Shanna Suburbia

Minus Suburbia

2011-02-28T20:53:00.000-08:00

It's been a long time since I was able to regularly update this blog, particularly with relevant food/home/lifestyle content. It was a good run while it lasted and I would certainly love to give it another go, if I returned to the Suburban life. Life has been going in crazy types of directions lately, so I'm giving this blog an official goodbye now.

If you're still following, you might want to keep an eye on ShannAwesome... ;-)

So long and thanks for all the fish <3

Tocky the Rolling Alarm Clock

2010-12-20T22:30:00.000-08:00

This toys with the fine line between "want" and "need", as it is adorable but also very practical. You see, when they came up with that "'not a morning person' doesn't even begin to describe it" line, they actually had me in mind.

Not. A. Morning. Person.

So I probably need something like this. Plus, I like that the thinkgeek description refers to its noises as "R2D2 on acid".

I've also seen some other neat alarm clocks, where they hover around the room or require you to put puzzle pieces back together in order to shut it off. Anything special you've seen?

Recipe: Tiramisu

2010-12-05T13:53:00.000-08:00

This year for Thanksgiving, I decided to try my hand at something on my 101 list... homemade tiramisu! It was a bit of a daunting task but I was quite content with the results.

I used this recipe from Chef's Pencil because it was a "no-cook" and the YouTube video below made it look pretty simple.

Here is my modified recipe:

For The Tiramisu

6 Egg Yolks
4 Egg Whites
2 ounces of sugar
12 ounces grams mascarpone cheese
1/2 cup fresh cream
2 cups coffee (cooled to room temperature)
1 cup Kahlua
Approx 48 ladyfingers (savoiardi biscuits)
9x13 inch dish
Electric cake mixer

Notes on ingredients: I have the great fortune to be a Californian, so I was able to purchase the mascarpone cheese and ladyfingers from Trader Joe's. I'm also not a coffee drinker, so I used what I had on hand -- two packets of instant coffee mix that happened to be vanilla latte flavored. This, combined with the Kahlua, made the tiramisu turn out very sweet despite my cutting the sugar in 1/3.

Also, most tiramisu recipes call for rum, but you can substitute just about any liqueur for it. I chose Kahlua because I would actually drink the rest of the bottle and the coffee cream Kahlua would get a little more "coffee flavor" in it, since it wouldn't have much otherwise.

Steps:

Add the egg yolks & half the sugar to mixer bowl
Whisk on high speed until light & creamy
Add the mascarpone cheese & mix on medium speed, until just combined
Add the cream and whisk for approximately another 2 minutes (until thick & creamy)
Use a new mixing bowl and dry the whisk
Pour the egg whites into the mixing bowl
Whisk on high speed until soft peaks
Continue whisking and slowly add remaining sugar (1 tablespoon at a time)
Continue whisking until stiff peaks
Remove the bowl from the mixer and fold half of the egg whites into the cream mixture in the large bowl
Once they are just combined fold through the remaining egg whites
Add the Kahlua to the coffee
Soak the biscuits in the coffee mix one at a time for a few seconds, drain and arrange in the dish
Once one layer of biscuits is completed in the dish, spread on an even layer of the cream mixture
Place another layer of soaked biscuits on the cream
Top and spread with a final layer of the cream
Smooth the top and garnish with some freshly grated quality chocolate -- I used one of my favorites -- sugar free Amberlyn dark chocolate mint
Set in the fridge for at least 3 hours.

To make individual portion servings, simply break biscuits into appropriate smaller size before soaking and prepare in the same way as above but in each glass or bowl

Notes: It might have something to do with the particular brand of ladyfingers I was using, but "soaking it for a few seconds" wasn't very effective in allowing the coffee/Kahlua to seep through the entire biscuit. It was more effective to dip it and shake the ladyfinger around a little in the liquid.

Some people may have concerns about the raw egg, but I don't think it had much of an impact on the finished product. Most likely, I will try my hand at the cooked one next time and possibly a variant of hot chocolate in place of coffee.

