Kepa has tagged me with a meme. I figured I'd get one sooner or later.
Here we go...
1.Answer the question, “What do you expect from your blog?” and try to be as specific as possible. Avoid warm-fuzzy answers unless that really is your thing. Link back to the blog who tagged you so your readers can check others’ answers.
Nothing really. I didn't come into this with any expectations. However, I have found it's a great way to express myself (the good, the bad and the meh) and get different perspective on things from different people.
2.Tag at least five bloggers with the same question.
Hmmm...Monica, Natalie, Lady T, Cactus Freak and CMAE
Sunday, January 27, 2008
Thursday, January 24, 2008
drama free is the way 2 b!
the drama with the new place is ended.
so here's what's been going on behind the scenes since i've moved in:
1. electricity: when i moved in there was no grounded plug in the kitchen, so i had to put the microwave in the front room. shortly thereafter, i found out that i couldn't run the microwave and the heater at the same time. so until the heat got fixed, it was one or the other. i was able to work around that...but not having no electricity in the kitchen. one morning i got up, went to the kitchen, plugged in the toaster and the whole apartment blew. went outside in the cold (cuz ya gotta go outside to get to the basement) to reset the breaker. that only turned on the juice for part of the apartment. long story short, the landlord had to come in and do some rewiring. that included a new fuse box inside the apartment and grounded plugs in the kitchen.
2.renter's insurance: the day that i was to sign the lease, i called the landlord's office beforehand and asked what i needed to bring with me. the guy @ the landlord's office who handles the leases (aka lease guy)said "your checkbook". i asked again and he said, again, the checkbook was all i needed. when i got there, he said that he wouldn't give me the keys until he had proof of my renter's insurance. so i called geico on the spot and got renter's insurance. while i was on the phone with geico, he told me that i had to add the landlord as additional insured, i told the person on the phone and geico said that they needed a name. so the lease guy gave me the owner's name. the company faxed him a copy my insurance certificate and all was good. until about a week later, i get this call from lease guy saying that the COMPANY has to be additional insured and the owner of the company needs to be removed as additional insured. so i contacted my insurance and asked that they make it happen. turns out they don't insure landlords. (pause for the cause: by being named as additional insured, the landord is protecting themselved from being sued by the insurance company if it is found that the loss of my property was related to something that landlord did/didn't do).
i called allstate and they won't insure this 'hood. so lease guy gave me contact info for an insurance agent that he works closely with - i called her and she couldn't find an insurance company agency that would do it. (and she has contact with MANY insurance companies). i forwarded her e-mail to lease guy and considered the situation closed. then, i get a call from lease guy telling me that i need to make this happen. but i reminded him of a few things:
1. how this situation came to be
2. i have renter's insurance
3. reputable companies have said no
4. that i have a full-time job, that does not include calling every insurance company known to man to make this happen.
i also let him know that if he found a company that was willing to do what he's asking and he's 100% sure that they will do it in a legal manner, please send me the information and I will switch. in the meantime, i still have renter's insurance through geico.
3. heat: i have radiator heat (translation - controlled by the landlords). when i moved in, instead of opening the radiators, the maintenance guy closed them. that was remedied pretty quickly
now...to finish unpacking, furnish the apartment, have a dinner party and other normal living stuff
so here's what's been going on behind the scenes since i've moved in:
1. electricity: when i moved in there was no grounded plug in the kitchen, so i had to put the microwave in the front room. shortly thereafter, i found out that i couldn't run the microwave and the heater at the same time. so until the heat got fixed, it was one or the other. i was able to work around that...but not having no electricity in the kitchen. one morning i got up, went to the kitchen, plugged in the toaster and the whole apartment blew. went outside in the cold (cuz ya gotta go outside to get to the basement) to reset the breaker. that only turned on the juice for part of the apartment. long story short, the landlord had to come in and do some rewiring. that included a new fuse box inside the apartment and grounded plugs in the kitchen.
