Bitchin’ Friday: Morning Manners

            For the past couple of weeks every time my man has woken up to get ready for work and leave the house he has woken me up and caused me to have weird sleep patterns.  Sometimes I would drift in and out of sleep state or cant fall back to sleep and thus I get up early, but most of the time I would go into one of those drift states and not wake up until 9 or 10 am.   This really sucks because I can’t fall asleep until midnight due to his snoring.  So what can someone do to make it easier on the person who is sleeping?

            For starters, turn down the noise.  By noise I mean the TV, making breakfast, and cleaning dishes.  I appreciate that you are doing dishes but those dishes you are doing are from last night and should have been dealt with last night.  I also understand you need to eat and have some forum of entertainment, but you don’t need to have the TV volume up supper high and keep banning pots to a minimal.

            On the subject of noise, if you want to have sex early in the morning, there are better way to do so than to blast your laptop speakers in the bathroom while playing a porno flick.  I am very curious as to why you would think I would want to venture down the stairs away from my warm bed to have a quickie in the shower. 

            Another thing you can do is to turn off the lights when you leave the house.  Lights keep me up, it is not hard to flip a switch or open an ipad to turn off our lights.  Also make sure you throw away your trash before you leave.  We have cats who love to play with trash. 

            It is the simple things that can keep a person from having a pleasant sleep and awakening.  So what are your pet peeves that prevent you from having a restfully morning?  Write them in the comments below and I will see you lovely bots on Monday.

           

            See you on the other side

Party Wednesday: Cosmos Viewing Party

            If you were a kid growing up in the 80’s or 90’s you have probably have seen the documentary series Cosmos re-running on PBS.  I loved watching this series with my dad when I was younger and brought out discussions on different theories of the universe and science in my family.  When I heard that FOX (what?) was presenting an hour long 13 episode series as a follow up to the original Cosmos; my heart was a little worried because FOX was presenting it but then I was over filled with joy that the host was going to be Neil deGrasse Tyson.  Even if this is going to be a dumb down version to appeal to a wider audience at least it will be a starting point of discussion for science.

            Now what does this have to do with a party theme?  Well for starters if you and your friends like to sit around discussing science then why not gather around the old boob tube and watch this series and have a discussion afterwards.  Regardless if it is good or bad any time you can gather with your crew to have a few drinks and talk is a good night.

Décor

            For you lighting find a star projector and have it set up to have the stars projected up on the ceiling. 

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Planetarium-Homestar-Theatre-Sega-Toys/dp/B005R0FMHY

Also set up a regular DVD projector and create a looping video of images of space.

Like this for example.

For additional lighting to see your food and to place along the room, you can make these glow stick jars that you make to look like a DNA strand or these cool brick glowing light bulbs to spark imagination.

http://www.creativegreenliving.com/2013/06/make-recycled-fourth-of-july-table-lanterns.html

http://www.suck.uk.com/products/glowbrick/

For your table, keep it simple with a black table cloth, you will have plenty of food and light decorations to cover it with.  Plate and flat wear, you can buy some online that feature different nebulas and galaxies.

http://www.zazzle.co.uk/outer+space+plates

Now I suspect that not every one will be able to sit on the couch.  An alternative is to create a padded and blanketed area in front of the couch for them.  You can throw down multiple rugs, blankets and pillows for their comfort.  Jazz it up with some throw blankets and pillows that have galaxies and nebulas on them. 

http://www.cafepress.com/+smc_throw_blanket,837933700

http://society6.com/mattborchert/Galaxy-e8U_Pillow#25=193&18=126

Food

Rocket Dogs

http://spoonful.com/recipes/rocket-dogs

Shooting Star Skewers

http://www.sheknows.com/food-and-recipes/articles/964439/patriotic-4th-of-july-recipes

Astronaut Beef Stew 2 Options:

Option 1 real astronaut stew:

http://www.astronautfoods.com/products/space-dinner/astronaut-beef-stew-space-dinner.html

Option 2

http://www.closetcooking.com/2008/12/italian-style-beef-stew-with-butternut.html

Space Pops

Cake recipe: http://www.bettycrocker.com/recipes/rainbow-layer-cake/4969fed8-141e-45f5-9a04-e03addd20fbb

How to build instructions:  http://cookiesandcups.com/funfetti-push-up-pop-cupcakes/

Drink

Space In A Glass

http://www.allgeektome.net/2012/08/16/alcoholic-beverage-puts-outer-space-in-a-glass/

Space Odyssey

http://www.scooking.net/cocktail/space-odyssey#.Uw5UZ847E1I

Black Hole

http://www.cocktailmaking.co.uk/displaycocktail.php/1588-a-blackhole

           

            Your Friends will be enlightened by the party that you have thrown… or drunk and passed out across your living room.  Either way it will be a good party all around.  The show Cosmos: A Space Time Odyssey premiers March 9 at 9pm on FOX.

