Friday Five

1. FutureLearn: This new MOOC site is the British equivalent of Coursera and it allows you to take college courses online for free.  Not only do they have a better variety of courses, but their site is so much nicer.  The site itself is much more organized and cleaner than Coursera. It's easy to use and much more interactive and fun.  Speaking of MOOCs...

2. MoocMonitor on Twitter: A MOOC is a massive Open Online Course site.  MOOCMonitor on Twitter serves as a one-stop shop in regards to all things MOOC.  It makes research for work much easier and is always presenting new course opportunities and classes I've never even heard of.  Twitter isn't always relevant, but I think the creators behind this handle definitely have the right idea!

3. The 21 Loveliest Places to go on a Date in London: While it's lovely to think I'd move to London and meet the Prince Charming (or Sherlock Holmes) of my dreams, I just don't have that luck.  But if I did, I'd be ready with this fantastic list of great date places.  Even without the date to take me there, there are some serious hidden gems that I'd just love to see.

4. Hawking on PBS: On Wednesday evening, Stephen Hawking presented an in-depth look at his life so far.  If you don't know anything about him, he's one of the most brilliant human beings living today.  He also has been living with ALS since the 60s and is forced to communicate with slight movements in his cheek that power a computer.  That man is nothing short of a medical miracle, and has still been able to present some of the most important ideas in Physics in a century.  While I understand next to nothing of his work, I'm fascinated by the way he lives his life and the amazing pieces of medical equipment that allow him to continue working.  

5. Mexican Food: I am in love with Mexican Food.  I can eat it pretty much anytime of day, multiple times a day.  It's even better when you have a father that makes REALLY delicious Mexican food. Yum Yum Yum!  Only question I have is: when are you making more?
  

BRB

Thanks to a cold, which the other day I was just patting myself on the back for missing this year (Karma sucks...), I'm down for the count this evening.  I'll be back tomorrow, after I collapse in bed for the next few hours.

Good Night!

Wondering Wednesday

Here is the question that I've been pondering since I got up this morning. How does an entire state shutdown over 2 inches of snow?  When I originally read that some kids in Georgia had to sleep at school because of the snow and thousands of cars were stranded on roadways, I figured they'd gotten some freak storm that dumped piles and piles of snow in a very small window of time.  But when I found out that the storm that completely cut off an entire state only dropped 2 inches, I was slightly perplexed.  

Even if they didn't have plows or salt.  Even if the roads were rough.  Even if buses couldn't get to schools.  Can't parents have walked to the school to pick up their children?  It wasn't a blizzard.  Put some heavy clothes on and go get your kid. I'd be so upset if I was forced to sleep at school.  If I was still teaching, I'd be even more annoyed.  Not that I wouldn't love my students but having to contain kids who are cold, and slightly frightened for a full 24 hours really isn't in the job description.  

I feel bad for all those people in Georgia who had to deal with all of the craziness.  But I can't help but wonder if the state government dropped a pretty big (snow) ball...

Kitchen Pinning

Two more hits this evening from Pinterest.  Dessert was a slightly bigger hit than dinner mind you, but my record is getting much better.  Usually at least one recipe fails miserably but somehow I managed to eek out two wins in the same evening.

First up is the Broccoli Cheddar Quiche.  Only thing I can add is that the cooking time is way, way off.  I basically had to double how long it said to cook it after quite a few attempts at cutting into liquid.  Oh, and be sure to cut the broccoli small - my chunks were just a bit too large.

Next up was dessert - Banana Foster Crumble.  I noticed it last week because it made the rounds quite quickly.  Before I pinned it, I saw it at least 5 times, then 3 more people pinned after I did.  That's always a good sign.  And boy was it ever a good sign!  It was absolutely delicious!  I didn't make the Kahlua Chocolate Sauce, mostly because I had none of the ingredients. But I don't really think it needed it.  It was sweet enough and with the cold ice cream, it was pretty darn perfect!  Also, you have to love a recipe that uses so few utensils.  Yum!

PS: Is it odd that I'm strangely fascinated by the fact that I have 500 food pins exactly?  I kinda don't want to pin any more recipes since I've reached a cool number : )

Currently

Kinda Digging: Hollywood Game Night. I'm as surprised as you are.  Game shows really aren't my thing, but this one is pretty enjoyable.  Plus Tony Dinozzo's on tonight so it kinda makes it better.

Singing and Humming: Since last night's Grammy Awards, that I DVR'ed and watched this afternoon, I've had these songs stuck in a constant loop in my head.  Saddest part is I'm not quite clear on the exact words so there's quite a bit of "adsflkhasldkfhoadsf" when it comes to parts that aren't in the title of the songs...

           
                                 

Attempting: To paint my nails and be patient enough to let them dry so they aren't a mess by tomorrow.  I have issues with this and am fighting a never ending battle.  If the darn things would just grow a bit more quickly, I could go have a real manicure and wouldn't need to rely on my terribly underwhelming skills.

