Tea and Cake Time

The "Oh, snap. Remember when we got back from our honeymoon A MONTH AGO?" post

megan.sarkisian@gmail.com (Megan) — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 16:58:00 +0000

Uh, yeah. I don't know how this happened, but somewhere in between flying home, unpacking, going back to work, attempting to catch up on schoolwork (sidebar: this semester? Not my best performance), getting through two-thirds of our thank-you notes, adopting a kitty, changing my name, getting back into the swing of cooking rather than eating out all the time, and gorging myself at Thanksgiving...I sure did not finish my Very Exciting Honeymoon Recap. Sorry. So what you get now? Is just a small explosion of my favorite pictures with a sentence or two thrown in for some extra tastiness.

Leaving Sydney, we headed up to tropical North Queensland-- Cairns and Palm Cove, specifically. While there, we hit the beach (which was about 50 yards from our hotel lobby-- pure bliss)...

trekked, took a gondola, and finally rode a train through the rainforest...

and, knowing that we had to take advantage of the fact that we were so close to such an insanely beautiful natural wonder, went out on the Great Barrier Reef. Our underwater pictures ended up sort of lamely, but! There was tea and cake time on the boat. I died.

and champagne! Or sparkling wine, at least. Whatever, there were bubbles.

And then it was on to Melbourne, complete with my fancy new sunburn (because it is some sort of law that no matter how much high-factor sunblock I slather on, I will be charred, while GP barely dabs it on and he is just fine). I really loved Melbourne because it's so neighborhood-y and really rewards you for just walking around-- there is a lot of cool stuff down some of those alleys! (Including a duty-free shop in Chinatown where I scored a ton of cheeeeeap Jurlique products. Sigh.)

We found our first dinner in Melbourne down one of the alleys-- delicious Chinese, complete with lots of wood paneling. Thanks, Fodors!

The next day, a walk down to the Yarra River that runs through the city.

Then a trip to the Old Melbourne Gaol, where Ned Kelly was hanged. (Note: the Ned Kelly movie with Heath Ledger is free on Hulu! Total win.)

And lo, the walk back to our hotel from the Gaol included a pass by the Victoria State Library! Another win.

We took in a performance of Chicago at a theater down the street from the hotel. I was worried about the accents, but the actors managed well-- is an American accent an easy one to imitate? I wonder...

Our last full day in Australia was occupied with a tour of the Yarra Valley, one of the country's wine-growing regions. (Like we were not going to go wine tasting on this trip. I mean, come on.)

GP tried kangaroo at lunch--turns out it is sort of a cross between beef and venison. (I had the vegetarian entree, a better-than-usual lasagna. You're welcome, animals.)

We ended the day at Chandon-- sort of funny, considering we haven't been to the one up in Napa yet.

Ok, that's the Official Honeymoon Wrap-Up! Now we can move on to more important things, like me complaining about the shipping of all the Christmas gifts I've ordered online, talking about my cat (I can't stop, I'm sorry), and being crazy-excited about the finale of Top Chef (Team Kevin, all the way. Or Jen, I love her, too. Really, anyone but the obnoxious Voltaggio brother.).

Oh, and my birthday is tomorrow. Yay!

I have a Big Fat Crush

megan.sarkisian@gmail.com (Megan) — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 05:34:00 +0000

...on Jason Segel. This clip isn't helping.

Apparently he's friends with Markéta Irglová and Glen Hansard (of Once fame) and did some guest-singing at a concert they did in LA recently. GP should be thanking his luck stars that we don't live in LA. I'm just sayin', is all.

P.S. That is allegedly his actual number. Say it with me, "Z-O-M-G."

Finding the warmth

megan.sarkisian@gmail.com (Megan) — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 13:35:00 +0000

"Hello babies. Welcome to Earth. It's hot in the summer and cold in the winter. It's round, and wet and crowded. At the outside, babies, you've got about a hundred years here. There's only one rule that I know of, babies:—God damn it, you've got to be kind."
-Vonnegut, God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater

I don't know if it's the season (impending holidays of the kith-and-kin variety) or that I'm still in the early phases of Disgustingly Happy Little Married Couple-dom (and, sorry, I know that's gross, but stay with me!), but I have begun to see and experience many more little moments of happiness on a semi-regular basis. Let me elaborate: you know how sometimes, as you're scraping yourself out of bed, trudging through your day, and bemoaning the fact that it is pitch-fricking-black outside by 5:30pm, you get a little flash of "we're all ok"? I seem to be having way more of these than usual these days.

Take, for instance, a recent account of Nice People on the Internet. I wasn't personally involved in any of these interactions (although, trying-to-be-a-good-blog-citizen that I am, I did comment), but just reading a story of people-- essentially complete strangers-- going out of their way to be helpful and nice, made me think that maybe people aren't that terrible, after all. It seems simple enough, right? You have something, someone needs or wants something, and you give it to them. Not because you have to, but because you want to. Because you want to help them out, to solve a problem of theirs, no matter how small or silly-seeming.

I've been trying to have this same attitude recently; give and help where you can, remember that everyone is dealing with their own bubble of stress/problems/dear-god-who-knows-what, and do more good than harm. Instead of giving the finger to someone who cuts you off in traffic (and y'all know how much I love to do that), give them a thumbs-up and continue singing along to the Glee CD you have blaring in the car. Be patient, and be nice.

And it comes back! Here is my proof. I've needed to replace one of my front turn signals, the one that would be the biggest pain to replace (as it is almost entirely blocked in by the placement of my battery), and had just not "gotten around to it yet." I finally bought the cheapie bulb, resigned myself to the fact that Volkswagen are jerks and will just tell you to go to the dealer for what amounts to a $2 fix, and armed myself with two kinds of screwdrivers (from my very own toolbox, because I am a badass). Sure enough, the Jetta was determined to be a jerk-- I fought little plastic pieces, clawed at the black box that contained the defunct bulb, got my hands dirty, but made very little progress toward my goal. Seeing my struggle, this man-- who I had never seen, met, or interacted with before-- approached and offered to help. "Let me just go get some sockets, and we'll take out the battery and get that bulb in," he told me. He returned with an arsenal of tools (and no fear of my car's battery, which for some reason terrifies me) and, within ten minutes, I had a fully functioning turn signal.

