Well it does. And I know it’s not just me, so let’s not all pretend we enjoy meeting new people, okay? It’s hard. And uncomfortable. And worse if you’re a woman. Men immediately have something in common to talk about- Sports. It’s their go-to. Women don’t have that. Although Pinterest is coming a long way into allowing women the same perk. But really, why is it so hard? I went to a book club thing recently with all women (as if I needed to add the all women part of that sentence). Anyway, every single one of them I talked to was super nice and very cordial. Still, I felt odd and out of place. Am I really that insecure? Yes. Yes I am.
Most of these women knew each other and as they sat there and laughed at their inside jokes and talked about each other’s kids and husbands and the hilarious thing someone who wasn’t there said, I thought “these aren’t my people”. Like I was in some sort of tribe or cult back in SC or something. I don’t mean “these aren’t my type of people”, they are. Funny, sarcastic, witty, classy, chic, food-lovin ladies. That’s my type! Ding, Ding, Ding…we have a match! But it was more like I was looking in from the outside on someone else’s friendship. I know I’ve felt this before and I know that some of those “others” are now my good friends, but at first it’s like I understand child birth is- you forget the awful beginning once it’s over. Now, I don’t have kids so I don’t know if that’s true but I do know some people that have had a second child after a miserable, terrible, horrible, no good, very bad birthing so there must be something to it.
I almost backed out of this little shindig at the last minute. I was going to claim tired, or busy, or root canal or something, but then I took a step back and thought "you are not an island, you have to make friends and not rely on Sparky"(or Syd- bless her for being my SC friend up here). Then I pushed myself even further and decided I needed to do this not only for myself but for Syd as well. I’m so selfless, I’ll take one for the team. Yeah, I really did have this sort of crazy conversation in my head. I also like to debate with myself about how people just talk to strangers and seem so comfortable and why I’m not that way. Some people are born with it and some develop it, I am neither. Sparky will talk to anyone. And I mean that literally. Any other human or animal. Everywhere we go. Constantly. It’s amazing and disturbing all at the same time. But I am deceiving. If you know me, you think I am crazy right now for saying this because, sadly, you can’t get me to shut up. Sorry about that.
Am I shy? Am I sizing everyone up? Am I judging? I’m not judging. If anything, I’m feeling judged as I stand there silent. But judged based on what? My lack of talking? My face? Is there something on my face? And why do I always suddenly feel like there’s something on my face? Like a sign that says “New person. Look at me! I don’t belong here”. And now I have the added pressure of my accent (which apparently is only heard some of the time by certain people) but one good y’all will stop them short. And then I think they expect me to be some kind of southern belle walking around with a big, floppy hat and some sweet tea talking about “bless her heart y’all. Well,I was just fixin to go make some more tea and sit out on the porch and fan myself.” Indeed.
Thursday, November 29, 2012
Wednesday, November 7, 2012
Madonna, Don't Preach
It is unfortunate that I come to you with a heavy heart today. I am saddened at what transpired last night. I had high hopes for what would turn out to be nothing but regret that I didn't get more sleep. It all started yesterday afternoon when I received a call from Sparky telling me that we were offered free box seats at the Madonna concert. "Yay," I said. "I hope she sings Lucky Star. And Material Girl. I really hope she sings Material Girl."
We got there a little before 8 pm and got to our box to order some food. We asked the wait staff who was opening for her, and were told a DJ- they didn't know his name. Interesting, but okay, I'll get on board. He came out about 9:00 to start. As a side note, it seems we were among a very small group of folks that did not know Madonna doesn't grace the audience with her presence until around 10 pm. The DJ was good. He may have been the highlight.
About 10:40 Madonna decided to come out. By this time, I was already tired. The first...ummm... production she did was about shooting her lover in the head. I don't know if you know this song, I didn't. In case you don't, allow me to explain. It is based on the storyline that she is a hardcore bandit of some kind (like a robber or whatever) that decides she wants to shoot her lover in the head repeatedly. I think that's what it was about. It was difficult to tell at times. I'm pretty sure the look on my face during most of the song was a combination of confusion and bitter beer. Sparky looked at me when the song was over and said, "well, that was violent". Indeed. Several of her songs were of that feeling. Violence, sex and lots of cursing. I will not give examples, but trust me when I tell you that she has a sailor's mouth.
