Daffodil Lane

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November 30, 2006

Whole Wheat Pasta Salad

1 - 10 ounce box of Hodgson Mill Organic Whole Wheat spirals with Milled Flax Seed
1 cup of fresh or frozen peas
1 cup of fresh or frozen corn
1/2 onion, chopped
1 large carrot, shredded
1/2 an English cucumber, chopped
1 teaspoon of dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon of dried basil
1/2 cup of freshly grated Parmesan Cheese
1 pinch of sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1/2-3/4 cups of olive oil
2 tablespoons of white balsamic vinegar

Cook pasta according to package directions and cool. Set aside.

Mix veggies together in a large bowl and add pasta to veggie mixture and stir until mixed.

In a small bowl mix remaining ingredients until well incorporated and pour over pasta mixture. Stir well.

Serve chilled.

Posted by Dianne at 4:33 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack

Are You A Good Cook?

You Are an Excellent Cook

You're a top cook, but you weren't born that way. It's taken a lot of practice, a lot of experimenting, and a lot of learning. It's likely that you have what it takes to be a top chef, should you have the desire...

Posted by Dianne at 1:21 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Are You Psychic?

You Are 80% Psychic

You are so very psychic. But you already predicted that, didn't you? You have "the gift" - and you use it daily to connect with others. You're very tapped into the world around you... Just make sure to use your powers for good!

Posted by Dianne at 1:15 PM

What Kind of Intelligence Do You Have?

Your Dominant Intelligence is Spatial Intelligence

You've got a good sense of space and how the world around you looks. You can close your eyes and "see" images. You have innate artistic talent. An eye for color and shapes, you're also a natural designer. Since you think in pictures, visual aids and demonstartions help you learn best. You would make a good navigator, sculptor, visual artist, inventor, architect, interior designer, or engineer.

That's pretty much me! ;O)

Not that this will surprise anyone.

Your Dominant Intelligence is Logical-Mathematical Intelligence

You are great at finding patterns and relationships between things. Always curious about how things work, you love to set up experiments. You need for the world to make sense - and are good at making sense of it. You have a head for numbers and math ... and you can solve almost any logic puzzle. You would make a great scientist, engineer, computer programmer, researcher, accountant, or mathematician.

Posted by Dianne at 1:13 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack

Christmas Meme

1. Eggnog or Hot Chocolate? Both

2. Does Santa wrap presents or just sit them under the tree? It depends on how big the present is. Santa wraps the smaller ones and ones that are a regular shape. Something like a bike or for instance the wagon Alexis got last year was not wrapped.

3. Colored lights on tree/house or white? White

4. Do you hang mistletoe? When I can find it.

5. When do you put your decorations up? Usually the Saturday after Thanksgiving

6. What is your favorite holiday dish (excluding dessert)? Deviled eggs and yeast rolls

7. What is your favorite holiday memory as a child? Exploring our stockings.

8. When and how did you learn the truth about Santa? I don't remember.

9. Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve? Sometimes.

10. How do you decorate your Christmas tree? I have usually 2 or 3 trees. The main tree is decorated with white lights and all sorts of ornaments that have various histories from over the years. The smaller tree in the dining room is decorated with multicolored lights, popcorn strings, gingerbread men and other funky homemade ornaments that Alexis and I will make over the next few weeks. We only have room for 2 trees in this house.

11. Snow! Love it or dread it? I LOVE snow!!! Seriously, I want it to start snowing right NOW! Of course it's so warm today I have my windows open airing out the house, so I guess it isn't going to snow anything soon. Oh well.

12. Can you ice skate? I can go forward on ice skates, but I can't do any of the fancy stuff and the only way I can stop is to go toward a wall, but I've never fallen on ice skates. Roller skates however I nearly cracked my head open as a child!! I do NOT do roller skates!!

13. Do you remember your favorite gift? As a child it was a trip to Washington, DC with my school group. As an adult it would have to be the diamond cross pendant Jamison gave me a couple of years ago. I always wanted one and I adore the one he gave me.

14. What's the most important thing about the holidays for you? Doing little things for people in need.

15. What is your favorite holiday dessert? Turtle cake and peppermint cheesecake

16. What is your favorite holiday tradition? Christmas Eve candlelight dinner with Christmas carols.

17. What is your favorite part about Christmas morning? Watching Alexis.

18. Which do you prefer - giving or receiving? Most definitely giving.

9. What is your favorite Christmas Song? Greensleeves, Dance of the Sugar Plum Ferry, Carol of the Bells...There is no way I can pick just one and if I keep writing them down we'll be here until the New Year! ;o)

20. Candy canes! Yuck or Yum? Yum!

Now your turn. ;o)

Posted by Dianne at 11:19 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

It Appears It Was Too Much To Hope For

The U-Haul truck is gone and the neighbors are still there. Damn.

Posted by Dianne at 9:45 AM | Comments (2) | TrackBack

A Meme of 50

1. When you looked at yourself in the mirror today, what was the first thing you thought? "That new cleanser you're using is really making your skin look great!"

2. How much cash do you have on you? $20

3. What’s a word that rhymes with “DOOR?” More

4. Favorite planet? Venus or Mars. And Pluto...You'll always be a planet to me! ;o)

5. Who is the 4th person on your missed call list on your cell phone? My Mom

6. What is your favorite ring tone on your phone? Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy

7. What shirt are you wearing? A grey Old Navy T-Shirt.

8. Do you “label” yourself? Don't we all? I'm OCD and a perfectionist. I'm also a mother, a wife, a daughter, a sister, a friend, a good cook, a crafty sort of person....This could go on forever! ;o)

9. Name the brand of the shoes you’re currently wearing? I’m wearing Isotoner slippers I got a BJ's last year.

10. Bright or Dark Room? What would you be doing in this room?

11. What do you think about the person who took this survey before you? She seems like a very awesome sort of person to me.