We introduced ourselves, I thanked him profusely, and then we parted. I don't know that I will ever see him again, but I am surprised at how surprised I was that he offered to help. He didn't have to, of course, but he saw me clawing at the insides of my car and knew that he could be of assistance. I may be attributing this too much to the Magic and Wonder of the Human Heart (it's all the dang Christmas commercials...I am terminally sentimental), but come on. Let's be appreciative that not everyone is a jerk all the time. We don't have to hug and share sundaes all the time, but be nice, dammit.

What Australia has to teach you

megan.sarkisian@gmail.com (Megan) — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 00:00:00 +0000

1. In continents/countries that are so geographically isolated, there is a crazy amount of biodiversity. This sounds boring, sure, but it does mean that there is insanely colorful wildlife. (Also, hello, platypus. So cute and venomous.)

2. Speaking of biodiversity, there are also many threatening and dangerous animals in Australia, including many not-pictured-here (but in Flickr for the strong-hearted) colossal spiders and likely countless (though only one is pictured here) reptiles that would gladly dismember you. Also a valuable lesson? Australians have awesome senses of humor, if a little dark at times.

3. You will feel infinitesimal when you realize that the ocean that chills your toes at Bondi is the same one that freezes your feet in Santa Cruz. All the wine you consume in Bondi almost makes you forget this, but not quite.

4. BYO is a huge (like seriously huge) thing in Australia, and you will come to love it. There is often no corkage for wine you bring yourself, and if there is one, it is likely something like $5 per person. Before you get the hang of things, though, it is likely that you will enjoy a meal with nothing but "orange drink" to wet your whistle. (This may have been Tang. Do they have Tang there?)

5. Nothing takes the edge off traveling like drinking before noon in an airport. There will usually be at least one other person at the bar, and you might be able to claim jet lag-- though likely not in the domestic terminal.

The one where we went to Sydney

megan.sarkisian@gmail.com (Megan) — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 19:59:00 +0000

As you may be able to imagine, this honeymoon recap is going to span several entries. What is slowly dawning on me, however...is that it's likely that Sydney alone demands multiple mentions. Don't worry, though, they'll be picture-filled (we did, after all, take 585 pictures)!

We departed SFO late Tuesday night, and, through the magic of flight and time travel, completely missed out on October 14th. After landing in Sydney and dropping our bags at the hotel, the exploring began! We started with some tea and scones (I knew I could expect great things from a country with The Queen on their money)...

...and proceeded to explore much of the major tourist area in Circular Quay, The Rocks, and the CBD. This included a tour of the Opera House (which we could not stop photographing),

a walk across the Harbour Bridge,

and a short stop at an amusement park (you're welcome, GP).

We arrived back to the hotel to find our room had been prepared with some champagne and a note-- Marriott must have known that alcohol was the way to secure our loyalties.

Our first dinner-- tapas at a Spanish place called El Capitan Torres-- was not as magical as it could have been, because it was then that all the exhaustion of traveling halfway around the world and traipsing all over the city of Sydney caught up with us. As we munched on crispy chorizo and chilled white wine, it was all we could do not to pass right out, sitting there at the table.

However! (And here is the great thing about flying west versus flying east, we discovered.) When we woke up the next morning, we were well-rested and ready to go. Some activities that filled the remaining four days that we had in Sydney included a trip to the Taronga Zoo...

(Those giraffes have no idea how good they have it. Check out those insane city views!) There was also a little wallaby-petting:

(GP maturely pointed out that I was touching the wallaby's butt. What was I supposed to do, buy it dinner first?) Also, a trip out to Katoomba, in the Blue Mountains, was in order. Apparently "hiking" is a thing people want to do on their honeymoons?

Well, someone should have told me that, because I hiked for miles and miles in flip-flops. Comfortable, lovely flip-flops that drew numerous sideways glances from other (actual) hikers who were trekking along with those ski pole-like things that somehow make what amounts to slow mountain climbing easier (and also double as weapons against whatever terrifying creatures were rustling around in the underbrush). Oh, and might I add that, while there were stairs to help in the climbing of the Three Sisters (pictured above), some of these stairs were over thin air? Not cool, Australia.

But we lived to tell the tale! Coming up next, valuable Australian lessons.

The first of many: remember that time I got married?

megan.sarkisian@gmail.com (Megan) — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 22:43:00 +0000

I'm trying to get Blogger to let me change my "identity," but it looks as though the best that's going to happen is adding my married-lady Google account as an author to the blog. So don't be confused...there is only one Megan around here, she's just in a weird, between-names place. (What a great excuse to have ADD and just create a new blog, though, right? I've been toying with the idea of naming a new blog "Hot MES," because those are my initials and I am often in ridiculous situations. I feel like it's dumb to call myself "hot," though, so that is a problem. Opinions?)

Anyway, to the task at hand! Since there was very little blogging lead-up to Wedding Day, let me fill you in on some key stuff: the event coordinator at the venue (cute downtown hotel) hadn't proven herself any more useful as time passed, I had a completely disastrous post-alterations fitting in which it was a challenge to get the zipper up (tears, shockingly, did not ensue), and I had completely lost the ability to sleep past, ohhh...5:30am? And yet, as it got closer and closer, I got more and more calm. I was able to tune out the idiocy of the coordinator (and ended up loving the hotel's day-of person), I went on this crazy (and probably pretty unhealthy, though I was still eating) diet and lost enough weight to be comfortable and attractive in my dress (and haven't gained back all the weight since, yay!), and I made the most of my all-the-time wakefulness with a ton and a half of craft projects. I was ready!

We got married on a Sunday, and people started getting into town around Thursday, which made my decision to only work Monday a pretty easy one. Things really started on Friday, when my mom and stepdad threw a wedding-weekend-kickoff cocktail party at their house. It was a lovely evening, and a good reminder to me that, since I wasn't eating much, maybe I shouldn't drink a ton. Unlike an engagement party that my mom and stepdad had thrown for us last August (well, last-last...it was August 2008), my dad wasn't invited-- not to be hurtful or exclusive, but I would say that it's the norm for divorced couples not to invite their exes to parties. This isn't terribly important now, but will become more so later. (Just trust me, ok?)