She did have some neat dancers and theatrical elements- I don't want to discount that. They did a great job. And she is in amazing shape for her age. Amazing. I know this for a fact because about 3/4 of the way into the show, she stripped down to her underwear and proceeded to show her hind quarters to the cameramen in charge of the big screens. She did a song in those undies at the end of which she laid on the stage and talked into her mic about throwing money on the stage for the people affected by Hurricane Sandy. I wish I had a picture of this. She literally laid flat on her stomach, laid the microphone down in front of her and talked into it like she was an amputee. Oh, and just in case you were wondering, she made it very clear that the money was going to Sandy victims. She "doesn't need our money". Good to know, Madonna. Good to know. Way to pull those heartstrings. I sort of hope she was half drunk. At least then she won't be crazy.
About halfway through the show she started asking people in the audience if Obama won. This went on for about 10 minutes. When she was convinced he did, she began to shout "We won! We won! Thank God! Thank God!" over and over. This turned into a 10 minute lovefest for Obama. My favorite part being when she said "And I just want to thank all of my fans that went out and voted for Obama, if you did. I love you." The rest of the show was more about Obama than anything. She dedicated a song to him- Masterpiece. Hmmm...questionable. And then she and her dance crew came out wearing Obama t-shirts to do the last couple of songs. Let me say before I continue that these are my opinions and should be treated as such. I do not ask that anyone agree with me. I do ask that you allow me to have my opinions, and that you allow me to voice them on my blog because, apparently, everyone is allowed to say what they think regardless of venue or company. Regardless of what party I voted for, I believe celebrities should keep their political views in check. The right place, the right time. The right time is at a political rally or on their twitter page. Not at a concert. People do not pay hard-earned money to go see what they think is Like a Virgin only to find out it is an Obama rally. Forget church and state, how about entertainment and state. Can we separate those? Also, didn't Madonna just recently move back to the states after living in England for years? Seems legit. And lest I forget the 5 minute soliloquy about how Obama rhymes with Madonna. haha! It rhymes! Amazing! Isn't that wonderful?! Actually, Madonna, it isn't that interesting and, frankly, I could be asleep right now, so let's hold off on calling Dr. Seuss and get on with the freaking concert. K? Thanks.
I miss the 80's Madonna. Speaking of which, she did not sing Material Girl or Lucky Star. She's lucky my ticket was free, that's all I know. Maybe she's different when it's not election time. Maybe we caught her on a weird night. I don't know. What I do know is that that particular experience made me not want to find out. I'll stick with my old school Madonna.
Whatever your beliefs are, you have the right to them. My belief is that we are in for a long ride. I will continue to work and live my life the best I can, and hope that one day we will be back on track and not owned by another country. I, personally, believe in God and all that he does. I believe he has a plan for us and I believe that if the Bible teaches us nothing else, it teaches us that we are at his mercy and his grace. He could take everything from us and bring us to our knees to learn the ultimate lesson. My favorite analogy of God is that he is a parent. Even if you're not a parent, it's not difficult to understand. Unconditional love, patience, trust, but most importantly, it is a parent's job to teach their children. Some lessons are harder than others. I think we're in for a hard lesson. For those of you that disagree, I hope you're right.
Being a Christian is difficult in these times. Everyone is so sensative to their own moral compass. Anti-Christian groups can have rallies and scream about how they don't want God involved in any aspect of their life. They don't want to see it, hear it, speak it, nothing. It's amazing to me which groups in our society have the loudest voices and get the most publicity. Look around. God is testing us and we're not doing so hot. A lot of this has nothing to do with the President, let's face it. This is just who we're becoming. We are vengeful, hateful, gluttonous, prideful beggars. Aren't we? Think about it. We just want an easier life. We want more for less. We want 1/2 price and buy one, get one free. We want to work less and get paid more. We want our dollar to mean more. We want cheaper gas, but we're not willing to do what it takes to get it. We want better products but we don't want to pay for them. Work is hard and not usually fun and I don't want to spend my money on crappy stuff. I want to spend it on what I want, but there isn't enough of it to do that. We are road ragers and murderers and gossipers. We don't love people. We judge people. Oh, there are a handful of folks who are still good to the core but mostly, no. Why do you think we feel the need to make a big deal out of do-gooders? They are uncommon. I don't care what side of the political fence you fall on, that's sad.
