Football Season is Here

Here I sit, in front of the television on a Saturday afternoon.

That will be the opening sentence of every Saturday blog post from now through the 15th of November.

This weekend I turned down a weekend trip to the Jersey Shore with all my girlfriends just to watch the first game of the season at the bar. Had it been on national television, thus able to be watched from the beach house, I still would've stayed in D.C. There's just something about being with 300 Hus.ker fans on football Saturdays.

I have been elected the Game Wa.tch Coordinator this year, so my duty is to handle the raffle every weekend. It's a fun way to get people excited, although the prizes are sometimes less than desirable. And the money goes toward a scholarship fund that sends a D.C. kid to school at the University.

I'm about to paint my toenails red and start playing the fight song.

Happy Game Day!

Boston Harbor

Miss her!

Summer Weekend

Not wanting to blog is not the issue. It's wanting to blog at the wrong times. I only feel like blogging at work, and I refuse to do it. Yet when I get home, my life seems much less interesting to write about. But I will write anyway . .

My birthday par-tay last weekend was pretty fantastic, I must say. Not only was it held at a pretty sweet rowhouse in D.C., the food was delicious. One of the hosts made smoked ribs, corn on the cob, two types of salad, beans, and more. My music mixes provided the perfect background noise on the patio, and I had a wonderful time flitting from one guest to the next. I felt very blessed that so many people would come just to celebrate my day . . and I especially loved the ones that brought a bottle of wine! :)

I can't believe my party hosts were people I met at a bar just one year ago (the ones the Texan introduced me to). I can't wait to be back at that bar with them this Saturday for the first football game of the season!

On Saturday, I went to a BBQ hosted by my boating boys and received a new pair of ski gloves for a birthday gift. I hope to try them out next weekend! We played many games of Cornhole (bean bag toss), (in which I consistently kicked some serious butt), threw around the football, and just relaxed. We filled our stomachs with seasoned, boiled shrimp, grilled pork loin, bbq beans, potato salad, pasta salad, and chips and dip. And dessert? was s'mores around the firepit after dark. The perfect summer BBQ.

This summer has been wonderful, and I'm a little sad to see it winding down, but football season will be totally worth it!

mix-making

I've been back from a wonderful birthday weekend in New England, and I haven't said a word about it! My initial thoughts:

• My best friend and her husband are so fun to be with!
• Most delicious weekend I've had maybe ever! I can't believe my pants still fit!
• So much fun packed into three days! And loads of pictures, of course.
• I miss them already!

Currently I am up too late (as usual!) putting together a few mixes for my birthday BBQ tomorrow night. Making a good mix is harder than one would think! Does anyone have any ideas? I need one semi-chill mix for the BBQ and one "groove/funk" mix for later on (not my words). What artists/songs would you put in a mix?

Birthday Celebration #2

Typically my birthday is celebrated only once per year , on my birthday. But this year, I'm totally banking on good food and fun times. Tonight my roommate Lyn, the fabulous cook, made an extravagant meal that has me stuffed to the brim.

On the menu:
Gewurztraminer white wine
caprese salad (tomatoes with bufalo mozzarella and balsamic vinegar/olive oil)
Bul go gi (beef marinated in soy sauce, sugar, garlic, pepper, sherry wine etc.)
Dak bul go gi (chicken marinated in the same)
mushrooms in same oil
white rice
crab cakes with chipotle aioli
cupcakes fresh from a bakery (served with milk)

I know . . you're so jealous. She is amazing!

I'm letting the food settle and going back for another cupcake! I think I'll have the strawberry shortcake.

Birthday Celebration #1

And what a gorgeous night to celebrate!  My friend and I met up on Capitol Hill for Mexican at Tort.illa Coast.  BBQ fajitas and chips and salsa filled my tummy . . but not enough that I didn't have room for dessert.  We headed to Capit.al Grille for one of my favorite desserts, and a stoli doli (pineapple-infused vodka; drink slowly!) for each of us.  On our long walk to the restaurant, I exclaimed (as usual) how much I love it here and tried to snap a few pictures to show why.

