Pre-Dessert
Plasticann knows she's on vacation with Plasticmom when:
1. as a pre-lunch snack, we enjoy some Haagen Daz ice cream---Dulche de Leche & Mint Chip thank you very much.
2. as a pre-dinner snack, plasticmom enjoys a pecan turtle bar and encourages plasticann to eat a fruit tart pre-dessert, which turns out to be delicious. We then eat a chocolate souffle cake after a seafood dinner.
Life is Good!
Sunday, June 29, 2003
Tuesday, June 24, 2003
plasticann & plasticmom go to Washington...see you all in July
Update on Krispy Kreme Medford's Grand Opening: Nina, Greg, Helen and I successfully procured two dozen doughnuts this afternoon. The line was short, there were free hot doughnuts to be had and I purchased a new shirt. Not bad at all...except for the heart palpitations I'm experiencing due to all that sugar and caffeine....blehhhh my blood stream needs to be detoxed.
Update on Krispy Kreme Medford's Grand Opening: Nina, Greg, Helen and I successfully procured two dozen doughnuts this afternoon. The line was short, there were free hot doughnuts to be had and I purchased a new shirt. Not bad at all...except for the heart palpitations I'm experiencing due to all that sugar and caffeine....blehhhh my blood stream needs to be detoxed.
Krispy Kreme Opens Today In Medford...Need I say more?
I first fell in love with Krispy Kreme doughnuts when I went down to Daytona Beach, FL for Spring Break with my college fellowship. There was a buy one box get another box free deal at Krispy Kreme so my buddy, Emily (Em-gei), and I hopped in the car one afternoon and bought two boxes of doughnuts to share with our friends. Then on the drive back to the motel, we started feeling really guilty and kind of bad and even hid our doughnuts in a bureau drawer while we debated what to do. Our friend, Ben, who was on the trip with us had a restricted diet due to a medical condition, no sugars, no yeast, and a bunch of other no nos and we were all trying our best to be supportive and cook meals that met his dietary restrictions. Krispy Kreme doughnuts, unfortunately, violated two of his biggest dietary no nos, sugar and yeast. Later that evening, Emily and I had to confess to Ben that we had forgotten and purchased doughnuts that he couldn't eat. Fortunately, Ben was super gracious and said that we should enjoy our doughnut loot and he felt fine not being able to eat them. Sugary and deep fried fatty bliss!
On the way out of Daytona Beach later that week, we stopped by the Krispy Kreme where I had a Hot Original Glazed Doughnut...heaven. I also collected a promotional movie poster with the Primary Colors Red White and Blue doughnut (v. funny), which I subsequently had laminated, and a Krispy Kreme Road signs travel mug. My byline for the newspaper article I wrote the following week about our road trip down to Daytona read, "%#$ &$@! B'00 ate five Krispy Kreme doughnuts while in Daytona Beach, FL."
Note: My name is not an expletive.
I first fell in love with Krispy Kreme doughnuts when I went down to Daytona Beach, FL for Spring Break with my college fellowship. There was a buy one box get another box free deal at Krispy Kreme so my buddy, Emily (Em-gei), and I hopped in the car one afternoon and bought two boxes of doughnuts to share with our friends. Then on the drive back to the motel, we started feeling really guilty and kind of bad and even hid our doughnuts in a bureau drawer while we debated what to do. Our friend, Ben, who was on the trip with us had a restricted diet due to a medical condition, no sugars, no yeast, and a bunch of other no nos and we were all trying our best to be supportive and cook meals that met his dietary restrictions. Krispy Kreme doughnuts, unfortunately, violated two of his biggest dietary no nos, sugar and yeast. Later that evening, Emily and I had to confess to Ben that we had forgotten and purchased doughnuts that he couldn't eat. Fortunately, Ben was super gracious and said that we should enjoy our doughnut loot and he felt fine not being able to eat them. Sugary and deep fried fatty bliss!
On the way out of Daytona Beach later that week, we stopped by the Krispy Kreme where I had a Hot Original Glazed Doughnut...heaven. I also collected a promotional movie poster with the Primary Colors Red White and Blue doughnut (v. funny), which I subsequently had laminated, and a Krispy Kreme Road signs travel mug. My byline for the newspaper article I wrote the following week about our road trip down to Daytona read, "%#$ &$@! B'00 ate five Krispy Kreme doughnuts while in Daytona Beach, FL."
Note: My name is not an expletive.
Monday, June 23, 2003
Moses supposes his toeses are roses...Moses supposes erroneously...
Debbie Reynolds is just the cutest Kathy Seldon ever, but I thoroughly enjoyed the local Broadway musical revival of Singin' in the Rain I attended last Saturday with Nina, Jessica and Adam by the Reagle Players. The musical was a really fun, and surprisingly faithful, adaptation of the movie musical with Gene Kelly, Debbie Reynolds and the hilarious Donald O'Conner. During intermission, I enjoyed some delicious coffee yogurt from Lizzie's Homemade Ice Cream. Singin' in the Rain is actually one of Adam's favorite movies, but it's fast becoming mine as well. In addition to this weekend's musical, I saw it a few months ago on the big screen at the Brattle Theatre also with Nina and Jessica and I'm now thinking about purchasing the DVD. It's just such a happy movie and puts me in a great mood. After the matinee performance, predominately attended by senior citizens who were on their way to The Chateau afterwards for an early bird dinner of toasted ravioli, folks were filing out of the auditorium singin, dancing, doing little jigs...you just can't help humming along absent mindedly.
