Woot for packing light

Packing light is liberating. Yes, liberating! I'm going on a trip soon and I am pumped about the prospect of fitting everything in just my carry-on.

I plan to stick with one clothing color scheme, wear my heaviest clothes (e.g., boots) on the plane and get by without some of my girly liquids. Woot!

$20 checked baggage fee? I'll pass. Woot!

Another monkey act?

I like my bananas a little on the green side, which means their period of edibility for me is a bit short (No banana ever goes to waste, though. The refuse becomes banana bread!).

I read on Iowa Girl Eats that if you don't store bananas as a bunch, they ripen more slowly. So, I've been scattering my bananas all around my kitchen in hopes of keeping them greener longer. I don't know for certain if this actually works, but I do know for certain that it makes my house look like some monkeys broke in to mess with me...just like last year.

How many bananas can you find in this picture? Yes, I admit I staged one of the bananas for the purposes of this picture, but I did it for you, reader. I did it for you.

Also, please note that I did not make a Gwen Stefani reference in this post. Thank you.

Pumpkin revealed

Thank you all for playing. The results are in and it's time for the big reveal.

My pumpkin is...Pumpkin B! For all those who selected B, please take a moment to bask in the correctness of your guess. You've earned it! Here's a fun prize for you.

It's pumpkin B! Girly pumpkins of the world, unite!

Pumpkins: 2010 edition

I carved one of these pumpkins. Care to guess which one? Vote in the side bar (Won't this be so fun? No, you say? Well, how about doing it to humor me, then?).

Just think how much joy and satisfaction you will feel if you guess the right one. I'll post the answer later this week. Good luck...you're going to need it.

Is my pumpkin (from L to R), pumpkin A, pumpkin B, pumpkin C or pumpkin D?

Genius baggie over toothbrush

I have a couple trips in my future (woop!), so as I think about what I'm going to pack, I'd like to make a contribution to the collective travel and packing tips of our time.

Cheap and easy toothbrush cover

Take one of those little extra-button baggies that come with new clothes, dump out the buttons (obviously), and place it over the head of your toothbrush. Push the seals together on either side of the toothbrush handle. Relish in the ingenuity.

Genius. Brilliant. Remarkable. Life-changing. Do it.

Window pain

The frame on one of my basement windows is rotting. Oh, joy. My dad is coming over to help with the repair this weekend. It's been kind of a pain (probably more so for my dad than me...although, he's been very good-natured about the whole thing, so maybe it's just me.) figuring out just what exactly we should do to fix this bad boy since my window is not a standard size.

Isn't this scary looking? I totally have a Blair Witch Project corner of my basement, too. It's Halloween year round in these parts.

Audio book love

I resisted for a long time (not sure why), but, now, I'm a believer! Books on tape/CD/mp3 are the way to go to make long car rides more bearable, especially when one is traveling alone.


I like audio books for two reasons: They make time go so quickly and I can selfishly add another book to my Shelfari list without doing much (I really like to track the books I've read. Before Shelfari, I just kept track on a spreadsheet.)


Couple more thoughts: I get my audio books from the library which means zero dollars out of my pocket. So far, I've just stuck to easy-reading books -- the ones that require minimal brainpower.

That voice! David Sedaris reads his own work. F-u-n-n-y. Pic from Amazon

This ridiculous chick lit is not all that good (terrible, really), but it keeps my attention. Pic from Amazon