It was SOOOOO not happening
On Wednesday night, after Jim's softball game, we had the opportunity to go see The Happening. The movie wasn't released yet but we have a friend that works at a movie theater and they were previewing the movie that night. We thought that the movie trailer looked pretty good so we went, along with 6 other friends.
The movie is a BOMB... sucked total ass. Every person with us did not like the movie. I don't want to say to much in case somebody out there wants to see it but there is only about 20 minutes of good movie. The "bad guy" (and I use that term loosely) is ridiculous and the movie doesn't go into what/who the bad guy is.
M. Night Shyamalan is now coming out saying that he wanted to make a good "B" movie... yeah right! Like anybody wants to make a good B movie! He is covering his own ass cause the movie is really bad. I would say it is in my top 5 for bad movies.
So friends of mine,,, please save your money and wait for this movie to hit cable!!!
Sunday, June 15, 2008
Thursday, June 12, 2008
Rest in Peace Dad
May 18, 1947 to June 6th 2008
My father passed away in his sleep last Friday. While he was having various health issues, all surrounding his diabetes, he had a strong mind and spirit. It is a shock to know your dad won't be calling any more, but I am at peace knowing that he is in a better place without pain. We had a memorial service for him today at his church. I was surprised at how many people showed up to the memorial service. Quite a few friends showed up, co-workers, Dad's friends, church member, and Jim's parents. I can't put it into words how much it meant to me that my friends got off of work and came to my dad's memorial service when they had only met my dad once or twice. It fills my heart with love and comfort to know that I have friends that will be by my side during the good and the bad times. And I have received so many positive messages as well as offers to help out from my friends that are not in town.
I can't thank everybody enough for their kind words and their support.
I have attached my speech for my dad's memorial service. It might have been the hardest thing I have had to do in my life. I wasn't able to get through most of it because I would start to cry every time I would look down at it. I think I gave a very loose version of the speech. I managed to say "damn it' and "badonkadonk butt" during the speech, which shocked the husband. :) I knew I had to stand up and share what made my dad special with all of the people that showed up. I have attached the speech for those of you that weren't able to make it today.
My speech for his Memorial Service:
Thank you all so much for coming today. It means the world to my family and of course my dad. I know my dad has touched many lives over the years just as you have touched his. My conversations with my dad consisted of a lot of telling me about his friends, who he met, what new recipe he tried, potluck dinners at church, and what was happening with his doctor’s appointments. . Your friendship was cherished by my dad and it helped him get through his many struggles. My dad has had plenty of heath issues over the past few years, but it never got him down. I don’t know how he kept such a positive attitude and outlook. If I was faced with losing my eyesight I would have been bitter and angry at the world. My dad was always looking forward to the future when the doctors might be able to correct his failing vision. I don’t know how he did it, but I will certainly adopt his attitude the next time I am faced with a crisis in my life.
He once told me that when he passes away he did not want me or any family or friends to mourn him, but to celebrate his life. If he knew how much I have cried over the past 6 days he would probably be pissed at me. So in true fashion of keeping things light, one aspect of my dad that I wanted to share is that my dad never met an ice cream bar that he didn’t love.
My dad introduced me to cooking and baking. I’m sure my dad has made some type of cake, cookie or cheesecake for more than half of you. I had to cut back on what I ate so I could keep my girlish figure. My dad completely enjoyed cooking and finding new recipes. But what my dad enjoyed even more than cooking was watching the enjoyment on the faces of the people that were eating his goodies. When my dad spent time in the VA hospital he found every single magazine and wrote down the recipes that he found. Then when he was well enough and went home he tried out most of those recipes and shared the good recipes with me. Even though he was adjusting to only having one leg, he also baked quite a few cookies and cakes for the nurses that took care of him during his stay. He didn’t stop to pity himself; he kept on going like the energizer bunny.
In fact, the day before he passed my dad, with the help of his friend Robyn gave us a 10 pound bag of onions. Now for some of you this might not seem like a good thing, but these are sweet Vidalia onions, which we are big fans of. Since they are only in season during a short time of the year, my dad took the time to go to the grocery store, and then drop them off to my house so I can use them. I frequently had little bags of grocery’s left on my door stop after my dad went shopping. Even though he lived alone he loved to shop at Costco, so he split his goodies with me. We would always talk about how to cook the onions and which ways we liked the best. Quite honestly we couldn’t find a way that we didn’t like onions.
