![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
It's been really hot here the last weekish (hot by my Atlantic Canadian standards, anyway), and this morning I woke up to the words "It's going to be 20 degrees cooler today than it was yesterday." After I got over the celcius conversion shock, I was very pleased. It's going to be 23 here today (instead of 33). Good times.
California is a straaaaange place.
It is currently 18.6 degrees C outside. Shamus and I just got back from a bikeride and put on some shorts in his case, and a light summer dress in mine. We are mildly considering going up to have a swim in a little bit.
We went out to the farmer's market. They still have mostly winter produce, but there are starting to be more strawberries, as well as a stall that wasn't there two weeks ago: a baby plant/herb shop.
I am certainly not complaining one bit, but biking around in a t-shirt on Feb 4, and looking at all the new blooming flowers everywhere gets a little surreal for us Northerners.
It is currently 18.6 degrees C outside. Shamus and I just got back from a bikeride and put on some shorts in his case, and a light summer dress in mine. We are mildly considering going up to have a swim in a little bit.
We went out to the farmer's market. They still have mostly winter produce, but there are starting to be more strawberries, as well as a stall that wasn't there two weeks ago: a baby plant/herb shop.
I am certainly not complaining one bit, but biking around in a t-shirt on Feb 4, and looking at all the new blooming flowers everywhere gets a little surreal for us Northerners.
Aww, so bad.
Jan. 23rd, 2012 01:37 pmShamus and I woke up to the weather this morning, on the radio. The guy was talking about how he is so sick of all this rain we've been having...
...
It has rained during _one_ of the days since... oh... last Wednesday or so. It's been raining most nights, for sure, but we have had all of one rainy day.
Coming from Halifax, all I really have to say to that is "awww, muffin!" in the most condescending voice I can muster. Seriously, since we moved here in May, it has rained about half a dozen times before last week, IN TOTAL.
I don't mind the cooler weather though; it gives me all kinds of excuses to drink tasty hot tea all day long. :)
...
It has rained during _one_ of the days since... oh... last Wednesday or so. It's been raining most nights, for sure, but we have had all of one rainy day.
Coming from Halifax, all I really have to say to that is "awww, muffin!" in the most condescending voice I can muster. Seriously, since we moved here in May, it has rained about half a dozen times before last week, IN TOTAL.
I don't mind the cooler weather though; it gives me all kinds of excuses to drink tasty hot tea all day long. :)
Farmers Market
Dec. 17th, 2011 11:28 amWell now. I just got back from the farmer's market a little while ago. Yes, our outdoor market is still going strong the weekend before Christmas. I think I would have to be pretty hardcore to show up right at opening time, since it is a little chilled out there, but by the time I got there around 10 or so, it was pleasantly cool, and I wasn't wearing my sweater over my long sleeved shirt.
I haven't got a clue how I'm going to manage when Shamus and I move back to a more northerly climate. My excursion resulted in a bag full of rainbow chard, kales, pears, lemons, persimmons and leeks. I could have gotten grapes, potatoes, all manner of winter squashes, apples, oranges, herbs, spinach, walnuts and more. It is super easy to eat seasonally here, due to the wide variety of things that are actually in season in nearby fields. The farmers seem interested in having a variety of goods as well, so you don't just get one type of apple or orange, you get at least 3. The person I bought the kale from gleefully exclaimed about me being brave for trying their new variety of kale, to which I replied "but it's so pretty!" Seriously, I want to put this stuff in a vase and leave it on the table instead of sticking it in a plastic bag in the fridge. Beautiful purplegreen curly leaves.
I find it interesting how I can easily fill up my bike pannier bags to bursting here, even by just going halfway up the block the farmer's market is held on. The local produce in the maritimes just has no comparison to the variety here. For sure, I will miss it when we move back to Canada.
I haven't got a clue how I'm going to manage when Shamus and I move back to a more northerly climate. My excursion resulted in a bag full of rainbow chard, kales, pears, lemons, persimmons and leeks. I could have gotten grapes, potatoes, all manner of winter squashes, apples, oranges, herbs, spinach, walnuts and more. It is super easy to eat seasonally here, due to the wide variety of things that are actually in season in nearby fields. The farmers seem interested in having a variety of goods as well, so you don't just get one type of apple or orange, you get at least 3. The person I bought the kale from gleefully exclaimed about me being brave for trying their new variety of kale, to which I replied "but it's so pretty!" Seriously, I want to put this stuff in a vase and leave it on the table instead of sticking it in a plastic bag in the fridge. Beautiful purplegreen curly leaves.
