Sayonara, Mets

Saturday's game was by far the best baseball I've ever seen in person. Sunday's drive back to Providence? Sad & tragic. And not just because I actually shouted out "Delgado, I Believe!" in the car. Once again, the Mets have broken my heart.

Obama '08

A neighbor gave these to us at our yard sale...I'm not sure where they're from beyond that, except that you can temporarily get one on ebay. I love the retr0/Andy Warhol-look.

Our First Yard Sale

We had our first yard sale last weekend, which was a, as my Global Outreach team would say, "Great Success!" Sadly, this means my spring decluttification has come to an end. While it was great to get those 100+ things out of the house, I secretly wish someone had carted off everything else in the house, as well. Mind you, I'm not wishing to be robbed.
I did purchase one thing--this pretty green bowl from my neighbor. Lovely.

P.S. Let's go METS!!! We're in nyc today & were at yesterday's (Saturday's) breath-taking Mets game. Today, well...I don't want to jinx it!

New Hair

Finally, no more drab blech a-top me head. I needed this new hair more than you could possibly imagine. Jaclyn, thank you!
(Just realized this hair coloring would make it really easy for *me* to be a pirate this Halloween. Pirate news: Johnny Depp is returning for a Pirates #4?).

Dominance on the Field

Obviously, I'm not talking about the Mets.
Philosophy and Theology, in their epic battle of department softball games, continued the tradition this semester, despite Nature's denial of athletic abilities to those granted the gift of intelligence.

Funny hand-magic vodoo coming from second base?
Taken 9/19/08.
Providence, RI.

Coach Jack Phillips

Sweet piece of nostalgia. This is my father's baseball team in college (1968). My dad, who is a total stitch (when he's not being ornery), is sitting in the front row, third from the right. He sent this to me because his coach (sitting next to him, second from the right) was Coach Jack Phillips, from the 1947 World Series-winning Yankees. Clarkson College recently named their new stadium after Phillips. Note: My dad was wearing those horned-rimmed glasses as I was growing up (he now has contacts). They're somewhat sheik now. Claire's dad on NBC's Heroes is sporting a nice pair.

It is truly amazing that after all these years I still hear new stories like this about my parents --they're not big reminiscers, so the stories trickle out slowly. The few I have heard, however, are great. I, in contrast, have converted all major & amusing events in my life (meaning, all of them) into captivating stories that my friends have heard ad nauseum.

Intense Veggie Burgers

Veggie burgers are very easy to make -- I usually use black beans, onions/garlic, egg, and bread crumbs. Because in this house we like every meal to burn your tongue off, we season up the beans with chili powder & hot sauce.

Not too long ago I was inspired by this elaborate 21-ingredient veggie pattie recipe that Guy Fieri used on the Food Network (the recipe is his sister's). Most of the ingredients are seasoning, and I'm pretty sure that I over-did the oats (6oz. of oats is a lot of oats), but these were incredibly hearty & flavorful. The photos get worse as the sun sets, but you'll get the idea.
Artichokes, red onion, garlic, green peppers, red peppers, and jalapenos.

Black beans, white beans, chick peas, rolled oats, & an egg.Paprika, chili powder, oregano, fresh parsley, red pepper flakes, cumin, celery salt, sage (very little), & bread crumbs. Let the burgers set up in the fridge (in plastic wrap) for a half hour. Love that cast-iron skillet (thank you Ashley!). Then toss them in the pan until brown on each side.
Finished product. Did I mention it was hearty? Next time I'll back off on the oats & go with a lighter side dish. Our side was grilled asparagus, sun-dried tomatoes, & mushrooms tossed with herbs. If you make the full batch, freeze the 5 extra burgers. Now you've got an easy few meals for later in the week. All revere the blessed veggie burger.

Sewing Slippers

I picked up this cute fabric at Michael's last night & I thought that today would be a good day to try my second sewing project (ever) -- handmade tie-up slippers. Notice the fabric I started out using, which did not end up in the final product.
Major discoveries had today: Do not ask me to sew in a straight line. There will be problems. Do not ask me to do algebra ratios so that the pattern fits my foot, unless I am allowed to ruin lots of fabric with 3 start-up versions that are too small (What a waste!). And, as it turns out, I am apparently befuddled by patterns with limited pictures (thank you Sarah for deciphering!).

After finishing one slipper (below), I need a stiff drink. Looks good you say? But have you seen the dreadful side view? (further below). The dreadful side-view. You gotta love the little pointed heel!

