While the first part of today’s Great Soap Experiment cools enough for me to work with it, I would just like to say this:

I do not care that Hillary is 19 points up on Obama in the polls. Really. I won’t much care about who is where on the polls at all ever, but if I have to hear about polling ranks and points for the next two years, I promise you I will go insane. Could we possibly at least wait until the actual election year … you know, 2008 … before we have a race for the presidency? This is just ridiculous!

If I were thinking of running for president (which I always am actually), I’d sit back and wait for all these early-adopter clowns to cover each other with so much mud no one wants to vote for any of them, and then announce my candidacy right before the deadline (which I am sure is still a long way off — just like the damn elections I am already hearing about). I can’t be the only one who is going to be sick to death of hearing about who’s the current front-runner for an election that is still two years off. It’s certainly not going to make me want to vote for any of them, because I will be tired of hearing about the fat lot of them in about … oh … five more minutes.

So to the media I say … will you please ignore any presidential candidates until a more reasonable time … like next year sometime? I’d appreciate it, and I don’t think I am the only one either. And isn’t there something more newsworthy than a two year off election we could be hearing about? I’ll bet there is. In fact, I know there is. Too bad we don’t have anything resembling actual journalists anywhere in America anymore.

I tried to find some easy way to show what song is currently playing on my iTunes, but alas, no such easy way to be found. Next I tried to find an easy way to export my current playlist in a format that could be cut and paste into a post, but alas, no such easy way to be found. So I typed it up in Textpad, and here you go … the songs I will be listening to during my soap-making day today:

Mad World — Michael Andrews
One Thing — Finger Eleven
It Ends Tonight — The All-American Rejects
Where My Heart Will Take Me — Russell Watson
Iris — Goo Goo Dolls
Dear God — XTC
Moonlight Towers — Coffee Sergeants
Offering Song — Wayne Kerr
Uninvited — Alanis Morissette
Don’t Give Up– Peter Gabriel & Kate Bush
I Grieve — Peter Gabriel
The Flame — Cheap Trick
Behind Blue Eyes — The Who
Oye Como Va — Santana
Rock Americano — Vallejo
Smooth — Santana & Rob Thomas
La Familia — Vallejo
Low Rider — War
Auron’s Theme — FFX Soundtrack
Pure Morning — Placebo
Shout — Tears for Fears
Games Without Frontiers — Peter Gabriel
Lifelines — A-ha
Sibeling — Depeche Mode
Mad World (Alternate Version) — Michael Andrews

This is my “All Time Faves” playlist, but actually it’s the “All Time Faves — that are on my new computer and not still sitting on the rotting hulk of my Windows box not being listened to” playlist. I really need to get the rest of my files onto my new computer soon. I’m starting to miss some of my favorite songs.

Getting phone calls in the morning with bad news is beginning to be a habit in 2007, and I don’t like it. I’m starting to get jumpy when the phone rings.

This morning’s news is my younger cousin Brad took a really bad fall and seriously broke his leg. He will be going into surgery, presumably to put in pins and posts, and it’s going to be quite a while before he is back on his feet again. This sucks in so many ways, but the biggest problem is that he and his wife are the sole caretakers and providers for her terminally ill parents (yeah, both of them). So I don’t know what’s going to happen with that now. Kristen can’t possibly do it on her own, and I know they can’t afford to have someone come in and help. Hopefully we can all work something out.

I’m at least glad the sun does seem to be out today. One more gloomy, grey and damp day and my ability to remain upbeat and positive, or at least pretend that I am, might have failed completely. I can only pretend things are going well for so long (and in pretending convince myself things are going well). Eventually though, reality really starts to wear on me. 2007 is really, REALLY sucking on all new levels.

It’s supposed to be sunny and warm today. Warm being a relative term, of course. I don’t usually call 60 degrees warm, but considering the temperature outside my front door right now is 37 degrees, if it gets up to 60 today … yes, that will feel warm. Here’s hoping that forecast comes true.

