Ahh, I can totally relate to that, Aussie! Once we step foot into Mr. HH's parents' house, he becomes this lethargic sloth-like creature, prone to flopping down on the floor to take naps in front of the fireplace, occasionally getting up to get a snack. Bah, when we stay there overnight, the kids and I have to do all of the packing and cleaning up, because he is too busy lounging or chatting with his parents. Oh, he would get to it eventually, but if want to get home before the kids are due back in school, I have to push, cajole, or pry him out.

Kitchens - I have lots of countertop space, but it always seems to be piled with stuff. Every week or so I sweep through and clear all of the surfaces, but they are quickly cluttered again. Spices? I have a spice shelf (all spices in there are in a slide in/slide out basket for easy access), two wall spice racks and two lazy susan spice holders (and I have also wondered why susan is lazy). Our family is spice crazy, and I dry my own herbs from my garden every summer. Our sink has two basins, a must-have. Our stove is electric, which I plan on replacing as soon as we are able to afford it. I love having my smaller appliances (salad shooter, mini-food processor, blender, waffle iron) in the appliance "garage" which is underneath one end of my island. The rest of the under-island area is storage for my bowls, casseroles, lasagne pans, etc., along with drawers for utensils. My big appliances (bread maker, KitchenAid mixer, toaster) are all left out on side countertops because we use them so often. Cutting boards and cookie sheets are in open slotted shelves next the the stove. Very handy. Our kitchen/dining room area is over a third of the sq. footage of our house because it is the focal point of our existence. I wouldn't have it any other way. I am so excited for you, yogi, I hope your new kitchen will be everything you hope for.

I am sorry about the passive aggressive date dude, Dodo. What a dickhead. (And if that isn't alliterative, I don't know what is.) You deserve better.

Dodo, let's go on a "kick boys in the nads" race, mmm kay? With thermoses filled with margaritas.

HH, can I move in with you? I'll stay in the kitchen???

Aussie, hope the familia surprised you with breakfast in bed & some R&R.

Hope everyone has a spanktacular weekend. I'm getting my mulletesque hair cut tomorrow, thank goodness. Looking raggedy!

Ska, you can move in with us anytime. It would be a good reason for Mr. HH to finish the bathroom and bedroom downstairs, so you wouldn't have to sleep in the kitchen, honest. I am afraid, though, that you would probably gain a bit of weight living with us - I am addicted to cooking and baking, and I do not permit guests to stay unless they submit to eating as much as I can stuff into them. According to FIL, I'm a "good German girl." Snerk.

Oh, and ska, good luck with the haircut. I know you have had some minor trauma with that in the past. Why is it that stylists always think they know better than you how you want your hair to look?

Have a happy weekend, all.

Man, Last Dodo, I feel for ya. I have a co-worker who is very similar. It's not what she says, it's how she says it. You come in with a nice outfit you bought on clearance, and she goes "gee, wish I could afford that" in the most longing voice. And this is a woman who has a cute little house...on pricey Lake Minnetonka. She manages to be 15 places at once during the day, but all of a sudden she can't manage to walk from behind her desk to tell an applicant to please come back tomorrow because it's after closing time. And these are two of the milder incidents. After about half a day of it, I was ready to go back out on strike.

Hey, tracey and baba, if you want to attend a TWoPcon this month, you may have to do some gentle coaxing. I pretty much told the Mpls/St. Paul board that "here's some numbers, take the ball and run with it". And nothing. Ah well.

I have a cute kitchen, but no counter space and not so much storage space. I have to use carts and a fold-up Ikea table for every thing. I'm thinking of using the Ikea table as a console table in my teeny living room or my smaller entry, and building this marvelous island I saw on "Home to Go". It has double-sided drawers, and you make it out of pre-fab home center parts. We'll have to see...

Ye Gods, that sounds like my whole entire family. And why I have to go on a bread and water diet before I visit Pittsburgh!

Anyway, talk atcha later. Gotta go to da gym.

Hi kids! It's the 3rd rainy Monday in a row here. Bah. Not that I want to be reminded of all that I'm missing when it's 70 & sunny, but not being wet would be loverly.

My hair went well - I've had good luck with Hairdresser, HH, but get frustrated when it's time for a cut b/c it gets very mullety. Very mullety. But now I'm hot again. Rowr.

I finally saw "Y tu Mama Tambien" this weekend. Rowr. Actually, double "rowr."

I also think my body is "feeling" the whole early ass work out. I set my alarm, and then when it went off was all, "Yo, body, I want to sleep!" So I reset it, but sat wide awake & just decided to go & had a spanky good workout.

I think Yogi is off to Cali, so safe travels. Princess Aussie Peachy, hope your visitor's visit winds up nicely & you get some rest.

Suctionyprints hope you're enjoying work again! Also, I have a question for you - shoot me an email.

ska, check your mailbox. In a minute...

Hey all! I also got a good cut over the weekend from skagirl's stylist, as well as toner because my highlights were getting a bit leopard-y. And yeah..."Rowr" is right about Y Tu Mama Tambien!

The highlight of my weekend was discovering East River Park, which is not even a five minute walk away for me...I'd always known it existed, but hadn't actually checked it out. But I used to love powerwalking along the lakefront back in Chicago, and I'm psyched to know I can do the same here...jogging in place in front of the TV is convenient and a two bird/one stone-killing timesaver, but there's times when I just feel really cooped up. It's not as well-maintained or pretty as the Chicago lakefront, but you still get great views of Brooklyn, Queens, and the various bridges, and an uninterrupted pedestrian path...down to the Manhattan Bridge and back is the perfect length for me.

There's this place by Union Square called pop that I've walked past a million times, so it was jarring to see it on the news last night blocked off with police tape because the owner got murdered by the porter late at night. I know it's a part of life, but it's just always weird to see crime scenes on the news that are in your everyday world. Like a woman got electrocuted walking her dog just a couple blocks away from me back in January, or two years ago this guy with a gun took people hostage at this bar that was around the corner from me at the time. Yet I don't feel unsafe or anything just because I hear about things like that because it can happen anywhere, unfortunately. The world can be completely random.