On Saturday morning, I took my maid of honor and bridesmaids out to breakfast and had scheduled a mass mani/pedi appointment for any in-town ladies who wanted to get together pre-rehearsal dinner-- this included out-of-town people and friends of mine and my mom's, etc. However, when we were on our way to the nail salon, I got a call from the owner, confirming my appointment for Sunday. As in, the day of my wedding. This would not do! Luckily, we all got our nails done and no one was the wiser-- and I think that was my only episode of "bride brain." Thank god. We arrived at the hotel later that afternoon for the rehearsal, during which my dad spotted the very meticulous timeline I'd put together on a bridesmaid's clipboard. Pointing at the entry for the Friday cocktail party, he asked my friend, "See that?" Gulp. "I wasn't invited." Fun, dad, thanks for that.

Saturday night was our rehearsal dinner, a delicious and less-stressful-than-I-feared spread put on by MaGP and PaGP. As the spokesperson for the couple, I got to be the one to give the thank-you speech and kick off the slideshow, a tearjerker complete with Ben Harper soundtrack (seemed more appropriate at the rehearsal than the wedding). I (unlike a certain spouse of mine) wrote all my cards to parents and the soon-to-be in-laws and husband, and finally managed to get some sleep.

Now, I could give you a blow-by-blow of the wedding day, tell you about hanging out in the hair-and-makeup room with the girls, listening to music from Glee to pass the hours and hours before the ceremony, waiting anxiously to do the "first look" photos with GP, and mildly panicking when I was told it was time to go and my fricking dad was nowhere to be found, but all you really want are pictures, right? Well, who am I to deny you? (NB: these are just stolen pictures from Facebook, not the lovely ones that I anticipate from my awesome ninja photographer.)

I had both my dad and stepdad walk me down the aisle.

I surprised myself (and GP, and many others) by not crying my eyes out during the ceremony. Instead, because it was so surreal, I had to stop myself from giggling a little.
Then, what seemed like about 2 minutes later (seriously, our ceremony felt so short!), we were married. Good thing we had practiced that kiss!
What we had not practiced was appropriate hand-holding. Let me explain: by the time we were getting closer to the kissing part of the ceremony, GP had developed a death grip on my hand, and my ring was digging into my left pinky finger. It did not feel awesome. But as the kiss got closer and closer, I knew I couldn't pull back, pause, and go, "Ow! Nice hands, please, sir." So I just went with it. And, not to bombard you with pictures of us kissing (I assure you it was an appropriate kiss), but come on... (and look how happy GP's sister looks!)
With all the kissing and finger-mangling done, we were ready to take our triumphant walk back down the aisle as husband and wife.
I had to pause for a second to collect myself...
(don't judge my double chin! I love this picture despite it)
After the cocktail hour, we had the dad and stepdad toasts (respectively short and blessedly tear-free, and long and sentimental), we ate our delicious meals, had the best mens' and maid of honor's toasts...and at some point got to eat cake. I love this picture because it shows a fraction of the awesome job our florist did.
He also made us some gorgeous centerpieces (there were three styles in all, distributed among our eleven tables). That program, though (and the ninety-nine others just like it)? All me.
Here we are cutting the cake-- less awkward than I feared, and with an Ingrid Michaelson accompaniment-- with our super-sweet photographer all up in our grills (oh yes I did).
When I have the much-anticipated pro pictures, I will share some of my favorites, but for now, I leave you with this: one of the more adorable ones of my brother, who was so sweetly teary the whole day. (And called me the previous Thursday to say that the Jim/Pam Office wedding made him cry because he was thinking of us. That kid!)

Up next: some honeymoon recaps!

NaNo...not even going to attempt

noreply@blogger.com (Megan) — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 04:21:00 +0000

I don't think that the best way to welcome myself back to Blogtown USA after taking a "Hot damn, I'm getting married and going on a big fat honeymoon, y'all!" break for the last month and a half would be to try blogging every single day (witness my previous failure to do this), but I promise you this, blogfriends: you will have the wedding preamble, wedding day stories, and honeymoon recaps by the time Thanksgiving rolls around. Well, I guess I can push it back to my birthday if I'm being realistic. But that's it! December 2 is my self-imposed deadline for getting all. These. Stories. Into writing!

The short version? I got married! It was awesome! Then? We went on our honeymoon. Also awesome! But then, last Friday, we had to come back home, and today...they made me do work. Which is not as awesome as vacation, even though I enjoy my job and coworkers. So at this moment, all I really want to do is play with my duty-free Jurlique products and come closer to finishing My Life In France.

In which I feel like a narcissist

noreply@blogger.com (Megan) — Sun, 13 Sep 2009 02:51:00 +0000

(Which is sort of moot, this being a blog and all.)

Anyway. Last month, my mom and Grandma threw me a gorgeous shower at a local mansion, and asked everyone to wear hats. It was an adorable theme, and I got some sweet gifts. I hadn't blogged about it yet because I was waiting on the pictures from my photographer, who came to shoot us for about an hour. Much to my great delight, he had the pictures ready yesterday-- and here are some of my favorites:

Um, ok. I make this face a lot. I am, probably thanks to (and much to the great chagrin of) my mother, a terrible eye-roller. Like, to the point where she would say, "Don't roll your eyes at me!" When my back was to her. Moms are magic, aren't they? Anyway, now it is something I do to convey strong emotion of any kind. In this case, joy. Or maybe anticipation, who knows.

Between my mom and GP's mom, who made the trip across the country to come to the shower. Bet you can guess who is who!

Seriously, how cute is my Grandma? If you answered, "Quite," then you are correct.

Here, two thirds of my bridal party are seeking shelter under my enormous hat. (Notice that they both wimped out and are wearing fancy headbands.)

