CARAZY

What up homes?

I WANT YO $$$$$$$!!!

It's official. I've gone absolutely insane (as if you didn't all know that already). And to prove it to you all I have decided to challenge myself above and beyond, mentally and physically. Even more so, I'm just bored and I need something to keep myself entertained, at least til winter in the northeast hits and I can spend all my energy sledding and attempting to snow board.

Over the next few months I am enrolling myself in a variety of races ranging from 5K's to half marathons and I need YOUR SUPPORT!

Here is my schedule so far of races I would like to complete:

9/26 - Tour de Habitat Relay bike race w/ VISTA's (?)
10/2 - Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure in Albany 5K
10/9 - Hartford HALF MARATHON !@(#!(#(!#!(@*@#%(@)#$!!!!!!!!!!
11/7 - Stockade-athon 15K (I hope I have the energy after the 1/2 marathon)
11/25 - Manchester Road Race 4.75 miles
1/1 - Albany Hangover Half Marathon/Sober Up 3.5 mile run

That's all I've got so far but I hope to add maybe a few more 5k's in there or maybe some more biking or something.

I would love to sponsor myself in all these events! However, seeing that I am an AmeriCorps VISTA volunteer living below the poverty line, I don't have the dough to do so and that's where YOU come in! HELP ME RAISE THE MONEY TO COMPETE IN THESE RACES!! :-) No amount is too small (or too big).

I NEED TO RAISE $300 OR MORE!!! And I promise that all the money will go to great causes!

Here are some incentives:

For every $5 donated I will be your friend forever
For every $25 donated I will make you tasty cookies
For every $50 donated I will give you a really great back massage
If you donate more then that, I'll arrange something exxxtra special for you ;-) (THAT WAS A JOKE)

Even if you can't donate anything, I would love your support on the race day. And if you are interested in doing any of the races with me let me know! I would love the company!

Peeing on the side of the road

This post was started on Saturday evening and finish on Sunday morning.

So. Here I am. Sitting in NYC alone in my brothers room on a Saturday night. And for the first time since school has ended I feel so alone. I suppose that makes this a Debbie Downer/Negative Nancy type of post but I was actually hoping that coming here and writing to you, anonymous readers, would help me realize that I was in fact not as alone as I feel. You see, I was unsure about my trip to NYC in the first place. I was hesitant to leave Albany because I had been thoroughly enjoying my stay there thus far and I was going to miss what has become my now weekly bike trip to the Troy Farmers Market. I also did not want to spend what little money I have on what usually turns out to be an expensive NYC experience. And this in no way is the fault of my little brother. He was actually quite awesome and funded a lot of my experience. He also let me sleep in his bed while he slept on the (comfortable, he claimed) couch in his living room. If anything, I am glad I came to NY to at least visit him. He is quite, quite, quite awesome.

I suppose I was just in a bit of a slump this weekend. Not really sure why. Well, that's a lie. I have an idea why and it's actually a really stupid reason. Reasons for which I have told my friends before are things not to be upset over. So I suppose that makes me a hypocrite, which is even worse. Because I often have trouble controlling my feelings. I am one of those people whose feelings control me so once I'm in a slump for whatever reason, unless things turn out unexpectedly, I usually remain in said slump. But I think what it comes down to was the fact that I was unsure about my entire city trip to begin with and then the entire weekend preceded to be framed around this state of mind.

Honestly, it was not all bad, really. I suppose I should have enjoyed it a bit more. I went to Max Brennars for the first time, ate falafel, visited the transvestites, visited the Stonewall Bar, walked over to the Hudson and saw an awesome view of Jersey City, went to the farmers market in Union Square, went to Times Square and purchased a kinda cool (though probably fake and unoriginal) poster, walked around a bit, got some delicious roasted almonds, went to long island to visit the grandparents, parents, aunts/uncles and cousins, sat in Union Square and was included in some dudes really awesome freestyle rapping, and now here I am...Sunday morning typing to you, my dutiful anonymous readers. You see, a generally pretty awesome weekend. But I think I was just not in my New York City state of mind. Normally I really love the city. But this weekend, instead of loving the city, I missed Albany. Caaarrraazy.

