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Post by Ambrienne on Jul 12, 2011 22:30:21 GMT -5
Bad fad. Bad. No need to Herald your presence that much. And I don't think some people have gotten the news that the fad is over yet. Either that or they're smokers and can't smell much of anything anymore.
Toys are scary. Just ask anyone who's ever watched a Chucky movie... or experienced a jack-in-the-box surprise at a very young age. The bird knows the truth... and just maybe, she doesn't like change.
I know there are some kids who eat ice cream cones like that dog does. But me... I never really liked the cone part all that much. It doesn't really have any flavor, and it's kind of like chewing on wet cardboard. But then, maybe in the good old days cones were actually worth eating.
(As in the book series that takes place in Valdemar, another Patterson book )
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Post by Solana on Jul 13, 2011 21:39:22 GMT -5
Yeah, that was one of the Nasty Bits of middle school days. I haven't seen as many adults doing that to the point of being able to taste things on the air, but (knocks on wood.) I also try and be careful at home with things like candles and oils, in case my family doesn't appreciate the same scents that I do.
Hmmm, never figured that maybe my darling bird isn't much for change. Cockatiels will normally bond to one or maybe two people tops, and not be as much for anyone else. I didn't pick her out- it was the other way around. Mom and I went to a cockatiel breeder on my 14th b-day, and she let all the birds she had available out to fly around. This little one landed on my shoulder and stayed there, even when we went through different rooms to see her setup. We decided to go with it and bring her home with us. ;D
I liked the sugar cones back in the day versus the normal ones, but overall also prefer a dish. It's much easier to add chocolate or strawberry syrup that one and swirl it around. Our puppy dog didn't get a lot of ice cream, but we would make her a vanilla cupcake for her birthday every year. We even put a candle on it one year, but unfortunately we weren't fast enough to take it off the cupcake before she ate it. (I think we at least got the wrapper off, though.)
I wonder if anyone has tried making flavored ice cream cones, say with a swirl of chocolate or even marshmallow on the inside. There could be some fun mixing and matching different cones with different ice creams. Or maybe making a kind of cone out of cake to support it instead of a plain one.
(Another Anthony Bourdain title.)
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Post by Ambrienne on Jul 14, 2011 13:26:03 GMT -5
I sometimes have the opposite problem. I get a scent, and the my mom decides that she likes it, too. And so she ends up Nicking all my shower gel. ...Not that we're likely to run out any time soon anymore. I've learned my lesson and have got at least half a dozen different scents in reserve. There's no way she can use them all. I can think of at least a couple of dogs that would have loved to choose me. One was a Shih Tzu, the other was a Minature Schnauser. Too bad we weren't in the market for a pet at the time. See your dog subscribed to one of the same philosophies I have, 'Never put inedible garnish on any food product, especially dessert.' Okay, so maybe, 'technically' the wax is edible, but it's not really tasty or encouraged either. The closest thing to a flavored cone I can think of are those ones that they dip in chocolate with either nuts or sprinkles added. I think one of those Unwrapped shows might have had the history of the ice cream cone, but I didn't pay enough attention to notice whether or not they'd ever had any distinct flavors. I know there's some kind of cake that's like a little dish (or was it shortbread?), but I think that most people just use it for strawberries and whipped cream. There's no reason it can't be used with ice cream, though. (As in the Saint, featured in The Christmas Chronicles, but also the name of the forensic entymologist in Tim Downs' Bug Man series)
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Post by Solana on Jul 15, 2011 20:22:16 GMT -5
Aha, so you stock up during the sales for those times? That's a good idea. Maybe you could also have a few hiding places around your home, to keep caches in case of emergencies. Try scattering them, so if one is found, some others might still be safe. (Of course, that carries its dangers too, like the 2nd latest episode of 'Burn Notice' showed, but that's all I'll say in case you haven't seen it yet.) Those dog breeds are absolutely adorable. Our baby girl was a black Lab mixed with a number of other things that only added to her cuteness, but I also have a weakness for a so-ugly-it's-cute pug or a sweet Skye or Yorkie Terrier. Oh, yeah, I forgot about shortcake. My mom is also a fan of putting a scoop of vanilla ice cream on dad's chocolate cake, but thinking on it now, it would also make it very soggy. (Even the regular cones could do that, which is why I went for the sugar ones.) The chocolate, especially if dipped, adds a nice extra layer for the cone to prevent that. I guess it would depend on if a person wanted the ice cream flavor to be the star and the cone to merely be a canvas, or whether they could be symbiotic and create a new combination. Or there's always foregoing the cone altogether and going for a smoothie or shake with ice cream and fruit. Most of the commercial ones are off-limits, but Edy's makes a whole line of sugar-free ice cream and it's a blast experimenting with different fruits for those. (Except for pomegranates. It might be okay if you were starting with something like Pomegranate Soup, but the seed husks DO NOT blend well. No matter how much fiber they're adding...) (Tamora Pierce title, Marsha Mehran title.)
