DJ Curium's Dance for UnCanny Con-Goers

My playlist from my set at 2018 CONvergence this passed weekend: 

Bad Reputation from the movie Kick Ass covered by The Hit Girls

Let’s Do It from the movie Tank Girl covered by Joan Jett and Paul Westerberg

Everyone is Wrong from the movie Elektra by The Donnas

Kids in America from the television show Riverdale (inspired by Archie Comics) covered by KJ Apa and Camilla Mendes

None of Your Business (Barb Wire metal mix) from the movie Barb Wire by Salt 'n' Pepa

Backdoor Lover from the movie Josie and the Pussycats "performed" by Du Jour

I Want Your Cray Cray from the television show Jessica Jones performed by Rachel Taylor (Trish Walker) & Kandi Marks

It’s On Again (piano edition) from the movie The Amazing Spider-Man 2 by Alicia Keys featuring Kendrick Lamar

King Charles from Marvel’s The Runaways by YUNGBLUD

DeadPool Rap from the movie Deadpool by TEAMHEADKICK

Wrek tha Discotek from the movie Blade by Roger Sanchez & Soulson

Opps from the movie Black Panther by Vince Staples & Yugen Blakrok

99 Red Balloons from the movie Watchmen by Nena

Just Like Heaven from the movie Atomic Blonde (based on the comic Coldest City) by The Cure (I picked a song from this movie because there is a scene in which there is a television on in the background and an Information Society video is on)

(Can’t You) Trip like I Do from the movie Spawn by Filter & the Crystal Method

Atom Bomb from the original X-Men movie by Fluke

Poison Lips from the movie Dredd (based on the comic 
Judge Dredd) by Vitalic

Bidibodi Bidibu from the television show Wynonna Earp by Bubbles

Wonder Woman’s Wrath (edited) from the movie Wonder Woman by Rupert Gregson-Williams

DJ Curium's Witching Hour

Well, I attempted my first night of djing in a club a few weeks ago, and it went much better than I thought. 

Allow me to share my playlist: 

Wanderer-Symone Smash-it

Sign of the Zodiac-Rasputina

Iceblink Luck-Cocteau Twins

Witchcraft-Book of Love 

White Rabbit-Collide

Fallen-One Dove

Heaven-the Golden Palominos

Bazamba-Sister Soleil

Violently Happy-Bjork

Daymalhum-Natacha Atlas

Veka(ext.)-Zola Jesus 

Ha Howa Ha Howa-Sexwitch

Strangeness and Charm-Florence and the Machine 

Down by the Water-PJ Harvey 

 

*If everything goes to hell I’m just going to put this on and leave bonus song” Open Your Heart covered by Birthday Massacre

Fire Mama's Spring Bizarre Bazaar

I have been working on getting ready for an event that is very unique. Something I have not yet done as a creator. It is a night market that is a part of a fire arts event. Just crazy fun stuff. Fire spinning, fashion show, bands, djs, and artist market.

You can find the information here and I'll share some photos of some of the things I'll have for sale! You should come!

Naturephilia

Another way I decided to take a chance creatively was by opening a shop on Society6. I am not a professional photographer in anyway. However, I do really enjoy taking photos. Most especially of flowers and the outdoors. I know it's a cliche, but these things can get you through some long dark days in Minnesota. 

This is especially challenging as I am fumbling around learning to edit products. I have been pretty happy with how they've been coming out as I've had some samples of things shipped to me and I am especially pleased with the pillows and throw blanket and I am looking forward to getting more. They are well-made and high-quality and since I am someone who wants enough blankets and pillows to build the world's biggest indoor fort this is pretty important to me. 

It helped me put more of my focus on positive things and creating this last year than continuing to obsess over things I cannot change. There is a reason why they call it blind rage. It really helps if you can harness it at some point to action and then also for self-care and direction. I currently have 93 designs up. I am aiming to have 200 designs up by December 1 of this year. It's a lot to be sure, but working a little bit each week seems to be keeping me on a good pace. 

You can visit my shop Naturephilia here. 

Have a look at some of the things I've had sent to me:

Thank you for stopping by! 

What To Eat Wednesday: Pizza Nea

This year has brought with it a wave of awareness I would say we haven't really seen before in this country. Even for myself, who has been doing my best for a very long time to stay abreast of the things I want to see changed and diving deeper into the things that matter to me, I have learned many things this year. Or at least had what I suspected all along confirmed by others, which in its own strange way is helpful - to know that you are not, in fact, losing your mind. It's also a relief when you know you've been feeling something for so long and have been unable to articulate it. Then one day you stumble across even the most basic of comments somewhere on the internet, and you see something someone wrote and there it is: the one sentence expressing what has been bothering you all along. 

For some years now I have been trying and trying to find ways to spend my money better. What do I mean by that? Well, it's very simple and massively complicated. It gets down to the fact that every time I turn around, these last couple of years especially, I feel as though I have learned that I have been unintentionally supporting someone who is racist, bigoted, destroying the planet, hurting animals, exploiting women-the list of garbage goes on and on. Now, I understand people make mistakes. People say or do things without thinking or without realizing the impact or depth of what those words or actions mean. Particularly in a society where terrible things are the norm and people do things because it was what they were taught. Everyone does this no matter how they purport otherwise.

