Monday, March 28, 2011

My Relationship With The Kitchen

Cooking—why must we eat to survive? I like the “fruits of the labor” so to speak…but ugh, I have to be in a “mood” to cook.


And don’t get me wrong, I cook even when I’m not in a “cooking kind of mood.”


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Because I have to.

I have a hectic schedule and sometimes cooking can be a long, tedious, inconveniencing task.

Especially when you’re sleep deprived.

So you’re probably thinking that I have an eating disorder or something—not true.

Sometimes I just don’t want to do it...

I cannot lie.

Ok most of the time.

I can't help it. 

I’m just not one of those people that love to cook...although I wish I was.

But I’m not.

I hardly ever look forward to cooking.

Ok never.

No, wait I'm lying...

There have been times when I enjoyed it…but definitely not each and every time.

Definitely not.

These moments are few and far between (haha)!

But something's better than nothing...right?

Just to clarify—when I say “cook” I’m referring to meals.


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Real meals.

Big meals.

Not macaroni and cheese or ramen noodles.

I’m talking about cooking.

And no, I’m not eating alone if that’s what you’re picturing—I have a family to cook for.

And I don’t cook five days a week (thankfully).

So why am I complaining?

Because I can.J

I think we all have something we're not too fond of.

And for me it's cooking.  


creativecommons.org
Sometimes we’ll go out to eat and sometimes we’ll just make something fast.

I love the days when I’m not a slave in the kitchen.

But I love my family too…damn it.

Sometimes I wish I could be one of “those lucky people” that enjoy new recipes and love to cook.

But I’m not.

So, basically, this blog is about my love/hate relationship with the kitchen.

Do you have one?

I’d love to hear about it.

Please don’t hesitate to tell me what’s On Ur Mind.

Monday, March 21, 2011

Woe! Did You Just See That?!

Woe…what just happened?!

Have you ever had something so strange happen to you that you actually had to second guess yourself? 

Ok probably not.


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Or maybe.

Well I have. 

I can’t believe I’m going to tell this story.

Now would be a good time to tell you all upfront that I’M NOT CRAZY.

And the reason why I know I’m not crazy is because I wasn’t alone when this happened.

Although I was kind of young—like15 years young—you have to believe me on this one.

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It was a clear, beautiful summer night and a group of us were hanging out at my house.

About 9 o’clock, maybe closer to 9:30, my friend asked me to walk her halfway home.

So I did.

Well, I just about reached my halfway point and we were just about to part ways…

And there it was.

“What was it?” you ask.

I’m still asking myself the same question.

In the sky, we had seen a series of strange orange lights.

No, they weren’t spinning. There wasn’t a “U.F.O. shape." There wasn’t a whole bunch of different colors and there was no blinding brightness…

Just noticeable brightness.  

There was only one color.  

Orange.

Just orange.

Bright orange.

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Different shades of orange.

Wildfire orange—but louder.

And these different shades of orange danced around—kind of like the way the sunlight hits a stream.

It glistened.  


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They resembled what you would see spilling out of a fountain on the Fourth of July.

That’s the best I can do for a description.

At first they where at quite a distance…pretty high up in the sky…and far enough away to kind of have to “squint” too see it.

But it was noticeable.

We both saw it at the same time.

Then it got closer and closer…

And lower and lower…

All of this in a matter of minutes.

“Hey…look, what’s that?! Is a plane going down?!”

I can’t exactly get into how many feet away it was from us...but I can say that you could’ve easily taken a picture of it with your cell phone cam’ (of course in the late 90s the pager was the "thing” to have…haha)!

Even if it was just a regular old flip phone—it would’ve been possible.

We didn’t know what to think!

(And YES…we where SOBER).

By this time it was pretty close to us…and we where freaking out!

 It was about halfway up the sky when…

Out of nowhere…it dropped down…

Straight down—and I mean fast!

Then it was gone—completely gone.

Just like that.


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“Huh?”

By this time we where screaming and started running back towards my house.

Then we stopped for only a brief moment to look back.

Anxiously holding onto each other…we see these lights shoot straight up…high into the sky.

And it disappeared.

Yeah.

There was no bright flash or anything when it disappeared...

It just vanished.

I will never forget that.


Why didn’t anyone else see this?

I didn’t live in the country.

I remember being glued to the television the next day to see if maybe the news had a report about it.

But nothing.

Was it military testing? A comet?

No…would a comet shoot straight up like that?

grcimagenet.grc.nasa.gov
It was definitely NOT an airplane…there was absolutely no blinking lights…no smog, no smoke...

Nothing.

It was just a series of orange “fizzy” lights.

We’ve only talked about it once since it happened.

So besides you thinking that I’m officially crazy—I’d love to hear your thoughts on this.

Or maybe you have a strange but true story of your own to tell.

Please, don’t hesitate to tell me what’s On Ur Mind.

Monday, March 14, 2011

No Offense Wayne...I Just Couldn't Help But to Notice...

Don’t even ask me how I came up with this one.


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I am a fan of horror flicks and Halloween is my favorite holiday. I’m not necessarily "crazy" about gore…but I can handle it.

The other day I was watching a documentary about serial killers (it was a Sunday and there was absolutely nothing on—so don’t judge meJ)!!

And I don’t remember exactly what channel…but man…I’ll tell ya’…this was like the “Serial Killer Hall of Fame.”

I only got to see the last 45 minutes or so, but it was good.

Naturally, I found myself wondering how anyone could be so sick. I couldn’t believe some of the stories I heard. 

That actually happened? 

I can’t even kill a spider, and here I am listening to these vial stories about serial killers.

