Birthday weekend with waffles and slugs…but no slug waffles.

Yup, I'm 33 and redyed my hair blue. In the back is a large poster I made of Brainscan zine art for a gallery show last year.

Friday night Theresa and I went up to the Riverhouse and James met us. We had a fire and talked late into the night. Saturday I came back to pick up Paul and Dan and Blue and Andy showed up while I was gone.  Later Lisa, Marc, Thomas, and James showed up.

There was a jam session with acoustic giutar, acoustic bass, and ukulele on the back porch by the river.

more hippy stuff

Blue and I found two slugs and one was really big!

yum!

I took this photo and it came out blurry but I sort of think that fits the mood of the evening. This was before we lit the fire. I didn't take my camera out when we had a fire because even after drinking I knew it was a bad idea.

That night Paul and I had a bed inside but decided to sleep in a tent by the bonfire, which was pretty rad. Then, at about 6am, it started raining. When things in the tent started to get wet we decided to head inside for the rest of the sleepytime.

ok, so I don't have any pictures of the finished waffles but they were great! We put daiya cheese and chopped up bits of broccoli in some. The broccoli steamed perfectly! We also made some with soyrizo and daiya and they were tasty too!

Paul works at Voodoo Doughnuts and brought home two buckets of doughnuts for a friend. I woke up to two huge buckets of doughnuts on my porch. I thought I would share this with you. I'm not really a sweets peprson but I still find this ridiculous and awesome.

Stumptown Vegans podcast and how I grow hops!

So, a few weeks ago I was a host on the Stumptown Vegans podcast .Well, the show is up in all its sugar crashy-ness. Go here if you want to listen.

And for photos. Here’s the trellis I made for my Cascade Hop plants. The twine is attached to an old box springs I use in my garden one one end and to the upstairs bathroom window. this should give them more lights, make a canope at the back door, and be super easy to harvest by just tossing down the twine!

This was a few weeks ago. I'll post a new photo soon!

looking up the side of my house...noitce the plumbing on the outside of the house.

Paul and I are headed up to the Riverhouse for some time together before I head up there for the weekend with whoever wants to come.

radio, pizza, cats and plants…

Last week I did two podcast recordings and neither of them were for my own Nobody Cares About Your Stupid Zine Podcast, although Marc and I do have plans to record another soon. I was on the Stumptown Vegans podcast with Jess my sister Webly where they stuffed me and a few others with mass quantities of  vegan baked goods until we wanted to brush our teeth and eat a whole field of kale. The show’s not up yet but I’ll let you know when it is. Here’s a picture of my sister trying to figure out what best to attach the mic to in order to pass it around. We eventually settled on a banana, but I like this shot of a mixer:

testing!

Blue and I were also on Nerd Report Radio with Emily and Sabrina talking about the Portland Zine Symposium. It was pretty rad and you can listen to it here. about 10 minutes before we were supposed to be on the air Blue, Emily, and I got stuck in the elevator. It wasn’t so bad that we were stuck on the 9th floor, but the fact that the elevator dropped about 6 inches terrified me! I immediately grabbed Blue’s hand and wondered if I put my bicycle helmet on it would help with the fall. We were stuck for at least 10 minutes and got to push the “HELP” button. I also noticed this:

If you can't see the caption says "when flashing help is on the way" Well, the light flashed and we were saved!

I got a bulb of fennel from my Organics To You box and wasn’t sure what to do with it. So, I sauteed it with onions and garlic and tossed it on top of a pizza with homemade pesto.

As I'm a vegan and Paul is an omni we have real cheese/vegan cheese pizza. This was my first experience with Daiya chesse and I think it's pretyt good. A bit like velveta in a gross way but I miss the stretchy-ness so I enjoyed it.

On to other weird things. So, there are these two cats that live at our house. They aren’t my cats. I’m not a cat person but I adore these cats. Sometimes I think I spent more time hanging out with them than most of my other housemates.  I worry that I’m becoming a crazy cat lady when I catch myself talking to them or letting Jackie sleep on my bed. Well, the other night OJ busted into my rook with his thick skull, jumped on the bed and proceeded to drink out of the pint glass of water by the bed. I had just changed his water the other day but apparently he really wanted to drink of the pint glass and/or disturb me while I was sleeping

he really wanted the water I guess.

cat tongue! OJ would drink drink drink and hyperventilate and shake his head and have to go up for air! Silly cat! Also check out of CCRadio. It even has a shortwave option.

