Hip Hop and We Don't Stop

Easter hasn't been a very big deal for my family for years now.  I vaguely remember my parents dressing me up in frilly Easter dresses and then standing me up next to some pastel colored flower and taking a picture.  Then we'd have an egg hunt which was the highlight of my day since my parents would fork up some cash in each of the eggs--well there was the unfortunate year when I literally had an IOU in an egg or two.

Anyways, I never got Easter baskets or had an Easter egg hunt in a VERY long time.  So this year, Pup and I decided to do the holiday up right.  Albeit our planning was a bit last minute but everything went off without a hitch.  First, we went to Costco and bought 5 dozen eggs equaling 60 eggs.  Then I purchased some egg dyeing and decorating kits including a Marvel comics and Star Wars set for the boys.  BSaa and his sister insisted on getting plastic eggs and filling them with candy so with their 36 we had almost 96 eggs (real and plastic) hidden in the yard.  

So the day before Easter was spent coloring and decorating real eggs and filling fake eggs with sugary goodness.  Lee, Pup's Jewish roommate, had never dyed eggs for Easter (for obvious reasons) so we were able to show him the awesomeness of the tradition.  Things, however, took a turn for the risque when tricksters started writing not-so-Easter sentiments on the eggs.  Kids these days!

"Egg"-perimenting with egg dye and canola oil for a marble effect

The finished product: the incredible edible egg!

An Easter cupcake from Porto's

Pup had told me that his favorite part of Easter was hiding the eggs which I, of course, thought was weird.  It worked out well because my favorite part of Easter was finding the eggs and winning the competition.  Well Pup got his wish and got to hide all of the eggs all by himself.  I patiently waited with Babycakes the Otter who was going to help me on my egg mission.   Once we got the go ahead, we raced to the backyard and hunted to victory!  

My hunting partner, Mr. Babycakes Cubbins

Megan and I searching for eggs in the trees--sounds impossible but it happened

The game changer: I clinched the win with the discovery of 3 eggs in the garage closet!

Babycakes protecting our prized eggs from all the vultures

The victors and their 20 eggs!

After our egg success, Babycakes, the rest of the gang and I spent the rest of the day playing Wii Resort, making deviled eggs and, in my case, drinking almost a whole bottle of wine.  It ended up being a lovely Easter on a lovely day in Los Angeles.

Oh, and we still have about 30 hard-boiled eggs left to eat in the fridge.  

February 22, 2010

...means Pup and Ninja Kitty have been together for a year and six months.

Time sure flies by when you're a boring couple that watches Battlestar Galactica and plays PS3 video games.

Halloween Update

BOO!

I hope you all had a wonderful Halloween filled with tricks and treats! Our Halloween didn't play out like we had hoped but we managed to have a fun weekend nontheless. Our initial plan to go to WeHo got scrapped when we learned that Pup's lil bro came down with the swine flu and nixed his plans to come to LA for the weekend. Little Jakred was quarantined in his dorm room for 2 days...poor guy.

With no guest to entertain, we figured we'd just go with the flow for Halloween. On Friday, we went to Pup's friend's party on the West side. We didn't have a costume planned and I really wanted to go as Kelly Kapoor in Subtle Sexuality's "Male Prima Donna" video and I wanted Pup to go as Ellie but it didn't come to fruition. Pup was lucky that I couldn't find a leopard leotard. That's all I'm sayin'!

After some creativity, we decided on being Mickey and Minnie Mouse. Of course, I was excited and Pup held his tongue. Being the weirdo that I am, I had both ears and a Minnie apron. Pup, being the weirdo he is, had a full black spandex body suit and tight red shorts. The end result was adorable!

On Halloween night, we donned our finest apparel for the evening festivities. If you don't remember Pup was Batman with a belly shirt and I was the infamous Keyboard Cat. We started the night at Dream House with the boys who had marvelous and ingenious costumes as well. After doing Trap's Halloween Power Hour, we headed over to my apartment for a Halloween party filled with jello shots.

