Amber & (Wiki)Leek and Potato Soup

Today, a day where I woke up with feeling under the (cold) weather and had a so-called "lady" start a fight with me (pushing!) over a dryer at the laundromat (Oh woe that Splashing Laundromat is still not opened after the fire in the building), is the perfect day for leek and potato soup.

Thank you, CSA, for the potatoes and leeks.

Amber & Chortling Over Chestnuts

Diana and her mom, Kate, are sure enjoying poking holes in the chestnuts so they don't explode when they roast.

Amber & Pulping the Poms

Mmm. Pomegranate. Dinner at Kevin and Diana's involves the prep of many unusual foods.

Amber & The Storm Before The Calm

1.  Go to Schaubhut to pick up more meds for Pickles.  Check.

2.  Go to Whiskers to get calm drops for travel and gut-pills for barfy Woody.  Check.

3.  Get, but do not eat, a chocolate croissant for Nick's Birthday Breakfast treat.  Check on the getting...

...and we'll see about the eating.

4.  Work.  (In Progress)

5.  Pack up work laptop, stuff at office, including books to read and bike helmet.

6.  Whole Foods for last minute purchases: sunblock, citronella spray, face scrub and shampoo.

7.  Stop by Spoiled Brats to place order to pick up tomorrow on way out of town.  (Rather than lug two cases of food, 35 lbs of litter, and other supplies up the stairs and then back down tomorrow.)

8.  Buy $5 gypsy skirt on the street.

9.  Laundry.

10.  Pack and clean apartment.

11.  Go to River House.

 Breathe.

Amber & Bunkered Down

You may be asking yourself, how is ALH surviving on bed rest?  Are the kitties scooping their own boxes and making her meals?  No, they are busy with their own lives (napping, chewing boxes, grooming my head while I am captive).  No, the answer to the success of my bed rest is:

Preparedness.

Before I bedded down yesterday, I ran errands.

These errands included: trips to two different pharmacies for three different drugs (drat the NY state law that says my doc can't call in pain pills, making me have to go pick it up), buying a pill organizer box (you should SEE the pills I have to take), picking up my work laptop for next week (I am way to stoned on pain pills today to circulate), getting my day planner (there's sooo much to plan for when you're on bed rest), buying a treat soap bar and a stop at Lush for seven bath bombs-- one for each day on bed rest.

Also, perhaps most importantly, I picked up a the office mail and lo!  There was a package containing seven packs of M&Ms, all in different flavors.  There are plain and peanuts, classics of course.  But there are also coconut (pukey), dark chocolate, pretzel (disturbing), almond (sooo good), and peanut butter.  I ate the peanut on Day One and the peanut butter today.  Many, many thanks to my kind benefactor, Erl. This kicks the ass of the fruit basket I got that year I called in sick on Shane's birthday.  This human appreciates your resourcefulness, Erl.

And I got this cutie house dress, Le Sac.

Don't confuse it with LaPerm (which very excitingly got its own Wikipedia entry).

But, lest my mother be crying right now because I plan to survive on soap and candy, let me assure you that I have real food, too.  Thank you, Fresh Direct.

I got those 4-minute pre-made meals, juices, yogurts (probiotic!), cherries (ha! take that, farm share that I missed this week!), bread and sandwich stuff, toilet paper, paper towels, tea, pickled tomatoes, milk, cereal... and Ginger, apparently.  That boy sure was disappointed there were no fresh veggies for him to sample.

There were, however, cherries, with which he proceeded to make sahelu with his face.

That boy loves produce.  And I love him.  Even if he isn't supposed to be on the counter.

See, mom and dad?  I am FINE.

Amber & Hoodies

On this breezy, chilly spring day, I want to talk to you about a very important topic: hoodies.

I recently acquired this black, light-weight hoody.

I was a late-comer to the hoody and only bought this new one to replace the pink hoody I bought in 2003 to be my Cat Fur Sweater, the garment you wear in the house and don't mind if the cats take sheddy naps on your belly because it's not going to get worn outside and it will wash up easier than a sweater.  Tragically, in addition to being spotted with coffee dribble, the original hoody kept shrinking laterally with each drying until ultimately it became a Regency Spencer jacket.

Charming in its own right, but not really warm on the mid-section.

Obviously, the new color choice is less suitable for Cat Wear, but it is ridiculously soft and just the right amount of warm for indoor use and outdoor use as a mid-layer.  This is more traditional, Jimmy Style of hoody usage.

Jimmy has a number of different hoodies of varying weights and colors.  In this photo taken at the Old River House, he is sporting my personal favorite, the AMSCRAY Neighborhoodie.  When Jimmy's hoody was delivered, it came with a very sweet note that said something like, "You wacky New Yorkers-- AMSCRAY means scram in pig latin!"  And indeed it does.

Thus, hoodies are not only practical for multiple uses and handsome in appearance, but they have a long, proud heritage.

