Garry had the day off today and it was also incredibly nice out (mid-fifties for the first time in living memory), so we made an effort to get out into the real world and not just go for a hike in middle earth.

First we walked to a fairly new store that sells running gear. We were looking for Superfeet that would conform to my crazy high arches, and it turned out a guy from North Face also had a job there, so he was able to help find the perfect fit (I’m a green E, apparently). But of course they didn’t have my size, so now Garry is going to check for them back at North Face tomorrow.

We then boarded the bus and made our way to Tenny Park on the near East side. There were quite a few people there; everyone was out enjoying the weather. I had a run-in with a porta-potty, we saw some happy ducks, enjoyed a selection of tunnels, and generally had a nice little walk along the canal from the park to the Willy St. Co-op.

Mmm, lunch

At Willy St. we picked up some lunch and two little baggies of sprout seeds. I would have liked to have gotten something for dinner there, but Garry was becoming bemused by the great numbers of hippies (he has a low tolerance for such things). So we escaped with our picnic to a little bench overlooking Lake Monona. It was a bit chilly (there’s still a lot of ice on the lake) but very nice.

And for dessert...

We caught the bus a block away and transferred at the square, and when we got home Garry took a nap while I learned about and planted my sprouts (they’re broccoli sprouts; I also got a “mixed salad” seed blend that I’ll try after). And I was in such a planting mood that I also planted some lettuce to grow indoors in a ziplock baggy (hey, I saw it on YouTube!) and made some modifications to the garden plan (as if I’ll actually follow the plan once we start planting). Later we ordered chinese take-out (it’s within 100 miles…) and had a bit of a BSG marathon (I think it’s getting a bit slow in the third season but Garry’s convinced it’s as good as ever). And that was our very pleasant first-real-day-of-spring!

This morning we took our children to the vet for their annual check-up. And it was quite a hectic morning, not helped by the fact that we slept through the alarm. But the important news is that the kitties are fit and healthy; well, except that Bailey has two kitty cavities that are going to cost $800 to fix, and he’ll have to go under general anesthesia.

I’ve been considering having us try the 100 mile challenge. We couldn’t be 100% strict; I mean, we would buy things from local bakeries, etc… but I would go making sure they got their flour from local… mills. I don’t even think we have local mills. But this evening we had RP’s pasta and bread from Clausen’s, both in Madison, which made me start thinking that if we can eat local without even trying it can’t be too hard to do it all the time. Plus the farmer’s market starts in two weeks, and soon we’ll be planting our garden.

Garden plan

Which brings me to the garden plan. This is probably my forth plan in as many weeks; but aside from a little tweaking I think this is the one we’ll use (especially considering I want to start planting next weekend). Tomorrow is Garry’s last weekend day off until the end of the month, which is really starting to annoy me because I want him to play in the mud with me. I’m hoping I can get him a job at Anchor; I wonder if they have a policy against family members working in the same building?

Ah, it’s nice being a stay at home wife again. So relaxing. ^_^

Garry is watching his football game that he taped with TiVo. Happy husband. The house is a total mess; I managed to puncture my finger with a wicker waste basket when I started cleaning, so I haven’t been a very effective maid today.

I’m trying to do a big cull of everything we don’t need before I start my new job. I also made a mammoth to do list; luckily they’re mainly little things. I like to list individual things that need to be done (like “clean the fridge”, “organize the cabinets”) rather than major things only (like “clean the kitchen”) so I feel more accomplished ticking things off. ^_^

I hope I get more done tomorrow; what’s the point in taking time off just to relax around the house?! =D