Wasps!

Angry Wasp--- |DANGER|
Originally uploaded by s_nazari.

No, not Martha Stewart types. The insect kind! We've had a problem in our back yard with wasps before, but I thought it was over. Wrong! I went out back yesterday to water some plants and when I went for the watering can, a wasp came out of nowhere and went straight for my forearm. It attacked me several times, each strike feeling like an electric shock, before it finally bit or stung me. Ouch! If you are wondering if this hurts, GD right it does! I grabbed Ira and ran in the house to inspect the sting site. It was red and super tiny, but my arm felt like it was on fire! I washed it off quickly in water and ran to check the internets for advice on how to treat it. There being no immediate relief for it, I iced it, then put some ointment on it and hoped for the best. It swelled a little and continued to hurt though the evening. Today it looks like a freckle, but I'm still a little sore. This incident has left me wondering, what do wasps have against me and why are they such dicks about it?!

On the cheap

I love me some Bariani olive oil, but that stuff ain't that cheap. We usually get ours from the farmer's market, where I think an actual Bariani sells it to us. I love using it for salad dressings and any other dish where it can stand front and center. If it weren't so much, I'd use it for my everyday sauteing and roasting. Hell, if it weren't so much, I'd bathe myself in it. Instead I've been using some cheap stuff from Trader Joe's at about $4.99 a bottle. So you know I was thrilled when I found my precious Bariani at the co-op for a mere 18 cents an ounce in the BULK section! How could I have missed this before? In the bottle, I'd been paying around 65 cents an ounce for it, so the bulk price is a real steal, comparatively. I can't wait to run out of our cheap oil so I can load up on the Bariani.

Never been so glad

Monday's bentos
Originally uploaded by riblet.

Whenever I visit other parts of the country, I'm always relieved to come back to California. Our recent trip to Palm Springs had me feeling a little home sick. It's so far from here and the culture and terrain so different. Coming back to Northern California was as relieving as if we had returned from a different country. I was so glad to have cold, fresh produce and a more forgiving climate for toting Ira's string cheese. This week's visit to the Sunday Farmer's Market was never sweeter. We picked up some delicious Casselman plums, which we've been snacking on all week. Red and yellow on the outside and sweet and peach-like in the center. I'm bummed not to have tried these earlier!

Ira and I hit some parks this week. That kid needs to be run like a dog and I like taking him to the park behind Sierra II to do this. It's mostly fenced in and the large soccer field area is a good place to let him run bonkers. The playground offers some good, challenging equipment for him too. It has swings, slides, ladders and sand. I was watching Ira play in the sand when I noticed another mother encourage her toddler to pull down her pants and pee in the grass. I was totally grossed out by this! Peeing in public is not okay for anyone! Even little tykes. Who wants to cozy up on a nice patch of grass that some little kid peed on? Ewww. Further, no one wants to smell this as it's happening. Some moms drive me crazy, but you know what? It's a bad example to call someone out in front of their kid.