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Thursday, April 29, 2010

Day 32=Feeling sick, and other things

I couldn't sleep all last night, and finally conked out around 7. When I woke up at 9 for work I felt nauseous so I called out sick. I felt a lot better later in the day so I went shopping because I need to get some stuff for my cruise, and for China.

I just want to point out that nothing makes you feel bad about yourself quite like shopping for bathing suits. I've never felt completely comfortable with the idea of running around in a swimsuit, so I usually just try on one pieces.

Today since I needed to do something new I decided to be scandalous and try on a bikini, and I would just like to applaud girls that feel comfortable enough to go outside a changing room in a bikini. Not only are they uncomfortable, but the constant threat of a wardrobe malfunction is a little to much for me.

There are pictures, but they will probably go bye bye within the next few minutes. Sorry, I know all of you would like to see them. (Note the sarcasm.)

So I have a new found respect for those that love their body enough to show it off the way bikinis do it. It's pretty hard to do, so I admire ya'll.

Wednesday, April 28, 2010

Day 31=I'm no Duke of Hazard

I'm also not Daisy Duke because
A. I'm not wearing booty shorts, and
B. I'm not built like Mizz Daisy.

I got close though. I am wearing shortish running shorts, and my hair is all curled and pretty...ok that was an odd tangent.

Anyways, I was pondering what to do today, and it hit me that I've never watched Dukes of Hazard. Watching it isn't the new thing for today, because that would be stupid, but it did inspire me for today's task.

I've never slid across the hood of a car. So I took a running start, went to slide, and this is where I failed miserably. Instead of sliding I kind of just plunked down on it. My hip is going to be nice and purple tomorrow. I think I'll need to try it again one day. I'm sure it's a very important skill to have when you're running from the cops, and we all know how often I run from cops. I am a rebel after all.

Tuesday, April 27, 2010

Day 30=Snails and other things

This morning I was running late for work so I ran out the door and happened to find a snake laying on our pathway. I wanted to pick it up because I've never even touched one, but I'd be even more late if I tried to stop and take a picture of me doing it, so I continued on my merry way.

After work I came home, and I found a HUGE line of slime, and a slow moving snail on one end of it. Sad to say, but I've never touched a snail either. I lead a deprived life. I mean I had a snail once as a pet, but I'd never touched it because it was "icky." It seemed like the universe was throwing stuff at me so I decided I'd take the opportunity to stop and touch the ugly glob.

Not going to lie, the girly girl in me came out and I was slightly disgusted when I picked it up because some of the slime had dried and it made a cracking noise when I moved it. I named it Kirby.

Proof I am not just holding a shell.



And my disgusted face when it started moving. I actually don't mind nature so much anymore.

Monday, April 26, 2010

Day 29=I stink at confectionary stuff...

Seriously.

I am getting the opportunity to test around with some things for a gift for some friends that are graduating, and it's insane because I come up with these ideas that sound WAY good in my head, and then when I try them they either blow up in my face, or stick to the pan, and smell like burnt sugar.

I wanted to make a caramel cream cheese filling which I've done in the past with that caramel syrup stuff, but I had caramel candy sitting around the house from the party the other night, and no one in my family including me likes caramels unless they're home made.

So my brilliancy really shown through tonight, and I thought why not melt the stuff and put it into the cream cheese frosting that I made?

I spent a nice 20 minutes unwrapping the stupid things and put them in the broiler and started heating it up.

First mistake. I didn't put anything in it except the caramels and apparently they get sticky when they begin to melt, so I hurried and put butter in trying to see if I could make it a nice creamy smooth texture and instead it coated a caramel blob with a bunch of fat.

Finally it started to get liquid-y so I got a spatula and began to pour it into the cream cheese frosting. I turn on the beater and for some reason it is having a hard time beating it so I stop it and grab a spoon. I go to scoop some and, no joke, the caramel solidified the second it touched the cool frosting. So I had a frosting coated caramel blob.

And you know what? It tasted pretty good, although I don't think I can ever really use it for a frosting...but it is always fun to mess around with things and see what I can create.

K seriously. I am thinking about this, and I swear half of my posts are about my mess ups or successes with baking and cakes.

