Sleepy Sunday

Shug and I are so sleepy today!

We went to another screening of ODDSAC yesterday,
ran into some old friends,
drank delicious wine,
ate king crab legs,
drank fizzy champagne,
and watched cable for hours and hours.

We gave up cable years ago, but when we stay in a hotel
we can't help but catch up on our reality television!

Have you seen Jersey Shore?
I know.
SO.
GROSS.

Our brains feel like mush today.

Source.

Happy Birthday to Shug!

Well, it's official:
Shug is a grown-up!

Ok, well maybe not that grown-up...

Last night we went to the amazing Pago for a delicious meal with S. and her hubby.
They are all about from "farm to table" where all of their food comes from farms and artisans nearby.

It
was
delicious!

Happy birthday to my partner in crime.
I'm sweet on you.
xo

Happy Friday!

This is Shug's last day in his twenties!
We are going to a supersecretsurprise restaurant to celebrate!
I'll let you in on the secret tomorrow!

I hope you have a lovely weekend!

xo

Best Acceptance Speech Ever

I know, right?!

ODDSAC...At Sundance

Rarely does a new filmmaker have a built-in audience. An audience so rabid yet loyal, they would venture to a venue teeming with puffy coats, Uggs, and D-list celebrity to see a project connected to one of, as the purple-velvet-sport-coated announcer put it last night, "the hottest" bands today. Yes, I'm talking about the Sundance Film Festival.

Director Danny Perez lucked out. As a roadie for the Black Dice, an oft favorite opener for the aforementioned "hot" Animal Collective, he became friends with the Collective and together embarked on a four-year long process of collaboration to create ODDSAC. Luck seems to cut both ways: Perez pairing with Animal Collective clearly got his first film a world premiere at Sundance, but when not backed by the sometimes brilliant soundtrack created by the band, the movie comes off as a disjointed film school project.

The movie opened with a young woman pacing a room with fire dancers visibly outside the window, she is then occupied by black tar oozing out of a crack in the wall of the room. Perez should have saved this montage for the end, since it was the strongest and most beautiful of the film and it proved to be a tough act to follow.

Unfortunately, it was all down hill from there. Heavily influenced by Matthew Barney of the Cremaster Cycle, the audience was forced into a disjointed journey that included a sad vampire, marshmallows eating a family, a food fight with a glittered man (straight from the Barney playbook), and a midnight canoe ride, to mention a few. The bright points in the film were strictly auditory. The first line from Panda Bear's honeyed voice had audience members unclenching their armrests and settling back in their seats to listen to why he wishes he "wouldn't feel so drained, if he could only keep his hands away." Beautiful and pared down, this song was an oasis of calm after what seemed like an eternity of stylized TV snow and feedback.

It was clear who had filled the seats of Prospector Square Theatre. The Q and A was directed mostly at Deacon, the Geologist, and Avey Tare (Panda Bear was sadly absent), while Danny Perez nervously swayed side-to-side. Questions about the collaborative process, where the band would be playing after the screening, and favorite films dominated over technical questions regarding ODDSAC. When one audience member directed a question at Perez in regards to the editing process and what tools he used, he answered candidly that you need, "...black curtains to block out the light and your girlfriend...leaves for the day and you spend five hours on YouTube..." Bless this lucky schmuck's heart.

A part of me realizes that Danny Perez didn't expect his film to be graced by a world premiere at Sundance. This film would have fit better at Tromadance or Slamdance. Had the film been cut into shorts and peddled as music videos, it would have been easier to handle. Understanding that when this process began, Animal Collective had yet to create their more accessible albums Strawberry Jam and Merriweather Post Pavilion. This seems a better explanation for the "tweaked," less "songy" soundtrack, as explained by Avey Tare.

When questioned about the meaning or plot of the film, Perez wanted to "leave it to you" to figure out what it means. I think he may not have known, either.

Earrings to Love

These look so simple and beautiful.

Something to wear all the time!

