The rain abated by late afternoon on Thursday [the day of the flash floods and heavy downpour] so David got up at his usual time on Friday morning to head to work. I declined to get up and drive him to work myself since I had a terrible headache and no need for the car that day. This turned out to be a very good thing since David was sent home from work at 11a.m. Though it wasn't raining, the sewers were backed up with all the water from the day before and they had to shut off the water in David's building, meaning that there were no functioning bathrooms. And when there are no functioning bathrooms to be had, you get to come home. Thank you heavy rains! I've enjoyed having my husband around.
By dusk of last night, however, dark clouds had rolled in over Oahu and we had a good-sized thunder and lightning storm, accompanied by even more rain. I love watching lightning light up the sky, especially at night. The best lightning I ever saw was in Arizona. You could actually see each individual lightning bolt streak across the sky over the vast and empty desert. Here I could only see bursts of light, but it was the first good storm I've seen on this island so I took what I could get. It's like the first snowfall of the year. You love the sight and sounds and smell of the snow and bask in its beauty....and then you slowly start to despise it as the winter progresses and you feel like you'll never be warm again. I'm starting to wonder if this island will ever be dry again.
The rain had stopped by nine o'clock last night and, having been cooped up in the house for quite some time, David and I headed out to see a movie. To see Twilight.
I had avoided seeing the movie for so long because I expected it to be three parts lame, awkward, and poorly acted. After hearing the reviews from friends who opinions and interests I generally share, I determined that my expectations for the movie were sufficiently low that I could probably enjoy some of the movie, if not just laugh through the whole thing from sheer lameness. Plus, I figured the 12 year screaming girls would be gone by now. I had also finally convinced David to come with me and so we set out for the 9:55 showing.
I was quite pleasantly surprised to find that I enjoyed the movie. So did David. Sure, there were a few things I did not like but I think the series has the potential to vastly improve. Especially under a different director with a bigger budget. I think it really did help that I expected the movie to suck, that I was prepared to laugh at all the awkward moments.
What I Didn't Like
1.) The special effects could have used some help. I especially hated the shots of the vampires running and jumping, etc. Since when did their feet not need to touch the ground?
2.) Was it just me or was every scene with Eric extremely awkward? Maybe it was the hair.
3.) Same for Jaspar. He seemed so pained. I swear....in some parts, he was the spitting image of Johnny Depp in Edward Scissorhands. I wish there had been less of the Forks High students and more of the Cullens.
4.) The direction. I felt like there were some weird shots and direction in the movie, especially in the scene where Bella and Edward are revealing his vampire status in the woods. [It also didn't help that the emergency alarm started going off during this scene.] Why all the close-ups of trees and not the actors while they are in the middle of talking? Why did Edward look like he had body glitter all over him in the sun? I always thought he would sparkle much more, and have a greater amount of light radiating off him. There were just some weird shots and I'm glad that Catherine Hardwick will not be back to direct the sequel.
5.) Robert Pattinson. I actually think Robert is very physically close to how I pictured Edward Cullen. And I didn't think he did a horrible job with the entire role, just certain parts. I always knew Edward was very intense, but Robert gave Edward a creepy intense vibe and came across as rather wooden at times. It was the scenes in which he loosened up and smiled that I actually believed him as Edward and enjoyed him in the part.
6.) Of course, it's not all Robert Pattinson's fault. The script was rather clunky in a lot of places and there was some bad dialogue.
What I Did Like
1.) Kristen Stewart. I'd never seen her in any movies and just from the trailers, I didn't think she was the right choice for Bella, nor did I think she was a good actress. Her performance as Bella was actually my favorite part of the whole movie. I thought she did a terrific job and really conveyed Bella's character perfectly.
2.) Victoria. Sure, she didn't say much and sure, I thought she'd have redder hair, but her presence was exactly as I imagined her.
3.) The chemistry between Bella and Edward. They worked together.
So yes, Twilight was not the most fantastic movie, but I at least enjoyed it, which was far more than I was expecting. I only wish that they had pushed the new Harry Potter movie back six months! Oh well.
Now, I suppose it's time to clean the house a bit. Tonight we're going to the Navy holiday party at a hotel in Honolulu. It's a bit of a fancier affair and I'm looking forward to it. Hopefully it will be exciting enough to warrant a post and some pictures.
Saturday, December 13, 2008
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Let it Rain!
I woke this morning to the sounds of torrential rain beating down on the roof of our condo and the distant flashes of blue lightning. Now, in a place where there is no prospect of snow and little climate change between summer and winter, rain signifies something resembling what winter should be, which puts me in the mood for Christmas....which until we put up our tree last night, I wasn't really prepared for.
I also woke to the image of my poor husband, bleary-eyed and wet [from a shower, not the rain] putting on his uniform. (Not one of the good ones, either.) My car has been out of commission for the last two weeks because of a leak in the power steering line which means I can't turn the blasted wheel. In any case, I've been waking up early (by my standards) to drive David to work at 6:30 in the morning so that I can have use of his car during the day.
So I stumbled out of bed in time to put on a baggy sweatshirt and slide into my slippers to take the 15 minute drive to David's work. We ran to the car but not before getting soaking wet and set off.
Our first indication that nothing good was going to come of this endeavor should have been the fact that our windshield wipers could not wipe fast enough to let us see out of them. It only went downhill from there.
We got onto Kamehameha Highway [Kam](which isn't so much a highway as a two-lane street that wraps its way around the whole island) and, as we headed down the hill, we were met with a police blockade which forced us to turn down a side street. We had no idea how to get where we needed to go from there, but all the other side streets we went down were fully flooded and we were spraying water all over the place. Cars were backed up and unable to decide where to go and rivers of water were gushing past our car.
We eventually got turned in the right direction and came to an intersection where we could get back onto Kam, this being the only way to get to work other than the actual highway which would require a lot of back-tracking through roads we didn't know to reach. Once we finally inched our way to the intersection, all the cars in front of us started to turn around. We finally realized that they were doing this because the entire intersection was completely flooded and there was a Jeep stuck in the water in the middle of the road. So David and I sat there, trying to decide if our little Pontiac Sunfire could make the right hand turn onto Kam of if we would get stuck like the other car.
By this time, we'd been battling the floods for 20 minutes and we were only a mile from home. The radio was full of people calling in, updating Perry and Price of new road closures, more flooding, bad traffic, blackouts (whenever there's bad weather, half the island is subject to electrical outages) and school closures.
David wasn't ready to admit defeat yet and so he gunned the engine and we made it though! As we drove back up the hill, we had to dodge fallen tree branches and brackish mud. As we reached the ascent of the hill, where it levels off before hitting Wheeler Air Field (still a ways from where David works), we noticed that the lights up ahead had just gone out. Just then, three minutes before David should have been at work, David got a call from his boss saying that the whole area around their building was flooded and that he should stay home. I was quite relieved because the whole time we were attempting to get David to work, I was thinking how much I didn't want to have to drive in such heavy rain or inch my way through flooded roadways.
Luckily, we were close to an on-ramp to get on the highway, so we zipped on home, shed our soaking wet clothes and hopped back into bed to sleep for another two hours (three in David's case).
Also lucky for us, we live in Mililani, which is in the center of the island, on a hill and has much better drainage and less flooding. We also still have electricity, which others do not have right now, and we're safely ensconced in our home, still wearing our pajamas at 11:00am on a Thursday morning.
It's still pouring rain outside but after our adventures this morning, I think I'd rather just stay right where I am. At least I have several good books to read and a husband to annoy. :-)
I also woke to the image of my poor husband, bleary-eyed and wet [from a shower, not the rain] putting on his uniform. (Not one of the good ones, either.) My car has been out of commission for the last two weeks because of a leak in the power steering line which means I can't turn the blasted wheel. In any case, I've been waking up early (by my standards) to drive David to work at 6:30 in the morning so that I can have use of his car during the day.
So I stumbled out of bed in time to put on a baggy sweatshirt and slide into my slippers to take the 15 minute drive to David's work. We ran to the car but not before getting soaking wet and set off.
Our first indication that nothing good was going to come of this endeavor should have been the fact that our windshield wipers could not wipe fast enough to let us see out of them. It only went downhill from there.
We got onto Kamehameha Highway [Kam](which isn't so much a highway as a two-lane street that wraps its way around the whole island) and, as we headed down the hill, we were met with a police blockade which forced us to turn down a side street. We had no idea how to get where we needed to go from there, but all the other side streets we went down were fully flooded and we were spraying water all over the place. Cars were backed up and unable to decide where to go and rivers of water were gushing past our car.
We eventually got turned in the right direction and came to an intersection where we could get back onto Kam, this being the only way to get to work other than the actual highway which would require a lot of back-tracking through roads we didn't know to reach. Once we finally inched our way to the intersection, all the cars in front of us started to turn around. We finally realized that they were doing this because the entire intersection was completely flooded and there was a Jeep stuck in the water in the middle of the road. So David and I sat there, trying to decide if our little Pontiac Sunfire could make the right hand turn onto Kam of if we would get stuck like the other car.
By this time, we'd been battling the floods for 20 minutes and we were only a mile from home. The radio was full of people calling in, updating Perry and Price of new road closures, more flooding, bad traffic, blackouts (whenever there's bad weather, half the island is subject to electrical outages) and school closures.
David wasn't ready to admit defeat yet and so he gunned the engine and we made it though! As we drove back up the hill, we had to dodge fallen tree branches and brackish mud. As we reached the ascent of the hill, where it levels off before hitting Wheeler Air Field (still a ways from where David works), we noticed that the lights up ahead had just gone out. Just then, three minutes before David should have been at work, David got a call from his boss saying that the whole area around their building was flooded and that he should stay home. I was quite relieved because the whole time we were attempting to get David to work, I was thinking how much I didn't want to have to drive in such heavy rain or inch my way through flooded roadways.
Luckily, we were close to an on-ramp to get on the highway, so we zipped on home, shed our soaking wet clothes and hopped back into bed to sleep for another two hours (three in David's case).
Also lucky for us, we live in Mililani, which is in the center of the island, on a hill and has much better drainage and less flooding. We also still have electricity, which others do not have right now, and we're safely ensconced in our home, still wearing our pajamas at 11:00am on a Thursday morning.
It's still pouring rain outside but after our adventures this morning, I think I'd rather just stay right where I am. At least I have several good books to read and a husband to annoy. :-)
A Tale of Two Trees
I must state for the record that I am now, and always will be, a true lover of real Christmas trees. Growing up, we never had an artificial tree. Sure, there were years when our tree was a little scraggly, or it bent oddly to one side, or it turned a little brown way too soon. But it also always smelled wonderful and the pine needles felt like little pin-pricks of Christmas joy in my skin.
I am not, for the record, a believer in fake plastic trees. (Radiohead would agree, I think.)
I am, however, a pragmatist. Or a realist. Whatever you would call a person who, while holding a deep loathing of garishly green plastic trees, also understands that while they do not smell woodsy and wonderful and fresh, they are infinitely easier to handle, cleaner, and oftentimes more practical than dragging in a fresh tree to slowly die in your living room while dropping its little needles all over the floor.
Knowing that the sad little pine trees that get shipped to Hawaii during Christmas lack something in authenticity and freshness and knowing that our next two Christmases will be spent in a foreign land that may or may not have trees readily available, David and I decided to purchase a fake tree.
The other thing you should know about living on an island is that if you see something at the store, you buy it then and there or else it may not be there again for a very long time....or never again. (There was a month period when I swear there was not a single box of Cinnamon Life on the entire island. And I looked. When it reappeared again, I bought 4 boxes. And I grab a box everytime I go to the store, even if we don't need it. The moral of the story is, you never know when something you love may not be there anymore so buy it now!) Anyway....I saw a tree at Wal-Mart that I liked. They had six boxes so I thought I'd bring David back later and pick one up. (It was too big to lift myself and there were six. Surely they'd still be there the next day!) Long story short, when we came back, they were gone. So we picked up a smaller tree just in case. (Like I said, if you see something and you think you may want it, you buy it! You can always return it. It's a state motto or something.)
