What the heck?!

Have I mentioned yet that even after spending $1400 on my car this weekend, my air conditioner is still broken? It's a sore subject, so let's not dwell on it. I only bring it up because the wind/noise of driving with the windows down has a peculiar effect on J-man... he falls asleep.

After work tonight he fell asleep on the way home. A bonus because this meant that I was able to go do the grocery shopping sans munchkin. I'd forgotten what a luxury that was! Man! I could browse the aisles, compare stuff, wander blissfully through the produce department unencumbered. See, I secretly love to grocery shop. I suppose it goes hand in hand with loving to cook, even though my husband will tell you that I avoid the kitchen like the plague. But, while I love to shop, doing so with the kid in tow is more like Mission Impossible meets Supermarket Sweep. (Does anyone else remember that show?)

Really I had a fairly short list of things to get, so I figured I'd be in and out rather quickly, but figured I'd savor my time alone and really get my money's worth.

Little did I know, it was inventory night at the 24 hour grocery mega-mart. What, exactly does this mean? Well, for starters, it means that they are not stocking anything, and there is very little on the shelves. Very little, as in, not a single gallon of whole milk in the entire place! Ummm.... yeah. I considered going for a gallon of 2% instead, but there were only two of them left, and they were both sporting expiration dates that were too close. There were several skim and fat-free gallons, but my kid absolutely WILL NOT drink it. I can't really blame him. I'm not a big milk fan, but if I'm going to drink it, it has to taste like more than white water. And am I the only one that thinks it looks sort of bluish when you pour it? Strange stuff.

For $2.29 I could purchase a half-gallon of whole, but again with the expiration dates! We don't use milk up very quickly around here, so I'm pretty anal about finding a carton that will be fresh for more than two or three days. Then I look over and spy the organic milk all fully stocked in the next case. Only $.70 more than the nearly expired stuff full of hormones. What the heck, right?

I've never really given much thought about my milk. Like I said, we just don't drink a whole lot of it. I can usually talk J into a single serving of it, but he just doesn't like it all that much. The only time I've ever had a craving for it was when I was pregnant, and I've probably consumed less than 24 ounces of it since then. All that said, I've always thought it would be pretty dumb to go out and spend the extra money on organic when it's such a small part of our regular diet. Let's face it... you have to be selective about your extra costs when you've got a paltry budget to work with. I'd rather buy organic produce, since we tend to consume a lot more of that.

But as I sat there, fretting over the fact that I really did need to buy some milk and that I was either going to go semi-cheap and buy the regular stuff with the fast-approaching expiration date, or stifle my thrifty side and actually buy the expensive stuff, I realized that I was being really stupid. I mean, it's less than a dollar more. So, into the cart went the organic milk.

Just this weekend my brother and I were discussing organic milk. He tells me that they buy it for their son, and that it tastes completely different from regular milk. I took his word for it, but now that I've been forced into coming to the dark (or is it light?) side, I'm intrigued. I can't wait to see if J's picky tastebuds agree with it.

Wow, long post about milk, isn't it?

What I really came here to tell you about is how aware I was of the fact that I seem to get stuck in these silly ruts. We all do, I suppose. How many years have you been buying the same toothpaste, or the same pancake syrup? Maybe it's because it's what your mom used and it gives you the warm fuzzies inside, or because it's the less expensive one, whatever... but how often do you step outside that little box for just a second and actively decide to try something new?

Maybe we should all try to apply the quantam mechanics (is there such a thing?) of organic milk buying to the larger things in our lives? In other words, live a little, try new stuff from time to time. Be different. For the love of God, wake up from our zombie-like lives.

BTW, Genisoy Crispy Dippers are like crack! Do not buy a bag unless you don't mind eating the whole damn thing in one sitting. Of course, they're heart healthy (says so on the bag) so why not?

Cat Puke Finished

I finished seaming the "cat puke" sweater today. I have mixed feelings about it, too. Knitting it was a great learning experience and it convinced me to think outside of the patterns. Usually I knit exactly to a pattern and I'm afraid to make any sort of changes, lacking the confidence to make anything turn out right without the lifeline of a roadmap.

I got the idea for this thing from a pattern in a book for a simple knit shell. Yeah, doesn't look much like a shell, does it? It was just a basic thing with a cable running up the front. Well, I kept the cable, and ran with the rest. I knit the sleeves a little tighter than most people would, but that was intentional. You see, Once I finished the body pieces, seamed the shoulders, and added the collar I realized two things: I was going to be cutting it REALLY close on the yarn, and the sweater was already a bit smaller than my gauge swatch had told me it would be. I didn't think loose sleeves would do for a tight-fitting sweater.

As you can see by the lovely modeled picture, it wasn't a total disaster. I think I might even like the color. But it IS pretty small-ish. It shows off the fat rolls perfectly, and if I were to do it over again I'd certianly add a couple of inches to it in length. If I had yarn left over I might have been tempted to cut off the ribbing, and kitchener on a little more, but alas, there's literally less than 3 yards of yarn left, and that's counting the little inch-long scraps. Sure, I could go buy some more and do it, and I haven't completely ruled it out, but lets face facts here: It's a sweater and I live in Florida. It's mostly acryllic yarn bought on the cheap and it was simply an exercise in trying something new. I'm not entirely disappointed in it. If it were wool I'd take the steamer to it, but being the synthetic beast that it is, I don't know if there's any hope of eeking out another inch or two that way. It'll just spring right back into it's original shape and size and leave me cursing.

Now that I'm convinced that I'm capable of knitting something on a larger scale than socks and baby stuff, maybe I'll indulge myself and pick out some luscious fiber and make another one.

In other news, I treated myself to a haircut today. This is one of those things that I really only do about twice a year, and it was entirely necessary. I'm feeling about 10 pounds lighter, and I'm loving it.

Yes, that is my natural curl. It was hiding all this time under the weight and ponytail that is my usual 'do. My hairdresser is good to me. She's also good to my kid. She took one look at his head today and laughed and asked who did it to him. Then she sat him in the chair and evened out the edges and around his ears, gave him two lollipops, brushed him off with a giant brush and baby powder, and then got him his own special chair to sit in while she set to work on my mop. I heart her in such a big way- especially since I'm not one of those regulars that's in there every other week. Did I mention that she didn't carge me for fixing his? Sure, it wasn't a major thing, but still- this is someone who gets paid by the job, ya know? I am known to tip well, though.