ultimate guide to keeping up your car

well, score one for the universe. just as i am frustrated with my lack of automobile knowledge, good ole lifehacker posts an awesome article on just that. i have read the article and it is good, very good.

My Dream Garden

i waste countless hours dreaming, planning & organizing my garden for 2008. unfortunately, it's not looking so plausible anymore. i must cut down a small forest worth of pine trees just to have enough sunlight for a garden, which will cost me a minimum of 4 grand. nevertheless, i dream and drool over catalogs.... so here's a list of plants i really want to grow (so far...)

Fragrant:
plumeria
sweet pea
tea olive
gardenia
climbing jasmine

Herb:
basil
thyme
lavender
rosemary
sage


Vegetables:
tomatoes
zuchini
squash
bell pepper
red pepper
green beans
carrots
potatoes
rhubarb

Fruit:
strawberries
blackberries
fig
pear

Ornamental/Useful:
Loofah

Things you should know about your car

I have car problems all the freakin time and its pissin me off. i just don't know enough about cars, i depended on other people to tell me what to do, when to do it and just shell out the dough. well, i guess i can't be so passive about it anymore so i did a little digging and found this easy to handle checklist of basic car maintenance. from this handy dandy site.

CHECK EACH MONTH
oil level -- add oil if low and check for leaks
hoses -- replace if bulging, rotten, or brittle
belts -- replace if worn, frayed, or glazed
tire pressure -- add air if low
coolant or antifreeze -- add more if low
air filter -- replace if dirty
inspect tires for leaks, damage, bulges, or uneven wear

CHECK EVERY 3 MONTHS
oil and oil filter -- change every 3,000 miles
windshield washer fluid -- add fluid if low
battery and power steering fluid -- add fluid if low
brake fluid -- add fluid if low
transmission fluid -- add fluid if low
battery terminals and cables -- clean if corroded

CHECK EVERY 6 MONTHS
wiper blades -- replace if worn, brittle, or smeary
make sure headlights, brake lights, and turn signals work
make sure horn works properly
inspect brakes for wear and tear or "slippage"
make sure spare tire is fully inflated
inspect exhaust system for rust, damage, or loose parts
inspect shock absorbers for oil seepage or wear

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Meal Plan Test

Ok, so I made up a meal plan according to the heather method. did you know that there are a lot of meal planning services on the internet? they actually charge you to tell you what to cook! good grief... and i didn't see any sample menus that i liked. sad....none of them really had any ethnic food. anyways, here's my plan for next week:



5 Dinners (with sides):

• Grilled Chicken Club Salad with Balsalmic Vinaigrette dressing.


• Teriyaki Chicken with Rice & Veggies.


• Crockpot Pulled Pork Sandwiches with Coleslaw and Mac n' Cheese Casserole.


• Falafel Pita Pockets with Side Mediterranean Salad.


• Marinated Salmon Steaks with Steamed Asparagus. (trying to eat fish 1x/week)

3 Lunches:

• Turkey Rollups with Chips and an orange..
• Couscous with Leftover Chicken and an apple.
• Grilled Turkey Burger with Chips and an orange.

2 Breakfasts (weekend):

• Slow Cooked Steel Cut Oatmeal with fruit and cream.
• Everything Bagel with Smoked Salmon Lox and Capers.

Everyday Breakfasts (weekdays - because it's the most important meal!!)

• Yogurt with handful of nuts and Soymilk.
• Frozen fruit and Powder Smoothie with handful of nuts.
• Organic toaster Waffle with Peanut Butter and Soymilk.
• Yogurt and Granola Parfait with Mocha Coffee.
• Ham & Egg Mcmuffin (yes, from McDonald's).

3 Snacks:

• Toasted Pita with Homemade Hummus.
• Spinach Artichoke Dip with Unsalted Tortilla Chips.
• Homemade Chex Mix.

3 Beverages:

• Homemade Soda Pop.
• Iced Green Tea.
• Soymilk.

2 Desserts:

• Snickerdoodle Cookies.
• Fruit Salad.

That's it. That's a lot of food -man! Thankfully I have left room for us to eat leftovers for lunch and stuff, so hopefully it will work out. If this turns out to be too many meals and we end up wassting food, I'll have to pare it down some more. The great thing about crockpot cooking is that I don't have to do as much work when I get home which leaves me more time and sanity to make a side dish. So, according to the schedule above I need the following groceries:

Chicken Breasts and Pork Butt or Shoulder.
Sliced Smoked Turkey Breast 1/2 lb, 1 pkg. Smoked Salmon (already have?)

Salad Mix, Coleslaw Mix, Asparagus.

Apples, Oranges, Bananas, Cherries, Shredded Coconut, Whipped Cream.

Artichoke Hearts, Black Olives, Chickpeas.

Yogurt, Cream, Cheddar Cheese, Cream Cheese, Parmesan Cheese, Feta Cheese (already have?).

Toaster Waffles, Sandwich Buns, Pita Bread, Tortilla Chips, Sun Chips.

