Galloping Nelly

Updates

June 14, 2009 · Filed under The Homefront

1. They talked the jumper down at 1:23 a.m., nearly 12 hours after she first appeared on the ledge. It’s pretty amazing that probably 25 people and 10 vehicles were on site for that long to save one person. And obviously those “talker downers” know what to do.

2. We are still cooking, though it was looking like I was starting to fall off the wagon. We’ve cooked 3 times in the last 36 hours! (Skirt steak with veggies, sloppy joes, and chicken enchiladas.)

3. I can’t even tell you how awesome the bed is.

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On Leaping

June 11, 2009 · Filed under Chicago is cool, Work

The big question around the watercooler (which is apparently at my office window), is whether the woman on the 24th floor of the building next door is going to jump. Police and fire brigades are standing by to clean up the mess, assuming they can’t talk her off the ledge. Click here for pics. (No blood or gore, I promise.)

Meanwhile, I received this e-mail this afternoon from one of our agency partners:

The boss has a friend who is a camera man with channel [X] news.

They need to interview a person today around 5PM about the following:

There is a new invention that was just FAA approved. Designed for people who live or work in high rise buildings.

It is a chair that has a parachute on it. It is designed so that in case of an emergency you can jump out of the window (if you can open the window) 40 floors or above and survive.

This is not a joke. Please find me someone.

Too bad the woman is on the 24th floor.

Sleeping a little easier

June 7, 2009 · Filed under The Homefront

I haven’t yet resorted to counting sheep, but let’s face it, sleeping together in a full size bed is theoretically great for newlyweds, but it makes for a crabbypants wife in the morning. (So I’ve been told.)

Perhaps this is why Mr. Farmer made the suggestion about a week ago that we shop for a new bed. Practically speaking, we’re both trying to sell our places, so I initially thought we should just suffer until we move. But the houses aren’t moving. And last I heard, I need to sleep at night.

So yesterday we ventured out to Portillos for lunch, then leisurely stopped at Target. And what do you know? We passed the mattress store. And stopped.

We’d done a little research about 6 months ago, thinking a Tempur-Pedic would be the answer. Hallelujah! But yesterday they just felt like rocks. And I didn’t think I could make the switch from a big squishy cloud to a foamy block that you slowly sink into for like five seconds when you turn over.

We also thought we would prefer a queen over a king. Ha. One leap onto a pillowtop king in the store, and I was hooked.

An hour later, we walked out as proud owners of a king Serta Perfet Day Effortless Super Pillow Top. On clearance! It’s being delivered tomorrow. I think I have to go take nap.

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Deciding on Dinner

May 24, 2009 · Filed under The Homefront

Ahhh, such great weather for a holiday weekend! Mr. Farmer and I have been goofing around for the past couple days, starting with 9 holes of golf on Friday evening, a big shopping trip for garden materials at Home Depot yesterday, and date night watching Angels & Demons. We managed to plant two pots and beds in the front and back of the house, with a big whine from me only once when he found me in the recliner with a Diet Coke half-way through the process.

At any rate, when we got back from our honeymoon, we found ourselves with a little more time in the evenings, so we decided to start cooking rather than scavenging for food out on the town every night. Two weeks ago we hopped on Rachael Ray’s site and just went with one of her weekly dinner planners, which at the time even gave you the shopping list. (Since that time they’ve taken down that feature. Poop.)

We didn’t go in this order, but here’s what it included. And with left-overs, it lasted us two weeks.

SUNDAY
Open-Face Pork Tacos

MONDAY
Spiced Grilled Chicken

TUESDAY
Beef-and-Portobello Minestroganoff

WEDNESDAY
Turkey Meatloaf Sandwiches

THURSDAY
Vegetable Ribbon Pasta

FRIDAY
Swordfish with Mango-Caper Relish

SATURDAY
Strip Loin Steaks with “Pizza” Topping

The turkey meatloaf sandwiches — surprising as it might seem — were our absolutle favorite, followed by the open-face pork tacos. Those were a ton of work, though, clocking in at over an hour. The steaks were really good too, especially using the pizza topping as a bread-pudding-like side dish. Least favorite for me was the pasta, followed by the swordfish — which was technically fine, but I’m not a big fish person.

Now that the shopping list feature has disappeared on that site, I set out this morning to just find receipes from her 30-minute meals sections that looked good and made the shopping list from there. Here’s what we decided on:

Fancy Tuna Melts

Asian-Style BBQ Pork Chops and Succotash

BLT’s

Chicken Satay Noodle Salad

Turkey Parm Meatballs and Caesar Slaw

Millionaire Rotisserie Chicken Salad

Brats

Marinated Flank Staek with Sweet-Hot Slaw

Herb Apricot Chicken

Cheesy Chicken Enchiladas (from Cooking Light)

The big question now is which item we’ll have tonight when Mamma Farmer comes over for dinner.

