Amber's Journal *

Farmer's Market week #ilosttrack

ambermae@livejournal.com — Sat, 11 Jul 2009 18:27:14 GMT

I headed out to the market early this morning because I had plans at 10:30. The place was crazy crowded anyway! The cool morning temperatures probably helped, though by the time I left the sun had come out and it was starting to get humid.

Today I went with a list. It looked like this:
fish
chicken
1 lb ground beef
fruit
cucumbers
cherry tomatoes
greens
2 ears corn

Here's what I actually got:
- fish (mmm grouper)
- chicken (whole)
- 1 lb ground beef (grass fed and grain finished. If I ever get the energy up to try a different market I hope to find 100% grass fed beef)
- blueberries (there was a severe shortage of stone fruit for it being peach season)
- cucumbers
- cherry tomatoes
- swiss chard
- 2 ears of corn
- three little green bell peppers
- a bag of white grits
- a slice of pound cake (for breakfast) and a slice of lemon blueberry meringue pie for Chris
- a loaf of multi-grain bread

So I got everything on my list and then some, but I didn't do too badly considering the great bounty of items spread before me. I also spent almost my entire budget this morning (I continue to blame the fish).

Then I went for a 2 hour bike ride and almost died of wheeziness and exhaustion.

Happy Saturday!

Farmer's Market!

ambermae@livejournal.com — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 14:20:37 GMT

Today was my first Saturday at the North Hills farmer's market since sometime in May. I missed it! When I left the booths were full of greens and strawberries, but today they were full to bursting with squashes, berries, peppers, tomatoes, and summer. There were some notable absences due to the holiday weekend, but I managed to get a good selection of deliciousness anyway.

The haul:
- a pound of little summer squashes that are green on the bottom and yellow on the top
- pint of yellow cherry tomatoes
- jalapeno and habanero peppers (five of these cost me 20 cents)
- a green cucumber and two small yellow lemon cucumbers
- small bundle of skinny rhubarb, the first I've ever seen at the market
- string beans
- two varieties of garlic
- watermelon
- canteloupe
- blueberries
- blackberries
- a whole free range chicken
- some hot sausage from pastured pigs
- cherry hand pie for breakfast and a slice of blueberry cream cheese coffee cake

Now I just need to figure out how to turn all of this stuff into meals because they all kind of look like snacks to me.

Happy summer!

Tri times posted

ambermae@livejournal.com — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 03:28:14 GMT

Chris: 1:05:51 37th place
Amber: 1:13:03 50th place

out of 62 participants

Yay! I wasn't last!

Triathlete!

ambermae@livejournal.com — Sun, 07 Jun 2009 02:59:09 GMT

We did it!

Honestly, I'm amazed we got ourselves up at 5:30am on a Saturday to do this thing. After that, everything else seemed, if not easy, inevitable. I think there might have been a moment while we were waiting for our turns in the pool when we would have sprinted for the door and gone home, but we didn't. And, as predicted, we were the last ones out of the pool (the last ones in, too) and I was the last to cross the finish line. Because of staggered start times I'm hoping to learn that I wasn't actually the slowest, but we'll see.

Nathan and Robin came out to cheer us on and take lots of pictures. They even walked half of the run portion with me, and Robin did the whole thing. I was so far behind the last person that if she wasn't there I probably would have felt sorry for myself the whole time. Instead we chatted and I made it to the end. Hopefully they'll post pictures soon, but maybe none of me in my swimsuit.

Chris and I are fortunate to have found this great group of pleasant and supportive people who are more interested in having a good time than winning. Everyone was positive and encouraging, and as I passed people on the return portion of the bike route they were all smiles. I even got a biking high five!

In summary, yay!

Triathlon tomorrow

ambermae@livejournal.com — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 15:08:01 GMT

Chris and I are participating in the Grueling Triathlon of Doom tomorrow, so I won't be able to go to the farmer's market. In fact, I'm booked with something or other every Saturday morning in June. I'm sad I'll miss out on tasty fresh veggies and seeing the offerings change every week with the season, but the summer bounty greeting me in July should be pretty awesome to behold.

So, yeah. Triathlon tomorrow. We tried all three pieces in a row at the gym last night and it worked great (except for the part that we just did a whole triathlon less than 36 hours before the real one). I'm more confident that I'll be able to finish barring a major bike emergency, and I think Chris is feeling better about his abilities in the pool. He ran almost the whole running part on the treadmill! I walked most of it.

We'll see how tomorrow goes! Wish us luck!

