Honey, she is twisted!

Love this video!!!

2010-07-24T20:24:00.001-04:00

I have been finding it too hot and too busy to blog but just have to share this fun video:

Mommy Rhapsody

HAPPY BIRTHDAY AMERICA!!!

2010-07-04T12:17:00.000-04:00

And to compete with the fireworks.....

I am guilty of do as I say and not as I do

2010-07-01T07:45:00.003-04:00

But this is too important to not share -- with all the things going, from weather problems to terrorist threats, be Ready, Get a Kit, Make a Plan and Stay Informed.

Recommended Items to Include in a Basic Emergency Supply Kit:

Water, one gallon of water per person per day for at least three days, for drinking and sanitation
Food, at least a three-day supply of non-perishable food
Battery-powered or hand crank radio and a NOAA Weather Radio with tone alert and extra batteries for both
Flashlight and extra batteries
First aid kit
Whistle to signal for help
Dust mask, to help filter contaminated air and plastic sheeting and duct tape to shelter-in-place
Moist towelettes, garbage bags and plastic ties for personal sanitation
Wrench or pliers to turn off utilities
Can opener for food (if kit contains canned food)
Local maps
Cell phone with chargers, inverter or solar charger

Videos that I just have to share!!!

2010-06-28T09:00:00.001-04:00

I STILL have not gotten back into the swing of blogging

2010-06-26T20:04:00.003-04:00

Blame Facebook. Well some of the games on Facebook.

So - my son has officially moved out of elementary school and will be starting high school in September. I am looking forward to be part of the mothers group supporting the boys and the school.

I have some new interests. I want to build my own trike (both a delta and a tadpole style) as well as a recumbent two wheel bike. I have my angle grinder (no discs yet) and face shield -- gotta save for the mig welder (well unless I find a kind soul who will do my welding for a reasonable price).

Why do I want to do this? Because it looks fun -- just check out Atomic Zombie. I LOVE some of the plans! And it is more reasonable to learn to build than to try to buy - even with purchasing equipment like the welder.

Add to that the fact that my son has decided to do the BSA Cycling merit badge. There is plenty of mileage to cover and someone has to go with him!!

I have some items arriving that will help me get my own cycling efforts jump started - I bought this trike conversion set from a seller on ebay after consulting the folks on Atomic Zombie.

It has been better part of a year since I was making bentos for myself. I have determined I need to get back to it -- I have not been satisfied at all with the other options I have been toying with.

Hope everyone who comes across this is doing well - and I look forward to chatting more soon!

World MS Day

2010-05-26T23:33:00.000-04:00

Beautiful Day - English from MSIF on Vimeo.

I have not quite gotten back into the swing of blogging

2010-05-26T11:54:00.004-04:00

Facebook keeps too much of my attention at times as do some blogs/forums.

And NOT bento blogs!!!

OMG!!!

Well I have finally found something that encourages me to exercise outdoors -- the Trikke!!!

And now I want to learn to build/modify my bicycle (which has gone unused for who knows how long). I want a trike to alternate with my trikke.

I like these kinds of projects because they allow me to exercise my brain (in planning/learning/researching) and hopefully will get me out more.

I have to organize the trike information first --

till I post again - take care of yourself!

Ok - being back to blogging is going slow

2010-05-05T17:06:00.003-04:00

Lots of things going on in my life - most I don't feel comfortable talking about but isn't that what life can be like?

This past weekend my husband was very busy because the Galway Association was involved with a social on the yacht Cornucopia Majesty. Approximately 900 guests and from what I have heard it was lovely night to go around Manhattan - good people, good food, good music. And all for the Galway Gaelic Football team!

So that was Friday, then there was assorted running around on Saturday and Sunday we all went to see the Galway team play NY at Gaelic Park.

So I am over the hump of resting up from last weekend and gearing up for this coming weekend (maybe see a movie Friday, go to a 1st Communion Saturday and then Mass at St. Patrick's Cathedral and a communion breakfast on Sunday).

In the middle of all this I have decided to purge my diet of as much sugar as I can and as many chemicals as I can. AND I am trying to excercise -- I have discovered trikking! Today I was out for maybe 15 minutes and did about 0.6 mi on a local bike path. I am still learning but I am getting there!

Here are some videos of others enjoying trikking:

I am back!!! Did you miss me??

2010-04-27T08:40:00.002-04:00

Life is such a funny fellow.

Lots of stress, lots of things to do, little time or interest left over for blogging.

It is hard to decide what way to go with a blog and it wants to evolve into a demanding beastie.

I have no energy for beasties.

So going to go back to being twisted - sharing the odd things I take up, find, enjoy etc.

Like trikking!!!

So will see you soon - have a dentist appointment this morning and going to look into positive changes to make to set up of the blog.

Bye for now!

Simple materials and techniques - Incredible results!

2010-03-16T08:18:00.004-04:00

If like me you have not heard of the Chalk Guy before you will be amazed at his work:

Artist is Justin Beever

These are drawn on a FLAT sidewalk surface

This video speaks for itself

2010-03-11T03:54:00.000-05:00

Sorry to neglect everything!!!

2010-03-08T10:02:00.010-05:00

Been on an emotional rollercoaster.

But that stuff is boring.

Here is what I want to do as I move forward -

Restart regularly blogging
Restart using bentos
START cooking more for ME and less for husband and son
(not as self centered as it may initially sound)
Restart making some of my clothes
Restart taking photos of projects

Now to more recent events -- this past Saturday I attended a get together with folks from my EIGHTH (8th) GRADE CLASS!!!

Some of us arrived earlier than others!

Here are the very brave men who came to see the girls they knew all those years ago!!!

HERE IS EVERYONE THAT CAME!!! It was a great night and thanks to all attendees!!!

Still need a way to help Haiti?

2010-02-03T15:56:00.004-05:00

Even though it is neither Xmas nor July I am including this for more plushies!

Ways to help folks get potable water and a nice PSI

2010-01-27T10:45:00.003-05:00

From the Five & Alive site:

Program Spotlight:
Safe Water Clubs

Rose is a mother of five in rural Malawi:
“My daughter Lucy came home one day from school and asked me if we cleaned our water. I did not understand what she was talking about. We get our water from the stream nearby and we used to drink it freely. My children had frequent bouts of diarrhea which forced them to miss school and often required us to walk many miles to the clinic. Lucy explained that she was joining a Safe Water Club at her school so she could teach people the importance of cleaning their water and washing hands. Lucy showed me how to pour a packet of powder into our water jug before we drink it. Now, my children are happy and healthy. They have not missed a day of school due to diarrhea since we started using this product. After learning about what Lucy and her classmates were doing at the school, the other parents and I started talking about what we could do to keep our children healthy at school. The community banded together to build real bathrooms at the school. Now our children are healthy and happy. I feel very good knowing that I am helping my family and allowing them to live better lives.”

See more about making a donation here -

$ 5.00 can provide a long-lasting insecticide-treated net to a child.

$ 25.00 can buy life-saving pneumonia treatment antibiotics that will
save the lives of more than 100 children.

$ 50.00 can distribute enough oral rehydration salts to save 500 children's lives.

$100.00 can provide more than 35 families with safe drinking water for one year.

Here is another video about the process being used:

Displaying the only video by Five & Alive.

Ashley Judd PUR Water Demonstration

Ashley Judd demonstrates how one of the Five & Alive products has the ability to change the world!

Now it is time for a game

2010-01-26T10:20:00.000-05:00

Do you do crafts? Threadbanger has started a project and request to help Haiti earthquake victims

2010-01-25T14:42:00.005-05:00

DIYers UNITE! HELP HAITI! How-to make a Baby Blanket

http://www.threadbanger.com/tb-projects/episode/THR_20100125/diyers-unite-help-haiti-how-to-make-a-baby-blanket

Ok - I still can't put the video here - but follow the link!

ok I hate being disabled

2010-01-22T12:34:00.002-05:00

I try so hard each day to do things here but either I have no attention span, no endurance or no energy.

I am trying to do some serious cleaning again here in the house - of course we might have guests - I am soo screwed and no one here understands.

thanks for listening all

THIS IS A BRILLIANT IDEA!!!

2010-01-16T07:56:00.007-05:00

How many times did you ever wish you could do more to help but couldn't in these tough economic times????

How many times did you groan (or scream) that things you used never had 'good' coupon savings and all this other stuff did??

Well here is a great idea I just saw on the news:

http://abclocal.go.com/wabc/video?id=7214218

I AM SOO SORRY - I CAN'T GET THE VIDEO TO PLAY HERE BUT GO TO THE SITE TO SEE IT!!!

READ FULL STORY

What changes has making bentos brought to your life??

2010-01-12T11:28:00.002-05:00

For some odd reason this question came to my mind this morning.
Before I developed Multiple Sclerosis MOST of the best ideas I had came because of strange reasons. I firmly believe I the fates gave me this disease so I would not take over the world.

Anyway. Making bentos has brought many things into my life - AND I AM NOT TALKING ABOUT MY FAIRLY SERIOUS COLLECTION OF GEAR AND BOXES!!!

Making bentos opened my eyes and mind to

blogs
doing my own blogging
playing with my digital camera
posting pictures of my bentos on the web here and on certain groups
revising my views on food
renewed reading about nutrition
improving my general plating skills for meals at home as well as meals I bring to other places
encouraged me to try other cuisines - especially Asian ones
encouraged far greater variety in my diet as well as greater willingness to try new things
made me bolder about visiting shops I would never go into before

How about you?? While you are thinking about it - take care and keep warm!!!!

eilish

Coldest weather in a quarter century or more and Ireland is not ready for it!

2010-01-07T09:31:00.002-05:00

My husband is from Co. Galway Ireland. He regularly checks the internet copy of the Irish papers for sports articles BUT this weather has him deviating from his usual pattern.

A snowman is left out in the cold at Trinity College, Dublin

Dempsey told to 'come out of hiding' as chaos reigns

From the article:

"Met Eireann is predicting the big freeze that has ground the country to a halt will continue for another week at least.

But despite the deepening crisis, neither Taoiseach Brian Cowen or any of his senior ministers were available last night to outline what the Government is doing to help stranded motorists and homeowners living in isolated areas.

There is also no national emergency plan in place to co-ordinate relief and rescue efforts across the country amid growing fears for the safety of elderly people living alone who are struggling to heat their homes."

New Books for the New Year

2010-01-06T10:07:00.005-05:00

Two different areas - scripture study and cooking.

They literally just arrived (the scripture study books on Monday, the cooking related on yesterday).

Here are the pictures and links to the information on Amazon.com (my FAVORITE place!):

OK there are days I can't format worth a damn! Hope your day is going better than mine!

(AND I scheduled a couple of doctor appointments for tomorrow and the next couple of weeks - now the real trick will be to make sure I get to them!)

Guess I have another addition to my New Year to do list

2010-01-04T12:49:00.003-05:00

and that is to blog more regularly!

Today while doing different things in the house the morning shows were filled with slightly different segments on the classic new year diet efforts - but all came down to stop doing what you have been doing!!!!

