Crabcake, twice baked potato, and salad

Crabcake, twice baked potato, and salad
Originally uploaded by SarahorNicholas.

Nicholas went to a movie with a friend tonight so I was actually forced to find my own dinner! Really unacceptable, but I think I did ok. I bought a prepared crabcake and potato at the local grocery store and added a small salad my very own self. ;)

I know ya'll are impressed.

Envy
Originally uploaded by SarahorNicholas.

I GOT A NEW CELLPHONE!!!

I've had Sprint since I first got a cell phone my freshman year of college. But ever since we've moved I've gotten crappy service and had a ton of problems with my phone.

Since Nicholas is already on Verizon (and you get service in the Metro!), I decided to switch and got a new EnV in the process! It's amazing. I mean did you know you can watch video on a cell phone?Ya'll I am so behind! Seriously though I'm going to need all of you who can receive video messages to let me know and then wait excitedly by your cell phones for me to figure out how to use that feature. ;)

Anyway, it's a very exciting new toy that OF COURSE Nicholas is constantly hogging and trying to steal.

P.S. I will be keeping my new phone number once I can "port" it over from Sprint on the 25th.

Red Lentil Dal

Red Lentil Dal
Originally uploaded by SarahorNicholas.

Sunday: Spinach Calzones

Spinach Calzones
Originally uploaded by SarahorNicholas.

Brownie Chocolate Mousse Trifle

Brownie Chocolate Mousse Trifle
Originally uploaded by SarahorNicholas.

We had a lovely dinner party tonight with our friends Jennifer and Eric. They are recently engaged so we spent a lot of time talking weddings and registry. :) The conversation was so great I forgot to take a picture (I know!) until dessert.

But I think it worked out well because that is one good looking dessert if I do say so myself!

Maggie for Hillary

Maggie for Hillary
Originally uploaded by SarahorNicholas.

Just so we're all clear were Maggie stands.

It's official

I got this email message this morning. First, I have to admit it was nice hearing it from Hillary before anyone else. :) Second, I didn't realize how excited I would be once it was official.

As most of you know, I am a huge Hillary fan. I think she is wise, careful and considerate in her decisions, and has proven herself a survivor in the field of politics and leader on the world stage.

It also goes without saying that the idea of a female president goes to the core of who I am and I cannot imagine anything I would more like to see happen in my lifetime.

However, as Obama-mania built, I found my loyalties tested a bit. I've seen Senator Barack speak and he is charismatic and full of integrity. And, of course, there is the whole Oprah thing. She loves him and I love her so I found myself being pulled in two different directions.

But when I got an email from Hillary Clinton this morning with the subject line "I'm in," my heart started beating faster and a smile spread across my face. She is my candidate. The candidate I believe can win and should win because she is the best option for this country.

I like Barack. I do. But he is untested, inexperienced, and so far noncommittal on every major issue. He doesn't speak to me and Hillary does.

So, Hillary's in and I'm officially in for Hillary. I'm sure most of you aren't THAT surprised. ;)


UPDATE:
I read the post to Nicholas and here is the exchange that followed:

Nicholas: I guess I'm going to have to vote for Barack.
Me: WHAT!?!
Nicholas: You know...bros before hoes.

It's going to be a long campaign season.

Eventually

I suppose it was bound to happen eventually...we forgot to take a picture at dinner tonight. We went out for sushi at Sushi Taro (pictured) and just totally forgot to snap a pic. It was delicious sushi though, I swear.

After dinner, we went to see Babel. It seems destined to be a Best Oscar Pic nominee, if not the winner, so we felt obligated to see it. And after 2 1/2 hours, here is my thoughtful review...

It was eh.

Split Pea Soup w/Leeks and Carrots, Grilled Cheese

Split Pea Soup w/Leeks and Carrots, Grilled Cheese
Originally uploaded by SarahorNicholas.

Cellulite

So Nicholas and I were jogging this morning and I noticed this movie poster.

And I have to say that I find it mind-boggling that a woman this heavy would have absolutely no cellulite. First of all, I have never met a single woman without cellulite. Period. But the amount and appearance seems to increase with weight.
Sooo...how ridiculous is it that unrealistic beauty standards are not only applied to everyday women but also to a character whose size is obviously a part of a joke AND who isn't even a real woman! Amazing.

Qdoba

Qdoba
Originally uploaded by SarahorNicholas.

Tonight, we grabbed a quick bite before the movie. We went to see Volver. It was really good. It made me like Penelope Cruz, which was hard, because I REALLY disliked her. Yeah, that's pretty much my review. ;)

Dylan pondering Moroccan couscous
Originally uploaded by SarahorNicholas.

Elizabeth

Ok so Helen Mirren just won a Golden Globe for playing Elizabeth I on TV and Elizabeth II on the big screen.

I think Nicholas nailed it. "There's a piece of trivia for you."

Thai green curry
Originally uploaded by SarahorNicholas.

Recipe

Slice assorted vegetables (I used a red pepper, three carrots, a medium onion, and some greenbeans).

Drain and dice tofu into 1/2 inch cubes.

Stir fry everything over high-heat. (Start with the tofu so it will cook nice and firm.)

When cooked add 1) can lite unsweetened coconut milk, 1/4 tsp salt (or a few dashes of fish sauce), 1/4 tsp sugar, and about 2 tsp of green curry paste (Thai Kitchen brand). Stir to mix everything up and let cook down for about 3-5 minutes.

