Shapes in the Asphalt

Some people like to see shapes in the clouds. Walking dogs can lead to a lot of looking at the ground, so I've found shapes in the asphalt. Here's one that looks like Texas to me - think the road repair crew did it on purpose?

Loaves and Loaves

The bread baking experiments continue. This load isn't the prettiest one I've made because it stuck to the cookie sheet as I was sliding it onto the baking stone in the oven. But I think it's been the tastiest loaf I've made so far. It's the first of a new batch of dough, and I baked it a little longer than I had been.



So far, I've tried a basic white bread recipe, one with some whole wheat flour added in, and I've experimented with different shapes - intentional different shapes, not just the accident pictured above!

Sunset July 5th

Sunset July 5th
Originally uploaded by Don'tDrinkTheOpinions

Foster Coordinator

If you want something done, ask a busy person to do it. The more things you do, the more you can do.
-- Lucille Ball

My Tall Guy says I'm one of the busiest people he knows, and I just got a little busier. I'm now serving as one of the two Foster Coordinators for the Greyhound Adoption League of Texas (GALT). Fostering one dog was the beginning, fostering two was the next step, now I'm coordinating! Helping these dogs has been addictive and very rewarding.

This volunteer position involves phone calls, which I'm trying to get better at, and maintaining a moderately complicated spreadsheet, which I thrive at. With over 60 greyhounds in foster homes, and more to place every day, it's certainly a challenge. Wish me luck! And if you know anyone who would like to foster...

Timing is Everything

Apparently timing is important when seasoning meat - should you season the day before, or right before cooking? A Food & Wine writer set out to find the answer, and ended up finding several answers.

The short version?

• Season chicken and lamb the day before if possible.
• Season beef and pork right before cooking.

For the long answer, check out the article.

Courtney

The first very temporary foster worked out well. And there was another dog in need of a very temporary foster home, as she's being adopted shortly. So now we have Courtney!



She's a very petite four year old, and aside from a lack of understanding that not every food bowl is hers, she's been a model guest.

Delilah

Just because she's such a cutie...

Fresh Bread

I haven't tried to bake yeast bread since I had a bread machine years ago. My bread machine phase didn't last - it was a pain to clean and the loaves never really seemed to come out quite right.

I can't remember ever trying to make bread from scratch before. The yeast, the rising, the kneading... It was just all a little intimidating. Then I found this book: Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day.

This book took the fear out of bread baking for me, and a lot of the time-consuming steps as well. You mix up a big batch of dough, let it rise for a bit, and then store it in the refrigerator. Mixing up the dough didn't take long at all - maybe 20 minutes max. When you want a fresh loaf, tear off a chunk of dough, shape it, let it rest, and then pop it in the oven. Five minutes of effort, not including cleanup!

Here's my first loaf, a boule:

Sunflower

Tom

Speaking of non-stop dog news...

Meet Tom:


Tom is a very temporary foster. He's being adopted next Monday, and needed a cat-free pad to crash at for a week until he goes to meet his new family. Tom is a gorgeous two-year old with a cute curl to his white-tipped tail. So far he seems to be a little perplexed about mirrors and other house oddities, but he does the happiest little dance when it's time to eat or go out for walkies.

A Glass of Lemonade

I found out today that another friend has started blogging! So go take a look at Leslie's blog, A Glass of Lemonade. She's a writer by profession, so it's sure to be more entertaining than my seemingly endless updates about the Greyhounds.

Toadies

The Richardson Wildflower Festival can have a hit-or-miss lineup of concerts, but there are usually a couple of bands worth seeing. And you can't beat the price, especially if you're a Richardson resident.

I caught one of my favorite bands, Fastball, a couple of years ago. This year I went to see the Toadies. The weather was perfect - a little cool even. There was a good crowd and I knew more of the songs than I thought I would since I only have one of their CDs.


(A cellphone camera at night with concert lighting is not the best recipe for a picture, but here it is anyway. )

Yeller

We didn't leave a foster vacancy open for long - Yeller has joined the pack. He's a Lucille Ball redhead, and a very sweet young boy indeed. He's been very calm and relaxed. He certainly seems to feel like he's part of the family already:



He had a short racing career that was plagued with minor injuries. I can't wait to see more of his personality unfold. He doesn't live up to his name - no yelling from Yeller. I haven't even heard him bark yet.