A big emphasis today was about 'detoxifying' or stop sabotaging yourself. It was good to see this right up front as prep work and giving some pretty reasonable recommendations that next to none of us could say "that won't work here" to.

GMA had You on a Diet: Book from Doctors Mehmet Oz and Michael Roizen on Eating Healthy - ABC News

And if you can find it - my favorite was the one on Rachel Ray regarding the 400 Calorie Solution makeover of one woman's home.

Hope you have a good day!

I forgot how nice it was to make bentos!

2010-01-03T15:33:00.003-05:00

I really have to get back into it.

My resolutions for the new year:

1) start exercising - simple things that don't aggravate the MS and include some simple cardio work

2) use my lovely lovely bento gear more!!

3) explore cooking -- I have been inspired by the movie "Julie and Julia", so inspired I bought a couple of Julia Childs cooking books/dvds

4) I will do more menu planning even if only for me as my husband gets weird about 'planned' meals as if they are not fresh or something

5) I will set up and go to all the assorted doctor appointments I have avoided even though I hate the thought of it (guess being in the maintaining phase of chronic illness can cause that feeling - you go and go and nothing gets better - well - might as well check up on areas I have ignored)

6) I will start sewing again - even if it is just small projects a la Threadbanger

7) I will work on knitting again - both by hand and machine

8) and continued from late last year -- I will continue to purge excess from here!

Wish me luck!!!!

Hope all who stumble upon this site have had a good set of holidays and are ready for the year to come!

Santa baby done by Shakira!

2009-12-26T06:23:00.001-05:00

MERRY XMAS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2009-12-25T07:43:00.002-05:00

For your festivities -- a nice reminder of the reason for the season and a fun musical piece -- ENJOY!!!!!

I am bummed

2009-11-27T10:29:00.002-05:00

Several relationships going thru changes.

My mom fell recently -- good news no major bones broken and for a 79 yo diabetic she is healing well - bad news - my mom fell recently. (I know someone out there understood that one)

No bentos lately - probably because I am bummed.

I have had some medical tests done - no results yet -- waiting does not help being bummed.

Ok - enough venting - thanks for listening!

I am not worthy!!!

2009-11-24T11:46:00.002-05:00

Or some folks have gotten to the bottom of the list of blogs they follow!!!

I have been given my first award!

So in compliance with the award...

So here is what I have to do next…….
The rules are to state 7 things about yourself and then to pass this on to 7 other bloggers.

I currently fighting with God and this time it is personal
I am way too fond of all things bento
I love Boy Scouts though sometimes it does not seem to love me back
I am finding an assortment of friends from my past on Facebook
I LOVE LOVE LOVE the Facebook game Treasure Madness - and I need to get back to digging!
I am trying to digest the recent reinvention of the program The Prisoner
I plan to start doing cross stitch again

Now I will pass this over to…..

Escape from Obesity

A Year of CrockPotting

Texasmomof4

Lunches Fit For a Kid

new2bento

Eating in a box

Disposable Aardvarks Inc.

Solar Panels at Low Cost – Buy Solar Energy with the Purchasing Power of your Community

2009-11-09T14:06:00.000-05:00

Solar Panels at Low Cost – Buy Solar Energy with the Purchasing Power of your Community

BRING OUT YOUR OLD XMAS LIGHTS!

2009-11-09T11:37:00.003-05:00

And bring them to Home Depot to recycle - (this started on 11/5 - I only saw an ad for it today)

Turn in your old Xmas lights for a $3 off LED Xmas lights. Price is $5.97 - $3.00 coupon = $2.97. Limit 5 per customer.

Here's the fine print:

Valid 11/5/09 through 11/15/09 and redeemable for a $3 discount on a single receipt in-store purchase of LED lights at participating U.S., Puerto Rico and U.S. Virgin Islands The Home Depot stores. Receive the discount for each string recycled (limit 5 discounts per customer). Offer not valid on (a) prior purchases or (b) purchases from any The Home Depot affiliate store. Offer may not be combined with any other offer, promotion or special incentive program or used as payment on any The Home Depot credit account

OMG is this too cute???!!!?????

2009-11-04T11:38:00.003-05:00

(see posting at From Japan with Love blog)

Definitely not for manly man shih tzu but still soo cute!

I have so wanted to do more with dehydrating foods.....

2009-10-30T15:05:00.003-04:00

It started with looking at ideas for Boy Scouts, then to manage some health related problems - and of course there is all the stuff that the husband grows in his garden each year that I fail to find uses for!

I have several camping related books - because I am part of my son's Boy Scout troop - and love the idea of rehydrating foods rather than carting ice etc when we go camping.

I have always known about dehydrating foods but never really got into it. I have one of the Ronco dryers and it works ok but the grill type levels makes stuff leak or drop thru and who stores round things ????

So here we have one of the bloggers I regularly follow - Stephanie of Keeper of the Home fame - offering a fabulous give away!!

OMG I soooo lust for this prize......

So this is my instruction to you, my readers, for the weekend --

1) Read Stephanie's review of this item over at Keeper of the Home
2) Cross your fingers for me that I might win!

Ok - and enter if you feel the need to compete with me .....

LOL!

Ohh I am a follower of the W.A.Y.!!!!

2009-10-22T08:44:00.002-04:00

Binging on Weird Al Yankovic (W.A.Y.) videos on iTunes - loading up the iMac and the iPods/Touch.

Eat It. White and Nerdy. Living with a Hernia. It's All about the Pentiums. Fat. Amish Paradise. Craiglist. Ricky. Ok - even The Saga Begins (actually my son likes this one but it is brilliant Weird Al all the same.

Man - I hate being sick

2009-10-20T10:18:00.003-04:00

I am not sure what is the matter but this has been going on for a couple of weeks. I might have to give in and go to the doctor.

Why would I have hesitated before this? Well, when one has several chronic illnesses it is hard to get the attention one needs for treatment. It is not anyone's fault - if you have history of chronic pain or something else that DX can mask finding the cause of today's pain.

My current theory is that I either have a low dose of flu or an infection that started one place (I am currently blaming my sinuses) and has now gone systemic.

Feeling worse than crap did not stop me from going to three open houses for the high schools my son is considering attending.

The coffee concentrate is ok - I am looking forward to trying a different brand of coffee for the next batch - and maybe use a smaller amount too! Hmm - down side of going with smaller amount is what do you do with the left over coffee grinds if you don't like it?? Oh well - I will play it by ear.

Now that I have checked in I think I will curl up and whimper for a while.

Crummy week and facing busy weekend -

2009-10-16T10:54:00.004-04:00

Updates - my son did not care for the coffee - he did not hate it but he did not like it. He has not like any of the coffee we have made at home - not sure why. The husband has not tried it yet.

I have spent most of the week in a near fetal position due to pain and fighting off a possible cold/flu. I am upright (for now) but babying myself because there are 3 high school open houses this weekend.

How do you fight colds/flus? My family and I use this product Oscillococcinum and have always found it to be extremely helpful.

Track the Flu

E-mail Flu Alerts

ok - my first batch of coffee concentrate

2009-10-13T13:30:00.003-04:00

They say it lasts up to 2 weeks .

It was messy but may have been worth it! - coffee update

2009-10-13T12:37:00.003-04:00

My first try - only a few errors (like not putting in one of the pieces in that top part for filtering). As you will now see there was A LOT of grounds that got thru the first filtering.

But I managed to filter this coffee liquid (the sites call it coffee concentrate) once more then tried it out. I took 3 oz of the concentrate and added 5 oz of boiling water, added some sugar and milk -- then tasted it.....

And it is not too bad!!

I will put the rest of the concentrate in another container, have the kid and the husband try some coffee using the concentrate and post their feedback!

Try cold brewing coffee -- you might like it!

This video will give you an idea about cold brewing coffee

2009-10-13T10:10:00.005-04:00

This is to a specific maker of cold brew gear called Toddy - it looks a bit like my set up but is much more expensive!

This morning I started to drain the soggy mess of coffee grinds - and found I did not really think this part out! I also learned I forgot to add one of the parts to my set up. But that did NOT stop me (made a small mess but that was not too bad). Using a full can of coffee makes for a LOT of wet grounds.

So I have now dumped the grounds, washed the top part, put the missing filter IN this time and am getting ready to re-filter my coffee!

While I work on this some more to get it to a drinkable state here are some more videos on cold brewed coffee and easier ways to do it - especially if you want to try smaller batches!

How To Cold Brew

How to Make Cold Coffee (low tech and good for small batches)

Getting ready to try cold brewing coffee

2009-10-12T18:00:00.005-04:00

Cold brewing coffee basically comes down to letting coffee grounds soak for 8 to 12 hours (either at room temperature or in the fridge. I accidently discovered the process when I found a Ronco product in the local Walgreens.

So as soon as I finish posting this I will go wash up the product and set up my coffee grounds to soak.

For a better explanation about how to do cold brewing read this.

Cofee!!!!??????

2009-10-11T12:00:00.003-04:00

I used to love to drink coffee. I think my mother gave it to me in my bottle as a baby. Ohh for the days when my parents and the 5 of us kids gathered for breakfast and it always included coffee!

The first time my family went to Ireland I was a major problem because I would not drink tea but wanted coffee. Now in the homes of my various aunts this was not too much of an issue but if we were out?? My parents pretty much had to sneak some of their coffee to us in restaurants!

But I am older now. Sometimes the acid (ok most times) bothers me so I drifted further and further away from coffee.

BUT I stumbled upon information about cold brewing coffee!!

Think I will set up my first batch tonight - and give you details tomorrow.

But for today -- I dragged out my son's camp percolator and gave it a try.

All three of us had a reasonable cup of hot coffee and I was very good not to boil the coffee or have any other mishap with the percolator.

Definitely more to come on this .....

Come Saturday morning.......

2009-10-10T08:59:00.004-04:00

and I don't get to go away with my friend
I do get to take the kid to his TACHS exam class
to help him with a test he needs to take to get into high school.

1 cup of sticky rice, some zuchini sauteed in butter,
some SPAM bits AND my first successfully rolled tamagoyaki.

A meal and a comparision

2009-10-08T11:53:00.002-04:00

Originally I was going to test out the Snoopy set but I am just not that hungry. I went thru my gear and found one that more represented my appetite right now:

My VERY modest lunch
A simple meal -- and a SMALL one! -- some freshly looked rice, small amount of ground sirloin with sauteed brussel sprouts and jicama

Now here is a picture of the Snoopy set and my Mr Bento -- I am not sure why but the Snoopy one feels like it should be so much bigger! The reality is that the footprint is nearly the same.

Baptism by donburi

2009-10-07T12:27:00.003-04:00

First go at making use of more of my gear - and the outcome was mixed.

1 cup of my favorite sticky rice,
some black pastrami (don't ask me what is the difference between it and regular pastrami
- that was the name of it) and some sauteed romaine lettuce

hmm good idea - not too good of an outcome
the romaine may have been too old - or sauteed too long - it was inclined to be bitter
last time I sauteed the romaine it was with bacon drippings and not as long
still not sure re the pastrami on the rice

but it was eaten

I have so much gear now to make use of some of it!!

