Canning

So my incredibly infuriating sister informed me earlier this year that she believed it would be better for the world if we all exchanged handmade gifts for Christmas (she took the handmade pledge). Anyway, I thought she meant we were supposed to make, by hand, gifts for each other. Apparently she meant buy gifts somebody else made by hand. So I got to work thinking about what I could possibly make by hand. The obvious choice was to make cards but that seemed too easy since my mom and sister both make cards as well. Instead I decided to embark on a jam making journey.

First off I contacted Auntie (I like to think of her as the head of the family) and she promptly sent me a packet full of recipes and books on canning. I did however notice that her amazing applesauce recipe was not in that packet. damn. I then bought a canning pot and headed down to the local farmers market to pick up some fruit. I decided on raspberries and got to work. It was really fun and I ended up with raspberry juice all over my clothes, my face and my kitchen.

I was too scared to try it so I decorated a jar with some fabric and twine and gave it to my friend Lindsay with a warning that it may not taste good. She gave it to her husband to try with the pancakes at breakfast and he really liked it, so much so that I traded him another jar of jam for some jars of organic peanut butter! Which was awesome as MaraNatha can get spendy. (It's so worth it though!)

UnAfraid

When I was snowed in on the coast I decided to pick up my mom's book club book. It is Unafraid: A Novel of the Possible by Jeff Golden. The premise is, what if the bullet that killed JFK strayed 3 inches, leaving him alive to serve 8 years as President? At first I didn't really like the book but then I got into it and couldn't put it down; even staying an extra day in the Coos to finish it. I suggest you check it out. It's a good read.

White Trash Bash!

(Britt & Casey)

As I previously mentioned my good friend Brittany had a white trash themed birthday party. I drove 4 hours to be there for the drunkenness. We drank consuelas which are basically a large pitcher full of shots and orange juice. We also sang karaoke (I was a karaoke virgin) and then went to Country/Western night at Cantina and danced and made complete fools of ourselves. Alcohol does that to me from time to time. It was basically an amazing night of drunken debauchery.

Driving home the next day I got stuck on I-5 when it began to snow and they decided to close the interstate. I then attempted to purchase chains and no Les Schwab from Florence to Brookings had chains that would fit my tires. What the hell? I detoured back to my mom's house in the Coos where I got to see my family and went to dinner for my soon to be sister-in-law's 21st birthday. We went to Puerto Vallarta Mexican Restaurant and they gave us tequila poppers and even mi madre downed one. Alcoholism apparently runs in the family! KIDDING. sort of.

It's Not Valentine's Day Yet But....

So, I don't think I've had a "valentine" other than my mom (love you) in 4 years which is fine by me because V-day is stressful and irritating and makes me want to vomit in my mouth a little bit. Today MSN has an article titled Little Things About Love. I click on it because this is what I do at work, read crappy articles on MSN but even though I'm all surly with my *Beetle Girl shell I am a sucker for sappy love movies. Here are some quotes
they had in their article:

*Yes, I have a friend who has nicknamed me Beetle Girl. He says I'm of the shit talking coastal pincher variety of beetle.

“Scarlett! Look at me! I’ve loved you more than I’ve ever loved any woman, and I’ve waited longer for you than I’ve ever waited for any woman.” —Gone With the Wind

“The best thing you can do is find a person who loves you for exactly what you are. Good mood, bad mood, ugly, pretty, handsome, what have you, the right person’s still gonna think the sun shines out your ass.” —Juno

“We’ll always have Paris.” —Casablanca

“I love that you get cold when it’s 71 degrees out. I love that it takes you an hour and a half to order a sandwich.... I love that after I spend the day with you, I can still smell your perfume on my clothes. And I love that you are the last person I want to talk to before I go to sleep at night.” —When Harry Met Sally

Etsy Find

I just found this dress at Etsy. I love it! I love the print and the ruffles and it's just cheery. It was handmade by a designer named Ananya and you can check out her blog here.

Brooke's Wedding Plates

My sister Brooke is getting married and she wants an assortment of different plates for her wedding. I have been thrifting for her and this is what I've found so far. I have 3 of the plates that are in the middle.

Here is the cutlery I found. A bunch of really neat knives and what not. I have duplicates of some but just took pictures of one of each design.

White Trash Birthday Bash!

One of my best friends from high school is having her birthday party next week in Corvallis and I cannot wait. It's a theme party where everyone has to dress up in their white trash best (not hard for those from the Coos) and go to dinner at a Mexican restaurant and then go drinking and dancing at the bar - on Country Western night. It's going to be so fun. I've been brushing up on my line dancing skills. Woo!! I will post pictures at a later date.

I almost forgot...

My mom, sister and I had our annual card making extravaganza. My friend Lindsay came and joined us for some card making fun. We sampled some local restaurants and went wedding dress shopping for Brooke and thrifting. Southern Oregon has some good thrift stores! We made a lot cards which I am now selling for $5.00 each. :)

O Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree...

Last night my friend Rhino (Ryan) brought over a mini Christmas tree that he cut down and we decorated it and then went to the Creekside Pizza Bistro for some pizza and beer. I don't like the color red so my tree has brown and gold ornaments. I'm not sure if you can see it but near the top is an ornament Rhino got me for Christmas that has a snowman head and his body is a NY Jets football. SO COOL!!

Goodbye Pasta!

My dear dear friend Matt left for a new job in Colorado on December 1st. It was a sad day for all of us so in saying good-bye we all met at the tree for one last fireball shot. yuck. Leave it to Matty to like the most disgusting shot ever concocted.

Catch Up Time not Ketchup Time

So I FINALLY uploaded my photos from the last 3+ months onto my computer. I had lost the cord but found it while moving. So where I live there is craziness that happens every Halloween. This town LIVES for Halloween. The Plaza is a crazy madhouse party til the wee hours of the morning. Last year I saw a drunken man in drag laying on the sidewalk in his own vomit. The cops don't care because they're too busy getting their pictures taken with girls dressed up in slutty police officer outfits. Fun times for all. Anyway, this is my favorite costume I saw this year.