And I'd say for the most part people can learn from these things even if the internet is a completely unforgiving place that will never let you move on to trying to be a better person. It is a frustrating thing to watch people act as though they themselves have never made a mistake and continue to tear at the others who messed up, were called out, and have tried to move on from it a with a new point of view. It certainly has impacted whether I visit a site or commentator anymore - the whole throw stones, glass house business. It can sometimes be seemingly impossible to earn forgiveness. I grant you, there are unforgivable things. But that is not what I am getting at here and that is a conversation for another time. And well, if all you do is sit on the internet bitching at other people and never actually do anything - give it a rest: You are part of the problem. 

Now, if you come forward and do your best, most especially in your day to day practices, you will have my support if our values align. Or maybe you even teach me something, who is to say what the possibilities might be? 

One of my favorite local businesses to eat at and support is Pizza Nea. Even before this election cycle (which, yes, has redefined a great deal for me, or at least confirmed some good things and some genuinely terrible fears) the owner was taking steps I appreciated. Making the business vegan-friendly, sourcing ingredients when possible from other local places. 

Then comes the election and, well, he spoke up - and loudly.  Quite predictably there were threats and people complaining about "getting political." Give. Me. A. Break. What a privilege it must be never to have to worry about anything. Or to be so unaware that everything that is stressing you out is probably being made worse by those in power that your apathy helped put there.

It was clear from the get-go that Pizza Nea would be an inclusive, welcoming place for everyone, and he even went as far as to form an alliance with other local businesses to make sure discrimination was not being tolerated, as well as using their growing social media platform to encourage others to get involved. 

Oh. And the pizza is super yummy. You know, which helps. 

It's a nice place, too. Not super dressy, but not so casual that you couldn't, say... have a romantic date here. 

Try it out. You won't regret it.

Focused Energy

As mentioned in a previous post, I've been working on finding projects and creating things as a way to focus my anger, stress, and absolute bafflement of why people are allowing the world to be controlled by horrendous people. 

One of the smaller steps I took was to put together a jewelry project for myself for my Etsy shop and holiday craft shows. So, I created these:

Coffin nail amulets with three 1800’s nails. These particular ones come from the inside of the coffins and were obtained from a practicing priestess. Coffin nails can be used for powerful protection (or hexes, but don’t ok?) I have put three into new amulets bottles. The new jars help to allow power out without interference from the past. I chose three because it represents the mind, the unconscious and the connection between the two. I have also made some with amethyst pieces to enhance clarity of mind. They are thought to have additional properties to protect from poisons.
A perfect gift for anyone looking for some extra care in their lives from the universe especially in these trying times. You can find them here: Coffin nail amulets

In a lot of ways this is a perfect little project for me. When I was a child my mother would have me read her tarot cards and practice the Ouija board with her. She was a devoted Christian and felt these were other tools to divine God's message. I'm not really sure what I thought about it at the time other than it was a way to spend time one on one with my mom. I received my first set of tarot cards in the mail for my 12th birthday from my mother's twin sister. Who used to be a fun, open minded person and has since turned into a racist, self-centered hypocrite. It's pretty disappointing. Of course, one of the things we all learned was that there are more of these people than we wanted to admit and that is in fact where a fair amount of my frustration comes from. The short-sightedness of these dreadful people. Who again, do it all in the name of God. 

Calling on that frustration I put these pieces together. Focusing my intentions.

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What to do in Winter

It has been sub-zero temps for weeks now in Minnesota and if you're anything like me you don't want to leave the house more than you absolutely have to which luckily for me is not much these days. 

However, it is actually supposed to "warm up" to about 30 degrees this weekend and I had been considering finding something to do. Not outside mind you as everyone seems to be fighting off some sort of illness, but it wouldn't be the worse thing in the world to stop going totally stir crazy by going somewhere. I was digging through places I'd been over the last year and three jumped out at me for distractions. If you like playing video games there's several places in town now where you can go have some drinks, play some games and even get some vegan food. It stayed pretty warm into the early part of December so when it got cold I'm not sure anyone was really ready this year. 

The first place is UpDown Mpls.. They specialize in 80's arcade games so if watching Stranger Things has you nostalgic for games you played as a kid this is where you'll want to go. Although in my case they have an X-Men game that I used to play when I was younger and of course was always Storm. I don't have super great pics of this place because it does get insanely busy and they don't, as far as I know, have any vegan food. They do however have some good hard ciders on tap. 

The second place in Uptown not too far from Up/Down is Tilt. They specialize in Pinball. The place is not very big, but what they lack in size they make up for with yummy "hot dogs" and cute atmosphere. They have some cool pinball machines and carry vegan sausages that you can cover with all sorts of yummy, smelly things. They have decent cocktails as well. We got great service when we were here and I enjoyed my afternoon hanging out.

The last place I'd suggest is actually my favorite, but it's a big chain and gets insane on the weekends except Sunday night when I like to go occasionally. The reason I like it is because they have electronic versions of carnival games I really like such as throwing balls to knock down clowns. It's amazing stress relief for me. I know it's silly, but it's true. They make ridiculous over the top Tiki drinks which are fun to have and order some French fries and I'm good for a couple of hours. It is the most expensive of the three places and can be very loud (though they all can be depending on the crowds). The one here is in Southdale Mall. I think there is a second MN location, but it's far from me. If you go at the right times you could probably also catch a movie. 

 

If video games are not necessarily for you or if you like really old ones you could always head over to another charming and fun place I went to: Can Can Wonderland. I love mini-golf so I am dying to go back here soon. Plus I believe they've added some vegan treats to the menu.