The kittens, having survived the horror of yesterday’s lack of dry cat food, are tearing around the house this morning with their usual amount of zeal and glee. In fact, everyone has a little bounce in their step this morning. Must have something to do with having gorged ourselves on all our favorite foods last night. White Castle cheeseburgers and tater tots for the humans, followed by Oreos and tiny chocolate covered donuts for dessert, and for the kittens Purina Kitten Chow. They really like that kitten kibble. Yes, last night, we were all fat, dumb and lazy on the couch after eating our species appropriate meals. There’s a kitchen full of food in the house, and all is well again.

I did a survey for one of my marketing groups last night, and now I am that much closer to getting my hands on Vue 6 Esprit! I am hoping to get enough cashola together before the pre-release sale ends and the price goes up another $50. They haven’t set a date for when that is going to happen, but in the latest newsletter they said they will be adding the box and manual version to the pre-release sale, so I guess that probably gives me at least a few more weeks. I’d rather have the box and manual anyway. Downloadable software is wonderful, in that you get it right away, but I still like to be able to sit on the couch and read the manual and have a hard copy of the software that I didn’t burn myself. I can’t wait to get my hands on this software!

Also the new version of Poser is out, and it’s a Universal Binary, so you know I will be whining about that next. Of course, it’s even more expensive, so I imagine I’ll be whining for a while. Now if only Adobe would get their act together and release a Universal Binary version of Photoshop Elements, I could get on with my computer graphics life. Well, if I had a fat bank account to buy all this software with, that is.

It’s too early in the morning to start ranting, but if I were going to rant about something it would be Shrub’s insane plan for health insurance and the false implication that Barrack Obama went to a radical Muslim elementary school (also known as a madrassa). I’d expect some ranting from me on both these subjects at some point today … especially the insurance plan. But first, I want to consume some more Dr Pepper to start my day right, and since the last thing I needed to make soap has arrived in my mail box, I think I will get all that out today and work on it. I have several people I have promised soap to, and I am sorry it has taken so long for me to get to it. The last few weeks have been a little crazy. But then, you read my blog, so you know that already.

And if the sun actually is out today and it actually gets relatively warm outside, I also plan to spend a few minutes sitting on my porch and soaking up some sunlight … or maybe even taking a nap on the sunny spot on the bed, with kittens, of course. 8)

Lin got home from work, and then he headed to the door to go buy groceries. On his way out he asked what I wanted him to get:

“Absolutely anything at all that you want … and cat food.”

That about sums up the shopping list. There is nothing AT ALL in the house to eat, aside from some really expensive canned cat food the cats don’t want and I am too proud to eat. Though I have to tell you, it smells REALLY good when you are hungry.

I was a complete bum today. I’m blaming it on the weather. I may hate cold, but I can get through it. It’s the cold and damp that just sucks the life out of me. Cold, damp and dreary … all three of which it was today. Just yucky. There’s no sunlight on the forecast for the next 7 days either. I need me some sunlight. I swear I am reptilian in nature. If I don’t get to soak up some sun rays every so often, my body starts to freeze up, and I go into hibernation mode. That leads to me being a complete bum. I didn’t even do any knitting today. Nope, all I did was sit at my computer and play games … for hours and hours. Truly a sad state of affairs.

Since I haven’t given an update on Lin’s new job yet, perhaps I should? I guess he likes it. He hasn’t said much about it at all, but at least he’s not griping, complaining and in a grumpy mood when he gets home. So I have to guess it’s going OK. Also, he’s just been in a better mood than usual all the time … more excited talking about his favorite topics (math and engineering — much to my math-hating self) and he’s not spending nearly as much time partaking in escapist activities (like playing 8 straight hours of Spider Solitaire). The only update I can give then is that he’s in a seemingly good state of mind, which leads me to believe he likes his new job. Or … he has finally become capable of hiding his moods from me, but I seriously doubt it. Just like me, his moods are always self-evident.

