Apocalypse Meow

French Toast Cake

2010-10-26T13:47:00.000-07:00

This year, The Ol’ Man had to work all day on his birthday, which was a total drag. But, to make the drag less heavy, I tried my hand at a yummy recipe I found on Confections of a Food Bride. You see, the Ol’ Man just loves French toast. He also loves cake. Why not put the two together? My concoction varies slightly from the Food Bride’s in that I only used heavy cream. I didn’t substitute regular-ass milk into it. I also skipped the part about caramelizing the sugar as I do not have a kitchen blow torch, although I kind of wish I did. I just dusted it with powdered sugar and it tasted amazing. Lastly, I used store-bought thick white bread instead of homemade Challah bread. This simple recipe would be a great treat for visiting family this Thanksgiving.

Ingredients
1 loaf thick white bread (AKA French Toast Bread)
4 egg yolks
2 cups heavy cream
2 TBSP sugar, divided
pinch of salt
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp cinnamon
¼ cup powdered sugar

Directions
Do this part the night before for best results.

Grease a 9-inch round cake pan

Cut bread into 1-inch cubes and leave on a baking sheet to dry out for a few hours. Go watch a movie or something.

Place cubes in a large bowl.

Whisk egg yolks, half and half, 2 Tbsp sugar, salt, vanilla, and cinnamon until well combined and pour over bread. Toss until all liquid is absorbed. Pour into the prepared pan and lightly press down on the bread to spread evenly.

Wake up about a half an hour before everyone else to bake.
Preheat oven to 325. Bake the French toast cake for 25-30 minutes, until browned. Run a knife around the edge of the pan and remove the rim. Evenly sprinkle powdered sugar over the top. Cut into 6-8 wedges and serve warm, with maple syrup.

Serves 6-8

Crochet Pumpkin

2010-10-11T12:54:00.000-07:00

There is no better way to re-start the crafting fun here at Apocalypse Meow then with a bit of Halloween fun!
I found a cute pattern for a very simple pumpkin at Lion Brand’s website. I wanted to make some pumpkins of varying sizes though, so I created a crochet pattern for a slightly larger one. I think it turned out pretty good! Give it a try. It is really simple.

Cute Pumpkin

Body
Chain 2
Row 1: SC 10 in first chain. Place stitch marker
Row 2: Two SC in each SC around (20 SC total). Move stitch marker to last stitch in round (repeat after each round).
Row 3: Two SC in each SC around (40 SC total)
Row 4: *SC three, two SC in next SC*. Repeat from * to end of round. (50 SC total)
Row 5-16: SC around.
Row 17: *SC three, SC2Together.* Repeat from * to end of round (40 SC total)
Row 18: SC2Together around (20 SC total)
Row 19: SC2Together around (10 SC total. Stuff pumpkin with Polyfill or other cotton stuffing. Cram that stuff in there, as much as you can!
Row 20: SC2Together around (5 SC total)
Bind off, weave in ends.

Stem
Chain 2
Row 1: SC 5 in first chain. Place stitch marker
Row 2: SC in front of stitch around. Move stitch marker to last stitch in round (repeat after each round).
Row 3-5: SC around
Bind off, leave a long tail to sew stem to pumpkin. Sew stem to top of pumpkin, weave in ends

Please note: I’m writing this pattern off the top of my head, so please forgive any inaccuracies.

We aren't dead!

2010-10-08T10:15:00.000-07:00

Dearest blog,

So sorry about abandoning you. Things have been crazy busy around these parts. I promise to try to keep the love alive and post again more frequently. Please don't be mad. Lory and I love you.

heart, kb

P.S.
I love this song and can't stop listening to it. Just thought I would share!

Jenny and Johnny - First Listen

2010-08-24T11:09:00.000-07:00

Jenny and Johnny, aka Jenny Lewis and Johnathan Rice, are getting ready to release their first duet album together titled, " I'm Having Fun Now ". Yesterday NPR Music has begun to stream the album in it's entirety and I have been listening non-stop! The record sounds totally awesome. A perfect marriage of the two performers, awesome melodies, perfect harmonies, catchy pop tunes without the fake smiles and noxious auto-tuning. My only complaint about the record is that it is being released on the last day of August - the end of summer - when it has all the things anyone could ask for in a fun-loving-good-time-rock n'roll-summer-time album. I guess I better hope the rock n' roll groundhog climbs out of his hole only to be frightened by his shadow and grant us 6 more weeks of Summer thus 6 more weeks of Summer-time tunes.....or something like that....

Anyways,
Listen HERE
I can't stop listening to THIS song!

Alley Philosophies....

2010-08-23T09:23:00.000-07:00

This is how I feel on Monday mornings.

This is Jeff O's photo btw.

Easy Camera Bag Pattern

2010-08-20T14:04:00.000-07:00

I recently bought myself a new digital camera. My previous one was six plus years old, so I decided it was time for an upgrade, especially on the day that the Casio Exilim went on sale on Woot.com. My new toy was about half the size of its ancient predecessor, so I needed a new camera bag. Anyone who knows me knows that I tend to store my small electronic devices in a sock until something better comes along.

Working without a pattern, I decided that I’d try out this fancy yarn I bought about a year ago. At about $10 per skein, Tango by Universal Brand Yarn makes a self-ruffling yarn that is a cinch to use, if you have a bit of patience. I was prompted by the sales clerk when I purchased the yarn that you are supposed to stick the knitting needle through the middle of the yarn and knit within the webbing (wow, it is a lot harder to describe what I am talking about than I realized!). The Lion Brand Yarn website has a fairly comprehensive how-to guide for knitting with self-ruffling yarn.

Anywho… here are my instructions, from memory, not a professional pattern by any means:

Ruffled Camera Bag (Fits Casio Exilim Camera)

Ingredients:
1 Skein Tango Self-Ruffling Yarn (22 yards/50 grams)
Matching, DK Weight, Non-ruffling Yarn for sewing the edges and the Strap (use one of your stash scraps)
Size 4 Knitting Needles
Size G Crochet Needle
Embroidery Needle
Sewing needle
Matching Color Sewing Thread
Complimentary Style/Colored Button

Pattern:

The Bag- Knit
Cast On 15 (wrap entire yarn ribbon around needle, do not implement ruffling affect)
Knit 18 rows in Garter Stitch using the ruffling method (No need for fancy knit stitches)
Cast Off
Sew in ends.
Fold in half, right sides touching, and sew the long edges together with a matching DK weight yarn. Sew in ends. Flip bag inside-out so that right sides are now on the outside and sewn edges are hidden.

The Strap- Crochet
Chain 12
Row 1: Insert hook into 3rd chain from hook . Single crochet across. Chain 2. Turn.
Row 2-12: *Insert hook into back of stitch and single crochet (This makes a “ribbing” pattern). Repeat from * until end of row. Chain 2. Turn.
Row 13/Button Hole: Single crochet 5. Chain 2 (more if your button is bigger). Skip next single crochet (skip 2 if your button is bigger). Single crochet across. Chain 2. Turn.
Row 15-16: *Insert hook into back of stitch and single crochet. Repeat from * until end of row. Chain 2. Turn.
Row 19: Cast off (wrap entire yarn ribbon around needle, do not implement ruffling affect)
Sew one side of the strap into the inside of the bag at the second row from the top.
Using sewing thread and sewing needle, sew button onto the bag, centered and approximately 3 rows from the top. Using yarn to attach the button is nearly impossible, sewing thread is better.

Sew Shoe Me Shop Update!!!

2010-08-13T13:05:00.000-07:00

New items have been posted and many more to come! Check it out!

funny.

2010-08-11T15:06:00.000-07:00

Lory took these photos of Jeff and I each holding the same 32 oz bottle of Miller High Life. He's 6'7, I'm 5'3. Pretty funny.

Big Bend Camping = Big Fun Camping

2010-08-11T11:15:00.000-07:00

Yet another summer camping trip has been completed. At the behest of some of our friends that didn’t make it to previous camping trips, Kortnee booked a group site in the Tahoe National Forrest, to which I immediately said, “No way, that’s too cold!” and she subsequently told me to stop acting like a baby and grow a pair. I never grew a pair, but I did manage to procure some snow gear from a Tahoe-local friend of mine. With parka and snow pants in hand, we drove 5,000 feet up to one of the most beautiful spots I’ve ever camped, Big Bend Group off the Yuba River.

We played dice games and chess games (I didn’t lose to Ted). We ate steak and campfire balls (Kortnee’s camping specialty). We drank beer and whiskey. Our friend, Jeff O brought all of his own freeze dried food to test out his backpacking gear. His Jet Boil was an amazing contraption. I want one for myself. We spent an afternoon at Donner Lake and an evening stargazing (my favorite part of the trip). The Ol’ Man and I failed at setting up our new 20-man tent cabin (in our defense, there were no instructions, or even a picture of what it should look like). There was much napping and good times had.

Pros:

Far away from any main family camp area so there was no threat of harassment from rangers for being too loud.

The site was literally right next to the Yuba River. With just the slightest bit of effort, one could find a good spot to swim.

Weather was extraordinarily beautiful. It did not seem like we were in the mountains. The nights were even reasonable. I didn’t need the snow pants, but the parka was a life saver.

It was only five or so miles from Donner Lake. Kortnee & Ted even rented a Kayak for an hour.

No serious animal invasion situation. We saw some mangy squirrels, but that was about it. There were bear warnings, but the ranger assured us that it was very rare for them to wander into that area.

Cons:

Right next to the 80 freeway, so the sound of cars rushing by was hard to ignore at three in the morning.

Vaulted toilets smelled horrible in the morning, and was so strong, the stench wafted into our campsite, making breakfast smell like a dead dog that had been decomposing in someone’s ass (sorry for the description, but it was REALLY stinky).

That being said, it was still an amazing and beautiful camping trip, filled with friends, food and booze. That makes three camping trips down and one to go.

