Eggs, part 1

No food posts in a while.. my apologies.

I haven't been too creative in the kitchen lately as far as new recipes go.. but, I have been eating a whooole lot more eggs. :) So. Get ready for some egg posts, as I show you what all I've been combining.

On a completely-related side note, I'm super excited to start getting farm-fresh eggs. Next week.. score!

Anyway, I'm not too keen on scrambled eggs, for some reason. I think it's because I just love over-easy eggs so much. Change is good, right? Trying new things and all that?

A little while ago, I threw together some taco meat I always keep ready in the fridge with some onion slices, peppers, spices (my favorites are cumin, chili powder, and cayenne), and eggs, obviously. Then I garnished it with salsa and cilantro. Yum!

Fresh cilantro. Tasty.

See all the fat on the taco meat? I might be the only person that adds butter to fatty turkey and beef burger when I cook it. Mmm. Butter.

Oh, speaking of... Let's add more! Yum. I'm completely hooked on pastured/grass-fed-butter. It's incredible.

Sizzle!

Yes, I did mix these all up, unfortunately..

... and it made for a sweet action shot!

Scrambled eggs look quite blah, once cooked..

.. but topped with salsa and cilantro, it looks incredible!


In other random news, there's not a lot happening. I photographed my first wedding last weekend, which was fun. I still can't believe "the season" is approaching so rapidly. :) If you want, you can check it out here on my Baseman Studios blog.

Also, I've been doing a teensy bit of shopping. With the coming of spring, and the fact that last spring I was multiple pounds heavier, my whole entire closet (which isn't much anymore!) was full of black. Of course, I had to take some pics! Yay for wardrobes with color!

Mmkay, I'm determined to not be one of those lame Friday night bloggers, so I'm out! :)

Walmart.

Let's set the scene.

(PS. Use of the word "black" is for descriptive purposes only. So you know in what way I heard all this. In no way at all am I racist... but maybe there's a reason for some of the common stereotypes.)

Joel's in the car, patiently waiting for me to come out with groceries. He was so patiently waiting that he just had called me to see if I was ever going to escape that place.

Hung up the phone, swung down the next aisle, passed someone, and heard: mmm hmmm. You know, the way black people say that. It might have been that certain expletive they say like that too. The one that starts with D.

He was talking on the phone, nbd, probably was talking to them.

I keep walking. I hear "excuse me?"

I keep walking. I hear "excuse me?" again. Louder.

Uhm what? as I turn around.

How do I find a girl like you? (As he's checking me out up and down) You lookin' good! (Insert something that I can't remember about white hair...) You from here?

Not originally... Iowa.

Many black people in Iowa?

Not so much, no.

So... you probably wouldn't be open to carrying black babies?

(Internal gasp. Hel-lo. Hold up my left hand.) I'm married.

So am I. Don't matter.

Yeah, it does.

Oh, you're happily married?

Very.

Well, marriages break up all the time.

Oh do they? Not ours.

Are you sure?

Yes.

Oh, okay.

And he walks away.


He wasn't creepy, probably 23-25 years old, probably no taller than 5"8", was decent looking, and was dressed fairly nicely, in reality.  But, really? You want me to carry your babies? And ask me three times if I'll give up my marriage?


Wow.

Is my ba-donk-a-donk that big that I'm attracting black guys? I think it's time to hang up the push-up bra and start doing some squats or something.

I was looking all over for my other experience with Walmart on my blog... apparently it happened PB.. pre-blog. Where those Postville (IA) meat-plant raids were happening and they were carting out illegals left and right. And storing them in an auditorium 3 blocks north of our apartment in Iowa. And it's sunny noon as I'm in the Waterloo Walmart. And this Hispanic guy with nasty teeth and a tracking leg-bracelet followed me out to my car. The one time I parked like a mile away. And wouldn't let me put my own potting soil in my trunk. And hardly let me shut the door. And walked my cart back to the store grinning and waving as I speed-locked my doors and flew out of the parking lot.