Serve over jasmine rice.

Last Minute Lasagna
Originally uploaded by SarahorNicholas.

How bout everyone just stop smoking...period

D.C. went smoke free on the 2nd. I was and still am super-pumped. However, I've just learned about a downside of going smoke free. I now inhale just as much or more second-hand smoke on the sidewalk outside the bars and restaurants, because everyone just goes right outside the doors to smoke.

So frustrating!

Corduroy

Corduroy
Originally uploaded by SarahorNicholas.

Tonight was another Restaurant Week reservation. However, this time I remembered to take a picture before dessert!

We went with our good friends Laura and Daniel and had a wonderful time. I had oysters and scallops (pictured) and Nicholas had the parsnip soup and tuna steak.

Corduroy is one of our favorites and we've gone every Restaurant Week for three years in a row. Once again, it didn't disappoint.

King Lear

I don't know if you many of you knew this but apparently Nicholas moonlights as a Shakespearean actor. Today was really a headline day for him because he was literally pulled into the performance of King Lear we saw this afternoon.

D.C. has just began a six-month festival/tribute to Shakespeare. It is apparently the largest artist retrospective ever with everybody from local art galleries to the Kennedy Center participating.

One of the centerpieces of the festival is King Lear with Andre DeShields at the Folgers Shakespeare Library. The performance was VERY dramatic and in-your-face exasperate by the fact we were sitting four fee from the stage in the very first row and the performers kept running back and forth in front of us.

However, it is also apparently interactive. During the second act, when Edmond discusses his triangle with Lear's daughters Regan and Goneril, he waved Nicholas up out of his seat, stood him next to him, and asked "both, one, or neither." Nicholas, without hesitation, responded "Both!" The crowd giggled and the play continued.

Of course, our lives will never be the same. I'm sure it is only a matter of time before Nicholas quits his job as a lawyer to join the Royal Shakespeare Company. :)

Salmon, Rosemary Potatos, and Asparagus

Salmon, Rosemary Potatos, and Asparagus
Originally uploaded by SarahorNicholas.

Update

For those of you who have had the pleasure of speaking with me over the past couple of weeks, you probably know I had recently applied for a job on the Hill. I got all excited about the Democratic majority and decided I just couldn't wait till May to get in on the action.

It was a pretty stressful application process because it basically came to a stand still over break and I didn't get an interview until the New Year. This last week has been absolute torture waiting to hear back and I have been not so much fun to be around. But the waiting came to an end today...

I didn't get the job.

And you know what? I'm strangely ok with it. I thought I was totally over school and ready to be out there working. But then I registered for some really cool classes and I realized I'd almost be disappointed if I had to drop them and switch to night classes. (Let's not even talk about working full time and taking night classes). Plus, I only have one more semester with my friends before we all scatter to the four winds. Not to mention, I have a four day weekend EVERY WEEK. And as my friend Laura put it, I'd basically be paying to work for a semester.

So I guess I'll just suffer through one more semester of a student's schedule complete with morning yoga classes and Friday matinées with my friends. (We just saw Dream Girls - whoa!)

But come May...watch out because I'll be rested and raring to go ;)

If we ever need, $1100

Lentil Barley Soup
Originally uploaded by SarahorNicholas.

My good friend Dylan asked to model our dinner last night. He joins us about a once a week so you should see his beautiful face pretty often.

We've known each other FOREVER (notice the T-shirt) and very few people understand me as well as he does. Our relationship was love/hate for several years but now is all love with a only a dash of mild annoyance at times. ;)

EDITED TO ADD RECIPE

1 medium onion, diced
3 stalks celery, chopped
2-3 carrots, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1&1/2 cups french green lentils
3/4 cup pearled barley
3 vegetarian boullion cubes or 3 cups vegetable broth
1 TBSP cumin
1/2 TBSP turmeric
7 cups water (3 if using broth and not cubes)
14 oz can of crushed tomatoes

In a large pot, heat 2 TBSP olive oil over medium heat.

Add onion, celery, and carrots and saute for about 5 minutes. Add garlic and saute for about 30 seconds. Season with salt and pepper - be sparing with salt as boullion cubes and broth have lots.

Add water and boullion cubes, raise heat to high, and bring to a boil.

Add barley, lentils, turmeric, and cumin.

Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 30 minutes.

Add can of crushed tomatoes.

Allow soup to simmer a little longer, until lentils are soft. Season to taste.

Serve with bread.

Maggie's New Haircut

Maggie's New Haircut
Originally uploaded by SarahorNicholas.

Maggie would like everyone to know that she got a new haircut. She would also like everyone to know that she thinks her parents are real assholes for getting her groomed on the day winter decided to show up. :(

Radicchio Omelet w/bread and salad
Originally uploaded by SarahorNicholas.

Tuesday Night: Spinach Quesadillas

Tuesday Night: Spinach Quesadillas
Originally uploaded by SarahorNicholas.

Sometimes your dog won't poop and its frustrating...

So, yeah, not to put to fine a point on it but sometimes you walk Maggie for what seems like hours and you KNOW she has to go but she won't. And of course on some level you know she's not doing it to you on purpose, but, on the other hand, you wonder why there aren't more warnings about shaken doggy syndrome.

ANYWAY, I had walked the dog twice with no luck. So Nicholas took her with him to the ATM machine. He returns...

