life rolled up in a nut shell December 9, 2008

A Birth Certificate shows that we were born.

A Death Certificate shows that we died.

Pictures show that we lived!

Have a seat . . . Relax . . . And read this slowly.

I Believe…

That just because two people argue,

doesn’t mean they don’t love each other.
And just because they don’t argue,
doesn’t mean they do love each other.

I Believe…
That we don’t have to change friends if
we understand that friends change.

I Believe…
That no matter how good a friend is, they’re going to hurt you every once in a while and you must forgive them for that.

I Believe…
That true friendship continues to grow, even over the longest distance.

Same goes for true love.

I Believe…
That you can do something in an instant
that will give you heartache for life.

I Believe…
That it’s taking me a long time
to become the person I want to be.

I Believe…
That you should always leave loved ones with
loving words. It may be the last time you see them.

I Believe…
That you can keep going long after you think you can’t.

I Believe…
That we are responsible for what
we do, no matter how we feel.

I Believe…
That either you control your attitude or it controls you.

I Believe…
That heroes are the people who do what has to be done when it needs to be done, regardless of the consequences.

I Believe…
That money is a lousy way of keeping score.

I Believe…
That my best friend and I can do anything, or nothing, and have the best time.

I Believe…
That sometimes the people you expect to kick you When you’re down, will be the ones to help you get back up.

I Believe…
That sometimes when I’m angry I have the right to be angry,
but that doesn’t give me the right to be cruel.

I Believe…
That maturity has more to do with what types of experiences you’ve had,

and what you’ve learned from them…..and less to do with how many

birthdays you’ve celebrated.

I Believe…
That it isn’t always enough to be forgiven by others.

Sometimes, you have to learn to forgive yourself.

I Believe…
That no matter how bad your heart is broken the world doesn’t stop for your grief.

I Believe…
That our background and circumstances may have influenced who we are,
but we are responsible for who we become.

I Believe…
That you shouldn’t be so eager to find
out a secret. It could change your life Forever.

I Believe…
Two people can look at the exact same
thing and see something totally different.

I Believe…
That your life can be changed in a matter of
hours by people who don’t even know you.

I Believe…
That even when you think you have no more to give, if
a friend cries out to you……..you will find the strength to help.

I Believe…
That credentials on the wall do not make you a decent human being.

Always Amy Etsy Shop – Adorable Stud Earrings October 30, 2008

Roller Derby Girl Stud Earrings

Buttery Flutters Stud Earrings

These earrings are my favorite of Amy’s Stud Earrings because they bring me back to my childhood. I love rollerblading and holding hands around the skating rink!!!

And, the butterflies??? What girl doesn’t love butterflies??!!! I have three tattooed on my neck!

6 pairs of stud earrings,
shipped to you over the course of the next 3 months!
Over a $30 value!

Wanna win?
It’s easy as ONE, TWO, THREE!

Click Here!!!

Vegan Mushroom Pasta Casserole – Best I have had!!! September 12, 2008

This casserole dish, by far, is my favorite and my husbands too. We could have gobbled up this meal all night. Creamy, yet vegan. The gravy is perfect. Seriously, perfect!

Vegan Mushroom Pasta Casserole

Ingredients:

• 1 medium  yellow onion, chopped
• 2 stalks celery, chopped
• 10 oz. white button mushrooms, sliced
• 4 tablespoon vegan margarine
• 1 teaspoon Bragg’s Amino Acids, healthy alternative to soy sauce
• 1/4 cup flour
• 2 cups veggie broth
• 1-1/2 cups unsweetened soy milk
• 2 teaspoon lemon juice
• 1 cup canned chickpeas, drained and mashed (I chopped mine in a tiny food processor)
• 1 cup crushed potato chips salted
• 8 oz. fusilli pasta

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 Degrees F and prepare an 8×8″ ceramic baking dish.

Heat 1 tablespoon vegan margarine in a pan.  Add onion, celery and mushrooms and saute for a few minutes. When mushrooms give off liquid, add the Bragg’s.  Keep cooking until all vegetables are tender, turn off heat.

In a medium soup pot, melt the remaining 3 tablespoon vegan margarine over low heat. Stir in the flour and whisk  for a few minutes. It will get thick. Start adding the broth bit by bit, whisking all the while and bring to a boil. Add the soy milk gently and continue to stir and simmer. Add the mushroom/celery/onion mixture and lemon juice. Season with salt, pepper and some paprika. Add the mashed chickpeas a spoonful at a time to break it up evenly throughout the sauce.

Cook pasta until al dente, approx. 9 minutes. Drain and return it to the pot.  Add the mushroom sauce to the pasta and stir gently to combine. Transfer the mixture to the baking dish. Cover tightly with foil and bake for 15 minutes.  Uncover the dish and sprinkle crushed chips on top and bake for another 5 minutes or until the top is browned.