That one actually required shoe shopping to get past the queasy stomach feeling.

Over the weekend

Saturday, we painted the kitchen.

Sunday was Mary Jo's 60th birthday.

After supper that night, Lana and Suz had organized a surprise birthday party for her... she had no idea!

We were treated to some amazing cake... Love C. Pheifer's cakes!

Monday we went to Door county...

A little change.

Hey, when was the last time I blogged? I guess you can look for a bit more of that now.

A bit of a lifestyle change... and I'll be focusing completely on my photography in the future. 100%. Full time.

So what does this mean? It means all you wonderful people have awesome referral opportunities for all the little minions you share your life with! And keep close watch in the future if you have engaged friends, there might be a crazy referral program coming up.

It also means that I've been doing quite a bit more photography "stuff" already, especially in the last week, so if you aren't already a follower (but hey, why wouldn't you be? :D), head over to my photo blog, or better yet, hit up my facebook page, and see all the sweet stuff you're missing!

----

Oh. So enough for my photography plug.

Life's been pretty good, except for the whole job thing. But I think it's a good thing. We've had special meeting company (really enjoyed that), and my post-operation checkup today went really well.

My class has been going well, but very busy as we're getting into the financials and accounting part of things. Too bad I'm not quite up to speed with some of the past homework, but heeey, more time for that now too!

We were in Iowa last weekend... Joel put a floor in Mom and Dad's laundry room (yes, the least-seen room in the house, but we've exhausted that discussion already), so it was great to catch a long weekend!

Caught up with my soon-to-be-married friend from HS (who, if you're reading, I'm totally pumped to shoot your wedding!), did a photo session with my little younger brother (he's taller than me) that included exploring a run-down, slightly creepy old school, and spent a whole afternoon in Sioux City with Mom looking for laundry room decor and photography props/materials.

I also did a photo shoot with Turbo, as I realized that I never post the millions of pictures that I take of her.. she's now going to be my new favorite subject!

My older brother and girlfriend were home for the weekend too, so it was great to be with the whole family again!

Hope you all had a wonderful Easter!



PS. Snow? Really?

Happiness is:

Fresh laundry smell.

Good deals in the grocery store.

The Office, Private Practice, Greys, and Castle returning.

Beautiful summer weather... FINALLY!

Getting some shoes sent from Heaven for my feet for work.

My first paycheck on Friday.

Finding that they have even a bigger size than before in your favorite brand of tampons!!

Talking silly with Joel.

4 wonderful days of convention ahead... starting tomorrow!!


**Update: A few more things:

Finding control top, yet waistband free nylons that don't fall down.

Finally having a job... and one that is very enjoyable.

Becoming friends with the people you work with.

Shoes and interviews

Calling all shoe lovers!

I finally got my shoes that I ordered from Aldo today... (finally meaning I had to wait a whole, what, 4 days? :D)

Ah. Love the 5" heels on the black ones. Don't know if they love me, though.







I have an interview tomorrow morning and then another interview set for Friday morning... both with "financial institutions." (Since using names is inappropriate on here.) I'll let you know how they go!

Well.

Deep subject as Dad would say. :)

I'm just compelled to post about a trick I tried at the grocery store this morning. I have this creative idea* that they should put little barcode scanners on shopping carts, so as you're putting stuff in your cart, you can add up your total bill as you're shopping. Brilliant, right? Or am I the only one who cares?
*patent #800,093,821,357 pending**

So. I took a little pocket calculator with me and added it up as I went along. Did it make me take anything off my list, especially as I flew past my self-imposed budget? No. But it did help me to put back these really awesome fizz-ed natural sodas, and leave quite a bit of other stuff on the shelves that wasn't on my list. And it wasn't such a horrible shock when I went to check out.
**just kidding. But isn't it a good idea?

Random: I saw a red cardinal at 5:30 this morning out of our bedroom window. I've never seen one in real life, so that was sweet. (I know, 5:30, two mornings in a row?! Even I'm impressed.)

