WE GOT CHICKS!!!!

Lately, we've been talking about chickens a lot. J gets fresh goat milk from a little goat dairy in Salt Lake* and he gets fresh eggs there, too. So we always eat good eggs at his house. We've been talking about how it would be nice to have chickens, though. Because then you always have fresh eggs, and you know what the chickens are eating, etc, and the yolks are darker orange and the whites are firmer, and eggs are just better.

And chickens are supposed to be pretty easy to keep. And fairly inexpensive.

So recently, we decided we would get a chicken coop and three hens and one chick (since they're so cute) to put in J's backyard. Fun!

Yesterday we went to IFA to check out coops and get some hens and chicken stuff, buuuut, turns out you can only get like Chicken Deluxe SuperFancy Suites there, which are like $350, which is way more than what we had been looking at online. And then, they didn't have hens at all, just chicks.

But the chicks were ADORABLE. So we got a heated water dish that we were going to need anyway, and I said, "J, what if we just get a few chicks, since they don't need a whole coop anyway...? And they're so cute..." and J decided that would be just fine with him, so we decided to get four chicks.

And we went to get the special chick food (which is like, medicated and has extra nutrition since chicks die way easy), and a lady stopped us and told us we should ask IFA if they have an IFA brand feed, because that would be cheaper. We thanked her, and I started asking her about what we could keep them in (we had talked about using a box, which the lady said was perfect), and what all we would need (our big heated waterer was too deep for them, we would need a little one too), and where we should look for grown hens and coops (online--her friend got a nice coop for $50!), and what she has (50 pullets! And like 50? 100? I forget how many grown laying hens), and what breeds she recommends, and so on.

We ended up getting two Araucanas (because the lady said they are her favorite because of their sweet personalities and because they're great layers and because their eggs are colored!) and two Buff Orpingtons (because we were planning on only getting those--the placard said they're friendly and that they lay during the winter, which we want them to; but the lady said she really likes those, too).

I held the box for the ride home, because I already loved our chicks. J told me he couldn't think of any reason why I couldn't keep them at my house, if I wanted. He meant that it wouldn't require a lot of space, and they wouldn't be loud enough to bother my neighbors, and that I would have fun being the one to take care of them. So I reminded him: "Paley." He had forgotten all about her and agreed that we had better keep them at his house. Paley would love the chicks as much as I do. Maybe more. That would be a problem.**


I had seen an online project (Three Chicks a Day) where this guy takes pictures of chicks every day to document their growth (but like, artsy photos, not scientific ones). His chicks are named Noodle Soup, Salad Sandwich, and Pot Pie. I thought those names were really clever, and wanted to come up with something similar. I wasn't really able to think of anything, though, so I decided that another good idea would be to give them old lady names. SO WE DID!

Some of the names I'd thought of were: Ethel, Gerty/Trudy, Maude, and Berta.

J thought Ethel sounded like the beginning of a chemical compound, and he liked "Gertrude" better than the shortened versions, so we named our favorite chick Maude, and we named her sister Gertrude. For the blonde girls, we originally decided we would call them Berta and were not sure what to call the last one. His grandma's name was Evelyn, so we thought that would be good. I texted Jess for suggestions, but then my mom replied, confused, so I took her suggestions, too. And texted Jess.

Mom replied: "Edith or mildred. Jason suggests Eleanore, Tyler says Judith. Brandon suggests Grandma Shumskins."

Jess replied: "Do you have a Gertie?" (We did.) She also suggested Ethel. Barbara. Gladys! LaVerne. Alice.

We liked Gladys. So I texted Jess back, "Oooh. J says Gladys is a winner."

And Jess texted back "Yay!"

I told Mom "Thanks for playing!" And she wondered if they had won, and I told them they won Honorable Mention.

The boys also suggested a boy name, which I said we wouldn't need, because if any of them turn out to be boys (they're supposed to be all girls), we will change its name to Dinner.

We liked Evelyn, though, so we changed Berta's name, even though Berta is maybe a good name for a Bird-a.

Here are the pictures of our cute chicks:


Getting chicks! He's reaching for the Araucanas.


Still at the store, in the shopping cart. From left to right you can tell them apart because the first one has like, a dark brown stripe (Maude), the next one is much lighter (Gertrude), the first blonde one has some dark on her head (Gladys), and the last chick is all yellow with no brown on her head (Evelyn).


After we got home (and washed our hands with lots of soap and warm water), we moved the chicks from their little cardboard box into a medium! cardboard box with water! and food! and a light! so that they would be more comfortable. Maude was awake when I picked her up, but she cuddled down into my hand and started to sleep while I was holding her, which I thought was just adorable. When I put her down into the new box, she wanted to stay in my hand, which was even more adorable. She is J's favorite too, because he thinks she's the prettiest. We like her.

Chicks! In their new home!


Annnnd, right before I went home: the chicks all sleeping together! Cute! ...On their food? We think it may be softer to sit on than the floor. Hopefully they don't poop in it. (Do you see how we can tell them apart? The one at the top of the picture has brown on her head--Gladys. So the other blonde one is Evelyn. And then the the brown ones are Maude and Gertrude, from left to right, because Maude is much darker.)

Cuuuute! So. Now we just need to find a chicken coop for sale. And hens (which will hopefully be good layers, and not ones that someone is culling.) Or we can build a chicken coop, but J thinks that may be more fun than we want. Heh.


*Which is the only dairy in Salt Lake. Super random, though--turns out my coworker's aunt and uncle own it! What a small world, eh?
** She would eat them, FOR SURE.

AMERICAN HOME - part 4 Air Warden Shin Dig

I wish I would have thrown this party. SRSLY, what a great idea. My favorite part of it is "delivering DAMAGE REPORT" because it sounds like a fantastic game. This game would be especially fun if you actually did throw this party for wardens. Unfortunately, my invitations would have to fall among guests who would have no more acquaintance with defense work than seeing it mentioned in the newspapers. Or, you know, the Internet.

OOOhhhh. My birthday is this summer. Maybe I should have an Air Warden Shin Dig!

