Sometimes I get in the mood for mountain dew, especially code red mountain dew. It was my friend during many final exam study weeks. I've never been a constant soda drinker, though I went through a stage when I lived in Central America because all of the cokes were made with real sugar instead of corn syrup. I'm much more likely to drink milk, water, juice, coffee, and tea now. However, I've recently had the urge for that code red flavor. I bought a pack but realized I was drinking it too often and that the sugar overload was giving me a headache. (It's not the caffeine. I tend to drink caffeine on occasion to help my migraines.) I bought the diet variety but no one really LIKES the diet aftertaste.
We tend to buy the simply orange juice at our house but the other day we decided to try the variety with added mango juice. I had just poured myself a glass when I remembered that I had already opened a can of diet code red mountain dew. Enter: Strange idea. I'm sure someone has done this before, but it was an original idea to me. I mixed the OJ and soda together. After all, mountain dew already has a citrusy flavor. The end result was rather tasty and it masked the diet flavor. The OJ does add some calories to the calorie-free diet soda, but it also adds some vitamins, so I'd say it's a fair trade.
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
How to Make An Amazing Pitcher of Southern Iced Tea
Sweet tea has been called the house wine of the south. There are probably some places outside of the south that offer this refreshing drink, but I had no idea that it wasn't a staple in all restaurants until I traveled out west one time and people snickered at me when I tried to order it. I lived in Central America for several years and although they offered sweet tea, it was usually made from a mix rather than brewed directly.
I love tea so much that I can drink unsweetened, hot, herbal, or just about any rendition and I take pride in the fact that I can make a proper cup of British tea, but my first love will always be southern iced tea.
Materials Needed:
1 cup of water per quart of tea you wish to make
1 family size tea bag or 2-3 standard tea bags per quart
tea kettle or saucepan
tea pitcher
sugar (approximately 1/2 cup per quart)
pinch of baking soda
1) To make a tea base, first boil water in a saucepan or tea kettle.
2) Place the tea bags in your tea pitcher and pour the water over them.
3) Allow the tea to steep for about ten minutes. Add a pinch of baking soda to cut the bitterness.
4) Remove the tea bags but don't squeeze them, as this can increase the bitterness.
5) Add sugar to taste and stir.
6) Serve over ice or refrigerate until chilled. Add freshly squeezed lemon juice to taste.
Keep your tea refrigerated to keep it from spoiling.
Note: I do not recommend using a microwave to boil water. Water will not bubble even when at a boiling temperature, so it can become deceptively hot. When moved, it can bubble over and cause burns.
I love tea so much that I can drink unsweetened, hot, herbal, or just about any rendition and I take pride in the fact that I can make a proper cup of British tea, but my first love will always be southern iced tea.
Materials Needed:
1 cup of water per quart of tea you wish to make
1 family size tea bag or 2-3 standard tea bags per quart
tea kettle or saucepan
tea pitcher
sugar (approximately 1/2 cup per quart)
pinch of baking soda
1) To make a tea base, first boil water in a saucepan or tea kettle.
2) Place the tea bags in your tea pitcher and pour the water over them.
3) Allow the tea to steep for about ten minutes. Add a pinch of baking soda to cut the bitterness.
4) Remove the tea bags but don't squeeze them, as this can increase the bitterness.
5) Add sugar to taste and stir.
6) Serve over ice or refrigerate until chilled. Add freshly squeezed lemon juice to taste.
Keep your tea refrigerated to keep it from spoiling.
Note: I do not recommend using a microwave to boil water. Water will not bubble even when at a boiling temperature, so it can become deceptively hot. When moved, it can bubble over and cause burns.
Monday, January 24, 2011
How to Procrastinate
1) Instead of doing what you should be doing, make long and detailed lists of what you should be doing.
2) Take a nap. Tasks can't plague you while you're sleeping. Unless you dream about drowning in paperwork or something.
3) Clean your house. It stalls the task at hand but helps you feel productive.
4) Watch a gripping movie or TV show. Your problems can never be as bad as a fictional protagonist, right?
