Hippo and Trent

We picked up Hippo last night and she seems perfectly fine!
The last cat that got declawed (that was Adzuki, our 23 pound maincoon) was such a drama queen about the whole ordeal. She cried all the way to the vet, cried while in recovery, and cried on the way home. When she got home, she couldn't stand on her feet and would walk on her elbows instead. She'd lie on her stomach like a beached whale, arms at her side, back legs limp and splayed as she stuck her face in her food bowl and just lay there. Whenever we'd walk by she's start whining again:

Meow! The pain. Oh, the pain! Oh...can I have more food??? Oh! The pain! the pain the pain...Meoooooow!

We didn't know any better, so of course we were hesitant to get Hippo's claws removed until we absolutely had to. We expected her to react similarly, but nope, she's fine.

She jumped out of her carrier, a little cranky, but quiet. She doesn't seem to have difficulty walking either. Instead of rolling over and feigning defeat or walking on her elbows in a great show of crippledness, she just lifts the front of her paws ever so slightly and keeps pressure off of the toe area. It's cute. It's like walking on your heels. Anyhow, go figure. Hippo's a trooper.

In other news, I saw this picture over at ETS. I was so amused by the pic itself, I didn't bother tracing the source, validity or context.



I can just see the conversation....

Trent: How much?

Andre: only $1000

Trent: Don't fuck with me. How much?

Andre: Honey, it's Dolce y Gabbana. You know these are good shoes. Look at the
leather. It's rockstar leather.

Trent: Yeah, but I've got---er, I mean, my girlfriend has got pumps way better looking than these and they were cheaper--

Andre (cutting Trent off): OH-MY-GOD! Is that a new bicept implant in your arm?

Trent: No, I only fixed my brachioradialis, moron....and HEY, don't cut me off! And, ahem, I happen to work out. This biceps are more fabulous than you. I could crush your balls right about now...

Andre: Oh and you know we'd both love it--

Trent: Just shut up. How much?

Andre: Okay, for you baby, $50.

Trent: Deal. No tax if I pay cash right?

Andre: Oh, alright, just cause you're such a cutie and those'll look so darling on you. I mean, Doc Martins are just soooooo out of style right now. Are you gonna wear those leather hot pants with these cause that would just complement your legs. Vavoom vavoom!

Trent: Look, they aren't for me, okay?

Andre: Whatever. Do you want a purse to go with those shoes?

TRent: Sure--I mean no. Oh fuck it, I'll take a pink one.

In the mood for chicken? CP 35 is up!

Tim Young has just finished compiling contrast podcast #35, a theme provided by Ross from Just Gimme Indie Rock. Perfect for those longing after Thanksgiving turkey...I'm quite shocked that the techno Hampster Dance version of Chicken Song isn't on there! Too bad I don't have it on hand, otherwise, I'd upload it.

Visit:
Contrast Podcast #35: Chickens and Other Birds

Let's see, what other feathered influenced songs can I dredge up?

Listen to:
Icharus Line- "Spit on It"
Ima Robot- "Let's Talk Turkey"
Lovely Feathers- "In the Valley"

Declawing Hippo

Hippo the kitty, is getting declawed today. So sad. Yes, for Christmas, she's getting her toes amputated.


Why declaw her?

Well, for one thing, she's terrified of the outdoors so she never goes out. Furthermore, aside from batting lazily at pieces of paper while lying on her back, she doesn't have much of a hunting instinct either. However, she still feels the need to sharpen her claws and I'm afraid our couch has really suffered due to this.

So...I'm having a hard time concentrating at work because I'm worried she won't wake up after the surgery. That's a risk with kitties going under.

soldier boy

One of my former student employees sent me pics of him in the army. I, of course, have mixed feelings about all this. I'm not keen on war, but at the same time, I understand signing up to serve one's country when you feel it's your calling or if you have no idea what to do after school.



This one is damn cool:


Toting guns with the other boys:


Dear God, don't let him get shot. He's fucking smart and there are just too many morons in this world.

