So you say you want date ideas? No? Well here they are, anyhow.

Ok so for the record my favorite dates have been the least expensive..... And dont forget to date your wife!
1. Be Creative!
Once we collected all the change we could find and tried to see what we could do with it down at the Seattle Waterfront. Share a shake with two straws, pick up something like flowers or a something cute for your date at a street vendor, ride the trolley. Give her a sweet treat that is always fun- Rice Paper candy always is a winner!
Or, for an event sure to produce all kinds of laughs, meet for a Saturday-morning breakfast, then take in a peewee soccer game, where you'll witness the adorable hilarity of a dozen five-year-olds trying to kick the exact same ball at the exact same time...
2. Travel with a theme.
Plan a "progressive" date, moving from place to place, each one connected by a theme. For instance, you could choose golf as your theme and begin with a round of putt-putt. Then head to a public golf course and spread out a blanket in a sand trap and enjoy a picnic. (Hint: Schedule your dinner late enough that most golfers have already gone home; a golf ball–size welt would help your date remember the evening, but not in the same way a bobblehead doll would.) Then settle in for some laughs with a golf movie such as Caddyshack. If you're up for it, wear golf clothes for the evening; after all, everyone looks their best in a pair of plaid knickers and a hat with a fuzzy ball on top.
I even had a date once where the theme was baked potatoes! (Don't ask) longest funnest date ever! Went to Tillamook OR for cheese, Idaho for potatoes etc., and baked them over hot coals on the snake river overlooking the canyon!
3. Go inside out.
Grab an extension cord, move your television and couch onto the lawn, and watch your favorite show or movie outdoors. Set up TV trays, nuke some popcorn, and "stay in" under the stars. And for that extra-special ambience, turn on a sprinkler and set up a flood lamp to create some Vegas-style dancing waters. Or pull your hibachi stove over near the couch (not too near!) and light up some charcoal. Nothing says romance quite like a glowing pyramid of briquettes. (ok or maybe a fire)
4. Give something back.
Find an organization committed to something you both believe in, and volunteer your time together. It might involve working with your hands, serving food, assisting with animals — whatever. This can be a great way to enjoy each other, help others, and establish certain priorities as part of your growing relationship.
Be sure to make this experience fun. Pick up doughnuts or burritos on the way, and save some time afterward to go for coffee or ice cream and debrief about your time together. Talk over the most meaningful and funny moments of the day, and congratulate each other for extending your date time beyond just yourselves.
5. Go for a "pic-knickknack."
OK, so maybe the name for this date's not so great. But the idea is to combine a picnic with a hunt for knickknacks. Find a local flea market or farmers market where you two can stroll together, people-watching and trolling for strange and interesting hidden treasures. If you like, you can inject some competition into the date. Wager $5 on who can discover the most bizarre home furnishing. Or maybe the last one to find Elvis paraphernalia has to buy the kettle corn. Or, to be even more elaborate, you could design a scavenger hunt beforehand, agreeing on a list of sought-after items. Then afterward, settle down curbside for a sausage on a stick, an ear of roasted corn, and some fresh-squeezed lemonade.
6. Keep it Outside while you can!
Anyone can take you to a nice restaurant... but when was the last date you forgot that kayaked across from Point Defiance and picnicked on the beach at Vashon?
If your date is a night owl... Lake Umek under a full moon is soooo great! Fun little trip and Mt. Rainier reflects clear and white on it. Wine or no wine great place to talk.
None of this costs much money. All that's really required is a bit of effort and creativity. So go on, get out there before the weather turns chilly, and enjoy the outdoor possibilities.

My favorite movie quotes.... for the record of course!

I never realized how many movie quotes I love to use regularily.....

