I didn’t leave myself time to blog for #NaBloPoMo yesterday, and so I woke up this morning feeling all contrite. Also slightly dazed and feeling hungover after Eddie and Lisa’s wedding last night.

My bedside lamp was still on this morning. I didn’t wash off all my makeup. I was able to remove my contacts but that was all I could manage before visions of white gowns and twinkly lights (the loft where the wedding and reception took place was decorated in just white candles and lights and it was GORGEOUS) danced in my head. Keep in mind, I didn’t drink but one glass of white wine. But I had quite a bit of regular Coke to drink instead of diet, and a piece of wedding cake. I bet my pancreas just loved that.

But seriously, the wedding was wonderful. It was great to see Jan, Rob, Erin, and Stef, my reception pals. The ceremony itself was short but lovely, and the reception afterwards was great. It was a chic cocktail party with insanely fun dancing. Every time I thought I couldn’t dance anymore, another great song would come on and I was compelled. COMPELLED.

After the day I had, I should have taken a nap. It wasn’t a bad day, but I didn’t give myself enough time at home rebooting. I went to voice class, went to Crate & Barrel to buy Eddie and Lisa a gift from their registry (and ended up buying a gift card because that’s what happens when you procrastinate), and then got my nails done. It was a wonderful day, actually, my favorite kind of weekend day. But I had no rest.

In voice class, we talked mostly about last weekend’s Halloween recitals. Every show was great, and now our teacher Gwen is working on the DVD. Gwen said the next recital is in February, and will have a 60s theme. One of the songs we got to sing was “Happy Together”, a sweet and recital-appropriate song. My favorite, though, was “Hard Candy Christmas” from “The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas”, a movie I’ve been meaning to see for ages. Not a Christmas song, as Gwen pointed out (it’s all the girls singing about how they’re sad about the whorehouse closing), but still something she likes to sing during the holidays. So there was that, as well as “A Kiss to Build A Dream On” and “What Are You Doing New Year’s Eve?” I think class is going to be fun (again).

But was that all exhausting? Not so much. I guess taking the bus from Lincoln Square to Lincoln Park for my other errands took a lot out of me. On an empty stomach, too? Less than fun. I meant to find a place to eat lunch after class but I was worried about time so of course I didn’t eat and that’s why I found myself devouring a burger at the Golden Nugget at 3:00 in the afternoon. When I’m hungry and I feel like my blood sugar is down in the dumps? Not the best time for me to be ordering food because, well, my instincts are not so healthy. Boo.

But I want to end on a happy note. The wedding was lovely, Lisa and Eddie looked so happy, and I looked adorable. Seriously. I found this dress at Macy’s that was $34 (marked down from $148!) and I looked cute as hell. I recently discovered the awesomeness of the costume jewelry at Forever 21, so I had these cute rhine barrettes in my hair and I think it worked rather nicely. I think maybe I should have remembered to spray on some perfume, especially since I took the bus and somebody on the Grand Avenue bus smelled like, well, ass and I should have remembered that when going in for hugs at the reception.

Also, those Westgrand Studios are awesome but it was dark when I arrived and so of course following the people and the music I almost attended the wrong wedding. Whoops. It didn’t take me very long to find the right one, as Eddie and Lisa’s was just down the block on the corner. I made my way up the stairs to the huge loft on the third floor, wondering if the other floors were occupied by businesses or residents (I can’t imagine living underneath an event space). After signing the guest book, I wandered in and sighed when I didn’t see anyone I recognized. I happened to find Jan at the gift table and after we hugged hello she led me over to Rob. They were going to stand, and I liked that. Not only because there weren’t enough chairs for everyone to sit, but because it felt appropriate for a ceremony.

Erin and Stef came in just before we got started. I feel like I should also say we all looked great, so I will. We all looked great. We caught up while drinking wine and eating Chex mix. I was actually holding a bowl of party mix when the ceremony started, but I put that down almost as soon as the officiant said a brief prayer. It was the least I could do.

degrassi meets doppler by jasmined featuring Levis jeans

Things that I had in mind when I got dressed this morning:

• The episode of “The Big Bang Theory” where Sheldon dresses up as the Doppler effect for Halloween.
• Heather Farrell and Erica Farrell from “Degrassi Jr. High” (though they didn’t start with their black-and-white outfits until “Degrassi High”) — wouldn’t that make a great couple costume?

Things that I did not have in mind this morning but probably should have (not like it would have stopped me from putting on this particular outfit):

• The Hamburglar

barney? an eggplant? grimace? by jasmined featuring Old Navy

I wore this outfit to dinner last night at Irazú with Elisa and her friend Maurel. I also wore it today because, well, I liked it enough to repeat it, this time with the necklace.

