highrise living for a joke like me

I'm going to have a moment of religious thought: to all who read this, please forgive me for any cruel/thoughtless/rude I have done to you during the past year. According to Jewish law, the ten days between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur are to be spent in reflection over the past year, including tying up any loose ends and making amends for mistakes made. We're supposed to ask people for forgiveness for anything we might have done to them and if they refuse three times, we are forgiven by God because we've made an effort. I don't really believe that God is sitting up there keeping track, but I'd like to know that I've been forgiven for stupid things I've done, rather than letting them fester. I'd like to know if you have forgiven me, but it's not a huge deal, as long as you have.

(RL update to come later. It's going to be long.)

This year's been pretty crap. Here's hoping the next one is better, for me and everyone else.

Because, man, I've got it down pat.

Seder tonight was fun. If people are interested, I could be persuaded to tell the Chad Gadya story, and maybe even record me doing the last verse in one breath and post it on the eljay.

Since no food eaten during Passover can contain traditional leavening agents (yeast, baking powder or soda, etc.), one has two options for baking: come up with an option that will survive being hefty (macaroons), or use some other method of trapping air to lighten your project. The standard solution is egg whites.

These are the household favorites. The macaroons are only a teeny bit sweet, so the flavor of the nuts doesn't have to fight with anything else. And the brownies? Good enough to make year-round.

Pistachio Macaroons
3 cups shelled pistachios (roasted, unsalted)
1 cup sugar
3 egg whites

Crush pistachios into chunks. You can use a blender, but we tend to throw them in a plastic bag, close out most of the air, and banging on it with the bottom of a cup. You want them ground into small pieces but not powdery.

Mix pistachios, sugar, and egg whites in small bowl until blended and place in refrigerator to chill at least 10 minutes. Preheat oven to 325°.

When mixture is done chilling, remove and drop onto parchment-covered baking sheets by rounded teaspoons. You might want to press them flat if the mounds are particularly thick. Mixture will be thin but cohesive. If it starts to fall apart, through it back into the fridge for a few minutes.

Bake 12-17 minutes, until bottom edges are browned. Increase heat to 350° and bake for another 5 minutes to dry them out a little, then remove to wire racks to cool.

Makes about 3 dozen.


In the background you can see, left to right: ubiquitous loose change can, knife block, decaf Kona coffee Da brought Mum from Hawai'i, Mum's flax seed grinder, and our shiny brand new stand mixer.

Passover Brownies
3/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar
5 eggs, separated into yolks and whites
1 cup 60% dark chocolate chips
1 3/4 cup almond flour
pinch of salt

Preheat oven to 350°. Grease 9 inch square baking tin.

Cream butter and sugar until smooth. Mix in egg yolks until uniform. Melt chocolate and add to butter mixture. Add almond flour and salt and mix until uniform.

In separate bowl, whip whites until stiff. Fold into batter; be careful to handle it as little as possible so you don't lose the lovely air bubbles you've made in the whites.

Pour batter into tin, smoothing top if necessary. Bake 45 minutes, until toothpick inserted one inch from the edge comes out clean. Remove pan to wire rack to cool and cut into squares.

I'm also a personal fan of meringues (second recipe down):


The rice steamer is visible in the far left of this picture.

from metaquotes, natch:

I wouldn't want culturally Jewish food. It would have all sorts of Holocaust-related neuroses, and would go to temple once a year without being able to articulate why. That's way more than I ask for in a sandwich.

I lol'ed.

(From here.)

Didn't go to services today, but I went to therapy, went driving, opened a bank account, and yelled at my HMO instead. Productive day, I think. And I don't feel like I've missed out on anything, not going to shul.

That being said, I'd like to do my annual tradition (much more meaningful to me than sitting for five hours):

I'm going to have a moment of religious thought: to all who read this, please forgive me for any cruel/thoughtless/rude I have done to you during the past year. According to Jewish law, the ten days between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur are to be spent in reflection over the past year, including tying up any loose ends and making amends for mistakes made. We're supposed to ask people for forgiveness for anything we might have done to them and if they refuse three times, we are forgiven by God because we've made an effort. I don't really believe that God is sitting up there keeping track, but I'd like to know that I've been forgiven for stupid things I've done, rather than letting them fester. I'd like to know if you have forgiven me, but it's not a huge deal, as long as you have.

And, since we're being deep:

Meaning of Life Meme: What was the 42nd entry in your journal?

Now, this journal is actually the combination of two: my original Xanga, and the current LJ.

on Xanga: a meme result; how sheep-ish :P

on LJ: homework, but that's high school for ya

and for shits and giggles, on the writing journal: a blanketforts drabble

That certainly broke the serious mood, didn't it? :P

Yes, it's very nice that you want to be edgy and post-modern and martially precise and whatnot. And it's nice that you're donating the money you raise to some group for disabled veterans.

