Honored!

I am honored and humbled to have been immortalized into art by the world renowned FA Painter, Marty!

 

Stop by his blog and look at beautiful works of some lovely women. (http://fa-painter.blogspot.com/) He's got a knack at bringing his subject's personality to life. Just wonderful.

Thought of the Day 2010 #4 - Skype

If you haven't tried Skype yet, what's stopping you?? I've only had good
experiences with it. Video calls from as far as Spain is just as clear
as my friend's video calls from Minneapolis. The sound quality is
excellent, too. So, computer to computer calls with video...you're
wondering what does it cost to use?? NOTHING!! Seriously, you've gotta
try it.

Thought of the Day #317 - Star Trek

I finally had a chance to see the summer blockbuster "Star Trek". Loved
it! It gave me faith in sci-fi movies again. I WILL be seeing again!

Thought of the Day #280 - A Mighty Fine Quote

"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover." - Mark Twain

Thought of the Day #237 - Can Do!

I wonder how many people look at items on Etsy.com and think, "That's a
great idea! I wanna make/do that."
I am one of those. It's such an inspirational site. Of course, the
number of people who say, "That's great! I wanna buy that," is obviously
high or the site wouldn't be as successful as it is. If I had all of the
energy and time to make all the stuff that inspires me, I would be
happy. But how many of us have endless time/energy available?? Yeah,
that's what I thought...

Thought of the Day #228 - Fat Art

I can't tell you these are 'fat positive' or even remotely positive at all, but I can tell you that I find them thought provoking. I don't know if the artist was trying to reach out from a fat body or if she's reliving her fat days filled with pain? I really don't know. In any event, I find them darkly thought provoking, something which I feel is pretty rare from today's art. Please visit Joanvix's Etsy shop here: http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=7527087 for more. Be sure to check out the sold items, too: http://www.etsy.com/shop_sold.php?user_id=7527087

 

 

Thought of the Day #214 - Painter 11

Corel Painter 11 - an amazing digital art program that I used fairly often several years ago, but with which just recently become reacquainted.

While I was putzing around, I came across a tutorial on how to clone-paint photos. While I don't think this is a masterpiece by any stretch, it did turn out pretty good for 15 minutes of work or so:

 

The newest version -- 11, has so many more tricks than the version I used almost a decade ago. Having a couple of gigs of RAM has made it slick, too. No more paint - wait - paint - wait. Strokes are instantaneous unless you're using a large brush.

Sooo, sooo cool and I've only just started to rediscover the program. if you have any interest at all in digital art, I heartily recommend it.

Thought of the Day #167 - Sleep

When in doubt, get more sleep, not less. Tell your dreams I sent you.

Thought of the Day #161 - Flash Mobs

Flash mobs bring a temporary continuity to an ever more separated existence. And I like it.

Thought of the Day #156 - Killer Bunnies

Love this game! Plenty of killer action and humor for all ages.

Thought of the Day #128 - Interpretation

Every time I listen to "Hide and Seek" by Imogen Heap, I interpret it differently. Child abuse? End of the world? Thoughtless use of the world? Relationships ending? No idea, but I like that it makes me think. If you haven't heard it, give it a listen. What does it mean to you?

Thought of the Day #102 - Books and Covers

Look at the expression on the f*ckers faces at the beginning of this. Sooo flippin' rude. They judge and judge and well draw conclusions, if you watch this, you'll see they're just so wrong. Susan Boyle is amazing! Watch this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9lp0IWv8QZY It brings a tear to my eye and a smile to my face. Just beautiful.

Thought of the Day #102 - I (heart) Google

They're not really an altruistic company -- they are out to make profits, and big ones at that -- but I am often blown away with the freebie applications that they offer which are completely free of advertising, too. I know I've mentioned Picasa a number of times and it's still my fav for picture organization. But, have you looked at all of the other offerings? http://www.google.com/intl/en/options/ So much stuff! And, for the most part, it's free. Kudos to Google!

