Crab People!

I am a Maryland girl, born and raised, and every summer there is one thing that I MUST do.... eat crabs!

It's true, it's a law somewhere.

I was never a big seafood eater when I was younger... with two exceptions: shrimp and crab - both with a GENEROUS serving of this stuff:

Mmmmm makes my mouth water thinking about it!

For those of you that have never tried it, Old Bay is the stuff that makes Maryland crabs what they are... it has a distinct taste and is far better than (in my opinion) other seafood seasoning out there. According to the website it includes spices such as celery salt,  mustard, red pepper, bay leaves, cloce, allspice, ginger, mace, cardamom, cinnamon, and most importantly, paprika.

Old Bay can be found on nearly everything around here: seafood (and crab dip), popcorn, eggs, corn, french fries, potato chips, and a few restaurants use it as either ingredients in or on the rim of a Bloody Mary.

I bring up crabs because I had the opportunity this past Sunday to get some friends together for a crab feast, and a college friend is coming in to town this weekend so I am pretty sure there is more crab eating in store for me. 

I'm fortunate that a friend of mine's husband works for a seafood restaurant in Baltimore, so we were able to get the "too small to sell" crabs easily and without much hassle for the crab feast. I invited about 20 people, and about ten of us tucked in to the crabs, going through nearly 2 bushels (that's 8-10 DOZEN crabs).

Ever had a crab?

The taste is, in a word, delicious. Crabs are meaty and sweet and delicate and when steamed with a more than generous topping of Old Bay, they are perfection.

The only trick, however, is that you have to work for your food. If this is not something you are fond of, either find someone to do it for you or move on.

It is a process to open up a crab, but as you get better and better at it, you can go through a crab in under 10 minutes. Everyone has their own technique, and I highly recommend Washingtonian's "Get Cracking" guide because it has some great pictures that will make the process easier.

from wellsphere.com (even though I can tell these definitely need more seasoning!)

Here are my top 10 crab eating tips:

1.  If you have any cuts on your hands, put a bandage on that seals all the way around. Trust me, you DO NOT want to get any old bay in to your cuts. It will burn and will impact your crab-eating time. 
2. Don't wear a white shirt. It's a bad idea and it will ruin your shirt if you get any Old Bay on it. Stick with easily washable dark colors. 
3. Be prepared to sit for a while. Have lots of water (or beer) handy to drink, and make sure you have a couple of rolls of paper towels handy (see tip #6). 
4. Eat outside. Have a trashcan with a trash bag ready or two. It will stink up your house, your car, and anywhere else the crabs hang out. 
5. Newspaper or brown craft paper. People refer to it as the "Maryland tablecloth" for a reason. It will protect (mostly) your table tops, and make clean up a snap - just roll up the paper with shells inside! 
6. Paper Towel Tip - Get crabs out of your way faster and make room for the eatin'. pre-tear several paper towels in front of you. Open the crabs on these towels, and once you've gone through one or two, fold up the crab in the towel and just toss. Bam! Instant clean. 
7. Mallets and knives - have both at the ready. Mallets are for claws, and the knives are for two reasons - to pry off the top shell, and to help with claw opening. Set your knife across your claw and whack the blade with the mallet. It will produce a cleaner, easier way to get to that sweet sweet crab meat. 
8. Take off all of your rings before you start. Old Bay really does get everywhere! I have been known to wash my hands periodically while eating crabs - otherwise it gets too messy. Avoid touching your eyes for a while after eating. The seasoning could linger and it burns....
9. Don't confuse the gills with meat! It can make you sick. Gills are gray, the meat is white. Also, some people will eat the "mustard" inside the crab. If you really want to try it, go ahead, but it's part of the crab's digestive system. 
10. Use lemon juice when washing your hands to get rid of the stink. 

So now that you have these tips and the summer is almost over, get out there and EAT SOME CRABS!!! You'll thank me later.


I will admit, however, that I haven't always been a crab lover.

Once, when I was in elementary school, we went on a family vacation to the Outer Banks, NC. We even went to the pier and caught our own crabs for dinner. My parents steamed or boiled the crabs, and when we sat down to eat them, and I opened one up... it was a female that was pregnant. I didn't eat crabs for about 3 years after that... and even to this day, I won't eat females. It's weird enough to me that they have eyes that stare in to your soul.....

My Deep Dark Secret

I have a confession to make.

