Homemade Sushi!

My brothers & dad have started a tradition - they have sushi for dinner then watch some sort of zombie/horror movie or a movie & its remake. Earlier this week, my mom & I were asked to join as a send off for my brother who was going back to Oregon.

Honored, I accepted, given that my sushi experience is limited & my tastes have only been for Ahi. I was only allowed to join if I ate halibut. Raw halibut. I agreed.

Instead of heading out for sushi, we made it at home! It was such a cool experience and much harder than I expected. We did SIMPLE rolls - seaweed, fish and rice. I made a poke salad but other than that, there was nothing else but fish & rice.

For Christmas, I gave one of my brothers a sushi set - sushi rice, sushi rice vinegar, wasabi, pickled ginger and two rolling mats. He got a fancy-dancy, super-super sharp knife from his girlfriend for Christmas, so besides the fact that we didn't have avocado or cucumber, we were ready to rock n' roll. (Get it? Roll? Ha.)

Honestly, we did a killer job. The fish was fresh (ahi, halibut & salmon), the rice was uber sticky, and the Sapporo was cold. The key to rolling is to make sure your hands are always wet - seriously, that rice is SO sticky - move slowly but deliberately, and slice with a purpose.

1. Lay out seaweed on rolling mat
2. Add a thin but solid layer of sticky rice (sushi rice with some sushi rice vinegar on it), leaving one 1/2 inch edge free of rice
3. Add your fish (avocado, cucumber, etc) in the middle of the rice
4. Roll the seaweed over the rice & fish
5. Continue rolling until you get to the free end. The water and rice will allow it to stick to itself. Make sure you don't roll the mat into the sushi roll. It's easy to do.
6. Slice the roll into 1" pieces with an extremely sharp knife. Start at the bottom of the blade and, applying barely any pressure, slice towards you. You should be able to get through the roll in one slice but if not, repeat.
7. Dip in soy sauce (mixed with wasabi if you're not a baby like me) and enjoy!

It's not a cheap dinner per se - each fish was about $25/lb. There were seven of us, we had 3 lbs of fish and 1 lb of shrimp tempura so when all was said and done, it was probably about $125 (not including the Sapporo of course) which is not too bad for seven people!

More than anything, it was a fun experience with my family and I highly recommend it!

Business Idea #74384242

I need to start a gym where the classes aren't classes at all. They're in those little rooms with the wood floors but there's just awesome music playing & you just go in there and dance for as long as you want. I'm pretty sure this would work. I HATE the gym but I love to shake it like a Polaroid picture so why not put both together and have a dance gym. Not Zumba or Jazzercise, just like a club but everyone is in gym clothes. You know you'd kill for this when at real clubs you're wearing shoes you can't even walk in, let alone dance in. At my gym, you'll be in tennies! And if you get sweaty, that's ok! It's the point! No need to worry about lookin' good because you're just there to work out.

I think I'd call it Dance-Off. Only $29 a month, no contract or sign up fee. 

I was also thinking that this gym would have Wiis & Kinects all over and you could just play those too. But no just sitting there. If Just Dance is on, you have to get up and move. If you're playing tennis, you have to get up and play. If you're playing Rock Band, you have to rock out as if you're really on tour. Boxing is always up & ready to go. How fun would this gym be!

Sad Day in My Career

Dear Mr. Microsoft Mouse,

You're approximately 8 years old so I should have assumed that your days were numbered. I didn't though, so today is a sad realization that we must part ways.

You came to me back in 2003 when I asked my company to get me a mouse with a scrolly wheel. Bonus: you also came with a side button which I could click, and you would take me back a page on the internet. Clearly ahead of your time. We spent the next three years at that company, coding, project managing, marketing & communicating all the day long.





When I left that company and moved on to the next, you were by my side the whole way. We set up shop together at a new desk, with new people & new projects. Almost five years later, we're still together, but today is the day I must say goodbye.