• "I love the smell of napalm in the morning." Apocalypse Now
• "You make me want to be a better man."As Good as It Gets
• "Have you ever danced with the Devil in the pale moonlight?"Batman
• "And our bodies are earth. And our thoughts are clay. And we sleep and eat with death."Alls Quiet on the Western Front
• "Mama, face it. I was the slut of all time."Elizabeth Taylor
• "I’d love to kiss you, but I just washed my hair."Bette Davis
• "I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship."
• "Round up the usual suspects."
• "We’ll always have Paris."
• "Here’s looking at you, kid."
• "Of all the gin joints in all the towns in all the world, she walks into mine."Casablana of course! "You’ll shoot your eye out."Christmas Story
• "Good night, you princes of Maine, you kings of New England."Cider House Rules
• "What we’ve got here is failure to communicate."I don’t remember?
• "Don’t knock masturbation. It’s sex with someone I love."Annie Hall
• "That’s what I love about these high school girls, man. I keep getting older, they stay the same age."Dazed and Confused
• "Carpe diem. Seize the day, boys. Make your lives extraordinary."Dead Poets
• "I bet you can squeal like a pig."Deliverance
• TV- "Maybe the dingo ate your baby?" - Seinfeld
• "Nobody puts Baby in a corner." Dirty Dancing
• "Be afraid. Be very afraid."The Fly
• "It’s alive! It’s alive!" Frankenstein
• "What is it you want, Mary? What do you want? You want the moon? Just say the word, and I’ll throw a lasso around it and pull it down."It’s a Wonderful Life
• "You’re gonna need a bigger boat." Jaws
• "Hi-Yo, Silver!"The Lone Ranger
• "You’re good, you’re very good."Maltese Falcon
• "I like your style, I like your moves"Starsky and Hutch
• "Oh, Jerry, don’t let’s ask for the moon. We have the stars." Unknown Bette Davis?
• "Now, I want you to remember that no bastard ever won a war by dying for his country. He won it by making the other poor dumb bastard die for his country."Patton
• "Hello. My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die!"Princess Bride
• "I’m an excellent driver."Rainman
• "Buy my underwear at K-mart"Rainman
• "Yo, Adrian!"Rocky
• "I gave her my heart, She gave me a pen" Say Anything
• "Say ’hello’ to my little friend!" Scarface
• "It took more than one man to change my name to Shanghai Lily."Shanghai Lily
• "A census taker once tried to test me. I ate his liver with some fava beans and a nice chianti." "She puts the lotion in the basket"Silence of the Lambs
• "Magic Mirror on the wall, who is the fairest one of all?"Snow White
• "May the Force be with you."Star Wars
• "Help me, Obi-Wan Kenobi. You’re my only hope."Star Wars
• "I have always depended on the kindness of strangers." Streetcar Named Desire
• "I’m here to fight for truth, justice, and the American way."Superman
• "You’re so money, and you don’t even know it."Swingers
• "You talkin’ to me?" Unknown? DeNiro
• "In Switzerland, they had brotherly love, and they had 500 years of democracy and peace. And what did that produce? The cuckoo clock."Unknown
• "You know how to whistle, don’t you, Steve? You just put your lips together and blow." To Have and Have Not
• "Badges? We ain’t got no badges! We don’t need no badges! I don’t have to show you any stinking badges!"No Idea?
• "The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn’t exist."The Usual Suspects
• "We’re not worthy. We’re not worthy." "Schwing!"Waynes World
• "Lions and tigers and bears, oh my!"
• "I’ll get you, my pretty, and your little dog, too!"
• "Toto, I’ve got a feeling we’re not in Kansas anymore."
• "I’m melting! Melting! The Wizard of Oz
• "Make like a tree and get outa here!"Back to the Future
• "Where’s the money Lebowski, Where the fucking Money?"The Great Lebowski
• "You got knocked the fuck out"Friday
• "The horror, the horror" Apocolypse Now
• "Do I make you horny?"Austin Powers
• "You need to be kissed. And often. And by someone who knows how!"Gone With the Wind
• "Saayyy, nice beaver!"
• "Thanks. I just had it stuffed!"The Naked Gun
• "Oh Hair pie! Hair pie! Revenge of the Nerds
• Anything from Turets Girl in Duece Bigilo Male Gigolo.

Fish Tacos- New recipe from my cookbook!

Mmmmmmmm!
I just made up this recipe tonight! It was so good I thought I’ld share. I’m lucky enough to have my fish fresh off the Washington Coast this week.

