I don’t apologize.

Lunch…

Tomato, baby! Campbell’s. There is no other if you’re a kid, or me.

In this…

There is no other if you’re a kid, or me.

I’ve had these soup mugs forever. Okay. They didn’t exit the womb with me, but a long time. Long. Time.

I have four. Still chip-free. That comes under the heading Miracle.

I paired my Campbell’s with a grilled Granny Smith apple and white cheddar — of the old variety — cheese sandwich on multigrain. Knocks my socks off every time.

Lunch as God intended.

Sometime on Friday, I’ll be in Matinee-land seeing this…

Mr. G, honey is girding his loins.

No, really. He’s a good sport.

No, really. I’m going to owe him big time. He’s gonna make me see The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo on the Big Screen, when I would prefer to see it on say, my iPhone.

Try not to judge me. I’ve been a Stephanie Plum fan for a long time.

I’ll let you know.

Who else is going?

That’s all for Hump Day, aka Wednesday, folks!

It’s a sister thing.

But it’s really no laughing matter.

As we watch the price of food rise at a steady rate — gulping every time we hit the markets of super, stores of grocery or convenience, whatever — we’ve been stocking our pantries with sale items.

No, not a gross of Cocoa Frosted Flakes or a skid of Pop-Tarts, but common staples that we both use frequently — canned tomatoes, beans, peanut butter, baking ingredients, and butter, Bacon!, whatever for the freezer.

Feeding a small family of deux, I haven’t really thought too much about this in the past, until recently.

I think about it now. A lot.

To keep the costs down on a lot of dry goods and baking supplies, I’ve been visiting our local Bulk Barn, Canada’s largest purveyor of bulk foods. It eliminates the throw-away packaging, which I assume is also better for the environment. One can only hope.

What to do, what to do about reusable storage containers?

I like cheap, and I like glass.

I like glass because I can see what’s in the container.

I like glass because it doesn’t yellow with age.

I like glass because it’s pretty.

There are disadvantages to glass, of course. Weight for one. It can crash and shatter for another.

I like glass.

I’ve used a lot of canning jars for small stuff, like spices and nuts, and bought some nice Anchor-Hocking large containers for oats and sugars, etc. (moderately cheap), and made in the USA, baby!

Yesterday, while in the Canadian Tire — yes, I am a Canadalander — I found these 56 ounce beauties. Cheap, cheap, cheap, I mean…inexpensive, Bernardin mason jars, also made in the USA. They have wide mouths and the standard metal screw lids and seals that go with them. I did invest in some white plastic lids for the long haul.

I’m waiting for them to dry.

So they can be loaded.

With bulk staples.

For my Victory Pantry.

I also buy local, when the growing season is on, and meat and poultry directly from local farmers. That is not cheap, but it’s healthy and benefits our local farmers.

This makes me a locavore. Not to be confused with herbivore or carnivore.

That’s a post for another day.

Food consumption is a fine balancing act.

My roots are sweating just thinking about it.

And that’s your Sunday news flash.

Note: The Victory Garden Poster image: Your victory garden counts more than ever!, 1945, Artist: Morley, Size: 27″x19″, Publication: [Washington, D.C.] Agriculture Department. War Food Administration. Printer: U.S. Government Printing Office

Every day is out and beating the tarmac for the next vehicle of motor. By the end of yesterday, I was leaning toward a Harley. My heart-of-hearts is filled with lust for a two-seater, but the G-Pup would become a rescue dog, and maybe Mr. G, honey too, at least during the winter months. He has some height on him.

Because it’s Hump Day, and because we’re craning our necks in Autoland, baby, I give you this for your viewing pleasure…

I could do that.

Be a cool cat.

If I wanted to.

And brain surgery.

P.S. The women is this video are cat-cool.

That’s what I’ve got here today — untitled post on WordPress blog, series II.

Moving on.

Mama Weather pulled a nutty this weekend and dropped the temperature and snow flurries on my neck of Canadaland. She’s trying to make amends by pushing it up to 40 something today, but my socks and hoodie aren’t buying it.

Gracie Allen Squirrel Buster doesn’t care about the state of Mama Weather’s mental health. She’s totally focused on one thing, and one thing only — squirrel-busting. My perennial borders may not survive her squirrel-bustin’ ways.

I misspoke. She has another focus. A deep, on-the-genetic-code focus. A reptilian brain urge to roll in the dead grass-cum-mud like a horse in pasture. She only does the full body shake once she hits the indoors. My central vac is terminal.

I’m still organizing the pantry. I found these cracker jars by Anchor Hocking, made in the USA. They have a lovely ribbed-glass pattern which you probably can’t see, brilliant photographer that I am.

I live for shiny, red lids.

I’m going back to get a dozen more. The only thing better is if the one on the right was filled with Cadbury Mini Eggs.

In other breaking news: My iPod died. Somebody drove a stake through its little undead battery. Wah. If you’re following me on Twitter, this is old news.

Indoors or out, no one relaxes in March, that month of wind and taxes, the wind will presently disappear, the taxes last us all the year. ~Ogden Nash

Hello Monday!

Elen

It was 65 degrees yesterday here in my neck of Canadaland, so Mr. G, honey and I zipped downtown to play. I bought a couple of books. One was The Spice and Herb Bible (Ian Hemphill with Kate Hemphill, 2nd ed.) I wanted to make my own dry rub. I wanted to know what purslane was and what to do with fennel. I’m going to get to do that with this book, and probably a few bicep curls, too.

I bought these beauties –

They’re glass confiture jars from France. I could and I might put jam in them, but I bought them for storage. I’m cleaning my pantry likes it’s never been cleaned before. It’s all about the storage.

I live for lids.

Pumpkin seeds. Yum.

Paprika, baby.

One of these is waiting for dry rub. I love the wide mouth on this jar. Ever tried getting the herbs out of those little jars? Plus, I buy a lot of stuff in bulk. I’m going back for a dozen more. Come the sizzling summer heat, I’m thinking fresh lemonade. That’s how I roll.

Let’s get this last Friday of winter started.

Elen