but it all worked in the end. Anthony got me a lot of nice gifts. He is really great at picking out the right things!
Well I'm off to the airport in 3 hours. I won't have my computer while I'm in New Zealand.
Peace out! ;)
12.26.2008
12.22.2008
ahhhh...
So i leave for New Zealand on Friday. It's really all too surreal. This will be a trip of a lifetime.
I can't wait!
I'm pretty excited for Christmas too. I want to give Ant his presents. I hope that he likes them. :)
It snowed a lot here last weekend (12/14/08). I will have to get some pictures up of just how beautiful it was. It kind of sucked at the same time because we had to drive over the summit from Reno and it took 5 hours to get home when it should take an hour and half tops. OH well. It's pretty much all gone now though. It's fun while it lasted.
Pictures soon to come and a yummy recipe for Turkey Chili! :)
12.12.2008
Merry Chrismtas Vs. Happy Holidays
Why does it even matter? Really?
This issue is a really big annoyance to me...
I would say that at least 90% of people in the USA celebrate Christmas. I would say that almost 100% of those 90% of people celebrate it differently. Not everyone celebrates it as the birth of Jesus Christ and that's OK. Some people celebrate it as a new beginning, a time to be with family, a time to reflect, a time to give thanks, to have hope, to be joyful, etc... And every single one of those reasons is fine by me (isn't it great to live in the USA?). But for some people it's just not...
So starts the argument of what to say when running into someone at the supermarket or answering the phone around this time of year... I say: say whatever one makes you happy (both make me happy FYI)! And don't take it personally if the greeting that is said to you isn't the one you would have said. Take it as a nice gesture and leave it at that! I actually prefer to say Happy Holidays when I'm saying it to someone i don't know for all the reasons i listed above. First of all this is a HOLIDAY season not just Christmas. It starts with Thanksgiving and ends with New Years. And you know what not everyone in this country is a Christian, so they don't celebrate Christmas. If i know the person and know how they feel about Christmas then I usually say Merry Christmas, such as my family.
Honestly I hear more people complain about someone saying Happy Holidays or Seasons Greeting to them rather then Merry Christmas... and to those people all I want to say is SO WHAT???!!!
Christmas to me is a feeling not a day. It's the season. It's the awesome Christmas lights on peoples houses, it's apple cider and hot chocolate, it's Cornish and Victorian Christmas (In Grass Valley and Nevada City), its my favorite holiday music, it's my Christmas tree decorated with ornaments from years past, it's the memories from my childhood, it's the hope of change in my life, and it's the time we share with the people we love.
And i think I'm done. FYI: This all started a few nights ago with a conversation I had with Ant and just got resurfaced with a forwarded email that i received this morning. A complaining email about people saying Happy Holidays instead of Merry Christmas... " It's a Christmas Tree not a Holiday Tree"..... (Rolls eyes! )
This issue is a really big annoyance to me...
I would say that at least 90% of people in the USA celebrate Christmas. I would say that almost 100% of those 90% of people celebrate it differently. Not everyone celebrates it as the birth of Jesus Christ and that's OK. Some people celebrate it as a new beginning, a time to be with family, a time to reflect, a time to give thanks, to have hope, to be joyful, etc... And every single one of those reasons is fine by me (isn't it great to live in the USA?). But for some people it's just not...
So starts the argument of what to say when running into someone at the supermarket or answering the phone around this time of year... I say: say whatever one makes you happy (both make me happy FYI)! And don't take it personally if the greeting that is said to you isn't the one you would have said. Take it as a nice gesture and leave it at that! I actually prefer to say Happy Holidays when I'm saying it to someone i don't know for all the reasons i listed above. First of all this is a HOLIDAY season not just Christmas. It starts with Thanksgiving and ends with New Years. And you know what not everyone in this country is a Christian, so they don't celebrate Christmas. If i know the person and know how they feel about Christmas then I usually say Merry Christmas, such as my family.