The only bouquet I will ever throw, because I think that it's sort of a mean tradition. At the wedding, we'll be giving the "toss" bouquet to the couple in attendance that's been married the longest (might be my aunt and uncle, or maybe even GP's parents!).

Finally, all the ladies together! I am usually sort of "meh" about group photos, because invariably someone is blinking or making a weird face...but this one ended up very nicely, I think.

This Guy

noreply@blogger.com (Megan) — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 21:29:00 +0000

He offered to guest post, and I nearly spit out my wine. "You would? Really? That would be so awesome." I do, at times, feel like I can only say so much about how annoying I find Taylor on the Rachel Zoe Project and post so many pictures of my kitchen experiments. So get excited, friends-- GP is at least nine kinds of fun.

Whether he's expressing frustration (but still appears to be smiling) at a lousy crossword clue...
Being terrified on a theme park ferris wheel (there's the smile again-- what gives?)...
Taking in a 3D movie about bugs, that happens to be narrated by Dame Judi Dench...
Or just taking a break and enjoying a good old-fashioned game of ball-in-a-cup (yes, that's what that blur is)......he is generally pretty good times. Bonus: he knows all my secrets, and will probably tell them to you if you offer the right combination of booze and salty meats. If you have questions, ask 'em, and if not...well, get excited, because who knows what the hell he'll end up writing about.

Easy as 1, 2, 3

noreply@blogger.com (Megan) — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 19:54:00 +0000

Three years ago yesterday, I arrived (a couple minutes late, of course) at what would end up being my last first date. It was a date that lasted eight hours, and didn't end with a kiss (yes, I still occasionally get razzed for that). What did follow this marathon date were innumerable emails, texts, phone calls, and late-night viewings of dvr-ed Futurama...oh, and then, about a year and a half later, there was a marriage proposal. In Paris. Because we are jerks like that.

So, how does one celebrate an anniversary that falls just a month before one's wedding? With Ina Garten recipes! And champagne! Observe...

There were gifts! But don't be fooled-- this box contains socks and t-shirts. Oh yes, the romance is still very much alive.
See? You send the man to the grocery store on his way home from work because you forgot to get blueberries, and he comes home with flowers. Win!

The pre-dinner libations: whiskey sours, Ina recipe #1. Totally worth making the simple syrup and squeezing the fresh lemon and lime juice. Also, very pleasantly boozy. Not pictured: pigs in blankets-- a snack that I find generally pretty gross, but GP loves. Compromise, y'all!

The dinner! It was my first time making any type of steaks at home, but the Safeway guy assured me these ribeyes would be delicious (and they were, with just a little salt, pepper, and olive oil)-- oh, and on top? That would be Ina's Provencal butter. So worth dirtying up the food processor. Also pictured: not-fancy-at-all, previously frozen fries, and broccolini with balsamic vinaigrette.
And for dessert? Ina to the rescue again (with even more butter) with a summer fruit crostata. So, so easy and delicious, especially because I was able to find some gorgeous peaches at the market. Because we were celebrating (because nothing says happy anniversary like dessert and a West Wing episode), there was some Gloria Ferrer Royal Cuvee. Fanciest Tuesday night. Ever.

This guy...I think I'll keep him around. Also, I think I've discovered how Ina has kept Jeffrey around for all these years-- pump him full of butter, and his heart will give out at anything faster than a brisk walk.

What I'm loving right now...

noreply@blogger.com (Megan) — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 02:47:00 +0000

This is one of those posts that begins composing itself in one's head a good two or three weeks before it finally gets posted. Not to say that the quality of the writing is that greatly improved, but it does mean that I really, truly do love these things...

New Sephora acquisitions: I am always so excited to make my final selections after loading my basket with a ton of "maybe" items. When I get home, I find myself tearing open the (pretty, pretty) packaging and using whatever I have purchased. Case in point-- went with MaGP when they were in town a couple weeks ago for my shower (which, ok, I am lame and haven't talked about or posted pictures...but I'm waiting on our photographer to send me the pictures!), and bought a Jurlique sample pack (am totally in love, convinced that I need to buy products that include a nearly-$70 "herbal recovery gel," oh yes I do) and Laura Mercier Magical Flawless Skin Set (or something like that, seriously, they should let me name their products). Got home and headed straight to the bathroom for face-washing and makeup-putting-on. Pure magic, I tell you.

West Wing. Period. I don't know where the hell I was when this originally aired (high school? Gah, what was I watching instead of this?), but I am so happy to have it in my life now. We have borrowed seasons 1-4 from one of GP's friends, and burned right through them. I'm downloading season 5 right now, and...oh my god, you guys, I am in love with AMERICA! And Josh Lyman, and, yeah, a little bit with Will Bailey. But that might just be residual Jeremy-love from my Sports Night watching (another Sorkin show, quite lovely, really. With Peter Krause, so...bonus!).

String cheese. Where have you been all my life, low moisture, part-skim mozzarella? Never leave me, ok? (Remember that time I gave up cheese for Lent, even though I am not the biggest fan of Jebus? Wasn't that just awful?)

How little time there is until The Wedding. Ha, you thought you'd be able to get through a single post without me mentioning it? You, my friend, are a fool. Because I have only one month and three days left, and I. Am. Ready for this thing. I am tired of making decisions, and already of chasing down the seven delinquent RSVPs, and tired in advance when I think about how ridiculous all the little things that we have to do before we can just Be Married are. But that's why we do them, right? Because we are convinced that, at the end of the day, it will be worth it. And I know it will.

Um, not to go back to something as silly as television, but I am more than reasonably excited for all my shows to start! I am filling the void with Bravo reality programming (I am more of a fan of old raisin-faced Rachel Zoe than I thought, though I want to throw Taylor straight into a swimming pool, Melrose Place-style) and new Project Runway (my favorite so far? Shirin.), but I have already re-watched the Glee pilot once (and am not above watching it again), and can't wait for new seasons of 30 Rock and The Office. Too bad we have to wait until January for more Lost...

