It's been a nice last few weeks. Not much to report, just a lot of work going on behind the scenes on a few different projects I'll be able to talk about soon. The next few months promise much more of the same, so unfortunately I probably won't be posting all that much till springtime. But it's all time well-spent, and I think once everybody sees what I've been up to, they'll be happier with the results and not a bunch of inane blogging.
Still, I've had quite a bit of fun in with all the work. We finally got some snow -- really good snow, and temperatures to hold it there -- and I've been out skiing a half-dozen times. Friday I got to go out nightskiing with D. through Asylum Lake, the clouds overhead parting briefly to show a huge glowing Jupiter, then slamming shut again into a claustrophobic, low cover that reflected the city lights so brightly that we cast thin shadows. The weather's in that perfect winter zone where you get fast easy skiing, the snow squeaking underfoot like beach sand, but not so cold that your face and ass freeze solid before you can get home.
A bunch of guys at work have started a Scoville Heat Units group. We made a field trip to a local shop with an amazing range of hot sauces, and each bought a bottle or two. Then we spent the next couple of lunch hours playing chicken with them. I'm still getting started climbing up the rungs of the heat ladder, but having fun doing so; I'm much fonder of the sauces that have good flavor in addition to heat, so my contributions were more to the fruity end of things, but everyone liked them, so it was all good. So far, so good -- no unfortunate side effects -- and I've even managed some of the mis-named "ghost pepper" sauce.
Paul's show went really well. A whole lot of people showed up, and he'd already sold copies of the limited-edition prints by the end of the night. Kyle Norris from Michigan Public Radio came by and interviewed Paul, Dan and Katie, and then took a whole lot of audio and photographs for an upcoming NPR spot on the monthly Green Brain Comics Jam. She said there's even a chance the spot might go national when it runs. Exciting!
Paul and I also joined a couple of friends for an awesome night of cheesemaking yesterday, in preparation for a party next weekend. We made a big loaf of queso blanco, several beautiful lumps of beautiful mozzerella, and some lovely ricotta, which we selfishly savored while it was still warm, garnished with honey and black pepper. No ricotta for anyone else! Just us! Oh so good, and so nice to see S & A, both of whom we get to visit far too rarely.