EEK. I don't blame you! Although you know how I said that he reminded me of Delia on Ryan's Hope? Bucky just "accidentally" knocked Delia into the Hudson River with a cooler during her umpteenth tirade about how everyone's against her and everything's that "mean" Faith Coleridge's fault. Quite cathartic.

So here's a random question for my fellow New Yorkers with all this talk of kitchens...where do you prefer to do your grocery shopping? Here's what I've found:

Food Emporium: They have a lot of cool stuff you can't get anywhere else, but the stuff that is available tends to be at least 50 cents-a dollar more there. Their produce, especially, is outrageous. The other day I needed to pick up strawberries and limes for entertaining among other stuff I needed specifically from there and I didn't have time to go store-hopping. Most places limes are 3 for a dollar and strawberries are $1.99 a container. There? Limes were 2 for $1.49 and strawberries were $4.99. NOT a happy camper.

Associated: I get as much as I can here instead, although I'm mystified how they can have a HUGE store on 14th & 1st and yet have absolutely nothing I need in it. The one by me on Avenue C is half the size yet has a way better selection, but also has the most insolent cashiers in the world.

C-Town: I blame this store for putting weight on me last year when I was unemployed. It's the closest to me and the cheapest, but it's geared more toward large families rather than the health-conscious. You want dirt cheap macaroni and cheese or a bucket of lard? You're in business. (Not that I ever used lard myself, mind you.) Fat free or low-carb alternatives? Not so much. But the few things they do have there that I can use are definitely cheaper than anywhere else, and they have some cool Spanish specialty items.

Gristede's: Honestly, most of the ones I've been in have seemed like outrageously overpriced, poorly maintained junkshops. Still, there are one or two things there that I can't get anywhere else. But I go here the least.

D'Agostino's seems to be the other big one, but I don't have any near me.

Don't get me started on the price of food here.
Gristede's are nasty nasty nasty. Tuna, maybe. You buy mayo & it's expired (twice this happened to me). Chicken is various shades of pinks & yellows & gray. Bleh.
CTown Town's tend to be ghetto & run like oversized bodegas, but occasionally they'll have staples darn cheap. The one near me has a different name but all the C C C Town Town Town baskets & signs. However, I won't go there since I saw a cat jumping through the produce & the staff are morally corrupt (well, just rude & argumentative).
Dag's is overpriced but the quality is fair. Ditto with Emporium but that's a bit of a long walk to carry bags for me.
Associated near me (Laguardia Pl & Bleecker) tends to have the best selection but is more expensive on a lot of staples. Then there's a decent walk so I have to be careful not to weigh myself down.
There's also a Citerella close to my crib but I am not a Hilton. But I don't think they eat...hrrmmm, well, you know what I mean.
I've only been to Fairway once but I can't wrap my fat head around taking my groceries on the train.

Because my neighborhood is still old school, I try to go to the vegetable stand for veggies, Murray's for cheese and Faicco's for meat (I don't like the smell of the other butcher, Ottomanelli's). Out of laziness or cash, I end up a nearby Gristede's or Dag's on the way home from the gym (the one at the Archives is amusing for people watching). I also use coupons my mom sends me for staples : )

I still need to try Fresh Direct.

Heh. I think they send the rejects over to my Associated. Seriously-it's like they roll their eyes if you dare to interrupt their gabfests by coming to their register. The nerve of you, you know?

Hi Gang at Meet Market!

It does seem like I'm singing Karen Carpenter's rainy days and mondays always get me down a lot lately, skagirl. I had three bags of stuff to bring to the office today, and I was so worried the bags were getting so wet, I would be hauling three bags of stuff in my arms. But I caught a taxi just in time to avoid that unpleasant scenario. And let me just tell you, the increase in taxi fare has not improved the driver's manners one little bit. We just pay more to get pushed around and hollered at!

I have been working so hard. I woke up at 3:30 this morning and went right to work. I'm all worn out. This weekend I was so tired, I sent Mr. Yogi out to hear a band he likes without me. He was very happy to do so as he joined up with a couple of our good friends. (Though when he pointed out to me, "I'm going out tonight with two lesbians," I thought he sounded a bit to pleased with this turn of events - Heh.) I went to bed. I fell asleep before Little Yogi did, which was not good. Little Yogi was waiting up for Mr. Yogi when he came home. Bad me.

I'm off to California on Friday. Thank God.

I'm so sorry to hear that MIL was such a bad houseguest, Aussie Girl. I am a fabulous houseguest. I grocery shop, cook, and thoroughly clean the whole house. I think some of my friends don't clean the house for months before I come, knowing that I will clean it. In the past when I had visitors, no one ever touched anything to help me when they visited me. It's ridiculous. With some of my old friends who have stayed with me a lot, I would suggest that they help themselves to coffee or tea, and they would act like they have never heard the words coffee or tea in their lives before. Things have gotten better though. Now when I have a dinner party, I ask people directly to help clear the table or take out a dish, and they do get up, which is a nice development. I will fall into a faint if anyone ever makes coffee though.

Did I mention I'm off to California on Friday? Thank God.

I love hearing about y'alls kitchens. Please keep me posted. You have given me all sorts of good ideas, which I will hopefully be able to incorporate soon. Hooray!

I want to go to Heidihug's house...... I really do......

Dodo my favorite is you putting stuff on the belt, and they look and walk away. I mean the heck?!!?

Yogi, I bet you're sleeping the whole trip out there! You poor thing!

I don't understand rude houseguests. I was taught never to show up empty handed and always P's & Q's and help fill the dishwasher. We have a "friend" who shows up uninvited and plops on our couch, and gets angry when we haven't offered him something to drink. Excuse me? I'm in my towel or pjs or whatever inappropriate time it is & you want ME to pour you water? No. He also gets angry when we send him home at the end of the night - last time he took an hour and a half nap & got pissed & stormed out when I told him to go home - I had my cousin in town & our Sunday was packed! He was going to let his boyfriend just flounder? And it was all of 11 pm. Gah.

yogi, it really, really, REALLY sounds like you need it. Wishing you all kinds of enjoyment and relaxation in advance!

ETA: And as long as I'm here, can I request some sympathy in advance as well? I've got a SEVEN HUNDRED piece mailing coming up this week. Mailings are the absolute bane of my existence as an administrative assistant. Nothing makes me feel more menial than stuffing envelopes. Bleah.

