Michelle's Hobby Bloggy

Sundance 2012

2012-01-29T18:41:00.000-08:00

This year I attended and volunteered at the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah. Here's a rundown of the movies I saw and the ones I recommend!
Nobody Walks, starring John Krasinski, Olivia Thirbly, Rosemarie Dewitt, Justin Kirk. I gave it 3 stars at the time, but it was the first movie I saw, so I have since demoted it. Probably would give it 2 stars now. John plays a sound mixer in LA, who is married to Rosemarie, a therapist who used to be a feminist revolutionary or something. Olivia comes to stay with them from NYC to work on her short film, "the bug movie" or something like that. and lots of bad choices and sexy times ensue.

Cast of Nobody Walks at the Q&A:

Liberal Arts, written, directed, and produced by and starring Josh Radnor, as well as Elizabeth Olson, Allison Janney, Richard Jenkins, Meredith Gray's mom from Grey's Anatomy, and Elizabeth Reaser. One of the best comedies I saw; 4 stars. I thought it was funny that they made fun of Twilight-type books, and yet one of the actresses is in those movies! Josh plays an admissions councilor at a NY college who returns to his alma mater in Ohio for his professor's retirement party (Jenkins). Elizabeth Olson is the 19-year-old daughter of another couple, who is attending the college. she and Josh bond and he struggles with their relationship. It's very well-written and funny.

Liberal Arts cast at the Q&A (Josh is at the podium; Right to left is Kate Burton, Allison, richard, Elizabeth Olson, and John Magaro

On Monday I went to Redstone for the Animation Spotlight. The first short, Dr. Breakfast, was great. (check it out! only 7 minutes.) everything after that was kinda strange. Robots of Brixton won the Special Jury Award for Animation Direction.
Then I saw Sleepwalk with Me at the Library Theater before my volunteer shift. It was written by Mike Birbiglia and his brother Joe, based on Mike's experiences trying to make it as a stand-up comedian, while having violent episodes of sleepwalking. (I used to sleepwalk on vacation!) Another excellent comedy. Lauren Ambrose stars as Mike's girlfriend, but she wasn't at the screening. I only got a picture of Ira Glass, one of the producers (he also has a cameo as a photog). Mike was there, as was Carol Kane, who you probably know from Princess Bride, Marc Maron (a popular comic who gives Mike advice in the movie; he must have been staying at our hotel b/c i saw him in the lobby at 6:50 am!), and a few other cast members and a lot of the crew.

Tuesday we skied then went to the premier of Goats at Eccles. It was pretty good. the young star, Graham Phillips, was very good...and very easy on the eyes. (he's totally legal! 19 in a few months!)
Cast of Goats at the Q&A: Vera Farmiga, not sure her name, Dakota Johnson, Ty Burrell, David Duchovny, Anthony Hamilton (i think? is that his name? he's not listed in the cast on IMDb), Graham Phillips, and the director Christopher Neil. Not present: Keri Russell and Justin Kirk. (that guy plays a great asshole.)

Wednesday was Volunteer Appreciation Day, so we got to go to a free screening of Safety Not Guaranteed. We were surprised the Director and screenwriter were there for a Q&A for us lowly vols! The movie starred Aubrey Plaza (April on Parks and Rec), Jake Johnson (from New Girl), and Mark Duplass, with cameos by Kristen Bell, Mary Lynn Rajskub, and Jeff Garlin. It was also very good!

On Thursday we waitlisted the documentary Finding North at the MARC (which is at the Park city Racquet Club. i thought it was cool that on the other side of the curtain, people were playing tennis). It showed many people around the country who are hungry, and sometimes overweight, because they can't afford real food. I thought it was very timely as Feb/March are Minnesota FoodShare campaign time. 1 in 6 people are hungry in this country! So if that gets bought and distributed, you should see it.

Then we saw For Ellen at Eccles, which is pretty much the only movie I saw that I would not recommend. I should have read the reviews before I was sitting in the theater to see it. It was as slow as described. There weren't any stars of the movie there, but we did see Amber Tamblyn and David Cross in the entourage section (and then stood right by them in the lobby afterwards...) it was kind of strange. it's also strange that they are dating, as she is my age (28) and he is 19 years her senior!

Friday morning we left the house early to see Hello I Must Be Going, once again at Eccles (it's the biggest venue with about 1200 seats, so it's easy to get in without a ticket bought in advance or a special pass). It has the same premise as Liberal Arts: 35-year-old involved with a 19-year-old, except in this case Melanie Lynskey (from Ever After and two and a half men) is the older one. it was really funny and charming. It was directed by Todd Louiso and written by his wife. you probably don't know that name, but you would recognize Todd from High Fidelity (he works at the record store) and small roles in lots of other things. No cast members at the Q&A, just Todd and his wife and two producers, I think. This is a movie I'd recommend to adults of any age.

And last but not least on Saturday morning, the documentary The House I Live In at the Egyptian.The writer/director/producer was inspired by the family and life of black woman who worked for his family when he was growing up; her son died as a result of drug use, so he looks into the history of criminalization of drug use in the US, and specific targeted racial groups. today, the targeted group is cultural: poor people. so my solution to both of the subjects of these docs is have all the criminals in prison grow fruits and vegetables to give/sell for cheap to the poor and hungry people (and lots of government reform) and then everyone will be rehabilitated and no longer fat and hungry! tada!

I saw a few celebs while I was working at the Library theater: during Smashed, Aaron Paul, Nick Offerman, and Megan Mullally (who was looking too skinny and had to be helped up the stairs into the building as she was wearing wicked high heels; when she left I think she was wearing snow boots); during Grabbers, Richard Coyle and probably lots of not-yet-famous Irishmen; during Filly Brown, Edward James Olmos. Rhi was working while i saw Sleepwalk with Me, and said that Eddie Izzard walked the press line, but he left early and I didn't see him. (he isn't in that movie.) Spike Lee and his entourage stayed at our hotel, as well as the attorney general (no one in my group could recall his name), which is why there were secret service guys about (not that I noticed them).

A lot of the movies are balloted, meaning they are up to win an Audience Award. here are all the Award winners.

I only got to 10 screenings, so I hope all the other movies get released so I can see them when they come to town or on TV!

Craft Day Resumes!

2012-01-14T18:15:00.000-08:00

When the mercury drops and the snow flies (it actually snowed today, OMG!), we take to our warm(ish) houses and settle in. And we often craft to keep from going crazy. Today Karyn hosted the crafty girls at her house! The main theme was scrapbooking, but others made cards or knitted, crochet, and cross-stitched. We all ate and drank a bit too!
Delicious dishes:

Cheese sampler; bread I brought; bagels from Brueggers and cream cheese (not pictured: great egg bake in the crockpot, and Laura's raspberry muffins)
Closeup on the fruit:

Jen's not much of a scrapbooker. She worked on both of her crochet projects, and a bit of the cross-stitched samurai.

I brought some hootch! Laura decided to improve her cranberry juice.

Hard-core card makers! we were impressed with their creations.

The scrapbooking table, with Saleh, Karyn, and Jen.

I finished 2 years worth of ski trips (9 pages from Park City 2000; 5 or 6 pages from Breckenridge 1999). My scrapbook technique is basically "glue pictures to pages." Nothing too fancy.

I also recently finished a couple of yarn projects. check them out on ravelry:
Headband
Bumpy Hat
Insou hat
If you weren't already aware, I love purple.

favorites of 2011

2011-12-05T20:28:00.000-08:00

Not finished yet.
Songs:
Vomit by Girls - because you don't expect a song named that to be so majestic and moving. the end sounds like something the Stones would have done.
Midnight City by M83
Paradise by Coldplay - I admit to being in the camp who hates coldplay just because they are Coldplay. And because I don't like a lot of their songs. this song i crank up when it comes on the radio.
A Little Bit of Everything by Dawes
Wandering Star - Polica
Ritual Union - Little Dragon

Albums:
w h o k i l l by Tune-yards - anything that sounds like nothing i've ever heard automatically goes to the top of my list.

sick of:
If i never hear another song from the Bon Iver album, it will be too soon. JUST GET OVER HIM ALREADY, MUSIC INDUSTRY. FOR EMMA WAS BETTER.
Adele. overplayed.

Fall TV!

2011-09-12T18:30:00.000-07:00

These are the shows I'll be DVRing soon, based on Entertainment Weekly's Fall TV Preview (print edition, but here's the online version). I think this looks like a good crop of shows! (these are only the shows on network TV; all times Central)
Monday:
How I Met Your Mother, CBS, 7 pm
2 Broke Girls, CBS, 7:30: about two girls two work in a brooklyn diner; one of them is Kat Dennings, and i like her.
Mike and Molly, CBS, 8:30: although it does remind me of 2 and a half men, it has some funny moments. i love Mike's mom's dog.
The Playboy Club, NBC, 9 pm: will this be any good? I have no idea.

Tuesday:
Glee, Fox, 7 pm
New Girl, Fox, 8 pm: Everybody's gonna watch this because it has Zooey Deschanel! I wonder how many Death Cab or She and Him songs it will feature...

Raising Hope, Fox, 8:30: if you haven't watched this show, give it a chance. i didn't have room for it in my schedule last season, but when i watched it, it was hilarious. it's like the new My name is Earl--kinda white trashy, but not necessarily dumb humor.
Ringer, CW, 8 pm: Sarah michelle gellar's new show. will this be any good? I have no idea.

Wednesday:
Up All Night, NBC, 7 pm: You had me at Will Arnett, Mya Rudolph, and Christina Applegate.
Modern Family, ABC, 8 pm
Happy Endings, ABC, 8:30: another show you should watch if you aren't already!
ANTM: All-Stars, CW, 8 pm: were they not able to find any good new models? so they had to bring back the old ones? But one of them is, as Amanda called her, "Jealous" girl (Allison), and she's amusing. this should be an interesting season.

Thursday:
Big Bang Theory, CBS, 7 pm
How to be a Gentleman, CBS, 8:30: kevin Dillon from Entourage is in it!
Community, NBC, 7 pm
Parks and Rec, NBC, 7:30
(maybe I will watch the Office this season, since Michael is gone...)
Whitney, NBC, 8:30
Bones, Fox, 8 pm: they are having a baby! i'm still confused by that.
I have mixed feelings about The Secret Circle (CW, 8 pm), because it's an LJ Smith series that I LOVED as a kid, just like the Vampire Diaries, which the CW totally changed and ruined. plus i can't DVR 3 things at once, so maybe i'll catch it in repeats!

Friday:
Supernatural, CW, 8 pm: only one more season, right?
Grimm, NBC, 8 pm: there's a fairy tale theme in shows this year, just like at Fringe!

Saturday:
Rules of Engagement, CBS, 7 pm: i'll either watch it live, or on sunday morning!

Sunday:
Allen Gregory, Fox, 7:30: animated show from Jonah Hill
Pan Am, 9 pm, ABC: this looks like "Catch me if you can," but with Christina Ricci!

and some non-network shows:
The walking Dead, AMC, 8 pm
(and Dexter's back on Showtime, but i've only watched the first season, and i don't have Showtime, so it makes no difference to me!)

pictures of downtown Minneapolis

2011-09-02T21:23:00.000-07:00

in no particular order...
I suggest clicking on the pics to see them larger (I've resized them from the original file though).
From the Walker Art Center (which is south and a little west of downtown) on August 31, 2011:

June 3, 2011, from the Witch Hat Tower (east of DT), on a rather smoggy day:

Also from the Walker Art Center, but on the hill during Rock the Garden on June 18, 2011, on a rainy day and night:

I like this one at night, it looks like the skyscrapers are steaming.

From within downtown (Hennepin and 11th), during the Pride Parade, on June 26, 2011. I liked seeing the planes flying low on their way to land at MSP. Directly below the plane is Foshay Tower, the first skyscraper in Minnesota. The IDS Center is the one with 2 spires on top, now the tallest building in Minnesota.

From the rooftop of Cafeteria Restaurant in Uptown (southwest of DT) on July 24, 2010:

And one more (for now)! From Target Field, April 16, 2010. I like how the overhang from the upper deck frames the image.

2011 Fringe Round-up!

2011-08-14T15:28:00.000-07:00

Shows I saw and how I rate them:

1. Underneath the Lintel: 5 kitties
2. Our Freaking Kids Show: 4
3. Rambler Family Ramblers...: 2
4. Smothers Brothers Grimm: 4
5. Brain Fighters: 5
6. Proper way to beat a dead horse: 1
7. MacBeth Video Game Remix: 5
8. Disney Dethroned: 4
9. Balls Out!: 5
10. 7 (x1) Samurai: 3
11. History Camp: 5
12: Uptown the Musical: 4
13. Comedy = Tragedy + Someone Else: 3
14. You only live forever once: 4
15. Minnesota: Finally Famous: 2
16. Entwined: 4
17. How Do You See It: 4
18. Minnesota Middle Finger: 3
19. Knit One, Purl the Other: 4
20. Once Upon a time in the Suburbs: 4
21. Death Perception: 4
22. Blood and 2 Gingers: 3
23. Nightmare in Bakersfield: 4
24. Sousepaw: 3

My ratings are based on how much I enjoyed the show. and I enjoy, above all else, humor and music. for a "drama" to get a 4 or 5 from me, it has to be well-written, well-acted, and so engaging that my mind doesn't wander off. I'd say Underneath the Lintel fit that requirement... so it kind of set the bar high for the rest of the festival. Sousepaw got lots of good reviews, so I reserved a ticket to make sure I saw it. It was more "theatery" then most of the other shows. i'd say it was well-acted and well-written, but it was a full house and I couldn't see very well from where i was sitting.
There are lots of shows I wanted to see but either didn't have time, or they sold out before I got in. oh well, the world keeps turning.

