Yay for Labor Day weekend and not having to labor! Have been doing a lot of fun stuff today. We took a nice long scoot this morning, had breakfast and went to the dread Wal-Mart to pick up a couple of odds and ends. Then we buzzed around the net for a good long while. I stumbled upon and completed this Harvard Dialect Survey. It's really long, about 300 questions (you don't have to do it all at one sitting, you can save your answers and come back at a later time) parts of it are pretty funny. For example: What do you call the activity of driving around in circles in a car? Answer choices: Doing donuts, doing cookies, whipping shitties. I've got to admit that I've never heard it called anything but doing donuts, but geesh, whipping shitties sounds pretty funny. Another question: What do you call it when rain falls while the sun is shining? Answer choices: sunshower, the wolf is giving birth, the devil is beating his wife, monkey's wedding, fox's wedding, pineapple rain, liquid sun. Those are some pretty creative terms.

I also made some "adult style" frozen ice pops today. And no, by "adult style" I don't mean that they're pornographic, but that they do contain alcohol. Mine are freezing right now and I can't wait to try them. You can find receipes here, at Epicurious. I made the Blue Martini and Pina Colada ones. Per the recommendation of another Epicurious user, I used frozen pineapple in place of fresh and Coco Lopez in place of coconut cream, and did not take the time to pass the Pina Colada stuff through a fine mesh before pouring it into the molds. The liquid for both tasted great. You may remember seeing these ice pops on the cover of a Gourmet magazine last summer. Yes, I purchased the mag then, but just never got around to making them until now. I'll report back on the success or failure of these treats.

I also bought a bottle of Campari when I was at the liquor store. I've been intrigued by this stuff, because nowhere on their website do they tell you what it tastes like, and the website is pretty flashy and enticing, and it includes drink recipes. There's also a grapefruit and Campari ice pop recipe I'd like to try. Well, let me just say that at first sip, this stuff is quite bitter and a little nasty. Maybe it will be better when mixed with something else. At least I hope so...