Month: February 2012

Fujiologists….what?

by barbstruestories, posted in Life's observations

One of my (many) weaknesses, is, at times, I take things just as they present themselves without cogitating enough.  And sometimes I give voice to my ill-informed thinking without mulling things over in my head.  This makes for teasing fodder that just never ends.

True Stories

Tommy No Se Picker

Years ago I saw a shirt in a sports store.  It looked very similar to the Tommy Hilfiger shirts of the time.  I said to my family, who were in the store too (unfortunately). “Look at this shirt.  What the heck is Tommy No Se Picker?”  They pointed out that it was Tommy Nosepicker.  And they have never forgotten that one.

Fujiologists

Yesterday a friend and I attended a travel presentation on China.  It was given by another friend who is an avid photographer and traveler.  With one of the slides, he said “and for the fujiologists in the crowd-here’s a xxxxx”.   My brain was stuck on fujiologists.  What the heck do fujiologists do?  Then I connected my friend’s profession and it dawned on me.  

“And for the few geologists in the crowd”.

Fortunately I never said this one out loud.  But I supposed putting in a blog is pretty much the same thing.

Tell me-have you had similar experiences?

Splinters, an Odd Name and Missing Papers

by barbstruestories, posted in Life's observations

The Theory

It’s a marvel.  How events in one portion of life seem to repeat in another form at another time and place.  But the premise is the same.  This true story is about how things work to the surface.  (I know mostly and I hope particularly)

Splinters

Our mother loved us dearly.   She also wanted to make sure we grew up independent and not coddled.  We learned a great deal from her sayings.  We heard the sayings over and over again.  One of those sayings was “it’ll get better before you get married”.   An example would be a sliver or splinter in your finger that wouldn’t emerge immediately.  She’d say that if we left it for a while your body would naturally start to work in the area and expel that nasty splinter.  And it worked.  Wonderful mechanics inside our bodies.  Left alone, it worked to the surface.

An Odd Name

I once wanted to re-connect with a man I had heard speak several years before.  I thought he could assist greatly with a project at work.  Couldn’t remember his name.  I asked others who had been at the same presentation where he spoke.  They remembered him and the presentation but couldn’t recall his name.  I googled this and that and emailed here and there-nada.  I knew it was an unusual name but that’s as far as it went.  The nagging question was embedded somewhere in my brain-I picture some very disorganized files up there in that grey matter.  There’s little file structure, hyperlinks sometimes work, sometimes not, in my brain.  File formats are a combination of handwritten, typed, .doc and .docx, jpeg’s and magazine articles.  I am approaching an age where some youth might think the original files are chiselled on slate.  

One day many months after giving up on that mysterious odd name I was meeting a friend for lunch.  Arriving early, I opened the menu to browse and upon seeing a special for filet of sole, out of my poorly organized brain popped the man’s name!  Eli Sopow!  Now where was that and how did it get up to the surface when looking at a restaurant menu?   Left alone, it worked to the surface.

Missing Papers

Yesterday I looked for 5  papers that I have been going to process for some time.  Yesterday was the day I was getting around to it,  finally. They are each single pieces of paper-they have surfaced in a number of times recently.  They were never far away.  They were held together by a paper clip.  Or maybe I moved them to an envelope.  Whatever occurred, I cannot find them.  How does that happen?  Then you wonder, did I mindlessly throw them out or shred them?  Are they hiding with the wooden toothpicks (now missing for several weeks).  Left alone, I trust they will work to the surface.  Please tell me they will.  

Any and all advice on becoming organized will be most welcome.

Opposite Directions

by barbstruestories, posted in Observations

One Sunday morning, not so very long ago, I went to church.  Going to church is something I have done with decreasing frequency over the past several years.  

In the afternoon of that day I finished Christopher Hitchens‘ book “God is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything”.  

When I told someone about the day, they said paradoxicality is the ability of adults to hold seemingly contradictory notions in mind at the same time.  