And here is the coconut cream pie with its macaroon-style crust, coconut cream, and caramel rum sauce! 

Even though I love D.C., sometimes I still miss home:

Exciting Things

1. Coldplay, of course - only five days away
2. football season - only one month away
3. the possibility of going to Australia in September - I hope, I hope, I hope
4. the Latin dance gym class I discovered last night
5. the Hermes scarf I won from www.stephanieklein.blogs.com

Now if I could only decide how to wear the twilly scarf . . .

I know, the neck thing does not work for me.

This Week's Dinner

Tonight's dinner was delicious! I invited my old roommate over and made Salmon Burgers with Spinach and Ginger and sides of sweet corn on the cob (fresh out of the husk) and baked potatoes with shredded cheese. Another recipe out of The Gourmet Cookbook:

Salmon Burgers with Spinach and Ginger

45 minutes start to finish

1 (1 pound) piece salmon fillet, skinned and cut into 1/4 inch dice
1/4 pound baby spinach, coursely chopped (3 cups)
3 scallions, minced
1 tbsp finely grated peeled fresh ginger
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 large egg white
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp vegetable oil
2 tbsp drained sliced Japanese pickled ginger (optional, I left out)

Stir together salmon, spinach, scallions, fresh ginger, salt, and pepper in large bowl until well combined.
Beat egg white with soy sauce and stir into salmon mixture.
Form into four 1/2 inch thick patties.
Heat oil in 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat until hot but not smoking. Add patties and cook, carefully turning once, until golden brown and cooked through, 6-7 minutes total.
Serve burgers (with or without buns and with or without pickled ginger topping).

For dessert, it was warm banana pudding. Mmmm. Easy recipe and very delicious!

I Cook!

I recently decided to begin cooking at least one meal per week, because pb&j can only cut it for so long. So far, I have cooked two meals in the past month, one was gourmet, and the other was definitely not. Both revealed my nervousness over cooking times. How do you know when it’s just right? Not undercooked, yet not overcooked. I suppose it just takes practice.

My first meal was only slightly ambitious, as I found it in The Gourmet Cookbook, but it involved a small number of ingredients. Seared Salmon with a Balsamic Glaze. At least it sounds fancy. When I saw that the recipe involved “reducing”, I became very excited. “I know how to reduce! I know what that word means!” This is thanks, of course, to my roommate Lyn who has taught me everything I know in the kitchen. My mother tried, but I had a long list of excuses to get me out of making dinner, such as “I’m reading my Bible” or “I’m doing homework”. The latter she should never have believed.

The salmon dish turned out delicious, but I should’ve reduced the sauce just a bit more. I served it with steamed asparagus and Whole Foods Seeduction bread. I will only buy my seafood from Whole Foods, which means I won't be making it very often. Four fillets cost me $20. Here is the recipe:

Seared Salmon with Balsamic Glaze

1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup water
1 1/2 tbsp. fresh lemon juice
1 tbsp. + 1 tsp. brown sugar
4 (6 oz.) center-cut pieces of salmon fillets with skin
salt and pepper
2 tsp. vegetable oil

• Stir vinegar, water, lemon juice, and brown sugar in small bowl.
• Pat salmon dry and season with salt and pepper.
• Heat oil in 12 inch skillet over medium high heat until hot, not smoking.
• Increase heat to high, add salmon (skin up) and sear until well brown (about 4 min.)
• Turn over until just cooked through (about 3-4 min.)
• Transfer salmon to plates and add mixture to skillet (liquid will bubble and steam). Simmer, stirring until thick and reduced to 1/3 cup (2 min.)
  
• Spoon over salmon.

This week, I finally used my Trader Joe's pineapple salsa. I knew it would be amazing! There really isn't a recipe for this one, because all I did was stir-fry chicken, red and green bell peppers, and pineapple salsa. Delish! I will be keeping a jar of pineapple salsa on hand from now on!