(L to R) Jewish Grandma at Atlantic City, Batman, Shaun from "Shaun of the Dead," Robin and the gay Planeteer.

I will say that it was one of the best Halloween's I've had in a while mainly because I ate too many jello shots and Keyboard Cat was the absolute best costume to have. I jammed to so many songs on my fake keyboard! I think I may have found my calling.

Halloween, Halloween. Halloween! Halloween!

*The title of this post was taken from the song "This is Halloween" from the popular movie The Nightmare Before Christmas

Halloween is this weekend and Pup and I have been anxious to let the world see our marvelous costumes. Pup's little brother will be in town and we're taking him to WeHo for the ultimate Hollywood Halloween experience. I am very excited to witness all the manhandling!

I'm sure I won't be able to post Halloween pics for a while since I'm a lazy kitty. So here's a little tasty teaser of what's to come this weekend!

Pup's costume:
Pup, being Pup, wanted to be Batman but he wanted to get a kid's costume specifically. In his mind, he envisioned himself in a tight little costume talking like the Christian Bale Batman all night. Well, he bought a costume that looks somewhat like the one below....

but it didn't quite fit and now it looks a little bit like this...

Yes, Pup will be prancing around the streets of West Hollwood in a tight Batman belly shirt! The gays are going to love it or at least I hope they do so I can get free drinks out of this relationship.

Ninja Kitty's costume:
When Pup decided on Batman, I instantly considered dressing as Batgirl. I quickly remembered why I hate Halloween when I went costume shopping and found a vinyl and cheaply made Batgirl costume for $70. No, thank you. Then I opted to make the Batgirl costume myself but then my laziness came into play.

Still costume-less, a brilliant idea hit me! KEYBOARD CAT! Sexy Keyboard Cat to be more exact! For those who don't know anything about Keyboard Cat, just go on youtube and search "walker texas ranger, keyboard cat." You will mesmorized. MESMORIZED.

Imagine this but sexier

So we'll see you on the streets of West Hollywood for some good natured merriment and intentional junk grabbage! Stay tuned...

Pup and Ninja Kitty's Obsession of the Moment

What's our current obsession?

Batman: Arkham Asylum!

Most of Dream House have been playing this game since Trap bought it a month or two ago. I have always been very wary of playing video games because I know what a good game could do to me. I'd play it, get hooked, play for hours on end, sleep, dream about playing, wake up and play for some more hours on end. Well, I started playing Arkham Asylum one slow weekend afternoon and I haven't been able to stop!

Whenever I go to Dream House I hope that no one is watching TV so I can bogart the 360 and become the bat. Now I've gotten into the habit of saying "I am the Bat" in a deep Christian Bale-y Batman voice. It's not healthy. Thankfully, Pup finished the game the other day and I am close behind. I beat Poison Ivy last night and am looking forward to the action-packed final showdown against the Joker.

Did I mention Pup made me a total nerd?

Dinner with Pup and Ninja Kitty: Vol.1

"Dinner with Pup and Ninja Kitty" is a nice little part of the blog where I document the fabulous, and sometimes not so fabulous dinners (ask Pup about his ground beef and rice disaster) we scrounge up together. Many times, we'll be stealing recipes from our parents because we're not talented enough to come up with any creative or unique meals for ourselves. So, I present the first of many dinners...

Whole Wheat Rotini with Sweet Italian Sausage, Fresh Basil and Sundried Tomatoes

I think this meal proved to me how connected Pup and I am or that we're both fatties who crave pasta. All the way in the valley at NBC, I was thinking about pasta with a meat sauce all day so I gchatted with Pup in Hollywood and asked him what he wanted to eat for dinner. Surprise, surprise! He wanted pasta with a red sauce too after watching the Today show that morning. It's funny how things come full circle (you know, NBC, Today show, pasta).

So Pup and Ninja Kitty started cooking after deciding on a meat (sweet Italian sausage) and veggies (onions, tomatoes, and mushrooms) to put in the red sauce.  But before I go on, let me provide some background information...