Still, if I was going to suffer through having a fake tree, I wanted a really nice one. I didn't want some dinky one that obviously was completely fake. So, I dropped by Wal-Mart on my way home from work yesterday and lo and behold, they had 3 boxes of my big, beautiful tree. I grabbed a friendly Wal-Mart associate (who was actually not so friendly) to help me lift the box into my cart and I was off!
I was terribly excited about the tree, so I convinced David to ignore his homework to help me put together the tree.
Here I am surrounded by all the groups of branches. One thing I did not know about fake trees is how dang long it takes to fluff out all the individual branches. And those fake needles sting just as much as the real ones. But they don't feel like pin-pricks of Christmas joy to me.
Here's our tree in the process of being erected. It was pretty good looking, as far as fake trees go.
And here's David doing a last bit of fluffing before putting the last piece on top.
So after an hour of fluffing and fitting all the branches into their little cubby holes, we had one beautiful (albeit fake) Christmas tree.
There was only one minor problem....
It was way too big for our little condo. I didn't take the width into consideration when selecting the tree....only the height. With our 7.5 feet tall and 5 feet wide tree scrunched in one corner, there was no room for both our couches or our little dining room table in the living room. Either the tree or the couch had to go.
Luckily, we still had the smaller tree we had purchased before so today we spent another good 45 minutes dismantling the plastic beast and re-packaging it to go back to Wal-Mart and we set about erecting and decorating our new tree.
This one fit a lot better. And it had fewer branches which meant less fluffing. All in all, it was a good decision to use the smaller one. It does look far more fake than the bigger, more expensive tree but it is a lot smaller and will therefore require less storage space. Which is good because we're running out of room.
This isn't the best picture of our tree, but it's hard to capture it in its full glory. I love a Christmas tree all lit up and decorated. It's one of my favorite things about Christmas.
Here's a close-up of the red ornaments and pretty ribbon I used to decorate the tree with.
And our tree from below. Even though it's fake and it doesn't smell like anything, it's still David's and my first Christmas tree as a married couple and it looks beautiful and feels special to me nonetheless.
Besides, if I need to sniff something that smells good, I'll just go hoover over these tasty cinnamon rolls I made yesterday.
And then I'll eat one. Yum.
I am not, for the record, a believer in fake plastic trees. (Radiohead would agree, I think.)
I am, however, a pragmatist. Or a realist. Whatever you would call a person who, while holding a deep loathing of garishly green plastic trees, also understands that while they do not smell woodsy and wonderful and fresh, they are infinitely easier to handle, cleaner, and oftentimes more practical than dragging in a fresh tree to slowly die in your living room while dropping its little needles all over the floor.
Knowing that the sad little pine trees that get shipped to Hawaii during Christmas lack something in authenticity and freshness and knowing that our next two Christmases will be spent in a foreign land that may or may not have trees readily available, David and I decided to purchase a fake tree.
The other thing you should know about living on an island is that if you see something at the store, you buy it then and there or else it may not be there again for a very long time....or never again. (There was a month period when I swear there was not a single box of Cinnamon Life on the entire island. And I looked. When it reappeared again, I bought 4 boxes. And I grab a box everytime I go to the store, even if we don't need it. The moral of the story is, you never know when something you love may not be there anymore so buy it now!) Anyway....I saw a tree at Wal-Mart that I liked. They had six boxes so I thought I'd bring David back later and pick one up. (It was too big to lift myself and there were six. Surely they'd still be there the next day!) Long story short, when we came back, they were gone. So we picked up a smaller tree just in case. (Like I said, if you see something and you think you may want it, you buy it! You can always return it. It's a state motto or something.)
Still, if I was going to suffer through having a fake tree, I wanted a really nice one. I didn't want some dinky one that obviously was completely fake. So, I dropped by Wal-Mart on my way home from work yesterday and lo and behold, they had 3 boxes of my big, beautiful tree. I grabbed a friendly Wal-Mart associate (who was actually not so friendly) to help me lift the box into my cart and I was off!
I was terribly excited about the tree, so I convinced David to ignore his homework to help me put together the tree.
Here I am surrounded by all the groups of branches. One thing I did not know about fake trees is how dang long it takes to fluff out all the individual branches. And those fake needles sting just as much as the real ones. But they don't feel like pin-pricks of Christmas joy to me.
Here's our tree in the process of being erected. It was pretty good looking, as far as fake trees go.
And here's David doing a last bit of fluffing before putting the last piece on top.
So after an hour of fluffing and fitting all the branches into their little cubby holes, we had one beautiful (albeit fake) Christmas tree.
There was only one minor problem....
It was way too big for our little condo. I didn't take the width into consideration when selecting the tree....only the height. With our 7.5 feet tall and 5 feet wide tree scrunched in one corner, there was no room for both our couches or our little dining room table in the living room. Either the tree or the couch had to go.
Luckily, we still had the smaller tree we had purchased before so today we spent another good 45 minutes dismantling the plastic beast and re-packaging it to go back to Wal-Mart and we set about erecting and decorating our new tree.
This one fit a lot better. And it had fewer branches which meant less fluffing. All in all, it was a good decision to use the smaller one. It does look far more fake than the bigger, more expensive tree but it is a lot smaller and will therefore require less storage space. Which is good because we're running out of room.
This isn't the best picture of our tree, but it's hard to capture it in its full glory. I love a Christmas tree all lit up and decorated. It's one of my favorite things about Christmas.
Here's a close-up of the red ornaments and pretty ribbon I used to decorate the tree with.
And our tree from below. Even though it's fake and it doesn't smell like anything, it's still David's and my first Christmas tree as a married couple and it looks beautiful and feels special to me nonetheless.
Besides, if I need to sniff something that smells good, I'll just go hoover over these tasty cinnamon rolls I made yesterday.
And then I'll eat one. Yum.
Friday, November 28, 2008
Thanksgiving Bounty
This Thanksgiving, David and I ate our delightful feast at the home of our good friends. They prepared the turkey and several other fixings; I signed up to make rolls, mashed potatoes, and several desserts because dessert is my absolute favorite part of the whole Thanksgiving meal. I decided that this year I would make everything from scratch. Absolutely everything. I don't think there's anything bad with cutting corners, but I happened to have a lot of time on my hands and I wondered if something--say whipped cream--would make my banana cream pie taste better than Cool Whip (which I don't really like). I've learned quite a bit in the last few days of baking and eating and baking and eating and I've documented the whole thing for my loyal readers (all 5 of you :-).
I began my baking journey on Wednesday morning by making the dough for no-knead dinner rolls, also sometimes called Parkerhouse Rolls. I love to watch dough rise. It's so fascinating the way it slowly creeps up and up and up and how it gets all springy and soft. I like to poke dough as it rises. After my dough had risen an adequate amount, I set about rolling the dough into little balls to rise in a muffin pan. The recipe I used (from the Pioneer Woman, whose recipes I love), did not mention how many rolls the dough would yield.
For those who might want to use the recipe in the future, here's my advice: cut it in half. I was rolling and rolling my little dough bits and I filled one muffin tray. And then I filled the two cheap aluminum foil ones I had bought for the extra dough. But that still wasn't enough. I had to break out my little muffin pan to fill with baby bite-sized rolls. Here are my many, many trays of rolls rising on the oven.
Look at them rise!!! Did I mention I love watching dough rise? Once my rolls had risen for another two hours, I set about baking them. My oven tends to run on the hot side, so I often have to fiddle with the temperature and placement to ensure that everything gets thoroughly cooked and doesn't burn. It's very annoying. But after baking at 375 for roughly 16 minutes, I had lots of delicious rolls.
I had rolls coming out my ears. I still have a ton of rolls left over. It's a good thing they're so tasty because I'm going to be eating rolls until Christmas.
Next up, I made pumpkin cookies. (And okay, I cheated a little because I used canned pumpkin puree.) I'm not the biggest fan of pumpkin pie and I know it'll take me several tries to figure out how to make pumpkin pie just the way I like it (with lots of spices), and I hate to waste all the extra pies I know I won't eat on my way to culinary perfection. But, it didn't seem right to NOT have a pumpkin dessert of some kind, so I made these pumpkin chocolate chip cookies.
I love the mixture of chocolate with pumpkin, but most of all, I love the cakey quality of these cookies. They bake up nice and plump and are so tasty, especially right out of the oven. (Caution: Don't use big blobs of dough, because they do expand quite a bit while baking and then you're left with a monster cookie.) Then, I remembered these pumpkin cookies that MJ made last year with no chocolate chips and frosting and I thought those were quite tasty, so I made another batch of the same pumpkin cookies without the chocolate chips. Instead of using regular vanilla frosting, I used this brown butter maple frosting recipe from Bakerella's blog:
3 cups sifted confectioners sugar
Sift sugar and set aside. Melt butter over medium heat until golden brown. Watch closely so it does not burn. Add butter to sugar, scraping all the butter into the bowl. Add milk and maple flavoring. Stir until smooth.
And it was heaven. Seriously. The maple frosting was so, sooo good on the pumpkin cookies that I want to make another batch right now. I spent most of last night wondering what other types of cookies would taste really great with maple frosting. The maple obscures quite a bit of the pumpkin flavor but the two still mingle together so nicely. And well, maple frosting is just all sorts of decadent. Forget the cookies, I think I just want to eat maple frosting with nothing else. Mmmm. . . . .
Oh right, I was still talking about desserts. I also made two types of pies: apple crisp pie and banana cream. I'm really weird about apple pie. I really love apple pie, but I can only eat it warm with vanilla ice cream. I cannot consume apple pie cold or with whipped cream or no ice cream. And I've been trying, unsuccessfully, for the last three years to perfect my apple pie. This year, I decided to try a new recipe (again from the Pioneer Woman) that uses a layer of maple sugar, oats, butter and pecans as the top crust.
It was very rich, but still rather tasty, if still a little runny inside. (My apple pies are always a little runny.) I might use the recipe again with a little tweaking, but I love, love, love the new pie crust recipe I used. It was super easy to make and oh so flaky. I love flaky crusts.
For my second pie--the banana cream--I used a recipe from Dorie Greenspan's book Baking, From My Home to Yours. I've liked a lot of the other recipes I've used from this cookbook, but I always feel like there's something lacking in her recipes, or at least in her instructions. I made the pastry cream from scratch (a first for me) and while it had good flavor, it was a little too dense for me and made the pie too heavy. I also whipped up some fresh whipped cream with a touch of sour cream. I enjoyed the whipped cream, but its lightness contrasted sharply with the density of the cream. While the bit of banana cream pie I ate right after making the pie tasted good, it did not sit well and tasted rather heavy and flavorless once we got around to eating it later that evening. I think I need to find a new pastry cream recipe....one that's light and fluffy and subtle. Normally, I love banana cream, but this one fell a little flat.
But that's the price you pay for trying out new recipes. Some--like the maple frosting and pie crust--turn out fantastic, while others--like the banana cream--did not live up to my expectations. But, I had a lot of fun in the process and I now have a lot of leftovers to enjoy this weekend.
I also learned that food photography is a lot harder than it looks and that taking pictures of tasty food only makes me want to eat more of such tasty food.
Excuse me while I go consume a lot of pie. And rolls. And if the ants hadn't discovered the pumpkin-y goodness of maple covered cookies, I could enjoy some of those too. Maybe I'll just go make some more.....
>Anyway, I hope everyone else had a happy Thanksgiving!
