The latest

Yes, I know, I'm a total dorkwad cuz I haven't blogged in ages. It's true, I admit it. I won't even give any excuses, although I do have some. So, here's the skinny about my recent life happenings.


1st off.......GOODBYE LIBRARIAN, hello.......I don't know what to call it, but something much better. I had been feeling kinda like a librarian lately, meaning, I felt like my style was much older and more boring than I was. It wasn't that my hair was that bad, or my clothes were that bad, but practically every time I got ready for work, I would look in the mirror and say....oh my goodness, I look like a librarian and I'm 23! I'm not saying librarians look bad, I'm saying the cliched , stereotypical librarian does. Anywho, I needed an overhaul! So, I thought, what's anti-librarian? ROCKER! So, my darling sister-in-law did my hair. I got bangs, I got my haired dyed back to brown, and then I got bright blonde peek-a-boo highlights that are on the bottom layer of my hair. I LOVE IT! How fresh I feel......so now you can understand why I say, GOODBYE LIBRARIAN! Maybe when I'm 40 we'll say hello in a hip way, but until then, siyonara!
Next, I read my first challenging book since college. It was a lot harder than it should have been. I had read this author before in a lit class, and thought he was among the easier to read authors in the English major. Nope, we're talking over 500 pages of magical realism, tons of parallels to India and Pakistan history, over a hundred different characters......the works....this novel is jammed packed with literary devices and craziness which is why it's considered so important among contemporary lit. Anyway, it took me over a month to read cuz my brain had to absorb so much. (Just so you know, I really love literature, so this was fun for me, but like I said, harder than I expected) I'm wondering, was it so hard because I didn't have a professor pointing out the important parts, and helping me narrow down themes and motifs? Do I totally suck with literature? How do professors get so smart? GGgggrrrrr. Overall, I'm glad I read it, and I'm proud of myself, and I am looking forward to the next challenge, in hopes that I'll get better at grasping all the author is trying to convey.
Also, I've been cooking new recipes. I decided that I would make cooking more fun by considering myself a fabulous chef, and listening to fun music in the process. My lovely chum Amy hooked me up with some of her fave recipes to give me a jump start. I was sick and tired of going through recipe books, looking for dishes that were healthy yet tasty, and with ingredients that weren't ridiculous....like 1/2 cup of leeks, when you have to buy them in a set of huge stalks for $2.....for one ingredient.....get real. So.....here are some fabulous dishes I've created.
Stir fry in coconut and peanut sauce, with a side of cous cous. Okay, this one I had alone while Chad was at school. He isn't big on tons of veggies and sauce, like most guys, so I spared him. But I loved it, and felt super healthy!
Fusilli with chick peas, spinach, and tomato
Here I am with my first real crepe! For some reason I have always found the idea of crepes to be so charming.
These were the crepes all folded up around an orange and cherry cream cheese sauce. This recipe was actually a dud.....bummer......at least I felt cool making crepes....lol. PS, I didn't get this recipe from Amy.
Pastitso. This is a greek dish. Yuuuummmmmm.
Eggplant rollatini. I had never used ricotta cheese before, or eggplant, or fontina....lots of new stuff.
And an old staple of mine, healthy pizza. This one had olives, sun-dried tomatoes, spinach, peppers, parmesan, onions, and a sprinkle of cheese with pasta sauce.

I also made spicy sesame noodles w/peanuts and basil. On my goodness, I had never used fresh basil before cuz it was so spendy. I splurged, and I was in heaven! We're growing some of that in the yard this year, oh yeah. And my last new dish, minestrone with mushrooms and feta. Ooooh la la. Surprisingly enough, this cooking fest was not inspired by the onslaught of chef movies that have recently come out, like No Reservations, and Ratitouille. Although, I've been known to be inspired by movies before, like when I came out of Ocean's 11 wanting to construe some big heist.....lol....I didn't pursue those inspirations by the way.
Lastly, Chad got me a wedding band for Valentine's. It was a huge surprise. When we got married, I told him I didn't want a wedding band, cuz I thought it would ruin the engagement ring....plus whenever I went to look for a wedding band the stinkin' sales people would say I should get 2, one for each side of the ring, cuz my fingers were so long......gross! I'm not 65 years old! After we got married, I realized that a wedding band was really important if you want people to quit asking you if you're engaged. Duh, I know. Anyway, I knew I needed one, but it wasn't important enough to me to really pursue. So, he surprised me. I LOVE IT! It makes my rings look so much better. I stare at it 10 times more. OOoooh, sparkly!

