pudding is the missing link!

i recently decided i would add instant pudding mix to all my baking endeavors (which have thus far only been chocolate chip cookies). so far there have been no blunders, just awesome pudding flavor infusion. i may move on to cakes. some white cake with a hint of butterscotch, anyone?

seriously, i feel like paula deen here. it is the simplest addition, but i feel like i am crafting my own recipes. it doesn't take too much to get me to be proud of myself in the cooking arena.

a short list (but not THE short list) of things i love

*disclaimer in the form of a cheesy quote: the most important things in life aren't things.
they are obviously people. this is a list of things. i love people more*

1. water beds.
2. stickers.
3. claw machines.
4. pistachio pudding
5. old churches.
6. the movie angels in the outfield.
7. cupcakes.
8. bookstores.
9. communist ideology.
10. monopoly.
11. this american life.
12. stationery.
13. roller coasters.
14. car drives.
15. mix cds.
16. television.
17. licking the pudding off the lid of my snack pack.
18. daffodils.
19. socks that go up to your knees.
20. bop it.
21. the smell of the air conditioning in my car when i turn it on the first time after winter.
22. fire.
23. watching babies taste lemons. (this one sounds mean, am i horrible?)
24. temporary tattoos purchased from vending machines.
25. all things miniaturized.
26. deviled eggs.
27. stars.
28. laying in bed in the morning, even though i am awake.
29. old pennies.
30. bicentennial quarters.

epic purse

"i once knew a person who really liked two different purses, she was bi-satchel."

i have this unrealized dream of being the person who has everything anyone could ever need in her purse. it is largely unrealized because i rarely tote a bag, and if i do it has minimal contents. however, when i am packing my purse for a trip, i always make sure i have plenty of things other people will need, typically tampons and scissors. (i have found scissors immensely handy on trips, principally because on a sunny vacation one of your tripmates will inevitably want a new pair of sunglasses and will opt to cut that plastic wire holding the tag to the nosepiece rather than chew through it like a hamster.) however, most of the time when people ask me for something like ibuprofen or floss, i'm helpless to their request.

those days are over.

i am going to build an epic purse.

tentative list of contents:
pen*paper*pencil*ibuprofen*quarters*lotion*hand santizer*tissues*nail clippers*scissors*pocket knife*mirror*chapstick*mints*gum*feminine hygiene products*light snack*basic first aid kit*sewing kit*paper clips*ponytail holders*brush/comb*bobby pins*floss*water bottle*visine*sunglasses*basic makeup supplies*jax*deck of cards

any suggestions for additional items would be heartily welcomed and could be beneficial to you if you are in my presence and in need of a certain something.

minor annoyance

i'm not an avid blogger, would not classify myself as a bloggista, and am not by nature an overly meticulous person. however, it bugs me that the address of this blog is still ronigoestoitaly.blogspot.com. Hence, i am changing the url.

i've been trying to think of a cool url. maybe ronivagabondista. i'm not too much of a vagabond, but, as you can tell, i am a little obsessed with the suffix -ista. and i saw a book called vagabonding about taking your time with your travels, not rushing from hot spot to hot spot and exploring exotic places and the deep caverns of your soul. it made me want to be more vagabondish.

i am also feeling compelled to change the url because--drum roll--i have been accepted to be a volunteer in london this summer. i don't honestly know the details yet, simply that they'll let me go. so, the ronigoestoitaly url seems to jilt great britain. i plan on making it down to the peninsula while in europe, but the bulk of my summer will be spent with the british.

so, new address coming soon.