[The highlight of my weekend was playing Oscar bingo...]
Last week I tried to sew a supposedly easy potholder using bias tape and it turned out so horribly that I cried my eyes out (my husband thought I was losing my mind).
I hate a) failing and b) wasting time.
Work has been busy because of a bank refinancing.
No time to brainstorm blog ideas.
The weather has been so-so. Kinda rainy & drab.
Not good for my motivation.
Excuses, excuses!
I need to quit my bellyaching and do something cool
so I have things to blog about.
TO DO LIST
1. Make a to-do list (check!)
2. Make homemade thin mints & give you the recipe
3. Secretly eat all of homemade thin mints
4. Feel guilty & make a salad for lunch the next day
5. Go thrift shopping with Mom
6. Share more wedding photos on blog
7. Vacuum the car (not exciting, but desperately needed)
8. Make a spring purse
9. Get in shape for lacrosse season
10. Learn to make Tim's favorite Indian meal: lamb chettinad
So yeah, I better get on these before you're bored to death with my blog.
I don't want to turn this blog into a place where I complain all the time.
Sometimes, things just really annoy me and I gotta let it out.
Maybe it's the 5 inches of snow we got over night (after a 70 degree weekend).
Maybe it's the fact that I didn't eat breakfast this morning.
I promise you, this will not happen regularly.
So here we go...
Gripe #1: Your Job
People with jobs who complain about them... annoy me. I've had crappy jobs. We all have. If you honestly cannot stand your job, find a new one. Yes, they're out there. It might take you a few solid months of searching, but it's possible. You don't like what you're getting paid? Maybe you should have thought about that before you majored in art. Or philosophy. Or women's studies. Unless you're the next Picaso or Aristotle, those majors will never ever ever pay off. And just to be clear, you don't HAVE to go to a traditional 4-year college to get a good job that you enjoy. Parents who push this on their kids annoy me. My husband hated sitting in a classroom. But put some tools in his hands and let him play around under the hood of a car and he'll shine. If you want a career that you'll enjoy and that pays well, you have to be practical. I love giving people advice and organizing things. As a paralegal, that is literally what I do all day. I didn't just pick it because I thought it sounded cool, I picked it because it's an in-demand job. During my senior year of college, I started thinking ahead and my mom even did research about what jobs would be prevalent in the future. She brought the paralegal idea up to me, I liked it, so I did what was necessary to get the job. I went into my major (communications) knowing that additional schooling after graduation could be necessary. I worked full-time at the front desk of a small law firm while going to night school for a year. It was hard, but it paid off big time. I love what I do now and also feel that I am fairly compensated for it.
Gripe #2: Your Health
People who always complain about being sick... annoy me. Achieving and maintaining good health is no longer a mystery. We've figured it out. It's all about your immune system. If you keep it strong, it will fight off bacteria & viruses for you. If you don't take care of your immune system, you will get sick often & be miserable. We even know what things strengthen our immune systems. There are countless super foods, vitamins, minerals & herbs that your immune system loves. All you have to do is read a few books and google a few articles. There are countless websites that tell you, word for word, how to prevent colds. How to limit their number, length & severity. Yet all people do all winter is complain about their 8th, 9th, 10th cold.
If you can't do a few simple things during cold & flu season, then frankly, you deserve to be sick all winter. I feel no pity for you.
Gripe #3: Your Weight
Setting aside serious medical problems or unavoidable medications that lead to weight gain, you CAN lose weight (if you want to, ahem, Donna Simpson in New Jersey). Diet & exercise. Diet & exercise. Diet & exercise. There are no ways around it. You have to eat less, eat healthy and move around. Tim and I went out for Mexican food on Saturday night and sat at a table next to a very large family. There were only 5 of them, but what was large was their individual sizes. Mom, Dad, 2 boys & a girl. The kids were larger than their parents (already) which was the really scary part. The other scary part was how much food they consumed at one sitting. The portions at this particular Mexican joint are big. Enough that Tim and I had to have half of our meals boxed and we finished them for the lunch the next day. But each person in this family housed their entire meal and multiple sodas, they each ordered & finished dessert (fried ice cream) and the kids got giant, sugary gumballs out of the gumball machine on the way out.
I almost couldn't enjoy my meal with them next to us. It was appalling. With everything we know about how to live a long, healthy life... how can you do that to yourselves and your children? They're all doomed to a life of type 2 diabetes and heart disease if they don't change their ways ASAP. It's science.
