Easy peasy au naturel, 10-step blackberry jam

[Disclaimer: You'll want to read this post all the way
through because there's a mini giveaway at the end!]

Since being unemployed, I've felt like I've had more time to feed my creative sole. More time to read, more time to design, more time to write (even if you don't see me more here - I have 1,000 other projects going on), more time to say, "Hey, I've always wanted to do that... " And then I DO IT. Go figure.

In the last couple weeks, I've noticed blackberries blooming into big, fat, weighted, sweet gloriousness on the various paths I take while walking, biking or running through my environment. Then I walked into Metropolitan Market last week and saw a table set-up, advertising the products they carry to make jams and jellies. Ding, ding, ding! Light bulb. (They see girls like me coming a mile away.) I decided I really wanted to make blackberry jam from scratch. And oh hey, look! I have a TON of time on my hands without that eight hours a day, oh you know, spent in the black hole of a cubicle office.

So, I bought the ingredients last weekend, and I Martha Stewart geeked out into the best case version of a housewife that I know. (A swearing, drinking, sassing Martha Stewart, which is much more fun because we're better in bed, if you ask me). Of course, this led to me purchasing my ingredients at Metro Market. This was a stupid idea, in hindsight, that the BF was so kind to point out, because I am UNEMPLOYED and something tells me that I might have been able to find cheaper jam ingredients such as empty jars other than a place that caters to those who actually make money and can afford $4 cans of yams.

What concluded, after I obsessively read what I believe is every blackberry jam recipe and canning instructions available on the Worldwide Web, was a night of whipping up some pretty damn fantastic au naturel blackberry jam. Even if it meant I had to drag myself out to pick more blackberries in the dark at NINE P.M. cause I didn't have enough. Here is my Martha Stewart geekiness and easy peasy instructions for you in pictures:

What You'll Need - in layman's terms:
Canning jars with lids
Pectin (No Sugar Needed Pectin for a sugar-free or au naturel jam)
Blackberries (Or other fruit that sounds yummy)
Splenda, honey or other sweetener of choice
No sugar added apple or white grape juice
A very, very large pot
A large saucepan
A potato masher, or big metal thingamajig
Tongs
A couple clean towels

1. Find blackberries and pick em. Just don't tell PETB (People for the Ethical Treatment of Blackberries). If you're really smart, you'll enlist a boyfriend or friend to help you out since this is the most strenuous part of the adventure, and having thorn-poked fingers and brier-scratched arms sucks.

2. Pick somewhere around 8 cups (to make four 8 oz jars). If you pick only four ounces, you'll have to go back outside in the DARK to pick BLACKberries. This is very difficult. You've been warned.

3. Put your jars and lids in the pot, fill it with water and heat the water on medium-high heat, but make sure it doesn't boil. This heats the jars so they don't crack when the hot jam is poured in.

4. In the large saucepan, mash the berries with a potato masher, or something that can equivalently mash such as the metal thingamajig I used, one layer at a time. Don't puree them in a food processor!

5. Once all the berries are mashed, add a cup of no-sugar-added apple or white grape juice and one package of no-sugar-needed Pectin. This is for the sugar-free or au naturel jam. If you want to make jam with seven cups of sugar, you can purchase the regular box of pectin. Boil the berries and pectin/apple juice mixture until it rapidly boils and cannot be stirred down.

6. Next add the sweetener of your choice - or none, if you like. You can use Splenda, another artificial sweetener or honey, which is what I chose. If you'd like to use honey too, add one cup. Bring this mixture to another rapid boil, for three minutes, stirring constantly. While this is boiling, or earlier if you can fit it in, pull the jars and lids out of the hot water with tongs and place them on a clean, dry towel.

7. Skim the foam off the top of the heated jam, then ladle or pour, using a funnel, the jam into each individual, warmed jars. Wipe the edges and rims of the jar with a clean, damp towel. Screw the lids on tightly.

8. Using the tongs, carefully place the jars back into the very, very large pot of hot water. Make sure there is one to two inches above the tops of the jars, and bring the water to a boil with the lid on. Let it boil for 10 minutes (or the correct time for your altitude, according to the instructions in the pectin box). What you're during right now is sealing and preserving the jam, so you can store it, and it won't go bad.

