Thursday, November 15, 2012

crazy brain

So, this blog thing hasn't been working out. I warned you! Truth is, when I come home, watching TV and relaxing on the couch has been winning out over this here blog. I was thinking, though, about devoting this space to my crazy brain... and probably more accurately, my crazy female brain (there are going to be lots of generalizations here, feminists be advised). 

For example: Tonight I got the desire to eat something about an hour before I went to bed. This is the absolute worst time to want to eat. I always feel like I am so close to ending the day, I should just brush my teeth and go to sleep and forget it. But once you start thinking like that, you can't stop thinking about the thing you want to eat. Two hours before bed, not an issue. 30 minutes before bed, actually too close and I will just go to bed. But that hour is the trap. 

I of course ate something but then I had to feel like I should have just gone to bed. Guys do not do this. If they are hungry, they just eat. Ughh.

See? Crazybrain.

Thursday, October 25, 2012

SOA

Do you guys watch SOA? Can we talk for a second about how Gemma is the biggest POS??

Saturday, October 20, 2012

Go State!

















I'm a (very) proud Michigan State University alumna, and today we try to take on that other school in the state for a 5-in-a-row victory. Let's be honest, our season has been disappointing, especially given our rise over the last few years. That's to be expected (I think) when you lose your QB. This season is just helping to make the next even better. Win or lose, GO GREEN!


Thursday, October 18, 2012

The sad truth.

The sad truth behind my lapse in posting is that bf&i started watching Supernatural and we are hooked. So, when we get home from work, we start watching Supernatural and keep watching 'til we go to bed. If we are not watching Supernatural, it's because we are watching one of our fall shows: Sons of Anarchy, Grimm, Parks & Rec, The League, Dexter, American Horror Story, Key & Peele, or most recently, Elementary. 

Sooo yeah. We are lame. It's getting cold out. Bring on the hibernation.

Thursday, October 11, 2012

Hair

I've had my fair share of short haircuts, but I started growing my hair out at least 6 years ago and just let it grow. 

I was bad about maintenance though, and it was heavy, and I knew it was time to let it go. 

I know it's just hair, and it grows, but  I had grown (how many times can I use the word grow in this post?) really attached to my long hair. Every time I thought about cutting it, I'd start getting all sorts of compliments on it. I felt like it was an expression of my personality. 

Still. It had to be done! So on Tuesday night, I finally bit the bullet and cut it off. 

Long hair

I honestly thought I'd hate it but the second she cut that ponytail off, I felt much better. I knew it would be okay, haha.

Chop chop.

Finished 'do.

I feel like a new woman!

Wednesday, October 10, 2012

Wednesday Wednesdays

You may have noticed that I missed (quite) a few days. Last week I was busy with work, and, well, to be honest, bf&i have been spending all of our time watching Supernatural and "horror" movies. I put horror in quotes because to be honest, my definition of "scary" might be a little bit tame for most people... my friend Sara knows this well. 

Oh, and we've been watching Dexter ... !?!?!... this season is causing me so much stress, although I am psyched about Ray Stevenson. Okay. No spoilers (unless you want some? ;) )

Anyway. It's October and I'm full in the Halloween spirit. If you have any good recommendations for creepy movies that are not slasher films -- send them my way! Cabin in the Woods is next, which normally would not make my list but everyone keeps saying I should see it. 

Without further ado, here's a little black cat action for our Wednesday.

This is a RARE occasion of her sleeping in my lap. She only lies on  M. Little brat.

Congrats to my friend Laura who had a beautiful little boy yesterday!

Thursday, September 27, 2012

Now Playing: Lana Del Ray, Born to Die






























Sometimes, when I see a lot of hype around a name/artist, I purposely avoid it, because I'm kind of a jerk. Thankfully I came to my senses and decided to check out Lana Del Ray. I haven't stopped listening since. I am honestly obsessed with this album. I keep trying to listen to other things so I don't burn myself on it, but I can't. The songs play through my head all day and I can't wait to listen to them. They are the only things getting me through traffic on my drive home. The album and her lyrics(!) are amazing! 



If you've been skipping over this album, don't be like me. Do yourself a favor and get it ASAP.

Wednesday, September 26, 2012

Sunday, September 23, 2012

Weekend

It feels good to be lazy sometimes! We had a nice low-key weekend. 

On Thursday, we started watching American Horror Story. We watched two episodes that night, four on Friday, and on Saturday knocked out the last six. I lovelovelove watching whole seasons of TV shows, even more than watching movies. 

I never really wanted to watch that show but I'm glad I finally gave in because we loved it. I get creeped out very easily but every fall as we approach Halloween I get the urge to be a little scared. Just a little though... no Halloween/Friday the 13th/Jason for me.