5) Pretend to work. Or do all of the preliminary planning, such as getting a template for a document ready. You'll convince your brain you're actually working.
6) Find someone to procrastinate with. It eases the guilt.
7) Do absolutely anything else but what you're supposed to do.
*sigh* I'm way too good at this. I need professional help.
2) Take a nap. Tasks can't plague you while you're sleeping. Unless you dream about drowning in paperwork or something.
3) Clean your house. It stalls the task at hand but helps you feel productive.
4) Watch a gripping movie or TV show. Your problems can never be as bad as a fictional protagonist, right?
5) Pretend to work. Or do all of the preliminary planning, such as getting a template for a document ready. You'll convince your brain you're actually working.
6) Find someone to procrastinate with. It eases the guilt.
7) Do absolutely anything else but what you're supposed to do.
*sigh* I'm way too good at this. I need professional help.
Sunday, January 23, 2011
How to Draw
This is one of the top most searched for how-tos, but also one of the vaguest when compared to specific entries like how to tie a tie and how to cook a turkey. Drawing is a much more abstract concepts. Yes, the pencil, paper, your hand, and maybe even subject is concrete, but the way you process that subject is not. Although there are methods and techniques that can be used to improve your drawing, everyone sees the world a bit differently and everyone draws differently.
If you want to be an artist or you have a mandatory art class, then these are the suggestions that I have for you that can help you to discover the way that you draw best. Although some people are naturally more artistic than others, I think everyone can at least learn basic drawing skills.
1) Buy a sketchpad (if you're taking a class, this will probably be required anyway). Invest in a nice one and you'll be more motivated to draw in it.
2) Invest in drawing pencils. I have many sets. General's Kimberly drawing pencils were my low end beginner pencils but now I have a Derwent set. Pencils have different levels of hardness, which determines how dark they are on the page. It can be extremely difficult to get a variety of values out of a single, ordinary pencil.
3) Draw every day. It doesn't have to be a masterpiece; it can be a simple sketch of just about anything. Just as musicians and athletes must practice to fine tune their skills and build physical or intellectual "muscle", artists must develop their skill. There is always the occasional prodigy that was just born with it, but I have more admiration for those who painstakingly work at their craft.
4) Don't tear out pages, scribble everything out, erase too much, or get frustrated and give up on your drawings. I used to do this all the time and my teacher told me that it was just a sketchpad, not the final product. Work out the problem on the paper. You might come back to that idea later on and improve on it.
5) Don't restrict yourself to realism. Yes, it can be impressive to recreate a scene with photographic quality and you should practice this skill. However, don't be afraid to doodle, make things up, or alter the characteristics of real world objects.
6) Before you focus too much on a completed work, shading and all, make sure that you have the basics down. Drawing begins with a line that is either thick or thin, straight or curved, light or dark. Lines progress into shapes and figures that go together to form a composition. Figure drawing and shading are skills I practiced seperately for a long time before putting them together.
7) If you invest in any sort of book to help you, don't just buy one that is filled with pictures for you to copy step by step. Find one that also has sketching exercises or guides for things like shading techniques, correct proportion, point of view, etc.
8) One book that I highly recommend is Drawing on the Right Side of Your Brain. Right-brained people tend to be more artistic while left-brained people tend to be more analytical. I took the brainworks test many years ago and it showed me that I was split almost evenly between right and left brain, auditory and visual. But even if you are left-brained, that doesn't mean the right side of your brain is dead. This books gives you exercises that activate the right side of your brain.
9) One such suggestion that worked well for me was turning a picture upside down and then drawing it. That way, I didn't focus on what my left-brain thought it was supposed to look like, but instead on the lines and shapes that my right brain actually saw. Two other techniques that my teacher incorated into our classroom was covering the clock and not talking while we drew (language and time awareness are associated with the left brain.)
10) Observe more than you draw. Too often budding artists glance at their subject and then draw for several seconds without looking back. Don't just guess at what is there. Really look at it and notice the subtle nuances of every line and shape. If the normal fruit composition doesn't strike your fancy, compose your own still life.
