It All Hits the Fan

Laura’s Blog Entry

My apologies for the light blog entries. And they will continue to be light through the rest of the week. Next to December, this is the busiest month of the year for The Smiths. It’s the last week of school and Mari has rehearsals every day for her recital that is Friday AND Saturday night. BECAUSE ONE SHOW IS NOT ENOUGH, PEOPLE.

We did manage to record the June podcast, so it will be posted for you on June 1st. Neil chose some cool, chilled out electronic tunes that are perfect for summer. Plus we should have a podcast video extra as well. Just because we love you.

Here are a few odds and ends…

Along with Mari’s recital this week, she also was honored to participate in a show for the Girlfriendology Podcast. Our friend Debba created the Girlfriendology website and show, and we have recently caught up with her at our local New Media Cincinnati group. Debba was planning to do an interview with Carol Duvall. Mari and I are big fans of Carol, who had a craft show on HGTV for many, many years, and a 56-year career in television! When Mari was a preschooler, we would watch Carol every day together.

So Debba asked if Mari would like to submit a question to Carol. We recorded it and sent it in. You can hear the whole interview, along with Mari’s question here (or on iTunes). Carol was very sweet to provide such a nice answer. Mari’s face lit up as she listened (although she ran out of the room when she heard her own voice!)

The Girlfriendology Podcast has lots of interesting interviews, as well as contests with great prizes, so check it out!

Finally, a few items regarding this website. I recently updated the “About” page with some more detailed info about us and some photos. Thrilling, I know.

Plus I discovered the other day that if you want to follow the comments on a particular post, you can do so by clicking at the bottom of the post where it says:

“You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed”

It will make you a bookmark for those comments. Who knew? Not me!

OK, I am off to clean the house. The in-laws arrive later this week to attend the recital. And I have to make a run out to get yet another last-minute costume item: white bobby pins. I can keep them in Mari’s new fancy stage makeup kit.

I saw one of the teen dancers had one of these at the last show and I decided it would make life so much easier to have this thing stocked with her supplies. Now we won’t have to run around grabbing everything before each show. Note that empty prescription bottles make great containers for safety and bobby pins.

With all this going on, I even took the time to make Dining Room draperies, because Neil’s parents gave me a gift card for Christmas, and I had planned to use it for draperies. Since they are visiting, I wanted to have them up. Photos will be forthcoming. Because summer is almost here! And I can stop driving all over creation everyday and get more done! Or sleep!

Go Cincinnati

Video Blog Entry

This past Saturday the three of us took part in a 4000 volunteer citywide service project called Go Cincinnati. It is a yearly event in our city that is just a small part of a larger and more global effort to eliminate poverty.

Our project was picking up trash in the West End of downtown Cincinnati. This is a very interesting neighborhood of the city in which we have not spent a lot of time.

Over the years, it has fallen into disrepair. We were told that one of the streets we cleaned, Dayton, used to be millionaire row. There are some amazing stone mansions there that have seen better days. There are some homes that have been bought and restored, but the neighborhood is a mix of poverty, decayed opulence, and renewal. We hope to be a part of bringing those very different elements to a place of healing.

Below is a video that is just a slice of what we experienced. We started the day at a big kick-off rally. Then we drove down and got to work. I think the thing about the day that impacted me most was the fact that so many people got up crazy-early and gave up their Saturday morning to do things like this all over our city. Many organizations came together and this unity seems to be key in eliminating poverty.

Please note that no hair and makeup people were used in the creation of this footage. Neil and I are horrified with our appearance on camera. We now have a rule that we can only record each other from a distance of 6-8 feet. NO MORE CLOSEUPS. SHUDDER.

Enjoy!

Open for Business at Etsy

Laura’s Blog Entry

It is really nice feeling when a project you have been working on for months finally kicks in. This week I was able to launch my store on Etsy.com. If you aren’t familiar with Etsy, many artists, designers and crafters are able to come together on Etsy and sell their handmade items.

I am very excited to be able to set up shop with such talented and creative people. The quality of the work at Etsy is top-notch. It is a great place to browse for gifts – and cool stuff for yourself.

Neil and I have started a company for our creative work called WORKSMITH.

