I am terrible at grief, and I'm terrible at eulogizing as well. With that said, my Granny passed away during the night. Not unexpected but still very sad.

Here are some pictures.

She's in the center:



With Pappy:

Labels: family, granny, pictures

It's one of my favorite times of year: Girl Scout Cookie Time! I capitalize the first letter of each word because it deserves it. All caps would be overkill.

Over the years I've heard that the cookie bakeries are very much regional and I decided to look this up. After all, what wonders could another part of the country hold? Thin Mints seem to transcend geography, but what about the rest? Could my now-defunct Lemon Coolers live on in the Pacific Northwest? The answer to that last one, in case you wondered, is NO, they don't exist anywhere. Dommage!

I do remember hearing some years ago that in California Samoas and Tagalongs were renamed (it was speculated that this was due to cultural sensitivity type stuff). Given that cookie bakeries are regional I can imagine that this would cause some confusion to someone on a cross-country move. I've always lived in Little Brownie country so I don't know better. I would be excited to try a Thin Mint from ABC!

Anyway, let's start with a link to the 2008 Girl Scout Cookie Lineup.

This is the picture on the Girl Scout Cookie web site. For the record, unless they've changed on me this year these are NOT the Thin Mints that Little Brownie (my regional cookie supplier) offers. Is there someone in another part of the country who could send me a box of ABC Thin Mints? I will reimburse all costs. The bakery is labeled clearly on the box--on mine the label is on the bottom.

That's another thing--apparently the council sets the cost. Ours are 3.50 a box. No bargain to be sure, but as a former Girl Scout I think it's a worthy cause. What are the costs in your area? I'm really looking for people outside the Southeast. It's scientific!

What the hell is this wimpy cookie? That's hypothetical--I'm well aware that it's supposed to be a Samoa. Again, unless Little Brownie has changed their ways (and they shouldn't--things have worked just fine for years). This is one of the renamed cookies--I call them Samoas, but some folks call them "Caramel DeLites" which is the worst name ever. Sure, they've got caramel, but in my opinion the coconut is the real draw here. I don't even like coconut that much but the Samoas make it OH SO wonderful.

These beauts are called Lemonades. They are made by ABC and therefore are NOT available in my area. Would someone PLEASE get me a box of these???? NOT THE LEMON CHALET CREMES--I already have a box of them in my possesion. Speaking of Lemon Chalet Cremes, the web site says that they're new for 2007 but I recall that they were offered ages ago, but they may or may not have been lemon. I do remember the creme poking through to give the impression of snow-capped mountains. By the way, I never made it to the Girl Scout Swiss Chalet. Does anyone except the super alpha type A girl scouts?

I loved the Double Dutch and the Lemon Coolers, neither of which are offered (I think the Lemon Coolers were only available for one year).

Also, do other areas get the Girl Scout Cookie Ice Cream? Here it's made by Edy's but I think that's known as Dreyer's in other parts of the country. They make Thin Mint, Samoa, and something else (Tagalong?), all of which are available shortly before cookies come in and as long as cookie season lasts. MMMM.

To end, here's a link to the Little Brownie Bakers web site. I'm going to have to make those brownies...

Labels: food

there's a higher res version on flickr. come on.

Labels: dogs, pictures

Thanks to user isdvideo on youtube.

This is Harry O'Daniels, Jr. As you may recall, I had to get a picture with him. He's a great public speaker and definitely passionate in his support for Barack Obama.



In the first count Edwards did not have enough supporters to be viable. Here, some supporters try to convince others to join them.

Labels: iowa, politics