big red EP

Clubbing

2012-01-27T23:55:00.009-05:00

We saw Brooke White (Jack&White) perform tonight at the Hotel Cafe in LA. I guess I wasn't supposed to videotape. Oops.

I want I want I want

2012-01-27T16:30:00.002-05:00

This industrial mixer was in the corner of the kitchen at the Stake Center. I want it! I bet it hasn't been used in years. I'm trying to figure out how I can adopt it...

Lunch

2012-01-27T16:30:00.000-05:00

Birmingham High School

2012-01-27T16:20:00.001-05:00

When I got to my high school I just drove through the parking lot, took a few photos and got out of there.

Mulholland Jr. High

2012-01-27T16:20:00.000-05:00

I stumbled around Mulholland Jr. High this morning until a woman asked me what I was doing and told me I had to register. I explained that I had gone to school there and just wanted to take photos. She asked when I was leaving, I told her I was headed out and so I didn't have to register. I had no idea walking down memory lane would be so complicated.

Gault Street Elementary School

2012-01-27T16:15:00.000-05:00

On my third trip to my elementary school today I got in to wander around and take some photos (they made me meet the Principal). I almost gave up but I really wanted to see it. The Principal was very nice and showed me the photo albums they have with school pictures and they were fun to look through.

Van Nuys Stake Center

2012-01-27T16:00:00.000-05:00

When this building was built (in the 50's) I believe it was the largest chapel in the church. There were 2 chapels (one can seat 450 and the other 350), a FULL basketball court, two kitchens (one industrial), a stage, baseball field, and two huge parking lots. It's since been remodeled but the chapels weren't changed much. It was really nice to be able to go inside the building today (someone was there setting up for a wedding).

What's hot?

2012-01-27T15:30:00.000-05:00

Our family frequented Western Bagel when we lived in Van Nuys. It was near our chapel. We always asked "What's hot?" and then we'd get the bagels that were the freshest. I bought a dozen bagels this morning (which is really a baker's dozen) for $8.50. Not a bad price for a good bagel.

LA Temple

2012-01-26T22:40:00.000-05:00

I love the LA Temple. Tonight I met my brother and sister-in-law there. And I saw my old Laurel adviser. And we met my nephew's mission president. The LA Temple was dedicated in 1956 and when it was built it was the tallest building in the area. It's a beautiful building...might be my favorite Temple.

This is the Place

2012-01-26T22:35:00.001-05:00

I LOVE LA

2012-01-26T22:15:00.000-05:00

Flying...

2012-01-26T22:00:00.003-05:00

My first flight was from Boston to Memphis. Imagine my surprise when the flight attendant announced the flight was to Jackson, Mississippi. People gasped! She was confused and immediately announced it was to Memphis.

The guy next to me on the Memphis flight held a barf bag the last 20 minutes of the flight. He didn't have to use it (thank goodness).

2012-01-26T10:22:00.003-05:00

California here I come
Right back where I started from
Where bowers of flowers
Bloom in the spring
Each morning, at dawning
Birdies sing and everything
A sun-kissed miss said, "Don't be late"
that's why I can hardly wait
Open up that golden Gate (or the gate at LAX)
California, here I come.

A new generation is redefining Mormon cuisine

2012-01-25T10:30:00.002-05:00

Mormon cuisine?!?

Not Just for Sundays After Church

photo from the NYT

My kind of winter day

2012-01-24T22:30:00.001-05:00

56 degrees

Busiest work day of the year

2012-01-23T22:15:00.000-05:00

This hole punch was my best friend today on my busiest day of the year.

2012-01-22T15:15:00.000-05:00

More from the party

2012-01-21T21:45:00.001-05:00

Double Open House

2012-01-21T21:40:00.000-05:00

It was a busy October for the Duke boys. Wes and Lauryn were married in the LA Temple in early October and Taylor and Katrina were married in the Seattle Temple in late October. Today Amy hosted an Open House for both couples. There were lots of Arlington Ward "alumni" there. It was wonderful celebration.