My dad loved all animals which is a good thing because he had 3 furry grand kids. My husband and I have two dogs and my brother has one. I swear my dad came over just to see the dogs and play with them. He would love to roll around on the floor as the dogs licked his face and played around with him. My dogs knew that when my dad stopped by, it meant that they were about to get plenty of treats. Just like a good grandfather, he always showed up with plenty of treats for the kids. No matter where he was, if he was at a 5K, walking down the street, at a festival, he would always stop to love on an animal.
My life will be different without my dad in my life. Like, who am I going to call when I break something in the house and I don’t want my husband to find out? While I think I am the queen of the power tool, I tend to make things worse rather than better at fixing things at the house. I would call my dad to find out what type of paint would be best to use, how to patch a hole in the wall or get a stripped out screw out of the way. I knew that if we were stumped on how to fix something or improve it in the house, dad always had an idea. Now, the idea’s or suggestions weren’t always feasible, but he was certainly creative. There is a picture that I have up of my dad in his wheelchair cutting laminate wood flooring. I got a call from my dad requesting my help laying down the wood flooring. I haven’t done it before and I can’t really say that I’m an expert now. I was so amazed at his stamina and determination to continue to work on his house. We tried and tried and tried to lay the floor down, but it just wasn’t working. As soon as we would get one row down and start on the second row, the first row would pop out. Sooooooo frustrating. Unfortunately we weren’t able to figure out what we were doing wrong, so we ended up having to all in an expert. Apparently we were laying the floor down backwards. OOPS. I’m not sure I’ll be laying down wood flooring any time soon.
My dad will be missed by all but I know that he is in a better place. Thank you again for coming out to say good bye to my dad.
He once told me that when he passes away he did not want me or any family or friends to mourn him, but to celebrate his life. If he knew how much I have cried over the past 6 days he would probably be pissed at me. So in true fashion of keeping things light, one aspect of my dad that I wanted to share is that my dad never met an ice cream bar that he didn’t love.
My dad introduced me to cooking and baking. I’m sure my dad has made some type of cake, cookie or cheesecake for more than half of you. I had to cut back on what I ate so I could keep my girlish figure. My dad completely enjoyed cooking and finding new recipes. But what my dad enjoyed even more than cooking was watching the enjoyment on the faces of the people that were eating his goodies. When my dad spent time in the VA hospital he found every single magazine and wrote down the recipes that he found. Then when he was well enough and went home he tried out most of those recipes and shared the good recipes with me. Even though he was adjusting to only having one leg, he also baked quite a few cookies and cakes for the nurses that took care of him during his stay. He didn’t stop to pity himself; he kept on going like the energizer bunny.
In fact, the day before he passed my dad, with the help of his friend Robyn gave us a 10 pound bag of onions. Now for some of you this might not seem like a good thing, but these are sweet Vidalia onions, which we are big fans of. Since they are only in season during a short time of the year, my dad took the time to go to the grocery store, and then drop them off to my house so I can use them. I frequently had little bags of grocery’s left on my door stop after my dad went shopping. Even though he lived alone he loved to shop at Costco, so he split his goodies with me. We would always talk about how to cook the onions and which ways we liked the best. Quite honestly we couldn’t find a way that we didn’t like onions.
My dad loved all animals which is a good thing because he had 3 furry grand kids. My husband and I have two dogs and my brother has one. I swear my dad came over just to see the dogs and play with them. He would love to roll around on the floor as the dogs licked his face and played around with him. My dogs knew that when my dad stopped by, it meant that they were about to get plenty of treats. Just like a good grandfather, he always showed up with plenty of treats for the kids. No matter where he was, if he was at a 5K, walking down the street, at a festival, he would always stop to love on an animal.