JBro and CindyAdzuki: "The Hippo Song"

No, we're not a band, but we're family...and every time there's a family gathering of sorts there will always be jam sessions. More often than not, the adlib songs will either be about one of my cats or my brother's stuffed dolphins, Seaweed and Weeseed.



This would almost be a contender for the Podcast of Pointless Singing, but I think it misses the cut since we are glorifying my adorable half-siamese half-ragdoll kitty, Hippo. She's sort of turkey shaped.

Speaking of podcasts, I'm working on Adzukipod #8 at the moment. No, it's not "H is for Heresy." I'll give you a hint: one of the instruments is in the side bar.

Jbro and I doing the "Hippo Song"

I'd say it was about 6 months ago when I randomly came up with the 1st line of the Hippo song with a sloppy 3 chord progression:

Hi-Hi-Hippo....She is a cat

Of course my brother expanded upon it, as well as a bunch of my other friends. Too bad we didn't capture the glorious jam session with my buddies Mark, Sammi, Dick, Belinda and Michael, but this video of Jbro and I is about as silly and absurd. I wonder if my cat appreciates all the fuss we make about her!



If you listen carefully, there's a reference to Seaweed and Weeseed the stuffed dolphins.

Yeah, I come from a nutty family, but I'm damned prod out it. I swear my brother also sounds like Jack Black.

Random Aside

..of course it deals with food again.
I forgot to mention this earlier. When we were checking out at the store, the cashier gal held up my bag of rutabagas and went:

What kind of onions are these anyway?
(you have to imagine a cute teenage gal smacking gum and wearing a lot of eyeliner saying this)

ONION???!!!!!!

That thing's got rooty bits coming out the bottom and leafy greens sticking out the top and she decides these things are most likely onions? If she said something like "what a fucked up beet!" or "why is this potato sprouting?" I would have understood, but it looks nothing like an onion. Seriously, a rutabaga looks NOTHING like an onion.

Okay, I'm done ranting now. Off to make some challah.

More food

So, Jbro is leaving in about an hour from Dallas and I'll be seeing him soon. Not sure what to eat for dinner since tomorrow will be a gorge fest. I'm stuck working from home for a few more hours, but figured I'd take a break and write about food.

I definitely need to ask Monica for her Pumpkin Chiffon pie recipe and Sammi for her Pumkin Fudge recipe.

I've decided to add a fennel and pear salad to the menu. Fennel bulbs are going for $3 each! Good grief! Had I known, I wouldn't have bothered, but T did the shopping and it didn't seem odd to him how expensive these vegetables were. I figured they'd taste good drizzled with olive oil and balsamic vinegar.

Darlin Hubby's real birthday is tomorrow, so I'm going to bake up a cranberry orange loaf and ice it heavily with orange icing as a birthday cake. Ha!

Yesterday I had another one of those insane salmon cravings where I called up my husband and asked him to bring home a fillet. I fear what I'll be like if I ever get pregnant, but I am thankful he's so obliging. I scarfed down all 14 ounces on my own. that's almost 2 serving. Yeech. I must be having an iodine deficiency or something.

Contrast Podcast #34: Musicians Introduce Their Own Songs

Once again, Tim Young (you should know who is is by now!) from the Face of Today has amassed a talented and dynamic group of musicians for this episode of contrast podcast. Among them is one of my absolute favorite singer songwriters from Texas, Salim Nourallah who contributes The World is Full of People... a fantastic song that was written for his darling son, who also introduces the song.

Michael and Belinda Morris of the Angelic Strings also appear with their trademark "Celtic Blues" sound and I was also very excited to see songstress Allison Crowe and Tim Young himself in this show as well. If you are amongst those who are missing Schrodinger's Cat a great deal, give Tim a try. He's got the big beat acapella thing down.

Visit:
Contrast Podcast 34: "Musicians Introduce Their Own Songs"

Plenty of new musicians to check out and enjoy!

Anyhow, tomorrow is Thanksgiving in the US, so I've got family over and am busy preparing stuff for tomorrow's gorge fest. Mmmmmm, pumpkin custard. Till then, happy Turkery day!

