The Densa Quiz

So I came across this quiz again and remembered it from when I took it in the 6th grade. And it's still really fun to do! See how many you can get right. Answers are written below so cover your screen or don't look at them!!!

1. Do they have a 4th of July in England? (yes or no)
2. How many birthdays does the average man have?
3. Some months have 31 days, how many have 28?
4. In baseball, how many outs are in an inning?
5. Can a California man legally marry his widow's sister? (yes or no)
6. Divide 30 by 1/2 and add ten. What is the answer?
7. If there are 3 apples and you take away 2, how many do you have?
8. A doctor gives you 3 pills and tells you to take one every half hour. How many minutes would the pills last?
9. A farmer has 17 sheep. All but 9 drop down and die. How many are left standing?
10. How many animals of each kind did Moses take on the ark?
11. A clerk in the butcher shop is 5'10" tall. What does he weigh?
12. How many two cent stamps are there in a dozen?







ANSWERS:
1. Yes, there is a 4th of July everywhere...it just might not be celebrated like in the USA.
2. 1, the average man only has one birthday.
3. 12, all the months have 28 days.
4. 6, each team has 3 outs.
5. No, he cannot marry, he's dead.
6. 70, dividing by 1/2 is the same as multiplying by 2, then add 10.
7. 2, if you take away 2, you have 2.
8. 60 minutes, take the first one, then the second one half hour later, then the third one another half hour later, it's been 60 minutes and the pills are gone.
9. 9, all but 9 drop, so you still have 9.
10. None, Moses didn't take any animals, Noah did.
11. Meat, he's a butcher.
12. 12, there are 12 stamps in a dozen no matter how much they cost.

Last Minute Costume Ideas

We all know that Halloween costumes are sometimes difficult to come up with and time is running out to find the perfect costume. Halloween is a mere four days away, so if you are still without costume, I have decided to give a couple recommendations for easy and quick costumes that you can probably make with stuff around your house. Have fun!

Greek Goddess
What you'll need:
-bed sheet
-gold jewelry and belt
-vines
-sandals
This costume is all about the TOGA!! A toga is one of the simplest, yet sexiest costumes someone can wear. All you need to achieve this look is a bed sheet. Now classic white is always a good look, but you can always mix it up with a colored sheet as well. Take the middle of the sheet and put it under one of your armpits. Then wrap the sheet around yourself one full time while still keeping the top two corners out. Now you should be completely covered and have the two corners pulled up above the place you first started. Tie the two corners above your shoulder and VIOLA! You have a toga. Depending on how scandalous you want to be, you also have the option of folding the sheet in half (hot dog style) first for a shorter style. Add your gold accessories and a vine or two in the hair and there you have it.

Rockstar
What you'll need:
-white tank top
-jeans
-heels
-lots of jewelry
-studded belt
Everyone wants to be a rockstar at some point in their life and Halloween is a great time to be one. This look is so simple and still very sexy. Just put on your basic white tank, preferably with a colored or patterned bra underneath. If you're like me and have like ten white tanks and you can spare one, cut a slit right down the middle of the chest for just a little more appeal. There are a couple options for the bottoms. I prefer jeans, the more torn the better. Skinny jeans are also a good option, black is the best bet for color. But if you want to show off those legs, put on a denim mini with some fishnet tights. A studded belt will always add to the rockstar persona along with lots of jewelry. Then, slap on a pair of heels or boots and you're all set. Don't forget the heavy black eyeliner to make those eyes pop while you're on stage!

White Trash
What you'll need:
-old tshirt or sweatshirt
-cut off shorts or worn jeans
-optional accessories
This is a great costume for men and women and is sure to get laughs! For guys, just take reference from the picture above. Cut off the sleeves to an old tshirt and put on a pair of worn jeans. If you want to spend a little money, invest in a mullet wig OR if you're really brave, cut your hair for the occasion. (Remember you can cut it off the next day.) For girls, go with a sweatshirt with the neck cut out 80's style (and preferably supporting a rival school...try WSU) and make sure your bra straps are showing. Add a pair of short cut offs and some high wedges. White trash can still be sexy! For accessories, plasticy costume jewelry is always great, a baby doll for your child, and my favorite, a Super Big Gulp cup from 7-11 to drink out of all night. This costume is a fun one to get into character and pretty soon it will be hard to drop the southern accent you have suddenly picked up.

