(Most brands of margarine and "buttery spread" type things do have some dairy in them. Fleischmann's, Willow Run, and Earth Balance do not. I prefer Earth Balance, because it tastes the best. My mom prefers Fleischmann's, because it's available at most regular grocery stores.)

Hi Hil. Somehow I had the impression you were vegan. So you will eat dairy? Is that just a non-purist-thing because buttery spreads don't have much dairy, or will you eat stuff with significant amounts of milk and cheese?

I am vegan. (Well, except for honey, but that's another discussion.) The three brands of margarine I mentioned are the ones that don't have dairy.

We just had the big go-live-success celebration.

Sheeit. That was a big go live. And I went live with a hospital once. I kinda got teary.

Spent some time "bonding" with the chick with the name like mine. Now she can be on the lookout for the guy who thinks he's spoken to her. She has also not been party to this sort of confusion before.

I'm glad you're getting to celebrate. Nice catharsis.

Congrats ita.

my compost is composting. whee! I should have been turning it more, but I will start now. I just cleaned out the yucky veggies from the fridge.

Also, the people who don't say "No, Thanks" but rather "I don't eat X specific thing, do you have Y specific thing."

I've been known to say, "I don't drink beer, might you have hard cider?" not only because I like cider, but I don't want to be seen as "the judgy person who doesn't drink". I'll say this at establishments that serve alcohol and might actually have cider, not, you know, at someone's house where they probably don't.

Most anywhere I go to eat, I can find something that I can make low-carb, even if it's just "cheeseburger, hold the bun". Being invited to vegetarian/vegan places is harder for me, because I really don't like most vegetables and there's rarely anything on a vegetarian menu I'll enjoy. But "I don't like vegetables" isn't a good reason to ask other people change their plans! I feel like I'm just being a picky whiny brat.

Not the sausage kind.

The gluten thing with me is an intolerance, not an allergy or whatever, so I can have a little of it sometimes, and focusing on low-carb mostly takes care of the bread issue. I don't really understand it, but I've gotten more bad-attitude responses to saying I'm gluten-intolerant than to saying I'm on a low-carb diet. Oh, wait, I do understand it. I'm fat, therefore saying I'm on an *anything* diet and sticking with it wins me Invisible Social Points. Whereas saying "I don't eat bread" makes me annoying for judging and trying to control other people's food choices (even though I'm not).

Plei, my mom has that adult-onset onion thing. Actually, it's a reaction to sulfur in them

My sister has that too. I wonder if I'm starting to develop it, because whenever I'm around someone cooking garlic, my eyes start to sting and my nose closes up, and while I never liked the smell I don't recall a physical reaction ever happening in previous years.

I am watching Castle, thanks to crazy canuck scheduling

I also scored two Trixie Beldens and one of the Trixie Belden quiz books today. Score!

The time I gave in and went out with the team after work, I didn't drink. Because I was leaving soon and driving. And people asked me if I wasn't drinking. I tried my best to give them the "don't ask me if I teetotal" and it seemed to work, but seriously?

They want to know the truth, that I'm a total lush, but I just don't play with drinking and driving, and oh, I'm leaving as soon as I can get away, and I WEIGH LESS THAN ALL OF YOU.