60 in 60: Day 1- S'mores Cookie Bars

Today's cookie: S'mores Cookie Bars

Today's Recipe: Found here.

I have been overly excited to start this project in the past few weeks. Yesterday and Saturday my boyfriend and I went to Aldi's and Wal-Mart to get cookie supplies for this week. There are a few interesting ingredients for this week's cookies in, what I've dubbed, the cookie box. (There's also a bag of half-eaten stale movie popcorn from Saturday in there, but that isn't part of the ingredients.)

S'mores Cookie Bars

Ingredients:

1/3 cups Unsalted butter (softened)
1/3 cup Vegetable shortening
2/3 cup Brown sugar (firmly packed)
1 Egg
1/2 tsp Vanilla extract
1 cup Graham cracker crumbs
2/3 cups All purpose flour
1/4 tsp Salt
6 tbsp Whipping cream
9 oz. Milk chocolate candy bars (chopped)
1 cup Mini marshmallows

I was doing the ingredient list by memory and knew that I needed graham crackers for these cookies, but it completely slipped my mind that I needed crumbs and not actual crackers. It probably didn't help my memory that I took almost a complete five minutes deciding whether I wanted "cinnamon" or "honey" graham crackers. (I went for honey, by the way.) So, I get to smash the graham crackers first thing.

Now with more SMASH action.

If you needed to know, about 5 1/2 graham crackers equals 1 cup of graham cracker crumbs.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Grease a 9x13" baking pan.

Combine softened butter, vegetable shortening, brown sugar, egg and vanilla extract in medium mixing bowl. Beat at medium speed until well blended.

Combine the graham cracker crumbs, flour and salt together, and add to creamed mixture, mixing at low speed until blended.

Spread the dough evenly into greased pan.

When I first dumped the mixture in to the pan it didn't look like it was going to cover the entire bottom. But, amazingly, and with a bit of work, it did. There may have been a few holes in the bottom crust, but it didn't seem to hurt the cookies.

Bake for about 15 minutes or until edges are lightly browned and the middle is set but still slightly soft. Allow to cool completely.

Make topping by placing cream in a heavy saucepan, bringing to a simmer.

Remove cream from heat, stirring in chocolate pieces until melted.

9oz of chopped chocolate bars is equal to just under 6 Hershey bars. That means you can eat a few pieces as you're waiting for the whipping cream to boil.

Stir in the marshmallows.

Spread mixture evenly over the cooked crust.

Refrigerate until firm before slicing into bars.

This was the hardest part of the entire recipe, trust. I hate waiting. I'm not very good at it. Especially when things look and smell delicious. Speaking of looks- the recipe didn't call for the marshmallow toppers on the cookie bars, but it looked like it needed something so I added, say, an extra 2 cups of marshmallows to the recipe. Now it looks even MORE delicious.

Recipe Yield: 1 9x13 pan of deliciousness

My Yield: 1 9x13 pan of deliciousness, minus a hole here and there.

The best and worst 2 months, ever. (Part 3)

((This is the last bit of this saga. After this my blog will be filled with delicious cookies for a few months.))

A few days in to August (I'm not sure, exactly, the date) I got a phone call from my old boss at St Bonaventure. I worked there as a theatre tech helper while I was laid off and had loads of fun. I was sad to leave. He asked if I'd like to help out on some shows this season. I said yes, of course, and asked when I should go in to see the schedules in the like. He said the next day would be fine. I was super excited, I had a job again! I got up early the next morning and biked the mile to the college only to find out that he really didn't need me until October, he was just making sure I'd be available.

On my birthday, the 20th, I got a text from my landlord. He asked if it was acceptable to not pay rent or if I had moved out. I responded asking if it was acceptable to let me live in the shit hole that I live in. He didn't have much to say to that other than it's hard to pay for plumbers if I don't pay him rent. I didn't respond. It was my birthday and I was in no way going to let him get me in to a pissy mood before my party.

I had stayed at my boyfriend's apartment the night before, like I sometimes do, and had to make a stop at my house for one thing or another before going out that night. Luckily, he waited in the driveway for me to get whatever it was that I needed (my belt, I think, or something equally needed, but trivial). When I got to the top of my stairs, I found a note stuck in the window of the door from the power company. Oh joy of joys, my power had been disconnected on my birthday. Would the day ever get any better? I went in, got what I needed, apologized to the cats for not having the fan running, and left. I didn't take the note with me, but I did tell the boyfriend what happened. I allowed five minutes to talk about it and feel pity for myself before I demanded not to hear about it again on my birthday.