Don't Miss It!

Who doesn't love Charlie Brown, Linus, and especially Snoopy!? Tomorrow night @ 8:00 on ABC (at least in Seattle...) they are playing "It's The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown" and it is a definite must watch. Every year I look forward to watching the Charlie Brown specials of each season and I'm so excited to watch this year. And I encourage everyone else to watch as well. Anyone can enjoy a little holiday magic from the Peanuts crew!!

Test Your Knowledge

How well do you know your Halloween myths? The team from Mythbusters created a little quiz so you can find out if your favorite Halloween stories are true or false. Take the quiz here! The answers may surprise, and even spook you!

Ed Emberley Drawing Books

Ed Emberley is such a cool artist and his creations are so much fun to draw. My siblings and I grew up with his drawing books and we still love them to this day. Even though my drawing skills have progressed passed needing a book to tell me how, I still enjoy learning to draw funny creatures that I wouldn't normally think of. The best thing about his drawing books is his methods. He uses the simplest shapes like circles, squares, and lines to create these creatures that even the youngest of kids can draw them. The most recent one I have found is Ed Emberley's Drawing Book of Weirdos, perfect for Halloween. I highly recommend having one of these on hand just for some fun or maybe adding a character to a card or invitation of some sort. For a full list of his books (cause it is way to long to type them all here), visit his website!

Bargains Part 2

Finally, here is part 2 of my bargains blog. These are the fun and fabulous deals I have found over the past few months. The trick to finding good deals and awesome clothing is to go shopping with NO expectations that you will find anything. Due to Murphy's Law, if you're looking for something, you probably wont find it. All of the following I have simply just come across and then fallen in love with afterwards.


The Best Bargain
Value Village: $0.99
Although I have been wanting a high-wasted black skirt, I certainly didn't expect to find one I liked at Value Village. I really like the pockets and it is pretty much a timeless piece that I will be able to wear forever. And what a deal! My friend would be proud. You never know what you might find at a thrift store.

The Favorite
Nordstrom Rack: $39.99
I instantly fell in love with the colors and cut of this dress and it has become one of my favorite pieces of clothing I own now. Although it is a bit pricey for a bargain, when I found out the brand and original price after I took it home, I felt I got a real good deal. The dress is French Connection and its original price was $149.00. This is a great dress to wear casually or can easily be dressed up for a night out. I paired it with my Steve Madden gladiator shoes (the cheaper version of the Chanel's) and lots of accessories and have dubbed it my Carrie Bradshaw look. My new challenge is to find a way to wear it during the winter...


The Necessity
BCBG Outlet: $19.99
Everyone needs a little black dress. I have about six of them, but this one is definitely a step up from the classic cocktail dress. I found this one at the Quil Ceda outlet mall. The store has some really great finds there if you're looking for dance dresses or party dresses. I just happened across this one and couldn't pass it up for only $20 (originally $89.99 or so). The twisted straps and rouched waist band give it a little extra spice and remember, black equals lots of fun accesories! I also like to wear my gladiator shoes with this and add my plank necklace (Bargains Part 1).

For Work And For Play
Target: $5.99
I now go to Target because I can almost always find what I call the "Six Dollar Target Dress". This was the first one I found for my Valentine's Day outfit. The wrap dress style is really flattering, especially on those with bigger features like me, and they are so comfortable. You can wear this dress for going out or it makes a different style for the office. I pair mine with a tank underneath, black tights, and black boots. Originally $24.99, this dress is definitely worth its value.

Congratulations......Leanne!

After what felt like a long wait, the winner of Project Runway was finally crowned this evening. Congratulations Leanne of Portland, OR!! Her final runway show was inspired by the waves and colors of the ocean and it was so beautiful. She has definitely been one of my favorites throughout the season, and although I was very shocked that Korto (another favorite of mine) was not the winner, I was rooting for either one and Leanne's collection was amazing and definitely outfits I would wear. Below are some of my favorite looks of her's from the Bryant Park.

Soups, Stews & Chilies

Now that the winter-ish weather is setting in and everyone seems to be getting cold, it's the perfect time to make soup! Soup is the ultimate cold weather food and it's DELICIOUS! My mom bought this cookbook (although it looks more like a magazine) called "Soups, Stews & Chilies" and it has a ton of awesome recipes to cure the winter chill. We like them so much we make a new one at least once a week. They even recommend a great side dish for each soup. I will share with you my favorite recipe (so far) below, but if you want to buy the whole book, you can find it here! Enjoy!