Cheap Wine & Relaxation

AutoMoto has such a great label. I love that font.
And, for your edification, Willow's latest approach to an oncoming week.
Taken 9/8 and 9/3/08.

When childhood explodes on a page...

A re-do of the Josie (Halloween, 2001) page. Paint & embellies added.
For Scrap Mojo's latest challenge: The title is actually a bumper sticker, "Everyone Remember We're Only Visitors Here." I used a plastic onion bag for the bow/flower & Band Aids in the upper left hand corner. Clearly, I channeled my inner teenager for this one.

Delgado for MVP

We're missing the double-header today because Fox is broadcasting the Phillies instead of the Mets, but Delgado's incredible performance in the last few months has re-ignited our enthusiasm, which led to the purchase these new Mets jerseys. My jersey cost $8, while Chris' was $40. Both included shipping and both were e-bay steals. Can you believe that official jerseys normally run between $90 and $250 at the clubhouse? What a waste.

Roger Williams Park, aka Gorgeous Land of Frolicking Unicorns

Unbeknownst to me, we live very close (15 min.?) to an incredibly gorgeous 40-acre park. I've been playing with the photoshop actions, so a few of these are far from natural. All the same, enjoy.

Roger Williams Park, Providence.
Taken 9/7/08.

Sweet, Sweet...Super 8

There is something incredibly wonderful about receiving a gift that demonstrates how well a person knows you. It's not the market value of the item or the money spent that makes it valuable, but the meaning we give to things, especially when they indicate the nature of a relationship. There's nothing special or unique in viewing gifts and belongings this way. Most of the people in my life feel the same way about material goods and I appreciate them for that. (I also appreciate the fact that Chris is great at picking out gifts, since I stress so much about 'what gifts say.')

For my birthday last month, Chris bought me a perfect gift--an old but mint-condition Super 8 video camera. I would have never bought it for myself, but he thought I'd like it for its creative potential. He was right and I can't wait to play. I don't know how to use it yet, or what I'll use it for (I'm trying to convince Chris to do Food Network clips, but he's resisting), but I know the film will look amazing. The camera takes Super 8 film cartridges that are fairly easy to find, but developing the film is trickier. Once developed the film can be played on a projector, or filmed and digitized. I'll keep y'all posted on my cinematic debut. All I can say is - watch out, Kaminski.

Jack Scrap

Above is my first jack or my take on Christina's page over at Scrapjacked. I loved her set of mini-photos on paint and her page inspired me to use my new sewing machine for the crazy scribble lines. The photos are an assortment of events from last year, 2007. See mom? I scrapbooked all of 2007 on one page! Talk about efficiency. And another (below) for Erin's Scrappy Place , a challenge site that uses sketches. For this page I used photos from Joe's wedding and yes, he's insane.

"Cheers, Suckas" - A page of Joe's Hotlanta Wedding.

Ruminations on Moules

One of my first few dates with Chris was to an Italian restaurant in Queens, where he and his friend John Greg used to regularly dine. That date didn't go so well.

First, we ordered mussels as an appetizer (I was thinking we were ordering clams) & oohhh what's this? oohh I'm not a fan of these...the word 'dishwater' comes to mind. Then we argued over whether or not un-opened mussels would make you sick. I couldn't imagine a restaurant putting out something that could make you sick -- a lawsuit waiting to happen, I would think. Apparently, it is common knowledge that one should avoid closed mussels and I was very wrong. Then, to top it all off, at some later point in the evening, I dumped a glass of red wine all over myself. Total class.

7 years later, I gave mussels a try, once again. This time, I was in Manhattan at Cafe de Bruxelles celebrating my friend's engagement. Zut, alors! What have I been missing? C'est vrai, j'adore moules! [Apparently one should speak of mussels with french phrases thrown in. Especially whilst reading a mystery novels, with characters that do just this.]

I'm still afraid of oysters, mind you. No amount of french phrases could quell that fear. But mussels...I'm on good terms with mussels. My latest moules frites, 'house' style, at Red Stripe in Providence, confirmed that the little critters can be prepared quite well. We're not fancy-restaurant goers, but we try to kick it up a notch when guests are in town and this place was a hit.

Do you know what else is a hit? When someone shares with you their homemade sangria & lobster prepared on the backyard grill. Eh, oui. C'est bon. Merci Theresa!