The Decree of Freyja

Adventures in Book-Related Cooking (aka I Have No Life)

2012-01-31T22:33:00.000-08:00

I've been reading The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. They're super-addictive books. I can't put them down. It's been awhile since I've read a series and I forgot how enjoyable it was to follow characters through a couple of books. I think I'm going to have to re-read Harry Potter next.

For those who don't know, Hunger Games takes place in a dystopian, post-apocalyptic future. What was once North America is now one large nation called Panem, divided into 12 districts and ruled over by a large, dominant city called The Capitol. The Capitol puts on an annual event called the Hunger Games every year in which two "tributes" from each District, a boy and a girl, are randomly selected to compete to fight to the death. The Games are televised and the whole country is forced to watch. They're supposed to be some kind of horrible punishment for all of the Districts rebelling against The Capitol decades ago. The plot is eerily similar to Battle Royale, but it's still a good read.

ANYHOO, a big point in the books is that The Capitol is wealthy and advanced and its citizens live in luxury, while nearly everyone else is starving. Which is why I kind of scoffed when I saw a Hunger Games cookbook in the store a few weeks ago. I thought, "What the hell are they going to have in there? Tree bark and squirrel and gruel?" Later, I went on Pinterest to see if there were any good HG-related pins and found some videos on Youtube of people making recipes based on food that's mentioned in the book. And then I realized that they do talk about food all the time in the series. So while the cookbook is clearly capitalizing on a trend, the idea isn't THAT far-fetched. Or maybe I'm just trying to justify my foray into Hunger Games related-cooking. I dunno. I thought it would be fun and decided to try some of the recipes I found online. Here are the results!

All of these are from a Youtube user named "Schemestresses", who did a series called "Hungry For The Hunger Games". They're all foods that are specific to certain scenes in the book. Here are the relevant links to the ones I've tried, if you wanna watch. They might come in handy for your next book club meeting

http://youtu.be/Yo-b97poC1Y
http://youtu.be/hcmaQot3PMs
http://youtu.be/AWUE6nXIX4s

First off, I tried making "Springtime Soup", which is described in the book as being a clear, green broth that tastes like springtime.

Basically, you need a bunch greens. Watercress, spinach, parsley, green onion, and celery, to be exact.

Also, some vegetable stock.

You cook the celery and green onion on the stove for a few minutes in some oil, then add your greens. Once those are cooked, you can add your vegetable stock and let simmer for a bit.

Once that's done, blend it all together until it's a super green liquid that resembles something that you feel like you shouldn't be eating.

Add some salt to taste, and you're done! Huzzah!

Despite the fact that it looks weird, it was quite delicious. A nice, herb-y soup. Good for vegetarians. And perhaps people on a liquid diet.

I also made District 11 bread, which is given as a gift to the novel's protagonist, Katniss, during an important scene.

I'd never made bread before, so this was a challenge.

Here are all the ingredients.

The most important thing to make bread, apparently, is knowing how to use yeast. The tiniest mistake with the yeast, and you get crap bread.

You take your yeast.

And mix it with some warm water. It's very important that the water be just slightly warm. Not too hot or cold. Otherwise, CRISIS.

I lucked out on my first try with yeast though. Here it is all nice and foamy, which means it's activated and ready to go.

You mix the yeast stuff with all your other stuff. In this case - warm milk, oats, flax seed, poppy seeds, honey, and brown sugar. Oh yea, and flour.

Once it's all mixed and dandy, sprinkle some flour onto your counter top, take the dough out, and KNEAD KNEAD KNEAD.

Do this for 6-8 minutes. Or until your wrists and hands wanna die.

Roll the dough into a ball, cover loosely, and put in a warm place. After a long, long time, the ball of dough will rise and look twice as big.

Shape the dough however you want it to look, then let it sit and rise some more.

Cover in a glaze of egg and seeds. Pop in oven for 25 minutes. And then you're done. Voila! Homemade bread!

This turned out very tasty. And on my first bread try! Hopefully one day I'll graduate to French baguettes.

So those were some of experiences in literary-themed cooking. Any other famous book foods I should try?

Top 5: Albums of 2011

2012-01-05T10:21:00.000-08:00

Soo....I totes lied about updating my blog while I was Maine. Oops. Sorry, got busy.

But now I'm back south in Virginia after a crazy experience doing documentary radio at the Salt Institute in Portland, Maine. And I'm back to what's really important...making Top 5 lists!

Which maybe will help me in my life goal of being a relevant alt/indie blogger, surpassing the fame of Carles or Aquarium Drunkard

I realized while compiling this list that I've actually listened to a ridiculous amount of music this year. Probably not as much as I feel I should have, but enough that narrowing this list down to five was actually quite difficult.

So, without further ado....my Top 5 of 2011.

5. tUnE-yArDs - w h o k i l l

I got irrationally pissed off at this band that I had to look on Wikipedia to make sure I typed out their name and album correctly with the correct lower-case and upper-case spacing and whatnot. But this album is crazy and amazing, fusing together different musical genres and playing around with different arrangements. Horns come in and out. Sound cuts out sharply and comes back in. In "Gangsta", vocalist Merrill Garbus layers her voice to sound like a police siren. There's a sense of calculated randomness to the proceedings which turned me off at first, but then after 2-3 listens I was completely sucked in.

4. Wild Flag - Wild Flag

I was a big Sleater-Kinney fan and was super-stoked when I went to see Wild Flag in concert this year, curious to see a sort of girl band super-group, taking Carrie Brownstein and Janet Weiss from the aforementioned Sleater-Kinney, along with Mary Timony from Helium and Rebecca Cole who played with The Minders. This band made me so happy and this album is pure, catchy, energetic rock.

3. Destroyer - Kaputt

Please forgive the video posted above, which starts out like an ad for American Apparel and then just gets weirder. Kaputt combines elements of smooth jazz (a genre I normally find repellant) with 70s/80s-esque dream pop to create a rich collection of songs that wash over you. I feel like it's something that shouldn't work but it totally does.

2. Active Child - You Are All I See

Active Child is the moniker of Pat Grossi. And I have a hard time describing this album, but the best sort of genre description I can come up with is "ethereal R&B". There's beautiful orchestrations, and Grossi's vocals sound sort of church-like, if that makes any sense. Everything here is lush and ghostly. Also, Grossi plays the harp. THE HARP. You gotta love the harp.

1. Twilight Singers - Dynamite Steps

It's the Twilight Singers and motherfuckin' Greg Dulli. There's no way this could NOT be my favorite album of 2011. After most of the members of TS took time to do the Gutter Twins (the Dulli/Mark Lanegan collab of awesomeness), they came back this year with an album that was well worth waiting for. Dynamite Steps is a dark, hypnotic brew of solid, cinematic rock songs, the perfect soundtrack for a bar fight with your ex-lover who did you wrong or a melancholic last call on your last day on Earth.

In related news, the freakin' AFGHAN WHIGS are reuniting for at least two shows this year - one in London and one in New Jersey. I need to find a way to go.

Tally Ho!

2011-08-23T20:05:00.000-07:00

So, it has been a very long time since I updated, so I felt like now was a fitting time.
I'm moving, folks!

To Maine!

Portland, Maine to be more specific.

I'm going to the radio program at the Salt Institute of Documentary Studies. Hopefully to learn how to be the next Ira Glass. I'll be there for 15 weeks. It feels like I'm moving to a foreign country. I have to keep reminding myself that I'm not even leaving the east coast, so I need to stop being such a baby.

When I'm not too busy with that, I will try and update this blog a little more with awesome Maine stuff. Hopefully my laziness with blog updating will not prevail.

Anyhoo, I'm off to a land that I imagine is filled with lighthouses and lobsters, so wish me luck!

Anchorage In A Day

2011-03-07T18:01:00.000-08:00

Today I will give you my own special Lindsey travel guide to Anchorage, Alaska.

Say you have a day to explore the (somewhat) lovely city of Anchorage. Anchorage is not a particularly pretty city, but it is Alaska's largest. So if you're in Alaska and, like me, your favorite kind of travel is exploring of urban areas, Anchorage is your best bet.

To start off, you can go to the Saturday market downtown. I guess this only works if you're there on a Saturday.

You might see a man balancing a fake leg on his face. While it may be weird, this is what I would consider a pretty impressive skill.

You might also see a dog wearing goggles. Why is this dog wearing goggles? The world may never know.

Do you wanna know where you can find some spices? Head to "Caribou Corridor".

There you'll find a huge variety of spices. Sadly, none of these are very Alaskan-y. But I'm sure they'll help you improve your salmon bake.

After you're done perusing the many booths at the market, you've probably gotten pretty hungry. Head down to Arctic Roadrunner for some huge, tasty burgers.

My father assures me this place is an Anchorage staple. The burgers are very tasty.

What stands out the most, however, is the uber-kitschy Alaskan decor covering the walls... including this porpoise.

After lunch, head over to the Anchorage Museum, a really cool building which has exhibits pertaining to pretty much everything about Alaska. There's art, archaeological relics, science experiment, photography, history, etc.

Oh, and giant stuffed grizzly bears.

Also, this creepy ancient rock that looks like a face.

A large portion of the museum is used to showcase the language and culture of Alaska's many, many Native American tribes.

Many creepy masks were involved in the making of this exhibit.

Elsewhere in the museum was some pretty cool, but random sculpture art.

Also, what appeared to be a salmon-shaped suitcase.

After taking in some culture, take in some Alaskan (and non-Alaskan) wildlife at the Alaska Zoo.

The last time I was at the Alaska Zoo, which was about 10 years ago, this polar bear was kept in the same enclosure of a grizzly bear. I think they had been raised together as cubs and were buddies. This time the polar bear was solo. I wonder what happened to his grizzly friend.

The zoo also has the traditional black bear...

Also, randomly, llamas.

By now it should be close to the end of your day. It's time to go to Gwennie's Old Alaska Restaurant for some traditional Alaskan eating. Meaning the portions are epicly large.

As mentioned in the previous post, this restaurant used to be a brothel. It's also full of stuffed animals and other kitschy, Alaskan-y decor. But the monstrously large pancakes and the reindeer sausage make it well worth a visit.

So, that's Anchorage in a day. It's a pretty cool place. In all honesty though, my favorite part of Anchorage is leaving, to go down the uber-scenic Seward Highway.

A Few Random Hours in Seattle (and some in Alaska)

2011-02-28T17:48:00.000-08:00

Be warned, there's no real reason for this post, except as an excuse to post older photos that I really like.

I've decided that I'm strangely enamored of the Pacific Northwest. For the purposes of this post, I'll lump Alaska with the Pacific Northwest. Hopefully that's not offensive.

I can't explain why. It could have something to do with the fact that I've spend approximately 95% of my life on the east coast and thus heading West still holds some exoticism for me. You know, exoticism in the form of tall pine trees and rainy weather and an over-dependence on coffee shops.

When I went to go visit my dad last summer, I had a 6.5 hour long layover in Seattle. It was long enough that my Seattle friend kindly offered to pick me up from the airport and entertain me for a few hours.

These hours entailed going to see some earthworks...

Befriending some ducks...

Running up this hill...

And staring at this huge-ass navy ship. Or at least I assume it was a navy ship. There were men in uniform on a huge-ass ship at any rate.

After bopping around for a few hours and staring at the Puget Sound, I had to hop on another plane to Anchorage...

To Alaska...a land where even your local Wal-Mart looks like it could a part of some epic scenery for a Lord of the Rings movie...

... and where your typical trip to the market holds mystery and wonderment...

... and where former brothels become cherished family restaurants.

Maybe I do need to one day pack up and move out west. At least for the option of having daily moose sightings.

Existential Kitty

2011-02-02T20:22:00.000-08:00

I decided a few days ago that I wanted to start a blog about Jazz called "Existential Kitty".

I'll be too lazy to actually start this blog. But the idea came to me because I often find Jazz laying on the carpet, looking as if she's discovered some horrible truth about the world.

A universal truth that weighs heavy upon her kitty soul.

What deep, existential thoughts is she thinking? What mystical secrets of life and death is she pondering?

Or is she simply re-enacting her favorite Radiohead music video?

A Person's History of a Dismemberment Plan Reunion Show

2011-01-27T20:10:00.000-08:00

So, as hip as I sometimes claim to be, I was not entirely familiar with much of the Dismemberment Plan's music before I bought tickets to their reunion show at the 9:30 Club. The D-Plan were a notable DC indie band who broke up in 2003. The announcement of a reunion tour incited a lot of hype - their first two scheduled DC shows (one at the Black Cat and one at the 9:30 Club) sold out insanely quickly. When I found out a third date was added, I snatched up tickets right away. I only knew a few songs from the band, but figured that it's best to seize on hyped up DC band reunions.

I got very stoked for the show last Sunday. DCist had been blogging about the impending concerts all week. I'd been listening to their album Change on my iPod (where it had been sadly sitting, largely un-listened to, since college) to prepare and had gotten Emergency & I.

