Archive for May 2013
At Pipkin’s Market, they have their garden area set up. They had a very clever way to bound their flower beds.
More places need signs like this:
For supper, my daughter had a grilled cheese sandwich, two mini bell peppers, some strawberries, and some toasted pecans. I think I made a simple meal special.
A clean bike is a happy bike.
Beso, looking handsome on the steps.
I keep a bag full of the various cables my mobile devices use (along with external batteries with USB ports, a spare pair of headphones, and a kickstand). My coworkers discovered this, and greeted me (rather it) warmly one morning.
I’ve been trying to see the baby ocelot born at the Cincinnati Zoo on New Year’s Eve all year. On the last weekend of Zoo Babies, I got to see her, and her mom.
Sometimes she wandered around looking for her mother.
Other times, as cats are want to do, they wrestled.
Such a pretty little girl.
The bonus was down the hall.
Three sleepy pallas’ cat kittens.
Who weren’t asleep for long!
Adorable balls of fluff! Of course, pallas’ cats stay fluffy.
One even came close to the window.
I love when sitting cats wrap their tails around them like that.
A sand cat was sleeping up on top of some rocks.
Miss Lop-Ears the caracal was up on the rocks, too.
The bobcat, since he couldn’t see the caracal, decided a nap was in order, too.
…and someone must have clued in Nubo.
However, the tiger was stalking in the grass.
Since I first had one in my early teens, my favorite sandwich has been the New Orleans classic, the muffuletta. I suspect, however, since moving to Ohio about eighteen years ago, there was a large portion of nostalgia in it. Unless I take the time to build it from the ground up, I can only get one once or twice a year, when I travel to Louisiana. It’s just as well–it’s not exactly health food.
Almost ten years ago, I got to watch a show on PBS titled “Sandwiches You Will Like.” Some of them–such as brain or pig ears and snouts–were more than a little off-putting. Others, such as falafel, were intriguing.
One sandwich proved elusive for years. Bánh mì is a Vietnamese sandwich, which combines Asian flavors with a form similar to a po boy–definitely reflecting the historical influences of that land. It is served on an airy form of French bread, with a variety of meat, pickled vegetables, cilantro, and peppers. It was elusive. I saw the program about ten years before I was able to go get one.
It was awesome! There was a nice combination of sweet, savory, and spicy flavors, and the bread had a good crunch to it. The first one I got was from Pho Lang Thang, a Vietnamese restaurant in Findley Market. It was great, however, not convenient for our normal routine.
However, I recently discovered Le’s Cafe. It used to be located in the main library, but recently opened their own cafe downtown. It’s not exactly close to my office–in fact, it’s a decent hike, but still do-able. Le’s is clearly a family run operation, and I think they are starting to recognize me (I think I’ve made a weekly pilgrimage for the last few months). They have great bánh mì, and the price is quite reasonable ($4 for a sandwich). They also serve rotisserie chicken and pho (a Vietnamese soup)–at some point, I may need to branch out.
I suppose bánh mì has become my favorite sandwich, displacing two-and-a-half decades of muffuletta dominance. Better still, it’s much less-bad for me than it’s predecessor. I’m glad I took the chance to branch out, and was able to find something new. I’m looking forward to finding other places to try bánh mì.
I confess my prior photos of the baby birds were…less than awesome. The light wasn’t great. Mostly, I posted them as I was so excited. This weekend, I went out and and got a couple better ones.
It’s been really neat having them there.
I’ve shown pictures of Luna on the bannister in the hall before. What she likes to do is look at the skylight in the hall. Many months ago, I lifted her to the skylight, so she could see it. We would do that from time to time. I wasn’t sure what she thought about it until today.
I was in our bedroom with my wife when I heard her chirp. I joked about her wanting to look out the skylight. My wife said that Luna tried to get her to lift her to it, but my wife isn’t tall enough to get her. Luna walked into the room, and I asked, “want to see the skylight?” I stood up and walked to the hall. She jumped on the bannister, and walked along to the end, staring at the skylight. She was clearly irritated when I tried to bring her down, clawing to hold on to the edge of the window. There’s my answer: she digs it.
What will she think of next?
My wife and daughter planted a garden.
The main garden has strawberries and red bell peppers.
We have an herb garden in front. We have basil, which I like for all sorts of things, including pizza. I requested cilantro, as we’ve been using a lot more lately.
I confess I was goofing off on my bike while they were working on this. At least Eddy was there to supervise.
In other plant news, our flowers are blooming nicely.
This, the latest round up of quotes copied into my journal, wraps up the prior MIO Journal and roughly half of my new journal, which is a Rhodia Webbie.
“For small creatures such as we, the vastness is bearable only through love.”–Carl Sagan
“I belive cats to be spirits come to Earth. A cat, I am sure, could walk on a cloud without coming through.”–Jules Verne
“If people can be monsters while ‘just following orders,’ others can be heros for ‘just doing their job.'”–commenter on the Fukushima 50
“Without cats, we wouldn’t have the Internet.”–Mike Calore
“In context, the food of cats is frightened of the cat, and is dedicated to its own survival. It is intelligent, brave, fast moving, often well armed, and sometimes much larger than the cat who wants it. So, to live at the edge, the cats were challenged to become highly skilled hunters.”–Elizabeth Marshall Thomas, The Tribe of the Tiger
“Life is just a series of trying to make up your mind.”–Timothy Fuller
“We are not paid for what we do. We are paid for what we can do.”–Coworker
“People join companies but leave bosses.”–@rayhalagera
“Before you diagnose yourself with depression or low self-esteem, first make sure you are not, in fact, just surrounding yourself with assholes.”–William Gibson
“The corporate world could learn a lot from the religious one in terms of the dignity of every human person.”–Father James Martin
Didn’t realize Geek Pride Day was today until I got up…
What’s left of my Star Wars action figures from when I was a kid. They’re over thirty years old.
Remember the nest next door?
It has three new occupants.
I’ll try to get better pictures, but I wanted to share this great news!
Another week, another bread experiment. The latest inspiration from the Red Star Yeast Pinterest board is honey oatmeal bread. It is a wheat bread, and probably my first successful one. It has a sweet note as you chew it, but a good mouth feel. My daughter isn’t a fan, but my wife and I think it’s great.
While the recipe called for a loaf pan, I made a free-form loaf. I prefer the look, and, lets face it: throwing a blob of dough on a silpat is much easier than greasing and flouring a pan. It seemed to work well, and I think it’s a great adaptation of the recipe. I definitely recommend it.
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