I hope he doesn’t take too long at the store. It’s not that I am actually hungry, seeing as I had a hearty lunch of leftover stew and a few cookies for dessert, but like the kittens, I start panicking when there isn’t any food visible. Though running low of foodstuffs is secretly a challenge I enjoy. It certainly makes me get creative in the kitchen and try new things. Things you would never imagine trying if you had all the food you wanted sitting around. Last night, for example, I had one really thin and icky cut of beef, a can of diced tomatoes, and a can of corn, which I turned into a somewhat reasonable approximation of stew. But it didn’t have any potatoes in it, and I wanted potatoes in my stew. Soooo … I looked in the freezer and there were about 12 tater tots left. I crumbled them up in the stew, and lo and behold, it was quite tasty. I can’t say I will be doing this all the time, but it’s nice to know that it works … should we ever find ourselves with almost nothing to eat again (which wouldn’t be happening now if his last employer would pay him the many, many dollars they owe him — putzing assholes).

I suppose I will pour myself another glass of Pink Lemonade Kool Aid and play another game while I wait for him to get home. I hope he remembers to get Dr Pepper. I am SO in need of some Dr Pepper.

As you can see, Myu is obviously wasting away from starvation. Too weak to even lift her poor little head! Ronin, on the other hand, has decided that really expensive 100% duck cat food isn’t so bad after all. While Myu has been moping, Ronin has been chowing down.

The kittens sniffed their lunch and turned their noses up at it. I guess they aren’t too darn hungry if 100% duck meat isn’t good enough for them.

I can’t get warm today. It’s almost 50 degrees outside, which considering how cold it has been lately is a heatwave, but even dressed warmly here in the house, I am still shivering. I am beginning to believe our thermostat isn’t functioning correctly. It says it’s set at 85 degrees, and the furnace isn’t on, but I can tell you right now, it is NOT 85 degrees in here. No way, no how. The next time we are at a store that sells cheap wall thermometers, I’m getting one and putting it in the den. I’d think it was just me feeling cold, because I always seem to be cold, but Lin hasn’t been griping about it being too hot in here, even when the thermostat is set at 90 degrees and the furnace is blasting. So yeah, methinks the thermostat is having an issue of some sort. I wouldn’t be surprised. I’m pretty sure it was made in 1960 when the house was built. It certainly looks that old.

So I’m going to start ignoring the thermostat and judge how warm it is in here by how much clothing Lin is wearing and how warm I feel. You see, at about 78 degrees, Lin starts to shed his clothing and complaining about it being too hot (damn Yankee), and at that temperature, I’m just starting to feel like I’m not getting frostbite. So crank the furnace, I say! Thermostat readings be damned!

Other than shivering, there isn’t much going on around here today. I had such a productive day yesterday, I have no housework to do today. Yippee! A day of goofing off! All I have been doing is playing silly flash games on the internet, reading the news, and emailing Lin at work. Oh … and watching the kittens waste away to nothingness.

Speaking of kittens, they are holed up in the bedroom, the warmest room of the house, so I think I’ll go pester them for a while. Maybe I can take their minds off the fact that the only thing in the house for them to eat is the best cat food on the planet, which they don’t seem to want. Silly brats. I guess they will gorge themselves later when Lin brings home the kitten kibble.

The kittens are having their first experience with hunger. Not starvation, mind you. They ate well last night and had breakfast this morning. No, we are talking run-of-the-mill, empty-kibble-bowl hunger. The way you or I might feel when it’s not quite lunch time, and you don’t have any snacks at hand … but you want a little something. Mostly I think they are having a little kitten crisis because for the first time ever, their dry food bowls are empty and that it has little to do with actually feeling anything resembling hunger. Though I am certain, to them, it feels like paradise is crashing down around their heads. The endless supply of manna has dried up and disappeared! Poor, poor kitties.

Though it was pretty hilarious to wake up this morning with two small cats staring me right in the face. I think it’s a good thing I woke up when I did. I believe they may have been plotting about the best way to consume my extremities.

