I don't know s#%t about wine: Rex Goliath Pinot Noir

Hello friends - I've been terribly busy, but missing blogging. I have a few wine reviews that I wrote pre-massive blog break that I will be sharing with you over the next few weeks. Thanks again for all of the supportive comments, notes and e-mails that I've received. You guys rock!

The wine: Rex Goliath Pinot Noir
Year: N/A
Price: $8.99
Region: California, U.S.A.

Observations: My friend Shannon brought this over a few weeks ago, and it was the perfect wine to sip on over funny Youtube videos and conversation. Tasty, not heavy or horribly complex.

Star Rating: 3 out of 5

Purchase again? Yes.

Easy-Peasy Beehive Hair-do Tutorial

Happy Monday every one! This past Saturday, I went to the farmers' market for the first time this season (SQUEEL!), and I wanted to do something fun with my hair to mark the occasion. I have not been able to rock a beehive since I did the BIG CHOP, but my hair is finally long enough again, so I gave it ago!



I have been wanting to post a beehive tutorial for quite some time now. I even recorded a video a few months ago, but my video skills are minimal, and it was hilariously long-winded and boring, so I scrapped it! So here is my (much briefer) tutorial on how-to to create a sweet beehive up-do WITHOUT teasing, back-combing or hairspray.

NOTE: I cannot attest to this working for anybody else...but it works for me.

Easy-Peasy Beehive Hair-do Tutorial

You need:

Brush
At least two large bobby pins
Toilet paper roll
Optional: Elastics, scarves, clips, etc

Directions:

1. HERE'S MY SECRET! Take a toilet paper roll and rip one end off, until it is about 3/4 of it's original width (unless your head is enormous).

2. Brush a segment of hair from the front of your head straight up...if you have thick hair, like I do, take a smaller chunk of hair than you think, otherwise the next step becomes difficult.

3. Take your toilet paper roll, and place it behind the brushed segment of hair, and roll downward, rotating away from your reflection, as if you were putting in a curler.

4. Take a large bobby pin, and catch the hair closest to your scalp, the hair on the roll, and the roll itself, to secure the whole shebang to your head. Repeat on each side of the roll.

5. Now, here's the tricky part. Take the hair on the roll, and gently fan it out, so that it creates a nice beehive bump, and the toilet paper roll is hidden. If you fan too much, you will see the sharp edges of the toilet paper roll. This part is something that you will get more adept at with practice.

6. Optional - For the back of your hair, you can choose to do a multitude of things. My favorite look is to cap off the beehive with a scarf, and twisting the remainder of my hair into a messy french twist. A sort of mullet-take on a beehive. Business in the front, party in the back. Other options I've worn include pigtails, a low side ponytail and I high braided bun. The sky is the limit here.



If you try my Easy-Peasy Beehive Hair-do Tutorial, post a picture online, and share the link below in the comments. I would love to know if this works for any one else. Enjoy!

Dance-spiration Friday: Annabelle Lopez Ochoa's Requiem for a Rose

Requiem for a Rose is a work that Annabelle Lopez-Ochoa was commissioned to choreograph for the Pennsylvania Ballet. This video is such a tease! I would've loved to be able to see this work in its entirety. All of the elements need to create a beautiful piece of theatre are here, brilliant choreography, lush music, smart lighting and gorgeous costume designs. All of these combine to form something truly beautiful and very special.

Gushing aside, what I enjoy most about this video is that you see Lopez Ochoa in the studio and hear her thoughts throughout the choreographic process. I really nerd out on knowing what makes choreographers tick!

Enjoy, Requiem for a Rose.

Dance-spiration Friday: Christopher Wheeldon's After The Rain

So, let's resuscitate Dance-spiration Friday, shall we? You'll be happy to know, that for the most part, I have continued to take ballet class about once a week since ringing in the New Year. I have a wonderful teacher, and pals that I dragged into coming with me that have been so supportive of my S-L-O-W, crawling, return to ballet land. My thoughts? I am *SO* not seventeen anymore. Sigh...but I'm doing the best that my creaky body will allow!

Anyways, this is supposed to be an inspirational blog post series, so I will quit my bitching and get to the inspiration bit.