One story particularly stuck out to me—John Wayne Gacey. Ugh.

I didn’t hear all that much detail—but what I did hear prompted me to do a little research on this weirdo.

Why did I even bother to research him?

Well…once you have a “journalistic mind” you want to know the who, what, where, when and what-ifs of everything...all the time. It can actually be a pain sometimes.

Anyways I came to a realization…

There is a TON of convicted killers that have the middle name “Wayne!”

Seriously.

To name a few—Michael Wayne Summers, Coy Wayne Wesbrook, Jerry Wayne Walker, Randall Wayne Stevens—it goes on and on!


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Follow this link to democraticunderground.com

Pretty crazy huh?

If you just followed that link then you know exactly what I'm talking about.

Now, if your name is Wayne, or your middle name is Wayne, or your dad’s name is Wayne, or your child, etc…

My apologies if you think I'm doggin' the name "Wayne."

I don’t have any problems with the name “Wayne.”

I was just stunned after discovering how many convicted killers have this as a middle name. 

Can you blame me? 

I’d love to hear your thoughts on this.

So please don’t hesitate to tell me what’s On Ur Mind.

Sunday, March 6, 2011

It's A Catch 22

Have you ever wondered who coined the phrase, “catch 22?”

I have heard this phrase quite a bit.


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Every time I hear it I think, “Dang…that just sounds funny.”

Why do people say it?

Where did they learn this phrase?

From word of mouth of course.

But does anyone really KNOW the story behind the phrase?

Or if they are even quoting this phrase correctly?

Do you say it just because it sounds cool?

Or do you say it because you THINK you know what it means?

Yea, I’ve said it…but I was never really comfortable after I said it.

All I knew is that other people said it when they where referring to a specific type of dilemma that didn't work out for them no matter what.

So I must be using this phrase correctly…right?

What is the true meaning to the phrase “catch 22?”

Where did the phrase come from?

I looked it up.

According to answers.com…we all have the right idea about how to use the phrase.

Yes, a “catch 22” does indeed mean that you are referring to somewhat of a “no-win situation.”

Whew!

Now the history behind it.

“Catch 22” is the name of a WWII novel written by Joseph Heller.

In the book, a pilot by the name Yossarian wants to STOP flying dangerous bombing missions.

In order to do so he HAS TO BE declared insane.

He IS declared insane because he WANTS to fly.

However, he KNOWS this mission is dangerous—and because he KNOWS this…he is declared SANE.


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He is in a no-win situation.

So…let me try to clarify this.

If you are in the military and try to make a case that you ARE insane…for example YOU are UNAWARE that you find combat pleasurable—but EVERYONE ELSE around you sees that you LOVE it…you would NOT get discharged.

Although the military CAN discharge you for being insane… they would consider you IDEAL for the mission.

Now, if you try to make a case that YOU think YOU ARE insane by TELLING someone…they would say that you are NOT insane…because only a SANE person would recognize THEIR behavior as abnormal.

An INSANE person would NOT recognize their behaviour as abnormal. A SANE person would.

So basically, you’re damned if you do and you’re damned if you don’t.

You are in a no-win situation.

Confusing—yes.

So, every time you hear someone say, “It’s a catch 22.” You’ll know where the phrase came from and EXACTLY what it means.

I’d love to hear your thoughts on this.

Please don’t hesitate to tell me what’s On Ur Mind.

Tuesday, March 1, 2011

HOT DAMN!


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I think everyone knows someone that just LOVES spicy foods…the spicier the better…right?

But come on…boundaries people!

And don’t get me wrong, I LOVE spicy foods—but to a certain extent.

Have you ever had something so hot that you could’ve swore you seen stars?

Seriously.

And no matter what you did, NOTHING would put you out of your misery.

Yea, I’ve been there.

Which brings me to this one time years ago, a group of us went to eat sushi.

Now, I’m not a “sushi kind of gal.” (Not that there’s anything wrong with that)!

It was something new and it was something different.

So, being the “sushi rookie”—I was introduced to the California Roll.


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Wow…this thing was cool—very appealing to the eye.  

It was rolled all perfectly and had all these little side deals that you could “dip” it in if you wanted.

I know it sounds ridiculous, but for a 19-year-old first timer—this was awesome.

So…here I am dabbling in this and that, when I happen to look over and see this “green gew” so conveniently placed before me.

“What’s this?” I ask.

“Oh, that’s Wasabi…it’s really hot.”

“Oh yea…how hot?” I ask.

“It’s hot. You don’t need that much, just put a little.”

So, in the back of mind I’m thinking, “Yea right. You’re just weak. Your version of hot and my version of hot are two different things. Whatever”


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I grab a knife, and ever so generously apply a heaping spoonful of this “green stuff” to my California Roll.

I take a bite.

And that’s all I can remember.

I swear I seen colors—colors I never even knew existed.

My ears started ringing.

It felt like I had a torch in my mouth.

It was awful.

My eyes were watering, my nose was running, and every pore on my body was panicking.

And come to find out that the California Roll isn’t even really considered sushi.

According to associatedcontent.com, “The California Roll is a sushi roll that contains no raw fish, and is said to have been invented by Tokyo Kaikan, a sushi chef at a restaurant in Los Angeles, California."

Do you know what this means?

The California Roll is technically not sushi—since it was created in the U.S. and contains no raw fish.


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They’ve never even heard of it in Japan.

So there you go. I’m barely finding out now that my first sushi experience was a fake.

It’s a good thing I tried the Tuna.

Do you have a “hot” story to tell? I'd love to hear about it.

Please, don't hesitate to tell me what's On Ur Mind.