Baking: Artisan Bread

2011-02-19T07:49:00.000-08:00

A few weeks ago I was intrigued by this posting from Snack Girl: easy, homemade yeast bread. For a while now I've wanted to bake with yeast. I don't know why it seems so interesting; I've made non-rising sweet breads plenty of times (pumpkin, zucchini, banana, etc), but the idea of getting the bread to rise sounds kind of magical. Once before I made whole wheat rolls with yeast; they turned out okay. I just didn't know where the best spot was to let them rise, since my house is generally colder than "room temperature" in the winter. (I put them above the satellite dish receiver, but I mixed them up wrong anyway, so I scrapped the first batch.) But this book, Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day, claimed that it can be easy to bake bread like you find in bakeries! I was in. But knowing how my hobbies usually burn out quickly, I didn't want to invest too much dough (haha, baking pun) into this before I am sure I will stick with it. There were a few pieces of "equipment" I needed before starting out. I got a round baking stone from Jen (it was her mom's) and borrowed a pizza peel from a coworker who had also done the artisan bread thing in the past. Then I just had to buy an oven thermometer (to make sure the temperature my oven said it was at was accurate) and a 5-quart container to store the dough. Both I found at Target.
Supplies: cookbook (borrowed from the library), yeast, water, kosher salt, and unbleached all-purpose flour. and my container (it's actually a plastic shoe box!).
First step: put the yeast and salt in the container and add with lukewarm water.
2: add the flour, mix with a wooden spoon.
all mixed up. then, let it rise with the lid on for 2 or more hours. Refrigerate overnight (or you can use it right away, but the dough is easier to use when it's cold).
The next morning: cornstarch on the pizza peel and the cold, risen dough. you flour the top of the dough, then grab a big blob (they say about a pound, but i didn't weigh it.). add more flour and shape/rotate it into a ball. (I found this video very handy for figuring out this technique. It shows the whole process.) Let it sit on the peel for 40 minutes to rise. (I didn't think it looked much bigger after the 40.)
20 mins before baking, set the oven to 450F. after the 20 mins, the oven therm didn't say it was 450 in there (even though the over said the preheat was done). so i cranked up the temp to 500 to get it hotter. but then it was over 450, so i tried to cool it down. the pizza stone started smoking, and it got a bit foggy in my house. I opened a window. (the book says to put the bread in the oven after 20 mins, even though your thermometer won't read 450 yet. oh. wish I had realized that earlier...)
Anyway, after rising, dust with flower and cut a cross into the top with a bread knife. Slide the loaf from the peel onto the stone in the oven. You also need a broiler pan above the bread that you put 1 cup of hot water into right before you shut the oven door. I guess the steam is needed to achieve the crispy crust.

30 minutes later, voila! Bread! The book recommends letting it cool completely before eating, but that's not possible for me. It probably sat for 30 mins when I cut into it, still steamy in the middle.
Very delicious and doughy, but not undercooked! It must be easy if I can do it! I still have dough for 3 more loaves (the basic recipe is written to make 4 loaves), but you can shape it into different things; I'm going to try a baguette and pizza crust (both I will hopefully serve at my Oscar party next weekend). The book has recipes for a lot of other kinds of bread, and things to do with the bread (sandwiches, pizza, jams, etc). But I have to take the book back to the library in a week, so I will either have to have a crazy week of baking, or buy it! my kitchen shelves are already filled to the max though... but the authors have a blog with some recipes, yay! Also I think it's really cool that they live in the Twin Cities, so maybe i can meet them some day!

Valentines 2011: HIMYM

2011-02-14T17:11:00.000-08:00

Happy Valentine's Day! Here are the valentines I created to take to my friends' Matt and Laura's grown-up V-day party yesterday. A few years ago I started doing this for Veronica Mars (2006 and 2007), and this year I found that How I Met Your Mother inspired me the most (of all the TV shows I watch). (images from various sources around the internet)

Winter cooking, part 3

2011-02-07T17:36:00.000-08:00

More recipes and pictures! It was a busy weekend. on Sunday I also made Artichoke Hummus from this Hungry Girl recipe. I also used my blender to puree the chickpeas, instead of mashing them with fork. No process photos, just the final shot with some ingredients.
Just as good as any store-bought hummus! probably better, since it was fresh. the other super bowl-party goers didn't eat much, but there were plenty of other options (a lot of the celery was eaten though because we got spicy wings from Papa John's). Monday's veggie clubbers were very hungry though--all the veggies were gone and a lot of the hummus!

Amongst the cookies and dip, I made my latest favorite breakfast--for lunch. It's Michelle's breakfast sandwich!
1. In a small fry pan sprayed with cooking spray over medium heat, pour in a little less than 1/4 c. of egg whites (i don't really like cooked eggs, so i prefer egg white omlets and stuff, but you could use regular egg beaters too). cook until the top is no longer shiny and the edges kind of crackle. flip it over (I use a big pancake spatula for full coverage).
2. Toast an English muffin. Spread both sides with your favorite wedge of Laughing Cow cheese (i used Garlic and Herb, but the tomato and basil one is also good).

3. once the egg is cooked, fold it into quarters and place on english muffin. in the fry pan, cook a couple of thin-sliced pieces of lunch meat (i prefer ham; one thicker slice would also work, or canadian bacon). the meat doesn't really need to cook, just warm up a bit.
4. Eat! *nom nom nom*
So delicious.

My fridge is now packed, after the big shopping trip and all the cooking!
Leftover for a week!

this has been another installment of Cooking with Michelle. bonjour!

Winter cooking, part 2

2011-02-06T14:08:00.000-08:00

this morning, after getting up too early then going back to bed for an hour, I was busy cooking again! First thing I made is a weight watchers recipe for Spiced Peanut Butter cookies. I first made these for Christmas in 2009 when i gave my coworkers cookie plates. They seemed too soupy to roll into balls to be mashed and cross-hashed, like you do with PB cookies usually. so after the first sheet was cooked, i added about 1/4 c. flour. then as the batter sat on the counter, it kind of firmed up. so i probably could have rolled them, instead of they baked more like chocolate chip cookies. makes no difference to how they taste! what did make a difference, is i added an extra 1/4 tsp of red pepper flakes. every bite is surprisingly spicy!
The best part of these cookies is they are made of chickpeas.
pureed chickpeas are smelly.
ready for the oven:
done!
that's it for now; off to a super bowl party!

Winter cooking, part 1

2011-02-05T17:57:00.001-08:00

Long time, no blog! no hobby-related blogs, anyway. I guess i haven't felt like anything i've been doing was worthy to post. but this weekend, i've found my inspiration in the things i'm cooking and baking.
Tonight for supper I made Goulash based on this recipe. But I had to make my own modifications, of course. I think it turned out very good! So here it is.

Michelle's Goulash
20 oz. lean ground turkey

2 large yellow onions, chopped (I used about 1/3 of a very large purple onion)

1 green bell pepper (I only used half)
3 cloves garlic, chopped

1 cup water

46 oz. bottle of V8 tomato juice

2 (14.5 ounce) cans diced tomatoes
1 7-oz can of mushrooms
1 15-oz can corn kernels

3 tablespoons soy sauce

2 tablespoons dried Italian herb seasoning (you might want to try less...it ended up very herby)

3 bay leaves

1 tablespoon salt, or to taste

3 cups uncooked whole wheat rotini pasta (I had it left over from another recipe and wanted to use it up!)

1. In a large skillet, cook and stir the ground turkey over medium-high heat, breaking the meat up as it cooks, until the meat is no longer pink and has started to brown, about 10 minutes. Skim off excess fat, and stir in the onions, peppers, and garlic. Cook and stir the meat mixture until the onions are translucent, about 10 more minutes.
2. Pre-heat a large crock pot to high. (line it with a slow cooker liner, if you've got one.) Place the ground turkey mixture into the preheated crock pot. Stir in water, V8, diced tomatoes, corn, mushrooms, soy sauce, Italian seasoning, bay leaves, salt, and pasta until thoroughly combined. Cook on High for 1 hour (or longer).

The whole wheat pasta was...interesting. kind of chewy. maybe it wasn't cooked enough (which is why i recommend cooking more than an hour, if you've got time). but the rest of the flavors were really yummy.

My dinner (i was not monitoring the toast; it burnt while i was taking pictures of something else!):

Plenty of leftovers!
Tomorrow i'm going to make Hungry Girl Artichoke Hummus to take to a Super Bowl Party, and maybe peanut butter cookies (which also use garbanzo beans/chickpeas; i bought a 29 oz can). I'll post those pictures in Part 2!

I also will do a post soon on my recent knitting and crocheting projects! and maybe someday the ski trip scrapbook i'm working on. and on Valentine's day, my original valentine cards! see, i really have been busy.

Best Music of 2010

2010-12-03T21:46:00.000-08:00

Sound Opinion's opinions (mid-year review)

Amazon's top 50

The Current's Hosts' picks
NME (New Music Express)'s top 75

My Favorite Albums of 2010:
Phantogram: Eyelid Movies
The National: High Violet
Yeasayer: Odd Blood
Mumford and Sons: Sigh No More
Sufjan Stevens: The Age of Adz (I think i'm going to write in "Impossible Soul" on the Top 89 of 2010. Because can you think of any other 25-minute song that is this amazing? and i want them to play it on the Current sometime!)
Broken Bells: Broken Bells
LCD Soundsystem: This Is Happening
Arcade Fire: The Suburbs (I kind of feel like i have to put this. but the songs are good. and who doesn't love a concept album.)
Cloud Cult: Light Chasers (their songs are so uplifting, and i love the harmonies and all the instruments.)
(interesting fact: i saw nearly all of these bands live this year. i could see Broken Bells on Monday, and that would complete the list!)

Late Additions (2009 releases):
Avett Brothers: I and Love and You
Lady Gaga: The Fame Monster (what can I say, I was a little late to the party.)

Favorite Songs (songs I love but don't think the whole album deserves to be on the list above):
Caribou, "Odessa"
Matt and Kim, "Cameras"
S. Carey, "In the Dirt"
Dessa, "Dixon's Girl" (I don't have the whole album, so I really can't judge it, but the song makes this list at least)

There are so many albums that came out recently that i don't have! (Cee-Lo, Kanye...I kinda want to hear Taylor Swift and Rhianna's new albums too, even though i have none of their earlier stuff.)

Best live show of the year:
it's a tie: Gaga vs. Sufjan. one cost $80 and i was at the back of the arena; one was about $45 and it was in the front row. front row always wins!

Flashbacks!
2009: I forgot i put Florence + The Machine on my Strib "Pick Six" in August 2009. They officially "broke out" in 2010, which I always thought was amusing because I knew that album was over a year old. I think i liked the music of 2009 better than 2010. I wonder what 2011 will bring! All this stuff, apparently.
2008
2007 (not just music)

Beading with friends!

2010-11-21T12:28:00.000-08:00

The weekend's second attempt at cooking without a recipe is now in the oven! didn't take any pictures during the assembly; will put up a pic of the final result (it's pumpkin stuffed shells).

The actual subject of this post is a hobby I have done in the past but not in a while: beading! my friend Laura has a HUGE collection of beads (she has been known to buy other people's entire beading collections, including tools). They are very well organized (better than the one cabootle i have mine in!):
Yeah. I love organization!
We Laura and her mother-in-law Shirley helped us make our pick of the following: 2 pairs of earrings, stretchy bracelet, bookmark, wineglass charms, or badge lanyard. Jen made wine charms (unassembled, from her twitter page):
Shirley helps Rhiannon with her bookmark:
Abby's cute earrings have another function:
Working on my badge lanyard (purple, of course!):
The supplies:
Final product:
Happy beaders: Deanna, Laura, Gabbi, Matt, Poonam:
Matt enjoys being the only guy hanging out with a bunch of women. He's the happy Bartender Man!
He makes some tasty drink (that pomegrante martini was stronger than it tasted, as evidenced by the video that I have yet to see...)
Ugh, all that food...so yummy.

There were a few females in the house who did not make anything. Here's one of them.
very curious.

Experimental baking, part 2 (and drinking!)

2010-11-19T17:09:00.000-08:00

I desire to make a food that combines the qualities of pumpkin cheesecake and pumpkin bars. plus chocolate. but with less fat and calories than cheesecake. I want something more like a bar than cheesecake. plus, cheesecake is a lot of work. so right now, 4 oz of fat-free cream cheese (leftover from a different recipe) is softening on the counter. I don't think i'm going to bother trying to base it on a recipe, or a combination of recipes. I am flying by the seat of my sweatpants, and drawing on years of experience.
Here's the plan:
Beat cream cheese until smooth.
add pumpkin puree (i roasted a pie pumpkin on wednesday and have over 2 cups. plus a couple of cans in the cupboard, but i don't plan on using it). amount to be determined. probably start with 1 cup, then add more if it seems too thick.
add brown sugar, vanilla extract, and egg (probably beaten egg whites to make it fluffy).
dry ingredients: this is where i'm not sure. pumpkin pie and cheesecake don't use any flour. traditional cakey bars take about 2 cups. i want more of a bar-like consistency. so i'll probably start with 1/2 cup and work up. I also like to add oat or wheat bran for texture and fiber. more like a muffin then. i like that idea...
then, spices! pumpkin pie spice, obviously. i finally broke down and bought pumpkin pie spice not too long ago. it is just a combination of 4 things, but i got tired of measuring them out separately (cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, allspice). i like lots of spice. also throw in some baking powder and salt.
I think I will bake it in muffin tins. I am toying with the idea of a crust, which is essential for most pies and cheesecakes, but not necessary for bars. i've got some graham crackers and Fiber One cereal, i might mix some up with a bit of sugar and butter and try that in a few cups.
once it bakes, i am melting CHOCOLATE on top!! and how does this sound: cinnamon and nutmeg mixed into the chocolate?? a-MAZ-ing, that's how it sounds.

and about the experimental drinking...at the end of a long week, we deserve a drink, right? even if you are sitting at home alone watching How the Grinch Stole Christmas and blogging? here's what I combined: Strawberry vodka (trying to use up the small amount left), orange juice, and club soda. YUM! kind of a screwdriver-on-the-beach. i love baking and drinking.

