Starzipan

formspring.me

2010-01-24T23:29:00.001-08:00

Ask me anything http://formspring.me/starzipan

Head update

2009-10-09T22:09:00.000-07:00

Gross. Sick. Ew.

The head was hanging from my ceiling with a string tied around its neck. Ew. Ew. Ew. I've retaliated. I'll post after Corbin has found it. I don't want to clue him in.

The Head

2009-10-06T23:39:00.000-07:00

A few days ago I came downstairs and found this staring at me. I knew it was Corbin's and that he had put it there to startle, probably not just me, but nevertheless. So I picked it up and put it in his bed. The next morning I found it on the banister right outside my bedroom, staring at me. I put it in the fridge. Later it was back downstairs where I first found it. I put it in the washing machine. James was the unlucky victim this time. I told him to rehide the head and he did as told, placing it in Corbin's shower. It found its way into my closet. Corbin's food cupboard. The microwave.

Approximately five minutes ago Corbin came home. "Where'd you put The Head, Bjorge?!"

Postal Service

2009-06-16T18:18:00.000-07:00

I think I discovered a secret to the United States Postal Service. If you get mail for a former tenant and you write "No longer lives here" on the outside of the envelope and stick it back in the mailbox, it disappears with the rest of the outgoing mail and you stop receiving mail for that person. It's like MAGIC. I call it a secret because no one seems to know you can do this and that it works. I discovered it after reading the envelope from a mail-in ballot that was addressed to a person who used to live in the house. The envelope said to write "no longer lives here" and put it back in the mailbox if the person is no longer a resident of the house. So I tried it for other mail and it works for everything! Cell phone bills, personal mail, even advertisements as long as they don't say "or current resident" on them. So I've decided to pass my secret along, in the hopes of decreasing your unwanted mail and maybe saving some paper in the future.

Saltwater Sandals

2009-05-17T16:11:00.000-07:00

When I was little I would see my Granny every Saturday. We'd go down to Portland and do something fun, often going to the waterfront or playing in a fountain or going to Saturday Market. I remember this one day she took me to I think it was Nordstrom's. She said "we need to get you some saltwater sandals," and we proceeded to get matching navy blue ones. I just bought some tan ones from here: http://www.saltwater-sandals.com/index.html

I am happy Starzy!

My weekend

2009-04-19T23:10:00.000-07:00

Planted a couple more peas(5 or 6 sprouts have come up!), a bunch of scattered carrots, and 4 artichoke starts I bought at the farmer's market today. Also, Hannah and I went to Bark and Garden and got air plants :-). i now have my own baby air plant and don't know where to put it. I'm thinking of using Hannah's idea of hanging it in a window from a wire or string.

I'm incredibly tired because yesterday was a long day of way more activity than I'm accustomed to. I went to the Great Wolf Lodge water park for Peter's birthday party and went on slides and played in the wave pool and other such nonsense. It's fun to play with my friends :-).

Benji's working on some homework and then I think I'll make him go to bed with me, as I am very sleepy. It's almost impossible for me to fall asleep when he is still awake, I keep thinking he'll come to bed any minute and then I can't sleep. So that is my story. Also, I have knock-off Chuck Taylor's that are white with pink cupcakes all over them and a typed recipe for cupcakes in black Times New Roman scattered about. They're basically the best shoes ever, thank you Payless. Also, allergies are the suck and I have taken 12 freeze-dried nettle capsules today to keep them in check. My throat hurts and I am itchy and it is hard to breathe. STUPID. If anyone with health insurance and a prescription wants to sell me some Allegra that'd be awesome. Turns out even the generic is $90 for a month's supply without insurance. Fuck me, right? I used to get it for $10 or $20 a bottle. Ah the good old days.

Also, I've recently read Bonk by Mary Roach and recommend it highly, along with her previous two books, Stiff and Spook. Now I'm reading The Other Boleyn Girl by Philippa Gregory, which I borrowed from Hannah.

Also, don't go on the yellow/red slide at Great Wolf Lodge unless you want to pee your swim bottoms.

I now know that chicken needs to be cooked hotter than beef

2009-04-09T10:26:00.000-07:00

The food handler's card class is one of the most boring classes ever. It was only about an hour but it felt like forever. I was the first one finished with my test. I even got a question wrong because I was filling it out so fast, the better to escape. Also, having to be at the courthouse at 8:20 am sucked too. Now I have an hour to kill before I can go meet Ben for lunch. Also, it is possible I'll start work tomorrow. I am very excited, way too excited for a food court job, but my boss is really optimistic about me and that makes me feel optimistic about me. He wants someone to be friendly to customers and go out into the food court with samples and coupons and chat people up. I am super good at chatting up customers. Customers love a tiny blonde 20-something with free food. I am a dream come true. Life is good.

Starzy Update

2009-04-08T19:03:00.001-07:00

After much distribution of my resume, I got hired at Charley's Grilled Subs in Capital Mall. So that's good news. The owner is named Charlie, but it is a coincidence. He says I have experience, enthusiasm, and spunk. Yay me? I do have those things though :-P

Also, I am probably going to get health insurance, but it's up to a six-month wait. It's through Washington Basic Health and if all goes as planned, I will have good Group Health insurance for $22 a month!! If you've ever done research on getting health insurance, the cheapest you can get to actually be able to see a doctor regularly or get prescriptions is about 80 bucks. 50 bucks will get you the barest minimum of insurance so you won't get completely wiped out if you have to go to the hospital or something, but is otherwise useless. I'm psyched that I qualify. Everyone besides the college considers me a resident of Washington, which is a relief. I also qualified for Take Charge which is an awesome program that I found out about through Planned Parenthood which gets you free birth control for a year. I'm going to be in Washington for at least another year for school, so I might as well be a resident.

Let's see...Ben is doing good, he is in a class called "Marx and Marxisms" and is reading through Capital. That shit is dense, but he is doing an admirable job of making sense of it. I proof-read all his papers and outlines, so I'm learning a lot too :-).

I'm enrolled in just 4 little credits, American Sign Language 2. I love it and continue to learn a ton every week.

I haven't been baking or cooking much lately, just kinda lazy I guess. Not in the mood. Yesterday I wore shorts and a tank top all day. It felt great. Currently my iPod is serenading me with "Crazy for You" by Madonna. That's about all I can think of for now. I am getting shit done this week, stuff that's really hard for me to do, like making phone calls and taking initiative on things that I don't entirely understand. I made the phone call to Basic Health knowing nothing more than the flyer I got at the Health Center told me. Then I made an appointment to meet with some stranger at St. Peter's hospital and rode a bus line I've only been on once before... I am amazing. Hehe. Also, I have a sparkly butterfly temporary tattoo on my lower back. It is my ephemeral tramp-stamp.

Gardening Update

2009-04-08T18:59:00.000-07:00

Planted tomato, eggplant, and pepper(jalapeno and cayenne) in egg cartons under a propagation dome.

Planted blue potatoes and a few yellow onion sets directly into the garden. Gave up on the languishing broccoli and lettuce starts, gonna direct seed in the next few days as attempts at transplanting resulted in floppy leaves laying in the dirt. Sad times. Also need to direct seed some kale, more peas(digging around i found 3 of the original seeds, i think a squirrel ate the rest), kohlrabi, turnips, swiss chard, and maybe some carrots. i want to make a trip back to bark and garden, maybe i'll make hannah drive me out there when she comes up for a visit!

350 PPM

2009-04-07T18:36:00.001-07:00

Sunday

2009-03-22T16:55:00.000-07:00

It's cold and windy outside so I couldn't stand to be out very long, but I managed to plant two short rows of peas and a little patch of miners lettuce. I was not expecting the lettuce seeds to be so itsy bitsy and accidently dumped the whole packet out on the ground. I couldn't even feel them when I tried pouring them in my hand. So I guess we'll see what happens. I can always buy more, I suppose. Now the sun is coming out again but I am loathe to leave my cozy warm living room. I don't want to be stuck at home again though. I get pouty if I don't do something with my day. Shoulda woulda coulda.

More gardening updates

2009-03-21T22:12:00.001-07:00

Feeling confident after my visit to Bark and Garden I planted 12 sections of an egg carton with seeds, six of broccoli and six of lettuce. I watered them ever so gently and put them in a propagation dome. I figure that since they don't need much watering in the dome and probably won't do anything for at least a week they'll be fine while I'm gone. And the worst that happens is they all die and I start anew. I plan to direct seed peas and miners lettuce in the garden tomorrow! I dug up quite a few more chunks of grass. It's exhilarating, except when you find a little white thing that feels like a root through your gloves but you're pretty sure it's a bug, but if it is a bug, it's a munching bug that should probably be dead if it's gonna be in my garden, but maybe it's a root and since you're not sure you can squish it and not feel like a murderer. So then you go to squish it but it won't, it's hard. This is another point for the root hypothesis, so you go to snap it in half when it explodes with white bug guts! Ew! I actually yelped. I'm glad none of it got on me or I probably would have gone and showered or something equally ridiculous. I have changed a lot since childhood. I still woulda been freaked out, but I was dirty all the time when I was little, I didn't give a shit.

Then I spent several hours poking around on my computer like a sullen loser, missing Ben. When I determined it'd been over 7 hours since he left the house, I gave him a call and he updated me on his day(sitting in a car) and I updated him on mine and then I got off my butt and cleaned the house a bit(started the dishwasher, took out garbage and compost, swept and vacuumed living room, wiped down counter and sink in kitchen, wo0t!). Now I'm gonna chill out until Ben calls to say goodnight. Then Monday I catch a train at 11:15 or so(which means catching a bus at 10:00 from my house!) and ride it to Portland. I don't know when I'm going back to Oly, I haven't bought a return ticket yet.

Springtime!

2009-03-21T15:21:00.001-07:00

Yesterday was the Spring Equinox and today it is sunny and almost warm! I rode the 49 bus to Cooper Point and then got off and walked to Bark and Garden Center. I only needed a few things, a little greenhouse plastic thing for starting seeds, some potting soil, and plant tags(I need to keep track of these buggers!). While waiting in line I checked my bus schedule to see if it would be possible to catch the 47 over to the mall, and found that it does not run on weekends. I resigned myself to having to walk all the way back to Cooper Point with a bag of potting soil when a woman standing behind me asked if I was in a hurry. I replied that I was not, as the bus I was hoping to catch isn't running so I have to walk back to Cooper Point anyway. She casually said she'd give me a ride, to which I asked, really? She was serious and I was stoked. She was wearing a pink sweater and pink glasses and her name was Christine. Things I found out about her on our short drive to my house: She went to Evergreen a long time ago but then she got divorced and needed to work to support her three kids, so she took night classes at St. Martin's to graduate(Evergreen didn't have their Evening/Weekend program back then). All three of her kids graduated from WSU and are very successful in their careers. Evergreen graduates seem to be preferred when applying for jobs with the state of Washington. She thinks Evergreen encourages independent thinking and graduates can take care of themselves.

