I'll be in New Orleans until next Thursday for a family vacation! Woooo! Here's to hoping I don't get horribly sick of all my relatives too quickly! Already dreaming of beignets. avec un cafe creme peut-etre? je le manque immensement, le cafe francais! mais tant pis, il y a des coffee bean and tea leafs ici en la californie, alors on ne peut pas plaindre. maybe i'll get to brush up on my french this week in Nola, though I don't know if the french down in La Nouvelle Orleans is too different from the french i know. i mean, french canadians are like a huge mystery to me as far as their language is concerned (a mix of modern french, pre-revolutionary french, and english. like the friction alkool!) so we'll see how New Orleans French compares. i should definitely be doing more french things this break so i don't forget everything. i must have a book in french around here someplace.
Ok then, off to sleep before my early flight tomorrow! A plus tard!
Monday, December 27, 2010
Sunday, December 26, 2010
weekend
spent the day at e's helping her cook for the twenty family members she's expecting tomorrow. together we chopped up and then caramelized 13 onions to make onion tarts. a labor of love, let me tell you. love and onion-tears. mixed the caramelized onions with eggs, nutmeg, salt and pepper and put them in pie shells, topped with kalamata olives and baked. mmmm! then we watched easy a, after eating some trader joe's veggie pizza. surprisingly funny movie, and it was pretty cute. has this guy in it http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0046112/, like every teen romance movie ever, but he's super cute so i'm not complaining. if only he were more keatsian, then we'd be talking. it was great to see e and catch up after so long, hadn't seen her since summer. she gave me a mix cd which im excited to rock out to later.
been planning my etsy a lot, so many ideas it's hard to know what's a feasible of amount of projects to actually aim to get on there, and where to draw the line of whether the project would be worth the labor and process for the price i would get for it on etsy. i definitely need some stash busting projects since i have like 8 skeins of lime green yarn and a bunch of other random colors. smhm would tell me to make 10000000 lime green coasters. she would LOVE that. currently watching house and needlepointing, and one of the characters asked house, "why do you try so hard to not be human?" very interesting question, i think that's probably something we all struggle with. trying so hard to extend ourselves, be all we can be, push push push ourselves, reject normalcy, reject adequacy, strive for more. sometimes that's good. sometimes we all just need to chill the fuck out and take a power nap. that's my life philosophy. finally understand that after 4 years of hopkins and before that 4 years in a crazy demanding magnet program, constantly berating myself for not doing better, not getting the grades i felt i deserved and not achieving every single thing i set out to. but you know what? that shit doesn't really matter. i mean, of course it does, but not nearly as much as my academic institutions had me believe/would continue to have me believe. and also, i am doing pretty well, so i don't need to stress so much. thanks for liberating me, house reruns. awesome.
in other news, linzer cookies are soooo good. i should make some with the lingonberry jam we have back in baltimore. yummm! my brother told me he had a piece of gooseberry pie last night. first of all, what is a gooseberry? second of all, where did he go at 1 am on xmas eve night and find an open restaurant serving exotic pies? why, dupar's of course. you can always depend on diners, that's another life philosophy. power naps, diner's, humus, yogurt, crafting, and bear hugs. yup.
been planning my etsy a lot, so many ideas it's hard to know what's a feasible of amount of projects to actually aim to get on there, and where to draw the line of whether the project would be worth the labor and process for the price i would get for it on etsy. i definitely need some stash busting projects since i have like 8 skeins of lime green yarn and a bunch of other random colors. smhm would tell me to make 10000000 lime green coasters. she would LOVE that. currently watching house and needlepointing, and one of the characters asked house, "why do you try so hard to not be human?" very interesting question, i think that's probably something we all struggle with. trying so hard to extend ourselves, be all we can be, push push push ourselves, reject normalcy, reject adequacy, strive for more. sometimes that's good. sometimes we all just need to chill the fuck out and take a power nap. that's my life philosophy. finally understand that after 4 years of hopkins and before that 4 years in a crazy demanding magnet program, constantly berating myself for not doing better, not getting the grades i felt i deserved and not achieving every single thing i set out to. but you know what? that shit doesn't really matter. i mean, of course it does, but not nearly as much as my academic institutions had me believe/would continue to have me believe. and also, i am doing pretty well, so i don't need to stress so much. thanks for liberating me, house reruns. awesome.
in other news, linzer cookies are soooo good. i should make some with the lingonberry jam we have back in baltimore. yummm! my brother told me he had a piece of gooseberry pie last night. first of all, what is a gooseberry? second of all, where did he go at 1 am on xmas eve night and find an open restaurant serving exotic pies? why, dupar's of course. you can always depend on diners, that's another life philosophy. power naps, diner's, humus, yogurt, crafting, and bear hugs. yup.
