Too Much Chocolate?

Is it possible? Can I really have too much chocolate? Oh yes.


Last night I went to a Girls Night Out to the Chocolate Madness fundraiser that NARAL Massachusetts does each year at The Cyclorama in the South End. Some of the best restaurants and bakeries in the Boston area make chocolate confections for an amazing all-you-can-consume extravaganza. There were so many delicious goodies that I can't even begin to think about what was a favorite. They do have a program and I was thinking "Maybe I should make little notes so I remember what I thought about each thing." Ha! And waste a hand that could carrying a plate of chocolate? I don't think so. I have to say some of the highlights was a very charming Gordon Hamersley and his Chocolate Mousse Torte, the Smores from Grill 23 and Bar and the homemade peanut butter cups, oreos and their own version of the Hostess cupcake from Flour Bakery.

For my sister, I had to get the obligatory cupcake photo although I have to admit that a cupcake was harmed during the taking of this picture. As I snapped a photo of the wonderful cupcakes from Lulu's Bake Shoppe, my plate flipped over and it was "Pastries down!". A very sweet older gentleman (I think a friend of the women at Lulu's) provided me with napkins and as I finished wiping frosting off the floor (sniff) I got up to see that he had gotten me a new plate and started collecting the items that I had dropped. How charming!

I do have a bit of a sugar hangover today and the idea of anything sweet is a bit too much. I even skipped my daily iced coffee! But it was so worth it.

Oh, I had to come back and edit this to add that while walking to the T to go home I managed to fall in the most splendid form. I tripped and just when I thought I was okay a muscle in my calf went "Oh hell no!" and twitched and I was flat on my face. Meg was very nice and blamed the uneven brick sidewalks of the South End but we knew the truth... I was drunk on chocolate. I'm okay, an ouchie here or there,I'll survive....maybe a truffle will help.....

How do I respond to this?

This is one of those work stories that I would normally call me sister with in the middle of the workday to ask her if I am in bizarro world again. But since her clan is down in Orlando visiting Mickey Mouse...who we kidding, she's going to see Princesses. If Mickey or Eeyore happen to walk by that's a bonus but all my niece really wants to see are Princesses. So Marsy's loss is your gain and I really need to get this out of my head or it may bounce around in there all weekend like a pinball machine. And since I recently told new people about my blog other people besides my sister may actually read this. Feel free to comment. Really! I am a big ol' comment whore and as you see have so very few....sniff, sniff.

Since we are all having performance evaluations the talk of jobs and satisfaction is all floating around my department. So I'm talking with Coworker T and the conversation includes this...

Coworker T: I love my job. Do you?

Me: I like it but I don't love it. (Sidenote: to say I like it is being very generous but I digress...) What is it exactly that you love about it?

T: I like doing the mailroom and helping on the phones.

Me: But you work in accounts payable, you do the mail room for like a half hour a day and you fill in on the phones may once a month at most?

T: Well, I like when I can do nothing.

Me: Uhhhh.....okay.

That pretty much sums it up. She should be quoted on one of those motivational posters with a sunrise. Just so wrong.

Can't wait until my evaluation on Monday when I most likely will get in trouble again for doing my work too fast and looking for more things to do.

Sublime Tea Towel Tour '07

I have just completed my portion of the Tea Towel Tour. Jenny Hart of Sublime Stitching, whose patterns I love, posted a message on craftster for some testers for the new tea towels she may carry. So I signed up and just finished my piece. There are 12 of us who will each embroider something on the towel and then send it on to the next person. I love the idea of a shared work like this. I can't wait to see how it develops.

I also have this urge to have like a concert tee shirt with Tea Towel Tour 2007 on it. Ya know with all the cities listed on the back. 'Cause you know nothing is more kick-ass, rock 'n roll than embroidery and tea towels.

Even though I picked the sushi pattern as my freebie (a thank you to the testers) I had to go with the Veggies for my contribution. First of all I needed something pretty straight-forward and quick as this week is oddly busy and I didn't want to hold up the towel. Also I love the little apple, something about him always makes me smile.

As for the towels, they are really good to embroider on, have nice even seams and are a good thickness so hopefully they'll be carrying them soon. Aren't I a good spokesperson?

If you want to keep up with the tour, check out its' progress here.

Stitch on!

Happy Feet

Yay! I finally get to post this project. I made these Twinkle Toes from the Winter Knitty for Michelle for Hannukah. But I never actually got to give them to her because I kept having to frog them, I believe it was 3 times!

One time - 'cause they just sucked, one time because I managed to turn the page incorrectly so I knit it half with the toddler directions and half with adult, whoops! And after finally knitting up two whole slippers I realized they were way too small and had to re-do them in the child size. Whew!

Then it turns out that I never got a chance to see Michelle until her birthday this past weekend so they became a birthday present. In a highly surprising move, she let me take one shot of her feet and then they were whisked off to the dress-up box until the next time she plays ballerina.

Felt Beads

I was a bit stressed last night over really silly stuff so I figured a good way to chill myself out would be to do something crafty. I haven't done anything since my craft stuff is all in piles in my entryway since I emptied the office to paint it which I so have not done. Idiot!



Anyway I needed a quick project that I would not linger in my "Works in Progress" heap. I realized I had a few felt beads I had already made and never strung and I also made some new ones. By the end of watching Veronica Mars I was awful pruney but I had a finished project. The purple ones are coming out a bit grape-y in this picture but you get the jist.

So I made this bracelet with some glass beads I had hanging around.

Pink and purple....hmmm...I wonder who those are for?

Faster than a speeding paper tray....

It must be because of watching 'Heroes' or maybe just 'cause I am mind-numbingly bored at work but I started thinking about what my superpower would be if I had one. Clearly it would be nothing cool like flying or being invisibile. I'm pretty sure it would be something like being able to clear paper jams out of the copier with my mind. Useful, it's true and yet completely lame. Where is Gleek when I need him?

Happy Slushy Valentines!

So I went to an author reading by Christopher Moore last night and I have to say he is hysterical. Another author who doesn't actually read at his readings which I am finding are usually a bit more entertaining. I've read several of his books Lamb, The Lust Lizard of Melancholy Cove and my favorite holiday book ever The Stupidest Angel. And he has a great website where he recommends other fun books to read while you are waiting for one of his to come out.

While he touched on many topics what I came away with most is a new phrase to add to my lexicon. He was telling us about pitching ideas to tv execs who wanted to make his books into shows when he suddenly has an FI moment. FI moment? When you suddenly realize you are talking to a fucking idiot. Like people being dumber than bags of hammers I know that I will start muttering under my breath "It's okay you're just having an FI moment - it'll pass." Not very PC or genteel but this is from a man whose new book is called You Suck.