I received a text message last night informing me that I needed to update my blog (thank you, Liana) so here I am. Sorry I've been so lackadaisical about it lately.
So I have just three weeks of school left! It feels like this year has absolutely flown by, but I'm ready for summer! I'm excited for my first summer as a married woman, and Nathan and I have lots of plans.
The thing I'm MOST looking forward to is our trip out to Montana in June to see the baby. Of course, at this rate, he might not be here in June. He may just stay in Sheryl forever. (Did you know the gestation period of an elephant is like 18 months? Not that that's relevant here.) Becky, Joel, Laney, Matt, Emily, Nathan and I are all piling into a vehicle and driving out to a cabin in the mountains. We plan to do some hiking (if I can keep my allergies under control) spend some time in Bozeman with Sheryl and Cody, and just chill with the family. I'm pretty excited...there are few people in this world I love as much as my siblings!
So this weekend Mom and I are going to South Dakota with our Junior Olympics volleyball team...this tournament wraps up our season, which is rather sad. The only thing I enjoy more than playing volleyball is being on stage. In a way, they are similar to me. I get the same rush of adreniline. I missed playing so much, and coaching filled in for that a bit. I am hoping to find a coaching position for a younger team in the fall, so hopefully I'll have that to look forward to.
Anyway, I'm going to go make another cup of green tea...with honey, of course. I've become an addict.
Love to all!!!
Lissa Hoarn
Thursday, April 22, 2010
Thursday, April 1, 2010
Fail
So tonight I decided to make a lovely dinner for my wonderful, wonderful husband. I was in the mood to try something new, so I found what looked like a great recipe for lemon poppy seed chicken. The recipe was really simple: not many ingredients, and basic instructions.
Apparently, it wasn't simple enough. Either that, or I suck. However, in this case, I choose, for my own self esteem, to blame the recipe. (Not that my self-esteem needs help.)
It was TERRIBLE. First I had a little problem with the butter. The recipe called for a half stick of butter, melted in a sauce pan, to brown the chicken with. Then I removed the chicken, as directed, to add the next ingredient. However, by the time the chicken was sufficiently browned, the butter was also brown, and in some spots, burned. So I kept the chicken, and dumped the butter, because it is supposed to be a part of the sauce. So I remelted butter til it looked like the picture (don't laugh) and then added the next ingredient: two tablespoons of flour.
Ok, so shouldn't a recipe tell you that the flour is going to chunk up into nasty little fried turdy looking things??? Out went that batch of butter and flour. The third time around I got it right. I applied the "cornstarch" method to flour (mixing it with a little cold water first) which I probably should have figured out the first time, but hey, give me credit.
So once that road bump was behind me, I followed the recipe to perfection! (I swear!) I finished the sauce, put the chicken back in the pan, and let it simmer for the proper amount of time. Then the fatal tasting. I almost spit it back out. It was bitter, and nasty, and did not taste at all like anything ANYONE would want to put on a nice dish of chicken and pasta. After several minutes of adding things to try to make it better (didn't work) I called on my husband to taste it.
He still claims that it wasn't that bad. He fiddled around with it for a while, then said that he would gladly have it for dinner, but I found a better place for it.
That's right...it all went down the sink. Luckily for us, Nathan can cook fantastically, and of course, in his effort to be unfailingly, annoyingly good at EVERYTHING, he never uses a recipe. After graciously telling me that it hadn't really been that bad, he made his own, much better, version of lemon poppy seed chicken.
However, my cooking skills were not a complete failure. We used the same chicken, which, despite having sat in that awful concoction for a good part of an hour, had acquired a lovely, moist, light, lemony flavor. And of course, I made the most important part of the whole meal.
No one boils spaghetti like I do. No one.
Love to all,
Lissa
Apparently, it wasn't simple enough. Either that, or I suck. However, in this case, I choose, for my own self esteem, to blame the recipe. (Not that my self-esteem needs help.)
