Music, Meows, and Munchies

Hi and welcome to my third installment in my mini-series of information about going to music concerts. I wanted to make these posts aimed towards new concert-goers or for people who are looking to improve their own concert experience. You can check out my first two posts  here  and  here  to learn about getting the best spots on the floor and best tickets, and also to learn more about mosh pits and how to be safe around them. This post I wanted to sum up a lot of little things that go on at concerts and are some things you might not realize happen if you have never been to a concert before. Merch  (i.e. merchandise)  etiquette : Try to find where the line roughly is. Try not to cut, but it does happen. Know what you want before you get up there and have your money ready. (It helps to bring different size dollar bills so that you can do exact money and not have to have change counted back to you.) Merch guys are typically pretty crabby in my experie...

Hi and welcome to my second post detailing my concert experiences. Check out the first part of this mini-series  here  if you want to learn about venue sizes and how to get the best tickets and spots in line and on the floor. This second post in the series is all about mosh pits. Mosh pits can be scary to people who have never gone to a concert before, and some people don't know what a mosh pit is or what it entails. When I was getting ready to go to my first concerts, I did not understand what I mosh pit was either and did my best to find out how to avoid them before I went. If you are like me and are confused about how to handle being in or around a pit, I hope this post helps you out and be sure to let me know if you have any other questions or concerns in the comments below! And of course, let me know if I posted something that isn't correct. Mosh pits: I (at this point in time) try to avoid being near the mosh pits, but that is because I am pretty wild a...

Hi there! Welcome to my blog if this is your first time here. I wanted to start this new series of blog posts because I like to be prepared, and I think that other people do too. Some of my information may be wrong, but don't be afraid to comment and let me know if I am wrong or something needs to be added or corrected. This is geared towards new concert-goers who want to get into the music scene more, and for people who have gone to many concerts, and are looking to improve their experience. If you have stumbled upon this post nearing summertime, here are some links to my Warped Tour posts:  Ultimate List: What to Bring to Warped Tour , and  What I learned at Warped Tour . Summer is full of hot days, warm nights, no school, and plenty of music festivals. But as the temperatures outside drop, bands move indoors into more intimate spaces. Indoor concerts have their own set of rules to follow and offer tons of more memories to take with you. Let's start this post with t...

I went back to school this fall after a summer break and haven't had much time to breathe in between everything else going on. I wanted to start a new series of blog posts titled, "The Comprehensive Guide to Concert-Going." In this new series, I will post several blog posts detailing a lot of things new concert-goers, or even veterans, might not know or just add on to additional information that you do already know. I like to be extremely prepared for anything in life, and a lot of the time that can't happen. I hope the information I will soon relay will help you improve your concert experience to make the experience more enjoyable for yourself and the people around you. Happy concert-going, Jaimey

This is my last "banana" themed post for this month and this recipe is a great transition for what I want to do next month: mug cakes. As someone who is trying to be more healthy and is trying to transition to a vegan lifestyle, it can be hard to find something simple, like a mug cake, that fits into what I am trying to do. I went out for a run last night and wanted to eat some protein afterwards to help start the muscle-repair process; the only problem was that all the recipes I could find for a protein cake wanted me to use eggs. As a college student, mug cakes are the way to go. It makes one serving, so I am not trying to resist a whole batch, and as an introvert, it keeps me out of the dorm kitchen as long as I have a microwave. They only take a few minutes to mix up, and one to two minutes to cook. I hope you enjoy what I have created for you, and if you are a vegan looking for protein, I hope this really helps!    Combine the protein powder and o...

For the third week of August, I made a vegan french toast that uses banana as a thickening agent to hold everything together. It turned out super tasty, and it wasn't gross and chewy because there was no eggs in the batter. Also, the almond milk I used smelled devine after being warmed up by the stove.  It was the perfect way to start a lazy rainy day.  You will need: 1/2 of a Banana 1/4 cup Almond (Soy or Coconut) milk Dash of Vanilla Extract 1/2 teaspoon Cinnamon  1 1/2 teaspoons Agave Syrup Crusty bread 1. Mash up the banana really well. 2. Whisk in the other ingredients. 3. Dip both sides of bread in batter. 4. Fry them up in a fry pan with a little vegan butter or oil.  5. Smother in maple syrup and more banana slices and become overwhelmed by the deliciousness of vegan french toast. 

For the month of August, I thought I would get my act together and post a new blog post every week like I am supposed to. I decided to make August a theme month: bananas. Here is the second banana post for the second week of August. Today I have a clean-eating banana pancakes recipe that is a little more than your typical just-a-banana-and-two-eggs recipe that everyone wants you to try. This one is not that much more special, but that is okay. I have tried the just a banana and two eggs and failed miserably. With the added oats in this version, it stays together a lot easier. I think the one trick to keep in mind is to cook over a medium heat so that it does take longer to cook and firms up more before trying to flip the pancakes. I made a raw raspberry topping of just 1/4 cup raspberries and a little honey and I just mashed it up with a fork. You will need: 2 Eggs or 1/4 cup Egg Whites. 1 ripe Banana 1/2 cup instant/rolled Oats 1 tsp Vanilla 1/2 tsp Cinnamon 1. Mas...

I wanted to make August a theme month so that I could get my act together and post something every week like most people do. My mother brought home two bunches of bananas which were left to die a slow death and needed to have something done with them. I froze a bunch of them, but I also whipped up some pretty tasty recipes. They are also fairly healthy because most of the recipes I will be posting will be vegan, like this one, and will have no added sugar because bananas are already pretty sweet and adding white sugar to anything makes me cringe. Like, I don't even want to look at a bag of white sugar. This recipe turned out really moist and slightly chewy from the added oats. This recipe is almost  vegan because I used honey, but I am sure vegans who are better at being a vegan than I am know a way to get around that. This is also a really good clean eating recipe, but I used all-purpose flour because I don't have whole-wheat flour on hand, which would have bee...

