Because Everybody Loves a Bat

Found this picture in the web while browsing. It proves one thing. Every one looks like a bat. I really love that Bat.

This Way Up

Just Visiting : Shakespeare in Delaware Park : Hamlet

Everyone is looking for something different to do now that school is out. Summer is just that time of year when it seems there is either not enough time to do anything, or there is far too much time and nothing to do. Whichever way you look at it there is bound to be some free time in your summer at some point. You're waiting for me to tell you what I have in mind for you to do with it aren't you? Don't rush me!

What I have to recommend to you today is the Shakespeare in Delaware Park's 2013 productions. As they do every year they will be presenting 2 plays. But because I don't want you to feel daunted. I'm just going to let you know about the one that is starting this week. Hamlet.

As it does every year (as long as I can remember having attended it anyway) they will be presenting the play at 7:30 pm nightly, Tuesday through Sunday. As to what kind of take they're going to have on the play, that's up to the director. Please be advised that parking and seating is first come first serve, so if you want to enjoy it, make sure that you get there a little early.

The play will be acted from June 20th through July 14th. I do hope that you get the chance to go and enjoy it. I would love to see it myself, but I'm here in California at the moment. But we'll see what we can come up with to compensate for missing the play.

As far as directions and the address go, I must apologize for being a bit fuzzy on the details. But if you know where the Albright Knox Art museum is, the performances are held in the bit of the park past the rose garden across the street.

Music Monday (9)

S Club 7 : The Color of Blue

Flatt Lonesome : I'm Blue

John Lennon : Out The Blue

The Marcels : Blue Moon

April Smith and the Great Picture Show : Colors

So this weeks list is a little heavy on blue. But that's alright. I hope you all enjoy the selections, and we look forward to having you with us this week. You never know what topics are going to come up.  I hope you have an amazing week and that this Monday starts out strong.

Machu Picchu

Cartoons are amazing things. They cross cultures and can sometimes be full of fun vibrant examples of art. I hope you enjoy watching this one as much as I have.

O.O

                                               Momus : I Want You But I Don't Need You

I know it's not Monday, and I know you haven't heard much from me this week. I'll get back on the ball soon. But I ran into this song yesterday, and I've really... kind of... gotten stuck on it. It's really sweet. But I guess it's really just something people can understand.

Music Monday (8)

Good Charlotte : I Want Candy

The Raveonettes : You Want The Candy

Christina Aguilera : Candyman

Aqua : Lollipop (Candyman)

Mika : Lollipop

Yes >.> This weeks Music Monday has a theme. Can you tell I'm having a bit of a sweet tooth? I wish they still made Blue Moon ice cream, and I'm dreaming about Vampire Gummies... How far away is October? It's not soon enough. It's odd when all I can think about are marshmallow peeps and skeleton candy.

What's in the Oven? : Applesauce Bread

So this is what I made this week. Well, not all I made. I also did a Banana Bread, but It was all eaten up before I got around to remembering that I should share with you what I've been up to. After we ate all the banana bread, I remembered that we didn't have anymore Banana's in the house, So I decided to research what else I could make. I found a few different recipes. Applesauce Bread sounded pretty good, and simple enough. So that's what I decided to make.

Applesauce Bread

Picture of Applesauce Bread Taken by Polke A Dot (It's just food! It doesn't need a glamor shot)

So first things first. I didn't have everything on the recipe list. But I didn't find that out until I had already mixed most of the concoction up. So the list below shows what I actually put into my Applesauce Bread. The verdict on how it tasted? Well... we'll get to that later on.

1 1/2 cups flour
1 1/4 cups applesauce
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1/3 cup butter softened
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Set the oven to 350 degrees. It needs to be that hot. Then  grease and flour your loaf pan, so that you don't have to deal with that once your batter is ready.

So you start off smooshing the butter and sugar together, then smoosh in the egg and applesauce. Pretty simple right? Then you add in all the dry ingredients. Mixing them up until they're a decent consistency (NOT DRY).

And I found half a bag of chocolate chips in the cabinet. So in my case I poured them in to taste, adding them into the mixture before putting it into the margarine and flour treated loaf pan.

Then into the oven it went for an hour.

Sure felt like a long time.

