Sep 30, 2010

I wish

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I wish that I was the type of person to get out of bed at a reasonable time. The type of person who wakes up the first (or even the second) time the alarm goes off. I wish I were the type of person who woke up with enough time to go to the gym; to read the front page of the NYT while drinking some tea and leisurely get ready. I wish I woke up with enough time to make my bed every morning.



Instead, I am the type of person who hits the snooze button for at least an hour (seriously. an hour.), sprints to the shower, throws on the first thing I find and rushes to work hoping that my boss doesn't catch me putting on my makeup in my cubicle. 

My dreams are just too good and my bed is just way too cozy. 

Grrrrrrrrr. 

Sep 29, 2010

this pleases me

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I am way too tired to write today, so here are some of my favorite internet finds from the last couple of days. 

Enjoy.

#1 Cute Monkey Cake. I think I found this on Joanna Goddard's blog?

#2 Cute wedding stuff in my hometown! Yet another reason to move home.As if I didn't already have enough. 

#3 Best food idea since bacon wrapped tater tots. And so easy! I think I will make them when my mom comes to town in a week and a half.  These also look delicious.

#4 Adorable children from Michelle Woo's blog. 

#5 HUGE news. I have found the perfect fall boots. I was drooling over the amazing photos on Blue Lily's blog and spotted them. I have been on the hunt for the perfect fall boot for about four years now. My birthday, awesomely, coincides with the Nordstrom Half Yearly Sale. EVERY year I browse online and in store to find the perfect fall boot. Sometimes I find one that I love, I order it, and for some reason or another it never works out. Boo. These ones look PERFECT!  However, I have no idea how to get them and I doubt they come in my size. Not only because I have huge feet, but because they are kid boots.  The search continues. Ho hum.

That is all. 

Photo is from my boudoir. Do you like my pony?

p.s.- did you know that the word boudoir comes from the french verb to pout? So really, the boudoir is the pouting room. This pleases me.

Sep 26, 2010

an excerpt

    "I swear, Sophie, I think theres something wrong with me. Every man I meet is intolerable. Perhaps I should set my sights lower-not so low as the grey doctor who clicks, but a bit lower. I can't even blame it on the war--I was never very good at men, was I?
    Do you suppose the St. Swithin's furnace-man was my one true love? Since I never spoke to him, it seems unlikely, but at least it was a passion unscathed by disappointment. and he had that beautiful black hair. .....................Sophie--what is the matter with me? Am I too particular? I don't want to be married just to be married. I can't think of anything lonelier than spending the rest of my life with someone I can't talk to, or worse, someone I can't be silent with."

An excerpt from The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society


I think I'm going to like this book very much. 


I would like to start a literary society, but I would much rather eat creme brulee than potato peel pie. 


Who is with me? 


What shall we call it? 

Sep 25, 2010

incongruous

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I feel like a fraud when I listen to Rage Against the Machine. 

In my cubicle. 

Working on a Saturday. 

Rebel fail. 

Zack would be so disappointed.

Photo of college friend Tyler and me trying to be bad asses.......and failing at being bad asses because we're really just nice kids who sometimes like bad ass music. 

Oh, college.

Sep 24, 2010

wins

Here are my WINS from yesterday;

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1) The prescriptions that the pharmacist told me would cost $60 only cost $15. Score!

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2) Individually wrapped hand sanitizer. Perfect for the doula-on-the-go! I just love things that are individually wrapped. Although, I do feel guilty when I buy things that are individually wrapped. It all started when Dawn Schafer decided to save the planet in book #57 Dawn Saves the Planet, and yells at Claudia Kishi for having individually wrapped candies. Yes, I still think about The Baby-sitters Club and how it relates to my life. Quite often, actually. For those of you who never read the books, I'm sorry. For those of you who were fans of the Baby-sitters Club, you're welcome.


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3) A lovely card from my wonderful marmie.


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4) WITH a Trader Joe's gift card. She can always sense when I am at my Broke Phi Broke-est. Also, she is coming to visit in three weeks, so she prolly needs me to start stocking up on the Jesus Juice. We tend to go through a lot when she visits. We just get so thirsty in this dry desert!


Did you have any wins yesterday? I hope so.

