Why I love my life

My mom and “aunt” Gail just drove my dad’s old Honda Civic Hybrid up from NC because I bought it. They drove me to work and are off looking for coffee (since I don’t drink it) and the Mall of America.

This text conversation occurred after they dropped me off:

Me: “Wow! I just realized the underwear I’m wearing has a huge hole chewed in the crotch by Ninja!”
Me: “Did you find the mall?”
Mom: “We r at cEibou having coffee”
Mom: “Gail says crotch issue is omen of sexy man in yr future”
Me: “Oh good!”
Mom: “Next stop bachmans”
Me: “Cool get me a mint plant”
Mom: “Ok”

It’s the little things.

I’ve got something important to talk about! Here in Minneapolis, street food vendors are not allowed to park on the streets to sell us delicious, sometimes bacon-filled, tasty food items. There is a hearing TOMORROW. PLEASE ATTEND IF YOU CAN! Here is what Carrie from the Chef Shack has to say about this:

“The Public meeting is coming up, to determine the future of street food in
the greater downtown Mpls area. There is much debate and resistance to this from business owners of the city and warehouse district. For anyone/chef who may be thinking of doing a cart or truck/trailer in the future, this meeting is imperative that people for the movement come out to show their support… City council members have directly informed me that NOW is the time to push this forward, as it may never again surface in legislation.”

Details on the meeting:

A public hearing will be held on Monday, March 22, 2010, at the Regulatory, Energy and Environment Committee of the Minneapolis City Council at 1:30 p.m. in Room 317, Minneapolis City Hall. The purpose of this hearing is to gather public comment on the proposed amendments to allow mobile food vehicles in the Minneapolis Downtown Improvement District (DID). These vehicles may offer a wider variety of foods than the food carts currently authorized in downtown. Licensed vehicles would be allowed on approved locations along the public sidewalk or private property. Much of the Hennepin Avenue sidewalk frontage between 5th Street and 9th Street has been determined to be wide enough to allow mobile food vehicles. Other segments of Hennepin Avenue may also be deemed appropriate.

Highlights of the Proposed Amendments Include:
Mobile food vehicles will be allowed in the Downtown Improvement District.
Vehicles may park on sidewalks or private property.
Vendors may sell foods that can be prepared on the vehicle.
Vendors are required to have a current food license.
Vendors are required to submit plans for the vehicle and the location.

So, if you CAN, please, please, please GO and voice support for this amendment!

Love,

Formica Dinette

I want to win a blogover.

Yes, I combined blog and makeover. So be it.

My blog is ugly and Nicole and her codependent partner slash roommate, Jamie, have really fabulous blogs and they make really fabulous blogs and, get this, they’re giving away a really fabulous blog makeover!

So, I really really really really really want to win this blogover. I want to re-release formicadinette.com with this blog but with this blog really really really fabulous-looking instead of ugly. Don’t you think that would be great? You should probably comment here in honor of me and how I should win (is that cheating?) and tweet about it. Why? Because you love me and I’m cute but my blog isn’t?

Love,
Formica Dinette

Formspring, part 3

Is morality universal or relative?
Relative.

So where do you see yourself in five years?
Well, at the old age of 31, I’d say I would like to be living in a house by Lake of the Isles, driving around in a Mini Cooper S, 6 speed convertible, with Ninja. I’ll have a job that I love mostly. I’ll travel a lot. I’d like to have a worthy man in my life, and live with him in my lake-palace. If I have a man then Ninja will get a dog, probably named “Sashimi” or “Morkie” (if she’s the same brand as Ninja). Maybe I’ll be married, maybe I’ll be engaged, maybe neither. And I’ll be probably starting to think about whether I want to have 1 or 2 kids in the next 3 years.

But, hey, who knows….

You get one 5-course meal and then you only get to eat sandwiches for the next year. What courses would you choose?

Can I also choose the sandwiches?

Okay, this is really difficult.

Course 1: Probably a soup like Carrie’s (The Chef Shack) Ginger Butternut squash. Or maybe a Tom Yum, from Thailand.

Course 2: A cheese plate (like the one at Cafe Maude which is fabulous).

Course 3: Foxy Falafel’s barikas.

Probably Brasa’s chicken with collard greens and creamed spinach for the main course. Oh and corn bread.

Dessert would probably involve ice cream (from Sebastian Joe’s), Malasadas from Leonard’s in Hawaii, and those little cheesecake bites that are better than sex that they make at 20.21 every now and again.

Okay I’m already thinking of other combinations, can I do it again?

bacon bra v2.0

bacon bra v2.0, originally uploaded by bikini sleepshirt.

Well, we finally created bacon bra 2.0! This was the 2nd attempt to make a cooked bacon bra. The first attempt went pretty poorly but this one was awesome, if I may say so myself. Neely and I had many ideas from last time and we invited Alex to come help and photograph the process and results. It was a lot of fun and it came out pretty fantastically. I’ll post some more pictures after they get edited.

Love,
Formica D

Formspring, part 2

If a State Fair official hinted that he could make you one of the butter princesses for a sufficiently generous bribe, how much would you pay?
$9. Definitely $9.