Kiwi! and buddies

I've gotten reassurance from others that I'm not the only one who started bawling when I first wateched this. Sooooo cute and so sad:



So the moral is apparently: it is better to have tried and died than to have never tried at all. I guess that's true. Notice the poor kiwi is completely alone as well. Goes to show often, when you're pursuing your dreams, no one will be there to support you. That's more the message I took with me.

On an urelated note (as they usually are), I found a dress on Go Fug Youself that I actually kinda like. The sillohuette is pretty and although the chocker collar is a bit much, hot damn, Eva Green she makes a classy goth doesn't she?



Sandy shared with me something kinda sad and depressing. Last week she attended a formal gala that was supposed to honor WWII vets with her father. Instead, it ended up being a thinly veiled fundraiser complete with mediocre buffet and blatant auction drive. Why the hell would people in their 80's a 90's want to buy more stuff? How insensitive is it to set up a buffet line when so many are motion impared? This really disgusts me and it just struck me as being disrespectful. I think Sandy and her dad ended up leaving early. Had I gone to something like that with my grandfather (he also fought in WWII for the Japanese), I would have left early as well.

Did you know that the first WWII memorial didn't open until 2004? Hmph.

I got a job offer today. I'm debating whether or not the take it. It's only 30 hrs a week but the pay is about what I made a couple of years ago, so eh, no biggie. Can't decide!

Ladybug:Ladybug

How could you possibly resist an adorable 4 piece Taiwanese punk band, especially one with a lead singer named "Mei-Mei" (which means "little sister") called Ladybug? The line up has changed over the years from 4 hot chicks to 2 hot chicks and 2 effete but cute guys, and yet, the talent has remained the same. These guys are definitely one of Taiwan's most influential indie-punk groups and have performed around the world including the famed New York club CBGB.

The band's Engrish is definitely noticeable (for example, some copies of their CD have track 12 as Instrumental while others are printed with Instrument) and yet, the accents and slaughtered grammar somehow add to the songs.

Titles like Motorcycle and Fuck off Creep will get your adrenaline running with its pure punk rawness while ballad pieces such as Are we Still Friends? can make even the hardest ass go emo for a few minutes. Check out some of the lyrics to the latter song:

Why lie? When you smile to me
Why trick? When you play with me
I don't understand,I don't understand,
Why hate? When you're behide me
Why laugh? When I get down my knees
I don't understand. What's in your fucking head?

For the most part, this is sugary lightweight girl punk and definitely not in the caliber range of the Donnas but just as entertaining and easy on the eyes and ears.

Listen to:
"Are we Still Friends?"
"Motorcycle"
"Instrument(al)"

Visit:
Ladybug's Official Website
Buy Ladybug album at Amazon


(photo courtesy of Island of Sound)

stuffing too!

Oh how could I possibly have forgotten the stuffing in my menu below? My stuffing is stuffed, let me tell ya:

1 small onion diced
4 celery stalks diced
1 pack of ground pork sausage (like Jimmy Dean)
1 large pack cornbread stuffing
1 box of Uncle Ben's wild rice (oh yeah...msg heaven here)
1 stick of butter
1 cup chopped pecans
1 cup of dried cranberries
6 cans of chicken broth

fry pork sausage until brown and crumbly, remove from pan and fry diced onion and celery in pork fat. Transfer to a large glass bowl. Meanwhile, perpare wild rice with 1 can of chicken broth. When the rice is done, toss with the pork sausage. Toss in the chopped pecans and dried cranberries while boiling the rest of the chicken broth with butter added. Dump cornbread stuffing into same bowl. When liquids are boiling, pour on top. Toss everything until stuffing is moist.

Jam it up the bird's ass right before you're gonna bake the dish, and you're good to go. This makes a lot of stuffing (so much that sometimes it take two people to assemble as you can see in the pic of my bro and I), so normally I place the contents into a casserole dish, cover it and let it heat in the oven.