Your silver coating has worn off, your feet are worn down and your wheel is almost bare, but every day your light shines bright, preparing me for the day. You have started clicking on things that I didn't click on and for that, you must go. It has been an incredible journey, one that I will cherish for the rest of my career.


Please don't be offended if I choose a mouse that has a big red ball or more bells & whistles than you have. It's just how it is, and it doesn't mean I love you less. I will really miss you, little silver Microsoft mouse.









Until we meet again,
Your proud owner.

What? I have a blog?

Yeah. It's been a while. My job consists of writing all day and thinking about writing anytime I'm not writing. By the time I get home, the last thing I want to do is write here. But it's been too long. I was just reading an interesting blog and on the list of things never to say to single people, this was by far my favorite:

5. Please don’t assume that we’ll sleep on the couch. It’s Christmas or Thanksgiving and there are a dozen people staying at the same house, and yeah, we get it. You need the bed more than we do (go ahead and rub it in). If you ask us, we’ll let you have it. But don’t just assume. It’s humiliating.

I couldn't have said it any better. I actually didn't realize until now that what I have felt in the past was humiliation. That's exactly what it is. Hm. Thank you, Modern Reject bloggers.

The rest of the list has some gems too. I guess I'm just hitting my breaking point on being single, hence reading blogs & articles like this. I'm tired of this area, tired of the attitudes, tired of my routine, ready for a change. I'm not a huge fan of the saying "something's gotta give" (it just reminds me of that movie with Diane Keaton) but it really hits home right now...

Fakebook

There are so many - SO many - people who are really good at marketing themselves on the interwebs. They appear to have perfect lives in the perfect house, the perfect hobbies, perfect kids, perfect spouses. The content people post out there rides a fine line between "I'm perfect! Lookatme!" and "My life sucks. Lookatme!" I'm not sure which is worse...fake optimism or negative nelly. Really, it's this image that sums it up:

You know who you are.

Just a Saturday.

I'm sitting here, watching The Office, trying to get some (un)important online shopping done. I considered working on my website, but honestly, I just really haven't felt up to it. That's a big project! In other news, my dishwasher is in the process of being installed! The baby dishwasher that I bought months ago, the one that's been sitting in my kitchen, watching me wash dishes by hand, laughing at me. I can't believe it's about to be installed...truly a dream come true.

I'm still trying to figure out life. Part of me feels like I'm wasting time. Part of me feels like I should enjoy my weekends and time off not doing much because I need the rest. Not sure if I'm having a third-life crisis or what, but what the heck am I doing with my life? Should I start joining MeetUps and do a ton of new things? Should I go gung ho with my photography and get myself set up to really consider opening a studio in the future? Should I take it easy and relax, enjoying the sights? I just don't know! I guess I'm just ready for the next episode.

Why isn't Jim Halpert real? I heart him.

Ohmygoodnessthehumidity.

"Tonight will drop to 75. Tomorrow it'll hit 101," said the woman on the radio, "with a heat index of 114." Wwwhhhhaaaaaatttttt!!!!!!!!! Haaaaaaaaaaa.......

I've experienced humidity lotsa times in my life but ohmygoodness it's hot in Virginia. This heat wave is no joke. During my 1.5 hour drive from Richmond to Charlottesville, I was trying to think of ways to describe this type of humidity...

-I'm sitting on a plastic-covered 60s couch and a sweaty sumo wrestle settles in on my lap.
-I'm pretty sure you could really actually cut the air and serve it up for dessert.
-Wrapping up in a soaked wool blanket on the hottest day of summer.
-Every one of your friends aims their hair dryers at you. While you're in a sauna.

If I think of any more while I'm here, I'll be sure to share. If I haven't yet melted, that is.

Whatta Thursday.