From My Sunset Road on Etsy.

She uses at least 50% reclaimed or recycled silver in all of her designs.

Love.

Goldteef's Best of 2009

I know we are almost a month into 2010,
but I had a "best of" mix in the works since the beginning of December!

If you know me at all, you know I love music.
And lists.

So here it is to download!
For free, of course;)!

1. Toro y Moi - Blessa
2. Cassowaries - Covens
3. Real Estate- Fake Blues
4. Kurt Vile - The Hunchback
5. Girls - Lust for Life
6. Inverness - Her Nectar
7. Beach House - Zebra
8. Fever Ray - Seven
9. Grizzly Bear - Ready, Able
10. Animal Collective - Daily Routine
11. Circulatory System - I, You, We
12. Ganglians - Valiant Brave
13. CAN'T - Ghosts
14. Califone - Ape-like
15. Bibio - Over the Hills and Far Away
16. Dirty Projectors - The Bride
17. Black Moth Super Rainbow - Twin of Myself
18. Atlas Sound - Sheila
19. HEALTH - Death+
20. Bear in Heaven - Lovesick Teenagers
21. Monsters of Folk - Dear God

I hope you like it.

Adorable Sustainable

I am loving these flats from SMARTFISH.

They are 100% vegan and made by hand without the use of any adhesives.

So cute.

Missed Connections

Have you seen Sophie Blackall's blog filled with her drawings of missed connections from Craigslist?

It's downright brilliant.

Happy Saturday!

Busy Weekend

This is the look I had on my face when I found out I am going to church on Sunday...

After years of Catholic school and living in Utah,
I decided I wasn't built for the normal, church-going life.

I have a deep respect for devout individuals of all religious affiliations
and sometimes envy the faith many of my closest friends draw their personal strength from.

As part of a multicultural immersion project for class,
I am going to revisit some of the religious services that played such a huge part in shaping the woman I am today.

I'm just hoping there aren't any lightning bolts thrown my way...

I'll let you know how it goes.

What plans do you have this weekend?

Grey (NOT Gray) Hair

So, I have a little secret.

I found my first grey hair when I was 16!
It was all downhill from there.
I have to color my hair religiously to "look my age."

I'm getting a little sick of it, to tell you the truth.

I also feel guilty about washing all those chemicals down the drain every 6 weeks.

Apparently grey is super chic right now.

What do you think?

Should I embrace my natural hair color or continue dying it for a few more "youthful" years?

Source. Here and here, too;).

Recipe of the Week: Moroccan Chicken Stew with Sweet Potatoes

This is a quick-to-whip-up stew that is filling as it is healthy! The acidity of the lemon juice really brightens up an otherwise heavy dish. If you are a vegetarian, tempeh or seitan (mind you the seitan is SO not gluten-free) could easily replace the chicken in this recipe. You could also replace the brown rice or quinoa with traditional couscous (plus it's 20x faster to prepare than the good ol' brown rice, but not gluten-free, either!)

P.S. Pay no attention to the Christmasy wrapping paper! I pinky swear I took down the decorations!

Moroccan Chicken Stew with Sweet Potatoes
Serves 4
Ingredients:
3 boneless skinless chicken breasts, sliced into strips (or 8 oz. tempeh or seitan)
Salt and pepper
2 T extra virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
1 2-inch long piece of peeled ginger
1 cinnamon stick OR 1 t. ground cinnamon
1 can reduced sodium chicken or veggie broth
2 medium sweet potatoes peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks
Pinch of saffron
2 T fresh lemon juice
1 cup of brown rice OR couscous OR quinoa
Fresh cilantro, roughly chopped

In a 5-quart Dutch oven or heavy pot heat the olive oil and add the salt and peppered chicken. Brown on both sides for 4-6 minutes and then transfer to a plate. Add the onion, ginger and cinnamon to the pot and stir until the onions are translucent. Return the chicken to the pot. Add the broth, sweet potatoes, and saffron. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer until the chicken is cooked through and the sweet potatoes can be easily pierced with a knife.

