adios, jackson

the view before boarding the plane today.

A ski shop

In Jackson, WY, a ski shop recycles.

Sunset in the Tetons last night.

Blurry but still pretty!

The drive out of Yellowstone today.

The Yellowstone Assoc.'s store

Up in Gardiner, MT. The shadows are lovely at sunset.

Monday

We found a pay phone in the middle of nowhere... well, in the park.

And on Sunday

We saw Old Faithful in Yellowstone.

View on Saturday

The Grand Tetons from our room at Signal Mountain Lodge, Grand Tetons National Park, Wyoming.

welcome, february

my last post was november. NOVEMBER. since then, i've ridden a bike (first bike ride in 22 years) along south beach, moved into a new apartment, tasted multiple rum punch concoctions at the local dive bar (the pink one's the best), added a daily dose of levothyroxine to my pill-popping ways, returned to a semi-regular yoga practice, bought strawberry plants, and, over three very long post-new years days, cleansed my insides with juice, broth, and tea. guess i have a lot to write about.

let me be illogical, captain.

i tried to use priceline to bid on a rental car today. not traveling until next month, i thought, "why not bid low? REALLY low? we're in a recession. saving money results in a quality, well deserved high-five from your hubby!" i bid $11/day for a compact car, and felt good about it until forced to stare at william shatner's pulp fiction pose for two minutes. boy, did he make me feel guilty. his image may be intended to solidify his role as my price[pause]line neh[pause]goh[pause]shee-ay-TOR. but instead, my inner save-a-holic is positive he's telepathically telling me "F you." apparently, all participating rental car agencies agreed. tomorrow, i'll chin up and re-bid.

the gloved one

we spent a long weekend traversing through yosemite, and somewhere between a waterfall and the village store, i lost one glove. i'm bummed--these cool weather-protectors have saved my fingers from frigid nights and cool, breezy mornings, all while giving me the finger freedom to answer my phone and hold on to the overhead bar on the bus, hoping to make it to my destination in one all-limbs-attached piece.
after filing a report with yosemite lost and found, i acknowledge that i may never see my missing glitten again. wait, a glitten??? you're probably wondering what that is.

this is dexter, the half-golden retriever, half-poodle mix. don't tell him this, but his golden genes are slightly recessive.

similar to a goldendoodle, glittens are part glove, part mitten. glittens may also be known as pop-top mittens or convertible mittens. all of those, though, seem way too modern age for me. i still call my glove(s), well, gloves, even with the mitten tops that can be opened at a moment's notice.

so while i'm using a back-up pair of gloves, i'm still itching for my old pair. but j.crew is out of them until next fall (as proven after a peppy phone call with customer service this morning. had i wanted five different kinds of button-down linen-blend shirts, well, i would have been in luck). several google searches later, i acknowledge that my quest may be futile, but when futility riles its ugly head, what's better than to look at etsy.com's offering and then laugh at said futility?


gloves for your ghostly blanket hands.
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argh there, sexy! these gloves were made for sexy pirates. gotta keep those wrists corseted on those humid caribbean nights.
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for when your hands constantly fart lilacs.
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zombies are always cold. now at least a part of them can feel human.
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for those who live in alaska and are standing in line waiting for the midnight opening of the next twilight movie.
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for giants fans. or lovers of frosted flakes.
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for the colorblind.
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for those committed to purgatory.
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camo works with any season.
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only for this woman.
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seattle, part 2

let's time travel, shall we? not too far back--don't want a "back to the future" just-call-me-calvin fiasco on our hands! and calvins totally clash with my hanky pankys. rewinding a few days to last friday, 100+ women (and a few good men) including me spent the day at nintendo hq learning about the newly released nintendo 3ds! at the onset, there were a few ground rules set into play:

• no photos inside the building except for the main conference room we were in.


• escorts! not the late-night, hush-hush variety, but nintendo staffers who kept a close eye on us as we went to the restroom. or stepped out for a phone call. or turned the wrong way down a very long hallway. guess they didn't want us to run off for an afternoon nap in the moo meadows conference room. or to break into the "kid icarus" testing area.