WORKSMITH is stuff we make, things we say, our innermost thoughts and the music we play. It’s both analog and digital and utterly handcrafted.

I am starting with a line of hand-knit felted coasters, and I have ideas for other colorways as well as other projects to add to my space. If you are interested, please click the link below to view my page.

http://worksmith.etsy.com

Who knows, maybe Esty will inspire you to make something, too!

Ten Seconds of Gold

Video Blog Entry

Well, here’s our first effort, made on our new Flip Video Laura got for Mother’s Day. Next time we will consider having some content. Really. We promise.

Forty Rhymes with Naughty

Neil’s Blog Entry

This Friday was my fortieth birthday. That’s right, kiddies, I’m old. Well, not really. I’ve heard that forty is the new thirty. So I guess thirty is old.

Anyway, so Friday morning I’m walking into the office and this is what I see.

My friends at work decorated my work space with black balloons, black streamers, black glitter (Can glitter actually BE black? Think about that one for a while), and a tombstone made from Styrofoam that read “The Big Four-0.” Oh and did I mention the whole thing was taped off with police crime scene tape that read “Over the Hill Party Scene?”

It was a great birthday – some cool presents, a nice lunch out with friends and my lovely wife and then a really great dinner at J. Alexander’s.

My mom asked me a while back – actually, she has asked me this about six times since Christmas – if I was freaking out about turning forty. And you know what, dear reader, I’m not. Seriously. I honestly feel about the same way I did when I was around twenty-eight. It’s not that my life hasn’t changed since then. On the contrary, there have been many changes in my life, but I don’t FEEL any older really. Maybe it’s because I have the maturity of a fifteen year-old… I don’t know. It’s just the way I feel.

Still with no pithy catchphrase,
Neil

It’s Never Too Soon To Start the Christmas Knitting

Laura’s Blog Entry (Like Neil would write about this…)

Yes, the Christmas knitting is already well underway. I am doing another shawl. This one is rectangular and almost approaches small afghan status. It’s for someone wool-allergic, so I went with Lion Brand Homespun in Corinthian.

It really is very soft. I like the basketweave pattern, which would show up even more in a solid color. But I love THIS color.

I got the free pattern here. All the counting in the design isn’t driving me too demented once I started putting in stitch markers in each row after every repeat. That way if I end up with the wrong amount of stitches somehow, I can easily find the error in the row.

I think this would be nice in a soft wool, cotton, or especially in a silk-blend yarn, if I had a bigger knitting budget. It would be great to have this lying on the sofa for TV watching.

I have formulated a little list of other Christmas knitting that will be mindless and portable for summer vacation travel. But first I am going to use up my leftover Lion Cotton Ease and crochet a Market Bag (click on the Pattern Finder and search for pattern #60551). Mine will be in multi-colored bands of white, pink and green. I’ll feel like I am back in high school when I carry it. Remind me to tell you all about my uber-preppy phase in the early 1980’s. Once something like that happens your only choice is to go goth for the rest of your life as penance.

Speaking of goth, I also have been progressing on the black trinity stitch cardigan (called The Flirty Sweater in Ready, Set, Knit by Sasha Kagan.) Remember, I am NOT putting on the bow closure the pattern calls for. Perhaps a tasteful little skull button closure instead?

Slowly progressing. OK, I ripped out 37 rows and started over because it was riddled with errors. There I said it. Now I am up to almost 50 rows and I only see one error and I can live with it. This pattern is impossible to ladder-down to fix an error due to the complicated pattern. So I have to really concentrate on each row, and use stitch markers to count. It’s getting a little faster, but not much. I am not in a hurry on this, though.

Finally, I made another pair of baby booties for a friend.

(Lionbrand.com Pattern Finder: Glamour-Baby’s First Booties) I tried another cashmere blend, (Bernat Cashmere Natural Blends) which turned out OK. It is very soft, but it didn’t have the body of the Lion Cashmere Blend that I used the first time. The Bernat would make a wonderfully soft scarf, though.

Now I want to go and work on the shawl, because when it is finished I’m starting that market bag. It will be fun to have a crochet project for a change. Today is Creative Wednesday! So I’m off to work on vocals and write a podcast script. And find time to knit? Ha. Ever the optimist.

