The Great Debate

Disclaimer:  I, Julianna, in the position of editor, do solemnly swear that Alexandria’s comments have not been tampered with in any way and accurately reflect her opinions.  That said, I choose to disassociate myself from her narrow viewpoint and oppose even posting this ridiculous discussion.  However, if you choose to keep reading, I hope you will not be completely swayed by her arguments. 

Alexandria:  Over dinner Julianna and I often ponder the deep questions in life.  Tonight the discussion became very heated.  You may wonder, “Are they arguing over pressing issues such as eliminating national debt or reducing poverty?” We weren’t.  The debate tonight centered on chick flicks and the fact that most of the cute guys in these movies have dark hair.  While Julianna conceded that most of the guys in the movies do have dark hair, we did have a lengthy argument (and it still continues).  As a rule I tend to like guys who are TDH (tall, dark, and handsome), whereas Julianna seems to go for men with lighter hair.  Therefore, our disagreement could be due to differences in taste, but we tried to remain as objective as possible while searching for the answer. 

            First we had to set up the appropriate qualifiers and operational definitions as any great researchers would.  We narrowed the field of movies to only include chick flicks and romantic comedies.  This in itself created some controversy.  Next, we had to determine what counts as dark hair versus not dark hair.  After watching several clips of our favorite chick flicks, we determined that dark blonde is still blonde and light brown is still brown.  It would have been helpful if we had a color palette to reference.  Julianna did suggest that we go down to the local drugstore to compare to the hair coloring samples they had (we did not actually do this in case you were worried).  

Our next operational definition was whether the guys in question were actually cute or not before they were to be considered in our pool of subjects.  This led to another debate- whether or not the gentlemen in English dramas such as Pride and Prejudice could ever be considered cute.  (I am of the opinion that any dudes sporting mutton chops cannot rate very high on the cuteness scale.  We also had to Google mutton chops to verify the definition.)  Another side of the argument that was brought up was the fact that a very high percentage of dudes in movies have dark hair so those with light hair are not given equal screen time.  The rebuttal to this was that most movie stars are considered good-looking and therefore naturally have dark hair. 

            Next we had to present the appropriate evidence to support both sides of the case.  To support Julianna’s case for cute blonde guys, the evidence included Zac Efron, Matthew McConaughey, and Matt Damon.  All of these gentlemen did qualify as being blonde and having acceptable ratings on the cute factor.  However, Matt Damon was excluded since his normal movie genre is nothing close to chick flicks or romantic comedies.  Zac Efron was debatable since we are not 13 or huge fans of High School Musical,but he has been in a few other movies which made him more legitimate.  There was simply no debate about Matthew McConaughey; Alexandria conceded on that one. 

Besides these three actors, every other cute guy in a chick flick that we could think of has dark hair.  This led into a discussion on what qualities are the most important in determining if a man is good looking.  Hair is definitely near the top of the list, followed by eyes and smiles.  However, that is a debate for another evening.  All in all, it was a great girls dinner:  we finished off a whole frozen pizza, discussed cute guys, and even watched snatches of a few of our favorite chick flicks.  What more could you ask for?

Fall

What do you all love about fall?  After several e-mails and remarks about not being able to leave comments, we were able to tweak the settings so you all can do so anonymously. 

There are so many things that we love about fall.  These are a few of our favorite things (if you like, you can pretend that we are singing in our best Julie Andrew’s voices)

Julianna

1.                  Christmas songs—Ok, I know some people are absolutely opposed to listening to Christmas music until after Thanksgiving, but I say you can never have too much of a good thing.  Maybe it’s also because when I was younger we would start in October to practice for our Christmas piano recitals and choir concerts.  Nowadays, my roommate Alexandria just gets to enjoy me unknowingly humming “A Holly Jolly Christmas.” (Alex interjecting:  It does get old after awhile, especially since you’ve been humming it over and over since July!)  Now that our local radio station is playing Christmas music, hopefully I can get some other songs stuck in my head. 

2.                  Pumpkins—There is something festive about pumpkins, and this (is it a fruit or a vegetable?) food item brings back fond memories.  Instead of carving them, my brother and I painted them with rather sad results on my part.  We had fun all the same.  My parents also bought pumpkin trash bags that we filled with leaves; of course jumping in them prior to raking was much more fun.  Another random memory involves filling our plastic pumpkin baskets with lots of candy on Halloween when we went to our church to play fun games.

