Thinking ahead............

As the year wraps up to a close, I'm thinking to the year ahead. What sort of resolutions do I want to make? One thing that I always suck at is coming up with a great Halloween costume. I usually have grandiose plans to come up with the most kick ass costume ever, and it, of course, never pans out. For a number of years I've had plans of sewing myself a Dorothy from The Wizard of OZ costume, I even bought the pattern. Let's be serious, that is never going to happen. One costume that I've also always talked about doing seems like it might actually be fun to put together....Angus Young from AC/DC. I even just found a website on the necessary items that need to come together for an Angus Young costume.
You're probably saying to yourself...."Huh, I never knew Jess was such an AC/DC fan." Well, you are right. I'm not a huge AC/DC fan, but I think Angus Young is pretty cool. The fact that he wears a schoolboy-uniform on stage all the time is wild, and I dig the look.

I've found some various images of Angus wearing different color uniforms, usually red, blue, or black. I'm leaning towards a dark blue velvet look, white shirt, striped tie, white socks, newsboy cap. Should be fun.

And yes, I realize that Halloween is a full 10 months away. But if this is going to actually happen, I need to start gathering materials now. I don't think you can find dark blue velvet shorts just anywhere, ya know!

Venturing out......

After over 24 hours of confinement to the inside of my house, I decided to venture out this afternoon. I would guess that it has snowed about 6 or more inches in the last 24 hours. Let's just say I was getting a little bit of cabin fever. There are only so many episodes of MythBusters you can watch before the marathon ends and you are stuck flipping through the channels. I love the Discovery Channel, and am fully prepared to park my butt on the couch for the Dirty Jobs marathon that is starting tonight at 6pm. Mike Rowe is a dreamboat, as is Grant from MythBusters.

Check out the view from my porch. It doesn't really give you a good idea how much it has snowed, but it sure is pretty, everything covered in white.
Okay, so here is a shot where you can get an idea of the snow accumulation. The steps to the side door of the house. White, fluffly, loveliness.

I didn't realize that I was trapped inside my yard until I tried to open the gate. I had to dig my way out.

It was really fun to walk around the neighborhood and see a ton of people out and about, enjoying the calmness. Is it just me or do things seem a little quieter when there is a snow blanket on the ground? Maybe less traffic, maybe people stopping for a moment to look at the beauty of the snow. There were people sledding down the hills, building snowmen, skiing, cross-country skiing, snow-shoeing, walking.....I even saw one guy jogging. It was a really peaceful walk, and a great afternoon break.

My treat for the afternoon: a grande decaf mocha from Caffe Fiore. A mere 4 or so blocks from my house. Yummmmm. I really can't tell the difference between decaf and regular. It has been over 18 months since I kicked the caffeine habit for good, but I sure still enjoy the taste of coffee. You know what I don't miss? The wicked headaches I used to get if I didn't have two cups by 11am. I'll never go back to regular. That is probably sacreligious considering I live in the coffee capital of the world, but I don't care, those headaches were brutal.

Hope everyone that follows this blog is having a relaxing snow day!

So totally unprepared.........

Today's weather report states that we are in for a real treat here in Seattle.....5 to 8 inches of snow tonight. Earlier this week a few inches of snow fell and the city basically shut down. I can't imagine what will happen if we get 8 inches of snow tonight. I decided in an effort to prepare for that amount of snow I should go to the grocery store this afternoon and get some basics, like milk and cereal, to tie me over for a few days. Apparently EVERYONE IN SEATTLE had that same idea. I pulled up to Ballard Market about 2pm to a super packed parking lot, I ended up parking over a block away. Then when I entered Ballard Market? Mayhem. Each check out line was backed up the grocery aisles all the way to the back of the store. I have never seen a grocery store that packed. I immediately turned around and left. I'll just have to survive on what I already have in my cupboards.....canned soup, pasta, and a plethora of Christmas cookies. I could probably survive on Christmas cookies alone for a few days. I am a little sad that I couldn't get any milk, I might try and walk to nearby gas station if I get desperate. Is there anyone else out there that doesn't really want to buy milk at a gas station? It just seems kind of strange to me. I feel like the milk has been sitting on the shelves for awhile. I'm not sure what my problem is. I should get over it.

