my addiction

i guess it's time for me to come clean with you guys. i am an addict.
i am addicted to the food network!
seriously. i don't care what anthony bourdain says i love watching it. i really enjoyed watching the next iron chef america. lately i think my favorite thing to watch are the challenges. i particularly enjoyed the 'edible ornaments' challenge and the one where they had to make a haunted house out of gingerbread. i get kind of bored with emeril and bobby flay but i love watching paula deen, rachel ray $40/day, alton brown (especially the one where he's traveling around the country), unwrapped, dinner impossible, 2 dudes catering. i love the stuff with a story behind it or a challenge. watching emeril crank it up a notch doesn't do much and neither does sandra dee or lee or whatever her name is. the thing where bobby flay challenges people is kind of sad to me because here are these nice people thinking they have a tv crew doing a special on them and then it turns in them having to defend their honor in their hometown. boo. that's not cool to me.

so now you know what i spent alot of my time at home doing. my down time and relaxation usually involves me...the couch...my laptop and the food network. there's just something so comforting about it. i love to cook too and the food network has definitely inspired me and taught me quite a bit. every since i was a kid i loved watching cooking shows and daydreamed about having my own someday. i love that i can now watch them pretty much any time of day (except during the 3am -9am infomercials, what's up with that?).

12!

do you understand that it is 12.46 am and i just spent the last 2 hours of my life with my husband and a bunch of the nerdiest looking kids i've ever seen at a gamestop store waiting to get "rock band" at it's midnight release? that my friends is true love. :) do you know what else has to do with 12? this. this awesome little find by andrea that shot me back to about 1978. when will someone wake up and smell the coffee and release a dvd set of sesame street from the 70's? if they have already please tell me.


update @ 1:08am my wish has been granted!

crock pot recipes

any ideas? something yummy and non casserole-y. something other than chili or pot roast. it's fall and i need some good recipes that can cook all day by themselves while i'm at work.

photobooks

ok so i have a question for anyone that wants to answer. i want to make one of those nifty digital photo books of all our wedding pictures, the kind that you order and it comes back look like your own bound book. has anyone ordered these before and/or any reccomendations on the best company to go with. there are quite a few to choose from.

songs we love to hate

yesterday over at musicmamas.com we all posted our top 5 songs that we love to hate. you know the ones......the ones that if you hear one more time your brain will explode. songs that are played out, over played and over rated. songs that make your ears ache, grind on your nerves and make you wonder how anyone could listen to this crap! come on over and share your list too!

musicmamas.com

recently i got an email that made me really happy. my friend kendra decided to start a blog and asked me to be a part of it. i am absolutely thrilled and honor to be part of creative project involving some of the most creative, talented and beautiful (inside and out) women that i know. it's all about music written by some of us girls that are all connected in random ways through blogging, music and friendship. our theme this month is "the evolution of music in my life". stop by and meet everyone and say hello here!

criterion collection finally includes 'bottle rocket'

this is the best news i've heard in awhile. thank you criterion collection. i can't wait. read more about it here

craigslist you did it again

wow! a month or two ago i would have probably bought this before i found the danish modern dining room table that i got on ebay for a steal. this is on the columbus, oh craigslist today for only $200. the seller actually has quite a few little mid century gems posted today. click here for the listing and then search for "fabulous fifties" to see this buyer's other offerings.

owen wilson

so many articles being posted and written right now about the sad news of owen wilson's hospitalization. behind all that celebrity there's a human being with a broken heart. it makes me sad.

no one seems to even mention bottlerocket in his film credits, so here's my tribute to one of my all time favorite movies. after all, the name of this blog is from a quote from that movie. owen, if you are out there somewhere on the internets......we're praying for you. hang in there.

retro patio

i've decided to put my craigslist addiction to good use. since i am already obsessively watching the columbus, oh furniture "for sell" listings everday...i have decided to post some of the great finds. so far i have found a great vintage dresser ($30) and 1960's chrome lamp with glass globes ($25) and i am am on the hunt for a couple more items to decorate our home.

i'm going to post some of the cool things i find that i would buy if i had the money or space or that are just so cool that someone should buy them! maybe someday i'll expand to other cities, but for now let's stick with columbus, oh. my focus is on finding great pieces at a great price.