I spent this morning working in my yard. I dug up a bunch of my irises to plant a bunch of native plants that my sister got me for my birthday. Then I dug up even more of the irises and mixed up the roots and replanted them. I’m excited to see what colors got placed where when they come up next year! I’ll post more photos soon of the yard but for now, here’s one of my many foxgloves:

foxgloves make me happy.

U of O, pizza and vegan cheesecake

I was asked to go down to Eugene to speak at a class at the University of Oregon about zines and zine culture. The class uses my book Stolen Sharpie Revolution as a text and Doug Blandy, the professor is a patron of zines.

I picked up a zip car and had Doug and Maggie come along with me for the two hour trip south. I didn’t exactly know what to expect but, I knew I could talk about random zine stuff for a long time. When I got to the University I had to find my parking spot for the ZipCar. Somehow I felt like I was a celebrity when I found this:

Allied Arts Department Guest Lecturer Wrekk. Rad!

In the class we talked about zine culture and the importance of zines and zine culture. We talked about zines in archiving and academics and how zine culture has changed. I also found myself talking about things that I didn’t expect like my family and my given name. Overall it was really fun and I’m glad I went.

After class I was interviewed by Jennifer from Siren, the feminist paper on campus. I have to say that I had some of the best questions from any interview I have ever had. It wasn’t the typical “How did you get into zines?” “What’s your favorite zine?” “Why do you make zines?”  I got hung up on one question and I have been thinking about it a lot since wondering how I could have answered it better. It was actually the second part to the questions. I was asked if I was a feminist, which the answer is yes. But then I was asked what that means to me. The only way I could answer it was to say that it’s all well and go to say “I support women and think they can do awesome thing.” but I also said that I don’t believe in single issue politics and that oppressions are all tied together. As a feminist I feel it is part of my responsibility to recognize oppression in all forms and support those fighting against them. I said all this in a super vague way because I don’t feel I need to tell you a litany of oppressed people to describe this. I did this in part because I get really annoyed when people get caught up in the rhetoric and language of radical/progressive cultures. It just seems to go in circles and alienates those that don’t fall into that specific subset.  I’m fully aware that “oppression” is a work that falls in that category through.

Anway, after that Maggie, Doug, and I went to the Pizza Research Institute for some yummy pizza. After that we went to Sweet Life for vegan cheesecake. When my sister lived in Eugene we used to make a joke about getting to Sweet Life by turning ‘Right At Monroe!” to the tune of “Riot at Monroe” from the Avail song Monroe Park. It was nice to share a punk joke with Doug.  It was also nice to share vegan cheesecake.

Someone told me that I have officially 'made it' when someone is willing to tow cars away for me!

Caleb came to visit! Part 1

The past two weeks have had lots of great highs and one deep, unexpected low.

My friend/penpal, Caleb, I met in Halifax at the Anchor Archive during my zine residency last fall came to visit on the 15th. We had little more than one long day to hang out before I left Halifax but I already knew we would be great friends and we started planning his trip to Portland almost immediately! It seemed sort of ridiculous to be planning a trip 4,000 miles away and 6 months in advance to hang out with someone we had only spent a few times with… even if one of those times involved a 13 hours conversation, but I knew it would be fun! We continued penpal-ery and e-mail-ery for months and all of sudden it was the 15th and I was headed to the airport to meet him!

I met Caleb at the airport and we took the train into the city, met paul at XV for food and some beer then headed to Powell’s for Smallpressapalooza. The readings we caught were great. My sister showed up and immediately burst into tears. Her doggie companion, Coda, wasn’t doing well after over a week of treatments for a weird blood disease. I was honored that Webly would show up to my reading when there was such heavy stuff going on in her life.

I read the pieces I had selected and Paul played guitar then we sang a song at the end. I was nervous about the singing but I think it went ok. Webly recorded video of us but I guess the video is 2gigs so we need to find a way to compress it for the internets and my embarrassment. We stayed for the people reading after us and they were great too. After that some of us headed to Deschutes brewery which was closing so I left a New Kids On The Block rock card I found in my bag on the door to let the people following that we were headed to the Low Brow Lounge. After that Paul, Caleb and i caught the train home and crashed out.

