Antsier

Antsy-er? More Antsy?

Just over a week since I last checked, and only 1,000 invites have been extended.

Found you!

• You signed up on August 7, 2007
• You are #23725 on the list.
• 12592 people are ahead of you in line.
• 6422 people are behind you in line.
• 36% of the list has been invited so far

Last time, there were 13,590 ahead of me in line. I'm guessing that the switchover to the grown-up servers and big data center setup aren't going as smoothly as planned . . . Casey posted to the Unraveled blog that they were planning on inviting 5,000 new folks by now.

So, it's okay. I can be patient, because I'm still not knitting. ;o)

For all of us with children.

This eBay auction is a total crack up. And the winning bid shows just how much eBayers liked it!

In other news, I'm still here, and still not feeling too well. Maybe I'll have a contest to see if anyone can guess why. Hmmmm . . .

Have a great Wednesday!

Recipe for Monday: Spanish Rice Bean Dip

Quick, easy & reasonably healthy. (My favorite combo. ;o)

Preheat your oven to 350F.

~2-3 cups white Jasmine rice, cooked.
1/2 lg. can Herdez Salsa Casera (labelled "Hot," but it varies widely; usually between mild & medium. YMMV.)
1 lg. can Rosarita Homestyle refried beans
~ 1/2 packet Taco Seasoning (no MSG, sugar, soy stuff, anti-caking agent, or similar)
1 can Ortega mild fire roasted chopped green chiles
3/4 can black olives (I use Natural Value w/o ferrous gluconate)
4 oz. cheddar cheese (Greenbank Farms raw organic cheddar)


Spread the rice on the bottom of a 9" x 13" Pyrex. Spoon the salsa over it and combine well.

Open the can of beans and mash with a fork until it's softened up, then daub it evenly over the rice & sala. You want to try to preserve the layers, so don't mash the beans in hard, but try to get an even layer. My bean layer was lumpy and didn't completely cover the rice/salsa, but it was even overall.

Sprinkle the taco seasoning evenly over the beans. Don't overdo it. 1/2 packet is tons.

Sprinkle the drained green chilies (all but about 1 teaspoon) over the beans.

Drain the olives and mash them with your fingers as you sprinkle them over the beans. Trust me on this one--they taste different when you break them up with your hands than when you cut them with a knife or egg slicer.

Grate the cheese over it all, and spread evenly.

Take a dinner fork and, holding it sideways, use the edge of the fork to push the cheese down into the layers. You're going for some incorporation here, but don't want to totally mix everything together. Level out the top and push the edges back down (they have a tendency to creep up as you're working near them), and put the whole thing in the oven for about 20 minutes.

Serve with your favorite tortilla chips and possibly a green salad. (I didn't do the salad today, but it would be good with some jalapeño ranch, garden-fresh tomatoes and pignolias . . . )

Now, I know you're thinking: "I've got regular white rice; I can just use that." No! You really can't. The Jasmine rice gives this a subtle flavor that is out of this world. Put 1 c. Jasmine rice to each 1 1/4 c. water in a saucepan, bring to a boil and simmer for 25 minutes. (Or boil for 15, turn off heat, and let sit for 10 minutes.) I had leftovers in the fridge, which is the easiest way to make this. So, just cook up a big batch the day before to eat with stir fry or some good Kim Chee, and you'll have leftovers ready to go for the bean dip. ;o)

Sorry I don't have a photo . . . it only occurs to me to post recipes after they've all been eaten; they've got to prove themselves, y'know?

Any questions?

Have a good one!

Antsy

Just for kicks . . . here's where I am in the Ravelry queue:

Found you!

• You signed up on August 7, 2007
• You are #23725 on the list.
• 13590 people are ahead of you in line.
• 4506 people are behind you in line.
• 35% of the list has been invited so far

I wonder what the percentage will read next week? At this rate, I've only got a month to go. Woo-hoo! :o)

A Sad Development

Well, since I came down with that bug, knitting makes me motion sick.

Yep.

If I knit more slowly, it's not as bad, but it's still no fun. Booger.

The last time this happened, it took a few months to wear off before I could knit again, so I'm going to take it easy and try to satisfy my crafty need with sewing. The kids do need a few things, so it's not all bad. My fabric stash has been sorely neglected, after all. The last time this happened I pushed it and kept knitting, and it seemed like such a long time before I could bear to even look at my stash. (Shocking, I know!)

However, that doesn't mean that some stash enhancement won't continue. Just today I managed to pick up a few skeins of PureWool's new 3-ply in some very, very pretty colorways. (And it was a great deal, too. :o) I'll share photos when they arrive. There's just enough for a couple of small projects, so I'll know how much I really "need" when the new co-op opens up on the first of September.

Knitting content to resume in a couple months or so. {Fingers Crossed}

Wish me luck!

Recipe for Monday: Killer Guilt-free Smoothies

The latest creation:

1 can pineapple chunks (the largish one)
1 bag frozen mango chunks (about 12 oz.)
1/2 bag frozen raspberries (about 8 oz.)
~1 1/2 c. Pacific Organic vanilla oat milk

Put the ingredients in your Vita-Mix or smoothie maker in the order listed. (If you're using a regular blender, you'll probably need to let the fruit thaw some before blending.) Use the tamper (if your machine has one) to push the frozen stuff down into the blades and stop when it's all processed well. With a Vita-Mix, be sure to not over process, 'cause it'll melt it.

