Embracing the Tears

I have cried twice today already.  Some of you may be looking up the number for the suicide hotline to leave for me in the comments section, but it’s really not that unusual for me.  I’ve always known that I am an overly sensitive person, but I realized just how much I show it while reading the Hunger Games trilogy.  I read all three books in about a week and cried a total of 839 times.  When I found out that my sister only cried once and a friend of mine didn’t cry AT ALL, I felt a little embarrassed.  I felt especially embarrassed when my sister’s boyfriend sat down to watch TV in our den while I was finishing up the third book and I began to sob uncontrollably.  He looked at me like I was on the verge of a major breakdown.  I had to leave the room to compose myself.  Ridiculous.   

I remember going to see “My Girl” with Macaulay Culkin at the movie theater with my cousin, Thomas.  I remember him making fun of me for boo-hooing in the seat next to him.  We weren’t even to the end of the movie yet, mind you.  Of course when we got to the end where Macaulay’s character goes to search for Vada’s (Anna Chlumsky) mood ring and dies in a swarm of bees, leaving young Vada heartbroken without her friend, the front of my shirt looked like someone doused me with a bucket of water.  I looked over at Thomas to see tears rolling down his face.  He of course denies this ever happened.

Why is it that we are embarrassed by showing our feelings in this way?  Is it because we feel vulnerable?  Is it because we make ugly faces when we cry? (Yes).  I have even found myself getting angry with people I genuinely care about so that they don’t sense how upset I am so I’m able to hold back the tears.  The more I thought about it, the more it didn’t make sense to me.  Of course no one wants to be around someone who is a constant blubbering fool, but why is showing our emotions in this way perceived as such a bad thing?

I have been thinking about this in regards to myself for a few weeks now.  I’ve always felt like my sensitivity was something that held me back in a way.  I felt it made me a weak person.  I began to think about how I interact with those that I love and have loved and how they made me feel.  My heart began to swell so hard it hurt.  I should be grateful that God gave me the ability to love this much and that he gave me this many people to love because honestly, not everyone in this world can say that. 

So I’ve decided to now live my life without worrying about my tender heart because it’s my heart that God blessed me with for a reason, and I embrace it. 

So I don't leave you completely picture less, here are some pictures of a few of those that make my heart swell...

TGIF

Not long ago I found myself trying to remember the TV show lineup for TGIF from back in the day.  It was kind of sad how much I remembered.  So I have a few good posts lined up, but I didn't have the time to get to them today so I will save them for next week.  For today I will leave you with a few highlights from my week.

1. Here are two vidjas that I can't stop watching...






2. I was cleaning out my picture folder on my work computer the other day and found this and thought I would share before it goes in the recycle bin...

3. Everyone's posting on facebook what the #1 song was the day they were born.  Mine is "Truly" by Lionel Richie.  Perfect for me.  If you know me, you'll know that my love of Lionel was first proclaimed when I was in kindergarten and my teacher asked all of the children what their favorite song was.  Everyone answered "Jesus Loves Me" except for me.  I apparently answered excitedly, "Stuck on You by Lionel Richie!"  Thanks dad!

4. So my boyfriend, Roger, lost his match last night to Monkey Nadal.  I'm surprised he has the ability to even perform at the level that he does seeing as how he has is fingers in his crack most of the time.

^ Monkey

5. Lastly, my sister was telling me a story about someone from her work last night.  A coworker was talking to her about the age of another one of their coworkers and whether or not she's still "gettin' busy".  I found this hilarious and wondered to myself why no one uses that phrase anymore.  Hmmm...

Have a good weekend!  See ya on the flip side!

Inevitable Awkwardness

So as I've mentioned before, I have the ability to be somewhat socially awkward at times.  As I've gotten older, the intense pressures of everyday life have eased, but those little moments that make your blood pressure spike to stroke level and help to create sweat stains the size of Texas on your newly dry cleaned silk shirt will forever remain.

Tom, it's a problem when you sweat through a blazer, just sayin'.

Here are just a few of those moments:

+  The Bathroom Visitor: It's a toss-up on which is worse, being the one to walk in or the one to be walked in on.  Both are pretty terrible, but if I had to choose, it would probably be worse to be the one to walk in, especially if the person were male.  I once inadvertently walked into an unlocked, occupied dressing room where a woman was removing her shirt, bare breasts exposed.  Can't get much more awkward than that.