What an awesome lady. I just wanted to tell the world that there's a nice woman out there who gives bus-riding girls with potting soil a ride home.

Geek Pr0n

2009-03-01T22:49:00.001-08:00

Googling "pr0n" for the lulz results in this:

http://photos.jibble.org

Caboodle Ranch

2009-02-27T02:15:00.001-08:00

this is so cute

Hanzipan

2009-02-27T02:06:00.001-08:00

Have you been reading my cooking blog? Hannah and I share a blog on which we post recipes we make and bake.
http://www.hanzipan.com

Also, this:

Bunnies!

2009-02-05T17:30:00.001-08:00

Star is sorry she's tacky :-(

Day's accomplishments

2009-02-02T18:07:00.001-08:00

Things accomplished today:

Dropped my 12-credit class. I was not gonna pull off a miracle and get my work done and this way I get rid of the stress and get a 50% refund and no credit rather than lose all my money for no credit and possibly get kicked out of Evergreen.

Picked up a book I got from the Interlibrary Loan system at the library.

Printed off some copies of my resume.

Looked for the shovel. Couldn't find it.

Walked to the hardware store. Bought a new shovel.

Dug in the garden a bit. Chop chop chop goes the grass.

Then I sat down here and have not done much since. I think I've only eaten a baggie of salt and vinegar chips today. I should eat more.

First day of February

2009-02-01T18:53:00.000-08:00

I am currently failing at doing an Hourly Comic. FAIL.

I'll just type it up, huh?

Woke up at about 1pm when the doorbell rang. Ben always jumps up, gets dressed, scampers out to answer it, and either misses the person or has to run out to the street to catch them walking away, and it's never anything important, so this morning, I put my arm out as soon as I heard the bell and said "Leave it!"

Yes, "leave it." Like to a dog. However, Sleepy Ben responded well and stayed down but tense. When it rang again he got up but missed the person anyway. So I was left all by my lonesome because once he's up he likes to stay up and I don't get my morning snuggles. Rude.

Eventually I got up too. Dawdled around and ended up going to Target(say it "tar-jay"), did their computer application thing in the "employment kiosk" as it is labeled.

Went to Jamba and dropped off the application I'd picked up the day before. Got a fro-yo from the fro-yo-sto (hehe).

And now I am home. Ben just said "Hey, Star" and took a camera phone picture when I looked.

"Thanks. That's a picture of you tolerating me."

garden planning

2009-02-01T01:15:00.000-08:00

ordered more seeds...

This time from Sand Hill Preservation Center

Carrots:
-Dragon Purple
-Snow White
Thomas Laxton Peas
Royalty Purple Pod Beans
Country Gentleman Corn.

Update

2009-01-28T14:25:00.000-08:00

I totally was sick with something, I thought food poisoning, but then everyone has been getting similar symptoms that last a day or two. It's weird, you feel totally 100% fine and then you wake up having to puke. So yeah, avoid that if you can.

Haven't been updating Hanzipan because I haven't been baking or cooking. Most forms of protein have been grossing me out. Regardless of the fact that it probably wasn't food poisoning, the last thing I ate before I puked it all up was Chicken Tikka Masala, so anything meat or rich sauces sounded really gross. The whole thing where you've watched it in reverse, ya know?

So yeah. I'll try to bake soon. I have all the ingredients I need for a cheesecake, I just need to find the springform pan. Also, if your name is Alex Southworth or Casey Mars, we need to go use those gift certificates at the Iron Rabbit before Sunday or they expire! Oh nooooooooes!

cute youtube video, deal with it

2009-01-27T21:18:00.001-08:00

Cheese and Blogging

2009-01-21T20:17:00.001-08:00

Hannah and I have started a baking/cooking blog. I will reveal the address when we are satisfied with its progress. The name stems from a combination of our names/nickname.

Also, I have eaten a lot of mac and cheese in the last two days. Yesterday I didn't eat properly until I'd gone to school, got off the bus at Groc Out, gone grocery shopping, and came home, so I quickly microwaved a Lean Cuisine mac and cheese and ate it. Then I was still hungry and I'd also bought a Linda McCartney mac and cheese so I made that. Then today, I had a box of Annie's. Oh, and on the subject of cheese, I made a quesadilla last night.

More cheese! Always more cheese!

Oh! And Ben and I plan on making a cheesecake tomorrow to take to Katherine and Peter's house on Friday night(we are classy and have hella couple friends we hang with).

Territorial Seed Company

2009-01-20T18:27:00.000-08:00

I ordered seeds from Territorial Seed Company in Cottage Grove, Oregon and today they came in the mail!
I received:
Umpqua Broccoli
Yaya Carrots
Lemon Cucumber
Twinkle Eggplant
Kolibri Kohlrabi
Wild Garden Kales
Tom Thumb Lettuce
Early Jalapeño Pepper
Small Sugar Pumpkin
Bright Lights Swiss Chard
Purple Top White Globe Turnips
Ananas Noire Tomato
Miners Lettuce
Spicy Mix Sprouting Seed

Chocolate Chip Cupcakes

2009-01-19T22:56:00.000-08:00

From the book Cupcakes! by Elinor Klivans

Hotel for Dogs synopsis

2009-01-18T20:41:00.000-08:00

Have you actually read the synopsis for "Hotel for Dogs"? My favorite part is the younger brother's "mechanical smarts".

"Disheartened by their new guardians' announcement that pets are strictly forbidden, sixteen year old Andi (Emma Roberts) and her younger brother Bruce (Jake T. Austin) race to find a home for their loyal dog Friday. Fortunately for Friday, there's an abandoned hotel just around the corner, and Bruce possesses just the kind of mechanical smarts needed to transform the rundown inn into a four star retreat for canines. For a while Friday and his friends have it made, but when the neighbors start to get suspicious, Andi and Bruce resort to every trick in the book in order to prevent their secret from being discovered."

This weekend

2009-01-18T18:38:00.000-08:00

This weekend, Hannah Maier came up for a visit from Sandy, OR. We had a very nice time!!!

On Friday we hung around the house for a long time and made cupcakes.

Specifically, we made Lemon Poppyseed Butterfly Cupcakes, AKA Fairy Cakes, from the book Cupcakes! by Elinor Klivans. They were recieved with rave reviews and I'm sure Ms. Maier will be posting pictures soon on her blag.

That night we went to the reopening of the Olympia Library which had been closed for a couple of months for some minor remodeling(including new paint, carpets, and desks). Kimya Dawson played songs and the children ran around barefoot in the aisles.

Then we came home and watched "Burn After Reading".

Saturday Ben, Katherine, and Peter had "band" practice and then Katherine and Peter announced that they were going to McDonald's and I decided we should all go to McDonald's and it became a McDonald's party(Katherine, Peter, Hannah, Ben, and I). While we sat there eating our tortured animal meals Ben spotted Alex and his brother, Ryan walking by! I ran outside and gathered them up and we all sat and chatted for a while.

Then Ben, Hannah, and I drove to the Co-op because Hannah had never been in the two years she lived here. We got some nom noms including carrots, organic sugar, and milk. Then we went home and Hannah and I made mozzarella that was mostly successful, then put that mozzarella into a quiche with cheddar, spinach, and multi-colored carrots. People arrived for a little party get-together and we played a bunch of Mario Kart 64 and ate quiche and pizza. We watched a movie called "Shoot 'Em Up" which is one of the stupidest movies I've seen but also pretty entertaining.

Then Hannah and I made Chocolate Gingerbread Cookies that we cut out in the shape of dinosaurs with the cookie cutters I got her for Christmas. Such fun.

Later after several people had gone home we watched "Tekkon Kinkreet" which I didn't love, but several others liked very much.

Today Ben and I woke up quite late as we'd managed to stay up until 5 the night before. Of course Hannah had been up for hours as that is her way. We decided to go out for some lunch and ended up at Nonna Rosa's Tea Room on 5th, just down from the Capitol Theatre, Darby's, etc. We had afternoon tea and it was really nice, I really recommend that place. There were tiny cucumber and cream cheese sandwiches and crackers with egg salad and really yummy tea with honey and cream. We sat there for a good hour I'd say, chatting and munching happily. I kept thinking it wouldn't be enough food because I'm used to being served huge portions that I gobble up, but I found that eating slowly and in little bites I got really pleasantly full. Then we drove to Cost Plus because Ben needed to replace a chipped cup that belonged to Jenny and we spent a long time there wandering around and found some things on sale and had a nice time. Then home so Hannah could pack and leave us. Alas.

Lemon Poppy Seed Butterfly Cupcakes can be found in Cupcakes! by Elinor Klivans.

Carrot and Spinach Quiche was adapted from "Juno's Summer Quiche" with whole wheat crust in Witch in the Kitchen by Cait Johnson.

Chocolate Gingerbread Cookies are from AllRecipes.com and can be found here.

Food

2009-01-10T10:58:00.001-08:00

I don't take pictures of things but I'd like to point out that I made a failed Broccoli Cheddar Soup(the broth and cheese never became one. It was broth with cheese blobs in it. Gross).

I made very successful Chocolate Cupcakes with Chocolate Buttercream Frosting.

I am posting this from class. I have class all day Saturday, and even though I signed up for it, I am rebelling.

A Starzipan Summary

2008-12-26T16:36:00.000-08:00

Currently in Aloha, Oregon.

On Monday, December 29th, I will leave for Spokane, Washington by car.

Staying in Spokane until Saturday, December 3rd, when I will return to Aloha with Ben.

Being driven back to Olympia on Sunday, December 4th by one of my parents.

Winter Quarter starts on Monday the 5th! :-D

Happy Holidays

2008-12-26T00:19:00.000-08:00

I got some delightful gifties for Christmas.

Specifically:

*from Ben:

-An adorable Hello Kitty t-shirt

-Settlers of Catan expansion pack

-a Postsecret book

*from my relatives in MA:

-Silly boot-like knit brown slippers

*from Steve and Wan:

-a Chiang Mai t-shirt

-a pink t-shirt with a pretty design with beads

*from Dad:

-Sorel waterproof snow boots

-a fleece Marmot jacket(very warm)

-chocolate

*from Kent and Lannie:

-a kit of things to make sushi with(fish not included)

And my best gift is that I've managed to borrow a car to drive to Spokane! I will leave on Monday morning :-). Ben and I will drive back together on Saturday the 3rd!

Snow Days

2008-12-21T13:26:00.000-08:00

It's snowy as all get out here in the Portland Metro Area. I think this might be the most snow I've seen here at any one time.