What got me the most out of everything Madonna said last night was the "we won" comment she kept repeating. Who is "we"? We the democrats? I think this is a major problem. WE needs to be America, not a political party. This has turned into a team sport. Us against them. We're gonna win, you're gonna lose. We're right, you're wrong. We're pretty, you're ugly. We love people and you hate them. Anyone else see the problem? There were lots of things last night that I was disappointed by, but mostly it was that people like Madonna are going around the country proving that we are an abrasive, arrogant nation.
We got there a little before 8 pm and got to our box to order some food. We asked the wait staff who was opening for her, and were told a DJ- they didn't know his name. Interesting, but okay, I'll get on board. He came out about 9:00 to start. As a side note, it seems we were among a very small group of folks that did not know Madonna doesn't grace the audience with her presence until around 10 pm. The DJ was good. He may have been the highlight.
About 10:40 Madonna decided to come out. By this time, I was already tired. The first...ummm... production she did was about shooting her lover in the head. I don't know if you know this song, I didn't. In case you don't, allow me to explain. It is based on the storyline that she is a hardcore bandit of some kind (like a robber or whatever) that decides she wants to shoot her lover in the head repeatedly. I think that's what it was about. It was difficult to tell at times. I'm pretty sure the look on my face during most of the song was a combination of confusion and bitter beer. Sparky looked at me when the song was over and said, "well, that was violent". Indeed. Several of her songs were of that feeling. Violence, sex and lots of cursing. I will not give examples, but trust me when I tell you that she has a sailor's mouth.
She did have some neat dancers and theatrical elements- I don't want to discount that. They did a great job. And she is in amazing shape for her age. Amazing. I know this for a fact because about 3/4 of the way into the show, she stripped down to her underwear and proceeded to show her hind quarters to the cameramen in charge of the big screens. She did a song in those undies at the end of which she laid on the stage and talked into her mic about throwing money on the stage for the people affected by Hurricane Sandy. I wish I had a picture of this. She literally laid flat on her stomach, laid the microphone down in front of her and talked into it like she was an amputee. Oh, and just in case you were wondering, she made it very clear that the money was going to Sandy victims. She "doesn't need our money". Good to know, Madonna. Good to know. Way to pull those heartstrings. I sort of hope she was half drunk. At least then she won't be crazy.
About halfway through the show she started asking people in the audience if Obama won. This went on for about 10 minutes. When she was convinced he did, she began to shout "We won! We won! Thank God! Thank God!" over and over. This turned into a 10 minute lovefest for Obama. My favorite part being when she said "And I just want to thank all of my fans that went out and voted for Obama, if you did. I love you." The rest of the show was more about Obama than anything. She dedicated a song to him- Masterpiece. Hmmm...questionable. And then she and her dance crew came out wearing Obama t-shirts to do the last couple of songs. Let me say before I continue that these are my opinions and should be treated as such. I do not ask that anyone agree with me. I do ask that you allow me to have my opinions, and that you allow me to voice them on my blog because, apparently, everyone is allowed to say what they think regardless of venue or company. Regardless of what party I voted for, I believe celebrities should keep their political views in check. The right place, the right time. The right time is at a political rally or on their twitter page. Not at a concert. People do not pay hard-earned money to go see what they think is Like a Virgin only to find out it is an Obama rally. Forget church and state, how about entertainment and state. Can we separate those? Also, didn't Madonna just recently move back to the states after living in England for years? Seems legit. And lest I forget the 5 minute soliloquy about how Obama rhymes with Madonna. haha! It rhymes! Amazing! Isn't that wonderful?! Actually, Madonna, it isn't that interesting and, frankly, I could be asleep right now, so let's hold off on calling Dr. Seuss and get on with the freaking concert. K? Thanks.