(Good) friends

2012-01-21T21:35:00.000-05:00

Reading the Book of Mormon

2012-01-20T22:15:00.001-05:00

I'm reading the Book of Mormon again. The twist this year is I'm trying to not wait until bedtime to read. So far...pretty good.

2012-01-19T22:10:00.000-05:00

Um, yum

2012-01-18T23:00:00.001-05:00

I've got big plans for the cute cowboy fabric

2012-01-17T23:30:00.000-05:00

In my condo

2012-01-16T18:35:00.000-05:00

The table in the entryway.

Last night I was in the kitchen...

2012-01-15T14:00:00.000-05:00

...wearing an apron and making black bean chili, bran muffin mix, and a chocolate cake.

The Cannery

2012-01-14T13:55:00.000-05:00

I went to the Cannery in Worcester this morning. Who wouldn't want to wear a hairnet and operate some heavy equipment? I helped can dehydrated carrots and apples, beans, rice and oats. There were seven of us working together which was really enjoyable (we were a good team). I now have 11 more cans for my Mormon food storage.

Mirror, mirror (almost) on the wall

2012-01-13T23:15:00.001-05:00

Easing into winter

2012-01-12T23:50:00.002-05:00

It was snowy and rainy and slushy this morning. I wore running shoes and didn't bother with my umbrella. Um, hello, it's winter.

Ceilings

2012-01-11T23:45:00.000-05:00

They've been painting the ceiling/molding in Lobby 10 at MIT. I love how it looks. My ceiling isn't quite as fancy but I love that they kept the molding from the original school.

Hope

2012-01-10T16:35:00.002-05:00

2012-01-09T15:35:00.001-05:00

Hamilton, Mass - 01-07-12

Been sick

2012-01-08T23:00:00.000-05:00

I prescribed myself a few movies to watch.

Happy Birthday, Nan!

2012-01-07T20:10:00.000-05:00

Love, your favorite daughter.

The Town of Hamilton recycles Christmas trees

2012-01-07T18:55:00.000-05:00

A sign I've never seen in New England before

2012-01-07T18:50:00.005-05:00

I went to Mulholland Jr. High which isn't far from the real Mulholland Drive.

Strangers in Newburyport

2012-01-07T18:50:00.002-05:00

Strangers to me. They were a cute old couple (and I think they noticed me taking photos).

Newburyport

2012-01-07T18:35:00.000-05:00

I drove to Newburyport today. My plan was to stop at the Oldies Marketplace and then meander. I found a few cool things -- most notably a round beveled mirror. I love Newburyport; it is unbelievably quaint. I fell in love with about 65 houses. I love the ones with the flat fronts that are close to the street (there's probably a fancy name for them). It was warm (as in 55 degrees!) and a great day for a New England drive.

Frozen cookie dough balls

2012-01-06T13:25:00.002-05:00

I gave 45 of these frozen cookie dough balls to someone who likes chocolate chip cookies. I've been wanting to do this for a while but didn't have enough room in my freezer to freeze them on a cookie sheet; now I do.

Backing up my blog

2012-01-05T23:50:00.001-05:00

Making a blog book for 2011 would cost a lot of money (oh the woes of a daily blogger) so I'm continuing to go the pdf route. It's easy! I used blog2print.com and a pdf is only $7.95.

Note: You will need to follow the instruction for making a book and once your blog is uploaded and you are previewing it you will see the pdf option.

Baby it's cold inside

2012-01-04T08:00:00.001-05:00

If I was a Bishop

2012-01-03T20:55:00.003-05:00

My friend's senior-in-high-school daughter had a conversation with her (Mormon) Bishop recently about going to BYU and he told her that her first priority was to "find a husband".

Really? Is it still 1970?

