salsa hangovers

Rachelle moved to Dallas about a month ago and took her blender with her, leaving me blender-less and therefore salsa-less. I finally bought a new blender on Wednesday and made three batches to both consume ravenously with co-workers and sell to some of those co-workers for them to take home and enjoy at their leisure. They'd missed it, and I'd missed it.

My burning jalapeño hands had not missed it, however. The extraction of contact lenses on those days is hellish.

experiments in salsa selling

I sold salsa in a booth at Farmington Festival Days on Saturday. I didn't have work on Friday so I got up early, took care of some biznass, and then drove up to my mom's house to start peeling, slicing, and blending away.

I'd never done anything like this before, so I had to guess about the amount to make. I didn't want to run out, but I didn't want to have a ton extra. I made 30 batches (93 sixteen-ounce containers) in four or five hours. My hands burned for hours afterward. Anyway, I sold 2/3 of what I'd made, and I deem that a success.

After giving some away, taking some to a BBQ, taking some to work, annihilating some with friends and some alone, I have seven or eight containers left in my fridge which I am most likely to devour in the next couple of days unless anyone stops me.

Selling salsa = positive experiment. I was even my own accountant which is a greater feat for myself than making 30 batches of salsa in my mom's Vita Mix blender.

Oh yeah, and the health department shut me down early.

i'm thinking of selling my salsa to people.

Would any of you buy it?

Also, does anyone know where I can buy containers of this variety? k thx.

the coolest tree in the world

Our train of five Land Cruisers drove past this tree each day to the village.

On the last day I finally got a photo with it.

Notice the branches reaching all the way to the camera in the first photo.

Who knows what kind of tree this is?

I will reward you with my salsa if you can tell me.

a very, very interesting list of things to accomplish today

1. not fall asleep at my desk (this week has been unfortunate in that department)
   example:
   
2. purchase groceries (i shouldn't be allowed to go longer than three days without cereal and milk.)
   
3. not go to my german class (only a smidgen disappointed in myself for this decision)
   
4. make salsa (not for me, but as a going-away present for someone at work. i won't even buy chips. or...maybe i will.)
5. assemble my new bookshelf (which will bring me to two. now i can relieve my mother of looking after my extra boxes of books.)
   
6. properly plant my plant in its pot (since september this pot has been filled with mini republic of china flags and broken watches instead of any O₂-emitting greenery.)
   
7. slackline (my first solo surgery on knotting, carabiner-ing, and tightening)
   
8. moto ride & crêpes (yes.)
   

¡felíz cinco de mayo!

I love celebrating holidays, especially ones that include piñatas and a lot of chips and salsa.

Speaking of chips and salsa, I made two batches in record time last night—one for work and one for Ashley's Cinco de Mayo bridal shower that's being held tonight. This bridal shower will also include a piñata, seven-layer dip, chili con queso, etc. Oh, and lingerie. How many of you can say that about your Cinco de Mayo celebrations?

I hope Ashley and her sister enjoy the fact that I morphed this party from 100% typical bridal shower to 40% typical bridal shower and 60% Cinco de Mayo celebration.

How did this day even turn into a celebration? All it is is a day commemorating Mexico's win over a battle with French forces in 1862, but I'm OK with that.

cry me a riva'

Ashley moves out tomorrow. Cry cry.

It's a good thing that I moved to SLC and got to know her then-boyfriend/now-fiance, because it would be quite sad if I had still been in New York all this time. I would have never really known him or them together (you all know it's easier to get to know your friend's boyfriend than it is to get to know your friend's husband).

I'm glad they'll only live ten minutes away after they get married. I'm also glad that they enjoy my third-wheel company, because I like slacklining, riding bikes, eating salsa, relaxing at the hot springs, picnicking, diving, snowshoeing, and devouring food at The Bombay House with them.

Two good things (that don't quite make up for it) I get out of Ashley moving out: (1) Her bedroom that is large, full of light and a queen-sized bed; and (2) her tent.

Love love.

the west side market

Welcome to The West Side Market, Cleveland's oldest publicly-owned market, not to be confused with New York City's Westside Market.