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Post by Ambrienne on Jul 16, 2011 16:52:21 GMT -5
::looks both ways:: You'll never believe what I found. Get a load of this: Sierra Soundtracks DatabaseAnd yes, I'll wait while you squee, just let me put in the earplugs first. And, gee, I feel old now. I don't think I've heard Girl In the Tower for years upon years. And boy, some of those other soundtracks sure look tasty. ::burps a QfG track:: 'Scuse me. ;D You know, I don't even know how many Burn Notice episodes that I'm behind. What with all these different shows starting up at virtually the same time, our family's got enough of a tape backlog to wrap around a Crime Seen several times. And at least one of the tapes has tried to cannibalize itself. Twice. I love pretty much all of the terrier and toy groups. Usually, whenever they have the Westminster Dog show on, I watch those two groups just for the extreme cuteness dose. As for the melting, I think that's why, when they serve a la mode style desserts in restaurants, they don't always put the ice cream directly on the cake. Or they wait 'til the last second. Speaking of that kind of dessert, though... am I the only one who got annoyed by switching bits of silverware and just eats the whole thing with a fork, ice cream and all? It's just as well to leave the seeds out when it comes to fruit. I don't know about the pomegranate specifically, but I know that for both apples and cherries (or was it the peaches?) the seeds/pits are big no-nos... they contain arsenic. You can blame one of the Monk books for allowing me to pick up that bit of trivia. (One of Victoria Laurie's Psychic Eye mysteries, which my mom reads)
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Post by Solana on Jul 16, 2011 18:30:02 GMT -5
(Waits until the process of putting earplugs in is completely Dunn, and even assists.) All good? Okay. COOOOOOOL!!! That is just beautiful. I never knew that some of those games were even Sierra! (Willy Beamish, for example...) Actually, in one of the Space Quests, (V, I think), there's a part where an alien is playing different tunes, and does go into 'Girl in the Tower' at one point. I never knew this latest of your talents. ;D Burping the alphabet is supposed to be impressive, but videogame soundtracks leaves that in the Dust. (And better the tunes than a mug of Dragon's Breath.) Okay, I'll keep from giving any hints about specific storylines from future episodes. I'm still peeved about the Wild Arms II spoiler, and wouldn't want to do the same disservice for anyone else. (Never mind being dragged into a different room on here, it'd be worthy of seppuku.) Youtube is a very dangerous place to spend time looking for cuteness. There used to be a series called 'Puzzled Pugs', where a guy put three pugs on cameras and would ask them questions, and they would cock their heads in different directions in unison. The next one had four pugs. I'm surprised that the screen was able to handle that much cuteness in one shot, but then again, it did handle pictures of my nephew and niece from my bro's wedding, so... I'm not too picky on silverware. Use whatever works, and that includes nothing if it's not needed. My family has torn into cake with only forks (and no cutting slices) on at least one birthday, I regularly eat baked potatoes by picking them up and chowing down, etc. It probably wouldn't go over too well at a fancy dinner, but hey, it's fewer dishes to wash. Hmmm, might have to keep that arsenic trick in mind. Certainly there are more ways of battling with food than the Makai chef tricks or taking turns stirring a cauldron in the heat of battle. (That could be a branch of a food-jutsu style.) (Last name of Laura Dunn from the Sword and Sorceress XVI anthology, title by Elizabeth Bear.)
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Post by Ambrienne on Jul 17, 2011 19:47:18 GMT -5
That's not really one of my talents. I was just carrying my edible music digestion metaphor a little too far. I guess that Sierra Mist.
... ::whistles innocently:: Okay, moving on to jokes made for ages seven and up...
Now, now... Let's not resort to seppuku here. It's just too Plum dangerous. Just imagine, if you don't properly disinfect the blade first, you could die of some horribly disgusting flesh eating disease. Or just think of the legal consequences of performing surgery without a medical license.
Oh yeah, and you might die, too.
It's all due to advances in digital media. Those new cameras are simply impervious to cuteness meltdown. Their operators may not be, but what can you do? There's always a weakpoint in the system somewhere.
Hey, if you do whatever suits your fancy at dinner, it's automatically a fancy dinner, isn't it? Oh, well. At meals we don't usually end up using too many dishes, but we somehow seem to use even more dishes just making one dessert. I guess that's the joy of having to mix dry and wet ingredients, among other things.