Good night camping, love Lory & Kortnee.

We're off to the Mountains!

2010-08-06T09:37:00.001-07:00

We'll return with adventurous stories, full camping bellies and maybe a couple of photos.

Have a great weekend!

My Mom is The Best!

2010-08-02T12:01:00.000-07:00

I just have to tell this story, even though pretty much all of my friends have heard it already.

I was eight. It was third grade. Annie, the movie, had released that summer to great fanfare. Red and white Annie dresses were in the girl’s clothing section of every department store in America. Little girls in red and white dresses were dotting the streets of my home town. I wanted one. I wanted an Annie dress so bad I could taste it. But, they were expensive. We couldn’t afford it. Like any crafty and resourceful mom, mine decided to make me one. We could afford that. Mom was a wiz on the sewing machine. She hand-made Cabbage Patch- style dolls for myself and each of my female cousins on year for Christmas. She made mine and my brother’s Halloween costumes every year. One year, I was a lamb and my mom sewed hundreds of cotton balls to my leotards and made me a lamb’s hat out of a cut up milk carton. Brilliant!

Anyway, she made me the best Annie dress a girl could have. It was perfect! I thought I looked exactly like the orphan waif in my new red and white rags. I even had my own matching heart-shaped locket. I wore that dress every single day, all summer long. I was the bee’s knees.

And then, school started and third graders are sadistic. My dress was considered less than adequate because it was hand-made instead of store bought. I was laughed at for having a “fake” Annie dress. Musings of my financial status were discussed with vicious delight. I was ridiculed and shunned. My heart was broken. I was ashamed.

Crushed and defeated, I slunk home to mom and relayed the horrors of my day to her, tears streaming down my face and my dress crumpled tightly in my dirty, sweaty hand (I took it off the second I walked in the front door). Mom, with her nurturing insight, spoke only one sentence that renewed my love of the dress all over again. The next day that I wore my Annie dress to school, my resolve was strong and my confidence was high. When my callous classmates began their relentless taunting again, I responded with the wisdom of my mother’s words, “My dress is more real than yours. Annie would never have worn a dress with her own name printed on it.” Take that, you heartless monsters!

I love you Mom, and Happy Birthday!

Featured on ETSY!

2010-07-28T11:44:00.000-07:00

I got a convo on Etsy from Mills Design Co. saying she featured my shop on her Treasury!

I didn't know what that meant but I was excited anyways. I did a little poking around and learned that treasuries on etsy.com are "member curated shopping galleries".

Sounds good to me! She featured a pair of shoes from my shop alongside some of her site-wide favorites. It's totally awesome! Check it Out!!!!!

Rock N' Roll Clothing Swap

2010-07-28T11:03:00.000-07:00

Amid the plethora of spreadsheets and expense reports I sometimes can find time in my busy work schedule to peruse fashion articles and blogs on the internet.
Several weeks ago I stumbled upon this blog post which led me to this website which led me to this article.
My bud Kristie and I had been throwing around the idea of having a clothes swap party but just never got it off the ground....that is, until I read all the swap-erific literature the webz has to offer!
I quickly put together a list of girlfriends and sent out an evite. We had a turn-out of 10 which was actually quite ideal.

The rules were as follows:
-Everyone must bring a minimum of 5 articles of clothing, shoes, accessories etc
-Everyone also brings a snack or a boozy bottle of sorts
-We all drew numbers to determine our "picker" order - numbers were re-drawn for each round
-We went in order of our numbers and chose from the pile what we wanted to claim as our own!

That's it! So simple yet so effing awesome! Everyone had a blast and we were able to trade in some of our closet clutter for some new treasures!
It has already been determined that this swap is going to be a bi-annual event..... I kinda can't wait until February!!!!!

CA State Fair 2010

2010-07-26T16:05:00.000-07:00

It is that time of year again, time to strap on the walking shoes, comfy shorts and sun screen and head to the California State Fair for a day of pigs, rides and food. Not necessarily in that order. In fact, first order of the day was food. The Ol’ Man and I started the fair right, arriving just as the gates opened to the public and heading straight for the food promenade. We shared a world famous county fair cinnamon bun, complete with cream cheese frosting. It was so gooey and delicious that I wanted another one right away. Listening to my smarter sub-conscience, I decided not to.

After being chased by animatronic dinosaurs, we headed to the livestock nursery where we saw a calf that had just been born only four hours earlier. We also got a close look at the baby piggies. There was no one on “petting duty” so I did not get to hold one, but I sure do love their cute little piggy butts!

On our way back to the main food court, we wandered through the wine tent. Normally, there is this hokey fake jungle that fits the theme for the year. I always like to go through it and pretend I am a part of what ever adventure lies within. This year, however, we had our socks blown out of our asses when we wandered into the view of a real life anaconda. Holy poop, it was huge! The thing was no less than 15 feet, and maybe more, since we couldn’t actually see the whole body. There were also giant turtles and enormous boa constrictors. There were so many different varieties of snakes, I couldn’t remember them all.

The reptile excursion left us hungry for something deep fried. I found the perfect food stand and ordered deep fried cheese curds. Now, I’d never had a cheese curd, so my mouth was pleasantly surprised to have such a horribly delicious treat. Craig found the jumbo corn dog stand, and we were set for a few hours.

We wandered around for the rest of the day, checking out the gadgets in the retail expo buildings and admiring the pencil drawings of that kid from Twilight at the high school art exhibits. Another favorite area for me is the “Fur and Feathers” building. I love the giant, floppy-eared bunnies and the exotic Japanese black chickens. This year, I fell in love with the Peruvian Guiney pigs. I’m seriously thinking about raising one myself. Maybe I’d even show it at next year’s State Fair. That is if my stupid cat doesn’t eat it first.

After we visited every exhibit, ogled every farm animal and scoped out every souvenir we hit the food stands one last time for an ear of roasted corn and a root beer float. State Fair: done! I’m going back again, at least two more times. I have to do my “pick-up” days. That’s when I go back for the fair food I didn’t have room to fit in my stomach, the rides I was too tired to stand in line for, and the crash-em-up derby that is only on the last two days of the fair.

Etsy Strikes Again

2010-07-22T13:39:00.000-07:00

While wasting away hours of my time on Etsy, I came across an adorable store called Do-Rah Designs. This store specializes in handcrafted purses, satchels and bags. I myself am not a purveyor of such womanly novelties, but what did catch my eye was a reusable lunch tote. Now, I’ve already got a cute little reusable lunch bag, complete with a lovable panda bear, al-la Hello Kitty style. The problem with mine is the size. I can pretty much only fit a sandwich, a baggie of chips and a package of instant oatmeal. That’s it, nothing more. So, whenever I try to bring something interesting for lunch, or if I want something like a banana, I’ve got no room! I have to put the additional food items in my purse. Since I ride my bike to work, that can be a problem. I’ve actually lost parts of my lunch along the Sacramento River bike path, true story.

So, when I came across the handmade lunch totes from Do-Rah Designs, I was ecstatic. I found the perfect sized lunch bag, and it is adorable to boot! I bought it right away. The lunch totes are $18, but well worth the cost. They are sturdy and well-
made.

Do-Rah Designs is based in Elk Grove, so I’m buying local as well! Now, I’ll no longer be forced to decide which parcel of food to stuff into my tiny sack. I’ll no longer have to hide my sweet treats at the bottom of my purse, risking the possibility of either getting chocolate all over my wallet, or lipstick all over my pastry. My new and super-cute lunch tote is big enough to fit it all. But it is still small enough to look like a lunch bag.

If you are interested in a handmade, reusable lunch bag that will make you the envy of all your craft loving co-workers, check out Do-Rah Designs on Etsy.

Camping Instax

2010-07-21T13:38:00.001-07:00

Here's a couple of Instax photos I nabbed from the weekend..

Nerd Camp V

2010-07-20T09:16:00.000-07:00

Every year, a group of our friends gets together for a weekend-long camping trip. We call it Nerd Camp. In 2005, the first year we did this, there were 10 of us, and the original intent was to play a game of Dungeons & Dragons while camping. The game never took place, but getting together and eating, drinking and sleeping our butts off did. Now, five years later and with twice as many attendees, Nerd Camp has become a three-day party tradition. Nerds and non-nerds alike converge on an unsuspecting state park and proceed to wreck havoc on approximately one acre of protected woodlands. When we leave, we leave behind no trace of our existence.

We have never camped in the same spot twice. At first, I was trying to find us the perfect spot. Stumpy Meadows was infested with mosquitoes, Black Butte was too hot and had no trees, Salt Point was too cold (for me), Clear Lake just sucked all around. Now, I think I’m just on a pilgrimage to visit the group site of every State Park in California.

This Year, we stayed at Bothe-Napa Valley State Park in Calistoga, so far, my personal favorite. Even though it got pretty warm during the day, it was a beautiful spot with lots of trees and hiking trails. The nights cooled down to a pleasant temperature and we were not harassed by park rangers for being too loud, which we were.

Kortnee and I and our respective dudes showed up at the campsite first, picked the perfect spots, and commenced with the drinking. As the camping crew trickled in, so did the revelry. The only thing we managed to accomplish on the first day was setting up camp, drinking and eating- exactly the way it should be.Andy slaved over a hot grill for hours and produced the perfect New York Strip for 10+ carnivores. I made a pot of vegetarian chili and Kortnee made her famous Campfire Balls. Of course, no camping trip is complete without the obligatory S’ more. My Ol’Man toasts the marshmallow to perfection! He is a S’ more aficionado.

The next day was Saturday. We woke up late and ate a delicious breakfast of French toast with Brioche and fresh fruit that our foodie friend Taryn made, num. While ccoking up eggs and bacon for the meat eaters, Andy experimented with heating up some leftover stake in the bacon fat. He called it Stakon. It was absolutely delicious.

