Day 377
I forgot to post this yesterday.
So I spent my morning (prior to going up to Boulder) canning jam for the first time. It is strawberry rhubarb and my favorite.
Recipe:
2 cups smashed strawberries
2 cups rhubarb (chopped)
5 1/2 - 6 cups sugar
4 tbls lime juice (because I didn't have lemon)
1 thinger of pectin
- Add the berries, whisk in pectin
- boil (keep stirring!!!)
- Add in rhubarb
- boil (keep stirring)
- Add all that sugar (if you stop stirring get the fire extinguisher ready)
- boil hard for one minute
- CAN!
So the thing about canning is, if you screw up you get botulism and not the fun stuff that goes in your face (well, it is the same thing, but I wouldn't inject homemade botox in my face) AND canning at altitude (here in Denver!) means you have to add a ton of time to your canning. But have no fear, for once, I followed the recipe directions. Delicious!
Now if only I had some bread so I could make a kick-ass PBJ
Canning
Pair of Pink Roses
Today Mike and I went to Wash Park and we had a great dinner from Tokyo Joes (my first time there). We had a picnic dinner, there is nothing better than eating outside on a beautiful Colorado night.
This past Sunday when I was up in Boulder photographing the mountains I managed to swing into Art Mart on Pearl Street and get Mike the piece of art he wanted to get for his 3 year anniversary at the company. He had no idea I got it, and even brought them up in the car on the way to pick up dinner, I bit my lip, hard, to keep from saying anything. He was totally surprised :) and I'm pretty awful at keeping my mouth shut when I'm excited about something.
I'm really excited to continue to build this collection. The prints are by Steve Lowtwait check out more of his work at www.campsteve.com it is great!
After I surprised Mike he let me play in the rose garden where I took even more pictures. The wind was blowing with I thought would screw up all of my photos, but instead, the wind made for some really cool shots where the photos were off-center etc. You can see the whole stream here: Wash Park 6.29.
I'm really proud of the Pair of Pink Roses that I put at the beginning of this post. I like the soft focus and how the larger rose sort of protects the smaller one. They are exactly the same, interchangeable, but one protects the other.
I really like having an outlet for all my creative pent-up energy--there's a lot of it.
Photogging
I love photography. I especially love macro-photography. This weekend I went up to Boulder and into the mountains with Vanessa and Mama Graz. It was absolutely beautiful.
Before we went up I went to Wolf Camera on Friday and got a new filter for my camera which, I think, made my photographs even more vibrant. Saturday I went to the Cherry Creek Farmers Market with Mike and got some great shots and then went to Wash Park for even more great photos, especially of flowers. Sunday I went to REI and got these Keen shoes I've been wanting (glad I did, kept me from falling in the river) and a fancy belt pack for my filters, inhaler (damn asthma) and a water bottle. It was a great investment for my photograpphing. I really love to photog and it isn't that expensive. The equipment I have, the adding on is pricey.
In August, I get my dad's old computer so I'll be able to hand tint and mess with my photographs on a computer who's photoshop actually works.
I need to figure out how to slow the water down in the river shots so that next time I go up to Boulder I can get that cool slow, soft, water effect.
you can see all my photos here http://www.flickr.com/photos/fryxie/
I'm working on organizing them and tagging them.
Wish list
I'm stealing this idea from one of my favorite blogs: Creature Comforts
Often she has great wish lists of pretty things she wants or wants to do and her collages of them are beautiful. I on the other hand are just going to start posting things I want and see if I ever buy them. I'm trying to sort out that need v. want thing.
Basically I want everything at See Jane Work and my entire house to be outfitted by the Container Store.
Resisting the urge
So this morning I was driving to work. All I wanted was a coffee from Starbucks and then I wanted a bagel and coffee from Einsteins. And then I passed a Safeway and thought ooh I want to get more of that shaving cream I like and some fruit.
NO! I can get coffee at the office and I have extra conditioner that I can use as shaving cream (works well btw). I also have oatmeal at home and fruit leathers that are way better for me than a bagel. And! I'm going to the farmer's market this weekend so I'll get fresh and delicious local fruit and veggies. That was close.
The other day I broke my hair straightener, major bummer. So I was looking at Target for a new one and thought to myself "hmm do I have one at home" and I went home and one that I had almost smacked me on the head in my closet. I need to research what I have before I go buy what I want.
Instead of making excuses as to why I need to buy something I made excuses as to why I DIDN'T need something.
The infamous first post
(get it, post, first post ha!)
This is a blog about me. a 381 day countdown until my 27th birthday. Yes, I know I could've waited until my 26th birthday in a few days, but 365 days is so lame. This is a blog about the things I do, the things I need to do and the finding the true and perfect me.
I know that I'm very blessed. I have a job, friends, finally made it to Colorado-- my dream place to live-- and the most amazing man in my life. I know that he is the proverbial one, but I also know that it isn't fair to him, or to us, for us to get married until I've erased my debt, my doubt, my insecurities and mastered the chaos of my life.
Here I'll share lots of different things:
- the ramblings of a fictional book I've been writing on and off
- my crafty projects-- I love to sew, knit, build random shit
- my cooking experiments, successes and recipes
- my photography-- which is something I'm trying to get more into, like the things stated above, in order to shift my occasional melancholy to productivity and enjoyment.
Here's what I need to overcome:
- $5,000 in credit card debt on a salary that is just over 6 times that
- my compulsion to shop to fill gaps
- my clutter, all that shopping left me with a lot of disorganized stuff, and by a lot I mean a shit-ton
- this nagging feeling that I took the wrong fork in the job path and pushing towards the front of my brain that I'm a success and that I will continue to be so.
- my dissatisfaction with my lack of perfection within myself.
Wow that's some heavy stuff, but at least I know what the road ahead looks like.
Craft and cook more. Buy, spend and give in less. Find my balance. Share. Keep smiling