Debbie Reynolds is just the cutest Kathy Seldon ever, but I thoroughly enjoyed the local Broadway musical revival of Singin' in the Rain I attended last Saturday with Nina, Jessica and Adam by the Reagle Players. The musical was a really fun, and surprisingly faithful, adaptation of the movie musical with Gene Kelly, Debbie Reynolds and the hilarious Donald O'Conner. During intermission, I enjoyed some delicious coffee yogurt from Lizzie's Homemade Ice Cream. Singin' in the Rain is actually one of Adam's favorite movies, but it's fast becoming mine as well. In addition to this weekend's musical, I saw it a few months ago on the big screen at the Brattle Theatre also with Nina and Jessica and I'm now thinking about purchasing the DVD. It's just such a happy movie and puts me in a great mood. After the matinee performance, predominately attended by senior citizens who were on their way to The Chateau afterwards for an early bird dinner of toasted ravioli, folks were filing out of the auditorium singin, dancing, doing little jigs...you just can't help humming along absent mindedly.
Friday, June 20, 2003
The Cake Mix Doctor
Last month, I discovered Duncan Hines' interactive create your own recipe feature on their website. Intrigued that the addition of other ingredients, such as sour cream, could change the texture and taste of cake from a mix, Nina suggested Anne Byrn, The Cake Mix Doctor, whom she'd seen on TV. I just got my copy of the book yesterday from Amazon and the recipes look really fun and easy...v. exciting and perfect for my new bundt pan.
Note: She also has a chocolate recipe book and a dinner doctor book.
Last month, I discovered Duncan Hines' interactive create your own recipe feature on their website. Intrigued that the addition of other ingredients, such as sour cream, could change the texture and taste of cake from a mix, Nina suggested Anne Byrn, The Cake Mix Doctor, whom she'd seen on TV. I just got my copy of the book yesterday from Amazon and the recipes look really fun and easy...v. exciting and perfect for my new bundt pan.
Note: She also has a chocolate recipe book and a dinner doctor book.
Thursday, June 19, 2003
Nantucket Nectar Grapeade
My favorite Nantucket Nectar is their Grapeade, which doesn't nutritionally really qualify as Nectar or Juice. Grapeade is more like "punch juice," which is what MGDub's not so little cousins would call it. I actually like a lot of their juice products having consumed more than my per capita share of Nantucket Nectars in college: Orange Mango, Cranberry Apple, Half & Half and nearly every other fruit/lemonade/ice tea combo they come up with.
Thinking about Nantucket Nectars is a trip down college meal plan memory lane. As I've mentioned before, I was on the highest meal plan (20 meals a week) for all four years...a "lifer." I'll spare you from an in depth discussion about all the nuances of the meal plan system [which, by the way, I mastered by my second semester], but here are the essentials: I almost never ate breakfast so my breakfast meal credit translated into a dollar denominated snack credit which I would use during the evening hours, after 8pm.
The campus snack bars, which were really QSRs or Quick Service Restaurants, all stocked Nantucket Nectars partially because Tom&Tom were both alums; the cool celebrated hip entrepreneurial kind rather than the old stodgy irrelevant to thirsty college students kind. Unfortunately, the campus snack bar student workers would stock the fridges with the following sub par methodology: open any three boxes from the basement storage area and stock fridge. The problem was, rather than stocking the fridge with a variety of flavors, if the three boxes were Cranberry Apple, Cranberry and Grape Juice, that's all you got until they sold out so I would hoard my favorite flavors whenever they were available. [Note: They got better about stocking a variety of flavors toward my senior year with the introduction of a new Nantucket Nectars display case.]
At any given point my freshman year, chances were a bottle of Grapeade resided in the dorm fridge I shared with my roommate with my stash of Grapeade bottles hitting 6-8 at various points in time. One of my friends, having witnessed my obscene Grapeade stash, ridiculed my love of Grapeade until one fateful night. I’d snagged three bottles of Grapeade that night when I spied his brown paper bag filled with his snack bar loot and innocently asked, “Hey, what did you get?” He hemmed and hawed and avoided the question until he finally revealed they he too had three bottles of Grapeade in his brown paper bag. Harrumph…
Sadly, Grapeade was near impossible to find at any campus snack bar after my freshman year. Grapeade became a rare treat once I had to use my "flex points" or god forbid, cash to buy them at the campus market and other non snack bar vendors. Turns out, my coworkers Nina and Steve also enjoy Grapeade and occasionally we’ll come across some Nantucket Nectars leftover from catered lunch meetings. One time, I specifically went into the conference room after a meeting to scavenge a Grapeade, but was unsuccessful. Five minutes later, Steve saunters by my office brandishing a bottle of Grapeade. I exclaimed, “I was just in there looking for that, where did you find it? Are there anymore?” Steve was duly rewarded for his meticulous search and rescue effort finding the Grapeade buried in the ice. However, he was nice enough to share his Grapeade with me. Having declared my undying eternal love for Grapead, I'm thinking I might splurge and just buy one next time I'm out and about.
My favorite Nantucket Nectar is their Grapeade, which doesn't nutritionally really qualify as Nectar or Juice. Grapeade is more like "punch juice," which is what MGDub's not so little cousins would call it. I actually like a lot of their juice products having consumed more than my per capita share of Nantucket Nectars in college: Orange Mango, Cranberry Apple, Half & Half and nearly every other fruit/lemonade/ice tea combo they come up with.