These are dairy- and gluten-free, and full of great fiber, vitamins and such. The oat milk makes it taste creamy and rounds out the taste without dairy and all of its attendant allergenic concerns.

This makes a great meal with a batch of homemade* muffins (like Amy's Tropical Muffins) or sandwiches.

*Speaking of homemade, did you know that it's not allowed to bring homemade cookies/cupcakes/et al to some schools? Being homeschoolers, we're blissfully ignorant of a lot of what goes on in the local schools . . . but I was surprised to learn that one from a neighbor. What is the world coming to?

Have a great Monday!

Still alive . . .

Between Blogger totally messing with my photos, and being under the weather for a while, things have been pretty quiet around here, haven't they?

I'll be back . . . honest. ;o) I've just got to get my feet under me again.

Anybody want to come be "Mom" in my place while I convalesce? lol

Have a great night . . .

How many does it take?

How many forum members does it take to change a light bulb?

1 to change the light bulb.

1 to post that the light bulb has been changed.

14 to share similar experiences of changing light bulbs and how the light bulb could have been changed differently.

7 to caution about the dangers of changing light bulbs.

27 to point out spelling/grammar errors in posts about changing light bulbs.

53 to flame the spell checkers.

6 to argue over whether it's "lightbulb" or "light bulb" ... another 6 to condemn those 6 as anal-retentive.

2 industry professionals to inform the group that the proper term is "lamp".

15 know-it-alls who claim they were in the industry, and that "light bulb" is perfectly correct.

156 to email the participant's ISPs complaining that they are in violation of their "acceptable use policy".

109 to post that this forum is not about light bulbs and to please take this discussion to a lightbulb forum.

203 to demand that cross posting to hardware forum, off-topic forum, and lightbulb forum about changing light bulbs be stopped.

111 to defend the posting to this forum saying that we all use light bulbs and therefore the posts are relevant to this forum.

306 to debate which method of changing light bulbs is superior, where to buy the best light bulbs, what brand of light bulbs work best for this technique and what brands are faulty.

27 to post URLs where one can see examples of different light bulbs.

14 to post that the URLs were posted incorrectly and then post the corrected URLs.

27 to post about links they found from the URLs that are relevant to this group which makes light bulbs relevant to this group.

33 to link all posts to date, quote them in their entirety including all headers and signatures, and add "Me too".

12 to post to the group that they will no longer post because they cannot handle the light bulb controversy.

19 to quote the "Me too's" to say "Me three".

4 to suggest that posters request the light bulb FAQ.

44 to ask what is a "FAQ"?

4 to say "didn't we go through this already a short time ago?"

143 to say "do a search on 'light bulbs' before posting questions about light bulbs".

1 new forum member to respond to the original post 6 months from now and to start it all over again.

*This is one of those "Author Unknown" funnies full of timeless truths that circulates around the internet, and pops back up from time to time. While I would have loved to thought this up myself, I didn't write it, and send kudos to whoever did.

Sob

So, back in early May when I read Amy's blog post about Ravelry, I went over to the Ravelry site and added myself to the waiting list. When I read Melanie's post today, announcing that she received her invite, I went over to check my progress.

I'm not there.

No email address of mine showed up. Zippo. Nada. In desperation I added my email. That's three months I could have been on the waiting list. At the Unraveled blog today, the waiting list count is 15,422. That "2" at the end is me. (On the "antsy" status-checker page, it says I have 15,421 people ahead of me.) So, at roughly 1200/week (according to Ravelry's Casey), I've only got 12.85 weeks to go. {sob}


I'm being a big girl about it, but it's hard.





At least I can still knit . . .



Er, I mean, at least I can still knit . . .



Oops, that wasn't it, either . . . Maybe this?



Fiddlesticks. Ummmm . . .



I mean, at least I can still knit . . .



This is getting embarassing. One last time.

At least I can still knit!



Ahhh. There it is. ;o)

My Mood Today . . .

Prompted by a visit to The Knit Farm.


Click here to create your own painting.

Actually, that's pretty much how I'm feeling about now. It feels good to look at it. :o)

Maybe I'll hang it on my wall . . .

Recipe: Rockin' Fast Pesto Pizza

Rockin' Fast Pizza

1 ~12" Kamut Pizza crust (I buy them all cooked and beautiful from my local health food store.)
1 can Natural Value green olives (just as good as the more expensive varieites)
1/2 lb. cooked ground turkey with onions
1/3 c. pesto
2+ c. grated cheddar & mozzarella cheese

Spread the pesto on the pizza crust, then add the turkey & onions, followed by the olives (I crush them in my fingers as I take them out of the can. Must faster than cutting or slicing with the egg slicer). Sprinkle the cheese liberally on top, and put it under the broiler on low for about 3-5 minutes. Watch it closely . . . we almost had a burnt offering instead of pizza, had I been even 30 seconds slower today. ;o)

Bonus: Word of the Day

Pestocide: n. 1) Death by pesto.

Have a great weekend!

Love my Laceweight

Sorry to make you wait so long for a finished photo!

As the baby is fond of saying: Da-Da!



There's no blue in it . . . it's really dark dark dark purple with shades of burgundy. The red filter strikes again . . . and ain't no way I can bring that red back. It looks lousy when I try. ;o) Use your imagination . . . .

Attack Cat

Need I say more?

LoLolololol . . . .