Oh Dodo, too bad you are not here. Believe it or not, many high school kids ENJOY mailings. Sometime I buy some food, sometimes they just like to do it. Of course these are the non-confidential mailings.

I have little to say on groceries and kitchens. I do enjoy my breakfast bar and the nearby Wegman's, but this is the first time I have lived somewhere (since college) where someone will DELIVER food to me. Hard to pass up.

I am getting that new coffee pod machine this week and will be the envy of the market.

Also, I got roped into an alumni event at the University Club (NYC) this Thursday. Just thought I'd mention it, although it doesn't matter if it really a terrible place cause I already promised I would meet my friend there.

How sad is that I was just reminded of Mother's Day by a "What not to Wear" commercial. Badaughter.

Edited to add that although I may not clean an Existing mess at a house I visit, I am very clean and can provide thank you presents and babysitting...

Oh, Dodo, I hatewiththeheatofathousandthousandnuns any sort of mailings. My bosslady announced in our department meeting this morning that we will be sending out a 3000+ piece mailing soon. I mentioned that we cannot do this type of mailing in-house, that we have to farm it out to a printer, and she was incredulous as to why. I guess she does not realize that printing 3000+ letters and 3000+ envelopes on our department's laser printer would be, well, freakin' impossible. Our IT department will not allow it because it would likely burn the printer out, plus it would take forever (at least 2 whole days just to print them, IF there were no malfunctions). Crazy, crazy, out-of-touch-with-reality management people. We still have to have the letters and envelopes printed and returned to us because the %"$&* VP insists that all letters that get sent out be personally signed. Then we have to fold them (no, we do not have a decent letter folder despite the fact that we are a multi-million $ co.) and stuff them. Then, send them out. So, overall, I feel for you, man. Mailings suck.

I am also a good houseguest. I pick up after myself, wash dishes, make beds, etc.

Groceries? I love to hear about the variety of shops you have in the big city. FYI, groceries are a lot cheaper in cities than in little towns. I routinely pay $2 for a head of lettuce, $1 for a lemon, $3/lb of tomatoes, esp. when they are out of season. I get them at the Piggly Wiggly 'cuz it's the only game in our little town. When I get to Green Bay, I stock up on stuff at Sam's Club and Walmart. You have to plan ahead when you live in the boonies. Did I mention that we have two refrigerators upstairs and an upright freezer in our basement? A must for us rural dwellers.

Yogi, you deserve a break. Have a wonderful time in CA.

I've seen it-- she's right. RrrrrOWR, indeed.


Seen him too. Sadly, she's still right. And she even charitably skipped over some of the most annoying stuff he pulls. Boy is the kind of houseguest my normally-passive little mom would have cracked over the noggin' with a skillet and felt completely justfied in doing so.

Ladies and gentlemen-- I give you Saint Skagirl*.

*Please ignore the slightly tarnished halo.

Gidday Meet Marketers, and a merry Tuesday to you all!

MIL left on Sunday, she was quite sad to be leaving, as were we all, but I just looked forward to not having another person to pick up after, and I felt much better after that! The two days before she left were lots of fun. We went to see Eternal Sunshine, quite enjoyed that, and then went out to dinner. The next day we took her to Lone Pine wildlife sanctuary to see the obligatory koalas and kangaroos and emus etc. From there we caught a boat to Southbank, which is the site where World Expo was held in 1988. They have turned it into parklands, lots of restaurants, street performers, lagoons, pubs, markets, and generally lots of fun. They also had a Buddha's Birthday celebration which was great. We had dinner there at a great seafood restaurant (I had snapper with crab and avocado and heaps of hollandaise sauce - yum!) before getting the boat back. All in all, a great day.

Milly and I do get along pretty well, I guess it was just getting to me that she did not help. When we were in Montana, I helped out all I could, cooking and cleaning etc, and I had a very young child to care for also. I am a good houseguest and it astounds me that others don't even have the concept of helping out. Could have been worse though. Last time both she and her husband were here for 3 months, waaaayy too long. It was so bad then that I actually left and went to stay at my mum's!

I spent yesterday cleaning the house up and getting littlest Aussie settled back into his room. We just bought him a fire engine bed, so he's happy. Can't fall out either!

Yogi I wish for you a peaceful and happy time in CA. I will be thinking of you walking along the beach there. I'll wave to you across the Pacific. Hey, put a note in a bottle and throw it my way - or if you prefer, swim over for lunch. Just head west and then south, and I'll meet you on the beach.

Wow, only 3 more episodes of my favourite show to go. Whatever will I do after that? We have one ep tonight, another on Saturday night, so we will be caught up with you then, and I think the Finale will be on Monday night (your Sunday, so it will be only a few hours after it screens there). I am not going near a computer in those couple of days, as I do not want to be spoiled! BTW, The Apprentice starts here tonight, I'm intending to watch it.

Smiles and hugs from Princess Peachy!

Hi all!! Yogi I hope you have a fabulous time in California. Can't wait to hear all about your California Dreamin'.
re: houseguests - I always have a big party in the summer, where everybody has a great time, eats too much, drinks too much, and ends up spending the night at my house, rather than risk a DWI. Every year my very good friend helps me clean up the mess the next morning, and makes sure everyone gets coffee and breakfast before they leave. And she does it with a great big beautiful smile. I think I'd like to nominate her for sainthood, along with Saint Skagirl!