*********
Tuesday Morning Gripefest is now over.
Ahhh, that feels so much better.
And just to prove that I'm not being a TOTAL debbie downer today,
I'll leave you with this clip from the episode of Seinfeld that was on TV last night.
Ran for the first time in 2 months. THAT was interesting. I did a little over 2 miles and almost vomited afterwards. My leg muscles hated my guts he next day. Gotta push on though. I start reffing girls' lacrosse again in mid-March. My 3rd season! And I still feel like I have no idea what I'm doing.
*****
The hunt is on for a solution to our boring non-working fireplace.
This is what it looks like right now.
We nabbed the grate from my parents house & believe it or not, I snagged the birch logs on eBay! They are real but way too small for this huge fireplace and I am getting angry with their lameness.
I've googled lots of solutions: potted plants, stacks of books, giant candles, giant glass vases... but none of them are calling out to me. Do you guys have any ideas?
I'm looking to spend no more than $30.
I'm thinking of thrifting for a shelf or something. I can't describe it.
I always need a little project to keep me occupied.
If you don't like chocolate & peanut butter mixed together, you're insane.
And to those of you with nut allergies, sorry you'll never know one of life's greatest pleasures.
You probably shouldn't read any further. The risk of ignoring potential anaphylactic shock to make these is too great.
My husband volunteered to cook with me the other night (whoa, hold the phones, yes it's true) and we made these wonderful chocolate peanut butter cups.
The best part was licking melted chocolate off spoons, bowls, etc.
I am starting a little blog series called Living with a Dude.
I think all the married ladies out there will be able to relate.
I bring you Part I, which just happened yesterday.
Decor
Each morning I wake up to find my husband's
decorative touches throughout the house.
Only a husband can tackle accent table decor
& his athlete's foot problem, simultaneously
Disclaimer: I love my husband to death! I am in no way criticizing him. Everyone is different and I am simply showcasing & celebrating our differences in a humorous light. I am not perfect, either. Like when I don't clean the bathtub for a month.
Boboli Whole Wheat pizza crusts have made at least 1 dinner per week a breeze.
My only issue with them is the questionable preservatives & "artificial color." At least they've wised up and now use regular old sugar instead of high fructose corn syrup. Hey, nobody's perfect.
It sure beats ordering out or heating up something frozen. You at least feel like you're cooking when you add your own toppings & whip a snazzy pizza out of the oven.
[Slicing your thumb open also makes you feel like you're actually cooking, but I advise against it.]
I've made these kinds of pizzas dozens of times before, but last night's was particularly impressive.
Just ask my husband, the wannabe professional food critic.
His comments usually make me a better cook. But sometimes I get frustrated and end up yelling something like Why can't you just tell me it's good!! I shed a few tears and then he feels bad and apologizes. I take dinner very seriously.
We are totally normal.
Sausage, Onion & Spinach Pizza
Ingredients
1 pizza crust (Boboli or make your own if you're bored)
3/4 c. marinara
2 c. shredded mozzarella cheese
1 c. spinach leaves, roughly chopped
1/2 of an onion, chopped
1/2 lb. sausage*, cooked & chopped into bite-sized pieces
*We use uncured sausage, bacon & hotdogs whenever possible to avoid nitrates. They are not cool.
Directions
Cook your sausage stovetop on medium-high heat for about 3-4 min. on each side. It's way easier to slice when it's cooked, so definitely do this first. I learned the annoying way.
While the sausage is sizzlin', preheat the oven to 425 and prep your veggies.
Then layer your ingredients like so:
Marinara
Spinach
1 c. mozzarella
Onion
Sausage
1 c. mozzarella
[Putting the spinach under the cheese helps to keep it in place!]
Bake for 12-15 minutes. Let cool for 5 minutes before cutting & serving.
Since all of two people entered my first giveaway, it's kinda silly to declare only one winner. So you'll both be getting something awesome & handmade.
Congrats Beth & Joy!
Thank you for not making my first giveaway totally lame.
(Although let's face it, by most blogging standards, it was.)
Moving on...
Here is a recap in photos of our Valentine's dinner out.
We exchanged some gifts on Saturday afternoon & went to Macaroni Grill (a small step up from Olive Garden) for dinner that night. They have paper tablecloths & crayons.
We took full advantage of that.
[They trust you to mark how many glasses of wine you drink from the bottle on your table. I was honest, I swear!]