Today

I start working for a day camp for 3rd through 5th graders run by Seattle Parks and Rec. I hope no kids have asthma attacks, or an allergic reaction, or a crazy temper tantrum, or die. I hope they like me.

These are my Birthday Presents

I'm a little copying Molly, and a little copying Lauren and Lindsey, but I REALLY wanted one of these guys and I got one! Because I specifically told my parents it's what I wanted (they did not get me the electric toothbrush on my list, however). Today Myke and I are going to buy records because I don't have any and he's too paranoid to let me borrow his. Of course I want my own collection, too. I love all the sounds the record players make. Like the sound of the arm moving and then settling down on the record before it starts playing. Also!! It's a "stack-o-matic" which means I can put 4 records on and when one ends another will drop and start playing! It's like the beginning of Happy Days!


Last night when I got it I was really excited to play something but realized I didn't have any records. My mom pulled through with a couple of ooold Hawaiian records she hadn't gotten rid of, including one of her high school choir singing. I think it was a little fitting that the first records this baby played were weird old Hawaiian music records, because that's the type of music that really seems right for record playing. We listened to a one hit wonder Japanese guy with ukelele and guitar that belonged to my grandma. I think it would be funny to only listen to instrumental music from the 60s on it and drink martinis all the time.

P.S. I didn't force Blanco to be in this photo shoot, she wanted to.

Mistakes in the Office

Thank goodness I don't work in a place like this. Anyways, I've been spending the last couple months writing to tenents to request insurance certificates. Because no one has sent any documents back, I've started sending second notices. Anyways, I had an original letter out, addressed to "Alan Cheladawada" and I thought "Now that's a very interesting name." I went into our database to double check the address and everything, and apparently his name is really "Alan Shalloway". I don't know how I addressed the original to Mr. Cheladawada, and I can't imagine his confusion upon receiving it. Maybe that's why he didn't send me anything back.

This is my Cat

Pepper is my cat. I've had her for 16 (!) years . I was six and my best friend who lived down the street was moving to another town. Pepper is an outdoor cat and always hung around by our house, so my friend and her family decided she would probably be happier to stay with us than to move with them. Pepper was an unenthusiastic mother before we got her, so I place her age at an estimated 18 years old. Pepper was once very spry. She was a talented hunter, and I was the honored recipient of many dead bird, rat, and mole gifts in my room. She used to sleep with me every night, and has had a many years-long love affair with my teddy bear, Big Bear. She was very patient with us children, especially my brother who would drag her by the tail, bathe her in the sink, and throw her out of trees to see if she would land on her feet. She always did.

These days she is old and has gone a little bonkers, but she seems quite happy. She spends all day on my parents bed, though she comes down the stairs and sticks her face through the bannister railing to say hello when someone comes home. She has become much more cuddly in her old age and purrs the moment someone begins petting her. I love her.

Today I Made a Lemon Meringue Pie

One of my dad's favorite things is lemon meringue pie, so I made one for him for father's day. The custard is a little lumpy and the custard tastes a little cream of tartar-y, but it looks nice. I've always wanted to work in a bakery. Someday I think it would be the epitome of "lovely" to have my own pastry bakery. I used my mom's really old copy of Joy of Cooking, first published in 1931. I like the old print and the very basic rudimentary drawings that show you how to do things.

The thing about using old cookbooks is that nothing in them is easy to do. Everything these days is about convenience: 30 minutes meals, etc. Back in the day, especially when our grandmothers were housewives, cooking was like the qualifying talent in society. It wasn't convenient to cook because it was supposed to take all day to make a worthwhile dinner. A meal represented hard work, thought, and care. While I generally throw some pasta on for dinner with sauce bought from the convenience store, sometimes it feels good to spend some real time making something great. Today was the pie.