A Side of Grits

Summer Solstice Cake

2009-06-25T10:12:00.001-07:00

Arriving in Florida I was reminded that it is just about the dead middle of summer. We were out of things to do for the day so decided to make a Summer Solstice Cake. It took three boxes of cake mix, three containers of icing, a variety of candy and an hour of carefully mixing food colors to get an acceptable variety of colors for the icing artist palettes. Five hours later we were left with a cake the size of an entire refrigerator shelf and wondering whose kids we were going to call to eat the damn thing.

Ef El "A"

2009-06-25T09:55:00.000-07:00

Spending some time in Florida for a couple of weeks. It is so hot here! It got up to 104 degrees a couple of days ago. It has cooled back down to around 94 today. Sitting just south of Jacksonville right now and heading over to Tampa in a couple of days.

2009-06-13T21:09:00.000-07:00

Ahhhhh....here we go again with another blog. Life has been busy (as usual). Things are slowing down at work which is not necessarily a good thing, but it has allowed for a little more free time. Looking forward to a trip to the US soon. Also, getting ready for a mid July move out of the current apartment. Lots of choices and ideas right now of where my feet will be planted next. Friends and family are going to be dominating July with several people taking trips to Belize. I feel change coming...all good and exciting stuff.

Update

2009-05-11T14:01:00.001-07:00

Having a blog is kind of hard. You have to like write and stuff. On a fairly regular basis. Hmmm, guess I'm not the best at that. Anyhow, here's the round up: Went to San Diego in March. Got cold. Partied hard. Worked harder. Bought new shoes. Played Guitar Hero. Drove my car, nowhere in particular, just thought I'd point that out. Back to Belize. Got hot. Easter in North Carolina. Got cold. Saw old friends. Yelled at my family. Went to a Dead Show. Got a hangover. Back to Belize. Got hot. Turned 32. ---Update done!

Out of town...will return soon.

2009-03-27T18:40:00.001-07:00

More Carnival

2009-03-03T15:48:00.000-08:00

Carnival was criziggity crazy! Too bad my Dad has all the pictures of me with paint on me on his computer in North Carolina. It's funny trying to explain to people that they will get their face painted during Carnival. The conversation goes something like this:
-"I'm going to get a butterfly on my cheek!"
-"No, you're going to get a bucket of paint on your head."
-"What?"

Yep, I think if anyone had a butterfly on their cheek it was just stuck in the paint.

Oh and the "ladies" of the night were very entertaining as well.

It's Carnival

2009-02-24T13:12:00.000-08:00

Oh. My. God. Tonight is the last night of Carnival, but I could not wait to post this picture from Monday night. More to come. Much more...

We almost made it

2009-02-06T17:06:00.000-08:00

We almost made it to Sweet Basil for the big par-tay on Wed. night, but had one too many and had to head back towards town...in a cab.

Care Bears Attack San Pedro...

2009-02-01T19:07:00.001-08:00

Tenderheart and Sunshine Bear were spotted wreaking havoc on the beach today. They've been known to infect the unsuspecting with love and happiness. (I don't know how they did it, but it created a lot of smiles.)

There's a little black spot on the sun today...

2009-01-31T20:13:00.001-08:00

(pictured: John Paul, Karisse, Butch)
The sky cried today for John Paul. And we cried tonight. A beautiful person taken from the world too early. The wind blew harder tonight than I have ever felt in Belize. I'd like to think it was was John Paul blowing us a kiss good bye. Mad love.

Go Fish

2009-01-29T19:57:00.000-08:00

This is the haul from a BYC fishing trip today. They seem too colorful to eat. But that doesn't mean I won't partake.

Itch-A-Way

2009-01-29T09:53:00.000-08:00

There are these teeny, tiny ants that crawl through the screens every night. They are like ninjas. They like to bite me. This makes it hurt less. Apparently, it solves just about everything except world hunger - although, their site does point out you can drink it.

25 random things about me

2009-01-28T20:30:00.000-08:00

1. Occasionally my stubborness is mistaken for bravery or bitchery.

2. I make the best guacamole ever. Even my Mexican friends are impressed.

3. I love Law & Order. All of them. But SVU is my favorite. Actually, I am captivated by most true crime and probably spend too much time perusing true crime web sites. I feel it adequately prepares me for all the crazies in the world.