Nicholas: Your dog is a jerk.
Me: I TOLD YOU!!!
Nicholas: Oh no, you have no idea. I've trumped you by a mile.
Me: What she still hasn't pooped.
Nicholas: I take her out. We stop in the grass for a minute...nothing. So, we walk to the ATM machine. I'm depositing the checks, not paying attention. Meanwhile, our dog is shitting underneath my left foot.
Me: AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

I can't help but think this is some form of retaliation for our new dedication to the Dog Whisperer's pack leader technique.

Dessert

Dessert
Originally uploaded by SarahorNicholas.

Tonight Nicholas and I went with our good friends Paul and Lisa to PS 7's for Restaurant Week. Our meal was so delicious I totally forgot to take a picture until dessert!

Nicholas had Sarah's Salad and Sea Bass. I had Butternut Squash Neopolitan and Pan Roasted Rockfish with Wilted Blonde Pea Shoots, Maroon Carrot Purée and Blood Orange Emulsion.

Dessert was particularly delicious. Nicholas definitely won that round as he had cinnamon churros with dark chocolate dipping sauce. I had Coconut Cheesecake with Macadamia-Graham Cracker Crust and Vanilla Rum roasted Pineapple.

Will you people stop at nothing?!?

I've been getting ALOT of these kind of emails lately:

They are all generic pay check advance loans, but they appeal to people through their religious affiliation. I don't know if this is just the latest trend in email spam (I haven't heard from my friend the Nigerian Prince in quite awhile). But I find these appeals completely despicable. Paycheck advance loans are bad enough with their five hundred percent interest rates (I've always said you are better off borrowing your money from the mob - at least they won't affect your credit score!) but to appeal to people with lame tag lines like "Borrow money the CHRISTIAN way." Puh-leeze - as if slapping the word Christian on it, means Jesus loves you more for ruining your financial future with these people as opposed to someone else. Give me a break.

Barbe-fu, Tots, & Baked Beans
Originally uploaded by SarahorNicholas.

Penne with portobello mushroom ragu
Originally uploaded by SarahorNicholas.

Funky weather

I never thought a sunny 70 degree day could make me so cranky, but, seriously people, IT'S JANUARY. I should NOT be able to walk around in short-sleeves.

Where's my bitter cold?
Where's my snow?
Where's WINTER?

Friday night:Vace Pizaa

Vace Pizza
Originally uploaded by SarahorNicholas.

This is widely regarded as the best pizza in D.C. and we now live about a block away. It's excellent and pretty unique because they put the sauce on top.

A Great Day for Women Everywhere

Potato Curry
Originally uploaded by SarahorNicholas.

Recipes

Per request by a reader, I have attached links to the recipes for each night dinner (unless it's not available one the web or Nicholas just made it up) :)
Just click the pictures.

White bean hummus wraps
Originally uploaded by SarahorNicholas.

One of my favorites. I had two ... thank you very much :)

Risi e bisi + Rosemary Focaccia
Originally uploaded by SarahorNicholas.

Tofu and broccoli, originally uploaded by SarahorNicholas.

Nicholas and I have decided to post a picture of what we eat for dinner everynight...basically because it's our blog and we can ;)

(Apparently 2007 is going to ALL about the food)

Mini grilled cheese, originally uploaded by SarahorNicholas.

So I talk a lot about how Nicholas cooks for me. But really on days like today I can't say enough.

He fixed me mini-grilled raclette cheese sandwhiches with tomato and rice soup...FOR LUNCH!

The winner, originally uploaded by SarahorNicholas.

We spent a lovely New Year's Eve with Pamela and her boyfriend Max. We ate dinner. Played board games (of which Nicholas won ONE and I won the other). And watched the ball drop ... a dang near perfect evening.

Holidays with the Hollands

Holland Christmas
Originally uploaded by SarahorNicholas.

Ok so I've decided to stop playing my new Nintendo DS Lite long enough to blog about our Christmas vacation. :)

The theme of this year's Christmas was babies - for everyone playing along at home. Holy crap, there were a lot of babies. They were all well-behaved a majority of the time, except for a few freakouts brought on by over-stimulation. When they were being really sweet, my baby fever definitley got worse. Luckily, the spit-up and meltdowns tempered it pretty effectively. I also learned Nicholas and I are the perfect baby yin-yang. I prefer the little ones that sleep a lot. He prefers the bigger ones who need constant entertainment.

The first few days we finished up our shopping and got in all our favorite ATL food (Athens Pizza and the Varsity). Christmas Eve and Christmas Day we basically just sat around eating ourselves into a stuper - interrupted by spurts of present opening.

Plus, after only about six years, I'm really starting to get used to these in-laws of mine. I realized I think of them as my family now, instead of Nicholas's. IN FACT, I think I might even choose to hang out with a them if I wasn't required!

...

(At least of couple of them anyway) ;)

Merry Christmas ya'll!!!

Christmas in Kentucky
Originally uploaded by SarahorNicholas.

The very first day we got back from Thanksgiving I began decorating for Christmas. I would have started at midnight on Thanksgiving if possible so to soak every last second out of the holidays. For those of you who don't know me AT ALL, I (heart) Christmas.

For example, as I was decorating my tree, my friend Dylan expressed surprise at my multiple boxes of ornaments and the fact that I have so many decorations at such a young age. (I have two boxes and would guess around 70+ ornaments.)

As way of explaination, I thought I would offer pictures of my mother's house so that everyone can fully understand that I really have no choice. Christmas has always been a huge deal at my house. It's partly because I am an only child and partly because my parents love the holiday. (Although when I was little, my stepfather tried repeatedly to convince me Christmas was cancelled.)