This is one variation of the same outfit that I wear just about every day. Which is fine. I love fashion but I don’t always have the energy to work it every day. Sorry, dudes. I bought the t-shirt (and this great gauze blue print scarf that is not shown on the Old Navy web site for some reason so it’s not in the set) to wear to dinner because the white henley I’d spent the day wearing was just stretched out and boring and blech by the time evening rolled around. Who wants to go to dinner wearing a stretched-out t-shirt when there are cute dudes involved?

I used to avoid purple, often choosing pink or red or blue if I had a choice. But I’m coming around to it. I think it’s pretty on me. Even if I sometimes wonder if I look just a little bit like Grimace, Barney the Dinosaur, or an eggplant.

Anyway, dinner was delicious. I’ve been to Irazú many times before, most recently this summer when Elisa was trying to convince me that this waiter with awesome tattoos was into me. Chris, our waiter last night, was appropriately flirty and very friendly. I ordered the chifrijo appetizer to share, a banana-oatmeal milkshake (my usual), a side of fried plantains, and the pepito sandwich. The chifrijo and the pepito were suggestions from @rachelleb, and they were incredible. Elisa got the Cuban sandwich, a side of yellow rice, and the cornmeal milkshake. Chris approved of the milkshake order especially, telling us that it tasted like Honey Smacks cereal. And it did, another amazing drink. Maurel got the grilled steak, a huge platter of steak and salad and plantains. Somehow, she still had the appetite for bread pudding after eating all that food. I helped her out with dessert, of course.

We talked about Elisa’s job, her non-birthday party coming up in a few weeks, the cheesy songs on Maurel’s iPod shuffle. Maurel asked Chris to guess her and Elisa’s ages. Chris was adorable, a fine and wonderful young man (he was 25!) but not the waiter from the summer. It’s not as though if summer waiter had been there that I would have, you know, asked him out or anything. Still, though. I have to confess that I was disappointed that he wasn’t there. I guess it’s really autumn after all.

Halloween 2005 spread featuring Peggy Boren’s Famous Spinach Balls

I like recipes. I am trying to get back into the habit of cooking, and I like reading recipes to prepare. Of course, reading recipes keeps me from cleaning my kitchen and doing the dishes that have crowded my sink for the last few months weeks. Such is life, and such is sloth.

But I feel that I have motivation and inspiration to cook. Cooking is fun, and it’s cheaper than dining out or ordering in. Also, I have a deadline. I’m having Thanksgiving dinner with Nite and Jeff this year at Nite’s place. While they’re providing the bulk of the meal (you can order a complete Thanksgiving dinner from Whole Foods, which they did two years ago), their guests — me, Jon, Alissa, Elisa, and another friend of Jeff’s whose name escapes me — have been asked to provide a side, dessert, or a beverage.

Immediately, I thought of the two recipes below. Delicious, fortifying, and shared by two of the nicest people I know. And while I’ll be participating in this year’s Thanksgiving parade, I shouldn’t have too much trouble making one or both of these delicious treats as my contribution to the holiday meal.

First, we have “Peggy Boren’s Famous Spinach Balls” from my former roommate (and owner of the fabulous organizing business Simplicity Works) Molly Boren. Peggy, if you haven’t already guessed, is Molly’s mom. Molly was a great roommate, and a great party co-host. We had two really great parties during our roommate tenure:

1. a Halloween party where everybody dressed up as someone or something that died a notorious or tragic death (think: Cleopatra, Eazy-E, Terri Schiavo, and Malcolm X!)
2. “Total Eclipse of the Heart” (yes, this party had a title) an 80’s themed Valentine’s Day party where I made a cake in the shape of Pac-Man.

I’ve asked Molly for this recipe about three gazillion times, but I never remember if it’s in e-mail somewhere or on a post-it. When I asked for it this last time she said:

I keep this in my phone for just this sort of occasion! No need for anything in return; you are helping achieve my life’s mission of spreading spinach balls throughout the world.

Peggy Boren’s Famous Spinach Balls

• 4 eggs, slightly beaten
• 2 boxes (20 oz total) frozen, chopped spinach, thawed and drained
• 1 cup chopped onion
• ½ cup melted butter (can use less)
• ½ cup grated parmesan
• ½ cup grated cheddar
• ½ t. garlic salt
• ½ tablespoon thyme
• 2 c. ground herb stuffing mix
• dash salt

1. Combine all ingredients.
2. Form into walnut-sized balls.
3. Refrigerate balls, separated on cookie sheet, 30 mins. to 1 hr.
4. Bake 20-25 mins. at 350.

