What does blogging mean to you?

via here

It's been radio silence over here for a while now.  I keep meaning to write but have only managed a few Mixtape Masters and fluff posts.  On one hand I think I may be having a midlife crisis (weeeee!), but on the other...I really just don't know what to do about this blog or what blogging now means to me.

Why do I want to write?  What do I want to write about?  Who am I writing for?

Why: Enjoyment?  Affirmation?*  Prospects of becoming rich and famous?  The first two definitely have something to do with it.  I'd also like to write more just to better hone my writing.  Also, come on, can't deny that we all love to talk about ourselves!  Hence the 'navel gazing' post tag that is probably going to get way too much use.

What:  I realized that I don't really share too much in blog land.  I write and blab, but I'm generally not good at sharing about my life.  I dunno why, but I should definitely share more about who I am and what I'm doing, yes?

Who am I writing for?  This was a big one for me to think about.  After switching blogs, my readership dropped dramatically.  Which is cool and all.  Just because people wanted to hear about my wedding biz doesn't mean they are interested in hearing me blab about my really average life biz.  But it definitely took away any of the accountability I felt to write for those followers, ya know?  I realized I had to be writing for myself first and foremost and that if I did that sincerely it would follow the whole Field O' Dreams mentality.

I'm going to continue writing and developing whatever voice I decide to be mine.  I need to be more conscious of my writing and take it more seriously.  No more "oh shit!  I gotta post!" followed by digital diarrhea.  Or at least less of that, yes?  Because sometimes the digital spew is all there is!

So, blog land.  What makes you write?  And what keeps you writing?  Who are you writing for?

Thanks and I'll see you around,
Jen

*While writing Me, Myself, and Bride and talking all about weddings, it was great to get affirmation.  To feel like its ok to be a bit crazy when planning a wedding and that I was not alone.  That sort of feedback is huge!  I will always be fond of wedding blogs because of it and always have warm fuzzies for fellow wedding blogger.

**Also, apologies for just one of way too many "omg, I promise to be a better blogger" posts.

Mixtape Masters: Best of the Midwest: MN Hip-Hop

A few editions ago, I featured some Best of the Midwest. It was so much fun realizing the extent of great music we have in the Twin Cities (and beyond) that I decided to do a few more Best of the Midwest.

This week it's the Hip-Hop edition and it really isn't "Midwest" so much as just "Minneapolis". I'm sure there are some other great artists coming out of the Midwest, but these are the ones I know. Mostly it's due to our radio station, 89.3 The Current. It's one of our three public radio stations (news, classical, and the current).  They focus on local music as well as other indie/alt/misc. music, and it's my main station.  No yelling, crazy noises, weird talk show crap, whatever... just sweet music with normal people!  If we ever move out of state, I'm totally going to be streaming it online.  (And if you are looking for something cool to listen to where they don't yell at you, check it out!)

Anyway, enough of my plug for public radio, on to the music!  This mix features artists from Rhymesayers Entertainment, a local label.  Hope you like it!

Ciao, babers!
Jen



(If you want to hear that P.O.S. song in a normal, not-live version, check it out!  It's one of my faves.)

Check out the other Mixtape Masters on these blogs!

One Cat Per Person | Hi-Fi Weddings | Tylre. | Ten Thou Bride | Fashion Under 100 | Jo, Rooting | Craft My Life | another damn life | Savoir Weddings | Fancy Notion | Dead Flowers | Casa De Kaloi | Bunnies’n’Beagles | My San Francisco Budget Wedding | Existing Between Reality and Dreams | HitchDied | DJ Prof

Mixtape Masters: Dancey Pantsey

Um, yeah, so I'm a little slow.  I meant to post this playlist last week for some New Years dance party action, but...whoops!  Better late than never, right?

I put together this list trying to find some of my favorite dance songs that are still good as background music.  Upbeat, happy, danceable... or just jamming in your office on Friday. (hi!  that's me!)

Hope you like it!
Jen

• Wallpaper, I Got Soul, I'm So Wasted - These guys are a blast! They opened at a show and totally had me smiling the whole time! (minus some douchey lyrics...but thats pretty typical)
• Passion Pit, Little Secrets - So happy they came back with more good tunes after Sleepyhead! I thought they were gonna be a primo one hit wonder.
• MGMT, Time to Pretend -  Whats a good electro dance mix without MGMT!
• Justice, D.A.N.C.E. - I forget about this song and keep rediscovering it every fews months.  Still good!
• Phantogram, Mouthful of Diamonds - Just came across this one recently and am digging it.