It's not just that my mother decorates - its more of an explosion. No room or surface is left untouched. I used to say it looked like Santa Claus threw up all over our house.

We have two beautiful trees (not counting the one outside). A ton of nativity scenes. angels, lights, and Santa Claus's. She has THREE sets of everyday Christmas dishes and one set of fine Christmas china. The bathroom is covered. The extra bedrooms have themes. Even the phone stand is covered.

But you know what's really sad? The pictures from this year are low key. She has boxes and boxes left untouched.

Who am I kidding though? I love it. It makes every holiday so much more special. And what I've noticed from watching other people is that it's a lot easier to go with the Christmas tidal wave then to fight it :)

So Merry Christmas everyone - I hope your holiday is filled with friends, family, food and a crapload of decorations!

New Spot

New Spot
Originally uploaded by SarahorNicholas.

Remember when I was worried about Maggie not finding a new spot in the new house. Apparently that was misplaced...she found a new spot and a new friend ;)

You learn something new everyday

You learn something new everydayr on Vimeo

For instance, yesterday we learned that Maggie HATES yo-yos and wants to kill them.

Generations

Four Generations
Originally uploaded by SarahorNicholas.

I just got back from Kentucky. I flew into Louisville Wednesday night and spent the next two days visiting with my old roommate Erin and shopping for the rest of my Christmas presents.

On Friday, I drove to Paducah and spent the weekend with my family. It was really nice, especially Sunday afternoon after eating lunch (or supper in these parts) with my great aunts and uncle, my grandmother, and Ron. My great-aunt is without a doubt the family historian and where I get my photo-taking, scrapbooking, pack-ratting genes from.

Ever since putting the photo collage together for my dad's 50th birthday, I've wanted to get some photos from my mom's side of the famiy so I could put together a display. Well, I hit the jackpot with Carolyn. I got pictures, pictures, and more pictures.

Beautiful pictures of my grandmother when she graduated from high school. Pictures of my great-grandmother in what my grandmother informed me was a "go-to-hell" hat. A school picture my great-aunt had written a little love note to my great-uncle on.

However, the most amazing pictures are the ones of my great-great grandmother and her family. Her name was Ruby and she died when my great-grandmother was three or four. I've heard the story several times before because it is cited as the reason the women in my family aren't big nurturers. The theory goes that my great-grandmother was raised by her stepmother who took very good care of her but never treated her as her own child, and therefore she never had that super-nurturing model. I've always loved that my mother was the "walk it off - you'll be fine" mother. It made me the independent person I am today so it was pretty intense to look at the woman whose death shaped my life.

It got me thinking so much that when I got home I signed onto ancestry.com and started working on my family tree. Well, SIX hours later I'd gotten several generations back. The best part was when I was showing Erin what I had done once I got back to Louisville I did a search that plugged me into another tree people work on together. I was able to trace back to 1259 Scotland! Pretty crazy.

It's so fascinating to see who and where you came from. I know it sounds cheesy but both sides of my family have been in Kentucky for generations, which makes me feel slightly less crazy for feeling so connected to it.

I started working on Nicholas's tree last night. As I have suspected all along, he is a total imposter as a Southerner. Almost his entire family came from either Massachusetts or Pennsylvania... I can't believe I married a Yankee. So, anyway I guess not all the revelations have been positive ;)

This story is true

Last year, my parents were having about their sixteenth thousand problem with their router. They'd had a cheap MSN Router that they'd always had problems with so I made them buy a Netgear router. If I recall, I spent almost an hour trying to set it up but it seemed to work fine for several months.

Then, when I came home this weekend it was down after a power outage. I immediately called Netgear because I couldn't pull up anything with the IP address listed on the router. I was informed by the customer service representative that the warranty for hardware failure on December 15, 2006. Only thing it WAS December 15. When I tried to explain this, I was informed that it was a -1 warranty and they could answer no other questions. Grrrrr....

SO we sent Ron to Best Buy to buy a Linksys Router, which one of our relatives had suggested. He came back with a box touting "One Step Setup." Needless to say, I was not hopeful. Two hours later, my cynicism proved accurate. After trying ourselves for a while, a representative informed us we had to install a firmware update to get it to work. Information that would have been helpful IN THE BEGINNING OF THE PROCESS.

We finally got it working for Ron's computer and his laptop. However, when I told the representative that I couldn't get the internet on my mac, she informed me "they don't support macs." After a couple of google searches, I realized that this Linksys router was all but completely incompatible with Macs. The only solution that began to address the problem was installing the firmware update on my Mac. Well, I was up till 3:30 in the morning trying to get that to work and after being frustrated to the point of tears several times, I finally got it to work.

The next morning it STILL worked...for about six or seven hours. Then, the entire network went down. Ron spent another hour on the phone with Linksys, setting up the entire network again (this time named "ronismadashell"). But it would only work for about fifteen minutes at a time.

SO, we went back to Best Buy and thought we'd give D Link a try (for those of you keeping score, that's Microsoft 0, Netgear 0, Linksys 0). Again, the "quick" setup was a big ole lie. This time it took about an hour on the phone with D Link AND BellSouth, Ron's ISP. This network was named "ThisBetterWork" and it did...for about THREE hours.