Resistance

2017 is a year I've started referring to as the Empire Strikes Back. Because it feels to me that there is a decreasing in size group of people who seem to think the only way to be is the way that they are and that way to be is narrow-minded, classist, racist, sexist, and bigoted. And what's worse is they do it all in God's name. 

I have always been one for politics. I have been writing letters and contacting my representatives since I was a young child as my mother never really kept her opinion to herself. It was a strange thing to experience in hindsight as I look back at our home life. But that is a story for another time. My mother was in touch with our representatives so frequently they invited her to parties and fundraisers even though we had no money. Simply because they knew that she cared. I wish I had all my letters from way back when. I don't but I do have some from a couple of decades ago still. She was even on the news for things that she would stand up for a couple of times. I mean seriously, she was involved. Unfortunately, as her mental health declined so did her activism. But she never forgot to remind me to vote. I have voted since I turned 18 in as many elections as I could be available to vote in. I was less aware of them (such as smaller, local races) 20 years ago as I am now, but at one of my more recent caucuses I was the youngest person in our group who had been to the most caucuses and primaries. Things matter to me. 

This passed year was no exception. Like many people I was horrified and shocked by the outcome of the presidential election and with each passing day having someone in power who doesn't seem to care about anyone but themselves is unsettling to say the least. Even this morning there are threats of nuclear war. This is the 21st century and this is what we wake up to these days. What's even more disconcerting is that their are others who think this is a good idea. People who support this person. To think that you could support the annihilation of another country or group of people is downright evil to me. I don't like using the word evil because I find it dramatic, cartoonish, and used to dismiss things that are more complicated than one emotion, but in this case I'd say it fits. If you think people deserve to die simply because they are different from you-you really need to spend sometime reflecting on what kind of human you are and if you do it in the name of God-well, I can't even begin to imagine the cognitive dissonance. 

Because of this passed presidential election, my activist gene has kicked back into high gear. I went to protests, wrote letters, made calls, gathered people to participate, donated, and have done my best to support businesses that are inclusive(which often seems impossible, but I do try). I spend time researching anything I see people talking about and I quit Twitter because wow do I think that is HUGE part of the problem. 

The one year anniversary of the astonishingly well attended Women's March Protest is approaching and I am seeing more and more about the Mid-term elections which are so crucial this time I can't even imagine what might happen if things don't change. For a while I saw no hope. I was quite frankly traumatized by the outcome of the election. The idea that so many people supported someone who thinks it's funny to harass and assault women, who is racist and makes fun of differently abled people, who sees anyone with a different skin color and looks at them as an enemy, who thinks our planet is a trash can-I was not in a good place. 

However, I see more and more reasons to be hopeful and if anything came out of this garbage election it is that people are becoming more and more aware that the world is bigger and more diverse than they ever could've imagined. That on the whole, your average person wants the same things they do: to be healthy, employed, and not contributing negatively to the world-no matter what they look like and that has helped. Just like going to these events helped. Seeing so many people ready to fight for what they believe-it pulls you out of the dark place. Plus, there is something immensely empowering about genuinely exercising your rights. In America, people constantly holler about gun rights forgetting we have a whole bunch of other ones that are in my opinion a whole helluva lot more important. Without the others, there's no point in having a gun. Because what the hell are you defending then? The right to own a weapon? That is not what America is about and it's not even what the second amendment is about-and using your rights reminds you of that-using your voice and your vote reminds you of that, you're not fighting for your right to own gun, you are fighting for your rights to exist, thrive, and to belong to something much bigger than any one person. 

And even though we seemed determined as a country to do every dumb ass thing every other country has already done and suffered the poor results of which easily could've been avoided, I do believe there is truth that America is the only country that was founded on a good idea.

The RainDrop Girl Christmas Tree

December is a strange month for me. It seems to both fly by and drag on forever. It is a mix of holidays, art successes and failures as well as the anniversary of my mother's death is in this winter chaos. I have been thinking all week about what a roller coaster it is for me. I can't think of another month that is this way for me. This passed year was not the best one I've ever had and I am both trying to let it go and to appreciate the good things and even few amazing things that came out of 2017. I certainly know I am not alone in feeling like overall 2017 was trash. The world at large is greatly suffering and a handful of spiteful, greedy people are running some of the most powerful countries. The overwhelming news each day coupled with personal going ons that is not great makes each day often a struggle to get through with the idea that anything might work out okay in the end. It hasn't felt much like that for me this last year. Everything from having to cut out toxic relationships and of course, being blamed for it because that is what toxic people do to suffering a tremendous creative loss to basically just wanting to scream each time I read the news. After a while of feeling like I might not be getting anywhere, something I am still trying to deal with each day, I started making more projects for myself. Projects definitely seem to be helping me feel better. From small things like making a necklace to big things like painting the entire main floor of my townhouse. I don't know if this is for everyone, but I have read very often that finding a creative outlet can help you deal with a myriad of things from grief to depression to writer's block. In my case, cleaning my house also helps me. Yes, I know that's silly, but it does. There's something about having to get up and focus on the task and then actually having a tangible result after a shorter time period in particular when writing longer books and stories. 