Honestly I hear more people complain about someone saying Happy Holidays or Seasons Greeting to them rather then Merry Christmas... and to those people all I want to say is SO WHAT???!!!
Christmas to me is a feeling not a day. It's the season. It's the awesome Christmas lights on peoples houses, it's apple cider and hot chocolate, it's Cornish and Victorian Christmas (In Grass Valley and Nevada City), its my favorite holiday music, it's my Christmas tree decorated with ornaments from years past, it's the memories from my childhood, it's the hope of change in my life, and it's the time we share with the people we love.
And i think I'm done. FYI: This all started a few nights ago with a conversation I had with Ant and just got resurfaced with a forwarded email that i received this morning. A complaining email about people saying Happy Holidays instead of Merry Christmas... " It's a Christmas Tree not a Holiday Tree"..... (Rolls eyes! )
12.11.2008
just some more..
Today was long... and I'm glad to be in bed now. :)
Although, I did get a lot of stuff done tonight. After work I went to the store and bought some more stocking stuffers for Ant. It's kind of hard picking out those things for boys.. girls are way easier.
Then I came home and made dinner. I decided to make blueberry pancakes and Ant had the great idea to add chopped pecans to the batter. Yum-O! They turned out really well. Kudos to my boyfriend.
(do you like my retro plates? I got them from my great grandma and they are from England too)
And I was in the mood to cook more so I decided to make this recipe that i found from this very cool site called Simply Recipes. There are a lot of recipes that I want to make from this site. Oh and her photography of the food is really awesome too!
Anywho, It didn't turn our quite the way i wanted it to but it was still a fun and tasty experience. Next time we will use a different kind of apple, smaller apples, and i would like to have a baster too.
I did more work on my Christmas Ornaments too which are turning out to be really nice and way more fun then i had expected.
Thank God tomorrow is Friday btw. :) We are probably going to go to Reno for the weekend and it's supposed to snow.. really low. yay.
12.10.2008
The Count Down!
15 days until Christmas!
16 days until New Zealand!
21 days until 2009!
I really can't wait until I'm on the plane for Auckland, New Zealand. It's really a one in a lifetime experience. I'm glad that my friend Lacie told me about this trip and asked me to go with her. I don't regret spending $4000 from my "car fund" to have 2 weeks full of new and exciting things.
The only thing that makes it a bitter sweet trip is spending new years away from my boy. Not being able to kiss him when the clock strikes 12am! I will actually be celebrating the New Year a whole 21 hours before anyone in California which is actually a pretty cool thing. Oh and when i come home i get to live the same day twice! crazy...
16 days until New Zealand!
21 days until 2009!
I really can't wait until I'm on the plane for Auckland, New Zealand. It's really a one in a lifetime experience. I'm glad that my friend Lacie told me about this trip and asked me to go with her. I don't regret spending $4000 from my "car fund" to have 2 weeks full of new and exciting things.
The only thing that makes it a bitter sweet trip is spending new years away from my boy. Not being able to kiss him when the clock strikes 12am! I will actually be celebrating the New Year a whole 21 hours before anyone in California which is actually a pretty cool thing. Oh and when i come home i get to live the same day twice! crazy...
12.09.2008
Last Night..
I made Chicken Tortilla soup for dinner! I didn't follow a recipe so i wrote down the things i did as i went along. It was fun not following a recipe and seeing how it would turn out!
So this is my recipe for some pretty darn good soup:
5 or 6- corn tortillas, cut into strips
6- cups of Chicken broth ( i might do 7 next time, i would like a little more broth)
1- medium yellow onion (about 1 plus some cup)
2-cloves of garlic, minced
1-jalapeno, chopped finely and seeds removed
1-red chili pepper, chopped finely and seeds removed
1-15 oz can of tomatoes with diced green chiles
3-cups already cooked chicken, chopped up or shredded
1-15 oz can of black beans
1 1/4 - cup of frozen corn
1/8 tsp-cumin
A hand full of cilantro leaves without the steams, chopped up.
