Getting a jump on things, stamps.

     Haven't updated since autumn. I'm not going to try to fill in all of that blank time, so instead, I'm getting a jump on summer. I changed the backgrounds around to the summer theme today, although it is not yet officially summer. I'm not waiting until June 21st to make the change. Summer to me is in months--June, July, August. Although in metro DC land, it's June through October, really. I shouldn't complain--Spring 2011 hasn't been too bad at all. More rain than usual, but we don't nearly have the tumultuous weather that much of the rest of the country is experiencing. I did watch a special on NOVA about tornadoes a few weeks ago, though (you can probably catch it on Hulu if you were so inclined), and they reported about an F4 tornado that hit the town of La Plata, Maryland in 2002. La Plata is about 35 miles south of DC. The expert on NOVA said that if the storm were about 50 miles north, it would have wrecked DC beltway to beltway. I hope that, in this year of increasingly violent weather, we do not approach anything like that scenario. Storms aside, the temperatures haven't really passed the mid 70's. As I type, my computer reports a temperature of 66 degrees, which is comfortably cool to me. I just looked up the forecast for next week, and I saw the temperature 85 coming up--I knew the heat wouldn't stay away for long.

     I decided to pick up posting today because I wanted to write about my experience buying stamps online, and I figured it would be too long to tweet or post on Facebook. I went to the USPS Stamp Store Online, and the variety of forever stamp designs was very tempting. I added a few to my online cart, and before I knew it, I was up to $65. In stamps! The most I usually mail are my holiday cards, and I'll probably purchase holiday stamps for that time. I'm sure in my life, I'll probably use that many stamps, but did I really need to buy that many right now? No. I did enjoy the designs, though. Jazz, American Scientists, Flora and Fauna, Green Living Tips, The Year of the Rabbit. I did buy the Green Living and Year of the Rabbit ones. I also bought 10 of the Comics collection and 10 of the Adopt-A-Pet collection. I should be set on stamps. I was disappointed that the Simpsons collection is no longer being sold, though. I did enjoy mailing in expensive bills with Bart Simpson's outward-sticking tongue on the front.

     In other news, have you ever bought something that you just absolutely loved? I just did on Thursday:


Calvin Klein Sheer Ribbed Drapefront Cardigan
Seriously, I love it fiercely. I'm pretty sure it doesn't "do anything" for me--it doesn't accent my silhouette or my shape and it doesn't make me look slim. I don't intend to hide in it, though, either. I look at myself in a mirror and hear the chastisements of What Not to Wear hosts in my head, but I can't bring myself to care. I feel like I've been looking for this cardigan for a long time, and now that I have it, I'm satisfied. And I'm okay with that!

I've been considering eating a bean.

     Garbanzo beans, to be exact. I don't like beans as a rule of thumb. I try to, but the texture kind of grosses me out. I can take it for a few spoonfuls, but I usually end up not liking bean-made things before I get halfway through. This is a terrible sin, though! Lots of amazing-sounding things are made with beans. Like chili! Chili sounds awesome in theory, but I just can't do it. I've had a bean breakthrough recently, however. Hummus. Local to DC, Whole Foods carries the Cava Mezze brand of Hummus, and their regular and roasted garlic versions are delicious. It's considerably better than the Whole Foods house brand, and tastier than versions I've ordered in restaurants. It's the best, and I eat it every day while I'm making dinner. I figure there are worst dips to frequent.

So, hummus is made from garbanzo beans. Could I like garbanzo beans? I recently watched Giada make a frito misto, and she included deep-fried garbanzo beans, and to listen to she and her guest, they were an extra special treat. Are garbanzos the magic bean that I've been looking for? (Side bar, my spell checker says garbanzos is "garbanzos" and not "garbanzoes". But isn't potatoes "potatoes" and not "potatos"? Does the consonant-vowel-ES rule not apply here? If so, why not? Pronunciation issues? Do we fear that people will start calling them "garbanz-ZOOEYS"? Like Zooey Deschanel? End side bar.)

Last night, I had a dream, possibly a nightmare. I ate garbanzo beans, and they were just as distasteful to me as other legumes. This morning, I woke with my continued prejudices against all beans including garbanzo. I thought, "Remember that time I ate them and didn't like them?" and then I realized that I dreamt that and it NEVER HAPPENED.

