Grace and Ben

1) I don’t like it when the stitching on my umbrella rips. It makes me sad to buy a $15 umbrella at the Rite Aid and have it start falling apart within 3 months. Wish someone made sturdier umbrellas. I bought a $20 Totes umbrella from Macy’s in Chicago and that one also broke after just a few months of use.

2) I had a lovely dinner. Cooked kale (prewashed, came in a bag) with some sauteed onions and garlic. Added some balsamic vinegar at the end. Also ate 1 raw green pepper and 1 raw tomato (free from DoGEE). My dessert was a peach and some french vanilla flavored Stonyfield Farm yogurt.

3) I’m seriously considering getting up at 7 am tomorrow morning to go to the Waverly Farmer’s market. I don’t really have any produce that I need but I love fall fruit and would like to get some potatoes to make more curry. I also have to go to work tomorrow (and the selection isn’t so good after 9am) so I want to get to the market early.

I read this in the UIUC safety manual:

Perchloric acid: If perchloric acid is heated above ambient temperature it may
evaporate and condense on ductwork in the form of explosive perchlorates. Hence,
when heating perchloric acid above ambient temperature, a perchloric acid fume
hood with a water wash down system or a local scrubbing or trapping system must
be used.

Another useful chart of how resistant various types of gloves are towards different chemicals is listed here (glove_info). Not comprehensive, but interesting.

This is a photo of Grandma Arlene, her four daughters and their families.

(Click on the photos for full size image)

These are Arlene and her brother Don’s children.

Here are Arlene and Don’s grandchildren.

Went to Walters Art Museum today. It’s in a nice neighborhood (south of Penn Station) which felt very safe mid-morning on a Sunday. Their collection was kind of eclectic. Not a traditional art museum (with lots of impressionist and modern paintings) but mostly sculpture and weird ancient artifacts and a nice exhibit of local artist Herman Maril, which I liked. My favorite was “Languid Cat.”

1. Going to the grocery store on a Sunday night. It’s always very busy and there’s not much fresh produce left.

2. Eating at restaurants on Friday or Saturday nights. Also very busy and usually the service and food aren’t as good. Tuesday nights are the best!

3. Seeing 80% of drivers talking on their cell phone (no headsets or bluetooth earpieces) while they drive. ARGH! I especially notice it when I’m walking and I try to be extra cautious crossing the street because I know they are distracted and sometimes don’t see me.

4. Two year contracts on cell phone plans. I’d rather pay a few hundred dollars extra for a phone up front and not feel stuck with any carrier. I hate being at a point at 1.5 years and wanting to switch but being unable to. Often, the batteries on cell phones don’t last two years (especially if you drop, abuse them like I do).

5. Driving to/from BWI during rush hour. I’d rather take an early morning flight or late night flight to avoid driving through downtown Baltimore around 9-10 am.

6. Ink jet printers. I hate how the ink costs more than the printer. But, alas, I like to print in color–especially cards and photos, so I can’t complain. Just gotta find a place that will fill ink cartridges instead of buying new ones every time.

7. The parking lot at the Trader Joe’s in Towson. There’s a secret entrance and it’s not obvious how to get there. The store is also hidden. You can’t actually find it unless you are a local or something. Hmpf!

8. Baltimore city income tax. What’s up with that?! I guess I shouldn’t complain because sales tax is only 6% here and they don’t tax groceries (like they do in Chicago).

9. Off! bug repellent. Why does it have to be so sticky? I put it on after I take a shower in the evenings–clean and dry–so I won’t get bit to death by mosquitoes, but then I feel dirty again cuz the stuff is so greasy (but effective)!

10. Ikea’s locations. I was thinking about this the other day. Ikea stores are always in the middle of nowhere. That way, we have to drive several hours to get there and we will be less inclined to take anything back because it’s super-inconvenient to make any returns. That’s my theory.