Mukka-Mukka-Mukka

Last month, for my birthday, my wonderful husband gave me a gift that I had been eyeballing for a year or more. It is a stovetop cappuccino maker made by Bialetti, an Italian kitchenware manufacturer, called the Mukka Express. The idea behind this machine is that you can make 16 oz. lattes or cappuccinos at home with just a few easy steps.

I had not purchased a Mukka Express due to the somewhat high retail price, around $80, and the mixed consumer reviews that I had read online. It seemed that the opinions about this product were very much split down the middle, love or hate.

This clever machine works simply by the following few steps:
- Fill bottom tank with water up to the fill line.
- Place basket/filter with ground espresso on the top of the tank.
- Carefully screw on top tank.
- Add milk to the fill line.
- Push down the valve button.
- Set the machine on the stovetop and turn it on medium-high.
- Wait 4-6 minutes for 2 cups of hot, frothy deliciousness.

Sounds easy and trouble free, right? Well, wait right there before you place your order. Let me tell you about my initial experiences with my Mukka. I followed the included instructions to the tee, making the first three batches and dumping them. Each of these three attempts (plus about seven to ten more) resulted in coffee leaking out between the two tanks, everything from a little steam to a full-blown boil over. The idea behind this all-in-one wonder is that the pressure builds up from the bottom tank of water and is released thru the top tank valve to froth and steam the milk. So, a steam leak with definitely result in a not-so-foamy, not-so-fun drink. My solution, which may or may not actually be working, is to get my finger wet under running water and run it around the seal on the bottom of the upper tank.

Fast forward a month. I have now mastered the art of the Mukka and I LOVE IT! As most reviews that you may read will say, it takes a couple weeks of practice and more than a few disasters. I will also say that the coffees produced taste better each day. You just need to allow your Mukka to “break in.”

Now, go ahead, place your order. I would recommend Amazon.com, since they occasionally will run a special price and offer free shipping. Now, the big decision… which model do you get: the classic stainless steel, the whimsical cow print, the new pink model or, for you office dwellers, the electric version. Hmmmmm…. Or should I say yummm!

Row, Row, Row Your Boat.

A couple weekends ago we spent a fun and relaxing weekend with friends in Standish, Michigan, about 45 minutes north of our home.  We spent two nights camping in a tent - no home improvement projects, no dogs, no kids (not us, our friends, of course), no jobs, no worries.  We had a great time!

On Saturday, we spent the day on the Rifle River.  Here are a few photos from my underwater, disposable camera.  :o)

Kristi & Neil

Ryan & Gabe

Kristi, Lindsay & Nicole

The Group

I think Ryan is attempting to sun tan.

Lydia & Jen

Me, Kristi, Nicole, Lindsay

Jeremy & Lindsay

Fun!

The Story of a Letterpress

It all started about 3 months ago.  I’m not really sure what made me do it,it just happened, I decided I wanted a letterpress.  So, I did what anyone from my generation would do, I turned to the Internet.  I researched the process, the different types, the supplies.  My mind was officially made up.  First things first, I had to come up with a proposal to convince my husband to give me part of his workshop (aka, our garage) so I could house this 1500 lb., century old piece of equipment.  Surprisingly, he was just as excited about it as I was.  He said, “When and where do we pick it up?!”  Of course, it wasn’t that easy.  I still had to find “the one.” 

From my research, I decided I wanted a 10x15 Old Style Chandler & Price platen press.  This seemed to me to be an ideal size, not too small, but not too big.  :o)   So the search began.  I scoured BriarPress.org, a website dedicated to the letterpress industry.  I also started checking eBay and Craigslist daily.   After a couple failed attempts, I finally talked with a wonderful, nice gentleman named Leighton.  He lived near the Southwest border of Missouri and just happened to be selling an Old Style Chandler and Price letterpress.  Originally, he was under the assumption that his press was 12x18, but once I got it home and measured the chase, it is actually a 10x15 – my dream press!  Perfect!  Don’t get me wrong, I would have totally taken a 12x18, more room to print on, but also about 500 more pounds to move and house.

On Friday, May 22, 2009 we headed to Missouri.  Armed with my brother-in-law's gigantic Chevy Silverado and a rented U-Haul trailer, we were on a mission.  That day we drove 9 hours to St. Louis and stayed with our friends Sarah & Todd.  This was a treat in itself!  Sarah has been one of my very best friends since we were in Middle School.  After a nice night on the town, we called it good in preparation of our big day on Saturday.  The next morning, we were on the road at 6am, CST.  We then drove the 4 hours across the state, through the Ozarks (beautiful) to Carthage, MO. 

We arrived at Leighton’s building and, as the garage door opened, it was the big unveiling.  You have to remember I agreed to buy this press without anything more than a couple emailed photos and the good vibe I got from Leighton on the phone.  She sat proudly in the middle of this giant garage, ready to meet us and start the trip to her new home.

