Saturday, October 30, 2010

Amy's Here

Guess who decided to ditch Chicago for Atlanta this weekend? My sister, one Ms. Amy Lee!!!

We have lots of plans...to do nothing...

But I bet there will be 1) wine, 2) talking, and 3) laughing!!!

Thursday, October 28, 2010

A Wedding!!!

Congrats to the happy couple...


Of course, I mean Jason and Bobbie!!!

Monday, October 25, 2010

Meatless Mondays

A recent National Public Radio story has one of the original Mad Men type characters, Sid Lerner, advocating going to Meatless Mondays.

He claims a diet free of meat, red meat especially, will help your wallet, your health, and your carbon footprint. And doing it just once a week is not a huge lifestyle change, just a minor dinnertime adjustment.

I realized that I was doing that since Jeff has been at harvest, without even realizing it. Today's meal? Here it is ~

Breakfast - greek yogurt and blueberries

Lunch - Kashi Mayan Harvest frozen dinner (vegan), 100 cal cheez its, and cake (hey, it was in the break room!)

Dinner - Macaroni and Cheese with a giant side of frozen vegetables in olive oil

Ok, admittedly this is probably a wee bit too many carbs but I can see with just a few tweaks (mostly by adding beans), that it would be totally possible. Anyone else going to try Meatless Mondays?

Thursday, October 21, 2010

We are the #2 Champions!

Thanks to my new neighbors, I was taken out to MELLOW MUSHROOM for a night of pizza and trivia.

There are 20 trivia questions and each team has 3-4 minutes to answer. Bonus points happen every question if you get the singer of the song that is on while you wait. The last question is like "final jeopardy" in which you can wager against your current score.

Of course, my team was really competitive and got second place!!! Woo hoo, a $20 gift card to another trivia night will come in handy...hopefully I will get invited back after meeting so many new people :)

Wednesday, October 20, 2010

For what purpose?

That is my new favorite saying because, today, everything is irritating / baffling me. More specifically, people saying stupid things or making stupid decisions or asking stupid questions are irritating / baffling me.

Like not fully reading an email I just sent and then asking a question that was already answered in said email...for what purpose?

Like offering up something you think is awesome but I don't care about, and then getting disappointed when I'm not impressed...for what purpose?

Like yelling at a poor hourly worker with no power...for what purpose?

Like complaining about waiting for ANYTHING for 5 or 10 minutes...for what purpose?

I suppose most of these, I just need to have an attitude adjustment about. Right now, I will be practicing tolerance!!!

Monday, October 18, 2010

A new recipe

The other night I made baked chicken in a fancied-up kind of way. But I 'think' it was probably still pretty healthy. (Maybe a little sodium heavy though.)

Layer in as follows ~
2 tbsp olive oil
3 large chicken breasts (turn chicken once in the pan to coat with OO)
small jar sundried tomatoes
1 tbsp capers
1/4 cup feta cheese
sprinkle parmesan

Bake at 350 uncovered for 20-30 minutes. Serve over orzo pasta with green beans on the side.

Then today, I was sick of the leftovers (again) from this meal (with Jeff gone, the leftovers go REALLY SLOWLY), so I prepped myself a little salad.

I took mixed bagged greens (with spinach and raddachio) and plopped most of the leftovers into a rubbermaid, with a little orzo and green beans on top. For lunch today, I topped it off with 2 tbsp light balsamic vinaigrette, mixed it up really well, and ate it cold. A totally different take, and taste, on the leftovers!!!!

Let me know if you try it and what you think...

Friday, October 15, 2010

Good Airline Service

I love this article from thestreet.com today. Most of the time when I tell people who I work for, they can't WAIT to tell me their most recent horror story. It's nice to hear some of the really great stories that are out there, and that happen every day.

4 Top Airline Service Moments of 2010

ATLANTA (TheStreet) -- Guess what? As recent under-the-radar stories from Delta(DAL), American Airlines(AMR), US Airways(LCC) and United(UAL) show, airline employees often get it right.

That is a little known fact, because the airline industry suffers from an advanced case of crummy image. Most of the news you hear about airlines focuses on complaints, with airline fees a favorite topic.

By contrast, you rarely hear much about the industry's enviable safety record or its ability to transport about 750 million passengers annually, most of whom get to where they want to go at the time they want to get there. While good service alone does not move airline share prices, it's fair to say that passengers prefer to book on airlines where the service has been good.

Read on for four recent incidents of beyond-the-call service at the four biggest network carriers.

US Airways' Teddy Bear Tale
One day in February, a four-year-old girl named Georgia was flying from Phoenix to her home in Boston with her dad and her teddy bear, Bubba.

This is where it gets sad: Georgia lost the teddy bear in flight. "My daughter cried and cried night after night because Bubba was lost," her dad wrote in a letter to US Airways. "It was heart-wrenching to watch our darling little girl struggle to be okay."

Dad wanted the airline to find the bear, and his request came to the attention of Pat Chilton, executive assistant to the station manager of the Phoenix hub. For several weeks Chilton made inquiries, but she could not find Bubba.

The father wrote: "This weekend a package arrived with a return address from 'Bubba's Aunt', saying that Bubba is now traveling around the world and could not come home," he said. "Instead Bubba's cousin 'Buckley' was here to stay with Georgia and take Bubba's place. Georgia was so happy and smiled for the rest of the day walking around with Buckley tucked under her arm. Indeed, she has slept with Buckley every night since."

Delta's Help in Tracking Down Mom
In April, a western Kenya resident named Sophia got on an airplane for the first time in her life so that she could attend her daughter Agnes' university graduation in Nova Scotia.