When you feel like you have reached a milestone with your sketching ability, try bringing that idea to life on a big piece of quality drawing paper. My favorite surface to draw on is bristol board. When you finish your first composition, set it up on one end of a well-lit room and walk to the other end to critique it. Often a drawing at a distance loses much of its detail and contrast, so you can tell what areas you need to work on. The best drawings have a wide range of lights and darks, which more easily capture the attention of observers. Be wary of books or people teaching who proclaim they will teach you how to draw. Some teachers actually give you techniques that help you develop your own ability and style while others merely have you copy them and therefore learn their style. A bit of both is okay.
If you want to be an artist or you have a mandatory art class, then these are the suggestions that I have for you that can help you to discover the way that you draw best. Although some people are naturally more artistic than others, I think everyone can at least learn basic drawing skills.
1) Buy a sketchpad (if you're taking a class, this will probably be required anyway). Invest in a nice one and you'll be more motivated to draw in it.
2) Invest in drawing pencils. I have many sets. General's Kimberly drawing pencils were my low end beginner pencils but now I have a Derwent set. Pencils have different levels of hardness, which determines how dark they are on the page. It can be extremely difficult to get a variety of values out of a single, ordinary pencil.
3) Draw every day. It doesn't have to be a masterpiece; it can be a simple sketch of just about anything. Just as musicians and athletes must practice to fine tune their skills and build physical or intellectual "muscle", artists must develop their skill. There is always the occasional prodigy that was just born with it, but I have more admiration for those who painstakingly work at their craft.
4) Don't tear out pages, scribble everything out, erase too much, or get frustrated and give up on your drawings. I used to do this all the time and my teacher told me that it was just a sketchpad, not the final product. Work out the problem on the paper. You might come back to that idea later on and improve on it.
5) Don't restrict yourself to realism. Yes, it can be impressive to recreate a scene with photographic quality and you should practice this skill. However, don't be afraid to doodle, make things up, or alter the characteristics of real world objects.
6) Before you focus too much on a completed work, shading and all, make sure that you have the basics down. Drawing begins with a line that is either thick or thin, straight or curved, light or dark. Lines progress into shapes and figures that go together to form a composition. Figure drawing and shading are skills I practiced seperately for a long time before putting them together.
7) If you invest in any sort of book to help you, don't just buy one that is filled with pictures for you to copy step by step. Find one that also has sketching exercises or guides for things like shading techniques, correct proportion, point of view, etc.
8) One book that I highly recommend is Drawing on the Right Side of Your Brain. Right-brained people tend to be more artistic while left-brained people tend to be more analytical. I took the brainworks test many years ago and it showed me that I was split almost evenly between right and left brain, auditory and visual. But even if you are left-brained, that doesn't mean the right side of your brain is dead. This books gives you exercises that activate the right side of your brain.
9) One such suggestion that worked well for me was turning a picture upside down and then drawing it. That way, I didn't focus on what my left-brain thought it was supposed to look like, but instead on the lines and shapes that my right brain actually saw. Two other techniques that my teacher incorated into our classroom was covering the clock and not talking while we drew (language and time awareness are associated with the left brain.)
10) Observe more than you draw. Too often budding artists glance at their subject and then draw for several seconds without looking back. Don't just guess at what is there. Really look at it and notice the subtle nuances of every line and shape. If the normal fruit composition doesn't strike your fancy, compose your own still life.
When you feel like you have reached a milestone with your sketching ability, try bringing that idea to life on a big piece of quality drawing paper. My favorite surface to draw on is bristol board. When you finish your first composition, set it up on one end of a well-lit room and walk to the other end to critique it. Often a drawing at a distance loses much of its detail and contrast, so you can tell what areas you need to work on. The best drawings have a wide range of lights and darks, which more easily capture the attention of observers. Be wary of books or people teaching who proclaim they will teach you how to draw. Some teachers actually give you techniques that help you develop your own ability and style while others merely have you copy them and therefore learn their style. A bit of both is okay.
Saturday, January 22, 2011
How to Avoid Getting Thrown Out of a Bar
Don't continue to hit on or buy drinks for someone that clearly does not want your attention, especially if you are a stalker.
