Yummy things I've been cooking (that I can and cannot eat)

The only thing of significance I've been cooking that I cannot eat is sour-milk biscuits, inspired primarily from the milk that went bad on me.

Otherwise, this week I've used my crockpot and made lentil stew, chili and mashed potatoes. (I was indulgent and peeled the potatoes, since they weren't organic.)

Being busy with Girl Scout cookie sales had me planning ahead with the crock, so I've been coming home to a finished dinner. It has been nice.

Food as love

Food is still love to me, to a certain extent.

I realized it when someone pointed out that I always bring yummy things, yummy things that I cannot and will not eat, to potlucks.

But I bring those things for others to enjoy.

It probably isn't the best idea.

Girl Scout cookie time!

The nice thing about this year's Girl Scout cookie season is that I'm not training for a marathon during it.

I don't actively sell the cookies myself, as I believe it's my daughters' job. At the same time, I end up doing a lot of facilitating -- taking people to booths and being an adult supervisor, helping deliver cookies, walking the girls around, posting the availability of the cookies on Facebook.

It actually can be frustrating. Not that I think anyone actually *needs* Girl Scout cookies -- but with my adult level of comfort with talking to strangers, I could sell them much more easily than my daughters can. (And, of course, thousands of times more easily than I could have myself when I was the age of even the eldest.)

I spent the weekend talking to people again, helping with cookies and doing my little market research projects. I feel lucky in that I lucked into a project that doesn't take much times but that pays much better than the typical little jobs I pick up.

It was funny because I could tell a lot of people feel sorry for me. "What a job!' one guy said. Another woman offered me a job working for her, telling me she'd pay me much better than I was making right then. As if she knew.

It's not the job for everyone, as I need to be on my feet all day, wearing "business casual," and I'm usually in heels. My ability to wear heels all day finally actually helps me with something!

Oftentimes when I do these projects, I'm supposed to talk to mostly women.

I'm finding, of course, that women are so much harder to get to talk with me.

I've been doing clothing experiments, though, to see which will be most appealing to the women. I have the men figured out, of course, and they're easier anyway. Only about 30 percent of men refuse to do my survey. At least 80 percent of women do.

I'm terrible, too, because I always ask if they can "help me" with my survey.  No, I don't play fair.

But, regarding fashion: Women seem to like it when I wear boots. They also talk to me more -- surprisingly -- when my skirts are slightly shorter and my tops a little bit more low-cut.

Who would've thought?