Running With Scissors

Are You a Wrimo?

I used to think Weenie was a bad nickname (Colleenie-weenie -- yes I have a terribly creative family. Emphasis on terribly) but now I'm a Wrimo. A Wrimo is a participant in Nanowrimo, aka National Novel Writing Month. All those participating have pledged to write a 50,000 word novel during the month of November. That's a whole lot of words.

I have found out the hard way that I am a creature of deadlines -- I need to know that someone is waiting for me to finish. Even if that someone is an anonymous group of mostly strangers on the internet. So I thought this project might work for me -- and so far it has. As of today, I am slightly ahead of schedule with about 10,000 words.

We all know this could go horribly wrong at any moment, so I am gloating now while my stats are looking good. And no one has read this book.

 

Bad Dog, No Biscuit

Chance the dog is a Rat Terrier, also known as "small spotted hyperactive dog with attention deficit disorder." He has mellowed in recent years. Now he needs a nap after ferociously barking at the automatic pool cleaner or chasing a bee around the yard. Normally, we find his eccentric behavior entertaining, even endearing. But not at the Fourth of July. Chance seems to think that every pop of a firecracker is the signal for hordes of invaders to enter his personal domain. And no one, not a bug or a bird even, enters Chance territory without his express permission. So he barks at every single firework. Always. To save our sanity the vet prescribed some doggie downers so that we can all enjoy the holiday. We try to give him as little medication as possible so that we don't have to spend the rest of the summer taking the little fella to rehab. "Hi, my name is Chance and I like pills, and cheese." Unfortunately, the timing is tricky. We gave him a dose on July 3 because apparently our neighbors don't have a calendar. Chance spent most of the next day pleasantly buzzed and mellow.  We waited until he started to perk up before we gave him another dose. The prescription says to give him the meds 20 minutes before the fireworks. We learned the hard way that it takes longer than that to kick in. We went to watch the fireworks show off the pier and this is what we found when we came home.  A Chance-sized hole in the screen door.

Good Stuff

Don't say I never give you anything:

Chicken With Tabbouleh (Except I use cous cous)

1 1/2 cups boiling water
1 cup bulgur wheat
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (2 lemons)
Olive oil
Kosher salt
1 whole (2 split) chicken breast, bone in, skin on
Freshly ground black pepper
1 cup minced scallions, white and green parts (1 bunch)
1 cup chopped fresh mint leaves (2 bunches)
1 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley (1 bunch)
1 hothouse cucumber, unpeeled, halved lengthwise, seeded, and medium-diced
2 cups halved cherry tomatoes
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

In a heat-proof bowl, pour the boiling water over the bulgur wheat. Add the lemon juice, 1/4 cup olive oil, and 1 1/2 teaspoons of salt. Stir. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and allow the bulgur to stand at room temperature for about 1 hour.

Place the chicken breast on a baking sheet and rub it with olive oil. Sprinkle liberally with salt and pepper. Roast for 35 to 40 minutes, until just cooked. Set aside until cool enough to handle.
Remove the chicken meat from the bones and discard the skin. Cut the chicken into medium dice and add to the tabbouleh. Add the scallions, mint, parsley, cucumber, tomatoes, 2 teaspoons salt, and 1 teaspoon pepper. Season, to taste, and serve immediately or cover and refrigerate. The flavors will improve as it sits.

This recipe is courtesy of my beloved Ina Garten, the Barefoot Contessa.  And it's good.  Really good.  The first time I tried to make it I bought cous cous by mistake and it was still awesome.  I actually like it better with cous cous. I usually use chicken left over from something else (whenever I make chicken, I make extra, cut it up, put it in a Ziploc and throw it in the freezer).  The nice thing about the hothouse (or English) cucumber is that you don't have to peel it -- if you have the regular kind on hand, by all means, use it.  Just peel it first.

The Chair

Casey's main request for his birthday was a papasan chair.  You know, those roundish chairs that they sell at Pier One and Cost Plus.  Easy enough, I thought.  And inexpensive too, right?  Wrong.  The chair is only $50, true.  But the pad that goes with it is another $50.  Oy. Oh well, he was tickled with his chair and snuggled right in to watch some hockey.  He didn't take it back to school with him because his apartment is furnished and there's no room for it.  It's for his new apartment next fall.  I didn't consider what I was going to do with it all summer.  Right now it's in the family room, I'm hoping to wedge it into Casey's room or the garage soon.  In the meantime Chance will keep it warm for Casey.
 

Enabler Alert

Did you get a new i-Pod or i-Tunes gift certificates for Christmas?   Have I got a hot tip for you!  I-Tunes is running a special on all the books in Sue Grafton's alphabet series ("A is for Alibi", etc.) including the brand new "T is for Trespass."  Every audiobook is only $9.95.  This is one of my must-read mystery series.  Enjoy!