Hey all! I'm back from a looong weekend in Yakima aka the armpit of Washington. No offence to anyone who lives there or anything, but the worst place EVER. Don't go. I beg you, don't risk it. They call it "the Palm Springs of Washington", but now you know the truth! It is TERRIBLE!!!!
Alrighty, done with the "hatred of Yakima" speech, part one.
Part two: Heat. 90's. 90's I tell you!!! In APRIL! In Washington! Other things wrong with Yakima: Crime (my friend's car was broken into 20 minutes after getting into town), poverty, heat, long drive from anywhere (four hours from here), overrun with illegal Mexicans. Not that I'm racist, but when I order Chinese food from a Chinese place, I don't expect it to taste Mexican! The Chinese place was run by Mexicans! That is wrong, yo.
The good things about Yakima: Our softball team got 1st place. In the consalation bracket. With only eight players. But still, we rocked it out. We beat those nasty little rich teams who think they're soooo good just cause they have backing from rich companies and have spankin new uniforms and pitching machines and trailors with thier logos on it and such. But they were no match for the poor little white hicks (us). Other good things? Umm, fresh Fruit and Veggies? Sure.
OK, done with ranting.
House guests? Wow, I feel horrible after that. Sure, I make my bed and clean my dishes and offer to help and such, but cleaning? Cooking? Nope. And I only really help at people's houses that I don't know that well. At other places, such as my best friend/soulsista's, we don't do squat. Either of us. We'd rather spend time with each other than clean up after ourselves.
Yogi, have a fun, relaxing, no stress vacation. You deserve it. By the way, Oregon is a lot closer than Australia...
Aussiegirl aka Princess Peachy, I'm glad to hear you had a good time. Lucky girl, getting to see koalas and such.
Bye ya'll. This little PiP is dead tired.

Hey Gang at Meet Market!
Thanks for the well-wishes, guys! I feel like I might actually get there now. Yesterday, I was on the telephone with a friend in California, and I turned to look out the window behind my desk. There was a huge hawk circling right in front of my window on the 55th floor. He flew back and forth for several minutes within only a few feet of me, then he increased his circle path, the way hawks do, to include several city blocks. The whole time I was on the phone, almost twenty minutes, he circled past my window - so beautiful. I think it was a portent of an auspicious week to come in California. In the past when I was there, I have had other hawk visits and once an eagle came to see me several days in a row. And if you have never been close to one of these creatures, let me tell ya', these birds of prey are enormous! The eagle perched on the oak tree right above my door and allowed me to come and stand for ten or twenty minutes underneath and quite near him for several days. Sometimes I have visits from less auspicious creatures. On one trip, I went for a swim at the pool at 6 AM. I was joined by several large ducks who swam laps right along with me for a full half hour. When the janitors came out at 6:30, they couldn't believe their eyes. Who was this crazy woman swimming laps with the ducks? Heh

I would love to see the koalas and kangaroos, Aussie Girl. I don't care how touristy it is. It would give me enormous pleasure. How fortunate your husband and his family are to have you as their guide!

I do send you great mailing sympathy, Last Dodo and Heidihug. It's hard to do work you hate. But I have to say I cringe when I hear you talk about your bosses like that. I can only just imagine what stupid things I have said and requests I've made to my assistants. Ugh. finger raised in salute...I definitely commit to being a better manager in the future. Luckily, the only big mailing we do is at Christmastime, and now I know why my assistant just didn't do it for several Christmases in a row!

Speaking of silly places to have Chinese food, PiP, on my first visit to Florence, my friends insisted on going out for Chinese food. Why, you intelligent people may ask? Because they claimed that Florence was known for it's Chinese food. (Silly me, I thought Florence was known for its, ugh, Italian food.) Anyway, worst Chinese food evah!! Though your experience at that heinous town of Yakima may rival it.


Ricci, you can come by my house anytime! Have fun on Thursday. If it's a good friend, it doesn't matter where you go or what you do, don't you think. That's the joy of a good friend.

Homage to Saint Skagirl, who was canonized, ironicially enough, by whereverthefk. That fact is enjoyable to me!

ETA Yikes! I don't mean to suggest that the irony is that whereverthefk is not a holy and sacred person deserving of the honor of canonizing saints, but rather the irony is that someone named whereverthefk is canonizing saints. I sure that whereverthefk is a positively papal in her holiness....

Heeeeeeee. Yeah, something like that happened with us late last year. We had to send out a letter to all 2200 drivers. The senior generalist wanted to personalize all the letters via mailmerge, and print them on the printer. And her hoity-toity assistant was starting to get this rolling when I simply said, "I know you want to make this personalized, but why not just get IS to run off the labels, and do a form letter in the copy center. Then the restricted duty drivers can put the whole thing together." (They get bored not driving routes while they heal up and want stuff to do when they're not delivering packages and letters as couriers.) I know, I'm a genius. I got no credit. Zilch. Ah, that's the past. Everyone is still so happy to have me back, right? *cough* Dodo, where is that Hudson River when you need it?

It's interesting that your in-laws are from Montana, Peachy. My sister-in-laws' in-laws are from there, and they are about as strangely (and poorly, at least for us city folks) socialized as yours. But that's a long novel...

I'm in Minnesota. We have luxury regular grocery stores here. No kidding. Ones with chandeliers and nice carpets and wide isles. It's destination shopping! And the prices aren't that terrible. A good place to go when you need an escape...and some onion soup. And some paper towels. And milk.

Anyway, hair therapy for the first time in 2.5 months - wheeeeee!

Have a super day, everyone!!!!

Thank goodness the sun is out. I'm very glad that whereverthefk is testifying to my sainthood. Preach it, lady! She has her own moments of sainthoodery also.

I can join you in the hatred of mailings. I understand BossLady not joining in the fun, but StupidHead actually told me once that she wasn't good with the folding - mind you I had her just folding self-mailing newsletters, not matching the personalized letters for the segments! Gah.

PIP welcome back!

Thanks for the benefit of the doubt, yogi, but don't be so sure about that...


Emphasis on "moments."

(I figured I'd say it before you did, SkaKnowerOfWaaaaayTooManyOfMyEvilSecrets.)

And yes, HALLELUIA for Madame Sun!!! Now where the hell is Monsieur. Heat?!?!

Wow, grocery stores with carpets, suctionprints?!? That gives a whole new meaning and dimension to the announcement "Clean up on isle 6." Argh! And yet? It must be lovely to shop in such an environment.

Mr. Yogi and I grocery shop together every Saturday. I put the menu for the week and the list on the computer so that I can cut and paste to organize the list by aisle. Then, we zoom vite, vite, vite through the shops. We do the Food Emporium for staples and Grace's Market for meats, cheese, most fruits and vegetables and specialty items. This is a good method as it's fast and we have almost no waste at all. Plus, Mr. Yogi loves Grace's because everyone in the store knows him because of his Mets cap, and they really enjoy chatting with him about sports. Me, I just tag along. It's really his thing. All the men in his family were great at going to the shops. Maybe it's an urban thing? Or an Italian thing? But, in my family? I don't think my father could even describe the interior of a grocery store from actual experience.

