Pie Cook-Off Becomes Official

Every Sunday for the last two months we've been getting together to watch the HBO new series [click] Boardwalk Empire (BE), and having dinner afterwards. The post show meal was originally intended for a discussion panel about the episode that night. The BE discussions end quickly, replaced by talks of football, scandal, work, food. In fact two Sundays ago the subject of apple pie came up when Henriette critiqued Costco's mistake in making their lattice top crust. The discussion heated up with dares and a pie making contest.

Tonight we've finalized it. In honor of the [click] 2010 Apple Cup (the annual college football rivalry game between the University of Washington Huskies and the Washington State University Cougars), which is this coming Saturday, the apple pie contest will be held on the night of the BE finale next Sunday.

Here are the rules:

1. Apple is the key ingredient. It can be a pie, streudel, crumble, etc., etc., etc.
2. The competitor must make the apple dish. You cannot purchase a ready-made apple dish.
3. If you're making a pie, it must be no more than 9 inches.
4. All ingredients must be from scratch. You cannot use a ready made pie crust. You cannot use canned filling.
5. The judges shall be comprised of non-competitors. Which means we will be inviting friends over who have not been watching BE with us since the beginning. Hmmm, we need to start making the invites.
6. The judges shall not know who made each apple dish for two reasons.

                A. The contestants experiences range from none to veteran, 

             and we don't want the judges to feel "sorry" for the 

                   inexperienced baker. That's right, singular, ONE baker.

             

                  B. *Boxster, I have a little something for you...*

 
                         *Come on, take it, I insist... my pie is the one with
                          the star shaped apple cut outs...*

[Click] May the best pie win!

Make Up

I don't wear make-up for two reasons:

1. It's a hassle. I mean, seriously, it takes a minimum of ten minutes- depending on the how extensive-  to put it on and take it off. And God forbid you should poke an eyeshadow brush right in the eye. OUCH! Then, throughout the day you have to be conscious of it least you inadvertently rub your eyes. Can you imagine suffering from allergies, itchy eyes? Which brings me to reason number two...  lllllllkkkkkkkkkkas;ldkjnf asl;dkjf rjke;rlkjas;ldkr a;lerkjf erlkj';a ae;rlkjll
2. I have a habit of wiping my face with my sleeves. I don't carry a hankie like a proper lady should. Speaking of proper, I don't do a lot of things that a proper lady should: I sit with my legs apart, I burp loudly, I laugh with my mouth agape, I smack my lips when I chew, I snort when I have an itch in my nostril, and I sniff-test my armpits in public. The latter because I sweat a lot. Which brings me back to Reason #2 for not wearing make-up. 

But every now and then, when the occasion calls for it, or even not... when I happen to walk through the cosmetics section at the department store while there is a big make-up extravaganza going on, I oblige the make-up artists with a complimentary sit-down. I make it sound like I'm doing them the favor, but really they do me the favor of making me look like this once in a great while:

That night I go to bed with a stinging face, raw from rubbing the make-up off. And I thank heaven that this isn't a nightly routine.  But then I see this photo the next morning, and I consider sacrificing the hassle and the pain to look like this.

Naaaah! I enjoy the convenience of doing things that a proper lady doesn't do.

Stella & Dot

 My friend The Author hosted a jewelry party, featuring Stella & Dot.

The best part was that we got to try them all on!

 

 And the mimosas, of course.

Not that Mary Kay has anything to do with the last sentence...

Just sayin' we all had a wonderful, girlie time.

My Wardrobe

I went on a photo shoot date with Cousin Abby. This is my favorite picture that he took. The colors are so me: ALL OVER THE PLACE! Hah!

My wardrobe, from head to foot:

1. The sunglasses were a gas station find, for $7.00.

2. The scarf was from an estate sale, for ¢50. It has a matching 

     beanie hat, but it was not cold enough to wear it.

3. The pleather vest is a Target find, for $29.00. I bought it 

     specifically to match the boots. As you can tell, they don't 

     match. Lesson in shopping: bring the item you want to 

     match in order to get it right.

4. The sweater is chenille, oh so comfortable, from REI, on 

     sale for 30% off. 

5. The jeans... I have no idea what brand they are. But I got 

     them for $5.49 at Sam's Club.

6. The piéce de résistance, the boots. I got them on Ebay for 

     for a steal!

7. The purse, my jimmy rigged camera case purse, the odd 

     ball color that doesn't go with anything above, is from Fred 

     Meyer, for $35.00. 

There you have it, my eclectic, psychedelic, colorful wardrobe from all over the place.

Piss & Vinegar

Cousin Abby is a free spirit. He's done almost everything, from being run over by a quad runner to committing arson. Those are events deserving their own stories. Right now, he is going to attend an underwear event, and it ain't his first.

Not that attend underwear parties  -  I rather keep my jiggly butt to myself  -  but Piss & Vinegar makes a line of fashion men's underwear that pack a [censored] statement.

By the way, does Ehw stand for something?

Jimmy Rigged Camera Case Purse

As practical and safe as they are for your camera and lenses, camera cases are just not fashionable. So I bought a purse with a wide opening, and jimmy rigged it for my camera.

I bought foam padding and leopard print fabric at the craft store for the individualized compartments.

And voilá!

My fashionable camera case purse.

All right, so it doesn't go with what I'm wearing...

And then I discovered Epiphanie Bags. What an epiphany.