Twitter! I am so late to the party on this one that it's a little silly to be so up in arms about it, but...I am. In my boss's absence, I am co-manning the library's Twitter account, and let me tell you, organizational Twitter accounts, especially in our field, are fricking boring. Mine, I promise, is much more entertaining. It is much as I thought, very similar to my Facebook status updates, but more conversational. I still can't believe that there aren't more younger Twitter users--I believe there was a quote in the NYT article about Twitter where a teenager said that Twitter seemed "more, like, professional," and I say to this teenager...what? I am sort of living in fear of any potential future employers (who we will assume lack much of a sense of humor, for the sake of argument) discovering my tweets. Professional, my ass.

Also. Get excited, friends! I took GP out for dinner last night to mark a birthday that officially means he is in his Late Twenties, and the blog came up...and he offered to do a guest post. So. Get! Excited! It is likely to be wedding-or-mawwage related, but will be completely different from my constant oh-my-god-I'm-going-to-kill-someone wedding rantiness. Anyone have a question or two for him? I'm sure he will be happy to oblige...

The Best-Friend Problem

noreply@blogger.com (Megan) — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 17:21:00 +0000

Warning: this post starts mushily, and will end even more so. For the faint of heart, click away now!

Ok, so for the same reason that I do not have a favorite color (I am not nine years old), I do not really have a "best friend." I don't want my friends to think that they have to compete for my affection (because you know there would be fistfights if they did), and each friendship is so different that I wouldn't even know where to begin choosing a "best." A related problem to this is that I am fairly uncomfortable even using the term "best friend"-- I don't describe anyone as such, and can't really bear to say that I am "marrying my best friend." Just like "journey" and "soul mate," "best friend" sort of makes my skin crawl. I can't explain it...and, because we are writing our ceremony with a lot of help from our awesome officiant, I don't have to. What I do have to do, however, is find adequate words to express what we're feeling. Commence brow furrowing!

And then. Last night, amid cheers and agonized cries brought on by the beginning of college football season, GP turns to me and says, "You know how you are trying to find another way to say 'best friend' for the ceremony? What about...constant?" He assured me that he was about 40% joking, and it may have been the combination of beer and cheap riesling responding, but I was instantly won over. Sure, it is a fairly dorky term from a television show. But! People who know it in the context of Lost are likely to smile along, and people that don't know the connection are likely to still "get it" and appreciate the term for its own, non-sci-fi-tv-show-related, meaning. Right? Is this a terrible idea? Because right now, when I look at our ceremony and I look at this clip, I feel like it just...fits.

Ta-da!

noreply@blogger.com (Megan) — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 00:11:00 +0000

Here is The Hair! I just love my hair girl so much-- she offered to do a second trial when I do my highlights later in the month, so I will get to be Dr. Awesomehair one more time before the wedding...

P.S. Thanks for being sympathetic to the Bride-Beast behavior. It definitely made me feel less like a crazy person. :)

Big hairy deal

noreply@blogger.com (Megan) — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 14:09:00 +0000

(Yeesh, the word "hairy" grosses me out more than I thought. But there it is.) In the name of not having such a venomous post up at the top for more than 12 hours, let's talk about The Hair Trial! It's happening this afternoon, and you know there will be pictures...

And if you're sick of wedding things...sorry! There's only about a month left, then we can all breathe a big sigh of relief. I mean, excitement. Nah, I sort of mean relief. Whatever. I can get back to blogging about food and whatever it is I used to talk about.

The bride-beast

noreply@blogger.com (Megan) — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 00:59:00 +0000

So, here is why I am a faux-bitchy bride: we are having an "adults-only" wedding--with the single exception of one of my cousins who is five years old (her two younger siblings will be hangin' with the babysitter on Wedding Night). I thought we would be able to avoid the ol' Surprise Additional Guest trick by addressing invitations only to those people we were inviting to the wedding, but there were of course a few add-on boyfriends and plus-ones. (For what it's worth, the add-ons were all people that we've met, and there are only two of them, so I feel ok about them coming.)

Enter the friends of GP who have one-year-old twins. They live on the other side of the country, they have "misplaced" the invitation that we sent to them (which, p.s., was addressed only to them), and emailed GP to let him know that they were "planning on bringing the girls so that everyone could ooh and aah over them." CUE THE TEARING OUT OF HAIR. First, we aren't having more than this one child at our wedding. Second, we didn't invite your-- surely delightful, but who can say for sure-- kids. Third, (and this is where I sound like the crazy bitch that I usually am not) we are not having our wedding for people to be able to gasp over how adooooorable your kids are. Believe it or not, we're having a wedding so that we can publicly display the promises we will make that day. Not so that we can meet your fricking kids.

I hate being in the position of Bitchy Bride Who Clearly Hates Your Kids and Only Wants Her Wedding to Be About Her (or BBWCHYKOWHWBAH, if you want to be brief about it), and I hate that there is no "nice" way to resolve this. GP drafted an email telling them that we aren't planning on having any super-young kids at the wedding and would gladly help them find a babysitter, so we'll see what happens. I'm sure these friends are nice and all, but I'm worried that all I'll be able to think when I meet them is, "Oh, nice to meet you, Mr. and Mrs. Entitled Parents. You are so, so ridiculous."

/end rant. Feel free to call me a bitch.

My Two Dads

noreply@blogger.com (Megan) — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 15:39:00 +0000

Eventually I will actually do a post about my dad and my stepdad, but for now, I leave you with this:
I learned today that Simon Doonan and Jonathan Adler are married. Do you think they would adopt me? They are just. So. Adorable.

Faux-late-night thoughts

noreply@blogger.com (Megan) — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 05:47:00 +0000

Yes, 10:47 qualifies as the middle of the night around here. GP is snoring away, earplugs crammed firmly into his ears, able to block out the sounds (and, yes, smells-- they smoke) of our neighbors...while I am not. I had in mind a list, but that dissolved when I began to write what I could remember of it. So, rather than anything coherent, I give you the following.

Kevin Smith should stop "acting" and stick to writing. One thing at a time, sir.

I think Jennifer Garner and I should be friends. I have thought this since I read that she has a yellow lab named Martha Stewart.

That's enough, Juliette Lewis.

