Cream Cheese Frosting

I'm pretty sure I can't be friends with anyone who doesn't like cream cheese frosting.

Unless you are lactose intolerant or have never tried the stuff (then I'll just consider you ignorant).

This isn't a joke.  Or a drill.

I made some red velvet cupcakes with cream cheese frosting today, and though I haven't tried the finished product, both the cupcake batter and the finished frosting were pretty much to die for.

Cream cheese frosting will probably be featured in heaven, it's so good.  Or at least the recipe I used today.

Beaten enough that it's light, airy, and sans lumps of butter/cream cheese.

It melts in your mouth, and onto love handles.

(photo courtesy of misquincemag.com)

Lose the weight fast.

I have recently stumbled upon an excellent and fool-proof diet method.

Or rather, my brother has.

Listen closely, take notes, etc. because once I write my book about it, you won't be able to get this advice for free.

Because it is that good.

Ready?  Here it is:

Get really bad tonsillitis, have your tonsils out, and then (*ta da*) you'll lose approximately 20 lbs. in 3 weeks.

Awesome, right?

And (hopefully) when I write that you can see the ridiculousness of using sickness as a diet measure.

No one would choose that, right?!

Yet people try other equally unsafe and absurd options.

You know what would really make sense, to just eat grapefruit for a week.  That would be really good for my body.

Now I'm not a dietician or a nutritionist (although I did take nutrition back when I was playing basketball and could eat a million calories a day without a problem--the class was a little lost on me), but one thing I have picked up over the years is the importance of a balanced diet.

That's why I stick to the main food groups: cookies, bread, cheese and peanut butter.

What can I say?  I'm the epitome of health and wellness.

For more excellent information (or a few laughs), check out FadDiet.com.

Peanut, peanut butter (and jelly)

I've been consuming peanut butter recently at an alarming rate.

But it's so delicious, how can you not want to eat it all the time.

First of all, I was introduced to peanut butter in oatmeal.  If you don't like oatmeal, just ignore that idea, but if you enjoy oatmeal (and peanut butter), mix it up.

I also eat peanut butter on toast, from a spoon, on a banana, with celery, or in a milkshake.

Delicious, all.

I should probably be worried about fat content and other nutrition-related issues, but everything I've heard says that nuts are healthy.

And how can 'everything' be wrong.

I might try avoid too many of the milkshake peanut butter options though.

Ice cream isn't cheap.  Not like celery.

Expensive Jewelry and Valentines Day

I am a member of Gilt and Hautelook, sites that have sales on designer brands.

So far I've purchased two things: a gift for my cousin's wedding shower and a pair of earrings.

I get daily emails telling what's on sale now and I can't help but click through and do a little online window shopping.

Lately I can't seem to help but look at every single jewelry designer they have.  And sometimes those designers are ridiculously expensive.

So expensive, in fact, that when I see an item that drops into the hundreds-of-dollars range I think to myself, "Oh good, something affordable."

When in fact it is not affordable at all.

And even if that was a price I could afford, wouldn't it be better if I had someone to buy it for me.  That's what I really need in my life.

Speaking of needing someone, DO NOT see the movie I Hate Valentines Day.  It's horrible.  So horrible, in fact, that we only made it about half an hour into the movie before switching back to the SAG awards.

It has the woman from My Big, Fat Greek Wedding, which I liked, so I thought this might be cute, too.

Not.

Don't rent it, see it, and definitely don't buy it.  Ever.

The Techie Meets Porn

I have resigned myself to the fact that my blog posts will regularly be sprinkled with stories of my grandfather in the weeks and months to come.

I just can't imagine not sharing some of it with you.

Yesterday my grandfather called to ask if I could help him with a few things around the house, errands to run, etc.  I'm pretty much his personal assistant/techie.

Although I use the techie term pretty losely.  I'm not gifted with computers, but sometimes he needs help signing into his email, which I can definitely handle.

Today we worked on transferring email addresses.  My grandfather has had a prodigy address about as long as there has been email to have.  That's really not an exaggeration either.

Somehow in the process of transferring his contacts (or maybe it happened sooner, without my presence) his computer contracted a virus, or 34.

Suddenly the virus software was asking to be updated to save the computer and I couldn't access a single website.

Yahoo! was dangerous.  Or so said the software.  Maybe that was part of the virus though.

The virus culminated with a pornography pop-up coming on screen, without any encouragement from me--might I add.

That was the point when I realized that it was time to shut it down and walk away.  Nothing like viewing a pornography website with your grandfather to make you walk away.

I think it's time to call in the big guns.  Although I have no idea who that might be.

From the computer crisis we moved on to bigger and better things (i.e. The Dollar Tree and Office Depot), where the real work happened.

I realized today that I'm not looking forward to the jello that seems to be prevalent in retirement homes.  Especially if it's going to have raisins and shredded carrots in it.

Gross.

Paid for Nothing

I had to work today.  Or rather, I was supposed to work today.  From 6-8pm.