Prefab Sprouts – Adventures of a First-Time Food Co-op Member

Laura’s Blog Entry

As I sit here eating my yummy veggie sandwich, I am reflecting on what a great weekend we had. It seemed to go really slowly – and we got lots done – a rare combo.

We had our first pickup from our food co-op, or CSA (which stands for Community Supported Agriculture.) I have wanted to participate in one for many years, and finally found one in our area that didn’t require working at the farm. Sorry, I’m much too lazy to do that!

The way the co-op works is that you purchase a share in the co-op, and then each week, from late May until late November, locally grown seasonal produce will be delivered to a central location for pick up. The food doesn’t travel far, which reduces the use of fuel to truck it across country, plus the food retains a higher nutrient value as well as taste. Our pick-up point is at the home of a co-op member. We we got there on Sunday the food was all set out on their screened in porch. I just read off the blackboard what I got to take home. Here’s what we got:

Kale, spinach, green onions, bean sprouts, and a tomato plant. The plant was an unexpected bonus! We’ve had to rework our meal planning routine a bit to accommodate the food pick up. Normally I get up on Sunday morning and leisurely put together a meal plan for the week, along with a grocery list. Then Neil has started doing to shopping. We used to all go, but the charm of a family shopping trip has long worn off for me. Now Neil can go try all the samples and have a good old time and I can stay home and help Mari get her homework done.

Now we’ll have to pick up the CSA food and then see how that fits into my weekly plan. I think I can rough out a menu, and then just tweak it depending on what we get.

So what have I used so far? Well, the veggie sandwich I am eating included some of the fresh spinach and sprouts. I also grated some carrots and sliced some cucumbers. It would have been even better with tomato. Oh, and I topped it with a light cream cheese mixed with peppercorn ranch dressing. It is really amazing if you have a good hummus to slather on.

Yesterday I was able to substitute the green onions for regular onions in the Tortilla Soup that I made. I’ll put the recipe for that below. Neil had requested a batch of the soup, which I hadn’t made for a while. This led me to hatch a little menu scheme last week. First I made a grilled pork tenderloin that is to die for. And couldn’t be easier. Then I used the pork in the Tortilla Soup. Never fear, vegetarians, the soup can be made without the pork. Read on after the meat business…

Pork Tenderloin
(Created by Brian W.)

1 pork tenderloin (about 1 1/2 pounds or so)
I jar of Patak’s brand Cilantro and Ginger Marinade and Grill Sauce

(This little bottle of magic can be found in the Indian section of our grocery store. It is a paste that is technically a curry base. It is completely amazing. I kid you not. There are other flavors, but this one has been our favorite so far.)

Spread about half the jar of marinade onto the pork tenderloin. Really thick. Place tenderloin on a oiled preheated grill. Grill with indirect heat. I heat both sides of our gas grill for a few minutes on high. Then I turn down one side to low and put the meat on that side. Keep the other side on high. Cook for approx. 45 minutes. Turn after 20 minutes.

Use a meat thermometer. I let it get to about 165-170 degrees. Remove from heat and let rest on a platter covered with foil for 7-10 minutes before slicing – if you can wait that long!

Even the picky child loves this. It is not hot and spicy, but extremely flavorful.

One tenderloin serves the 3 of us, plus makes a batch of the following soup:

Tortilla Soup

Olive Oil
1 medium onion, diced (or 4 large green onions, green stalk and all, diced)
1 4 oz. can diced green chilies (found in the Mexican aisle)
1 large garlic clove, minced
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
6 cups chicken (OR VEGETABLE) broth
1-16oz. can diced tomatoes with juice
8-12 oz. left over pork roast or turkey, etc. cut into bite-size pieces. (You can also shred up a rotisserie chicken) (OR USE 1 CAN OF YOUR FAVORITE BEANS)
1/3 cup chopped fresh parsley
salt and pepper
Grated Monterey Jack cheese
Broken Tortilla chips – or bake your own tortilla strips – I am too lazy

Heat a small amount of oil in a large soup pot over medium heat. Saute onion until translucent, about 4 minutes.

Add the can of green chilies, garlic and spices. Stir for about 1 minute.

