So I know it seems like I have been avoiding you guys recently. I haven't, I have just been busy, and when not busy I haven't been feeling well. I'm actually not feeling well right now. But I will be back soon with more IQ dropping nonsense in the near future. LOVE YOU!!! not there is anyone reading this...>.>

~The Bean

Addiction

So, Anthony and have discovered that we have a shared addiction. And the first step to recovery is admitting you have a problem, so here I am.

And what's the problem?

The problem is that the Goodwill is right in front of the Lowe's.

Let's back track a little. I've been fixing up old things for a long time, as a hobby with my parents. The fact that Anthony has taken an interest in doing it with me, only makes it a bajillion times better.

Last Friday Anthony and I went on a mad search for a dresser. We fond one at a Glorified Junk Store (a second hand place that had maybe 10 antiques scattered around) that was too tall, way ugly, and $60. We decided to keep looking and we we found a dresser at goodwill that was absolutely beautiful as far as shape...everything else had to go...But it was only $30. So we went ahead and bought it and headed over to Lowe's. We picked up two mini paint rollers and trays used for trim, a quart of paint in a beautiful gray color, and 6 new drawer pulls and spent about $30. Yeah, we know that it still came up to 60 bucks, but we adore this dresser! The other one would have been 60 before paint and handles, and it was just too tall, and didn't have a mirror. 

This is the beautiful monstrosity! The white paint was peeling, the veneer on top looked like it was trying to be white wood, the little plastic feet in front looked like they where trying to be ivory, two of the drawers had these plastic pieces on them that I think was supposed to look like gold, and the plastic around the mirror had faded so badly that it looked yellow rather than white. Plus there was a ton of gold streaks here and there and everywhere!

You can tell we needed a dresser because of all the clothes on the couch. (Yeah actually, most of those clothes are still on the couch, but whatever.)

A flat coat of gray softened it up tremendously, and hammer finished black barn-esque drawer pulls make for a very happy Jenna Bean! :)

Then this Thursday (not even a week later) we went back to the goodwill in search of kitchen/dining room chairs. They didn't have any, so instead we picked up a mini two drawer dresser, a shoe caddy, and a lamp (that had a great shape, but an ugly green color and lots of chips in the paint) for $14. Then we headed on over to Lowe's and picked up 3 sleek silver drawer pulls, some bright pink paint, a nice paint brush (because we knew that using a roller on the lamp would be hard) and a lamp shade for $30. 

I'm considering painting a band around the vase part inspired by Native American vases and bowels, but I don't know yet. Either way, it's much better in gray than in the original goose shit green! :)

We used left over gray paint on the lamp and then attached the shade and a bright ass light bulb. We paid about $14 dollars for the shade, but they had a lamp very similar to ours in an ugly blue color at Lowe's for $15, and we got ours from Goodwill for $3! Hells yeah!!

Then we set to work on the shoe caddy. I turned it into an entertainment center for the girls, and instead of shoes, filled it will movies and books. It had two white handles on the front to pull the door down, and we replaced it with one silver pull. It was originally a white color that had lots of chips and stains. 

We had no idea when choosing a paint color that the pink would be almost identical to the girls Disney Princes Television! :)

It looks uneven but that's just because of our weird ass carpet hiding half of the bottom base (plus I can't hold the camera still) trust me though, it's perfect!

The dresser was the same color white with a lot of chips and stains and originally had these handles one it.

This is the result!

 I can't stand dark corners. It didn't bother me too much before, because this space held nothing but a few tubawares full of barbies, but with a dresser there it needed some light so I used the lamp that was originally in me and Anthony's room. It suits there room better, and looked silly in ours.

Is it obvious that my Jelly Beans LOVE pink?