Here's what I would tell a Mormon senior in high school (girl OR boy) going to BYU (or any college):
--This time in your life will be the easiest time for you to get an education.
--Learn to be independent.
--Write letters home (not emails or texts).
--Ask your family to write letters to you. You will treasure them.
--Try to attend as many international cinema movies, devotionals/talks, cultural events, sporting events and special events that you can.
--Make lots of friends. Don't worry about them having everything in common with you. You will be friends with some of these people for the rest of your life.
--Don't be afraid to end a dating relationship if it's not right (and you see "red flags").
--Learn how to live a well balanced life.
--Don't forget about fruits and vegetables.
--Keep a journal and write something every day.
--Use good manners.
--Prepare to make important Temple covenants and live a "Temple life".

copyright Ellen Patton 2012

Rose Parade

2012-01-02T16:55:00.000-05:00

I've lived in Boston 23 years and I think today was the first time I watched (part of) the Rose Parade since moving here from LA. And I love the Rose Parade. [No fire trucks or clowns or throwing candy--I've become a parade snob.] Just beautiful floats, top notch marching bands, horses, and some famous people.

This is the Los Angeles Unified School District ALL-CITY BAND. And they are terrific. I think they said there were 382 brass and percussion members marching today. I was in the high school marching band and I knew kids in the All-City Band. I always felt proud and kind of emotional when they'd march by.

I think we went to the Rose Parade every New Year's Day and during our teenage years we slept out with our dear friends "the Jensens". I have lots of fun memories. One of these years maybe I'll go back and watch it in person.

From the outside

2012-01-01T20:40:00.000-05:00

From the inside

2012-01-01T20:35:00.002-05:00

Sparkling cider

2011-12-31T17:45:00.002-05:00

Market Basket was out. I needed some to go with shrimp cocktail, baked brie and grapes (and the Bourne trilogy). I hope no one saw me going into the Wine & Spirits store (and walking out with a brown paper bag).

2012 CALENDAR GIVE AWAY

2011-12-31T00:00:00.000-05:00

Leave a comment telling me something fun you're going to do in 2012 and I'll draw a random winner at midnight.

I'm hoping to visit LA (where I was born/raised) -- I haven't been there in 19 years!

Click HERE if you want to buy a calendar.

Happy New Year, ALL!

33 weeks

2011-12-30T16:55:00.000-05:00

This afternoon I visited my delightful friend Meg who is 33 weeks along today.

DONUTS

2011-12-30T16:45:00.002-05:00

I've been hearing about this donut shop for a few years (from some of my Medford friends) and today finally got there. Now I know what all the fuss is about. Delicious!

A wreath on every window...

2011-12-29T16:10:00.000-05:00

...one of my favorite things about living in charming New England. This house is down the street from me and I admire it every time I drive by.

Oh, the traffic

2011-12-29T16:00:00.001-05:00

I call this the Market Basket Beltway. If you live near me, you know where this is and you know it's a disaster. They need to fix the light cycles or add traffic cops. Or do something! It's a mess. I try to avoid the M.B. Beltway as often as I can.

A Christmas story

2011-12-29T15:50:00.000-05:00

Seven Christmases ago my friend Becky, a young mother of five, was in the hospital. She had suffered through a few gallbladder attacks and the plan was to have her gallbladder removed the day after Christmas. I remember talking to her a few days before the holiday and she asked what I was going to be doing on Christmas. I said, "If you are in the hospital on Christmas, I want to visit you." She was in the hospital on Christmas and I did visit her. She was fasting in preparation for her surgery the next day but we talked a lot about food. We decided that day that when she felt better we were going to Chili's to get their Awesome Blossom appetizer. Well, we never did. I saw Becky a few weeks ago and we were reminiscing about that Christmas day she was in the hospital and realized we never went to Chili's and we made a plan that we would go this week. We went today and to our shock and disbelief, the Awesome Blossom is no longer on the Chili's menu. Apparently it won "worst appetizer in America" because of its unusually high totals of calorie and fat. Awesome Blossom or not, we had a fun time at Chili's today (and my meal came with onion strings).

We Bought a Zoo

2011-12-28T21:30:00.000-05:00

I saw We Bought a Zoo last night and loved it. The little girl reminded me of Adrienne and Matt Damon seemed like a regular guy. It's definitely worth seeing.

New running shoes

2011-12-28T20:40:00.000-05:00

I drove to the NIKE Outlet (sweet discount) in Wrentham today and bought some new running shoes, however; I only run if I'm being chased.

A package, a magazine and a dozen Christmas cards

2011-12-27T18:15:00.002-05:00

Fancy dinner

2011-12-27T18:10:00.002-05:00

More binders...