After an appropriate level of relaxing, we decided to hit the trail for a hike. We trekked a short distance to the pioneer cemetery where we saw a collapsed gravesite. Creepy! Then, we headed to the nearby Bale Grist Mill. The mill is a cute place to go if you have kids, but not much of a destination point otherwise. Our hike was a total of approximately one mile and we were hot and hungry when we arrived back at the camp.

A group of the guys hiked their own trail. They called it the Keg March. They walked a total of 7 miles, 3.5 at a steep incline, with a “mini-keg” of Heineken. The point was to climb to the top and back, all while finishing off the mini-keg. Mission Accomplished. They were back four hours later with sunburns and buzzes.

Our friend, Rochelle celebrated her birthday on Saturday, and seeing as how we were not able to be with her, Kortnee came up with the brilliant idea to have the guys send her a very special birthday greeting.

After a lunch of Taryn’s grilled veggie Panini and a lazy afternoon of beer and dice games (or Munchkin), we decided to head to the public pool to cool off. After all, we were covered in sweat and dirt and we needed a place to clean up. The Napa Valley State Park has a public pool on its premises and since that is the only body of water nearby, it makes for a nice afternoon swim. We waded around in the deep end until closing time, and rinsed off at the free pool shower. Once we were cool and relaxed, we cooked up homemade pizza on the grill for dinner and finished off the night with more relaxing, drinking and campfire conversation. Oh, and S’ mores too.

Unfortunately, check-out time at California State Parks is noon, so you barely have time to heat up some coffee, make breakfast and drink one last beer before you have to pack up and go. This time, we managed to close up shop and disappear in record time, 20 campers worth of crap was taken down and packed into cars in one hour and fifteen minutes. Way to go everyone!

Nerd Camp V was a huge success, and I am already scoping out the perfect site for next year. If you have any recommendations, please let me know.

Good Night Camping.

Summer Snack for Summer Fun

2010-07-15T15:54:00.000-07:00

The Ol’ Man and I went to Texas recently for a week of fast and loud music. While in the lovely town of Austin, we patronized many-a-restaurant and sampled their fine wares. Something I noticed is that they always offered queso dip with chips the way you would be offered salsa at a Mexican restaurant in California. It was just normal to have queso all the time. Now, where I come from, this lavish cheese delicacy is too precious to just throw around all willy-nilly, so to see it so prevalent throughout the South Western Region was a treat and a half, to say the least. Ever since our trip to Austin, I have been craving the warmed, spicy delight.

I came across this easy queso recipe while reading Confections of a Foodie Bride. I enjoy food blogs. I absolutely love looking at pictures of food, and food bloggers have a knack for making their dishes look like edible works of art. Confections of a Foodie Bride is a blog where you find fairly easy recipes for really delicious treats. Shawnda’s “Not-So-Easy Queso Dip” (So-named because you don’t just dump a can of RoTel© into a bowl of warmed cheese) was not only easy to prepare, but heavenly to devour.

Don’t be dismissive of the need for Velveeta instead of cheese. It is surprisingly tasty when mixed with all of the other yummy, flavorful ingredients. Shawna recommends Velveeta because it is the only cheese she has worked with that melts with the right consistency.

I also recommend being wary of your cilantro levels. I love cilantro, but felt that a quarter of a cup was just a tad overpowering for my taste. However, my snacking companions all disagreed with my diagnosis, so who knows.

Here is the recipe, straight from Confections of a Foodie Bride:

Not-So-Quickie Queso
8 oz Velveeta, cut into large cubes
1/4 cup milk
1 Tbsp vegetable or olive oil
1/2 cup white or yellow onion, diced small
1-2 large jalapeno peppers, diced (~1/4 cup, I leave the seeds in)
1 tomato, diced
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
Pinch of salt
Dash of cayenne

Place Velveeta and milk in a medium bowl and set aside.
Heat oil in sauce pan over medium-high. Saute onions and peppers until the onions are translucent. Pour over Velveeta. Microwave for 60-90 seconds at a time, stirring until melted and thoroughly combined. Stir in tomatoes, cilantro, salt and cayenne. Serve hot with chips of your choice or warm flour tortillas.

Coastal Delight- California Style

2010-07-13T11:22:00.000-07:00

This past weekend, the Ol’ Man (Craig) and I headed to San Francisco for pizza and record shopping. We both scored great finds, spent way too much on vinyl and ate till our tummies hurt. We spent so much time rummaging around in Amoeba Music's treasures that we didn’t save time for any touristy fun (I kinda wanted to hit Ghirardelli Square). Instead, we made the trek to Santa Rosa by way of Highway 1. I know that is exactly not the way to Santa Rosa from San Francisco, but I really wanted to spend some time along the California Coast.

We stopped at Muir Beach to see the sights. It was beautiful, albeit overcast and chilly. We watched the tide roll in and adventured around until I spotted a starfish on one of the rocks. Oh, happy day! We also came across a huge rope that looks like it may have, at one time, tied a pretty big ship to an anchor, or possibly a lady to a railroad track.

After stopping at Muir Beach, we traveled along the Coast, past Point Reyes, until we hit Highway 12 and headed inland to Santa Rosa, where my dear friend Matt resides. We arrived just in time for burgers at Phyllis’ Giant Burgers and then caught the late showing of Predators. If you haven’t seen it, I highly recommend it. Cheesy and fun and full of explosions, just the way I like my action films. The Ol’ Man had a lower opinion of the movie than I, but I think it’s because his expectations were so high. Predator is one of his favorite movies, you know.

The next morning, we headed to the Parkside Café for breakfast. I ordered a two-egg breakfast. I truly regret not taking a picture of my meal before devouring it. The sausage was the longest I’ve ever seen, at least five inches in length! Breakfast was delicious, and it hit the spot. Off to the Sonoma Coast!

Our drive to the Sonoma Coastline took us past various beautiful beaches and landed us at Wright’s Beach. Matt took some amazing pictures. Craig and I took naps. We took off our shoes and took in the sun. On the way back to the car, we decided it would be better to leave our shoes off so that we could avoid getting more sand in them, big mistake. We ran like desert lizards across the blistering sand. At one point, Craig was up ahead and fast approaching what looked like cooler sand. I shouted to him to confirm whether that was true. “No!” he shrieked in a little girl’s voice, “It’s a billion times hotter!” I’m still giggling about that one.

The rest of our day consisted of a visit to Bodega Dunes to check out the campgrounds and a stop off at Patrick’s Salt Water Taffy Shop where I bought a pound of delicious taffy, in various flavors. We visited an amazing taqueria in Sebastopol called Taqueria El Favorito, and watched a few episodes of Robotech before heading home.

I had yet another amazing weekend, thanks to friends, records, and the beach. Next weekend: camping in Napa Valley. I wish the summer would never end!

Camping; Arizona Style

2010-07-12T11:47:00.001-07:00

We arrived at the airport just in time to discover that our flight was delayed… two and a half hours. It only takes two hour to get to Arizona! We posted up and watched the sun set on Sacramento. The rest of the weekend was a hot blur. To bed at 2:00 AM, up at 6:00 AM, Mom’s graduation in the sweltering Phoenix heat, racing off to the camp site in Flagstaff. Flagstaff Arizona is MUCH cooler by the way.

The camping spot was interesting. It is part of the Luke Air Force Base. Fort Tuthill is only usable by military personnel. The benefit to that is the place is clean and well-maintained. The downside is that it felt less like camping and more like spending the night at a middle school. The scenery was beautiful and the sites were more than generous. But there were streetlights everywhere. I’ve never been camping where there were so many artificial lights! There was also a playground and a small hotel within the campsite. Weird, right?

We ate lots of good food and plenty of beer. There were no critters hiding out in our tent and the critters around the campfire were Ron’s adorable grandchildren (Hooded Rescuers Unite!). We had great conversation and my ever-lovin’ man, Craig, even drove a boat!

The one thing I discovered on this camping trip is that, no matter where you are, or who you are with, camping is the most awesome thing in the whole, wide world.

Sew Shoe Me

2010-07-09T11:22:00.001-07:00

I launched my new etsy store today, "Sew Shoe Me". It's nothing but shoes!
Have a gander! I really like it.
Here are some of my goods:

Check it out HERE

HAPPY BIRTHDAY LORY!!!

2010-07-08T09:22:00.000-07:00

Today marks the day that the world's greatest She-Nerd was birthed into the world.
She has a heart of gold and feet the size of tiny red potatoes! Happy Birthday Lory Gil! Heart Heart Heart!!!

Today Rocks!

2010-07-08T09:10:00.001-07:00

I woke up this morning to find this delightful little birthday gift from the most adorably awesome boyfriend a girl could ever have. Today Rocks.

2010-07-07T12:53:00.000-07:00

It's Official. Kortnee and I are meilleures amies. Here's the proof!

Best Weekend Ever!

2010-07-07T08:57:00.000-07:00

This past weekend we not only got to celebrate the birthday of America, but also the birthday of my closest and bestest lady confidant Lory Gil!
We spent the weekend eating fabulous foods and enjoying even more fabulous company.
A 4th of July/Birthday BBQ took place at my house complete with triple digit weather and and a few Not-So-Safe-And-Sane fireworks.
We partied the night away then headed to the American River the next day to nurse our hangovers.
Also, Jeff O. made the official move to Sacramento on Saturday! He's an official Sacrament-ite? Sacramentian? Sactite? Sacramentor?
Whatevs...

I mostly took film photos this weekend that have yet to be taken in and developed so these are courtesy of msilver.

I need these.

2010-07-02T13:34:00.001-07:00

This crafty girl is all kinds of awesome!!!

