Arboretum

There were butterflies all over the place... almost too many. They should do a remake of "The Birds" with butterflies. Creeeeeepy... And who ever came up with a term like "butterfly", anyway? Wikipedia tells us: "The Old English word for butterfly was buttorfleoge apparently because butterflies were thought to steal milk." I knew it - they're evil!

The two awesomest shows on TV...

Here is a pretty good article in Entertainment Weekly on the future of "Battlestar Galactica" (season 3 starts Oct 6!). I missed out on last season since it wasn't part of our cable package any more (frak you, Comcast!), but am planning to catch up on that...

Also, season 2 of Doctor Who is starting this Friday on Scifi! Strangely enough, I had made it thru most of my life without ever hearing of the "Doctor" phenomenon (my husband still married me). I thoroughly enjoyed the first season (or rather, I enjoyed Christopher Eccleston, the actor playing the Doctor). The new Doc looks a little bland, but I'll give him a chance...

Well, I got nuffink...

'cept maybe these delightful papercraft thingies from Epson Hongkong (now load up the good laser printer and start printing, cutting and pasting!): paper plants, paper animals, more, and more.

It's rainy and thundery here. We finally cat-proofed the balcony with deer netting from Home Depot (100 foot for a mere $15). Now I'm freaked out about birds getting caught in it. The cat, however, is rubbing his paws in anticipation...

New apartment pictures

Yay! pictures!

A pig load

This is what you find on flickr when you have too much time on your hands...
Oooh I want a guinea pig!

I had a red/brown guinea pig when I was in my twenties (originally named "Heinzi", then "Elvis" for his amazing shock of hair, and then I rechristened him "Muckel" just cause he looked like one) who lived to the biblical age of eight. I regularly took him outside where he would happily munch away on grass and make his funny noises. Here is a great article on how to build a nice big cage for as many piggies as you want...

Daiso

Did you know that there is such a thing as Japanese dollar stores? In North America? Where they sell Japanese things for a buck or two? DID YOU???

Well I didn't. And I guess I can be glad I didn't, 'cause now I'm pining for a visit to Canada or Seattle, only to go shopping. I would have to park W. somewhere else as he already gets "highly impatient" after what feels like 5 minutes in a normal dollar store. As proven last Sunday. I try and give him tasks as in "go find a squeegee" and "go get me a cart, would you, Dear?", but in vain...

So there's this one called Daiso in Seattle, and then some more on the West Coast, and I really hope they'll spread out like mushrooms. Heh. Cute little mushrooms with faces on them like these:

.

: Little Mushrooms :.
Originally uploaded by Warm 'n Fuzzy.

More Japanese stuff

I couldn't help myself but had to order more Japanese goodies, this time from KawaiiCorner. So kawaii-cute! I probably won't even use those stickers and note pads - I just like to keep them in a drawer and look at them from time to time. They make me smile.

Foo...

We made it! After torrential downpour on our way moving to Kansas...

and a brief stay at my SIL's place (where the cat was beleaguered by other hairy monsters:

- or actually, he was the one doing the beleaguering), the new apartment is finally ready...

All moved in!

The one thing that I really dislike about moving to a new place/city/state is that you have to search for "good" food all over again. Back in Chicago, I had just discovered a Turkish store that sold great, cheap tea and wonderful Halloumi cheese, and a Polish supermarket with nice fresh bread (seven grain!), organic fruit popsicles and German chocolate at incredibly low prices. Here? Well, we've been to a SuperTarget, a SuperWalmart and an Aldi store. Where's the fresh Feta? The Mozzarella? The freshly baked rolls? The Edamame soy beans?

Well, they're all at Whole Foods, it seems. Just at about three times the price I'm used to paying. No cheap Polish supermarkets here. No Polish and Russian accents, either (or Hispanic, for that matter). Seems I'm the only dang foreigner around in these parts of Kansas!

On the bright side, the kitchen is nice and new (kitchen island!!), the windows big and sunny, and we actually have a balcony that we can use (as opposed to the stamp-sized "balconette" at the old place). Oh, and there's about a thousand stores and eateries, just a 20 minute walk away! And did I mention the bathrooms? Two of them? And the ginormous closets? Who needs weirdo foreign food when you have so much closet space?

Speaking of food, the CHOW website seems to be expanding (after they shut down the magazine after only 3? editions). Hmm, I do like the way those appetizers look -
especially this one: Creamy Hummus and Tangy Eggplant Caviar on Pita Crisps