And!

There's also this (slightly askew) photo of my puppies...enjoy!

Yo, 2011!

Well. That was a quick year. But now it's Onward, Agnostic Soldiers. Ha.

So yeah, I got some ideas for 2011. Here are two:

Closet Makeovers: I have about 10 closets in my house and none of them are living up to functionality standards right now. But I have some ideas. Oh, I have ideas. So I thought I would tackle one closet a month until they all meet my magical mystical perfect closet standards. And FFS, if I can't handle finishing some closet makeovers, I should just cut my losses & sell this house. (Hahaha... it's funny cause it's true)

-365: Read that like: minus 365. I used to love stuff but now I hate stuff so I'm pledging to empty all the boxes and get rid of (at least) 1 thing everyday. Using the highly scientific donate, sell or toss method. And yes, sadly, there are at least 365 things in my home that I neither need nor want. Thus this little challenge.

"OOOHH, AAAHH," right?

But wait there's more!! Well, maybe. We'll see. But there's this for now & that's something. Hehehe...

hello

Try it (again). You might like it (this time).

So yesterday was one of those kinds of Mondays... the ones that are actually on Tuesday because you had a 3-day weekend. Ha. Anyway it was a crap day & as a result, I did not want to make dinner when I got home. You know those days. I had no idea what I had to eat at home after eating at restaurants all weekend... but then I remembered something that I had picked up on my last trip to the grocery. A bag of frozen Chipotle Roasted Sweet Potatoes & Vegetables by Alexia Foods.

It was pretty random for me... because I have not ever liked sweet potatoes. But the other day I ordered a pizza w/green peppers & mushrooms. And I didn't used to like those either. So what the hell, right? Plus, it had the word Chipotle in it & when has any food w/that word in it ever sucked?

Anyhoodle, this bag of frozen stuff had sweet potatoes, black beans, corn, onions, & red peppers and a bag of seasoned oil. It's super easy to make: heat up oil, dump bag in pan, cook for 8-10 min. So I did that. Then I added eggs. And some leftover shredded cheese.

OMFG. Dee-li-cious.

And now I like sweet potatoes. Sometimes that's just how it works w/me.

34 etc

So now that I'm no longer 33, does that mean I should start a new blog (again)? Heh.

I think I stay here for now... after all, that's why I added the "etc."

Kickstarter

Have you ever heard of Kickstarter? I hadn't until today. I LOVE the concept. People like you and me can help fund other people's creative projects. How fun! And a little like public tv/radio, you get little extras for pledging to a project. And you only pay if it reaches it's pre-determined goal. I learned about this project from swiss-miss and it was my first pledge:

Gainsbourg

Would really love to see this movie, though I read that it's not likely to be released in the U.S. WTF? Too bad, because it looks wicked good. Fingers crossed for DVD...

Two Cute Puppies

I love the way my two puppies look when they are sleeping...

Kitchen :: Before

My kitchen is not finished. Not even close. I just finished priming the walls & have not even started on the cabinets. And this is just phase 1. Phase 2 will come at a later date (and probably not even the same time, so Phase 2 & 3) & will include new floors, counters, backsplash, sink & faucet. But I thought it would be fun to look back at what was here when I bought the house... so here we go:


Wooooo! Look at that wallpaper (+ border)! This is the dining area of the eat-in kitchen... check out that chandelier! Fancy. Nothing says 1959 ranch like a chandelier w/a pineapple center! Also... biggest phone ever. And that weird black strip on the door? That's weather-stripping done wrong.


I noticed all my photos are from this side of the kitchen (ha)... here you can see the back door, the doorway to the living room (check out those curtains... hot!), where the fridge goes, the counter stovetop, & the some of the cabinets. And the off-white counter (yuck). Oh, and see that chair rail? Yeah, they just put it up & painted over the wallpaper. That was a fun discovery.


More cabinets, they're in good shape. I like that they have flat doors. But I'm not a fan of that orange wood. You can also kinda see the sink/faucet although they blend in very well w/the counters as they are the exact same color. The composite granite sink sucks. And there's the backsplash... peach w/a brown border. Ugh.


Pretty much the same view though you can see the wall oven off to the left. And there's a great view of the floor. Not the most horrible thing I've ever seen, just not my style.