Ode to the Farmer's Market

2010-07-01T13:22:00.000-07:00

You know it is summer time when you can find a farmer’s market every day of the week. My friend Candice hits the Freemont Park market on Tuesdays. I work in Downtown Sacramento, so I hit the Cesar Chavez market on Wednesdays and the Westfield Shopping Center market on Thursdays. There is a huge one at W and 8th on Sundays that is open all year long, but I have yet to battle that strawberry field. Saturdays, there is a nice little farmer’s market in Del Paso Heights that I’ve heard is good, but that is only if you aren’t already up early to go yard sale shopping. OK, so I guess Mondays and Fridays are off the plate, but you get the point.
This week, I picked up some Rainer cherries for Kortnee, since she is a big fan of the sweet/tart little gems. I also found some golden rod squash, eight-ball zucchini, and flying saucer squash. I added red potatoes and purple onions to my stash and grabbed a half-flat of strawberries for the 4th Of July party this Sunday (I’ll be making my famous Strawberry Shortcake). Farmer’s markets are the best way to eat, all summer long.

I love you summer. I love your damn stupid face.

Summer Solstice

2010-06-21T14:46:00.000-07:00

Happy first day of summer everyone!
I had an adorable little kick-off for the summer season.
As you all know, today is Monday, which means back to work, which means grumpy morning.
But as I left the house this morning I saw a little hummingbird darting around the front yard. Last night I hung up a little hummingbird feeder my dad had given me and and jumped in my car to give him some privacy and see if the little guy would partake in the sweet feast before him.
Instead of heading for the feeder, the little guy bee-lined towards an old Halloween decoration hanging on the porch that has the honor of staying up all year-round. Right on top of one of the hanging wooden spiders was perched a tiny little nest with two little baby hummingbird heads sticking out. It was so effing cute that I couldn't help but squeal from sheer enjoyment from inside my Buick LaSabre.
Ted went out and snapped a shot of the babies. He scared one of them and it flew away to hide but the other sat and and posed for the camera!

So anyways, Happy Summer Solstice friends and here's to a season full of river swims, cold beers and backyard bbq's!
heart
-kb

[Rec] 2 -- So 'cited!

2010-06-17T10:52:00.000-07:00

I remember watching the first "Rec" at Lory and Craig's house about a year-and-a-half ago and screaming and jumping and hiding my face in my shirt. It had all the things a good horror movie should have. It was scary, creepy, fun, exciting, there were zombies and monster/demon type things, tense "left for dead" type scenes, lots of blood, flesh eatting, killing.... just an all around good time. ;)
You can imagine my excitement when my good friend Tom sent me an email invite to a pre-release screening in L.A. at his fancy-shmancy film school. Unfortunately the screening is in L.A. ...... On a Tuesday night. I thought pretty long an hard about going - even went so far to price last minute plane tickets - but the cost of getting there and back didn't quite equate to the savings of a free screening.
So for now I'll just have to wait and satisfy my craving for blood, guts, demons and disease ridden zombies with the minute and 17 second trailer...
Enjoy!

Bright Faces

2010-06-14T10:45:00.000-07:00

Bright Faces had their very first show on Saturday and what a great first show it was!
Even though the evening was hot and humid, the masses were out and about to see and be seen for Sacramento's 2nd Saturday "Art Walk".
The dudes played at Barber's Shop Automotive which is a garage that specializes in repairing Alfa Romeo's and Vespa scooters. It was pretty funny how they were set up under a couple of lifted cars.
For those of you who missed it (coughcoughMATT.CHARLEScoughcoughSTINE.JEFF) Lorygil shot a little video of their show. They are playing a 2nd show at Old Ironsides on S Street June 25th.

Hope y'All had a fantastic weekend!

MC Chris + BBQs = Summer Fun Time. Begin!

2010-06-10T12:36:00.000-07:00

The same fun-filled weekend that Ms. Kortnee blogged of our summer start-off: complete with BBQ and swimming, I attended a delightful show at Slims in San Francisco. My purpose: to see the raddest nerd-rapper in the world, MC Chris. Along for the ride was MC Lars, who is also a well-know nerd-rapper (his song Download This Song is a big hit). I’m pretty sure that MC Chris has only defaulted to a higher level of fame due to the fact that he did voice-over work for Cartoon Network. Really, they are both in the same league when it comes to recognition. But MC Lars has nothing on MC Chris, mainly because the latter is cuter. He’s like your best friend’s younger brother that you secretly have a crush on but won’t tell anyone because you’d get ridiculed by everyone in your class. MC Chris is cuter than ever, now. He grew a fuzzy little beard. Now he looks like a freaking leprechaun. Get in my pocket little rapper!
Having never seen MC Lars and only knowing a few songs, I didn’t have a lot of expectations of his set. I was pleasantly surprised and found myself liking his performance. His songs are not as outright funny as MC Chris, but the content is the same. No, I take that back, MC Lars represents nerd culture a lot more than MC Chris does. The funny thing is that, while MC Chris sounds and looks like a true-blooded nerd, MC Lars looks like one of those guys who calls themselves a nerd, even though they would probably have beat up the nerds in high school. So, who really knows.

MC Chris pleased the crowd with a T-Shirt contest. Apparently, he has been doing this throughout his tour. Dozens of people jumped on stage to show off their nerdiest shirt. I was on my way up with my Admiral Ackbar, “It’s a (Finger) Trap” shirt, but before I could hoist myself up onto the stage, I noticed another girl with the same shirt (I was mortified). Turns out, that shirt already one at a previous show and she was disqualified anyway. Thank you shirt.woot.com for your clever, clever t-shirts.

Jenny and Johnny

2010-06-09T14:03:00.000-07:00

I have a little place in my heart for all things "Jenny Lewis" and her latest project with her BF Johnathan Rice, I'm sure, will be no exception. I have been scouring the internets for some sort of sample/demo/teaser for their new album titled "I'm Having Fun Now" but have so far been un-successful. All I've seen so far is a couple of tour dates, a homepage for a website and now this album art!

Don't get me wrong, I'll take what I can get but
I want more! I need more!

Also, Jenny and Johnny are opening for Belle and Sebastian in Hollywood on October 3rd and Ted and I scored ourselves a couple of tickets! I hope our little rock n' roll hearts can handle all the awesomeness!

Summer Kick-Off!

2010-06-07T09:41:00.000-07:00

Spent an amazing weekend with good buds in the Bay Area. Kayaked in the Bay, BBQ'd by the pool, drank Negra Modelos, watched National Lampoons Vacation (which led to hours of singing Lindsay Buckingham's "Holiday Rooooooooooooooad!"), cruised around the city, ate some amazing Tapas, scored a new pair of sunglasses and ate Bi-Rite ice-cream. We couldn't have asked for more perfect weather or better company. Summer has officially begun and I am so stoked for more weekend adventures!
Also, I got a Fuji Instax camera last week in the mail - here are a couple of photos from Cha Cha Cha on Haight Street as well as a snap-shot of Lory and Craig in a funny face-hole board thingy. He's a taco and she's a french fries...those crazy kids!!!!

Amen Sister

2010-05-28T10:13:00.000-07:00

Kitty-Stache Party

2010-05-21T09:57:00.000-07:00

Thursday night is TV night in our house ans last night Ted was trying to sneak in some work during commercial breaks. Some of these breaks ran a little long and I was forced to entertain myself.... no TV, no Dude.... just a pen and a couple of cats. Here is the outcome...

Happy Friday Friends!

Elvis Costello and the Imposters

2010-05-17T10:04:00.000-07:00

This weekend was truly amazing. Ted got us tickets to see Elvis Costello play with the Imposters in Reno at the Peppermill. Our friend Andy's mom frequents the place and got us a complimentary meal and way discounted rates on a room. Along with our room came "VIP access" meaning we had access to a fully stocked bar in a private lounge area that was completely free!In this lounge was where we started our little stay at the Peppermill and where we not-so-surprisingly spent a good amount of time.

After a few cocktails and a hearty trip through the buffet line we meandered over to the auditorium in which the show was taking place. Our seats, as pricey as the were, left something to be desired but we were super stoked to even be there.

Elvis played early hit after early hit and motioned to the crowd to come in closer.
Now, this wasn't your average standing room concert. People were seated in assigned seats and for the most part were happy to stay where they were. There were, however, enough people who were willing to answer Mr. Costello's beckoning call and rush towards the stage. Once bodies started moving forward I grabbed Ted's hand and forward we went. The security made everyone head back to their seats and we were all turned around, but not too soon to where we didn't get to rock out to "Chelsea" right in front of the stage.

As we were being turned around, Ted and I ducked into a closer row then our assigned seats and moved even closer once we received a text message from our friend Andy who also snuck into better seats, THIRD ROW SEATS!! He said there were chairs for us so away we snuck. Success!

Elvis played amazing song after amazing song and did it all without a 2nd guitar player. He played all the leads himself and even broke into a couple of mini jams sessions mid set. He played "Watching the Detectives", "Pump It Up", "Radio Radio", Peace Love and Understanding", "I can't Stand Up for Falling Down" and so many other amazing songs. I swear to god it was like being inside an Elvis Costello Greatest Hits album. The night was really magical and we managed to push even closer during Elvis' encore. I literally got to be like 8 feet away from the legend. It was effing awesome! Thank you Mr. Costello for an awe-inspiring good time!

Brownies From Heaven

2010-05-13T12:25:00.000-07:00

It seems like I am always on the hunt for delicious brownie recipes. Well, I found a real hum-dinger in the April issue of Martha Stewart Living. The preparation is simple and fast, and you’ll have mouth-watering chocolate heaven in less than an hour.

Here is the recipe:

1 stick unsalted butter cut into large pieces
6 oz. bittersweet chocolate, chopped
1 1/2 cup sugar
3 large eggs
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup plus 2 tbsp salt
1/2 cup plus 2 tbsp all-purpose flour, sifted

1.) Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line an 8-inch square baking pan with parchment, leaving a slight overhang on all sides. Melt butter and chocolate in a double boiler or a heatproof bowl set over a pot of simmering water, stirring until smooth. Remove from heat, and whisk in sugar. Whisk in eggs, one at a time, until combined. Add Flour.

