T-Day went by without a hitch.  Well, why wouldn't it, right?  I guess since I am the self-appointed CEO of my family's Thanksgiving, then I take it upon myself to be the official spaz.  It's a total waste of energy.  Remind me in a year's time to take a chill pill.  I need to quit selling myself short, I can totally cook up a feast!  And I actually enjoy it.  I won't let the holidays get me in a fit.

We had our Thxgiving meal @ KMHD & Zach's home.  The menu was traditional & straightforward.  Zach & KMHD built (I said BUILT) a lovely dinner table & decorated it, too.  Our guests of honor were Mayumi & Zach's mum.  Nothing went wrong, everything was tasty.  I didn't forget to hook up Gen. Chang with turkey under the table!

As is our tradition, we had supper @ Waffl3 Hous3.  The one on McCain Blvd. was so understaffed & miserable that we went to the one in Sherwood.  It's a tradition I can live with.  

KMHD:

Zach's mum, Zach & ATM:

ATM & Gen. Chang:

Mayumi:

Zach:

That evening, we put up the Xmas tree.  All ornaments are from my late paternal Grandmother.  They are older than I am, so they've lost their luster & are probably chock full of lead, but are valuable to me.  Aside from the lights, there is nothing new on that tree, it's all vintage.

I am so addicted to Irish Cream coffees.  My homemade ones are KILLER & I find myself drinking them all hours of the day/night.  It has become my official drank of winter 08.  Here's my recipe: one shot of Irish cream, freshly brewed good coffee, two dollops of homemade whipped topping & a sprinkle of cinnamon.  Do not mix it, drink it through the cream.  Go to town!  Do a dance!  Wash some dishes!  We actually need to lay off 'em, they are screwing with our sleep habits.

On Black Friday a.k.a. Buy Nothing Day, we carefully navigated back roads & avoided main driving arteries to get to the tobacco shop & Sam's Oriental Market.  I always want to observe BND, but I'm never prepared enough or have the discipline to do it.  I'll forget to buy something that I'll need that day/evening.  I mean, I don't go to any stores in hopes to shop for some bargain Xmas deals, but I will go to the grocer's to buy a forgotten ingredient, or the liquor store, or the gas station.  I will try harder next year.  On Thankgiving night, we actually saw people camping out in front of B3stBuy.  In tents, wtf.  We considered stopping by & watching them for awhile.

Our post-Thxgiving Bring Your Leftovers potluck was a success.  We had too much food, not enough appetite.  Although I had a lovely time, I think it'll be awhile before we have company again.  We've had several communions in such a short amount of time.

Yesterday, Eclipse Glasses Banda were photographed for a Dem-o-zette article about them & the AR Flag & Banner building.  I tagged along, so I could look at the legendary Dreamland Ballroom upstairs.  I walked around in awe, you can envision how awesome shows were in the heyday. It needs a lot of work.  Hopefully the coverage will bring in the money. Little Rock needs it.  ELLA FITZGERALD & BB KING WUZ HERE.

Arriving, outside of AR Flag & Banner:

Entrance, on the third floor:

From the stage:

Group shot I:

Group shot II:

Group shot III:

After lunch with the guys, me & ATM drove to Hot Springs to check out the flea market.  I also do a little retail Xmas shopping.  I bought things like nice olive oil, real maple syrup, & olives.  You know, things we want for Xmas.  I'm all about getting/giving perishables for gifts.  Our house is small, we don't need more stuff.  The rest of the gifts will be baked goods (I've got banana bread duty, KMHD will attempt sourdough bread) & Heifer Int'l givings.  We didn't leave town before stopping by Rolando's for supper.  That stuff is God food.

Today, it is cold, grey & rainy.  I wanted to go to JT Designs for the last time, but they were closed.  I don't know if they were closed closed or just not open today, but I bet I could've found some vintage kitchen gadgets with a severely reduced price tag.  I'll just have to keep my eye on it, maybe try this coming Saturday.  I'm about to look up chicken pot pie recipes for this evening.  Perfect for this kind of weather and a good way to wrap up this Thxgiving holiday.