Unused balls can be frozen, then baked for 25-30 mins. at 350.

I don’t remember how many balls this recipe makes, but it makes a lot. It’s perfect for parties or for one or two people snacking over the course of, say, a week. Molly would put these out on a tray with a ramekin or small bowl of ketchup. Plain or dipped, they are remarkable and popular. If you see these, move fast!

Rozi Bhimani is a lawyer, a wife, a mother, a runner, the person who got me into “The Amazing Race”, and fellow shoe fiend. She and my friend Andrew have been together for 10 years (!) and celebrated five years of marriage this past August. They have a 3 year old son, Nathan. I have to confess that when I first met Rozi over ten years ago, when Andrew brought her to the Hyde Park apartment I shared with our pals Jacinda and Andrea, that I was pretty, well, not sober. It’s not like I was vomiting into a bucket at 10 in the morning, but let’s just say I went from feeling mellow to pretty mortified. Rozi didn’t seem to notice, care, or judge about this, and I have loved her ever since.

Rozi and Andrew have me over for dinner occasionally, and everything I’ve eaten from their kitchen has been delicious. This broccoli, cheese, and rice casserole from her aunt, Lynn Arnsdorf, is a standout. When I asked Rozi for the recipe, she replied:

Ok, I will share, but you have to promise not to be grossed out! I fear you will never eat this again….(also, I typically swap out for low fat options….fat free mushroom soup and low fat cheese whiz; I’ve tried this with brown rice too but it’s not as good; and, i regularly forget the butter and that seems ok too; basically, this recipe is indestructible).

The recipe was to me not gross but thrilling in its simplicity — just six ingredients, and you don’t even have to cook the rice beforehand — and it’s quality. It is just so good and filling, perfect for serving to friends, and therefore made for family dinner, Thanksgiving dinner, and any other dinner you care to have.

Lynn Arnsdorf’s Broccoli, Cheese, and Rice Casserole

Heat the following in a large saucepan:

1. ¼ cup butter
2. 1 small jar of Cheez Whiz (use half of the 13 oz. size)
3. 1 can cream of mushroom soup
4. 1 package of frozen chopped broccoli

Once mixed together, add some chopped onion (1-2 tablespoons) and 2 cups of Minute Rice (uncooked). Mix and pour into 1.5-2 quart casserole dish. Bake 1 hour at 350 degrees.

Okay, enough blogging for today. I’ve got some cooking to do.

I just finished watching By The People: The Election of Barack Obama on HBO. It was pretty good. It reminded me of how much I lived and died by this past campaign. I did a lot of it in private, though, because while I think of myself as passionate about the electoral process I am pretty uninformed about politics. And I didn’t want to get too much into discourse even with my friends who are of the same political stripe, lest I degrade the conversation. Nobody wants to be the annoying newbie asking all the questions they should have asked during AP US history in high school. PS: I got a 3 on that particular AP test. See? I’m a lightweight.

But back to the movie! It was a fine look at the behind the scenes action of the Obama campaign, following a few people from the Iowa caucuses through election night. I loved watching the people of Iowa caucus, cajoling and encouraging each other to support their candidate. I loved seeing Michelle and her daughters playing dominoes (could somebody teach me?) at their house before taking a phone call from Barack. I teared up whenever Ronnie Cho talked to his mom, and just bawled when he broke down after victory was declared. It reminded me that the election was made possible by many. We all did our part. But it also reminded me that the victory was a call to action, that the anger and disappointment some of us may be feeling now because things haven’t changed overnight can once again be converted into the hope and faith and spirit and hard work of 2008.

Clearly, I’m biased about By The People as I am a liberal Democrat. I supported President Obama in the last election. I say “supported” because I didn’t vote for him. I didn’t vote for him because I wasn’t able to. I wasn’t a citizen then. But I’m a citizen now. I’ve got three years until I can vote for him (finally!). In the meantime, I mean to work on making good on a few promises I made to myself last year. Firstly, getting involved with my fellow Democrats as we prepare for the 2010 midterm elections. Secondly, finding time to volunteer for people who need it. Yes, that means charity, but I’m not crazy about that word. I invite you to join me, or help me figure out how to get going.

Tomorrow’s #NaBloPoMo entry is most likely going to be a re-blog of my election day 2008 post. Apologies in advance for the laziness!