So I grabbed a snack, walked out the door and drove to campus, only to find that class had been cancelled and no one had told my coworker and I.

While it was a bummer to make the (short) commute for nothing, I am still getting paid.

I like to relish in the times when classes are cancelled.

Tonight, so far, I've been paid to drive home, eat dinner, wear sweatpants, stalk people on Facebook, watch basketball, write a blog, and cuddle with the puppy.

Not a bad gig.

All Pizza'd Out

Tonight the grandparents took me and my parents out to dinner.

It was nice to spend some time with them and a weekly dinner out has become a bit of a tradition since they moved here.

Unfortunately, the meal out meant that I had pizza for the 3rd consecutive night, which is more than enough for me.  Luckily it was different pizza each night, including homemade pizza last night (yum!).

Tomorrow is mostly a day off from work.  I actually do have to go in from 6-8pm for a seminar, but by that late in the evening I've usually mentally moved onto to the next workday anyways.

That's what I'm telling myself, at least.

I am just really ready to get into more of a rhythm.  I've been doing a terrible job of getting to the gym as often as I'd like.  I also need to get back on track with my meals.

Not that pizza everyday isn't good for you.

The highlight of my weekend was playing Super Mario Bros. for Wii at CC's birthday party (happy birthday, friend!).  Man I enjoy that game.

I'm proud to say that I had two lives left when we finally called it quits.

Now excuse me while I get back to Harry Potter on Blu-Ray.

Blue like that.

Sometimes I'm hit by the sense that my life kind of sucks.  I'm really not where I thought I'd be a this point.

Sure, I know that my life isn't all the bad.  I'm not homeless, I have a job, family and friends that care for me, etc., etc.

But there are moments when life doesn't seem all that peachy.

Like when you're trying to do your taxes and you realize that you are still claimed as a dependent because you've lived at home with your parents all year.

Awesome!

So of course I'm hit by doubts and worries.  I mean, that's pretty human, right?!

Why am do I have a college degree that I'm not really using, a job that I enjoy but isn't really what I wanted, and so little of what most people consider a grown up life.

Cry me a river.

Luckily, I'm not one to dwell to long about these sorts of things.  The downer moments just aren't worth it.

Instead I eat a fudgesicle and wonder why I haven't been eating more of them.  I mean, c'mon, it's only 100 calories and full of chocolate-y goodness.

That sounds like something that should be a part of any well-rounded diet.

Also, my grandfather filled up my tank with gas today.  That's definitely a plus.  At the rate I'm going, I won't be paying for another tank until sometime in February.

(Cross your fingers and yay for a hybrid!)

My life doesn't actually suck.  I know that, but sometimes I don't feel it.

Another part of my problem right now: it's the winter and dark more than half the day and rainy and gross, so that definitely doesn't help with cheery-ness.

Speaking of winter, I learned recently that eating raw vegetables in the winter is not a good idea.

I can't really remember why, but if the internet says so, it must be true.

Now I'm signing off before any other ridiculousness comes to mind.

You are welcome.

Tag teaming, night classes, and reading lips

I know I mentioned that my grandfather is an endless source of entertainment, but I didn't really give any examples so here's one for you.

The other day he told my dad that if my dad and my mom weren't going to be around at any point, my grandfather and his wife would look after us for them.

First of all, my sister (the youngest child) is turning 21 on Tuesday.  And if we should be keeping an eye on anyone it's my grandfather and his wife.  You never know what ideas they'll get in their heads.

I'm actually headed over to his place tomorrow morning to fix his printer (being the tech guru that I am) and take him to Office Depot to make copies of pictures or something.  I should probably mention that he has his own copier and the printer (which has a copier but isn't functional at the moment).

I committed to this errand but started to freak out that I would not be able to get all his errands done and make it to work on time.

So now my mom is coming with me to tag team it.

Speaking of work, I just realized that I have to get my time sheet done and turned in tomorrow.  That's priority #1 seeing as how I haven't had a paycheck since sometime in December (one of the major downsides of having a month vacation while an hourly employee).

At least I only have two hours of work tomorrow.  Ridiculous, yes, but a welcome relief after three straight scheduled night classes to cover.

(I am so thankful for my job.  I am so thankful for my job.)

While working this week I was reminded that I am possibly the worst lip reading on the face of the earth.

I was taken back to my school days (there's a phrase that makes me sound ancient--good thing I talked about my still alive grandfather earlier) when people would "talk" across the room to me and I would smile and nod hoping that was a reasonable response.

Seriously, though, I am really bad.  It took me three tries to get "how are you?"

I'm pretty sure there's no way to get better at lip reading either.  You either have it or you don't.

And I most definitely don't.

Sitting in Sweats

I am maybe the worst networker in the world.  In pretty much any area.  Work-related, blog-related, etc.

Part of it is that I just feel presumptuous networking.  Like, why should I act all "hey, look at me" when I don't even really know what I'm doing.

