Never Hold a Staticky Cat While Listening to Your iPod

Those earbuds (that come with iPods) hurt when they are forcefully yanked out of your ears, especially if it was because a static-ky cat jumped out of your arms.

Fireworks also hurt when they come at you, then explode behind you.

Janitors who tend not to show up to work for three days in a row (especially over the holidays) tend to get fired.

Also ones who hide and play video games on a computer not authorized to them, while they are supposed to be working, tend to be fired as well.

Playing video games at all while the owner is watching, will probably get you fired.

Sleeping on the job, while the manager is watching, might too, but you will be hired back, then they will fire you for playing video games on the computer later. (This really happened to a coworker of mine.)

It is weird to have a janitor get mad at one of your friends for walking across a floor they just vacuumed, asking them if they “would walk on a Picasso?”

The late shift really is not bad. You get paid more, and you get to sleep in all the time.

Going to bed at 1am, is much better than going to bed at 2am or 3. You have more time in the day to get things you want to do done, and you feel more refreshed at work.

iTunes is addictive.

Guitar Hero on Tour (at least for DS Lite) can be switched for lefties!

Some frozen vegetarian pizzas actually have warning signs that say: “Heat before eating.”

Some cell phones have warning signs that say, “Do not heat in microwave.”

I have decided that Melissa may be the only person who reads my blogs…. Even though my mom says she does too. Thank guys! :)

Balcony Snowmen

I had enough snow drift on my balcony out back, so I decided to make a couple of Calvin & Hobbes sized snowmen for the occasion.

Leftover Turkey Tostada Pizza

So did everybody have a good Thanksgiving? I did. I actually did all the cooking myself this year, with the exception of my dad's excellent cranberry relish that he found on the cooking channel last year. All the food turned out really yummy too, so I was pleased!

After Thanksgiving, I had to house/cat sit at my aunt's, so I was combining leftover ingredients from my fridge and hers, and created something of my own that turned out quite tasty and easy to make.

At first, I experiemented with turkey on a typical tostada that I usually make, but that was not as good as I had hoped, so I ended up making this instead, which seems more like a cross between a tostada and a pizza (hence, the name). So now, I am sharing my recipe with you! If you try it, I hope you like it too! Here is the recipe:

What you need:

• flour tortilla(s)
• refried beans
• chopped onion (or you could just tear it into bite-size pieces, like I do
• leftover turkey (in bite-size shredded pieces)
• shredded cheese
• chopped tomatoes
• roasted red pepper vinaigrette

Basically you put it together like you would a pizza.

First, spread your beans over an uncooked flour tortilla:

Then, lay or sprinkle onions on top of the beans:

Next, shred your cold, leftover turkey and place over the onions (sorry, I forgot to take a photo!).

Sprinkle shredded cheese over the whole thing:

Place in microwave, and heat it on HIGH for about two minutes, or until cheese is melted.

After you take your tostada pizza out of the microwave, sprinkle chopped tomatoes over it.

Finally, drizzle some roasted red pepper vinaigrette to finish it off.

Eat and enjoy!

Fall Highlights

Autumn leaves, and all the beautiful colors they come in: Brown, orange, yellow, green, and red!

The patterns they leave on the ground.

Walking around Manito Park, in Spokane, seeing the Japanese Garden there.

Pumpkin Pie Ice Cream, with a touch of cinnamon, from Coldstone Creamery.

Having some Old Time Photos taken with my sister while on vacation (anxiously awaiting to see the final shots).

Finding Jon, an old friend of mine online, and being able to visit and become even better friends than we were before.

Seeing my best friend, Richelle, who I have been friends with since 6th grade, and have known even longer.

Going to a Sonic burger place, where they bring your order to you on roller-skates!

...or Dick's in Spokane (not part of the Seattle chain, as I learned) where burgers are only 87 cents (depending what you order).

The Big Cat Zoo - known as "Cat Tales." Apparently the MGM Lion resides there, even though I did not get to see him, my sister sort of did.

Running around, with very limited time, on a beautiful day, snapping shots of all the beautiful glass Chihuly's outside the glass museum in Tacoma.

