more to come

So I've had a post twerkin' since I was home, but its gotten ridiculously long for what it is, and I just don't have time to finish it until this weekend (last week before finals = total sadness). So instead, I'm just gonna tell you a few things, then I'll finish the other one later.

Ok, since I now spend approximately 63% of my free time photograzing, I feel like food is just about the only thing I'm "current" on (ask Hayley; she'll tell you how I have zero knowledge of anything resembling pop culture). But I just don't get the high concentration of doughnut recipes. Seriously, there is a new one up there everyday. I mean, I get it. The urge to bake something sweet and sinful when the weather is starting to make you never want to get out of bed is undeniable, but doughnuts? Really?

And for everyone's modern-day-dirty-hippy fix.... enjoy!

the saddest kitty in all the land

Imagine being a cat and having to go to the vet twice in just a couple of weeks, and for gaping wounds, nonetheless. Well, I'll just let you know, it would not make you happy. Especially when you come out looking like a spray painted poodle/rat. And the vet says there were bite marks this time. Looks like Kitty has found herself a more threatening enemy than the Arizonian mockingbird.

Yes. It's disgusting.

i may be the thrift store queen, but sometimes i need help

I hope you are all aware that if you EVER see an acordian for less than $200, I want it. Please buy it and I will reimburse you.

good news for the cilantro

I know you are all dying to know how my cilantro has fared since its run in with the squirrels. And the answer is deliciously.

All those present at Thanksgiving 2009 might remember this little darling dish...

Marinated Butternut Squash

I wanted to make it yesterday, but I didn't have red wine vinegar, dried oregano, or fresh mint. So instead I used lime juice, chili powder/cumin, and cilantro. Poof! Mexi squash.

squirrels are the bane of my existence

All I ask is that I have be able to keep a few plants around to greenen my thumb and flavor my meals, but these damn squirrels just don't want to allow it. Apparently they are just too lazy to dig in real dirt, so they opt to burry their nuts in my pots. Real jerks.

Destructor squirrels reek havoc on cilantro.

I wanted that soil in the pot, thanks.

But I guess I'll learn to accept it. Lord knows I love little, fuzzy creatures (see below).

the trouble with chickens

Chickens are pretty much the easiest, most useful pet ever. I feed them and water them everyday, just like Kitty, but unlike Kitty they require no further attention. And Kitty never made me breakfast.

Chillin' in the coop

Kitty is not a fan of the ginormous birds

Despite all the benefits, there are a few drawbacks to having chickens:

(1) I am too accustomed to always having and never buying eggs. Just a few weeks ago, they were averaging about an egg a day between the three of them. Then it got cold and productivity slowed way down. Now it's been three days and no eggs. What exactly am I supposed to eat for breakfast now? Or what if I want to bake something? Or make some delicious concoction involving fresh mayonaise? Turrible.

(2) I don't mind people bringing me kitchen scraps to feed the chickens. Believe me, I love feeding them old food. But I get these big bags of whole rotten vegetables from other people. Most of the stuff I feed them from my kitchen is just vegetable trimmings, stale chips, or moldy dairy, all of which is manageable. I wish these people would figure out that the chickens would probably really enjoy most of what they've got, except in smaller pieces. And I never feel like chopping other people's rotten vegetables. So they sit in my fridge and take up more space than my own food. It's gross.

(3) Chickens are dumber than a box of rocks. Mine don't even want to be free-range chickens. I spent a good bit of both Saturday and Monday finishing the fence around my backyard so they could come out of their coop. I got a wood pallet to block one side, and fashioned a fence out of zip ties and recycled fence posts. Hours of jerry-rigging later, I finally have a fully fenced in backyard. So yesterday, I open the coop, lure them out with grapes, and they wander around until it's about to get dark and they go and roost in the coop. All is good. 

Today, I open the coop and what do they do? Absolutely nothing. It took them almost three hours to figure out they could leave. Geniuses.

An interjection to the story

Yes, yes, I know. I finally got to Ecuador and the blogging started to fizzle. The truth is, the Ecuador part of my summer is the hardest part to tell. It has a fair amount of ups and downs, and the beginning is mostly downs. Still, I feel its my duty to make sure everyone who hears (or reads, in this case) my story knows just how wonderful a place it really is.

In an effort to put it off a little longer, but maybe still keep your interests peaked, I thought I'd say a little bit about life in South Carolina. It's very nice here. I am quite a fan of the <90 degree days (less so of the mosquitos, but I'll survive). I do, from time to time, feel a little bit of that homesick feeling though. I'm not even sure it can be called that. Four years in Arizona hardly makes it home, but every time someone brings up the Colorado River (and you might be surprised how often I hear about it), I get a little achin' for the wide open landscapes and ginormous colored rocks.

Tonight feels better though. The South might actually be winning for now. You see, I finally hung my hammock, and as I layed there drinking a beer and enjoying my National Geographic, I had the pleasure of enjoying the fireflies before it got dark. As cool as they are at night, they're even cooler when you remember they're just little bugs with glowin' asses.

More of the summer, and Ecuador, soon.