***
On an unrelated note, Travis is home. Yay! He bought me a ski cap that's pink and says "I love DC." It's cute, but too bad it never gets cold here!
***

Because so many people were out in ballet, they combined technique classes last night, so I was stuck in the crazy hard Russian woman's class. You know the type--she's just made out of sinews and nothing else. When your toes are bleeding she scoffs with:

In Russia, when we trained, we had no water. We drank our blood!
Or something to that effect. :P

Oy. Class was so hard that I started getting a headache trying to process all the combinations and much of the time I found myself thiking I didn't know my leg was supposed to be able to do that...So instead of feeling refreshed from working out, I just felt utterly worn out.

Still, I'd take crazy hard Russian woman over evil Disney loving ballet teacher any day.

Thanksgiving Dinner Menu

Okay, I think I figured out what I'll cook for this year's Thanksgiving. Let's see how close I stick to the menu, but this time around it'll just be my mom, dad, Jbro and hubby...oh and the cats, so I need to cut down on volume.

This year I'm going to definitely cook:
-roasted duck
-white mushroom sauce
-plain green beans
-black beans with bacon
-roasted root veggies (yams, parsnips, carrots, rutabagas and beets)
-corn
-cranberry orange relish
-pumpkin pie

Items I am undecided about:
-corn bread muffins
-Challa roll
-cranberry muffins
-a big honking ham
-mashed potatoes
-salad

What's everyone else preparing or eating (not that anyone else besides my brother and Sandy reads this blog anyway! But, if you happen to stumble across this entry, I'd love to know.)

Maddy Prior and the Carnival Band: Carols and Capers

Ah, sweet November. Here in the US, Thanksgiving is just around the corner. It's a time of year where we celebrate the support and love of those around us and the bounty of our hard work by gorging on copius amounts of food. I think in reality, many are thankful for loose fitting clothing. However, another tradition comes to mind whenever the smell of stuffing, spices and yams are in the air--Madrigals!

Ah yes, those cheesy, yet fun loving reenactments of the bygone Renaissance-era featuring women in over stuffed corsets, men in tights, lots of angelic acapella singing and of course food! Jugglers, belly dancers, seers and jesters are usually included as well activities such as wenching, goosing and other forms of debauchery. The level of classiness and talent varies considerably from ensemble to ensemble (I'd say my alma mater's Madrigal group is talented, but we don't hold back on raunchiness either...case in point "The Moose Song"). However, much of the repertoire stays the same.

I'm a newcomer to Maddy Prior, the emotive siren of the British folk rock band Steeleye Span. After mentioning to a co-worker that I really like Loreena McKennitt, a bunch of Maddy Prior discs appeared on my desk with a note saying: Loreena sings too slow. Maddy is better!

I happen to think they're just different, but the disc of Carols and Capers caugh my eyes and ears and took me back to my glory days as a madrigal singer (for the record, I was a tenor...:P ). Prior's versions of these classics are supported beautifully with the talents of the Carnival Band.

Listen to:
"Wassail"
"The Boar's Head"

Visit:
Maddy Prior's Front Page
Maddy Prior Wiki Entry
The Carnival Band's Official Website
Purchase Evening of Carols and Capers from Amazon.com

Podcast of Pointless Singing

How did I go through life not knowing about this blog for so freaking long? I mean yeah, this is a relatively new blog, but I tend to sniff out the absurd rather quickly! I wear absurdity with pride, damnit! Anyway, the site I'm writing about is about as random and entertaining as the Google Image Search Blog. For those of you who are visualy impaired, here's the auditory counter part.

Yes, we humans can all make gutteral sounds and sometimes it comes out like music. And sometimes it really doesn't. Just wait. I know that eventually someone (*wink*wink*Psst, Shawn...)is going to sample these gurggles, blahs, oh-ah, meee-ohhs and yada yadas into some trendy techno tune eventually.

Anyhow, if you haven't visited yet, give it a go:

Podcast of Pointless Singing Blog

There's a certain beauty associated with pointlessness.

