Cyber Chocolate

Start the Year Right

2010-01-01T23:50:00.000-05:00

Feeling: tired

~~~o0o~~~
Technorati Tags: chocolate

Happy New Year!

2010-01-01T01:06:00.000-05:00

Hubby and I had our traditional take-out Chinese food for dinner, something I didn't get to do last year while recovering from that nasty intestinal infection. Then I set up my toy party, something I've done now 3 years running. Or maybe 4. I tend to lose count. But it's fun to do. The above picture was from the filming session, processed through a fun bit of software called Poladroid.

Feeling: Festive. Also, stuffed

~~~o0o~~~
Technorati Tags: New Year's

A No-Brainer

2009-12-28T16:34:00.000-05:00

Of course, I had to do this one.

You Are Chocolate Mousse

Compared to most people, you are blissful and content with your life.

You enjoy each moment, and you try your best to live simply. You think people cause their own anguish.

You are charming and a bit of a smooth character. You can always get by on your charm.

You are confident and sure of yourself. You are comfortable with your own skin and don't try to be someone else.

What Chocolate Dessert Are You?

Blogthings: We'll Tell You The Truth... Someone Has To!

Feeling: vindicated, because I do love chocolate mousse. Not that the description is all that accurate. But I do love chocolate mousse. Rich, thick, creamy, chocolate mousse.

~~~o0o~~~
Technorati Tags: quizzes

My Favorite Cookies

2009-12-27T17:16:00.000-05:00

I was feeling nostalgic, so got a box of Mallomars
. Mallomars aren't really cookies, more like mini, well, not quite cakes, either. They're confections made of crackers and marshmallows dipped in dark chocolate, and they're only sold in the cold months so they won't melt on store shelves. They were my mother's favorite cookie and they're one of my favorites. I haven't eaten any in years because, to be honest, I can eat an entire box in one sitting. They're not healthy for me to have around.

My other favorite cookies are Oreos, chocolate chip, bakery cookies (see below), and Sprinkle Cookies. I don't know if the latter are made anymore, but they were thin, soft chocolate crackers, marshmallows, and chocolate sprinkles (Jimmies, for parts of the country), and I could eat a box of those in one sitting, too. Actually, that's true for all my favorite cookies. And Milanos Dark Chocolate are a close runner-up.

Oreos are the perfect dunk-in-milk cookie. I also love taking them apart, eating the icing, then the cookie halves.

Chocolate Chip cookies come in many forms (I love Entenmann's and Friehofer's), but homemade is best. I use the Joy of Cooking recipe and apparently, I'm not the only one.

Bakery cookies refer to the cookies I grew up eating. My paternal grandfather was a baker and the kind of cookies I love are East European Jewish style, although you can get them almost anywhere in NYC now. And here's a nice, if a bit racy(!) site that is a nice guide to many of these treats.

Milanos also come in many varieties, but I prefer regular and double chocolate.

And finally, no discussion of cookies is complete without Black and Whites, best when bought from a good, kosher bakery. Greenberg's is my favorite bakery for them.

Feeling: chocolicious

~~~o0o~~~
Technorati Tags: cookies

Merry Christmas!

2009-12-25T00:11:00.000-05:00

The Ugly Doll carolers and I wish everyone who celebrates it a very Merry Christmas!
Feeling: tired

~~~o0o~~~
Technorati Tags: Christmas

No Chewing Allowed

2009-12-23T18:01:00.000-05:00

I had the day off, so went to get my comics and walk around the holiday craft and gifts bazaar held this time every year in a nearby park. I happened across the booth for Chocolat Mathez and they had small samples for taste testing. I have to admit no way I'd want to chew these truffles. Letting one melt on my tongue was truly an emotional experience. I'm trying to take off the weight I gained on vacation and I didn't have much cash with me, but I did want another taste, so I took a second sample. mmmmmmmm.... good!

Feeling: cold

~~~o0o~~~
Technorati Tags: chocolate

25 of My Favorite Christmas Songs

2009-12-21T00:34:00.000-05:00

I'm not Christian, yet love Christmas music, just not the religious songs. Here are some of my favorites, in no particular order. The numbers are there so I could keep count.