I miss the 80's Madonna. Speaking of which, she did not sing Material Girl or Lucky Star. She's lucky my ticket was free, that's all I know. Maybe she's different when it's not election time. Maybe we caught her on a weird night. I don't know. What I do know is that that particular experience made me not want to find out. I'll stick with my old school Madonna.
Whatever your beliefs are, you have the right to them. My belief is that we are in for a long ride. I will continue to work and live my life the best I can, and hope that one day we will be back on track and not owned by another country. I, personally, believe in God and all that he does. I believe he has a plan for us and I believe that if the Bible teaches us nothing else, it teaches us that we are at his mercy and his grace. He could take everything from us and bring us to our knees to learn the ultimate lesson. My favorite analogy of God is that he is a parent. Even if you're not a parent, it's not difficult to understand. Unconditional love, patience, trust, but most importantly, it is a parent's job to teach their children. Some lessons are harder than others. I think we're in for a hard lesson. For those of you that disagree, I hope you're right.
Being a Christian is difficult in these times. Everyone is so sensative to their own moral compass. Anti-Christian groups can have rallies and scream about how they don't want God involved in any aspect of their life. They don't want to see it, hear it, speak it, nothing. It's amazing to me which groups in our society have the loudest voices and get the most publicity. Look around. God is testing us and we're not doing so hot. A lot of this has nothing to do with the President, let's face it. This is just who we're becoming. We are vengeful, hateful, gluttonous, prideful beggars. Aren't we? Think about it. We just want an easier life. We want more for less. We want 1/2 price and buy one, get one free. We want to work less and get paid more. We want our dollar to mean more. We want cheaper gas, but we're not willing to do what it takes to get it. We want better products but we don't want to pay for them. Work is hard and not usually fun and I don't want to spend my money on crappy stuff. I want to spend it on what I want, but there isn't enough of it to do that. We are road ragers and murderers and gossipers. We don't love people. We judge people. Oh, there are a handful of folks who are still good to the core but mostly, no. Why do you think we feel the need to make a big deal out of do-gooders? They are uncommon. I don't care what side of the political fence you fall on, that's sad.
What got me the most out of everything Madonna said last night was the "we won" comment she kept repeating. Who is "we"? We the democrats? I think this is a major problem. WE needs to be America, not a political party. This has turned into a team sport. Us against them. We're gonna win, you're gonna lose. We're right, you're wrong. We're pretty, you're ugly. We love people and you hate them. Anyone else see the problem? There were lots of things last night that I was disappointed by, but mostly it was that people like Madonna are going around the country proving that we are an abrasive, arrogant nation.
"We have met the enemy, and he is us."- Walt Kelly
Thursday, October 25, 2012
For my amusement
Things I love:
This woman's story- Kelle Hampton Truly inspiring. She is an amazing, beautiful, strong, delightful creature. This particular post will kick you in the gut a few times, but is worth the pain. Get the Kleenex out. You've been warned. She is an exceptional story teller and an exceptional person. Her entire blog is awesome.
A good book- Seriously, is there anything better? The correct answer is no. I'm one of those crazy people that gets so into the book that I start talking abou the characters as if they are real. Sparky loves this I'm sure. But I can't help it. I take breaks between books because I have to decompress and recompose myself. I am a freak and I love it. I'd love to know what books people love. Feel free to post some of your faves below.
Photography- I am not as learned as I would like to be. I am not as perfect as I would like to be. I am not as creative as I would like to be. But, man, I love taking pictures. Honestly, if I had to choose right now, I would choose still life/landscape. I like people too, don't get me wrong. There's just something about capturing a beautiful sunset or tree or really cool junk pile. I love stopping that moment in time. Knowing that sky will never look just like that ever again. Capturing the beauty of whatever God puts in front of my face at that moment. Plus, people move a lot.
