Commandments For Sale

I've been posting over on {frolic!} and for ideas I have been going through sites I had bookmarked. Lots of design, jewelry, art, and music sites. I found this one that has lots of fun, very original jewelry. One particular series was especially intriguing. It's a necklace made with 2 chains, one chain had a number pendant and the other chain had a small disk engraved with one of the 10 commandments to match the number. So basically 10 versions were available. 9 versions have sold out, but one, #2 is still available. I wonder why that one is still around. No takers on avoiding graven images. Did no one think it amusing that the one about graven images is engraved on a necklace?

Wondering Where I Am?

This week I'm a guest blogger over at {frolic!}. Check it out.

Some Thoughts

No special title for this one.

I had a patient die last night. It was expected and she was as comfortable as she could be, whatever that means. Her family was around her all night, sleeping in chairs, draped over her bed. She was basically unresponsive all night but there was no way she didn't feel the love in that room. She was young, about my age. Through reading her history and physical I knew the whole unfair story of her disease and was witness to her death.

I'm not sure why I'm writing this, I can't go into any detail about her. And it's making me cry so my eyes will be red and puffy at work tonight, again (they were already red and puffy last night). But I guess the little I know about her told me she was loved, she reached some amazing goals, she continued in the face of despair and even after she knew how it would all end, she lived as if it wouldn't. I guess I just think I have a lot to learn from her, this person I only knew for 12 hours.

Happy Pioneer Day!

Yesterday was Pioneer Day here in Utah. I remember when I worked for Washington Mutual in Oregon, the yearly list of holidays showed "Pioneer Day (Utah only)." So sad to know other people are getting a holiday and you aren't. Well this year, I was one of the cool kids! I got the holiday!

Liz had a party on her balcony up on 6th Ave overlooking the valley and the fireworks. Great food, fun people. I wanted to make a pioneer-themed dessert but what did they eat? Hard tack with syrup? So I made this...

And in honor of my roots, the recipe is from Southern Living. They call it Mississippi Mud Cake. I called it Oxen in the Mire cake. See all those little marshmellow oxen stuck in the mire of the frosting...

1 cup butter, melted
2 cups sugar
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa
4 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups coarsely chopped pecans, toasted (optional)
1 (10.5-ounce) bag miniature marshmallows

Whisk together melted butter and next 5 ingredients in a large bowl. Stir in flour and chopped pecans. Pour batter into a greased 9x13 inch pan.

Bake at 350° for 25-30 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Remove from oven; top warm cake evenly with marshmallows. Drizzle chocolate frosting over warm cake. Cool completely.

Chocolate Frosting
16 oz powdered sugar
1/2 cup milk
1/3 cup cocoa
1/4 cup butter, softened

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix until smooth.

Wrapped Up In Books

I like to read. See there on the right, the very first thing I list is the books I like or am reading. I keep a journal of what I read. My dream house would have a library with extra-tall ceilings so I would need one of those rolling ladders to reach the top shelf. So it makes sense that Kelly just invited me to join goodreads.com and I love it. You can find books you have read and rate them. You can "linkup" with friends and see what they have read and how they rate those books. And they have book groups so you can join groups with similar interests and see what they are discussing. And it's all FREE!

P.S. That picture used to hang in my room when I was a little girl.

Let The Music Play

Some friends and I have a music club. Each month one person gets together a CD-worth of music, uploads it to something like yousendit.com and then forwards the link to everyone else. So each month you get new music. Here are my choices. Not all of the songs are new but they all make me think of summer, relaxing and avoiding the heat or ignoring the heat and dancing anyway. If you like the mix, click here to download it for your very own.

Butterfly Nets - Bishop Allen
Chariot - Page France
Just Like Honey - The Jesus and Mary Chain
Suspicious Minds - Pete Yorn
Tonight I Have to Leave It - The Shout Out Louds
Uh - Fijiya & Miyagi
I Wish - Stevie Wonder
AM Slow Golden Hit - Hotel Lights
Sunshine - Matt Costa
The Thanks I Get - Wilco
Heartbeats - Jose Gonzales
Can't Stop the Rock - Sister Vanilla
Got To Give It Up (Part 1) - Marvin Gaye
Oh Girl - The Chi-Lites
Ice Cream Man - Tom Waits
7 Stars - Apples in Stereo
Trapeze Swinger - Iron & Wine
Nightswimming - REM
Inside & Out - Feist
Ooh La La - The Faces

And if you really want the Shannon song mentioned in the title, click here.