2011-12-27T14:25:00.003-05:00

...are organized. I'm getting shizzle done.

Evidence of EP Productivity: the quilt

2011-12-26T23:45:00.000-05:00

P is for Productive

2011-12-26T23:40:00.000-05:00

I'm planning on having a Productive week. Today I made a quilt for a friend's new baby (and did a few other things including going walking with a friend and cleaning out the trunk of my car).

Florida Pattons on Christmas: they've got hair

2011-12-26T12:45:00.002-05:00

Recipes (take 2)

2011-12-25T23:45:00.000-05:00

A few years ago I tackled my recipes and put them in sheet protectors and notebooks. I have a list of projects to work on while I'm on vacation (3 days down, 8 to go!) and tonight I worked on my recipe binders (don't hassle me about having 8 binders, OK?). I had a big stack of recipes that needed to be filed (or tossed) and I got caught up while watching "It's a Wonderful Life".

Christmas gift for Kimberly

2011-12-25T15:35:00.002-05:00

I borrowed Ian and Colin last Saturday and we went to Mentomy Rocks park to take some photos as a gift for Kimberly from her boys. She's going to pick a few that will be enlarged and framed. She called me a few minutes ago and she loves the photos.

Christmas visits

2011-12-25T15:30:00.002-05:00

Luke 2

2011-12-24T18:00:00.000-05:00

My sister-in-law Kim made this origami nativity for her brother's family.

More favorites

2011-12-24T13:50:00.000-05:00

Tonight's the night

2011-12-24T05:00:00.000-05:00

2011-12-23T23:40:00.000-05:00

My favorite Christmas stories

2011-12-23T23:35:00.000-05:00

Click here to read some of my favorite Christmas stories.

Whitman family gingerbread castle

2011-12-23T21:40:00.002-05:00

Rambling around New England today

2011-12-23T20:55:00.000-05:00

Cookies were a hit

2011-12-22T22:40:00.000-05:00

Work gifts are done

2011-12-22T01:30:00.000-05:00

Sweet treat

2011-12-21T18:35:00.000-05:00

Christmas gift

2011-12-20T23:10:00.000-05:00

My creative coworker Diana made this for me. I love it.

Picasa's new features

2011-12-19T23:50:00.000-05:00

There is a new feature in Picasa called Cross Process. It makes this...

...look like this:

...and I really like it. You may have noticed.

Making bretzelis

2011-12-18T21:00:00.000-05:00

I'm making bretzelis tonight. They are labor intensive but worth it. Click here to read about my history with these Swiss cookies.

Santa's mother is in town

2011-12-17T12:25:00.002-05:00

Ward Christmas Brunch

2011-12-17T12:20:00.003-05:00

T EE XX T III NN G

2011-12-16T22:05:00.003-05:00

I'm a very slow texter.

Last Sunday before a church meeting I noticed a cell phone on the windowsill. I put it in my purse and after the meeting tried to figure out who it belonged to (hey, not everybody at church is honest). I slid the top of the phone up and to my surprise, there was a little keyboard. I scrolled through the contacts list, found someone I knew, and texted them that I had found this phone and didn't know who it belonged to and gave them my cell phone number. I got a text back letting me know who the phone belonged to and I called to tell them I had it. End of story.

Not really. I liked texting with a keyboard (welcome to the new century, Ellen!) and decided it was time to upgrade my lame phone. So I did. I got a fancy phone for free and only had to pay the taxes on it. It arrived Thursday (Christmas!) and I love it.

I'm sure I'll be texting like a teen in no time.

Big City night

2011-12-15T22:27:00.003-05:00

After work I took the subway one stop and then walked down Charles Street through Beacon Hill stopping for pizza at Upper Crust (my card had 10 punches so my slice was free!) and then through the Public Garden, along the Boston Common, to the Wang Theater. I have been wanting to see the Radio City Christmas Spectacular (the Rockettes in Boston) and a dear friend had an extra ticket and invited me to join them. It was a relatively warm evening, the Christmas lights and decorations were pretty, and I felt all big-city-girl-ish in downtown Boston.

