Easter with the fam' up north.

Dana with her loot from us- some clothes, one of which was too big. Shucks!
Dad, Dave and Dana opening their b-day presents. All three were born in April, a happening month.
We gave Dad goodies for his new bike, a light and mirror.
Sweet!
Dave poses with his ladies man shirt-the other shirt was too small. Double shucks!
Easter fixings.
Up north, we hunt for Easter rocks in the yard.
Dana was the lucky winner, discovering this biggie in the front yard. We were playing catch when she came upon the top of the rock. The boys dug it up much to the dismay of Dad, who luckily hardly ever gets mad. All I did was pose. Brian actually tried to use the tool I'm holding, which didn't help much.
Penny looking like a bad dog.
Pop with the b-day cake. It matched his shirt nicely.
Nan and me being cozy.
Great action shot.

Happy Dana.
Gram and me.
Penny looking for shadows.
Dad took a pic of his feet.
Dad and Mom took a cute shot of themselves.
Eric guzzling relish.

Easter baskets!

Mmmm, Easter consisted of good home cookin': quiche, ham, twice baked tatos, all kinds of goodness. On Friday, we shot some hoops in the driveway and played knockout--loooove that game, even if Dave uses his height to an unfair advantage. Ahem, shooting over people's heads before it's his turn to shoot. :) The Phelan men worked wonders on my car-the air now blows cold- ahhhh! (actually, Pepboys took care of that, but they did fix my tire rod, if I remember that car part correctly-is that what that was? Eric just informed me that the correct term is tie rod ends.) Saturday was b-day time, and on Sunday, church was packed. We were asked to bring down the offertory (bread and wine) since we were standing in back. Luckily it went better than the last time the Dapores were asked to bring the offertory to the altar on Easter. Many years ago on that day, we had accidentally started walking down a bit early, and the priest made it quite apparent, waving his hands furiously and mouthing "Noooooooo." What a nice priest he was. Anyways, on Sunday Dana and I hunted for eggs in the house. She beat me since she knows all the secret hiding spots. :)

Clap Your Hands Say Yeah

What a great name for a band. The name alone makes me feel all happy and warm inside. I bought a t-shirt with Clap Your Hands Say Yeah printed in bright hot pink block letters so that others may feel so happy just reading my t-shirt. If Joe and Melissa and I wore our shirts all at the same time, everyone would be bursting with happiness.
So Southgate House brings in some pretty cool live acts. The Brunettes opened and were kinda cool; they actually clapped their hands more. They played a song about Mary Kate and Ashley while wearing cardboard masks with the girls' images from their Full House heyday with the eyes and mouths cut out. It was kinda creepy but funny. Why are the Olsen twins so damn appealing to our culture? They don't ever show their teeth! Do they have teeth anymore? Did they let their teeth rot and fall out while trying to take the hobo look to a whole new level? When Clap Your Hands Say Yeah came out, two dudes in the band looked like little Dave Couliers. Can you find the two Daves posted up top? I'm sure you can! Especially with the help of the first pic with one of the Dave Coulier lookalikes peering out of the corner. Reminders of Full House are everywhere! If I hadn't just witnessed the tribute to the Olsen twins, I probably wouldn't have made this odd connection.
Anyways, CYHSY's music was fun; I don't know what genre I'd classify them as. Listening right now to their CD that Joe secretly went off and bought for me at the show makes me like them more as I type. It's all coming back to me. Thanks Joe, what a bro! Never having tuned in to CYHSY prior to the show, I think I appreciate their music even more now than if I hadn't seen them live. And the fact that their t-shirts kick U2's concert shirts a-- helps their case too. I wouldn't ever shell out the bucks for one of U2's "we're so cool look at us being all cool in our shades" t's.
The sushi restaurant at Newport has some delicous eats. I had miso soup and a tempura salmon roll with avocado and cream cheese...mmm, the best tempura I've ever had, so light and perfectly crispy. The bathrooms there are super fancy. Once inside, two toilets are sectioned off each by a sliding door, so it's like you're in your own little room. I couldn't even hear Melissa going, and even said, "Melissa, can you hear me?" a couple of times, and she had no idea. I would've loved to capture all these things on film, but my battery died in my good ole little Elf. Eric has the digital cam in Portland.
Alright, nighty nights night.

