All Growed UP

*Smiff*

It's like they grow up without you even noticing. Soon they'll be off to college, getting real jobs, meeting the cats of their dreams and giving me grandkitties. Oh, wait...

Anyway, today marks the day that my kitties become cats. I bought them adult food.

Of course we shall not mention the incident where Schnitzel got tangled in the plastic bag that held the adult food and ran about the apartment like a bat. out. of. hell. bumping into things at warp speed. I literally had to tackle her to set her loose and she's still totally freaked out about it. Is it wrong to laugh about my kitten's cat's misfortunes?

Hello! My Name Is___________

This is my new and nameless friend. Eyeball helped me pick her out on Friday, and after riding her home from the store, I already began to experience some discomfort. Which didn't stop us from riding about 15km yesterday. That was fun, yo, and I only found myself in distress twice - at first when I rode from my place to hers (about 200 meters - LAME) and on the last half kilomoter or so, when my thighs performed an unsuccessful mini-revolt. There were a TON of people in the park where we rode with lots of kids veering off into our path unexpectedly, but we managed ok.

On the way down to the port (our destination) I heard a surprised "rappy" and turned my head only to find my favourite waitress from the cafe lounging on the grass with her husband, so we stopped and chatted for a bit.

Anyway, I'm having a hard time picking a name for her. She's a Merida Kalahari 550, and I'm thinking of Kali, but aren't yet committed to that name. Won't you help me on that front?

Getting to know me: Sherry Style - Part II

The last picture I owed Sherry was of the cafe in which I (used) to spend ridiculous amounts of time.

I tend to sit at the tables under the awning, usually closer to the foreground of the picture.

*Hug*

rappy: my cats are HUGGING.
highwaygirl: that can't possibly be true
rappy: that they're hugging? You shouldn't challenge a woman with a camera
highwaygirl: *throws down the gauntlet*

On Assignment

Ok, kids. I still owe pictures to Sherry, highwaygirl and lifeonhold, but they will take a bit of doing, so I'll put them up at a later date. I have a new project that requires your input.

Post a recipe in the comment section, and I will attempt to prepare it and document the process on camera.

Caveats:

1. Common ingredients in the US/Canada are not always that common in Isreal. I may have to veto your recipe, so have a back up ready.
   
2. My kitchen is wee and I have a rather limited selection of kitchen equipment, so recipes that require 4 pots going simultaenously and miles of counter space might be problematic.
   

Feed me, people!

AWW!

Can you stand it? Can you stand the cuteness?

Angels and Demon

Angels...

...and Demon

I'm always amused by Kiwi's double-coloured paw. It's like she's giving the perpetual middle finger.

Getting to know me: Erika Style

Erika (aka Roo) wanted to see:

1. Something that defines my city.

Property taxes. That or old people, and my tax bill was a lot more handy. When eyeball and I lived in an apartment in Tel Aviv that was three times the size of this place and right in the heart of the hippest neighbourhood in the city, we paid about 1/3 less in property taxes. I suppose having my garbage collected three times a day accounts for the difference.

2. Me and your sister together.

My brother and I took eyeball out to dinner on Friday to celebrate her awesome accomplishment on her ride this past week. We went to a restaurant in south Tel Aviv, which was pretty ok. The picture doesn't really tell the real story of the street. The brothel was two doors down on the right. The casino four doors down. The restaurant door had a security guard PLUS it was locked from inside and required buzzing in. CREEPY.

3. Me while watching Alias on my computer. :)

Only a couple more of these to go. Stay tuned for another reader-requested photography project!

Getting to know me: Jenny Style

Jenny (aka Ka Ching) wanted to see:

1. The first thing I see when I wake up in the morning.

This is the first thing I see, although technically, I neither see it in daylight (as my bedroom shutter is always drawn) nor lit up (as the light is usually off when I awake). I think this fixture is actually quite gorgeous. I *may*, should I ever get around to it, try to do something decorative in my bedroom relating to it.

2. What's out my front door and/or down my street.

This is my street, as photographed last night. The entrance to my building is on the left, right next to the large utility pole. It's a 3-story low-rise, with 4 apartments on each floor. The truck on the right side with all the crap on the roof belongs to someone living across the street who I presume to be a contractor.

3. The one thing in my house that makes it feel like HOME. ;)

I mean, could you just die? Are they not the best, cutest, fluffiest thing ever?

Soy Good!

Teemy wanted to know how to make those scalloped potatoes I posted in her getting to know me post. Because I'm feeling particularly generous, I'll throw in the soy chicken recipe for free, too. Both these recipes are courtesy of an old roommate from Toronto, with whom I have no contact anymore.

Scalloped Potatoes
2-3 medium to large potatoes, peeled and sliced into 1/4" rounds
3 tbsp butter
3 tbsp flour
1-2 cups of hot stock (I just use a tablet with boiled water from the kettle)
Paprika

1. Preheat oven to 375.
2. Layer potatoes in a baking dish so that they overlap each other by about a third.
3. Have stock hot and ready near stove.
4. Melt butter in a small pan over medium heat.
5. Once butter has melted, spoon in flour one tbsp at a time, incorporating it fully into the butter before adding the next.
6. Remove pan from heat and pour in soup. Mix very briefly and immediately pour over potatoes, spreading to cover with spatula. The sauce will thicken VERY quickly, so speed is of the essence.
7. Sprinkle with paprika and bake for 30-40 minutes, or until potatoes are fork tender.