12. What does your watch look like? I don't wear a watch.

13. What were you doing at midnight last night? Asleep

14. What did your last text message you received on your cell say? I don't remember, but I know it was from Jamison on election day.

15. Where is your nearest 7-11? I think there is one a few miles from here, but I don't frequent 7-11 so I don't know for sure.

16. What's a word that you say a lot? No. I have a three year old after all! ;o)

17. Who told you he/she loved you last? Miss Aleximus

18. Last furry thing you touched? I have no idea. Probably Amber's former cat Charlie.

19. How many drugs have you done in the last three days? Does Advil count?

20. How many rolls of film do you need developed? One or two from days long ago.

21. Favorite age you have been so far? 33 is pretty good.

22. Your worst enemy? Good question.

23. What is your current desktop picture? Alexis and "her" Christmas tree.

24. What was the last thing you said to someone? "No!" Did I mention I live with a three year old? ;o)

25. If you had to choose between a million bucks or to be able to fly what would it be? I would choose to be able to fly, because in reality that would last a lifetime and would come in handy, while in reality a million bucks isn't so much money these days.

26. Do you like someone? I like a lot of people. Be more specific.

27. The last song you listened to? "Everything" by Alanis Morissette

28. What time of day were you born? I have no clue. I was adopted and my birth certificate doesn't say. As a matter of fact it really ticks me off that I don't know, but then again I guess that is how life goes.

29. What’s your favorite number? 3

30. Where did you live in 1987? Etowah, Tennessee

31. Are you jealous of anyone? No. Jealousy is a wasted emotion.

32. Is anyone jealous of you? I have no clue, but I would hope not.

33. Where were you when 9/11 happened? I was out running errands that morning and found out about the first plane on the radio and found out about the second plane from the Pepsi delivery person at the grocery store. From there I went home and heard about flight 93 and the plane at the Pentagon on CNN. I pretty much sat glued to the TV until later that afternoon when Jamison made me stop watching.

34. What do you do when vending machines steal your money? I don't think that has ever happened to me

35. Do you consider yourself kind? I strive to be kind. Do unto others and all that, but sometimes it's hard to be nice to some people that aren't being nice to you.

36. If you had to get a tattoo, where would it be? Why would I "have" to get a tattoo? I'm not a fan of tattoos. I think they are tacky and I can't get past the thought of a tattoo on 80 year old saggy skin! Not pretty!!

37. If you could be fluent in any other language, what would it be? Gaelic, Italian, Spanish, Latin and French. Why just one?

38. Would you move for the person you loved? Yes and have done so as a matter of fact.

39. Are you touchy feely? I am with people I'm comfortable with or people I know that are comfortable with being touched. Otherwise no. And I don't like people I don't know touching me. I think there are boundaries you should follow with such things.

40. What’s your life motto? At least try. If you don't then what do you have to complain about?

41. Name three things that you have on you at all times? My wedding band, my engagement ring and lip balm.

42. What’s your favourite town/city? New York, Cape Hatteras, DC...It's hard to choose just one! And if you can add cities you've never been to then throw in any city in Ireland or Scotland, London, Paris, Rome, Kyoto, etc. I want to see them all!

43. What was the last thing you paid for with cash? Lunch yesterday.

44. When was the last time you wrote a letter to someone on paper and mailed it? Last December.

45. Can you change the oil on a car? Yes

46. Your first love: what is the last thing you heard about him/her? I'm married to my first real love. I thought I was in love before Jamison, but I wasn't.

47. How far back do you know about your ancestry? Don't know, don't care. I was adopted for one and also what's the point of getting all excited about a bunch of people long since dead? I've never gotten the whole thrill with genealogy. Especially after a person told me to my face that I didn't "count" in the family tree because I was adopted. Um yeah, those people are freaks!!

48. The last time you dressed fancy, what did you wear and why did you dress fancy? I don't even remember. I vaguely remember dressing up and going out to dinner with Jamison, but I'm not sure when that was, but I wore black, because well I like black and it looks good on me too. :o)

49. Does anything hurt on your body right now? My back, but then again that's nothing new.

50. Have you been burned by love? By real love no, but the guy I dated before Jamison was quite the a$$hat!

Via Shakespeare's Sister.

Posted by Dianne at 9:13 AM | Comments (1)

November 29, 2006

Clerks II

We just got finished watching Clerks II and let me tell you it's hilarious! I'll admit the original Clerks is by far not even close to my favorite Kevin Smith movie (That would be Dogma, closely followed by Jersey Girl), in fact it ranks dead last, but this one is great! If you haven't seen it and you enjoy Kevin Smith's humor then by all means check it out. But for those of you who don't like off color slightly dirty humor then I advise you just move along.

Posted by Dianne at 9:38 PM

Could It Be Too Much To Hope For?

A U-Haul truck just pulled up next door. Could it be too much to hope for? Are the loading or unloading? If they are loading that would be the best Christmas present E-V-E-R!!! Load baby load! Please be moving! Prayers going up and fingers crossed!!!

Update 1 : 3:50 PM: I went upstairs and looked down upon the scene and something is definitely going on, though as of right now the truck is just sitting. They did put one thing in the back of it, but that's no indication of what is going on. They have out their tacky Christmas blow up things and a plastic fish type deal that looks like a crystal fish or dolphin with a Santa hat on the roof of their porch, so I would think that would indicate they weren't moving. Oh well. Time will tell. My rational side tells me it's doubtful, my hopeful side is still clinging to the off chance that they are out of here! After all he did tell Bonnie (my neighbor across the street) a couple of years ago that they had bought some land on the water and were going to build a house. It's possible. Oh please let it be possible!!

