Friday Leftovers (Oct. 22)

The leftovers...

More Race Pictures

I will have more pictures, of my CA Dreamin Jacket as well as my race bling, coming up, probably Saturday so come back for that. Just didn't want to post it today or this morning, or here in this post even, because it will get lost in the shuffle.

Word Association

Play along here.

1. Freak :: Show
2. Homework :: Afterschool
3. Favor :: Ask
4. Encounter :: Strange
5. Shake it :: Booty
6. Felony :: Criminal
7. Loops :: Turns
8. Groove :: Get into the
9. Funding :: Money
10. Plot :: Thickens

Get into the groove, boy you've got to prove your love to me...

Lame. I don't even know the artist or title of that song but that's stuck in my head forever. Totally lame. I know it's some 80s song, I'm pretty sure. Some songs I can't, for the life of me, learn the lyrics yet I have useless songs like that one, that would sound strange for a guy to sing nevertheless, at the ready.

Five Question Friday

Welcome to another edition of Five Question Friday. Go to Mama M's blog to play along. It's a pretty cool thing I must say.

The five questions this week...

1. Who is the better cook, you or your spouse?

This isn't even a question around here. It's no contest. Hands down, I'm the better cook. I'm not saying that to be arrogant or anything; in fact, Mrs. LB will tell you that herself. I was forced to take on the cooking duties when she got her job that she has now, in March 2007. She started to commute so it just did not make any sense for her to cook while I was at home most of the day.

It started slowly. In fact, it wasn't until the end of '07 that I really started to take off with my cooking and actually started making things. I used the awesome site AllRecipes.com to help me because there were (and are) tons of recipes on there for all sorts of things and they were really easy to follow and the reviews on there were very helpful. So I started looking for and making recipes, and it just took off from there. And then many months later I learned there was a sort of message board part to that site and met a lot of really cool people and, well, I could write a book on all of that, but for now, let's just leave it at that.

Sadly, I'm not quite as adventurous now as I was then but I think part of that was because everything was so new to me. But I cook and handle the cooking duties. I like to go to the grocery store... probably too much... and like the whole process of making something. It still amazes me sometimes that I can make something like lasagna or orange chicken from scratch.

2. How often do you talk to your mom?

Multiple times a week. I love my mom to death but it seems we can't spend too much time around each other. We used to fight a lot but when I moved out our relationship got a ton better. I probably should go over more often because of the girls and I feel guilty when several days pass by and she hasn't seen them. But I do talk to her often and I am beyond grateful that she is nearby and we have a good relationship. I just have a little bit of a Mom Quota is all :)

3. Are you adventurous in the kitchen or stick to the recipe?

Aha! Thought you were done listening to me talk about my cooking. Guess again.

In terms of trying new things, I used to be more adventurous. When I am making something that requires a recipe, I stick with the recipe. If I make it enough and take ownership of the dish, then I let myself experiment. The thing about experimenting though is this: if I try something new and change the recipe around and it does not turn out well, is it because I changed something or is it because the recipe wasn't that good?

Sometimes I'll try and replicate a dish I've had out at a restaurant or something. Like recently I had a pasta dish that had some sauteed veggies (zucchini, red bells, onions, artichokes, mushrooms) and it had some diced, cooked sausages in it as well. It was delicious! I tried to make it at home and... it was just okay. Not necessarily a fail but I may try it once more and then forget it.

4. Is your second toe longer than your big toe?

No. My second toe is shorter than my big toe. Isn't that how it's supposed to be? No, I know some (a lot?) have their second toe as longer but not me. My second toe, however, is unique. On both feet, my second toenail is black. From running. They're my badges of honor. Lefty's been looking bad for more than a year now and Righty was fine (the toenail actually fell off this spring) until the LB Half Marathon. Right after the race, the nail had turned purple and now it's black. Awesome.

5. Do you dress up for Halloween? (Bonus question: What will you be this year?)

I'm not a dresser-upper for Halloween. I have dressed up before...

In 2007, towards the tail end of my weight-loss journey

Arrr... With me daughters last year...

How do I look with eye shadow?

Because I'm so original, I'm wearing the pirate stuff again this year. Yay for originality.