These Are My Confessions...

...just when I thought I said all I could say my chick on the side says she's got one on the way...

This post is sparked by a conversation I had with a coworker the other day, about health habit "do's" and "don't's" that we either do or don't do.  (Wow, that really didn't make any sense at all.)  There are certain things that I have in the past tried to do because I'm "supposed" to do them, and things that I DO do that I felt kind of guilty about because I'm "not" supposed to do them.  This led me to think of things both health and non-health related, and before I knew it I had a list that made me look like the biggest misfit on earth.  BUT... I truly don't care anymore.  I am who I am, and this is the list of confessions that make me, me.

• I love mayonnaise.  Plain, regular, Hellman's mayo.  And don't give me that "lite" junk either.  I love how people are all, "mustard please," and trying to tell me that mustard should be a healthy replacement and how I shouldn't eat mayonnaise, and mayonnaise is gross.  Back off.  Mustard has a place, but that place is NOT mixed with tuna fish, and it only has half a place in a cheese sandwich.  The other half is for mayonnaise.
• I also like iceberg lettuce.  I will let you other food bloggers regain composure... no, I do not eat solely iceberg in salads or sandwiches.  But I can tell you that I like to mix it in there because I like crunch, and as much as I like raw spinach, crunch it does not. 
• I despise broccoli.  For most people this is their most loved vegetable but I hate it and always have.  It doesn't matter if it's raw or cooked, covered in cheese or marinara, I do not like it and I am going to stop forcing myself to eat it.  I'm 26, I don't have to eat it if I don't want too.
• Two very popular items in the blog world, nut butters and figs, are underwhelming to me.  (Somewhere, a food blogger's head is exploding.  I can feel it.)  Everyone talks about both of these things so much that I had to try it all, almond and cashew butter and figs.  The almond and cashew butter... meh.  Definitely not going to spend all that money when I like crunchy peanut butter better for a fraction of the cost.  And even then I really only eat peanut butter stirred into oatmeal or the occasional PB&J.  Figs to me taste like an under ripe peach.  I truly don't see the hoop-la surrounding this fruit.
• I use white sugar.  Yep.  I said it.  With that being said, I rarely come across a need to sweeten anything other than my morning coffee, so it's not like it's a whole lot of white sugar.  I had stopped a while back and was using Agave nectar but there seems to be controversy about that now.  I flat out refuse to use anything artificial to sweeten anything I eat so sugar it is.  If I need a lot for baking and such, I do try to go organic.
• I am extremely label conscious.  (See, I had you all thinking just now that I had abandoned all health beliefs and was running for the hills, didn't I?)  I am very very VERY aware of the HFCS, hydrogenated oils, and artificial sweeteners running rampant in food today and 99% of the time I want none of it.  The other 1% is attributed to the random Apple Jacks cravings, when I want candy, or at someones house and have no other choice.  It's fine with me to have a teeny amount of these things in my life, but by no means ever do I want to consume them daily.  Or even weekly for that matter.
• I have never in my life eaten a Twinkie.  I have also never watched the Goonies.  I put these two things together in one because it elicits the most "omg!!!" reactions from people.  Due to the shocking nature of those statements, it has now become a bizarre mission for me to never engage in Twinkies or the Goonies, and continue shocking people for years to come.
• I watch a LOT of TV and I like it.  I thought of this one today when my friend Jenny (hi Jenny!) announced that her and her fiance are getting rid of cable after football season.  She is excited because this means they will find something else to do together and hopefully spend more time together.  I am all for living life and not being attached to the TV.  But voluntarily giving up cable is not an option for me.  I love my RH, Jersey Shore, Criminal Minds, 90210, Melrose, Grey's, and I am going to stop there before you all think there is a serious issue going on.  I enjoy going home after work and zoning out.  I don't mind spending time watching TV with J.  I like it. 