And here is where the story gets REALLY ridiculous (as if it wasn't already). I call D Link and they run a few test and it seems the DSL connection is down all together. So I call Bell South and they ask me to check the cords. I scoff and inform them the cord JUST came out of the box and was working fine for a couple of hours. But we try a few other things and nothing happens so I go ahead and switch back to the old Ethernet cord and IT STARS FRACKING WORKING AGAIN. After all that, it actually was a burned out cord.

UNFREAKING BELIEVABLE.

The network has now been up and running for almost 24 hours...we're all holding our breath. Because as fun as it is to spend the holidays with customer service representatives half a world away, I'm really hoping to spend it with my family. Or at least ignoring them, while I play on the internet. ;)

Matt Damon Does Matthew McConaughey

Not to blowup youtube but this is FRACKIN hilarious! (that's right I'm using frack now DEAL WITH IT I figure its a great opportunity to both incorporate my love of BSG and solve the whole nanny/cussing thing) ;)

Sleepy Spudgy

I'm not going to lie this is WAY cuter than Maggie and her collar...sorry Mags ;)

Crazy Weekend

THE tree
Originally uploaded by SarahorNicholas.

Nicholas and I had a pretty amazing weekend - filled with one extreme to the next.

Friday night was his law firm's holiday party. Nothing too extreme about it actually, pretty much the same thing as the last two years. It was held at the Mandarin Oriental, which is really fantastic. There was a cocktail hour, followed by a dinner buffet. I had like four courses between the seafood bar, the soup, salad and sushi, and the main course. Then, everyone mingles back out into the main forrer for dessert. This year was a little more festive because all the desserts had a holiday theme - eggnog creme brulee, sugar cookies, etc. After dessert, we did a little dancing but the big draw is karoke. I did my standard, "Something to Talk About," to lots of praise. Of course, it wasn't hard to wow the crowd since the guy before me sang "O Come All Ye Faithful." Needless to say, this guys did NOT know his crowd. We went home a smidge earlier then we usually do because we had a very early morning the next day.

On Saturday, we woke up at 4:30am and took the train to New York for a little holiday shopping. Unfortunately, our train was about an hour late but we still arrived at 9:45. We had a quick breakfast by Penn Station and then took a cab down to Fifth Avenue. We started at Henri Bendel, which was crazy fabulous withthe price tag to match. It was probably reflective that the first purchase of the day was for me. ;) We then made our way up Fifth to see the windows and do a little shopping in Saks. The highlight was the hot chocolate we had on the sixth floor at Charbonel et Walker - delicious!

Of course, the big event was across the street at Rockafeller Center. The tree was really gorgeous but the people were the realy sight. Apparently there was a three hour wait to ice skate! We walked back up Avenue of the Americas to FAO Schwarz, which had a line down the block to get in. Luckily, it was really really fast and we made our way in within three minutes. It was such a scene inside but definitely fun. Kids playing the huge piano from BIG and stuffed animals as far as the eye could see. What made it even more fun was we have a niece and nephews to buy for this year - even if they are a bit small. ;)

After FAO, we took at cab to Soho for the Pearl River Market. Basically, its anything you can think of and then some. We got lots of awesome stocking stuffers. We then did some shopping at the Holiday Market at Union Square. Again, crazy crowded but we made a final dent in our list there. We took a small break for Mud Coffee (highly recommended by Rachel Ray) and relaxed while enjoying the view of the Empire State Building.

We met my friend Lindsey and her boyfriend for dinner at Elmo. Lindsey is a writer and is utterly fabulous - particularly because she featured me in her new book! We had a really great meal filled with even better conversation. By 9:15, we were back on the train home! It was quite a whirlwind but worth every second. I've always wanted to New York at the holidays so it was definitely a dream come true.

The extreme Saturday filled to the max with activity was followed by an extreme Sunday filled with absolutely freaking nothing (or as the Sweet Potato Queen's say "doing jackshit"). I didn't get out of bed till around 10:30 and didn't get out of my pajamas all day! I know what you're thinking "Sarah, staying in your pajamas all day is extreme!" (Well, you're thinking that unless you're my mother who has made the all-day-pajama-binge an art form - I learned from the best!) But the sad part is that is not the extremeness I'm referencing.

Here goes nothing...

Yesterday, Nicholas and I watched twelve hours of Battlestar Galactica...not counting the ten webisdoes online. That's right.

TWELVE HOURS

And I'm not ashamed either because that show is freaking amazing! I kept hearing all about how great it was, how smart it was, how it was the BEEEESSTTT. So finally i was like FINE I'll watch! So I put Season 1 on the Netflick list thinking I'd try it out. That was two weeks ago and we're already four shows away form being caught up with season 3! (Of course I sucked NIcholas in along the way - we only have one TV after all).

And really everything they say about that show is true. I mean I don't even like sci-fi that much (except Harry Potter and comic book movies and Lord of the Rings and...ok I'm stopping now) but this show is more political then anything else. It is very much post-9/11 and really asks important questions. How far are we willing to go to be safe? Or to get information from terrorists? Recently, they had a whole storyline about insurgency and occupations. Oh and they have their own version of the f-word! "Fracking toasters!" I mean it is truly amazing. Needless to say, I highly recommend it. Just set LOTS of time away if you start ;)

Maggie and her collar

Maggie and her collar on Vimeo

You have never met a dog that loves her collar more than this one. It borders on the weird. She freaks out when you take it off and acts like you are giving her chocolate covered snausages when you put it back on.

