In my mind.

Zombie

LK — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 23:50:03 +0000

Dear work,

Please stop sucking the life out of me. I’m too tired and I can’t take it anymore.

kthxbye

NO

LK — Sat, 17 Jan 2009 23:34:54 +0000

oh no no no no.

I don’t think any more needs to be said, other than that this is currently availabe at American Eagle. Did I mention no?

Kelly!

LK — Wed, 14 Jan 2009 00:20:40 +0000

I think you need to get this when it becomes available in Feb. I saw it and immediately thought of you. (You don’t need to pose on the counter and look pants-less. Unless of course you want to, in which case whatever floats your boat…)

{Orla Kiely for Target}

Am I the only one

LK — Wed, 14 Jan 2009 00:14:23 +0000

who doesn’t like American Idol? I just don’t get it. I actually kind of loathe it being on. Of course the hub wants to watch (I swear, sometimes he is more girly than me….), but I might take a long bath whie its on. I deserve one. These past two weeks have been ridiculously stressful.

First, I got a parking ticket. No, scratch that. The valet that I left me car with two months ago got a ticket and failed to give it to me. So I got a lovely letter in the mail demanding that I pay up. Nice. Its not a cheap fine either.

Then, we had a radiator malfunction. I still have no idea what happened, but basically the thing exploded and started spewing nasty water all over the study. Did I mention the water was nasty? Because it was black and sooty and smelled awful. And of course we didn’t know any of this was going on, so it continued to spray nasty water all over the place for the better part of an hour. Awesome. We’re getting it fixed, and that also isn’t cheap (lets say its ab0ut seven times the cost of the ticket). Anyway, while the radiator was gone, we decided to take the opportunity and paint. So its all pretty now, even though it still smells kind of bad. We’re keeping out fingers crossed that there isn’t any water damage…. its kind of hard to tell. Anyone want a house? I’ll trade you for an iphone…. (I’d probabaly be getting the better end of that deal).

And on top of al that, we’re back to working full days. And I have a new, very demanding client. Which is fun (I know, I’m sick), but gosh is it exhausting! I get to work and basically don’t stop working until I leave. And the week stretches out before me and seems like it will never end. I’m pretty sure I’ll be bringing a ton of work home this weekend.

I guess all of this to say I’m exhausted. Totally drained. I’ve meant to update, but I just can’t bring myself to. If you need proof, I feel asleep last night during 24. I don’t know how I let my eyes shift away from Jack Bauer for even a second, let alone close for the entire second half of the episode!! (Thank goodness for dvr!)

I Hereby Resolve…

LK — Wed, 31 Dec 2008 22:49:40 +0000

I’ve never really been one for New Year’s resolutions. I usually just make something up at the last minute, and then either give up because its impossible or give up because I just don’t care that much.

This year though, there are actually things that I want to change about myself. In general I’m happy with the way my life is going, but I often feel like I’m just coasting and not really living.

Mainly, I want to just do more. Live more. I spend a lot of time doing a whole lot of nothing. That needs to change.

Sometime soon, I’m going to come up with an actual list of things to this end that I would like to accomplish. Something that I can cross off and see that I’m progressing. But generally, I want to:

- Stop saying no to things. I never do anything, never hang out with people. And then I feel bad for having no friends. So this year when someone asks me to something, I’m going to say yes unless I have a legitimate reason not to.

- Be healthier. Exercise more. No more going straight from my desk to the couch to the bed. Start cooking more often again. And cut back on processed foods. And update my food blog again. Also I should probably see a doctor since I haven’t been in about 8 years. Maybe a doctor can help with my anxiety and make #1 a little easier too.

- Turn off the TV and read instead. Only watch shows that I actually care about. Sign up for the LSAT and buy a practice book.

- Take more time for myself. Get up 10 minutes earlier and enjoy my coffee. Do one thing a day just for me. Sign up for and attend a class of some sort: cooking, academic, dance, whatever.

Here’s to a happy 2009!

Project!

LK — Mon, 29 Dec 2008 22:08:53 +0000

The boy and I have been wanting to get a chair for the living room, but we can’t agree on a style for the life of us (I favor something like a Queen Ann, he wants a huge, ugly Lazy Boy type thing). I saw this chair at a yard sale this summer though and thought that it might be a good temporary placeholder if I fixed it up a bit. Well, guess what? We both love it! AND it was only 5 bucks! Can’t beat that! (Yes, it sat for like 4 months untouched. deal with it. I was busy.)

