Reflections

I could spin a spiel about reflection and their relevance at the end of the calendar year, but I just can't be arsed. The truth is, I have a handful of nifty photos I want to post.


I took this one while getting a pedicure. There are mirrors on both walls, facing each other, resulting in an interesting layering of visual information. At least I thought so.


This is the shiny floor of Arclight Hollywood's lobby in the daytime.


This is the same lobby at night, and shot from the opposite direction. Those gold squigglies atop are the movie showing times.


I took this photo last night. Stopping by the neighborhood grocery store, I notice the reflections on a black SUV and couldn't resist.


This image is from a while ago. It's the entrance of the Flamingo hotel in Vegas, and its reflection on the trunk of a cop car.

Have a good new year, peeps.

Whatever, Really

Flea Market

The first Sunday of December was a beautiful day: bright, sunny, with a seasonally appropriate nip in the air. Complete opposite of the one in November.


No surprise then that the Pasadena Flea Market was busier than a beehive on spring cleaning day.


I bagged yet another typewriter, but will post picture of that later. I have three now.


The flea market is also a great place of holiday shopping for the budget conscious. And honestly, who wouldn't want an eighties style red leather jacket for Christmas? Look how many zippers it has!


If you think twelve bucks is too much for this old toy, you can always haggle. Although, some take it to extreme. I came across a new vendor, a Chinese couple who wouldn't take no for an answer. I thought I might have to chew off a limb if I wanted to escape without purchasing something.


Ain't these great? Just think about filling them up with hot cocoa and then topping it off with giant marshmallows. It would be like drinking Santa's brain!


These should be sold by the pound.


Tired from all the walking? Put your feet up!


Well that's it for now, I'm packing it in.

Happy Krampus Day!

In parts of Europe St. Nicholas' Day is celebrated on December 6th. On the night of the 5th St. Nicholas - Mikulás in Hungary - comes around and leaves small gifts - mostly fruits, nuts, candy where I came from - to those who'd been nice. The interesting part is that he has a demonic sidekick, Krampus (Krampusz in Hungary). This guy is generally portrayed as an ugly, furry creature with horns, sometimes with one human foot and one cloven one, sometimes with two of the latter. His job is to take the naughty children away, not sure where.

Denmark has something similar, Sinterklaas, but there St. Nick arrives on a steamboat and his sidekick is Zwarte Piet, a politically incorrect black guy, who takes the bad children to...Spain! If that's not enough reason to be naughty in the middle of the Danish winter, I don't know what is.

Gallivanting in the Garden

Last Sunday was a day rotten to the core – rainy, gloomy, good for nothing but staying inside and hibernating. But then Monday did a complete hundred-and-eighty with sunny skies and balmy temperatures.


So I went to The Huntington. It’s a shame, I know, but I’d never been before. The Japanese Garden is closed for sprucing up, but the place is still plenty big to kill several hours.


In one corner I found piles and piles of wonderfully prickly cacti. They made me think of Dive.


For most part you’re allowed to walk on the grass too - that’s how I found these delightfully slimy shrooms. I think they are Velvet Foot Mushrooms, but won’t swear to it.


I found some stone children frolicking around – my favorite kind, they’re very quiet.


Stone people need stone chairs to sit on.


One of these days I need to go back to check out the library and the museum too.

Turkey

I know it's not Turkey Day yet, but I was in the mood. I got a nice half turkey breast and stuffed herbed butter under the skin. I also boiled some potatoes, sliced them up and put them in the bottom of the roasting pan. On top I placed the turkey breast, and into the oven they went. During roasting some of the butter escaped, nicely juicing up the potatoes. Delish!

I didn't make cranberry sauce because I had some from COSTCO - yummy and all natural.

Flea Market

It's cold, wet, and miserable today, and there's no way I'm going anywhere, even the flea market. However, I've never posted last month's pictures. So here they are!


Ferret circus. Why not? I bet Hamlet is much more fun with ferrets.


I kinda wish I bought this bunny-shaped tea pot. I don't know what I'd do with it, but it's fantastic.


Once a hustler, always a hustler.


Only you can prevent forest fires! Oh wait, wrong bear.


Dummies freak me out.

Spooky

Spooky, spooky, oh whoa, all right
Spooky, oh yeah yeah
I said Spooky yeah yeah...


It's the season for the scary, freaky and bizarre.


Haunted cake.


I hope it's gooey inside.


And I thought Hollywood was freakish enough already.


Lord Voldemort would disagree.


No comment.


Look Ma, there is a face in my pelvis!


...

Chestnut Cheesecake

I was rooting through my cupboard and found a can of chestnut spread I probably bought as an impulse once. It was a billion years old, but being in a tin it could have added another billion and it still would be good. I opened it and found it sweet. Wondering what the heck to do with it, I figured cheese cake could work. I just had to adjust a recipe I had already. Here it is:

Chestnut Cheesecake

Crust
2 cups of finely ground cinnamon graham crackers
1 stick (4 oz) melted butter

Filling
8 0z cream cheese softened at room temperature
8 oz sour cream
8 oz chestnut spread (technically it was slightly more, but who's counting?)
4 eggs
1/2 cup sugar


Preaheat the oven to 325º F

In a mixing bowl combine the crust ingredients with a wooden spatula until it's all even. Coat the bottoms and sides of your baking pan with the mix. Use your hand; don't be a wuss. If you want to be all proper, use a springform pan, but only if you have extra wide aluminum foil at hand. If you don't, use a solid baking pan.

In a bowl slowly beat the cream cheese with an electric mixer till it's smooth - ca. one minute. Add the eggs one by one, continuing to beat slowly. Add sugar and beat till creamy. Add chestnut spread and sour cream. Mix well. Don't forget to scrape down the sides of the bowl time to time. Pour the filling into the crust-lined pan.

If you used springform, set it on a sheet of oversized aluminum foil and fold up the sides around it. Place the pan in a large roasting pan. Pour boiling water into the pan till it comes hallway up to the pie pan.

Bake for 45 minutes. It will still jiggle in the middle, but it will firm up. Cool for 30 minutes, then chill in the fridge for at least 4 hours.


Okay, so it doesn't have the prettiest color, but it tastes good.

iGallery Augury

I’ve realized that these days almost all my posts are about the flea market – meaning that I post once a month. So just to break the pattern, I will post something else, even though I went to the flea market yesterday. Instead, here it is a random selection of iPhotos with a nonsensical commentary. Enjoy. Or not. It’s all the same to me.


The world will end in 2411. Don’t you believe me? You fool.


I have irrefutable evidence – I divined it myself from this double egg yolk. It’s so obvious.


The Heavens will split open,


and the Earth shall rupture.


From the depths of the Sea,



the beasts will rise.


Humankind will be split into two, to be sent to Heaven


and Hell.

Or did I mix the two up?