You see that black blob next to that blue chair under the window? Stay tuned. :)

~They also had to have dream catchers, just like Jenna and Daddy! :) ~

Then last night that wasn't enough. The girls tv was originally sitting on a white table with no storage. I had planned on setting that table near their little plastic play kitchen set with their blue plastic chairs to make them a little "dinning room" area, but the table was too tall for the chairs. So I ripped the legs out and used the top to make one of those "breakfast in bed" trays (we eat in our bedroom A LOT) to use in our room. I painted it gray to match the other gray things in our room, made handles for it using the original drawer pulls from the gray dresser, and lined the inside with black felt so plates and cups wouldn't slip around too much, and put intentional splatters, spills and smears of gray paint on the felt, just for the fuck of it.

I wanted to put some kind of little feet on the bottom of it, but figured I would had to wait to buy some- but then got a great idea. We had bought some build it yourself out of a flat pack box furniture for our first two bedroom apartment (a coffee table and two end tables) a while back. We still use the coffee table, and one of the end tables is in our room as a bed side table. But the other table was sitting in our living room, about to be thrown away because it wasn't getting used. I remembered that each of the four legs had 2 little floor protecting feet, and decided to use those on the bottom of my food tray. And then one great idea led to another. It just so happened that the table was the perfect height for the girls little blue plastic chairs. Three coats of pink paint later, and that black blob you saw in the curtain picture is now a pink dinning room table for the Jelly Beans play area. (I needed something to keep me occupied while the paint dried on my food tray.)

I stayed up all night working on the tray and the pink table, and didn't get to bed until around 6am. Needless to say, I definitely have an addiction! 

Turn Worthless Shit into Gold! It's better than Crack!!!

XD

Fun in the Kitchen

My mother was the kind of cook who could throw some random shit into a pot and it would come out tasting like fucking heaven! With my mother, it was something she was born able to do. A gift. With me, it's a learned talent. It has taken a lot of work and a lot of patience, but over time I have learned what foods go good together and what doesn't, and today I am going to share a recipe with you that I totally just made up while cooking dinner because I didn't want to use anything but leftovers and readily accessible items.

What you need:

Pasta (you can cook it, or you can do like I did and use leftover noodles from the fridge. I had some left over penne from a Italian sausage Alfredo I had made a few nights back.)

Sauce (Either Alfredo or tomato will do, but I was out of Alfredo and used tomato)

Chicken (I prefer dark meat, and had enough to feed two people but not four, which is why I used it tonight, because the Jelly Beans are at their grandmothers.)

Two Small Apples, diced/chopped/otherwise mangled

1/4 Onion, diced/chopped/otherwise mangled

Shredded Mozzarella

Shredded Parmesan (and not that powder weird shit you get in a shaky can, I'm talking about SHREDDED Parmesan! Like this:

 If it came in a zippy plastic pouch thing from Wal-mart, that's fine, but the only thing you should ever, EVER put powdered Parmesan cheese on is a greasy pizza!

What You Do:

Smack a little Olive Oil in the bottom of a pan or wok and turn the heat up. Add the onion and the chicken at the same time (you want the onions to caramelize a little and you want the chicken cooked all the way through.) Salt, pepper, and some fresh Oregano/Rosemary/Mint (or, like in my case, a couple shakes of the Italian Seasonings Blend.) Let that cook for a while, then squeeze in some lemon juice (fresh is better, plastic lemon shaped container from the fridge is fine), one of the diced apples (so that it will soften and lends it's flavor to the chicken), and if you like (some don't, I do) a couple splashes of red wine or red wine vinager. Stir and let cook until the chicken is done, reduce heat to low or warm setting. Heat sauce in a separate pan. If the pasta is previously cooked and refrigerated, add a few splashes of water (so it doesn't dry out) and a few splashes of olive oil (so they don't stick), stir and microwave for about a minute, then check and microwave in 30 second intervals until warm through. Add the remaining diced apple to the chicken dish (doing it last so they will stay crisp and juicy), stir, remove from heat. Pile the pasta on a plate, top with sauce sprinkle on mozzarella, cover in chicken mixture, sprinkle with Parmesan and VOILA! 

(Pardon the crappy pictures, I don't have a fancy camera and these where taken with the phone.)