9. While this is boiling, pour any leftover blackberry jam mixture over vanilla ice cream IMMEDIATELY. Eat it like a fat kid eats cake.

10. After 10 minutes, carefully take the jars out with tongs and set them on a clean towel. Don't shake them, so the pectin in the jam can set. Let them cool on the counter for 12 to 24 hours. If the lid doesn't pop up and down after this, each jar is properly sealed and preserved. Decorate them with ribbons and a label if you're a SUPER dork like me.

TA DA! Easy peasy au naturel blackberry jam in only 10 steps. Isn't it fabulous to have a jam that is made of only blackberries, apple juice and honey?! The stuff in the grocery store is so full of sugar and additives... I'm now inspired to try to make all types of jam from scratch - it was that easy!

So, if you made it though that entire, ridiculously long post on how to make blackberry jam, I will reward you... I'm giving away one little jar of my beautiful culinary masterpiece that I'm quite proud of. THAT'S how much I love you! All you have to do is leave one little comment, telling me you're absolute favorite type of jelly, jam or toast topping. (Peanut butter, honey and cinnamon sugar is accepted as well). Make sure your profile links to a place that I can find your e-mail... I'll choose the winner of the jar of au naturel blackberry jam on Friday. Good luck!

Currently Feeling: Overworked and underpaid - I'm volunteering so much, it's taking up all my time! But it feels really great to be involved.
Currently Anticipating: Having a free day tomorrow.
Currently Loving: The both Top Chef and Project Runway have started! TV swooon!

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At the moment...

... I feel like I'm on the convergence of some really fantastic paths that will take me places I've never been and help me to grow into the women I'm not quite become...

...I'm training (rather quickly) for a 5K that I signed up for at the end of September. It's a 5K during Seattle's Oktoberfest, so I'm running TOWARD a beer garden. And then I have a prepurchased ticket to get into the beer garden after the run. Nothing like a little motivation! I will cross this off my list of things to-do in 2009. BTW, did I mention I hate running...

...I'm networking and meeting more fantastic new Seattle ladies than I ever thought possible. A personal mantra of mine is that you can never have too many friends, and there's always a new friend to be had. This city is coming even more alive for me than it ever has been. And it's making me fall in love with Seattle all over again...

...I'm working really hard on my relationship with The BF and making time for just he and I. With all the networking and volunteering I'm doing, and all the home remodeling and working he's doing, we lost site of ourselves and our relationship for a short time. Now we're trying to schedule more date nights, be more romantic, appreciate each other that much more. And I tell yah what, being conscious of these kind of changes and an ebb and flow in a relationship makes you that much stronger...

...I have a new entrepreneurial spirit that is blossoming and growing on a daily basis. I've met so many people who've started their own business, who are their own boss daily and who manage their own time and schedule. And for the first time in my life, I said out loud, "I think I want to own my own business some day..."

...I've lost most of the epic tan of my lifetime since the weather has been a bit cooler this August in Seattle. I'm not yet ready for the summer to kiss us goodbye, but I am welcoming to the change in temperature and not sweating a puddle in my bed every night. Is there anything more uncomfortable than trying to sleep in 100-degree weather without air conditioning...

...I'm behind 200+ blog posts in my feed reader. I haven't read some of my favorite blogger's updates since mid July. I've been busy with outdoor stuff, and when I'm not outdoors I'm busy with job searching stuff. But I miss my blogs dearly, and if you haven't heard from me in awhile, it's not because I've stopped all together. Today I'm determined to get through all outstanding posts and catch up on the blogosphere for the last month. Here goes nothing...

What are you "in the moment" about right now?

Currently Feeling: Lazy from all the fun last night. I need to get up and pound out my training run today, so I don't guilt trip myself all day.

Currently Anticipating: Date night at The Flaming Lips tonight!
Currently Loving: That Labor Day is approaching - I swear it's one of my all time favorite weekends, even if it does kinda signify the end of summer.

Excuse me while I kiss the sky

A couple weekends ago, I went on a trip to Orcas Island in the San Juans Islands. I went there last year with Baby Daddy, and we just loved the place so much, we went again this year. For those of you who are local and pay attention to my Washington-focused food, wine and camping blog, you've probably seen my post about Orcas Island already. But, I just wanted to share a few of the sunset pics that I took while there for the readers here.

