Tuesday, August 11, 2009

Nothing Like August

What is it about August that just makes it the guts of Summer? Maybe it's the feeling you got as a kid, knowing that school was just a few days away and you had to live it up while you could, asking your mom to stay outside just ten minutes more when she called you in at night. Maybe it's the balmy buzz of cicada filled trees, garden plants beginning to yellow after their fruit has been picked, and the way the sunlight seems to have a golden tint all day long.

Whatever it is, it's here right now, and I love it.

I'm sitting outside this evening, catching up on blogs. The little girl across the street is playing in her inflatable pool, spraying water from a garden hose and yelling things like "HAPPY BIRTHDAY!", "USA!" and "JESSE JAMES!". I'm not sure about the last one, but I remember that feeling. Walking outside is like being wrapped in a blanket, there are grass floaties in the water of your plastic pool, and you're just so unexplainably happy you feel like shouting it to the world. You want to hold on to every second of it you can because it won't be back for another nine months, which may as well be an eternity in kids years.

I was reminded of that feeling this weekend while working in the yard. As I sprayed months of grime off the side of the house, I smelled one of summer's unmistakable scents: hose water on hot concrete. That combination, to me, is the essence of August. Though it's exactly the same tap water I drink all year long, it somehow changes to something special in that scenario. The smell is metallic and earthy and humid. It's a respite for burning feet on hot pavement, it's a romp through the sprinkler or helping Dad wash the car in the driveway.

The days are already getting a bit shorter, and I really need to get the yard mowed tonight, but I think I'll just sit here and enjoy it... for ten more minutes.

(Photo courtesy tsuacctnt)

Wednesday, July 29, 2009

101 Salads from Mark Bittman

Ran across this article, 101 Simple Salads for the Season, by food writer and activist Mark Bittman in the NY Times.

They all sound AMAZING! Bring on the salad :)

(Photo via NY Times)

Wednesday, July 22, 2009

Maybe She Wanted a Cookie?




With all of the reflux nonsense going on, I haven't been sleeping well lately. I'm fairly lucky, as it doesn't often keep me up all night as some people experience, but I find myself waking up uncomfortable and shifting around several times per night. Last night I was up at 2am, tossed and turned for a bit, and eventually drifted off again.

At 3:30am I woke up again, but this time it was to the drum of running kitty feet. Ugggh. I was soooo comfy, and my usually quiet cat decided, out of the blue, that this night was good for playing. The dog was even startled awake, and jumped off the bed to go investigate. I settled in, and just as I started to doze, the racket began again. I coaxed the dog back into bed, and realized that he was shaking nervously. My goofy pup has been known to shake like this for no good reason, so I got him to lay back down, and tried to sleep...again.

Before I knew it, my cat had dragged one of her toys onto the bed and was alternately pouncing on it, and then kicking it with her back feet. (Actually just guessing on this, since it was pitch black, but this is her typical mode of attack). I sat up, rolled her onto her back, and as sternly as I could at 3:45am told her to "CUT IT OUT AND GO TO SLEEP!"

I can't lock her out of the room, because this only provokes the "cat paw under the door/door rattling" reaction, which is exponentially more noisy and annoying than "wild cat on the bed."

Mere minutes later we've started the whole cycle again, I'm going nuts, and the dog is still shaking. I decided that taking the toy away is the next best option, so I began blindly sweeping my hand back and forth across the duvet so I didn't have to turn the light on. I found the toy, and as I was lifting it off the bed realized that it was soooo soft...and....squishy. (*gulp*)

I dropped it faster than you can blink and sat there in the dark thinking, "Oh my gosh, please don't let that be what I think it is." Slowly I rolled in the opposite direction and flipped on the bedside lamp.

There, in the middle of my bed, surrounded by myself, the shaking dog, and the proud cat was A DEAD MOUSE!! No. Flipping. Way.



I've never seen a mouse, or even evidence of a mouse in my place. But there was definitely a (only minutes prior) healthy specimen laying on her back, dead as a doornail. No marks on her. I looked at the dog who seemed to say, "This is what I was TRYYYYING TO TEEEELL YOU." The cat sat across from us, calm as can be, looking like she was queen of the world.



