Breakin’ the Law: Pinterest Style June 24, 2012

I’m a ripper. A magazine ripper. I rip out recipes and gardening tips and pictures of Julia Roberts so I can copy her eye makeup one day when I actually wear eye makeup. But mostly I rip out recipes. The result is an unwieldy tattered mess in a pile on the bookshelf.

One of my first summer projects was to turn all of the collected pages into a cookbook. I figured it would take me an afternoon and the better part of an evening to finish. I just finished a few minutes ago, having started last Monday. Factor out moments of extreme ADD and you still have a project that took 18 hours over six days to complete.

Best.damn.cookbook.ever.

This isn’t the first time I’ve compiled recipes into my own cookbook. My first version is a forest green photo album where I peeled away the protective plastic to stick recipes to the pages. The book must be 20 years old at least. I doubt I’ve used it 20 times in those 20 years.

This time the book was made with the user in mind. This time the pages are sheet protectors that can be removed one at a time. This time there is only one recipe per page. This time everything is held in two 2” binders with tabs. This time no recipe was allowed that required any type of crust to be created from scratch. Let’s not kid ourselves.

 

Functional, not fancy. Might stand a chance.

 

I was so impressed with my organizational skills, I figured why stop with the mess on my bookshelf? Let’s tackle my Pinterest boards too! My food category, Num Num was split into Num Num: Desserts!, Num Num: Eat Your Veggies!, Num Num: Party Starters and Num Num: Thirst Quenchers (which is really just where I hide all of the alcohol drenched fruit). I was ready to break things down even further when Pinterest put the kibosh on my pinning practices for excessive repinning.

Now I could understand their apprehension if I were creating boards titled In the Kitchen: Poisons or Gifts: Holiday Mail Bombs, but I can promise you I was not. I was simply subdividing my chaotic food board. No need to go all Patriot Act on me.

 

Scene of the Crime

 

I really don’t think this is what George W. intended. I should appeal to him directly to get my pinning privileges reinstated. He would agree with me that the summer salsa with its corn and black beans would be a fine appetizer for a cookout (he’ll call it a barbeque though). And meatloaf made in a muffin pan? Shut the front door. He’d make a phone call and I’m free to pin again. Then he’ll whisper to the Secret Service agent to save him one of those cupcakes that look like a watermelon. The seeds are really chocolate chips, he would say with delight!

And that’s how you get a presidential pardon, y’all.

Recap: Hockey Roadtrips 2011-2012 (or How I Almost Bought a Max Talbot T-shirt) April 15, 2012

This post wasn’t supposed to come so early. It was only to be written after the Pittsburgh Penguins won the 2012 Stanley Cup. And, right, the Pens aren’t out of it yet, but they are down 3-0 to the Philadelphia Freakin’ Flyers. And, you are right, they could have a gut (and heart) check to come back blazing Wednesday night. Stranger things have happened. (See: Boston Red Sox, 2004 or watch the movie Fever Pitch — and don’t go to any costume birthday parties Wednesday night.)

Patterson and I went to our first NHL game in February 2011 — the Pens at the Carolina Hurricanes in Raleigh. Pens lost. Our second game was in Pittsburgh for the last game of the season in April. Pens beat the Devils to make it into the playoffs. We were officially hockey fans, specifically Pittsburgh Penguins fans, and it was going to get extreme.

The evolution of our hockey love is kind of a long and arduous story, but it goes a little something like this: Local minor league hockey coach’s wife starts working with Patterson in Fall of 2010 > Local minor league hockey coach’s wife doesn’t like to sit alone at games > Local minor league hockey coach’s wife gives us tickets to the games > Local minor league hockey coach’s wife gives us the behind the scenes scoop of the real hockey action > A sickly afternoon marathon with HBO 24/7 featuring the Pens and Caps takes it to the next level > Signed, sealed, delivered, I’m yours.

After the misguided dismissal of local minor league hockey coach at the end of last season (and pretty much the entire team, for that matter), we went to a few games this season, but it wasn’t the same. Good job on those dismissals, by the way. We went from just missing the playoffs last year to being dead last (with a bullet!) in the league this year. Best laid plans, I suppose.

We turned to the NHL to keep our hockey buzz alive. We went to seven games and had a 5-2 record. I’m starting to think we should have shown up for the playoffs.

