Life Decisions

Time is a valuable commodity. I enjoy my job, but have been working long hours. I’m also taking a class in preparation for deciding on whether to dive completely into the PhD.
For me, graduate school isn’t difficult per say, just time consuming. I’ve already done this before with the MA. Weekly papers, [...]

A Day at the Zoo

Recently we went to the Omaha Zoo. I’m often torn at zoos – I recognize their conservation value, and at a well-run zoo, the animals have a decent quality of life.
Still, primates get me. I am one, after all. Could I imagine being kept in an enclosure that small for my [...]

Bike to Work

Weekend bike ride photo
We started biking to work for a variety of reasons.
1) parking passes are $550, which is ridiculous
2) thought it best to walk the talk about sustainability
3) the bike is actually faster door-to-door than the car
4) the average new bike-to-worker loses 13 lbs the first year
We take a bike path the majority of [...]

Being Green – Hand Towels

There are plenty of large-scale changes that we need to do to be more sustainable. Sometimes we just need to start small.
It’s no surprise to those who know me – I have, what could be delicately put, a small bladder. I feel guilt every time I “kill a tree” to dry my hands. [...]

Samwise the Hamwise says What?

Sam went to the vet yesterday. Since he was a kitten, he’s always had an ear scratching problem, but on Sunday, we discovered he’d scratched a new area and it was large and freshly scabbed over. So, off to the vet. Diagnosis? Allergies – could be diet, could be environmental. [...]

Mostly Martha

We watched this movie the other night – it’s the original that No Reservations with Catherine Zeta-Jones is based on. It’s in German, with subtitles.
They always say you can understand more of a language you learned, than speak it. I’m amazed that practically 10 years later, I remember anything at all. I [...]

“Americans don’t really know how to do nothing.”

I had Friday off.  My payroll week is Friday-Thursday, and as of Thursday at 5pm, I had worked 60.5 hours.  I took Friday off to recouperate; to just relax.
Oh, but I didn’t relax.  Because I didn’t get enough done.  For the record: I made my husband a pancake breakfast, ran two errands, cleaned the bathroom, [...]

Poor-man’s Mississippi Valley

The Murky Missouri 
As I drove along western Missouri to Kansas City last week, I was reminded of my beloved western Wisconsin. Gentle hills, river bluffs, and of course, the river itself. But the Missouri is murkier, the bluffs not as high, and the rolling hills, well, not all that rolling. And yes, there were cows, [...]

Kansas City

My work duties brought me to Kansas City last week. I unfortunately didn’t find time to explore, but Dan and I are planning a weekend trip. It reminded me in some ways of Milwaukee – old brick buildings, fun looking taverns and shops, and I hear the fountain area is a replica [...]

Watermelon Chiffon Pie

This one looked good on paper and is one of my August pies. It’s not a favorite of mine, but many people at work liked it. It’s different, so I’m including the recipe so you can try it for yourself.  (Not that you’ll actually find good watermelon this time of year, but people were complaining [...]