While the stew is simmering, prepare your brown rice, quinoa, or couscous. If using brown rice you should start it well before you begin the stew...it takes a long time!

Remove the cinnamon stick and ginger piece from the pot and add the lemon juice and cilantro. Dump a big ladle of stew over the starch of your choice and don't burn your tongue, it'll be hot!

In which I find myself rooting for blue people...

Never in a million years would I have thought the following would occur:

• I would willingly purchase tickets to a James Cameron film.
• Use an oh-so-precious Friday night to watch a 2 hour and forty-odd minute film.
• Sit through a 2 hour and forty-odd minute film about 10-foot tall blue cat people.
• Become emotionally invested in these blue cat people and cry when their FernGully gets blown up.
• Actually like one-dimensional characters and a dicey storyline.
• Get seasick at the movies.

I know there are many folks who hatehatehate James Cameron (Shug included) and rightly so. I am still one of the three people left on the planet that hasn't seen Titanic. And I was one of the three people left on the planet that hadn't seen Avatar.

The technical beauty and groundbreaking animation of this film cannot be overlooked. Seeing the world of Pandora (dumb name, agreed) felt a lot like watching Planet Earth on mergatroid steroids. Scene after scene of floating mountains, glowing spindles of trees, and fluorescent seed pods, in 3D IMAX no less, left me a little nauseated and utterly amazed. The reverence and care taken in creating this world was evident in every little detail, from the Latin names every plant was given to the premise of chemo-receptor communication (mirrored after the human brain) between all living things.

After being bludgeoned with the message to take care of our own planet (which we absolutely should), I really started to enjoy the subtext of other messages the movie had to offer...I'm sure these messages were purely accidental since Cameron is about as subtle as a nuclear bomb. Case in point: the precious ore the humans were raping Pandora of was called Unobtanium...yes, unobtainable Unobtainium. (Dumber name, agreed.)

BUT, some of the less obvious messages the movie conveyed were downright spot-on.

From a feminist perspective, the importance of a matriarchal society, deity, and leadership was awesome. The female characters in the movie are important because of their intelligence, hunting prowess, leadership skills, and groundbreaking research, not their beauty or cup size. My newly engaged friend, Supermodel, pointed out that the interface between the indigenous people of Pandora and all other living things is a very asexual connection shared my male and female inhabitants alike. The bodies of the main female characters are lithe and strong, and while under-dressed by human standards, the males wear just as few clothes.

I also really liked the examination of our connection to our bodies in a digital age. Jake Sully, a paraplegic, is lucky enough to embody an agile avatar of himself. Much of the movie is spent following Jake through a celebration of movement and tactile sensation. He cannot NOT touch plants that rebound from his grasp, he cannot wait to run and feel the dirt between his toes when he first synchs with his avatar, and he follows his indigenous guide off of treetops and branches to the forest floor. There was rarely a moment in the movie, while in his avatar, that Jake is still.

I wondered why Jake was paralyzed and how this was important to the film. We are forced to join Jake as he struggles with his wheelchair and atrophied legs. We join him in conversation about getting "fixed" in return for the secrets of the indigenous culture he's infiltrated. While in his human form, he refuses to let people touch or help him, he is an island. While many would see his paralyzed state as a bargaining chip for information, we come to find out he embodies American culture - a hooah, an answer-to-the-man drone, a sedentary creature, without personal connection or physical interaction. Only when he begins assimilating into the indigenous culture does Jake let touch and physicality occur with others while using his own faculties and heart to make life-changing decisions.

There are some MAJOR issues with the story and plot-points of this film, but you know what? I ceased to care. I let the fact that Cameron is a megalomaniac that creates one-dimensional villains, the white-man-saves-everybody plot twists, and horrible one-liners roll off my back.

Why? Because this was the most beautiful movie I have ever seen.

2010 is looking up already...

