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.

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.

Steelers

Nuff said.

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.