Sprucing up the Door Mat

Bored yet wanting to feel constructive I decided the door mat needed sprucing up. When I bought it, there were subtle, muted colors shaded blue, pink, green. Over time and wear the colors faded so that now the entire mat was just black rubber.

I used acrylic paint with the idea of sealing it with a varnish once I'd finished. I'd seen this idea elsewhere online. 

Seasoned painters and artists may already know this but;

I took the mat outside, laid it on the ground and gave it three coats of spray *varnish ( see warning) at 30 minute intervals.

*WARNING:  The directions say to spray in a well ventilated area. I  sprayed outside on the ground without a mask, goggles or protective clothing. Unfortunately, a breeze came up and blew the varnish back on me and I accidentally inhaled it. Later, I was wondering why I had a sore throat and upper respiratory discomfort.  After reading about side affects from inhalation, I knew it was the varnish.  This is day three and I'm feeling much better. By day four it should be completely gone. So, if you use this product cover and protect yourself unless you just happen to have a spare HAZMAT suit hanging in your closet.

I'm very pleased with the outcome. The bright colors are welcoming to visitors.

next week Will my Garden Grow?

That's it***

REMIXES - Macaroni & Cheese, Stationery Pouch

"If at first I don't succeed, I'll usually try at least once more."

Remember this? 😩

I tried it again and things worked out a lot better. This time I used a recipe and I had all of the ingredients I needed. No shortcuts this time.

Here's the Remix

I've had this recipe for a long time and have used it on more than one occasion. 

I may not be the best cook but I can follow directions.😃

***

☹️REMIX-Stationery Pouch 

I enjoy crafting and sometimes things don't turn out the way I expect them to. I'll  put things to the side if I feel there is a chance they might be saved later on. And so it was with this stationery pouch which was supposed to be a clutch purse.

Anthropologie

Some time back, I'd observed a tote bag on the Anthropologie site made from canvas art with leather straps. 

As with most of their items price is an object and I prefer smaller handbags to larger ones. I still thought it was a unique idea. 

I headed to a couple of thrift stores to see what I could find. I didn't search high and low because I'm not a big fan of shopping. Jupiter has to align with Mars or something like that to make me WANT to shop.

😲 But, I digress. 

Nothing on fabric canvas was I able to find. I ended up with posters and fabric scraps that I had in my stash which  I cut to clutch purse size, sewed and glued together and sealed the paper with shiny Mod Podge.  

So basically I decoupaged it.💃Whatever.

I still wasn't satisfied so I put it aside until..

EUREKA!➡️➡️➡️➡️➡️ Stationery pouch. I hot glued a piece of grosgrain ribbon to the back to use as a tie closure and I was done.

That's It ***

Rap Snacks

I only went in to pay for gas and then I saw these. THEY definitely caught my eye. They’re unusual, colorful and they list curious flavors.

I'm not a rap music fan. Anything past the era of  The Sugar Hill Gang, Kool Moe Dee and Grand Master Flash, I drop off of the grid. 

Nutrition Stats

Rap Snacks consists of various flavors of popcorn, potato chips , cheese puffs, fries. Of course I had to try them. I didn't concern myself with the caloric content.

 

I tried the Cardi B Honey Dripped Popcorn because a Facebook friend, P.P. said it was good. Also, I like Cardi B's quick wit and humor though I've never listened to her music.  After pouring the popcorn into a bowl it yielded about 2 cups of popcorn. The flavor was just the right amount of salty and sweet. It had a light yellow coloring.

 I also tried the Migos chips..  I ate them before taking a picture so obviously they too were good. ☹️ Overall, I’d say these snacks are  as good as any others. 

Flavors include jalapeño, honey, barbeque, ranch, cheese, habanero, jerk and sour cream, all mixed in a variety of  ways. The snacks retail at $1.49 / 2.75 ounces

The marketing idea of placing pictures of rappers on the bags is a great concept in more ways than one. 

Who's the brain behind this idea?

James Lindsay is the CEO of Rap Snacks. After working for other companies he decided to venture out on his own.  He'd  had numerous successful food businesses before teaming with Universal Records in a project  featuring rap artists on his snack foods.

 Lindsay began in 1994 selling  his snacks under another name through a distributor. He sold out of 800 cases in 2 hours. The snacks were 25 cents a bag. Successful, but the business plan needed tweaking. After a five year hiatus James Lindsay came back with larger bags of the snack, more flavors and a deal with Universal Records to feature their rap artists on bags of his Rap Snacks. 

You can find a list of the various rap artists and their flavors

 here.

I'm Not A Role Model

"I'm not a role model."
Do you remember that quote by  Charles Barkley?


In a similar vein, I'm Not a Cook.

There are those who can turn out the perfect dish on any occasion.  
Whenever asked if I can cook, I respond with, "You can eat it."
I'm basically a fast food person.

From time to time I'll have a burning desire to prepare home cooked food and try out new recipes. When I do, I try to prepare enough so that some can be portioned out and frozen for future meals.

The few times I've had guests over I make sure that what I prepare is foolproof, AND often I prepare it the day before so that in the event it's a bust, I have plenty of time to purchase a frozen entree and packaged salad from the grocery store to fill in for the mess up. 

                                                            ***

Macaroni and Cheese.....The comfort food
I wanted the real thing. Made from scratch.  I decided I'd make individual servings using my muffin tins. That way I'd be able to freeze the single servings, heat and eat when I had a taste for it.

There is no end product or Voila' !

WHY?

• I went by memory and didn't use a recipe.

• I didn't have enough whole milk to make the sauce. So, I tried to add Almond milk and cornstarch together to thicken the sauce. BTW-That doesn't work. The cornstarch    didn't even dissolve.

• When I took it from the oven it was a sloppy mess.

Sooooo... It went the route of other cooking catastrophes...

BUT,

The oven fried chicken thighs were delicious. I only oven fry. 

There are too many places that sell fried chicken for me to bother dodging Nth degree,

 hot, popping, cooking oil and maiming myself all in the name of fried chicken.

Another lesson learned in the culinary kitchen.

That's it***

NOTE: 5-30-2019 An update can be found here.

Yes, You Can Pop Popcorn in the Microwave

But,

                           You must be careful.

There's always an internet post on "hacks." 

Hacks= Shortcuts/alternate ways to doing various things. 

• Some work. Growing basil from clippings.
• Some make you go Hmmm? Put hot glue dots underneath socks to make them non slip

• Others are  ridiculous. Maxi pad bed slippers.

 You'll need some regular popcorn, a measuring cup and a brown, flat bottomed paper bag.

 I measured about 1/4 cup of popcorn and poured it inside the bag. 

I folded the bag over a couple of times but, have since revised that.
I now fold the bag over enough times so that it will rotate freely inside the microwave. I also tape down the opening.  

 I set my timer for 2 1/2 minutes. Make sure the bag isn't touching any of the sides of the microwave and that it doesn't get stuck at any time. Otherwise, YOUR POPCORN WILL BURN. 
I've  had that happen during my experimentation. That leftover, burned smell isn't pleasant. Febreeze doesn't help.

Here you can see the bag puffed out with the popped corn. 

 What's popcorn without butter or some type of seasoning?  Without any seasoning you might as well be eating Styrofoam. But, if you're into the air popped popcorn, it's perfect.

This made about 2 cups.