I went for a very slow run, did some laundry, and have spent the afternoon in a coffee shop, writing. Go me.

Of course, it's fanfic, not original fic, but still, writing.

So I'm watching the PBS pledge drive and what's his name that played BJ Hunnicut on MASH and some chick were talking, he said something about her not knowing about the economy or foreign policy and then she joked "I'm qualifed to be Vice President" and he laughed and agreed.

I'm a little fuzzy since it's on closed captioned (I'm at my grandma's) but still Palin is a joke on a PBS fund raiser.

I was watching that, too, and I am pretty sure that was Michelle Phillips from the Mamas and the Papas..

Couldn't find garam masala and developed a migraine to boot, so no chicken tikka from scratch for me tonight.

Cereal sounds doable, though.

I'm sorry about the migraine. Just in case you want to make your own garam masala the next time,

2 tablespoons cumin seeds
2 tablespoons coriander seeds
2 tablespoons cardamom seeds
2 tablespoons black peppercorns
1 (3-inch) stick cinnamon, broken up
1 teaspoon whole cloves
1 teaspoon grated nutmeg

Toast everything in a dry skillet, then grind. Or use the same quantities of pre-ground, if that's what you gotta do. I don't know your usual spice cabinet, but if you only lack a couple of those, they may be easier to find than prepared garam masala -- and it'll certainly be better.

Yeah, the one time I was using garam marsala, I made it myself. Of course, I never used the cardamom after that, but eh.

Every spice there but the peppercorns and the nutmeg appear either in the tikka masala recipe or the pilaf, though I don't have them in seed form. Ground or pods, I think.

I seem to have acquired a bit of a sunburn, and I don't think I was really IN the sun that much. Stuck to the shady side of the street and all. Went down to Hampdenfest and saw lisah's band, which was awesome. They have the best little maracas player (little girl who totally got into it, despite the heat, humidity and her yawns towards the end!)

But I think the heat and humidity caught up to me (it is seriously thick out there) and I just showered cause I was feeling so slimy and gross and thought I could still smell the street (stale beer) on me.

Chicken tikki masala sounds really good right now.

Too much rain here! We've had over six inches since it started last night, and they're predicted several more before it ends tomorrow night. If we're lucky, Ike will end up tracking south of us, in central Illinois, and skip us completely, because we don't need any more rain!

The parking lot at the bookstore was partially flooded and really fun to try and get out of. Luckily, the streets home were free of rain, if not people, but seeing all the rain in the yards I passed wasn't a good thing.

mmmm... chicken tikka masala sounds delightful.

Noah got his first haircut today. And subsequently he's been eagerly demonstrating his ability to toddle a few steps.

Tomorrow, BBQ fest and Polgara time. WOOT WOOT! And swim lessons.