Camping is in tents

I love camping, it's one of my things.  But, for whatever reason, I just wasn't into it when we went this past Thursday.  I went through the motions of setting up the tent, etc., but remained in a foul mood.  It took a long tent nap, some driving around the countryside, and dusk to fall for me to start enjoying myself.  It's so off-putting to not have fun at something that I love to do.  It worries me and makes me wonder things like, "Are you sad about something?"  I don't want to find myself in such a way again.  NO








Ouachita River:

Kilgores know how.

Collins + Lauren got hitched!  They had a seriously bangin' reception @ the Little Rock Country Club -- I got to see a lot of people I haven't seen in a good while, expats and otherwise.  Lots of free-flowing champagne and dancing, so you know I had the best time.  Too much fun, one might argue.  (Me, actually. The next day.)


ATM, Keiko:

ATM:

Collins, Natalie, Lauren, Hank:

Collins + Lauren:

By KMHD's

NWA

MaaaaaAAAAaaaaaay!

First of May, first of May...

TOP TEN

1.  Coming out on the sunny side of a weeks-long gloomy weather fest.  I had to keep reminding myself that you cannot have good weather without the bad, but, honestly, towards the end there.  Dreadful.

2.  Boulevard Bake House & Market on Main St.  I am officially a regular and Pearl takes extra good care of me.  So, delicious/quality food/drink and a nice friend.  And free wifi.  Little things.

3.  LR Cream ep.  Available here.

 LR Cream, track 2 by fear_ants

4.  ATM.  Again, little things, but they add up!  Changing bed sheets for when I get off work from job #2, DJing while I cook, taking me out to eat when I obvs feel blue, and just general "getting" me.

5.  Future May events include attending a lecture by HH Dalai Lama, CKIII's wedding, and Leigh's birthday!

6.  Tonight, I started a long cooking project, way too late on a Sunday evening.  It'll be 9:00 p.m. before we have our supper.  App: salt & malt vinegar kale chips, Entree/side: korroke drizzled with vegetable/fruit tonkatsu sauce & steamed broccoli with ginger-chili dipping sauce.  Yesss!

7.  Camping soon.  I desperately need this.  This world is crazy.  I need to spend time in the woods, inhale exorbitant amounts of campfire smoke, and sleep in a tent.  Possibly swing by my favorite green thumb and Hot Springs.

***I got interrupted by Pres. Obama's late-night address right about here.  All I gotta say about it is this:  People, don't be so disgusting.  No one won anything.  This world is crazy.***

8.  Izzy's vegetarian  tamales.  Those tamales are so good that we had to keep checking to make sure they were meat-free:

9.  Staying home to work on and putter around the house.

10.  First paycheck from second job.  Straight to the GOOD TIMES savings account.  Cheers.

I don't know too

I've been avoiding FEAR ANTS largely because I'm going through another bout of "Do I actually write about anything?" and "This is boring" and "I haven't been up to much anyway".  I can be pretty harsh on myself, even if this is just a retrospective blog that I share with family/friends.  I think it's this paid writing I've been doing.  That stuff is awful!


It's been so grey, it's green.



The haps:


1.  I am just so sick of storms.  Sleepless nights of terror.  And the distant sounds of a thrashing wind chime or siren is horrifying.


2.  I have a second job now.  I start Tuesday eve.  Pizza slingin'.  It's what you do when you want to travel to New Zealand.  New Windows.  New Kitchen.  New Bathroom.  New Records.  New Camera.  etc.  Inflation.  I don't know if I've ever lived my employed/tax-paying life without it.  "It" "isn't" "supposed" "to" "be" "this" "way".    Thankfully, Job #1 pays the bills/mortgage and most else, but we are only treading water and not saving as much as I'd like.  Job #2 is supposed to help us enjoy life a little more.


3.  New Memphis restaurant crush:  RP Tracks!  We tried the legendary BBQ tofu nachos and BBQ tofu sandwich.  ATM & I, with gratitude, noted how much easier it is to be vegetarian these days.  RP boasts about their "world famous BBQ tofu" above all else on the menu and it isn't even an exclusively meatless restaurant.  Brilliant.  

APRIL 2011 TOP TEN

Here we go.

1.  Fresh vinyl!







2.  I figured out how to make the perfect omelette.  It's easier than I imagined.  Omelettes are currently my favorite food, so I eat them too much.  My ideal kind is topped with pesto, spinach & ripe Arkansas tomatoes.  Heavenly!


3.  I got my Memphis back!  BWAAaaeeeuuuh!





4.  Dreaming of Glasgow New Zealand!  We've been on a steady diet of Surf City, The Clean, Tall Dwarves, et al.  I'm throwing as much money as I can at our savings which essentially means I don't know when we are going, but we are.


