Don't Tell Jamie Oliver

Nineteen times out of twenty, I'm devoted to the cause.  I think real people should cook real food.  Healthy food, made from real ingredients and not processed crap.  I definitely think people should be able to identify the difference between a potato and a tomato.  I eat real food, that I've generally prepared myself.  These days I'm even learning a bit about cutting back on or eliminating some of the white sugar and white flour in things.  I'm on board with the "Food Revolution"

But the twentieth time?  That time I just want Macdonalds.  And not one of their new salad options either.  I want a cheeseburger (no mustard, no onions, no pickles), and chicken mcnuggets, and french fries.  Preferably all consumed in the same artery clogging meal.  I still want chicken mcnuggets even after Jamie demonstrated how they're made and what they're made of last year on "The Food Revolution."

I had Macdonalds last night.  The very meal described above.  It motivated me all afternoon as I trekked across the city on foot and by transit, crossing errands off my list of things to do.  I plotted what I would order, and thought about how much I was going to enjoy it.  And I didn't even feel guilty about it (well, maybe a little guilty, but it was totally guilty pleasure!)

Today, I'll be back on the wagon.

Please don't tell Jamie.

(and, by the way, if you haven't watched Jamie's TED prize talk, you need to.  It's linked up above where I mention that I think it's important for kids to be able to identify vegetables correctly.)

Daily 5 - Day 323

Last night was pretty rough.  Some odd dream/vision things that meant that sleep was fleeting.  Various things heavy on my heart through the night mean I did a lot of praying and pushing through some stuff, and not a lot of sleeping.  Around 4:30 this morning I took an extra dose of the supplement I take to aid with sleep, and somehow managed to mostly sleep for about the next 4 hours or so.

I wrote to a dear friend, describing the night I'd had, and commenting that I was having a pretty slow morning because of it, and she wrote back, saying among other things that she hoped I'd find some interesting reasons to smile today.  When I finally managed to propel myself out of bed (which I think was sometime around noon - I did a lot of email/blog/internet stuff from a horizontal pose this morning!), I set out to do just that - find some interesting (to me at least!) reasons to smile.

And thus, here's today's daily 5:

1. not having major plans, thus allowing for a very much needed slow morning in bed after a rough night
2. compensating for my cold bedroom this evening by lighting tons of candles all around the room and enjoying their glow, and the warmth they're adding to the chilly air
3. solo zoo trip
4. the baby gorilla - and, I learned a new fact: gorillas nurse their babies for 3-5 years.
5. the colobus monkeys were really funny to watch today
6. It takes me between 27 and 35 steps to walk the length of a blue whale.
7. finished some reading for a Christian leadership course I'm taking (besides the school stuff) while I was on the bus.  it was nice to get this out of the way a day or two before it actually has to be done.
8. I revisited one of my favorite quotes, painted on the wall as you exit the rainforest exhibit where the gorillas are.  "Like water, be gentle and strong.  Be gentle enough to follow the natural paths of the earth, and strong enough to rise up and reshape the world." (Brenda Peterson)  It always reminds me of Jesus being called living water, and expresses rather nicely how I'd like to live - gentle and strong.
9. I made a rare visit to the downtown, central library branch, and spent a bit of time hunting for some books I had in mind.  It's more fun, somehow, when the books take up several floors.
10. The library had the entire series of three novels that I was looking to read soon in stock today.
11. I picked up a few books with various walking tours around the city.
12. I made it to the mall, and managed to get a whole list of errands out of the way.
13. I spent some very enjoyable time plotting the junk food supper I was going to treat myself to.
14. I walked, a lot, today.
15. knowing that my schedule was totally flexible, and it didn't matter in the grand scheme of things if the bus was 10 minutes or more late (which at least one was)
16. having junk food for supper (more on that tomorrow!)
17. thinking about all of the things I was doing as I did them, and keeping a mental running list of "interesting reasons to smile"
18. clean drinking water - there's something about this that just never gets old for me, especially since water is my beverage of choice.  I suppose I think too, about the many, many people who can't have it, and that makes it even more amazing to me.
19. the male peacocks at the zoo were displaying their feathers in full force today.  Since I usually go in winter, I don't see that often, and it really is a beautiful sight.
20. giggling just thinking about the giant anteater (one of my favorites, after the gorilla).  I didn't see it today, but just stopping to think about it really did make me smile outwardly and giggle inwardly.
21. a ten minute yoga video this morning (in retrospect, with all the walking I did today, the exercise was totally unnecessary, but it was a nice way to wake up when I did finally crawl out of bed)

I Kill My Own Spiders

A number of years ago my dad read a column to me that was written by humor columnist Dave Barry.  It was titled, "From Here on, Let Women Kill Their Own Spiders."

I was thinking of that title this week, because it's summer, and I live in a basement.

Life in a basement generally always means that there is a spider or two to be found.

Life in a basement in the summer can mean that spiders are a regular occurrence.

And this week I've killed at least three or four.  I don't even scream anymore.

Not only that, but the other day, I walked through the laundry room on my way to the little basement bathroom I use at Grandma's, and noticed a spider.  I just couldn't be bothered to kill it.  It wasn't in my bedroom or bathroom, so I just ignored it.

I've come a long way.

And I kill my own spiders.

Daily 5 - Day 322

Today's Daily 5:

1. Playing a knock off version of the game "Battleship" on my iphone.  I have fond memories of playing a travel sized version of Battleship on long road trips as a kid.  I think they're particularly fond because it was one of the few games I could consistently beat my brothers at.  I don't think I ever told them that I won by cheating - either by "glancing accidentally" to see the location of their ships, or moving mine around while they were firing shots.
2. bottled water
3. talking for a little while this morning with a dear friend
4. time with family, sharing good food
5. chocolate - peanut m and m's in particular today.

Summer Nights at Grandma's

I'm at Grandma's house mostly only for sleeping these days.

But, let me tell you about summer sleeping in the basement at Grandma's.

It requires more clothing and blankets, not less.

Last night I wore my pajamas, and my polar fleece robe, and a pair of socks to bed.

I haven't taken any blankets for winter off of my bed.

My theory is this.

Basements are always cold, because heat rises.

In the winter, this is compensated for by the reality of a furnace.

So here's the problem in summer.

My room gets absolutely no natural light, really, meaning it doesn't naturally warm up.

The heat sensor for the furnace in the house, the thermostat, is upstairs. 

Upstairs, which, on hot summer days, doesn't require a furnace.

My room is cold.

The furnace generally kicks in sometime in the middle of the night, when the upstairs temperature finally drops a little.

In the meantime, sleep in summer at Grandma's requires layers.