-----

YOU couldn't stand on your doorstep and toss a doughnut into the air without having it ring someone who is doing Civilian Defense work. But these patriotic-minded people enjoy a rip-snorting good time for a change from their duties, too. You could have this party for the wardens of your post, or let the invitations fall among the workers and non-workers in your circle of friends. It's still a good shindig even if none of your guests has any more acquaintance with defense work than seeing it mentioned in the newspapers.

The telephone is the easiest method of issuing invitations, but if you want to be different, send bids on red, white, and blue bordered stationery. Or, to go whole hog, cut out five-inch circles of dark blue paper and paste on white triangles with parallel crayon stripes of red. On the intervening white stripes you can write the facts about the party. (In case you're not of the initiated, the message will have been written on the symbol of the Air Raid Warden.)

After amusing yourself with the games described opposite, hold up a menu like the one shown above (Yellow Warning--Blackout Delight--First Aid Stimulant) and offer a prize to the person who writes down the best interpretations of the items listed. Our fare for hearty appetites was creamed eggs on toast, devil's-food cake, and coffee. The whites of the hard-cooked eggs are in the cream sauce, and the yolks are chopped up and sprinkled over the top, thereby giving "yellow warning" effect. Or, you might try some kind of American cheese dish. You can't improve on the chocolate cake and coffee.

Canteen Race

All of the girls, supposed to be canteen volunteers, choose partners. Each worker is given a tumbler half full of ginger ale, milk, or some other liquid, and a teaspoon. When the starting signal is given, they start racing to see who can "spoon feed" every drop of liquid to her partner first. Chief delight of this game seems to be in the guests' irresistible urge to giggle just before swallowing a crucial spoonful. This adds to the merriment, of course, but doesn't help make a winner! Try it on your thirsty pals.

Rumor-monger
An old but amusing stunt that points a worth-while moral. Write out, in advance, a fairly complicated rumor involving your country. Now whisper this message to one of the guests, then have it whispered along from one to another until it has made the rounds. The last person recites aloud what is heard, and then the original story is read. The moral will be obvious! Example for rumor: "The Germans have established a secret base near the tip of Cape Cod. They have 2,371 soldiers there, a fleet of supply ships, and hundreds of tanks. Thirteen submarines are based there, and a large airplane field has been built and is being used by 293 planes just in from South America."

BOMB disposal (An American Home game)

THIS, too, calls for action. Line up two to four players, each armed with a table knife, and in front of each put a "bomb" which, curiously enough, will look exactly like an Idaho baking potato. Give the starting signal, and the race is on to see who can roll his potato to the other end of the room, finishing with it on an inverted plate, which has been placed on the floor for the purpose. A final winner can be established by having as many "heats" as necessary. This harks back to the old potato races you had in the third grade.

delivering DAMAGE REPORT (An American Home Game)

DAMAGE report messages are being delivered in spite of fact that water mains have burst and the area is so flooded that the only transportation is by boat. The boats which you produce at this point are large dishpans. Select two or three wardens, help them into their "boats," and have them race with their reports to the other end of the room. The winner of each heat competes with other winners for the prize offered to the fastest warden. This is good healthy exercise, and fun because it's both silly and competitive. Your main problem is to get dishpans big enough to fit your guests!

It's that time again... (Netflix)

Anyone want a free month of Netflix? I've blogged about this before, but these offers always expire so...

Just in case anyone is interested, they sent me an email which I am supposed to forward to friends and family, offering a free month of Netflix. Know how I used to get a free movie for every person who signed up? I don't anymore. Now the email makes it look like it's kind of a gift I can give to other people. I'm not watching very many movies these days, so it doesn't really matter.

So if you're interested, here is the link for ONE FREE MONTH OF NETFLIX.

The offer is valid through 15 June 2009.

If you want me to forward the email, or if you want one of the really special cards that I got in the mail yesterday (which have the same offer, but an individual! special! code on each one), let me know, and I have those too. (If it's something you were already wanting to try, great, have at it. If not, don't feel obligated at all.)

I <3 Smith's

I love Smith’s.

I buy most of my groceries and stuff from the Smith’s Marketplace down the hill from my house. They are just really great.

Today I got a big envelope full of coupons that are personalized for me—they’re coupons for things that I actually buy, including a couple coupons for free things that I normally buy, and then a bunch of coupons for discounts on products that I buy.

This time I got a coupon for a FREE box of Cheerios, a coupon for a FREE package of blueberries or strawberries, just like, fresh, from the produce department. And then I got coupons for: cereal, Weight Watchers cheese or cream cheese (I buy the cream cheese), butter, frozen vegetables, the kind of cat food that I buy for Paley, Stouffer’s entrees (I buy the lasagne), chocolate chips, fruit cups (I like mandarin oranges), graham crackers, Kraft mac&cheese, a Lowry’s marinade, and the kind of toothpaste that I buy (Colgate Total). All of the coupons are for precise things that I already buy (like, store brand coupons for things that I buy store brand, and brand coupons for things that I buy brands for), and they’re for useful amounts. They add up to $10.50 worth of coupons, plus the two free ones that are worth about…$3 for Cheerios and $3 for berries? They’re good through the middle of July.

This is the second time this has happened. The last batch of coupons was personalized for me too. These are way more useful than coupons for random things that I don’t normally buy, or coupons for things that cost more than what I normally buy so that unless I use them when the item is on sale, I don’t save.

Smith’s also sends me “special customer” little magazine things that always have a theme and a bunch of coupons. There was one for spring cleaning, and another one for frozen foods, and one other one… (I think I get them about every six weeks, maybe?) In those little booklets, there are usually several things I don’t buy and are spendier than I am, a few things that I do buy, and a couple things that are like, very general coupons, or things that almost anyone would buy. It’s nice.

Smith’s also has a student discount. If you sign up for their “Fresh Values” card with a student ID, they give you a special student Fresh Values card that automatically gives you 5% off of everything that you buy, every time.

Plus, I get gas rewards when I shop. So if I were driving, and if my Smith’s had one of the Smith’s gas stations (or if I just went to one), I would be getting various amounts off of my gas (sometimes it’s 5 cents/gallon, sometimes 15 cents, etc.).

