It's Xfinity's Watchathon week. Since Tuesday, my spare time has been spent catching up on so much television. Since I'm not paying for premium cable channels, this is a rare opportunity to watch stuff we'd normally have to see through bluray or Netflix. Watchathon ends tomorrow, so I have rearranged my priorities a bit.
The List, so far:
HBO's Girls. Done...with both seasons.
Homeland Season 1. Done. Onto the second season, which I downloaded on my iPad and have for ten days in case I don't finish by tomorrow. I was actually watching it while my making my NYC recap post.
Dexter Season 7. Halfway through.
The Newsroom. Wasn't planning on watching, but have been getting into. I'm multitasking with it on right now.
Consider me occupied until tomorrow...
Saturday, March 30, 2013
Wednesday, March 27, 2013
NYC recap
So we had the pleasure of spending the last couple of days in New York City. The weather this time around was much more doable...even though the one day that we had to wait outside, it snowed/rained and was the coldest. Go figure our last day was the best weather wise and we had to spend that time on the bus back home.
Megabus is awesome by the way, if I never mentioned it before. It was an hour late to pick us up in Baltimore (apparently there was a big accident that was holding up traffic), but it so worth not having to deal with Jersey/NY drivers and the $13 tolls.
Trip recap:
-Staten Island Ferry, which is a free option if you want to get a glimpse of the Statue of Liberty and the cityscape from the water.
-We saw rats in the Subway. I was hoping for Splinter and the Turtles.
-Also saw a women vomit in a bag on the Subway. She then proceeded to ignore the fact that she's carrying around a bag of her own vomit. Lovely.
-The Highline. My favorite place in NYC.
-99 cent pizza
-Dinner in Koreatown
-de Throwdown wafel from Wafel and Dinges' food truck.
-Being in the live studio audience on Comedy Central's The Colbert Report (there'll be a blog post about this soon).
-Seeing my aunt and uncle and having a mini Passover Seder with them.
-Papaya King
-Chinatown (wasn't the greatest and could've lived without)
-Walking. Lots and lots of walking. We ended up walking from the Staten Island Ferry station all the way back up to Midtown (45th St). And not in a straight path, more like a zigzag.
-Seeing my baby brother's twin in Koreatown next to us. Spitting image! Even the mannerisms were spot on.
-Central Park, even though it was raining at that point.
Megabus is awesome by the way, if I never mentioned it before. It was an hour late to pick us up in Baltimore (apparently there was a big accident that was holding up traffic), but it so worth not having to deal with Jersey/NY drivers and the $13 tolls.
Trip recap:
-Staten Island Ferry, which is a free option if you want to get a glimpse of the Statue of Liberty and the cityscape from the water.
-We saw rats in the Subway. I was hoping for Splinter and the Turtles.
-Also saw a women vomit in a bag on the Subway. She then proceeded to ignore the fact that she's carrying around a bag of her own vomit. Lovely.
-The Highline. My favorite place in NYC.
-99 cent pizza
-Dinner in Koreatown
-de Throwdown wafel from Wafel and Dinges' food truck.
-Being in the live studio audience on Comedy Central's The Colbert Report (there'll be a blog post about this soon).
-Seeing my aunt and uncle and having a mini Passover Seder with them.
-Papaya King
-Chinatown (wasn't the greatest and could've lived without)
-Walking. Lots and lots of walking. We ended up walking from the Staten Island Ferry station all the way back up to Midtown (45th St). And not in a straight path, more like a zigzag.
-Seeing my baby brother's twin in Koreatown next to us. Spitting image! Even the mannerisms were spot on.
-Central Park, even though it was raining at that point.
Tuesday, March 19, 2013
Weekly Rewind
A little late but...
Lows:
-That whole Daylight Savings time change screwed up my internal clock. It's been over a week and I'm finally getting adjusted. I just wasn't tired when it was my normal time for bed. And I was exhausted all last week.
-A hinge on my car's gas cap door has been broken off and I've been bootlegging it shut with scotch tape. Don't act like you're not impressed. It kind of adds character...
Highs:
-The sun being out longer is an appreciative plus of Daylight Savings
-Being really busy at work. I think I do better under pressure and the work days have been going so fast.
-A Jimmy John's opened up near me. So excited. I used to love their sandwiches.
-Walking the dog at least a mile as often as I can. She's prone to seizures when very stressed and walking has helped keeping her calm. That and both us could use the exercise.