Thinking about Nantucket Nectars is a trip down college meal plan memory lane. As I've mentioned before, I was on the highest meal plan (20 meals a week) for all four years...a "lifer." I'll spare you from an in depth discussion about all the nuances of the meal plan system [which, by the way, I mastered by my second semester], but here are the essentials: I almost never ate breakfast so my breakfast meal credit translated into a dollar denominated snack credit which I would use during the evening hours, after 8pm.
The campus snack bars, which were really QSRs or Quick Service Restaurants, all stocked Nantucket Nectars partially because Tom&Tom were both alums; the cool celebrated hip entrepreneurial kind rather than the old stodgy irrelevant to thirsty college students kind. Unfortunately, the campus snack bar student workers would stock the fridges with the following sub par methodology: open any three boxes from the basement storage area and stock fridge. The problem was, rather than stocking the fridge with a variety of flavors, if the three boxes were Cranberry Apple, Cranberry and Grape Juice, that's all you got until they sold out so I would hoard my favorite flavors whenever they were available. [Note: They got better about stocking a variety of flavors toward my senior year with the introduction of a new Nantucket Nectars display case.]
At any given point my freshman year, chances were a bottle of Grapeade resided in the dorm fridge I shared with my roommate with my stash of Grapeade bottles hitting 6-8 at various points in time. One of my friends, having witnessed my obscene Grapeade stash, ridiculed my love of Grapeade until one fateful night. I’d snagged three bottles of Grapeade that night when I spied his brown paper bag filled with his snack bar loot and innocently asked, “Hey, what did you get?” He hemmed and hawed and avoided the question until he finally revealed they he too had three bottles of Grapeade in his brown paper bag. Harrumph…
Sadly, Grapeade was near impossible to find at any campus snack bar after my freshman year. Grapeade became a rare treat once I had to use my "flex points" or god forbid, cash to buy them at the campus market and other non snack bar vendors. Turns out, my coworkers Nina and Steve also enjoy Grapeade and occasionally we’ll come across some Nantucket Nectars leftover from catered lunch meetings. One time, I specifically went into the conference room after a meeting to scavenge a Grapeade, but was unsuccessful. Five minutes later, Steve saunters by my office brandishing a bottle of Grapeade. I exclaimed, “I was just in there looking for that, where did you find it? Are there anymore?” Steve was duly rewarded for his meticulous search and rescue effort finding the Grapeade buried in the ice. However, he was nice enough to share his Grapeade with me. Having declared my undying eternal love for Grapead, I'm thinking I might splurge and just buy one next time I'm out and about.
Wednesday, June 18, 2003
"Don't Pee on My Leg and Tell Me It's Raining:..."
I once asked a college friend (more like an acquaintance) what his dad did and he answered, "he makes yogurt." This conjured up images of his dad rising at dusk to make yogurt in his shop, make that a "shoppe." Bread maker, candlestick maker, butcher, yogurt maker...not entirely inconceivable and I really don't know much about the French to culturally dispute the existence of "old timey" artisan yogurt makers in every town. The fact that they lived in New York City and made yogurt was odd, but I didn't press the discrepancy. As it turns out, his dad was something like the North American President of Dannon Yogurt. I don't personally think his dad can legitimately list "yogurt maker" under "occupation." Anyhow...his dad's now moved up from "yogurt maker" and is now a "socially aware, we don't use animal testing soap maker."
However, I do have a legitimate beef with Dannon. I enjoy their yogurt, but their "let's put only six ounces of yogurt in a container that accommodates eight ounces and tell them that we've substituted air for yogurt and given them 'room' on top so they can add their own 'stir in' without fear of overfilling their yogurt cups and please give me an award for spinning a shrinking product as an innovation to our customers," marketing enrages me. Oh Puuhleeas...do I look like an idiot? Don't answer that!
I once asked a college friend (more like an acquaintance) what his dad did and he answered, "he makes yogurt." This conjured up images of his dad rising at dusk to make yogurt in his shop, make that a "shoppe." Bread maker, candlestick maker, butcher, yogurt maker...not entirely inconceivable and I really don't know much about the French to culturally dispute the existence of "old timey" artisan yogurt makers in every town. The fact that they lived in New York City and made yogurt was odd, but I didn't press the discrepancy. As it turns out, his dad was something like the North American President of Dannon Yogurt. I don't personally think his dad can legitimately list "yogurt maker" under "occupation." Anyhow...his dad's now moved up from "yogurt maker" and is now a "socially aware, we don't use animal testing soap maker."
However, I do have a legitimate beef with Dannon. I enjoy their yogurt, but their "let's put only six ounces of yogurt in a container that accommodates eight ounces and tell them that we've substituted air for yogurt and given them 'room' on top so they can add their own 'stir in' without fear of overfilling their yogurt cups and please give me an award for spinning a shrinking product as an innovation to our customers," marketing enrages me. Oh Puuhleeas...do I look like an idiot? Don't answer that!
"under the weather"
Whenever someone says they're "under the weather," I immediately think "it's that time of month" even though I use the phrase "under the weather" for times when I've got a cold or other ailments because that was the context it was used in when I first encountered the phrase in some chapter book. However my automatic mental assumptions warrant a chuckle, while admittedly improbable & bizarre, especially when the person "under the weather" happens to be male.