I know I am not ready for kids because when I see pictures of the children and dogs of high school friends on Facebook, I am way more excited about the dogs.

Kate Spade shipping > Amazon shipping. Witness: yesterday, I bought all of my books for this semester (which, ok, started yesterday) from Amazon, and they have yet to ship...and I just got an email from the Kate Spade website saying my (on super-sale!) passport case and wallet have shipped! Too bad I cannot post on my class discussion boards about newly-acquired leather goods.

How is it possible to dislike actual birds so much and still really like them as a design element (jewelry and t-shirt motifs, for instance)? I don't know, but I can tell you that it is.

I am always, always signed out of chat when I am signed in to Facebook. I am definitely past the point where I am ok with random IMs. Mostly, this is because I am a jerk, but it is also partly because I never feel like I can commit to a conversation with about 80% of my Facebook friends (who I just know are yearning to talk to me).

"Is there anything sadder than homeless robots at Xmas? Only drowning puppies, and there would have to be a lot of them."

There is a Love List in the works, but who can say when that will be done.

Let's accessorize, shall we?

noreply@blogger.com (Megan) — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 19:02:00 +0000

Now that we are within two months of the wedding (seriously, less than fifty days...let's freak out for a minute about that), just about all the Big Decisions are made. We have a lovely venue (with two coordinators whose heads I want to just knock together sometimes, they are so frustrating), an officiant, a florist, a (super-ninja) photographer, a DJ, clothing, attendants, the whole shebang. Since I have decided that I do not want to be making decisions about the wedding past, say, mid-September, we've begun planning some details. You'll be happy to know (you will, won't you?) that we have decided upon a first-dance song (point, Buble!), the ceremony is in a nearly-completed state, bridesmaid and maid-of-honor gifts have been purchased, and, oh yes, there are shoes!

And then, on a recent shopping trip to the Stanford Shopping Center (likely my new favorite mall, luckily--for my AmEx bill--too far away to visit regularly), mom bought these for me:

Cue a teary exit from Bloomingdales-- it seems so real when we're thinking of things like earrings, rather than, "What might be a good month for the wedding?" and "The dress-- white or ivory?"

Finally, and most excitingly (that's a word, right?), The Precious has a new friend:

They look cozy together, don't they. I'm not gonna lie, GP and I have been "practicing" wearing our rings. We sit around the living room and he says, "Look at me...I'm a married dude." My future husband, ladies and gentlemen...

Whip It Up! Make Your Own Takeout Edition

noreply@blogger.com (Megan) — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 17:50:00 +0000

Guys, I think Rachael Ray has a cute/annoying little nickname for this, right? MYOTO? Fine, I confess, I own her 365: No Repeats...in fact, I can see it from where I sit this very second. Luckily, my recipe this week did not rely on a "30 minute" time frame (which, come on Ray-Ray, let's be honest, is completely unachievable), and so I sought inspiration elsewhere. A staple when we are trying to eat through what's left over in the fridge before a trip to the market is pizza-- and no Boboli for this girl, I usually use a super-easy from-scratch recipe from Smitten Kitchen. The problem with this is that, with yeast involved, there is a lot of (albeit hands-off) time involved (while I wasn't in a rush this week, I am too impatient most of the time to allow things to rise adequately). The solution? Something that I've enjoyed in many store-bought pizzas and have been itching to try myself: cornmeal crust! I combined a couple recipes that I found online, with delicious results...

Clean-Out-the-Fridge Sausage and Mushroom Pizza with Cornmeal Crust

Ingredients
1/2 cup yellow cornmeal or polenta
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup water
2 tablespoons olive oil

Method

Place the polenta, flour, baking powder and ½ teaspoon salt onto your work surface. You could also combine the ingredients in a food processor or a bowl.

Make a well in the center and add the water and olive oil.

Combine and knead for about 8 minutes until the dough is elastic and shiny.

Top pizza and bake on a baking stone or greased pizza sheet in a 400 degree oven for 15–20 minutes

Was the recipe easy to follow?
Yup. You can't beat a 6-ingredient recipe!

Did the dish taste good?
Certainly. I loved it (I've eaten many cornmeal-crust pizzas-- blame the uppity Italian grocery store where I worked during high school for that one), and even got GP's grudging approval (I made him his own traditionally-crusted Smitten Kitchen-style pizza). If you're not an absolute pizza purist, I'm pretty sure you'll enjoy this (bonus: it is wonderful for the more impatient among us).

Would you make it again?

I certainly plan to! Pizza is one of our go-to recipes, and I'm happy to add this variation to the rotation (I am less pleased about my accidental rhyme there, but what are you going to do?).

Whip It Up! Favorite Chef Edition

noreply@blogger.com (Megan) — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 16:36:00 +0000

This week's WIU "assignment" was a tough one-- so I went with the chef whose recipes I find myself making most frequently. They're generally easy, tasty, and impressive despite the short time it takes to make (most of) them. Also, I am not sure whether she qualifies as an actual chef, but I do know (from her Chefography, yeah shut up) that Giada De Laurentiis does have actual culinary training (unlike, ahem, Sandra Lee), so I'll just call her a chef for brevity's sake.

We had some salmon on hand, so I settled on her recipe for salmon baked in foil.

Ingredients

4 (5 ounces each) salmon fillets

2 teaspoons olive oil plus 2 tablespoons
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 tomatoes, chopped, or 1 (14-ounce) can chopped tomatoes, drained
2 chopped shallots
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried thyme

Method

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Sprinkle salmon with 2 teaspoons olive oil, salt, and pepper. Stir the tomatoes, shallots, 2 tablespoons of oil, lemon juice, oregano, thyme, salt and pepper in a medium bowl to blend.

Place a salmon fillet, oiled side down, atop a sheet of foil. Wrap the ends of the foil to form a spiral shape. Spoon the tomato mixture over the salmon. Fold the sides of the foil over the fish and tomato mixture, covering completely; seal the packets closed. Place the foil packet on a heavy large baking sheet. Repeat until all of the salmon have been individually wrapped in foil and placed on the baking sheet. Bake until the salmon is just cooked through, about 25 minutes. Using a large metal spatula, transfer the foil packets to plates and serve.

