itsakitty's Profile

Kefir! I tried it once, and it was terrible. I really want to learn to make it well.

The best litter is the litter your cat will use! I learned this the hard way. Soon after we adopted Moxie, aka Moximus Prime, I got annoyed by the stink and litter tracking, so I tried:

World's best: not bad, but expensive
Pine pellet litter: cat ate them, did not recognize them as litter, "held it" for almost a day.
Box liners: he scratched/tore at them while burying his business
Anti-tracking pads outside the box: chewed off pieces of rubber and ate them
Odor neutralizer powders: sneezed uncontrollably and refused to go into the box
Covered box: spun around 100 times every time he "went" and accidentally stuck his rump out the side of the box

He ultimately refused all boxes except a giant, multi-cat litter box, so the price of World's best to fill that size box was prohibitive. I now buy the generic petco cat litter in giant 30 pound buckets. I go through one 30 pound bucket every month or month and a half, costs $12. I don't have a good solution for tracking, but I did buy a hand vac :)

awesome! this used to be a running joke in my family - my sister got VERY hangry on a regular basis. We'd be out on a family trip, and invariably she'd start yelling or complaining or bothering someone else. My mom would yell, to no one in particular, "Put some food in her mouth!"

I also have an upcoming move, so I'm interested in hearing people's opinions.

I'll be in the unique situation of moving *back* to Boston after being in Berkeley/Oakland for almost 8 years. In one way, it'll be a familiar move because I lived in Boston for 5 years during and just after undergrad. In another way, I'm in such a different life situation now (PhD, married, big girl job, savings account!) that it might feel like I'm rediscovering the city all over again. Also, a lot changes in a city in 8 years. I plan to establish a routine for errands and tasks that I currently do here, which will force me to venture out of my old Boston comfort zone (I rarely shopped for groceries and never did hot yoga 8 years ago).

I'm not sure if the round table is going to make you happy in that space. You could possibly put it in the corner next to the stairs, but from my experience, a properly sized rectangular table is preferable because it doesn't result in "dead space" in corners.

I would suggest a small table in the kitchen to use as dining for 4 or 6 as well as island/prep space. I got an amazing one made of all wood from Ikea several years ago, but I don't know if they still make it. It's sort of like this:

http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/80089003/

If you set up the table like an island, you can fit backless stools underneath when not in use, and you can use it as a prep surface because it looks like you have very little counter space.

Small sofa can go flush with the stairs entry from the bedroom, facing away from the kitchen. If you want a TV, you can mount a flat screen on the wall opposite the kitchen or put it on a very slim TV cabinet, like this:

http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/90176839/

The couch might be too close for the TV, I'm not sure. But this way, you can still put a very small rectangular table in the corner next to the stairs for a workstation while minimizing the impact on living space. A couple of nice armless dining chairs can be stored in a corner and pulled out for extra seating for company. A second couch/loveseat or traditional living room armchairs might be too bulky in your space.

I also think that wherever possible, high bookshelves can be a great use of space if you have high ceilings. You can get them to go super-tall, with the proper bracing, and they can be used to store almost everything in baskets or containers.

I make mine with honey and no butter. It's a completely different recipe, but just as delicious... and I feel less guilty eating it right away with a spoon!

My apartment has forced air heating, so it blows dry, hot air at us all night in the winter. I don't know if I should get a humidifier or just turn off the forced air heat and get a small space heater for the bedroom at night. Anyone have suggestions for "safe" space heaters that won't burn curious kitten noses? My cat has no sense of self-preservation.

Yay! I just went out and bought a big frame and mat (16x20) to put with a piece of artwork that my husband gave me for a Christmas gift - from Etsy, which I love for artwork. I haven't matted or framed it yet, but this will feel like a free day for me because the matting and framing are the easy parts.

I'm struggling with the flowers assignment for the same reason as many of you - I have a cat who gets into EVERYTHING. Savannah cats are beautiful, but they're total SOBs. I used to love buying flowers until we got our furry tornado. The only room where he can't get at flowers is my husband's office, which has a closed door all the time, so I wouldn't be able to enjoy them. Catgrass is out, too. We tried to get him a pot of catgrass, but he quickly figured out that the dirt it grows in is much more interesting than the grass itself.

One idea I had was to put a small flower into a bud vase and put it on the highest shelf of our tall bookcase, like 6 feet up. It's too high for the cat to jump, and he hasn't figured out yet that he can climb bookshelves (knock on wood). It's not as lavish as a whole arrangement, but it's a start, and I won't have flower petal vomit all over my house. I usually just bring flowers to work...

@Lactoferment, your comparison of your book and Sandor Katz's Art of Fermentation is very useful. I bought and read Art of Fermentation when it first came out, and I'm using it now to do some vegetable ferments. In my opinion, it's not for beginners, particularly those who are anxious about "messing up" a ferment. I have a biology background, specifically microbial biology, so I'm not scared of "bugs" that do chemical reactions in my food, but I would be very afraid if I didn't already have an understanding of what's going on AND I only had Art of Fermentation to go on. I felt like a lot of Katz's advice is "try a bunch of stuff and taste as you go." This kind of vagueness works for some, not for others.

I think your book seems much more accessible to those who want a detailed instruction manual. I am considering buying it based on your description and what I can see on Amazon. Thanks for contributing this important information so more people will get into making their own fermented foods.