Roots ~ Audrey

They say your roots are part of your personality. They shape who you are. The way your parents went about life, the environment you grew up in. Your earliest experiences are your most important ones. I never really realised before, just how true this is. I guess you never can see the patterns in your behaviour, until they are laid out in front of you. As of the past year or so, I have always been one to be very sensitive about my image, whether it be my body image or personality. I've always just kind of accepted this along with my quirks and such just as something fate decided to drop on me. But, as I've come to realise, it's your past that shapes your future. Concerning my body image towards myself , I recently learned that from a very young age, my curiosity for everything made me extremely self conscious,  and my early childhood companions sparked an idea that would later come back to haunt me, big time. Starting at the age of 4 or so, snacks and portions of lunches would come home with me from preschool, untouched. That was a pattern that would rapidly increase over the years. Sometimes, as a child, I would refuse food to the point of creating a fake allergy to multiple foods. Neither my parents or me saw any indications of any warning signs. But, I'm going to disagree with myself. Why should our past so drastically shape our future? It may be psychologically proven but I will still disagree. Early childhood may be long gone but, for the most part I've barely begun my life. I think our actions now, is the stuff that really matters. The battles with ourselves or other things, fought and won. Or the neglect, days simply passing by. Even the most mundane days, full of sadness or joy. We write our own stories. And no one should be able to change that.

~ Audrey

The Train ~ Maci

There was a train. This was no ordinary train for it had one conductor quite young, just out of school. This train would wheel around the ground, forward, backward, left, and right, free of tracks, lights, and passenger. So spontaneous and different, nothing was planned out. The train would solely run on the conductor’s time. It used to chug around randomly, but now it stops at the garden every day, waiting for the conductor to finish his break. It could crash into other trains, yet nothing would break or tear, no one would scream and cry. It was a peaceful train, a train that buzzed lightly as it sped quickly and a train that squeaked slightly as it slowed down. But time has aged the conductor and the train was lost and forgotten, until the next generation, where the little toy train will chug its way across the carpet once again.

~ Maci

Mac and Audrey (The Best of Both Worlds) ~ Audrey + Maci

As you may already know, one of the things Maci and I love to do most is cook or bake. So today, I thought I would share with you guys one of our favourite recipes. (Which Maci has oh so cleverly dubbed "Mac and Audrey") Personally, I love this recipe because I think it's like the ultimate mac and cheese pretty much ever. Obviously mac and cheese is a comfort food that's very down to earth, but I like to think this one has a little bit of class in it. Simple, but with a little flair. (sorta like Maci and I) Which is probably why I love it so much. So, unlike other recipes, instead of using boring cheddar cheese, we use our favourite cheeses. Those happen to be Mozzarella, and Havarti. Another awesome thing about this is that the site that I based this recipe off, ( I know, I know its not completely original ;), so sue me) has a changeable serving option, so you can pick and choose how much you want to make easily. If you want to make the recipe your own, go right ahead! The original recipe link will be at the bottom of this post. (Just note, that this makes mac and cheese for about 2-3 people). Okay let's get started shall we?

First, preheat the oven to 200 degrees Celsius, or 400 Fahrenheit.
Bring half a pot of water to a roiling boil in a large saucepan.
Then, take 1 and 1/2 cups of pasta, preferably bow tie, and cook for about 8 minutes on high, depending on your preference.
While all this is happening, its usually a good idea to start on the sauce. In a large mixing bowl, stir together 1/4 cup of butter (at room temperature), 1/4 cup of flour, a few pinches of pepper and 1 + 1/4 tablespoons of salt. Now, add the spices. Maci and I usually use garlic powder and Oregano, but you can use pretty much whatever you want. Just make sure you don't use too much, it will overpower everything else.
After you've done that, it's time to grate all the cheese. Again, you can pretty much use whatever cheese you want, but we suggest  Mozzarella and Havarti. For the sauce, you need 2 cups of cheese. Its also a good idea to have some cheese left over to sprinkle on top. Make sure you don't add the cheese to the sauce ingredients in the mixing bowl, we'll do that later.
By now, the pasta has probably boiled. Pour the pasta into a strainer over a sink to drain and (depending on what kind of stove you have,) leave the burner on because we will use the same saucepan for the sauce!
Keeping the burner on high, put the sauce ingredients in the sauce pan. Stir continuously until big bubbles keep popping up and the sauce becomes thick.
When that happens, turn the heat down to low and add in the two cups of cheese. Stir until everything is blended together.
Then, add the pasta to the sauce and pour it into a greased crock pot or anything that will go in the oven.
Sprinkle some cheese on top, (add some breadcrumbs if you're feeling fancy) stick it in the oven  and you're done!
Bake it for about 10-15 minutes and enjoy! :)

