Monday Mumblings

Since I had a headache all weekend and got preoccupied with other things in my life, and just didn't have the mindset to sit and write a blog, I'll have to post something later today about this historic day--Nov. 9--the twentieth anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall. I got out my photo albums and looked through them--I have some photos I took of the wall(on the then "West" German side) on a visit there in April of 1989--about 7 months before it all came officially tumbling down. I'll have some more photos and thoughts about all this later today. For insight on this from the perspective of someone who has lived on the inside as well as the outside of the "East Bloc", please visit Protege's blog- excellent writing over there today.

How do you like my scary little "owl-o-lantern"? To view the owl before the rotting set in and the squirrels plucked off all the sunflower seeds, go here. I noticed lots of rotting, creepy carved pumpkins, in fact, on all the doorsteps, in the last few days. Funny how they end up looking way creepier the week after Halloween.

Fuzzy image of Brandenburger Tor(Gate) as it used to look, taken from my old photo album.

Hail to the Chief

This is the official portrait of President(first time I can write that!!!!) Barack Obama, by Pete Souza, the newly-announced official White House photographer. This is also the first official U.S. presidential portrait taken with a digital camera.

R and I , bowls of ice cream in hand (and much warmer than the crowds in D.C.) watched the historic ceremony together on the couch this afternoon. It had been set to be taped while we were out. R was having her tooth pulled(a simple procedure to remove an *extra* tooth) at the dentist's just as Obama was being sworn in, so it was a slightly delayed viewing (hurray for DVR!). The funny thing is, that as I type this, the TV coverage is still going on, seven hours later. And I have been a media junkie with the radio on NPR in the kitchen and CNN on the TV in the other room, going back and forth. (Thought it fitting that Dick Cheney had to ignobly vacate the White House by being pushed in a wheel chair, too. Buh-bye!)

This afternoon, I made soup stock--a special Inauguration Day edition-- from the saved up vegetable scraps and trimmings I keep in a plastic bag in the freezer. Every time I prep food, I toss the celery tops, nubs of onion, pepper ends and any other vegetables pieces(all washed first, of course) into this bag. It was looking full today, so I decided to dump the contents into a pot of water(with a clove of garlic and an extra small onion added) and simmer it for an hour or so. It makes the house smell good...and then I divide the strained broth into smaller freezer bags so I have broth for cooking for the future. And then I just wash out the bigger, newly emptied bag, and restart the whole process.

Yes We Did !

I can't remember a presidency which has filled me with this much hope and excitement. Despite the tremendous challenges facing Obama/Biden when they take the White House on January 20, 2009, I feel assured America has done the right thing (finally, after what seems like much more than eight depressing years) . I can't remember a time when I stayed up past midnight to watch the election results and can't remember when an election brought me actual tears of joy. Oh, and please watch and most of all, listen to the whole video..."There's no one as Irish as Barack O'Bama!" ;-)

Palin for President

If only......!