I miss Sams. Only in America can you buy 100 AA batteries.

I got my hair cut today too. Must be something in the hair.... (get it hair, air?, no? OK)

Heh. Yeah, there's several people I'd like to bump in there with a picnic cooler, alright. (Incidentally, now Delia is going through Pat's medical books because she's convinced that she picked up some sort of serious disease from falling in--and it's all Faith's fault! It had to be pointed out to her that one disease she was sure she had only came from mosquitos in the Congo. Heh. Love that show.)


See, that's what I'm used to as well. (Well, OK, maybe not chandeliers and carpet.) But back in Chicago, the Jewels (the grocery store chain, not the singer--although now I'm picturing commercials with produce singing "You Were Meant For Me". Shake it off...shake it off...) were huge, and with the exception of some specialty items that only a health food store like Sherwyn's carried, it was basically a one-stop shop for me.

So the good news? I had a routine follow-up this morning (I wasn't feeling well in February), and not only is everything fine, but it's official...I've lost ten pounds since then! Actually, judging from eyeballing and clothes fit, I think I've lost a little more fat and gained some muscle, so it's like the net result may be a little more, if that makes any sense. But the doctor said she wished more of her patients were as diligent as me. Whee!

The irritating news? Someone hijacked my email address for a spam mail, so now I'm being bombarded with literally hundreds of those "Error--No Such Address" type messages. And they're all coming from legitimate sources (like AOL Postmaster, etc.), so it's not like I can block them. Grrrrrrr.

I'm in Minnesota, too, and my grocery stores don't have carpets, chandeliers, and whatnot. Is that someplace in Nordeast, suctionprints, or maybe the new Kowalski's in Uptown (haven't been there yet, I've heard it's nice)? Even my local Lund's isn't that posh. I usually shop at Cub (cheap and warehouselike, for non-Minnesotans).

One of the things I enjoy doing when I visit out of towners is go to their grocery stores. The Shaw's by my sister in NH is HUGE - nice wide aisles, etc. They have faux wood flooring in their fancy organic section. I even like the Long Island grocery stores of my youth with their relative spaciousness. In NYC, the carts are smaller and you still can't adequately pass someone in the aisles, and if they're stocking the shelves (which they always seem to be doing) it's tough getting down the aisle with a cart on your own.

I have a close Gristede's, a big Gristede's as well as an Associated in a two block radius. The only non-sealed thing I buy at any of them is bananas. I go to Whole Foods for my healthy cereal fix, and sometimes pick up produce there. I've pretty much given up on Fairway because it's over ten blocks away and insane on weekends, but I will occasionally go there for produce as well. Even with three grocery stores in a two block radius, I have to go to the CVS a block away to buy tomato sauce because the groceries don't carry the type I like, yet this drug store does. Weird.

iME, I do that, too. It is very interesting to see the regional products and preferences and how things are laid out. Grocery stores around NE Wisconsin are extremely utilitarian - pretty much all the same inside. It is fascinating to imagine living in say, NYC or downtown Chicago, and going grocery shopping 4 or 5 times a week like some of my friends say they do. That way they get fresh produce and meats and things from specialty shops that are just not available to us in flyover country. We have lots and lots of locally-made cheeses and sausages to pick from at stores here, but it's kind of sad that starfruit are considered exotic.

yogi, I am sure you have not been one of those wretched impossible bosses to your employees. You are not capable of being oblivious like that. What a wonderful sight, the hawk circling by your window. I take for granted the bald eagles, cranes, hawks, deer, wild turkeys, etc. that we see nearly every day in our area. Thanks for reminding me I should appreciate it more. Mr. HH swears he saw a golden eagle near our cottage last weekend - if he did, it would be an extremely rare sighting. Supposedly there are some in the UP of MI, but not many in N WI.

Glad for you for the clean bill of health, dodo, and for being able to breathe a little easier now that the MIL visit is over, Aussie.

Carpets and chandeliers in the grocery store? Man, I would love to see that!

Hey PiP, 1st place! Congratulations! And I'll be sure to avoid Yakima next time I'm in the US.

whereverthefk, what a great name! Has me laughing every time I see it, especially when you are talking about canonising Skagirl!

Yogi, I too have to say that it seems nigh on impossible for you to be a bad boss. You seem to be very understanding and humourous, two important qualities to have when relating to employees. Loved your story about the hawk (and ducks), they are magnificent, eh? I remember lying by the pool at a friend's house, almost drifting off to sleep, and then I saw this hawk circling around and around. I was almost hypnotised by watching it - really beautiful.

BTW the best Italian food I ever had in my life was in Germany. Go figure.

suctionprints where the rellies (that's Aussie for relatives) live in MT looks like a scene from Deliverance, so you get the picture. Nice people, but kind of a little backward...

Glad to hear your health is so good, Dodo. It's always nice to hear something like that from your doctor. Well done, mate. You sound like you're quite fit. And now of course, I'm going to be humming Jewel's songs all day..... I like her music.

heidi where you live sounds so idyllic. Just beautiful.

I watched Survivor last night, and didn't you-know-who look gorgeous in that blue shirt? Watched The Apprentice after that, thought it was okay, and I'll watch again, but you know, as interesting as The Don is, he ain't no Peachy. Oh well....

It's the Byerly's in Roseville - it's got this huge chandelier in the front of the store, and pristine gray carpet and a salad bar that other stores would die to have for their produce section. I shop there about twice a year for small things when I need an escape from the Rainbow or Cub. Those two stores are where I usually shop, with the occasional side trip to ethnic markets and co-ops and farmer's markets. And Delmonico's, the tiny old-school Italian market across the street from me. Homemade ravioli. Yum.

The first grocery store that I was in that had carpet was Jim's Foodmart in Houghton, MI, my hometown. The owner had moved from a tiny storefront across the street from the high school/junior high/elementary/kindergarten to a plush spot near the MTU campus. The owner, Jim, wanted to stress his commitment to service when he opened the new place in 1970, so the new Jim's had wall-to-wall red carpet. Which looked pretty plush for the first, oh, say ten years or so. Now it's kind of pink and thin. Jim should spring for some new carpet, methinks - his 35th anniversary in the new place is rolling around soon enough.

