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Deviled Eggs: The Recipe

I'm not much of a cook. That isn't to say I'm bad, but I don't derive a particular joy from cooking, and thus don't have as much practice as some people. One thing I do enjoy making, though (and know I'm good at) is Deviled Eggs. They're hardly the most difficult thing to make, of course, but I've sooo many sets that were just... well, so-so or COMPLETELY overdone and overgarnished. I've also met a lot of people who love them and never learned to make them; I think that's ridiculous, since they're so easy!

So, for those of you who don't know, here's a simple guide to nice, creamy deviled eggs :D

Deviled Eggs Recipe of DOOM

You'll need:
Large Saucepan
Strainer
Mayonaisse
Yellow Mustard
Dill Pickles
Eggs
Cutting Board
Paprika (optional)
Mixing bowl
Plate (for eggs when done!)
Fork (to mix the eggs up ;D)
Sharp Knife (to cut them in half!)

I tend to start with 12 eggs, but since this isn't numbers-based, you can use however many you want. You'll want a large saucepan, filled more than halfway with water. Set it on the stove, and bring it to a boil.

After the water is boiling, you'll want to add your eggs. Dropping them in can crack the shells, so I usually put them in a large ladle and drop them in gently, two at a time. Once they're all in, set the timer for 20 minutes. Check the stove occasionally to make sure it's not going to boil over.

Once the 20 minutes are up, remove the pan from heat, and empty it into a strainer. Start running cold water over the eggs, rotating them occasionally so they all get hit. After a while (once the eggs are cool enough to handle), take one egg and start tapping it lightly (although hard enough to start cracks in the shell). I tend to roll the egg all around multiple times, squeezing gently, until I have the whole shell riddled with little cracks. Carefully peel the shell off the egg (it's easiest to start from the bottom, as there's a notable gap between the shell and the egg).

Now that you've got your eggs all peeled, put them on a cutting board on their sides (not on the flat bottom). Cut them all in half down the middle. Once they're cut, turn them upside down over the mixing bowl and put gentle pressure on the bottom so the yolk falls out (this should be easy most times). Occasionally you'll have an egg that tore somewhat; I generally try to halve it so the tear is on once side. Crumble the torn egg white up and add it to the yolk mix. Don't worry if none of your eggs tore :)

You should now have all your egg yolks in the mixing bowl. I find it's usually best to stir them up a bit with the fork, so they aren't TOO chunky when you add in the other incredients. They should be reasonably crumbled.

Once the yolks are all crumbled up, it's time to add your incredients! You'll add mayonaisse (NOT Miracle Whip), Mustard, and the juice (or "brine") from the pickle jar in small amounts at a time. (Proportionately, you'll usually add more of the mayo). Stir it, and taste test. You're making these for you, so it's important that YOU like them! A big thing with adding in small bits is that it's easy to tell what you're too heavy on, and what needs to balance it out. You don't want to completely eliminate the egg taste, though! I can't really give you measurements, since I never measure xD After a time or two, you should have the hang of the balance you like :)

Once you've got the taste down, give the mix another stir, so that it gets extra smooth and creamy. Then it's time to dish it into your egg whites! Scoop them full one at a time, and move them to your plate in a pretty little arrangement. After they're all on the plate, take your paprika (optional), and tap it lightly over some of the eggs (not everyone likes paprika, but I like the little bite it adds, as well as the visual appeal).

You're finished! If you're serving them right away, do so ;D If not, cover them with plastic wrap and put them in the fridge to chill. If you have extra yolk mix, it makes a great cracker dip ;D

Summer's End

It's Saturday night. I leave on Tuesday evening. Where the hell has the summer gone?

For a while, in the middle, it felt like it was going on forever - maybe that was because we were working nonstop and everyone was having periods of getting cranky. At that point, I thought that I couldn't get home soon enough - I was homesick. Now, it's almost like I'll be leaving what's become a new sort of home.

I take a while to really get acclimated to new people and a new place - and now that I have, it feels almost like I'll be going back in time. Sure, I'm excited to see friends and family again - but I think I'll also be a little bit in shock, going from seeing these people day in and day out to not at all. There won't be a Tiffany to spring into gear whenever someone is hurt or sick; there won't be Renee to have silly, pointless conversations with a million times; there won't be Ris and her refreshingly candid conversation; Bree insisting I need to get laid; Jess being silly and lighthearted; Jen getting into some silly get-ups; there won't be anyone there whose presence has been a constant these past few months.

This past week has had some of the best days of my life. Fun adventures, ridiculous conversations, and some of the coolest people I've ever had the pleasure of getting to know.

I don't know if any of you will ever read this, but I love you guys to death, and I hope it won't be too long before I get to see you all again.

Here's to Porthouse, 2010.

Life After High School, Up 'Til Now (Abridged)

I make no attempts to deny it - in high school (and before), I was widely considered flat-out weird. That's not always a good thing (as much as I might appreciate it). I can't speak for others, so I don't know exactly what way they viewed me, but I'm fairly certain I was rather annoying.

