Roller Derby

Ever since Ellen Page starred in Whip It I've wanted to see a local roller derby bout. Last week a Groupon popped up for the River City Rollergirls' season opener at the Richmond Convention Center. We decided to get a refresher on roller derby rules by watching Whip It again (because movies translate directly to reality, right?) but it actually helped a lot in figuring out how to identify the blockers/ pivots/ jammers, exactly what a jam is, and ways teams can score points. (You can read about it here.)

Poe's Punishers (one of the Richmond teams) slammed the Charlottesville Derby Dames with a final score of 186-100. Even though Ellen Page and Kristen Wiig weren't on the track, it was still really exciting the see the heavily tattooed gals in fishnets ramming into each other on old school roller skates. They even have clever don't-mess-with-me names like Traumagotchi, KGBeast, and Rude McSlamahan.

Mates of State

A week ago, in rare form, I decided to google a local news website. Local news kind of scares me, but I wanted to be informed of any pertinent crime since I was headed to a dicey neighborhood later that day for work. I never did find the crime stats because I noticed a plug for Mates of State -- a band I really took a liking to about four years ago -- doing a show in Richmond that night. They played a lot from their old albums (my favorite is Rearrange Us) and infused it with songs from Mountaintops, their latest. It was the perfect surprise for what would have otherwise been a mundane Monday night. You can listen to a sampling of their tunes here.

20 x 200

If I can't spend my day making art, I'd like to spend it surrounded by some. That's the idea of 20 x 200...

(limited editions × low prices)
+ the internet 
= art for everyone

There are tons of prints to choose from in varied sizes and prices (and easily Googled promo codes!). I saw this untitled print a year or two ago and I kept going back to it in my mind. With a potential new house on the horizon, I checked to see if it was still available and ordered an 11 x 14 print this afternoon.

To me it says, "today is going to be a good one."

Wednesday

Some days you just need a giant cinnamon roll the size of your face. 

To share, of course.
Lucky coworkers.

Happy Hearts

[Image via Kate Miss]

We've never really done much for Valentine's Day, but I don't mind it. Some people get carried away with all of the hype, and others just as carried away with the anti-hype. I'd love to wake up to these lovely ranunculus and a sweet note just as much as a fancy dinner out.

On Our Way

[image via Hilda Grahnat]

Well folks, I can gladly report that this house's inspection is a lot easier to swallow than the last! With a new roof, we'll be in business. Negotiations and estimates are happening this week, so by Friday we should have a good idea of where we stand. In the meantime, I'm trying to hold back on scouring the internet for house-y purchases and instead spend my time browsing resources like Design*Sponge At Home, Domino, and Pinterest.

Calm

I love this photo by Hilda Grahnat -- so much that I use it as my desktop at work. It brings a little calm to my day.

Cross! Your! Fingers!

We found another house. So fast, right? Like I said, I'm extremely glad that relationship rebound rules don't apply here. Thank goodness houses don't have feelings.

Chris saw pictures online and thought it was great, so we got the second showing right after it came on the market on Monday. Charm, charm, charm! amigos. Open space, lots of light, breakfast nook, etc etc. The downfall with the last potential house was the inspection, so please cross your fingers that this house only comes with very few and very minor issues. Eee!

Neighborhood Spot

Garnett's, I adore you. Your eclectic framed photos on the walls, cheesy mornay sauce on my Croque Garnett, and little slice of ever-rotating heaven for dessert. To you I will always be true.

Foods I Like

Lately I've been into three specific foods: brussels sprouts, kale and quinoa. I've talked about brussels sprouts before so I thought I'd give the other two some time in the spotlight.

1. Kale is a relatively new discovery to me but only recently have I been brave enough to experiment with. And truthfully I've only done one thing with it. Kale chips. There are all sorts of recipes for kale chips on the interwebs, but I tried and loved Smitten Kitchen's version and have made them approximately four times in the past two weeks. For reals.

Baked Kale Chips - via Smitten Kitchen
Adapted from a bunch of inspiring places

1 bunch (about 6 ounces) kale (I used Lacinato or “Dinosaur” Kale but I understand that the curlier stuff works, too, possibly even better)
1 tablespoon olive oil
Sea salt, to taste

Preheat oven to 300°F. Rinse and dry the kale, then remove the stems and tough center ribs. Cut into large pieces, toss with olive oil in a bowl then sprinkle with salt. Arrange leaves in a single layer on a large baking sheet (I needed two because mine are tiny; I also lined mine with parchment for easy clean-up but there’s no reason that you must). Bake for 20 minutes, or until crisp. Place baking sheet on a rack to cool.

2. Quinoa has been in my kitchen repertoire for a while now, but the other day I mixed it in with another tried and true combo and loved the result. Basic quinoa is one part quinoa to two parts water. I do 6 oz. of the little mini can of Spicy Hot V8 juice, 10 oz. water, and toss in some spices like chili powder, TJ's 21 Seasoning Salute (a no-salt mix of garlic, onion, lots of other things -- amazing!), and red pepper flakes. It gives the grain some extra oomph. While the quinoa is cooking I slice and pan-cook polenta circles and sauté onions, peppers, broccoli, jalapeños, and ________ (any other veggies we have). Top the polenta cakes with the amped up quinoa and veggies, and then top those with sliced avocado and a smidge of sharp cheddar. Avocado is key here! I wish I had a picture for you but it was too delicious to stay on my plate for long...

In other news, the sellers wouldn't make the repairs we wanted so we voided the contract on Sunday afternoon and are continuing our search. I'm really hoping relationship rules don't apply to house hunting because we scheduled a showing for a new house on Monday. Rebound? :)