"Santa Got Run Over by My Chevy" (Manic Hispanic). Finding the lyrics or even a useful website for this isn't all that easy. I was happy to find the name credited with the recording.
"Jingle Bell Rock" (Bobby Helms). Probably my all-time favorite.
"Run, Run, Rudolph" (Chuck Berry). Fun, fun, Rudolph.
"The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire)" (Nat "King" Cole). Simply the best.
"White Christmas" (most versions). Irving Berlin's classic. My favorite version is the one by The Drifters.
"Jingle Bells" (Singing Dogs). I love this; don't hate me. ;)
"Santa Baby" (Eartha Kitt). Sultry Christmas!
"Nuttin' for Christmas" (Stan Freberg). A humor classic, but I can't find the lyrics for Freberg's version, at least, not tonight. And the nicer Barry Gordon version. Freberg's version had a harder-edged ending.
"Christmas Dragnet" (Stan Freberg). No one did parodies like this better than Freberg.
"The Twelve Gifts of Christmas" (Allan Sherman). Sherman was right behind Freberg when it came to parodies.
"Christmas Wrapping" (The Waitresses). Fun fluff that can get stuck in your head.
"Christmas (Baby, Please Come Home) (Darlene Love). Darlene Love performing this on the David Letterman show has become a holiday tradition I try to never miss.
"Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer" (Elmo and Patsy). I had to include it.
"Marshmallow World" (Darlene Love). Love's voice makes any song a classic.
"Christmas (Don't be Late)" (The Chipmunks). Another classic, a vital part of my childhood.
"Snoopy's Christmas" (The Royal Guardsmen). It's Snoopy! Nuff said!
"The Marvelous Toy" (Peter, Paul, and Mary). Probably not a Christmas song, per se, but it does get a fair amount of airplay this time of year.
"Rock and Roll Christmas" (George Thorogood). Can't beat the beat. Here's a video.
"Do They Know it's Christmas?" (Band Aid). A song in the true spirit of the season.
"Nut Rocker" (B Bumble and the Stingers). A wonderful instrumental, rock riff on The Nutcracker.
"Father Christmas" (The Kinks). Not your typical holiday fare.
"Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree" (Brenda Lee). Infectious.
"Santa Claus is Coming to Town" (Bruce Springsteen). Sure, it's an oldie and overdone. We all probably learned it when we were kids, even we Jews. But Springsteen made it sound fresh.
"Christmas All Over Again" (Tom Petty). I've loved this song even before I knew it was Tom Petty's. I love Tom Petty's music.
And to wrap up the list, "Blue Christmas"
by Elvis Presley has to be included. So poignant, and no one could ever sing it better than the King.

I keep thinking I'm missing some goodies. In fact, I know I am.

This novelty collection from Dr. Demento is wonderful.
Check out the background on some Christmas Novelty Songs.
And then, of course, for old-time rock 'n' rollers, there's the Phil Spector Christmas Album, a true classic, full of some of the best Christmas music you can find.

Now, if we could only get such a variety of Chanukah songs! :)

Feeling: festive

~~~o0o~~~
Technorati Tags: christmas

16 Questions Meme

2009-12-17T22:15:00.001-05:00

Found this on Facebook: 16 Questions Nobody Has Asked You Before. And I've got to admit, I don't recall being asked these before.

What was the last thing you had from Starbucks?
Uh, a piece of cake, I think. It was back in August, so my memory is fuzzy.

Which of these body parts can you crack willingly: knuckles, neck, toes, wrists, knees, shoulders?
Knuckles, but not so much as when I was younger. My elbows crack on their own.

What is the worst thing you have ever tasted?
Soap.

What is your (or was your most recent) locker number?
It was, uh, almost 40 years ago, so I don't remember.

What brand of bottled water do you like best?
Evian, but I mostly drink Poland Spring, which is cheaper and almost as good.

What kind of frosting do you prefer on chocolate cake?
Chocolate.

What was the first cell phone you had?
Uh, a Nokia, I think.

Which are your favorite socks?
Too many to choose from. I love socks.

What does your handwriting look like?
Harder to read as I get older.

When is your three-quarter birthday?
February.

Which band or singer do you dislike?
All the ones I don't like.

Who is your favorite Winnie the Pooh character?
Hmmm.... I never read Winnie the Pooh, so don't really have much affection for any of the characters.

Do you prefer neon, straight flourescent, curly flourescent, or standard light bulbs?
Those nice energy saver ones.

Are the light bulbs so shiny, just begging for you to lick them?
No.

If you had a pet lobster, what would you name it?
Dinner. Not really. I don't like eating lobster.

Do you burn inside?
Only when I have hot flashes. (What the hell does the question even mean?)

Feeling: tired