My birthday was almost awesome, by the way. With the exception of my best friend turning in to an angry drunk and the boyfriend being just a bit too possessive for my taste. (While I appreciate the sentiment, I can take care of myself, and I know when to say no.)

My old boss from the SAC now works at St. Bonaventure and he's looking for someone part time. I got his cell number last Monday and asked if he was still hiring. He told me it was only ten to fifteen hours a week, but if I still wanted the job, he'd contact me later.

I've yet to hear from him, but I have my hopes up. What's the worst if I don't get it? It'll just turn in to the best and worst three months. And that, I just might be able to live with. After all, I do have work lined up for three days in October.

((Also, as I mentioned in the comments of part 1, but neglected to state in any entries. I did finally suck it up and apply to everywhere within biking/walking distance. No one seems to want me, I guess.))

The best and worst 2 months, ever. (Part 2)

((As promised yesterday, here's a bit more of my tale of sadness. I'm not trying to be all "poor pity me" by blogging this it's just..I need to tell SOMEONE.))

Fast forward to my Gram's birthday, June 22nd. Still no job. I had, probably, fifty dollars left from the money that would last me "months". I also still hadn't touched the money from unemployment. But, rent was due soon and the old ladies always went to dinner and the casino for birthdays. I was hoping to hit it big as the casino. I took 400 out of the unemployment money. One hundred was for that day and the other 300 was supposed to go to rent.

After dinner and the casino, I ended up spending 150, so I was short on my already short rent. And, probably needless to say, I didn't win a dime at the casino.

On July 6th I managed to pay my rent by taking even more money out of the unemployment fund. Luckily, I was no longer paying for my alcohol addiction. My best friend, who was now speaking to me, and my guy friend-turned boyfriend were taking care of that for me. All I had left to pay for were my food and movie addictions. Easy enough, I stopped eating every day of the week and I also stopped renting new releases. Dollar movies and big lunches were all I had left.

After I paid rent I had, quite literally 187.39 to my name. No bills were paid in July, except my rent and half of my already overdue electric bill. The gas bill was so little, I figured I could hold it off for a bit. They also hadn't started to send me notices yet. The water bill, luckily, kind of, only has to be paid once every three months here and I figured I wasn't going to get it for another month. Well, as I was slowly figuring out, things I "figured" were almost always wrong. And I hoped what I was figuring out was wrong, too. The water bill didn't get paid that month either.

I swear, if the electric company took all the money that they put into envelopes and paper and printer ink and postage to send me overdue/shutoff notices, they'd have paid most of my bill for me.

Not four days later, July 1oth, my toilet decided it didn't want to work anymore. It was going to just leak water all over and not flush properly. So, not only did (do) I not have a kitchen sink (that broke in the winter) and a permanently plugged bathroom sink (someone, most likely me, dropped a plastic lid down the drain), but now I no longer had a working toilet. My problems never seemed to slow down.

But, as I try to do, even now, I looked on the bright side of things. My landlord had a plumber come out a few days before, and he would surely fix this problem when he came out to finish repairing my kitchen sink. Remember what I said about my figuring always being wrong?

By the end of July I had torn apart the apartment and gathered every last nickel, dime, penny, and quarter I had. Rolled and spent that on my ever-loving movie and food addictions. I was now down to eating every other day and renting kids movies (always free!) and fifty cent rentals. When August came, I didn't have any money to pay rent. Everyone I talked to about the issues in my apartment told me that I shouldn't be paying rent anyway, at least until I get my toilet and sinks fixed.

So, I listened to them for once.

My rent is due by the fifth of the month. I expected angry texts and emails and calls from my landlord on the sixth. That passed, nothing. The seventh passed, nothing. The eighth and so on. Nothing. By the tenth I figured that he knew why I wasn't paying rent and that he might do something about it.

There's me figuring again. I should learn to stop doing that.

I'll finish the story tomorrow. There's good news in that one, kind of.

The best and worst 2 months, ever.

