True Beauty

A lovely lady in blue shared this link with me today. I was captivated. Watch it with the volume up and on full screen. Hopefully it has the same effect on you as it did on me. Cheers!

The Aurora from Terje Sorgjerd on Vimeo.

The Chara/Pacioretty Hit

Dear Habs fans,

I don't mean all of you... just the ones who are all up in arms over the Chara hit on Pacioretty... the ones who are saying that the LEGAL hit Chara made on Pacioretty was fully intended to cripple him.

Give me a break... 

1 - Chara was taking Pacioretty out of the play. The hit was legal. Watch it again.

2 - Anyone who doesn't think that a beast like Chara isn't going to cause pain to anyone (especially someone 50lbs lighter and 3/4 of a foot smaller than him) in a full contact sport is delusional. 

3 - It was more the location of the rink that the hit took place that explains why such an injury occurred. Pacioretty was in the wrong place at the wrong time. It happens. Had the whole ordeal happened two or three seconds later, it would have happened inside the blue-line, along the boards and the high glass. At worst, Pacioretty would have been temporarily shaken up by getting hammered into the boards.

I'm upset to see that this happened to Max Pacioretty and I wish him a speedy recovery; however, sometimes there are these things in life called coincidences.... and sometimes the outcomes aren't good, even tragic. 

Instead of wasting your time whining about Chara getting no suspension, you should be writing the NHLPA in regards to reviewing the restructuring of the rink at the Bell Center and maybe even demanding a review of the safety of other rinks around the NHL. 

The Best Sugar Cookie Recipe (in the world?)

I stumbled upon my favourite Sugar Cookie recipe (possibly the best) last summer when I made a special batch of birthday cookies. I'm usually a cake in a box or cut and cook pilsbury kinda girl, but I decided I wanted to make something from scratch this time around. They turned out amazing and they were such a hit with the birthday boy and his mom, that I decided to label it a keeper. Ever since, they have been my staple cookie that I bake for special occasions. I can't take credit for the actual recipe as I found it on a different blog by Lucy : http://myediblememories.net/

Birthday TOOLkies

Lucy's Favorite Chewy Sugar Cookies  (makes 5-6 dozen 2" cookies)  

Ingredients:
2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/8 tsp salt (use 1/2 tsp if using unsalted butter)
1 cup salted butter, softened
1 2/3 cups granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp almond extract

Directions:
1. Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl.

2. In another bowl, cream softened butter with sugar until fluffy. Add one egg at a time and stir until incorporated. Stir in vanilla and almond extracts.

3. Gradually add the flour mixture into the batter, stirring until well-mixed. Don't be afraid to stir it a lot. (Stirring the dough well will develop the gluten in the flour, which is important for chewy cookies!) When everything is incorporated, the dough will be heavy and slightly sticky. Cover it up and put it in the fridge for 30 minutes to chill.

4. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. When the dough is done chilling, scoop out balls of dough about the diameter of a quarter, and place them on foil-lined baking sheets about 2 inches apart from one another. 

5. Grease the bottom of a flat glass and gently flatten the dough balls until they are small discs about 1/3 inch thick. This will help your cookies spread evenly instead of mounding in the middle.

6. Bake for about 10 minutes, until the edges are just very slightly starting to become a golden-brown. Immediately remove from oven and let sit on the cookie sheet to finish baking for another 2 minutes. While cookies are still warm, remove from foil using a spatula and finish cooling on a cooling rack. They will be perfectly chewy starting from the moment they are cool enough to eat, until they are all gone :)

**I always use a royal icing finish, but it is not needed. They are still delicious without!

                  

             OM NOM NOM!!!!

Spiral Out...

One of my all-time favourite songs... Lateralus. So much so that my tattoo is partially based on it! I'd heard about the fibonacci sequence being used in Danny Carey's percussion, but this video explanation takes it to a whole different level. It's long, but it's interesting if you make it through. (Plus the song is pretty amazing itself!)

source

Did Maynard and the boys really sync up the song based on the fibonnaci sequence, or is it coincidence? What do YOU think?!?!

Constellations - Part II - The Little Dipper

source

Ursa Minor is the “Little Bear” or “Son of the Mother Bear" – Ursa Major.  It is made up of 7 stars just like its larger counterpart.

• Polaris (North Star)
• Kochab
• Pherkad
• Yildun
• Ahfa al Farkadain
• Anwar al Farkadain

·   OTHER INTERESTING FACTS:

**In earlier times, the Little Dipper was named “Dragon’s Wing” as it was thought of as part the constellation, “Draco”. 

**Both the big and little dippers are found in the Northern Sky, near the pole.

**You can only see them clearly if you are in the Northern Hemisphere.

**The North Star is as bright as the seven stars in the Big Dipper (the rest are fainter).

**A dwarf galaxy named “Ursa Minor Dwarf” is located in the same area as The Little Dipper.

**One of the stars within the constellation has its own extrasolar planet (planet outside of solar system)

**Constellations that border Ursa Minor are: Draco, Camelopardalis and Cepheus.

Memories

In the spectrum of things, there are actually very few things in life anymore that can really melt your heart and turn you to mush; OR, maybe that's just me.

Last Sunday evening, I went to a friend's house for one of those "candle party" thingies, and a few of my other friends showed up, with kids in tow. I'd spent most of the day stressed about finding a permanent full time teaching gig, and working on cover letters, school board apps, etc. Something happened that night that has given me one of the greatest memories I've ever experienced. It seems like such a small thing too.

Here's the background:
Every Tuesday, I babysit my friend's 16-month old daughter. Usually when she sees me she gives me the stink eye because she associates seeing me with her precious mum leaving her. Needless to say, it takes a while for her to warm up to me, even when her mum is still around.

Sunday evening rolls around, and my friend and her 16-month old daughter come to the candle party thingy. They come in and get settled. Baby is wearing her Tinkerbell pyjamas and has a mini ponytail at the right side of her head. She looks around the room; she looks tepid and shy and unsure of what to make of what is going on. As she's looking around the room her eyes fall on me and I give her a smile.

Here is the moment:
Baby's big, beautiful, blue eyes widen and twinkle and a huge-ass open-mouth smile graces her face as she realizes who I am and RUNS her tiny little feet towards me in excitement and jumps on me with her arms opened.

Yes, I realize that the only reason she was so excited to see me is because the room was full of people she wasn't very familiar with and I was someone she recognized. Do I care? NOPE! I'll take it! I love that little girl and to finally see her so excited to see me is one of the greatest visual memories I've ever had. I almost wish I'd gotten a picture of it so I'd never forget, but I have a feeling that moment is plastered in time in my heart and will never disappear.

Funny how such a small thing can have such a huge effect on someone's soul.