Friday, December 24, 2010
academic validation
all my grades except one have come up on the registrar website thing. so far, im feeling very validated! woooo! all my sleepless nights, stress and crazy zombieness are paying off. what's up dean's list, nice to see you again! (unless i fail cognition....which is unlikely, but you never know)
to celebrate, i ate a bowl of sugar-free, fat-free vanilla ice cream. nice shopping parents! that's not a pointless, bland excuse for ice cream at all! (mental note to introduce my mom to skinny cow bars) it wasn't that bad actually, but i covered it in rainbow sprinkles. fat-free dairy i'm all good with, skim milk all the way, but sugar-free anything tastes like splenda or the blue sugarthing in coffee...blegh! my dad likes the blue sugarthing. it's disgusting.
now im drinking a cup of verbena mint tea with raw honey in it, crocheting something new on the couch and watching curb your enthusiasm. winter break, i love you. have my babies! i'll have your babies! i'll do your laundry! i love you!
to celebrate, i ate a bowl of sugar-free, fat-free vanilla ice cream. nice shopping parents! that's not a pointless, bland excuse for ice cream at all! (mental note to introduce my mom to skinny cow bars) it wasn't that bad actually, but i covered it in rainbow sprinkles. fat-free dairy i'm all good with, skim milk all the way, but sugar-free anything tastes like splenda or the blue sugarthing in coffee...blegh! my dad likes the blue sugarthing. it's disgusting.
now im drinking a cup of verbena mint tea with raw honey in it, crocheting something new on the couch and watching curb your enthusiasm. winter break, i love you. have my babies! i'll have your babies! i'll do your laundry! i love you!
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Current Craft Projects
Things I have Done Today:
1. woke up at 1 pm
2. made coffee
3. messed up in making the coffee which then leaked all over the counter and the floor
4. cleaned up coffee leak disaster
5. made toast
6. prayed to the weather gods to make it stop raining. it's been raining since I got home Friday. IT WILL NOT STOP. no sunshine. sad california weather. Here's a gratuitous shot of my backyard being bombarded by the downpour. Maybe you can't see the giant raindrops in the picture, but believe me, it's a deluge. We only get weather systems like this once every 12-15 years, a series of rainstorms coming in off the pacific one after another and another. grrrr please stop!
7. decided to blog!
8. then decided to eat a cookie first.
9. watched grey's anatomy reruns on lifetime. yuuppppp.
10. spent forever getting all these pictures into this post, seriously they should invent a simpler way to do this. jebus!
So, here are some of my current craft projects. Some are done and some are in-progress. Many are in Balitmore, which means they won't appear on this blog till I'm back there mid-january.
Finished Projects:
Flower Decorated Throw Pillows
-technique: felt pillows embroidered with cotton yarn, "yoyo" cloth flowers (i'll do a tutorial on them someday) with vintage button centers, backed with a patterned wool fabric, and a crochet trim. (the little one doesn't have the crochet trim yet but let's just imagine.)
Grandpa Scarf
-technique: crochet, alternating rows of double and single crochet stitches. Creates a nice, simple, gender-neutral/slightly masculin scarf. Good for Grandpas, Brothers, Boyfriends, Dads, whomevers!
Lace Scarf
- technique: crochet open-work lace mesh stitch with flower decoration at the edges. Followed a pattern by Drops Crochet,
link: http://www.garnstudio.com/lang/en/visoppskrift.php?d_nr=104&d_id=11&lang=us
Grey Beanie
- just a little crocheted hat i made at some point while in france. don't remember the stitch, but looks like I used double crochet clusters.
In-Progress Projects:
Granny-square Baby Blanket for baby Charlotte
My cousin Shayna had a baby in September! The first of the new generation, it's very exciting!!! Shayna is 12 years older than me, she was the first to get married and then the first to have a baby. So, I'm making baby Charlotte a little blanket, especially because her great-grandma, my grandma's sister Freda, isn't here to crochet anymore and I'm sure she would have already crocheted and sewed that little girl an entire warddrobe. technique is crochet granny squares.