Will update with pictures after I'm done!

update 1: the batter tastes pretty good, although it was thick. i didn't add any oil or butter, so i'm fearing hockey pucks.

update 2: pumpkin bars not turn out so good. kind of like the pumpkin bundt bread i made a few times last fall, these didn't cook in the middle. rather mushy. i still ate three.

The one in the top middle has chocolate chips on top, and i tried to spread them around, but that didn't work. I ate the other one. the two in the middle left are upside-down; they are the two with the graham cracker crust.

New plan: stick with the traditional pumpkin bar recipe. master it. change it. change the world...

Rocktober wrap-up

2010-10-31T11:03:00.000-07:00

oy, what a month. actually, more like a month and a half. I've stopped attempting to take pictures a concerts because I'm never sure if cameras are going to be banned, plus Rhiannon's camera takes much better pictures anyway. So I'll bum hers and others taken by journalists.

Wednesday, September 22: Arcade Fire at Roy Wilkins. I wish I had seen AF before they were big. I'd like to see them up-close. Far away was pretty impressive too; they filled up the entire stage with a 8-member band and very impressive set pieces and background images.
Photo album from City Pages Gimme Noise

Thursday, September 23: Of Montreal and Janelle Monae. We were prepared this time. OM's Kevin Barnes enjoys a unique stage presence. It's always a spectacle. Rhi's photos.

Saturday, October 16: Sufjan Stevens at the Orpheum. Oh Suf. how i love thee. I also loved the opinions of this show. This was my favorite show of the month.
(Photo from TC Daily Planet: Suf gets in touch with his Impossible Soul. what's so bad about a 23-minute song anyway??)
Review from City Pages Gimme Noise (the first comment is mine)
Review from Star Trib (Riemenschneider didn't like it, what a surprise)
Review from TC Daily Planet

Thursday, October 21: Rock of Ages at the Orpheum: this musical features a ton of 80s music. I've had a lot of the songs stuck in my head since then. It was a pretty good show. Rhi and Amanda B are in love with Constantine now.
Review from TC Daily Planet
Review from Star Tribune

Friday, October 22: Phantogram at Fine Line. night out with the girls! First it was dinner at Thom Pham's new Wondrous Azian with my sis, rhi, and karyn. Krista and Margot met up with us later. The show was pretty good, although the band had a lot of things working against them: Any serious TC concert-goer hates the Fine Line. the layout sucks (the bar is too close to the main floor; to get from backstage to the stage you have to walk across the path to the bathroom; the door to the smoking patio is right by the stage) and they cram way too many people in there. and then the people won't shut up, and don't respect anyone's personal space. I concluded I hadn't seen a show there since Cold War Kids in October 2008, and I didn't miss it. (at that show, the crowd had no respect for the opener, AA Bondy, who I admit was probably a mismatch to open for CWK, but the crowd could have at least stopped talking when he was singing!) Another strike against the Fine Line: the bartender who provided Karyn with a Whiskey and grapefruit instead whiskey and ginger ale. But back to the show. It was okay. as expected for a band with only one album.
Calendar article from City Pages

Saturday, October 23: LCD Soundsystem and Hot Chip at Roy Wilkins. All the indie hipsters were a twitter over this one, the biggest dance party in town. Rhi and I were very happy to have balcony seats though (this being one of the reasons). She left a few songs before it ended; i went home after the last song (i was very tired). but the musicians themselves make the trip across down for a DJ set at First Ave during Too Much Love. That would have been so cool to have been at the dance night, and then one of the most famous DJs/musicians in the country/western world shows up. and i just gotta say, if you saw James Murphy walking down the street, you would not guess he's a musician in any sense of the word. He looks more like an IT guy/engineer.
Review from TC Daily Planet
Star Trib Artcetera write up (even Riemenschneider enjoyed it!)
Photo album from City Pages Gimme Noise
James' Theft of the Dial on the Current (I haven't listened to it)
Hot Chip's In Studio at the Current (listening to it now; I love them live, saw them at First Ave in 2008)

Wednesday, October 27: I couldn't miss Stars at First Ave, so I went by myself. the crowd seemed rather mature and subdued, which normally I would love, but I felt like they weren't giving the band any energy. Still, I liked hearing my favorite songs live. and the bubbles.

(photo from TC Daily Planet)

Review from TC Daily Planet
Review from Star Trib's Artcetera Blog

Friday, October 29: Mumford and Sons at First Ave. I think i'm alone amongst my group in finding the opener King Charles to be amusing; I like a little weird. second opener Cadillac Sky played their strings to the fullest in a perfectly short set. Then Mumford played their hits, with some technical difficulties; i enjoy a show that isn't a duplication of every other show on the tour. we got to hear a very quiet acoustic cover with some of the members of Cadillac Sky, and all musicians performing that night came together for the encore.
Photo album from City Pages
Review from TC Daily Planet
In-studio at the Current from May that Rhi and I went to (and we were very happy to, since their show at the Varsity unexpectedly sold out)

concert spending

2010-09-02T12:40:00.000-07:00

August - October 2010
The National: $25?
Rufus: $45
Interpol: $30
Lady Gaga: $80
Arcade Fire: $50
Of Montreal/Janelle Monae: $25
Sufjan Stevens: $32 plus fees, round up to $40
Rock of Ages: $70
Phantogram: $15
LCD Soundsystem: $46 (on sale 9/10/10)
Mumford and Sons: $28

(does not include Wicked and Fringe and baseball...)

Total: $454. plus parking and food and drink!

sidenote: I have a gross amount of cash. gross...get it? hehe. don't rob me.

Deals and Steals

2010-08-25T16:43:00.000-07:00

Coupons! BOGOs! Discounts! If you're paying full price for something, you aren't trying very hard. Here are my methods for saving money.

Coupons
For everday grocery store purchases, subscribe to the Sunday paper or visit these sites weekly for click-n-print coups:
SmartSource
Red Plum
Coupons.com
Shortcuts.com
These are the same companies who put out the coupons found in the paper, so if there's a coup for something you buy a lot of, go online and print out a bunch more! I recommend getting a coupon organizer and coming up with logical categories so it's easier to find what you are looking for. Some of mine are Fruit and Veg; Meat; Fibery stuff (eg, bread, cereal, granola bars); Dinner stuff (soup, pasta, kits); and Household (cleaning supplies, toilet paper, ziplock bags). I've seen some really cute coupon organizers in stores recently, like this one from Francesca's.

City-specific Daily Emails
Groupon started it all. Now I also get LivingSocial, CrowdCut, DealStork, and STeals (from the Star Tribune). I suggest being selective with what you buy--things that are actually a good deal, and things you will use. I like the discount to be more than 50%. Make sure you read the fine print (some restaurant deals exclude the busiest days of the week or the happy hour menu) so you know what to expect.

Amanda and I bought a couple Groupons to RollerDome at the Metrodome last spring.

Events and Activities
Goldstar sends out weekly emails for usually 50% off plays, comedy, and other stuff. Many theaters do $20 student rush a couple hours before showtime. or get on their mailing list and be on the lookout for discounted shows!
The fact that you have to pay to get into the MN State Fair sucks, but you can get tickets for $2 less in advance at Cub Foods (the deadline for that might have passed as the fair starts tomorrow), or find out if your place of work (or someone else's) can get even cheaper tickets. Also, buy a Blue Ribbon Bargain book for $4 at Cub ($1 less than at the fair!) to save monies on all the yummy food you were going to buy anyway! (I know the concept of buying coupons seems stupid, but sometimes you've got to spend money to make money!)

Also those big Entertainment books that retail for $25-35 are a good deal if you actually go out a lot or have a big family. I'm always afraid I will never remember to use the coupons before the year is up! A good idea might be to split the cost with some friends, family members, or co-workers, then more coups would get used.

Members-Only websites
You never know what stuff these sites will have for sale every day, but if you like designer clothes and accessories, you can save a ton (unless you actually like your money and you don't buy things at designer prices anyway). I joined (for free) Beyond the Rack and have bought a few things off of it (shipping is not cheap though so I try to combine items from multiple events).

I got this shirt from BtR, and wore it to Tiger Sushi II to help Rhiannon use her Groupon! Here's a site my sister referred me to: Ideeli.com

If anyone needs a referral to one of these websites, leave your email in the comments and I'll send it your way!

Another cool website in the Twin Cities is Pocket Your Dollars, which aggregates coupons and deals from multiple sites into one place. at Restaurant.com you can browse through discounted gift cards for local eateries (generally to use yourself).

Fringe 2010, cont. (days ???)

2010-08-14T06:00:00.000-07:00

Wednesday, August 11: did not fringe. Went to see Rufus and Martha Wainwright at the Orchestra Hall.

Thursday, August 12: Originally planned on seeing 4 shows, but instead played in a final softball game of the season with my team, SWAT (which stands for “seriously, we are terrible.” Because we didn’t win a game). So I did that, then went on a much-needed grocery shopping trip, then ate dinner and took a shower. Then I picked up Amanda and we saw…
-“O(h)” at the Southern Theater. It made fun of classical and modern dance, which I don’t know a lot about, but it was still good. They also sang. And stripped to their underwear.

Friday, August 13: ditched work early, met up with my mom, and drove all over Minneapolis!
-“ONEymoon” at the Southern
-“In the Weeds” at the Theatre Garage, about being a server and working at a restaurant
-“Bedroom Eyes” at the Jungle Theater. We even had time to grab some dinner (Milio’s) before this show!
-“Fw: Re: Mom Update” at the Playwright’s Center.
-“Speech!” at the Rarig Arena. Mike and Joe and others reenacting their forensics/oral interp days of high school (set in 1994). Very funny and true-to-life.

Today: much more expensive theater (Wicked) and another concert (Interpol). Sunday: working 2 more shifts, seeing at least 1 show (I only have 1 punch left!).

Fringe 2010, days 4 and 5

2010-08-11T12:10:00.000-07:00

on Monday, I volunteered by being "on-call" to be a box officer if they needed me. I hung out at Fringe Central for 2.5 hours and wrote a friend a letter, knitted, and talked to mom. i was not needed, apparently. easiest comp for four shows ever!
on Tuesday, i saw 4 shows:
-"Amaretti Angels." 3/5 kitties.
-"Pop Goes the Cherry." 4/5 Kitties.
-"Grind: The Musical," set in a coffee shop in Minneapolis. it sold out and they were understaffed so i box-officed and the house manager let me in for free! the show was average. 3.5/5 kitties.
-"Zombie High School." the best musical i've seen this year! good singing (all acapella with an awesome beatboxer), good songs, good acting, staging, etc. i was impressed. so apparently was the guy a few rows behind me who would NOT stop laughing. maybe he knew some of the cast. maybe he was drunk/high. detracted from the show a little, but i will buy the soundtrack if they ever create one. only one show left (saturday at 8:30), and i recommend it! 5/5 kitties.

Here are some pictures!
Sunday at the Ritz Studio. the Box office is CLOSED! no ticket for YOU!

Best house manager EVA! and the script for her amazing speech!

The realm of the box officer: ticket stubs, buttons, and credit card machine.

From the Bedlam rooftop patio on Monday, around 8 pm. view this full-screen for the full impact! It was rather surreal to be up there with only a few other people because after 11 pm it is PACKED. unless it's raining. then it's packed with soggy people.

Fringe, day 3

2010-08-09T13:21:00.000-07:00

Sunday, August 8:
-A Nice Guy's Guide to Awkward Sex at Mixed Blood: featuring one of my favorite Acme regulars, Amber Preston! All of the characters are stand-up comedians (or aspiring to be). 5 out of 5 kitties.
-Bite Me, Twilight at Mixed Blood: I only got in because they added 12 seats and I used my gold comp! rather predictable based on his treatment of "Harry Potter" last year. still, very funny. 4.5 out of 5.

and then i worked 3 shows at the Ritz Studio!

Fringe, Day 2

2010-08-07T21:08:00.000-07:00

Saturday, August 7:
"The Damn Audition," starring Joseph Scrimshaw and Randy Reyes. Best show so far. I guess all it takes are some good actors and a funny script! 5 out of 5 kitties.
"Naked Yoga" and other stories on a gay theme. not my favorite. 2 out of 5 kitties.

then i hung out in a coffee shop for an hour, had a latte, read the Onion, worked on my scarf. then i laid in the grass by Rarig for a few minutes. i was sooooo ready for a nap. but no time to sleep as i was due for 4 box officing shifts at the Rarig Xperimental. I worked one sold out show (Confessions of a Lazy Hmong Woman) and our recon sheets came out right every time, so it was a pretty good evening. i decided not to go to Bedlam, although i probably won't have any other opportunities to hang out there on a non-work night. Tomorrow morning I'm going with my neighbor (who has a pickup) to get my new front door from Home Depot....then more shows at 1! This time at Mixed Blood. Hopefully I'll see 2, maybe 3, but i have 3 volunteer shifts at the Ritz starting at 6:15 and I have some errands to run. so we'll see!

