Flashback Friday

Interlochen Arts Camp, 8.2.2008

Living in a cabin in the middle of nowhere Northern Michigan alongside 12 10-12 year old girls doesn't SOUND like a party, but that was seriously the best summer of my life.  High School Musical dance parties, seeing crazy pink and yellow moths like you see above, playing tooth fairy to 200 little girls, and sunshine.  So. Much. Sunshine.

Keeping Cool with Sorbet Making

I'm not sure about you, but the last week or so has been torturously hot.  As in, stay inside the apartment with the shades drawn, making a pro/con list entitled "Reasons to Move to Alaska."
But I decided that while practicing the fine art of hermit-hood mixed with a little escapism is one way of solving the problem, there are other ways to stay cool.  Such as ICE CREAM.  Except, I have a minor milk allergy.  Normally I can eat a serving or so a day, but I knew I'd be eating more than that in this heat.  Which led me to SORBET.  So I took a trip to Target for needed materials, recruited a friend, and followed these steps:


1. Bring a mixture of equal parts sugar and water to a boil over medium-high heat.  (I went with 2 cups of both.)  Once you reach a boil, reduce the heat and let the mixture simmer for 3 minutes, until all of the sugar dissolves.

Ooohh, ahhhh, the dissolving in action.

2. Quarter two containers of strawberries and place them in the blender, along with 2 containers of raspberries and the juice of 1 lime.  Blend into a puree.








Sub-step 2: Make loud noises of frustration and consult owner's manual when brand new blender container won't seem to snap into base.  Find nothing helpful in owner's manual.  Continue to wiggle container around.  Consider giving up and going to Forever Yogurt. (Best frozen yogurt place around.) Imagine the sweaty journey to Forever Yogurt, and persevere through sorbet-making task.  Resume regular scheduled programming once container FINALLY snaps in.  (I have a college degree, I promise.)


3. Pour strawberry/raspberry puree through strainer to remove seeds.  This will by far be the most tedious part of the sorbet-making (provided your blender doesn't have a diva moment, as mine did) but keep your eyes on the prize to find the strength to continue smashing the puree through the strainer!

4. Wait until the simple syrup solution is COMPLETELY cool.  I'm going to be honest with you, kids--I tried to make sorbet a few weeks ago, before heading to a picnic/concert at a park.  Because I only had about 2 hours to make the sorbet, I waited until the simple syrup was pretty much, kinda, sorta cool.  What I got in return was a sorbet mixture that never turned into sorbet. An unrealized liquidy mess, and a very sad me. Ahh, the universe--always teaching me the importance of patience.  So in conclusion, COMPLETELY cool!

Sub-step 4. In an effort to allow COMPLETELY cool to occur, place simple syrup in fridge and head outside to take some pictures!

Enduring the heat and crazy Cubs fans made getting to finally eat the sorbet THAT much better.  No pain, no gain.

5. Once the simple syrup is COMPLETELY cool (have I made that clear enough?) add it to the strawberry/raspberry puree, and add 1/2 cup of light corn syrup.  Pour the sorbet mixture into your ice cream maker (I have and love the ice cream attachment for the KitchenAid mixer) and mix until sorbet is formed!  This mixture took about 15 minutes before it became the right consistency.

6. Scoop into bowls and ENJOY the fruits of your labor!

I really enjoyed how this sorbet tasted exactly like fresh strawberries, with a hint of raspberry. I think I'm going to start doing some experimenting to find some more crazy flavors that will work--my brother suggested cherry limeade!  And don't worry, I'm not ACTUALLY moving to Alaska--I've made too many Sarah Palin jokes for them to let me stay there, anyways.

Music Monday-Ha Ha Tonka

I've seen these guys live a few times now, and always leave impressed by their energy and talent.  I saw them most recently on Saturday, as part of Wicker Park Fest.  Thanks to incredibly slow (but entertaining! included a drunk guy yelling "HAVE FUN BEING A HATER!" to anyone who wouldn't give him a high five) public transit, I didn't get to the fest until halfway through Ha Ha Tonka's set.  But no matter, I guess I'll just HAVE to see them the next time they're in town!  Check them out live if you get the chance!

Flashback Friday

Arles, France,11.29.06


Sometimes, the clear blue of Chicago matches the clear blue of Arles precisely.  When that happens, I close my eyes, imagine the chatter around me is in French, and see this picture in my mind.  It's not France, but it's the closest I can get without getting a plane ticket involved!

Crafting a Windowsill Garden

I love living in the city, and often tell my family that I moved to the city so other people can take care of the greenery I see and enjoy in parks. (Lazy, lazy, lazy.)  But I've recently found myself wishing for a bit more greenery inside my own apartment.  After a bit of reflection on my green thumb skills (which peaked around age 12 and have gone significantly downhill since then) I decided that grass and forget-me-nots were my best bet.  I also didn't want boring or outdoor-looking pots, so off I went to my local thrift stores for answers.  One thrift store, one Goodwill, and $12 later, I ended up with these in my possession:





A few of the containers I picked up were clear glass, which would have looked less than beautiful with dirt inside them.  So, I broke out some acrylic paint and covered the inside of the glass in shades of blue. I also giggled upon seeing the name of this paint color, from a bottle of paint I purchased at age 12.  I sincerely hope 12 year old me did not pick that shade based on its name!





After letting the paint dry, I headed outside with supplies and a cranky brother in tow.  We first added gravel to the bottoms of the containers for drainage:





...and then got to work filling the containers with dirt and seed.





I'd be lying if I told you a large portion of dirt didn't end up in places outside the containers--but that's what you get for hiring a brother to be your helper!  A week of watering later, and here is the result in my windowsill:





The forget-me-nots haven't sprouted yet, but I remain hopeful.  Overall, I'm pretty pleased with the result!  The pop of greens and blues in my living room is very summer-y and refreshing, and I like the unexpected touch of grass growing out of china and dishware.  If I had to change one thing, I would pick containers from the thrift store with more variance in height.  I thought there was enough of a difference, but one last lining up of my items before heading to the cash register would have helped!  But for under $20, I was able to bring a bit of color and the outdoors into my apartment.  Which is great, because this week's heat wave has kept me apartment-bound!

Music Monday-Summer Loving

Fits of Wanderlust

Wanderlust: A strong desire or impulse to wander or travel and explore the world. (According to the sage and perpetually accurate source, Wikipedia!)

In my opinion, some of the best discoveries come when you surrender yourself to wanderlust--forgoing plans and routes and structure for seeing and doing and twisting and turning. I strongly believe in the "go big or go home, baby" philosophy, and there is nowhere that it counts more than when you're exploring your world.

This blog is a place to collect all my thoughts on where I've been yesterday, where I find beauty today, and where I would like to spend my tomorrow. My capturing will hopefully be done through pictures, words, and music. I love creating and crafting, so I will try to bring my camera along with on those adventures to document my crazy ideas and crazy attempts at creating. Inspiration, exploration, creativity. Fits of wanderlust.