oh hey, sweet fixie

do you see these bikers? look at how colorful they are, look at how colorful the road

is. it's like they're riding on a rainbow. i bet if we could see their faces they would be smiling like little balls of sunshine [because this is a picture. in real life, they would probs be panting and breathing like nerdboys because they are tired [i.e. me] or making judgmental faces at people driving, people walking, people sitting, animals sitting, inanimate objects sitting, life [i.e. bike hipsters]]. [i wish i knew the rules for punctuation and brackets. i think the rule is actually "learn to write better so you don't have to use brackets," but that's not really realistic, you know?] they would be smiling because they are the proud new mums and dads of studio gelardi's contrail.

the tool clips onto your bike frame and leaves a trail of chalk behind you as you ride. as more bikers ride in an area, the bike path builds up, letting other bikers know where it's safe to ride and alerting cars to presence of bikes. it looks like it's just a concept design right now, but i'm hoping it'll be produced sometime soon.

having never ridden in a city before, i waited three months before finally feeling brave enough to go down to center city on my bike. i had no idea how to navigate one-way streets [i still don't, are you supposed to ride on the right or the left?] or what streets were good to ride on and most of the bike kids i knew or talked to were more interested in being obnoxious experts than being helpful. being able to see where other people ride might make biking seem less daunting and encourage other people to try it.

also, seeing colorful paths on road might make my number one enemy*, cars, realize that all those "share the road signs" are not just a suggestion. and that no matter how much you honk and curse at me, i will not bike on the sidewalk because it is a] impossible and b] illegal.

and if you don't bike or aren't always narrowly escaping death by car, just think about how pretty it is. if you were walking and saw chalk lines all over the street, you would smile like the bikers in the picture are probably smiling. and it would be like christmas, only in the summer, which is like australia. "summer heights high" is in australia and is a fantastic show that would make you smile too.

i've just re-read this and it's like a second grade persuasive essay titled "the world is a better place when you've got sparkly streets." great.

in a similar non-destructive-graffiti-things-that-belong-in-some-"stuff-white-people-like"-category vein, i saw these led throwies on instructables and fell in love with them a little bit because they're nerdy and crafty. i want to go out and play with them but the problem is i can't think of any magnetic buildings and they seem like an expensive-ish project with all the tiny batteries and lights and magnets. my mum sent me a package of glow sticks [and rice. ?.] the other day, though, so i think those are just going to have to do for now.

*i actually love cars, i'm just jealous of them.

dinner and deserts [not sic]

i finally decided what to do with the notebook that my aunt sent me for my birthday [in october] today. if you're like me, 5 months is a good amount of time to spend figuring out what to write in a cute book. since i'm always leaving my recipe cards to fade in the kitchen window, i thought it would be a good idea to write all my recipes in a book too. in celebration of my pretty, covered-in-birds-chirping-and-spring-happening notebook filled with food, i am giving you a recipe for pizza dough. it's really easy, you just need to plan a few hours early so the dough will have time to rise.

+1 pack [2 1/4 teaspoons] of fast-acting yeast

+2 tablespoons of sugar

+1 cup of warm water

the water should be warm enough so that the yeast can grow but not so hot that it kills the little guys. if you turn on the faucet and wait until the water feels as warm as your hands, that's about perfect. mix the water, sugar, and yeast with a fork as well as your can, but don't worry about trying to get the yeast to dissolve--it won't. after about ten minutes, there should be light brown bubbles on the surface. if there aren't, stir it up again and wait a little longer, if there are, go on to the rest.

+1/3 cup of olive oil

+3-4 cups of flour

add the olive oil to the water-sugar-yeast mixture, stir it, and then start adding the flour. it's better to start with 2 1/2 cups and add more if you need it, because adding too much flour will make the dough dry and tough. if you've got a kitchenaid, you probably know what you're doing and shouldn't be listening to me, if you don't, use your hands to mix. the dough should be shiny, elastic-y [but don't play with it too much! it won't rise as well], and still sort of sticky when it's right; just make sure you stop adding flour before it starts looking like cookie dough. get another bowl, grease the sides, put your dough in it, cover the bowl with a cloth, and put it somewhere warm like a window, an oven [not turned on, obvs, although i've done that before and accidentally cooked a lump of dough], your fire escape, or your front steps. let it rise for an hour, punch it down, turn it over, and let it rise for another hour.

while you're waiting for it to rise, think about sand. why does it exist and what is it made out of? i mean, i mostly understand the sand in oceans [rocks & shells + water = erosion], but what about the sand that's in deserts? my mum said she thinks it's there from when deserts were covered by water, but that was a long time ago, shouldn't the wind have scattered it by now? once you've figured it out, let me know. for real. i've been looking online and can't find anything about sand formation.