And all of this stuff is kind of like, unadvertised, secret savings. They also have very competitive prices, excellent sales, and I often get good coupons from the little machine at the register. Sometimes those coupons are even for free things. Plus, like a month ago, they did a big thing where they lowered the prices on their produce, and now a bunch of their produce is CHEAP! Like, not just one or two things—a whole bunch of stuff! Plus, their workers are friendly and helpful, and super attentive. And their stores are clean. I just always have a great shopping experience when I go.

Anyway. It makes me feel like they value my business. I think they actually do.

Meeting President Monson

This weekend I had a neat experience. I met President and Sister Monson! I volunteered at the Symphony again, and they were in attendance (for the Bravo Broadway show). Our volunteer coordinator told us that he was there, and that he may come for our intermission reception (which was what I was volunteering at). We expected a lot of people. I made sure to be at the soda table (which I usually am anyway) instead of the wine one. (Because like, who wants to have the one time they see the Prophet to be when they’re serving alcohol?)

Anyway, not very many people came to the reception at all. But President Monson did!

As soon as he came in the door, he came over to the soda table and shook our hands. The other person at the table was an older lady, and she said something cordial (“It’s nice to meet you, President Monson?” “Thank you for coming, President Monson?” Or something like that.) and so did I. I asked if he was enjoying the show and he said “I’ve not heard finer.” I offered him something to drink but he said he didn’t want anything because “a wise man doesn’t drink anything during intermission.” He said he didn’t want to miss any of the songs later.

His wife was in a wheelchair and she came over to get a drink. She seemed like she wasn’t really sure what she wanted, but decided on Coke. A few other people came over to the soda table to chat with President Monson. He told the little group of us that he had especially enjoyed the trolley song. He explained:

“I met my wife on a trolley.

We were seventeen.

Best trolley ride I’ve ever taken.”

It was really cute. He was very sweet with his wife. He wheeled her over to get some hor d’ourves. Another lady seemed really excited to chat with him and kept talking to him about different things. She got her picture with him.

The person from the Board started making his little announcements, thanking the Prophet for bringing his wife on a date (cute!) and mentioning President Monson sitting in the front row tapping his foot.

And I started thinking that maybe I would like a picture with him, too. Because stories about meeting the Prophet are cooler if you have a picture to show. I was wearing a skirt, though, so I had no pockets and my phone was in my bag, which was in the back of the kitchen, in another room. I decided to go for it.

After the little speech, I asked President Monson if I could have a picture with him. He said, “That’s alright.” And it sounded like it meant no, but he’s from a generation where people say what they mean, so he actually meant that it was all right for me to get a picture with him. “Don’t ask security, though, because they’ll tell you no,” he added.

I got the lady who had been so eager to talk with him to take my picture. I started to explain how the camera on my phone works (it’s an iPhone and a lot of people press the button to take you back to the main screen instead of pressing the camera button that shows up on the screen). “I have one. I know how to do it,” she told me, and she took the picture. She said it came out really good.

It didn’t. She took it all blurry. Oh well. At least you can tell that it is me, and that I’m with them, and that President Monson knows he’s in the picture too

My mom and my boss (separately!) mentioned printing the picture and framing it. I hadn’t even thought about it. Because it’s like…blurry. So I don’t know about that. But for sure I’ll be able to tell my kids someday about meeting him. Just like my dad told us the story of meeting Ezra Taft Benson in the rain.

I liked him. I felt like he was a really good man, just from the way that he talked to us and to other people (he randomly went up to one man and showed him his Navy cuff links? Or something. And I don’t know what made him think the guy would be interested, but he was…), and from the way that he was towards his wife. He patted her and touched her, and wheeled her around, and was just really nice. Very pleasant. And I did feel like he actually, really is a prophet. I felt like he could see our hearts, or knew us, or something. I don’t know. Maybe that’s what it feels like to be with people who have spent years representing Christ and showing love to strangers. It was a neat experience, though. And it was cool that he came up to us right away, even though he had no plans to get anything to drink.

I was happy that I wasn’t serving wine. He didn’t go over to them.

DOES YOUR LANDLORD HAVE A BILL OF SALE FROM GOD?

My coworker Devin came back from pulling books with a stack of yellow papers. He was pretty excited about them. Apparently someone went throughout the library and put yellow papers on the shelves. He said there was like, a trail of them. He went from one to the next, collecting them. He thought I would appreciate them, which I did.

I think you will too.

This is fantastic!

Here are some of my favorite parts:
- Your landlord cannot charge you rent because they don't own your property--God does.
- We are slaves to banks, paying interest on their money that they printed.
- Everything we do is based on fear.
- Create your own reality! It's now or never, wake up!

Also, I love-loved the ALLCAPS, so that everyone knows that this is REALLY IMPORTANT, and TRUE (because obviously, anything printed is true.) (Just like everything on the Internet is true.)