• no photos of the games in 3d mode.

apo. but not sydney bristow apo. nintendo apo

there's a soccer field out front. also, i heard there's a basketball court. no word on the indoor bobsled course.

reggie fils-aime, nintendo of america's president and coo, welcomed us. several women tweeted as he spoke and then asked him specific questions from their readers. i just sat there awestruck while trying to figure out the settings to my new camera. for some reason, reggie kept coming out all fuzzy in my pictures. he looks more in-focus in person, i promise.

we were separated into nintendo character-labeled groups and then rotating through each gaming station. my fellow toads rocked! (photo by shari at crazedmommy)

as we rotated, we tried out the nintendo 3ds--look, mom, no funny looking glasses necessary! over the day, we played tons of games (by the end, my eyes felt slightly cross-eyed--when playing in 3d mode, definitely take a break every 20 min. or so!) and toured the building.

when we stopped at the store (no photos there!), i was overwhelmed by all things mario-related. mario mugs, luigi pajama pants, peach t-shirts--you name it, they had it. with anything more than a few minutes to shop, i would have needed a zelda luggage set! instead, i returned home with two beanies and a wii internet converter... but i'm still secretly coveting the bowser backpack with fuzzy felt spikes. it's not practical, but it is unique!

the trip to nintendo peaked my interest; before, i knew virtually nothing about the nintendo 3ds. but now i'm really wishing i had bought street fighter at the nintendo world store when i had the chance. it quite possibly would have made the plane-ride home a peanut butter-dream free zone.

* as a nintendo brand ambassador through brand about town, i receive free products to play with and enjoy. as part of the summit, i was given a nintendo 3DS and a gift certificate to the nintendo world store. the trip was paid for by nintendo/brand about town. the opinions expressed in this blog are entirely mine and the facts true.

to make a quick buckeye

at the nintendo summit, i met nora, and we hit it off over (other peoples') tales of the rock and an amazing chocolatey mint dessert. somewhere in the middle of the conversation, we discussed oreo truffles, which got me thinking about buckeyes--mainly, both are messy attempts at rolling things into balls.

two hours of flight time home allowed me to deeply ponder the inner workings of cocoa and peanut combinations AND watch two episodes of the real housewives of orange county. during that time, i figured i might as well take my own whack at buckeye bars (aka butch bars to anyone who frequents hot cookie). becca's buckeye bars

ingredients

• 1 bag (16 oz) semi-sweet chocolate chips


• 1 tablespoon shortening


• 1 (18 oz) jar creamy peanut butter


• 1/2 cup butter or earth balance, softened


• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract


• 4 cups sifted confectioners' sugar

directions

• line an 8x8 pan with parchment paper.


• clear out a flat space in your freezer.


• melt half of the chips and 1/2 tablespoon shortening over medium heat (use a double broiler or your own microwave method. stir every few seconds, and don't burn the chocolate!).


• poor the melted chocolate into the bottom of the lined pan. spread evenly, and place in the freezer for 30 min.


• place the peanut butter, butter, vanilla extract, and 3 cups of powdered sugar in a large bowl. mix until smooth (use fingers, fork, a hand mixer, whatever). depending on taste and consistency, perhaps add the last cup and mix until smooth (i used 4 cups, and feel that my final product was a little too sweet).


• remove pan from freezer.


• line the chocolate mixture with the peanut butter mixture. flatten/smoothen the top of it and return to the freezer for another 10-15 min.


• meanwhile, melt remainder of chips and shortening.


• remove pan from freezer, and layer with melted chocolate mixture. smoothen, and return to freezer for another 45 min.


• remove from freezer, slice, and keep in fridge!

seattle, part 1

i'm just outside of seattle at a nintendo branding event*. the whirlwind 42 hours of crazy fun kicked off last night with a cocktail reception. at it, women kept asking me what i twittered about, and i had to keep explaining that, no, i don't twitter. i just wait in line with twitterers (what do you call those who work at twitter?) at whole foods. pretty much everyone here originated as bloggers, and most still write (more than 140 characters) on a regular basis, which made me feel relieved bordering on utterly thankful that i've kept this up (even with my recent writing droughts).

as i made my rounds of the room, though, i felt somewhat nationless. to the mommy bloggers, i had to admit that no, i don't have kids yet. to the 20-something single bloggers (yes, that's how they introduced themselves), i have a signifiant other and my wedding dress is (still) at the dry cleaners, waiting patiently in line to get refreshed and fluffed and placed into a special archival box. finally, somewhere in the last half hour of the mixer, i found a few 30-something coupled women who were not yet head-to-toe in playdates and soccer games nor were they reminiscing with their five blogger best buddies over late afternoon champagne-induced posts of failed craftdom.

all the women seem incredibly nice, though, and i'm curious to see what today has in store. rumor has it, we'll get to see the nintendo 3ds up close and personal. whee!