Volunteering

Well, I went downstairs to our annual condo board meeting and came back as the newest board member...whoops.

I'm sure none of you are surprised that I volunteered, but it is just not in me to turn down an uncontested position. Considering one of the board members recently called a resident a "condescending fucking prick" across the entire listserv, it would seem I have no where to go but up. ;)

Holiday Entertaining

Table
Originally uploaded by SarahorNicholas.

We had a very busy weekend.

On Saturday evening, we had several friends over for a dinner party. Nicholas made a delicious menu of sausages with pickled onions, potato and apple gratin, salad, salmon on shallot toast, and warm olives. It was all a huge hit. Later in the evening, we played a rousing game of Dirty Santa. My friend Laura had never played before and she was very intent on other's stealing to make the game more interesting. Of course she was delighted when her gift was traded several times. :)

Later, we had cake and eggnog while everyone enjoyed a good laugh at some of my home movies. (It all started with a showing of "What My Church Means to Me" - see below.) All in all, I'd say it was a very successful evening considering it started at 7 and ended at midnight.

Today, we had a dessert reception for my friends from Chandler's office (and my friend from high school Dylan, he comes to every party so he can tell everyone he knew me first!). We had a beautiful spread as you can see. I was particularly proud of my cookie tree - unfortunately Nicholas's didn't make the cut ;) Again, it was a really lovely afternoon and I think everyone had a good time.

It was all a lot of work but it was really nice to have everyone over to see our apartment finally. Plus I got to bring out my china! :)

What My Church Means to Me

What My Church Means to Me on Vimeo

There's a saying in the law "res ipsa loquitur." It translates "the thing speaks for itself." ... Yep ....

Old 45's

Old 45's on Vimeo

Thanksgiving

Cracking up
Originally uploaded by SarahorNicholas.

Sorry it has taken me so long to post. Nicholas and I are having two holiday parties this weekend and we have been in full party-planning mode since coming home.

We had a really wonderful Thanksgiving full of family, friends, and food. We got home late Tuesday night and stayed up till 1am with my parents looking at old home movies and listening (and dancing) to my mom's old 45's...don't worry video is to follow. On Wednesday, I went to lunch with some friends from high school and got caught up on all the gossip. That night we went for sushi IN PADUCAH and it was actually pretty good. Although the best roll was deep fried, which was not surprising. ;) We also went to see Casino Royale, which was excellent. I just want to say for the record I always supported Daniel Craig and his hotness as James Bond. Anyone who has seen Layer Cake would never doubt his ability.

On Thursday, we did a whirwind tour of family gatherings. We went to Allen Family Thanksgiving for lunch in Evansville. My Aunt Barbara and Uncle Jimmy hosted the clan and we had some fantastic food. I made a chocolate roulade which my counson Andrea called a big chocolate burrito, but a good chocolate burrito so I guess I shouldn't complain. It was really wonderful to be with all my family, especically since they are crazy fun (see above picture).

After lunch, we drove to Hopkinsville to eat dinner with Ron's family. The only problem was none of us ate because we were so stuffed from lunch. However, we got to visit with everyone which is sort of the point. :)

On Friday, my dad's family and my Aunt Lana and her family came over for pancakes. I know most would find it absurd that my father's family is coming over to my mother's house since they've been divorced for over 20 years. But hey later that day my grandmother came over with all the family to my grandfather and his new wife's house for dinner. So at the very least it runs in the family. ;)

The next day we drove to Louisville for the day to visit with our friend's Tim and Emily and see their new house. Tim and Emily (or Timily if you prefer) are pretty ridiculous. On the surface, they have very little in common but somehow that translates - they seem to be the only two people on the planet that understand the other. We also saw Annie and Kyle and their new house. From our guided tour, I would guess those two have done nothing else but home improvement projects since they moved. Kyle in particular has crazy energy so this fits him perfectly. They've been in the house only a couple of months and they've already ripped out walls in the basement, vines on the front tree, and painted their back room. I don't know how they do it - ya'll saw what happened when I asked Nicholas to help me paint our tiny kitchen.

On our way home, we stopped at Beaver Dam - a rest stop on the endlessly boring West Kentucky Parkway. On my way in the door, I hear "Hey Sarah!" I recognize the face and the voice so I put on a big ole smile and gave the guy a hug with an accompanying "HEY!" We exchanged pleasantries and he introduced himself to Nicholas as Brandon but as we walked away I had NOTHING - I mean absolutely nothing on who that kid was. So lucky Nicholas had to hear for the hour and half back home. "Brandon! Brandon! Brandon Who!?!" I called my mother, my grandmother, TWO friends from high school and no one could figure it out.

I racked my brain through all my groups of friends - high school friends, Paducah family friends, La Center familiy friends, church friends (or "churchies"). They were the only group left and conveniently enough were coming over that night to visit. After eliminating Brandon Mosley, Jessica Carfield (my savior!) remembered Brandon Driver who was a few years older then us. A quick search through the church directory and myspace and TADA! Brandon Driver! Thank god we figured it out or I would have been tossing and turning all night "Brandon WHO!?!"

Sunday was our last day in town and we didn't do anything exciting except gorge on Red's Donuts and go shopping. We flew out of Nashville late that night - arriving home at around 1am. An exhausting trip but worth it! :)

UCLA Student Gets Tazered

This is the most disturbing thing I have seen in a long time.