THE END IS NEAR

YOUR 'FREEDOM' WILL SOON BE A DISTANT MEMORY. YOU ARE BEING DELUDED INTO A NIGHTMARISH FUTURE BY AN ELITE CLUB OF WEALTHY FASCIST ELITES. 9/11 IS AN OBVIOUS CONSPIRACY. THE LIES PERPETRATED THROUGH THAT TRAGEDY BY THE DECEITFUL CABAL POSING AS LEGITIMATE WORLD GOVERNMENTS HAS DUPED YOU. YOU HAVE BEEN CONFUSED WITH DUPLICITIOUS RELIGIONS, A BOGUS ECONOMY, ENDLESS WARS, AND A MANIPULATIVE MEDIA TO ACCEPT THEIR VERSION OF REALITY IN ORDER TO KEEP YOU DISTRACTED, ASLEEP AND UNAWARE. WHEN YOU ARE AFRAID, YOU ARE EASIER TO MANIPULATE, AND EVERY DIVISIVE ELEMENT OF SOCIETY IS AN ARTIFICIAL CONSTRUCT SPECIFICALLY ORCHESTRATED TO SOFTEN YOU UP FOR THEIR IMMINENT SEIZURE OF POWER. ANALYZE YOUR ACTIONS AND DESIRES, AND YOU WILL REALIZE THAT EVERYTHING YOU DO IS BASED ON FEAR AND OR THE NEED TO ACQUIRE WEALTH IN ORDER TO SUSTAIN THE ILLUSION THAT YOU ARE FREE. YOU ARE NOTHING MORE THAN A SLAVE IN WAITING. WHAT IS THE DEFINITION OF A SLAVE? HE WHO IS CONTROLLED THROUGH FEAR. YOU ARE AFRAID OF BEING POOR. YOU ARE AFRAID OF NOT BEING ACCEPTED. YOU ARE AFRAID OF THINGS AND PEOPLE THAT ARE DIFFERENT FROM YOU. YOU ARE AFRAID OF THE RENT. WHO OWNS THE LAND YOU LIVE ON? DOES YOUR LANDLORD HAVE A BILL OF SALE FROM GOD? NO ONE 'OWNS' ANYTHING. THE BANKS HAVE TRICKED YOU INTO BELIEVING THAT YOU OWE THEM SOMETHING, WHEN ALL THEY'VE DONE IS SCARE YOU INTO PAYING THEM INTEREST ON MONEY THEY PRINTED IN THE FIRST PLACE. WHO ARE YOU EARNING YOUR 'LIVING' FROM? WEALTHY ELITES WHO HAVE DECEIVED YOU INTO A STATE OF PERPETUAL WEAKNESS SPAWNED BY FEAR. NO ONE IS ENTITLED TO DEFINE YOUR RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD. NO ONE CAN CHARGE YOU FOR RENT ON THE LAND THAT NO ONE ACTUALLY OWNS. NO ONE CAN DEFINE YOUR REALITY FOR YOU UNLESS YOU LET THEM; THE ONLY REASON YOU LET THEM IS BECAUSE YOU ARE AFRAID. THIS IS THEIR POWER, BUT IT IS AN ILLUSION OF POWER IF YOU THINK FOR YOURSELFAND CREATE YOUR OWN REALITY. IT'S NOW OR NEVER, WAKE UP!

AMERICAN HOME part 3 - Don't Be a Public Enemy!

There were a few advertisements like this in American Home.DON'T BE A PUBLIC ENEMY Be patriotic and smother your sneezes with KLEENEX to help keep colds from spreading to war workers. America needs every man--full time! (from a letter by D. L. R., Chicago, Ill.)

HELP **WIN** THE WAR

Save on Kleenex so Kleenex can save for you!

When half-size will do, tear Kleenex in two. Tear across fold! Saving Kleenex saves material necessary to win the war!

Kleenex "Pop-up-Box" saves tissues--saves money! Because it serves up just one double tissue at a time!

WIN $25 (MATURITY VALUE) DEFENSE BOND For each statement we publish.
Write how the use of Kleenex saves you money and helps win the war.

2 for 1...
My Kleenex does double-duty! After using it to remove face cream, it's perfect to shine up furniture or leather shoes and purse! (from a letter by G.C.T., Pomona, Calif.)

--

I like it. What company now would tell you to use half of their product, even for a cause? Now what a company would do is sell a special brand of tissues that were half size and charge more for them. Also, I love that the last comment is from someone in Pomona. (WHAT UP!?!)* Can you imagine any girl using her dirty tissue to shine furniture or leather shoes and purses? Do girls even shine leather now? I think we just buy new things. I bet it worked, though.

*Do you love that I just holla'd at someone who, if she was 20 when this was published, would be 87 years old now?! Think about it. She had no idea what Pomona would be like now...

AMERICAN HOME part 2 - Never Too Young to Help

"Yes, boys and girls, every single one of you can help us win this old war! There are lots and lots of ways, and here are some that are right at your front doors!"

This is another reason why we're still having problems in Iraq. Kids these days don't wash and store their rubber beach balls, or take care of their metal lunch-boxes, keeping them clean and dry. KIDS, it's all your fault we're losing this old war!

The suggestions read:

You can help save rubber overshoes by cleaning, drying, and keeping them cool
Neatly placed clothes give you a lot more dressing speed if there's a fire
Rubber beach balls like to be washed and stored dry and cool for the winter
Help the war by taking care of your metal lunch-box, and keeping it clean and dry
Yes, a picnic stove from a big old tin can, holes cut for fire and a chimney!
In New York you can "adopt" a doll if you will always keep her very clean and well
Girl Scout fixes up old toys so other children won't need to buy new ones
New bicycles for juniors are "out," so tip-top care of yours is mighty important
Jimmy helps win the war by taking care of his raincoat so it will last longer

And, get this, the photographs are courtesy of Cleanliness Bureau. What is this magic bureau? Why do the Interwebs offer no information about it? All I can find is something online that says the Cleanliness Institute was started in New York in 1927 by Association of American Soap and Glycerine Producers, to tell women and children that they should be cleaner.

BEST. MAGAZINE. EVER.

At work, I discovered the best magazine ever. Okay, maybe not the best, but it's up there. It's called "The American Home" and it is fantastic. Someone requested something from volume XXVIII, which is June to November, 1942. I can't put it down.

I have six excellent things to share from within these issues. They are:
1. Four great IDEAs!
2. A Kleenex advert.
3. Two Windex adverts.
4. An Air Warden Shindig.
5. An article about how children can help us win the war.
6. A VICTORY DIET!

These are really amazing. If you want to see pictures of the covers from these magazines, they are posted here. Totally worth it. According to Wikipedia, it was published from 1928 to 1977. I don't know. I don't know if it was quite this amazing after the war, but during the war, like every page is about ON GUARD...the home front. Cooperating for VICTORY. I love Victory. So did they. They had Victory vacations, Victory parties, Victory dinners where everyone dressed up as vegetables from their Victory gardens. Victory hobbies, Victory everything!


Just a thought--maybe this is why we keep having problems with our wars now. Maybe if we would just buy some war bonds and take care to feed our future citizens more vegetables, and use more Bon Ami cleaner and take care of our homes since they are Second Fronts, maybe we would win our wars in the middle east. I'm just saying. Nobody invited me to an Air Warden Shindig during the war in Iraq.

