Magic bars

So despite the name these bars do not have any drugs in them.  Although, you wouldn't know it because these are ADDICTING.  I'm serious, make a small pan, because you will eat the whole thing.  I made them just last night, and half the pan is already gone.  The best thing about these bars is that they are SUPER easy to make, but are different than just making cookies.  Also, everyone will loose their minds for them.

Things you will need:
1 stick butter
1/2-1 bag of semi-sweet chocolate chips (depends on the size of the pan you are using)
1/2-1 bag of butterscotch chips (depends on the size of the pan you are using)
1 can sweetened condensed milk (make sure it is condensed not evaporated)
1 box graham crackers (you don't need the whole box, but one and a half of the sleeves that are inside)
1 pan (can be glass or metal, and size depends on how many bars you want to make)

How to:
Preheat the oven to 325
Melt the butter (because I used a glass pan, I just did it in the microwave right in the pan)
Move the butter around in the pan so it coats about half way up each side of the pan
Put to the side
Use a knife to cut the graham cracker into crumbs, you can also use the flat side of the knife to crush the crackers (for a 9x5 pan I used 1 sleeve of crackers)
Crush them into bread crumb sized pieces
Pour into the bottom of the pan on top of the butter
Push them down into the pan to make a crust
Sprinkle chocolate chips across the crust
Sprinkle butterscotch chips across the chocolate chips
Make sure the crust is completely covered
Open the condensed milk, and use a spoon to pour over the chips
Cover them compeltely
Put in oven and bake about 20 mins (check them at 15 because it depends on the oven.  The chips should be partly melted, the crust should be separating from the side of the pan, and the sides and top should be browning.

Take them out of the oven, and let them cool about 30 mins.

Ta Da!  You can also add things in with the chips such as coconut, walnuts, raisins or whatever else you want to put in there.  Now, I have some delicious bars to eat.

Hurricane Sandy

I just wanted to share this video with you guys.  I thought it was really interesting.  It's a time lapse of hurricane Sandy hitting New York City.  It is a perfect view from Brooklyn of the lower parts of Manhattan.  Spread it around...


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PyohW9rYEKc&feature=share


Also, this:

Enjoy!!

Happy Halloween (sort of?)!!

I have not posted on here in QUITE a while, but that's because I have joined the working world.  I am now a teacher in a kindergarten classroom as well as an after school supervisor.  I am still crazy busy, but because of hurricane Sandy I have a lot more time on my hands.  I decided we could use some Halloween cheer around the apartment, and decided to bake some cookies.  I started with making my standard sugar cookie recipe:

Pre-heat oven to 375.  Melt 1 cup butter into a bowl, add 1 1/2 cups sugar, 1 tsp vanilla, and 1 egg to the butter.  Mix completely.   In separate bowl, mix 2 3/4 cups flour, 1 tsp baking soda, and 1/2 tsp baking powder.  Add dry mixture to butter mixture gradually.  Mix completely.  Take a spoonful of dough roll it into a ball and press it flat (about 1/4 inch height) onto the cookie sheet.  Bake one tray at a time for 5-6 mins (depending on your oven).

Now for the fun part!
On half of the cookies I pressed them into orange sprinkles for a simpler Halloween look.  For the other half I made vanilla butter cream frosting (recipe below), and dyed it orange with food coloring.

Buttercream frosting:
Take 1 stick of butter out of the fridge several hours before you are going to use it).  Let it soften completely (but don't melt it in the microwave).  Beat the butter in a bowl until it is smooth.  Add about 4 cups of confectioners sugar (depends on how thick you want it), 1 tbsp vanilla, and about 3 tbsp cream or milk (ideally 2% or whole milk).  The milk will blend into the sugar quickly, so be careful not to add too much.  Blend that mixture completely, and dye it whatever color you'd like.

Now for the spider webs!
Your icing should be pretty thick.  Take a ziplock bag and spoon the frosting into it.  Cut a VERY small piece off of the corner of the bag.

Make a line across the center of the cookie.

Make another line perpendicular to the first, but stop at the middle.  Skip over the middle and continue on the other side.  If you make lines all on top of each other the frosting at the center of the cookie gets to be really tall.  

Continue making lines until there are 8 lines all meeting in the center.  

Connect the lines by using little dips of frosting.  Go slow on these because you want the frosting to be even.  