This place was filled with all the delicious things you could imagine: Grapes, strawberries, bananas, pineapple, papaya, mango, raspberries, starfruit, avocado, tomatoes, ginger, onions, garlic, cilantro, bell peppers, jalapeños, apples, peanuts, pears, dates, dried fruit, dried vegetables, celery, oranges, blood oranges, lemons, limes, kumquats, broccoli, broccolini, beets, turnips, artichokes, lettuce, string beans, potatoes, exceptionally large carrots, plums, kiwi, watermelon, honeydew, cantaloupe, pluots, and more.

And there were samples.

Oh, and we must not forget the other side of the market with sausages, meats, baked goods, crêpes (the Le Roi was divine: peanut butter, chocolate, bananas), spices, flowers, hummus, pita, tamales, enchiladas, salsa, cheeses, falafel, pasta, coffee, and herbs.

Enjoying the delicious Le Roi crêpe.

Best market ever.

Mmm.

so i'm 24 now.

The tradition at my office is to decorate a person's cube for their birthday.
So when I came to work last week my cube looked like a spring fiesta.

I recommend keeping brightly-colored, fake flowers at your desk.
They really help to eliminate the winter blahs.

This "chips and salsa" dish was my creative birthday card.

So great.

By the way, yesterday was the first day I didn't eat chips and salsa in about two weeks.

delicioso.

I love Cafe Sabor.
I love salsa.
I love Mexican food.
I love my Quiksilver boy wallet.
I love these girls.

living in the present.

It works wonders, it does. I think my "honest" post liberated me, letting me enjoy. Which I have since been doing. Enjoying. Living in the present. Not missing. Except tortillas, I still miss those. Oh, and salsa.

My British flatmate, Felicity, inspires me.
To cook,
to plan,
to maintain positivity,
to learn, to reflect,
to have goals.

So.
Now I have goals.

homemade tortilla chips!

Today after church I joined other Mormon Beijingers for a potluck lunch. I diced peppers for the salsa and realized too late how that would affect me if I were to rub my mouth and eye. Fire came out of my face for a solid twenty minutes.


Still no uploaded photos. My British roommate, Felicity, and I daily lament the location of our laptops.

sticky sweet dilemmas

Lucky for me, some days the biggest dilemma I have is wondering which kind of peanut butter is my fav. If we're talking brand, Skippy is the shoe-in. It's when we start talking specifics that things start to get sticky.

I've always been a fan of creamy. Creamy goes nice and smooth onto bread for the PB & J, which is, of course, a staple of my diet. So—no contest.

This all changed on a lunch break to D'agostino's. I needed more peanut butter for my snack drawer, but they were out of Reduced Fat Creamy Skippy. Reduced Fat Creamy Skippy tastes spoonfuls better than Regular Creamy Skippy, so I went out on a limb and bought the Crunchy Skippy to keep in my desk drawer along with the Triscuits (Triscuits with peanut butter—a great 4:15 p.m. snack for any Californians who are in need of some ideas).

It was a great buy. My esteem for crunchy peanut butter has risen greatly since that day. Jane's peanut butter cookies made with crunchy peanut butter only helped to establish my newly-found feelings.

I...love...crunchy peanut butter. I...love...it. (But my PB & Js are still getting creamy.)

This is like that time when I was seventeen and finally discovered salsa.

if only.

I'd be willing to give away all of the chips, salsa and peanut butter that I have stored at my desk if only I could go wakeboarding today.

a new york best

One of my best New York Nights was on Monday when I left work at five on the dot, hit up the gym (half-heartedly) on the corner of Varick and Clarkson and then crossed the street to a sparsely-populated Chipotle where I savored an hour sitting on a barstool, reading Black Swan Green, and enjoying a chicken salad with a side of chips and salsa.

Creepy or...?

BYU Creamery Salsa was in my dream last night.

How could I resist?

Tagged by Aly and Jen

A. The rules of the game are posted at the beginning.
B. Each player answers the questions about themselves.
C. At the end of the post, the player then tags 5 people and posts their names, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know that they have been tagged and asking them to read your blog.

5 Things I was doing 10 years ago:
1. Babysitting.
2. Helping Jessie with her paper route.
3. Swinging over the creek on Jen's rope swing.
4. Wearing really nerdy glasses/braces/bangs.
5. Getting in arguments with my friends.