My amazing family and friends- what would I do without them? They are my guideposts. They are my beacons. They are my advisors, my diaries, my mirrors, my accomplices, and my very own personal comedians. Recently, my friends and I started a "blog club". It's sort of like a book club but with blogs. In the short amount of time we've been doing it, I can honestly say I am moved. I highly recommend this group activity. And my fam. What can I say about them? We've been through a lot. But they show me constantly that there is good in the world. And that family is...it. I am inspired and challenged to be better, stronger, smarter, funnier and more loving with each passing day. I could not ask for more.
Oh, and Ranch dressing. And lots of it.You heard me. Sometimes I wish I was one of those health conscience people that can eat oil and vinegar on salad... but I'm not. Full fat Ranch is what I'm about. Can't help it. I've tried others but they don't cut it. Judge me if you want.
Things I loathe:
Pickles. And tomatoes. And onions. Seriously, get out of here. And why do menus not list these items in their food descriptions? People, I do not want diced onions on my salad! List it or re-make it. That's all I'm sayin.
Birds in my house- Bet you didn't see that coming, did you? Yep, I came home the other day to a bird in my bedroom. Hello, friend. I did manage to get it back out the window before it flew throughout the house. But as I say that, I'm thinking, I have no idea how long it was in the house so it definitely could've taken a tour prior to my finding it. Sparky was not terribly impressed by this story. Although I will say I may have acted like it was a cougar, so maybe it was just that he realized Iwould survive the cute little bird before I did. I will say that I may have found a new calling in life. I opened a window, stood in front of it and made the best bird noise I had in my repotoire. He/she flew right towards me and out the window. I am the bird whisperer. Either that or he was trying to attack me and my noise and missed.
Political debates- Ok, I'm sorry for all of you groupies out there, but I can't take it. It's like watching cats fight. I just can't figure out how people get anything out of them. They make me uncomfortable and I find them annoying. So sue me.
The movie Julie & Julia. Raise your hand if you've seen this terrible excuse for a movie. It made me hungry and it made me want to punch Julia Childs. In the face.
What do you love and loathe? This is an interactive post, folks. Play along.
This woman's story- Kelle Hampton Truly inspiring. She is an amazing, beautiful, strong, delightful creature. This particular post will kick you in the gut a few times, but is worth the pain. Get the Kleenex out. You've been warned. She is an exceptional story teller and an exceptional person. Her entire blog is awesome.
A good book- Seriously, is there anything better? The correct answer is no. I'm one of those crazy people that gets so into the book that I start talking abou the characters as if they are real. Sparky loves this I'm sure. But I can't help it. I take breaks between books because I have to decompress and recompose myself. I am a freak and I love it. I'd love to know what books people love. Feel free to post some of your faves below.
Photography- I am not as learned as I would like to be. I am not as perfect as I would like to be. I am not as creative as I would like to be. But, man, I love taking pictures. Honestly, if I had to choose right now, I would choose still life/landscape. I like people too, don't get me wrong. There's just something about capturing a beautiful sunset or tree or really cool junk pile. I love stopping that moment in time. Knowing that sky will never look just like that ever again. Capturing the beauty of whatever God puts in front of my face at that moment. Plus, people move a lot.
My amazing family and friends- what would I do without them? They are my guideposts. They are my beacons. They are my advisors, my diaries, my mirrors, my accomplices, and my very own personal comedians. Recently, my friends and I started a "blog club". It's sort of like a book club but with blogs. In the short amount of time we've been doing it, I can honestly say I am moved. I highly recommend this group activity. And my fam. What can I say about them? We've been through a lot. But they show me constantly that there is good in the world. And that family is...it. I am inspired and challenged to be better, stronger, smarter, funnier and more loving with each passing day. I could not ask for more.
Oh, and Ranch dressing. And lots of it.You heard me. Sometimes I wish I was one of those health conscience people that can eat oil and vinegar on salad... but I'm not. Full fat Ranch is what I'm about. Can't help it. I've tried others but they don't cut it. Judge me if you want.
Things I loathe:
Pickles. And tomatoes. And onions. Seriously, get out of here. And why do menus not list these items in their food descriptions? People, I do not want diced onions on my salad! List it or re-make it. That's all I'm sayin.