After two delays in Sacto, one delay in Hotlanta and a marathon Tarmac sitting of at least an hour with no lights or AC, I'm finally sitting at the gate in Virginia. Man this plane is stuffy. Things I've noticed:
-When you stop worrying about missing connections or who is going to sit next to you on the plane, traveling isn't that bad. Yeah sure the delays aren't cool but really, what am I gonna do about it? Sit back, relax & enjoy my flight. That's what I'm gonna do about it.
-Children have an amazing ability to giggle about nothing for hours. Truly giggle. Crack each other up about nada. I miss that. When was the last time you really had a hearty, belly, tears in your eyes, can't catch your breath laugh? It's been a while for me for sure.
-I'm hot. Temperature-wise.
-The guy behind me has the same voice and accent as my uncle. Now wouldn't that be weird.
-I'm about to get my rental car and drive almost 2 hours. Not an ideal plan I had.
-Southern boys are cute.

Solo Road Trip Day 10: More Random Musings

I haven't blogging much because I haven't done much. I've been relaxing by the pool by day and wandering around Sin City by night. The thunderstorms here have been crazy - I've never experienced them like this in Vegas. I've been getting in pool time around 10am  - 12pm or so, and inevitably when I get too hot and bored by the pool & head back to my room, huge drops start falling and Vegas is bombarded by a quick storm.

At this point though, I'm starving and wanted to head out somewhere. Now I'll just patiently wait for the rain to stop. The buffet yesterday should have tided me over for longer...

Is the most boring blog post or what!

Solo Road Trip Day 7: Random Musings

On Tuesday, I got up early and went to Devil's Postpile in Mammoth. A fact which I forgot to mention in my Day 5 post :) I was really tired...  It was truly a long, long day but got some great photos at Devil's Postpile and the drive to Hurricane. I will definitely be posting a map with my route because I think I'll actually surprise myself! I believe Enrique has tracked us at around 1300 miles or so. Not bad, eh?

So, Hurricane, Utah, is where I stayed on Tuesday night and wrote my very long post. I wanted to call it Slurricane from here on out, however I learned on the radio yesterday that it's actually "Her-uh-kin" and not "Hurr-uh-KANE" like it should be. Yes, should be. Why change the pronunciation of an actual noun? Why, Utah, why? Is it because you like to be different with your dry counties and plural marriages? Don't get me wrong, I love me some Big Love but come on now, it's HurriCANE, as in large, destructive storms that usually form in the Gulf of Mexico area. Thanks.

As I posted earlier today, the highlight of my trip so far was the Neon Museum. I had the best tour guide, Justin, the birthday boy. He was so funny & knowledgable. It was such a great experience, despite the heat. I wanted to go to Fremont Street to shoot the old signs but I just couldn't bring myself to get out of my air conditioned car so I plan on coming back later this year. If I take photos of the ones actually ON buildings, I can post them on my photo blog and actually promote them as my own photos. That'd be cool. I will respect the Neon Museum's request to not use my photos from today commercially. I'd hate to make them upset - they're just so awesome.

A sidenote on money - if you want to take a cheap vacation, go to an all-inclusive resort in Mexico in October. A road trip is not the way to go. I've done very little and spent very much. It's amazing. I've barely even eaten! I tried to snack on fruits & veggies in the long car rides but man that gets old. Good thing I had my buffalo & beef jerky to eat. I felt quite barbaric ripping off pieces of dried meat. Manly, really.

[insert majorly annoyed comment here: I just wrote another 3 paragraphs and Blogger didn't save them. I think it's because I'm staying on floor 13 of my hotel. What hotel HAS a floor 13?? Oh that'd be mine. ARGH.]

Yeah so anyway, I owe you and myself a lot of photos. Devil's Postpile, most of the drive from Mammoth to Slurricane (yep, the name sticks), (shish)Kaibob National Forest, more of Inyo National Forest, the Grand Canyon, Zion National Park and the drive back to Vegas.

A quick open letter to Las Vegas: What is WITH the thunder storms and HUGE raindrops? Stoppit. It's July for pete's sake.