For the top:
Avacado-sliced
Sour cream
Shredded cheese, any kind
Cilantro
*First I cut the tortillas into strips, placed in oven at 200 and let them dry out a bit ( they will start to curl up when they are good). Then i put some vegetable oil in a pan and fried them up until they were nice and crunchy. Then i put them on a plate with a paper towel so the oil would drain off.
*I then put the onions, garlic, and peppers into the same pan and cooked. I then transfered them into a big pot. I added the chicken, chicken broth, tomatoes at this point and let that simmer for 15 minutes.
*I added the beans, corn, cumin, and cilantro next and let it boil/simmer for another 15-20 minutes. (For a thickening agent, i set a side about 1/4 cup of the beans and smooshed then in a seperate bowl, then added them to the soup along with the whole beans, it seemed to help thicken the soup)
To serve i put some of the tortillas in the bowl, then added the soup on top, then put more tortillas, avacado slices, a dollop of sour cream, some cheddar cheese, and a few cilantro bits.
I would say that all and all my soup turned out pretty good. I can't wait to try it again. And all i can say is that i'm excited for my leftovers tonight!
So this is my recipe for some pretty darn good soup:
5 or 6- corn tortillas, cut into strips
6- cups of Chicken broth ( i might do 7 next time, i would like a little more broth)
1- medium yellow onion (about 1 plus some cup)
2-cloves of garlic, minced
1-jalapeno, chopped finely and seeds removed
1-red chili pepper, chopped finely and seeds removed
1-15 oz can of tomatoes with diced green chiles
3-cups already cooked chicken, chopped up or shredded
1-15 oz can of black beans
1 1/4 - cup of frozen corn
1/8 tsp-cumin
A hand full of cilantro leaves without the steams, chopped up.
For the top:
Avacado-sliced
Sour cream
Shredded cheese, any kind
Cilantro
*First I cut the tortillas into strips, placed in oven at 200 and let them dry out a bit ( they will start to curl up when they are good). Then i put some vegetable oil in a pan and fried them up until they were nice and crunchy. Then i put them on a plate with a paper towel so the oil would drain off.
*I then put the onions, garlic, and peppers into the same pan and cooked. I then transfered them into a big pot. I added the chicken, chicken broth, tomatoes at this point and let that simmer for 15 minutes.
*I added the beans, corn, cumin, and cilantro next and let it boil/simmer for another 15-20 minutes. (For a thickening agent, i set a side about 1/4 cup of the beans and smooshed then in a seperate bowl, then added them to the soup along with the whole beans, it seemed to help thicken the soup)
To serve i put some of the tortillas in the bowl, then added the soup on top, then put more tortillas, avacado slices, a dollop of sour cream, some cheddar cheese, and a few cilantro bits.
I would say that all and all my soup turned out pretty good. I can't wait to try it again. And all i can say is that i'm excited for my leftovers tonight!
12.05.2008
Foodie
I found this on someones blog. I thought it would be fun to do it! Since I love food and all!! :)
I guess these are the rules:
1) Copy this list into your own blog, including these instructions.
2) Bold all the items you’ve eaten.
3) Cross out any items that you would never consider eating.
4) Post a comment here once you’ve finished and link your post back to this one.
5) Pass it on!