3.                  Other fall activities—As I walk outside, I can inhale the amazing scent of barbecue and smoke from the local diner.  This reminds me of amazing times during youth group bonfires and high school retreats; doesn’t everyone love staring into the flickering flames and roasting marshmallows for smores?  And then there’s the hayrack rides and playing hide and seek in the dark.

4.                  Weather—After experiencing a humid summer, the transition to fall is always refreshing.  There’s something wonderful about waking up on a fall day and being able to wear a jacket in the morning and experiencing a perfect afternoon.  The air is cool and crisp, and the beauty of God’s creation is displayed in the glorious colors of fall.  The reddish brown, gold, and orange leaves contrasted against the blue sky both amaze and humble me.  God desires to reveal Himself to us in fall despite “the fall” of mankind and my own “falls” when I try to do things in my own strength instead of His. 

Alexandria

5.                  Leaves—I love crunching leaves under my feet.  As a kid walking home from school, I would cross to the opposite side of the street just to walk through the leaves.  Even still I love to stomp, crunch, and kick leaves- I just secretly hope no one is watching me do this.  Another one of my favorite things about fall is nature’s fireworks.  Each fall I anxiously wait for the first leaves to change colors.  I have several favorite trees based on their display during autumn. 

6.                  Halloween—One aspect of my childhood that sticks out is the variations in my Halloween costumes.  As a toddler, I went as Big Bird and Minnie Mouse.  I then progressed from cartoon characters to architectural landmarks.  In first grade I was the Statue of Liberty.  The next year I really wanted to go as the Golden Gate Bridge, but for some reason the logistics on that didn’t work out.  I instead went as a picnic table.  My younger brother and I once went together as Vikings; I had great yellow braids to go with my Viking helmet.  Last year I dressed up as the Tree of Knowledge for the kids program I helped with at church. 

7.                  Football— Football and fall just go hand in hand.  There is no better way to spend a fall afternoon than tossing the old pigskin around.  There will be more on football and fall in a later blog.

8.                  Food—I am all about seasonal eating.  There are so many great fall foods.  Julianna has started making soups now that it is cooler.  I love making fall desserts such as apple cake or pumpkin bars. We also have enjoyed drinking tea and hot apple cider.  And then there is Thanksgiving.  Fall has so much to offer culinarily speaking.

There are many great fall foods but we have included the recipe for pumpkin dessert bars from Alexandria’s Bible study leader Rebecca. 

Julianna:  Thank you, Rebecca!  I got to enjoy this recipe Alexandria made, and it was amazing!  Enjoy!

• 1 package yellow or spice cake mix (set aside 1 cup)
• ½ cup melted butter
• 1 egg
• Mix and press into a 9x13 pan

• 1 can pumpkin
• 2 eggs
• 2/3 cup milk
• Combine and pour over crust

• 1 cup reserved cake mix
• 1 tsp. cinnamon
• ½ cup sugar
• ¼ cup butter
• Mix together with a fork and sprinkle over top of filling.
• Bake at 350F degrees for 45 minutes.

Conquering the Kitchen

The score is currently 3-1 (Although there is some debate about this).  This has nothing to do with athletic endeavors.  This game is not for the timid or the faint of heart.  (Warning:  don’t attempt this yourselves.  Remember we are untrained unprofessionals).  We are talking about the score of cooking disasters in our kitchen.  These disasters include some ill-fated muffins that lost a battle with the laws of physics, some spicy tacos since the cook has a faulty sense of taste and didn’t realize how much seasoning to put in, and lots of odd groans and others crashes, clangs, and bangs. 

Neither of us claims to be Julia Childs (although we enjoy watching the movie Julie and Julia together) and I (Alexandria) for one had very limited experience since I had never cooked for myself before moving here.  However, we have celebrated some successes; comforted each other after devastating defeats; shed tears; and laughed a lot in our kitchen together. 

One success was a casserole that was made up from about three separate recipes since we didn’t have the ingredients for any single recipe.  It basically consisted of throwing in leftovers from the freezer and some random cans in the cabinet.  Surprisingly it turned out pretty good but it was a one time only deal that can’t be replicated again—like a classic piece of artwork. 

At another time, Alexandria walked by as Julianna was making dinner and saw her with a calculator and hands covered with biscuit batter.  Julianna’s response was, “Oh shoot.  I was hoping you wouldn’t walk in here and see this mess.”  (Only accountants use calculators while mixing up biscuits.) 