4-5 Rock Cod fillets (Halibut or Cod will do nicely) .
Salt pepper and garlic powder to taste ( I use more cracked black pepper than usual)
Lime (squeeze over the fish after done cooking)
In olive oil cook 4 minutes each side
Napa Cabbage sliced in long thin strips
Red onion very thin strips
Prepare Sauce and slice veggies while fish cooks
Sauce
½ cup mayo (Best Foods)
¼ cup sour cream
½ tbs. Garlic powder
½ lime juice
¼ tsp. Salt
Corn Tortillas
Peanut oil (stands up to higher heats... olive oil cannot)
Fry tortillas at medium high heat for 1 minute or less each side is browned but not hard. Place on paper towels.
Prepare tacos, tortilla, fish, sauce, dash onion, cabbage, squeeze of lime or dash of hot sauce if preferred. Super delicious! They are really fresh, light and surprisingly filling meal!
Cilantro would be great here, and FYI the lime helps keep the house from smelling fishy.

Fall makes the family group hug come out

I love fall, I love the way my summer party button pops like a turkey timer, and I am done. I want to kiss, load my house with baskets of soft cuddly blankets, and mittens. Go to the fair, stroke someones hair, and cook for lots of people around a big wooden table.
So in light of this I am planning...

Winthrop-Apple stands, hiking, fall leaves.

Oktoberfest- Have your own backyard Oktoberfest! Assorted Brats, Apple and Slaw Kraut, Spaetzle or german potatoe salad, A wonderful Apple Cranberry Struedel is a great add on!

Caramelled Apple Party- a week after the fair is over we always make caramelled apples and watch Breakfast at Tiffanys among other things

Pumpkin patches and Corn maze

Cooking 101

I've noticed that at 5pm I usually get phone calls, or make them in the usual fashion... "What's for dinner?" My brain is fried and I need ideas. So I started making lists every Sunday for the next week. That way I can plan my shopping and mindlessly stare at the list on the fridge every night. All the ingredients are there, and I already know what I am making. So for Jeanne especially, here's what's for dinner. I'm calling you next week though... what's for breakfast?
All meals take no longer than 45 minutes total time.

Monday
Chili with toppings (cheddar, onions, sour cream, tortilla chips), Cheddar/jalepeno corn bread

Tuesday
Lemon Grass Chicken, Basmati rice, Asian Broccoli

Wednesday- German
Brats, butter noodles, red cabbage

Thursday-
Fish Tacos! Our favorite!

Friday
Never cook on Fridays! Let someone take you out!

Saturday
Stuffed pork chops, salad, garlic bread

Sunday
Ocean-Crab feed, bread, homemade clam chowder

Next week

Monday
Stuffed peppers, sliced ripe pears

Tuesday
Broccoli Cheddar soup, salad, bread

Wednesday
Pineapple Chicken, rice, stir fried veggies

Thursday
Nachos

Friday
No cooking!

Saturday
Spare Ribs, garlic cheese bread, salad

As if he had nothing better to do

"The Sun, with all the planets revolving around it, and depending on it, can still ripen a bunch of grapes as though it had nothing else in the Universe to do." - Galileo Galilei (1564-1642)
" The Son, as the universe revolves around him, and depending on him, can still ripen a bunch of grapes as though he had nothing better to do." -Anna McClusky
The living God, who is in all and over all and through all, the creator and ruler of the entire universe and all who dwell therein -- this same God is ever filled with compassion and love, longing and available at every moment to draw us unto Himself so that we might dwell with Him for eternity.- Tom (1946-present)

As though he had nothing better to do but love little ol' me, and yet still does.

Go Take a Hike!

For kids. (that includes me)
Take a walk this weekend and collect fall leaves in every color and size. Go down to the river and collect nice smooth river rocks.
If the leaves are dry iron them between two sheets of wax paper with a thin dish rag(or paper towel) on either side. The leaves will not curl up, and will remain fresh and flat.
Lay them out on a mantle, or your window sill to celebrate what fall is about! If you can you have them available in your yard you can add pine cones, scotch moss, or even some little pumpkins.
YOu can also hang the leaves from strings in your window, or keep it in the wax paper and hang it like a stained glass window!
IF you are really into fall... make it a caramelled apple and cider day too!
Have fun and go play oits better than playing in the street!

Seeds? someone say wha?