Spring weather and Taco Casa

Yesterday was a great spring night so Eric and I decided to be adventurous and give Taco Casa a try. Wanting to get ahead in line before the dudes who pulled in beside us, I nudged Eric toward the register while asking the lady behind the counter what the most popular order is at Taco Casa. Without hesitation, she said "The taco salad."
I then flashbacked to my boss eating a Taco Casa salad earlier that day and saying it was sh****. I think its claim to fame is Cincy’s best taco salad, but it’s a pretty short list if I’d have to guess. I figure sh**** or not, I want to try Cincy’s best taco salad and quickly ordered two.
“Large or small?”
It’s dinnertime, so I said two larges while Eric asked “Are those your sizes?” as he pointed to a HUGE large bowl and a REALLY small bowl behind the counter, well that’s what they looked like to me. I wanted more than not enough; plus, I couldn’t tell how deep these things were. Turns out, these things are massive, and Eric had called it. From first glance, he always has a better idea of proportion.
The salad had a top layer of cheese, then some crazy white sauce that was ostensibly sour cream, and some extra guac we had asked for but couldn’t taste with all the crazy flavors that included what I think, but not limited to, were beans, lettuce, onions, ground beef, etc. etc. I could see the guac mixed in there though, and with my soft spot for guac I was desperately trying to differentiate its flavor with no luck. We were only able to eat about half of the craziness. I’d give Taco Casa a 6.5 out of 10. Nothing great but nothing terrible. If you feel like being a human garbage disposal, give it a try!
P.S. the hot sauce sux, it's like watered down tomato paste with some tabasco, black pepper flecks and lime--not successfully hot by any means. Who puts black pepper in hot sauce?

Dumpster divin'

Eric didn't necessarily go diving, but he came back home one night after an excursion with Brett to retrieve a slender, long piece of black granite. It was conveniently hanging out of some trash receptacle (I hope it was trash) at his work, FRCH Design. I can't even lift the thing, it's so heavy. Right now it's serving us as a clothes shelf until Eric finishes his cherry dresser in shop next quarter. How nifty. What will it be next? (Only 1 quarter left of school. The countdown and house-hunt begin!)

Travelin' man and threatening weather.

Eric's a one-man surveyin' band headed to Berkely, Cali, early tomorrow morn' for work. He was just assigned on Friday afternoon to survey a Charles Schwab. I hope I'll be able to wake him up since he can't ever hear the alarm, and my reaction to it is usually delayed, or I hit the wrong button in extremely early morning circumstances. He'll get back early Wednesday morning. He's never been to Cali and will have about two seconds on his own time to check out the area. Then, he'll be headed to Portland, Oregon, for about a week in early April for some Design Build conference and to see if we'll have an interest in living there someday. Anyone want to come visit me? Erin's expressed interest for April.
Hopefully Cincy doesn't get crazy snow this week like the news is predicting. Darnit, I'm soooo excited for spring and summer! I never got to sled, but I got over that! No snow puhleeease...you already had your chance, Mother Nature.

Cincy subway: unfinished since the 1920s

There are over two miles of twin tunnels built between 1920 and 1925 and still there's nothing there, just some big ole empty tunnels below the city.
With lots of ideas over the years on what to make of them, nobody can figure it out. George Clooney's dad, a former Cincinnati anchorman, wanted to make the tunnels a "giant subterranean shopping district."
This unfinished project is pretty interesting, considering it got so far and just ended. And the tour sounds cool, but there's a $50 pricetag. Nevermind. View the Cincy Enquirer article here: http://news.cincinnati.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060315/NEWS01/603150348/-1/CINCI Yes, I stole the pic.