What is not nice is your black uniforms with silver braid, the German techno you were dancing to, and the Iron Crosses on your hats.

In a room that was predominantly gay or otherwise queer.

In a town (city) with a high percentage of Jews.

For serious, what the bloody fucking hell were you thinking?

I'm the first to tell people to forgive and forget, but I definitely spent their entire performance looking frantically for the exit. One of the friends I was with, who is also the grandchild of survivors, was pretty much doing the same thing.

And the woman in the front row who was flipping you off through the majority of your performance? Yeah, she was a surely a bit drunk, but I can definitely see where she was coming from.

If I have nightmares tonight, I certainly know who I'm blaming.

No love,
Me

Big long crazy-assed weekend. Sheesh.

Saturday I wound up in synagogue, to go to a friend of the family's son's bar mitzvah. I haven't been to shul in at least a year (probably more), but I was mildly amused that I still knew all of the prayers, and could basically do them while my brain went off on a merry romp counting bricks. The rabbi hasn't changed a bit, the congregation is still made up of mostly septuagenarians and above, I don't plan on going back anytime soon. I did have some blather I wanted to say about the rabbi's sermon, but I've forgotten.

Then afterwards I went out driving with Mum, where we did loops in one of the high school's parking lots and then I actually drove on streets. For the first time. Admittedly, it was in the orthodox Jewish neighborhood and just after noon on a Saturday, so there were no cars and no pedestrians, but it was still very exciting as I'm sure you can imagine. Mum kept getting this "my baby's all grown up!" look on her face, though she denied it.

After that I had work, which was terribly boring, so I won't bother talking about it.

Sunday I had work in the morning, and it was horrible. I'm reminded of why I never work mornings: too many people all at once, too many baristas on the floor, and the newbs and idiots tend to work mornings, so that always makes it gobs worse. It's amazing how long a seven-hour shift can feel when 3/4 of it is spent wanting to bang one's head against the wall.

Afterwards, I went out to dinner with the family and some family friends to Marrakesh, a Moroccan restaurant on New York and 7th (N...W, I think). It's not just dinner, it's a whole performance. You're seated on padded benches around low tables, and the food is done communally: a plate in the middle of the table, and everyone eats with their fingers. They do seven courses, each brought out individually, and somewhere in the middle they dim the lights and there's a belly dancer. The decor's amazing, and even the door looks like something out of one of the Arabian Nights stories.

( cut for babble about food )

Expensive, but totally worth it.

In utterly unrelated news, I saw Wall-E with the family tonight. I won't talk about it in detail right now (though I totally will tomorrow, I suspect), but let me just say that it was one of the best movies I've even seen. Sweet and romantic and scary and so so sad. I'm not the best judge of these things, but I spent the majority of the movie in tears. I know the response has been mixed, but it's really worth a viewing.

Quick, before I jet, a meme:

1. Reply to this post and I'll assign you a letter.
2. List (and upload, if you feel like it) 5 songs that start with that letter.
3. Post them to your journal with these instructions.

theemdash gave me L weeks ago, and I'm finally getting to it now.

I'm also going to totally cheat and do more than five, since my music collection is kind of ridiculous and eclectic.

La Vie Boheme - Rent A and B
I've got a long, mildly amusing story about my relationship with Rent, but suffice it to say that I used to hate the show but now I'm rather enamored of it and when I'm in a bad mood I tend to turn these tracks up loud and sing along, much to my mother's chagrin.

Lady Diamond - Steeleye Span
I have a completely irrational love for this song, even though it's kind of nasty in the way many ballads from that period are. It actually is a Child ballad (269, if you care), and I totally love the Steeleye Span version of it.

Lament - Into the Woods
If I still acted, I would give my right arm to play the witch in Into the Woods, if only for the opportunity to perform this song. It's on my list of songs I would really love to perform, along with "Aldonza" from Man of La Mancha and Jacques Brel's "If We Only Have Love" in the original French.

The Last Trip Home - Battlefield Band
I have a soft spot for anti-industrial songs like this one. Weird, I know. But pretty.

Late Night Radio - Tom Rush
I've definitely been up at that time of the night, though I don't tend to listen to radio. iPods killed the radio star?

Life is a Highway - Rascal Flatts
Sadly, I can't say I'd heard of this song before it was cool (ie. before Cars).