5.  Surf City!





6.  Tofu Happening!  A vegetarian dish & a vinyl record gains you entry.  Probably a good idea to bring your own cold drink & chair, too.  








7.  Full-time tea drinking.  My being sick makes ingesting coffee complicated.  Or ingesting coffee make my being sick complicated.  Either way, coffee is just way too heavy right now. Tea Party.  I've turned it into a leisurely pastime at my job.  All work ceases.  I inhale the steam & aromas.  I check out for minutes.  I'm a goner.  Celestial.





8.  HAPPY BIRTHDAY @KMHD.  DIRTY THIRTY! XXX  (But, you are still 10 in my mind.)


9.  Camping!


10.  Dragging out the VCR player and watching 120 Minutes and Cure videos.




-----
I am actively avoiding writing the vegetarian guide.  Writing for $$$ is horribly boring.  But, I need the money.  I actually applied for more work on Thursday.  A couple nights a week at a restaurant will, perhaps, get us where we need to be to as far as saving funds for traveling goes.  This is my main focus right now.  


The homemade ginger ale is not really ginger ale, but a fizzy ginger drink.  It's good, not great.  Next time I make it, I will juice the ginger instead of grating it.  I only like my orange juice pulpy. It's totally refreshing and not too sweet, although I'd probably make it with scant less sugar next time.  


  




New kitchen gadget:









I need a scheme.

No title today

After reading about it on one of my favorite undisclosed websites, I decided to try my hand at making my own ginger ale.  The directions are straightforward and simple.


You will need a 2-liter bottle.  (Buy 2-liters of anything and either drink it or dump it.)  Rinse well.  Take 1/2 tsp of yeast (Fleishmann's, et al.) and 3/4 c sugar -- funnel it into the bottle.  Grate 2 T of fresh ginger root; add to bottle.  Add the juice of one lemon.  I added a pinch of cayenne pepper for thrills.  Add (not tap) water to 1-2" from the top of bottle.  Cap.  Shake bottle well to mix sugars and yeast.  Let the bottle hang out for a day or so.  Ours is chilling in the living room, underneath the side table, so I can keep an eye on it.


Later this evening, I'll check the sides of the bottle for tautness.  If it's ready, I'll stick it in the fridge to slow the metabolic action of the yeast. And then I'm gonna crack it!


The push to make my own ginger ale came when I realized that most commercial ginger ales are made with high fructose corn syrup.  They put that rubbish in EVERYTHING.   Of course, there are exceptions, like the natural, hand-brewed ones.  They're brilliant!  I just wanted to try my hand at homemade.


I'll probably start making my own BBQ sauce, too.  In a pinch, I'll buy sauce from Whole Hog Cafe, but I had to make a run to the grocery store this weekend.  Every single bottle from the store contains HFCS, which is prompting me to go homemade in this arena, too.  I'm feeling inspired and it's another teeny step in the direction of eating better.  I'm hoping after some experimentation, I will make my ideal sauce: smoky, sweet & spicy.  And then I'll make the best BBQ tofu you've ever had.


In other inane news, I'm trying this new thing where I don't wash my hair on a daily basis.  At most, I can go four days before I start feeling disgusting.  It all started when my hairdresser told me to be bold and wash it once or twice a week at most.  It takes some getting used to, but it does improve hair quality.  You have to 'train' it to get accustomed to not being washed daily or even every other day.  Being a longhair can be tiresome.  I'm hoping to save gallons of water and time from even dealing with it as additional benefits.
















I've got my mind on a woods view.

Nest egg update

Hatched!

I wanted to get a photo of the little buggers while they were being hungry open mouths, but I really need to just leave them be, so their mum or dad won't ditch them.  

Feel good.

Save the date!

click to enlarge. haven't you figured that out yet?

-----

I envy those who write with reckless abandon.  They pen their stories & musings, seemingly, without worry of judgment or consequence.  Hell, even with judgment and consequence, they continue to write.  

I hold back.  I totally hold back.  I know my audience, they are friends and family.  

I am not always cheerful and positive.  I can get boorish, angry, and mean.  Unpolished.  Uneducated.  I actually disagree with my friends (and family, natch) on a number of big issues and matters of little import.  I usually don't say anything.  I don't want to come off as rude, confrontational, argumentative, contrary, or just plain holy.    No, no, I say nothing and try to be an agreeable good girl.  Tolerate and be tolerated.  Middle ground.  Safe.

-----

Just one of those days.

Baby pay no rent cuz yuzza yuzza spent!

Friday night, we drove down to Hot Springs to hear Surf City perform @ Valley of the Vapors.  They were SO GOOD that when we returned home that night, I checked to see where they were playing next.  Memphis.  Perfect.  Despite my being completely exhausted and already have spent my paycheck allowance, we convinced ourselves that it would not only be totally bitchin' to go see them play again, but that this is a BRILLIANT idea and "I'm young!" and "What Я consequences?"