So, there you have an idea of where I started... the house is a ranch built in 1959. It had one owner before me. Old man chic. Haha. It's a nice big space, tons of cabinets + a pantry (which I don't seem to have taken any before photos of). But it was really lacking in the pretty department. Like I said before, Phase 1 on the kitchen was removing the wallpaper & painting the walls plus painting the cabinets (white). But there are always surprises. In this case it was 3 layers of wallpaper over unfinished drywall, some of which was literally crumbling & being held together by the wallpaper. Took FOREVER to remove it all & then there was fixing drywall, skim coats, sanding, etc. Yeah, I have no patience or attention span so I stopped and started many times. But I'm determined to have Phase 1 done by the 1st anniversary of buying the house... and that's approaching fast.

Preview for visual types: the cabinets will be white, the kitchen walls pistachio green, & the dining area white. White trim, of course. I have a new light for the dining space & a killer plan for a table. No plan for the backsplash yet, but I'd really like either white corian or butcherblock counters, a slick stainless sink w/a faucet like this. And the floors? Thinking plywood, either painted or just sealed.

See? This look back was a good motivator to move forward... :D

Cute.

I'm a huge Wes Anderson fan. I can see why a lot of people dislike his movies but I personally LOVE them. This couple obviously does too:



(via Gawker)

I ♥ Muppets

I heard this song & it made my head hurt. But then someone genius & awesome took the Sesame Street "I Love My Hair" clip & mashed it together w/the song to make this video. And now I love it. I giggle every time I see the little Muppet dance. It's so perfect.

Weekend

Weekends go fast. Goyle spent most of the weekend throwing up. Ginger spent most of the weekend barking. I spent most of the weekend working on my kitchen.

Mudding. Sanding. Priming. Caulking. Etc.

Redid the drywall on a wall I was not happy with. Have a couple of other little things to touch up. Hoping to finish priming the newly fixed wall & around the edges early this week. Then PAINT. Finally.

And then it's on to the cabinets.

It's getting there.

Archive of Interests

I've decided to post more things I'm interested in as I come across them or as they pop into my head... let's start with this video.

Desk - Music and Sound Design from Aaron Trinder Film:Motion:Music on Vimeo.

via Lifehacker

Wait, WHAT?!

Ha. So my dad is not coming to town in November now. He's coming next weekend. Let's take another look at the list, eh?

1) Paint my kitchen walls & cabinets & pantry.
2) Paint living room
3) Paint bathrooms
4) Get water shutoffs fixed
5) Clean/organize garage
6) Clean/organize 2nd bedroom
7) Paint/organize hall closets
8) Map out/clear garden beds
9) Map out/dig out garden path
10) Slipcovers for sofa/chair
11) Paint foyer

I, uh, cleaned/organized my garage... Yeah, that's it. It's only been a week, FFS. So, no housewarming party while he's here because I'm not gonna magically find an extra 7 weeks laying around here.

Meh.

I'm gonna work on my kitchen this week but who knows if that will get "done" done. I also need to work on the 2 bedroom because I'm gonna make my dad work while he's here. Need to have a clear space to stand while I point up at the ceiling & say, "Put in an accessible attic access... Mmkay? Thx. And maybe throw some insulation around while you're up there! Double thx." Also, "Put a door on this basement doorway... Mmkay? Thx." I may also tell him the list for future visits:

• New front steps & porch railing!
• Replace this sliding door!
• Build me some bookshelves in this closet!
• Close off this extra door w/drywall!
• Knock out this back wall in my living room & replace it w/floor to ceiling windows & a pivoting glass door that opens onto a modern deck!

OK, not really the last one. Unless I win el lottery. But for now, just those 2 simple (for him) tasks that he can probably do in 1 day. He's just bought (another) house (ugh*) so I imagine he'll mostly be working over there while he's here.

But anyway, I'm not giving up on my list just because my deadline is jacked. I'm still pushing for November to finish the listed items because I want this shit done. It's not like this is the "my house is finished, I can relax now" list... this is more the, "Let's get these little things done so I can relax a little bit before I make the big scary expensive list for the next 10 years."

Woohoo.

*I can barely stand owning one house. So the idea of owning FOUR is just hideous to me. But, meh... to each his own.

