I've been on a mission.
I've been seeking Wow.
I've spent the past 18 months relearning, rethinking and redefining "Wow".
It doesn't look the way I thought or the way I remember (well, kinda remember). In all honesty, my wow looks better than I ever could have imagined. It's sweeter and simpler. And in that sweet simplicity I find magic.
I do believe in magic. I do. And no one can convince me otherwise.
I don't find wow where I used to find it. Thank Goodness!! Often I find it around me in the world. Bright beautiful moments that make me stare in wonder like a child. More often than not I find wow in the brilliant stars I collect in my orbit that masquerade as people.
In addition to this seeking of wow I've found myself seeking love in my life as well. Craving it, really. It's been more years than I care to admit. A lot of years ... Did I mention its been years?
Ugh. Years.
Pfffffftttt.
So I love that I heard "wow" in reference to love come from a star spinning in my orbit in the last couple weeks. It's simplicity was absolutely awesome. It was actually a definition of love offered to me in exchange for my opinion.
Now, I've heard folks try to define love with words and criteria, sex and categories, requirements and strategies. But never in my life have I heard love described as a scenario. A scenario so beautifully culled down that I feel I may shame it with my own words. I'll try to do it justice and apologize in advance for anything I miss or leave out.
As I - if I - remember it begins with getting ready to go to a dinner party at a friends. Get dressed, get in the car, drive to party. Get to party, part ways, mingle apart from one another. One talking to one group and one talking to another group. Quietly bring food to the other, not because one asked but simply because it was their favorite and a small lovely unsolicited gesture. And somewhere in the evening over the noise and across the room you catch each others eyes. And without saying a word it's understood that the sentiment is as follows:
I'm busy and distracted in this moment but you are the most important thing on my mind and in my heart and I'm coming right back to you.
Essentially, I'm here. And you matter. And it's unspoken.
You are my heart space.
(Pause)
Wow.
And that was it. A whole definition of love. Just like that.
It floored me.
(Wendy stares wide eyed in wonder like a child)
Heeeeeeyyyyy .. I WANT THAT!!
So I'm gonna spend some quality time shouting that request out to the universe and being incredibly grateful to the star that shared that light.
And maybe, if I'm really really lucky, there will be cheese, bread, berries and green grapes on the plate lovingly provided by my Wow.
Sunday, August 31, 2014
Stasis
These thoughts began at about 5:00am.
Oddly, it's one of my favorite hours of the day. It's the hour before the sun breaches the horizon, the hour before the world is a flurry of activity, the time before the world comes to life and I feel the need to spring into action. It's quiet and I can breathe. For a moment everything feels clear and clean and possible.
Stasis.
It's a rare space that I have difficulty finding and truly cherish when I do.
Obviously, it makes me feel reflective and contemplative. Today is no exception. But this particular 5:00am feels a bit like a gift that I have a responsibility to receive. This last week has afforded me the opportunity to review the sum of all my parts in many many ways. It might almost be rude to not accept this hour as a reason to reflect and celebrate. I graciously and gratefully accept.
The universe provides. Man, does it ever. Sometimes I actually have the wherewithal to "get it".
I've been running and jumping and playing so fast and furious for the past year and this last month my world has slowed way down. Waaaaaayyyyy down. I began that journey into doubt and anxiety that something was going wrong and maybe I'd lost the mojo that I'd been riding ... (Because thats where my silly little brain likes to go) ... When it snapped into focus like lightening.
The universe had very deliberately slowed my pace because there was something I needed to focus on. A few things, actually.
The past month has been a whirlwind of new and crazy and uncertain and peculiar.
I needed time and space to be in those moments. 'Cuz it's worth it.
The past week was truly the sum of my parts. I needed time to stop learning and start engaging and employing.
I hit some milestones. Major ones. Minor ones.
I hit my target weight which is a huge deal as it was so incredibly important to me to be able to begin and complete a goal for so many reasons I just don't have words to explain, That path began an odyssey that took me places I never thought myself capable of.
My outsides and insides are aligned. I'm awestruck.
I completed a two year life changing journey that has been wrought with pain and agony and struggle and beauty and wonder ... Again, I don't have sufficient words.