O.K., I have chilled the fuck out since I last posted.  Things are getting done, the grocery store was prepared for the masses, so it wasn't so bad,  and food is getting prepared in a timely manner.  We're even gonna make some time to step out and get some dinner.  I'm starting to wonder if I was just in a bad mood & using holiday madness to justify it.  Sounds like it!  

So far I've made cupcakes (w/ homemade cream cheese icing!) for Mayumi's birthday, which is Friday.  I've also made dressing x 2, rosemary mashed potatoes, butternut squash & pumpkin cheesecake x 2.  I've got to roast the turkey, do the peas + pearl onions, & yeast rolls.  The cranberry sauce will be as easy as opening a tin can!  People, I did it with nary a bead of sweat.  aiPod cooking soundtrack consists of:  Free Blood, Buzzcocks, the Four Tops, the Skatalites, A Tribe Called Quest, Unwound & Wilson Pickett.

Gosh, I'm tired.  Too beat to go looking for folks to hang out with, so I'm glad that I got some sit down time with ATM & Jonathan & Collin last night.  We looked at olde photos of ourselves, it was kinda silly.  Collin has this one photo of me where I look utterly confused, I love it.  

Time for rest.

O.K., here's a tall order: I require an 11-foot radius of open, clear space around me at all times today. I have a lot to do & would like A) to not be here @ work and B) to be left to my own devices.

Gosh, I was in a good mood when I woke up this morning, but having encountered human beings put me in a most pissy demeanor. Boo! Hiss! Stand back, stand back!

A part of me just wants me & ATM to hop in the car and drive a couple of hours in any direction and spend Thxgiving there.

Having put everything off last minute, I've got to clean an entire house AND start making food this eve. I haven't even gone to the grocer's, wtf!

Right now, I'm at work, feeling a bit helpless. I've got my "to-do" lists ready to go! Instead, I'm dealing with an old man who can't figure out how to turn on his computer monitor. He mocked me when I cool-breezed it into his office and pushed the freaking power button. Yr welcome, dude! Also, our paper shredder doesn't work, I'm supposed to fix it. Really? I don't know.

Grrrrr

Big week! I've got lots of cleaning, maintaining , cooking & the regular normal stuff to do. I'm looking forward to eating and laughing and getting autumny drunk with friends. I need ya'll to wish away the expected rain on Friday evening!

Sunday Productive Sunday

Another grey day!

I woke up this morning & made a huge pot of coffee and listened to 80s music -- like Kate Bush & Pussy Galore kind of 80s.  It didn't take me long to get "up & at 'em", I was really determined to get some things done today.

We are going to an Indian food potluck this evening @ WWT.  I decided to make kheer, the only thing I know how to make successfully.  I usually just do the almonds & raisins, but I went all out and added ground pistachios, too.  I tripled my recipe, which can be a harrowing experience, you just don't know if a doubled or tripled recipe will turn out well until the very end.  Thankfully, it turned out heavenly!

On Friday evening, I got to meet fellow blogger Alannah (accompanied by D) for dinner @ Layla's.  I've gotta testify, I love her, she's really rad!  Meeting her made me appreciate her blog even more in that what you read is what you get, she doesn't have a freaky-deaky online persona.  It's so refreshing!  Anyway, after dinner, we went to Creegen's to get post-dinner drinks.  Creegen's boasts like 24 different Irish coffees, they're so good! Recommended, especially for the upcoming winter season.  We talked and talked and talked, never a lull in the conversation.  I can't wait until we meet again, hopefully on her turf.


 Saturday, we got up & did our Xmas card photo shoot.  As KMHD says, ATM really "nailed his character".  I don't want to spoil the photos until we mail them out, so I'll just give you a taste.  Here we are, post-photo shoot @ Vino's.

After taking the photos, I was pretty much useless.  I didn't leave the house the rest of the day.  Naps ensued.  And lots of television.  It was too cold!  I just wanted to be inside, wrapped in blankets.  