It was TERRIBLE. First I had a little problem with the butter. The recipe called for a half stick of butter, melted in a sauce pan, to brown the chicken with. Then I removed the chicken, as directed, to add the next ingredient. However, by the time the chicken was sufficiently browned, the butter was also brown, and in some spots, burned. So I kept the chicken, and dumped the butter, because it is supposed to be a part of the sauce. So I remelted butter til it looked like the picture (don't laugh) and then added the next ingredient: two tablespoons of flour.
Ok, so shouldn't a recipe tell you that the flour is going to chunk up into nasty little fried turdy looking things??? Out went that batch of butter and flour. The third time around I got it right. I applied the "cornstarch" method to flour (mixing it with a little cold water first) which I probably should have figured out the first time, but hey, give me credit.
So once that road bump was behind me, I followed the recipe to perfection! (I swear!) I finished the sauce, put the chicken back in the pan, and let it simmer for the proper amount of time. Then the fatal tasting. I almost spit it back out. It was bitter, and nasty, and did not taste at all like anything ANYONE would want to put on a nice dish of chicken and pasta. After several minutes of adding things to try to make it better (didn't work) I called on my husband to taste it.
He still claims that it wasn't that bad. He fiddled around with it for a while, then said that he would gladly have it for dinner, but I found a better place for it.
That's right...it all went down the sink. Luckily for us, Nathan can cook fantastically, and of course, in his effort to be unfailingly, annoyingly good at EVERYTHING, he never uses a recipe. After graciously telling me that it hadn't really been that bad, he made his own, much better, version of lemon poppy seed chicken.
However, my cooking skills were not a complete failure. We used the same chicken, which, despite having sat in that awful concoction for a good part of an hour, had acquired a lovely, moist, light, lemony flavor. And of course, I made the most important part of the whole meal.
No one boils spaghetti like I do. No one.
Love to all,
Lissa
Monday, March 29, 2010
Hotel Nilius
Nathan and I puppy-sat for Becky and Joel this weekend while they were in Omaha visiting family. We had a great weekend with just us and Kodi, their fluffy white husky.
Friday night Mom, Lezlie, Nathan and I went to go see "The Wizard of Oz" at the Orpheum in Minneapolis. It wasn't a great show, but we had fun, and I got terrible blisters on the back of my heels from shoes I've worn a thousand times. It's a little strange, since they've never given me trouble before.
Saturday was an early morning, since mom and I had to be in Burnsville by 7:15 to coach volleyball. We picked up Starbucks on the way to keep us awake. Morgan and Kelly surprised us by coming to watch our team play, and Morgan stayed the whole day. It wasn't a great day for the team, but it was fun to see Morgan. I miss her lots these days.
Sunday night Nathan and I had a bonfire in the back yard. It was so fun just to snuggle up and talk for a couple of hours by the fire. After that we play Bananagrams and some card games. The best thing about this weekend is being able to play music or talk any time of the day without worrying about waking the neighbors.
We are going to head home in an hour or two here, because we have some things to do, but I don't really want to leave. We've both grown very attached to Kodi (I'm thinking of dog-napping him) and I like this house...particularly the fridge, which Becky stocked full of all sorts of delicious things for us.
Anyway, I'm going to go finish packing and fold some laundry. (we took advantage of the free washer and drier...we have to pay two dollars a load at our place) Love to you all!
Lissa Hoarn
Friday night Mom, Lezlie, Nathan and I went to go see "The Wizard of Oz" at the Orpheum in Minneapolis. It wasn't a great show, but we had fun, and I got terrible blisters on the back of my heels from shoes I've worn a thousand times. It's a little strange, since they've never given me trouble before.
Saturday was an early morning, since mom and I had to be in Burnsville by 7:15 to coach volleyball. We picked up Starbucks on the way to keep us awake. Morgan and Kelly surprised us by coming to watch our team play, and Morgan stayed the whole day. It wasn't a great day for the team, but it was fun to see Morgan. I miss her lots these days.
