WELL PLAYED BEEF

Okay, so I'm not sure that any of you have ever thought of me as being cool, hip, with it, etc. However, just in case you were so disillusioned, this post is going to change your mind. I was driving over to my food co-op at the ridiculous hour of 6:30 A.M. on Saturday listening to the radio when this over-the-top sexy voice came on encouraging me to eat beef.

Who was that voice?

I'm sure you know the answer.

Matthew McConaughey.

And oh my goodness it was sexy. I'm pretty sure it ranks among the best work he has done in years if not in like forever. Upon hearing this ad I immediately had two thoughts (this is where you will realize how not "with it" I am): First: I must share this on my blog. Only, when I got home and googled the ad I discovered that McConaughey has been doing this since 2008. How did I possibly miss this for nearly 3 years? I like to think that it can all be attributed to my channel surfing ways when it comes to commercials, but the more likely explanation is that I just wasn't paying attention to the "important" stuff. And second: I must find some beef. Fortunately the saner part of my brain stepped in, acknowledged the sexiness of the ad, and then insisted I stick with the slightly-healthier turkey burger on the menu for Monday's in-the-kitchen BBQ (booo rain).

Just in case you are as out of touch as I am, here is similar ad (with pics added by funny or die):

 

I wonder what McConaughey would be like as an audio book reader. Annoying or able to suck you in to the most boring topic possible?

SAY HELLO TO MY BREAKFAST

(i had oatmeal too)

And an extra special hello to the frosting--which set swimsuit season back at least 2 weeks.

recipe: here via not without salt

note: i found the frosting a tad salty. next time i'll probably not add any salt into or on top of.

COLORS (OR COLOURS--A BETTER SPELLING!)

Last week a few friends and I sat down and did a couple colour (personality) test just for the fun of it--a few matched up pretty well and then there were others that just didn't. And then I picked up a book that randomly mentioned the favourite colours of a few American authors and I immediately realized that I must step up my colour choices--make them a little bit more snappy and interesting.

Here are some examples of how cool American poets can be:

Ezra Pound: Purple, Ivory, Jade

T.S. Eliot: Eggplant, Sable, Mustard

William Carlos Williams: Blue, Yellow, Tan (okay, so maybe not so much that one)

Robert Frost: Teal Blue, Slate Gray, Blood Red

Wallace Stevens: Vermilion, Chartreuse, Wine

And here is an example of how cool I am not:

Courtney: green, yellow, orange, red, gray

I am now on the hunt for some cooler favourite colour names. So far I am going with Claret, Citrine, and Slate Gray (cause I'm not sure you can cool up gray). Any suggestions for green and orange. Or care to share your faves?

Citrine comes via inspiration for this chair that I am absolutely in love with right this minute:

You know, I possibly shouldn't adopt British spellings in a post about American poets...

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ALLERGIES

So it turns out the not all of my recent suffering is the fault of the cottonwood tree across the street--not that I'm letting that tree off the hook for any and all suffering it has and will impose on me. I am allergic to dairy (please join me in some quiet sobbing).

Fortunately there is an upside: I'm not deathly allergic to dairy. Which is a great relief because I'm pretty sure I would choose death by dairy than life without it.

The downside: dairy is murder on my skin (for most of my life I had just been attributing my dry skin to my living in a dry location--I suppose I should have considered the blatant fact that my dry skin didn't go away entirely when living in humid environments like Boston and Ireland in dispelling that myth a little sooner in my life (and there goes my claim of being an observant person). 

Anyway, in a small attempt to relieve my red, flaky, itchy skin I am trying to cut down my dairy intake. Here is how it has been going so far this week:

Sunday: had Parmesan cheese on my pasta, Havarti cheese in my swiss chard strudel, and a bowl of ice cream

Monday: had frozen yogurt

Tuesday: had nothing!!!! but it is still early

Good thing I'm not deathly allergic.

RAIN

Don't you just love the rain?

I do.

It is my favorite.

And it looks like I may get 2 more days of it (unheared of in my desert).

But only 2 because then I have a trip to the zoo

and an outdoor wedding.

SOMETHING EXTRAORDINARY

spotted here

SUMMERTIME

Okay so it may not feel exactly like it is just around the corner (only 60 degrees today--remember those cold days of Winter when 60 degrees was just a dream? Now I'm putting words like "only" in front of it!) but really summertime is almost here. And while I am not ready to be jumping into a swimsuit this weekend, I sure wouldn't mind having one of these in my dresser right about now:

on sale here

retail store in American Fork, Utah (if you're local)

use coupon code "GTU20" (online or in the store) for an extra 20% off today and tomorrow (May 4 and 5)

WHAT I LEARNED OVER THE WEEKEND:

I have absolutely zero self-control when it comes to these:

Which is really rather sad because it pretty much rules out my ever having one of these (her figure):

But on the upside, I have discovered that I have mastered total self-control over these:

Which quite possibly means I might be growing up just a tad.

recipe and picture here (cause I was too busy eating to bother with my camera)

IT'S BEGINNING TO LOOK A LOT LIKE CHRISTMAS...

...only on April 30th I'm just really not in the mood:

THE ROYAL WEDDING

I am an absolute sucker for a good wedding so of course I was well prepared to watch this one--or at least well prepared to watch a replay of this one (4 AM is just a wee bit too early for me). And I must say it did not disappoint in the least.

Kate was beautiful:

Pippa nearly stole the show (in a very classy understated way). I imagine we will be seeing wedding trends mirroring both Kate's and Pippa's dresses:

 

Beatrice (on the right) somehow NEARLY made this work:

Sadly Eugenie (on the left) was also a bit off.

Of course there were a few more rather sad mistakes such as this tent from Victoria Beckham who apparently thought she was attending a funeral in October rather than a Royal Wedding in the Spring (I'm told it was actually navy blue but it sure didn't come across like that on TV):

And Harry's on-again (?) girlfriend Chelsy Davy who somehow just looks a bit trampy (and with all the amazing hats in the world to choose from, why on earth did she pick that one):

All in all, I'd call it lots of fun and a smashing success.

DON'T CALL

So you thought last week's Real Salt Lake Soccer game was big? Well tonight's is even bigger.

And just so that you don't feel that I have entirely wasted your time by writing this post, check out this really cool looking exhibit coming soon to the BYU Museum of Art:

Yep, that sculpture is made out of books! The exhibit is call "Matter of Words" and is opening at the Museum next month.

And just in case I haven't had a chance to tell you in person, last Saturday's Doctor Who was brilliant in every possible way.

picture: here

more info: here

A NEW ADDITION TO THE FAMILY

I've got a new 9-pound nephew:



It is amazing to me how one day he is just some unknown floating around in my sister's belly and the next day, without even seeing him, I am filled with so much love for him it would hurt if it were possible for this kind of love to hurt.

AN EASTER MESSAGE

A BRITISH COUNTDOWN: 2 DAYS

It has been on my calendar for a month now. People are stopping me at church to share in my enthusiasm. And I've just found out there are recipes. RECIPES! No, I haven't confused my dates. I am fully aware that Wills and Kate are not getting married in two days. What I am talking about here is Doctor Who. He's back and I can hardly wait.

Those fantastic scenes were shot in my very own state of Utah. And I didn't even head out to the shoot to do some stalking. It is called restraint, my friends, an immense amount of restraint.