Aimee Is Writing

WHAT THE FUCK?!

2008-09-12T09:10:00.000-07:00

So I just listened to a feature on All Things Considered (NPR) about race and the election, Does Race Matter In '08? The View From York, Pa.. For obvious reasons race is an issue this election year, and NPR went to Pennsylvania and put together a group of white, Latino, and black voters. They were asked questions about their own racial identity, how it's influencing their politics, and who their voting for and why. I think it's a valiant effort from NPR to talk about the elephant in the room in such a frank way, and to get people to admit to their own biases, but they should have made the whole 3hrs available. Here's a shocking quote that over shadows the whole show:

Leah Moreland, the woman who said she grew up sheltered from prejudice, plans to vote for McCain. Party loyalty is also part of her decision. But her cultural compass also comes into play. She says her gut tells her not to trust Obama.

"I look at Obama, and I have a question in my mind," she says. "Years ago, was he taken into the Muslim faith? And my concern is the only way you are no longer a Muslim is if you are dead, killed. So in my mind, he's still alive."

Although Barack Obama has said repeatedly he is not a Muslim and has never been a Muslim, Moreland is still unconvinced.

"There is something about him I don't trust," she says. "I don't care how good a speaker he is, I just can't trust him."

I don't even know what to say about this woman, and it disturbs me to no end that she isn't alone. She is the kind of person that would have put me in a camp during WWII. She is the kind of person that is going to destroy the United States.

Anyway, the rest of the segment is decent, and you should give it a listen. I'm going to try and forget about how fucked up everything is...

Soft Pretzels!

2008-09-04T16:27:00.000-07:00

So I had this horrible craving for soft pretzels last week and my coworker told me I should get them frozen from the grocery store. Great idea, but i guess my grocery store is lacking... So there I was without a pretzel and then I had a big idea: I'll make my own! I stayed home from work today because I'm sick with a monster cold but after sleeping in and taking a hot shower I felt good enough to bake.

The recipe can be found here and here is a link to the show on youtube. I followed the recipe exactly (which is kind of rare for me) and they turned out amazing! Love, love, love. :)

edit: A friend of mine made pretzels with the same recipe. If you make the pretzels please post a picture and leave a comment. :)

Polar Bear in a Snow Storm

2008-09-03T13:29:00.000-07:00

I've always been a fan of the "polar bear in a snow storm" drawing (so cute!). Anyway, this is in poor taste, but it's for Palin Vs. Bears.

Stuff White People Like

2008-09-03T11:34:00.000-07:00

So in general, and without doing much research, I find Stuff White People Like to be really stupid. I've never really liked comedy that points out the obvious and SWPL is basically that, yes Yuppies like fair trade coffee, yoga, and gay friends, big freaking deal. Some of the elaborations are amusing (white people like gifted kids, and there for all kids are gifted) but I find most of the humor so obvious that it's boring. I agree with this article's break down of the humor in SWPL:

In fact, all the site's entries, while superficially chiding, can actually be divided into three very comforting categories:

1) Entries that don't reflect your lifestyle choices (in my case: going nuts on St. Patrick's Day, running marathons), and therefore make you feel superior.

2) Entries that do reflect your lifestyle choices (Apple products, recycling), and therefore make you feel like you're in on the joke, and that you're good-humored enough to laugh at yourself (you know--like Gene Simmons!), and therefore make you feel superior.

3) Entries that nod to commonly held comic stereotypes (white people like assists in basketball and standing still at concerts), and therefore, because you recognize them, make you feel superior.

But that sums up all the humor I dislike, so I guess I should get over myself.

The real point of this post is that I just listened to an NPR feature (oh no my whiteness is showing!) on the author. Link! Besides actually being intelligent in his summery of SWPL, Christian Lander points out how white people don't like to be generalized, but that's what they do to everyone else (around 4:50). SWPL and Lander are not making any leaps to making white people more accepting of privilege or race issues, but that did make me dislike SWPL a little less. I'm mostly impressed at how something so stupid can be defended in such an intelligent way.

Now I'm going to go off and enjoy some more stuff white people like (NPR, tea, and expensive sandwiches).

Food Meme

2008-08-28T09:04:00.000-07:00

I haven't done a meme in a while, so I was inspired by a fav blog. I think this list is going to leave me a little disappointed with myself. But, hey, maybe I can set some food goals. :)

How it works:

1) Copy this list into your blog or journal, including these instructions.
2) Bold all the items you’ve eaten.
3) Cross out any items that you would never consider eating.
4) Optional extra: Post a comment at www.verygoodtaste.co.uk linking to your results.