We called Zach and Matt to see if they wanted to join us. Yes.  Then the lot of us piled into the Hyundai and we drove to Memphis.  It felt good to be on the road, still tired from the previous night.  I was (am) still dizzy from illness and medication and I didn't care!  Because, man, I need to live, right?!

Surf City are excellent live.  Well, specifically, their sound is really good live.  They aren't showmen and they had nothing to say, which is fine, I appreciate those who don't have to say something always.  I really enjoyed them in Hot Springs, but they came off as real sour grapes in Memphis.  Reasons unknown, but they were not keen on the Memphis crowd [as a Little Rocker, this is understandable], which stings because, hey, we were front and center.  They did bang out another good set and that was that.  We tried chatting up one of the guitarists and he was polite, but a kind of emptiness came over me.  And then I was annoyed.  Because the band after them, Bare Wires, totally spanked them with their California funness.  I just don't know what to do about bands that are great, but are slightly vampiric and have Kiwi accents.

In Hot Springs:

In Memphis:

Is this even the same band?

If you get a chance to see Surf City, do it, it is worth it, just don't expect to be charmed.  If you get a chance to see Bare Wires, do!  They are one helluva three-piece and they caught me off-guard and helped me feel not so crazy for driving to Memphis to watch a band I really like be total babies.

I mean, I can be totally misjudging them.  It was just one of the fellas, too, that was being an ass.  

-----

Looks like we will be traveling to Cortez, Colorado sooner than later to visit an aunt whom we haven't seen in years and would love to reignite the relationship.  She and my uncle have provided me with some of my best teenage memories by letting me work on their ranch during the summers and I am so sorry that we've lost touch over the years.  I really want ATM to know her and to experience Colorado, so we're going to make the trek.  I want to complain about money woes, but what good would that do?  We will get there.  Watch me squeeze even more blood from a sugar cube.

Let England Shake, but I can use a rest.

I feel well enough to sit up and bang out a few words.  I've been down since last Thursday night with a sinus infection.  Thankfully, the vertigo is easing up, but I still get hella dizzy & nauseated, walking into walls when I believe I'm going straight.  So, I'm on antibiotics and something I call 'hell in pill-form'.  This shit (pardon) will not let me sleep!  I've been awake since 2:30 a.m.  In short, it's been a restless, dizzying nightmare with no end in sight.  I figured I'd take a PM pain med this evening, but all of the directions expressly warn not to take it with hell in pill-form, so I'm about to drink ungodly amounts of chamomile tea and hope for the best.

Despite how miserable I feel, it hasn't been all bad.  I finally got out a mirror to check out the nest some birds built on our front porch light.  I figured I'd remove it if there were no eggs, but...

Six of them, hey!  Very spring!  Very cute!  When they are hatched, we will have to keep a very close eye on Lil Wolfman Jack (Hot Dog) and make sure he doesn't killeat them.  




 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 So, if I had to decide the best music of 2011 thus far, then Wild Flag & PJ Harvey's Let England Shake would take top honors.

Last Monday night's show was not only very cherry, but refreshing, too.  The confidence & intelligence the women of Wild Flag exude is something I'm starved for.  It acts as a cornerstone for their extreme ability to rock your face off.  And they did.  They did.  I went to work the next morning partially deaf and upbeat.

They all wore pants!  It's valuable to me in that they weren't trying to come off as sexy sexual sexed up sexxxx kittens.  But, by default, what with their confidence, intelligence & rockin good choons, they came off as very sensual.  What an important band this is!  Check them out, please!

And getting back to Polly Jean Harvey, she has been consistently weird, artistic amazing from the moment I've ever known her -- 50 Ft. Queenie!  Let England Shake is a very worthy album and if you need convincing, check out her Y0utube offerings.  Watch them all.  They're beautifully made, the latest one filmed by Seamus Murphy.


---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

This Friday, we are going to Valley of the Vapors in Hot Springs to go see Surf City.  Better grab some ear plugs.  While I was ill, I compiled a list of things I'd like to do if I ever felt better, because, at one point, I wasn't sure I'd ever.  I'd like to go on a walk, eat ice cream, wear earrings and other adornments, and wash my car.   Plan a camping trip.  Shoot my BB gun.  I still feel way off.  I'm dizzy and I don't sleep well.  I'll deal, one thing at a time.



C L I C K A L L P H O T O S T O E N L A R G E

March 2011 TOP TEN

Ides of March Eve Edition!

I'm steppin' out tonight.  This is kind of a big deal.  