Thought of the Day #93 - Wind Power and Salt Flats

I don't recall if I've mentioned this before or not, but I think Utah
has the potential to become a super power in electricity production.
There are hundreds of miles of salt flats where plant/animal life
cannot exist. To me, a perfect place to build thousands and thousands
of wind power generators. No negative impact on the environment, no
neighbors complaining of the noise, and nothing to block the wind that
the mills would capture. All in all an ideal situation. The only trick
is figuring out how to build on the corrosive salt. There's gotta be a
way.

Thought of the Day #90 - Cinnamon

 

When making cinnamon rolls, don't use plain ol' cinnamon. Use Vietnamese cinnamon for a strong, almost biting flavor. Soooo good. Cinnabon uses something similar, and you know, the airport always smells good because of it.

Thought of the Day #89 - Ooooh Soft

If you've never had the luxury of touching silk velvet, please seek it
out. It's the ultimate in sensual softness.

Thought of the Day #15

For those of you in the deep freeze (at least minus 10F), go get the
bubbles. Yeah, the kind kids use. Blow them outside into the frigid
air. Frozen bubbles are beautiful when frozen solid then shattering
upon impact. Try it! It really is the best part of bone chilling temps.

Best Barbie Ever

Barbie as Tippi Hedren in Alfred Hitchcock's "The Birds".
(Well, I'm not sure about *ever*, but it's pretty cool.)

Like Scary Stuff?

Give Hotel 626 (http://www.hotel626.com) a try. Props to Doritos for providing good, free, scary fun in a bad and scary economy! And I do mean genuinely scary and creepy! Oh, and the site is only available from 6pm to 6am, so if you're surfing from a day job, wait 'til you get home.

Las Vegas Show Tips for Fat Chicks

For those of us in the "fatter than average" category, oftentimes going to theatrical shows can be a problem. Live theaters are often fitted with the smallest seats on Earth. It's been years since I've been to a Broadway production in NYC, but man, I still remember the pain of the cheap, nosebleed TXTS seats we had for one performance. The seats were ultra narrow and the rows were just as narrow. I spent two + hours crammed into a seat with my thighs around the head of the person in front of me. No where to move. Aaack.

Anyway, for my recent birthday, I wanted to go with my friends to a show in Vegas that would be accomodating for the fatty-puffs in my crowd. The two that came up in my searches were the couch seating for Zumanity and the Wynn's VIP seating for La Reve. Zumanity was dark that week, so no luck there. La Reve showed no seats available for the nights we were there. Booo. I didn't have a lot of lead time, so I didn't find any other spots available. So, I pretty much trashed the idea.

To make a long story short, my sister ended up calling around while we were down there. She found out that La Reve had one VIP seat available and the rest of the party could sit in the row directly in front. BONUS! So, yeah, because it was my birthday celebration, I got the VIP ticket with champagne, chocolate covered strawberries, my own sweet waitress, an LCD screen with underwater action...and...and...the most comfortable live theater seat I've ever experienced. ME! The fat chick! Comfortable at a live theater performance! Yeah, it was a good night! The champagne was good and the strawberries weren't half bad either.

The only drawback to the VIP seating -- the price. If you're going for a special occasion, the $200 isn't tooo...tooo...toooo bad. It's only ~$50 more than the regular seats, so if you're fat and fabulous (or even just fabulous) and looking to have a sweet water-filled theater experience in Vegas, check it out! Even the regular seats were larger than typical seats, not super comfortable for super-size, but not bad for average size people. Oh, and, I love the Wynn as a casino and restaurant stop, too -- extra comfy slot chairs and yummy food. A great all around experience in Vegas! Here's info on the show at the Wynn.

Arches National Park

If you're looking for something to see this summer and you happen to find yourself in southern Utah, I heartily recommend Arches National Park. My most recent visit was yesterday with my sister and my step-daughter. It showed me even more things than I had missed in my previous visits. Everytime I go, something new pops into view. There really is so much to see, and it has this "other world" feeling that you don't find just anywhere. And for $10/car for admission, you can't find much cheaper family entertainment.

I hope to make a camping trip of it this summer. Baking in a tent on some purty red rock sounds like fun at this point. Of course when it's 120 this summer, it may not sound like such a huge blast, but I'm sure that pretty red rock will keep me warm at night! Anyway, check it out when you get a chance. You won't be disappointed.

