It's All Surreal to Me

Happy Monday! Back to blogging after spending the weekend with a painful sore in my mouth. Advil and an ice pack did the trick . . . the swelling is all gone! I do have to get to the dentist one of these days as I am long overdue for a check-up. I stopped going to my childhood dentist because of the distance and expense. I am finally getting some leads on dentists in Manhattan. . . . there is one I think I'm going to try.

Courtesy of Wikipedia

The French writer and poet André Breton (1896-1966) is the author of today's cryptoquote: "All my life my heart has yearned for a thing I cannot name." Breton was one of the initiators of Surrealism, a movement in art and literature (begun in the early 1920s) that sought to release the creative potential of the unconscious mind. Surrealism developed out of the Dada movement from World War I, Some of the best-know Surrealist works--including art, drama, music, and film-- are: Salvador Dali's The Persistence of Memory,  Rene Magritte's The Empty Mask, Kurt Weill's Threepenny Opera, Man Ray's Return to Reason, and Edward Lear's nonsense verses. Surrealism used many absurdities and non sequiturs and influenced many later artists, writers, musicians, and humorists such as Andy Warhol, Yoko Ono, Franz Kafka, James Joyce, e.e. cummings, Pink Floyd, Frank Zappa, and the Monty Python troupe.

Courtesy of Babble.com

Today's crossword was a nice, easy Monday puzzle by Billie Truitt. The theme was "Breakfast Time" and here are the theme answers:

20A: Breakfast Order, Part 1: GRAPEFRUIT JUICE (Note, I prefer orange or tomato!)
36A: Breakfast Order, Part 2: TWO EGGS OVER EASY (Meh, not my favorite style of eggs. I prefer a nice veggie omelet filled with onions, peppers, broccoli, tomatoes, and mushrooms).
53A: Breakfast Order, Part 3: WHOLE WHEAT TOAST (This is all I eat these days. . . haven't had white bread in ages! A friend sent an alarming report about butter vs. margarine. After consuming margarine all these years, I find out that butter is actually better for you!)

Breakfast literally means "breaking the fast of the night." Nutritionists all agree that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, and I agree 100%! If I don't eat breakfast, I have no energy for the rest of the day, especially when I go to work out.

On Saturday, Matthew and I went to Home Depot to purchase some paint supplies. It was a pain in the neck carrying everything until we came across a supermarket. We needed a new shopping cart anyway, and it made the walk home so much easier! I don't always have what is considered "breakfast food." Sometimes I will have a piece of chicken or fish. When it comes to bread, I will eat the light, whole grain breads or English muffins only. And of course, I have a piece of fruit for a healthy, sweet snack. Don't get me started on cheese and yogurt--YUCK!!!

Yesterday I went to the Housing Works' (www.housingworks.org) annual warehouse and book sale. They had books for as little as a penny. However, what piqued most people's interests was the $20 bag. Shoppers purchase a brown shopping bag for $20 and you can stuff it as much as you want. I got lots of goodies: A Kate Spade bag, an Eileen Fisher bag, two pairs of Ann Taylor pants, a pair of Lululemon pants, two blazers, two scarves, and a winter jacket. The jacket is pretty badly stained; I'm going to see if the cleaners will take it out.

We got tickets to "A Conversation with Bono and The Edge," which is at the 92nd Street Y (www.92y.org) next Monday. Tickets went on sale only yesterday and I believe it's almost all sold out! And yes, Spiderman is actually opening next Tuesday after NUMEROUS delays!

That's all for now. . . . till next time!

Signing off,
The Puzzlechick