Connect All of the lines together around the center.










Do the same thing around the outter edge of the cookie. 

Ta Da!!  A lovely Halloween treat!

 

End of summer sandwich

After a long day of errands Chris and I were starving, and naturally we had some ingredients for several things, but nothing to make a full meal. I decided to attempt at sandwiches, and they turned out pretty great. Here is mine:

Olive ciabatta bread
Sliced chicken breast
Basil pesto
Herb and garlic goat cheese
Potato chips

Champagne mojitos

I spent this last weekend at my beach house in Delaware with my boyfriend, my parents, and a few friends.  And the best beach activity is having cocktails on the beach.  These drinks, however, are not just good for the beach, they are good for any occasion any time. 

The Champagne Mojito:

What you will need:
LOTS of mint leaves (I used a whole box)
2 bottles of champagne
6 limes
14 spoonfuls of sugar
1 bottle of white rum (750 ml)

Directions:
Chop mint leaves, but not too small, and crush with a glass.
Place in pitcher.
Cut 5 limes into quarter slices, and squeeze into the pitcher.
Pour rum into the pitcher.
Put 14 spoonfuls of sugar into pitcher.
Stir for a few minutes.
Add champagne and continue to stir until the sugar is dissolved. 
Use a fork or the grated portion of the pitcher top to pour into glasses (to prevent excess mint). 
Use a spoon to add desired amount of mint.


Serve with lime garnish. 

Sugar do do do do do ohhh honey honey

Recently one of my friends gave me a school bus cookie cutter because I want to be a teacher.  So obviously, when I got a job as a teacher, I made myself a lovely batch of sugar cookies.  Because Chris and I are only two people though, I had to make some in shapes that he, as a 26 year old man, could take to work.  We picked dinosaurs haha.  I used a different recipe than the one I am putting down here because the recipe I used is more for regular sugar cookies rather than roll out sugar cookies.  Anyway, here is the recipe:

What you need:
1 1/2 cups melted butter (3 sticks)
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract (or to taste if you like more or less)
5 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt

Directions: 
Melt butter in large bowl, after melted mix in sugar, eggs, and vanilla (in that order). 
In separate bowl mix flour, baking powder, and salt together.
Mix dry ingredients into wet ones.  Mix completely.  Cover dough and chill for at least an hour (preferably 3).
Once dough is chilled, preheat oven to 400 degrees. 
On a floured surface, roll out the dough til about 1/4 in thick (roll slimmer than you'd think).  Use cookie cutters or a knife to create desired shapes. 
Place cut dough on cookie sheets.
Bake for about 5-6 mins each. 
Cool completely.
Frost.


Frosting recipe:
What you need:
2-3 tablespoons melted butter
1 tablespoon cream
about 2-3 cups powdered sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla (or to taste)
Food coloring

Directions:
Melt butter.
Add sugar and mix.
Add cream and mix.
Add vanilla.
Divide into however many colors you want, and add food coloring to each section...add one drop at a time...a little bit goes a long way.


And here are the finished products:

Homemade ice-cream sandwiches

I started with the cookies. My favorite recipe for chocolate chip cookies is as follows:

Melt 3/4 cup butter (salted or unsalted) in a big bowl.
Add 1/2 cup sugar and 1 cup brown sugar to the butter.
Beat thoroughly.
Add vanilla to taste.
Beat in one egg and one egg yolk.
In separate bowl mix 2 cups flour, 1/2 tsp baking soda, and 1/2 tsp salt.
Stir into the butter mixture.
Add chocolate chips.

Bake at 350 for 6 mins.

Let cool.

Now for the ice-cream.
Glide along the top to get thin strips of ice-cream. Place on one cookie. Cover with a second one. And there ya go. I made mine with vanilla ice-cream, but you can make it with any kind. I suggest blackberry, strawberry, or chocolate (if you are a big fan of chocolate).

Enjoy!!

New music obsessions 3

I got some new music ideas for y'all.  Here they are:

Peter Bjorn and John:
Recently I heard Young Folks in a store.  Young Folks is a song done by these guys.  It was popular around the time Gossip Girl the TV show came out.  I really only picked up on that song from them in terms of being popular, but I recognized Lay it Down as well. 

http://peterbjornandjohn.com/blog/

They are a Swedish (duh) indie/rock band.  The band is named after its first three members.  They have six albums all together: Peter Bjorn and John, Falling Out, Writer's Block, Seaside Rock, Living Thing, and Gimme Some.  I downloaded the latest two albums, and so far these are the only two songs that have really stuck out to me, but I hear some of their earlier stuff is pretty good. 


