Going Tramp...

In light of Sarah Palin's new book, Going Rogue, I thought I'd share a few definitions of rogue courtesy of the Merriam-Webster dictionary.

rogue (noun):
1. vagrant, tramp
2. a dishonest or worthless person: scoundrel
3. a horse inclined to shirk or misbehave
4. an individual exhibiting a chance and usually inferior biological variation

rogue (adjective):
1. resembling or suggesting a rogue elephant especially in being isolated, aberrant, dangerous, or uncontrollable
2. corrupt, dishonest
3. of or being a nation whose leaders defy international law or norms of international behavior

rogue (verb):
1. to weed out inferior, diseased, or nontypical individuals from a crop plant or a field

So these are supposed to be good qualities?

Cooking Adventures - Curried Squash Soup

I love to eat soup, especially in the winter when it is cold and snowy. One thing I don't like about store-bought or canned soup is that they tend to be loaded with sodium. I generally don't like to drink about 8 glasses of water after just one bowl of soup because I feel so parched because of all the sodium. Even the low sodium soups seem too salty! So, I thought I'd try my hand at making some homemade soup. On the menu tonight was a Curried Squash Soup. I found it on the Cascadian Farm website, and the recipe looked really easy. Unlike most creamy soups, for this recipe you didn't need a blender, immersion blender, or a food processor—neither of which I have—so I thought it would be really easy. And it was!

It was also very yummy! It was a little bit sweet, but it was also a little bit spicy. It was also very filling. Today has been a cold, wintry day, and this really hit the spot.

Hot Air Balloons and Heart Attacks

I live in the northeast area of Boulder, and because I'm on the outskirts of the city, I'm surrounded by quite a bit of open space and farms. Because this area is so open, it makes a good launching point for hot air balloons. Often when I'm leaving my apartment and on my way to work early in the morning, I see several hot air balloons filling the sky. When I was walking to my car this morning, I saw a bright yellow balloon floating over my apartment complex. Because I'm easily distracted and even more easily amused by the most mundane things, like balloons or clouds in the sky, I was happily staring at the balloon like a child as I neared my car. Suddenly, a body fell out of the balloon! Arms and legs were flailing wildly. Just when I thought the body would surly go spat on top of a building or parking lot or street, a parachute popped over the falling man. There were several other balloons in the sky and more people with parachutes were jumping from them. Maybe it's a new sport or they are practicing a stunt. I'm happy the man didn't go splat, but I'm not happy about having a near heart attack before work. Work is stressful enough!

Grocery Shopping Success

So, feeling bummed out after watching the Broncos lose their first game today, I nonetheless had to make a run to the grocery store to stock up on food for the next few weeks. I was quite organized and prepared this time. Before I left, I looked at the weekly flier, cut out my coupons, and made my list. After checking out, I looked at my receipt and was quite amazed. After combining store specials and coupons, I managed to save $29.66. How cool am I?! My final total was only about $50.00. Sure, it could have been less than that if I didn't grab a few bags of candy corn on impulse. But at least the candy corn was on sale, too. I'm pretty proud of myself.

All in all, I'd call it a successful shopping trip. And now I'm looking forward to making some Turkey Burgers and Sweet Potato Fries for dinner later tonight!