I am so ashamed. No, not really--I love to cook, and am pretty good at it, but sometimes, you just have to work with what you've got.

I took four Tyson breaded chicken patties and placed them in a baking dish. Topped them with Safeway generic cornbread stuffing, then four more patties. Mixed together a can of cream of celery soup, a can of mushrooms with their liquid, salt, pepper, and paprika, poured it over the stuffed patties and threw it in the oven at 350 for 45 minutes or so.

Dumped frozen collard greens, Hormel bacon bits, white wine vinegar, water and nutmeg (freshly-grated, happily) in a saucepan and cooked until the liquid evaporated. Served it all to the long-suffering rootbeer1, who rolled his eyes and then ate it up.

We are so easily pleased.

In other news, we just had a fantastic weekend in Palm Springs with a bunch of great friends. No drama, no conflicts, just a lot of swimming, eating and napping with some very nice and handsome and smart men. Story on Steve's LJ here, and pics here.

That is all.

I think this is cool---

Not a lot...which is why I haven't updated in a while. Work continues normally for me--we moved to a new building (2 blocks away) last month and I'm liking my new cube. If I lean back I can look out the window and see the Bay Bridge. I'm working on a number of projects in addition to my usual backend engineering stuff, such as a .NET web app and a code generator written in Python. Another day, another language.

On the homefront, Steve (rootbeer1) is still looking for work. The economy appears to be picking up just a smidge and he's getting a few nibbles on the line, so we're optimistic. We were planning a cross-country drive this fall when I get my 4-week sabbatical, but given that Steve will hopefully be in a new job by then we'll probably put it off till next year. In the meantime, we're going to Palm Springs over July 4th with some friends, renting a big house with a lovely pool. I plan to bake in the sun and catch up on my reading.

I'm back taking Prilosec for my reflux problem. I thought I was having an allergic reaction to it, but it turns out it was the shampoo at the gym. It makes all the difference (the Prilosec, not the shampoo).

Having finished the afghan I was crocheting for the last 7 years, I've been working on a few new little projects whilst we watch HGTV in the evenings (I like House Hunters, but Property Virgins is fun too--those newbies are so demanding and whiny--'There's no granite! No stainless steel appliances! And it's so expensive!!! Waaaaah!!!!') Anyhoo, here's a few of my recent crochet accomplishments:

A couple of close-fitting caps. The black one kind of looks like hair when I'm wearing it.


Another cap with a bill like a baseball cap.


And finally, My Little Cthulhu.


This is actually my first stuffed animal. It was really fun to make. The wings were challanging and a little tough, but I sort of figured them out.

Earthquake!!

The weekend sort of began Thursday evening. We went over to Cal (shprdbear) and Dave's for a delicious dinner, and hung out with them and Julio, whos' staying with them while working in the City. Steve (rootbeer1) had just picked up our friends Rich and Pat fron San Diego at the airport and dropped them off at their hotel.

Friday I telecommuted, and we had lunch at home with Mauricio, an online friend who was on his way to a job fair. After work we met up with Rich and Pat in the Castro and had dinner at Blue, sitting next to Scott (sftekbear) and Brian and seeing a number of other people we knew, as always happens in the Castro.

Saturday we picked up R&P and went to the Saturday farmer's market at the Ferry Building. It's gotten bigger than ever, and we walked around sampling all kinds of yummy organic produce. We had lunch at The Slanted Door, arguably the best Vietnamese restaurant in the country (Bill & Hillary eat here all the time when they're in SF) and it didn't disappoint. Then back home to rest a bit before heading out to the Metreon to pick up tickets and wait in line three hours to see Star Trek. Dave (daved010) and Andy joined us in line and we hung out and chatted and ate popcorn and movie hot dogs. We also saw basically the entire SF bear community arrive like the Academy Awards red carpet--too many to mention, but pretty much everybody.

The theater was packed, of course, and the film was spectacular. As a long time ST fanboy (I was in junior high when the original series aired, and saw every one, and even circulated a petition to keep in on the air which we sent to NBC) I think it was perfectly cast, and just totally entertaining. And it was in IMAX, so it was BIG.

Today (Sunday), we rest. It's The Amazing Race finale tonight, and I might even finish off the afghan I've been crocheting for the last 7 years.

So Steve (rootbeer1) and I have been on a mini-vacation since Wednesday in the LA/Long Beach area, First, we drove down to Glendale to spend some time with Ray (profkampf) and see a few other friends. We met up with Alan for a bit, then went over to Ray's and out to dinner, then back to Ray's and played The Price is Right and Boomblox on the Wii. Thursday we drove to Westminster to hang out with Len and Brian, and Friday had lunch with Thom, then visited the Museum of Jurassic Technology (which actually has nothing to do with the Jurassic Period). Vewy interesting. That evening we met up with Dave (e_ticket), Jason (fidgetcub), Brad (reddish68), Alan, and Ray and went to The Stand, a hot dog restaurant. Then back to Dave & Jason's to watch Josie and the Pussycats, which is actually really fun.