That's enough for now. I promise I post more often. : )

An awesome day= Snow, Family, and a Puppy!

My husband is so hot. Well......except for the time I told him to pick me up and twirl me in the snow like a scene from an ultra-corny romantic movie, and he thought it would be funny to trick me and tackle me right when he was about to pick me up. But hey, he helped me back up and dusted the snow off me afterwards. : ) We ALWAYS have good times.
Okay, so we didn't actually build this snowman, but he happened to be conveniently waiting for us at the park for some great pictures. Dakota wanted to play fetch with his arm....lol. We left him w/all limbs in tact.
HAPPY, HAPPY , HAPPY! The park was beautiful!
Okay, I know the outfit is laughable, but when we got home from church I wanted to go out in the snow right away, I threw on some leggings, boots, a hat, and a coat, and off we went. I stayed in those clothes all day. They made it through snow angel making, and all.




It was such a wonderful day. Chad and I got to be together almost all day, and Dakota loved the snow. She is such a great puppy and we're enjoying her so much. Now I can run and jump in public, and people think I'm just a normal person playing w/my dog.......ha......how little they know!

Meet Dakota!

So.....over Christmas we got a puppy! Her name is Dakota and she is a german shorthaired pointer. This picture is of the 1st day we got her, which was a little before Christmas.
This picture was a few weeks ago.
This is her with her dad. We took her to visit her real parents last week. The owners, or the people we bought Dakota from, are experts at training dogs, and they agreed to help us train Dakota so she could become as great as her parents. Her dad is huge, but Chad and I both agreed that he is the prettiest dog we have EVER seen in person. This picture doesn't do him justice.
This is Dakota with Mom. Both her parents are awesome. They'll just come and sit right by you, as if you're already best friends.

We'll admit, right now she is a lot of work, but we are really looking forward to taking her to parks, having a great jogging companion, and enjoying such a loyal, loving pal.

Bedroom Design Progress

Sweet Georgia, the hard part is over!  Well, I'm not completely done, but I had to show how far Chad and I had come.  As you can see the room is TINY....so I'm trying to keep it simple to maximize the space...but obviously I need to add some art, and I would love to get a chandelier! I also hung the curtains only a few inches from the ceiling (the window actually starts a lot lower) and this makes the room feel taller and grander.  I figured if I couldn't make the room feel wider, I could make it feel taller.  
I made new pillowcases cuz I didn't like how "matchy, matchy" the bed was....it looked too much like a bed in a bag (which it was) and that was driving me nutters!  Plus, the fabrics were all swooshy, swishy (more satin-y feeling, instead of cotton) and not soft....completely sleep hindering.....and like I would have that...puh-shaw!
Before the paint, and new pillowcases.
Oh, back where we began.  SO MUCH BETTER!  I love our house!  Now we have a luxurious, little cave....or grotto.... harbor.... retreat....sanctuary ....sorry, I wanted to use the new thesaurus I got for my birthday, LOVE IT!

Ooooogh, taggy waggy!

So, yes, tagged I am. Anywho, here goes.

5 Things I was doing 10 years ago:
1) Being a happy-go-lucky middle schooler, I was ALWAYS happy
2) Having my first boyfriend....lol. It was ridiculous, and i hated the whole 5 weeks of it.
3) Playing the piano, and playing the flute and trumpet in the band...I didn't think I was such a dork
4) Getting crushes on boys
5) Decorating my locker with pics of movie stars, I was a huge Harrison Ford fan.

5 Things on my to-do list today
1) Finish all paperwork, etc. Clean and organize the office, prep for re-design
2) Clean the house...luckily it's already pretty clean
3) Watch What Not to Wear...yay it's Friday, I LOVE Clinton and Stacy
4) Try out a new restaurant w/my wonderful Chad, it's date night!
5) Try not to eat the pumpkin bread from my visiting teacher so I'm hungry when we go out to eat...lol

5 Foods I enjoy:
1) Curry
2) Cheesecake...de Sweet Life especially
3) General Tso's chicken (Sunbird stir fry packet sauce)
4) Waffles and pancakes
5) I LOVE trying new food and restaurants, it's a thrill for me. So...bring on the ethnic stuff!