2.renter's insurance: the day that i was to sign the lease, i called the landlord's office beforehand and asked what i needed to bring with me. the guy @ the landlord's office who handles the leases (aka lease guy)said "your checkbook". i asked again and he said, again, the checkbook was all i needed. when i got there, he said that he wouldn't give me the keys until he had proof of my renter's insurance. so i called geico on the spot and got renter's insurance. while i was on the phone with geico, he told me that i had to add the landlord as additional insured, i told the person on the phone and geico said that they needed a name. so the lease guy gave me the owner's name. the company faxed him a copy my insurance certificate and all was good. until about a week later, i get this call from lease guy saying that the COMPANY has to be additional insured and the owner of the company needs to be removed as additional insured. so i contacted my insurance and asked that they make it happen. turns out they don't insure landlords. (pause for the cause: by being named as additional insured, the landord is protecting themselved from being sued by the insurance company if it is found that the loss of my property was related to something that landlord did/didn't do).
i called allstate and they won't insure this 'hood. so lease guy gave me contact info for an insurance agent that he works closely with - i called her and she couldn't find an insurance company agency that would do it. (and she has contact with MANY insurance companies). i forwarded her e-mail to lease guy and considered the situation closed. then, i get a call from lease guy telling me that i need to make this happen. but i reminded him of a few things:
1. how this situation came to be
2. i have renter's insurance
3. reputable companies have said no
4. that i have a full-time job, that does not include calling every insurance company known to man to make this happen.
i also let him know that if he found a company that was willing to do what he's asking and he's 100% sure that they will do it in a legal manner, please send me the information and I will switch. in the meantime, i still have renter's insurance through geico.
3. heat: i have radiator heat (translation - controlled by the landlords). when i moved in, instead of opening the radiators, the maintenance guy closed them. that was remedied pretty quickly
now...to finish unpacking, furnish the apartment, have a dinner party and other normal living stuff
Sunday, January 20, 2008
after all of that...
First - my oven/range works! The gas guy came out Saturday and did whatever it is that they do. He lit the pilot and shortly thereafter, I made spaghetti.
Now that I have a working oven/range, I'm cooking...in my crockpot. To be fair, I did use the burners to take the raw off of the onion and the mushrooms. But I digress.
The soup that I'm making in the crock pot is inspired by one of my favorite marinades (mojo criollo) and a broth based pumpkin soup that I had fifteen years ago when I was in Jamaica. Since I have no pumpkin, I used butternut squash, carrots and sweet potato. Yes, I know that the three don't equal pumpkin, but I like all 3 in soups, so I put them in there.
Here's the recipe:
3 boneless skinless chicken breasts (raw, bite sized pieces marinated in mojo criollo for at least 30 minutes)
1 large sweet potato (raw, cut into chunks)
2 cups butternut squash (raw, cut into chunks)
1/2 head raw cauliflower (cut into chunks)
1 red onion
1.5 cups mushrooms (raw, sliced)
1/2 cup mojo criollo (do not use the mojo criollo that the chicken was in, make up some fresh/pour directly from the bottle)
2 cups low sodium chicken stock
1 small can tomato paste
chipotle powder
salt free all-purpose seasoning
1. Sautee the mushrooms and red onions until they are just cooked
2. Dump everything in the crock pot and turn on low
3. Do some chores, go see a movie, go to work, take a nap or whatever suits you
4. Ladel into a bowl and enjoy
Now that I have a working oven/range, I'm cooking...in my crockpot. To be fair, I did use the burners to take the raw off of the onion and the mushrooms. But I digress.
The soup that I'm making in the crock pot is inspired by one of my favorite marinades (mojo criollo) and a broth based pumpkin soup that I had fifteen years ago when I was in Jamaica. Since I have no pumpkin, I used butternut squash, carrots and sweet potato. Yes, I know that the three don't equal pumpkin, but I like all 3 in soups, so I put them in there.
