Monthly Archive for March, 2008

Taxes

I heard just yesterday about the so-called “economic stimulus payment.” I figure if I hadn’t heard about it, maybe there are others out there that also haven’t.

The simple version is that anyone who made over $3,000 in 2007, has a valid SSN, and files a federal tax return this year will receive between $300 and $1200 (individual -> married) from Uncle Scam. Sounds like free money to me, as it only takes a few minutes to fill out a 1040EZ.

Of course, it’s actually more complicated than that. See this and this for more info.

More Cake Party Photos

Philip got some good shots of Cake Party action. Here’s a sample:

Wyatt making cake at 3-23-08 Cake Party
That’s spelt flour, my favorite kind of flour. Click to see full size.

It’s late and I’m tired and need to take a bath. I’ll post more later.

WordPress 2.5

I haven’t seen any posts about WordPress 2.5 on Planet Python yet, so I thought I’d make a quick mention of it. RC2 came out today. I installed it on a test site, and it’s looking pretty sweet. Definitely worth a look. The admin interface is much improved–easier to navigate, reduced clutter, and a new, lighter feel. Also, amongst other things, photo galleries are now built in.

Anyway, I just wanted to mention that I think it’s worth a look. For details, check out these posts over on the WordPress blog:

http://wordpress.org/development/2008/03/25-sneak-peek/
http://wordpress.org/development/2008/03/wordpress-25-rc2/

Blazers vs Wizards

I just got home from yet another Blazers game. Philip M got free tickets through work again. I met some of his coworkers, and there might even be a job opportunity that comes out of this. Cool.

This time we watched from a “sky box.” You can’t see the individual players and moves as well, but it’s a great vantage point to keep an eye on the whole game. It was a fairly uninteresting game, but it was a fun experience.

Blazers vs Wizards from sky box
A dark & blurry view of the proceedings.

Philip and I spent most of the time chatting about relationships and love and meeting new people and what not. That was good. Very therapeutic, although we didn’t arrive at any definite answers to the harder questions/issues.

Blazers vs Wizards - view above skybox
A semi-interesting photo of the view above our heads. It took me a while to notice this.

I rode the MAX across the river and then walked about two miles home in the rain. My outer garments were wet, but I stayed warm (layers, yo!). I love walking home in the rain at night. There’s no better time to think and feel.

Cake Party

The best thing about having a cake party at your house is that you get to eat all the leftover cake. Or maybe that’s the worst thing. I don’t know. Either way, the cake party was on Sunday and I had cake for breakfast, lunch, and before-bed snack on Monday. The only other thing I had Monday was Olives and Nuts at Holocene. That was pretty tasty but awfully salty.

Anyway. It was a relatively small party, but it was fun. We played a game of team Scrabble. Isaac and I whooped ass with a bunch of multi-word plays. (Not that I’m bragging, because that would be unseemly.)

And then there was the cake. Mmm mm mm. (Did I spell that right?) Originally, I thought there were going to be several cakes and that at least one of them would be “normal” (that is, non-vegan). As it turned out, there ended up being only two cakes and both were vegan. I hadn’t been planning to make one, but I did.

Jason W. made a chocolate cake. I made a vanilla cake using the recipe on this page[1]. Of course, I modified that a bit by using spelt flour and Sucanat instead of normal sugar. Philip M. made some really excellent raw frosting that we put on both cakes. Both cakes came out well (we used the convection bake option) and were very tasty, though I liked Jason’s better, especially with Philip’s frosting; it reminded me of the German chocolate cake I loved so much growing up.

Most of my pictures didn’t come out well. This is maybe the best one:

Philip and Isaac at Cake Party 3-23-2008
Philip and Isaac watching me make cake. Actually, I don’t know what they’re doing or why they’re making those faces, but I was making cake right there at the edge of the counter. Jason was working on his cake to my left.

[1] Here’s the recipe, in case that page disappears:

“This sure to be a party pleaser!

  • 1/2 cup soft soy margarine [I used Earth Balance]
  • 2-3/4 cups all-purpose white flour [I used spelt flour]
  • 2 1/2 teaspoons baking soda [I used 1 1/4 tsp b.s. and 1 1/4 tsp b.p. because the directions below say baking powder]
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 2 teaspoons Ener-G Egg Replacer
  • 1/4 cup water
  • 3/4 cup soy milk
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 1-3/4 cups sugar [I used Sucanat]
  • 1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Spray two round 8″ x 1-2/3″ pans with Pam, or lightly oil and flour. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Combine flour, baking powder, and salt and set aside. Mix Egg Replacer and 1/4 cup water and set aside. Mix soy milk and 1/2 cup water, and set aside.

In large bowl of electric mixer, beat soy margarine until it is creamy, about a minute. Gradually add sugar until well creamed. Beat in vanilla. Add mixed dry ingredients and mixed soy milk/water alternately to creamed margarine, sugar, and vanilla, beating after each addition. Begin and end with flour mixture. (Add flour in 4 steps, liquids in three.) Add mixed Ener-G along with the third addition of liquid. Turn evenly into pans.

Bake at 375 degrees for 30 to 35 minutes, or until done (wooden pick inserted into cake comes out clean). Remove from oven and let cool on cake rack for 10 minutes. Remove from pans and let cool on rack until cold. Frost as desired.