+  The Run-In: You catch eyes with someone you know and haven't seen in a while.  It's too late to try and pull the whole look away and pretend as though you haven't seen them routine.  All you can do is go up and exchange pleasantries and pray to God that your phone rings or you pass out.

+  The Long-Drawn-Out-Oh-My-God-It's-Painful-Silence: A couple of weeks ago I was out with some friends and was left at a table with a guy I didn't know very well.  He was very nice, cute, but not at all talkative.  The awkward part of this silence for me is not really the silence itself, but the way I react.  In an attempt to avoid these painful silences I develop word vomit.  I found out what this guy did for a living and I started rambling on and on about things that may or may not have been relevant.  Regardless of whether they were relevant, I know he definitely didn't care.  So instead of an awkward silence, I got an awkward stare.

+  The Stow-Away Panties:  This has actually never happened to me, but it has happened to friends of mine.  You're running late so you throw on a pair of jeans you wore the day before.  You get out in public and all of a sudden feel something creeping down the leg of your pants.  If you are fortunate enough to feel them, there's a possibility of retrieving them before anyone finds out*.  On the other hand, you could have no clue at all and find yourself in the middle of a classroom full of your peers staring down at yesterday's panties beside your desk.

* This happened to me in college.  Thankfully I was able to pull them out in the stairwell on the way to my 200 some odd person lecture class.


Anyone else have any inevitable awkward moments to add?  Please tell me I'm not the only one who is this anxiety ridden.

Happy Birthday, Harrison!

I meant to post this yesterday, but I didn't get the chance.  A very special friend had a birthday yesterday.  A friend I miss very much. 

Six months ago, my dear friend, Harrison Clark, stepped into eternity.  My group of friends from Dothan have gone through this kind of thing more than people our age should have to, I feel. 

It seems to always be that person with the kindest heart and biggest spirit.  I used to have such a hard time with this.  I still do.  I mourn every friend that exits my life in whatever capacity.  However, after Harrison's death, I realized that however badly I wanted him back here in his earthly home, God had a purpose for him.  There was no question. 

And even though it's difficult.  And painful.  There's no reason to be sad. 

We should rejoice that he was given the ultimate reward for his kind heart and beautiful spirit because this life here on earth is precious, and it goes by in a flash.  So one day it will be my turn, and I couldn't think of a sweeter face to be there to welcome me to my eternal home. 

I miss you so much, Harry!  I was so incredibly blessed to have had you as a friend!

Sidney Harrison Clark
January 22, 1983 - July 3, 2011

"He was guiding me, love, his own way

Now the man of the hour is taking his final bow

As the curtain comes down

I feel that this is just goodbye for now"

Down to Biznass

So a whole month of 2012 has just about passed us by, dear friends.  I now have exactly 10 months to train and run a half marathon before my 30th birthday in November.  That was really hard to type and kind of made me want to puke a little.  That being said, this guh's got to get down to biznass! 

I thought for a very brief second about trying to train for the Mercedes Half Marathon here in Birmingham, but then reality gave me a nice, quick b*tch slap across the face, and I realized that not only is it less than a month away, I have only run a total of...oh...er...maybe 3 times since the beginning of the year.  Each run was less than 5 miles, mind you.  ALSO, for those of you not familiar with the Birmingham area, it is not flat.  It is in fact quite hilly.  "Magic City Post" made a qote about the course saying, "It incorporates several steep hills through Birmingham’s Southside, 755 feet high at its peak." So in other words, try again next year, Lynds because it ain't happening.  You will die.

Running does make me feel amazing once I'm finished, but to be totally honest, running is terrible and hard and frustrating.  It's totally unpredictable.  I am never sure of how I will fair on any given day.  One day I could feel strong and be able to bang out 4 or so miles at a pretty decent pace.  Others I feel like I've suddenly morphed into Pizza the Hut and it is all I can do to drag my extra-large butt with cheese and pepperonis down the street for two miles.

There was a really disturbing image that came up when I just googled that.  I hate when that happens.

This usually happens because I am so inconsistent with my running.  It's not like other sports where you can practice every now and then and expect to pick up somewhat close to where you left off.  If I take a week off of running it almost feels as though I am back to square one.  This tends to make me angry and frustrated because I consider myself an athletic, strong individual.  Some of the exercise classes and training I have done in the past have been extremely difficult and I showed them who's boss.  However, running is a completely different bird and it takes a whole different type of endurance.