I began my baking journey on Wednesday morning by making the dough for no-knead dinner rolls, also sometimes called Parkerhouse Rolls. I love to watch dough rise. It's so fascinating the way it slowly creeps up and up and up and how it gets all springy and soft. I like to poke dough as it rises. After my dough had risen an adequate amount, I set about rolling the dough into little balls to rise in a muffin pan. The recipe I used (from the Pioneer Woman, whose recipes I love), did not mention how many rolls the dough would yield.
For those who might want to use the recipe in the future, here's my advice: cut it in half. I was rolling and rolling my little dough bits and I filled one muffin tray. And then I filled the two cheap aluminum foil ones I had bought for the extra dough. But that still wasn't enough. I had to break out my little muffin pan to fill with baby bite-sized rolls. Here are my many, many trays of rolls rising on the oven.
Look at them rise!!! Did I mention I love watching dough rise? Once my rolls had risen for another two hours, I set about baking them. My oven tends to run on the hot side, so I often have to fiddle with the temperature and placement to ensure that everything gets thoroughly cooked and doesn't burn. It's very annoying. But after baking at 375 for roughly 16 minutes, I had lots of delicious rolls.
I had rolls coming out my ears. I still have a ton of rolls left over. It's a good thing they're so tasty because I'm going to be eating rolls until Christmas.
Next up, I made pumpkin cookies. (And okay, I cheated a little because I used canned pumpkin puree.) I'm not the biggest fan of pumpkin pie and I know it'll take me several tries to figure out how to make pumpkin pie just the way I like it (with lots of spices), and I hate to waste all the extra pies I know I won't eat on my way to culinary perfection. But, it didn't seem right to NOT have a pumpkin dessert of some kind, so I made these pumpkin chocolate chip cookies.
I love the mixture of chocolate with pumpkin, but most of all, I love the cakey quality of these cookies. They bake up nice and plump and are so tasty, especially right out of the oven. (Caution: Don't use big blobs of dough, because they do expand quite a bit while baking and then you're left with a monster cookie.) Then, I remembered these pumpkin cookies that MJ made last year with no chocolate chips and frosting and I thought those were quite tasty, so I made another batch of the same pumpkin cookies without the chocolate chips. Instead of using regular vanilla frosting, I used this brown butter maple frosting recipe from Bakerella's blog:
3 cups sifted confectioners sugar
1/2 cup butter
1/4 cup milk
2 tsp maple flavoring
Sift sugar and set aside. Melt butter over medium heat until golden brown. Watch closely so it does not burn. Add butter to sugar, scraping all the butter into the bowl. Add milk and maple flavoring. Stir until smooth.
And it was heaven. Seriously. The maple frosting was so, sooo good on the pumpkin cookies that I want to make another batch right now. I spent most of last night wondering what other types of cookies would taste really great with maple frosting. The maple obscures quite a bit of the pumpkin flavor but the two still mingle together so nicely. And well, maple frosting is just all sorts of decadent. Forget the cookies, I think I just want to eat maple frosting with nothing else. Mmmm. . . . .
Oh right, I was still talking about desserts. I also made two types of pies: apple crisp pie and banana cream. I'm really weird about apple pie. I really love apple pie, but I can only eat it warm with vanilla ice cream. I cannot consume apple pie cold or with whipped cream or no ice cream. And I've been trying, unsuccessfully, for the last three years to perfect my apple pie. This year, I decided to try a new recipe (again from the Pioneer Woman) that uses a layer of maple sugar, oats, butter and pecans as the top crust.
It was very rich, but still rather tasty, if still a little runny inside. (My apple pies are always a little runny.) I might use the recipe again with a little tweaking, but I love, love, love the new pie crust recipe I used. It was super easy to make and oh so flaky. I love flaky crusts.
For my second pie--the banana cream--I used a recipe from Dorie Greenspan's book Baking, From My Home to Yours. I've liked a lot of the other recipes I've used from this cookbook, but I always feel like there's something lacking in her recipes, or at least in her instructions. I made the pastry cream from scratch (a first for me) and while it had good flavor, it was a little too dense for me and made the pie too heavy. I also whipped up some fresh whipped cream with a touch of sour cream. I enjoyed the whipped cream, but its lightness contrasted sharply with the density of the cream. While the bit of banana cream pie I ate right after making the pie tasted good, it did not sit well and tasted rather heavy and flavorless once we got around to eating it later that evening. I think I need to find a new pastry cream recipe....one that's light and fluffy and subtle. Normally, I love banana cream, but this one fell a little flat.
But that's the price you pay for trying out new recipes. Some--like the maple frosting and pie crust--turn out fantastic, while others--like the banana cream--did not live up to my expectations. But, I had a lot of fun in the process and I now have a lot of leftovers to enjoy this weekend.
I also learned that food photography is a lot harder than it looks and that taking pictures of tasty food only makes me want to eat more of such tasty food.
Excuse me while I go consume a lot of pie. And rolls. And if the ants hadn't discovered the pumpkin-y goodness of maple covered cookies, I could enjoy some of those too. Maybe I'll just go make some more.....
>Anyway, I hope everyone else had a happy Thanksgiving!
Monday, November 24, 2008
Blistered Heat
I was tagged by MJ the awesome, which is very good because I was struggling to come up with something to write about. I had a lot of fun with this one seeing as how I love music but it's been a long time since I've spent any good amount of time listening to new music...or listening to the music I already have.
1. Put Your iTunes, Windows Media Player, Winamp, etc on shuffle.
2. For each question, press the next button to get your answer.
3. YOU MUST WRITE THAT SONG NAME DOWN NO MATTER HOW SILLY IT SOUNDS.
4. Put the artist after a dash following the song name.
5. Put any comments in brackets.
6. Tag some lucky people to spread the disease.
How would you describe yourself?
"Machinehead" by Bush
[Ummm. Ok. Actually, it kinda makes sense, if you take the song title at face value and then remember how stubborn I can be sometimes. Otherwise, not so much.]
How do you feel today?
"In the Aeroplane Over the Sea" by Neutral Milk Hotel
[Lyrics sample: "And one day we will die And our ashes will fly From the aeroplane over the sea But for now we are young Let us lay in the sun And count every beautiful thing we can see Love to be in the arms of all I'm keeping here with me." The song is actually about Anne Frank but it rings with a sense of hope and optimism despite its wistful tone. It's actually a rather appropriate song for how I feel today. I'm feeling rather lonely and introspective (with a touch of frustration) but I'm trying to count every beautiful thing that I see.]
What is your life’s purpose?
"I'm a Ghost" by Ted Leo and the Pharmacists
[Crap. Now my secret's out!]
What is your motto?
"Is this love?" by Clap Your Hands Say Yeah!
[Lyrics sample: "And its love, yes its love, now its love, must be love, this is love, yes its love, now its tough, Must be love, is it love, yes its love, now its hard, must be love, and its hard, is it love, yes its not, now its hard, yet in love, is it love, this is love, must be love, it is love, love, love, no doubt." Actually, this makes for a pretty good motto. It's so easy to question love, especially when its hard. But it's love, no doubt.]
What do you think about very often?
"Your Ex-Lover is Dead" by Stars
[No, I don't have an ex-lover and no, he's not dead, but the thought of loosing David does occupy my thoughts quite a bit. Lyrics sample: "There's one thing I want to say, so I'll be brave, You were what I wanted I gave what I gave, I'm not sorry I met you, I'm not sorry it's over, I'm not sorry there's nothing to say..."]
What is your life story?
"I Know That My Redeemer Lives" by the BYU Singers
[This is my favorite hymn so I'm glad it came up, but I'm not so sure I'm prepared for it to be my life story. If David had any say in it, we'd be missionaries/mission presidents in China for 50 years. Then, this would be really applicable.]
What do you want to be when you grow up?
"One" by U2.
[Apparently I'm going to become a human rights activist and be known by only my first name. I just don't think "Liz" has the same ring to it as "Bono" does. Still, it's an awesome song and there are much worse things that I could be when I grow up. Lyrics sample: "Did I disappoint you Or leave a bad taste in your mouth? You act like you never had love and you want me to go without... Have you come here for forgiveness? Have you come to raise the dead? Have you come here to play Jesus to the lepers in your head...One love, One blood, One life, You got to do what you should, One life, With each other, Sisters, Brothers, One life..."]
What will you dance to at your wedding?
"Do You Really Want to Hurt Me" by the Culture Club
[No joke. I swear this is the song that came up....and yeah, it's from The Wedding Singer soundtrack. And no, I did not dance to this at my wedding. Sadly, there wasn't much dancing at my wedding and David and I ended up only dancing the first dance to "Blue Eyes" by Carey Brothers.]
What will they play at your funeral?
"Woman King" by Iron and Wine
[Well, if that's what people think of me, then who am I to stop them? Lyrics sample: "Hundred years, hundred more Someday we may see a Woman king, sword in hand, Swing at some evil and bleed."]
What is your hobby/interest?
"So Come Back, I am Waiting" by Okkervil River
[I sure hope this doesn't become a hobby. I'm really impatient....]
If you could do anything right now, what would it be?
"Float On" by Modest Mouse
[Sounds reeeeeeal nice right now. I'll take it! Lyrics sample: "Bad news comes don't you worry even when it lands, Good news will work its way to all them plans, We both got fired on exactly the same day, Well we'll float on...good news is on the way."]
What do you want most of all?
"Something" by the Beatles
[George Harrison totally knows it too. I just wish I knew what that something was.]
What is your greatest fear?
"Please, Please Let Me Get What I Want" by the Smiths
[Such a sweet, sad little song. But isn't that so aptly true? Sometimes, don't you fear getting everything you want? I'd be afraid I didn't deserve it. It's not a long song, so I'm going to post all the lyrics:
Good times for a change
See, the luck I've had
Can make a good man turn bad
So please please please let me, let me, let me
Let me get what I want this time
Haven't had a dream in a long time
See, the life I've had
Can make a good man bad
So for once in my life
Let me get what I want
Lord knows, it would be the first time]
What is your darkest secret?
"Ground for Divorce" by Wolf Parade
[I've never been divorced and I sure hope I never am. I still think this song is awesome though. Lyrics sample: "You said you hate the sound, of the buses on the ground. You said you hate the way they scrape their brakes all over town. Said pretend it's whales, keeping their voices down. Such were the grounds for divorce I know..."]
What is your favorite thing in the world?
"Bleed American" by Jimmy Eat World
[So this song isn't about this, but when I hear the phrase "bleed American," I think of patriotism and dying for your country and while dying for your country is not my favorite thing, the love of country ranks pretty high up there.]
If you could have one wish, what would you wish for?
"Make Out Song" by The Rosebuds
[Awesome song. An excellent make out song. Truly. But ummm....it's not that I'd wish for making out or anything but as soon as David sees this, he'll feel that's it's his responsibility....nay, his duty!....to grant me this wish. Thanks, iTunes. Some lyrics: "True love is more than a make out song, waited to tell you way too long, wait a little bit we've been forever for two years now first time I kissed you, I almost died, so maybe there's more than love tonight.]
What is your theme song?
"Transatlanticism" by Death Cab for Cutie
[When David and I were apart, this was a pretty appropriate theme song for us. Change the Atlantic for the Pacific, and it's still rather appropriate, even now. "The distance is quite simply much too far for me to row. It seems farther than ever before. Oh no, I need you so much closer."]
The next time you hear this song (aside from now, that is), you must dance.
"I'll Believe in Anything" by Wolf Parade
[It's not really a dancing song, but I do have a few moves for this song. It's my favorite Wolf Parade song. It's brilliantly awesome:
I could take another hit for you
And I could take away your trips from you
And I could take away the salt from your eyes
And take away the spitting salt in you
And I could give you my apologies
By handing over my neologies
And I could take away the shaking knees
And I could give you all the olive trees
Oh look at the trees and look at my face
And look at a place far away from here
So give me your eyes
I need sunshine
Give me your eyes
I need sunshine
Your blood, your bones
Your voice, and your ghost ]
What will you post this as?