Rainbow Bobble Afghan
technique: triple crochet clusters. I started this blanket with yarn I bought last year in San Francisco at an amazing craft store, but then ran out of yarn and need to order more before finishing this. It's very warm and colorful, which I like, clearly.
Giant Doily Tablecloth
this one is in Baltimore, but it's going to be very cool. Similar to the thing I made in May for my host parents, but an oblong shape. Here's the pattern: http://www.learn-how-to-crochet.com/doily.html Colors will be teal, dark green, lime green.
1. woke up at 1 pm
2. made coffee
3. messed up in making the coffee which then leaked all over the counter and the floor
4. cleaned up coffee leak disaster
5. made toast
6. prayed to the weather gods to make it stop raining. it's been raining since I got home Friday. IT WILL NOT STOP. no sunshine. sad california weather. Here's a gratuitous shot of my backyard being bombarded by the downpour. Maybe you can't see the giant raindrops in the picture, but believe me, it's a deluge. We only get weather systems like this once every 12-15 years, a series of rainstorms coming in off the pacific one after another and another. grrrr please stop!
7. decided to blog!
8. then decided to eat a cookie first.
9. watched grey's anatomy reruns on lifetime. yuuppppp.
10. spent forever getting all these pictures into this post, seriously they should invent a simpler way to do this. jebus!
So, here are some of my current craft projects. Some are done and some are in-progress. Many are in Balitmore, which means they won't appear on this blog till I'm back there mid-january.
Finished Projects:
Flower Decorated Throw Pillows
-technique: felt pillows embroidered with cotton yarn, "yoyo" cloth flowers (i'll do a tutorial on them someday) with vintage button centers, backed with a patterned wool fabric, and a crochet trim. (the little one doesn't have the crochet trim yet but let's just imagine.)
Grandpa Scarf
-technique: crochet, alternating rows of double and single crochet stitches. Creates a nice, simple, gender-neutral/slightly masculin scarf. Good for Grandpas, Brothers, Boyfriends, Dads, whomevers!
Lace Scarf
- technique: crochet open-work lace mesh stitch with flower decoration at the edges. Followed a pattern by Drops Crochet,
link: http://www.garnstudio.com/lang/en/visoppskrift.php?d_nr=104&d_id=11&lang=us
Grey Beanie
- just a little crocheted hat i made at some point while in france. don't remember the stitch, but looks like I used double crochet clusters.
In-Progress Projects:
Granny-square Baby Blanket for baby Charlotte
My cousin Shayna had a baby in September! The first of the new generation, it's very exciting!!! Shayna is 12 years older than me, she was the first to get married and then the first to have a baby. So, I'm making baby Charlotte a little blanket, especially because her great-grandma, my grandma's sister Freda, isn't here to crochet anymore and I'm sure she would have already crocheted and sewed that little girl an entire warddrobe. technique is crochet granny squares.
Rainbow Bobble Afghan
technique: triple crochet clusters. I started this blanket with yarn I bought last year in San Francisco at an amazing craft store, but then ran out of yarn and need to order more before finishing this. It's very warm and colorful, which I like, clearly.
Giant Doily Tablecloth
this one is in Baltimore, but it's going to be very cool. Similar to the thing I made in May for my host parents, but an oblong shape. Here's the pattern: http://www.learn-how-to-crochet.com/doily.html Colors will be teal, dark green, lime green.
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
Oh Hey World
Oh heeeyyyy world, there you are!!
So after I got back to the US, I stopped blogging. If anyone actually reads this blog, they may have noticed the 6 or 7 month "hiatus." I found that blogging during school was stressful and often I just forgot that I even had a blog. I had to spend way too much time staying up far too late studying, working at my part-time librarian gig, and when not in a completely sleep deprived zombie state of academic stress, I was asleep on our sofa or eating macaroni and cheese. All of this, I realize, is fairly typical of college students, but I just couldn't find the time to blog.
But, as a new years resolution, I aim to start blogging again. This will be my final semester at Hopkins, which is a terrifying, thrilling, daunting and wonderful concept. I'd like to remember it in detail! Also, I aim to get my etsy shop up and running, and I want to use this blog more to document my crafting and as a sounding board for new projects.