A big part of the problem is that someone has gotten a little lazy over the past few months...

I have pretty much quit my strength/plyo training, which is actually my favorite because it keeps my attention seeing as how my ADD rules my life.

So anyway, I am determined to start and stick to my training.  I have added a widget (somewhere over here--->) from daily mile so that I will know that if I start to slip, you all can shame me back into reality.  Deal?  DEAL.  I also plan to start back strength training twice a week so that maybe I can get back to my old 12% body fat self circa 2009/2010.

All nice and tight is what I plan to be come spring!  And a super fast long-distance runner.  The death march starts tomorrow!  I'll keep all of you abreast of the horror to follow, no worries!  Have a great weekend!

Worthless Wednesday

So it is Wednesday and I am worthless.  I tried to get a little work done this morning, but the men I work with had their usual Wednesday "meeting" this morning in our conference room and they for some reason refuse to shut the door.  It's not as much a meeting as it is a competition to see whose ego comes out as victor, which is usually decided by who tells the most crude and offensive joke.  Seriously?  Just shut the door.  We already have to hear about the details of your colonoscopy so please spare us from the rest.

Anyway, keeping in line with the worthlessness, I've decided to discuss some recent worthless current events/happenings in my life.  Don't everyone get excited at once.

First and foremost, thanks to my dear friend Brooke, I have a follower!  Woo hoo!  The book deals should be rolling in any day now. 

For all of my Bama friends that might be reading this, don't be offended.  I, of course, don't feel this way about you personally, just the majority of your fan base.  Plus, we're friends and I am not friends with skanky people, therefore you do not equal skank.
I'm sure that most everyone has heard by now about the incident that went down in the Krystals on Bourbon Street.  I heard about it over the weekend, and simply dismissed it as just another idiot man/Bama fan trying to get attention.  I never thought it would snowball like it has.  For those of you who don't know what I'm talking about, apparently a group of Alabama fans stumbled upon an LSU fan who was passed out at a table in the aforementioned Krystals.  The jokes started innocently enough by stacking empty Krystal boxes on the guy's back, but then it just got weird.  If you want to read the rest on Deadspin, click here.  I don't really feel the need to explain in detail on here.  Anyway, the shocking part to me is the amount of attention this is getting.  It's kind of absurd.  I turned my radio to Jox yesterday afternoon on my way home to find the discussion on Finebaum was centered around this incident.  Yes I am butch and listen to sports talk radio. 

This is seriously offensive and that poor guy is probably mortified his face is all over the interwebs with some backwoods Bama fan's genitalia resting on it, but is it really this big of a deal.  I'm sure worse things have happened at that Krystals.  Since becoming a big to do, the UofA has come out with a statement saying, "UA hopes that our fans act with class and dignity and we are disappointed when they don't.  We are aware of the video...and will appropriately deal with any student who might have been involved."  Class and dignity?  Dear sir, you must be unclear of the meaning of those words.  Or you just live a life full of disappointment.  Anywho, I'm done talking about this so if you want to read the kicker of the story, click here.

My parents are leaving for this place in a few days, and I cannot express the feelings of jealousy and resentment I feel.

I can't wait to be close to retirement and have the ability to pick up and leave for exotic places.  If wishing your life away was a career, I'd be at the top of my game.

So the pretty people are at war with the smart people.  Not really, but you could think of it that way.  Guess who will win that game every time.

In other news, I had a date last night that was not a complete train wreck.  Go figure.  Yay for not being completely socially awkward!

Oh Patrick, you know I am just buying time until I see your beautiful face again in 72 days.  I WILL come and hold you captive in your trailer this year.  It. Is. Happening.

Happy Hump Day!

Dark Chocolate Truffles

I have been wanting to make these for a while now.  Besides being quite messy, these little balls of deliciousness were quite easy to make.  I got the recipe from Ina Garten, or Barefoot Contessa, and actually changed it around a little bit.  There are so many different things you can do and add to these that bring out the flavor of the chocolate in different ways so it's been fun to play around with the recipe. 

First, here are the ingredients you'll need to get started.



 I halved the original recipe because I didn't want 8,000 truffles at my house staring me down like little demons.

So first, chop both bars of chocolate up and put them into a mixing bowl.

Next, scald the cream in a small saucepan.  Put the saucepan over medium-high heat.  Don't turn it up too high because you'll risk burning the cream.  Watch the cream as it begins to boil, turn off the heat, and let the cream hang out for about 20 seconds.  After it sits, pour the cream through a fine sieve onto the chocolate.