Wouldn't you know that two of the most beautiful-amazing girls on the planet asked me to me one of their bridesmaids!

I can't believe how lucky I am to have such a wonderful summer to look forward to!

They both were bridesmaids for my wedding this past summer and made my and Shug's day all the more special.

Now just to get through the little details of school and winter...

Photo from our wedding photo booth!

Ruby Drama

I found the cutest line of dog collars for Rubes.
I decided to get her one.

It wasn't cheap.

Shug and I went to a movie this weekend,
and when we returned
Ruby was sweet enough to make us TWO of her collars.

She'd managed to chew her week-old collar in half.

Mind you her $1.99 collar is still perfectly intact.

I love my dog.

Weekend.

What are you doing this weekend?

We plan on donating to this.
Finally seeing this.
Getting rid of all of these in the house.
Singing "Happy Birthday" to this sweet girl.


And, of course, taking a snoozer with Ruby.



Source.

Stripes

I've always had a soft spot in my heart for stripes.

Found here, here, and here.

Haiti

It is so so devastating what happened in Haiti.
If you want to help *just a little*,
donate.

And keep this little country and it's people in your thoughts and prayers...

A book for the reading pile: I Heart Your Style

I had a "best day" last week when my sister, S., came to Salt Lake and spent the afternoon with me. We had lunch at our favorite little restaurant in the Avenues, stopped for a cup of fresh-pressed coffee, and shopped our little hearts out at the Gateway. The 2.5 hours we spent in Anthropologie (they were having a sale, ok?) resulted in a few sale items, some glorious candles, and this lovely book!

My sneaky sister bought this, unbeknownst to me, and presented it right before she scooted off to have dinner with her hubby! She truly is a sweetheart, that one.

Anyway, the REST if my best day was spent poring through this fashion tome. Amanda Brooks, the author, has had the most enviable life: she is nouveau riche, was a fashion muse to the designers at Tuleh, was creative director at an Italian accessories designer, and married even richer...While I should scoff at whatever opinions this gal has to offer, after reading I Heart Your Style: How to Define and Refine Your Personal Style, I really like her take on fashion!

She explores the different categories and elements of personal style: classic, bohemian, minimal, high fashion, street, and eclectic. She even breaks down the methods behind cheap chic and investment pieces. Homegirl knows how to bargain and thrift shop! She also follows my own personal calculations of cost-per-wear!

If you are looking for a great coffee table book and you love fashion, get this in your life.

Recipe of the Week: Apple-Cinnamon Toastie

When I heard about this mythical bakery in NYC called Babycakes I truly thought I'd died and gone to heaven. This bakery was a devoted gluten-free and vegan establishment that apparently made some of the best cupcakes east of the Mississippi. The only problem was my two thousand mile commute to pick up a few confections.

Enter the new Babycakes cookbook. I was so excited when it came in the mail a few months ago and I've tried a few recipes from it already. My favorite so far has to be this Cinnamon-Apple Toastie. It is moist, crunchy, spicy and sweet...In other words HEAVEN in a slice.

Cinnamon-Apple Toastie from Erin McKenna
Makes 10 slices that won't last the day...
Ingredients:
1 cup garbanzo-fava bean flour
1 1/4 cups evaporated cane juice plus more for sprinkling
1/2 cup potato starch
1/4 cup arrowroot
2 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
1/2 cup melted coconut oil plus more for brushing and pan
1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
2 tablespoons pure vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups hot water
1 cup roasted apples (recipe follows)*

Preheat oven to 325 degrees and grease a 7 x 4 x 3 inch loaf pan with oil.

In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, 1 cup of the evaporated cane juice, the potato starch, arrowroot, baking powder, baking soda, xanthan gum, salt, and 1 tablespoon of the cinnamon. Add the melted coconut oil, applesauce, vanilla, and 1 cup of the hot water to the dry ingredients. Stir until the batter is smooth, then fold in the roasted apples. Transfer 1/3 cup of the batter to a small bowl and add the remaining 1/4 evaporated cane juice, 1 tablespoon of cinnamon, and 1/4 cup hot water. Stir until creamy.