¡Hola Cuadrilla en El Mercado de la Reunión! Feliz el Cinco de Mayo!

I researched the appropriate Cinco de Mayo Fiesta, and this is what an official website tells me we should all be enjoying today - Consider, my fellow Meet Marketeers, the table in the corner of the Meet Market (or El Mercado de la Reunion,) which is fairly groaning with a wonderous selection of homemade Tamales, lucious Chicken Enchchiladas Verda, and tasty Chiles en Nogada. Help yourself! As it's virtual, there are no calories. Perhaps we can convince Last Dodo and suctionprints to mix up a delicious beverage for us in their blenders. Mmmmm, it's so good!

I love using the Universal Translator on the Web. It makes me feel like Captain Kirk, an amusing sensation.

Good news! I got the preliminary go ahead on the preliminary, unofficial and uncertified estimate on my renovation. I literally hollered with glee yesterday when I heard the news. The next step, as I can figure, is to find an architect and begin to do an official preliminary estimate. There are a lot of steps to this. I figure the actual renovation will probably occur after my roof falls in - something that is frighteningly more immenent than I am comfortable with!

I've thought about the whole carpets in the grocery thing, and I've come up with an opinion (shocking, I know.) I would have to say, I'm against it. I like clean, carpetless floors that I can wash in both kitchens and bathrooms. I like to feel like I'm getting those places really clean, and a carpet is just so much harder to clean. I do like carpet in bedrooms for softness and silence, and I could go either way on the carpet in the living room, but how would you wash a carpet if a broken jar of pickles fell on it?! So I'm taking a stand against carpet in the grocery store. Although, if the carpet was just in the organic fruit and vegetable section, one could argue that if one dropped an expensive exotic fruit, it would bruise less easily on the carpet, thus a good thing.

Enjoy the Festival, Gang at Mecado de la Reunion!

Is Cinco de Mayo becomming a more popular holiday in the US? We don't celebrate any other country gaining their independence from their former oppressors as far as I know, and I don't think any other countries celebrate 4th of July. Is Jose Cuervo or Corona behind this?

I think there is a marketing ploy, a la Hallmark pushing all of the holidays we have now where we are guilted into spending 3 bucks on a card. However, there are definitely areas where independence days or national holidays are celebrated citywide, and I think the rapid increase of immigrants from Mexico plus the tacky tie-in of Corona (they started agressively marketing the holiday about 4 or 5 years ago) has made it more nationally known. It's getting to be like St. Patrick's day.

Other ones which are definitely regional include Polish holidays in Chicago (we got Pulaski day off from school). Puerto Rican Pride parade in NYC is not so much a holiday but really shuts the city down more than other parades. Also, I don't know of many places outside of NY & NJ that have parades on Columbus Day, which is actually Italian-Americans. Oh, and Oktoberfest for Americans has become equal to a month of drinking in lieu of the weeklong (IIRC) festival celebrated in Austria & Germany.

Personally, I'm a big fan of Bastille Day.

I didn't realize about the Corona marketing, but I was going to say something similar--that if you live in or by neighborhoods with a significant Mexican population, you're bound to be conscious of it. I remember in Chicago I used to do plays up in Andersonville, and there was a fairly significant Mexican population east of Clark, and there'd be lots of driving through the neighborhood with Mexican flags and such. I don't remember anything quite that obvious here, but both of the neighborhoods I've lived in since I've gotten here (Spanish Harlem and Alphabet City east of B) also have significant Mexican populations, so I won't be surprised if I see celebrating on the way home from work tonight.

I also remember getting Pulaski day off from school in Chicago...and from what I remember, Columbus Day is a fairly big deal there too...I seem to remember there being a televised parade each year.


There used to be a Survivor Translations thread in Creative Quests, where you'd translate lines from English to another language and back using Babelfish....the results were quite hysterical. Like, "If ifs and buts were candy and nuts, we'd all have a Merry Christmas" translated to Italian and back comes out, "If the SFI (statistics international financial institutions) and the buts were candy and dice, we'd all have Good NATO them!"

Good luck with the renovations, yogi!

Yup, Last Dodo, wouldn't get through the streets in Andersonville (which is becoming re-yuppied and re-guppied) or Clark, from Peterson to almost Irving Park, today.

When I lived in DC in a neighborhood with a huge El Salvadorian population, I remember some celebration that I believe was a national holiday in El Salvador, possibly a constitution day or the like. Gigantic celebration at the community center down the block that went on all day & all night.

Yogi, you will have to keep us updated with photos of the renovations!

There's a grocery store around here with a floor that would look, if you took the roof off and everything out, like a wooden diamond in a tiled square. Very nice-looking. Very annoying when you're pushing a grocery cart. Bump bump bump bump bump over the tiles, as the light stuff in your cart falls to the bottom. Ahh ... smooth wood as you turn down an aisle, select some food, place it in the cart, head for the milk case. Bump bump BUMP bump as you hit the tile again. Splat as your coffee falls over. It's a great store and they have all sorts of cool stuff, but because of the awful tile, the only time I go there and buy more than a basketfull is at Passover.

Mr. Blevins bought a bicycle last week. We went out riding on Saturday. There's a great Rails-to-Trails trail near the apartment, so I thought we could head over there after checking out a hobby store he wanted to visit. I forgot the trail was down a long, steep hill at its nearest cross-street, so things didn't get off to too great a start. We got about a mile and half before his legs were too sore to go on. I was stupid and wore a thick, hot shirt, so I was ready to stop, too. We chickened out and took the bus home. Eh ... Lance Armstrong we're not.

yogi, wearing a banana turban on her head, dances with brightly colored maracas through the Meet Market to the strains of a cheeful Mariachi Band. "Anyway for a bit of conga," she asks?

I love all the holidays. Like skagirl, Bastille Day is a particular favorite. I always celebrate it. In fact, I love Bastille Day so much, I was married to Mr. Yogi on Bastille Day. My personal motto (ok, one of my personal mottos) any reason to celebrate is a good reason. And celebrating Independence in all it's forms? That's a great reason. Cheers to Corona! (though I would rather have a margarita. Are they Mexican though?