Anyways. In my defense, I haven't really had a weekend to rest yet. This weekend NYC, last weekend, home for less then 24 hrs (which included leaving West Hartford at 6 AM in order to get to Albany on time for work), weekend before I went to Schenectady, weekend before that I had 2 friends come visit. Weekend before that, home. You see? Busy!

Alright, alright. I'm going to stop complaining. I'm going to stop feel bad for myself. Lets find something good in all of this. Lets see. The good. I love Albany. I love my life in Albany. I love my friends in Albany, my new job in Albany, my awesome apartment in Albany. And coming to NYC for the weekend made me realize that. It made me realize how much I really am enjoying post college life. It's not as bad in the real world a they make it seem, kids. In fact, its actually quite survivable and enjoyable. Even on severely limited income. This is my take away from the weekend. Along with $30 from my mom. So I suppose, all in all, it actually wasn't so bad. Although I do still feel a bit slumpy. But once I'm back in Albany, I'll be sure to look back at the great weekend I spent in NYC with my bro.

B E A utiful

Litany

by Billy Collins

You are the bread and the knife,
The crystal goblet and the wine . . .
Jacques Crickillon

You are the bread and the knife,

the crystal goblet and the wine.

You are the dew on the morning grass

and the burning wheel of the sun.

You are the white apron of the baker

and the marsh birds suddenly in flight.

However, you are not the wind in the orchard,

the plums on the counter,

or the house of cards.

And you are certainly not the pine-scented air.

There is just no way you are the pine-scented air.

It is possible that you are the fish under the bridge,

maybe even the pigeon on the general's head,

but you are not even close

to being the field of cornflowers at dusk.

And a quick look in the mirror will show

that you are neither the boots in the corner

nor the boat asleep in its boathouse.

It might interest you to know,

speaking of the plentiful imagery of the world,

that I am the sound of rain on the roof.

I also happen to be the shooting star,

the evening paper blowing down an alley,

and the basket of chestnuts on the kitchen table.

I am also the moon in the trees

and the blind woman's tea cup.

But don't worry, I am not the bread and the knife.

You are still the bread and the knife.

You will always be the bread and the knife,

not to mention the crystal goblet and—somehow—the wine.

What I want.

Understand more
Learn Everything
Open my mind
Live with intent
Dig Deeper
Be better
Fear nothing
Fear Everything
Be honest
Accept dishonesty

yum? YUM?

Oh My Awesomeness!

So, remember that potato salad I was contemplating a few weeks ago? Well I made it...the pesto one that is and I adapted it and changed it to what I like. You see, I usually find recipes and use them as template for amounts and modify them to how I like. And this recipe in particular work FABULOUSLY!!! And they usually do anyways.

Let us call this the Awesomely Awesome Blue Colored Earthy Rustic Potato Deliciousness Salad. Here is the recipe (I trust that you, anonymous and trusted reader, will not go off and become famous with it because if you do I will have a mastiff/st bernard mix bike your head off in my honor (-: ).

1.5 - 2 lbs Blue Potatoes (mine were fresh from the Troy Farmers Market)
1 lb Green Beans
1 Head of Broccoli
1 Red Onion
1/4 Cup + 1 TBSP Olive Oil
1/3 Cup Grated Parmesan
1/4 - 1/3 Cup Crushed Walnuts
1 Cup Sliced Basil (FRESH!)
Garlic Powder
Pepper
Italian Seasonings

Wash Potatoes. Bring them to a boil in a pot of water and drain. Return potatoes to pot and toss with garlic, salt, Italian Seasonings, and 1 TBSP olive oil. Roast in over at 400 F for 1/2 hr. While the potatoes are roasting, cut up broccoli, green beans and onions. Put in the same pot potatoes were mixed in. Stir fry veggies for 5-10 minutes over medium high heat (til slightly tender). Take off heat. When potatoes are done, put them in the pot with the rest of the veggies, olive oil, basil, walnuts, Parmesan, and spices.