Whenever someone says they're "under the weather," I immediately think "it's that time of month" even though I use the phrase "under the weather" for times when I've got a cold or other ailments because that was the context it was used in when I first encountered the phrase in some chapter book. However my automatic mental assumptions warrant a chuckle, while admittedly improbable & bizarre, especially when the person "under the weather" happens to be male.
Tuesday, June 17, 2003
My first love...
...well, not exactly. I was working on some craft projects while watching TV last night when I rediscovered my self-healing cutting mat and my cork backed stainless steel ruler. They're two of my oldest, but favorite tools. I haven't been using my self healing cutting mat much since I lacerated my finger with an X-ACTO knife one Thanksgiving and finally invested in a paper cutter, but I was reminded how much I love its self healing properties (gotta love technology) and it's lovely printed measuring grid (how convenient). I also think my cork back stainless steel ruler (no slippage while cutting and very durable) is just simply "the best." I especially love my old one because it's got inches on both sides of the ruler rather than metric on one side. While I appreciate metric, having inches on both sides of my ruler allows me to line things up easily because the measurements line up exactly on both sides. It's really the little things in life.
...well, not exactly. I was working on some craft projects while watching TV last night when I rediscovered my self-healing cutting mat and my cork backed stainless steel ruler. They're two of my oldest, but favorite tools. I haven't been using my self healing cutting mat much since I lacerated my finger with an X-ACTO knife one Thanksgiving and finally invested in a paper cutter, but I was reminded how much I love its self healing properties (gotta love technology) and it's lovely printed measuring grid (how convenient). I also think my cork back stainless steel ruler (no slippage while cutting and very durable) is just simply "the best." I especially love my old one because it's got inches on both sides of the ruler rather than metric on one side. While I appreciate metric, having inches on both sides of my ruler allows me to line things up easily because the measurements line up exactly on both sides. It's really the little things in life.
Monday, June 16, 2003
Announcement: Monikers
My mom will henceforth be referred to as "plasticmom," a nickname she coined for herself after reading this blog as a reference to Nina and her mom, #&*$^@100 & #&*$^@mom. [Note: Their AOL screen names are not expletives, but this is my effort to conceal their real identities.] I'd like to welcome her to a cast of blog regulars who go by their real names and some who go by their thinly veiled nicknames such as "Zrad," "MGDub," "GJDubya" and "Adam."
My mom will henceforth be referred to as "plasticmom," a nickname she coined for herself after reading this blog as a reference to Nina and her mom, #&*$^@100 & #&*$^@mom. [Note: Their AOL screen names are not expletives, but this is my effort to conceal their real identities.] I'd like to welcome her to a cast of blog regulars who go by their real names and some who go by their thinly veiled nicknames such as "Zrad," "MGDub," "GJDubya" and "Adam."
Liquified and Reconstituted Graphite: the particleboard of pencils
Keith (real name), Zrad's housemate, was nice enough to let me try out his cool new liquid graphite pen-cil...it's a pen-like pencil...perhaps just as "bizarre" as those new McGriddle sandwiches, which are really not as bizarre as the hyperbolic ads portray them to be. They're definitely a cool idea, but I'm not sure how I feel about them...I think I'll have to try these pen-cils out again under an environment more conducive to writing, a smooth writing surface. Now the space pen, often a subject of geriatric ire on Seinfeld, is neat. They write over grease, upside down, underwater, and just about anything. I don't actually own one since my sedentary lifestyle does not require such innovative and Xtreme writing implements, but I think they're especially cool when paired with a Rite in the Rain waterproof notebook, yet another item my lifestyle does not require. I had one when I was a kid and the paper's been coated with a "special sauce" so it's really waterproof. Now if only it were "coffeeproof," I'd be using it at work.
Keith (real name), Zrad's housemate, was nice enough to let me try out his cool new liquid graphite pen-cil...it's a pen-like pencil...perhaps just as "bizarre" as those new McGriddle sandwiches, which are really not as bizarre as the hyperbolic ads portray them to be. They're definitely a cool idea, but I'm not sure how I feel about them...I think I'll have to try these pen-cils out again under an environment more conducive to writing, a smooth writing surface. Now the space pen, often a subject of geriatric ire on Seinfeld, is neat. They write over grease, upside down, underwater, and just about anything. I don't actually own one since my sedentary lifestyle does not require such innovative and Xtreme writing implements, but I think they're especially cool when paired with a Rite in the Rain waterproof notebook, yet another item my lifestyle does not require. I had one when I was a kid and the paper's been coated with a "special sauce" so it's really waterproof. Now if only it were "coffeeproof," I'd be using it at work.
Friday, June 13, 2003
Ginger Apricot Scones
Last night I attempted to replicate the delightful ginger scones I had at Teaism last month (see 5/5/03 & 5/12/03 posts) and the results turned out quite swimmingly. I used a half-cup each of chopped crystallized ginger and dried apricot in my scone recipe and topped each scone off with a sprinkle of Sugar In The Raw prior to baking for that nice crystallized sugar topping effect that's been eluding me. The scones pack a bit of heat from the ginger, but were sweet enough to be thoroughly enjoyable. I also tried to make lemon curd with lackluster results, but I'm going to try a different recipe next time.