Hot soups and apple cider.

Getting an iPod and rediscovering old songs forgotten, and new songs released. (Currently liking the free music video of the week, "Little Toy Gun" by Honey Honey).

Looking forward to Thanksgiving!... a favorite holiday of mine. :)

Now they make excersise look like fun!

My sister saw this clip on the television show, Ellen. I thought it was really cute and funny.
Treadmill Kittens

Today is My Day!

Ah... today is my birthday. Lucky me!

Last year, I celebrated here, which was more awesome than I ever imagined.

This year, I will spend it here, which will also be very nice! I am excited too, because I will be able to see some friends I have not seen for awhile, which makes it even more special.

Now, excuse me, while I go out to purchase a fire extinguisher for my cake!

Salmon and Small Miracles

Every year, the people in my group from church have their "Annual Salmon Bake." Apparently, it has been a tradition since 1975! Wow, that's a long time! Anyway I have been to three of them.

We meet at someone's house on the lake, and there is always boating, waterskiing, and lots of food! There is the salmon of course (they usually make 3 different kinds), then everyone one else brings a salad or a dessert. It is always delicious.

This year, I kind of decided not to go boating. Then when I got there, I changed my mind. It was so fun, getting out there, looking at the beautiful scenery, laughing at my friends on whatever kind of thing it was that they were riding on behind us -- some kind of huge blow-up thing, like an air mattress with handles. Forgive me, I have no idea what it is called! It looked fun though! Wish I brought my suit!

When we got back, we ended up tying ourselves to another boat. As I went from one boat to the other, we all heard this "clingk!" ..."Oh my gosh...What was that?" Somebody said. As I looked down, I noticed it was all my keys, along with my attached wallet with all my important cards, sinking to the bottom of the lake.

My first instict was to jump right in after them, but I kind of knew that might not be the best idea. The water was supposedly 10-12 feet deep, and I was not sure I could dive that far. Luckily, a member who had just moved into our church, volunteered to dive in after them. Someone provided him with some goggles. The first time he went down to look he did not see anything. The second time (I said a tiny prayer), and he came up with my keys! Such relief! I totally thanked him, since my whole life is linked on those keys: my apartment key, my car keys, my work key fob, my library card, etc, etc. He said the only reason he found them was that a small piece was sticking up through the seaweed.

The wallet part of my keychain is made out of leather, so obviously it got kind of ruined by the water, lol, but as I was pulling out my stuff to lay out and dry, I remembered that not too long ago I took out a bunch of stuff that I did not absolutely need in it. Like my sister's wedding photo and some other kind of neat paper stuff. So, really nothing besides my car insurance card got ruined! (Even the car insurance car is still legible, so it's all good). I just feel so fortunate for having a small miracle of getting back my keys, and having everything that is important, safe.

Bumbershots

I went to Bumbershoot for the first time on Monday. I really wasn't sure what to expect.

I checked out some vendors (one had some chimes shaped into a frog and some fish that were made out of spoons and forks that I thought were pretty cool.);

I sat down in a room that had easels, pencils, and live models and practiced drawing a bit;

I ate some great Cilantro Salmon with rice!

I also checked out a couple of bands playing:

"Paramore," (who sounded good, but I would have liked better if they used the stage a little more, and said "Seattle" a little less - I mean, were they afraid we may forgotten where we were? Or maybe forget where they were themselves?), and "Death Cab for Cutie" I felt performed very well, they were all very animated, and seemed to enjoy what they were doing, but was it just me? or was the sound balance off? The instruments seemed to drown out the voice! Other than that, they sounded great. They mentioned Seattle maybe once or twice (which is fine), they are based out of Seattle, so it isn't likely that they would forget where they were!

They had a decent set of songs. Obviously, by the crowd reaction "I Will Possess Your Heart," was the most popular. In fact, several fans left after that song was performed. I think it was because it was FREEZING all day, or it could have been because they had to be there first thing in the morning, stand in two lines to get a ticket, then wait till the end of the event to go to the show. I don't think it was because they got bored. In the meantime, I took a few photos of my surroundings, as you can see.