Eat your heart out. Yum.

A Quickie

Yo Yo Yiggady Yo! (If I might borrow that from Juno)

Well, its been a while and in light that revelation I have decided to provide you with a quickie just to keep you satisfied until I have a chance to write a much longer post. Thought knowing myself this may or may not actually end up being a short post.

Events of the past week or so have involved a lot of bike riding to and from Siena, biking to the farmers market, biking in general, purchasing a chain to make a bike lock, making said bike lock, admiring my awesome bike............

Have I done anything besides care for my bike this week? Well yes, but none of it has provided as much entertainment as the new bike obsession. I moved boxes. Lots of them. I went to a retreat at which I discussed my (non-existent) christian identity and how this related to my (currently almost non-existent) duties relating to students. I ate pecan pie at a food festival. Oh, and I was a passenger in a car that went upwards of 125 miles/hour (sorry mom, if you're reading this...I am alive and well...the car ride was quite awesome, thanks for asking).

That's about it, really. Most of the time I find some ways to keep my own self entertained (not in the way that you sick minds may be thinking...). Though the past few weeks have been oddly satisfying and fulfilling. We shall see how this continues.

Now the real reason I wanted to post today was because while at the retreat (at which I discovered my non existent christian) I productively created a list of things I wanted to accomplish this year. I also created a logo for the coop/bakery/food pantry/community kitchen I am going to open, but I'll leave that for another post. Some of the goals are lame and effortless and will take all of a few minutes. Others will take months of preparation and effort. But rather then prep you for what they are I think its better to just throw them right at you! So, in no particlar order, here they are:

1. Learn Harmonica
2. Start biking
3. Bike More (and sweat more)
4. Eat more local/fair trade/organic
5. Blog (obviously have not completed this one yet)
6. Do more crafty projects (like make bracelets)
7. Run a half marathon
8. Do more photography
9. Learn more about film and Polaroid photography
10. Read more news
11. Be more sustainable
12. Learn
13. Read the pile of books I have had since freshman year of college
14. Learn how to drive stick
15. Study and take the GRE's (and or GMATS)
16. Figure out how to start my bakery
17. Learn to play guitar
18. Write more
19. Read more poetry
20. Stare at the sky at night and watch the clouds during the day

This is an ongoing list so it may be edited an anytime without notice. Sorry. I also plan on putting these up on my apartment wall next to the list of goals Michael made for the apartment.

Anywaayysss. I told you this would be a short post turned long post, did I not? Not unlike the extremely long and thick bratwurst I lay eyes on at the international food festival that somewhat resembled a part of the male anatomy. Though I'm not sure how my post could qualify as being thick. Yup. Well, keeping in the theme of Juno we have going on, I say a farewell with this quote:

"That ain' no Etch-A-Sketch. This is one doodle that can't be un-did homeskillet."

Thank you, Dwight from the office, for those wise words. The mean more then you know.

It's hot as a stiff cock!

AMAZING Potato Salad!

So today, several VISTAs gathered for a (free) bbq hosted by Young Organics, a program run by Grand Street Community Arts, which is James' site. ALL of the food was beyond delicious, especially when nothing but pasta and salad has been eaten over the past 2 weeks at Siena (not that I'm not thankful for that food). The Stewart's Ice Cream served for dessert was especially good, but this time around nothing beat the potato salad.

