Wow, we are a quiet group today!

Lobster--yum! I've only had it once, on Martha's Vineyard a long time ago. But I remember how good it was. And the best place I ever had scallops was in Maine where the restaurant had just got them down the beach that morning. Now that's fresh!

Shannon, what's the company farm? Congrats on the good days!

Allison, I fried my hairdryer in England so I had to buy one there. For some reason, I thought the converter thing would help, but it didn't. My advice re: the doctor--just don't get on the scale. Glad you're feeling better, BTW.

Pat, kudos for losing weight on the cruise! That's practically unheard of, I think. Hope the trial contacts work for you.

Today we took dogs and cats to the TV station for their almost weekly TV show on Saturday (taped on Friday). This one dog that had been nice, but stressed during testing a couple of weeks ago, turned out to know sit, down, speak, shake and he would wave his paws. He was wonderful! It's incredible what gems we get at the shelter. So many kittens, too. Cages everywhere full of kittens. I don't understand why people don't get their cats fixed, especially when there are so many low-cost or no-cost programs??

Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!

I was at the vet's last night with one of the cats and they said that 16 kittens had been dropped off there in the past week alone. I didn't realize but people bring strays to vet offices because they don't know what else to do with them. One woman found a nine day old kitten in a plastic bag that someone had thrown into the Walmart parking lot across the street! Nine days! The poor little thing was in foster care, otherwise I'm sure I would have taken it home (despite already having five cats!) It's just so sad.

Our oldest kitty is 18 now and we found him in 1991 on a sand dune in NJ when he was three weeks old . At such a young age, he had to drink kitten formula and we had to teach him how to lap it. DH taught him how to wash himself and I'm sure that's why he still thought DH was his mom for years. He didn't even meow for two years.

Things were chaotic at work this week so I'm only now catching up on my reading. All this talk about lobster is making me hungry! I grilled a big batch of sea bass on Monday and having been loving it all week. We're grilling shrimp this weekend. I'll make a cucumber salad with some local cukes and some sesame rice for DH. Funny how I never get tired of fish and seafood! Good thing too because I'm kind of burned out on chicken breast.

No exciting weekend plans for us -- how about any of you?

We got our new fridge delivered yesterday but were too lazy to install it and move all the food over. So that's tonight's work.

I'm mending, but am left with a horrible cough. You know the kind--I sound like a smoker and I hack and hack and often it brings tears to my eyes and then my nose runs and nothing can make me stop. The worst part is when it happens in the middle of the night. DH didn't have a cough until today and he sounds like Guido the Mobster!

We went out to lunch today and frankly I wish we hadn't. I'm not hungry at all. I have had no appetite at all with this cold (that's a good thing!). I did eat--a BLT on rye with iced tea. Tonight we're having burgers and I'm not looking forward to it. I may end up not having one the way it's going. I'd rather just sleep. But at least my scale is rewarding me for all this--I'm down 2 pounds this week.

DS got his braces off this morning. He wouldn't smile and he's having a hard time learning to talk with his retainers, but he'll do fine. I remember getting my braces off--I refused to smile. I felt naked!

Everyone have a great weekend!

Sheila - My bosses' own a 2000 acre farm north of Atlanta where they hunt, fish, camp, etc. They have quail fields and keep it stocked, have gardens with a limited supply of veggie crops. More of an entertainment farm, really. We have a caretaker who maintains the place, and I had to go up yesterday to do new hire paperwork for an assistant for him. It was definitely a relaxing way to start the day!

Allison -Glad you are recovering, but the hacking cough is terrible! I have that happen sometimes at night, I hate it... And I wouldn't smile for a month when I got my braces off. My parents were so surprised, they thought I would be thrilled...

Meg - I would have a houseful of cats if I could... And I'm kind of burned out on chicken breast myself. DH isn't big on the seafood though, except shrimp, and I have no idea how to prepare it, other than stir fry. I should research... I'm jealous of your sea bass!

Hoping for a mild weekend with no AC... I've got to have another test done on Monday to make sure the problem is really what the service tech this past Monday said it is... No matter that this past Monday he assured me that I didn't need this test... Called back today and said I had to have it... One more piece of drama for the puzzle. All I can say is that if it delays my repair past Wednesday heads are going to roll...

Any big weekend plans? I'm thinking about going to see the Impressionism exhibit at the High Museum. It will be cool there.

Have a good weekend everyone!

The best way (IMO) to eat shrimp is cooked and then cooled, right out of the shell, with a little cocktail sauce. You know, a shrimp cocktail. Yum. Really great for the hot summer!

Shannon, depending on their size you can grill shrimp (and the size only matters so they don't fall through, though you could skewer them kabob style), but I really like best either stir-fried or just plain. They're also good in a fettucine alfredo, but sigh, that's not on my food plan very often....

Allison, I hear you on the cough. That's all I have left as well, but given the smoke that's around here (forest fires both north and south), it's not getting better. Hope you get some sleep.

I, too, am always amazed at how many people don't have their animals neutered. When we adopted our younger kitten (just 2 now) she was 8 months and turned in because the people were moving! Why wouldn't you take your kitty??? Our shelter now won't let you take an animal home when it's not neutered - you pay the fee and they transport the animal to the vet, where you can pick them up the next day. They used to refund the fee but people were still not getting their animals neutered. Anyway, my hat's off to you Sheila for volunteering there - I'd have trouble not taking them all home.

Ha! I do not have this problem, obviously. Jay and Jessica can send me their lobsters and I'll do the terrible deed.

I actually just got in a bit late from a full day of field work. It was full, but productive, so that's good. No big plans for the weekend. The usual, I suppose.