Aside from some cleaning & cooking (I made sweet potato fries for the first time today, YUM!), today has been pretty lax.  I'm trying to get ahead on my household chores.  Mayumi will be our overnight guest on Thxgiving, so it's gotta be a deep cleaning.  You know how it is with parentals.

This is really amazing, my favorite tree in downtown just all of a sudden dropped all of it's leaves overnight. One moment, it's a brilliant yellow leafed tree and then this:

I went to look at the leaf blanket and learned that this tree is a gingko, one of my favorites! This photo does no justice in showing that the leaf blanket is a couple of inches thick.

Natural color.

I am wearing the shoes that I ordered online yesterday after work!  That's fast, good customer service!  

I've got to get amped for kickboxing, so how about some CRASS?

$$$$$

We ate @ Layla's last night and it was perfect, as usual. I've never had a better baba ghanoush or falafel. Anyway, business was slow, we were the only other table. I am entering a plea for you to dine there & our other favorite restaurants as often as you can! Yes, especially now! I know that we're amidst uncertain economic times, but our losses will be much more after the fact. Too, YUM, falafel!

Nu Shooz

I have two pairs of shoes that do this:

Permission to buy nu shooz, Sarge?

It's just a matter of me sitting down & Zappoing. New kicks! Jam on it!

I'm still getting used to Daylight Saving Time -- every evening at dusk, I get those awful feelings of _____? I mean, I get over it, but I need sunshine! Getting home from work at dark is bogus. Every year and I will never get used to it.

Rachel Maddow is on vacation or something, she hasn't been hosting her show and she has Allison Stewart covering for her and it just isn't the same. So, I turn off the t.v. & listen to music. But, I'm tired of my jams, so I turn off the music & try to read. I want to finish the Watchmen comic (I refuse to say 'graphic novel', man!), but as soon as I get cozy and set up, well, zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz. Anyway, I heard that the Watchmen is being made into a movie & I'm not trying to sound like a bitchy comic book purist, but I'm having a difficult time envisioning this being translated to the silver screen.

I have a black thumb of death for all plants. I've killed cacti & succulents! I've managed to keep two ferns and some plant that ATM got from his grandfather's funeral alive. I've moved them indoors and have been watering them & moving them into sunlight, but what else? What else do I need to do? Massage them? Read them short stories? Call them once a day from the office? I hope they live. That will be quite the accomplishment for me.

Me & KMHD, we love our Muy Thai kickboxing class. Despite my moaning & groaning about my aches & pains, I really do love it. It's a challenge. I do have one genuine complaint, though. The fellas, they can be annoying. I can deal with their locker room chatter, but when they are talking to me as if they're trying to holla, it's just plain annoying. I guess this is to be expected in an enviroment that has only 2 females in it, but we've made it clear that we are there to learn & work out. This is what happens when you step out into the "real world", out of your safe inner circle, I guess.  The other day, I was trying to make small talk, so I ask one of the instructors (I know, it's an instructor! Way to be professional, dirtbag!) what he is doing for Thxgiving. "Eating with you." But, he said it with sex-eyes. Gag. I just kinda, I don't know, did nothing, but made a yuck face.  This is how it's like.  We can't even have a normal discussion with these dudes.  And they don't get that we hate this.  Don't worry (I'm looking at ATM), it is under control.  And if I ever felt weird weird, I'd totally do a jab-jab-uppercut-hook kick to some dude's face, without hesitation.  In the meantime, me & KMHD stick together!

Gimmicky blog!

Check out FEAR ANTS schwag!

We got a little antsy on Sunday, so we took a drive into deep East Little Rock.
Windmill blade plant in LR Port:

Piles of crushed metal. Piles kill!:

LR National Cemetary:



So, KMHD has taken up drawing! I'm pleased to post them here for you:

I hope to post more here soon & often.