Big Mill Bed & Breakfast

ambermae@livejournal.com — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 02:37:07 GMT

Today was the first day in a week that I ate three home cooked meals in a row, and it was lovely. Of course, the reason I wasn't cooking last week was also lovely. Chris and I decided to go out of town for Memorial Day/our anniversary/my birthday. We had a bit of trouble deciding where to go; he wanted to travel somewhere tropical and I wanted to avoid planes and long car trips because they both sounded like work to me. In the end, we decided on Big Mill Bed & Breakfast in Williamston, NC.

I found Big Mill B&B and its proprietor, Chloe, by Googling for eco vacations in North Carolina. That was how I found the B&B we stayed at in Vieques (and the whole island, come to think of it). This time my Google search brought me to the Vocation Vacations web site, which is just a brilliant idea to begin with, and to the writeup on Chloe and her eco friendly B&B.

Williamston isn't exactly a bustling metropolis with lots of activities to choose from, but we figured it was within striking distance of a bunch of towns in the eastern part of the state that we'd never been to together before, and it wasn't too far for a day trip to the beach. What really attracted me was the isolation and the pictures of Chloe's breakfasts. Since we've been back I've made her pecan cranberry granola -- and we've only been back for 2 days!

Our vacation was wonderful. We brought Chris' camera and won't have any pictures until we develop some film, but the first thing I did most mornings was wander outside and take pictures of the zillions of birds who call the place their home. There were at least three barn swallow nests (one of which fledged before we left), a whole gaggle of baby geese, and one tiny robin who fell out of his nest and who miraculously was still alive and kicking days later when we left. No matter where he was -- middle of the yard, against the old chicken coop, in the ivy underneath a pecan tree -- his mama found him and brought him meaty things to eat. I hope he's still out there getting big and strong.

Speaking of food, we had some memorable meals. I tried to arrange for a catered dinner for our anniversary, but the caterers weren't available that night. We ended up at a cheap steakhouse behind a hotel across town. There really weren't all that many attractive lunch and dinner options. Our room did have a kitchenette, though, so we had beer, brownies, and ice cream to last us all week. We also ate a slice of our vacuum sealed wedding cake and opened a reserved bottle of Chris' homemade wedding champagne on our anniversary, which was fun.

We had a couple of great meals. First, Chloe's breakfasts were a life saver after eating out the other two meals of every day. She brought everything to our room in the evening so we were free to sleep in as late as we wanted the next morning. Then Chris would make coffee and I'd microwave quiche, toast bagels or english muffins, and spread out the rest of the feast. There was always quiche (different every day), fruit (ditto), trail mix or granola, homemade jams, delicious homemade breads, and juice. We ate like sleepy kings.

We drove to Edenton on Thursday and found a great lunch place. It wasn't culinarily amazing or anything, but it was a bright spot in a week that was filled with Alamo chicken and salad bars. We parked down by the waterfront and found Chero's. I was starving and not expecting much, but the place was cute and their chicken salad had been featured in Southern Living magazine. The portion sizes were pleasantly large (especially nice after our tiny wraps at Mimi's in Washington the day before) and their sandwiches came with lots of fruit. Chris' giant fish sandwich also came with mac & cheese that tasted like it was my recipe.

That night was my birthday dinner. I scouted out a location in advance on the Chowhound message board and got a recommendation for On the Square in Tarboro, a 45 minute drive. It was so awesome. I ordered a cucumber mojito to start and Chris had a plummy sangria. Then I got the roasted asparagus salad with bearnaise sauce and a poached egg, while Chris ordered the strawberry salad with goat cheese and champagne dressing. We split an order of their gnocchi in pesto cream sauce (yum) before our main course, and ordered a bottle of Burgundy, the Patriarche Pere et Fils Gevrey-Chambertin 2003, to drink with dinner (which we finished in our room a couple of days later). Chris had a pork tenderloin with Mexican spices and mashed potatoes, topped with a thin and crispy fried onion and sweet potato julienne. My dinner was super awesome: breaded veal with mascarpone and peas, swimming in a very rich mushroom demi-glace and topped with crispy fried thinly julienned potatoes. I ate it all. Somewhere in there I mentioned to the person who brought our wine that I'd found the place when looking for restaurants to go to for a birthday dinner, so when my dessert came out (strawberry shortcake) the kitchen had written Happy Birthday in chocolate syrup on the plate and stuck a lit candle to the plate, too. Chris had the molten chocolate cake, but I was too full and tipsy to pay much attention at that point.

Of course, when we got back to the room that night Chris had surprised me by ordering cheesecake from the caterers (Chloe was leaving it on our table as we got back) but we were far too full to attempt it, so we ate it the next day after breakfast. It was vacation! We could do what we wanted!