Amber & Some Things New, A New Thing Old

I feel like I am constantly in a struggle with the Entropy of Clutter in my home.  It's hard to carry out myself and the trash and the recycling--especially since the refuse area is down five flights of stairs, around the corner, and in an alley out behind the building frequented by what I like to think of as sleek-tailed squirrels.  And, I seem to accumulate stuff: direct mail samples, Fresh Direct boxes, books of to-do lists, cat fur, etc.  It's crucial to do a weekly Junk Round Up to make room for new, magical space-occupiers.  For example, I'd much rather have this weird sushi wind up robot that Nick gave me than a stack of Con Ed billson my desk.

(Seen here with Big Nose Felted Guy, another keeper from Nick.)

That's two pieces of inari on the left (my fave) and two pieces of tuna on the right.  And I can't show you because I got my phone before they invented video for iPhones (drat to early adapting), but the two sushis sort of bicycle up and down and round and round when you wind it.  Why?  Because it's amazing.

Gifts are not always keepers, but this new Ganesh statue that Diana brought back for me from India sure is.

(Like the mechanical sushi, Ganesh is not as blurry in real life.)

And that reminds me that my blurry-making phone is actually another place to collect wonderful, and muladhara chakra comforting, things.  Like this Ganesh application.

 (See how the bell is all lit up? You can pick it up and ring it. That is mostly what the app does.)

And, Jimmi referred me to this absolutely essential app where you can gong a mokugyo or the metal gong on the left and induce nagomi ("harmony").

(I won't spoil what "With Cat Mode" is.)

And, speaking of cats, this guy came to live with us a few weeks back.

(He's actually laying on a pile of books to return to other people, on the theme of getting rid of old stuff to make room for the new.)

This new buddy is actually an old artifact from the Boxing Day Heritage Booty.   I molded him from greenware, painted his eyes, paw pads and nose, and then glazed the heck out of him in ceramics class.  Proof?

Every great artist signs her work.  In 1981, I was apparently trying something new with my R's.

Amber & Rewards

As much as I hate Laundry Day, I sure like having fresh bedding to look forward to. A bed never looks as well made as on Laundry Day. And a kitty never looks as blissful.

P.S. I really am going to finish painting that wall soon.

Amber & Supplies

I just made a supply run to Saint Jesus Pharmacy.

I bought tissues (I ran out yesterday), T.P. (I ran out today after it had to play double duty after the tissues ran out), trash bags (I need somewhere to put all the used tissues), lady stuff, generic decongestants (ran out this morning), a heavy moisturizer for my super-sore under-nose, and Sambucol.  Even though I am a bit worried my friend Sambucol hasn't really been working this time around, I want to believe I would be that much worse without it.  It's made from black elderberries--how could it not be good for me?

I also got  some Scrubbing Bubbles tub cleaner.  (I'm sorry Al Gore.)  I really want to take a spruce bath but my tub hasn't been cleaned in quite a while.  I normally use baking soda and vinegar, but I'm just too pooped to provide the catalyst of muscle power.  I've seen those commercials where the bubbles do all the work.  I promise to re-use my cardboard coffee sleeves for all of 2010 to make up for this grievous environmental sin.

And, I stopped at Floridita Bakery for a cafe con leche alto, sin azucar y la rocali.

I discovered this authentic cuban baked treat when Floridita first opened, but was very sad to learn, from the baker, that "rocali" really just means "rugelach" in espanish.  Still, I think I taste some cuban flavor.  And it's also huge.

Mission: Achieved.  My nose is super grateful for the tissues.  And my belly is happy for the rocali.

Amber & Turning and Facing the Strange (Changes)

When you are enmeshed in your own drama, you seldom think that the rest of the world is undergoing its own changes and challenges. But then, your own controversy subsides, or your flank feels a little less ouchy, and you venture out into the world and discover that the universe waits for no Amber.

Imagine my surprise when I came into the office today to discover we had a bike rack!

That's my bike, the second one in from the right, suspended there.  Some of those other bikes belong to Hope, our former officemate, and I have no idea whose the fourth one is.  How organized and space-saving.  Why, I can actually get to the window now without playing one of those parking puzzle games.

Much of the box clutter has disappeared from the corners as well.  The coat rack has been moved to a new convenient location near the door.  I'm not sure who is responsible for this flurry of restructuring and organizing, but I bet it was Kevin.  But maybe with help from Emma the Architect, seen here with her world-rocking graph paper.

One thing that has not gone away, though is this fascinating and mysterious handbag.

The handle is made from pink ribbon, but the bag itself is made of-- brace yourself-- white, uninflated balloons.  For a long time, when it was hanging from the coat rack, I thought it was a bathing cap.  But now that I know it's a handbag, I am kind of in love with it.  But maybe that's just the flank pain clouding my fashion judgment.

Amber & I'm Off

Environments? Check. Lowell the World's Best Cat Sitter? Check. Kisses for each baby? Check. Boston, here I come.

Amber & After Laundry

There's nothing like freshly laundered, unfolded sheets to bring kitties together in sleepy harmony.

I think I need a bigger bed.