Here's the recipe:
3 boneless skinless chicken breasts (raw, bite sized pieces marinated in mojo criollo for at least 30 minutes)
1 large sweet potato (raw, cut into chunks)
2 cups butternut squash (raw, cut into chunks)
1/2 head raw cauliflower (cut into chunks)
1 red onion
1.5 cups mushrooms (raw, sliced)
1/2 cup mojo criollo (do not use the mojo criollo that the chicken was in, make up some fresh/pour directly from the bottle)
2 cups low sodium chicken stock
1 small can tomato paste
chipotle powder
salt free all-purpose seasoning
1. Sautee the mushrooms and red onions until they are just cooked
2. Dump everything in the crock pot and turn on low
3. Do some chores, go see a movie, go to work, take a nap or whatever suits you
4. Ladel into a bowl and enjoy
Wednesday, January 9, 2008
you say theater and i say theatre
However you spell it...i'm going
James Earl Jones and Phylicia Rashad and Terrence Howard and Anika Nani Rose in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. Truth be told, they could be reading the phone book and I would be there. Okay, the NY Times and maybe not the phone book.
Happy, happy. Joy, joy.
James Earl Jones and Phylicia Rashad and Terrence Howard and Anika Nani Rose in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. Truth be told, they could be reading the phone book and I would be there. Okay, the NY Times and maybe not the phone book.
Happy, happy. Joy, joy.
Tuesday, January 8, 2008
in da house
the movers came on time and everything was delivered..sans scratch or damage.
the cable guys came early (and que guapo to boot)
the fridge was delivered.
it's a little cool and my oven isn't working.
so i'm wearing a fluffy robe and i went out for decent carribbean food
the best part...i'll be sleeping in my own bed tonight.
the cable guys came early (and que guapo to boot)
the fridge was delivered.
it's a little cool and my oven isn't working.
so i'm wearing a fluffy robe and i went out for decent carribbean food
the best part...i'll be sleeping in my own bed tonight.
Friday, January 4, 2008
mi casa
yay!
found an apartment
via craigslist (translation: NO BROKER FEE)
beautiful rehab one bedroom....gorgeous wood floors...buttery yellow wall...aesthetically pleasing wall sconces
move in on tuesday
happy urban chick....happy happy urban chick
found an apartment
via craigslist (translation: NO BROKER FEE)
beautiful rehab one bedroom....gorgeous wood floors...buttery yellow wall...aesthetically pleasing wall sconces
move in on tuesday
happy urban chick....happy happy urban chick
Tuesday, January 1, 2008
Happy Birthday to ME....happy new year to you
Happy New Year, y'all!
It's my birthday! So awesome already. This morning after prayers, I heard a muffled boom. When I looked outside, I realized that my perfect view of NYC also afforded me a perfect view of the post ball drop fireworks. The best firework show I've seen in years.
It was a perfect start to my birthday. Truly rang it in with a bang.
I was so excited, that I started to cook right away. I took the lamb out of the marinade and then added to a pot with garbanzo beans, diced tomato, sliced raw sweet potato, collard greens, red onion, and mojo marinade straight from the bottle. Then I popped it in the oven on 170 to warm up the pot and a couple of hours later turned it up to 175. It's been cooking for the past 10 hours and the lamb is starting to become fall apart tender.
My cake is so cute. I took it out of the fridge and put on the candles. Then I put it back in the fridge because I didn't want to eat it until my call with the NMF later today (that's when I'll post the pictures).
More updates to come...
It's my birthday! So awesome already. This morning after prayers, I heard a muffled boom. When I looked outside, I realized that my perfect view of NYC also afforded me a perfect view of the post ball drop fireworks. The best firework show I've seen in years.
It was a perfect start to my birthday. Truly rang it in with a bang.
I was so excited, that I started to cook right away. I took the lamb out of the marinade and then added to a pot with garbanzo beans, diced tomato, sliced raw sweet potato, collard greens, red onion, and mojo marinade straight from the bottle. Then I popped it in the oven on 170 to warm up the pot and a couple of hours later turned it up to 175. It's been cooking for the past 10 hours and the lamb is starting to become fall apart tender.
My cake is so cute. I took it out of the fridge and put on the candles. Then I put it back in the fridge because I didn't want to eat it until my call with the NMF later today (that's when I'll post the pictures).
More updates to come...
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