Lows:
-That whole Daylight Savings time change screwed up my internal clock. It's been over a week and I'm finally getting adjusted. I just wasn't tired when it was my normal time for bed. And I was exhausted all last week.
-A hinge on my car's gas cap door has been broken off and I've been bootlegging it shut with scotch tape. Don't act like you're not impressed. It kind of adds character...
Highs:
-The sun being out longer is an appreciative plus of Daylight Savings
-Being really busy at work. I think I do better under pressure and the work days have been going so fast.
-A Jimmy John's opened up near me. So excited. I used to love their sandwiches.
-Walking the dog at least a mile as often as I can. She's prone to seizures when very stressed and walking has helped keeping her calm. That and both us could use the exercise.
Sunday, March 17, 2013
Shamrock Shake Cupcakes w/ White Chocolate Frosting
Top of the morning...errr...afternoon to you.
St. Patrick's Day. The only day you can get away with looking like a little green man looking for that pot of gold. It's also another excuse to get drunk, because, you know, apparently all the Irish do is drink and fight.
For me, it's an excuse to bake.
I love McDonald's Shamrock Milkshakes. It might be the novelty of being available for a couple of weeks a year, but I always look forward to February because I know they'll start being offered. And then April hits, and the shakes go away. I know there's copycat recipes floating around that I have yet to try. Until then, McD's Shamrock Shakes will have a place in my heart.
So when I saw a recipe for Shamrock Shake Cupcakes from Better Homes and Garden, I stopped what I was doing, immediately printed off the recipe, and checked my pantry. Unfortunately, I didn't have some of the ingredients on hand, so I had to wait til I did my grocery shopping, which was only the next day.
The cupcake itself wasn't too sweet and had a slight mint flavor (I don't think I added enough). The white chocolate buttercream frosting was sweet so it balanced with the cupcake. Overall, pretty good I must say. The recipe calls for Creme de Menthe, but I didn't feel like buying it just for the little bit I needed, so I used milk, mint extract and green food coloring. I also cut the recipe in half since I didn't want 20 cupcakes.
Shamrock Shake Cupcakes w/ White Chocolate Frosting
from Recipe.com (Better Homes and Garden recipe)
Ingredients:
Remember, cut this in half if you don't want 20 cupcakes
Cupcakes
4 egg whites
2 c flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 c buttermilk
1/4 c green creme de menthe <-- Since I cut the recipe in half and didn't have this on hand, I used 4 tbsp milk, 1/2 tsp mint extract (I'd recommend adding more) and green food coloring til I got a deep green color.
1/2 c shortening
1 3/4 c sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
green food coloring
White Chocolate Frosting
2 sticks softened butter
6 oz white baking chocolate with cocoa butter <--- This is important. Look at the ingredients. The consistency won't come out right if it doesn't have cocoa butter. I used Bakers chocolate.
1/3 c whipping cream
powdered sugar
green food coloring
-Allow the egg whites to stand at room temperature for about 30 minutes. In a bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder, soda and salt. In a glass bowl, combine the buttermilk and creme de menthe.
-Preheat the oven to 350. In another bowl, beat the shortening for about 30 seconds. Gradually add the sugar and beat until light and fluffy. Beat in the vanilla. Add the egg whites and beat well. Alternately add the flour mix and the buttermilk mix, a little each time, and beating until everything is just combined.
-Spoon the batter into cupcake liners, about two thirds full.
-Bake for 15-18 minutes or until the tops spring back when lightly touched. Cool the cupcakes completely on wire racks.
-Melt the white chocolate and whipping cream together and stir until smooth. Let it sit for about 15 minutes. Gradually beat the butter into the melted mixture until combined. Gradually beat in powdered sugar until you have the icing consistency you want. And this where I added a drop or two of the food coloring.
Happy St. Patrick's Day!
St. Patrick's Day. The only day you can get away with looking like a little green man looking for that pot of gold. It's also another excuse to get drunk, because, you know, apparently all the Irish do is drink and fight.
For me, it's an excuse to bake.
I love McDonald's Shamrock Milkshakes. It might be the novelty of being available for a couple of weeks a year, but I always look forward to February because I know they'll start being offered. And then April hits, and the shakes go away. I know there's copycat recipes floating around that I have yet to try. Until then, McD's Shamrock Shakes will have a place in my heart.