Special K Treats

2011-12-15T22:20:00.000-05:00

1 stick butter

1 cup sugar

1 cup light Karo syrup

1 cup peanut butter

1 12-oz package Special K cereal

Boil butter, sugar, and syrup in a pan for one minute. Stir in peanut butter until melted. Pour in cereal and stir until well coated. Form into balls and cool on wax paper. Store in air tight container. Try not to eat every last one.

Brimfield Fair soldiers

2011-12-14T00:05:00.000-05:00

Cookie Swap

2011-12-13T22:30:00.003-05:00

Picture #1 - cookies I brought home from the cookie swap

Picture #2 - my contribution to the cookie swap

Note: Late last night I had some problems getting the spritz cookie maker to work (it worked 3 weeks ago)...so I threw it in the sink, put the bowl of dough in the sink, and turned on the water (this was after looking through numerous recipes and deciding what I would make for the R.S. cookie swap). I know. I'm a ten year old.

Movie star brothers

2011-12-12T14:00:00.000-05:00

This is a clip of my brothers Robert and John in a movie called Hitch Hike to Hell (for reals). The director was the husband of one of my dad's co-workers and this clip was filmed at their home in Encino. I am not recommending you rent the movie (if you can even find it); reading the plot summary was disturbing enough for me. But you might enjoy this clip. When I emailed John about it this morning he wrote back asking if Entertainment Tonight was doing a "where are they now?" segment.

This Christmastide

2011-12-11T22:50:00.008-05:00

One of my very favorite holiday traditions is going to the Relief Society Christmas concert at the Longfellow Park Chapel. I'm (obviously) no videographer and this filled my memory card so I didn't get the end. This Christmastide is one of my favorite Christmas songs.

2011-12-11T21:45:00.000-05:00

2011-12-10T12:20:00.000-05:00

2012 CALENDARS - ORDER NOW!

2011-12-09T01:00:00.001-05:00

Click HERE to order your calendar.

Anthropologie in New York City

2011-12-08T23:15:00.000-05:00

They always have cool displays and windows.

Christmas movie

2011-12-07T22:20:00.004-05:00

I sent this email to a few single friends today:

Does anyone want to go with me to see this movie on Christmas?

http://www.warhorsemovie.com/

A few hours went by. No responses. And then I remembered Christmas is on a Sunday and sent this email: Um...I just remembered that Christmas is on a Sunday...so I guess I won't be going to the movies. What is wrong with me?!? :)

On the sidewalk

2011-12-06T22:15:00.000-05:00

Brother Bishop

2011-12-05T23:15:00.001-05:00

My brother John was sustained as the Bishop of a single adult ward in the LA area yesterday. He's been a counselor for a few years and got the big promotion (ha!). He'll be great. He has a big heart and is one of the most caring and committed people I know. Belle took this picture of Robyn and John right after he was set apart.

Ten taking on The City

2011-12-05T13:00:00.001-05:00

Purl SoHo

2011-12-04T20:00:00.005-05:00

I discovered PurlSoHo a few years ago and have been to the store in New York City a few times and read their blog. The old store was tiny (smaller than my living room); it was very New York. Yesterday I went to the new store. It's just as awesome as the old store only bigger. I found some cool fabric and notions and felt inspired to keep on sewing.

NYC at Christmastime-a great day!

2011-12-03T23:55:00.000-05:00

Coin purses

2011-12-03T05:00:00.002-05:00

I'm going to NYC for the day with a gaggle of gals. I made them each a coin purse for their pin money.

Sewing factory is open

2011-12-02T07:30:00.000-05:00

Wreath Making Party

2011-12-01T23:55:00.003-05:00

It's one of my very favorite New England traditions and the best way to start the holiday season. It was tonight--it was wonderful (and it's ovah!).

Breaking (bad) Dawn

2011-11-30T18:40:00.000-05:00

I'm not the only one who wanted to LAUGH OUT LOUD when werewolves were running through the forest in Breaking Dawn Part 1, am I?!?

The view from my loft

2011-11-29T00:05:00.000-05:00