My New Car!

Okay... so it is not the beautiful Lamborghini, as seen above, which I saw outside of work one day. I really do like the car above, but I needed something a little more practical than that. ...and in my price range?

My mind was pretty much set on a Toyota Corolla. I even looked around at a local dealer about 3 months ago. Nothing really felt, like: "This is it!" I was worried I was going to have to settle.

My friend, Trina said she was looking into a Toyota Corolla as well, and we decided to go car shopping together. She said the 2009 cars were about the same price as some of the used ones I had been looking at. That sounded like a deal.

She wound up going before me, and unfortunately, they had no more 2009 cars. She got a nice, new 2010 car, at a higher price. Then, she went with me, while I decided on something different. Her advice was very helpful, and having her there, with me, made the process a whole lot easier.

I wrote in a previous blog about how I paid a significant amount of money back to my grandfather, and in return, he put a significant down payment on my last car that I had: A 17 year-old car, that I owned for 15 years. I have to admit... despite all it's problems (in latter years), especially in winter, I really loved the car.

• My old car leaked, so much that I had a portable swimming pool riding around the spare tire.

• It froze inside and out during winter, making it nearly impossible to get into it, until later in the day (scraping the inside of my sharply sloping window while sitting inside the car, was no picnic either).

• The horn blared, without me touching it.... (I had to get that removed).

• The radio went out. That was long after I got a tape stuck in the tape player.

• Sometimes in the summer the key would not turn in the ignition, but it always ran well. I never had trouble with that.

So, fortunately, I was able to sell it. Amazing. I was going to donate it to charity, but someone decided to buy it from me. I am happy, because I think even though I am not giving it to charity, it is going to someone who might appreciate it, instead of being turned into scrap metal.

I really hope it does not give the new owner too much grief. It was very comfortable to sit in - I was noticing as I drove home from work on Friday, but I knew it was time to say, "goodbye."

Purchasing a car has been a totally new experience for me. Thanks to some of my friends and family, bits and pieces of advice, plus TONS of research. It all helped me find the exact car I wanted for the price I was willing to pay. I hate the fact that I am in debt again. I don't like it. I have managed to avoid it most of my life, but I suppose, sometimes it is unavoidable. Maybe even worth it.

So, here is my new 2007 Honda Civic. It looks just like the newer cars at the place I work at (for the drivers there, except without the decals). Since I used to be a driver, I am somewhat familiar with this car (though I never got one of the newer ones - only got to borrow for special deliveries!). I am excited, and a little overwhelmed. It is the nicest car I have ever had.

Nanaimo Squares

Last night, I made Nanaimo Squares for the first time. I have had them several times before, just never made them. I also found out just last night, that Nanaimo is a city in British Columbia, Canada that claims the cookie originated there. Anyway, after the cookies were all assembled, I found out that I did not quite make them right. The recipe I have seems poorly written. I am not sure if I got the recipe from my mom (who just happens to be Canadian), or somewhere else. All the recipes online are slightly different and vary. The recipe did not make sense to me until after I was finished - but here it is, the way it was written:

Nanaimo Squares

Melt over hot water:
1/2 cup butter
1/4 cup sugar
5 T cocoa
1 t. vanilla

Cool slightly and add:
one egg, beaten

Mix:
2 cups crushed graham crackers
One cup shredded cocoanut
2 cups chopped walnuts

Combine with other ingredients and press
Into 9 x 9" pan. Cover with Icing mixture.

2 cups icing sugar:
1/2 cup butter
1/4 cup milk
2 T custard powder

Chill. Cover with 4 squares chocolate
(1/2 semi sweet and 1/2 bitter) melted
With 1 T butter

Where I went wrong, was in the amount of the icing sugar. It says "2 cups of icing sugar," then gives the ingredients below. What I did not realize, as I was too busy putting the ingredients together, is that the ingredients listed below does not make "2 cups!" I guess I should have known, since it only lists a 1/2 cup of butter (which is a heck of a lot of butter anyway).

What I don't understand is why wouldn't they say the amount you need to make the 2 cups of icing sugar, or at the very least say, "you need 2 cups of this, but you will have to quadruple the recipe!" I guess it is because when you get to that part, you realize how much butter you are consuming. You might as well just eat 4 sticks of butter! With the addition of the other butter in the crust, it would be less butter to consume!

Anyways, if you make this recipe, the right way, the icing sugar alone to make "2 cups" will probably take you 4 sticks of butter. You will need more for the crust and the chocolate topping. If you don't want to use that many sticks of butter, just use one for the icing sugar. Then your recipe will turn out exactly like mine did. Still pretty good, but not quite the same as what I have eaten before. Have some milk on hand. These are pretty rich.

Afterthought notes: After a discussion on the ingredients for this recipe, I realized that you don't need 4 sticks of butter, or that you need to quadruple the recipe. The recipe reads "icing sugar" and has a colon afterwards. That is wrong. It is actually part of the ingredients for the icing mixture. It should read "icing sugar" without the colon. Which is powdered sugar.

Just in case some of the other ingredients, instructions are hard to understand, here is a key to some of it:

icing sugar = powdered sugar
custard powder = dry pudding (most use vanilla)
T = Tablespoons

Also you need to chill each layer before adding the next one. You have the crust, cool slightly before adding the "icing mixture" (cool for at least an hour). Then add the hard chocolate top.

Hope your squares turn out right the first time!

Summer Tunes

Summer is coming to an end fairly soon, but here are a few tunes I have been enjoying:

"Fireflies" by Owl City. The song is fun and upbeat, with quirky lyrics. It cheers me up just hearing it. The lead singer, Adam Young has been compared numerous times to Ben Gibbard (lead singer of "Death Cab for Cutie" and "The Postal Service"). The cover has a photo of the "Burj Al Arab," which is the most expensive hotel in Dubai, Saudi Arabia. It has an outdoor tennis court towards the very top of it! See that little piece sticking out at the top? That is it! I am not sure I would want to play tennis that high up, but it does look cool.

"Turn Me Off" by Audrye Sessions. This song really seems to move. It has a 70's vibe to it, which I like. It makes me want to dance.

"Show Me What I'm Looking For" by Carolina Liar. When I first heard this song, I thought it was by Keane. I really liked it, as well as the cover. Even after I found out the song was done by Carolina Liar, I would sometimes hear the song and still think it was Keane. I really like how the lead singer belts out the lyrics. It is a fun song to sing to. They are using it for previews to "The Time Traveler's Wife." I would like to see that movie. I wonder if it's good?