Here's an update on the job situation. I was sick of not finding anything, so I went to the postcrescent.com, which took me to careerbuilder.com. So I posted my resume.

So far, I've had about 4 offers to sell insurance (which I've done in the past and don't want to do again), an interview with Prudential (which kudos to them on the speed, they emailed me within 2 hours of my posting it), and a few bank teller positions including Wells Fargo just down the street which eerily had a full time teller position open up there 2 days before I looked. I sent a resume to Fox Cities CU, just hung up the phone with Community 1st CU HR, went in and had a little chat with the Red Radish manager and owner, and poked my head in the door at Wells Fargo to give them a face with the name. I also applied at another bank that I can't remember the name of right now, and have an appointment with Cadre Staffing Services on Monday. I'm in the process of filling out an app to Career Options (another staffing place) for a teller position at a bank I know not.

I've been in touch with All Seasons Photography in New London, as the Marx family is nearly exclusive to them, and Mariah let it slip that one of their HS employees is leaving for school in the fall here. We've had a great email conversation, and there might be something there in the future.

Also, I'm going to be doing a trial wedding in Wautoma to gain some experience and grow my portfolio with Nick Pennington of Nicholas Norbert Photography, who's actually out of West Bend. He's letting me come along, and there might be paying possibilities in the future if we work well together. And before you raise your eyebrows, here's my logic for that: I might as well do something and get paid nothing... rather than do nothing and get paid nothing.

W/e. Just give me a job. And then I'll whine and moan about that. :)


Oh, and we sold our beloved car!! There was a chick that came and looked at it Tuesday night after gsp meeting, and she was rounding up the rest of the money to get it and finally got back to Joel this morning. :D

I'm going to miss that thing. It's bad, but probably the thing I liked about it most was how "cool" I felt walking out to it. Oh yeah. This is my car. Drool, now, because I drive it and you don't. Or something. But tied for first, was how slamming through the gears totally drained away any frustration. haha.


Mmm hmm. Sexy. :)

Finally, cheers to Friday being tomorrow, my awesome friend, Brett (yes, GIRL), from college coming up here next week, payday, and one of the most random posts ever!

Tiny..

I just found these photos in my blog photo folder.. Had to post them quick.

Mary Jo and I were shopping with Lana and Tiny.. and the conversation went like this:

"Haha, those bags are bigger than Tiny!"

65 things...

... that I've probably thought about before, knowing me.

1. First thing you wash in the shower?
my hair

2. What color is your favorite hoodie?
My white zip-up hoodie from HCC

3. Would you kiss the last person you kissed again?
I sure would. That would be wonderful right now. :)

4. Do you plan outfits?
Obviously.

5. How are you feeling RIGHT now?
Good... just finished some more juice for lunch. I also made myself a small chicken breast on the George Foreman that I had marinated in spices, ranch dressing, and olive oil since yesterday.

6. Whats the closest thing to you that's red?
... a chip clip. Random.

7. Tell me about the last dream you remember having?
Eek. I haven't remembered a dream in a long time. But I think it was that one where Joel and I were uhm, ya'know in a corridor of a sky-rise hotel overlooking this huge city.

8. Did you meet anybody new today?
nope.

9. What are you craving right now?
nothing, actually. I'm not really hungry. Chips and salsa always sound good though.

10. Do you floss?
*shame* about twice a year, three if I happen to go to the dentist.

11. What comes to mind when I say cabbage?
Ew. that would make disgusting juice.

12. Are you emotional?
Mmm. Yup.

13. Have you ever counted to 1,000?
What? No. But I did hear from the fml.com that this 24-yr old guy actually counted the number of licks to get to the inside of a tootsie roll pop.

14. Do you bite into your ice cream or just lick it?
both

15. Do you like your hair?
Sure. It's pretty versatile and isn't falling out anymore since I started using this natural shampoo and conditioner.