"Blistered Heat" by Badly Drawn Boy
I'd tag some people, but I don't know who'd get a kick out of it like I did.
1. Put Your iTunes, Windows Media Player, Winamp, etc on shuffle.
2. For each question, press the next button to get your answer.
3. YOU MUST WRITE THAT SONG NAME DOWN NO MATTER HOW SILLY IT SOUNDS.
4. Put the artist after a dash following the song name.
5. Put any comments in brackets.
6. Tag some lucky people to spread the disease.
How would you describe yourself?
"Machinehead" by Bush
[Ummm. Ok. Actually, it kinda makes sense, if you take the song title at face value and then remember how stubborn I can be sometimes. Otherwise, not so much.]
How do you feel today?
"In the Aeroplane Over the Sea" by Neutral Milk Hotel
[Lyrics sample: "And one day we will die And our ashes will fly From the aeroplane over the sea But for now we are young Let us lay in the sun And count every beautiful thing we can see Love to be in the arms of all I'm keeping here with me." The song is actually about Anne Frank but it rings with a sense of hope and optimism despite its wistful tone. It's actually a rather appropriate song for how I feel today. I'm feeling rather lonely and introspective (with a touch of frustration) but I'm trying to count every beautiful thing that I see.]
What is your life’s purpose?
"I'm a Ghost" by Ted Leo and the Pharmacists
[Crap. Now my secret's out!]
What is your motto?
"Is this love?" by Clap Your Hands Say Yeah!
[Lyrics sample: "And its love, yes its love, now its love, must be love, this is love, yes its love, now its tough, Must be love, is it love, yes its love, now its hard, must be love, and its hard, is it love, yes its not, now its hard, yet in love, is it love, this is love, must be love, it is love, love, love, no doubt." Actually, this makes for a pretty good motto. It's so easy to question love, especially when its hard. But it's love, no doubt.]
What do you think about very often?
"Your Ex-Lover is Dead" by Stars
[No, I don't have an ex-lover and no, he's not dead, but the thought of loosing David does occupy my thoughts quite a bit. Lyrics sample: "There's one thing I want to say, so I'll be brave, You were what I wanted I gave what I gave, I'm not sorry I met you, I'm not sorry it's over, I'm not sorry there's nothing to say..."]
What is your life story?
"I Know That My Redeemer Lives" by the BYU Singers
[This is my favorite hymn so I'm glad it came up, but I'm not so sure I'm prepared for it to be my life story. If David had any say in it, we'd be missionaries/mission presidents in China for 50 years. Then, this would be really applicable.]
What do you want to be when you grow up?
"One" by U2.
[Apparently I'm going to become a human rights activist and be known by only my first name. I just don't think "Liz" has the same ring to it as "Bono" does. Still, it's an awesome song and there are much worse things that I could be when I grow up. Lyrics sample: "Did I disappoint you Or leave a bad taste in your mouth? You act like you never had love and you want me to go without... Have you come here for forgiveness? Have you come to raise the dead? Have you come here to play Jesus to the lepers in your head...One love, One blood, One life, You got to do what you should, One life, With each other, Sisters, Brothers, One life..."]
What will you dance to at your wedding?
"Do You Really Want to Hurt Me" by the Culture Club
[No joke. I swear this is the song that came up....and yeah, it's from The Wedding Singer soundtrack. And no, I did not dance to this at my wedding. Sadly, there wasn't much dancing at my wedding and David and I ended up only dancing the first dance to "Blue Eyes" by Carey Brothers.]
What will they play at your funeral?
"Woman King" by Iron and Wine
[Well, if that's what people think of me, then who am I to stop them? Lyrics sample: "Hundred years, hundred more Someday we may see a Woman king, sword in hand, Swing at some evil and bleed."]
What is your hobby/interest?
"So Come Back, I am Waiting" by Okkervil River
[I sure hope this doesn't become a hobby. I'm really impatient....]
If you could do anything right now, what would it be?
"Float On" by Modest Mouse
[Sounds reeeeeeal nice right now. I'll take it! Lyrics sample: "Bad news comes don't you worry even when it lands, Good news will work its way to all them plans, We both got fired on exactly the same day, Well we'll float on...good news is on the way."]
What do you want most of all?
"Something" by the Beatles
[George Harrison totally knows it too. I just wish I knew what that something was.]
What is your greatest fear?
"Please, Please Let Me Get What I Want" by the Smiths
[Such a sweet, sad little song. But isn't that so aptly true? Sometimes, don't you fear getting everything you want? I'd be afraid I didn't deserve it. It's not a long song, so I'm going to post all the lyrics:
Good times for a change
See, the luck I've had
Can make a good man turn bad
So please please please let me, let me, let me
Let me get what I want this time
Haven't had a dream in a long time
See, the life I've had
Can make a good man bad
So for once in my life
Let me get what I want
Lord knows, it would be the first time]
What is your darkest secret?
"Ground for Divorce" by Wolf Parade
[I've never been divorced and I sure hope I never am. I still think this song is awesome though. Lyrics sample: "You said you hate the sound, of the buses on the ground. You said you hate the way they scrape their brakes all over town. Said pretend it's whales, keeping their voices down. Such were the grounds for divorce I know..."]
What is your favorite thing in the world?
"Bleed American" by Jimmy Eat World
[So this song isn't about this, but when I hear the phrase "bleed American," I think of patriotism and dying for your country and while dying for your country is not my favorite thing, the love of country ranks pretty high up there.]
If you could have one wish, what would you wish for?
"Make Out Song" by The Rosebuds
[Awesome song. An excellent make out song. Truly. But ummm....it's not that I'd wish for making out or anything but as soon as David sees this, he'll feel that's it's his responsibility....nay, his duty!....to grant me this wish. Thanks, iTunes. Some lyrics: "True love is more than a make out song, waited to tell you way too long, wait a little bit we've been forever for two years now first time I kissed you, I almost died, so maybe there's more than love tonight.]
What is your theme song?
"Transatlanticism" by Death Cab for Cutie
[When David and I were apart, this was a pretty appropriate theme song for us. Change the Atlantic for the Pacific, and it's still rather appropriate, even now. "The distance is quite simply much too far for me to row. It seems farther than ever before. Oh no, I need you so much closer."]
The next time you hear this song (aside from now, that is), you must dance.
"I'll Believe in Anything" by Wolf Parade
[It's not really a dancing song, but I do have a few moves for this song. It's my favorite Wolf Parade song. It's brilliantly awesome:
I could take another hit for you
And I could take away your trips from you
And I could take away the salt from your eyes
And take away the spitting salt in you
And I could give you my apologies
By handing over my neologies
And I could take away the shaking knees
And I could give you all the olive trees
Oh look at the trees and look at my face
And look at a place far away from here
So give me your eyes
I need sunshine
Give me your eyes
I need sunshine
Your blood, your bones
Your voice, and your ghost ]
What will you post this as?
"Blistered Heat" by Badly Drawn Boy
I'd tag some people, but I don't know who'd get a kick out of it like I did.
Saturday, November 15, 2008
Did you know that libraries are full of books?
I've noticed several other friends mentioning their love for their public library systems. I, too, have re-discovered the public library here in Mililani. Now, the library here is nothing special. It has no cool check out system, it has no easy online renewal system (which really irks me), and it doesn't have the greatest selection of books (though you can have books sent from any of the other public libraries on the island for free), and it certainly doesn't have enough parking spaces. What it does have are lots and lots of books to read.
Now, you may be saying to yourself, "Duh, Liz. All libraries are full of books to read. Have you never been to a library before?"
Why yes, I have been to a library before. Many of them, in fact. I've practically lived in a few of them. But the beautiful, wonderful, breathtakingly large libraries I have been frequenting for the past seven years include the BYU library (oh, be still my heart) and the Library of Congress. (GW's campus library was LAME. But again, I could still get all the books I needed through the consortium.) A university/research library is a very different beast than a good old public library. And while I love rows and rows of academic books, anthologies, and research tomes, what a university library lacks are fun, frivolous, and entertaining books to read.
Not that I don't love to read a good academic book. I loved a lot of the books I read in graduate school. On average, I read 2-3 books per week. And by read, I mean skimmed really fast and then read the book reviews/summaries written by other really smart people. Some of the books I read for my courses, I'd recommend to anyone. The Age of Homespun or The Midwife's Tale by Laurel Thatcher Ulrich. (Um, anything by Laurel Thatcher Ulrich. I really love her. She's my academic hero. Her and Lynn Spigel. Oh, and Delores Hayden. And Amy Kaplan.) The Refinement of America by Richard Bushman. A Traffic of Dead Bodies by Michael Sappol. The Great Arizona Orphan Abduction by Linda Gordon. Make Room for TV by Lynn Spigel and Cold War Orientalism by Christina Klein. There's some seriously good stuff out there in the academic world. And while a good deal of it is poorly written or badly organized, there are a few jems out there that unfortunately don't get the recognition they deserve from a wider audience. It's the rare academic that can bridge the gap between academic books and trade books.
So while I loved a good portion of the books I read in both my undergraduate and graduate studies, the one thing I truly missed was reading a book for the shear enjoyment of reading. There's nothing I love more than getting truly, blissfully, and unequivocally caught up in a good book. I love getting to know new characters, I love rooting around in their lives, taking a piece of their heart and wisdom away with me once the story is over.
And now that I'm not in school and only theoretically employed, I have re-awakened my love of reading by diving into anything and everything. I'm at the public library at least once a week looking for new books. I jump around between historical narratives and biographies, classics of English/world literature, cookbooks, contemporary fiction, and "chick-lit" fiction which are surprisingly satisfying, almost like a good romantic comedy. For the past month, I've been thoroughly engrossed in Diana Gabaldon's Outlander series. Borders labels them as romance books. My library calls them fantasy. I'd call them historical fiction with a science fiction twist. But however you want to label them, they are detailed, nuanced books, well-written and worth each page. (They're extremely long. The series has six books and each is well over 800 pages.) If you've got the time to spare, they're so worth it. I'm on the last book now and I think David will be quite happy once I'm done because I've been staying up late to read.
I love books. I love the way they smell and feel of their heft in my hand. I love their crinkled pages and dog-eared corners and row after row of perfectly sculpted text. Books, as Jonathan Rosen said, are the companions of our soul. Most of all, I love the story within and the way some writers can bend words in ways I never knew you could, the way they can break your heart with a subtle, well-placed preposition. I often wish I had that talent. I often wish I had that way with words. But then again, I've never tried to write anything other than a journal entry, a blog post, or a term paper. I've never been a great storyteller or a creative writer, yet I often dream of writing and being published and taking my words and arranging them in such a way as to be truly beautiful. Maybe someday. But I'm fully convinced that the only way to learn to be a better writer is to read the writings of others until you find your own voice.
And for that, I am glad for the public library and how they are full of books to read.
Now, you may be saying to yourself, "Duh, Liz. All libraries are full of books to read. Have you never been to a library before?"
Why yes, I have been to a library before. Many of them, in fact. I've practically lived in a few of them. But the beautiful, wonderful, breathtakingly large libraries I have been frequenting for the past seven years include the BYU library (oh, be still my heart) and the Library of Congress. (GW's campus library was LAME. But again, I could still get all the books I needed through the consortium.) A university/research library is a very different beast than a good old public library. And while I love rows and rows of academic books, anthologies, and research tomes, what a university library lacks are fun, frivolous, and entertaining books to read.