Natural Q

(image from petite mort.org)

If you like Portished or smooth jazzy bossa nova infused vocal stylings, check out this Taiwanese band, Natural Q. In case you're wondering what their band name means, quew-quew is the affectionated word for "curly" in Taiwanese. Hence, given that vocalist Waa and instrumentalist Chico both sport naturally curly locks, Natural Q is a suitable name for the two.

The sound is mellow and deceptively acoustic until you notice the electronic bits added in for mood. It's the perfect kind of music to listen to on a rainy day while sipping a latte curled up with your favorite book.

As always a big shoutout to Island of Sound the best source of Taiwanese Indie pop and rock.

Listen to:
"99 Drops Tear"

Visit:
Natural Q official Website
Petit Mort profile on Natural Q

Photos of Mark Harden

My weekend in pictures

I wish I could have gone to Washington DC with my hubby this weekend (he's doing a poster session for work) but considering I wasn't able to get the week off for Thanksgiving, I was not the least bit hopeful I could get time off on even more of a short notice. The crazy thing is that as of now, I have over 300 hrs of vacation accumulated, but I can't use any of it. Arrrrgh!

I did however do plenty this weekend.

First off all, I was craving sugar cookies. So, I baked up a batch and made some peppermint flavoured icing to go with them. I did some detail work in melted dark chocolate. Yum Yum.

I want to send some of these to an ex-student of mine who is stationed in Iraq at the moment, but his army address changes weekly it seems and as he put it: You can try to send anything, but no telling if it'll go through customs... Sigh.



Molly my cat posed for me a bit. She hasn't been feeling all that great due to sore teeth. However, giving her more canned food seems to lift her spirits. She looks so cute bathed in sunlight:


Caught up a bit with my best buddy, Shawn. I swear all of my good friends who understand me best live hundreds of miles away from me. He's going through down times as well, but I think that mainly has to do with graduate school.

The current cool thing going on is that he got a kick ass computer and apparently it comes with a web cam (not to mention tons of awesome multi media software. Shawn is the band Das Mobius, by the way). He sent me this Warhol-eque pic of him:


The would be a neat album cover. Too bad Warhol has been done a gazillon times.

I did a photoshoot on my friend Mark of Desert Waltz this weekend. He needed photos because he's trying out for Duran Duran. He'll be a good fit, but like ballet and female dancers, guitarists are a dime a dozen. If he gets the spot, I'm going to unabashedly beg for backstage passes and front row seats.





Here's my beautiful imperial topaz I finished cutting that I'm now thinking of setting. I want a ring (I seem to only like rings...) but I can't make up my mind on what style to get. And yes, JBro, I'm addicted to Jewelry Television and the style channel now. I can just see myself in 40 years with big hair, opera length pearls and gawdy rings on every finger as I'm smoking a clove from a long cigarette holder. I'm headed that way, I'm sure!

I'm usually not too entertained by politics...

...unlike my husband who says up all night looking at maps to see which states turn blue and which ones turn red. No, I did not vote for Kinky either. I voted for Bell.

But, that isn't the point of this post. I should also point out that I am blatantly biased.

The point of this post is to say that for once, there was a bit of political "news" that caused me to laugh so hysterically that I sprayed my drink all over the television set. I wasn't watching the Daily Show nor was this another Bush-ism (they're staring to get old anyway).

No, last night's piece of political entertainment came from the local news:

Rick Green punched Patrick Rose.
(Statesman Article here)



Yep, he socked him right in the face. :( But oh, is this so much more juicier than Fed-X and Brittany.

Now, if you saw that PBS documentary called Last Man Standing about the TX Legislature and the 2002 race between scrappy but uber-optimistic Patrick Rose (D) and seasoned incumbent Rick Green (R), you know Green had more than a chip on his shoulder after losing to the 23 year old. That's right, Rose was only 23 when he began his campaign. This is the kiddo who raised some of his money through auctioning home-baked pies from his supporters. Grass roots indeed. And although that may not have been professional in the eyes of some, it was sincere and left more of a positive image in my mind than all the fundamentalist spewage that came out of Green.

If you haven't seen the doc, I highly recommend it.