4. I come from a large family. Three brothers and two sisters. We don't all have the same parents, but we've been related long enough to throw boogers on each other. I don't like the word step-"anything". I feel like it insinuates a sub par relationship so I call them all my brothers and sisters.

5. I love to go to the gym but don't do it as much as I should. It usually happens in spurts, one month all the time then not for a month. I wish I was more into Yoga but I feel like you really need to be in a class for it to have an impact and it seems exceptionally expensive, especially in Belize. If they want me to relax then why are they contributing to the mass disappearance of my $? Actually I think insurance should cover yoga, but that's another soap box. And I don't have insurance anyway, so it doesn't matter.

6. I like to bake things for other people, especially cookies. It makes me happy to see other people enjoying something I made. I think this stems directly from my Mom constantly having baked cookies in the house when I was a kid. Baking for someone is a symbol of love. If you just like someone you can always give them a Twinkie - it lasts forever so no harm done.

7. I spent a lot of time in summer camps growing up and subsequently developed a working knowledge of activities such as riflery, capture the flag, group singing and making other people pee themselves. I still practice one of these and it ain't group singing.

8. I love horror movies. Especially the "B" movies from the late 60's to the 80's. Boobs and blood. Boobs. And. Blood.

9. I am on a constant quest to improve my Spanish but have yet to invest in Rosetta Stone. I have lived in a couple of places that have a heavy Spanish speaking population but have relied on my Spanish 2 class from high school for far too long.

10. I played soccer for six years and basketball for one. I sucked at basketball and always believed it was mostly a ploy for the male coaches to watch pre-pubescent girls sweat in way too short polyester shorts. I got kicked off the team 4 times and reinstated 3. Apparently coaches don't like it when you tell them they are pervs. Soccer was different, I always had good coaches and took every opportunity to release some angst with a slide tackle on a muddy field.

11. I can, and do, work to music at a decibel that would be distracting to some.

12. There are certain songs from different periods in my life that can easily instigate the water works.

13. Sometimes my humor is mistaken for cruelty. Those assholes can't take a joke.

14. I am terrible at romantic relationships.

15. I sold or gave away everything that wouldn't fit in 4 suitcases 2 months ago. That's a lie. I just like how dramatic it sounds. My friend has my car and 6 containers of my "most important" things at his house in San Diego. I did have a yard sale that nearly made me weep though.

16. I enjoy doing jigsaw puzzles. But only when done alone.

17. I saw too many friends die young, I think about them every day and wonder what they would be doing right now.

18. I have a severe case of motion sickness. I have to take a Dramamine if I am planning on flying, boating or even riding passenger in a car. As a matter of fact, they kicked me off the bus in Kindergarten because I threw up every day and was making the other kids sick. They kept a bag of kitty litter on the bus to try and "freeze" the vomit and prevent it from rolling from the front to the back all the way to school. Frankly, I would have kicked me off too.

19. I miss the smell of Fall. I haven't been in a Fall for 6 years.

20. Holding infants scares me but I l get along famously with kids once they can start walking and wiping their own ass.

21. My friends mean a lot to me and I try and let them know.I could probably do better.

22. I am a student and always will be. I work full time and always will.

23. Mexican food is my weakness. San Diego carne asada is at the top of the list.

24. I think that for the most part, all people are good, sometimes they just get off track.

25. I'm terrified I put something in this list that I actually didn't want anyone to know.

Easy like Sunday morning...

2009-01-28T17:46:00.000-08:00

Just kidding. It's Wed. night. Happy Hump Day! I need to get up earlier and get sunrise shots, they are more colorful from this side if the island.

Parker Posey

2009-01-27T20:23:00.000-08:00

Parker Posey rocked Indie before Indie was Indie. There's not many celebrities worth meeting but this chick is the epitome of doing it, doing it and doing it well. Yeah, she sold out a bit over the last decade, but she works hard for the money. Can I get a House of Yes?

Juno what I'm talking about?

2009-01-26T20:25:00.000-08:00

I successfully put off watching this movie for a year and caught it last night in a bout of insomnia. Like most things I refuse at first, I ended up loving it and the soundtrack is audiotastic.

