Catching up...
May. 4th, 2009 04:59 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
sarea
Ugh, so much to post about when I haven't posted in awhile, which makes me want to not post, which makes the list of things I need to catch up on even longer. I know y'all have been through that at some point or another.
First I want to share some of the food I've been making.
Chinese Bakery Style Hot Dog Buns - A favorite snack growing up.
Red Hot and Blue's Potato Salad - My favorite potato salad EVER, a copycat recipe from one of my fave BBQ chains in D.C.
"Perfect" Mac and Cheese - My favorite homemade mac & cheese recipe ever, and it was something off the cuff.
Hot Cross Buns - Didn't make them for Easter, though apparently that's when it's most common, but they're delicious sweet rolls.
Red-Braised Beef - One of my favorite Chinese dishes. The secret is the star anise.
I also made gougeres, which were yummy, but the pictures didn't come out well. Last night I also made shrimp curry from a recipe in Ruth Reichl's Comfort Me with Apples, which was surprisingly good (surprising because she calls it a "typical American curry," and my food snobbery led me to believe that only Asian-style curries could be good).
I've also finished a few books -- the aforementioned CMwA, as well as Ruth Reichl's other book, Tender at the Bone, which![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
ropo got for me at some bargain book sale for $2, yaaaaay cheap good books! TatB and CMwA might as well be one book, as the latter starts right where the former ends, and reads like one book. The first book I ever read by her, Garlic and Sapphires, picks up after that, but is slightly different in tone ... or at least, I think so. I've also finished The Power of One by Bryce Courtenay, which was excellent. I just don't see how the movie could do it justice; it's just too packed with people and events to translate well to a 2-hourish movie, I think. I could be wrong.
My favorite Dollhouse episode so far is "A Spy in the House of Love," which is quite a lame title but was an excellent ep. I hope it'll continue in that trend.
The other day I downloaded that screener (or whatever it's called) version of the X-Men Origins: Wolverine movie, and watched it yesterday. Other than some of the special effects looking quite cheesy in their uncomplete form, I thought it was fairly entertaining. They didn't show enough of Gambit in the trailers for me to recognize him, and the actor's name didn't ring any bells with me. It wasn't until I saw him in full light that I realized it was Tim Riggins. Heehee. Also, Agent Zero, played by Daniel Henney? Really hot. He's half Korean, and the first time I ever heard of him was fromakscully, who recced a Korean movie he was in. Glad to see he's getting work in Hollywood, because he's ridiculously good looking. Here's a pic if you don't believe me.
Finally, some financial/investment stuff.
1. We've found a house that is promising, and have put an offer on it. Should hear back soon on whether it's been accepted or rejected. Our bid was a little low, I think, considering someone else was going to make an offer at the same time, but I'm in no hurry. If it gets rejected we'll just keep looking.
2. I need mortgage interest rates to stay low (or go lower) just until I find a place, and then it can start climbing up on the road to recovery. :P We're already starting to see the signs that things are picking up ... rates are already higher than they've been in the last couple of months.
3. In order to help cut costs, I've canceled my yard waste pickup service and gone down to the smallest trash bin possible. Sometimes I go weeks without having to put out any trash, and it seems like a huge waste of money to be paying so much for it.
4. I've canceled Vonage. It was a smart decision to go with them when I first signed up more than 3 years ago, because it was cheaper than a regular land line, and I could also choose any area code I wanted, which meant that calling me would be a local call for Jade and Robbie. However, things have changed since then -- Jade and Robbie usually call me on my cell phone anyway, and I was considering nixing a land line altogether. But then my dad told me about magicJack, which is a VOIP service like Vonage, but has pros and cons. The best thing about it is that instead of $30/month (which is what Vonage costs), it's $20/YEAR. That's right, $20/year for service. You also have to pay for the adaptor, which is $20, so for the first year it's $40, but still, it pays for itself in a month! You just can't beat $40/year (well, unless it were free). Anyway, the only negative thing about it is that it needs an active Internet connection, so for it to work, your computer needs to be on. Vonage wasn't like that; it worked regardless of whether your computer was on or off, it was more like a traditional land line that way. However, when your computer's off your magicJack voicemail still works, and you can also have it forward calls to wherever you want, but I haven't done that yet, because anyone who really needs to reach me knows my cell number. The sound quality is pretty much the same as Vonage, which was very good, and you can also choose your own area code (and prefix, even). So really, saving $340/year for a land line is awesome.
I'm still playing WoW, though way more casually than I used to. I'm considering going deep discipline for my priest, just to try it out. I'm also really enjoying my rogue, who is 67 atm, and am considering making her my main. But we'll see if my interest stays to even get me to 80.
First I want to share some of the food I've been making.
Chinese Bakery Style Hot Dog Buns - A favorite snack growing up.
Red Hot and Blue's Potato Salad - My favorite potato salad EVER, a copycat recipe from one of my fave BBQ chains in D.C.
"Perfect" Mac and Cheese - My favorite homemade mac & cheese recipe ever, and it was something off the cuff.
