Mundania II

A combination of absent husband and ever-present kids has stifled the blogging spirit lately. That can mean only one thing: It's time for Updates in Mundania.

* We've had a bitter winter here. Once it got down to 26 degrees, and that was at midday! Mostly it's hovered in the 50's -- it was 60 degrees on New Year's Eve. Resident Canadian-Yankees think it's really weird. Displaced Deep-Southerners think it feels like home.

* In our house, if we're out of something, it means we "hafta buy some more." This rule applies to milk, popcorn, granola bars, Christmas presents, and Christmas itself. Yes, the last time we checked, we're raising American kids...

* Darren was out in St. Louis, and went to a gallery of local artists. He enjoyed browsing and wanted to buy me a piece of pottery. But the cheapest one was $35 and it was orange, a color I prefer to leave out of my personal rainbow of life, so I didn't get a pot for my birthday.

* Stuart's favorite color is orange.

* My neighbor has just announced she's expecting her second. Yesterday, we happened to drop in at the library at the same time, so she, her sister, and I looked through baby-name books together. There's one book I want to check out: it's called New Age Names, and I'm sure I'll find some real gems in it. The real danger, I guess, is that I'll find a name in there that I like.

* The above comment was not a subtle announcement of my own. It's just that I'm a name fanatic, which regular readers of this blog are well aware of.

* Darren went out and bought some stock Indian spices, and we've been experimenting with exotic cuisine. The yogurt chicken came out quite tasty.

* Speaking of names, I have a certain group of friends whose names are very nice taken separately, but maddening in conjunction. Three of the closest people in my life are Darren, Debra, and Dana. I've just struck up a new, fun friendship, only to realize that her name is Dena. My above-mentioned neighbor is Nina, and her husband is Dana. It's starting to sound like Dr. Seuss's Baby Name Book.

That's all! -- SJ