Not that I don't love to read a good academic book. I loved a lot of the books I read in graduate school. On average, I read 2-3 books per week. And by read, I mean skimmed really fast and then read the book reviews/summaries written by other really smart people. Some of the books I read for my courses, I'd recommend to anyone. The Age of Homespun or The Midwife's Tale by Laurel Thatcher Ulrich. (Um, anything by Laurel Thatcher Ulrich. I really love her. She's my academic hero. Her and Lynn Spigel. Oh, and Delores Hayden. And Amy Kaplan.) The Refinement of America by Richard Bushman. A Traffic of Dead Bodies by Michael Sappol. The Great Arizona Orphan Abduction by Linda Gordon. Make Room for TV by Lynn Spigel and Cold War Orientalism by Christina Klein. There's some seriously good stuff out there in the academic world. And while a good deal of it is poorly written or badly organized, there are a few jems out there that unfortunately don't get the recognition they deserve from a wider audience. It's the rare academic that can bridge the gap between academic books and trade books.
So while I loved a good portion of the books I read in both my undergraduate and graduate studies, the one thing I truly missed was reading a book for the shear enjoyment of reading. There's nothing I love more than getting truly, blissfully, and unequivocally caught up in a good book. I love getting to know new characters, I love rooting around in their lives, taking a piece of their heart and wisdom away with me once the story is over.
And now that I'm not in school and only theoretically employed, I have re-awakened my love of reading by diving into anything and everything. I'm at the public library at least once a week looking for new books. I jump around between historical narratives and biographies, classics of English/world literature, cookbooks, contemporary fiction, and "chick-lit" fiction which are surprisingly satisfying, almost like a good romantic comedy. For the past month, I've been thoroughly engrossed in Diana Gabaldon's Outlander series. Borders labels them as romance books. My library calls them fantasy. I'd call them historical fiction with a science fiction twist. But however you want to label them, they are detailed, nuanced books, well-written and worth each page. (They're extremely long. The series has six books and each is well over 800 pages.) If you've got the time to spare, they're so worth it. I'm on the last book now and I think David will be quite happy once I'm done because I've been staying up late to read.
I love books. I love the way they smell and feel of their heft in my hand. I love their crinkled pages and dog-eared corners and row after row of perfectly sculpted text. Books, as Jonathan Rosen said, are the companions of our soul. Most of all, I love the story within and the way some writers can bend words in ways I never knew you could, the way they can break your heart with a subtle, well-placed preposition. I often wish I had that talent. I often wish I had that way with words. But then again, I've never tried to write anything other than a journal entry, a blog post, or a term paper. I've never been a great storyteller or a creative writer, yet I often dream of writing and being published and taking my words and arranging them in such a way as to be truly beautiful. Maybe someday. But I'm fully convinced that the only way to learn to be a better writer is to read the writings of others until you find your own voice.
And for that, I am glad for the public library and how they are full of books to read.
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
ABC's of Liz and Christmas Fun
A round of surveys for your viewing pleasure. I should print these suckers out and paste them into my journal for my posterity. It's a thought.....
Anyway. First up, the ABCs of me.
A- Attached or Single? Sin....oh no. That's not right. I'm very much attached. Yay!
B- Best Friend? Kara since the 4th grade. And Jen since our junior year at BYU. They are such complete opposites of each other but I love them both so much. And David, of course. But that's a given.
C- Cake or Pie? Cake. I love cake. I adore cake. A lot.
D- Day of Choice? You know, when you don't do anything, every day kinda feels the same. Fridays are good. I've always had a thing for Thursdays though. I don't know why.
E- Essential Item? Chaptstick. I cannot go anywhere without some Burt's Bees.
F- Favorite Color? Right now, I love purple. It was my wedding color, after all. But yellow and pink are way up there.
G- Gummy Bears or Worms? This is hard. I really really love chocolate covered cinnamon bears (or just plain cinnamon bears in general) but I think I'd have to pick gummy worms. They are much more fun to eat.
H- Hometown? Poway, California
I- Indulgence(s)? Anything chocolate. And new shoes.
J- January or July? Neither month have much personal meaning to me, but I have to pick July if only for the Fourth of July. And Pioneer Day.
K- Kids? No. No. And no. Though I expect that it will happen soon enough. By soon enough, I mean before I turn 40.
L- Life is incomplete without? Faith, hope, and David.
M- Marriage Date? June 6, 2008. It was the perfect day to get married. I have this really weird thing about odd numbers so I insisted that we get married on an even date. It worked out to be 06/06/2008. I didn't even realize it was D-Day when we picked the day.
N- Number of Siblings? 3 - One brother and two sisters. All older. I love being the baby.
O- Oranges or Apples? Apples. I love the fall when there are lots and lots of different kinds of apples available. I really love Cameos.
P- Phobias or Fears? I have a lot of random fears. For the longest time, I was afraid I'd find a spider in the toilet and it would bite me on the butt. I hate driving under overpasses, especially in heavy traffic, and driving next to big rig trucks because I always think they're going to smash me and my little car to bits. I might possibly even be a bit of a closet hypochondriac. I hate big social events and calling people I don't know on the phone. But I also try not to let my fears dictate how I live or prevent me from living my life. My biggest, most horrifying fear, though, is to loose either David or my mother. I don't think I will ever be prepared to live without them in my life.
Q- Quotes? I often hear quotes and love them for their poetry or truthfulness, but I never remember to write them down or commit them to memory, except for quotes from movies or songs. I love the quote from Yeats from which I drew the title of this blog. Or I could mention my favorite scripture in Alma 26:35-36: "Now have we not reason to rejoice? Yea, I say unto you, there never were men that had so great reason to rejoice as we, since the world began; yea, and my joy is carried away, even unto boasting in my God; for he has all power, all wisdom, and all understanding; he comprehendeth all things, and he is a merciful Being, even unto salvation, to those who will repent and believe on his name. Now if this is boasting, even so will I boast; for this is my life and my light, my joy and my salvation, and my redemption from everlasting wo." Or I could mention a few lines from "Blue Eyes" by Carey Brothers....one of my favorite songs because it reminds me of David and it was the first song we danced to at our wedding: "Cause blue eyes, you are all that I need....cause blue eyes, you’re the sweet to my mean....I just wanna sing a song with you, I just wanna be the one that's true....cause blue eyes, you’re the secret I keep.....But you can't point the way to your heart, so sublime, when the stars are aligned...But you don't know, you don't know the greatness you are."
R- Reason to Smile? Life. I forget to smile for that reason way too often.
S- Season? Fall
T- Tag 5 People? Umm....Kara, Abby....anyone else that reads this blog? No pressure though.
U- Unknown Fact? It's always so hard to think an answer to open-ended questions like this. But since I'm sitting here, in my living room, staring at my bookshelves full of all their tantalizing books, I'll say this: I'm a very fast reader. My mother instilled a love of books and reading in me at a very early age and somewhere along the way, I became a super speedy reader. (I wish that were a super power. I could be the Great Reader or Literary Girl or something like that.) I say this because the only contests that I have ever won have been the result of my reading abilities. In the fourth grade, my class had a reading contest and we had to log the number of pages that we read each night. I racked up the most pages and won.....a book. The summer between 4th and 5th grade, my mom signed me up for a summer school class that was all about reading and enrichment type activities for kids and we got tickets for every book we read. At the end of the summer, the teacher held an auction in which we used alll the tickets we had collected over the summer to buy stuff. I had the most. Several of my fellow classmates accused me of cheating. But I truly did read every single book. I don't, however, remember anything I bought at the auction. In the seventh grade, the middle school library had some electronic literary system rigged up. They had a long list of books to read, each worth a different amount of points (the hard ones were worth 5 points). After reading a book on the list, you took a short test on the computer about characters, plot, themes, etc.. If you passed, you earned the number of points the book was worth and you had 3 chances to pass the test for each book. The only test that I did not pass was for The Great Gatsby (worth 5 points which is why I chose to read it in the first place). It was a little too heavy and symbolic for my 13 year old mind to comprehend but it has since become one of my favorite American novels. At the end of the school, year I was the loser with no life who had amassed the most number of points and I won $100. Sometimes it totally pays to read. I wish I could get paid to read now.
V- Very Favorite Store? Target. Not that they have Targets in Hawaii, but I love that store.
W- Worst Habit? Futzing with my hair. I'm either pulling the ends through my fingernails or picking at split ends. It's an annoying habit that I've had forever and no matter how hard I try, I simply cannot stop it. It's almost like a security blanket for me. If I have my hair trimmed, then I can't pick at the split ends, but then it much more fun to play with because I like the blunt edges. I just can't win either way. The only time I did actually stop was when my hair was short, but I'm forbidden to cut my hair.
X- X-Ray or Ultrasound? I've never had an ultrasound done before but I've had plenty of X-rays. And even an MRI and CAT scan.
Y- Your Favorite Food? There are so many good choices for this. I love food in general. Pizza ranks really up there for its many variations and options, chocolate, won tons. It's too hard to pick.
Z- Zodiac? Aquarius.
And now, for a Christmas survey. I love Christmas and even though I think it's just a tad too early to be thinking about it already, I couldn't resist jotting down my answers.
1. Wrapping paper or gift bags?
Gift bags are often the easier route to go, and for some odd-shaped or bulky items, they are much easier, but I much prefer wrapping paper. I find wrapping presents to be rather cathartic and I love ripping open the paper to reveal what's underneath. Bags take some of the fun away from opening presents. But then again....it's much easier to peek inside a bag and I'm notoriously nosy and impatient about opening up gifts.
2. Real tree or Artificial?
I love real trees. I love the way they smell but the mess is often not very fun. I'd insist on getting a real tree but I think for our first Christmas together as husband and wife, David and I will invest in an artificial tree in case we can't find Christmas trees in Korea. At least then, no matter what, we'll have a Christmas tree. Because there's no way to have Christmas without a tree, whether it's fake or not.
3. When do you put the tree up?
Well, if we do get an artificial one, I'll probably put it up at the beginning of December, but normally, with a real tree, my family wouldn't get one until maybe the second week of December....sometimes later. I don't like jumping too quickly from holiday to holiday.
4. When do you take the tree down?
Sometime after New Year's. Or when it starts turning brown.
5. Do you like egg nog?
Not really. I've only had it a few times and I didn't think it was awful, but it's not something I would go out of my way to buy or drink during the holidays.
6. Favorite gift received as a child?
You know, I can only remember the silly little things I received as a child.....and I can't really remember if I got them as Christmas gifts or birthday presents. I was very lucky to have parents who could afford to give us nice Christmas gifts but I can't remember anything that I begged and begged my parents for and then found it under the Christmas tree. My mother used to buy us new pajamas each year for Christmas and I liked that. And we always got new clothes. But oddly, it was the little presents I'd find in my stocking each year that I was always most eager for because they were always so random and unexpected.
7. Do you have a nativity scene?
I do. I have several. They are one of my favorite Christmas decorations because they feature Christ. I have a small Fontanini set that I bought when I was studying abroad in Rome. Each piece (and I have 7-8) normally costs around $20 in the States, but I got them for about 5 euro each in Italy. I'd love to be back in Europe sometime around Christmas again so that I could add more pieces to my collection. They are plastic but they are hand painted and have a beautiful quality to them. I also have a small plastic set that I got out a Kinder egg set (anyone know what those are?) and I have a smaller all-white porcelain set that I got as a child but which I think is still buried somewhere in my parent's home. Someday, though, I'd love to own a beautiful porcelain set like my mother's complete Lladro set. Funny story about that. We went to Valencia during our family trip to Spain for the sole purpose of going to Lladro's factory store so that my mom could buy the entire Nativity set (and a few Christus statues) for half the cost. After purchasing the whole set, we had 4 massive boxes full of Lladro. We had to unload the car of all of our luggage, load in the Lladro and then my dad and brother drove off, leaving my sister, mom, and me, by the side of the road with all our belongings while they went off in search of a post office still open (it was right about siesta time). They finally found a place, and came back to get us. It cost as much to ship the Lladro home as it did to purchase it, but it still cost my parents half of what it would have to have bought it in the States. They are absolutely beautiful.