Saturday we tearfully left Ray after breakfast and drove to Long Beach to attend our friends
Sam and Wade's wedding. The hotel was quite full of teenage girls in town for a cheerleader
convertion, which made for some screaming in the hallways at times, but it wasn't too bad.
We spent the afternoon resting and wandering around the Long Beach convention center area,
then over to Sam and Wade's place for a pre-wedding party. Met some very nice people and
remet some we knew. Steve played Wii with some of the kids there. At one point I glanced
into the video room and saw Steve was bowling and behind by 20 points or so, Then I saw his
opponent was a 5-year-old girl. After the game, I taunted him with "Hah! you lost to a
little 5-year-old girl!!" He replied, "I didn't lose, I won by one point. And she isn't 5
--she's 7."

Sunday morning we had breakfast with Bill and Tom, then back to get dressed for the wedding.
On the way to the car we passed one of the cheeleader contestants in uniform, heavy make-up
and wearing a jersey with "Idaho" on it. We tried not to snicker at the juvenile
translation we thought of.

The wedding was at the synagogue where Sam is the cantor, and the service and following
reception at the synagogue were extremely moving. Virtually the entire membership of over
600 was there in force to support their cantor and his beloved at the first same-sex wedding
ever in that congregation, and their spontaneous applause as Sam and Wade processed down the
aisle toward the officiants under the huppah was a first, we were later told.

Afterward we attended a smaller wedding dinner (at the same place we had had brunch earlier)
and had a wonderful time, sharing a table with Dave (pseudocub), Dave, Richard,
and Jonathan.

Arriving back at the hotel, the elevator door opened and three young cheeleaders were in the
car. We stepped in, and as the door closed one of them cheerily said, "Hi, how are you?" I
replied, "Great, how are you? Are you here for the competition?" "Yeah, we lost," said
another of the girls, coincidentally the same girl we had seen earlier in the parking
garage. "But at least it got us off the potato farm." Kids are so witty these days...

Tomorrow we're off to Agoura Hills to see John and Frank (sunbeam_bears), who we
have sorely missed and who are making a fabulous New England Fried Seafood Platter for
dinner, something seldom seen in California and also sorely missed. It will be great to see
them, and then we're back home on Tuesday,

30 seconds ago...

I went to the gym sans rootbeer1 today--Steve had already been early this morning. Walking back to the locker room from the pool after swimming my million laps, I was joined by an elderly Chinese man.

"You swim very good," he said.

"Thanks, I've been swimming laps for many years," I replied.

"You swim for a long time. You don't get tired?"

I wanted to reply, like Shelley Winters in The Poseidon Adventure, "In the water, I'm a very skinny lady." But I wasn't sure he'd get the reference, so I said something like "I weigh less in the water, so I can go a long time, and it's better for my joints." He gave me a big thumbs up with both hands.

I do really like our gym--people are very personable. Except when they hog the good jets in the jacuzzi.

Happy Birthday to my rootbeer1!

Fill this out about your SENIOR year of high school. The longer ago it was, the more fun the answers will be!! Though you all who knew me back then might get a laugh out of some memories. Share yours!

1. Did you date someone from your school? No

2. Did you marry someone from your high school? No

3. Did you car pool to school? Once in a while my older brother would let me drive in with him

4. What kind of car did you have? No car till after college

5. What kind of car do you have now? 2003 Toyota Matrix

6. It's Friday night...where were you? At home watching TV

7. It is Friday night...where are you? At home watching TV

8. What kind of job did you have in high school? Dishwasher and short-order cook

9. What kind of job do you do now? Software engineer

10. Were you a party animal? No

11. Were you considered a flirt? No

12. Were you in band, orchestra, or choir? Church choir

13. Were you a nerd? Yes. Chess Club, Math Contest, National Honor Society, the works

14. Did you get suspended or expelled? No

15. Can you sing the fight song? No, but I know the alma mater

16. Who was/were your favorite teacher(s)? Dr. Drimilas, Math and Mrs. Colapinto, Latin

17. Where did you sit during lunch? Cafeteria or the library

18. What was your school's full name? Shenendehowa High School

19. When did you graduate? 1973

20. What was your school mascot? The Plainsman, a politically-incorrect Indian brave. Since been changed to a stallion.

21. If you could go back and do it again, would you? Yes, knowing what I do now...

22. Did you have fun at Prom? Didn't go

23. Do you still talk to the person you went to Prom with? N/A

24. Are you planning on going to your next reunion? No

25. Do you still talk to people from school? No, but I was friended the other day on Facebook by an old classmate.

Steve (rootbeer1) made the most delicious kielbasa tonight for supper. Served with sauerkraut with caraway and dill, spicy baked beans, and smashed potatoes with olive oil and garlic. And I get to take the leftovers to work tomorrow for lunch!

Speaking of work, I've been pulled on a project coding a web app, after escaping the most recent round of layoffs last week. All my ASP.NET books are so old, I had to order a new cookbook from Amazon this afternoon. Should arrive tomorrow--meanwhile, the Internets provides me with lots of helpful tips. I'm basically a Unix engineer, but I can code in just about any language. I guess I'm a digital polyglot...