2009-10-05T14:59:00.006-04:00

This is from the various food prep tools

I like Miffy -
I have a few other Miffy things but will start with this donburi set -
I am not totally sure how all the bits work -
especially the little grate/fence thingy but I will learn.

Then there is Snoopy - this has two food sections and one beverage section,
a cup and a spoon. Not sure how much control on food temp there is
but that is what one learns using it right??

I bought all these items from Ebay.

I hope I do better with this than this blogger!

2009-09-27T12:36:00.005-04:00

Comments I enjoyed most and/or learned the most from in today's post (Dear Tofu) at Jenn's Not Exactly Bento :

"You are a hot mess. I’ve tried to love you. I really have. We’ve had several experiments at home, all failures unfortunately."(boy can I relate!)
"I may never have tried you as a child, but I am trying things as an adult. I’m working very hard at it. You have been on my list for a long time now of foods I WANT to like. However, it just doesn’t seem to be working out." (even my own experiment today - testing the benefits of bacon to make everything 'good' - did not work!)

"Quite some time back, I thought pan-frying you might help. I thought the crispy outer shell would help. It didn’t. Instead, you tasted like I had fried up one of my kitchen sponges, without the soapy taste of course."(ok - maybe the bacon did not totally fail - my fried tofu today did not taste like the kitchen sponge! )

"After all the failed attempts to like you, I put you aside for awhile. I thought that maybe, one day, I would find the recipe for me. The recipe that would help me like you. I feel that I should like you. I feel like it is important that I like you. Can’t you understand how important it is to me to like you? You’re filled with protein. You’re supposed to be important to a more vegetarian diet. I am determined to like you. Your time just hasn’t come for me yet. Or so I thought."

"I have to tell you, Dear Tofu, I am not trying you again. This is the end of our association. It is unfortunate indeed. I mean, how many eggs and beans can one girl eat in a week to get her protein? I guess I’ll find out."

LOL Jenn -- thanks for a fun post - and a glimpse at the lengths you have gone with tofu! But remember - never say never! - when the memory of this last fail fades you will try again --

foods can be like that ....

Even the men are making their own in Japan!

2009-09-22T12:32:00.005-04:00

Japan's white-collar workers turn to homemade lunches in face of recession

Almost 10% of men take 'bento' box to work to save money, according to a survey

It has taken the worst recession since the war to force Japan's kitchen-phobic white-collar workers, known as salarymen, to get in touch with their inner Jamie Oliver.

This one is for one of my blogger friends!!!

2009-09-13T14:19:00.003-04:00

And you know who you are without my saying it!!!

How can anyone forget?

2009-09-11T13:41:00.001-04:00

Yeah - I know - You hate having to click a link to read something I want to share here

2009-09-09T23:56:00.004-04:00

This is soo interesting to look at! It is from:

Tuesday

Bento Box

Are you a trust fund baby in your late twenties about to be cut off from your parent's "flowing" bank account? Are you currently caught in a domestic dispute? Is your boyfriend texting you less? I have a little solution here that *might* work. Pack a lunch for that person. But be deliberate.

Using the archetype of traditional sushi rolls, I built a bento box (Japanese lunch with compartmentalized sections of food usually meticulously presented and wrapped) with three separate courses. Instead of using seaweed wrappers (Traditional method) I used these colorful soy wrappers that Giada DeLaurentiis featured on her cooking show, "Easy Italian". (foodtv loves the word "easy"). Upon first taste these soy wrappers are dry and nasty, but once they meet moist fillings, they turn into a slightly softer texture (sort of crepe like). I also focused on using ingredients other than raw fish (since it does not have great portability) and also, decreasing the amount of rice that is normally used in sushi. Hate feeling the 3 pm crash? I think most of this "crash" has to do with eating a carb heavy lunch that makes you really sleepy in the late afternoon.

Maybe you can start the lunch with a little note, handwritten notes are nostalgic nowadays;

A sampling of soy wrappers for my mock sushi.

1st roll; Vegan roll. I decided to do a vegan roll (even though I am a meat eating and fur wearing brat) for those finicky girls and boys who don't like meat. I don't understand vegan culture and I never will. Can vegetable patties replace a fried drumstick at Popeyes?? I think not. Nonetheless, to each their own. Here I used cucumber, japanese pickled rice, green tea soba noodles drenched in ponzu sauce, grilled tofu, and soy wrappers of course.

Ah ha, one of my favorite sandwiches, Turkey Club. I used a sesami Soy wrapper sheet for this one, and surrounding the meat portion is a thin layer of white bread. Turkey, bacon, avocado, mayo...The process of making the rolls were pretty self explanatory in terms of layering and ingredients so I did not show the process.

Again, using the least amount of carbs as possible. A fried shrimp roll with chives, cucumber, soba noodles, carrots and fried egg ribbons.

Placed neatly into the bento box, with decorations. I took a romantic approach to this one.

Nothing like a little cajoling.

For the next course, I chose a Cobb salad (another one of my all time faves) and banana, peanut butter and chocolate sandwiches.

Cobb salad ingredients;

All mixed up with quail egg sliced on top. Bacon, cheese, lettuce, avocado and grilled chicken.

So since the bento box is small in nature, I had to figure out a solution to make a salad that was easy to eat. I decided I would make little salad dumplings, which is just the tossed salad mixture (without the dressing) wrapped into a bite size dumpling out of soy wrappers and tied with a chive. These are not to be steamed or boiled! Its a salad...

A childhood favorite, banana, peanut butter and chocolate sandwich. These are wrapped in soy wrappers which make it very figure friendly. How does one get a clean cut without smudging the choc and the peanut butter everywhere? Freeze it for 30 minutes ahead and then slice them.

2nd course finished.

For my last course, I decided it needed to be alcohol related. Nothing like starting happy hour before everyone else ......

Some classic *yet cheesy* cocktails, sex on the beach, mojito, blue sapphire, strawberry and champagne, kahlua and cream, dirty martini.....and so on......

But what exactly am I getting at? Am I going to pack a cocktail? I decided the best solution would be jello shots. I know, reminiscent of college boys, and sort of trashy...but I like taking trashy things and making them more elegant. Nothing new about jello shots, just improvised the Luxirare way!

Drinks following classic cocktails, made into agar agar shots (used agar agar instead of jello boxes). Do you see the one in the middle with red and orange? That one's "sex on the beach". (Shrieks)

The one in the middle with olives is a Dirty Martini, and the one next to it a Pomegranate martini with Pomegranate seeds
stuck inside agar agar like a Damien Hirst Formaldehyde piece. Dirty martinis are my favorite, extra olive juice and extra olives.

In the middle, Kahlua and cream.

Labels for your loved one.

If you're curious to know how these shots were made, here is the process. You need to get agar agar which is a flavorless
jello like liquid (when heated). Right now they are dried up bars. First soak them in hot water for 30 mins and then boil for 10-15, and eventually it will turn into a liquid.

Choose your alcohol of choice, add the heated, liquified agar agar into the shot glass, and pour in the alcohol. The more agar you put in, the stiffer it will be, but in general its best to consume when its soft and liquid like so don't pour in too much of it.

So let it cool for a while in the fridge.

Flip over your cup to test of it there is still liquid coming out. If it has turned somewhat solid, you're ready to take the shot out of your mold, and here it is, liquid turning into solid. This is nothing new and its been around in China and Japan for ages now, they use it to mummify their fresh sushi and a bunch of desserts. Japanese people love this jello like stuff; you can find it online or at a Japanese Supermarket. Crazy food chefs like Arzak, Achatz, and Adria use this stuff too. Its real easy. Before you put it in the fridge is when you can other things like fresh fruit so that it floats inside.

Okay so now you're done. You don't have to decorate, its nice to just keep it plain too as I've done with the other courses.
Again, I tried to take a more romantic approach in styling this shoot.

All stacked together.

Complimentary sauces; spicy mayo, truffle oil, ponzu sauce, and oil and vinegar for the cobb salad.

Wrap the bento box up with your favorite fabric, and send it off!

Bento hits the NYTimes!!

2009-09-09T01:04:00.002-04:00

Bento Boxes Win Lunch Fans

Jim Wilson/The New York Times

ARTISTRY AND A FUNNY BONE Sheri Chen of San Leandro, Calif., fills bento boxes for her children with bunny-shaped eggs and such. More Photos >

By SAMANTHA STOREY

Published: September 8, 2009

ARMED with kittens of molded rice and sweet potato flowers, Sheri Chen took aim at her 2-year-old daughter, Lucy — a picky eater.

Multimedia

Slide Show

Jim Wilson/The New York Times

Ms. Chen arranges items for her daughter's bento.
More Photos »

George Ruhe for The New York Times

THRIFTY Jordan Smith,
a student at Yale, makes his own bento boxes.
More Photos >

Jason Miller

LOOKS MATTER
Bento boxes can be cute,
but they don’t have to be.
More Photos >

“I have to make her food look like something she recognizes,” said Ms. Chen, 42, a stay-at-home mother in San Leandro, Calif. “If her boiled egg is shaped like a bunny and it is holding a baby carrot, she’ll eat it.”

With cookie cutters Ms. Chen makes her daughter star-shaped vegetables; and with decorative skewers, a plastic top hat and pieces of nori (dried seaweed), cherry tomatoes become smiley faced, mustachioed creatures.

Her ruse includes assembling each meal in her version of a bento box, a Japanese lunch box, decorated with cute cartoon characters.

It might seem like silly kids’ stuff, but that sense of fun has helped make bento boxes — obentos as the Japanese call them — increasingly popular with grownups in the United States, too.

For dieters, they are an eye-popping form of portion control. Artistic preparation of ingredients can act as a pleasant distraction for health-conscious parents. For others, bentos are a way to make lunch pretty or indulge their love of things Japanese.

In Japan, compact, compartmented bento boxes are traditionally filled with rice, pickled vegetables and fish or meat. Japanese mothers take pride in their obentos and hope they outshine those of other mothers, said the Japanese cookbook author Hiroko Shimbo.

“Obento making is a kind of cult,” she said.

It’s approaching cult status in the United States. On Saturday in Central Park, as part of its Crossing the Line festival, the French Institute Alliance Française will be handing out bento boxes with components made by some top French and American chefs — including Inaki Aizpitarte, Pascal Barbot, Alexandre Gauthier, Michel Bras, David Chang and Wylie Dufresne.

On a more plebian level, Amazon.com said sales of the boxes and accessories like egg molds, rice shapers, plastic skewers shaped like animals or flowers have been growing.

But toothache-inducing cuteness is not the only appeal.

Jordan Smith, 20, a junior majoring in East Asian studies and political science at Yale University, started making bento boxes in high school in Port Orange, Fla.

“I was on the football team,” Mr. Smith said, “so I tried to have a balanced diet and eat healthy as much as possible.” He would group protein, rice and vegetables. “I would usually use snap peas, tomatoes, carrots; basically things that were relatively colorful and not too bland tasting.”