Sunday night Nathan and I had a bonfire in the back yard. It was so fun just to snuggle up and talk for a couple of hours by the fire. After that we play Bananagrams and some card games. The best thing about this weekend is being able to play music or talk any time of the day without worrying about waking the neighbors.
We are going to head home in an hour or two here, because we have some things to do, but I don't really want to leave. We've both grown very attached to Kodi (I'm thinking of dog-napping him) and I like this house...particularly the fridge, which Becky stocked full of all sorts of delicious things for us.
Anyway, I'm going to go finish packing and fold some laundry. (we took advantage of the free washer and drier...we have to pay two dollars a load at our place) Love to you all!
Lissa Hoarn
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Seasons and Such
I'm sitting in bed, wrapped up nice and cozy in my snuggie (Don't mock me until you've cuddled in one), with the window open to let this spring-like breeze we are having in. I certainly hope this weather lasts...today, I actually wanted to go outside. Do you know how often that happens? It might as well be never.
In spite of the lovely warmth, I don't like spring for several reasons. Soon the snow will melt, and the trees will decide that they feel compelled to poop pollen everywhere. If you've ever met me, you know that pollen might as well be arsenic to my immune system.
I can't breathe for entire months at a time. My eyes look like I'm a meth addict. I eventually resort to making strange noises in an attempt to scratch my throat. It is very disturbing.
And then, as if that weren't bad enough (subjunctive mood, anyone?), spring decides to turn into summer. And summer is my absolute least favorite time of the year. Now, if I lived in California, in a nice beach house, I would love summer. But in the lovely state we call Minnesota, summer only means mosquitoes, humidity, and loads of people swimming in lakes and chlorine infested pools, both of which I'm allergic to.
If I had my way, we'd skip spring in Minnesota all together. A month of summer, nine months of fall. Why fall? Because fall is perfect. Colorful, brisk, but not freezing, and allergy free. Add it to a Manhattan sky line and we've achieved heaven on earth.
Add enough winter to cover Thanksgiving, Christmas, and the New Year. Ba-boom! We've achieved a perfect climate.
Love to you all!
Lissa Hoarn
In spite of the lovely warmth, I don't like spring for several reasons. Soon the snow will melt, and the trees will decide that they feel compelled to poop pollen everywhere. If you've ever met me, you know that pollen might as well be arsenic to my immune system.
I can't breathe for entire months at a time. My eyes look like I'm a meth addict. I eventually resort to making strange noises in an attempt to scratch my throat. It is very disturbing.
And then, as if that weren't bad enough (subjunctive mood, anyone?), spring decides to turn into summer. And summer is my absolute least favorite time of the year. Now, if I lived in California, in a nice beach house, I would love summer. But in the lovely state we call Minnesota, summer only means mosquitoes, humidity, and loads of people swimming in lakes and chlorine infested pools, both of which I'm allergic to.
If I had my way, we'd skip spring in Minnesota all together. A month of summer, nine months of fall. Why fall? Because fall is perfect. Colorful, brisk, but not freezing, and allergy free. Add it to a Manhattan sky line and we've achieved heaven on earth.
Add enough winter to cover Thanksgiving, Christmas, and the New Year. Ba-boom! We've achieved a perfect climate.
Love to you all!
Lissa Hoarn
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
A Very Funny Video
So my sister Sheryl just sent me an email that said "Cody gets bored sometimes" and the following link.
http://sendables.jibjab.com/view/38kAsPU0n8eIY57L
I'm posting it here, because it needs some serious exposure. You'll notice it was the staff pick for this particular website. Please watch it...my stomach hurts from laughing.
Love to you all,
Lissa Hoarn
http://sendables.jibjab.com/view/38kAsPU0n8eIY57L
I'm posting it here, because it needs some serious exposure. You'll notice it was the staff pick for this particular website. Please watch it...my stomach hurts from laughing.