L O N G D A Y I I

It gets dark so early now!  This photo was taken in the car yesterday evening.  I was passenger.  It looks like a portrait painting at times:


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We woke up at a reasonable hour despite staying up so late last night. We decided to go Heifer International's ranch in Perryville, Arkansas -- an hour's drive west of here. When we arrived, the retired elderly docents gave a brief oral bio and then made us watch a video. When it was over, we got a tour of the lay of the land by minivan. We didn't get to see too many animals up close, it was bitter cold & most animals were inaccessible anyway. We had a great time & would like to return when the weather is nicer.

I startled this llama with flash. It actually glared at me & gave me stink eye, never getting too close again.

These adorable turkeys followed close. They make a pleasant clucking noise. I hope they aren't for Thxgiving!

This one got very close.

Water buffalo! What girth! I bet I could punch him in the side & he wouldn't even be bothered.

Leaving:

When we got home, we called Collin and inquired about his supper plans.  It was decided that we'd go to Damgoode -- we met at his home, visited & then had pizza on the outdoor patio.  It was heated with outdoor lamps.  Zach H. met us, too.  We got to see TC!  It's been too long.  He seems to be doing well.

With Collin:

My tiredness is catching up with me now.  Me & ATM have been making our house a home listening to records and arranging things.  We like it here. 

L O N G D A Y

Nooooooo, suicide kitty!

Waiting in the car.

I got one haircut!  It won't look like this again, so here's the documentation:


White Water Tavern:









Eclipse Glasses & sadly my best shot of them.  Too far!

I have to tell you my dream from last night. It stems from a conversation I had w/ mum, KMHD & ATM. We were talking about how tacky & wrong Christian missionaries are. I mean, they go to third world countries, wag their bags of rice in hungry starving people's faces and tell them that they may have a bowl, but only after they listen to their wonderful tale of Christ. What bullshit. The worst part about it is how "fulfilled" & proud they feel doing this. God's work. OMG, no.

Anyway, in my dream, we (like all of us, me & my friends) were "fun" missionaries. We went to any third world country and introduced them to games like dodgeball & kickball. We also brought with us a sunglasses vendor so we could give our new "friends" some knock-off shades. We weren't gonna stuff our beliefs down their throats, man, we were just gonna show those people how to have a good time! Why so sad, you know? At one point in my dream, a little malnourished boy came up to me and handed me an iPod. He said that he finished listening to all of the songs on this one, can he have another?

Nice, huh? I can be such a jerk dreamer. I woke up completely hating the dream version of us.

Eclipse Glasses
at White Water Tavern
14 Nov 2008
at that regular show time
$5

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I'm making headway @ work, getting caught up. I hope to start off 2009 in top form, personally & professionally. I'm a big fan of odd-numbers and am almost superstitious about it. I believe odd-numbered years are luckier than the even ones, although this has been an exceptional even-numbered year.

Last night, I texted John Pugh a happy belated birthday & he responded, "Sweetnesss. See you in feb." Cryptic, yet clear as day! You's people who don't live here anymore, you need to take a cue from this John and COME HOME. For a good proper visit, at least.

Speaking of John Pugh, ATM gets to review Free Blood's album for the AR Times. Hopefully, we'll get a copy of it? Up until recently, it was only available in the UK, which is total rub.

Multi-media blog!

I'm having zero luck posting my Sonic Youth (in Fayetteville!) videos here.  I can't even get them uploaded to YT!  I don't know what I'm doing wrong.  I am open to suggestion.  I'm tellin' ya, you really want to see these videos.  Bull In The Heather and Drunken Butterfly!

In the meantime, here's Wilson Pickett.  Now you can listen to music while you read how my day went and what I ate.  Ha ha.

Hairdresser On Fire

I'm sitting here fuming because my bullshit hairdresser cancelled on me.  It's my day off, man!  My window for getting a haircut is very small, so it may be another six months before I actually do it.  I did reschedule for Friday, but we'll see.  

I did get some food work done today and that's pretty good!  

Cooking colour (yeah, with the added "u", because it's fancy):

Since I had a bit of time on my hands, I made waffle sandwiches for lunch.  Scrambled eggs w/ cream cheese, bacon & rosemary potatoes.  Hot damn!