Ok. Emma you're right. I can't pour it out of the pan before it's cooled. *hopes it remelds before morning >.>*

Verdict : It didn't taste half bad. To be honest, it was a little spicy, but the chocolate balanced that out. Polke A Dot even ate some. So it couldn't have been all that bad. He doesn't like anything that might be good for him.

The Saga of Biorn

Just Visiting : Timken Museum

So it's been a little bit since we told you about anything that there is to see or do. So today We want to share the Timken Museum with you. There are a few different reasons that we can recommend you go to the museum. One is that it has a variety of older art pieces. Another is that it isn't going to be an expensive stop.

The museum is home to a variety of artworks. From various artists around the world, and spanning a large amount  of time. There are some gorgeous religious paintings, as well as some beautiful pastoral scenes. In the American paintings area, the nautical theme is wonderful. Not to mention a lady holding a viper in her cup. It made me pause to wonder what the painter was trying to say.

There is even a Rembrandt painting in the collection. It's very dark, but it's still a lovely painting to get to see. It's not every art museum that has one. It's the kind of thing that's nice to be able to tell people that you got to see. At least, if you're interested in more classical art and history.

The people that supervise the museum are also very knowledgeable. So if you have a question they might have the answer. The museum does do special exhibits. So make sure to check their website, they may be showing a "new" painting you haven't seen before. This helps to offer different pieces for viewing and appreciation.

The Timken Museum is open with free admission 10:30am - 4:30 pm Tuesday through Saturday.  So don't bother trying to get in on a Monday. They're also closed for major holidays.'Located in Balboa Park in downtown San Diego, it can be found near a number of other destinations of interest. While admission is free, they do appreciate donations as a way to help keep the paintings and art pieces available for public viewing.

Timken Museum of Art
1500 El Prado
Balboa Park
San Diego, California 92101

Music Monday (7)

2Gether : Regular Guy

3 Doors Down : Kryptonite

U2 : With or Without You

The Len Price 3 : If I Ain't Got You

Matchbook 20 : Unwell

I hope that you enjoy this weeks selections. Please remember that none of the music is owned by us here at AFG. Anything we post for Music Monday is intended for entertainment purposes. Also music shared here will hopefully introduce some of you to artists or genre's you haven't heard before. Hope this Monday kicks your week off awesome.

Product Review : Mio

People are frequently looking for the next best thing to add to their cupboards or picnic baskets. Something that's light, useful, and offers an option they haven't had before. At least not as simple and clean as it is offered now. For years we've had the powdered drink options. But now these concentrated drink liquids are growing in popularity.

These are 4 of the Mio's that we have in house currently.

Mio is advertised as a Liquid Water Enhancer. Basically that translates to concentrated koolaide like flavoring. It comes in a wide variety of flavors, and even options energy drink like options. They allow you to choose how much flavor to add to your water (whether you use tap water or bottled water doesn't matter, it's a matter of personal preference). I like mine a little more flavored than Polke does.

We have had a number of different flavors of this product pass through our household. So far my favorites have been the Berry Blast and the Arctic Grape variants. Polke's Mother likes the Sweet Tea flavoring. While Polke likes the Blueberry Lemonade one. To be honest though, I think we've tried most of the flavors.  None of us liked the Mio Energy Green Thunder, and to be honest, the Mio Energy variants in general weren't found to be appealing by our household.

Current list of Mio flavors we've tried:
Cherry Blackberry
Berry Pomegranate
Strawberry Watermelon
Blueberry Lemonade (household favorite)
Lemonade
Sweet Tea (household favorite)
Mio Energy Black Cherry (won't re-buy)
Mio Energy Green Thunder (won't re-buy)
Mio Fit Berry Blast
Mio Fit Arctic Grape (household favorite)

We do enjoy the fact that these enable us to have a number of different flavors on hand, while not taking up the large amounts of space packages of gatorade might take up. Not only that they're small. You can pack them in your purse and have them wherever you go. It makes it easy to have options, without being committed to one thing for extensive periods of time. So on the most part, Yes this is a good product. And there seems to be a flavor option for everyone.

Thanks for reading! I hope you find a flavor you like! We'll let you know about another interesting product sometime soon. Maybe even something amusing. Like...socks?