Friday we watched our eps while eating some potachoes.


Saturday we had lamb burgers and a few brew-ha-has while finishing up the season. 

Today (Sunday), I made french toast for I think the first time ever. I tried to make pumpkin french toast and it turned out pretty good. I am normally a pancake person but we got a free loaf of texas toast so when life gives you lemonsfree bread, make french toast. 



I didn't really measure anything, just mixed one egg, some cinnamon, vanilla, pumpkin pie spice, a couple spoonfuls of of pure pumpkin, and some vanilla soy milk into a bowl to dip the bread. 

Later we did our Sunday ritual of hitting up Costco (pumpkin pie samples!) and then got Chinese food and watched The Raid: Redemption (which was pretty awesome).

It's been awhile since we had a Sunday like this so it feels nice! Now I'm going to go plant my butt back on the couch. Hope you had a wonderful weekend!


Thursday, September 20, 2012

Restaurant Crawl

Tuesday night, I went to a restaurant crawl downtown with my Mom. I had good intentions of taking pictures of everything I ate, but once the food was in front of me, I couldn't think of anything else and wolfed it down. I finally managed one picture.


Caramel Apple
For the crawl, you went to 15 different restaurants and had a little bite at each one.

I honestly thought we would only make it to four or five but somehow we managed to fit all of this into our stomachs:


  • Half of a slider
  • Mini coney dog
  • Spinach and artichoke dip (x2) and chips
  • Chicken wings
  • MIni cupcake (pictured above)
  • Pork kebab
  • Pita with garlic and tzatziki
  • Lemon chicken rice soup
  • Pulled pork slider
  • Ice cream and fudge samples (pumpkin pie and Mississippi mud, respectively)
  • Mini shortbread cookie
  • Chocolate macaroon (I hate coconut but this was delicious!)
  • Bruschetta
  • Italian sausage with peppers
  • Lasagna
  • Sun-dried tomato dip with crackers
  • Sushi
  • Chicken tenders with ranch
  • Homemade potato chips
  • Chocolate eclair
  • BBQ salad from Panera
  • Strawberry scone
  • Chocolate chip cookie
  • Club sandwich
  • Apple fritters
  • Meatballs
  • Chicken tandoori roll
  • Frozen yogurt
Uhhhh ... yeah. Portions were small, but still. We rolled ourselves home and I passed out on the couch watching Real Madrid beat Man City. I don't even know how I ate food the next day. 

(Mrs. Ginger Bloom, have you done one of these? It is super fun.)

Sunday, September 16, 2012

Columbus part 2

The next morning we woke up and checked out downtown Columbus. It's huge! We got lost drove around for a while and then did a little shopping. I ate at my first Waffle House, it was delish. 

One cool thing about the game was that we ended up on TV! 5 seconds of fame, ha.



Today we checked out the Renaissance Festival. I should've taken pictures but it was really crowded and I tend to get overwhelmed in places like that. I have no sense of direction and so I can't comprehend how I am going to see or even find everything. Luckily bf is the complete opposite and can lead me through.

Hope you had a nice weekend! I'm going to go read blogs until I crash. Back to the grind...

Friday, September 14, 2012

Oh when the Yanks go marching in ...

On Tuesday morning, we headed down to Columbus, OH to watch the USMNT take on Jamaica in a World Cup Qualifier. 


Road trip fuel

American Outlaws are awesome. They (with the help of 4th St. Bar in Columbus and the Hudson Street Hooligans) put on the best tailgate. Unlimited Budweiser and bacon-wrapped hot dogs? Don't mind if I do.
Beer, game, awkward, party
































Columbus Crew stadium is super nice. I wish we had an MLS team so bad! The game was awesome, nonstop screaming and cheering and beer spilling. I took some really bad phone shots of Dempsey and Howard but instead I will just give you this .gif.

source

The boys won and we mowed down some nachos and buffalo wings at Applebee's before passing out.

More later! TGIF!




Thursday, September 13, 2012

Wednesday Wednesdays ... on a Thursday

I'm a little late on Wednesday Wednesdays this week, but in my defense, I was out of town. I'm surprised I even remembered what day of the week it was. Hope to be back soon with a recap of our little trip!

Until then, enjoy this picture of Wednesday after she crawled into my shopping bag.



Monday, September 10, 2012

weekend recap

I've got a mini vacation this week! Next two days off, woohoo.

I like that schedule: two days off, one day on, two days off....

Friday night, I went with my mom to a Taste Fest downtown. 

