Green in the city

Chris and I recently joined a farmer' cooperative food share program. Every two weeks, we get a box filled with organic produce from southern Wisconsin farms. We got our first allotment on June 17, and we're finally using up the rest of the bounty. We got:

• Asparagus
• Rhubarb
• Strawberries
• Mushrooms
• Mint
• Green Onions
• and three types of leafy greens, which we think are romaine, lettuce and arugula, but we could be wrong. For a while, I argued that one of these greens was actually swiss chard. So yeah, we have no idea what we're eating.
  

Having this stuff around the house has given us an excuse to try out all kinds of new recipes, like this cake I just made yesterday, and this potato salad I'm planning to make tonight, as well as old standbys, like the strawberry asparagus salad I insisted* Chris bring for Father's Day dinner at my parents' house.

We get our next allotment tomorrow. I can't wait to find out what's in there. The program also offers a cheese share, but most of their cheese is raw, which sadly, I'm not supposed to have while pregnant. But next summer? That cheese share will be mine.

In other veggie news, we also recently planted our first garden in our backyard. It features tomatoes, three types of peppers, cucumbers, basil, oregano, cilantro and thyme. Chris' ultimate goal was to grow everything necessary to make Greek salad. Now we just need to buy a goat.

* as you might recall, I hate asparagus, to the point that I can't even handle the smell of it cooking in our house. I know. I'm weird.

I want to hug this reviewer

I had no plans whatsoever to see Transformers 2 anyway, but the first paragraph of Roger Ebert's review is a thing of beauty:

"'Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen' is a horrible experience of unbearable length, briefly punctuated by three or four amusing moments. One of these involves a dog-like robot humping the leg of the heroine. Such are the meager joys. If you want to save yourself the ticket price, go into the kitchen, cue up a male choir singing the music of hell, and get a kid to start banging pots and pans together. Then close your eyes and use your imagination."

Read the rest of the review here.

9 Links, June 17

There's just too much good stuff floating around the internets today.

1. So cute. Rottweilers get a bad reputation, but check out this male rottie that adopted an abandoned wolf cub. Adorable.

2. More cute stuff. They're called "mini-schwein." I want one.

3. Kinda cute. I've watched this video of The Count Censored so many times, but it still makes me laugh every time.

4. Not cute. The 1968 Chicago riot cops are holding a reunion. And if that weren't enough, check out this gem from the article: "Former Police Supt. Philip Cline is scheduled to be a keynote speaker." Unbelievable.

5. I can't stand Joe Buck, so for this week at least, I'm in love with Artie Lange.

6. I'm sure a lot of people have already seen this video of Obama going Mr. Miyagi on a fly, but if not, enjoy.

7. I'm not sure how I feel about the film adaptation of The Time Traveler's Wife. I love Eric Bana. I'm undecided on Rachel McAdams. And Ron Livingston as Gomez? But who am I kidding? I almost started crying during the trailer.

8. It only took two years, but I've finally started redesigning my Web site. It still needs some work, but it's infinitely better than my old one.

9. And finally, a BIG congrats to my boss, who just won the American Business Media 2009 Custom Media Innovator of the Year Award. Yay Jim!

Still here...

...just kind of busy at work and home. Chris and I went to New Buffalo, Mich. this weekend for a little getaway. It was lovely and quaint and the perfect little getaway, although I wish that going once meant no longer having to hear or see those Tim Allen "Pure Michigan" ads.

Birth and birthdays

About five months ago, I wrote this nice little post about how I planned to celebrate Chris' 30th year for all of 2009. I still have a list in my desk at work with all my ideas for the 30 things I'll get/make/surprise Chris with over the next year. And that list has sat mostly untouched since Jan. 31, the day we found out I was pregnant.

Suddenly, all those lovely weekend trips I had planned and big-ticket purchases I thought we could afford have disappeared as I sink every extra penny into the "maternity leave/day care/holy shit, we're having a kid" fund.

In my the last post on this topic, I wrote about gifts 1 - 6. Since then, I did manage to check off a few more items:

7. New York trip - We went the weekend of Jan. 23
8. Carbomb cupcakes - Made a bunch for Chris to bring into work for St. Patrick's Day
9. Massage in Arizona - I got one, too. Week of March 23.
10. Another weekend in New York, but this time with his guy friends, sans wifey - weekend of May 22

And that's it. My average so far ain't too good, unless I manage to pull off five more gifts in the next four weeks. Unfortunately, most of the ideas on my list are no longer doable, due to the aforementioned lack of funds, or my own lack of ability (like that ski trip I was going to plan for last February, until I remembered that pregnancy and downhill skiing don't mix. Although, now I can add "carrying your first born child for nine months in my womb" and "childbirth" to the list.)

Pretty much, the only things left of the list that are affordable and doable are food related, which are fine, but I need more variety. I've got some brainstorming to do.