If Jodie Sweetin steals your identity, it's cuz of the meth, man

Relating to a prior blog post about Jodie Sweetin and her meth addiction, an article I read on MSNBC.com asserts that meth addicts are big identity thieves.
"Meth addicts who can stay awake for 30 hrs. or more, have been known to obsessively stitch together shredded documents to commit crimes."
The article also says to paper shred those pre-approved credit card applications instead of simply tearing them apart, which is good I guess unless all of those shredded pieces somehow fall into the hands of a meth addict.
So, the moral of the story is: don't tear, shred. And while you're shreddin', stay away from any meth heads, ahem, your next door neighbor.
Here's the article: http://redtape.msnbc.com/2006/03/what_if_a_despe.html#posts

Cleaning's a b----, and then you die

Chloe, our deceased kitty cat knows this all too well. Chloe cleaned herself meticulously almost til the day she died. She kinda gave up on her grooming towards the end, but I applaud her for doing such a good job with her furry landscape for so long. I however, have not been doing so hot on keeping our small 500 some square foot apt. in shape. Everyone says, "It's so small, it should be easy." Ha, I'm pretty picky when I clean, concentrating on wiping each individual blind, getting every scuff off the window. When I moved in, there was a widow's peak of dirt lining the window- Eric witnessed my determination when I reached outside without falling off the ledge to rub it clean. He thinks I concentrate on that which is unimportant. Eric's working hard at school, and what am I doing? Thinking about cleaning everything that's unimportant. Gotta go clean those blinds. Maybe our whole place will be clean by Friday, maybe.

OK, back from a little cleaning whirl because I've found a recipe that I had promised to give Michelle and whomever else may desire it: Artichoke Bruschetta, compliments of USA Weekend. This took me probably a half hour MAX to make the first time--so easy and delish.

• 1 6.5-ounce jar marinated artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
• 1/2 cup grated Romano cheese
• 1/3 cup finely chopped red onion
• 5 Tbs. mayonnaise (Americanized bruschetta, no? I used light mayo-still tasty)
• 1 French baguette, cut into 1/3-inch-thick slices

Preheat the broiler. In a medium bowl, mix marinated artichoke hearts, cheese, red onion and mayo. Top French baguette slices with equal amounts of the artichoke mixture. Arrange slices in a single layer on a large baking sheet. Broil in the preheated oven 2 mins., or until toppings are bubbly and lightly browned.

Karen, have you tried the goulash yet? I'm still gonna try that chicken recipe you gave me; gotta go to the store!

I'll take a burger and a hotdog and some lovin' on the side.

These recent posts are definitely in no particular order. I can't remember what week everything happened as I've gotten behind in blogging. Eric and I downed this burger and hotdog on Valentine's Day after going out with friends, Dave and Tonya, at Maloney's, our sometimes Tuesday night joint. We had already downed burgers that night, but Tonya had these waiting for us in her car. She teaches inner city 4th graders, and one of her students gave her these as a V-day present. Tonya just couldn't help cracking up as she bestowed them upon us, and we thought them rather funny, but also tasty, ourselves. (and no, they weren't laced with anything that we know of yet, at least.)

Girls' Weekend

Boogying down to Madonna: Confessions on a dance floor
Ann (my aunt) and Grandma laughing. Jason was working over the weekend, so Michelle had us girls over to eat, drink, dance, game, beautify, brunch, and shop! Mom was the photog and unfortunately, we were all having too much fun to realize she wasn't in any pics!

Michelle with another one!

Telling secrets.
Kyra listening intently.

Ann and
her glorious chocolate fountain. We feasted on oreos, donut holes, strawberries, pretzels, etc. D-licious!

Family

Pop and Eric

Me, Pop, Gram, Dad, and Mom celebrating Dad's first day back from the hospital (after undergoing heart valve replacement surgery) and Gram's belated b-day. Dad didn't have too many zip-up shirts, so with his stiff walk and stylish jumpsuit, Eric said he looked like he was unfrozen from the 80s.

Babysittin'

Kyra loves E-wickkkkk and playing with my hair. She also loves onos (doughnut holes), Rek (Shrek), Rella (Cinderella), taking her medicine, and going to bed right on time. When Michelle got Kyra out of bed the next morning, Kyra asked, "E-wickkk?"

