Another satisfied customer!

Our recipe for homemade bread is so easy that Mr. M made some all by himself! (I'm not a bit proud of him, nope, not me.)

Walt Disney Concert Hall

Mr. M and I had a fantastic evening at the Walt Disney Concert Hall on Friday. If you've never been, it's an amazing experience, although I would never have paid for the seats we had. We kept saying to each other, over and over, "I can't believe we won these tickets!!"

The question which I answered correctly to win tickets was "Starting with the 2009/10 season, Christian Zacharias will be an Artistic Partner for which American orchestra?" The answer was
the St Paul Chamber Orchestra.



The program began with Brahms Serenade #2, which has no violins. Next, came Haydn's Sinfonia Concertante with solo violin, oboe, bassoon, and cello. During the intermission, the stage hands wheeled out a grand piano with no lid. I was confused, until I remembered that the soloist (Christian Zacharias) was also the conductor. He played the Schumann piano concerto, which I played* at Interlochen, and it was a treat to hear something I knew so well. It was very entertaining to see him pounding away at the piano and then start waving his arms to conduct. A few times he leaned waaaay back on the piano bench and I wondered if he would fall off. I also wondered if in the midst of his conducting, he might forget to come in as the soloist. He did neither.

After the concert, we headed over to the Green Room. (I happen to be on a first name basis with the Green Room security guard, thanks to a ticket mix-up earlier in this month with my friend Kathryn.) My friend Leticia from the viola section met us there, and gave us a backstage tour. We concluded our evening on the rooftop gardens/amphitheatre looking out across the downtown skyline. It was a lovely evening and a great way way to kick off the birthday celebrations for Mr. M!

P.S. Did you LOOK at that amazing organ? Next on my list - how to get to one of the organ recitals.

*I played the orchestral violin part, not the solo piano part. Sorry to disappoint anyone who thought my piano chops might have been that good.

I must scream it to the world, my excitement, from the top of someplace very high!*

I just won 2 prime tickets to the Los Angeles Philharmonic this weekend! I am so excited that I've been jumping up and down and screaming it to my living room.

I subscribe to the LA Phil newsletter and every time they send it out, they have a little question at the end about one of their concerts or guest artists. If you are the first one to respond with the correct answer, you win! I sent in my answer yesterday and my gmail said it had been 2 minutes, so I promptly forgot about it, until I got an email this afternoon! The universe is smiling upon me and I am smiling back!

*This is a movie quote. Anyone know the answer? Leave it in the comments. Here's a hint which may or may not help: I've seen it 6x in the last week.

Beautiful, easy, homemade bread

When my MIL sent me a link to Easy No Knead Bread, I was skeptical. After I saw the video, I was curious and determined to try myself.

I'm delighted with the results, crusty exterior and soft, chewy interior. We'll be eating this loaf with our lunch today, a nice and saucy pasta that requires bread for pushing and dipping.

First Five

I got this from Greek Goddess, who got it from from susan's blog, which was taken from cath's blog (which was taken from kate's blog). It's a chain of giving and I like this idea.

The first five people to respond to this post will get something made by me!

My choice of something for you. There are some limits and restrictions, which I have tweaked to suit my style:

1. It will be sometime this year. Don't rush me:)

2. I don't know yet what it will be - it might not even be tangible. Maybe food or a massage or a bookmark or babysitting or a song or a movie... OOH, possibly a visit, depending on who or where you are.

3. Most importantly, you must offer the same deal on your blog - the first 5 people to comment on your blog (or if you do not have a blog, facebook) get something made by YOU! The first 5 people to do so and leave a comment telling me they did win something deLIGHTful by me.