Here is one of the individual servings I made with the leftover ingredients. (The recipes calls for 12 oz and the marscapone cheese at Trader Joe's comes in 8oz so I bought two and made some extra.) Perfect afternoon snack.

Enjoy!

Competitive Bunny Jumping

2010-09-01T19:54:00.000-07:00

Adorable!

Japanese Street Performer WIN

2010-08-30T20:35:00.000-07:00

I love when failblog brings WINs.

This whimsy brought a smile to my Monday. Hope it does the same for you!

Recent Obsessions

2010-08-16T10:21:00.000-07:00

Me: Glee

(I had heard it was amazing but just now got around to watching it.)

Clement's obsession: the Inception soundtrack

Day 23.5

2010-07-18T11:20:00.000-07:00

Whoa, what happened? I disappeared off the face of the blogosphere. =(

I've been adjusting to a new position as a Payroll Specialist/HR Assistant! It's a far cry from my events management experience but I'm enjoying it. The payroll side is about as exciting as it sounds, but I'm learning a lot.

I failed at the 30-day challenge! I thought about starting it over but then I figured... nah. I've spotted a few things recently that made me really miss blogging so I'm trying really hard to come back.

I missed you guys.

Day 23

2010-04-23T18:33:00.000-07:00

This was another hard one, because I looked through my favorites list and got sidetracked with re-watching all the awesome things I liked. Anyhow, I finally chose this 2-part segment of Cookie Monster on Martha Stewart, where Cookie Monster is basically obnoxious and drives Martha crazy. It was the first thing I ever favorited and hope you enjoy it too.

Happy Friday!

~~Day 01 — Your favorite movie~~

~~Day 02 — Your favorite song~~

~~Day 03 — Your favorite television program~~

~~Day 04 — Your favorite book~~

~~Day 05 — Your favorite quote~~

~~Day 06 — Whatever tickles your fancy~~

~~Day 07 — A photo that makes you happy~~

~~Day 08 — A photo that makes you angry/sad~~

~~Day 09 — A photo you took~~

~~Day 10 — A photo of you taken over ten years ago~~

~~Day 11 — A photo of you taken recently~~

~~Day 12 — Whatever tickles your fancy~~

~~Day 13 — A fictional book~~

~~Day 14 — A non-fictional book~~

~~Day 15 — A fanfic~~

~~Day 16 — A song that makes you cry (or nearly)~~

~~Day 17 — An art piece (painting, drawing, sculpture, etc.)~~

~~Day 18 — Whatever tickles your fancy~~

~~Day 19 — A talent of yours~~

~~Day 20 — A hobby of yours~~

~~Day 21 — A recipe~~

~~Day 22 — A website~~

Day 23 — A YouTube video

Not Easy Being Green

2010-04-22T15:28:00.000-07:00

Happy Earth Day! Love the earth and mother nature and all that! I'm mostly pretty green-minded. I have several reusable bags, I recycle and compost, I do my best to save paper by letting everything I can become digital. For a twist though, I'm going to make my Earth Day post about the ways I have a hard time being green about.

Fast Food/Groceries

All the better if fast food comes in paper but oftentimes it comes in wax paper, aluminum foil, or Styrofoam. I do my best to avoid this by cooking at home and choosing places that I know don't use styrofoam but it is really hard to drop the habit of this convenience because it's everywhere. As for groceries... at least the little plastic bag that veggies come in is reusable/recyclable, but what about bigger things? Potato chip bags? Anything that comes in a box? Yogurt containers? When SunChips announced their new compostable packaging, I considered renouncing all other chips just to support their efforts. But that is just one biodegradable bag out of the thousands of food packaging out there.