On Friday we drove out to the outer banks. We first stopped off at the Bodie Island lighthouse and took some pictures. Chris ended up striking up a conversation with some random geeky guy from Raleigh. I'm sure they're going to end up running into each other again some day. We then drove north on a futile search for dinner. We ended up in Duck, a town I'd been wanting to visit since I first saw a North Carolina map. Chris was so hungry he was almost catatonic at this point, so we stopped at the first restaurant that looked like it might have fish. It was closed (we were there just before 5), but there was a candy shop in the same shopping area so we wandered down there to get us some emergency blood sugar. The owner recommended a different restaurant in town, and wandering back to check out the menu we could see why: the original restaurant we'd chosen was really pricey and didn't offer much in the way of local fish. So we took the candy store guy's recommendation and went to Fishbones, which wasn't terribly great but did the trick. We even got to eat conch fritters together almost a year to the day after having them for the first time (the ones in the Caribbean were better, natch).

Then, on the way home on Saturday, we stopped off at the Skylight Inn, barbecue capital of the world. There was a line out the door when we got there, two teenage boys weighing out orders on an old fashioned scale, and two other guys chopping up a whole pig on the counter behind them. They don't sell sides: you get barbecue in a tray or on a sandwich, slaw, and cornbread. That's all. But that's enough. It was yummy.

And that was our vacation. I'll remember more about experiences that weren't food related when we develop our pictures, I'm sure. Mostly I napped, ate, slept, ate, and napped again. It was the perfect vacation.

Farmer's Market week #7

ambermae@livejournal.com — Sat, 23 May 2009 19:00:28 GMT

It's the first day of our week-long vacation today, though we don't go out of town until tomorrow. The only reason I headed to the market this morning was to pick up some meat for the freezer. I rediscovered why I normally go around 9:30. Today we slept in til 10ish and by the time I got to the market everything had been picked over. The chicken people were out of chicken, there were no pork sausages left, and my favorite baker had sold out and gone already. I still managed to get some pork chops, the last grouper fillet, a loaf of wheat bread, and two coconut bars from the German baker. We'll miss market week #8.

Back next Sunday!

Strawberries!

ambermae@livejournal.com — Mon, 18 May 2009 03:56:27 GMT

I just made strawberry jam!

(Posting this to all of the social networks I frequent because I'm just that excited.)

Farmer's Market week #6

ambermae@livejournal.com — Sat, 16 May 2009 16:47:36 GMT

Last year I could buy something from every farmer at the market and stay within my budget (and come home with a good variety of veggies, besides). Now I find myself skipping almost half the tables there in favor of the people I feel most loyal to. I'm hoping that I'll branch out once summer comes and spring's lettuces, onions, and strawberries give way to more variety of fruits and veggies. Not that I'm complaining! I love my farmer's market.

Today:
- heirloom lettuce
- two mini baguettes from The Bread Shop, which we'll use as rolls with our...
- spicy pork sausage, from a new pork vendor
- snap peas, chard
- broccoli, asparagus
- beef chuck roast
- hothouse tomatoes (Chris came with me today and picked them out)
- strawberry rhubarb hand pie & tropical buttermilk pie (with coconut, pineapple, and lime)
- ~~pear & blackberry cake~~ cookies plus two pretzels from the German baker
- vanilla cashews & cinnamon roasted pecans (yum)

We didn't pick up any fish this week because we aren't planning on being home for dinner Friday night. We also didn't get any strawberries this week because we're going strawberry picking today! Chris took the day off and everything. We already have plans to make a strawberry clafoutis for breakfast, strawberry wine, and maybe some jam.

Now we just need to recover from those huge pancakes at Pam's Farmhouse restaurant so we can move from the couch and go to the farm.

The most depressing newspaper

ambermae@livejournal.com — Wed, 13 May 2009 13:46:12 GMT

My first responsibility at work every morning is scouring the local newspapers for articles relevant to North Carolina's schools. After doing this for a few months, I am convinced that the Fayetteville Observer is the most depressing newspaper on the planet. Just scanning their local news headlines every morning gives one the impression that they enjoy reporting on death and mayhem, because somehow even the very occasional neutral story ends up sounding sad and pathetic.

