magic ingredients

hello on the island. 

Let me say as a brief hormonal aside, I don't know how you deal with so many pint-sized, life-sucking forces on a daily basis. Teachers are a-mazing. I am not wired to work with littles. I mean, I love my own littles. I even like them very much. But a group of them? Bleh. I had been asked to assist with the 7 and unders on Wednesday nights after dinner, for 3 weeks, and it's not terrible. But it's not awesome, either. Would much rather go to the discussion group in an adults-only room. Rather than absorbing the fire of 7 little personalities. Although to be fair, said hormones were more than likely skewing my opinion last night, and I might also have felt hostile and unnerved in the discussion room, too. 

Well anyway. Stewardship. 

I'm repainting the coffee table top yet again, and I insist that it will be right this time. Apparently outdoor shellacky paints are not the end-all be-all in warding off chips, scuffs, sticky smudges, etc. So this time there is minwax shellac and sanding and 3 coats. And dancing around the table insisting no one breathe on it, so much as look at it funny, until is ALL DONE. 

Discovered at SamsClub: this. Serrrriously. It does happen to contain the dreaded HFCS, but I'm ignoring that now as I inhale it with both tortilla chips and those awesome crunchy rice cracker thingies. Cold, warm, whatever. My soul is arrested by its spicy genius. And I feel like it would be easy to make - basic artichoke dip with that added magical ingredient, the jalapeno. 

Purchased with birthday money: this. Yay! It hath arrived! I have been daydreaming about it for months now. This is not to say I actually know how to use it yet, or have even acquired thread, but still. Possibilities! 

Tomorrow is my 20-14th birthday, and dareisay I'm looking forward to it? My cake is going to have Kermit on it, for starters. And there is bookclub. And either pizza or spinach ravioli for dinner, I cannot decide. 

That bookclub book, though. I zoomed until about page 100 and then ran into a brickwall. Just, no. The little brother in the cabinet things was too much, is all I can say. I looked ahead. I skimmed, I perused spoilers. The plot is pieced together in my mind enough to discuss it all. And it's not that it's badly written or that I'd never recommend it... movingon. 

So instead I'm reading another Cath recommended/Downton Abbey-esque, No Angel, which I think she also recommended to you. Are you going to read Forsyte? Because the appeal of free and online and a possible virtual bookclub discussion to boot... 

love to YOU

penelope