I do have a few road trip tips for you: Make sure your iPod is filllllllled with music, Pandora will not save you from highway boredom when most of the way there's no signal. Bring better food - seriously. Road trippin' makes you hungry. Whilst driving long distances that are primarily straight, download your photos from your CF card to your external hard drive. (Note to all Highway Patrolmen/State Troopers: I'd never do this.) You can sleep in any National Forest - for free. I wish I had done this at least once. I was all prepared with my twin blow up mattress and everything. Oh well. I did take a nice nap in (shish)Kaibob National Forest on the drive down the mountain from the Grand Canyon. Photo of my napping spot to come.

There won't be much photo activity over the next couple of days except the occasional phone photo - I'll be poolside. I'll try to post the other photos soon though! I hope to get a map too - I gots to track this route - I'll be impressed with myself.

Solo Road Trip Day 7: Neon Museum Tour, Las Vegas

Yep, I skipped a few days but I promise I'll post photos and commentary soon. I just HAD to get a few of these photos up because it really truly was the coolest thing I've done so far. (For some, the Grand Canyon may have been the highlight of the trip, but for me, the Neon Museum in Las Vegas was AWESOME.)

Update:
I moved these photos to my photo blog. Sorry, the post is password protected due to permissions from the Neon Museum. If you want to see them, email me!

Solo Road Trip Day 5: Mammoth and Beyond

(Be forewarned - this'll be a long one...)
(also, the radio is killing me. 1. No, I will not catch a grenade for you. 2. I just CAN get enough. 3. Let's NOT do it tonight. 4. That stupid Adelle song. Still.)
I got to Mammoth yesterday - didn't take long from Tahoe. I'm going to say right now -- a weekend trip is in order. Such a cute town, cool people, so much to see. On my way down, I stopped a ton along the way...Mono Lake was absolutely incredible. It was so much prettier than I expected! I can see why people have "Save Mono Lake" stickers. I want one... From there I stopped and took tons of photos of the mountains - they're so different than the Tahoe Sierras. (see photos here) I did many a scenic loop including June Lake which was so worth the detour. I went up to the Minaret Vista Point which is above 9000 feet. Stunning. I learned this morning that one part of the mountain range is in Wizard of Oz -what the what! Time to rewatch that! I finally decided to head into Mammoth Lakes and got a room. Happy America's Birthday -I had Mexican food for dinner, a Mexican beer and didn't drive out to Crowley Lake for fireworks. So un-American. I rested for a while because I had done a lot of walking in the heat then decided I had to try Mammoth brewing. I headed up to Whiskey Creek and had their IPA -yum. One of the brewmasters was bar tending - Bryce. He was awesome, had a great time chatting with him. We exchanged numbers so next time I'm in Mammoth I'll have to look him up! I'm sure there are tons of cool things there only locals know about...

This morning I went back to the mountain and hopped on the bus headed to Devil's Postpile. Totally worth the trip! I'll post photos later... I did talk to a super cool guy & his wife on the way there. Such nice people! I'm happy I met them - its nice to talk to people during the day! I didn't make the hike out to Rainbow Falls - it was too far for my poor knee and I wanted to hit the road for the Grand Canyon. My bus driver (I was the only one on the bus) was so awesome too - and cute but that's beside the point. He is from the same town outside of Chicago where my aunt lives! It's a small world after all.