I want to be a hipster.

Yes, that's right. I want to be one of these:

N

No, I don't know where this image came from but I <3 it. 

I know I come off as a sort of nerdy/preppy girl, but I like to thing this is sort of because I wear glasses (if I were a real hipster, I would wear glasses ironically).

It started last year with a slight obsession. I wanted a "warm-weather scarf" - the breezy non, knitwear version of a winter scarf, perhaps with a funky pattern or in plaid.

I finally found the perfect one (it's blue with a blue and black plaid over it) and bought it.

Next, when I got my hair cut, I added bangs. What goes well with a fun, funky banged haircut? Headbands of course. The best would be the kind with bows or flowers or feathers on them. Got those too.

As the winter months began approaching I discovered footless tights. I said I bought them for wearing under jeans when it was cold out, but that never happened. I would, as this picture above demonstrates, wear them with my jean skirts or short dresses.

This past fall I purchased an argyle sweater vest and eyed some chunky black bangles.

I colored my hair a great shade of red.

Deep down, I am a Hipster.

Purple Footless Tights

I don't want you to get me wrong, I don't rock skinny jeans, lip rings, big wide belts or anything that could be misconstrued as being "worn ironically." I just want to be in to indie music, work my footless tights/leggings, rock a headband and scarf, and just pretend I'm cooler than you.

I mean, I don't buy in to all of the "hipster stuff" but I definitely think there's something to be said for the style choices of some hipsters.

But in the end, I too will make fun of hipsters. For some of the greatest "aren't hipsters funny" sites, you can check out:

Look at this F-ing Hipster (language)
Hipster Puppies (cute puppies! as hipsters!)
Unhappy Hipsters (life is so sad!)

Thank you, Sweeden!

Wow. We fail at blogging.

Sorry.

I know that you have been waiting with baited breath for Emily and/or I to update our blog with our thoughts, hopes, and dreams. It shouldn't have taken this long, but alas... it has.

So here's my first entry in far too long.

Ikea.

The mecca for the modern 20-something year old person with its cheap prices, cool Swedish accessories, and modern do-it-yourself (sorta) design, Ikea has become our generation's This End Up  (I think we all had or knew someone who had this furniture in their rec room growing up and then saw it again as dorm furniture in college). I dare you to meet someone who lives in or around a fairly busy metropolis who does not own at least one piece of Ikea furniture. It's affordable, easy to put together, and you can pretty much find something for everyone.

Growing up, I remember the closest Ikea was at least an hour away, but it was near Potomac Mills so we would stop in when shopping at the outlets. In college, my friend Carolyn convinced two guys she knew (one had a van) to drive to the closest Ikea (in NEWARK, NJ) so that she could get a (admittedly perfect for her) purple couch.



Living in Alabama for two years was the furthest I'd ever been from an Ikea, until they put one in Atlanta.
People who aren't used to the sheer wonder of the store just don't understand how awesome it is.

Now, Ikea is less than 25 minutes from me and at least once or twice a year my friends and I make the trip. No one walks away empty handed. It doesn't matter if you didn't come for anything, you will likely walk away with either some artwork or an amazing kitchen accessory (it's only $3, of course you can afford that milk frother).

We'll head out first thing in the morning and grab breakfast (a full breakfast for less than $3, yes please!)

Gone are the days when Ikea furniture was merely pressboard lightweight crap. Now some of that stuff is actually wood and it is HEAVY (imagine two girls trying to load four large boxes longer than we are tall in to an SUV. It was tricky, but we did it.). It looks great and really can make a house look like a home.

Now that I'm moving in to my very first home (yes, I FINALLY found out that I've got the house and I close on FRIDAY!! but more on that later), I am already browsing for furniture and one of the first places I looked was Ikea.

I want this for my TV stand (rotated 90 degrees). 

 

I've already got a few older pieces of Ikea furniture in my apartment (a dresser, a couple of floor lamps, a desk), but I am all about upgrading to stuff that doesn't look like it came out of a dorm room (or grad student apartment).

My boyfriend and I have plans to go to Ikea after we close on our house, and hopefully he will talk me out of buying some of the rediculous stuff that I want like this amazing lamp:

It's huge and amazing and this picture doesn't do it justice.

I will end up also buying some "real" furniture, but for now, Ikea suits me just fine.