I think I had weird expectations for this show. Since these DC reunion shows had been so hyped up on DCist and such places, I thought that this was going to be a Big Deal. On par with inauguration. Or the Prince William/Kate Middleton wedding. I thought every famous DC musician ever would be in attendance. Like Ted Leo. Or Henry Rollins. Or all of Fugazi.

Sadly, none of the aforementioned people were in attendance, as far as I could tell. That didn't take away from this being one of the more memorable live music experiences I've had in recent memory.

The crowd was awesome and sang along to every song in an enthusiastic, appreciative way. Everyone was genuinely stoked to be there. Especially the band.

Lead singer Travis Morrison danced and flailed around. Guitarist Jason Caddell took a flying leap at one point. It was so refreshing to see everyone so thoroughly enjoying themselves.

A fact I didn't know about Dismemberment Plan shows is that the crowd is supposed to rush the stage during "The Ice of Boston".

A gajillionty people joined the band on stage to rock out and dance around. It was something to see.

Even though going to concerts is one of my favorite hobbies, it's been awhile since one has filled me with the same sort of giddiness and excitement I felt when I first started going to shows back in high school.

Thanks, Dismemberment Plan. It truly was an awesome night. You should reunite more often.

My Year In Lists: 5 Favorite Films of 2010

2011-01-10T19:42:00.000-08:00

In the tradition of my usual top 5 lists, I've decided to give you all my Top 5 Favorite Films of 2010! I was going to make a more traditional Top 10 list, but I didn't get around to seeing most of the really hyped movies this year, like 'The Social Network' and 'True Grit'. Oh well. Plus I'm all about the Top 5 lists, really. I still saw a crap ton of movies this year, so without further ado, here's my Top 5!

5: A Single Man

I reviewed this movie earlier this year, but I assure you it's still fantastic. I didn't get to see The King's Speech before the year was out, so this movie is still my top choice for best Colin Firth performance of the year.

4. How To Train Your Dragon

Who ever thought a movie about a viking boy and his dragon friends could be so adorable and heartwarming? Also, did not have the overall soul crushing-ness that was Toy Story 3. To say I was pleasantly surprised would be an understatement. This movie was fantastic. And it makes me just a little sad that I do not have a pet dragon. Or multiple dragon friends to chillax with.

3. Scott Pilgrim vs The World

This has pretty much everything I could ever want in a movie. Comic book-ness, video game-ness, an awesome soundtrack, lesbian ninjas, Aubrey Plaza, vegans with superpowers...seriously, what's not to love? This was the most stylistically fun and enjoyable movie I saw all year.

2. Animal Kingdom

This movie came out of nowhere and really blew me away. Truly outstanding. The story revolves around a criminal family in Melbourne, Australia. A teenage boy, after the death of his mother, is welcomed into the fold by his uncles and grandmother and has to deal with what he discovers in their world. Jacki Weaver, who plays Smurf, the matriach, deserves major props for her performance. Every time she so much as smiled I got the chills.

1. A Prophet

This stunning crime drama by Jacque Audiard is about the steady rise of a young criminal, Malik, in a French prison. The film masterfully follows his journey from scared new prisoner to a person to be reckoned with. DCist wrote a much better review than I ever could.

Honorable mentions: Black Swan, Somewhere, Ondine, Inception, Waiting For Superman, Tangled

A New Addition To The Family

2011-01-02T21:39:00.000-08:00

Right before Thanksgiving, my mother decided to get a new dog. A friend of one of her co-workers was trying to find a home for their dachshund puppy. I guess my mom decided that having one short dog wasn't good enough - she wanted another, even shorter one. So she decided to take in the weiner puppy. His name is Ryder. Him and Shorty have become fast friends.

Shorty even puts up with Ryder's constant attempts to bite his face.

But they bond over epic wrestling matches.

Shorty makes a good older brother-figure for the puppy. They make a good pair.

A Brief Look at Experimental Music

2010-11-24T20:21:00.000-08:00

Back in September, I attended part of Sonic Circuits, which is a DC area experimental music festival. Experimental music, I learned, encompasses many things.

There was the Cornel West Theory, a DC hip-hop group with an angry political bent. I liked them a lot. However, they were the most "conventional" of all the "experimental" bands that day.

There were several jazz ensembles. I forget which one this is. Their entire set consisted of one 30 minute improvisational song. They played an encore afterwards, which I didn't stick around for because the first song was so exhausting. I can only assume it was a trillion years long though.

Here is Astma. They came all the way from Russia. They had a guy on guitar and a girl who howled and screeched into the microphone while playing drums.

RDK + Insect Factory was quite good. They were intriguing enough that I bought a CD of theirs, though I can't really describe how they sounded. Very atmospheric and cool. Also, the guitarist reminds me of Sergio Cilli from infoMania.

My favorite act of the day though was Fuse Ensemble.

This whole performance was called "Usina Mekanica" and it is the work of local composer Gina Bever. It consisted of several musicians playing a variety of instruments, both conventional and unconventional. There were the tiny toy pianos, pictured above.

There was also the creative use of wind-up toys to add another interesting layer of sound.

There were the more conventional string instruments..

And there was a mechanical table. You know, every band needs a mechanical table to hoble around during songs.

And, of course, every band needs a wind-up punched paper playing do-hickey. Do these things have a technical name? It created a sound similar to what you would hear from a music box, so I'm guessing it's the same technology.

Overall, I can get behind any group that includes guys in grey jumpsuits and wind-up toys.

The Santa Claus House

2010-09-18T08:34:00.000-07:00

Just north of Fairbanks, is the small city of North Pole.

The North Pole, while admittedly very, very north, is nowhere near the actual north pole.

North Pole is primarily known as the home of the Santa Claus House.

The Santa Claus House is a store/kitschy tourist attraction. It sells all manner of Christmas and Santa-related items. It might be the biggest Christmas store you've ever seen. It was founded in 1952 by Con and Nellie Miller. It initially began as an ordinary trading post. However, Con Miller loved dressing up as Santa every Christmas and got an idea. And thus the Santa Claus House was born.

Also, the town of North Pole takes this Christmas stuff seriously. Many of the main streets have Christmas-y names (like St. Nicholas Drive, Santa Claus Lane, and Kris Kringler Drive). And the street lights are shaped like candy canes.

The Santa Claus House does have reindeer, which I didn't take many pictures of because I was reindeer-ed out from going to the reindeer farm twice in one week.

Also, at the Santa Claus House there are only 3 reindeer. Which, if I'm following my Santa Claus mythology correctly, is not enough to fly his sleigh.

One cool thing about the House is that it receives letters from children all over the world addressed to Santa. If you ever have a hankering to write to Santa Claus, send it to the address above.

Your letter might get an illustrious spot on this wall.

The Santa Claus House also has a Santa and a Mrs. Claus. Who were sadly not there the day we visited. It was their day off.

I feel a little cheated. Because I wanted to meet Santa and tell him what I wanted for Christmas.

You know, like a puppy and a nice pair of boots and for the Afghan Whigs to get back together. And a trip to India. And for everyone I love to be safe and happy.

But no, it was Santa's day off. I guess even Santa needs a day off.

I'm glad I went though, and if you ever find yourself in the Fairbanks area, pay the Santa Claus House a visit.

A Roadside Yard Sale in Wasilla

2010-08-30T19:36:00.000-07:00

Wasilla is a town in Alaska that is probably best known to the American public as being the former mayoral stomping grounds of Sarah Palin. My family and I briefly drove through it on our way up to Fairbanks. I can assure you that it's a fairly unremarkable place. There's a pretty pond, some strip malls and chain restaurants, gas stations... nothing too interesting to see. However...

We did find an odd flea market/yard sale on the side of the highway. It mainly consisted of several people selling things out of their vans or pick-up trucks.

My stepmom wanted to stop there to look for a moose pelt (she was unsuccessful). There were, however, many other pelts to choose from.

My dad befriended this stuffed bear...

While my nephews befriended this man and his adorable husky.

This man and his dog were incredibly kind and sweet and let us hang around and talk to them for a long while. My dad jokingly asked the man if he could buy his dog off of him. The man replied that the dog was not for sale - he had originally belonged to his son, who died in combat in Iraq.

Eventually we wandered around so some of the other sights of this Wasilla roadside flea market thing.

I don't know how indicative all of this was of the typical Wasilla experience. I do have to say that it was one of the more interesting hours I've ever spent. And, I can't think of many other places outside of Alaska where you can find people selling bear pelts and swords on the side of the road.

Alaska: A Land of Bears

2010-08-24T21:10:00.000-07:00

If there's one thing I found out after going to Alaska, it was...that they have a lot of bears.

Apparently, it's a bad enough problem that someone has invented the bear-proof trash can.

And at any park or campground, you'll see numerous warnings telling you not to leave any food out, so as not to attract the bears.

I must admit, it was a little unnerving sometimes to go down a trail and have to worry about encountering large, potentially dangerous animals.

Luckily, all of my bear encounters in Alaska were of a nice, friendly, cuddly nature.

At zoos and animal reserves...

Or from a very, very safe distance.

However, in case I did have a "bad bear day", I would know exactly what to do. Because of helpful posters like these.

Reindeer Vs Caribou

2010-08-22T21:00:00.000-07:00

You wanna know the difference between a reindeer and a caribou?

It's a trick question, really. Or maybe it's not. I'm sorta confused by trick questions.

(P.S. The picture below was taken shortly before my tiny tiny little nephew was somewhat kicked in the head by that harmless looking reindeer. Don't worry, he's fine.)

According to the woman who worked at the Reindeer Farm in Palmer, Alaska the difference between a reindeer and a caribou is ... a reindeer can fly.

No, really.

A reindeer is simply the domesticated version of a caribou. Since they are domesticated and nice, docile creatures (except for the one that kicked my nephew), they are flown around the world for various reindeer purposes. Usually involving posing as Santa's animal sidekicks come Christmastime. They grow antlers, which are filled with many many blood-vessels and help regulate their body temperature. They shed their antlers every year. Female reindeer, as well as male reindeer, grow antlers. Also they can walk on top of snow. And are unsinkable. See, I learned a lot at the reindeer farm.

Also, that they can get a condition called "antler warts", which are warts...on the antlers. They're disgusting-looking. Apparently you can't really do anything about them except hope that they don't come back after the reindeer sheds his antlers.

This little baby reindeer was orphaned and so the people at the reindeer farm are bottle-feeding her. She was especially friendly.

Also, they let all the kids bottlefeed her. She gulped down the entire bottle in about 2 seconds.

Another awesome thing about the Palmer Reindeer Farm? As well as reindeer, you can also feed elk.

And moose. How very Alaska.

A Seal A Day...

2010-08-12T00:35:00.000-07:00

... keeps the blues away.

Seriously, this harbor seal could save anyone from even the foulest of moods, just be chasing its flipper-tail.

His other seal companion seems less enthused, however, choosing to sleep and ignore Spotty's antics.

University of Alabama: Roll Tide

2010-07-25T12:20:00.000-07:00

In the continuing adventures of Lindsey in Alabama, I spent a hot, sweaty afternoon wandering around the University of Alabama campus. Let me give you a pictorial tour! At the University of Alabama campus in Tuscaloosa, you can find...

...many pretty red brick buildings...

...a sleeping robot...

...some random sculpture art...

...a drawing by Art Spielgeman...

..the Denny Chimes...

...the Presidential mansion, sporting some lovely antebellum architecture...

...the largest college football stadium I've ever seen

...along with statues of past famous football coaches.

...a boat full of rocks...

...and many, many red and white flowers.

Bacon-palooza

2010-06-18T08:43:00.000-07:00

I know it's been a couple of weeks since my last post, and I'm sure the 2-3 of you who read my blog are dying to know more about what other wonderful things there are in Alabama. Besides the adorable dog.

Well, part of my Alabama experience, though not necessarily indicative of the typical Alabama experience, involved... bacon.

The night that I arrived, Corianne and her roommates threw a big party. Instead of picking a single theme to the party, they instead picked several.

The party would have tie-dye.

The party would have a water balloon fight.

And, probably most importantly of all, the party would have bacon.

A bacon-themed cooking competition, actually.

The above-pictured gold spray-painted rubber pig was the prize to be awarded to the one who most effectively and creatively incorporated bacon into their dish.

I made bourbon bacon brownies, from this recipe that I found. This is the batter. I actually think they turned out pretty well.

Corianne made a bacon turtle cheesecake (which sadly I could not try because it had nuts in it).

One of the most popular entries were these bacon-topped cupcakes.

They were so delicious, even this ball pyton was tempted by them. Don't ask me why someone brought a python to a party. That's just how they roll in Alabama, I guess. The snake was very cute and chill though, as far as snakes go. And he was named after some famous Floridian football player whose name escapes me but starts with a 'T'. My mom would probably know. For the sake of this post, I'll just call him 'Snakey'.

