Passion Pit - Sleepyhead

also, this song.

anniversary

This summer is the two year anniversary of my blog. I started a blog two years ago because I was home a lone for a week in logan and had gone days and days without any sort of outside human contact. not healthy. anyway, this week is very the same it seems. my "host family" as i like to call them (because it makes me either sound like a parasite or a foreign exchange student- both things i obviously aspire to) are away for the week and I am left here in the cottonwood heights. So, in honor of our anniversary, and in an attempt to not go crazy for lack of fun things, i would like to present a week of chicken marinades. this may seem strange, but if you know me well, you know that i enjoy chicken. usually i just cook it in a pan. no oil. no sauce, just a pinch of salt. but i'm realizing more and more that eventually i will have to cook for people who like food that tastes like something (wierdies).

Marinade number one: Honey-Lime

Instructions: Juice one lime. Juice one honey. Juice one soy sauce. Mix. Put on chicken.

Rankings

Taste: this taste tastes good.

Nutrition: mmm

Style: lots

Presentation: Medium

Probability that I will do this again: 100%

fourth

if only nevada was really made of strawberries...

this was one of the most fun fourth of julys ever. at first when i realized it was on the sabath, i was a little bummed, being in utah and all, i figured that there would not be much business happening. but what it really meant was that everyone in the salt lake valley picked a different day to do fireworks- friday through monday! last year i saw thee number one most amazing fireworks (in boston) so pretty much i've just consigned myself to being disappointed for the rest of my life- knowing that i will never see a more amazing display. however, the quality of last year's show was far out done by the mass quantity of fireworks we saw this weekend. i think our total firework show count was SIXTEEN. not kidding. friday night we saw 4 different shows from a grassy hill overlooking the valley. then saturday we went to sugar house and saw an AWESOME show. sunday we drove up the mountain a ways to get a good view of the whole valley- i think we saw some 10 different shows happening all at once. then on monday we went to a salt lake bees game. afterwords we sat out on the field and watched more fireworks. i have never been so close before. they were launching them from like 50 yards away. probably the highlight of the show was when we saw this huge mortar go super high, and then fall down without exploding... it landed on the grass a little ways a way from us and then went off. luckily no one was hurt. anyway- i wish i could find a way to express to you how crazy it was. mmmmaybe you could take a moment and close your eyes and imagine me saying "IT WAS CRAZY." that ought to do it. here is a picture of some fellow firework enthusiasts and myself.

quilted

I quilted this little wall hanging! it's a likeness of my house in clayton.

list

things that are trying to make a comeback according to billboards along I-15.

1. sizzler

2. colonoscopies

3. liposuction

4. churches with less strict commandments

yellowstone

this week we enjoyed our (first) annual nieman family reunion in beautiful yellowstone national park. it was awesome. we saw some buffalo

when my nephew carson saw these he made the comment "i think i just saw two buffalo that weren't in the same family, look at eachother and they fell in love."

we also learned about geyser saftey, (a picture which refused to be rotated)

ate some sandwiches in the parking lot,

AND, dad even let me wear his cal ranch hat.

it obviously looks much better on him...

good job niemans. we are all proud of you.

easy anti-plague formula

our relief society just made everyone these very cool emergency preparedness binders. it has lists of things you'll need in a 72 hour kit, ways to organize food storage, talks about being prepared...lots of good things that are very legit. however, i did find this recipe tucked away in the back.

Easy Anti-Plague Formula

A handful of each:

Horseradish root

White onion

Ginger root

Garlic

Habanero peppers (or the hottest you can find)

Add:

Apple cider vinegar- blend with all ingredients

Pour into glass jars, cover with wax paper and lid. The older it gets the more powerful it becomes.

How to take it? Take it be the teaspoon, or by the tablespoon if a plague comes along.

It is very strong.

So, next time the plague comes to town we will all be prepared.