Here are some notes from my 10 hour, 4 state drive today:
--I listened to country music for 3 hours. It's a lot dirtier than it sounds...it's like a rap song all countrified. I think they got something there...granted I did hear one country song about country music. Whaaaaaaa.... Oh, I also heard the country version of "I Swear." how rad is that!
--I was almost the one being pulled over three times this trip. I need to watch it.
--A beef jerky stand in Bishop was highly recommended so I stopped. Listen carefully to this one and pick your jaw up off the floor: I ate buffalo jerky. What?! Moi? Yes. I ate buffalo. And it was so much better than the beef jerky. Who am I? Really.
--My two favorite signs in Bishop: The Loco Frijole and Giggle Springs.
--I left Inyo National Forest today. Kinda sad, I've been Inyo for days. (ha! That was waaaaaay funnier in the car earlier today.)
--I took some pass from Bishop to highway 95 to Vegas. I was the ONLY person on 95 the whole way. Sure there were people going the opposite direction, but no one was going my way. (yes, that was a little Life Is a Highway, just for you.) The pass was loooooong but kinda cool.
--I went through the town of Beatty which is flanked by a brothel called Angel's Girls coming in to town and a strip club called Bikinis on the way out. Remember, this is in the middle of NOWHERE. those chicks must be so hot, huh?
--About 60 miles outside of Vegas there was a Smarte Car convoy. As I've said before, those. Are. Hilarious!!!
--there was a massive prison out there in the massive high desert. Hitchhiking was prohibited.
--When I got to Tahoe I was at 126.2 miles. When I left Tahoe yesterday, I was at 256.6. When I got to Bishop today, I was at 486.5. When I left Inyo, I was at 532.2. When I get up tomorrow, I'll check again and update this post...I drove a lot today.
--It' HOT.
--I saw lightning a ton - thank you, Utah.
--I'm currently in a relatively nice Travelodge in Hurricane, Utah. I think I'm only about 30 minutes from Zion National Park so though it wasn't on the itinerary, I'll definitely be stopping tomorrow on my way to the big hole in the ground, the Grand Canyon.
--it's been a long day of driving so my apologies if this doesn't make sense and has typos. I felt great until about an hour ago, so I'm glad I have this huge Travelodge room - with cable - and lots of pillows. Nighty night!

Solo Road Trip Day 4: Hwy 395

So South Lake Tahoe wasn't exactly a great idea. It was a 21-year-old-drunk-fest and I'm just too old for that. Even the bartender at Stateline Brewery last night, 26, said it was obnoxious. I love South Lake, but only with my friends. I probably won't do that again...

The highlight of yesterday was going to Stateline Brewery for dinner and meeting a cool chick at the bar. We ended up hanging out through dinner then had a beer on the patio. It was so fun to meet someone new and the night flew by telling stories and people watching.

Like I've said before, life ain't always rainbows and unicorns. The beginning of this trip hasn't been. It's been awkward to be by myself, alone with my thoughts, barely talking all day long. I think meeting Dawn last night helped break me out of my shy shell and I hope I can do the same tonight here in Mammoth.

Wish me luck.

Solo Road Trip Day 3: South Lake Tahoe

Not even 11am and I've already done so much! Breakfast and driving range! It's only 72 degrees and it feels like 95. Thin air? I'm sweatin' up a storm. TMI, I know. Now for a little stream of consciousness...I'm sitting outside Starbucks, stealing their internet because my lovely motel's internet is terrible. I went out last night and it was weird. I had a hard time with it and I hope this rollin' solo thing gets easier. Today my plan is to eat at restaurant bars so I have a better chance of talking to people. I'm not sure what to do today - I'm thinking get some books and post it on the beach. Not sure yet though.

Here are some photos from yesterday (Starbucks, tunnel, brewski) and today (golf):

Solo Road Trip Day 2: South Lake Tahoe

I'm up and at 'em too early today. I think part of this has to do with the fact that I'm at a ghetto motel so I can hear everything. But at least they always leave the light on for me.

So yeah, I'm up. Did I say "at 'em"? Not quite yet. Trying to decide what to do today...First I'm going to color my hair. Thrilling, eh? Then maybe make my way down to this cool cafe I saw yesterday for some fuel. I'll definitely be at the lake today - It's supposed to be nice and warm so in between shooting, I'll just enjoy the sun. We'll see what happens today - I'll check back in later in case anything funny happens.