Snakey was a huge hit with the ladies.

Anyway, back to the bacon.

These were some kind of delicious fried chicken-bacon balls with a duck sauce to dip them in.

There was also some of your basic, chocolate-covered bacon.

There was a delectable cheesy, corn, bean, bacon dip.

There was some crackers with cheese and bacon-y stuff on top.

And there were these peanut butter bacon cookies. They happened to be the only vegetarian thing available at the party, because of their use of veggie bacon instead of real bacon.

I'll have to admit, my favorites were the bacon-wrapped prunes (much more delicious than it sounds, seriously) and Annie's creation, which were jalapeno peppers stuffed with cream cheese and wrapped in bacon.

For this creation, she won the coveted Golden Pig.

The lesson I learned from this party was that, if you open your mind a little, you can add bacon to a lot more foods than you would normally think.

Also, to always check your "douche bag" at the door.

Ain't Nothing But A Hound Dog

2010-06-04T13:27:00.000-07:00

I recently went to Alabama to visit my friend Corianne.

Another one of my friends from high school, Annie, also drove over from Atlanta to visit that weekend, and it was awesome to see her.

Corianne has the enviable luck of getting to live with this dog. He's a hound dog. And his name is Bernie.

Bernie, sadly, belongs to Corianne's roommate, but still. I'm jealous of anyone who gets to come home every day to those big, brown, hound dog-y eyes. And the floppiest of ears.

Those eyes...they just make you wanna give him snuggles and ice cream all day long.

I was sad to say goodbye to Corianne and Alabama upon my leaving. But I confess, I was also really sad to say goodbye to Bernie. The ears! So floppy!

Vintage: Presidential Elections, 2004

2010-05-21T13:18:00.000-07:00

I re-discovered that my Photobucket account, which contains some pictures I have from high school and early college. Among these were photos from a rally I went to for former presidential candidate John Kerry in 2004.

I remember election season in 2004. My first time voting. Everyone remembers their first time. The air was so full of hope back then. How young we were, how naive...

Also, I think I might've gotten extra credit in my AP Government class for attending this. Hopefully I did. That class was hella hard.

My friends and I arrived at the Johnson Center at George Mason University early to get a good spot. The evening involved lots of standing around waiting.

We were waiting a long, long time. You can tell by this disgruntled-ness on Corianne's face.

There was plenty to look at while we waited. Here are some of the supports who got to hang out at the front of the stage and wave signs. You can't tell really in this photo, but this group has a sign that says "Armenians For Kerry". It's nice to know that Kerry supported the Armenian community.

And, of course, there were the usual crazies there with their signs. I can't remember what exactly it said now, but this one looks like it says something about Kerry killing babies.

Here are some random political type peoples talking.

And eventually John Kerry came up to speak, looking slightly like Sam the Eagle from The Muppet Show.

I feel like this was my first political rally, and I remember feeling so cool and patriotic at the time. I was pretty excited when I started college that fall and got to turn in my absentee ballot (less thrilling than going to a polling place, but still nice). Of course, as we all know, Kerry lost the election.

But still, you'll never forget your first Presidential election.

Ladyboys and Girls

2010-05-16T20:54:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago, I attended a roller derby bout in Richmond between a team from their league, the awesomely named Poe's Punishers, and the DC All-Star Team.

It was fun seeing a bout that was not on home turf. But what was even better was their half-time show. Can you guess what Richmond roller derby games have that DC games don't?

That's right.

Drag queen cheerleaders. Dancing to Lady GaGa's "Bad Romance". As my friend Aimee put it, "Every time a drag queen dances to Lady GaGa, a fairy is born."

I don't get it. Why doesn't DC have drag queen cheerleaders? We have plenty of drag queens. Can they not get all dolled up and show some hometown spirit? Seriously. We need to fix this. Seriously.

The half-time show also had girls with hula hoops. Also an improvement on DC roller derby's half-time shows.

Sorry DC roller derby, you fail at half-time shows. We need some drag queens and hot chicks dancing with hula hoops!

OK, DC roller derby doesn't entirely fail though, since they did win the bout by a huge margin. Go DC Rollergirls! Just get some drag queens and I'll love you forever!

Is Arthur Ashe Creepy?

2010-04-27T13:57:00.000-07:00

I visited some friends in Richmond this past weekend. One of them lives on Monument Avenue. Monument Avenue is aptly named because... there are quite a few monuments on it. Most of these are famous Confederates. You know us Virginians, ever so proud of our Confederate past.

Stonewall Jackson, for instance.

Jefferson Davis also.

Some oceanographer dude named Maury?

However, no monument on this street captures my interest quite like the one build for Arthur Ashe, a famous tennis player and Richmond native.

Joh had warned me about the slight creepiness of this statue. Here you see Arthur Ashe, with some books in one hand and tennis racket in the other, standing before a small group of children who are reaching out to touch him. He looks like he's either going to throw the books at the children or beat them with the tennis racket. There's something malicious about the expression on his face.

I'm sure the real Arthur Ashe wasn't really a child-beating creepster. I'm sure he was a very lovely man. He also died before the debut of this sculpture, so I won't put him at fault. I'm all for honoring hometown heroes and whatnot, but ... isn't this just a really creepy statue?

A Visit to Kurt Cobain's House

2010-04-19T20:26:00.000-07:00

There was a time in my early teens when I was obsessed with grunge. I watched the movie Singles enough times that I can still quote very large chunks of dialogue from it (particularly any of the scenes that the members of Pearl Jam appeared in). I worshipped Eddie Vedder, grabbing any Pearl Jam related video or single or item that I could find. I stole my brother's Alice in Chains CDs. I read Michael Azzerad's book about Nirvana, Come As You Are, multiple times. On a related note, I also read Poppy Z. Brite's biography on Courtney Love several times (both are actually fascinating reads that I would recommend).
I suppose it was fortunate that I got my teenage angst phase over with pretty early. I look at that time now with some fondness, but mostly embarrassment. While I still love Pearl Jam, my obsession with most other music of that time has died down considerably.

However, this did not deter me from the somewhat morbid desire to visit Kurt Cobain's house in Seattle.

Yes, peeps, this is the place where, on April 5, 1994, Kurt Cobain took his own life. Supposedly. You might be a part of that "Courtney did it" camp or whatnot. Technically, it happened in a greenhouse on the property which has since been torn down.

We stared at the house from across the street for a few minutes, taking photos and feeling a bit awkward. I could picture the current residents of the house pulling aside the curtains and staring at us in disgust. The fact that the lights were on in the house did not help. I could only assume that they're used to people coming by every day to gawk, but I couldn't help but feel like a morbid, morbid tourist.

You don't really get a sense of Kurt Cobain looking at this house. A nice, big, but not ostentatious home in quiet residential Seattle on Lake Washington. It does not seem like the kind of house a tortured, drug-addicted, suicidal rock star would choose to live in. This is a man who used to sleep under bridges.

Right next to the house is Viretta Park, where Nirvana fans from around the world come to scribble messages on these benches.

One person saw it appropriate to leave a book.

Others saw it fitting to use the bench as a platform to spout some vitriol against Courtney Love.

Jimi Hendrix got a statue in front of a record store in Capitol Hill. Kurt Cobain gets scribbled-on benches. It seems fitting though. Nirvana's music spoke to a lot of people in a really personal way. It seems appropriate that they can personalize their own tribute to him. Despite the fact that some of the graffiti on the bench was stupid and non-sensical, there were plenty of ones that said things like "You changed me" or "Your music saved my life". Cobain never managed to overcome his depression, and we'll never know what more he might have done had he not killed himself. Hopefully through his music, he's managed to helped some others.

The Best Kept Secret in the French Quarter

2010-03-26T08:25:00.000-07:00

Let me take this oppurtunity to tell you all about Verti Marte.

Verti-Marte is a small grocery/deli/carryout that exists on 1201 Royal Street in the French Quarter in New Orleans. If you're ever in the neighborhood, I would highly suggest a visit. Particularly later in the evening, so you can socialize with the crazies and the drunks who are standing in line to get their mac and cheese or their jambalaya.

As silly a reason as it sounds, my reason for wanting to go to Verti-Marte during my trip to New Orleans had to do with Greg Dulli. There's a song on the first Twilight Singers record entitled "Verti-Marte" and as soon as I found out about the deli, I wondered if maybe the song had been named after it. The song is an odd, moody, lush, mostly instrumental piece with random bits of dialogue repeated throughout. Does not conjure up the image of a place you'd go get a sandwich at 1 AM.

Verti-Marte, like all the best food places, is pretty inconspicuous. You walk in, standing in line and wait to order.

You can peruse the large menu up front, advertising "Real Food for Real People at Real Prices".

Finally, you get your chance to order. The food is worth the wait.

Anna and emerged with a muffuletta sandwich about the size of my face. It was seriously large...and delicious. Late at night sometimes, I dream about the sandwich. It was so big though that Anna and I, together, could barely eat half of it. I wish I had taken a picture of that sandwich now.

As we exited Verti-Marte, we were accosted by a drunk and/or crazy man eating mac and cheese who loudly exclaimed to us that it was the best mac and cheese he'd ever had. A few blocks later, we run into this man on Bourbon Street walking a miniature horse outside of a gay bar (where another very nice, hairy man complimented my Twilight Singers t-shirt).

A few blocks after that, another very drunk and/or crazy man yelled at Anna and me that we needed to "love each other more! There's not enough love in this world!"

Then we all had to meet up with our professor (who was taking a bunch of us college kids on this trip) who made us go to a bar to pick up his very drunk ladyfriend and drive her home.

Overall, it was a pretty legendary night.

Movie Mondays: Caramel (2007) and Linda Linda Linda (2005)

2010-03-22T19:38:00.000-07:00

To make up for missing the last few Mondays, I'll post two movie reviews today. These are movies I've watched recently and particularly enjoyed. Go check them out!

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Caramel (2007)

Starring: Nadine Labaki, Adel Karam, Yasmine Al Masri, Joanna Moukarzel, Gisele Adouad, Sihame Haddad, Fatmeh Safa, Ismail Antar, Fadia Stella, Dimitri Staneoski

Directed by: Nadine Labaki

Grade: A

Caramel is a charming ensemble piece by first time director Nadine Labiki. Labiki is known for her work directing music videos for Arabic pop stars (Nancy Ajram, in particularly) and I was really impressed with this as her debut feature film. It concerns five Lebanese women living in Beirut and their everyday struggles. Most scenes take place in the beauty salon where three of them work. The film has a nice balance of drama and comedy. Despite the fact that it deals with some serious issues in Lebanese society, it never gets too heavy. The characters deal with such things as being in love, family issues, adultery, sexuality, marriage, re-virginification, homosexuality, living in a mostly conservative culture, and aging. The chemistry between all of the women is great and their dialogue and interactions feel very natural. Overall, this film shows an excellant, real slice of everyday life of women living in today's Beirut.

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Linda Linda Linda (2005)

Starring: Bae Doona, Aki Maeda, Yu Kashii, Shiori Sekine

Directed by: Nobuhiro Yamashita

Grade: B+

Linda Linda Linda is the story four Japanese high school girls (OK, well, technically one of them is Korean) who form a rock band to play at their school's Hiiragi-sai or cultural festival. Finally, a movie about Japanese schoolkids where they're not trying to kill themselves or each other! Granted, my exposure to movies about Japanese school children is limited to Suicide Club and Battle Royale but, you know, it seemed like a pattern. This film is an adorable, peppy, feel-good piece. When the story begins.Kei (Kashii), Nozomi (Sekine) and Kyoko (Maeda) are in a bit of a pickle. Three days before the school's festival, their lead singer and guitarist quit, leaving them in a scramble to replace them in time. Kei takes over guitar (though she barely knows how to play). They recruit Korean exchange student, Son (Doona) to sing, though her Japanese is a little rough. They decide to play three songs by Japanese punk band The Blue Hearts and the next few days are a series of grueling, non-stop practice sessions. Through learning to play together, the girls learn about each other, become friends, and become empowered through the power of ROCK. Although the pacing is a little off in the beginning and it takes a bit of time to get into this movie, I was eventually won over by its charm, energy, and spirit. When it's time for the girls to finally play the show they've worked so hard for, you're jumping up and down and rooting for them to kick some ass. Overall, this is a really adorable movie with some great music. It made me want to get some stuff by The Blue Hearts...but sadly I can only find imported copies on Amazon for $40. Sigh. I'll leave you with the following clip:

Derby Dreamin'

2010-03-21T09:21:00.000-07:00

In recent months, I've sort of become obsessed with roller derby. This is through a combination of attending several bouts with the DC Rollergirls and watching the movie Whip It a couple of times. The obsession became big enough that I went out and bought some derby skates, a helmet, and pads and spend a good chunk of my idle hours dreaming of my future glory as a derby girl...kicking ass and taking names.