I am listening - en masse, with great clarity - to the culmination of phrases and thoughts lovingly gifted to me over a span of 20 years and they finally all fit. Make sense. Apply.
I got seriously uncomfortable and then found courage and got in motion.
I found - dare I say - a moments worth of balance and when I couldn't I reached out and found those that could hold me steady.
I had one of those "A-ha" weeks where all these things converged to create a perfect storm of goodness ... And I was there, present, awake, alive and accounted for to "get it".
That's a miracle for this little girl. I found that illusive little space where I understood the balance of action and stasis.
So, thank you Universe, for slowing my roll.
And, thank you self, for putting in the hard work to get me here.
Job well done. 'Cuz it's worth it.
Some of the things that hit their mark?
(But first, lets not get it twisted ... I've "known" these things .. "Heard" these things .. They just all came together in a manner in which I could feel them and see the proof of them working)
Don't open your mouth until you can NOT be full of shit.
The bravest thing you'll ever do is fall apart.
Courage is being scared shitless and doing it anyway.
Everyone's opinion is none of your damn business.
Choose wisely and treat kindly.
Don't leave before the miracle.
Be brave and then be patient.
Saying you won't accept my help is like saying you don't trust my friendship.
Human being rather than human doing.
We celebrate all successes .. No matter the size.
Live, love and laugh.
Tell on yourself.
Be sure your head and heart and shoulders and intentions are all facing the same direction.
Live. It. Out. Loud.
And then a more recent one. One that literally stopped me in my tracks causing me to dig desperately in my purse for a pen to write it down on the first scrap of anything I could find.
"Sometimes I can't tell the difference between a catastrophe and a miracle."
(Hitched breath)
(Slow exhale)
(Lightening bolt)
I don't have words for exactly what happened to me when I heard that ... But it was profound.
And I had to force myself into one of those quiet moments and sit with those words for a bit. We had to get to know each other. We had to define our relationship. We had to stare each other down and be pissed at each other for a while. Then we had to hug it out and decide to love each other.
I fear I've mistaken one for the other and not appropriately celebrated either.
I'm working on it.
I think both are important.
I think I've done myself and those situations the great disservice of creating one when I needed the other and ignoring them both when they begged for my attention.
I'm working on that too.
So this morning I sat with myself ... At 5:00am ... And stasis settled on me and I welcomed it. And we just were.
She gave me room and I chose to reflect and appreciate.
And I made a promise that I'd continue to embrace the catastrophe and seek the miracle.
Then I'll be brave and be patient
But I'm human and busy and distracted and forgetful .. So I'll be reaching out to my angels to give me gentle reminders. I'll be sure to return the love. This is why we keep our angel wings around each other. Because at 5:00am it all comes together and makes sense.
Oddly, it's one of my favorite hours of the day. It's the hour before the sun breaches the horizon, the hour before the world is a flurry of activity, the time before the world comes to life and I feel the need to spring into action. It's quiet and I can breathe. For a moment everything feels clear and clean and possible.
Stasis.
It's a rare space that I have difficulty finding and truly cherish when I do.
Obviously, it makes me feel reflective and contemplative. Today is no exception. But this particular 5:00am feels a bit like a gift that I have a responsibility to receive. This last week has afforded me the opportunity to review the sum of all my parts in many many ways. It might almost be rude to not accept this hour as a reason to reflect and celebrate. I graciously and gratefully accept.
The universe provides. Man, does it ever. Sometimes I actually have the wherewithal to "get it".
I've been running and jumping and playing so fast and furious for the past year and this last month my world has slowed way down. Waaaaaayyyyy down. I began that journey into doubt and anxiety that something was going wrong and maybe I'd lost the mojo that I'd been riding ... (Because thats where my silly little brain likes to go) ... When it snapped into focus like lightening.
The universe had very deliberately slowed my pace because there was something I needed to focus on. A few things, actually.
The past month has been a whirlwind of new and crazy and uncertain and peculiar.
I needed time and space to be in those moments. 'Cuz it's worth it.
The past week was truly the sum of my parts. I needed time to stop learning and start engaging and employing.
I hit some milestones. Major ones. Minor ones.