He endured a bit of ridicule — “like, look at that white person pretending to be Japanese” — but that didn’t stop him.

“Japanese culture here is getting more popular by the day,” he said.

He’s still making bento boxes, but now they’re mainly a way to save money by making his own lunch.

Debra Littlejohn, 52, a quality-assurance engineer from Edmonds, Wash., estimated that she and her husband were spending $400 a month buying lunch out every day.

So in June she started packing her dinner leftovers into bento boxes.

“If I had to price out all my ingredients,” Ms. Littlejohn said, “each box would probably cost $2.”

She likes to find artistic ways to present the food.

One of her recent boxes included a multihued medley of halved figs, curried eggplant, green leaf lettuce and sliced purple carrots.

“I don’t have time to break out the art supplies in my drawer,” Ms. Littlejohn said. “Every evening when I pack our lunches, I get this creative outlet. And if I don’t do something artistic, I might implode.”

Creativity matters as much as taste and nutrition to Jason Miller, a graduate student in anthropology at the University of South Florida.

“It doesn’t hurt to add a funny element as well,” Mr. Miller, 28, said. He recently made onigiri, triangles of sticky rice with various fillings. “Instead of leaving them plain, I cut nori — seaweed — in strips and made the onigiri into sumo wrestlers.” Artistry is what differentiates a bento box from a plastic container of leftovers, said Makiko Itoh, 46, who lives outside Zurich and runs the blog justbento.com, filled with how-to’s, recipes and discussion forums.

“Food presented attractively looks more appetizing, since we eat with our eyes as much as our taste buds and stomachs,” said Ms. Itoh, who was born in Japan but lived for a while in New York. “That’s emphasized more in Japanese cuisine and culture perhaps than in other cuisines.”

She said bentos often reflect the Japanese belief that each meal should have five colors — a version of the food pyramid. It helps people remember to vary their food, especially since the most colorful foods are usually fruits and vegetables.

“You can apply that to any lunch combination,” she said. “For example, sliced bread (let’s call that white, even if you use whole wheat) with peanut butter or cold cuts (brown), a green salad (green) with red peppers and cherry tomatoes (red) and a banana (yellow).”

A balance of flavors, textures and cooking methods also matters, she said.

Sheri Lindquist saw bentos as a healthy choice for her five sons and her husband after he had triple-bypass surgery. “I don’t make them bento lunches all the time,” said Ms. Lindquist, 48, who lives in Denair, Calif. “But if there is something especially yucky or healthy or new I do try to present it in a more fun format.” Like breaded spinach balls with carrot ears and faces.

Acquiring accessories like plastic giraffe picks or star-shaped nori punches, however, proved challenging for Ms. Lindquist, as most of the boxes and tools were sold only in Japan. So in March 2008 she began iloveobento.com, an online bento box store.

Another bento blogger, Jennifer McCann, began veganlunchbox.blogspot.com on her son’s first day of school in 2005.

She made him sushi for lunch in a bento box from laptoplunches.com, which sells Americanized bento boxes with lidded compartments for items like yogurt or dips like ketchup. She took a picture of it and posted it.

“I thought it might give a lot of vegan moms inspiration for other lunches besides PB and J, “ said Ms. McCann, 38, who lives in Kennewick, Wash.

Within months she was getting thousands of page views a day of the boxes she was making, she said. She’s since published “Vegan Lunch Box” (Da Capo Press, 2008) and “Vegan Lunch Box Around the World” (Da Capo, 2009), which includes recipes for a Japanese tiger bento, Caribbean plantain wraps and Indonesian tempeh.

Her son, James, now 11, has outgrown the boxes and no longer takes the bentos to school. “He wants his lunch to be totally normal now, like everyone else,” she said.

Making lunches look cute for children is an art called kyaraben in Japan.

But some bento-ists think cute takes too much time.

Deborah Hamilton, 40, who writes the blog lunchinabox.net, makes boxes for her husband and 4-year-old son of, for instance, tamales, broccoli florets, cherry tomatoes and a strawberry. “You can make these as intricate or fancy as you like,” she said, “or you can make them plain and simple. You don’t have to get all kinds of Martha with it. My regular bento takes 10 to 15 minutes, maximum.”

Ms. Itoh, the author of justbento.com, said the boxes, about the size of a fat turkey sandwich, let her control her portions and helped her lose 30 pounds.

“Generally speaking, for a tightly packed Japanese-style bento, the number of milliliters that a box can hold corresponds roughly to the number of calories it holds,” she wrote on her blog.

Crystal Watanabe, 30, an administrative assistant in Honolulu, used bento portion control when she began a Weight Watchers program in 2007. She lost 22 pounds and wrote about her experience on her blog, aibento.net (Adventures in Bentomaking).

The blog got her involved in the bento community on the photo-sharing site Flickr.com.

“We post pictures and people take ideas from each other,” Ms. Watanabe said. “It’s really a very creative community and fun. Everyone is so supportive.”

Ms. Chen, in San Leandro, one of the more prolific contributors to the photo pools, can be a little wilder when making bentos for Lucy’s brother, Koa, 6, who, unlike his sister, is not finicky.

“He even eats the lettuce I put in his boxes as garnish,” she said.

A recent lunch box for him included teriyaki salmon with peapods, two kinds of sweet potato and golden beet “maple leaves.” On the side: skewered purple carrot discs and a tomato made to look like a frog man. For dessert: a strawberry, champagne grapes, blackberries and a litchi.

“I am not a gourmet cook,” Ms. Chen said, “but when you put anything in a bento box it looks nice.”

Where to Get Boxes and Supplies

BENTO & CO Bentoandco.com (French language site, ships from Japan).

BENTO CRAZY Bentocrazy.ecrater.com.

FROM JAPAN WITH LOVE From-japan-with-love.com (ships from Japan).

I LOVE OBENTO Iloveobento.com.

JAPAN CENTRE Japancentre.com (ships from England).

J BOX Jbox.com (ships from Japan).

KINOKUNIYA 1073 Sixth Avenue (41st Street), (212) 869-1700.

LAPTOP LUNCHES Laptoplunches.com.

BOOKS: “501 Bento Box Lunches: 501 Unique Recipes for Brilliant Bento” (Graffito Books, 2009) and “Vegan Lunch Box Around the World” by Jennifer McCann (Da Capo, 2009).

I LOVE bento so of course I have to share this!

2009-09-06T22:31:00.004-04:00

"This" is today's entry in Sakurako Kitsa's blog ...It's a food-art blog.

Sunday, September 6, 2009

Lest anyone get the wrong idea...

I do food art to entertain myself. When I take a picture and put it up there on flickr, it's "hey, look at this silly thing I made out of food." That's it. I'm not trying to persuade anyone that what I've made is scrumptious, or precisely balanced nutritionally, or that it's what they should be feeding their kids. It's just a picture made out of food. I do my own thing, I make pictures out of food, that's where it begins and that's where it ends.

Now, there does exist a (large) bento community with whom I'm more-or-less loosely affiliated, in that a lot of my stuff shows up in bento boxes; it's oekakiben (picture bento). I'm not a mainstream bento-maker, though. If you're looking for nutritious ideas for an adorable lunch to send off with your preschooler, there are lots and lots of people who will have great information for you. You can browse flickr and see all kinds of appetizing combinations and great ideas for bento lunches. Do what you like. Bento is what you make it.

I eat what I make because I don't waste food. Blue rice, for all the reaction it seems to inspire in people, tastes like regular rice. It's just blue. It's tinted with natural food coloring, it's not harmful, it's just blue. The same goes for applesauce tinted blue and anything else I might have gone nuts and tinted blue at some point. Some people are fascinated with blue food. Some people find it repulsive. If you don't like it, you don't have to make it or eat it.

It's your choice. Everything is your choice...what ingredients to use, what recipes to make, what the nutritional balance should be, whether or not your rice is an orthodox color. You choose whether your sandwich looks like Hello Kitty or a monster or a good old no-frills sandwich.

Besides the me-vs-most-bento-makers comparison being a total apples-and-oranges thing, what's wrong with a little adventure? In my flickr profile (where I try to catch people on their way to announce to me what they think of blue rice), I mentioned chef Cat Cora and how fun her innovations can be. Cotton candy on soup gave her audience pause, but they swirled it in and found it delicious. This stuff can work.

Have you ever flipped through a magazine and seen one of those beef council ads, with the landscapes made of beef? There's brown sugar sand and sour cream snowcaps. Would you eat beef with brown sugar and sour cream? Probably not, but hey, it's a cool picture made of food. If it gives you a "hey, what if I..." moment, so much the better. And that's really all I'm doing.

Hope that helps clarify some things.
Thrown on here by: Sakurako Kitsa around 5:28 PM

I wish I could test products and write reviews like some bloggers

2009-08-26T12:29:00.003-04:00

You know - lucky folks that have items sent to them to test out.

Well until that luck hits my house, I am willing to pay my own way and write about things I find interesting to try out.

Like this week. Infomercials don't often make me want to order a product but some really hit a nerve.

A little over 2 weeks ago I ordered Gourmet Trenos Always Fresh Containers and they arrived about a week ago. I have been slowly trying them out - unfortunately none of my original test subjects lasted long enough before being eaten to check this 'keep fresh longer' claim - until now!

This past Saturday my husband came home with a few donut peaches for me. I put most of them in one of the Always Fresh Containers (along with some kiwi I keep putting off eating) and left one out with the other fruit in the house.

It has not been a week but you can see that one of the peaches aged quite rapidly while the other did not.

Now these peaches tend to be very easily bruised. Several in the box along with the unblemished sample were bruised and the bruises worsened a bit but not at all like the peach that was outside of the box for the same number of days.

Do I have to say it? I am impressed!

There is only one thing I don't care for - that you can't see through the box to the contents but that is a small issue.
I am impressed. I have yet to try them out in the microwave or in the freezer BUT I will be keeping both sets for my own uses!

Currently I have one box with kiwis in it and one with grapes from Sunday's shopping trip. I will post an update on those tests and as well as future trials in my real life setting!

Downside of the last couple of weeks

2009-08-16T09:04:00.002-04:00

Lots of stress. Some of it may have triggered some minor health problems I am dealing with. Ohh - can't forget the dental work.

Good things? Got to see two friends from my youth, I have been continuing to volunteer with local Paddle and Rowing club to provide free kayaking to people in my area ( I do the admin stuff and shore support), my husband and son have been visiting family in Ireland (they return Tuesday) and I have been trying new foods.

Hmmm - trying new foods -- maybe that should be in the downside column! There were far more fails than anything but I did get to try with no one around to give me a hard time or get in the way of experimenting.

Again I am in need of lots of prayers -- and thanks for all and the good thoughts/good vibes you send my way!

Am I hanging out with the wrong crowd or just getting old?

2009-08-06T08:13:00.004-04:00

There are so many things to explore in life. And so many (maybe more) things to re-examine and explore more deeply from earlier times.

To those who follow my silly blog - I am sorry about not posting. The summer can be very draining when one has Multiple Sclerosis. Also this time of year is marked by the anniversary of my mother-in-law's passing - this month being the first anniversary.