Pour the batter into the pan. Drizzle the batter from the small bowl down the center of the loaf. Sprinkle the top with evaporated cane juice and put in the oven. Bake on the center rack for 25 minutes, remove from oven and brush the top with a generous amount of coconut oil. Return to oven and bake for 15 more minutes until top is crunchy and a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

Let the toastie stand in the pan for 20 minutes and then invert onto a cutting board. Cut and serve warm or let cool and save for up to 3 days (if it'll last that long!)

*To make roasted apples, peel and dice a pound of granny smith apples and toss on a parchment-lined cookie sheet with 1/2 tablespoon of cinnamon, 1/4 cup agave nectar, and 1/8 cup lemon juice. Bake at 325 degrees for 35 minutes, turning the pan 180 degrees after the first 20 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool for 30 minutes. Throw 1 cup of them in your toastie recipe!

P.S. Extra-virgin coconut oil and evaporated cane sugar can be $$$, so you can totally substitute canola oil and granulated sugar in equal quantities in place of these. I prefer the flavor and health benefits of coconut oil, but I see no difference between evaporated cane juice and granulated sugar other then the way they are processed...It's up to you!

Hoo. Ray!

Guess what?
Shug and I were able to get tickets to Oddsac yesterday!
Better yet, it's opening night!

We waited in line with other nervous locals, flipping through the film catalog
then dashing up to the calendar to see if our selected movies had sold out yet.

All of the movies we wanted to see were already sold out, except for our number one pick!

Some of the movies with hella buzz weren't even available for locals to purchase.
Bummer.
We really wanted to see Hesher and Blue Valentine, but I'm sure these movies will get picked up for major realease.

We might have been nerdy enough to get another set of tickets to Oddsac on Shug's birthday...

We're pretty excited...!

Sundance TwenyTen

So a few months ago, Shug and I found out about this. We have been rabid for tickets ever since. Unfortunately, we are but lowly Utahns that must purchase our Sundance tickets after all of the hoity-toities from Cali have had their pick of the festival.

We get to purchase tickets TODAY!! In t-minus 7 hours and 4 minutes....

Cross your fingers for us so we can get tickets to the opening screening!

This video was one of the first collaborations between Danny Perez, the director of ODDSAC, and Animal Collective...Judging by this, we are in for a crazy ride!

Beautiful Weekend

I stole this post idea from bel biv devo and for good reason: it's astonishingly lovely. Bradford Cox is such a prolific talent I am almost positive he's slightly insane.

I hope you have a lovely weekend!

P.S. Thank you for all the lovely emails and suggestions on how to deal with "difficult" people! I realize what a grump I was yesterday!

xo

"Difficult" People

I may be an opinionated lady, but I have always tried to be a team player. Not an "ok-I-don't-care" teammate or a "no-no-no-YOU-decide" teammate, but an opinionated, (and I hope) diplomatic, and integral part of the networks in my life.

Being a teammate to other "difficult" people has proven to be much more of a challenge than my personal quest to not rock the boat. When my will wavers (usually after an extreme lack of sleep, a big ol' bowl of wheat, or finals week) I have to bribe myself to keep the devil of verbiage that wants to belch its way out of my system under control.

I think this ability to "play nice" may be getting worse in my old age! My tolerance level for rudeness, narcissism, and just lack of general awareness and concern for others had plummeted in the last few years. Maybe because I know it's NOT OK to let difficult peoples' behavior persist in the workplace, school, relationships, or family. I realize I may have been a part of the creation of these "difficult" peoples' idiosyncrasies and atrocious interpersonal tics by not addressing them at first blush! I don't think these individuals are horrible people, I just think they have horrific personalities...

I truly would appreciate some "tips and tricks," if you will, on how to deal with people that make me want to reconsider my aversion to poking others' eyes out with my thumbs.