A couple of things I forgot to mention yesterday:

• I followed a car on 80 yesterday for like a half hour with this  book visible in the back window: "Bird Songs Bible." If anyone knows me at all, it's that I hate birds. I mean yeah, the chirping is nice and reminds me of summer and sun and all that crap, but in general, if you put a cool graphic on a t-shirt of a tree, then I look closer and there's a stupid bird on it, I will not buy it. Bird people are weird. This dude had a bird songs BIBLE in his car. I'm pretty sure we wouldn't get along.
• I was getting a little road rage yesterday because the traffic on 80 was not awesome. As we were approaching Sacto, Poison by Bel Biv Devoe came on the radio and all was well.
• I forgot Chapstick yesterday. CHAPSTICK. 3.5 hours I waited to buy some in Tahoe and slather my mouth with it. Went from Hell to Heaven in just a quick trip to Rite Aid.
• Hot Blooded by Foreigner came out when I was about 55 days old. Crazy. I love that song.

Solo Road Trip - Day 1: Tahoe

I have arrived at destination #1: South Lake Tahoe. I'm having a hard time separating from work so instead of pressuring myself to "get out 'n shoot" I'm takin it easy in my (not) sweet motel room with That 70s Show as my companion. It's gorgeous up here: 78 degrees! When I get some Internet, I'll post photos too.

Some things I thought/noticed on the drive:
1. If I hear that Adelle song one more time, I'll flip out.
2. I counted about 278 coolers in cars on I80.
3. I will be drinking a lot of Starbucks on this trip.
4. All photos taken on this trip count, including phone pics.
5. I may get a book on my phone to listen to. Weird.
6. I'm really tired and have no motivation to do anything. Today has been declared a wash and I will continue to be lazy & slightly boring.

More Photos...

And it begins...

Packing is not going so well. What the heck do I take for 12 days away from home with all different types of plans and a lot of unknown? Well, for one, I take a suitcase just for shoes. Yep, guys out there, I said one suitcase dedicated *just* to shoes. Wanna see?

Ahhhhh. The day is almost here. The suitcases are heavy. There are more bags & rolly bags & bins & suitcases than one person would ever need for 12 days away. Good thing I'm rolling solo.

Solo Road Trip 2011 - Mental Preparation

I'm takin' a road trip. By myself. For 12 days. I'm really excited but I'll be honest, there are some things that I'm worried about.

1. I might get lonely. It's a lot of open road, lots of time to think, lots of not much to look at. This is part of the reason I'm going - to really get away from it all. I'm just a tad worried that I may get sad I'm not experiencing this with anyone. I'm sure I'll get over it...
2. I'll get sick of my music. I mean, what if Pandora doesn't work in the middle of nowhere and I'm stuck listening to Blame It on the Rain over and over?
3. Overspending on hotels. I'm trying really hard not to plan everything to the last detail. That's typical me and I'm trying to stifle typical me for this trip. I like to get the best deal. I can't help it. Not booking all hotel nights in advance makes me worried. Oh well. So I'll overspend. It's a vacation!
4. I won't take as many photos as I intend to. This IS the purpose of the whole trip...
5. I'll procrastinate. Even on vacation. Heck, I haven't even packed yet and I leave in 2.5 days. What exactly am I waiting for?
6. I won't be able to go out alone. Talk about awkward! I'm going to try REALLY hard on this one. I'm going to two super fun places and I don't want to just sit in my hotel. That's lame. I need to go out and meet people. Wish me luck on this one....I need it. If you have any confidence dust, sprinkle it now.

For the most part, I know I'll be fine. I'm not worried about breaking down in the middle of nowhere. I'm not worried about being kidnapped and sold for drugs. I'm not worried about getting lost and losing time. I'm not worried about what I'll be wearing. (Ok, that last one is a lie.)

The countdown truly begins. Oh, and if you think of anything I should see or any photos I should take or any scavenger hunt-type items I should do, post a comment! 