Now, I'm not usually a fan of potato salad (or macaroni salad or egg salad or tuna salad or any of those salads drenched in mayo). But this potato salad was blue. It was made with BLUE POTATOES! So I HAD to try it! Not to mention that it looked like it was just overflowing with good stuff and was begging to be eaten. In fact, the moment I saw the pot it was in, I could hear the potato salad calling out my name. It was saying "Eaten me Ariel. EAT ME! For I am tasty and blue and full of good stuff for you." So, of course, I obeyed. Again. And Again. And Again. And then I packed some in a cup to take home for lunch tomorrow (to be eaten with avocado, carrots, and pumpkin cheddar crackers... yum!). And the best part about this salad???? It's sooooo simple!

Here is the recipe that was given to me by the free spirited awesome hippie lady who seemed to be a member in charge:

Blue Potato Salad (That Calls Out Names)

Blue Potatoes - Boiled
Mayonnaise
Yellow Mustard
Red Peppers
Oregano
Salt/Pepper

The awesome free spirited tree hugging (I mean that as an endearing term, for I also see myself as a tree huger. It's ok for tree hugers to call other people tree hugers) hippie lady told me she didn't know the amounts for all the ingredients, which is 100% ok with me. This means I get to experiment!!

Oh, and the other best part of this blue potato salad? The blue potatoes had been picked that day!! How much more fresh can you get?????

So, because I like to research food and food combination's and experiment and add ingredients to makes them unique, I looked up recipes for rustic potato salads and here are some other things I may add:

Red Onion
Olive Oil
Vinegar
Dijon Mustard
Sour Cream
Eggs
Garlic
Hot sauce
Paprika
Basil
Rosemary
Green Beans
Pine Nuts
Chives
Dill
Lemon

and anything else that may float your boat (or potato bed...in this case). I think I might try mine with some fresh spinach!

While on the search for other things to add to a potato salad I discovered this very yummy looking pesto potato salad recipe which works well for people like my housemate Michael who hate mayo.

Rustic Pesto Potato Salad:

Ingredients:

1 lb. small, thin skinned potatoes (I used red, white & purple, but any one of these would be just fine), rinsed and quartered
1 lb. green beans, trimmed
8-10 cloves garlic, chopped
1 cup basil, sliced
1/3 cup of toasted pine nuts
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
As many eggs as you're in the mood for
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Bring the potatoes up to a boil in a large pot of salted water. Once the water is boiling allow the potatoes to cook for another five minutes or so or until tender.

Two minutes before the potatoes are done, toss your green beans into the pot with the potatoes. Allow to cook for 2-3 minutes, then drain potatoes and beans and place back into your pot or into a large bowl.

Stir in the garlic, basil, pine nuts, olive oil, salt, pepper and mix together thoroughly. Taste for seasonings (this salad tends to beg for a couple extra pinches of salt).

Serve yourself a plate of potato salad and top with an over easy egg(or not)...Enjoy!

Serves 6.

Yum! Does That Not Look Good???????? Well, this blue potato salad is on my list of things to make...thats if I can get my hands on blue potatoes at the Troy Farmers Market this weekend...or perhaps at the Menands/Albany regional market. I'll give it a try. Two other things I would like to try include homemade mayo (Julie Child, thank you) and Banana Bread. Though we don't have a bread pan so it may have to be banana muffins. We have multiple overripe bananas that are just begging to be consumed and what better way then banana bread? I'm happy, the bananas are happy, the people eating banana bread are happy...nothing wrong with that! I was gunna post Julia Child's mayo recipe, but alas, all the ones I find are too long and not worth sorting through at the moment. But never fear! I will try the mayo recipe and get back to you about how many times I failed :-)

Now before I bid you adieu, I leave you with this:

"I hear it's bad form to say Yum when you're eating. But, yum!"

Yum is an integral part of my vocabulary. I may even replace most common nouns with it. I'll yum ya later, yums!

Awhaaaa?

To my anonymous reader .... (s).

If you or someone you know:

1. Does not have herpes

2. Has a harmonica that is unwanted

I would like it. The Harmonica that is, not the herpes...or your friend. Unless he's cute.

Thanks.