I got up, cleaned everything up, scrubbed my hands like craaaaaaazzy, and the three of us FINALLY fell asleep for good.



(photo courtesy Natasha Sara )

Friday, July 17, 2009

Thursday, July 16, 2009

Skeeered!

Maybe I'm being a giant weenie, but I'm a little scared today. I went to the doctor this morning after having my second round of pretty nasty heartburn. The first time around it lasted about three months, and once I started Nexium it was gone in three days! Awesome, awesome stuff. Anyway, eventually I was able to go off, and stay off the meds for about four months. It came back a couple of months ago, and nothing is really getting rid of it this time.

My doctor told me today that...(gulp)...I need to get an upper GI endoscopy next week.

For those of you that (like me) don't really know what that means, let me tell you. While you are sedated and numbed up they put a tiny camera in a tube DOWN YOUR THROAT and all the way INTO YOUR STOMACH! Yikes!! Reportedly this doesn't hurt and you really don't remember anything afterward. Did I mention that I have to SWALLOW A CAMERA!!

Ok, ok, now I am being a weenie. Honestly, I think other than the unknown of what this will feel like (supposedly not uncomfortable) I think I am most scared of is the needles part.

Uuuugh. I get squirmy just thinking about it.

I suppose that unless I want to try this without sedation (no thanks) I'm going to have to get over it and be brave.

Anyway, think happy thoughts for me that they find the cause of all this and it's easily fixable. Oh yeah, and that I don't gag all over myself or have a total freak out. Eeeeeeeee..........

Leave me some love. Please?

(photo courtesy bredgur)

Wednesday, July 15, 2009

Back on the...sneakers?


I've been procrastinating for months. I know...I'm on a marathon relay team...my team is depending on me. Buuuuut...it's been really hot. I've been doing a lot of other stuff. I'm going to start later in the week. There's always later in the week.

Today is the day, though, to get back on the horse, or the running shoes. My marathon team is complete. There's no what ifs.

I even agreed to do a 5K with my Dad three weeks prior for some additional motivation. I emailed him about it today and he sounds really excited. Not going to lie, I'm pretty excited too. Doing something like this with my Dad, that's good for both of us, that we both have to work for, makes me feel really good.

That little extra push got me going. I started small, but I started. It's pretty steamy today, and I didn't get an opportunity until late, but I did it. First half-mile down, and many more to go.

(photo courtesy timtak)

Missed Connections

Who doesn't love reading the missed connections on Craigslist? There's a great missed connections blog over at Tumblr. Funny, funny stuff.

Still, today I found the doozy of all doozies, for all things MC. Illustrator, Sophie Blackall, has the most wonderful ILLUSTRATED blog, appropriately titled Missed Connections. Her hand drawn ink and watercolor pictures are fantastic and a little dream-like. Check it out. Blog love of the week!

(photo courtesy Sophie Blackall)

Sunday, July 12, 2009

BBAC Week #8 - Cinnamon Rolls

Not gonna lie, I was a little lazy about my baking this week. The Bread Baker's Apprentice Challenge recipe this week made either cinnamon rolls or sticky buns. I chose cinnamon rolls and I'd planned on prepping everything up to the actual baking on Friday night. I totally scrapped these plans when given the opportunity to go see the movie UP with J. Such a great movie! The animation blew me away and we laughed so hard we cried for most of the movie.

I got home at about 10:30pm and started my dough. Got everything mixed and let it rise once. By that time I was exhausted so I just covered the bowl in plastic and tossed it in the fridge. So tired, in fact, that I completely forgot to take any photos up to that point. Oops!

The dough risen a bit more overnight in the fridge, but didn't seem over-risen by Saturday morning. I did the poke test (gently poke the dough with your finger: if the indentation fills back in the yeast is still active, if not it has risen for too long) and the dough was surprisingly in perfect shape.

I rolled he dough into a large rectangle, covered it in cinnamon and sugar, and rolled the whole thing into a big, doughy log. I actually think the overnight refrigeration helped during this step as the cold dough didn't stick to the rolling pin, my hands, or the board.


I sliced the roll into twelve buns, and placed them on a parchment lined baking sheet. I let them rise for a bit longer than the recommended time since they were still cold from the refrigeration.