Oatmeal, Chex Mix, Granola, 2 bagels.

Staples: Milk, Egg, Olive Oil, OJ, Soymilk.

I wonder if I can buy all this for $100. I hope so. This is a pretty healthy menu, in my opinion.

Things to do in January

To start the year off right, I made a list of things that really need to be done this month. even if I can't complete them, they should at least be started.

1. Figure out my damn Roth IRA account. I have no clue what to do with it. DONE!
2. Open a savings account with $500.00 and save at least $150.00 per month.
3. Find, plan & implement a meal planning system where I can plan meals ahead of time and make grocery lists accordingly.
4. Make an appointment for Bibi's surgery.
5. Completely finish organzing all the stuff in the house and weeding out things to be sold/thrown away.
6. Buy a damn exercise machine.

2008 Home Improvement Plan

Here is the first List of the year... (in a somewhat chronologically preferred order)

1. Cut down all the damn pines in the front yard. (I have posted an ad in craigslist to help)
2. Re-build the front porch.
3. Finish touch-up painting in the house. (stairs, baseboards, ceilings)
4. Replace/Install light switches & electrical outlets.
5. Install threshold in kitchen, extra wall cabinet/shelf by sink.
6. Repair front door.
7. Repair Gutters!!!!! Install rain barrells. This should really be #1 on this list....
8. Seal leaks in roof... again probably too important to be #8 on this list...
9. Install lattice around back porch to hide ugly lawn equipment. DONE!
10. Seed & fertilize lawn.
11. Repaint the office. I hate the half brown, half white colors. What was I thinking??
12. Repaint back porch.
13. If possible, move shed to side yard.
14. Replace driveway, add round-a-bout.
15. Pressure wash entire house, especially moldy brick.
16. Service/repair A/C and furnace systems.
17. ......

2008 New Year Hopes, Dreams, & Goals

Yea, new year resolutions are a crock but that doesn't stop me from making my lists.

what do I hope to achieve in 2008? above everything is health. I need to treat myself better. That means being active, eating better foods, learning to deal with stress, learning to relax when I need to, deal with difficult people (like my mother) in a harmonious manner. I am also going to pamper myself better. I don't spend any "me" time anymore. I used to hang out in my bathroom doing my nails, inspecting my face close-up, fiddling with my hair & makeup, experimenting with soaps, lotions, etc. I just don't do that anymore. I just go into the bathroom to poop and brush my teeth these days.

I started off 2008 with a very luxurious and long long overdue hot bath. I felt a tinge of guilt because of the drought but then I justified myself because I don't run water, I flush less, take really quick showers, only wash with full loads of laundry/dishes, reuse watever water I can and am implementing a rainwater collection system. so I deserve one lousy bath, right?

It was splendid. I dissolved some epsom salts with a generous dash of chamomile oil and some lavendar bath soap. I read my new favorite book, a slice of organic life, and just soaked. Marvelous. I shall do it more often - like at least once a month I think. I even got to really scrub my feet, which is harder for me to do because of my ankle and oh yea, I got really fat in college which makes it harder to bend.

On a side note, I had a dream the other night but the only part I remember was trying to teach my kid that compassion gives you strength. I don't really know why but it felt like something I should remember.

So, besides the obvious I wanna lose weight goal, I have to seriously work on implementing a strategy. Having asthma and a bad ankle (and now knee) definitely makes it harder but it's not like I have another option. I must lose weight or have a heart attack way before my time. I also want to be healthy when I have kids. So, strategies. Make excersizing and eating right impossible to bypass. Which means I need it to be staring me in the face. I need an excersize machine in my living room. I need a thorough meal plan for every meal of the week. I need Johnny to be on-board. That's the hard part cause he likes his meat and salt and I try to keep that down but it feels like he'll suffer if I eliminate it. God I wish he would quit smoking, it's pissing me off. I want to just have ONE DAY where I don't smell any smoke. And not just secondhand smoke but aftersmell. I hate cigarette aftersmell, it triggers my asthma just as strong as if I were standing next to him while he's smoking.

I also want to lead a more organised life. Financially and professionally mostly. I'm slowly working on that and making some progress so I am happy with it. I need to conquer the Roth IRA thing this year. And I will do the heck out of my taxes.

I also want to be more involved with the community. I need to volunteer with habitat for humanity or something. That ties in with my LEED certification goal.

I would really like to start the printing business thing but I don't think Johnny is enthusiastic enough about it and I don't have the energy to carry us both. So that probably won't be happening. It's too bad cause it's a really good business plan. My goal for 2008 will be to not be too dissapointed in this and just let it happen naturally.

Also in 2008 is my house. I want to finish up all the loose ends and finally get my mini-farm up and running. I am going to plant raised bed vegetable gardens, install a chicken coop, set up my worm farm, plant my herb and flower garden and landscaping. I also need to make repairs to the roof and install the rainwater collection system.

This year we must get bibi's legs fixed. We just have to.

I think that's about all for now. I will be a very happy person if I can accomplish these things this year. It's going to be a busy but very fulfilling year.