PS - My road trip needs a name. It's o-s-c-a-r. HA. Kiddin'. I'm leaning towards A Girl's Gotta Drive or A Solo Road Trip for the Soul. What about a Soul-o Road Trip? Cheesy? Yes. What about Just Drive. Or Shut Up & Drive. Well, I won't be doing that - I don't think I ever shut up and that's a terrible song. How 'bout Vanishing Point? No, that's terrible too and I'm sorta giving myself bad luck with that one. Hmmmmmmm.........

Spend Nothing for 10 Days

I wonder if I could truly do this...

I am terrible with money. I'll admit it. I never admit it...I pay my bills on time, I have a (modest) savings account and I eat cheaply for the most part (Cheerios anyone?) I have spending vices like clothes, shoes & coffee and all of that adds up QUICKLY. My thinking lately has been "garage sale! garage sale!" just to offset some of the money I've spent and get rid of the crap I've accumulated. Not spending a dime for 10 days terrifies me. What if something awesomely cool comes up? What if I really need new black pants? Then the rational side pops up and says - dude. It's 10 days. Come on.

I think I should try. Granted, this may go the way of my trying not to eat meat for 10 days...

Denver!

A couple of observations about Denver, having been here for approximately 2 hours...

A lot more people smoke here than I would have expected.
I can see why they call is Menver.
Altitude is stupid.
The amount of awesome signs printed on brick buildings is incredible here. I must comeback armed with my good camera.
The 16th Street Mall is very cool - painted pianos every couple of blocks, guys playing chess, sign spinners, and the occasional crazy yelling person.
The bus down the Mall is free. Cool.
It reminds me a little bit of Portland and a little bit of Austin.
This place rocks.

More to come...

Random Thoughts

Here is my own version of Ruminations for today.

• Is anyone else a tad creeped out by American Apparel online ads? No? Just me?
• I would kill to work for myself. Well, not kill I guess. Then I'd be in jail and STILL be workin' for the man.
• The Northern Lights are sick. (Hey, 1995 called. They want "sick" back.)
• I think Fon du Lac, Wisconsin is one of the coolest city names ever.
• Other cool words: Albequerque and alopecia (definition notsomuch)
• There are those who say, "I have an idea!" and let you decide it's worth and then there are those who say, "I have a great idea!" and are arrogant jerks.
• Streaming Netflix through my Wii is awesome. Really, really awesome. Now I wish I could stream Hulu through my Wii. Life would be complete. Almost.
• Why does it seem so difficult to win the lottery?
• I love one hit wonders. And bad TV.

More to come...

My Backyard

It's been a while since I've posted anything about my ridiculous backyard. It's too much yard for one person, one person who is completely averse to gardening of any sort - mowing of lawns, whacking of weeds, planting of flowers. My backyard is good for one thing and one thing only: parties.

Since I haven't used my backyard since fall, other beings have decided to inhabit it. Chickens. At least two. Maybe more, I haven't checked. Maybe they see it as a party backyard too. If any other barnyard animals show up, I'll be sure to let you know.

Air Travel

Is gross.
Is annoying.
Is frustrating.
Is tiring.
Is exasperating.
Is sorta fun.

I went to New Jersey this week by way of Philly. I chose the flight there simply because it had a layover in Denver - a good 2 hours with a break inbetween. I had a nice mom & daughter next to me to Denver so that wasn't so bad. I should have seen this coming though....from Denver to Philly I had the worst dude next to me! I'll just list off the things he did so you can make your own judgment: long fingernails, sat with legs WIDE open (yes, this means resting his leg against mine. Move over buddy, I don't know you.), scratched his junk. Yes. The WHOLE flight. Does he think I can't see it? I'm sitting 3.456 inches from you, dude. And he was a jerky pants to boot. 3+ hours of this and I was ready for a change of scenery.

Landed in Philly....picked up by JerseyJ.