Feminine Hygiene Products

If you're a guy, this section doesn't matter to you and you can skip down to the next one. Ladies, you feel me on this -- that time of the month sucks. I can't wrap my mind around the green alternatives -- a reusable cup or cloth. The cloth is tough since I'm sometimes out all day, for 10 or 12 hours. No way am I hauling that around with me. And the cup? Honestly, I really just don't like the idea of reaching up there. I don't like the idea of the Nuvaring and I don't even use tampons. It's unfortunate, but I just can't get green about this.

Toilet Paper

Yes, toilet paper. And its cousin, the tissue. Mental Floss has an amazing article on the history of toilet paper and discuss how other parts of the world have widely accepted water as their primary method of cleansing. How much water, money, and paper would we save if we were't using toilet paper -- or even more, if we don't use water-based toilets? I also read on Mental Floss about a composting toilet, which essentially routes your excrements to become compost rather than... well, yeah.

Too green? Maybe.

Transportation

I live in Southern California and that should speak for itself about traffic. Even with all the public transportation innovations, the choice method of getting around is still with your very own car. Things were better when I was in college in San Diego, where I walked places half the time and took buses/shuttles most of the other half, but that's because most things I needed were in walking distance. To be really green, I'd have to eat up a lot of time on buses or splurge on at least a hybrid car. Tesla Motors is looking to begin production on the Model S, the first fully electric mid-range sedan, by next year. Two years after that, they are hoping to begin production on an economy-priced sedan.

Being green is tough sometimes -- some things are just unreasonable or unfeasible, but some are our mental blocks. What are some things that are hard for you to get green about?

Day 22

2010-04-21T12:20:00.000-07:00

This is probably a bit of a cop-out but I simply adore Facebook. I've been with the site ever since it was launched, although I later learned it was for... less than chivalrous reasons. (Although, really, I can't chide the guys for building it as a directory for the girls in school because I too had used it as a directory of boys during my first year at school.)

I consider myself to be part of the first graduating class of Facebook, since it was originally built as a college networking site and it launched in 2004, the year I graduated high school and went to college. It's amazing what has happened in six years. I wish I had some screen shots of the original Facebook. The wall used to be this empty text field where you could edit anything that anyone wrote in it. There was no newsfeed, no applications, and it was completely and totally restricted to people with an .edu address. Now it's a fully integrated website for communication and community -- complete with photo albums, video, blog, and link posting.

I'm still not quite used to the idea of being FaceBook friends with people's mothers, former teachers/professors, and guildies from World of Warcraft that I never actually met. Nevertheless, Facebook has become an amazing medium for communication. This week alone I have discussed the iPhone leak with one of my favorite college professors, made fun of my 2nd grade best friend in Texas for being a "white girl," made plans for a breakfast reunion with my high school gal pals, and began planning a Vegas Adventure for later this year. (That last one may have been a result of the jealousy of seeing what was apparently half my friends list jet off to Vegas last weekend.)

Want to be my Facebook friend too? Click here.

Day 01 — Your favorite movie
Day 02 — Your favorite song
Day 03 — Your favorite television program
Day 04 — Your favorite book
Day 05 — Your favorite quote
Day 06 — Whatever tickles your fancy
Day 07 — A photo that makes you happy
Day 08 — A photo that makes you angry/sad
Day 09 — A photo you took
Day 10 — A photo of you taken over ten years ago
Day 11 — A photo of you taken recently
Day 12 — Whatever tickles your fancy
Day 13 — A fictional book
Day 14 — A non-fictional book
Day 15 — A fanfic
Day 16 — A song that makes you cry (or nearly)
Day 17 — An art piece (painting, drawing, sculpture, etc.)
Day 18 — Whatever tickles your fancy
Day 19 — A talent of yours
Day 20 — A hobby of yours

~~Day 21 — A recipe~~

Day 22 — A website

Day 21

2010-04-20T13:07:00.000-07:00

Strawberry Shortbread Thumb print Cookies

(Sorry I don't have a pretty foodie picture of it but the lighting in the apartment was terrible anyway. You get the idea -- they are way better than those Knott's cookies ;-)

Strawberry Shortbread Cookies

INGREDIENTS

1 cup butter, softened
2/3 cup white sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup seedless strawberry jam

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
In a medium bowl, cream together butter and white sugar until smooth. Mix in 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract. Mix in flour until dough comes together. Roll dough into 1 1/2 inch balls, and place on ungreased cookie sheets. Make a small hole in the center of each ball, using your thumb and finger, and fill the hole with the jam.
Bake for 14 to 18 minutes in preheated oven, or until lightly browned. Let cool 1 minute on the cookie sheet.