I popped the rolls into the preheated 350 degree oven and started prepping the rest of breakfast. I ended up baking them for 40 minutes, rather than the 20-30 minutes in the recipe, as they weren't browning very quickly. It was definitely worth the wait.



The rolls rose a bit more during baking, and the sugar turned into a glaze in between layers, and created a crispy crust on top. By this time I was starving, so I hopped in the shower while they cooled (recipe calls for 10 minutes of cooling before glazing) so as not to dump the whole bowl of fondant on top and start downing them. I think this was more effective than a low flow shower head at conserving water, because I was in and out in record time!

Not surprisingly, these were really good. Per the recipe, I added lemon zest (you could also use lemon extract) so they were a bit citrusy. I'm not completely used to lemon in my cinammon rolls, but it was a nice addition. We ate them with good, crispy bacon and a fruit salad of honeydew, orange, grapefruit, and Ranier cherries ( love that they're on in season and on sale right now!). Didn't get any photos of the plated breakfast because it immediately went into our mouths. Sooooo good!

Next up: Cinnamon Raisin Walnut Bread

Friday, July 10, 2009

UHP: Photo Update!


I have tomatoes!! They're not quite ready yet, but as of yesterday there were even some turning yellowish/pinkish, so fresh, ripe tomatoes are just around the corner.


There have been lots of blossoms on the butternut squash plants in the garden. I'm a little worried though as instead of forming little nubs where the squash will develop once the flowers shrivel, I can only see that the blossom and the branch for about two inches down the stalk are brown and dry. Not sure what happened??

The herbs have grown so much that they're looking bushy and really needing to be pruned back. I will definitely miss them this winter. So will the bumble bees who LOVE the lavender and basil blossoms.


In other interesting news I've seen a number of very smart re-purposing ideas in the blog world this week. Loving this idea from pippa5 on Instructables to create a vertical garden out of a hanging shoe bag. Perfect for growing herbs, greens, or small fruit or vegetable plants and keeping the beasties out. Also great for apartment or patio gardners, or anyone with limited space.

Another great idea from Instructables user Monkeybrad, lawn furniture made from 55 gallon drums. The instructions are pretty simple, and these drums are pretty easy and inexpensive to get your hands on. With the recent influx of spray paint for plastics, you could likely also paint these if you're not a fan of the standard bright blue.



Finally, while this idea may be out of the realm of DIY for most of us, I still thought it was a great idea worth mentioning. Featured on the ReadyMade blog, Jocko Weyland and the folks at Macro Sea are making urban pools out of dumpsters! They've been hosting Friday Pool Parties in the Brooklyn neighborhood where this one is located. Reusing and bringing the community together --doesn't get much better than that!


Wednesday, July 8, 2009

Cherries and Blog Love

Two unrelated topics, but both worthy of note.

1.) I am eating the crap out of cherries lately! I bought a 2# bag on Saturday and polished it off today. So good I may get another.

Let me know if I start turning pink.

2.) I have found a new blog crush. I ran across My Milk Toof on StumbleUpon (which you should totally try if you haven't). This blog is probably one of the most original ideas I've seen in quite a while.
Creator, Inhae Renee, sets it up by saying:
"When I was young, I placed my baby teeth under my pillow and when i woke up I'd find a shiny new quarter. But whatever happened to those little teeth? Where did they go? Would I ever see them again?

Many years later, a little tooth was standing at my door. It looked familiar. Its name was ickle. Welcome home, my milk toof!"
Check out the antics of the teeth, Ickle and Lardee, if you get a chance. You won't be disappointed.
(photo courtesy bensonkua)

Tuesday, July 7, 2009

...Stilt-Walking Skills...

The BF and I had a very fun three-day break this past weekend. Among other things I got the opportunity to show off my stellar stilt-walking skills.

What? You say you can't walk on stilts at all?

That's too bad because I AM AWESOME AT IT.






The BF, being the stilt newbie that he is, gave a valiant effort. He was up...



...and then he was down.


Don't worry BF, THEEEZ SKILLZ are years in the making. Stilt-walking like this does not happen overnight. Also, I'm naturally gifted with the ability to balance on tiny wooden platforms...in flip flops, nonetheless...pssssh.