Fringe 2010, Day 1

2010-08-07T06:36:00.000-07:00

my "day 1" was the overall day 2. but i was busy on the real day 1.
Shows i saw on Friday, August 6:
"Mike and Matt" and the Rarig Thrust: 4 out 5 kitties. Mike Fotis' younger brother Matt talks and acts just like him, but the resemblance is minor. i liked matt's story about the birth of his child better than mike's usual angry yelling about an incident in his life.
"Table 12: A Play at a Wedding" at Theater in the Round: 4.5 out of 5 kitties. my favorite show from Friday!
"My Mother Told Me" at the Southern: 3 out of 5 kitties. Dramatic spoken word and interpretive dance aren't my favorite genres.
"Cosmo the Musical or how to ruin your life by having unrealistic expectations" at the Rarig Thrust: 4 out of 5 kitties. songs based on articles from Cosmo, and very amusing characters!

today i'm going to see 2 shows, then have a break, then work 4 at the Rarig Xperimental (in the basement). Maybe i'll see you there!

Updated to add this picture of Spencer and me from the Fringe Prom on friday night!

beer goes great with '80s prom dresses.

Whole Body Cleanse: done

2010-06-17T08:29:00.000-07:00

Cleanse over! i feel like a new person!!

okay, not really. actually day 14 was 3 days ago...maybe i didn't change my eating enough to make a difference. maybe the contents of the pills didn't do anything for me. so i don't know. my advice: if you want a real cleanse, do a good one, and really go for it. maybe take a vacation at the same time, or go to a retreat/spa. don't just take some pills and expect miracles! (I was not expecting miracles.)

My 5k is 9 days away...must start running every day! I ran yesterday when i got up (6:40 to 7:10 am)...then had mexican (and 2 sangrias) for supper. today, chinese for lunch! already had second breakfast (fruit and a cookie at 9:30). so i'm going to have a lot of cals to burn off tonight!

Whole Body Cleanse, Day 8

2010-06-08T17:43:00.000-07:00

I'm totally behind on the blogging, and i apologize to the 2 people reading this. But after day 3, nothing very interesting happened in terms of the cleanse...and my life was pretty busy, so that was good. But the business led to some not-so-great-for-cleansing eating. But let's re-cap the weekend, shall we?

Friday I met my friend Spencer at the Witch Hat Tower in Prospect Park (famous for apparently inspiring Bob Dylan to write "all along the watch tower"--i only know that as a Hendrix song, however). The neighborhood was having a festival/fundraiser, and this is the only day of the year you can actually walk to the top of the tower (it used to be a water tower). So after waiting in line for approximately 45 mins, and growing hungry, we took the skinny, twisty stairs to the top and took some pics of Minneapolis, St. Paul, and surrounding areas. I could almost see to my house! well, not really, but I could see the Quarry.

Then we went to the festival part and I ate corn on the cob, two cream cheese wontons, and a plate of cake and ice cream! I wanted a root beer float, but they were out of root beer! :( so I settled with chocolate cake, so awful. But the evening involved a fair amount of walking (or at least standing around), so I got in my low-impact exercise. (no photos because I forgot my camera and spence hasn't posted any.)

Saturday was the AHA Heart Walk! I've been fundraising and planning for this event since March. the "walk" was 3 miles around downtown Minneapolis and the lovely warehouse district. Here's my sister and I:
The opening events were at Target Field, so it was fun to wander through areas I didn't see when I went to a game, like the exclusive "champion's club" right behind home plate.

After the Walk, and in the rain, we went to my co-worker Tim's house for a BBQ with our team and his family. so i ate a delicious cheeseburger...lots of pasta salad...half of a hot dog...a few sips of wine...some of the rhubarb bars I made...chips....afterward, my tummy felt stretched to the limit. but then I went home and sat on the couch (and watched the second disc of Party Down, season one).

Sunday I walked even MORE! at Grand Old Day, on Grand Ave in St. Paul. I hung out with my friend and co-worker Amanda K as we looked at the booths and watched bands. and ate things like Pizza Luce and mini donuts!
and we may have ended up with free deep fried s'mores on a stick... not surprisingly, it was also delicious. quite messy though.

Let's also make this a BAKING post! Check my recipe for Rhubarb Walnut Bars. I started with someone's recipe for Almond Rhubarb Coffee Cake, and made it BETTER!
everyone who had one said they were good! (i wasn't sure how the oatmeal topping would turn out, so I only put it on half.

So, on day 8 of the cleanse, I start taking a Milk Thistle capsule in the morning, 2 at night, and fewer laxatives at night. I don't feel different yet...I'm kinda tired but that's probably because I was up until midnight and it was rainy all day, which doesn't inspire perkiness. but on to week 2!

WBC, day 3

2010-06-03T20:11:00.001-07:00

This afternoon I got really tired. I don't know if I can attribute that to the cleanse, although the materials do say to take it easy, in terms of exercise, so as to not overstrain yourself, or something. I got the usual amount of sleep last night and wasn't overly sluggish in the morning, but I did do a lot of walking around at work today. So I don't know! i didn't exercise even though I brought my clothes to work; after walking the dog, i watched the news, then took a nap on the couch. I was awoken by my phone ringing at 7:50, but it was an unknown number. which was annoying, but i didn't need to sleep any longer anyway! So i'm going to bed at 10:30 tonight. I hope, if it rains, that it doesn't thunder too much.
In other notable news, i was reading on the FAQs that you can cut back on the Fiber capsules if things aren't...moving very quickly. considering 8 of the caps are 16% of your DV of fiber, and i get plenty every day (such as from my new favorite gnu "Fiber and Flavor" bars, 48% DV), i didn't take the 4 fiber caps tonight, just the 3 lax and 1 milk thistle. so we'll see if that makes any difference.
Saturday is the Heart Walk...hopefully I am feeling more energetic by then! Tomorrow night I want to go climb the Witch Hat Tower, then I need to go to the grocery store and make something for our post-walk BBQ (walnut rhubarb coffee cake, never made it before) and get a good night's sleep! We have to be at Target Field by 8:20 for a team picture.

Whole Body Cleanse, Day 2

2010-06-02T20:32:00.001-07:00

Not too much to report. things seem to be status quo. and you don't really need to know what that entails. I was planning on going to yoga at 7:30, but it was so nice out I decided to celebrate National Running Day (as I'm told is June 2). but then i settled in on the couch...watched the season finale of "Kendra" and then ate soup and crackers for supper while watching "Top Gear"...then at 8:30 I figured if I was going to run, i needed to get out before it got dark. i took a new route and got a little lost which resulted going farther than I had originally planned. halfway through I regretted eating supper before running...so i walked the rest of the way (except running across Lexington so I wouldn't have to wait for the next green light) to prevent any...accidents.
so that's all for now! maybe i'll exist on only lemon juice, cayenne pepper, and honey for a day, just for fun, to really kick the cleanse into high-gear. and then probably pass out walking to the bathroom or something.

Whole Body Cleanse, Day 1

2010-06-01T19:24:00.000-07:00

I've only taken the 4 Fiber caps so far. they were tasty!
Relatively small morning dose, and the big glass of water.
let's record what i ate today:
breakfast: smoothie (strawberries, raspberries, banana, OJ, vanilla yogurt, little bit of canola oil) and a small banana muffin
lunch: lentil-tofu soup with golden corn vitatop and a small jell-o fruit cup. and some veggies from the Carrot Club Cube (that i brought, so of course i liked the selection). and a 100-cal pack of cocoa-covered almonds.
snack: Fruit (blueberries, blackberries, melon, pineapple) and two glasses of sparkling grape juice (i did not have cake though!) at my boss's surprise "you've been promoted to director!" party. and i had a piece of dark chocolate when i got back upstairs...
late snack/early supper at 4:20: fiber one bar
before softball: a few pickled mushrooms and a popsicle
after softball: two slices of pear-cheese bread and some cherry tomatoes
is that all? hmm, i didn't feel the urge to constantly eat today! I really think it's a monthly thing. I bet i've consumed twice my daily recommended amount of fiber. I think this "cleanse" just makes you constipated then gives you diarrhea.
Oh, also, for the record, i got up at 6:30 and went for a 20 minute run then 10 mins of sit-ups and stretching. and I played softball.
i'm kind of excited to take the bedtime pills and see how they affect me. now i shall walk the dog, take a shower, then take the pills and settle in to bed for some reading.

UPDATED:
8 pills, and another big glass of water! I need 8 oz. just to swallow all of these. the lady on the booklet sure looks happy. "best poops of my life!" i bet that's what she's thinking.

Whole Body Cleanse, Day 0

2010-05-31T20:16:00.000-07:00

I decided to try Whole Body Cleanse's two-week program. It's about $20, and you can get a $5 off coupon on their website. I'm not sure what I'm expecting out of it, but I thought I'd blog about how it goes. if it's not too gross. at least Amanda will find it interesting.

So everyday for the first week, I will take:
Morning: 4 Fiber Fusion UltraCaps
Bedtime: 4 Fiber Fusion UltraCaps, 3 Laxative tablets, and 1 Super Milk Thistle UltraCap.

the second week is slightly different--less laxatives, more Super Milk Thistle (let's call it SMT). the SMT is to cleanse the liver and gall bladder, and it "helps eliminate the toxins and excretory matter which gets loosened up by the Laxative Formula and absorbed by the Fiber Fusion." Fun! it also has artichoke extract, licorice, and dandelion! the Laxative Formula contains magnesium hydroxide, slippery elm bark (to support healthy intestinal mucous), and marshmallow root. the Fiber Fusion contains "all-natural fibers and herbs" and pectin from citrus fruit and psyllium husk. Apparently, "cleansing without fiber isn't pleasant." Toxins bind to the fiber and are excreted from your body, instead of being absorbed back into your bloodstream. cool!

Here's what I find most amusing about the little booklet i'm getting all this info from: pretty much every sentence ends with an asterisk to a footnote that says (in tiny font): "this statement has not been evaluated by the FDA. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease." True, i don't expect it to. I'm kinda glad the Enzymatic Therapies company hasn't bothered the FDA with their product, so the FDA can focus its limited resources on MY company's products.

Here are some helpful cleaning tips:
-drink lots of water (duh)
-avoid eating highly processed foods, sugar, refined flour, artificial sweeteners, caffeine, alcohol...
-limit your intake of beef, pork, sausage, bacon, shellfish, soy products, peanuts, oil, margarine, shortening...
-eat less dairy and wheat products.
So basically i can eat chicken, fruits, and vegetables? and maybe not as much fiber as i usually eat, since i get to take 8 fiber pills a day!

Tomorrow is day 1, so we'll see how it goes!

Pottery, Part 2: the Reveal!

2010-05-29T13:17:00.000-07:00

When painting with the glaze, everything looks pastely, so you're never sure how the final product is going to turn out! Fortunately, all of ours turned out great!
My vase:
I intentionally only did one coat on the inside, and on the outside I probably should have done another coat to get it more solid and less streaky, but once the glaze dried, it was hard to tell where I'd done 3 coats already!
Matt's stein:
with the sponge-paint technique.
Laura's bowl:
Amanda B and her bowl, turned out great!:
She sponged the inside:
Action shot! Amanda K's reaction to her bowl:
Bottom:
She did very good with the tape.
I didn't pick up Rhi and Lisa's, so here are the pictures Lisa took and posted on facebook:
Rhi's bowl (i think it came with chopsticks, but those were not glazed):
The inside of Lisa's platter:
It took her a LONG time to do the yellow background, and then the detail on the stenciled fruits, cake, and coffee cup. I'm sure her SIL will love it!

Crafting with others: Pottery, part 1

2010-05-28T07:53:00.000-07:00

This month's group non-work crafting event was hosted by the fabulous Amanda B! She is a fan of painting pottery, and a while ago there was a Groupon for Kiln Kreations in Woodbury, so it was meant to be! Other attendees were Rhi, Lisa, Amanda K, Laura, and Matt. Here are action-shots of the hours of painting our masterpieces required.
Rhi and her chopsticks bowl. she did the "wax paper" technique to create very cool-looking dots.
First you put some glaze on wax paper, then lay it over the piece...
Then take it off! voila! art.
Lisa and the platter she designed to match her sister-in-law's kitchen. this is just the first layer of art! there was more!
Amanda B and her beautiful bowl, coming soon to a summer party near you, probably filled with homemade guac.

the marrieds: Matt looks SO excited to be there. but he was. he wouldn't have come if he wasn't into it. right? Laura worked very hard on her polka-dotted bowl.
Matt did a solid background on his stein, then sponged different colors on top of it.
Amanda K made sure to do at least 3 layers to get very solid colors on her bowl.
Here I am with my wavy vase. behind me you can see part of the wall of unfinished pieces we could choose from.
I painted the background a solid lavender, then used the "writers tips" bottles in 4 colors to created pointilism flowers. such an artist! this is the best thing i could think of that didn't require free-hand painting. that never ends well.

After the crafting was kinda the best part of the day...classy tailgating! Amanda brought snacks for us to enjoy while we painted, but then we were told we couldn't have food in the main room! just the rentable group room. :( so we all had a fresca at the table then moved the party to the parking lot!
we had to eat all the guac and cheese to see the designs that amanda painted on ceramics in the past! it was a fun challenge.

I will post pictures of the final fired pieces tomorrow! I bet you can't wait!

Gardening

2010-05-24T17:41:00.000-07:00

New season, new things to grow! Here's what I've got cooking.

Mom brought some pots from home and i used one to make a pretty arrangement for the front path. I don't remember what's what, but as you can see, i am going for a purple and pink theme.