License to Kim Jong-il

The Kim Jong-il costume was a success, I think. I pinned up my Old Navy trench at the neck to get the look of the Leader’s usual collared jacket. I braved the Trixie hordes (who were all buying Lady Gaga wigs) at Beatnix to buy an Elvis wig. Tucking in the sideburns turned Elvis into Kim. I found his glasses, a pair of imitation Gazelles (like the ones Run-DMC used to wear) in the basement section of Ragstock. It didn’t take much to complete my transformation.

As you can see in the photo above, I was my own cockblocker. The idea was, to me, too awful and too offensive and too funny not to do. Comedy beats out pretty (or anything I can approximate) when it comes to me and Halloween (much like life). Still, though, it would have been nice to wear some lip gloss.

I wasn’t trying to meet boys looking like this. If I had succeeded in some decent flirting, it would have been in spite of the costume, not because of it.

Fun things about Hallowe’en!

• Finding the wig, the last bit of my costume, Saturday afternoon. I rewarded myself with a big lunch of egg nog pancakes at IHOP. Actually, I needed the sugar. At 1:40 that afternoon, I hadn’t yet had anything to eat. Oops.
• I thought I left a bit early to meet Nite and Jeff for the North Halsted Halloween Parade, but it turns out we were right on time, as the parade started an hour earlier than years past.
• Parade was fun, but my favorite part was after the parade ended. We walked north up Halsted Street, so I could catch a bus to Cinnamon and Andrew’s party, so Nite could head home, and so Jeff could meet up with friends to hit some bars. A few more folks saw my costume, a few of them even shouted “Kim!” at me. I rewarded them with a creepy stare and a stiff wave.
• On the bus up to the party, I saw this dude:

He looked like BOB from “Twin Peaks”. He kinda acted like him, too. Only not so much with the killing.

• The party was awesome. The food was delicious. Everybody looked adorable in their costumes. There was not one but TWO Björks. Andrew’s Flickr set from the party is here.
• I went home kind of early, as I was feeling tired, hot (I wore a sweater under my coat, and indoors it was murder), and old.

The day after Halloween, I had brunch with Kathy. We went to the Flat Top Grill. Brunch there is all-you-can-eat for $9.99. Same concept as with lunch and dinner, only you can have your ingredients incorporated into French toast, pancakes, omlettes (regular and egg white only), and egg scrambles. It was pretty effin’ fantastic.

I needed to eat a lot because I felt like I would need energy for my four minutes of singing backup, in costume, for a fellow Old Town student performing in a special Halloween recital. I’d already hit rehearsals Friday evening and Saturday morning, but I felt nervous when I arrived at the school on Armitage. All I needed to do was sing “wah ooh” and “The monster mash!” but would I remember to sing the right stuff at the right time?

Of course I did. We all did. We did the monster mash and struck poses during verses. We opened the 3:30 performance, and stuck around to watch the other students as they sang, alone or in pairs, sing songs from the Vocal Technique 2 repetoire. I can’t wait for the DVD of the show to come out. In the meantime, imagine:

• Belinda, a petite brunette in a French maid costume, wielding a plastic knife and singing “Psycho Killer”
• Lin and Yoko as a pair of teenage punks, one growling the other pouting through “Teenager In Love”
• Alyson and Art singing and rapping through Adam Sandler’s immortal “Lunchlady Land”

I should have stuck around and socialized after, even stayed for the 5:30 and maybe the 7:30 (!) shows, but I was exhausted. I wanted to go back to being myself. Retire the Kim/Elvis wig, and start thinking about what I need to do to look cute for Halloween 2010.

I’m going to be participating in National Blog Posting Month, or NaBloPoMo, for the first time. I could cheat and say that I already blog every day over on my Tumblr, but I think I’d like to get back into generating original content about my life, and I find I prefer to do it here. Hopefully, I’ll get back into the habit of writing on a regular basis, and making that writing better.

Wish my ass luck.

I slept really well this morning. I guess I slept pretty well last night, too, though I did wake up at 5:30 with the feeling that something was wrong.

And I was right! The vision in my right eye was all blurry, which is no surprise as I have horrible eyesight and being asleep I wasn’t wearing my contacts, but everything looked like it was in night vision. I was scared as I looked around my apartment, blinking my eye to make it go away. It did, sorta, and I could see normally this morning when I finally dragged myself out of bed.

I didn’t make the mistake of watching anything terrible last night before I went to sleep. Unlike Sunday night, when I made the mistake of watching Bully for a bit before turning in. Does anything good ever happen in a Larry Clark movie? I’ve only seen Bully and Kids but based on those two I’m guessing no.