(**note: I can only gloat like this because the dear BF has skills superior to mine in virtually every other arena. But not stilts, because I am the winner.**)

Sunday, July 5, 2009

BBAC Week #7 - Ciabatta

Onward and upward to week #7 (my second) of the Bread Baker's Apprentice Challenge with Ciabatta. This bread was first made in Italy, and should have a crisp crust with a porous, soft interior.

The dough was much stickier than the Challah from last week. I made the poolish variety, rather than the biga, but both involve starting the fermentation process a few hours, or even up to three days, before making the actual dough. For the poolish, I mixed the flour, yeast, and water together to make a sticky, thick pancake batter-like texture. I let it ferment for four hours on the counter, and then stuck it in the fridge overnight.

This morning I added the poolish to more flour, salt, yeast, and water in the mixer, and mixed for about 7 minutes total using the paddle and then the dough hook. It was a bit dry at first, so I added water by the tablespoon until I got the stickier texture I was looking for.

After the first 30 minute rising, I added some fresh rosemary and thyme and did the first stretch/fold, and let it raise for another 45 minutes.


It was looking pretty puffy by then, so I decided to go ahead and divide it up into loaves. The loaves sat in a makeshift couche (one of my kitchen towels) to keep them seperate during the final raising.



To get the crispy crust I was looking for I had to add steam to the oven. I did this by pouring hot water into a preheated pan on the top rack as I added the dough to the bottom rack. I also misted the walls of the oven every thirty seconds for the first two minutes of baking.



The recipe made enough dough for two small loaves and two buns. Since I don't have a baking stone or even a huge pan I decided to bake them individually. The recipe called for a bake time of approximately 22 minutes, but I had to bake each for closer to thirty to get the caramel colored crust I was looking for.


The loaves looked great. I didn't take a photo of the inside this time, though, because I was a little disappointed with how mine turned out. Ciabatta is known for it's light crumb filled with tons of big air pockets. Mine was sadly missing those big holes. The only thing I can figure out is that the house was a little cooler today, and the recipe called for a final stretching ( but no folding) of the dough as it was going into the couche. I think that last stretch probably flattened any air holes that might have formed.

Despite that, the bread tastes great, and looks nice. I'm still going to chalk this one up to success since the buns played an important role in tonight's dinner.

Mmmm...salmon burgers (grilled by the BF) with avocado aioli and leaf lettuce. Pretty excellent way to end the three day weekend.

Next up: Cinnamon Rolls

Tuesday, June 30, 2009

Monday Night


Look at those bully butts!

Charlie and I got to hang out with J and Bella last night for some Bachelorette action. Fun times were had by all.

Thoughts from last night's episode:

*Why is Wes still around?
*How did Michael suddenly get so impossibly cute? (whispers) "I'll miss you." And now he's gone!
*Kiptyn is without a shirt approximately 1/3 to 1/2 of the time.
*Jesse's family has a winery AND a rock band. NICE!
*Wes is a tool.
*Hotel confrontations make for good tv.
*Balcony crying scenes two seasons in a row...way to go ABC.
*Ed is back. Go Team Ed!! You've got some making up to do, buddy.
*Reid has nice glasses that he should wear more often.
*Wes is a giant tool.

Saturday, June 27, 2009

Bread Baker's Apprentice Challenge - Challah

I've been wanting to perfect (or really get started on) my bread baking skills. It seems like my dough never rises right, or the crust browns before the inside is done. I heard about The Bread Baker's Apprentice Challenge over at Pinch My Salt and decided to go for it. The rules are simple:

1.) BUY Peter Reinhart's awesome book The Bread Baker's Apprentice

2.) FOLLOW along with the group by baking one recipe per week

3.) SHARE your successes, failures, tips, photos, etc

4.) ENJOY the fruits of your labor..mmmm...

So I FINALLY got my book in the mail and started today with Week #6 - Challah. It was a good, fairly simple recipe to begin with.

Challah is a traditional Jewish yeast bread made with eggs. The dough turned out beautifully and the color was awesome with the addition of 2 eggs/2 egg yolks.

Two rounds of kneading meant the dough was silky smooth by the time it came around to forming the loaf.

