New Discoveries in the Month of July

[bunchofgrapes]

Usually over the summer, I don't go anywhere. I like to do my traveling in the Spring and then take a beach trip in the Fall. However, I really like it when things change and take me out of my normal pattern. This year I went to Denver the first week of July and then to Portland, OR the last week of July (yes, I know I still need to post about that trip--details will be forthcoming). Along the way I made a few discoveries. Some of them probably won't be new to you and you will laugh and point at me but I'm an INTJ so it takes me a little longer to process stuff. Don't judge me.



* Fandom is full of a few people who take things way too seriously. Ok, I already knew that but it was just confirmed in a big way in July.

* Fandom still manages to have some very cool people who don't take things so seriously and who laugh with you at the people who do.

* Manchego cheese

* Vinho Verde

* Lindemans Framboise lambic beer. Where has this been all my life?

* I get all my alcohol recommendations from my parents.

* I love my stepmother way more than I love my mother.

* I love my aunt way more than I love my mother. I've known this most of my life and after spending vacation time with her, it's still true.

* It's possible to spend time with family and have a great vacation. I haven't seen my mother in 5 years because it just gets ugly every time.

* How to cook and eat an artichoke. I know people in CA are laughing at me right now but hey, can you fry okra? Do you even want to?

* A NETI pot can make your cold last two days. Seriously, people, it works!

* Tillamook special reserve cheddar cheese. So, so good.

* Oregon sort of reminds me of Colorado but with a coastline. Both are really beautiful places, btw.

* Adding those little packets to your bottled water to make flavored tea. A 4 year old showed me this.

* I really, really miss my kitties when I’m away.

* My kitties really, really miss me when I’m away. They wouldn’t leave my side for three days and when I left for work the first morning, all three of them sat by the door, looking at me like I was about to abandon them again. It's good to be loved by your kitties.

* Kittens grow up so quickly. When I got back from being away a week, Tucker was huge!

* Everyone should get a full massage regularly but it's especially true if you're a woman.

* COMCAST is evil. Do not use them if you can help it. Dial up gives you better internet access.

* Punching a chair can really hurt. See that bit about Comcast being evil.

* I really need a due date to finish a fic. See that part about me being an INTJ. We make lists, we need deadlines.

Comments

[bunchofgrapes]

And on our way up, we drove up the coast. We might have passed you. Heh.

I went to the Made in Oregon store before I left and got all this Tillamook cheese shipped back here to me. It really is divine. I also like that I've actually been to Tillamook now. We didn't do the tour but we did drive through the town. And Tillamook with wine (and the Lindemans) is how we enjoyed it and yes, we did die and go to heaven. At least I did.

Glad to know you can fry okra. I love the stuff but a lot of people think it's slimy. That's because they aren't eating it the right way. Fried all the way, baby!

The fandom that wound me up was Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea. It was my first fandom and it's very small but it's got some craziness. Not like CSI though. I don't think anything holds a candle to the whole GSR vs Grillows craziness. That's why I like Brass. He just stands in the background and avoids the craziness.

[bunchofgrapes]

I think that's why I'm liking Paul, Louise and Brass/Sofia so much. No ship wars or bashing.

Except for the part where everyone bashes Sofia. I hate that too.

But I have no qualms about who Brass gets shipped with. I can do Brass/Sofia, Brass/Catherine, Brass/Annie, Brass/Sara (not read many good Brass/Sara fics and I'm not a big Sara fan so this one has to be done well), or even Brass/OC as long as it isn't an obvious Mary Sue. Brass goes good with any meal--even okra!

I'm originally from Oklahoma so I grew up on most fried foods and meet. If you could fry the meet, even better.

[bunchofgrapes]

I is also educated in oklahoma and dunt no how to spel meet. Der.

[barracudacool.livejournal.com]

Well damn did I miss more drama. You know how I like to make fun of all the drama and angst crap. What the hell did I miss.

GSR. Oh man. Please get Sara out from under the car and then just have her dribble away over three episodes. Gimme back the old Grissom with his snarky sense of humor. Maybe even give him lady Heather off camera as his new girlfriend and then have the writers write better CRIME SCENE INVESTIGATIONS!!!

Hmm i wonder how many more fanlists I can get thrown off of in six months. One gunsmoke, one CSI. No voyage yet.

Come up the east coast next time and stop to see me in baltimore.

[bunchofgrapes]

No, you didn't miss any new drama. Same drama from before over on VTTBOTS. But CSI definitely has drama going on all the time.

And I still want to know how the hell you get thrown off a Gunsmoke list?!

Come up the east coast next time and stop to see me in baltimore.

Ready for some news? We're practically neighbors. I'm in Northern Virginia, near Tyson's Corner. So, if you're ever in a mood to hear fandom stories, talk RB, rant about CSI or point at men with man boobs, let me know and we can meet up (pick a place in the middle, maybe). I'll even tell you how I came to have Richard Basehart's pants. I also have Paul Guilfoyle's hockey jersey but RB's pants is a better story because they were HIS PANTS!

[barracudacool.livejournal.com]

woo woo. wouldnt that be fun. We need to do this. seriously need to do this. RB's pants??!! Yes i will have to hear that story. I got thrown off a gunsmoke list or rather run off cause i am a wild west kinda gal and the moderator was being a butthead. I'll tell you that story and how I got hurled off the CSI *YTDAW list in the same month.