I'll also probably pick up some things in their "home decor" section like rugs, artwork, and lots of kitchen gadgets. I really love kitchen gadgets.

Well, what about you? What's your favorite peice of Ikea furniture? What would you do if you were unable to get to an Ikea?

On Being a "Grown-Up"

I turned twenty eight in October.

Now, twenty eight may be an anti-climactic age, but this time in my life... I'm starting to feel like I'm actually a real adult. I'm not sure if I like it, but I've accepted it.

I've been younger than my peers for a long time, and it always made me feel like a kid trying her hand at being an adult. In grad school almost all of my classmates were older than me, and I still felt stuck in that college mode of having a good time and looking out for number one (it's a symptom of my generation... we're all narcissists). The thing is, even though I was having a good time, I worked hard. I am proud to say that I earned my MFA (a terminal degree in my field) before I was 25 years old, moved in to a position that was created for me and then transitioned in to what was, at the time, my dream job. I was barely a year or two older than people who, in some senses, worked for me. My first intern, in fact, was actually four months OLDER than me!

 Denny Chimes at University of Alabama, 

where I earned my MFA.

Then, last May, I was let go from that job, and I was heart broken. It was the sort of job that left me working nearly 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. When I wasn't actually at work, I could get phone calls or be THINKING about work. At the end of my time with that company I was looking for a new job, and I wanted nothing more than to leave, but my deep love for the people and the organization kept me tied there far longer than I needed to be. Though every once in a while memories tug at my heart strings, I have no ill feelings and still think about that company and wish them well

It's been an interesting (almost) year, to say the least. Since being let go I was able to, for the first time in nearly five years, relax. I actually took a vacation in Atlantic City with my family and got to see some friends in New York. I spent time really thinking about what I wanted to do with my life and if I really wanted to stay in the low-paying long-hours world of non-profit arts organizations (the answer - an unequivocal yes).

I applied for jobs across the DC/Baltimore metropolitan area and in New Jersey, Texas, New York, Pennsylvania, and beyond and ended up working in my own backyard in a position that is giving me some of the best hands-on experience I could ever ask for as an young arts administrator. I will leave this job (years from now) with a whole new knowledge base that I never had before.

So, I've been at my current job for more than six months, and though I'm still learning, I'm really enjoying it.
I've also learned that at the end of the day, it's ok to just walk away.

You know what else makes me feel like a grown-up?

I have roots.

I've been a Girl Scout Leader for the last three  years, but have really invested my heart and soul in to it this year.

I've joined the Young Professionals Network of Howard County - part of the local Chamber of Commerce. I also applied to be part of their "steering team" and after an interview process, I just found out that I got the position.

I attended my ten year high school reunion back in November, and I'm trying to reconnect with old friends as best I can. I finally got to have dinner with a bunch of people I hadn't seen in YEARS and it was awesome. 

I've made time for a social life and have a great group of friends that seem to find me really funny (who knew?).

I've developed a love for baking (how domestic of me!)

And, the craziest thing? I made an offer on a townhouse. I could actually be buying a home in the next month or so... just waiting on word from the bank to find out if they'll approve the sale and Keith and I could be moving in as little as 30 days from when everything is final.

 This could be my new house!

Almost 11 months after being let go from what I thought was my dream job, and I have found myself in a place in life that I never expected.

And you know what? It feels pretty good.

What, exactly, is "crazy?"

Before I start writing the rest of the post, I have to let you know a fact about me: I am NOT crazy.

I like to consider myself someone who thinks/writes/acts with my stream of consciousness. If something comes to my mind, I say it or write it. That leads a lot of people to find me funny (not narcissistic, just a fact) because, as they tell me I'm quite quick witted. I think I just have an overactive imagination.


Now here's the thing:

Some of the thoughts that occur in my head I have to seriously consider this question "if I say this out loud, will people actually think I'm insane?"

Whenever I'm in an elevator alone, I may do something weird like sing to myself or dance, and then I automatically think "gosh, what if someone were watching me right now... what would they think of me?"

Sometimes I'll be driving my car and think about what would happen if I suddenly turned my wheel sharply and hit another car or a tree. Some people may also think those thoughts, but that's where they stop. Me? Then I think about hitting that tree, rolling my car over, rolling in to a ditch, and breaking my leg. It's always breaking my leg for some reason.

When I was younger, I used to have this regular thought whenever I would use the restroom that a snake or other lizard type animal would come out of the toilet and bite my rear end.