Anyhow, 4 years later, Green decides to punch Rose in the face after getting incensed about seeing his face superimposed over this year's Republican nominee Jim Neuhaus' body on a Rose flier. I understand the irritation, but seriously, for a political ad, that's tepid. Besides, Neuhaus has a fine ass and Green is looker himself, so what is he complaining about? There you go, viola...sexy Republican.

Seriously though, how is punching Rose remotely Christian? Any sort of negative feelings I had towards Green have pretty much been validated.

Adzuki Bean Pod #7 is up!

Okey dokey. I finally got my newest podcast uploaded. Phew! Track listings and artist information can be found at the sister podcast siteAdzuki Bean Stash Podcast. It's definitely a varied mix of music, but so far one of my favorites.

Listen to:
Adzuki Bean Pod #7: G is for Gods and Ghosts

Tim Young over at Contrast Podcast is grinding out podcasts at lightening speed! The newest one is CP#32 with the theme of "When."

Visit:
Contrast Podcast #32: When?

Is this for real? Season Shot

I'm trying to figure out if you really could make bio-degradeable bullets. Considering how much my head hurt the last time a fucking squirrel hurled an acorn at me, I'm guessing a lethal bullet doesn't have to be metal. I don't think this is real as the FAQ is sparse, but this is damn funny.

Season Shot:


That's right, you shoot your freaking turkey with a tightly packed "season bullet." The birdie dies while getting marinaded to perfection upon impact. You stick it in the oven, the pellets melt into the meat and then viola, as the diagram indicates, you have a perfect meal.

Oh the Dick Cheney jokes that come out of this one...

More EZ Archive ranting...Moonbabies

Well not really. I've fallen to whining now, but I am relieved that others hate EZ archive as much as me.

I too am joining the masses of annoyed MP3 bloggers and will most likely do away with EZ archive. Hence, it may take a while to get things rolling again. Till then, read the other rants related to their "upgrade." Actually, this is also a hint to take the time to visit other blogs:

Flatlander puts it real bluntly---EZ archive Sucks
Matt's rant from EarFarm
Aikin talks about Pearl Jam and suggests MediaMax for file share
EZ Archive "Shits the Bed"

And there are many more posts complaining about this all over the internet. I hope no one invested in EZ archive stock...

To illustrate the lovely ease of the much-more-intuitive and stable file sharing site, MediaMax let's listen to a cute song by the adorable Swiss pop group Moonbabies.

Listen To:
"Sun A.M"

Wow. That was so easy to use. I just uploaded the mp3 and voila, the link was there for me to use. Imagine that.

Poor Moonbabies gets swept up within a EZ archive rant, but alas, they were on my computer and their music always puts me in a better mood. Just visit their site to learn more about them. I'm all worn out from EZ archive (and I paid for my storage space there!)

Visit:
MoonBabies Official Site
MoonBabies Myspace

The Alpha Conspiracy and Low Technicians: Forward Rewinding

There are few musicians who are capable of creating works that continue to unveil layers of complexity with each listen while managing to stay timeless. Alpha Conspiracy is one of those groups. In simpler words--I never get tired of this band. I've gushed about brainchild Andrew Sega's project before and featured them in Adzuki Podcast #4. Needless to say, any group that collaborates with them is worth checking out.

Forward Rewinding is actually a split EP sharing space with another Austin based group, the Low Technician. Their electro-pop industrial infused sound pairs perfectly with the Alpha Conspiracy and after hearing this EP, I'm definitely looking forward to the Low Tech's next full length album.

Listen to (courtesy of the Alpha Conspiracy):
"Last Collection"
"Sunday Monday Morning"(Low Technicians/Alpha Conspiracy mix featuring Joel Willard originally of CTRL)

Visit:
Alpha Conspiracy's Official Website
Low Technician's Myspace
Purchase Forward Rewinding from Amazon


(Andrew Sega. Photo from official website)

twitchy

My left eye keeps twitching. It's driving me crazy. Either I haven't slept enough or there's a brain tumor in my head. Either way, I can't stand it!