((As a side note, if you know me in person and you read this, please don't mention it. To anyone. PLEASE. It's embarrassing enough to have to admit it to myself, but I need to tell someone and the internet is safe enough for anonymity, but I know a few people I know personally read this. I had to tell someone. Thanks.)

It all started on June 1st of this year. Well, for me it was May 31st, but the official paperwork calls it June 1st, so that's what we'll call it. That day, or night, rather, it was 4 in the morning, I quit my very good (read: well paying) job at Seneca Allegany Casino and Hotel to pursue what I told my family were "better opportunities somewhere I didn't have to work 3rd shift." Two months later, here I am, writing this on a dying laptop by the light of a 9 watt bulb powered by D batteries, none of which I bought for myself. It's 11.30 at night, normally at that time of night my apartment would be ablaze with lights, sounds, and movement from my television set. Not so tonight. You see, 4 days ago, my electric got turned off.

When I quit my job I was only mildly in debt. I had a few unpaid bills, but not enough to seriously worry about. Plus, I figured, I had enough saved up to live on for at least a month, two, if I were strict with my spending. That gave me two to three weeks to find a job, I figured. I wasn't at all worried. Actually, I was happy with my self for finally doing the thing I've been saying I was going to do for a while now.

What can I say? I was twenty one and stupid as hell.

All went well for a bit. I was as happy and relaxed as I could have been. For a whole week, I didn't pay for a single meal that I ate. I spent loads more time with my then flirt-crush (now boyfriend) and I got to sleep at night for once, instead of trying to do it during the day. In that week I managed to spend time with my father (something I slacked on when I was working) and I went to the movies at nine o'clock at night, instead of six, or midnight. The flirt-crush and I went from hugs to kisses. All was good in my life. Well, except my best friend wouldn't talk to me for a few days. But we both knew that she'd get over it. The only reason she was really mad was because we spent most of our time at work talking to each other. As soon as she found someone else to talk to or managed to finally switch shifts, she'd be fine.

I didn't bother to look for a job that first week. As I said, I figured I could go on living unemployed for a month before I had to begin to worry. I also managed to track down my unemployment money that hadn't been processed from when I was laid off in December (I started back to work in the beginning of February). The unemployment money was over seven hundred dollars and a nice safety net for me to fall back on if I happened to be unemployed still after a month. And that, I assured myself, would never happen.

Okay, I need the laptop power to get me through the night, so I'm going to leave the story there for now. I'll post more tomorrow. Promise.

The oven is calling me...

I love baking. I love blogging. Trouble is, I tend to not do either one for one reason or another. So, taking a cue from "Julie & Julia"'s Julie. I'm going to do both. At the same time.

I always pretend to make loads and loads of cookies ahead of time for the holidays. I spend a few days doing nothing but baking, bagging, and freezing cookies. Trouble is, they never last until the time they're intended for.

So, this year, I'm going to do something a little bit different. I'm going to start baking in September, on September 1st to be exact. I'm going to spread my baking out over 2 months, 60 days, exactly. I'm going to make around 60 different cookie recipes, 60, exactly. That way, I don't spend one week making cookies and the next three weeks eating them.

My little project will run from September 1st to October 30th. That way I can have premade cookies for NaNoWriMo in November. (This year I'm going to ML, so there's a little extra strain on me this year.) Hopefully there will be some leftover for Christmas. But, if not, I'll just get to bake again in December!

I'm super excited about this. So excited I'm going to, probably, do some baking today.

But first, I need recipes! Sixty different cookie recipes. They don't have to be drastically different, but a little something different here and there would be nice. I have 16 recipes as of this post, and I'd love to hear what recipes you, my 6(+?) readers love to make/eat. If you're nice, I might even send you some cookies I made off of your recipe. That is, if I don't eat them all myself first.

Michelle is awesome.

So, as you may have noticed, I have absolutely nothing to blog about. That and multiple computer/internet issues have left this space sparse, outdated, and half-forgotten. But, because I wanted to update this blog, I asked my faithful Twitter followers what I should blog about. At the time of this post, I got one response. It was from @rotheroni, someone who I've known over the internet since way back in my high school days, when Neopets were all the rage.

She told me to blog about how awesome she was, "because it's true."

Michelle is awesome for several reasons. I'm going to randomly, and probably not in order, list a few that I remember from the many years I've known her.

