Category: FUN

Anything to do with fun & enjoyment

FUN

AWay with Words – inspirational WOW

words of wisdom

Nothing happens unless first we dream. ~ Carl Sandburg

Those who dream by day are cognizant of many things which escape those who dream only by night. ~ Edgar Allen Poe

Happiness is when what you think, what you say and what you do are in harmony. ~ Gandhi

There is a fountain of youth: it is your mind, your talents, the creativity you bring to your life and the lives of the people you love. When you learn to tap this source, you will truly have defeated age. ~ Sophia Loren

There is a higher court than courts of justice and that is the court of conscience. It supercedes all other courts. ~ Gandhi

Tension is who you think you should be. Relaxation is who you are.  ~ Chinese Proverb

Remember, if you ever need a helping hand, it’s at the end of your arm, as you get older, remember you have another hand: The first is to help yourself, the second is to help others. ~ Audrey Hepburn

“Where should one use perfume?” a young woman asked. “Wherever one wants to be kissed,” I said.  ~ Coco Chanel

The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen, nor touched… but are felt in the heart. ~ Hellen Keller

FUN

B Well – Will Power!

Willpower – the Greatest Human Strength!                   

Willpower isn’t just some storybook concept.  It’s a measurable form of mental energy that runs out as you use it, much like gas in your car.  That’s why your resolve to hit the gym weakens after you’ve slogged through a soul-sapping day at work.

Roy Baumeister, a psychologist at Florida State University calls this “ego depletion”, and he proved its existence by sitting students next to a plate of fresh-baked chocolate-chip cookies.  Some were allowed to snack away, others to abstain.  Afterward, both groups were asked to complete difficult puzzles.  The students who’d been forced to resist the cookies had so depleted their reserves of self-control that when faced with this new task, they quickly threw in the towel.  The cookie eaters, on the other hand, had conserved their willpower and worked on the puzzles longer.  That’s good to hear as I just ate 6 cookies.

Further studies have suggested that willpower is fueled by glucose –which helps explain why our determination crumbles when we try to lose weight.  When we don’t eat, our glucose drops, and our willpower along with it.  “We call it the dieter’s catch-22:  In order to not eat, you need willpower,  But in order to have willpower you need to eat,” says John Tierney, coauther with Baumeister of Willpower: Rediscovering the Greatest Human Strength.

We can wield what scientists know about willpower to our advantage.  Since it’s a finite resource, don’t spread yourself thin.  Make one resolution rather than many.  One tactic is to outsource self-control.  Get a gym buddy.  Use Mint.com to regulate your spending, or RescueTime.com to avoid distracting websites.  People with the best self-control aren’t the ones who use it all day long.  They’re people who structure their lives so they conserve it.  That way, you’ll be able to stockpile vast reserves for when you really need it, like hauling your lazy ass to the gym.              Judy Dutton for Wired Magazine.

Don’t miss listening to “Transforming Health” with host Brad King for the most up-to-the-minute interviews with leading health experts – Live every Wednesday @ 12PM-PST/3PM-EST on VoiceAmerica.com – #1 internet radio station in North America.
But you can listen to previous episodes too.  Here’s the link: http://www.voiceamerica.com/show/1686/transforming-health
FUN

AWay with Words – on design

DESIGN IS WHERE SCIENCE AND ART BREAK EVEN – Robin Mathew

Room8 modern counter top

Design is the search for a magical balance between business and art; art and craft; intuition and reason; concept and detail; playfulness and formality; client and designer; designer and printer; and printer and public.

Design creates culture. Culture shapes values. Values determine the future – Robert L. Peters

It’s art if it can’t be explained.
It’s fashion if no one asks for an explanation.
It’s design if it doesn’t need explanation – Wouter Stokkel

Art, Design, Fashion….it’s all personal is it not?
FUN

décor – bed, bath and way beyond

At Room8                                                                                                                         Italian design is all about self-expression! At ROOM8, they believe that everything should be an expression of one’s personality.  I’m especially intrigued with their exclusive selection of made to order flat screen TV’s – where the TV is not the main focus.

This mirrored cabinet, made to order, hides a flat screen TV

Framed Flat Screen TV- Mirror in bedroom
This is a BED
Art Wall

 

 

 

 

Japanese porcelain, paper and silver leaf bowl

That’s not all –  ROOM8 Kitchen Showroom is designed to give prospective buyers an opportunity to experience the uniqueness of each kitchen style. The lines currently on display were selected to show some of the most intriguing and technically demanding design execution in the industry today.  From book-matched veneers in exotic woods, frameless, glossy and satin glass doors to the minimalistic 45° transition between counter top and door; these collections represent the most current trends in kitchen and bath design today – and they still have a hidden gem for those looking for something more –100% WOOD by Effeti, assembled from select logs of chestnut from Provence using a centuries old millwork technique – no screws!

