campaigning

Here's an unusual, but very realistic, way to get some money together.

With breast augmentation the second most popular elective plastic surgery procedure in the world (second only to liposculpture), this is not so far-fetched. In a country like Venezuela that needs a dramatic government overhaul, this sounds like a great idea to me!!

the way of our words

Linguistics is just a cool field all-around.

This site is very interesting, especially to those of us from other countries, or who grew up with accents surrounding our day-to-day. You can browse the sound of the English accent in different cities and countries. I think it would be even more poignant if they had a male and female version of each, but maybe that's just me...

What they do provide is information on each speaker, including: age, years speaking English, how they learned the language (naturally or academically), and whether they ever lived in an English-speaking country. Hell of a project, really.

must... post

I wasn't planning to, as it is quite hard with only one functional upper extremity (more on that later). But, on a whim, I visited a site I hadn't in a while, and felt compelled.

You see, we had had a party a few weeks ago. I always make several types of sangria, but this time felt inspired to try something new. After a little research, as well as trips to three (yes, 3!!) liquor stores to find the magical ingredient, I made my own Pimm's Cup. Now it can be yours. Necessity being the mother of invention, you will find mine to be different from the original.


you need:
equal parts Pimm's No.1, fizzy lemonade, ginger ale (original, with ginger pieces floating inside)*
mint leaves--about 20
small cucumber--sliced
lemon--sliced
1/2 pint blueberries (I inadvertently had used the last of the strawberries for the sangria)

you do:
mix in a large pitcher
serve over ice

*of course, you could use one or the other, or even ginger beer, but I really thought that this was especially refreshing, and not too ginger-overpowering

this easily scales up or down :)

Enjoy!!

corn--quintessential summer (kind of)

So, yes, corn IS the quintessential summer veggie, but the recipe I am about to throw at you is not, AT ALL, quintessentially summery... in fact, it is, quite frankly, late autumn-wintery. That being said, we do not have the luxury of an outdoor grill. And, well, oven-cooking is slightly less heat-inducing than stove-top cooking. So, there you have it...

"Oven-Roasted Corn"... or maybe "Oven-Braised Corn" would be a better title

you need:

6 ears of corn; peeled of leaves and silk, washed and split in half (dry lightly)
4-6 garlic cloves--minced
1/4C olive oil
1/4C vegetable broth*
couple of pinches of salt and pepper
few sprinkles of marjoram
(any other herbs/ spices to your liking)

you do:

-preheat oven to 350F
-place ears of corn in large enough baking dish that they are not overlapping, but cozy
-sprinkle corn with salt, pepper, marjoram, and any other herbs or spices you wish to use
-sprinkle with garlic
-mix olive oil and vegetable broth and pour over corn
-cover tightly with aluminum foil and place in oven for 30 minutes
-turn corn (add a little more broth or water if dish is dry)**
-cover again with foil, and back in the oven for another 30 minutes
-turn the oven up to 400F and take off foil (again, add broth or water as needed)**
-allow to bake an additional 15-20 minutes

enjoy!

*of course, home-made broth beats out any store-bought. in a pinch, I find Trader Joe's (!-yes, Trader Joe's) to work well
**remember that steam will be hot when you take off the foil--do this carefully, and away from your face!!

obviously

OK, so for crazy people like myself, this is reason enough to have a baby!!

It is such a cool contraption--it does EVERYTHING!! And they have funky, chic little freezer trays for left overs. I have always thought that if I had a child, I would definitely cook my own baby food. This little guy makes it effortless. I am considering buying one now... joking! (OK, only partially joking)

Obviously, I would have to buy every one of the accessories. OK, no buying... this is THE ONLY thing that needs to go on the baby shower list, as far as I am concerned. (That and a remote-controlled helicopter for my guy, of course.)

babies... and recalls...

Another day of recalling. This time on NeoProfen, which is an injectable ibuprofen.

This is a form of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory which is used in neonates with patent ductus arteriosus. In this congenital malformation, there is aberrant blood flow between the aorta and pulmonary artery. This type of blood flow is actually normal in fetal anatomy, but the connection normally closes soon after birth. The abnormality is relatively common in the United States, occurring in 8 per 1000 births.

The injectable medication in question has a specific patient profile, including gestational age and weight. In this case, the medication did not meet a quality standard, and this recall will result in a shortage, since the lots that are being recalled are the only lots available.

People that need to know: parents of patients, pediatricians, neonatal cardiologists, pediatric surgeons, and anesthesiologists.