16. Do you like yourself?
Yup. And we're starting to be buddies with the scale, too. Woo hooo!

17. Would you go out to eat with George W. Bush?
Why not... I respect the man, and he'd probably be interesting to talk to.

18. What are you listening to right now?
The sound of my dehumidifier in the basement.

19. Are your parents strict?
In some ways.. I think they're about perfect in that department for me.

20. Would you go sky diving?
YES!

21. Do you like cottage cheese?
Mmm hmm. Love it. Every single morning.

22. Have you ever met a celebrity?
Er. No. I grew up in Iowa, remember? But I did meet a really famous photographer in Madison earlier this year.

23. Do you rent movies often?
Eh. That get's expensive.

24. Is there anything sparkly in the room you're in?
Sparkly? No.

25. How many countries have you visited?
Canada, Mexico... I'm not very well traveled.

26. Have you made a prank phone call?
Actually, no. Is it fun?

27. Ever been on a train?
Nope.

28. Brown or white eggs?
White...?

29.Do you have a cell-phone?
Love my crack-berry!

30. Do you use chap stick?
All the time.

31. Do you own a gun?
No.. should have bought one before the O-man raised the taxes on those.

32. Can you use chop sticks?
My feeble attempts probably don't fit the word "using" very well.

33. Who are you going to be with tonight?
Myself. :(

34. Are you too forgiving?
Not really... quite the opposite, actually.

35. Ever been in love?
:D

36. What is your best friend doing tomorrow?
Working... and not around home.

37. Ever have cream puffs?
My darling Grandma Baseman... I love your cream puffs!

38. Last time you cried?
It's been a little while. I'm proud of myself for sending Joel out the door without breaking down!

39. What was the last question you asked?
I don't remember, something to Jeanine on the phone earlier.

40. Favorite time of the year?
Summer.. forever and always.

41. Do you have any tattoos?
Nope.

42. Are you sarcastic?
Never.

43. Have you ever seen The Butterfly Effect?
nope

44. Ever walked into a wall?
All the time. Say, is this a good time to bring up my novel idea about rounded walls in houses?

45. Favorite color?
What? I have to pick just one?

46. Have you ever slapped someone?
Hmm.. seriously? I don't think so.

47. Is your hair curly?
Le sigh.

48. What was the last CD you bought?
bought? Probably my Cold Play one that's like 5 years old.

49. Do looks matter?
Of course. But other things matter more.

50. Could you ever forgive a cheater?
Let's not test it.

51. Is your phone bill sky high?
Not really.. although, I'm not enjoying the extra $$ for the data plan.

52. Do you like your life right now?
I really do. I wish I had a job though.

53. Do you sleep with the TV on?
Ew. No. Two fans.

54. Can you handle the truth?
I sure hope so.

55. Do you have good vision?
Depends on how old my contacts are.

56. Do you hate or dislike more than 3 people?
Oh most likely.

57. How often do you talk on the phone?
When Joel's here, not that much, actually.

58. The last person you held hands with?
:) Joel.

59. What are you wearing?
My sweats from my walk this morning.

60.What is your favorite animal?
Dogs, always. Cats just bother me. I have dog fever sooo bad.

61. Where was your default picture taken?
For blogger? It's an old one from the studios at HCC.

62. Do you have a job?
Le sigh. Soon.

64. What was the most recent thing you bought?
Photoshop. :D Shh. Don't tell Joel. j/k But I'm in love with my new juicer, and that's pretty recent too!

65. Have you ever crawled through a window?
Er. no.

Okay, time to get to work..

Moving!

Well, everything's up here in Wiscon... and into our duplex!