So when I saw a recipe for Shamrock Shake Cupcakes from Better Homes and Garden, I stopped what I was doing, immediately printed off the recipe, and checked my pantry. Unfortunately, I didn't have some of the ingredients on hand, so I had to wait til I did my grocery shopping, which was only the next day.
The cupcake itself wasn't too sweet and had a slight mint flavor (I don't think I added enough). The white chocolate buttercream frosting was sweet so it balanced with the cupcake. Overall, pretty good I must say. The recipe calls for Creme de Menthe, but I didn't feel like buying it just for the little bit I needed, so I used milk, mint extract and green food coloring. I also cut the recipe in half since I didn't want 20 cupcakes.
Shamrock Shake Cupcakes w/ White Chocolate Frosting
from Recipe.com (Better Homes and Garden recipe)
Ingredients:
Remember, cut this in half if you don't want 20 cupcakes
Cupcakes
4 egg whites
2 c flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 c buttermilk
1/4 c green creme de menthe <-- Since I cut the recipe in half and didn't have this on hand, I used 4 tbsp milk, 1/2 tsp mint extract (I'd recommend adding more) and green food coloring til I got a deep green color.
1/2 c shortening
1 3/4 c sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
green food coloring
White Chocolate Frosting
2 sticks softened butter
6 oz white baking chocolate with cocoa butter <--- This is important. Look at the ingredients. The consistency won't come out right if it doesn't have cocoa butter. I used Bakers chocolate.
1/3 c whipping cream
powdered sugar
green food coloring
-Allow the egg whites to stand at room temperature for about 30 minutes. In a bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder, soda and salt. In a glass bowl, combine the buttermilk and creme de menthe.
-Preheat the oven to 350. In another bowl, beat the shortening for about 30 seconds. Gradually add the sugar and beat until light and fluffy. Beat in the vanilla. Add the egg whites and beat well. Alternately add the flour mix and the buttermilk mix, a little each time, and beating until everything is just combined.
-Spoon the batter into cupcake liners, about two thirds full.
-Bake for 15-18 minutes or until the tops spring back when lightly touched. Cool the cupcakes completely on wire racks.
-Melt the white chocolate and whipping cream together and stir until smooth. Let it sit for about 15 minutes. Gradually beat the butter into the melted mixture until combined. Gradually beat in powdered sugar until you have the icing consistency you want. And this where I added a drop or two of the food coloring.
Happy St. Patrick's Day!
Friday, March 15, 2013
Friday Favorites
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| Favorite Group Sleep. This just looks so weird to me.... |
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| Favorite Baby Giraffe. This has been going around the internets for awhile now. Totally understandable with that baby face. |
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| Favorite Sleepover. This kinda actually looks like fun...to watch. And you know it was a good time if there's a bottle of Siracha sauce laying around... |
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| Favorite Method of Carpooling. Really? What's the purpose of Smartcars anyway? |
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| Favorite Thor Tattoo. The nerd in me thinks this was a little clever. It's Thor's Hammer, with lightning! |
Tuesday, March 12, 2013
National Napping Day
We're two days after the Spring one hour time change. Some of us are feeling great and some of us are feeling like we just can't catch up that lost hour of sleep. Well, rest assured, today is National Napping Day. And that's my kind of day. It's raining and is just completely ugly outside and all I want to do is sleep.
In college, all I did was nap in my spare time. And now in my adult life, I don't nap much at all. The only times I really nap are when I'm sick, reallllyyy bored, or after eating myself a mountain of Chinese food.
We always hear there are so many benefits to getting a full night's sleep of at least 9 hours. Ppppffftt. Who does that, really? With my work schedule, I'd have to go to bed at 9 pm to get those recommended 9 hours. Although I love sleep, I also love my television and am not sacrificing tv time to go to bed early. Sometimes, we're even eating dinner at 9. So nope, not happening.
National Napping Day is a good way to raise awareness; that it's okay to take naps (which I totally need to start doing). Our bodies need it. Unfortunately for me, I don't have much time from getting home from work and going to bed. Napping after work just can't go into the equation. But...napping at work, would be a whole lot better, and that's something I think many would agree with. Unfortunately, I don't think my employer would never go for that idea, let alone advocate it. Maybe yours will though.
Reasons To Nap at Work:
from Huffington Post
-Napping keeps us alert. A small Australian study showed that even after a 10 minute nap, participants felt alert. Not sure if they actually were alert, but at least they felt they had a bit of a boost after that power nap.