Alexandria is not very confident in her cooking skills but has tried a few recipes out of Backpacker Magazine since she figures “If people can whip these up on the trail at 10,000 feet, surely I can manage it in our kitchen.”  One of these recipes was for Apple Granola bars.  They turned out to be a hit.  However, the next two batches turned out to be more the consistency of plywood.  To make these chucks of plywood edible required eating them crumbled on top of large amounts of ice cream- so it all turned out well in the end.  Or could it be intentional sabotage to necessitate eating of said ice cream?  That would also help even up the score of this cooking adventure. 

One of the not so successful dishes was a quiche in which the cook (Julianna) forgot to add the eggs- kind of a main ingredient in any quiche.  Key lesson:  set aside main ingredients and note where you’re at when interrupted by phone calls.  Anyway, the quiche turned out to have the consistency of a cheesy spinach sauce.  Salvaging this disaster involved taking five coffee mugs (or tea mugs in our case since we don’t drink coffee, remember?) sprayed with PAM and cracking an egg in each cup before placing it in the microwave for a minute.  The sauce was ladled over the eggs to complete this rather interesting dish that hopefully will never be repeated. 

There are many things about our cooking we hope not to repeat again or forcefully ingest twice.  But if you, dear reader, should ever have similar mishaps, we may be able to offer assistance to make your recipes edible.  All in all, we are big fans of eating, so we continue this quest to become chefs (even though Alexandria would be perfectly happy eating PB&J all the time).  Each day is a new test to hone our skills and rise to the challenge.  Please feel free to offer us advice and/or share your own cooking mistakes and how you dealt with these problems. 

Driving

This picture was taken by Michael Flick on November 5, 2006.  Obtained through Flickr. 

One of the adventures we daily encounter is the congested roads of the metropolitan area.  Although I (Julianna) grew up in a large city, fall during the past six years always brought a haven in the form of the Little Apple.  I could easily find my way across town in 15 minutes, and drivers are usually patient and don’t cut you off.  However, Alexandria informs me that my city upbringing comes out upon entering the freeway on-ramp.  The adrenaline rush from merging, anticipating the next person who might cut me off, driving approximately 70 mph with cars flying past in the other 3+ lanes—I do enjoy this in a way.  However, two-lane roads with speed limits exceeding 45 mph terrify me.  What if the other driver barreling towards me should suddenly lose control and run into my lane?  Alexandria, who is an expert on two-lane roads, appears visibly relieved once leaving the busy city freeways and hitting the open road. 

My (Alexandria) driving background is slightly different.  My county doesn’t have any stop lights.  I thought a normal commute was the three minutes it took my dad to get to his office downtown.  There is no need to use turn signals since everyone in town already knows where you are going anyway.  Rush hour consists of three cars on the road at the same time.  I cannot fathom the need for any road to have 6 lanes.  In short, Kansas City driving terrifies me.  I avoid I-35 at all costs if I can.  Even learning the street names have been a challenge. My hometown has numbered streets through 9th St. instead of 190th St. While Julianna seems to be completely at ease on the I-35 as she gracefully merges on, I on the other hand, grip the steering wheel with white knuckles and start to hyperventilate.  The idea of hundreds cars hurtling past me scares me spit-less.  I do much prefer simple two-lane highways where I can easily see the speeding semis coming towards me instead of randomly showing up in my rearview mirror. 

Navigating is usually an adventure for us as well.  Julianna will plug in her GPS and then completely ignore its suggestions or even start mumbling things about it under her breath.  A lot of people complain about backseat drivers, but what is different about a GPS?  It is always some woman telling you to “Keep left” or “Turn right now” or  telling you that you are completely off course and that now she has to go to all the extra work of “recalculating” your route.  However, I don’t believe we have been hopelessly lost together...yet. 

One sign of a true Johnson County driver is a disregard for yellow lights.  While normal people slow down and possibly stop before the light turns red, JoCo drivers blaze on through without a second thought.  Julianna is a JoCo driver.  (Julianna exclaiming:  what?  Well, I am not necessarily a JoCo driver...city driver...metro transportation expert...umm, I guess that doesn’t make it any better does it?  At least I didn’t qualify to be a New York taxicab driver...not that I have applied for that job...yet.)  She also isn’t very patient at stop lights when she does stop.  She sits there tapping on the wheel, inching closer, ready to speed on to the next stop light at the next block and repeat the process again.  (Julianna:  in my defense, I try to avoid the stop lights by taking side streets as much as possible.)  Maybe someday in the very distant future Alex will morph into a city drive as well (probably not).  Too close, here is a you tube video of the Rascal Flatt’s song “Life is a Highway.”

Love Letter to Library

For our second blog posting, we decided to enclose in a love letter our passion about the best feature of Johnson County: the library.


