Chicago: Become Familiar with its Distinctive Neighborhoods

Fuck. CHRISTMAS CARD.

I had a terrible night at Catch and needed medicating and I am suffering from Xanax-brain this morning.

were you guys all hooked on the wire right away? we watched the first episode of the first season and were kind of "meh." but everyone says it's so great...

yeah, honestly i didn't know that character was a girl until i listened to a little of the commentary!

did you see that omar's boyfriend was reading a george pelecanos book?

ha, no, i was wondering what book that was.

thinking back, i was interested right away but it might have taken a couple episodes for me to get totally hooked.

it definitely gets better as it goes on and there is less emphasis on mcnulty as a central character, as he's the most stereotypical cop show character on The Wire. but if you don't like it after the first few episodes, you're probably not going to like the rest.

So what did you do it on?

Crossword Wizard, which is for Mac. It allows you to make the grid but not to turn it into a pretty page with columns of clues, etc.

Anyway: here it is.

Whoops, that was too small. I mean this.

Awesome. Do you just pick a standard grid from a template? It seems like the grid options in Crossword Weaver are kind of limited, but I don't feel equipped to make one from scratch or whatever.

I CAN'T WRITE A CURSIVE "B" TO SAVE MY LIFE. (trying to forge my boss's signature)

also i watched disc 1 of the Wire season 4 and i'm obsessed all over again. METOO.
I also did not realize creepy nail gun kid was a girl until JUST NOW. I thought someone referred to him as a she, which confused me, but I had been watching for several hours at that point and was experiencing fatigue.

The classroom scenes are GRATE.

Carcetti totally creeps me out too. Man do I love that show.

Colette, as for your question, yes I was hooked right away, but I am a a pretty big fan of the genre. Try it with the subtitles on -- it relieves some of my name-related listening fatigue.

also i am going to start spelling your name correctly starting today

I just make my own grids. Sometimes I do the whole grid first before filling in clues and sometimes it kind of fills itself in as I go along. Once you've done a couple, it's easy to remember what works and what doesn't, like how you need at least three black squares at the grid's edge after at least three rows. Crossword Weaver also automatically makes it symmetrical for you (if you put a black square in the top-left corner, it will automatically create on in the bottom-right).

sometimes it kind of fills itself in as I go along

I don't mean this literally. Just that the words I pick dictate what the grid looks like, rather than the grid dictating what words I pick.

Very interesting, I did the opposite on my first puzzle, which probably made it harder than necessary. Next time I won't work from a template.

you guys i think i have the arthuritis in my left wrist/hand
:(
hello geritol

Also, now that I'm doing themed puzzles, I have to fill in the theme answers first.

Does anyone here know any good bossanova music?

Besides, like, Getz/Gilberto?

I used to have a cheap Antonio Carlos Jobim sampler that was pretty undeniable.

I dunno, I guess? I am searching ILM threads for later reading.

jobim, sergio mendes' brasiliero album, getz/gilberto is the obvious one, Black Orpheus soundtrack

xpost

(This is the Jobim comp I had.)

i tend to like samba stuff a lot more, like any carlinhos brown album.

also david byrne's label put out some great brazilian comps, i forget what they're called.

yeah -- all of it
i would start with joao gilberto/stan getz (can't remember the name of the album)

oops too late for me
damn that arthuritis

worst medical advice ever:
"Another technique is to substitute distraction for pain. Focus your attention on things that you enjoy. Imagine a peaceful setting and wonderful physical sensations. Thinking about something that is enjoyable can help you relax and become less stressed. Find something that will make you laugh -- a cartoon, a funny movie, or even a new joke. Try to put some joy back into your life. Even a small change in your mental image may break the pain cycle and provide relief."

Jobim's Wave is all right, too, but it's a little too sweeping and orchestral for my tastes.

Whose the hell advice is that??

goddamn webmd

You know what makes me happy and distracts me from pain?? PRESCRIPTION PAINKILLERS, THAT'S WHAT.

i stretch and rub my wrist/hand/forearm, like, every five minutes. i don't even notice i do it anymore.

Seriously. "A cartoon" is not gonna cut it. I am wearing a wrist brace for the second year in a row.

I stopped reading WebMD a long time ago. Worst possible thing for hypochondriacs.

Also, I'm starting to get sick. :(

I almost didn't come into work today.

thx peeps

I hurt my left wrist yesterday, I shit you not, while air drumming. In the shower.

Later on I went to Home Depot and bought a shovel, then shoveled all the snow/slush/ice off of our sidewalk, which actually helped it a bit. And now I have a blister on my hand.

which actually helped it a bit

my wrist

and the sidewalk, too

amanda, i keep reading about a supplement that's good for aching joints, but don't know if it's a scam or not-- glucosamine, i think?

I hurt my left wrist yesterday, I shit you not, while air drumming.

haha, i've done this too, though not seriously. i think it's because your movements are waaay more exaggerated than when you actually have a stick in your hand.

I'm going to start an Air Drumming Awareness Organization.

do any of you have a good vegetarian lasagna recipe you can send me? i just want regular lasagna, with noodles, sauce, cheese, and mmmmmmmaybe spinach. no eggplant, zucchini, squash, anything else like that. classic lasagna.

hmmm can't you just make regular lasagna without the meat if you don't want veggies in it

sauce noodles sauce cheese sauce noodles repeat until pan is full

i give glucosamine to my elder doggie for his joints. maybe i should take it too.

We made lasagna last weekend. I can send you a recipe later. We did two kinds: 1) spinach and bechamel sauce, and 2) mushroom and marinara sauce. But they both had the same base of no-boil noodles and three kinds of cheese: parmesan, fontina, and cottage (the latter substituting for ricotta and barely noticeable, if you're not a fan of cottage, which I'm not).

I AM STUPID AND I NEED A RECIPE

i actually don't like ricotta or cottage cheese but apparently some is necessary for lasagna

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Cheese-Lasagna/Detail.aspx looks pretty similar to one we did from jamie's italy (the only jamie oliver cookbook i like)

i'd like to make more pasta bakes this winter.

jaymc, did you make the bechamel sauce yourself or was it ready made? i'm always scared to try stuff like that.

zukes are awes in lasag

We made the bechamel ourselves. Or rather, Kr did. I don't remember what was in it. The recipe was from Cook's Illustrated.

i use low fat ricotta and it has never bothered me -- i'm not a fan of ricotta generally. if you want to put some frozen spinach in there just layer with the sauce/cheese OR mix in with the cheese for minimal noticing of the spinach. also remember an egg in the cheese mixture to hold it together.

i guess i just usually don't use a recipe for pasta dishes.

i can't tell the difference between frozen spinach and fresh in something that's cooked to hell like lasagna is, so that's why i recommend frozen (chopped, in the bag not the weird box) for ease.

See, here's the thing: with this recipe we used, the lasagna only has to be cooked for 20 minutes. We blanched the spinach first, so it stayed moist and fresh.

mmm, this is making me hungry! i'm not sure PB&J is going to cut it, but alas that's what i've got. but lovely leftover art of pizza stuffed pizza for dinner tonight, which is certainly in the same family.