New York. I mean, Kansas.

Joe, my sister's boyfriend, does a delightful impression of Christopher Walken.

Creepy theaters, cold windows, and hotcakes

Full Flickr set

The pie I didn't try

I must admit that I am always a little hesitant to cook food for potlucks that I cannot try first. Soups, salads, entrées, cupcakes, all that jazz - easy. I can taste them first and season to my liking. Pies and cakes? That's another story. You are probably going to notice if there is a chunk missing from that cake (Oh man I love that Cosby Show cake scene).

Anyway.

I got it in my head that I wanted to make a strawberry pie for Shayna's pig roast. Strawberries equal summer, ya know? Plus, there are only three components — crust, cream cheese filling, and strawberries — you can't really go wrong with that. So, I made it. I photographed it and now I'm giving you the recipe. But please, don't ask me how it tastes because I do not know.

Strawberry pie
Crust: I used your average frozen deep dish pie crust but please feel free to make your own. You fancy folk, you.

Filling:
8 oz. cream cheese, softened.
1/4 cup sugar
1 Tbsp of vanilla extract
1 Tbsp. of Cognac (optional)

1 1/2 - 2 lbs of strawberries, washed and halved (or quartered)
jam for glazing (I used apricot)

1. Bake crust according to directions on packet (Or use your own delicious homemade crust). I brushed mine with an egg wash. Remove from oven and let cool completely.

2. Make filling: In a medium bowl, mix all of the filling ingredients until smooth. Spread evenly in bottom of the baked crust.

3. Place strawberries in filling. I started in the center and worked my way out but doing the opposite would probably produce a prettier and more organized pie. Do what your heart tells you!

4. Microwave jam in a small bowl for about ten to fifteen seconds. Brush onto strawberries. Chill pie for at least one hour. Garnish with sprig of mint. Drive five miles under the speed limit on hilly rural roads in fear of smashed pie all over my newly-cleaned car.

Friendship fountain fireworks

Pig roasting at Shayna's in Vint Hill. There were Arnold Palmers, quinoa cakes, and a couscous salad. Caleb and I exchanged shoes, I do not remember why. I had a shot of tequila with a pineapple-cilantro juice chaser. Who knew you could feel healthier after having a shot of alcohol? There was a bonfire and dollar store fireworks. I was not bitten by a mosquito once. It was a pleasant afternoon.

Full flickr set

Baby, I'm Yours

If you fall asleep on my couch,

I'm gon' tell you right now that you might be photographed and blogged.
Consider this your warning.

Neon Trees and thimblefuls of chili

We saw Neon Trees (sort of. I was standing behind tall guys.) 

Taste over ten types of chili? Yeah, ok. 

They keep it classy up in there. 

Roundhouse kick to my tastebuds. 

 Full Flickr set

Maybe she was lost.

One of the vain vina photos was reblogged on a fashion tumblr. 

Bacon and crushing dreams

me: There's a restaurant in Charleston that grinds slab bacon directly into their burgers. Oh em gee. 

Caleb: I wanna go. 

me: Road trip!

Caleb: Yes!!! For reals!

me: Can you imagine a road trip with Rach and Logans? We would all kill each other or stop at every local diner. Probably both. 

Caleb: Yeah, it would be rad. Seriously, make plans. I've been wanting a road trip for awhile now. 

me: Psh, Rachel just got back from Indiana, I'm still looking for a summer job, and I have no idea what Logan is up to. We are not going this summer. 

Caleb: YES WE ARE DREAM CRUSHER.

Side note, you should really check out the menu on the Husk website.
I love me some Southern food, y'all.

Mary Sunshine up in here!

Meekus: This day has totally sucked so far.
me: It's only eleven AM; it can't suck that bad.
Meekus: There is still time to get better, I suppose.
me: There's always time to get better! Maybe you should steer away from Depressmoville and go towards Sunny City. What? I don't even know.

Orange you glad?

Orange you glad I said parfait
plain yogurt
granola
navel orange segments
fresh thyme
honey

Homemade Orangina 
orange juice
Perrier

Party animal parents

Office temperature, make up your mind!

[via text]
me: Man, it's like 90 degrees out and I'm going to be carrying around some soup.

Justin: Just beware that I'm not a barrel of fun today. 

me: You're always a barrel of fun. 

Justin: Today I am a barrel of Dayquil. 

me: Soon you will be a barrel of lentil soup.

Laundry monsters

[via text]
Meekus: I don't know why but for some reason last night in my sleep I got up, dumped out my entire laundry basket, threw it across the room, and laid back down. O.o

I can't make you love me

Side note, I love how Libby emailed me the Bon Iver cover with the subject line "aekurhgaekurkn." You know it will be exciting when there is gibberish involved.

I like it when contemporary musicians channel the old timey

VH1 TV Shows | Music Videos | Celebrity Photos | News & Gossip

Alex Ebert (You know, dude from Edward Sharpe), what is going on with your hair? They have this marvelous invention now. I believe they call it "hairbrush."

Ma! Someday I'm going to go to the moon!

 
Pa: (making baby noises at her beta fish) FISHY FISHY FISHY...vina, are we weird?
me: Uh, yeah.
Pa: Did I ever tell you that I want to fill the bathtub and let Spike (the fish) swim in it? It will be like DA OCEAN for him!