1. Natto
2. Green Smoothie
3. Tofu Scramble
4. Haggis (I had to look this up and would never eat!)
5. Mangosteen
6. Creme brulee
7. Fondue
8. Marmite/Vegemite
9. Borscht
10. Baba ghanoush
11. Nachos
12. Authentic soba noodles
13. PB&J sandwich (who hasn't?)
14. Aloo gobi
15. Taco from a street cart
16. Boba Tea
17. Black truffle
18. Fruit wine made from something other than grapes
19. Gyoza
20. Vanilla ice cream
21. Heirloom tomatoes
22. Fresh wild berries
23. Ceviche
24. Rice and beans
25. Knish
26. Raw scotch bonnet pepper
27. Dulce de leche
28. Caviar
29. Baklava
30. Pate
31. Wasabi peas
32. Chowder in a sourdough bowl
33. Mango lassi
34. Sauerkraut
35. Root beer float
36. Mulled cider
37. Scones with buttery spread and jam
38. Vodka jelly
39. Gumbo
40. Fast food french fries
41. Raw Brownies
42. Fresh Garbanzo Beans
43. Dahl
44. Homemade Soymilk
45. Wine from a bottle worth £60/$120 or more
46. Stroopwaffle
47. Samosas
48. Vegetable Sushi
49. Glazed doughnut
50. Seaweed
51. Prickly pear
52. Umeboshi
53. Tofurkey
54. Sheese
55. Cotton candy
56. Gnocchi
57. Piña colada
58. Birch Beer
59. Scrapple
60. Carob chips
61. S’mores
62. Soy curls
63. Chickpea cutlets
64. Curry
65. Durian ( I had some Durian Ice cream before...gross)
66. Homemade Sausages
67. Churros, elephant ears, or funnel cake (no on the elephant ears)
68. Smoked tofu
69. Fried plantain
70. Mochi
71. Gazpacho
72. Warm chocolate chip cookies
73. Absinthe (instant headache!)
74. Corn on the cob
75. Whipped cream, straight from the can
76. Pomegranate
77. Fauxstess Cupcake
78. Mashed potatoes with gravy
79. Jerky (all kinds-beff, salmon,deer, and pheasant)
80. Croissants
81. French onion soup
82. Savory crepes
83. Tings
84. A meal at Candle 79
85. Moussaka
86. Sprouted grains or seeds
87. Macaroni and “cheese”
88. Flowers
89. Matzoh ball soup
90. White chocolate
91. Seitan
92. Kimchi
93. Butterscotch chips
94. Yellow watermelon
95. Chili with chocolate
96. Bagel and Tofutti
97. Potato milk
98. Polenta
99. Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee (i never got into coffee)
100. Raw cookie dough
If i counted right I have had 58/100! Well that was fun. Back to work.. i know...i'm bad.
I guess these are the rules:
1) Copy this list into your own blog, including these instructions.
2) Bold all the items you’ve eaten.
3) Cross out any items that you would never consider eating.
4) Post a comment here once you’ve finished and link your post back to this one.
5) Pass it on!