Anyway, here is the first part, which is actually four parts:

IDEA! IF "Drink your orange juice, Junior!" raises a storm of stubborn objections, you can settle your tempest, in a teapot! Invite your young problem child to have "tea" with you. Lay the table just as you do for grown-up parties, with regular cups and a large teapot. No kid stuff! Make a plate of miniature, but healthy sandwiches and sit down to "tea," while your child pours. -EFFIE LEE ESTES
IDEA! CAKE FOR BABY: For baby's first birthday, pile mashed potatoes into the shape of a cake, surround with "frosting" of buttered beets or spinach, and center it with a hollowed-out cooked carrot candle holder and an asparagus stalk candle. - MRS. ELMER STOWELL
MYSTERY MAKES MONEY: If you're giving a benefit party, remember that curiosity is one of your best allies, and wrap up the white elephants instead of letting them stand out in the open for sale. People are much more likely to part with their nickels and dimes if they aren't sure of what they'll get. - MRS. DAVID CANFIELD
IDEA! MY THINKING-TIME BILLBOARD is thin wood veneer decorated with decals appropriate to the kitchen and is hung on the wall with tiny rings and glass-headed picture tacks. It holds ABC vitamin lore, perhaps a club speech to be "polished off," a lovely poem, a new recipe, or the day's menu. - MARION FISCHER
TO SAVE THE FLOOR: To eliminate those dark smudges on linoleum caused by the bottom of chromium kitchen chairs, apply Scotch tape to the parts touching the floor. - MRS. FRANK JACKLE
IDEA! Yes, it's done with mirrors--big ones or little ones, whole ones or in pieces--hung on strings or thing wires here and there in the fruit garden so that they swing and send flashes of sunlight in all directions. Robber birds just can't figure out what it's all about, so they go away from there as fast as their wings will carry them. - MAY LEWIS

These things worked in 1942, people, and they'll work now. Help us win the war! Make your babies vegetable birthday cakes!

Tulip Festival at Thanksgiving Point

I've been hearing a lot of radio commercials for the Tulip Festival at Thanksgiving Point lately, so on Saturday we went. Saturday was actually supposed to be extra-special, because it was going to be Dutch Day. I was excited about that, because there was to be a costume contest, traditional music, and other stuff going on.

Jess and Mitch came with us. We went in the afternoon, and by the time we got there, not much was happening for Dutch Day. I saw one lady dressed up. Jess said they saw a couple others, when we arrived. [We did get to hear a little bit of traditional music (although we'd had our fun by then, so we didn't stay long), and we passed up the opportunity to paint little wooden shoes for $3. ]

However! Thanksgiving Point arranged for it to be cold and rainy, just like it probably is in the Netherlands, and that was pretty impressive. We rented a golf cart, which made our visit quite pleasant, partially because it kept us dry, because we got to see everything within the amount of time we felt like being there, and also because it was super fun to drive.

The gardens were lovely. The signs and commercials and everything said they had over 250,000 tulips. Apparently, they order the tulips directly, from Holland. A sign in the bathroom said that if you like what you see, you can place an order with them by 30 May, and on 1 June, when they order for next year, they will add your order to theirs so that you can grow lovely tulips directly from Holland.

We wondered what they do with all of the tulips, and apparently they have to take them all out every year. Otherwise, they wouldn't know what would pop up where next year. So they remove them and sell them.

Anyway, it was all very pretty. The festival goes on until 2 May. It's $10/adults, $6/kids, $9/seniors, and I think golf carts are $25, and worth every penny if it's rainy or if you don't feel like walking, or if you like speeding (THERE ARE NO SPEED LIMITS!!! WOOOO!!!), and especially if you have four people.

Earth Day Revue!

This Wednesday was Earth Day, and we had something on campus called Earthfest. It was a big thing with a bunch of booths that helped everyone get excited about being green, or going green, etc.

There was a booth that had facts to prove that unless everyone in the world moved into 2-bedroom apartments and used solar electricity and grew their own foods, and only walked and rode bikes and stopped having kids, etc, then we would destroy four Earths within our lifetime. I didn't read all of it, but that was basically what my coworker said about it afterward. So here's what I don't get, though: have none of these scientists ever been on a road trip? There's still a lot of space. Hasn't anyone played Sim City 2000? Because obviously, of course, the solution is to start building arcologies when we need to. I don't understand what the problem is.

There was a sculpture of a unicorn that said "clean coal" on it. I heard someone explain why they built it, and basically it was because Matheson has clean coal ideas, and they think it's as real as a unicorn which should fly off to some magical fairyland or something. It sounded really ridiculous, but I guess they probably got a lot of attention, and that's probably what they wanted.

One of the booths had soil and seeds, and they encouraged people to plant a seed. So I did. A lot of the seeds they had were for things that I'm already growing or for things that I wouldn't know how to use if it did grow. So I planted catnip. Paley will like that. She loves catnip. And then I carried the little planted seed around all day so that everyone would know that I Care About The Environment, which is a Big Deal here.

The booths that I was more interested in were:

The Utah Museum of Natural History. They had a booth about their exhibit called Toadally Frogs! There was a guy dressed up as a frog at the booth, and I got a picture with him, but my favorite part of his costume you can't see in the picture--he had green little-kid swim fins on top of his shoes. And he was wearing green tights. The costume was pretty awesome, actually. I think the exhibit sounds cool, too. I want to go. It is free for [U of U] students and $7 for adults. (Other students with ID are $2.50, and kids are $3.50.) They have some neat lectures and events coming up. This weekend we're going to the Tulip Festival (for Dutch Day! At Thanksgiving Point!), but this exhibit goes through September, so maybe we can go after school gets out.

Sun Ovens. I had never heard of these before! Basically, it uses reflector things to heat up an oven. They were cooking cookies (at 350 degrees F!) and bread right in front of us. These seem like they would be great for emergencies or for camping.