!. Going to see WILD FLAG.  They've got a reputation that precedes them.  I've read the rave 160-character hashtagged reviews, I've watched the videos on y0utube, and listened to their single mp3.  I believe this is the show I've been waiting for for a long while!  Apparently, you need to stand on Mary Timony's side of the stage if you want to see some behind-the-head guitar noodling.  MEET ME THERE.

2.  Little Rock Half Marathon.  Look, I'm not the sporty type, which makes it that more amazing that I signed up for it and completed the course.  Our team raised more money for Heifer International than we hoped!  I'd do it again.


3.  Going to Memphis with KMHD.

We paid for just the atmosphere @ Arcade Restaurant.  Their breakfast is shite, but there is one thing on the menu that makes the visit worth it.  Sweet potato pancakes.  My goodness.

4.  Everything is in bloom! (Despite this horrible, gloomy weather.)

5.  This:





6.  FINALLY finding the Mummies 'Stronger Than Dirt' on vinyl.





7.  New color wheel necklace!

8.  These paintings:

9.  Starf*cker's 'Julius'.  Cringe-worthy band name, great song:



10.  I'm just going to go ahead and gush over Twitter.  It's very much like Magic Eye: you can do it with ease or you can't at all, there's no in between.  It's like customizing your ideal news & entertainment feed and it's constantly evolving, too.  Also, I get how people would see 140 characters as confining, BUT, I prefer that one makes a point in as little words as possible, please.  Real time, real talk.  #amdown

NIPPON

KMHD and I identify ourselves, at times, as culturally Japanese.  Our stepmother, from Yokosuka, Kanagawa, raised us when we were small children through most of our teenage years.  I have an extended family there.  One of my closest friends is from there.  Even though I've never been to Japan, I feel a tremendous connection with her.  My heart just aches for  her people who are suffering greatly right now.


Please, I beg you, make a donation to Doctors Without Borders to aide in their quest to help those in immediate need.


You can also text "REDCROSS" to 90999 to send $10 for relief efforts in Nippon.  Domo-Arigato.



by James White



by Rob Dobi



by The Living Conspiracy




Also, there's no harm in making your own earthquake preparedness kit.   Be prepared, be diligent!

13.1

(((HAPPY BIRTHDAY, ATM!)))

The last three miles seemed impossible, half of my body doesn't function properly, and I now have an affinity for sports drink, but I'd do LR Half Marathon again.  In all, it was a fun, moving, and inspiring experience.  Most importantly, we raised more than the projected goal for Heifer International!  Win! Win! Win! Win!


My favorite observations: 

Seeing ATM & Robert at Mile 8, bundled up, cold, sipping on coffee from a thermos, and cheering us on.  I witnessed spectators setting up comfort stations along the course for walkers and runners; they played music and offered words of encouragement.  When we passed Vino's, I looked over and saw friends wildly banging on the window and waving excitedly.  Leigh, with her long legs, was always a few-to-a-dozen paces in front of me.  She totally could've gone ahead, but she kept looking back to check on me.  We stuck together as a team!  When we neared the finish, we decided to jog the very last bit, a strong finish.  It was amazing.  Aaaand, we got medals!


 


I've concluded that she is my adventure femme, since we've thus far gotten tattoos together and now a (half) marathon.  Frankly, I'm curious and looking forward to our next adventure, whatever it is.


My sole complaint for the marathon is this:  there needs to be better bands and DJs along the course, especially if mp3 players are discouraged.  Wow, it was something awful.  If the songs weren't being butchered, the tempo was too slow.  We needed some ragin' choons, not covers of "Family Traditions" and "With or Without You."  Ugh, gag.


Here's Leigh w/ her mum.  Gwyn walked 6 miles with us:



Today, I am sore and swollen.  Even my face!  My goal is to putter around the house, putting things away, but KEEP MOVING.  Ibuprofen.  Epsom salt soak.  And figure out what my next big goal is.  There is no feeling like marking off a big one off the list.

I am taking a long walk tomorrow.

Doing the half marathon tomorrow to raise funds for Heifer International.  If you haven't yet & are able, will you please donate some $$$ to my team?  Say...a dollar a mile? That's only $13! Hey!  Obrigado!


I'm quite prepared to do this.  Fanny pack?  Check!  Protein bars? Check! Anti-chafing lubricant and medicated talcum powder?  Yes ma'am!  Shit-eating grin accompanied by an "I can't believe I'm doing this" expression?  You got it!


I joked with ATM that I may need to take his recording device with me should I have some hallucinatory delusional revelations.  "Mile 9...I've come up with an excellent concept for a sitcom..."  

Go Team Heifer!

Oh, you guys!  I'm totally participating in the Little Rock (half) Marathon this Sunday for a good cause.

Can you please kick in a few dollars?  I will make you proud!  

Gratitude.