            Like always I would love to hear from you if you have any suggestions on what I should do for the next Party Wednesday; or have pics you would like to share just send them my way.  See you Friday for some ranting or whatever. 

See you on the other side

Loot Create & Website Upgrades

            Last week I spent a majority of my time planning out my Wonder Woman costumes for Emerald City Comic Con and redesigning my website for my sound services.  There is still some fine tuning that I want to do to my resume and demo reel for my site, but look wise it looks ten times better than it did.  As for my cosplay, I’ve started to buy some pieces for my costumes but I need to go to the fabric store soon.

            Thursday was Pentatonix concert.  You can read more about it in last weeks Friday blog here: Bitchin’ Friday: Pentatonix Concert Review

            Friday was Loot Create Day!!  You don’t know what loot create is?  It is a monthly subscription (like a food of the month club) where they have a theme for that month and fill up your creates around said theme.  This month it was warriors.  My man and I received a t-shirt, bravest warriors’ bow tie (impossibear style), gas powered stick bag, dunny sideshow camera lens bunny, bacon love card, bravest warriors digital comic, and a bravest warriors stick and button.  I highly suggest signing up for loot create, you will end up with more value in the box than what you paid for. you can sign up here: LOOT CREATE.

February 2014 Loot Create

Damn cat messing up the shot.

            Saturday and Sunday were lazy, sitting at home with my man playing games and trying to pin down days with my friends to hang out.  One of my friends we are working out a day to go over to her place to work on our cosplay for ECCC.  One I tried to get in contact with but I think I may have pissed her off at some point and I don’t know if we will be catching up together at all.  In any case I can’t be too worried about friendships when I am trying to gather up more work. 

            This week I am trying to push out a party Wednesday for you, I think I just cam up with a concept just now….  Also I will be going to a screening of a film I worked on this past January, got to keep up with my relations with directors.  Have a good week everyone and see you back here Wednesday.

            See you on the other side

Bitchin’ Friday: Pentatonix Concert Review

            Last night I went to see Pentatonix (PTX for short) concert at the Paramount Theater.  I haven’t been to a concert in forever and the one I usually attended are rock concerts.  But I like PTX from their YouTube channel and my man thought it would be interesting to see who they perform live.  

            The band originates from choir and added base vocals and beat boxer to forum a more harmonic a cappella group.  There voices are lovely and each one of them has such a huge vocal range.  Here is where it gets messy, in the opening song “Daft Punk” (which is one of my favorites by the way) they sounded like a jumbled mess.  The tenors and sopranos over whelmed the bass muddling up.  To top it off there was very little choreography and felt like we were attending a high school choir concert with lights constantly blinding us.  It wasn’t until after there first act when they brought out their beat boxer to play on his cello while beat boxing.  It was beautiful song he played/sung and it really wanted me to get up and do a sensual dance with my man. You can watch the cello beat box here:     

After the cello beat box the concert turned around and was so much better.  There was less vocal fighting and each vocal range shined at the proper moments. 

            What this concert really needed was a live sound mixer.  They really needed him in the first half of the concert, but threw out a really good sound mixer will help balance out the vocals and create more dynamic range in each song.  If you compare a local band concert to a professional stadium concert you know the pro’s sound quality is ten times that of the locals.  This is not to say the locals music is bad but I am comparing to the over all sound quality of the instruments and the vocals.  In the Pro’s the vocals can be heard loud and clear and the instruments are not muddling together.  Compare that to a group that does not have a live mixer and the instrument start to muddle together and you can’t really hear the vocals unless they shout into the microphone.

            A few tweaks from a sound mixer during this concert would have helped with the muddling problem.  Aside from the vocals, visuals would have helped significantly.  Simple blocking and a bit of dancing from the artists would have been more entertaining.  Even something as simple as a costume change would have shake things up.   I go to concerts not only to listen to the music but to be visually stimulated as well.  A little choreography goes a long way.

            I still really like this group and they are a very talented young bunch of kids.  What they are lacking is stage performance and grandeur.  With a few tweaks to their performance and a sound mixer off stage, this can be a worth while concert to attend.  Check out PTX for your self at their site PTX Official.