I served it with an orzo salad from Cooking Light, which was sort of meh but will improve with some doctoring.

Was the recipe easy to follow?
Oh yes. This is one of her simpler dishes-- and handily involved only dried herbs and other things I had on hand. Super, super easy to put together ahead of time and then just pop into the oven. GP was not thrilled with a 400 degree oven on an 85 degree day, but he didn't have to make dinner, so he was quiet about it.

Did the dish taste good?
Yup. I am used to a lighter, lemonier salmon, so this was a fun departure. I feel like this would be a really good and cozy dish, especially in the winter.

Would you make it again?
Certainly. Maybe when it has cooled off a bit, and I am getting fewer glares when I turn on the oven...

Soundtrack

noreply@blogger.com (Megan) — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 03:47:00 +0000

With exactly two months until Wedding Day, we have yet to choose a first dance song. While GP is not in most ways a "music person," he does have the occasional opinion, and I am all about the music and lyrics. This does not mean, however, that either of us has any idea what song will be the soundtrack to our first official husband-and-wife dance. I've been mulling this over for months and months...and here are the finalists, in no particular order:

Forever and a Day (Always) - Jewel
I Only Have Eyes for You - Jamie Cullum
You Are the Best Thing - Ray LaMontagne
God Only Knows - Joss Stone
All the Things You Are - Ella Fitzgerald
It Had to Be You - Harry Connick, Jr.
L-O-V-E - Joss Stone
Never Had Nobody But You - M. Ward and Zooey Deschanel
Can't Help Falling in Love - Elvis Presley
I Will - The Beatles
Your Song - Elton John
To Be Alone With You - Sufjan Stevens
Everything - Michael Buble
They Bring Me to You - Joshua Radin
Everyday - Vetiver
Melt With You - Nouvelle Vague
Nobody Knows Me - Lyle Lovett
Question - Old 97's
Real Love - Regina Spektor

Thoughts? Suggestions? Also, don't be bitchily judge-y. Now is not the time.

Whip It Up! Two-fer: Spicy and Appetizer

noreply@blogger.com (Megan) — Sat, 08 Aug 2009 00:49:00 +0000

Last weekend, we took a trip to Tahoe. As is my habit, I commandeered the cooking duties, such as they were: dinner on Friday night, and a couple of fairly easy breakfast items (really only eggs and biscuits, because I am weird and enjoy custom-cooking eggs). The only wrinkle in this plan was that half of our group would be vegetarian-- I had to think of something that was palatable to all and a good fit for the non-meat-eaters. And an entree (and corresponding appetizer) was born! (Or conceived of, whatever.)

From the magic of the internets, we have a recipe for samosas. I've served them as both appetizer and side, and they are delightful either way. This recipe was the first time I've made them from scratch (minus the wrappers, which turned out semi-disastrously when I tried making them myself-- just wrap the filling up in triangles of store-bought puff pastry).

Ingredients
1.5 cups peeled, cubed, and boiled potatoes
.5 cup peas
2 tbsp Amchur powder or Chaat masala
2 tsp chili powder
1 tsp Garam Masala
Salt to taste

Grind together: .25 cup fennel seeds, .25 cup coriander seeds, 4-5 red chilies, 3-4 curry leaves

Method
Mix together all of the above ingredients. Use as much or as little of the ground spice mix as you'd like-- the above amounts make quite a bit, so it might be too potent depending on your taste.

Scoop a heaped tablespoon of the filling into each puff pastry triangle.

Bake in a 350 degree oven for about 20 minutes, or until golden brown.

From my Bon Appetit "Every-Night Cooking" cookbook, we have Peas and Potatoes Masala (the carnivores had to deal with sauteed chicken breasts), a dish that is spicy only in that it contains spices, but I had little to no hope of making something with any degree of kick if I wanted anyone to eat it (yeah, I know that sentence was longer than it needed to be).

Ingredients
.25 cup vegetable oil
2 medium onions, chopped
2 14.5-oz. cans diced tomatoes in juice
2 6- to 7-oz. russet potatoes, peeled and cut into .5-inch cubes
1 tbsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground allspice
12 oz. firm or extra-firm tofu, drained well and cut into .5-inch pieces
3 cups frozen peas, thawed
.5 cup chopped fresh cilantro

Method
Heat oil in a heacy, large skillet over medium heat. Add onions and saute until golden-- about 6 minutes.

Add tomatoes with juices, potatoes, cumin, and allspice. Cover and simmer until potatoes are just tender, stirring occasionally-- about 8 minutes.

Add tofu, peas, and cilantro. Simmer uncovered until vegetables are tender-- about 6 minutes.

Season with salt and pepper. Enjoy!

And now, the wrap-up for both:
Were the recipes easy to follow?
Yep-- each left a good amount of room for improvisation, and I felt comfortable doing so because there wasn't any mystical cooking technique going on. It all amounted to "cut up some things, measure out other things, mix them up, add heat," which makes for an easy-to-follow recipe and plenty of room for variation.

Did the dishes taste good?
They were both hits! Even for a crowd that had some members that were wary of Indian cuisine, they scarfed it right down. Fun tip for cooking for a bunch of people: wait to serve dinner until about 9, and make sure they have had plenty to drink. They will love whatever you cook! Seriously, though, it was just as good-- nay, better!-- the next day.

Would you make it again?
Absolutely! I might leave out the tofu and include a few more veggies-- there were a lot of peas involved. Maybe some eggplant or squash next time?

Making it official

noreply@blogger.com (Megan) — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 18:20:00 +0000

So, the wedding is only about two and a half months away. After months and months of putting things off or figuring that we (read: I) would "get around to them," we're now having to put together all those last pieces. It feels real now, and it feels good. Also a little crazy. Who gets married? What are we-- grownups?

The invites have been sent (and we got our first RSVP last Friday! Hurray!), the florist has been booked (he is five feet, two inches of pure delight-- and got me more excited about flowers than I thought I would ever be), the dress is here (and pending alterations, which apparently don't happen until about six weeks out), and our tasting is on Wednesday (more of a formality, fine, but yay for food!). This is going to happen, really happen. I have known this, of course, for over a year now, but getting all of these to-do's accomplished makes me feel like we are making visible progress toward it, not just checking off days.