A typical example (bolded for emphasis):

* Hope Mills woman honored on "Regis and Kelly''
* Fayetteville police apprehend murder suspect
* New leader knows 7th Special Forces Group well
* Hennis lawyers allege witness tampering
* As soldiers for a day, spouses take a leap
* Whiteville man indicted in wedding day wreck
* Elizabethtown man dies from beating injuries
* Virginia fugitive arrested in Fayetteville motel
* Restaurant owner charged with ID theft
* Fayetteville woman charged in fatal wreck
* JFK Center gets new senior enlisted adviser
* Spring Lake police scandal leaves jumble of emotions
* Job opportunities scarce for new graduates
* Cheers and Jeers for May 9
* Fayetteville State approves building contractor
* N.C. Bar Association honors Grannis
* Work begins on 2nd downtown roundabout
* Study says recovery from autism possible
* NASCAR driver Jeremy Mayfield, two others fail drug test

Today, though, things were a bit different. Take a look (also bolded for emphasis):

* Gasoline prices rising again
* Robbers attack gospel choir teen, then apologize
* $1,140 bottle of vodka sold in Hope Mills
* Woman run over; friend charged
* Cumberland ABC board sees big profit for fiscal 2009
* Robeson storm damage estimated at $800,000
* Robbery victim pursues suspects through gunfire
* N.C. confirms 12th case of swine flu
* Robeson Smart Start disputes audit findings
* Fallen lawmen to be honored Wednesday
* Tea party, hat show planned in Laurinburg
* Horse owner sues Cumberland County
* Fort Bragg Green Beret featured on TV show
* Investors' lawsuit accuses pair of loan fraud
* 3 Fort Bragg soldiers leaving for new commands
* FSU nursing decision supported
* Cumberland school board approves $455.2 million budget
* Raeford robbery suspect sought
* New Hope shelter to help city's homeless
* Robeson schools OK optional furlough days
* Leaders salute community involvement at banquet
* Bill encourages cord blood donation
* Cheers and Jeers for Wednesday, May 13
* Bad times drain Social Security, Medicare coffers

It's not a dramatic difference, but just enough that I noticed. Maybe these couple of days of sunshine have improved an editor's mood?

Farmer's Market week #5

ambermae@livejournal.com — Sat, 09 May 2009 15:05:35 GMT

It was a beautiful morning for the farmer's market, and I was one of only a billion people who thought so. The place was kind of packed. Of course, it's kind of fun with lots of people. That means that lots of kids are running around on the green and their parents can sit on benches and enjoy the band (bluegrass today). I don't mind lines at my favorite tables because it means everyone wins. After 45 minutes of humidity and waiting and running out of money, though, I was ready to go home.

Today's loot:
- 3lbs of grass fed ground beef for tomorrow's Mother's Day cook out
- another grouper fillet (our favorite fish so far)
- broccoli, asparagus, and zucchini from an impossible farm that straddles growing zones
- strawberries and onions with looooong green tops
- a spinach-like asian green whose name I have forgotten
- a loaf of experimental sourdough bread from The Bread Shop (the last one because it's way yummier than their previous sourdough from a dry starter)
- lemon chess pie (for sharing) and a strawberry rhubarb hand pie (for breakfast) from my favorite baker, who returned to the market this morning after a layoff during which her family adopted a little boy from Guatemala (one of the aforementioned kids running around on the green)
- cinnamon roasted pecans and vanilla roasted cashews (soooo delicious)
- a bavarian pretzel with the last bit of change in my pocket

It was a good morning.

P.S. Note the absence of lettuce. That's because I still have a bag leftover from last week.

Afternoon update - Bad news: it seems the mystery Asian green is a relative of mustard. Maybe Chris will eat it.

For future reference: Gold's Gym Member Services

ambermae@livejournal.com — Thu, 07 May 2009 16:45:12 GMT

A phone number at Gold's Gym headquarters may be the most elusive thing on the internet. But I have one: 1-888-824-2331

My new hobby: biking!

ambermae@livejournal.com — Mon, 04 May 2009 14:48:33 GMT

I don't know if you can call something you've only done twice a hobby, but I've biked 10 miles in the last two days and I'm excited to go explore more of the city in search of the perfect longish stretch of bikable road. This, to me, sounds like an impending hobby.

So, Chris and I signed up for this crazy triathlon in February. The race itself is in June. After we signed up we realized that we neither owned bikes nor had easy access to a pool. Fortunately, Craigslist exists to help with half of that problem. We bought cheap bikes that don't really fit us several weeks ago and proceeded to park them in our living room.

Then, a couple of weeks ago, my ex-boss Jess and I set up a biking date for this past Saturday. She invited me out to Durham to try out the American Tobacco Trail, which is where the biking portion of the triathlon will be happening, anyway. I figured I'd try to make it the 6-mile race distance and see how I did, then I would know how much training I'll have to do this month to get up to the full distance. But you know what? I did it! 6 miles! I was so proud of myself.

Chris probably felt left out since he's doing this triathlon with me but couldn't come on the biking date, so Sunday we took the bikes back out, parked at the entrance to Schenck Forest, and headed (downhill) toward Umstead Park. The uphill climb back to the car was tough; my bike doesn't quite fit me and I'm terribly out of shape. The ride was worth it, though.

