Somebody Take His Mic, Please

This morning, on my way into the office, I caught the tale end of a radio ad from the Think Before You Speak campaign. Here is a video ad from the campaign that sends the same message as the radio one I heard today.



I love Wanda Sykes. But... who doesn't?

Anyway, the ad that I heard this morning featured a male football player calling out two girls for saying "that's so gay." At the end of the spot, one girl says to the other, "Oh no! That guy's a football player and now he totally thinks we suck!" The comment is a little bit funny in an after school special way, but the message that football player equals cool equals someone who thinks before they speak is a good one.

However... the DJ did his best to help us miss that point.

As soon as the ad ended, he started running off in this manner. I paraphrase.

Yeah, think before you speak. That's a good idea. The only thing that I don't really like about that ad is that the girls say that guy telling them to think before they speak is a football player. And, in my experience, it's not usually the football players who are all [insert mockingly sweet, effeminate voice here] 'hey guys, let's do the right thing, okay?' So, that's my only problem. I don't buy it. It just doesn't fit the stereotype.

Thankfully, he cut to weather just then. I used that reprieve to praise him for his uncanny ability to miss the point completely.

He said it all without even a hint of irony. Of course he did.

He came back (too soon in my opinion) to say 'I'm not saying that football players aren't intellectual or anything.'

I took that opportunity to balance out my earlier praise with some good ol' fashioned cursing.

Really, Bangor DJ?! Really?

Somebody please take his mic away.

Luck, Coffee, & Burns

Luck

This weekend, I ran some errands in preparation for St. Patty's Day. The liquor store had exactly what I needed in one adorable package.


Lucky.

I broke a ten at the liquor store and my total at the gas station was one penny more than the amount of change from my ten.

Lucky.

As I left the gas station, I found a penny (heads up!) just outside my driver-side door. I picked it up and added it to the other two precariously balanced on my dashboard clock ledge.

Lucky.

Coffee

The Dunkin' & Deceivin' project is only getting better these days. On Monday, I dealt with my first male Dunkin' Donuts cashier. He called me a traitor for using a Starbucks mug, but then he only charged me the refill price. So he was the most upset and most generous DD cashier I've encountered in the project.

Today when I picked up coffee for my roommate and myself, the girl working only charged me for a small refill (my cup is a little bit larger than a medium) so I got my coffee for a record $1.30. She also insisted on putting on my lid because she could lose her job if the coffee spilled and I got burned.

Turns out DD coffee is heated to 120 degrees. Or maybe she said 190. It's been a long day.

Burns

Sunday, when I was baking what should have been my lucky cupcakes, I ran into a bit of a snag. As I checked the cupcakes for doneness, I put my oven mitt on my right hand and did the checking with my left. I usually do this checking the other way around. So, when I was sure that the cupcakes weren't, in fact, done, I raised my right hand (with oven mitt) in the air and attempted to shove the oven rack back in with my (naked) left hand.

So unbelievably unlucky.

Now I am sporting three nicely lined up burns across the first three fingers of my left hand. I have a recurring dream about cutting myself and getting stitches across the tips of the fingers on my left hand, so this burn is especially... interesting.

Luckily the cupcakes rocked hardcore, the burns aren't painful anymore, and my grandmother presented me with a shiny new Dunkin' Donuts giftcard when I surprised her last week.

F.A.Q.s on the New Header

1. Is this your real kitchen?

Indeed! This is where the magic happens. Please take note of the massive counter space. In all fairness, I do have a kitchen table that serves as my workspace when cooking, baking, neighbor-watching, and so forth.

2. Is the clock on the far left right?

Not even a little bit. When the giant icicles just outside that window fell during one of the big thaws, that clock was thrown from the wall. The hour hand broke loose of... something... and now it always hangs somewhere between six and seven PM. My roommate and I like to joke about the fact that "it's 6:30 now..." but I guess you have to be here.

3. Could you seriously not be bothered to do the dishes before you took the picture.

No. I couldn't. But notice that they are all red. The color scheme holds.