5 Bad habits:
1) Freaking out when I have too much to do
2) Driving too fast
3) Not wanting to shower every other day
4) Not calling people back
5) Going through serious hobby phases....I'll start something and be really into it for awhile, then it will shift to the next, luckily, it's pretty much a big circle and I come back to things once I"m through the cycle.....these hobbies include, cooking, decorating, organizing, thrift/bargain shopping, piano, voice, studying topics, health, and other things.

5 of my favorite toys:
1) The piano and new music, especially music with lyrics
2) DVR, I love being able to fast forward, rewind, and pause when I'm watching tv...wonderful
3) ipod
4) My wardrobe, though I think I'm getting too creative and dressing weirder and weirder....ol well, I like my clothes
5) camera


5 People I tag:
1) Lindsay Marchant
2) Sarah Peterson
3) Carina Hallock
4) My sisters, if they had blogs...hint hint
5) I dunno, I don't have any more friends....they have already been tagged...I think

I LOVE EUGENE!

So, I've been wanting to blog all week about my fabulous weekend, but Chad has needed the computer for school....so.....I know it's a week later, but I had to share anyway.

So, it started with the Gem Faire at the Fairgrounds on Friday.  I know this sounds weird...what is that?....do you go looks at rocks and jewels?  Although that is part of it, there is SO much more.  So there are oodles of different booths, from beads, to amazing pendants, rings, earrings, and all really unique, and as authentic as you want to get.  It's basically a huge art exhibition, but you can buy the stuff and wear it!  Every booth has a different specialty.  I had so much fun.  I must have said, Oooooh, I love that, thousands of times.  Ofcourse there was tons of hippie looking stuff too, but it was actually really pretty.  This is going to sound really bad, but I realized a lot of hippie stuff is really pretty, but when paired with smelly dreadlocks, hairy armpits, head-to-toe hemp, and dirty fingernails, it doesn't look quite as great.  I know, I'm a terrible person for saying that, I honestly have nothing against hippies, except when they complain about how the government doesn't help people enough by paying for everything, while they're sitting on the bums playing bongos.  Hello, if you want money, work for it!  The government isn't your loaded great aunt Muriel!  Anyway....back to the point, here is what I got.  If I had tons of money, I would have got more, but I'll have to wait for next year. 

Sorry the pics aren't great, I don't have my regular camera.  But those leaves, are made out of REAL ROSE LEAVES.  They treat the leaves with this metal, and then brush silver on them.  They had tons of different kinds of leaves, and in gold, silver, and this cool bronzy-copper.  Ever since I saw Jen Aniston in "The Breakup"  I've wanted a set of leaf jewelry.  Yay!  The blue earrings were $2.50.  I love them, they're kinda oriental looking.  I know this stuff is kinda funky, but i love it....and hey, I'm funky, so it matches me.  : )
That night, Chad and I went on the Art Walk in Eugene.  The first Friday of every month, lots of art galleries open their doors for free, and you just walk around downtown and take a look.  We didn't know what to expect, but all the galleries were really close together, and only 2 of them were really weird, and the rest were awesome.  Chad was having a bit of a hard time appreciating the really "modern art" but he loved the rest, and it was fun talking to each other about what we thought about all the different pieces.  In one gallery, Chad was looking inquisitively at a painting, and the curator said, "You're an artist, aren't you?"  She was so SURE of herself too.  Chad just said no, but later we laughed so hard, cuz just before he was kinda poking fun at a "weird" painting.  He's not the artist type, I doubt he has done art since middle school.  Then we went to this fun restaurant, Poppi's Anatolia.  They serve Indian and Greek food.  I love trying new restaurants and cuisines, and Chad has discovered a dining world apart from steakhouses and huge restaurant chains.  It had such charm, and was full of the local homebodies.  I love getting to know this town....I'm slowly checking off all the things I've wanted to do....and it just makes me more and more connected to my hometown.  Before I die, I'll have visited almost every street, shop, park, path, and restaurant.     

On Saturday, I went on an awesome bike ride, with my ipod, on the river.  So, Eugene has this awesome path along the river.  Seriously, I think it's among the best in the US, maybe the world.  Anyway, I didn't realize how long it was.  I thought I had seen most of it, but there was more.  I was just peddling along, with a little Dean Martin, Madeleine Peyroux, and Gwen Stefani, having myself a merry time.  The leaves were beautiful.  Then I came across these marshes.  I must have seen 10 huge cranes, perched on floating logs.  It was so cool.  I crossed all these serene bridges, watching the grey, blue water rolling along, while following a curvy path that kept leading to new sights.  I was so happy, just enjoying this beautiful place on a beautiful autumn day.  

