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Thursday, April 23, 2009

Picture a Day - Day 142

"Knowledge comes in two flavors. One is what you spend most of your life studying and paying for, the other comes when you've just stuck your fork into a toaster and realized it is plugged in."

This week I experienced that second flavor of knowledge (I like to think of it as the Cherry nut of knowledge. No one likes it, we're not really sure why we need it, but once it is gone we get our ear chewed off by very cranky grandma's.)

I've been feeling a bit run down. Not so much from work (bacteria continue to do bacteria type things) I'm just sick and tired of always having to plan meals. Especially as summer rears its big ol' ugly head and I have to retire a good half of my fall back meals because who wants an oven on when it's 80 degrees out?

At least that's my excuse for what I did to achieve Cherry Nut notoriety.

After Easter we scored a great deal on a leg of lamb (at least half off), and I thought oh crock pot with lots of lemon and garlic. Easy peasy. So I got up early, chopped up the garlic and got the whole thing put together.

Just as my husband was coming in to start making lunch I flipped the switch and left to get dressed.

Fast forward 8 or so hours later and we're coming home, looking forward to some crock pot type meat. I should have known as soon as I got in that something was wrong, it didn't smell right, but I was obsessed with the mail.

Then I open the lid and spot my elemental mistake.

A crock pot only works if you actually plug the damn thing in!
No, I didn't mix up pictures. I was so pissed that I didn't take a picture of the crock pot looking all sad and forlorn, begging for someone to plug it in.

Instead this is a picture of my latest book (about the death of Poe, I'm still in it and it has its pluses and minuses, but I like to wait til the end to decide for myself if it's worth recommending) surrounded by some pretty flowers at the arboretum.

I like to steal a few minutes to head outside every chance I can, if not to read at least just to enjoy nature. As soon as temps break the 60 degree barrier there is a magnetic pull to get me outside. Too bad I don't have anything much to do out there yet or really a good place to go.

What do you like to do when you only get a few minutes to yourself? (I am guessing few people will say run around like an idiot snapping pictures of flowers or posing a book just for the hell of it) Have you had any Cherry Nut experiences lately?

And the most important question of all, just what do you make for dinner in the summer?

7 comments:

  1. I love running around snapping pictures (my favorite past time) - also love going for long walks and jogging down by the creek - it seems to relax me.

    Summer time meals - anything grilled! :)

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  2. FYI, you can make just about anything on a grill that you do in an oven. The key is to block the lid open a bit so it doesn't get too hot. We even make pizza on the grill!

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  3. We eat lots of salads and sandwiches when it's too hot to cook.
    I take my camera everywhere. I insist on taking pictures of everything now. I fear I am annoying everyone. Oh well!

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  4. LOL!! You know, I think the people in the car behind me the other day thought I was crazy, taking pics of that construction sculpture in my car, as the light turned green!!!
    When it gets nice like this, I like to be outside too. Even if it's just staring at my garden or playing with the pups.

    And for summer meals? I hear ya - imagine how we feel when it's 100 degrees here? Well, we have air conditioning, but still...
    We like to grill out a lot - which sounds kind of counter-intuitive, but nothing says spring/summer like barbeque chicken!! And potato salad! I like to balance hot with cold - so grilled meats and either green salads or potato/macaroni salads. Stir-fry is another quick and easy meal - fast and light.
    But I totally understand about getting into a rut about planning dinners!! I do too. So sometimes it's just "fend for yourself" night - when we get to scrounge through and try to find something to feed us, like leftovers, or chips.

    But I'd have to say that we grill out probably a good 70% of the time. And husbands are good at that too, which takes some of the pressure off of you!

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  5. Oh, but the important thing about grilling out is to stay in the shade -that way it's not too hot!

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  6. I love going outside for the sake of going outside. As you've likely noticed, I also go outside and take photos of...flowers and such :P Warm Summer is such a fleeting season in Alaska that I have to take advantage of it every chance I can!

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  7. I totally forgot to comment on this when you originally posted it, but I had a bit of a moment myself that same day. I did remember to plug in the iron, but I ended up having to iron my shirt 3 times because I forgot to turn it on. (Third time's a charm, I guess?) You'd think I would've noticed the lack of heat...

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