~~~o0o~~~
Technorati Tags: questionnaires

Potato Latkes were Consumed

2009-12-14T22:30:00.001-05:00

Chanukah dinner at my father's last night. We had the traditional latkes/pancakes.

Feeling: still full

~~~o0o~~~
Technorati Tags: Chanukah

Happy Chanukah

2009-12-12T02:12:00.002-05:00

Feeling: content

~~~o0o~~~
Technorati Tags: Chanukah

Astronomical

2009-12-09T20:44:00.000-05:00

Okay, this works.

You Are Astronomy

This world is not enough for you... literally. You can't help but wonder about what else is out there.

You're the type of person who believes that anything is possible, and you'd like to prove it.

You are also quite philosophical. You spend a lot of time wondering about our place in the world, how the universe was started, and what the future holds.

You may not ever get all the answers you seek, and that's fine with you. Questioning is part of the journey.

What Field of Science Are You?

Blogthings: Take a Quiz. Annoy Your Friends.

Had today off, but it was nasty most of the day -- it cleared up in time for the sun to set -- so I stayed home and watched the DVDs of my father's home movies (hubby had converted them from tapes to DVDs for me). A lot of memories there.

Feeling: blah

~~~o0o~~~
Technorati Tags: quizzes

Bag It

2009-12-07T23:45:00.002-05:00

Yeah, this sounds about right. ;)

You Are Unpretentious and Honest

You're quite happy with who you are, and you never pretend to be someone you're not.

You just act naturally. It's what works best for you, and you're comfortable with who you are.

You like people when they're just being themselves. Nothing turns you off more quickly than a phony.

You don't like it when other people want you to measure up to their standards. You should be enough as is.

The Handbag Test

Blogthings: We're Not Shrinks, But We Play Them On the Internet

Feeling: tired

~~~o0o~~~
Technorati Tags: quizzes

A Peek Inside

2009-12-06T23:46:00.000-05:00

Hubby and I got to go on behind-the-scenes tour of Citi Field, home of the Mets today. The team was doing this for full season ticket holders and it was quite fun. We got to go onto the field, into the dugout, and as you can see from this photo, into the Mets' locker room. The only thing missing was the Mets!

Baseball season can't come fast enough. I hope the Mets manage to field a better team this coming season, one that stays healthy.

Feeling: content

~~~o0o~~~
Technorati Tags: citifield

Triple Chocolate Mousse

2009-12-03T00:13:00.001-05:00

At the risk of turning this into a food blog, I present tonight's dessert: triple chocolate mousse at Veselka, a Ukrainian restaurant in New York's East Village. Before dessert, I had Chicken Kiev. I joined a couple of friends for dinner, for a pleasant evening. And the food was delicious.

Feeling: stuffed

~~~o0o~~~
Technorati Tags: chocolate

It's All About the Shopping

2009-11-28T15:05:00.001-05:00

As in the past few years, the New York Daily News has come up with some great shopping sites. Here are the ones that intrigued me.

Coupon Winner. A wide, searchable variety of thousands of retailers.
Prices and Coupons. Coupons and price comparisons, with categories.
Alice.com. Household basics, includes coupons and free shipping. The little browser icon is a blue rubber duckie, which is way cool.
IMShopping. A shopping question and answer site. Kinda cool.
Like.com. Visually search for what you want. Even if you don't find what you're looking for, it's fun to play on this site.
Modista.com. Another visual search site, for shoes and accessories. To say this sort of thing is addictive for people who enjoy shopping would be an understatement.
Polyvore.com. The Daily News writer likened this site to playing with Colorforms, and I agree! Use it to put together outfits.
UWantSavings.com. Closeouts. And you can sign up for weekly raffle and special offers.