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More Photos

May 18, 2009 · Filed under Wedding

Boy have I gotten lazy. So to make up for it, I’m giving you pictures. And a poem.

Click here for snapshots from Mom’s camera (various photographers — camera got passed around like my niece.)

And if you haven’t seen the slideshow from the photographers, go to www.heartlandphoto.blogspot.com. Hooray!

As for the poem, Mr. Farmer’s birthday was last week, so I gave him a book of poems about the things we did on our honeymoon. (G rated, people! Keep your heads out of the gutter!) Here’s today’s excerpt:

One fish, two fish, three fish…
I wish! No fish.
Bring me my lunch dish
For my wheat thins — delish!
Oh wait…a bite!
What a delight!
Reel, push, pull, a fight!
Get that marlin up here tight.
The catch of the day.
The crew yells, “Hooray!”
Will my wife say,
“Yes!” on the wall it can stay?

(This poem was fiction — Mr. Farmer’s quest for a marlin continues.)

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We’re back!

May 10, 2009 · Filed under Wedding

It’s time for a Sunday afternoon nap, but I felt compelled to say hello! The wedding was tons of fun, and Maui was fabulous. Click on the Flickr photostream on the right to see some pictures from Hawaii.

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Essay #3

April 19, 2009 · Filed under Wedding

TOP TEN REASONS WHY, AW SHUCKS, WE CAN’T ATTEND MR & THE FUTURE MRS FARMER’S WEDDING

Our 700-word Essay

So…before we get to the Top Ten List, you need to know we had to pare down our reasons for not attending. There were many, in spite of how badly we wanted to attend. Sazzee is from Ohio and Lakota John lived there for several years—in fact that’s where we met and got married… oops, digressing, here.

Anyway, we’re both familiar with pig roasts and are going through withdrawal because people don’t seem to do that sort of thing in Chi-town. Hate missing all the fun. Also, it was the week-end to wash our dog. (You see, Toto sleeps with us, so doggy hygiene is very important at our house.)

The long and the short of it is that “it is what it is…” basically Sazzee’s fault, as you’ll see when you read the “Aw, Shucks…” list.

THE NUMBER TEN REASON WHY WE CAN’T ATTEND MR & THE FUTURE MRS FARMER’S WEDDING IS THAT: Sazzee is allergic to tulips. Well all flowers actually. But mostly tulips. Too perky!

THE NUMBER NINE REASON WHY WE CAN’T ATTEND MR & THE FUTURE MRS FARMER’S WEDDING IS THAT: When we called the AAA for directions they told us there was this yellow brick road we had to follow. We went online and checked it out on Mapquest.com and discovered that it is closed for construction. It appears that while we have been away (working with Sazzee’s new image consultant) monkeys have torn up the bricks and are selling them on Ebay.

THE NUMBER EIGHT REASON WHY WE CAN’T ATTEND MR & THE FUTURE MRS FARMER’S WEDDING IS THAT: Every time Lakota John goes over the speed limit, they arrest Saz and take her to this place called Emerald City. (She has a record for operating a broom without a license.)

THE NUMBER SEVEN REASON WHY WE CAN’T ATTEND MR & THE FUTURE MRS FARMER’S WEDDING IS THAT: One time the ECPD pulled Saz’s prints and they spelled her name ELPHEBA!! Do you know how many mispronunciations there are?????

THE NUMBER SIX REASON WHY WE CAN’T ATTEND MR & THE FUTURE MRS FARMER’S WEDDING IS THAT Glenda has a restraining order against Sazzee (into perpetuity) ~ not sure what her issue is….she’s the one that’s got the dress, the crown, the wand and the “bubble”…

THE NUMBER FIVE REASON WHY WE CAN’T ATTEND MR & THE FUTURE MRS FARMER’S WEDDING IS THAT Sazzee can’t find here ruby red slippers. The last time she wore them she clicked her heels and she ended up in Ft. Wayne, Indiana. The slippers are probably under a bed in some No-Tell Motel.

THE NUMBER FOUR REASON WHY WE CAN’T ATTEND MR & THE FUTURE MRS FARMER’S WEDDING IS THAT when Sazzee called to place a special order for striped stockings, (she refuses to attend a wedding without wearing stockings) Taiwan informed her that they don’t make them in Queen size anymore.

THE NUMBER THREE REASON WHY WE CAN’T ATTEND MR & THE FUTURE MRS FARMER’S WEDDING IS THAT Sazzee suffer from carpel tunnel because of being 4’11”. Honest! Seems people confuse her with the longest living munchkin and run after her wanting her autograph….some just ask her how to become a member of the Lollipop Guild!

THE NUMBER TWO REASON WHY WE CAN’T ATTEND MR & THE FUTURE MRS FARMER’S WEDDING IS THAT “Oz never did give nothing to the tin man”. Go ahead…figure that one out.