The next day I woke up early to head to my sister’s house to see Coda. It would likely be the last time I saw her so even though I was up late with friends it was really important to me and my sister to visit one last time to see my puppy niece. Then I headed home. I think Caleb and I made buttons and ate burritos. That night my sister called to see if we wanted to go to Hungry Tiger Too with she and Brian. Coda had been put to rest and they didn’t want to go home to a house without her. They don’t drink so I was sort of a surrogate drinker and let Webly pick out what I should drink. Caleb was blown away by the place having two menus. One vegan, one no vegan. It wouldn’t be the first on his trip to Portland.

Coda was a black Cocker Spaniel found on the street the summer my sister had moved to Portland after graduation from the Uof O. Webly had always wanted a dog and a friend found Coda but couldn’t keep her at her apartment. Webly took her in, cut off all her dreadlocks that were constricting her leg movement and even the blood circulation to one leg. Webly wasn’t sure she was going to keep her but they fell in love and Coda was part of the family ever since. She was my first doggie niece and I dog-sat for Webly when they would go out of town. Coda liked garbage, treats and squeaky toys. She will be missed dearly.

There are lots of photos here of Coday and Webly plus images of Goody who left this world on Christmas. It’s really not fair to lose two canine members of our family within 3 months.

That was the super sad bit of my past two weeks but I still had a lot of fun ahead. The next day Caeb and I went downtown. We realized too late that it was St. Patrick’s day which is like Amatuer Hour of drinking. We first stopped by the world’s smallest park also forgetting the lephrecan/St. Patrick’s day reference to find it coved in stickers about the luck of Irish and whatever.

it's basically an island in the middle of the road.

We walked around the Willmette for a bit continuing what would be more epicly long conversation that would eventually give us both sore throats. We took the train to the Zoo stop and wandered around the Arboretum where we saw this tree.

The Larch

Which, just made me think of this Monty Python skit. I don’t think I would have been able to recognize a larch before that. I knew it was a deciduous conifer and Monty Python told me how to recognize it from a long way away. But now  I can identify it from close up!

After that we headed to Powell’s and bought too many books including Zane Lamprey’s from the drinking show Three Sheets book about drinking. I also picked up a used copy of all three of the Riddle of Stars books in one book. I think that will be the next series in Caleb and my long distance book club after we are done re-reading the Earthsea books. The we went to Deschutes and drank yummy beers and Caleb coveting their epic looking growlers. I’m not sure what else we did that night but my bet it that it had to do with drinking and listening to records.

The next day we had planned a bike ride to Southeast, and area of town I rarely venture. It was a beautiful spring day. I was actually surprised because I was expecting rain while Caleb was in town. We rode by Food Fight! and the vegan mini-mall, and by one of my old apartments before slipping into my favorite Cemetery, The Lone Fir Cemetery. Where there are crumbling mausoleums and lots of neat headstones including this one.

We walked/rode up Belmont and stopped and got a beer at the Horsebrass but it seemed so dark in there when it was glorious outside so then we walked/rode down Hawthorne and got some pretty amazing stickers at the Dollar Scholar. Laser stickers with cats and vegetables! Stopped for another beer at a place where could drink outside and then headed to Los Gordiots! Yet another restaurant with both a vegan and non vegan menu! I had enchiladas that came with rice and beans that reminded me of the Mexican place my family used to go to when we lived in Houston. Caleb was again blown away by the amazing vegan food in this fair city. After a day of riding about 20 miles and my belly filled with food I fell asleep early that night but not before torturing/playing with the cats with the hamburger maggie drew and catnip in the back pocket.

More photos and stories later including a trip to the Riverhouse, Timberline lodge, The ocean including the Goonies house.

wisdom teeth, the Eugenic Dentist, the stupid facebook zoo game, and possibly looking for a subleter

Portland false spring came early! This could mean that we will get another one in February or that it will be miserable until May. I worked in my yard a bit over the past couple of days. It really needed it since I wasn’t around to do my winterizing last autumn.

I woke up this morning with a sore molar. It wasn’t hurting last night and some how within 7 hours it just started hurting. It was my stupid wisdom tooth. Every couple of years it moves enough to irritate me and shift all my other teeth around. It got me wondering why I didn’t have my wisdom teeth out when I was younger, my sister did. My dad had his out sometimes in his 30’s and ended up with an infection and in the hospital for awhile. I would worry about my body’s reaction to having them out but I’m probably healthier than he was and I don’t smoke. I just don’t want to go. This whole being an adult this is no fun. Why can’t my mom just make an appointment for me and write a note to get me out of school?