Ah, yes. Many a kid is a practitioner of food-jutsu, that discipline honed through long years of boredom and too much lousy cafeteria food. But then, it seems like the only way you can get a black belt is to get your hide tanned in detention. Or at least, that's what would happen if they didn't consider corporal punishment to be child abuse.
(The last name of the main character of quite a lot of Janet Evanovich's books)
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Post by Solana on Jul 17, 2011 20:28:54 GMT -5
Oh, but there are a line of home surgery kits. Their title is Suture Self. (I'll see that Sierra Mist pun and raise you... ) Good point on the flesh-eating disease making things all yucky. When the day comes, I plan on being cremated and having my ashes scattered Over In the Ocean, and it would be a terrible thing to unleash something that nasty in the waters I love. (I figure that if I couldn't live in the seas during life, at least the ashes can. And I hope that Randy Alcorn's heaven guidebook is wrong, and that there WILL be oceans up there.) Speaking of which, have you ever thought about what a first day in heaven will be like? I'm thinking on seeing our puppy dog, (who of course will be checking my hands to see which treats I brought her,) and my grandma will have made the world famous chocolate cake. The regular version. And I'll eat the whole thing, down to the last crumb and dollop of frosting. ;D Ah, yes, the infamous human error. What a person could do is set up a camera and lock it in place on the tripod. That way, if they faint of too much cuteness, the camera could still keep rolling. They might need different announcers for different takes for the same reasons. I've already tossed around a few ideas for food-jutsu for my pair, especially after watching a few episodes of Mythbusters. They were seeing how high flames would get if someone tossed water on a grease fire. Well, start with a pyro with specialized cooking oil, have her light it up, have a hydro then douse it with a deluge, which then equals catastrophe. Learning careful knifework could also lead to increased accuracy with a blade, while the spices... the spices could form a sub-category all their own. (Childrens' book by Marianne Berkes and Jeanette Canyon)
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Post by Ambrienne on Jul 18, 2011 13:21:08 GMT -5
Well, when it all comes down to it, there's going to be, not only a new heaven, but a new earth as well. It says so somewhere in the last few chapters of Isaiah (among other places). I can't claim to know enough to write an entire guidebook to heaven, which I wouldn't even try to do anyway because the human imagination at its finest is woefully inadequate (making any guidebook even less useful than a briefcase full of gold bricks). However, I don't see any real reason why the new earth at the very least couldn't have an ocean... or more than one. I can't say I've never thought about that first day. I'm certainly expecting to take quite a bit of time on my knees (which won't hurt anymore when I try to kneel along with any other obnoxious body part) thanking God and crying tears of relief that it's finally over. Yes, that's right. Tears. It says that there will be no more pain and sorrow, not that there won't be any tears. Otherwise, how could He wipe our tears away? Other than that, I don't know what I'm going to do. Maybe I'll finally get to meet my grandfathers (who were both dead before I was born). And I'd like to see my own first pet, Fluffy, of course. After all, she taught me almost everything I know about relating to humans (which, come to think of it, is probably why I can figure out what dogs are thinking better than I can relating to members of my own species, but there you go...). On another note... You know that tote deal from BaBW? They're having another one soon. At the end of July (like the 29th or so), it'll be a 'get this for $20' with an additional $30 purchase. I can't tell what all of the items are in the picture (at least scent-wise, anyway), but other than the bag itself, it'll include a shower gel, body lotion, and fragrance mist in Coconut Passionfruit, a Guava Grapefruit Blast anti-bacterial soap, a mini anti-bacterial (can't determine the scent on this one), a lip gloss (undeterminable), a True Blue mini softening hand lotion (kind of ironic since its container is pink), one of those things that they call a Scent Portable (it's shaped like a ladybug, but other than that, it's another scent undetermined), a candle (I think it's a mini, can't tell what scent), and one of those bath things that looks like it's a close cousin to the hair scrunchie. Yeah, I'll be getting it (surprise, surprise). After all, I know a good deal when I smell one. Oh, and if you've got any room left after your chocolate cake consumption, would you like to try a batch of my Caramel Chocolate Orange Cinnamon balls? I'm sure heaven doesn't have any inconveniences like Nestle discontinuing my favorite type of specialty chips. ;D Do you think that, if the cameraman faints, the pugs will just lick them to death or until they wake up (whichever comes first)? That thing about the fire and water kind of reminds me of something that was somewhere in the Quest for Glory series. If you were a magician, at one point you had to do alternating casts of fire and ice in order to make something shatter. Here's and advanced food-jutsu technique from the spice division: Breath of the Infernal. It could also be known as mace/pepper spray, only with an extra kick that would never be allowed into the hands of a civilian by any government that was even halfway sane. And any halfway sane civilian would never want it in the hands of their government, either. Ah, well. (name of a fantasy e-book I picked up on my Kindle a while back, just emphasis)
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Post by Solana on Jul 18, 2011 20:17:27 GMT -5
Oooh, forgot about the new earth part. A beautifully sparkling Pacific ocean, with all of its coral reefs in full glory. (And hey, maybe we won't need to breathe air anymore, either.) All of the colors we know and probably so many more we don't, all woven together in a living organism carefully crafted for untold times. Maybe the now extinct species will be there, too. Can you imagine being able to find each new species that has been or will ever be, and study that much larger ecosystems for all eternity? (Holds up arms dramatically.)
