The question we are all secretly asking ourselves...

When I get bored at work, I peruse Craigslist. This is what I found today, under "fitness":

I have lost 20 lbs < convicted_of > 07/11 21:54:41

I am 24, female, 5'6" and I went from 157lbs to 137lbs... I did it very slowly, and i've completely changed my life style. I feel pretty OK about my body now, but I need to get rid of the exxcess flab that still remains- although it's not much.

IS IT BECAUSE I EAT CHEESE?

More easy recipes

This was last night's dinner:



If it looks unimpressive, that's because it is. But despite a distinct lack of fanciness, this is a delicious and really simple meal (providing you have a grill).

Tofu
Prepare firm tofu using your preferred method. For grilled tofu, which was what I made, just slice your tofu brick into long thick strips, brush with olive oil, and place on grill, turning them over when they start getting those nice black grill marks. Then, in a small bowl, cut a generous glob of tahini with lemon juice and minced garlic - stir until tahini becomes liquidy. Remove tofu from grill and top with your sauce.

Carrots
Roll peeled carrots in a mixture of salt, pepper, brown sugar, and cumin. Place directly on the grill, remove when you see grill marks.

Portobello Mushrooms
Brush mushrooms with olive oil, sprinkle with thyme, grill until done.

From the New York Times' 101 Fast Recipes for Grilling

Old update

Meant to post this a while ago, but uploading lots of pictures is kind of a bitch, you know?

Anyway. A few weekends ago I spent a lovely Saturday with friends in Litchfield County, CT. We stopped at a carnival and the best grocery store ever before our final destination of Lake Warmaug in Kent. We had a delicious picnic, consisting of raspberries, ginger peach soda, kombucha (new favorite thing), smoked mango salsa with flatbread crackers, and a very special watermelon. The next day, my family and I drove up to some crazy place in upstate New York to visit my brother at camp. The difference? On Sunday, I brought a camera.

Always. Bring. A camera.

This was where we stopped for lunch:











Periscope geese









The drive up









Neve's Taxidermy



















Final destination

WWII meets Lady GaGa

I don't know who did this, but I need it to be made into a poster so I can buy it and hang it in my dorm/in my cubicle/everywhere.



Speaking of things that are completely irreverent, I had an idea for a movie. It is going to be called "3D Vampires in a Recession." I don't know what it will be about, but it will make a shit ton of money.

I lied...

Har. Like I actually sleep at night...

Anyway, this is my new favorite thing ever.


Stuff No One Told Me

In the artist's own words, "Think of me as a wise LOLcat."

Food for thought

Spent most of today thinking about this:

--> WSJ on hermeticism

Spent most of tonight listening to/thinking about this:

--> Arthur Zajonc on meditation

That's it for now. Goodnight!

African Fractals

I still don't understand fractals, but holy shit this is so cool (and this is coming from someone who despises math and still has trouble with addition and subtraction).



EDIT: Here have another one, Ken Robinson on why schools kill creativity:

Reporting to you live from United States of Amerifunk

So, for those of you who've been living in a cave, I've recently (like, since the Olympics, there is some logic here...) aquired a somewhat disturbingly avid interest in professional figure skating, specifically Johnny Weir and his utterly ridiculous and adorable reality show. The 2 hour Olympic season finale of Be Good Johnny Weir is on Sunday, and promises to be equal parts heartbreaking (spoiler: HE WAS ROBBED) and lolarious as usual.



I. Can't. Wait.

Also, Viacheslav Romanov is apparently commentating during the Olympics. She is probably one of my favorite parts of the show, and I know that the main theme of this episode is what is Johnny doing now that's he's kinda old-ish for a figure skater and hasn't medalled, and all I can think is VIACHESLAV COMMENTATING AT SOCHI. Seriously. Needs to happen.

If you are unfamiliar with the exploits of Viacheslav:



In short, this show is awesome and so is Princess J, and I highly recommend you watch it. There's a marathon of Season 1 on Sundance Channel tomorrow, and then the finale is Sunday at 9:00 EST.

До свидания, and see you there.

I will never stop talking about this wedding

Pictures and stories from my cousin's wedding, from the wedding planner's blog

Daily Dose of Escapism

Places I would like to go.

Starting with where I'm at...


Barnard (I think this was Nicole?)


New York City/Central Park (Also Nicole? Or Yooni? Halp?)


Spain (me!)


Italy


Seattle (indigo_umbrella)


Coney Island (mausumi)


(mausumi)


Montmartre, Paris






San Francisco (Vanessa)


(Vanessa)


Vallee du Loire


But, most of all (at least for now)






Iceland (all by _applescruff_)

(Note: All of these are pictures (save one) I've saved from random corners of the internet. Unfortunately, I am notoriously bad at remembering to label the pictures I save. None of these images are mine (except for one!) - if they are yours or you know whose photos they are and they're not labeled, please let me know)

Thanks, Pandora!

My boss recently gave me permission to listen to music at work, and it's made my life about a gazillion times better. Here are today's new finds and new favorites.







PS If you want to friend me on Pandora, I'm (predictably) XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX. I'm still working out the kicks, but I will say that my Lady GaGa/Reggeton/Southern Rap/Dance Hall station is perfection.

Summer 2010

Um. So. I'm back. There are some reasons why I left, mostly starting college and becoming gradually more uncomfortable whipping out my camera in public, and there are some reasons I'm back, namely not wanting to spam my personal journal with random photos of food/craftiness/whatever. But I won't get too too much into that.

Hey look, some food!

Last night I made Nutella Cookies with Chocolate Chips and Chopped Hazelnuts.


Batter up!




The finished product




All packed up and ready to be shipped out.

And then, today was father's day!

Easy peasy and delicious way to prepare grilled veggies: combine olive oil, lemon juice, cilantro, and a sprinkle of salt and pepper. Brush the mixture over your veggies of choice and you're ready to go!

Before:


After:



I guarantee this is the best salmon garnish you will ever taste in your life. And it's so easy to make! Pulse half a red onion, zest of one orange, juice of half an orange, 1 tbsp fresh lime juice, 2 large cloves of garlic, 3/4 cup FRESH parsley (it must be fresh or this will fail miserably), 3 tbsp olive oil, salt, and pepper in a blender (don't go crazy - ingredients should be combined but not mushy, you should still be able to see chunks of red onion). Spread on top of your salmon, and serve some on the side in case people want more (trust me, they will). IT. TASTES. SO. GOOD.

Before:


After:


Final product:


And for dessert, we had (store bought) strewbarb (strawberry rhubarb, that is) pie with cool whip.


And for those of us on diets, substitute fresh berries for the pie (and be prepared to stain your teeth)


Yields: one happy family (or, at the very least, a full one)



Welcome back, bitches.

(I know I look like a hot mess, but it was 90 freaking degrees out. Couldn't be helped)