• This final confession isn't so much a confession as something that I have decided not to care about anymore.  Since I moved to NC from NY, I have had numerous people tell me that I come across as unfriendly, bitchy, and rude.  This has come from coworkers, both boss's, people who have become friends who have told me their first impression of me, etc.  I guess it made me mad mostly because the latest conversation with my boss was about how I don't smile at people in the hall.  He actually had someone complain about this.  Seriously, you clearly do not have enough work to do if you are running to my boss to tattle that I did not smile at you in the hall.  Get a life.  And the funny thing is, I think I'm a friendly person.  I think I treat people well, and I think I do well covering (at work anyway) when I dislike someone.  No, I don't walk around with a perma smile and never have, but this doesn't mean I'm unfriendly.  It used to bother me, it doesn't anymore.  I have come to realize that this is not on me, it's on other people because if they talked to me, they would see that I'm nice and outgoing.  They simply choose not to try.  Their fault, not mine.

Don't I look like a nice person????

Owen's Blog Debut!

                                      

Oh my God.  What is that??  It looks delicious.  Oh yeah, that's right.  It's the obsession I can't get over.  This time there was vanilla Chobani, Bear Naked granola, blackberries and raspberries.  Blackberries and raspberries are BOGO at the store right now, and even though they aren't organic, mama needs to fix a very expensive car part right now and BOGO berries are heaven sent at the moment.  And FYI, I'm hoping that name dropping things like Chobani and Bear Naked will cause the companies to sent me like, lifetime supplies of these things.

                                   

                                                                      All Mixed Up

Dinner tonight was Bang Bang Wednesday from Bonefish, aka $5 Bang Bang shrimp!!  I also got this the other day after the horrific airport experience and it was basically heaven in a takeout bag.  Did you know that if you get the order of shrimp, you get a little loaf of bread also?  And... that I have connections with Carraba's that hook me up with spices, so I mixed them in EVOO and had a feast. 

                                  

                                 

Yes I had already dug into the bread before the pictures.  I'm such a bad blogger.  Truth is, I didn't even finish this meal.  I was stuffed and I have about a third of the shrimp left in the fridge.  The other day I inhaled it and was comfortably full, but I guess the difference between Monday and today is there was nothing in between the yogurt bowl at 10 and the shrimp at 8:30 on Monday.  Today there was an unpictured PB&J, some Doritos, a little bit of cottage cheese, and a Bojangles egg and cheese biscuit.  (Cottage cheese and PB&J were all organic, the Doritos were a snack size, and biscuit was a terrible, terrible craving:) )  There also was a lot of desk-sitting, and the other day was all running around at stupid airports.. coughcoughLaGuardiaclearthroat...  You see the difference.  So I'm thinking I will take the extra shrimp and top a salad with them for lunch tomorrow.  That sounds fabulous right?

I'm off to finish watching Kourtney and Khloe, and then probably at least one episode of Without a Trace or something.  Kourtney, I have no clue what you see in Scott.  He's a total douchebag, you can do MUCH better, you are beautiful and you have a beautiful baby, a million men who do NOT wear pastel sweaters tied around their necks would be more than happy to treat you well.  Just sayin... and speaking of adorable baby boys, I got permission to post Owen pics from Owen's mommy, so prepare to see the most adorable child on earth.  Are you ready???

See you all tomorrow :)

Andd I'm Back!

Whew.  Hello everyone.  It has been a whirlwind few days!  I would have posted last night but the person I "steal" internet from went and secured their connection.  WTF????  I need to suck it up and buy my own wireless router.  It's on the list right after I fix my car.  ANYWAY...It was a decent trip, some things happened that I didn't want to happen at all, but at the same time I wasn't altogether surprised either.  If you knew and understood the dynamics of my family, it would make sense.  But I don't want to get into all that now.  I did get to meet my brother's girlfriend and I really like her.  I also met my best friend's son, (my "nephew,") and attended his 2nd birthday party, I love him right to pieces!!!  He is completely and totally adorable.  I am not going to post a picture though, because his mother is very private and I don't know if she would like that.  I will have to clear it with her first.  Just know he is the cutest little boy on the planet :)