We've been meeting with and talking to officiants, which has made me a little regretful that I haven't attended church (or been particularly religious) for about fifteen years-- the choice would be so easy then! The idea of having a friend or family member officiate (something that we can do through the online ULC certification or through a county deputy commissioner thing) was quickly rejected because everyone has enough to do that day. But we are using all the power of the internets to try and find that Perfect Person to lead us through our vows. The first one we talked to was very thorough, having us fill out a questionnaire about why we thought our marriage would last, what we have learned from each other, and how we think of marriage. Our phone call lasted about an hour, and she seemed so interested in what we had to say, very committed to making our ceremony feel different. The second call, with another officiant, was yesterday morning. It was much shorter, she sounded (and is, I believe) younger, has definitely been doing this for a much shorter time than officiant #1. Then, yesterday afternoon, we met with yet another officiant, the first (and only) man we had on the short-list, and liked talking to him, too! The icing on that interaction was that he sent a follow-up email to GP saying that he "I know[s] [our] life together will be filled with lots of happiness. [We] are one of the few couples [he has] met who really KNOW themselves. That is such a refreshing quality." I will admit it, I teared up at my desk. I know that, whoever we choose, we will have a great ceremony (that I will cry just about all the way through, no matter what)...I just wish the choice were easier! We have another meeting (our last) tonight, with officiant candidate #4. I'm sort of hoping that she'll be awful, to make the choice simpler, but I am afraid she will be lovely. Yeah, I know, this is not a real problem.

All you married or about-to-be ladies and gentleman-- how did you pick your officiant?

Whip It Up! Healthy Options

noreply@blogger.com (Megan) — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 21:29:00 +0000

Ah, our good friend, the Healthy Dinner. In the name of impending wedding as well as better health in general, most dinners in our house have been of this type in the last ten months or so, so there is a big fat stack of "recipes to try" that fit neatly into the healthy category. Having been tempted by on-sale eggplant at the market, and knowing that GP would never permit the long and hot oven journey to an eggplant parmesan (a recipe that is, now that I think about it, not new to me-- hence, not WIU-eligible-- but is a favorite nonetheless. I'll share later.), I knew what I had to do: ratatouille!

Not just because we are rabid Pixar fans (seriously, friends, we have all the movies and the shorts, and an unhealthy obsession with John Lasseter), but because we are enthusiastic eggplant fans, I knew this would be a hit. I chose a non-traditional recipe that contained chicken because GP is so rarely enthusiastic about meatless meals (in a very "Where's the beef?" sort of way). Without further ado, I give you...

Chicken Ratatouille
(adapted from a SparkPeople.com recipe)

Ingredients

1 tablespoon olive oil
4 medium chicken breast halves, skinned, and fat removed, boned, and cut into 1" pieces

2 zucchini (about 7" long), thinly sliced
2 medium eggplants, cut into 1" cubes
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
1 medium green bell pepper, but into 1" pieces
4 medium tomatoes, cut up
1 clove garlic, minced
1.5 teaspoons dried crushed basil
salt and pepper to taste

Method
1. Heat oil in large Dutch or French oven. Season chicken with salt and pepper, add to pan and saute about 3 minutes, or until lightly browned.

2. Add zucchini, eggplant, onion, and green pepper. Cook, covered, about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

3. Add tomatoes, garlic, basil, and pepper; stir and continue cooking about 5 minutes, or until chicken is tender and cooked through.

Et voila, you have ratatouille for days! Seriously, this recipe makes a ton.

Was the recipe easy to follow? Yes! It is as simple as "cut stuff up, put it in a pot until you think it's done, and eat it." While that would read ridiculously in a cookbook, that is basically how this one goes. I saved myself some time (I think) by prepping everything ahead of time, cooking-show style, all cut up and in little bowls. Take that, Giada!

Was it good? It was a hit! We are still eating it a few days later, and it has only gotten better-- definitely one of those dishes that improves as all the ingredients hang out together.

Would you make it again? Sure would! I can see myself adding and subtracting ingredients based on what's on hand and what's in season. I think I could even manage to sneak a meat-free version under GP's nose...those eggplants were beefy!

Whip It Up! Regional Favorites

noreply@blogger.com (Megan) — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 22:06:00 +0000

Being a native and likely lifelong Californian (though of course I am not ruling anything out...), I knew immediately that my "regional favorite" had to be something that contained avocado. This week, I decided to concoct what is essentially a no-cook recipe-- a delicious chilled soup, perfect for the entire summer, of avocado and cucumber. Also included in the process? An opportunity to use my immersion blender, one of my favorite (so far) registry gifts.

Cucumber Avocado Soup
via Gourmet Magazine, July 2007

1 lb of cold, seedless cucumbers
1 large firm-ripe avocado
2 scallions, coarsely chopped
¼ cup fresh mint leaves [I used dried, and just let them hang out with the buttermilk for awhile before blending everything together-- but I bet the fresh mint would be even better]
½ cup chilled buttermilk [which, at my local market, is only available by the quart. Bonus: buttermilk waffles on Sunday morning!]
coarse kosher salt

Cut cucumber into 3 equal pieces, then coarsely chop 2 pieces. Quarter avocado lengthwise, then pit, peel, and coarsely chop one half.

Blend together chopped cucumber, chopped avocado, scallions, minutest, buttermilk, water, and 1 teaspoon salt in a blender until smooth, 1 to 2 minutes. Chill soup, uncovered, 15 minutes.

Cut remaining cucumber and avocado into 1/4-inch pieces and stir into soup. Season with salt. Thin with additional water if desired.

Was the recipe easy to follow?
Sure was!

Did the dish taste good?
Yes. Not not mention the fact that it was hot as blazes outside, so a chilled soup was just the thing.

Would you make it again?
Absolutely. The leftovers didn't stand a chance, so I foresee this soup becoming a regular in the rotation.