Birds in my house- Bet you didn't see that coming, did you? Yep, I came home the other day to a bird in my bedroom. Hello, friend. I did manage to get it back out the window before it flew throughout the house. But as I say that, I'm thinking, I have no idea how long it was in the house so it definitely could've taken a tour prior to my finding it. Sparky was not terribly impressed by this story. Although I will say I may have acted like it was a cougar, so maybe it was just that he realized Iwould survive the cute little bird before I did. I will say that I may have found a new calling in life. I opened a window, stood in front of it and made the best bird noise I had in my repotoire. He/she flew right towards me and out the window. I am the bird whisperer. Either that or he was trying to attack me and my noise and missed.
Political debates- Ok, I'm sorry for all of you groupies out there, but I can't take it. It's like watching cats fight. I just can't figure out how people get anything out of them. They make me uncomfortable and I find them annoying. So sue me.
The movie Julie & Julia. Raise your hand if you've seen this terrible excuse for a movie. It made me hungry and it made me want to punch Julia Childs. In the face.
What do you love and loathe? This is an interactive post, folks. Play along.
Tuesday, October 16, 2012
Funnel cakes and Falling water
The Wrap up:
This past weekend several things happened. Friday night Sparky and I went to a charity hockey game between the Pittsburgh firefighters and the Pittsburgh police officers at the Consol Center (that's the big arena where the Penguins play) Except that on Friday, which should have been the opening night of the Penguins season, the Penguins weren't playing. Why, you ask? Well, hockey is on strike. Shocking. Who isn't? Remember when sports was more than money? That was fun. So instead, there was a charity game. Love the idea! And, no offense to the policemen but I'm a firefighter girl. Yeah, the score was 6 to 2. Policemen. On top of that, they made me cry when they had the guy they were raising money for up on the jumbotron telling everyone thank you. I mean, crying at a hockey game?! I am not well.
We then decided to make our way to the end of the Mt. Lebo vs. Peters Twp high school football game. Ok, that sounds crazy. Here's why we did this- Sparky tells me he has a co-worker who is working at the concession stand selling funnel cakes (daughter in the band) and he told us to stop by. You had me at funnel cake. It wasn't exactly warm and I had on my cute Friday night clothes, boots included. So the only thing keeping me trekking up the steep hill from the parking lot to the stadium was the promise of the fair delight. No such luck. Sparky got his days/events mixed up. His co-worker was there but not with dough and hot oil. He was just a normal band parent. The funnel cakes were on Saturday...at a farm. I never got that funnel cake. Meanwhile, I haven't been to a high school football game since, well, high school. They are so funny. I was definitely judging just a little bit. "is that kid serious?", "who acts like that?" ,"ugh. grow up", "that stupid girl thinks she is so cool", "I never acted like that". What do they know, they're like 15? It totally made me miss high school.
Saturday was surprise date day- Sparky's version- and I have to say, he's nailing this stuff. I've been really impressed (cause sometimes I think he waits until Friday and then just asks a co-worker what to do while I research for a week or more). But, so far, like I said- nailing it. This time we drove about an hour or so to a little town called Ohiopyle. There's a state park there and it is beautiful. And such a cute little town. We had these amazing sausage sandwiches that the volunteer fire department was selling. No, I didn't misspeak. Sausage sandwich not biscuit. It is a sausage patty on a bun with cheese on top. The patty has to be larger and thinner than your normal breakfast sausage. Think McDonald's sized. Sparky added pickles, I refrained. So simple, but so good. My nose found them before we did. I swear, I'm like a very intelligent, very clean dog. My nose and ears work too well for my own good. If you like rafting, kayaking, hiking, biking, etc you should venture to Ohiopyle. I don't really do any of that but I like to admire outdoor beauty, so it works.