Later we used Google pedometer to calculate our distance and it looks like we went about 4 miles! Only 8 of those were uphill (felt like it, anyway). Also, check out the awesome USGS topo map feature on that site. I may never use another mapping utility again.

So now I have a bike, a bike rack, and a map of the Raleigh greenway system. I may not have many muscles or a cardiovascular system worth mentioning, but biking is great fun even without them.

Next up: swimming. I'm a bit terrified of that portion of the race.

Farmer's Market week #4

ambermae@livejournal.com — Sat, 02 May 2009 14:16:31 GMT

If salads are your thing, get yourself to the North Hills Farmer's Market immediately. The place is positively bursting with lettuces. We're not a big lettuce family though we did start trying to eat more salads last week. I guess we'll be building on that effort for the first week of May.

What I got:
- heirloom lettuce and arugula
- head of lettuce that's a hybrid of butter lettuce and romaine
- broccoli
- purplish spring onions
- strawberries
- beef soup bones & a pound of pork sausage
- Black Drum fillets
- a packet of chipotle pepper flakes (from the guy who sells stone ground grits) to put in my next batch of grits or cornbread

Help!

ambermae@livejournal.com — Wed, 29 Apr 2009 13:50:24 GMT

View Poll: Choosing a vacation

Thanks for all of your input. We finally chose a vacation! We're going to stick fairly close to home and will share details later on.

Farmer's Market week #3

ambermae@livejournal.com — Sat, 25 Apr 2009 16:12:01 GMT

Today was the first time that I had to go to an ATM while shopping to get more cash for the farmer's market, and I blame the fish. I also got a call from Emily this morning because she and the baby were on their way to the market and she hoped I would still be there. So I put my food in the car (in the parking deck, so sun wasn't a problem) and bought a cone of cinnamon roasted pecans from a vendor and a vanilla frappucino from Starbucks and waited for them. It was a beautiful morning. The market was packed with happy people browsing, talking, and listening to the band play on the green. This market is the highlight of my week.

Notable:
- london broil from Meadow Lane Beef (Emily picked up some ground beef)
- ground chicken from S&L Farm (too expensive, won't do that again)
- butterflied trout from the fishermen, flown in from Colorado (I'm going to stuff them with whatever's left in the crisper drawer on Friday)
- heirloom salad greens and arugula
- kale
- rainbow chard
- strawberries
- asparagus (I'm making soup this week) and those awesome garlic leek things
- a small flat of mini bell pepper plants
- a loaf of ciabatta from The Bread Shop (they had me at samples)
- more tasty pastries from the German bakers, this time lemon squares and a tart cherry cake

I also picked up some literature this week:
- Franklin County is sponsoring a locavore dinner during it's farm tour May 16-17. Tickets are $10 and can be purchased from S&L Farm at the market.
- Jackson Farm and Pamela Clark at the Thyme Savor are teaming up to offer Victory Garden classes, which will include both cooking and canning. I have a schedule for May and June and would love to go. Classes are $35/person.
- I scouted out some pick your own strawberries places and came home with directions to the farm where I bought all my hot peppers last year. The woman who works there is very nice and that heavily influenced my decision. There were many strawberry farms to choose from, but I enjoy my relationship with this one. Hopefully we can find some free time to do that soon.
- I also brought home a copy of Edible Piedmont magazine which is tormenting me with its articles on shallots, rhubarb, and ramps -- none of which I've seen at the market so far this year.

Quote of the Day

ambermae@livejournal.com — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 17:28:28 GMT

"There's no evidence of the Lincoln Memorial if you look the other way and refuse to turn around. But if you care to look, it's really quite impressive."

- Jim Carrey, Huffington Post
The judgment on vaccines is in??

Note to commenters: Be pleasant to each other. I know and like you all and you may have to meet in person at some future occasion so don't say anything in a tone you'll regret.

Movie list

ambermae@livejournal.com — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 01:56:30 GMT

I'm posting this here because I don't like to post notes on Facebook.

SUPPOSEDLY if you've seen over 90 of these films, you have no life, or you're very cultured. Mark the ones you've seen. There are 249 films on this list. Copy this list, go to your own Facebook account, paste this as a note. Then, put x's next to the films you've seen, add them up, change the header adding your number, and click post at the bottom. Have fun.
Tag some others - get them to do the same. You must tag the person who tagged you.

I've seen 97. I guess that means I have no life. Also, this list is kind of random and bad.