Exhausted: Because like an idiot I stayed up way past my bedtime to watch Sherlock last night then got up at 5 am.  Not the brightest idea I've ever had.

Impressed by: FutureLearn.com  They're the British equivalent of the MOOC site Coursera but so much more organized and with better offerings.  I'm already in the middle of 2 courses and plan to take quite a few more.  Why in the world is everything better in Britain?!

Etsying

Back in April, I decided that one of the 30 things I was going to do this year was to open my very own Etsy shop.  As I have no idea what that entails, I've been doing some research and deciding what I wanted to sell.  In my head, an Etsy shop should have a theme and one particular item as its specialty.  However, I'm a bit of a scatter-brain so I tend to like to try all sorts of crafty things.  

After a few months, I think I've found a way to work within a theme and create different items.  I'm keeping that particular reveal a secret for now, but I have been feverishly working on getting my stock together.  I've given myself the deadline of April 1.  I'm not sure if I'll make it but I'm pretty excited about it.  A little freaked out as well - what if no one likes my stuff?  I think that may be what's been keeping me from doing it for so long.  But this year's word in my head is Adventure so I suppose - here goes nothing!

Another Senseless Act...

Though this time it's a bit too close to home.  This morning's mall shooting in Maryland that killed 3 (including the gunman), occurred in a mall in which I spend all too much time.  I'm there at least 5 times a month and in fact it's the go to shop for most of my family and friends.  But, thank goodness, everyone I know and love is safe tonight and weren't near the mall today.

The number of shootings like this has increased quite a bit in the last few years so I suppose it was only a matter of time until something like this happened here in Maryland.  But it's so scary to see somewhere you love all over the news and know exactly where in the mall the incident happened.  I've walked by that particular area dozens of times, but now all I can think of is how close it is to the carousel where kids play all the time.  I can only imagine what it was like to hear those shots ring out.  

I know in the coming days, the lawmakers will bring the story back around to gun control legislation.  And for that I'm quite grateful.  If a tragedy like this can teach us anything it's that guns need tougher controls so no families have to go through what the hundreds of shoppers and workers in Columbia went through today.

Friday Five

1. Who doesn't love a good cupcake?  I have to say that the best in Maryland (and outside of Maryland too, in my opinion) are from Kupcakes and Co. in Elkridge.  I'm usually partial to Elvis (Banana, Peanut Butter and Chocolate Chips - Yum!) but that wasn't the special today so I opted for Hot Chocolate which was chocolate with marshamallow icing.  I have a feeling it's a special just for winter which is a real shame because it's just become my favorite! I'll need at least another dozen before the season ends...Absolutely delicious!

2. As a Harry Potter Fan, the Wizarding World of Harry Potter in Disney World, has been on my radar for a while.  But I'm not a huge fan of Disney World in general (ridiculous I know) so I haven't really felt the need to get down there too quickly.  However, after the unveiling of the new plans for this summer, I'm super ready to hop on a plane.  The best part is, I'd only need a weekend to get it all done.  It's most definitely on the itinerary for next summer or spring.   I can't even imagine how they're planning to recreate Leicester Square in central Florida but I can't wait to see it!

3. You just have to love Brit award shows!  Their winners just seem so much more heartfelt in their speeches and well-spoken than ours ; )

          

          
4 & 5.  There have been 2 fairly ridiculous things that have made me laugh like a fool this week.  Neither should be as funny as I think they are, but I hope others at least get a giggle. The first is the list of the 30 Naughtiest Puppies. (Whoever created Dog Shaming should receive a substantial award.  I can't help but laugh every time I see those photos!)  And the second is the Bad Lip Reading of the NFL.  (I have no idea how in the world these people make these videos, but they are perfect on every level.)

Only a Matter of Time

I suppose it was only a matter of time.  If you didn't see it coming, you've been oblivious to the entertainment world for the past year.  In utterly un-surprising news Justin Bieber was arrested today for a DUI amongst other charges (ironically not underage drinking seeing as though he's only 19...).  And of course when he was arrested, the entirety of the world press turned off all other news to focus on this "ongoing saga" CNN called it this morning.  Really?! The story of a spoiled little rich kid thinking he can do what he wants when he wants is really the definition of hard hitting journalism?

There are riots in Syria and the Ukraine.  The world's at athletes are preparing to enter a relatively unsafe area of Russia.  The North East is in the middle of frigid temps and nasty weather which are shutting down flights and travel.  Yet, CNN took the time this morning to read, word for word, the first hand account of the police officer that arrested a drunk 19 year old.  I just don't understand.

Yes for some unknown reason, he's a mega superstar.  But he's also a punk who lives to cause trouble because he gets airtime.  If we really want him to stop acting like the celebrity diva he is, we need to stop giving him all the attention.  We need to stop treating him like he's anything more than a 19 year old with talent.  Not a single press release would have been sent had it been some other kid with a DUI.  When he was arrested this morning, the Miami PD shouldn't have issued any statement (something I'm sure his lawyers are going to have a field day with and will most likely use to throw the charges out) and none of the networks should have changed the subject from important, life-changing news.  