Introductions

Colleague to Russian girl we're interviewing:

" . . and this is Ned. He speaks Russian . .

. . and this is Lisa. She also speaks Russian; she lived there, right Lisa? . .

. . and this is L. She's our big waterskiier and just a really happy person. We need more people like her. "

I may not be bilingual, but I'm happy and I love to waterski. I think that's better than speaking multiple languages, don't you? *smile*

Weekend Update

What a fun-filled weekend I had! And it began with me taking over the world! It appears I am an excellent Risk-player. I exclaimed to my roommate that I hated the game I’d never played before, but I still went over to her friends’ place to play. We ordered kabobs from a nearby Middle Eastern joint, and I made a pre-game announcement that I was about to dominate. Everyone laughed, but my statement soon proved to be accurate. I had taken over Asia (the largest continent), Australia, and was moving into Europe and North America. My red armies were all over the board! I was defeating armies larger than my own, and it quickly became apparent that no one stood a chance at taking me down. I love winning! Maybe I am more strategic than I thought.

Saturday was a lake day, but not at the usual spot with the usual guys. Instead I was at a beautiful lake in Warrenton with my old co-worker/Friend. Her realtor was having an annual party, and I left with a full belly and a new t-shirt! J I also left exhausted from the intense heat and not so much as a light breeze! A pint of Americone Dream at the convenience shop made me feel much better, as did the Coldplay tunes from her stereo. On a side note: Are any of you brought to tears by their amazing new album? Because Friend and I were! I’m not sure I’ve ever been moved so much by a secular album. I don’t know what he’s even singing about, but the music is incredible.

On Sunday, my bedroommate Lyn and I, took a road trip to Philadelphia to visit one of her friends. It was my fourth time to the city, and I was still able to see new things. We had lunch at White Dog Café on the UPenn campus, saw the Liberty Bell, and went through the Constitution Center and the Philadelphia Museum of Art (home of the “Rocky” steps), featuring an Ansel Adams exhibit. All that history made me want to go home and watch the History Channel, but I came home and crashed instead. I love short, quick trips like that. And it cost me under $20, food and all! (thanks to her friend treating us to lunch and ice cream, that is).

I love Google!

Due to lack of love life, I’m living vicariously through my friend right now. She’s out in San Francisco and was just asked on her first date since moving there four months ago. I got the scoop on the guy from her, tried to see his tiny picture on Facebook, but then decided to do a little research on my own. Much to her surprise, I sent her an email the day of her date letting her know at which law firm he worked, how long he had practiced law, where he attended undergrad and law school, and that his childhood friend was a Marine who sadly lost his life in Iraq a couple of years ago.

“I’m confused. If he’s still practicing law, why did he tell me he’s involved in football recruitment.”

“He does entertainment law.”

If anyone needs me to do some snooping, I charge by the hour.

Speaking of a love life and me not having one, The Kansan is actually still in the picture. As a friend. One that consistently asks me to hang out (just the two of us) about every other week or so and occasionally calls me to see how my day was. Strangest thing I’ve ever experienced with a guy, but I feel like I’m on the exact same page. I really enjoy just being his friend . . and hearing how awesome and smart I am on a regular basis is pretty nice, too. We agree on everything from politics to our least favorite college football division, which makes for great conversation. Plus he brings me free copies of US Weekly (sent to his house’s previous tenant) every time we hang out. It’s a pretty sweet deal if you ask me! Now if he would only invite me to see Coldplay with him next month . .

Happy Early Birthday to me!

And it’s much earlier than usual that I’m getting excited this year, because my gift has already come in a way: my plane ticket to New Hampshire has been purchased! I haven’t seen Best Friend since Christmas, the longest we’ve ever gone by far, but I decided a weekend with her is all I wanted for a gift. So although it will be a bit weird to not get any tangible presents from my parents or grandparents, it will be more than worth it to visit her over my birthday (one month from today!). I won’t start planning my itinerary yet, but she does have sole permission to use her in-laws beach house that weekend, so I know some sand and sun are in my future. And hopefully Boston, too!