It is here in the trip when the real work began, loading this extremely heavy, extremely old, extremely top-heavy, piece of equipment that was sitting on a cart/jack thingy (did I forget to mention that it was on wheels?). After removal of the ink disk & pulleys, construction of a make-shift ramp, a dozen ratchet straps, three cumalongs and about three hours, she was locked, loaded, and ready for the long ride home.

The press strapped in to the trailer.

The ink disk and one pulley in the back of the truck waiting to be re-attached.

We took it slow, cringing at every bump we hit, as we headed out of Carthage.  We started east, towards the expressway that we came in on.  It looked dark and stormy, which required a phone call to check the radar.  “I’m not going to lie, it doesn’t look good,” was the weather forecast that I received from my sister.  So, we decided to turn off and try to avoid it, which, in the end cost us probably an extra hour or two on the road.  A while later we heard that the area we would have went through just receive a dosing of two inches of rain in one hour.  As we headed north, through MO’s countryside, we enjoyed our ride.

Waiting to be cranked off the trailer.

Fast forward past one close call of the press bouncing off its cart near Chicago, a 3 hour nap in a Holiday Inn parking lot and a lot of pretzels and Cheez-Its, we finally arrived home after 27 hours on the road.  With the help of an ATV ramp, some plywood, two cumalongs and three manly men, the press cranked slowly and easily off the trailer, to solid ground, with no major disasters or trip to the emergency room.  

A little snippet of the ride off the trailer.

 

Safely back on solid ground.

My beautiful, hundred-year-old letterpress is home!  Now the dirty work begins.  I will start cleaning and shiny up my antique treasure this week.  I can’t wait!

3/50

What a great project!

Eco-mania!

I designed a bag for Kroger's reusable shopping bag contest.

Help me win by voting once a day until May 15th!

...please...

Week 1, Workout 3

Workout:
Brisk five-minute warmup walk.
Then alternate 60 seconds of jogging and 90 seconds of walking for a total of 20 minutes.

All I can say is - terrible, completely awful.  No fun at all.

Words of Wisdom

"Would you tell me, please, 

which way I ought to walk from here?"

"That depends a good deal on 

where you want to get to," said the Cat.

"I don't much care where –" said Alice.

"Then it doesn't matter which way you walk," said the Cat.

Week 1, Workout 2

Workout:
Brisk five-minute warmup walk.
Then alternate 60 seconds of jogging and 90 seconds of walking for a total of 20 minutes.

No wheezing again today - yeah!  But, I truly felt my legs were going to snap in two.  I am still very sore from the first workout, which tells me I am very much in need of exercise and this program.

Week 1, Workout 1

Workout:

Brisk five-minute warmup walk. 

Then alternate 60 seconds of jogging and 90 seconds of walking for a total of 20 minutes.

It seems my new asthma inhaler is my very own version of Popeye's spinach!  I didn't have trouble half-way through like I did when I attempted this in January.  Yes, I was pooped by the end, and my face, arms and chest were a blotchy, red mess, but I finished successfully.

One workout down, 26 to go - watch-out!

Hit the Ground Running!

My body has been telling me to get up and do something for about six months now.  I have made promises, resolutions (see post "2009"), signed up for classes – but nothing seems to stick.  Luckily, I have a very determined and persistent personality.  I admit I have a problem and have decided to join a support group.  Unfortunately, my personality also tells me, "You don't need a stinkin' support group!  Are you really going to get the nerve to admit that you are completely lazy and lack motivation to complete strangers?"  

Unfortunately, my personality is probably right – so I have enlisted the help of three of my best friends!  Starting the week of March 29th, the four of us will begin the "Couch to 5k (3miles) in 9 weeks Running Program."  This program takes you through three, thirty minutes workouts every week for nine weeks. Each workout alternates between walking and running and gradually building up to running a full three miles by the end of the 9 weeks.

Our plan is to do this on our own time and check in after each workout via email!  If all goes as planned, we will be jogging a full three miles by June!  Just in time for bikini season!

UPDATE: Does anyone else find it ironic that my last post was about donuts??

Happy Paczki Day!!!!

I enjoy celebrating Fat Tuesday every year for many reasons. It reminds me of my Polish heritage and how different my life is today compared to how my family lived just three short generations ago. Secondly, It also allows me an entire day to eat donuts and have a legitimate reason why I need to enjoy another. Because, in all honesty, most years this is the only day I eat an actual donut, so lay off! Lastly, the Mardi Gras celebrations are just too fun! Someday, I hope to travel to New Orleans for the festivities.