Splendeliscious

Well look at that! Day number three and post number two...who knew? Haha, that rhymes...shit, maybe I've been reading too much Shel Silverstein. What a great dude he was. A literary genius. Literally! I would have love to have met him and understood what went through his head when he wrote his amazing books of poetry. Well, besides mary j. and coke that is. A very brilliant man, none the less. I'll have to add him to my list of dead people I would like to have met. Actually, he is the first person to make the list. I always used to just pull some random person outta my ass whenever I was asked that question. Now I have an answer! Its kind of like when someone asks me what my favorite book is. Yes, I read books. However, over my college career I probably only read 5 books out of leisure. The rest of the books I read (or rather skimmed) were for academic purposes. Mix minimal book reading with very bad memory and you have me. A person who has read many good and memory worthy books but cannot remember anything about them. For example, the other day I was having a conversation with some people (as normally happens, usually within my own head but sometimes with real people) and the book 1984 came up. Now, I remember back in high school I read a book similar to 1984 that I really liked, but it was not actually 1984, but I decided to stick with the fact that it was 1984 that I had read because I could not remember anything about the book. However, then another person mentioned the book Brave New World and I realized that I had actually read Brave New World but not 1984 but I could still not remember a single thing about either book. Why was I telling you this story?

Shit, now see? I don't even know where I was going with that whole 1984/Brave New World thing. And this happens often throughout my day. I forget what my point is in conversations and story's I tell in everyday life. It's quite rough to be me and forget shit like this all the time. I blame it on the fact that I am easily distracted by things that go on around me...perhaps an undiagnosed case of ADHD. Riddlin totally would have come in handy during college. I would have had a lot more spending money.

ANYWAYSSSSSS. I created a new blog post for a purpose and now I can't remember what it is (surprised?). Think...think think think. Haha, its like in the Winnie the Pooh movie when Pooh is trying to figure out where he can get honey because he is out of honey and then realizes he can just go "borrow" some from Rabbit. Hahaha. Now see, thats crazy! I can remember shit like that but nothing to do with the task at hand.

AH YES! Got it! So, step one of how to be happy (or step two if you count "unimportant thoughts"): Don't make yourself vulnerable. Now, the background story as to why I this is the first (or second) step of being happy is not necessary for you to hear. Just know that it is uncomfortable and bothersome and involved me putting myself in, well, a vulnerable position. But you see, when you do that, you rest all your ability to act and fend for yourself on the decision of another person. And who knows what the hell that person (or persons) has in mind. And when you're like me and you take things personally, it becomes really easy to be that vulnerable person that gets hurt all the time. I like to believe that all people are inherently good, but that is what put me in this position in the first place. While I still inevitably (and genetically) view all people as inherently good, I have adopted a deep sarcasm to protect myself. So it follows that step two of how to be happy (or step three...once again depending on how you look at it) is: be sarcastic. For example: "Not the brightest crayon in the box now are we?" (I get that one a lot) or "A hard-on doesn't count as personal growth." Or, for a live example, re read this blog. More examples are welcome in the comments section. See, I bet you feel better already. In fact, I do too. So thank you, anonymous reader, for being an albeit free source of therapy for me in a rough time. Though this doesn't stop the fact that today I did put myself in a vulnerable position and because of it I missed out on other events that could have been a lot of fun.

To make a long story short, don't be vulnerable, be sarcastic. It will save you a lot of emotional turmoil and make you appear less like a looser. Also, don't ever blog. No one will ever read it. And if they do, they won't care about it. And if they care, well, they will only pity you which means they judged you which just leaves you out in a worse place then when you started.

Well, its getting late. And for your benefit, anonymous reader, I am going to avoid the truth and tell you that I feel better now after writing this post (and I avoid the truth because I don't believe in lying...honesty truly is a virtue. Don't live by my example). I hope my unimportant thoughts entertained you because they were meant to. I leave you with this quote from a very deep and meaningful movie that changed me life:

"You guys might not know this, but I consider myself a bit of a loner. I tend to think of myself as a one-man wolf pack. But when my sister brought Doug home, I knew he was one of my own. And my wolf pack... it grew by one. So there... there were two of us in the wolf pack... I was alone first in the pack, and then Doug joined in later. And six months ago, when Doug introduced me to you guys, I thought, "Wait a second, could it be?" And now I know for sure, I just added two more guys to my wolf pack. Four of us wolves, running around the desert together, in Las Vegas, looking for strippers and cocaine. So tonight, I make a toast!"