-Napping can improve memory and learning. This is probably with longer, deeper naps though. MRI scans have shown that brain activity remains higher with those that nap than those who don't.
-Napping helps creativity. Researchers found that energy remains in the brain's right hemisphere, the side linked to creativity, during sleep.
-Napping makes us productive. Without the right amount of sleep, we deteriorate throughout the day. A 15 minute nap is enough of a boost to get us back to work.
-Napping can make us happy. When I'm tired, I can be cranky and am not fun to be around. I don't need research to say that sleeping can boost our moods.
-Napping helps relieve stress. A nap is a good way to just forget about everything and to "escape" whatever stresses ails you.
Yup. I think those are decent justifications to nap at work. We, as sleep deprived human beings, need a way to recharge our bodies that caffiene just can't do on those long work days.
As for me, I guess I'm stuck with catching a snooze as soon as I get home. It's either that or excercise. And the longer my sleep deprivation continues, the more I'm leading towards the first choice. And it's all due to my love of television...
In college, all I did was nap in my spare time. And now in my adult life, I don't nap much at all. The only times I really nap are when I'm sick, reallllyyy bored, or after eating myself a mountain of Chinese food.
We always hear there are so many benefits to getting a full night's sleep of at least 9 hours. Ppppffftt. Who does that, really? With my work schedule, I'd have to go to bed at 9 pm to get those recommended 9 hours. Although I love sleep, I also love my television and am not sacrificing tv time to go to bed early. Sometimes, we're even eating dinner at 9. So nope, not happening.
National Napping Day is a good way to raise awareness; that it's okay to take naps (which I totally need to start doing). Our bodies need it. Unfortunately for me, I don't have much time from getting home from work and going to bed. Napping after work just can't go into the equation. But...napping at work, would be a whole lot better, and that's something I think many would agree with. Unfortunately, I don't think my employer would never go for that idea, let alone advocate it. Maybe yours will though.
Reasons To Nap at Work:
from Huffington Post
-Napping keeps us alert. A small Australian study showed that even after a 10 minute nap, participants felt alert. Not sure if they actually were alert, but at least they felt they had a bit of a boost after that power nap.
-Napping can improve memory and learning. This is probably with longer, deeper naps though. MRI scans have shown that brain activity remains higher with those that nap than those who don't.
-Napping helps creativity. Researchers found that energy remains in the brain's right hemisphere, the side linked to creativity, during sleep.
-Napping makes us productive. Without the right amount of sleep, we deteriorate throughout the day. A 15 minute nap is enough of a boost to get us back to work.
-Napping can make us happy. When I'm tired, I can be cranky and am not fun to be around. I don't need research to say that sleeping can boost our moods.
-Napping helps relieve stress. A nap is a good way to just forget about everything and to "escape" whatever stresses ails you.
Yup. I think those are decent justifications to nap at work. We, as sleep deprived human beings, need a way to recharge our bodies that caffiene just can't do on those long work days.
As for me, I guess I'm stuck with catching a snooze as soon as I get home. It's either that or excercise. And the longer my sleep deprivation continues, the more I'm leading towards the first choice. And it's all due to my love of television...
Monday, March 11, 2013
Weekly Rewind
Lows:
-Getting so excited for the prospect of a major snowfall. Nope. Another winter storm fail. I grew up in an area where snow just didn't accumulate much, so I actually enjoy shoveling and was looking forward to it this year.
Highs:
-Springing forward for daylight savings. I still think changing the clock is pointless and don't like daylight savings at all, but at least now the sun is out longer.
-Really nice spring like weather. Love it.
-I had some time to kill while the dog was at the groomer, so I got some retail therapy done and boosted the economy. This should be more of a low though since I'm trying to save money.....
-Got my tax refunds!
-Menu planning and being under budget for groceries for the past couple of weeks.
-The dog being groomed. She doesn't look disheveled and crazy...and smells nice....for like a day.
-Getting so excited for the prospect of a major snowfall. Nope. Another winter storm fail. I grew up in an area where snow just didn't accumulate much, so I actually enjoy shoveling and was looking forward to it this year.
Highs:
-Springing forward for daylight savings. I still think changing the clock is pointless and don't like daylight savings at all, but at least now the sun is out longer.
-Really nice spring like weather. Love it.
-I had some time to kill while the dog was at the groomer, so I got some retail therapy done and boosted the economy. This should be more of a low though since I'm trying to save money.....