Enough is enough people! Healthy living is not eating junk food 24/7. I dare myself to go 2 weeks without counting food anything as my new thing for the day.

If I don't do it I will...do something totally embarrassing, and let you all laugh at me. Not like that's anything new. Am I right?

Sunday, April 25, 2010

Day 28=Jazz Game!

So my dad and brother love The Jazz. They went to a game this past week, and I got the chance to go tonight. It was so incredibly fun, and here is why.

1. The signs people make are hilarious. For example "Sorry Bishop," or "I love getting booze on Sunday."

2. Apollo Anton Ohno not only was in the audience but he got to launch a t-shirt into our section.

3. I have a slight crush on Kyle Korver...sorry Madi.

4. I got to spend time with my family.

5. It's so much easier to get into basketball when you're actually there.

6. I got to laugh at all the girls that decided to go to the game with super tight pants and 5 inch platform heals that couldn't walk.

and finally

7. The Jazz won, and it was thrilling.

Me before the game because my mom saw the no camera sign and thought it would be better just to put the camera back in the car.

Day 27=Partay!

So I had an awesome time in a play I was in but had to drop out. It made me super sad, and I missed everyone.

So they had a play going on in Logan, and I wanted to see them, and we planned to have a sleepover party thing last night. It was the first time I've had a boy girl sleepover.

I love hosting parties. I go all out, so I'm really glad I did it.

Thanks guys!

Friday, April 23, 2010

Day 26=I'm super creative I guess

I wanted to make a birdhouse out of Popsicle sticks. I go to get some and decide I'm going to decorate a birdhouse. Then I decided screw that, I'm going to decorate a picture frame. I like decorating a lot I guess.

So I bought a cool turn table picture frame thing and decorated it to match my room. It's gonna stink when I move out though considering everything I make matches my room at home. I'll have to decorate my future homes to fit my old room I guess...



It turned out so pretty!

:) Another day done!

Thursday, April 22, 2010

Day 25=I'm SO tired!

I seriously sat around for a half hour deciding what I should do. I have done a few new-ish things today, but most of them are things I was required to do based on my job, so I try not to count that stuff to much. There was a lot I came up with but I was either to tired, or not given enough time to do it.

Wow this could be my new thing. Making up excuses for why I haven't done a new thing. Yes? No, I'm kidding.

After the half hour was up, I decided I wanted to go to bed, so I just laid upside down and played a tune on the old piano. Never done it before, and I won't tell you which tune because it's a really easy one.

You like my oomph for today's fun adventure?

It's new though, and tomorrow should be better. Sorry guys!

Day 24=I Feel Like I'm at Girl's Camp

So it rolls around to 6 last night and I realize I hadn't done anything for my "Do Something" goal. So frantically I was thinking about what I could do.

My mom had to go to the library to drop a book off so I asked her if she could get a craft book while she was there. When I was flipping through the book I saw a section about making bracelet's so I figured I'd give it a shot. I mean I've made bracelets before but they were usually just a piece of string with mismatching beads on it.

This one called for elastic, ribbon, and buttons, and this is how cool my family is.

While I was making it I go to show my dad and the first thing he asks is "So wait, are you making a garter?" Two things went through my head. What kind of person does my dad think I am to make a garter, and why would I need a garter?

Oh I love my family.

Tuesday, April 20, 2010

Day 23=There's An Art to Ice Cream?

Today I did something that wasn't really by choice, but it was a new experience for sure.

So they are having to cut hours at my work, and since I work only a few at Robin Hood they pretty much cut me out entirely, so I moved over to Taco Bell about a month ago.

Something exciting came to my attention and I decided it was time for me to learn how to run Baskin Robbins. Believe me when I say that the reasoning for the switch is totally dorky, and not needing to be told because I'd be extremely embarrassed.

Anyways, today was my first day over at Baskin Robbins, and surprisingly there is actually an art to how you scoop ice-cream...not kidding.

In fact I got schooled on how I need to scoop it, and then I was ordered to practice scooping for the rest of my time working there. Personally I'm only thinking of one thing when I'm eating ice cream and that is "Dang I wish I had more." No where in my thought process am I thinking, "Wow, the worker really made this scoop circular. It's like a perfect sphere. I shall continue getting my ice cream from said worker just for the fact that they took an extra few seconds to make it pretty."

