Write or Wrong?

New fangled electronic devices are all the rage right now ie. iPad, Nook, Kindle. Also it is becoming trendy to uses these devices for reading, whether it be your text book, classics (usually free of charge) such as Pride and Prejudice or The Jungle Book, or the latest installment of The Hunger Games.

Now I blame (or thank) my Ma for these next thoughts... I like books. I like them a lot. They make the best gifts, I like to (Ma cover your eyes) paint in books, highlight them, dog-ear my favorite page, spill coffee on them, spray them with perfume, crack the spine, give them away, keep them forever, lend them, look at them, read them... basically love the book whatever way I feel necessary.

So now we jump to a Kindle. I cannot do any of those things. Call me old fashioned, but I love the feeling of a novel in my hands rather than have my eyes glaze over a computer screen (more than I already do!) I feel the same way about magazines and newspapers. They are just not as good. Online, you cannot feel the glossy pages of Rolling Stone or hold a Readymade magazine open with your knee as your hands are busy building the latest project; your fingers do not get stained with ink, nor do you get the satisfaction of creasing the paper correctly when searching for the Editorial section of the paper.

There are certainly upsides to these new pieces of technology, such as traveling, not paying as much for textbooks, and of course the ever popular fad of "going green" and saving on print materials. (Don't get me wrong, I care about the environment more than most people do, I will just choose to save our Mother Nature in every other way) So this is in no way an article to bash those who use electronic reading devices, actually, I applaud you for your movement toward simplicity, sustainability and saving space. I for one just cannot shake the memories of every summer since I was a child, sitting on my porch swing, with my old cat Katie drooling on my shorts, reading mountains of books for hours on end.

In honor of my love of all things literary, I have decided to give a new DIY project I stumbled upon a try. No time to read the New York Times in the morning? No fear! Make that coffee to go and make a statement with your nails.

its as simple as a white base coat, soak your nails in rubbing alcohol for 5 seconds, then press newspaper onto the wet nail and there you have it folks. 

cut out specific words to pass on a specific message; I found my words in an article about Bonnie Raitt and her folk influence and appreciation for all things music. 

and yes, my middle finger does say Bob Dylan. thank you for asking. 

go read something,
rach

artist of the day

Today's Artist: Andrew Bird

Over spring break, I got addicted to Andrew Bird extremely fast.  I was reading the Hunger Games and decided to have him play in the background. And let me tell ya, it was a great combo.  I've only had a couple Andrew Bird songs on my iPod over the past few years, so I obvi had no idea what I was missing.  Great lyrics, beautiful violin playing, and relaxing songs that are almost impossible to get sick of.  I love it. Love him. So good.

Give it away,
Hill

There are 20 candles in the cake... WHAT ELSE COULD THAT POSSIBLY MEAN??

I don't like cake. Sorry, wait no! I will not apologize. It is too sweet. No Gracias. Rather than cake, it has and better always be a tradition in the Wetzel family to have birthday pancakes and your "cake" of choice. I will now list the "cake" that we have for each respective family member's birthday-

Madre Bonita- Pumpkin Pie

Daddy-O- Cheesecake

Justine (the sister)- Cream Puffs

Me- Apple Pie

These desserts are not only delicious, they are more individualized that lame old cake. But back to the pancakes... Ever since I was one year old, we have pancakes on our birthday but not just any pancake... they are always shaped in the number you are turning!! So, needless to say, I was happy to get a nice, thick, sweet, fluffy 2 and 0 on Easter morning. There was also coffee and bacon. best. birthday. breakfast. EVER.

And then of course, my ma and sis made me my b-day apple pie. It was so delicious and made from the apples from the trees in our back yard. it cannot get better than that. but seriously, it cannot, so don't even try to top it.

just look at it. begin to drool, it's okay.

I like to dunk the crust into a glass of milk.

Ma's Betty Crocker Cookbook has seen better days, the cover is torn off and the pages are all sticky and splattered, exactly how a cookbook should be. 

So after enjoying a slice of this delicious pie, my mom and I decided to give another snack a try. Birthday cake popcorn. Let me tell you, we did not have high hopes for this sickly sweet treat, but it just sounded so fun and festive. So we made it anyway.

First of all, the ingredients are very simple, they consist of, 6 cups of popcorn, a bag of white chocolate chips, vegetable shortening or crisco, boxed cake mix and of course... SPRINKLES. sprinkles are the best thing ever. It is basically the equivalent of glitter in the cooking world.

Simple enough. 