1. Natto
2. Green Smoothie
3. Tofu Scramble
4. Haggis (I had to look this up and would never eat!)
5. Mangosteen
6. Creme brulee
7. Fondue
8. Marmite/Vegemite
9. Borscht
10. Baba ghanoush
11. Nachos
12. Authentic soba noodles
13. PB&J sandwich (who hasn't?)
14. Aloo gobi
15. Taco from a street cart
16. Boba Tea
17. Black truffle
18. Fruit wine made from something other than grapes
19. Gyoza
20. Vanilla ice cream
21. Heirloom tomatoes
22. Fresh wild berries
23. Ceviche
24. Rice and beans
25. Knish
26. Raw scotch bonnet pepper
27. Dulce de leche
28. Caviar
29. Baklava
30. Pate
31. Wasabi peas
32. Chowder in a sourdough bowl
33. Mango lassi
34. Sauerkraut
35. Root beer float
36. Mulled cider
37. Scones with buttery spread and jam
38. Vodka jelly
39. Gumbo
40. Fast food french fries
41. Raw Brownies
42. Fresh Garbanzo Beans
43. Dahl
44. Homemade Soymilk
45. Wine from a bottle worth £60/$120 or more
46. Stroopwaffle
47. Samosas
48. Vegetable Sushi
49. Glazed doughnut
50. Seaweed
51. Prickly pear
52. Umeboshi
53. Tofurkey
54. Sheese
55. Cotton candy
56. Gnocchi
57. Piña colada
58. Birch Beer
59. Scrapple
60. Carob chips
61. S’mores
62. Soy curls
63. Chickpea cutlets
64. Curry
65. Durian ( I had some Durian Ice cream before...gross)
66. Homemade Sausages
67. Churros, elephant ears, or funnel cake (no on the elephant ears)
68. Smoked tofu
69. Fried plantain
70. Mochi
71. Gazpacho
72. Warm chocolate chip cookies
73. Absinthe (instant headache!)
74. Corn on the cob
75. Whipped cream, straight from the can
76. Pomegranate
77. Fauxstess Cupcake
78. Mashed potatoes with gravy
79. Jerky (all kinds-beff, salmon,deer, and pheasant)
80. Croissants
81. French onion soup
82. Savory crepes
83. Tings
84. A meal at Candle 79
85. Moussaka
86. Sprouted grains or seeds
87. Macaroni and “cheese”
88. Flowers
89. Matzoh ball soup
90. White chocolate
91. Seitan
92. Kimchi
93. Butterscotch chips
94. Yellow watermelon
95. Chili with chocolate
96. Bagel and Tofutti
97. Potato milk
98. Polenta
99. Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee (i never got into coffee)
100. Raw cookie dough
If i counted right I have had 58/100! Well that was fun. Back to work.. i know...i'm bad.
12.04.2008
Catching up for lost time..
I love Christmas time....
Anthony and I went Christmas Tree cutting on Sunday afternoon. It was a beautiful day. It was actually kind of warm in the sun! We went down Cement Hill Rd in Nevada City to the Christmas tree farm that he has been going to since he was little! We had fun picking out the perfect tree for our very own apartment.
And here we have the perfect tree in our new lovely home!
Anthony and I went Christmas Tree cutting on Sunday afternoon. It was a beautiful day. It was actually kind of warm in the sun! We went down Cement Hill Rd in Nevada City to the Christmas tree farm that he has been going to since he was little! We had fun picking out the perfect tree for our very own apartment.
And here we have the perfect tree in our new lovely home!Tonight I started making Christmas ornaments too. I plan on making them for my friends and family. I don't have a lot of extra $$cash$$ this year so I wanted to do something crafty (see I'm trying). Check it out:
All and all it was a good time. And did I mention that i just love Christmas?
Working and Thinking...
I have been doing a lot of thinking lately. I need some change in my life...
My boy and I are seriously thinking about moving. I want to move to New York City. He thinks it would be fun and cool too. That's my plan and my goal. I have never even been there before but it feels like I have. I do so much research on New York. I have wanted to live there since as long as I can remember. Everytime I think about it it gives me butterflies! I even started looking at flats in the city. Prices are so high there! I need to do some more research of what i can do for work!
I also have started to realize that I am kinda lame. I look at other peoples blogs and there are so many neat, creative, fun people in this world! It makes me want to be better, to have more of a drive in my life, to work toward something (small or big), and it also makes me want to be more creative! I have never really had much discipline in my life. I did the whole instrument thing in grade school until the beginning of highschool, then i did the whole organized team sport (paintball) and although i loved it, I never accomplished all that I wanted. Now I am here. I just want more out of this life! I guess I have been going through a bit of a quarter life crisis. I can't go back and change anything that I have done in this life and it scares me.
My boy and I are seriously thinking about moving. I want to move to New York City. He thinks it would be fun and cool too. That's my plan and my goal. I have never even been there before but it feels like I have. I do so much research on New York. I have wanted to live there since as long as I can remember. Everytime I think about it it gives me butterflies! I even started looking at flats in the city. Prices are so high there! I need to do some more research of what i can do for work!
I also have started to realize that I am kinda lame. I look at other peoples blogs and there are so many neat, creative, fun people in this world! It makes me want to be better, to have more of a drive in my life, to work toward something (small or big), and it also makes me want to be more creative! I have never really had much discipline in my life. I did the whole instrument thing in grade school until the beginning of highschool, then i did the whole organized team sport (paintball) and although i loved it, I never accomplished all that I wanted. Now I am here. I just want more out of this life! I guess I have been going through a bit of a quarter life crisis. I can't go back and change anything that I have done in this life and it scares me.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