Notes: The original recipe called for a glaze, which you can see I tried in the top left and right corners of the picture, but I didn't like it so I didn't include it in mine. Also, the original called for almond extract rather than vanilla but that was a pain so I just used vanilla. =P

~~Day 20 — A hobby of yours~~

Day 21 — A recipe

Day 20

2010-04-19T18:36:00.000-07:00

Contains some cursing.

Hobby? Webcomics, obviously! This is one of my favorite strips of all time by Jeph Jacques over at Questionable Content, which is by the way, really not very "questionable."

Other contenders for today's post included blogging, video games, food, and Toastmasters.

~~Day 19 — A talent of yours~~

Day 20 — A hobby of yours

Day 19

2010-04-18T23:21:00.000-07:00

I have been told many times that I am "frightening good" at a valley girl impression/accent.

(image source: Wikipedia)

~~Day 18 — Whatever tickles your fancy~~

Day 19 — A talent of yours

Day 18

2010-04-17T11:45:00.000-07:00

I was in the car a few days ago when I spotted this Mustang that had a bit of a bumper problem. Okay, a lot of a bumper problem.

It was flapping around all over the place and just crazy looking... as you can tell from the picture. Wonder why they haven't gotten around to fixing it. Seems pretty dangerous to be driving around with the bumper in that condition.

flap flap flap.

That was the sound, seriously.

~~Day 17 — An art piece (painting, drawing, sculpture, etc.)~~

Day 18 — Whatever tickles your fancy

Day 17

2010-04-16T22:57:00.000-07:00

So, this one was another tough one for me because I am generally not all that interested in art or sculpture.

But I did manage to dig up this awesome... sculpture? This was taken in Taiwan last year. I think it was in the Chang Kai-Shek Memorial but it could have been any of the ones in the area, since they are all clumped together and I am evidently bad at remembering or taking notes about where I take pictures.

When this picture was taken year, it was the Year of the Ox, hence the choice of shape. Red was the obvious choice as well, since the Chinese consider red to be a lucky color and wear it to ward off evil spirits.

Even though my birth year is 1986, I am actually an Ox baby rather than a Tiger baby, because I was born just before the Lunar New Year that year. There is some celebration in the USA, in areas like Chinatown and other cities with a high Asian population, but definitely not to the extent of the Taiwanese. True Chinese culture shone through when I saw things related to the Year of the Ox all over the country. Seriously, literally everywhere.

Sculptures, banners, little figurines -- you name it. Oxen everywhere.

~~Day 16 — A song that makes you cry (or nearly)~~

Day 17 — An art piece (painting, drawing, sculpture, etc.)

Day 16

2010-04-15T20:01:00.000-07:00

"Imagine" by Brunch

Okay, this one is kind of cheating, since it's not the actual song that makes me cry. (Especially because it's in Korean and I don't actually understand the lyrics.) It's the soundtrack song to the final part of a 5-part animated series called "There She Is!!" by a three-person animation team called SamBakZa.

The song is permanently linked to these videos for me and that last video almost always makes me cry, or at least tear up.

You have to watch all of these to feel the impact. Don't just jump to 5. (Banner links will open in a new window.)