I mean don't get me wrong, standing around continually scooping ice cream, AND getting paid for it is pretty cool, and I can now scoop ice cream perfectly. Ya, everyone be jealous of my skill.

Monday, April 19, 2010

Day 22=All Tied Up

Now that I'm older, I've switched over to big girl shoes (heels). Sometimes I wonder if I even remember how to tie shoelaces, and the only time I get to practice this incredibly important skill is when I put on my sneakers to go running, and I've gotten out of practice tying things up lately, if ya know what I mean. wink wink...ya I need to work out more. Moving on!

It's amazing how much I don't do in the way of tying. I haven't ever tied a tie, which is kind of sad considering how much I may need it in my future jobs. I mean if you doubt that just go look at the Olive Garden waiters. All of them look super snazzy in their white button up shirts with nicely tied ties around their neck. It is well beyond my time to learn how to achieve this formal look.

So I got my dads ties, well, the ones he said were cheap enough for me to use(makes you wonder where he was going with that), and he showed me how to do it. So much more goes into it than I expected. It was fun though, so I kept practicing....



Props for you guys out there that master tying. At least now I have a skill that will help me look professional.

Ok, so maybe I'm never going to wear ties, but at least I can help the uneducated little kids of the world that wear clip on ties because they have only learned to tie their shoes.

Sunday, April 18, 2010

Day 21=I Look SO Old...

...or just my furniture.

The furniture in my room very well may be older than my parents marriage. They bought it used for my sister, and when she went off to college I was bestowed with it. (I actually like the rustic look of it.)

My senior year of high school my musical director was giving away stuff that he didn't need anymore, and for some reason I was drawn to this ugly gold stool. It sat in the corner of my room for 3 years sticking out like a sore thumb, and finally I decided to change that. Antique time! Which is really fun because you can get all dirty from the paint and rags.

So I went and got some crackle paint type stuff from the craft store down the road and started on it. First I had to spray paint it a cream-ish color.



By this point it looked like one of those stools they use in glamor studios. I was so tempted to sit on it and pose like Kip and the Uncle in Napoleon Dynamite in that one scene with Deb, but I refrained.

Then I painted it with this crackle paint and it ended up looking stupid...not gonna lie. The crackle didn't crackle like I'd hoped, and I thought it was going to crackle the cream base paint, but it just crackled on itself, and since the stuff was clear it looked like someone took a sponge to it and messed up a bad paint job (Sorry if that didn't make any sense. My crackle art is a touchy subject that makes me form run on sentences apparently).

Then I got some acrylic paints and made a brownish, grayish, watery paste and spread it all over with a rag. It actually turned out decent for my first time, and my hands got all brown and gunky from it to. Yay for gunk!



Now my 3 year old stool will fit in with my much older furniture!

Saturday, April 17, 2010

Day 20=The big 2-0

It's days like today that I have to sit and wonder if I really accomplished anything.

I mean I haven't worked out for four weeks, and I finally got off my tush and went running. Running 2 miles after not doing anything physical probably wasn't the smartest thing to do, but I got past the gag reflex, and I'm proud to say I did it. Even though this is an accomplishment I wouldn't exactly classify it as one of my "do something" moments. It has to be something new after all.

I figured since I've hit the 20th day it would be important to commemorate it with something stupendous and astounding but unfortunately I slacked off today (My use of big words makes you think I'm smart, huh?). So since I clearly stated it could be something new, either mediocre or awesome, I think I'll be safe with this one.

I got a mango a couple of days ago, and yes I've tried them, that isn't the new part. Geez, I may be a deprived person but give me some credit here. Usually I peel the skin off and then cut it off the pit ever so beautifully, and then eat it like a lady.

The mango was finally ripe so I decided I'd partake in it's juicy goodness so I got a knife and started to peel the skin. Unfortunately it wouldn't cut. The skin just kept ripping and it became confetti in the garbage can. So after about 10 minutes of pointless peeling I decided to ditch that and dig in like an ape.

Yes, I am secure in my humanity enough to compare myself to a primate.