[in my car]
me: Don't be touching my blessing string.
Justin: I thought it was a hula hoop.

Must try

via Forever is Today

I don't want your damn lemons!

Breakfast in slow motion. You're welcome.

BSS | Breakfast Interrupted from Bruton Stroube Studios on Vimeo.

[via text]
Russian Rachel: I saw that pic of you on fb. Wanted to say "look at this fucking hipster <3" but it was someone else's album that I didn't know...P_P
me: hahahah, I posted our conversation on vain vina.
Russian Rachel: This one here? Hahahaha!
me: Oh no, this one I will post on Lemonade.
Russian Rachel: hahahahhahahahaha ohhh lawd. Our texts are conversation GOLD.

[11 PM text]
Russian Rachel: If you were an animal, you'd be the chameleon from Tangled. No, I have not had anything to drink tonight.

Good job, Christopher Boek.

Oh no

Harris Teeter at three in the morning

Suga suga how you get so fly?

Books, magazines, articles, oh my!

Man pigeon

So true

Awww!

vina, if you have time to blog, you have time to come with me.

[Printmaking computer lab, less than five hours to finish a take home exam and three papers]
Justin: Whatchu doing? You want to come with me to the Lavender graduation?
me: What? Justin! No! I have things to do!
Justin: Come on, half an hour.
me: No! It's not going to be done in half an hour!
Justin: You only have to stay for half an hour. Fifteen minutes. Just walk with me there.
me: No! Because then I'll be stuck there for an hour or longer and at ten PM will be like this.
Justin: (grabs onto the chair, pulls me out of the lab) How about I just drag you along like this?
me: No!! Go away!
Justin: Fine! You suck!
me: YOU suck!
Justin: You suck more! (turns around and leaves)

Spilled a few drops of vinaigrette on my dress = Hell yeah, I'll wash the entire front of my dress in the printmaking sink, no shame.

Agreed

Cameron Frye, this one's for you.

Tuesday morning

sounds like: wind in the trees, Mark Ronson and the Business INTL, and Pandora stations (The Canadian Tenors, Adele, and Johnny Cash).

tastes like: sausage/spinach/scrambled eggs breakfast burrito, blueberry hibiscus tea, tomato spinach salad with mackerel filets, and oranges. 

feels like: Finally, the last day of the semester. I have to wrap up a take home exam and four papers (total page count = 15) by midnight tonight.  Papers schmapers, you got this. 

smells like: Eau de Savage cologne, rain in the air, sizzling spicy sausage and fresh coffee

image via Flickr

Soon, Justin Vernon. Soon.

Truth.

[via text]

Meekus: Your welcome. 

me: :(

Meekus: Lol I did that on purpose. 

me: I know. For a few seconds I thought about thinking less of you until I realized what you were doing.

Artsy things from the past week

Justin installing his show in Gallery 123

Hip Hop Culture things

Lynne Constantine looking at Justin's show "Sparagmos and Omophagia."

Peter Lee's senior show about the NSI

My prints for the Fiction & Diction print exchange

Doing some light reading aka lightly procrastinating

  

[last night, Belmont Bay]
me: Hey, Nat. I'm pretty sure that couple is having sex in that car over there.
Nat: Two black people in a white neighborhood? It's sinful and exciting.

Yeah, it looks pretty sweet. It looks awesome. That cheese, it's... it's incredible.

me: Burrata looks so gross but it's so good.
Steph: I know. It tastes especially good when the cows get into an onion patch.

image via Maplebrook Farm

[via gchat]

me: (link to this post)

Steph: haha like

me: Justin just comments "*like" on Blogspot. 

Steph: lol. I know, it's just so much easier now. I usually want to do that to your fwds but I'm afraid it would come off douchey but now that that's cleared away, I can just start doing that...

Swimming with Dolphins

Justin: I never told you this story? So, I went to the beach by myself since no one could come with me so I was like "Fuck you bitches, I'll go by myself." I'm in the water, having a good time or whatever, when a wave comes — bam! — knocks me down. It was a pretty heavy duty wave so, you know,  it knocked the wind out of me. 

I try to stand up and realize that I can't. I'm like "shit" since I'm there by myself. I'm in the water by myself so I have to scoot myself up on the beach on my elbows. I get myself out of the water, look down and my right foot is flopping and dislocated. (me: Ew, like in Harry Potter?) Yes, just like that! I look down and my first thought, no joke, was "You have got to be kidding me." 

I don't know what to do so two or three minutes go by before I see a woman playing with her son on the beach. I say, "Ma'am? Ma'am, could you please get the lifeguard?" She says to me, word for word, "Oh, I thought you were just resting." This bitch. She goes and she comes back with a ziploc bag of ice. I mean, I appreciate the thought and all but it's a little late for that. 

And, as the lifeguards are walking up, I see dolphins in the water. The stretcher, the ambulance, three hours in the waiting room, surgery, eight pins in my ankle, and the rest is history. 

Moral of the story: Don't go swimming with dolphins.

Wake Up

I love me some Hanksy.

Black

Ah ha hush that fuss

Everyone loves sandwiches!

Read more!

That one portrait project from awhile back

Is it more design than collage/illustration? Perhaps. 

Do I care at this point? Not really.
Side note, Jimmy Stewart was such a cutie.