I’m Back

Peace in Our Time

I can’t even begin to explain what a hassle this blog-moving has been. If you follow my twitter or the blog’s facebook page then you might have some idea, but basically the last four days have been an endless cavalcade of support emails and error messages, finally culminating this afternoon in a flurry of my most hysterical tweets yet. At one pm I posted my now-classic rant and within hours everything was resolved and my blog was all nice and cozy in its new hosting home. FUNNY HOW THAT WORKS.

Thank you to everyone who gave me emotional support during this time of extreme crisis, I really appreciate it! And to everyone who was inundated with a bunch of old posts when I was editing them earlier this week: I’m sorry. Now I’m ready to start posting all the posts I didn’t post in the past week, so get ready for posts on hese exciting topics!

•  triple-chocolate mini-donuts!

• all the make up & nail polish Hardy Candy sent me as a runner-up prize from the StyleOn DIY Manicure contest!

• the food I’ve been making to fit in with Taylor’s stringent new dietary restrictions!

•my new neighbors’ new fence!

•I got my hair done and it looks exactly the same!

• my new raincoat!

• people sent me socks and scarves in the mail!

• aaaaaaaaaand lots more new & adorable pet pictures!

Now that the move is made it’s possible that some posts might be weird, or missing images/videos, or have broken links. If anyone is creepy creeping through my archives and finds a broken post, I would love it if you could leave a quick comment to let me know something needs fixing.

Slow It Down

I don’t know if I’m going to be posting much this week, because I’m going to be busy with a new, super-fun project. That was sarcasm btw, because the project I’m working on is moving this blog off of wordpress.com and self-hosting it. Actually Taylor very thoughtfully (at my insistence) already did all that HOWEVER I need to re-redo the layout (that I just redid, argh) and find and reinsert a bunch of pictures into my posts. See, MOST of the pictures you see on this blog are on my flickr, but in the wayback long time ago before I had a flickr account I just uploaded all the pictures right to wordpress.com, and I still sometimes do if it’s something like a screencap or picture from someone’s etsy or something. So yeah. I need to download all those pictures (since most of them I don’t have on my computer anymore), upload them to flickr and edit them back into the posts. There’s only like TWO HUNDRED AND FIFTY of them so it’s no big deal. (More sarcasm)

Argh.

Anyway this also means that if you didn’t update your links when I first switched from unicornparade.wordpress.com to unicornpara.de, then you need to go do it! Right now!

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Anyway, hopefully I’ll get this all done pretty quickly and get back to posting like normal! Of course, I need to actually START doing it first. Today I was so desperate to find something to procrastinate on I actually started ironing my sheets and pillowcases O____o

Some Things

Cable Knit Sweater
me earlier this week, when my eyes still worked

Now that I’ve been to the doctor for antibiotic eyedrops & can see again, here’s a selection of things from the week.

Sailor Moon Cats
this week Sailor Moon was really big in our house

Symphony’s dad was away in Alberta all week for work, so that meant she was here every day, as was the dog. It was awesome having them both around, but I’m so used to the schedule we usually have it seemed to make the week really long somehow. Like a whole week of Wednesdays.

Yellow Cucumber
a yellow cucumber, who knew this was even a thing?

I don’t think I’ve ever mentioned it in this blog, but Taylor has a fairly gnarly form of seborrheic dermatitis (it’s a skin condition) and nothing really ever seems to help. He recently made some dietary changes to try to get it under control, but after some research on my part and discussion, he decided to just go whole-hog and cut out everything that could be triggering it, at least temporarily. This week has been a kind of “last hurrah” of sushi, poutine, pie and beer, before starting six weeks of pretty much nothing but vegetables, fruits (except no citrus or strawberries) and brown rice.

Ombre Banner
my latest, greatest idea: ombre glitter banners

On Wednesday I was working on a banner for a customer in a particular colour scheme, when I had a brilliant burst of inspiration on how to make it even more amazing.

Happy Friday everyone!

It Came From My Eyeball

Way back in time on the internet, a certain blogger *cough*kdiddy*cough* posted an extreme close-up photograph of her diseased eyeball. I’m not gonna do that. You’re welcome.