(X) Rocky Horror Picture Show
(X) Grease
(X) Pirates of the Caribbean
(X) Pirates of the Caribbean 2: Dead Man's Chest
(X) Pirates of the Caribbean 3: At World's End
() Boondock Saints
(X) Fight Club
() Starsky and Hutch
(X) Neverending Story
() Blazing Saddles
(X) Airplane
Total: 8

(X) The Princess Bride
(X) Anchorman
(X) Napoleon Dynamite
(X) Labyrinth
() Saw
() Saw II
() Saw III
() Saw IV
() Saw V
() White Noise
() White Oleander
() Anger Management
() 50 First Dates
(X) The Princess Diaries
() The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement
Total so far: 13

() Scream
() Scream 2
() Scream 3
() Scary Movie
() Scary Movie 2
() Scary Movie 3
() Scary Movie 4
(X) American Pie
() American Pie 2
() American Wedding
() American Pie Band Camp
Total so far: 14

(X) Harry Potter 1
(X) Harry Potter 2
(X) Harry Potter 3
(X) Harry Potter 4
(X) Harry Potter 5
() Resident Evil 1
() Resident Evil 2
(X) The Wedding Singer
() Little Black Book
() The Village
() Lilo & Stitch
Total so far: 20

(X) Finding Nemo
(X) Finding Neverland
(X) Signs
(X) The Grinch
() Texas Chainsaw Massacre
() Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning
() White Chicks
() Butterfly Effect
() 13 Going on 30
(X) I, Robot
() Robots
Total so far: 25

(X) Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story
() Universal Soldier
() Lemony Snicket: A Series Of Unfortunate Events
() Along Came Polly
(X) Deep Impact
() KingPin
() Never Been Kissed
() Meet The Parents
() Meet the Fockers
() Eight Crazy Nights
() Joe Dirt
() King Kong
Total so far: 27

() A Cinderella Story
(X) The Terminal
() The Lizzie McGuire Movie
() Passport to Paris
(X) Dumb & Dumber
() Dumber & Dumberer
() Final Destination
() Final Destination 2
() Final Destination 3
() Halloween
() The Ring
() The Ring 2
() Surviving X-MAS
() Flubber
Total so far: 29

() Harold & Kumar Go To White Castle
() Practical Magic
(X) Chicago
() Ghost Ship
() From Hell
() Hellboy
() Secret Window
() I Am Sam
() The Whole Nine Yards
() The Whole Ten Yards
Total so far: 30

() The Day After Tomorrow
() Child's Play
() Seed of Chucky
() Bride of Chucky
(X) Ten Things I Hate About You
() Just Married
() Gothika
(X) Nightmare on Elm Street
(X) Sixteen Candles
() Remember the Titans
() Coach Carter
() The Grudge
() The Grudge 2
(X) The Mask
() Son Of The Mask
Total so far: 34

() Bad Boys
() Bad Boys 2
() Joy Ride
() Lucky Number Slevin
(X) Ocean's Eleven
(X) Ocean's Twelve
(X) Ocean's Thirteen
(X) Bourne Identity
(X) Bourne Supremecy
(X) Bourne Ultimatum
() Lone Star
(X) Bedazzled
() Predator I
() Predator II
() The Fog
() Ice Age
() Ice Age 2: The Meltdown
() Curious George
Total so far: 41

(X) Independence Day
() Cujo
() A Bronx Tale
() Darkness Falls
() Christine
(X) ET
(X) Children of the Corn
() My Bosses Daughter
() Maid in Manhattan
(X) War of the Worlds
(X) Rush Hour
() Rush Hour 2
() Rush Hour 3
Total so far: 46

() Best Bet
() How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days
() She's All That
() Calendar Girls
(X) Sideways
(X) Mars Attacks
() Event Horizon
(X) Ever After
(X) Wizard of Oz
(X) Forrest Gump
(X) Big Trouble in Little China
(X) The Terminator
(X) The Terminator 2
() The Terminator 3
Total so far: 54

(X) X-Men
(X) X-2
(X) X-3
(X) Spider-Man
(X) Spider-Man 2
(X) Spider-Man 3
() Sky High
() Jeepers Creepers
() Jeepers Creepers 2
(X) Catch Me If You Can
(X) The Little Mermaid
(X) Freaky Friday
() Reign of Fire
() The Skulls
() Cruel Intentions
() Cruel Intentions 2
() The Hot Chick
(X) Shrek
(X) Shrek 2
(X) Shrek 3
Total so far: 66

() Swimfan
() Miracle on 34th street
() Old School
() The Notebook
() K-Pax
() Krippendorf's Tribe
() A Walk to Remember
(X) Ice Castles
() Boogeyman
() The 40-year-old Virgin
Total so far: 67

(X) Lord of the Rings Fellowship of the Ring
(X) Lord of the Rings The Two Towers
(X) Lord of the Rings Return Of the King
(X) Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark
(X) Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
(X) Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
(X) Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skulls
Total so far: 74