Check out the other Mixtape Masters on these blogs!

One Cat Per Person | Hi-Fi Weddings | Tylre. | Ten Thou Bride | Fashion Under 100 | Jo, Rooting | Craft My Life | another damn life | Savoir Weddings | Fancy Notion | Dead Flowers | Casa De Kaloi | Bunnies’n’Beagles | My San Francisco Budget Wedding | Existing Between Reality and Dreams | HitchDied | DJ Prof

Thanks, 2010! It's been fun!

Normally I'm not too retrospective, even around the New Years. I acknowledge the last year, say my farewells, and then look forward to the upcoming year. This New Years has been a little different, though. Because this time last year, I was fresh meat newly engaged!

Oh how long ago that seems!

It feels like looking back on a stranger when I remember the rolling emotions, excitement from family and friends, and pure possibilities of what were to come. I was full of confidence, creativity and conviction. I knew so little of what to expect and was so unprepared for the pressures to come.  So many changes happened, the wedding turned out vastly different than I first envisioned but all was well in the end.

I gotta say, I still get moments where I feel this big rush of relief to be done with the wedding and on to married life.  Our relationship feels so calm and comfortable now and we're able to focus our combined energies to bigger and better things.

This New Years has me thinking back to my past, newly engaged self and sending out good vibes to all those newly engaged couples about to enter the circus of wedding planning.  I don't envy them what they are about to go through... but I do hope they gain as much as they can in their crazy, stressful, fun, crazy, intense, creative, and crazy journey.

Thanks, 2010!  We had some great trips, lots of new work experiences, fun with friends, learned I could exercise consistently, got engaged, planned a wedding, got married, and came out the better for it all.

Cheapo's Guide to Wrapping

I absolutely hate buying things to wrap other things in. Wrapping and tissue paper and bags and bows are expensive! I'm going to spend all my money finding you a gift you'll love, so no complaining if it's wrapped in newspaper, alright?

That said, I do love to make a good looking package that has people eying it under the tree. It builds the anticipation and makes the recipient feel that touch more special. Definitely worth it ...where "it" isn't money but creativity! For you last minute wrappers, here are a few tips and tricks for spending nothing to very little on wrapping!

1. Reuse! I'm totally going to become my Nana and spend 10 minutes unwrapping my presents to keep the paper as intact as possible, all the while oohing and aahing over how beautiful the paper is. Also, boxes, tissue paper, bows, bags, etc are all easy to keep and reuse. This is my preferred method because it requires extremely little energy or thought. Until you get them home and have to organize them in the 'wrap' section of your crafting room.

What?  You don't have half of your house dedicated to ridiculous amounts of wrapping?

2. Upcycle! Brown paper bags can be used as wrapping paper and actually look pretty trendy with a few spiffy touches.  Add some ribbons, bows, paint, sparkles, or some twiggy stuff from outside shoved under some raffia ribbon and it's sure to make a festive mark! Other great upcycle candidates are newspapers (especially the comic sections or slightly awkward advertisements), magazines, maps, old t-shirts, books from the free table, or leftover wedding craft fabric. Also, here is a sweet and easy looking tutorial for how to make a bow.

Look how trendy and M. Stew worthy that is!  Photo via

Or you can do like my lady friend Rachel did and paint a portrait on their present!
(me on the left turning red with giggles)

3. Make sure part of their gift is a reusable bag. Sure, we may all have twenty reusable bags by now, but one more makes us so much more sustainable, right? Right? No? Whatever. Maybe they need a lunch box? A fanny pack? A tote? Or normally shops give you a bag when you buy something, so just use that.

Or wrap it up like this and gift them the gift of a fashion turban!
So in right now.

4. When we're going to my parent's house for Christmas, I bring my gift wrapped very plainly in whatever we have laying around. Then, I sneakily sneak into the basement and dive into their bow collection! They get a wonderful present, topped with a bow, and then they get their bow back for triple reuse!  Don't worry, Mother Earth, you can thank me later.

5. For a truly Red Green Christmas vibe, duct tape now comes in festive colors and patterns. Wrapping has never been so easy!

Just make sure you have a knife ready to get into this sucker!