Cheese & Corn Chowder
(prep time: about 1 hour)

Saute; sweat:
5 strips thick-sliced bacon, diced
2 T. unsalted butter
2 T. olive oil
2 cups diced onions
1 cup celery, diced
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 t. minced fresh thyme
1 t. kosher salt
1/4 t. cayenne
1/4 t. ground tumeric

Add; garnish with:
6 cups chicken broth
1 lb. russet potatoes, peeled, diced
8 ears fresh corn, shucked, trimmed (4-5 cups kernels, may use frozen corn)
1 cup heavy cream
1 cup white cheddar, shredded
2 oz. cream cheese
Minced fresh chives

Saute bacon in a large pot over medium heat until crisp, 5 minutes; drain on a paper towel-lined sheet and set aside. Pour off drippings, wipe out pot with a paper towel, and return to burner. Melt butter with oil, add onion and celery, and sweat until soft, 7-8 minutes. Stir in flour, salt, thyme, cayenne, and tumeric, cook 2 minutes.
Add broth, potatoes, and corn kernels. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer until potatoes are tender, 10-12 minutes. Stir in cheeses and reserved bacon; simmer until cheese melts, about 5 minutes. Garnish with chives.

Spokane

This weekend I decided to trek over to the other side of the state to see how my newly married friend now lives. Now, Spokane is no Seattle, but it still had some fun elements and it was nice to see a new city. Here are a couple places I recommend visiting if you're ever in the neighborhood.

Raw Sushi & Island Grill is the place I would recommend for dinner in downtown Spokane. They have amazing food, and I can say that because I am not the biggest fan of sushi and I thought it was fantastic. They have probably the best calamari I have ever tasted and so many selections of different sushi rolls that it was impossible to pick just one. I decided to go with the Mexi-Cali, an inside-out maki roll with crab mix, cream cheese and jalapeno. It had a dollop of spicy sauce on the top for the perfect amount of hot. If you love sushi, or even if you don't but are brave enough to try it, this place is definitely somewhere you'll want to visit.

The Marquee Lounge is a great bar located just blocks away from Raw Sushi right in the middle of downtown Spokane. It is a swanky bar with high ceilings and a towering bottle display. When we first walked in at around 8:00 there was close to no one in there, but we needed a place to watch the end of the game and the seating looked pleasing. Then we looked at the drink menu and were convinced to stay. They have pages of signature cocktails to pick from, all that looked delicious. We talked about just staying for a bit and then checking out some other places, but the cocktail waitress convinced us that the night would pick up. Boy did it! Within a couple hours, the bar was completely filled with people, the dance floor was packed and the bouncers had to move our table out of the way. We managed to get stamps to go up into the VIP section of the bar, which turned out was basically just a smaller bar upstairs, but it was a cool experience. To check out more pictures of the bar, visit their website. Or just visit the bar!

Water For Elephants

Okay, I know summer is over, but who says you can only have a reading list during a certain season? Being out of school and not needing to read over-sized textbooks anymore, I am able to get back to reading fun books like I used to when I was younger. I recently finished "Water For Elephants" by Sara Gruen and found it very good. The story is about a boy just finishing up vet school when he finds out his parents died and he loses everything. He is walking along train tracks one evening and decides to jump on, only to find himself entering the life of a circus worker. The story is very cute and if you like animal stories you'll probably like this one. Some things are hard to stomach, but it makes the story more enthralling and enjoyable. If you find yourself with some extra time and want a quick read (it took me about 4 days, with a lot of stopping), then pick this one up.

Rogue Dead Guy Ale

I was out with some friends last night at the Red Door in Fremont and didn't really know what I wanted to drink. For those that know me (or go to Beerfest with me), if I don't know what I want, I usually pick the drink with the weirdest name. So last night I chose the Rogue Dead Guy Ale and it turned out to be fantastic! It is probably up there in my top three favorite beers. It has a darker color like an amber or an IPA, but without the bitter flavor. I found it very light and refreshing, almost fruity (but in a good way). Okay so I'm not a beer connoisseur, but it was definitely tasty. I looked it up on Rogue's website and it turns out it won the silver medal in the World Beer Championships three years in a row. So it turns out I might know how to pick good beer, so try it! Even if it wasn't for the name, the label is so badass that, had I seen it in the store, I probably would have bought it for that reason also.

