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I've been doing the 1200 calories a day thing for about 6 weeks now (except last Saturday) and I'm about fed up with it. I don't know why I didn't think that PMS would derail me. I want a goddamn breakfast sandwich!!! A greasy one with bacon and oozy eggs and cheese and butter... this yogurt is not cutting it!

I had my first Gyro on Saturday. I know!! 31 years without a Gyro! Can you believe it? It... was... amazing. Steve's Gyros at the West Side Market in Cleveland. My my my. My husband stopped and said that he was getting a gyro for lunch and I was toying with the idea of getting a brat. Then I saw the guy in the gyro stall frying up the pitas and thought, "what the hell..." Best decision I've made in a long time. Hubby and I took our gyros and sat in the balcony over looking the market and feasted. The meat was moist and spicy, the veggies were crisp, the pita was soft, and the garlic, cuke, and yogurt sauce was really out of this world. My husband said that it was way more aggressive in flavor than most of the sauces that he's had... full on garlic flavor... yum!! I'm hooked. It was the best meal that I've had in a long time. Best date with my husband in a long time too.

The office provided lunch for us today. Barberton Chicken dinners from Milich's. I like their chicken a lot, but it doesn't travel well so I got the pike. It was ok... the breading was pretty thick and a little chewy, but it was nice and salty. I could only choke down a handful of the lard fried french fries, but the hot sauce always goes down easy. Actually, I managed to scam a few extra servings of that yummy stuff from my co-workers. I'm not a big coleslaw eater but I do like this simple vinegar recipe that all the chicken joints around here serve.

This was in the old Scene Magazine recently... Clickity Brazilian... sounds really tasty.

Great. This must be the regional Ohio version of kolache, as I've never seen it like that anywhere else. ← Well... grandma never wrote anything down. The "recipe" that she gave me sounds more like a Rugelach, as it uses a cream cheese dough. She told me that she uses the same dough and fillings, varies the shapes (rolled jellyroll style then cut, rolled crescent style, or rolled then cut into squares then pinched), but she calls them all Kolaches. Kolache or Rugelach... I don't care. They were yummy and now I want some!

Don't ask.

That's how my maternal grandma made hers (Lake Milton, Ohio!!). I'll see if I can get her to spill the beans.

I do have a "tub o' funk" in my icebox... it's for my husband. I think that he is the only person in the world that doesn't like real butter on bread. Seriously. He loves real butter melted on hot things, but he doesn't like it straight up. Sigh. He's awfully cute tho'.

Wow, now that you've brought this to my attention, I realize that I am not a freak. Teakettle is on the stove. I use it about once a month... maybe. It looks nice tho'. I have two canisters on my counter... one for wooden/plastic/silicone utensils, and the other for metal utensils. One canister for things that I can use with my non-stick stuff, the other... well... isn't. For some reason my husband can't keep this straight. I have four drawers for silverwear, cutlery, and other tools. One silverware drawer is for everyday stuff and kiddie utensils. One holds the two sets that I would consider to be the "nice stuff". It's not really that nice but it's newer. My husband can't keep these straight either. One drawer holds a crappy knife set that I received as a gift. I never use them but I felt bad throwing them away and they came with a really nice cutting board that I wanted so I didn't return it. The other drawer holds measuring cups, measuring spoons, and gadgets. Shit... I am a freak.

Mmmm... shanks. The last time I had them I made a nice venison/barley/mushroom soup. It was wonderful and very filling.

In my defense, it was my baby's first movie, so I HAD to get popcorn for us to share. It's all about the experience. Next time I won't feel obligated.

Here's my receipt from the concession stand last night: 1 Welch's Fruit Snacks $1.50 1 Large Popcorn $5.00 1 Small Bottled Water $3.25 Total $9.75 $9.75!! Yeah, I'm gonna have to start bringing stuff from home because that is just re-freakin'-diculous. Don't even get me started on the bottled water. I asked for a big cup of water, stating that I would pay the soft drink price, but the girl said that they couldn't do that. That would have been a $4.00 cup of water. What the hell?! God bless Netflix.

This is fantastic. I'm really glad to see you're blogging! You have a very clear and easy going writing style that is so appealing! It's going to be really fun to check in with you every day! Getting to see NYC again doesn't hurt either.

I'm taking my two-year-old to see Curious George tonight... If I had a DD I'd sneak in some booze and a Valium. I don't, so I guess it'll just be raisins and water for us.

Poor guy. Got his hopes way up and then dashed within moments. ← I know... now when we do go there, nothing is going to be good enough for him.

I quit (cold turkey) on January 1st and even tho' I've fallen off of the wagon a few times, I still consider myself a quitter. I tried last year with the "aid" of Wellbutrin and decided that I'd rather smoke than not give a shit about anything that was going on in my life. Everyone responds to drugs differently, but the Wellbutrin turned me into a zombie and I didn't like it. I can't be trusted to have an emergency pack around because my idea of an emergency is pretty weak and I really have to watch my alcohol intake because I seem to associate smoking with drinking. I'm gonna have to start two-fisting beers so that I can keep the other hand occupied. Food really does taste better and the aromas that I can pick up are amazing... that being said, I've had to put myself on a diet, of sorts, to keep from sating my oral fixation with delicious smelling food.

Mmmm... Shiner Bock. My husband's family lives in Texas and I tried it for the first time about two year ago. I really, really liked it and rejoiced when they brought it to Ohio a year ago. I'm over it now. It is treated and priced like an import or a micro here and when you order it at a bar, the bartender asks you what part of Texas you're from. We have quite a few local brews around here but the only one that I can stomach is Great Lakes Dortmunder.

I had to bump this because of a conversation that I had with my husband the other day in the car. I was going on and on and on about a new tapas bar in town. Now, I accept the fact that he probably only listens to about half of what I say, but he kept asking me to repeat myself and I was starting to get pissed. Then he just kept saying things like "I can't believe you want to go there!" and "I can't believe they opened it right around the corner from the library and right next to Jacob Goode!" and "You don't want to eat the food in those places!" He thought I was saying "TOPLESS".

You should put a warning on that picture! Do not look at this is you have a weak stomach... or if you are hung over.

Hey, you live in Akron. You can go for Barberton chicken. Here in Philadelphia and NJ we can't do that (though I'm planning to make a detour on my next Phila-Wisconsin drive). ← Yum. That looks like the perfect summer cookout plate. I actually work in Barberton, altho' I haven't hit the chicken houses in quite some time. It might be about that time...

Should I be ashamed that those pictures actually made me salivate?

Fannie Farmer for me too... Completely basic. It's a great springboard for creating your own 'signature dishes'. I can't for the life of me remember where I got it tho'!

Ohhh... I don't like having it served to me. I'm one of those people that has to eat at a table. I love making it for other people tho'. The breakfast in bed tray might as well be another gadget for me to play with. It also gives you an excuse to garnish or use a pretty napkin or a cute bud vase. Fun. Did I just sound like Sandra Lee there? I'm not talkin' "tray-scapes" here folks... just a nice good morning.

This study was also conducted on post-menopausal women with an average age of 62. Maybe a study about changing your habits earlier in life would be in order as well.

I'm going to have to second cleaning out the refrigerator. I try to keep up with it, I really do, but it would be a safe bet that there is some variety of "refrigerator soup" a-brewin' in my crisper drawers as we speak. Bleck indeed.