Last night, in fact, I was crawling in to bed, and I thought about what would happen if I stepped on a mouse. Granted, I thought about that because we recently had a mouse sighting in my apartment.

Seriously. Who thinks about this stuff?

Oh, yeah. I guess it's me.

My boyfriend has learned to live with it and love me regardless...in fact, he occasionally finds it endearing. He reminds me, however, that every once in a while I need to think about things in my head before I say them so that I don't come off as a crazy person.

SNOWPOCALYPSE 2: Electric Boogaloo

This post was originally going to be about the greatest TV show you're not watching, but I decided to change my topic due to the impending snowstorm set to befall the Washington, DC metro area starting as early as late tomorrow morning.

Growing up in Maryland, I always enjoyed the fact that we never got much extreme weather. When we did it was always a freak tornado, a freak blizzard, a freak earthquake. Nothing to write home about. In fact, the big joke was always that when there was little more than an two inches of snow on the road, school was canceled.

Then I went to school in Connecticut where it snowed a lot, including a storm that would dump at least a foot or two, usually in March. It was awesome. I remember Freshman year trudging across campus in a foot of snow to get to that little booth by the entrance for my work-study gig as an University Ambassador. School wasn't canceled unless professors couldn't make it to campus. It was at UHa where I learned, truly, the sheer joy of being snowed in, especially with friends, and especially with some alcohol.

In fact, I missed the snow living in Alabama. I didn't like wearing short sleeves on New Year's Eve.

I love the snow. But what I love, way more than I could ever love snow itself, is the sheer madness that occurs just before the snow is about to hit.

Like I mentioned, we never get a ton of snow here in MD, usually the snowfall for the entire winter is less than a foot. Then we had last year. It snowed twice in December, including a massive snow dump on Dec. 19th that dropped about two feet in my town.

That storm, was dubbed by many in the DC area as the Snowpocalypse. There was even a Facebook group with that same name. I took pictures, starting the night before of the empty bread aisles and then, starting with the first flakes, I took photos every hour documenting this historic snowfall. It took me three days to get my car completely dug out (I didn't have a shovel for one of those days, and realized that it was easiest to get my boyfriend's car out first). There was even a snowball fight in the middle of DC!

Just when that snow was almost completely melted away... bam, two more snowy days, the most recent being on Sunday. Now, however, the DC area is bracing for a snowstorm that could start as early as mid-morning tomorrow and dump ANOTHER two feet here.

YES!

Wanting to avoid the grocery store panic (quick, where's my bread/milk/toilet paper?), I hit the store late last night and it was already crowded. The photo above is from December's Snowpocalypse.

Every time I log on to Facebook or Twitter, someone else is posting the most recent snow-cast, and it's followed by a string of "NooOoOoOOO!!!!" comments.

I can't wait to see the insanity that will inevitably ensue when the snow starts to stick tomorrow.

Traffic? YES! Lines at the Grocery and Liquor stores? YES! Schools and businesses closing early? YES (Heck, the Feds have already put a liberal leave policy in effect for tomorrow)!

I'll be spending my snowed-in weekend, baking cookies, enjoying some TV and movies with my boyfriend, blogging (lucky readers, you), and once again taking photos as often as possible.

Want some tips on how you too can survive a SNOWPOCALYPSE?

1. Go to the store early. Like 3 days. If you don't have it when the first flakes fall, it's not worth it. Trust me.

2. If you can avoid it, don't drive, but if you must get out, make sure that you have the right kind of car. Just because you have a pick-up truck, it doesn't mean that you should be driving in snow, especially if your bed is empty (car accident waiting to happen).

3. If possible, don't get snowed in alone - that's one sure-fire way to go stir-crazy. Make a plan with friends to end up at one person's home.

4. Record lots of silly stuff on your DVR (if you have one), if not invest in Netflix on-demand.

5. Bake. It makes your house smell good, gives you something to eat, and, at the end of the day, keeps you from being completely totally lazy. Try a new recipe!

6. Start digging your car out early, especially if you live in an apartment complex where you will get plowed in. Help your neighbors if they need it!

7. Enjoy it! Make snow angels or go sledding. I think running around in the snow can really put a smile on anyone's face.



PS Flights have already been canceled, the Feds are on liberal leave, and I know at least three people who were waiting in line at DC grocery stores for more than an hour!