The batter gets a little sticky when you try to coat the popcorn. You may want to put in in a ziplock bag and just shake it until your arms fall off. Then you just add sprinkles, a lot of them. And then you just let it dry or set on a cookie sheet. Then you eat it. or look at it. The usual ratio is eating 2 pieces every 4 hours. It is too sweet to eat anymore.

look at how beautiful and festive it is!!

I would certainly make this for a gift. Mainly because it looks to cute and also because I don't personally want to eat it. 

gotta love the yellow bowl. it makes the popcorn taste better. fact. 

So there ya have it. Birthday are all about food.
Everything should be about food.

eat up,
rach

The Bunny, the bunny, oooo I love the bunny.

Happy Easter,
Rach

artist of the day

Today's artist: Sublime

Ahhh, it's almost that time of year. The lazy, hazy, crazy days of summer. When you only need to worry if you have enough sun screen on, or if you've been drinking enough lemonade while running around outside. sunglasses, shorts, tank tops, swimming suits, used books, grassy hills, sandy beaches, tan lines, s'mores, iced coffee. all things good happen in the summer. and what's playing on my ipod on a daily basis? sublime. the perfect summer band. their funky reggae ska beats make you forget that you have work the next morning or that your college classes are starting up in a week.  sublime gives you a reason to be lazy, enjoy life, and hang out with good friends.

happy almost summer,

hill

Uncle Tony

I'm not sure if you know this... but I like Anthony Bourdain. 

No... I'm serious... I really LOVE this man, seeing as I refer to him as Uncle Tony, respectively. 

Now, I will assume you dear reader are a tough audience. Tony is a standoffish man; he is lewd, brash, often drunk, opinionated, skeptical, condescending, hypocritical, and dare I even say... sarcastic? So, here I make my case, there are so many reason why Anthony Bourdain is the man and I will prove it to you.   And if I succeed... the new season of Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations premiers April 9th at  9:00 on the Travel Channel (and no, the TC is not paying me for that little plug). 


How do I love thee? Let me count thy ways...

Cajun Country, United States of America

1. Anthony is big on the pig. 

Virtually every part of this animal: bacon (duh) sausage, gammon, ham, pork scratchings, head cheese, chitterlings, blood pudding, pig's ear etc. Maybe the topic of bacon (and the pig in general) has been a soft spot since I have given up meat (and when I say meat, of course I mean bacon) for lent. But not only does Tony eat the pig, he knows how to prepare the animal from the time you pull the trigger (and yes, the picture above is a pig that Tony killed and butchered himself). Pictured above is in Cajun Country with good folk music and a love for the cookout. 

Lucha Libre, Mexico

2. Anthony is fearless. 

This is El Octagon. And that is Tony on the floor, waiting to feel that churning feeling in his stomach.  That may have something to do with the 86kg (190lb) black belt descending upon him... or maybe it was that intestine menudo. Regardless, Tony doesn't say no and you know why? He does it for me... I mean his loyal viewers.

It don't matter where this is. 

3. Anthony sticks it to the man.

This photo is from Tony's blog (http://blog.travelchannel.com/anthony-bourdain/)and his actual caption said that this is how he responds when the network asks him to give a shout out to his website... he gets someone to give the promo in Spanish. Tony went through a lot of inner turmoil when he was offered the job of a TV host because he feared that he was selling out of a business he held so dear. Basically he was terrified to be thrown in the same pot as Rachael Ray and really, can you blame him? But the profound love for the craft and the culture and the people make clear that Tony is in this for the right reasons and those reason do not include demanding his audience to check out his website. Sweet dreams Tony, sweet dreams. 

Quito, Ecuador

4. Anthony is artistic. 

When Tony is not prepping for a scene, or sleeping... see #3, he can often be found exploring more than they show on TV. Any one who has seen this show knows Tony's extreme, no-tourism policy and this usually includes snapping photographs of every street sign, shop edifice or blinding the locals. But many of the shots on his website or his books or those that capture his film crew are taken by Bourdain himself.  He has quite an eye and I really enjoy seeing his perspective in a visual way. 

Eating Oysters, Cambodia

5.  Anthony is personal.

One of the main reason this show was created was to promote a harmony that connects the world that is based off of the closeness that is a result of food.  Whether it is in the preperation, the actual eating or the talks after the meal is over, food is the gateway to learning, understanding, respecting and sometimes falling in love with a culture. Tony is big on what I like to call "face time" with the people who show him around the country.  He sits down, takes part in their life, their food and only through that is he able to project that harmony to his audience. So turn off the cell phones, lock eyes and see what you can learn from the next person you share a meal with. 