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I'm not sure what it is about derby that captures my interest so much. I've never really been into sports. While I like going to the occassional baseball or football game, for the most part I can't be bothered to get into any sports or learn their complicated rules. I went to my first derby bout out of curiousity. I liked it immediately. I liked the punk-ish DIY aesthetics of the whole things. I liked the bad-ass aliases that the players use (the DC league has players called "Guantanamo Babe", "Marion Barrycuda" and "Condoleeza Slice", for example). I liked watching the blocks, the spills, watching the jammer whip around the track in a merciless pursuit of points.

With each bout that I've attended, I've gotten more into it, learned the rules, the penalties, and what to watch for.

Maybe the thing that attracts me is that roller derby is a sport in which women are encouraged to kick some ass, to be strong and aggressive and awesome.

Maybe it's because I feel, deep down, that I need be strong and aggressive and awesome. That I need to learn to show a little nerve, to gain some confidence, to grow some balls (metaphorically speaking).

Maybe it's just because I want to learn to be able to wear booty shorts and fishnets without fear.

However, my dreams of being a derby girl are currently just pipe dreams. I cannot skate without looking like an old lady shuffling or without falling on my ass. But maybe one day I'll grow some balls, learn how to take a hit (as well as throw one), and get out there on the track....you can call me "Hate Winslet".

Sláinte Mhaith!

2010-03-17T20:02:00.000-07:00

Today was St. Patrick's Day, a good day to wear green, drink Guinness, and pretend to be Irish. Silly as this sounds, it was a good excuse for me to get nostalgic and think back on Marianne and I's trip to Ireland last July. It truly was an awesome trip. Marianne sent me a bunch of her photos from the trip and I had fun looking through them. Oh, the memories...

There was the time when I felt a weird cumpulsion to hide behind this post in Cork. I am also amused that there's a sign on the post for an Easter Rebellion commemoration.

And then there was the time I partied with these statues at our hostel in Dublin.

And then there was the time I crossed that trecherous rope bridge in Carrick-a-rede.

And of course, at every bar we went to, Marianne and I declared it METAL.

At our hostel in Belfast with Kelly from Canada and Jean-Marc from Miami, who I liked because he loved Anthony Bourdain even more than I did. He's a chef and when I brought up Bourdain's book Kitchen Confidential, he exclaimed, "Oh my God, I read that book and thought, 'Holy shit, this is my life!'" He also told me the night before that I was an "awesome girl" because I was the only one "not giving him shit". The night before was pretty memorable, even though all that happened was a bunch of us hostel people hanging out in the back drinking vodka and beer. I think a game of Kings was played. Someone else got out a guitar and someone else played rap music and a bunch of people were talking and kicking a soccer ball around. Oh, Paddy's, you were a weird and magical place. I was possibly the only one not hungover in this photo, though I suppose it's hard to tell based on my facial expression.

And of course, what blog post about Ireland would be complete without the obligatory photo of a pint of Guinness?

At the end of each day, I took my Flip camera and recorded Marianne's final thoughts of the day, which we called our "Anthony Bourdain moment". Here's my favorite one, at some fish and chips place in Dublin, the night before I was to fly home.

Movie Mondays: A Single Man (2009)

2010-02-22T20:01:00.000-08:00

Starring: Colin Firth, Julianne Moore, Matthew Goode, Nicholas Hoult

Directed by: Tom Ford

A Single Man, based on the novel by Christopher Isherwood, tells the story of George Falconer (Firth), a gay English professor who is struggling to move on after the unexpected death of Jim (Goode), his partner and love of sixteen years. The film shows a single day in George's life in which he prepares to kill himself. He goes to teach his last class, he empties his safety deposit box at the bank, buys bullets for his gun, writes letters to his friends, and picks out which suit he's going to wear at his funeral. Along the way, things get in the way of George's impending suicide, some of them even comical. Among these are a student (Hoult) who becomes fixated with him, a meeting with a Spanish hustler, a drunken visit with his friend Charley (Moore), and recurring memories of his time with Jim.

This film is a very strong debut by fashion designer Tom Ford. Considering Ford's background, it's no surprise that the overall design and visuals of the film are fantastic. The story takes place in 1962, right after the Cuban Missile Crisis, and the set and the costumes really evoke that era. If you like the look of Mad Men (which I do), then you'll probably love this movie. It's easy to get hung up on the lush and meticulous visual aesthetic of this film. As Firth's character goes through what he assumes will be his last day on Earth, everyday occurrences become more meaningful and poignant to him. Colors turn from dull to blooming and saturated as George experiences things that touch him. A memory of George and Jim on the beach is shown in gorgeous black and white. Everyone frame is filled with a kind of heartbreaking poignancy. However despite the emphasis on the visual aspect and design of this film, A Single Man is not an exercise in style over substance. The movie is an exquisitely told story of a man dealing with grief, trying to live in a world which he no longer feels worth living in. The fact that he's a gay man in 1962 doesn't help matters much. With the cultural atmosphere at the time, he is never really allowed to show his grief and what he's feeling. Everything about him feels buttoned-down, contained, and his whole existence feels like nothing but a mask. Colin Firth gives a revelatory performance. I had written him off as a serious actor (particularly after the Bridget Jones sequel...yikes), but he's really amazing in this movie. Julianne Moore is also great as his lush of a best friend who has been in love with him for years.

Overall, I highly recommend this movie. It has an intriguing story, lush visuals, a beautiful score by Abel Korzeniowski and Shigeru Umebayashi, and great performances all around.

Grade: A-

Rascal

2010-02-15T21:07:00.000-08:00

I didn't mean to make another post, but I just feel compelled to share something.

I think I'm in love.

With this cat.

Isn't that seriously the most darling face you've ever seen?

I went over to bake cookies today with my friend Linnea's mom. They got a kitten last summer, named Rascal, that I had yet to meet. Until today.

I bent down to say hi and pet him after going through the door. He immediately responded by sitting on his haunches and getting right up in my face for a very intense sniffing session. He then spent the rest of the afternoon jumping on counters, licking me, trying to get into the dog's food, trying to get into the sink, stealing yogurt, rolling around on the floor, teasing the dog, eating paper, and batting at everything in sight. He's more trouble than a two-year old. And yet incredible people-friendly and sweet as can be.

He's so cute that I'll forgive him for getting into my camera bag.

Extreme cuteness can get you out of a lot of trouble.

Movie Mondays: The Girlfriend Experience (2009)

2010-02-15T15:54:00.000-08:00

Starring: Sasha Grey, Chris Santos, Timothy Davis, Mark Jacobson

Directed By: Steven Soderbergh

Soderbergh's The Girlfriend Experience tells the story of Chelsea (played by porn star Sasha Grey), a high-class New York City escort who gives her clients "the girlfriend experience". Essentially this means that her clients are paying for her companionship more than anything else, for her to act like a date or girlfriend, and sex may or may not be involved at all.

The story is told in a non-linear fashion and jumps from event to event, leaving the viewer to piece together what's happening. It takes place close to the time of the presidential elections of 2008 and approaching the impending financial crisis. There are many scenes of Chelsea's clients griping to her about the worsening economy and financial woes. This comes up in other areas of the story as well - Chelsea's trying to find ways to expand her business while her boyfriend, Chris (Santos) is a personal trainer who is struggling with money and his career. Things start to get a little interesting after Chelsea clicks with a client (Davis) and decides to go away with him for a weekend.

I found The Girlfriend Experience to be an intriguing film, but I'm undecided as to whether or not it was a successful one. The aesthetics of the film are great (and impressive considering it was shot on a low budget with an inexpensive Red One camera) and I liked its sleek, yet naturalistic visual style. And while there have been mixed reviews on Sasha Grey's performance, I thought she did a good job with presenting Chelsea as someone who is somewhat shallow, yet very guarded and detached. Most of her scenes are with her clients and she projects a perfect, idealized image of herself for them. As she tells an interviewer (Jacobson), the clients are not paying for the real her. They're paying for her to listen, to talk with them, to be sympathetic with them, but not more invovled than she has to be.

My main issue with the film is that it doesn't really try to connect with the viewer beyond a surface level. It gives us a window into its characters' worlds, but doesn't take the time to explore their deeper desires and motivations. Perhaps this is Soderbergh's intent, to remain detached, but seeing as how I took this movie as a sort of character study, I'm surprised he didn't go more in depth with some of the questions that he raised. I also found Chelsea's relationship with her boyfriend problematic. Chelsea treats him with the same sort of detachment that she does with her clients and I really wanted to know how exactly he felt about what she does for a living.

Also, considering how much of the time the characters spent talking about money, not having enough of it, trying to find ways to earn more, this doesn't disguise the fact that Chelsea is a high-class escort and charges likely thousands upon thousands of dollars for her services. She also has an insanely nice, spacious Manhattan apartment with what looks to be original art on the walls. On top of that, to keep up with her high-class image and high-class clientele, Chelsea has an expensive, designer wardrobe (she chronicles what she wears to meet every client, piece by piece). Just a small gripe, but I found the disconnect between all the talk of the failing economy with Chelsea's expensive lifestyle problematic.

At any rate, it was a very interesting movie and I would recommend The Girlfriend Experience. At least if you're looking for something more serious and a bit more introspective than an episode of Secret Diary of a Call Girl. However, considering that Soderbergh is a more-than-capable director, I wish it had taken more time to flesh out its story and characters.

Rating: B-

A Visit to the Seattle Central Library

2010-02-14T11:19:00.000-08:00

Last night, while walking through downtown DC, I passed by the Martin Luther King Jr Memorial Library, which is the main building in the DC Public Library system. I've walked by it plenty of times, never really thinking twice about it. I'm sure it's a fine library on the inside but, as you can see from the picture below, it's not really remarkable or anything especially nice to look at. Just another large building downtown.

I'd heard a lot of praise regarding the Seattle Central Library in downtown Seattle and how neat it was. I never made it around to visiting the Seattle Central Library during my trip last year, so this time around, I made sure not to miss it.

We were somewhat rushed, having scheduled a tour of a local chocolate factory for later that afternoon. We only got to spend about 20 minutes in this amazing library, but we made it count. And even in that short time, I fell in love.

Let's first meander through the children's section.

I'm so intrigued by this book, despite its horrifying title.

Colorful, whimsical, and full of every delightful book imaginable, this was the children's section of my dreams. My 8-year old self could've lived her forever. Then again, my 24-year old self is still pretty tempted.

However, since our time was running short, we had to rush to see what else this building had in store.

Up by the top there was a great view with these amazing slanted glass panes.

And of course, let us not forget the neon yellow escalator.

I spent a lot of time in libraries growing up. In middle school and high school, whenever I had a chunk of spare time, I would take the bus down to the library and spend hours there, pouring over books. I wish I had had such a cool space as this. I sadly don't think enough about architecture and it's ability to transform locations and create incredible, memorable, unique spaces. Maybe one day I'll create my own fantastical, magical, surreal, cool-ass library that'll rival even this one.

Art Isn't Easy

2010-02-11T20:30:00.000-08:00

On Day 3 of our Seattle vacation, Anna, Joh, and I visited the Henry Art Gallery. It's located right on the University of Washington campus and despite its small size, it is a really cool gallery and has many, many things to look at, such as a collection of polaroids by Robert Mapplethorpe and a skyspace by James Turrell (pictured above).

Also, this weird couch thing (by Roy McMakin, in case you're curious).

Despite the fact that it was still relatively early in the afternoon, we were already exhausted.

Anna took the opportunity to rest upon the art, while Joh and I were content to photograph her. I'd like to think she became part of the piece. Which maybe was the artist's intention. At any rate, I would love to have a weird staircase-chair piece in my apartment.

Lastly, I'll show you the Turrell skyspace from outside the gallery. I think the exterior is supposed to change colors, depending on the light outside. Pretty nifty.

Poles on Puget Sound

2010-02-10T11:25:00.000-08:00

I recently purchased a Groupon to take a handful of pole dancing classes at a gym in DC. Pole dancing is a lot harder than it looks and requires a considerable amount of balance, upper-body strength, and coordination. And, like any other form of exercise, it requires practice in order to improve one's abilities. What sucks about pole dancing is that....you really need a pole to practice. If you're stubborn like me and have to comply with certain agreements in your lease, then you're not going to set one up in your home. Which means one must take to the streets in order to find adequate poles for practice.

This is also harder than you would think. Good poles are apparently hard to come by. They're always too wide, too narrow, or too unwieldy.

On our recent trip to Seattle, after wandering through Pike Place Market a bit, I took Anna and Joh down to the waterfront. It was there were we discovered, near the weird statue of Christopher Columbus and by the Seattle Aquarium, was a raised stage... with some poles.