today's pick is a vintage patio set. i think this set is just so lovely and the floral seat cushions give it a fun kick. it would look great on the patio of one of my friends who has an adorable ranch style house out by the lake. i can just picture a fun lady's luncheon on this table with chicken salad sandwiches, petit fours and iced tea.

if you want to see more click here for the full listing. it's going for $150 and it's been posted several times over the past few months. someone buy it!

pink/orange/red/wonderful

so i am cheating a bit and combining the last days of color week. the colors aren't quite as vibrant in photo as in person. all my pictures in this series have been from our wonderful trip down to georgia in june for our second reception at the beautiful bellevue mansion in my hometown, father's day, a day trip to cumberland island, going to savannah and YES going to paula dean's restraunt (totally worth the 2 hour wait), charleston SC, cherokee NC and gaitlingburg TN. we drove down with my wonderful mother and father in law and equally wonderful brother in law and got to spend time with my entire wonderful family including my grandmother, aunt & uncle, mother & stepfather, brothers, dad & stepmother and very dear friends. all the pics are up on my flickr page. there are so many stories behind each picture. if you are ever in gaitlinburg, take the time to go to the new ripley's aquarium...it was very impressive.

white/brown/black & i've been tagged.....

i've been tagged for a meme by zabs
how fun! i haven't done one in awhile and i always like a good meme.

Personal Top 8 Meme.

Here are the rules:

A. Each player lists 8 facts/habits about themselves.

B. The rules of the game are posted at the beginning before those facts/habits are listed.

C. At the end of the post, the player then tags 8 people and posts their names.

1. i walk to my temp job everyday from my apt downtown. it takes about 30 minutes but it's great exercise and saves money on gas and parking.

2. i love water. i love swimming. i love the beach. i love these things and i love to talk about how much i love them to the point that it's nearly driving my poor husband silly. despite this fact i have not yet been swimming in the pool at our apt complex and that fact is lamented every day when we walk past it. it's just a matter of time and the lack thereof.

3. i am addicted to craigslist. i check it obsessively all-day-long. seriously. i look for jobs, furniture, gigs and apts i don't even need. i send links to my friends whenever i find a little odd job they might be interested in. i love doing that. i love research. i love connecting people with stuff they love. could i get paid for this craigslist research job?

4. i have catered 2 small weddings and some days what i want to do is go to culinary school and have my own cooking show. other days i want to be an event planner. most days i want to be a writer and photographer. in between i just want to travel the world and get paid for it.

5. i HATE how divinity tastes but i love the southern-ness of it and the tradition of it and how it looks all lined up neatly and how the weather has to be just right or it will fail miserably.

6. almost 2 months in and i still haven't written my wedding thank you notes and i feel like a jerk.

7.i miss summer nights where you could stay up as late as you want and watch nick at nite because you don't have to go to school the next day. i miss the old nick at nite with patty duke and dobie gillis.

8. last saturday night i went to see the polyphonic spree in concert in cleveland. i haven't listened to them much but my husband is a huge fan and our friend that works at the venue got us free tickets. after waiting an hour for the show i was pretty much convinced i would never be a fan no matter how good there show was because i was so annoyed at the one hour wait between the opener and the main event. it turns out they were amazing and somehow totally made up for it with their quirky, fun, confetti-full show.

i'm tagging andrea & glam jo & joy & karen & my dad & lisa & aj & jan

green

blue

my husband and my new brother in law, jared at the ripley's aquarium in gaitlinburg, tn.

color week

hula 70 has proclaimed this week "color week" and i have come out of hiding to play along. today is yellow which is good thing because it's monday and because we could all use a big dose of yellow today.

coming soon

i am working on a little project. it's going to take a bit of time to explain it and have it up and going but here's the first step.
goldiestereo

a little taste

a mint?
Originally uploaded by fensterbme

i want to sit here and blog for hours about the wedding and how amazing it was, how beautiful and perfect and surreal. how amazing our friends and their talents without whom it would not be possible. i want to tell you how fun it is to be married and how free i feel. i would like to bottle up that feeling of having almost all your favorite people in the world all together in one place to see you marry your most favorite person in the world and take that feeling and let it bubble over like a champagne shower on you all. ..but we are leaving for part 2 at 7am in the morning. we have another wedding reception in GA and there will be more petit fours and maybe even cupcakes and more magnolia leaves and more love and more stories to tell. so for now here's just a taste. these melt in your mouth little cheesecake thumbprint cookies were made by two angels, who also go by the names of jade and erin, who managed to whip up the most delectable display of desserts i have ever seen or tasted anywhere.