I drove home yesterday and it was intense. Ben and I borrowed Mom's car and drove home to Olympia on Friday. Then Saturday morning I drove him up to SeaTac and it was lovely and sunny and a beautiful sunrise and all that. We had some airport food for breakfast and then I left when he got into the security line, pulling out onto I-5 south around 10:15am. Got into Oly in about an hour and stopped by my house because I forgot my snow pants. Was back on the road by 11:15, took me about 15 minutes to get back on the freeway *grumble grumble should have taken 5 grumble grumble*. The road remained clear and easy for a while and then at some point the snow started really coming down and the temperature dropped to the point that the road was teh icy. Ended up doing a 180 while trying to switch lanes. The snowdrift in between the lanes caught me and spun me around on the icy road. Kept my hands on the steering wheel and my foot on the brake and waited until the car stopped and then turned myself back around and continued on. It mysteriously was just wet pavement around Longview but it got icy again. All in all, I drove for about 4 hours and finally got home to Mom's house around 2:30. Both my parents were worrying fiercely. I passed out in Mom's bed and only woke up once when Ben called to chastise me for not calling to let HIM know that I'd gotten home safely(I'd called him once during the drive to tell him about the 180). Slept until about 8.

Now I'm here at Mom's house in Aloha having slept 10 more hours last night and I'm gonna go take a shower and continue to wonder what Essie and Ainsley and Candice and Tyler are up to on this lovely snow-filled day. Candice is pretty much off he hook as I imagine she can't safely get down the hill, but Ains and Essie are just down the street from me! Let's have some fun!

Bummer

2008-12-14T14:03:00.000-08:00

Apparently Portland is all snowed in and there are only a couple of ice crystals on the cars and fence up here. This sucks.

Hannah isn't coming up to visit so the only way Ben and I are going to be able to make it down to Portland is on the train because my mom hates driving up here in good weather, much less snow, and Dad is working.

And Hannah isn't visiting. That really sucks.

The week!

2008-12-12T21:42:00.001-08:00

This evening, Ben, Alex, Casey and I went on a date to the Iron Rabbit, which I definitely recommend if you want to go out to a nice meal(appetizers are all around 10 bucks, entrees 11 to 20 or so). I had a delicious cheeseburger, fries, and a Caesar salad, and we all shared the artichoke pesto dip. Yum!

Tonight Ben and I are going to the 11:30 pm improv show in Lecture Hall 1 on campus. It should be very good.

Tomorrow Ben and I will most likely be going to The Nutcracker, because a guy that Ben and I know from school is in it! His name is David Hunter and he has "TAKE ONME" on his knuckles and a hippogriff on his chest. Amazing. There are shoes at 2 and 7:30 and I think we're gonna do the 7:30.

Sunday Hannah is coming up for a visit! We'll all go to "Book of Liz" at 7pm. It's a play written by Amy and David Sedaris and directed and performed by some of our beloved comedy people. It's also in Lecture Hall 1.

After the weekend, Hannah is staying around until Tuesday afternoon, when she will drive Ben and I down to Portland with her. Ben and I will crash at my dad's place(he is staying at grandma's and I don't want to have to explain to her every five minute who Ben is nor have her terrified in the middle of the night by a strange man in her house, and Mom's air mattress popped and that was the only spare bed she had, so it's off to my empty house to sleep on my twin bed :-)). We'll stay until Friday when we'll borrow a car and drive back up to Olympia, stay here that night, and then I'll drive Ben to SeaTac on Saturday to catch a plane to Spokane.

Wheee!

Star Vs. Babeland and Star wins!

2008-12-12T17:54:00.001-08:00

I win, because I do this for FREE!!!

Babeland Party

A Babeland Party is a lot like a Tupperware party, but with sex toys! Our Babeland Party Presenter(s) will lead you and your guests on a fun-filled sex toy tour. Our presentation will last for approximately one hour and will include sex tips, tricks and techniques, our favorite product selection (vibrators, games, books, oils, etc.), and additional time for you and your guests to make purchases. The cost of a Babeland party starts at $150, depending on the location. Download and print theBabeland Parties brochure (pdf).

Events this weekend

2008-12-10T22:16:00.000-08:00

On Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, Riot To Follow Productions(run by mostly Sketch/Improv people) is putting on a play written by Amy and David Sedaris called "The Book of Liz". It's at 7 PM each of the three nights.

Friday at 11:30 PM is the "almost midnight" improv show. They should both be delightful and I highly encourage you to attend.

Today was a day for fixing my computer

2008-12-10T19:26:00.000-08:00

Well I took my computer to ResNet today and Evan installed the new fan and I am using it. It hasn't overheated yet, keep your fingers crossed.

Tomorrow I have my class potluck in the morning and I am bringing an apple pie that I'm going to make tonight. I make really good apple pie. My only qualm is that I will not be able to share it with Ben tonight, because I'll want a good presentation tomorrow. Alas!

Also, why will no one respond to my pleas for Passion Party hosting? Is it because you have no real excuse and don't want to lie to me? That is lame. You should either host one or at least acknowledge that I exist and am trying to make my business work. I really need this to work and for that to happen, I need people to host parties and invite people that I don't already know. Then those people will see how fun your party is(because it will be fun) and then THEY book parties, and their parties will be ENTIRELY made up of people I don't know. Then I'll be able to book party upon party instead of sitting here like an idiot while my friends ignore me. Guilt-tripped, yet?

Hannah is amazing

2008-12-09T10:20:00.000-08:00

So my friend, Hannah, creates the cutest most adorable little creatures and is a Goddess of the Fiber Arts.

She has outdone herself and made these chickens.

I stand in awe.

Holidays

2008-12-09T00:27:00.001-08:00

Next week is Evaluation Week which means no classes and people start going home for Winter Break. Ben is staying around until the 21st(Saturday) and so shall I. Although there is a possibility of a mid-week visit to Portland.
Tomorrow I would like to bake a pie. Yesterday I made Pumpkin Scones and Pumpkin Muffins.
Oh, also tomorrow I shall make Smoky Pumpkin Soup. It will be a wholesome day.

Also, you should REALLY book a Passion Party with me ASAP. There's only a couple weeks left to order Christmas presents(I can just mail you a catalog if you don't want to do a party) and parties are the best way to earn hostess credits and discounts so you can get your stuff for CHEAP! Plus, I will give you free things, like a full size Spice Lubricating Massage Lotion, just for hosting a party. Please email me at star.bjorge@gmail.com. Do not call, my phone is turned off due to unpaid bills. I can't get a new account, because my mom's and my account was randomly put under my name, so the debt is in my name too. Le sigh. But certainly, email me.

Winter Quarter

2008-12-09T00:23:00.001-08:00

Tomorrow I register for classes for next quarter. If all goes as planned, my schedule will include these two:
Evolutionary Ecology
Winter and Spring quarters
Faculty: Karen Hogan ecology
Academic web site: academic.evergreen.edu/curricular/biohe/evoeco.html

Major areas of study include evolution and ecology.
Class Standing: Sophomores or above; transfer students welcome.
Note: This 12-credit program will meet from 6 to 9:45 p.m. on Mondays and Wednesdays and from 9 a.m. to 4:50 p.m. on five Saturdays each quarter (winter: Jan. 10, 24, Feb. 7, 21, Mar. 7; spring: Apr. 4, 18, May 2, 16, 30).
The year 2009 marks Darwin’s 200th birthday, and the 150th anniversary of the publication of The Origin of Species. In winter quarter, we’ll focus on Darwin’s contribution to our understanding of evolution. We will read works by and about Darwin, including The Voyage of the Beagle and The Origin of Species. We’ll also study some of the work by Darwin’s contemporaries, and learn about the scientific and cultural context of Darwin’s work. In spring quarter, we will study ecology from an evolutionary perspective. Fundamentally, this means that ecological interactions can be best understood by looking at how adaptations of the organism (form, physiology, behavior) interact with its environment (physical conditions, competition, predation, etc.) to influence the organism’s evolutionary fitness (reproductive success). We’ll investigate how the perspectives of evolutionary ecology can cast light on applied problems such as conservation biology, global change, and other issues.
Credits: 12 per quarter
Enrollment: 25

American Sign Language I
Credits: 4
CRN: 20173
Faculty: Anne Ellsworth
Days & Times: 3-5p Tue & Thu
Location: Lab II 2207
Enrollment: 30
In this course, students will learn basic finger-spelling, vocabulary, conversation sign and ASL grammar. Introduction to deaf culture includes invitations to participate in Deaf Coffee and other Deaf activities on campus and in the community.

For a total of 16 credits.
So that's
Monday: 6-9:45 pm
Tuesday: 3-5 pm
Wednesday: 6-9:45 pm
Thursday: 3-5 pm
And sometimes Saturday: 9 am-4:50 pm

Pumpkin Scones with Icing

2008-12-07T17:50:00.000-08:00

Hannah sent me this recipe from
http://bread-and-honey.blogspot.com/2008/11/pumpkin-scones.html

Ingredients:
For the Scones
2 cups all-purpose flour
7 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
6 tablespoons cold butter
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
3 tablespoons half-and-half or milk
1 large egg
For the glaze
1 cup powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
dash of nutmeg
2 tablespoons whole milk

Directions:
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Lightly oil a baking sheet.
Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and spices in a large bowl. Using a pastry knife, fork, or food processor, cut butter into dry ingredients until mixture is crumbly and no chunks of butter are obvious. Set aside.

In a separate bowl, whisk together pumpkin, half and half, and egg. Fold wet ingredients into dry ingredients. Form the dough into a ball.

Pat out dough onto a lightly floured surface and form it into a 1-inch thick rectangle (about 9 inches long and 3 inches wide). Use a large knife or pizza cutter to slice the dough twice through the width, making three equal portions. Cut those three slices diagonally so that you have 6 triangular pieces of dough. Place on prepared baking sheet.

Bake for about 14 minutes. Scones should begin to turn light brown. Place on wire rack to cool.

To make glaze: Mix the powdered sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and 2 tbsp milk together until smooth. When scones are cool, use a brush to paint the glaze over the top of each scone.

Thank you, Hannah!

Mockingbird Hill

2008-11-30T05:54:00.001-08:00

My mom sang to me a lot, because her mom sang to her a lot. This is one of the songs they sang/sing:

It makes me feel happy and safe. I hope it makes you feel good too.

My mom also sang me THIS song, and I never knew that it was from "Jesus Christ Superstar" until Jessie Christensen mysteriously began to sing it one day. I was stunned and asked her where it was from. Then I remembered my mom loves that musical. Oh well. I love this song too.

Pumpkin Muffins!

2008-11-23T00:21:00.000-08:00

I made these last night and they were AMAZING. The recipe is from the Co-op monthly specials flyer.