When livejournal was the hip, cool thing (back when you had to have a code to open one) she routinely made me a new layout just about every time I was sick of my current one.

When she got her first website she hosted mine for free. She also designed and coded my first layout. After that I attempted to do it myself, but almost always screwed something up, which she almost always would fix for me. She also helped with my brother's fan club web page.

Michelle and I also traded Christmas cards every year, a past time that has sadly gone out the window because I'm horrible at sending things in the mail. (I still have a Mother's Day card to send to my mom from 2008.) When I moved by myself for the very first time she sent me a blanket and some ducky things for my bathroom. Those few ducky things (I know one was a soap holder, but I can't remember what else started with her) have now evolved into the "Rubber Ducky Invasion" that is now my bathroom. I tried to complete the set that she started, until Wal-Mart discontinued it.

I remember I sent her a package/letter/card/something one time and I couldn't remember her last name so I just wrote "Michelle Bin Laden" on the package.

I also remember one time, while I was living with my Gramma, that I left the web cam on while I went to rehearsal/work/a party and asked her to watch the house for me. She did. She also claimed that my Gramma, whom she dubbed "Agnus," was hot. She demanded that I start calling her Papa. I did. It started to became difficult to explain that she wasn't really an elder man when I said something about "my papa," but I still did.

We did kind of lose touch for a little bit. Sometime after I "met" her for the first time (during which we went to see Hairspray). But, thanks to twitter, I'm still kind of updated on the awesomeness that is Michelle.

By the way, if you happened to click on the link to the archived version of Michelle's website, the last few sentences of the last post on the page are about me. It's one huge reason why I think that Michelle is so freaking awesome:

Jessica is, honestly, my best friend. She’s always there to make me laugh. She’s very silly, but I like her like that. I’m glad that we met.

So, I'm going to finally pay her back by telling the world wide web what I think of her:

Michelle is, honestly, one of the coolest people I know. She's been there for me whenever I needed her and I can always be myself when I'm talking to her. I'm so glad that I've (hopefully) had the chance to influence the tiniest part of her life, because she has influenced mine in more ways that she or I probably know.

Michelle is awesome.

Dance to the music

I went to see Almost Abba at Olean's Festival Italia this weekend and during the band's break I realised something:

I just love to watch people dance.

When you dance, you're in your own little world.

Sometimes, your friends come for a visit,

And it doesn't matter if everyone is doing the same choreography,

Or if it looks like they're dancing to different music,

As long as you just dance.

I think I may love watching people dance just as much as I love to dance.

Mirror Me

I met my Mirror Universe counterpart last night.

At first, she seemed like a very nice person,

but then I turned around. Mirror JessAnn took the opportunity to attack me.

It didn't take me long to figure out what was going on. By the time I turned around, she was already attempting another kick, which I skillfully blocked.

As Mirror JessAnn regained her balance, I attempted to gain the advantage - by kicking her in the head.

Unfortunately, my advantage didn't last long, as Mirror JessAnn quickly struck back by placing her foot in my chest.

I aimed a kick back at her chest, but she very skillfully evaded it.

As I was landing from my kick, Mirror JessAnn spun around me and tried to catch me by surprise again.

I countered by making a quick kick to her abdomen that Mirror JessAnn wasn't prepared for.

In a rash move, Mirror JessAnn attempted another kick. Luckily for me, my block knocked her off balance and caused her to fall to the floor.

Unluckily for me, Mirror JessAnn put all of her power into one big kick aimed directly at my baby maker.

As I was reeling in pain (and wondering if I'd ever be able to have children), Mirror JessAnn returned to her own universe. Who knows why she left so soon? Maybe I was just too weak to be able to bond with her. Or maybe kicking my ass was all she needed to do to somehow prove herself in the Mirror Universe.

All I know is that my Mirror Universe counterpart is a fucking ninja. Well, that, and she doesn't have a beard.

Dude! It's a bogus liscensed game!

If you asked me what my favorite video game was when I was 6, I'd have answered, without a doubt, Bill and Ted (for my NES). I've traded in a ton of NES games since then, and have even upgraded to the Playstation (and from there, the Playstation 2), but I never quite had the heart to get rid of my old Nintendo system, or a few of the games. And even after 5 or 6 moves (two of those cross-country) and 15 years, I still have my NES and my six-year-old self's favorite video game, Bill and Ted's Excellent Video Game Adventure. And even though I'll pick up the game and play it every now and then, it is no longer my favorite game in the whole world. It's not even on my top ten, nor is it on my top fifty. (It is on my top 100 though, only because I've not played 100 console games.)