 

 

Patterson swears Marc-Andre was practicing proposing to her.

 

 

Saturday, November 12 — Pens at Carolina Hurricanes (L)
We had hoped to see Sidney Crosby back after being out for nine long months, but we were a week or so too early. Highlights included sitting beside the bench, good naturally harassing the security guy at the end of our row and meeting the Pens Knitting Lady and her husband (who takes amazing photos of the games, by the way.)

 

 

Sid's back! (This is my screen saver on my phone. Is that creepy?)

 

Saturday, December December 3 — Pens at Carolina Hurricanes (W)
Sid was back and it was the first time the entire Pens team was healthy and on the ice after a litany of injuries. It didn’t last long though — Jordan Staal was nailed in the face with a puck, right in front of his parents, and spewed blood all over the ice. I swooned, and not in a good way. Highlight of the game was discovering that sitting behind the goal is pretty dang cool.

 

 

Got a Sidney Crosby doll for Christmas. Took it to Tampa. This is how we found Sid after housekeeping cleaned the room.

 

Sunday, January 15 — Pens at Tampa Bay Lightning (W)
Good grief, this trip started out as the Journey to Hell. The drive down was dull and slow. We arrive at our hotel to find it covered in feathers. Patterson is highly allergic to feathers. She turned a weird color and oozed from every pore. It was gross. And she still had to haggle with the front desk to be released from our reservation. (This was after they claimed to have hypoallergenic feathers. No joke.) We moved to the lovely Marriott that was, hands down, the best hotel of the trip. We walked past Tyler Kennedy as we were leaving Precinct Pizza. Now, poor Tyler Kennedy has taken a bit of a beating from me because he’s the only non-beautiful kid on the Penguins. I mean, tell me he doesn’t resemble one of the pigs from Angry Birds. Yeah, see, I told you. But let me tell you, put TK in a suit and set him out in the Florida sunshine and that kid sparkles. I kid you not. We were still giddy when we watched Geno score a hat trick later that day. [Hockey Bucket List Checkoff: Witness a Hat Trick]

 

 

Flower took the pow-wow literally.

 
Saturday, February 16 — Pens at Philadelphia Flyers (W)
I was slightly afraid of walking into the Wells Fargo Center with my Crosby jersey. Flyers fans are, um, serious. Happy to say we made it out alive with only mildly hostile razzing from disheartened Flyers fans. We beat them pretty squarely. Further convinced that behind the goal seats are the way to go.

 

 

The guy in the front row's big head was blocking all of my photos of Zach Parise.

 
Saturday, March 17 — Pens at New Jersey Devils (W)
I like the New Jersey Devils — OK, I like Zach Parise. Pens won and we went into NYC to celebrate Saint Patrick’s Day. A good time was had by all.

 

 

James Neal in the penalty box. (He had just fixed his hair.) Wish I had video of Geno in the box. He talked to himself the entire time.

 
Sunday, March 18 — Pens at Philadelphia Flyers (L)
Hockey insanity. We decided that since we had to drive by Philadelphia on the way home from Newark, we should stop in for the game. Our seats were behind the penalty box. That game was intense. Pens lost in overtime with .9 seconds left on the clock — there is a point in front of that 9 and that’s less than a second. The crowd was crazy. I had to tell Patterson to stop talking about James Neal’s hair because we were on the verge of being beat up. In fact, an older lady in a Flyer’s jersey had her husband watch us as we walked to our car because she feared for our safety. We were so dejected by the loss, we didn’t even realize we were in harm’s way. On the way out, I almost bought a Max Talbot Flyer’s t-shirt because I loved Max as a Penguin. I wanted our relationship to continue. But he switched sides and it’s time to let him go. Good-bye, Max. It’s for good this time. [Hockey Bucket List Checkoff: Overtime Game]

 

 

We became besties with Matt Cooke during warm-ups.

 

Saturday, April 6 — Philadelphia Flyers at Pittsburgh (W)
It’s officially tradition. Our second annual last game of the season in Pittsburgh. We ponied up for glass seats and it was totally worth it. I don’t know how I’ll ever go back to the third row.