I hit my target weight which is a huge deal as it was so incredibly important to me to be able to begin and complete a goal for so many reasons I just don't have words to explain, That path began an odyssey that took me places I never thought myself capable of.
My outsides and insides are aligned. I'm awestruck.
I completed a two year life changing journey that has been wrought with pain and agony and struggle and beauty and wonder ... Again, I don't have sufficient words.
I am listening - en masse, with great clarity - to the culmination of phrases and thoughts lovingly gifted to me over a span of 20 years and they finally all fit. Make sense. Apply.
I got seriously uncomfortable and then found courage and got in motion.
I found - dare I say - a moments worth of balance and when I couldn't I reached out and found those that could hold me steady.
I had one of those "A-ha" weeks where all these things converged to create a perfect storm of goodness ... And I was there, present, awake, alive and accounted for to "get it".
That's a miracle for this little girl. I found that illusive little space where I understood the balance of action and stasis.
So, thank you Universe, for slowing my roll.
And, thank you self, for putting in the hard work to get me here.
Job well done. 'Cuz it's worth it.
Some of the things that hit their mark?
(But first, lets not get it twisted ... I've "known" these things .. "Heard" these things .. They just all came together in a manner in which I could feel them and see the proof of them working)
Don't open your mouth until you can NOT be full of shit.
The bravest thing you'll ever do is fall apart.
Courage is being scared shitless and doing it anyway.
Everyone's opinion is none of your damn business.
Choose wisely and treat kindly.
Don't leave before the miracle.
Be brave and then be patient.
Saying you won't accept my help is like saying you don't trust my friendship.
Human being rather than human doing.
We celebrate all successes .. No matter the size.
Live, love and laugh.
Tell on yourself.
Be sure your head and heart and shoulders and intentions are all facing the same direction.
Live. It. Out. Loud.
And then a more recent one. One that literally stopped me in my tracks causing me to dig desperately in my purse for a pen to write it down on the first scrap of anything I could find.
"Sometimes I can't tell the difference between a catastrophe and a miracle."
(Hitched breath)
(Slow exhale)
(Lightening bolt)
I don't have words for exactly what happened to me when I heard that ... But it was profound.
And I had to force myself into one of those quiet moments and sit with those words for a bit. We had to get to know each other. We had to define our relationship. We had to stare each other down and be pissed at each other for a while. Then we had to hug it out and decide to love each other.
I fear I've mistaken one for the other and not appropriately celebrated either.
I'm working on it.
I think both are important.
I think I've done myself and those situations the great disservice of creating one when I needed the other and ignoring them both when they begged for my attention.
I'm working on that too.
So this morning I sat with myself ... At 5:00am ... And stasis settled on me and I welcomed it. And we just were.
She gave me room and I chose to reflect and appreciate.
And I made a promise that I'd continue to embrace the catastrophe and seek the miracle.
Then I'll be brave and be patient
But I'm human and busy and distracted and forgetful .. So I'll be reaching out to my angels to give me gentle reminders. I'll be sure to return the love. This is why we keep our angel wings around each other. Because at 5:00am it all comes together and makes sense.
Tuesday, May 20, 2014
Three Heathy Habits
Blog Challenge Day Fourteen: Three Healthy Habits
I got fit.
To be completely honest, I was just like a bazillion other folks deciding to declare war against my fatness at the beginning of the year. A friend and I made our resolutions and big plans and found a gym. We hit that gym hard ... With gusto and devotion. We kept each other going and changed up workouts and diets and music and motivating factors. We sought out a fantastic trainer. We stayed the course. Then something happened. Right about the time we typically should have lost interest and resumed our skeevy lazy habits, I noticed that I was changing. And that small something became EVERYTHING. It's no secret that I have struggled all of my adult life with alcohol addiction. When that is your life NOTHING ever changes. Each day is a tragic carbon copy of the last. It is an endless non stop cycle of destruction and madness. So those couple of inches and few little endorphins were the first evidence that I really could make a change in my life. It was the first change I'd seen in the better part of a decade. It was like I had thrown off chains. That half hearted New Years resolution managed, magically, to set in motion a chain of events that changed the course of my life, turned me upside down and set me on a path I never could have imagined. I'm forty pounds lighter and a very different person than the one that started that journey.