Which is worse (or better): having 250 plants or eight cats?
250 plants is better. Plants don’t poop.

Has anyone really been far even as decided to use even go want to do more like?
Yes. Definitely. Err, what the eff?

Should cops be able to give DUIs to people who drive golf carts while drunk?
No, I love driving golf carts drunk. Not that I golf. But there was that one time….

10,000 Maniacs: Brilliant or annoying?
Who are 10,000 Maniacs? I hear this is a band?

If you could give up one of your five senses, which would you give up and why?
I would give up my sense of style. Oh wait. Ummmm…. Not taste, because I live for food. Not sight, I am completely visual. Sound.. live music is one of my favorites…. Touch.. not a chance in hell. So, I guess we’re going with smell. I mean it’s cool to be able to smell, believe you me, but I couldn’t do without those other 4!

When traveling in a new country, you are offered a new type of dish. You ask what in it and they note it’s a type of dog. Would you eat it? Why or why not?
No. I don’t eat dog. I don’t really like to eat “pets.” And yes I know that it’s totally cultural what we eat and what we consider pets etc etc… But I love dogs (and not in an eating sort of way) so I just wouldn’t eat them. I also wouldn’t eat horses. I’d ride horses. I don’t ride pigs or keep them as pets so I eat bacon. Really, I’d like to stop eating all animals, or at least unless I know where they come from and how they were raised. But that’s a whole-nother-question.

Have you made Bacon Bra 2.0? If not, when will you? by emilysaysso
Well, that’s a great question! I haven’t made Bacon Bra 2.0 yet. However, it is planned for January 27th, 2010 (after step class at the YWCA). That’s coming up very soon! I better remember to defrost the bacon!

Ask me more! http://www.formspring.me/formicadinette

Formspring, part 1

If you found you were allergic to dogs, would you give Ninja up? Who would you give her to?
I don’t know what I would do!!! Ninja isn’t very allergenic, being that she doesn’t shed. But if I was allergic to her, I guess if it were minor I’d try taking some drugs for it and seeing if I can live with it. If it was major I guess I’d give her to a friend. I’d find out who wanted her and had time for her. But Conner/@sloped would be high on the list because he’s taken care of her for 3 weeks and they had a great time together.

If you had to relocate to a different state, what state would you like to live in?
Well, eventually I will relocate probably. I think it will be to San Francisco, or possibly Seattle or Portland or possibly NYC. So I’d place my bets on that states that those are in. Or somewhere else, because who knows?

What’s on the floor of your car?
Dirt. Maybe a few receipts that need to be thrown out. Maybe my gym bag, but I think it’s on the seat. I’m not one of those people with trash and dishes and live rodents on the floor of my car. I like it semi-clean, I get it from my Dad, he likes a clean car.

Name a celebrity you would leave a boyfriend/husband for?
I don’t have a boyfriend/husband. So, pretty much most of them!

Ask me more! http://www.formspring.me/formicadinette

Ask me something

…because why not?

I absolutely suck at blogging. So if you want to see me write something or feel like asking a question, DO it!

http://www.formspring.me/formicadinette

Love Harder, for Kenny, and for Brandy and her H.A.D.

Well, to start out, I don’t know Brandy, but Doni does, and so does Nicole, so that’s good enough for me. I follow both of their blogs and after reading what they had to say about Brandy and her Hot Awesome Dude, I decided to write my own little post.

My uncle passed away 2 years ago last week from Multiple Myeloma. He was diagnosed in 1988 and lived with and fought the disease for much of his life. He was a great man and a great uncle. He picked me up on the side of the road when I was driving G-Pa’s car and it broke down in the middle of the highway. He talked about computers and technology with my friends at my condo-warming party. He took his whole family to Mexico while fighting with illness and took care of his 90-something year old father. He provided me with a family in MN ever since I moved here from NC where my parents live. He invited me to his birthday parties and to come meet his grandkids (my cousin Missy’s cute kids) and to be a part in my MN family. He was a great father to his kids. So this post and my donation to MMRF is for my Uncle Kenny and for Brandy and her Hot Awesome Dude.

Please consider making a donation to the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation today in honor of them! And if you’re not convinced, ask Nicole’s or Doniree’s opinion!

http://www.loveharder.org

-Formica D

Trying to Stay Warm

Trying to Stay Warm, originally uploaded by conner.mccall.

I brought Ninja with me to take some photos of the Chef Shack at the Holidazzle parade. She was so pissed and I had to stick her in my coat so she would stop shivering. Poor little creature!

Lisa and Carrie gave us some tasty hot cocoa, butternut squash soup, and chili dog. They even packed us up 2 to-go boxes of mini donuts and pork tacos.

The dizzle itself was okay, some lighted up floats and such… but the reason to go to the parade is for the Chef Shack! Conner and I both have some photos on Flickr if you want to see more.

I will miss my almost weekly Chef Shack visits for the next few months since I am headed to Vietnam and then Lisa and Carrie head to Asia right before I get back!

I’ll also miss my ball of fur, Miss Ninja Biff Rose Dinette. This will be by far the longest I’ve been away from her.

-Formica D