Update 2 : 4:20 PM: Still no loading or unloading, but there is a whole lot of negative energy going on over there right now. There has been some yelling and you can just feel the tension! Something is most defintely happening!

Update 3 : 4:21 PM: They just backed the truck up into their driveway! So either we're loading or unloading!! Not sure which yet!

Update 4 : 4:31 PM: The truck is still there, but they seem to have disappeared. It has gotten very quiet over there and the tension is gone. I guess they went somewhere.

Posted by Dianne at 3:36 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Nobody's Watching: Friends In 90 Seconds

Fun-ny!!

Posted by Dianne at 2:24 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Note To Britney Spears

First and foremost PUT ON SOME FREAKING UNDERWEAR!! No one wants to see your vagina every time you get out of a vehicle!

Second stop hanging out with Paris Hilton! Seriously? Paris Hilton? I know you can find better friends than that!

Third and more importantly YOU ARE THE MOTHER OF TWO SMALL CHILDREN....ACT LIKE ONE!! You need to be at home with your boys at night and not out partying to all hours of the day and night EVERY SINGLE EVENING! When you become a parent you do NOT have the liberty to stay out partying all night I don't care who you are, how much money you have or how many nannies you can afford! A night here or there is one thing, but every night? No!! You brought those children in to the world and now it's your responsibility to raise them! I'm just saying.

That is all.

Posted by Dianne at 9:55 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

It's About Time Someone Decided To Work In Washington

WASHINGTON -- Senate Majority Leader-elect Harry Reid said Tuesday he's doing away with the "do-nothing Congress" that Democrats campaigned against and plans to keep senators working long hours _ focusing first on ethics, the minimum wage and stem cell research.

The Nevada Democrat said he would tackle those priorities after cleaning up the "financial mess" the outgoing Republican Congress is leaving behind, a reference to nine long-overdue spending bills covering 13 Cabinet departments for the budget year that began Oct. 1.

"They're just leaving town, it appears," Reid said during an interview with The Associated Press in his Capitol office. "And so we're going to have to find a way to fund the government for the next year."

The must-pass legislation totals more than $460 billion and could divert time from other items on the Democratic agenda. "It's certainly not going to help it," Reid said.

He is wrapping up his final days as Senate minority leader. He will assume control of the Senate's agenda on Jan. 4, when the next Congress convenes with 10 new senators, at least 52 new House members and Democrats holding majorities in both houses for the first time since 1994.

"We're going to put in some hours here that haven't been put in in a long time," Reid said. That means "being here more days in the week, and we start off this year with seven weeks without a break. That hasn't been done in many, many years here."

We have a hard road ahead of us, especially with the lack of effort put forth by Republicans, but make no mistake we will persevere. It may take a year or two, but slowly but surely we are going to fix our country. Of course the Republicans will have to be drug kicking and screaming and that will slow down the process a bit, but the tide has turned against them and their backward ways. The time to heal our country is now, so either get on board or go ahead and lay down in front of the train and just put yourself out of your misery now. Progress is the only way forward and that's what the Democrats intend to do.

Found via the Washington Post.

Posted by Dianne at 9:45 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Take Note

I wouldn't mess with Mr. Webb if I were you:

The Post says Webb refused to have his picture taken with Bush and even refused to stand in the receiving line. Here’s the paper’s version of the exchange:

“How’s your boy?” Bush asked, referring to Webb’s son, a Marine serving in Iraq.

“I’d like to get them out of Iraq, Mr. President,” Webb responded, echoing a campaign theme.

“That’s not what I asked you,” Bush said. “How’s your boy?”

“That’s between me and my boy, Mr. President,” Webb said coldly, ending the conversation on the State Floor of the East Wing of the White House.

2007 is going to be awesome.

Bush really has no clue. He sits up on his high horse removed from reality through his own deluded visions and then he has the nerve to ask someone who not only served our country, but has a son currently in Iraq how his son might be. Well Mr. Bush how do you think he is? Wake up and smell reality! Mr. Web handled himself quite well and clearly threw Bush for a loop.

Wonkette is right...2007 is going to awesome! For the past six years they've played dirty and now they are stunned that no one takes them seriously. They've lied, cheated and....well you get the picture! Justice is bittersweet in this case, but we'll take it, because the alternative is not a pretty picture.

Found via Wonkette.

Posted by Dianne at 9:33 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack

November 28, 2006

Telling On Daddy

Jamison was getting Alexis out of the bathtub and she was procrastinating and lying on the bottom of the bathtub refusing to get up. After telling her a couple of times that she needed to stand up and get out of the tub he had to get firm with her.

"Get out of the tub NOW Alexis!"

*Blink, blink* "Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!"

"I told you nicely and you wouldn't listen so I had to use the Daddy voice and I don't like to use the Daddy voice!"

"Mommy, I need you right now! Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!"

So I walk into the bathroom and Alexis tells me still crying, "Mommy, Daddy's been a bad boy!"

Someone was bad, but it wasn't him! Jamison and I exchanged a look and both started laughing. She is just too funny sometimes! ;o)

Posted by Dianne at 7:17 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack

O'Malley answers the call of jury duty

Why is it that you never get feel good stories about Republicans? Wait that's a long conversation I'm not in the mood to start. Our future Governor was off doing his civic duty yesterday as "Juror No. 368". I've met the Governor-elect a couple of times now in my political travels and you just can't beat his sense of humor.