Last night I attempted to replicate the delightful ginger scones I had at Teaism last month (see 5/5/03 & 5/12/03 posts) and the results turned out quite swimmingly. I used a half-cup each of chopped crystallized ginger and dried apricot in my scone recipe and topped each scone off with a sprinkle of Sugar In The Raw prior to baking for that nice crystallized sugar topping effect that's been eluding me. The scones pack a bit of heat from the ginger, but were sweet enough to be thoroughly enjoyable. I also tried to make lemon curd with lackluster results, but I'm going to try a different recipe next time.
A retraction of sorts
Turns out, I did tell my mom about the word "comeuppance." I mistakenly assumed she wasn't really listening because she was distracted by her [TV] "shows." However, I am correct in that she did write the word down on a scrap of paper for future use. Diamonds for Mom for use of "comeuppance," Coals for Ann for forgetting.
Turns out, I did tell my mom about the word "comeuppance." I mistakenly assumed she wasn't really listening because she was distracted by her [TV] "shows." However, I am correct in that she did write the word down on a scrap of paper for future use. Diamonds for Mom for use of "comeuppance," Coals for Ann for forgetting.
Thursday, June 12, 2003
"comeuppance" here, "comeuppance" there, "comeuppance" everywhere
By the way, I think my mom is quite simply AWESOME. English is not her first language, but she sure is a quick study and has a vast vocabulary she whips out when I'm least expecting it. After all, she was the one who got me reading the Wall Street Journal when I a kid. My first cognitive memory of the WSJ middle column was in second grade when I brought in an article for show and tell about people who kept Vietnamese pot bellied pigs as household pets dressed them up in costumes...the thought of pigs wearing clothes is especially hilarious when one is seven. Back to the her always growing vocabulary, she's currently working on a final paper for her class on the leadership styles portrayed in the film, Schindler's List. The best part is this reference to fate of the evil Nazi camp commandant, "Consequently, he was hanged after the war, comeuppance." Completely in context, spelled correctly, slightly off grammatically, but otherwise brilliant. I can just imagine her pondering with glee as she whips out yet another word from her little notebook of cool words that I know she keeps. I've never spoken to her about the word "comeuppance" and I doubt she's been watching the Simpsons, the Magnificent Ambersons, or reading a Maltin review of Down With Love and I know she doesn't read my blog. I'm sending the paper back to her with minor grammatical and stylistic changes, but other than that, I think my mom is pure genius.
By the way, I think my mom is quite simply AWESOME. English is not her first language, but she sure is a quick study and has a vast vocabulary she whips out when I'm least expecting it. After all, she was the one who got me reading the Wall Street Journal when I a kid. My first cognitive memory of the WSJ middle column was in second grade when I brought in an article for show and tell about people who kept Vietnamese pot bellied pigs as household pets dressed them up in costumes...the thought of pigs wearing clothes is especially hilarious when one is seven. Back to the her always growing vocabulary, she's currently working on a final paper for her class on the leadership styles portrayed in the film, Schindler's List. The best part is this reference to fate of the evil Nazi camp commandant, "Consequently, he was hanged after the war, comeuppance." Completely in context, spelled correctly, slightly off grammatically, but otherwise brilliant. I can just imagine her pondering with glee as she whips out yet another word from her little notebook of cool words that I know she keeps. I've never spoken to her about the word "comeuppance" and I doubt she's been watching the Simpsons, the Magnificent Ambersons, or reading a Maltin review of Down With Love and I know she doesn't read my blog. I'm sending the paper back to her with minor grammatical and stylistic changes, but other than that, I think my mom is pure genius.
Wednesday, June 11, 2003
"Kickin it Retro Old School"
This morning's Wall Street Journal, "Care Bears' Second Act, Revived on Kitschy T-Shirts, Many 1980s Icons Discover They Still Have Toy Appeal." I'm officially old enough that cultural phenomenon of my youth are now legitimately "retro." YIKES! No longer does "retro" end at the 1970s with those bell bottoms; Care Bears, Strawberry Shortcake, My Little Pony, Smurfs, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles of the eighties are now retro as well as being "ironic," "sardonic," and here's a shocker, "kitschy."
Next time I'm home, I'm scouring the house for my old Strawberry Shortcake sheets and my "distressed" (Read-rusty, old, & when was your last tetanus booster?) Holly Hobby lunchbox. I've already appropriated my vintage Raggedy Ann & Andy sheets and if Hot Topic would only market them as the next cool "kickin it retro old school" trend, I'll be cooler than their punky tween customer base. They've retooled Strawberry Shortcake and her friends eschewing their traditional pinafores for comfortable overalls. True to the original, they've maintained that artificial, but oddly pleasant perfumed scent. [Laurel is a huge Strawberry Shortcake and Care Bears fan, I'll bet she still has her collection of Care Bears...now's the perfect time to sell those "vintage" dolls on ebay and fund that European vacation.] As for me, Hello Kitty and her friends harken the fondest memories from my youth. According to Wendy, the cool grad students carried Hello Kitty pencil cases...the only thing separating me from those cool grad students is, well...grad school.
Note to MGDub...I'm not sure if "Apple Dumpling" is a member of new Strawberry Shortcake & Friends cast, at least I haven't seen Apple Dumpling as of yet.
This morning's Wall Street Journal, "Care Bears' Second Act, Revived on Kitschy T-Shirts, Many 1980s Icons Discover They Still Have Toy Appeal." I'm officially old enough that cultural phenomenon of my youth are now legitimately "retro." YIKES! No longer does "retro" end at the 1970s with those bell bottoms; Care Bears, Strawberry Shortcake, My Little Pony, Smurfs, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles of the eighties are now retro as well as being "ironic," "sardonic," and here's a shocker, "kitschy."