Yes this is my first Philly cheesesteak ever - Provolone Wit. We had to choose between Pat's and Geno's. Pat's looked a little less "fine tuned" so we went there. I much prefer hole-in-the-wall versus fancypants so I was thrilled. I told myself I'd never have a cheesesteak sandwich unless I were in Philly - scratch that one off my bucket list! Now I can eat them anywhere.




After gorging on my sando, we headed to Atlantic City (now referred to as AC because I'm lazy.) After a long day of travel and a bum knee, we met up with another coworker, had dinner and went to bed. Nothing special. I didn't even gamble.

Day two was work and not appropriate to blog about work because previous blog issues a couple years ago. Moving on...

Day three was back to the airport in Philly after too short of a time in AC. Got to see the Atlantic but not touch it - reason enough to go back. I hear it actually gets warm in the summer! How random is that. This flight was going to be a doozy - Philly to Vegas. 5+ hours. My only saving grace was who I randomly sat by: this guy. He was funny and talkative which made the flight go pretty quickly. We landed in Vegas, I didn't even get to get off the plane to put $10 in a slot machine, I changed seats and geared up for another 1.5 hours home. Who sits in front of me in my new seat? Worst-BO-ever-guy & hacking-up-a-lung-coughing lady. What a wonderful experience air travel is.

At least I came home to record-high temps. Cheers to California.

My Favorite Things

The Groupon copywriting
Tahoe
My bed
Smoothies
The Groupon copywriting
Grande nonfat lattes
Fuzzy socks
The Groupon copywriting

Living for Today

I am going to try to move past all the bad things that have happened by living just for today. I know it's a little like the Serenity Prayer in AA, but honestly, every time Dear Abby prints that thing, I try to memorize it.

This weekend was great. Nothing huge happened, no crazy nights out, didn't meet Prince Charming. This weekend just was, and it was fun. No huge plans = random days. A couple hours of walking in the sun, a couple hours chilling at the coffee shop, a couple hours of a movie, a couple hours of shopping and dinner, a couple hours of Rockband. I'm pretty sure that makes for an awesome Saturday.

Today was great too! A day in the city with my folks, hit up Rayko Photo Center for their Kodachrome exhibit, saw my dad's office, had some great Thai. Oh and I started the day with the longest run I've done in years - 3.4 miles.

If I can keep my focus just on today, I should be ok.

Cranky Pants.

Life isn't always ice cream and sprinkles. It just isn't. Anyone who acts like it is can suck it.

Today, I actually got up and ran. That's three times this week. I hope I can keep it up. Made me feel pretty good about myself.

I headed to work, arrived a bit late which I'm ok with because I ran, and realized I had left my computer at home. Back into the car I go.

I get home, retrieve my computer, contemplate putting my PJs back on and just calling it a day, and head back to the office.

Somewhere along the highway, I heard a pop and then wind wooshing around. A quick window check reveals that all of my windows are intact and indeed closed. A quick open of the sun shade  reveals that my sunroof has shattered into bits and it's all bad. I go to work.

I spend too much time of my very busy day on the phone with insurance claims agents, body shops and more insurance agents. I take my car over to the body shop where they tape plastic on the roof so I don't get rained on tomorrow while they wait for the insurance company and glass order to come in.

I head home to work from there because really? Can I not catch ONE break in this life?

I thought, ya know what I need? Comfort food. What better than chili on this chilly night in the slow cooker? That way I don't need to do anything but plop it all in and turn it on. I did just that.

I just went into the kitchen, 2 hours later, to stir my concoction. Who's the fool who forgot to PLUG THE SLOW COOKER IN? Oh that'd be me.

Awesome. Guess I'll have chili tomorrow. Good thing it's an ice box in that kitchen - probably colder than my actual refrigerator. And if I get food poisoning from the ground turkey sitting on the counter for 2 hours then we'll just tack that on to a so far sucky year.

Please let something good happen soon. Lottery, maybe?