~~Day 01 — Your favorite movie~~

~~Day 02 — Your favorite song~~

~~Day 03 — Your favorite television program~~

~~Day 04 — Your favorite book~~

~~Day 05 — Your favorite quote~~

~~Day 06 — Whatever tickles your fancy~~

~~Day 07 — A photo that makes you happy~~

~~Day 08 — A photo that makes you angry/sad~~

~~Day 09 — A photo you took~~

~~Day 10 — A photo of you taken over ten years ago~~

~~Day 11 — A photo of you taken recently~~

~~Day 12 — Whatever tickles your fancy~~

~~Day 13 — A fictional book~~

~~Day 14 — A non-fictional book~~

~~Day 15 — A fanfic~~

Day 16 — A song that makes you cry (or nearly)

Whoa, We're Halfway There

2010-04-15T15:38:00.001-07:00

...Whoa, livin' on a prayer!

Sorry, I can't help thinking of that song every time I hear or say"we're halfway there." Love Bon Jovi and Rock Band 2.

Anyhow, I'm already halfway through my 30-day posting spree! The time is kind of flying by and it really is recharging me as a blogger. It makes me feel guilty that I'm posting so much stuff without sharing any real content, so I'm looking forward to getting the writer wheels spinning again.

I do have a shameless plug though -- I'm getting ready to launch a new blog (I know, you hear this from me all the time) about professional development. It will cover the old topics of networking, resume-building, etc. and also talk about how to grow as a professional and a leader. If you or anyone you know is interested in becoming a contributer, please shoot me an email.

I'm looking forward to pulling this blog back in the direction of home and lifestyle, although I realize that a lot of my "lifestyle" portions are pretty geeky. What can I say, I like nerdy things.

15 more days!

Day 15

2010-04-14T19:47:00.000-07:00

This is the first of a comic series called "Simply Potterific," by Katie Shanahan aka Kt Shy.

Here's the link to the full gallery on DeviantArt, but it may have some spoilers. Actually, most of this stuff probably won't be the least bit funny to you if you haven't actually read the HP series.

But I simply love her take on Sirius and Lupin. They are much closer to what I imagined while reading the books than how the films depicted them. (i.e. she drew them much hotter.)

~~Day 14 — A non-fictional book~~

Day 15 — A fanfic

Day 14

2010-04-12T19:39:00.000-07:00

A Child Called It is the autobiographical recount of Dave Pelzer's abusive childhood, which has gone down in legal history as one of the worst cases of child abuse in the state.

Even though it's a terribly subject matter, the book is impossible to put down and I read through it in one sitting. Haven't tried the sequels.

(Photo credit: Vegan Butterfly -flickr)

~~Day 01 — Your favorite movie~~

Day 02 — Your favorite song
Day 03 — Your favorite television program
Day 04 — Your favorite book
Day 05 — Your favorite quote
Day 06 — Whatever tickles your fancy
Day 07 — A photo that makes you happy
Day 08 — A photo that makes you angry/sad
Day 09 — A photo you took
Day 10 — A photo of you taken over ten years ago
Day 11 — A photo of you taken recently
Day 12 — Whatever tickles your fancy

~~Day 13 — A fictional book~~

Day 14 — A non-fictional book

Day 13

2010-04-10T16:51:00.000-07:00

I read this over 3 sittings in the UCSD Bookstore. Still haven't seen the movie but I wouldn't want to be disappointed, as I had really enjoyed this book.

Day 12

2010-04-09T16:46:00.000-07:00

Sushi Cat

A little flash game I've been addicted to lately. You definitely want to watch the little cut scenes and have the sound on.

~~Day 01 — Your favorite movie~~

~~Day 02 — Your favorite song~~

~~Day 03 — Your favorite television program~~

~~Day 04 — Your favorite book~~

~~Day 05 — Your favorite quote~~

~~Day 06 — Whatever tickles your fancy~~

~~Day 07 — A photo that makes you happy~~

~~Day 08 — A photo that makes you angry/sad~~

~~Day 09 — A photo you took~~

~~Day 10 — A photo of you taken over ten years ago~~

~~Day 11 — A photo of you taken recently~~

Day 12 — Whatever tickles your fancy

Day 11

2010-04-08T22:35:00.000-07:00

Lakeshow, Staples Center

Lakers vs. Bobcats

Feb 3, 2010

~~Day 10 — A photo of you taken over ten years ago~~

Day 11 — A photo of you taken recently

You Get What You Pay For

2010-04-08T15:34:00.000-07:00

I'm a firm believer in splurging on great products and I truly believe that, for the most part, you get what you pay for. There are plenty of articles out there about what you should never skimp on and I don't think that technology is something to be skimped on.