AND…THE NUMBER ONE REASON WHY WE CAN’T ATTEND MR & THE FUTURE MRS FARMER’S WEDDING IS THAT: Every time we fly to Kansas, a house falls on Saz.

So, you can see…our reason for not attending MR & THE FUTURE MRS FARMER’S WEDDING is pretty serious stuff. We didn’t take the decision lightly. Derek’s mother is a dear friend of Sazzee’s (well, Lakota John likes her pretty well himself because they’re Jesse Stone buds.) If there was a way we could have made the trip happen…we’d be there. Striped stockings or not. We know it will be a beautiful ceremony…a raucously fun reception and the celebration of two very special people. 700

Wedding Pics

April 17, 2009 · Filed under Wedding

Just so I don’t get swept up and forget about it…I’m giving you the link to my awesome photographer’s blog. If she follows her trend, she’ll be posting a few pics from the wedding sometime during the week after it. So CLICK HERE around April 30 to get a sneak peek!

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Essay #2

April 13, 2009 · Filed under Wedding

[Names have been changed to protect the innocent.]

Sandy and I are very sad that we can’t party with you until the cows come home. Neither of us had ever been to Kansas and we were excited to go. The closest we had ever been was Kansas City, but I don’t think it was the right Kansas City. I mean, not the one on the Kansas side. It was on the Missouri side. That’s because I have family in St. Louis and they thought it would be fun to go to Kansas City. We saw a Royals game and that’s about it. Then we drove back to St. Louis. Fun times. Not as fun as your wedding would have been though. I hope you guys have a great time!

Is this 700 words yet? Geez, that’s a lot of words. Maybe I should have Georgette write it. She tends to write way too many words. That would have helped.

So…unfortunately, your wedding is the same weekend as the 40th wedding anniversary of Sandy’s parents. 40 years! I bet you and Mr. Farmer hope you last that long. Now, Sandy’s parents didn’t meet online. They didn’t have “online dating” 40 years ago, let alone E-Farmony. Instead, they met at a YMCA dance. Yes, I’ve heard that story one too many times. And I will hear it again that weekend.

While you’re gone, I’ll try to hold down the fort. I bet I will find out quickly what keeps you here till 9pm every night won’t I? As long as I don’t have to write any decks for Sal. You’ll have to do that from Hawaii.

You are going to Maui right? You’ll have a great time. Sandy and I have been lucky enough to hit Maui together a couple of times, and we really like to eat, so here are our recommendations for Lahaina:

• Lahaina Coolers — great for pizza and late night food http://www.lahainacoolers.com/
• Cheeseburger in Paradise — great onion rings. Good location and usually a live one man band www.cheeseburgerland.com
• Mooses — best happy hour and lots of fried food http://www.mooserestaurantgroup.com/
• Chez Paul — a few miles from Lahaina…good French food and the best crème brulee in the world because it’s served in a pineapple http://www.chezpaul.net/
• Longhis —- a bit pricey, but worth it…good steak and seafood http://longhis.com/
• Penne Pasta — decent Italian, if you’re in the mood for some pasta http://www.pennepastacafe.com/
• Curry in a Hurry — you know it’s good because it doesn’t have a website. Quick snack or lunch take out place
• BJ’s Pizza —- don’t expect the Chicago style pizza you’re used to, but do expect a local singer and some good apps http://www.bjsrestaurants.com/locationdetail.aspx?lcID=53

Of course there is good food all over the island….so if you end up going to the high end shopping at Wailea and feel like some fish and chips, Alexander’s Fish & Chips in Kihei is a can’t miss place. And if you have a car, a place that never disappoints in Hailimaile is Halimaile General Store http://www.bevgannonrestaurants.com/haliimaile/index.html

Rusty Harpoon is good for a quick beverage right near you in Whalers Village. Great first night spot too because you don’t have to go far but still feel like you’re going out.

So that should successfully put about 10 lbs on you and from what I hear, Mr. Farmer needs it.

Well, the question now is whether or not I extend this out for another 100 words. I guess I have to.

Some simple advice. Don’t think about work. Relax. It will be here when you get back and worse than when you left it. So don’t worry about it. I’m sure M. will crack the whip while you are out, and S. will do her best to wrangle in the client. P. will wonder where you are. I will continue to procrastinate, mostly in honor of you, but everything will get done.

Again, we’re sorry we can’t make it but look forward to celebrating with you when you get back. Put it on the calendar. Sandy and I will take you out to dinner. And maybe you can make the recommendation on where to eat this time.

Church Wedding Shower

April 12, 2009 · Filed under Wedding

Last weekend the folks from church threw a lovely shower for us.

There’s quite a tradition of interrogating the groom at these showers, but thanks to “church clean-up” day that day, the peanut gallery seats were removed for floor polishing, and the poor old hecklers hat to sit with their wives in the audience. (And behave.)