In other (not so fabulous news,) I have a serious issue with USAirways at the moment.  I had 4 flights with them.... they messed up all four.  We were delayed twice without explanation.  One flight had the roughest landing I have ever experienced, I'm talking the plane tilting wildly from side to side, and sudden drops that made my stomach come up into my throat.  Not pleasant, I hate roller coasters and that's exactly what it felt like.  Although, in my opinion, the pilot did it on purpose to get back at the most annoying family on the plane... the family with 2 children that screamed the entire flight.... the family that when we were 2nd in line for takeoff, rushed their 3 year old to the bathroom.  I will never forget the flight attendant's face when she asked in disbelief, "Why is he not wearing a diaper???"  (The answer, by the way, was, "We have diapers but are in the process of potty training."  Um, buddy?  Put the damn diaper on.  This is not the time.)  We lost our spot in line.  Then, when we were about to take off again, someone else went into the bathroom.  The pilot came on, "Attention passengers.  Whoever is in the bathroom needs to get out now, because I am not losing our spot in line for a second time.  We WILL be taking off in about one minute, so hurry it up!"  In a way, I don't blame him for the landing.  I was just as irritated.

This is all nothing compared to the final flight, which due to an EXTREME unexplained delay by USAir, I was flying American.  (And don't even get me started on trying to find a whole new airline at LaGuardia.. that's a whole other blog post, suffice to say I will be avoiding that airport like the plague from here on out.)  Anyway, the change was sudden and took place within 20 minutes, so US did not transfer my luggage.  I'm going on day two of work without makeup and my hair back due to lack of a straightener.  Thankfully, I am pretty sure it's coming today.  But this warranted an extra hour and 15 minutes at the airport due to the long line out the baggage claim door, and the one SUPER slow old woman working the desk.  Awesome.  I was supposed to be home by 5:30.  I finally made it at almost 9.  If not for a surprise takeout order of Bang Bang Shrimp from Bonefish, I may have totally broken down before getting home.  And I may or may not have totally cried anyway as soon as I laid down.  It was a really stressful day.  BUT... it is what it is, right?  As soon as I have my luggage back I can put the whole thing behind me and make sure from here on out that there will be no more USAir, or connections through LaGuardia.

Alright, enough complaining.  Although I will say you are lucky, because that is an extremely condensed version of all the things that went wrong.  Here are some pictures from the happier parts of the journey:

All these wonderful fabulous friends of mine made my trip so fun, I always have a great time with all of them.  They are the best friends a girl could ask for and I miss them like crazy!

I will see you later IF I can find a wireless network that isn't smart enough to be secured :)  Have a great day everyone! 

Andd I'm OUT!!

All Packed

I am all ready for my trip home to NY in the morning.  With the exception of last minute toiletries, this is it.  It looks so small!  If you know me, you would know that I usually pack like crazy and end up wearing about 1/3 of what I bring.  I'm trying something new, but having a slight panic attack that I will want something and won't have it.  Oh well, no turning back now!   I'm very, very sleepy now so I think this is going to be a short post since I need to be up at 3am.  You can bet I will be sleeping on that plane!

Since I'm from Northern NY and it's the country surrounded by more country, I probably won't be blogging while I'm gone.  My parents have dial up internet and I don't have the patience.  I'm also not bringing my laptop because it's my work laptop and I need there to be no way I can be coerced into logging on.  There was a small emergency last night that I spent all day at work trying to fix, and I had to leave the rest in my boss's hands.  Since it wasn't my fault at all that this issue happened, and I worked all day trying to help fix it, I don't want to be spending any part of vacation working on it.  I told my boss he could call if he needs too, but I know if I take the computer I will feel guilty and end up working.  So... if I can borrow my brother's laptop and have the time to find somewhere with WiFi, I will try to post.  If not, well, I will see you all next week!  Send up extra prayers for me, I have a fear of flying and I'm starting to get all nervous.

                                        

Molly knows something is happening, I got a big kiss right after this pic.  I will miss my girls and my boy!