Here's the numbers so far:

3 days packing and loading (thanks again, Mom!)
1 final that took me 15 min
4 hours of driving time
4 hours of unloading the trailer (thanks, Ron and Rory!!)
3 hours of trying to find a de-humidifier for the stinky basement
3 hours to unpack only the kitchen boxes (and there might be some more elsewhere)
1 cup that was broken (due to it falling out of the cupboard)
16 cans of mountain dew in our new fridge
10 McChickens I've eaten in the last week (probably, some might have been Whopper Jr's)
6 hours of sleep a night (just kidding, it isn't that bad)
3 wallflowers to take the musty apartment smell out (it's as if there's lilac bushes growing in our kitchen)

My brain is done being creative right now... :)
Today Mary Jo and I are going shopping for a washer, dryer, and stove... hopefully we can find some good deals!

Too many irons...

... in the fire.

A lot has gone down this week. Too busy to post. And certainly too much on my mind to write in complete sentences. :)

I *did* end up getting sick Monday evening... and was really sick on Tuesday. Now the leftover remains are a slightly stuffy nose, and lots of pressure in my head/neck/back. Or that part is just from stress, who knows.

This week I had to get all my portfolio images sent to the lab so they could print my beautiful 11x14 images, mount them and get them back to me by Wednesday. I finally had to call and after a little bit of persuading, I picked them up Thursday morning. Needless to say I wasn't too happy, as I had specified they needed to be picked up Wednesday afternoon.. mm. Anyway, after looking at them, 1 of them was scratched, 2-3 of them had spots on them that were white.. I think maybe it was a little scratch?, and all but one had big greasy fingerprints on them. ew. One of them was even cut weird. But I'm over it. I had one of my teachers help me fill in the scratch, so that's all good.

Also on Wednesday, I get this call from my landlord. She says that this guy is coming over to look at the place and wants me to show him the apartment. ... What? Hello. I don't want to let some strange guy in, especially when the landlord isn't going to be there. And I doubly don't want to do my landlord's job. Ugh. Anyway, I guess it went okay.

After meeting on Wednesday, I went over to Lisa's and went for a short walk with her. It was great to get some fresh air and catch up a little.

Thursday morning, I get a call right after I begin my first class at 11:00, which is the mortgage rep asking me to make sure we bring our reciept of 1-yr prepaid homeowner's insurance to the closing. The closing was yesterday. As in Friday. And he called me Thursday at 11:05. Dork. We're first time home-owners, we aren't going through a realtor or lawyer, and so the only information we get is from you, the mortgage rep. And we didn't think about that. So.... after I got out of class at 3, I started rushing around, calling our insurance agent, and other freaking-out behaviors. As it ended up, our insurance agent is a doll who stayed until 6, getting this figured out for me. Whew.

Our closing was yesterday, and it went relatively well... as well as it could have gone with our dork of a mortgage rep. He had to leave a couple times and make sure that we were making the check out right and something else that was not figuring right. I bet we spent 30 minutes just by ourselves waiting for him to get back. Anyway, it's all over and done with and we're the proud owners of a duplex! woo hoo.

Monday, I've got "Portfolio Day," which is where we take our portfolios to 5 different mock interviews with professional photographers that our instructor has invited to come. They go through our portfolio and interview us, and determine whether our portfolio is "acceptable" or not. It will be fun as I know some of the photographers interviewing me... :) I'm not too worried about doing well.

However, I do want to get a new accessory for an outfit for Monday. Something cute and cheap, like a new scarf. You know, just something to dress up the day a little. :)

Portrait field trip

So we went down to Ames and Des Moines for a class trip to tour some studios and basically get away for a day or two.. or something. Because we don't have anything to do here, like work on our portfolios or scrambling for our last assignments...

My neck feels so good after riding in one of those realllly uncomfortable tour buses. Or not. Thank you, pillow. Thank you, Blackberry. Thank you, Pandora. Thank you, headphones.

Anyway, it was fun, we learned a lot, and we got to drop by the Jordan Creek Mall there in Des Moines... mmm. We sooo need a Wet Seal in Appleton.

Here are some photos of my purchases... maybe I'll even post some photog stuff we were learning/observing.. I would be the one to come home from a photography field trip and only post photos of my shopping items.. :) The watches and Gladiator sandals are from Wet Seal and the scarves from Vanity.