My life will be different without my dad in my life. Like, who am I going to call when I break something in the house and I don’t want my husband to find out? While I think I am the queen of the power tool, I tend to make things worse rather than better at fixing things at the house. I would call my dad to find out what type of paint would be best to use, how to patch a hole in the wall or get a stripped out screw out of the way. I knew that if we were stumped on how to fix something or improve it in the house, dad always had an idea. Now, the idea’s or suggestions weren’t always feasible, but he was certainly creative. There is a picture that I have up of my dad in his wheelchair cutting laminate wood flooring. I got a call from my dad requesting my help laying down the wood flooring. I haven’t done it before and I can’t really say that I’m an expert now. I was so amazed at his stamina and determination to continue to work on his house. We tried and tried and tried to lay the floor down, but it just wasn’t working. As soon as we would get one row down and start on the second row, the first row would pop out. Sooooooo frustrating. Unfortunately we weren’t able to figure out what we were doing wrong, so we ended up having to all in an expert. Apparently we were laying the floor down backwards. OOPS. I’m not sure I’ll be laying down wood flooring any time soon.
My dad will be missed by all but I know that he is in a better place. Thank you again for coming out to say good bye to my dad.
Wednesday, June 04, 2008
My little red buddy is gone....
Jim and I went to the batting cages tonight before his softball game. So I took my old bat out of the garage to bring with me. We got to the cages, bought our tokens, stretched, then took some slow pitch balls. I love going to the batting cages. Luckily I had years and years of coaching and practice, so no matter how much time has elapsed I can usually look pretty good and hit all of the balls. :o)
So after about 8 pitches something weird happened with my bat..... The top flew off! ummmmmmmm..... What the fuck?? So now I can look down the barrel of my bat. Not good. My poor little bat is broken. I had to finish batting with Jims bat. I did okay but I miss my little bat!
I'll do a little research and try to fix my trusty little bat that has been with me for the last 13 years!
So here is to you little red..thanks for being such a great bat!!
Jim and I went to the batting cages tonight before his softball game. So I took my old bat out of the garage to bring with me. We got to the cages, bought our tokens, stretched, then took some slow pitch balls. I love going to the batting cages. Luckily I had years and years of coaching and practice, so no matter how much time has elapsed I can usually look pretty good and hit all of the balls. :o)
So after about 8 pitches something weird happened with my bat..... The top flew off! ummmmmmmm..... What the fuck?? So now I can look down the barrel of my bat. Not good. My poor little bat is broken. I had to finish batting with Jims bat. I did okay but I miss my little bat!
I'll do a little research and try to fix my trusty little bat that has been with me for the last 13 years!
So here is to you little red..thanks for being such a great bat!!
Monday, June 02, 2008
Saturday Night
We spent the day/night out in Georgetown on Saturday. We went to visit Jim's grandfathers old farm (it was sold a few years ago), went to Art in the Park with our friends, dinner, then fireworks! It was a great day,,, besides the hundreds of bugs that attacked my legs at the farm. Little fuckers, I'm still itchy all over.
Pregnant Ashley resting before the fireworks
The symphony playing before the fireworks
This is a bit blurry, but I like the colors!
We spent the day/night out in Georgetown on Saturday. We went to visit Jim's grandfathers old farm (it was sold a few years ago), went to Art in the Park with our friends, dinner, then fireworks! It was a great day,,, besides the hundreds of bugs that attacked my legs at the farm. Little fuckers, I'm still itchy all over.
At Art in the Park, Starbucks was handing out free samples. YUUUUUMMMMMM!
This purchase was a BAD DECISION! Seriously bad. When we went to the grocery store to pick up some beer for the fireworks, we spotted this drink and thought why not. Next time I'll need to think, Hell NO! I should have known better, but I was hoping it would be tasty. Sooooo not tasty.
Kyndal, our friends daughter. She was also enjoying a sample of Starbucks. A little caffeine in such a little body, can go a long long long way :) She was a bit hyper after drinking the coffee.
Our friends.... Lindsey didn't like her bottled crantini either.
The happy couple
Pregnant Ashley resting before the fireworks The symphony playing before the fireworks This is a bit blurry, but I like the colors!
Sex in the City!!!!!!
Run, don't walk to go see this movie!! Ashley, Lindsey and I went to see it yesterday and loved it! I liked the TV show but I really didn't think that I would like the movie sooooo much! I thought it was well written, fantastic story, and of course the marvelous clothing. Now, I wouldn't wear half of the clothing because I would look like a freak around Austin but I can appreciate them and the people that wear them!!