The VGT Omnivore’s Hundred:

1. Venison
2. Nettle tea - Does it count if I've had nettles raw, steamed, or dried?
3. Huevos rancheros - Probably not that authentic...
4. Steak tartare
5. Crocodile
6. Black pudding
7. Cheese fondue
8. Carp
9. Borscht
10. Baba ghanoush
11. Calamari
12. Pho - LOVE IT!
13. PB&J sandwich - I didn't like PB&J till I was in college.
14. Aloo gobi
15. Hot dog from a street cart
16. Epoisses
17. Black truffle
18. Fruit wine made from something other than grapes. - Plum wine, but I think I've also had something made from pears...
19. Steamed pork buns. I LIVED in Chinatown, how could I not. I'm not even sure what part of the pig was in them.
20. Pistachio ice cream - Gelato, but close enough.
21. Heirloom tomatoes
22. Fresh wild berries. - Not really a berry person.
23. Foie gras
24. Rice and beans
25. Brawn, or head cheese
26. Raw Scotch Bonnet pepper
27. Dulce de leche - amazing
28. Oysters - sadly not raw off the shell on the beach w/lemon which is my moms favorite way of eating them.
29. Baklava
30. Bagna cauda
31. Wasabi peas
32. Clam chowder in a sourdough bowl - I like carbs a little too much...
33. Salted lassi
34. Sauerkraut - I can't believe this is the first pickle on here!
35. Root beer float
36. Cognac with a fat cigar. - Does second hand smoke count?
37. Clotted cream tea
38. Vodka jelly/Jell-O - dixie cups exist for dentists and college kids to make jello shots.
39. Gumbo
40. Oxtail - it was a little weird to pull vertebrate out of my mouth, but this was soooooo good,
41. Curried goat
42. Whole insects. - They're going to have to be seasoned to high hell.
43. Phaal
44. Goat’s milk
45. Malt whisky from a bottle worth £60/$120 or more.
46. Fugu
47. Chicken tikka masala.
48. Eel. - Love the flavor and texture, but it's too heavy...
49. Krispy Kreme original glazed doughnut. - Guilty Pleasure.
50. Sea urchin
51. Prickly pear.
52. Umeboshi - I WILL NOT put the whole thing in my mouth *shudder*, but I love the paste on pretty much everything.
53. Abalone
54. Paneer
55. McDonald’s Big Mac Meal - I'm not going to strike this out but I don't think I'll ever seek it out...
56. Spaetzle
57. Dirty gin martini
58. Beer above 8% ABV. - I don't really like bear, but I've tired a few.
59. Poutine
60. Carob chips - BLEH
61. S’mores - With homemade marshmallows.
62. Sweetbreads
63. Kaolin. - Last I checked Kaolin is a type of clay, I've accidentally eaten clay but I don't think that's what this list is getting at...
64. Currywurst
65. Durian. - again, not seeking it out.
66. Frogs’ legs
67. Beignets, churros, elephant ears or funnel cake
68. Haggis
69. Fried plantain
70. Chitterlings, or andouillette.
71. Gazpacho
72. Caviar and blini - not sure what a blini is
73. Louche absinthe
74. Gjetost, or brunost
75. Roadkill
76. Baijiu.
77. Hostess Fruit Pie
78. Snail
79. Lapsang souchong
80. Bellini
81. Tom yum
82. Eggs Benedict
83. Pocky
84. Tasting menu at a three-Michelin-star restaurant.
85. Kobe beef - I had Wendy's in Kobe...
86. Hare
87. Goulash
88. Flowers
89. Horse. - on pizza
90. Criollo chocolate
91. Spam. - love spam musubi
92. Soft shell crab
93. Rose harissa
94. Catfish
95. Mole poblano
96. Bagel and lox
97. Lobster Thermidor - off someone else's plate
98. Polenta - I'd had it but Tyler bought it on a whim because it looked so weird in the tube. He wasn't that impressed.
99. Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee
100. Snake

I feel like there should be more pickles on this list, or at least a giant kosher deli pickles that you have to fish out of a barrel. I also think homemade alcohol should be on there as well. Oh and strained Greek yogurt with honey, or frozen strained Greek yogurt soft serve. More baked goods, like cream puffs and chocolate chip cookies. The beverage selection is so specific to alcohol as well, take off the cocktails and add fresh squeezed orange juice. Paneer kind of counts at cottage cheese, but real cottage cheese should be on there. Goodness I could keep amending till the cows come home (to be eaten!)