Too bad about the aborted bike ride, jennblevins. When the good weather finally returns, it can take a bit of getting used to. Case in point - my ensemble today is truly absurd. A sweater with summer pant and loafers. I look ridiculous. Ahh Well.


Heh, Heh, Heh, Last Dodo. I always wonder why there weren't more universal translator problems on Star Trek. I wonder about such things.

Hi there everybody!

I got back Monday evening from a 4-day family trip to celebrate my sister's birthday; exhausting to travel with small people, but on the whole they behaved amazingly well, and we survived, so that's all good. Couldn't get into the forums yesterday, so here I am, late to the party.
As to food, well. Hmmm. I'm not quite as good about things like baking as HH is, but I do love to cook. My kitchen is U-shaped, with plenty of room for numerous people. (My mother has a galley kitchen; we call it a 'two butt kitchen' b/c that's about all that'll fit in there.) It has a 1920's big 'ol farmhouse sink that we liberated from the family cabin when it got replaced with a stainless steel sink, tons of counter space, a small peninsula with a couple bar chairs, and a gas stove. Can't abide electric. I want to get a pot rack, but for now the pots reside in big wide pull-out drawers behind cabinet doors. I have two corner lazy susans, one of which functions as a baking center. I don't have overhead cabinetry yet as I have plans to have cool open shelving installed there some day. Sadly, the some day hasn't happened yet.

I'm with Yogi on the carpet in a food-oriented place. That seems Just Wrong to me. I have wood floors in the kitchen (it's actually a great room, and it's all antique heart pine, a big splurge that was the best money we ever spent.) Hides the dirt beautifully.
I'd like to have a second sink, but don't. I do have Le Giant Spice drawer, tho, and I adore it.

Okay, food shopping. We have a little local cheese shop where I can drop waaay too much money very quickly; I also go to the local organic farm b/c I have a veggie garden plot there, and the farmers market when in session. Grocery stores--Hmmm. We have a Super Stop N SHop that is good for sales and stuff, and also a smaller chain called Roche Bros. that has excellent meat but is expensive. However, they always send somebody out with the cart to load your groceries, and that's a nice little luxury.
I also shop at BJ's (Like Sam's CLub except not owned by WalMart) and Trader Joe's, which is a place of wonders.
Oh, and I get my milk delivered by a local dairy, which is much fun.

AussiePrincess, glad to hear that you survived your house pests! and Yogi, hope you have a lovely time out West! You totally deserve it. I do have a hollandaise recipe; I'll post it when I get a chance.
And all of you with the mass mailings? It makes me want to cry just thinking about it. I can't even cope with my Christmas cards for god's sack.

I like to go to local grocers when travelling, too. This most recent trip I dragged my BIL out to a Mennonite bakery b/c I wanted to see what it was like. And then at the little local grocery store I had to buy a jar of pickled green tomatoes put up by a local company, just to see what they were like (Salty but good.)

Here in Boston, St. Patty's day is a big holiday, as is Patriot's day, (aka Marathon Day). I think that the state government gets away with closing for St. Pat's by calling it Evacuation Day, or some such, which makes me think of enemas for some reason. Perhaps b/c we're always getting hosed by our local politicians?

{{{Drrooooollll}}}} I love me some Trader Joe's. Thank you & welcome back, Hildi!

Also, forgot to mention my favorite gadget: salad spinner. Work out & crisp lettuce.

De-lurking just a moment to say that thousands of people attend the July 4th party every year in Geneva, Switzerland. Yep, thousands.

Geneva has good, clean grocery stores with lots of wonderful things to buy but very, very expensive. The checkers get to sit down in actual chairs (not stools) and us customers bag our own food -- mostly with our own bags! We "rent" the shopping carts by putting a coin in a slot. The chain, which is attached to the cart next to it, unlocks. When you are done with the cart, you put the cart back in line, insert the end of the chain into the next cart and your coin comes out. The only thing I don't like about shopping here is that the veggies are all plastic wrapped and it's very difficult to buy "just one." No carpets or tile to worry about, though.

Thanks for the international perspective, bodieboopsie. After living in Paris, I am a very good grocery bagger, so I still bag my own groceries at Grace's. This seems to irritate the checkers to no end. I don't know why. I'm making their lives easier. I have a wonderful bagger at the Food Emporium. He always switches lines to take care of us. Because he baggs so perfectly and delivers them to my door so promptly, he gets nice weekly tips and a nice tip at Christmas. This irritates the other baggers, but they don't have his talent. What can I tell them?

Your kitchen sounds fabulous, Hildy! I heart heart of pine floor. I was thinking tile because its so bright, but wood floors in the kitchen might be more forgiving after long hours on your feet. What is a corner lazy susan? I can't picture it at all. I always put lazy susans in the middle of a table. Do I have an incorrect perception of lazy susan?

I'm getting a spice drawer!!!!

Oooooh, milk from a local dairy - so nice. So nice. Especially if it comes in glass bottles. Milk always tastes better in glass bottles.

Welcome, bodie! I love the idea of bagging my own groceries. That way the only person I can curse out for crushing the bread is myself. I used to shop at a store when we lived in a large city that would give a 10-cent credit for each paper or plastic bag we brought back and re-used. We got 25-cent credits for using canvas bags when we bought more than $10 worth of groceries or something like that. That was lovely, especially since the store was within walking distance of our house and the canvas bags with handles were so much nicer to carry than the plastic ones. Good times. I would love to see what is in grocery store in Switzerland. Would it be possible to do a trip 'round Europe which just toured groceries and markets? hmmm... Hildy and Yogi, you in?

Good news in that I was able to farm out all of the huge mailing duties to one of our print vendors, except for the make-ready of the database and letter. They will have it printed and back to us by the end of the day today, others will personally sign the co. president's name to all the letters tomorrow, and then the printer will pick up, fold, insert and mail them all. Hooray! (I usually am able to get out of signing letters with someone else's name since I my handwriting is absolutely atrocious - all loops and dips with no ability to write straight. My cursive looks just like it did when I was in 6th grade. Sometimes it's a blessing.)