Instead of putting a pot of flowers in this spot, i moved the rock back and put some fresh dirt in the old sandy stuff and a variety of flowers.

i put the extra flowers in a hanging pot, which i have no place to hang!

In the back... i put in a lot of seeds, so i'm letting everything grow. not sure if any are weeds! the pink flowers are a geranium i got for my birthday (from Karyn, i think. or whoever else brought a flower, i forget. sorry friend, but i love it!).
can you see the gnome in the middle, hiding amongst the lilies?
i put in white and red lilies last fall, so hopefully i have a wide variety of colors. so that's what's happening at my house! more pictures to come as things bloom!

Baseball

2010-04-23T17:54:00.001-07:00

By "baseball" I of course mean watching baseball, not playing. I did play softball for a few seasons as a kid and intramurally in college, but I'm pretty bad. Also talking about baseball, and thinking about baseball...and fantasy baseball.
How long has watching baseball been a hobby? When my family lived in Atlanta (birth to age eight), we went to Braves games at Fulton county stadium. My dad's company (Scientific Atlanta; they got bought by Cisco a few years ago) had tickets behind the home dugout, and he got the tickets from time to time. I probably went to 2 or 3 games. I remember being terrified of the mascot as it danced on the dugout roof (I hid under my seat; i did this at Chucky Cheese too. I did not like large furry human-animal hybrids as a kid. I didn't like dogs either; once I grew up, I got over these fears.) The 90s were a good decade for the Braves (except for 1991, when the Braves played the Twins in the World Series, and we had just moved to South Dakota), and most of the games aired on TBS, so I followed them during the Chipper/Andruw years. (the fact that Andruw is now a mediocre player for the White Sox blows my mind!) Moving to Minnesota in 2001 meant I kind of had to become a Twins fan, and I didn't really mind.
Why do I like watching baseball? Well, it's the only sport I fully understand. The rule aren't tricky, there aren't many "plays" like in football or hockey (hit-and-run and bunting are about the extent of that), and it moves at a fairly slow pace. If I'm at the game, I can keep score or knit a scarf. If I'm at home, it's easy to do something else while watching the game and not miss anything. I'm watching the Twins/Royals game right now! (Alternate reality moment: If we had moved from Georgia to Kansas/western Missouri, I'm not sure I would have become a Royals fan. They are usually 4th or 5th in the division and I can't devote myself to constant sorrow and misery.) However, when something exciting happens, it's really exciting. A hit is good; a home run is better; a grand slam is AMAZING. They're going to replay that action on Sports Center. There are 162 games a year, so prices are cheap, and you have enough time to get to know an entire team and talk about them like a stat head. On the other hand, i wish the season was a month shorter; start 2 weeks later in April and end mid-Sept so that the playoffs don't last until early November. that's just TOO MUCH BASEBALL, especially if you watch spring training games!

I like baseball so much, I didn't mind the Metrodome! Yeah, it smelled like stale beer and hot dogs, but it was cheap, and it was close to cheap parking. It was climate-controlled. I went to many games there. I got to use the Medtronic suite a handful of times (it got to the point that they sometimes couldn't give away the tickets for free!), which was cramped but at least close to home plate. Here's the view of home plate from the suite:
Rhiannon (i don't like any of the pics of me from this game) and a full shot of the lovely roof:
I've been to ball games at a few other major league ballparks: Wrigley Field (on a family summer vacation, mid-90s I'd say), Coors Field (another family vaca), and Miller Field in Milwaukee. Here's a couple of pictures from that trip in Sept. 2007.

I was pretty impressed by that stadium, although anything after the Metrodome is seems great. My one fault was our seats were in the sun the entire game and I thought I was going to die of heatstroke. I spent half of the game in the cool shade of the concourse.
But now... now. NOW IS THE TIME FOR BASEBALL IN MINNESOTA! Target Field is all the synonyms you can think of for "amazing." I'm pretty sure it's the most photographed structure in Minnesota right now, by pros and regular joes alike. here's a few pics from the first night game of 2010, April 16. (Twins beat the Royals, 10-3.)
Target Plaza, the entrance from downtown.

View from above the right field bleachers, inside Gate 34.

Zoom-in on seats behind home plate; the press box is above the "Welcome to Target Field", which is the club level; above that are the suites, or maybe the other way around. I don't know, we didn't go up there!

View of the Target Center and Downtown from left field seats.

Oh yeah, there was a game played too! Here you can see that Kubel went too far, and struck out!

Hey Jim Thome hit a home run! way to go, old man! (He'll be 40 this year.)

So that's my tribute to baseball. I'll probably have more ballpark pics in a month!

topic suggestions?

2010-04-12T11:15:00.001-07:00

It has been too long since i've posted! what should I write about next, fickle followers?

Crafting with others!

2010-03-16T20:16:00.001-07:00

I am the organizer of, I admit, a lot of knitting and crocheting (or other crafting) events. But some I just attend! Over the past few months, my circle of friends has taken turns hosting Craft Day at our houses on weekend afternoons. In January, Karyn had us over to her house, because she had a TON of yarn and supplies from her grandma who had recently passed away. So we jumped in and claimed our favorite colors!

Lisa liked the gold!
Someone's pile.
I looked through all the books and claimed some quilting/crafting ones for my mom, and crocheting patterns for myself. We thought this was the BEST book title and cover ever:
Oh yeah, take it off, Eleanor! I saw this on DVD at Joann's the other day; might be up to 35 years now.

Karyn asked me to help her come up with a border to an afghan that wasn't quite finished yet. First I had to teach her to crochet though!
In February (on V-day, actually) Rhiannon and I met up with our friend Andrea (who is in grad school at the U; her husband lives in Delaware so we were her stand-in valentines) in the afternoon at Anodyne Cafe in Minneapolis. I forgot to take pictures! They have a Community Knit project: someone supplies the yarn and leaves it in the lounge area and people work on it in whatever pattern they wish. The results are mixed (don't mix ribbing with nonribbing!).

On Feb. 27 I went to the Knit with the MN RollerGirls event at Crafty Planet in Minneapolis. They supply yarn for people to make hats, which they donate to hospitals to give to chemo patients. I took my project home with me, so I need to get it back to Crafty Planet soon! My coworker/volleyball teammate/crocheter extraordinare/rollergirl groupie Roberta was there too, and 3 roller girls and the referee Ump, who seems to be more obsessed with knitting than a lot of people I've met. He bikes and rides the bus as his modes of transportation, and the bag he uses is designed to carry all his knitting needles. we were impressed.

March craft day was at Rhi's house, and only Amanda and I attended, but that just meant there was more delicious snacks for us, and less squabbling over the music to listen to on her new turntable system!
Plugging away on my baby afghan, while Rhi reknits a cowel-neck thing.

Amanda finished up her bright orange scarf (made from Karyn's yarn!) and I showed her how to add tassles. She's going to send it in to Project Warm Hearts, which if I haven't explained yet, I will now...
We also knit and crochet at work! a couple of years ago, one of my coworkers wanted to learn to knit, and another coworker wanted to get back into knitting, so the three of us starting knitting over lunch every so often. Then more people got wind of it (at first it was just tech comm and regulatory), and we had to move to a bigger conference room! About a year about we all moved to a new building (Medtronic campus in Mounds View, which has 3000-4000 people; the old building had 150), and I invited everyone involved in Project Warm Hearts to come to these bi-weekly lunches. PWH is a volunteer opportunity that was started years ago (not sure how many) by an employee; she collects all the things people make (hats, scarfs, mittens, afghans, clothes, washcloths, dishtowels) and donates them to 3 organizations in the Twin Cities: Bridging, Alexandra House, and Children's Home Society. Every item we donate is worth a certain amount, because the Medtronic Foundation donates a matching cash amount to those orgs as well. So they get free blankets and things to keep people warm, AND they get money to pay for their operating costs! How cool is that? What I also like is each spring they have a luncheon and everyone who donates items gets invited to see a huge pile of the stuff (and say "this is cool, i want to make one!"), hear a representative from one of the three orgs speak, and we get to pick up some free yarn to create stuff for next year!
Anyway, I'm still working on my afghan; I'm on the second yellow section though!
PWHers Kathy (or Karen?), Gina, and Nicole.
Tina, I think is her name, works on giant mittens (she's going to felt them) and Roberta (as mentioned above) starts a hat.
First-time attendee Ann wowed us with her plastic yarn ("plarn") made from grocery sacks that she crochets into totes. Here's a pattern.
Also her noodle bowl smelled really good.

#3.3 Cooking: Chili

2010-03-12T18:19:00.000-08:00

I've been meaning to post this since Sunday, but during the week I usually don't want to do anything at home that involves this much typing. And I'm super-busy at work, so no time for secret blogging. barely a second to tweet! what is the world coming to?? But i've promised myself ice cream after i get this posted, so that's a big incentive.

On Sunday I made a big crock pot full of chili as my meals for the coming week. or 2 weeks, in this case. The recipe was a combo of the chili my friend Jen made when we were roommates, and recipe I got at a WW meeting once. I call it, Michelle's Chili!
Ingredients:
1.25 lb ground turkey (because that's how much comes in the Jennie-o package; you could use more or less)
1 medium onion (any color), chopped
1 green bell pepper, chopped
1/2 tbsp of minced garlic (or 1 clove)
3 14.5 oz cans of diced tomatoes (one of the cans i used had green chilis, you can use that kind if you want)
1 can of pinto beans (drain the sauce)
1 can of kidney beans
1 pound of chopped cabbage (i used half of a large head of green cabbage, but purple is good too)
46 oz bottle of V8 juice (i used the reduced sodium kind)
2 tsp chili powder

Brown the turkey in a skillet. add the onions, green peppers, and garlic; cook a bit. Add 1 tsp of chili powder.
Move the contents of skillet to large crockpot with tomatoes, beans, V8, cabbage, and 1 tsp of chili powder. Add more chili powder if it's not spicy enough; add salt and pepper to taste.
Cook on high for 3-4 hours, or low for however long you want. (I ate my supper on sunday night after it had cooked for 2.5 hours, but the cabbage was still kinda...firm. so i let it go for another couple of hours--actually i forgot about it while i watched the Oscars--and then onions and cabbage were satisfactorily mushy. The cabbage doesn't add any flavor, just fiber and bulk!)
I divided it into about 10 2-cup servings. I put it in WW recipe builder and got 4 points per serving with 9 or 10 servings. If you are veg-only, leave out the turkey and double the beans. Does anyone know of a meat substitute that would be acceptable? the Boca soy crumbles i put in my lasagna would not work in chili (texture is all wrong).

On Thursday I made up my Golden Corn Vitamuffins and ate two with the reheated chili (also what i had for lunch on Friday!). As a kid i kinda hated the corn bread my mom made; but as an adult, i've changed my mind, and Vitatops are part of the reason! You can probably get the GoldenCorn Vitatops in the freezer at your grocery store.

Non-hobby post: Things that made me happy today

2010-02-21T16:03:00.000-08:00

1. Sale at Michael's! I've been looking for some poster frames for a while so a few things can move from sticky mounting squares to real frames! and so i can hang up the Current 5th Birthday Party poster i got. at michael's, all frames are 40% off, plus there were coupons in the sales flyer today to get and additional 25% off your entire purchase of frames. so i got all these for $70! normally the biggest one is $50! I don't know which one i'll like better for the Current poster, so i'll be taking one back anyway. My posters are all weird sizes, it's so annoying. and custom framing is waaaaaaay more than i want to pay for a cheap poster. (I did frame some art i bought at the Uptown Art Fair last year, and the framing was more than the matted picture! even with a 60% off coupon!)

2. This critter. always wanting attention.
3. My new favorite Starbucks coffee! after surviving Michael's (which, by the way, is my new favorite craft store in Maplewood), Joann's, and Target, I decided I needed a coffee to make it through grocery shopping. This is a Grande decaf skinny cinnamon dulce latte. I don't know why that required so many notes on the cup. it lasted through shopping, and it was soooo good.
4. It's jelly bean season!! The Sweetart jelly beans are my favorite. i had to rip open the bag as soon as i got into the car.
5. Organized purses in my closet! I wanted some sort of cubby system to keep them in, so i could see all of them, but i couldn't find anything like that in the stores, and i wasn't going to bother to build it, so when i saw these totes at Target yesterday, i decided they would work. i had to go back and get a 3rd one today. so now i can sort through my purses without them falling on my head! (don't you dare say i have too many purses. this is probably 10 years worth, and if i buy on average 2-3 a year...i go back and use them again. i'm going to get rid of the ones i don't use.)
I enjoy being organized. here's the opposite side of the closet:
I did have to clean it up a bit before i took the picture, though.

STILL following me around:
6. Bought myself flowers! i had intended to get tulips, but the roses were prettier.
7. Made a recipe from the WW cookbook mom gave me for christmas, wearing the apron holly made me, using the crockpot i got for christmas a few years ago! Also happy I got a gorilla tripod for christmas, which allowed me to wrap my camera vertically around a table leg to take this picture. the recipe is "Tropical Chicken"; i don't intend to make the "later" recipe, as this is going to be my lunch and dinners during the week. (today I finally finished the curry soup i made...three weeks ago?, and the lasagna from 2 weeks ago for lunch on thursday.)

Things that did NOT make me happy today:
1. cleaning the skin off the chicken breasts, and cutting some bones off. never using bone-in chicken again. considered going veg.
2. Neither Michael's nor Joann's had the color of yarn i wanted in the brand i'm using for a afghan i've already started. so i got something else in yellow! it'll work; if it doesn't, the baby recipient won't know the difference.

#10. Being Healthy!