I find it interesting how I can easily fill up my bike pannier bags to bursting here, even by just going halfway up the block the farmer's market is held on. The local produce in the maritimes just has no comparison to the variety here. For sure, I will miss it when we move back to Canada.
So yeah, I'm basically the worst at keeping a blog updated. I am baking chicken right now though, for the cats (long story), so I've got some time to kill but not enough time to get really into doing what I plan for the evening.
Mom called and I told her all about my ideas about transitioning the cats over to a healthier, more natural diet (which will be storebought, but tonight they get chicken with their dinners). I was also in the process of making my own vegan meat replacement from scratch, which we used to make a very fancy tasting portobello peppersteak stew. I think adding wine to home cooking instantly boosts the fancy factor by at least 25. It was very tasty, and aside from the "this is the first time we've made this recipe" omgs, it was well timed with the rice and everything.
Mom asked me again if we'd gotten a Christmas tree yet, and I find it interesting how every time she asks, I have to reassess the time of year, because, seriously, it looks like September out there. There are poppies blooming, and a bunch of other flowers, and it just seems like crazytalk to be worrying about a Christmas tree when it's only holy crap is it the eleventh already? I don't think Shamus and I will be homesick for the holidays because it doesn't even feel like the beginning of the holidays yet.
In other news, Shamus and I have been sick with a terrible clinging cold for about the last 3 weeks. I think we are finally getting over it, and I have to start thinking about leaving the house under my own power again, rather than begging rides off of everybody I know because I have 5% of my regular lung capacity. Tomorrow I'll be heading up to the pet store to buy some food for the cats, since they don't want anything to do with the second flavour of trail envelopes I've got. Smudge looks at me accusingly, as if to say "you tricked me!" whenever I try this stuff, so that's why we have chicken in the oven right now.
I also need to head up to the library, because I have been making liberal use of their vegan cookbook selection (and buying the ones that I can't live without). They actually have a pretty decent selection. I have taken out somewhere in the area of 10-15 vegan cookbooks, and while not all of them have been winners, some of them have been pretty good, and some have been bloody fantastic. Shamus and I have been making this wonderful orange glazed scone recipe, and also some spiced carrot raisin muffins, and both of them end up being eaten rather too quickly. Best scones I've ever eaten though.
Anyway, it is much too warm by the kitchen right now, so I have to go hang out by the open balcony door for a few minutes before I get myself sick from heat. We've had the heat on a couple times in the last week, but today is definitely not one of those days. Sure, it's only 9 degrees outside, but I think our downstairs neighbours must have the heat on really high, or really, it could be that I have had the stove on in some form or another for basically the last 4 hours. Still can't seem to manage to get Shamus to make some scones though. :c
Mom called and I told her all about my ideas about transitioning the cats over to a healthier, more natural diet (which will be storebought, but tonight they get chicken with their dinners). I was also in the process of making my own vegan meat replacement from scratch, which we used to make a very fancy tasting portobello peppersteak stew. I think adding wine to home cooking instantly boosts the fancy factor by at least 25. It was very tasty, and aside from the "this is the first time we've made this recipe" omgs, it was well timed with the rice and everything.
Mom asked me again if we'd gotten a Christmas tree yet, and I find it interesting how every time she asks, I have to reassess the time of year, because, seriously, it looks like September out there. There are poppies blooming, and a bunch of other flowers, and it just seems like crazytalk to be worrying about a Christmas tree when it's only holy crap is it the eleventh already? I don't think Shamus and I will be homesick for the holidays because it doesn't even feel like the beginning of the holidays yet.
