We're planning on getting together with a group of friends on Sunday. This will be the first time we've seen everyone - in person - in over a year. Since we're still being careful, the meet up will be at a park near our home. So, I've been stalking the weather all week. I'm fairly certain Accuweather is ready to yell at me.

Here's what else I looked up this week.
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• Shadow and Bone - We started watching the Netflix series based on the books. I've been doing a lot of quick checks on plot points and actors. 
• The Bold Type - Every time I see a preview for this show, I always think that the actors look so darn young. Like, too young for the roles they play. I looked up their ages at the beginning and end of the show. They're not really too young - just younger.
• Shakespeare Theatre Company - A friend told me that they're putting on a Britney Spears show. She wants to go but heard you needed to buy season tickets and wanted to know what other shows you might have to sit through.

In a few hours, we're getting on the road to spend the long weekend outside of the city. While we're not going far, I've been doing a bunch of quick checks on the weather, hotel updates, and local attractions. So much more planning needs to be done when you're traveling with a toddler. I'm grateful that we're not going any further than we are. 

Here's what else I found myself looking up this week.
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• Pepper steak - A show we were watching mentioned this dish and I had no idea what it is. Now I want to eat it.
• Poison Ivy - We're going to be spending a lot more time outdoors and I wanted a refresher on what the itchy plant looked like.
• Pronounce "Nacotchtank"- I'm going to do a land acknowledgement in my webinar next week. I wanted to be sure how to pronounce the local community name.
• Common first words - I started a list of words our kiddo is saying. Since I was having trouble remembering them all, I wanted to see what other common first words I might have missed.

Our kiddo was home from daycare for a few days with a stomach bug. I am patting myself on the back for not going too down a Google rabbit hole of her symptoms. (Pediatrician said it was just a common stomach bug.)

Here is what I did look up this week.

• What temperature does salmon need to be cooked to?- Asked Alexa and she gave be a long answer when all I needed to hear was 145 degrees.
• Is corn a vegetable?- The husband and I were debating. While it's culinarily used as a vegetable, it's botanically a grain.
• What's the word for when you're really thirsty? - I forgot "parched."
• When do kids get birthmarks? - I have a café au lait birthmark on my back. I was curious when those usually appear.
• Fried Rice Spice Mix - No store near us had fried rice seasoning in stock. I looked at a few recipes to make my own.
• Dino Trail - Someone I follow on Instagram posted about their visit to the Dino Trail. I was curious about how far away it was because I think the kiddo would have fun.
• Inimitable - I needed the definition. 

As a part of the work I do to put together this weekly post, I review the history of my Alexa app. That means I mostly see what music we've played throughout the week. Usually, it's a lot of "Wheels on the Bus," "The Party Freeze Song," and the toddler time station. This week, there was also a Carole King based station. I now have "It's Too Late" stuck in my head. At least it's an ear worm I enjoy.

Here's what I found myself researching this week.

• Dish Towel Pictures - I needed to find a CC licensed image to put in the Green Committee newsletter I was drafting. 
• Reuse Tips - Same project as above - just looking for tips on easy ways to reuse things to be a little greener at home.
  
• Running T-Shirts - Since I'm now "running" I want to bribe myself to keep it up with t-shirts that aren't 15 years old. I'm looking for something simple, breathable, with a fit that is just right. Amazon reviews are all over the place so I am still on the lookout. Open to suggestions!
  
• Hosta and Dogs - Our building has some rocky landscaping that many residents don't love. In our Condo Board meeting some suggested replacing the rocks with hardy plants. I know hosta are pretty hard to kill but, since there are a lot of cute dogs in our building, I wanted to see if it was poisonous. It is. Sad face.
  
• Best way to reheat grilled cheese - Our kiddo opted to not eat what we ordered her and, instead, just grabbed food off our plates. That's fine, but it meant we brought home her untouched grilled cheese sandwich. I went with the frying pan with lid method. Pretty good - except it was such a thick sandwich the center cheese didn't fully remelt.
  

I wrote a blog post for work about research in real life. It's always fun to show students how research goes beyond finding articles for their papers.

Here is what I found myself looking up this week.

• Atlas Obscura Podcast - Not that I need to add another title to my "to listen to" list, but I saw that Atlas Obscura had a podcast. I wanted to know how many episodes there were and what topics it discussed. I ended up adding it to my list.
• Watering Air Plants - I now have a gorgeous quartz crystal air plant holder that is going to double as a bookend on my WFH desk. This is my first air plant and I wanted to learn how to not kill it.
• Hanging Indent Word - Formatting a works cited page. It's been awhile and I completely forgot how to do a hanging indent.
• Geology v. Earth Science - We were watching one of those shows where experts are talking heads and one was tagged as an "Earth Scientist." Needed to verify the difference.
• Japanese Maple - I was writing up a caption for an Instagram post and I knew the tree I was showing was a Japanese Maple but I didn't know which kind. Image search helped me uncover that it was a red dragon.
• Cheugy - I keep seeing this word and didn't know what it meant. Explainer. Also, I am of the age where I do not know slang now.

