Scaredy Cat!

C'est moi.

Have you ever canned? I haven't. But I want to. That whole botulism thing is just a bit intimidating.

I have been saying I'm going to can ALL summer. Have I? No.

In my defense, most of the things I wanted to preserve were HIGHLY discouraged for home canning festivities. So instead of making roasted red peppers in oil, I roasted and froze them instead. As it turns out, that works just as well, if not better. Take a couple of strips out of the freezer, chop them up, and voila! Super-tasty FABulousness!

We've been freezing tomatoes as well, not because of The Fear, but just because it's easier. Chop them up, simmer them a bit, cool, put them in bags and freeze. Plus HN LOVES his vacuum sealer. Who am I to disagree!

I've also used the dehydrator of goodness to make "sun"-dried tomatoes, now resting comfortably in the freezer. Can I get a "YUM-MEE!"

But now it's the end of summer, well OK fall, and I can no longer put off the inevitable. Can I must.

Sigh.

Wish me luck in that I don't poison my family! It can't be that bad, right? I mean our grandparents did it, their parents, etc., and they survived! Sheesh, Just do it!

Yes, I admit I'm a giant goober,
Nugget

PS. oh you know I'll let you know how it goes!

Work Stuff, Part Deux

OK, this is the last time I go on about work stuff, I promise. Well, probably not, but anyway...

I walked into the meeting with my Pollyanna face on (read: game face). First question: Why do we need you? Ouchie! She plays hardball! Of course she was a bit uncomfortable asking it, hemmed and hawed a bit, so i knew it was coming, and yes, I was prepared. I have worked in the Snake Pit for 12 years, after all.

I enumerated the reasons for my Visual Resource essentialness and let's face it, world dominating goodness. She's a bit hard to budge once she makes up her mind, so it probably didn't matter to her WHAT i said, but I spoke my peace. Rock on.

My task if I should accept it, which I have, is to dismantle the collection of 35mm slides and have digitization "complete" in approximately 1.5 to 2 years from now. Will do. I say "complete" because apparently they will need no more images after that. Poor students, I feel sorry for them. Professors teaching the same lecture over and over for years and years and adding nothing new. Sigh...but digitize I am. Will I have a job after that? Eh, probably not, so I am basking in my Visual Resourcey-ness while I can. See, my dear reader(s), I really LOVE what I do. You don't find that often.

I remained upbeat during the whole meeting, which disturbed her. That pleased me. She finally asked me "You don't feel slighted by getting rid of the slides?" My response: "I'm excited! We're moving to the 21st century! It's progress!" I guess I was supposed to be sad to see the slides leave. Even though my job isn't about the slides, hasn't been for years. But hey, if you want to look at the small picture bosslady, that's your call. But I'm guessing some of the faculty might disagree. Yeah, I know, this is coming from higher up, whatevs.

But at least I got my server. Victory is mine!

hoping that the economy picks up soon...

Nugget

Pardon Me While I Go On About Work Stuff That Probably Means Nothing to You, Dear Readers...

You may or may not recall my blathering about The Big Project at work. Back story: I manage an image collection used for teaching art and art history classes at our local university. For many years, that meant using slides, but we are now increasingly becoming digital, against the odds of a small staff, budget, faculty enthusiasm, etc. Fast forward to now: almost all the faculty has embraced Tech, some more so than others. The Big Project has been converting our analog collection to digital, and it's been a task that has fallen solely on my shoulders.

And now, now there is a new chair. This is big people. She is technologically savvy. I cannot express the excitement I have about this. FINALLY, the big dream could become a reality. A searchable, on-line image collection. Ahhh. I'm feeling a little Pollyanna about it, but I think it could really happen this time. I know others have promised it, I have been there for 12 years after all, but there is a glimmer of hope in this cynical girl's eye. Oh yeah, they're forming a committee (jacking off gesture), but MAYBE THEY REALLY WANT TO DO SOMETHING THIS TIME!

A girl can dream...

All for now,
Nugget