You’re not kidding…at least on that Sunday.

Have you read the book and if so, what did you think? 

Warning Light: Anti-Freeze

by barbstruestories, posted in Barb's "best"..at this moment, Happiness, Observations

I have a theory about a human “anti-freeze” phenomenon .  It is based on my experience with winter and living my entire life in the northern hemisphere.  Those of us who live where the snow falls and temperatures can drop into -30C to -40C range (and colder if you factor in windchill), well, we learn about dressing warmly.  We have anti-freeze in our car’s windshield washer fluid.  We buy fleece lined vests and woollen socks and down-filled gear.

The Theory

When winter first takes its place out our front door we shiver and shudder.  We find it very cold and we begrudge putting on the layers and the winter boots and the scarves and hats and on and on.  Then gradually, we become used to it and it doesn’t feel so cold.  My theory is we have some human anti-freeze that builds as winter progresses.  It makes the cold tolerable.  

The Bad News

Due to a design error, our human antifreeze does not have a very long shelf life.  It starts to dissipate somewhere around the end of January.  Slowly it ebbs away.  If our bodies came with fluid level lights (like our vehicles do) the low-level anti-freeze light would start to flash.  And then it feels cold no matter whether the temperature is moderating or not.  I recently read an article that put forward a hypothesis about why it feels colder as winter starts to exit.  It wasn’t an “ah ha!” moment for me.  I prefer my anti-freeze theory. Those of you have lived or do live in colder climates-do you think you run out of tolerance for cold as winter ebbs?  Tell me it’s so.

What can you do?

Think of something else: here’s a few pictures of some things that took my mind off thinking I was cold this past week.

A sunny day, mid-week snowshoe with a friend and a tremendously tasty dinner cooked by my husband.  Oven roasted potatoes and brussel sprouts along with a braised beef tenderloin topped with a blue cheese/thyme/breadcrumb dressing in a red wine reduction sauce.

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What can I say? It was outstanding. Who cares about the temperature outside. It’s likely all in my head anyway.

Simply Biscotti #10

by barbstruestories, posted in Barb's "best"..at this moment, Beyond full time work, Simply Biscotti Project

My plan to eat my way through the dessert counter at Simply Biscotti is still in play.  I met friends there recently and we each enjoyed a sweet after lunch.  Two of chose the  dacquoise, one of their new desserts.  Have you ever heard of a dacquoise?  I hadn’t.  If you look around on the internet you will see multiple types with different fillings and toppings. It is a general term for a style of cake of merinque layers with cream or other fillings basically.  Here’s just one of many:

Dacquoise-noisette

I read about someone who saw Julia Child making a dacquoise cake on her television show. It was iced with buttercream.  She said  the joy of the cake was you could slice a piece off the end and enjoy it, then re-ice the cake and your guests would be none the wiser.

At Simply Biscotti, you are served an individual dacquoise, the layers of meringue with praline cream filling.  The topping is lightly toasted almonds.  The result is a variety of textures, some sweetness, some crunchy, some creamy and all very good.   This dessert might have to be tested twice.  Only because I want to report accurately.   I now plan to make a dacquoise.  It will likely be a cake where you can eat some before company arrives and then cover it up.  Have you ever had or made a dacquoise?  What did you think of it?

Dacquoise-Simply Biscotti


A (Perverse) Benefit of Life Beyond Full-Time Work

by barbstruestories, posted in Beyond full time work, Observations

This is a true story:

  • When one is beyond full-time, flat-out office work, you may partake in a more lingering lunch with friends….during the week.
  • You may slip and fall on your rear but you can go home without feeling guilty about work undone at the office
  • And find the ice pack and situate it on affected parts (difficult to do that in a team meeting)
  • And read about how to treat a bruise-take that ibuprofen
  • But then it says it’s best to elevate bruised area above heart level-and that would be difficult in this instance, no matter where you are-office or home.  Please don’t ask for the pictures on this one.