Kitchen Adventures 1 1/2: Bacon Avocado Muffins

  There aren't many things I know I do well - sure I know my internet memes, can talk Dr. Who forever and I can sing you a song by Sondheim, Gershwin and Cole Porter - but I'm talking applicable skills. I can sew on a button, but despite the recurring purchases of sewing/knitting materials I don't think I'm ever going to produce an actual garment any time soon. One thing, however, I would like to say I do well is food.  I love food. Really, all I ever actually think about is food. I could talk about food forever (those who know me I wil.) I love cooking food, eating food, everything there is about food.

So now I would like to talk about food.

First,  a little background...

Since we moved into our new apartment I would sit and dream about the kinds of food I could make in our new awesome, awesome kitchen.
Also since then I keep remembering that I live with two people:

My Mother - who is forever on a diet and eats portions I swear a mouse couldn't survive on.

My Father - who doesn't understand why I want to "bother" cooking when we could just go out or order in (now that we live somewhere where you can go out or order in.)  His response when I say "would you eat this is I made it?" is always "why trouble yourself?"

These two (three?) facts in combination made me a very sad person.

But recently I decided to just start cooking for myself. Its something I enjoy doing, so I'm going to just go ahead and make stuff. I've built up a following of some rather eager taste testers. Someone'll eat it.
So far I've made quite a few things, mostly for myself or  out of curiosity or necessity.

If you call a craving for Bialys a "necessity." I certainly do.

Things That Exist (or Thank you, Japan!): Mind-Controlled Cat Ear Headbands

 One thing my friends know about me is I love nearly everything Japanese - the food, the films, the animation, but most of all  I love unnecessary Japanese novelty items.  That's why one of my favorite things to do in Epcot is just wander around Mitsukoshi (read about the original in Tokyo over meah) - clear plastic 3D Unicorn Puzzel? Of course! Speaker system that looks like a mini-jazz band? Brilliant!

I also appreciate the thoughtfulness of this pre-emptive warning.

(No lie - first thing my friend said: "OMG Froggie Body Sponge!")

So, imagine my nerdgasm when I saw these over at Nerdist.com

Now, I don't necessarily want to own these, but I do want to play with them - so, so bad. Much the same way I want make friends with someone who owns a Mind Flex.
Anyway, these mind-controlled Cat Ears - called "Necomimi" - are made by a company called Nerowear  (visit their site  - in Japanese - over meah.) This is what they say about themselves according to their site as translated by Google

"Neurowear" is the name of our project to develop fashion items and gadgets

using brain waves and other biosensor with "Augumented Human Body" as the concept.

Other than the first project "necomimi", we are planning to development other various items. 

  Other various items, you say? What might those be, Neurowear? The obvious next step are tails - you'll make Cosplay and Renn Fair enthusiasts very happy and, lets be honest, Furries will rejoice. . . if they're not already.  But where do you go after that?  I say you update the grabber, Doc Ock Style. 

Come on! Talk about an awesome way to change a lighbulb.

You're bringing me down, Tampa.

  My parents just got a Netflix account and of course I've been the only one using it to death.  So I'm looking around the recommendations on the front page and I come to the "Local Favorites" section for Tampa. . . This is what was in the second set of recommended titles

   Tampa. . . you disappoint me.   Here I am, having a great time, auditioning, working on some films (posting soon), meeting new fun people,  and you go and make Yanni - one of the creepiest mustachioed unexplained-celebrities/pianist of the '90s - so popular so popular that Netflix thinks I might enjoy watching it by association. . .

Now go think long and hard about what you've done.

Things That Exist : The Shirt Plate

  

Gentlemen, have you ever made a sandwich or plate of nachos only to come back to the couch to decide you would rather lay down?  Ordinarily you'd have to choose between relaxation and eating your snacks while watching television.  But not anymore! Introducing - The Original Shirt Plate!

  Yes - no longer will you be forced to sit upright like a human being while you eat your. . .

Plate of non-brand cheese doodles!

Plate of Spaghetti! 

or

Giant Theme Park Turkey Leg!

 All Original Shirt Plates are Dishwasher Safe, come with a leveling attachement (for us ladies *wink*) and can be yours for only   

$14.99

to $28.99

prices vary by size

price does not include shipping and handling

Soon to be available in fancy new styles like: 

The Tux Style Shirt Plate (for cocktail parties)

The Game Day Shirt Plate (with love handle dip bowl belt clip)

and

Fine China Shirt Plate (for special occasions such as Thankgiving Dinner)

So stop on by ThinkGeek to order your Original Shirt Plate today!

any similarities to the Pocket Cup are purely coincidental

"It's polystyrene!" 

My favorite of the Hipster Disney Villian Meme

   Okay, I know this has been done to death - as all memes inevitably are - but I love Disney and especially Disney Villans. And hipsters. So I decided to group together a few of my favorites for what is definitely one of my lazier blog posts.  Enjoy.

More after the jump. . . 

And one for my theatre friends.

 

Hello, interwebs.  Buzzfeed.com alerted me to another unnecessary game this evening. This one, brought to you by and downloadable over at VectorBelly Webcomics, is based on Samuel Beckett's Waiting for Godot. And it is jam packed with waiting action!   Here's a video of the compelling gamplay:

 What? No failed self hangings?  No Pozo? No Lucky? Shenanigans.

Alright, I can't say for sure whether those elements are ever brought up during gameplay and I do no intend to find out.  No, I am not going to play this game.  Mostly because I don't feel like downloading it, but secondly because I've read Waiting for Godot. And if you don't know Waiting For Godot, I wouldn't suggest you play it either (though please do go see the play if you get a chance.)  I would, however, suggest that you tell your non-theatre friends to play this game. . . best/cruelest prank ever. . . probably almost as good as telling your friends that Penn and Teller's "Smoke and Mirror's" (specifically Desert Bus) is the most riveting gameplay experience ever.  

8-Bit Great Gastby for NES. Best thing ever?

That's right, Nicole Campos over at Nerdist.com found this little gem online.

  '

It's open source and available to play right over meah. Okay, so first I have to admit I never read The Great Gatsby (its on my Nook reading list. . . at least it is now. . . shut up!) but I don't think that really matters. I love it and its pretty straight forward: find Gatsby. . . I think. . . or whoever that smug douche with the white suit, blonde hair and blindingly shiny teeth over there is. . .

                                                                 Shiny-teeth motherf*****


At least I'm pretty sure that's what's going on and that he'll be at the end of each level.  I think. Again, never read he book and to be honest I spent most of my time trying to get screenshots so I didn't get too far in yet.  Anyway,  you complete the levels by collecting flashing coins and martinis. Also by destroying all enemies with your second boomerang-like fedora I'm assuming you keep in your snappy little vest.

That butler shouldn't be on the bookcase with that martini anyway. Irresponsible, that's what that is. 

And by enemies I mean butlers, flappers, washed-out-white-faced-Uncle-Sams, small malevolent Blue Jays. . . you know, whoever's around.

                         Dancing on slippery brick walls? This whole party is a lawsuit waiting to happen.

Oh and if you manage to grab a shiny gold fedora you'll suddenly dress snazzier/more like the mask for a minute. I can't really figure out the purpose of that, but again - does it matter? Not to me it doesn't! This game is nothing but good times. Except for the whole no pausing, no saving thing.  Dammit 8-bit.