No doubt the trip was an exciting cultural experience, but one thing neither Sophia nor Delta anticipated was that volcanic ash would shut down Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport soon after she arrived. Sophia, "who does not speak or understand English, was lost in the airport with no way to contact her family," said Delta CEO Richard Anderson during a weekly telephone message to Delta employees in April. "Caught in the fray of cancellations," she could not get on a connecting flight.

Agnes sent a plea for help via the Internet, and it was read by George Bourgias, Delta service manager in Amsterdam. He asked Agnes to send a photo of her mom to his telephone.

With the photo in hand, "George made a special trip to the airport and searched face-to-face among the many customers waiting there," Anderson said. "He was able to find [Sophia,] use his cell phone to put her in touch with her daughter, and get the customer rebooked on a flight."

American's Gracious Fleet Service Clerk
Following completion of a flight from Chicago to New York LaGuardia in May, a passenger named Don left his top-of-the-line Bose headphones on the plane. That's where Joseph Rota, an American fleet service clerk at LaGuardia, found them.

Rota also found Don's business card in the case and immediately called the cell phone number, then volunteered to bring the headphones to the taxi stand where Don was waiting for a cab.

In a letter to American, Don wrote that Rota than refused to accept a $20 tip. "When I said I was going to drop it on the ground if he didn't accept, he still refused," Don wrote. "Then I asked for his favorite charity so I could make a donation and he said that wasn't necessary. He said he was just doing his job and thanked me for flying American Airlines."

The Small Favor from a United Flight Attendant
Historically, flight attendants are employed to assure safety, not to serve drinks and try to stuff your oversized bag into the overhead bin. Once in a while, we are reminded of this primary responsibility.

In July, a passenger named John wrote to United(UAL) to praise Denver-based flight attendant Wayne Hickey, who saved his life.

"I was choking on a piece of meat that I did not chew correctly before swallowing," John said. "This young man responded quickly and performed the Heimlich maneuver when I was down to some of the last oxygen I had left in my body. He then checked on me frequently during the flight to make sure I was OK.

"I owe my greatest gratitude to this young man and your company for preparing him so well for a situation that doesn't happen every day," John added. "This young man saved my life, plain and simple."

Wednesday, October 13, 2010

Flu Shots

It's that time of year!!! Did you get yours? I got mine today :)

Tuesday, October 12, 2010

Blanket Disaster

Grrr. Last night my hobby got the better of me. I sat down to stitch together the LAST STRIP of a giant, complicated baby blanket for my little niece, Maddie.

It was too long.

No biggie, I thought. This has totally happened before. I'll just snip a corner and pull a free string, and it will start unraveling. Apparently this pattern had other ideas. Every snip gave me a free string, one that immediately knotted itself.

An hour later, I had made several cuts and realized I didn't have enough yarn in the yarn ball left to "do over" and I better not destroy the rest of this. yarn So I pulled from the other end, totally UN-did the entire strip, and balled it up.

So much for finishing. Turns out I will have to re-crochet that strip to the correct length and THEN I'll be done. I guess that will be my project tonight!

Oh, and my Maddie is adding her own special touches to the blankie:



(I'll wash it before I give it to my niece in a few weeks. I promise!)

Friday, October 8, 2010

Savannah

Savannah is all about the food. Seriously. Even on a business trip. Who cares what I DID, let me tell you what I ATE.

Wednesday night: Parmesan crusted fresh snapper with whipped sweet potatoes and green beans. And 2 glasses of Malbec.

Thursday lunch: Catered at the Mulberry Inn, a three course meal of tomato bisque soup, chilled beef tenderloin with apple, celery, and walnut salad on the side, and pecan pie drizzled with chocolate.

Thursday dinner: Alligator Soul restaurant - located beneath a shop on a side street, the only indication anything is down there is the alligator-adorned awning marking the stairway entrance. Once below ground, the most charming, and delicious food ever. I had a seasoned pork chop stuffed with an andouille sausage mixture, apple and cinnamon struedel, and roasted veggies.

Friday lunch: The Distillery, a new brew pub in town, with a to-die-for roasted turkey sandwich and sweet potato fries. Oh, and fried pickles.

Friday afternoon: A free hour along River Street led me to Savannah Candy Kitchen, where I bought goodies to send home. And sampled fresh caramel popcorn, pralines, and fudge. Hope the harvest crew enjoys this! Yahoo!



Monday, October 4, 2010

Bye bye

Well, Jeff is off to Harvest 2010!!! Due to the wet year, a lot less acreage was planted, and hopefully it will be dry enough to bust tail as well and make a short year this year.

I know everyone's memory is still fresh of combining well into January last year. Hopefully this year will be done in advance of Thanksgiving!

Meanwhile, I am still here and holding down the fort with many items to focus on:
1) Work out
2) Eat healthy (for one, it's tough!)
3) Play with kitties and change their catbox
4) Maintain the saltwater tank
5) Clean the house at least once ;)
6) Chiro once a week
7) Allergy shots twice a week
8) Skin appointment / facial / health

Saturday, October 2, 2010

Fall chores

Today, we put out our Halloween flag! Who doesn't love friendly pumkins and a Maddie-looking Halloween kitty?

I also got my fall decorations out and bought a cinnamon scented broom thing, to make my house smell like fall. Oh, and I bought bruised and dented Honeycrsip apples for $2.99/lb (still worth it). I know it will never live up to the bushel we picked ourselves in Minnesota and made lots of apple crisp with, but it works.

Jeff did some last minute yard work: trimmed up our bushes, threw down Weed B Gone, hauled some potting soil up from the shed, and helped me plant 2 pansy pots - a big one for the garage, and a smaller one for the back porch. I can't wait to enjoy them all winter (haha, Midwesterners!).



Just a few more chores to do before harvest...but in the meantime we are enjoying the end of a perfect fall day!