Aftermath.
For $15, you get all you can eat from at least 20 restaurants. We had pizza, feta cheese bread, chili cheese bacon sliders, prime rib, ahi tuna, honeybaked ham, shepard's pie, pulled pork sliders, salad, wine, stuffed figs, brownies, pie, mini cupcakes (x a few), mushroom crostini, buffalo wild wings boneless wings, pasties, and I know that I am forgetting more. It was the bomb.

Saturday my bf's nephew turned five, which is CRAZY because it feels like he was just born. Where does the time go?

I also went grocery shopping and bought ice cream. I hadn't bought any ice cream since we started P90X in March, which was huge. (I didn't say I didn't eat any ice cream since then -- that would just be crazy.) I finally caved. Same goes for the Cool Whip. I used to go through a container a week.

Reunited and it feels so good...

On Sunday, we went to our favorite flea market, and in good blogger fashion I forgot to take any pictures. The market happens twice each year and marks the start and end of summer. We never walk away empty handed!

Even though I forgot to take pics there, here are some of the goods:

It works!


Expanded my Batman cup collection (plus about 4 more...)
Sick Harley pouch.


Hope you had an awesome weekend!

Saturday, September 8, 2012

BREAKING NEWS

Apparently these will be dropping on Monday.


via Gizmodo
I cannot even contain my excitement right now.

GET IN MUH BELLY!


Friday, September 7, 2012

Labor Day

Sorry that I neglected you for a bit, dear blog. I think I had a bit of trouble adjusting after the long weekend.

Saturday night, we went to a wedding, and I accomplished my lifelong goal of getting drunk at a wedding. Dream big, people.

Hopefully bf doesn't mind that I put his face on the Internet.

Sunday we nursed our hangovers and probably ate a lot of food. My parents had us over for steaks, yum. My mom also made some raspberry chocolate banana bread laced with crack and I took down half the extra-wide loaf in one day.



Monday (Labor Day), we managed to be semi-productive before the main event...



 I got dressed in all white and we headed to a food & music fest to see Morris Day & the (mother fucking) Time.

I mean, we have Ice Cream Castle framed on our wall, so I was pretty pumped.


It was awesome. Morris has to be in his 50s but he was groovin' all over that stage. We were up way past our bedtime but it was fully worth it. We had a great time.

Here's a recent vid of The Time (2011), so you can see that they still got it. 


Aaaaand might as well throw this one in too!


It was the best way to say farewell to summer. I love summer so, so much but if I'm really being honest, fall is my favorite!

I hope you had a wonderful Labor Day and are gearing up for an awesome weekend.

Wednesday, September 5, 2012

Wednesday Wednesdays

Maybe I will eventually get around to telling you about my Labor Day weekend, but this will have to do for meow.




Sunday, September 2, 2012

sweet potato pie smoothie

I like to throw a bunch of things in the blender and hope for the best. I made a sweet potato pie smoothie that turned out pretty darn good.


Since I don't have prettier glasses, enjoy this cat.
Into the blender went:

  • Single-serve container of Chobani Honey yogurt
  • 1/2 cup or so of unsweetend coconut milk
  • Insides of one sweet potato, previously cooked (I didn't use the skin)
  • Liberal squeeze of maple syrup (I used sugar free)
  • 1 frozen banana
  • 6-8 ice cubes
  • Pumpkin pie spice or cinnamon
  • Torani SF Pumpkin Pie syrup  (optional, if you have it -- I only used one pump)
Mix and enjoy!

Friday, August 31, 2012

Unicorns

I kind of have a thing for unicorns. I have one tattooed on my side, at least 5 hanging up in my apartment, a few brass ones, jewelry, this awesome CakeSpy shirt ... you get the idea. I'm not quite Dodgeball status yet, but maybe one day.

Screencap from Apartment Therapy


Sooo, I am kind of losing my mind over this ASOS sweatshirt. 


ASOS Galactic Horses Sweatshirt
I'm cheap, so normally I would never pay that much for a sweatshirt. However, I have a feeling that this is going to end up in my closet very soon...

Thursday, August 30, 2012

chronicle

we just watched the move chronicle ... have you seen it? probably, because we are way behind on movies. then, when we do get something from netflix, we let it sit on the table for a good 2-3 weeks before we actually watch it (yep, we are those people).

the movie is about three teens who get super powers. if that sounds fun, it's not, really. the movie was really interesting and good, i thought. i really liked it, but it's also very unsettling. i feel weird now.

i'm hoping to go see hit and run this weekend, because i have a huge girl crush on kristen bell. have you seen anything good lately?

i know everyone has seen the sloth video, but hopefully you've also seen it autotuned. if not, enjoy.