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/baked-mac-and-cheese-for-one/detail.aspx?event8=1&prop24=SR_Title&e11=macaroni%20and%20cheese%20for%20one&e8=Quick%20Search&event10=1&e7=Recipe%20List

~Audrey + Maci

How to Find the Meaning in the Music ~ Audrey

Music has always been the thing that’s taking up my life. I mean, don’t get me wrong, I couldn’t live with out it. Since I could talk I was singing, since I could walk I was moving, and since I could stand I was banging around on one instrument or another. And I haven’t stopped to this day. I live, breathe and eat music. If that makes any sense. Its like I can’t go a whole day without listening, playing or singing it. Once you dedicate yourself to something like that, it becomes a part of you. You begin to see it in pictures, the way someone walks across the room, or even in something as simple as a feeling. It becomes the only way you can express yourself. For me, the first thing I want to do when I come home is play. When I’ve had a bad day, I blast music through my skull at a deafening tone until I get home. And the minute I do, I sit at my piano and play. Pages upon pages of soft melancholy piano solos, or a melodic prelude from my studies. Or when something so incredible happens, you don’t know what to say, I just turn to music. It’s the friend that never leaves you, always a shoulder to cry on. It's there with you through love, and joy, grief and heartbreak. Its like, imagine you’re an extremely skilled artist who has the ability to paint whatever they choose. You see something beautiful, and you won’t rest until you paint it. Whether it’s simply in your head, or on a canvas. I wish it were that easy, because on one hand, the majority of us aren't that talented. For musicians, it’s an irresistible urge to find that perfect chord or line to express what you’re feeling, especially when you cant find a way to do just that. For the less talented, it’s listening to video after video until you find that expression that someone else put out there. Musicians are perfectionists. Every single one of them. I for one have sat for hours on end, multiple times, just listening to music. And I could spend hours more playing it, rehearsing, changing and re-inventing until its just right. Or simply playing no reason at all. That’s what music is all about. Everyone has it in them. Some are just more willing to find it. It’s a part of you. One that, for a few special people, will never go away. It’s more than a passion, it’s a lifestyle. I believe that it’s not possible to be “bad” at music. Everyone can do it. Some may be better than others, but it’s not as simple as that. It’s not about how fast you can play your violin sonata, or how impeccable your technique is. Its not even about how many notes you get right, how perfect your pitch is or how well you can match a rhythm. Who ever said that everyone marches to the beat of their own drum, was a genius. Music is about finding all those little things in life, and literally putting them to your own tune. 

~ Audrey

Dating in grade 8? ~ Maci

This past week I have been asked out by two of my friends. One of which is a friend from third grad who managed to track me down via internet, “claiming” he had a crush on me when were were younger. (Not in a creepy stalker-ish way though.) While the other person, a swimmer, asked me out while he was standing in his bathing suit, half-naked, completely catching me by surprise. I said no to the first and maybe to the second person, but as I was considering whether to date the second person, or just date in general, really made wonder…what’s the point? To me, dating in grade 8 seems like a flagrant waste of time, considering the only thing that will happen, is the ending to a relationship. I’m in grade 8 for Pete’s sake! I don’t see myself like the couples in the mall; holding hands, laughing, making out. At the most I see myself awkwardly staring in the distance and talking about something completely random, because I am not fully into the guy. People in my grade are just dating so they can date and say they have a boyfriend. Yea of course one part of my mind wants to have a boyfriend, but if just having a one-ended relationship is the only way to have a boyfriend at my age. Why would I waste my time just to be hurt in the end? Of course it sounds so LG, but isn’t that the young girl fantasy? To have a boyfriend? I used to think so, but I’m freakin’ glad I didn’t date and I don’t intend to for awhile.

~Maci