4. What's in the plastic bag on top of the counter cabinet?

Good question. Glassware that I have not unpacked from my last apartment. Among other things, I have glass swizzle sticks with multicolored roosters on top in that bag. I should really pull that bag down, I guess. Never know when I might want those.

5. Don't you know that spices shouldn't be stored on top of the stove?

Yes. I do.

And it worries me every day. I wish I could say that I were joking. I honestly think about the fact that we should move those spices at least once a day.

6. Don't you have a paper to be writing?

I hate you. Also, shut up.

Cupcake Blogs of Note

As part of the multigenre cupcake project I mentioned a couple of weeks ago, I ended up reviewing several of my favorite cupcake blogs. If you are new to the cupcake blogosphere, then I recommend you check out these four blogs. They aren’t indicative of all cupcake blogs, but they will give you a good idea of what good cupcake blogging looks like.

Cupcakes Take the Cake

Known as the cupcake blog, Cupcakes Take the Cake is a continually building, comprehensive log of cupcake bakeries and independent bakers. Based in New York City, Nichelle Stevens, Rachel Kramer Bussel, and Stacie Joy take turns updating CTTC with cupcake photos, recipes, critiques, and news bulletins. These bloggers focus quite heavily on cupcakeries in New York and other major cities, but every once in a while, they release a secret recipe for home bakers. Because they are so well known, the CTTC bloggers have been on The Martha Stewart Show twice. Their fame benefits their blog followers since they are able to do giveaways pretty regularly. FYI: I won the book, 1000 Things to Eat Before You Die, by telling CTTC that I can eat three cupcakes at a time if I cut the sweetness with something savory. Overall, CTTC is good for browsing and general cupcake news, but it’s too big to feel personal. I give CTTC 3 out of 5 sprinkles.

How to Eat a Cupcake

How to Eat a Cupcake is my current favorite cupcake blog. HTEAC is a blogger from Virginia that I’ve been following for about a year now. She’s twenty-something and she obsessively bakes cupcakes for fun. Sound familiar? HTEAC started out as a blog that would help its blogger come up with new recipes to make for her family and friends each week for Wing Night. Now her blog has gained a wide audience and her cupcakes are quickly becoming the standard. HTEAC blogs her original and borrowed recipes very carefully with pictures of each step. She’s also really knowledgeable when it comes to adjusting ingredients and their amounts to make each cupcake its very best. Because of her great recipes and easy writing style, I give HTEAC 5 out of 5 sprinkles.

Cupcake Project

The Cupcake Project is a quirky little cupcake blog written by an unnamed blogger. CP is known for its odd flavor combinations and unexpected cupcake recipes. CP provides the blogosphere with such interesting cupcakes as mulled wine, hamantashen, pickles and icecream, toasted ravioli, and oreo cupcakes with a built-in cup for milk. CP usually posts about the special or uncommon ingredient that she’ll be cupcaking a few days before the actual cupcake post. As of this writing, CP’s readers are looking forward to a cupcake incorporating carob, dates, chickory, figs, barley, and almonds. For Thanksgiving this year, I tried out CP’s Sweet Potato Casserole cupcake and it was one of the best cupcakes I have ever made. I love to read about CP’s crazy concoctions, but my budget and location in Maine make my list of wacky ingredients rather short. Because of this drawback, I give Cupcake Project 4 out of 5 sprinkles.

Bakerella

I consider Bakerella the Martha Stewart of the cake and cupcake blogosphere. She makes gorgeously whimsical treats for every season and holiday and then entertains readers with general goodies on the in between days. Bakerella is known for her cupcake pops and even gave a cupcake pop demonstration on the Martha Stewart show last spring. Because Bakerella has such a large blog following, she is able to provide pretty nice prizes for her somewhat frequent contests. In a perfect world, I will win a Kitchen Aid stand mixer through one of Bakerella’s giveaways. :) Until that day, I’ll keep following Bakerella’s blog and learning through her step-by-step photos and explanations. Because of her unmatched creativity and flawless execution, it would be silly to give Bakerella anything but 5 out of 5 sprinkles.