Living Thing:
8) Lay it Down

Writer's Block:
 3) Young Folks

Bloc Party:
Everyone goes through a Bloc Party stage, and like most people I went through a few month where I listened to them non-stop.  Recently I was watching one of my favorite shows (How I Met Your Mother...SO good), and heard one of their songs in the background.  Since then I have gotten back into them in a big way.

http://blocparty.com/

They are a British band who classify themselves as an indie/rock band.  They have three albums (Silent Alarm, A Weekend in the City, and Intimacy) with a fourth on the way (aptly named Four).  In any case, I have a few favorites all of the songs I am going to recommend are off of Silent Alarm because that was the CD that was out when I was into them.  That being said, I have listened to their more recent CDs, and they are pretty good. 

Off of Silent Alarm:
2) Helicopter
4) Banquet
7) This Modern Love (this is the song that sparked all of this)

Air:
I recently got a new computer, and I have been dreading going through my itunes and editing songs I don't want anymore.  That being said, I DESPERATELY need it.  I have songs from middle school in there that, let's face it, if they came up on shuffle around other people I'd be horribly embarrassed.  

http://www.aircheology.com/

The band is two guys from France.  Interesting fact: one of the members studied architecture while the other studied mathematics before joining together to make a band.  They both played in a band before Air called Orange.  I only downloaded one album so far (Talkie Walkie), but I also have one other song from a previous album that I like. 

Talkie Walkie:
3) Alpha Beta Gaga
9) Universal Travler

Pocket Symphony:
7) Photograph

Passion Pit:
We all love Passion Pit, but they have a new album out that deserves some recognition.  I first heard the album through NPR.  I have just recently gotten around to downloading it.  I don't like this new stuff better than the older stuff, but this album is fun, and definitely has the Passion Pit sound. 

http://www.passionpitmusic.com/home

The band is from Cambridge, MA which I didn't know.  All but one of the members attended the Berkley College of Music in Boston.  Some choice songs from the new album (Gossamer) are:


1) Talk a Walk
8) Hideaway
10) Love is Greed
11) It's Not My Fault, I'm Happy


Anywho, as always, I am always looking for new music, if you have any suggestions let me know!

Mary, Mary, quite contrary, how does your garden grow?

 Cats and flowers don't mix.  Not only are they (especially Wedge) allergic to most flowers, but they also seem to be insanely attracted to munching on them.  As a result I decided to make a non-kitty-toxic bouquet. Below are individual pictures and instructions on how to make them. 

The carnation:

Step 1: Using tissue paper, cut 5-6 circles (about 3 inch circumference). Tissue paper can be the same color or different colors.                           

Step 2: Stack the circles, and use a sharpie or other marker to draw along the edges of all the circles.  It doesn't matter if the color does not get on all of the edges, in fact that creates a cool effect.                                    

Step 3: Fold circles in half, and cut two holes in the center of the halved circles.                    

Step 4: Put an unfolded paper clip or pipe cleaner through the two holes, and twist.

Step 5: Work from the inside, and pull the middle circle together, and pinch the base. Keep working out until all circles are bunched up. Instructions including pictures can be found here. 

              

The rose:       

Step 1: Cut a circle out of paper or tissue paper. Make sure to cut the edges wavy.

Step 2: Cut the circle into a spiral also making the cuts wavy.

Step 3: From the outside curl inward.  Be careful that it does not turn into a cone.

Step 4: Glue the bottom of the rose.                                                              

Step 5: Slide a paper clip or a pipe cleaner into the bottom in the center of the rose. You can find a step by step video here.

The plain flower:

Step 1: Pick 5 different colors of paper, or if you want use the same color.

Step 2: Cut 1 oval shaped petal out of each color. 

Step 3: Put them all together

Step 4: Using a paper clip or pipe cleaner poke two holes in the center.  Twist underneath. 

Margaritaville, sangriaville, and beerville

It's been my quest this summer to find nice, cool summer drinks. This weekend I happened to find 3.

