LydMc

The coolest elephant in town. If you've ever wanted to spice up your linen closet with a pachyderm or two, you've come to the right place. Whether your fluffy, homemade towel elephant (a.k.a. towelephant) is meant for welcoming a guest to their new room cruise ship style, reenacting scenes from Disney's Dumbo  or simply enjoying the art of folding towels origami style (towelgami),  this fun and illustrated guide can help you turn any set of towels into an adorable, little elephant of your own. To begin, you will need two towels. For a standard elephant, a bath towel and a hand towel work great. Once you have the basics down, try mixing other combinations (beach towel, wash cloth, etc.) to yield different shapes and sizes for your terry cloth pals. Mind the gap! Step 1: Lay the bath towel out flat and fold the two sides in hot dog style, leaving a gap an inch or two wide in the middle (where the proverbial hot dog would go). We're on a roll! Step 2:

UCSD Rocks!  I recently had the joy of returning to my alma mater, the University of California, San Diego, on a wonderful trip with my mom. It was the first time I'd been back since graduation, and it was an amazing adventure filled with old sights, new experiences, delicious food,  giant bear hugs (courtesy of  Bear  by Tim Hawkinson)  and an incredible race to the finish.  The reason this experience merits a Celebration Shout Out is because without a doubt, UCSD celebrates creativity. If the incredible architecture, spirit of learning and independent art scattered across campus weren't enough, the Stuart Collection of art seals the deal. So without further ado, please enjoy a small virtual tour! These could also be koala catchers. When I first arrived at UC San Diego, the RAs and tour guides introduced the strange blue creations hanging in the trees above as Giraffe Catchers, installed one fateful day to subdue some runaway giraffes escaped from the San Diego

Cherry Pi! Pies are one of my all-time favorite things to bake. Cookies, brownies, cakes and tarts... they're all good, but when it comes down to it, they're just not pie.  If you think about it, pies ar e actually easier to make than most people assume. Unlike cookies, you just have to pan it once, and unlike cakes, once it's in the pan you don't have to ice or decorate it.  Plus, with the right spelling, it's incredibly nerdy. B) Lemon Pi! The first time I was inspired to make a Pi Pie was actually for BBQ at my old math professor's house. Appropriate, right? Well, it got such a positive reaction - even from the guests not so mathematically inclined - that I decided to make it tradition. Lemon meringue, country peach, sweet potato, grasshopper and even chicken pot pie. Or should I say pi...? But what is a pie without its crust?! Kitchen Tip:  Try using a cheese grater to cut cold butter into your crust. It cuts the time and effort of such

Take that, imperial swine! My nephew is pretty much the coolest kid on the planet. No shame to any other kids on this or other planets either - it's not that they aren't cool, it's just that my nephew is the coolest. You know why? Last time I went to see him, he drew me this: Da na na na na na na na... BATMAN! And Robin! And the Bat Symbol! Yeah, James is cool for a lot of reasons, but he gets extra über brownie points for drawing my favorite superhero for me at school. He's so thoughtful and nerdy already! It's enough to make a proud, geeky aunt sigh!  I was so grateful for his awesome gift of art, that I offered to draw him a picture in return. What did he request? AT-AT, sketch edition. Star Wars Angry Birds . I wasn't too familiar with that branch of the Angry Birds franchise at the time, but I know Star Wars ! James was kind enough to introduce me to his new favorite ap, and even show me tips on how to play. (As a side note I find