So I got honest.
Those little changes gave me back a confidence I had lost some nine years earlier. So I decided to make bigger changes. I have always worked hard to be an authentic person. Tried, anyway. I am at my best when I am being and feeling exactly what I need to be in any given moment. I'm a better me for the folks in my life when I am in that space. But that is not entirely possible when living a lifestyle that is consumed by being completely toxic and polluted. So I got clean. I called out my angels and called myself on the carpet and tore down all my secret hiding places ... I came clean. That is a heathy habit I work at every day. It's the hardest work with the greatest rewards and most terrifying consequences I've ever taken on. And it will never end. This is for life. All in or back out.
Then I got busy.
I've been living in a self made, self imposed coffin for a long long time. I hate that I missed so much of my life. Regret is the heaviest thing I've ever known. So, with a new body and new outlook and renewed clarity and purpose I filled my calendar and got busy. Busy with ALL kinds of awesome stuff and even more awesome people. My weeks are packed with activity and laughter, chaos and exhaustion, food and fabulousness, bold, colorful events and sweet, sentimental moments. Man, I'm livin. And it feels amazing to even breathe on this planet. Only thing better than that? I'm ready for even bigger and MORE awesome things. This girl is just beginning to flex her wings.
I'm open to any other curve balls the universe sees fit to throw my way. Seems that I weather positive changes and shake ups pretty well. And when I'm fit (inside and out), honest and busy livin the storms I have to walk through don't seem quite so tumultuous after all. Or at least they dont seem to last as long.
I got fit.
To be completely honest, I was just like a bazillion other folks deciding to declare war against my fatness at the beginning of the year. A friend and I made our resolutions and big plans and found a gym. We hit that gym hard ... With gusto and devotion. We kept each other going and changed up workouts and diets and music and motivating factors. We sought out a fantastic trainer. We stayed the course. Then something happened. Right about the time we typically should have lost interest and resumed our skeevy lazy habits, I noticed that I was changing. And that small something became EVERYTHING. It's no secret that I have struggled all of my adult life with alcohol addiction. When that is your life NOTHING ever changes. Each day is a tragic carbon copy of the last. It is an endless non stop cycle of destruction and madness. So those couple of inches and few little endorphins were the first evidence that I really could make a change in my life. It was the first change I'd seen in the better part of a decade. It was like I had thrown off chains. That half hearted New Years resolution managed, magically, to set in motion a chain of events that changed the course of my life, turned me upside down and set me on a path I never could have imagined. I'm forty pounds lighter and a very different person than the one that started that journey.
So I got honest.
Those little changes gave me back a confidence I had lost some nine years earlier. So I decided to make bigger changes. I have always worked hard to be an authentic person. Tried, anyway. I am at my best when I am being and feeling exactly what I need to be in any given moment. I'm a better me for the folks in my life when I am in that space. But that is not entirely possible when living a lifestyle that is consumed by being completely toxic and polluted. So I got clean. I called out my angels and called myself on the carpet and tore down all my secret hiding places ... I came clean. That is a heathy habit I work at every day. It's the hardest work with the greatest rewards and most terrifying consequences I've ever taken on. And it will never end. This is for life. All in or back out.
Then I got busy.
I've been living in a self made, self imposed coffin for a long long time. I hate that I missed so much of my life. Regret is the heaviest thing I've ever known. So, with a new body and new outlook and renewed clarity and purpose I filled my calendar and got busy. Busy with ALL kinds of awesome stuff and even more awesome people. My weeks are packed with activity and laughter, chaos and exhaustion, food and fabulousness, bold, colorful events and sweet, sentimental moments. Man, I'm livin. And it feels amazing to even breathe on this planet. Only thing better than that? I'm ready for even bigger and MORE awesome things. This girl is just beginning to flex her wings.
I'm open to any other curve balls the universe sees fit to throw my way. Seems that I weather positive changes and shake ups pretty well. And when I'm fit (inside and out), honest and busy livin the storms I have to walk through don't seem quite so tumultuous after all. Or at least they dont seem to last as long.
Inside My Fridge
Blog Challenge Day Thirteen: Inside My Fridge
Not sure I can make this even remotely interesting ...