And it is not so fun to post when I don't have the camera!!! My son and husband have taken the digital camera to Ireland with them.

I have not been doing much with bentos lately BUT I have been trying new foods.

Yesterday I had bubble tea for the first time!

I finally used the lotus root I bought -- and boy do I have to work on using that! It is bland - like an underdone piece of fried potato - but it has potential.

I try to go to the local farmers market(s) - LOVE them.

I have been helping at a free program to introduce folks to kayaking - this is the 3rd summer I have done that. I look forward to actually getting on the water more once I get a break from some of this fatigue.

I have decided to FINALLY get a cell phone plan (lol - I have only had my pay as you go SIM for 14 + years) and will be trying out Consumer Cellular.

AND I am going to re-examine the use of structured prayer in my life. I am going to resume praying (or trying to pray - LOL - if I can adjust to the process!) the Liturgy of the Hours. I will use Universalis.com for now and may go back to using the books if 1) I can find where I put them and 2) if I can navigate them! Here is a piece from the Morning Prayer intercessions that really struck a note with me:

O God, you have made light shine out from the shadows and you have illuminated our hearts and made them ready to perceive your brightness in the face of Jesus Christ: increase our desire to contemplate your beloved Son.

– Lord, give us light that we may see.

Ok - more storm damage pics from around the house

2009-07-12T11:54:00.004-04:00

some of the hail

what was left of the damn tree after what is
believed to be a ligthening strike during the microburst

my "tank" gave its life
for the neighbor's car

The tree was sooooo big it blocked a "Y" intersection!

The husband in front of our other car that took the least of the damage - the damn tree got it!!! The roof was bashed in and the rear window shattered plus lots of water got during the rain/hail.

WTF did THAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! pics from July 7 - 10

2009-07-11T17:19:00.004-04:00

They think it was a microburst that hit this area of NY - hail, rain, thunder, lightening - neighbor's tree came down and messed up our cars (two cars).

No power for two days or so because the tree yanked out our connection to Con Ed.

more pics to come as I sort thru all the 'recovery' issues from this

It has been nearly a week since I fell

2009-06-15T08:35:00.003-04:00

I did not think I would blog about this.

Last Tuesday I was over tired, it was wet and the silly shih tzu got under foot. That plus the MS I guess I simply shifted my weight wrong while standing too close to the edge of the front step and down I went like a tree felled on Ax Men. Thankfully I basically "relaxed" thru it - tucking my arm to my side and let it happen - though it meant hitting the ground hard on my right side, especially my shoulder.

Of course no one was around so it took me a moment or two to get up but I did get up on my own, got in the house, and took some arnica montana. NOW THAT STUFF is why I decided to blog.

I did not have a bruise though I did hurt like hell and I was not too stiff. It has been less than a week and I am significantly better.

Arnica montana is a great item to have around the house for all kinds of things -

OK - here are some pics of the accident scene

This is too good not to share!! from Anna the Red

2009-06-11T13:32:00.002-04:00

bento#53 google chrome bento June 11, 2009

Posted by AnnaTheRed in bento blog (all), bento blog - American characters.
Tags: bento, charaben, google chrome, kyaraben
trackback
A little while ago, I received an email from someone who was doing a promotion for Google, asking me if I wanted to participate in a promotion for Google Chrome. The event was called “make the Google Chrome icon,” and he’d seen my bento somewhere and wanted me to make the Google Chrome icon with food. There were three conditions: the first was that I had to keep it secret until they began the event. The second was to make the Google Chrome icon with food. The last condition was that I had to videotape myself making it.

Bento #53: Google Chrome bento (actually it was “Bento# 48.5″)
Created on: 5/17/2009

See my video and other entries on the “Make the Google Chrome icon” event page! (the link should go live in about a couple of hours)

As I told the interviewer on Wired.com, I lack of finesse. That’s why it takes a long time for me to make a bento, and I wouldn’t make good how-to videos. So I was kinda reluctant to do this project at first, but my boyfriend was excited about it. Fortunately, he is a video editor, and the video needed to be only a couple of minutes. So I said I’d do it if he’d make everything look pretty, and he said “of course! “

Usually, my boyfriend is not allowed in the kitchen when I make bento. The main reason is that I like keeping each bento a surprise, but another reason is that the process of making bento isn’t as impressive and exciting as the final product.

I had a rough idea of what I’d do, but the bento box I use is a rectangle and Google Chrome icon is a circle. I doodled some flowers and bugs around the logo’s sketch, and I began making it.

I’m not going into too much detail since you can see that in the video. But, since I’m moving pretty fast in the video, I’ll just write what I did. First thing I did was to soak a hard boiled egg in red cabbage juice for the blue orb in the center. (see “how to dye eggs naturally”) I boiled broccoli for the green part, pan fried red peppers for the red part, and scrambled an egg for the yellow part.

Then I proceeded to make asparagus wrapped in bacon, sausage sunflowers (see “how to make a sunflower”), and cut snow peas. And I cut one side of ham, rolled it and made flowers.

After most of the ingredients were ready, I used a plastic bottle to mold the rice into a circle (see “how to make Totoro sandwich” for the plastic bottle cutter), and put broccoli, red pepper and scrambled egg on the rice. Then I put black sesame seeds between each color to make the black line. Finally, I put the dyed egg in the center, and carefully removed the plastic. It was nerve-wracking to remove the plastic. I was worried that the red pepper or broccoli or scrambled egg or rice would come apart, but it held up. Phew!

Red pepper on the edge of a cliff

Then basically I just tried to fill in the spaces with everything I made, looking at the color of each food, trying to balance it out.
To pretty up the bento, I made a ladybug with seaweed on a cherry tomato, and a bee with seaweed on cheese.

A lady bug!

A bumble bee!

Looking back now, this bento seemed so easy to make. In fact, it was far less complicated from other bento I make. But when someone’s watching & video-taping me while I’m making something was very… different from what I was used to, and I felt like it took a lot longer than it should’ve taken.

I was exhausted when I finished making this, and I wasn’t sure if I was 100% happy with it. But then my boyfriend used a little magic, and voila! In the video, I’m moving at the speed of lightning and look like I know what I’m doing. Not to mention the awesome music from Giant Robo. (It’s an epic anime show from the 90’s. It is composed by Masamichi Amano, performed by the Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra.) I get chills every time I hear this music, and it’s playing on the video of me making a bento! How amazing is that? My boyfriend used to work for a company that made trailers for movies, and he’s got mad skills.

I want to thank Jason for putting this event together. I guess this bento is considered a “requested bento” or “how-to bento” and it’s something that I would rarely do. But honestly, I wouldn’t have done it if he didn’t ask me to make a video of myself making it. I mean, my boyfriend and I use Google but it’s not like it’s a video game or anime. (we’d often imagine how cool it’d be to work at the Google office, though. ) But I love a challenge, and I was also curious to see how the bento making process would look in the video. Besides, now my parents can see and believe that I really make those bento.

Ta-da!

See my video and other entries on “Make the Google Chrome icon” event page, or just go straight to the Google Chrome Channel on youtube. (the event page should go live in a couple of hours)

Unfortunately, Google used the darkest part of my video (we were losing light) in the main event video which they put all entries together and edited into one video. =/ Oh well, but it was still tons of fun.

For more pictures of my bento, visit Bento! set and Bento details! set on my flickr page.

I wish I was this creative!!!!

2009-06-11T08:39:00.004-04:00

This is from What's for lunch at our house My newest hobby and since we do need to eat, it's technically a cost-effective one.

( I love the blog's name !!!!!!)

"Wednesday, June 10, 2009

A New Take on Bento, the Muffin Tin Meal
Since we are home for the summer, the need to make bentos has been few & far between. It's hard to get on board with handwash-only items when we are eating at the kitchen table.

On my travels around the web, I did find a fun site that talked about Muffin Tin meals. It's similar to a bento concept, I suppose, but in muffin tins--one compartment per item. And muffin tins are dishwasher safe.

We've done it twice already, with themed meals!

Alphabet theme--Apricots, Bananas, Cheese, Donut, Egg, Fish

And a number theme--1 cupcake, 2 carrot sticks, 3 slices of turkey on kebab sticks, 4 pieces of cheese, 5 crackers, 6 chunks of canteloupe

Despite the fact that my children take bentos for school, they were thoroughly impressed by these."

Blogging can be feast or famine - now I found something I have to highlight!

2009-06-10T21:20:00.002-04:00

This is from Escape from Obesity

I am looking forward to trying it.

"Yum

Today, I tried something new. Homemade, raw, "Veggie Cereal." Yeah, I know you're going "WHAT?" just like I was when I read this recipe on MckMama's blog. But it sounded so healthy, I was intrigued. Today I tried it, and I think it's blog-worthy. I even took a picture, which I will add later when I get it off my camera. So the next time you are feeling hungry, munchy, or like you need more veggies, try this!

Veggie Cereal

3 T raw pecans
3 peeled baby carrots
1/2 c. raw cauliflower
1/2 c. raw broccoli
1 large apple, cored, peeled
cinnamon

Put the nuts and carrots in a food processor and pulse until they are in small pieces. Add the cauliflower, broccoli, and apple (I cut these in chunks) and pulse until the size of couscous. (For those of you who are not into couscous, it's like a half grain of rice or so).

The original recipe says to scoop some into a bowl and top with cinnamon and almond milk and eat like cereal. I mixed cinnamon into mine first, and I used vanilla (sweetened) almond milk because I am a wuss about trying a Veggie Cereal with plain almond milk. It was really good!! It's crunchy and a bit sweet and apple-y. She says your kids won't even know what they are eating, but my kids knew really fast. "What are those green things mom??? THAT'S BROCCOLI!!!!" and "Hey aren't those orange things carrots?? Mom is this cereal made of VEGETABLES??" They were good sports and tried it but my daughter hauled butt to the nearest trash can to spit it out before she gagged up her entire lunch, and my veggie-loving son turned it down after a taste. He just likes his veggies straight, I guess. But anyway my point is that this is really yummy to ME, but if you think you're going to trick any kid over the age of 3 into thinking this is "cereal," don't bank on it.

Still, I enjoyed it a LOT and I am going to be making this often!

The original recipe can be seen here.

I'm doing great with my eating, updating on Twitter, and feeling amazing :)"

I think I want to try this --

2009-06-10T19:55:00.000-04:00

My Bento Diet: Okonomiyaki Bento Recipe: What I Like...

One day I will make my own bread --

2009-06-10T15:27:00.003-04:00

and I will catch some local wild yeast to do it!!!