The real surprise part of the date was later though. Sparky took me to Fallingwater. Fallingwater, for those who don't know, is a Frank Lloyd Wright design from the late 1930's. It is beautiful. More so on outside. Remember, I said 30's. The inside is still very much that era. Because apparently they didn't change a thing from the day construction was completed until they handed it over to the conservationists. It's still beautiful though. Did you know that Wright was a bit of a nut? He tended to get in arguments with his clients a lot. He also did whatever he wanted and told people it was his way or no way. The Kaufmann's wanted a 4-car garage for their little vacation home (that's what Fallingwater is) and Wright said no. He created the carport because he said enclosed spaces promote clutter. I tend to agree with that thought process. But he was still crazy. Crazy like a fox.
Here are my recipes for this post:
1. Crusty Bread- Fantastic! Love, love, love. I'm so excited to try variations of it. So impressive, but so easy.
2. Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole- Yum. It makes a lot though so we'll be eating it a while
3. Crack dip- This stuff is like crack. I took a bowl of it to a friend's house for football. 4 adults. None left by halftime. It's good with chips but amazing with bread (like the crusty bread above)
4. Chicken Bacon Pizza- There's no link here cause I just threw this together myself. I used pre-made crust, put a little bit of pizza sauce on it (not much at all) and then sprinkled with Parmesan cheese. I used can chicken and bacon from a bag. You can cut up chicken and make bacon if you want. Then I saturated it with mozzarella cheese on top (we love us some cheese). Sparky liked it better than the pepperoni/mushroom I also made.
Let me know if anyone makes any of these recipes. I'd love to know what you thought about them.
Thursday, October 11, 2012
Wednesday, October 10, 2012
And Recipes
So I went to Philly the other weekend to see my sister's new house/town. Ok, let me back up... My sis is moving to Philly (Jersey to be more specific- but right over the bridge so I'll say Philly). Her husband's company Godfathered him and gave him an offer he couldn't refuse. For those of you that don't know and are now thinking "that's great! you're in the same state now!" Ummm.. no. Philly and Burgh are about 5 1/2 hours apart. Not to mention their house is actually in Jersey which is just a tiny bit further. So it's not like we'll be hanging out every week or anything. It is closer than G-vegas so let's be thankful for that. Anyway, you're thinking Jersey Shore, right? Well, we did go there for the day but that's about 45 mins from where they actually live. They live in the burbs. Did you know that Jersey is a full service state? As in, when you get gas, they pump it. Not you. Literally, there are men standing around waiting to pump your gas. Seems legit. The big question is, do you tip them? Gas ain't cheap, friend. and it's not like you did something I'm not entirely capable of doing all on my own. I suppose you can guess which way I lean.
As stressful and sad as it is to leave the only home you've ever known, I think she/they will like it. Maybe not forever. But for now. Philly's cool and close to lots of other cool places so should be a fun little adventure. I'm sure I'll be going there quite a bit, so you'll hear more about it later. I will say that Atlantic City is somewhere in the middle on a scale of Mrytle Beach to Las Vegas.
All that said, my final verdict- Best. Cheesesteak. Ever.
Remember how I mentioned that Sparky and I are doing the "suprise" dates in order to get out and do things in our new community? Well, mine was last weekend and I was pretty dang proud of myself. We did glass blowing. Whaaaa??? Yes, blowing glass. It was super cool and fun and now we have some little glass pumpkins to show for it. The guys that do this are located in the eclectic, artsy Southside. The owner of the place (1 of the 2 guys working there) lives above it. But don't let that fool you. These guys are not artsy, fartsy pot heads doing a hobby. These guys are scientists. It is amazing what they have to know about heat disbursement, chemical reactions, and all sorts of things I have no idea what I'm talking about. It's a really cool process and I highly recommend it. And, below, TA DA, our pumpkins!