The 100th

Hello friends!  Today is the 100th post of TLD!!  I don't even know what to post about on this special occasion....  Hey, on the 100th episode of Friends, Phoebe gives birth to her brother's triplets.  I don't know if I can top that.  :)

Today started off at about 12:30 this morning, when I finally went to sleep.  My mother called late last night because my brother's girlfriend was having severe abdominal cramping and she was scared.  After I talked to her and calmed her down they went to the ER, where it turns out it was probably a side effect of a medication.  Crisis averted, but no sleep.  I had intentions to at least try to run, but there was no way when the alarm went off that I was going anywhere.  I haven't really woken up today at all, and right after this post I will be going to bed.  I need to catch up!

Anyway, I got to work this morning and looked on the calendar and saw that my insurance was due today.  So I get online to pay it, (remember, it was due TODAY,) and the page says, "This policy has been cancelled due to non-payment."  The HELL?  Cancelled?  At 10am on the due date?  Oh hell no.. and I called and the agent of course has no idea what has happened, and of course it was reinstated but how annoying.  And the even more annoying part... this happens almost every month.  Either on the day it's due, or within a few days if I'm slightly late.  Thanks a lot Allstate.  I don't feel as if I'm in good hands.  (Lame, yes, I had to say it.)

My day went on until I came home and stumbled in the door practically asleep, with all intentions of taking a nap... and then I couldn't sleep.  Does this ever happen to you??  Man.. I was so mad.  I've been relaxing watching Without a Trace and Criminal Minds, but still.  All I wanted was about an hour of sleep.  I was too tired to plan any kind of amazing meal, so "breakfast" it was.

Egg, pepper, whole wheat toast

2nd yogurt mess of the day

All together now..

In honor of Holly, who likes to add Froot Loops to her yogurt messes, I decided to put in some Apple Jacks.  There is Chobani vanilla yogurt, berries, granola, and Apple Jacks.  (The yogurt is under there, I swear.)  I buy sugary cereals for myself maybe 3 times a year, but when the craving comes, there is no fighting it.  It's usually Apple Jacks or Lucky Charms.  My mother never allowed that food in the house so I definitely do not eat it regularly.  Sometimes though, there is nothing like a bowl of sugar and chemicals :)  (For the record, it was fabulous.  And I may or may not have went back for more cereal and yogurt.  And then, MAYBE, just cereal dry from the box.  I won't confirm or deny anything.)

I am off to load the dishwasher, put the clothes from the washer to the dryer, and hopefully be in bed asleep in 15 minutes!  Ciao!

It's Like It Never Happened..

I have a massive disappointment for y'all tonight. 

Today after I came home, I actually went to the gym.  That's right, I came home, changed, walked to the apartment fitness center, did 30 minutes of intervals on the treadmill, and walked back.  I took pics of my sweaty self as proof, and showered it up.  Then, I made J a couple breakfast packets, aka potatoes, bacon, onion, pepper, sea salt, and garlic powder.  I took pictures of the whole process.  I ate dinner, laid back, grabbed the laptop and camera... and the memory card wasn't inside.  The pictures are saved on my camera, but not on the memory card and since I have no cord, I can't get them on the computer :(  I can't figure out how to save them to the card either, so I guess I'm SOL for this post.  BUT, I swear I worked out.  I'm pretty proud of myself actually, 30 minutes of intervals.  I can relax guilt-free tonight.

While I was on the down cycles of my intervals, I was reading a magazine whose health advice I actually usually respect.  Remember my Cosmo rant?  Well, this SELF magazine had a great quote inside.  It's a little long, but it really made me think about exercise, and health in general, and how I really need to get off this lazy streak and get moving, more for my health than anything else.

"On average, you replace about 1 percent of the cells in your body every day.  And each cell comes in a little stronger or a little weaker than the one before, depending on the chemical signals you send by how you live your life.  Thus, you end each day with a body that is a little bit younger or older than before- your choice.  Nutrition and emotion are key players in this process, but the most powerful change you can make is to exercise.."

