Darn right, with the Neosporin. Pile it on. And also stop getting cuts. (I know, I know... hazard of the job).

Paging Steph -- if you're up for it, would you be willing to rec a couple of good resources (books, cookbooks, websites, or anything, really) for someone who has to go gluten free? It's my boss -- her doctor has recced that she go gluten free, corn product free, limited dairy, and I think even no soy producst (but I need to double check that) because the doc thinks those things are aggravating her overarching medical condition.

And, really, if anyone else has good recs for any of those things, I'd really appreciate it.

She's a huge cook, and this is going to be quite a life changer for her. Thought I would come here, because, well, most questions can be answered and good recs made here, really. And quality answers, to boot.

My profile e-mail is good if you don't want to gum up the thread.

would you be willing to rec a couple of good resources (books, cookbooks, websites, or anything, really) for someone who has to go gluten free?

Off the top of my head, some good websites to start with are Simply Gluten Free and Gluten Free Easily. They, of course, have blogrolls and link other GF blogs in some of their posts, so I've found other GF blogs that I like* that way. And there are several GF blogs that encompass dairy-free and other allergen-free diets as well.

All of my links are at home, so I'll have to check in later.

Another thought is that she might want to check out Paleo blogs; not *exclusively,* necessarily, and not to embrace a Paleo diet (unless she wants to), but those recipes are going to be gluten-, dairy-, and corn-free. I assume soy as well, but I honestly don't know. However, Paleo is all grain-free (I think), and if she can have rice and other grains, Paleo won't cover that.

One Paleo blog I've snagged recipes from is Paleo Parents. t edit Another blog that isn't strictly Paleo but that avoids grains is Elana's Pantry. She bakes with almond flour mostly. And any other flours are also GF, though I can't remember if she uses corn or soy.

*(When I say "GF blogs I like," I mean the ones that suit my lazy lifestyle. I am never going to bake with 5 different types of flours when I can use an AP flour or baking mix. And if I can make Betty Crocker's boxed GF brownie mix, so much the better. There are LOTS of GF blogs out there with more involved [read: less lazy] recipes that someone who loves to cook might really dig. Gluten-Free Girl is one of them. She is a huge foodie and kind of a food snob, but has a lot of good resouces. Admittedly, I am too lazy to try her recipes, but they sound great.)

Zenkitty!! You're a badass Amazonian wonder of a woman! Send a cute geek a message.

AHAHA. Attempt to reconcile descriptor with perceived reality... FAILED. Resume program Fat Middle-Aged Cat Lady.

I just never know what to say! This is why online dating sites fail for me. When trying to charm a lad, I'm much better dealing face-to-face.

Teppy, how long were you on the gluten free diet before you started to notice a difference with your IBS?

Teppy, how long were you on the gluten free diet before you started to notice a difference with your IBS?

A few weeks, maybe? The GI symptoms went away pretty quickly, as long as I didn't decide a slice of pizza and birthday cake were a good idea. Gluten gets me in the gut every time.

A few weeks, maybe? The GI symptoms went away pretty quickly, as long as I didn't decide a slice of pizza and birthday cake were a good idea. Gluten gets me in the gut every time.

Thanks. I've been considering trying it to see if it would help, but I wasn't sure how quickly I could expect results.

I just never know what to say!

I dare you to cut, copy, paste and fill in the blanks: "I'm a geek; you're a geek. These are my fandoms: ___. These are my other geeky hobbies: ___. These are my areas of geeky technical expertise: ___. You can see all that on my profile, of course, but if that is a resume, this is a cover letter so I thought it would be good to summarize it here. Wanna (IM/talk on the phone/meet in a public place for coffee/etc.)?"

Thanks so much, Steph, that's perfect. I figure there are a bajillion and one resources, so I appreciate your sharing what you've found useful.

Also I might establish my girl-geek cred. by mentioning that I knew about the X-Men before the movies came out, and Doctor Who before Eccleston. So if you have some particularly juicy things that you feel make you a more attractive girl geek, feel free to add them.

Do eeeeeet.

Oh, and thanks for the Paleo rec, too. You'd think I'd have thought of that after recent discussion in Natter, but... I did not.