Welcome to Conger weekend 2k12! Here is a sampling of some of the glorious things happening this weekend. All (most? some?) of our favorite things!

The weekend will commence with brunch on arrival (b.o.a.). Perhaps we will check out “Superbowl Village,” something that sounds of absolutely no interest to either of us. We will certainly drink champagne, go shopping (while wearing brown spaghetti-strap tanks and out favorite Kangol barrets, and make sticky toffee pudding (STP).  Harry Potter will lull us to sleep, and we will put avocado on everything. And, if I can convince her, we will do a craft!

Let the games begin. 

Clockwise from top left: Whale print (here), Male model (here), Cupcake topper (here),  Burlap pillow (here),  Felted mittens (here), Wooden desk organizer (here), and Whale ring (here).

All so cute!

Instead, Ben choses to go on a date with Rachel. She has straight blonde hair and the scratchy voice of a smoker/drinker. I think a few years ago this show started being sponsored by a helicopter company. How else to explain the fact that it is their main mode of travel? I wish I had a montage of every Bachelor/ette’s multiple helicopter ride. Why not a hot air balloon every now and again? Now that’s romantic!

True romance

Instead they ride to a lake and go out in a canoe. It’s a loooot of silences. Interspersed by them saying how “nice,” “romantic,” and “peaceful” things are, and then Ben just gives up and starts making out with her. Girl is not good at making conversation!

I'm bored.

Ben tells us (after we watch some excruciatingly awkward conversation about crows feet (yes, eye wrinkles)) that he and Rachel have good chemistry but the conversation was lacking. Or maybe he said lagging. Either way: I don’t think conversation lacks when you have chemistry! Ben, chemistry is actually more than just thinking someone is pretty. He should learn that soon, before he picks the model as his wife. Eeks.

Anyway, it is a super boring date, filled with…no, it wasnt filled with anything. Empty date. Ben says he’s confused about what he’s feeling (To clarify: it’s boredom). Oh but then after he gives her the rose he explains why: Rachel is beautiful. He “likes kissing her.” Ok then!

Time for the group date! Up comes Ben on a horse (much like a knight in shining armor.)

Something tells me Lindzi won't be impressed

Something that I love about this show is their ability to take old cliches and turn them into realities. So, while the girls may say they are “leaping into things” or “falling for Ben,” they probably said these things on a bungee jumping date. Today, we take the “you’re a catch” cliche and run with it! A fly fishing date. What could be more fun than standing in two feet of water wearing chest-high waders with 10 other girls and Ben, who I think fits more aptly with “there are other fish in the sea” than “you’re a catch,” but what do I know? No one catches anything except Courtney, the “model.” Much like my dad, who was also a fly fisherman model. All the other girls are pissed.

Then it’s time for the fancy half of the date! Obviously Ben didn’t get the memo, or else he just really isnt interested in impressing anyone. Courtney is trying bravely not to care that she’s in competition for a scrub.

But it's my nicest hoodie.

Side-by-side conversation comparison: First girl is nice, and reports that even though she’s only had group dates she’s happy to see Ben at all. Second girl: Alll I get is group dates! Boohoo! I want a one on one! Ben thinks the second girl is lame, so he sends her packing! Well, that was easy! For Ben that is. Not so much for the girl. She cries a lot and then says something along the lines of the thing that hurts the most was that he didnt like her. So, nothing to do with Ben as a person. Just a bruised ego. Those heal quickly. Don’t worry, random blonde girl!

He's just not that into me?

Next up, Courtney plays Ben like a fiddle. She pretends that she is super upset, and “struggling.” She has lost sight of their connection since she hasnt been able to spend much time with him. It’s hard!! Ben is sad that Courtney is “sad.” She wants to be reassured, but only by being given the rose (she doesnt actually say this, it’s just obvious to everyone but Ben). Like a puppet on a string, Ben goes to get the rose and gives it to her. Kaci B acted sweet and nice and happy to see him during their time together, and Courtney gets the rose. Ben’s an idiot.

I'm not an idiot. I'm a caveman.There's a difference... I think.