Leaving the gym this afternoon after work, a big tranny shared the elevator with us in the parking garage. Steve said we should work out a signal of some kind, because he had no clue. I said after nearly 12 years in San Francisco he should be able to tell, but I'll try to come up with something.

I am so excited...just a few more minutes......

The nightmare is almost over.

Just got in from hitting the shops. Got some nice deals--new calandars (50% off), some books and things, and as a special treat for me a Keurig Mini single-cup coffee maker. Steve doesn't drink coffee much, and I'm always throwing out partial pots when I brew it for myself. SingleServeCoffee.com gives the machine an excellent rating. I also got a special thingy that lets you use your own coffee instead of their pods. But the pods were on sale too so I got a couple of boxes.

Yesterday was Christmas Day, of course, and it was a fine one. Steve (rootbeer1) and I got up and open our gifts. I got lots of books, CDs, DVDs, a daishiki, and some games, including Barbie Queen of the Prom. Steve got lots of goodies too, including a slushie maker and a Wii Fit (which we will both use). We made a breakfast of Danish pancake balls, scrambled eggs with cheddar, and thinly-sliced fried Spam. Then we relaxed and played with our toys till it was time to start dinner. Our best friends Dave, Cal (shprdbear) and Mel came over and joined us for prime rib and all the fixings, including Steve's absolutely perfect popovers. The tricks are to let the ingredients come to room temperature before baking, and never, ever opening the oven door until they're done. We had several pies and puddings for dessert, then sat around sipping ginger liqueur and talking and waiting for my new lava lamp to start blooping.


Mel, Cal, Dave, Steve

Happy Holidays everyone!!

cleaning--done.

decorations--done.

shopping--done.

cards--99% done.

wrapping--done.

menu for Xmas dinner:

Butternut Squash and Parsnip Soup
Standing Rib Roast
Baked Potatoes
Roasted Brussels Sprouts
Tourtière (pork pie)
Popovers
Pecan Pie

1. Name a movie that you have seen more than 10 times:
The Wizard of Oz

2. Name a movie that you've seen multiple times in a theatre:
2001: a space odyssey

3. Name an actor that would make you more inclined to see a movie:
Kevin Kline

4. Name an actor that would make you less likely to see a movie:
Adam Sandler

5. Name a movie that you can quote from:
Young Frankenstein

6. Name a movie musical that you know all the lyrics to all the songs:
Hello Dolly!

7. Name a movie that you have been known to sing along with:
The Sound of Music

8. Name a movie that you would recommend everyone see:
Dominick and Eugene

9. Name an unusual movie that you own:
The Apple

10. Name an actor that launched his/her entertainment career in another medium but who has surprised you with his/her acting chops:
Cher

11. Have you ever seen a movie in a drive-in?:
Yes

12. Ever made out in a movie?
Yes

13. Name a movie that you keep meaning to see but just haven't gotten around to it:
Shortbus

14. Ever walked out of a movie?:
No, but Howard the Duck was close

15. Name a movie that made you cry:
The Color Purple

16. Popcorn?:
Sometimes

17. How often do you go to the movies?:
Maybe once every month, but have thousands of DVDs

18. What's the last movie you saw in the theater?:
Milk

19. What is your favorite/preferred genre of movie?:
Science Fiction/Fantasy

20. What was the first movie you remember seeing in the theater?
Lady and the Tramp

Turkey's roasting
Vegetable Roast done and in the fridge
Stuffing done and in the fridge
Mushroom gravy cooling on the stove
Pies delivered and in the fridge

Left to do: Turkey gravy, carve turkey, heat prepared stuff, heat rolls

It's a potluck, so lots of other nummies will be brought

I think we're ready.

Bad news:




But some good news:

Via DailyKos:

Justice George, who wrote the opinion, based on California court precedent and NOT on U.S. Supreme Ct rulings. The case relied upon heavily was from the 40's involving mixed race marriages which stood for the principle that choice of marital partner is a fundamental right that cannot be infringed without without a truly compelling governmental interest.

Justice George's opinion did not set up a new suspect class based based upon sexual orientation as most commentators seem to assume. Here's the good part. There is ample precedent under CA law that alterations of fundamental rights cannot be done with a mere amendment via majority vote of the electorate. This would constitute a "revision" of the CA Constitution which would require 2/3 vote of both Houses of Legislature AND a 2/3 vote by the electorate or alternatively a State Constitutional Convention called by 2/3 vote of both houses.

It will have to be litigated but we will prevail.

In other news, I was called for jury duty this week. This morning I was seated -- Juror #9. We were sworn in, dismissed for lunch, and when we resumed the judge informed us that the case had been settled over the break. I'm free for another year! The trial would have lasted till mid-December, so I'm kind of happy. Yet a little sad--I've never been through a court trial before. But now I can say I've been a juror--for 5 minutes!