Add stock and tomatoes. Bring to a boil.

Add meat or beans and turn down to a slow simmer. Simmer 1 hour for best flavor, although you can eat immediately if you like. I add in the parsley for the last 15 minutes because I like it cooked down a bit, but you can use it as a garnish, if you like.

Taste for salt and pepper. If you are going to use tortilla chips, I wouldn’t add too much salt becuase the chips are salty. The bean version may need some salt, though.

Fill bowls with soup, then sprinkle with shredded cheese and tortilla chips.

Serves about 8.

Next up: Discovering Kale! Never tried it. Hope it’s not gross!

Recharge

Laura’s Blog Entry

Earlier this week it was just so beautiful outside that I had to go out and enjoy it.

I sat in my chair out under the trees on the driveway, watching the sky and warming my legs in the sun.

In my new Converse shoes.

If you look carefully you can see the cat in the top right-hand corner of the photo. He is an indoor cat, who dreams of being an outdoor cat. I feel bad for him, but we live on a busy street. He’s not the sharpest knife in the drawer, so the possibility of him wandering out into traffic is pretty high. So I came up with a solution. It is extremely odd, but I bought a harness and long leash and have tethered him to a little metal thingy in the yard. I can move it around so he can be out with me while I garden.

He loves the sunshine, and he lies still so the birds come pretty close and yell at him for being there. A win for everyone! The birds are freakin’ crazy this year. There is this one who I assume is a lonely male because he sings and sings all kinds of amazing songs. Most likely trying to get a girl bird to notice him.

The cat is rarely still, so a got a few shots of him. The first one… not such good timing:

But the second one – he’s ready to be the George Clooney of cats, serious, but with that boyish charm:

Is there a version of Teen Beat for cats? This shot would so be on the cover. And Sagwa would so be in a kitty boy band.

It was very healing to sit outside and listen to the new Nine Inch Nails album The Slip straight through, from start to finish. It’s rare to get the chance to do that. I hope there are more days like this ahead.

Photo Notes:
In the sky photo I pumped up the contrast and the color. But the sky felt this blue to me.

In the tree photo I pumped up the contrast, tint, color, sharpness, you name it. I love playing with effects.

Grandpa’s Big Idea

Laura’s Blog Entry

During some of the spring cleaning around here, I was emptying a drawer and I found an envelope I had forgotten.

This was the second time this envelope was discovered. The first time it was tucked carefully between the pages of a copy of Crockett’s Victory Garden, a book I got from my Grandfather’s collection when he passed away.

That’s my Grandpa. Isn’t that the cutest thing? He was a huge Cincinnati Reds baseball fan. I remember that he and my grandmother would watch every game on TV while listening to AM radio for the play-by-play.

Can’t say that I inherited the love of baseball, but I did get the gardening bug. And maybe a few creative ideas to boot.

SOP 017 – Mr. Smartypants and the Hot Chick from Transformers

Download this episode

Show Notes
Warning: Too much singing this month. Bad, bad singing. But for those who tough it out we have old-school litigious TV favorites, Mari actively solicits a May Day celebration over which to preside (all serious offers will be considered) and Neil recommends “Hogan’s Heroes” as a language tutor. Plus Neil and Dave Gahan of Depeche Mode share a birthday month. All this, season 4 of Battlestar Galactica AND Superman Week? You can’t mean it!

Music Guide
“Consumed”
Artist: Neil Smith
http://www.neilsmithmusic.com

“Heavenly”
Album: Personal Stereo
Artist: Flunk
http://www.flunkmusic.com/
www.myspace.com/flunktheband
iTunes

“…Bring May Flowers”
Artist: Mari Smith

“Addicted”
Artist: IO Echo
http://www.io-echo.com/
http://www.myspace.com/jgvellum
iTunes

“Superman Falls”
Artist: The Mood Rings
Song is available for free download at:
http://themoodrings.com/
Click on “Sounds” in the menu

Misc. Goodies and Links
Visit Us on MySpace – you know you want to.
www.myspace.com/smithsoccasional

BBC Sound Index

Movies Discussed in This Episode
Training Day

Gallery of Guys Neil Finds Attractive

The obligatory Depeche Mode Link
http://www.depechemode.com