parksy

sweet sweet honey

The first honey harvest happened! Now we have 15 jars of sweet amber delicious sitting in our kitchen.

We've got five hives now, but we'll only harvest honey from one of them this year. The other four are still pretty new, and they need time to get their bearings.

Honey is a magical thing. First of all, it's basically bee puke, yet delicious and decidedly un-gross. The bees collect nectar (sweet sugar juice) from flowers. They store the nectar in sacs in their body. Then, when they return to the hive, they regurgitate it into the wax cells of the honey comb. Other bees mix it with enzymes that will turn it into honey. The bees seal up the honeycomb, and in a short while, there is honey. The flavor of honey depends on the flowers that produced the nectar.

So why is it so magical (aside from being tasty vomit)?  Honey is one of the easiest foods for your body to process. It doesn't go bad easily and, as long as it is kept away from heat and humidity, can be preserved for decades - even centuries. It has various antiseptic and antibacterial properties, and may even end up being helpful treating serious infections like MRSA (multi-drug resistant strep). See? Magic, just like unicorns, IUDs, and leprechauns.

Yeah, so honey rules and we have lots of it. And speaking of bees, how much do I love this series? So much.

saturday afternoon

cosmic voyage

space and room

the bf is moving his studio out of the house, so we are going to re-do the space. it is still a small house - 750 square feet, shotgun style. mostly there are organizational issues: we don't really have closets, and we have lots of stuff. aside from having a loft bed, what are we to do?

we could do a wall of shelves and fill it full of crap. would this just make our small space look even smaller? i tried to find tips on how to make use of small spaces, and the internet was basically the least helpful thing ever. here are some pretty standard tips: 

what's cooking: fish tacos

a few months ago we bought some frozen fish. weird, i know. so i decided to cook it. in taco form.

i made cloe slaw with cabbage, lime juice, honey, vegetable oil, salt and pepper. coleslaw is the best. it's so easy to make, and pretty much alway delicious.

maybe it was a dream

what's going on

here are some things i am excited about:

OMSI after dark is next week. party party party grown up style in the science center. cause kids always take the fun out of sweet places like science centers and water parks, am i right?

though "einstein: the world through his eyes" doesn't sound like the most amazing exhibit ever, who can argue with the awesome allure of "chemistry lab after dark?" not this girl.

i hope it is a lot like this nasa photo of that pesky icelandic volcano.

a couple things that happen after a long drive and a long hike

1. Your legs will hurt for days thanks to the steep switchbacks.

2. You will see amazing things:

wahtum lake in the hemlock forest

alien magic cone flowers

mount hood peaking

boulders and wildflowers

saturday night movie

in case you were wondering...

"Scorpios are the most intense, profound, powerful characters in the zodiac... Scorpio is the most misunderstood of all astrology signs. They are all about intensity and contradictions."

(according to astrology-online.com)

daydreams

On a slow day at work, I'm thankful that I have a boring desk job so that I can spend my hours checking out couture.

This Givenchy collection is what my wedding party would look like if I took a time machine back to 1972 and married Gram Parsons for his money:

work tunes

Today at work I opted for the heart-string pulling, easy listening sounds of Harry Nillson. The man is a GD genius. Anyhow, there I was, typing away and humming, totally oblivious to the fact that this song is hardly work appropriate until my co-worker peaked in to ask me what I was listening to.

tiny, feathered dinosaurs

Did you know that chickens are cannibals? I mean, not always, but sometimes. It's a theme that pops up in all the chicken books I read. A book called Chicken Tractor (it's about portable chicken coops - don't worry about it) says:

"One horrible vice that chickens sometimes develop is pecking each other and in extreme cases, eating each other."

summer time problem solving

Sometimes I have problems that seem intense.  Sometimes I have problems that are easier to solve. These problems kind of rule. 

Problem? It's effin' hot. Solution:

 

$$$ and middle fingers

Today I called a financial counselor to make an appointment because I am terrible with money. I'm a smart lady, I have a master's degree, and I'm very organized at work, so it kind of doesn't make sense that I suck so bad at managing my finances. I guess I don't care enough about money, and I've always assumed I would never be wealthy because it just is not super important to me and rich people make me nervous. Plus I'm a sucker for a low-wage, high demand, soul-sucking, low-status non-profit job, which probably doesn't help things.  My tarot reading with Miss Renee informed me that I need to deal with my money problems pronto, and I'm not trying to piss off the universe - so I'm doing this.

what's cooking: fava-mame edition

this is actually a bit late coming because this meal happened days ago, but here you go nonetheless. we bought a grill; his name is smokey joe. this week our csa gave us a butt load of fava beans. apparently you can throw them on the grill, pod and all, then alt 'em and eat 'em just like giant edamame. the peas look just like green mussels. yum yum.

All salted and oiled and ready to go.

In honor of my name change...

Unleash the song bird

Had my first voice lesson today. It ruled. If you hadn't had the opportunity to take a voice class, I highly recommend it. You learn where you voice vibrates in your head and chest.

If you are a lucky lass like me you get to spend a lot of time imaging your voice coming from your butt. I mean, that is not exactly how it was explained to me. It has something to do with giving your larynx more space, but that didn't deter me from conjuring up the image of a mouth wind up toy in my butt singing loudly and proudly. Unleash the song bird!

Of course, not everyone in my life was so supportive. Here is verbatim my dearest pals gchat with me about how he thinks the voice class went. (All names have been removed to protect the innocent.)