A large part of that was probably due to me no longer caring - everyone was the same starting in 6th grade, and judgements were already made - and it didn't help that most were made before I was diagnosed with Aspergers' Syndrome and Clinical Depression. I've been on meds for years and years now, and obviously I've matured personally, but during those crucial years that was just another thing adding to the not-quite-right-ness of me in the eyes of the majority - and children are oh-so-quick to judge.

I've regretted it, of course - I can't begin to list the things I wish I'd done differently - but the past is the past. So going off to college, as I did in the fall of 2008, presented a whole new realm of possibilities.

I entered Drake as a Theatrical Technology and Design major (which I still am, and love!), and spent the first semester being more quiet, shy, and acquiescent than I had been ever before... and I was okay with that. Everybody there was new to me, and cool, and I really didn't want to start out with bad impressions. I tend to like most people (by most, I mean unless you give me a damn good reason, I'm not going to dislike you... but if I do, it's a serious dislike).

At some point, though, I began feeling more comfortable being me - especially as I got to know everyone in theatre better. It's a tight group, but one that's also very welcoming (although it is theatre - there's drama almost everywhere). I entered school happy with my choice (although Drake was not my original first choice), and I am absolutely confident that I chose the right place for me. By the end of my first year, I already knew how much I was going to miss the seniors, and how odd it would feel to no longer have everything how it was when I came. The Drake University Scene Shop Forewoman, Amy, was especially amazing - she kind of adopted me :) I've gotten to see her since (I flew down to Florida to visit over New Years!), and that's been awesome. Caitlin, the House Props Master from my freshman year, I've seen a few times as well (although not as often :().

I spent the first three weeks of summer after Freshman year taking interim classes with a few of my friends - Readings in Theatre and Stage Makeup. The rest of it I spent just kind of lazing - mostly because it was my last opportunity to do so. I got some little things done, took Theatre History online, and went to quite a few YMCA classes, but mostly it was a lazy summer - and I loved it. I hung out with Amy when she got back from working at the Utah Shakespeare Festival, I visited Ashley (a year above me and Amy's successor as Forewoman) in Wisconsin, and I went to my cabin for the first time in a few years! I'd been working both summers previous, so it was kind of weird being there (but fun).

Back to school in Fall 2009: I'm a sophomore, still taking mostly theatre classes (I got lucky with offerings, I have almost all my major classes done already), and living in a GIANT single dorm in Jewett Hall. The freshman class is much bigger than my class, which is good - and a bit weird. I'm now a T.A. in the Drake Scene Shop, and around mid-semester, I become the official House Props Master.... meaning I get shiny keys, and am in charge of general props stuff, helping the Props Masters for individual shows, etc. The year passes in an insane blur (I did go to USITT!), and suddenly it's summer again... which brings us to now.

I'm currently in Kent, Ohio, working at the Porthouse Theatre as Assistant Scenic Artist. I finished my last final, checked out, drove home, and spent one day there unpacking and repacking, before hopping on a 6am flight out to Ohio. Theatre check in happens pretty much when I arrive, and the next day, bright and early (really early - it's a different time zone!) I'm off to work. 9-5, Monday-Friday (although hours can easily be extended)... which really isn't bad at all for a summer theatre job. I spend my days doing a lot of painting (with Tiffany, the Charge Artist, and Renee, the Scenic Artist), and, currently, a LOT of work with foam @_@. We spent a week in a hotel while the apartments were refurbished, and then were moved in to four person 2-bed one-bath apartments. Mine, however, now has three people. Last week, while working with the table saw, something happened that caught one of Jess's fingers in the table saw, and sliced it almost all the way through, barely missing the second artery. No one witnessed, and Jess is too drugged up to remember, but she'd gotten her wood all the way through and used the push-stick, so it's very confusing. Since Tiffany and her roommates have cars (and had a spare bed), and were at the hospital, she's now moved over there.

And that's a concise version of my life up until now! (I'm also writing a fantasy novel... but will it ever get finished?)

Some random artworks I've done since high-school... (Drawings, jewelry-making, felts, etc.!)



Necklace I designed and made :D



Needle felted Piglet!



Self-portrait of a sort... I used it on my door in the dorms.



A watercolour piece based on a photo from the makeup final projects of two of my friends ;)

I might post more later when I get them xD I've done a lot digitally, too...

Love, Me :D

Twitteriffic

I think I've gotten addicted to Twitter.... I blame Tarla for this, you know!

It's just so convenient...

and y'all should follow me :D JNSuzuka is m' user ;D

Hey look, it's an update!

Hurry, or you might miss it!

So I know I'm terrible at this whole personal-blogging thing. Trust me, I never run out of things to say in person. However, due to my utter addiction to craft, design, and DIY blogs, I've decided to start another, separate blog as well... which will probably be updated quite a bit more often.

I realized that there's so much between all these blogs that could be relevant to theatre as well, but none I found seemed to focus on that... so I decided to! I'm entirely unsure as to whether anyone will ever actually READ it, but I feel good writing it and sharing thoughts and links :) So...

Here it is!