Next time I'm home, I'm scouring the house for my old Strawberry Shortcake sheets and my "distressed" (Read-rusty, old, & when was your last tetanus booster?) Holly Hobby lunchbox. I've already appropriated my vintage Raggedy Ann & Andy sheets and if Hot Topic would only market them as the next cool "kickin it retro old school" trend, I'll be cooler than their punky tween customer base. They've retooled Strawberry Shortcake and her friends eschewing their traditional pinafores for comfortable overalls. True to the original, they've maintained that artificial, but oddly pleasant perfumed scent. [Laurel is a huge Strawberry Shortcake and Care Bears fan, I'll bet she still has her collection of Care Bears...now's the perfect time to sell those "vintage" dolls on ebay and fund that European vacation.] As for me, Hello Kitty and her friends harken the fondest memories from my youth. According to Wendy, the cool grad students carried Hello Kitty pencil cases...the only thing separating me from those cool grad students is, well...grad school.
Note to MGDub...I'm not sure if "Apple Dumpling" is a member of new Strawberry Shortcake & Friends cast, at least I haven't seen Apple Dumpling as of yet.
Monday, June 09, 2003
Nalgene Splash Guards
Nina founds these Splash Guard inserts for wide mouth Nalgene bottles at EMS last weekend. I was at a church retreat a few months ago, when I caught a glimpse of someone's Nalgene bottle, it looked like there was a nifty insert that reduced the wide mouth to a more manageable size preventing water splashing all over her face. The best of both worlds, easy cleaning and easy drinking. I felt it might be rude to accost her about her bottle in the middle of a conference. Since I didn't get a good look at the insert and I couldn’t find it on the Nalgene website, I considered chalking it up as a figment of my overactive imagination. However, thanks to Nina, mystery solved.
Nina founds these Splash Guard inserts for wide mouth Nalgene bottles at EMS last weekend. I was at a church retreat a few months ago, when I caught a glimpse of someone's Nalgene bottle, it looked like there was a nifty insert that reduced the wide mouth to a more manageable size preventing water splashing all over her face. The best of both worlds, easy cleaning and easy drinking. I felt it might be rude to accost her about her bottle in the middle of a conference. Since I didn't get a good look at the insert and I couldn’t find it on the Nalgene website, I considered chalking it up as a figment of my overactive imagination. However, thanks to Nina, mystery solved.
Friday, June 06, 2003
My friend...
Nina was confused when I started referring to the office printers by their model numbers...almost as if they were my friends.
Ann: Yes! I'm so excited.
Nina: What are you excited about?
Ann: I've been having trouble with 5i and 8000 all week and I didn't know if it was my problem, but now 8000 works and I no longer have to use 5.
Nina: What are talking about?
Ann: The printers, Laser Jet 5, 5i and 8000.
Unfortunately, I don't win any creativity points for referring to the printers by their literal model number. Michelle used to work in an office with computers named "BET," "MTV," & "VH1," which lends to conversations about office equipment that are actually funny and not just confusing and weird.
Nina was confused when I started referring to the office printers by their model numbers...almost as if they were my friends.
Ann: Yes! I'm so excited.
Nina: What are you excited about?
Ann: I've been having trouble with 5i and 8000 all week and I didn't know if it was my problem, but now 8000 works and I no longer have to use 5.
Nina: What are talking about?
Ann: The printers, Laser Jet 5, 5i and 8000.
Unfortunately, I don't win any creativity points for referring to the printers by their literal model number. Michelle used to work in an office with computers named "BET," "MTV," & "VH1," which lends to conversations about office equipment that are actually funny and not just confusing and weird.
This Just In: Nalgene just introduced three new colors for its water bottles
Nina just discovered three new water bottle colors offered by Nalgene: Sapphire Blue, Ruby Red and Sage Green. The new colors are available for the wide & narrow mouth 32oz models. Nalgene started offering their lexan bottles in Technicolor a few years ago and here's the color chronology according to me:
1. Meadow Green, Raspberry Red, Honey Yellow, and Glacier Blue offered in wide mouth 32oz model.
2. Firefly Yellow, Meadow Green and Violet offered in the narrow mouth 16oz model.
3. Violet and Firefly Yellow then available in wide mouth 32oz.
4. Sapphire Blue, Ruby Red and Sage Green available in wide & narrow mouth 32oz models.
The problem is these water bottles are nearly indestructible which is great for functionality, but annoying if you want new fashionable colors. I got a violet bottle with a white cap last year and now I want all the cool new colors, but I can't quite justify buying more water bottles when I already own two. My mom's a fan as well clocking in with three Nalgenes. Since they're essentially made with laboratory quality plastic and functional under extreme heat and cold, she pours boiling water into her bottles to make her ice tea. Nearly everyone I know owns one, a good portion of whom I purchased a bottle for and are now fans themselves, I’ll have to think hard to find new friends to convert.
Note: If you buy from the Nalgene website, they offer free shipping, it's usually cheaper and you get to chose your own cap/bottle color combinations.