Photoshop Disasters - The Blog

Looking back at some of my digital manipulations, I know I've made some silly errors. Maybe that's what makes this blog, Photoshop Disasters, so dang funny! Be sure to check out Madonna's microcephalic head here. Good stuff! I should add, too, that this is a great site to send to women (or men!) struggling with body image issues. Especially those who think that cover models, celebrities, etc *really* look that way. Take this as an example.

Stinkin' Cute!

I found this limited edition print on Etsy tonight. It's so very evocative of the first time a little fat girl goes out to the pool with a swimsuit. At least that's how I read it 'cuz I was that fat girl. I think it could tell so many stories. Maybe she just got caught doing something wrong? In any event, so very, very sweet and so cute. You can find this print here: http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=9850568 . The talented artist's blog is here: www.kittygenius.com

Once

If you haven't seen this movie, go out and rent it. It's simple, a little slow at times which adds to the charm, and exceedingly sweet. Oh, and excellent music as Oscar nodded yesterday. We saw it about a month ago and Ivan immediately went to ITunes and bought the album. He was hooked! http://www.foxsearchlight.com/once/ for more info on the film.

Munch Munch

A recommendation for some yummy, yummy macadamia nut toffee -- V Chocolates in Salt Lake City: http://www.vchocolates.com/toffees.php. We received a box of this yummy (did I say that yet?) confection right before a trip to Vegas. It's delicate, choc full of macadamias and so, so...ummm...yummy! It came in an almost-Tiffany colored box, so you know, if you want to send someone a gift that is almost as nice as a fine piece of jewelry, this may be the trick.

Recommended Yummy Goodness

I'm a sucker for oaty and nutty granola type bars although I can go for months without ever missing them. THIS, however, is a different story. It's all nuts...and a little bit of sweetness. Think of it like a peanut or almond brittle that won't --1. drive your blood sugar through to the next county and ---2. cut your gums into tiny shreds. The latter is really the big reason why brittle doesn't ever get eaten aside from one bite. Ouch!

Anyway, it's also not a chemist's wet dream. The simple ingredient list: Nuts (peanuts and/or almonds depending upon the variety), sunflower seeds, sugar, corn syrup, salt, and almond flour. That's it.

I bought 'em a couple of weeks ago when Smith's was having a "Buy General Mills crap for a $1.00 days". A buck a box? Heck, I thought, I'll try 'em. So, yeah, they were good. I went back and bought four more boxes. Now I'm lamenting the fact that I didn't buy 10.

You Suck at Photoshop. No, really.

If you have any interest in digital graphics and humor...you'll love this. Be sure to check out all of the "You Suck at Photoshop" ~tutorials~ by Donnie at YouTube.com. Learn and laugh!

I (heart) Dexter

I never thought I'd admit that I (heart) a serial killer, but here it is. My friend, Peter, gave me the first season on DVD for Christmas. In one weekend, Ivan, his daughter and I were all compelled to watch all 13 episodes. We couldn't stop....well except we had to sleep for a few hours here and there. This series is amazingly well written, acted and...as I mentioned, compelling to watch. It's a bit gruesome from time to time, but it's also sweet, funny and smart. We were so sad to see it come to an end...but then there is another season...

Season two! Now I really, really, really want to watch season two! I heard that it's already run through on Showtime, but I also noticed that it's available "on demand" via cable...but of course one needs to be a member of Showtime to get it. I've been contemplating ordering Showtime for a weekend just to do another marathon viewing. Hold my calls and cancel my appointments. I may just have a date with a good-guy serial killer! I hope Ivan won't mind...well of course he won't because he'll be watching us! ;-)

By the way, I just heard that CBS will be carrying the first season coming in February. Sometimes a writers strike is good for broadcast television, it seems! I'm sure there will be some things cut out, but it really won't be too much you won't see.