In other news, Shamus and I have been sick with a terrible clinging cold for about the last 3 weeks. I think we are finally getting over it, and I have to start thinking about leaving the house under my own power again, rather than begging rides off of everybody I know because I have 5% of my regular lung capacity. Tomorrow I'll be heading up to the pet store to buy some food for the cats, since they don't want anything to do with the second flavour of trail envelopes I've got. Smudge looks at me accusingly, as if to say "you tricked me!" whenever I try this stuff, so that's why we have chicken in the oven right now.
I also need to head up to the library, because I have been making liberal use of their vegan cookbook selection (and buying the ones that I can't live without). They actually have a pretty decent selection. I have taken out somewhere in the area of 10-15 vegan cookbooks, and while not all of them have been winners, some of them have been pretty good, and some have been bloody fantastic. Shamus and I have been making this wonderful orange glazed scone recipe, and also some spiced carrot raisin muffins, and both of them end up being eaten rather too quickly. Best scones I've ever eaten though.
Anyway, it is much too warm by the kitchen right now, so I have to go hang out by the open balcony door for a few minutes before I get myself sick from heat. We've had the heat on a couple times in the last week, but today is definitely not one of those days. Sure, it's only 9 degrees outside, but I think our downstairs neighbours must have the heat on really high, or really, it could be that I have had the stove on in some form or another for basically the last 4 hours. Still can't seem to manage to get Shamus to make some scones though. :c
(no subject)
Oct. 29th, 2011 04:35 pmI noticed a weird thing last week. A patch of dandelions. I haven't seen a dandelion all summer. I don't think they're suited to the weather here. I hadn't even noticed that I wasn't seeing them around until I saw the patch of them, and was like "hey wait, I haven't seen those in months!"
Meanwhile, the leaves on the tree outside of our balcony are finally starting to turn colour. Most trees around here are still green, or looking sunburnt, but there are a few that are beginning to turn. SO strange, it feels like it's still a week in early September here, not at all the end of October. The kids around here won't be bundled up in parkas and mittens to do their trick or treating, for sure. We finally got our Halloween candy for them, and I may be doing a little sampling before we hand things out. Wouldn't want to give them crappy candy, you know.
I also have plans to make candy corn tonight. I live for candy corn at Halloween. The problem with this is that most candy corn nowadays is made with gelatin, which is not vegetarian, let alone vegan. I found a recipe for how to make them, so I am going to enlist Shamus's help with that sometime this weekend, I hope. I also have the ingredients for making homemade Larabars, which pleases me greatly, since a Larabar costs more than a dollar for a thing that's 1 inch by 2 inches, and it only has 4 or 5 ingredients.
In the "holy crap that's cheap!" grocery report, I got some avocados today for $0.49 each, as well as a pound of asparagus (the thin spring kind) for $1.49. I got Shamus some mild cheddar cheese for $2.99 a pound, and two litres of milk for $1.50 (seriously! Milk was just over $4 for 2 litres in Halifax when we left!).
I also found a pretty great vegan recipe blog the other day, called The Vegan Stoner. I was looking for "lazy vegan recipe" on google, because I was home for the evening by myself, and I couldn't be arsed to make dinner properly. I made the chickpea curry, and reduced prep work by using our FANTASTIC BLENDER to cut up the onion, red pepper, and carrot for me. Hot tip: don't try to cut up a giant onion and a giant red pepper in the blender at the same time. It's not less work than just cutting the damned things on a cutting board. We also made the oat shake, which was good, but not especially lasting, and kinda thick towards the end. It's really weird, but it tastes great. It just has a texture that need some tweaking, I think.
Anyway, that's about all I got for right now. Let me know if there's anything you want to know about or whatever. Since I'm living here and getting used to it somewhat, I am seeing a lot less that is like "I don't think we're in Halifax anymore, Toto." Though I still think it's ridiculous that I needed to get a prescription for a bottle of Robaxin here. The FDA hasn't approved it for over-the-counter sale. >:c
Meanwhile, the leaves on the tree outside of our balcony are finally starting to turn colour. Most trees around here are still green, or looking sunburnt, but there are a few that are beginning to turn. SO strange, it feels like it's still a week in early September here, not at all the end of October. The kids around here won't be bundled up in parkas and mittens to do their trick or treating, for sure. We finally got our Halloween candy for them, and I may be doing a little sampling before we hand things out. Wouldn't want to give them crappy candy, you know.