Light ranch dressing - a staple in this house and, I imagine, in Texas on the whole
Green goddess dressing
Vinegar
Izze sparkling juice
Cranberry juice
Milk
Diet dr pepper
Coke zero
Coffee creamer
A host of condiments. Boring stuff like ketchup and mustard and some fun stuff like spicy Thai sauce, white balsamic dressing and sesame oil
Left over spaghetti
Greek yogurt
Pickles
Left over goodies for our last cooking event (seafood)
Coffee
Fruit
Fresh veggies
Left over Chinese food
Whole grain bread
Lunch meat
Sliced cheese
This is, by far, the worst blog topic on the list yet.
Yeah, I'm over it.
I need peanut butter cookies ... They are beside the fridge. Does that count?
Not sure I can make this even remotely interesting ...
Light ranch dressing - a staple in this house and, I imagine, in Texas on the whole
Green goddess dressing
Vinegar
Izze sparkling juice
Cranberry juice
Milk
Diet dr pepper
Coke zero
Coffee creamer
A host of condiments. Boring stuff like ketchup and mustard and some fun stuff like spicy Thai sauce, white balsamic dressing and sesame oil
Left over spaghetti
Greek yogurt
Pickles
Left over goodies for our last cooking event (seafood)
Coffee
Fruit
Fresh veggies
Left over Chinese food
Whole grain bread
Lunch meat
Sliced cheese
This is, by far, the worst blog topic on the list yet.
Yeah, I'm over it.
I need peanut butter cookies ... They are beside the fridge. Does that count?
Monday, May 19, 2014
Favorite Childhood Book
Blog Challenge Day Twelve: Favorite Childhood Book
First and foremost, one of the best gifts my mother ever gave me was the love of and deep respect for reading. I do not just think of it in terms of all the wonderful books I've read and will read but in terms of how closed and small my world would be without that ability. Early exposure to reading opened my world to expression, education, writing and a myriad of other wondrous things. I can not imagine a world in which the simplest things would be a plaguing mystery without use of words. Street signs. Newspapers. Medications. Instructions. How trapped and helpless would I be without the magic of words?
I am told that I've had a book in my hand since age two.
Thank you mom.
Best. Gift. Ever.
That being said, I don't remember having a favorite childhood book. I DO remember that I had a Sesame Street book ordered with my name worked into the story. It was awesome. Big Bird talking to ME? Really?! How cool was I??
I have a collection of books that was special ordered for me when I was a wee one that I treasure. I've never seen or heard of the series in any store I've been to. I love them. They are full of magical creatures and little virtuous messages .... And scrawled crayon remnants of my childhood.
But I can not pinpoint any one book that was a bonafide fave.
I do, however, have distinct memories of when reading began to have meaning and bring substance to my life.
Oddly, in the genre of horror. ..... Considering the source, perhaps not odd at all.
There was a period when my mother was really really into Stephen King novels. She devoured them. And I wanted to be a part of anything grown up and "big". So I followed her into that literary journey. I became terrified by Cujo, mesmerized by The Shining and completely obsessed with It. More than that, it was during this time that I became aware of what reading awakened in me. I felt the wings of my imagination stretch, flex and take flight. I understood that my vocabulary was growing, my ability to write was developing, my thoughts expanding and my world opening. I learned about relaxing through reading and escaping and broadening my thoughtscapes. Essentially, I learned about the power of learning.
Mental murals and cerebral scrapbooks.
This was the first time I had even the slightest comprehension that my mind and my education was something - if not the only thing - that can never be taken from me. It's mine.
These days I'm thrilled about poking around to read and learn things I'm not yet familiar with.
I love Love LOVE books. Real books. Books with pages.
I love losing myself in them, trading them, sharing them, finding myself in them, losing myself in them and finishing one with the absolute certainty that I've added a few dimensions to my orbit and am vastly more curious than before about, well, EVERYTHING.
So, thank you Cujo and thank you Jack and thank you Pennywise <shiver>
And thank you to the writers who keep expanding the universe.
And thank you to all my geeky friends who share my passion and keep the circle / cycle of pages going.
... And, again, thank you mom.