1) strawberry margaritas:

Blend together equal parts tequila and Jose Cuervo margarita. Add a handful of frozen strawberries. Squeeze half a lime into the mix and blend completely.
Add a lime slice as a garnish.



 2) sangria:
Buy a bottle of red wine(I hear Italian wines with a bit of cherry flavor are best for this). Chop 1 green apple, 1 red apple, 1 orange. Put them in the wine in a pitcher. Put in two spoonfuls of sugar. Squeeze in half a lime. Stir. Enjoy!





3) beer:
One of my friends from home was visiting and we passed this kind of beer in the co op. She said it tasted exactly like lemonade and I had to try it. Saranac shandy. It's lager and lemonade made to keep on the European tradition of mixing beer and lemonade in the summer months. It tastes exactly like lemonade. It's awesome! I highly recommend.

This is for (iced coffee) lovers

The other day I passed this product and had to have it. I love iced coffee but I have to make it ahead of time because I have to make the coffee, add sugar while it is still hot, then refrigerate it. While you still have to plan ahead with this stuff, it means you can have some variety in how sweet you want your coffee each morning, or if you are serving it to several different people. Anyway, I highly recommend it.
It's produced by sugar in the raw. Here is a picture to help you find it.

Tonight I'm gonna party like it's 1776

I had a rather quiet fourth of July, so I decided to buy some fireworks, some beer, and some food and have the very few (but amazing) people I know in D.C. over to celebrate over the weekend.  I share a bunch of food recipes on this blog.  Here is a recipe for a great Saturday night:

1) Food- I served chips and salsa/veggies and dip.  Keeping it simple is best.  Everyone gets something they like and the host/hostess doesn't have to bend over backward making food for everyone.  I also made my cheesecake stuffed strawberries only this time I coated them in dark chocolate (great addition...I highly recommend it).

2) Beer- Chris and I bought lots of beer.  If you are beer drinkers, you can never have enough.  The only problem is having enough of a mix that someone can find something that they like.  Good thing Chris and I have kind of opposite tastes in beer.  We bought Sierra Nevada Summerfest, Flying Dog Raging Bitch, Flying Dog Seasonal (my personal favorite of the selection), Anchor Liberty ale (fitting for the 4th, and also Chris's favorite of the selection), and finally Allagash White.  All in all it was a pretty good variety.

3) Music- I created a long playlist featuring Arcade Fire, Beirut, Bombay Bicycle Club, Grouplove, Imagine Dragons, Kid Cudi, The Lumineers, Matt and Kim, Of Monsters and Men, Oh Land, Portugal. The Man, among many many others.  I focused mostly on chiller music with a little sprinkling of more dancy stuff.

4) Sprarklers and/or fireworks- Parties are always better with sparklers.  Since fireworks are illegal in most states I would suggest sparklers over fireworks, they are also easier clean up.  While we had both, the fireworks were a bit lackluster considering most of them were fountains that did the same thing as the other ones.

Last, but not least
5) Good people- I don't know a lot of people in D.C. right now, but I know a few, and the key to having a great Saturday night is surrounding yourself with fun people.

So there it is.  My recipe for a good Saturday night. 

          

New music obsessions 2

So I did a post like this not too long ago, but I have a few new bands/songs that I'd like to share.

1) I Need a Dollar- Aloe Blacc (real first name Egbert)
Chris and I have been watching How to Make it in America (an HBO show about young, up and coming designers who cannot catch a break).  We love the show, and this song is the song that plays during the opening credits.  I haven't listened to much of his other stuff.  He is an American soul singer and rapper.  He has two albums called Shine through and Good Things. 

2) Oh Land
In my last post about new music my friend Colin posted a comment about Oh Land, and I decided to check them out (see, I really do listen, so definitely post if you have anyone I should be listening to). 

http://www.ohlandmusic.com/

The lead singer is Danish, and has a pretty cool sound.  She currently lives in Brooklyn (cause that's where it's at).  They have two albums Fauna and Oh Land.  I only downloaded Oh Land, and it's pretty great.  It's fun.  I did not like most of the slower tracks, but luckily there aren't many of them.  My favorite tracks are:

3) Sun of a Gun
4) Voodoo
8) White Nights
10) We Turn It Up

3) The Lumineers
Another iTunes top 100 find.  There were many to sift through, but this caught my ear.  The song in the top 100 was Ho Hey.  It is fun.  It is kind of a weird genre.  I'm not sure what they call themselves, but I would say definitely indie but with a little country thrown in there.

http://thelumineers.com/

To answer my previous question they are a folk rock band.  They are based out of Denver, CO.  Two of the band members met and played together in NYC before moving to CO.  They met the third member of their band on Craigslist (the times really are changing).  They have one album called The Lumineers.  Their slower songs are good, but very mellow.  Their upbeat songs are catchy and fun.  My favorite tracks are:

1) Ho Hey
2) Stubborn Love
4) Dead Sea
5) Classy Girls
7) Flapper Girl

 4) Bombay Bicycle Club
I am actually not sure where I heard about this band.  I found a note in my phone to look them up, so I did. 

http://www.bombaybicycleclubmusic.com/

They are an indie band from London, England.  The name of the band came from a chain of popular Indian food restaurants in England (fun fact).  They have three albums: I had the blues but I shook them, Flaws, and A Different Kind of Fix.  I downloaded A Different Kind of Fix and Flaws.  My favorite tracks are:

From A Different Kind of Fix:
3) Your Eyes
6) Shuffle
8) Leave It

From Flaws:
1) Rinse Me Down
3) Dust On The Ground
4) Ivy and Gold
6) Fairytale Lullaby

 Anyway, leave a comment if you know of any new music I should be writing about.  I'm always looking for good new music!

A little bit salty and a lot bit sweet

For a while now I have been looking for a good brownie recipe.  Not being really satisfied by any of them I combined a few recipes to make this one.  It is pretty easy, and doesn't require many ingredients.

Brownies:
Ingredients:
1 cup butter (2 sticks)
2 cups white sugar
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1 teaspoon vanilla (I add a little more, but for most people 1 teaspoon is good)
4 eggs
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
Semi-sweet chocolate chips (however many you want)

Pre-heat oven to 350
In a big bowl, melt 1 cup butter
Add sugar and mix
Add cocoa powder, vanilla and mix
Add eggs, flour, baking powder, salt and mix completely.
Make sure that there are no lumps.  Cocoa powder clumps easily, so using a mixer is best, but a fork will do.
Add chocolate chips and stir.
Grease 9x13 pan and pour batter in evenly (using one pan makes thick brownies like in the picture...if thinner brownies are desired use two pans or don't use the all of the batter)
Bake at 350 for 20-30 mins.  Mine were about 26 mins, but every oven is different.

When they are done here are some ideas for something a little extra

Chocolate frosting topping:
3 tbsp melted butter
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1 tsp vanilla
2 tbsp milk or cream

Whisk together and spread over brownies before cutting...make sure the brownies are FULLY cooled. 

If you are feeling truly adventurous (which Chris is) or just love bacon (which Chris does) you can add bacon bits to the frosting.

If you want something a bit more basic, simply cutting up strawberries or another fruit (into small squares) and sprinkling over the top of the brownies adds nice flavor without being super rich.

Blackberry ice cream is also another good option, and for summer (and all those my age who are too unemployed or don't want to pay for AC this one might be a good option for you) it can cool you off a bit.

Enjoy!!

Holy guacamole!

Relaxing at home on a summer sunday is tiring work, and requires a good snack. I made my special guacamole, and thought I'd share the recipe!

1-2 avocados (depends on how much you wanna make)
1 quarter of a tomato-chopped
1 quarter of an onion (what type is up to you...I use red)-chopped
3 cloves garlic-minced
1 quarter lemon
Few pinches of salt

Spoon out avocado insides
Mash up with a fork
Cut up tomato and stir into avocado
Cut up onion and stir into avocado
Mince garlic and add to avocado
Add lemon and salt
Mix

Yummmmmm

I saw someone post this recipe on Facebook the other day, and I checked out the rest of the blog (http://www.thesweetslife.com/2011/08/cheesecake-stuffed-strawberries.html), and it's pretty good! Check it out if you are looking for recipes.   If you are looking for a way to spice it up, try dipping them in chocolate to seal in the cheesecake.  Or dip in chocolate then dip in graham crackers. 

Yummmm! Enjoy! I know I did!

 

First, carve out the middle of the strawberry.

 

Using a knife, put the filling in the center.