Down at the Market

My Blogging days, may be (or may not be) numbered, due to a burning plastic smell my computer was letting out last night, and completely shutting down on me today. In the meantime, please enjoy these pictures from Pike Place Market that I shot:

Spaceburgers - A Little Bit of Future from the Past

An ad from the ML fair schedule.

Every once in awhile, I go back to Moses Lake to have a Spaceburger. They are only offered once or twice a year during the Grant County Fair and sometimes during a spring festival. So I went back this past weekend, braved the scorching hot, over 100 degree weather, just to have one (as well as visit some friends and family along the way).

What they really look like! Well, sorta.

Spaceburgers were first presented at the Seattle World’s Fair, along with the Space Needle and the “Bubble-ator." All were shown as to give a glimpse into our future, so to speak.

The Bubble-ator: I wish I could have been around at the time, this looks fun!

The uniqueness of the Spaceburger is that it looks like a flying saucer after it is made. The ingredients consist of seasoned ground hamburger, lettuce, maybe onions, and some special sauce that is kind of like thousand island, but isn’t - all formed between to slices of bread

It is from my understanding, that once the Seattle World's Fair ended, Moses Lake then purchased many of the machines, and have continued to make the famous "Spaceburgers" ever since.

I am really glad they did. Because what someone once saw as a "futuristic burger" still remains, and I think that is kind of neat.

Summer On An August Day

Last summer, I caught a little girl posing on these blocks in Spokane. She kept on doing these poses, over and over, like she was some sort of body builder or something. I thought it was cute/funny. I also like the contrast of the girl beside her, all laid back and taking in the pleasant afternoon.

Art & Crepes

This past weekend I went to the Bellevue Museum Arts Fair. It is an annual event that has several artists (using various mediums) with their work to display and sell. Every year, there seems to be more and more to see. This year seemed to be one of the best years I have ever seen. There were so many talented artists there, that it is hard to narrow it down, but here were a few of my favorites that I saw this year:

J D Hillberry - He does some amazing work with charcoal and pencil! His signature style seems to be how he draws masking tape on many of his drawings, making it look real. It is very cool.

My favorite piece of his is called "Which Came First."

Another booth I went to had some painted shoes. I thought for sure they were ceramic sculptures at first, but then when I touched a pair they were actually real shoes, that you could wear! The had some very fun styles. These are the pair I touched (though in the photo they don't really look ceramic like they did in real life):

Shoes by Heliotropium - Fine Art Accessories

The next fun booth had some awesome handbags made from game boards, record covers, and programs! It was so tempting to buy one, but I decided I had enough purses for now, so I just picked up a business card:

Business card by Bagitude!

One of the more popular displays, one that I also enjoyed last year, was some metal sculpture work done by Jeffrey Zachmann. Not only is it formed in an interesting way, but it moves, drawing the attention to the whole piece for the viewer's pleasure.

It's fun to see kids watching these sculptures, because they are so fascinated by them. To get a better look at what these do, click on Jeff's name above and go to his site. There are some links there where you can see his art in motion!

Did you ever think you could make art out of a gourd? Apparently Susanne Newbold did, and she makes some impressive boxes out of them. They look like they are some type of wood material at first, but looking closer, they are definitely gourds, just by opening them you can feel how light they are, and the insides are painted, but they look more gourd-like inside.

I ended my day by eating a Nutella crepe by Crepe Tyme (yummy) and buying this unusual photo book by Domestic Bias:

It is folded in a form of origami.

The seller said that all the pictures on it are from vintage books.

This is the back. I think the whole thing is really cool. I cannot wait to put some photos in it!

Tradition

Aw…. The Bite of Seattle! I look forward to it every year. Mainly because of what they now call “The Alley.” It is a small area of “The Bite” that has somewhere between 7-8 restaurants that get together and serve a sample of one of their specialties for a reasonable price all on one plate! This was what they had this year - Mmmmm....

Food shown above in no certain order: Prawn-stuffed halibut (Portage Bay Cafe), Ancient Roman Meatballs (Al Boccalino), Crispy Duck Cake (Andaluca), Gazpacho (Salty's on Alki Beach), Mini Steak Sandwich (The Daily Grill), Slow Smoked Pork Butt w/ Sweet Corn Chow Chow (Dahlia Lounge), and Marion Blackberry Sorbet (Gelatiamo). All of these tasted very good to me!