Taking away their toys is the only way kids ever learn.

Snow Day Slug

As I said yesterday, I'm secretly a fan of snow days even though I'm forced to use my own time.  Quite honestly, when I finally pulled myself out of bed at 7:30, I could definitely have made it in to work.  The storm didn't drop as much snow as I thought it would.  But my heart was already set on a snow day, so I was going to enjoy it; British television, fast food, cookies, warm clothes and all.  A fabulous way to spend a Wednesday.  Now it's off to work in the morning - ugh!

Snowmageddon 2

Ok, so it's not nearly as crazy as the freak storm from a few years ago that completely shut down the state of Maryland by blanketing it in feet of snow.  But it seems that most parts of the state are treating it that way.  Before a single flake fell this morning (starting around 8ish am) all school districts had closed - some as early as 8pm last evening.  By mid-day most agencies, and shopping areas had also closed.  That's a little intense for a storm that has only dropped a few inches of snow so far in the last 12 hours.  

However, you can't really complain when it just looks so pretty!  I know, now that I'm not teaching and have no guarantee of a day off when the snow comes, I'm supposed to be grumpy at the very mention of flakes.  But I can't be.  I secretly love snow days and pray for a big storm at least once a year.  It sucks having to use my own time to take the day off but it's offset by staying inside where it's nice and warm and doing absolutely anything I want - like drinking tea curled up in bed with a good book or catching up with crafting.  Usually, I'm a good girl and set the alarm just in case it's gotten better over night.  But with projected temps around 9 degrees over the next 24 hours, that alarm was long since turned off and the "I'm taking the day" email has already been sent.  Of course, I can hope that maybe, just maybe my office will follow suit and close with the rest of them but I'm really not holding my breath.

For now, I'll just deal and enjoy a nice and cozy, warm and fuzzy day of my own.  Long live the snow day!

Happy Birthday Doctor King!

We're most definitely not there yet, but each year, I like to think we get a bit closer to the vision he had for us.

Super Sunday

We won't have to see this cry baby in the Super Bowl.  As much as I'm not a fan of Peyton Manning, I dislike Tom Brady even more so I was most definitely rooting for the Broncos today.  

This comes back tonight!  Woohoo!  I've already had the pleasure of seeing it however, my friends haven't so I can  stop redacting things I'm about to say and we can share in the amazingness! 

Of course, I only went 2 for 3 on the day.  I had hoped that Jim Harbaugh would lead the Niners back to the Super Bowl so he could have a ring too just like his brother.  But the darn Seahawks and their annoying "12th Man" managed to pull out a win in the end.  







Lots of food, football, Etsying and television - quiet but nice Sunday.  Made even better by the fact it's a 3 day weekend!

Cars!

I hate cars!  I hate that they're crazy expensive.  I hate that you have to buy gas for them each week.  I hate that you have to pay for insurance for them.  And most of all I hate that when you think all you'll need is a simple oil change to get you through the year, the car decides to plot its revenge and make you pay way more than you were expecting.  As you can probably guess, I've had a revenge of the evil Scion sort of day.  Even without the non-essential things that can wait a bit, I spent 20x what I was supposed to spend.  With the non-essential AND throwing in the fact that I also need a new windshield for the 2nd time in 6 months because of 2 cracks - you're looking at about the price of one whole trip.

Do you have any idea how obnoxious that is?!  I'm not even a fan of driving so spending money on something that is basically a means to an end is quite the pain in the neck.  I don't understand people who spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on their cars or those people that purchase new ones each year.  Or who live to drive the open road.  If I had my way, every city would have an underground that was preferably, just like London's.  That way, after a simple walk to the train station each morning, I'd have quick train into the office without sitting in traffic, getting hit by rocks or screwing up the alignment by driving over the hundreds of pot holes that have sprung up since last week's snow. 

As a matter of fact, do you know who does have an Underground exactly like London's?  That's right!  London, of course!  On second thought, let's just move there.  That'll be way more fun!

Friday Five

1. Erica's Cannella Vita: I have to say a baking, travel and photo blog written by a teenager should not be as good as it is.  However, she will make you feel completely inadequate.  She's seemingly figured out how to be awesome in the crafty-creative world and she's only in high school.  I can't imagine what amazing other things she'll do once she graduates!

2. These comments from one of the smartest and funniest actors in Hollywood were in response to this Guardian article on the Sochi Olympics and Vladamir Putin's idiocy. 
Though he's generalizing a bit (I know all Russian's don't agree with Putin's laws), it's well said.

3. "High Hopes" and "Hunter of Invisible Game" by Bruce Springsteen: I'm not the biggest Boss fan (love his old stuff but that ridiculous Pay Me My Money Down song is the bane of my existence!) but this new album is pretty amazing.  I love  everything about "High Hopes". While I'm not as crazy about the words to "Hunter of Invisible Game", I'm obsessed with the tune.  I've been humming to it all week.  If I could just find an instrumental version of it, I'd be a happy girl.