*all travel and accomodations paid for by brand about town.

i see london, i see france

a few years ago, a neighboring tenant across the backyard started hanging his man things in his window. weekly, he'd put a pair of tighty whities up on a wooden board, and hang them in the sun, taking them down every week or so. then the board would be empty for a few days, and then the underpants would return. it's boggled me, but what could i do but glance elsewhere? honeymooning in belize gave me a great excuse to drink frozen, fruity beverages on a nightly basis. somewhere in there, i told todd that i wanted to get to the bottom (ha! get it?) of this fruit-of-the-loom caper. his bright idea: hang my panties in response. little did he know that two days upon our return, i would do exactly that.

so far, no reply. but i'm eagerly waiting with baited breath.

belize

i haven't posted anything for quite awhile. my brain needed some recharging. but i have pictures from our trip to belize that i keep staring at. was it just a week ago that we were sipping blended beverages and floating above giant hunks of coral?

flying high

today, i was surprised at how lax airport security was until a really ancient woman hobbled through the scanner and the tsa person directed 4' 10" great aunt betty sue to the pat down section, yelling, "female attendant needed in row 4!" i hope they confiscated her sleeve kleenex, crosswords, and super poli-grip. i feel safer already.

ups and downs in the pacific northwest, part 1

now that things have quieted down a bit (namely the roto rooter van and a handful of city employees making a racket outside of my office window), i have a few moments to recall the more unanticipated events while todd and i were in washington.


first, and most importantly, the driving. todd drove the entire time we were up there because he has insurance coverage already, plus everyone can attest that my driving skills, when in unknown surroundings, are negligible at best. if you ever need to travel with me for work, you may be safer hitchhiking. just saying. because i can't take photos like this and drive at the same time.





we spent the first two days traversing mount rainier national park. even with the rain and lack of vegetarian options, we were having a great time: muddy jeans, hot tubs, and deer breakfasting just steps away from our cabin.


at the end of day 2, we were driving back from sunrise, the highest point you can reach in the park by car. here's a view of the mountain from sunrise at about 5PM.


as we're driving along the main park road, we saw a park ranger driving toward us. being the happy, we're-enjoying-nature type of folks, we waved at him as we passed. things are looking good, right? but no. he stops his car, turns on his lights and siren, makes a three-point turn, and comes after us. we immediately pull to a stop, and can't figure out why we're being pulled over. oh, sh!t, i'm thinking. what's wrong? is our rental car on a stolen vehicle list? did we not have our lights on? first, the officer asked us if we knew what the speed limit was in the area. duh, 35 MPH. now, i'm confused. i always freak out when todd speeds, and b/c of this, i have a really bad habit of freaking out pretty much anytime i'm in the car with him, so i'm confident that we weren't speeding, or at least not that much to cause the ranger to stop us on an empty road. in fact, i had looked at the spedometer just before we saw him and it read 38 MPH. but no. mr. ranger insists that he clocked us at 58 MPH. being the logical guy that he is, todd suggested that maybe the radar gun was faulty, but mr. ranger took his license, insurance card, and registration and went back to his SUV. we sat in the car for about eight minutes, which is a really long time when all you have to look at are a ton of trees. we had no radio reception, and the most we could hope for to de-stress us was an elk sighting (the best we got was a crow).

the ranger walked deliberately back to the car and told us he was going to be generous (yey! no ticket!!!) by knocking our speed down to 45 MPH (boooo!). but we had to pay $91 or appear in Tacoma court in 3 weeks. we played the good driver/good passenger role of yes sir, we're sure we weren't speeding, sir, etc., etc., etc., but still, we drove away with a bright pink ticket and a shadow looming over our heads.


not 20 minutes later, around 6PM, we're slowly (think 25 MPH) driving back toward ashford, with very limited visibility due to the fog, when the whole car (toyota corolla) goes "BOOM!" and then a "putter putter vrmmmmmmmrughah." yes, we blew out a tire. todd changed it, and i tried my darnedest to get some semblance of cell phone reception, only to find out that we needed to drive the car all the way back toward seattle, at a speed limit of less than 50 MPH, and exchange it.



the next morning, we drove back to avis, where the 18-year-old rental manager didn't give us any hassle at all about the flat tire or the exchange. i think he was still hung over from the night before. but interesting factoid: we have yet to be charged a fee for the tire or wheel. yippee! with all that under our belt, we then faced a three+ hour drive east for our one night in yakima wine country.


but could everything really go as planned? naw. while touring some wineries, all of which were subpar to sonoma and napa, we almost ran over a turtle trying to cross the rode. we drove back and helped the little guy make it to safety, which in this case was a massive corn field.


our wine country destination for the evening: a small bed & breakfast along the river in everyone's favorite tiny-ass town, prosser. but lo and behold, the b&b's proprietoress forgot we were coming, leading to a very awkward exchange where she insisted i had called awhile back to cancel and that i never really had a reservation anyway. at this point, i was mentally preparing myself to camp out in the vineyards next door, but i whipped out my confirmation email, and by the time we took a little drive and came back, she had magically remembered that we had in fact confirmed the reservation a month ago. thankfully, the overnight turned out ok, and we picked concord grapes just outside the b&b, which were ripe with flavor (and seeds).

all of this hubbub made this voicemail, received somewhere between our car rental return and the b&b fiasco, ever so much more appreciated (it's soft, so you may need to turn up the volume).