Thanksgiving Morning Organic Pumpkin Muffins
2 1/2 cups flour
2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon allspice
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
3 eggs
one 15-ounce can organic pumpkin (i substituted 1 3/4 cups pumpkin puree)
3/4 cup oil
1/2 cup raisins (i left these out)
1/2 cup walnuts (left these out too)

Cinnamon/Sugar Topping
2 tablespoons sugar
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Sift together flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, allspice, and cloves. In a separate bowl, beat eggs until well combined. Add pumpkin and stir to combine. Add oil gradually, stirring to mix well. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and mix. Do not over-mix. Add raisins and walnuts, stirring just to combine.
Grease and flour or line 12 large muffin cups or 16 mini-muffin cups 3/4 full or two mini-loaf pans and sprinkle lightly with cinnamon/sugar topping (to make tops hard and crunchy). Bake 30 minutes or until tops are firm.

LOL

2008-11-20T00:29:00.000-08:00

Found on I Can Has Cheezburger

The Mixtecs

2008-11-09T18:04:00.000-08:00

I've been doing a research project about the Mixtec of Mexico. They are most famous for their Codices, which are books of pictographic writing that tell stories of their history.
These are the signs for the days in the Mixtec calender:

And this is the coolest pictograph I've come across so far :-)

I think I'll write more when I'm done with my project.

Baking, cooking, computers

2008-11-06T21:16:00.000-08:00

I just made Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookies and they are delightful.

In other news, Evan and I discovered that the reason it seemed like the overheating had gotten worse is because it has. My computer's fan isn't running at all, which explains a lot. So I've ordered a new one for $50 and Evan is almost certain he'll be able to install it for me. The intense heat of the computer killed my hard drive so I just had to buy a new one of those for $100 and have Evan install THAT. Also, my battery is pretty much shot, so unless I want to use my computer plugged in all the time, I'm gonna have to invest in one of those too. The heat killed that part too. Evan is pretty sure that the rest of the computer should be fine. He was saying that if it doesn't work, it generally won't turn on, there's no gradual for the rest of the parts(sort of). But he doesn't know if it's affected the life of the computer, so it might not last as long as I'd like it too. I'm still going with fixing it though, because a couple hundred bucks is a lot cheaper than a grand, which is what a new one would cost(i'm not buying some shitty PC again, I'll buy a new Mac and take better care of it for my next computer). The good news is that my new hard drive is 3 times as much memory(320 GB) so that'll be nice to have.

Other things I've baked lately:
Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins but I substituted brown sugar for white, butter for the oil, did a whole cup of pumpkin(which I baked and pureed myself the other day), and heavy cream for the water. I also didn't have any cloves, so left that out, and I forgot the chocolate chips but didn't even realize it until I'd eaten two of the delicious delicious muffins.

I also made Pumpkin cookies the other day but now I can't find the recipe I used. Oh dear. The people who were at my Halloween Party will vouch for their deliciousness.

What else have I been making...? Oh! I made Chicken Tikka Masala from scratch on Tuesday night! I got the recipe from the Co-op monthly advertisement. I'll type it out so you can make this too! I'm sure it would work just fine with tofu, or just leave the "meat" out of it, and pour the sauce over rice and veggies.

To make the marinade:
Combine 1 cup of plain yogurt with juice from half a lemon, one teaspoon of fresh chopped ginger, 2 teaspoons of black pepper and one teaspoon each of ground cumin, ground cayenne pepper, cinnamon, and salt.
Place 2 pounds of boneless chicken breast or thighs, cut into one inch chunks, into a glass or metal bowl, add the marinade and refrigerate overnight.

To make the sauce:
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 medium onion, diced
1 serrano pepper, diced [i substituted some jalapeños from my garden]
2 tablespoons garlic, peeled and minced
2 tablespoons fresh ginger, peeled and minced
1 teaspoon each of garam masala [i found this at the co-op in bulk, so I'm sure you can find it wherever you live, too!], ground cumin, paprika, and coriander
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 cup tomato sauce, plain
1 cup heavy cream

In a 6 quart sauce pan [or 5 quart soup pot, in my case], heat 3 tablespoons of vegetable oil and saute the onions until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, ginger, serrano pepper, garam masala, cumin, and coriander and saute 3 minutes more. Add the tomato paste and simmer 3 minutes. Add the tomato sauce and heavy cream and simmer 15 minutes.
While the sauce simmers, in a heavy skillet over medium heat, heat 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil and saute the marinated chicken, stirring often. Add the cooked chicken pieces to the warm sauce and mix well. Serve over basmati rice.

Yes We Carve

2008-10-21T00:28:00.001-07:00

Palin is so odd

2008-10-20T15:41:00.000-07:00

Palin Protests Federal Listing of Beluga Whales as Endangered

Fuckin' BELUGA WHALES the cutest goddamn things and she doesn't want to protect them. Everybody's for protecting cute animals, right? Wtf?

Aw, I can't live very long

2008-10-19T19:04:00.001-07:00

47 seconds

Created by Bunk Beds Pedia

Passion Parties

2008-10-13T17:17:00.000-07:00

If you sign up to host a Passion Party on October 24th, 25th, or 26th, I will give you a FREE Cremesicle Edible Massage Lotion in Orange!
The smooth consistency is prefect for massaging into your lover’s skin and the fruity smell and flavor will add imagery and excitement to foreplay. Not only does this product assist in massaging but also this product’s ingredients provide numerous other benefits. While you massage and play, Shea butter is a healing product and aiding in retaining elasticity in the skin and healing skin ailments. Shea Butter contains essential vitamins A, E, and F. Leaving your skin softer, healthier, and looking vibrant.

Zucchini Chocolate Chip Cookies

2008-10-13T16:42:00.000-07:00

ZUCCHINI CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES
(Makes about two dozen)

1 egg, beaten
1⁄2 cup butter, softened
1⁄2 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup honey
1 tbsp. vanilla extract
Combine in large bowl.

1 cup white flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1⁄2 tsp baking soda
1⁄4 tsp salt
1⁄4 tsp cinnamon
1⁄4 tsp nutmeg
Combine in a separate, small bowl and blend into liquid mixture

1 cup finely shredded zucchini
12 oz chocolate chips
Stir these into other ingredients, mix well. Drop by spoonful onto greased baking
sheet, and flatten with the back of a spoon. Bake at 350°, 10 to 15 minutes.

Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver

thank you, hannah

2008-10-13T02:21:00.001-07:00

Find your own pose!

Fall baking

2008-10-08T18:58:00.000-07:00

It's fall again and I'm baking some cupcakes. Ok, so right now I'm sitting here waiting for things to be room temperature as the Joy has instructed me to do. Ben is recording the songs he's written lately so everyone is tiptoeing and whispering so we don't mess it up :-). I got some pastry flour and am hoping it will yield similar results to cake flour, but that was all the Co-op had.
Anyway, I'm using the 4-Egg Yellow Cake from the 75th Anniversary Edition of The Joy of Cooking. I plan on making Quick Chocolate Butter Icing. Wish me luck!

Head of Skate

2008-10-07T15:20:00.001-07:00

See more funny videos and funny pictures at CollegeHumor.

A Softer World gives sound financial advice

2008-10-06T22:38:00.000-07:00

Parties in October at my house

2008-09-30T14:15:00.000-07:00

Events this month at the Thomas Street house:

Saturday, October 4th:
Housewarming Party/Celebration of the fact that Ben was born
Bring a snack or refreshment if you can
6:30 pm

Saturday, October 11th:
Passion Party
couples and singles of any gender welcome
6:00 pm

Friday, October 31st:
Halloween Party
Wear a costume if you have one, prepare for good times
7:00 pm

Sarah Palin

2008-09-16T11:48:00.000-07:00

Hannah posted this video and I thought it was worth repeating:

Then there's the now famous, Anne Kilkenny letter:
Dear friends,
So many people have asked me about what I know about Sarah Palin in thelast2 days that I decided to write something up . . . Basically, Sarah Palin and Hillary Clinton have only 2 things incommon: their gender and their good looks. :)
Thanks,Anne

ABOUT SARAH PALIN

I am a resident of Wasilla, Alaska. I have known Sarah since 1992.Everyone here knows Sarah, so it is nothing special to say we are on a first-name basis. Our children have attended the same schools. Her father was my child's favorite substitute teacher. I also am on a first name basis with her parents and mother-in-law. I attended more City Council meetings during her administration than about 99% of the residents of the city. She is enormously popular; in every way she's like the most popular girl in middle school. Even men who think she is a poor choice and won't vote for her can't quit smiling when talking about her because she is a "babe". It is astonishing and almost scary how well she can keep a secret. She kept her most recent pregnancy a secret from her children and parents for seven months. She is "pro-life". She recently gave birth to a Down's syndrome baby.There is no cover-up involved, here; Trig is her baby. She is energetic and hardworking. She regularly worked out at the gym. She is savvy. She doesn't take positions; she just "puts things out there" and if they prove to be popular, then she takes credit.

Her husband works a union job on the North Slope for BP and is a champion snowmobile racer. Todd Palin's kind of job is highly sought-after because of the schedule and high pay. He arranges his work schedule so he can fish for salmon in Bristol Bay for a month orso in summer, but by no stretch of the imagination is fishing their major source of income. Nor has her life-style ever been anything like that of native Alaskans. Sarah and her whole family are avid hunters. She's smart.

Her experience is as mayor of a city with a population of about 5,000 (at the time), and less than 2 years as governor of a state with about 670,000 residents. During her mayoral administration most of the actual work of running this small city was turned over to an administrator. She had beenpushed to hire this administrator by party power-brokers after she had gotten herself into some trouble over precipitous firings which had given rise to a recall campaign. Sarah campaigned in Wasilla as a "fiscal conservative". During her 6 years as Mayor, she increased general government expenditures by over 33%. During those same 6 years the amount of taxes collected by the City increased by 38%. This was during a period of low inflation (1996-2002). She reduced progressive property taxes and increased aregressive sales tax which taxed even food. The tax cuts that she promoted benefited large corporate property owners way more than they benefited residents. The huge increases in tax revenues during her mayoral administration weren't enough to fund everything on her wish list though, borrowed money was needed, too.

She inherited a city with zero debt, but left it with indebtedness of over $22 million. What did Mayor Palin encourage the voters to borrow money for? Was it the infrastructure that she said she supported? The sewage treatment plant that the city lacked? or a new library? No. $1m for a park. $15m-plus for construction of a multi-use sports complex which she rushed through to build on a piece of property that the City didn't even have clear title to, that was still in litigation 7 yrs later--to the delight of the lawyers involved! The sports complex itself is a nice addition to the community but a huge money pit, not the profit-generator she claimed it would be. She also supported bonds for $5.5m for road projects thatcould have been done in 5-7 yrs without any borrowing. While Mayor, City Hall was extensively remodeled and her office redecorated more than once. These are small numbers, but Wasilla is a very small city.

As an oil producer, the high price of oil has created a budget surplus in Alaska. Rather than invest this surplus in technology that will make us energy independent and increase efficiency, as Governor she proposed distribution of this surplus to every individual in the state. In this time of record state revenues and budget surpluses, she recommended that the state borrow/bond for road projects, even while she proposed distribution of surplus state revenues: spend today's surplus, borrow for needs.