"How do you catch wild yeast?" you ask --

"Isn't wild yeast a protected species?" you then inquire --

"Is yeast a renewable resource?" our green newbie contingent asks boldly

(without knowing what a stupid question that is)

Lest you eat yourself up with worry here is some information courtesy of How Stuff Works:

"....before there was packaged yeast, bakers used sourdough starter to keep a supply of yeast alive and handy. They kept a pot of live culture in a flour/water medium, and "fed" it daily or weekly so that the yeast remained alive and active. To understand how sourdough starter works, let's look at how you can create a batch of starter using live yeast that is floating in the air!
To perform this experiment you will need:
A pottery crock, plastic container or glass jar, preferably with a loose-fitting lid
A wooden spoon
A piece of cloth
Some flour (preferably without any preservatives in it) and water
To start a culture, mix two cups of flour and two cups of water in a glass or pottery bowl (in the old days, a baker probably had a special clay crock for starter). Lay a cloth over the top and let it sit on the kitchen counter. It turns out that there is yeast floating in the air all around us all the time, and some of this yeast will make its way to your flour/water mixture. It will then start growing and dividing.
After 24 hours, you pour off about a cup of the mixture and feed it with another cup of flour and another cup of water. In a few days, the mixture will become frothy as the yeast population grows. The froth is caused by the carbon dioxide that the yeast is generating. The starter will also have a bacteria, lactobacilli, in it. This lends to the slightly acidic flavor of the bread by creating lactic acid! The alcohol that the yeast creates and the lactic acid together are the source of sourdough bread's unique flavor!"

Here are few sites to check out for more information:

Norwich Sourdough Bread Recipe | Wild Yeast
Let the dough rest (autolyse) for 30 minutes. ... A More Sour Sourdough. Fendu, and a Bit About Spiking ... Wild Yeast blog, a fantastic resource for all bread ...
www.wildyeastblog.com
HowStuffWorks "How Sourdough Bread Works"
Catching the Wild Yeast. Baking Sourdough Bread. Lots More Information ... bread, you add a cup of this live culture to the dough to provide the yeast ...
recipes.howstuffworks.com
Sourdough Bread with Roasted Potatoes | Wild Yeast
... Wild Yeast inspired me with her entry of Roasted Potato Bread, but ... The Sour Dough. Toxo Bread. use real butter. Ye Olde Bread Blogge. baking communities ...
www.wildyeastblog.com
Sourdough - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
... batter or a stiffer dough; as a general rule, more sour breads are made with ... Wild Yeast Blog - A blog covering all aspect of Sourdough bread as well as ...
en.wikipedia.org
Science of Bread: Basic Sourdough Starter Recipe
... make sourdough, bakers use a "starter," a piece of dough in which yeast is ... Grape sourdough starter, or biga, uses the wild yeast naturally present in grapes. ...
www.exploratorium.edu
Bake on the wild side: Part 1, the sourdough starter :: The Ethicurean ...
.. sourdough starter many years ago, I have exclusively used commercial yeast in ... might create a very sour bread like the classic San Francisco sourdough. ...
www.ethicurean.com
Sourdough Starter
Home Lifestyle Recipes Bread and Grains Sourdough Starters. Advertise on this site ... are that they will all be equally efficient in attracting wild (sour) yeast. ...
www.stretcher.com
Sourdough Starter
... you make a sour dough starter, you are actually attracting the wild yeast that are in ... of wild yeast(sourdough) starter became famous for the bread they ...
www.castbullet.com

We survived the weekend!!!

2009-06-07T12:46:00.002-04:00

It was a 'working' weekend for the kid and I -- I was campmaster at our Boy Scout council camp reservation and he was with his troop (the troop did "scout skills") for the Cub Scout Family Camping Trip. I believe there were 300 cub scouts scheduled to be there for canoeing, a treasure hunt, scout skills (knots, putting up a tent etc), Nature exhibit, fitness, arts & crafts and probably a couple of more items. There was a show by the Mad Science folks, a BBQ and a campfire with stories, skits and songs.

We had rain Friday evening but lovely day Saturday and today - with everyone getting off the reservation pretty early! A good weekend was had by all!!!

Now to rest..............tomorrow the troop is working the district scouter picnic.

It came to the U.S.A. in 1910

2009-06-03T20:10:00.006-04:00

http://www.acenturyofvalues.org/

Boy Scouts is celebrating 100 years in the United States. Here are some pictures from a program in the process of visiting all the BSA councils --

And our future lies with our current scouts -- here are some bits from the most recent Eagle Court of Honor for a member of our troop --

members of the day's Eagles Nest

Memorial Day Images

2009-06-02T16:12:00.006-04:00

Getting ready to march

A LOVELY monument to the Gold Star Mothers

Gotta have bagpipes Wreath left at local monument

I did not realize so much time had past since my last post!

2009-05-31T12:49:00.001-04:00

I have been busy

I have been tired

I have not felt too well

I lost track of the last time I posted!

so here is a catch up report:

My son was confirmed.

We attended several scout things - including working on a Habitat for Humanity community garden, my son marched in local Memorial Day parade where I saw a lovely memorial to Gold Star Mothers and a wreath laying at the monument near our troop meeting place and the local kick off of the 100th year of Boy Scouts in the USA.

We attended the Eagle Scout Court of Honor of the brother of my son's confirmation sponsor - lots of Eagles out of the troop this year!!

As I work thru the photos I will post more on the events.

Till then - hope all is well on your side of the monitor!

It was a great weekend!!!!

2009-05-03T22:16:00.009-04:00

And here I am with my favorite two things from the weekend:

The shirt is the new item to support Scouting in Iraq - a program at Victory Base Complex Baghdad.

I am holding something very special to me that has a bit of history re how it got into my hands.
Last year I met a cadet who had hoped to get one of the patches to show support for scouting in Iraq but they were all sold out. At the time we were chatting he was waiting to see if one of the Boy Scouts at the camporee who said he had one to trade was coming back with it. I told the cadet that since I am in the habit of buying things like that in 'mommy and me' sets that he was welcome to mine. So as we walked back to my tent site we chatted about a great assortment of things from his training and background to a number of silly things and information I was familiar with. We also spoke at length about things that could be improved in aspects of the camporee (when I was still working I was involved in corporate training so that kind of conversation comes easily to me - and since our group was a first time attendee I thought our experience could be useful).

When I fished out the patch and gave it to the cadet he gave me some 'brass' in exchange which at the time I neither expected nor appreciated - a flag for the uniform and a National Defense Service Medal. (I am still a bit brain dead after the weekend - I will find the items here and post a pic later).

This year - as I was coming back from a "meeting" - the cadet assigned to our troop saw me and brought over another cadet who I (honestly) did not recognize at first -- it was the fella in the patch story from last year! Now we had exchanged a couple of emails over the year but nothing recently. (here is where I get all weepy and extremely flattered) Seems he was looking to see if our troop was back this year and was I with them!!!!

We chatted a bit (well actually I was running my mouth re stuff all the stuff since we met and apologizing for things I had hope to do/send him but couldn't since having the MS flare last June). He starts reaching for something in one of his pockets telling me he had something he was waiting for the right situation - the West Point insignia used on the cadet dress helmets! I thought I would cry! So I hugged him and thanked him for his thoughtfulness, we joked how the boys will be surprised re my luck getting 'brass' again this year and more hugs from me. All too soon he had to go back to his tasks at the Camporee. I had hoped to see him later on but did not get to but I will make sure to write more this year!!

Here are some pictures I found of the insignia - first two involve the hat/helmet it goes on and the other is just a nice picture of it done as a patch.

I think it is going to rain this weekend.....

2009-04-30T23:40:00.002-04:00

Wait - the West Point Scoutmaster's Camporee is on this weekend - OF COURSE IT IS GOING TO RAIN!!!!!!

Well - at least for Friday it will - meaning we will have to set up tents in the rain.
One good thing about my case of MS - I don't have to do a hard (as hell) 3 mile Bull Hill hike.

I do get to stomp around 25' x 25' squares to try to find the least muddy one for the troop.

I am definitely taking pictures!! See you all on Sunday!

This is where I spent the weekend

2009-04-27T22:54:00.007-04:00

This is the campmaster's cabin at our local Boy Scout council camp reservation. All the comforts of home (fridge, stove, microwave, TV with satellite, phone, shower) but one - the toilet is at the latrine in the parking area.

We were very lucky this weekend - even though we had a 'full house' because of several programs running at the camp and the weather was HOT all went well.

My son and I were even able to attend mass Saturday night courtesy of one of the packs ! My guy is the one who is definitely overdressed for such a hot Saturday.

The Kid enjoyed his first real attempt at a 'job' - he was my official assistant for the weekend and main Trading Post staffer for the cabin. (original pic removed - he did not want to be on the blog)

We are both very worn out - and neither of us do well in the heat. Try as I might I was not hydrated enough and MS is always a problem with hot weather but I got thru it all and enjoyed all of it!

Now to rest and recover so we are ready for the camporee at West Point!!!!!!!

First pics with the new camera

2009-04-17T23:52:00.003-04:00

The dog is the bitch* I was minding - she has gone home now.

AHHHH feels so good to be able to post a bento meal I have made!!! I sooo missed having a camera! OK the box is by Paisely Pirate/Happy Yeti Designs - smaller section has sticky rice, larger section has corned beef hash with some spinach, clementine sections and some tomagoyaki.

Nothing exciting here -

2009-04-17T10:36:00.002-04:00

Thanks all for the prayers.

Upside since my last post -- the health things have not shown themselves to be from an MS attack - don't know yet what they are from but MS has dropped lower on the list for possible causes.

I think I understand my problems with anemia a bit more and have instructions from the doctor re correcting that pest.

Finally have a new digital camera!!!!!!

Starting this weekend and going for 3 weekends we will be very busy with Boy Scout 'stuff'.

This weekend the local troop and pack is running the district Pinewood Derby finals and doing work on Sunday for local park. Next weekend the kid and I will be campmaster at the Council camping area and then the first weekend in May we will be going to the Scoutmaster's Camporee at West Point NY!!

Downsides - the husband decided we could not keep my friend's dog here more than a couple of days. I have to trust this is for the best. Sadly she has to find the dog a new home but has a very promising candidate.

Hopefully - especially now that I have a camera again - my posts can be more regular.

Thanks again for the prayers and good wishes!

life gets in the way

2009-04-13T15:12:00.001-04:00

Sorry for lack of updates

life gets in the way

living with chronic illness is seldom fun

upside - I will be helping a friend by taking in her shih tzu puppy

please say a prayer for us!

I love sharing great posts on other blogs!!

2009-03-30T15:46:00.003-04:00

Some people make fun of my exuberance for bento style meals but they don't realize just how handy this style is. This article is about dealing with food sensitivities (courtesy of Maki's Just Bento blog and the author is niceties of Main-Main Masak-Masak. Maki's blog post of this is here - Enjoy!!!

Being anemic is the pits

2009-03-27T13:28:00.002-04:00

I am waiting to hear from the doctor about what is our next step to treat my severe anemia.
It seems I am losing blood somewhere but we don't know where - and like most slow leaks the cause is difficult to find.

I also recently had trouble with dizziness - seems I needed one of my HBP medicines changed.

Lame post huh?

AVIE!!!!! You NEED one of these!!!!!

2009-03-25T08:17:00.004-04:00

Time to get organized???

2009-03-20T18:08:00.003-04:00

Before I developed Multiple Sclerosis I was very organized.

One of the things that can happen with that disease is something called cognitive disruption.