Need to post more, again...

2008-08-27T10:56:00.000-07:00

This NPR segment amused me, and it's so true.

Faun

2008-07-25T11:12:00.000-07:00

Again. This one is a little more concept driven. I'm digging the shorter hair. Unfortunately there will be another character with horns, so I'm working really hard to make them different.

Tender Forever - Heartbroken Forever

2008-07-21T13:39:00.000-07:00

This is my new obsession. I can't seem to get enough of this song, and I'm going to have to go out and find the rest of the album before I go crazy. Tender Forever is on K Records (shout out to Oly!) but it originally from France. The music is like comprehensible Xiu Xiu. I don't know, this song is amazing, I wish I could find a better Youtube of it.

Also you can hear the studio version on this Muxtape here - http://heartbeats.muxtape.com/

I get that this isn't going to be everyone's cup of tea, but I love it so!

Today is an experiment in color!

2008-07-17T11:54:00.001-07:00

It was determined that this looked more like my sister.

Drawing at Work

2008-07-17T11:23:00.001-07:00

I doodle in photoshop when things are waiting to be printed. I'm thinking about starting a comic project and this is an idea for a fawn type character.

edit: It was mentioned by a couple of my coworkers (and pretty much everyone I know) that what I draw looks a lot like me. I've accepted this, and it might even be to my benefit as a lot of my "fine art" is autobiographical. There is one little thing that's bugging me, and it relates to something i heard on NPR. People are really bad at identifying other people of different races. The radio show was talking about the wrongful conviction of black men that were mostly identified by white people. So today I'm starting to think that yes my art does vaguely resemble me, but maybe the white people I'm surrounded with see a stronger similarity because they don't know how to look at Asian people. It's a bit far fetched, but white privilege is knowing that your art actually looks like you. Yeah, probably more then a bit...

Going Back to School

2008-07-10T09:35:00.001-07:00

I started taking a teaching English as a second (TESL) class last month, and getting back into the groove of school is harder then I thought it would be. This of course is me forgetting that I never was in the groove of school, and there was something I always hated about it and could never get over. Yeah, me and school don't have the best relationship. The class so far has been fantastic mostly because the teacher is amazing. I've also started to realize why in language classes they do the things they do. I spend 60% of my time in class sitting there thinking "Ooohhhh, that's why they did that!" It's a good feeling to know why things happened, but I wish I was taking a language class now so I could examine everything the teacher does. That could end badly though, as I would probably start correcting them, or try to steer them towards more modern ways of teaching.

Right now I'm taking this class to keep up on staying educated. I don't have any serious plans of jumping ship, but once I've got my certificate, we'll see. I'd like to travel, and I'm hoping that being TESL certified will open up some doors for me. Thinking in the long term I'd like to go to Japan, Korea, Europe (not that they need much help with English), possibly Dubai, and part of Africa. All this is way out in the future, but it's fun to fantasize.

Men are gross.

2008-07-03T13:25:00.000-07:00

I was stared at for a good 30 seconds by two Hispanic guys in a stopped car while I was standing at the bus stop. It was completely disgusting, and before someone pulls the raciest card, I'm just as grossed out when white or black or asian guys do it as well. The whole thing has worked me up into some kind of feminist rage. Yuck. I wish I could get the looks on their sweaty tan faces out of my head.

Oh and btw, if anyone is thinking that I was "asking for it", first of all you're a dumb ass to think that there is any time it's ok to objectify a woman, and second I was standing at a bus stop, wearing jean, a t-shirt, and a frumpy brown sweater. I don't wear clown makeup, and wear my hair in small pigtails to keep it off my neck. OMG so sexy, let's all treat Aimee like a piece of meat.

I wish I could be more articulate about this, but basically men suck and I hate you all. Now I'm going to go feel gross and scrub my skin off.

Why I'm Not Blogging, or Doing Anything Else Productive

2008-06-23T09:37:00.000-07:00

I'm obsessed with my Nintendo DS. This is my excuse for everything, and I'm sorry. I have a homebrew chip for it, and now I've got an entire world of games and random things I can do with this. So yes, silence.

Also, Tyler has a blog to record his progress working on rebuilding a robot arm. It's pretty technical but he does a good job of explaining things in plain-ish English.

Presenting: Mechan o Blog!

Bang Bang

2008-06-11T21:49:00.000-07:00

Banged this out in about and hour to see how photoshop would respond. It did ok, a little sluggish, but not so slow that I feel the need to shell out money I don't have on CS3. There are so many amazing things you can do with a computer, and I do this? Practice Practice Practice.

