Current Posts
Tuesday, September 04, 2007
A Thousand Times Yes
New York City is the Land of the Terrible Bathroom.
You'd think, even in a building which we were told was the premiere diamond building in the WORLD, they'd have a restroom larger than my linen closet.
Tiny, dark, dirty, smelly, mirrorless; I found then everywhere. In the diamond building, in the fancy hotel where we stayed, in the delis, the Starbucks, and the museums. Everywhere. However, terrible bathrooms--and numerous billboards declaring New York the Capital of Everything--aside, Greg and I had a fabulous trip.
We ate at a restaurant I later discovered was described as "achingly cool." It was very tasty, but the atmosohere was definitely "trendy with a capital T".
We rode in a pedicab--bicycle rickshaw--through Times Square: a roller coaster on three wheels, the crazy driver wove in and out of traffic, running red lights, at crazy speeds (for a bike carrying three people!).
We found a chocolate shop I've been wanting to try for ages, and got to try Mo's Bacon Chocolate Bar, among other things. :)
We toured the Metropolitan Museum with one of Greg's oldest friends from elementary school, and then walked through the beautiful Central Park, stopping to see a street acrobatic squad (one guy did a flip over FIVE PEOPLE AT ONCE), and a wierd guy dressed in a gold leather loincloth and chains who danced, sang opera, and played the violin ALL AT THE SAME TIME (and fairly well too).
We saw Spamalot on Broadway, which was Super Fabulous (I'm not dead yet!).
We walked through SoHo and discovered a tile mosaic company that does huge oriental-style rugs IN TILE that look frikkin awesome.
And we visited the diamond district for a very special appointment. :) :)
--
So how do you write about the most important moment in your life to date? On the one hand, its a very personal, and private, memory. But on the other hand, sometimes I just want to shout the news from the rooftops, I am so giddy. :) So here it is:
GREG ASKED ME TO MARRY HIM!
Coupling Quote of the Day:
Jane: You know... I went out with Steve for six years...
Susan: No, you didn't. You went out with him for four years. I checked.
Jane: Oh... well it seemed longer.
Susan: Yeah! Yeah! Of course it seemed longer. I, myself, have been going out with him since the 12th century. Or possibly since last week - it's hard to keep track. Because how are you supposed to measure time with the man that you want to spend the rest of your life with? What would make sense? Centuries? Nanoseconds?
Sally: Eggs.
// posted by Anya @ 10:20 PM (permalink) (2 comments)
Tuesday, August 07, 2007
Weather Report: Mostly Sunny
I realized recently I never posted a follow-up to my November doom-and-gloom post on my eye condition. Thankfully, a month after I stopped the CellCept treatment, my liver counts dropped back to normal. Tthe CellCept had some good effects too: previously, I was on a roughly 6 month cycle of steroid injections, but it took 12 months (including those on CellCept) after my last series for my right eye to have a minor flare up, and my left eye is still free of inflammation. My cataracts have also not worsened at all. So I feel pretty good about everything right now, and somewhat optimistic about my future prospects. The long-term outlook hasn't changed, but its a lot less scarier.
Thank you all for your support when I needed it most; it really meant a lot to me, and I don't know where I'd be without you.
Coupling Quote of the Day:
Jane: I don't like to label everything in my medicine cabinet. You'd never have any surprises.
Steve: This week's top tip from Children's Hour.
// posted by Anya @ 8:59 PM (permalink) (0 comments)
Sunday, August 05, 2007
Brings a whole new meaning to the phrase "sunk cost"...
You always think things like this only happen to other people.
I accidentally flushed my cell phone down a McDonald's toilet.
No, I'm not kidding.
And when I say "flushed", I don't mean, "dropped it in the bowl". I mean, "dropped it in the bowl after it had already started flushing, so it was instantly sucked down the pipes by the amazing force of Ronald's plumbing." So it's long gone. It's probably stuck in a u-bend somewhere under Centreville right now.