She's not very tolerant of divergent opinions or open to outside ideas or compromise. As Mayor, she fought ideas that weren't generated by her or her staff. Ideas weren't evaluated on their merits, but on the basis of who proposed them. While Sarah was Mayor of Wasilla she tried to fire our highly respected City Librarian because the Librarian refused to consider removing from the library some books that Sarah wanted removed. City residents rallied to the defense of the City Librarian and against Palin's attempt at out-and-out censorship, so Palin backed down and withdrew her termination letter. People who fought her attempt to oust the Librarian are on her enemies list to this day. Sarah complained about the "old boy's club" when she first ran for Mayor, so what did she bring Wasilla? A new set of "old boys". Palin fired most of the experienced staff she inherited. At the City and as Governor she hired or elevated new, inexperienced, obscure people,creating a staff totally dependent on her for their jobs and eternally grateful and fiercely loyal--loyal to the point of abusing their power to further her personal agenda, as she has acknowledged happened in the case of pressuring the State's top cop (see below). As Mayor, Sarah fired Wasilla's Police Chief because he "intimidated" her, she told the press. As Governor, her recent firing of Alaska's top cop has the ring of familiarity about it. He served at her pleasure and she had every legal right to fire him, but it's pretty clear that an important factor in her decision to fire him was because he wouldn't fire her sister's ex-husband, a State Trooper. Under investigation for abuse of power, she has had to admit that more than 2 dozen contacts were made between her staff and family to the person that she later fired, pressuring him to fire her ex-brother-in-law. She tried to replace the man she fired with a man who she knew had been reprimanded for sexual harassment; when this caused a public furor, she withdrew her support.

She has bitten the hand of every person who extended theirs to her in help. The City Council person who personally escorted her around town introducing her to voters when she first ran for Wasilla City Council became one of her first targets when she was later elected Mayor. She abruptly fired her loyal City Administrator; even people who didn't like the guy were stunned by this ruthlessness. Fear of retribution has kept all of these people from saying anything publicly about her. When then-Governor Murkowski was handing out political plums, Sarah got the best, Chair of the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission: one of the few jobs not in Juneau and one of the best paid. She had no background in oil & gas issues. Within months of scoring this great job which paid $122,400/yr, she was complaining in the press about the high salary. I was told that she hated that job: the commute, the structured hours, the work. Sarah became aware that a member of this Commission (who was also the State Chair of the Republican Party) engaged in unethical behavior on the job. In a gutsy move which some undoubtedly cautioned her could be political suicide, Sarah solved all her problems in one fell swoop: got out of the job she hated and garnered gobs of media attention as the patron saint of ethics and as a gutsy fighter against the "old boys' club" when she dramatically quit,exposing this man's ethics violations (for which he was fined).

As Mayor, she had her hand stuck out as far as anyone for pork from Senator Ted Stevens. Lately, she has castigated his pork-barrel politics and publicly humiliated him. She only opposed the "bridge to nowhere" after it became clear that it would be unwise not to. As Governor, she gave the Legislature no direction and budget guidelines, then made a big grandstand display of line-item vetoing projects, calling them pork. Public out cry and further legislative action restored most of these projects--which had been vetoed simply because she was not aware of their importance--but with the unobservant she had gained a reputation as "anti-pork". She is solidly Republican: no political maverick. The State party leaders hate her because she has bit them in the back and humiliated them. Other members of the party object to her self-description as a fiscal conservative. Around Wasilla there are people who went to high school with Sarah.

They call her "Sarah Barracuda" because of her unbridled ambition and predatory ruthlessness. Before she became so powerful, very ugly stories circulated around town about shenanigans she pulled to be made point guard on the high school basketball team. When Sarah's mother-in-law, a highly respected member of the community and experienced manager, ran for Mayor, Sarah refused to endorse her. As Governor, she stepped outside of the box and put together of package of legislation known as "AGIA" that forced the oil companies to march to the beat of her drum. Like most Alaskans, she favors drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. She has questioned if the loss of sea ice is linked to global warming. She campaigned "as a private citizen" against a state initiaitive that would have either a) protected salmon streams from pollution from mines, or b) tied up in the courts all mining in the state (depending on who you listen to). She has pushed the State's lawsuit against the Dept. of the Interior's decision to list polar bears as threatened species. McCain is the oldest person to ever run for President; Sarah will be a heartbeat away from being President. There has to be literally millions of Americans who are more knowledgeable and experienced than she. However, there's a lot of people who have underestimated her and are regretting it.

CLAIM VS FACT
"Hockey mom": true for a few years

"PTA mom": true years ago when her first-born was in elementaryschool, not since

"NRA supporter": absolutely true

social conservative: mixed. Opposes gay marriage, BUT vetoed a bill that would have denied benefits to employees in same-sex relationships(said she did this because it was unconsitutional).

pro-creationism: mixed. Supports it, BUT did nothing as Governor to promote it.

"Pro-life": mixed. Knowingly gave birth to a Down's syndrome baby BUT declined to call a special legislative session on some pro-lifelegislation

"Experienced": Some high schools have more students than Wasilla has residents. Many cities have more residents than the state of Alaska. No legislative experience other than City Council. Little hands-on supervisory or managerial experience; needed help of a city administrator to run town of about 5,000.

political maverick: not at all gutsy:

absolutely open & transparent: ??? Good at keeping secrets. Not good at explaining actions.

has a developed philosophy of public policy: no

"a Greenie": no. Turned Wasilla into a wasteland of big box storesand disconnected parking lots. Is pro-drilling off-shore and in ANWR.

fiscal conservative: not by my definition

pro-infrastructure: No. Promoted a sports complex and park in a city without a sewage treatment plant or storm drainage system. Built streets to early 20th century standards.

pro-tax relief: Lowered taxes for businesses, increased tax burden on residents

pro-small government: No. Oversaw greatest expansion of city government in Wasilla's history.

pro-labor/pro-union. No. Just because her husband works union doesn't make her pro-labor. I have seen nothing to support any claim that she is pro-labor/pro-union.

WHY AM I WRITING THIS? First, I have long believed in the importance of being an informed voter. I am a voter registrar. For 10 years I put on student voting programs in the schools. If you google my name (Anne Kilkenny +Alaska), you will find references to my participation in local government, education, and PTA/parent organizations. Secondly, I've always operated in the belief that "Bad things happen when good people stay silent". Few people know as much as I do because few have gone to as many City Council meetings. Third, I am just a housewife. I don't have a job she can bump me out of. I don't belong to any organization that she can hurt. But, I am no fool; she is immensely popular here, and it is likely that this will cost me somehow in the future: that's life. Fourth, she has hated me since back in 1996, when I was one of the 100 or so people who rallied to support the City Librarian against Sarah's attempt at censorship. Fifth, I looked around and realized that everybody else was afraid to say anything because they were some how vulnerable.

CAVEATS I am not a statistician. I developed the numbers for the increase in spending & taxation 2 years ago (when Palin was running for Governor)from information supplied to me by the Finance Director of the City of Wasilla, and I can't recall exactly what I adjusted for: did I adjust for inflation? for population increases? Right now, it is impossible for a private person to get any info out of City Hall--they are swamped. So I can't verify my numbers. You may have noticed that there are various numbers circulating for the population of Wasilla, ranging from my "about 5,000", up to 9,000. The day Palin's selection was announced a city official told me that thecurrent population is about 7,000. The official 2000 census count was 5,460. I have used about 5,000 because Palin was Mayor from 1996 to 2002, and the city was growing rapidly in the mid-90's.

Anne Kilkenny August 31, 2008

Also, my friend, Evan's current facebook status is this quote:
"Yes, I think I will see Jesus come back to earth in my lifetime." - Sarah Palin.

Woodruff Park

2008-09-06T12:50:00.000-07:00

Woodruff Park is across the street from my house.
Found by searching "olympia woodruff park" on google:

http://www.ci.olympia.wa.us/cityservices/par/parks/Woodruff.htm
Park History:
This westside park is named after Sam Woodruff who was born in China in 1858. He returned to Olympia and made his living as a printer and bookseller. Woodruff was one of our early developers and conveyed the Woodruff Park land to the City of Olympia in 1892 for $1.00."

http://www.theravive.com/cities/wa/counselor-olympia.aspx
"Or visit Woodruff Park, once a site for Victorian flower beds and the city watertower. "

http://www.theolympian.com/120/story/482987.html
"The program is run by Olympia Parks, Arts and Recreation, which is also having SKIPP, a free drop-in playground program for ages 6 to 12 with structured activities from noon to 3 p.m. SKIPP is at Lions Park and Woodruff Park, which is close to Garfield Elementary."

Cool satellite picture

Kitten thrown from car window

2008-08-20T13:21:00.000-07:00

chaoscat posted this in olywa and tesc on livejournal
@ 2008-08-19 20:42:00

Kitten chucked from car in west olympia by texaco
Around 12:30-1pm today, I was driving for work, getting ready to take a left on cooper point road, when someone chucked a little orange kitten from their driver's side window. It hit the street pretty hard, dodged a bunch of cars, and ran into the ivy in front of the texaco on cooper point and black lake blvd.

I don't know what the car looked like or what the plate number was, all I could do was watch in horror as a kitten no more than 4 weeks old bounced off the pavement and dodged cars.

I turned around to go look for it, but when I got there, me and two other people at the texaco searched for it and could not find it.

If anyone saw what happened, or who has seen the kitten, PLEASE get the kitten to the shelter or to a veterinarian and call the police!!! Any information would be great.

If you haven't seen the kitten, PLEASE keep an eye out for a small orange kitten around a month old, which may or may not have injuries. Feel free to call me at 360-556-2933 with any information. THANKS!

Passion Parties

2008-08-17T17:21:00.000-07:00

I've become a Passion Parties consultant. This is new and scary but I think it's going to be a good thing. I don't have a lot of information to give yet, I'm still learning.
This is the main website. This is my lame and almost completely uncustomizable website. If I give them $25 a month I can customize it and have people order things from me online. Alas. Please don't click the "shop online" link on the main site and order things there. It goes to a random consultant's page(one who's payed the $25) and gives the commission to her. If you want to order something, tell me!!! I have catalogs and order forms and such.
If you want to host a Passion Party, please contact me! I'm trying to figure all this stuff out but the best way for me to know if I'm learning anything is to try it out! I promise it'll be fun :-).

Homeward Bound

2008-08-06T14:14:00.001-07:00

I just bought an Amtrak ticket for a train to Portland leaving Olympia at 3:44 PM tomorrow. I'll be back in Oly at 8:03 PM Sunday. I plan on spending Friday with my mom, Saturday with my dad, and Sunday with my friends. So Essie, I will be at your party!