overjoyed

we're married!

looking for directions

does anyone know how to make this fruit display or where to find directions for something like this? it's stumping some of the most talented girls in the kitchen i know. i want to do something like this at a little party we are throwing next weekend. :)

edit: 5/14/07
we have figured out pretty much how to make this using skewers and florist wreaths but does anyone know where i could find some grape leaves?

chic and cheap!

can i just say first of all how much i love going to target? the prices, the fun stuff, the way they bring in high end designers to make fashionable pieces affordable for the masses? i can spend hours there, easy. so now they have done it again. say goodbye to being a slave to the overpriced bridal industry. target now has a line of wedding dresses and accessories for amazingly low prices. it's all designed by issac mizrahi and is avaiable exclusively at target.com. dresses start at $89 and the veils are $18.99. there are faux pashmina shawls, bridesmaids dresses, shoes, handbags, everything you need. so if you like simple lines are looking for style on a dime for your wedding, definitely check it out.

just so you know, i am just under 2 weeks from my own wedding and i've been in the trenches of budget wedding planning for 7 months. when we get back from the honeymoon i plan to blog all about how it is possible to have a wedding on budget and still love the style of it all.

It's about Time

The long awaited (and much speculated about on imdb ) film written and directed by Luke Wilson is finally coming to theaters. According to wikipedia The Wendell Baker story "has now been released on DVD for rental in a number of European countries, and will be distributed theatrically by THINKFilm on May 18, 2007."

in the moment

i'm still here. i've just been busier and more consumed with wedding planning than i ever dreamed i would be. we are right here caught in this funny pocket of time. not yet married, but so close. 37 days from now i'll be a mrs. it's exciting and more fun and crazy and all encompassing than i ever dreamed this time would be. i want to soak it all in and savor every minute. this is a once in a lifetime thing.

ipod meme

here's one i've seen posted all around.......i just discovered the fun of using the "shuffle" feature of my ipod (i know, pretty late in the game if you ask me too).....so i thought i'd play. if you haven't done it yet, consider yourself tagged.

if your life were a soundtrack, what would the music be?

here's how it works:
1. open your library (iTunes, winamp, media player, iPod)
2. put it on shuffle
3. press play
4. for every question, type the song that's playing
5. new question-- press the next button
6. don't lie and try to pretend you're cool


opening credits:
"soul for sahib" koop

waking up:
"something's got to give" the beastie boys

first day at school:
"hurt" johnny cash
ouch! school wasn't that bad

falling in love:
"pen and pad" blackalicious

breaking up:
"change your ways" mars ill

prom:
"the gate" belle & sebastian

life's okay:
"i love L.A." randy newman

mental breakdown:
"christmastime is here" vince guaraldi trio, a charlie brown christmas
aww, if i ever have a mental breakdown i think this would certainly soothe me

driving:
"root down" the beastie boys

flashback:
"him her he she" john reuben

getting back together:
"unexpected traffic" candy butchers

wedding:
"delicious" new edition
hmm, don't put it past me to have some new edition at my wedding :)

birth of child:
"bright nights" koop

final battle:
"sara smile" hall &oates
please if i am ever in a battle, someone please get a boombox and play "sara smile"

death scene:
"mild child" the shins

funeral song:
"lost in love" new edition
get out the hankerchiefs :(

end credits:
"don't worry baby" the beach boys


ok, that was a seriously a little freaky.

i'd love to tell you that i am sailing through the wedding planning process like an old pro. i thought i would you know, especially since i have been a bridesmaid at least 14 times (no kidding). it sure is alot different though when you are the bride. my biggest ordeal lately is a little something my dad calls 'paraylsis of analysis". i am stuck on a couple of key descions that have to be made....yesterday. i've simply looked at too many options. i have to just take a deep breath and realize that there is always going to be a more attractive option out there that will most certainly come along about 2 seconds after i finally decide and will be further enhanced by the fact that i have finally picked something ruling out any other options.