Crafting is therapeutic to me, and while some of my friends may know me as their pseudo-grandma who will darn their socks or mittens and is most often found crocheting on the sofa drinking strong tea, I don't see this as odd for a 22 year old at all. Well, maybe for an average 22 year old, but for me, it seems to fit. I am a septuagenarian at heart, I accept this, and I embrace it. This little personality quirk of mine lets me be the creative crafter I am, and I love that. I also consider it an honor to continue in the steps of my late grandmother and great aunt, her sister Freda, who were amazing crafting, spunky old ladies who crocheted and sewed and needle-pointed to the skies and back. They were both absolutely crazy but also wonderful, I miss them very much and like the fact that my hobbies reflect theirs.
This new, second version of this blog (which I hope I really will be able to sustain and post on regularly) will also reflect a new life decision I made recently, or rather a new life path I've chosen to pursue. As an art history major, I thought for a long time that I was going to pursue a PhD in art history after college, with the end goal of either working in a museum, or more likely, writing art criticism for an arts publication like Art Forum or Art News. I recently realized though, that I'm not that interested in research, don't want to get a PhD (at least not that this stage in my life), am not that interested in a career in museums, don't want to spend five years (or more) of my life in a research program that will lead to academic pursuits/academia when I don't want to work in academia and blablabla, basically no more PhD for me. What I am interested in, is design.
Interior design or textile design or surface pattern design, I love it all! I'm applying for internships now, and trying to introduce myself to the field and get a better orientation into the field and figure out how to pursue a career in design. Aaahhhh it feels so good to say it/type it, out loud! I won't apply to any graduate programs this year, because I need to build up my portfolio first and understand the field more before that. I aim to apply to schools next year, for fall 2012 being the start date.
So there you have it, world. My big update!!! It feels pretty good to be blogging again. I'm excited about all these new ventures, albeit slightly overwhelmed, but only slightly, which is probably normal. Let the wild rumpus begin!!!
So after I got back to the US, I stopped blogging. If anyone actually reads this blog, they may have noticed the 6 or 7 month "hiatus." I found that blogging during school was stressful and often I just forgot that I even had a blog. I had to spend way too much time staying up far too late studying, working at my part-time librarian gig, and when not in a completely sleep deprived zombie state of academic stress, I was asleep on our sofa or eating macaroni and cheese. All of this, I realize, is fairly typical of college students, but I just couldn't find the time to blog.
But, as a new years resolution, I aim to start blogging again. This will be my final semester at Hopkins, which is a terrifying, thrilling, daunting and wonderful concept. I'd like to remember it in detail! Also, I aim to get my etsy shop up and running, and I want to use this blog more to document my crafting and as a sounding board for new projects.
Crafting is therapeutic to me, and while some of my friends may know me as their pseudo-grandma who will darn their socks or mittens and is most often found crocheting on the sofa drinking strong tea, I don't see this as odd for a 22 year old at all. Well, maybe for an average 22 year old, but for me, it seems to fit. I am a septuagenarian at heart, I accept this, and I embrace it. This little personality quirk of mine lets me be the creative crafter I am, and I love that. I also consider it an honor to continue in the steps of my late grandmother and great aunt, her sister Freda, who were amazing crafting, spunky old ladies who crocheted and sewed and needle-pointed to the skies and back. They were both absolutely crazy but also wonderful, I miss them very much and like the fact that my hobbies reflect theirs.
This new, second version of this blog (which I hope I really will be able to sustain and post on regularly) will also reflect a new life decision I made recently, or rather a new life path I've chosen to pursue. As an art history major, I thought for a long time that I was going to pursue a PhD in art history after college, with the end goal of either working in a museum, or more likely, writing art criticism for an arts publication like Art Forum or Art News. I recently realized though, that I'm not that interested in research, don't want to get a PhD (at least not that this stage in my life), am not that interested in a career in museums, don't want to spend five years (or more) of my life in a research program that will lead to academic pursuits/academia when I don't want to work in academia and blablabla, basically no more PhD for me. What I am interested in, is design.
Interior design or textile design or surface pattern design, I love it all! I'm applying for internships now, and trying to introduce myself to the field and get a better orientation into the field and figure out how to pursue a career in design. Aaahhhh it feels so good to say it/type it, out loud! I won't apply to any graduate programs this year, because I need to build up my portfolio first and understand the field more before that. I aim to apply to schools next year, for fall 2012 being the start date.
