I looked out the window yesterday and noticed that my apple tree has bloomed. If I were less of a slacker, I’d probably have a picture to post here. A number of other trees are showing leaves, and while I like the spring weather, I keep thinking to myself that “this is just too early.” Last year, it was a week later than this when I planted stuff outside, and some of it ended up getting frozen out, so I don’t want to plant too much, but it’s probably time to get onions and garlic in, at a minimum. Later this week once the rain has passed. Looks like Wednesday or Thursday might be the target date.
I did a little shopping on Saturday to buy some containers to hold my herbs and spices in the kitchen, and after trying various stores, found that Target had some Altoids Citrus Sours on clearance, and those little tins, filled with candy that nobody wanted, were cheaper than any other tins I could find. The snag, of course (you knew there had to be a snag, right?) is that I need to wash them to clear out the candy-dust. But I think they’ll work pretty well. I’ll need to make up new labels and stick them to a cupboard door with velcro (also purchased during that shopping trip), but then I should have my herbs and spices organized so I can find them easily and free up a shelf in the cupboard, too. It also gives me an excuse to refresh some of the ones that have gotten old.
But that’s about all I got done all weekend. Yes, there was the trip up to mom’s. And I did stop by East River Market and discover that Nena’s now stocking Cracker Nuts (except for the Garlic, which are my favorite flavor). She’s also going to order me a wok, since I decided I need one, and couldn’t find a decent one during my shopping trip. But this weekend mostly consisted of laying groundwork for getting things done, rather than actually accomplishing anything. There were a lot of hours spent suckling at the glass teat and not all that much else. At least it had the decency to rain yesterday, so I didn’t feel too bad about spending the afternoon lounging on the couch.
- News flash! Post-9/11 secrecy produces some undesirable results. Hard to believe that bureaucrats might use
security
as an excuse to try and keep their mistakes secret. [schneier] - It’s a first: Judge Sentences Spammer to Nine Years for sending out ten million email messages per day, grossing ¾ million dollars per month. But hey, everyone who got one of those messages was a close personal friend of the guy or had asked him for information, right? His prison term is on hold while he appeals. [fark!]
- Hey, that was quicker than expected: Court Denies Smucker’s PB&J Pastry Patent. [boing boing]
- In France, ‘The Internationale’ Tune Turns Pricey, since the communist anthem, telling people to throw off their chains and loot the thieves who oppress them is still under copyright in France, and the rights-holders are collecting royalties. [boing boing]
- Good news: TSA slated for dismantling. No more Taking Scissors Away. Bad news: the functions will be absorbed into DHS, and they’ll continue making us
safe
. [instapundit] - The 394 tollway is selling passes now at the MnPASS site. The big surprise for me is that unless you have a pass, the diamond lanes will be off-limits during off-peak times now. [strib]