Salt Lake Food Co-Op. I volunteered at their shipment last month (counting lemons!), because of a group I'm involved with on campus, but I didn't actually know much about them. I think I may start participating, though. Basically, a whole bunch of people as a group order stuff mostly from local growers. So it's fresh, and supporting local farmers, and a bunch of it is organic. Plus! Since they order directly and cut out the retailers (people volunteer to make it all happen), things cost like half of what they do in the grocery stores. That's kind of cool. And it's not like, a poverty thing. It's an anyone thing.

Local Green Things. There were several booths about gardening opportunities, and free classes on gardening things, etc. One booth was about urban chicken-raising. I would really like to get some chickens, because I think it would be great to have fresh eggs! That booth had adorable little chicks. Apparently, in Salt Lake a lot of people are becoming interested in raising chickens. The laws here say that you can have chickens in the City if you get permission from your neighbors. No roosters, though. Nothing prohibits having roosters, exactly, but people kind of assume that it would disturb neighbors, which is a pretty safe assumption since most people don't want a neighbor's rooster to crow early. And if you were to get a rooster and it bothered your neighbors, the City would make you get rid of it. So people are sticking to just hens. (Which is kind of like the opposite of China--makes me wonder what they do with all of the left over roosters...)

The U of U's new bike program. The senior gift this year was a bunch of bikes, which students can borrow for free, for a couple weeks. Our campus loves bikes, because we love going green. Bikes are kind of silly, though, because our campus is on a huge hill. Senior gifts are silly, too, I think, because basically what they do is: take our money, spend it on something they want, present it to us, and we're supposed to feel like we're receiving something nice. I'd rather just keep my money. But hey, whatever. (I guess that would kind of be expected, since I'm conservative and prefer to keep my own money, thankyouverymuch.) The bikes look nice, anyway.

Farm to Fork Food! One booth had a bunch of food that you could taste that was made from fresh ingredients. So I bought tickets and I had bruschetta on fresh bread with fresh tomatoes and onions and olive oil. And I had watermelon juice to drink. It was fantastic. I ended up buying some artisan bread (honey whole wheat), which was excellent.

Salt Lake City 1/2 Marathon!

This weekend I ran my first half marathon.

I loved it!

Although I registered months ago, this semester has been intense, and I really didn't train for the race much at all. I think the farthest I had run before the race was 5 miles. Maybe? If that. A half marathon is 13.1 miles.

So I just kind of assumed that the race was way too much for me. And then they sent out final preparation instructions and there was a whole paragraph about how they welcome walkers (which they defined as people who need 16 minutes or more per mile). People walking the whole marathon could register for early start, but everyone else would start at the normal times.

And, huh. I hadn't thought about walking. I knew that I do just fine in 5Ks, though, and they're 3 miles. So I decided I would run until I got tired and then walk until I felt like I could run some more, and the whole race would be just a little more than doing 4 5Ks in a row. Which sounded like a lot again. But I walk a ton every day, so I decided I'd go for it.

I was nervous the morning of. Also, I had only gotten 3 or 4 hrs of sleep the night before, because since I was planning on not racing I had gotten tickets to a comedian and magician, which didn't even start until 10p. So I was way tired. It was totally fine, though! I ran the first 4 miles without really walking much at all. After that, I started to get tired. By mile 8 or 9 I was walking more than I was running. But there was no point where I felt like I was dying, and I never felt like I might not finish. I felt like I was closer to then end than I was, and I think I ran the last mile and a half without stopping, because people on the sides kept telling me I was almost there.

People were suuuuper encouraging. They always are at races. I love the atmosphere. Total strangers cheer everyone on. When I was downtown, someone walking back from the finish told us that we just had four blocks down hill, and that was it! (Sooorrrrt of.) So I ran. And towards the bottom of the hill, I realized that the finish was probably farther, and started walking, but another guy leaving encouraged me and I started running again. And then, when I finally got to the finish line, we had to run all the way down the Gateway, and I was suuuuper tired, but the sides were lined with people cheering, so I kept going. It felt awesome to finish.

A couple of my favorite parts were:

1. At about mile 2, a girl with a prosthetic foot passed me. She was totally in shape, so obviously of course she passed me, but I felt way motivated because if she could be a hard core runner, I totally could too. It was kind of like when you're standing in line for a scary roller coaster and not feeling too sure about things and a 7 year old in front of you is all excited to go on it again because they've already been on the ride 4 times.

2. At mile...6? ish? a couple guys had brought a griddle out in front of their house, onto the side of the road. "BACON!" "BACON!" they called out to all of us passing by. So I went over to them and they gave me a strip of fresh bacon. Fantastic! The whole thing was totally random, and all of us running thought it was great.

3. Finishing! I finished in 2 hours and 48 minutes, which isn't really fast, but it's like a 12:30ish pace, which is totally reasonable, I think. Also note: I was not last! Or even close to last.

Today the pictures came up on MarathonFoto, which is way spendy to order from. Still, I think ordering pictures is sensible because, what, am I going to ask other runners to take my picture while I'm running? Not so much. I'm posting the two that I'll probably order. (Wahoo! My first 1/2 marathon!) The other pictures of me are not very flattering. I blinked in a few of them/ could barely get my feet off the ground, etc. The top picture is one I took while we were lined up to start. It was a sea of people!

So now I want to do more of these! My marathon training group is doing Hobble Creek (sp?) over the summer, and I think I'll also do the Provo River Trail 1/2 Marathon this summer, and then hopefully I'll get into St. George for a full marathon this fall. I'll find out in about 3 weeks.

Hidden Love Letter!

I just found something neat at work--a love letter hidden in the margin of an independent film newspaper from the summer of 1984. Back then maybe it was out on the shelf, but now someone would have to request it specifically from our storage thing here at the library.

It says:

Wendy,
I want you to know that I have fallen in love w/ you in the short time that we've been together. It is such a great sensation one that I have not felt for along time & I feel better than I have for 5, 6 yrs. Anyway thanks for caring about me you make me feel important. I hope you see that Tim is not the one for you because it is me.
Your Soulmate

Wow!

I have so many questions!
1. The corner is torn right beneath "soulmate." What was there before? His name? Did she see it? Did she know? Did she take it? Did he?
2. Did she choose him?
3. Who is Tim? What happened to him?
4. Why confess your love in the margin of a newspaper that belongs to a library?