For now I'm going to crank up the heat, curl up in a little ball on the couch with Frank, and watch Season 1 of Heroes on DVD. Maybe make some hot chocolate sans milk. Gaze out the window at the snow falling. Nice little Saturday.

Cookie Night 2008

Like I said in a post below, for the past 5 or so years, Gina, Paula, and I have gotten together around the holidays at Gina's parent's house in the 'Ville to make and exchange Christmas cookies with eachother and Carol. This year we met up in the late afternoon, which was perfect timing. There was snow falling outside, Michael McDonald on the cd player, and a fire crackling in the background. Cookie Night 2008 was fixing to be the best year yet.

"What the heck is that thing?"....you are probably wondering to yourself. No, it is not a fancy waffle maker. Well, maybe it is. It is called a Krumkake maker, and Gina makes these Norwegian rolled up waffle cookies most years.
It always seems like it is going to be a pain in the ass to make them. The first few always seem to get ruined, but after a couple stinkers it seems to be smooth sailing.

And there you have it.....krumkake. You can fill the cookie with whipped cream or other filling of your choice, but we eat them plain. Good stuff.

You know what else is good stuff? This kid!!! He turned seven months old a few days ago, he is quite the handsome man.

Cookie Night 2008, continued.....

This year Paula made two batches of cookies..... white chocolate macadamia nut cookies, and oatmeal raisin (and I think cranberry?) cookies.

Malibu rum, Fresca, Christmas cookies, and snow falling outside.....the perfect afternoon for baking with your friends!
Mmmmmm......stack o' white chocolate macadamia nut cookies. Paula makes THE BEST cookies. I'm not sure what her secret is, all I know is that she has the magic cookie touch. She also makes a kick ass traditional chocolate chip cookie.

Paula and I decided it would be fun to own a cookie-slash-craft shop for about 4 hours, then it would grow tiresome and we would have to shut the place down.

I think we would have a ton of patrons if we had a cookie stack like that!

Cookie Night 2008, continued......

This year I wanted to make something a little different when we made cookies, so I tried a recipe my mom also made this year. It is really easy, and tasty.
Basically all you need is Snyder Pretzel Rods, a couple big Hershey bars, and whatever kind of candy or nut you would like to use as coating. I chose crushed candy canes, for the holidays. All you do is break the chocolate bar into the smaller square chunks and melt the chocolate in a mug in the microwave. Don't let the chocolate melt to the point where it is super runny or it will have a hard time making a nice thick coat on the pretzel. Coat the pretzel in chocolate by dipping it in the mug o' melted chocolate and twisting it around. Then roll the chocolate covered portion of the pretzel in the topping of your choice.

Let the pretzels dry on a cookie sheet covered in wax paper.

Voila! There you have it, a really simple way to make something a little different for the holidays.

Here is another recipe I made this year at Cookie Night 2008, also a recipe that originated from my mom.

Coconut Blueberry Cheesecake

For the crust:

1/2 cup butter

3/4 cup finely crushed graham crackers

1/2 cup all purpose flour

1/2 cup flaked coconut

1/2 cup ground pecans

1/4 cup sugar

-In a saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter until it is the color of light brown sugar, then set aside

-Mix graham cracker crumbs, flour, coconut, pecans and 1/4 cup sugar. Stir in melted butter and press in to 13x9x2'' baking pan

-Bake crust at 350 degrees for 8 to 10 minutes

For the filling:

1 & 1/2- 8oz packages softened cream cheese (12oz total)

2/3 cup sugar

4 eggs

1 tbsp brandy or milk

1 tsp vanilla

2 cups fresh blueberries

-In a bowl, mix the rest of the ingredients except the blueberries. Pour the mixture over the baked crust. Sprinkle the blueberries on top. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes.