Serves 2-3

Soy Chicken
There aren't really quantities in this recipe - it can be adjusted according to necessity.

Skinless-boneless chicken breasts
Flour
Oil
Soy sauce

1. Cut chicken into strips that are about 1" wide and about 1/2" thick.
2. Coat lightly in flour.
3. Brown chicken strips in saute pan with just enough oil to ensure they don't stick to the pan. Depending on your quantity of chicken, start with 1 tbsp and as you add more pieces add more oil, as necessary.
4. Cook chicken for about 1-2 minutes per side, and remove to plate once cooked. Depending on the amount of chicken you're making, you may need to do this in batches.
5. Once all chicken has been cooked return all of it to the pan and spray with soy sauce (sparingly! - it's really easy to make this dish TOO salty. A tbsp should do). Toss the chicken around the pan making sure both sides are coated in soy, until it turns into a nice brown shade. This should only take another half a minute or so to do.

Bon Appetit!

Getting to know me: Teem Style

Teemy actually made me work for this entry...

She wanted to see:

1. the view from my window (like Sherry)

The view is horrific, but look at all the cute kitties! The black and white one is a regular, but that grey kitten was a one day apparition. He was ADORABLE and I totally wanted to bring him inside.

2. the inside of my fridge (also requested this from hwg)

I am exceptionally embarrassed by this photo. All I seem to have in my fridge is condiments and beverages. So lame. To make up for it, here's a picture of the front of my fridge. I cut that picture out of the newspaper because I thought it was stunning.

3. my favorite meal, next time I eat it.

I usually don't have the salad, but I didn't want y'all to judge me for the absence of green on my plate. On the menu are soy chicken, scalloped potatoes, and a mixed green salad. So yummy and so easy to make. It's my standby meal.

Getting to know me: Sherry Style

I only have 2/3rds of Sherry's requested pictures, but she gave me the go ahead to post the third at a later date.

Sherry wanted to see:

1. The cafe I used to hang out in so much - still to be photographed

2. The view from my bedroom window.

I never look out this window. The shutter is always closed and Schnitzel often hangs out on the ledge, looking through the cracks. Being on the first floor, I'd rather keep it closed for privacy. And also, it's really quite ugly.

3. My favorite pair of shoes.

Are these not the HOTT? I got them in Florida when I visited heewig a couple of years ago, at Marshall's, if I recall correctly. They set me back an astounding $15 dollars. I friggin love them beyond compare, although I don't find many occasions to wear them.

To Do - 7.11.05

I'm exceptionally embarrassed about my piss poor performance (yay, alliteration!) on my to do list. Here it is, with all those leftovers, staring at me disapprovingly:

1. VAT and tax payment - Filled out forms - must get to post office by 15th
2. Deposit translation cheque - Uh, yeah. It's still tacked to the front door
3. Make Nigella stew in new crockpot
4. Finally empty last box from moving (in FEBRUARY) and fix up balcony - The balcony still requires some rethinking, but until the landlady takes away her table, it'll have to wait.
5. Look into landlady fixing noisy toilet pipes -Meter is busted, being replaced by city on Sunday
6. Install hot water heater timer*
7. Hang grid in kitchen (metal fence like thing to hang stuff from) - Started - drilled two right hand holes, hit concrete on left holes. Must buy special drill bit.
8. Buy box of mixed tea
9. Start working on Christmas gifts
10. Investigate things to do in Paris - Started. Must go to flea market. Trip postponed due to work obligations.
11. Paint canvases - Painted red, yellow, green and blue. Meant for blue to be dark, so need new paint. Purple remains to be done. That's 4 out of 5, so I'm marking this one off.
12. Find large Illy tins for kitchen
13. Hang towel bars in bathroom - One done, need a ruler to do the rest, but it's a start.
14. Find hanging shoe rack for bathroom door or some other shoe storage solution
15. Find coat hooks for wall behind door

* I'm a nice sister. (On occasion.)

Cat in a bag

It appears Kiwi enjoys being in Ikea almost as much as I do.

Wheels of Love

My sister, who is The Awesome, is participating in the Alyn Wheels of Love charity bike ride tomorrow.

Wish her luck as she traverses 500kms over five days, from northern Israel to Jerusalem, while raising money for a wonderful cause. It's also never too late to make a donation - she did a great job raising just over $2000! If you'd like to put in a late sponsorship (through that link), email me (frappy at gmail dot com) for her name.

Good luck, eyeball!

Getting to know me: Doomy Style

Doomy wanted to see:

1. My cookbooks - I had to take several pictures in order to capture the magnitude. Here they are, top shelf to bottom.

2. My makeup drawer/bag/case - I'm so ashamed. It's just this box with everything thrown in willy-nilly and largely ignored. I rarely bother with makeup anymore. As soon as I figure out a new storage solution in my bathroom there'll be more room for something presentable. I do have an idea that involved empty Biore facial wipes cases.

3. My computer area, where I sit and write and chat with the Americans so many miles and hours away - You mean my living room sofa? Where I'm pretty much always sitting unless I'm in bed? Here it is! I just bought the coffee table today. It is FHUGE. When not taking a picture of it, I am normally perched on the sofa with my feet up on the table and the cats spread out on my belly. The window above the sofa has a wide ledge and bars and the cats spend many hours there, checking out the neighbourhood cats and spying on my neighbours.

Shameless Thief

I totally stole this idea from myaimistrue.

List three things about my life that you would like me to photograph.