This year, I bought the half-dozen pastries that you see above - 2 lemon, 2 bavarian cream, 1 raspberry, 1 blueberry. Yum.
So, as you enjoy your delicious paczki, here is an excerpt from Wikipedia with a little history of these tasty treats..

*****

In Poland, they are eaten especially on Fat Thursday (the last Thursday before Lent). Many Polish Americans celebrate Paczki Day on Fat Tuesday (the day before Ash Wednesday). Traditionally, the reason for making pączki was to use up all the lard, sugar, eggs and fruit in the house, which are forbidden during Lent.

In the large Polish community of Chicago, and other large cities across the Midwest, Paczki Day is also celebrated annually by immigrants and locals alike. In Buffalo, Cleveland, Detroit, Hamtramck, Windsor, Milwaukee,Pulaski and South Bend, Paczki Day is more commonly celebrated on Fat Tuesday instead of Fat Thursday. Chicago celebrated and Fat Tuesday, due to its sizable Polish population.

In Hamtramck, an enclave in Detroit, there is an annual Paczki Day (Fat Tuesday) Parade, and lines at bakeries can be seen up to 24 hours before the deep-fried delights go on sale Tuesday morning. This happens especially in Parma, Ohio at Europa Deli & Imports, Colozza's Bakery and Rudy's Strudel and Bakery. Europa Deli & Imports keeps to its Polish tradition by celebrating Fat Thursday as well. People will wait in lines, or in their cars that run up and down Ridge Road; Parma Police have regulated traffic in past years. In Toledo, Ohio, people will start waiting in lines at 4 AM to get fresh paczki for Fat Tuesday. A local Polish grocery store called Stanley's, located on the north end of town, makes them homemade. The same thing happens also in Buffalo, NY, Cleveland or Garfield Heights, Ohio, outside the Charles Peters Bakery, which is near the border of both cities (at the triple intersection of Turney Road, Grand Division and Sladden Avenue). According to Garfield Heights police, one year 3,000 people waited for pączki. Police had to close Sladden Avenue, and Rybicki and Son Funeral Home had to delay funerals due to this. Many bars in town open early in the morning and provide free entertainment, a party atmosphere, pączki-clad mascots and, in at least one bar, pączki filled with Jagermeister. The Paczki Day celebration in these areas are even larger than many celebrations for St. Patrick's Day.

Book Review: The Last Lecture

I just finished reading "The Last Lecture" by Randy Pausch last night. It took me a total of four days. Granted, it is a small book and a very easy read, I couldn't put it down.

For those of you who haven't heard of it, Randy Pausch is a college professor who has been diagnosed with terminal pancreatic cancer and given three to six months to live. He was asked to give a lecture at the University where he taught Computer Science. Being a great optimist, he choose to speak about how he has succeeded in living out his childhood dreams through a positive attitude, hard work and a huge love of life.

I recommend it to everyone!

2009

Today is Tuesday, January 6, 2009. Yesterday was the first Monday of the new year. Speaking for myself, I don't usually accomplish much on Mondays, especially Mondays after a long weekend, a vacation or a holiday. Soooooo.... TODAY is the "first day" of the year! Today is the first day for resolutions, the first day for a new start. Being a visual persion, I envisioned myself hitting a big, red "Reset" button this morning which gave me a blank slate.

I don't want to say 2008 was a bad year. It wasn't. It was our first full year being married. We were able to take a couple vacations - one long weekend to Traverse City and a week to Las Vegas. We were surrounded by family and friends and good health in 2008. I was laid off from my job at the end of August, which actually turned out to be a great opportunity to open new doors. Yes, it changed some of our plans we had for the immediate future. But, it gave us just enough time to get prepare for an even better 2009.

I have made a couple resolutions. I don't like to be overly specific in resolutions, because you really never know what life will throw at you. But, having goals keeps you on track and gives you something to think about and strive for.

1. Take better care of myself. This includes thinking twice before I dish up two scoops of ice cream at 9pm. Maybe I only need one. Drink more water, eat more fruit. This also means getting my butt moving! Taking the dog for a walk at lunch, putting on some Black Eyed Peas while cleaning the house, going to yoga – these are all great ways to get more energy and get my blood pumping.

2. Give my business a real shot. For those of you who may not know, I have laid the ground work for an at-home graphic design business. I am very close to launching my website and preparing to start marketing. Owning my own business is something I have always been interested in, but never really had to opportunity to do it.

3. Get organized! This is something I HAVE to do to be successful with my business endeavors, but I also feel I need to get personal matters in order, as well. No more piles of junk mail on the counter. No more clean laundry in a basket to put away. That's it. It only takes three weeks to break a bad habit or start a new one. More organization = less stress.

Now that I have declared these resolutions in writing on the world wide web, I have to give them my best. 2009 is going to be a good year. It will be filled with challenges and surprises. What are you doing different in 2009? I wish you the best with whatever it may be.