It took right at an hour to rise during the first fermentation period. The second went a bit quicker, and I knew it was working when the big bubbles started to form during the second rising. One reason for me to not curse this heat wave: bread dough loves heat and humidity.
After separating the risen dough into six sections I rolled and braided. It's harder than I thought to roll springy, risen dough. It worked best to start in the middle of each section and move my hands away from one another at the same time while rolling.

I made one big and one small braid, and placed the smaller on top of the bigger to make the Celebration Loaf. Brushed the entire thing with an egg wash to make the crust crispy and golden and let it proof for a little longer. Traditionally, just before baking, you would sprinkle the top with seeds to symbolize manna from heaven. I was fresh out of poppy and sesame seeds thought, so I used a little bit of kosher salt to give the crust a nice flavor and a little sparkly texture.

I was surprised at how much bigger it got during baking! It smelled wonderful and luckily I pulled it out at just the right time. The recipe said bake 20 minutes, rotate the loaf, and continue baking 20 to 40 additional minutes. I pulled mine after approximately 27 minutes total. Really need to get an instant read thermometer, but I just took a guess at it's doneness by the look of the crust, and it was perfect!

The crumb turned out really well too. Very soft and springy with good uniformity and no gigantic air-pocket holes.

The BF and I slathered it with butter (and a bit of honey on our second pieces). For my first venture, I'd call it a success!
Next up: Ciabatta

Thursday, June 25, 2009

Finding Your Glasses



How much do I love Regina Spektor? This much <---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------> ...and more.

She just released a new album titled Far, and like her previous, it is magical. I can definitely hear a little influence from her recent work with Ben Folds.

I heard a great interview with Regina on NPR's Morning Edition this morning, in which she talks about singing in the shower, forgetting the lyrics, and finding "glasses" at an early age that opened up Beatles songs to her in an entirely new way.

Listen to the interview in it's entirety here. Her new song Eet will give you chills.

(photo courtesy Stuart Leech)

Thursday, June 18, 2009

Summer (Etsy) Lovin'

It's been a while since I've made an Etsy wishlist, so I figure it's about time. The following are some of my summer favs...too bad my birthday isn't until December.

First, I need these awesome Boylan Soda Bottle Glasses from YAVA Glass. Perfect for sipping cold drinks on the porch.

Charlie dog needs this summer-citrusy collar from Lucky Fiona.



This beachy little "Heather" oil painting from thisisalliknow reminds me of lazy days at the lake.


I could pack picnic food or some road trip snacks in these eco-friendly and cute reusable snack bags from Waste Not Saks. (Full disclosure: I already bought a couple of these and love them!)


And finally, this breezy, casual toadstool skirt from Made With Love By Hannah would be perfect with a tank top and flip-flops on a hot day.

Wednesday, June 17, 2009

Hello, handsome.

This is my new bike that the BF so sweetly gifted me last weekend. Love, love, LOVE IT! It's a vintage Huffy that even came with the original sales paperwork from 1982. We found it at a crazy antique mall off I-70 and he was convinced that I needed it. He was right.


It's all original, and in really good condition, including tires, seat....


...and this sweet sticker on the fender. I'll probably change a few things out just for the sake of updates and having tires younger than me on it.



Have taken him for a couple of spins around the block though and everything seems to be in excellent working order. I'm guessing it's been garaged for all this time.

Oh new bike, you and I have some good times ahead.

Thursday, June 11, 2009

I Want to Like It...


I want to like Bonnaroo. I REALLY want to like it. Even today as I'm reading an article about a family preparing for opening day this evening, I drool slightly at the thought of Bruce Springstein, Bon Iver, Wilco, Snoop Dog, Band of Horses, Neko Case, and Merle Haggard among others playing the same festival over the course of the next four days.

Even the description sounds good: "A four-day, multi-stage camping festival held on a 700-acre farm in Manchester, Tennessee." I like camping. Check. I love music. Check. Tennessee is pretty. Check.

It's just that it's not exactly what the inexperienced Bonnarooian (or anyone, for that matter) would expect. No amount of reading over "Being Here" or "Helpful Tips" articles will fully prepare you. I know. I speak from experience.