Tonight I went to hear my brother's band play and a guy got kicked out for bothering a girl. At first the owner just talked to him, but when the girl's friends told him that the guy had been stalking her for two years, he kicked him out.
This article could also be titled, "How to Get a Random Guy Thrown Out of a Bar by Lying", but I'll give her the benefit of the doubt.
Tonight I went to hear my brother's band play and a guy got kicked out for bothering a girl. At first the owner just talked to him, but when the girl's friends told him that the guy had been stalking her for two years, he kicked him out.
This article could also be titled, "How to Get a Random Guy Thrown Out of a Bar by Lying", but I'll give her the benefit of the doubt.
Friday, January 21, 2011
How to Save Money on Your Phone Bill
1) Go to Wal-Mart.
2) Buy a Straight Talk phone (ranging in price from about $40-$200, depending on your needs.)
3) Buy a car charger if you need one ($10).
4) Buy the protection plan if you're really mean to your phones ($20).
5) Go home and get on straighttalk.com.
6) Click on activate/register and follow the instructions. You can purchase your preferred talk plan here also.
7) Talk. Enjoy your savings.
8) Refill your phone with the $30 card (1,000 minutes/1,000 texts/30mb) or the $45 card (unlimited EVERYTHING). You can also buy cards that last one year or setup auto-refill from your bank account if you think you might forget.
Notes:
You can get a new number or use an existing one, though it can take up to 2 days to transfer an old number. Mine only took a few minutes, though. My family just switched all of their phones because we were tired of contracts and we realized that the "free" phones weren't really so free considering how expensive our bill was.
2) Buy a Straight Talk phone (ranging in price from about $40-$200, depending on your needs.)
3) Buy a car charger if you need one ($10).
4) Buy the protection plan if you're really mean to your phones ($20).
5) Go home and get on straighttalk.com.
6) Click on activate/register and follow the instructions. You can purchase your preferred talk plan here also.
7) Talk. Enjoy your savings.
8) Refill your phone with the $30 card (1,000 minutes/1,000 texts/30mb) or the $45 card (unlimited EVERYTHING). You can also buy cards that last one year or setup auto-refill from your bank account if you think you might forget.
Notes:
You can get a new number or use an existing one, though it can take up to 2 days to transfer an old number. Mine only took a few minutes, though. My family just switched all of their phones because we were tired of contracts and we realized that the "free" phones weren't really so free considering how expensive our bill was.
Thursday, January 20, 2011
How to Make Cake Mix Cookies
I made some tasty cookies today. I was first introduced to cake mix cookies at a friend's house, and my life hasn't been the same since. I ate a shameful amount of cookies that night and thought there must have been some special secret ingredient. It was actually quite simple.
Take any regular box of cake mix (I use yellow) and dump it in a mixing bowl. Add two eggs, a stick of butter or margarine, and 1 teaspoon of vanilla. Mix well. I add one cup of chocolate chips and a half cup of chopped walnuts. Drop by rounded teaspoons on a cookie sheet and bake at 350 for about 10 minutes. You can make bigger cookies and bake them a little longer.
You can make just about any kind of cookie you want with cake mix as a base. With cookie mixes and even made from scratch cookies I often come close to burning my cookies just trying to get the middle done. I don't like crispy cookies but I also don't like raw ones. Cake mix cookies just seem to cook more evenly. The middle rises up before th bottom burns.
Take any regular box of cake mix (I use yellow) and dump it in a mixing bowl. Add two eggs, a stick of butter or margarine, and 1 teaspoon of vanilla. Mix well. I add one cup of chocolate chips and a half cup of chopped walnuts. Drop by rounded teaspoons on a cookie sheet and bake at 350 for about 10 minutes. You can make bigger cookies and bake them a little longer.
You can make just about any kind of cookie you want with cake mix as a base. With cookie mixes and even made from scratch cookies I often come close to burning my cookies just trying to get the middle done. I don't like crispy cookies but I also don't like raw ones. Cake mix cookies just seem to cook more evenly. The middle rises up before th bottom burns.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)