            

            
4. Fangirl Quest: I read about these girls on BuzzFeed earlier this week.  There's something terribly geeky and terribly awesome about what they're doing.  They want to find all of the filming locations from favorite television and movies and photograph them (a la Dear Photograph).  It's hard to explain so click the link to see for yourself.  It's pretty impressive and I'm super jealous!

5. "The Best Travel Writing - Volume 9":  Two short stories in and I'm already hooked.  I'm currently devising a plan to acquire volumes 1-8...

Hand Pulled Noodles...

...were a bit of a bust.  

Here's the deal.  I've been looking for a restaurant in the general vicinity that served hand pulled noodles for at least the last year.  Everything about them, including the cool whack! they make when someone's pulling them, sounds perfectly scrumptious.  In all the food shows I'm addicted to, they always pair them with some delicious sounding sauce filled with peppers and spice.  So when we heard about the new Korean place that was doing hand pulled noodles in Columbia, we just had to try it out.

Unfortunately, a Columbia strip mall is not really the place to find authentic hand pulled noodles, or Korean food in general.  We should have known when we walked in at prime dinner time - there wasn't a single soul there.  When we sat down, we were given hot tea - in a soda glass filled only half way...After a few tries, we managed to coax some ice water out of the kitchen as well.  We finally decided to order, the hand pulled noodles in a bean sauce with pork, and Sweet and Sour Chicken and Pork.

Problem number 2 came when all we were given to eat with were chopsticks.  I'm completely and utterly chopstick challenged.  No matter how hard I try, I've never mastered the weird thing you have to do with your fingers to get them to actually work, so mine were being used as spears instead.  The sweet and sour pork and chicken was actually quite good.  Delicious actually.  Crispy and sweet, just not so spicy.  The noodles themselves weren't that bad either, it was mostly the weird bean sauce on top.  I just couldn't get past the taste.  Don't ask me to explain it because I can't.  It just had one of those flavors that gets even worse the more you eat it.  Ick! 

But, I'm not ready to give up the quest just yet.  I think this was just a bump in the road.  I'll just need to find a better quality of restaurant to feed the craving.

Long story short: Having a father daughter foodie date eating something we've both been dying to try - Wonderful!
Bean sauce on hand pulled noodles - Terrible!

Currently...

~ Super pleased with myself that I just figured out how to create a quiz in Adobe Captivate, all by myself in only an hour.  I thought it would take me to Friday, but I knocked that sucker out tonight.  Woohoo!

~ Rocking out to Bruce Springsteen's new single off his new album, thanks to The Good Wife. Haven't been a big fan of his new stuff in the last few years but "High Hopes" is fabulous!

~ Super excited that in about 5 minutes time, I will get to snuggle under the nice warm blankets and fall blissfully asleep for the next 7.5 hours.  I have no idea why but it's been such a struggle to keep my eyes open today.  I've been looking forward to my bed since I left it this morning.

~ Looking forward to the new EW magazine that hits newstands tomorrow - or so I've been told.  A certain famous deducing detective made the cover, and it's pretty exciting stuff!

~ Craving some craft time.  I've loads of ideas in my head right now, but I've been so sleepy or involved in other things to get them accomplished.  After the Christmas decorations come down on Saturday (yes, it's January 15 and they're still up - don't judge), I plan to give me some me time in the craft room.

~ Hoping to finish up "A Fork in the Road" tomorrow, to move on to yet another food book in the stack of food books that have invaded my bookshelf.  The goal is to finish 36 books this year (2 down - 34 to go after tomorrow!)

~ Staring at the pretty pink fingernails (yes, that's right, I said fingernails for the first time ever!) that are on my fingers right now.  If all goes according to plan, I'll be having my first ever manicure in about 2 weeks time.  One resolution down, just a few more to go.

~  Dreaming about the hand pulled noodles I will finally get the chance to devour at the new Chinese restaurant we read about today.  Dad-Daughter Foodie date tomorrow night - Can't wait!

Yum!

I'm usually a by the book cook.  I like having recipes because it's hard for me to know exactly what to put into things to make it taste a certain way.  But today, I decided to be adventurous.  I saw this recipe on Pinterest and thought it looked pretty yummy.  However, I hate canned tomato soup - dreadful!  So I just took a long shot and figured I'd wing it.  I threw together some tomato sauce, onions, pepper, garlic, Italian seasoning, salt, & pepper. Then I threw in some mini-sausage meatballs I rolled from Bob Evan's Italian sausage log and some frozen tortellini.  In about an hour, I had a delicious dinner!  Three cheers for taking a risk.  They hardly ever pay off for me, but this time it most definitely did.  The hard part of course, is seeing if I'll ever be able to recreate it : )

PS: Apologies for the less than stellar photography.  I get a little excited when there's food waiting and don't always have the time to grab the good camera.