(Crickets chirp and a tumbleweed blows by.)
Of course there can be tears of joy, tears of love, tears of being overcome by the sheer beauty of what we're seeing and being reunited with loved ones. There's no words for the thought of coming face to face with our Lord. I'm also looking forward to leaving the fibro behind. Being able to wake up feeling rested and not in pain for a change, being able to eat whatever looks good instead of checking the ingredients first, and not having to stop and rest or have anything ache. It'll be a good thing. ;D
Yes, I'd love to sample your Caramel Chocolate Orange Cinnamon balls after finishing cakey goodness. (I think you posted the recipe here one time?) Tell you what, I'll swap you a batch for one of the family chocolate cakes. And then, (after dessert, of course) I'll go for a batch of orange chicken. Or maybe stick to Just Desserts the whole first day, we'll see.
Oh, dear, my friends are so terrible for my wallet, with getting tempted twice with BaBW goodness. That Scent Portable would probably come in handy for trips, (though maybe not on the airplane in case anyone has asthma or sensitivities) but perhaps a hotel room. I've never seen the hair scrunchie bath cousin, but will certainly have to check it out, if only to see what exactly it is.
What kind of breed was Fluffy? She sounds like a wonderful mentor. It's really amazing how much animals can teach us about relations, and how much more intelligent than people they are/can be.
(Mary Daheim mystery)
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Post by Ambrienne on Jul 19, 2011 12:57:59 GMT -5
Just keep the crickets away from me, and we'll all be fine.
Yeah, I did post the recipe... such as it was. But when you say things in it like, 'I just keep sprinkling the cinnamon until the surface is covered', it's not like it belongs in Betty Crocker.
And, if that weren't enough, another new scent is coming out. They're calling it Paris Amour. If you check the site for it, you can read the three fragrance notes for yourself. I understand two of the three notes, but the third... I can't claim to have ever smelled that.
So, if I end up hating it, does that mean I don't love Paris?
She was a Westie. I know the name sounds like a kid would have done it, but it was my grandmother. The more sophisticated of my two grandmothers, too. Go figure.
(Sure, you don't read it from cover to cover, but it is a book.)
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Post by Solana on Jul 20, 2011 21:46:03 GMT -5
Deal, I'll handle the crickets. Eh, I wouldn't worry about your description not fitting in a typical cookbook. People have different ideas about cooking, from having a precise set of instructions to follow to the letter to throwing a bunch of ingredients together to try a wacky new combo and everything in between. Besides, maybe the precise amount of cinnamon needed wouldn't fit into a nice fraction of a spoon. Maybe the balls are different sizes. Maybe people have more or less liking for cinnamon. A true Kitchen Princess takes her customers'/friends' needs in account and adjusts accordingly. (Checks out the new scent from Bath and Body Works.) Huh... pink champagne? Never heard of it. Maybe it's blended with strawberries or pink grapefruit? The other two ingredients sound pretty yummy, but with this one... I'd have to sniff it first. (Too bad that there's not a way of testing those over the internet first. Yet.) Hey, that's where the time-traveling bathroom could come into play! Order whatever sounds good, and if it doesn't work out and we can't find anyone to pawn it off on who appreciates a differing scent, just pop back and leave a note against it. No more buyer's remorse! ;D And if it comes to that- nah, you don't hate Paris, you just choose to appreciate other areas of its magnificence. (I'd love to see what they could do with Egypt, personally...) Maybe the little cutie fit the name so perfectly that it could not have been anything else. Westies are quite fluffy and sweet, so it sounds like a good fit. ;D (Manga series.)