When a judge asked one group of jurors if any one of them was a lawyer, O'Malley stood. "I am a lawyer, my wife was a lawyer. All my brothers are lawyers. Nobody in my family knows how to do anything," O'Malley said.

The Governor-Elect was reading the following books.

I can't decide which one of his books I find more interesting. On the one hand, the Governor-Elect reading about the problems in Washington DC is sort of interesting. But a lawyer reading about the failure of the criminal justice system while waiting to be selected for a jury is definitely one of those poetic sort of things.

Read more over at Baltimore Sun.

Posted by Jamison at 6:24 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack

2 House candidates go to court on paper-ballot count

Just to keep everyone up to date on what's going on in my district. Our one Democratic incumbent has filed a case to have provisional ballots that were thrown out by the board of elections to be counted. In District 31, the race is within 28 votes, so when 222 votes are thrown out on a technicality that's a big deal. Based on the court's ruling, Joan will decide if she will ask for a full recount of the ballots or not. So we still don't know the results of the election and it's almost December. The election will be certified if I recall the first week of December barring a recount.

Read more over at Baltimore Sun.

Posted by Jamison at 6:17 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Alexis The Morning After

Alexis is MUCH better! The fever is all but gone! She's still snarfully, but she slept through the night and hasn't had to have any medicine since last night! She'll get a dose of Dimetapp before she goes down for her nap, but luckily we didn't have to bring out the albuterol! Onward and upward!

Posted by Dianne at 9:40 AM

November 27, 2006

They Look Like Swimming Orchids

The weird and wonderful creatures living by methane vents in the southwest Pacific have been photographed for the first time.

The deep-sea communities live around methane seeps off New Zealand’s eastern coast, up to 1 kilometre beneath the sea surface. The team of 21 researchers from the US and New Zealand, who spent two weeks exploring the area, have just returned to shore.

“It's the first time cold seeps have been viewed and sampled in the southwest Pacific, and will greatly contribute to our knowledge of these intriguing ecosystems,” says Amy Baco-Taylor from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in the US.

Cold seeps are areas of the seabed where methane or hydrogen sulphide gas escape from stores deep underneath. Like hydrothermal vents, the gases support unique life forms that can convert the energy-rich chemicals into living matter in the absence of any sunlight.

This is fascinating! The creatures above look like some sort of swimming orchid to me! And these are but a few of the new species they found!

It's amazing what lurks in the depths of the sea that we have never encountered. It always makes me think of the many things we've probably killed off without ever knowing of their existence, or what secrets they held, all because of our disregard for our planet. The mind reels.

Found via New Scientist.

Posted by Dianne at 9:38 PM | Comments (6) | TrackBack

Alexis Update Evening Edition

Although still grumpy (or she was before she went to bed anyway) Alexis is much better than last night. We didn't have to give her a dose of albuterol after all and I'm very thankful for that because that junk is some nasty stuff! Anyone that has asthma or knows someone that does has probably heard of albuterol and its side effects. Alexis does not have asthma, but some doctors prescribe it for respiratory issues that go along with colds and such.

Anyway, she made it to bed with only a dose of Motrin and Dimetapp and her breathing is calm and unnoisy this evening. That is a good thing! Her fever is still around the 100 degree mark, but it hasn't gone higher, which is a good thing too. Hopefully in the morning she'll feel much better, the fever will have broken and her whininess and meltdowns will cease. She's currently sleeping in her own bed so hopefully she'll be able to remain there the rest of the night and I get my bed back! :o)

Fingers crossed!

Posted by Dianne at 9:30 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack

A Whole Lot Of Shell Swapping Going On! Part 2

This morning we awoke to find that Triton had again moved into a new shell, though it took me most of the day to figure out which one. He had picked a rather large oblong shell with a pointy end that he could maneuver forward, but he couldn't back up with. I knew he wouldn't stay in that one long and sure enough by the end of the day he had moved into another smaller shell that Alexis picked out when we were in Ocracroke that is painted to look like a soccer ball. He's trying all of the shells in the thank on for size!

Vesta on the other hand appears to be staying in her own shell for now. But she too is getting bigger, though Triton is still the bigger of the two, so I don't expect her to stay in her shell for long. I'm not sure if this is Triton's last move either, only time will tell.

Who said Hermit crabs weren't interesting? ;o)

Posted by Dianne at 9:24 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Alexis Update

It turns out Miss G has an ear infection. She also has slightly inflamed air passages from all the congestion so they gave her an antibiotic for the ear and some liquid albuterol to take if she starts sounding wheezy again tonight. She has some of her spunk back, but she still melts into hysteria at the slightest provocation. I have a feeling the air mattress will be coming up from the basement this evening. We'll see how things go.

Posted by Dianne at 4:06 PM | Comments (3)

The Revolving "Ick"

Since the middle of October Alexis, Jamison and I have all had the revolving "Ick". One of us comes down with cold type symptoms, then another one gets it, then another, never actually fully recovering from the last visit from the "Ick" as I like to call it, before it revisits up again. Last week Jamison was back in the "Ick" column and I could tell Alexis wasn't far behind and the doctor says it's just a cold, nothing to be done, etc. etc. etc.

Last Wednesday morning Alexis woke up whiney. That's never a good sign and as the week wore on she continued to grow even more whiney. Usually when we have company, in this case Jamison's family was here for Thanksgiving, she'll chill out and just enjoy the attention she gets from everyone doting on her, but when she continued to whine I knew that the "Ick" was coming back to her, it was only a matter of time before it came back full force. And as it happens that "magic" day was Saturday and to add insult to injury I woke up feeling the effects of the "Ick" as well. Happy times folks let me tell you, happy times! It started with sneezing, then progressed into a runny nose and then was followed by a cough and yesterday I had trouble sitting upright, though I managed to do it all day.