January 31

While everyone is settling back into their old or newly resolved routines, I'm still a wreck. I am in persistent fight-or-flight mode until January 31. After making it through the marathon of ThanksgivingChristmasNewYear's, I have one more hurdle to clear before normalcy can return to my life: Shug's Birthday.

Since he's the easiest person in the world to shop for, finding a present will be a piece of cake...right?

Improve your karma or help out a desperate wife by emailing present-to-end-all-presents suggestions to igotgoldteef@gmail.com.

Kisses and my first-born will be your handsome reward.

Cast Iron

I love the look of these old cast iron pieces.
They look like they could last forever.
Or at least that they've been around forever!

Found here, here, and here.

Girl Crush: Charlotte Gainsbourg

Serge Gainsbourg + Jane Birkin + serious acting chops - talented pretension x wispy singing voice + relaxed beaty = Charlotte Gainsbourg

Recipe of the Week: Nopalito Hash

Every person I've discussed New Year's Resolutions with seems to have a list this------------long. Remember how I'm so not making resolutions? Well, I thought I'd come up with a dish that hits a lot if my loved ones resolution lists and is still tasty...and you KNOW how much I love checking things off a list...!

This little hash is 1)inexpensive, 2) vegetarian with a vegan option, 3) loaded with fiber and vitamins, and 4) quick to whip up. So you all can check off 1) saving moolah, 2) eating less meat, 3) eating more healthfully, and 4) having more time to exercise, kiss cute boys, read a great book, snuggle with your Ruby, or sleep.

See having not-resolutions can work!

Nopalito Hash
Serves 4 pious resolution-makers or 2 non-resolution folks
Ingredients:
6-8 new potatoes, scrubbed clean and cut into big chunks
Extra virgin olive oil
1 can of low-sodium black beans, drained and rinsed
1 1/2 cups of cooked, sliced nopalitos, drained and rinsed
1 small onion, diced
1 t ground cumin
1 T Worcestershire Sauce (leave out if vegan/vegetarian and up the Pikapeppa dosage)
1 t Pikapeppa Sauce
1 t Sambal Oelek or other hot pepper sauce like Sriracha
1 T soy sauce or Bragg's Liquid Aminos
2 T pumpkin seeds
2 T crema mexicana (leave out if vegan)
Salt and pepper

Get a pot of generously salted water and the potatoes going. Unlike pasta, where you should add the pasta to the water after the water is boiling, potatoes do much better when brought up to temperature with the water. They absorb the salt and are less "milly" if prepared this way. they should take about 30 minutes to cook. Check to see if they are done if they are easily pierced with a knife.

Meanwhile, in a large saucepan over medium heat, add a generous squidge of the extra virgin olive oil and the chopped onions. Saute until tender and translucent. Sprinkle the cumin over the onions and saute for 30 seconds. Add the drained black beans and nopalitos. Mix until well combined and then add the Worcestershire, Pikapeppa, sambal oeleck, and the soy sauce/Bragg's. Mush some of the beans up with your spoon to make a thicker sauce.

Drain the potatoes well and add to the saucepan. Mix well to coat all of the potatoes with the sauce and heat until the potatoes are warmed through. Add a little pepper and taste to see if you need any salt...you may not.

Dish up your hash and garnish with a drizzle of crema mexicana and pumpkin seeds. Sit back and enjoy your virtuous meal!

P.S. I'm hanging on to not taking my holiday decorations down another day...I just can't do it!

Lovely New Year

And to love.
xo

Source

Twenty-Dime

I like the ring of that!...

Source

For the New Year...

Germans in the Woods from Rauch Brothers on Vimeo.

Let's hope we quit sending our people to do things they don't want to do.
Let's hope we can learn from the mistakes in our country's past.
Let's hope for peace in the new decade.

Let's hope.

To a safe, happy, and hopeful new year and decade.

Much love,
Goldteef