The Sweatshop of Love Blog

Whenever I leave Chicago it becomes very very evident exactly how big a hipster I am. I’m such a standard order hipster in this city that I don’t even notice. (You know, thrift store/handmade clothes, pixie hair cut, affinity for sad bastard music, over-arty education, vegetarian. Bike user. Poor. Arty job… that might be it.)

But, eventually you have to leave Chicago and notice everyone else wears pants that no one else has ever owned. Everyone wears the same pair, actually. And the same tshirts that tell people which stores they bought the tshirts from (again, first owner). And it’s weird that I wear green jeans and a shirt I made out of a pillowcase.

I’m icing my shin right now because I tried to jump the Detroit People Mover turnstile post double header last night and failed. It hurts, and it hurt a lot when it happened but no one knew because when you get hit by a pitch you can’t rub it. You smile because you got a base, and you can ice it later.

Where, Exactly?

Normal: $9.50 half price Monday WAY upper reserved/bleacher seats where Bobby Jenks doesn’t look ogre-sized.

Not Normal: Starting the day in a fancy private bar INSIDE Comerica Park where the people buy better seats than I’ve ever dreamed of but don’t sit in them because they sit in the air conditioned bar, watching a game happening 100 feet away on TVs the size of my apartment. Brought to you by…

The Republican

He pays that light to follow him around.

Three Loves

I haven’t been to Detroit in 6 years. I haven’t been to Comerica Park since it opened. I think I giggled for 20 minutes straight, starting the moment I saw it for the first time and ending when The Republican hit me in the face. He is allergic to giggles.

It was the perfect day! It was sunny and warm with a breeze. It was the day you picture when you think about going to a baseball game.

Even The Republican, once or twice, stopped with the blackberry and made inaccurate statements!

“We are going to get swept today.” (WE swept THEM)

“Bonine is going to get lit up today.” (6 innings, 3 ER, 4 K)

“Dusty Ryan makes me miss Dane Sardinha.” (CLOSE (Dane is B.A.D.), but he did hit pivotal RBI single in game 2)

“It’s hot.” (It was 79)

In a Nutshell

I had a great time! It was my second double header of the season, which I didn’t even think was possible. The Tigers rocked it out and won both games and I didn’t get sunburned or killed! My shin is purple, but in a cute way, and numb right now so I don’t even really mind that it is twice the size of my other leg.

Detroit, though, down by the park, is like Wrigley meets the Gold Coast, with fat people. And Pabst was $3! What respectable hipster would pay $3 for a Pabst? In MICHIGAN! Where no one lives! I should have stopped trying to look cool and ordered something I could taste.

Bounty, and Pudge

Pudge Rodriguez was all up in my grill yesterday. Here she is sniffing some kale, which is quickly becoming her favorite green, and that is saying a lot since this cat can’t get enough vegetables. Or bread. Or cheese. Or anything spilled on the table. Or anywhere.

The Newleaf bounty included lettuce, kale, half a pineapple (though I haven’t even cut into the last one), three tomatoes, an apple, a mango, more blueberries, mushrooms, and an onion knob.

Zucchini and Kale Pasta

Zucchini of my Heart

I made zucchini and kale pasta with tomatoes, onion, and garlic sauce, with parm on top for dinner. I think I’m officially done buying pasta sauce! It is easy to saute up some onions, garlic, diced tomatoes and a little tomato paste while the pasta is cooking. Just season it (crushed red pepper flakes, fennel, fresh ground pepper, a tiny pinch of salt), and you are good to go. The zucchini is perfect right now, which is kind of a shame because…

I’m fleeing to Detroit for the Sox Tigers double header tomorrow! That is right, second double header of the season and it couldn’t be happening at a better time. I haven’t been to Comerica Park since it opened. And where better to mini-vaca then the saddest city in the world?

I’m going to go to game two naked so Curtis Granderson will take me home with him. Game one naked? Very unpleasant sunburn AND I wouldn’t get to see game two. That is called planning! And I’ll get to go stay with Mama and Papa Granderson on the south side whenever I want. Win. Win.

Be back Saturday. I’ll miss you.