I love this.  It reminds me of an article I read not too long ago, which discussed how you really are what you eat.  It talked about how your body's only source of energy to replace and repair cells is the food that is consumed.  That's it.  So if you are a person who intakes a lot of unhealthy fats, a lot of chemicals, a lot of processed foods, that's all your body has to work with.  But if you make an effort to eat whole, good, unprocessed foods, your body has all those vitamins and minerals and antioxidants to work with.  I truly think this is why people who live healthy lifestyles genuinely look better.  I'm not talking about weight at all, I'm talking about the glow of the skin, the hair, the nails.  The cells are healthier, which makes for a healthier person overall.  I can definitely tell a difference in my hair and skin since eating a more "whole foods" and organic diet.  I need to work on my shortcomings, like not exercising, and make myself get up and get out there.  I know I talk a lot about wanting to lose 20 pounds, 20 pounds, 20 pounds.  And yes, I should honestly lose this weight.  But more than weight loss, it's that I want to be a healthy person.  I don't want diabetes, heart disease, cancer.  I don't want to have to take fist fulls of pills when I'm older.  I don't want to physically age faster than what nature intends.  I know from watching family members that this means taking control NOW, right now while I'm young and can set a solid base for the rest of my life.  Not later, after a heart attack or chemo, or gastric bypass.  I don't want a "scare" to set me straight.  An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, and mainly that's all I'm trying to do.  After all that, THEN it's about the 20 pounds.  (Which, lets be honest, if I lose it I will be a healthier person.)

Anyway, wow, that's not at all what I planned for this evening.  I guess the loss of pictures wasn't the end of the world.  I think I will sign off now and spend the rest of my evening reading the magazine and watching Criminal Minds :)  Goodnight blogworld!

Food and Friends

Happy Sunday night everyone!  Sorry for not posting yesterday.  One of the perils of "stealing" internet is that the people who own the signal shut it off sometimes.  That's what happened yesterday, so I have 2 days worth of pics and news for you.  Well, I lied.  There isn't really any news.  It's been a pretty low-key weekend.  Anyway, here is breakfast from yesterday:

I woke up starving and knew the usual yogurt mess wasn't going to cut it.  So I added a couple of organic 365 brand blueberry waffles.  It was definitely as good as it looks.

I've been trying to find and fix new foods lately.  Now that I don't work at Target anymore, I have all this free time to try new things.  The last new recipe came from Jenna, and so did the one from last night's dinner.  This was also really good, but I think that next time I would add more veggies and such.  Here are the pics from the Cheesy Zucchini Pizza:

J has been obsessed with the shrimp dinner from the other night so I made that for him again last night.  It's always a win when I make something new and he likes it.  He comes from VA and is used to heavy Southern foods.  I'm from NY and grew up with a health nut mother, so our eating habits couldn't be more different.  A lot of the time he has no choice since I'm the one who shops and cooks. (Evil laugh.)  We had a small conversation about this today actually, that went something like this:

J:  "You can't even front, I've been eating so much better lately, since I started the new job!"  (Yeah, J talks like that.  He says things like "front" and "trippin."  I sound ridiculous when I say all that, and he sounds even more ridiculous when he tries to talk like me.  Anyway...)

Me:  "Um, no.  You have been eating better because I don't work at night anymore so I'm COOKING FOR YOU."

All he could do was laugh.  He can't front.  (See?  Ridiculous.)

This morning I woke up starving again.  We were up till about 4 in the morning, watching TV and dozing on and off so I was very sleepy and hungry.  I proceeded to make and eat this:

It was so good and definitely filling.  I ate, popped in a Friends DVD and went on to watch TV and sleep on and off for most of the day.  I woke up starving again, this time randomly for Apple Jacks?? and went grocery shopping.  I bought the AJ and ate 2 bowls.  I almost never eat food this processed and fake but I really wanted it and went to town on that craving for sure.  After that I decided I needed some real food and made myself the shrimp dinner again.

Yes, this is a picture from the other night.  I suck.

It's 9:00 at night and Friends is still on, and I think I may go back for one more bowl of Apple Jacks.  I'm so rebellious today.  I hope you all had a great weekend!