  • Total calories per serving (without frosting): 295
  • Total fat as % of daily value: 12% Fat: 8 gm
  • Protein: 5 gm carbohydrates: 54 gm
  • Calcium: 69 mg Sodium: 298 mg
  • Dietary Fiber: 1 gm”

Organic Athlete Group Ride 3-22-2008

Today’s Organic Athlete group ride started again at the Cellar Door Cafe. It’s a nice little place with lots of light and a friendly atmosphere. I met Bonnie and Casey there at about 10:30. We hung out for a while and chatted with the owner some. I had a cup of tasty coffee and an even tastier home made banana split cupcake.

Eventually, we rolled out. It was a slightly chilly, very sunny, and fairly windy day. The wind seemed to blow in every direction. I rode my mountain bike because my road bike’s in the shop having its front wheel rebuilt. I love riding my MTB, though it does require quite a bit more effort on a road ride.

Westmoreland Park We made our way to the Springwater Corridor, rode that down to Umatilla, passed by Piece of Cake (vegan cakes, yo!) in the Sellwood neighborhood, came back north by Westmoreland Park and along the west side of Reed College then up SE 26th. When we hit the corner of 26th & Clinton (AKA, Clinton Corner), I realized I hadn’t been to that part of southeast in quite a while. Ah, memories…

At that point, the ride was essentially done, and we headed over to Seven Corners Cycles so Bonnie could pick up a new seat post. The shop is right down the street from People’s Co-op on SE 21st & Tibbetts. I’d never been there before. It’s a fairly large shop with a decent selection of bikes, equipment, and parts. I contemplated buying a new, “cooler” helmet.

Continuing our tour of SE bike shops I hadn’t been to before, we next went to A Better Cycle so Bonnie could pick up a new (used) stem. “A Better Cycle is a worker owned and collectively run used bicycle shop.” They sell mostly (all?) used bikes and parts. I only got a quick impression, but it seemed like a pretty cool shop.

For our final stop, we went next door to Papa G’s, a new all-vegan deli with an “organic, local, sustainable” focus. Tasty, wholesome victuals. I had a veggies & “cheese” pocket. Highly recommended.

Shorts 3-23-2008

Here is the Shorts cuteness for today. The images are a little grainy due to (I guess) bad lighting.

Shorts on a dirty towel by my dirty clothes hamper:

Shorts on towel by dirty clothes
Click for full size version.

Shorts on a pair of old school, nylon, rip-stop, hand-me-down, camo pants:

Short on camo pants on couch
Click for full size version. That pink thing in the background is a candle. What did you think it was?!

Blazers vs Clippers

After dinner at The Farm, Philip and I went to a Blazers basketball game at the Rose Garden Arena. Philip got free tickets from somewhere, and I’m always down for a novel experience, which this definitely was for me. I’ve been to one other pro sporting event that I remember, a Red Sox baseball game in Boston back in the late 80s. I went to one Ducks basketball game while I was at the University of Oregon.

I’m no sports fan, but I love basketball as a game. It’s such a dance–part choreographed, part freestyle–conducted by intricate rules of timing, interaction, and boundaries.

Part of the fun was people watching. Watching them get excited when the Blazers scored or screwed up. Watching them ogle and take pictures of the cheerleaders. Watching them spend $6.50 on pints of Budweiser.

The arena takes great advantage of the large captive audience and advertises with all kinds of flashing lights, announcements, and giveaways of junk.

I took some pictures (of the game and crowd, not the cheerleaders) with my phone, but none of them are worth posting here.

The Farm

Friday night started with dinner at The Farm with Philip. Michael B. stopped by also and had a couple beers with us. The Farm “support[s] local farmers by buying direct when ever possible.” They are located at SE 7th & Burnside.

I had a cup of split pea soup. Philip and I both had the “Herb Crusted Tofu with Mushrooms Marsala.” Holy shit! That is some good grub. Menu.

From the outside, the place looks like kind of dump, but inside it’s quite nice and homey–in fact, it’s in an old Victorian house.

Slightly spendy but definitely recommended.

Got Prescription Glasses and My Eyes are Correct

OK, so I can’t go around quoting that[1] just yet, but I’ll be able to soon: I just got back from my first eye exam in 10? 12? more? years. My eyes are “very healthy.” That’s a relief. Lately, I’ve been getting a lot of validation that my lifestyle, habits, and/or genes are generally healthy. After a minimum of ten years of having any kind of health, dental, or eye exams, it’s good to know, and quite interesting.

Anyway, back to the eye exam. My eyes are 20/30. I’m slightly nearsighted. The numbers on my prescription are -1.00/-0.75; “sph” cylinder. I have no idea what that means. I’m looking at some hip-but-not-overstated, black, rectangular-ish frames that work well with hats and bike helmets. Anti-reflective, polycarbonate lenses are recommended. That’s gonna run me about fo’ hunny[2]. Damn! Is that a reasonable price for glasses? I don’t have a clue.

In my last post about this, I thought glasses might help my eyestrain and headaches while sitting at the computer. The doctor mostly disagreed. She said the anti-reflective coating might help, but mainly I need to take more breaks and make sure my workstation ergonomics are all good. Tension in the back and neck can cause headaches and what feels like eyestrain. Who knew?

Here’s the general style I’m looking at:

Cruz I-20 Eyeglass Frames
Pinched from here.

[1] Perfection by Run-D.M.C. from the album Raising Hell
[2] $400