Cool Shit Monday: Oldies but Goodies

I've recently rediscovered a few things that I had forgotten existed.  Sometimes that's for the best, for example, any outfit I wore between the ages of 12 and 18, but in this cases I've unearthed some loved gems.

This camera.  I'm not a big photographer or photography aficionado (you're shocked, I know.  My photos are so amazing and all) but even this appeals to me.  So this camera was originally released back in the early 60s as a novelty item but quickly became the darling of the photography world for the cool imperfections it created in its photos.  This is a re-release of the original complete with handbook and accessories so even photo-failures like me have a shot at getting a good pic but the fact that it's all supposed to go a little bit wrong appeals to me.  And you get the added bonus of having a coral camera. If that ain't cool, I don't know what is.

From www.modcloth.com

Shit My Dad Says.  I'm sure most of you will have seen this website or the book or the facebook page or any other number of ways of viewing this wonderful thing, but I'm reminding you to look again.  The concept is a simple one: a guy in his adult years lives with his elderly father, father comes out with classic Dad phrases and advice, guy writes these down.  Whoop de doo.  But it is seriously some of the funniest stuff you will read.  You get some typical dad-isms mixed with brutal honesty, perceptive insight, and a little bit of old person racism/stereo-typing.  Nothing funnier.  Go read and give yourself a smile.  I dare you not to laugh out loud.

The Wellington International Ukulele Orchestra has been round for a number of years now (Bret Mackenzie was one of their founding members dontcha know), fighting the good fight for slightly dorky music.  I know, that doesn't make them sound all that cool but believe me, they are.  You have to be uber-cool to pull off a B-side Prince number, "I Could Never Take the Place of Your Man", and not destroy it.  You have to be hyper-awesome to make me want to sing Kenny Rogers' 'Ruby' over and over.  And you need to be get-out-of-town amazing to take a song like 'Africa' by Toto and make me want to put it on repeat.  So much better than the original.  They manage to be both self-deprecating and actually good all at once.  It's a talent.  Check them out if you haven't already, and put them on your playlist again if you've been neglecting them.

Not my favourite song but the best video.

This website has provided me with hours of amusement and I had forgotten all about it until Frankie magazine reminded me of it's awesome existence.  I try to be positive on this blog (because my true inclination is to be scathingly sarcastic and that's just not very healthy to indulge on a daily basis) but I freely admit that Cake Wrecks is all about showing you the idiots of the world.  Through baking.  Could there be a better combo (jam and cream are up there of course)?

Some biscuits have a mystery about them - they are ridiculously simple and yet so good.  Chocolate Digestives are just such a biscuit.  I believe the UK equivalent are McVities and Chocolate Malted Milks in the US.  It's a wheaten (boring) with a thin layer of chocolate (thin?!  stink!) that must barely qualify as chocolate as the cocoa percentage is so low.  Am I selling it?  But somehow, somehow the combination of all these really average things makes a delicious biscuit that is one of the best dunking biccies I know (you just need to make sure it's a quick dunk, not a gingernut-length dunk).  Interestingly, their rival brand equivalent, the Chocolate Wheaten, is a bit shit.  I'm sure that there must be all sorts of disgusting additives to make the Chocolate Digestive as good as it is, but I'm going to stay blissful in my ignorance.  In fact I am going to have a cup of nice earl grey and a Chocolate Digestive or two right now.

Also, if you happen to have anyone who is an oldie but a goodie close at hand, I suggest you give them  cuddle (or a high-five if you're a bit anti PDA and physical contact).  That's some cool shit right there.

Cool Shit Monday: Jubilee Gems

Having just spent a lovely Holiday-Monday in Oamaru with Edie's Nana and Grandad, I feel it only fitting to doff my hat to the lady of the moment - Liz.  So today's Cool Shit has a Royal theme to it.  I only wish I was in Blighty so I could a) go the whole hog with bunting and street parties and devonshire teas (minus the rain); and b) have an extra day of holiday.

I'd like to kick off with some goodness that would make the plate even at Queenie's party: Red Velvet Swiss Roll.  This recipe comes from one of my favourite foodie blogs, The Pink Whisk.  I love the Pink Whisk for several reasons - the writer, Ruth Clemens, was runner-up on The Great British Bake-Off so she knows what she's doing, but yet she still retains an element of the chaotic.  The woman is relatable.  She creates deliciousness from her postage-stamp-sized kitchen and doesn't pretend to be a domestic goddess above the rest of us mere mortals (see Baking: An Expose for further clarification of my opinions on cooking writers etc).  But best of all, every recipe of hers I have tried has been a raging success.  She has lots of photos to guide you through and keeps it entertaining, not preachy.  My type of lady.

Next is a selection of Royal Awesomeness from another favourite UK website, Not On The High Street.  I suppose you could say it's a little like Etsy or Felt in that it's a site that operates as a host for "shops" or sellers.  But it just does it with so much more style.  The site itself is beautifully presented and they clearly have rigorous criteria in terms of quality and presentation for the vendors as there are no grainy, "taken in my living room" photos, or crappy macrame owls here.  Anyway, today for your viewing delight, we have some Jubilee ribbon - essential for any Jubilee party, some swirly lollipops in British colours, the only shoes you could ever wear to a Jubilee party , and finally a corgi jumper.  I want this jumper, bad. Geek chic - I think so!

Hello Lover.  I've been waiting for a pair of shoes like you for a long time...