Sidenote: It wasn’t until writing this review that I realized “Bakerella” is a derivative of Cinderella and not Godzilla. I had been connecting the kitchen maven to the city-crushing lizard instead of the rags to riches fairy tale character. Oops. :)

Okay, now go! Go read about cupcakes!

Mama's Meatballs

Yesterday I mentioned my recent interest in meatballs to my mom who - as she often does - quickly produced the family recipe. She recopied the recipe for me and I made a grocery list during my layover. After a kharmically deserved stress-free day of flying, I was in great need of the kind of protein only provided by meat.

Just in case you are hankering for a meatball, here is the family recipe for meatballs and the sassy sauce to go with. My family has never been stingy with recipes before, so I'm assuming this release won't ruffle family feathers. We'll see! :)

From the Kitchen of: Meatballs
(I'm just keepin' it real. This is how the original recipe was written, so it's exactly how my mom copied it.)

+ 2 cups cornflakes or 1/2 cup cornflake crumbs
+ 1 lb. ground beef
+ 2 tbsp. ketchup
+ 2/3 cup nonfat dry milk (I used buttermilk powder and it worked really well.)
+ 1 tsp. salt
+ 1/8 tsp. pepper
+ 1 egg
+ 1/4 cup grated onion
+ 1/4 cup water

Crush cornflakes into fine crumbs and place in mixing bowl. Add remaining ingredients and mix thoroughly. Shape into 48 to 50 balls (drop by spoons - no need to shape). Place in single layer in foil lined shallow baking pan. Bake at 400 degrees about 12 minutes or until browned.


I was skeptical about the lack of shaping, but the irregular shape made for some gorgeous crispy bits around the edges of the meatballs. I recommend the spoon dropping for sure. I ended up with 55 meatballs, but I have a tendency to stretch things.

Spicy Sauce for Meatballs
(Creative naming is a family strong point.)

+ 2 tbsp. pickle relish
+ 1/4 cup ketchup
+ 8 oz. tomato sauce
+ 2 tbsp. chopped onion (I lazily used the dried stuff and it was lovely.)
+ 2 tbsp. brown sugar
+ 1/8 tsp. pepper
+ 1 tbsp. vinegar (I forgot I was out of vinegar, so I used balsamic vinegar. I'd recommend you use the regular stuff. The sauce was good but it did have a little balsamic edge to it that I could have done without.)
+ 1 tbsp. Worcestshire sauce
+ 1/4 cup water

Simmer in saucepan over medium heat for 15 minutes, stirring frequently. Add to meatballs. (I kept the meatballs and sauce separate and just spooned a bit over them on the plate. The meatballs are so good on their own that I didn't want the sauce to take over my leftovers.)

I paired my meatballs with some whole grain brown rice and steamed green beans. It was absolutely fantastic. The meatballs are flavorful without being overpowering or too saucey. The rice and green beans allowed the meatballs to take center stage and provided the perfect back up. My mouth is watering just looking at this picture.

I'm going to go to bed right now so that when I wake up it will be tomorrow and I can look forward to meatball leftovers for lunch!

YouTube Worthy(?) Zebra Cakes

I'm pleased to report that I did make it to VA yesterday.

I started my journy at 5am and I ended it at 11pm when I got off the plane. I don't count the hour+ that I spent in the car with my mom and aunt, but technically that was an added leg. Ugh.

Anyway...

Today my mom and I experimented with cake. (Surprise!) I've been wanting to try my hand at making a Zebra cake, and my mom was all too happy to help me out with the dicey batter dropping technique. I'll blog the after pics once we cut the cake, but here is a video for the diehard Amandafans. In this seven minute video, my mother (on the right) and I (on the left) drop strawberry and chocolate batter while we engage in normal - for us - banter. It might actually explain a lot about me.



So my question is this: YouTube worthy?

My family seems to think the answer to this is yes. My dad thinks that if we post it tonight he can expect to see the clip on GMA tomorrow.