This year we took in a forth cat. He is a total pain in the you know what just like all cats. I have often asserted the one truly selfless thing a human can do is adopt a cat. I haven't been able to put up a Christmas tree for the last couple of years because they will destroy it. This is hard for me emotionally because Christmas was a big deal when I was a kid and one of the few times in my memories that I recall my mother actually enjoying herself. But what can you do? You adopt animals, you make the concessions needed to keep them from eating tinsel and destroying your house. You don't always win, but you know, you try. 

To try to head off the usual massive bout of sadness I encounter I decided I would make myself a tree. I bought a small, black, sparkly tree and made all the ornaments in the theme of a short story I wrote The RainDrop Girl. It was my first time using clay which I got at Micheals and you could easily bake at home though I would suggest running a fan as you do so if you cannot open a window. And I made raindrops, clouds, and a moon topper. Then I took pillow filling and made it a "tree skirt" so it seemed like a cloud. Currently, I am trying to decide if I should leave it up or not since it is not especially Christmas looking. I fitted some of the drops with quartz crystals and threaded them with silver ribbon. I did also make some to give as gifts. Cuz I guess that's who I am now. 

It did help get me through the holidays. It was small enough to move around the house so when I could watch it I had it downstairs and when I can't I keep it in my office. Since my office is filled with my toy collection it seems to rather belong in here. I wrote another short story this year about a mermaid so now I am wondering about making a mermaid themed one....

Wild Hare Salon and Gallery, #shoplocal

Some completely lovely humans invited me to bring some objects and books of my own creation to add to their gallery they opened this year. 

I get my hair colored here, and well it's a wonderful and magical place. Not like how everyone uses the word magical because they can't think of another word. It is actually magical.

There is an event again this weekend. Look at the pictures and tell me I'm wrong. You cannot. 

Info here: Art shopping event

Art by: Rudy Fig, Rachel Girard, Masha, Gabrielle Angelicus 

Party Pictures

A second Featured Album I have on Facebook is party snaps. These are from parties I've helped plan and host as well as decorate through the years. You can sure tell when our(mine) photography skills got better and I got a better camera. These are from NYE, a cute one at my house  8 years ago, from a science fiction convention and my book release parties.

Vegan Shopping at Trader's Joe's

I don’t actually shop at Trader Joe's very much. A handful of times a year. I rather think of it as a special occasion place and party food place. Which is what works for me personally. I suppose this might be because they specialize in pre-prepared foods and things covered in chocolate. Not to mention the fun labels, signs, cheerful employees and often amazingly priced plants and flowers. And if you like cheap wine you know Joe’s can’t be beat at all. When they first opened in the Twin Cities it was continuously packed full of people. It does get very busy still and I don’t think they are hurting for business at all. It was however, not especially easy to shop for vegan things there. This has changed quite significantly, even in just the last couple of years. In both good and bad ways. There are, sadly, seemingly fewer chocolate vegan things, but the ones they do have are quite yummy. 

More and more of the products are clearly labeled, but not everything. You can still check out some of the usual vegan suspects to see if they are made with no animal products – like the Maize cereal for example. Sometimes there are surprises. Like the easy to bake cinnamon rolls. Probably not a good idea for every day, but they sure do make a nice treat once in a while. I've heard that there are pumpkin rolls right now that are vegan for the Fall season. 

If you are on Instagram there is a handy account here: Trader Joe's Vegan 

Here are some photos of products you could easily find that are vegan at Trader Joe’s. A lot of these make good, quick lunch options.

Nice breaks from the day: Normandale Japanese Garden

As someone who works at home most of the time I found myself in need of places to go to get out of my own head once in a while. This is especially true as I am also an obsessive news reader and each day brings with it untold stress and worry. I walk around the lakes near my huose frequently, but sometimes it's great to venture a little further away to have some quiet moments. 

I recently went to the Normandale Japanese Garden for one of these breaks. It was Sunday morning and a bit overcast and there were almost no people the entire time I was there sans an occasional walker or jogger. It's a charming little setting in an unexpected place and you can also feed the many koi fish. Bring a book and coffee and take that much needed break from reality. 

I'll include links to some other posts I've done about good places to take a break during your day after the photos. Remember, breaks are very important to productivity and our society is not very good at telling us that. Working till you drop is not good for you. 

 

 Normandale Japanese Garden

A walk round the Chain of Lakes.

A jaunt to the Franconia Sculpture Garden.

A visit to the odd and beautiful Caponi Art Park.

What to Eat Wednesday but on Tuesday: MN State Fair

I’ll start with the food.

 

New Things We Tried: 

Produce Exchange- The peaches are amazing. They have lots of other fruit as well.

Fresh French Fries-These were quite good and not as greasy as I thought they would be. 

Harry Singh’s-Chickpea Roti was so good that we went back so my friend could take one home for dinner. (The little restaurant in Minneapolis is stellar.)

Minneapple pie no ice cream-I bought one to bring home.

Farmer’s Union Iced Coffee with soy milk-dark roast with soy milk was great.

Strawberries and Creme-non-dairy whip-I loved this a lot.

Island Noodles-I do like wok-fried noodles. Very filling. (They also use compostable containers.) 

Dole Whip-Three of us split one. It was sugary and fun. I don’t think I’d get it again though just not for me. The vanilla is not vegan from what I understand.

Fried Green Tomatoes(small stand by main entrance)-was surprised that I liked these more than I thought.

Manny’s Tortas-Non-alcoholic Pineapple Pina Colada-this was fantastic. 

Sara’s Tipsy Pies-The Vegan Whiskey apple pie was fabulous. I loved it. 