2.)Pour batter into pan. Bake until set and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with moist crumbs- 35 – 40 minutes. Let cool slightly in pan- about 15 minutes. Lift brownies from pan using parchment. Remove parchment and transfer to a wire rack. Let cool completely. Cut into 9 squares.

If you make this recipe, please feel free to invite me over for a taste test. If you live out of my area, please mail them to me. Thanks.

Dangerously Cute!

2010-05-11T09:09:00.001-07:00

I signed into my Flickr account this morning, as I do most mornings, to find a little teaser photo in the corner of my screen that I just couldn't help but click on.
The picture of the cute baby fennec fox, which looks like a fuzzy baby Yoda, led me to this blog on flickr which hosts cute little photos of cute little wild animals taken by this guy!
Stumbling upon these sweet photos paired with the chocolate-covered cinnamon roll I treated myself to for breakfast makes for a pretty kick-ass Tuesday morning, I gotta say.

OhMyGod I want one.

Duct Tape Prom Dress Contest

2010-05-10T12:44:00.000-07:00

I stumbled across this website while avoiding work today that pretty much blew my mind. For the past ten years, Duck Brand(c)duct tape company has been holding a contest called Stuck at Prom. Teens can enter to win a college scholarship by making their prom outfits out of Duck Brand(c)duct tape. Some of these outfits are amazing! I can't imagine how uncomfortable it would be to walk around all night in a dress made of duct tape though.
Below are a few pictures for your delight. If anyone I know personally wants to enter this contest, I will totally help them make their outfit.

Hope Y'All Had a Good Mother's Day

2010-05-10T09:52:00.000-07:00

I spent mine with this lady...

DIY Photo-booth photos

2010-05-03T14:00:00.000-07:00

Matt and Bobby fashioned a home-made photo-booth for Bobby and Paloma's amazingly sweet wedding that happened this past weekend. Congratulations Bobby and Paloma! Good Party dudes!!

Here are some of the photos!

BEST. WEDDING. EVER.

awwww!!!!

2010-04-19T10:50:00.000-07:00

Cute boy (ted) with Cat (gimlet). It's posted HERE

sad day.

2010-04-14T08:54:00.000-07:00

I got a call from my dad last night. I could tell when I answered the phone that the somber tone in his voice was going to be followed with some pretty bad news.
The sweet little miniature Dachshund, Leibchen, that he bought me as an early Christmas present when I was 16 lost her little bout with Pancreitis yesterday morning. I remember bringing her home, holding her in my lap and thinking I would never let go of her. She was so small that she could fit in my dad's hand and I loved her tiny little face so much I couldn't hardly stand it. I named her Leibchen after another weiner dog I had only seen in photos. When my dad was younger, he too had a weiner dog named Leibchen. Everyone always had nothing but amazing things to say about that dog and would always talk about how special she was. I knew that my dog was special too and so I named her after my dad's dog as a sort or tribute.
As she got older she developed a "mild" obsession with squeak toys and would use them to supplement her little bark at passers by. She would growl and holler as though she didn't realize she weighed 7 lbs, she must have thought she was a great dane or a saint bernard or something. Anyone walking by the house could hear a mean growl with interludes of yappy barking and high pitched squeaks (usually from her favorite rubber hamburger). She was funny like that.
But Leibchen had been ill for a little while, couldn't seem to keep food down, and had been really lethargic. Her poor little spirit was not as it had always been, tenacious, spunky and bossy.
She woke up early yesterday morning and made a trek down the long hallway to my dad's bedroom. She scratched on the door to wake him which was a little odd since she had barely left her bed in over a month. He picked up her tiny little body and brought her back to bed and that was where she stayed. I think it was her way of saying goodbye. She died there, wrapped up in the blanket my grandmother crocheted just for her. My dad buried her in that blanket in the garden in his backyard.
I'm going to miss her little face and her giant bug eyes. She was a special little dog.... and adorable to boot.

Cute Boys With Cats

2010-04-08T14:27:00.000-07:00

This is awesome...and adorable.

New Favorite Website Alert!

2010-04-08T10:17:00.000-07:00

As most of my friends would attest to, I have a "healthy fondness" of fancy foot wear and accessories and Endless.Com is the perfect place to feed my addiction, er, "healthy fondness".
Endless.com is very easy to navigate which is great for shoe shopping novices and pros alike, and not only does the site offer an abundance of perfectly photographed designers and brands at great prices, they also price matching and offer free overnight or 2-day shipping on most styles!
Plus, the website's shopping cart is powered by Amazon.com so when I placed my first order, I needed to do little more than plug in my Amazon log-in, and click the button to approve my order! Huzzah! They arrive tomorrow!

And just for fun, here's a little eye/foot candy!

Ugh, I'm such a girl. Don't judge me.

heart
-kb

Everybody's Workin' For The Weekend

2010-04-07T14:47:00.001-07:00

Dear Friends,
This weekend Lory and I will will be going here...

...eatting this...

...drinking this...

and this...

and perhaps this...

And we will also be doing this...

And this..

And more of this...

Kinda can't wait!

heart
-kb

As Promised, My Handmade iPad Cover

2010-04-06T13:59:00.000-07:00

This was a super easy pattern. I basically just knit a stockinette stitch the whole time. I measured it at eight inches across and 23 inches long. After the cast-on, I did a seed stitch for two rows, and the same with the last two rows. The cute part is where I stitched the edges. I think it adds just the right amount of craftiness to the whole thing. The buttonholes were the hardest part, but I found a how-to guide at www.knittingonthenet.com.
The iPad fits snuggly inside the cover and protects it from dust or other scary irritants. Plus, since it is made from a 75% microfiber blend, it will not scratch the giant, vulnerable 10-inch screen.

Crafty Generation

2010-04-05T11:18:00.000-07:00

When my mom and I get together, I become a crafting maniac. Something about the sound of her needles clickety- clacking gets me motivated. So, last week, I found an adorable crochet pattern at lionbrand.com for amigurumi bunny baskets. Of course I had to try it. Mom made the first one and I finished the rest. It doesn’t take very long at all. If you are a speedy crocheter, you could finish one while watching a movie. I watched Where the Wild Things Are. The baskets were a big hit with the family and I finally used up a bunch of that crappy acrylic yarn that I’ve wanted to get rid of.

My mom discovered a pattern that works perfect with the Swiffer© brand mops. She spent her movie-watching time making me three adorable, reusable Swiffer© covers. I’ve never used one of these things before because I didn’t like the idea of the excessive consumer waste. Now, I can use one (or two) reusable covers for the daily sweeping, then use the third one for the weekend mopping and throw them all in the wash at the end of the day. It works great and is about a hundred times easier than sweeping and mopping the traditional way. Let me know if you want some. I think my mom might sell them.

Yarn Crawl 2010 - NorCal Style

2010-04-02T12:20:00.000-07:00

My dear mum came for a visit this past week. One of our favorite pastimes when calling on each other is yarn shopping. We have even coined a new phrase for this fibrous adventure, a Yarn Crawl. This time, we went on two yarn crawls. One trip was to Napa Valley as part of a nice day trip to the beautiful wine country and one was in my home town of Sacramento.

Napa crawl was only two stores, Yarns on First in downtown Napa and Muse in St. Helena. Our first stop was Yarn on First, since it was the closer of the two. The store is packed full of lovely yarns of all colors, materials and sizes. Your average yarn shop will stock their shelves by material (ie, wool or cotton), but Yarn on First displays their yard by color. This is a fun way to shop when you really don’t have a specific project in mind. Having all the reds or blues in one section lets your eyes decide what to pick. I was looking for nothing in particular when I stumbled across a 74% microfiber blend. I’ve never seen this blend of yarn before, and since I was only seven days away from getting my brand new iPad, I had a brilliant idea to make a cover for it with this super-soft material (don’t worry, my iPad cover post will be coming soon). I bought four skeins and a pair of adorable buttons to accent it.

Next, we drove to St. Helena’s for Muse. Now, I’m not one to trash-talk a yarn shop, so don’t misunderstand, but I wasn’t impressed with Muse. It seemed very small and didn’t have a whole lot of stock. One bonus to Muse is that they carried a lot of locally crafted items for sale. You may not be impressed with their yarn, but you might find a beautiful, hand-made purse instead.

The following weekend, mom and I did our Sacramento yarn crawl. After tracking down as many local yarn shops as possible, we headed to Rumpelstiltskin. Located downtown, this is my regular haunt, mostly because of its geographical convenience, but also because of the wide variety of yarn they carry. They carry your basic Cascade and Noru brands as well as locally spun and hand-died yarns. They even sell raw wool and offer spinning classes. I’d been to Rumpelstiltskin a million times so this was nothing special. I was on the hunt for a good pattern book on appliqués. I found a book called Beyond-the-Square Crochet Motifs by Edie Eckman which had a lot of patterns that could be used as an appliqué.

up was Shelby’s Place. I’d never even heard of it, so here is where the adventure began. Shelby’s is situated in the industrial park neighborhood of Natomas and actually shares space with a lawn care store. The place is enormous, but Shelby’s only takes up about one-third of the store. Yarn was shelved largest to smallest, so the back of the store had all of the chunky yarns, while the front had the sock yarns. They also hung a huge array of Cascade brand wool hanks from the wall, which was very appealing. Here, I bought an ergonomic crochet hook, mainly to patronize the store, but also because Kortnee swears by ergo-handled hooks.

