The Guinea Pigs are Helping Me Get Organized

I'll bet you didn't know guinea pigs were that talented, but ours sure are! We've opted to use shredded paper as their bedding and its working out wonderfully but it requires a hefty amount of shreddings and we just don't get enough bills to provide enough for the weekly cage cleanings.

Last week I found myself uncontrolably drawn to several binders and file folders full of papers that I haven't looked at since I left my last job in 2000. A quick look through revealed what I've always suspected but have been too unmotivated to verify, it was all useless, outdated info. I shredded enough for this week and next week. I have to admit its rather addictive. Fortunately, there are plenty more folders of useless info just waiting for me to shred them.

Jim, who is not usually a lover of small animals, is thrilled by this added bonus brought on by the guinea pigs. Motivation truly comes in all forms!

In food news, I created an unexpected combination last night that stretched leftovers and was really tasty. I had equal amounts of Cold Thai Sesame Noodles and Oriental Cilantro Slaw leftover from the weekend. Both recipes have very similar ingredients, mainly peanut butter and cilantro, so I decided to try combining them.

First, I heated the slaw on the stove to wilt the cabbage. It had been a little tough and I thought this might improve things. Once the cabbage had wilted, I turned off the heat and added in the leftover Thai Noodles. I gave everything a good stir to combine and then served it warm. The results were different and very delicious. As I hoped, wilting the cabbage improved the toughness but still provided a little crunch.

My knitting project is coming along too. Its finally starting to look like a blanket. I'm really hoping that I have time to finish it before the baby arrives. At the rate I'm going, I need at least another 10 days. I may have to put in some extra time to get the job done. The really exciting thing for me is that the knitting is becoming more automatic.