2010-01-23T19:57:00.000-08:00

I've said it before, I'll say it again: Being healthy isn't a hobby, it's a way of life. But keeping it interesting and not boring definitely is a hobby of mine. I love to eat, and I like to find new foods I can enjoy without feeling guilty. So I thought I would share with you my favorite snacking staples of the moment! I get all of them at Cub Foods or SuperTarget in Shoreview, which means you can probably get them at most grocery stores (nothing is hard to find).

Fuze Slenderize juices: I have to have something sweet to start my day, and when I started Weight Watchers, I was sad that an 8 oz glass of orange juice is 2 points. Even with all that Vitamin C, I can’t waste my points on liquid! So now I usually drink Crystal Light, diet pop (not for breakfast of course), or Fuze juices. One serving of the Slenderize flavors is only 5 to 10 calories. One 18.5 oz bottle is two servings, so I usually drink half for breakfast and put it back in the fridge, or take the bottle with me to drink on the go. I like all the flavors: Strawberry Melon, Pomegranate Acai Berry, Cranberry Raspberry, and Tropical Punch are shown here (8 flavors total shown on their website). Usually they are $1.79 at Cub or $1.49 at Target; recently they’ve been on sale for $1 so I stock up, plus I had a coupon last week for $1 off 5! (Coupons kind of ARE a hobby of mine.)

MultiGrain Cheerios: The idea that Cheerios are good for you is nothing new (take the non-challenge!). My historic flavor of choice has been Honey Nut Cheerios, but I've switch to MultiGrain because a serving size of MGC is 1 cup, which has 110 calories, 1 g fat, and 3 g fiber; a serving size of HNC is 3/4 cup, with 110 calories, 1.5 g fat, and 2 g fiber. Both are 2 WW points, so not that much in the end, but i can make my bowl a little fuller with the MGC, and they are still a little sweet. But I can't forget to mention new Chocolate Cheerios!! seriously General Mills, what took you so long to come out with those?? Three-fourths of a cup of those is only 100 cals! more sugar of course, and less fiber, but it's like grown-up, healthy CocoaPuffs. awesomeness in a bowl.

Fuji Apple: My off-season apple of choice! They are consistently $1.49 a pound, and they are sweet and firm and big. My favorite even before I became a fan of Hungry Girl, who worships Fujis like...well i don't know like what. But there is an entire chapter in her second book devoted to recipes featuring Fujis. During the summer, I go for local creations Honeycrisps, especially if they are cheap.

Baby carrots: The candy bar of the veggie world? probably. I have to have a bag of these on hand to snack on while I'm preparing dinner (so I don't go for cookies or chips or something). I usually bite a stick in half and give my dog the other half! She goes crazy when she hears the plastic bag russling.

Special K crackers: Great with soup for lunch or dinner! Show here is the Italian Tomato and Herb, which I prefer, but the Multi-Grain are good too. 24 crackers has 120 cals, 2 g fiber, and 2 WW points. I always thought it was dumb that crackers claiming to be "whole grain" didn't have much fiber in them, or more fat than necessary. So these have replaced WheatThins and even Triscuits in my cupboard.

Garden of Eatin' Baked Blue Tortilla chips: Love these! not greasy, and just the right amount of salt. they happen to be organic, so they are in the special organic foods section, not with the chips. right now on the website you can get a coupon for a dollar off! I just printed it! I hope it doesn't expire soon because as you can see, the bag I have isn't even open yet! oh well, the Super Bowl is in 2 weeks, i'll need chips and dip then. Best with tortilla chips? Salsa. no Points. forget cheese, put it on a quesadilla or something.

Airborne Health Supplements: My dad left these at my house once, and i kept them for a long time before I tried them. you drop the pill in a glass of water (like an Alka-Seltzer) and it fizzes like pop and makes it yummy. sometimes it is my morning juice. It's an easy way to get extra vitamins and minerals to prevent illness, and it doesn't upset my tummy like my multivitamin does if i don't take it with food. The flavors I've tried are original orange and lemon-lime; i like both. Also out there is pink grapefruit.

Banana: you've probably seen these before! I used to get the biggest ones i could find, but those are 2 WW points, so now i get small-to-medium sized, so i can count them as 1 point. If they get too ripe, i toss 'em in the freezer to keep on hand for bread or muffins!

Newer snackies:

Smartfood popcorn clusters: i noticed these near the Baked Lays in the chip/cookie/cracker aisle at Cub today (they are also made by FritoLay) and gave them a look-see, and after calculating the points, i was IN! One "purse pouch" of the Honey flavor has 110 cals and 5 grams of fiber = 1 point!!! and they taste good too!

WeightWatchers lemon creme cakes: Okay, they aren't exactly "nutritious," but they are portion-controlled cakes for when i'm craving cake! This is my second box; i took most of the first to work as part of my snack stash (along with chocolate-roasted almonds, i should have put those in this picture!).

JollyTime popcorn: I had a coupon! and they put the points value right on the front! although, it is kind of universally accepted that if it's a light microwave popcorn, you can pretty much eat the entire bag for like 2 points. corn's a VEGETABLE, people. So it's a very good snack when i want to eat a lot of something (as long as i don't burn the bag, stupid tiny microwave...).

So those are just a few foods i enjoy! Try 'em, you'll like 'em!

#9. Skiing

2010-01-16T14:38:00.001-08:00

I said i'd write about skiing when I was on the computer that had all my old and new skiing pictures. well here I am.
Why? It's fun, and I'm good at it.
How long? I first skied when i was seven, in Big Sky, Montana. After we moved to SD when I was 8, we skied in the Black Hills a lot, and every January took a week-long vacation somewhere out west, usually Colorado. So that's how I learned.
Here's some pictures through the years.

2003: Steamboat used to have bubbles over some of their chairs. I miss them.
2005: At the base at Copper Mountain.
2007: Holly and I at the Steamboat Gondola base.
2008: On the slopes at Copper.
2009 (the trip over New Years 2010): Steamboat, on the Morningside Lift, the morning it was freezing rain! my goggles got all icy. You can see this year I got a new coat, and used mom's Camelback water pack a couple of days.

If you want to see pictures from 2000-2003, visit my old Angelfire website. Sorry if some of the links are broken.

Random stuff

2010-01-08T20:44:00.000-08:00

I've been intending to write a post about a specific hobby (skiing, since our annual family ski vaca was last week), but the pictures are on my other computer, and it's cold down there, so I'll just write about other stuff on my mind.

Been watching lots of Food Network recently. Just watched the Good Eats about soybeans, although mostly edamame. I generally don't like edamame, but he made a hummus-type dip out of them that sounds interesting. Also, became a fan of Alton on Facebook and people mentioned his show from Monday was about how he lost 50 pounds without going on a diet. The episode, Live and Let Diet, is going to air again on Jan. 14 at 10 pm (Central time). I've already set my DVR. This is why I like Weight Watcher's mantra: it's not a diet, it's a way of life! Sometimes it's hard to resist the foods that taste so good to me (chocolate! cookies! chips!) but you'll love yourself more in the long run (for a longer time) if you eat healthier foods now. I'm trying to avoid of future of high blood pressure, bypass surgery, drug eluding stents, and Lipitor while I still have control. My annual physical is set for February, so I'm hoping that my cholesterol is below the high-risk level again!
I bought some packets of yeast (had a coupon, of course), and I think I'll make this recipe for Honey bread eventually. Tonight I got back into my baking groove with "Healthified" Oatmeal Peanut Butter Banana Breakfast Cookies (quite the name). even though it was about 9 pm I had to have one, and mmm. it calls for "natural" PB (no sugar or salt added), but natural PB as the same nutritionals as regular PB, so i say, just use what ya got. I wonder if could half the 1/2 cup of PB it calls for and use 1/4 c. of Better 'n PB, and less honey?
Got an idea for a video addition that maybe amanda and I could do together: Drunken Baking. Would anyone find that amusing? everything's funnier when you've had a few, especially things that involve sharp knives and hot ovens...
Other Amanda (no blog) has become a knitter! she has completed half of a set of wristlets. Here's a pattern from Joann's using circular double-pointed needles. My next challenge in knitting might be socks. Need to get a good pattern and the right supplies first, already got some bamboo yarn.
I accomplished a lot of knitting for the holidays. I made my sister a bulky black scarf (finished it on Christmas Eve!), hats for 3 people (and they all liked them! I was so happy!), a coffee cozy for Jen P, and I gave someone the white scarf I worked on last summer (instead of giving it to Project WarmHearts). So I have a completed black scarf to give away, and I'm halfway done with a thick grey scarf that I think a guy would like. But tomorrow I'm going to browse the Joann superstore in Maplewood...I received a crocheting calendar for christmas (I told mom to buy it for me) and there's a pattern for an afghan that struck my fancy, but it takes 15 skeins of moderately-priced yarn, so I'm not sure if I should plunge into that or start with something simplier. Someone at my work just had a preemie (4 weeks early, on my sister's birthday actually), maybe I'll knit him a baby cap!
Got a busy day planned tomorrow. Shopping at Joann's (for the aforementioned yarn, and maybe the new yarn by the Stitch 'n Bitch author, and i want to feel the new Hometown yarn, maybe make some maroon and gold scarves and hats...or just use the Minneapolis yarn, it's purple, in honor of Prince, I'd imagine), Joe's sporting goods (looking for stuff on sale), Half-Price books (for cheap 2010 calendars, a daily planner for food, activity, and events tracking, and any Charlene Harris books for cheap), Petsmart (to return the crappy booties i got and to get some pet-safe ice melt), and then to see Youth in Revolt at Rosedale with Rhi! and THEN, going to A Night at the Oscars at the orchestra with Jen P!

Now i'd better take the dog out to potty and get to bed!

#6.2 Music: Top Albums of 2009

2009-12-05T17:59:00.000-08:00

Music is kind of the center of my life. some songs are just...perfect. they make me dance, sing, change my mood... discovering a new band or singer that I fall in love with is one of the greatest things. the only thing better than a song I love is an album I love. asking me to pick a favorite song off some albums would be like making me pick my favorite child...if i had children. Music is sometimes the only thing keeping me from going off the deep end at work. but then i slap on my headphones, crank up the tunes, and bliss out. everyone's voices are gone, it's just me and my work. Every year I think, "this year had the greatest music!" and then the next year comes along and tops it! So, here are my favorite albums of 2009. If you haven't heard them, I recommend you get on iTunes RIGHT NOW and have a listen, and click "buy album." you won't regret it!

(note: I resist ranking my favorites. I love them all equally. And I don't restrict myself to 10...usually I go all the way to 20.)

Gossip: Music for Men
Dancey awesomeness. Kind of like new Gloria Gaynor ballads. Think "it's raining men" (which was by the Weather Girls, i know, but you know what i mean.) Stand-out songs: Dimestore Diamond; Heavy Cross; Love Long Distance

Metric: Fantasies
Past Metric songs and albums were good...this one, their fourth, is just a culmination of everything good they've done before...times 10. this show was awesome (the parts I remember!); Emily Haines is a tiny powerhouse. Stand-out Songs: Help I'm Alive (the original version is great; the piano version is EVEN BETTER); Collect Call (this summer it seemed like this song was on the Current every single time I was in the car. in fact, driving to work one day I said to myself "they're going to play Collect Call next. and they did. no prewarning. but you know what, i didn't mind!); Stadium Love; Gimme Sympathy ("who'd you rather be, the Beatles or the Rolling Stones?"); and Satellite Mind (i just listed half the album).

Dirty Projectors: Bitte Orca
What the hell kind of album title is that? who cares! I love bands that mix male and female lead singers. this one has TWO lady singers! and great guitars! this band was created for my benefit! Standout songs: Cannibal Resource; The Stillness is the Move; Useful Chamber (to hear them sing "Bitte Orca, Orca Bitte!" in the middle)

Mason Jennings: Blood of Man
Previous Mason Jennings albums have not been my cup of tea. I always thought he sounded too much like Bob Dylan, and I can't stand the whiny voice singing. This album just went someplace different. someplace very dark and sad, and that always makes for great tunes. Standout songs: The Field; Pittsburgh

Yeah Yeah Yeahs: It's Blitz!
This album doesn't try too hard to do anything fancy, or get very deep. Previous YYY albums did, and we don't need more of that. This album does its job of getting me pumped for exercising, though. Standout songs: Zero; Heads will Roll; Hysteric

White Lies: To Lose My Life...
Just your standard indie rock band, with very catch songs. saw them open for KoL. Standouts: Death; To Lose my Life; Fairwell to the Fairgrounds

XX: Xx
What an original title. I've only listened to this album a couple of times, but i remember being very impressed. It's hard to describe...kind of moody electronica, with a male and female singer. Good tunes to listen to when you are trying to fall asleep. Standout songs: Crystalized (I always think this is an Interpol song when it starts); Islands; Heart Skipped a Beat

The Big Pink: A Brief History of Love
This thing is epic. i just wish they had picked a different name for their band. Standouts: Crystal Visions; Dominos, of course (got ton of radio play)

Discovery: LP
Vampire Weekend + Ra Ra Riot + Dirty Projectors. and it sounds like none of those bands! my biggest complaint about solo or side projects is they usually sound a lot like the main act. not so with Discovery! Standouts: Orange Shirt (this gets the head bopping and would be great to play in my car if i had good woofers); Osaka Loop Line

Florence + the Machine: Lungs
I almost forgot this one! I was obsessed with this for a while, i put it in my Pick Six! Standouts: Rabbit Heart (Raise it Up); Kiss with a Fist; Hurricane

Phoenix: Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix
I blame that car commercial for getting "1901" stuck in my head so often. but it's still a great song. also Lisztomania...and the whole album. this show, back in June at the Varsity Theater, was definitely the hottest show i attended all year (even hotter than Metric), and definitely the most fun. my only complaint is the album is only 9 songs. i want more!

