Jam Session

The other day, my friend and I went to a local berry farm to pick strawberries! It was my first time picking them and it was a lot of fun! We decided to go early in the morning so that we could pick and be done before it got too hot outside. We both picked a "flat" of strawberries - which, it turns out, is way way more than one can possibly eat in a limited amount of time. So, I decided to try my hand at making strawberry jam! I used my mom's bread maker to cook the jam, and I had bought pint mason jars because I was so excited about this new found jam-making idea! Here are some pictures of my adventure...I wish you could SMELL the way my kitchen smelled! SO yummy!

My flat - just starting out

And we're off! Picking down the row!

yay for berries!!!

clean and awaiting their jam!

One way to ensure smooth jam...

Cooking in the bread maker. I know it doesn't look yummy, but it smelled delicious!!

Four jars of jam are sitting in my refrigerator cooling off as I type this! I taste-tested some of the first and second batches this morning on toast and they were pretty good! I was pretty happy with myself that I was able to make it taste okay. I know there are many different ways to make jam, but I just tried this method as I  am starting out. I really want to jump into this though, so I hope to find a canning kit for a reasonable price. I also should wait until I actually have a garden where I am able to can more things!

Happy can-canning!
LD

I've Got A Job, I've Got A Job, I've Got A Job, Hey-hey-hey-hey!

It's true! It's true! I have obtained a new job! You are reading a blog entry from the newest member of Gander Mountain Base Camp (Headquarters)!

 I start my new job on Wednesday as a Store Operations Specialist. I guess that means that I will be shelving my design career for a little while, but that is alright. I really like the company and the fact that it seems that there is a great opportunity for career growth and exploration at the company. The job is in downtown St. Paul, so commuting every day is going to be a significant change for me to figure out, but something new and exciting for sure!

After I had found out more about the job - went and took my drug test and background check paperwork filed, I certainly "lived the outdoor life!" Derick, Tucker and I went to my parent's cabin to pick up Derick's truck that had gotten some work done on it, and take the boat out to see if Tucker was a "fishing dog" or not. Turns out, Tucker is not so much a "fishing dog." For the majority of the boating trip, he was tied to the center of the boat. One time I let him off the leash and he almost jumped in the lake!! Here are some pictures of the experience:

Best pontoon boat ever - complete with fence!

Dam!

It was a nice experience though! Other than the fact that our ferocious appearing dog, is a HUGE baby coward and scared of, well, just about everything! I am sure that it will take some getting used to for Tucker to want to ride in the boat, and some more training for him to want to stay in the boat! Both important things for extended fishing/camping weekends!

-LD

Summer Blockbuster/Power Outage

Tonight my sister came over after her work shift. We had talked about maybe seeing a movie. We decided on seeing Bad Teacher at the local theater. About 3/4 of the way through the movie, the power went out in the theater! I can say that was a first! There were only a few people in the same theater as us, but we were all a little unsure about what we should do. We waited in there for a couple of minutes, thinking that some of the theater employees would come in and tell us what to do. Not so much, so the few of us went out of our theater and walked to the windows to see if it was the weather. It was forcasted that we were supposed to get some severe storms late this afternoon and evening. That was certainly the case. The clouds were terrifying looking just to the north of the theater!

These were photos from the way home. The first two were in the theater parking lot, and the other was at the stoplight leaving the theater area. It rained pretty hard, and some thunder and lightning, but that was pretty much it from what I saw. It has been crazy how many storms there have been this summer!

-LD

My Name is Memory, book review

The latest book to have been read and returned to the library is My Name is Memory by Ann Brashares. She also wrote the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants books.

Anyway, This was one of the oddest books I have read. I guess I have a knack for choosing odd books, like the more recent read, The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake.

Basically, one of the main characters, Daniel, has the ability to remember all of his past lives he has lived and the souls of people he has met in those prior lives. He remembers, particularly one individual, whom he calls Sophia, and tries to find her in each lifetime because he falls in love with her in each lifetime he finds her. She is his love interest, but when she comes back in each lifetime, she has no "memory" of her past lives or whom Daniel is. She feels some kind of subtle connection to him in one of her more recent lives, but is not sure how that could be since they had not so much as spoken before.

It made me wonder a little bit about the whole "past lives" phenomenon and whether there was any validity in it at all. The book was an interesting read and really brought you into the book once more of the action began about 3/4 of the way through the book. The ending I was a little disappointed about, but, I think it ended that way for the sole reason of one's own speculation.

The next book I have been reading is Chelsea Chelsea Bang Bang by Chelsea Handler. I thought her comedy was pretty funny, and this, I believe, is her second book about her life. The book is pretty much just like her, funny and vulgar. It reads just as I would imagine a conversation with her would go. I have been laughing out loud when reading this book, and have another of her books, Are You There Vodka, It's Me, Chelsea next on the list. 

Basically, I can review this book now: It is a book about parts of Chelsea's life. Some of the crazy stunts she has pulled. I can say that I hope I am never "tested" by one of her "jokes." Some of them are just plain crazy! But the read is a quick, funny one that gives you insight into her life, makes you feel a little sorry for her, laugh hard, and then not feel sorry for her any more. I just picked it up to see what it was about and if the books were any good. Often times, I have found, or have bought into the stigma that books "written" by celebrities are often huge wastes of time, and the paper they are printed on. Seriously, Lauren Conrad, I am talking to you.  Here are Chelsea's thoughts on ... Being unpopular: "My parents couldn't have been more unreasonable when it came to fads or clothes that weren't purchased at a pharmacy." Living with her boyfriend:"He's similar to a large toddler, the only difference being he doesn't cry when he wakes up." 