fortunately, at the end of the day on may 19th, it will not matter whether or not the candles or flowers or dresses or music are perfect..........nathan and i will be married. the miracle has already happened, we fell in love. if that can happen......everything else is simple.

guitar hero

he'll always be my guitar hero

this photo is so amazing i had to share it. this is nathan, my fiance, with his good friend zachariah at a recent show they did opening up for john reuben's new cd release party. the two of them make up the power-accapella/comedy duo known as 'indie blockedappella". our friend, nick fancher of shutter-think photography took this after the performance. nick also happens to be doing the photography for our wedding. when he approached us with the idea we were very excited. check out more of his amazing work here

out of service

i'm out of comission for a minute. :( feels like i am missing a limb without my laptop but help for it is on the way. 3-7 business days and i should be back in business. meanwhile, somone very nice let's me borrow their computer on occasion.....the wedding plans keep rolling along (food, photography, dresses and honeymoon are pretty much wrapped up! just a few more things now). have a wonderful day. i'll be back soon.

pondering

what can i possibly say about wedding planning that hasn't already been said. there are books upon books, magazines, websites, blogs, message boards, conventions, podcasts....all of which i have sampled. after much research and planning i have come to some conclusions.

having a small budget forces you to get creative. this is not a bad thing... it's just very easy to forget when you are staring at hundreds of options, none of which are affordable. if you want to just take what bridal companies and wedding planners want to sell you as the only option.........you will pay more money for something you could probably do for alot less.

however, i can certainly see why people go the cookie cutter wedding route. it's much easier than trying to 're-invent the wheel'. it would be so simple to just choose from their pre-fab options.

i have a feeling that even if i had unlimited resources i wouldn't be satisfied with that.

so .. i am asking you.......dear readers......for your ideas and input a couple of areas that i am still trying to think through. i might put some more ideas up from time to time. here's the first one.

photos
i really want to do photos instead of a traditional bride's book that people sign. i have a plan to do a couple of different backdrops to choose from and have their photo made, which we will later compile into a book. this could be done with poloroids or digital cameras.

poloroids.........pros: immediate gratification/nice white space at the bottom for guests to write a note
cons: expensive film/what do you do with all the poloroids when you are done? the poloroid photo albums i have seen would only fit about 30 pics

digital.........pros: inexpensive/ability to see photo immediately and retake if desired/photos can all be compiled into a book using iphoto or shutterfly
cons: no place for handwritten note so do you get a little journal for that or use a little chalkboard that could be in the photo (if they want it there)

another thought, how hard would it be to construct a DIY photobooth and how could that work?

one moment in time

i'm stealing this one from the lovely andrea. it's kind of funny to read today because i wrote it 3 days ago at work.

two names you go by:

mel, mD, death, mimi, goldie stereo


two parts of your heritage:

english
irish


two things that scare you:

horror movies
slugs


two everyday essentials:

orbit green gum
chapstick


two things you are wearing right now:

my great big winter coat
my engagement ring :)


two of your favorite current bands/artists:

sufjan stevens
blackalicious


two things you want in a relationship (other than love):

friendship
romance

two truths:

i am going to spinning class today for the 2nd time and i am afraid i will pass out
martin luther king day has a special place in my heart


two favorite hobbies:

cooking
photography


two things you have to do this week:

take a little road trip to cleveland
babysit 2 very sweet boys


two stores you shop at:

the papyrus stationary outlet
target


two favorite sports:

wii sports bowling
roller skating


two shows you like to watch:

gilmore girls
the office

two things you'd buy if money were no object:

a beautifully and comfortably furnished condo downtown overlooking the city

unlimited flight vouchers to use anywhere, anytime


two wishes for 2007:

for may 19th to be a beautiful, calm, peaceful, non stressful, magical day full of love, laugther and togetherness

to learn to be a wonderful wife and to share more love than ever with my family and friends

welcome 2007

goodbye to the old, hello to the new.....it's a year of promise. a year i've dreamed of all my life. welcome 2007, i am so glad you are here.