In travel news, next time you're in Chicago, visit the city's dullest spot:

[T]he northwestern point of the Dakin Street and Sheridan Road intersection in Wrigleyville...Emblazoned there on a sign affixed to a three-story brick building that houses a Thai restaurant and a bunch of apartments is the message: "On this site in 1897 nothing happened."

Hee!

How's the shopping list feature

Honestly, I've never found any automated shopping list to be useful, so I haven't really tested that one out. I use the site primarily for tracking the food and exercise I do rather than asking it to give me menu suggestions; I've found some good recipes there, and I have it suggest a week of menus now and again to spur ideas, but I mostly leave the "tell me what to buy and eat" stuff turned off.

Re hives:

That's interesting about the MSG. I would be surprised if that caused it, since I had an extremely typical lunch for me-- fruit, hummus, pita, yam, tea. And some ginger snaps.

The only thing I can think of is I just used a new detergent along with bleach. Would a reaction to your shirt cause hives all over your body?

Hm. Well, that sounds like how I'd be likely to use it. Thanks for the info.

Any of our southernistas have a beloved recipe for Pimento Cheese?

My Dad has one but it uses red peppers instead of pimento. My family loves the pimento cheese but I think it's nast. Ew. If you're interested, I can email him for the recipe...

Squeee! Yes!

Well, I need to make it tomorrow so Yes if You Think They'll Be Quick About It!

K, I'll email him.

The only thing I can think of is I just used a new detergent along with bleach. Would a reaction to your shirt cause hives all over your body?

I think it likely could, but hives are funny and can be totally flukey (I think). Where they were all over your body, I think I'd suspect something else, but since the detergent is new, it's probably the most sensible thing to investigate.

Allergies are also unpredictable. Once you're sensitized, you can react to stuff that wouldn't normally cause you to react. For example, normally, scented things don't bother me. But, if I'm already reacting to pollen in the air, even a candle scented with something that doesn't bother me (like cinnamon) will bother me.

I stopped eating stuff with MSG, for a variety of reasons. I knew it could sometimes trigger migraines in me (not the painful headachey ones; the ocular ones, which were followed by a headache, but a seemingly ordinary one). Then one day, I was cooking supper, and used canned gravy. I got some on my finger, and it itched like crazy, but I thought it was a coincidence. Then I ate supper, and got nauseated and headachy (all I could think of was Mrs. Cravitz from Bewitched, and her sick headaches). I took Benedryl on the off chance it might help, and I was better in minutes. I looked back at all the times I'd felt crappy when I ate chicken, and realized I served Rice-A-Roni (loaded with MSG) with it a lot, because the kids and Scott loved it. I stopped cooking Rice-A-Roni with chicken, and didn't feel crappy after I ate chicken.

Got kicked off the project with the AI Lady. Unsurprised, but still bitter. It's some other writer's problem now.

I'm glad it's not your problem, Dana, and hope it doesn't lead to any difficulties for you.