The Beauty of Roomba

Sure, you may think of the Roomba as just a lazy gal's toy...that it is to be sure...but it's also GREAT at cleaning out under beds. Just today I was cleaning out the guest room with Roomba. I started it up, and closed the door (I didn't want my little robot helper to escape!). I came back a half-hour later and my little Roomba found a flip-flop and a lipstick from under the queen size bed and pushed them both out within easy reach. Beautiful, just beautiful! Not only that, but it collected all of the dirt and dust that accumulated under said bed. The guest room is rather small and the bed is squished up against two walls, so cleaning under the bed to get all of the dust bunnies is quite a trick. Well, not anymore!

My sister generously gave me the Roomba for Christmas, and since then I've had it be-boppin' around my living rooms with great regularity. It doesn't get everything, but it does do great, as I mentioned, underneath furniture. In the living room...that means the under-couch areas are actually getting cleaned out more than once every few months...err...once a year under some pieces! (Did I just admit that?!). I think I can breath easier just knowing that. :-)

My only complaint is that I do need to either block off or lift up cables/wires and any small hazaards that may inhibit Roomba from performing it's dusting duties. Oh, and that he tends to get lost in rooms with too many chair legs -- so, dining rooms are a problem for dear Roomba. Other than those wee complaints it's a fun little robot addition to the household.

Next...I'm thinking Scooba for the kitchen floor! (See this site for more information on Roomba or Scooba or who knows what else they'll come up with for robot lovers! http://www.irobot.com/)

More Crippy Craft and a HOW TO for the Layered Cut Paper Illustration!

I haven't shipped all of my Crippy Craft gifties yet, but the ones above have already been given away. I'm on a roll, but it's an incomplete roll, unfortunately. I've got three left to do! I did want to get these on here with the "HOW TO" before I get any more complete.

As a little background, I was looking in mid-December for some sort of homemade Crippy Craft that I could as gifts. I came across A Little Hut (click here to visit A Little Hut), and was instantly inspired. She does beautiful work! A couple of my pieces above are a directly inspired by her pieces. Little Red Riding hood, the leaves, and somewhat the deer pieces are directly inspired. (I hope she doesn't mind!) The rest have been just things that popped in my head when I thought about the recipient or just thought would make a beautiful illustration.

If you're interested in doing some "art-pieces" or "Crippy Craft" like those above, click here for full HOW-TO instructions.

Bodies the Exhibition - Part 2

Way back in November of 2005, I was writing about this exhibit in my blog (see this link). I was dreaming of possibly being able to see it. Well, I actually got to see it a few weeks ago. Yay!

I don't think it has come to Utah yet, but luckily for me, a quick weekend trip to Vegas in mid-December paid off big. No, I didn't win any money, but as I mentioned, I got to have a little gross-out fascination tour at the Tropicana.

When you first see the full bodied display, there's a "ewwww" factor, but for me, it quickly turned into pure fascination. Bodies are really quite the groovy machine. A vessel that carries us for quite a long time all the while growing, changing and moving with great precision. Seeing the innerworkings in all their glory was -- to use my overused term -- awesome.

I did wonder, too, about whether or not it was ethical to use prisoners for this, and whether or not anyone really granted permission, but when I thought about it, what a great way to leave this world. Sure, your bits are on display, you've been cut to shreds, but how fortunate to be able to give to humanity in this way. We all should be so lucky.

Bottom line, GO if you get a chance to see the show in your neck of the woods.

Heavy Rain

  I've been a fan of Barry Kite's Aberrant Art (http://www.aberrantart.com) for years...probably at least 10. I came across his booth at Minneapolis's Uptown Art fair at least that many years ago.

His work combines two of my sincerest loves -- classic art and humor. Juxtaposed together into some witty or social commentaries, the pieces will either offend you or make you quietly giggle. I choose the latter.

Each time I look at his site's catalog, I see something new. This piece, "Unexpected Downpour", caught my eye during my most recent visit. He has several works which have fat chicks in 'em, so check it out!

Some of my all-time favorites are based upon Georges Seurat's "A Sunday on La Grande Jatte". One of my first purchases was "Sunday Afternoon, Wrong Island". I still love it.

Funny, fun stuff.

