food for thought

So... cooking and/or eating good food is not cheap. Yeah, I'm sure I'm late to realize this since I'm just now, at 27, trying to learn to cook for myself.

The tough part is, I want to cook yummy food, healthy food, AND food with a lot of calories. Do those three things ever come together? In any form other than avocados?

So $50 later, I've got a grand feast of garden herb pork tenderloin, potatoes (to enjoy baked) and yeast rolls. For dessert, cookies (yes, the kind you just plop on a baking sheet and you're golden).

And for breakfast this weekend, I actually bought eggs. Now I have to prepare myself for them not to be nearly as good as my dad's famous scrambled eggs... or as good as Steven's scrambled eggs which are always accompanied with other yummy breakfast goodies and typically served in bed.

I don't like standing in my kitchen alone trying to prepare food. If I'm going to spend the money, I want to be in a house with at least one other person to cook for, and I want to be enjoying wine and listening to some old 33 that someone has brought over to hear on my turntable.

Can I complain a little more?

Yes. Why do people in the express check-out lane stand over to one side while waiting for a check-out counter instead of waiting in the middle so everyone can form a line and wait for the next available check-out. If one person stands in the wrong place, it throws off the whole line. People start getting angry and the aisle gets all conjested and it just puts people in a bad mood. AND, that just defeats the purpose of using the express check-out and getting out of the grocery store with a smile on one's face.

Don't even get me started on people who pull up to the express check-out with shopping carts full. No, no.... no.

Some wives of cyclists seem to be sort of housewives that just hang out and cook for their husbands for when they get back from training or races or whatever shenanigans. I think I've figured out why these women do this. I don't think they ever wanted to end up in that position. They probably had careers and wanted a lot out of life. But then their friends started getting married and/or settling down in committed relationships and they got tired of sitting at home in the US while their significant others race away in Europe. So they just give in. They give in and move to f-ing spain and hang out in kitchens for the rest of their lives while their men pursue their own dreams.

Its quite possible that I'm being a bit dramatic right now. Ok, more than just a bit dramatic. I'm being a drama QUEEN. But I'm aggravated and I miss Steven and I hate cooking. So there.

Let's see how this meal might turn out. Stay tuned.

wednesday emotions

I just finished The Last Lecture. In case you haven't read it yet, make sure you purchase tissues along with the book. Good grief. That was intense. Finishing that book makes me want to do some pretty crazy things with my life. And that's all wrong, because I should always want to do these things in my head... sometimes I'm just too scared.

Last night M came over for some chili. Yes, I cooked it. And yes, it was good. Geez. Well anyway, we had a great time catching up. I wish we weren't both so busy, but I'm glad we could make time for each other.

Then today I got to have lunch with Linz. Again, score. We hit up Little Azio and I dished about my trip to California to visit Steven. She just laughed and laughed at my stories. Haha. I'm still laughing at a few of them myself.

I decided today that I'm very particular about everything involving the restroom. I have a favorite stall and I get cranky if someone is already using it. But what's worse is when I go into a stall (any stall) and there's still 'stuff' in the toilet. I'm talking about everything from literal shit to tampons or... and this may be the worst - a partially drenched toilet cover tissue. You know what I'm talking about. The things you can pull out of the dispenser to place over the toilet seat so you can actually sit on the pot instead of squatting. Well, come on ladies. I don't want to touch that thing! Its been on your butt! I promise it doesn't take much extra energy to turn around and make sure it's been flushed. Ah, I'm getting aggravated just writing about it. I want to cuss.

Well, I think now I'll go finish off the leftover chili and proceed to unpack the gigantic suitcase that's been sitting in my bedroom floor for the past few days. Maybe this time I'll beat the record of leaving it on my floor for 3 solid weeks (after Tour of Missouri).

holiday recap. movie montage style.

little red wagon

Had to get a mani/pedi before leavin' on a jet plane tomorrow at the crack of dawn. Obviously.

So my nails were drying and I had an itch on my nose. So I scratched it.

I'm the only person on this planet that can manage to smudge red nail polish all over my nose in the process.

Its true. The salon lady had to come over and wipe the polish off my nose... in front of everyone. Including Erin, baring witness and photographing my face, pre-public-cotton-ball-nose-swab.

Now I've got to pack up and try to find a little time to sleep before getting up at 3:45 a.m. to head to the airport. I can't believe it's been more than 6 weeks since I've seen Steven. I can't decide what to do first. Hug, kiss or clobber. Hmm...


[my nose still itches]


I'll update on California things when I get back on Sunday. Till then, peace, love and all that stuff.

ducks in a row

Damn.

It's been a long time since I've done this blog thing.

The first time I tried, I was in college and some of my ex-boyfriend's friends kept leaving crappy anonymous comments on every opinion I tried to express.

Second time was a pretty wide span of time between undergrad and now. I wrote mostly when I was upset about something. And that's just wrong.

This time... this time is more inspired by good than bad. I've always been a writer, quite like my grandmother. She passed away this fall and left a lifetime of journals for us all to enjoy. Her views on life, love and trivia are fascinating. Maybe it was magical because she wrote in hardback journals with golden-lined pages. Maybe it was nostalgic because she had handwriting like you'd imagine reading off a document from the 19th century. Maybe it was just because she was my grandmother and I have so much of her personality... I really don't know.

So here goes, 3rd time's a charm.

Its Sunday night and I'm doing laundry and picking up around the apartment, getting ready to catch a plane on Tuesday early in the morning to San Francisco. 2008 has been a year of chaos, among other things, and I'm ready to be held and kissed into 2009.

The whole -no alcohol sale- thing on Sundays really bites. I would kill for a numbers ale right now, but my fridge is bare and... well... its flippin' Sunday.



Post Script of the day: Call people on their birthday... even if your friendship has dwindled and could possibly be non-existent. I missed making a phone call yesterday out of some pride and/or confusion and it feels icky in my heart.

[happy 27th, mclain]