After that, we stopped off at a nearby book store where I found a great pattern book called Crocheting on the Edge by Nicky Epstein which has a lot of great ideas. We had lunch, I bet mom five bucks that the yarn she was looking for was called Sugar ‘n’ Cream, not Peaches & Cream. We headed to Michael’s. Turns out we were both wrong.

stop was Anna’s Yarn Shop in Elk Grove. I love this store. I’d only been twice before, but I was really looking forward to this one. They also set up their yarn by color and they have a huge selection. At this point, I was looking for a specific blend of yarn, which is when I realized that yarn-by-color is not always the best idea. I really wanted to be looking at cotton blends only, but I was overwhelmed by hundreds of different alpaca wool, wool, bamboo, cashmere, cotton, nylon… all in the same color, but not separated by blends. I found the perfect yarn and eventually tracked down three complimentary colors to add to my stash.

Our final stop was also in Elk Grove at a quaint shop called Knitique. This store had a very cozy environment, but the yarn was organized in a chaotic way. Colors and blends were all mixed up with no real system. Mom pointed out that if she lived here in town, she could see herself frequenting the shop, but as a visitor, the place just seemed disorganized. In a concerted effort to make sure I bought something at each place we visited, I picked up a copy of a book called Fiber and Fabric Mania! A Travel Guide as a gift for mom. She can’t go to a new town without seeking out the local yarn shops, so this book is perfect for her.

I had a blast with my wonderful mom and I’m glad I got to share our Yarn Crawl adventure together. She even surprised me at the end with a much-needed swift and ball roller. Thanks Mom!

Nettie-Pot-O-Rama

2010-04-01T08:59:00.000-07:00

It's April 1st y'all and you know what that means.....pretty flowers, blue skies, sun dresses and ...... Spring time Allergies!!!!

Growing up in the central valley I have been no stranger to the sniffy nose and itchy ears, the swollen throat and watery eyes. My dad says I get it from my mom but I blame it entirely on being a product of my environment. All that pollen and "fresh air" couldn't have been good for the developing lungs of a young KB. To say that I am "Allergic to the World" would be a blatant understatement and to say that it almost kills me is not too far from the truth.

Come the Spring equinox, Ted and I are popping Claritin like a couple of crack heads and going through Kleenex like nobody's business. About this time every year is when I also see a Nurse Practitioner to have my Albuterol puffer refilled.
Spring time is definitely a season of allergy-related rituals in our house and last year we introduced to our routine something new to us - but apparently ancient to the world- The Netie Pot. It's been used in India for centuries for nasal irrigation as part of a practice of Yoga. The basic gist is, you pour warm saline into one nostril and and it pushes all your extra mucus and nose nastiness out the other. It's great!
I will admit that it took a little getting used to - when Ted and I first tried it out we could barely keep from spraying that snotty saline all over the bathroom mirror from laughing so hard. (Proper use of the neti pot puts you in a far from glamorous position, and shoots snot and water and mucus right out of your face)

But now that we have it down pact, we have come to embrace our little plastic neti pot soldier in the on-going battle with allergy season. In fact Lt. Neti Pot, I would like to stand beside you and together we can give allergy season a very noble two-finger salute.

Now my friends, for your viewing pleasure: The best neti pot tutorial video in the WORLD. Enjoy!

SEE?!?

2010-03-26T13:45:00.001-07:00

AAAAAAUUUGH!!!! MY EYE!!!
Originally uploaded by Wbcomics

See previous post:

It's a Dave Downey Doppelgänger

2010-03-26T13:43:00.001-07:00

i.am.nerd :: megan
Originally uploaded by tamedblossom

I think she looks like Dave...am I right?

Be Still My Blogging Heart

2010-03-25T13:15:00.000-07:00

I came across this blog on the internet today and perused it for for over an hour (which is a long time when you are sitting in your office and are supposed to be cranking out Excel spreadsheets and what-not).
But anyways, this blog, it's amazing. It's about a couple of friends who live in Seattle and frequent yard-sales, estate sales, rummage sales etc. Browsing their blog pages was like tip-toeing through a junker's paradise.
Here are some true treasures they posted that made me giggle out loud:

I'm so stoked that warmer months are upon us and with those a plethora of land park junk sales!!!!!

Shameless... I know

2010-03-25T11:19:00.000-07:00

A website that I am very Unbiased towards wrote a review for the new She & Him album, Volume II. You should probably read it HERE

I need it!!!!!!!!

2010-03-23T11:53:00.001-07:00

Will someone please buy this for me? Pleeeeeeeeeeease?!

I Can't Hardly Wait!!!!!

2010-03-11T09:18:00.000-08:00

Dear Mexico,
I would like to dedicate this song to you.

See you on Saturday!
Love,
kb

II more weeks!!!!!!!!

2010-03-09T14:48:00.000-08:00

Two more weeks until Volume II comes out!!!
This little gem was released on Pitchfork today though!

In the Sun

(Northern) California Dreamin'

2010-03-09T08:48:00.000-08:00

This is the scene that accompanied me home as I drove back to Sacramento from Stockton on Sunday.

Going...

Going...

Going...

Gone!

It was awesome.

It's the Final Countdown....duhnuhnuhnuh....

2010-03-04T09:30:00.001-08:00

This is my calendar at my desk at work. Note the red countdown numbers:

This is because after reading the title of this post you will have this song stuck in your head:

'She Wears the Clothes of an Emperor'

2010-03-03T08:53:00.001-08:00

Since Ted and I went to Anthropologie the weekend of my birthday, I haven't been able to get the shop out of my head. The clothes are absolutely beautiful, everything is lined in soft silky fabrics and the details are above-par to say the least.
The clothes from here have become a recent obsession of mine and this obsession has completely thwarted my attempts to save money and/or pay off my credit cards.
I have always dabbled a little in the Anthro way of life but never allowed myself in too deep for fear I would drown in the abundance of organic silk dresses and piles of credit card bills.
I was discussing my current obsession with my tangible voice of reason, AKA Lory gil, and she brought up to me a brilliant idea. She said to me, "Kort," (thats what she calls me when we have serious talks about things like my frivolous spending), "I think you could totally make that stuff."
At first I gufawwed at the idea that my feeble hands could create such wearable masterpieces but she really got me thinking.
The wheels started turning and I got my crafty butt in gear. I currently have two separate Anthro-inspired projects in the works and am very excited about both.
Here are a few photos of some inspiration pieces...

Here's one I actually purchased...

Stay tuned for photos of completed said projects...

Hand-Made Cards are an Awesome Gift!

2010-03-02T10:33:00.000-08:00

I stumbled across an etsy store called Cornerstone LAE Designs the other day that had the most amazing hand-made cards. The cards have an intricate layering that is stunning and new designs arrive regularly. I was so impressed that I ordered a couple of them right away. The cards range between $5 and $7 (some go higher) plus $1.65 shipping, remarkably cheap when you see the detailed craftsmanship of these cards. After ordering the two items, the seller, Leisha, refunded the shipping for one of the cards since they were shipped together. When my package arrived, I was
pleasantly surprised to receive a third card for free and a thank you note. Now, that is what I call business relations! Leisha will custom-design a card for you with just about any image you want (she once made a card of a chair with a bunch of bowls on it), and with any phrase your heart desires at no additional charge, you just have to "convo" her (as the Etsy jargon goes.
Instead of spending your precious dough on crappy Hallmark sentiments, try ordering hand-made works of art.
Leisha has recently opened a sister shop on Etsy to sell just her paper designs called Paper Compositions.
Here is a link to Leisha’s many card designs on flicker

Party Over Here!

2010-03-01T16:07:00.000-08:00

Our birthday celebration with the Amazing Matt Silver was a success. First, we had a delicious lunch at Burgers & Brew in Sacramento. There were 12 of us in all, which they couldn’t accommodate inside, so we had to dine out on the patio. Luck was on our side, though. The sun managed to break through for the entire time we were there.
After gorging ourselves on meat from heaven, we headed to our friends’ house. Mike and Taryn were gracious enough to let a bunch of us hang out and eat their food, which was phenomenal. Taryn is an amazing baker. She has made some of the most extraordinary cakes I have ever put in my mouth. Matt’s cake was some kind of Italian wonder that I can’t remember the name of (Kortnee, do you remember?) that was had with a mouse-type filling with almonds, a very moist yellow cake that may have been soaked in rum and a chocolate ganache as the frosting. It was amazing.
As an added bonus, Taryn made home-made cheese crackers that were so good, I nearly sent myself to the hospital for stuffing so many in my face. According to Matt, and I'm paraphrasing here, they tasted like a combination of Cheese Nips and the sacrificing of a cheese baby.
The main reason to hole up at Taryn & Mike’s humble mansion was to play a board game that Matt was itching to play called, Arkham Horror. It turns out, that game is pretty f-ing fun. It took about six hours to finish the game, including the hour it took to learn how to play. In the end, we actually won against the main bad guy, which is supposedly near-impossible to do. Matt thinks we played it wrong and that is the only reason we were able to beat it.
All in all, it was an awesome time and I’m glad we were able to spend the day nerding it up with our dear friend Matt.

Summer's Coming

2010-03-01T10:36:00.001-08:00

Today is March 1st and with the tease of sun-shiny days and warmer weather, one can't help but day dream about warm Sacramento air paired with an ice-cold river and even colder beers.
I cannot wait to pull on my cut-off Levi's and head down to the river.

Dear Summer,
Please hurry. I can't hardly wait.
Love,
kb

Happy Birthday You Awesome Freak you!

2010-02-26T14:49:00.000-08:00

Our good Friend, Matt Silver's birthday only comes around once per year. We love to celebrate everyone's birthday with him and today is especially special. Happy Birthday Matt. I love you! (look me in the eye when you say it!!!)

Matthew Silver!

2010-02-26T14:42:00.001-08:00

We just want to say Happy Birthday to everyone's favorite IT guy and one of our bestest buds!!!!!! Happy Birthday Matt!!!