There is no one thing that is a problem and there is no predicting what will cause trouble.

One of the blogs I read regularly is I'm an Organizing Junkie where today there was information on something I am going to try here - the Fridgefile. I am purchasing it thru Daily Grommet where I saw the review/demo video.

I think I might be developing a 'thing' for pandas......

2009-03-17T10:18:00.008-04:00

This picture is just too cute!

(Photo via Cute Overload)

I wish I could afford this bento box!

Maybe I could get a tshirt........

Maybe this one.......

I settled on this for "the tank"....

I found this information here:

The origin of TarePanda

Suemasa Hikaru created TarePanda in 1995, when after a long day of many attempts of drawing, she grew tired and relaxed herself by lying down. Hence, this moment brought her inspiration to create a tired and lazy panda lying on the ground. She named it TarePanda. "Tare" a Japanese word which means lying on the tummy.

Tare Panda was originally created for use on stickers, but now he can be found on almost any product that is used on a daily basis - especially paper goods. The sketch style of the Panda is supposed to make people feel kind and happy, and is held as the main reason why he has become so immensly popular among the Japanese consumers.

San-X believed these products were successful because they were released shortly after the Asian financial crisis of autumn 1997, a time when many people in Japan were facing layoffs. "Many office workers felt exhausted thinking about the dark cloud hanging over the economy, which had grown unhindered until that time," said Kenji Sone of San-X. "I guess they saw a little bit of themselves in the worn-out panda character, so they were sympathetic toward it."

In 1999 Tare Panda became a super cartoon star, and Japan's Seda magazine elected Tare Panda as the most popular toy of the year. He is currently the most famous cartoon character in Japan. Tare Panda is his Japanese name, while in Taiwan and Hong Kong he is also known as "Pa-pa Panda" or "Lazy Panda".

TarePanda characteristics

Being the lazy Panda that he is Tare Panda doesn't get around using his feet. Instead, he prefers to roll from here to there. Being soft and springy this cute little Panda can roll at a speed of 2.75 m/hr. Of course, when Tare Panda is on a mission to find and steal his favorite fruit, Swama, he is willing to do anything no matter how lazy or tired he feels.

If Tare Panda likes you he will perform a gymnastic exhibition in which the tumblers form a human tree or pyramid. But if he doesn't like you at all he will show you his hunchback.

(sources: DreamKitty and WikiPedia)

This is another great blog entry by Basic Bento!

2009-03-15T22:38:00.002-04:00

I have seen lots of entries and information on getting started doing bento BUT this has to be the simplest, cleanest, clearest explanation regarding start-up gear I have ever seen!

Basic Obento

DIY Obento Box

I understand a lot of people who are interested in obento may not be fortunate enough to live down the street from Ichiban Kan or live in a city with a vibrant Japantown. I’m sorry. Here is a quick and easy solution to making your own obento box at home and it costs less than $3.

First, here is the gear:

What we have here is a bandanna, two rubber bands I saved from some asparagus bunches, and a GladWare square entree container. The container is sold at almost every major grocery store and big box retailers around the country. This container is perfect for obento because it’s not to tall and fits nicely in most backpacks or totes. It is also 740 ml, which will yield about a 700-750 calorie lunch–perfect for most people!

To ensure the lid doesn’t pop off in your bag and leak your preciously prepared lunch everywhere, wrap like so with the rubber bands:

After you put your bands on, go a head and tuck any utensils you might need for the day under the ‘X’ on the top. Okay, at this stage in the game, it’s not looking so hot and that’s why you need to wrap it in a cute little cloth. The square-ness of this container makes it easy to wrap in a square bandanna or any other cute piece of cloth that can double as a napkin:

TADA! How cute is that?

OMG!!!! Our Boy Scout troop is going back to West Point!

2009-03-14T21:08:00.002-04:00

I just looked at the information for the annual Scoutmasters Camporee and I was pleasantly surprised to find out troop on the invitation list!

The boys are going to be so pleased!!

Until they start Bull Hill Run that is! The following is from the camporee's FAQ page

"The information packet describes the Bull Hill Hike as "particularly challenging for younger scouts." How should I take that as SM? Should I let my 11 and 12 year olds try it? What kind of support system is there if a boy cannot finish it and he's halfway through it?
Encourage your younger Scouts to participate! Unless they are physically injured upon arrival to the Camporee, they should do the hike. There is no time limit, but we require Scout troops to stay together during the hike for accountability purposes. There is approx. 1/2 mile of rocky uphill terrain and 1/4 mile of rocky downhill terrain. Any motivated Scout who wants to finish it, will finish it. Our trail staff will have vehicles operating along the trail. If a Scout becomes injured our physically unable to continue, we can transport that Scout (with an Adult leader) to their Camp Site at Lake Frederick or seek medical attention if needed."

HAPPY Pi DAY!!!!

2009-03-14T17:02:00.001-04:00

http://www.exploratorium.edu/pi/index.html

Welcome to The Exploratorium's

2009 21st Annual Pi Day Celebration page

What is Pi Day?

Pi Day Activity Schedule

Pi Day in Second Life! If you have an avatar, go here

A Short History of Pi

Pi Activity - Discovering Pi

Pi Activity - Cutting Pi and Hat Sizes

Pi Day Image Archive

Pi-Ku (obviously Pi haiku!)

Pi Limericks

Pi Posters

Pi Links

My new discovery for the weekend

2009-03-14T11:07:00.001-04:00

OPW: Captain A-OK Fights Blug-Glub-Glub

Idiots Books

A dozen different stories hidden in a single sheet of paper

Eros, Philia, Agape
Rachel Swirsky
A tale of personhood: born and earned

Montmartre à trois

Wesley Allsbrook

Two’s company, three’s a crowd

Where is my red hat?????????

2009-03-11T02:34:00.004-04:00

I am 50 today!!!

I get to change my hat from pink to RED!!!!

An EXCELLENT blog post about Bento and its benefits!

2009-03-09T19:34:00.002-04:00

I made a new friend on Twitter - Angela aka basicbento - has a BRILLIANT post on her blog Basic Obento titled New American Bento. PLEASE take a moment to read it!!!

For the link adverse here is part of the entry:

New American Obento

This post is all about one of the major reasons to utilize obento in an American lifestyle. You could say the best example of an American obento are the cheese and cracker boxed lunches they sell in the deli case next to the hotdogs at the supermarket. They can cost almost $5.00. Getting lunch for under five bucks isn’t bad, however, this is one of the reasons Americans have such horrible eating habits; cheap, convenient food. Here is an example of one I picked up at the store today just for this post:

This box contains buttery crackers, ham (water added), American “processed cheese food” (their words, not mine), cherry flavored taffy bar, a Kool-aid singles pouch to go in 8.5 oz of water, and a 100 calorie pack of processed potatoes shaped into chips. Sarcastic “Mmmm”. I think the only truly healthy product in this box is the bottle of water, but even then they try to junk it up by including Kool-aid to dump in it. I would also add that this box contains less than 200 ml of food, but contains 490 calories and 22g of fat. That’s a lot for not so much. In a balanced obento with a “main” course, a starch, and tons of fruits and veggies, a 200ml container (which is not that big), should only yield approximately 200 calories. If that’s not scary enough, here is the garbage it creates:

This is another reason why my son gets a home-packed obento now, because school lunches come with just as much garbage. If I pick up my kid right after lunch, there are two huge garbage cans filled to the brim outside of each classroom with all the garbage from a school lunch. I can’t imagine what all that garbage must add up to by the end of the year. Not only that, but sometimes the school system will get food that is part of a batch of low-quality veggies or meat that goes to the prison systems. Can you imagine our children eating like little prisoners? Maybe some might need to develop that palate, but not my kid.

(Remember - the full entry is HERE!)

I wish I had a digital camera

2009-03-08T20:27:00.010-04:00

But the two we had died.

Oh well.

I wanted to document my adventures with "The Tank" (a '94 Ford Explorer Limited): the things I have to do to it and things I want to do to it.

For now I have to rely on just writing it down.

The husband, the Kid and I went to check a few things tonight - locks, lights etc. The Kid is not too interested nor too good at direction following to be of much help. They tell ME it is normal for a 13 yo boy but I don't want to believe that! Ok, I can believe that - what do you think the odds are that I get to skip the moody stuff if I accept this other part???

Anyway - back to The Tank.

My "must do now" items:

front driver headlight needs new bulb (easy fix) - DONE!!
rear brake lights need to be checked (could be a simple DIY project)
DONE thanks to the help of "fix that car" at JustAnswer.com!!
passenger side rear door needs new lock - FIXED !!!!
spare key(s)
get AAA membership

My "wish list of do now" items:

stuff for keyless entry (dealership says they can check to see if I have
the Ford system for this and could give me the key - just have to
make time to bring it in to check for this)
new floor mats like the ones here

Must do but further down the road:

fix 4x4
fix a/c
change steering wheel
dash cover (both for function and color accent) like those listed here

I guess it is not too bad for a start.

Wish me luck!

Paisely Pirate may want to string me up for this BUT

2009-03-07T10:40:00.003-05:00

The designs are so interesting!!! And one has to support art students right??

So IF after seeing these you want to order something here is the FAQ.

Happy Yeti Designs!

Old car - something new to learn

2009-03-03T08:16:00.003-05:00

Ohh life and its changes!

The lease for my van ended and I was not sure what to do - the recession/depression made me very concerned regarding a new lease or draining savings to buy the van.

So to cut down current expenses (like another lease or loan and higher insurance rate) I decided to get an older car.
A 94 Ford Explorer. It needs some work but it was in use up to a week ago when the owner bought a new car.

The kid is 13 so guess he and I can learn together about doing some of the repairs/updates ourselves and what to do about basic care care.

Now all I have to do is get it in my name and inspected and all those other good things.

TOMATO GOLDFISH!!!!

2009-02-26T09:22:00.002-05:00

Now I am not sure where exactly I would use this skill but had to try it out.

I learned it here: http://www.xanga.com/Otoro/693794645/tomato-goldfish/

Ok - so she uses a Roma tomato but I had to take it a step further - I did it with a grape tomato!!

It may turn out better if the tomato had not been sitting in the fridge so long.
I will definitely try this again

Another contest to enter!!!

2009-02-24T18:35:00.002-05:00

This time it is at Not Exactly Bento and has one of the nice bento sets from Ichiban Kan Natural line. It is in celebration of the looming and infamous 200th bento!

Maybe I will start counting bentos for lent -- think it would count as penance??

These are from a fantastic post on life stages and the use of bento

2009-02-24T10:09:00.007-05:00

From the same blogger that brought us the 5 Week Bento Challenge, A Japanese Life of Bento is a good explanation of how it is used by so many. The pictures are cute too as you can see from the samples below:

Random photos of things I like

2009-02-23T15:25:00.012-05:00

Ecce Homo -- Behold the Man

This ring cut for me at the last Weschester Co. Fair

that I attended. FROG stands for Fully Rely On God.