I hope that in 10 years I will have the same friendships that I currently have. The movie made me appreciate the friends that I have, regardless if they are down the street or across the US. The ladies in Sex in the City stick by each others side as well as being wonderfully honest friends.
So to all my lady friends out there.... you freakin rock and thanks for being my friend!!
Run, don't walk to go see this movie!! Ashley, Lindsey and I went to see it yesterday and loved it! I liked the TV show but I really didn't think that I would like the movie sooooo much! I thought it was well written, fantastic story, and of course the marvelous clothing. Now, I wouldn't wear half of the clothing because I would look like a freak around Austin but I can appreciate them and the people that wear them!!
I hope that in 10 years I will have the same friendships that I currently have. The movie made me appreciate the friends that I have, regardless if they are down the street or across the US. The ladies in Sex in the City stick by each others side as well as being wonderfully honest friends.
So to all my lady friends out there.... you freakin rock and thanks for being my friend!!
Friday, May 30, 2008
Rock N'Restock
I was lucky enough to have been asked to be the photographer for the Rock N'Restock charity event on May 22nd. The event was put on my Goldwasser Realty to raise money for the Capital Area Foodbank in Austin. The event was a great success! Here are some pictures from that night....
The main attraction, Bob Schneider. He has many fans, and a lot of them showed up! Bob and his band were very lively and held a great concert.
I even got to mess around in the "sound area". I noticed this little note, and just had to take a picture.
I was lucky enough to have been asked to be the photographer for the Rock N'Restock charity event on May 22nd. The event was put on my Goldwasser Realty to raise money for the Capital Area Foodbank in Austin. The event was a great success! Here are some pictures from that night....
Inside of the will call window at Stubbs
The event was held at Stubbs
I was an official photographer, so I had the pass that let me go everywhere!! :) I seriously need this pass every time I go to a concert now :)
This was one of the opening bands... Feeding 5000
The main attraction, Bob Schneider. He has many fans, and a lot of them showed up! Bob and his band were very lively and held a great concert.
I even got to mess around in the "sound area". I noticed this little note, and just had to take a picture.
Monday, May 26, 2008
Holy Shizzz... May is almost over
This month has flown by!!! I swear it was just Easter and we had much better weather. I hate to say it but I am already sick of the sweaty hot weather. I dislike sweating. After growing up in AZ I guess I had it good... lots o' heat, but very dry. I will say that I won't be moving back to AZ anytime soon (sorry Az friends, but it's true), but I miss ZERO humidity. I don't want to think of the next 4 months of crappy hot weather. Hopefully I'll be spending a lot of time on the lake with friends and sipping on fruity adult drinks. Our new favorite drink is a pina colada with a little bit of melon liquor. YUUUUUMMMMMM!
I have a few things to catch you guys up on... like me taking pictures at a charity event (wooohooo), a new and possibly bad kitchen gadget buy (it was one of the gadgets they sell on TV... Jim and I both wanted it so we bought it), and all of the Memorial Day events! I had a little snafu with my computer and the lack of memory, but I think I have it fixed so I can start sending out pictures again.
Work has been busy and slightly exciting. I might be moving to a new location which means more responsibility and a whole bunch of new issues and challenges. I think it might be a week or so before I really find out. I don't want to say a bunch about since I don't really know who is reading my blog but I will be staying with my current employer. And of course, e-mail me and I'll give you the details (a HUGE thanks to Angela for helping me list the pro's and con's of moving!.
I hope everybody had a wonderful and safe Memorial Day weekend!!!
This month has flown by!!! I swear it was just Easter and we had much better weather. I hate to say it but I am already sick of the sweaty hot weather. I dislike sweating. After growing up in AZ I guess I had it good... lots o' heat, but very dry. I will say that I won't be moving back to AZ anytime soon (sorry Az friends, but it's true), but I miss ZERO humidity. I don't want to think of the next 4 months of crappy hot weather. Hopefully I'll be spending a lot of time on the lake with friends and sipping on fruity adult drinks. Our new favorite drink is a pina colada with a little bit of melon liquor. YUUUUUMMMMMM!