Conclusions? (1) I worry about silly things too much that they break into my subconscious. (2) Dream tastes are not the same as real tastes, and I should go out and try garbanzos. (3) Hummus is still awesome.

Back to school!

     I have two brothers. One is 18, eight years younger than me. We'll call him Ron Weasley. Ron is starting college this year, going to his sister's alma mater at a satellite campus. I did the same. He moved on to campus on August 20, and I have to tip my hat to him. As an 18-year-old freshman, I was way too scared to move out of the house. I'm proud of the kid. With a little help, he's going to be something really cool, and I'm glad that I could help.

     My other brother is 16, ten years younger than me. We'll call him Tuna (as he would prefer). He's starting his sophomore year in the same high school that I attended. I'm also proud of him, because he's doing much better than I ever did.

     There's something about back-to-school time that really makes me want to have a home-cooked dinner, and if I could have my way, it would be my mom's pasta. Once upon a time, she had a really nice set of pasta serving dishes. I don't think they were expensive, but they made pasta night feel really authentic. They were red, white, and green, and they had an Italian guy in the middle, harvesting something, and they said "Italy." I think. See, I can't quite remember, because they are about ten years old and they keep breaking. I've since bought my mom a replacement set, but they are more cute than authentic Italian, and not quite the same.

     Right now, though, Williams-Sonoma has a very nice set of pasta serving plates available.


Italian Recipe 5-Piece Pasta Set
These plates are "[...] Offering an authentic taste of Italy's regional cuisines, our limited-edition bowls are adorned with artwork by painter Marc Lacaze. They showcase five colorful collages, each combining original watercolor images of local architecture and ingredients with a classic Italian pasta recipe. Embellished with hand-painted borders, these versatile bowls are perfect for serving everything from pasta, risotto or polenta to your favorite salads and homemade stews. Four recipe cards are included with the set." I don't think I could have said it better. I saw them in person at my local Williams-Sonoma, and they are just lovely. While not being exactly what my mom had, they're a pretty quality replacement, and a set that I'd love to call my own.

     With comforting ideas of a long day at school followed by a tasty dinner, I wish all back-to-schoolers a great year.

Wait a minute, it's still August, right?

     I think I've made it pretty clear that I love the fall holidays just as much as the next guy. Probably more than the next guy, even, but fall has a feeling that I mostly attribute to the cooler weather. My friends, the temperature in DC is still in the 90s, so it is driving some very conflicting emotions within me to walk into one of my favorite stores, World Market, and see this:



World Market's Fall Theme, "Harvest Market."

and this:


A display of fall-themed leaves and owls.

and this:


Fall wreathes and tins of various candy barks.

and especially this!:


Bags of already-roasted pumpkin seeds.
Why do you tease me so, stores? Do you think I want it to be summer still, hot and sticky? Do you think that I do not long to turn my oven back on, to start making soups and stews again, to start baking spicy things to warm my apartment? I can't even buy a pumpkin for making jack-o-lanturns yet, let alone roast the pumpkin's byproducts into tasty treats. Seriously, I still have a watermelon on my kitchen table at home.

     Yankee Candle and Bath and Body Works have also already begun to taunt me by releasing products aimed at the Halloween season. Yankee Candle has fully released the new pieces in their usual "Boney Bunch" collection. Although I'm not particular to those pieces, I do really like their "Haunted House" collection.


The "Yankee Manor" Haunted Mansion Multi Tea Light Holder and "Dreadful Drip" 12-inch Taper Candles
Although I don't own either of them, I really like both of these products. The "Dreadful Drip" 12-inch candles are a Yankee Candle classic. When you start to burn them, the wax below is red, and as the candle burns, the red wax drips, giving the candle a bleeding effect. It's really cool and kind of creepy. I like the Haunted Mansion tea light holder, because it looks like it could cast some really great shadows.

     Bath and Body Works's too-early contribution to the Halloween celebration is a little smaller.


A Halloween assortment of Pocketbac Deep Cleansing Hand Gels
Scents from left to right: Zombie Squad (White, Marshmallow); Bat Bite (Green, Green Apple);
Vampire Blood (Red, Plum); Spider's Web (Black, Licorice); and Candy Corn (Orange, Caramel)
I'm going to pick up one or more of these this weekend. Probably Candy Corn. BUT! I'm going to save it until at least mid-September, and probably longer. Autumn does not begin until September 23rd this year, and in DC, it is going to be warm up to and probably past that date. As much as I'd like to pull out my sweaters, I probably couldn't bear it. Until the weather cools, unfortunately, my excitement over autumn must cool as well.