5 Things on my to-do list today
1. Blog
2. Send Molly's Christmas package
3. Watch a movie
4. Clean my room
5. Plan something with Seung Jung

5 Snacks I enjoy
1. Chips and salsa
2. Chips and salsa
3. Cereal
4. Triscuits and Skippy
5. Ice cream

5 Things I would do if I were a Billionaire
1. Go to Belgium and Iceland and China and Scotland and Ireland and India and Brazil and Japan and New Zealand and Fiji and Russia and Switzerland and Mongolia and Korea and Taiwan and Chad and Azerbaijan.
2. Rent some really really cool apartment downtown.
3. Have a car.
4. But lots of clothes. Just being honest.
5. Buy the whole chain of Café Río so they could be my personal chefs, and I could eat their tortillas and salsa every day of my life.

3 of my bad habits:
1. Biting my lip
2. Letting my room get messy
3. Freaking out when it is most likely unnecessary.

5 places I have lived
1. Ventura, CA
2. Henderson, NV
3. Farmington, UT
4. Provo, UT
5. New York City, NY

5 Jobs I’ve had
1. Cold Stone Creamery. Definitely awesome. I gained five pounds that summer.
2. Bed Bath & Beyond. Not my best work.
3. Karen Foster Design. Scrapbook luvers unite.
4. BYU Advertising Lab. BEST JOB EVVVVER.
5. The Geppetto Group. The real world it is.

5 Things people probably don’t know about me
1. I remember playing with My Little Ponies when I was like 12. Too old?
2. I like spray-mounting cut-out pictures onto mix cds for people.
3. I took a jazz dance class in 8th grade. What!
4. In December I like to sit in the dark with nothing but the glow of my Christmas tree lights and think.
5. I throw the javelin. Threw.

I tag Seung Jung, Mel, Anna, Jason Bond, Kylie.

Thanksgiving Break, etc.

Got new shoes, came down with something, ate lots of Cafe Rio, took jumping pics, took tree pics (a new thing!) and fence pics and middle-of-the-road pics, got a David Tao CD, got a new doo—'do?—"do"?, saw August Rush, saw Transformers, saw friends, saw family, ate lots of pie, ate Creamery Salsa (below). Great break. Great break.

But the real kicker was when I got back to New York late last night, and I begrudgingly felt relieved to be back in my apartment, back in my bed. Is New York home now? I've been fighting it. Me and New York City, wrestling. Sleeper Hold. But it might not be so bad. Sirens still wail their Doppler cries through my window. Strangers still breach my personal zone on the subway. But I think my love/hate soap opera with the city is becoming less sudsy.

And so I tell myself to let go of holding on. Be here now.

friends these days

i've been thinking a little bit about the internet and how it plays a somewhat essential part in us getting to know each other. through facebook, myspace, blogs, even gchat we can become familiar with someone. familiar with their thoughts, their beliefs, their sense of humor, before we've even spent very much time with that person, and sometimes before we even meet.

that's quite different from the way friends were made and kept in the past, isn't it? you used to have to talk to someone on the phone, write notes or letters, spend time in person, generally just get to know someone gradually over time. but now all i have to do is add a recently acquired acquaintance as a friend on facebook, and i suddenly have the power to look through their photos, see their interests and the things they find humorous, read what they say to friends, and basically just get a feel for the person and their background.

and isn't it interesting that you can simply say to someone, "so we're facebook friends now," and it's supposed to give you some sort of bond or plotting ground that you are then able to forge an actual relationship from or something.

or i can meet someone, and if i find out that they have a blog i can read through their old posts (not that i do that often, but once i read almost all the posts of a friend in order to learn more about that person), then i can feel like i really know how they think and what they think about before it's even socially acceptable to know that amount of information about them. sometimes you actually hold back from mentioning something that you already know about a person (something you might really want to say!), simply because you're not supposed to know it yet.

because you can't really mention the things you learn about a person before they've told you those things or else they'll know you've been tracking them online. but if you do happen to mention something, you have to do it in a self-revealing way like, "so, i was stalking you on your blog and happened to see that you really, really like byu's creamery salsa," or something like that. doing this is always a risk of self, because you hope that the person won't think you're just a little bit creepy for delving into their past. or at least for admitting to it.

i think about the friendships that my parents still have from high school and college and can't help thinking that there would be so many more contacts and friendships kept if they'd only had what we have now.

the way we forge and maintain relationships is evolving, isn't it? is this more of a filtering process of finding the people we're more likely to connect with? or is it merely a more-easily accessible way to make friends? or both?

never enough.

i've discussed my passion for byu creamery salsa in five posts in the past two years.

and in five posts mention my relationship with fruit snacks.




this makes six.