  

Dip in graham crackers.

Flatiron, kitchen needs, and italian fare

My friend Anna from home was visiting today, and I met her in the Union Square area to have breakfast.  We ate at the Grey Dog Cafe on University place and e. 12th st. (http://www.thegreydog.com/).  It's an ok place, they have great homemade breads, and their orange juice was pretty awesome. 

From there we walked up past Union Square to 23rd and Broadway.  On our way an adorable kitchen supply store caught my eye.  This. Place. Was. Awesome.  I am putting the website up on here as I am showing Chris everything I want from this store (totaling a couple thousand dollars).  It's called Fishs Eddy (http://www.fishseddy.com/).  I stumbled upon the sale section where I found little bowls for holding salsa, or dips. Chris had just been saying this morning that we should have something like that. 

Once we were up at 23rd and Broadway we decided to stop in at Eataly (http://eatalyny.com/) for a glass of wine (don't worry, we diligently waited until after 12 to go).  So honestly? The place kind of sucked.  I know that it's supposed to be awesome or whatever, but its kind of stupid.  You and your dining partner have to want EXACTLY the same thing, because the way it is broken down is by a bunch of little restaurants featuring each type of food.  So when the waitress asked me if we wanted to be seated in the "vegetable section or the seafood section" I was rightfully confused.  More intensely so when she said that they only had one pasta on the vegetable menu.  Isn't this an Italian restaurant? It took us until after we ate to figure out that there were other sections for "red meat", and "birds", and "pizza" and "pasta".  All. Different. Sections.  What is that?  In any case, I got it into my head to make dinner for the best boyfriend ever, so I bought freshly made pasta, and seasonings to make sauce.  Because I can't find it on the site, a way to make it would be crushed red pepper, dried basil, and garlic.  Mix that in oil and saute with oil.  FANTASTIC. 

The rest of the day was spent strolling, sunbathing, and taking in the fantastic site of the flatiron building and union sq. park. 

Screen junkies

Chris showed me these hilarious trailers called honest trailers.  They have a bunch of them.  One of my favorite ones is Twilight:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0gugBiEkLwU&feature=autoplay&list=PL086867C1ED88C7D7&playnext=1

Another funny one is Avatar. 

If you are looking for a laugh, check it out.

New music obsessions

I'm sure I will do a bunch of posts like this with new music that I am listening to and where I found it.  Anyone and everyone should feel free to comment with additions or comments. 

1) Grouplove
Chris and I were watching the Bonnaroo livestream, and they were one of the bands we watched.  The second they started singing both Chris and I turned to each other and said "they are pretty good".  They only got better.  A good way to tell if you like a bands music is their live performance, and we were hooked after theirs. 

http://www.grouplovemusic.com/tour-dates/

Two of the members met in NY, but they formed a band at an artist commune IN CRETE!  Sounds like fun to me.  The band is made up of mostly guys, but has one girl.  They have one major album (Never Trust a Happy Song) and one EP (Grouplove).  Never Trust a Happy Song is a great album.  My top favorites if you wanna try out a sampling before committing are:
Tongue Tied (track 2)
Lovely Cup (track 3)
Slow (track 5)
Spun (track 7)

2) Imagine Dragons
I was going through iTunes top 100 or whatever the other day because a lot of the time that is how I find good music (you just have to filter through "rack city, bitch" and the like).  I stumbled upon this band.  They are pretty good. 

http://www.imaginedragonsmusic.com/

The band is based in Las Vegas, Nevada.  They are of the indie rock persuasion.  A bit more on the mellow side, but definitely still fun and dancy.  They are touring with AWOLNATION (major song: Sail) this fall as well as playing at a bunch of the major music festivals this year.  They have a bunch of EPs and one album that will be released in September.  I have their most recent EP called Continued Silence.  Some good songs to check out are:
It's Time (track 1)
Demons (track 2)
On Top of the World (track 3)

3) Of Monsters and Men
One of my friends from school told me about Of Monsters and Men a while ago, and I just recently got around to downloading them, and got into them in a big way.  Also of the indie rock genre, they are a bit more inventive with their instrument usage. 

http://ofmonstersandmen.is/

This band is from Iceland, and have pretty cool accents that only add to their indie rock/indie folk music.  They have a female lead singer and their creativity with their instruments remind me a lot of Florence and the Machine.  Their one album is called My Head is an Animal.  A few songs I'd recommend are:
King and Lionheart (track 2) 
Mountain Sound (track 3)
Six Weeks (track 7)
Numb bears (track 13)
Little Talks (track 14)

I hope you enjoy the music suggestions, and I am always looking for new music, so if you have any suggestions leave a comment!