-Cover and refrigerate.

Delicious!!

First Ebay Purchase Ever........

One of my most vivid memories from growing up is making Spritz cookies with my mom around the holidays. The last few years I have tossed around the idea of getting a Mirro cookie press, but whenever I would search for them online, all I would find were the newer plastic versions. I remember the one my mom had was aluminum, totally sturdy, the kind of sturdy that would probably survive a tumble down an elevator shaft. I figured I could find an old school cookie press on Ebay, and sure enough, I did!! $20.50 later, I have my very own vintage Mirro cookie press.

Here is a shot of my press with parts:
This is a picture of the Mirro cookie press my mom has (picture taken from Google images):

My mom's press has that same exact box, and nifty wooden tray to hold the pieces. I called my mom today for the recipe and she said that the price tag on her Mirro press said $3.25!! Granted, the thing is like 40 years old. It could be even older considering it was given to her by either my grandmother or my great aunt Grace.

Every year for the past 5 or 6 years, Gina, Paula, and I have met up at Gina's parent's house in Marysville around the holidays, and made cookies with Carol. We all end up making about two or three different kinds of cookies, and we end up leaving with so many Christmas cookies, it is unreal.

Here are my Spritz cookies, with Maraschino cherries, about to go in the oven.

If you are interested, here is my mom's Spritz cookie recipe, it is super easy:

1 cup butter, room temperature (or you can use 1/2 cup butter, 1/2 cup Crisco)

3/4 cup sugar

1 egg

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/8 tsp salt

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 & 1/2 cups flour

Bake at 350 degrees for 12 to 15 minutes

Giggidy Giggidy Giggs......

Casey was in the Ballard neighborhood this morning and gave me a buzz. I do like the pop-in....it is unexpected, but always a pleasure. It is nice having a friend or two that also have some weekdays off to hang out. On the itinerary today......football (soccer) at The George & Dragon Pub in Fremont. According to their website, they are "Seattle's Only Authentic English Pub"...learn something new every day.

Little did I know when I woke up this morning at 10am, that I would be drinking a beer an hour later. Good morning Manny's Pale Ale, nice to see you. I barely finished my decaf espresso before starting in on this pint o' libation. Interestingly enough, the place was jumpin' at 11:30am. Two games were on the "telly"..... Manchester United v. Aalborg BK and Arsenal v. Porto. You know my penchant for soccer players.....check out Cristiano Ronaldo. One word: attractive. Casey and I were saying Giggidy Giggidy Giggs all morning for Ryan Giggs, midfielder for Manchester United. Apparently in the world of soccer, 35 years of age is old. He's been playing for MU since 1990, that seems like a LONG time. Both Ronaldo and Giggs weren't playing this game, unfortunately. Check out this dude, Wayne Rooney, he looks like Flea from the Chili Peppers.

One the menu? Shepherd's pie for me, and fish & chips for Casey. I'm not sure if you can see in the photo, but the shepherd's pie had a thick layer of melted cheese over top the mashed potatoes. I had to scrape that away. Not sure if that is shepherd's pie blasphemy, but that cheese shealth was wiggin' me out. Other than that.....delicious.

Casey drizzled his fish & chips with HP sauce, which I had never tasted before. It is like A1 sauce here in the states. On the menu, they had translations for some British terms, it was pretty funny. A couple examples (verbatim, from the menu):

bollocks = testicles

fanny = it's not your backside

I never knew that fanny didn't mean rear. Huh.

Something else I learned today? Even at 12pm on a Wednesday, a pint of beer goes down incredibly smoothly. And another thing? It's fun to say bangers & mash.

Hidden Treasure

I didn't even realize this little gem was hidden within the later half of the latest SNL episode hosted by John Malkovich. Thank you Casey for clueing me in. Enjoy.