Oh, and if you watch the clip to the end, write my last exclamation in your comment and I'll send something special your way. Leave your email address if I don't know it already. ;)

First Time for Everything

Ugh. Isn't it the truth?

Today, for the first time, I missed a flight.

Now, Kira was there the only other time that I came close to missing a flight. We were young and in France in the Spring of '06. Because of a scheduling conflict involving obligations in Vatican City, Kira and I found ourselves loosed on Paris without the benefit of an escort. At the time, we were studying in Prague as part of a very shoddily constructed, semester long, public university program housed in a seminary -- you can imagine the everyday struggles. We made the most of our unpoliced time by going to EuroDisney and watching the same damn episode of Top of the Pops three times (Flaming Lips, "Yeah Yeah Yeah" and the Pet Shop Boys, "I'm with Stupid"). We capped off our weekend in The City of Lights by nearly missing our flight out of it. There was a disagreement over the train. There were some harsh words spoken waiting for the next train to take us in the opposite direction. There was a fair amount of running through a very long tunnel of some sort and there was some frantic, awkward communication with the French airport costumer service persons. They were... not at all concerned. As it turned out, my former roommate and I hated each other for about an hour and then quickly got over it when we realized our flight was delayed and we were fine. Then bored, but ultimately fine.

So, you see, I've been through hectic. The BIA is not what I would call hectic. We have three gates. Two are usually in operation. Instead of making announcements over a loud speaker, the attendants just yell. And not even that loudly. There is no bathroom after security because, let's face it, if they added a bathroom, they'd lose half their seating. Personally, I have flown in and out of BIA six times in the last 20 months. I've dropped off and picked up another four times. All of these visits were successful. It only makes sense that my most time sensitive flight would be the one I miss.

This morning I got up at 5am and readied myself for a very quick trip home. I'm surprising my mom tonight, and I'm quite excited about it. I checked off the last few things on my "morning of" list and I headed downstairs without my phone. I went back upstairs and didn't find it. I came back down and discovered it in my bag. I went out the front door without my toothbrush and came back in to grab it. Having grabbed it, I noticed it was still damp and had to go into the kitchen for a ziploc. When I finally got out of my house, I had to go a few minutes in the wrong direction to get some cash from my bank. You can see how I ended up running just a little late.

Long story... well... anyway, I got to the airport just under 30 minutes early. I was so close to being allowed to check-in that the Continental reservations woman that I had to call to rebook was surprised that they didn't let me in. I was booked on an 1-800 number, provided credit card information (it takes a while to read off all those numbers), then walked sadly all the way back to my car in the long term parking lot, and turned it on all before my scheduled departure time of 6:25am. More than enough time to clear security at BIA that probably didn't have anyone in line for it anyway.

But I'm not mad. A little bit ticked with myself? Certainly. Now that the sun has come up (nearly an hour after I arrived home), I'm even amused by the whole thing.

Here are the good things about missing my 6:25am flight and being confirmed on a 1:30pm flight:

1. I can work on my Duddy Kravitz paper. Can. Will? I don't know yet.

2. I got to have breakfast. Food is important when flying but I usually forget about it.

3. Since my roommate left on Feb. 27th, I have been slowly but surely cleaning and straightening our entire house. Now I can put away the clean dishes and empty out the refrigerator before she comes home this afternoon. By that point, the apartment will be embarrassingly neat.

4. I'm sure I was seated next to a large, sweaty, hairy man and his crying baby on the 6:25 flight. My 1:30 flight compatriot will be small, gorgeous, witty, and just the perfect amount of talkative. Or, I'll just have an open seat.

5. Now that my flight is getting in later, my Dad can pick me up from the airport. My plan was to take the bus from the airport to either my Dad's shop or my mom's office which is within walking distance of my home. However, I am not too keen on riding the HRT at night, neither is my dad. Problem solved.

6. Since I only paid $18 for the original flight, the $50 same-day reschedule fee is not really that much of a blow. A flight from Maine to Virginia for $68 is still a remarkable deal.

I should really get to work on 1 and 3 now. Such early rising really does encourage productivity, doesn't it? Also... napping.