Monday, February 28, 2011

30 Days of Photos: Day 15

It is day fifteen of my 30 Days of Photos challenge (feel free to join me at any time).

I while back I mentioned that I have very few pictures of myself as a child. I have the scary school pics that we were all all tortured through in grade school and high school but no baby pictures. Here is the youngest photo I have of myself -- I'm so damn cute (even if I do say so myself).

Friday, February 25, 2011

30 Days of Photos: Day 14

It is day fourteen of my 30 Days of Photos challenge (feel free to join me at any time).

One of the things I've been crazy addicted to lately is doodling. I used to doodle a lot when I was a young adult but I eventually left it behind. But now I crave it it daily (I did two today).

It all started a few weeks ago when I created a Squidoo lens called Zendala Challenge. From there it has led me to furthering doodling, buying books to doodling in (my currently goal is to fill a 110 page sketch book with doodle creations) and collecting doodling books. I now have a collapsible folder of doodling tools, cut up paper, notepad, ink pens, and the doodles I've been collecting.

Jeff celebrated a birthday recently and I couldn't help decorating the plain envelope with a few doodles in his honor:

Tuesday, February 22, 2011

30 Days of Photos: Day 13

It is day thirteen of my 30 Days of Photos challenge (feel free to join me at any time).

I perpetually have cold feet. Except in the summer but in 30 degree Celsius I don't imagine many people would have cold feet. My feet are coldest at my desk. I face an outside wall, have hardwood floors, and my desk is metal. To say I complain or whine about having cold feet is probably an understatement. Occasionally I'll don extra socks, legwarmers (I actually wear them a lot in the winter), and/or slippers. Put my feet really hate to be suffocated so I'm usually only in socks.

Jeff decided he was tired of the whining and bought me the colorful reversible tiles that can be used for kids to play on or in workshops. I bought some a while back which I split for in front of the washer in the basement and under my exercise bike in my office to protect the floor. These new ones I split again, two for in front of the ironing board in the basement and two for under my desk, one on the floor and one up the back of the desk against the wall. I noticed an immediate improvement! My feet are still cold but at least they are not frozen solid. JD seems to like it too because I've caught him under my desk more than a few times since I put them in place.



So if you have cold feet at your desk and can't afford an under the desk heater give them a try. They can be found at hardware stores or retail stores for about $15 ($8 on sale).

Monday, February 21, 2011

30 Days of Photos: Day 12

It is day twelve of my 30 Days of Photos challenge (feel free to join me at any time).

I'm a tea drinker. Actually, I'm a milk drinker first. Then a tea drinker. My favorite tea is green tea (bag, loose, and matcha) and occasionally I'll drink chai. My sister-in-law tried to expand my tea horizons by sending me some blooming tea. Which is basically an herbal type tea that is artistically sewn up in a ball that expands as the tea brews into a lovely centerpiece. As far as novelty goes it is pretty cool and the tea is acceptable to drink but when the novelty wears off I still want my green tea. Here are to pictures (side and top to get the full affect).


I think this was a chrysanthemum. The picture doesn't do it justice really. The center flower some how seemed redder in real life.

Friday, February 18, 2011

30 Days of Photos: Day 11

It is day eleven of my 30 Days of Photos challenge (feel free to join me at any time).

I took a week off. I know, bad me. But look at this creation. I call it Chocolate Cake in a Mug. Yes, I was a little desperate for some chocolate affection last night. It's good in a pinch.



If you ever find yourself in the same situation here is what you do (assuming you have the basic ingredients on hand):

Large microwave safe mug
1 tablespoon of oil
1 egg

Add oil and egg to mug and stir until smooth.

3 tablespoons of granulated sugar
3 tablespoons of cocoa

Add sugar and cocoa to egg mixture. Stir until smooth.

4 tablespoons of flour
dash of salt
1/8 teaspoon of baking powder

Add flour, salt, and baking powder to creamy mixture. Stir until smooth.

Microwave on high for about 1 minute (my microwave is hot so keep an eye on it). It puffs up like a real cake. It makes one large serving (I say large because I couldn't finish it) or two small servings.

Enjoy!

Monday, February 07, 2011

30 Days of Photos: Day Ten

It is day ten of my 30 Days of Photos challenge (feel free to join me at any time).

It's a new week and a new me. Nothing like an afternoon at the spa to rejevenate the body or in this case the tender tootsies. Today's picture is of my feet in an awesome foot bath before I get scrubbed, rubbed, buffed, and finally painted.



If you have to pay for a pedicure then you should be soaking in a tub like this and not a bowl. You can do a bowl at home. Shop around for your pedicures ladies!

And for those of you who like moving pictures, you can get the full effect of the jets here:



FYI: Both were taken on my iPod Touch 4G.

Tuesday, February 01, 2011

30 Days of Photos: Day Nine

It is day nine of my 30 Days of Photos challenge (feel free to join me at any time).

You get two-for-one today. Here is a picture of our fifteen+ year old Proctor-Silex toaster oven. As you can see it has gotten a lot of use over the years. I've melted many a plastic bag on the top -- my favorite was the bag of beans that exploded all over the place when I lifted the bag off. Yes I have a thing for horizontal services and it is one of the reason why Jeff fears leaving me home alone.


Anyway, Canadian Tire has an Oster Digital Toaster Oven with Convection on sale for $75 (Reg. $150) so we decided to replace the old Procter-Silex which has been amazing and still cooks but doesn't toast anymore) with what we hope will be a more energy efficient upgrade that will allow us to use our not so energy efficient oven less. This will also replace the older toaster we have.

There wasn't a sale Oster locally so we had to drive to the next town last night (about 30 minutes) to pick one up there. When we got home I cleaned off the counter, rearranged some counter items and unpacked our shiny new toaster oven which is twice the size of the old one. I was all ready to make some toast (it can do 6 slices at one time) when I plugged it in but... nothing. No beep, no light, nada. We haven't even used it and it is dead. But it's pretty:



I've just finished packing it back up in to the box to go back to Canadian Tire to get a replacement. I hope this isn't a sign of things to come. Our last toaster oven lasted for over a decade and I expect this new one to do the same (well, not this one, the replacement we pick up). Even though the old one is smaller it still feels more substantial when you pick it up than the new one. I'm hoping this isn't a mistake. Will let you know after the first week of cooking.