Frankenstein Live-ish

Things I learned seeing this in DC.
  
              

~ While it was very different than I expected, it was very, very good.  I should have expected Danny Boyle-ish effects and allusions but I didn't for some reason.  He has a very distinctive look to his works and this definitely had it.  That being said, it wasn't scary just slightly macabre.  But also, pretty amazing!

~ I had hoped to see Benedict Cumberbatch in the role of the creature as his reviews were better for that role, but instead Jonny Lee Miller was taking him on.  He was fully commited and tremendous as such.  I'm sure spending a good 20 minutes or so naked pretending to learn how to walk, talk and feel took some getting used to.  But he managed it perfectly.  I think he may have been slightly over the top sometimes, but you can't say he wasn't totally in character as a scientifically engineered creature.  That being said, Benedict Cumberbatch was also fantastic  in the role of Dr. Frankenstein.  While you kind of loved to hate him, every once in a while you saw flashes of Sherlock break through.

~ I'm not sure the bestie enjoyed it as much as I did.  She looked at her phone quite a few times checking to see how much longer it was going to last...We really have such different tastes, it's a wonder we don't argue all the time!

~ The Shakespeare Theatre Company seems to be a pretty fantastic place to see live theatre in DC.  Halfway through the show, I realized even though there were people sitting directly in front of me, the stage wasn't blocked at all.  I could see perfectly.  I can't wait to get back there for another show.  I only wish the Hippodrome was so lovingly built.

~ Theatre Geeks will talk to almost anyone.  At one point 2 girls surrounded the bestie and I and all personal conversation ceased to exist.  Neither girl knew each other, but suddenly they were joining in every one of our conversations.  It was a bit odd and I'm still not sure I wasn't in some Social Psych Grad project...

~ Being able to throw everything to the wind like that and acting your heart out must be such a high. I can't ever imagine having the guts to do so.  But I'm so glad talented people do because they are truly awesome to watch!

Sunday Snippets

~ After spending 3 paragraphs ranting on the merits of Adobe Captivate, well, I'm a bit more captivated this evening after realizing all the craziness that I was seeing, was actually caused by me and not the actual program...So there's that.

~ Still flabbergasted over the ending of Sherlock we've waited 2 years for.  After 717 days, it was over within 12 days. Sad but completely, and utterly fantastic!  I'm just hoping I won't be waiting until 2016 for the reslolution.

~ Giving Hollywood royalty liquor then expecting them to make sense when they've received an award just seems like a bad idea.  Also, the Hollywood Foreign Press is way off base on the winners of these awards!

~ Now that I have the beginnings of finger nails for the first time ever in my 30 years, I've sort of become obsessed with painting them.  I think I've blown through 5 different colors in the last 5 days...

~ Off to finally see Frankenstein in DC tomorrow.  Slightly worried that I'll be a bit of a wimp but it's Benedict Cumberbatch and Jonny Lee Miller!  How could you not want to see it?!

So Not Captivated

I consider myself to be a fairly technologically savvy person.  I can't create an app or code a website, but give me some time I can figure out most programs for myself.  However, for some reason, Adobe products completely confound me!  I've taken a few lynda.com courses on Photoshop but I still haven't been able to figure out my Photoshop Elements.  I think I've got it, then of course I go ahead and do it and absolutely NO-thing happens!  

For the last few weeks, I've been working on a course in Adobe Captivate.  I gave myself some extra time, so I could play with the program.  I figured out how to import a PowerPoint all by my lonesome.  I added interactives, shapes and graphics.  Everything was working perfectly. But today, I attempt to preview all the beautifully working elements I've added and ZIP. Every one of the interactives is broken.  Buttons disappear, font goes back to original and shapes fade away.  In other words, it turns into basically a really slow slide show.  Awesome.

Not only do I not know how to fix anything, but I also have no idea how to start from the beginning and make the issues not happen again.  Considering I wanted to hand it in by tomorrow morning, I'd say I was a little stressed out.  So much for a relaxing Sunday!

Friday Five

1. NotontheHighStreet.com: I just discovered this site today and I'm thinking it might be my new Etsy.  I'm still overly obsessed with all the goodies Etsy has to offer, however, this new site just increases those goodies 10 fold.  Of course, it's based in Britain, so there are quite a few Britain-centric accessories and that may be why I find it so darn amazing.  Their tagline is "For a life less ordinary"so if you are looking for new and out of the ordinary gifts, this should be one of your first stops.

2. The very fact that after 2 years, Sherlock is finally back and I'm able to watch it with England, due to my TunnelBear VPN.  Absolutely amazing invention though I have no idea how it works!  However, I know now I can use the BBC iPlayer which makes me very happy. Also, seeing as I live on Pinterest, I would have never had the willpower to avoid some major spoilers since the show hasn't started showing in the states.  The show itself has been fabulous and I think I may be even more in love with where it's going than I have been in the past (however, I fear evil is in the air, so I'm slightly scared to watch the finale on Sunday...)