Now if you walked in on me eating it you either thought one of two things.

1. I am a Neanderthal.
or
2. I am practicing for a role on Lost as one of the survivors of flight 815.

I will take the latter. I think I'd be awesome on that island. I have all the personality traits that would make for an awesome character. (And yes, I am being facetious.)

Day 19= I have to stop making promises...

Because I obviously can't keep them. My career is cake decorator, and since it takes up so much time it's hard to do anything else when I have a cake to make, but thankfully it involves trying new things all the time. Yesterday I got the opportunity to go see some friends in a play they were doing in Logan. Since I'm weird I wanted to make them something nice for opening night so I made these cake ball type things that looked like truffles. I've never done it before and it is actually a bit more effort then you'd think. So without further ado, that is my new thing for Friday.



And a close up. SO cute!

Thursday, April 15, 2010

Day 18=You're Never Fully Dressed Without a Smile

Name what musical that song is in. Ready, set, GO!

Anyways. So I'm either smiling or I have the "auto-pilot," am I really here, look on my face most days. I blame school. I try and not frown, but sometimes it happens.

Today I decided that I would not go on auto-pilot. I had to wear a smile the entire day. Not just a little smile either. I had to smile wholeheartedly, and not just with my mouth, but with my eyes. Oh ya, I went the extra mile.

It started off really well since I went to class and there is this guy in it that I'm all googoo for, so I had it easy. It was going really well until I went to my dad's office where one of his coworkers was talking about death, and I didn't think it was really appropriate to smile when someone is talking about that subject, so I had to tone it down to a mere eye smile.

After an hour of that I decided I needed to head home, and once I got home after a whole car ride smiling again, I realized my cheeks hurt so bad. Not only that, but I had smile lines in my make up. It actually made me laugh a whole lot which didn't help with the hurt cheeks.

I have no idea how the Princesses at Disneyland do it. Kudos to you Cinderella, Kudos to you.

Wednesday, April 14, 2010

Day 17=I learned 2 very important things today...

Number 1: When it comes to chalk drawing, I lack creativity.
And Number 2: Some of my clothes look like they go on an eight year old. Especially when I wear pigtails. (Yes I did play this up.)

So I checked my chalk today and voila!



Chalk is born.

Today I wanted to keep in the chalky mood, so I decided I'd amp up my sidewalk chalk experiences and draw some intense hardcore one of a kind Giovanna masterpieces. I was totally stoked to start having my creative juices flowing. Chalk in hand I got ready to draw!



And I decided to start of easy with words...



I know what you're thinking. I'm amazing...no? Alright moving on.

This is another thing I learned. Dressing up like a little kid and drawing with sidewalk chalk can either be really fun, or really embarrassing depending on if neighbors you know drive by and honk their horn.

My mom wanted to start cooking dinner so she didn't capture any more pictures of my beautiful backside as I drew so this is me after I was done...



And my name. It's like the signature at the bottom of paintings. Except Graffiti-like.



So today's do something wasn't really new since I ended up drawing like I was an eight year old. Oh well. Today was still fun! :)

Tuesday, April 13, 2010

Day 16=My future children will be like Pioneers

I loved drawing with chalk when I was little. My neighbors and I would get together and trace ourselves, or draw flowers, or the occasional tree when we felt really artsy.

I haven't done it in years, and so I decided I wanted to draw a masterpiece since I haven't ever done that before. Unfortunately I'm weird, and buying chalk is so last decade for me so I decided I would make my own. I actually didn't think it was something you could whip up on your own.

So I Googled. I love Google. It turns out that it's a lot easier to find a recipe for chalk then for good cake (just thought I'd state my dislike for people that think they are amazing chefs and post their not so amazing cake recipes for unsuspecting people to stumble upon). Apparently you can make it with plaster, water, and tempera paint. I broke out the plastic bowls, and spoons, and the toilet paper rolls, and went to the driveway.



Can you tell I'm kinda tired? Maybe a little cold? Nah, I wasn't either...honest.

I was gonna draw with my newly made chalk, but apparently it has to dry at least 24 hours. Sad day. Oh well. I decided though that my future children will have to work for their chalk priveleges. No going to the store and buying chalk for them. Psh. They're making it, and they're gonna like it.