Located at 110 – 1706 W 1st Avenue | Vancouver | BC | V6J 0E4 | T 604 734 1323               | F 604 734 1387

http://www.room8.ca/

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

FUN

Simple and so Satisfying – Red Wine Velvet Cake

Red Wine Velvet Cake – from Oprah Magazine

How apropos that I found this amazing recipe after having just visited the Sonoma and Napa Valley wine regions of California.

If you love WINE and you love CAKE then you can have your wine and eat your cake too!

I never did understand that saying.

This recipe makes 1 cake, to serve 16-20.

Cake:

18 Tbsp. unsalted butter at room temperature, plus more for greasing
2 1/4 cups packed dark brown sugar
3/4 cup granulated sugar
4 large eggs at room temperature
1 large egg yolk
2 1/4 cups red wine (you can drink the rest while it’s baking)
1 Tbsp. vanilla extract
3 cups plus 2 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups Dutch-process cocoa powder
3/8 tsp. baking soda
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
3/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
3/4 tsp. salt
Frosting:
24 ounces cream cheese (three 8-ounce boxes), at room temperature
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) butter, at room temperature
2 tsp. vanilla extract
3 1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar
To make cake: Preheat oven to 325.  Line the bottom of three 9″ round cake pans with parchment paper.  Grease parchment paper and sides of pan. Place butter in a large bowl.  Using an electric mixer, cream butter on medium speed until smooth.  Add brown and granulated sugars and beat until fluffy, about 3 minutes.  Add eggs and yolk and beat until incorporated, then add red wine and vanilla.  (Don’t worry if the batter looks a little uneven and grainy).
In a medium bowl mix flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt.  Sift dry mixture over wet ingredients.  Mix until 3/4 combined, then fold in remaining dry mixture with a rubber spatula.
Divide batter among prepared pans.  Bake 25 to 30 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted into the center of each layer comes out clean.  The top of each cake should be shiny and smooth.  Cool in pan 10 minutes, then remove cakes from pans and let cool completely on a rack.  (If cakes have domed a bit and you want even layers, trim tops using a long serrated knife held horizontally).
To make frosting:  In a medium bowl, use an electric mixer to beat cream cheese and butter until smooth.  Mix in vanilla, then gradually stir in confectioners’ sugar.
To frost cake, place one layer on a cake stand or plate and spread with 1 cup frosting.  Repeat with next 2 layers and spread top and sides with remaining frosting.
Cheers and Bon Appetit!
FUN

AWay with Words – drunk on quotes

“I drink to make other people interesting.”  Unknown

This is “True Sake” in San Francisco.              Finest Selections!

“It is the man who drinks the first bottle of saké; then the second bottle drinks the first, and finally it is the saké that drinks the man.”  Japanese proverb

“I feel sorry for people who don’t drink. When they wake up in the morning, that’s as good as they’re going to feel all day.”
Frank Sinatra [1915 – 1998]

“I drink too much. The last time I gave a urine sample it had an olive in it.”
Rodney Dangerfield [1921-2004]

“Always do sober what you said you’d do drunk. That will teach you to keep your mouth shut.”
Ernest Hemmingway [1899-1961]

“sir, if you were my husband, I would poison your drink”.
– Lady Astor to Winston Churchill
“Madam, if you were my wife, I would drink it.”
-His reply.

“When I read about the evils of drinking, I gave up reading.”
Henny Youngman [1906-1998]

Draft beer, not people.  ~Author Unknown

The first thing in the human personality that dissolves in alcohol is dignity.  ~Author Unknown

Great find! – Santa Cruz Mountain Vineyard ’08 Pinot

 

FUN

décor – Intriguing Interiors

MINT is unique furniture + beautiful objects

MINT Interiors was created by Michael McNamara and Rien Sharma with a vision to bring to Vancouver truly original furnishings that help people create homes that are extensions of their individuality. We believe that your home should reflect your personality and act as a sanctuary from the speed of modern life.

MINTeresting pictures
lights and hand made mixed-media bags
Wall paper has never looked this good

or more in vogue

coffee table

local designs

beautiful feather pillows

Available at:

http://MINTinteriors.ca