I made homemade whipped topping.  So easy & so much better than that store-bought crap.  

Pie-baking, pie-watching:

Happy ending:

Mum is coming over tomorrow eve to celebrate the Obama victory, which is why I made pie.  Do ya'll know how easy it is to make pie?  Simple.  It makes you feel like you're a wizard, like you did something pretty complex & magical.  I wonder what it feels like to make bread.

Renegade, Renaissance, Radiance & Rosebud

I skipped breakfast this morning, so all I can think about is food. Because I'm so hungry, I'm getting wild ideas. How about...waffle sandwiches? Pile on eggs, cheese, potatoes & other ingredients...OM NOM NOM NOM NOM! I think I may have to experiment.

I'm off work tomorrow as it is Veteran's Day. I still don't know how to spend my day off! I'm not good at sleeping in, I don't want to spend the day doing sensible things like cleaning. Maybe I'll use tomorrow to make good on baking and food experimentation. Yeah, that's what I'll do.

And a haircut @ 3.

Big spender?

No, not me!  I want this necklace, but it would set me back $163, wtf.  

Amazing, no?  Well, since it ain't gonna happen, I'll take comfort in the purchase I made this morning.  I woke up just sick because I didn't own a waffle iron, so I went and bought one and made some damn waffles for brunch.  It was awesome!  ONLY REAL MAPLE SYRUP, please.

I know it's fire pit season & we're all sitting around one here & there, but last night's sit down was exceptional for me.  I was surrounded with people I've known for a long long time & people I've known for a long long long time.  Collin, Mark Lewis, Rett, Keiko, Jonathan Thompson, Shawn Miller, Andrew D'arezzo, James D'arezzo, Jeremy Brasher, Damian Thompson, Brittney McDonald & Sonja Schafer.  KMHD & ATM were there, too, of course.  Last night, it was a classic crisp cold autumn night.  I kept hearing people say outloud, "I have the best friends" or "I seriously love my friends".  I don't care if I come off as sentimental, it was a total lovefest.  Who knows when that particular lot will ever assemble again?  Much love goes out to each and every one of them.

Yesterday was pleasant.  We didn't do anything!  Well, we did go to Savers to see if we could find our ugly Xmas sweaters for the upcoming holiday.  Total success.  I'll save the photos for later, because, I know, it's too soon for Xmas!  Anyway, Collin comes over to hang for a bit while we wait for Jonathan to show.  Can I just interject that I've been hanging out with Collin a lot more lately and I love it?  I hope it continues.

Jonathan finally arrives with my birthday sweet potato pie in tow.  If you don't know already, JT has style -- he also had some heavy whipping cream to make homemade whipped cream!  We dragged out ye olde stand mixer & he made some fresh whipped topping right there.  Apparently the pie recipe calls for two shots of brandy.  Well, Jonathan informed that it has two shots of Remy Martin XO!  A high class, $15-per-shot sweet potato pie!  Oh, my my my my my my my my my!

Around the fire, me, JT & KMHD discussed pie, natch.  I think I may have invented a kind of pie that you are already familiar with:  chili frito pie.  The crust, though, will be made of crushed Frito Lays, very similar to a graham cracker crust.  Fill with chili, top with cheese -- and of course a dollop of sour cream.  If I remember correctly, KMHD offered to work on a prototype.  Can't wait!

I don't have too much lined up today, maybe some lite housekeeping and working on the now infamous third room.  You know, the little room that has all of my art supplies and whatnot, but is not being used properly?  It's still a wreck in there, but maybe I'll make some headway today.  This evening, ATM will be taking me out for my official birthday dinner.  I see crab cakes in my future!

Because I feel like making pie, I may make a sweet potato pie, because Mum is coming over on Wednesday to celebrate the Obama victory.  I don't know what that entails, but I'll make a pie.  And since I'm riding high on the sweet potato pie wave, that's what we're havin'.  With homemade whipped topping.