Silversun Pickups: Swoon
Their sophomore effort was definitely not as good as their debut album, but when an album is that perfect, you can't expect the followup to be as good. but i still have to give them some love. this album has slowly grown on me, especially after the show at the State theater this year. Standouts: No Secrets This Year; Substitution

The Rural Alberta Advantage: Hometowns
I assume they are Canadian?

I'll probably add more as i remember them...

On the other hand, there are a few songs that i love more than the whole album...or i'm too lazy to listen to the whole album and decide if it's worth of a place on the list above. Here are my favorite individual songs.

Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros: Home
I'm not unique in loving this song...it's just so cute and folksy and I love the talking story at the end ("Remember that time you fell outta my window and almost broke your ass?").

Neko Case: People Got Lotta Nerve
"everyone knows i'm a maneater...still you're surprised when i eat ya..." She could sing the phone book and i'd love it!

White Rabbits: Percussion Guns
So energetic!

Eels: Fresh Blood
Kinda evil.

Grizzly Bear: Two Weeks

Peaches: Talk to Me

#8. Knitting

2009-11-21T20:15:00.000-08:00

I took a break from knitting to crochet, but now I'm back at it! I got some ideas for things to make for quick Christmas presents, and things for me! So here's what I've been working on recently.

Coffee Cozy and coaster!

Caribou was selling something like this, and I said, "i can make that!" the cable braid is actually really easy.
Here's the pattern so i can upload it to ravelry:
Caribou reusable coffee clutch

Yarn: Cotton or worsted weight

Needles: 7

Finished size: width: 2.5 inches, Circumference: 9 inches

Cast on 17.

R1 (RS): K2, P2, K9, P2, K2.

R2 (WS): P2, K2, P9, K2, P2.

R3 (Cable row 1): K2, P2, (cable back), K3, P2, K2.

R4: P2, K2, P9, K2, P2.

R5: K2, P2, K9, P2, K2.

R6: P2, K2, P9, K2, P2

R7 (Cable row 2): K2, P2, K3, (cable front), P2, K2.

R8: P2, K2, P9, K2, P2

Repeat rows 1-8 until piece measures 9 inches (end on row 4 or 8). Cast off; leave long end for sewing seam.

Sew ends together with tapestry needle so it forms a loop.

Cable back: slip 3 sts onto cable needle and hold in back; K next three; 3K from cable needle.

Cable front: slip 3 sts onto cable needle and hold in front; K next three; 3K from cable needle.

I knitted a circular coaster based on a washcloth pattern. I'm planning on doing a few more sets like this; the one i did today is varigated pink/white/brown (looks like neopolitan ice cream) in a checkerboard pattern.
(BTW, the creme brule latte from Starbucks is really good.)

Doggie sweater!
I got this pattern on somebody's website/blog, but it doesn't fit Maddie very well. The seam is down the chest, and it's supposed to be sewn together, but it's really hard to get her into sweaters like that. i put some buttons down the front but it's too small. so i need to refine that pattern and try again. probably design one with the buttons down the back.

Hat and scarf!
This is the skinny scarf i was working on during the Fringe festival. i ironed it, and it's supposed to lay flat, but it doesn't want to. oh well. The hat pattern i got off of lionbrand.com. it's a knit 4/purl 4 rubbing. I had the yarn from the amigurumi panda project (that i never finished because i thought it looked like a freaky alien when i sewed the eyes on the head) and it kind of matches the pinky color in my new ski coat. here's a closeup.

Also, this is the white scarf i finished a long time ago and was planning on giving it to Project WarmHearts, but now i might give it as a christmas gift.

Shopping!

2009-11-07T17:01:00.000-08:00

Last week I told myself I wasn't going to spend any money on myself until after Christmas (with the exception of the day after Thanksgiving sales, of course). but then i happened to go to a few stores...and i needed a few things...and they were on SALE!... So here's me modeling what I brought home.

On Friday, after bowling in Blaine, we stopped at the Kohl's. I was looking for a new black purse for the winter. I got a Nine & Co. purse, a wallet to go with it, a colorful clutch wallet (for concerts and such) and a cute sweater! all on sale. (i love my manikin pose.)

on Saturday, we (we being my mom, sister, and I) went to the "original" sewing and quilting expo at the convention center. I managed to not buy anything (although I did find the ONE booth with yarn and drooled over their baby alpaca yarn); mom resisted buying a $160 iron. so victory on that front. then we went down to the Local for lunch (i said "Screw the Points!" and ate a Reuben and fries) and wandered down Nicollet Mall just to see what there was to see. we went into the Saks 5th Ave Outlet and were tempted by some gorgeous cashmere sweaters, cute dresses, and tasty leather jackets. but instead we went across the street to Marshall's! they have Calvin Klein and Michael Kors too, so it's practically the same the same store. I scavenged the dresses and bought...
a grey and black cotton dress ($25!) and two pairs of tights! Yay for work clothes.
Then, back to the convention center for the Ski and Snowboard Expo. I decided a while ago I wanted to buy a new coat for skiing this year (as my current coat is a little big now). in the Hoigart's "store," I tried on a couple and the first one was my favorite!

(ski pose)

What sold this coat was the cuffs with the thumb holes. that's going to keep my wrists warm and dry on the slopes! we thought the design was pretty unique (it sucks to see someone with your same coat when you're skiing, it's like prom dresses). now i need some cranberry-colored accessories! i'll have to look at yarn tomorrow...

Recipe: Pumpkin Banana Bread

2009-10-22T20:22:00.000-07:00

Ingredients:
3 ripe medium bananas (or 2 large), mashed (The bread won’t taste like banana in the end.)
1 1/3 c. canned pumpkin puree
½ c. egg substitute (or 2 eggs)
1/3 c. unsweetened applesauce (Or 1/3 c. vegetable oil, but why would you want all that fat?)
1 tsp. vanilla
¼ c. honey
¼ c. molasses (Measure honey and molassas together in a ½ c. measuring cup)
½ c. Splenda or white sugar (I could barely taste the Splenda)

1 c. wheat flour
1 c. all-purpose flour
½ c. wheat bran (If you don’t have wheat bran, use 1 ½ c. wheat flour total)

1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt
2 tsp. cinnamon
½ tsp. nutmeg
½ tsp. ginger
¼ tsp. all spice
(The original recipe called for 2 tsp pumpkin pie spice and 1 tsp cinnamon, but I don’t have pie spice and I like a lot more spice in my bread!)
¼ c. chopped dried cranberries (or raisins or chocolate chips or nuts)

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Grease a bundt pan or 2 bread pans.
2. In a large bowl, blend the bananas and pumpkin puree with a mixer (I pureed them in a
blender, but an electric mixer would do the same job). Blend in the eggs (or substitute),
applesauce, honey, molasses, vanilla, and Splenda/sugar.
3. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, wheat bran, baking powder, baking soda, salt,
spices, and chopped dried fruit (mixing with flour makes them less likely to clump
together in the wet mixture).
4. Stir the dry mix into the wet mixture until just combined. Fold in the chips or nuts if
desired. Spoon batter into the prepared pan(s).
5. Bake at 325 F for 60 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool in pan for 10
minutes, then on wire rack.

Servings: if you cut the bread into thinner slices, about 16; thick slices, 12.

#7. Volunteering/Apple Orcharding

2009-10-19T17:11:00.000-07:00

I love hybrid hobbies!
Why volunteering? it's the cheapest way to give back! i'm not a particularly...let's say caring person, but I figure, I have the time and means to help out less people, so I should! and so should you! It helps a lot that my employer actively encourages us to volunteer (you can volunteer during the work day and not take vaca, assuming your manager is okay with it). I think it would be cool to work for the Medtronic Foundation. Through Medtronic, I've assembled furniture donated by Target to be given to Bridging (i have pictures of that, but i'm not in them!), been a Bridging "Shopper," been a Reading Buddy to a elementary school student...other stuff too. you get the idea. last MLK day, I signed up to help out at Second Harvest Heartland (we ended up addressing envelopes to donors, not what I expected), and now i get emails from them. on Friday, I got an email saying they urgently needed people to harvest apples at an orchard on Saturday, and the apples would be donated to Second Harvest, who'd get them to hungry Minnesotans. So figured, sure, why not! Amanda from work and my friend Jen wanted to come along too! so at 8 am on a Saturday (earlier than i normally leave the house on a weekday), we set out to Delano! which is about an hour away from St. Paul.
Here's my advice for apple gleaning at 9 am in the middle of October: warm gloves (waterproof would be great); shoes you don't mind getting wet and muddy; layers; sunglasses; a strong back.

We signed the waivers and got our bags.
jen and i don't look so enthused. let's improve this photo...
much better! Then it was a caravan off to the orchard (I was in the lead!).
There were many, many trees. the rows just kept going! i think we mostly picked Regents. when we got hungry, we each sampled one. quite tasty, fresh off the tree! the owner said if the 40 or so of us (and probably 50 in the afternoon) didn't come out to pick the apples, they would have just been wasted. which i find strange, that an orchard would let that profit go to waste...but whatever!
we only were allowed to pick the apples that we could reach (or get to by pulling branches down), but there were still plenty out there. i don't know how many times i emptied my bag.
I must have it!!!
Some random people emptying their bags in a tote. we counted at least 10 full totes when we left!
After all that walking and hauling and thawing out my fingers (but TOTALLY worth it to help people without actually having interact with them), we wuz hungry! back to Apple Jack Orchard for some lunch. it was considerably busier at noon than at 9. can you say CHILDREN?!? EVERYWHERE?!?
my last bite of a "Sloppy Jack," ie, BBQ pulled pork sandwich. i also had an apple pullapart, which i thought i would share with the other girls, but then it was SOOOO good i ate most of it myself!

Next Saturday is Make a Difference Day, so if you are participating in a volunteering activity, register it on the site!

#3.2 Cooking

2009-10-06T19:11:00.001-07:00

This weekend I decided to make something with the shrimp in my freezer. thus, Spicy Lime Shrimp Tacos were invented. I got some ideas from recipes on allrecipes.com.
Obligatory "assemble all the ingredients" post.

WAAAAAAAY too much shrimp (amanda had two bags in her freezer and since she's a veg now, she wanted to get rid of it), zucchini, squash, onion, peppers, limes, cayenne pepper (used chili powder too), lite soy sauce, can o' corn. sooo....let's see where this goes.

Juicin' the lime.
IT'S A LIME!!!!!!!!!!!!!
i'm a hand model!
Jen made spanish rice (sadly, not vegetarian, which i kind of thought was implied in rice, but whatev) and I actually put the shrimp in a serving dish! I made a non-shrimp version for amanda.
Assembled with cheese, tomatoes, and lettuce, on a whole wheat tortilla!

Amanda says "yum!"
Jen gives it a thumbs up! or maybe 3/4 of a thumbs up.

Then we watched THE TWINS WIN THE CENTRAL DIVISION and Amanda wrote a post too :D. but i totally posted mine FIRST!
I will be submitting my "original" "recipe" to jen at priorfatgirl's e-cookbook! you can submit one too! or sign up to get the cookbook when it comes out!

#5.2 Lazy Baking

2009-10-03T18:35:00.000-07:00

I usually bake from scratch these days, but there's nothing wrong with using a bag or box of mix occasionally! or most of the time. or all the time. plenty of things are definitely better from a mix (cake, for sure) and always easier. Last Tuesday, I made two mixes that had been sitting in my cupboard in a while, taking up space, and i decided now was finally the time to whip them up. and i took pictures. these are those pictures. (DUNG DUNG) (law and order)

For Jen E's poker night, i made up the Tiramisu kit that my boss had given me as a housewarming gift (let's pretend i haven't lived in my house for two years, k?). The reason i hadn't made it up until this point were some of the ingredients: coffee and amaretto. i have since acquired some instant coffee, for the occasional visitor who wants some, and decided to buy some amaretto. (Jen P's hot chocolate at the orchestra last weekend may have had something to do with that! also, it's good in coke. or just about anything, we decided.) The other ingredient was milk, so i got some of that and here we go!
Lady fingers, coffee+amaretto, and the Disaronna! and the pretty purple box.

Whipping the milk with the powder. it is hard to do this while taking a picture. make sure you whip at the highest speed to get the right consistency!

Cream filling applied and cocoa powder sifted on top!
It turned out well. i'm eating the leftovers right now. mmm...

I also made up the blueberry VitaMuffin mix!
They look totally boring (it suggests garnishing with fresh blueberries, but i didn't buy any), but they are totally good and fibery. a good alternative to Vitatops if you don't have any room in your freezer for the originals!

Of course, after all this "baking," i'm still left with this:
If it can't go in the dishwasher, it usually sits in my sink until i get the motivation to wash by hand. fortunately, most things can go in the DW!

The next hobby will be...knitting or simming.

#6. Concerts

2009-09-29T18:39:00.000-07:00

This was a big concert weekend! I'm just going to get right to the pictures.

Saturday: Minnesota Orchestra: Tchaikovsky's Sleeping Beauty (and some other Russian stuff)

I don't have any pics of the orchestra, of course, because the old people would have gotten grumpy and thrown us out. So here's me and Jen drinking at intermission.
Amaretto Hot chocolate, delicious!

Red wine, not as delicious compared to that hot chocolate. we were all tarted up to try to find old rich husbands, but i don't think it's meant to be.

To regain my indie street cred, i had to do something drastic. fortunately, Rhi decided i was most worthy of her extra ticket to Sufjan Stevens (indie God, in our opinion).