Just found another of Kite's works that is fat friendly and...new to me! "The Spring Line" with the Venus of Willendorf figures on the catwalk. Good stuff, Maynard! :-)

I feel...

I feel as if this site: http://www.wefeelfine.org/ may come in handy when there's a huge national disaster (or a national election, but really, what's the difference?) that causes every one to pause and blog. Right now it's just pretty amazing. Hey, but that's just how I feel.

Fat Woman Goes Around the World

This is just one example of a fellow fat chick taking the world on with a healthy dose of self-esteem: Where is Geri http://www.whereisgeri.com/ is a blog written by a woman I've known off and on at fat friendly events in Minneapolis. When I was at Kim's wedding last month, Geri told me of her plans to go on a grand adventure around the world. She found the timing, finances and ~everything~ had aligned to make it possible to follow this dream. I'm so overwhelmingly happy (and jealous, in a good way) that she's doing this. I should mention, too, that she's doing it alone. All around the world, alone. I believe she said she was going to catch up with a few familiars in various countries, but by and large, she'll be on her own. Just freakin' impressive!! Anyway, she's going to blog her journey at her site. I hope that you all stop in and read about her year-long adventure. Isn't it just awesome?!!? Go Geri!!

Fat Positive Site - Adipositivity.com

A hearty recommendation for another fat girl photo site: The Adiposivity Project (http://www.adipositivity.com/). Beautiful photos with a healthy dose of sexy attitude. Be sure to check 'em out!

Things I Learned on My Autumnal Vacation

The first thing? Photo booths at wedding receptions are AWESOME. At Kim & Chester's wedding (Congrats by the way!!), they had the booth by PartyBooths.com, a parcel of silly props, and several hours of booth availability to take fun shots. It was a great diversion for guests and it kept wee ones very busy. Not only that, but the typical party favor of a few Hershey's kisses on a stick is now a very personalized remembrance photo(s) instantly printed out for guests who participate. OH and another brilliant idea? The bride did a "dollar photo session" -- similar to the "dollar dance" where you get one-on-one attention with the bride/groom on the dance floor -- only with this, you pay (ahem...DONATE) to get a photo taken with the bride. FUN stuff! For their money, the bride and groom also get a CD with all of the photos taken at their reception ...and all of the photos are also availble online for all of the guests to see, too. I really can't recommend this idea enough.

Next item -- Minnesota can be WARM in October. I was thinking it would be oh, I dunno, 60ish for highs. Au contraire. 80s! So, there I sat with a huge suitcase full of cool weather clothing and only one short sleeve shirt. Yeah, poor planning on my part.

Next item -- Working in the office...no matter how hard I try...ends up being a LONNNNNG week with very long hours. I worked for half of my time in Minnesota and I was ever so grateful that I planned a week off after HELL week which was filled with training, meetings and many more meetings.

Next item -- Attending a meeting in person became very important due to the unique announcement that started it off. If I had been on the phone listening in, I'm quite sure I would have been saying, "What? What did she say? I really misheard something. Please tell me what she really said..." I know some people from work read this, so I won't be divulging the particular surprise publicly. Trust me when I say it's an amazingly unique announcement. I really feel a lot of sympathy for the couple involved as it's a very complex situation. I hope all turns out well for them.

Next item -- My coffee obsession had me traveling all over small northern and central Minnesota towns in search of a good mocha..."Is there a Starbucks here? A Caribou? A Dunn Brothers? Anyone??" Sadly, in towns under 15,000, trustworthy coffee chains are VERY hard to find.

What was NOT hard to find -- BIG stuff (http://www.biggirlbigstuff.com). Which reminds me I really need to update that site! I've got several entries from the summer contest, several from Kimmy and now several happen-upons from my autumnal tour of small town Minnesota. I "captured" a fish, Robin Hood, a bowling muffler mand as Paul Bunyan and his trusty Babe with bowling pins in its mouth, a deer and a sea serpent --- all without even trying to find 'em. I did see a giant hot dog on a roof, too, but it was raining and we were cranky. That will need to be "captured" another time.

