11 Things...

I can't tell you how excited I was that the fabulous Gracey at Fashion for Giants tagged me in her 11 Things, 11 Questions post yesterday. I had some wicked insomnia last night, so this post is brought to you by sleep deprivation.


Here is the scoop:

There are five rules:

1. Post these rules.

2. Post a photo of yourself and 11 random things.

3. Answer the questions set for you in the original post.

4. Create 11 new questions and tag people to answer them.

5. Go to their blog/twitter and tell them you’ve tagged them.

My Photo:

Leopard+Leopard+Leopard+Lion Belt+
Pepper Necklace= Bad Ass

My Random Things:

1. I could repost nine and a half of the eleven things that Gracey posted. I am not terrified of heights, and I am not going to wait until I'm old to be crochety wear a plethora of caftans, turbans and necklaces all together. I am way ahead of the curve on those. Crocheting is the first step to being crochety, right? Carpe diem.
2. I wear size 11 women's shoes. It is the same size my husband wears (but he doesn't wear women's shoes).
3. I wear animal print. A lot of animal print.
4. I am attempting to do away with the word "should" in my life. It only makes me feel guilty. I am replacing it with "could." All the possibility, none of the negativity.
5. Feeling guilty is a second language for me. Or maybe it's a third language and sarcasm is my second.
6. I have also studied French and Serbo-Croatian.
7. I have six piercings and one tattoo. I would like to add at least one more of each.
8. I wish I was in Cozumel, Mexico right now.
9. I have one sister. She lives in Portland, OR. I miss her. (Mom, when you read this post I miss you too.)
10. My favorite craft project of the past year is my lion belt.

    

    Lion belt.

    
    
11. I hate migraine headaches, insomnia and vacuuming. Migraines hurt my brain. Insomnia hurts my sanity. Vacuuming hurts my ears.

Gracey's Questions:

1. What is your guilty pleasure?

As I mentioned above, everything makes me feel guilty. That being said, I don't really have any guilty pleasures. I like what I like and I don't feel any more guilty about it than I do about anything else.

2. What place would you most like to visit?

Cozumel. Well, other than Cozumel, North Africa and the Middle East, but not right now.

3. If money was no object and you weren’t opposed to spending ridiculous amounts of money of fashion, which designer would you wear?

Easy. I would wear Louboutin. Solely because of these shoes. (Ha ha. Solely. Shoes. I crack myself up.) I don't follow designers that much. I like Goodwill. Even if I had ridiculous money I think I would still shop at Goodwill.

Freaking lion foot shoes make your feet look like
lions' feet.

4. Fur. Yeah or nay?

In between. I would feel guilty about buying fur new, because I would feel like that animal had been murdered to satisfy my capitalist gluttony. I would probably buy vintage/second hand fur because then the animal would have died for someone else's capitalist gluttony.

5. Do you prefer the mountains or the ocean?

Ocean. Mountains are nice too, but I love snokeling.

6. What are you most looking forward to in 2012?

I am looking forward to travel We have a trip to Las Vegas in the works and one to Portland to see my sister a little later in the year. Hopefully we will also manage to squeeze in a trip to Cozumel.

7. What are your thoughts on zombies?

My thoughts on zombies are multi-faceted and complex. I started reading the Forest of Hands and Teeth series a few years ago, and I really loved it. (I know it's Young Adult fic. What of it? I'm not an old adult.) Since then I have read a few more books about zombies. I have enjoyed them too. On the other hand, zombies feature pretty regularly in my episodes of parasomnia, and there is nothing like running across the house in the middle of the night to "escape zombies" to endear me to my husband. I definitely don't want to become a zombie, because I heart free will. Also, I like the song Zombie by the Cranberries. And I bought six bags of cranberries to freeze before they went out of season. In conclusion, zombies are great in books but not in my dreams and cranberries are delicious and a good band that makes me feel 12 again.

8. What is the worst book you’ve ever read and how far did you get before giving up?

I can't remember the last time I didn't finish a book. Once I start it I feel like I have to finish even when I'm not really liking it. Also, over the years I have developed a pretty good idea of what I'll like so I don't start ones that I'll really hate.