() Baseketball
() Hostel
(X) Waiting for Guffman
() House of 1000 Corpses
() Devils Rejects
(X) Elf
(X) Highlander
() Mothman Prophecies
() American History X
() Three
Total so Far: 77

() The Jacket
(X) Kung Fu Hustle
() Shaolin Soccer
() Night Watch
(X) Monsters Inc.
(X) Titanic
(X) Monty Python and the Holy Grail
(X) Shaun Of the Dead
() Willard
Total so far: 82

() High Tension
() Club Dread
() Hulk
() Dawn Of the Dead
(X) Hook
(X) Chronicles Of Narnia: The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe
() 28 days later
() Orgazmo
() Phantasm
(X) Waterworld
Total so far: 85

(X) Kill Bill vol 1
(X) Kill Bill vol 2
() Mortal Kombat
() Wolf Creek
(X) Kingdom of Heaven
() the Hills Have Eyes
() I Spit on Your Grave aka the Day of the Woman
() The Last House on the Left
() Re-Animator
(X) Army of Darkness
Total so far: 89

(X) Star Wars Ep. I The Phantom Menace
(X) Star Wars Ep. II Attack of the Clones
() Star Wars Ep. III Revenge of the Sith
(X) Star Wars Ep. IV A New Hope
(X) Star Wars Ep. V The Empire Strikes Back
(X) Star Wars Ep. VI Return of the Jedi
() Ewoks Caravan Of Courage
() Ewoks The Battle For Endor
Total so far: 94

(X) The Matrix
(X) The Matrix Reloaded
() The Matrix Revolutions
() Animatrix
() Evil Dead
() Evil Dead 2
() Team America: World Police
() Red Dragon
(X) Silence of the Lambs
() Hannibal
() Hannibal Rising
Total: 97

Farmer's Market week #2

ambermae@livejournal.com — Sat, 18 Apr 2009 16:42:45 GMT

Another great haul at the North Hills farmer's market this week. There were more vegetables this week and some strawberries, but the bread people weren't there. Or maybe they hadn't arrived yet -- I got there just after it opened.

This morning I achieved a goal that I set for myself after reading Animal, Vegetable, Miracle a couple of years ago: to buy asparagus from local farmers while it's in season. I plan on having it with my bagel and eggs for breakfast this week. Might need to make myself up a quick hollandaise sauce to go with it.

Haul:
- 1 lb of beef short ribs (for the smoker)
- 1 lb of NC coast red grouper (for Friday)
- a giant beef liver, the result of a misunderstanding with the other beef vendor last weekend (if my cat won't eat it, what do I do with liver? Anyone have any non-livery recipes to recommend?)
- kale and chard from Double-T Farm
- daikon greens (yum) and pea shoots (double yum) from Edible Earthscape Farm
- strawberries! and asparagus!
- giant garlicky leeks
- a plum pastry (for Chris' breakfast) and a pretzel (for me) from the German bakery

I'm putting together a nice meaty and cheesy menu for this coming week, the first after Pascha. This is fun!

Opening day!

ambermae@livejournal.com — Sat, 11 Apr 2009 17:01:57 GMT

Today was opening day of the North Hills farmer's market and I dragged myself out of bed early so I could get out there before the liturgy of St Lazarus this morning. I'm glad I did! It was so much fun seeing all of the familiar faces of the farmers I hadn't seen since the fall. Everyone was friendly and happy and they all had amazing food (and other things) to offer.

This morning I came home with:

- a potted basil plant for Chris
- a pound of pastured ground beef, also for Chris
- three pounds of spicy sausage from pastured pigs (I'm sad because my favorite pork people aren't going to be back this year, so no more bratwurst for us)
- a bag of chicken wings
- eggs from Chris' boss' chickens, who happen to be near the farmer's market
- cake and a pretzel from the new German bakers at the market (yum)
- cinnamon swirl bread and hamburger buns from Pittsboro's The Bread Shop
- beets and cilantro from Edible Earthscape Farm
- chard, kale, and broccoli rabe from Tom at Double T Farm (we had a winter CSA with him that just ended last week)
- carrots from the only African American farmers at the market
- stone ground yellow corn grits from a guy in Rocky Mount
- a promise to buy some fish next week off of the new fishermen at the market: Southport Seafood Company
- a goats milk soap sample

It was a good haul and a great way to spend the morning. Can't wait to go back next week!