Hot Cross Buns - Didn't make them for Easter, though apparently that's when it's most common, but they're delicious sweet rolls.
Red-Braised Beef - One of my favorite Chinese dishes. The secret is the star anise.
I also made gougeres, which were yummy, but the pictures didn't come out well. Last night I also made shrimp curry from a recipe in Ruth Reichl's Comfort Me with Apples, which was surprisingly good (surprising because she calls it a "typical American curry," and my food snobbery led me to believe that only Asian-style curries could be good).
I've also finished a few books -- the aforementioned CMwA, as well as Ruth Reichl's other book, Tender at the Bone, which
ropo got for me at some bargain book sale for $2, yaaaaay cheap good books! TatB and CMwA might as well be one book, as the latter starts right where the former ends, and reads like one book. The first book I ever read by her, Garlic and Sapphires, picks up after that, but is slightly different in tone ... or at least, I think so. I've also finished The Power of One by Bryce Courtenay, which was excellent. I just don't see how the movie could do it justice; it's just too packed with people and events to translate well to a 2-hourish movie, I think. I could be wrong.My favorite Dollhouse episode so far is "A Spy in the House of Love," which is quite a lame title but was an excellent ep. I hope it'll continue in that trend.
The other day I downloaded that screener (or whatever it's called) version of the X-Men Origins: Wolverine movie, and watched it yesterday. Other than some of the special effects looking quite cheesy in their uncomplete form, I thought it was fairly entertaining. They didn't show enough of Gambit in the trailers for me to recognize him, and the actor's name didn't ring any bells with me. It wasn't until I saw him in full light that I realized it was Tim Riggins. Heehee. Also, Agent Zero, played by Daniel Henney? Really hot. He's half Korean, and the first time I ever heard of him was from
akscully, who recced a Korean movie he was in. Glad to see he's getting work in Hollywood, because he's ridiculously good looking. Here's a pic if you don't believe me.Finally, some financial/investment stuff.
1. We've found a house that is promising, and have put an offer on it. Should hear back soon on whether it's been accepted or rejected. Our bid was a little low, I think, considering someone else was going to make an offer at the same time, but I'm in no hurry. If it gets rejected we'll just keep looking.
2. I need mortgage interest rates to stay low (or go lower) just until I find a place, and then it can start climbing up on the road to recovery. :P We're already starting to see the signs that things are picking up ... rates are already higher than they've been in the last couple of months.
3. In order to help cut costs, I've canceled my yard waste pickup service and gone down to the smallest trash bin possible. Sometimes I go weeks without having to put out any trash, and it seems like a huge waste of money to be paying so much for it.
4. I've canceled Vonage. It was a smart decision to go with them when I first signed up more than 3 years ago, because it was cheaper than a regular land line, and I could also choose any area code I wanted, which meant that calling me would be a local call for Jade and Robbie. However, things have changed since then -- Jade and Robbie usually call me on my cell phone anyway, and I was considering nixing a land line altogether. But then my dad told me about magicJack, which is a VOIP service like Vonage, but has pros and cons. The best thing about it is that instead of $30/month (which is what Vonage costs), it's $20/YEAR. That's right, $20/year for service. You also have to pay for the adaptor, which is $20, so for the first year it's $40, but still, it pays for itself in a month! You just can't beat $40/year (well, unless it were free). Anyway, the only negative thing about it is that it needs an active Internet connection, so for it to work, your computer needs to be on. Vonage wasn't like that; it worked regardless of whether your computer was on or off, it was more like a traditional land line that way. However, when your computer's off your magicJack voicemail still works, and you can also have it forward calls to wherever you want, but I haven't done that yet, because anyone who really needs to reach me knows my cell number. The sound quality is pretty much the same as Vonage, which was very good, and you can also choose your own area code (and prefix, even). So really, saving $340/year for a land line is awesome.
I'm still playing WoW, though way more casually than I used to. I'm considering going deep discipline for my priest, just to try it out. I'm also really enjoying my rogue, who is 67 atm, and am considering making her my main. But we'll see if my interest stays to even get me to 80.
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no subject
Date: 2009-05-05 01:21 am (UTC)I loves me some curry.
I enjoyed Wolverine - though I was still hoping for more. More Gambit and more Deadpool-- or actually Wade.
Good luck on the house!
no subject
Date: 2009-05-05 01:26 am (UTC)Totally agree re: Wade ... I adore Ryan Reynolds! I'd love to see a Gambit origins movie. Took them long enough to get him in the franchise.
no subject
Date: 2009-05-05 07:18 am (UTC)On the other hand, Doc and Geel Piet are played by some great actors and the Tadpole Angel song is pretty good.
On an even better side, theres a sequel called Tandia, which isn't as great (I don't think) but still pretty good.
no subject
Date: 2009-05-07 04:17 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-05-05 07:20 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-05-07 04:18 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-05-05 07:26 pm (UTC)Looking forward to Saturday - yummmmmmm.
no subject
Date: 2009-05-07 04:19 am (UTC)I'm totally looking forward to lunch this Sat. I really must know what this place is like.