Sunday: Sufjan at the 400 Bar

(she took these pics.)

Did I mention we were in the SECOND ROW?!? i could see his individual eyelashes. they are lushious.

Keyboardin'. I loved how they shared instruments...like Suf would play his electric and keyboards in a song; in the same song, the trumpeter would also play keyboard. in another song, the bassist would hand the bass to another guy, and the bassist would play electric, and Suf would play acoustic or banjo. not really any room on that stage for extra instruments!

"We are the handclaps!" if Suf tells you to clap, you clap. you also sing when he says sing, but shut up when HE's singing.

This is my favorite...
Nothing foreign about that body...

(more photos from someone standing next to us)

After the show, Rhi bought a vinyl copy of "Come on, Feel the Illinoise!" and managed to nail him down for his autograph and a picture. you can find that on her Facebook album, "I love Famous People."
So yeah, this show was definitely in my top 5 of all time (rhi's top 10, but she's been to more shows) due to the fact that we were so close; it was so quiet in there; and it's SUFJAN. COME ON. he played a lot of new songs, and usually i hate when bands play songs i don't know, but it was really, really cool because we just watched and listened and were amazed. he was singing a lot of them from lyrics on a music stand, that's how new they were. (or maybe it's more a matter of his songs are REALLY long and it's impossible to remember all those words!) It's hard to pick a favorite Sufjan song, but he did play some of the more popular ones: Casimir Pulaski Day (definitely one of my favorites, although a very sad song); Jacksonville (the most upbeat song of the night); and Chicago to end (a softer version than the original, although the Avalanche album has 4 versions).

And Then...

Monday: Kings of Leon and White Lies

At pretty much the polar opposite in terms of venues: the Target Center! at least Rhi got us some awesome seats (left side, row A).
I took these pics. First, here's White Lies, a band from London that i enjoy.

how color-coordinated. They played for about 45 minutes, including their hits, "Death" and "To Lose My Life," which always gets stuck in my head ("let's go home together....and die at the same time").

Then, the biggest thing to come out of Tennessee since Dolly Parton, KoL!

The set was really cool. Check out YouTube for my vids!!! ...all of "Sex on Fire," people! now i can relive it FOREVER. (Strib review and setlist)

Baking extra

2009-09-16T08:19:00.000-07:00

see more Lolcats and funny pictures

another reason not to have a cat... doggie is quite interested when I bussle around the kitchen, though. things i'm making noms for her!

#2.2 Crocheting

2009-09-04T07:27:00.000-07:00

i TOTALLY told myself i wasn't going to start another project until i finished the 2 scarves i'm working on (knitting one for myself, crocheting one for the Orphan Foundation's Red Scarf project, which I technically haven't started because i'm going to rip out what i've done and make it wider), but i COULD NOT RESIST. this thing is like a borg.

Crochet-along Amigurumi!

I made those two amigurumi dogs, and this looks like fewer pieces, so it shouldn't take as long. now i REALLY need to go to Joann's this weekend and pick up some yarn. i love that place a little TOO much. now i can't wait for it to snow so i have an excuse to stay inside all the time and crochet!

#5. Baking

2009-08-31T19:52:00.000-07:00

It's not just a hobby; it's a way of life. a way of sustaining life, anyway.

How long have I been baking? uh...as long as i can remember? my mom isn't a huge baker in the '50s homemaker kind of way, but i remember helping her make things as a kid. Once i went to college and had my own kitchen, i usually only let there be cookies in the house if i made them myself. i figured if i put effort into it, i deserved to eat it! recently I have started making recipes that are more healthy--less butter and oil mostly, and wheat flour or bran when appropriate. I started trying to experiment and create my own original baked goods this weekend! results vary.

Why? well, it's fun! as mentioned previously, i like to create things. and there's no better outcome of a creation than eating it! i like to share with friends too. especially experimental things...

Let see some pictures! Okay, if you insist.

Pear pie i made in January 2009: my first pastry crust from scratch!
never stays together of course.

i'm sure it was very tasty.

more recently, I had a giant zucchini from a co-worker's garden. i made TWO things out of it: Zucchini brownies and zucchini pineapple muffins! the brownies were amazing because there were no eggs, and i think very little oil. i left the zuke in the food processor too long, and instead of being shredded, it was pureed. but that made the brownie batter easier to pour into the pan. (if you look at the recipe, i left off the frosting.) The zucchini muffins were very moist too; i made them with mostly wheat flour, and half applesauce, half oil. i still have some of them left. I recommend keeping baked goods with fresh ingredients in the fridge, otherwise if left on the counter, they will get moldy (or just stinky) really fast. (in my blogger profile pic, i believe i'm holding up the raspberry chocolate cupcakes i made for a friend's bachelorette party. i brought the extras to work on Monday. By Tuesday or Wednesday, the smell of them made me want to puke. Amanda almost ate one that day. scary but true!)
the zuke muffins are on the left. they look really pale and slightly green in certain light, but definitely not moldy. i hope. a jumbo muffin makes a good breakfast (and is about 4 WW points).
also featured in that picture are some banana bran muffins i made this weekend! some have walnuts, some have blueberries (and some have nothing at all!). i made a half-batch to see how they would taste with my modifications: pineapple juice instead of orange; 1/4 c. applesauce and 1 tbsp oil... i don't remember what else i changed. I put way too many blueberries in. there's more berry than muffin in some. but otherwise, a successful muffin. they bleed their own blue blood.

Hungry Girl Recipe! it's amazingly easy: chocolate cake mix (18 oz box) and pure pumpkin (15 oz). mix. spread in greased pan. cook for a while. tada! brownies. (and a doggie who wants one.)
I first made this for our Fourth of July weekend at the lake. This time i used up some left over cake mix to make them into cupcake brownies. and i shall eat them all.

the REAL experiment was Banana Brownies. i merged the zucchini brownies recipe with another recipe i found online. and tried to make them healthy.
they look pretty standard...
and people have eaten them and not thrown up/died. i used wheat flour, and i probably shouldn't have. they don't taste sweet enough to me.

i think i'll give muffins a rest for a while, then try some other variations... ideas?

----------------
Now playing: Rilo Kiley - Give a Little Love
via FoxyTunes

#4. Theater, specifically Fringe

2009-08-08T21:44:00.000-07:00

oh my, where has the time gone? it's been nearly 2 weeks since i last posted, so what's been keeping me so busy?? Well duh! It's my favorite and craziest 11 days of the year, the Fringe Festival! It is definitely a hobby that I would classify under the larger heading of Theater-going as a hobby.
What is it? Fringe festivals have been around for a while and come from the UK mostly, but they have a big following in North America. this year the MN Fringe had 162 shows, each about an hour long, each performed about 5 times over the 11 days. every performer/theater group who wants to be in the festival gets entered in the Fringe Lottery in the spring and they are randomly selected. there is no jury process to decide who is the best (although sometimes i wish there was, just to get rid of some horrible shows).
How long have I been Fringing? (that's totally a verb, btw. it's also kind of a state of mind...) I believe i first went to some shows in 2005; at least i still have the buttons going back till then. each year i try to go to more shows than the previous year. last year set a very high goal: 19 shows. however, I've seen 18 already, and i'm going to at least 2 tomorrow, so i DID IT!
Why? well why not? it's fun! it's the cheapest way to see a huge range of theater in the shortest amount of time. it's crazy, and it creates a sense of community. This year i decided to volunteer so i'd legitimately earn my free admittance to shows (last year my friend Spencer volunteered a ton so i mooched of of his punch card). I had to buy a punch card too though. And now i feel like i have a right to mingle with the actors and other really involved people at Fringe Central (known the rest of the year as Bedlam Theater in the West Bank). i hung out with Spencer and his girlfriend there last saturday, and we got to talk to 2 of our favorite performers. last night, i hung out with Amanda K and some new people, and we had a great time at the retro dance party, even though it was pouring rain outside. these are ARTSY people, people. they don't care what you wear or how you dance (or how you smell). these are the kinds of people i want to hang out with, if i am forced to do so.
What do I need to know if I, too, wish to fringe? I'm glad you asked! Here's my "survival guide."
1. YOU MUST BUY AND WEAR YOUR BUTTON. it's cute. you can get discounts to shows throughout the year. it's how they make any money!
2. The box office opens 30 mins before the show starts. Buy a 5- or 10-punch card and share it with a friend to save on multiple shows. Go to the BO to redeem your punch for a ticket (or buy a single ticket). People in the rush line (volunteers and performers) get tickets starting 10 minutes before the show.
(used punch cards, trading cards i've collected from Rockstar Storytellers, and show programs so i can remember what i've seen!)
3. some shows are popular and sell out! you can reserve a seat for $1 by going online or calling the number. i'm not going to tell you how to do that.
4. you need some form of speedy transportation if you are going to see back-to-back shows which happen to be in different parts of the city. I recommend seeing a bunch of shows in one area on one day, then shows else where on another. the West Bank is were most of the action is; i've been parking my car at Bedlam the riding my bike (which i brought from home on Day 1 and left in the parking lot all week) to Rarig at the U of M where there are 4 stages, or Mixed Blood, Augsburg (2 stages), Southern, and Playwrights' Center. I saw two shows in Uptown (at Bryant Lake Bowl and Intermedia arts) and made it back just in time for my next shows.
5. Bring something to do! below shows the typical contents of my bookbag: simple knitting project; Book; fringe program; show postcards; bookbag with past buttons (one fell off in the car); ticket stubs; and my constantly revised schedule.
the only drawback to fringing is you never get enough sleep! but who needs it. next year i'm going to try to be a house manager and take the whole time off from work so i can stay up late every night and sleep late every morning!(me, volunteering on Friday, with super-fake-smile Spencer, Kristin, volunteer coordinator/performer Allegra, and Peter. i'm holding a hold puncher! most important tool of the trade.)

#3. Cooking

2009-07-28T07:44:00.001-07:00

This is an impromptu post, so that i can enter a contest. :D Weight-loss inspiration and occasional lunch-buddy Jen is giving away a cookbook and apron at her website, Prior Fat Girl. my co-worker Amanda has started her own blog within Jen's empire. so i get to hear a lot about them.

How long have i been cooking? Well, my mom always made us help her cook dinner. she always made it look so easy and everything was ready to put on the table at the same time. I think she had many years of practice. when i try to make more than one thing at once, though, it seems the potatoes are done 15 mins before the meat or veggies, so I leave them in the oven to keep warm, but they dry out, and so on and so forth. (it doesn't help when the person i've invited over for dinner is 30 minutes LATE!) I like baking better, but that's a future post.

Why? I, like most people, have to eat. and sometimes, I like to make something more than soup or a sandwich. Generally things I cook for dinner are semi-disasters, which is why i stick to spaghetti or chicken fajitas.

#2. Crocheting

2009-07-22T21:49:00.000-07:00

Actually, I’ve been knitting longer than I’ve been crocheting, but a recent event prompted me to describe this hobby first.
How long have I been crocheting? I can recall as a kid making a really long crochet chain, but not being able to handle the second row. A couple years ago I bought one of the “I can’t believe I’m _____ing!” books, this one on crocheting of course, and taught myself how to do more than just the single chain (single crochet, double, half double, etc). More recently, members of our knit and crochet group at work inspired me to pick up a crochet hook and give a real project a try. The first thing I made was a washcloth. I gave it away ($1 for the Medtronic Foundation!). Then I was ready for something more ambitious. I had to try the pattern for “Barkus the Dog” from Lion Brand Yarns. I used a different yarn than they recommended because I’ve used Homespun for knitted things and I really hate it after a while. I used Jiffy instead, it was the same weight (5). I worked hard at it while I was at my parent’s house for Memorial Day weekend. It came together pretty good. The hardest part was sewing the head onto the body. Maybe I overstuffed him. Here he is next to my real life doggie.

Next up: another dog for my boss (she said she’d pay me, how much should I charge?) and a then a red and green sparkly Christmas stocking!
Why? I can’t just sit and do one thing! I have to keep my hands busy while I’m watching tv or a baseball game. Also I like to create things (that may be the theme to my hobbies), whether I use them myself or give them away, it doesn’t matter. I usually give my creations to a volunteer group at my work called Project Warm Hearts. They collect clothing, scarves, mittens, hats, afghans, and so on that people have crocheted or knitted and give them to local charities like Bridging (http://bridging.org/, which I’ve also volunteered for) and Alexandria House (http://www.alexandriahouse.org/).

Related links: There is currently an exhibit at the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis called “The Quick and the Dead.” I have no idea what it’s about, but included are crocheted representations of hyperbolic space. They look like jellyfish or sea coral to me, but you can take a workshop at the Walker on July 30 and make one yourself! Woo! http://calendar.walkerart.org/event.wac?id=5111

Caption challenge: Fill in the blank: “I can’t believe I’m _____ing!” bonus points if you include a photo of yourself doing it! keep it clean though.

#1: Blogging

2009-07-15T20:50:00.000-07:00

A blog about blogging? it seems to be. I had this idea not too long ago, to have a blog with a theme, rather than just about my life (because having a xanga and livejournal wasn't enough). I aspire to put more thought and effort into these posts so it's not just me rambling, although i can't help it sometimes. I'm going to try to have a similar structure to each post (see below).

How long have I done this hobby? I've been blogging since 2001, when i got my first computer as a HS graduation gift and first started at xanga.com/shelly327.

Why? I need to get my thoughts on paper (albeit electronic) sometimes, and why not let the entire world see them?

future topics include gardening, baking, knitting/crocheting/other crafts, skiing, reading, playing volleyball, simming, and whatever else i realize i do that's a hobby.