So after watching most of Bully, I knew I couldn’t go right to bed. My dreams would doubtless be full of drug-addicted murderous teenagers smoking endless joints and taking endless drives through suburban Florida. It wasn’t as bad as the time I stayed up until 3:00 am watching The Ring by myself but it was close. I had to find something else to watch. Thank goodness for this video from Toby Jones of Jones’ Big Ass Truck Rental and Storage fame:

Oh but I forgot to say: I now own jasmined.com. I’m very excited but I have no idea what to do with this domain. Right now it’s pointing to jasmined.tumblr.com. I think it would be hilarious to create a mid-90’s looking web page much like the one I had in college. It’s been so long since I’ve seen the <blink> tag on the internet.

I take three four different types of pills every day. Two pills I take once a day, the other two twice a day. One of the twice-a-days is actually three large pills. None of these pills are shiny like the ones in Valley of the Dolls. They’re white or peach in color, and easy to swallow as long as I have some water on hand. It doesn’t say as much on the bottles (at least I don’t think it does) but probably not the best idea to wash them down with booze.

My bedside tray is beginning to look like this one shelf in my parents’ kitchen, where all of their pill bottles are lined up, alongside the cheap reading glasses my dad buys, 3-for-$14.99 at Walgreen’s. I don’t know what to do with the empties — are they recyclable? Should I black out my name and address on the label should an enterprising pill entrepreneur go through my garbage and try to get refills? Good luck with that.

Yesterday I went to my second-to-last class for Vocal Technique 1 at Old Town. Gwen explained the schedule changes in classes for the day of the Halloween recital. A recital in which I (and everybody else who will be in Vocal Technique 2) will be singing backup for “The Monster Mash”. The backup part goes something like this for the verses sung by Milo:

Wa-ooooh!
Wa-ooooh!
Wa-ooooh!
Wa-ooh!

And then the chorus:

He did the mash!
The monster mash!
He did the mash!
He did the mash!

It should be easy. The backup part for the chorus is one note. The second line changes in response to the verse:

Chorus 2: “They did the mash”
Chorus 3: “They played the mash”
Chorus 4: “It’s now the mash”
Chorus 5: “Now you can mash”

It’s like some strange conjugation that only occurs in novelty songs.

Yesterday was a beautiful sunny fall day. Naturally I had nobody to spend it with. I thought about schlepping over to Fantasy Costumes to look for components of my Halloween costume. But the sight of the southbound Lincoln bus told me to change course — reverse! reverse! — and instead I ended up on Lincoln and Paulina. I thought about eating some lunch but didn’t feel hungry. Light-headed, sure, but I attributed that to all the deep breathing at class.

I wandered through The Ark, but the thrift store didn’t yield anything Kim Jong-Il-esque. Dinkel’s Bakery didn’t have anything for a costume but they did have, you know, pastries. There were all sorts of fancy cakes, pies, and (what’s another word for baked things?), um, SNACKS but I didn’t want anything fancy. I got two doughnuts, one for walking and one to eat while watching Mad Men. I’ve never had a plain cake doughnut that tasted so good. I bought an apple danish, too. That was just okay.

A lady and a greyhound stood on the corner of Lincoln and School, the greyhound wearing a plastic cape advertising greyhound rescue. I slipped a dollar in the pocket on his cape, and petted his soft head. He had the wettest, blackest nose. Before I kidnapped him and tried to sneak him into my no-dogs-allowed apartment building, I walked east on Belmont to Uncle Fun.

Uncle Fun was cramped and a little dusty, but in a fun way, not creepy like The Ark. I found many toys and funny cards and props but nothing for my costume. Except for a bootleg United Nations flag. The adorable clerk wished me luck.

I lost steam at Something Old Something New. Not even the cupcake sample I’d snagged at Bittersweet was enough to keep me going, though I was pretty sure I probably could have had some costume luck at Ragstock or Hollywood Mirror. It was my own dumb fault for not eating, though I thought the sugar in the doughnuts could have bought me some time for more browsing.

I made it back to “my” Walgreen’s (the one on Belmont & Broadway, where the infamous Maurine* works, which may as well be my second home) to pick up some prescriptions, ogle the cute clerk (OMG what is wrong with me? I’m just ogling cute boys who are way too young for me all the time), and go home for a late, late lunch.

* Seriously — after the maybe-not-so-late Jean Le, Maurine is my favorite neighborhood character. You either love her or you hate her. I tend to think that if you get to know her, you love her. Maybe even find delight when her antics piss off customers. I know I do. A search of store reviews on Yelp! for “Maurine” and “Maureen” produces a few results. Sadly, no results for “cute redheaded clerk” yet.

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Originally uploaded by The Official White House Photostream

The ears are just cracking me up. Also proof that it’s definitely the President.

Just kidding, Mr. President!