Life Upon the Wicked Stage - Show Boat
So wrong, and yet so right. This is the recording from the My Favorite Broadway - the Leading Ladies show a few years back, and we recorded it on VHS, copied the sound to cassette, then digitized it to .mp3, so please forgive the crackles. :P

The Lighthouse's Tale - Nickel Creek
For the last *mumble* years, I've been trying to write my NaNoWriMo based on this song. I've since decided I should probably turn it into a short story and the hell with it. Some day it'll get written, I swear!

A Little Brains, a Little Talent - Damn Yankees
Probably the only show I've been in that I still like any of the music from. This isn't the song that convinced my Big Gay Senior Steve that I could act (it was actually "Whatever Lola Wants"), but I'd love to perform this one, too. Assuming I ever learn sex appeal.

Luck Be a Lady - Guys and Dolls
A few of you will remember the year I dressed in drag to sing this song for a theatre class, after spending two weeks getting my guy friends to teach me how to stand like a man. Also a Capella. I torture myself, I know.

And, because I couldn't resist:

Leaving on a Jet Plane - John Denver (and also by Jefferson Airplane)
Extra bonus song x2. Little known fact: I sang this song a Capella at my middle school graduation, and there were tears streaming down my face at the time. Like one person on my flist was actually there for that.

(You see what I did there? :P)

So, we have to read the Gospel of Matthew, Acts of the Apostles chapters 1-9, and I Corinthians for Medieval History, and, good Jew that I am, I'm confused. Da explained some of it to me¹, but I still feel the need to natter on. If my utterly impolite commentary will insult you, shove off. :)

( Blasphemy under the cut. )

Shower time now, I think, and then back to read Acts and Corinthians.
____
^{1 Da went to Fordham for grad school, so he's my source for all things Christian.}

First of all, a big smooshy thanks to celleri_kun for starting the process of illustrating Danse Macabre - Ghost Story for me for imaginarybeasts. I'm so excited!

Second, I've reached a new level of name stupidity. Last night, the delivery guy who brought my Insomnia cookies thought I was "Mexican" because "Iliana [sic] is a Mexican name, right?" Um, no. Just...no.

Also, I've finished all the tv shows on my hard drive. Other than Babylon 5 (yes, allandaros, I know, and I'm working on it), what do people suggest?

And, despite the fact that I didn't go to services this year, I'll do my annual Jew thing: I'm going to have a moment of religious thought: to all who read this, please forgive me for any cruel/thoughtless/rude I have done to you during the past year. According to Jewish law, the ten days between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur are to be spent in reflection over the past year, including tying up any loose ends and making amends for mistakes made. We're supposed to ask people for forgiveness for anything we might have done to them and if they refuse three times, we are forgiven by God because we've made an effort. I don't really believe that God is sitting up there keeping track, but I'd like to know that I've been forgiven for stupid things I've done, rather than letting them fester. I'd like to know if you have forgiven me, but it's not a huge deal, as long as you have.

And now to update my planner so I can see just how much homework I have. *facepalm*

( But I'll do a meme first... )
Yes, sure, why not.

So it's definitely a good sign for a performance project when not only notes the professor has about your rehearsal are the ones that your group had already made amongst itself. And, better yet, she's letting us lead the class in a warm-up before the exam to get everyone to wake up. After the A- on the paper for that class, I'm rather optimistic about my final grade.

Still haven't gotten any work done on the first 113 paper. I don't know why I'm having so much trouble settling down and just doing it. I'm considering another change of plans and devoting Friday to the paper, Saturday to ANTH, Sunday to CLAS and ANTH, and then the week to 113.

Need you guys' advice on something. Starbucks just started a partnership with iTunes, which means that I got a free playlist (of random shit, haven't listened to it yet), and a free song of my choice. Suggestions? I have until mid-June to use the keycode. Also with that, I have a special site that lets me get a discount on Apple stuff, including iPods and big things. It's something I'm allowed to share with family and friends, so let me know if you're planning on buying stuff and I can send you a link.

A dump of fun links and things, and then I'm going to maybe devote some time to the damned bibliography of evil.

The Creation, if God were a programmer. Really amusing.

Linked to that, the awesomeness that is Mr. Deity. Not to be taken seriously, but really fucking funny.

Also stumbled across this, dun remember how. All-American Rejects' video for the song "Dirty Little Secret", which uses some of the PostSecret secrets. Video's not really related to the song, but it's still kind of cool.

The Letter Project: this guy writes real personalized letters to people if you give him your name and address. Looks interesting. I like getting mail.

That's all for now. Yanno, I should probably organize this randomness dump, maybe do it on some kind of schedule or something. *shrugs* Who knows?

Still need to rehash Remix/Redux and do a first 101 days update on Mission 101, but I'll get to those later.