Everyone is going through it, even people who "have their life together"

I got a message from my best friend today. She was just telling me how since she has graduated she has not really wanted to do what she studied. Her gut is telling her to go a different route. I was just thinking about this during the week. I felt a little dumb for working at a coffee shop after getting a degree. Then I reminded myself of how miserable I was with a big girl job. So, hearing from her, even though she is going through a hard time really helped me. I felt a lot better knowing that even my best friend is having the same issues I am. Hell, I may never know what I want to do, but I am gonna follow my gut and be happy.

Foto Friday 3

I took this picture last summer off my parents' porch. There as a huge storm rolling in, and the wind was crazy. I love how in the summer everything is so green, and when a storm comes in all the leaves start blowing and the thunder starts roaring. I am true to the south in that I like to sit outside in a storm with a glass of sweet tea and just feel the wind and watch the rain. Here's to missing those rainy summer days.

Backyard Burgers

So yet again I have to combine blogs. I am wishing for a backyard, and a back patio. I want a deck with a grill and table. I want some Adirondack chairs with a fire pit next to a swimming pool. I want a big back yard to play football and volleyball in. I want to throw BBQ's with couples and families. To me, a backyard is like a mini vacation. If you live somewhere far enough away from town, you can walk out into your backyard and lay in the sun or read to just get away. It's like walking into a different world. One of my dear friends told me once that something he dreams of is having these lavish parties/BBQ's in his backyard. Ever since then I haven't been able to shake the idea. I mean if you have a backyard there is so much you can do. You can have a garden, a pool, a clothesline...life would just be better.

When I created Tasty Thursdays I was not thinking I would always find gourmet food to talk about. This week is case in point. Zach and I tried the new Cheeseburger Doritos. We were both intrigued by the name and the fact that neither of us really eat that much meat. I can never eat a whole burger, but I could eat a whole bag of these. They taste JUST LIKE a burger. You can taste the toppings, the meat, the cheese, the spices, the onion, the pickle, everything! It's a burst of flavor in your mouth that you can't fight. You'll eat whole bag if you aren't careful.

Greece Please

I stole this picture from a friend's facebook. She went to Greece last summer. And I want to go one day. I am sure it's not perfect everyday, but look how blue the sky is and how crystal clear the water is. It looks like something out of a crayola box. There is so much to see in Greece, the ancient ruins, the sea, the houses, the Olympic stadium, the food! I read an article that people who follow the Mediterranean diet live longer, healthier lives. So, maybe an excuse for me to get to Greece is needing to test that out in person. So until I can actually get there I will just keep dreaming of the Mediterranean.

CS Lewis

CS Lewis is one of my favorite authors, so I decided to read the Chronicles of Narnia. I read some of them when I was in elementary school but never the whole series. So I am now on book 5, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. Something I love about these books is the palpable descriptions he gives. You really do imagine yourself there, in the story, following the main characters around. He always includes the reader as a character in his books making little comments about how you would know the reason for things since you are the reader. I am anxious to finish the series and love that I chose to read it.

Running soothes me

Serenity Sunday 2: Running is peaceful. Lacing up the shoes, setting the timer on my watch, grabbing my ipod, and taking off; the whole process is soothing. When I run, I think. Sometimes I don't think. I let go of things that bother me and sink into the music to find my rhythm. I close my eyes and take in deep breaths of the sun or the frost lately. Running relieves my stress and gets rid of any anger. I can't completely explain the feeling I get when I run, but it's almost as if I escape reality. No one has to know where I am going. I don't take my phone. I literally run away from life. My life isn't bad at all, but it's nice to escape reality. You know what I mean if you are a runner, or maybe you have something that takes you to the same place. If you don't, you should find something.

Serendipitious Saturdays

I meet a lot of people at the coffee shop. There is a fellow runner friend of mine who comes in on a regular basis. We've run together once and continue to share tips and encouragement to one another. I hurt my knee last week, and it just so happens he is a biology and A&P professor at MTSU. He knew what was wrong and was able to tell me how to fix it. I am about to hit the pavement as we speak here, so thanks to fate and Michael, we'll see how my knee is!

Foto Friday 2

I love this picture! I took it last year around March on a 6 mile hike. This is one of my friends who was with me on the hike and a stray dog that followed us around.

Trout-licious

Zach took me to the Aquarium restaurant in Nashville for Valentine's/Anniversary. I wanted to try something new and I had never had trout. So I ordered the Macadamia Crusted Trout with steamed asparagus and rice. I paired it with the house Chardonnay which was smooth and tasty. The trout tasted like tilapia and chicken, but the seasoning was delicious. I liked that the fish wasn't too fishy. Zach loved it! He doesn't even eat meat, but he tried some of that and ended up eating about half of mine. For dessert Zach had Creme Brulee and I had Cheesecake topped with raspberry sorbet in a chocolate shell. I had been craving cheesecake for a month or so. Anyhow, the restaurant was wonderful. I don't think it was ridiculously expensive. The food was great, our server was great, and the atmosphere was awesome. If you ever get the chance, you should take a night to go there. http://www.aquariumrestaurants.com/aquariumnashville/dining.html 

Two a day blogging

My internet has been out for the last few days so I am covering two days again.