Expect a chalky masterpiece story and picture on tomorrows post.

Oh and my night in the fort was actually the best sleep I've gotten in a while. I suggest you guys try it sometime and put about a foot of pillows on the floor of it. It's heaven.

Monday, April 12, 2010

Day 15=Now I know how Louis and Clark felt....

So we live on a hill that outlooks this huge piece of farmland and has a creek running through it. My family has always wondered what it looks like down there so after eight years my mom and I set off at one end of the creek. There are so many firsts that I decided I'd simply create a checklist. And yes, my friends it is laundry day. Therefore all I had was random pieces of clothing. I say capri pants, spandex tights, red button up, and a purple hoodie are incredible looking.
Alright.
1. Torn apart deer carcass.



Check

2. Wading through a valley of thistley thingy's. Believe me this wasn't even the worst of it.

looking.


Check

3. Jumping a fence.



Check. And another check because jumping a barbed wire fence counts as two.

4. Finally seeing the back of our house from afar. That's muh dad.



Check

5. Seeing a...group of deer up close. (Whoever tells me what a group of deers is gets a plate of cookies.)



Check

6. Shimmying up a tree over a creek to get to the other side.



Two checks cuz I'm an awesome shimmy-er.

7. Finding a really old, decaying wheel in the middle of a dead forest.



Check.

So by this time it started raining, and the brush was getting thicker and thicker. My hair had gotten so many thistles in it, my boots were cake in mud, and more thistles, my pants were scummy, and my shirt smelled like horse...don't ask me why because I don't know.

My mom and I had to keep moving forward though because we didn't want to go back the way we came, so we kept going and found that we had walked onto someones yard(Trespassing on private property=number 8, check). Their dogs started barking at us, and the owner came out to find my mom and I trying to hide so we wouldn't get in trouble. She asked us what we were doing and we had to explain that we'd gotten stuck in the brush, and we didn't know how to get to civilization (Getting completely lost is number 9, so check).

She laughed and offered us a ride home so we got in her car and she drove us to our house. My mom took a picture of me after. It's kind of funny. Apparently getting your hair caught in a bunch of trees can lead to some awesome hairdo's.



Moral of the story? Don't be stupid.

Aw well. Rounding off the checklist is number 10.

10. Finally finding out what's in my backyard.

Check.

Sunday, April 11, 2010

Day 14=Forts, and a cat.

I really had no childhood I think, because I never made a fort. I have to ask myself, what was wrong with me!

I enlisted my mother to help me make the fort which I think ended up pretty cool.

I stuffed it with pillows and blankets, and it even has the sign and all! I have to say, that I feel like a Sheik in Saudi Arabia, or a genie in a bottle. I need some MC hammer pants, and a tube top. Just kidding. We were almost done when my kitten Jinks came and found her new little home.


After she got out, I got Patch my stuffed dog and took a picture to commemorate it.



It ended up really small and cramped, but it's gonna be so fun to sleep in. Oh goodness I love acting like a little kid.

Day 12 &13=life as a baker

Lately I've had some cake orders I've had to fill, and the cakes are kinds I've never made before. When this happens I spend every free second looking up recipes, baking recipes, modifying them, looking up designs...it can be very tedious. It kind of stinks because I have no time to do anything else, so today and yesterday I've only been able to do that.

I promise I'm trying to do something new every day but these two days are a break. Shhh, don't be upset with me everyone!

But it is a new recipe so I guess that counts. I promise this is the last baking post. Haha

Saturday, April 10, 2010

Day 11=The Ancient Art of Origami

So I've tried origami before but it was when I was 7 and the extent of it was one of those fortune tellers that you make when you're on the playground with your friends and trying to figure out who your husband was going to be. Looking back, I think kids are weird because obviously those aren't accurate, and fooling yourself into thinking that they are is slightly embarrassing.

Whenever I tried anything else I'd get to the point where you open the book and find a cool one to make and then I'd give up after seeing my mom figure out how to do it. I gave up pretty fast just like when I tried to learn how to knit. I think I knit one pearled two, and handed it over to my mom. It's a really cool stitch. Very beautiful if you can master it. Haha.

