Why so serious?

A year ago I joined Atlanta Rollergirls after moving to Atlanta from Wisconsin.  With Stateline, my teammates and I struggled to hold a wall for any length of time.  Now I want to be an all-star for one of the top tier leagues in the world.  I've always been an ambitious little thang, I suppose.

I'll start by acknowledging that while I've gotten better over the past year, I'm not satisfied with where I'm at now.  To mitigate this problem, I've created a training schedule for the next three months before tryouts.  I'm buckling down.  In addition to attending almost every minute of practice, I'm also planning workouts, eating clean, drinking water, and getting as much sleep as possible. 

Figuring out how to train improve in the most efficient way, how to use my individual skills to make smart plays, and how to stand out as a highly-effective blocker is a tall order, especially since derby is a newer sport.  There's no established training method and what's considered effective seems to be a moving target.  I'm reasonably competent at some strange things, including sideways and backward blocking.  But those aren't the old standbys.  They're fancy, I guess.  This would be like if I was good at tap dancing but had some trouble with walking.  My team wants me to "walk" better and "tap dance" less.  It's hard to stop doing what feels most successful to do.  I want to be the best teammate possible.  But I also want to stand out.  Quandary.

I've got something to prove.  I'm a pretend rookie.  It's my first year with Atlanta, and I basically started with the skills of their draftable fresh meat.  But I've been doing derby for three years now.  I've been going to almost every practice and giving it my all for three years.  I've had no off-season.  Ever. And I'm gonna do that again in the interest of growing leaps and bounds in my sport.  I'm tired.  And I'm scared of failure.  But I want this so badly! And I AM GOING TO DO IT.

I know if I make the team I will have access to even more tools to make me successful.  I just have to take it to that level myself, first.  Want.  Going after it 100%.

Thrilla in Vanilla is Peachy!

Thrilla in Vanilla, along with the Mister and me, have moved to Atlanta, Georgia. Hoping to have some more time for baking and blogging, now that I'm not working at work.

22 Punkin Pies

Mini pumpkin pies inspired by Bakerella. They look like little punkins! So cute, so easy, so delishus. My secrets: cardamom and Vietnamese cinnamon. (Thanks, President Clinton, for lifting that trade embargo. You don't want to miss out on this spice.)


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

The Party of the Biennium Returns!

Halloween Party, originally uploaded by sdauscher.

The Dauscher-Sather Halloween party is on for 2009. Don't call it a comeback. Please join us at the party's new home for mass revelry in fabulous costumes. As always, expect tricks, treats, music, beverages, and the cider of death. Debauchery and scandal encouraged.

Bring who you like and leave with who you've come to like more! Guests are encouraged to bring supplementary beverages. Thanks to Ben Nerad and Arla Dauscher, red wine arm wrestling is now strictly prohibited.

Come for the liquor, stay for the boos. (It's a pun!)

Batter up!

Cookie Magazine launched a birthday cake contest today. Obviously, my entry's already in. Cookie asked readers to submit a photo of the best (original) birthday cake they've ever made. To keep things timely, I decided to go with the Milwaukee Brewers cake I made for my fiance's 24th birthday this June. While the team isn't doing so hot this year, my cake was a big hit at the Old Fashioned, so wish me luck in my second contest endeavor!

Color Me Impressed

Threadcakes winners announced! It's not me, but some of these are pretty sweet and are worth checking out. Next year is mine.

Lemon Aid and Threadcakes

My dream of participating in an internet competition of cakes based on clever t-shirts has finally come true. It's been realized thanks to Threadcakes and "Lemon Aid."

The cake was inspired by the adorable and gruesome paramedic lemons rushing to the aid of a injured lemon with more than just a flesh wound. I like to think that in the end, our little juicy lemon friend was saved.

I used a box cake in the interest of time, but it was still delicious and covered in homemade buttercream frosting. Behold, the artist's process:

My KitchenAid mixer going to work. How I love my KitchenAid!

Then bake for 28 minutes and...

Slather in buttercream

Cover in fondant.

Those dots don't punch themselves out.

Sculpt a sliced lemon. Pock it up good.

And voila! (Just add lemon blood.)

We had cake in celebration of the Dairyland Dolls' decisive victory over the Brew City Bruisers. It tasted like victory. Threadcakes wanted photos of everything, up through shoving the knife in and enjoying delicious cake. So here it is, the moment I stab it to death:

And then Tommy noms a lemon.

Then we're done! (Poor little fella.)

See my entry and more at Threadcakes!