I have always been a lover of the sun. Always. Sometimes I wonder why the hec I can't be like all the other Seattlelites who rave about the grey and clouds - some people here live for that weather. Me, I live for the three, sometimes four, months a year we get sunshine. But my trip to Orcas made me realize that as much as I love the sun, I love watching it set just as much.

When I was little, my mom used to tell me that a sunset happened when the Angels were baking cookies. While it's not my MO to be all religious, I still like to think of Angels baking cookies each night the sun sinks down behind the clouds and glowing oranges spread out over the sky. For some reason, it still comforts me just as it did when I was a little girl.

Shadows just look so much better in the glow of a sunset - holding hands is that much more romantic - night is less depressing and scary - and the thought that you get to wake up again tomorrow and watch the sunset all over again just makes it great to be alive.

[all photos taken on my Nikon COOLPIX P90, on loan for the Nikon Coolpix Circle]

Where's the best sunset you've ever seen?

Currently Feeling: Sleepy after a night out on the town with my twin besties from high school (one lives in San Diego and is in town for the week)!
Currently Anticipating: The Flaming Lips concert tomorrow and one of my bestie's wedding barbecue wedding reception on Saturday. (The one who got married in Mexico in April).
Currently Loving: That I've had a former college acquaintance AND a former coworker move into my building! How fun! I've never had girls I've known in my building before... lots of girly wine nights on patios and realty TV parties in my future.

Update: 100 Salads of Summer

Last week, I started picking my way through the list of 101 Salads for Summer that I previously posted about. I decided that I'd just randomly move through the list as my taste buds see fit. The first two I picked out were:

# 2. Mix wedges of tomatoes and peaches, add slivers of red onion, a few red-pepper flakes and cilantro. Dress with olive oil and lime or lemon juice. Astonishing.

My notes: I love that these "salads" can be served alone, or work great as a side dish too. I think I'll have a better understanding of how to pair veggies, fruits, oils and ingredients after this. It's hard, however, to figure out the proportions of these salads since each "recipe' is just an ingredients list. I thought the red onion WAY overpowered this salad; next time I'll use way less. The cilantro is also powerful, and the red pepper didn't stand out enough. The colors in this salad are simply amazing though! Red, green, orange, yellow, purple! I threw mine over some quineau and served it with chile lime verde crusted salmon.

# 3. A nice cucumber salad: Slice cucumbers thin (if they’re fat and old, peel and seed them first), toss with red onions and salt, then let sit for 20 to 60 minutes. Rinse, dry, dress with cider vinegar mixed with Dijon mustard; no oil necessary.

My Notes: Who doesn't love cucumber! I once again guessed on the ingredients - and didn't put enough Dijon mustard in the cider vinegar. But this was super easy breezy. I served it with a portebello mushroom Garden Burger over a lettuce leaf, sprinkled with pepper jack cheese. Kinda random, but I'm cutting out carbs this week to make up for all the wine I drank last week! (I had two wine tasting events I attended. Uber fun; but that much wine is terrible for the waistline).

The next two I'm going to try:

6. Sichuan slaw: Toss bean sprouts, shredded carrots and celery, minced fresh chili, soy sauce, sesame oil and a bit of sugar. Top with chopped peanuts and chopped basil, mint and/or cilantro. (The full trio is best.)

14. A classic Moroccan thing: Thinly slice carrots, or grate or shred them (the food processor makes quick work of this). Toss with toasted cumin seeds, olive oil, lemon juice and cilantro. Raisins are good in here, too. There is no better use of raw carrots.

(I have a box of fresh cilantro now that I'm trying to use up!)

Currently Feeling: Over packed with all this volunteering I'm doing - but at least I'm staying busy!
Currently Anticipating: The season opener of Top Chef 6 tonight! There are two Seattle chefs on it this season, and I've met one of them!
Currently Needing: To stick to my 5K training program. (Don't laugh). I finally registered for one in September, so I can cross it off my to-do list for 2009!

On decorating in pink...

As most of you know, I'm in a LTR. If you're like me, and you had no idea what that little acronym meant until about a year ago, I'll let you in on the little secret - it's Long Term Relationship. (Woowee. How exciting!) I've been in my LTR for nearly two years now. EEEKK. Really, that just scares the bejesus out of me. Am I the only one who feels like their life is flying by at warped speed? Before I know it, I'll be writing some sappy, long post about turning 30. (Puke in my cereal. What? Why yes, it's past noon, and I'm eating cereal. Don't judge).