kaythanks, back to pizza: if you're really really in a hurry, you don't have to let it rise twice and you can cook it after the first hour, but your pizza won't be as good because you were an impatient 5-year-old [and also because the dough won't have time to develop it's flavor]. grease a pan and use cornmeal if you have it, roll out your dough, decorate your pizza, then cook it for about 13 minutes at 425F.

today, i am cranky

my life is a joke: a story with visual aids

+my hammer: my apartment key mysteriously bent in a dancing extravaganza a few weeks ago. it’s mysterious because they were attached to my waist when it happened and i don’t think i weigh/am strong enough to smash metal. know who is strong enough to bend metal? lights. check out this girl's arms: PHWOARRR. [photo credit: maureen spier] anyway, i found a hammer and banged my key back into shape [ish], but apparently bending w

eakened the metal because the key keeps changing shape every time i go to get into my house. which means now i have to carry a hammer around with me so i can force my key into the lock. not a big deal when i have a backpack or whatever, but not so cool when i’m just carrying it around.

+the stepstool: i’m short [5’3”]. my roommate’s shorter [4’10”]. we can’t reach anything. ever.

+my helmet: my bike is my pride and joy

because i spent all summer making it myself.

even though i can take a bike apart and put it

back together, i don’t have tools yet, so it keeps

breaking little by little and i can’t fix it. also, philadelphia is supposed to be a bike-friendly city, but cars here treat bikes lanes as passing lanes and seem to think it’s acceptable to honk at bikes to let them know that they’ve decided to drive in the bike lane and that going to run into them but not actually make any effort to avoid hitting the bike. 2 ton car v. me [on a bike with brakes that aren’t reliable] = i wear a helmet

+my leggings: i refuse to go outside

without at least 65 layers of clothing on between october and march.

winter seems to be especially never-ending this year, but i’ve found a solution: thermal pants. they’re like a tank top for your legs, only infinitely less sexy.

+this window: my walls are absolutely dwarfing, and seem even bigger when i’m alone. in unrelated news, i can almost name all the duggar children. i need a job.

+my license: last time i was in ohio, i went to wal-mart to buy rubber cement so i could finish my art homework. when i went to check out, the cashier told me she needed my id because you have to be over 15 [FIFTEEN!] to buy rubber cement. i gave her my 2 half-licenses and she told me they weren’t legal and wouldn’t let me buy the rubber cement. there are so many problems with is: a] i am 20 not 15. b] are they seriously worried about huffing? um, guess what? huffing’s like unicorns, it’s like tss, it’s not real.

later that night, we did a super-unscientific study grandma’s table about huffing and 0/19 people knew anyone who had ever actually huffed. if i’d bought, like, rubber cement and brown paper bags, i guess i would have understood why the cashier was so adamant, but i was buying paper, an x-acto knife, and rubber cement, so come on. c] i used the same id to get on a plane but they wouldn’t let me use it at wal-mart. sorry to rain on your parade, cashier girl, but you’re not keeping anyone safe by not letting me use my license, you’re just being obnoxious. d] it’s wal-mart, what did i expect? last time i was there, i was talking about how there’s no tax on clothes in pennsylvania with my mum and the cashier told me it was because they grew the cotton and made them there. which is obviously not even a little bit true.

maybe maybe

CAPO 3

VERSE:

Am C

|---------------|---------------|
|--------1------|--------1------|
|----2----------|----0----------| x8
|------2----x4--|------2----x4--|
|--0------------|--3------------|
|---------------|---------------|
cutting belts and magazines
and things you'll never need
the mirrors in you room at night
and skies that never fold
you're sorry that it matters more
but who would ever tell
i know you need to stay above
but i swore i swore i swore

CHORUS:

C G
|---------------|---------------|
|--------1------|--------3------|
|----0----------|----0----------| x6
|------2----x4--|------0----x4--|
|--3------------|---------------|
|---------------|--3------------|
it's all over your eyes
there's nothing you can do
i'm coming out my skin tonight
so tell me if you're ready or no
i'm tired of living out a lie
sitting here watching things flying by me

Am C
|---------------|---------------|
|--------1------|--------1------|
|----2----------|----2----------| x3
|------2----x4--|------0----x4--|
|--0------------|--3------------|
|---------------|---------------|
and maybe maybe
you're gonna save me
maybe maybe
G
|---------------|
|--------3------|
|----0----------|
|------0----x8--|
|--3------------|
|---------------|
but i don't know
Am C
|---------------|---------------|
|--------1------|--------1------|
|----2----------|----2----------|
|------2----x4--|------0----x4--|
|--0------------|--3------------|
|---------------|---------------|
i don't think so

VERSE
last night i woke up cold
and i walked right out into the dark
and eight-hundred reasons why
kept flying into my eyes
wish i could say that i killed them dead
but they're just much bigger than i

CHORUS

shirts!

a lone ranger:

[pretend like it's in black and white on a green shirt]

rabbit, rabbit, rabbit