Last night after putting Alexis to bed it became readily apparent that she was going to have to sleep with me so I could keep an eye on her. Her fever went up, though not high, but still troubling, and she was wheezy. So we gave her some "purple medicine" (Dimetapp) and some "pink medicine" (Children's Motrin) and she moved into my room and Jamison moved to the guest room. If I had been thinking clearly I would have had Jamison bring up Alexis' air mattress and let her sleep on that, but I didn't have that bright idea until this morning. Oh well.

Alexis slept fitfully through the night and early this morning when Jamison ventured back in to our room he found me on the edge of the mattress, with Alexis cuddled up to my back. Sadly we slept that way much of the night! But fortunately I feel much better this morning, other than being tired from sleeping on roughly 12 inches of mattress all night long and dealing with my fitful sleeper!

Alexis is still droopy. She's currently lying on the couch, covered up, watching Noggin. Alexis is not a sit still kind of kid, so that in and of itself speaks volumes. Her temperature is hovering in the 100 degree range. I called and made an appointment for her to see her pediatrician and will take her in at 2:20 this afternoon. Hopefully she'll take a nap between now and then. We'll see how the day goes.

And now I'm off to clean up the kitchen. It's horrendous! And note to my dear husband....Next time I'm sick, YOU clean up the kitchen! ;oP

I'll update later as to what the doctor says.

Posted by Dianne at 9:32 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

GOP leaving spending bills to Democrats

I guess nothing should surprise me anymore, especially Republican incompetence and mismanagement. The general consensus is that the GOP is hoping that they can derail the Democratic efforts to actually start making some forward progress for the country by leaving them a complete budgetary mess. My confusion is that the budgets were already suffering massively from Republican incompetence and irresponsible spending, so it's really not any bigger of a mess than the GOP had already created. This is good because it's gets the children out of the room so that the adults can take over and start making decisions with an eye towards the future.

Of course, it doesn't matter if the Democrats pasted the most most perfect budget in the history of the world, the GOP will find one line item and that's what they and their puppets in the right wing media will be whining about for the next two years. Republicans are always so predictable, there is no interest or ability to really govern, they only strive to backseat drive while people infinitely better than them make the hard decisions.

If I have any advice for Democrats at all it's this: Do what has to be done! The American people are starving for real leadership after a void for the last decade in the House. Make the hard choices and stand by them, the Republicans lack the spine to do anything that's not pushed by James Dobbson and his crew.

[via Crooks and Liars]

Read more over at Yahoo News.

Posted by Jamison at 7:38 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

November 26, 2006

Grammar Test

Posted by Dianne at 6:02 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack

Do you deserve your high school diploma?

Considering I rarely cracked a book in high school I think that speaks for itself! ;o) Now college on the other hand...There was some cracking there! ;o)

The tragic part I guess is the fact that now I'm mad to know which ones I missed. Probably the English questions!!!

Found via Count It All Joy.

Posted by Dianne at 5:44 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

High court to hear global warming case

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court hears arguments this week in a case that could determine whether the Bush administration must change course in how it deals with the threat of global warming.

A dozen states as well as environmental groups and large cities are trying to convince the court that the Environmental Protection Agency must regulate, as a matter of public health, the amount of carbon dioxide that comes from vehicles.

Carbon dioxide is produced when fossil fuels are burned. It is the principal "greenhouse" gas that many scientists believe is flowing into the atmosphere at an unprecedented rate, leading to a warming of the earth and widespread ecological changes.

The Bush administration intends to argue before the court on Wednesday that the EPA lacks the power under the Clean Air Act to regulate carbon dioxide as a pollutant. The agency contends that even if it did have such authority, it would have discretion under the law on how to address the problem without imposing emissions controls.

The states and more than a dozen environmental groups insist the 1970 law makes clear that carbon dioxide is a pollutant that is subject to regulation because its poses a threat to public health.

A sharply divided federal appeals court ruled in favor of the government in 2005. But last June, the Supreme Court decided to take up the case.

The ruling next year is expected to be one of the court's most important ever involving the environment.

To be honest I don't hold out a lot of hope for this verdict given that the Surpreme Court is stacked with a bunch of Neo-Con idiots that woudn't know sound science if it smacked them in the head. But hopefully they can get past the political hoo ha and put forth a verdict that not only helps our environment, but in the long run it's better for We the People as well. However given that the court's corporate masters don't want to cut back on carbon dioxide because they don't care if we destroy the planet as long as they are making a buck right now, I doubt anything will change. I guess we'll see soon.

Found via USAToday.

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Gobble Gobble

Posted by Dianne at 3:24 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

How Evil Are You?

How evil are you?

It will be interesting to see where Jamison ranks on this one! ;o)

How evil are you?

I'm confused on what role my web browser selection makes in determining how evil I am.

Found via Living the Scientific Life.

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What Tarot Card Are You?

You are The High Priestess

Science, Wisdom, Knowledge, Education.

The High Priestess is the card of knowledge, instinctual, supernatural, secret knowledge. She holds scrolls of arcane information that she might, or might not reveal to you. The moon crown on her head as well as the crescent by her foot indicates her willingness to illuminate what you otherwise might not see, reveal the secrets you need to know. The High Priestess is also associated with the moon however and can also indicate change or fluxuation, particularily when it comes to your moods.

What Tarot Card are You?
Take the Test to Find Out.

Dianne asked me to take the test too.