Enjoy!

Oak Glen – Riley’s Farm – Apple and Raspberry Picking September 1, 2008

Raspberry Picking

Riley’s is the first apple farm as you enter Oak Glen. Its main feature is U-Pick apples, but there are also a lot of activities here designed to educate kids about farm life. During the week they offer educational programs and tours for local schools. The selection of apples raspberries available for U-Pick was extensive and easy to get to. They also have U-Pick pumpkins and U-Press cider. The farm is quite large, and the apple trees are marked with color coded flags so you know what kind of apples you are picking.

You are not suppose to eat the fruit before you buy them, but Raleigh couldn’t resist. Delicious, fresh-picked, red, juicy raspberries. Who can, really?

Raleigh had no problem picking from the apple tree and eating right away.

Shon and I were surprised on how crisp and juicy the apples were. Yummy!

Riley’s Apple Farm
12201 South Oak Glen Road
Yucaipa, CA 92399
(866) 585-6407

info@rileysapplefarm.com
webmaster@rileysapplefarm.com

Left over Brine? What to do? Here’s a soup recipe… August 28, 2008

Stella Artois + Kimchi + Bread + Noodle Veggie Soup made with left over Kimchi brine = Happiness

Noddle Soup Ingredients:

• Left over Brine (any type) as much as you want- My brine was left over from Spicy Kimchi
• Water or vegetable stock to brine ~ equal amount to brine..depending on how many u’r cooking for
• Somen or Udon Noddles, cooked (with directions on the package)
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 2 carrots, pealed and chopped
• 2 stacks of celery, chopped
• Hand full of Bok Choy (use any green that you have), chopped
• green onion, chopped (to top the soup)
• 3 garlic cloves, chopped
• salt and pepper to your taste

In a large pot, mix brine and water and heat on the stove until boiling.

In the meantime, saute the celery, garlic and carrots in olive oil on medium heat for 5-7 minutes.

Transfer veggies and cooked, rinsed noodles to the large pot with the brine and water mixture.

Heat all the way thru.

Add bok choy, cook for another five minutes on  simmer.

Garnish with green onion on top before you serve.

Bad Ass Art, Clothing and Events WWW.DSTROYR.COM…The Three Questions August 22, 2008

Three questions about Dstroyr. com

Jon Chase

1.) Describe Dstroyr.com is three words?

Future Dreams Now

2.) Where can you by Dstroyr.com products?
A: online at Outlawswapmeet. com, or check the DSTROYR store list on the blog. Most of the stores are in the Inland Empire, but just got an order from a store in Medford, Oregon. That is pretty awesome, so stoked that independent stores that are willing to carry a small unknown little tiny clothing brand.

A Sneak Peak:

3.) Who would you thank the most for your success?
A: Mom and Dad, mom for being a artist and Dad for being a level thinker. I got a little of both, they always supported me no matter what. Katrina my super awesome fiancee, she really puts up with my crazy.

Maxx242 for believing in me more then I did years ago.

Mr. Barker for giving me a chance to do what I do.

The love of art for helping me decide it was time to go out on my own and do the freelance thing. Grow as an artist and experiment with new ideas, and work towards a new chapter in my life. For me it’s not the end result it’s the process, and the process is barely getting started.

Contacts:

Dstroyr WordPress Blog

Dstroyr.com

Dstroyr Shop

Dstroyr Myspace

Dstroyr Twitter

John Chase MySpace

Kombucha – Another Batch + Our New Jar August 10, 2008

Yesterday, arrived our new wide-mouth glass jar (with a spout) for a continuous brew of Kombucha.

I am so so so excited!!!

We bought the jar from Happy Herbalist.com which has a smörgåsbord of herbal medicine supplies. We also bought the book Wild Fermentation by Sandor Katz which I am currently reading. The book explains Kombucha well, but also dives into all kinds of Fermentation with tea, grains, vegetables, fruit, cheese, ect. I have started my second batch of Kimchi and my first batch of cilantro-garlic pickled vegetables (which will be posted soon).

Back to our continuous brew of Kombucha!!! In the picture below, we have already made the green tea with the sugar. We have not yet put the Scoby in or the “starter” tea (left of Kombucha tea from the previous brew).

We then added the scoby from our last batch. The scoby grew another one underneath while fermenting. With your hands, peel apart the scobies and add one to the next batch and leave the other in the jar it just came from for another brew.

We placed the scoby into the new jar.

Then we poured in the “starter” tea…

We then covered the Jar with the cloth and secured it with a rubber band.

Now, we wait a week or so and then we will have Kombucha from a SPOUT!!!

Calgon, Take Me Away August 9, 2008

I have a headache.

The Apple Doesn’t Fall Far from the Tree August 1, 2008

Both, Daddy and Raleigh have talent!!!