I only have 3 of the 4 molars and only 3 of 4 wisdom teeth have shown up on X-rays. I guess my dentist I hated in Utah didn’t seem to think that it was necessary for me to have them out. I sometimes joke that he was the eugenics dentist. He seriously told me that the problem with my mouth was that I had a European jaw and American Indian teeth and that interbreeding was the problem….Now, as a 12 year old my politics were not fully formed but I knew that was a fucked up think to say. He also told me that I would either have to have my back bottom right molar pulled out or have a fake bottom one put in because the top one would grow and fall out because nothing held it up. what?

5 years ago I went to the dentist for the first time in 7 or 8 years. I went to the OHSU dental school and had one student work on my teeth for a couple months. It was tedious and time consuming but I felt like I got really good service done. Well, I’m going to call tomorrow and start at process all over again. ugh.

In other news:

-I made 2 different kinds of vegan cheese from cashews today. Some went into lasagna and some I’m aging overnight.

-I have been playing a stupid zoo game on facebook. It all started with Paul finally getting a facebook and then he started playing the game and I decided that I could play it better than him. I proved him right but now I can’t stop playing. I just wish I had  more work to distract me.

-I have started doing morning stretches and  meditation and taking vitamins again and it feels good.

-I set up my seed tray by the window in our room so I can plant a bunch of seeds on February 2nd like I do every year. 2 weeks ago I ordered seeds from Park Seeds and I have been checking to see when they would ship. They still hadn’t shipped today so I wrote to say that I have been working in mail order for 10 years and I find it completely unacceptable when they say that orders will ship between 5-7 days. They said that they hadn’t even gotten they seeds from their supplier yet? So, I canceled the order and I’ll just buy more seeds tomorrow when I get coffee and make a button trade off with someone.

-Jackie the Cat has decided he is my best friend again and has been sleeping next to me at night. He sort of plays Goldilocks with the housemates but probably spends the most time with me.

-We might possibly have a sublet opening in our house for a few months. If you know anyone cool who might like a place to stay for a few months let me know.

Vegan sausages

Last week I decided that I was going to try to make vegan sausages. I did a bit of internet researching and found this which really comes from here. But seeing as I am incapable of following directions or recipes and I couldn’t stick to measurements I made up my own and went a little nuts on fun spices. Jess really likes fennel and I don’t really cook much with it but I ground some up and put it in the sausage.

While I was grinding the fennel I realized why I don’t cook with much fennel. When I was a kid my dad would let us spice out own hamburgers. He would open up the spice cabinet and tell us we could put anything we would like in them and we would mix in ridiculous spice combination. Well, I think I must have used to much fennel and it caused some sort of aversion. Anyway, looking back it was pretty rad for my dad to let us experiment with spices, but, on with my vegan sausages.

I used pinto and navy beans cooked from scratch. first.

more ingredients. It is sort of funny that I rarely meansure anything yet I really enjoy the cooking show aesthetic of little bowls of things.

Vegan sausage mash

before the wrap up

all wrapped up and ready to steam

Then you put them in the steamer... hey, this reminds me of tamales...mmm tamales. I should make those again.

While the sausages steamed I cooked some beets and parsnips...mmm parsnips. There's some olive oil and thyme was the prime spice.

I have two secret ingredients and one of them in vegenaise. This is a dressing made with a vegenaise base and some spices, primarily thyme and thined out with water. I also really like this bowl.

I also made an onion suace with carmelized onions and some garlic that I roasted in the oven to put over the sausage.

after steaming I grilled the sausages and thought about how I need to make them with the liquid being beer next time. mmm, beer.

So, jess has nailed down not only my palate in relation to wine but also my palette in relation to the spices I use when cooking and what wine would go with it. Damn, it is awesome to have my very own sommelier! She has often paired my foods with wines from the Montsant region of Spain. There has not been a single wine from there that I haven’t liked. Now I need to do more research. Gee, thanks Jess for giving me yet another expensive snobish taste to add to beer, coffee and writing utensils.