All Days are Night: A Concert Review

     On Saturday, August 7, 2010, I had the pleasure of attending a concert held by Rufus Wainwright at the Strathmore Music Center in Bethesda, MD. Many of my friends know that I am a long time fan of Rufus Wainwright. I discovered him on the soundtrack to the film Shrek. One of the sadder moments of the film features Leonard Cohen singing his amazing song, "Hallelujah." The soundtrack of Shrek features Rufus Wainwright's cover of that song. Shrek came out in 2001, which would have placed it right in the middle of my grand love affair with the piano, and there was "Hallelujah," a gorgeous and artistic piano ballad. I fell in love, used the music-finding software of the time to find Rufus's second album, Poses, and the rest is history. I am going on a ten-year relationship with Rufus Wainwright.

     A very good friend of mine attended the concert with me. Parking at Strathmore was a dream, which eased my nerves. Parking in DC has the potential to be a wreck waiting to happen, but Strathmore uses the Metro parking lot, so everything went smoothly. I must mention this--the auditorium of the music center is very pretty. Everything is made out of a light wood stain, the seats are comfortable--any concert is a pleasure to see in that auditorium.

     A big disappointment was the starting time. The tickets said that the show started at 8pm, so I assumed that is when I should aim for arriving. However, although we arrived about ten minutes prior to 8pm, we found the opening act already in progress. Rufus Wainwright's sister, Martha Wainwright, was the opening act. She is a shining example of what is wrong with music today. The woman is so freaking talented. She has a lovely voice and creativity to spare, and she's not famous. She should be, and it is a sin that she isn't. I especially appreciate what she brings to the background vocals of Rufus's studio albums. She is his go-to female accompaniment, and I can't accuse it of being sheer nepotism. When Rufus performs some songs alone, I often wish Martha's voice was there too. She adds so much to a song with so little effort. Anywho, Martha had started way before 8pm, so we only caught the tail end of her act. I wish I would have known that she was starting earlier, because I would have loved to see more of her.

     Rufus's part of the show began with his latest album, All Days are Nights: Songs for Lulu (above), being played straight through as a piece of performance art. To accompany the lone musician and his piano, the stage was dark with the exception of a projection screen behind him. Artistic depictions similar to the cover art of the latest album played on the screen while he played, and he requested no applause between songs. It was a requiem for his mother, the exceptionally talented Kate McGarrigle, who was ill during the making of this album, and who passed away shortly after the album's release. The performance was dark, sad, beautiful, and touching.

     After a brief intermission, he returned to a more positively lit stage to perform songs from his other albums. During this portion of the show, I really felt like he was playing just for me, because he chose a few of my very favorites, including "Beauty Mark," "La Complainte de la Butte" (which he recorded for the soundtrack of Moulin Rouge!), "Cigarettes and Chocolate Milk," "The Art Teacher," "Poses," and of course, his ever famous cover of "Hallelujah." It was nice to see him, bright and smiling in an orange and coral colored suit on a stage of candles, playing these songs that made me so happy over the last decade. It made remember a person I used to be, who was very different than who I am now. It made me remember feeling like I had art inside of me to share, and it made me remember being desperate for love. It was quite a nostalgic experience. Rufus's performance is so precise and superb lately, too, that, paying attention to technicality, you can hardly tell differences from his recordings to his live performances.

     Rufus ended the show by covering a song of his mother's called "The Walking Song." It was a pretty and simple folk love song, and he performed it with such sensitivity--I'm sure everyone was moved. I left that night feeling sad and sweet, for my past and for Rufus and Martha. Unbeknown-st to them, we've been through a lot together.

     Please note that this post contains product links using Amazon Associates. Should enough people click the links and make purchases, I would get paid. Amazon Associates pays once your clicks equal $10; in my entire history with the program, I currently have about $3, so I have never been paid yet, lol. The biggest reason I use Amazon Associates is so that I don't have to use my own personal server space for image hosting when I refer to products, and to ensure proper and unbroken links for archiving purposes.

