While I may not be the most mechanically inclined person on the face of the earth, I spent an hour tonight fixing the kitchen faucet which had been pooling water underneath the cupboard for an unknown amount of time. Of course the job only needed some patience and plumbers tape, but I’ll leave it up to you to guess which I had readily on hand (clue: I had the tape). Good to know I can at least put my tools and obscene vocabulary to good use…

Ahhh springtime, I had almost forgotten how good you feel. The time of year where the sun warms & the permafrost rolls back to reveal FOUR MONTHS WORTH OF DOG SHIT IN THE BACK YARD.

Par for the course as a dog owner. I guess you can count this my official 1st day of spring. Welcome back to the new weekly yard work routine…

Yes, I’m the supreme slack. I haven’t made a new post in weeks, so sorry. I could have filled up the entire time with snide remarks about my old boss, or how awesome my new job is, or about all the ridiculously fun things we’ve done over the past 3 weeks, but I didn’t. I’ll be putting in some double time to get back in the habit of posting things as they happen…

Long Point Provincial Park

July 17-20

Need I say more?

Yep, at the Hazel Park Race Track! Guess he gets to dork it out all day and gamble on his lunch hour.

Amazing goulash…

1/2 pound whole wheat elbow macaroni
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 1/3-ish pounds ground sirloin
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 can diced tomatoes
1 medium onion, chopped
1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
2 tablespoons paprika
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon dried marjoram
Fresh ground Black pepper & Salt
1 cup beef stock
1 cup sour cream
2 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley
2 tablespoons chopped dill (or more!)

Bring a pot of water to boil for pasta. When it comes to a boil, add pasta and salt to season the cooking water. Cook pasta 12 minutes (package time) to al dente.

While water comes to a boil and pasta cooks, heat a deep skillet over medium high heat. Add extra-virgin olive oil then ground meat. Break up meat and crumble for a few minutes. Add garlic, onions, red bell peppers, tomatoes, and seasonings to the beef. Cook a few more minutes then add beef stock and sour cream to the pan. Bring to a bubble and reduce heat to simmer. Add cooked pasta and stir. Let pasta absorb some sauce, a minute or so. Adjust seasonings and serve. Garnish the prepared dish with chopped parsley, and..

PREPARE FOR FOOD COMA.

Not only does this make a metric crap-ton, but it tastes amazing.

No, not what you think (pfft).

After a LOOOONG hiatus, Lost is back tonight with a replay of the season 3 season finale cliffhanger (fast forward!!) with enhancements, and the 2 hour season 4 premier tomorrow night.

If you are looking for C or I between 8-10pm either night, don’t bother.

I’m currently in study FREAKOUT mode for my test this week, so I haven’t had time to to do much of anything else. We’re going to LA for a long weekend, but I expect lots of Hollywood trash-talk and a return to regular posting when I get back.

We’re changing Monty’s food to a less protein rich yet still natural lamb & rice formula to reduce his gas. It’s safe(er) to come over and visit again. Seriously.

I am back to blogging today after a break, so consider me online.
Here’s some randomness about what’s been going on with us…

We upgraded our bed and got a queen. That makes 6 more inches for C and the dog to hog. Swell.

Seriously now, I have been waiting for Lost to start back up again for the past 9 months. The writers better get back to work soon because I refuse to suffer any longer without this damn show. Our new show of interest, Dirty Sexy Money has already been effected, so something better give soon or I will lose my sanity.

After 2 years of talking about it, we finally did something about it. We hired Alvin to add some power receptacles in the basement. I now have a plug right by my desk for my music & geek-out equipment. We also have plugs at the workbench, one outside, and one for the humidifier & pump at the furnace. Next up, cleaning up the old wiring to start finishing the basement. Thanks Alvin!

Still working on a new design for the site between marathon studying (finally finishing my MCSE after 3 years of being a few tests away) and entertaining the monster Monty after work. Stay tuned.

Random quote from New Years spent in Detroit:

Detroit is like a 3-legged dog: you want to shoot it and put it out of its misery but it’s just too damn cute.