The List

I made a list. One of those, here's a billion things I want done by
some date lists. This list is house related. It's part tired of the
same projects being unfinished list & tired of people asking when the
housewarming party is list... so I set a date. Well, a datish date.
November. My dad will be in town so why not have a housewarming party
then, right?

SO MUCH TO DO...

Of course I don't expect to have *everything* done but the house
should at least not look so... falling apart. So I made a list. 11
things to do before November.

1) Paint my kitchen walls & cabinets & pantry.
2) Paint living room
3) Paint bathrooms
4) Get water shutoffs fixed
5) Clean/organize garage
6) Clean/organize 2nd bedroom
7) Paint/organize hall closets
8) Map out/clear garden beds
9) Map out/dig out garden path
10) Slipcovers for sofa/chair
11) Paint foyer

It's a stupid excessive list of whichI will prolly only finish 1/3
of.... but that's how I roll. Expect explanations of projects + before
& after pix in the coming weeks.

(grumble) Neighbors (grumble)

Yeah... post-vacation life has been a little crazy busy. Also a little crazy crazy so I have not had time to do anything fun like blog or upload photos.

Let's see, there are many new responsibilities on my plate at work. Busy busy.

Then there's the sudden realization that my quiet little neighborhood has some of those annoying neighbor types (they have apparently been waiting for the proper time to pop up & reveal themselves... like within 1 week of each other). The kind that mow your lawn *without asking if that's acceptable to you* while you're at the bank. Or the kind who after 6 fires in your fire pit decide that they don't like you having fires in your fire pit on your property & call the fire department to try and put an end to that. Instead of walking 10 feet to the fence and giving you a clue as to what exactly the problem is. Because using government workers/services is the proper way to deal with petty neighbor annoyances when you're an adult, I guess.

Look, here's the thing... my last house was bordered by a museum for AA people, an apartment building where unsupervised children seemed to spontaneously multiply every week & a home for the mentally handicapped. Was I constantly annoyed by things that were happening? Yes. Cars blocking my driveway, kids destroying my flowers, people banging their heads on windows, kids hopping my fence to just hang out on my patio, cigarette butts & trash in my garden, and SO LOUD all the time... Did I ever call the police/fire department/city? NO. Because that should always be the last resort. And a lot of that was stuff that was affecting my property! I'm more of a bitch about it, do what you can & then move on type. And yeah, I will bitch about things *when needed*. I'll tell the kids to get off my patio & I'll make the museum people fix the damage their contractors caused to my property. And you know what? That usually works. Amazing!

But as for what people do on or with their own property, not my business. MYOB should go a looong way in neighbor relations. I'm not talking about ignoring if someone is climbing in their window or smoke is coming from their garage. I'm talking about all the little things that you would never do but they would do. Like paint their house peach. YUCK. But meh, MYOB. Or don't keep up their lawn as much as you'd like. Meh, MYOB. Or have a loudish party every once in awhile. Meh, MYOB. You know? You can not like it. You can be annoyed by it. But you know what else you can do? Ignore it. It's really pretty simple once you make that decision.

If my neighbors want to spend lots of time, energy & money on replicating some marketing department's idea of the Perfect American Lawn... they can go ahead & do it. I'm not ever gonna let my lawn get to a length where city notices get staked in the yard but I'm also not gonna mow it every week in the summer (and you're really not suppose to). And if my neighbor down the street, who can't even see my property from his property, has a problem with that? He can say something to me and listen as I explain to him how wasteful I find "the perfect lawn" to be. That's why I don't have chemicals sprayed on it or water it for hours every week or have more than a reel mower or think it's worth 4 hours of energy to make sure it's the same height as my bordering neighbors at all times. And that I have a gorgeous landscaping plan for my lawn but that it's gonna take about 5 years to get it there. If he wants to continue being annoyed by the it? That's his choice. But he does not get to bring his gas spewing mower over & mow my lawn without asking. Because I'm the one paying the mortgage & property taxes and I get to make the decisions. (stomps feet)

And as for Miss Fire Department, I will still be using my fire pit. As the nice firemen hopefully explained to her, I was following all the rules & they had no problems with my fire. I hope that she will respect that and I will try to respect her by moving the fire pit as far away from her property as I can. If I had known it was bothering her, I would have moved it sooner.

