I found out the other day that my favorite Asian grocery is gone. It was not convenient for my commute home, but I managed to visit the store when I was in the neighborhood.

I am now devoid of a source for wonderful and strange things Asian; from dried squid snacks to brightly colored jewel bright candies. Click through the link and see a small sampling of what I’ll be missing. [linky]

If anyone knows a good alternative in the SE Michigan area, let me know… I’ve been to two other Korean/Japanese markets and haven’t been too happy with them.

In penitence for prancing around in ribbed cotton briefs and a zip-hooded sweater all weekend, we had two days of crazy bitter cold.  Monday and Tuesday, dozens of schools who would normally stay open under mounds of snow, shut down because it wasn’t safe for children to go outside.  There hasn’t been snow, nor clouds to trap in all that lovely UV heat.

Suffering through mornings of  -3°F (-20°C) and wind chill -20°F (-28°C); magically, the groundhog not seeing his shadow along with the serpents and badgers peeping out of their wintery dens – signs of an early spring it has warmed to 0°F (-18°C) with a wind chill of -8°F (-22°C).  Come join me – I’ll be sunbathing in the back yard after I put the washing out on the line.

I don’t have headphones today.  I’ve been here for hours and I’m ready to pass out.  The soporific din of the ventilation system and workstations are causing me to fidget in my chair.  The unheard cries of unplayed podcasts are calling out to me.  While attempting to surreptitiously listen in, huddled near the macbook’s speakers; all ambient chatter that would keep me safe from non-podcast listeners, ceased.

I am now plotting a quick purchase of head phones during my lunch hour.  Turned my attentions to reviews on C|Net and have poured myself another cup of coffee to keep awake, I am determined.  Sure, I should be tending to customers but the bulk of my communication is through text chat and e-mail, a scarcely engaging medium.  I need my narrowly scoped, nerdily accented, exciting-because-it’s-not-my-life-we’re-talking-about podcasts to get through the day.