Does This Look Familiar?

Gary returned safely from his trip and brought us some dried mangos. Kitty was awaiting his return.

Thanksgiving 2008

I have a bit of spare time before leaving for the airport to pick up Gary and then to go to friends' house for dinner. I've made my yeast rolls and they are out on the countertop rising. Rachel is coming over soon to make her specialty, green bean casserole.

I was going to make a list of things I'm thankful for, and I still may do that, but I decided to make links all my Thanksgiving blogs of past years. Wow, I've been blogging for quite a while. It is always interesting to look back over one's life and see how things have changed (or not):

2004
2005
2006
2007a and 2007b

I do have a lot to be grateful for.

Math--Ugh!

Tonight I'm realizing that it was about 150 years ago that I used to know how to do algebra. I'm feeling sorry for Rachel who is spending at least part of her Thanksgiving vacation studying for a certification test that she's not entirely likely to pass (because it is over specific content stuff that she too studied years ago. I went over some of the math review questions--it seemed a lot like reading a foreign language! The literature review was brutal too--ugh! At least I knew the English grammar questions!

Anyway, pray for Rachel to do as well as she is able on the test (Dec 17) and then that she won't lose her job if she doesn't pass it! Yikes!

She loves the job and it has been a great thing for her, a perfect fit. It has been a learning and stretching experience, but she has done a good job with it. It would be so sad to lose it!

Recycle, Reuse, Repurpose, Part 4

I love to get rid of things by finding a new use for them. My niece, April, is spending a year in Atlanta with an organization which works with the homeless called Mission Year. Recently, when April heard of all my cleaning and throwing out, she asked if we had any old backpacks to get rid of. I collected a few (mostly bags Gary was given at academic conferences, so they have weird logos) and needed a way to package them up to send to her. What better container than an old cat food bag turned wrong side out??

I wiped off the cat food residue, and stuffed the old backpacks inside.
I sewed it shut.

And now I await April's mailing instructions.

My Husband Doesn't Like Tomato Soup

But I do, so I'm having it while he is away. I found a few leftover bits of ham and avocado in the frig to throw in for fun.

I'm still, still working on cleaning and sorting and throwing out projects. Yesterday's project was to gather together all the odds and ends of disposable dishes and cutlery and put it all in one spot--most were leftovers from two wedding receptions last summer. My goal for the day is to finish putting away the summer clothes and getting out some winter ones. And to throw a few away in the process.

Still to go: my desk and nearby bookshelves have been started, but they are a continual battle to keep under control. And then when Gary gets home, he promised me he'd do some cleaning in his office. Which is also my office.