Glass of Win

Current style influences:

Red Riding Hood ANYTHING!

by Jessie Wilcox-Smith

Glittery gold!

Sexy striped & back-seamed stockings!

by Leg Avenue

Brand spankin’ new purse AND clutch in fuchsia found at the thrift store!

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Last Friday there was a big event at Hollywood and Highland (also known as the Kodak Theater, a ginormous mall usually swamped with tourists) commemorating the upcoming Tim Burton Alice in Wonderland film. My friend Loren and I wanted to hit it up because we’re both big fans of Kerli (mentioned here) one of the music artists featured on the Almost Alice album.

There were a lot of people dressed up – some cosplaying directly from the new movie…

…some taking on a more traditional Alice costume….



…and others with their own unique interpretations of the classic children’s story

Loren lucked out and won a Twitter contest hosted by Kerli and got into the “preferred pit” area – which was situated squarely in front of the stage and did not have any over-sized planters blocking the view. The crowd was INSANE – mostly comprised of very eager teenagers who learned about the event via Hot Topic & Myspace.

The Crowd: part one

The Crowd: part two

Kerli, rocking out

We only stuck around for Kerli as the other musical acts weren’t our cup of tea. I knew that Burton, Helena Bonham-Carter and Mia Wasikowaska (Alice) was going to appear, but it was also announced at the event that Johnny Depp was going to show up. HOLY SHIT! Had we been better prepared, Loren and I may have stuck around to see them…but we would have had to listen to a plethora of music not to our liking and screaming 13 year-old’s. Not to mention, our tummies were rumbling so we headed over to 6255 West Sunset Boulevard to dine at The Waffle (review here).

Related Links
Alice in Wonderland Official Myspace
Alice Fan Event – the examiner

I have never been able to properly stomach burgers, even when I was eating red meat. All right, there was those three nanoseconds in Jr. High when I was able to keep down a couple of Big Macs but I think I was going through a growth spurt or maybe an alien life form inhabited my body during that time.

Anyway, the concept of the burger always sounded tasty, but the execution was just never adequate enough for my stomach (save for the lobster burger at The Yard House, which I order sans meat patty). So I decided to concoct my own recipe made from my new favorite combination – vegetables & Quinoa.
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Today is milk glass mao’s 27th birthday. I could have gone through her blog and figured out which songs she enjoys most, something by Sun Kil Moon or Elliot Smith…maybe dug up an old childhood favorite…but honestly, it just isn’t a gift from me if I’m not celebrating with the most obnoxiously New Wave, bubblegum-pop song to wish KD a truly happy birthday!

The 1980s is full one-hit wonder and cheese-o-rama GOLD – gold, I tell you – and this awesome ditty by Scottish band Altered Images featured in the 1984 flick Sixteen Candles is a true gem.

Covers
The Tings Tings (on Yo Gabba Gabba)

DuckTales is not just one of my favorite cartoons, it is one of my favorite television programs EVER! It wasn’t only entertaining, it was educational and as I got older, I would recognize the anthropomorphic history lessons and inside jokes. What’s not to like about DuckTales anyway? It’s a bunch of ducks going on adventures, searching for treasure and solving mysteries and shit. That’s fucking adorable.

I think another favorable aspect about DuckTales is the fact that it featured a number of independent female characters, namely:
Magica De Spell – A powerful sorceress with her own island. She even turned her own brother, Poe, into her familiar.
Ma Beagle – Single mother raising a gaggle of sons in a life of crime.
Goldie – A feisty music hall showgirl and Scrooge’s One True Love. They’re too independent & stubborn to be together, though.
Mrs. Beakly – Housekeeper/nanny and overall matriarch of the McDuck household. She don’t take no lip – er – beak!

True, there are only a smattering of females but DuckTales is largely gender-neutral and never felt like a “boy” cartoon to me.

Even so, my favorite character has always been Scrooge McDuck. He’s grumpy, miserly and rich, rich, rich. All wonderful aspects I aspire to. I used to tell my parents that I wanted to live in a house JUST LIKE the Scrooge McDuck Mansion. There was a large house that resembled his when I lived in Pennsylvania and every time we passed it, I’d press my nose up against the car window and exclaim, “THAT’S MY HOUSE! MY SCROOGE HOUSE! LET’S MOVE IN!”

Yeah, never mind the family that lived there…

Though it is a show I could easily watch all of the time, I sadly do not own the DVDs because I am a snob and those episodes are OUT OF ORDER. THE HORROR!
Additionally, the initial five-part introductory mini-movie was left out and there are various edits I do not agree with. Yes, these are serious grievous offenses because Duck ales does actually have a somewhat stable time line of events and past episodes influence future ones. Not to mention, much of the show has several arcs that span over a number of episodes.

I only wish Disney treated DuckTales with the same respect they initially did, because DuckTales was THE first cartoon of its kind (in America) and paved the way for other animation companies to step up their game.

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Going to try a little something new here on Wednesday ~ and that’s giving one mighty heartfelt toast to a single worthy cause/person/news. May not happen always, but from time to time. Change is good. Anyway.

This Weekly Toast goes to KerryBeary of Etsy, who I commissioned to rework one of her prints in honor of my (now passed) beloved cat, Mr. Destiny (whom I previously wrote about).

I was going to wait until I had it properly framed and hanging on my wall before posting, but the tragic passing of (Indy Grrrl) Brandy’s cat, Perry, prompted me to post about this today. There truly is no time like the present to seize an opportunity to express my gratitude and appreciation for Kerry’s artwork. It’s beauty is in its simplicity and the retro sass is very endearing.

So I sit here with my cat, Kermit, purring up a storm, his fuzzy butt parked on my arm as I type this; my thoughts are on Mr. Destiny, Perry, Mina, Mr. Purr Purr, She-She, Wacko, Ferris, and Duke ~ all of the pets that have left us. I endeavor to remind all of my dear readers to cherish the time they have with their pets. Give them an extra cuddle for me.

Let’s raise our glass and give a toast for all of our animal friends!

My friend Anya mentioned this recipe on Twitter and, considering myself to be somewhat of a nut for butternut squash ravioli, I asked for the recipe. She linked me to Lorna’s recipe on Allrecipes.com and even though I’m more of a fan of creamier sauces for squash-filled ravioli, I decided to give the sage brown butter sauce a whirl (with a few alterations)

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