House

2008-07-10T12:48:00.000-07:00

Ben and I finally met our landlady last night and things are looking good for us getting the house! For people who are confused:
Currently, Ben and I live with John and Jessie. John is the only one on the lease for our 4-bedroom house. He and Jessie moved in about a year ago, when they signed said lease. They agreed to be responsible for finding other roommates so all Joanne, the landlady, has to worry about is getting a check from John every month. So officially, Ben and I don't have any claim to this house, and the only agreements we have are with John. So when John and Jessie move out in August, Joanne could kick us out too. So our hope is that we'll pass all the rental check thingies and get to sign a one year lease with Joanne so that the house will be ours to live in and fill with roommates. Yay! The end.
Oh, and I got the go-ahead to garden wherever and however I please and some suggestions for composting. And I slept for 12 hours last night, beginning with falling asleep without brushing my teeth and with all the lights on. Classic exhaustion.

Links and Plans

2008-06-28T14:25:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Hannah for this link: Green Porno: Isabella Rossellini demonstrates how invertebrates have sex...with costumes.

Last night Ben and I watched about an hour and a half of "The Elegant Universe" which I watched on tv several years ago. It's Nova and Nova rocks.

Also, it's summer and I'm lazy and overly warm. I've been spending a lot of time sitting near fans and forgetting to eat. I have my first day of class on Tuesday, 9-5. Yay, intensive summer classes! Then on Friday morning(the 4th) Ben and I are riding the train down to Portland. That day will most likely be spent with my familia, but I'd love to hang out with friends on Saturday!!! Pwease?
<3 Star

XKCD

2008-06-20T23:24:00.000-07:00

This comic is about Ben.

Break!

2008-06-14T23:22:00.000-07:00

I'll be in Aloha from Thursday the 19th until Sunday the 22nd. Email me if you wanna hang out!
<3 Star

Cuteness

2008-05-24T15:18:00.000-07:00

http://view.break.com/495740 - Watch more free videos

This weekend

2008-05-15T18:07:00.000-07:00

Lately I've been having trouble getting my ass out of bed and accomplishing anything once I have. Depression? Laziness? Stress? Who knows. Also, Ben is intensely busy and the only time we get to spend together is right before we go to sleep and right after we wake up. This is stressing us both out. We got to walk around and do errands together yesterday and we both felt really happy and were sad when he had to go to rehearsal for his play and then he had another rehearsal at noon today so he had to leave first thing. But we did get sushi to go and eat it together and hang out last night because it was our 1 year and 3 month anniversary and we have a pattern of doing something every three months. Generally in between we just give each other kisses and smile when it's the 14th.
Harvest Mooning continues. And Groc Out has delicious Crunch ice cream bars right now as well as these frozen pizza stick things that you bake and are wonderful. I recommend a trip over there.
Oh! And tomorrow it's supposed to be over 90 degrees! Today it was over 80!
Saturday something is happening in the field called "Geoduck Fest" which as far as I can tell is a bunch of people selling crap on blankets while others play with a dunk tank or throw water balloons at eachother. Then that night at 8 is Ryan(Hitchcock) and Miguel's comedy show "Space Brothers". Then after that Ben and I are going over to Alex and Ryan(Butler)'s house for a get together of sorts. THEN Sunday night is the improv show! Busy weekend!

Other recent happenings in the life of Star

2008-05-10T02:09:00.000-07:00

Oh yes, and Ben and I have been watching "Invader Zim" as a respite from the intense amounts of "Dead Like Me" marathons we'd previously been having. We also watched the movie "This Film Is Not Yet Rated" and were informed that "But I'm A Cheerleader" was given an NC-17 rating before they cut a few scenes. Then we had to rent "But I'm A Cheerleader" to shake our heads in disbelief at the MPAA (plus, dude, lesbians).
And I just played Katamari for the first time. Super cute.

Harvest Moon

2008-05-08T22:18:00.001-07:00

I haven't been posting lately because I didn't feel I was doing anything worth posting, but then Ben suggested to me that I post about what I've been doing anyway. So here it is.
I've been playing Harvest Moon: Back to Nature like there's no tomorrow. It's a game for the original Playstation(yes, I still own one of those, as well as an N64 and a Super NES, though the last two are home in Beaverton). It is very simple and very addicting. You are a little farmer dude who decides to fix up his grandpa's old farm and try to succeed in this little village. You can plant crops, raise animals(cows, chickens, and sheep for profit, a dog and a horse just for the hell of it and for entering in races), forage in the wilderness, fish, etc. You also can choose to court and marry one of five girls in the village. As far as I can tell the game goes on forever. In the N64 version(yeah, i have that too) I've played for seven "years" and had a wife and a toddler but ended up giving up on it for one reason or another. I always get tired of it and then start a new game the next time I pick it up. I've married all the girls at one time or another and my current conquest is Karen. She's the sassy one and I dig her styles.

Procession of the Species

2008-04-26T13:27:00.000-07:00

Today is the Procession of the Species Parade! It starts at 4:30 in downtown Olympia. I will be there watching!!!

More on the Yacht Club

2008-04-22T23:58:00.001-07:00

As a follow-up to my last post, here are the Commodore and First Mate of the Olympia Yacht Club.
That's really all I need to say.

Yardwork

2008-04-20T21:40:00.000-07:00

Ben and I have been enjoying the yard at this house by cleaning it up a bit. The other day we weeded the front where there is a sort of rocky terrace with some planned plants and mostly dandelions. It looks amazing now sans weeds.
Today we mowed the lawn with the manual push mower and Ben did some weeding in the back. Go us! I'll take pictures as things continue. More bulbs keep popping up, some really pretty tulips. I can't wait to plant more! Also we fixed my bike up and I just need to adjust the seat a little more and I can ride it! Just need warmer weather.
Last night we walked downtown and it snowed on us. It was really beautiful. Ben thought it was more hail than snow but he is wrong. They were little snowflake shaped ice crystals. Snow! We went to Plenty and got milkshakes and artichoke dip and then rode the bus home. We stopped in that little park on the west side of the 4th ave bridge and walked around the boardwalk on the other side. The Olympia Yacht Club was having a bumpin' party. Limbo music was being played by a DJ and a bunch of old people were whistling and laughing. Van Morrison came on as we got to a place where we could see inside and count about 20 middle-aged to elderly people wearing leis. Thank you, Yacht Club.

Organics in Landfills don't decompose

2008-04-19T12:53:00.000-07:00

The Spring/Summer 2008 issue of "Talkin' Trash" from Thurston County Water and Waste Management (which can be found here) gave me an interesting tidbit of information that has convinced me to try composting again, especially now that I'm in a house.
"Organics in Landfills: It's a myth that yard and food waste decompose quickly in landfills. Organic materials stay intact for decades in landfills because the items are sealed away from oxygen and moisture. University of Arizona Professor William Rathje and his students found hotdogs, pastries, and other recognizable foods 15 years after the foods were buried in a landfill. Nearby newspapers (still readable) were used to identify when the items were buried."

Spring Quarter Schedule

2008-04-12T12:43:00.000-07:00

Monday:
6-10pm: Chemistry for Everyone (every other week)

Tuesday:
10am-12pm: Introduction to Beekeeping
1-3pm: Ceramics: Studio Projects
7-9pm: Principles of Economics

Thursday:
1-3pm: Ceramics: Studio Projects
7-9pm: Principles of Economics

Friday:
2-5pm: Introduction to Neon: Shaping Light

My Personality Type

2008-04-07T12:24:00.000-07:00

Hannah posted her personality type on her blog, so I am following suit [it's just the standard Meyers-Briggs(sp?)].
Monster.com Quiz

Life as an INFP
(Intravert, Intuitive, Feeler, Perceiver)

People of this type tend to be quiet, reserved and kind; deeply passionate, sensitive and easily hurt; loving and dedicated to those close to them; creative, original and imaginative; curious and flexible in small matters; nonconforming.

The most important thing to INFPs are their deeply held beliefs and living in harmony with their values.

Great careers for INFPs

Here are just a few popular and often satisfying careers for people whose Personality Type is INFP:

Psychologist

Human resources professional

Physical therapist

Researcher

Translator / interpreter

Legal mediator

Employee development specialist

College professor: humanities

Editor / art director

PersonalityType.com Quiz
This site added two careers:

Religious worker
Holistic health practitioner

And offers this advice for loving me:

How to Love an INFP

Appreciate my uniqueness and sensitivity.

Be a patient and supportive listener.

Respect my privacy and my need for emotional intimacy.

Be reassuring and gentle in your words and actions.

Try not to force decisions too quickly, or bug me about being messy.

Above all - respect my feelings and never demand that I compromise my values.

Tips for Communicating with INFPs:

Share genuine beliefs and values to establish rapport

Respect their slower warm time and need for privacy

Emphasize the ways ideas will benefit others

Update on projects

2008-04-06T14:50:00.000-07:00

I've been working on some interesting things. Interesting to me at least.
To start out, here's Ben being a good boyfriend and putting together my bed on the day I moved in:

This is my latest knitting project. It's going to be a hat. The pattern is from a book I bought recently called Knitting Beyond Scarves by Melissa Leapman. It's a rectangle that you gather at the top. Anyway, the yarn is Ella Rae brand 100% wool and is ever so lovely.

This is a project I'm putting on hold for a while. It's a very wide scarf made with Lion Brand "Homespun" which is really frustrating to use.

Another scarf. Lion Brand "Wool-Ease"

A bowl I made in ceramics has turned into my Knitting Bowl.

Knitting bowl plus Mit Mit...

Equals Mit Mit Bowl!

Here's some random ceramics projects:

Also, Canvas Works is an AWESOME store!

Ben is amoosing

2008-03-27T22:48:00.001-07:00

Ben's post about the Giant Inflatable Colon makes me laugh. There are excellent pictures. You should read it.

http://tomtomklondike.livejournal.com/4078.html

Spring Break

2008-03-27T13:09:00.000-07:00

Sorry I haven't updated but I don't have any pictures right now and I wanted to wait.
I finished a scarf, it's the blue and orange striped one for Ben. I saw Candice yesterday and we went to Sushiland, Powell's, and a yarn store on NE Broadway called "Twisted" and I got a yarn needle and she showed me how to tuck in the little tails on the scarf.
My mom got a puppy. We haven't named her yet, but she is very wee, a mix of Pomeranian, Pug, and some sort of Terrier. She is gorgeous and adorable. I didn't bring my USB cord, but I'll take pictures and upload them when I get home.
Also, my room is pretty much set up back in Olympia. I'll take pictures of that soon too.
I'll be back in Oly on Saturday, my mom is driving me up. I think that's when Ben should be home too. So...that's my story.
Oh! And my Aunt Lannie gave me five Persian rugs that she's gotten from auctions and such for cheap and no longer needs AND a bunch of big jars to keep my dry goods in(flour, sugar, etc). Yay!