I'm still having trouble figuring out if I should laugh, or cry. Mostly, I've been laughing. I needed a new phone anyway, so this was a great excuse to upgrade.
To add insult to injury though, I went to the store to pick out a new phone today, and after about 2+ hours of agonising decision-making, I finally picked out the one I wanted, only to be told that it was the one model/color combination they didn't have in stock.
Anyway, please meet my new (as of tomorrow) phone: the Black Pearl (hahahahahaha <-- evil laugh).
Yes, I'm going to have to pimp it out with Pirates of the Caribbean ringtones and wallpaper.
Coupling Quote of the Day:
Jeff: Steve, do you know what I call this kind of woman? You know, the total "can't get rid of".
Steve: Is this gonna be really tasteless? Am I gonna be ashamed to be your friend?
Jeff: It's a technical term. It's just a harmless expression...
Steve: Hit me.
Jeff: "unflushable"!
Steve: Turn around Jeff, walk away!
Jeff: You know, because they keep bobbing around!
Steve: No, no, no, Jeff! GO! GO! ... Don't look back. GO!
// posted by Anya @ 8:20 PM (permalink) (1 comments)
Friday, August 03, 2007
Anya's Sticky Toffee Guinness Pudding
Another recipe to add to my "bastardized" collection (see here and here for previous installments): I recently realized I've never posted my sticky toffee pudding recipe, created after our Ireland trip, from several different internet recipes. I'm remedying that now--enjoy!
Cake (Pudding) Ingredients:
4 ounces (1 stick) unsalted butter
1 1/4 cups firmly packed dark brown sugar
2 medium eggs, beaten
1 1/2 cups plain flour
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
7 fluid ounces Guinness stout (or other stout / dark beer)
2/3 cup cocoa powder
Toffee Sauce Ingredients:
6 ounces (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter
1 1/4 cups firmly packed dark brown sugar
1/2 cup heavy cream
Directions:
Grease and line pan (I usually use a square brownie pan), and preheat the oven to 350F degrees. Cream butter and sugar together. Gradually beat in the eggs. Sift the flour, baking powder and baking soda into a separate bowl. Slowly whisk beer into cocoa powder in a third bowl, adding only spoonfuls of liquid at a time to prevent clumping. Carefully fold in alternate quantities of flour and cocoa to butter/sugar mixture. Spread batter into pan and bake for 30-35 minutes. Leave to cool in pan for 10 minutes before slicing.
While the cake is cooling, melt the butter in a small saucepan and add the sugar and cream. Simmer gently for 3 minutes. Place cake slices in individual bowls. Poke the top of each cake with the tines of a fork and pour sauce on top. Serve immediately.
Alternately, you can make the cake and sauce ahead of time and refrigerate. The sauce will thinken significantly but should not harden (more than a crust on top) or separate. Before serving, let the cake warm to room temperature, and gently reheat the sauce on the stovetop.
Coupling Quote of the Day: "I'm an emotional vegetarian. I know a lot of vegetarians and we tend to like the same films." - Jane
// posted by Anya @ 5:57 PM (permalink) (0 comments)
Tuesday, July 31, 2007
Swimming with Jesus
The "Christ of the Abyss Statue" in Pennekamp State Park...
and Sharks!
Greg and I recently got back from a fabulous diving trip with my family in Key Largo.
We had a great time, and my dad took some awesome pictures with his swanky new camera. Here are a few of my favorites:
An awesome squid shot
A sea turle
A flamingo tounge (don't ask me what that is...)
And a cute fish.
You can see more on my dad's website, lesterknutsen.com.
In other news, I read the final Harry Potter book in 7.5 hours. No I am not kidding. I am a dork.
I've also recently determined that I wil be THIRTY when the final Harry Potter movie comes out. Never before have I felt such a distinctive indicator of my age. Oh god...
Coupling Quote of the Day:
Susan: Sally, has it ever occurred to you, that age brings wisdom and greater confidence?
Sally: Susan... Age brings you more to shave.