Feeling: lethargic

~~~o0o~~~
Technorati Tags: shopping

For the Cold Times

2009-11-28T00:34:00.000-05:00

There's a bit of a chill tonight, and the wind is howling, so I figured some hot chocolate was in order.

Feeling: tired

~~~o0o~~~
Technorati Tags: chocolate

The Joys of Dark Chocolate Haagen Dazs

2009-11-26T21:49:00.000-05:00

The dark chocolate is on the left. You can see how much richer it is.

And this is the malted I made with the dark chocolate ice cream.

One of the yummiest, chocolate-iest malteds I've ever had. So, I'm thankful for Haagen Dazs Dark Chocolate ice cream, even if it's a limited edition.

I hope everyone who celebrates it had a great Thanksgiving.

Feeling:

~~~o0o~~~
Technorati Tags: chocolate

Chocolate Heaven

2009-11-24T23:14:00.000-05:00

This limited edition Haagen Dazs Dark Chocolate Ice Cream is amazing. It's rich and creamy, almost fudgy, and much better than other of their rich chocolate (except the Mayan Chocolate which is my favorite) because it's so smooth. I never much cared for their Triple Chocolate because I didn't like the mixed texture with the fudge layer. I can't wait to try this in a malted, but I'm almost afraid it'll be too rich for that. I'll report back after I give it a try.

Feeling:

~~~o0o~~~
Technorati Tags: chocolate

Chocolate to Warm the Soul

2009-11-22T01:22:00.000-05:00

I usually have Swiss Miss Rich Hot Chocolate laced with a spoonful of Ghiradelli hot chocolate, but they were out of the Swiss Miss a few supermarket trips ago, so we got a box of Hershey's Special Dark Hot Cocoa Mix and it definitely doesn't need enhancement. I had it with a spoonful of Ghiradelli the other night and without the Ghiradelli tonight and it was just fine by itself, plus a couple of spoons of milk which I always add to hot chocolate mix for more creaminess.

There weren't too many packets in the box, so this will be used up sooner than a box of Swiss Miss would be, but it's well worth the expense. Just the thing a chocoholic needs on a cold night.

Feeling: satisfied

~~~o0o~~~
Technorati Tags: chocolate

Turning Off Anonymous Commenting

2009-11-17T09:18:00.000-05:00

I really hate doing this. One reason I moderate comments here is to allow anonymous commenting, but the amount of anonymous spam the last week or so is driving me nuts. I even turned of comments on an individual post from a couple of years ago that was getting the bulk of it, so now the comments are showing up for other older posts and I can't keep turning off comments on a post-by-post basis. It's just too time-consuming and tedious. So as of today, you'll need either a Blogger account or Open ID. Sorry.

Feeling: sad

~~~o0o~~~
Technorati Tags: comments

Notes from the Short Work Week

2009-11-14T13:59:00.001-05:00

I worked Thursday and today. Not much time and yet, nonsense happened.

First, I spent most of the time going through emails. And doing telephone reference. It's the latter that yielded the following bits of nonsense.

Thursday night, a patron calls and asks to register for the computer training program on Saturday. I've been away, so thought something new had been scheduled, but no, there's nothing. The rest is paraphrased and shortened from the original.
Me: Do you mean the one on Nov. 7? That was last Saturday.
She: Yes. The 7th. I'd like to register for it.
Me: It happened already.
She: So, can I register for it?
Me: We had it last week. It's over. We don't have another session scheduled, but we might in the future.
She: So I can't register for it?
Me: No.

(It's a longshot, but I've submitted the above to Not Always Right, one of my favorite blogs.)

And then, today, from one of our regulars, a pleasant woman who should've known better: "Don't mind me munching in your ear." Did she ask if I'd mind? No. She just said it. And did it. And I did mind. And it was hard to understand her over the munching. So. Very. Rude.