Dearest Johnson County Public Library,

We just wanted to express our deep feelings we have about our relationship. Before we even met, we had heard such wonderful things about you and developed quite a crush. The first time we entered your doors we knew in the depths of our hearts that it was going to be a long lasting relationship. You bring so many great characteristics to the table…err bookcase. Possibly your most enduring quality is the vast selection of reading materials we find through searching your online profile/catalog. You are quite the technology expert with your automatic checkout scanners, and we are very thankful that you are willing to be patient and “hold” things for us until we can rush back to you. In the meantime, you fight off 56+ other people who will just have to take their turn waiting for their favorite item. We also appreciate that you are man enough that even if you are lacking in what we need, you will ask others for assistance through the Interlibrary Loan program. There is nothing we enjoy more than watching a movie on a Friday night- thanks for providing us with affordable entertainment. Going on long road trips or just driving around the city is much more pleasurable with you along on the journey through great books on CDs. That companionship makes the time fly by. You push us to better ourselves through taking on new challenges, whether it is Julianna’s pursuit of understanding the mysteries of physics or Alexandria’s quest to become (somewhat) fluent in Espanol through access to Mango Language programs. From Alexandria’s love for adventure books about hiking in the wilderness and grand rafting expeditions to Planet Earth DVDs—you have opened up whole new worlds to us and have taken us on unimaginable adventures. With 13 branches around the county, you are never very far away. It seems that we can never spend enough time with you. Are we demanding too much of your time with our frequent visits (like 4 times a week)—we just can’t help ourselves. Our library cards are one of our most treasured possessions. Saying good bye is too difficult, but the thought of seeing you again soon makes our hearts go pitter-patter.

Your greatest admirers,

Julianna and Alexandria
(XOXOXOX)

P.S. We thought you might enjoy this humorous you-tube video about a person’s first experience attempting to read a book.

Coffee Shops

As we sit here, we are sipping on hot apple cider tea and a raspberry fruit smoothie at Homer’s Coffee House. Tonight we were in search of a coffee shop to hang out at for the evening. We like the idea of the coffee shop atmosphere as a quiet place to hang out (actually we can’t even chat with one another right now because of the volume of the live band performing here tonight- oh well) and the aroma of coffee wafting through the air. The downside is we don’t like drinking espresso, yet we considered a coffee shop to be the perfect place to begin this adventure of writing our first blog entry.

Coffee shops are a great symbol of what our blog will be about. For me (Alexandria), coffee shops represent the sophistication of city life. One of the things Julianna and I are going to do with this blog is share our views and thoughts on city living as two young professionals. That in itself is not exactly true on a few different levels. Neither of us are professional anythings. Julianna is in the process for hunting for a job while Alexandria is a student in the physical therapy program at KU Med. Beyond not being employed currently we also struggle to act our age at times. A great example is Julianna occasionally sitting at her desk spinning in her chair while blowing bubbles. This is our story as we attempt to grow and mature through our experiences living together.

One of my (Alexandria) goals while living in Kansas City is to get a taste of city life. Growing up in a small Kansas town of about 1000 people, I am trying to adjust and possibly embrace city life. Julianna, on the other hand, has lived in metro areas all of her life but is also a transplant to the Kansas City area. She often laughs at my misperceptions of city life but is always up for the adventure.

That leads us back to our evening at the coffee shop. A few months ago one of my brothers asked me if I had been spending time hanging out at Barnes and Nobles or coffee shops every day (because that’s what city people do). (Julianna’s interjection: what? I didn’t start hanging out at coffee shops until college, and that very rarely.)

So after 4 months, we are finally at a coffee shop. Of course it was an adventure just to get here (as most travel in Kansas City is). We found that the closest Starbucks location was a few miles down the road, so we headed there first. We soon realized this location was actually in a grocery store. Next we headed a few blocks away to Caribou Coffee. This was a disappointment also since it was just a drive-thru. Frustration mounting. As far as we are concerned, the best thing about coffee shops is the environment, so there is no reason for drive-thru coffee. We then trekked farther to reach Homer’s, which was luckily a real coffee shop. I was under the impression that the city is covered with coffee shops on every corner, but we had to search high and low. However, our search was rewarded with amazing drinks that happen not to be laced with espresso. I will admit that I feel very sophisticated sitting here typing on my laptop with other people chatting with friends or reading classic literature. We could get used to this.


** Some names have been changed to protect the identities of the individuals and to save them from excessive embarrassment. We also like being women of mystery.**