Thank you, writers of The Hangover, for doing to me what no body else did. When I figure out what that is, I'll let you know. And to you, anonymous reader, well, that quote was for you. I considered myself to be a loner but now I have you, a member of my wolf pack. Just by reading this blog you have entered my world and made yourself a member. But sorry, unlike The Hangover, membership is not free (nor does it require you to slice open your hand...). Your must pay the relatively low fee of $19.95/month. But that's not all I get! You also include a bottle of tequila with your check or money order. That you for understanding my entertainment is not free and that I have an important livelihood to uphold. All questions can be directed to my non existent 800 number. Have a splendeliscious day.

Welcome, Lovely People

Hello!

You have some how found your way to my blog, so I welcome you! Welcome Welcome Welcome! How you may have found this blog, I do not know, nor do I really care. This blog is more for my own purposes then for the enjoyment of anyone else. Though you probably will gain much enjoyment from reading the passages ahead. I created this blog in order to have a place to write my thoughts (not many, I'll give you that), stories, and ideas about life; a place for me to document the next year of my life as an AmeriCorps volunteer; a place for me to store recipes and resources from websites pertaining to social justice to tips on competitive running. And if you, anonymous reader, may feel so inclined, you may also post interesting thoughts, ideas, and resources that you enjoy. This is an ongoing list, if you will. A sort of pile of information and interesting things. Or perhaps a public diary? Well, whatever you call it, it is bound to be entertaining. You see, I have been told that I have no shame. I have also, as a 22 year old, often been compared to a small child. 22 going on sex. Sex is German for six. Ha, get it? Yes, my point exactly. Expect a lot of that...

Well, anyways. We will see how long this blog will last. I may be devoted to it; an addict to posting; a devoted blogger; a procrastinator introduced to a new form of procrastination; an addictive personality fatally introduced to a new drug. Thought more likely, I will at some point abandon this blog, leaving it victim to the infinite labyrinth of the world wide web. One of millions of sites that pops up when someone googles "How to Be Happy." A blog that someone may look through and disregard as a lame girls failed attempt at making her own thoughts appear more important then they really are. Because that is what a blog is, isn't it? A person with too much free time and too many unimportant thoughts. A blog is a half way attempted at making this persons thoughts mean something and then conveying these thoughts to the entire world because the entire world would not survive without them. Well I am boycotting important thoughts. These are my unimportant thoughts. The one moment in my life where I will be realistic rather then optimistic or idealistic. My thoughts are important to know one but myself. So I hope you find the forthcoming passages as unimportant as I do. And I hope that, in some deep, dark part of your mind, they entertain you. And in that deep dark part of your mind, you store these unimportant thoughts of mine. And occasionally when you encounter something unimportant or come to realize that your own thoughts may actually be unimportant, you think of the unimportant thoughts I lay down in this blog.

Alright, I know. Enough of my unimportant thoughts for now. Sometimes I have a tendency to go on and on, as I am right now. So I give you permission to stop reading when you deem appropriate.

For now, I leave you with an invitation from a poet who loved to have a good time and knew how to tell a good story. For that, Shel Silverstein, I thank you.

Invitation

If you are a dreamer, come in,
If you are a dreamer, a wisher, a liar,
A hope-er, a pray-er, a magic bean buyer...
If you're a pretender, come sit by my fire
For we have some flax-golden tales to spin.
Come in!
Come in!

So to you, anonymous reader, please come in. Just leave your judgments and preconceptions at the door. Oh, and please wipe your feet.