Ok, so maybe wikipedia isn't that great

I will proclaim my love of wikipedia to anyone that asks. I check it all the time and used to argue its neutrality and reliability...that is until I checked the entry on the shooting at my high school in 1997.

Most of the content was copied word for word from the shooter's website and it merely listed the victims at the very bottom of the page. However, the most disturbing part was that the majority of the entry had been written by a teenager from Australia who admits to mental illness but says he is "attempting to resolve these issues [his] self, but with great difficulty" AND who only edits or contributes to entries about school shootings or other violent events.

I guess the best part about wikipedia is you can edit when you see something wrong. Well, I saw a lot of things wrong so I spent several hours editing the entry. Not exactly memories I love to revisit but I felt it was important. Actually during my research, I found a lot of interesting follow-up stories and learned more about the people with whom I share those memories and their lives now, which was actually very nice.

I thought I might post about that day but even ten years later I'm not really ready to talk about my experience in-depth...at least not tonight anyway.

Dear O.J.,

We don't need your ridiculous hypothetical confession! And do you know why?

You stunning piece of crap and wasted flesh...

because WE ALL KNOW YOU DID IT!

With great hatred and anger,
Sarah

*******************************

Seriously, I cannot control my vitriol when talking about O.J. Simpson. I was just in high school when the whole thing went down and I remember thinking it was quite the circus. I think I always thought he probably did it but it seemed semi-inconclusive.

Then I remember on rainy weekend in college I was being lazy and stumbled across the E! True Hollywood Story about the O.J. Simpson trial. It was like four hours long. At the end I recall being completely shocked and thinking "Holy crap! That man killed those people in cold blood and got away with it!"

Ever since then, I get really really angry when I talk or even think about O.J. I don't usually feel that way about criminals. I never had an ounce of anger for Michael Carneal. Maybe that's because he went to jail for his crimes and I never had to see footage of him happily playing golf or dating Playboy bunnies. Or maybe it's because Michael Carneal was and is mentally ill and O.J. Simpson is just a jerk who got away with murder. I don't know. All I know is O.J. Simpson is a walking, talking mockery of our criminal justice system and the fact that he is going to make money or gain one more second of publicity from brutally murdering those people makes me want to scream. I hope bad bad things happen to him, on earth and beyond.

Holy Crap! Someone painted my kitchen orange!

New Kitchen
Originally uploaded by SarahorNicholas.

Naw - I'm just kidding. Nicholas and I painted it today. Wow, was he unhappy about that. He got over it eventually though...of course that was about the time we figured out it would need three coats. ;)

Consider this the second installment of my "Introduction to Our New Apartment" series. I've already showed you our bedroom and now that we've decided not to mount our television, pictures of the living room should be coming soon!

******

Of course today wasn't completely without mishaps... ;)





























This is actually the face he had all day.

Borat: Very nice...NOT!

Last weekend, Nicholas and I attempted to see Borat. Sasha Baron Cohen's new mockumentary about a reporter from Kazakhstan who travels to America. It was completely sold out. Disappointed, we had to listen to a week of great reviews from critics and our friends who had seen the film. "The funniest movie in years!" "Revolutionary!" "Genius!"

Needless to say, we were pretty syked. Only one problem - not that funny.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not one of those totally unhip hipsters who are easily offended or think comedy can't cross certain lines. Here, let me present my hipster comedy credentials:
I watch South Park.
I laughed my ass off during The Aristocrats
And I was at Jackass 2 opening night.

And all of that was funny. Borat was not funny.

There were parts were I giggled and even laughed out loud. But overall I was terribly disappointed.

First, the movie jumps back and forth between scripted and unscripted moments so I was never truly convinced either way. Plus, with the recent accusations put forth by several of the "drunken, frat boys" in a recent lawsuit, it seems Cohen doesn't just script pieces of the film, he manipulates to the point of fraud.

Second, I felt patronized. Several critics have praised Cohen for showing America in all its racist, sexist glory and making us laugh at ourselves. Only one problem - I wasn't laughing. As a Southerner, I couldn't help but notice that Cohen spent a majority of the film in the South - stopping in Virginia, Atlanta, Alabama, and Texas. Even when he was on his way to California in the middle of Arizona he manages to find three frat boys...from South Carolina. He spends a small amount of time in New York and L.A. There are a few gags about how New Yorkers will punch you out for trying to kiss them but no time spent making people in New York or L.A. seem like racist, ignorant jerks. I've been to New York and L.A. - believe me when I say there are racist, ignorant jerks there, too.

One part of the film in particular struck me as manipulative. In Atlanta, Cohen stops in the "ghetto" to speak with a group of African-American males. They are very nice to him - explaining how to wear his pants, laughing at his music choices, and teaching him slang. At first I thought, "how funny that the people that seemed most dangerous were the nicest to him." But looking back on it, why didn't he spout off his usual sexist, anti-Semitic, or homophobic rants to them to see how they would react? In the real documentary "The Protocols of Zion," the filmmakers spend a lot of time addressing the historical mistrust of Jews in the African-American community. How come he didn't try that route? Something tells me because it wouldn't have fit in as nicely with spearing of white America. Too complicated to really look at racist America, instead of just laughing at the ignorant, white people...which maybe would have worked if I had been laughing at that either.

Third, several parts of the film were just mean. Calling a woman ugly at her own dinner table is mean, not funny. Scaring the shit out of young children with a live bear is mean. (Ok maybe a little funny but also a little mean). Plus, I was never sure how people were supposed to react. At one point, an etiquette coach is shown pictures of Cohen's "family" which include pictures of his "son's" penis. She doesn't bat an eye and calmly explains that though he is proud of his family, perhaps he should keep the pictures to himself. I didn't think that was ridiculous or funny. I thought it was dang admirable.

