Domesticity

I’ve been feeling especially domestic lately. I’m on the hunt for a bread maker. How great would it be to plop in some ingredients in the morning, and have freshly baked bread by the late afternoon? I love bread, and home-made is really the best. I’ll also scrounge up a nice bread box from the thrift store.

Speaking of domesticity, I’ve been thinking (dreaming, longing) about my next abode. I’m 23-years-old, and need to be content with renting for awhile. And I really should be, who wants to “settle down” in their early twenties? I still want to extend my feelers out into the world and see where I’ll end up.

Despite that, I’ve got this ever-present desire to find a cute little house on a few acres of land. I want to have my own vegetable garden. I’d love to have a (very small) chicken coop, with 2 or 3 chickens. I want to be more self-sustaining — plus fresh food is just so much tastier.

That dream could be a long way off, or maybe not. It really depends on where Rob and I decide to live. Northwest NJ has a lot of interesting living opportunities, and I’ve been considering everything from complexes and townhouses, to single-family ranches and lake cottages.

In the mean time, I’ll have to satiate my desire to be self-sustaining by baking dog biscuits and finding that bread maker.

Red Pandas

I love Red Pandas (Ailurus fulgens). They are among my favorite animals. I've seen a couple in my lifetime; the first one was at the Bronx Zoo. More recently, I was lucky enough to see one at the Turtleback Zoo in West Orange, NJ.

It was blistering hot the day we visited and I was upset to find the Red Panda exhibit empty. After nearly giving up and walking to the leopard exhibit, we went back upon hearing the yells of excited kids. Sure enough, the Red Panda had emerged from his (presumably air conditioned) sanctuary and ventured out into the heat, just a few feet away from the adoring crowd.

It took every inch of my being not to steal this little bundle of fuzz.

See more photos in my Flickr set here.

Things To Look Forward To

Rob and some Prairie Dogs at the Turtleback Zoo (6/20/2010)

Anyway, here's what I'm looking forward to this summer:

• MC Lars/YTCracker/MC Chris show on Wednesday. Not a huge MC Chris fan, but we'll see.
• Fourth of July weekend at Eric's beach house I believe.
• Possibly going to Virgina for a weekend in mid-July.
• Visiting with the Siberian Husky breeder that I may be purchasing a puppy from this winter.
• Wrapping up July with our Ocean City trip at the end of the month.
• Also hoping that we sign a lease for August 1st. Fingers crossed.