Finally, my hubby can be pretty brave. While traveling into a small town, we noticed that a house was just starting to catch fire and that no one was stopping to even investigate the situation. He turned the car around and parked out front. At this point, he jumped out of the car and was going to make sure no one was stuck inside. I told him to NOT open the front door as that's where most of the smoke was coming out. By the time he got to the front of the house, a cop car pulled up...and immediately following him...a distressed homeowner. She had just gone into town a scant few minutes before this. She shouted out that no one was inside except for her cat. So, Ivan came back to the car unscathed and we watched the firetrucks pull up. It took them quite a while to even get water to the hoses, and by that time, it was looking REALLY bad for the house. The photo shown here is my hubby to the right and the homeowner getting consoled by the police prior to the firetrucks arriving.

Picasa & Flooring

I know I haven't given the "flooring update" as promised below. So, yeah, here it is...the finished flooring and the new rug which I adore from Lowes. The new floor, while gorgeous when clean, quickly gets dusty. I'm not sure if it's the dusty world of Utah that is to blame or if it's the boiling water canners billowing water deposits in the air. More than likely, it's a combination of factors. In any event, the Pergo flooring is gawwwwjusss.

And Picasa -- Google's image manager. VERY sweet program. Easy photo manipulations and collages, publishing to blogs, email, tracking and management, etc. Just a brilliant program. Go here to try it out: http://picasa.google.com/ It's the best freebie program I've tried in years.

A Skull A Day

No, it's not about horror stories from Iraq, but with a little bit of autumnal (read the start of Halloween-season) chill in the air this morning, I did hit upon a fun, albeit ghoulish site: skulladay.com

Money, Money, Money

Do you ever see the stories in the newspaper about billions of "unclaimed" dollars that the government, banks or other entities are holding for people who have gone missing? I check nearly every year and what do ya know? This year, I've got some cash coming to me! Go here if you want to find out if you're due some moola: http://www.missingmoney.com/ The money I'll be getting is from a class-action suit with Microsoft settled in 2003, I believe. I didn't get my check 'cuz I moved from my old address and changed my name. It's not a lot of money, but hey, it'll buy a dinner out on the town. Wahooo!

10 Ways To Be A Body Positivity Advocate

I cannot recommend this "Big Fat Deal" post highly enough. I've been telling ya'll most of this the past 10 years, but this is beautifully direct and concise! Click on the title to read it and actually DO IT. Some changes take time, but make a promise to yourself to start. Ok? Ok.

Reading and Killin' Time

I thought I really ought to post about blogs that I read with regularity. There are quite a few so I'll mention 'em at random rather than doing a "blog roll". If you want to see my "blog roll", ask for my favorites file. Here's the first recommendation... Shorpy the 100-Year-old Photo Blog. For the love of old photos! Most photos are 1930's and older. A great time killer and quite entertaining. They started publishing a scant few months ago, but their archive of pages is HUGE. If you have two hours to kill, sit back and start clickin'! I love, too, that they provide large size copies of all of the images so that you can see pretty decent detail. To help provide a "fat" angle, the woman pictured to the side of this post is proof that there were fat/chubby people long before the supposed "epidemic".

Dried Fruit Goodness

Sunsweet Cherries, Mangoes and Blueberries are yum-diddly-dum-dum! I was looking for some new fruit to add to my granola and came across these beauties today. OH MY GAWD. They are soft and chewy and gooey! If you've ever had the Williams-Sonoma tart dried cherries, the cherries are DEFINITELY for you! I have loved 'em for years, but most grocery store varieties are bland yet sweet. These are tarty tart and sweet to boot. They will be perfect in the Williams Sonoma Chocolate Cherry Chunk Cookies recipe that I haven't made in eons 'cuz the good cherries are so hard to find. The blueberries are like super soft raisins...not like the hard nubs ones that one typically finds. The mango is super softly-chewy, huge strips, and dang yummy, too! They had a Berry Blend that I passed on...but I will be going back for. It has Blueberries, Bing Cherries, Raspberries, Cranberries and Red Tart Cherries. Save some for me!