Commies, Cuba

7. Anthony is an educator. 

I can attribute about 1/2 of my knowledge of history and geography to No Reservations.  Rather than just soar through a episode, trying to find what makes "good" TV, Tony is also focused on preserving the reputation and integrity of the place he is visiting. That means being knowledgeable ladies and gentlemen. Being aware of the language, taboos, national dishes, and most importantly, the nations history is a big deal for travelers. If you are able to hold an intelligent conversation with the locals, you develop a rapport and lose the tourist label.  Tony is the master at this.  

Beirut, Lebanon

8. Anthony is a risk-taker. 

In July 2006, the No Reservations crew was filming in Beirut when the Israel-Hezbollah War or Lebanon conflict broke out. 1,326 people died and both sides claim victory over this event. The crew was lucky enough not to be counted in the 53 foreign civilians who were killed by the explosions. Anthony knew of the risk before arriving there, but he was committed to showing and educating the general public. It was a risk of course, I mean, the Marines had to rescue the team from the roof of their hotel and then take them to the beach, but the end result was a lasting memory, a need for closure (No Reservations: Back to Beirut 2010) and received an Emmy for Outstanding Informational Programming in 2007.  

Clockwise from top left: Slash, Tiny Tim, Joey Ramone, Chewbacca, Janis Joplin, Robert Plant, Howard Stern, Yoko Ono. Center: Anthony Bourdain.

9. Anthony has a past. 

Tony's success story (told in detail in his NYT bestseller Kitchen Confidential) starts from a grunge teenager, on every drug in the book in desperate need for employment. His saving grace was his position as executive chef at Brasserie Les Halles in New York City. Maybe the hair in the picture above can be blamed on his drug problem. I would certainly hope so. 

10. Anthony is the man. 

Ripped jeans, The Ramones t-shirt, kafiya thrown to the side, bracelet of Indian prayer beads, pounding back his 12th shot of pisco sours or clear Russian death (See any episode featuring the drunken debauch that is Zamir) Tony is indestructible and untouchable by any other so called "foodie" or TV host. 

I will leave you with some words of wisdom:

(After left in the hands of Zamir promising him an exciting night, "Aren't you supposed to lie to your wife about fun stuff you're doing? Instead, I'm going to Chernobyl."

(When in Singapore, or anywhere for that matter) "If there's another American there, leave. And don't you even think about visiting a Starbucks or Hard Rock Cafe."

"If some Birkenstock-wearing knucklehead driving around in a SUV and wearing sneakers someone was sold into slavery to make is sniffling about the poor animals, that person is clearly never going to experience the world."

"As you move through this life and this world, you change things slightly, you leave marks behind, however small."

So tune into No Reservations at 9:00 (which happens to be his daughter Ariane's birthday and respectively the day after mine, thus making the new season my birthday present from Uncle Tony to me. 

one lives to find out, 

rachael

Gliterally

Happy Good Friday!

Today I'm gonna teach you how to glitter-fy your life. Gliterally, and figuratively. 

Step one: buy a big bottle of crafting glitter paint...preferably in gold, silver, or multi-color.

Step two: grab everything in your room that would look remotely better if there was glitter somewhere on it.  

Step three: use a foam brush and glitter-fy the crap out of your crap. it will make your beatles poster that much cooler. i promise.

step four: try not to regret the fact that you just glitter-fyed your beatles poster. that one might have been a mistake.

step five: put the bottle away. i know it's hard, but if you continue, the next thing you know you'll be drinking glitter out of you ikea cups.

Now, 10 easy ways to glitter-fy your life everyday (figuratively).

1. write letters to people. who doesn't love receiving something in the mail? (DOUBLE POINTS: glitter-fy the stationary)

2. wake up early because you WANT to, not because you need to. waking up with this mindframe is SO much easier/better.

3. wear bright colored tights to class. you'll feel like you stand out because, well, you do.

4. put on some "pump it up" music before taking a big exam. you're more likely to stay awake if you have a skrillex song stuck in your head.

5.  if it's above 55 degrees, sit outside and eat your lunch.  uv rays+vitamin d+chirping birds=happiness.

6.  drink a smoothie and take a walk with your best friend. great combo.

7.  speak up in class. even if you don't think what you have to say is "good," the professor appreciates words coming out of your mouth...cause let's be honest, how many people in your biology class actually speak? do you even know if they have voices?

8.  lay incense around your dorm room. if you can't burn it, at least put some in a vase by your desk. instant potpourri.

9.  if you find yourself bored at a party, grab a friend and start playing games such as the classic "how many fraternity brothers can i get a picture with?" or "how many people can i get to give me a hug?" or "extreme beer pong" or how about "make up a dance to a song and pretend it's the actual dance to the song and see how many people actually try to learn the dance"

10. dress up when you feel crappy. works every time. (DOUBLE POINTS: you can wear GLITTER!)

get your glitter on,

hill