Juanita’s Fajitas -beans with tortilla-add some habanero salt and it’s super yummy(request without cheese).

 

Things we’ve had before other places:

Tot Boss-plain tater tots

Cinnamon Roasted Almonds in the International Bazaar

French Meadow-brown sugar scone

Holy Land-all their vegan things which I highly recommend.  

Falafel King (which has improved dramatically over the last few years)

 

I was disappointed to learn that Hot Indian Foods samosas are no longer vegan. 

 

Things we didn’t try but I’ve read other people say are vegan:

Corn Roast-no butter

St. Martin’s Olives

Los Ocampos -Guac and chips

Veggie Pie’s -Frozen Grapes on a Stick

Burrito Mercado- Chili lime mango

Sonny’s Sprials-Potato on a stick

Preferred Pickles fried pickles

Ballpark Cafe – Onion rings, garlic fries

Chan’s Chicken on a Stick – Vegetable Fried Rice

Oodles of Noodles – Spicy Thai Noodles, spaghetti or penne with marinara

OOF-da Tacos – Vegetarian Taco without cheese

Potato Man and Sweety-Sweety’s Churros without whipped cream, unsure about dipping sauce

 

**Please consider rinsing and bringing home containers you cannot recycle at the Fair (I had a tote bag and would just rinse things in the bathroom or hand wash stations) or requesting no silverware or straws by keeping the first plastic ones you get. Nearly everything has a number on it, but they don’t have the same facilities as we do in Minneapolis. 

Thank you.

 

 

I’ve never spent the day at the fair and truth be told it was pretty surreal to me. I decided to try to see as much as possible but I do not go to the animal barns. I just can’t. 

That said, there is plenty to see that is not about having to eat animals. The Horticulture building is pretty amazing and there is quite a lot of art. 

I know lots of people go here with families and situations like that and there’s no need to be left out if you’re vegan or vegetarian. And for that matter, the more vegan things that sell, the more they’ll make. The Tipsy Pies were sold out at first but they made more. Pretty great, as they are clearly marked vegan on the menu. The french fries had lines all around.

Your best bets are the International Bazaar and the Food Building for lots of choices. Though the strawberries and creme were near the Kid’s Midway and the Farmer’s Union is near the main entrance. 

There were three of us and we shared everything we bought. It was still more than enough food that way. Most of the time we only got one of each thing. The couple of times we got two of something it was nearly too much.

So go out and enjoy the fair if you like such things. There’s lots to see, and it helped distract me for a bit from some personal things I can’t do anything about right now because there is absolutely so much to take in. 

 

And if you can, drop a a few bucks into the Houston food bank so others can get something to eat as well as disaster clean up begins. You can donate here: Hurricane Harvey Relief. 

Have a wonderful time. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

EASY TO CUT AND PASTE LIST: 

Produce Exchange- The peaches are amazing. They have lots of fruit.

Fresh French Fries-These were quite good and not as greasy as I thought they would be. 

Harry Singh’s-Chickpea Roti was so good that we went back so my friend could take one home for dinner. 

Minneapple pie no ice cream-I bought one to bring home, made  nice treat for breakfast. 

Farmer’s Union Iced Coffee with soy milk-dark roast with soy milk was great

Strawberries and Cream-non-dairy whip-I loved this a lot.

Island Noodles-I do like wok-fried noodles. Very filling. 

Dole Whip-Three of us split one and it was sugary and fun. I don’t think I’d get it again though just not for me. 

Fried Green Tomatoes(small stand by main entrance)-was surprised that I liked these more than I thought.

Manny’s Tortas-Non-alcoholic Pineapple Pina Colada-this was fantastic. 

Sara’s Tipsy Pies-The Vegan Whiskey apple pie was fabulous. I loved it. 

Juanitas Fajitas -beans with tortilla-add some habanero salt and it’s super yummy(request without cheese).

Tot Boss-plain tater tots

Cinnamon Roasted Almonds in the International Bazaar

French Meadow-brown sugar scone

Holy Land-all their vegan things which I highly recommend. 

Falafel King (which has improved dramatically over the last few years)

Corn Roast-no butter

St. Martin’s Olives

Los Ocampos -Guac and chips

Veggie Pie’s -Frozen Grapes on a Stick

Burrito Mercado- Chili lime mango

Sonny’s Sprials-Potato on a stick

Preferred Pickles fried pickles

Ballpark Cafe – Onion rings, garlic fries

Chan’s Chicken on a Stick – Vegetable Fried Rice

Oodles of Noodles – Spicy Thai Noodles, spaghetti or penne with marinara

OOF-da Tacos – Vegetarian Taco without cheese

Potato Man and Sweety-Sweety’s Churros without whipped cream, unsure about dipping sauce

Strange the Dreamer


Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Laini Taylor has written some of my favorite Teen books out there. I re-read Daughter of Smoke and Bone just a few months ago and loved it as much as I did the first time. Strange the Dreamer is a wondrous story of unique ideas and colorful visuals that fill your mind with vivid scenes. Her main characters being star-crossed is one of her themes and she delivers the bittersweet joy of such so well(also writes fabulous kissing scenes). Lazlo is officially my new crush having moved on from Akiva (though I will still always love him). She is quite good at interweaving complex subjects such as prejudice, rape, and religion (to name a few) into her stories and all the grey areas they inhabit without being preachy or trite. I really look forward to the next book because this one ends with quite the unfolding story.... 