Let Dinner Tonight text you dinner ideas!

     This is quite possibly the coolest and most helpful thing I've seen in a while. Martha Stewart's Everyday Food magazine has a new text messaging service called Dinner Tonight by SMS. If you sign up for this service, the kind folks at Dinner Tonight will text you a recipe title every day. This is where the service gets cool. You don't like the title? Delete the text. It never came, and you can forget about it. You do like the title? Sounds like it might be tasty?


Dinner Tonight by SMS
Reply with the word "cook". The text messaging service will then text you a shopping list and email you a copy of the recipe. This means that I'm sitting at my desk, it's 5pm, and I'm wondering, "What am I going to make for dinner when I get home?" Boom, a text message with a recipe titled Penne with Two Tomatoes and Mozzarella. Sounds tasty, I think, and I reply. Boom, there's my shopping list, and I can mentally tick off what I have at home versus what I have to pick up from the store (mozzarella). I stop at the store, pick up my cheese, and when I get home, I sign on and have the recipe there, 20 minutes to make, and dinner's on the table.

     The recipes have all been about 20 minutes cook and prep time, too. It's really a brilliant service, and I am looking forward to the quick recipes that it will share. If you're interested and have a cell phone (no smart phones necessary), I suggest you try this out as well.

EDIT: As of 8/1/2012, This service is no longer available. Sorry, non-smart phone users!

Quick Post: Williams Sonoma Sale!

     Although it is currently 92 degrees outside here in DC, I must give all the heads up regarding an email I just received. Williams Sonoma online is having a 75% off summer sale, and when I browsed over to see what they were offering, I found something I had to have:





Essential Oils Collection in the scent of Spiced Chestnut
     I posted about this set last October, but didn't pick it up then. The original price of that set was upwards of $35. If you catch it soon, you can also pick it up for $14.99. I can't wait for fall to come--I'm already fully stocked and ready to enjoy it.

Holiday Ro o o o o o o o o oad!

     I just got back from a really great family vacation in the Outer Banks, NC. I'd never been there before, but after a week there, I know I'd go back. It's more laid back than other beaches I've visited, but it's got some great little gems that are really worth the attention. It was a great week. Five straight days off of work, read a good book, got some sunburn, but at least my skin saw the sun! Working in an office leaves me paler than pale usually, so I'm really happy I got some color. I know about the health concerns, but like I said, I see sun so rarely, I think my skin will be able to repair the 51 other weeks out of the year that I hide indoors.



     My top five picks for fun at OBX:

1. Duck Donuts: If you haven't had these, I'd almost urge you to drop everything and drive to OBX for them. Best. donut. ever.
   
2. SunScents: My husband and I actually had the chance to talk to the owner of the store and creator of the candles. He was a great guy. He recommended Burt's Bees Carrot Body Lotion for my sunburn, and said that all of the locals prefer it to Burt's Bees After Sun lotion. Also, he said that he tries to make sure that the products in his store are made in the U. S., which my husband and I respect. The candles smelled really good, too. I got one for my mom--don't tell her!
   
3. ALL Beach shops in general. I love beach shops, ankle bracelets, and shell jewelry.
   
4. Billy's Seafood. This place is brilliant. You're at the beach all day and tired, you'd like to eat dinner at your beach house, but you don't feel like cooking. Anything. Take a trip to Billy's Seafood in Collington, order yourself some already-steamed crab legs for under $10 a pound, take it home and feast. If you like blue crabs, call a few days ahead. Their steamed shrimp was also excellent, and you can't beat their price or quality on steamed crab legs at any restaurant.
   
5. Scarborough Faire Shopping Village: I'm a window shopper, and this place was lovely. Off the roads, there's wooden walkways and a ton of shops.
   

     If you'd like to view a couple of pictures that I snapped, I placed an album here.

Rain, rain, rain.

     It's getting warm lately, and humid. With the summer months come thunderstorms, and they surely appear to be getting close and soon.






Photo One is a picture of ducks in my in-laws' back yard in State College. Photo Two is a stormy afternoon in DC.
To quote my mother, it is weather for the ducks. I'm glad I found rain boots.

FYI...

     Yes, my purse is supposed to be a panda.







My husband got it for me for my birthday. :)
I'm answering this question because I'm getting it often lately.