Daisy bicycle

I was recently given a free bike (thanks! Christy =)). Now, I can join the hordes of hipsters riding around San Diego, buying veggies and art supplies; it's absolutely fantastic!! =)



I'm having loads of fun riding up to Whole Foods, down to Little Italy and over to the craft/art supply store. It gives me a little extra exercise and saves a small puddle of crude oil somewhere in the world. I haven't found a helmet yet, but I'm sure that when I do, I'll make sure to post a photo of it in all its adorable, helmety glory.

Prickly pear vs cotton yarn pear

So many different types of pears and neither of the ones featured in this post are actual, real live pears!

I've recently conducted a comparison of the prickly pear which is the fruit of an edible cactus and the little cotton pear that I recently crocheted. So far the prickly pear wins for tastiness and the little crocheted pear wins for cuteness :)

So, obviously I am not actually comparing these "pears" but it sure was cute to set them next to each other for a photo. This was, in fact, my very first experience with buying, prepping and eating prickly pears. 

When I saw them at my favorite grocery store, I just knew I had to try them. I love buying new, to me, fruit and this was about as unusual as I've ever had.

Turns out they are just the loveliest color ever(my favorite color) and they taste a little bit like pomegranate, because of the earthy, seedy taste. Basically, I blended the flesh of the fruit and then strained it to mix with sugar and water for a light syrup. This syrup went into margaritas and bubbly water. I only used this to make a few delicious beverages because the other things people tend to make with prickly pear(jelly, candy) require many more prickly pears than I had purchased. 

Maybe prickly pear jelly can be a "someday project" which I will make if I ever have more prickly pear fruits than I know what to do with, until then, I think it's fun to enjoy their contribution to making fun and unusual beverages.

cheerful pear

My latest crochet project was very quick to make and easy. It required very little stitch counting and almost no sewing of little parts together, so when I was done I was done, unlike so many of the projects that I've made which can take upwards of 30 min or so of hand sewing fins or limbs or little tails to bodies once I've crocheted all the pieces.

I made this little pear over the course of two craft night sessions, but I really think it could come together in less than an hour if I was focusing all my attention on working on the pear and less time on chatting with friends (but who wants to do that? =))

Of course, as with all my little crochet projects, the big question is, "what's it for?" I'm not entirely sure but I suppose the real point of making these little creatures is that they are cute and cheerful and fun to make.

 

Candle making

My first candle making attempt has resulted in mostly perfect results, but one of the candles set very oddly. I made them at the same time, same method but one candle set up beautifully, while the other candle looks like I stirred it as it was setting(though I didn't). 

Other than the one lumpy candle, I felt very successful with this first attempt. I used a combo of vanilla and sweet orange oils to create an orange creamsicle scent. The candles smell delicious and I can't wait to burn them :)

The sad, sad lumpy candle

The happy, cheerful, perfect candle

Finishing up Japan pictures-Tokyo

Matthew and I thought we were eating well during the first two weeks of our trip to Japan, but it turns out all of that was just in preparation for the last week which was spent gorging ourselves silly in Tokyo. Naturally, we wanted to make sure we didn't miss a thing and of course that isn't possible in a country like Japan that has so, so much to offer, especially in regards to delicious delicacies.

Ramen in Yokohama- the broth was thick enough to stand a spoon up in it; not my favorite but interesting for the experience

The mixed Katsu plate- so perfectly fried- the best I've eaten

The Macaron Off!! This was just too much fun, buying so many gorgeous macarons in one day and deciding that the best course of action would be to use the excuse of comparing them to justify such an indulgence.

Still in their boxes- didn't want them to start fighting

Pierre Herme vs. Laduree: Matthew and I both loved all the macarons but felt that the macarons from Pierre Herme had an edge over the macarons from Laduree. They were more intensely flavored, possibly due to having more filling between the cookies and while the colors of the cookies were not quite as vibrant as those of the macarons from Laduree, the complexity of the flavors was more interesting in the macarons from Pierre Herme. My final judgement: I don't really care whose are better, just let me eat macarons!! =)

A beautiful selection from Pierre Herme

A charming selection from Laduree

pour over coffee from Shozo coffee stand, located in 246common

A perfect lunch to keep us happy while doing laundry - The Five E's Burger from Parrot Kitchen

I mistakenly ordered the tsuke-men ramen at Matthew's favorite ramen shop in Akihabara but I still enjoyed this warming dish- despite the fact that I don't prefer this style of ramen

Matthew's favorite ramen- tonkotsu broth with roasted garlic oil poured over the top

Since we were in Akihabara having a bowl of ramen, we went ahead and got a drink at the Gundam cafe- I had the strawberry latte 

A fantastic little lunch in sweet little cafe- I loved having two tiny sandwiches instead of one big one cut in half

amazing sashimi in Kanda

Eating Salmon eggs with a wooden spoon- my new favorite way to eat Ikura

I loved the barely seared edge of salmon that gave this piece of sushi a smokey flavor- delicious!

Finishing up Japan pictures- Shibamata

 
During our last week in Tokyo, Matthew and I made a quick trip out to a suburb of Tokyo to the area of Shibamata. Matthew has long wanted to visit the old fashioned neighborhood used to film scenes for the Tora-san movies.

 
We spent only an hour or so checking it out and did buy a few tasty treats, some freshly made Karinto and some peanut brittle. All in all, worth the trip out for the beautiful views of the river, alone.

Finishing up Japan pictures- Nara

Well, I guess I kinda got off the blog posting band wagon that I had going for the first half of our visit to Japan, and now that I'm home and life is on it's way back to being normal, I'll finish up posting a few photos from the remainder of our time there.

After our big, fun day in Osaka, we took a quick trip out to beautiful Nara to see the crazy crazy deer they have just roaming the parks and streets. I think these deer must have a keeper because they are all very tame. Of course, they have thousands of people a day feeding them little deer cookies, so that might have something to do with it =)

you can see the hardened look of a back streets cookie thief in his eye

they acted just like goats- it was just a little odd

this little deer was ready to bolt-totally not into petting, only cookies!!!

Taken two seconds before the deer bit Matthew's tummy(yes it was completely hilarious)

Taken two seconds after the deer bit Matthew's tummy