Monthly Archives: November 2010

Erik Buell is the lone ranger of motorcyclists.

“People should feel guilty about driving big, fat SUVs. Whether it has an electric motor or a gasoline motor, you know, if you’re riding in luxury with multiple screens around you and air conditioning and it’s padded and you’re driving by yourself, you should be embarrassed.  I think people are going to start thinking, ‘This is stupid, we shouldn’t be doing this.’ There’s plenty of other things to be using our resources on, we should be using them to go to the moon or feed the world instead of cranking out more freaking Hummers.”

and

“I don’t necessarily believe that a 1,000cc sportsbike is practical transportation, but compared to a Hummer? Maybe it’s not the most green thing on the planet, but it’s not bad. I hope we don’t come to a world where we’ll all wearing IBM suits and riding Segways to work. God help us. The bikes I want to build, I want them to be fun and capable and cool and work. I don’t want to be in the mundane transportation business.

From the article at Hell for Leather Magazine, which you should probably subscribe to posthaste if you like motorcycles. Or even if you don’t. It’s good stuff, and is for darn sure getting me through my winter of sub-40 deg temperatures and oh did I mention my carb is all ganked up, won’t come apart for me to clean it, and I can’t even start my darn bike anyway?

sad yeast roll lesson: even the warm oven in a 62 deg house doesn’t make for warm yeast rising. sighs all around.

making yeast refrigerator rolls for 2nd thanksgiving tomorrow for the 1st time ever. I hate waiting for things to cool before next steps.

Flaky Pie Crusts

Flaky Pie Crusts

Originally uploaded by karinajean.

Apparently I have a knack with pie crusts. Pie crusts, biscuits, and roux. I can make a gravy so accidentally thick you’ll lose the ladle and have to send out for pizza. I can make a pie crust from scratch that will fluff up into gorgeous flaky layers of pastry. I’ve been told that these are highly advertisable skills on internet dating sites, but you know, I just thought they were pretty good knacks to have but nothing extraordinary.

I’m not a fancy chef, I never plate or sauce food neatly, but I do think I have a certain Americana knack about the kitchen that is kind of like my gramma, and also, kind of great.

Dinner done, pies sufficiently fawned over, kids asleep, @tinychoices post for tomorrow written, knitting out. THANKFUL. love!

We are so late to my dads house. How did it go fm 1030 to 1245 so fast?

Didja know my pie crusts are full of flakey layers? (@mikegrundy is surprised I didnt mention in my dating profile) http://yfrog.com/5d5qp0j

early prep of thanksgiving foods derailed after I remembered that green stuff also has cottage cheese in it, which I TOTALLY didn’t buy.

“giving in” and buying a subscription to @HellForLeather online moto magazine – my day job desk jockey experience is miserable without it.

I knew the house sounded extra creaky this morning.

We are refinancing our house, and the appraiser came today to take a look. This, understandably (yeah?) makes me nervous. We cleaned and swept and I said things to Mike like: I just don’t want her to think we’re dirty people. The house looks much better on the inside than it did a short 3 hours ago.

So she is walking around the house with me, and I notice something on the ground. It’s a piece of the siding that goes up by the roof. And it has blown off of the house and gone ENTIRELY AROUND THE ENTIRE STRUCTURE and ended up on the ground on the exact opposite corner from whence it came.
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What do you do? I just ignored it. I thought:  maybe she won’t notice it if I don’t say anything. Our yard is pretty messy right now, and it is entirely conceivable that we could have a big chunk of something that looks like roofish siding lying in the weeds just ’cause. I didn’t say a word. I didn’t stare at it. I didn’t even try to kick it out of the way.

I HOPE SHE BOUGHT IT.
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(confidential to Mike: let’s talk about you getting up there and hammering some stuff back onto the house, ‘kay?)

I’m so cold right now: kneecaps are tingly. but! so warm here in NY compared to the west coast! but! we keep our house at 55 in the PM! brr.

need to find two recipes for thanksgiving (and 2nd thanksgiving): fresh pumpkins-into-pie, and capons. any favorite standbys?

A good policy for the holiday season (and beyond!)

I am, however, smart enough to follow simple direction. Followed by some effort. Like this quote from Mother Teresa.

“If you judge people, you have no time to love them.”

Thanks, Musings of an Intrepid Commuter, for a great quote.

RT @feministhulk STEP 2 SMASH, STEP 3 INVOLVE THRILLING DANCE NUMBERS, STEP 4 INVOKE CORE (W/OUT RECOURSE TO ESSENCE). HULK JOURNEY LONG.

did weights at home and alone for the first time and it is resolved: I miss Ginny and her awesome bootcamp of awesomeness!

it’s not fair that the earlier I get up, the more I do (run, crunch, laundry, bathroom clean) and the later I go to work.

wow, according to the @dailymile analytics my 5K speed today is my fastest pace in the last 12 mo! no WONDER it felt so hard.

Pickle on a stick at the rosendale pickle festival! http://yfrog.com/5mrh1tj

.@mikegrundy on nose-hairs: “We’ve been in here for 40 years, man! It’s time to get out and see the world!”

after lovely crafternoon @mikegrundy and I spent the evening reading and knitting on the couch. and then slept in. #wewillrockretirement