Nina just discovered three new water bottle colors offered by Nalgene: Sapphire Blue, Ruby Red and Sage Green. The new colors are available for the wide & narrow mouth 32oz models. Nalgene started offering their lexan bottles in Technicolor a few years ago and here's the color chronology according to me:
1. Meadow Green, Raspberry Red, Honey Yellow, and Glacier Blue offered in wide mouth 32oz model.
2. Firefly Yellow, Meadow Green and Violet offered in the narrow mouth 16oz model.
3. Violet and Firefly Yellow then available in wide mouth 32oz.
4. Sapphire Blue, Ruby Red and Sage Green available in wide & narrow mouth 32oz models.
The problem is these water bottles are nearly indestructible which is great for functionality, but annoying if you want new fashionable colors. I got a violet bottle with a white cap last year and now I want all the cool new colors, but I can't quite justify buying more water bottles when I already own two. My mom's a fan as well clocking in with three Nalgenes. Since they're essentially made with laboratory quality plastic and functional under extreme heat and cold, she pours boiling water into her bottles to make her ice tea. Nearly everyone I know owns one, a good portion of whom I purchased a bottle for and are now fans themselves, I’ll have to think hard to find new friends to convert.
Note: If you buy from the Nalgene website, they offer free shipping, it's usually cheaper and you get to chose your own cap/bottle color combinations.
Thursday, June 05, 2003
The Flip-Flop Jungle--an update to Havaianas
A few months ago, I happened upon a huge display of cheap Havaiana flip-flops because Adam wanted to check out this Brazilian supermarket. Last night I went back hoping to find a pair of Havaianas for Adam. I knew I was being optimistic hoping to find a pair in Adam's size, but I was dismayed to find the selection and display in such disarray. It was as if a plague of locusts had descended on the flip-flop display scattering dirt and decimating the Havaiana selection. I methodically checked all the flip flops for any sign of a pair in his size and finally settled on buying him some Guava & Cheese wafer cookies as a consolation. I bought another pair for myself (Royal Blue) and bought Michelle a pair of black ones, if only to rescue them from an under appreciated existence of grime and chaos. I washed the dirt off my Havaianas and they're looking much better. Michelle joyfully declared her Havaianas as "squishy."
A few months ago, I happened upon a huge display of cheap Havaiana flip-flops because Adam wanted to check out this Brazilian supermarket. Last night I went back hoping to find a pair of Havaianas for Adam. I knew I was being optimistic hoping to find a pair in Adam's size, but I was dismayed to find the selection and display in such disarray. It was as if a plague of locusts had descended on the flip-flop display scattering dirt and decimating the Havaiana selection. I methodically checked all the flip flops for any sign of a pair in his size and finally settled on buying him some Guava & Cheese wafer cookies as a consolation. I bought another pair for myself (Royal Blue) and bought Michelle a pair of black ones, if only to rescue them from an under appreciated existence of grime and chaos. I washed the dirt off my Havaianas and they're looking much better. Michelle joyfully declared her Havaianas as "squishy."
Wednesday, June 04, 2003
The Price is Right: Cake Edition
Laurel and I trekked down to Party Favors in Brookline, a party supply and more importantly a cake shop. They've won various "Best of Boston" awards for birthday cakes and such, but I wanted to visit because we had gotten our most delicious birthday cakes from them. The store had a penetrating aroma of butter and sugar and was jam packed with party supplies and displays of beautifully decorated cakes and other baked goodies. The lower level displayed more merchandise, but also housed their bakery and cake-decorating workshop where you could watch cakes being decorated through Plexiglas. There were vats of butter cream in a rainbow of colors on the counter. One man wore a plastic lizard on his forehead while he decorated a huge wedding cake...a strange juxtaposition. Spying a beautiful four tiered wedding cake in a glass case waiting to be delivered, Laurel and I played a lightening round of that classic game, "Guess how much that costs?" Using my mental powers of deduction and displaying a disturbingly accurate knowledge about wedding cakes, I won this round of "The Price is Right: Cake Edition," unwittingly refereed by the helpful Party Favor's employee who looked up the sales slip for us.
Laurel and I trekked down to Party Favors in Brookline, a party supply and more importantly a cake shop. They've won various "Best of Boston" awards for birthday cakes and such, but I wanted to visit because we had gotten our most delicious birthday cakes from them. The store had a penetrating aroma of butter and sugar and was jam packed with party supplies and displays of beautifully decorated cakes and other baked goodies. The lower level displayed more merchandise, but also housed their bakery and cake-decorating workshop where you could watch cakes being decorated through Plexiglas. There were vats of butter cream in a rainbow of colors on the counter. One man wore a plastic lizard on his forehead while he decorated a huge wedding cake...a strange juxtaposition. Spying a beautiful four tiered wedding cake in a glass case waiting to be delivered, Laurel and I played a lightening round of that classic game, "Guess how much that costs?" Using my mental powers of deduction and displaying a disturbingly accurate knowledge about wedding cakes, I won this round of "The Price is Right: Cake Edition," unwittingly refereed by the helpful Party Favor's employee who looked up the sales slip for us.
Tuesday, June 03, 2003
Seven Layer Bean Dip
Growing up with Laurel meant seven layer bean dip at all her parties and get togethers and it was hands down my favorite savory treat. I used to park myself in front of the casserole dish of bean dip, but usually there was someone else parked there with me so I felt less gluttonous. I've asked her for the recipe on several occasions, but I've never made it because my eyes start glazing over after a few layers that I've never seriously made it down the recipe to layer seven. However, Adam's requested seven-layer bean dip for his birthday party and I'm determined to make it once and for all. The good news is I'm now more domestically able than I was in 1995 so I'm hoping it's no longer delusional to attempt this recipe.