So we have this book full of really cool things like a unicorn (how do you make it? I still don't know) or easy stuff like a snake (ok it's not easy but the way I do it is crumple it into a long stiff stick like thing).

I decided to start off with a dove, which I unfortunately didn't get a picture of. I didn't have my camera at that point. It was really cool, but it looked kind of like it was born squished or something.

After that I made a squirrel. I always loved squirrels after I watched the cartoon "Sword in the Stone." Do any of you remember that? The big red girl squirrel that wouldn't leave Merlin alone was my FAVORITE. Hahahaha oh gosh now I can just imagine that scene in the movie. K back to the blog.



Then after that I decided I needed to make a flower. I guess it was the girly girl in me talking. This flower gave me such a hard time, but it's really pretty if you ask me.



It was fun. I think I might do some more. Maybe I'll take a shot at that unicorn. I'll get back to you on how that one turns out.

Friday, April 9, 2010

Day 9 and 10=pumpkin treats

So day 9 actually didn't happen. I totally spaced it with the semester coming to a close. Today was pretty cool though. I haven't just thrown stuff together in a long time, and I was in a baking mood, so I wanted to use my noggin and create a Giovanna masterpiece. I wanted it to be healthy so I broke out the cocoa powder, pumpkin, and egg whites. They were my base ingredients, and I added a little bit of sugar and milk, and a tad bit of flour, stuck it in a ramekin and baked it for a little bit. It was so good, and a nice way to get a healthy dessert.

The method is something I've done before, but I've never used pumpkin in my experiments before, and it was yummy.

Just so everyone knows. There are studies that have come out that say that cocoa should be consumed everyday because of antioxidants. Try and fit it in everyone, but do it with dark chocolate, or cocoa powder, and not milk chocolate. Milk chocolate is pretty much pointless.

Oh! I know something else I did that was new. I made an omelet with egg whites. It was actually REALLY good, but it falls apart so it's more of scrambled eggs. Try it everyone!

I'm thinking this is gonna be the last post I make about food. I mean, I bake all the time. I need to find some new stuff. I promise it'll be better tomorrow...really.

Night everyone!

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

Day 8=I'm Bruce Lee

Today's post is going to be very short, but that's ok.

I have a Tae Kwon Do class, and since the semester is coming to a close the teacher decided to bring in some nunchucks for the class to learn how to use. It was pretty awesome because if you think about it, now I know how to hurt you with sticks. :P Just kidding. I'm pretty sure I'll end up with welts tomorrow morning but it was worth it. I suggest everyone plays with them sometime in their life because they're pretty cool.

Last week we learned how to defend against an attacker with a knife. It's really cool knowing that I can somewhat defend myself if I ever need to. I think everyone should take a self defense or karate class of some kind because it's really important these days to know how to protect yourself.

Anyways, I'm off to eat dinner. Have a nice night everyone!

Monday, April 5, 2010

Day 7=The HR office

Today isn't really a new thing...I mean, in a way it is. I've been feeling a little under the weather so I haven't been able to do much and the weather has been disgusting. I went to school and work, and long story short, I had to call the human resources office for a password change to log in to the company system to take some annual tests. Unfortunately they deleted my information from the database. How I was getting paid is beyond me.

So everyone thought that an hour before clocking out would give me enough time to get in touch with them and fix everything so we called, and I sat down at the computer. I sat, and sat, and after a half hour I decided I would start talking to the voice automated system because I've heard that sometimes the people listen to what you're saying, and if you make a good enough plea they'll be nice. I mean what could it hurt, right? So I pretty much started begging them to pick up the phone because I just needed to change my password to take some tests.

Another 20 minutes goes by, and I start telling them I had to clock out in ten minutes and I needed to be places, and that since they were the HR office they needed to start caring about their employees and not putting them on hold for 50 minutes.

It has now hit the time when I'm supposed to clock out, and I'm literally about to hang up the phone when it puts me through. The guy picks up and the first thing out of his mouth is "So you're at work huh?" I wanted to reach through the phone and slap him, but I tried to remain calm. Our conversation went on for a little while and when it was time for him to explain how to get my new password he zipped through the instructions like there was a fire in his office, but he was determined to get the info to me before running for his life out of the building. So when he finishes he asks me if I've got it, and by this time I'm getting really peeved because it was now a half hour after I was supposed to clock out. So I said I didn't have time to even do the first thing he said and by the time I could do it he was already finished with his explanation and that he'd have to start over.