Sep 23, 2010

beauty

swim

I have been having a hard time lately. With the way I look. One of my many obnoxious neurosis. I loathe taking photos {I usually make a witty quip about needing to check with my agent first} and have been avoiding mirrors. Ugh! Such a waste of precious energy.

I think it has a lot to do with my finally deciding to be more proactive about my genetic disorder. When I was diagnosed, I gained sixty pounds in one summer. This was NOT acceptable for some members of my family, genetic disorder or not. I have been good about seeing my doctors lately, figuring out the right hormone replacement balance and facing the uncomfortable questions and stories that come with each new care provider. 

These things take me back to when I was diagnosed with good 'ol Swyer Syndrome. The summer before high school senior year when all I wanted was to be a normal teenager; dreaming about college and prom. Instead, my mind was consumed with my syndrome, watching my body blow up, and feeling that my body betrayed me in more ways than one.

In order to prevent myself from slowly slipping into my dark place of self loathing and hopelessness {so dramatic, right?}, I have been trying to focus on the things that make me feel beautiful. Not the conventional kinds of things like make up or pretty dresses, but things that make me feel beauty in my core. Like every chromosome, xy or not, is emitting radiant goldenpink light that shines on everything I come into contact with. 

I'm sure you've probably figured it out based on the photo at the beginning of this post, but one of my favorite feel beautiful activities is swimming. Swimming until my lungs burn and my shoulders scream. Swimming until my fingers wrinkle and my calves cramp. Swimming until my goggles press deep creases into my eyes and the pool lights turn off. 

What is your thing? Your unconventional 'I feel strong and beautiful' thing?

I want to know! Tell me.

photo courtesy weheartit

Sep 22, 2010

etsy love

lemondrops

My mom bought matching prints for she and me.

SO cute, right?

You can find them on Tender Beast's etsy page.

I think you should match us too.

Sep 21, 2010

Make Not Ready

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This is my work phone. See? It says Taylor K. That is my nombre. 

I have to log into a call queue where people phone in to yell at us. It's super fun. 

Thankfully, we have a magic button that says, Not Ready.

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Then our display thing says, Make Not Ready.

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And I got to thinking this morning how nice it would be to have a Make Not Ready function for life.

I try to live my life in a way that is ready. 

No, READY. 

Ready to take on new opportunities. Ready to meet new people and experience new things. 

But sometimes, it would be nice to have a Make Not Ready button.

This morning I would have pushed it so that I could stay in bed for another hour or two. Wait, who am I kidding? I would have used it to stay in bed all day. This week, I would have pushed it to give me an extra hour each evening to swim laps or take a yoga class. This month, I would have used it to postpone my mortgage due date. 

What would you use your Make Not Ready button for?

P.S. Phoenix bff is ready to pop. Her baby needs to stop pushing the Make Not Ready button and come out already. WE WANT TO MEET HER! 

Did you hear that, Baby K? 

I'm sorry for yelling at you, but it's time.  

We have lots of nice presents. Come out soon. 

Ok? 

Sep 20, 2010

queso

button

Well hello there!

Today I am the guest blogger over at

one of my MOST favorite blogs.

So go check it out!

While you're there, check out the Our Story section of the blog. It's the adorable whirwind romance story that shows the true essence of the Cline Family. :) 

Farts+Chuckee Cheese=LOVE


Music Monday

Sep 11, 2010

repeat

I know that I have blogged about this before, but I do believe it is one of the best inventions of the twenty first century. Long live Postino wine bar.

Sep 10, 2010

music

I have some music topics that I would like to discuss;

1) Please listen to this song, this song and this song this weekend. I feel that they are good songs to listen to no matter what the weather. Do you have certain songs you like better when it's cold outside or warm outside? I definitely do. The songs I've suggested are good year round and are perfect for this season-straddling time of year. They can be enjoyed with a crisp cocktail on a warm summer evening or cozied up on the couch with a soul warming glass of red wine and your favorite blanket. Enjoy.

2) I've been thinking about Music Monday and have been considering adding a playlist to my blog that I update every week, instead of doing a (sometimes cheesy/poorly made) youtube video. However, sometimes blogs that have an auto playlist bother me. For example, when I'm reading a blog with my music off and decide to switch windows because I must watch a youtube video of, say, corgis doing belly flops, for example, it totally bugs when I turn on the speakers and I can't figure out where the music is blaring from. Is it the youtube video? Is it another window open? Have I finally cracked and now hear songs in my head that aren't really there? 

