Guess Who’s Working On His Podcast Segment?

Laura’s Blog Entry

What’s Pink and Hangs from the Ceiling in a 10-Year-Old’s Room?

Laura’s Blog Entry

No, not a very bad Barbie who is playing serial killer. Stay tuned for the answer.

My organizing kick is still ongoing. Neil’s parents came to visit this past weekend. Isn’t it so nice when you clean for something like that and then the house remains pretty nice looking on into the next week? I am loving it.

I also took a look at the functioning of Mari’s room and it was sad, sad, sad. As her interests change, we have to update the way her tiny little room is set up or it is chaos! Here’s a before picture so you can see I’m not making up the mess:

Oh the humanity!

First I got the bed/bookshelf area back together (which involved moving out some books she had outgrown.)

Then it was time to move on to the corner of the room that was just being wasted. Note the cat sitting next to the vaporizer in the next photo. He has fallen in love with it and visits it often. We call it his girlfriend. He loves to sit next to her, and sometime he pokes her with his paw, making the water slosh around. One time I found her upside down, her water completely dumped on the rug. I don’t even want to know.

Here’s the after:

I relocated her little table and chair and set her up a work area that doesn’t interfere as much with the traffic pattern in the room. She is nearly ready for a proper desk, but she loves this little table that was mine when I was a child. Next year I think we’ll have to get something bigger.

Low and behold, we found the perfect finishing touch at IKEA over the weekend. You have to take your in-laws to IKEA when they visit. Especially if they’ve never had the meatballs. Anyway, they had small canopies for $15, so we gave in and got her one:

She was up until midnight the first night just lying awake staring up at it. To say it made her happy would be a gross understatement. She loves to climb in there, shut the curtains and read or play with her Nintendo DS. Her pink DS. I’m hoping the canopy possesses magical powers that make homework fast and easy. There was no such claim on any of the packaging, but I remain hopeful.

Beauty That Moves

Laura’s Blog Entry

On this cold and crisp Sunday morning I have been wearing my fuzzy slippers, planning meals and looking at recipes from my comfy black leather chair. Seems the perfect time to share one of my new inspirations.

It’s a website called Beauty That Moves. I’m not even sure how I found it, but it now ranks up there with Dooce as one of my favorites.

It is written by another blogger named Heather. What is it with Heathers and their fabulous, inspirational blogs? Anyway, Heather lives in the eastern part of the US in a craftsman bungalow house. She is a yoga instructor and a craft artist. She cooks yummy food and takes pictures of it. She has one daughter six months older than Mari. I see so many similarities in our lives, I totally feel at home at her blog.

Her kitchen is to-die-for with its cozy vintage touches. And her writing has a balanced vibe of calm that kind of soaks into me through my laptop each morning. I check her RSS feed as I start my day and it helps me be a bit more intentional about the life I want to create.

I’ve made a couple of her recipes – usually vegetarian, sometimes vegan – and I will share a link with you for her cream of tomato soup.

As usual, I made some tweaks for my version. We prefer to leave out the cream cheese. Plus I added some chopped fresh spinach. It is very rich and super satisfying.

I hope you get as inspired by her as I do and you do something lovely and nurturing for yourself today.

Depeche Mode North American Tour Dates Announced

Laura’s Blog Entry

Woke up this morning to the news that DM announced the dates for the North American leg of the Tour of the Universe. This list is as follows:

Friday, July 24th (Toronto)
Saturday, July 25th (Montreal)
Tuesday, July 28th (Washington, DC)
Friday, July 31st (Boston)
Saturday, August 1st (Atlantic City)
Monday, August 3rd (New York)
Monday, August 10th (Seattle)
Wednesday, August 12th (San Francisco)
Friday, August 14th (San Diego)
Sunday, August 16th (Los Angeles)
Monday, August 17th (Los Angeles)
Thursday, August 20th (Santa Barbara)
Saturday, August 22nd (Las Vegas)
Sunday, August 23rd (Phoenix)
Tuesday, August 25th (Salt Lake City)
Thursday, August 27th (Denver)
Saturday, August 29th (Dallas)
Sunday, August 30th (Houston)
Tuesday, Sept 1st (Atlanta)
Friday, Sept 4th (Tampa)
Saturday, Sept 5th (Ft. Lauderdale)

Venues TBA. So rush to your calendar, count up your vacation days, tally up your pennies and let me know in the comments below which shows you will be attending.

Our knee-jerk reaction, with absolutely no confirmation of any details is that we will try to go to Vegas and NYC.

In more news, the tasty contents of the deluxe box set of Sounds of the Universe were released. A nice compilation of what’s included can be found here.

Finally, here is another in-studio video of Martin working on a synthy bit for the track “Wrong.” Also a rare look at what happens every time I call him on his cell. If I had his number, that is.

Enjoy. Attention: Super cute hair ahead. You have been warned.

In Search Of… The Queen City’s Best New York Style Pizza

Neil’s Blog Entry

Where I grew up there was pretty much one kind of pizza. Sure, we had Pizza Hut and Domino’s, but that wasn’t really pizza… that was something else entirely. The pizza I grew up eating was New York style – also known as Neapolitan.