A portion of the price paid goes to the Food Lifeline, an organization to stop hunger.

I started going years ago when I was a kid, and my aunt invited my family to it. Back then, it was called “John Hintenberger’s Alley” (a well known food critic). Then it turned into “Kathy Casey’s Alley” who I think is another food critic. Next it turned into “Tom Douglas Flavors of America.” I guess they realized they needed to stick the word “alley” back into it because this year it was called “The Alley Hosted by Tom Douglas.”

For awhile, it was traditionally just my dad and I that would go there every year. My sister was a very picky eater back then, and my mom does not generally like “fancy foods.”

However, my mom was the only one able to make it last year, and this year she came with my sister (who also now looks forward to The Bite). She is willing to give me the foods she does not like, which makes it even better.

Last year and this year’s bite were very different from each other. Last year it rained continuously. It was about wet dogs and drenched park benches.



This year, dogs were discouraged from coming (as the internet site suggested), and there was hardly anywhere to sit!

Along with The Alley, there are a few concerts playing and several other food booths around, sharing select items for a price. There always seems to be something really different to try. One year I tried “Alligator on a Stick,” which did taste like chicken, but very dry and kind of tough.
My dad complained that if it were cooked right it would taste totally different, even though it was the first time he had tasted alligator as well... I thought it wasn’t bad.
This year, my sister and I tried coconut milk served in coconuts. They LOOK really cool. But what is inside them is pretty nasty by itself. After drinking all the milk, you can scoop the coconut and eat it. I was surprised when after I scooped some out and put it in my mouth it was slimy! Ew! It was so disgusting! We both ended up throwing them away before finishing them.
I appreciate coconut milk because it is in many good recipes, like in Thai food. I even like shredded coconut. I just do not like the taste of fresh coconut at all! No matter how cool it looks to eat one.

What Takes the Cake?

For the past couple of years, I have tried out cake recipes that I haven't made before for my sister's birthday. Last year I made these yummy cupcakes:

This year I wanted to make a Red Velvet cake! I have searched for YEARS for a decent recipe of this. I have tried out several versions, including one you can now buy during the holidays from the store, but none of them tasted quite the same.

The first time I had Red Velvet cake was in kindergarten. Jimmy Englar's mom brought these red cupcakes that I just loved. I ran home to mom and asked her if she could make them for me sometime. She had no idea what I was talking about. Red cupcakes that sort of tasted like chocolate cakes, but not really. She thought they were just chocolate cupcakes with red dye, but they are not.

Years later, my dad brought home a Red Velvet Cake he won at an auction. It was the same taste as I remembered! So I asked him to get the name of the cake. I searched in the stores and recipes everywhere to duplicate it, but nothing tasted the same.

Finally, this year, Dad won another Red Velvet Cake that came with the recipe! After tasting it, I decided that this was closest to the right one. I made it for my sister's birthday. By the next day, two of them ate over half of the cake I made! It was definitely a hit!

Hmm... these guys look familiar...

For those of you who already know me, you know that I am a long-time fan of the comic Calvin and Hobbes, by Bill Watterson. I was excited to find this illustration drawn as a tribute to the former comic strip, by Nina Matsumoto of Space Coyote (as posted by NeatoRama ).

The image is a cross between the comic itself, and caricatures of the philosophers it was named after (John Calvin and Thomas Hobbes). The print is available for purchase here.

Cool Tunes, Cool Covers

I went to my hometown for the long weekend, and was browsing though some of my dad's record albums. I have a good size collection myself, but the music is limited to just a few groups/singers. My dad has a variety of good albums - he has such good taste! I never thought of buying the same albums because he always had them. Now that I have been gone from home for quite awhile now, I miss hearing the old tunes. Sometimes I still hear the more popular songs on the radio though.