Too funny!

-LD

Going The Distance

Okay. Seriously, I think there must be something wrong with me and my patterns of thinking.

Remember how I JUST said how I hate biking, well, in order to prove to myself and my husband that I could hack it, we biked about 7 miles to the Champlin Library to return books. Wow. We did a little work on my bike before we took off, and that helped a ton. It is amazing what a few small improvements and tweaks to a bike can do to your overall ride satisfaction. It took me about a mile for my butt not to hurt extremely, but after that, I kept at a pretty slow to medium pace, but I stuck with it. My favorite part of the ride, okay, I had a couple favorites:

The flag in the top, middle of the bike bridge! It was my true Rocky moment!

Derick and I at the middle of the bike bridge!

One of them was the bike bridge that was about 3/4 of the way to the library. It took a lot of work to make it UP the bridge, but it leveled out and centered after the mid-point.

Second was the brief time that we went through the park reserve path. It was so nice and peaceful in there and the paths are AWESOME! So smooth and just enough hills to make you work and able to relax and coast too. So nice.

Oh yes, and the fact that Derick was wearing a bright pink T-shirt and I made him carry the orange and maroon hibiscus printed backpack the whole way there...priceless.

The first couple of steps off the bike were awkward though - my legs felt like wobbly jello! We had only taken about 2-3 short water bottle breaks and that was all - never getting off the bikes, but just stopping or slowing to catch a quick drink.

___________________________________________
Bad Karma:

Okay, I have a rant. I am so sick of the universe kicking and kicking Derick and I. There are so many things that absolutely SUCK about this year, and yesterday there was one more added to the stack. Derick's truck broke down at my parent's cabin in Wisconsin about an hour and a half away from our house. Now, we are looking at getting a different vehicle for Derick on no money really coming into our household. Sounds like a great time, eh? We are just waiting for a break. Just one, that is all we need right now.

I am going to start looking for part-time jobs around here - serving or some retail thing. We'll see what there is available around here, although I hear pickings for odd summer retail jobs are slim.

We shall see...

And the beat goes on.

LD

A Real Distaste For...

Biking.

You know it, two wheels, handlebars, with or without streamers, and one of the most uncomfortable excuses to call a seat possible.

Last night Derick and I went out on a "little" bike ride. I loved the sound of the idea - get outside, check. Get some exercise, check! Spend some time with my hubby, another check. Had I forgotten just how much I actually loathe bike riding? Check.

It always starts out fine, but then about 3/4 of the way through the ride I want to die. Last night's ride was no exception. My knees hurt, between my shoulder blades hurt, and of course, my butt hurt like insanity. I hate the goofy leaning-over posture that biking makes me contort into. I might need to get a bike re-fitting to make sure that all of the settings are as they should be for me, but until then, I may just have to play around with them on my own time, or switch back to rollerblading, which I have not done for years.

I do need to stop making excuses for not working out anymore. Tomorrow is my new goal - do something exercise worthy. I have just been feeling kind of sloth-like and yucky about myself lately. A recent doctor appointment also made me painfully aware of my weight. Those scales scare the bejeesus out of me.

Okay, tomorrow WILL be the day - I will post to confirm day one of feeling better about my bod! Yay

-LD

Congrats to the Graduating Class of 2011

This is going to be more of a catch-up post...

On Memorial Day, we went to my aunt and uncle's cabin near Amery, WI and enjoyed some chit-chat and some great home-cooked food - YUM. I also had made another installment of cupcake creations and brought them with me to celebrate my cousin, Craig's graduation and my sister's (almost) graduation.

I am proud to present the class of 2011:

I thought they turned out pretty cute! And pretty tasty too! mmm...

Lately the rest of my time has been spent looking for and applying for jobs. There are a few out there, and you can bet that I have applied to them - what almost seems like ALL of them, that I am qualified for in my field and a few "reachers."

Another large task I have started is scanning in all of my "Inspiration" 3-ring binders of magazine and newspaper clippings. I am down two 4" binders and moving onto a 2" binder and then the loose stuff...it feels good to be recycling all of that paper and stuff and getting digital with it all. More productive to look at it all in photo form thumbnail images rather than flipping through the archives as I have been doing for years...

Here's some "breaking news," my little sister is engaged. Yep. Engaged. She has known/been planning her wedding with dating this guy since November-ish (yes, that is only seven months, I know). Right away she inundated and overwhelmed the family with his presence at every family holiday gathering minus one.They are planning a wedding for next June, and that is all that I know, oh, that, and that my sister asked me to be her Maid/Matron of Honor at the family Memorial Day celebration as well. Goody...Don't get me wrong, she's my sister, and by obligation, that means that I have to love and accept the crazy things that she does. It is just that we are SO very different, but she has been known to copy just about everything I have done when we were younger - from getting the same shoes I did then pretending not to know I had them, to now, talking about how she wants to get married outside...by a lake...and have her colors be red and or red and purple (ahem, just exactly like my wedding). Way to think and be original...I mean, it just gets annoying that she chooses not to really think for herself and uses what other people have done or bought before her. It will be interesting to say the least. Stay tuned, maybe on the hit TV show. You know the one.

-LD