3. A Crock Pot supper: I think I may have said this already, but having dinner ready when I came home the other evening was about the coolest thing ever.  The smell was fabulous and the recipe worked like magic.  Gotta love something so easy and so delicious!

4. "The Tower, The Zoo and The Tortoise" by Julia Stuart: I have to say it was most definitely not what I was expecting.  I've been looking at this book for the last year or so, and assuming it was a bit of a fairy-tale for grownups.  While not necessarily, light and breezy, it was quirky and cute and after the first 40 pages or so, I fell in love.  Fantastic story and fantastic characters.  Oh and the setting (Tower of London!) wasn't so bad either.

5.  My new inspiration for the year 2014.  

Basketball Idiocy

I'm going to say this bit first, I've never been a fan of Dennis Rodman.  I think he has a bad attitude, is unsportsmanlike and is reckless.  But on top of my original feelings about him, this week you can add completely and utterly mystified to that list.  How on earth can an ex-basketball player with no ties to the government, and a bad reputation, somehow gain papers that would allow him into a closed state like North Korea on multiple occasions?  That of course, is only mystery number 1.

Mystery number 2 is why on earth are any of the news stations giving him air time to talk jibberish on topics he has no understanding of?  And mystery number 3 is the most confounding of all: why aren't we more afraid of what he's doing?  The man has become "friends" (his words) with one of the most delusional and ruthless dictators currently living in the world today.  He talks with him and plays games with him.  And now, based on comments Rodman has made to the press, he's discussing foreign politics with the man.  One subject he obviously knows nothing about.  If he had, he'd never have condemned a US citizen living in a North Korean prison camp on American television.  Now that he has, I'm sure the propoganda machines are going on about the American people believing Kenneth Bae is guilty.  We'll have an even harder time now, getting this man out of their custody.  

What Rodman thinks he's doing, and what he is in fact succeeding in doing are 2 very different things.  You get the feeling he thinks, he's actually persuading the dictator to be more of a humanitarian and less of a tyrant; and cool the waters between our allies and theirs.  However what he is doing, is heating back up the long-standing rift between North Korea and most of the world.  The North Korean government thinks Rodman speaks for us and anything he says will surely be thought of as an "American" ideal, rather than a ideal of an apparently drunk ex-basketball player.  And by giving him the airtime, we're cementing those thoughts.

What we need to do, is get Dennis Rodman out of North Korea and not allow him to go back. If he won't stand for that plan, then let him stay in their country permanently.  If Kim Jong Un and the North Korean government officials are as great as he says they are, I'm sure he won't have any problems with making it his new home. 

Crock Pot Dinner #1 - Success!

I've been wanting a Crock-Pot for a while now.  Well, when I say awhile I suppose I mean since the invention of Pinterest and since I saw Target had a cute Chevron one. (Isn't it adorable!?) Though, it did make sense, seeing as I stress about getting dinner on the table on time and making everyone wait until I've finished cooking to eat.  What could be better than dinner that's ready as soon as you walk through the door?  So after receiving it for Christmas (Thanks buds!) and hitting Pinterest up for some recipes, I decided to give it a go.  Though, the first recipe I tried wasn't found on Pinterest at all, it was found on Facebook.  

The recipe was Salsa Chicken and it was delicious!  It was a little juicier than I had hoped so it would have made very messy tacos, but the juice was perfect on rice which I had made, so it worked out perfectly.  Unfortunately I don't have any pictures because I was much too excited by the fact my house smelled yummy when I walked into it and much too hungry to grab my phone when we sat down to eat.  All in all, I'm calling the Crock Pot Project a giant success and will be scouring Pinterest this evening to see what other goodies I can come up with for the next meal.

Slow Cooker Salsa Chicken
 lbs. (32 oz.) chicken breasts, boneless and skinless
1 cup salsa, homemade or purchased
1 cup petite diced canned tomatoes (choose low-sodium)
2 tbsp. taco seasoning
1 cup onions, diced fine
1/2 cup celery diced fine
1/2 cup carrots, shredded (you can leave these out if you are concerned about the carbs)
3 tbsp. sour cream, reduced fat (can use regular sour cream if you like)
Directions
Place the chicken in a slow cooker. Sprinkle the taco seasoning over the meat then layer the vegetables and salsa on top. Pour a half cup water over the mixture, set on low and cook for 6-8 hours. The meat is cooked when it shreds or reaches an internal temperature of 165°F. When ready to serve, break up the chicken with two forks then stir in the sour cream.
Makes eight 1 cup servings.

Baby It's Cold Outside

I don't think I'm spoiling anything, when I say, Oh my goodness, is it cold outside!  This so called polar vortex (I'm still not sure where that name came from) is turning us all into polar bears.  I've avoided going outside until absolutely needed, worn so many layers I looked like a marshmallow and declared, I'm going into hibernation until Spring.  This is ridiculous!  Aside from not being able to feel my toes, there are some funny stories coming out of this mess, as long as you look past the many different photos of car temperature gauges that are popping up all over social media.