Now, as you can see...these are not quite ideal poles. They were not nearly sturdy enough to do a catch-spin or to try and lift yourself off the ground. Also, at least one side is situated on a step, so that makes things a bit awkward. But I thought that they were decent enough to play around on and try a few tricks. I tried to demonstrate some of these to Anna.
This mainly consisted of a lot of spinning around, since I had forgotten how to do most of the tricks I had learned in the one class I took a few weeks ago.

And trying not to fall off of the step to a concrete death.

Joh opted not to participate in the pole festivities, opting instead to play photographer. Because she is not a shameless woman.

It just goes to show you that if you know where to look, opportunities are everywhere for random, shameless, fun antics with friends.

A Rainy Afternoon in Ballard

2010-02-09T19:07:00.000-08:00

Anna, Joh, and I recently returned from a trip to Seattle.

One thing that people kept trying to tell us before we went was that Seattle, being in the Pacific Northwest and all, is quite damp. Rains quite a bit of the time. You think that this would've been quite obvious.

This fact did not become apparent until we decided to trek all the way from our hostel in Belltown to Lunchbox Laboratory in Ballard, because we were craving burgers in a bad way.

I'd read about Lunchbox Lab and its mythically large burgers, so it seemed like the good place to go to satisfy our insane hunger. Two things you should know about Lunchbox Lab, if you ever have a chance to visit - 1) It is quite popular, probably due to word-of-mouth about its mythically large burgers and 2) It is ridiculouslously small inside. It can comfortably seat... maybe 10 people inside, rather than the 30+ who had showed up, looking for food.

Since we had come a long way and had no other options, we decided to park ourselves in one of the two very damp tables outside to sit and eat. So, after having dried off our seats and table as much as possible, we sat outside in the cold, drizzly air, and ate our burgers.

They were even bigger than expected. Regretably, I only managed to down about 1/4th of mine.

After that, we trekked down to my friend's apartment, where we took in some of the neighborhood sights.

My favorite were these concrete couches. Which I would've sat in if they hadn't been so darned DAMP.

Only these tree-clocks rivaled the concrete couches for neighborhood quirky-cuteness.

Also, can someone explain this playground to me? So confused here. I would've climbed on it to test it out, but again, you know...it was damp. Soon after this point we found my friend's apartment and spent many hours there trying to get warm and dry again. Overall though, it was a very good afternoon.

Stay tuned for further accounts of our Seattle adventurings!

A Tribute to Tippy's Taco

2010-01-14T21:27:00.000-08:00

Back when Marianne lived in the States, we would often get together at a place Tippy's Taco. Tippy's Taco is a chain of very cheap, delicious Mexican food in Northern Virginia. I don't know what started us on Tippy's in the first place. But we continued to go whenever she was home from school. And we went one final time before she moved to Spain in September. These photos are from our final Tippy's visit.

They did have some amazingly delectable guacamole there.

I think about going to Tippy's sometimes. And then I realize that I can't go with Marianne. Sure, it would be awesome and tasty and cheese-filled, but it just wouldn't be the same. It wouldn't be filled with chomping on chips while discussing school and boys and Pearl Jam and Crispin Glover and our eventual adventures in Ireland.

So, suffice to say, I miss my Tippy's trips with Marianne. But, while I do miss her something most fierce, I should not let this deprive me of wonderful Tippy's Tacos. One day, one day I will return again...for some epic enchiladas.

Top 5: Fleetwood Mac

2010-01-14T19:47:00.000-08:00

Interesting fact about myself - Fleetwood Mac was my first favorite band. I was 11 or 12. My dad listened to them all the time and, as a result, I listened to them all the time too. Other kids were listening to the Spice Girls (OK, I did too, but beside the point), which I was bouncing along to Rumors and Tusk. Not sure why. Maybe it was their harmonies, their catchy, funky, melodic tunes, Mick Fleetwood's beard, or my desire to marry Lindsey Buckingham (see my "Top 5: Weird Crushes" list). A lot of it, I think, had to do with how much I loved Stevie Nicks.

Stevie Nicks had an amazing, unique voice - a little bit gravely, a little bit vulnerable, yet strong at the same time. I loved her witch-y, mystical persona, her personal, other-worldly lyrics...and her shawls, of course. It's still a childhood fantasy of mine to BE Stevie Nicks. Minus the coke addiction and tendency towards having affairs with Mick Fleetwood and Don Henley.

But at any rate - here are my Top 5 Fleetwood Mac songs!

5. "Second Hand News" from Rumours

4. "What Makes You Think You're the One?" from Tusk

3. "Gypsy" from Mirage

2. "Rhiannon" from Fleetwood Mac

1. "The Chain" from Rumours

Adventures in Vegan Cooking: Seitan Pot Pie

2010-01-07T20:26:00.000-08:00

Last weekend, I went to my friend Daniel's apartment to make seitan pot pie. I had never tried seitan before, and I've decided it is my new favorite fake meat. Daniel got the recipe off the blog Vegan Sweetie, who, in turn, got it from Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero's book, Veganomicon. Considering it was my first time making a pot pie, or pie crust for that matter, I think we did an awesome job and it turned out deliciously!

In case you've never made a seitan pot pie before (and I'm guessing not many of you have), you will need the following incredients...

There is, of course, the seitan...

Add potatoes, carrots, celery, onion, corn, edamame...

Spinach works too!

Don't forget the vegetable broth!

Combine all into a hearty, stew-like concoction.

Consumption of alcohol whilst cooking also helps.

Oh, right, it's a pot pie! So, at some point...a pie crust should be assembled...this process was surprisingly difficult, involving chopping the shortening into the flour mixture. According to the recipe, however, it would make, like...the best pie crust ever.

Voila! You have a pie crust!

And then...assemble!

We discovered that cooking can be stressful.

But it's all worth it, because in the end you have delicious seitan pot pie!

Pop a slice on a plate...and enjoy!

My Year in Lists: Favorite Albums of 2009

2010-01-06T20:02:00.000-08:00

After much deliberation, I have finally finished my yearly "Best Albums of the Year" list. I feel compelled to do this every year, which I suppose is silly, since I'm sure no one cares. But, you know, I get a weird pleasure out of making lists. Let's go!

10. PJ Harvey & John Parish - A Woman A Man Walked By
This second collaboration between Harvey and Parish can be a bit challenging to listen to. It's full of restless energy, haunting melodies, and some weird vocals/instrumentation. But it's really grew on me. While it's not an entirely even effort, PJ Harvey has never sounded better and lyrically, she's going some really interesting places.
Try: Black Hearted Love, A Woman A Man Walked By / The Crow Knows Where All the Little Children Go, Sixteen, Fifteen, Fourteen

9. The Pains of Being Pure At Heart - The Pains of Being Pure At Heart
I like the Pains of Being Pure At Heart because they sound like nostalgia. Or like the soundtrack to a modern-times John Hughes movie.
Try: Young Adult Friction, The Tenure Itch

8. Dirty Projectors - Bitte Orca
I was against Dirty Projectors for a long time. Not for any real legitimate reason, but just because they were hyped up a lot in indie music blogs and Pitchfork and the like, so I figured they would probably be overrated. And then I heard an acoustic version of their song "No Intention" on Sirius XMU and decided I needed to reevaluate my opinion of them and get their album. And I discovered it's actually quite brilliant.
Try: No Intention, Cannibal Resource, Stillness is the Move

7. The Antlers - Hospice
This is a concept album, built around the story of someone dying of bone cancer. The songs are equal parts softness and sparseness and emotional, desperate crescendos. It makes for some depressing listening, but it's the good kind of hurt.
Try: Two, Kettering, Sylvia

6. We Were Promised Jetpacks - These Four Walls
I saw these guys open for The Twilight Sad earlier this year and they blew me away. This is a pretty solid debut and is particularly enjoyable if you're like me and you like grandiose, emotional rock music performed by guys with Scottish accents.
Try: Roll Up Your Sleeves, It's Thunder and It's Lightning

5. Bat For Lashes - Two Suns
This album has probably made Natasha Khan (aka Bat For Lashes) my new favorite female artist. There's a lot of duality, faery-ness, and metaphysical lushness going on here...these songs are simply some of the most gorgeous things I've heard this year.
Try: Daniel, Pearl's Dream, Siren Song

4. Passion Pit - Manners
Danceable beats! Falsetto voices! Children's choirs! Electro-pop goodness! Most of the things that I would normally find annoying in indie bands I love about Passion Pit. Somehow they make it all come together into one amazingly infectious, addictive album.
Try: Sleepyhead, Little Secrets, Moth's Wings

3. Phoenix - Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix
Simply put, the best French alternative rock band ever to write a song about Hungarian composer Franz Liszt. This might be the only album this year catchier than Passion Pit's. Which is not an easy feat.
Try: Listzomania, 1901, Armistice

2. Future of the Left - Travels With Myself and Another
Loud, fast, funny, rude, odd...this Welsh punk trio was my favorite new musical find of this year. And despite the wonderfulness of this album, you really should see them live. They're just a blast to see.
Try: Arming Eritrea, Throwing Bricks At Trains

1. Metric - Fantasies
I'm surprised I hadn't been converted to Metric before and lead singer Emily Haines' particularly sexy allure. All I can say is that this is a really great, solid rock album and has many many songs worthy of cranking up loud in your car and singing along to. Most of the songs from this album have been on repeat in my iPod for the last 6 months and they have not gotten old yet.
Try: Sick Muse, Gold Guns Girls, Satellite Mind

Honorable Mentions:
Au Revoir Simone - Still Night, Still Light
HEALTH - Get Color
Karen O and the Kids - Where the Wild Things Are (Original Soundtrack)
The Mountain Goats - The Life of the World to Come
The Middle East - The Recordings of the Middle East EP

Until next year, folks!

Year End Roundup: 2009

2009-12-31T07:58:00.000-08:00

2009.

I think I might've been mistaken about you.

In my head, I thought I couldn't wait to be rid of you. That you were one of the worst years ever. The economy was crumbling. I had a horribly stressful job that I hated. Michael Jackson died. Creed got back together. People freaked out over health care reform. Glenn Beck became creepily popular. I began to worry a lot about the future.

Then I began looking at photos I had taken over this past year. Of all the things I've done and all the time I've spent with friends and the adventures we've had. And then I realized that I was wrong about this year. I had let too many little things get me down, too many things I couldn't control.

This year was actually really great. I've done many things I'd been too scared to do before and gone places I've never been able to before and had many, many good times.

So, let's epic-ly review...2009. In pictures!

JANUARY

I rang in the New Year, as usual, with Linnea. This time at a big party at Mallary's Arlington house.

January marked a few significant events. The most memorable of them involving a trip up to New York with Megan and Skye, where we watched ourselves get a brand spankin' new president. Other people migrated to our home base of the DC area to watch the inauguration. But we wanted to be different. Instead we watched it in Times Square, on all the huge big screens. Sure, there was weirdly no sound on any of the screens, but it was just as cool.

It was also during that trip where we saw this young wizard naked on Broadway (and I've never been able to watch a Harry Potter movie in quite the same way again).

FEBRUARY

One of my favorite things in February was my trip to Seattle, marking the first time I've ever taken a trip alone. It was scary as hell, but it was worth it and I had an amazing time.

I also got to see Dan Savage in person twice in one week!

MARCH

March was a good month. It marked many things. Including the first time that we went out for St. Patrick's Day, as a group.

It was also marked the anniversary of the birth of that dark forest of a man, Mr. William Shatner. I went and played Shatner-themed Cranium (dubbed "Crane"-ium, after Denny Crane of Boston Legal) at Lisa's fiance's apartment.

Megan and I took in a lot of events at the Kennedy Center. We also took in a lot of the view from their terrace.

Jenny and Chris also came to visit and I was reminded how much I missed having them around on a near-daily basis.

APRIL

April. I got to go to Megan's and make festive Easter cupcakes for the first time. Seriously, aren't these adorable?

It also began to get nice and warm again, which meant I could spend more time outdoors with friends.

MAY

May was a huge month. I went to Philadelphia one day, to watch a kinetic sculpture derby race.

And then a couple of days after that I went to Boston to go see The National.

On the way to the concert, I walked by Fenway Park. This would've been really cool if I was a Red Sox fan.

JUNE

June was also a crazy month. I saw a warehouse full of art in DC.

Mallary and I drove 6 hours to Watkins Glen, New York, to camp out with other crazed fans and see The Mountain Goats play in a barn.

Mallary and I also tried out Ethiopian beer for the first time, which was delish.

JULY

July was EPIC. Mostly because of Marianne and I's trip to Ireland.

I also moved out of my mom's house and Skye and I moved into a big, grown-up apartment together!

Boaz, one of my rats, passed away suddenly. I still miss his spazziness and complete inability to sit still.

AUGUST

August involved getting settled in to the new apartment.

Megan, Skye, Megan's mom, and I also went down to Colonial Williamsburg for a weekend. It was the first time I've ever been there, even though I'm a Virginian and you think I would've gone like...a bajillionty times by now.