The phone, no joke, went dead silent for a few seconds, and then all I heard was, "...OK-you didn't get any of that?" My blood pressure had risen by this point because he was getting super snippy, and I didn't have all day, and I'd have to come in on my day off to do the tests that I couldn't do because of their mess up.

I think help lines bring out the worst in me because I was a little rude after this point.

"No, I didn't get any of that, because you didn't pause to let me tell you to slow down, and when I did try to speak you kept cutting me off, now please explain it to me again, and this time try a little slower." Ya-apparently I'm a really mean person when I get attitude from someone who's company was the cause of the problem. So the phone went silent yet again, and then he made a long overdrawn sigh like the ones you hear in Napoleon Dynamite, and then explained it to me like a five year old.

So I guess the new thing for me today is having to call the HR office for the first time, and deal with someone that is entirely to rude for their own good. The good thing about this is that I'll have a funny story to tell my coworkers next time I work, and yes I will refer to the guy as Napoleon Dynamite.

Sunday, April 4, 2010

Day 6=The Newspaper

I have a lot of fond memories from my childhood, but there is one that has always stuck out in my mind. Sunday would roll around, and my dad would get the Local Newspaper. As he read each page diligently my family would go throughout our day. Once he was done I remember him handing the comics to my siblings. This is where my memory becomes hazy. I either fought with my brother for them (which also happened with the toy at the bottom of the cereal box.)or we would each take a page and read the comics then switch. My point in all of this is that the newspaper seemed to bring my siblings and I together even if it was for a short amount of time.

I loved those times because no matter where we moved, the comics and the time spent with my family stayed the same. (Reading back on this, it sounds super corny, but I didn't mean for it to. Haha)

Once my family moved to Utah it seemed like I read the comics less and less, until I didn't consider reading them anymore. If you think about it, it's kind of sad, because the Sunday comics were like Saturday morning cartoons, and believe me, if they still showed cartoons on Saturday, I'd be waking up before work to watch them.

So for today I decided that instead of just reading the comics, I would sit down and read through at least one article per section. Which was cool because my dad was still reading them to. I've never really picked up a newspaper before (not counting the ones that the college prints out) and just read it, so I was pretty excited.

I realized something from this. The world is scary. Newslines read all sorts of negative, and I'm not gonna lie, I was really sad. That is until I got to the sports section, and started reading about the tradition of the President throwing the first pitch in the Washington opener.

Very interesting if you ask me. At first the tradition was to throw the ball from the stands to the starting pitcher or the umpire. It changed to the ball being thrown over photographers into a crowd of the players of both teams who would have a "battle for the ball." Whoever won would have the President sign it, and get to keep it. It made me laugh imagining what these players would be willing to do to get the ball.

I can imagine that this "battle" is the reason the President now takes the mound and throws the first pitch. The battle wounds probably caused players to not play their best.

Overall, I'm glad I read the newspaper. I feel a little more intellectual, and I learned a lot.

The most important thing to remember is that because of the time I took away from the things I have on my to do list, I formed a new memory; reading the newspaper with my dad. Remember guys, good memories are priceless! Try and make as many a day as you can.

Saturday, April 3, 2010

Day 5=A baking nightmare

Souffle's are always scary for me. I see them in movies, and they always collapse if you don't stand on your head and recite the Gettysburg address, or some crazy thing like not following the directions to a T, and even then it still seems like there are tons of horror stories out there about someone trying to make some for guests, and it turning out disastrous.

This is the reason why I never tried to make one before. So I came across a recipe for chocolate banana souffle the other day and it was on this healthy recipe website, and I figured I might as well try it.

The recipe was really simple, and fun to do because I got to take out my aggression for a mean coworker on the bananas that I had to mash up...just kidding, I'm not an aggressive person. I'm pretty sure that this is just a knock off souffle recipe though because the "collapsing" that happened was it shrinking after awhile.