This is the Motorola SLVR L7, circa 2005.

How I came to own one is a little bit of an interesting story. I had originally gotten the ROKR, which is the first ever phone to have iTunes on it. MP3's were the hottest new technology thing at the time and this is right around when the iPod was a huge status symbol rather than something just as routine as your socks. So, at the time this was the most technologically advanced phone on the market.

My parents couldn't see why I didn't just want to get the free phone offered with the new plan but I insisted. The ROKR was the one I wanted. Just one month later, the SLVR came out. It was thinner than the RAZR and had all the same capabilities as the ROKR. It was basically a ROKR-RAZR brainchild, and it came in a sleek shade of black. I was not happy.

But then my ROKR had a ringtone issue. One particular ringtone would never actually make any sound. It played just fine from "My Sounds" but never actually rang. I called customer service and they agreed to send me a replacement. Only, the ROKR was out of stock. So they sent me a SLVR instead. I was happy.

Fast forward 5 years and I'm still using the SLVR.

My only real complaint about it is that the center button of the navigation pad has broken off. (It really just means I have to move my thumb over 2 cm to hit "confirm" rather than pushing the center button.)

As you can see, it's still in great shape. Keys are never sticky and the usability is as good as ever. It has an impressive speaker for such a tiny phone and I can still occasionally go for 3-4 days without charging it.

Most impressive of all is that I've been using it nonstop for the last five years. Other people have gone through free phones like crazy but I haven't needed an upgrade yet. In fact, I could probably go on using this one for another 5 years if smart phones weren't completely taking over the cell phone market.

The real reason I'm bragging about the SLVR and how enduring it's been is because I'm thinking about a new phone. I don't want to leave AT&T, both because the customer service is great and because it will kill our minutes if Clement and I were on different carriers. So this essentially boils my choices down to the iPhone or the Nexus One. (Previously, the Blackberry Pearl was also on this list but touch screen is clearly the way of the future so I dropped the option.)

The iPhone has been recently rated by users as the number 1 smart phone according to a survey by JD Power, hurting only in the category of battery life. This survey, however, hasn't covered the highly anticipated Nexus One, which has been opened up to AT&T as of March 16, 2010.

Even in my quest to invest in a great piece of technology, with my first-hand experience in understanding that you get what you pay for, should I spring for the $200 iPhone or can I really justify a $530 phone? iPhone or Nexus One -- will it take a 5-year beating the way that my last investment did? Which one will I be bragging about in 5 years and happy I had made an invested choice in?

Technophiles want to weigh in?

Day 10

2010-04-07T19:00:00.000-07:00

This laptop is only 2 years old, so it doesn't have any pictures of me before I was 22. I was too lazy to dig up an physical picture and didn't want to shift through the 500 gb hard drive I've filled with... well, mostly TV series and movies. Anyway, lucky there's Facebook and old friends with scanners. Thanks, Elaine.

This is 1/3 of a panoramic picture of my 5th grade class. Did you find me? Hint: I'm wearing red.

~~Day 01 — Your favorite movie~~

~~Day 09 — A photo you took~~

Day 10 — A photo of you taken over ten years ago

Day 09

2010-04-06T18:48:00.000-07:00

(Click^ for bigger version)

This is the pond in Japanese Friendship Garden at Balboa Park, San Diego, CA. This was one of our stops on our first anniversary outing.

~~Day 01 — Your favorite movie~~

~~Day 08 — A photo that makes you angry/sad~~

Day 09 — A photo you took