Feeling: in need of another vacation! :)

~~~o0o~~~
Technorati Tags: libraries

Vacation Officially Over

2009-11-10T22:41:00.000-05:00

Today's my last official day of vacation. I spent the morning getting my annual mammogram. All is well on that uh, front. Then I came home and cleaned. Ah, the joy that is my life.

Tomorrow is a federal holiday, so not a work day. Thursday, I return to the grind of the workplace.

To tide us over, some fun stuff. I think I need some of the geeky goodness showcased on this site. The Ctrl, Alt, and Del pillows are my favs. Found on The Presurfer.

Purses that look like book covers. Found on Boing Boing.

Feeling: tired

~~~o0o~~~
Technorati Tags: links

We All Scream for Ice Cream

2009-11-05T23:22:00.002-05:00

Chocolate ice scream, that is. In California, I tried these two brands for the first time: Dreyers and Sheer Bliss.

Sheer Bliss is a bit high end and comes in tins. My cousin and I decided we had to try ice cream that comes in a tin, and a nice tin it is. The ice cream isn't overly rich, but it is chocolatey and smooth, with a nice, creamy consistency. It had more of a dark chocolate taste than most chocolate ice creams I've had, which makes sense because the flavor is actually dark chocolate.

I'd heard about Dreyers, and might've tasted it once before, but don't recall offhand. Hubby and I found it in a food court in the outlet mall in Las Vegas and I had to have a scoop in a cup. Nothing fancy, and this ice cream doesn't need any enhancement. It's rich, creamy, and very chocolatey. A pleasure to eat.

I also had the pleasure of having a cup of Ben & Jerry's chocolate ice cream while shopping in California, so, along with all the chocolate desserts and the visit to Ethel M's chocolate factory, it was a very chocolicious trip.

Annual Philadelphia Miniaturia dollhouse minis show this weekend. I expect to spend some $$$. :)

