In lieu of researching for my paper on Turkey, I have been researching the following things in excess for the past three weeks.

• Hiking. The husband and I are headed to Rocky Mountain National Park for Labor Day weekend and I want to invest in a pair of hiking shoes.  My ankles and the soles of my feet were killed when we were hiking in Guadalupe Mountain National Park.  I’ve been reading reviews of different popular brands for women but I’ll need to stop in a REI to try them on.  I’d appreciate any recommendations if you have them.
• Labrador Retrievers. The maternal instinct is kicking in again and I’ve always entertained the idea of getting a puppy.  It’s quite complicated once you start reading about it.  You start reading about breeders and genetics and what to watch out for.  It’s a lot.  I don’t understand how people can buy puppies so quickly.  So yeah, the verdict is, no puppies until we’re living in a city where the weather is nice more than 2 months out of the year.
• Wood sealants. I’m still researching on how to convert my tree stumps into chairs.  I have to cure the wood for some time.  It risks cracking but it makes the sealant more effective.  I plan on putting cushions on top of them anyway.  One website I read says that if the bark isn’t easy to peel off then it’s not ready yet.  The bark is not easy to peel.  Good thing it’s so hot in Houston, the garage is acting as a nice oven to dry out the wood.
• Katsudon recipes. The husband is a huge Katsudon fan.  He insists on ordering it at expensive sushi restaurants in hopes that fresh fish equals authentic Japanese cuisine.  It usually doesn’t.  We started eating Katsudon in L.A. at these cheap late night places for like $4.95 a bowl.  I hate that he orders it for $8.95 a bowl.  So I’ve dedicated myself to perfecting a katsudon recipe.  This is kind of like what my mom used to do to try to convince us to eat at home more and not out with our friends.  She would find out what we liked at restaurants, and then cook it for us until we didn’t like it anymore.
• Lemon curd. Ever since I had that lemon curd cupcake at Path of Tea, I’ve been kind of obsessed with it.  I am going to give it a go tonight for a going away dessert party.  Curd is such a weird word.  It reminds me of rotten milk– you know, curdling.
• PS3, third-person perspective games with 2-player cooperative mode. We haven’t found anything close since Everything or Nothing.  Third-person because I get dizzy when playing first-person shooter games.  Maybe if I keep forcing myself to play, I’d be cured of my motion sickness once and for all.

Wow, I should have given you a boring post warning.  Sorry.