35 Suggestions for a Healthy Home

I'm pretty sure I've shared things from the Apartment Therapy book before. Although the fixing-up-my-apartment project continues [forever], after four months of borrowing the book from my library it's finally due. I have one more section that I've been meaning to share, and it's from the appendix. I've tried a bunch of this stuff, and it just seems good, so here it is:

35 Suggestions for a Healthy Home

When you wake up in the morning, make your bed. [I usually do now. I like it.]

Make sure the seat is down after you use the toilet. [I always do this. One time I actually left it open and Paley accidentally jumped into the toilet, because she usually jumps from the toilet seat to the sink, and didn't know to be careful. It was pretty funny and she got a bath right after I pulled her out. Poor cat.]

Always leave the shower curtain pulled across, so that it can dry and not mildew. [I try to remember this. It also makes my bathroom more colorful.]

Use your kitchen in the morning, even if it is only to have a glass of orange juice.

Take out the recycling when you leave home each morning. [I hate the environment so this doesn't apply to me.*]

Always include a thank you note with your rent. [I started doing this. I like it and will continue to do it. Now that I think about it, I bet it could just be a card that says "Thank You" with the check in it. What I've been doing is giving him an update on the apartment and telling him a little of what I'm up to. For example, this month I will update him on my painting project. Maybe I'll start doing just a blank thank you card for months that I don't have things to tell him about?]

Have your paper delivered. It is cheaper and more efficient.

Always go out of your way to say good morning to your neighbors on the street.

Pick up garbage in front of your building even if it's not yours. [Dilemma: I have a neighbor who is a collector. Of everything. I've heard his apartment is packed with stuff. He has two cars next to the house that are full of stuff too. I want to get rid of the junk on the side of our house, but I think he may be "saving" some of it. What to do?]

Before you leave the office, take five minutes to clean up your desk. [More relevant if you have a desk at work.]

On Fridays, take fifteen minutes and clear your desk, throwing out or filing all Post-Its, cards, or papers that are old.

Buy flowers for your apartment at least once a week on your way home from work. [I did this for a few weeks, but it gets kind of spendy on a student budget. Still, it brought life to my old little house. I wonder if the kitchen herbs will have the same effect? Eh. Probably not.]

Take off your street shoes when you come home. Use house shoes inside your home. [I started wearing house sandals. I like this and will continue to wear them.]

Hang your coat up right away when you come home.

Sort your mail right away when you come home.

Keep all coats, bags, and shoes by the front door. [Works better if you have an entryway, I would guess.]

Use the time just after you get home to run any local errands, such as dry cleaning, pharmacy, or laundry.

Check your messages right away and then erase the tape. [Huh. Do people still have answering machines?]

Return all your calls before dinner.

Use a cordless headset to make calls while you cook or straighten up your house. [ = Bluetooth?]

Don't let your refrigerator fill up with old food.

Always eat on a real plate with a real napkin.

Light a candle when you eat, even if you are alone.

Drink water.

When you are done, clean up and take this opportunity to clean your counters and table. If any counters or tables need oiling, do it right away.

Do all dishes before you go to bed.

Floss each night.

Don't make calls after 9 p.m.

Put all clothes away or in the laundry before going to bed each night.

Take a bath before bed if you have trouble sleeping.

Plan on at least 7 1/2 hours of sleep a night.

Buy good bedding. Invest in a good bed. [Someday.]

Get in bed early and read for 30 minutes.

Only have one book at your bedside at a time. Finish the books you start.

Give four parties a year.

Anyway, those are the 35. I almost felt like I should bold all of the ones that I'm doing and post it on Facebook. Doesn't it seem like one of those?

*Just kidding. Mostly. I did switch to earth-friendly dish soap and laundry detergent because of this book.

As promised...

As promised, here is the other ad that I enjoyed from the 18 Nov 1950 Colliers:

Verizon's commercials

Know how Verizon has these really clever commercials where the employees are all following the person using their phone? Because, you know, so many people are all working to make sure that your Verizoning experience is exactly what you hope it will be, and so much more?

Yeahhhh, it's actually not all that new of an idea. Check out this ad that I found while I was working today:

Gasp! It's been done!

600,000 Bell Telephone People were coming out of people's telephones even back in 1950, Helping to Get Things Done. Who knew?! Verizon, probably.

(This is from the 18 November 1950 issue of Collier's. Which is my new favorite magazine. I think I would have been good at the 1950's.)

I also found another AMAZING advert, but it was in color and was taking too long to email, so it'll have to wait until tomorrow.

Jagged Edge Retreat

I've been meaning to blog about the Jagged Edge Retreat since there's really not much about it online.

My stylist is Cara, and I like her a lot.

The whole place is fantastic, actually. The salon is painted blue, and there are these giant trees all over. Each of the stations is made in basically the same style, but the wood and details about each of them are all different. It's totally a trendy place. I think most of the stylists have tattoos. They use Redken products.

I started going several months ago. I had Jess find a place online; I was actually thinking of a particular place downtown, but I couldn't remember what it was called. She found this one, and set my appointment for me, and I went. It ended up not being the place that I had wanted [thought I wanted?], but when I walked in, I immediately loved it. Although I had been planning on just getting a haircut, I knew that it would be a waste to leave without having them do color.

Back then, I had been doing my hair at home and it had gradually become more red than I wanted, and then I had kind of matched my natural color... kind of. My hair was growing out and you could see the part that was dyed and the part that wasn't, but I don't think people noticed unless they were looking closely. So I told Cara that I wanted something different, but I really didn't know what, and I showed her a couple magazine pictures of layered haircuts.

She suggested highlights to bring it all together. I said that was fine, but that I didn't want to look like a zebra. My first stylist back in California used to do my highlights, and I kind of felt stripey, especially looking back at pictures. Cara understood.

And that was the beginning of that. I liked Cara because she had so much personality! (She still does.) We chatted a bunch, and I was having guy problems back then and she was the one who sang "just gotta keep on keepin' on" which I still think about sometimes.