Kinako Pancakes

2008-06-07T10:12:00.000-07:00

I made these kinako pancakes today, but alter the recipe a little bit since I didn't have yogurt or buttermilk. I used a cup of milk, and they ended up a little dry. I've made them before following the recipe exactly, and they are much moister and fluffier, it's worth the yogurt. I do highly recommend these. Kinako is probably foreign to most people, but it's not a scary food. I'd compare the flavor to a nut butter and it smells a little sweet. Anyway, it's good and you shouldn't be scared.

Also the last pancake was a monster.

It's hard to think of titles for updates like this.

2008-06-06T12:40:00.000-07:00

Starting the painting. I moved some stuff around a bit, so it was more of falling position and less of a OMG so windy I'm getting blown around. Legs haven't changed much so i just cropped them out. I'm thinking about taking this into an Alice in Wonderland direction, or maybe the opposite of that... conflicted. Anyway, this has been really fun so far (which is the point!) and I hope I can get photoshop at home soon. Also, I'd like to thank Paris Hilton for providing the skin tones. Hot damn these sentences where pointless and distracting from the real point of this post.

Found this at the bottom of a folder, I think I posted a detail, but this is how far I got before giving up.

All About the A-R-T.

2008-06-05T08:37:00.000-07:00

I seem to be on a big art kick these days, which is good since it seems to be the only thing I'm passionate about. Here's a look at something I'm working on at work in my down time.

More Art?

2008-06-03T12:47:00.000-07:00

Dicking around in Photoshop during my downtime at work, so much better then Oekaki. See it full sized here, be warned it's pretty big and full of empty white space. I need to draw more.

Ow, my hand. :(

2008-06-02T21:59:00.000-07:00

I keep promising art, and instead I post this pathetic attempt at... something. This was done on Oekaki board, and that's something I haven't thought about or done in well over five years. Since I'm photoshop-less I have to try out my other less advanced options. Some people can do amazing things with this program, but it's not enough for me. Yeah... this killed my hand since I was gripping the tablet pen with a death grip. Also, it seems like every time I try my hand at digital art, I draw a girl with red hair and a dumb look on her face. *SHAME*

Mexican Casserole

2008-06-02T15:43:00.000-07:00

Here's another food post, since food is the most exciting thing going on in my life right now.
Yesterday for lunch was Easy Mexican Casserole from AllRecipes.com. Sadly I have no pictures so the image to the left was taken from here as an example. This recipe was so straight forward that Tyler and I put it together in about half an hour. We left out the fresh tomatoes and used enchilada sauce to make up for the lack of tomato flavor. I also went lighter on the cheese since it's impossible to spread a thin layer of sour cream on anything, let alone ground beef and beans. The whole thing baked up nicely, but when we scooped it out of the pan it crumbled and didn't hold any shape. It wasn't pretty, but it was tasty, and even better next day. I think I'd try to go a lot lighter on the sour cream, and maybe add some fresh chili's to up the flavor and heat. The fresh tomatoes would be good too. And a larger can of olives. I don't know anything about good Mexican or Tex-Mex, but this was delicious and I think we'll make it again. If there are any suggestions for more authentic Mexican casserole I'd love to hear them too.

Feed Me?

2008-05-28T11:59:00.000-07:00

I'm toying with the idea of staring a blog explicitly for food. In the last few months Tyler and I have been cooking fairly large complex meals twice a week. I'd like to keep a record of the recipes we try, how they turn out, and how we've changed them. My only concern is that I'm not a Foodie. I like the stuff, but I'm not picky, and some times a 50 dollar meal tastes the same as a free one. How can a non Foodie have a food blog? I have to admit it feels a bit deceptive.

OK, lets take a second to talk about pizza. New York and California style pizza are easily one of my favorite foods (not a fan of deep dish, sorry Chicago). In high school and one summer in college, I worked for a local "gourmet" pizza chain. Their questionable hiring practices and misogynistic ways aside, the food was pretty good. I learned a lot about what's good on a pizza and what everyone will like (mushroom and onion). Working around pizza constantly turned me off to it, but now that I've had some time to get over it, I'm completely on the band wagon.