OK, I suck at remembering to take before pictures, but this thing was in pretty bad shape. The wood was painted this gross fake cherry color, and the seat had a big ole rip.

(I don’t know why this picture insists on posting sideways?)

So yeah, pretty bad shape. But only 5 bucks! I painted all the wood white, which brightened the whole look up a ton and did my best at stitching up the rip. Then I got a nice, cushy piece of upholstery foam from the craft store and made a new seat for it (it makes it way more comfortable and -bonus!- covers the rip). I covered the new seat with some fun fabric, and made a little pillow with what was left over. Yay! So much better now, right? (ignore the electrical tape, that was temporarily holding the fabric down until I could find the fining nails. It has been removed.)

Happy Christmas!

LK — Wed, 24 Dec 2008 23:01:57 +0000

My Christmas Eve will be spent in the way that has become tradition over the past few years… gorging myself on lasagna (sausage and pepperoni! this is no time for diets!) and drinking copious amounts of Delirium Noel (look! pink elephants on the label- you know this stuff is good…) and Bailey’s while exchanging gifts with the husband and dog. I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Tomorrow will be spent running all over creation, visiting relatives and trying not to say anything that will get me in (too) much trouble (with my family this can be an amazing feat) and picking at food that is substantially less delicious.

To my dear friends, I wish you a holiday filled with laughter, warmth, and returnable gifts.

Let’s Make Croissants!

LK — Sat, 20 Dec 2008 01:17:16 +0000

I apologize for taking so long to post this. I meant to post it a lot sooner, but life (namely winter and the grey sky that comes with it and makes me lose my motivation for doign anything) got in the way. But better late than never, right?

A word of warning: this recipe does require some advance planning. It takes a few days to make the dough. Don’t let that stave you off though! They are SUPER easy to make, and each step only takes a few minutes. It just means that if you want to eat croissants on Sunday, you need to start on Friday night (I’m experimenting with freezing the dough though, so if that works out I’ll let you know!). Also, if you have a stand mixer or food processor with a bread hook, I highly recommend that you use it. And if you want to flavor these at all, you can add a flavoring in with the original flour. I added orange zest to the batch I’m making this weekend.

Ingredients:

1 c. plus 3 T. milk (I use skim since its what I have, and its fine)
2 tsp. yeast
2 1/4 c. plus 3 T. flour
2 T sugar
1 tsp salt
12 T. unsalted butter
1 egg yolk

Day 1 (Friday night);

1. Heat 1 cup milk to lukewarm. Dissolve the yeast in 1/4 cup of this milk. Stir in 2 T, and whisk until there are no lumps. Cover with plastic wrap and let sit for about 20 minutes.

2. Mix sugar and salt into 2 cups plus 2 T flour.

3. Add remaining 3/4 cup milk to milk/yeast/flour mixture, stirring at high speed. Reduce speed to medium, and gradually add flour mixture, until it forms a soft, sticky dough.

4. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.

Next morning:

1. Combine butter with 3 T. flour.

2. Roll dough into a rectangle, about 6×15. Spread the butter all over the top 1/3. Fold the dough into thirds (like a letter). Turn dough clockwise 1/4 turn. Roll and fold a second time.

3. Put dough on a baking pan, cover with plastic wrap, and refridgerate.

Afternoon:

1. Roll dough out two more times 9this is what makes it flaky). Cover and refridgerate overnight.

Croissant Morning!:

1. About an hour before baking time, roll the dough into a circle. Cut into 12 triangles. Roll each triangle straigh un, starting with the wide end (don’t curl them into a croissant shape, they”ll do that on their own). Arrange on a baking sheet, and brush with 2 T milk. Let stand at room temp for about a half hour, until doubled.

2. Heat oven to 400. Mix egg yolk with 1 T milk, and brush over croissants. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes.

3. Enjoy!!

Yes, Please

LK — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 15:46:55 +0000

I love this rug. I wonder what the color is like in person? It’s called clementine orange, but the picture makes it look pretty neutral. I’m scared it will be way brighter in person though. If it looks like the picture though, I think it would work in my green and chocolate living room living room…

{Pottery Barn}

Quiet Mornings

LK — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 18:05:08 +0000

Is there anything better than a quiet morning spent with your husband and dog, a cup of coffee, and a fresh out of the oven croissant (made by moi)? Yeah, I didn’t think so.