One of my favorites was the story of Michael Bay's mini-meltdown at some conference caused by his tele-prompter not working.  One clever journalist dubbed it "Strictly speaking, he's having a bi-polar meltdown", which made me laugh quite a bit more than I suppose it should have.

Another is the photo that's been making the rounds all day of a light house on Lake Michigan, completely encrusted by snow and ice. Apparently, after quite a few hours of hard-hitting investigative journalism, it was found that the particular picture that everyone had been sharing wasn't even from this 2014 arctic blast.  It was from last year's arctic blast and therefore shouldn't be used to illustrate how cold it is during this vortex.  

The dueling political parties seem to be having a go at the weather's expense as well.  One joke I saw on Facebook today: "It's so cold Governor O'Malley is sticking his hands in his own pockets for a change."

Then of course, there was my personal favorite.  Apparently, during bouts of cold weather like this, it becomes a thing to take various hot beverages outside to see if they'll freeze.  It would seem that some of these experiments were less successful than others, because a handful of people all over the states, have been taken to the hospital with minor burns caused by throwing their warm beverages in the air to freeze.  Really?

Hopefully laughing will warm us up a bit so we can all survive this long cold snap we're having.  And of course, if that doesn't work, summer is officially 5 months and 14 days away, thank goodness!

Should be Interesting...

So this is happening.  A few months ago, I first heard about the concept of a Color Run aka the Happiest 5K in the world. From what I gather,  you run 5 kilometers and every few meters, you get pelted with powdered paint in a variety of colors.  At the time, I thought it was pretty nifty but wasn't really interested.  Since then, I've heard it come up a few times but never gave it much thought, until today that is.  A few girls at work are doing it and decided to create a team then sucker me into joining them.

In an attempt to get a life, I said yes.  Being adventurous is all well and good, but I don't know how to run.  I tried it once, made it a few feet, thought I was going to die and decided that I would never run again unless my life depended on it.  Also, I really hate getting messy. Cooking, baking and crafting may create whirlwinds of stuff in my house, but I draw the line at getting things all over my clothes; intentionally that is.  

At least the race isn't until May.  That gives me 5 months to come up with some life-threatening reason as to why I can't  do it (powdered paint allergy, maybe?).  If I can't create a plausible one, you'll find me walking (there's just no getting around the lack of oxygen and stamina I have to make a run for it) in DC wearing a tutu (apparently that's the uniform for our team - and who do you think is making those?  that's right -me.  I'm quote-unquote the crafty one...) and trying desperately to avoid flying paint.

Sunday Evening Ponderings

~ Contrary to my original pics for this week's wild card rounds (Kansas City - they were undefeated through much of the season, Green Bay - Love Aaron Rogers!, and Cincinnati - their coach used to work for the Ravens), I'm happy with 2 of the teams losing.  I still think KC blew the shot that they truly deserved (also, after having the best record all season, I still don't understand how they fell in the wild card around to begin with!).  But as much as I love Green Bay, now that the Niners won, John has his shot to win the big game just like his brother did, which I'm sure will make Sunday dinners at the Harbaugh's a bit easier.  And with Cincy losing, the Chargers, who will eternally be on my good side seeing as their win last week kicked the Steelers out of playoff contention, get a chance to shine.  If the Ravens weren't going to the Super Bowl, I suppose the best teams may get the chance - as long as it's not Denver or New England!

~ I may need a few more re-watches of The Sign of Three episode of Sherlock to really appreciate the laugh a minute jokes.  It was definitely different, and I wasn't sure how I felt at first but somewhere around the time John and Sherlock got wasted at John's Stag do, I was hooked.  I'm not sure what the writers were on but you could tell they and the actors were having a blast.  Even after all that, they managed to throw in a bit or two that made me a bit weepy.  Everything a good episode of television should be and more!

~ I really have absolutely no idea how I'm going to handle going into work tomorrow morning.  I've been on and off, away for the last 2 weeks.  Why does vacation seemingly take so long to get here but is over in a blink of an eye?  A full 5 days of work - dreadful!

~ I know it's winter in Maryland, and everything should be expected but after a weekend (and more is expected this week) of sub-zero temperatures (ok not today but the last 2 days have been ridiculous!), I'm ready to pack it in and move to the tropics!  Having to scrape ice and snow off of my car in shifts because I can't feel my fingers through my gloves is not my idea of a good time!

~ "Remembrance of Things Paris - 60 years of Writing from Gourmet" is on the reading list for this week.  Loving it so far!  I may not have fallen head over heals for Paris as I thought I would, but reading about it still gets me starry-eyed.

Books, Books, and More Books in 2014

I've been seeing all sorts of nifty ideas for writing prompts on Pinterest lately, so since I didn't have much to say today, I thought I'd try one out: My reading list for 2014.