Our own version of NHL Awards:
Best Venue: Consol Energy Center
Nicest Event Staff: Carolina Hurricanes
Best Fans: I can’t believe I’m saying this… Philadelphia Flyers. Sure, they are homicidal, but they know hockey.
Best Restaurant: Marra’s in Philadelphia with the best buss boy ever, Mario. Honorable Mention: Jerome Bettis Grille 36 in Pittsburgh
Best Hotel: Tampa Marriott Waterside Hotel & Marina

On Tap for Next Season:
Washington, DC to see the Pens play the Capitals
New York City to see the Pens play the Rangers at Madison Square Garden
Boston, MA to see the Pens play the Bruins
The first and last home games in Pittsburgh
Every game the Pens play against the Hurricanes

But this season isn’t quite over yet…

 

 

March Eats March 4, 2012

I hate to keep beating up on February, but included on it’s list of offenses was lazy, indulgent eating practices. We practically ate out every night — which fattens your waistline and makes your wallet skinny. Not the effect I’m going for in March. Most recipes are from the March 2012 edition of Cooking Light, unless otherwise noted. And I’m very excited to put my hours on Pinterest to good use this month — those are the links toward the end of the month. I had to weed through a lot of martini recipes, so enjoy!

 

 

Considering eating shamrocks this month for extra luck.

 

 

March 5 — Potato, Mushroom & Leek Croquettes with sauteed spinach
March 6 — Chicken & Sausage Stew
March 7 — Crispy Herbed Sprimp with asparagus
March 8 — Grilled Sirloin with Broccoli Rabe
March 9 — Cheesy Pigs in Blankets
March 10 — Cheesy Pasta Bake
March 11 — All American Meat Loaf with Potato & Root Vegetable Mashers and broccoli

March 12 — Dinner out for Z’s birthday
March 13 — Hamburgers with Creamy Potato Salad
March 14 — Tempeh and Broccolini Stirfry
March 15 — Tarragon Chicken Salad with salad greens and biscuits while wearing a toga [Southern Living, March 2012]
March 16 — Roadtrippin’ with P to see the Penguins play the NJ Devils
March 17 — Saint Patrick’s Day in NYC [Squee!!!!]
March 18 — Bloody Marys. Lots and lots of Bloody Marys.

March 19 — Mushroom & Manchego Panini
March 20 — Cheesy Brown Rice Gratin with Zucchini & Eggplant
March 21 — Cheesesteak with Oven Fries
March 22 — Chicken Risotto with Spring Vegetables [Southern Living, March 2012]
March 23 — Baked Chicken Nuggets
March 24 — Crock Pot Chicken Taco Chili
March 25 — Spinach & Artichoke Baked Pasta

March 26 — Steak House Mac & Cheese with salad
March 27 — Smoky Chicken Panini [Southern Living, March 2012]
March 28 — Kale, Sausage & Lentil Skillet
March 29 — Chicken & Mushrooms in Garlic White Wine Sauce with Baked Rice and Peas
March 30 — Pan-seared Scallops with spinach
March 31 — Chicken, Avocado & Bacon Quesadillas
April 1 — Spinach Lasagna Rolls

Are You Feeling Lucky? March 1, 2012

Happy March! I’ve never been so happy to see the turn of the calendar page. For as rotten as February was, March is going to be epic in it’s awesomeness. Welcome to the debut of the Lucky List, All Things I’m Lucky To Love:

 

Nothing lifts the spirits like clear skies and warm temperatures. Let’s just keep it under 90, fellas.

 

How cool are these little lunch containers that I picked up at Target? Love the measurements on the sides. I’m too lazy to actually measure out 1/2 cup of brown rice. They come with ice packs too, so your blueberries will stay nice and cool.

 

 

I know I just said it’s warm, but this hot chocolate is a-mazzzzing. Amazing. It will change your life. But go easy, because it will also change your waistline at a whooping 150 calories a pack [not counting the milk].

 

 

I predicted a Pens shootout win against the Dallas Stars last night. How much more evidence does the NHL need that I am simply incredible?
[Pictured from left to right: Fleury, Malkin, Crosby and Engelland.]

 

 

Do you know about Birchbox? If you don’t, you need to get hip. For ten bucks a month, you get a cute little package with fun beauty samples. It’s great for replenishing your road trip bag. [And if you don't have a road trip bag, this is a great reason to start one!] It sounds a little on the pricey side, but I say we are all worth it.

So what’s bringing you luck this month?

My Fake Date with a Hockey Player February 28, 2012

I was reminded last night that February wasn’t all bad. There were a few ridiculous, hilarious moments that poked through the haze of daily life.