Love to you all,
Lissa Hoarn
Monday, February 22, 2010
Missing Him
Some lyrics from my favorite and least favorite song in "Working". It's a beautiful piece, with moving lyrics, and our director has staged it so beautifully. But I can't watch it, or listen to it, because I have to be on stage immediately after, and I can't very well go on sobbing. It doesn't help that the guy who sings it looks like a 20 year old version of my own father. I miss him every time I hear this song.
He was my hero then,
He couldn't do no wrong as far as I was concerned,
I thought he was the wisest, and the strongest, and the best of men,
The tables hadn't turned,
I hadn't learned,
How little time it takes,
Everybody breaks,
And daddies make mistakes.
Just thought I'd share that before going to sleep.
Love to all,
Lissa Hoarn
He was my hero then,
He couldn't do no wrong as far as I was concerned,
I thought he was the wisest, and the strongest, and the best of men,
The tables hadn't turned,
I hadn't learned,
How little time it takes,
Everybody breaks,
And daddies make mistakes.
Just thought I'd share that before going to sleep.
Love to all,
Lissa Hoarn
Rehearsal Blog
I have five minutes til places, so this may be a short blog. I promise (or nearly promise) a longer blog tomorrow...I know, I know, I've been slacking in the blogging department. In my defense, life has been CRAZY busy lately.
So I'm going to put in a shameless plug for the show I'm in right now, and tell every one (everyone in Minnesota, that is) to come see it! It's one of the best productions I've ever been in, and by far the most powerful. It is a collection (seamlessly integrated) of real life stories from people in the working class, from a CEO of a major corporation, to a housewife.
Hold on, I have to go onstage. Back in a jiff.
Ok I'm back. Not that you would have noticed if I'd left, since you are almost inevitably reading this in one sitting.
Anyway, the power in this musical lies in the truth of it. There's no magic, no fairy tales, except the magic and fairy tales that these people made for themselves. If you've read Stud Terkel's "Working" you know what I'm talking about. It's a powerful work.
There is one thing about this show my vanity doesn't like, and that is that every costume I wear (I have 4 of them) is completely and utterly shapeless. It makes sense for them to be shapeless, as my main role is a teacher in her 60s, then my subsequent roles include a housewife, a factory worker, and a cleaning woman. Well, they're not COMPLETELY shapeless...my butt looks good in my housewife jeans. But for the most part, they're worse than CLBS polo tops, which are something akin to a potato sack.
Yes, that bad.
I love you all, and hope to see this Thursday, Friday, or Saturday at the show! (If you are poor, Wednesday is a free preview. Call me for details...or facebook me.) Talk to you later!
Love,
Lissa HOarn
So I'm going to put in a shameless plug for the show I'm in right now, and tell every one (everyone in Minnesota, that is) to come see it! It's one of the best productions I've ever been in, and by far the most powerful. It is a collection (seamlessly integrated) of real life stories from people in the working class, from a CEO of a major corporation, to a housewife.
Hold on, I have to go onstage. Back in a jiff.
Ok I'm back. Not that you would have noticed if I'd left, since you are almost inevitably reading this in one sitting.
Anyway, the power in this musical lies in the truth of it. There's no magic, no fairy tales, except the magic and fairy tales that these people made for themselves. If you've read Stud Terkel's "Working" you know what I'm talking about. It's a powerful work.
There is one thing about this show my vanity doesn't like, and that is that every costume I wear (I have 4 of them) is completely and utterly shapeless. It makes sense for them to be shapeless, as my main role is a teacher in her 60s, then my subsequent roles include a housewife, a factory worker, and a cleaning woman. Well, they're not COMPLETELY shapeless...my butt looks good in my housewife jeans. But for the most part, they're worse than CLBS polo tops, which are something akin to a potato sack.
Yes, that bad.
I love you all, and hope to see this Thursday, Friday, or Saturday at the show! (If you are poor, Wednesday is a free preview. Call me for details...or facebook me.) Talk to you later!
Love,
Lissa HOarn
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