Wednesday, August 29, 2012

Monday, August 27, 2012

weekend recap

How was your weekend? Tell me all about it.

Saturday night we took my bf's mom out for Sonoran hot dogs. We first had them in Tucson a few months back when visiting my sister. 

Sonoran dog in Tucson
It's basically a hot dog wrapped in bacon with beans and other tasty deliciousness. His mom was pretty jealous, so when we heard a new Mexican restaurant near us had them, we promised to take her. 


I opted for tacos (chorizo+potato+queso & pork+pineapple+jalapeno) and elote especial: grilled corn with poblano lime cream, cojita cheese, and chilis. First, please know that I LOVE corn. I was expecting a little cup and could not have been more excited at this giant cob of goodness. Mmmm.

Since this is quickly turning into a food post/blog, here's my dinner on Friday night:

Lamb burger patty, grilled peppers and squash with hummus, rice, pickle
We like to do dinners right!

After having a margarita with dinner on Saturday, I wanted to keep the party going, so like real awesome people we set up our camping chairs in living room and watched soccer while playing music and drinking some beers. Good times. The camping chairs were necessary, because if we sat on the couch, we would've just fallen asleep. 20s going on 80s. 

Sunday I went to theee cutest baby shower for the most fabulous mama-to-be. She is going to have one stylin' little man! :)


Then I finished off the weekend with the True Blood finale. I need something else to look forward to now on Sunday nights to help avoid weekend-end-depression!
Also .. is the next season going to be the last?? Please say it ain't so!

Saturday, August 25, 2012

Feeling fruity....

I love grocery shopping, a little bit too much. Every Saturday I meet up with my mom and we shop with good intentions -- spend less money, stick to the list. The day I achieve this will be a proud day. 

I've been trying to cut back on sugar. I looooove fruit, and even though a piece of fruit is better than a candy bar, the minimum 5 servings I eat a day is probably not good. So I had all these good intentions of not buying too much (since I'd already been to two other stores) and not buying so much fruit. I ended up with six kinds of fruit. #help

Ijustloveitsomuch.

Alsoooo Jell-O has these new puddings out that I could NOT resist. 
Photo from theimpulsivebuy on Flickr

Another problem I have is that whenever I buy a box of cereal, I have to eat a bowl of it immediately when I get home, regardless of if I am hungry or not.


It's just so delicious!

I had every intention of being "good" today in order to prepare for the Mexican feast I will be enjoying later tonight, but my mom showed up with a Biggby Peanut Butter Cup Chill, and that is one thing I will never turn down.


Mmmmm, PB


I did ride 32 (long overdue) miles this morning, though, so I'd say I earned it!



Usually I try to ride my bike as much as I can in the summer, but for whatever reason, I have really been slacking. I was happy to break that (too) long hiatus today! It felt great to get out there. It's really the best way to start the day.

I hope you are having an amazing weekend!

Friday, August 24, 2012

T.G.I.F

Thank goodness it is Friday. I am more than ready for the weekend! It should be a fun one, too, with a birthday dinner for my bf's mom and a baby shower. 

A few things I enjoyed this week....


Expendables 2. God was this movie fantastic. It was even better than the first one (though to be fair, the bar wasn't set that high). So many good one-liners. If 90 some minutes of explosions and gratuitous violence doesn't put a smile on your face then I don't know how to help you. Go see it now. 

It doesn't fall in line with my usual musical tastes (save for the Queen of Pop Britney Spears), but something about Katy Perry's music just puts me in a good mood. I kind of love-to-hate her as a person but I will proudly blast "Part of Me" as I drive down the road.



My mom and I got a really good Groupon deal for 10 Zumba classes for $20 or something equally crazy. It was my first time but I have really been enjoying it. The teacher this past week was aweeesome. It really makes me miss my dancing days! Even though I feel like I am incapable of "shimmying" -- my shoulders just don't want to go that way. Regardless, it's a lot of fun. 


That's all I've got. What made you smile this week?

Wednesday, August 22, 2012

Wednesday Wednesdays


Wednesday rarely lies on the couch, so she looked so cute lounging the other day. She looks so tiny. 



Oh she had a wonky eye!



Also, have you seen the chimera cat? My bf sent me this. We want one bad.

Photo from Geekologie

And then, there's this, which I am making my ringtone (not joking)...


Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Now Playing: The Darkness

The long-anticipated reunion album from The Darkness dropped on Monday, and it pretty much exceeded expectations based on the cover art alone. 



I bought the MP3 album but I'm planning on tracking down the vinyl so that I can hang this up. If they happen to sell a giant poster, even better.

We saw The Darkness once live on the tour of their first album, and it's still one of the best shows I've ever seen. The music scene needs a lot more glam-metal-freddie-esque-dance-rock if you ask me.