 

Nope, that's not him.

 

My favorite February moment was my fake date with a hockey player. OK, it wasn’t my date — and, ok, it wasn’t a date at all, but remember I am fragile and work with me. Our local minor league hockey team ran an auction to win dinner with a player. It wasn’t cheap. Your car payment is probably more than their monthly paychecks, so the winner had to buy the player’s steak dinner. And you don’t get to keep the player at the end of the night [rip off!], but you do get two glorious hours to interrogate him on all things hockey. [Squee!] I bid on a player under the guise that it would be an excellent practice date for P, who was due after a lengthy divorce. [And secretly I really wanted to break bread with a full-blooded Canadian.] When the auction made a 6’3″, 220 lb professional hockey player suddenly available, it clearly meant my plan was endorsed by God. I told P that I placed a bid in her honor. She panicked, then recovered her senses in time to ask for an additional bid on the player with the sketchiest reputation. And while I’m quite sure said sketchy player came with a bonus supply of penicillin, I told her we were sticking with my original pick. I mean, pace yourself, Woman.

 

Nope, that's not him either.

 

P and I were both deathly ill the night of the big date. [Did I forget to mention that I'm chaperoning?] My head was stuffed with kindergarten paste and I hadn’t had color in my cheeks in weeks. P was wearing twelve layers of makeup and weird sounds kept escaping from her throat. Just to dial things up a notch, I decided to see what really does happen when you mix Magic Cough Syrup with Blue Moon beer. [Answer: You say just a little too much about your inner most hockey secrets.] We walked into the banquet room of our local old money steak house and were directed to the only player sitting alone at his table. See, the auction was actually for season ticket holders, but no one told me that when I bid. Essentially everyone in the room knew each other — except for the random girls that just walked through the door. Freakin’ details. Get you every time.

 

Cha. You wish.

 

Take notice, NHL teams, this chick can pick an awesome hockey player. First of all, he was incredibly, insanely nice. Secondly, he was handsome. We’re talking NHL good looking. Like Pittsburgh Penguins good looking. [Stop. You know they are the best looking team in the NHL.] We chatted nonstop. We wanted to know all about Canada. It’s a lot like here. [Bummer.] We wanted to know about hockey fights. Typical southern hockey fans. We wanted to know who he knows in the NHL. He used to work out with Steven Stamkos of the Tampa Bay Lightning during summer breaks. We told him about our monthly hockey road trips. He was worried about our chances in Philly. [But I suspect secretly thought we were awesome.] We mentioned the hockey blogs we read. What?! Hockey blogs? Hilarious. We asked what he wanted to do after hockey. Fireman. [Awww.] He told us about playing hockey in Europe. We talked about traveling. Has he ever been to Austria? Yes. Definitely go. It was like we were trying to shove a filming of NHL36 into a two hour dinner. The only question he really had for us was: So why did you pick me? We froze. Did I tell the truth? Was I really going to look him in the eye and say, “Uh, cause you are, like, hot and you had the best Movember stache on the entire team.” Noooo, I was not! After dodging the question twice, I lamely muttered, “Seemed like a good idea.” He gave a little Canadian smirk and went back to debating goalies with P.

Amazing night. Call me, NHL. I know what I’m doing.

Runners to the Starting Line! January 10, 2012

That's right.

I’ve been out of commission for the past three days, but couch time is a good time to research and organize your race schedule for the coming year. I’m going to do a mix of 5Ks and 10Ks this year. If I can successfully get through this year, I *may* work my way up to a half marathon. I like the idea of doing the Rock ‘n Roll Half in a major city or the Flying Pirate Half in Nags Head. I have absolutely, positively no desire to do a full marathon. Running is not easy for me. I don’t have the willowy limbs of a natural runner. But that doesn’t mean I can’t put some effort into it and accomplish a few miles. I just don’t want to accomplish 26.2 miles at one time.

Preach it.

2012 Race Schedule
March 3 – Saint Patty’s Run Green 8K, Raleigh, NC
March 31 – USO of NC 4th Annual Run for the Troops 5K, Fayetteville, NC -or- Cooper River Bridge Run 10K in Charleston, SC
May 5 – 11th Annual Cinco de Mayo 10K, Fayetteville, NC
June 2 – 5th Annual Airborne & Special Operations Museum Foundation Run for the Legend 10K, Fayetteville, NC
TBD – Hot Chocolate 5K, Chicago or DC

Despite being born and raised in the muggy south, I hate hot, humid days. I will not be running outside during July and August. I’ll run with limited enthusiasm in September. Give me a freezing cold race in the depth of winter any day.

