A link for a bruise

My sister Mo emailed me this pic of the awesome bruise she got the other night blocking a shot in soccer. She also mentioned that she can find this site from my tech blog, but I don't have a link from here back to the other blog. OK, Mo, just because you're hurt and shouldn't have to work so hard to get from here to there, I've added a link on the left that points from this site back over to JoeLitton.net.

Mojito

For an incredibly refreshing, light, cooling adult beverage, you have to try a Mojito ("moe-HEE-toe"). Mojito is a wonderful Cuban drink. The perfect drink on a hot day. So here's what we've decided (after some experimentation) is the recipe for a perfect mojito:

2 tablespoons sugar syrup (to make syrup, warm equal parts sugar and water until the sugar is disolved) 8-10 mint leaves juice of a 1/2 lime 2 shots light rum club soda ice (duh!)

Make the syrup if you don't have any. Put 8-10 mint leaves in a tall glass. Add the syrup. Crush the leaves against the edge of the glass with a spoon until the fragrance of the mint is wafting strong. Add the lime juice and rum and stir. Toss in several ice cubes, stir, and fill the rest of the glass with club soda. Garnish with some mint leaves for the full effect. 08/19/2005 - We've cut this back to "only" 2 shots of rum. I've also taken to using a mortar and pestle to really smash up the mint leaves. This works much better than a fork on the inside of the glass, and brings out a lot more mint flavor :) Warning: Note the 2 shots of rum. This is a strong drink, but I guarantee you won't taste the strength of the drink. One is plenty. Slow down and enjoy it.  :-)

Easter egg

Here's a great pic I just received of my niece coloring Easter eggs:

Neti Pot: sinus cleanse method

My alternative title for this post is "Joe Litton - party guy". I've got a very mild cold at present. I sort of suspect that maybe I've got (and have had for a while) a very low grade sinus infection. Anyway, I don't care too much for most treatments prescribed by MD's, preferring a more natural approach vs prescription drugs. Infections, however are an exception; if this treatment doesn't work, then I may visit an MD and see if I've got an infection and if so, then get some antibiotics.

So what do I mean by "this treatment"? What I mean is flushing the sinuses using a technique from yoga - the use of a neti pot (you can order one here and read more about the technique here). The idea is simply to use warm salt water to flush out the schnoz. Here's a pic of me earlier today, pouring warm salt water into one nostril using a neti pot, and letting the water drain out the other nostril, taking some extra gluck with it:

Shirley's used this technique for a while if she's stuffed up, but I never had. It looked too strange. Well, gosh, I've often done basically this same thing at the ocean, intentionally snorting up some salt water to flush out the sinuses (you may want to make a note to stay away from me when I first go in the water :-)

Well now after finally trying the neti pot, I am hooked. I'll continue to take echinacea, drink lots of warm liquids and citrus juice, etc., and I am going to use the neti pot several times a day for a week or so and see if the sinuses feel better.

So invite me to your next party if you need to thin the crowd a little. Demonstrations are free :-)

Eye Candy

My blog friend Jess posted about how it's important to always have something pretty in sight. Yup, I agree. I'm a very visual person, and it means so much to me when there are pleasant sights around. The picture here is of my view from my desk at work. Wow! How often does a contractor get a window cubicle, let alone one with such a sanity-inducing view!

Then when I get home (to our temporary quarters at Joe's apartment), I can pop out on the little balcony and have another little sanity view.

Thank God for things that grow and bloom and colors and...