So there you have it, world. My big update!!! It feels pretty good to be blogging again. I'm excited about all these new ventures, albeit slightly overwhelmed, but only slightly, which is probably normal. Let the wild rumpus begin!!!
Sunday, August 22, 2010
Return!
Well, I've been off the airwaves (internet waves?) for quite some time. Ooops!
I enjoyed my time at home, short that it was. LA was filled with seeing old friends, sleeping in, swimming, watermelon, cooking and experimenting in the kitchen, and crafting. I didn't take pictures of anything! So not blogger-y of me! Again, ooops! it was the summer sunshine obscuring my vision, and sense of time. Before I knew it, it was time to return to Baltimore, to do thesis research, theoretically. Well, I've been here for exactly two weeks and not much thesis research has been done, my adviser doesn't seem pleased with that.... but I'm working on it, honestly. Ehh, not too hard I'll admit. I've been having trouble waking up at a decent time and it's so humid here I can hardly make myself leave the apartment so i've only gone to the library a few times. I haven't been feeling very productive, I'm kind of in a summer-vacuum rut, as in since i have no class and work hasn't started up again, i have nothing to do adn no responsabilities, and i'm acting like it.
I should-- no must, must, MUST- work on this in the next week. But for now, I'm going to cook some tofu, maybe I'll be proactive on the blogging front and actually document my process. Unlike yesterday when I made beet-sweet potat0-arugula hashbrowns and nectarine relish!
Classes start in a week and yet it doesn't seem real....summer is ending too quickly, slipping away without me really noticing how fast time is going by. eeek!
I enjoyed my time at home, short that it was. LA was filled with seeing old friends, sleeping in, swimming, watermelon, cooking and experimenting in the kitchen, and crafting. I didn't take pictures of anything! So not blogger-y of me! Again, ooops! it was the summer sunshine obscuring my vision, and sense of time. Before I knew it, it was time to return to Baltimore, to do thesis research, theoretically. Well, I've been here for exactly two weeks and not much thesis research has been done, my adviser doesn't seem pleased with that.... but I'm working on it, honestly. Ehh, not too hard I'll admit. I've been having trouble waking up at a decent time and it's so humid here I can hardly make myself leave the apartment so i've only gone to the library a few times. I haven't been feeling very productive, I'm kind of in a summer-vacuum rut, as in since i have no class and work hasn't started up again, i have nothing to do adn no responsabilities, and i'm acting like it.
I should-- no must, must, MUST- work on this in the next week. But for now, I'm going to cook some tofu, maybe I'll be proactive on the blogging front and actually document my process. Unlike yesterday when I made beet-sweet potat0-arugula hashbrowns and nectarine relish!
Classes start in a week and yet it doesn't seem real....summer is ending too quickly, slipping away without me really noticing how fast time is going by. eeek!
Sunday, July 18, 2010
Home At Last
Well, I got home Friday night, and I have sooo much to update about. But I'm still so jetlagged so I'm going to put it off for a while yet. Hopefully tomorrow I'll get around to it, but let's just leave it with this:
I had amazing adventures!
I explored new places, ate new things, heard new languages, learned about myself, got sunburnt, ate licorice a billion times, I went to Oxford, Oslo, Stockholm, Copenhagen, Prague, Vienna, and Berlin.
I saw so many things and had so much fun!
Then I had to travel 18 hours (9 hour flight from berlin to new york, 3 hour layover, 6 hour flight from new york to LA) and finally reached home!
It feels nice to be home, have a fridge full of food, pleasant sunshine and heat without humidity, my own bed and room, and to be with friends and family after so long without them!
I had amazing adventures!
I explored new places, ate new things, heard new languages, learned about myself, got sunburnt, ate licorice a billion times, I went to Oxford, Oslo, Stockholm, Copenhagen, Prague, Vienna, and Berlin.
I saw so many things and had so much fun!
Then I had to travel 18 hours (9 hour flight from berlin to new york, 3 hour layover, 6 hour flight from new york to LA) and finally reached home!
It feels nice to be home, have a fridge full of food, pleasant sunshine and heat without humidity, my own bed and room, and to be with friends and family after so long without them!
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