Ode to the Muppets

First of all, in case you can't tell from the name of my blog (which is named after Pepe the King Prawn), I love the Muppets. Jim Henson was a genius and I am still saddened to think he died at age 53 of a rare illness almost 20 years ago. Who knows where the Muppets would be now if he had been involved all these years. But this is a happy post.

See, it looks like the Disney folks are planning to bring back the Muppets in several different ways. If you'd like details, please read the entire New York Times article. There's a great picture of Pepe along the left column. If you don't want to read the article and have better things to do with your time, I shall summarize. Disney is going to market the hell out of the Muppets. They'll appear in Disney Channel specials with teeny bopper favorites such as The Jonas Brothers and High School Musical cast members. Muppets will also appear in brand new videos on Disney.com and YouTube (see below). And for those who want a bit more interaction, a Muppet boutique at the New York flagship of F. A. O. Schwarz will be opening soon. Shoppers will build their own Muppets, a la Build a Bear. (Al will have to try this since she lives so close) I am most looking forward to seeing them in the Macy's Parade and in NBC's Muppet Christmas special.

Also, I'm pretty sure you have 2 minutes to spare if you just read my blog, so watch this video. It's hilarious, patriotic, and Sam the Eagle is one of my favorite Muppets of all time.

Auditory amusements

G-Chat conversation this afternoon:

Lori: have you ever made teriyaki sauce?
me: made? no. I buy it though... why?
Lori: I want to make it, and found billions of recipes online and they're all different, and I don't know what the best one is. and you're my domestic goddess, so i thought I'd ask :)

Can you get there from here?

I took a trip to the post office this morning, which I know, thanks to Al, is always a bad idea.

The post office is one exit (3 miles on the highway) away from my current home (probably about 9 miles door to door) and I have been there before. But just to be on the safe side, I put the P.O. address into the GPS and was on my way. I notice that the GPS had me going two exits instead of one and don't think much of it. Perhaps the P.O. really is closer to that next exit and it takes less time. Mistake #1: Trusting the GPS! (Some might argue Mistake #1 is going to the P.O. in the first place, but it was a necessary trip.) I continue down the road, which apparently has been rerouted since the GPS was made because the GPS chimes to 'take the exit right' as I am passing the exit! GRRRR By now, I'm positive that my 'one exit away' option would have been best. Now I'm three exits away and at this point, the exits are for... DISNEY WORLD! God help me. I take the next 'exit right' for "Animal Kingdom" where I do not want to go, and end up on Route 192. If you've never been to Central Florida, 192 is pretty much tourist hell. If it's a low to mid-scale chain restaurant (think Sizzler, Golden Corral, Ruby Tuesday) you'll find it on 192. You'll also find a lot of cheap hotels and motels (with outside doors!) and out of state license plates or white Dodge caravans with an enterprise sticker in the window. In other words, folks who have no clue where they are! (At this point, I know where I am but cannot get to my destination!) Luckily it's September and the number of tourists has greatly decreased since last month. Upon driving down 192, I see signs for Celebration and realize I have made a 270 degree curve around where I actually want to be. Fantastic. To add insult to injury, when I am finally stopped on 192, sitting at the light to turn left to get me to the town where the P.O. is located, I see a sign that says "Post office" with a left arrow. Gee thanks. I finally 'reach my destination' only to discover that there is street parking only. Fantastic. Do I know how to parallel park? Not so much! In fact, not at all, really. I can steer the car very well forwards, make U turns (in legal places), and even back out of a parking space. But manuevering backwards to the side? Please. Luckily, by some miracle of God, there are 2 spaces in a row open, so I am able to get the car in with no problem. It takes 30 minutes to travel less than 10 miles East. And I'm in a car, not on a bike.

I am happy to report that I made it to the P.O. only to be told that the zip code was incorrect on one of my boxes. It is addressed to a family member who apparently doesn't know where she lives.

On the way home from the P.O. I have another mishap. Stupid me sets the destination to 'home' thinking surely the GPS will take me back out to I-4 (one exit away!) and back to the condo. Wishful thinking. I am stuck behind an idiot driving 25 MPH the whole way. I channel Mom but do not act upon any negative thoughts. I continue along and notice signs for I-4 ahead. Awesome! I think that the GPS is right and I'm almost there. Well.... Dummy me again listens to the GPS, doesn't see the final 'turn here for I-4' sign, and ends up back on 192. Seriously?!

In summary, I'm so glad I have this really expensive interactive satelite map to get me where I need to go in an efficient manner. I would have been better off confirming my hunch on googlemaps before I left- would have saved time and gas. But then I would have never written this blog post.

Cupcakes are wonderful, but frosting is divine

I don't know about you guys, but I love frosting. I am lucky enough to have a mother and a boyfreind who do not so I get to eat the frosting on their cupcakes or pieces of cake. I have no shame. Do you think that's indulgent? Well, check this out. I need to a find a bakery that does this. In the interest of saving money, I shall continue to eat it by the spoonful out of a can OR I shall make the recipe at the bottom of the page. Or, if I want to not be a waddley-pooh, I will desperately try to limit my sugar intake. Time will tell!

Crayola 64 Box

I recently discovered what is perhaps the most fun online quiz ever. The Crayola 64 box has been around for 50 years and the nice marketing people have created fun games and other celebratory distractions on their website. My favorite is the "Color Quizzer" which can be found here. I am proud to announce that I named all 64 and am a "certified color genius" although the row of "kids choice" colors tripped me up. I clearly haven't colored or purchased a box of crayons since the kids renamed those few crayons. Rest assured, most of the names remain classic. Does anyone else remember Salmon or Burnt Sienna?