I also have plans to make candy corn tonight. I live for candy corn at Halloween. The problem with this is that most candy corn nowadays is made with gelatin, which is not vegetarian, let alone vegan. I found a recipe for how to make them, so I am going to enlist Shamus's help with that sometime this weekend, I hope. I also have the ingredients for making homemade Larabars, which pleases me greatly, since a Larabar costs more than a dollar for a thing that's 1 inch by 2 inches, and it only has 4 or 5 ingredients.
In the "holy crap that's cheap!" grocery report, I got some avocados today for $0.49 each, as well as a pound of asparagus (the thin spring kind) for $1.49. I got Shamus some mild cheddar cheese for $2.99 a pound, and two litres of milk for $1.50 (seriously! Milk was just over $4 for 2 litres in Halifax when we left!).
I also found a pretty great vegan recipe blog the other day, called The Vegan Stoner. I was looking for "lazy vegan recipe" on google, because I was home for the evening by myself, and I couldn't be arsed to make dinner properly. I made the chickpea curry, and reduced prep work by using our FANTASTIC BLENDER to cut up the onion, red pepper, and carrot for me. Hot tip: don't try to cut up a giant onion and a giant red pepper in the blender at the same time. It's not less work than just cutting the damned things on a cutting board. We also made the oat shake, which was good, but not especially lasting, and kinda thick towards the end. It's really weird, but it tastes great. It just has a texture that need some tweaking, I think.
Anyway, that's about all I got for right now. Let me know if there's anything you want to know about or whatever. Since I'm living here and getting used to it somewhat, I am seeing a lot less that is like "I don't think we're in Halifax anymore, Toto." Though I still think it's ridiculous that I needed to get a prescription for a bottle of Robaxin here. The FDA hasn't approved it for over-the-counter sale. >:c
Still alive!
Oct. 14th, 2011 03:40 pmSo California has not killed me, despite its best efforts. I have developed some reasonably frequent migraines, and I fell off my bike the other day, but aside from that, I'm doing alright.
( groceries, vitamix, seasons... )
( groceries, vitamix, seasons... )A fine library
Jul. 23rd, 2011 09:19 pmThis will be short, because I have comics to draw and ink before we begin the potential travesty that is twice a week comic updates on Monday.
Shamus and I went to the library today, and discovered that not only does the Sunnyvale Public Library have a magical checkout/checkin system, but they also have TWO sections full of comics to take home and read.
I may be a while.
Shamus and I went to the library today, and discovered that not only does the Sunnyvale Public Library have a magical checkout/checkin system, but they also have TWO sections full of comics to take home and read.
I may be a while.
A whole lotta nuthin
Jul. 15th, 2011 01:05 pmSo I went to the doctor this morning, spurred by a sharply dwindling supply of my daily medications. The insurance plan we chose through Shamus' work has a fairly low incidence of doctors near Sunnyvale. The one I chose was one of the closest I found (though if I could have been arsed to pick up the phone, I bet I could have found someone closer) and she was still 3.3 miles away, according to googlemaps. Even so, that's only half the distance I traveled yesterday in search of cat little and specially ordered cat food for my babies.
( more on doctors and too much about cat litter... )
( more on doctors and too much about cat litter... )Things I Have Learned In California
Jul. 2nd, 2011 11:13 pmIn lieu of an actual blog post, I am going to make a list instead. Because it's 11pm, and I am waiting for a pizza.
( education awaits! )
( education awaits! )
Wherein nothing goes right
Jun. 25th, 2011 04:19 pmSo when I left you on Monday, we were waiting to hear back from IKEA within 24-48 hours from Sunday morning. Well, Tuesday came and went, and that evening, while Shamus was finishing up with making dinner, I called them to find out what was happening. First off, turns out that the person that Shamus was talking to on Sunday had recited the reference number wrong, so the poor girl on the other side of the country (she was in Eastern Time) had to take about 8 minutes to track down my case. She gave me the correct number, and then, after trying to figure out what was going on, she transferred me to the actual East Palo Alto store since it seemed that the case had been sent there. She had originally told me that SHE was going to call them, so I was a bit shocked to find myself talking to someone there and explaining what was happening, especially when I was told "well, I'm not in front of a computer now. I'll have to see what's going on when I get downstairs. I probably have an availability Wednesday evening between 5 and 9, but we may not even have the item in stock" I responded that as soon as possible was great, and I just needed to know when to be home. She confirmed that she'd call me back in about an hour, and that I should expect a "drop pick" for it, which meant that they would take our old couch, and just give us a brand new one.