8. Hardest person to buy for?
My father. He's the type of man who likes expensive electronic gadgets but if he wants something, he just goes out and buys it for himself anyway. And then when you ask him what he wants, he always says "The pleasure of your company" which is sweet and all, but not an actual present that you can wrap up and put under the tree. And while I'm not promoting materialism, it's always nice to be able to buy something for someone else which you know that they will enjoy. Half the fun of buying gifts is seeing the look on someone's face when they open it. And no matter what you buy my father, he never looks happy or excited or pleased to have received it. It'll sit on the living room floor for a week after Christmas until my mom picks it up and puts it somewhere. Argh. Can you tell this is something I go through every year?
9. Easiest person to buy for?
I've always found shopping for my friend Kara to be relatively easy. I just buy something I would like and give it to her. We've always had similar tastes. David is also pretty easy to shop for. He's always happy with some standard gift like a tie or Legos but he's also the type to not spend a lot of money on things for himself. I pay attention to things he casually mentions or things I know he'd like and I hold onto it until Christmas or a birthday or anniversary so that I can buy it for him and surprise him.
10. Mail or email Christmas cards?
Email is great for so many things but I love to receive real mail and I still think Christmas cards should be the real deal.
11. Worst Christmas gift you ever received?
Lint rollers. No, seriously. It's become this thing now. I was in Costco with my sister Cassy three Christmases ago, discussing Christmas and gifts. I was remarking on how I think I'm such an easy person to shop for because I love to receive gifts and don't really need a lot to make me happy. (Ultimately, I'm a very practical person when it comes to gifts. I like things that are useful.) As I was saying this, I grabbed a four pack of lint rollers and waved them about and said, "Like a pack of lint rollers. I'd be happy with a lint roller because I use them all the time!" That Christmas, I got five lint rollers. One from every family member. I get at least one lint roller every Christmas now. It's my own fault I suppose. Sure, I use them and sure, now I don't ever have to worry about buying another lint roller ever again but seriously? Is it really still that funny?
My family sure seems to think so.
12 . Favorite Christmas movie?
I haven't really seen many of the classics. I've never seen "It's a Wonderful Life" or "A Christmas Story" or even a "Charlie Brown Christmas." I love "Elf" though.
13. When do you start shopping for Christmas?
It depends. Sometimes I start really early because I know exactly what I want to get certain people, or I want to spread out the expenses. I've already picked out one of David's gifts this year but I haven't got a clue what to get anyone else in my family. And most likely I'll procrastinate a ton and not get them sent out in time.
14 . Have you ever recycled a Christmas present?
I've given away some of my spare lint rollers but otherwise, no.
15. Any Christmas traditions?
My family has quite a number. There's a few I plan to continue with David, but I'm also looking forward to creating a few of our own, especially once we have children. My favorite family tradition is eating pizza on Christmas Eve. My mother had normally prepared a large and lavish Christmas Eve feast but one Christmas, when she was hugely pregnant with me, she just couldn't do it. She told my father that it was his responsibility to find dinner that night and so my father did the only thing he knew to do.....he ordered pizza. Ever since then, it's been a Hayman family tradition to eat pizza on Christmas Eve. We get pizzas from 2-3 different places, bring out the nice china and silver, and feast upon layers of oozing cheese and pepperoni. David has already promised me pizza this Christmas Eve.
16 . Clear lights or colored on the tree?
I really don't like colored lights. I only like clear lights. Colored lights are fun and festive, but clear lights are elegant and magical.
17. Favorite Christmas song?
"O Holy Night." It's so beautiful. I also really like Micheal McLean's "Forbidden Carols" CD. I listen to it every year.
18. Travel at Christmas or stay home?
I always go home for Christmas, which requires some travel as I haven't lived at home for some time. I've never spent a Christmas away from my parents or other family members and I'm, quite honestly, having a hard time accepting the fact that I won't be going home for Christmas this year. I mean, what are David and I going to do for the whole day? Christmas is normally a busy, busy day of opening gifts at my parent's home, eating Swedish scones, and then going to my grandparent's house to open more presents. I knew that I wouldn't get to go home every year, especially once I got married, but well....what to do on Christmas if you aren't with family?
19. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer?
If I thought really hard about it. I know Rudolph.
21 . Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning?
Christmas morning. I'm much opposed to opening them on Christmas Eve. I'll make an exception for a pair of pajamas to wear to bed that night, like my mother sometimes used to do.
22. Favorite thing for Christmas dinner?
We never did anything big for dinner on Christmas (only the pizza on Christmas Eve), but there's always good bread. I love good bread. Oh, and dessert. That's my favorite part.
Anyway. First up, the ABCs of me.
A- Attached or Single? Sin....oh no. That's not right. I'm very much attached. Yay!
B- Best Friend? Kara since the 4th grade. And Jen since our junior year at BYU. They are such complete opposites of each other but I love them both so much. And David, of course. But that's a given.
C- Cake or Pie? Cake. I love cake. I adore cake. A lot.
D- Day of Choice? You know, when you don't do anything, every day kinda feels the same. Fridays are good. I've always had a thing for Thursdays though. I don't know why.
E- Essential Item? Chaptstick. I cannot go anywhere without some Burt's Bees.
F- Favorite Color? Right now, I love purple. It was my wedding color, after all. But yellow and pink are way up there.
G- Gummy Bears or Worms? This is hard. I really really love chocolate covered cinnamon bears (or just plain cinnamon bears in general) but I think I'd have to pick gummy worms. They are much more fun to eat.
H- Hometown? Poway, California
I- Indulgence(s)? Anything chocolate. And new shoes.
J- January or July? Neither month have much personal meaning to me, but I have to pick July if only for the Fourth of July. And Pioneer Day.
K- Kids? No. No. And no. Though I expect that it will happen soon enough. By soon enough, I mean before I turn 40.
L- Life is incomplete without? Faith, hope, and David.
M- Marriage Date? June 6, 2008. It was the perfect day to get married. I have this really weird thing about odd numbers so I insisted that we get married on an even date. It worked out to be 06/06/2008. I didn't even realize it was D-Day when we picked the day.
N- Number of Siblings? 3 - One brother and two sisters. All older. I love being the baby.
O- Oranges or Apples? Apples. I love the fall when there are lots and lots of different kinds of apples available. I really love Cameos.
P- Phobias or Fears? I have a lot of random fears. For the longest time, I was afraid I'd find a spider in the toilet and it would bite me on the butt. I hate driving under overpasses, especially in heavy traffic, and driving next to big rig trucks because I always think they're going to smash me and my little car to bits. I might possibly even be a bit of a closet hypochondriac. I hate big social events and calling people I don't know on the phone. But I also try not to let my fears dictate how I live or prevent me from living my life. My biggest, most horrifying fear, though, is to loose either David or my mother. I don't think I will ever be prepared to live without them in my life.
Q- Quotes? I often hear quotes and love them for their poetry or truthfulness, but I never remember to write them down or commit them to memory, except for quotes from movies or songs. I love the quote from Yeats from which I drew the title of this blog. Or I could mention my favorite scripture in Alma 26:35-36: "Now have we not reason to rejoice? Yea, I say unto you, there never were men that had so great reason to rejoice as we, since the world began; yea, and my joy is carried away, even unto boasting in my God; for he has all power, all wisdom, and all understanding; he comprehendeth all things, and he is a merciful Being, even unto salvation, to those who will repent and believe on his name. Now if this is boasting, even so will I boast; for this is my life and my light, my joy and my salvation, and my redemption from everlasting wo." Or I could mention a few lines from "Blue Eyes" by Carey Brothers....one of my favorite songs because it reminds me of David and it was the first song we danced to at our wedding: "Cause blue eyes, you are all that I need....cause blue eyes, you’re the sweet to my mean....I just wanna sing a song with you, I just wanna be the one that's true....cause blue eyes, you’re the secret I keep.....But you can't point the way to your heart, so sublime, when the stars are aligned...But you don't know, you don't know the greatness you are."
R- Reason to Smile? Life. I forget to smile for that reason way too often.
S- Season? Fall
T- Tag 5 People? Umm....Kara, Abby....anyone else that reads this blog? No pressure though.
U- Unknown Fact? It's always so hard to think an answer to open-ended questions like this. But since I'm sitting here, in my living room, staring at my bookshelves full of all their tantalizing books, I'll say this: I'm a very fast reader. My mother instilled a love of books and reading in me at a very early age and somewhere along the way, I became a super speedy reader. (I wish that were a super power. I could be the Great Reader or Literary Girl or something like that.) I say this because the only contests that I have ever won have been the result of my reading abilities. In the fourth grade, my class had a reading contest and we had to log the number of pages that we read each night. I racked up the most pages and won.....a book. The summer between 4th and 5th grade, my mom signed me up for a summer school class that was all about reading and enrichment type activities for kids and we got tickets for every book we read. At the end of the summer, the teacher held an auction in which we used alll the tickets we had collected over the summer to buy stuff. I had the most. Several of my fellow classmates accused me of cheating. But I truly did read every single book. I don't, however, remember anything I bought at the auction. In the seventh grade, the middle school library had some electronic literary system rigged up. They had a long list of books to read, each worth a different amount of points (the hard ones were worth 5 points). After reading a book on the list, you took a short test on the computer about characters, plot, themes, etc.. If you passed, you earned the number of points the book was worth and you had 3 chances to pass the test for each book. The only test that I did not pass was for The Great Gatsby (worth 5 points which is why I chose to read it in the first place). It was a little too heavy and symbolic for my 13 year old mind to comprehend but it has since become one of my favorite American novels. At the end of the school, year I was the loser with no life who had amassed the most number of points and I won $100. Sometimes it totally pays to read. I wish I could get paid to read now.
V- Very Favorite Store? Target. Not that they have Targets in Hawaii, but I love that store.
W- Worst Habit? Futzing with my hair. I'm either pulling the ends through my fingernails or picking at split ends. It's an annoying habit that I've had forever and no matter how hard I try, I simply cannot stop it. It's almost like a security blanket for me. If I have my hair trimmed, then I can't pick at the split ends, but then it much more fun to play with because I like the blunt edges. I just can't win either way. The only time I did actually stop was when my hair was short, but I'm forbidden to cut my hair.
X- X-Ray or Ultrasound? I've never had an ultrasound done before but I've had plenty of X-rays. And even an MRI and CAT scan.
Y- Your Favorite Food? There are so many good choices for this. I love food in general. Pizza ranks really up there for its many variations and options, chocolate, won tons. It's too hard to pick.
Z- Zodiac? Aquarius.
And now, for a Christmas survey. I love Christmas and even though I think it's just a tad too early to be thinking about it already, I couldn't resist jotting down my answers.
1. Wrapping paper or gift bags?
Gift bags are often the easier route to go, and for some odd-shaped or bulky items, they are much easier, but I much prefer wrapping paper. I find wrapping presents to be rather cathartic and I love ripping open the paper to reveal what's underneath. Bags take some of the fun away from opening presents. But then again....it's much easier to peek inside a bag and I'm notoriously nosy and impatient about opening up gifts.
2. Real tree or Artificial?
I love real trees. I love the way they smell but the mess is often not very fun. I'd insist on getting a real tree but I think for our first Christmas together as husband and wife, David and I will invest in an artificial tree in case we can't find Christmas trees in Korea. At least then, no matter what, we'll have a Christmas tree. Because there's no way to have Christmas without a tree, whether it's fake or not.
3. When do you put the tree up?
Well, if we do get an artificial one, I'll probably put it up at the beginning of December, but normally, with a real tree, my family wouldn't get one until maybe the second week of December....sometimes later. I don't like jumping too quickly from holiday to holiday.
4. When do you take the tree down?
Sometime after New Year's. Or when it starts turning brown.
5. Do you like egg nog?
Not really. I've only had it a few times and I didn't think it was awful, but it's not something I would go out of my way to buy or drink during the holidays.
