Pottery, Week 4. A bowl and a spoonrest!

I felt like I was getting the hang of it this week. Can't wait to do some more and to paint the rest of the pieces I have already made!

Pottery, Week 3.

I have only painted one of week 3's pieces thus far, and it is an ashtray for James's father, Jim. It was meant to be a bowl, but it collapsed and is now the perfect ashtray!

My pottery!

So, over the last few weeks I have been in pottery lessons. I have learned the basics now, and am going to continue to practice and gain skill. I also enjoy the painting. Our little studio in downtown Melbourne is great, and it's beginning to feel like a second home to me.

I haven't taken any photos of my week 1 attempts. They're pretty pitiful, and hardly worth mentioning. Even the paint on them looks like crap!

Week Two attempts:

These two are attempts at mugs. Not very drinkable. However, they gave me a good canvas to practice my painting techniques.

This is my funky gravy bowl. The sides were weak, so one side collapsed leaving neat creases. I formed a "spout" and added a handle, and VOILA!

Memoirs of a Geisha--the movie

Last night I watched "Memoirs of a Geisha" to compare it to the book. As I normally say--the book was better than the movie! Surprise, surprise.
I really did like the scenery, and the characters--that really made everything worthwhile. The plot, however, lost a lot in the movie (as most do). I would still recommend it, though.

Lucky me, my nieces are visiting from Tampa this weekend! My in-laws are here as well, and I am so glad they were able to bring Kami (6 yrs.) and Kenzie (4 yrs.) along. Those two little stinkers certainly liven the place up and keep me on my toes. They're such a blessing to me, and my favorite part is that they think Aunt Tristin is the coolest! (I also think they're the coolest because they just told me of their new-found adoration of The Sound of Music! Does it get any better than twiriling around the living room and singing "The Sound of Music" with your nieces?)

Tonight I am making a lasagne for all of us, and tomorrow James is smoking some Boston Butts so we can have barbeque with all the works! Of course, we'll make our Famous Smoked Beans and my Asian Cole Slaw. Also, it's my father-in-law's birthday on Superbowl Sunday so we're having the carrot cake that made me his favorite daughter-in-law (well, technically his only daughter-in-law, but who's counting?).

Also, we have Chitty Chitty Bang Bang to watch tonight--yay!

Superbowl Sunday Snacks

I recently made these layer bars for a potluck and I really enjoyed them. I thought I'd share the recipe... They're from a compilation cookbook that my mom made for me for Christmas this year.

Delicious Layer Bars

1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs (that's 1/3 of a box, or 1 plastic sleeve)

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup butter, melted

***************

1 8oz. pkg cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup sugar

1 egg

3/4 cup flaked coconut

3/4 cup chopped nuts

1 cup chocolate chips

Combine crumbs, sugar and margarine; press onto bottom of a 13x9-inch baking pan. Bake at 325 for 10 minutes.

Combine cream cheese, sugar and egg, mixing until well blended. Spread over crust. Sprinkle with combined coconut, nuts, and chocolate; press lightly into surface. Bake at 350, 25-30 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool; cut into bars.

*Tip: I lined the pan with foil before assembling these bars--it made cutting and clean-up much easier!

Riverwalk Cat

I never really wrote about our travels in Texas as I promised to, and since it has been practically two months since the trip, I really don't plan on it. Fact is, we were kind of bums while we were there--we spent a lot of time in our hotel room sleeping because it was the kind of vacation we needed at the time. Also, I only uploaded the pictures (we took only 10 or so! awful!) today--so I am definitely far behind.

Can you believe that there was not sweet tea at any of the restaurants we went to?! But, that's another topic entirely. Also, everytime I saw a homeless person in Austin, someone was giving them money. I hate to generalize, but you can ask James--we were impressed by the generosity of the city. We certainly weren't used to that in DC--no one handed money to the homeless there except for the tourists. Another topic, as well...

Back to the intended topic... When we were at the Riverwalk in San Antonio, this little cat came to be my friend. It was a photogenic cat, and for that reason, the whole point of this blog is to share this picture...

Simply Potatoes

One of my favorite convenience foods is the "Simply Potatoes" product line. Recently, my grocery store had a BOGO sale on the mashed potato varieties, and I had coupons, so of course I took advantage of the sale.

Last night, we had a delicious dinner of steak, steamed broccoli and sweet potato casserole. Here's my simplified version of sweet potato casserole!

Super-Simple Sweet Potatoes

1 Carton of Simply Potatoes Mashed Sweet Potatoes

5 Graham crackers, crushed (James enjoyed doing this!)

3 Tablespoons Brown Sugar

4 Tablespoons Butter, melted

Spread potatoes in a buttered 8x8 (or some kind of small equivalent) pan. Mix remaining ingredients together and sprinkle over potatoes. Bake uncovered at 350 for 30 minutes.

Simple, right? Here's a picture of my super-simple sweet potatoes.

And here's the final meal. I know it looks like we must be piggies because the plates are so full, but the steaks were cut thinly, I promise!

Wisdom

"If you want something then you lose everything. If you don't want anything then you already have everything." -Seung Sahn

Not a pie person.

Last night, James and I watched a wonderful film called Waitress. It starred Keri Russell as a pregnant waitress, wanting to escape her life (typical story, right?). So, throughout the movie, she makes pies in a way that most people would journal--her pies express her emotions and document what is going on in her life. I hope I explained that well--it's really a great idea.

So, I was thinking about pies last night, and recalled one of my family's classic memories. It took place at the bar in the kitchen of my Poppy and Granny's home, where the majority of our meals there were eaten. Every night, there was some kind of dessert after dinner, the standard being a classic pound cake which was always kept underneath an aluminum cake dome with a plastic handle and the word "CAKE" written on the side. This particular night, however, the dessert of the night was some sort of pie--apple, I think. I didn't particularly want dessert, so I decided to forgo the pie I had been offered. No harm, no foul, right?

A few nights later, I was again offered pie by my Poppy. Before I could unnter a word, my Granny quickly replied, "Bennett, Tristin is not a pie person."

My refusal that fateful night forever secured my destiny of not being a "pie person".

Truth be told, I really don't prefer pies. I like berry pie and key-lime pie, and certain lemon pies... But, beyond that, I guess it's true that I am not a "pie person". Anyhow, anytime that my immediate family has pie, someone reminds the family "Oh, don't give any to Tristin--she's not a pie person. Then we all have a big laugh.

The humor lies in the fact that in the South, you cannot just turn-down a piece of pie. Why on earth would any self-respecting Southerner (which I am not--I am merely the descendant of Southerners with an inherited thirst for sweet tea) refuse a piece of pie?

Lesson learned: Don't refuse food from a Southerner. (Besides, even if you do refuse, you'll often still find a plate placed in front of you and a fork will miraculously find its way into your hand.)

My Little Geisha

As my previous post suggests, I have been thinking about geisha lately. (I learned from the book that plural geisha is still geisha, not geishas like my mind prefers.) As I walked alongside my little buddy Brian, I wondered (not aloud): Who are the modern geisha?

Well, that led my thoughts along several different paths. I guess you could consider "trophy wives" the modern geisha, however the parallels don't totally match. But, then I stumbled upon the exact parallel--the modern geisha...

Dogs.

Yep, dogs. Walking along with my little pal, having people gawk at his precious white face led me to the understanding that Brian is my geisha. You see, he is showered with love and affection simply because he is something nice to look at, and he makes me feel good about myself. Who waits at the door so that he can kiss me and wag his tail when I come in the door? Whom do I shower with gifts and affection? When he and I are out in public and he is by my side, who do people smile at and flirt with?

Why, Brian of course.