Here's what usually happens when we make dinner: Ninja Kitty comes up with a meal idea. Pup loves the meal idea and says "We can definitely do that!" Ninja Kitty and Pup go to the supermarket. Pup kicks Ninja Kitty out of the cooking process (aside from maybe chopping something minimal). Ninja Kitty sits at the kitchen table bored and watches Pup cook. Pup and Ninja Kitty taste the meal. Pup and Ninja Kitty high five on the success of their meal. Pup and Ninja Kitty eat, usually too much. Ninja Kitty washes the dishes since she didn't cook.

And that's what happened for the most part....

This is Pup cooking for me

The fresh basil that I didn't chop

A healthy array of pasta and tomatoes, two ways

The meal--mid cooking--looking appetizing

and may I present a hearty and somewhat healthy meal for two...

I will say that it was probably one of the best meals we've (Pup) ever cooked.  And in the words of Julia Child and Mere Bear "BON APPETIT!"

I'm a CAMPER!

That's right! You heard it right. I am officially a camper. Pup, Pink Tips and I went camping in the Los Padres National Forest 2 months ago and I survived. This came about when Pup suggested that we three go out into the woods to go camping--something Pink Tips and I had never done. I was hesitant but told Pink Tips that if she went I would go. Pink TIps had the same idea so we were locked in for an overnight trip at, at that point, an unknown location.

The planning for the trip was a bit hectic and last minute. Pup and I were busy with work and Pink Tips just got done hosting her parents for a week. Initially, we wanted to camp on the beach or a cliff by a beach but we eventually decided on more woodsy camping because Pup said there would be more to do.

So on September 19, 2009, Pup and I were off to Santa Barbara to pick up Pink Tips for our adventure. Since we were about to see Pink Tips, it only made sense that we make a stop at Porto's (www.portosbakery.com). We picked her up some potato balls and meat pies and headed out on the 101.

Pup packing up the rivety Rav

Once we got to SB, Pink Tips graciously thanked us for the Porto's treats and may have eaten one or three potato balls. But before we headed to the forest, we stopped at Santa Barbara Outfitters to find me some water shoes. And what were the chances! Just 30 seconds in the store and I spot some Vibram Five Finger Shoes (www.vibramfivefingers.com) which Pup has been on the hunt for for quite some time now.

Due to the horrid aesthetic of the shoe, Pup and I had made a deal. He could buy the shoes but I wouldn't hang out with him while he wore them. So Pup had made the smart decision not to buy them. But this was different. We were in a store that actually had them in stock and were physically in front of him. So I encouraged Pup to try them on and figure out what size he was. Needless to say, I was being a good girlfriend.

What we thought would be a quick 15 minute shopping trip turned into 45 minutes or more. Pup got his shoes and I even got some nice hiking/water shoes (http://www.keenfootwear.com/product/ss09/shoes/women/waterfront/whisper) to traipse around in.

Pup couldn't wait to put his new creepy shoes on

Making sure his toes are all tucked in

I feel sick just looking at them...

With new shoes on our feet, we headed to Paradise Road in search of what else! Paradise! With the help of some shady old man characters we found in trailers along the way, we found our final destination at Upper Osa Campground. Thankfully Pup followed Pink Tips and my request to stay at a campground where we the car was a few feet away instead of parking the car and hiking two miles to a campsite. We are novice campers afterall!

We carted our bags, potato balls and meat pies to our designated lot and started to set up camp. Pup and Pink tips set up the tent after Pink Tips volunteered so I took on the arduous duty as photographer. I think I had the worst job of all! (Hello, sarcasm!)

Pink Tips sitting on the picnic table to avoid the fire ants

Pink Tips thinking "Why did I agree to this?"