6. Favorite gift received as a child?
You know, I can only remember the silly little things I received as a child.....and I can't really remember if I got them as Christmas gifts or birthday presents. I was very lucky to have parents who could afford to give us nice Christmas gifts but I can't remember anything that I begged and begged my parents for and then found it under the Christmas tree. My mother used to buy us new pajamas each year for Christmas and I liked that. And we always got new clothes. But oddly, it was the little presents I'd find in my stocking each year that I was always most eager for because they were always so random and unexpected.
7. Do you have a nativity scene?
I do. I have several. They are one of my favorite Christmas decorations because they feature Christ. I have a small Fontanini set that I bought when I was studying abroad in Rome. Each piece (and I have 7-8) normally costs around $20 in the States, but I got them for about 5 euro each in Italy. I'd love to be back in Europe sometime around Christmas again so that I could add more pieces to my collection. They are plastic but they are hand painted and have a beautiful quality to them. I also have a small plastic set that I got out a Kinder egg set (anyone know what those are?) and I have a smaller all-white porcelain set that I got as a child but which I think is still buried somewhere in my parent's home. Someday, though, I'd love to own a beautiful porcelain set like my mother's complete Lladro set. Funny story about that. We went to Valencia during our family trip to Spain for the sole purpose of going to Lladro's factory store so that my mom could buy the entire Nativity set (and a few Christus statues) for half the cost. After purchasing the whole set, we had 4 massive boxes full of Lladro. We had to unload the car of all of our luggage, load in the Lladro and then my dad and brother drove off, leaving my sister, mom, and me, by the side of the road with all our belongings while they went off in search of a post office still open (it was right about siesta time). They finally found a place, and came back to get us. It cost as much to ship the Lladro home as it did to purchase it, but it still cost my parents half of what it would have to have bought it in the States. They are absolutely beautiful.
8. Hardest person to buy for?
My father. He's the type of man who likes expensive electronic gadgets but if he wants something, he just goes out and buys it for himself anyway. And then when you ask him what he wants, he always says "The pleasure of your company" which is sweet and all, but not an actual present that you can wrap up and put under the tree. And while I'm not promoting materialism, it's always nice to be able to buy something for someone else which you know that they will enjoy. Half the fun of buying gifts is seeing the look on someone's face when they open it. And no matter what you buy my father, he never looks happy or excited or pleased to have received it. It'll sit on the living room floor for a week after Christmas until my mom picks it up and puts it somewhere. Argh. Can you tell this is something I go through every year?
9. Easiest person to buy for?
I've always found shopping for my friend Kara to be relatively easy. I just buy something I would like and give it to her. We've always had similar tastes. David is also pretty easy to shop for. He's always happy with some standard gift like a tie or Legos but he's also the type to not spend a lot of money on things for himself. I pay attention to things he casually mentions or things I know he'd like and I hold onto it until Christmas or a birthday or anniversary so that I can buy it for him and surprise him.
10. Mail or email Christmas cards?
Email is great for so many things but I love to receive real mail and I still think Christmas cards should be the real deal.
11. Worst Christmas gift you ever received?
Lint rollers. No, seriously. It's become this thing now. I was in Costco with my sister Cassy three Christmases ago, discussing Christmas and gifts. I was remarking on how I think I'm such an easy person to shop for because I love to receive gifts and don't really need a lot to make me happy. (Ultimately, I'm a very practical person when it comes to gifts. I like things that are useful.) As I was saying this, I grabbed a four pack of lint rollers and waved them about and said, "Like a pack of lint rollers. I'd be happy with a lint roller because I use them all the time!" That Christmas, I got five lint rollers. One from every family member. I get at least one lint roller every Christmas now. It's my own fault I suppose. Sure, I use them and sure, now I don't ever have to worry about buying another lint roller ever again but seriously? Is it really still that funny?
My family sure seems to think so.
12 . Favorite Christmas movie?
I haven't really seen many of the classics. I've never seen "It's a Wonderful Life" or "A Christmas Story" or even a "Charlie Brown Christmas." I love "Elf" though.
13. When do you start shopping for Christmas?
It depends. Sometimes I start really early because I know exactly what I want to get certain people, or I want to spread out the expenses. I've already picked out one of David's gifts this year but I haven't got a clue what to get anyone else in my family. And most likely I'll procrastinate a ton and not get them sent out in time.
14 . Have you ever recycled a Christmas present?
I've given away some of my spare lint rollers but otherwise, no.
15. Any Christmas traditions?
My family has quite a number. There's a few I plan to continue with David, but I'm also looking forward to creating a few of our own, especially once we have children. My favorite family tradition is eating pizza on Christmas Eve. My mother had normally prepared a large and lavish Christmas Eve feast but one Christmas, when she was hugely pregnant with me, she just couldn't do it. She told my father that it was his responsibility to find dinner that night and so my father did the only thing he knew to do.....he ordered pizza. Ever since then, it's been a Hayman family tradition to eat pizza on Christmas Eve. We get pizzas from 2-3 different places, bring out the nice china and silver, and feast upon layers of oozing cheese and pepperoni. David has already promised me pizza this Christmas Eve.
16 . Clear lights or colored on the tree?
I really don't like colored lights. I only like clear lights. Colored lights are fun and festive, but clear lights are elegant and magical.
17. Favorite Christmas song?
"O Holy Night." It's so beautiful. I also really like Micheal McLean's "Forbidden Carols" CD. I listen to it every year.
18. Travel at Christmas or stay home?
I always go home for Christmas, which requires some travel as I haven't lived at home for some time. I've never spent a Christmas away from my parents or other family members and I'm, quite honestly, having a hard time accepting the fact that I won't be going home for Christmas this year. I mean, what are David and I going to do for the whole day? Christmas is normally a busy, busy day of opening gifts at my parent's home, eating Swedish scones, and then going to my grandparent's house to open more presents. I knew that I wouldn't get to go home every year, especially once I got married, but well....what to do on Christmas if you aren't with family?
19. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer?
If I thought really hard about it. I know Rudolph.
21 . Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning?
Christmas morning. I'm much opposed to opening them on Christmas Eve. I'll make an exception for a pair of pajamas to wear to bed that night, like my mother sometimes used to do.
22. Favorite thing for Christmas dinner?
We never did anything big for dinner on Christmas (only the pizza on Christmas Eve), but there's always good bread. I love good bread. Oh, and dessert. That's my favorite part.
Monday, November 10, 2008
Weekend Visitors
My sister and brother-in-law spent the week vacationing on the Big Island at my parent's timeshare and before they flew home to San Diego, they came to visit David and I for the day on Saturday. We picked them up at the Honolulu airport and drove over to Pearl Harbor. The only thing my sister wanted to see during their brief visit to Oahu was the Arizona Memorial. I haven't been to the Arizona Memorial since I moved to Hawaii (although I went both times I came to Hawaii to visit David while we were dating) but I've gone to the other historic Pearl Harbor sites like the Pacific Aviation Museum and the U.S.S. Missouri. While its free to visit the Arizona Memorial (which is run by the National Park Service), the other Pearl Harbor historic sites, like the Bowfin submarine (pictured below), the museums, and the U.S.S. Missouri all charge an entrance fee. (Pretty hefty ones at that too.)
The Arizona Memorial floats above the sunken remains of the U.S.S. Arizona in between Ford's Island and the shore of Oahu which means that visitors are required to take a short boat ride to the memorial. Before boarding the boat, you watch a twenty minute video about the attack on Pearl Harbor and the start of World War II.
It always makes me cry. And it also makes me very proud of the men and women who fight during times of war and who give their lives for the defense and protection of our country. War is never good, it is never easy, but of everything I have ever read, studied, or watched of the World War II era, there never seemed to be any doubt to the validity and rightness of fighting in this battle. World War I was called the great war, but World War II was called the "good war." I wonder if that's because Americans knew they were fighting for a just cause. I wonder if we will ever have a "good war" to fight again, when the entire country is united together in one purpose, one cause, one outcome. It almost felt that way in the months after September 11th, but that unity of country has since been lost. We didn't have it during the Korean War, Vietnam, Desert Storm, or the current war in Iraq. I wonder if we will ever have it again. I think our country has become too divided to ever unite in that way ever again.
But at least we can still feel unity in our mutual respect for the sailors, marines, airmen, and soldiers who lost their lives during the attack on December 7, 1941 and in the four years of war that followed. And I always silently thank Heavenly Father for the fact that my husband is in Navy but works on land, in a cubicle, and not in the claustrophobic confines of a ship or submarine.
And that I don't have to worry about him being buried at sea.
An old roommate of mine at BYU married a man in the Air Force ROTC and at the time I thought that there was no way that I'd ever marry someone in the military because that wasn't the life for me and they don't get paid very well. But that's before I understood what the military does and how each branch operates and how your pay is dependent on the cost of living of the location in which you are stationed and how many dependents you have. Even when David and I started dating, I kept wondering to myself why I was dating him, because I'd told myself I could never be a military wife.
I loved this shot of the American flag (hanging from the back of the boat) framing the U.S.S. Missouri across the water. The Boy Scouts leader in our ward asked me to teach the class for the American Heritage badge and our visit to Pearl Harbor made me even more excited to do it. I can't wait to impart my love of American history on young minds.
I'm sorry. I get a little emotional on the topic of America. I can't help myself.
Anyway, here is David, me, and my sister Bobbi waiting our turn to board the boat to the memorial. My sister spent one week in Hawaii and was already much tanner than me. I like being pale and stuff. The sun and I don't get along, especially since I had a doctor who pretty much told me I was going to have skin cancer. (Yay?) But I also suddenly realized that my hair is getting really dark. I have this vision of myself in my head in which I'm blonde and skinny until I look at a picture like this and think "Is my hair red? When did that happen?"
Oh well. I always did want red hair anyway. After our visit to Pearl Harbor, we drove to the Pali lookout, which is one of my favorite spots on the island. You gives you an absolutely stunning view of the windward side of the island.
Photographs simply can't do it justice. Plus it was a tad hazy so you don't get the full impact.
It's very windy up there. But it feels oh so nice.
My sister and her husband.
The Arizona Memorial floats above the sunken remains of the U.S.S. Arizona in between Ford's Island and the shore of Oahu which means that visitors are required to take a short boat ride to the memorial. Before boarding the boat, you watch a twenty minute video about the attack on Pearl Harbor and the start of World War II. 
It always makes me cry. And it also makes me very proud of the men and women who fight during times of war and who give their lives for the defense and protection of our country. War is never good, it is never easy, but of everything I have ever read, studied, or watched of the World War II era, there never seemed to be any doubt to the validity and rightness of fighting in this battle. World War I was called the great war, but World War II was called the "good war." I wonder if that's because Americans knew they were fighting for a just cause. I wonder if we will ever have a "good war" to fight again, when the entire country is united together in one purpose, one cause, one outcome. It almost felt that way in the months after September 11th, but that unity of country has since been lost. We didn't have it during the Korean War, Vietnam, Desert Storm, or the current war in Iraq. I wonder if we will ever have it again. I think our country has become too divided to ever unite in that way ever again.
But at least we can still feel unity in our mutual respect for the sailors, marines, airmen, and soldiers who lost their lives during the attack on December 7, 1941 and in the four years of war that followed. And I always silently thank Heavenly Father for the fact that my husband is in Navy but works on land, in a cubicle, and not in the claustrophobic confines of a ship or submarine.
And that I don't have to worry about him being buried at sea. An old roommate of mine at BYU married a man in the Air Force ROTC and at the time I thought that there was no way that I'd ever marry someone in the military because that wasn't the life for me and they don't get paid very well. But that's before I understood what the military does and how each branch operates and how your pay is dependent on the cost of living of the location in which you are stationed and how many dependents you have. Even when David and I started dating, I kept wondering to myself why I was dating him, because I'd told myself I could never be a military wife.