Here are a couple of records that he has that have really cool covers:

Supertramp: Breakfast In America. Cool because it takes several white kitchen dishes and food items to make it look like New York. The waitress with a cheesy look on her face is supposed to be the Statue of Liberty. The orange color creates a great contrast as well. It is awesome. I love this cover. The music is quite humorous too, so the cover suits the music inside.

Fleetwood Mac: Rumours. Love the music. I love dance photos, probably because I really used to love dancing and took classes for a short time when I was younger. A couple of my favorite dance movies are Center Stage and Strictly Ballroom.... oh, but I guess that kind is off the subject, but that is how I am sometimes.

As I was browsing looking for the album cover images, I found this spoof! At first I thought it was just a funny drawing spoofing only Fleetwood Mac. However, it is also supposed to be spoofing two characters from the Harry Potter series, Professor Treelawny and Professor Snape! Whoever illustrated this did an awesome job!

G is for Georgetown

It was one of those rare, sweltering hot days today. Despite that, my friend Melissa and I went to Georgetown to see their arts festival that was going on this weekend.

First, we had to see the "Hat and Boots" that are being restored to a local park there. Then we walked around the rest of the town to see what else was going on.

I was distracted by this record/comic book store. :D

Locked up teeth!

This room looked much darker, and more violet in color when we were in it. It was nice because it was one of the few places that was actually a couple of degrees cooler than the rest of the places we walked in.

Melissa and I both agreed that these sort of looked like Neutrogena Soap!

Details

1. WERE YOU NAMED AFTER ANYONE?
It was either after Jacqueline Kennedy, or an ex-girlfriend of my dad's.

2. WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU CRIED?
Either this morning or yesterday.

3. DO YOU LIKE YOUR HANDWRITING
When I am trying to make it look nice, yes.

4. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE LUNCH MEAT?
Hillshire Farm Deli Select Ultra Thin Roast Beef, it has to be this exact brand of roast beef or I don't like it. Most lunchmeat roast beef has too much "flavoring solution" which I cannot stand. Their other lunchmeats are good also. I like all of them ultra thin.

5. DO YOU HAVE KIDS?
No.

6. IF YOU WERE ANOTHER PERSON WOULD YOU BE FRIENDS WITH YOU?
I would hope so.

7. DO YOU USE SARCASM A Lot?
Who me?

8. DO YOU STILL HAVE YOUR TONSILS
Yes.

9. WOULD YOU BUNGEE JUMP?
Strangely enough, I have "thought" about it. I don't think I could handle climbing the ladder though, since I am afraid of heights. I am also afraid of snapping my neck.... so maybe not.

10. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE CEREAL?
The new Shredded Wheat with Real Strawberries by Post. I like the Special K with Real Strawberries too. There is something about those freeze-dried strawberries! The Shredded Wheat one is definitely delicious! I wish it came in a bigger box.

11. DO YOU UNTIE YOUR SHOES WHEN YOU TAKE THEM OFF?
Most of my shoes don't have laces any more! The ones that do, never get untied unless they untie themselves! Darn things!

12. DO YOU THINK YOU’RE STRONG?
Not physically, but I have strength in other things.

13. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE ICE CREAM?
I don't know, I like many flavors.... I often go for rich chocolate kinds, with chunks of chocolate, brownies, and/or nuts.

14. WHAT IS THE FIRST THING YOU NOTICE ABOUT PEOPLE?
Mannerisms and their eyes.

15. RED OR PINK?
Red.

16. WHAT IS YOUR LEAST FAVORITE THING ABOUT YOURSELF?
Letting some of the little things get to me sometimes.

17. WHO DO YOU MISS THE MOST
I woke up this morning really missing my old cat, Daisy. She was my pet for 20 years. I really miss her sometimes. I miss old friends too.

18. DO YOU WANT EVERYONE TO SEND THIS BACK TO YOU?
Of course I do.

19. WHAT COLOR PANTS AND SHOES ARE YOU WEARING?
Eep! I am still in my pajamas! This morning's pajama bottoms are an off white, with pink cherry blossoms on them. I am not currently wearing any shoes.