Coco Loco

2009-01-26T19:06:00.001-08:00

Great beach bar! Linda is a gem. Linda, I'm bringing your book back this week. As soon as it stops raining. Visit Coco Loco's Beach Bar just north of The Cut on the right (duh, the beach side).

A really late wedding gift

2009-01-26T18:11:00.000-08:00

Got this at Orange gift shop in San Pedro. Great prices on amazing original pieces. This is for my brother Gill and his wife Claire who got married in August. Yeah, I know I'm a little late on this one but they're coming to visit in Feb. so they'll get it when they get here. Then THEY can drag it back to Montreal with THEM. See how I avoided cold weather and duties.

Fried Green...Bananas

2009-01-26T17:47:00.001-08:00

1. Use the green ones or else your going to end up with fried banana pudding. Slice in short or long strokes. These are short. Long would be the other way down the banana. Do I really need to explain that?

2. Soak in water with a dash of salt for 10 minutes

3. Drop in a heated pan of oil and cook until they look the same color of McDonald's french fries.

4. Let them cool! Don't be a pig. Good with ketchup; bad for the complexion.

Sunday Best

2009-01-26T17:32:00.000-08:00

Further proof that Belizeans and Southerners are cut from the same cloth: the proximity and possible affiliation of The Living Word Church and Heaven's Hair & Nails. Gawd luvs him sum purty. I'll have one Body of Christ blow out and a Mary Magdalene manicure please.

Roxanne Potvin is Amy Winehouse without the crack pipe

2009-01-23T22:35:00.000-08:00

She didn't invent her own skin fungus. Take note Amy W.
http://www.roxannepotvin.com/

Mini Me

2009-01-23T22:11:00.000-08:00

Holy crapazoly, does everyone have kids except me? Most of them are cute but F to the U-C-K ,they make immigration a bitch. You never know when they're gonna stash some shiz in their pocket. No ma'm. Jessica, Mark, Gill & Claire be warned. Chet, Kim and other Mark watch your kids' pockets.

FedEx doesn't care about my address

2009-01-23T20:06:00.000-08:00

Learned this today: If you ship FedEx to San Pedro (even if you have an address) pick packages up at the San Pedro airport. Don't believe the people at FedEx when they say the package will be delivered to your door. It goes to the airport. And forget about tracking it, that's for people who care about what day it is. I'm just saying.

I Like Tha Way You Werk It

2009-01-23T18:00:00.000-08:00

These people are working. Yeah. Working. Must be nice.

I Light Up My Life (or at least the balcony)

2009-01-23T15:54:00.000-08:00

People from The South love them some Christmas lights and fortunately so do people in Belize. Belizeans actually take theirs down in January though. Martin added this sparkling feature to the balcony today. Hopefully, it's not too white trash for the neighborhood. I'm just makin' it mah home, ya'll.

Life in the gutter never looked so good...

2009-01-23T15:49:00.000-08:00

This beastie lives in the gutter above the bedroom window. I managed to capture him/her/it out sunbathing yesterday. Looks pretty chill, plus he has the extra protection of the overhang from flying predators. Smart little bugger. Thought about giving him a name but Gutter seems too... well, obvious. I am also considering Sweet Baby Jesus.

Super Mom and Sidekick Steve

2009-01-23T15:03:00.001-08:00

DSCF0699.JPG, originally uploaded by Karisse Green.
Mom and Steve came to visit over Christmas. We had a blast and they took many pictures. We did a Mayan ruins trip and cave tubing. Steve wants to live here and Mom already got another ticket for May. It's hard to resist the weather.

We Be Jammin'

2009-01-23T10:39:00.000-08:00

So here I am in San Pedro. It's been a long month so far but I have gotten a lot accomplished. Moved from a studio in the middle of town to a one bedroom just South of town. It's much quieter here and a lot easier to get work done! The Friday night bingo games in the center of town were like having the caller over for dinner...B5, B5, B5...O14, O14, O14. The best part of the move was that I increased my Internet connection speed by about 200%! Yay, this means I am able to stream video now...welcome back Hulu! I've never done a blog before but it seems like the best way to keep friends and family in the loop. So, if you're interested in watching how this adventure unfolds...stay tuned. If not, now's the time to change the channel.