Sir-up or SEAR-up?

It's amazing how words and colors make people feel. This week, a lot of people posted the Pantone color of the year.

Here it is.

And here was my reaction:

Me too, kitty.

Me. too.

Radiant, my hiney. It's so dull and awful. It seriously makes me feel ill. 

But some people love it! What part of our brain determines whether a color makes us gag or squeal?

My theory is that it's the same part of our brain that makes us cringe when people pronounce something a certain way.

Take syrup for example. When Bobby Flay said SEARup this morning instead of SIRup, I wanted to reach through the TV and tape his mouth up with some radiant orchid duct tape. But he'd probably say the same about me if he heard SIRup.

Then there's CARmel and CARAmel. I'm a carmel person, personally. CARAmel gives me an eye twitch.

And don't get me started on PREEEEsentation. Really - don't.


What makes you twitchy?

Cold weather makes me twitchy. But not if it's only on paper. Tonight I'm hosting a Virtual Stamp Night Challenge for our Up to SNOW good VSN - the challenges are completely adorable.

My challenge is for you to get nekkid and STREAK!!

Hang on, you freaks - keep your clothes on! Wait for instructions please! :D

Here are all the details of the challenge - so at least keep your clothes on until you read them.

We're giving away Fan Club Memberships too so you'll definitely want to play.

For my challenge sample, I used this week's Mix-Ability challenge for inspiration. Kyra challenged us to use Versamark and chalk or pastels, so I decided to bust out my Pan Pastels that I bought in Santa Fe in 2012 and still had not opened. (Shame on me.)

I taped this stencil down over my Whisper White card base and then used my Ranger blending tool to apply Versamark all over the cardstock.

I removed the stencil and used a sponge to apply Pan Pastel in Ultramarine, Phthalo Green Tint and Hansa Yellow Shade.

They have such a soft feel to them - it's not like chalks at all - it feels more like a very silky makeup powder. I'm in love. They work so well with Versamark.

Since I wanted the technique to be the star of the show, I chose just a small greeting from Christmas Messages and a little snowflake from Snowflake Soiree. I added a teeny rhinestone to the center and voila - a streak!

Now that is a very self confident streaker!

Now, I have to bring you another crockpot recipe.

Dina sent this one to me. I modified the recipe of course - the original one called for fish sauce, which reeks like roadkill, so that wasn't an option. I always substitute ponzu or hoisin, or sometimes a mix of the two. For this recipe I used ponzu. Also, for some reason, once again the internet brings us a recipe without salt. I don't get it. So I had to use a lot of added salt. I like my peas crunchy, so I did something different with those. Finally - it needed heat - I don't think Thai food is completely done if it doesn't make my face sweat. I added a LOT of pequins - more than most humans would like - so use cayenne to taste if you want to spice it up. It is INSANELY delicious. Even my completely anti-soup human LOVED it and came back for thirds.

Enjoy! Then take your clothes off and come play in my challenge!

Thai Crockpot Chicken Soup

2 tablespoons red curry paste

2 12 ounce cans of coconut milk

2 cups chicken stock

2 tablespoons ponzu or hoisin

2 tablespoons brown sugar

2 tablespoons peanut butter

1 1/2 pounds chicken breasts, cut into 1 1/2 inch pieces

1 red bell pepper, seeded and sliced into 1/4 inch slices

1 onion, thinly sliced

1 heaping tablespoon fresh ginger, minced

40 chile pequins, crushed, or serrano, Thai chili or cayenne for heat 

1 cup frozen peas

juice of 1 lime

cilantro for garnish

cooked white rice

salt, to taste (it needed 4-5 teaspoons)

chopped peanuts 

Mix the curry paste, coconut milk, chicken stock, ponzu sauce, brown sugar and peanut butter in a 4-1/2 to 6-quart slow-cooker bowl. Place the chicken breast, red bell pepper, chiles, onion and ginger in the slow cooker, cover and cook on high for 4.5 hours.

Cook the rice in chicken stock instead of water. (I toast my rice first - I think it tastes better that way.) When the rice is done, add the frozen peas, stir and replace lid, while you stir the lime juice into the soup.

To serve, put rice in a bowl and pour the soup over the top. Garnish with cilantro and chopped peanuts. 

(Original recipe)

Whisper my name.