~Served with grapes because nothing compliments a heavy savory dish like a juicy mostly sweet, kind of sour side piece. Plus, I just love grapes.~

And since we are on the topic of food, here is the cake I made for Anthony's 28th birthday party, back on April 13th. I'm proud of it!! XD

Culture Inspired Fashion and Art (First Rant.... I mean... Post!)

I thought long and hard about whether or not to start a blog. Then I finally decided it was a good idea, and made one. Then I thought long and hard, the last few hours, at least, about what to make my first post about. Maybe about the huge issue over Bin Laden. Or maybe give you an inside look at my political/religious/social beliefs. Or maybe about my distaste for most leaders. But that's just not my style. >.<

So today the grandparents came to pick up my little Jelly Beans, so Anthony and I had the day (and tomorrow, but that's not here yet) to ourselves. After a healthy dosing of sex, we went to McDonalds (bad idea when you are on a diet, a chicken sandwich on whole wheat bread had as many calories as a big mac, and I am already over my calorie limit today and that is ALL I have had to eat today -insert angry hungry rant here-) and then we went to some antique shops around town. Now, I love Native American art and design, I love moccasins and dream catchers, etc, and when I love something, I like to replicate it. I was looking for a few more dream catchers and a themed rug for our bedroom floor. (We have a very mild Native American theme going on in our room, and I mean a couple of dream catchers, a piece of fake fur, and a few inspired paintings-mild.) I found these great little moccasins in pink for little girls and I wanted to get some for my Jelly Beans. We also tried on cowboy hats and big redneck belt buckles just for fun. When I got home, I got online to search for some cute Native American inspired dresses and the best way to bleach a cows skull (don't ask).

I came across another blog (too lazy to find the link) that was saying how wearing feathers in your hair or Native American inspired print clutch or a pair of moccasins was degrading and racist to Native Americans. O.o Not only is this act degrading and racists, it is especially so since we (the white man) killed all of the Native Americans in the first place.

{a picture that was on the blog post}

ok

1.)I have Native American in me. Not a lot, but a little. Most of us do.

2.)>I< personally did not kill anyone. I can not be held responsible for what my ancestors did in the past. Would you kill Hitlers child just because it was Hitlers child. I certainly hope not.

3.)-And in my opinion, the most important to consider regarding this matter-Imitation is the greatest form of flattery.

Fashion is like wearable art. If you admire something, would you not try to replicate it? There is a difference between mimicry and mockery. I love Native American culture, I love learning about it and studying it, and I find the designs (particularly dream catchers) to be GORGEOUS!!!Wearing a design inspired by something someone created is the perfect way to flatter their work. To show off the beauty.

The thing that got me the most, honestly, was the fact that all the people complaining about it, where not Native Americans, but -ding ding ding you guessed it!- the white man. Lots of white stuck ups trying to tell others what is and is not acceptable. Here's the thing. If you think it's degrading, don't wear it. That doesn't mean you need to attack someone else for choosing to. And honestly, I think before you should be allowed to have a negative opinion about it, ask a true Native American if it offends them, before assuming that it would. And how about this, if a true Native American ever tells me my moccasin inspired flats and feather earrings are degrading, I'll consider changing my point of view. (Did I mention I am wearing those flats on my wedding day? No? Just curious...)

And now, because I am sure that if you ARE reading this, you are tired of trying to decipher my terrible grammar/spelling, some beautiful inspiration that I like.

~~

All photos courtesy of a shameless google search, paintings by Sylvia Ji (I love her, and these three paintings especially).

So anyway, in closing, I should mention that the blog also bashed on people who let their children (or adults who did it) dress as "Cowboy and Indian" style Indians for games or parties or Halloween. Honestly, I think if the costume isn't negatively stereotypical (i.e. the "indian" drinking "fire water" and scalping the cowboy) then let it go. If one of my little girls wants to be an "Indian" for Halloween, why should I stop her? My little girls will NOT dress up as something they don't like, so if they asked to dress as a Native American, it is only out of admiration and awe.

Honestly, as long as you are doing it out of inspiration and not mockery, I say go for it.