Travel Tuesday:

I have been very nostalgic for California lately. I am from Grass Valley, California which is about an hour east of Sacramento. I love the entire state of California. Two of my friends are there now which makes me jealous. I didn't start thinking about Cali until I watched the Bachelor. One of the girls is from San Fransisco. I remember driving through the hills to get to the Bay when my brother had to go to the Shriner's Hospital. You come around the corner and there's the bridge. The most magnificent sight. The whole drive there you go through tunnels and hills, and then there is this beautiful bay just so inviting. I want to go back. I want to experience this city in all it's glory. I would love to move there for a just a little while. I really do miss California. The diversity of the entire state provides this place you never need to leave. You can be in the mountains, or the desert, the beach, the vineyards, everything. It's an amazing state, and part of me still calls it home even though I only lived there 7 years.

Wishlist Wednesday: I really want new jeans! I know that sounds simple and easy, but it's just not in the budget right now. I have been wearing my best jeans to work in because my old jeans are done for. So I not only wish for new jeans, but need them.

Monday Monday

So I finished Harry Potter Year 3 today. I have noticed that like Harry, I do not know much about my parents. I mean I do as far as who they are and what they do now, but I don't know much about their pasts. They don't open up very much about things of the past. I don't know if they have just always been the way they are now or if there are major differences. Maybe they have deep dark secrets. It makes me wonder where I got my ability to be an open book and wear my heart on my sleeve. I wish my parents, my mother in particular, would open up more. Both my parents are great and I love who they are for the most part, but it would be interesting to know about who they were a long time ago. Maybe they keep quiet about things to protect me, or maybe they were just really boring. Anyhow, that's all I got from the Harry Potter book. Of course, I wasn't expecting a life lesson or anything.

Sidenote: Buckbeak getting beheaded was the saddest part of the book.

Saturday AND Sunday since my Internet was out

I have had the best weekend! I won't indulge on mushy things about how awesome Zach is, but he is. I'll keep with the blog themes.

Saturday-Serendipitous: I think it's awesome how things just work out. There have been a few things this week that fate just works out for me. I am thinking of writing some childrens books, but I need an illustrator. So I asked a girl I work with that is an artist, and she is totally up for it. Also, a guy I know told me he knows a publisher and to let him know when I get my first draft done! How awesome is that? It also happened that Zach and I had our 8 month anniversary on Valentine's Day. I am not a huge Valentine's Day fan just because so many people make it an excuse to love someone, or an obligatory day to show affection. I agree with many people that EVERYDAY should be treated like Valentine's day. Anyhow, Zach and I went on a great date this weekend in honor of our 8 month/Valentines. Funny how that worked out I suppose. Last thing that happened was I hurt my knee this week while running. I ran into a friend of mine who is also a runner today and told him what happened. Just so happens that has happened to him before too. He knew what it most likely was and gave me the remedies. So that was all the serendipitous things that happened to me this week.

For Serene Sunday: There are so many things that bring me peace, but I will try to focus on just one here. Let's see...picking up my camera. There is something that sweeps over me when I touch the old SLR. I like putting a roll of film in and letting it go for a few months. Taking pictures here and there when I see something and then developing it later. It's like a mini-surprise to see the prints. It's neat to stop time with a strip of film. It just feels warm and fuzzy when I have my camera in hand. My dad is the one who sparked my interest in photography so that is a very special link for me. I don't know if I will ever do anything with photography other than have a degree in it, but it will remain a sanctuary of mine forever.

Foto Friday

Two winter photos. On this day, I wanted to walk to the gym from Zach's apartment. He wasn't very excited, but he did it anyways. I love snow, and I wanted to take pictures. It hadn't snowed like this since my first year in TN, so I wanted to take advantage of being outside. It was freezing, yes, but beautiful just the same. I loved the way the trees curved over the icy road. I loved that Zach still made me laugh even though it was frigid. The photo of him is one of the first that he doesn't look like he notices the camera. I love that his outfit and the scenery are all very neutral shades of whites and blues. I love that his smile is crooked like when I make a sarcastic comment.

Wine, Quiche and Desserts

I tried a new recipe this week. I wanted to post a picture of the finished product but I forgot to take one. Tuesday I made dinner for my sister and her family. Zach and I went to visit for a couple of days, and I thought I would take dinner. So I made a quiche that made the house smell like home cooked heaven. Potato, Cheese and Leek Quiche. I altered the recipe just a tad for cost purposes and my own laziness. Here's the recipe, more or less:

Crust-you can make your own with butter and flower, but I just used crescent rolls and flattened them out.

