Solonor's Inkwell

Did you know that if you have a clogged drain, and you don’t have any Drano® or other chemical drain unclogger handy, that you can dump vinegar and baking soda into the sink instead?

Did you also know that you can substitute baking powder for baking soda, if you don’t have any of the latter?

Did you further know that it might not work, but it makes a really cool whooshing sound and lotsa bubbles?

Finally, did you know that you’re supposed to put the two ingredients directly into the sink and not try and mix them in a measuring cup first, or it will explode all over the place and leave you with a vinegar-scented mess on the kitchen counter?

The more you know, the smarter you grow.

Because of the cold front that is pushing Wilma quickly out to sea, they just said the low tonight is gonna be 47! Yikes!! Where the hell is FEMA???

The womenfolk just informed me that they need to eat all the ice cream in the freezer “in case the power goes out”. Where the hell is FEMA???

Holding onto our Easter bonnets here, but so far we’re not in the thick of things. Wilma is pounding South Florida, and there are tornadoes on the Space Coast. Lots of wind and rain here. Enough to make the roads un-fun and to close all the schools and businesses (including my office). Hopefully, the storm will zip outta here without causing too much grief.

Getting ready to head out to grab some coffee and a sweet comestible before catching a train or a cab to the airport.

I’m so glad I got a chance to spend an evening with my brother and Rachel. She was the ultimate Philly insider (having grown up and lived in the city all her life), as we walked through many, many, many, many (did I mention “many”?) blocks of the center city.

I’m trying to remember the route we took (Rachel will correct me if I miss something), but we went from 17th and Naudain down to South St. and east all the way to I95. We took in a great monologue from an actress at the Khyber, then went up to see all the historic stuff (Independence Hall, the Liberty Bell, etc.), wound through the darkened city parks and all the off-the-path historic stuff (Carpenter’s Hall, the First and Second Bank buildings, etc.), then through Elfreth’s Alley and had dinner at a Turkish restaurant on Vine St. around 10:30 or 11pm (mmm… baba ganoush…) and hopped a cab back home, past the skyscrapers and the “Rocky steps”, around midnight.

Amazingly, my old man legs have not fallen off… yet.