You ever have one of those work weeks where every day feels like a Friday? That was me this week. I was constantly moving my mouse into the corner of my computer to verify what day of the week it actually was.

At least it's Friday today. 

Here's what else I looked up this week.

• Buzz Aldrin and Neil Armstrong - Following the news that Apollo 11 astronaut Michael Collins had passed led me to look up if his crew mates were still alive. Aldrin, yes. Armstrong, no.
• Geode Planter - I spent some time looking for a geode planter to add to our bedroom. I found a beautiful one on Etsy that even comes with an air plant.
• Terrazzo - Cleaning my grout this week lead me to a deep dive on terrazzo floors. They often don't have grout so I was considering if they could be an option when we get around to remodeling our kitchen. Probably not, but I still wanted to look.
• Arugula Pesto - I have a bunch of arugula leftover from a dinner recipe. A quick search led me to find that I could make a tasty arugula pesto recipe with things I have on hand. Now I just need to do it.

If you ever need to find an icon for something, I highly recommend The Noun Project. I just spent 30 minutes finding some great things to put in a slide deck.

Here are the rest of the things I looked up this week:
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• into vs. in to - I still can't get it straight.
• Pfizer Immunity Timeline - I'm one shot in and I wanted to know where I was at in the immunity building process.
• Safe Chicken Temperature - I just need to memorize that it's 165 degrees.
  
• Terrazzo Tiles - At some point we will be redoing our kitchen. I wanted to the general cost and look of these tiles. I'm not sold on them. Like it. Don't love it.
  
• DSW Coupon - Wanted to see if I could find any savings on a new pair of running shoes. Always Google for coupons before you hit purchase!
  

Several times a week I think, "Oh! I should look that up later!" and then I never do. Then I get frustrated that I can't remember what I wanted to find. Then I forget all about it and it happens all over again. Please tell me I'm not the only one who does this.

Anyway, here is what I did remember to look up this week.

• Kratom - We were watching To Catch a Smuggler and the package inspectors uncovered boxes of it. I wanted to know more about this drug than what the show told me. Before it's processed, it looks any old plant. I thought that was surprising.
• Average library user age - I never was able to find an answer to this. I could find information about what percentage of an age cohort uses the library but not the average age. I guess there are a lot of variables involved here - type of library, geographic location, hours, etc.
• 50 Decibels - I wanted to know just how loud this was as, apparently, I should not set my kid's white noise machine about this. 
• Brood X Temperature - It's getting warm and I need a reminder of when all the cicadas are going to pop out of the ground. The answer was 64 degrees.
• Moss Ball Aquarium -  I read an article that these are now being banned because they are letting in an invasive species. I wanted to know what they looked like.

In college, I had a roommate who kept a small paperback dictionary on her bookcase. Whenever she looked up a word, she would put a dot next to it. I think about her every time I look up a word, because I thought her method was just so cool. It was visual representation of learning in action. 

Here's a sample of what I looked up this week.
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• da da da da dadadada song  - Our kiddo likes to sing along to this song where part of the chorus is "da das." I couldn't remember the name of the song. Luckily, Google is very good with weird searches like this. It led me to the correct song - Jason Derulo's "Take You Dancing."
• What does Apoplexy mean? - Asked Alexa this while watching an episode of The Office. I still don't know what Oscar was getting at.
• Trepidation - I wanted to confirm I was using this word correctly in a presentation proposal.

Current events, twitter, and household chores comprise quite a bit of what I research. Here are the things I looked up this week.

• CVS Covid Vaccine - DC is having some... how shall I be nice about this... "issues" getting shots in arms. I heard local CVSes might have some, so I tried to track that down. Still not eligible. Bummer.
• How to Insert a Chart in Canva - This week, I need to redesign an event flyer/phamplet. I made it in Canva because I think the results are nicer to look at. One problem I ran into is that I need to recreate a Word table for the schedule of events. Luckily, I learned how to cut and paste something that is graphically more pleasing.
• Rome Atia - I recognized an actress in Bridgerton as someone I have seen before but could not quite place. IMDB led me discover that she played Atia in the TV show Rome. I did a quick Google to get images from the series.
• Carrot Muffins - I want to bake a new kind of muffin this weekend. I want something that is isn't just a cupcake without cream cheese frosting. Then again, aren't all muffins just cupcakes without frosting?
• Raclette Machine - A nearby embassy was visited by the cops for a "suspicious package." A local reporter tweeted a joke about it being a raclette machine. I learned a new way to enjoy cheese.
• Grout Cleaners - Our bathroom floor grout is looking rather dingy. I want to clean it and needed to learn the various options and methods.