We got to see the American Revolution begin, as it does every day in Colonial Williamsburg...promptly at noon.

Megan left for Morocco, and I thought that I would have to spend the entire next year missing her (but then she came back a year early and my heart was whole again!)

SEPTEMBER

In September, Skye's friend Allison came to stay with us while looking for a place and a job in DC.

Megan, Anna, and I went to New York to see some Broadway shows

Though sadly, not Spiderman, which has yet to open.

Marianne moved to Spain to be a teacher, and so we had our last ever meal at Tippy's Taco in Fairfax. I really miss Marianne and I's Tippy's trips, which we would take whenever she was home from college.

Marlowe also passed away this month. I'll always miss Marlowe, even if I get rats again. Marlowe would've made a great ambassador for rats. He was so wonderfully affectionate and sweet.

OCTOBER

We were officially into fall now, which brought many things, including a trip back to Fredericksburg to visit old college haunts.

Burlesque shows...

The Equality March in DC (which actually did pass marriage equality legislation, huzzah!)

And of course, that greatest of holidays, Halloween. Symbolized here by a carved orange pepper (Harris Teeter was out of pumpkins).

NOVEMBER

I think I suffered from a lack of picture-taking initiative in November. It seems as if the only pictures I have are from the camera on my phone from concerts I went to. But I did go to a crap-ton of concerts in November!

Public Enemy (sorry, it's with an iPhone so it's a very dark, blurry pic of Flava Flav...but you can see the big-ass clock!)

The Mountain Goats...the 3rd time I'd seen them that year.

And Saul Williams, as his alter-ego Niggy Tardust

I also saw Cold Cave and Metric in November, but sadly have no photos of either or those. Sigh.

DECEMBER

And now we finish off the year!

We had not one, but two snow-storms this month. The later, being the more intense, blizzard-y, 2-foot of snow affair, referred to nation-wide (or Twitter-wide, at least) as the great Snowpocalypse.

Megan turned 24!

And Skye and I put up our very own Christmas tree!

So that's my pictorial year in review! It's actually been a pretty fun year I think, and I've realized that I've actually done a lot of cool stuff, met some neat new people, and had plenty of hijinx.

So here's to 2009 and hoping that 2010 will be even more epic!

Office Decorations

2009-12-27T20:04:00.000-08:00

The last two years of college, I worked for the secetary of the University's Department of Psychology. I had a desk and a computer. Pencils, staplers, a scanner. You know, the usual stuff. There was a filing cabinet directly across from my desk, with this poster taped to it:

The poster was somewhat fitting in that office, seeing at how it was the Department of Psychology and all. And if you're a Psych student or professor, you clearly should know the signs of depression. Or even if you're not, I'm sure it's just a good thing to know. Weirdly enough, looking at it makes me nostalgic. It wasn't the most exciting job, but it was very non-stressful and I really liked working with kooky professors every day. I wish I could steal the poster to put it up on the wall of my office now. Since I dislike my current job so much, maybe I would just put it up there so I could keep tabs on myself, lest I develop the tell-tale signs of depression that these cartoon poster people have! Or perhaps I could just pretend I was back at the Psych Deptartment, alphabetizing scantron sheets and making copies of scholarly articles about weird behavioral experiments. Or maybe just pretend I was back in college again.

Top 5: Christmas Songs

2009-12-23T21:24:00.000-08:00

Again, I've been horrible about posting. Sorry! However, I bring you, just in time for the holidays, a new Top 5 list! Here are my Top 5 favorite Christmas Songs! I'm also currently working on my yearly "Top 10 Albums of the Year" for 2009, so hopefully I'll have that finished before the end of the year.

Without further ado...!

5. "The Little Drummer Boy" - Bing Crosby and David Bowie
I think I've mentioned this before on my "Favorite Duets" list, but I just love this. There's nothing better than two legends singing a traditional Christmas song. And the banter before the song actually begins in this video is just adoreable.

4. "What's This?" - Jack Skellington from The Nightmare Before Christmas
Does this count as a Christmas song, technically? I'm not sure. I do know though that the thing that I love about The Nightmare Before Christmas is that you can watch it around Halloween AND Christmas and it works pretty well for both holidays. However, I think this song is the most "Christmas-y" of the bunch. And you've gotta love lines like "There's children throwing snowballs, instead of throwing heads!"

3. "Santa Baby" - Eartha Kitt
God, do I miss Eartha Kitt. She was just awesome in every way. This song appeals to everyone's inner-materialist...which is, of course, appropriate for Christmas. But Miss Kitt also brings her own own unique brand of playful sexiness to the tune.

2. "White Christmas" - Bing Crosby
Hey, you can't go wrong with classic Bing Crosby. There's just something about this song that just feel so soothing and cozy.

1. "Happy Christmas (War Is Over)" - John Lennon
This song is a great Christmas song. It's like...the exact opposite of Paul McCartney's Christmas song. It's somehow both hopeful and sad at the same time and the children's chorus gets me every time.

And now I invite you all to share your favorite holiday jams!

Marlowe

2009-11-16T20:05:00.000-08:00

I've put off a post about Marlowe for a long time now, because I didn't feel up to it. On September 23, I had him put to sleep, after his pneumonia became too advanced to be treated.

I still miss you, Marlowe.

These are the last pictures I took of them, with the camera on my cell phone. He was naturally a cuddly, affectionate rat. In his last few months, however, when I would let him out of the cage, he would often want to come rest on my pillow or, if I was also laying on my bed, in the crook of my shoulder.

Let's Go Out Tonight: Ferretstock '09

2009-11-04T19:55:00.000-08:00

I meant to make this blog post many months ago. I got lazy. Oh well!

For the past few years, my mom, her friend Susan, and I go up to Maryland for Rocky's Ferretstock. In case you're not in the ferret enthusiast community (or are related to someone who is), then you might not know of the wonderfulness of Ferretstock. Or the weirdness of it, at any rate. Ferretstock is an excuse for ferret lovers to get together in rural Maryland to eat, drink, and win (ferret-related) prizes. People come from all over, many camp on site. All of the money that is raised from the event benefits Rocky's Ferret Rescue, a shelter in Baltimore County, Maryland. So you know you're eating and drinking and raffling for a good cause.

This is Barb here, in the blue shirt. She runs Rocky's and she's a very sweet and awesome lady.

You might ask what in all goes on at a Ferretstock. Well...there's a cake walk (cake not pictured in this blog post).

There's raffling.

Usually for ferret-related things like this cute little wooden box.

And of course, a fundraising event for a ferret shelter usually has adoptions for adoreable little ferrets. This little boy will learn a very important lesson here.

Which is that ferrets are very, VERY slippery.

Wouldn't you want to take one of these critters home?

I mean, their bodies are just as long and tubulars as the tubes that they like to crawl through and play in.

My mom took pity on whoever made these ferret costumes and put a raffle ticket in. She won. Hers was the only ticket. We haven't had the heart yet to put one of our ferrets in the costume.

Oh yea, I forgot to mention before. There's beer. And a LOT of it. And it's free.

And there's food, from this here food booth, appropriately called "Cafe Fuzz".

My lunch consisted of potato chips and a strawberry daquiri (very strong). Probably not the smartest or healthiest idea.

However, the thing I love best about Ferretstock is that it's a goofy, but really fun way to spend time with my mom. Because I love my mommy. She's the shizzle.

Top 5: Cover Songs

2009-10-14T20:46:00.000-07:00

Yes, yes, I've been lazy about blogging again. I apologize. It's a shame, because there are plenty of things I could be blogging about, but I'm just too plain lazy! However, I was letting my mind wander at work and starting thinking of cover songs. I go crazy for cover songs. I don't know why. I love seeing what another artist will do with a piece of music. Hearing a different spin or different interpretation of something. Seeing how one song can have many layers of meaning. So I compiled a list of my top five favorite cover songs.

5. The Mountain Goats - "One Fine Day" (Carole King)

The lyrics of one fine day tell a tale of unrequited love, but Mr. Darnielle strips away the doo-wop poppiness of the original track and what we're left with is raw emotion and more than a little desperation.

4. Nirvana - "Where Did You Sleep Last Night" (Leadbelly)

Nirvana's haunting version of a classic Leadbelly song becomes a classic in and of itself. I've heard several covers of this song and Nirvana's is probably my favorite.

3. The Afghan Whigs - "Creep" (TLC)

Greg Dulli is a genius at covers. He takes something unexpected...say, a TLC song, and completely makes it his own.

2. The White Stripes - "Jolene" (Dolly Parton)

In the original version, Dolly Parton pleads with a woman to please not take her men. Jack White does the same...except his plead comes out as a desperate yowl.

1. Johnny Cash - "Hurt" (Nine Inch Nails)

No offense to Trent Reznor or anything...but I honestly think Johnny Cash's cover trumps the original. I find it much more moving, at least. Cash's version is more sparse than the original, and sung with the somberness of a man approaching the end of his life.

Let's Go Out Tonight: H Street Country Club

2009-09-20T08:28:00.000-07:00

I always like to find new and crazy things to do in the DC area. So, when I heard word this past summer that they were opening up a bar on H Street in NE with skeeball AND put-put, I could not say no! Mallary and I paid it a visit way back when to test out their epic mini-golf course.
Behold, dear readers, I bring you...the H Street Country Club.

Why yes, you CAN drink while playing put-put at the H Street Country Club!

All of the obstacles on the course are from DC landmarks or reference DC history in some way. This one recreates the famous "Awakening" statue...in the likeness of former mayor Marion Barry.

These "lawyers" were particularly hard to get around.

Though, strangely enough, not as tricky as the Lincoln Memorial. Curse you, Lincoln Memorial and your deceptiveness!

And then, of course, there were the zombie presidents, arising from the grave.

And one mustn't forget the Iowa Jima painted on the wall...WITH actual plastic toy soldiers!

The "Mixing Bowl" they have here is just as treacherous as it is in real life!

Mallary and I survived the put-put course, unscathed and WAY over-par, and lived to see another day. And hopefully next time there will be an epic game of SKEEBALL.

Adventures in Vegan Cupcake Making - Part 1

2009-08-27T21:33:00.000-07:00

I've been so busy the past month with moving to a new apartment and other general life things that I've been too lazy to post on this blog. Sorry! So, to ease myself back into the habit of posting, I will share with you one of my more recently acquired pasttimes - Vegan Cupcakes!

I thought I would give vegan baking/cooking a try after several visits to Sticky Fingers, a bakery in the neighborhood of Columbia Heights in DC. I admired their delicious confections and discovered that you don't have to use milk, eggs, or butter to make tasty baked goods.

This brought me to the book Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World by Isa Chandra Moskowitz (of Post Punk Kitchen fame) and Terry Hope Romero. There are over 75 cupcake recipes in that book and over the course of this summer, I'm determined to try making many of the amazing-sounding recipes in this book. So here are the first few attempts. I'll keep you posted.

Batch 1 - Chocolate Cupcakes (Made with Agave Nectar!) with Vanilla Buttercream Icing, Topped with Berries.

Batch 2 - S'mores!

Batch 3 - Margarita Cupcakes!

Batch 4 - Cookies & Cream

Anyhoo, those are all the vegan cupcakes I've made for now. I'll keep you posted as soon as I try some of the other crazy recipes in that book. Stay tuned!

Things To Do In Belfast

2009-07-16T20:49:00.000-07:00

Recently, my friend Marianne and I took an epic trip to Ireland. This included a visit to the city Belfast, in Northern Ireland. Despite the fact that Belfast is best known for its somewhat tumultuous history, we immediately fell in love with this place. In case you've never been and were wondering, "Gee, what does one do in Belfast?"...I've created a few brief tips and suggestions.

First, you could visit the headquarters of Sinn Fein, which apparently has a gift shop (closed unfortunately on Sundays, when we went to scout it out).

You could go see the Peace Wall, which is a bit ironically named, considering it acts to separate/segregate Catholic and Protestant neighborhoods. Apparently there are over 20 of these "peace lines" in Belfast. Some have gates which close every night, effectively locking people in...and out. You can sign this wall, though, which tons of people have, which is kind of cool.

"Our divided society can be a better place to live."

In a similar vein, you can see the many, many interesting (and some slightly unsettling) political murals, which line many a wall in Belfast. The following two are on Falls Road (Catholic/Republican neighborhood). This one is from the "Solidarity Wall", which has murals of the Palestinian conflict, Fredericks Douglas, and Che Guevara.

This one is right outside the Sinn Fein office. It's of Bobby Sands, a famous IRA volunteer who died on a hunger strike in 1981.