In a LTR relationship at 27, most people have already moved in together or are talking about it in the very near future as their "next step." Not me and Baby Daddy though; no sirree. We're on a slow path (or something). There are a few personal reasons why moving in together isn't in our very near future, but I'll tell you my favorite part of holding out on living with a boyfriend (besides that I get to sneak away from him whenever I want and do super single behavior in the comfort of my own home like watching trashy reality TV and perusing the Internet while reading US Weekly on commercial breaks and painting my toenails. What can I say; I'm an excellent multi-tasker). One of the very tip top reasons is that I still get to decorate in PINK. Hot pink to be exact.

See, when you move in with someone, you have to give up girly decorating and be all adult or something. Think about all the couples you know who live together - I bet their bedroom or living room is light blue and brown. What is it about that combo that is so conventional couples bedroom? I mean it's a lovely pairing; I'm not knocking it - I just don't want to give up decorating in PINK and butterflies just yet. My room is so girly it's almost comical to see my boyfriend sleeping on my pink sheets.

How much do you love that wall cling that I posted about buying a month ago?

To me, there's nothing more pretty and lovely, and the best to wake up to, than hot pink and butterflies... perhaps with a hint of orange, yellow and turquoise. What can I say, I love to live a life on COLOR like my girl Lily.

Yes, this is the Ikea mirror that everyone and their mother has - the butterflies are a hanging glitter butterfly garland, that I found at one of my favorite stores in Seattle, Fireworks Gallery

Atop my desk sits a crepe flower I bought at a Fremont Sunday Market,
and the framed print I bought, handmade from Etsy of course!

Some of these handmade, handpicked items are so special to me - what am I supposed to do? Just toss them aside, gift them, give them away at a garage sale? It will be a sad day when I have to let go of my hot pink crepe flower (that is literally nearly three feet tall) or my strand of glitter butterfly garland. I mean, no girly room is complete without it. And even worse than getting rid of these will be hiding all my fashionista crap that I've accumulated through the years. When you live with a boy, is it appropriate to...

Display your 100+ hanging earrings & necklaces on the wall as if
they were art? (Psst. I bought this handmade jewelry holder at an art fair for $25).

Or your scarves, hats and 20+ purses of the moment (20+ more in a plastic storage
bin under the bed)? (Psst. That little hot pink phrase wall cling came as an
EXTRA bonus with my "Keep Calm and Carry On." Don't cha love it?!)

Or have a ridiculously large storage bin of make-up
(lip gloss drawer shown here) on a table for ease of use?

No. It's not. And I tell yah what, I love my boyfriend, but currently I love my hot pink and butterfly Princess girly fashionista bedroom just a little bit more. Me, brown and light blue might be friends someday, but for now I'm going to enjoy every dang minute of waking up in my hot pink sheets, sometimes alone if I want to be.

What are you going to be reluctant to give up when you move
in with a boy? And if you already live with your boyfriend or
husband, what do you miss the most about not cohabiting?

Currently Feeling: In love with Rilo Kiley, Pandora, my time, the sun again in Seattle and life in general.
Currently Anticipating: Getting through this busy week - I feel like I'm even more busy unemployed than I was when I worked every day!
Currently Loving: Lucerne rootbeer float ice cream bars - only 100 calories!

Personal Mission Statement

I have an interview in, oh um, 34 minutes. Just a screen interview - but at Amazon.com, so that's pretty exciting. Right now I'm researching the group I'd be working for and going through my list of "Top 100 Interview Questions" that I used when I was trying to interview before I found my last job. I filled all of the interview questions in - and it's super interesting to read through what I expected or how I'd answer some of them. I'm definitely a bit more firm in my needs and wants in a job... last time I was just kinda throwing stuff against the wall in hopes that it'd stick.

I just came to question # 56, "What is your personal mission statement?" And this is what I'd wrote as my 24 or 25-year old self:

I want to live a life of no regrets. I want to love to my fullest, travel all the time, learn everything I can and excel in my career. I want to be happy. I want to get up everyday with a smile.

I really like that. I want to get up everyday with a smile. I need to hold fast to that personal mission and never lose site of it again.