6. The decoy box method is very handy and will keep the recipient guessing! Grab any box you have laying around and stuff the gift inside. Tape it shut and voila! Is it a pair of shoes? Ventilator tubes?* Cereal!? What could it beee!?!?!?

In case you haven't eaten cereal in a while, get your very own decoy boxes here!

7. If you're working on a super low budget/energy/caring, then may I suggest the close-your-eyes-and-hold-out-your-hands method? Absolutely nothing necessary except someone who can follow directions.

Merry wrapping to all and to all a cheapo Christmas!
Jen

*Both my parents work as respiratory therapists. We have very exciting decoy boxes!

Mixtape Masters: A not so Christmasy Christmas

It seems like the holiday spirit is now saturating the air!  It's been building slowly, but now the holidays are out full force!  (or maybe I'm just slow to this party?)  My work's holiday party is today, we have a batch of birthday/holiday parties this weekend, we've been crossing off items from out shopping list (meaning we ordered our final item offline!  we have yet to step into a store!), and baking sweets left and right!  So for my mix today, I wanted to do some holiday tunes, but nothing too Christmasy.  My list today includes songs that are all kinda holiday/winter songs but that I also listen to year round!  They are all pretty chill - good for sippin hot cocoa and cuddling with a loved one under ten pounds of blankets.

Enjoy!

Jen

Can I just mention that the Vince Guaraldi Trio's "A Charlie Brown Christmas" is one of the best albums ever.  Ever.  I want to listen to it all year round, but I try to limit myself - it makes it so much more rewarding when the snow hits, the temperature drops, I'm baking in the kitchen, and those tunes are rolling over to my ears.  Perfection.

Check out the other Mixtape Masters on these blogs!

One Cat Per Person | Hi-Fi Weddings | Tylre. | Ten Thou Bride | Fashion Under 100 | Jo, Rooting | Craft My Life | another damn life | Savoir Weddings | Fancy Notion | Dead Flowers | Casa De Kaloi | Bunnies’n’Beagles | My San Francisco Budget Wedding | Existing Between Reality and Dreams

Craft this! Candied citrus peels

Oh yeah, Lisa!? You think you can have all the crafty goodness to yourself!? Well, I'm here to tell you something, sista! You may have a crafty life, but once in a while...I have a crafty day. Maybe even a week if I'm feeling especially energetic. And that week is this week! So watch out, cuz I'm bringing the craft!

Naw, jk, Lisa! You totally dominate craft land. And my crafty week has partially been inspired by you and all your awesome DIY Christmas gift ideas!

Today, I'm sharing one of the things that I will be making. It's going to serve as a hostess gift, a stocking stuffer, an office acquaintance gift, and the some extras for me and the beau to enjoy!  (Note: when making delicious gifts, don't forget about some extra for yourself!  Otherwise all those gifts will end up just a little bit smaller...)

Candied Citrus Peels
I originally found this recipe on M.Stew's site, but there are a million out there. They are generally all the same, though, with just little tips here and there.

To make these candied peels, you'll need two things.  1) citrus fruit  2) sugar!

Step One:  Cut each piece of citrus into fourths and then peel each, keeping the peel as intact as possible.  Leave as much pith (the white fleshy stuff) as you can on the fruit and scrape off as much pith as you can from the peel.  (The pith will add a bitter taste to your peels.)  Slice the peels into strips, approximately 1/4 - 1/2 inches wide.
Step Two:  Place peels in a pot, cover with water, and bring to a boil.  Let simmer for 10 minutes.  Strain the peels and repeat the process twice more.  This will remove more of the bitterness from the peels.
Step Three:  In pot, combine 1 cup of water and 1 cup of sugar per two cups of peels.  Bring to a boil until sugar is dissolved.  Add peel to this and let simmer until syrup has thickened
Step Four:  Strain the peels and set out to dry for 1 hour.
Step Five:  Once cooled, toss peels in sugar to coat.  Let peels dry overnight before packaging.

Notes:
- To store, keep in an airtight container at room temperature, up to 3 weeks. 
- One strategy I saw for removing pith was to boil peels, which softened the pith and made it easy to remove with a melon baller or spoon.
- Also, some people then dip the peels into chocolate for added schnazz.

Hope your holidays are all shaping up to be fantastic!

Cheers,
Jen


Photo from M.Stew