My friend says we are supposed to laugh at ourselves as Americans because we will tolerate such absurd situations in the name of politeness or political correctness or whatever. But I just don't understand what would have been a preferable reaction. To scream and yell? Why are we supposed to laugh at the racist, Southerners who live on Secessionist Drive because they go out of their way to try to understand the cultural differences between themselves and their guest from Kazakhstan.

I just don't get it.

Give me Johnny Knoxville anyday. ;)

It's official

I can't stop smiling either Nancy...

Why I'm a Democrat

If I had to pinpoint a time when I began describing myself as a Democrat, it would be the winter of 2000. By this point, my transition from a good little Baptist conservative to what Cartman describes so aptly as a "college know-it-all hippie" was really in full swing. As you can imagine, 2000 was not the best year to switch parties because we started losing...a lot.

It wasn't always easy to stand strong. 2004 was particularly devastating with pundit after pundit proclaiming the death of the Democratic party. However, I became and remain a Democratic because I believe to my very core that this party is better at governing our country. I do not believe that Republicans are evil (at least not ALL of them) or that they hate America. I do believe that the basic ideas of the Republican party spell disaster for America.

Corporate welfare does not work. Leaving corporations free to pursue the almighty dollar and expecting them to do what's best for America in the process is absurd. And who can blame them? It is their job to make a profit at all costs and most of them are pretty good at it. However, it is not their job to watch out for working men and women. It is the government's. The middle and lower classes of this country do not ask for much but when they do we should deliver. Democrats deliver. They delivered Social Security. They delivered the Family and Medical Leave Act. And they will deliver a raise in the minimum wage.

Wedge issues might be an election strategy but they are not a governing strategy. Without a doubt, religious and social values are important. It was a strong faith in God that led Americans to demand an end to slavery, an end to segregation and the right to vote for women. However, reducing complex issues of morality and faith into divisive discussions on abortion and gay marriage is wrong. Morality in government really means less corruption. In the first 100 hours, Speaker Pelosi has already said the first item on her agenda will be to close the revolving door between legislators and lobbying.

Nation building does not work. It never has and it never will. Being strong on national security requires diplomacy and restraint, not brute force and moral judgment. Our experiment in Iraq has failed. By refusing to address our failure, we have also made North Korea and Iran more powerful and more dangerous. Without a doubt, we are less safe and less secure. Democrats will demand the accountability that has been sorely lacking in our government's foreign policy. Tough questions are ahead but that does not mean they should not be asked.

I believe in the Democratic party. Not because we are perfect or have all the answers - but because the foundation of our party is built on real solutions for this country.

Election Night 2006

Election Night 2006
Originally uploaded by SarahorNicholas.

YEAH!!!!! Kentucky coming through - woot woot

Wow!

I cannot believe she did this. I mean everyone hates to lose but HELLO there's a camera on you.

My niece and her proud parents

Elizabeth
Originally uploaded by robholland.

This picture is just too sweet not to post.

Exchange

Nicholas: The Breeder's Cup is today
Sarah: The dog show?
Nicholas: (Stares blankely)...The horse race.
Sarah: (Gives cutest smile so husband is distracted from her very stupid comment)

Questions for the Game of Life

I was trying to think about something to post about since it's been a couple of days. I don't want to post about the election because I'm afraid I'll curse it. I didn't do anything terribly exciting today or the day before that. I'm currently watching On Golden Pond. Needless to say, current events is not an option.

Then I remembered these "If..." books I have. They have conversational questions like "What famous person would you have dinner with?" Stuff like that. Nicholas always hates to do them with me so I'm going to make you guys play!!! ;)

Some of them are way too easy for me - basically every answer to any question involving a famous person, dead or alive, will be Oprah.
If you could have a famous person as your parent, who would it be?
Oprah
If you could have any person in history be your boss, who would it be?
Oprah
If you could change places with any celebrity in the world, but have to remain that person forever, who would you be?
Oprah

Others are harder.
If you could be any sign of the zodiac other than your own, what would you want to be?
I don't really know about any other zodiac sign but my own. Wait - I think that's a characteristic of a Leo.
If you had to pick the TV personality you were most in love with as a kid, who would it be?
Whew. Tough call. I remember Don Johnson being my first real celebrity crush. If we're counting adolescence, I had it bad for Jordan Catalano (Jared Leto) - along with about 3000 other 15-year-old Angela Chase wannabe's.
If you could have been present during the inauguration of any past president, whose would it be?
This one is really hard. My first instinct is Abraham Lincoln's second inaugeral. But then again JFK's? or FDR's? Or what about George Washington's? Oh or Thomas Jefferson's? Too tough - can't pick. Impossible.

Well, that's it for now. Feel free to leave your own answers in the comments if you're bored! :)

A place to rest your head...

So in all the Halloween excitement I didn't get a chance to post about the other development this weekend. We bought a new mattress!!!

I know I know - this sounds like some joke post about how boring people's blogs about their personal lives can get but seriously! We were sleeping on Nicholas's $175 mattress from law school and now we are sleeping on this. I mean you can only imagine the difference.

Needless to say, we sleep better, longer, and don't wake up with sore backs. Aaaaaaahhhhhhhh........