Because my family and friends know me so well, I received lots of books for Christmas which is positively delightful.  I was able to kick off my 2014 reading list right.  The theme so far seems to be cooking and traveling.  Isn't it always?  On top of the 6 books I already have in the queue, Mary Higgins Clark and Mary Kay Andrews both have new books coming out this year, so those will be added in April.  In 2013 I vowed to re-read Harry Potter and finished the first 2 last month.  I'd like to finish the last 5 this year as well.  That series was so unbelievably important in my life as a reader and it's terribly sad I can't remember important details.  I'll never have the enjoyment of reading the books for the first time again with the same sense of wonder and surprise but reading again after so long, I'll still feel the excitement in the details.

Seeing as this year is the 450th anniversary of Shakespeare's birth, I'd also like to read a few of his works.  I plan to take a course on FutureLearn on Hamlet in performance, so I'll be re-reading that again soon.  Also, Coriolanus is coming to theatres here and I've no idea what that one is even about.

I still have a few Jenny Colgans, and Ali McNamara's to get from England which will either be ordered from Amazon Second Hand or direct from the source in the fall depending on how the queue is shaping up.  And when Eleanor & Park and FanGirl finally reach paperback, they'll both be added to the list as well.  Of course, I'm also waiting on The Rosie Project, Billy Crystal's autobiography and Provence 1970 to reach paperback too (I hate spending the money on hardbacks unless it's someone I already know I love).

I somehow managed to read 33 books in 2013, I'm hoping to hit 36 this year.  By the looks of my ever growing stack, I shouldn't have too much trouble achieving that goal!

Friday Five

1. This interview is pretty much flawless.  It's how I imagine myself conducting an interview with pretty much anyone on the planet: entering with loads of intelligent questions and flailing as soon as the interviewee arrives. Though, I must say, I'm in love with all of the Sherlock love that's being shared around the web these days (#SherlockLives!!!!), but this interview takes precedent above them all.

2. Collect App: I was reading about this app in an article on Project Life.  Now I know I've come out against the whole Project Life craziness, but I can't help but be impressed with some of the gorgeous albums I see on Pinterest.  Apparently, a lot of Project Lifers use this app to keep track of when photos are taken.  You can create different albums then upload the photos you take onto a calendar.  You can also label them in a variety of styles.  The best part is it reminds you when you haven't taken a picture on a particular day so if you are trying to complete 365 pics in a year, you have that little push you need when other things get in the way of remembering.

3. I never really bought into the whole right brain left brain thing but after reading this article, I'm convinced I'm right brained. It's actually quite creepy how accurate these depictions are except the whole not knowing the grammar rules thing.  I rocked out Language Arts in elementary school : ) (PS: Excuse the language on #9, it's a little risque..)

4. Unexpected Snow Days: Based on the weather forecasts for the last week, you'd think we here in the NorthEast would have been prepared for the storm of the century.  But the last time the storm of the century was coming, we received not one single snowflake and yet all schools, government agencies and churches were closed long before they realized NOThing was happening.  So when it started snowing yesterday, and snowing, and snowing and snowing, we were pleasantly surprised.  It wasn't the storm of the century but it was enough to look gorgeous on the trees and close enough down to give us a pretty nice 3 day weekend.  Now if it would get above 8 degrees tomorrow, I'd be a much happier girl!

5. Travel Planning: Not only has next week's trek to DC to see Frankenstein been shored up, but also the Summer trip to NYC to see Cabaret (with Alan Cumming!!!!) has been booked and tentative dates for Boston are set.  Things are looking up in the travel department!

Something in the Air

I'm not sure if it's the new year or just a new feeling but there's something definitely in the air.  I'm feeling optimistic for 2014 and I'm not really sure why.  I read an article a few weeks ago that mentioned finding one particular word for the new year and focusing your energy on that word.  At first I thought it was a bit ridiculous but for some reason one word keeps popping into my head so I'm taking it to mean that the universe believes that's what I need. Excitement.  That's what I want.  I want new experiences and new people.  I want to do fun things and see new places.  I want to live an exciting year instead of just slogging along.  

For the first time in a long time, I'm happy with everything in my life.  I feel fairly secure (barring any layoffs which always creep into the back of my head and freak me out) at work. I have a family and friends who love me.  And I'm optimistic in regards to the fun things I already have planned for the coming year.  I'm even feeling more and more creative.  I fizzled on the last photo a day challenge I attempted, but I thought I may try it again.  I've even kicked around plans for a far-reduced than usual Project Life album but that still may be too intimidating and time-consuming for me.  But hey, it's a new year and a sorta kinda new me.

Outside of the normal midnight New Year's Eve doldrums (I haven't got a boyfriend, husband, white picket fence or twins yet), I'm trying to look on the bright side and see where the year takes me.  I have 363 days to squeeze all the fun out of 2014 - Let's see what I can do!

Happy 2014!

            

Here's hoping your 2014 is full of happiness, love and all the good things your heart is wishing!

Happy New Year!