Cinnfully Crunchy

I just picked up a bag of Pringles Select Cinnamon Sweet Potato chips. Yum. But then I like cinnamon and crunchy together. It's kind of like the outer part of fried ice cream like the serve in Mexican restaurants only crispier! Not a lot of sweet potato flavor, but if'n you like cinnamon, Yum. Yum. Yum! I can definitely see dippin' into some ice cream with these or maybe a scoop on top of a bunch of 'em. Yum! Did I say that yet? :-)

On the Tele...

I end up flipping to the HGTV channel fairly often. There are good and bad shows in their mix, but my overall favorite -- Divine Design with Candice Olson. While other designers on that network have hits and misses, Ms. Olson's rooms are always spectacularly beautiful.... The lighting....The lushness.... The color schemes. All magnificently detailed. Do ya think they could do a show from Utah? Our main living spaces (entry, frontroom, livingroom and kitchen) is in desperate need for some splendiferous beauty. Ahhhhh, perchance to dream! See some of her stuff online here: http://www.divinedesign.tv/

Recommend

I don’t recommend too many things on here, do I? I hope not. I don’t want to make it seem like I’m advertising rather than honest-to-goodness recommending.

Anyway.... I heartily recommend the magazine BUST (http://www.bust.com/). It’s girl-centric, alternative, edgy, crafty, sexy, sew-y, fat friendly, music-y and well written. I don’t really consider myself a “feminist” per se (I’m much more of a humanist), but much of the writing in the magazine might be considered ‘feminist’, so be forewarned if that bothers you. I happen to find it refreshing. Another side warning: the edginess means that there’s a lot of frank talk, “swear words”, sexuality and the like. Again, if your sensibilities are delicate, you may want to stick with a more mainstream mag. The articles themselves are interesting, but at the back of every issue, there are tons of alternative shopping resources all with fun, kitschy or koool websites – a great way to kill an afternoon! So, yeah, I’m just sayin...

An Ode to My Mixer

I don't "glow" very often about a product, but I really must confess my love for the KitchenAid mixer. We got it as a wedding giftie and I don't believe it's had an idle week since. I always liked my little KitchenAid hand mixer, but until I got the stand mixer from them, I didn't know what I was missing! The power of it all! Making bread is a breeze. Heavy duty cookie doughs are a snap. Even when the dough gets super, duper thick, the mixer grinds through it with ease. It whines a bit more, but never fails to finish the job. You know, I always suspected there was a reason for the price...it's a bit high, but well worth it! My mixer is white. Pretty basic...goes with everything, even my little black dress, but now I see they have 18 colors! I really don't have a reason to rid myself of my current model JUST to get a colored one. I doubt the thing will ever break down. Oh, woe is me. ;-) But seriously, if ya ever want to invest in a tool that will make you seem like *the best* chef evah, get one of these puppies. (Note: I wasn't paid for this endorsement!!)

Self-Heating

If you like science, and I know you do, check out the new self-heating coffee from Woflgang Puck. Don’t buy it for the coffee. It was pretty blechy. What’s awesome is the self-heating science experiment at the bottom of the can. To activate the heating, you push a bladder of greenish liquid into a hidden chamber. That liquid sets off a chemical reaction in the base of the can that starts the heat for the coffee. It says it gets up to 140 degrees F in about 5 minutes. All in all, pretty awesome. The downside is that the 10 ounces of coffee costs about $4.00. But think of the science of it! I remember hearing about some companies in Japan using it for cans of soup. It’s awesome that one can find it stateside now. OH! When writing this, I decided to look up the product. On the WP site I found this video that describes the technology. Fun!

NetFlix

I've been a member of Netflix for a little over a month. I lllllove it! Not only is it economical, especially in the winter months when we're more likely to be plopped infront of the TV, but it is also fast and fun! When I drop a movie in the mail, I get an email the very next day saying, "Received 'Wedding Crashers'. Later the same day, I get an email saying, "For Wednesday: Amelie" or whatever movie is next on my queue list. It's pretty slick! The distribution centers for Netflix are all over the country, so my returned DVD isn't traveling to New York and then back again which would take days and days turnaround. Quite the brilliant set up. I wish I had purchased stock in the company early on, really.