My favorite sticky rice

Lent is coming -- so here is a brush up on the rules

2009-02-23T08:59:00.002-05:00

Lent begins at midnight Ash Wednesday and ends at the beginning of the Mass of the Lord's Supper on Holy Thursday, at which point Triduum begins.
We are obliged to fast on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday.
The law of fast binds everybody from ages 18-59 unless they have a medical condition that would interfere significantly with fasting.
The law of fast allows the eating of one full meal plus two smaller meals, provided the two smaller- meals are not as large as a regular meal if combined. This law is confusing as many people tend not to eat similarly-sized meals.
We are obliged to abstain from meat on Ash Wednesday, the Fridays of Lent, and Good Friday.
The law of abstinence binds everyone who is fourteen years old and up unless they have a medical condition that would interfere significantly with abstinence from meat.
The law of abstinence forbids the eating dishes principally or substantially comprised of the flesh of land-dwelling mammals and birds (NOTE: trace amounts of meat and other parts of the body besides meat do not count). It does not affect gravies or other sauces (even if these are made with meat), and it does not affect anything made from parts of land-dwelling animals other their meat (so milk, cheese, eggs, things made with animal fat, and Jell-O, which comes from hooves, are okay).
Lent is not forty days long. It may have been at one time, but the way the Church's liturgical documents are written today, Lent is just under 44 days long. (It would be forty-four if it didn't end on the evening of Holy Thursday.)
The way the Church's documents are written, Sundays are part of Lent, but since penances other than fast and abstinence on the required days are voluntary, you can cut yourself a break on Sunday from whatever other penance you may have decided to do.
To fulfill our Easter duty,we are obliged to receive Communion at some point between Ash Wednesday and Trinity Sunday, which is the Sunday after Pentecost (unless for a just cause this requirement is fulfilled at another time of year).

Presidents are good to eat!!!!

2009-02-20T08:13:00.002-05:00

I find some of the things folks do with food too funny - here is a great example!

Thanks to Lyvvie for the heads up on this and look here for more details!

I Miss My Digital Camera(s)......

2009-02-15T13:53:00.004-05:00

We had two - both died so I have no pictures this week. I miss taking pictures of my bentos and posting them!!! I am in bento pic withdrawl!!!!!!!!!!!

Ok - so this is how I have been coping.

I tried taking pictures with my cell phone - they are crummy and I can't get them off the damn thing!!!

I focused on trying new foods - mango mochi, Sharon Fruit, kumquats and Lady apples. The only thing I hated was the kumquats but now I am going to look at some recipes to make with them so they don't go to waste.

The Five Week Bento Challenge ends today. It is sad to see a good thing end.
I have used the 5 weeks to explore the whole idea of bento style eating, learning to use new items, learning to use old items in new ways and trying new foods. It has been a GREAT 5 weeks.

Here is how my week 5 goals worked out:

sort bento ACCESSORIES and plan to use more of them - ongoing and some were weeded out for a bento swap!!
look into new things to try like furikake from samples on hand - done and I did NOT like anyone of them - I think I will not pursue this further.
pre-plan the bentos and other meals for 7 days ON PAPER OR AT LEAST ON THE PC - done and on paper!!! YEAH!!!!!!!
refine mise en place according to meal plans - on going and also laying out mise en place for husband and son for meals they make themselves
make at least 4 bentos and photograph them - 3 bentos made and photographed - can't get the pictures off the damn camera!!
post here and write a report on my adventures! - DONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Bento Challenge Week 4 Wrap Up

2009-02-07T23:43:00.003-05:00

The flu/cold/sinus trouble woes continue for myself and the Kid - needless to say not too many goals were met. Here are the Week 4 goals and the follow up notes:

sort bento boxes into what I really want to keep & what I am willing to give away - DONE!
identify bento boxes that suit caloric intake per meal - DONE!!
pre-plan the bentos and other meals for 7 days ON PAPER OR AT LEAST ON THE PC - a losing battle but we will start fresh in week 5!
refine mise en place according to meal plans - ONGOING!
make at least 4 bentos and photograph them - 3 were made and photographed
post here and write a report on my adventures! - DONE!!

Week 4 bentos -

3 were made but no photos to post because the cameras died and I can't get the ones on the cell phone OFF of the damn phone to post them! If I ever get them off the damn phone I will add them here.

Now here are the Week 5 goals:

sort bento ACCESSORIES and plan to use more of them
look into new things to try like furikake from samples on hand
pre-plan the bentos and other meals for 7 days ON PAPER OR AT LEAST ON THE PC
refine mise en place according to meal plans
make at least 4 bentos and photograph them
post here and write a report on my adventures!

ohhhh So you DON'T like cute bentos.........

2009-02-05T02:59:00.000-05:00

Thursday - February 05, 2009

Another bento comic at Real Life!

2009-02-03T18:29:00.001-05:00

ENJOY!!

http://www.reallifecomics.com/

Tuesday - February 03, 2009

I have not gotten into CUTE bento yet but here are two GREAT examples

2009-02-03T17:13:00.003-05:00

from a WONDERFUL blog I follow.

Wonderful ideas and how to do them - real inspirational stuff for new and experienced bento makers!

Hold the bento for the Zebras! (301)

Noah’s Bento, Upper Deck (300)

Peeling Hard Boiled Eggs WITHOUT Peeling Them??

2009-02-02T17:53:00.004-05:00

CHECK OUT THIS LINK TO SEE HOW!!!

This is a cute trick to remember next time you do deviled eggs and such but won't be much help if you want to try molding/forming eggs for anything like a bento lunch.

Now for a giggle - I like all things bento but the smiley bit and faces on food is not for me.
Someone on another list shared this comic today -

Real Life, 02/02/09
OT, just thought I had to share:

Bento Challenge Week 3 Wrap Up -

2009-02-01T00:19:00.005-05:00

A mild dose of the flu for myself and the Kid meant not getting too many goals met. Here are the Week 3 goals and the follow up notes:

sort bento boxes according to volume they can hold - not done & I am going to change this to sort bento boxes from what I really want to keep and what I am willing to give away as I have been "gifting" more bento gear lately
identify bento boxes that suit caloric intake per meal - not done
pre-plan the bentos and other meals for 7 days ON PAPER OR AT LEAST ON THE PC - done for half the week then got sick before doing the other half
refine mise en place according to meal plans - ongoing
make at least 4 bentos and photograph them - DONE!!
post here and write a report on my adventures! - DONE!!

Week 3 bentos -

Now here are the Week 4 goals:

sort bento boxes from what I really want to keep and what I am willing to give away
identify bento boxes that suit caloric intake per meal
pre-plan the bentos and other meals for 7 days ON PAPER OR AT LEAST ON THE PC
refine mise en place according to meal plans
make at least 4 bentos and photograph them
post here and write a report on my adventures!

Bento Challenge Week 2 Wrap Up -

2009-01-25T21:46:00.004-05:00

How was the week? Hmm - did not get too many goals met. Here are the Week 2 goals and the follow up notes:

sort bento boxes according to volume they can hold - other chores got in the way of this.
identify bento boxes that suit caloric intake per meal - other chores got in the way of this.
pre-plan the bentos and other meals for 7 days - still just roughly planned according to what is in the house and on shopping list but not committed to paper.
refine mise en place according to meal plans - done for husband and son but because I am not fully planning I don't have it worked out for myself.
make at least 4 bentos and photograph them - this was achieved in that 4 were made but only two were photgraphed as the camera died.
post here and write a report on my adventures! - DONE!

Now here are the Week 3 goals:

sort bento boxes according to volume they can hold
identify bento boxes that suit caloric intake per meal
pre-plan the bentos and other meals for 7 days ON PAPER OR AT LEAST ON THE PC
refine mise en place according to meal plans
make at least 4 bentos and photograph them
post here and write a report on my adventures!

THEY TOOK BACK THE POLE!!!!!

2009-01-25T20:29:00.003-05:00

It was soo cold this weekend but the boys of Troop 5 successfully took back the pole and finished first in the BSA 4 Rivers District Klondike Derby!

Hail to the champions!

Now for some more pictures:

Honey, she is twisted!

Love this video!!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY AMERICA!!!

I am guilty of do as I say and not as I do

Recommended Items to Include in a Basic Emergency Supply Kit:

Videos that I just have to share!!!

I STILL have not gotten back into the swing of blogging

World MS Day

I have not quite gotten back into the swing of blogging

Ok - being back to blogging is going slow

I am back!!! Did you miss me??

Simple materials and techniques - Incredible results!

This video speaks for itself

Sorry to neglect everything!!!

Still need a way to help Haiti?

Ways to help folks get potable water and a nice PSI

Program Spotlight:Safe Water Clubs

Now it is time for a game

Do you do crafts? Threadbanger has started a project and request to help Haiti earthquake victims

ok I hate being disabled

THIS IS A BRILLIANT IDEA!!!

What changes has making bentos brought to your life??

Coldest weather in a quarter century or more and Ireland is not ready for it!

New Books for the New Year

Guess I have another addition to my New Year to do list

I forgot how nice it was to make bentos!

Santa baby done by Shakira!

MERRY XMAS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I am bummed

I am not worthy!!!

Solar Panels at Low Cost – Buy Solar Energy with the Purchasing Power of your Community

BRING OUT YOUR OLD XMAS LIGHTS!

OMG is this too cute???!!!?????

I have so wanted to do more with dehydrating foods.....

Ohh I am a follower of the W.A.Y.!!!!

Man - I hate being sick

Crummy week and facing busy weekend -

Track the Flu

E-mail Flu Alerts

ok - my first batch of coffee concentrate

It was messy but may have been worth it! - coffee update

This video will give you an idea about cold brewing coffee

Getting ready to try cold brewing coffee

Cofee!!!!??????

Come Saturday morning.......

A meal and a comparision

My VERY modest lunch

Baptism by donburi

I have so much gear now to make use of some of it!!

I hope I do better with this than this blogger!

Even the men are making their own in Japan!

This one is for one of my blogger friends!!!

How can anyone forget?

Yeah - I know - You hate having to click a link to read something I want to share here

Tuesday

Bento hits the NYTimes!!

Multimedia

I LOVE bento so of course I have to share this!

"This" is today's entry in Sakurako Kitsa's blog ...It's a food-art blog.

Sunday, September 6, 2009

I wish I could test products and write reviews like some bloggers

Downside of the last couple of weeks

Am I hanging out with the wrong crowd or just getting old?

Ok - more storm damage pics from around the house

WTF did THAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! pics from July 7 - 10

It has been nearly a week since I fell

This is too good not to share!! from Anna the Red

bento#53 google chrome bento June 11, 2009

I wish I was this creative!!!!

This is from What's for lunch at our house My newest hobby and since we do need to eat, it's technically a cost-effective one.

( I love the blog's name !!!!!!)

"Wednesday, June 10, 2009

Blogging can be feast or famine - now I found something I have to highlight!

"Yum

I think I want to try this --

One day I will make my own bread --

We survived the weekend!!!

It came to the U.S.A. in 1910

Memorial Day Images

I did not realize so much time had past since my last post!

Program Spotlight:
Safe Water Clubs