This one is on Sandy Row, a Protestant/Loyalist neighborhood. It's helpful in case you've forgotten what neighborhood you're in.
From around Shankill Road, another Protestant/Loyalist neighbor. We saw this one while on a "Black Cab" tour, where a cabbie takes you around different parts of the city and talks about the conflict and The Troubles and all that jazz. The cabbie stopped and let us look around and see all a bunch of the murals in the area. When we came back, he asked "Did you see the gunman that was following you?" We immediately freaked out a little bit, but it turns out he meant the gunman on this mural. It's a bit creepy because it's like those paintings with the eyes that follow you - no matter what direction you're facing or where you're looking, the gun is indeed always pointed at you.

Also in Belfast - you can learn worthwhile lessons about products from bus stop advertisements, like this one. Apparently Tango causes hair loss AND casual sexism.
So, after you're done walking around segregated communities, listening to this city's (still) depressing history, well...you might need to go get some drinks. Lavery's is a good place for this.

And of course, while traveling in Belfast (or really, anywhere for that matter), you must declare metal with random foreigners!

This has been an edition of Lindsey's travel tips. Goodnight, folks.

Top 5: Favorite Movies

2009-07-12T17:54:00.000-07:00

I'm sure you all are on the edge of seats waiting for stories and photos from Ireland. But you'll just have to hang tight a little while longer. In the meantime, I'm been watching Current, which is a terrific channel. On it, they have the Rotten Tomatoes Show, which is like the website...in TV show form. They bring on a celebrity every week to give their Top 5 favorite films. So, in case you were curious, here are mine. Despite the fact that I like and enjoy more "serious" film, if you asked me what would honestly be my five favorite movies...these would be it. Counting down!

#5 - Wayne's World

Hey, for movie based on a Saturday Night Live sketch, it actually works. Party time, excellent! it's not a perfect movie, by any means, but it's so much fun and has so many quotable lines. Which I'll spare you from now, because I like you. But really, the Alice Cooper cameo alone is reason enough to watch this movie.

#4 - Beauty and the Beast

As far as Disney movies go (pre-Pixar), I don't think you can find a better one than Beauty and the Beast. Told with sensitivity and heart, it's a beautifully crafted story with a good message. Also, the heroine is a book nerd, which I'm personally ALL for. And the Gaston song? AWESOME.

#3 - Quills
This movie has many things going for it. These things include 1) Geoffrey Rush, in a commanding performance, 2) Kate Winslet's cleavage (the rest of her is fantastic too), and 3) Joaquin Phoenix as a sexually frustrated priest. It's also a deliciously wicked and witty, as well as gruesome and disturbing tale of sexuality and censorship. Oh, did I mention it's about the Marquis de Sade? Yea.

#2 - Amelie
This is just an overall amazing movie, full of whimsy, romance, great cinematography and the adoreable Audrey Tatou.

# 1- Some Like It Hot
A classic. I could watch it dozens of times and never get bored. Jack Lemmon and Tony Curtis in drag and Marilyn Monroe being her most...Monroe-ish. Could you ask for more? Also, rated AFI's #1 Comedy of All Time.

Top 5: Female Rappers

2009-07-09T16:12:00.000-07:00

Let's just admit it right now - it's a man's world out there. I was listening to some grime on the way home from work today, which got me to thinking about hip-hop/rap in general (which I admittedly, am not terribly knowledgeable of), which led me to the random thought of the role of women in rap. Which made me realize that I couldn't name very many female rappers/emcees off the top of my head. Which made me a little embarassed. I mean, isn't that sad? Because I know there are plenty of good ladies in hip-hop that probably don't get their due, with all the Kanyes and Lil Waynes out there. However, I was inspired to create this list. Because even in a very male-dominated musical genre, these ladies are BOSS. Therefore, I bring you...my Top 5 Favorite Lady Rappers.

#5 - Shystie

Shystie is a grime artist from the UK, where she's toured with The Streets and also stars in a TV series called Dubplate Drama, which is all about how hard it is to be a bad-ass female emcee. Rumor has it she eats the testicles of Dizzee Rascal for breakfast every morning. Don't worry. He re-grows them. Like that Greek myth where Prometheus steals fire from the Gods and is punished by being chained to a rock and having a giant eagle eat out his liver every night.

# 4 - Queen Latifah
Sure, she hasn't been doing much musically lately, but she is and always will be The Queen. She's awesome enough that I'll forgive her for Bringing Down the House. Which, if you've ever seen it, hopefully you'll agree with me that it's a terrible terrible movie. Also "Ladies First" is the one of the best Girl Power songs of all time. Fo sho.

# 3 - Lady Sovereign
What can I say about Lady Sovereign? Another export from the UK, she is, by her own admission, "the biggest midget in the game". She's loud, in your face, rude, and could probably out-drink and out-swear your crazy, alcoholic Uncle Phil. Also, she might not have the biggest breast-esses but she writes all the best disses! There is something about her crassness that I find utterly captivating and strangely adoreable.

# 2 - MC Lyte

MC Lyte has been rapping since the late 1980s and was a pioneer for women in hip-hop. Many female rappers today probably owe her a great debt. She's a phenomenal lyricist. She also appears to have a blog, I've discovered! Check out "Ruffneck".

# 1 - Missy Elliot

Do I really need to explain this one? Nah, didn't think so. Instead of a brief explanation on why Missy Elliot is so frickin' awesome, I will instead offer this quote from my AP English teacher, Mr. Ketch:

"Missy Elliot and Busta Rhymes need to get married and have babies. And those babies will be the best rappers EVER."

Top 5: Michael Jackson Videos

2009-06-26T21:09:00.000-07:00

As I'm sure you're all aware (unless you, literally, live under a rock), Michael Jackson passed away this past week at the age of 50. Like a lot of people, I was shocked and saddened by his sudden death. Because, despite everything, the man did create some of the best pop music ever, tunes that I grew up with and still enjoy getting jiggy too this day.

But, along with awesome tune-age, Mr. Jackson was a master at the art of the music video and it was, undoubtedly, a medium that helped make him a cultural icon. So, with that, I bring you my Top 5 Favorite Michael Jackson videos. And yes, I realize "Thriller" is not on this list. But, honestly, that video scared the living bejeezus out of me when I was a small child, and I still haven't quite gotten over it.

# 5 - "You Rock My World"

The song is so-so, coming around at a time when Jackson was trying to make a sort of "comeback" in the era of Britney Spears and the Backstreet Boys. However, the video is classic MJ, and is humorous and entertaining. As is typical, it's a kind of mini-movie, with Jackson and his pal, Chris Tucker, fighting over a girl, who's involved with some gangster (played by Michael Madsen), escalating into some crazy dancing and hijinx that occur in a sketchy bar, owned by Marlon Brando. Say what you will about Michael Jackson, but if he can convince Michael Madsen AND Marlon Brando to be in his video, I'm sold.

# 4 - "Beat It"

Obviously this is an iconic music video, with an appearance by the famous Orange Jacket. But I love it mainly because it shows that any conflict between rival gangs can all be solved through the POWER OF DANCE. Possible a lesson that Michael learned after watching "West Side Story" one too many times. Either way, awesome video.

# 3 - "Smooth Criminal"

Fedoras, awesome 1920s gangster style outfits, tommy guns, and the impressive, defying-gravity lean (shown above). What's not to love? And, again, the problems of mobsters can be solved also through the POWER OF DANCE. Really, that's the main lesson to be learned from Michael Jackson videos, people.

#2 - "Leave Me Alone"

This video shows Michael Jackson riding through a rollercoaster/rocketship car through a crazy, animated, amusement park while being confronted with headlines and reminders of all the crazy rumors about him. Along with dogs in suits, iguanas, and all manner of bizarre things. I thought this video was incredibly cool when I was a little kid. I still think it's a neat, creative video and shows MJ's ability to poke fun of himself and be a little tongue-in-cheek.

#1 - "Remember the Time"

This is another one of those epicly long, mini-movie kind of music videos. It starts off in Ancient Egypt with a Pharoah (played by Eddie Murphy) and his Queen (played by David Bowie's wife Iman), hanging out in their...pyramid/palace or whatever. The Queen proclaims that she is bored and Pharoah Eddie Murphy summons one of his henchmen (played by Magic Johnson) to bring in all manner of performers to entertain her. She is unimpressed with the first few, ordering them to be executed, until..at long last...Michael Jackson shows up to save the day! Of course, Iman starts giving MJ lustful looks, and jealous Eddie Murphy orders his henchmen to chase MJ around the palace to kill him. But it all ends happily with a kick-ass dance number. But not before Jackson and Iman share an awkward kiss...only to be rivaled by Jackson's even more awkward kiss with his then-wife Lisa Marie Presley at the MTV Video Music Awards.

Still, awesome video and who doesn't love Ancient Egypt and excellent celebrity cameos?

Top 5: Dogs From Movies

2009-06-24T14:54:00.000-07:00

Here's where I'll bring you my first installment of my White Hot Top 5! I've become keen on making Top 5 lists lately. Pointless as they are.

This week's top 5 will be my top 5 favorite movie dogs of all time, inspired by Megan's tweet about Dug from Up being the best movie dog ever.

And here they are...Top 5 Movie Dogs!

#5 (tie!) - Chance and Shadow from Homeward Bound: The Incredible Journey (1993)

I realize that the cat walked a gazillionty miles too, but this list is about dogs, people, OK? And these dogs walked REALLY freakin' far. And they miraculously made it home without getting eaten by mountain lions.

#4 - Perdita from 101 Dalmations (1961)

Perdita was also featured on The Rotten Tomatoes Show's list of Top 5 Bitches of all time. So I'll sorta steal their justification - She gives birth to a huge litter of puppies...which, you know, doesn't sound like an easy thing to do, then she rescues an even larger group of puppies and pretty much adopts them! What a great bitch!

# 3 - George from Bringing Up Baby (1938)
That little terrier caused so much mischief. You know, stealing priceless dinosaur bones and all. But in the end, he helped bring Katherine Hepburn and Cary Grant together. Jackpot! Interesting trivia, the dog who played George, Asta, was also in The Thin Man and quite a few other big movies around this time. Quiet a famous movie actor dog, he was.

#2 - White Fang from White Fang (1991)

My dad used to watch this movie quiet a lot, so I have fond memories of it. I suppose White Fang doesn't really count, since he's part wolf and all, but he's so bad-ass that I'm just gonna stick him on this list anyway.

#1 - Dug from Up (2009)
Yes, Megan, I'm stealing this from you. But, in all seriousness, I feel like if my dog had the ability to speak, he would sound like Dug. "My name is Dug. I have just met you, and I love you"

Near-Cult Experiences

2009-06-15T17:16:00.000-07:00

It is hard to describe The Mountain Goats. The Mountain Goats usually refers to a man named John Darnielle, a former nurse in a psychiatric ward who started out writing an recording songs on his boombox. These eventually evolved into something closer to an actual band, though it still is mostly just Mr. Darnielle and his guitar. Sometime during my freshman year of college, Mallary introduced me to The Mountain Goats, through the classic songs "No Children" and "International Small Arms Traffic Blues". After falling in love with these songs, I bought the album Tallahassee, an incredible 14-song affair chronicling the destructive relationship of a couple who will eventually drink themselves to death. I was hooked. I moved onto the gorgeously beautiful and fragile songs of The Sunset Tree (I might have to do a write-up of later, because I love it so much), then We Shall All Be Healed, then All Hail West Texas, then anything else I could find. Mallary was a huge, invaluable help in this regard, having a near-complete collection of Mountain Goats songs...probably somewhere around 300...I never really counted, but it's a good guesstimate that they constitute 1/4 of the content of my iPod, easily. That same freshman year that I got hooked on TMG, Mallary and I trekked all the way up to Haverford College in Pennsylvania one adventurous Sunday night just to watch Mr. Darnielle and Peter Hughes play a show in the basement of a dorm.

Let's fast-forward to about...now.

A little over a month ago, Mallary told me that it was confirmed that The Mountain Goats would be playing a benefit for Farm Sanctuary near the tiny lakeside town of Watkins Glen, New York, called Zoop II (there was a previous Zoop in 2007). A brief description of Farm Sanctuary - FS tauts itself as "the leading farm animal protection organization". It rescues farm animals from abusive situations, rallies against factory farming, advocates a vegan/vegetarian lifestyle - all that jazz. The festivies of Zoop II would ibe a weekend long extraganza with shows by John Danielle, Peter Hughes, and John K. Samson of another of my favorite bands, The Weakerthans. And, of course, since in the past Mallary and I have proven ourselves dedicated fans of The Mountain Goats, it seemed only natural (i.e. completely batshit crazy) that we drive up to Watkins Glen to camp out for the weekend with 200 or so other rabid Mountain Goats fans.

So here's a brief pictoral run-down of the weekend.

Here are the cabins where John Darnielle and company stayed in.

And here is our little tent village directly across.

The evening started off with an excellent set by John K. Samson (who I later sat next to briefly at the post-show bonfire)

Here's John's bandmate Peter Peter Hughes, who did a most energizing solo set with a lot of danceable disco-opera songs about Aregentinian race car driver Juan Manuel Fangio (look him up). They caused Zoop-goers to randomly shout "Fangio! Juan Fangio!" for a good chunk of the rest of the weekend.