The fun is with the "friends" set up as well as the browsing and rating movies you've already seen. The friends area allows me to see what my friends are watching and to pick up ideas about what to add to my queue. They also have silly surveys in the friends area like, "Alexandra and Roger Ebert disagree on the following movies. Which movie did Roger love and Alexandra hate." Way fun!

Anyway, I can't recommend the service highly enough. Check it out if you haven't already. If you're already using the service and want to compare notes in the friends section, drop me a line at cat(remove this) AT (remove this)catay.com.

I suck...

Just sharing a little bit of my kitchen adventures...or misadventures as the case may be. I received a vacuum sealer for Christmas, the kind that you use to suck the air out of bags in order to preserve foods (or other items) from spoilage or pests. The other day, I went through the cupboard and sucked and sealed until I had most of my left over dry goods (left over chocolate chips, nuts, beans, grains, etc) compacted and preserved. The little bugs that crawl through the kitchen lookin' for goodies are going to hate me! Then I went to the fridge and sealed the dried and frozen fruit as well as cheeses. Who knew this useful little device would be fun, too? I had some left over coconut that went from a huge bag of fluff, down to a solid baseball size mass. I don't know whether or not the coconut will stick together and retain the ball shape. The day I cut the rip cord and release the coconut from its air-free home I will know. Come to think of it, I test vacuumed some grated cheese. Methinks that may actually retain the solid shape. Oops. Yeah, so fun!

My last post was a bit "boring"...a wristband? C'mon...you could have these instead. Silly and fashion forward geeks unite! The sushi USB drive is soooo funny. Who knew? Oh, or how about these, for the softer side in you.

New Techie Gadget

Me likey this: a flash memory wristband!

It's oh so fashionable for the geek in me.

Maybe it's just me...

...but when I get the Pottery Barn catalog in the mail, I'm as excited as a teenage boy finding a Playboy magazine. Well, ummm...you *know* what I mean. It's all of the sweet lookin' displays that I know are "out of my league". (Again, just like the teenage boy with the swimsuit models?) We make decent coin, but I can't justify spending $2K on a chair that I can't even test drive. I love the classic styles, clean lines and muted tones. Luckily, there are accessories I can buy and pretend I'm buying the whole suite! Also, because of the relative simplicity of the designs, some things can be replicated on the cheap...thanks to my new found talents learned on HGTV. OH, and once in a while I find steals on Ebay. For our guest room, I purchased a linen duvet cover for less than 1/6 the going retail price. Sure, it was from two seasons ago, but you know, classic designs rarely go out of style. So, yeah, anyway, back to dreaming about my secret love...Pottery Barn.

Love Your Peaches

I just got an order from Love Your Peaches. LOVE it! Janelle, the owner/designer, as a cotton/lycra line that is fabulous! The fabric is a good transitional weight and the designs can be dressed up or down. The cotton/lyrcra stuff allows for good fit & flare styles -- especially good for those who lurve their curves. OH, and the prices are decent, too! Check it out!

Customer Service

This page is cool! If you ever need to get ahold of a genuine human being at a large company, rather than a message loop, this page may be for you! My trick is usually just never push a button when the message says to push one. You know, pretend you still have a rotary phone number. It usually works like a charm.

Catching up...
This past weekend, I went up to the Northwoods of Minnesota, specifically to Lake Itasca State Park. For those of you unfamiliar with the significance of Lake Itasca, the Mississippi River starts at Lake Itasca. Here, you can cross the river, and if you fall in, you won't be dissolved in the industrial chemicals that pollute the river a wee bit further downstream. A group of us stayed at a GORGEOUS two-story log cabin in the park. It's quite a steal, actually, because for ~$350/night, you can sleep 21 people. Plenty of bathrooms, bedrooms, air conditioning (if you want) and a beautiful fireplace in the center of the great room. The only thing that disturbed me about the place was the balcony on the second floor. The railing on the balcony was low...just about hip high. If I were to take a spill on the rug while walking toward the railing, my center of gravity would easily swing me over the ledge and down to the great room below. It wouldn't be pretty. :-)