Anyway, on with the meal

yum!

vegan “rabbit” stew? yes please!

My housemate Dan is rad and a good cook. He’s not vegan, he’s an omnivore, but he took an alpine rabbit stew and made it vegan! (WARNING: there is a rabbit carcass. If this would be gross or offensive do not click!) It turned out awesome!

So, while Paul kneaded some bread dough and I made seitan from scratch Dan went out in the cold and the rain to find juniper berries. Wow, what are we some sort of hippie house?

Anyway, Dan documents his Alpine Rabbit Stew on his blog here. Including our happy faces eating it up. There are no seitan carcasses, I promise!

Holiday Wrap up

Ok, Holidays are done.

A few days before Christmas Paul and I went up to the Riverhouse. My parents were in town with their new adorable puppy, Maggie. She has this problem with wanting everyone to wake up at the same time and so she runs around and jumps on you when you are sleeping and just waits for you to wake up. it would be more annoying if she wasn’t so damn cute. Both of my aunts brought their dogs and one of the aunts brought her boyfriend. My sister and brother-in-law came with their two dogs. The final count was humans: 9, dogs: 5. Although one of the old dogs was taken away by Santa to doggie heaven on Christmas Eve. That sort of put a damper on things but it was the right decisions. he lived a long and loved life and was a very special furry friend.

We aren’t really a family that buys each other clothes or ties or whatever. Some of the unique gifts I received were: a set of ingredients for brewing a brown ale (my aunt drove all the way from Texas with the yeast in a cooler so it wouldn’t spoil!), that gift also came with a bottle opener that was also a keychain and a 2 gig flash drive!, a stainless steel  soap (even though I like my hands smelling like garlic!) and tickets to Portland Center Stage. My parents gave me some money which is always a good gift but I think it will have to be used for the not so fun-ness of going to the dentist.

We played a multitude of games: Uno, dogs with a laser pointer almost as fun  as cats with a laser pointer) Life (on a computer and not the boardgame) crossword puzzles, Apples to Apples (the best game ever!) and I think I walked in on a failed attempt at my family to play Mille Borne with a french deck left over from my parents when they used to live in Ontario.

A Christmas with our family wouldn’t be complete without two things: Copious amounts of drinking and Chinese food. Last year for Christmas Eve we got Chinese food from the town near the Riverhouse and Paul got sick. This year we had some from a different place the day after Christmas and Paul still got sick. We have had this tradition for as long as I can remember where we each take turns shooting Champagne corks and try to get the farthest distance. The Champagne is for our traditional Christmas morning Mimosas. I held the record at two separate house my grandparents lived in Texas. I was able to make it to the center of the river from the back door but I think my sister’s shot was farther this time. We went through about 7 bottles of Champagne for 11 people. Good times! My dad also made the mistake of taking me to the beer store and telling me I could get a six pack… I grabbed 6 beers that added up to over $40. He should have put a money limit! I did impress wine drinkers who say they don’t like beer with some Belgian Ales and the syrupy black Abyss by Deschutes. yum!

I love my family but after 4 days in a cabin it was time to go home. I had about 80 e-mails waiting to drown me and my housemate’s cat who were not very happy with the food that their person left them with when he left for the Holidays. It was nice to sleep in our own bed.

One of the days we got a zip car to run errands and spend some gift cards. We had ones from Home Depot, Target, Lowes, and Pet Co. The pet go one was sort of due to the passing of a family animal. My mom decided the cats at our house should get treats too. Paul and I wandered around thinking that we could get pets for the cats like parakeets or ferrets but decided on a case of ultra fancy human grade cat food with trout and salmon. It always seemed weird to me that cats like fish. The thought of a cat taking down a fish is just ridiculous!

Paul and I decided to be adults with our gift cards and buy boring adult things like weatherizing stuff: air duct covers, spray foam for cracks, silicone caulking, plexiglass to replace a cracked window pane in the basement and air vent to put in it for our clothes dryer exhaust, stuff like that. If it was up to me alone I would have got a bunch of plants and dirt and garden stuff but, this was about being practical and hopefully saving a bit of money on our heating bill. You see, I have finally come to the conclusion that I will be staying in this house so I better take care of it. For so long it was sort of up in the air if I was going to sell it and more on but things seem to be going well here so I think we’ll stay.