"Winning." (Her caption not mine) (Actually, Charlie Sheen's caption, not hers)

Next up is a date with Jennifer. She seems nice and normal so she won’t win. They hike up to a rusty cage and are then supposed to repel into a cave. Jennifer is not excited, as no normal person would be. Enough with creating scenarios where the girls have to “trust” Ben, and if they don’t it means they are uptight bitches. I would “trust” my partner not to put me in a situation where I had to walk barefoot through a rusty cage only to have to drop  200 feet into a puddle. Trust means your boyfriend won’t make out with other girls when you arent around, and he’ll look out for your best interests. Clearly, these women have no reason to trust Ben! (Cliche used: Taking the plunge. They never miss an opportunity for meaningless phrases, I’ll give them that!)

I shaved my legs for this?

Then, they go to a country concert. Uhg, worst date ever. Jennifer disagrees, and now she can confidently say that she would like to marry Ben.

At the rose ceremony, all I really learn is that Courtney is extremely annoying. It mostly has to do with everything she says, but also they way her lips move when she talks. She is always curling or scrunching or pursing or eating her lips and it is weird and distracting.

See?

Courtney and Emily also have some weird, lame little fight that was boring. Then Ben tries to convince us that this week has been a turning point, and also that his wife is somewhere in this room. Sounds spooky, like she’s a ghost. She’s here, but we just can’t see her or know who she is. What I want to know is, does Ben know who she is? Or he’s just pretty sure it’s one of them? That’s not super romantic.

The rose ceremony is not super dramatic because he is still giving roses to people I don’t know. Jamie? Nikki? Ultimately, this girl is sent home:

I put on clown make-up for this?

She didnt have the right look to win, but I kinda liked her. She was like the Greek chorus in the house, saying pretty reasonable, funny stuff about what was happening. Obviously that won’t get you far on this show! Don’t worry, second random blonde girl, you are dodging a bullet.

So who is your pick for top three? Mine are Lindzi, Kaci B, Emily, and Courtney. Oops, thats top four. Since Courtney would be the dumbest pick, that’s probably what will happen. Ben, it’s your funeral! Or, your public humiliation and subsequent breakup. Good luck!

See you next week for skinny dipping, a giant handkerchief  worn as a dress, and lots more tears!

This weekend Aaron and I tried a new restaurant we haven’t been to yet, Twenty Tap, in South Broad Ripple. They’ve been open for a few months but we don’t go down that way that often.

The bad: My only real complaint is the atmosphere. Just plain wooden booths, maybe some red and yellows. It is not warm or inviting, there is not much decor. I’m not sure exactly what’s wrong, and this probably sounds weird, but it felt like there were too many angles. This may be related to the lighting? Not enough light sources softening out the edges? It was pretty busy when we went, and the place is divided into a bar side and an eating side. In the front of the bar side there are 2 dart boards in the area where normally people would stand and wait for their tables. Or, which could be filled with more bar high tops so more people could be sitting and eating. There was not enough room for darts and it seemed like a really dumb place to try to put it.

The good: We waited about 10 minutes for a table and got a beer while we waited. They have “twenty taps” most of them were local. I think the beer I tried was called “Fountain Square Blonde.” I liked it but it was nothing super special. But our meal was delicious! We ordered two appetizers, boiled peanuts and cheese curds (a meal representing my Midwestern heritage and Aarons Southern upbringing…). I have never had boiled peanuts before, and they were interesting. Not terrible, but not amazing I didnt think. Aaron liked them because he’s missed them, but he said he prefers them even softer. The curds were really really good. We have tried a lot of curds here in Indy, but there were the best. Good beer batter, nice and chewy, and you got to choose two aiolis. We got horseradish and chipotle. They were both yummy!

For dinner we shared a sandwich. Impressively, they served tofu. This was the description of our sandwich: “Vegan Bahn Mi w/ Smoked Tofu, Pickled Carrot and Daikon, Cliantro, Cucumber, Jalapeno, and Vegan Mayo.” I thought it sounded like it would either be really good and flavorful or really dry and bland, but it was really good! Lots of flavor, warm, silky tofu, crunchy cucumber, creamy mayo, cilantro. We both really liked it. And saw quite a few other people order it too. It came with fries which were decent but salty and we were pretty full by this point.

All in all it was a good experience, and we will go back! I just wish they would redecorate.