I have a few things to catch you guys up on... like me taking pictures at a charity event (wooohooo), a new and possibly bad kitchen gadget buy (it was one of the gadgets they sell on TV... Jim and I both wanted it so we bought it), and all of the Memorial Day events! I had a little snafu with my computer and the lack of memory, but I think I have it fixed so I can start sending out pictures again.
Work has been busy and slightly exciting. I might be moving to a new location which means more responsibility and a whole bunch of new issues and challenges. I think it might be a week or so before I really find out. I don't want to say a bunch about since I don't really know who is reading my blog but I will be staying with my current employer. And of course, e-mail me and I'll give you the details (a HUGE thanks to Angela for helping me list the pro's and con's of moving!.
I hope everybody had a wonderful and safe Memorial Day weekend!!!
Thursday, May 22, 2008
Thursday, May 15, 2008
Not pretty, but tasted good!
I tried a new recipe last night that didn't quite look the way it was supposed to, but it was damn tasty. It was a Korean pancake filled with veggies and shrimp. The pancake was more like a crepe. The recipe is soooo simple but the execution of the recipe is what got me :) Let me explain.... I went a little crazy with the filling. I added way more things that what was on the recipe. So after using half of my fridge for the fillings, I realized that I should have cooked it differently. The dish was very tasty, but it looked like a pile of food. Okay, not that bad, but it didn't look anything like the picture on the internet :)
Korean PancakeMake one 9-inch (23cm) pancake
http://www.davidlebovitz.com/archives/2008/05/korean_pancakes_1.html
There's plenty of variations on this recipe and you can certainly make your own up, using some of my suggestions above. A large spatula works best for flipping it, although you can slide it onto a dinner plate and flip it that way, or even cut it in half, then flip each piece separately.Next I'm going to experiment using sparkling water, or maybe add a pour of beer in place of some of the water.
1/2 cup (70g) all-purpose flour
1/2 cup (125ml) ice-cold water
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 large or extra-large egg, lightly beaten
1 bunch of scallions
a spoonful of soy sauce
optional: dried red pepper slices
vegetable oil, for frying
Dana's Additions to the recipe: 1/2 chopped onion, 1/2 chopped tomatos, 1 chopped garlic clove, 4 slices of jalapeno, chopped up. I also used appromixatly 20 small shrimp
1. Stir together the flour, water and salt until just mixed.
2. Chop the green parts of the scallions into 3-inch (10cm) lengths. Reserve the white parts for another use.
3. Heat a thin layer of vegetable oil in a 9 or 10-inch (23-26cm) skillet, preferably non-stick, until hot. Fry the scallions until they're completely cooked through and soft. Add a touch of soy sauce to the pan when they're almost done, to season the scallions. * This is where I added all of my veggies that I listed above
4. If using other ingredients, any vegetables, kimchi, or prawns—what have you‐add them now, then toss a few times to heat them through. *I took the veggies out of the pan and added the shrimp to cook. I sprinkled cajun seasoning over the shrimp to give it some spice.
5. Pour the pancake batter over the scallions (and other stuff in the pan), spreading the batter, and cook a few minutes until the bottom is nice and brown underneath. Lift the edge to peek. * This is where my problems started. Since I used so many veggies, the batter did not go to the bottom to cook. I ended up transferring the food to a bigger pan, and tried to flip it in the process. It kind of worked, but the food ended up seperating, which caused the pancake to break apart.
6. Pour the beaten egg on top then swirl the pan to even out the egg a bit, still keeping it pretty uneven. Distribute the dried pepper strands over the egg, if using, and cook until the egg is just beginning to firm near the edges. * I almost didn't do this since the batter didn't really work. But I decided to try it... but I did a little different. I added two eggs (one didn't cover the top) then flipped the sucker again. Flipping this was not easy, and I ended up cutting it into two pieces to make it easier to flip. I'm glad that I did it because it was well worth it.