[bunchofgrapes]

We definitely have to do this because I have a feeling, we'll laugh so much, liquids will spray from our noses. It'll be fun. I have your email addy from the Voyage lists so I'll email you and we'll try to coordinate something.

[tos-lover.livejournal.com]

Myers Briggs, woo hoo. I'm partly INTJ, too. Lists for freakin' everything. Even lists for the lists I have to make. And the due date thing? Well, obviously I'm not much good at that, either. Whenever I think about going back for more college, that whole deadline thing holds me back.

We barely do anything over the summer either, save for the trip to NY, but that's usually right at the tail end. This summer has been totally nutso for us, tho. I'm actually finding I kind of like a certain busyness to it.

And um, no, I've never had okra, but wouldn't be adverse I don't think. I kinda dig new foodstuffs. And actually preparing an artichoke correctly is a fine art. Getting that choke out is a pain. Hats off to ya.

And yes to the massage. I hit the chiropractor every week and they make you get a 20 minute massage with the adjustment. I am so not complaining.

Comcast is devilspawn. Canceled them after six months I was so disgusted. Of course copying everything off the DVR sucked and I'm not sure where Those Secrets went in the fallout.

Oh yes, stories due....emails to write....

[bunchofgrapes]

Our OU VP is really into Myers Briggs so the last couple of offsites, we've done the whole type thing. And if you have an excellent facilitator, as we did, then you can really get a good understanding of why the people you work with are the way they are. I used to be an ISTJ but all the incompetence at work changed me into a strong INTJ.

I can't leave the house without a list or else I wander aimlessly around the city. I have to have a plan (A and B at least), I have to have a list, I have to have a due date. And yet, I'm not really an organized person. Go figure.

I generally hate the summer. It's hot, it's humid, it never rains so everything's crispy and dead, the neighborhood kids are annoying, and I'm irritable. Traveling has made the summer go by very quickly so I might have to do it again next year. Plus, I got to spend a week where it was 57 at night, 70's/low 80's during the day and it rained.

I like okra in gumbo but I love it fried in cornmeal with nothing to hold the cornmeal on but the slime. Stay away from breaded. That's just wrong. And I bought an artichoke when I got back home. You're right about getting the choke out but getting to the heart is worth it. Yum!

As for the massage, I was going every three weeks then my massage therapist decided to leave and I quit going. I'm back with a new person (she used to work with a chiropractor) now and it's wonderful. It's not cheap but it's very worth it, especially if you're at a computer all day.

I lost my internet at 7pm Sunday night and 7:45pm last night. It was down all evening. The DVR (I still need to transfer Those Secrets off it) is the only thing keeping me from canceling.

[tos-lover.livejournal.com]

And if you have an excellent facilitator, as we did, then you can really get a good understanding of why the people you work with are the way they are.
When I still worked at the corporate level we did the same kind of offsites so everyone would ultimately understand each other better, and also figure out what their 'true calling' was. It really worked, a ton of people bailed within a couple of months and the guy who organized it got fired.

I can't leave the house without a list or else I wander aimlessly around the city. Exactly. I'm like that at the grocery store too. I have to write out the list by aisle otherwise it's Deer meet Headlights time. And I swear there's no OCD involved...I don't count to some number constantly or flip lightswitches. Honest. I probably have other foibles a therapist would have a field day with though.

The farmer's markets round here have had a ton of okra this season and now I'm even more tempted to pick some up. We've been trying to figure out how come it's become so popular out here this year. I've never tried making a gumbo before. I think I'll go recipe hunting.

And re: Comcast, how come you don't just transfer your stuff off and get a new service with DVR? We got DishNetwork and as far as those things go, they're okay.

[bunchofgrapes]

Comcast, how come you don't just transfer your stuff off and get a new service with DVR? We got DishNetwork and as far as those things go, they're okay.

Would you believe that I live in one of the most populated, fastest growing and wealthiest counties in Northern VA and the only broadband available where I live is Comcast? I'm serious. I checked Verizon, nada. There are no other cable companies, unless I buy a new house in a subdivision where it's all included in the HOA. I could go with DirecTV and they do offer internet through one of their affiliated providers but I like cable TV better than satellite, especially when it rains. So yes, I am Comcast's bitch. And oh, btw, I couldn't post this last night because the f'ing thing went down at 8:45 and never came up again.

When I still worked at the corporate level we did the same kind of offsites so everyone would ultimately understand each other better, and also figure out what their 'true calling' was.

Our facilitator didn't focus on true callings but I did realize that I should never coach a team with little kids. I'll make them cry and their parents irate. Screw fair play, it's all about winning!

[tos-lover.livejournal.com]

I should never coach a team with little kids. I'll make them cry and their parents irate. Screw fair play, it's all about winning!

Hahahah. Yes. Like almost every other kid in this town Abby plays AYSO. Yep, I'm the one on the sidelines shouting and jumping. Not even my friends will stand next to me at the games. It's not like it's England playing in the World Cup or anything, but I just can't help it. It wouldn't be good for anyone if I were a coach. Something about patience and having to explain myself more than once.

[insanityonline1.livejournal.com]

I like cheese. I haven't heard of those cheeses, but I like cheese :D

[bunchofgrapes]

Manchego is a cheese from Spain. It's hard and has a very mild flavor. It's very good.

Tillamook cheddar is made in Tillamook, Oregon. I'm not a huge fan of sharp cheddar but this is the best I've ever had.