"Cheney's Got a Gun" sung to Aerosmith's "Janie's Got a Gun"

You all may have already heard this parody, but my first time was this moring on the way to work. I heard a different version on the radio that made me laugh without the reference to Fox News, but when I looked online for it, this is the closest one I could find:
Cheney's got a gun
Cheney's got a gun
His whole world's come undone
Was looking straight at the sun
What did Dick Cheney do?
What did his friend go through?
They say the EMT's attested
They found the buckshot in his face
But man, he had it comin'
Now that Cheney's got a gun
Things ain't never gonna be the same
Cheney's got a gun
Cheney's got a gun
His long week's just begun
Comedians havin' fun
Tell us now it's untrue
What did the VP do?
He shot his shotgun without caution
The man has got to be insane
They say the stress that he was under
Was just a little blunder
And that buckshot doesn't cause much pain
Run away, run away from the blame
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Run away, run away from the blame
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Run away, run away, run, run away
Cheney's got a gun
Cheney's got a gun
His long week's just begun
Comedians havin' fun
What did the V.P. do?
The NRA's IOU
He had to make it look easy
And put some buckshot in his brain
He said cause everyone believes me
That aimin' ain't that easy
And FOX news won't make me take the blame
Run away, run away from the blame
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Run away, run away from the blame
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Run away, run away, run, run away
Cheney's got a gun
Cheney's got a gun
Cheney's got a gun
Everybody is on the run
Cheney's got a gun
His long week has just begun
Now everybody is on the run (Cheney, Cheney what's your problem) Cause Cheney's got a gun (Tell me it ain't right) Cheney's got a gun (Was it Cheney's way of talkin') His long week has just begun (That made you scream at night) Cheney's got a gun His long week has just begun Now everybody's on the run Cheney's got a gun

The old apartment...this is where we live.

Can you put all the pieces together?!?!






Hold on to your seats: Living room, bathroom, and bedroom to come! Probably by the time we're outta here (late '06, early '07 probably), we'll finally have the bedroom the way we want it. At least we'll have pictures to remember our old apartment, and we can say "This is where we USED to live."

Gotta love Saturday b-days

24th b-day highlights:

Dad wishing me happy birthday a day early, even though he knew Saturday was the day.

Receiving an early b-day card from Gram and Pop in the mail.

Eric surprising me with a nice card and thoughtful presents.

Karen CALLING ME! "Is this Melissa?!" I asked. AND, I received her card that was in the mailbox ON MY BIRTHDAY!!!

Joe and Melissa singing "Happy Birthday."

Dana calling. "Who is this?" I asked. Sorry, Eric didn't tell me it was you before handing me the phone.

Mom coming down to visit for the day and of course, giving me a nice mom and dad card.

Eating out at Biagio's Bistro on Ludlow. Mmmmm--chocolate cream pie topped with a pretty candle.

Jason, Michelle and Kyra singing "Happy Birthday."

Eric's parents calling.

Watching "In Her Shoes," a chick flick Eric actually enjoyed. Cameron Diaz's booty probably helped. Ooops, missed that photo-op.

Ah, that's better.

Christmastime was here....

Then the freakin' new year. Already a month into the year, and still gotta hit the pavement (RUN). The Flying Pig half marathon is definitely a no-go, the 5K, hmmm, we'll see about that. If only Dana, Eric's sis, would show interest in U.C. and become my running buddy in about a year and a half (then maybe I'll finally get in shape again). We'll see. There's still time to convince her. Maybe I should finally give in, pay the 50 bucks a month (2 yr. contract) for Gold's Gym, and get in shape with a bud who's already payin' up. Eric's working out for free at the Y since he's a student. Should I pay up? Or wrap up? February sure is starting out cold. What's the verdict?

Christmas Eve at Nan and Dodie's (Eric's grandmother and aunt who live in Struthers, Ohio)

Brian, Dana, Dave, us, Rachel, Diane, and Susie (cousins)
Aunt Dodie, Mom, Nan, Aunt Linda
All the girls
Penny with her new toy.
Dad camera-ready.

Scarf sistas. Dana had finally woken us all up on Christmas morn' by playing her trumpet.

Jodie Sweetin (Stephanie Tanner) Addicted to Meth!!!!

What the H***?!?! You know the world's coming to an end when you hear news like this: ABC News report: ‘Full House’ Sweetheart Talks About Meth Addiction

Was anyone else as saddened as myself to hear this? Geesh.