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What to Eat Wednesday: Vegan Target

I am someone who is lucky (and privileged) to live by a couple great grocery stores and have easy access to good food. This is not something that was true when I was younger. I did not know it at the time but I lived in what they call a “food desert” now, meaning it was difficult to get to healthy foods for my family. The store closest to us was over 5 miles away, and we did not have a car for a long time. The transit service that was available we had to walk over a mile to reach, and it ran infrequently. In the unrelenting heat of Texas, you can imagine this was not a great way to have to live, and my story is not unique. The store was a chain and marketed all the prepackaged, advertised foods that we are all familiar with, and that was also what was on sale normally, not fresh fruits and vegetables. As such, much of my childhood was based in canned foods and processed goods since that was what the store had that was affordable. Add in that we bought large quantities to store for the large family I belonged to, well... healthy eating was not on the menu. And what’s worse is that this is what we believed was supposed to be normal. 

Things seem to be starting to change even if our relationship with food is still not great. Plus when life is busy it can be hard to want to expend the energy to also think too much about where to shop and what to get, so convenience is a necessity for many people and so is affordability. Love them or hate them, this is where big box stores come in and are often the only places some people grocery shop. 

One place in Minnesota that has grown its grocery business significantly over the last ten years is Target. They’ve expanded what they carry that is vegan by a large margin as well. I would imagine that, store-by-store, this is going to be a bit different because they did offer up local brands of items here in the Twin Cities. But this is a picture-heavy post to give you some ideas of what you can look for that is vegan at Target. Local things, lunches, snacks, dinners, basics, and yes… some treats. 

Front and center at Target is produce and it included some regional items. I am not going to post a ton of photos of this because obviously fruit and vegetables are vegan:

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I was glad to find tofu there as it as good foundation food for vegans and people who don't want to eat meat all the time:

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A lot of the Target brand bread was vegan. Not all, as some had eggs and milk, but still a fair amount, including dinner rolls (very hard to find at the holidays):

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For on your bread:

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Plenty of hummus including local favorite Holy Land and their own line:

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There is the biggest selection of non-diary milk I've seen anywhere, and some easy breakfast stuff (besides cereal, which is plentiful):

Road trip (and work) snacks abound. Though please... for the planet, recycle the packaging as they are not exactly earth friendly. But I know that snacks are the best.

One thing I used to run into back when I was microwaving my work lunches a lot was that the sodium content was really high. These aren't the best they can be, compared to fresh food, but they are better and Target has a lot of easy lunch stuff (some are clearly marked as Vegan):

Some helpful dinner basics ideas:

Mayo, crackers, treats, including Target's own brand of cookies, crackers, as well as Haagen-Dazs Vegan ice cream:

This is just some of what they have, to give you an idea what to look for. There are also many cereals, chips, juices, fruit leathers, grain based lunches, etc... There are Targets nearly everywhere you go around Minnesota, so getting to vegan food should be a little easier. I hope this is a trend that continues and I will update this in the future as the seasons change. Thank you for reading!

Measuring CONvergence in Decades, Part 2

The second time I attended CONvergence, which was the third year of the event, was a strange affair for me. Very strange indeed. I was ill. 104 degree fever type of ill.
But I was not going to miss the convention. I double-checked with my doctor that I was not contagious and, since what I was diagnosed with was meningitis, after a week I was given the ok to head back out in public. It wasn’t a great idea - I actually stayed sick for well over a month and experienced migraines from the spinal tap I had to have. I wouldn’t say I am overly gifted with common sense. (It also turned out that my diagnosis was probably wrong since the spinal fluid tests are pretty much inconclusive for several of these mosquito-borne illnesses. They just treat your symptoms as best as they can.)
I didn’t have a hotel room, but at one point I had to go get one before I passed out from my fever as I was trying to watch masquerade from the tech table and almost fell off. This particular CON passed in a bit of a haze, as my headache meds kept me from thinking too clearly. I do recall that I went to several panels about prop-making that were just awesome, and kept walking around and around the parties trying to decide if I wanted to host one. By the end of the convention I was sure that I did and had the only semi-ok idea of a villains party. I ended up dismissing the idea quickly because as I threw out the idea to people they kept bringing up Disney villains and I was pretty much sick of Disney at this point in my life. (They have been slowly winning back my love with the female relationship focused movies now.)
I did spend time in the main foyer of the hotel talking with different people throughout the night after my fever broke and I couldn’t sleep. 
I wasn’t sure what I was going to do or who I was going to do it with, but I definitely decided to have a party. 
When the convention was over I was spending a lot of time collecting comic books that I wanted. It suddenly occurred to me that my favorite one, The Sandman, was filled with party themes. Plus, a lot of my new friends were Sandman freaks the way I was, so it made sense. 
Welp, it didn’t work out for a lot of random personal reasons… some serious, some not. 
So go to the convention, wander the parties and finally get someone who genuinely wants to try hosting a room party. Little did we know what we were getting into…
We settled on trying to put together some sort of Library of Lost Dreams. Books, as many of you will know, feature prominently in the Sandman series. Creating a bit of the atmosphere became the goal. The first big decorating project ever attempted for CON became bookshelves. It seemed like we should just carry in shelves and fill them with books but seriously, who wants to haul around boxes of books in the heat? No one. Plus there was nothing about that idea that seems particularly wonderful. It was too literal - not the impression of an illusion which parties should possess. The big catch with these things is also the amount of money you have to spend. Because, especially at this point, we were on a budget. (I might add I can’t even begin to describe what I would do with a giant budget… just know it would be spectacular, spectacular*.)
Brainstorm. When you are stuck, get everyone you can around you and just start throwing ideas out, no matter how dumb they may seem. We had already decided that we wanted one big project to center the decorating around and we knew we wanted it to be book related. I had collected dollar reprints of Sandman comics to make a collage wall (which was both met with adoration and horror during the CON “How could you cut up comics?” ). We cut giant, foil paper butterflies for the ceiling, had a project from a co-host's previous event, and some smaller details. It just took time to figure out the book part.
Cut to the idea of seeing if used bookstores had books they didn’t sell. 
Turns out that they often do. In fact, the bookstore we went to I ended up working at for many years, and long before that they gave us many, many old books which were not fit for selling that we could reuse.
We sat for more hours than I can possibly count, taking the spines off of old, sometimes rotting books. We had to cut through ancient glues, papers and dried up leathers. Sometimes finding highly unpleasant things in them. In addition, in order to recycle them we had to take them completely apart, which took somewhere near the end of time. 
We used 4’ x 8’ sheets of wood to be the backdrops of the shelves and became very familiar with the use of a glue gun, and thus the Library of Lost Dreams came together (and after many years of party decor, it is now a permanent resident at the Saloon as a Goth Prom decoration). 
The party went off pretty well. However, I immediately took note of the fact that, despite seeming like we had too much decor, I didn’t think we had enough. When all was said and done that CON, the room was still a hotel room, and that wasn’t good enough for me, so for the next year leading up to CONvergence the ideas got some water in order to grow.