I actually didn't have my sieve with me so I was scared that the film that had formed over the cream would create a problem with the consistency, but it didn't make a difference.  Slowly whisk the cream and chocolate together until it is completely melted and try not to turn the bowl up and down the entire thing.  You'll want to.

Now that you feel like a total pro because you just made ganache, now it's time to add in yo flavah.  There are so many things you can add to alter the flavor of the truffle so whatever tickles your pickle.  I was out of Grand Marnier, but I had some brandy in the cabinet so I used that and vanilla to flavor mine.

And don't laugh at my cheap brandy.  I'm poor and I don't really know what brandy's supposed to taste like anyway so I went with the cheap stuff.  Next, chill the mixture for about an hour in the fridge.  I checked mine after an hour and ended up leaving it in there for a little while longer because I didn't think the center had set enough.  It will have to be thick enough to be able to do the next step or you will have a gigantic chocolaty mess on your hands fo sho.

After it is chilled, spoon round balls of the mixture onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.  Put them back in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.  Roll each one into a ball using your hands.  I washed and dried my hands really well every 3rd ball or so because your hands will get caked with chocolate and make it hard to form them.  Roll them in confectioners' sugar and/or cocoa powder and you're done!  They will keep in the fridge for several weeks, but they are best served at room temperature.

Here is the recipe typed out:

1/2 lb. good, bittersweet chocolate
1/2 lb. good, semisweet chocolate
1 cup heavy cream
2 Tablespoons brandy, optional
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
confectioners' sugar
cocoa powder

Finely chop both chocolates and place them in a heat-proof mixing bowl.  Heat the cream in a small saucepan until it just boils.  Turn off the heat and allow the cream to sit for 20 seconds.  Pour the cream through a fine-meshed sieve into the bowl with the chocolate.  With a wire whisk, slowly stire the cream and chocolates together until the chocolate is completely melted.  Whisk in the brandy, if using, and vanilla.  Chill for one hour.

With 2 teaspoons, spoon round balls of the chocolate mixture onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.  Refrigerate for 30 minutes, until firm.  Roll each dollup of chocolate in your hands to roughly form a round ball.  Roll in confectioners' sugar, cocoa, or both. 

ENJOY!

Sorry, I'm Not Sorry

I am a total creeper.  Creeper in that I read people's blogs that I don't know and who have no earthly idea I exist.  I never comment, which makes my stalker status even creepier.  Kind of on the same wave length as this guy and his creepy flesh-colored beard...

Anywho, whilst creeping around, Pratt-style, on the interwebs one day, I came across this guh's blog and it is absolutely hilar.  I started to read through some of Rachel's posts and came across one that she wrote last year about "owning" who we are and the choices and decisions that we make and not having any reservations about them or be sorry.  Brilliant! 

I decided to get in on this action so for those of you who care, here goes:

1. I twirl my hair.  I realize this might make me look like a complete ditz, possibly make my hair fall out at a slightly faster rate, and I'm accutely aware of the fact that I'm awesome and can tie it in a knot with one hand.  Sorry, I'm not sorry.

2. I'm a major blog stalker/creeper of both people I know and people who I have never met.  I realize I should probably comment, but they might think I'm weird.  I own this.

3. I like mayonnaise.  This doesn't make me a gross person so please turn your judgemental eyes away.  Sorry, I'm not sorry.

4. In this same vein, I do not like shrimp.  Stop looking at me like I am from another planet.  They have a putrid smell and a horrific texture.  Sorry, I'm not sorry.

5. I like the Kardashians.  They are talentless for sure, but their ridiculousness makes for great television, in my opinion.  I own this.

6. The only reason I have for running a full marathon is so that eating an entire wheel of brie and drinking an entire bottle of wine could be considered a reward rather than total gluttony.  Sorry, I'm not sorry.

7. I hate musicals.  Sorry, I'm not sorry.

8. I own the fact that I am old and do not want to go get wasted at a bar with a bunch of 23 year olds.

9. I am annoyed at the fact that my facebook mini-feed is now filled with pictures of people's children.  Sorry, I'm not sorry.

10. I went through 4 majors at Auburn and I came out wishing I had stuck with my first one.  Indecisive much?  I own this.

