This and That

Cassie was berating me earlier for being such a slacker this week on the ol' blog, and since it's her birthday week, I'll oblige and do a post.  

If it's not interesting, blame her.  

1.  Man oh man!  It's a wild and crazy birthday month up in here.  Matt, Cassie, Obama, Grandma Carol, and Caitie (and a bunch of people I probably just offended by forgetting on this list) are all celebrating birthdays in the next few weeks, and I'm stoked, if only for the cake.  And the celebrating life and getting old and being handsome and general awesomesauce awesomeness.  Birthdays!  Woo-hoo!

2. I'm on a popsicle kick.  Also an ice cream kick, cheeseburger kick, apple kick, and kick kick.  But what's new?   At least it's not a crystal meth kick or a murderin' kick.

3.  Speaking of crystal meth and murderin', are you watching the new season of Breaking Bad?  Also, does it make you think that you'd rather just be poor than start cooking meth and doing meth?  (You know, sores on the face, impending doom, parties that destroy your house, etc.) Also, does Gus freak you out or what?

4.  Mitch just smacked me in the face with his waggin' tail.  Oh, that pup.  How can I leave him for four days?  I keep telling him that absence makes the heart grow fonder, and that I'm already getting excited for our happy reunion.  Then he sasses me and tells me to get him another milk bone.  

5.  And, with all that interesting commentary on life and love, I'm off to San Diego for the BlogHer conference and the Knorr cooking contest (eek!).  I'm excited and anxious and a little bit overwhelmed.  Also, I won't have a computer with me (and I got rid of my smartphone after I almost got carpel tunnel because I was on it so much), so if you contact me through any of these newfangled internet mediums, you won't hear back from me until Monday.  Wish me luck!

RIBS!

A few things to share on this fine Thursday morning.

1.  Went outside for like 2 seconds the other night and got approximately 37 mosquito bites.  Now I keep scratching my arms, and I'm afraid that people think that I'm a meth addict.  

2.  New elliptical is kind of amazing.  Now, I got home from school today and was all ready to go ellipt, to get back on the ol' fitness train.  But then I started to feel really tired, so before ellipting I took a little Brothers & Sisters nap.  Didn't wake up from that nap until 10:00.  Hmph.  In the meantime, Matt ellipted for like three hours.  Right next to me.  So, the bad news is that I continue to be a lazy sloth; the good news is that the new elliptical is so quiet that I can take a coma nap while Matt ellipts for three hours right next to me.

3.  Norm MacDonald has a new show on Comedy Central that is basically just his Weekend Update but with sports.  I really don't care about sports at all, but I love me some Norm, and the show is really, really funny.  You might need to watch it.

Sports Show with Norm Macdonald	Tuesdays, 10:30/9:30c
What the H – Athletes Dating Reality TV Stars
www.comedycentral.com
Sports Show Norm Macdonald #SportsShow

Anyway, that's enough rambling.  Now on to the ribs!

I always thought, for some silly reason, that it would be hard to make ribs.  It is not hard to make ribs.  In fact, they're absurdly easy.

Now, they are time consuming.  Yes, you've got to really be thinking ahead and to have delicious ribs in time for dinner, but there's very little hands-on time and the difficulty level is low.  Like, Mitch made our last batch.

First you make some dry rub (recipe below) and rub it generously all over a big hunk o' ribs.  (These are pork ribs, by the way.  Sometimes I feel guilty about eating pork because of Charlotte's Web, but this week I've been reading Animal Farm, so I'm all about some pork right now.  Glue, however. . .  Poor Boxer.)

And then you put those ribs in the oven at about 275 degrees for, oh, five hours or so.  When they have reached your desired tenderness, take them out and finish them off on the grill.  Grill on high for 5-10 minutes, just long enough to slap on some barbecue sauce and to soak in some of that tasty grill flavor.

Serve with extra sauce and buttery corn on the cob*.  Or whatever strikes your fancy.

And eat up.  And get sauce all over your face.  

Dry Rub for Ribs Recipe (adapted from this one)

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 1/2 tablespoons paprika
• 1 1/2 tablespoons salt
• 1 1/2 tablespoons ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon cayenne
• 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder

*I wanted to have corn on the cob at our wedding.  Matt vetoed that idea because it was logistically tough, and because our wedding was already becoming "a little too county fair."  He wouldn't let me have a moonbounce, either.  Probably for the best.

Back from the ABQ!

Well, we're finally home.  After ten days, five airports, one bajillion calories, and just as many laughs, I'm back here watching Jeopardy! with Matt while Mitch licks a bowl that once held macaroni and cheese.  Ahhhh. . .

Now, it'd been decades since I last visited Albuquerque.  The last time I was there, Mario 3 had just come out, the New Kids topped the charts, Bush I was president, and my sister was seven years away from gracing the world with her presence.  Normally I would be a little morose at this time, having just left my grandparents without knowing when I'd see them again.  But I'm not this time, because in about a week they'll be moving to Florida where they'll only be about 3 hours away from us!  Shoot yeah!

Our visit was just lovely.  It was nice to get to talk to my grandma and grandpa, to listen to their stories, to help them cook and clean and pack.  I've never had the opportunity to enjoy that much one-on-one time with them, and I'm really grateful to have had this time with them.

Here's a little bit of what it looked like, hanging out with Carol and Bruce in the ABQ.

Grandpa loved his new red suspenders. 

 Grandma's favorite farmer's market.  

 Edible loot.

 Sassy suitcase of Grandma's.

 We didn't cook any meth, but maybe Grandma and Grandpa's neighbors were?

Ouch!

Look Familiar?

Recognize this place?

The first person to get it right wins a shiny prize.  

Picking for Bugs Under Your Skin Isn't Normal.

Okay, so today I worked a shift waiting tables, and things started out boring enough.  My first table was a guy about my age, and a woman I assumed was his mom, or aunt, or Mrs. Robinson.  Didn't matter to me.  After they chowed down on their chain restaurant delicasies, they paid with a credit card, and left. 

It was pretty uneventful.

Uneventful until I went to clean the table, and noticed that underneath their credit card slip there was a note. 

It was hard to decipher the writing, but eventually my coworkers and I figured it out.  Well, sort of.

Methadone.  Ol' Brian either wanted to sell me some methadone, or he figured that since I was working at a restaurant, that I must have a good drug connection to hook him up with some methadone.  The situation is disturbing to me for two main reasons.

1. What sort if image had I been projecting to make Brian believe that I either was in the market for or could sell him some drugs?
2. Why couldn't Brian just use proper punctuation, therefore clearly expressing his message?

Oh, also, I learned today that methadone is not the same as crystal meth.  The basic difference between the two is that methadone is a depressant and crystal meth is a stimulant. 

So I guess the good news is that Brian didn't think I looked like someone who would:

• Lose my virginity in a public restroom
• Beat up an old man for money
• Try to tear off my own skin
• Make my girlfriend sell her body
• Pick for bugs under my skin
• Ever have to worry about having lipstick on my teeth

Leaving notes for waitresses looking for drugs isn't normal but on meth[adone], apparently it is.  And, in case you were wondering, I didn't take him up on his offer, whatever it was.
 
(Oh, and I blurred out the phone number just in case any of you readers are junkies.  I don't want to be an accessory to your illegal and scary activity.)