The last time we celebrated my birthday together (three years ago), it involved a “Rocky Mountain” dinner at a new restaurant and re-runs of the Cosby Show. Exciting, yes . . but clearly this year will be way better!

Pictures from Home

Hi!  I feel like I never "see" you all anymore.  I've hardly had any time to read your blogs, and if I haven't commented, I apologize, because I've probably been at work, and that is one thing I refuse to do at work.  It's ok to read blogs occasionally, but noooo commenting.  

Today I turned in a 10-page proposal at work, and I get to wait all weekend before finding out what my "boss" thinks.  He did say, upon a brief glance, that it was exactly what he was looking for and lengthwise, much more than he expected.  So I'm optimistic.  Except that after he tells me he likes it, I have to really start doing my job and executing all the "action items" I recommended.  Maybe ten pages was a little long.  

I am still getting familiar with the MacBook and probably will be for the next six months, because I just don't have as great an urge to be online anymore.  We'll see how long that lasts.

I do want to share a few pictures from my trip to Nebraska.  It's hard to choose which ones,

 because I had such a wonderful week and every picture seems to have some story behind it.  

This is downtown Omaha, the Old Market area.  Cobblestone streets and old buildings.  Unique shops and restaurants.  I like it.

My sister and I, still downtown.  Look at those big buildings! :)

Pontoon ride at Grandma's lake on a perfect summer evening.

The cake for my sister's lingerie shower.  It was made by my friend, Anne, who just started a cake business.  It was delicious!  Vanilla with chocolate mousse filling.  Plus chocolate cake truffles that were to die for. If you live in Omaha, you've gotta get your cakes from her!

My cute sister and me at her rehearsal dinner.  We made it casual and grilled out Omaha Steaks burgers and chicken at the lake.

On top of the obvious slalom skiing I did, there was also a hotdog ride with my cousin and aunt.  We were whooping and hollering the entire way, attempting to stand up, and laughing when we fell off.

The Fourth of July means fried chicken and lots of yummy sides.  Followed by lots of yummy cakes and homemade ice cream.

Minutes before walking down the aisle.  Doesn't she look pretty?  I mean, she IS pretty, but with that fab make-up job I did, she's beyond pretty. ;)

They took some great pictures!  The ceremony was one of the sweetest I've been to . . and I've been to some incredibly sweet ones.  

back and unmotivated

I've been back since Sunday, but I'm too busy playing with my new black MacBook to talk about my wonderful week at home! There are plenty of pictures and stories to share, of course, and hopefully this weekend I'll sit down and do it.

For now, can I just tell you who added me as a friend on Facebook? The Texan! Ha. I think I'll make him wait for a bit.

last days

Hi! I'm here in Nebraska enjoying the last few days of my sister's singleness. We've had brother/sisters bonding day, an evening of wall painting at her apartment, a day of decor shopping (my gift to her), a fun lingerie shower/bachelorette party, and a mostly smooth rehearsal followed by a fun little BBQ at Grandma's lake. It's all been flying by too quickly, of course, and I can't believe I only have two full days left. Crossing my fingers that crying does not enter the picture at any point within those two days! So far, I feel far from tears, but we'll see if that changes once I see her in her lovely dress. I can't wait to celebrate!

Yum Yum!

Usually strained finances and expensive meals don't go together, but this is me we're talking about . . and I've been eating well lately. And documenting it, of course.