Yeah.. no phone call...
( what else can go wrong? )
Yeah.. no phone call...
( what else can go wrong? )Ceci n'est pas un couch
Jun. 20th, 2011 09:06 amShamus and I took an ill advised trip to IKEA on our bikes on Friday night, to go procure a couch for delivery.The same trip got us two end tables, a recycling container, a laundry hamper, some kitchen storage things, and a mixing bowl. We left the end tables and couch there for delivery, and took everything else home on our bikes. The round trip ended up being 35km, the route there was entirely cycling into a headwind, and we didn't get home until after 10pm after including a "shortcut" through the parking lot of Synopsis that essentially made up bike in a huge circle around our apartment.
( nothing is simple )
( nothing is simple )A lovely day
Jun. 15th, 2011 12:45 pmI am sitting on the floor of my balcony, enjoying the shade and breeze. It's supposed to get up to 28 degrees here today, which means that I either stay inside all day, or I go only to the pool. However, we have a north facing apartment, so the sun never touches most of our balcony which means that even on the hottest days, the balcony is lovely and temperate. I generally sit out here at least once a day (pining for patio furniture), and often one or both of the cats will accompany me. We have harnesses and leads from their airplane trip down here, so I figured I'd put them to good use while soothing my anxieties that they'd be stupid enough to jump for a bird.
( a whole lot of nothin' )
( a whole lot of nothin' )Well wasn't that exciting?
Jun. 10th, 2011 07:30 pm I just got back from an unplanned little jaunt up to Mountain View. Shamus texted me shortly after leaving work, because his back tire had gone flat. He went back inside to figure out what to do, since his phone died in the midst of our frantic texting back and forth. Turns out there's a bike shop a short distance away from his workplace, so I offered to bike up and meet him there. He only had half an hour to get there before they closed, so away we both went.
I took the time to scribble down the directions, pack a "cheer up" cookie for Shamus, and spray my exposed skin with a light coat of sunscreen, since I had scrubbed all the day's earlier stuff off in the shower after I went for a swim. I ran out the door, then ran back in after going down a floor, since I realized I would probably need my bike gloves. Unfortunately, I was downstairs on the sidewalk before I realized I needed my sunglasses, but I decided to forgo them in the interest of rushing to my husband's side.
( and onward... )
I took the time to scribble down the directions, pack a "cheer up" cookie for Shamus, and spray my exposed skin with a light coat of sunscreen, since I had scrubbed all the day's earlier stuff off in the shower after I went for a swim. I ran out the door, then ran back in after going down a floor, since I realized I would probably need my bike gloves. Unfortunately, I was downstairs on the sidewalk before I realized I needed my sunglasses, but I decided to forgo them in the interest of rushing to my husband's side.
( and onward... )I just checked the weather forecast on my phone, and discovered that the UV index right now is 12 out of 16. I had been wondering how bad it would be to go up to the grocery store for the milk we desperately need, and sunscreen and so on. It seems that if I go now, I will char to a crisp. The UV is insane here. I have been tanning despite liberal application of sunscreen most days, and only going out for short periods if I am unprotected. Turns out those days that it says your skin will burn in minutes with the UV index actually exist here. Still, I have been lucky and I've only gotten one minor sunburn since my arrival, so I'm doing alright.
Yesterday was pretty eventful. We got our delivery from IKEA, which means I am typing this while sitting on a chair, on a table (that is slightly too high for typing, honestly, but I am not fussy right now). Last night I slept on a mattress with sheets on it. It was fabulous. We also went up to Palo Alto to the Crate & Barrel and picked up our dishes, as well as a pitcher for iced tea, a set of juice glasses and high ball glasses, some cutlery, and a bread knife. We had breakfast out of real bowls with real spoons this morning, and it was wonderful. The dishwasher is drying the remaining dishes and cutlery right now.