Joy Kampia O'Shell

How awesome is this dress? If you like cheeseburgers as much as me, you'd think it was too. I was looking through an article for "The Best Recycled Halloween Costumes" and this dress pops up. I thought to myself, "I might actually wear that normally." It would take a really awesome pair of shoes and a badass hairdo, but I think given the right occasion, this is definitely wearable. Anyways, I checked out who made it and her name is Joy Kampia O'Shell. I went to her website to see some of her other work and it is actually very interesting. She has a few other dresses that one might want to eat as well as other yummy-looking crocheted items. Definitely take a look at these delicious delights. I can't wait until this dress is in stores!

Yearbook Yourself

If you haven't already heard, as I feel this epidemic has spread like wildfire, the newest way to waste time is to Yearbook Yourself! This is a hilarious website where you can upload a picture of yourself and they place it in old photographs so you can see what you would look like back in the day. It will keep you laughing for hours. You can do it to yourself, friends or even celebrities. Above is Glenn Howerton cerca 1978.

Don't Vote. Unless...

I saw this video on my friends blog Everyday Delights and felt compelled to share it.

Bargains - Part 1

This summer was all about finding the bargains. As much as I love shopping, I usually have a hard time paying full price for most things. With inspiration from my friend who writes shop.frugality, I've decided to share with you some finds that I have come upon in the past few months and to let you know places to look that you might not have thought of. Accessories today, clothing to come later!

White Tiger Bracelet
Urban Outfitters - $5.99
I saw this bracelet and thought "I have to have this" as I am a big fan of tigers. Now, it was originally $24.99 and I never would have bought it at that price, but lucky me I happened upon a sale. Usually the funkier the jewelry, the more likely it is to be on sale. That's why I own so much funky jewelry.

Teal Zebra Bracelet
Chico's - $2.99
Ordinarily people my age wouldn't think to look at an older women's store for jewelry, but I actually own a lot of jewelry from Chico's. They use great colors and it always stands out. I'm not even sure the original price because they just had a giant bowl of bracelets to peruse. It was definitely worth looking through and anyone at any age could find something they like.

Purple Square Ring
Bartell Drugs - $7.00
Who would have though Bartell's would have jewelry this pretty? I saw this and thought since I'm a Husky, I pretty much need it. If you're looking for costume jewelry, or nine simple pairs of earrings for less than $10, it's not only at Claire's, but you can also find them at Bartell's.

The Samantha Jones
For Love 21 - $3.99
I call this necklace "The Samantha Jones" because it looks like something her character would wear on 'Sex and the City' and she is my favorite when it comes to accessories. For Love 21 is the accessories store for Forever 21. It's a great place to find jewelry because they have such a HUGE selection. Even though this one was on sale, the original price was only about $7.99 or so, so basically it's a great deal either way for a cool piece of jewelry.

Walking The Plank
Chico's - $24.99
This one reminds me of a bunch of planks put together for a boardwalk or something. The brown pieces are made to look exactly like wood and give a very exotic, yet elegant look when matched with a low cut dress. Again, it's from Chico's. It's a bit more pricey, yet I'm always looking for something new and different and with the original price being $48.00, I thought the sale price was reasonable.

October

My favorite month is here! There are so many great things about October that you don't even need to focus on the fact that the weather gets cold and your football teams aren't doing the best. It's not just about Halloween. Here are a few more things about October that are great that you may not have known...both in the present and the past.

October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. It has been awareness month for the last 23 years. NBCAM, along with other companies and organizations, have concentrated on distributing brochures, talking to news programs and other events to spread the word about breast cancer.

It's Adpot a Shelter Dog month! Let's be honest. Everyone needs some unrequited love. So save a puppy from having to live in a cage for their lives and take one home with you. How can they not make you smile?

In 1933, the five-day work week was officially sanctioned by the American Federation of Labor. Seven years and 22 days later, part of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, the 40-hour work week went into effect.

Walt Disney World opened in Orlando, Florida in 1971!!

It's National Cookie Month! Along with Halloween (clearly the celebration of candy) we also have the celebration of another delicious treat. Plus Cookie Monster really should have a month just for himself...C is for cookie, that's good enough for me!