Currently Feeling: Nervous. Duh! Even though it's just a phone screen, I haven't interviewed in a really long time.
Currently Anticipating: Bike riding this afternoon, even though the weather kind of stinks right now! Thankfully it's supposed to get back up in the 80s this weekend.
Currently Reading: My Mother's Lovers by Christopher Hope. (A Seattle Times Best Book of the Year!)

Atleast once a day, kiddies!

Apologies in advance, for I'm about to talk about something slightly gross and inappropriate...

No, not fat people, chicken farming, vaginas or puking...

FLOSSING.

I'll admit. I spent a huge chunk of my life not flossing. I'd always dread the dentist cause they'd jam their floss in between my teeth (in a very ungentle fashion), leaving my gums sore for days afterward. And they'd lecture me each time, "Do you FLOSS? You need to FLOSS. At least once a day!"

I think flossing was flushed down the same shoot as washing my face every night. (I know, I know. I'm gross. And I can't believe I'm admitting this on the worldwide Web.) I guess I can just blame my MOM. Thanks a lot mom. You forgot to teach me, at a young age so it was ingrained in my being, that I needed to floss and wash my face every night. Hmph.

So it wasn't until recently that I started to become a Flosser. I don't know if it's because my teeth are moving, leaving larger and larger gaps as I get older (that's really exciting to think about), but in the last six months or so, I feel like I always have something stuck in my teeth after eating. So I started flossing after every meal, and OH.MY.GOD.

Have you seen the stuff that gets stuck in your teeth after a meal? I mean, I'm pulling out huge chunks of chicken, steak, bacon (Mmm. Maybe I should save that for later) or whatever else I've eaten. It seriously, seriously disturbs me. I mean, if you don't floss after meals, or at least at night, that food is just sitting in your teeth ROTTING. Like rotten meat. In your TEETH and mouth. The same mouth you kiss people with! And if you don't floss and get that junk out of there, where does it go? Does it just disintegrate into your gums? Have you ever had a chunk of something come out of your teeth in your mouth, and you're like, "Hmm. I didn't eat corn for dinner..." Yah. Because if you didn't floss, it's probably the corn you ate LAST WEEK.

Do you see how neurotic I've become about this? I've starting carrying around floss in my bag. And the times I haven't had floss (like when I forget it camping), I make my BF drive me to the store so I can buy some. I mean, I'm probably diddling away my severance package on dental floss. Thank god the BF is just as neurotic about it. I mean, we both shiestly sneak away after every meal so we can floss, which is kinda weird, but at least I know I'm not going to be kissing someone with rotten food in their teeth. I think if I find myself single again someday, "Being a Flosser" is going to go on my list of requirements in a mate.

Cause all I'm going to think about every time I kiss someone from here on out is, "Gee, I hope you don't have ROTTEN DEAD BABY ANIMAL hiding away anywhere in there."

I bet you want to go floss now.

Currently Feeling: An extreme need to grocery shop. I've been getting creative with all the boxes and random ingredients, but now I'm out of eggs, bread and milk. Booo. Hisss.
Currently Anticipating: Bike riding tonight and then Superbad at Redhook Brewery outdoor summer movies.
Currently Loving: Tuna. With lots and lots of pickles!

Trimming down my lady bits

I posted a couple weeks ago that I was trying a Summer Slimdown diet I found on Pretty in the City. I spent tons of money on fresh ingredients and special Tupperware for my salads, breakfasts and snacks (Um, if you haven't seen the Fit N Fresh Tupperware, you must seek them out immediately. They come equipped with containers for dressing, silverware, frozen ice pack, etc. AND I found mine at Ross). Anywhoo. I did the diet for only a week, but I didn't have as hard of a time with it as Karyn from Pretty in the City. I didn't find myself headachy or starving. But then again, I try to keep a low sugar, healthy diet anyway. I liked the food, and I lost two pounds in the first week. (Water weight, but at least the scale was moving down!) Then it just became a little too hard to maintain with all the summer fun, barbecues and, ahem, wine. The lack of variety got to me (you can only have olive oil or guacamole for dressings or dips), so I eventually lost track of it as my healthy ingredients started to rot. I will say, if you decide to try it - I added a couple squirts of balsamic vinegar to my salads. Salads with just olive oil? Yuck! AND the Peanut Butter Cookie Larabar's are Aaaa-mazing. Did anyone try it and succeed? Karyn has lost somewhere around 15 pounds, and I'm totally jealous.

