How to make an Orange Julius

Hi readers! Today, I'm going to teach you how to make an Orange Julius. It's a drink, made of orange juice and milk with a few extra things.

So, to make it, you'll need:

• Six ounces frozen orange juice concentrate
• One cup of milk
• A half cup of water
• A quarter cup of sugar (use a bit more if you want it sweeter)
• A teaspoon of vanilla
• A scale to measure your concentrate
• A liquid measuring cup
• To know how to use a blender

This is really easy. Measure out the ingredients and blend them together until they form a smoothie-like consistency. Then just pour into a glass and drink your Orange Julius! Serves three. Best enjoyed on a rainy day in a comfy chair with your favorite book.

I hope you make this, because it's DELICIOUS. --Taryn 

The tardigrades

A tardigrade. Image from National Geographic

Readers, have you ever heard of the tardigrades, also known as waterbears or moss piglets? They are so awesome! 

They have survived all five mass extinctions and came into existence about five million years ago. They're about the size of the head of a pin. On Cosmos, Neil deGrasse Tyson said, "For every one of us, there's a billion of them". They can survive some of the harshest conditions on Earth, from just above absolute zero to well above the boiling point of water and the vacuum of outer space! They can go without food or water for at least ten years, and, in my opinion, are some of the greatest animals in the world. You probably can't keep them as pets, due to the fact that they're microscopic, but whatever. Yay, tardigrades!--Taryn 

10,000 pageviews

Hi readers! As you might have noticed, I installed a gadget that tracks the all-time pageviews to this blog. I want to get ten thousand pageviews by, say, October thirty-first. Can we do it? I sure hope so! 

Okay, I'll make a deal with you: I will post at least once a week, and you will check my blog at least once a week. Does that work?
All right. Let's hit ten thousand! --Taryn
P.S. I don't track my own pageviews, so this is all on you! No pressure or anything, though. 

What should be on YOUR In Case Of Boredom List

Hi readers! As you might remember, I wrote an In Case Of Boredom post several months ago (if you're new to this blog, check it out here). Well, here's some stuff that should be on yours! (In no particular order, just so you know.)

• Note: always, always remember that you should never panic in the face of boredom.

• Tricky Triangle. This is a very fun puzzle game, in which there is a wooden triangle with several pegs in it. The object of the game is to jump each peg but one. Best time to use: anytime you need quick entertainment, such as while you're waiting for a parent to reach the front of a long, long line. Also good for long car trips/short plane rides if you're really persistent at puzzles and never quit until you figure it out.

How a Tricky Triangle game might start

Stuck? Here's a hint: if you can arrange your pegs into the position below, you've won!

Winning position

• Lots of origami paper. Learn the ancient art of origami! (At least, I think it's ancient.) It's fun, comes in different levels of difficulty, and is great to do with friends. Go here and here for two excellent instruction sites. Best time to use: there are some super-easy figures to fold, such as the frog and the lucky star. Have a boring class? You can easily make the star if you've got pre-cut paper strips, and the frog can be done with just a piece of rectangular paper. Just memorize the directions and fold away!

  

  Origami paper, probably available at your local craft store.

• A big ol' stack of books and magazines. Add a quiet, sunny corner, a comfy chair, and your favorite snack, and you've got instant non-boredom. Also works with an electronic reading device or an audiobook. Best time to use: On a bright but cold weekend, where you should be cleaning but want to relax. 

• A tablet of some kind. Play apps, text, and videochat with friends! Best time to use: when you've finished homework and chores but don't know what to do before bedtime. 

Now go out there and stop being bored! --Taryn

Yay!

Hello, readers! I have gotten eighty-two pageviews today. EIGHTY-TWO! Thank you so much for this! Thank you thank you thank you! I promise I'll keep posting! --Taryn

Taryn the origamist

Hi readers! 

On Monday, I started doing origami. Miss Dawn and Diana helped me with a few things, and now I'm having tons of fun with it! Here are a few of my creations:

The house is the object under the cicada. There's also another cicada in front of the house.

Two blossoms and a frog.

Top: piano. Left: sitting fox. Right: another blossom.

Sometimes I do get frustrated with myself and the origami, but I still have fun doing it. So far my favorite things to fold are frogs and the blossoms. 

Oh, I get instructions from this site. Also, Kathy and I coined the term "origamist" last night. It means a person who does origami. 

Have fun with origami!--Taryn

P.S. Thanks to my FIFTY-SEVEN readers who inspired me to write this!

What I want to eat in Iceland

Hi readers! Iceland is right around the corner (my family takes off in May) and Mommy and I have just finished watching a show about Icelandic food, which was really cool. The host of the show ate fermented shark! (In Iceland, it's called Hákarl. Sounds like how-karl) He said it smelled really bad. I still want to try it, though, along with these other foods:

• Skyr (say Skir). An Icelandic dairy product, Skyr supposedly tastes like yogurt, is full of nutrients and comes in many different flavors.
• Svið (pronounced Svith). This is a sheep's head. You can eat the cheek, tongue, eye, brain...pretty much any part that's on it. Sometimes, Svið is served with rhubarb jelly.
• Hot dogs from Bæjarins beztu pylsur. This hot dog stand is said to serve some of the best hot dogs in the world. 

The outside of Bæjarins beztu pylsur. Image from Wikipedia

• Slátur (rhymes with cow-ter). This is Icelandic for blood pudding. It's rye flour, and oats mixed with blood and steamed in a sheep's stomach.
• Fish. Wow, Taryn, after all those weird-sounding foods, you just want to try fish? However, Icelandic fish (mostly haddock and cod) is very, very fresh. Plus, you can't really go to Iceland without trying the fish.

Also, we're going to the supermarket on a Saturday to get fifty-percent-off candy! Saturday in Iceland is called 

nammidagur, yummy day, or candy day.

While I'm on the subject of Iceland, I found the Icelandic version of "Let It Go". Check it out here.

I AM SO EXCITED!!!!! --Taryn