You can stream the whole album right now over on Rolling Stone. Don't miss it! 

Saturday, August 18, 2012

Expendables 2

Is anyone else as excited for this as I am? We are going tomorrow morning... bring on the explosions.


Friday, August 17, 2012

my motivation seems to have gone missing. if you find it, please return to...

I've been feeling down this week, for no good reason really. I've got way more things to be happy about than sad, but I just can't seem to get out of this funk. I feel like I'm stuck in a rut. I feel burnt out. I think that I should have taken a short break from working out after finishing P90X in June, because now I'm dreading my workouts. I always take one or two (usually two) rest days, but I think I needed a week or so. I just feel like I am lacking direction and motivation, or maybe it is the absence of structure.

I'm going to try and take a short break from working out, but the problem is, 1) I feel guilty and 2) when I don't work out, I just want to say the hell with it and eat a large pizza with a bowl of ice cream. Neither of these are good things -- I should not feel guilty, and I should not feel like I need to give up. My bf found an analogy about how when you drop your phone, you don't say, "oh, I dropped my phone, might as well smash it into a million pieces." You shouldn't do this with your diet, either -- if you eat that large pizza, you shouldn't use that to rationalize adding on ice cream, beer, and french fries (pick your poison). This makes so much sense to me, and I try to remember it, but it's hard to really put into practice. I do want to just dive head first into a bowl of ice cream some days. 

I was thinking earlier that it's completely ridiculous that I even feel bad about trying to NOT eat certain things, when so many people don't even get that option! But again, even though I am aware of this and try to think about it, I still can't seem to change my mindset. 

I don't know where this is going really, but I just feel a bit lost. When I feel bad about myself, it affects everything else I do -- so even though it seems trivial to be down about skipping some lunges or eating that bowl of ice cream, it's all connected.

Does anyone else feel this way? Am I crazy? Do you have any tips for finding your motivation? I'd love to hear them. 

On another note, the 3-day Walk for the Cure is this weekend. I love seeing those ladies walk, it's so inspiring and I feel so much pride. I participated in Ride for the Cure last year and  I hope to do the century next year now that I have a proper bike (I rode 60 miles on a single speed!). The feeling I had when I was done was like no other. So to all the ladies (and men?) participating in the 3-day, you rock!

Also on another note, this morning a GIANT spider appeared in the kitchen. Of course, when I went to go get help, it disappeared. I thought I was getting better about spiders, but considering that I cried after it was gone, I guess the opposite is true! I just couldn't deal. I'm still afraid to go into the kitchen, I keep peeking my head around the corner before I dare enter. Hopefully my cat had a little midday snack. 

Sorry that was so text heavy! Thanks for reading :) 

TGIF!

Thursday, August 16, 2012

Things I Love Thursdays: I really love soccer

  • I feel like all my TILT posts have involved soccer thus far (a whopping two until now), but, I guess I really love soccer. Last night the U.S. Men's National Team won for the first time EVER in Mexico. It only took 75 years but Brek Shea off the bench got a play started and the U.S. held the lead until the end. History in the making:

  • Also, the Premier League starts this weekend and I can't wait. Anyone want to join our Fantasy league? Anyone? Bueller? RVP to Man Utd is stressing me out. It's totally messing up my line up (and my head).
  • Pinterest. I'm no stranger to Pinterest but lately my obsession has gone into overdrive. I want to just organize everything in my life in pinboards ... how sad.
  • Donut plugs from BMA Modified. I got these plugs as a gift (thanks sister!) and I just love them. 

  • I got a new bike!! I'm pretty excited about this. I previously only had a single speed, which I love, but I'm ready to get serious and learn how to use gears, hah.
  • Sonic. Am I the only one who gets really excited at the start of a month, because I know Sonic's new items are going to come out? Yeah? Just me? Well, I am not ashamed. I go to a zumba class near a Sonic and undo all my efforts. I was SO excited when Sonic finally came to my state. I could go for a diet raspberry limeade right now (or more like a giant hey batter batter blast). This sign made me laugh because at least I'm not the only one ... 
via here


Wednesday, August 15, 2012

Wednesday Wednesdays

Just some cute kitties hanging out in a box:


I'm a bad mom and couldn't even tell you which one is Wednesday. She grew up in a plumbing/bathroom supply store so basically she is a junkyard cat. 

She is one tough little cookie! 


That picture is so funny to me. Actually, she is a scaredy cat. She jumps at everything.

Speaking of animals, have you seen Tret the Parkour dog? My bf sent me this yesterday and it is insane.


(via FilmDrunk)