I’m a Gotham Girl!

April 20, 2012 at 8:45 am · 1 comment

Sooooo I got you guys all excited for my debut as a Gotham Girl and then I fell off the face of the blogging planet! MY BAD! Have I mentioned that roller derby can be pretty time-consuming?!

I am pleased to inform you that I have been drafted to the Queens of Pain (captained by none other than Suzy Hotrod)! I will also be playing with Gotham’s B travel team, the Wall Street Traitors.

Queens of Pain headshot

Queens of Pain headshot

Wall Street Traitors headshot

Wall Street Traitors headshot

March 31 was my first bout with Queens (and my first official bout EVER!). We lost to Brooklyn, but barely. Then last weekend (on April 14), Queens traveled to Philly to play the Heavy Metal Hookers. We won (!) and I scored a few of our points.

1 comment

Home team draft. Oh, and food.

March 5, 2012 at 16:07 pm · 1 comment

Roller derby makes me hungry. Like, all the time. This weekend Corner and I made soy balsamic slow cooker chicken, frozen banana bites, and mint chocolate chip cookies.

Today at lunch I went to Whole Foods in Tribeca because none of the other grocery stores I visited this weekend had coconut oil (which I need in order to make this joyful almond oatmeal). Whole Foods had like 8 kinds in stock! Yay!

I bought a Silhouette Cameo and have been experimenting with that. I used it to make a screen and I silkscreened my name and number on a bunch of shirts to use for derby. They turned out pretty well, if I do say so myself.

Byers Remorse tank top

Byers Remorse

I’m dying to tell you all the results of the GGRD draft that took place last weekend. The latest batch of fresh meat and transfer skaters were placed on Gotham’s 4 home teams. Will I be skating for Manhattan Mayhem, Brooklyn Bombshells, Queens of Pain, or Bronx Gridlock? Since I am sworn to secrecy at the moment, you’ll just have to come to the Derbytaunt Ball to find out.

1 comment

I can’t wait to devour these paczki!

February 21, 2012 at 16:20 pm · 2 comments

Ladies and gentlemen…I have procured paczki!

paczki

For those of you who have no idea what I’m talking about, you’ve been missing out. I didn’t realize that paczki are a Polish-American “thing” until I left Michigan and paczki on Mardi Gras were suddenly impossible to come by. So tonight, for the first time since leaving Michigan 4 years ago, I will eat paczki! HURRAH!

The definition, according to Wikipedia:

A paczek is a deep-fried piece of dough shaped into a flattened sphere and filled with confiture or other sweet filling. Paczki are usually covered with powdered sugar, icing or bits of dried orange zest. A small amount of grain alcohol (traditionally, Spiritus) is added to the dough before cooking; as it evaporates, it prevents the absorption of oil deep into the dough.

Although they look like berliners (German name), bismarcks (south-central Canada/north-central US name), and jelly doughnuts (generic name; sometimes “jam donut”), paczki are made from especially rich dough containing eggs, fats, sugar and sometimes milk. They feature a variety of fruit and creme fillings and can be glazed, or covered with granulated or powdered sugar. Powidla (stewed plum jam) and wild rose hip jam are traditional fillings, but many others are used as well, including strawberry, Bavarian cream, blueberry, custard, raspberry and apple.

I have no idea what flavors mine are, because I purchased these 8 paczki from a teeny Polish bakery in the East Village. I was the only English speaker in the place. I had to leave for work extra early in order to retrieve them. And tonight I look forward to sampling them all with friends at my self-hosted paczki potluck! Happy Mardi Gras, everyone!

2 comments

Writing my roller derby player bio

February 17, 2012 at 13:28 pm · 1 comment

I’ve been asked to write my player bio for GGRD’s website and 2012 program. As a writer, you’d think this would be easy, but it’s HARD to write about yourself! I need to reveal some random facts about me, list some of my likes and dislikes, etc. I’ve shared my draft below.

Also, it’s super weird referring to myself as “Byers”. I like the nickname Morse better. Or Remorse. Or Remy. But unfortunately, I think Byers is the most organic shortened name.

Derby Name: Byers Remorse
Number: 13% APR

I also need to devise a tagline to accompany my derby name and I have zero ideas. Any suggestions?

Schoolyard Scrimmage

Skating in a schoolyard scrimmage in Chinatown to keep my skills up last summer.

Derby Background (in case you missed it)

(This is too long for the program stuff, it’s just to clue you in regarding my somewhat convoluted derby history.)