3 potatoes (I used 2 white and 1 sweet) thinly sliced
2tbsp butter
2 tbsp oil
2 cloves garlic-minced
3 leeks chopped
1 lb of spinach-use fresh spinach-I used canned and it wasn't as great as it could have been
1 cup of cheddar cheese
1/2 cup cream
1/2 milk
4 eggs

Sautee the potatoes in the butter and oil and garlic. Make sure all the potatoes are covered in oil and let steam for 5 minutes covered. Remove and let pat dry on paper towels. Sautee the leeks in remaining oil. Once softened, set aside. Steam spinach for about 2 minutes, until wilted. Let pat dry. Begin layering in quiche-cheese, potatoes, spinach, leeks, and repeat. In a separate bowl or jug, mix milk, cream, and eggs. Pour over quiche. Bake at 350 for about an hour and a half. Receive super yumminess in mouth :)

Dessert was peanut butter buckeyes and chocolate haystacks.

For the peanut butter: Mix 1 cup creamy PB, 2 cups powdered sugar, and 2 tbsp melted butter. Dip in melted chocolate.

Haystacks: Crush up potato chips-preferably ruffled- and dump in melted chocolate. Spoon onto wax paper. Sprinkle with sea salt.

Freeze both for a bit to harden. Awesome easy desserts!

Ok and lastly: I am currently drinking a cheap bottle of Crane Lake Malbec. It's ok. If you want a glass of wine just to relax it's not a bad choice. I am a Pinot Noir lady myself so this has not been my favorite, but it's what the wallet can handle for now.

Enjoy!

Wishlist Wednesday

Well I was going to write about something big on my wishlist like a house, new dress, new car, or something of that nature. However, after my run on the treadmill at 10 pm, my wish has changed. I will be running a half marathon in April. I wish to finish that race and reach my goal of fundraising for the American Cancer Society. I had an extremely rough run on the treadmill tonight in which I got utterly discouraged about my capability as a runner. Maybe my emotions were crazy or something, but I felt like crying after it took me almost an hour to complete 4 miles. It was one of my worst runs. I have a list of reasons of why I hate the treadmill, but I won't get into all of that. I will just wish that I can get better and finish this race in April.

Travel Tuesday!

I LOVE to travel. I could talk about all the places I want to go and bore everyone to death. So, I am designating one day a week, instead of every moment, to write about travel. China has been on my mind lately. I have been as some of you may know. I was just telling Zach yesterday about all these noodle shops we used to eat at. I don't know what they use for the broth, but it's divine. I love the people and the countryside. The people love Americans. They want to move here. It always shocks me that people want to move to America so much, but they want freedom. It sounds old aged to me, wanting freedom, because I have it. They do not. It makes me respect America a little more.

So anyway, I will focus on this one particular place in China. Some friends and I wanted to go hiking. I can't remember the name of the place, but we took a bus to get there. It was about 20 minutes away maybe. We drove up this mountain and could finally see the blue skies again. Once we were off the bus, we walked. A long way. Michael kept promising a little water hole for us to swim in. We kept walking. And walking. Until finally we saw this.

By the time we got to the water hole we were so hot from hiking. We all jumped in, fully clothed. It was the most refreshing feeling, and probably the cleanest water in China. We took turns jumping into the water from this ledge, and eventually left for the day. After all that walking, Michael decided to pay for a golf cart ride back.

I miss that part of China a lot. It was one of my favorite places because by that time in the trip I was wanting a little taste of home, and hiking does that for me.

Hello Blogger World

Hey there everyone! I have been inspired by a wonderful friend, who was inspired by her wonderful friend, to do this blog thing. It's themed daily. How fun! Right?! I thought I would give it a shot. I enjoy reading her blog, so maybe people will enjoy mine. So here are the themes followed by a short post for today.

Serene Sundays: I will write about something that brings me peace or happiness that I can always escape to.
Manuscript Mondays: I will write about the book I am reading for the week.
Travel Tuesdays: I will write about places I have been, want to go, or are planning on going.
Wishlist Wednesdays: I will write about things I want, goals I have, things I desire to do.
Tasty and Thirsty Thursdays: I will write about a new recipe tried and will post the recipe
Foto Fridays: I stole this from Jes. I will post a picture I have taken. Should be easy as a photographer.
Serendipity Saturdays: I will write about things that happen during the week that were surprising or fateful.

So for this Mondays Manuscript I am currently reading Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. I have decided to read through this series since everyone else did. It's all the rave and I want to know what it's about. I am on the third book in the series, and I can see why it is addicting. Of course, there is a general theme of the books that shines through. It's often the same story line with different adventures. I like it though. So I will actually be headed off here to read for a bit.

Enjoy Today~