20. WHAT WAS THE LAST THING YOU ATE?
Since I had an hour lunch yesterday, I took myself to Panera Bread. I had half of an Asiago Roast Beef Sandwich with French Onion Soup, and French Bread. I just drank some orange juice this morning though. I plan on eating more once I am done filling this out.

21. WHAT ARE YOU LISTENING TO RIGHT NOW?
The gentle hum of my computer, and the tapping of my fingers against the keyboard.

22. IF YOU WERE A CRAYON, WHAT COLOR WOULD YOU BE?
Starlight. :D

23. FAVORITE SMELLS?
Coffee, though I don't drink it. Rain on hot pavement. Apple Pie. Roast Turkey. Roast Beef. Orange Ginger (a fragrance I sometimes wear).

WHO WAS THE LAST PERSON YOU TALKED TO ON THE PHONE?
Denise.

25. DO YOU LIKE THE PERSON WHO SENT THIS TO YOU?
Of course! She is my friend!

26. FAVORITE SPORTS TO WATCH?
If I do watch sports, it is usually not the traditional ones. I will watch people on dance shows occasionally. Sometimes the ice skating and speed skating during Olympics season. I am not against watching sports though, I just have better things to do with my time, like answering these little surveys from my friends! :D

27. HAIR COLOR?
Dark Brown.

28. EYE COLOR?
Bluish-Grey.

29. DO YOU WEAR CONTACTS?
Never.

30 FAVORITE FOOD?
My mom's version of tacos.

31. SCARY MOVIES OR HAPPY ENDINGS?
Happy endings.

32. LAST MOVIE YOU WATCHED?
The Visitor. I liked it. It was different. It was based on a true story. I don't feel like it will get mass appeal though.

33. WHAT COLOR SHIRT ARE YOU WEARING?
My pajama top is the same as my pajama bottoms, off white, with pink cherry blossoms.

34. SUMMER OR WINTER?
Summer. Though I prefer Fall and Spring over either.

35. HUGS OR KISSES?
Hugs.

36. FAVORITE DESSERT?
Pie.

37. MOST LIKELY TO RESPOND?
Um... I don't know... everyone seems so busy right now.

38. LEAST LIKELY TO RESPOND
People who read this Blog that don’t know me.

39. WHAT BOOK ARE YOU READING NOW?
I am in the middle of about four books right now. One is about Audrey Hepburn.

40. WHAT IS ON YOUR MOUSE PAD?
An advertisement for a hospital. It is cool because it is circular! It works as a good frisbee as well.

41. WHAT DID YOU WATCH ON TV.Late LAST NIGHT?
I went to bed as soon as I got home last night. After all, I do work late now!

42. FAVORITE SOUND
The sound of a cat purring. I have no cats. :(

43. ROLLING STONES OR BEATLES?
Beatles.

44. WHAT IS THE FARTHEST YOU HAVE BEEN FROM HOME?
Florida.

45. DO YOU HAVE A SPECIAL TALENT?
Some people say I can draw a little... ;)

46. WHERE WERE YOU BORN?
Utah.

47. WHOSE ANSWERS ARE YOU LOOKING FORWARD TO GETTING BACK?
Anyone. Even if I don't send it to some people, or even if I don't know them, I want their answers too! :D

I Went to the Aquarium a Few Days Ago and Touched a Starfish

It is pretty fascinating to go down to the aquarium and see how another part of our ecosystem lives. I felt pretty lucky to be able to touch some of the creatures that call the sea their home. I touched about three starfish. They each felt a little different, but they all pretty much felt like dry, hard shells (even though they are under water). That surprised me! I thought they may be a bit soft, or even a little slimy, but they were not at all! It was pretty cool.

Another thing, I was able to touch, were something like these sea creatures. I do not remember what they are called. Some of them I could not feel at all when I touched them. Apparently they send out stingers that paralyze fish when they swim by.

We, as humans have a thicker skin, so we are not affected by this. One of them tried to zap me. I felt it, but it did not hurt. It was very quick though, so quick it made me jump! That was kind of funny.

Dale Chihuly did a magnificent piece for a display at the aquarium.

I like looking at the seahorses.

If you look closely, there are two in this picture!

What a big, beautiful fish!

The underwater dome is a lot of fun!