We also managed to not have enough alcohol to serve people and ran out at one point. I had baked 400 chocolate chip cookies and those disappeared very quickly. Getting comfortable with greeting the most awkward of people, trying not to put your foot in your mouth, and trying to make sure all the rules (which sometimes are not always clear) were heeded - the first year was a learning experience. And many, many notes were taken…

*Five points for Gryffindor if you caught my Moulin Rouge reference.

Part one is here, if you missed it.

What to Eat Wednesday: Vegan Food at the Mall of America

Love it or hate it, there are times when you end up at the Mall of America if you live in the Twin Cities (and even if you don't). I recently was there because, in my personal situation, it is a good place for me to go bra shopping -- the one time the internet does not cut it for me, as I wear an unusual size range. 

It can be a long day. A trying affair. It's crowded, bright, and loud (and you can take hours trying things on that don't fit right). And if you think you can't eat anything but french fries when everyone else is eating a full meal, it can make the day even longer. 

Things have come a long way in vegan food eating. And it even shows in the suburbs of the Twin Cities. The Mall of America even has its own Smart Dining Guide(though it does have a couple of things on here that are no longer, like my love... Disco Fries R.I.P).  The phone app is also pretty handy for such things. 

There are some obvious places such as Chipotle with vegan options like the Sofritas dish and Noodles and Co. which has a separate vegan menu you can request.

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Other places I have tried and like for fast food are Pita Pit and Naf Naf Grill- which has a clearly labeled menu of what is vegan or what is not, including a baklava.

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If you want something a bit nicer I would suggest two places that I like. My most recent discovery on Friday was a great surprise. 

First up would be Masu. A Japanese place that has a vegan menu with some good stuff on it such as this "caterpillar"

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The surprisingly great place, and not just great for mall food-actually good food, was Cantina Laredo.

Our server, Alexis, was all about helping out. She didn't hesitate for a second and listed entrees that could be made vegan and checked on tortillas without my asking. The restaurant offers "Modern Mexican Food" and well, it's yummy.

There are three entrees that can be made vegan and I tried two: Portobello Fajitas and Avocado Enchiladas (the third is Stuffed Poblano Peppers). They prepare guacamole fresh at your table and serve house made, spicy (not too hot) and more importantly-flavorful salsa. 

It is a place that is a bit more expensive than your average sit down place, but if you want a good meal while out at the mall you won't regret paying for it. I had plenty of leftovers that reheated nicely with some avocado mashed on top with salsa. The chimchurri sauce on the fajitas was aces and they made their own flour tortillas. The rice does have milk in it, so she doubled up on our black bean servings which was fine by me.

If you still have room for dessert afterwards there are two surprises that I adore at the MOA.

Cupcake offers at least two vegan flavors a day (sometimes more). I've had a fair number of them and like them all but I love anything with the strawberry frosting. And you can get them to go if you had too much to eat already.

If cupcakes are not for you, you can head over to Paciugo for vegan gelato or my new favorite a gelato "shake".

They have lots of flavors that are water and soy based. I had a "shake" made with strawberry gelato and orange San Pellegrino. Delightful.

Things to make your day easier.

CONvergence 2017 Playlist

My original set though I had to drop a couple of songs due to time constraints. Includes source material. Pretty awesome and looking forward to doing it again.