Laurel's Seven-Layer Bean Dip
(You need a 9"x9" or 10"x10" pan. Or you can double the recipe and use a 9x13 pan.)
Mix together and leave in fridge at least 2 hours:
2 tbsp mayo
2 tbsp sour cream
1 pkg taco seasoning mix
Layers go as follows (from bottom to top):
1 can of refried beans
the mayo-taco mixture
1-2 avocados, mashed
1.5 c. shredded cheese
1-1.5 c. chopped fresh tomatoes
1-1.5 c. chopped green onions
1 small can of chopped olives
0.5 c. shredded cheese
P.S. When Laurel first e-mailed me the recipe, she forgot tomatoes and was debating whether cheese in two areas of the dip counted as two layers or merely as one. Being a connoisseur of Laurel's bean dip, I determined the missing layer was chopped tomatoes after not all that much deliberation.
Growing up with Laurel meant seven layer bean dip at all her parties and get togethers and it was hands down my favorite savory treat. I used to park myself in front of the casserole dish of bean dip, but usually there was someone else parked there with me so I felt less gluttonous. I've asked her for the recipe on several occasions, but I've never made it because my eyes start glazing over after a few layers that I've never seriously made it down the recipe to layer seven. However, Adam's requested seven-layer bean dip for his birthday party and I'm determined to make it once and for all. The good news is I'm now more domestically able than I was in 1995 so I'm hoping it's no longer delusional to attempt this recipe.
Laurel's Seven-Layer Bean Dip
(You need a 9"x9" or 10"x10" pan. Or you can double the recipe and use a 9x13 pan.)
Mix together and leave in fridge at least 2 hours:
2 tbsp mayo
2 tbsp sour cream
1 pkg taco seasoning mix
Layers go as follows (from bottom to top):
1 can of refried beans
the mayo-taco mixture
1-2 avocados, mashed
1.5 c. shredded cheese
1-1.5 c. chopped fresh tomatoes
1-1.5 c. chopped green onions
1 small can of chopped olives
0.5 c. shredded cheese
P.S. When Laurel first e-mailed me the recipe, she forgot tomatoes and was debating whether cheese in two areas of the dip counted as two layers or merely as one. Being a connoisseur of Laurel's bean dip, I determined the missing layer was chopped tomatoes after not all that much deliberation.
Monday, June 02, 2003
Ninety-Five Percent
I went to a party at Zrad's house last weekend and he showed me his stash of Fluff, he had two 16oz plastic tubs. As of Saturday night, he claims to have eaten a Fluffernutter bagel 18 of the last 19 mornings, skipping one morning only because he ran out of bagels. "Kickin' it old school," he tried it on squishy white bread, but settled on bagels as his preferred vehicle for consuming the dynamic duo of Fluff & Peanut Butter. I also got the lowdown on Zrad's diet. He eats five meals a day placing his caloric intake at around 7000...YIKES! I've always wondered if the football players in college got tired of having to eat so many servings of Chicken Fingers; they would be there eating when I got to lunch and still be eating when I left. I think I would get really tired of eating and eating would become a chore, but then again I also chew a lot so I would have a particularly difficult time. Good thing I don't aspire to play pro football...Whew!
I went to a party at Zrad's house last weekend and he showed me his stash of Fluff, he had two 16oz plastic tubs. As of Saturday night, he claims to have eaten a Fluffernutter bagel 18 of the last 19 mornings, skipping one morning only because he ran out of bagels. "Kickin' it old school," he tried it on squishy white bread, but settled on bagels as his preferred vehicle for consuming the dynamic duo of Fluff & Peanut Butter. I also got the lowdown on Zrad's diet. He eats five meals a day placing his caloric intake at around 7000...YIKES! I've always wondered if the football players in college got tired of having to eat so many servings of Chicken Fingers; they would be there eating when I got to lunch and still be eating when I left. I think I would get really tired of eating and eating would become a chore, but then again I also chew a lot so I would have a particularly difficult time. Good thing I don't aspire to play pro football...Whew!
"In the Criminal Justice System..."
Although I don't watch it regularly, Law & Order is one of my favorite shows. I always appreciate it when Adam tapes it on his Tivo because I get to watch it without commercials. The theme songs are slight variations on the original for the different spin-offs, but I like humming along to the original version the best. I should note that I don't enjoy watching Law & Order SVU because it's too disturbing, but I like the original and Criminal Intent. I read this editorial last year by the founding editor of slate.com, Michael Kinsley titled, "The Secret Vice of Power Women." For years he assumed a close female friend was out at parties he wasn't invited to, but all the while she was just home watching Law & Order reruns.
Although I don't watch it regularly, Law & Order is one of my favorite shows. I always appreciate it when Adam tapes it on his Tivo because I get to watch it without commercials. The theme songs are slight variations on the original for the different spin-offs, but I like humming along to the original version the best. I should note that I don't enjoy watching Law & Order SVU because it's too disturbing, but I like the original and Criminal Intent. I read this editorial last year by the founding editor of slate.com, Michael Kinsley titled, "The Secret Vice of Power Women." For years he assumed a close female friend was out at parties he wasn't invited to, but all the while she was just home watching Law & Order reruns.
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