7. Using a wide spatula, flip the pancake and cook for another minute or two until the egg is set and preferably crispy at the edges. (I tend it cook it pretty well, although I like hard-cooked fried eggs, which I know ain't "gourmet", so use your judgment.) *I never got to this part, but see above for what I did
5. Slide pancake onto a cutting board, then cool to room temperature. Cut into six or eight wedges, and serve with dipping sauce made by mixing 3 parts soy sauce with 1-2 parts rice vinegar and a few drops of sesame oil. A bit of chile oil can also be added. *we at this hot because we were hungry. Like I said,,, this wasn't pretty to look at, but it tasted soooooo good. I plan on doing this again trying various combinations of fillings.
I tried a new recipe last night that didn't quite look the way it was supposed to, but it was damn tasty. It was a Korean pancake filled with veggies and shrimp. The pancake was more like a crepe. The recipe is soooo simple but the execution of the recipe is what got me :) Let me explain.... I went a little crazy with the filling. I added way more things that what was on the recipe. So after using half of my fridge for the fillings, I realized that I should have cooked it differently. The dish was very tasty, but it looked like a pile of food. Okay, not that bad, but it didn't look anything like the picture on the internet :)
Korean PancakeMake one 9-inch (23cm) pancake
http://www.davidlebovitz.com/archives/2008/05/korean_pancakes_1.html
There's plenty of variations on this recipe and you can certainly make your own up, using some of my suggestions above. A large spatula works best for flipping it, although you can slide it onto a dinner plate and flip it that way, or even cut it in half, then flip each piece separately.Next I'm going to experiment using sparkling water, or maybe add a pour of beer in place of some of the water.
1/2 cup (70g) all-purpose flour
1/2 cup (125ml) ice-cold water
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 large or extra-large egg, lightly beaten
1 bunch of scallions
a spoonful of soy sauce
optional: dried red pepper slices
vegetable oil, for frying
Dana's Additions to the recipe: 1/2 chopped onion, 1/2 chopped tomatos, 1 chopped garlic clove, 4 slices of jalapeno, chopped up. I also used appromixatly 20 small shrimp
1. Stir together the flour, water and salt until just mixed.
2. Chop the green parts of the scallions into 3-inch (10cm) lengths. Reserve the white parts for another use.
3. Heat a thin layer of vegetable oil in a 9 or 10-inch (23-26cm) skillet, preferably non-stick, until hot. Fry the scallions until they're completely cooked through and soft. Add a touch of soy sauce to the pan when they're almost done, to season the scallions. * This is where I added all of my veggies that I listed above
4. If using other ingredients, any vegetables, kimchi, or prawns—what have you‐add them now, then toss a few times to heat them through. *I took the veggies out of the pan and added the shrimp to cook. I sprinkled cajun seasoning over the shrimp to give it some spice.
5. Pour the pancake batter over the scallions (and other stuff in the pan), spreading the batter, and cook a few minutes until the bottom is nice and brown underneath. Lift the edge to peek. * This is where my problems started. Since I used so many veggies, the batter did not go to the bottom to cook. I ended up transferring the food to a bigger pan, and tried to flip it in the process. It kind of worked, but the food ended up seperating, which caused the pancake to break apart.
6. Pour the beaten egg on top then swirl the pan to even out the egg a bit, still keeping it pretty uneven. Distribute the dried pepper strands over the egg, if using, and cook until the egg is just beginning to firm near the edges. * I almost didn't do this since the batter didn't really work. But I decided to try it... but I did a little different. I added two eggs (one didn't cover the top) then flipped the sucker again. Flipping this was not easy, and I ended up cutting it into two pieces to make it easier to flip. I'm glad that I did it because it was well worth it.
7. Using a wide spatula, flip the pancake and cook for another minute or two until the egg is set and preferably crispy at the edges. (I tend it cook it pretty well, although I like hard-cooked fried eggs, which I know ain't "gourmet", so use your judgment.) *I never got to this part, but see above for what I did
5. Slide pancake onto a cutting board, then cool to room temperature. Cut into six or eight wedges, and serve with dipping sauce made by mixing 3 parts soy sauce with 1-2 parts rice vinegar and a few drops of sesame oil. A bit of chile oil can also be added. *we at this hot because we were hungry. Like I said,,, this wasn't pretty to look at, but it tasted soooooo good. I plan on doing this again trying various combinations of fillings.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