I’m going to cut down on travel time this year too. Traveling to a race in the pre-dawn hours was more stressful than I thought it would be. If I can’t stay overnight near the race, I’m skipping it.

Fall races that I’ll repeat:
Moonlight Madness 5K, Winston-Salem, NC
Women’s Only 5K, Greensboro, NC
Ardmore 5K, Winston-Salem, NC
Trick or Treat Trot 5K, Wilmington, NC
Reading Rocks! 5K, Fayetteville, NC
Monster Dash 5K, Raleigh, NC
Joint Special Operations 5K, Fayetteville, NC
Turkey Strut 5K, Winston-Salem, NC
Mistletoe Run 5K, Winston-Salem, NC
Ryan’s Reindeer Run 5K, Fayetteville, NC

We have the same running form.

I tried to find races that coincided with The Official 2012 Pens Stalking Tour. No dice. I hoped participating in an organized race would keep me from chasing the team bus. If you know of a race, let me know. I’ll pay your entry fee with my unused bail money.

Tampa, Florida for the weekend of January 14-16
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania for the weekend of February 17-18
Newark, New Jersey for St. Patrick’s Day weekend {Really? No beer runs have been organized?!}
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania for Easter weekend

Lessons Learned January 9, 2012

You, too?

I went to bed last night and woke up this morning feeling less than awesome. I’ve spent the day intermittently sleeping on the couch and watching bad movies. [Have you seen Sandra Bullock's Premonition? Don't do it.] But all of the down time has given me the chance to reflect on my food journal.

I’ve been keeping up with my food journal even though I haven’t posted it. I was distracted for a few days by a friend’s crisis and then took a while to get back on track. As I was taught in social work school, it didn’t happen if it wasn’t documented and evaluated, so here is what I’ve learned so far.

Things I’ve Learned From My Food Journal:

1. This isn’t a shocker: I drink my calories. I know, it’s one of the first things that nutritionists, dieters, and overall fitness know-it-alls will tell you to not do. And I do it all the time. So instead of starting the day with a sugary drink (I do.), I’m moving it to the end of the day as a reward. After I drink 64 ounces of water, after my post-workout chocolate milk and after two cups of green tea, I can have a Coke. My guess is that by the time I can have the Coke, I’ll be too waterlogged to want it. Drinking Coke is my not-so secret shame. I know it’s awful for me. I know that Coca-Cola is a socially irresponsible company (and I’m usually all about using my consumer power to destroy corrupt corporations). In this case, I just don’t care. {Wait, is that the very essence of addiction?!} All of my friends tell me to drink Diet Coke. I tell them Diet Coke is disgusting, they shrug (but don’t disagree) and life goes on. It occurred to me that I need to regard Coke as I do champagne. I love champagne, but I only drink it two or three times a year. If I applied that strategy to Coke, I would have to truly tiny tush.

2. The photo journal was great because I’m a visual learner. I learned that all of my meals needed to be scaled back by about half. That was an easy, practical adjustment to make.

3. I love vegetables and I was surprised to see a lack of veggies in my journal photos. Luckily, this is another easy fix. I’ve already doubled my fresh veggie consumption.

4. I have a “I need to eat” rather than a “I’m hungry” mentality. I’m a schedule girl. I feel the need to eat based on what time it is. Rarely does my stomach growl. I could do that when I was younger. I don’t need to do it now that I’m 40.

5. I am surrounded by people who love me and accept me as I am. I’m thankful. But it does make it difficult to stick to an eating plan when you are the only one on it. Especially when you are the only one struggling to lose weight. We (family and friends alike) view a meal as celebration, as comfort, as a social activity. I don’t want to replace my loving, fun, happy eaters with neurotic calorie counters though. I need encouragement without condemnation… and world peace.

So now I know what I know. Time for less thinking, more action. My 2012 race schedule posts tomorrow. I can already see you on the edge of your seats in anticipation.

“Don’t let your learning lead to knowledge; let your learning lead to action.” Jim Rohn