Then, THE DUCK GAME!  Chad and I watched with his family at his parents'.  I love watching games with them.  We always have so much fun.  We ate yummy food, cheered, booed, and sat tensely as the lead almost slipped away.....but we killed 'em in the end!  Boo yah!  I couldn't imagine living in a town without a big college....who do you root for?  It's just not the same if you're not there in the town, where all the fans are, with flags on their cars, and banners in their shop windows.  

So...basically, I really enjoyed Eugene this weekend.  

Chad and I made a headboard.  Here it is.  Chad made the frame from plywood (from Jerry's) and 2 by 4's we kinda stole from a construction site.  They weren't gonna use the wood, the pieces were in the scrap pile, and had some nails in them.  So, then we covered it the back with a queen size egg-crate cuz it was gonna be cheaper than buying foam by the yard.  Then ofcourse we covered it with the brown, suede fabric.  Soft, neutral, and only $6.  So, for a King size headboard, we only had to spend $40.  As you can see, our room is tiny and there were only 2 ways to fit the bed.  Either it was against the wall w/o a window, and I would have to roll across the bed to get to my side, or against the wall w/ a window....and leaning against a window when you're reading/studying in bed, just doesn't work.  So, obviously, the solution was a headboard!  Yay, we finally finished.        

 
So...this called for a new bedspread.  I'm planning on re-doing the whole room, so here is the start.  I'll probably work on the pillows so they're not so matchy, matchy.  Lots of work to do, but I'm so excited.  I have wanted to fix the bedroom forever, but I could never find a bedspread I liked that was a decent price.  Everything was $60.  8 pieces for a KING size bed!  Comforter, 4 pillow cases, 2 pillows, and a bedskirt.  I didn't put all the pillows out.  Anyway, much better already!  
That was really long....probably my sister only made it through it.....but think of it as creative non-fiction, that genre really exists.  I just went to an author's reading of his creative non-fiction.  Great stuff BTW.  

I'm turning into a psycho, weirdo pants!

So....I've been noticing a few weird things about myself.  I've always known I've had some interesting quirks, but now I'm starting to worry myself.  Allow me to elaborate.

1) I'm hearing things.  The other day, I could have sworn I heard Chad's cell phone ringing when I was washing dishes.  Then Chad told me his phone was in the car.  Weird.  The next day I thought I heard the doorbell, I looked really quick, and no one was there.  I didn't hear the doorbell.

2) I'm starting to like really ugly clothes.  I like to go to Goodwill, and St. Vinnies, and plough through their stuff.  Well, yesterday, I was just so in the mood.  Going to these places can be a lot of work, cuz you have to sort through everything 1 by 1 to find the good stuff.  So many times, I would come to clothes I knew were ugly, dated, embarrassingly bad, and I would think, hmmmm, that's kind of pretty.  You're probably thinking the clothes were decent, but NO!  We're talking, funky sweatsuits, winter sweaters COVERED in designs with colors that shouldn't ever be put together, hippie shoes, metallic puffy coats that come to your knees.  Luckily I didn't look at the jewelry cuz who knows what would have caught my attention, probably some dingy snap bracelets!  It was weird, I knew they were ugly, but I liked them cuz they had tons of interesting colors and were really funky, but in a bad way.  I feel like I'm turning into the Olsen twins (not their eating habits ofcourse) but you know how they're dressing lately, they look like bag ladies people!  Honestly, if they just sat down on the curb, they would look like bums, but worse.  IN the end, I didn't buy anything weird, so that's all that really matters right?    

3) I'm talking to myself.  Yes, as embarrassing as it is, I have caught myself talking to myself......WHEN I'M IN PUBLIC!  Luckily it's nothing too shameful, and it's usually when I'm shopping....and I'll say, ewww, that looks disgusting, oh, that's so cute, or I have wanted to try that cereal hmmmmm or I'll talk about the people around me, don't i know her from somewhere? what a cute jacket.  Anyway, these things will come out of my mouth, and then I'll kinda giggle to myself because I realize what a weirdo I am becoming.  It might be okay if I shopped with people, but I usually shop alone.   Oh dear.  I just know someone has caught me and started to roll over laughing....lol.  

Anyway, those are the majors.  At this point, I think it's really just funny, but I'm slightly concerned that I might come to a point where I won't think those things are even weird, and that would make me a total loony!  Beware of the NARGLES!