Shannon, I hope you enjoy the exhibit and stay cool!

Allison, sorry you feel sick still and I hope you feel better soon.

Meg, mmm, I LOVE grilled shrimp too! It feels so decadent, but is so healthy for you!

Sheila, the woman who runs our humane society told me once that people in the area sometimes get upset - they call her wanting a pet, but not one that is spayed/neutered. The humane society always spays/neuters its animals, that's part of the deal. I couldn't believe it! If they want another cat or dog, they could probably find a few in an hour just driving around here. It's not like they need/can take care of a litter of pups or kittens! Some people are so ridiculous! I completely agree with you. There are so many pets out there that need good homes and ones that are suffering b/c they aren't being taken care of, it's heartbreaking.

Pat, mmm, salmon. This post is definitely making me want lots of seafood! I hope the contacts work out.

I'm heading home. Hi to everyone else, and have a great weekend all!

I'm off for a week of sleeping over with 2 kitties starting today. The younger cat has a behavioural problem (peeing) and my clients didn't think just visits would be enough.

They have moved to a new house that has been completely renovated so I'm going to enjoy all the space and big windows.

And I can come home a lot to keep DH on track with his diet (and keep me on track with maintenance).

Have a great weekend all!

Dagmar

Good morning everyone! Alas, no museum today - DH discovered a serious technical problem with a piece of equipment that is launching on Monday, so he is at work today. Along with his boss and one of the VPs... I'm going to take the opportunity to read a little and get some exercise in... He was at work until 8 last night, so we got Chinese takeout instead of cooking so I still feel squishy. After all of our seafood discussions, I got jalapeno pepper shrimp - yummy!

I totally don't understand people who discard their pets either... You see it all the time around here. Sure, my cat is the loudest cat on the planet and meows a lot and annoys me when she wakes me up at 4 am for cat food or by running around the house, and I sleep with my door closed a lot for that very reason, but I'm not going to just give her away! She also lays on my chest when I'm on the bed reading and licks my chin. How can you replace that?

Have a good weekend everyone!

Hmmm, Shannon, I may have to challenge you on the loudest cat issue.

We had a nice picnic last night with our square dance club. Weather was warm and a small breeze so no mosquitos. I ate carefully, and felt really good about my choices and the portions. Luckily for me there was a ton of fruit, so I didn't mind missing the desserts. Ate a chicken sausage and a burger without the bun, plus my cabbage salad and some green salad. Oh and a spoonful of baked beans and some homegrown tomatoes (and got gifted some to bring home!)

This morning I went with some people from church to paint an elderly woman's home. THere were about 20 of us, which is almost too many! I could only stay a few hours, but I painted all the shutters and the trim around the garage. Lunch was provided by two people who couldn't paint - and once again, yummy fruit (cantalope and grapes) plus smallish sandwiches on homemade ww rolls. And I had brought my own morning snack so I just stayed far away from the donuts! I stopped to grocery shop, and have been mowing the lawn. Had to take a break after about 50 minutes as I was too hot. You're right Shannon - definitely cardio. I'll do more when it cools off a bit.

Dagmar - the house sounds wonderful, and I'm sure the kitties appreciate you spending time with them. I like mine to have more than a feeding/clean the litter box visit when I'm gone more than a couple days.

to everyone. Hope you're all having a great weekend!

Pat - I'll just say mine is the loudest cat in my neighborhood, then! She is the only cat that you can hear from outside the house on a regular basis. My mom says as much as I talk it is only fair that I get a talky cat! Sounds like a great picnic last night, and painting party today! And do be careful working on your lawn in the heat. Mine is smaller than yours and I had to take several water breaks.

Dagmar - The house does sound neat! Cool that it is close enough to come home and hang with DH, too!

Megan - I've heard the same about pet adoptions from humane society volunteers here. People want pets that aren't spayed or neutered even though they have no intention of breeding them because they say the surgery changes their behavior. Though, I'm sure if they ended up with a litter of puppies or kittens they would drop them right off at the humane society... Makes me mad..

Allison - I never think about shrimp cocktail when I think about preparing shrimp, but I know DH loves it. Does it sound odd to do shrimp cocktail with some side items as meal? I always see it as an appetizer.

Got up this morning and cleaned the bathroom before I came downstairs. My productive thing is done for the day, now I can be lazy. Good Sunday everyone!

Shannon, I hate cleaning bathrooms but just love the result. My treat when I'm finished is a long soak in the tub.

As for shrimp cocktail as a main course, why not? It's a good fallback when we're out at a restaurant and I can't find anything on the entree menu that fits my food plan. So why not at home?

I grilled shrimp last night that turned out really well. I made a marinade with Asian chili garlic sauce, a little hot sauce, garlic, sesame oil, parsley and lemon juice and marinated the shrimp for about two hours. I wasn't worried about the calories in oil because not much soaked in at all. Very tasty! Best of all, there's leftovers and they'll be great cold in a salad.

I'm home from the gym, showered, and ready to tackle a bunch of paperwork on my desk, including paying our property taxes. We live in the county with the second highest property taxes in the US. What an honor.

Meg--the first highest property taxes must be in my county-- don't get me started!

Your shrimp sound delish. We are having shrimp and scallops tonight.

You all may have loud cats but I don't know if they compete with mine. Besides being loud, Wilbur has a habit of vomiting on the bed. Last night I heard him retching when I was sound asleep and managed to throw him off the bed in time. Then I had to find the "present". Finally got back to sleep and one of my cats was snoring so loud with this whistle snore that it woke me up! I had a terrible night's sleep!!!

Grumble, Grumble.....