-Got my tax refunds!
-Menu planning and being under budget for groceries for the past couple of weeks.
-The dog being groomed. She doesn't look disheveled and crazy...and smells nice....for like a day.
Monday, March 4, 2013
Book Review: Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter
Just the title alone should be hint enough that this isn't historically accurate, I would hope so at least.
A couple of birthdays ago, the BF gave me zombie/vampire/undead themed gifts, this book included. It's just taken me long to finally get to it. But once I started reading, it was so hard for me to put down. Seth does a really good job of keeping you interested in the story.
First of all, this is a case where the book is definately better than the movie. Some parts of the movie matched up with the book, and alot of it didn't. Which is fine, because you can read and/or watch either and it won't ruin the other.
The book begins with Seth being approaced by a man named Henry (who just happens to be a vampire friend of Lincoln) to write a book based on Lincoln's personal journals. These journals share the secret of his vampire hunting days. Excerpts from this fictional journal are spread thoughout the book. Although again, not historically accurate, there are alot of similarities between this book and Lincoln's real life. For instance, his mother died when he was young. True. In the book, she just happened to die at the hands of a vampire. He really did fight to end slavery. In the book, the slaveholders just happend to be vampires that were using the slaves as lunch, thus he wanted to eliminate vampirism as well. He was assassinated by John Wilkes Booth. In the book, Booth happened to be a vengeful vampire. The story of the "Lost City of Roanoke" was even answered. It was clever how Seth came up with these supernatural parallels to historical events.
The ending was quite clever too.
SPOILER ALERT!!!!
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Henry and an usually tall gentleman are in Washington DC watching Martin Luther King Jr give his famous "I Have a Dream" speech. And the book ends with "Some men are just too interesting to die." Perfect ending to a (fictional) story about one of the greatest men in US history.
Weekly Rewind
For the past week:
Lows:
-All of the furlough talk. I'm a Dept of Defense employee and will be affected by 22 unpaid days and a 20% salary cut if things don't get figured out. It sucks. I should be okay financially, but I'm worried nonetheless.
-Having the animals wake us up early, early in the morning...when we're in a deep slumber...on one of the few days we have an opportunity to sleep in.
Highs:
-Finished Season 2 of Game of Thrones. That show is amazing. It's a fantasy/war/drama series and I can't get enough of it. A small part of me wants to get HBO just so I can watch this show "live."
-Finished Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter by Seth Grahame-Smith. I'm now a little bummed out that the former president really wasn't a vampire slayer. But I guess he did do other great things.....
-Skyped with my niece Lola. She's gotten so big and is seriously the cutest kid ever. I'm totally not biased about that....
-Booked our NYC hotel and bus tickets. So excited for this trip. The last time we went was for a spontaneous weekend in the middle of February. Let's just say we didn't get to enjoy it nearly as much because of the crazy cold. Here's hoping the weather's much better this time around.
-Discovering a new favorite beer, Redd's Apple Ale. I'm a sucker for commercials and kept seeing them for the Redd's Ale. We tried it, I loved it. End of story. It's tastes like apple cider to me.
Lows:
-All of the furlough talk. I'm a Dept of Defense employee and will be affected by 22 unpaid days and a 20% salary cut if things don't get figured out. It sucks. I should be okay financially, but I'm worried nonetheless.
-Having the animals wake us up early, early in the morning...when we're in a deep slumber...on one of the few days we have an opportunity to sleep in.
Highs:
-Finished Season 2 of Game of Thrones. That show is amazing. It's a fantasy/war/drama series and I can't get enough of it. A small part of me wants to get HBO just so I can watch this show "live."
-Finished Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter by Seth Grahame-Smith. I'm now a little bummed out that the former president really wasn't a vampire slayer. But I guess he did do other great things.....
-Skyped with my niece Lola. She's gotten so big and is seriously the cutest kid ever. I'm totally not biased about that....
-Booked our NYC hotel and bus tickets. So excited for this trip. The last time we went was for a spontaneous weekend in the middle of February. Let's just say we didn't get to enjoy it nearly as much because of the crazy cold. Here's hoping the weather's much better this time around.
-Discovering a new favorite beer, Redd's Apple Ale. I'm a sucker for commercials and kept seeing them for the Redd's Ale. We tried it, I loved it. End of story. It's tastes like apple cider to me.
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