           

            See you on the other side

Cold Bug Is Gone

            Last week I mentioned that I feeling under the weather due to my stupid-ness of going outside ill prepared.  As a result a majority of my week was spent hurdled up on the couch coughing and sleeping.  But I did manage to bring you a party Wednesday and I was over my cold by Saturday evening.

            Friday was Valentines Day and I spent it like any old couple would… eating home made nachos and watching TV.  After being together for 8+ years we (more like I) figured that instead of getting dressed up braving the stormy weather and fighting crowds of people for an over priced meal it would be better to stay home and be comfy.  After dinner my man surprised me with a gift, even though I told him not to get me anything, it was Sharies Berries.  If you have never tasted Sharies Berries before you my friend are missing out, holy crap they are tasty!

            Saturday I was a little bit lazy and finally got off my butt and saw The Lego Movie.  It was Awesome.  Not going to ruin the plot but it is better than Toy Story and has a better meaning at the end.  So go see it!

            This week I don’t have any big plans but I will figure something out.  I will probably play some Titianfall beta, this is a really fun multiplayer and you should go play it on your Xbox One NOW!  Catch you fin folk Friday for some ranting or review.

           

            See you on the other side

Bitchin’ Friday: Valentines Day

            If you are single and went on Facebook today, you will notice a trend amongst your couple friends.  They have replaced there usual duck face selfies in place of a selfie of them and there significant other.  This is both obnoxious and a stab to all there single friends.  Before you ask, yes I did replace my picture on Facebook with one of my man and I…because I’m and asshole.

            Valentines Day is not meant to be just for couples to flaunt there love for one another.  It is also saying how much you care about your friends, family, and even pets.  For this Valentines Day grab a friend, family member, or pet and tell them how much they mean to you.  You don’t have to buy them lavish gifts; just a simple hug or scratch behind the ears will tell them just how much you mean to them. 

          

  So instead of moping around and hating on couples, grab a friend and do a friends date night and remind them why you two are friends.  As for me and my man we are doing a low key V-day.  I’m making love nachos and playing Titian Fall beta.  So what are you plans for this day?  Leave me a comment below on what you are doing and why you love/hate this day.

            See you on the other side

Party Wednesday: 8 Bit Valentines

            Valentines Day is only 2 day’s way, what are you doing for your loved one?  Me, I’m doing jack shit.  No fancy dinner or going out, just being lazy and playing video games.  If you want to do something for your loved one, or plan on doing a romantic dinner in the near future why not make it a throw back style of classic video games. 

Décor

            Lighting is the one key to setting the tone for romance.  It is harder to put the moves on in a well light room than it is in a dim room.  For our romantic dinner we are going with soft red lighting scheme.  You want to go for more of a bedroom sunset feel rather than a red light district selling off prostitutes.

http://www.arup.com/Projects/Gardner_Museum/Gardner_Museum_Gallery2.aspx

            Suspend from the ceiling and place along the walls 8 bit hearts and flowers.  You can easily print off a bunch of hearts and flowers, glue them on to cardboard.  The cardboard makes the images pop out more form the wall and with hang a little sturdier. 

http://www.thinkgeek.com/product/e731/

Or

http://www.thinkgeek.com/product/f2a4/

            Moving onto the table, use a tall square table and drape this lovely fabric over it.  This particular fabric I found on Spoonflower and I find that it ties into the 8 bitness well.

http://www.spoonflower.com/fabric/2477260

            For your centerpiece have 4 bouquets of 8 bit flowers.

http://www.etsy.com/listing/86803433/fireflower-themed-felt-bouquet?ref=shop_home_active_2

http://www.it8bit.com/post/3186778729/8bitbouquet

            For dinner I planed out a sushi dinner, that way you can share and be interactive with each other.  I found a couple of plates that fit that retro 8 bit style:

           

http://www.amusement.net/2013/09/03/the-only-bone-chine-tableware-you-will-ever-need-plates-with-game-boy-patterns/

Or

     

      http://www.zazzle.com/8_bit_hearts_plates-115442597113111390

            Champagne brings out the giddiness in a woman (sometimes a man).  I found this cool champagne glasses that your have to keep together in a vase.   Instead of filling the vase with sand (like it is pictured below) why not fill it with tiny legos and bricks.

http://www.wayfair.com/Cathys-Concepts-Champagne-Flutes-in-a-Vase-7296-YCT1211.html