And you know what? I couldn't be happier to be married to someone in the military. (Especially the Navy. Go Navy! They have the best uniforms. Just sayin'.) I'm so proud of my husband and what he does and what it means and how it's changed his life. And even though he doesn't plan on staying in the military, I think that his military service will be the key to all his future success.
And my friend who married the Air Force officer? She's been living in Japan for the last few years, has three kids, and loves the military life. It's not the life for everyone, but it's been a good choice for us.
I loved this shot of the American flag (hanging from the back of the boat) framing the U.S.S. Missouri across the water. The Boy Scouts leader in our ward asked me to teach the class for the American Heritage badge and our visit to Pearl Harbor made me even more excited to do it. I can't wait to impart my love of American history on young minds.I'm sorry. I get a little emotional on the topic of America. I can't help myself.
Anyway, here is David, me, and my sister Bobbi waiting our turn to board the boat to the memorial. My sister spent one week in Hawaii and was already much tanner than me. I like being pale and stuff. The sun and I don't get along, especially since I had a doctor who pretty much told me I was going to have skin cancer. (Yay?) But I also suddenly realized that my hair is getting really dark. I have this vision of myself in my head in which I'm blonde and skinny until I look at a picture like this and think "Is my hair red? When did that happen?"
Oh well. I always did want red hair anyway. After our visit to Pearl Harbor, we drove to the Pali lookout, which is one of my favorite spots on the island. You gives you an absolutely stunning view of the windward side of the island.
Photographs simply can't do it justice. Plus it was a tad hazy so you don't get the full impact.
It's very windy up there. But it feels oh so nice.
My sister and her husband. After the Pali lookout, we drove back to our condo, sat and chatted, and introduced them to the wonder that is the Wii before taking them back to the airport.
It was so nice to have visitors. For the first time in months, I didn't feel like I was 15,000 thousands miles away from everything and everyone. Anyone else want to come visit? We have really comfy couches.
Thursday, November 6, 2008
A moment of clarity
I had today what I would call a moment of clarity, of calm, of peace. I'm not a rabidly political person...unlike a lot of my dear friends who work for the government, volunteer for campaigns, and actively seek ways to let their voice be heard. All that means is that while I have opinions and beliefs about certain issues, I don't often enjoy engaging in political debate or voicing my opinion unless it is asked of me or I feel the need to express or defend my chosen beliefs. I rarely get deeply involved in political issues or political elections. I do, however, consider myself a highly patriotic person with a deep and abiding love of my country (hence my two degrees in American Studies) and therefore have the utmost respect for our political system and for those crazy people who seek political office and who actually enjoy being involved in politics. I did not live in DC for two years without picking up a thing or two.
I did not intend to comment about the recent election and I am still somewhat hesitant to talk about it at all. While I do not agree with a lot of Obama's stances on issues both moral, economic, and political, I did, however, consider him to be the best Democratic candidate in several years and thought I'd be okay with him as President since I knew McCain had very little change of being elected. (I think a lot of my perspective on many issues stems from the fact that my husband is in the military. It changes how you view the government and the many important issues being debated this election.) While Obama's win was no surprise, I did become rather apprehensive about what would happen during his Presidency.
Then, it started to bug me how article after article and person after person kept commenting how cool it was that we had a black president, how Obama was black, how they loved that they'd made history for voting for a black president. And I grew concerned that the only reason that Obama had been elected was because of his race. I know how that sounds. It sounds like I'm saying I don't want a black president which couldn't be farther from the truth. But what I don't want is to think that voters did not elect the best candidate because they believed in his ability to lead, his platform or his moral/ethical integrity but rather based their decision on race. (Though to be quite honest, Americans have voted for candidates for much less judicious reasons.)
After talking with several friends and Obama supporters, I know that they voted for all the right reasons. No one chooses who to vote for lightly and even if some people liked the fact that Obama will be our first black president, that wasn't the real reason they voted for him. And yet, I was still apprehensive. What if everything changes? What if everthing is screwed up in the next four years? Did America make the right choice?
And then, as I was washing dishes, I had my moment of clarity. I realized that it doesn't matter that Obama and I have vast political differences. It doesn't matter that he will lead our country in a different direction than his predecessors. Who said that that direction would be bad just because it was different? But what does matter is the change that Obama's win has already brought to this country. It has made people optimistic. It has engendered better feelings in foreign countries and made being an "American cool again," to quote one AP article. It has reinserted patriotism into our vernacular....a patriotism that has been rapidly diminishing in the years since September 11th. Whatever the outcome of Obama's win and his presidency, at least for now, Americans are happy with the decision they have made and in our prospects for the future. And the best way to change America is to change the attitudes and feelings of its citizens. If Americans themselves are more optimistic and have more faith in their chosen leader, then I believe this country cannot help but succeed. Not that Obama doesn't have his work cut out for him, but I can at least be grateful that we have a new leader who has excited and reinvigorated Americans.
Let's just hope he doesn't screw things up. :-)
I did not intend to comment about the recent election and I am still somewhat hesitant to talk about it at all. While I do not agree with a lot of Obama's stances on issues both moral, economic, and political, I did, however, consider him to be the best Democratic candidate in several years and thought I'd be okay with him as President since I knew McCain had very little change of being elected. (I think a lot of my perspective on many issues stems from the fact that my husband is in the military. It changes how you view the government and the many important issues being debated this election.) While Obama's win was no surprise, I did become rather apprehensive about what would happen during his Presidency.
Then, it started to bug me how article after article and person after person kept commenting how cool it was that we had a black president, how Obama was black, how they loved that they'd made history for voting for a black president. And I grew concerned that the only reason that Obama had been elected was because of his race. I know how that sounds. It sounds like I'm saying I don't want a black president which couldn't be farther from the truth. But what I don't want is to think that voters did not elect the best candidate because they believed in his ability to lead, his platform or his moral/ethical integrity but rather based their decision on race. (Though to be quite honest, Americans have voted for candidates for much less judicious reasons.)
After talking with several friends and Obama supporters, I know that they voted for all the right reasons. No one chooses who to vote for lightly and even if some people liked the fact that Obama will be our first black president, that wasn't the real reason they voted for him. And yet, I was still apprehensive. What if everything changes? What if everthing is screwed up in the next four years? Did America make the right choice?
And then, as I was washing dishes, I had my moment of clarity. I realized that it doesn't matter that Obama and I have vast political differences. It doesn't matter that he will lead our country in a different direction than his predecessors. Who said that that direction would be bad just because it was different? But what does matter is the change that Obama's win has already brought to this country. It has made people optimistic. It has engendered better feelings in foreign countries and made being an "American cool again," to quote one AP article. It has reinserted patriotism into our vernacular....a patriotism that has been rapidly diminishing in the years since September 11th. Whatever the outcome of Obama's win and his presidency, at least for now, Americans are happy with the decision they have made and in our prospects for the future. And the best way to change America is to change the attitudes and feelings of its citizens. If Americans themselves are more optimistic and have more faith in their chosen leader, then I believe this country cannot help but succeed. Not that Obama doesn't have his work cut out for him, but I can at least be grateful that we have a new leader who has excited and reinvigorated Americans.
Let's just hope he doesn't screw things up. :-)
Sunday, November 2, 2008
Welcome to the Dead Man's Party
David's birthday is only two days before mine (separated by two years) so this year I suggested that instead of buying each other individual gifts, we pool our resources and buy ourselves one big gift to be shared between the two of us. I decided that we buy a new digital camera since David didn't own one and I've had mine for over 4 years and it's rather pathetic in its picture-taking abilities. So, during the month leading up to our birthdays (which is in February, by the way) David and I visited many different stores, checking out camera after camera until we finally decided on one. It was a Fuji film camera and it looked pretty awesome. But we didn't buy it. We oscillated. And thought maybe we should wait a few months until we got married since we wouldn't be together anyway to share joint custody of the camera. When we finally decided to just go and get the camera, it was no longer available. Long story short, we never bought a new camera until last week, a mere 8 months after our birthdays. We bought a Sony Cybershot DCS-W150 because it was on clearance at the NEX for $50 cheaper than I'd seen it anywhere else and it was the camera I wanted but David would never consent to buy. A sale is always a good motivator to buy something. Especially something you've been wanting to buy for eight months.
David made our robes. He made the pattern, pieced them together and sewed them up. I did my hem but still, all credit goes to David for the actual execution. I did, however, paint our wands. Just so you know I'm not useless.
The Dead Man's Party was a lot of fun. There was a pirate pineapple-o-lantern and cookies. I love cookies. I made the homemade sugar cookies on the left.
See how I contribute? And since we live in Hawaii and since the hosts couldn't find a decent pumpkin, they did the next best thing and carved a pineapple.
I couldn't get a good shot, but how awesome is this?
We bobbed for apples on a string. Which is a great deal more difficult to do than it looks like.
I was never able to get a bite out of my apple. I could have used magic, but that just didn't seem fair.
There was some dancing as David demonstrates with Caspar the Friendly Ghost. And there was some friendly banter among friends.
Watch where you're pointing that gun, Billy the Kid. That's my husband. Good thing he's got his wand out.
There was a witch hunt. And wouldn't you know, my David won?
And this silly headband was his prize. Sadly, this picture is typical David.
Can you believe I married him?
Sometimes I can't.
But I wouldn't take it back either....
Most of the time.
There was a costume contest. And this guy totally won. It wasn't even a contest.
He's the dragon Smaug from The Hobbit and he made the costume himself. Kinda makes our little black robes pathetic in comparison. We did it in two days! And neither of us has sewn in approximately 10 years.
We also played charades (which I've found is actually quite fun) and had an all-around rocking time. It's been so long since I've dressed up for Halloween and I've got to say, I can't wait to do it again. Dressing up is a ton of fun.
Even when my husband is being a nerd.
Which is all the time.
I still love him though.
I tested out our camera this weekend at the Dead Man's Party we attended on Halloween and I'm very pleased with the results. But any camera that can actually take a picture in anything less than perfect light is a considerable upgrade from my old camera.
In order to attend the Dead Man's Party, you had to be dead, so David and I decided to go as James and Lily Potter.
David made our robes. He made the pattern, pieced them together and sewed them up. I did my hem but still, all credit goes to David for the actual execution. I did, however, paint our wands. Just so you know I'm not useless.
The Dead Man's Party was a lot of fun. There was a pirate pineapple-o-lantern and cookies. I love cookies. I made the homemade sugar cookies on the left.
See how I contribute? And since we live in Hawaii and since the hosts couldn't find a decent pumpkin, they did the next best thing and carved a pineapple.
I couldn't get a good shot, but how awesome is this?
We bobbed for apples on a string. Which is a great deal more difficult to do than it looks like.
I was never able to get a bite out of my apple. I could have used magic, but that just didn't seem fair.
There was some dancing as David demonstrates with Caspar the Friendly Ghost. And there was some friendly banter among friends.
Watch where you're pointing that gun, Billy the Kid. That's my husband. Good thing he's got his wand out. There was a witch hunt. And wouldn't you know, my David won?
And this silly headband was his prize. Sadly, this picture is typical David.
Can you believe I married him?
Sometimes I can't.
But I wouldn't take it back either....
Most of the time.
There was a costume contest. And this guy totally won. It wasn't even a contest.
He's the dragon Smaug from The Hobbit and he made the costume himself. Kinda makes our little black robes pathetic in comparison. We did it in two days! And neither of us has sewn in approximately 10 years.
We also played charades (which I've found is actually quite fun) and had an all-around rocking time. It's been so long since I've dressed up for Halloween and I've got to say, I can't wait to do it again. Dressing up is a ton of fun.
Especially now that I've got one awesome camera to capture all the special moments.
Even when my husband is being a nerd.
Which is all the time.
I still love him though.
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