9. Momentarily forgetting the lesson we learned in “Midnight in Paris,” if you could live during any era, what era would it be?

I think there is a lot to be said for the present day. It is far from perfect, but it has antibiotics, indoor plumbing, contraception, great communications technology and, in this country anyway, an unprecedented amount of personal freedom. If I had moved 1,000+ miles from my family 100 or 150 years ago, there is a fair chance I would never see or talk to them again. That being said, we as a country must guard those freedoms. Complacency is the enemy of liberty. I just made that up. I think. A quick Googling didn't show that I am subliminally plagiarizing. Sounds pretty profound, doesn't it. I think it means speak up. And vote! Also, I can wear whatever the hell I want, listen to whatever music I want and read whatever I want, so I will experience other other eras in those and other present-day ways.

10. What’s one thing you wish you could do better?
I wish I could be better at loving myself because, in the immortal words of RuPaul, "If you can't love yourself, how in the hell you gonna love somebody else?" Can I get an amen? I am working on it.

11. What is your “signature dish?” (And will you share the recipe?)

I am tooting my own horn, but I am a pretty good cook. I am going to post three signature dishes because I am so stinking full of myself. Only one of them is new to the blog though. But one of them is related to zombies. In that it is related to cranberries. Are you still with me?
Pecan Crusted Chicken (adapted from the America's Test Kitchen)

This recipe is so good that Stephen didn't share any with Wonton. This is rather unheard of these days since he has decided that she is his dog. Ingredients:
1 c. pecans, ground into a coarse meal
1 1/2 c. panko bread crumbs
3 T. butter
1/2 onion minced
1 c. flour
2 eggs
Dijon mustardsalt and peppercayenne pepper
zest of 1 lime4 chicken breasts (about 6 oz each)
Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350. Melt butter in a skillet until it just begins to brown and smells nice and buttery. Add the onion and 1/2 tsp salt and saute until it just begins to brown. Add the panko and pecans. Saute until panko and pecans are medium golden brown. Remove from heat, pour mixture into a shallow dish and add lime zest and 1/4 tsp cayenne or to taste. (You will have plenty of crumbs to reserve some for another use such as sprinkling a little on a salad or over some cottage cheese. They are very tasty.)
2. Scramble eggs in a second shallow dish along with 1/2 tsp mustard and a sprinkle of black pepper. Place flour into a third shallow dish.
3. One by one, dredge chicken breasts lightly in flour, then egg, then in nut mixture, pressing the nut mixture lightly to coat. Place chicken breasts on a wire rack on a baking sheet.
4. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the temperature in the thickest part of the breast is 160. Let rest for 5 minutes then serve with lime wedges. Or use the lime wedges in your margarita.

** Bonus margarita service announcement: When making a strawberry margarita, use frozen strawberries instead of ice. When I make strawberry margaritas I use frozen strawberries, lime juice, triple sec, tequila and love. It is like a wonderful smoothie that makes you buzzed.**

Other recipes:
Chicken Soup: Not necessarily the best thing I ever made, but I make it a lot and it is incredibly easy, inexpensive, and no fuss.
Cranberry raisin or cranberry kumquat goo: Mmmm. Delicious goo.


My Questions:
What is your name?
What is your quest?
What is the air-speed velocity of an unladen swallow?
Just kidding. Those are the questions from Monty Python and the Holy Grail.

1. What is your signature cocktail (or mocktail or what do you drink to quench your thirst)?
2. To steal a question from Monty Python, what is your quest?
3. What fashion rule or rules were made to be broken?
4. When do you feel beautiful?
5. Who is your fashion icon?
6. What do you want to listen to when you first wake up?
7. What do you want to listen to on a quiet evening?
8. What do you do when you can't sleep?
9. When was the last time you stepped out of your comfort zone?
10. What was your last adventure?
11. Who inspires you in real life?

Unfortunately I'm rather new to the blogosphere and I haven't connected with many other bloggers yet. I'm going to fish around and see if I can get some folks to answer my questions. I'll keep you updated. I'm not going to call anyone out because I don't want to exert undue pressure.


If you would like to answer my questions, leave me a comment!

Thank you, Gracey, for tagging me! This was fun and I am so flattered because you are terrific!