A few weeks ago, my roommate, a fellow food lover and fantastic cook, mentioned a new chocolate restaurant in town. We had no plans on a Friday night, so at 8:30pm we headed to Coco Sala. First of all, restaurant isn't exactly the right word for it. And we shouldn't have been surprised as the name means chocolate lounge. It was more of a posh NYC-style bar with modern decor and velvet booths where we looked completely out of place in our flip flops. We declined the owner's offer of a drink at the bar - we just wanted the chocolate! And after a half hour wait, we got it. Plus a few additional delicious appetizers like:

crispy Louisiana crabcake with mango salsa, chipotle chocolate tomato glaze, and avocado cilantro emulsion

and

mac n cheese with elbow pasta, parmesan and cheddar cheeses, fresh sage, and a cream cheese crust

I was in heaven already.

And then, three courses of chocolate each. My roommate and I shared every dainty treat. Our favorites were:

mini boston cream doughnut with cappuccino panna cotta
milk chocolate, peanut butter and banana foster split &

cinnamon churros with dulce de leche dip

Here's one course:

In Toronto, I took advantage of my travel per diem by treating myself to an extravagant lunch in the classiest neighborhood in town. I later learned that the chef was known as one of the best in the city! No wonder my lunch cost $66! Here's what I ate:

orechiette with braised rabbit, rapini, garlic, and chili - WOW, it was amazing, especially with a yummy glass of Chardonnay

And you know I ordered dessert: chocolate peanut butter bread pudding with caramelized bananas and yogurt sorbet. Words cannot describe.

And this week it was Lebanese food. It had been too long. Again, my roommate and I went to dinner together, ordering a bottle of wine and six small plates to share. It left me perfectly satisfied . . and just barely tipsy, oops! My favorite was the phyllo breaded and fried shrimp with a tahini pistachio sauce.

I'd sleep sheetless for her

I'm back from another summer weekend at the beach, ready (but not feeling ready) to take on the big week ahead, the week where I finish planning and preparing for my little sister's wedding festivities. I can't believe I'll be home in just one week! I hope that week at home is the slowest week of my life, because I want to savor every last moment with Alyssa P_____. I don't even care if she hogs the sheets.

Ok, that last part was a lie. I will always hate it when she hogs the sheets. But maybe not as much this time.

my trip thus far

Word to the wise: Mark your clear 3 oz. bottles when you travel! Since arriving, I have attempted to both clease and moisturize my face with Aveda curl cream! I knew something didn't feel right, but all my liquids are the same color! And they all seem to smell the same, as well.

Twenty-four hours later, I have survived the conference thus far. I've been extremely well-fed and have met lots of nice people, mainly men. I say this only because I often wish I had more females to talk to, because maybe they would throw just a little less over-my-head industry language at me . . and maybe we could talk about clothes or make-up for a few seconds. It's not exactly 'natural' to walk around an event all by yourself trying to strike up conversations with hundreds of men, many of whom know several other members in attendance. I knew no one. But I did it. And I got to talk about football. And I got to watch the last few holes of the U.S. Open. So maybe I'm ok with all the men.

The "grand event" was quite the event last night. Each room had a different theme, played different music, had different dancers (ex: flamenco and tango), and served different gourmet snacks. I felt like I was on Top Chef! I have one more briefing tomorrow morning and then I'm off to be a tourist! I've made a list of neighborhoods I'd like to visit, but with only six hours to do everything, we'll see how far I get . .

about to leave my comfort zone

I don't want to go downstairs. I'm up on the 31st floor in my lovely room with its lovely view of the lake, the CN Tower, and many other skyscrapers. The King-size bed is calling my name, and the flat screen TV looks like it might be fun to watch. Also, I'm pretty hungry and perhaps should be ordering room service. But the real reason I don't want to join the conference? I'm kinda scared.

I'm about to be surrounded by hundreds of senior executives, and I am responsible for telling them all about an initiative that I, myself, am still becoming familiar with. Yikes!

I mean, if you called me up right now, I'd have no problem sharing all the details, boring you to tears, and getting excited about it in the process. But you also probably wouldn't ask me any hard questions.

It's always the unknown we're afraid of, the "what ifs", and the chance of failure or not living up to (usually) our own expectations. But, tough! You've just gotta bite the bullet and do what you have to do. Wish me luck!