Dear Trader Joe's,
These Milk Chocolate Mini bars taste funny. A little fruity. Is that normal? I've now sampled several from the same package and can confirm that they all have the same, slightly fruity flavor. I think perhaps it would be wise to compare them to a different package in order to ensure a wider product sampling.
Accordingly, please send chocolate for review.
Sincerely yours,
C.M. Nielsen
Chocolate taster
(or possibly No. 12, I don't actually keep track of these things, y'know)
Last night, when I should have been doing sensible things, (like paying bills, putting away the dishes, or writing gracious thank you notes), I was telephoning everyone I know between the ages of 12 and 14 1/2.
and without any preamble or greeting whatsoever...
launching into an Official Poetry Recitation.
from the wit of A.A. Milne, to be precise.
It was a splendid series of recitations, if I do say so myself. (only I may have actually read the longer ones).
... because sometimes we just need a bit of poetry to help our perspective.
Both of the recipients of said recitations were quite enthused and jolly about their surprise calls. Laughter and Merriment ensued. Indeed, it's possible there was much giggling.
Who knows. With that kind of success, you could be next. Is it safe to answer the phone, do you think?
"James James Morrison Morison Weatherby George Dupree..."
[Now We Are Six by A.A. Milne, of course. With illustrations by the incomparable E.H. Shepard.]
11:00 am, Rome - sitting on the side of the conference room... where the conversation has primarily been in Italian for the last 30 minutes.
Though one may appreciate the dialogue to determine and define current process... still, it's hard to pay 100% attention when you don't. speak. the. language.
at all.
Try as I might, I'm only understanding a word here or there. Usually when someone slips in a phrase in English.
The mind wanders...
My co-workers are checking email (work and personal), vacation itineraries, and other internet stuff.
I'm taking "notes"...
on Noses...
Very discreetly, of course.
10+ hours of meetings yesterday... somewhere in hour 7, I needed a diversion. Discreetly, I flipped to the back of my notebook and...
When in Rome...
Friday, May 21st is/was the 30th Anniversary of the creation of Pac-Man - the video game that spawned a million obsessions. In typical Google fashion, they rolled out a sweet little logo... that just happens to turn into a game board you can actually play.
Seriously?? SERIOUSLY.
Use the arrow-keys on your keyboard to play.
Coolest. Google logo. EVER!
I was dressing for church on Sunday morning and decided to wear a skirt that hasn't been off the hanger recently. A lovely houndstooth linen, it would be perfect for this in-between weather we're having around here lately.
'Hmmm...' I thought, as I pulled it on. 'Feels a bit snug. That dry cleaner must have really shrunk it!'
Which of course explains why there wasn't a chance of buttoning the waistband, right? Because the two sides were INCHES apart.
'No problem,' I thought. 'I'll just pull it up and wear it as a fitted, high-waisted skirt. Stylish!' Well. What am I to think when said skirt will barely button around lower ribs?! Okay, so maybe I won't blame the dry cleaner for that.
But I'd like to.
I've never met a scale I liked.
When I was a teen, I weighed around 115 pounds -- skinny for my height, though I thought I really ought to drop five. Typical teenage girl.
When I was in college, I put on 10 pounds. Still okay, though, again, I thought I ought to lose... five, maybe 10. whatever.
And that's where I stayed for a decade. At least.
But somewhere around age 35, it starts. You've changed no habits. Nothing. Yet, between one week and the next, you're attacked by five pounds. Attacked, I tell you!
Give it a few more years, and evidently that five pounds has now invited its friends. They're having a regular party around here. 'Gah!!'
I'd like to uninvite them all.
I suspect its the sort of Herculean task that needs help. Exercise-type help. Well, bother. Next thing you know, I'll be thinking "personal trainer". Or maybe even "private chef". 'Thhbbbt! ' Maybe I should just donate that lovely houndstooth skirt to the thrift store. Or cut it up and use the lovely fabric for something else.
Am I ready to give in... or give up? Am I willing to admit that healthy eating is enough and I don't mind those extra pounds and the clothes that no longer fit?
Hardly.
Though I may still do something with that skirt. Because I'm pretty sure the dry cleaner really did shrink it. At least a little.
[Photo images found by surfing retail sites on the web. Nice!]
Well, sometimes I color...
You know how you'll open up a book and there will be a map at the beginning? Well, I always wonder why those fictional maps are in black & white. Afterall, wouldn't it make more sense if they were in color? Just because color is more expensive... well, pshaw. Personally, I always have to stop and think -- is that land or water? And which part is the ocean? (Oi! remember these are fictional maps - not like Europe or Asia or anything) It would just be easier if they were in color, without all those confusing gradients and different map techniques to work out. {sigh} And all this confusion leads to explaining that I'm always tempted to start coloring in these maps, though I almost never do...
Which is just silly when you think about it -- because it's my book! I can color it if I want to. Hah!
Sometimes I draw funny charts too...
I have a particular fondness for a clever murder mystery novel. Lately I've discovered a set of mysteries by Georgette Heyer that are exceptionally witty and delightful. They're just so... so! You know? It's like discovering Agatha Christie for the first time all over again. {bliss!} However, sometimes, an introduction to one of these cast of characters can be a bit confusing. Like when they're all seated around the table at a fancy dress dinner and the descriptive adjectives and pronouns start to fly... At these moments, I sometimes find it handy to, well, create a map of a different sort. Such as a dinner seating chart. Any good society hostess would be envious, don't you think?
Trust me, it did help. lol!
And then there are the late night snacks...
Here's another thing about those British murder mysteries... Have you ever noticed how much detecting occurs at tea time and other meals? Why, it's enough to cause anyone to be famished! Which must explain why I found myself mixing up a cuppa' of cocoa at 11:30 at night. and making a sandwich too. Simply famished I tell you!
P.S. That sandwich was really good too.
So is it just me, or are you ever tempted to color, draw charts, and make tea... all because of a book?
[Map pictured is from Septimus Heap Book One: Magyk, by Angie Sage. Copyright 2005 by Angie Sage. Book text pictured is from They Found Him Dead, by Georgette Heyer. Copyright by the author.]
Yes, really!
Which just goes to show that Alice is popular even with the oh so chic and (possibly) blasé NYC crowd. Once again, we're right on trend, eh? J
Flipping through the catalog, {ahem!} that is to say, Owner's Manual No. 76, you'll also find these darling illustrations hidden in random corners. I'll admit that I'm completely enamoured of them. Do you think anyone would mind if I absconded with Peterman's Mr. Rabbit drawings and used them for my own not-so-nefarious purposes?
Perhaps if I promise to wear a very pretty frock...?
[The lovely Owner's Manual No 76 by J. Peterman Company is printed on WHITE paper and came in the mail. These photos of said Manual taken by me on a rather cloudy afternoon. Obviously. Sorry 'bout that! Note to self: next time, use a scanner.]