Moving right along... I'm trying something new - but not a detoxish type thingy or pseudo fad diet. I'm going to do something FUN. I was reading Sweats in the City, and she posted an article in the New York Times with 100 quick and easy summer salads. How cool is that!

Francesco Tonelli for The New York Times

I'm always wanting to expand my salad options... I'm super uncreative and usually just eating sliced grilled chicken with some veggies and a random dressing. So, I decided that I'm going to try out two salads a week until I get bored with it. I haven't decided yet if I should jump around, or start at 1 and work through... No diet. Just a little healthy food adventure I'm creating for myself. I'll share the ones I super duper love here!

Currently Feeling: Surprisingly fresh even though I went to bed at 4am last night cause I was uploaded photos and writing blogs. WTF?
Currently Anticipating: Walking down to Purple Wine Bar & Cafe to meet Paolo, Cari and Al for lunch - and taking some pics of Seattle along the way!
Currently Contemplating: Finding a digi cam class to take.

Picture me takin' pictures

I have some exciting news - I was contacted a couple weeks ago by someone working for Nikon, who said they noticed I took pictures on my blog here and there and invited me to become part of the Nikon Coolpix Circle - a new program for bloggers. Now, I didn't know, exactly, what this meant, but I had a feeling it had something to do with a free camera, so of course I was like, "Um, yes. Sign me up immediately." Because really, all pseudo promo blogs posts aside, my first digital camera was a Nikon Coolpix that lasted me FOREVER, and I have never liked another digi cam I've owned since then as much as the Coolpix. (That is the honest truth. Sony Cybershot = SUCK. I bought a Canon a couple months ago, and it's just okay. I should have splurged for a more expensive model).

Anywhoo, long, convoluted background story aside, I received my information packet with the details of the Coolpix Circle program last week. It didn't offer up a free camera, per se. But I do get to become part of a cool network of other bloggers in the program, nominate bloggers who I think will benefit from the program, take pictures with my borrowed camera and post them to a Tumblr and Flickr group. The program just started, so there's not much up yet. But I'm assuming it's going to have some pretty neat stuff. I know that partially because I'm involved, and I'm AWE-some.

Speaking of AWE-some, back to the aforementioned borrowed camera detail. Here's the deets. I got to choose one of four Nikon Coolpix cameras. Nikon sends me the camera for three months, on loan. At the end of three months, I can purchase the camera at an "editorial discount," which I have no idea what this'll be. I can also choose to return the camera, or continue to borrow it for up to six months. At the end of the six months, whether I purchase or return the camera, all money or returned cameras will go to charity, so Nikon actually doesn't make profit from the program.

(What was that about long and convoluted?!)

How cool is that? Anyway, I chose the most fancy camera of the four - a Nikon Coolpix P90. The camera is a bit of a bridge between a compact, point-and-shoot digi cam and a D-SLR. (My ultimate goal. I just don't currently have the extra cash for it). I received the camera in the mail on Saturday, and Nikon was even nice enough to send me a 1GB memory card, so I was ready to start using the gem on my camping trip this weekend to the Olympic National Forest.

Being the huge geek that I am, I read the manual during our drive to the campground. Boy was that slightly tedious. But, I'm excited to switch from being a constant automatic-camera-setting-photographer to trying to learn a little bit more about shutter speed, aperture, composition, etc. Now, I'm by NO means an expert, so don't judge me. It's just meant to be something fun...

And of course, I'll continue to share my pics here with you and perhaps an update or two on what I think about the camera, for those of you who care about photography or might be in the market for a camera soon. Here are a few of my favorite shots I took this weekend while exploring high, high up in the woods and driving down the Washington coast:






You can find my complete set of photos from the trip at my new Flickr account, which is now linked up top in the newly added social media heart icons. (Don't you love 'em!) Cheers, lovelies!

Currently Feeling: So comfy on my couch, with a breeze (finally), while catching up on my DVR from the last week!
Currently Anticipating: Getting some stuff done this week since last week went in the shitter due to the 100+ degree weather.
Currently Reading: The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane. Um, GOOD. Yes, super, super good. I'm hooked!