New York-style pizza is a style originally developed in New York City by immigrants from Naples, where pizza was created. It is often sold in generously sized, thin and flexible slices. It is traditionally hand-tossed, moderate on sauce, and moderately covered with cheese essentially amounting to a much larger version of the Neapolitan style. The slices are sometimes eaten folded in half, or even stacked, as its size and flexibility may otherwise make it unwieldy to eat by hand. (From Wikipedia)

Now, I’ve been living in Cincinnati for almost 25 years. Cincinnati is a very pizza-friendly town. There’s a pizza place on almost every corner. They’re almost as popular as chili parlors… but that’s a whole other blog topic. But 90% of the pizza places here are Chicago style. Not that there’s anything wrong with that, but sometimes I long for that thin, crispy and chewy crust of my youth.

So I decided that I’d take another crack at finding good New York style pizza here in the Queen City. (For you out-of-towners, Cincinnati was christened “The Queen City of the West” back in the 1800’s.) To my surprise, all it took was a few hours online one morning and I had a list of pizza places all claiming to be the genuine article. They are listed here in no particular order:

The Flying Pizza – Mason
Fratelli’s – Mason
Roc-A-Fella’s – Sharonville
Balboa’s – Downtown
Aponte’s – Mason
Lucy Blue Pizza – Downtown

So with high hopes and a grumbly tummy, Laura and I set out on Monday to begin our adventure. NOTE: We will be hitting the other places in the near future and will be blogging as we do so.

Stop #1: The Flying Pizza

The Flying Pizza is on the corner of Montgomery Road and Fields Ertel Road, located in a strip mall in the Mason/Montgomery area of Cincinnati. The first thing we noticed walking in was the aroma. The second thing we noticed was that the pizza was available by the slice – a good sign that we were about to eat some truly authentic New York style pizza.

Fans of gourmet pizzas with fresh pesto, black olives, feta cheese, baby spinach, and sun dried tomatoes eaten by candlelight with a nice Cabernet Sauvignon, please take note: this is not gourmet (although there was beer and wine on the menu), and there was not much in the way of ambience. The décor was what I had expected – very utilitarian. A simple dining room full of hard laminate booths, vinyl walls sparsely covered with framed images of New York City. Think of a Subway restaurant or a Penn Station or a Taco Bell. But all that being said, we commented more than once that The Flying Pizza was impeccably clean.

There were two men behind the counter – one a bit older than the other. Now, I have no idea if this is true or not – in fact I’m actually making this part up – but in my mind, I imagined the older guy being the father of the younger guy and teaching him the old family recipe and then moving from Brooklyn to Cincinnati to set up shop. Maybe they had to move out here because they got into trouble with the mob or something. They still have the mob in New York don’t they? I dunno.

Anyway, we ordered a medium cheese pizza – yes, I said “cheese.” You don’t ruin a New York style pizza by covering it with any toppings. It’s cheese all the way, baby. Anyway, we ordered a medium cheese, some breadsticks and two drinks. The whole thing cost about $18.

The breadsticks arrived first, with two dipping sauces – tomato sauce and nacho cheese sauce. Both of which were delightful. The sauce was very tomato-y and slightly sweet – which made Laura’s day because she prefers her tomato sauce on the sweet side. Me? I’m a tangy kinda guy. Laura was a bit hesitant on the nacho sauce at first, but quickly decided, like I did, that it was indeed awesome.

The pizza arrived at the table and it had all the visible traits of a New York style pie. There were a few dough-bubbles, the cheese and sauce was sparse and the crust seemed thin enough and looked as if it might actually be crispy. Let’s eat!

The crust was indeed perfect! It was crispy on the outside and chewy on the inside. Not doughy at all, but just right. The taste of the crust itself was excellent – which is a big part of the New York style pizza experience. Slightly yeasty, but not to the extent of being too yeasty. Slightly salty as well, but again, without being too salty.

The sauce was the only thing that was a bit different from what I remember. Like I said before, it was a bit on the sweet side, but it was absolutely delicious.

We finished about half of the 13” pizza and took the rest home in a box. As any fan of New York style pizza knows, one of the true tests of good pizza is how it holds up either reheated… or better yet, eaten cold, right out of the fridge. Although Laura has yet to embrace that particular part of the process.

All in all, we give very high marks to The Flying Pizza. An honest to goodness New York style pizza right here in Cincinnati. And one that we think we’ll be enjoying again very soon.

And so, until we visit another place on our list, if any of you have any recommendations for New York style pizza in Cincinnati, please put them in the comments section below.

Still with no pithy catchphrase,
Neil

Stray Theories – Oceans, Vol. 1

Neil’s Blog Entry

This is an absolutely beautiful album that’s like a deep, soothing massage for your brain, your spirit and your soul.