A knitted cake.  It's a little random I know, but I knitted this wee cake for Edie's 1st Birthday.  I think it would fit nicely at a Jubilee party.  Also it's pretty freakin' cool so fits in well with our Monday theme.  The pattern came from a whole book of knitted cakes I got in a random Christmas Gift game.  Score.  And yes, my Mum finished it off for me.  Sigh.  As an aside, when I found the link for the book on Fishpond, I noted the book advertised next was for knitted meerkats.  And you thought cakes were a bit odd...

I did find these super cute knitted strawberries that really would be awesome at a Jubilee party - strawberries and cream: could it get more British and summery?!

Here are a couple of my favourite writers that represent Britain at its stereotypical best: Enid Blyton and PG Wodehouse.  The fabulous innocence of Enid Blyton's stories with their quaint turn of phrase, yet fabulous insight into the world at large - no wonder they still appeal to children today.  And P G Wodehouse and ultimate duo - Jeeves & Wooster.  Oh how I love the charming idiocy with which Bertie gets into dire straits and the subtle wit Jeeves uses to get him out.  It's a formula that never tires for me.

And if you're really feeling in the spirit, it's not too late to send HRH a personal message to acknowledge the 60 years since she sat on the Stone of Scone and had the crown balanced on her careful coif.  She even sends you a reply!

So long live Liz and other alliterative phrases that celebrate the Queen and her giving us a day off!  I hope you all had a nice cup of tea and a cake, and maybe hummed a wee bit of "God Save the Queen".      Jolly good!

Cool Shit Monday: Round 2

It's Monday.  It's cool.  It's certainly not shit.  And your Monday won't be either once you sift your way through this treasure trove.

This lady here is officially the coolest person I know.  I once held a costume party where you could dress up as anything that took your fancy.  I had an outfit I wanted to wear and couldn't be bothered trying to think up a cool theme so just made it a generic dress up.  I think that's how most costume parties happen.  Leigh came as a tampon.  And she brought Toxic Shock Syndrome Information pamphlets with her and handed them out to other guests.  She even plaited a string trailing behind her and everything.  It was the best costume I've ever seen and I think it says a lot about how awesome she is.  Not everyone has the balls (interesting choice of words) to go to a party where you don't know many people dressed as a tampon.  She rocked it.
Another one of her most admirable exploits is as the ring leader of the SLA (Sugar Liberation Army), nicknamed "Angry Fruits".  She and another awesome lady, Luci, launched Operation Tang when Pascalls ceased producing Snifters, Tangy Fruits and Sparkles.  It was truly inspirational.
I have never been to see a Roller Derby although I find it intriguing.  I would go to anything just to see Leigh.  Especially in this outfit.

Stone.  Cold.  Fox.

BBC's Sherlock Holmes (you can watch it in New Zealand TVNZ On Demand here) is a masterpiece of television writing and acting.  Season 2 has just finished here in New Zealand and I was very happy to discover that Season 3 is being made.  Sherlock is just the most fantastic character and Benedict Cumberbatch is masterful in his portrayal.  I am excited to see him play the baddy, Khan, in the next Star Trek movie.  Martin Freeman is the shizzle too.  A perfect Watson and foil to Sherlock's sociopathic aloofness.  Interesting fact (straight from my sister who is the fount of all British popular culture knowledge): the guy who plays Mycroft (Sherlock's brother) is also one of the writers and is of course recognisable from another great British TV series, The League of Gentleman.  There you go, you learn something new every day.  I don't just bombard you with pics of crazy ladies in roller skates.

This dress is maybe not so cool if you don't have a little girl but I do, so it's freakin' cool.  Once again, it falls into the "I could make that" category.  I should change that to the "I could make that but even if I got off my chuff to do it, it would be one in a long list of things I'd be making so would never get it done". But that's a slightly less snappy name now isn't it?  Back to this cool shit... I love the Boden clothes for wee dots.  If only I had infinite resources.  They don't ship to New Zealand but luckily for me, I can send to my sister, who sends to me.  I would guess most New Zealanders know someone in the UK who can be their Boden mule so it's not too much of an issue.

I read this the other day and it cracked me up.  For a start, it accurately describes the laundry process in our house, but I also love that someone has a whole blog based on drawing shit Paintbrush pictures of their life.  That's my kind of art.  Here is the laundry process for you to read...

Direct from www.crappypictures.com

This appeals both to my aesthetic and my love of words.  Such a cool idea.  If I had any original artistic talent, I'd like to think that this is what I might do.  But then it wouldn't be original.  Basically the artist has taken words no longer used in the English language (i.e. not in the dictionaries or common usage anymore) and made word art.  The artistic representation of the word tells you something of the definition.  Weekly challenge: include one of these words in natural conversation this week.  Let me know how you go.  Don't let it become pamphagous though (that was pretty weak but I'm pressed for time here).

Oporopolist (oh-pawr-po-.list )n. 1671 -1725; A fruit-seller.

Lettering by Karen To

Montivagant (mon-TI-vey-guhnt),n. 1656-1658; That wanders in mountainous areas.

Lettering by Karen To

This book is, in my view, compulsory reading for every woman.  And every man actually.  So EVERYONE READ THIS BOOK!  Caitlin Moran pretty much the funniest person I've read in a long time and she's extra sneaky because she disarms you with her hilarity and before you know it, BAM! you're actually thinking about stuff.  I wish she had more reading material readily available as her writing makes me feel affirmed in every way.  I aspire to be like her.  Although I do not aspire to wear me mum's hand-me-down undies like she did...

So there's some cool shit for your Monday.  It's actually really hard to narrow it down as it turns out there is a lot of cool shit in the world.  That's a nice thing to discover really.  Perhaps I shall have to make a sister-post, Awesome Things Thursday?