Last night when I was reading Sym her bedtime chapter of Harry Potter (the chapter of Goblet of Fire where Voldemort gets his body back, perfect reading for bedtime), my left eye started watering incontrollably. Just watering and watering. It was making me crazy, and it kept it up all evening, until I went to bed. At three am I woke up and discovered it was gooped shut, and when I managed to pry it open my vision was all blurry and obstructed. I stumbled to the bathroom mirror and confirm my suspicions.

I am suffering from THE HEARTBREAK OF CONJUNCTIVITIS.

Gross. GROSS. Pink eye is the biggest drag ever, and it’s one of the diseases that the health authority mandates can’t be hanging out untreated in a child care setting. If the kids get it they can’t come (although I did once have a parent send her child to daycare with such a bad case of pink eye that it was like there were rivers of green snot pouring down his cheeks, yuck), and if I get it the kids can’t come. I had the text all my clients first thing this morning and ask them to keep their kids at home, at least until I go to the doctor. So inconvenient for them, but thankfully they were all very understanding (most people are when you tell them you have pus oozing out of your face).

The worst part is I know EXACTLY where, when and why I got this pinkeye. Not from any of the kids, and not from having a cold (did you know colds can spread up the inside of your face to your eyes and give you viral conjunctivitis? It’s true!), but from my own stupidity. See, I RARELY wear makeup. It’s just not suited to my life and tbh I don’t really care that much. So I rarely think about makeup, and I certainly never think about replacing old, old, old items. But on Wednesday night we went out for dinner with an old fried of mine, and I actually wore makeup for once. Without even thinking twice I swiped on a couple of coats of some Lancome Hypnose (aka the best mascara everrrrrrr) waterproof mascara. Waterproof mascara I bought to wear on my wedding day in case I cried. My wedding day which was in March of 2009.

Oops.

So. LESSON LEARNED. I will be tossing the offending mascara immediately and picking up a new tube- luckily the doctor’s office I’m going to is right next to a drugstore, which is convenient for both having prescriptions filled AND replacing bacteria-riddled mascara tubes (fun fact: in Canada you can buy Lancome mascara at the drugstore. One time on a trip to Seattle I forgot mine at home and I was SHOCKED and APPALLED that I had to go to Macy’s to buy a new one).

Beautiful Georgie

As promised, not a picture of my crusty, seeping eyeball.

What I’ve Been Reading

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Book Trio
Swamplandia!, Karen Russell; Twilight #18 Watery Grave, Joseph Trainor; Codename: Sailor V, Vol. 1, Naoko Takeuchi

I read Karen Russell’s St. Lucy’s Home for Girls Raised by Wolves a few months ago and I’d been meaning to read Swamplandia! ever since. It took me a little while to get into it- the chapters which between the POV of two different characters and I didn’t really like one of them at first, but it definitely grew on me. This book is basically amazing and you should definitely read it.

Before there was Twilight, there was TWILIGHT: WHERE DARKNESS BEGINS… When I was a kid in the 80s, my sister had a bunch of these cheesy YA horror novels and I read them all. I recently remembered them and on a crazy whim I ordered one, Watery Grave, a total gem of literature. It was just as terrible and wonderful as I remembered, and I particularly like the ending where SPOILER ALERT the female protagonist saves her injured boyfriend by blowing the monster’s head off with a shotgun. There are lots of other books in this series and I kind of want them all, so if you are looking for a gift for me you wouldn’t go wrong with a bunch of these. I’m particular keen on getting Nightmare Lake, Spirits and Spells and The Initiation.

In case you live under a rock or are for some reason not obsessed with Sailor Moon, then you know that all the original manga are being rereleased with a new, more accurate English translation. I preordered the first two, Codename: Sailor V Volume 1 and Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon Volume 1 and they came on Friday night. It took me a little while to get used to the right-to-left reading, but I have no complaints about this and look forward to getting the rest of the series.

a full list of all this year’s books can always be found here, and as always, book links are usually to Amazon, and clicking on them might earn me a nickel.