11. If you call me to ask me out on a date for that same night, I'm going to have plans.  Sorry, I'm not sorry.

12. Any amount of physical activity will make me sweat so much I end up looking like a drowned swamp creature, and I own the fact that I don't care about going out in public looking like said creature in front of all the rich moms that live in my town. 

13. I am horrified at every picture taken of me.  I am not insulting your photography skills, just my inability to look like a normal human being.

14. I hate discussing politics.  It's boring and your opinion is your opinion.  Your candidate does not have the answer to utopia and neither does mine.  And watching politicians talk themselves up to the point of being angels knowing we'd be buried in skeletal remains if we were to open any of their closets, makes me ill.  Sorry, I'm not sorry.

15. I have absolutely no desire to go to an Asian country.  The thought frightens me.  There are massive amounts of people which stir feelings of claustrophobia, and they don't use our alphabet.  Sorry, I'm not sorry. 

There you have it.  Just a few of my choices/preferences that I own.  However arbitrary they may seem, they usually attract the eye of shame.  But guilt be gone because I now own them so sorry, I'm not sorry.

This...

...about sums up how I'm feeling today.

OR THIS...



On that note, hope everyone has a wild and cray-see MLK Day!

Lullaby

Deep in the meadow, under the willow
A bed of grass, a soft green pillow
Lay down your head, and close your sleepy eyes
And when again they open, the sun will rise

Here it's safe, here it's warm
Here the daisies guard you from every harm
Here your dreams are sweet and tomorrow brings them true
Here is the place where I love you

Deep in the meadow, hidden far away
A cloak of leaves, a moonbeam ray
Forget your woes, and let your troubles lay
And when again it's morning, they'll wash away

Here it's safe, here it's warm
Here the daisies guard you from every harm
Here your dreams are sweet and tomorrow brings them true
Here is the place where I love you...

Obsessed

When it comes to reading, I go through phases.  There are times when I'll pick up a book, begin reading, and immediately have to put it down.  I'm not sure why this is exactly.  However, there are other times when all I want to do is relax and bury myself in a book.  In some ways I feel reading is a way to escape the world around me and see the world through someone else's eyes other than my own.  Some of the characters you find you can relate to, and others are far different so you get a perspective you wouldn't usually get otherwise, which for me, is the most interesting part.

For the past couple of months I've been in a reading rut.  I love historical literature, whether it be fiction or non-fiction.  I found two books that had excellent reviews that I knew I would love, so I purchased them.  I chose which I would read first, opened it up, and began to read.  It started sort of slow, so of course I began to grow disinterested and ended up putting it down after just 100 pages.  Blasted ADD.  I hate this about myself.  Since then, I've yet to pick up anything else until about a week ago when I discovered this...

I had heard all the rave reviews, but I figured I wouldn't be interested.  It's so different than anything I normally read, and in my mind, I had put it in the same category as those cheesy series like Twilight.  Gag.  I honestly do not understand the whole sexy vampire thing.  To me that is an oxymoron.  What is sexy about an extremely pale person with bloody fangs?  Doesn't do anything for me.  Anyway, I eventually watched the trailer for the movie that is coming out in March.  I thought it looked interesting so I ended up borrowing the first book (there are three) from a friend.  I could. not. stop. reading.  They are like crack.  It's been a week and I am almost done with the third book (nerd alert).  I'm pretty positive I am going to go into a deep depression once I am done with them.  I could go on and on about how wonderful the story is, but I will save those thoughts for a post all their own!

Yet Another 365 Days of Football Torture

So I meant to write this post yesterday, but all attempts were directly followed by me wanting to hurl myself out of my 2nd-story window at work, physically hurt someone, and/or be ill all over my desk.  Your welcome for the visual.  Needless to say, the ole Crimson Tide won their 8,342 National Championship on Monday night against LSU.  I sound so incredibly disgusted with this because I am an Auburn University alum.  The majority of my family went to Auburn, including my father and my two sisters.  Because there is no professional team in Alabama, college football reigns, and you are basically forced (this is no joke, forced) to choose who you will side with. 

The Auburn/Alabama rivalry is a bitter one that I love being a part of, but at times think becomes a little ridiculous.  Things that have been done over the past couple of years have simply taken the enoyment and sportsmanship away from the rivalry.  For instance, before the 2010 Iron Bowl in Tuscaloosa, Auburn fans taped a Cam Newton jersey on the statue of Paul "BEAR" Bryant outside their stadium.