Do you know what I mean?

3) Dear Pandora, 

This is not Louis Armstrong. I believe it is Duke Ellington, but it is most definitely not Satchmo. Please correct this issue. 














Sep 9, 2010

Ketchup

Have you ever seen something in a movie and thought, 'I HAVE to do that one day or my life will not be complete?'
Well, my Aunt Carol {the one who likes to be mentioned on this blog} has always wanted to make Ketchup a la Meet Me in St. Louis. 
Since Carol and I are both TCM addicts, we watch this movie often. Our heart strings zing, our trolleys clang and our bells ding. Whatever that means.  
So, while Carol was summering {I have always wanted to summer somewhere} in Belmont Shore this year, she and my mom decided to fulfill the ketchup making fantasy. 
And here goes a blog post and photos from my mom, who documented their ketchup making debut. 

Anything that I add to the dialogue will be in red.

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you will have to add the links to meet me in st louie and long beach farmers market and chase and not sure what else.  i love you me {ok mom, I will}

Dear taylor. 

Ok so cousin carol decided that she would simply die if she did not make home made ketchup.
is it ketchup or catsup, i don't know why it is spelled two different ways but whatever..
so being that i am all things fun and being that it is 500 degrees in Phoenix and due to that little heat fact there are no outdoor farmer's markets in phoenix {this is not true. there is a FANTASTIC outdoor market on Saturdays and Wednesday evenings. Heat or no heat. It's awesome.}  so she came to long beach, california to make ketchup in the cozy little kitchen in the cute little house on the hill.
we go to the farmer's market five minutes before closing so we can bargain with the people to get cheap stuff.  i know this makes you CRAZEE and run and hide your face in shame {it's true. I hate it when they bargain} when i ask for a discount or try to haggle a little but Carol is even more intense {more embarrassing is more like it} than I when it comes to getting a good deal. 
In truth it has very little to do with the kind of deal we are getting but it is just so fun for us.  So as we exit the car, knowing that we have no time to waste she hollers at me "you get after the tomatoes, i'll get the strawberries." did i mention that we were after strawberries too?  now i have.  she made jam too and one batch was not enough, it was so YUMMM did-li-umptions that she wanted more.  her strawberry jam tricks will have to be saved for another blob because two stories about red items being made into liquid are just way too much.  Agreed.

So i lickety split start looking for tomatoes; sizing up the people in the produce booths. looking for nice ripe red tomatoes and someone who looks like they would know a good deal when they see one.  Me with cash, desirous of taking a big lugg of tomatoes off of their hands, thus avoiding the pesky process of loading them back on the truck and taking them somewhere else to sell. 
I see the lovliest tomatoes and start feeling them for ripeness.  As luck would have it i also see a nice teenaged boy working in the stand.  I ask him if i can have a whole box for $15.00 i point at the big-ass box to which i am referring.  he politely says "just a minute i'll check".  He walks back to the truck, speaking a language I do not understand and comes back with a grandma looking woman.  I smile nicely, nod my head and say "i'm making ketchup."  certain she has no idea what I just said, I nod and smile more and lean in territorially toward my selected lug of tomatoes.  She snaps back a reply to the young man, and he says yes.  Then I decide that I want to pick out each and every tomato rather than just taking a pre arranged box. {I would be whimpering in the corner at this point, so embarrassed of her behavior while shooting apologetic glances at the teenage boy and his grandmother}  so i feel and examine every single tomato.  after having satisfactorily piled up my "stack o maters" i pick up the box and my oh my is it heavy.  
i tromp down the asphalt aisle looking for cousin carol who has gone after the strawberries.  reminiscent of the scene in Sex and the City ( Movie #1 where Miranda and Steve agree to meet on the Brooklyn Bridge ) {I could only find the French version of this clip. Enjoy}  look through the crowd and over the tops of people's heads eager to find Carol and show her my tomato booty.  You know like pirate's booty, only different.  So i spy her in the crowd and we make eye contact.  She can see that I am carrying a big box, I can see that she is carrying a big box we know that we have scored and then i think "Was I suppose to get the tomatoes or the strawberries?"  I begin to panic; then i see that she has little red things in her box and they are indeed strawberries.  She is pleased as punch with the tomatoes and the price and we tell each other that we did a good job and go home.  