I've been trying to be a good wife recently. Okay, that's wrong. I'm always a good wife. I've been trying to be a better one. Yeah, that sounds right. Anyway, so my goal has been to try new recipes to spice up our meal life. This is step one in the amazing wife transformation. I think there are twelve steps total. Like AA. I've been doing pretty well. Some have been huge successes. Others not so much. Sparky does not have quite the sensative pallet that I do, so I can't always trust him to tell me if something is good or not. He will eat almost anything. Live octopus, bring it on. Mystery meat, sure why not. Leftovers from a month ago, yep. But you put a piece of pineapple in front of him and out come the "ugh! ewww! no.no.no" Odd. So if you're looking for good pineapple recipes, the only one I have is to mix the juice with Malibu and stir. Here's some of what I've made thus far and how it went over:
1. Chocolate chip Banana Oatmeal bread- enough said.
2. Skinny spaghetti- Ehhh...it's okay. If I'm out of real stuff to make, I might do it again
3. Crock pot chicken taco chili- Finger lickin' good times. So good!
4. Baked Ranch and Parmesan chicken- I would give this 4 1/2 stars. Will make again
5. Roasted cabbage- No. Maybe we're just not cabbage people, but no.
6.No bake energy bites- I make these constantly. Can't get enough. No chocolate in mine.
7. Baked Egg Boats- The bread got inedibly hard so it was difficult to eat. Thumbs down.
8 Hasselback potatoes-Not impressed.Good in theory but didn't work out.Middle was raw
9. Turkey Chili- has potential. Next time will make a bit thicker but overall very good.
Thanks for stopping by for the latest edition of the Life and Times of Jess. Love to you all.
Thursday, September 13, 2012
The Pearls Are Off
You know what I don't get? Drivers here. With all due respect (and we know since I said "all due respect, I can now say anything I want without fear of offending anyone) what is the deal with the whole "oh, sure, you need to get out of that gas station onto a four lane major road? Not a problem, let me just slam on my breaks real quick so you can slowly get out into traffic. You're welcome." or how about "aww, look at me. I'm going to stop my lane of traffic so you can take a left out of that parking lot. I'll wave you on cause I'm super nice. But just so you know, I'm not checking the other lane for cars and I'm definitely not going to make sure cars aren't coming in the other direction, so it's pretty much risking your life. You're welcome." Don't get me wrong, I'll be nice and let you out if I'm coming up to a red light or there's lots of traffic and I'm going to stop anyway. But not just randomly. So I propose- Is it nice or just stupid?
I will say this- after the Steelers lost last weekend, I did notice people being less likely to let others out. The niceness meter dropped just a bit that Monday. Interesting...
Speaking of which, I don't think it's possible (if you live here) to not be a Steelers fan. It's unlike anything I've ever seen. These people are cra cra about their football. I saw people dressed up in full Steelers gear like it was game day 2 months ago... on weekdays. A friend of ours got called out in church last Sunday for not wearing black and gold. It is a way of life here. I do appreciate that Pittsburgh had the good sense to make all their teams the same colors. Big shout out to the guy with that brilliant idea. We're going to the Steelers home game opener this Sunday. I'm a little worried my enthusiasm level isn't up to par with these folks quite yet. I'll let you know.
We went to the Pirates game a while back when my sis was in town and here's what came out of that...
1. Toto, I don't think we're in South Carolina anymore. Let me set the record straight. In the South, the majority of women wear cute outfits to games (All sports). Not all women. And they are most certainly not always cute. But nonetheless, a solid 70%. ESPN did a whole thing about southern girls and their cute outfits, so that's how serious it is. Sis and I were excited about our cute black dresses and yellow jewelry. I have this fantastic hat that's black and yellow plaid that was making it's debut. So, we finally walk up to the giant tailgate and it is soooo obvious that we are not from around these parts. We looked like we were going to prom. These women were not in cute outfits. They were in jerseys and jeans or t-shirts and shorts. WHHHAATTT?! Not a fan. I guess this is how it is everywhere but the South. Well, I may be the only one, but I'll be darned if I'm going to an event looking like I just got done mowing the lawn. I'll rock a jersey I'm sure, but it'll be cute if it kills me. You can take the girl out of the South but you can't take away my cute outfits.
2. You can take a ziploc bag of snacks and a bottle of unopened water into the stadium! Okay, maybe that's just exciting to me. I love snacks and water! And it's a good $30 cheaper for Sparky if I get to bring that stuff in from the outside where items are reasonably priced. Go Bucs!
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