Oh my. There is a creeping destruction running up my pipes. One after another, sections of plumbing are just going kaputz on me. It began with the main drain line to the city hook-up. Then, there was the day I came home and heard the sound of running water - HEAVILY running water - from *somewhere* and finally had to crawl under the house and shut off the water to the outside pipes because a joint had burst. That was the very first time I did it myself. So, in an emergency, I can get under there and, more importantly, get out again. BUT - I prefer not to.

Yesterday, mysterious water by the toilet on the floor, but not *from* the toilet. Hrmmmm. This morning, I found that the leak is from the kitchen drain, but the crack or break or whatever is between the walls and leaking out from behind the toilet. The coffee grounds were the key clue. I have no idea how the plumber will get to that spot unless he also has to crawl under the house, poor bastard.

and so...the watery drama continues...

to end on a bright note, I give you: Sunrise

In college, at some point, we have all lived on Ramen noodles. They're cheap, easy to make and did I mention cheap? After college, I swore I'd never eat them again. I would find better things to eat and besides, I was gonna be making money in the Big World and wouldn't need to buy Ramen anymore.

HA! - said Fate. There will come a day...

and so it has. this last pay period has been tough - particularly since my utilities bill was so damn high, and I've had to revert to the Ramen as a boost to my pantry. Frankly, as a staple to my sustenantial needs. while they are not very satisfying, I do enjoy eating them with chopsticks (I like a challenge).

However, they don't travel well. I'm not sure how to utilize them as lunch at work, because I don't know how to microwave the noodles, and I don't want to waste any. so - I look to you, livejournal community:

What are your favorite (cheap) Ramen recipies and how the hell do you microwave that shit????

Where was I during the speech? I had to duck out to the Ukrop's to get lunch for me and a co-worker. I looked at pictures from the event on the computers in the galley, but most importantly - at Noon exactly - I did a happy dance.

Hello Obama!!! Let's get to it!

Saturday, January 24th – MOOSSA plays with Stump Hole Water at Highwater Restaurant at Toad’s Place.

MOOSSA brings its eclectic roots rock mix back to the Richmond area on Sat Jan 24 with a 9pm show at Highwater Restaurant at Toad’s Place. The 6 piece group features strong, song driven rock laced with reggae, funk and blues. A mainstay in the Richmond area over the last 7 years, the band is known for great live performances as well as a catalog of 4 CDs recorded locally at Sound of Music and Minimum Wage Studios. Moossa’s most recent release, “Route 17”, is a “…new A+ album that’s got all the elements to get your smoky jazz club party into a funky dance fix, then turn it back around into a mellow jam infused with some reggae overtones…stylistically breaking the boundaries of what you may hear from your traditional rock album.”

Kicking things off for the evening is Stump Hole Water featuring the dark, folk, down-to-earth acoustic blues of Mr. Clark Lovelady. "Stump Hole Water channels vintage Americana with great instrumentation and spirited vocals. Swapping instruments and vocal duties, the brothers Lovelady and Mr. Andy Malik weave an entertaining blend of lively tunes that evoke props to many styles and genres, but remains refreshingly original and new. The songs never take back seat, as Stump Hole Water sells each one with such enthusiasm and celebration. In an age of labels and carefully prepared descriptions, it’s a pleasure to "not" be able to pigeon-hole this band of young talent, paying homage to musical inspirations of days gone by."

Catch Moossa and opener Stump Hole Water Sat Jan 24 at Highwater at Toad’s Place. 9pm. 140 Virginia St. RVA NO Cover!


Get the CD at Plan 9 or online at cdbaby.com (www.cdbaby.com/moossa4).

You can also visit us at www.moossa.com, http://www.reverbnation.com/moossa or www.myspace.com/moossamusic

Check out our Cafe Press page, while you're out surfing: http://shop.cafepress.com/moossa

So, I had a nice, quiet New Year's Eve at home with my bestest buddy, Ashly. I cooked some dinner. Wanna hear it? Here it go:

Cornish Game Hens with roasted winter veggies and fruit:
2cornish game hens
fresh sage & thyme
bacon
kosher or sea salt
olive oil
balsamic vinegar
sweet potato
red potato
apple
sweet onion
Preheat: 400 degrees
Cooking Time: 2 hrs

( The recipe )

Joy of Joys! I only had to work until a little after 1 pm today. All the shopping that I'm going to be able to (financially) do is DONE, and to top all the goodness off - this happened today:




just in time for Saturday. And now, I will cook. A chicken is in the oven roasting as I type. It's got celery and sweet onion in the cavity and fresh herbs shoved under the skin and copious amounts of kosher salt sprinkled over the top to make the skin crispy and good. YUM!

and Bogart (read: me) opened his present today so that I could get rid of one whole toy. I think I miscalculated.



and Frankie - they all squeak. except for the rope and the ball. they ALL squeak. heh.

Merry Christmas everybody!

for those of you who aren't slaves to Facebook, like I am in danger of becoming (or have already become)I has update:

Good News: My christmas tree is up!


I love the topper arrangement I did:


Bad News: I am getting my yard dug up today so that they can replace my sewer pipe. *joy* Merry Christmas to meeeeeee!

Moossa dates are already set in January at the Highwater in Richmond, and we're working towards getting some festival gigs this summer. See you out there!

Just so excited about today, folks! Don't forget - 6 PM to 6:15 or 6:30 (if we're lucky) Moose and I will be on the air at WRIR 97.3 talking about "Route 17". Listen to the live stream via the website: www.wrir.org.

I also wanted to share this link to XL 102.1's Studio B, presented by RVA magazine: The Link.

