Many moons

Ever wonder what all the full moons for each month are called? We all vaguely know about the Harvest Moon, and maybe some of you geniuses out there have heard of the Hunter's Moon, but there's more! The Farmer's Almanac has a nice list of full moon names, complete with a description, of each month's full moon. The names are poetic and evocative--I love the Pink Moon for April and the Strawberry Moon for June!

I couldn't resist coming up with a list relevant to my world, however:
January: Dead Battery Moon
February: Still Fucking Winter Moon
March: Green Beer Moon
April: Tax Moon
May: Garage Sale Moon
June: Construction Moon
July: Fucking Humidity Moon
August: Allergy Moon
September: Still Fucking Construction Moon
October: Cross-Dressing Moon
November: Two Evils Moon
December: Cold As Hell Moon

Nice rack!

I have a nice rack, if I may say so myself. I don't have too much trouble strapping it in, though sometimes I need someone to help me. Once my rack is adjusted, it's ready to go places!

It holds two bikes when it's strapped onto the trunk, without marring the finish of my car. It's really a nice rack!

Today was one of those perfect October days, with a deep periwinkle sky and bright sunshine. The leaves are starting to turn, and there were ruby-red and pumpkin orange trees brilliant against the clear sky. It was the perfect day for a bike ride! I went to Moraine Hills State Park for the first time in my life, and it was great biking! Moraine Hills, which is on River Rd. just north of Rt. 176 in McHenry, is a little gem of a state park. It has 10 miles of crushed limestone trails which are really packed down well, and you can bike or hike or just meander as you wish. The trails are loosely arranged in concentric loops, with a couple of little side loops here and there. It would be pretty difficult to get lost in Moraine Hills--the trails are clearly marked and most are one way, so just follow the big huge arrows of helpfulness. If you're something of a rebel, the compliant nature of Moraine Hills may not be to your liking. But for you rebels, you can ride around Lake Defiance, which rather defiantly dried up several years ago and is no longer a lake.

The trails are rather hilly--a grueling workout on a bike! Grueling in a good way though, like your heart is about to jump out of your ribcage and run for the nearest park bench. I managed to shift accurately and made all of the hills, an accomplishment for me. I won't be the King of the Mountain Stage in the Tour de France anytime soon, much less the Tour de McHenry. But I was pretty excited about going up and down all those little hills! The scenery is really pretty--lots of forested areas filled with dappled sunshine--my close friends know what a freak I am about dappled sunshine--can't get enough of that dappled sunshine!

I forgot to take my camera, though. I'm irked about that. Oh well. Instead of posting photos here, I'll just offer to mime the whole ride for anyone who asks.

Which Circle of Hell is your workplace?

If your daily routine includes being cast into pits of burning sulphur stoked by winged, remorseless demons, you may be in Hell, specifically one of the Circles as outlined by Dante in his masterpiece The Divine Comedy. See, long before The Office, workplaces were inspiring black comedy... Surely Dante was a beleagured employee at a soul-crushing workplace back in his day; he simply hits the nail on the head in his descriptions of Hell.

It's almost 3 p.m. now, and time to pick out which Circle of Hell you're in!

1st Circle: reserved for Virtuous Pagans, i.e. those ass-kissers who pretend to do work at home or volunteer for crap, but really they do jack. You're force to listen to them, based on your cubicle's proximity in this Circle.

2nd Circle: reserved for those who lust, i.e. those who are in danger of getting slapped with a sexual harrassment suit. The lusters can be amusing, as long as you realize they're not raunchy funny like the movie Wedding Crashers, but just raunchy boring. Still, for being one circle below the Virtuous Pagans, they're a bit more tolerable. Nobody likes an ass-kisser.

3rd and 4th Circles: reserved for Gluttons and the Avaricious, respectively. I work in a public library where people greedily snap up every single DVD off the shelf. Many days I toil in these particular Circles, trying to satisfy the insatiable lusts of these slavering Demons. If you work in public service or retail, chances are you know these Circles well.

5th Circle: reserved for the Wrathful, i.e. that one coworker frothing at the mouth, and you're afraid they're going to go postal any day now. Or perhaps that wrathful coworker is you.

6th Circle: reserved for Heretics, i.e. anyone who dares question a company policy....hmmm....we've all been in this Circle, have we not? More brimstone, please!

7th Circle: reserved for the Violent--see how this is starting to look like your workplace?

8th Circle: reserved for those who commit fraud, with a special inner circle for Politicians!

9th Circle: reserved for Traitors/Betrayers, i.e. management.

Ow! Those pitchforks are really pointy!

Cooking For Engineers

Cooking isn't fun unless you can be really analytical about it, or at the very least, anal. That's why I love Cooking For Engineers! And look, there's a handy tool for making conversions right at the top! You can always trust an engineer to have the right tool...for making calculations, that is. Speaking of engineers and their tools, I have heard that engineers make better mates than dates...

Check out the 92 comments on making mayonnaise! And don't forget to kiss the cook, and kiss an engineer! They could be one and the same!

Cold mornings and hot coffee

There is no greater joy than a cup of hot coffee on a cold morning. Even Oskee agrees. He likes his coffee with lots of cream and a generous pinch of catnip. I drink mine black.

This summer I bought some yard furniture at local garage sales, enough to furnish my "outdoor salon." Please say that with a fruity French accent: sah-LONH. It's fancier that way. I like sitting on my $12 glider with a good book and my great coffee. Unfortunately, the mornings now are so dark; I have to wait for the weekends to enjoy my hot coffee outside.

Might I add, there is no greater annoyance than forgetting to turn off the fricking coffeepot...