Feeling: chocolicious

~~~o0o~~~
Technorati Tags: chocolate ice cream

A Week in Vegas and California with Food

2009-11-04T13:24:00.000-05:00

10/25: Fly to Las Vegas with hubby, buffet dinner in one of the hotels.

10/26: Hubby and I go on Hoover Dam tour, ending with a stop at Ethel M's Chocolate Factory, one free sample. Yummy dark chocolate. Note the e on the two remaining pieces. It's a rather smooth flavor, not too bitter, melts nicely. I'd eat more. Much more.

Hubby and I went to see Jersey Boys and thoroughly enjoyed it. Dinner followed at Canter's Deli in one of the hotels, then a trip to the top of the Paris Hotel's Eiffel Tower (a weird experience right there). It's about 1/2 the height of the real one in Paris, France and offers a great view of the city. At night, it's especially pretty.

10/27: I indulged in a full massage. Ah..... Hubby and I went shopping at an outlet mall. After a quick dinner, we saw Penn & Teller (we'd seen them 3 times in the '80s), then drove to downtown Las Vegas which I much preferred to the Strip (which is technically in Paradise, Nevada. It was wonderfully lit up and the main street has a canopy with a light show. It's probably dingy during the day, but it's magical at night.

10/28: I fly to Los Angeles to visit my cousins while my hubby stays in Las Vegas. A couple of friends join him there. I have dinner at an Italian restaurant with the cousin I'm staying with (M) and her brother and his wife. These are my mother's cousins. I had ravioli and we had these cute meringue ghosts and I had some of this chocolate cake for dessert.

The ghosts were light and yummy and the cake was rich and yummy.

10/29: M and I went to the Grove shopping area. We had a yummy lunch at Morrell's (I had a meat sandwich), then shopped a bit and walked around. The Farmers' Market is there and I hadn't seen it since my family went to California in 1969 for one of my cousin's Bar Mitzvah. The area sure looks different now. One vendor selling pumpkins got into the Halloween spirit.

After, we had dinner with one of M's cousins and his wife, at another Italian restaurant. I had veal piccata this time. Back at M's house, we watched an episode of Nip and Tuck she'd TIVO'ed.

10/30: In the morning, M and I went to a small park run by the US Park Service near her home to walk her dog. They have a couple of ponds, one of which had a nice sized flock of ducks! I, of course, took pictures. After, M took me to Beverly Hills where we lunched at Nate and Al's Deli. I had the requisite corned beef on seedless rye and kasha varneskes (bowtie pasta), the latter which was almost as good as my grandmother used to make, but there were too many onions. Still, very tasty.

Then M, a friend of hers, and I went to see "Law Abiding Citizen" because M is a big Jamie Foxx fan. The movie was gory, but not as bad as the reviews had led me to believe. Implausible, but that works okay for movies like this which are somewhat reality-based fantasies. However, I figured out what was going on fairly easily, was annoyed by a bit in the beginning (why the hell does someone so smart open the door without checking who is outside?!), and couldn't quite figure out how he was doing things. Dinner at Mr. Cecil's Ribs followed, but I had a hamburger and fries, which were very good.

10/31: I had lunch with my cousin R and his wife. I hadn't seen her in 23 years, soon after they'd gotten married, so it was a real treat. My aunt (R's mother) joined us for lunch in yet another Italian restaurant, Tiramisu, (no pic of the meal -- I had pizza -- but it was the best of the Italian meals so far), then my aunt went home and R, his wife (also an M!), and I went to the newer of the two Getty museums. We had a great day enjoying the museum itself (gorgeous, very open architecture, with a garden) and the exhibits. We were especially taken with the Irving Penn photography exhibit Small Trades, haunting b&w images of people who toiled in all manner of jobs, mostly unglamorous ones and using a platinum printing technique. There's also a hardcover book. R and I are both into photography, so being able to see this exhibit, which ends in January, was good timing. We went to dinner after at a deli with a broad menu and I had Belgian Waffles for a change of pace.

It was great to be able to spend so much time with my cousin. His family moved to California when I was 2, and we've seen each other no more than a dozen times since then, so this was special. And his wife is warm and wonderful.

11/1: Went to M's brother's house (he's also an M, so we'll call him M2 although he's older than M). M2 and I went shopping at Universal City's CityWalk and had lunch at Wolfgang Puck's there.Yup, more Italian food. This time I had one of the best 4 cheese macaroni and cheese meals I've ever had. We did some shopping, then his wife, E, and I went for hamburgers while M2 stayed home (he has back problems, was tired, and is a vegetarian) at Mo's.

11/2: M picked me up at M2's house and drove me to the airport where I met up with hubby who came in from Las Vegas an hour before I did. And I owe it all to the little earplugs to the right. These Earplanes (tested by the US Navy) made flying possible for me again. I was having so much trouble with me ears when I last flew in 1986, even with the pill I was taking to help with the pressure, that I stopped going on trips that required plane travel. I wish someone had told me about these earlier. I had some discomfort and itching, mostly on the trip home which might be because I ended up inserting them too late for the descent (which was 20 minutes past the recommended 1 hour before landing), but nothing like the sharp pains I used to get in the back of my ears.

Feeling: mellow

~~~o0o~~~
Technorati Tags: vacation

All Trips Must Come to an End

2009-11-03T16:56:00.000-05:00

I don't get jet lagged going west, but coming back east is murder. I was not in any way tired last night and ended up staying up til 4:30 am. I think I ended up getting 4 or 5 hours of sleep when I finally got to bed.

Now I'm watching taped shows from while I was away. I'm currently watching last week's Halloween episode of Castle. Not only does Nathan Fillion still look good dressed as Mal Reynolds of Firefly, there was some neat dialogue between Castle and his daughter where she reminds him there are no cows in space when he says he's a space cowboy, which refers to the confusion about Firefly when it aired. And when she asked didn't he wear that five years ago, I actually laughed. So good. And a few notes of the Firefly theme were a nice touch! Oh, and his Buffy reference was nice, too, because he guested on that show as a really evil preacher, the guy responsible for Xander losing his eye. Very cool all around.

The trip was wonderful and I'm still on vacation. No work for another week plus! There will be some chocolicious posts coming up.

Feeling: jet lagged

~~~o0o~~~
Technorati Tags: tv