Well, they ran out of dry food late yesterday afternoon, and by the time Lin got home, it was too late to go shopping if we wanted to watch the State of the Union Address. OK, not that we really wanted to watch it, but we feel compelled to keep up with what the White House has to say. So they got canned food for dinner. They don’t like canned food all that much. On the one hand, that’s a good thing, because I’d really rather they continue eating dry food, since it’s easier to deal with and cheaper, but on the other hand, that’s what we have right now, and they aren’t happy about it one bit. I’m pretty sure the reason they don’t like it is that with the dry food, they can eat, eat, eat as much as they want and whenever they want, and as soon as the bottom of the bowl becomes apparent, I top it off again. With the canned food, as soon as it’s gone, there’s no food just sitting there waiting to be eaten. They have to wait for me to give them more, usually some hours later. It’s really working their little nerves today.

They’ll have kitten kibble again tonight, and I imagine they will be thrilled to see overflowing bowls of little brown, hard chunks of mystery food sitting there waiting for them to have a snack whenever the urge hits them … like every five minutes. In the meantime, they are alternately attaching themselves to my person (and being far too adorable for words) and running through the house as though the end of the world is at hand (and stopping to sniff their empty bowls every time they pass the kitchen). Yup, the poor, poor, over-fed and spoiled kitties are having a life crisis today.

Though I wish I had photos of them when I was opening their can of food today. Ronin was sitting on the air humidifier, which allows him just enough height to put his front paws and head on the edge of my worktable, and he was doing just that … looking completely pathetic the whole while. Meanwhile, Myu was throwing herself down on the floor, jumping up and throwing herself down on the floor again … over and over and over. And, of course, there was a whole lot of mewing going on too. You’d have thought they hadn’t eaten in days.

Hey, I know how they feel. We don’t have any instant, snack-type foods in the house for humans either, so my usual method of eating lunch by grazing through the kitchen area whenever I get hungry is unavailable to me. I’m actually going to have to COOK something for my lunch today and eat one real meal … and then wait for dinner. The horror! I think I’ll join my furry babies the next time they make a run around the house in protest.

Having completed yet a few more of my refrigerator tests, I am now ready to disclose the following information:

Crab combined with butter and Brussels sprouts, cooked through and then left in a sealed storage container on a shelf in the fridge will produce a stench the likes of which even God can’t tolerate. If ignored long enough, said stench will seep through the storage container and infect your kitchen. Interestingly, no evidence of mold or decay to be seen. Looked just as it did the day it was served two months or so ago, but the smell would knock you out … and eating it would probably kill you.

Potatoes and sausage baked and then left in a less-than-airtight covered roasting dish on the bottom shelf of the fridge, also for approximately two months, creates a nice thick lump of green potato mold. The scent was not altogether unpleasant and was somewhat reminiscent of the deep, wet woods in fall. Wear a nose mask when emptying into the garbage container, or the thick plumes of mold spores it puts off may kill anyone with a sensitivity to mold (such as myself). A shower might also be in order. I did neither of these things, and so I will likely be on death’s door in about an hour.

Eggs dated to expire in November should be gently handled and carefully placed to the side to be put into the garbage container after everything else has been cleared out … lest one or more of these stink bombs detonate. Trust me. You do NOT want that to happen. Just … trust … me.

Canned vegetables stored in airtight containers anywhere in the fridge apparently never rot and never begin to smell no matter how long they are forgotten. On the one hand, that’s a good thing, if, like me, you have a tendency to run science experiments in your fridge. On the other hand, it leads me to question whether or not they are even edible (or even vegetables) in the first place.

If you encounter a closed storage container which is not transparent, and you have no idea what it might contain or how long it has been hiding in your fridge, do not under any circumstances open it. Simply toss it into the trash and walk away. Once again, you will just have to trust me. Really, I mean it. Just … trust … me.

Remember, I run these refrigerator experiments so you don’t have to. Go now and remove any food from your own fridge which is no longer edible. Do as I say, not as I do. You’ll thank me later.

Now if you will excuse me, I have to go spray a can or two of lemon-scented air spray in the kitchen and put several boxes of baking soda in my fridge and freezer. Then I think I will bake some cookies. The smell of cookies baking can take away any horrible scent experiences … and there will be cookies to eat too, which is always nice after a day of icky housework.