For New Years I made black eyed peas and collard greens,  tradition from my Texas side of the family, but them in Tupperware and we met James and Christina at the Tugboat brewery and headed to their house. I was amazed by the people drinking in public! Dude on the street car with a half empty plastic gallon jug of vodka, girl with the comically large bottle of Champagne, and her friend with a half empty case of Coors light. I felt I should join in and drink some vanilla infused vodka from my flask although I was a bit chicken and didn’t drink any until we were off the train. At James’ and Christina’s house we snacked on food, drank more beer, and listened to records. Then someone has the bright idea to do Screaming Nazi shots (Jagermeister and Rumple Minze), something we used to do about 11 years ago that always seemed to lead to bad things. At the 3rd shot Christina said something hilarious causing James and I I to spew our drinks all over the kitchen. Good times! and also sticky floors in the morning. We were up until 4 listing to Oingo Boingo, which seems to be perfect New Year Music, and Paul kept howling at other people on balconies off the porch to see if he could get them to howl back. Paul and I got home and crashed out again only to wake up later to watch the new Doctor Who!

I guess there were a few things I missed in there. I snowed the other day. We don’t normally get snow but we got 3 inches of fluffy white stuff. The housemates and I made a chickpea stew to eat over barley and watched episodes of Spaced. We also had the one night a year amnesty of smoking in the house. Oh, also Paul and I listen to 1st and 2nd wave ska over the Holidays. I’m not exactly sure how that happened last year but it seemed to make sense. I have been on a Cure kick lately. I blame it on Paul getting me that disintegration album and also reading Roger Odonnell’s memories of making that album. He posted it on his site here as a sort of a celebration for the 20th anniversay of the album. The Cure were my first favorite Band and that album  came out the year I entered Jr. High and pretty much changed my life for ever.

Now it’s back to work life for me. I have 75 copies of my new zine to put together and finally send more out to distros, I have button orders to attend to and about 50 pounds of coffee beans came the other day and I have yet to put them away. But first, the year end meme:

1. What did you do in 2009 that you’d never done before?

Took a train underwater to France, Went to 5 zine fest and 2 other zine events, started a podcast that I swear we’ll put another one out someday, did everything from pre-press on for my own book all by my self, put out a zine i have been meaning to do for years, sang on a song a let Paul record it, took part in the Anchor Archive zine residency.

2. Did you keep your new years’ resolutions, and will you make more for next year?

I don’t really make resolutions.

3. How will you be spending New Year’s Eve?

I was with Paul and James and Christina eating black eyed peas  and Champagne.
4. Did anyone close to you die?

Yes, a puppy nephew.

5. What countries did you visit?

USA, UK, France, Canada

6. What would you like to have in 2010 that you lacked in 2009?

More time and energy to work in my yard and on my house.

7. What dates from 2009 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?

7a driving though the Redwoods with Paul in June with all my books in the car and listing to music and singing along.

7b One of my last days in Halifax Caleb found a car to drive us to the ocean. I drew a labyrinth in the sand and stared out at the sea thinking about how I had been on both sides of that sea this year. It felt like an accomplishment.

8. What was your biggest achievement(s) of the year?

Publishing my own book, getting my zine done, doing a lot of traveling by myself, meeting some very special friends.

9. What was your biggest failure?

Not doing enough in my yard and no doing much in Portland.

10. Did you suffer illness or injury?

I had The Sick.

11. What was the best thing you bought?

plane tickets, publishing my book, and my new computer

12. Where did most of your money go?

travel

13. What song will always remind you of 2009?

The whole Lemuria-Get Better album has been on high rotation. I have also been listening to Cub and love the song Chinchilla. Paul says it reminds him of me but I’m not exactly sure what that means.

14. What do you wish you’d done more of?

Saved money, planned more, ridden my bike, brewed more beer.

15. What do you wish you’d done less of?

worried.

16. What was your favorite TV program?

I watch too much tv on the internet. I think Battlestar Galactica ended this year and that was sad. I also liked Mad Men and Doctor Who.

17. Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year?

I try not to hate. There is some weird power in that. I am still annoyed at the people I was annoyed with last year but I don’t want to talk about it.

18. What was the best book you read?

I read three books in the Dies The Fire set. They were alright. I can’t really remember what other books I read and enjoyed. I read a lot of zines.

I19. What was your greatest musical discovery?