Another one of those subjects dear to my heart.... I can hear your comments now. Either, "Oh heavens Anna, you're such a granola bar" or "Where do you get such random interests"
The use of hybrid seeds and the eradication of native, disease and drought resistant seeds is sheer disaster. The old USSR was a major global seed bank before its fall. At that time funding for the freezers and storage obviously fell by the wayside. Overly dramatic to call it the "doomsday" seed vault? I think not. We take the production of food at face value. Never realizing the downfalls of the over producing, resource draining, extremely fragile existence of hybrid seeds. Plusses of Hybrid seeds- *Mass produced wheat, corn, and rice at a high rate of production and growth. Serves the world over. Minuses-
*Parches the earth of its natural minerals leaving it parched and useless. Therefore a high use of chemical fertilizers are needed just to produce anything. Contaminating water sources, oceans, and very likely the reason for the rising rate of extinction of many species of frogs, honey bees, and many birds. The fertilizers being pumped into our ocean are the main source of red tide, and highly productive algae that sufficates anything in its path. Killing mass areas of the ocean.
*Heavy use of water resources. These seeds require a massive amount of water. So much that most regions that produce them have to have water imported. Resulting in higher levels of water shortages everywhere.
* Producing these massive amounts of fast growing grains is not necessary to provide for the earth. Why do you think farmers are subsidized by our government not to farm? Would it not be better to grow what the earth can provide without harm? To enable nations in need with resources to help small family farms produce what they need?
*The biggest concern for me is the seeds themselves. Native seeds have been sorted by time and trial. The strongest surviving is more that true in this case. Drought resistant, disease resistant, plaugue sturdy. Genetically engineered seeds do not have this in any form. So in the event of any form of disaster, you would at the least need a stock of these seeds to back up the overwhelming loss of crops. If the seeds disappear, i.e. are never grown, or saved you have a world wide epidemic. It is that severe of an issue. With the loss of the banks in the USSR, Iraq, Afghanistan, and the Phillipines. The United States virtually ignoring the issue, as usual, I am very happy to see the below article. I would not call Norway a nation of chicken littles. Maybe its time we started making our own reserves.

Dear Winter

I can't do this anymore. It's time for "us" to be over. We both know it.

When I met you in November, I was totally into you. I'll admit that you helped me see the crisp of the earth in a totally different way. Washed all the dust of Augusts away, and gave me a sense of comfort for being wrapped in warmth in front of my fire.

Because of you I went skating, rekindled my love for hot chocolate, cozied up under piles of blankets and watch my favorite old movies, spent evenings in concocting great meals. You know how I love the sensuality of the simmering pots on the stove top.

Christmas vacation was amazing, and I know that had a lot to do with you. Without you, none of those things wouldn't have happened. I know that. And it's not like those times weren't great. But it's time to move on. And you know why.

For one thing, I'm starting to grow weary of the clothes you force me to wear. I have my own sense of style you know. And it doesn't include wearing every garment in my closet day after day. It doesn't include schlumping around in those horrible boots you insist on, either. I mean, give it a rest already! How about you let me wear a pair of open toe shoes for a change? I'm ready for 3-4 inches of love with out cleaning the mud off the tips of my toes. Or maybe even clothing that shows I'm a woman, and not an androgynous lump. I am SO over your tyrannical and unsightly fashion sense.


And then there's your coldness towards me. There have been so many days in the past months when things have been great - my job, my friends, my family. And then WHAM - your coldness slams into me and chills me to the bone. When you do that, it makes me feel like I have nothing to live for. And we both know that's just not true! I can't continue to let you affect my outlook on life in this way. It's unhealthy, and I'm not putting up with it any more.

You don't give me flowers anymore... they just wilt in your presence. Hell even the "birds and the bees" aren't, shall we say, pollinating at this time.

I don't want to be a jerk or anything. And after the fun times we've had, I hate to hurt your feelings. But you deserve to know that I've got my heart set on someone new. Someone who will let me wear skirts, and encourage me to get outside more often. Someone who will make me feel lighter and freer.

My friends and family keep mentioning that this new relationship is just around the corner, if only I can get rid of you. So please. Stop tapping on my window. Stop showing up at my office after work. I'm moving on.