Remembering the Old Days

2010-02-23T16:44:00.000-08:00

I have this vague memory of singing this song when I was a kid. Tie Me Kangaroo Down, Sport. I even have a memory of a cartoon kangaroo and a real life kid interacting with each other. As I grew up and sang the song for my friends, no one seemed to remember it. I started thinking I must have made it all up and there was no such song. Until one fateful day when I was rummaging around the 7” punk vinyl section of Records (on Broadway) in Sacramento. There it was, staring at me, smiling, telling me it was real, I was not just making it all up- the single of the song Tie Me Kangaroo Down, Sport by Australian artist Rolf Harris. While the cover was a bit worn, the record was pristine. It looked as though it had never even been played.I was elated, but with a sticker price of $25, my heart sank. Months went by and there the record sat, untouched, unrelentingly expensive. More than a year had passed and still I coveted it from afar, not willing to pay $25, and too afraid to ask the shopkeeper if he would sell me the prize at an exponentially reduced price. I assumed they knew something that I didn’t regarding its value. Maybe this was a special, rare copy that deserved the high price tag. I wasn’t asking because I didn’t want to face the rejection. In mid February of this year, I finally swallowed my fears and jumped in, head first. I asked the clerk if he would be willing to sell me the record for $5. That’s right. I low-balled the shit out of that thing. To be honest, even though I loved the song, I wasn’t willing to pay more than $5 for it (you can listen to it anytime through youtube.com) so I was just asking for what I wanted. To my surprise, he agreed and I am now the proud owner of the song that I’ve sung for as long as I can remember talking. Now, the mystery to solve is, where the hell did I hear it?

23

2010-02-17T09:31:00.000-08:00

That is how many days there are left until Lory Gil and I will be sipping Negra Modelos in a much warmer climate.
And this is what we will be looking at...

Reliving my Youth

2010-02-11T14:52:00.000-08:00

Some people go to Star Wars conventions, some people go to comic book conventions, some people go to tech conventions. Me? Well, in addition to the above-mentioned nerd-fests, I’ll be attending a punk rock convention. That’s right, for the past five years, the artistically unassuming town of Austin Texas has been infiltrated with the dregs of the world for a weekend of blast beats and guitar shredding Japanese guys, otherwise known as, Chaos in Tejas.
My BF, Craig, and I have discussed making the trip a few times, but we always put it off until it was too late and tickets were sold out. This time, no hesitation, I reserved a room, called in a favor for some “frequent-flier” tickets and snatched up a five show pass.
Bands come from all over the world for this little shindig. This year, Bastard will be in attendance. They traveled all the way from Japan, and from the late 1980s in a sense. They broke up back then and have not played together since. Another Japanese great, Crow, will play as well. The band X, from Australia (no, not the exponentially more famous L.A. band, X), will be headlining one of the main shows. The Subhumans, from the U.K. will be making a spit-stop. Bands from Spain, the Netherlands and Sweden are also on the schedule.
There are 57 bands confirmed so far. Last year, shows took place in bars, on bridges, in basements and on boats. Music plays all night in one form or another. It is going to be one punk rock weekend. Anyone who says I’ve gone suburbanite can eat my poop!

I'll let you know how much fun I had when I get back. If I get back.

All-You-Can Anything; Turns Out, it's Pretty Rad

2010-02-10T13:58:00.000-08:00

Until recently, I had never heard of “all-you-can-eat” sushi. When I did learn about it, it kinda sounded awful. I mean, most all-you-can-eat style restaurants are mediocre, at best. Add raw fish to the equation and I’m thinking about stinky not-so-fresh fish and crusty Wasabi. I reluctantly agreed to this dangerous adventure with my Apoc. Meow cohort, Kortnee, and our friends Anna Joy and Norah. AJ had recommended a place in West Sacramento called Raku, so off we went.
I'm not dead, so you know the fish was fresh. But it was more than fresh, it was wonderful! For a mere sixteen bucks, you get all the sushi rolls, hand rolls, Nigiri, Chicken Katzu and Edemame your fat face can eat.

And, boy did we eat! No less than 14 rolls, 4 pieces of Nigiri, all of the above mentioned appetizers, plus mini-doughnuts and sesame rolls. We showed that fish the business end of our mouths and all of it was delicious.
What’s next on the all-you-can-eat menu? Chocolate Truffles? Cristal?

Birthday Weekend

2010-02-09T09:38:00.001-08:00

I'm back at work today after an amazing weekend spent with some very amazing friends. (And believe me, getting up this morning to come back was no easy feat)
We had a little party at my house Saturday night which included a house full of party guests, a spread full of delicious little treats, a freaking present table and a beautiful home-made cake. (Thanks Taryn!)
Yesterday, my real birthday-day, was a blast as well. Ted and I did so much stuff!
We had dim sum in the morning, drove out along the river road to take photos with my new Diana+F camera, stopped at the Bogle winery for wine tasting, made a batch of chocolate chip cookies, had dinner at our favorite cheesy Western-themed Steakhouse where we dined on Sirloin and lobster, had Lory, Craig, Roach and TimTim over to share a rum cake that roach made me along with a couple of bottles of wine and finished off the night with a quick game of scrabble and an episode of "This American Life."
I had a perfect weekend, perfect birthday and perfect people in my life.
Thanks dudes! Here's to being 27.

Photos and stuff still to come...

And Penny Too!!!!!

2010-02-05T09:04:00.000-08:00

My sweet little niece, and Sam's little sister had a b-day this week too. She turned 5 yesterday and got the dolly that I made for her.

Happy Birthday Penny Lou, you amazingly sweet little kid, I heart you very very much!

Sam-Bot!

2010-02-03T10:30:00.000-08:00

Yesterday my super-awesome-super-adorable nephew turned 8 years old!
I sent a package with a card and a crochet robot I made for him.
My brother sent me this photo last night. Sam went bowling for his birthday and the bowling shirt he's wearing in the photo belonged to my brother when he was an itty bitty on a children's bowling team. (My mom was way into bowling and my brother and I were both involved in Youth Bowling Leagues when we were little....weird, huh?)
Anyways, I digress....

Happy Birthday Sam, to the raddest 8-year-old in the world!!!

"In the Sun"

2010-01-22T13:28:00.000-08:00

She & Him released their first single off their next record, Volume Two!

You can listen to it here.

Soooooooo 'cited!

Wun Ying Love

2010-01-22T09:03:00.000-08:00

Just a few days ago I discovered the mesmerising and playful art of Carrie Chau. I have spent a lot of time perusing her Wun Ying Collection and the loads of merchandise she has it printed on. I read a little bit about her background and learned that this Hong Kong native taught herself to draw with both hands allowing her to save time to do other things like work in her garden and see movies. (How rad is that?!) She's a graphic artist as well as an illustrator and her designs, drawings and sculptures are just so freaking cute I can't stand it.

Check out her website here

Read an interview with her here

Hello Dolly

2010-01-21T09:05:00.000-08:00

So about 75% of my family has their birthday in February (I happen to fall into that 75%) so I have started working on a few gifts. The first one finished is a little felt doll I made for my niece who is turning 5. I loosely followed a template by Black Apple that was posted on MarthaStewart.com. My doll turned out oh-so-cute and only took a couple of hours to make! She is made mostly from recycled felt and her dress is made from some vintage fabric scraps I bought at a rummage sale for 25 cents!

I think I'll have to make another for myself.

Never 'felt' better!

2010-01-18T15:01:00.000-08:00

I just ordered a little beginners needle felting kit on etsy. I can't for it to come in the mail. I have spent the last 30 minutes pondering what adorable little creature I will fashion first.
Here are some cute inspiration pieces to keep me tied over until I can make my own!

Do You Want To Date My Avatar?

2010-01-14T11:19:00.001-08:00

Felicia Day is my hero. She's cute, she's funny, she's smart and she lives for MMORPGs. About a million years ago, I heard an interview with her on The Instance Podcast (so you don't have to). I found out about Day's web series, The Guild. From that moment on I was a Codex-head (whatever that means). She has made tertiary appearances on a variety of movies and T.V. shows. She was a recurring character on Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Her biggest roll (other than her self-written, self-produced, web series) was as Penny in Joss Wheadon's epic web series, Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along-Blog.

Now that you know a bit of background on the coolest nerd in Hollywood, here is a funny little ditty that Day did with the cast of The Guild. I love the Internets.

Cupcake Competition

2010-01-06T12:45:00.001-08:00

My dearest friend and cohort in crafts, Kortnee, recently stumbled upon a delectable recipe for a peanut butter cupcake that is to-die-for. After tasting her concoction for the first time, I gobbled up every morsel in site, and promptly became overwhelmed with envy at her mouth-watering treasure. I guess I'm a bit competitive when it comes to baking. So I made my own.

I thought, "I'll add this and that and oh, mine are going to be so much better than hers!" I set to work. I found a recipe on allrecipes.com and added a few things to it. I decided to go with a semi-sweet ganache instead of the traditional frosting. The smells in the kitchen were tantalizing.

On first bite, I knew Kortnee had won. While my version is certainly edible, it just doesn't hold a candle to her scrumptious sweets. Mine came out beautiful in looks, but were a little on the dry side, and the semi-sweet topping lacked the refreshing sweetness that comes from milk chocolate butter cream.

Kortnee, you won this round, but I'll be back. I'll never rest until my cupcakes are at least as good as yours.

It's the thought that counts

2010-01-06T12:14:00.000-08:00

There are fewer things in this world that are cuter/sweeter/more awesome than a home-made gift. And even more awesome yet, the sub category of home-made gifts - the all impressive mix tape. Cassette tapes have gone the way of the saber tooth tiger and the "urkle doll", becoming more and more obsolete as this crazy web of information known as "the INTER-NETS" succeeds in turning our world into an in-tangible cluster*!#$ of password protection and anonymity.
But now you can impress your music-snob friends and those oh-so-cute faint of heart indie girls with these awesome CYBER MIX TAPES!!!!
You can customize them yourself with different designs and layouts and email them to those whom you choose. They may not have the actual music embedded into them (although it would be awesome if they did) but hey, after all, it's the thought that counts.