Finished Sock, and Pudge

I’ve had a rough weekend. I fled to Michigan where I finished these socks, which Pudge Rodriguez really likes. Actually I think they just smell like my mom’s house full of animals. So, she doesn’t like them. She is confused about how they smell. I’m often confused about how socks smell.

… what was I saying? Right; I had a rough weekend. Then I came home and PT and I broke up for realzies.

Blueberry Pancakes, and Potatoes

So we made blueberry pancakes and potatoes and onions. Because, well, you eat pancakes when you are sad. And my mom sent me home with a ton of blueberries. And blueberry pancakes are one of the best things ever. And we ate them.

Comfort Socks

Needless to say, we didn’t make it to Duck Soup. I was really bummed because I was looking forward to it. I love that movie, and I had the best time last week. But there would have been tears and crap. So I knit this sock, with the nice striping yarn, and watched the Tigers, who eked out a win for me. It’s really the least they could do.

I can’t stop knitting this sock. I’ve memorized my pattern so I’m just knitting and knitting. I’m just knitting and thinking and enjoying the quiet of the apartment. The Chicago quiet, so car alarms and people laughing and cars cars cars. If it were warmer, like it should be, there would be yelling and screaming and kids fighting in sprinklers, which I like. I miss being miserably warm.

I’m going to knit this sock some more. And make myself a dinner I will hopefully have an appetite for. I want zucchini pasta, with zucchini my mom sent me home with. The produce box just came so I can dig around in there, too.

Deep breath. Cooking for one.

Every morning I wake up to this:

Fail

Fail.

FAIL!

Seriously it is a terrible thing to see every morning. Stupid Topsy Turvy, ruining my life. I’ve got a back up tomato plant that I started in an olive jar. As in, a tiny jar that had olives in it at one point, with like 2 oz of soil in it, that is doing better than this thing that is DESIGNED TO GROW TOMATO PLANTS.

At what point do I let it go? It’s dead. It’s like, really really dead. I’ve watered it. I’ve loved it. I’ve given it as much sunlight as I possibly can. And it repays me by dying two feet away from my bed.

Topsy Turvy? Epic failure.

Newleaf Natural Grocery delivered the second produce box yesterday and it was full of fun things!

Pudge is Happy

Greens, blueberries, a pineapple, cilantro, apricots, garlic, baby carrots, and, again, bananas! I was happy to see this babies.

Pudge Rodriguez was happy to see the greens. The cat loves greens. And bread. And liquid of any kind. And the blueberries she attacked after I quick put the greens away. She just basically loves people food. Whenever I’m in the kitchen she is in there with me, sniffing out what I’m making, trying to steal nibbles of whatever I’ve got out. She is growing into her name, and I’m not talking about the catcher. (FAT! SHE IS GOING TO BE FAT!)

Banananana

I promptly made myself a big bowl of blueberry and banana oats with a sprinkle of cinnamon and a handfull of Scooters, with a slice of crunchy peanut butter and banana toast.

1/3ish cup of milk, 1/2 cup oats, half a banana, a sprinkle of blueberries, cinnamon and Scooters. These blueberries are out of control and I can’t wait to make some pancakes! Muffins? Just stick my face right in the carton? There are many possibilities.

PT's Pasta Dinner

My Lunch

PT must have also been very excited about the produce box; I found this picture of his dinner from last night on the camera. Looks like chard and lots of olives and onions. I cooked up this swiss, cucumber, mustard, and lettuce sandwich on homemade bread. It was lovely. I love having so much produce around. I feel like I never need to go grocery shopping! I need to figure out what to do with all those greens, though. Lettuce wraps? No one can eat all that in salad form.

Stupid Bag

I also finished this stupid bag. I hate it. The side seams are stupid. Why would you crochet this closed? I have half a mind to pull it out and knit the whole thing again in the round but I don’t care enough. It’s a biking bag, after all. It doesn’t have to be perfect. I just get irritated when I see how lumpy the seams are.

My pin looks good on it, though! This is the first thing I’ve put that pin on that I’ve actually knitted. I have one on all my purses and bags and jackets etc etc, but I feel good that I’m finally using it for it’s purpose.

… though I don’t really want people to know I knit that since it looks like shit. Shit. I really need to hire someone to do this marketing thing for me. I seriously suck at it.