  1. Yellow Flicker Beat performed by Lorde from the movie Mockingjay Part. 1 based on the novel Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins

  2. #1 Crush -Garbage from the movie Romeo & Juliet, story by William Shakespeare 

  3. In Your Grave -Jaymes Bullet from the movie Vampire Academy based on the books in the Vampire Academy series by Richelle Mead 

  4. I Want You to Want Me performed by Letters to Cleo from the movie 10 Things I Hate About You adapted from The Taming of The Shrew by Shakespeare

  5. Kids in America- The Muffs from the movie Clueless an adaptation of the book Emma by Jane Austen (also recently featured in Riverdale)

  6. Hush performed by Kula Shaker from the movie I Know What You Did Last Summer based on the book by Lois Duncan 

  7. Let’s Do It-Joan Jett & Paul Westerberg from the movie Tank Girl based on the comics series Tank Girl  by Jamie Hewlett & Alan Martin 

  8. It’s On Again by Alicia Keys (featuring Kendrick Lamar) from the movie The Amazing Spiderman 2 based on the comic series created by Stan Lee

  9. Backdoor Lover performed by “Du Jour” from the movie Josie and the Pussycats based on the comics created by Dan DeCarlo

  10. Poker Face performed by Lady Gaga from the movie the Lightening Thief from the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series by Rick Riordan 

  11. Obsession performed by Sky Ferreira from the show The Vampire Diaries based on the book series created by L. J. Smith 

  12. Choosing Dauntless by Junkie XL  featuring Ellie Goulding from the movie Divergent based on the book series by Veronica Roth 

  13. Into the Lair performed by Zedd from the movie The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones based on the book series by Cassandra Clare

  14. Tea Party performed by Kerli from the movie Through the Looking Glass based on the book Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll 

  15. Brand New Day performed by Diana Ross and Micheal Jackson from the movie The Wiz based on The Wonderful Wizard of Oz book series by L. Frank Baum

  16. Be Our Guest performed by Ewan McGregor, Emma Thompson, Ian McKellen, Gugu Mbatha-Raw from the movie Beauty and the Beast based on the book La Belle et la Bête by Jeanne-Marie Leprince de Beaumont

  17. Other Father Song performed by They Might Be Giants from the movie Coraline based on the book by Neil Gaiman

  18. Kings and Queens and Vagabonds  performed by Ellem from the show Reign inspired by the Young Royals Series by Carolyn Meyer 

  19. Breath of Life performed by Florence and the Machine from the movie Snow White and the Huntsman based on the fairy tale by The Brothers Grimm

  20. Once Upon a Dream performed by Lana Del Rey from the movie Maleficent based on the stories La Belle au bois Dormant by Charles Perrault and Briar Rose by the Brothers Grimm

The 100 (but really only like 20 or something)

Nuclear War. Fanatical religion. Tribalism. Treacherous A.I. Ecological Disaster. Making our children fight wars for us. Just to name a few of the elements that fuel the storylines of the show "The 100". Based on a book series by Kass Morgan, the television show "The 100" sits on a lot of lists with titles “Best Shows You’ve Never Seen” and “Most Underrated Sci-Fi Shows.” The overwhelming majority of the time I do not agree about what shows are on these lists, but in this case they are correct. 
Set a little less than 100 years after nuclear war has wiped out most of mankind, "The 100" tells the story of 4,000 survivors sent to live in a space station above the planet to ensure the continuation of the human race. Resources are scarce and they are supposed to last far beyond what they realistically can, so any crime, no matter how small, is punished by death-unless you are under the age of 18. These crimes include stealing needed meds or food, and having more than one child.
But best laid plans really are the road to hell. The ark (as the station is called) does not have what it takes to ensure the survival of anyone, much less 4,000 people, so they send 100 “prisoners” to see if Earth is in any way habitable. Here they find radioactive storms, toxic soil, warring clans, and societies that shun anyone not genetically attractive (not unlike leper colonies from history). 
Merciless in killing off of characters, somewhere near the end of episode 3 The 100 is already down to less than half. (At this point into season 3 I am surprised if anyone makes it through an episode, much less a season). 
"The 100" brings with it some of the more realistically theorized behavior of humanity after a nuclear war than I would say most shows do. In the sci-fi writing world there are genuinely only a handful of things writers seem to agree on. Humankind’s annihilation at their own hand, be it through nuclear war or ecological disaster, definitely is one of those things. And really, when you have a look around, I don’t think anyone (reasonable) would disagree that this is a possibility beyond measure these days. It also establishes once again that here on Earth we seem to have a pretty hard time learning any lessons. 
The books had not yet been published when the CW picked up the rights for the story. I didn’t know much about it when it was being filmed, but I decided to avoid watching it for some time because what little I knew about it I didn’t want spilling over into my own writing as I was rounding out completing my first sci-fi novel at the time. (This ended up being unnecessary as the stories are pretty different). 
In the first season of the show the soundtrack was comprised of popular, recognizable hit songs and it did not work. It was one the few elements keeping it from being a serious sci-fi epic, but season 2 came and that changed. 
As the kids go out into the world and discover not only do they not necessarily have any idea what morality is or what that could even possibly mean in this world they now live in, the music gets more complex and immersive. And one way this is demonstrated is by the discovery of relics of the past. And it is UNSETTLING. It’s in these moments that the nature of the story really hits home. A very good example of this is a scene when a group is headed once again to find if there is any safe passage across a stretch of land and in a moment of seemingly carefree jubilance they sing along to "Add It Up" by the Violent Femmes-a pretty familiar song in the indy rock world. It’s only then you realize how eerie the lyrics to this piece of music really are, and that 100 years from now is not much time. 
*as a side note, the linguist who worked on Game of Thrones has also worked in developing the Grounder language on "The 100" 
*I also appreciate that sexuality is a non-issue. It just is.