You can find the site to make your own HERE

Day Tripper

2010-01-03T16:19:00.000-08:00

Lory, Heather, Candice and I decided to take a day trip to San Francisco this past week. We had a complete blast just hanging out with each other. (Not something that happens all too often when something called "life" tends to get in the way.)
We started with a yummy lunch of dim sum, trekked on over the the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, shopped a bit, had cheeseburgers and beer for dinner and finished the day with a warm cup of coffee. It was awesome. I heart these chicks.
Below are some photos of our day...

Oh yeah - and Happy New Year!

yum yum sushi!

2009-12-28T21:16:00.000-08:00

It's officially my first day of vacation (not counting Christmas) and I decided to ring in my time off by not doing anything. It was awesome. I slept in, hung out, grocery shopped and decided to make a sushi for dinner for Ted and I.
There is this awesome little Japanese market down the street from my house where they sell a rad assortment of sushi grade fish, all the fixins to go along with it and some very sweet little knick-knacks to boot. I made fresh salmon and avocado rolls and spicy tuna rolls. We got a little packet of instant Miso soup, added a little extra nori....and Voila! Dinner.
I have tried my hand at making home-made sushi before but I think that tonight was my best yet!

wika-wika-WHAT?!

2009-12-23T08:37:00.000-08:00

As you know, Lory and myself are a couple of old ladies at heart who enjoy yarn crafts, sewing and baking cookies. (That is, when we aren't busy shredding our guitars, beating our drums and living the rock n' roll lifestyle.)
Well, previously un-beknownst to me, there is a whole genre of music that combines the two. It's like the happy medium between Clark Kent and Superman, the "and" in Dr. Jeckle AND Mr. Hyde.

Jaz found this YouTube phenom, sent it to me and I'm pretty sure changed my life.

Lory, we need to re-light the proverbial fire under Apocalypse Meow's lazy butts, write some crafty songs and befriend this woman. She might be the coolest thing in a puffy painted sweatshirt since Jerry Blank.

Merry Christmas friends! Enjoy!

Current Favorite Song....

2009-12-18T13:44:00.000-08:00

About a month ago I got an email from my friend Heather that said, "I stumbled upon this beautiful song." I watched the video and then soon after downloaded all of Cass McComb's albums. I love this song. I have listened to it every day since the first day I heard it It really is a true gem. Thanks H - you're RAD. I love you.

Too Hot to Handle

2009-12-17T12:22:00.000-08:00

While rummaging around on Etsy, I cam across this x-rated craft.

I think I'll but one for my grandma.

Interesting Find

2009-12-11T14:35:00.001-08:00

Earlier this year, I found this adorable set of silver plated salt and pepper shakers at an estate sale. They were dirty and oxidized, but my mom collects S&P shakers and I just knew she would want them (I hope she doesn't read this blog, they are her Christmas present this year!). Last night, while cleaning them, I discovered a very interesting stamp on the bottom. It read, "Made in Occupied Japan." I'd never heard of that and was intrigued. After a quick Google search, I learned that between 1945 and 1952, the U.S. Government assisted the country of Japan in becoming economically stable again. Money from the U.S. went toward manufacturing of ceramics, pottery and metal crafts in Japan. These brick-a-brac were then shipped back to the U.S. and sold to us with a stamp reading, "Made in Occupied Japan." What do ya know about that!

Cookie Party Part Too!

2009-12-09T16:28:00.000-08:00

The Annual Cookie Exchange is fast approaching. Each year, I try my hand at a new and exciting cookie recipe that I hope will wow the participants. This year, my first round of practice cookies were Hungarian Cheese Thumb Prints.

The mixed batter, waiting to be molded into deliciousness.

Prepped and ready to bake

And, Viola! Golden brown and ready to be shoved in my fat face hole.

They turned out light and delicate. Literally melting in your mouth. I think that is due to the fact that the recipe called for a whole pound of butter!

She & Him - Volume Two!!!

2009-12-09T16:03:00.000-08:00

I have long been awaiting the arrival of 'Volume Two' since I first heard She & Him's first record, 'Volume One'. To say that I am excited about this news is a drastic understatement. It's due out March 23rd and I can't wait to go out and buy a 2010 calendar purely to mark the date!

Read about the oh-so-far-away release here:

Look at adorable photos here:

And here:

And check out a video from their debut release here:

you're welcome.
heart, kb

Oh Tannenbaum!

2009-12-08T10:26:00.000-08:00

Ted and I got our christmas tree this weekend!
We got it at this little christmas tree lot in Oak Park. Right next to Carolina's and Mercado Loco.
I love it!

The Oatmeal for Breakfast

2009-12-04T09:18:00.000-08:00

Have you ever wanted to know five very good reasons to punch a dolphin in the mouth? Have you ever wondered if your loved ones are trying to eat you? Well, theoatmeal.com is the place for you. Fun little comics to make you pee your pants a little and get you in a lot of trouble with your boss when you can't stop giggling. If you park it there every morning, like I do, you can buy The Oatmeal a cup of coffee.That is, you can donate any amount of cash-o-la through Paypal to help keep the website going. Happy surfing!

cookie party!

2009-12-03T10:47:00.000-08:00

So last night Ted and I went to eat at our favorite little ramen house, Shoki Ramen House.
It truly was the perfect meal since it was so effing cold outside.
I always order the same thing - Tan-Tan Men with a side of steamed cabbage.
It's a spicy ramen broth with house made noodles topped with minced meat, spinach, shitake mushrooms and bamboo shoots.(I'm kinda drooling right now just thinkinag about it)
This is what it looks like - The little flower shaped fish cake doesn't come with it but Ted always gives me his because I think it's so cute.

After we got home from noshing down our delicious bowls of noodles and broth I got a major hankering for some cookies. Ted expressed to me that he WAS NOT going out to the store to retrieve whatever ingredients I needed to complete my desired task what-so-ever. I decided to do a role call of ingredients I had in my cupboard anyways and came to find that I had everything I needed to create some delicious peanut butter - chocolate chip morsels.

I couldn't believe it. I never have all the ingredients.
This has never happened to me before. I'm pretty sure this is some weird girly right of passage.
I am a grown-up now people.
I feels kinda awesome.

Christmas Card Craft

2009-12-02T12:55:00.000-08:00

Ann Martin, admistrator of the blog, All Things Paper is a true lover of paper craft. She recently had a Christmas card craft posted on one of my favorite websites, Craftzine.com.

A recycle alternative to the materials listed in her pattern would be to used some of those old Christmas cards you got last year from Aunt Sue and make some fun holiday shapes out of them. Adding the pretty notions will enhance the beauty and you don't have to feel guilty about throwing out last year's cards!

BAD ASS (Literally)

2009-12-01T09:29:00.000-08:00

So the former Miss Argentina and mother of two died due to complications while getting butt implants. BUTT IMPLANTS!!!!

Are you kidding me?!
This is why I don't understand the whole plastic surgery phenomena that's happening right now. People are voluntarily putting themselves at risk and having their bodies cut open and stuffed full of god-knows-what in order to appear younger? More endowed?
Curvier? More attractive?

To this I say "Bullshit!"
The whole thing is gross and weird and vane and un-natural.

You want a bigger ass?

...Have a donut - trust me - it works.

(photos by doe.c.doe - doecdoe.blogspot.com)

A Day at the Office? I Wish!

2009-12-01T09:15:00.000-08:00

I would take a cut in pay if I could work with these guys.

Why don't my coworkers want to play with me?

puss-puss!

2009-11-30T09:21:00.000-08:00

This is the Octopus I crocheted for my neice for a christmas present.
I got the pattern out of Amigurumi World by Ana Paula Rimoli.
It was super simple and oh-so adorable.
I kinda want to keep him for myself!

I Don't Mess Around with Leftovers

2009-11-27T13:23:00.000-08:00

Peep this deliciousness.

The leftover meal of the century...

1. Homemade Olive & Cheese bread.
2. Just a smidgen of mayo.
3. Cranberry jelly.
4. Green olives, smashed.
5. Cornbread stuffing.
6. Bit o' light & bit o' dark meat.

Take that, Thanksgiving!

Thankful for pies

2009-11-25T19:38:00.000-08:00

I am making a couple of adorable pies for tomorrow.

Berry pies are my favorite!!!!!!!

P.S. My house smells amazing right now.

The Muppets Do Queen!

2009-11-25T09:21:00.000-08:00

So I know that this is all over the internets by now - but I want to post it cause it makes me giggle... a lot.
Ever since my friend Ramona (aka my friend Kristie's 2-year-old daughter) started talking she requests to watch The Muppets(Take Manhattan) every time she comes over to my house for a visit. I have 2 kid-friendly movies in my DVD collection and she knows that it's one of them. We have watched that movie so much in the recents months I have lost count of how many times it's been.

So the fact that the Muppet enterprise is incorporating Queens music!?!?

Radness...utter radness.

Check it out. I dare you.

Fail Blog Giggles

2009-11-24T10:52:00.001-08:00

I love failblog.org. It's pretty much the funniest website around. Some mornings, there is a bit of dribble in my undies from the over-abundance of laughter.

see more Epic Fails

What I want to know is, how does she plan on passing off the seller of said tickets as any of her six kids? Or, do you think she is hording the shots in her closet and doling them out in exchange for things like rock concerts and bottles of Wild Turkey? I didn't realize the H1-N1 vaccine could be used monetarily. I guess I'll be lining up tomorrow.

Elvis Costello on The Colbert Report

2009-11-24T09:52:00.000-08:00

I watched a re-run of The Colbert Report the other night and was overly excited to find out that Elvis Costello was going to be one of the guests. Apparently Mr. Costello was having issues with voice loss and couldn't sing. Good thing Stephen Colbert is so effing RAD - this is what they gave us...

The Colbert Report

Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c

Elvis Costello

www.colbertnation.com

Colbert Report Full Episodes

Political Humor

U.S. Speedskating