And here's Johnny!

It was great, epic set. The crowd got very rowdy during "This Year".

Cultimating in John Darnielle probably very nearly getting hit by this broken beer bottle.

A bonfire followed the concert (not pictured in this blog entry)...30 or so Zoop-goers gathered around, guitars were brought out and people drank and sang Mountain Goats songs til the wee hours of evening. John Darnielle made a surprise appearance to join the sing along and Peter and John K. Samson also stopped by. I have to tell you, it was kind of surreal. The next morning, Farm Sanctuary gave Zoop-goers a free tour of their facilities, and an oppurtunity to meet all of the animals. Including adoreable, huge cows.

Roosters.

Turkeys.

And Goats! (hehe) This goat here is Zoop, whom the event is named after. She only has 3 legs. She also likes to head-butt.

I see you.

A goat named Jerry Lee who most people simply call "The Pope".

This sheep fell in love with Mallary and wouldn't let her go.

And then a random goat escaped, causing staff to have the chase it and wrangle it back in.

This awesome woman and her husband made free t-shirts for everyone.

Now this here...is the infamous "Request Only Setlist" board. People were asked to write down any songs they wanted John to play during the Request Only show that night. They also were asked to donate money (which would go to Farm Sanctuary) in order to encourage John to play their song.

It rained a bit, then cleared up, causing an awesome and gorgeous sunset over the hills.

People gather around for the Request Only show.

I love John's enthusiasm and unabashed joy when he plays. It gets me every time.

The second, Request Only show was my favorite of the weekend. It was here especially that encapsulated the ...for lack of a better word,"specialness" and surreal, magical quality of the weekend. It's hard to really put into words. Maybe it was the environment, the setting, the people, the fact that everyone had travelled hundreds of miles just to see this guy that we all admire play songs that we all love in a barn in beautiful upstate New York. It was just incredible. I'd say you'd be hard-pressed to find someone happier to play in front of an audience that couldn't be happier to see him. Having everyone sing-along to even the most obscure of Mountain Goats songs...at one point John jokingly referred to himself as a cult leader (Mallary and I and others were also joking about a vague "cult-like" atmosphere to the whole Zoop experience. Anyhoo, during the show a sort of boundary between artist and audience was broken briefly. Like when John's guitar string broke right before the encore and he came out and led everyone in a sing-along, a cappella version of "No Children". Just...incredible. What amazing people. What amazing music. What an amazing frickin weekend. I'm afraid I'm going to find going to normal concerts at normal clubs and bars and typical concert venues really disappointing after this.

5 Movies That You Probably Haven't Seen (And Probably Should)

2009-06-02T14:16:00.000-07:00

I'm glad that lately I've gotten back into my habit of going out of my way to see interesting films The new Netflix account also helps. Seriously, why have I been against Netflix all these years? It's such an amazing invention! Here I give you five movies that I've seen recently that I think you should check out. Some of these are out on DVD already, some should still be in theaters. Checkee out.

Sin Nombre

Starring: Edgar Flores, Kristyan Ferrer, Tenoch Huerta Mejía, Paulina Gaitán

Synopsis (courtesy of Flixter): "After murdering his gang's leader, a teenager joins a family of Honduran immigrants making the dangerous journey across Mexico to the United States, avoiding a fellow gang member who has been sent to kill him along the way. "

This is the debut feature from director Cary Joji Fukunaga and, based on this, I'd be really excited to see what he does in the future. Sin Nombre ("Without Name") concerns people who are on the edges of society (i.e. gang members and illegal immigrants). It also teaches you not to mess with MS13. Like, seriously. The cinematography is amazing, with some hard-to-watch scenes inside the dens of gang leaders, and wide shots of trains zipping up the countryside of Central America, with dozens of people crowded on top, desperately trying to escape to a better life. This is a gritty drama that'll stick with you long after you're done watching. Still in theaters, I think. Watch trailer here.

Romance

Starring: Caroline Ducey, Rocco Siffredi, Sagamore Stévenin, François Berléand

Synopsis: "Although deeply in love with her boyfriend - and indeed sleeping in the same bed with him - a schoolteacher cannot handle the almost complete lack of intimacy he will allow. Increasingly frustrated, she gradually finds her sexual appetites leading her into ever more risky situations, including a developing one with the headmaster".

I've been trying to get into the work of director Catherine Breillat and this is the third film I've seen of hers so far (along with The Last Mistress and Fat Girl) and so far the one I like the most. However, I would say her films are difficult to like and she's certainly not subtle in terms of her agenda. Even still, I'm not exactly sure how much I like this film, but I definitely think it's worth checking out, if only because of the questions it raises and the buttons it pushes. I'd also have to say that Breillat's films, this one especially, have some of the most explicit sex I've ever seen on film...and also the least erotic. It's hard to explain. But worth a gander.

(Probably not work-safe) Trailer here.

Let the Right One In

Starring: Kåre Hedebrant, Lina Leandersson

Synopsis: A bullied Swedish boy develops a friendship with the girl next door...who happens to be a vampire.

Rarely will you see such bloody carnage in a movie and go "Awwww, it's so cute!" But seriously, the relationship between Oskar and his cute lil' vampire girlfriend Eli is simultaneously morbid, touching, and utterly adoreable. The young girl who plays Eli has a precociousness and an odd charisma that reminded me a lot of the girl who played Miette in City of Lost Children (what happened to that girl anyway? Does anyone know?). Even if you're not into vampire lore or vampire cinema, this Swedish export is still captivating, odd, and very well-crafted.

Trailer here

Gegen die Wand (Head-On)

Starring: Birol Ünel, Sibel Kikelli

Synopsis: "40-year-old Cahit is brought to German psychiatric clinic after attempting suicide and sets out to start a new life, even as he longs for drugs and alcohol to numb his pain. There he meets Sibel, who is young, pretty and like Cahit, Turkish-German. She lives a lifestyle that is a bit too wild for her devout, conservative Muslim family and fakes a suicide attempt to try and escape them. But the incident brings shame upon her family, who insist that only marriage can save her. Sibel begs Cahit to marry her and he reluctantly agrees, perhaps in an effort to save her and to find meaning in his own life. Gradually, however, Cahit begins to fall in love with Sibel and she, in turn, comes to realize that she loves him - but not before an incident of jealous violence tests this fledgling romance."

I loved, loved, LOVED this movie. I only saw it a little over a month ago and I would already put it in my top five favorite films ever. Here we are presented with two very damaged people who you are compelled to like and root for despite a number of unlikeable traits and habits. And despite the fact that their relationship seems ultimately doomed from the start, you just really want these crazy kids to make it! This film just has an amazing rush of energy to it and takes you on a rollercoaster ride that keeps your heart racing until the very end. Seriously, cannot recommend this highly enough. Watch it.

Trailer here.

Goodbye Solo

Starring: Red West, Souleymane Sy Savane

Synopsis: Goodbye Solo is the story of Solo, a kindhearted 34-year-old Senegalese taxi driver in North Carolina. He is hired by William, a tough 70-year-old white southerner, to drive him in two weeks time to a mountaintop from which William plans to jump to his death. Solo decides to charm his way into becoming William's friend, and this odd couple's unexpected friendship grows. Now all Solo has to do is change the old man's mind before the two weeks are up.

This movie reminded me a little bit of Thomas McCarthy's movies The Station Agent and The Visitor, which both dealt with unlikely friendships. This movie quietly takes you to some unexpected places and ultimately leaves you uncertain about the fate of its characters. But I think that's what I liked best about it.

Trailer here

Still in theaters.

Now get watching!

Boston In 6 Hours Or Less

2009-05-31T18:29:00.000-07:00

So, last weekend I took a trip to Boston. A friend of mine who is originally from Boston endeavored to send me on a trip through the city's most beautiful parts in an effort to convince me that it was "one of the most gorgeous places in the Western hemisphere". Thus, he created a "walking tour" for me, with precise directions and landmarks. Per his instructions, this walking tour was supposed to take around 4-5 hours. I was very excited about this. It seemed like a big adventure. Sort of like following a treasure map or going on a scavenger hunt, but on a grander scale. So, on my last day in Boston, I printed out his e-mail instructions, grabbed my map and guide book, and went on an epic walk through Boston. I started off at about 10:15 in the morning and got back to my hotel around 4:30. I suppose that's closer to 6 hours. But, you know, I'm a slow walker and very easily distracted by anything shiny. Luckily, I got back in enough time to catch my flight (which was delayed anyway). Here I'll give you a massive picture post of some of my favorite things from that walk. I'd give you a map with my route, but...I'm lazy.

Here is me at the beginning of the walk, after leaving the hotel. I would become much, much sweatier as the day went on.

My instructions told me to turn on this walkway here. First leg of this walk took me through the South End, which was a very pretty part of town.

If you zoom in on this picture, right after "watch", there is a picture of a growling tiger or cougar or some large, fanged cat. It wants you to watch for turning vehicles.

These stairs are frickin' gorgeous.

Eventually I found Union Park, which was small, but quiet and pretty.

I found this Syrian restaurant. It made me wish Megan was with me, so that we could get lunch there.

Somewhere around the corner of Dwight and Shawmut Ave (if you want to Google-map it) I found the entrance to this FABULOUS house.

Next I was to catch a bus at about the corner of Berkeley and Washington St. I saw this radioactive bunny sticker on the way.

The bus took me all the way downtown. There was a large gaping hole where I guess some tall buildings has been demolished. I was intrigued that the one building here still has one wall intact. I think the front said "Filene". Anyhoo, just thought it looked cool.

Happened upon the AWESOME Kung Fu Video right above the Discount Jewelry Exchange.

Found some musicians hanging out in front of the Borders across the street from the Old South Meeting House.

Soon after, I found myself around the Quincy Market. Which was uber-touristy, but did have this little boy with the most epic balloon hat ever.

Oh, and this Silver Woman.

Holocaust Memorial.

Somewhere around Beacon Hill, a torrential downpour started. I had to hide in a doorway for awhile.

Here is Pickney St and Louisburg Square. John Kerry apparently lives right about here. I didn't know which house on the block was his though.

On Charles Street, I found this cute little pharmacy that looked like it hadn't changed since the mid-1950s. My favorite part of this photo though (if you can make it large enough to see clearly) is the very unhappy baby that the man in the red shirt is holding. Poor child.

A close-up of of the windows of Gary Drug. Below these cute little bath toys it says "Designed by Experts...Mde by Craftsmen in England".

Soon after that, I crossed this awesome bridge over into the Charles River Esplanade.

I was charmed by this family of geese looking out over the Charles River.

After going over another bridge, I ended up back in the Back Bay. Around Commonwealth Ave, I found these people doing some kind of impromptu tightrope thing. I feel this is an activity we should pick up.

I wound my way a block or two up Newbury Street, where I was strongly encouraged to stop at JP Licks, apparently some of the best ice cream in the country. I had a flavor called "El Diablo", which was chocolate ice cream with cinnamon and cayenne pepper. It was unique and delicious, indeed. And the cow on their sign is so adoreable!

Eventually, I reached the end of my epic journey. What makes it even better is that at the very end, near my hotel, I found Waldo! Score!

What Can You Do In Philly In One Afternoon?

2009-05-16T21:29:00.000-07:00

A surprising amount, actually.

You can visit the Trenton Avenue Art Festival, which was the hipster mecca of the tri-state area this particular Saturday afternoon. The main event of the fest? The Kensington Kinetic Sculpture Derby!

What is "kinetic sculpture derby", you may ask? It's a valid question. I was as confused as you were when I first heard of it. Luckily, it's relatively simple. Also, Wikipedia can help.

Basically, people get creative and make float-type or other related contraptions and build them onto their bicycles. And race. It's a delightful combination of art and good ole sportsmanship. Please see the following examples:

Apparently casinos are a contentious issue in Philadelphia? Who knew!

You've gotta appreciate this troupe of creepy Wizard of Oz flying monkeys display here.

After you're done with sculpture derby, you can head across town to the Reading Terminal Market and sample the various wares (often Amish made).

Delicious vegetables

Oyster bar

Delicious authentically Amish apple dumpling!

The Amish close up shop around 5, so we did not get to see the delights of the AJ Pickle and Patch Salads. Sigh.

Next up you can visit Society Hill, and see tons of cute little historic things. Such as old rowhomes that like to display their Patriotism by flying outdated American flags.

Or you can visit a bar called the Artful Dodger. Doesn't he look artful and dodgy? I mean, look at that coat, the untied shoelaces and that smirk.

Or you can wipe your boots off at any one of these nifty little things scattered around. Too bad I wasn't wearing boots.

Lastly, if you want to see kinetic sculpture derby in action, I present you with a handy video of some of the action this afternoon.