June 2007 my friend Sarah and I set off to be free-spirited, happy camper, hippie concertgoers for a long weekend. We loaded up with all the essentials: tent, sleeping bags, food, chairs, clothes, knee high mud boots, PLENTY of sunscreen, concert schedules, baby wipes (because it costs at least $10 to take a shower in a dirty stall, IF you can get in...no joke) and a plethora of other goodies. We made our way across Missouri and through Tennessee, planning what shows we would watch when, and listening to our favorite acts that we would soon see in person.

We made it to Manchester and got into the miles-long, creeping lines of cars headed toward the entrance. No problem, we expected this. We inched along, tuned into Bonnaroo radio, and anticipated what to do once we got camp set up that night. Three hours later we made it to the checkpoint, got our car searched, got wristbanded, and herded in the direction of a camping area. We were still cool, though getting tired and hungry at this point.

Everything we'd read before heading out said to plan on having room to park your car, and approximately the length and width of another car behind your vehicle to set up your stuff. It also said that it was permissable to leave and return in your vehicle once during the weekend. No prob, we thought.

I had assumed that there would be some type of "alleyway" system set up between cars, so that in the event of emergency, you could leave. I assumed wrong, and my slightly claustrophobic self started to FREAK!

We followed the other cars into the field where we would camp, and got directed to the actual spot by volunteers. As cars came to a stop people literally FLEW out of their cars. We didn't quite grasp what they were doing until it was too late. They were staking claim, and before we knew it our "car-sized camping area" became an area barely big enough for our tent directly behind the bumper of my car. We literally had to ask those around us to move some of their crap so that we would have a square big enough for our 4- man tent. We were two rows in, and suddenly realized that there was going to be no way for us to move our car until everyone started leaving four days later. Everywhere we looked, for literally a mile in any direction was a sea of cars, tents, and people. Hmmm....

We set up and headed in the direction of Centeroo, or the area where all the shows happen. We walked a circle, getting our barings about where everything would take place in the next few days and watched a few of the opening acts that evening. One of my favorite things was the Silent Disco. There was a DJ and everyone inside was wearing wireless headphones, dancing to the same music, with club lights flashing. We couldn't hear the music from the outside, but it was pretty great and kind of surreal watching a bunch of people dancing to the same beat that we couldn't hear. Little did we know that this would be a metaphor four our weekend.

We got back to our site at about 9pm. We stopped at a line of one of many Port-a-Potties near our site. These are literally 20 or so stalls in length, and there are probably hundreds of these stations throughout the festival. Already many were surprisingly full and gross, after only four or five hours. We wondered what they would look like two days in, in 90 degree heat. Nonetheless, we powered through that, and brushed our teeth at one of the many communal troughs. We could do this, no prob.

That night we stayed up and talked a bit. We noticed that our neighbors were getting louder and louder, but that's to be expected as everyone was pretty excited about being there. We tried to go to bed at about 11pm, as we'd heard that we would be awake by 8am or so when the temperature started to rise. I read for a bit, put my earplugs in, tried to read some more. The neighbors got louder and louder. They'd been drinking whiskey since our arrival at 7:00pm and I'd hoped that the effects would kick in soon so we could all get some rest. Just then I heard, through my earplugs mind you, one of the guy's say very slurrily "Dude, this stuff is about to knock me out. I think it's time for the smack." For those of you who don't know what I'm talking about...Google it. I sat up, looked at Sarah, she looked back at me, both of us slightly in shock. We knew that there would undoubtedly be drugs there despite all the car checks and stuff; but naiive, clean girls that we are, were still a bit shocked. Before long, our neighbors had started an illegal fire and I was imagining them setting a whole row of tents and cars ablaze in their severely altered state. To the right we had some kids completely out of their minds on who knows what, all of us packed in like refugees, and fire. My claustrophobia started to kick in big time, Sarah's too, and we peeked out to see if there was any way of moving our car to another spot. None. There were two campsites between the nose of my car and a gravel road, which was at the top of a pretty significant incline. People were either asleep or still watching shows, and there was no way of getting through without having at least two groups move their cars and all of their stuff.