Over the weekend I had some people over, and instead of ordering 90 dollars worth of pizza I made my own, not really from scratch. Trader Joe's is an amazing resource for homemade pizza. They have pre-made pizza dough, which is on par with what you would get at a pizza place, and way better anything I could make from scratch (though I've been working on it!). All the dough I've gotten has been exceptionally fresh, and has good gluten development. Their shredded cheese is of a high quality as well and they quite a variety. I'm a fan of the four cheese blend. As far as toppings go, I stay away from the produce, but they have a good selection of packaged meats (pepperoni and prochuto) and of course all kinds of canned and jarred stuff. The above pizza was made with left over dough, porchuto, pepperoni, mushrooms, and cheese. Quite tasty. Also, I think the key to amazing pizza, besides fresh ingredients, is a good pizza stone.

p.s. I need to get some batteries for my digital camera, until then it's all camera phone.

3 Things

2008-05-21T10:25:00.000-07:00

1) My bangs, fringe, that hair that grows in your face, is getting too long and stabbing me in the eye. I want to grow my hair out, but it's going to get really hot, and there's the whole eye stabbing thing. Dilemma.

2)I bought a bag from Gilt Group. It was expensive and a good deal at the same time.

3) I'm obsessed with candy, mostly Leone Pastiglie candies and Pucho Shuwa.

Did Being an Emo Bitch Make Me Genuine?

2008-05-15T16:23:00.000-07:00

The image to the left was done in 2004, I was about 17. Sorry that it's not work safe. Anyway, I've been thinking that the art I've been doing for the last couple years seems very dishonest compared to what I drew in high school.

I was very much a teenager as a teenager, but I don't think I had anymore angst or insecurities then your average 16 year old. It's pretty obvious that I was putting a lot of what I was thinking and feeling into my art (not what I was doing though. didn't do drugs, smoke, drink, or harm myself.) in a really blunt way. People around me didn't get it, and to some extent I don't think I got it either. Something compelled me to draw, and that's what I did. I wasn't worried about what other people thought, or how my art fit into the entirety of the art world. What I was drawing was uninformed, and isolated from pretty much everything.

Now, after college, I have so much more to consider when I draw. The biggest thing weighing on my mind is the eternal question: "What does it mean?" Ok, so all art doesn't have to "mean" something, but art professionals will not think something has no meaning unless you tell them blatantly. Plus I don't think that art meaning something or existing in a context is a bad thing; if a viewer picks up on a feeling from your art it's an amazing feeling. In the same vein as coming up with meaning, I do want to have narrative aspects of my art, and I want it to look good, and I want it to look like someone older then 15 made it. There's all this stuff to consider, and I think it gets in the way of raw honesty. I don't think my art from 2004 was better, but I do think the emotion was stronger, and the viewer got more. The argument against that is that I was being really obvious, but I'm not going to touch that with a 10 food pole.

Unfortunately for me I don't think there is any conclusion I can come to about this. I'm stuck being who I am now, even though it's interesting to look back there isn't anything in the past that can be recaptured, or should be recaptured.

There's Nothing Wrong with Milk Chocolate

2008-05-15T12:33:00.000-07:00

I just finished off a pretty good, considering what I paid for it, milk chocolate bar. I'm a bit of a pig, and really love chocolate in all shapes and forms, but this makes me think of all the people I know who wont go near the milky stuff. These are normal liberal people, but when I tell them I like milk chocolate they gasp in horror and start to think I'm either an idiot or missing taste buds. Being thought of as less of a person just because I have different preferences in foods is offensive, and I in turn think these people are idiots because they're so quick to judge a person based on taste in chocolate (or anything else for that matter).

I could go on about intolerance and why I think it's immature, but that's for another post. Instead I'm going to enjoy the lingering taste of smooth, not too sweet, milk chocolate. Yumm.

Iron Man > Speed Racer > Mediocre

2008-05-10T18:34:00.000-07:00

Image taken from Yahoo Movies

Mmmk. Hung out with my friend Chris for lunch and a movie. We went to Boom Noodle, which wasn't that great, but hat a hot bar tender, and then we went to see Speed Racer. I've never been attached to the Speed Racer cartoon, probably since it was a little before my time, but I know the characters and basic idea. I went into this movie thinking it was going to be terrible because let's face it, there's not a whole lot behind Speed Racer. The first half of the movie was heavy on the plot, and the acting wasn't that engaging so I got a little bored. BUT, the highlight of this movie is all the crazy CG, Mario Kart, acid trip race car driving. The last half of the movie is all crazy driving, and more dramatic plot, and much more fun. So I'd say the movie redeemed it's self. Also, I wouldn't recommend waiting to rent this, the whole point is seeing all the colors and bright lights huge.