When I went back, she totally remembered me. She remembered where I worked, and my mission in Italy, and the guy problems, and everything. And she asked all about it, and we picked right up where we had left off. She has a little index card that she uses to keep track of the exact amounts of color she does each time so that she knows how to get the precise colors we do for me.

And that's how it is every time. We're friends. At the beginning we talk about what I want, and plan out my hair, and I always leave a couple hours later feeling like my hair is artwork. Right now we're doing blonde highlights and dark brown (...lowlights?), mixed in with my normal hair color and the caramel that we used to do. I think it looks smashing!

They also do extremely trendy hairstyles, like whoever you know who has amazing, amazing hair, except better.

It is kind of spendy, but for people who Googled this and just want to look awesome, it's totally worth it. And for everyone else, I wanted to share pictures, since the place is super random.

[Also, PS, they are usually busy-- I took the pictures at my last appointment, which was a late appointment, and I decided it would be nicer to avoid pictures of other people since I knew I was posting them on the interwebs. (Except at the front, because they were there and I wanted one of the front anyway.)]

Doga?

I just found something interesting on Craigslist. It's Doga, which is yoga for dogs.

...

I can't decide whether it sounds like a good idea, (like massages for infants, which do a lot of good things), or whether it just seems silly.

It says it's a class unlike anything else being offered. I think this is true. The description says:

"Doga is incredibly fun and benefits both you and your pup in a variety of ways. You will have the opportunity to bond and spend some peaceful, soothing, quality time with your pup, you will also learn the basics of canine massage, as well as putting calm behavior on cue - incredibly helpful if you have a dog that stresses or gets hyper. Dogs of any size may join this class, and NO prior Yoga experience is needed. The Yoga poses are simple & easy enough for even the newest beginner, but may also be modified for those yogi's with more experience."

Huh. No prior experience needed. (I wonder, are there dogs that do have prior experience?)

The part that I really love the most, though, is the picture on the ad!


It makes me giggle and also fascinates me.

If you want to know more their website is here, or you can see the ad on Craigslist here. If you decide to get a dog just so that you can try this, the hours and location of the class are also listed.

I wonder if they would let me bring Paley. Or if they have Catoga. Probably not.

Garden 2.0.09

Even though a week ago it was still snowing here, when I went grocery shopping at Smithy's last Saturday they totally indulged my desire to pretend it's spring by having a Start Your Garden Indoors! display.

They had seeds for everything, and those little peat moss things (or fake peat moss since using real peat moss is Bad for the environment) that expand so that you can start seeds indoors. In all sizes! I could start a few seeds, or a lot of seeds, or a ton of seeds. Of anything.

And even though I do know it's not really spring yet, I totally bit. I bought it ALL! Well. A lot of it, anyway. I won't need more seeds for a long, long time.

I knew I wanted to start growing fresh herbs for my kitchen (I think this was even on my 101 list), so I got the Kitchen Herbs kit, which came with six little pots and seeds for Basil (mmmm), Chives, and Parsley.

And then I chose the seed growing kit that had 72 cells (instead of one with 50 something or 30 something.) And I chose seeds. I'm growing: cilantro (which is also coriander. Who knew?), rosemary, mint, oregano, thyme, onions, cauliflower, broccoli, cantaloupe, arugula, celery, peppers, and mixed lettuces.

Here are some of the lessons that I learned from my garden last year:

- Buy little plants instead of using seeds, especially for tomatoes and strawberries. Otherwise, it takes all season for them to grow to be big enough to give fruit and then there isn't enough time for them to grow things before fall.

- Don't plant anything outside until after it's done snowing.

- The little pods that are not just dirt (so that you can plant them in the tiny pot they grow in) are cool, but they make me feel concern for the roots that aren't strong enough to break through.

- Even though seeds are tiny, you don't have to plant a whole lot for them to grow.*

- Thinning a garden is not fun, because you have to take little plants (!) that worked so hard to grow from being teeny tiny seeds (!) that are totally viable (!) and just throw them away (!)

- Science has a lot figured out, but God has even more figured out.

- Plants need sufficient light to grow. If the package says it needs direct sunlight, partial sunlight for a few hours isn't going to cut it.**

Anyhow, I got the stuff, and I planted it. I planted the little kitchen garden first, and then I planted the other stuff. I came up with a plan so that things would stay organized:

I used my label machine to make little labels for some of the things on the sides so that I would remember what was where on the actual thing.

And then I put it up on the plant shelf in my kitchen window and left it.

AND THEY GREW!

I planted this stuff one week ago, and here are pictures from today:

I still need to figure out who had the garden in front of our house last year. We have a triangular space about 1o' x 15?' that someone used for gardening last summer. If it was the girl who used to live where I am now*** then it's my garden now. If not, I may have to fight someone for it, I mean share nicely. In either case, I plan to get a bunch of pots for outside since Krista's garden thrived last year, and hers was in pots, and mine didn't and wasn't.

* But that didn't keep me from planting several lettuce seeds in each cell. Because they're just so tiny. Annnnd, now they're all growing. Of course.

** Hooray! I have great sunlight at this house.

*** Likely, since she had a ton of plants in this apartment--hanging, on shelves, in pots outside.

First Morsbag Complete!

I just finished my first Morsbag!

(This is a project that I have on my list of 101 things in 1001 days; I want to make 250 of them.)

I am so proud of myself.

It came out absolutely darling. If I were not already converted to bringing my own reusable grocery bags, this would totally win me over. Because why would you want to use nasty cheap plastic bags which kill animals if you could use a lovely (almost designer!) reusable bag also for free? Salt Lake is going to love morsbags.

It's pretty big, too. In the picture the label looks like it's 3" wide or something and the bag isn't so big...the label is actually about the length of a dollar bill.

The seams are all way reinforced, too, so these will be pretty sturdy bags.

Hm. This is a way fun project. I have stuff cut out to sew 14 more. (But not tonight! I need to go to bed!)

Tomorrow I'm going to donate platelets for the first time since I moved up to Utah. I've done a few other things from my list. And I need to blog about my garden, too. I've been doing a lot of stuff lately.