If you were to read the Wikipedia article on Bill and Ted, you might figure that the game sounds completely horrible. Well, that's because it is. But, like so many of the games on Facebook today, it's very addictive, if you've nothing better to do with your time. You walk your little 8-bit version of either Ted or Bill (you don't get to choose which one, but it doesn't matter, they have the same skills) around a map in various points in history and try to locate two things. First, you'll need bait to get your historical dude to come with you, then you'll need to actually find said historical dude. There's no treasure chests nor hidden areas. Just lots of trees, rocks, bushes, fences, and houses.

Ted taking a walk in the Modern World, notice the rocks and the bushes.

Bill pretending to be a cowboy in Western World. In this instance, trees are replaced with cacti. This is because we all know that trees don't grow in Old West times.

You also have to be careful not to get carted off to jail, because the only way to get out of jail is with a skeleton key. The keys act like a life in this game. Run out of keys and the game is over. There are a few ways to get thrown into jail, but the most popular one is to get caught wandering around by a Crazed Jailer Dude (not kidding, that's what they're called in the game book). I've found the easy way to stay away from the Crazed people is by jumping off the path, because while the primitive natives have to stay on the marked path, you don't because you're from the future and you can do whatever the heck you want.

Bill running from a Crazed Jailer Dude in Ancient World.

Ted must have pissed someone off in Medieval World.

(Sad as this is, I know it's the owner of the Jester's Bar and Grille from this cap. I've pissed him off an awful lot myself. So much, I don't go talk to him anymore.)

There is a plot to Bill and Ted's Excellent Video Game Adventure, but I haven't read the 3 screens of game play where it actually takes place in years. But, according to various sites, time travelling rebels have stolen various historical figures and placed them in points in the past. Your job is to go to the past, find the historical dudes, and take them back where they belong. You must do this, because if you don't, Wyld Stallyns will be doomed to be a shitty band forever. (Or something like that, I really didn't read the plot on the web either. I scanned it, Rufus sums it up quite nicely though.) The plot really doesn't matter in this game, because it never comes up in the actual game play. The rebels are never seen and you don't have to pick a lock or anything to get your historical dude back to his own time.

How to find bait for your historical dudes and dudettes in Bill and Ted:

Step 1: Find a collection of fences, rocks, and bushes off of the beaten path.

Step 2: Jump on over to where you think the bait might be hiding. Hope and pray that you've got the right spot as you land on your butt for the nine hundredth time today.

Step 3: Repeat, because you're looking for a Compact Disc for Thomas Edison, not a rose for Marilyn Monroe.

Now, how do you know which Historical Dude you're looking for in this game? Well, easy, you look them up in the phone book. If there is a red blinking phone number underneath their real number, it means that you have to go to whichever world they're in (indicated by the blinking phone number) and go find them!

Confucius says "No prank calls, please."

Because the maps in Bill an Ted are so huge and every piece of every map looks so similar, I make my own little maps in a notebook so I can have a layout of the area and write down where the bait is hidden and where the historical dudes tend to hang out. And since the last time I've played this game, I managed to (yet again) lose my little hand-drawn maps, so I'll be spending the next few days in the past jumping, landing on my butt, and jumping again so I can lure Cleopatra out of Colonial World with a few credit cards. Then Wyld Stallyns will truly be an awesome band, worthy of having Eddie Van Halen on guitar.

Why are Bill and Ted not looking at the audience?

Scavenger Hunt 3 - The Search for Scissors

Last night, I was going to sew a few things, but realised I had lost my scissors somewhere between Halloween (the last time I sewed) and now. After I looked in all the usual spots (on the desk, behind the couch, under the bathtub, in the cupboard) I started really digging through things to find them. While I was on the hunt, I also found many other things of interest:

Fun labels I bought last Halloween to put on your bottles,

Many many sided dice,

Lots and lots of piratey tattoos (that I immediately put on),

Four identical staplers (I think I have a fifth in the kitchen),

An old picture of me as a blonde,

a disposable camera that hasn't been developed yet,

And my scissors, of course!