Pup rifling through the grab bag of fun and adventure

Pup laying down the tarp for the tent

Pink Tips laying down her part of the tarp

Now they're moving the tent away from all the fire ants

It looks hard, but I don't think it actually is

Our home coming along nicely

Our humble abode

Thanks to Pup and Pink Tips' hard work, our new home was set up lickety split! We were all ready for some kind of adventure so we set out to find the famous pools at Red Rock. One of the creepy old camp men told us that Red Rock was popular with the "young'ns." I was very excited to jump in some water to cool off from the extreme heat that day. We were all expecting the experience to be more like this: http://12feetunder.com/bin/13/12/spot.php. Unfortunately, we couldn't find any pools and our experience was more like this...

Pup on the hunt for some water to jump into

Doing his best Mountain Man pose

Hiking in the riverbed...where water is supposed to be

If you look really hard, you can see Pink Tips sweating her butt off

After hiking in the riverbed in search of the river for a couple of minutes, we abandoned the hike and drove around looking for some pools. Thankfully we found a reasonably sized pool with cold water to swim in. It was almost completely secluded except for a family with about 5 kids--one of whom had a crush on Pink Tips and almost hit her with a rock and another who said that Pup looked like a "mountain man."

Pup going for a nice little dip

Pup claims he's looking at the water...I think he's looking at the reflection of his bod

All cooled down from a dip in the river pool, we headed back to camp. Somehow we all made it into the tent for a nap. I blame Pink Tips because she went in first, I followed, and of course Pup follows me wherever I go, so he came in last. I eventually became the last man down when Pup went to get things ready for dinner and Pink Tips did other things besides sleep.

Bartholomew taking a little catnap

Pink Tips taking advantage of the peace and quiet to read a magazine

Pup starting up the fire pit for smores

Pup starting the burner so he could start cooking

It looks like we hung something we hunted for dinner but it was just Pink Tips' dirty clothes hanging out to dry...some call it an illusion

Pink Tips concentrating on not messing up our dinner

Now she doesn't care and starts enjoying herself

Camping fashion is so ahead of itself these days

Such a poetic shot: Pink Tips. Cooking. Woods. Surround. Her.

Pup cooked us gals dinner (again, Pink Tips helped out while I took pictures). We had a hearty ground beef minestrone stew with more than enough for three wee campers. Pink Tips had brought a classy twist off cap bottle of white wine that we had with dinner--she was on a mission to get drunk and forget about bears or mountain lions. After cleaning the pots, pans, plates and utensils (yes, I did help this time), we settled in by the fire and made some smores!! It was the best smore I've ever had. Sadly though, I only had room for one but Pup and Pink Tips were able to pick up the slack...fatties.

We lingered around the fire for a bit longer, throwing the remaining potato ball and meat pie in it so we didn't attract any wild animals that could potentially eat us. While chatting around the warmth of the fire, we noticed the most amazing part of the trip: the stars. They were everywhere! None of us had seen that many stars before. We even saw part of the milky way. Living in LA, I had taken stars for granted but they are truly a marvelous thing.

Tired from a busy busy day, Pup, Pink Tips and I settled in the tent for some well-deserved sleep. Pink Tips had the great idea to play a game where we told secrets which ended up with Pup getting annoyed with how loud Pink Tips and I were talking and cackling. He would shush us...how rude.

Everything else is a blur. I pretty much passed out while talking but the night was not as easy as I thought it would be. Pink Tips was lucky to have a sleeping bag all to herself unlike me who had to share one with Pup. This was a learning experience because I will never share a sleeping bag with anyone ever again. I kept waking up throughout the night because I was freezing. I had my sweatpants on and my legs were fine but Pup used my hoodie as a pillow so my top half was not happy. Later in the night, we swapped places but I was crammed into the sleeping bag and was so hot I had to ditch the sweatpants.

Needless to say, by morning, Ninja Kitty was not a happy camper (literally). But I perked up once Pup handed me some hot chocolate and we ate breakfast (corned beef hash and rice). We broke down the tent and packed everything up and we were back on the road towards Santa Barbara. After dropping off Pink Tips and hanging out for a bit, Pup and I drove back to LA to return to civilized living. We got back into the groove of things with Pup unpacking, cleaning and playing video games and me passing out for 4 hours. Gotta love the easy life...