You are The Devil

Materiality. Material Force. Material temptation; sometimes obsession

The Devil is often a great card for business success; hard work and ambition.

Perhaps the most misunderstood of all the major arcana, the Devil is not really "Satan" at all, but Pan the half-goat nature god and/or Dionysius. These are gods of pleasure and abandon, of wild behavior and unbridled desires. This is a card about ambitions; it is also synonymous with temptation and addiction. On the flip side, however, the card can be a warning to someone who is too restrained, someone who never allows themselves to get passionate or messy or wild - or ambitious. This, too, is a form of enslavement. As a person, the Devil can stand for a man of money or erotic power, aggressive, controlling, or just persuasive. This is not to say a bad man, but certainly a powerful man who is hard to resist. The important thing is to remember that any chain is freely worn. In most cases, you are enslaved only because you allow it.

What Tarot Card are You?
Take the Test to Find Out.

Muhahahaha!!!

Via Monica.

Posted by Dianne at 12:37 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack

Anne Arundel County Department of Social Services launches recruiting campaign

Children are near and dear to Dianne and I, we've both spent many years working with children. From Space Camp and Upward Bound, to mentoring and teaching students in the classroom, to the good old baby sitting jobs we had as teenagers, we've spent most of our lives around children taking care and educating them. I personally get a big kick out of people that are baffled by how easily we handle kids. After a few decades of experience it sort of becomes second nature to you. Dianne's better at it than I am, but given that most men have never been alone in the same room with a child in their entire lives, I sort of get to shine anyway in comparison.

Which brings me to the problem here in Anne Arundel County. We've got a severe lack of foster parents in the County. Nearly two thirds of our foster kids are having to be placed outside the County because of the lack of foster parents. This is definitely a matter of great concern, because you want to keep kids a close to possible to their native environment to make transitions easier for them. Uprooting them completely puts a lot of the possible progress that they could be making in danger. If you can make room in your home and hearts for a kid that has suffered a bad break, you should definitely consider getting involved. If you don't have the time or the resources to take care of a child in your own home, there are many other ways you can help out the program. Here's the list they provide for Anne Arundel County.

* Become a respite parent for a foster child * Mentor a child in foster care * Hire a foster child to work for you and/or your company * Have your business or civic groups sponsor a special event or activity for foster/adoptive families * Donate goods and services for children in foster care, such as computers, or school supplies * Call our Volunteer Office at 410-269-4461 or 301-261-1756 ext. 4461 to get more information about being a mentor

The article also had an interesting discussion of how they are expanding their website to provide online support to foster parents and children in foster care. I had always assumed something like this already existed, because it's such an important tool for parents to work together to get over the tough spots with kids. Sometimes a fresh set of eyes on a problem will yield impressive results. So if you are already a foster parent in Anne Arundel County thanks for your hard work and now you will have another resource at your disposal.

Read more over at Baltimore Sun and Anne Arundel Foster Care.

Posted by Jamison at 7:34 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

November 25, 2006

Flooding

It looks like there is some flooding near the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse. I guess that coastal storm system that slammed them and then moved up to us caused some localized flooding.

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No I Do Not Curl My Child's Hair!

I'm always astounded by the number of people who ask me if I curl Alexis' hair. The answer is plain and simple...NO!! Alexis, like me, has naturally curly hair. She got it honestly and I do not curl her hair. I can't imagine getting a 3 year old to sit still long enough to have her hair curled or how you would begin to go about doing that even if you wanted to. I for one don't have that much free time to even attempt such a crazy feat.

So here you go world, the answer is no! So stop asking me stupid questions!

Posted by Dianne at 3:22 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack

More Holiday Food!

Another shot of the Pumpkin Pie Fudge:

And the finished Pumpkin Cheesecake:

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A Whole Lot Of Shell Swapping Going On!

Triton moved out of his shell into a larger one sometime on Friday. Then Vesta moved out of her shell into Triton's old shell shortly after his initial move. Apparently this wasn't to her liking because last night she moved BACK to her old shell! And now Triton has moved BACK to his original shell within the last hour! There's a whole lot of shell swapping going on right now in the Daffodil Lane Crabby World!

Posted by Dianne at 2:48 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

The future of Bio-Fuels

It's pretty clear that bio-fuels are the future of fuel in this country. Even if we move to Hydrogen in say the next 500 years, bio-fuels are still the best storage source of hydrogen we have in the near future. The question has become what will be the source of our bio-fuels? The folks in Washington at the behest of the American autoindustry have been pushing the ethanol solution from corn. We do grow a lot of corn and it does help us out to use some of the corn for ethanol production. But by far the best source of bio-fuels is algae and the more that we research it the clearer that fact becomes. Here's a nifty chart I snagged from the AutoblogGreen folks on fuel productions from the different sources, corn and soy have about the same production ratios just for comparison purposes.

* Soy = 40 or 50 gallons of oil per acre per year
* Brassicas = 100-150 gallons per acre per year
* Palm = about 650 gallons per acre per year
* Algae = perhaps 10,000 gallons per acre per year (algae can be harvested every two weeks instead of once a year)

So that's a 200 times the production capacity per acre using Algae verses Soy folks. It's pretty easy to see why the South Africans were able to quadruple our bio-diesel production using Algae over regular food crops in 18 months. If we want to help American farmers we are going to have to break the strangle hold of Corporate Argriculture has over them, then they won't need as many bio-fuel options. Once again, we are suffering a political problem instead of a technological one.

Read more over at AutoblogGreen.