They played two songs from the new album - "Down" was played on 11/9 and "Digital Lovers" was played just last Sunday on 11/30. Keep your ears peeled on Sunday nights between 9-10 pm to catch all your Richmond favorites and maybe some more Moossa!

**EDIT** Live streaming is available on the WRIR website: www.wrir.org

Ok people, I know we usually listen to NPR around here, but for just a few moments, tomorrow (Sat 12/6) at 6 PM tune into WRIR 97.3 FM and check out Moose and Me! being interviewed about "Route 17"

*squee!* I haven't been on the radio since I popped into the studio when Tee Morris did his show at WXJM.

Also - if anyone listens to XL102, Studio B, we had a couple of songs played on there. Let me know (or comment on the myspace page for the band) if you hear us again!

and.....IT'S FRIDAY!
*happy dance*

Gray-V is also playing at Cary St. Cafe on Saturday night. $7. set starts at 9:37 sharp. Don't ask me why. I don't know.

And so they cooked




...and cooked...



"I'm still waiting," said the dog. "It's getting dark."



"Good things are worth waiting for," said the girl.



And so, in due course and time, the loin of pork was ready to be removed from the grill. Oh, the smells! If you could only smell this, my friends.



"Can I have some?" asked the dog.



"Of course," said the girl
"Yum!" said the dog



"But not yet," said the girl.



"We must wait until the side dishes are ready," said the girl. "They're cooking now and should be done soon."



"I hate waiting," said the dog.



At last, everything was ready. The sides were cooked and off the grill and the loin of pork was done and still warm.




The girl made up a plate of the food. Her tummy rumbled with hungry anticipation.



She looked at the dog. His tummy was also rumbling. "Would you like some?" she asked.



"Yes!" said the dog. "Oh, sweet Dog in Heaven, YES!"



"Are you happy now?" asked the girl.
"Yum," said the dog.



And so they feasted. And it was good. When the meal was done and the plate was empty...



...the girl sat back and patted her full tummy.
"Ahhh," said the girl. "I am satisfied. How about you?" she asked the dog.

The dog replied,



"That was excellent. I would like some more."

And so they ate some more and relaxed into the night. The girl and her dog were happy and thankful. After all, what is Thanksgiving for?

So, where were we? Ah, yes! The grill - so the coals were ready and hot:



"This is the hard part," said the girl



"Now we have to take our tools and the raw materials," she said




"And wait," said the dog



"No," said the girl. "We sear the meat!"



"Can I have some of that?" asked the dog.



"No," said the girl. "We have to finish cooking it first." The meat needed to smoke - low and slow - before they could feast. It was time to get the grill ready for the second phase: SMOKING!



"And now," said the girl, "we wait."
"I hate waiting," said the dog.



MmmmMMmmmmMmmmm!

Once upon a Thanksgiving, there was a girl:


and her dog:



and they prepared to make a Thanksgiving Feast from meats and veggies they found in their kingdom of Richmond:



"But what shall we do with these fine ingredients?" the girl asked her dog. "This porcine loin and massive tuber and lovely winter asparagus?"




"We already know what happened to the pie," said the dog




"I was hungry last night," said the girl.

"Besides, it's MY pie, and I can eat it whenever I want to!"



"Let's start!" said the dog.
"I agree!" said the girl.
So they began with the asparagus and prepared it just like her Greek Friend had taught her.




"Can I have some of that?" asked the dog

"No," said the girl. "We have to let it marinate for a while first. Now, we have to get the grill ready!"




"AND..." said the girl, "we need to get the most important ingredient out of the fridge!"



"Can I have some of that?" asked the dog
"Maybe," said the girl. "If you are very, very good."

And so the adventure begins!

Hope everyone has a great day of food, fun, friends, family, chaos, mess, yelling, laughing and all that comes with the holidays!

some of you know that my stove is broken. A while back, I woke up one morning to find the readout looking like this:


which is why I use it to hold dirty dishes ALL the time:



I read the manual, and it said:



sorry, my eyes are a little sleepy in the morning, too - so I'll tell you what it said:

"F followed by any number - - - - Call Service Immediately"

Which made me sad:


My good friend loaned me some money to have it looked at, which I was going to do first week in December, when I had some time off.

But, Lo! and Behold!!! Today, at work, the Big Bosses had learned of the suffering of the working man and gave us bonuses so that the holidays wouldn't be so tough. This may be the bonus we get yearly, or something in addition to the profit-sharing bonus we get every year (this year being my first eligible year to receive it), but either way, SCORE! I have enough in the bonus to buy a new stove (from the scratch & dent store, of course) and not have to worry about getting the old one to work.

And this is how that makes me feel:



w00t!

Nothing too stunning - I just wanted to share some cool stuff.

First - Bob - This is what we imagined you looking like after I carried you in my dire-wolf maw after Luke had knocked you off the horse:


and my new D4, thanks to Chris:



but the coolest thing, by far, was Miss K's shirt:

I heard this as a news report on the Today show this morning:

"Pirate attacks are up..."

my first reaction: KEWL!
my second reaction: sucks to be a super tanker or a tool with a yacht!
my third reaction: *I* wanna be a pirate!

yes - it will be a good day today, my friends.

I found the lion in Chesterfield:
( Read more... )

But I really think it's the first pic.

The Life and Times of a Non-Lesbian Single Woman (or How I Wore Pants To A Wedding)

or even

Titular. Heh heh heh

Yes, even though there are people at my house RIGHT NOW partying, I am editing pictures from Halloween Night and from the wedding that I attended today.

Here's one:



and these:



but I LOVE this one:


See them all here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/25398885@N03/sets/72157608569828108/

and here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/25398885@N03/sets/72157608576046435/

I should get back to the party now...