I found this quite humorous myself, but Alabama fans, of course, went ballistic and one of their redneck, back woods fans decided to poison the Toomer's Corner trees that have been there for hundreds of years and serve as an icon of sorts at Auburn.  Traditionally, Auburn fans roll the Toomer's trees with toilet paper after a win.  I was at Auburn for four years and have been going to games with my father all of my life, but I had never rolled the trees until this year after the Florida game.  I threw one roll up into the tree and was terrified even the feather weight of the toilet paper was going to snap the tree in two.  I know it sounds like a silly tradition, but it's our tradition and that's all that matters.

Toomer's Corner after the 2011 BCS National Championship



Moving on to the game.  So, what a crap show that was.  The LSU players looked as though they weren't even there.  You could see in their faces that they had no clue what was going on around them.  They are a talented team so there's no one to blame but the coaches in my opinion.  I don't care for Nick Saban (aka, the robot), but he prepared the Alabama team and it showed.  Les, on the other hand, did no such thing. 

He really is.  If you watch his interviews he will take some of the worst situations and talk around them in such a way that they don't seem so bad.  Magic.  There are, of course, things that could have been done before this game to more readily prepare for Alabama.  I don't know what was going on back in Baton Rouge over the break because they were severely unequipped to handle what the Bams brought to the table.  Alabama finished the game with 21 first downs to LSU's measly 5, they had 150 rushing and 234 passing yards compared to LSU's 39 and 53 yards respectively.  Insanity!  I mean, I had a bad feeling that Alabama was going to pull out a win, but I definitely didn't think that it would be the first shut-out in BCS history.  So freakin' lucky.

Gross, AJ.  Just gross.  How did you go to St. Paul's?  Speaking of quarterbacks, that's another mistake Leslie made in the beginning of the game.  Once he saw that Jefferson wasn't getting the job done, he should have replaced him with Jarrett Lee, in my opinion.  Instead, he waited until it was too far gone and Jefferson was in such a twitt that he actually threw a shovel pass that landed softly in the hands of an Alabama linebacker.  When asked why he didn't put Lee in for at least a part of the second half, Leslie replied, "I felt like it would be unfair to him with the pass rush he would sustain late in the game."  In other words, it wouldn't have made a difference.  < Conversational wizard.  The Alabama coaches knew exactly what to do to take advantage of LSU's strong secondary.  They threw on the first down as much as they could to keep the Honeybadger and their other defensive back on the outside where they were less of a threat.

With Marquis Maze out of the game with a leg injury and crying on the sideline, AJ had to play the game sans his best receiver.  Of course there's a very lengthy article on ESPN's website that is totally dedicated to praising him.  Maybe I'm wrong, but I feel like most of the media attention Cam got even after being acquitted by the NCAA for all infractions and winning the title was laced with negative statements putting him down, especially on ESPN.  AJ only completed three more passes than Cam during our game last year, but Cam threw for more yards AND got two touchdowns.  He did only run for 64 yards in our game, which was well below his average.  It doesn't matter.  Alabama can have those idiot brown nosers over at ESPN.

The Alabama kickers should feel a little better about not losing their lives seeing as how they scored all but six of the points on the board.  I seriously throught they were going to have to be kept on suicide watch after the regular season game against LSU.  Bams don't play.  In this game, they still managed to miss two though.  I'm no football player, but I just don't get how you can miss that many field goals in one game.  You're the kicker.  That's all you do.  There are even rules that state that no one is allowed to touch you on the field.  I feel the same way about guards shooting free throws in a basketball game.  Besides layups, all you do is shoot from the outside.  A free throw shouldn't be a problem unless you're this man...

Did anyone else see the SNL skit last Saturday when Charles Barkley was hosting where Keenan Thompson played Sir Charles and Sir Charles played Shaq?  Hilarious.

So yeah, to sum up, I'm really bummed about having to listen to a bunch of Bams talk about how their team could beat a team of angels with Jesus as the quarterback for the next 364 days.  They are ridiculous and delusional.  And if you're thinking of asking me why I wouldn't pull for another team from my home state, don't.  Alabama fans ask me this all the time knowing good and well they feel the same way when Auburn is playing.  I was raised to hate Alabama and never pull for them.  Ever.  I don't feel bad about it and frankly, I like it that way.

Cam says Happy Hump Day and War Eagle!

UGH

This happens in a couple of hours...