Because I'm not a jerk. Unlike some people.

Vacation - The End

Last day off was full of chores and shopping... now I'm back at it with a BUSY week & a massive craving for a latte.







1) Car Wash 2) It's still the 90's at Burlington Coat Factory 3) New blanket 4) Turquoise Foo Dog 4) The End

Vacation - Day 8

Yesterday was a lazy lazy day... starting to ease out of vacation mode.







1) Goyle is too cool for school 2) Sushi 3) Triple Color Roll* & Eel Roll 4) Ginger sittin' up 5) Bedside Books

*I almost always get the same thing at the sushi place: Spicy Crab and Tempura Shrimp. Last night I tried a new roll - Triple Color Roll - Spicy crab, spicy shrimp, mango, seaweed salad wrapped in pink soybean paper & topped w/fried taro chips & eel sauce. It was good.

Things that make me go hmmm...

A few times in my life , I've had moments of absolute clarity
When for few, brief seconds, the silence drowns out the noise
and i can feel... rather than think.
when things seem so sharp.
and the world seems so fresh.
it's as though it had all just come into existence.

I can never make these moments last...
I cling to them, but like everything, they fade.
I've lived my life on these moments.
They pull me back to the present.
And I realize that everything...
is exactly the way it's meant to be.

Quote from the movie: A Single Man

The Week in Links

That time again... recipes galore in this week's links:

Gazpacho

Poblano Chicken Salad

Tomatoes and Frico

Red Shiso Shochu and a Cocktail

Catalan Tomato Bread (Swear I don't really like tomatoes but they look delicious to me this week)

Non-recipe stuff:

Wall of Bikes

Shell Bench

House in the trees

New kick-ass front door at the Brick

Love this space... especially the white floors

I would like a wall of firewood so my fires can last past 11:00

This would be perfect for people who have no room for a bedside table

Geninne's new art studio has a great view

Vacation - Day 7

1) Goyle's AM sunbathing 2) Breakfast in the park 3) Little Ladybug Friend 4) Video Installation at Art Museum 5) Mr. Peanut Graffiti

Vacation - Day 6

1) Naptime 2) My bedroom is now so clean, it glows 3) If I had to describe West Point Market in one word, that word would be: Condiments 4) Mmmm, Mmmm, toasty 5) Fire, fire

Vacation - Day 5

Uh, oh... it's closer to the end of vacation then it is to the beginning. Better make the next 4 days worth it! Today was fantastic... besides getting an omelette w/mushrooms *and* tomatoes in it, two things I don't particularly like, later I also ordered something different then my usual dish at the Mexican restaurant! CRAZY! Heh. Plus, there was a field trip to the Cleveland Botanical Garden:








1) "You lookin' at me?" 2) Wisteria Light Tricks 3) Medusa 4) Flutterby 5) Karma Chameleon

Vacation - Day 4

Hey I got out of the house today! For more than food... hee. Morning hike, afternoon movie, and a drink w/the dentist (who does not hate me for flaking on Lady Gaga)... I took many photos today but mostly on the hike. I'm sharing more than five. :D











1) Someone carved a chair in a fallen tree... It looked like a throne & I really wanted to sit in it & sing, "I am the king of the foooor-eeeest!" all Wizard of Oz like
2) But Goyle is the real King of the Forest
3) This was my first hike in my Vibrams & I highly approve of "barefoot" hiking
4) I sat here for a few minutes because I love the sound of water moving over rocks
5) The texture of this rock was mesmerizing... had to capture it
6) The kids exploring while I take in the sights & sounds
7) Stretching towards sunshine
8) Blurry Me
9) Went to see "Eat Pray Love" ... I didn't dislike it, it was OK. But I found myself very distracted by Julia Roberts doing her usual Julia Roberts thing. Yeah, I'm sticking with: "It was OK."

Vacation - Day 3

1) Summer of garden neglect 2) AM showers at 4:30 PM 3) Reading 3191Q while puppy looks bored 4) Food, Mama? 5) Fish Tacos*

*Recipe from Everyday Food (they didn't have red cabbage at the grocery so I just used regular)

Vacation - Day 2

1) Breakfast Part One 2) Breakfast Part Two 3) Lounging 4) Fly Hunting 5) Walking on Castle