Variations on a Theme

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Honey Garlic Roasted Chick Peas

I really like recipes that have easy tweakability, and I also really like snacking. These roasted chickpeas are perfect for both tweaking and snacking. I’ve made them with the original salt & vinegar recipe, I’ve made a chili lime variation and most recently, a honey garlic variation that is my new favourite thing to eat.

The honey garlic was a little different to make than the other varieties, so I decided to make a real post about it. Also because I’m totally over my once weekly big food-round-up posts (as evidence by my being terrible about even making them haha).

Anyway. Ingredients! (shown here making an assault on Black Reach.)

Honey Garlic Roasted Chick Peas

1 14oz can chick peas
2 1/2 cups water
1/2 cup honey
1 clove garlic
2 tsp olive oil
salt to taste

It’s worth noting here that all my ingredients are either local, organic, or both, except for the salt, which is my own special blend of New Zealand sea salt and two different varieties of Hawaiian Alaea sea salt. Why is this worth noting? Because I’m a total pretentious douche.

Drain and rinse your chickpeas and mince your garlic.

Honey Garlic Roasted Chick Peas
Honey Garlic Roasted Chick Peas
Honey Garlic Roasted Chick Peas
Sharky the Shark Knife is a big fan of garlic.

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine the water and honey, and stir until the honey is fully dissolved. Add chick peas and minced garlic to pan. Increase heat to high and bring to a boil. Remove from heat and let sit for 30 minutes.

Honey Garlic Roasted Chick Peas
This looks gross but I swear it’s not.

Preheat oven to 425 and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Using a fine sieve, strain the chickpeas and garlic (using a colander with large holes will result in the heartbreak of garlic loss). Place of the baking sheet, drizzle with oil and sprinkle with salt. Roll the peas around until they are nicely coated- I don’t like getting oil all over my hands (I already have to wash my hands 550,000 times a day, why would I want make extra hand-washing work for myself?) so I do this by folding the parchment over them in different directions and rolling them.

Honey Garlic Roasted Chick Peas
Honey Garlic Roasted Chick Peas

Roast for anywhere from 30 to 45 minutes until golden brown. I’ve never roasted mine for longer than 35 minutes, and they can burn really easily so be careful! You definitely need to keep an eye on these.

Honey Garlic Roasted Chick Peas

Allow to cool for .5 seconds before stuffing them all in your face while reading volume 1 of the newly rereleased Codename: Sailor V, like I did on Sunday night.

Honey Garlic Roasted Chick Peas
Honey Garlic Roasted Chick Peas
Perfect evening, tbh.

Manicure Monday

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Last week I ran-didn’t-walk to Shopper’s Drug Mart to pick up some of the new Quo by Orly nail polishes, and I have to say, WOW. The colours are totally beautiful and the formula is amazing. Not too thick and gloopy, not too thin and watery. No streaks, two coats for perfect coverage, and dries quickly. I’ve tried four shades so far and been thrilled with all the results. Here are the first two.

Quo by Orly Celestial Star
right hand: Quo by Orly in Celestial Star

This has purple in it as well but unfortunately I couldn’t get it to photograph properly no matter what light I used. It’s really pretty but for some reason it reminds me of this metallic blue Wet’n’Wild polish all my goth friends and I used in 1993 (back then it was the only “weird” colour of polish, besides black).

Quo by Orly in Turquoise Sky
left hand: Quo by Orly in Turquoise Moonlight

I had a bit more luck with this one! Depending on the light it looks anywhere from bright turquoise to dark teal to emerald green. I love this polish, I haven’t been able to stop staring at it!

A Clean Start

I’ve mentioned here recently that I’ve been in a rut, a slump, a funk, whatever. I’ve been feeling very :/ about a lot of things, and one of them is this blog. I’m sick of my posts! I’m sick of my pictures! I’m sick of thinking up titles! But most of all, I’m (was) sick of the layout, so last night I steeled myself for a huge hassle and changed it.

New New Blog Layout

It’s not one hundred percent perfectly how I want it, but it’s pretty close! I think it’s a lot cleaner looking than the old layout, which is definitely what I was going for. I’d love to hear any thoughts or feedback you guys might have about it, and as a thank you here’s a Georgie for your troubles.

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