BIG MOUTH: the academy also failed to nominate me for Best Supporting Actor that year for that role it was a crushing blow
wait, what are we talking about??
ohh hhaha your singing
that is very exciting!
solo lessons?
me: yeah lessons with xxx's bf, xxx. he is a real pro asked me lots of questions
about my goals and etc

6:21 PM BIG MOUTH: are you an alto or soprano?
me: very much a soprano
who knew

6:22 PM BIG MOUTH:
VOICE TEACHER: So before we start, what are your goals?

MELISSA: Well, for starters, Im aiming for at least two more dates with xxxx, I really want to commit more to my blog, and I intend to learn how to make at least four more versions of my slaw dish. Other goals include opening up a savings account, improving my pilates endurance, and learning Chinese.

VOICE COACH: Umm...

6:24 PM me: For a man who only cares about himself you actually know me really really well

BIG MOUTH: true
i don't ONLY care about myself! "primarily" would be a better word
I HAVE NO TIME
i threw in the "Chinese" part to inspire you
6:25 PM it's a beautiful language that uses different tones and pitches
and since you have perfect soprano pitch... well i thought you'd be a good fot
fit. CHINA IS THE FUTURE


Cruel. Cruel. Cruel.

What does big mouth know, not much. For this is how I feel after voice class:

pies and muffins and tarts

With almost 10 pounds of blueberries in the house, I've been doing some baking. I made a batch of muffins that were yummy, though not the best recipe ever. Cinnamon in blueberry muffins yields mixed results. And they weren't as light as I would have wanted. But I didn't have all the ingredients for the recipe I wanted to make, so I went with a quick and easy recipe.

berry

We went to Sauvie Island to pick some berries. Blueberries, strawberries, marionberries and rasberries.

Guarded by cats

And so begins my photos of cats on the porches in portland...there are a lot of them.

friday movie marathon

Well, let me tell you about last night. It was an epic Friday night chick flick marathon, courtesy of Netflix. Mel and I curled up on the couch with some ice cream and silly gin cocktails (cliche alert!) and hunkered down for some sweet lady entertainment. This is what we watched:

Footprints in the sand

Learned at Thursday's Tarot reading that with all the major arcana cards in my elements, the universe is carrying me.  Miss Renee said I am not in the drivers seat. Just hang out and hang on until it sets me down. Deep shit.

So deep in fact that I spent the entire next day camped out on Stacy's futon watching bad movies made for women. When I found Haagen Dazs was on sale 2 for 5$ between movie number 2 and 3, I decided that this was indeed what the universe wanted for me.

Today is a different story. The sun is bright. We have blueberry picking and Pam's dancing hot dog costume on our docket of activities. The ten day forecast is predicting a heatwave and in 2 days I will be done with my Heathers experiment and can stop wearing blue. All these are very good things. Now I just have to get off the futon. Universe send me a sign.

all right demon. bring it on!

Tarot card reading with Miss Renee did not disappoint.

Okay, so before I get into the cosmic outcomes of the reading, a brief description of just what this tarot reading entailed. Miss Renee lives way up north, so we took a long long bus ride to her house. We were a little early, but not worries - she let us in right away. Apparently she was just gaming anyhow. And let me just say that Miss Renee is rad. She swears a lot (and occasionally and adorably apologizes for it). She exudes this low-key soothing energy. She is sex positive and talks about gender in good ways. Her aesthetic, tone of voice, vibe - it all worked. Basically, I like her style.

tarot thursdays

Tarot card reading tonight with Miss Renee! Here's a taste of what we're in for:

I never forget that I am an instrument; I am just the messenger. I open myself to my gift as an empath and skilled tarot card reader and help people see their strengths and weaknesses. To help make it easier for people to see the path that will serve them best now and in the immediate future...

Now imagine this information coming out via one darn cute big Black chick that will probably make you laugh at least twice, can be a little cheeky, and tells it to you in plain English.

Im a gifted tarot reader of 17 years and spiritual astrology hobbyist. My readings just might knock your socks off, so you may wanna paint your toenails first :)

Needless to say, I'm stoked.

what's cooking: tunabomb edition

Tuna sanwiches with capers, radishes, celery, boiled egg, cheddar and shallots. Not being a fan of mayonnaise, I opt for an olive oil/dijon mustard/lemon juice mixture to bind it all together.

Fucking Eagles: Diary Week One

I associate keeping a journal with high school drama class or something lame health educators make their participants endure. To get through this I need inspiration. Enter the diary persona. Each week, I will take on a new diary-keeping persona and use the constraints of living in my weeks persona to keep my diary writing regular.

Week one's persona: Veronica Sawyer from Heathers.

Project One: Keep a diary

I have never kept a diary, but this month will be different. This month, discovery summer month 1, I will keep a diary. As a whole, I find the idea of keeping a diary to be a hold over from adolescence, navel gazing self introspection, or at least a way to get you in trouble with your close circle.

But...

There is a long tradition of ladies keeping diaries to help them figure shit out or to help them get laid (Anis Nin I am looking at you)

And...

This summer is about doing things I don't like in order to figure out what I do like. So, with that begins my month of journaling.

Debutante

Tomorrow is my debutante ball where which will usher me into Portland society. We are going to a spot that has Beer Slushies. Seems appropriate. But now for the real question: What oh what should I wear??

what's cooking: pizza edition

Pizza with fresh mozzarella and tomato sauce on the left. Pizza with sauteed kale, boiled potato and baked egg on the right.

mel says...

"I'm interested in diaries and memoirs right now. But first I have to watch Heathers."

On tap for this week:
Tarot reading, debutante coming out cocktail hour (formal attire not required), $3 movie, gym class, dancing in the ball room, voice lessons, cooking with Zuni, exploring the arts and crafts room, and Pam's hot dog dance recital.