Last week I posted my  Ultimate List of What to Bring to Warped Tour , and this week I have what I learned from my Warped date. Check out the link above if you are getting ready for your own date and want to know how to over-pack. This list isn't complete, but I wanted to out it out there for people to look at and learn from. I will add to it every once in a while as I think back to Warped Tours I have been to. I like to know what I am getting into, and I like to let other people know what to look for. I hope you don't mind all the details and enjoy the list as you think about your own experiences and hopefully future ones, too.  You will, hands-down, have one of the best days of your life, every year that you go. You will get sunburned. You will get funny tan lines. You will feel like passing out at some point because of dehydration or not eating (guilty). You have to lookout for crowd surfers and the mosh pit so that you don't get knocked in the head by a f...

I know this is a little late in coming since the tour this year is already half-way over, but I myself am getting ready for my own Warped Tour date. After much research and through my own experiences, here is what to bring: Everything you could possibly need: A sturdy backpack - don't bring the biggest one you could possibly own, but a regular school backpack works well. It depends on how much I have listed below you plan on bringing and how much merch you plan to accumulate during the day. You get handed a lot of free stuff and trust me, you will want to buy merch at some point. You could bring one of those little drawstring bags, but the rope that keeps it pinched close wears on your skin. Bring a small backpack with thicker straps. Money - Bring at least $200. I swear you will spend more than you plan to. This takes into account gas money to get there and the ridiculous amount of food you will scarf down at the end of the day. Bring five dollar bills, tens, and twentie...

I have found a new food craving: overnight oats! I don't know what it is about them, but they are my new breakfast addiction. For people who are trying to eat right every day, it is important to eat breakfast and what is better than looking forward to what you are going to eat to keep you on the right track? This recipe is something that I came up with one night and tastes like the perfect peanut butter cookie, but for under 300 calories and is chock full of protein! And what is even better is that you can just throw everything into a jar or little Tupperware container, stick it in the fridge, and forget about it until morning. This recipe is vegan, has about 10 grams of protein, and is about 280 calories to get your morning started right. 1. Mix the protein powder and peanut butter together until they are well blended together. They are supposed to come together kind of like trying to cut butter into flour for pie crust. It will just be crumbly. 2. Pour in the alm...

Looking for an easy recipe for your Church's get together of sorts? Look no further! This super simple recipe is easy to make and makes two pies as is. To make it easier, just buy premade graham or regular pie crusts. I made my own because I had nothing better to do. For the graham crust: Crumble up one and a half packages of whole graham crackers, so about 15 crackers. Mix in sugar and cup melted butter. Divide the mixture in half and add to two pie tins. It is easier to push the crumbs up the sides first and finish the bottom last. On top of the crust, add a layer of either fresh or frozen-and-thawed strawberries. I used thawed berries because we seem to be hoarding bags of frozen strawberries. Now for the filling: do two separate transactions. This part doesn't take long and it is easier (I think) than just doubling the mixture and trying to sort it out later. In a saucepan, combine the jello, sugar, cornstarch, and water.  Whisk this well and let...

My Mother's favorite frosting is Cream Cheese Frosting. Whenever her birthday comes around, this is a necessity. This is one of my favorite recipes to make too, though. Homemade cream cheese frosting is one of the greatest food creations on Earth, and any form of it that isn't hand made is a sin. This is a super easy recipe and really pays to use exact measuring when it comes to the powdered sugar, so as to not cover up the gentle tang of the cream cheese. 1. Cream the cream cheese and butter together until fluffy. 2. Add the powdered sugar one cup at a time and incorporate. 3. Add the vanilla extract. 4. Optional: add fresh fruit or other flavorings. Ingredients: 4 oz cream cheese 4 oz room temperature butter 2 cups powdered sugar 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1. Cream the cream cheese and butter together until fluffy. 2. Add the powdered sugar one cup at a time and incorporate. 3. Add the vanilla extract. 4. Optional: add fresh fruit or other fl...

It seems like quite a few of my recipes are made for those of us with a love of baking but little talent towards it. I have tried so many different recipes and I would say 7/8 of them don't ever turn out like they should. But that is life, and life is frustrating. I have an apple pie recipe for you today that is extremely simple. You just use your favorite pie crust recipe (mine is my  Fool-Proof-Even-I-Can't-Screw-It-Up Pie Crust ), cut up your favorite apples, sprinkle some sugar-flour-cinnamon mixture on top, finish it up with either a crumble or lattice top, and bake it until it is to the point of disintegrating. My Dad always complains that whenever I cook potatoes, apples, or another hard fruit/vegetable that I never cook them long enough. He doesn't seem to like "al dente." He likes mush apparently. So I cook things longer than necessary, but an hour and fifteen minutes will do too here. 1. Start by cutting 5 to 6 cups worth of apples into slive...

Pie crust is my arch-enemy. I have tried so many different recipes and methods to make various pastry pie crusts, but they never turn out magically light and fluffy like your stereotypical hometown diner dreams of. In all honesty, I have started to buy pre-made pie crusts because it just makes it easier. But I don't like to lose, and especially not to something as easy as pie crusts. It really rattles my bones when someone says, "easy as pie," because pie is NOT easy to make. The crust is never fluffy, and if you're not careful, the filling can be too liquidy and not set up or cook correctly. I have for you today a pie crust recipe  that gives me the least amount of trouble. The pie crust that I use has butter AND shortening in it. the shortening helps set up the pie crust and keeps it together, but the butter makes sure it melts in your mouth and helps combat the weird shortening flavor. I have included a few tips along the way to keep in mind so that your pie cr...