Moving day

2008-03-17T00:52:00.001-07:00

Today Ben and Hannah were badasses and helped me move all day. Hannah made a post in her blog about it, accompanied by pictures:
http://greenerliving.blogspot.com/2008/03/moooooovation.html

Me in front of my new house.

Ben with "Lil' Hauler", the U-Haul mascot!

Here's a video tour of the house:

My night

2008-03-16T01:31:00.001-07:00

Tonight, Ben and I went to the Black Front Gallery to see his friends' band play. They are called "The Globes" and are from Spokane and now live in Seattle.
It was really loud, so you had to lean in real close to talk to each other.
This girl's bun looks like a heart.
All but the "K" on the usbank sign were burned out. I thought it looked cool.
I like it in black and white too :-)

Happy Saturday! It's after midnight now, so it's SUNDAY and today I am moving! I'm almost done packing. I'm really happy and excited. Oh, and Louis C.K. is on Comedy Central and I keep laughing really loud, so it's a good thing Corbin's not home or he would hear me.

Moving

2008-03-14T15:59:00.000-07:00

I'm moving to my new house on Sunday afternoon. So far Hannah and Ben are helping me, and I'm renting a U-Haul so I don't have to try to strap a full mattress on top of Hannah's Subaru. Also so I can get most everything in one go, especially the furniture. If you wanna help, show up at my apartment at 1:30 or 2. The plan is to order pizza when we've got most of the stuff moved into the new house. Since I have the U-haul, you can ride over to the house in Hannah's car. I hope that if you can't help on Sunday, you'll at least come visit me soon! I want everyone to see where I live, it's really easy to get to. I posted the address on facebook. You get off at the Koibito stop and then it's a very short walk. I'm super excited!

Spring Classes

2008-03-12T15:55:00.000-07:00

Chemistry for Everyone
2 credits
6-10p Mon, Mar 31, Apr 14, 28, May 12; 10a-4p Fri or Sat, May 30 or May 31
Through a series of learning experiences, this course will relate chemistry to everyday life in a manner suited for those with no science background. Learning experiences will focus on both general and organic chemistry. The learning experience may consist of lectures, workshops and labs. All students will be given the opportunity to make and break chemical bonds, handle glassware and chemicals and perform chemical reactions.

Ceramics: Studio Projects
4 credits
1-3p Tue & Thu
This is an intermediate to advanced course. Emphasis is on independent work in sculpture, pottery and/or related areas. Course work will include a study of glaze chemistry.

Economics, Principals
4 credits
7-9p Tue & Thu
Presented in a non-technical and logical manner, this introductory course will introduce you to the essentials of economic theory and policy. We will explore the fundamentals of economic theory and practice, and extend these concepts to real-world applications. This course will help you acquire an understanding of micro- and macro-economic terminology, concepts and principles. Furthermore, this course will help you realize the important role that economics plays in our lives, and will help you gain a greater understanding of economic policy, as well as how decisions influence the success or failure of a business.

Neon, Introduction to: Shaping Light
2 credits
2-5p Fri
This course introduces students to the basic skills in the fabrication of neon. Each student will learn to heat, bend, weld and anneal glass tubing using a ribbon burner, cannon fire and tipping torch. Students will learn the bending process for the four basic bends: 90 degree right angle, double back, "U" and "O" loop. Students will learn to blow bubbles in a tube. They will use these techniques to fabricate several creations of their own design. Students will be guided through the processes of bombarding and wiring of their individual projects to safely attach and handle high-voltage transformers to energize their neon. Instruction in the mounting and display of the neon projects concludes the course.

Moving!

2008-03-10T20:13:00.000-07:00

I'm moving, probably next week, and it's super excited! I found the place on craigslist. I'm moving into the available bedroom and then in July, the current occupants are moving out because their lease is up. Then Ben and I are taking over and it's gonna be awesome! This house is SO gorgeous.

This is the living room. I'm standing in front of the front door and Ben took the picture from the kitchen entry.

The living room from about where I'm standing in the previous pic. Those are my new roommates for the quarter, Jessie and John. The doorway behind them goes to a hallway with the bathroom and their bedroom nearest.

The kitchen from the entryway that the first picture was taken in, if Ben just turned around the other way. The room beyond is a little nook with a futon and plants in it. Those doors lead to the back porch.

The kitchen as viewed from the nook. Notice the gas stove!!!

Washer and dryer!!!!!

Very fancy stairs going up to the second floor.

Looking down the stairs.

The little purple bedroom that Josh moved out of, opening up space in the house for me!

A closet in the purple bedroom.

The space at the top of the stairs and between the bedrooms with a tv just out of the picture on the right side.

The larger bedroom where Johann currently resides. He's offered to switch to the smaller room since he's almost never there and I've decided to take him up on it, although the purple room is much more adorable.

The only bathroom in the house...

A chameleon in what's currently used as the computer room. He shares the room with two bright yellow finches.

A little add-on room where the dryer currently vents, making it unusable for anything other than basic storage. BUT it leads to a sauna!

Backyard...

Backyard...

Next to the garage with the house beyond. The garage and driveway are in a weird spot.

The beautiful back porch!!!

Silliness

2008-03-09T22:13:00.000-07:00

Ahh!

Gross, Ben.

We both look really dazed in this one.

Commercial break!

Kisses are nice.

Ben likes to pet my hair. It feels nice.

Card

2008-03-04T22:03:00.000-08:00

Jessie sent me a pretty card.Look, it's me!

More knitting

2008-03-03T23:09:00.001-08:00

I'm knitting another scarf. I'm making it wide and it's quite soft. I think i'm gonna need another skein of yarn for this one too.

Also, here's a funny picture:

The Ditty Bops

2008-03-01T15:26:00.001-08:00

The Ditty Bops have a new album! I'm excited to get it but until I call my dad and ask him for money I just don't have enough in my account to order it. I just wanted to let you all know.
It's called "Summer Rains" and they made the packaging special with pop-ups and drawings :-D and it's not released under the WB like their past albums. They have two songs from the album on their myspace page, one in the regular area and one in video form.
I hope they come to the NW again soon...

Bean Soup

2008-02-24T00:00:00.001-08:00

I've made bean soup again. The last batch wasn't that great, but not that many of you tried it. Hopefully this one will be better. Come on over if you'd like a bowl with a slice of buttered bread. :-)
P.S. I am still pretty sick.

This comic makes me happy

2008-02-22T17:37:00.000-08:00

http://xkcd.com/387/

videos of the riot

2008-02-21T18:25:00.000-08:00

Cooking with Starzipan

2008-02-20T23:48:00.000-08:00

I still haven't gotten any batteries for my camera, so there's no pictures, but I promise you, Ben and I made Pad Thai tonight from the recipe in the Joy of Cooking. It was delicious but different from most Pad Thai we had had before. I think I'll try a different recipe next time, and go to the Asian Market on Harrison instead of Safeway. Also, Hannah stopped by and helped us eat it. More like, Hannah and I helped Ben eat most of it. He is terrifying when he eats.
I'm still sick but I think I'll be well enough to go to class tomorrow. Ceramics! I'm behind and missed Tuesday's class so I gotta make it!
Soon, Hannah and I will go to a special yarn store she has discovered. I can't remember the name of it. I have big plans to get yarn to make a hat and to make a scarf for Ben. I need to go to Joann's again soon to get another skein of the green yarn I've been making another scarf with. Meanwhile, I've been tediously adding fringe to my first scarf.
Also, I'm out of baked goods. Soon I will bake again.

Illness

2008-02-15T16:51:00.001-08:00

I am once again very sick. Ben has infected me with his illness, resulting in exhaustion, aching all over, sore throat, and general blah feeling. Stupid sickness.
But last night was our one-year anniversary and it was lovely. He gave me a sweatshirt from the bookstore I've been eying for months and I got him flowers and chocolate ;-).
To sum up: I am sick but in love.

Knitting

2008-02-10T23:24:00.000-08:00

Hannah taught me how to knit! I've been knitting like mad. This is the scarf I've been working on. I just got a second skein of yarn today so I can continue, I had to stop yesterday because I ran out! It's looking really nice, I love the colors. :-D I wanna learn how to make hats next. My mom found the needles I grabbed from Granny's years ago and among them were two circular needles, as well as all the regular ones being metal, so they won't break like the stupid plastic ones I bought. Ok, that makes it sound like they snapped in half, just the tip of one of them cracked off when I was knitting with this other yarn that was probably too thick for the little size sixes.
And no, I am not taking orders yet, I'm not even done with my first scarf and want to learn how to make a bunch of stuff first. I will let you all know when I'm ready to take requests for birthday and Christmas presents.
Also, Hannah and I made a bunch of Valentine's cookies yesterday, to hand out to our friends and loved ones. It was quite enjoyable and we're getting together on Wednesday to make up little gift baggies.

Music I like

2008-01-29T00:06:00.000-08:00

I just discovered the artist Kate Nash. I find her voice and style to be charming and cute and lovely and would very much like to purchase her album.

Other albums I've been meaning to buy forevers are Rilo Kiley's "Under the Blacklight" and Tegan and Sara's "The Con".

Baking with Hannah

2008-01-28T23:49:00.000-08:00

Hannah came over on Saturday and we went to Joanne's and bought puff paints and then we came home and made cupcakes and decorated my apron that i use in ceramics to not get COMPLETELY covered in clay and dust.
Here's a link to her journal entry about the event: Greener Living

The recipe for our cupcakes can be found in the 1975 Joy of Cooking that I inherited from my Granny.
One -Egg Cake
Two 8-inch Round Pans
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Have all ingredients at about 75 degrees.Sift into an electric mixer bowl and mix for about 2 minutes at medium speed:
1 3/4 cups sifted all-purpose flour
1 1/4 cups sugar
2 1/2 teaspoons double-acting baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup soft butter
2/3 cup milk
Add and mix for 2 minutes more, scraping bowl constantly:
1 egg
1/3 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
Pour the batter into greased pans and bake for about 25 minutes.

Chocolate Cream Cheese Icing
About 2 cups
Melt:
3 oz. chocolate
Soften:
3 oz. cream cheese
in:
1/4 cup milk
Add gradually:
4 cups confectioners' sugar 1/2 teaspoon salt
Combine this mixture with the melted chocolate and beat until smooth and ready to be spread.