The stuff tasted REALLY yummy, and since I like the idea of something tasting good rather than looking good then it got two thumbs up in my book.

This is my souffle with a little fat free cool whip on top. SO good.



And this is my dads which shrunk because he wasn't home when they came out.



If anyone wants to try the recipe, here it is. Like I said, pretty good.

Chocolate Banana Souffle

* 2 ripe bananas, mashed
* 2 tsp cornstarch
* 1/4 cup cocoa powder
* 1 tsp vanilla extract
* 2 egg whites
* 3 tbsp sugar
* butter flavored cooking spray

Preheat over to 400F. Coat 4, 6 oz ramekins with butter flavored cooking spray. Place on a baking sheet.

In a medium bowl, mash bananas and vanilla together. Sift cornstarch and cocoa powder over bananas and stir well.

In another medium bowl, beat egg whites with sugar until they form soft peaks. Fold 1/3 of egg whites into banana mixture. When incorporated, fold in the rest of the egg whites. Spoon mixture into ramekins.

Wipe the top 1/4 inch “collar” of the ramekin to remove any excess batter so that the souffle will rise straight and place ramekins on a baking sheet. Bake at 400°F for 15 minutes. Serve immediately.

Friday, April 2, 2010

Day 4=breaking of the scales

In my first post on here I shared that a lot of things have happened in my life over the past year. What started out as a plan to live a healthier lifestyle turned to more. I was on the brink of bulimia, and anorexia, and I looked down on my life, and everything I did as a failure. It's true that I've been in a rut, and everyday is a battle with that, but thanks to my family and Jamila I have been given hope. My life isn't a failure, and neither is anyone Else's. So for today's "do something" post I decided to smash the scales in my house. Take control of your life, and don't let the material things EVER dictate how you live. Today I made a goal to live my life the way it should be lived. I'll live a healthy and active one, and I encourage everyone to do the same.

Like I said. Take control, and never let the stupid things in life get you down.

Oh and for some added enjoyment, here are some pictures of the junk after I smashed it.



And this is where it belongs.

Thursday, April 1, 2010

Day 3=April Fools!

So another year has come, and everyone has played an April Fool's joke sometime in their life, even Mother Nature has the past 2 years with snow in the spring. I am an oddball because I unfortunately have never played a prank on anyone ever. I witnessed one once, but I was always so worried about how the pranked person would feel about me afterward.
I decided that it was time to join the club so this was my new thing for the day. My friend Mason's birthday is today, and since I am a cake kind of person I thought what a perfect way to prank someone. That and I looked at the cakewrecks blog this morning and saw they had some funny pranks, and voila, lightbulb. I planned on making a cake for Mason today anyways and I figured that it could be my penance for the prank. Mason has said he has wanted to eat healthier so with that in mind I got cucumbers, alfalfa sprouts, bread, and a little cream cheese and started on my task for the day.

Layer upon layer of the stuff, and then frosted over with the cream cheese. I seriously spent a good half hour trying to make the not square bread shape look like a square.

Then I dyed the cream cheese an extremely light blue, and piped on a happy birthday, and with a good laugh and picture opportunity I was done. This is the picture of the cake as it's heading out the door.



So Mason opens the door and I walk in, and set the thing on the counter, and convince him to slice himself a piece. He cuts off a corner and picks it up, looks at it for a second, and then asked me what the heck it was. I told him it was healthy cake, and that he should try it. Then I bust up laughing telling him that it was fake, and it's really a sandwich. I think he either laughed at it because it was a good joke, or because I was finding it entirely too funny.

We then decided that we'd leave it on the counter and see if anyone else tried to eat it. It looks yummy on the inside right? (which apparently someone did)



So after the whole fake cake prank I started making the real one which had my mouth watering. Vanilla cake, chocolate cream cheese frosting and filling, chocolate shavings, and cherries on top. One word. Yum!



I completed my first April Fool's joke which I think might have been funnier in the moment, made 2 works of art, and laughed a lot. I'd have to say that today was a great day.

What should we all take away? Laughter is an important part of everyday life. Find any reason to do it.

Oh and I got chased by a dog tonight on my way home from delivering the second cake. Just a little something to start off the laughter.