I hate Alabama.  Don't worry, I have wine ready to numb the pain if they win.

Putting in Place

I've made a little change to the ole blog after just one post.  Not shocking.  I was never really thrilled about the name I chose to begin with so I decided to give it some more thought.  I didn't intend on having a "theme" per se, but I knew that I would need some sort of direction to come up with a name that I truly liked.  Before I began, I knew that I would be writing about general happenings within my oh so interesting life.  I felt as though having a theme would narrow the list of topics I should be writing about more often than not.  The more I thought about it the more I realized that that wasn't the case at all.  There are plenty of blogs out there that have a central theme that most of their posts follow, but they still post about their everyday lives and the things happening around them.

So I started by simply thinking about myself, what I enjoy, and what I would write about the most.  I have a love for cooking.  I have always said that if I were independently wealthy I would go to culinary school just for the heck of it.  I would just stay home and cook amazing meals for my family and entertain my friends.  Sadly, wealthy is no where close to being in the list of adjectives that describe me (tear).  This love began in college when I began watching Food Network 24/7.  When I wasn't in class, I was watching Paula, Giada, Rachel, and my favorite, Tyler Florence.  I'm in lurve with him.  I can't believe he went and married a former Miss Wyoming when he could have had me.  RUDE.  Anyway, cooking has always been a way to relax for me, as well as a way for me to show those close to me how much I care for them. 

Another love I met in college was this magnificent beauty...

I'm sad to admit, I started out with the hard stuff, such as Franzia's Chillable Red (or box wine for those of you who have never had the pleasure of enjoying).  Puke.  I then began to branch out and today I'm a full on snob.  Not really, but close.  I told a friend recently that one of my life goals is to become a sommelier.  The ultimate wine snob.  Who wouldn't want to be able to upstage all of your friends at dinner parties?  Seriously though, wine fascinates me.  There is so much that goes into growing the grapes, such as the weather, the soil, and the timing of the harvest.  If any one of these has a negative affect on the grape, it can totally alter the taste of the wine.  The care that is taken throught the winemaking process is so meticulous.  There are countless varietals to taste and choose from that it makes me wonder how these people who are so knowledgeable about wine can retain the amount of information.  Possibly my favorite thing about wine, however, is being able to pair it with certain foods to bring out their flavor.  One of my favorite pairings is wine and chocolate.  Next time you go to the store, pick up some dark chocolate and a full-bodied zinfandel or syrah.  You won't be disappointed.

I'm not sure where this love came into play, but I somehow became obsessed with all things French.  Weird, I know, but I love their culture.  Everything is beautiful: their language, art, style, countryside.  And the fact that a large part of it is centered around wine and cheese doesn't hurt either.  Although, French men I could probably do without.  I feel like they would be super high maintenance and creepy.  I picture them all looking like this...

Lastly, I enjoy exercising.  It's hard and painful at times, but I enjoy being outside and the feeling of accomplishment when I am done is like no other.  I usually work out with weights, run, or go to a spin class.  I try to mix it up because this guh has a pretty big case of ADD.  If I get bored, working out is torture.  Over the last year I've been running a lot more than usual.  I don't have the body of a long-distance runner and I never ran track or anything growing up so it's been tough.  I turn 30 this year and have made a pledge to myself that I will run a half marathon before my birthday in November.  I plan to start really training seeing as how this has been a mild winter and my fingers don't feel as though they will snap off at any moment so we shall see how it goes!

So after compiling all of these thoughts I still couldn't make my brain function enough to think of a creative name for the blog so I enlisted some friends for help.  One of them came up with Mise en Place.  I had to google since I had no idea what it meant and thought it was perfect!  It is French and it translates literally to "putting in place".  Even though its meaning has to do with the setup and organizing of a kitchen before cooking, I felt like I could relate its meaning and literal translation to all parts of my life.  It is basically the steps a chef takes in order to be prepared so that he is ready for whatever lies ahead.  Technically you could say that life is like a constant mise en place.  As we all grow older, we go through multiple trials and tribulations that we don't understand.  We sort through them and we're eventually able to put them in place behind us.  With each step we learn more about ourselves and who we are.  This, in turn, prepares us for what lay ahead.  We put the pieces of our lives into place in an effort to be prepared for what life chooses to throw at us next, whether it be good or bad, large or small. 

I hope everyone likes it as much as I do!  I'm glad I can finally check that off the list.  Happy Munday!