I often get into what I call a "YouTube dance spiral" where I watch video after video of choreography. This one said in the description "Most beautiful dance footage you will ever see." "Pshh!" I thought to myself, "I've seen so much dancing in my lifetime, I highly doubt this video is going to knock my socks off *that* hard!" I was already familiar with the choreography, having seen it in a theatre before, and while I liked it, but didn't think it was anything earth shattering.

I WAS SO WRONG. THIS IS THE MOST BEAUTIFUL DANCE FOOTAGE I HAVE EVER SEEN.

The sun, the wind in her hair, their killer bodies/crazy technique...Arvo Pärt providing the gentle lulling of Spiegel im Spiegel mixing with the waves, creating a beautiful, atmospheric soundtrack...I could watch this over and over and over again!

SO.

If you don't have ten minutes now...please save this post for when you do. Then watch Damien Smith and Yuan Yuan Tan from San Francisco Ballet perform Christopher Wheeldon's After the Rain. You'll be transported. Promise.

Celebrity Doppelganger?

I've already shared this on Flickr and Facebook, but I thought it was too funny to pass up sharing here as well...

Last week I was listening to James Taylor's Sweet Baby James. The photograph of young James Taylor on the album cover felt so familiar to me, and after having a good stare, the connection dawned on me!



Has anybody else ever noticed the similarity between young James Taylor, and my smokin' hot 1990's boyfriend Jared Leto (as Jordan Catalano in My So Called Life)? Uncanny, right?

Looking good James, looking good.

Triple Berry Pie Recipe

So here is the aforementioned Triple Berry Pie...



This is the first time that I have made a pie without a recipe. I totally winged this one! I had distinct reasons for doing so, too. Originally, I thought that I had enough strawberries to make a strawberry pie...

Go Google "Strawberry Pie Recipe." I'll wait.



Are you back? Great.

Name the number one yucky ingredient in 90% of those strawberry pie recipes.

What is strawberry gelatin, Alex?

EWWWWWWWWWWWWWW

Don't get me wrong, I'm not hating on Jell-O. I love me some J-E-L-L-O! But when I think of making a delicious berry pie, using gelatin as a binder just does not fit the bill! Here's what I came up with:

Triple Berry Pie Recipe

Ingredients

One recipe of your favorite pie dough. I swear by Martha Stewart's Pâte Brisée.
Two cups of strawberries
One cup of raspberries
One cup of blueberries
1/2 cup of sugar, or to taste (my berries had been in the freezer for awhile, so I ended up kicking in an extra quarter cup)
1/2 cup of flour

Directions

Preheat oven to 425° F. Combine the berries, sugar and flour. If your berries came out of the freezer, like mine did, this mixture might look like berry colored vomit. Don't worry. It's going to be delicious. Roll one half of your dough recipe and press into a pie plate. Add berry vomit. Cover with the second half of the dough. If you want to be fancy, brush the top of the dough with a little creme and sprinkle some sugar on top. Bake for 20 minutes, then lower the heat to 350° F. Bake for approximately 40 minutes more until the crust is golden brown. Your pie will be lava hot, so don't try to eat it for at least half an hour. ENJOY!

Strawberry Ginger Iced Tea Recipe

Over Memorial Day weekend, I thawed out the last of my frozen strawberries from last season to bake into a Triple Berry Pie, (which absolutely deserves its own post). As the berries thawed, a decent amount of juice gathered at the bottom of the baggie, and I couldn't bear to throw it down the drain. I strained the berries and reserved the juice, and then pondered what to do.

Think. Think. Think.

Then I had my "A-HA!" light bulb moment. The following recipe is a modification of an iced tea that is a staple in my parents' refrigerator. My mum makes it by the gallons each week, I am sure!

Strawberry Ginger Iced Tea



Ingredients:

Water
1" ginger root, sliced thin
4 tea bags, strong black tea, or the equivalent loose tea
1-2 cups of reserved strawberry juice
1 cup of sugar

Instructions:

Pour 1.5 inches of water into a pot, add ginger slices and bring to a boil. Lower heat, and simmer for five minutes. Add tea, and brew until very strong. While the water is still warm, add the strawberry juice, and sugar, and stir until the sugar is dissolved. Cover with 6-8 cups of cold water. Refrigerate and enjoy!

*Note: If you keep sliced strawberries that have been sprinkled in sugar in your fridge (Mum), try reserving the liquid from that and omitting the sugar from this recipe. Waste not, want not!