New Music discovery? Fifth Hour Hero (thanks Steve!) and also my housemates’ band The Tagalongs!

20. What was your favorite film of this year?

I don’t really like movies. it is hard for them to hold my attention. I prefer tv shows where there is time to develop character. I think I saw Star Trek and Avatar this year and that’s about it.

21. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?

I turned 32 but I don’t think I did anything that special. Soon after Paul and I took a plane down to Oakland to sticker copies of SSR and drive back up. it was a fun birthday trip.
22. What kept you sane?

Paul and knowing I had a home to come back to wherever I went.

23. Who did you miss?

Friends who live to far away. I hope they all come visit me soon!
24. Who was the best new person you met?

I met a lot and sort of have  have a top 3 even though it seems sort of unfair: Steve, Isy and Caleb.
25. How did you spend Christmas?

With my family at the Riverhouse, see above.

26. What was your favorite month of 2009?

June or October… probably October.

27. What did you get really, really, really excited about?

Travel and getting my book printed

28. Compared to this time last year, are you:
a) happier or sadder? happier and a bit more hopeful.
b) thinner or fatter? fatter but whatever
c) richer or poorer? about the same

29. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2009: Traveling alone is a worthwhile experience in wits and a total adventure!

infused Vodka and a future cook zine…

I don’t know what it is about the cold weather that makes me want to drink liquor. I’m generally not a big fan of the stuff. I’m a craft beer geek but sometimes mixing drinks is fun! Especially when I can create my own weird concoctions!  I bought a half gallon of decent vodka last week and have been infusing them like a mad scientist!

The Habenero is great for Bloody Marys along with olives, cocktail onions, peperocinis, pickled okra or any other sort of brined good-ness. 2 shots served in a pint glass with chopsticks to test your drinking dexterity skills! I like my Bloody mary like and alcoholic salad!

I made some with strawberries picked from my yard that I have had the freezer. Strawberry Vodka can be put in soy milk for something like an alcoholic strawberry Qwick! Tonight I put some in fresh squeezed grapefruit juice and pomegranate juice that I made Paul squeeze out of the pom!

I had some Earl Grey vodka with ginger ale or orange juice, ginger vodka with juice. It’s fun! And even when I make a bad one I just have paul drink it! I like how all the bottles sit on my window sill and looks pretty.

I have decided to do a cook zine. I think I’ll call it “recipes are tools of the patriarchy” I’m not a fan of following recipes… I’m sort of bad at following directions when I think I have a better idea. I read at once point that recipes were created by women for men who were going to war and needed to know how to cook things. So, maybe recipes are more likely tools of war. I can’t really substantiate this claim and I don’t feel like doing the research, I’m just going to believe it and hope other people do too!

It will basically be a guide to stuff you can put together that taste good and I’ll just write “to taste” after everything! I acknowledge that baking does need specific amount but I’m not a baker! I’ll leave that up to my sister. I’m planning a “choose your own soup adventure” where you pick different veggies and food from different columns and get mystery soup!

Seeing as I plan for this to also be a zine I’ll write stories about recipes and people who taught them to me. Like my garlic bread recipe that a boy named Richard taught me. One time we were making out in the kitchen and I was sitting on the stove. Somehow the stove turned on while were were kissing and all of the sudden my ass was getting warm! Luckily I jumped off the stove before my pants caught on fire! We all have cooking and kitchen stories like the time in Columbus, Ohio where I drunkenly made several pounds of french fries in a fry daddy while simultaneously listening to AVAIL and  playing “keg hockey” with an empty beer key across the the wet kitchen floor. Good times!

So, as I have been busy with orders and Paul has been off work since it is the slow season. He’s been playing Metroid and we have been watching the Might Boosh for about the 3rd time. I keep threatening to make Paul my house husband. I actually sort of need someone to clean up after me when I get this busy.

Tonight we had leftover risotto from the other night plus roasted veggies and unphotogenic tofu.

sun dried tomatoes, pine nuts and mushroom risotto.

roasted veggies before I roasted them: brussel sprouts, carrots, squash and cauliflower plush herbs.

I guess that’s about it for now. I think I think I’m going to go make myself what I have been calling a Canadian Toddy with Canadian Whiskey and maple syrup instead of honey. Then I’m going to call it a day and read a book instead od staring at this computer screen!