Posted by Jamison at 10:42 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Adaptive Wings Could Improve Aircraft Fuel Consumption 5% to 15%

It took me a few minutes to wrap my mind around the implications of this technology. Basically using a mix of memory metals and actuators they are able to reshape the wing of an aircraft in flight to be optimized for whatever flight conditions it's under. The ramifications of this kind of thing are staggering when you think about it. Just from the economic stand point, the idea that half the costs for an airline are in fuel, and you are dropping fuel consumption by as much as 15%, that's a 7.5% drop in their expenses on bottom lines.

From what I can tell it would seem that it would also enable them to decrease the weight of planes because they would no longer have to put in all the extra equipment that they have for flaps and such that are used only during take off to change wing geometry. No to mention that memory metals really require very little in the way of maintenance and repair, compared to the complex flap systems that are on commercial airliners. Of course, they could get 2 to 6 times the fuel savings if they just switched over the lifting body design. The lifting body designs could also benefit from this technology as well, so it's really just matter that we desperately need to move the technology forward like yesterday.

Read more over at Green Car Congress.

Posted by Jamison at 10:03 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

November 24, 2006

More On Today's Violence In Iraq

BAGHDAD, Iraq - Revenge-seeking militiamen seized six Sunnis as they left Friday prayers and burned them alive with kerosene in a savage new twist to the brutality shaking the Iraqi capital a day after suspected Sunni insurgents killed 215 people in Baghdad's main Shiite district.

Iraqi soldiers at a nearby army post failed to intervene in Friday's assault by suspected members of the Shiite Mahdi Army militia or subsequent attacks that killed at least 19 other Sunnis, including women and children, in the same neighborhood, the volatile Hurriyah district in northwest Baghdad, said police Capt. Jamil Hussein.

Most of the thousands of dead bodies that have been found dumped across Baghdad and other cities in central
Iraq in recent months have been of victims who were tortured and then shot to death, according to police. The suspected militia killers often have used electric drills on their captives' bodies before killing them. The bodies are frequently decapitated.

But burning victims alive introduced a new method of brutality that was likely to be reciprocated by the other sect as the Shiites and Sunnis continue killing one another in unprecedented numbers. The gruesome attack, which came despite a curfew in Baghdad, capped a day in which at least 87 people were killed or found dead in sectarian violence across Iraq.

My heart literally breaks for everyone involved in this nightmare. There is no good it seems, only bad. It's just devastating.

Found via Yahoo! News.

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This IS Civil War!

BAGHDAD, Nov. 24 -- As the death toll from Thursday's barrage of car bombs, mortars and missiles in Baghdad's Shiite Muslim heartland of Sadr City rose to more than 200 on Friday, political cracks began appearing in the Iraqi government and retaliatory attacks against Sunni Muslims erupted in some Baghdad neighborhoods.

There is no way that anyone can honestly think this isn't civil war unless they are completely lacking of their faculties. And anyone that thinks we didn't cause this mess is completely insane. It's time for us to go. We aren't making the situation any better, it appears we are making it much worse. It truly is sad that this president has led us to this, has led us to a place where we have yet another breeding ground for terrorists that hate the US and there is no way for us to overcome. It's a bad situation, that is getting worse by the minute and the whole thing breaks my heart.

Found via the Washington Post.

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Harry Potter And The Order Of The Phoenix

Posted by Dianne at 12:43 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack

Now That's a Ticket I Could Really Get Behind!

RALEIGH, N.C. - When introducing former vice presidential candidate John Edwards at a book signing this week, a family friend mentioned a bumper sticker she'd seen around town: "Edwards-Obama." The giddy audience roared with approval.

I think Edwards alone would be perfect, but throw in Obama as the VP and I think that would be heaven on Earth! I could easily support that ticket and feel good about doing so!

Found via Yahoo! News.

Posted by Dianne at 12:18 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack

Elephants Aren't Thankful?

Posted by Dianne at 12:16 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

November 23, 2006

Be Thankful!

May you have a blessed day filled with food, family and fun! Be thankful and enjoy!

Posted by Dianne at 8:00 AM | Comments (3) | TrackBack

November 22, 2006

Thanksgiving Recipes: Apple Walnut Muffins

1/2 cup of safflower oil or unsweetened apple sauce
2 eggs
Cooked apples
2 cups of unbleached all purpose flour
1 teaspoon of baking soda
1 teaspoon of baking powder
1 teaspoon of salt
1 cup of heavy cream or half and half
1 teaspoon of vanilla
1 cup of chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 350 F. Beat together oil (or apple sauce) and sugar. Stir in eggs and apples. Add remaining ingredients and place muffin batter into prepared muffin pan. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown.

Posted by Dianne at 7:41 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Thanksgiving Recipes: Spinach Artichoke Dip

2 - 8 ounce packages of cream cheese
1/2 cup of Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup of light mayonnaise
1/4 cup of light sour cream
1 small jar of artichoke hearts stored in water, drained and chopped
1 small package of frozen spinach, thawed and drained
sea salt
freshly ground pepper

Melt cheese along with mayonnaise, sour cream, salt and pepper in a pot over medium heat. Add artichokes and spinach and stir until well mixed. Serve warm with fresh cut veggies, bread and/or crackers.

Posted by Dianne at 7:37 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack

Thanksgiving Recipes: Pumpkin Cheesecake

Crust:
1 small package of gingersnap cookies
1/4 cup of sugar
1 1/2 sticks of butter, melted

Filling:
3 - 8 ounce packages of cream cheese, softened
1 can of mashed pumpkin or 1 and 3/4 cups of freshly mashed pumpkin
1 cup of ricotta cheese
1 cup of natural brown sugar
4 eggs
1 teaspoon of pumpkin pie spice
1 cup of flour

Preheat oven to 325 F. This is very important! The oven must be preheated!