According to my Paper Source calendar, today is National Handwriting Day!  Did you know the study of handwriting is called Graphology? The word in purple above is my real handwriting, as some of you may recognize.

Time to analyze your own handwriting!

If Your Writing Slants…

To the right: You are open to the world around you and like to socialize with other people.

To the left: You generally like to work alone or behind the scenes. If you are right-handed and your handwriting slants to the left, you may be expressing rebellion.

 Not at all: You tend to be logical and practical. You are guarded with your emotions.

If Your Loops Are…

Closed for L (meaning the upstroke overlaps the downstroke): Feeling tense? This implies you are restricting yourself in some way.

Full for L: You are spontaneous and relaxed and find it easy to express yourself.

Closed for E: You tend to be skeptical and are unswayed by emotional arguments.

Full for E: You have an open mind and enjoy trying new things.

(Info from the highly reputable, Real Simple mag, found here.)

Or, go here, write something in the box with your mouse, and then take a quiz to get it analyzed! Here are the results of my analysis:

You plan ahead, and are interested in beauty, design, outward appearance, and symmetry. (I do plan ahead, but I don’t always follow through with plan. I prefer asymmetry.)
You are a shy, idealistic person who does not find it easy to have relationships, especially intimate ones. (True for the most part.)
You are diplomatic, objective, and live in the present.(I agree.) 
You are a talkative person, maybe even a busybody! (Depends on who I’m talking to, but Aaron definitely thinks I’m too nosy! However, my shyness usually gets in the way of asking most people too many questions.)
You enjoy life in your own way and do not depend on the opinions of others. (Yes.)

World's Worst Sale Table

Today was the Indianapolis Woodworking Show! It really wasn’t bad. I watched a guy make some cabinetry using lots of fancy new tools that I didnt really understand. There were lots of demonstrations going on, lots of SELLING. As in, live informercial type things. I even got sucked into one! A guy started talking to me and before I new it I had purchased squishy gel shoe inserts. But actually, I was in the market for a pair anyways because my feet have been giving me problems lately, especially my heels. And since I stand all day at work I thought I’d invest. I wore them around the show and they are pretty comfy! When you put your heel down, it pushes all the gel forward so when you go to put the ball of your foot down, the gel is now up there, waiting to cushion you. Then you squish it back towards your heel and so on. I was a little disappointed that the actual insert didnt have glitter in it like the demo insert, but I suppose they are still cool. Well, maybe not “cool.”

There was some really nice furniture there, Aaron bought a few tools that I can not identify off the top of my head, but he swears they are extremely useful. Except one of them needs an air compressor, which he doesnt have, so…. useful? I also learned about his up-til-now-well-hidden secret obsession with sandpaper. Every booth we looked at he ended up browsing through the sandpaper as if he hadn’t just bought 20 pieces. Weird! But that’s ok. Saturday I spent too much money on fabric, today he spends too much money on tools. We’re even! And today I had an Etsy sale, so I’ve almost already made my money back.

Also, single ladies: woodworking shows are the place to be! I would say I was outnumbered, men to women, by a ration of at least 10 to 1. Of course, you have to be in the market for an extremely specific type of man. Over half the guys there had “Woodworkers Uniform” on, which I now know consists of the following components:

 Greyish hair

flannel jacket or shirt (or both)

faded jeans

work boots

beard

beer belly.

Seriously! It was a sea of flannel and beards. Kinda funny how specifically similar everyone looked. I wonder what the identifying markers of the quilt guild are.

So that was my day. Not too bad! (Plus, I brought my book to read when Aaron was taking too long at a booth. Everyone wins!).

This afternoon I went to my first meeting of Indy’s Modern Quilt Guild and it was so much fun! And it was at my favorite fabric store, The French Seam, so that was a bonus! We started out introducing ourselves and doing a show and tell. I showed my pennant quilt and another non-quilted project I have. The great thing was seeing everyone else’s quilts though. I really do not like old lady style brown/rust/mustard/batik quilts. I think they’re gross. None of that here today! Everyone’s quilts were really neat and different and interesting, and super colorful! I was really regretted not having my notebook with me. The one day it’s not in my purse!