            And to eat your sushi, you can go with a traditional pair of chopsticks or find some Lego ones!

http://korin.com/Ironwood-Cherry-Bark-Chopsticks?sc=29&category=281366

http://www.rakuten.com/prod/block-chopsticks-green/252558296.html?listingId=295505834

                Don’t forget to change into a nice shirt and pants.  Style it with an 8 bit tie of bow tie!

http://www.thinkgeek.com/product/9352/

http://www.etsy.com/listing/60248300/8-bit-bow-tie-by-clever-trevor

Food

Fancy up your sushi with some designer nori!

http://www.feeldesain.com/designer-nori-laser-cut-seaweed-patterns.html

Osaka Style Sushi

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/robert-irvine/osaka-style-sushi-recipe.html

Square Kiwifruit Sushi

http://www.zespri.com/zespri-recipes/starters-and-snacks/square-kiwifruit-sushi.html

Bubur Cha Cha

http://www.singaporelocalfavourites.com/2010/08/easy-bo-bo-cha-cha-recipe.html

 

Drink

Rose Champagne

Veuve Clicquot, Vintage Rosé Brut 2004

Peach’s Cake

http://www.thedrunkenmoogle.com/post/75933653972/peachs-cake-super-mario-bros-cocktail

Sexy Night Cap aka Baton Rouge

http://liquor.com/recipes/baton-rouge/?utm_source=huffpo&utm_medium=articl&utm_campaign=nightcap

Gifts

           

            Yes even though you put together this wonderful meal and evening, you still need to get them a gift so they will always remember this night.

8 Bit Heart Necklace

http://ournerdhome.com/8-bit-heart-necklace/

8 Bit Watch

http://www.dvice.com/archives/2010/12/x_awesome_gifts.php

Fully Functional Wooden NES Controller Coffee Table (a great way to end the evening with both of you playing old games together)

http://www.gizmag.com/nintendo-controller-coffee-table/22224/

            With pixilated moves like you will be putting on your lady or gentleman you are sure to score some point with them.  Like always I would love to hear from you if you have any suggestions on what I should do for the next Party Wednesday; or have pics you would like to share just send them my way.  See you Friday for some ranting or whatever. 

See you on the other side

Cold And Under The Weather

            Blargh, I am felling under the weather today.  I think I caught my cold from the frigid temperatures and standing in freezing temperatures for long periods at a time.  Today I think I will take it easy, drink warm liquids, and relax and not worry about a thing.

            These whole sicknesses started back on Wednesday, if you live in the Seattle area or in Washington then you know that day was the Seahawk parade.  If you read my previous Monday post, you know that they have won there first supper bowl.  Living so close to the parade route, I was constantly looking outside to see if the streets were becoming packed.  By 8:30 am I decided to bundle up with multiple layers of pants and shirts to stand out and wait for the parade that was suppose to start at 11am.  Come noon the parade starts and I am freezing my but off, I couldn’t feel my toes, but I did have a pretty good spot on the side walk to take some photos (a total of 900+).  Despite being so cold it was cool to see the team up close.  Below is a link to my flicker page to see the parade pictures.

            Thursday I went out in the cold for errands, stupid move.  On Friday my mom surprised visited me and we went shopping.  I always enjoy shopping with my mom, but when I felt that sore throat creeping up on you it suck.  That night my man and I went out to see Spamalot the Monty Python musical.  I should have stayed in but I am so glad that I didn’t!  If you are any kink of Monty Python fan, you need to see this.  I guarantee you will laugh your ass off. 

            Saturday was the coldest day of them all, and it had to fall on our game day/night over at a friend’s house.  It would have been fine if it didn’t snow and we had to leave early because of it.  We were having a great time playing Forbidden Island, Betrayal at the House on the Hill, Pix, and Mass Effect Risk.  Hindsight it was probably wise that we left when we did other wise we would have been stuck at our friend’s house over night and that would not have been good for my on coming illness.

            Any intelligent person with half a mind would stay home and relax for a day to combat the cold.  I am not a wise person.  Sunday I ventured out to do some grocery shopping.  Hello, my name is Schadenfreude Girl and I’m an idiot.

            Now I am paying for not listening to my body, and can not speak with out phlegm falling out of my mouth.  Good news is that I have an idea for this week’s party Wednesday!  To a nod to old loves every where I am going to do an 8 bit valentines day.  Come bake Wednesday for a little love inspiration.

           

            See you on the other side