Amber & The Never Ending Laundry

It's really hopping here at Splashing Laundromat today. I had to wait for a washer to open up and am anticipating similar drying delays.

Maybe I should rethink the whole two costume changes per day Wardrobe Concept.

Amber & Travel

I've spent the day cleaning the mess that accumulates in an apartment inhabited by four cats when their owner suddenly becomes a frequent traveler. As frequent readers know, I was in San Francisco a short time ago for work and then also a day of recreation and Redwoods.


Then, I was home for one week, but never really got back into a normal routine or got on top of the entropy. And then, I traveled to the world of Freakshow Injuries when I got whiplash while blow-drying my hair. (No, really. I really got whiplash. Apparently, my muscles were cold and then I shocked them with heat and then moved in the exact wrong way. Beauty hurts.)

And then I had to take off, unable to turn my head to the right, to face my old nemesis, Washington, DC. The kitties were alone from Tuesday AM until Thursday evening on account of not being able to get a sitter. I left out tons of dry food, a day's worth of wet and seven water bowls (and two Woody paw-sip glasses full).

Photo by James, 2005

Mysteriously, when I got back on Thursday, there were no barfs at all, proving that no cat sitter vs. cat sitter makes no difference in kitty puke habits.

On Friday, I had more travel in store! I ventured to Brooklyn for a chiropractor appointment. Mysteriously (again), my left shoulder hurts like crazy since that visit, but I can totally turn my head to the right. Hello, right side of the world!

The sad and happy thing about my Brooklyn journey was that my chiropractor is in Amy & David & Hazel's old neighborhood. It made me sad that I haven't seen them in forever, but it made me super happy that they are such good people and, with a little effort and a little less travel ahead, I can see them soon. And maybe just in time for the second snow of the season.

By the way, I don't have any hot water today. Not ideal for cleaning nor for whiplash soreness. WTF, building? Why do we never lose hot water when it is warm outside? And why wasn't there even a warning sign this time?

You thought my hair was gross when I had to wash it with conditioner....

Amber & Household Chores

I was making my breakfast this morning and felt something ticklish on my foot. I looked down, expecting to see one of my many cats, instead I saw a kitten-sized clump of one of their furs. And so I got out the vacuum. Vacuuming is not a popular activity in my house. Pickles disappears under the bed, and Woody sits on the window sill in the kitchen just waiting for it to end. (Of course, Ginger follows the vacuum around, every now and then rubbing his face on it.) But, poor Tiggy Winkle is the scarediest of them all.

I swear I did not touch any of the blankets or position the cat within in them in any way.

This photo was taken about fifteen minutes ago. I stopped vacuuming at 9 am. She's still in her hidey cave. She's actually under the pillows, with just her head sticking out, surrounded by the edges of the sheets. It actually looks quite cozy.

And it definitely looks safe from the Cat-Killing Machine that vacuums the house. I wonder how long she will stay in there....

Amber & Out of the Frying Pan

I have returned from the Bay Area. All of the kitties are fine: Woody's nose is 99% healed, Tiggy only puked once (and not on my bed!), Ginger is shedding like crazy from a week of not being pet, and Pickles needs to be right next to me everywhere I go. I have some cleaning to do (six days of cat shedding, plus laundry) and some work (no meetings today!).

But, it is really really really hot. Oh man is it hot. I went out to get cat food and an iced beverage and almost sweat myself into a shriveled heap.

I really would move to San Francisco... if it wasn't going to fall off into the ocean in the next 30 years.

Amber & Home Chores

Cubbies organized = check! Kitties put away.


Close-up-style (learned from Cuteoverload.com).


Admittedly, Gigi put himself away. Ugh. Can you believe his perfection? Or that I still have those striped sheets?

Amber & Errand List

Laundry = check! (Is the reason why they remove my sheets from the
drier before they are dry, while i am standing there, that my elders
know they have less life ahead of them? Or does the greatest
generation just deserve fluffier bedding than I do?)

Amber & Dirty Floors

Imagine my surprise when I discovered that, although I had vacuumed and Swiffered wet the floors last night, they were even more dirty this morning. And, really, really dirt-y.


The boys seemed just as curious about the dirt pile as I was. In fact, they called my attention to it first thing I woke up. Pickles coincidentally wanted to lie down just where the dirt pile was.

In other unrelated news, the dill plant mysteriously disappeared from its pot. I guess it ran away from home.

What a morning of mysterious coincidences!

Amber & Kitty Chores

One of the priority chores for the day was Getting The Fur Under Control. Some of that involved the vacuum and Swiffer, but some it involved going right to the source prophylactically with my little blue buddy, the Zoom Groom.

This is Ginger Fur which I won't have to lint roller off my pants next week.


Simultaneously impressive and disgusting, right? (I love cat fur on the cat, but off the cat it makes my lip curl.) Well, this is the Pickles yeild.

That is Pickles in the shot for scale while he attacks the brush to exact his revenge on it. I don't quite understand why he is not bald now. La Perm. I put the fur in the compost... it is just hair, right?