The thing that I found most interesting was the way that people used solids in their quilts. I believe, in quilting, it is referred to as “negative space.” I have not really done much with solids but now I am inspired to (stopped at JoAnn’s on the way home to buy two yards each of off-white and grey solid). On my Pinterest Quilts board are lots of quilts I like or want to try making. The ones in the collage above are standing out to me now because of the use of solids! The hexagon quilt (here) is cheerful, and I’ve been kind of obsessed with hexagons for the past few months. The one in the top middle I found on a blog the other day, made by placing random scrap quilts on a design wall and then filling in the spaces with white. Cool idea. And it was a young daughter who did the layout, which seems like a neat project. Seems a bit Kandisnky-esque.  The third quilt (here) is going to be my next project, and I already have the fabric for it, which I was going to make a zig-zag quilt out of but I’m glad I didn’t because now I can use it for this. It is this bundle, and some others thrown into the mix. I just love the stars! This is a shape I have always doodled, and I may play around with size too. I’ll keep you in the loop!

And the bottom photo isnt a quilt, it’s a painting, but I think it would make a pretty awesome throw blanket! Like in a sparse, light wood cabin perhaps…

So anyway, that was my day so far. Today is also the one-year anniversary of the day Aaron and I met! We might go get drinks at the bar where we had our first date later. Who knew that the guy I had yet to meet on Jan. 20, 2011, would be the same guy who went to the library for me but didn’t get my books on Jan 21, 2012!

I hate taking down Christmas decorations! This is what the corner of my living room has looked like all month. And we don’t even turn the tree on anymore. It is so hard to find the right boxes, make room for everything, take the tree apart. But hopefully I will at least get started on this project this weekend. Seems like Christmas was a really long time ago, but really it’s been less than a month, so I’m not at an embarrassing situation yet. My piano teacher always left her tree up until after Valentine’s Day.

Also this weekend: There’s a meeting of the Indianapolis Modern Quilt guild on Saturday at my favorite fabric shop. I was invited to join when I met a few of the members at a craft show I did, but I havent been able to go to a meeting yet. There is show and tell and a project. I am finishing up another pennant quilt that I’m going to bring. I’ll post pictures tomorrow.

Sunday is a Woodworking Show at the fairgrounds that I’m going to with Aaron. I think it will be cool, but I also have a feeling I’ll be a little bit bored. Not with the subject, but the amount of time spent there. Whereas I like to look at booths (even of things Im really interested in) for maybe 15 minutes, Aaron is more around the 30-45 minute mark. That’s a lot of standing around!

Saturday night we may try a new restaurant, I made a list the other day when I was reading Indianapolis Monthly’s restaurant section. Lots of places that sounds good that we havent tried yet!

Also: need to go to the gym at least one day, hopefully two. Have only gone once so far this week. Bad!

I really think that your surroundings influence your aesthetic. It is currently winter in the Midwest. That means no leaves, no grass, grey skies, grey roads, white(ish) snow. But, it has been a rather mild winter, with more sunny days than I am used to, hence the pops of aqua in my winter collection. This is also a new technique I’m learning in Photoshop. Not perfect, but it was fun to make!

Here are the things I’m currently diggin’ this month:

1. Cool Art Print  Affordable too. I really like this saying, and I may order it. My dining room is pretty bland.

2.Turquoise Ring. I love this little ring so much. It looks like it’s already been sold, but I would have accepted it as an engagement ring. Nothing flashy, but very sweet, and turquoise is my birthstone!

3. Buffalo Print. I saw this on Etsy a few weeks ago and just had to have it! It arrived in the mail today and it is just what I had hoped. I am planning a gallery wall, and this will definitely be part of it. Very good prices too.

4. Awesome Sweater. I promised myself I wouldnt but clothes for the next few months, but if I did, I would buy this. I think it’s so fun and cute! And less than $50.

5. Salt Cellar. I am currently using Aunt Kiki’s hand-me-down salt shaker, which is a Corona bottle with holes in the lid. So the idea of this sweet little bowl is very appealing. Luckily I love salt, so i should be able to use the Corona bottle up quickly….

6. Chevron Rug. I love this West Elm rug. Would be nice under my dining room table, but why are rugs so expensive?? Oh well, maybe someday. I love the little bits of yellow on the ends.

Hope you’ve enjoyed my first monthly roundup! What are your favorite things right now?