Syndicated

ambermae@livejournal.com — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 17:29:06 GMT

Now that I have Twitter I tend to use lj more as my own personal RSS reader. Here are a few blogs I've syndicated or subscribed to recently that some of you may enjoy:

firstguns: First Guns is a blog written from the perspective of Michelle Obama's arms. It is funny and insightful as it calls American media out for being so shallow.

georgiaonthighs: Georgia on my Thighs is a new blog but from its very first post it became a must read. The author is a French-trained chef from someplace that's not America who is cooking her way through Paula Deen's cookbook.

ethicureanblog: The Ethicurean is a great way to stay updated on my new obsession: food politics. I'm also enjoying douloijohanna's new blog, foodrenegade, very much.

Do you have a favorite lj feed to recommend?

Do you need a blog made into an lj feed and refuse to pay an annual subscription fee for the privilege? I'm here for you.

An ordination in Alkmaar

ambermae@livejournal.com — Sat, 21 Mar 2009 19:11:55 GMT

This looks like a shoot from a vestment catalog.

Ordination 21 Mar 09 (89)
Originally uploaded by jimforest

A short note on economics

ambermae@livejournal.com — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 21:00:44 GMT

I'd like to know what percentage of total tax income these various federal budget expenses are that we all get so outraged about. So far I lack the context for proper consideration.

Anyone have a good source?

A tale of two blog posts

ambermae@livejournal.com — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 13:32:11 GMT

This is the best summary I've seen of the two political sides of the school choice issue. Both of these came up in my feed reader this morning.

Parents who have money can exercise school choice, either by buying a home in an area with good public schools or by paying tuition.

But less-affluent parents are stuck with what they get. If the local school is led by a distant bureaucrat, staffed by inexperienced or burned-out teachers, whipsawed by education fads, and dominated by bullies, parents are told reforms are on the way: Just wait a few years, and then a few more.

If the school is just second-rate, parents are fed happy talk about how everyone’s special and those nasty test scores don’t indicate the real learning kids are doing. Why, they’re going to be lifelong learners! It doesn’t matter that they’ve learned nothing so far. They can look it up on the internet.

Nobody says: "Juan can’t read or write well enough to fill out a job application; he doesn’t have the math to qualify as an apprentice carpenter, electrician or plumber. He can go to community college, because they’ll take anybody with a pulse. But he’ll be stuck in remedial classes to learn what he was supposed to learn in elementary or middle school. The odds are he’ll get discouraged and quit." That, they don’t say.

Quoted from Our School: The Inspiring Story of Two Teachers, One Big Idea, and the School That Beat the Odds

It's easy to understand the anger. But before writing off opposition to vouchers solely as an attempt by the haves to deny the have nots the same opportunity, we need to take a closer look.

Let's put aside studies that call into question the beneficial effect of vouchers on test scores when similar groups of students are compared, and look instead at the matter of parental satisfaction. While it's true parents who have chosen to participate are so pleased with the results for their children that demand exceeds supply, little is said about parents who have not exercised their option, and the effect it has had on their children.

What emerges is a disheartening picture.

Look at Milwaukee, home to the largest and oldest voucher program in the country: Without anyone in their corner, children who remain in regular high schools have a graduation rate well below that in voucher high schools, according to a study by School Choice Wisconsin. This metric is widely considered the most sensitive indicator of school success.

If voucher supporters believe these children constitute the unavoidable price that must be paid in the service of the principle of choice, then they cannot demand at the same time that all children achieve meaningful proficiency.

That's why vouchers are opposed by many groups. They believe in the right of parents to send their children to any school they want, but they also recognize that not all children will be the beneficiaries of this policy. Instead, they want to improve all neighborhood public schools to make vouchers unnecessary, except in rare instances.

From School vouchers leave too many children behind

Work and politics

ambermae@livejournal.com — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 18:13:21 GMT

I have to admit that I didn't know much about the issues surrounding school choice when I took this job. I just knew that homeschooling sounded like a pretty good idea to me, and that here in NC we seem to be fortunate to be able to do that without too much government interference. Without having actual children to school, though, I never paid much attention.

Now part of my job is combing through news sources every day to find relevant articles to pass along to my co workers and other interested people. Doing this for two weeks is causing me to seriously confront my own personal political opinions.

We say in our office that school choice isn't a Republican or Democratic issue, but one that is important to every family. Of course, that's sort of a lie. It's one of many issues that polarizes people. I didn't know that as a left-leaning individual my responsibility is to believe that every kid should be in public schools, and that the only thing keeping public schools from achieving equally is funding. I also didn't know that I would spend my days reading and passing on opinions by people who believe that all Democrats are evil and are out to keep poor people from attaining freedom.

I feel like I have to put aside my personal beliefs when I walk into my office in the morning just so I can do my job. Given the number of people in this office who speak highly of our new president I am probably not the only one. In a way I'm glad for my 15-20 minute commute home -- a little bit of NPR helps me leave the office behind.