I like the grocery stores with self-checkouts -- you can bag your own groceries, directly into a backpack if you don't own a car and have to lug them home on your own power; you can pay with 300 pennies without the clerk rolling his/her eyes; nobody looks askance at you if you buy six bags of potato chips and a sack of sugar instead of vegetables or Atkins food or whatever the clerk thinks you shoud buy.

Of course, I usually go shopping at odd times, like 11 o'clock at night. I imagine the lines aren't so great at peak hours.

All this kitchen talk is making me jealous. I just have the standard crappy apartment kitchen, complete with most of the counterspace being unreachable in corners. It also has no windows. I keep having to remind myself that it could be worse; I could have no dishwasher or worse yet one of those that has to be hauled out and connected to the sink. We had one of those growing up and when it was running it split the house into halves, each half unreachable from the other without going outside.

Welcome Bodie! I love that Euro clerks sit - I remember that in Poland. In Russia, many of them sit, and luckily when there is no food, they don't have to stand (which actually happened when I was there. It was more of shockingly humourous than funny ha ha. Or as one laughs in Russian, "Xa xa xa."

My first real job was at Dominick's, a huge chain in Chicago bought out by the evil Safeway o' California. To this day and because the stores I shop at never have baggers, I get to dictate how to avoid crushing my eggs or putting cleaning products in with vegetables! Ahhh! Huge issue with me. Because Clorox bleach on my mushrooms is a bad thing.

I really must take a photo of my kitchen for you kids. Wherever can verify - the "kitchen" will put all of you to tears.

Wow I love all the holiday talk. I love festivities. If this stupid wedding ever gets off the ground I want it to have a crazy theme. Did you guys ever see that wedding show when the friends of the bride/groom plan it? I saw it once and they planned a theme on candy. Now THAT is festive! Although I would want something else, it sort of conveys my spirit.

My last apartment wall to wall garage rug cause it was a basement place. It was pretty gross-o that rug, but the apartment had a nice fireplace and was bigger than all the other 20somethings/Joneses.

I bought the Senseo coffee maker yesterday and it is AWESOME. I will drink a cup of coffee with my salsa and chips today. (Feliz de Dia Yogi!) Mexican food is one of my favorites. I have a bunch of students from Mex, and we cook a dinner together in the spring really estupende.

Welcome Bodie, where do you hail from?

Re holidays - we have a lot of them here. In fact, for the last 3 weeks, the Monday has been a public holiday. I guess that's why they call Australia "The Land of the Long Weekend". And BTW, we always celebrate July 4th in my house, because it's my birthday. And, oh yes, I'm married to an American.

Hey Hildy - welcome back, party's still going strong. That would be Yogi dancing away there, really happy that it's only a few more sleeps till she gets to California. Margaritas, anyone?

Hey, Meet Marketeers!
I love virtual tequila - it's the only way I don't get a hangover from the stuff. I think tequila makes people crazy. When I was living in Paris, I went out for Mexican food with two of my friends - gorgeous cover models (What were they doing with stubby little me, you might ask? I have no idea. Perhaps I was there as a visual foil?) Anyway, the waiter brought us over tequila shooters. We thought they were so tasty, we started to order more ourselves. Oh. My. Heck. I have never been able to drink a lot with impunity, but Lord next to these two 90 pounders, I looked like a pro! Long story short, they started the worst cat fight I have personally ever seen in my life. The took the hollering and shouting right out onto the street. It was unbelievable. I left them on the street fighting and just jumped in the first taxi I saw. And then they telephoned me, furious that I left them! Divas, baby. What can you do?


I totally wanted a pinwheel theme, Ricci for my wedding. I used to dream of it - in the garden, everyone playing croquet and badmitton and a gorgeous profusion of pinwheel turning in the breeze. Sadly, Mr. Yogi is not so whimsical, and we ended up getting married at the club. In the end, it didn't matter so much, because it's really the marriage that's important, and I'm glad I married his conservative little self, even if he can be a bit unimaginative at times.

I send you best wishes for the kitchen of your dreams, skagirl. It sounds like you enjoy cooking as much as I do. When I have an actual kitchen that works (even though my kitchen is larger than yours, it still has almost no working appliances, including a broken oven now,) you must come over and cook with me. We'll send Heidi out to do the grocery shopping.

And Hildy and Heidihug, I am so with you on the vacation grocery thing. I hardly ever shop for clothes when I travel, but I always come home with a few choice delicacies to enjoy and remind me of my trip. Yum! I used to live right across the street from one of the most elegand market streets in Paris. It was desination shopping for sure. I loved marketing there every day. I always had a full pantry, so I always had a full apartment. It was absurd - people came by all day long for a bite and a chat. Folks even came by to have coffee in the morning before work. How did I ever get anything done? Perhaps I didn't! ;D


Oh, good gravy marie, Hildy. Now there's an image to carry with you for life....

Like mayonaise and catchup in squeeze "toothpaste" tubes?

The undercounter cupboards here in my kitchen pull out like drawers. Love it. No more bending over at an awkward angle and reaching into the dark. Would a corner "crazy susan" be one of those things that are usually under the counter in the corner and the door is 90 degree angled halfway thru and the shelves are usually wire racks centered on a pole and cut out like a quarter piece of pie is missing?

Best wedding reception I went to was pot luck (okay, except for the cake) and there were quite a few card tables set up with must have been hundreds of those little plastic wind-up toys on them. There was even a weather balloon barely inflated hanging in the corner of the yard.

I'm originally from California but have been living in a town near Geneva for the last 4 years. Will be moving back to the States in about a month, though.

Thought you guys might enjoy this quiz.

It turns out that I am Boston Rob. I'm not going to think about that any more.

Yeah, Hildy, I'm Rupert. *sigh* I guess it could be worse. Right?

Are you moving back to the States for a job, bodie? Are you excited, or do you dread the move?

yogi, your model friends fighting story is hilarious. I take it they are not friends of yours anymore? And you lived across from a market? In Paris? And friends dropped in for coffee and pastries? Girl, your life story must beat all. I have never been out of the US. *another sigh*

Hello all! I'm not usually a Meet Market-er, but that quiz was just too hard to resist! And don't worry Hildy, I'm a Boston Rob too. Does this mean I need to start perfecting my Boston accent?