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Post by Ambrienne on Jul 22, 2011 13:13:24 GMT -5
Yeah, I know at least one person that doesn't like cinnamon at all. It makes me wonder what's wrong with her tastebuds. But then, there are things that I don't like that plenty of other people do, so there you have it. And of course it's not limited to food. One of those things that I hate: People going out shopping with absolutely no intention of buying anything. Mainly because, if I'm going to get dragged around on a walking marathon, I want it to be worth it. It's one thing if you don't find what you're looking for. Because hey, even the best of stores can have such a Steal of a Deal that things sell out before a person gets there. My dad's never heard of the pink champagne either, and he was actually in Paris when he was a teenager as part of a family vacation. Maybe it's some modern thing someone came up with just so they could try to make it appeal more to ladies. ...You know... aren't tulips supposed to be a symbol of friendship, not love? Ah well. If it ends up smelling good, they can call it anything they want to... unless it's something that would make some people want to wash others' mouths out with soap. I wish I could do that traveling bathroom trick to save myself unnecessary mall/store walking, too. But then, I'd have to be careful not to cause an error of Date Warp proportions. I don't want to have endless copies of myself or other people who've made the same, or similar, mistakes having to bail me out in the end. Let's see... If I had to give Egypt a scent, it would probably have to have some exotic spices and maybe a trace of incense. Something that made you think, mysterious and alluring. Yes, certainly Fluffy was a more appropriate name than calling the first Get Smart villain Mr. Big. But then, in that case, it was supposed to be a joke. (The title of a gem related mystery that I think was written by Ginny Andrews) (if you want to get some idea of what I'm referring to, check this out: Date Warp GameYou could just play the Youtube link there, but you can hear the theme a whole lot better if you download the demo. Well, I think the theme is cool, anyway.)
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Post by Solana on Jul 23, 2011 10:20:25 GMT -5
Cinnamon is a spice that requires a bit more mastery. I don't like a heavy hand with it, like with cinnamon gum or toothpaste. With pie or cider, Iwan only a little to enhance instead of overpowering the apple flavor. Has she tried anything from your kitchen with it? As for shopping... ah, might be guilty of this one. A lot of times, it can be for research for future present buying for others, or looking at things and talking myself out of buying anything extra. It can also be helpful for putting together birthday or holiday lists for the future, or researching things for characters for stories. (A bit of a stretch? Maybe...) Well, I think in some cases that friendship is a different type of love compared to romantic. It could also be describing a love of life, of beauty, of the little things. (But if people do need to wash their mouths out with soap, they won't have to go too far to find some!) Another danger with the bathroom trip would be to not create an endless loop, a la Groundhog Day. Then one would have to do the mall walking again and again and again... But even the bad or annoying experiences can be valuable. Could a person go through it, get the lesson, then pop back without having to go through it again, or would that be a paradox? Mmm, that sounds lovely for Egypt. I think Rose attar is pretty common there, too. Ooh, some day I'll just have to go down there, dive into the coral reefs, take some more bellydance lessons from the professionals, then stock up on their own perfumes. (V.C. Andrews title, character in Stephen Lawhead's 'Hood', another V.C. Andrews title.)
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Post by Ambrienne on Jul 24, 2011 15:23:41 GMT -5
No, she hasn't. But hey... sometimes you really just don't like something. Maybe there's some personal association involved that makes cinnamon especially detestable. I usually do my window shopping from the computer, using Windows, funny enough. Or sometimes, when I'm out for a different reason, I'll see things along the way that I store in my mind for later. At least... that's what I do if it looks like there's no danger of whatever it is running out. Otherwise, even if I have to store it away somewhere for half a year, I'll Ran away with it. Yeah, I figure they're going with one of the Greek distinctions between different love types to stretch it there. It works, sort of. But really, when people think of Paris, it seems to be more of the 'love love' type (to steal an expression Japanese manga/anime). And yes, not only will the soap be within reach but, no matter how it tastes, your breath will smell nice afterwards. And here a person could think that sweet smelling words was just a figure of speech. By the way, I figured out what type of mini anti-bac was in the summer tote. You know how they have to come up with these new cutesy themes all the time to keep the mini bacs seeming fresh and fun? Well, I think the title on this one is supposed to be something like Best Friends 4 Ever. The good news is, the actual scent should be good. It's described as Coconut Punch. Gosh, it's almost like they're going with a coconut theme for this tote or something. Well, except for the larger bacterial soap. And maybe those other items I couldn't identify. But hey, half a coconut is better than no coconut, right? Maybe there's a failsafe built into the time traveling bathroom. All you have to do is press a certain button before you flush the toilet, and all your temporal flux problems are solved. Maybe it won't be a paradox if you go to a parallel universe. Of course, other 'you's may have the same idea. You could end up being in a class by yourselves. But then... at least roll call should be easy. (The heroine of Case Closed manga/anime)
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