Crush ginger snaps and mix with sugar and melted butter to form crust. Press into a spring form pan that has been well sprayed with non-stick spray. Set aside.

Cream together cream cheese, pumpkin, sugar, ricotta and eggs until well blended. Mix in pumpkin pie spice and flour until blended. Pour into prepared crust.

Wrap the bottom of your spring form pan securely in aluminum foil and set cheesecake on a baking dish or baking sheet. Pour warm water into the dish or pan being careful not to get any water on the cake itself.

Bake for 1 hour. Turn oven off and open oven door to broil position and let the cake sit for 1 more hour. Chill in the refrigerator for at least 8 hours.

Enjoy!

Posted by Dianne at 7:27 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Thanksgiving Recipes: Brining A Turkey

1 large bucket
1 turkey
1 bottle of black peppercorns
8-12 lemons or limes cut in half
rosemary springs
thyme springs
sage leaves
2 cups of coarse sea salt
water
ice

In a very large, clean bucket (think mop bucket or larger) place your turkey and make sure there is enough room to completely cover the bird with water. I have a bucket that I bought specifically for this purpose and that's all I use it for. Dump in all of the ingredients and cover with water. Add a thin layer of ice to the top and place in the refrigerator for at least 8 hours to overnight.

Before cooking remove bird from brining solution and drain. Rinse with cold water and pat dry. Prepare and cook as you normally would your turkey.

Posted by Dianne at 12:26 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Thanksgiving Recipes

There will be more Thanksgiving Recipes as the day progresses! Yum! :o)

Posted by Dianne at 12:23 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack

Thanksgiving Recipes: Sweet Potatoes

3-4 large sweet potatoes
1/4 cup of honey
1/4 cup of natural dark brown sugar
Pecans

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Bake 3-4 large sweet potatoes 45-60 minutes or until fork tender. Remove from oven and let cool.

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Once cool cut into sweet potatoes and scoop pulp into a mixing bowl. Mix with honey and brown sugar. Pour into a bowl and smooth out. Top with whole pecans.

Bake for 25-30 minutes. Serve warm.

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November 21, 2006

Get Your Copy Today!

What are you waiting for? Go on! ;o)

Posted by Dianne at 12:40 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Thanksgiving Recipes: Cooked Apples

4 large apples, peeled cored and cubed
1/4 cup of natural brown sugar
1 tablespoon of honey
Freshly grated nutmeg
Freshly grated cinnamon

Bring to a boil over medium heat, and then reduce to a simmer stirring occasionally until apples are soft and begin to break down and the "liquid" thickens. (60-90 minutes).

The possibilities for this are endless! You can use it for a pancake topping or even to make apple pancakes! Put it on warm toast, eat it plain, use it to make apple bread (recipe for that to come later!) or even use it for pie filling!

Will keep in the fridge for 2 weeks or it can be frozen for 6 months.

Posted by Dianne at 8:00 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

November 20, 2006

Two Identical Cookies

Two identical chocolate chip pecan cookies bought from the Whole Foods bakery. I have one and give the other to Alexis. I walk to the refrigerator to pour a glass of milk and she's eating my cookie, that I had already taken a bite out of and hers is laying untouched on the kitchen counter. So why does she need my cookie? Did I mention they were IDENTICAL?? The mind reels!

Posted by Dianne at 4:28 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Thanksgiving Recipes: Cornbread Dressing

This is a variation of my Mom's dressing that we've had as long as I've been alive. I lightened it up a bit and took out the butter, but you won't miss it! I've also made this with dried out french bread and it was good too, but then obviously it's not "Cornbread Dressing"! ;o)

Cornbread:

2 cups of corn meal (Whole Grain is fine)
1/2 cup of unbleached all purpose flour (Or you can use Albino Whole Wheat Flour)
1 teaspoon of sea salt
1 teaspoon of baking soda
1 teaspoon of baking powder
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups of butter milk

Preheat oven to 425 F.

Mix all ingredients in a bowl until incorporated and pour into a 8 inch baking dish sprayed with non-stick spray.

Bake for 20-25 minutes until golden brown.

Remove from oven and cool. Crumbled into pieces roughly the size between grapes or plums. Every piece doesn't have to be consitent. If you don't have time to let it cool, then place conrbread into a large bowl and break up with a spoon.

The cornbread can be made a day before hand or even made well in advance and frozen.

Dressing:

Corn bread, prepared and crumbled (NOTE: You do NOT want to use sweet cornbread for this recipe, such as a variety like Jiffy Mix! See reipce above!)
3-4 celery ribs
1 small red onion chopped
Pinch of sea salt
Pinch of black pepper
1-2 tablespoons of olive oil
2-4 cups of chicken, vegetable or turkey stock
2 eggs
1-2 tablespoons of ground sage

Preheat oven to 375 F.

In a large skillet with a little olive oil saute vegetables with salt and pepper until tender. Remove from heat and stir in stock.

Place cornbread in a very large bowl. Pour in stock with veggies, eggs and sage. Mix throughly. Taste to check seasoning and add more salt, pepper or sage if needed. Place into a 12 X 8 baking dish sprayed with non-stick spray and bake 30-40 minutes until golden brown. Add more stock if it looks like it is drying out.

Can be rerigerated or frozen and then reheated. If reheating add more stock to the top to keep the dressing moist.

Enjoy!

Posted by Dianne at 11:50 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack

Pet Peeve #33: "Red" Onions

Seriously whoever decided that a "red" onion was "red"? It's purple! It's purple when you grow it, it's purple on the outside, it's purple on the inside, it's purple when y