Then today I made brownies using my 2006 75th Anniversary edition of the Joy.
Brownies Cockaigne
The little intro bit says, "If you want them chewy and moist, use a 13 x 9-inch pan; if cakey, a 9 x 9-inch pan.")
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease a baking pan lined with foil. Melt in a small saucepan:
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
4 ounces unsweetened chocolate
Let cool. If you don't, your brownies will be heavy and dry. Beat until light in color and foamy in texture:
4 large eggs
1/4 teaspoon salt
Gradually add and continue beating until thick:
2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
With a few swift strokes, stir in the cooled chocolate mixture just until combined. Even if you are using an electric mixer, switch to a wooden spoon for this. Stir in just until combined:
1 cup all-purpose flour
Gently stir in, if desired:
(1 cup chopped pecans) (i used 1 cup milk chocolate chips)
Scrape batter into the prepared pan. Bake about 25 minutes. Cool completely in the pan on a rack.

This is my favorite picture from Hannah's blog. As Ben put it, "You look so ill." These young people and their lingo.

Blogs

2008-01-23T19:53:00.000-08:00

I've added some links to my links list. Most recently there's Jessie's Wisconsin blog that she's using for this quarter she's spending there, working in a wildlife rehabilitation center.
Also Frannie has a blog for her photography that I don't think anyone knows about but me.
Ben started a livejournal after I showed him mine and has been using it to post his thoughts, which, being Ben's thoughts, are quite interesting and written in a style that is his own.
Then of course, there are the old standby's:
Corbin's Stock Ticker is a blog written by former D-dormer and now downstairs neighbor, Corbin. It's hilarious. He writes about movies a lot.
Hannah calls her blog Greener Living in homage to Evergreen. She started it at the beginning of last year to let family and friends from back home know what it's like being a student at Evergreen. There's a bunch of posts from her travels in Europe, since she spent last quarter living in Florence, Italy. She puts a picture in almost every post and has a really charming writing style.
Steve almost never updates his blog, Artemesis, but when he does, there are fascinating pictures of whatever art projects he's been working on lately.
Jessie posts whatever poetry she's been writing lately in her poetry blog. She is not to be confused with Jessie Maier, who is Hannah's little sister. Several of Hannah's relatives clicked on a link to Jessie Allison's blog from Hannah's and assumed that this was the poetry of 17-year-old Jessie Maier, and that Jessie Maier was clearly very depressed. It spread through the grapevine of the family and arrived back with Hannah who exasperatedly explained that this was a friend from college who actually is not depressed at all.

2008-01-21T17:19:00.000-08:00

I've been sick since Friday night and it has been rather miserable. Just one of those colds where you're exhausted and your nose is drippy and your eyes tend to water and you have a cough and an occasional sneeze and you lay around watching hours and hours of America's Next Top Model because they just play one after another and you think to yourself, "well, I am curious who gets cut this week, maybe just one more episode."
About a week ago Ben and I went to visit the Hannah/Katherine/Evan/Paul household where we played video games and baked pie. i brought the filling I'd made over and Hannah and I made the crust which involved me putting too much shortening it and it being somewhat moist and crumbly. Oh well. Hannah took some lovely pictures here: http://greenerliving.blogspot.com/2008/01/triumphant-return.html

More about my classes

2008-01-14T21:51:00.000-08:00

Beginning Ballet (from the syllabus):
Each week we will be studying the basic positions, vocabulary and movements of ballet. Each class we will add new positions and steps.
In addition to learning ballet, each week we may study any or all of the following: focus exercises, Pilates, Gyrotonics, EFT, self massage, Developmental Movement Therapy and stretching exercises.

Beginning Ceramics: Vessels
Week 1:
Tues: Course intro
Thurs:Pinch pots
Assignment: Make 20 pinch pot bowls to be used for glaze testing.

Week 2:
Tues: Soft clay forming: pinch, altered slabs, dowel formed
Assignment: Matching sets: plate, bowl & cup: 2 of each (6 pcs.). Match shape, surface, coloration, designs on all pieces.
Thurs: Slip painting and surface development

Week 3:
Tues: Slump and press mold forms/alterations, additions, handles
Assignment: Make 2 slump or press molded pieces
Thurs: Leatherhard slab construction.
Assignment: Make 2 10" pots (tall or wide)

Week 4:
Tues: High fire glazing: lecture and demo
Thurs: Work day
Assignment: Glaze all bisque ware made to date

Week 5:
Tues: Coil construction: large forms
Assignment: build a 12" to 15" pot
Thurs: continue

Week 6:
Tues: Wheel throwing: cylinders - centering, opening, and forming
Assignment: 20 cylinders - 1-2 Lbs clay each, throw, cut in 1/2, and recycle.
Thurs: 3 basic forms: cylinder, bowl, closed form
Assignment: 2 of each

Weeks 7-10: individual projects: using techniques, processes from weeks 1-6, complete 3 projects (ie: large pieces, sets, experimental vessels, etc)

The Practice of Writing:
This course will give students a broad overview of prose writing, and help them to broaden, deepen, and improve their own writing practice. We will explore every step of the writing process, learning to brainstorm, structure, draft, critique, rewrite, polish, and "share out" in ways large and small. The course will also address key principles of good writing, challenges like procrastination and writer's block, and ways to develop productive writing routines.

Our class meetings will include lectures, writing workshops, small-group critique sessions, brief tutorials, and class recitations. Outside of class, you will keep a daily journal, pursue various writing activities as assigned, and complete a 5-10 page final project. If you wish, you may also visit Evergreen's Writing Center for one-on-one coaching, especially if you want or need to strengthen your grasp of the more technical aspects of writing (paragraph and sentence structure, spelling, punctuation, etc.).

Winter Quarter

2008-01-07T21:22:00.000-08:00

Today was the first day of winter quarter here at Evergreen. Here's my schedule for the next ten weeks:
Monday: Beginning Ballet 12:00-2:00
Tuesday: The Practice of Writing 5:30-9:00
Beginning Ceramics 1:00-3:00
Wednesday: Nothing!
Thursday: Beginning Ceramics 1:00-3:00
Friday: Nothing!
Saturday: Nothing!
Sunday: Nothing!

This comic makes me laugh

2008-01-03T08:52:00.000-08:00

http://stereotypist.livejournal.com/

The Graffiti Discussion continues

2007-12-31T00:05:00.001-08:00

Since most people probably don't check back that far, I'm gonna copy and paste some comments on my older post about Ben's article in the CPJ.

Anonymous said...: It's the fault of the fucking system, the management, that the minimum wage workers have to clean the graffiti. Why can't they leave it?

And what makes it a "mockery"? You do, because you assign the word to it. I don't think it's a mockery, I think it's just someone expressing their feelings on wall, with a marker.

When people say it isn't art is what upsets me the most because I don't think it's anyone's job to criticize another person's art. It's totally dada and it's fine and shouldn't be removed by anyone.

What happened to free speech? anti-censorship?
December 18, 2007 2:27 PM

Ben Jammin said...: For my Anonymous poster.
I noticed you commented with some questions about my article. After reading your comments, I thought over my article and came up with a few things I wanted you to respond to.

I divided your comment into about 5 sections and I am going to go one at a time so I can keep my thoughts separated.

1.)“It's the fault of the fucking system, the management, that the minimum wage workers have to clean the graffiti. Why can't they leave it?”
Response:
I suspect that many building owners don’t want ideas represented on their buildings that were not discussed or agreed upon by the people who work or live in there. I imagine it is a bit like waking up with “balls” written on your face. You don’t want somebody else speaking for you on your buildings, any more than you want someone writing something you had no part in making and signing your name to it.

2.) “And what makes it a "mockery"? You do, because you assign the word to it. I don't think it's a mockery, I think it's just someone expressing their feelings on wall, with a marker.”
Response:
I decided the key things/questions here are:
“Why is graffiti a mockery of social change?” and “Is graffiti self expression?”

Graffiti mocks social change by presenting messages of change, in a form that undermines that purpose. “The violence, the crime, repetition of the old and worn-out, all of these things are outputs of our social system. Far from opposing the things wrong with our society this graffiti amplifies and glorifies the wrong by repackaging it as “rebellion”(or social change).” –I know it is dumb to quote yourself but it seemed like the correct thing to write.

There is also a chance that what you meant was that I personally have changed graffiti into a mockery and that I should knock it off. I would say that Is a very flattering thing to say but the damage is done. Now that I have seen the flaws in graffiti as social change I will not be able to shut my eyes to them. I will also say that since I have changed graffiti in to a mockery, the people doing it need to change their tactics so that they will no longer make a mockery of the things they want. I look forward to what they can create.

3.)“When people say it isn't art is what upsets me the most…
Response:
I think for this part I would need from you a definition of art. For me art is something that serves a social function. If a composition (drawing, music, etc…) does not propose something new it can very often serve to reinforce current climates. Those things I that do not propose something new would be closer to crafts then art. Using this definition, the graffiti is merely a craft displayed as a sad reflection of a struggling social system.

4.) “…because I don't think it's anyone's job to criticize another person's art. “
Response:
This is perhaps the key argument to your comment and for me it is, honestly, the most frightening.

Criticizing* is to look at what someone says, weigh its consequences, and respond. Thinking about what someone says is what gives thought and expression it’s power. If people are saying things, but no one is thinking about it, or criticizing it, and working to find the holes and fix them, speech might as well be white noise. It is criticism that gives art and thought its capacity to enact change.

When taught that questioning what someone believes is wrong or rude, we repress our ability to be skeptical. Ideas are left untested and unrefined because we are instructed to tolerate their flaws. Argument is all but completely devalued if we accept conflicting views instead of challenging them. All that is left after this kind of tolerance is comparison between alike and dislike. Conversation becomes a means of recording thought without examining its ramifications.
We become trapped in a sea of unrefined and thoughts because we are too afraid of seeming impolite or intolerant.

“What happened to free speech? Anti-censorship?”
Tolerance is what has happened to free speech. It is a censor that operates by allowing thoughts to be spoken and then immediately sinking them into irrelevance, devaluing what someone has to say by allowing it to exist, and at the same time, depriving it of meaning and all capacity to enact change.
More deadly still, tolerance can be applied to ones self. There is little point in discovering new and better ideas when we are too afraid to implement them. Tolerating flaws in your own thinking put a hold on your ability to progress into better things. Tolerance hides beneath something seemingly polite and turns it into a graveyard for progress in yourself and others.
I fear I am being unclear. Please take this example. -The discussion that ends with the polite agreement to disagree.-
To agree that you will both remain set and stubborn in your thinking until the end of time. It is an ending to let you leave a conversation without coming to a conclusion and both parties having ideas with flaws unchallenged.
If I have found fault in the graffiti and the creator continues to use it, the creator is no better than the system he is a part of.
If you are anti-censorship I would ask you to please try and respond and criticize all the things you see that are wrong in life and in art. This repressive and “benign” tolerance is frightening when it is unseen. Please fight to find problems and push until they have been repaired. Don’t settle for “at least they are trying”.

Please write back, I would like, and need to be criticized. ; )

*(according to the Merriam- Webster online dictionary)
To Criticize: 1 : to consider the merits and demerits of and judge accordingly
2 : to find fault with : point out the faults of; December 30, 2007 2:29 PM