Bonnarooooooooo

So last year Chris and I hopped in my little cabrio and drove down to bonnaroo. This year we decided to buy a bed (I know, such an adult decision haha just more proof I deserve an adult glass). Needless to say, we were bummed. Today, we stumbled upon a live stream of bonnaroo done by YouTube. It's been on ever sense. I suggest you guys check it out!

http://m.youtube.com/user/BonnarooMusicFest?client=mv-google

Ayers and Pears

On our walk to brunch this morning Chris spotted a sign for a yard sale.  We have been trying to go to more of those to find cool vintage things or fun things to decorate the apartment with.  This particular one was kind of a bust except these two great posters.  We are going to put them up in the bathroom.  They are old poster advertisements mounted on wood.  Pretty cool, huh?


Also worth noting was brunch.  We went to one of our favorites in the neighborhood called the Ox Cart Tavern.  Their brunch menu is featured on the link below.  We went with one of our friends who just moved to the neighborhood.  I had peach pancakes (amazing).  Chris had strawberry and banana stuffed french toast (amazing). And our friend had a tuna burger with fries and homemade ketchup (amazing.).  We also had the soft pretzels and biscuits for an appetizer.  Needless to say, none of us actually finished our meals, but they were great!

Later, Chris and I went to see Prometheus.  It was great.  I had not seen Alien and Aliens until recently and enjoyed them, so I was curious to see if I would like this one too.  I really did.  I strongly recommend it.  We did not see it in 3D, so I think we are going to go back and see it in 3D.  Even if you haven't seen Alien or Aliens it is still good and you will be able to follow.  

Anyway, enjoy your Saturday nights everyone.  If your looking for something to do head to the movies and see Prometheus.

My day in pictures

  

It began with Chris being able to come home early!!

 

Next, we walked to a local wine store, and got two amazing bottles of wine AND a frequent buyers card (buy 12 get the 13th for a DOLLAR!).

 

On the walk home, we walked by my FAVORITE house (featured in the post below).

 

Followed by a DELICIOUS dinner.

 

And an adorable (but lazy) cat! 

All in all a pretty great Friday if I do say so myself.

My future home

So part of being fresh out of college is fantasizing about the future.  When Chris first moved to Ditmas park we went on a walk and I saw a house.  The most wonderful house that I have ever seen (apart from my home in DC of course).  It was colorful and big ad so close to everything.  Ever since then I have gone by to look at the house, found the address, and looked it up on all real estate sites.  Sadly, it has not been on the market in a while, so there were no pictures other than the outside one.  Until today.  I was on the neighborhood blog looking at activities for this weekend, and guess what I saw.  THE HOUSE!  It turns out that it is one of the many bed and breakfasts in the neighborhood (would it be silly to rent a room when I live just a few blocks away?).  In any case, I wanted to share my future home with you all.  I hope you enjoy, and if any of you are trying to find a place to stay.  I HIGHLY suggest here...if only so that I can come and visit you. 

http://ditmaspark.patch.com/articles/a-staycation-in-ditmas-park-rugby-gardens-b-b#photo-10237447

Down in the treme

So tonight I went out to dinner with two of my best friends. One of the topics of conversation was what the fuck we are all doing with our lives, which made it fitting when my mom showed us the cover of a recent NY times magazine that I thought I'd share (picture on the right). After they left my mom and I watched the first episode of the second season of Treme, a show we started on our trip to Tulum, Mexico. It's about New Orleans after the hurricane and follows several characters. It's a great show and the reason for the post. I highly recommend it. It can be pretty heavy at times, but it's good. Links about the show below.

http://www.hbo.com/treme/index.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treme_%28TV_series%29

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2jnSzAI3gCQ

Music

The AUX cable in my car has been broken for about two years. Needless to say, I settle for just about anything on the radio over listening to one of the five CDs in the car. My boyfriend and I started recording what songs we listened to over the course of long car rides, and that's just what I did today. Quite a funny list if I do say so myself.