Tuesday, March 17, 2015

Meeting Mrs. Jeni's Ice Creams (or How I Am Good at the Internet)

1. The inside of the new location. Super sleek. 2. Jeni and myself... new besties. Or something. 3. Riesling Poached Pear sorbet in champagne. 4. My signed cookbook, mixing spoon and awesome mug. 4. Root beer float with vanilla bean and salty caramel ice cream (HEAVEN) 5. Goat cheese with red cherries ice cream with lemon buttermilk frozen yogurt. 

I've said it before and I'll say it now: if the Internet was a class I would get straight. A's. I'm really good at social media, which actually saddens my heart. I want to be good at SOCIAL. no media. SOCIAL. I guess it's a double edged sword because you kind of have to be proficient in social media nowadays. For me it's my forte. I tend to be the most genuine via text. But the good thing is I write exactly how I speak so there is no disconnect. I think that's the secret. Don't have an Internet alter ego. Be who you are all the time forevers.

But I digress. 

If you've never heard of Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams you don't even make SENSE. Jeni's ice cream is a whole other LEVEL of ice cream. It's made not with eggs but with cream cheese and corn starch and the result is the creamiest, richest, cold confection you've ever tasted. I tried it once and never turned back. I remember it being the hot awesome thing and she would SHIP it to you packaged in dry ice. It was science made trendy. I hopped on board with her cookbook and immediately made like 4 of her ice creams and just... Fell in LOVE. I also found out how much I love science. It's in my genes. I almost made a trek to Ohio to meet her. Seriously I had a place picked out on Air B'n'B. 

In comes Instagram. I stan for Instagram. I am somehow able to mingle with gods and men alike through the wonder that is that app. I've made many an Internet friend through there solely by adding a funny/relatable comment on someone's post. CUE JENI. She posted a picture not even about the opening of her newest Chicago store but I asked if I should come to the new opening. I didn't go to the Southport opening and regretted it as I really wanted to meet her. She responded "YES! Please come I'll be there!" And I was like, "I guess I'm going then..." And that was that. Then a couple days later she commented again asking me to shoot her an email. I did, and allowed myself a gentle gush of fandom in the email. She responded with an invitation to the preview party the day before the grand opening. Like there was a list. With my name on it. That not everyone could get into. NOT TO BRAG OR ANYTHING BUT DANG. Woo! *fans self* 

I braved the special hell that is downtown Chicago driving and made my way there. I was the first one there and I was late. Wut?? But I was greeted at the door by Jeni. Cue brain loss, lack of speech and smiling so hard my eyes look like they didn't exist. She won a James Beard Award for pete's sake! JAMES BEARD. Did I mention all the ice cream was free?? Like ALL of it? Including the floats?? Oh okay. It was free. 

Side note: GET THE LEMON BUTTERMILK FROZEN YOGURT. THERE ARE SHORTBREAD COOKIES IN IT. LIFE CHANGER. 

So I had a lot of ice cream, a root beer float and a champagne float (Riesling poached pear ice cream in champagne. Fancy af). She signed my (her?) cookbook, too! I also brought a spoon for her to sign. Any awesome cooking person I have them sign a kitchen spoon and I collect them. Cool right? Be my friend still? Okay. At the end of the night i mustered enough courage to ask for a picture, which really means I stood in the corner and stared at her until she came over to ME and I asked for a picture. I wanted to buy one of her cool mugs (BECAUSE MUGS) and she just... GAVE ME A MUG. And when I resisted she was like, "Who's gonna stop me?!" Ugh. CLASSIC Jeni. It was cool mingling with her Columbus crew and all the new scoopers were so sweet. 

Gosh I love Internet adventures. Now if it could only lead me to meet BeyoncĂ© I will have reached true enlightenment. 

Wednesday, March 11, 2015

ridiculous thoughts, love Abby

[originally written in April of 2013 and I still find it comPLETELY relevant - God bless the drafts folder] 

This post. is going to be ridiculous. and I apologize.



I'm the type of girl who wonders if I'm friends with a person or not or if I've crossed over into 'best friend' status. I've been sticking the label of 'best friend' on the most undeserving people or people who don't even KNOW I think of them as my best friend.

All my life I've relished having that one friend you could tell anything to or talk to for hours on end about anything and everything. I would find someone who was cool and awesome and I'd think THEY could be my best friend right?! And I'd quest for their approval only to find out they thought I was great... but the coveted spot of 'best friend' was already taken. It's like people come pre-loaded with a best friend out of the womb. What is that??

To be honest, I'm still a sucker for the label of best friend. I'm a sucker for labels really. There's nothing I love more than defining a relationship. Defining anything really. I try it out in my head just to see how it would sound. Roll it around on my tongue for a time but never utter it to anyone. Swap out potential candidates to see how they would handle the role.

It's stupid, I know, but as a girl who has never had a friend longer than a few years it's just a thing I would like. It's stupid to be offended at someone calling me their 'good' friend and SPOUT the blessed phrase BFF in the next sentence so easily. Is this weird? Am I twelve years old? Well obviously... YES.

Being friends with married people means you're already out of the running. Their best friend is their spouse because you're supposed to marry your best friend! I like married people a lot though... being their friends will always be a thing.

Maybe best friends are over rated. I'm lying they're not - they're amazing. Look at Joy and Tracy. It's totally not over rated.

In the end it's really not about the label, it's about the person. Having a defined boyfriend doesn't make him any less of a jerk-wad. Having a best friend won't stop the person from talking about you behind your back so... maybe I just need to find people who know what they've got.

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