It starts off with “Sleep” which instantly moves the listener into one of those “I’m gonna just lie back and take this all in” kinda moods. It’s very close to ambient, but with subtle drum tracks and rhythm tracks buried deep down in the mix, it achieves a style all it’s own. The synth-work is never over done and yet somehow never lacking in it’s simplicity and grace.

A favorite track is “Dreaming,” which is a beautiful piano piece. This song just really flows. I get lost when I listen to it. I don’t know if it’s a remake or a remix or re-imagining, but it’s obviously the sister song to “Part of Me” from another Stray Theories album, Eyes Closed.

The rest of the tracks play out in this same vein, some more elaborate than others, with the addition of delicate piano melodies and more electronics here and there. But as in the above mentioned tracks, they never overpower. Stray Theories has found a nearly perfect mix – a perfect blend – of electronics, ambient sound and elegant melody. I highly, highly recommend picking up this album.

Here’s where you can purchase it:

iTunes

Or if you use Amiestreet.com, it’s a killer of a deal there.

Still with no pithy catchphrase,
Neil

Pepperoni Rolls

Laura’s Blog Entry

One of our new favorite taste treats was introduced to us by the lovely Holly Spears. Holly is a kickass singer songwriter, by the way. She is from West Virginia, and a regional specialty in those parts is Pepperoni Rolls. She graciously brought us a bag of them after a trip home and we fell in love with them.

So of course we had to figure out how to make them ourselves. After researching some recipes online I came up with this version.

Pepperoni Rolls

1 loaf of frozen bread dough, or 1 loaf worth of dough from your favorite white bread recipe
Stick pepperoni
Mozzarella cheese – fresh is really yummy, but regular will work
Pizza sauce for dipping

Instructions:
Thaw frozen dough until it is warm enough to cut and shape. Alternately, make homemade dough and let it rise once.

Chop pepperoni into a very small dice – I use a food processor for this step. Cut the fresh mozzarella into small cubes.

Cut dough into 8 equal pieces.

Slightly flatten each piece of dough into a rectangle. Cover with a layer of pepperoni and a few cubes of cheese. Roll up, jellyroll style and tuck under the ends to seal.

Place on a cookie sheet. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Slit the tops of rolls diagonally with a knife if you like. It looks pretty! No need to let them rise longer than the time it takes to heat oven. (The ones in the photo above rose a little too much.) Bake 10-15 minutes until rolls are golden brown.

Eat immediately or cool to room temperature. Serve with pizza sauce on the side for dipping, if you like.

Yum and yum.

The Sleep on Rhapsody

Laura’s Blog Entry

Just a quick note to let you know that our album, Never in a Million Years is now available on Rhapsody. You can hear full versions of all the songs, including our cover of Depeche Mode’s “Blue Dress.”

Click this link to check it out.

Happy Mondays

Laura’s Blog Entry

At least this Monday is happy with two more in-studio videos I can post from Depeche Mode. From the early reviews I’ve read, specifically this one from Filter, the album is not going to disappoint. I couldn’t be happier for the band, and for us fans right now. The only thing that would make me happier would be to hear it.

In this clip, legendary producer Daniel Miller makes an appearance as Dave records some vocals for the song “Jezebel.” It was only a matter of time before they discovered the vocoder. I don’t think they’ve used it before, have they?

This time Martin, Dave and producer Ben Hiller have a little jam session.

Blissful. Simply blissful.

And Now for Something Completely Different

Laura’s Blog Entry

Neil gets to do a lot of cool thing in his video job. A few weeks ago his team had one of their dreams come true. For years they had a concept for a project that would involve a chimpanzee. Well, they finally found the right project that fit the concept and the right chimp that fit their budget.

Here’s where I had to get involved. I have always loved chimpanzees. I could watch them at the zoo for hours, and I adore shows about them on Animal Planet. I find them fascinating because they just look so intelligent. So I immediately volunteered to be a production assistant for the shoot. Of course, so did everyone else and his brother, so they really didn’t need me. I can honestly say I wasn’t the least bit helpful, but the team was kind enough to let me hang out all day.

It was one of the coolest things I have ever experienced. The chimp was two years old, and her name was Lisa Marie. One of her handlers also works as an Elvis tribute artist, (Not an Elvis “impersonator.” There is a difference. Just another thing I learned that day.) which explains why she is named after The King’s daughter.

Lisa Marie was as cute as she could be. She was carried around in her car seat:

And she wore pajamas from Target. Precious!

It was so fun hanging out with her handlers, Ed and Annette from Monkeys and More Exotic Animal Rescue, who drove in from Chicago. They patiently answered all our questions about chimps. I learned that she drinks baby formula. And she lives in their house with them. And she has more energy than any child I’ve ever known. She was like a toddler x 100!

She really liked the guys a lot and especially bonded with Neil, who wasn’t even present for that much of the shoot. She immediately went up to him and hugged him.

Thanks so much to Susan P. who took all these photos. The only shot I got that turned out was this:

I was hiding under the counter during the filming in case she decided to fall backwards.

Here’s a short video I shot that sums up the day:

Thanks to everyone for letting me hang around! It was truly amazing!