Trying not to panic, I attempted to sleep. I dozed off, only to be awakened by our neighbors having an in depth discussion on the pros of DATE RAPE. Literally. I started to wake Sarah up to tell her that we were WALKING ourselves out of this crazy mess when one of the drunken/stoned fools from next door FELL ON TOP OF ME. I was laying in my cot, he fell on the outside of our tent, and I found myself with a complete stranger LAYING ON ME with only A THIN PIECE OF TENT IN BETWEEN US!! He apologized overly profusely (through the wall of the tent), in the way that only a drunken and stoned idiot can, and I remained awake for the next four hours to protect myself and my sleeping tent mate from certain death.

Somewhere around 4am, our neighbors (if you can even call them that at this point) passed out all over their site, and I eventually drifted off.

At 6am I woke up to Sarah shaking my cot. "Cara! CARA!! We've got to get out of here. SERIOUSLY." Apparently she had awakened to someone loudly revisiting all of the beverage they had drank the night before...right by her head on the other side of the tent wall. Some how I had slept through that one.

We stumbled outside as the sun was slightly above the horizon to all kinds of carnage. People passed out in chairs, people sleeping on top of their cars. Wrappers, bottles, cans, cold hot dogs, strewn about like casualties. Miraculously, though, the car nearest the road, and all of their camping equipment was gone. Apparently their night had been much like ours, and they had bailed because they could. Sarah and I didn't even have to speak. We began breaking down the tent, and throwing stuff into the back of the car as if it were an Olympic sport. When we were packed up we made our way to the campsite standing between us and sweet freedom. Inside a mosquito netted shade tent to the left was a 20 something, passed out on his back, shirtless, with a chest covered in yellow American cheese slices. Not. Even. Kidding.

Trying to ignore this we gently roused the tent between us and the road. We offered to help them move all their stuff if we could somehow just get enough space to drive to the road. Luckily they agreed. When that path opened up we hopped in my car, gunned it up the hill, and after two attempts on the grass slick with morning dew (and likely some Jim Beam) we made it to the road and didn't look back. We drove into town, grabbed some breakfast, and tried to find a hotel room anywhere in town, planning on using day parking for the shows. There were none. No hotel rooms in the area. We discussed for a while, and eventually ended up squeezing our hands out of the wrist bracelets that we'd exchanged for our tickets, and sold them to some scalper on the side of the road for $75 apiece.

Yes. I am a Bonnaroo quitter.

It still bums me out that it all happened that way, but at the time we could not imagine going back in there, and possibly getting stuck again, for three more days.

Don't get me wrong. I LOVE music, and I know I would have loved the shows. This was not one of my finer moments, but I can't say that I would honestly change our ultimate decision if faced with the same situation again. Call me a pansy, but by fully plumbed bathroom and stoner-free bed had never looked as good as they did when we got home that night.

For all of you making your way this year, I wish you good weather, good music, good neighbors and if need be, sell your firstborn for a campsite next to the road.

(photo courtesy kloppster)

Wednesday, June 10, 2009

Last Day Dream [HD] from Chris Milk on Vimeo.



Wow.

UHP: Photo Update!

The plants are growing like, well I'd say weeds, but that just seems inappropriate.

I did manage to grab a few photos in between thunderstorms yesterday. I feel a little like a proud mother.


Here's my tomato. Check those yellow blossoms! Ripe, red tomatoes are on their way!



This is one of the herb planters. Clockwise from the top I've got chives in the back, basil off the right side, rosemary in the front, a tiny sprig of sage that's hanging on to the left and in the middle the mint that's BLOWING UP! I've been putting a few sprigs of mint in with the tea bags and sugar before pouring the boiling water over it for sweet tea. Mmmm!


Here's a big, beautiful lavender blossom with some long, lanky dill in the background. I'm going to try to make some lavender chocolate chip cookies similar to the one's at Eden Alley Cafe.


Here are my accidental squash from "The Butternut Incident" . They're still in their pots on the porch for a couple more days. You can probably see the white shoot that stretches off the bottom of the page. They're really starting to reach out and grab on to surrounding ground, so I need to get them planted in their permanent home in the yard this weekend. I think the trick is going to be keeping the critters from eating any blossoms off once they're planted. I can't necessarily put up a big fence or even temporary chicken wiring in the yard around it, so not really sure how to handle this. Any suggestions?


Here's a horribly blurry photo of the melons in my egg planters because (**CRASH**) thunder and lightning!!

It was looking pretty ominous so I headed in, and sure enough, the downpour hit a couple of minutes later.