There Will Be Painting -- Eventually

Yesterday, the contractor spackled the small bathroom, but since he hasn't sanded yet, we weren't ready to paint. Maybe tonight.

In the meantime, he's gone to work on the master bath. The half wall that separated the toilet from the rest of the room is now gone and the bathroom looks much larger. He's also removed the old tile around the whole room.

And he put a large bucket under the shower head that has been dripping. Looking at it this morning, it appears that the shower's been leaking at a rate of about five gallons per day for about four years or so. *gack*

In happier news, we finally did grill those two steaks last night...

There Will Be Painting -- Eventually

Yesterday, the contractor spackled the small bathroom, but since he hasn't sanded yet, we weren't ready to paint. Maybe tonight.

In the meantime, he's gone to work on the master bath. The half wall that separated the toilet from the rest of the room is now gone and the bathroom looks much larger. He's also removed the old tile around the whole room.

And he put a large bucket under the shower head that has been dripping. Looking at it this morning, it appears that the shower's been leaking at a rate of about five gallons per day for about four years or so. *gack*

In happier news, we finally did grill those two steaks last night...

I Need Some of That Canadian Ketchup

I've noticed that ketchup tastes different in Canada. Some of that is due to a regional change in formulation, I'm sure, but some of it seems to be due to the use of sucrose instead of high-fructose corn syrup as a sweetener. That's probably due to the fact that Canada can buy sugar at the world price instead of the inflated price that we pay here in the U.S. to protect the growers of sugar beets. Sadly, it's one of those fine bipartisan subsidies to farmers that is supposed to protect the "family farm", but which instead mostly goes into the pockets of big corporations. And it also boosts demand for HFCS, which is produced by big companies like Archer Daniels Midland.

It turns out that our efforts to "protect" the farmers may have had a few unanticipated side-effects.

HFCS: From the Lips to the Hips?

I Need Some of That Canadian Ketchup

I've noticed that ketchup tastes different in Canada. Some of that is due to a regional change in formulation, I'm sure, but some of it seems to be due to the use of sucrose instead of high-fructose corn syrup as a sweetener. That's probably due to the fact that Canada can buy sugar at the world price instead of the inflated price that we pay here in the U.S. to protect the growers of sugar beets. Sadly, it's one of those fine bipartisan subsidies to farmers that is supposed to protect the "family farm", but which instead mostly goes into the pockets of big corporations. And it also boosts demand for HFCS, which is produced by big companies like Archer Daniels Midland.

It turns out that our efforts to "protect" the farmers may have had a few unanticipated side-effects.

HFCS: From the Lips to the Hips?