I joined 20SB, last year during a period of unemployment (which unfortunately did not coincide with unemployment checks as my previous employment had been temporary--yay for being an intern!).

I found myself with oodles of time on my hands, so I thought, "why not?!"

It was a short-lived experience where I "added" a few friends, found a few new blogs, and even had a somewhat creepy conversation via chat with a "blogger."  I still don't really believe that he was.

When I say "short-lived experience," I don't actually mean that it's ended.  I'm still a member.

But really, I don't use 20SB much because why would I ask someone to come check out my half-hearted attempt at blogging that sometimes goes neglected for weeks on end.

(If you're reading my blog for the first time, ignore that last sentence all together.  Seriously.  I put A LOT of effort into my blog.  Everyday.  Except when I don't.)

The blogging over the past month or so was really lame.  I blame that on the fact that I didn't work for most of it, and you can write about sitting on your couch in sweatpants so many times.

Preferably, I shouldn't write about that at all.

I've decided that as a semi-New Year's resolution, I'm going to put a little more effort into my blogging (but not my networking).

Grandfather

I mentioned this already, but my grandparents recently moved to town, with an entire semi of stuff that was supposed to fit in a small two-bedroom apartment.

Needless to say, we are still unpacking.

Today, my grandfather contracted me to hook up his computer, printer, copier and other miscellaneous electronics.

We haven't settled on a fee yet, but we are working on it.

This afternoon I typed up a letter for him.  Luckily I'm pretty much a professional typer.  I hadn't realized that it would come in handy.

Also, my grandfather is an endless sources of entertainment.

It took him over a day to shred a stack of approximately 100 pages deep, he wanted the popup on his computer that told him he had no internet access to go away, and he wants to ask the Comcast man about his Qwest internet account.

The conversations we have.  Seriously.  One of these days I'll have to record a conversation so you can enjoy a verbatim copy.

For now, though, I'll just enjoy them myself.

Unhappily Delayed

I heard some very disturbing news today.

As you are probably aware, the Vancouver Olympics start in approximately a month.

You might not be aware, however, that I only live a little over an hour away (depending on border traffic) from the city.

It's a city I've grown to love and visited numerous times.

I also love the Olympics.  As a lover of all things sports, the Olympics Games are pretty much perfection.

I thought my only regret about the Games this time around would be that I am working.

During Beijing, I was actually an intern through the US Olympic Committee and got to work "Olympic Hours" (6 hours, while getting paid for 8) so I could catch a lot of the action.

However, today I realized that work is not the biggest issue.

Before I break the big news let me just remind you that Vancouver is a little over an hour away from me.  Seriously.  This isn't a joke.

I won't get to watch the Olympics live.  That's right.  The TV networks will actually show the Games tape-delayed here in the Evergreen State.

Disgusting.

And thanks to our satellite, we don't get any Canadian channels either.

It's just not right.

Hiatus from the Kardashians (Thankfully)

My never-ending vacation is finally over.  I worked today for the first time in almost a month.

Not that I am complaining (about the long break or being back to work).

It's probably a good thing I'm back.  You can only watch so many episodes of The Real Housewives of Orange County and Keeping Up with the Kardashians before you start to lose brain cells.

And I passed that benchmark a week or so ago.

But, man, can those Kardashians be entertaining.  Anytime you see a mom accidently give her son a semi-permanent erection with male enhancement drugs, there are laughs to be had.

You can't make that up.  Neither can I.

So now I'm back at work, my sister is in London (I don't want to talk about it.), and my brother has tonsillitis.

One sibling is obviously winning 2010 so far.

Which reminds me, you may not be aware that it's actually a new year and if Hollywood and the Mayan calendar are to be believed, we only have two more years left on earth.

Use them wisely.

I've been considering doing a New Year's-esque blog posting along with every other Tom, Dick, and Harriet, but I'm kind of over it so I'll sum up my goals for the year right now:

• Go to Europe this summer.
• Find a job that I could see myself in semi long term.
• Continue my attempt at healthy living.

Hopefully, I meet all three of those.  But only time will tell.

A Week in Fast Forward

After a very relaxing first two weeks of vacation, things picked up a little bit this past week.

There was a wedding to attend, my grandparents to move to town, a trip by the sis and I half-way across the state to celebrate New Years with the cousins, and not enough sleep to go around.

Seriously the last week has consisted of billions of boxes, bull and bronc riding, and semi-sleepless nights.

I'm not even kidding.

I mean, I went to a rodeo and saw a chicken scramble.  Hundreds of children chasing after chickens.  On New Years Eve.  You can't make that up.

I did learn that small children and a dirt arena = a lot of laundry to do.  Thankfully I learned that by observation and not by personal experience.

Since I don't have children that I know of.  Or any on the way (just to be clear).

Now I have two days of vacation left and then it's back to the grind.

Of course, those two days involve continuing to unpack the grandparents and getting the sister ready for London.  (Jealous!)

But who's counting?!