Not-so-guilty pleasure

Oh, scrap magazines, how do I love thee? Let me count the ways.....

I subscribe to way too many magazines, some of which I don't know why they continue to come in the mail because I haven't renewed the subscription in what seems like years. My two favorites, that I read cover to cover, are Creating Keepsakes, and Scrapbooks, Etc. I am constantly scrap-lifting ideas from these two magazines for my own scrapbook pages. I usually modify the details to make it my own style, but for the most part I get a ton of ideas from these magazines. I always have a smile on my face when I open my mailbox and see that another issue has arrived.

I'm still cool!! I swear!! I balance out my scrap magazine addiction by subscribing to SPIN and Paste magazines. Unfortunately, I don't read those cover to cover. I usually let them stack up on the coffee table, hoping desperately that they will project the image of indie cred' by the occasional music snob visitor (i.e., Kyle and Casey). I think my so-called indie cred' is unfortunately cancelled out by the stack of unread issues of Better Homes and Gardens on the other side of the living room. Who signed me up for that subscription anyway?

The Daily Frank

It has been awhile since I have done a Frank post. He is my most photographed subject, besides Atticus. Since I bought my digital SLR last year, Frank has become quite accustomed to it being in his face every few days. I can't help it. I'm a sucker for the little guy. He doesn't even flinch anymore when I take his picture. He appears so sweet in his photos, only to taint that image when the camera turns off and he swipes at my hand. He is a little wee bit of an a-hole at times. But I love him.

Recently I discovered a blog called Dooce. It is a blog by a woman named Heather B. Armstrong, who years ago lost her job because her employer found out her blog posts contained stories about people in her workplace. Yikes! Exactly the reason I don't mention my job on this teeny tiny blog. Who really knows who could be reading, right? Although I bet I can count on my two hands who actually follows this low budget piece of literary garbage. Okay, off on a tangent, back to Dooce. Anyway, Heather posts a daily photo of her dog, Chuck, on her blog, called the Daily Chuck. It is so popular that she actually sells a calendar of Chuck, check out Chuck's 2009 calendar here. My favorite month is September. Maybe I should start a Daily Frank? I'd need some serious photography and photoshop lessons because my photographs pale in comparison to the Daily Chuck shots. How does one get the colors in the photo to appear so vibrant and crisp? It is beyond my scope of knowledge.

Until then, here are some average shots of a not-so-average cat. Frankles.

Chillin' with the AVL.....

This little guy is becoming quite animated. He is one of the most chilled out kids I have ever met. Easy to fall in love with, that is a certainty.

So maybe I have a problem......

Admittedly, all I have been reading the past few months are books by Philippa Gregory (except for Stephenie Meyer's Breaking Dawn in August). It all started back in June with The Other Boleyn Girl. I remember when Chris came to visit me in California, we were both laying out by the pool, totally engrossed in the book. Don't worry, we both had copies, it wasn't like we were reading from the same book:) After that first Philippa book, I was hooked. Next, The Virgin's Lover. And finally The Queen's Fool. Who knew historical fiction could be so scandalous? They were all page turners. Those three books take place in 16th century England, around the time of Henry VIII's reign. Right now I'm almost finished with The Constant Princess, which is about Henry VIII's first wife, Katherine of Aragon. I'm a little disappointed because it is a little slower than her other books, and it has been a struggle for me to maintain interest. But I'm going to power through!!

Today I worked over in the Magnolia area of Seattle, and on my lunch break I stumbled across Magnolia's Bookstore, cute little bookstore on McGraw. I walked in and immediately ran into a big stack of Philippa Gregory books with posted reviews by store employees. I was in Tudor England nerd heaven. I bought the following three titles:

I can't wait to sink my teeth into all three of them.

After that? I'm thinking of tackling The Dark Tower series by Stephen King. Heather and Casey have been talking about that series for years.