Dusty Has a Family!

Dusty was adopted by his very own family this weekend! He's an only pet, which might take some getting used to for him. But he was happily playing with a squeaky toy when I left, so I bet the transition will happen fairly smoothly.

So far, Dusty has been the foster that stayed with us the longest (four months). In spite of that, this was an easy delivery for me because I could tell that they already love him very much.

Happy Earth Day!

It's Earth Day! I was surprised to find out that Earth Day started in 1970. It's as old as I am! (Older by about 6 months to be exact.)

The Environmental Protection Agency was formed later that same year. Here's a nice timeline of things they've done to improve the environment. The government also has a list of ways you can reduce your energy and water usage, recycle, and get involved with volunteer opportunities.

Some of the things I've done or plan to do today:

• Drove our most fuel-efficient car today since I couldn't telecommute
• Recycled everything I could - cans, paper, plastic
• Made a stack of scrap paper out of old printouts
• Donated to the Arbor Day Foundation
• Tell at least 5 people that it's Earth Day
• Open the windows & leave the A/C off

What are you going to do for your planet today?

Space is Big

Space is big. You just won't believe how vastly, hugely, mind- bogglingly big it is. I mean, you may think it's a long way down the road to the chemist's, but that's just peanuts to space.

Douglas Adams, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

And I just noticed that I have an almost identical post from about two years ago - with the same quote, same title, but at least a different picture. If nothing else, I'm consistent!

Broccoli Rice Casserole

I made broccoli rice casserole to take to the family Easter lunch this year. I didn't want it to be too boring, or contain dubious cheese food. The recipe I found was easy and delicious:


Broccoli-Rice Casserole

1½ cups uncooked rice
½ cup celery, chopped
½ onion, chopped fine
½ bunch green onions, chopped
8 oz sliced mushrooms
¼ stick butter
1 16 oz package frozen chopped broccoli
1 10 ¾ oz can cream of mushroom soup
1 10 ¾ oz can cream of chicken soup
8 oz shredded cheese (I used a Mexican cheese blend)

Cook rice according to package directions. Preheat oven to 350 F.

Meanwhile, sauté the celery, onion, green onion and mushrooms in butter until soft. Mix in broccoli and cream soups. Stir in the rice and shredded cheese.

Spread mixture into a 9x13-inch casserole dish. Bake for 1 hour.

Wild Strawberries

To my great surprise, I found wild strawberries growing in our yard:


A much nicer find than the multitude of weeds that usually surprise me, don't you agree?

National Greyhound Adoption Month

In honor of April being National Greyhound Adoption Month, some pictures!

Here's Dusty looking all regal:


And Delilah, hauling you-know-what:

Black Belt Observer

For the first time, I sat and watched as a student who I helped train tested for his Black Belt. He's been training for about five years, and we've watched him grow up.



In some ways, it was just another test since I've seen him test before many times. But of course the Black Belt test is more. More intensity, more time, more effort, more pressure, more eyes watching you. I wanted him to do well, which he did, but sometimes it was nerve-wracking as my muscles twitched in sympathy.

A big congratulations to Mr. Foster, our newest (and youngest) Black Belt!

Too Big, Too Small, or Just Right?

You can now rate the packaging of your Amazon order, which is a very good idea in my opinion. But then again I get a lot of boxes from Amazon!

Most of the time, the shipments I get are good: good protection and good sizing. But every once and a while the box is just huge compared to what's inside of it, or I'll get a book in a padded envelope instead of a box and the cover is messed up because of it.

It's nice to be able to offer feedback on the packaging, and hopefully Amazon will put the info to good use.

Butterfly Boogie

I ran in the Butterfly Boogie 5K this past Saturday. We had a team of people from work - it was fun, but cold!

Freezing and windy is not my idea of great running weather, but once I actually started jogging it wasn't too bad. I managed a decent combination of clothes to stay warm - hat, gloves, long-sleeved shirt layered with a short-sleeved shirt, running tights layered with shorts. I had to take the gloves off around mile 2, but other than that it was perfect. But after the finish line I got chilly again really quickly.

I haven't been training at all, but I managed a somewhat decent 31:48 finish. I enjoyed the route. It started and ended in Reverchon Park; half was on the Katy Trail and half on streets. Maybe I should try to start jogging somewhat regularly again...