Miss Remorse discovered derby in the summer of 2010, when a coworker convinced Byers to join her in trying out for the local league, the Monterey Bay Derby Dames. After attending an open skate session at the local rink (and using crappy rental skates), Byers was hooked. She went home and immediately ordered a pair of skates to call her own (Riedell 265s, in case you’re wondering). She successfully tried out for MBDD and began working her way through the league’s Fresh Meat program.

Skating at Del Monte Gardens

One of my first times skating at the Monterey rink!

However, a few weeks into her training, Byers learned that she would be moving to New York City. With only a few months of skating under her belt, Byers tried out for the Gotham Girls and was invited to callbacks. When she did not make the final cut, Byers skated with Gotham’s rec league and tried to find other opportunities to skate as much as she could. The following summer she also found a home at Suburbia Roller Derby and skated with them for several months before trying out for the Gotham Girls again. This time, Kristen was accepted as part of their 2012 Fresh Meat class. WOO!

GGRD Rec League (Level 2)

The lovely ladies of my GGRD Rec League Level 2 class.

Athletic Background

While Byers has always had a competitive edge, team sports were never really her thing. Prior to roller derby, her most athletic endeavor was spending two seasons with the Glassmen Drum & Bugle Corps.

Glassmen Rehearsal

Rehearsing with the Glassmen. Don't tell me this doesn't look hardcore.

Bio

Byers Remorse was born and raised in Michigan, where she attended college and studied Digital Design & Rhetoric. After graduation, she moved to California for 2 years before making her way to NYC. She currently works as a web designer for a local government agency. When she’s not skating, Byers enjoys reading, writing, and spoiling her dog.

Awards

Suburbia Roller Derby – 2011 Meat MVP

Likes

nail polish, proper grammar, manual transmissions, sour patch kids, sushi, bubble tea, letterpress, the color green, listening to Christmas music starting July 25

Dislikes

red meat, long commutes, single-ply toilet paper

1 comment

I decided to celebrate Valentine’s Day by providing you with a brief wedding planning update:

  • Venue is booked
  • Photographer is booked
  • Photobooth is booked
  • DJ is booked
  • Wedding dress has been purchased
  • Bridesmaid dresses have been purchased
  • Hair appointments have been scheduled

I also started designing our invitations. These will also be used as a starting point for our other paper goods (save the dates, menus, etc.). I will need some feedback at some point during this process, so let me know if you’d like to help! We still have lots of decor and other DIY projects to get started on…*sigh*

In other news, training with GGRD is going really well. The draft happens in just two weeks; at that point, I will be placed on one of the four home teams (Brooklyn Bombshells, Queens of Pain, Bronx Gridlock, or Manhattan Mayhem). That means my first bout will happen in a month or two. SO EXCITING!

Also, my derby name is officially being submitted to the registry (this is BIG NEWS as it has taken me SO LONG to get to this point)! I will officially be Byers Remorse of Gotham Girls Roller Derby, and my number will be 13% APR.

4 comments

Busy holidays in Michigan

January 17, 2012

So after all of the excitement in mid-December, I drove to Michigan with Nigel and Nacho on December 23. It was a long drive, as usual, made longer by the fact that I was the sole driver, but Nacho was a great travel buddy and stayed awake chatting with me the whole time. We did [...]

Read the full article →

Nigel already knows what he is getting from Santa

December 21, 2011

Today I arrived home from work to discover that Nigel had opened his Christmas present. Last night I started packing for my upcoming trip to Michigan; I had gathered up all of the wrapped Christmas presents and placed them in a reusable shopping bag, which I left on top of the coffee table. Nigel’s gift [...]

Read the full article →

I’m going to be a Gotham Girl!

December 20, 2011

This post could also be titled “The Best Christmas Gift Ever!” I have been bursting at the seams to share this news with everyone, and now that all of my ducks are in a row, I finally can! On November 19, I tried out for Gotham Girls Roller Derby for the second time. I think [...]

Read the full article →

Library books and squirrel tails

December 14, 2011

I just used my lunch break to run up to the library and pick up 5 books that I had placed on hold. My friend Sarah pointed out that the New York Public Library system allows you to find and reserve books online and have them sent to a designated library location, where they can [...]

Read the full article →

Corner is gone and Kristen has to cook for herself (again)

December 5, 2011

Corner is in Ohio again for the month of December (he actually flies to Michigan on the day that I will be driving to Michigan for the holidays…jerk). As you may know, Corner does the majority of the cooking in our household, so it’s been interesting for me to figure out what on earth I’m [...]

Read the full article →