i decide that i got 30 lbs of tomatoes and tell everyone.  the neighbors, the husband cousin who is back home in phoenix, you, everyone who will listen.  we decide that the tomatoes need to sleep outside overnight for maximum freshness.  then we begin to worry about squirrels and parrots eating them so we decide against it and bring them in to the kitchen table.  

the next morning we begin our work.  but first we decide we should weigh the tomatoes to determine how many lbs we got for $15.00
having no produce scale in the house i step on the scale to confirm my weight, then i step on the scale with the tomatoes.  22lbs of tomatoes!  

please note the reason this ketchup making notion is even in cousin carol's pretty little blonde head is that she once {once? more like once a week} watched Meet me in St. Louis and evidently {evidently? like, you've never seen it mom? how is that possible?} there is a ketchup making scene in that movie.  In the movie, during the process, the neighbors, friends, sisters, brothers everyone traipses through the kitchen and tastes the ketchup, saying cute things like "oooh just a little more salt"..."Yumm needs more pepper"  "just right..." and so on and so forth.  So she is expecting imaginary people to just happenstance by the kitchen while we are making this and participate in her fun.  

so we find a recipe on the world wide web.  after much comparing and printing and reading the recipes out loud to me she decides.  
I'd post the recipe but i can't imagine that anyone in their right mind would make it so I'll continue with no recipe. Good point.

Essentially, making ketchup involves mashing up tomatoes, cooking them, straining them, making spicy vinegar, adding the spicy vinegar, adding sugar and cooking until 30 lbs of tomatoes reduce to two jars.  


So as you can see from the photos  we followed the directions, had one very handsome and complimentary taster, stirred, poured sugar and TA DA ketchup.  
cousin carol may now check this item off of her "things to do before i die" list and i am still wiping tomato juice off of the cabinetry.  
The next week we made hamburgers and decided that this was the best tasting ketchup we'd ever had.  
Actually, it was not so special so we decided never to make ketchup again.  the end.  
ps- my favorite part was making the cute little bag of spices tied in cheese cloth.  it is called the bouquet garni.  that is french for cute little spice bag.  it goes into the vinegar. 
More photos:
One Lugg. Sung to the tune of Bob Marley's 'One Love.'



tomatoes- some say
Mashed tomatoes- ain't as good as the 'taters.
bouquet garni- not a feminine hygiene product



























my favorite spoon- I always feel so powerful and professional when I stir with this


























almost done- are we there yet?


Sep 8, 2010

weekend highlights from my iPhone

And I use the work highlights very loosely. 


{also, I have NO idea why the photos are spacing out so strangely. Just keep scrolling. You'll find them.}

#1- I bought a dyson. I am madly in love with her. She is as cool as that tall British man says it is. I named her Devorah, as in Devo, as in she will whip it into shape. It being your home.   


















































I found some kool aid while cleaning out my kitchen. WIN! 




















































I read the NYT in bed. One of my FAVORITE activities. 





















































I saw this lady, who wins the DRYEST elbows in Phoenix award.
Aren't you glad I take photos of these things? I am a stealthy 
photo snapper. She had no idea I was even there. I'm like a chameleon.  













































I laughed at this silly tennis photo. Really NYT? You couldn't find a better photo from the US Open? He looks like he is auditioning (badly) for the Rockettes. I know a Rockette. Isn't that radical? 
























I came to the conclusion that I am a book hoarder. Admitting the problem is the first step. I discovered this after going agro on my house. I vacuumed everything with Devo. I accidentally put a huge gash in my hardwood trying to move furniture on my own. Don't tell my dad, ok? 
























I bought my first Pumpkin Spice Latte of the season. It's just not the same when it is 110 outside; lucky for me, my office is arctic cold. I so enjoyed it. 













































And I bought some pumpkin candy. Too soon? Probably. Don't tell my brother. He will probably disown me for celebrating a holiday before it is time. 

I'm asking you to keep a lot of family secrets today. Sorry about the added pressure.