"Oh, the places you'll go!" - Dr Suess
First and foremost, one of the best gifts my mother ever gave me was the love of and deep respect for reading. I do not just think of it in terms of all the wonderful books I've read and will read but in terms of how closed and small my world would be without that ability. Early exposure to reading opened my world to expression, education, writing and a myriad of other wondrous things. I can not imagine a world in which the simplest things would be a plaguing mystery without use of words. Street signs. Newspapers. Medications. Instructions. How trapped and helpless would I be without the magic of words?
I am told that I've had a book in my hand since age two.
Thank you mom.
Best. Gift. Ever.
That being said, I don't remember having a favorite childhood book. I DO remember that I had a Sesame Street book ordered with my name worked into the story. It was awesome. Big Bird talking to ME? Really?! How cool was I??
I have a collection of books that was special ordered for me when I was a wee one that I treasure. I've never seen or heard of the series in any store I've been to. I love them. They are full of magical creatures and little virtuous messages .... And scrawled crayon remnants of my childhood.
But I can not pinpoint any one book that was a bonafide fave.
I do, however, have distinct memories of when reading began to have meaning and bring substance to my life.
Oddly, in the genre of horror. ..... Considering the source, perhaps not odd at all.
There was a period when my mother was really really into Stephen King novels. She devoured them. And I wanted to be a part of anything grown up and "big". So I followed her into that literary journey. I became terrified by Cujo, mesmerized by The Shining and completely obsessed with It. More than that, it was during this time that I became aware of what reading awakened in me. I felt the wings of my imagination stretch, flex and take flight. I understood that my vocabulary was growing, my ability to write was developing, my thoughts expanding and my world opening. I learned about relaxing through reading and escaping and broadening my thoughtscapes. Essentially, I learned about the power of learning.
Mental murals and cerebral scrapbooks.
This was the first time I had even the slightest comprehension that my mind and my education was something - if not the only thing - that can never be taken from me. It's mine.
These days I'm thrilled about poking around to read and learn things I'm not yet familiar with.
I love Love LOVE books. Real books. Books with pages.
I love losing myself in them, trading them, sharing them, finding myself in them, losing myself in them and finishing one with the absolute certainty that I've added a few dimensions to my orbit and am vastly more curious than before about, well, EVERYTHING.
So, thank you Cujo and thank you Jack and thank you Pennywise <shiver>
And thank you to the writers who keep expanding the universe.
And thank you to all my geeky friends who share my passion and keep the circle / cycle of pages going.
... And, again, thank you mom.
"Oh, the places you'll go!" - Dr Suess
Thursday, May 15, 2014
Ten Favorite Foods
Blog Challenge Day Eleven: Ten Favorite Foods
I, personally, find this almost insulting. Ten?! Really?
There is a WORLD of amazing deliciousness out there and I intend to eat my way around the world and back.
How about ten "crave-ables"?
1. Cheesy chili dip. Y'all know its what's up. Truth be told, it's actually a lovingly modified version of a recipe from Tammy D. Appropriate, as she is my partner in food-ness and willing food adventurer.
2. Tater tot casserole. Straight up shamelessly stolen from Tammy D. See above mentioned reference.
3. Fruit. I adore fruit. I love it on its own and in all manner of goodness. Besides, it is a fantastic way (when used as an appetizer) to assuage the guilt of my indulgences. It's kinda like putting black beans in something and allowing yourself to believe said beans made it instantly healthy. I'm all good with that delusion. Keep that vile melon away from me though. Pffffffttt
4. Salads. I love salads because so many ultra cool things can be added to make them more fabulous. They also, despite the amount of calories I pile on top of greens, help me labor under the delusion that I'm eating healthy. Add fruit? Awesome!! Add bacon? Utopia.
5. Bacon. Need I even expound? Moving on ...
6. Thai food. Bring on the peanut sauce and rice noodles. Don't EVEN get me started on the healing powers of Pad Thai and ALL manner of curries. Heaven.
7. Chinese food. The ultimate in comfort food. Give me a rainy day, warm blanket, lit candle, excellent book and a BIG OL mess of Chinese food ANY day. Instant docile ninja.
8. Crab legs. Don't mind if I do!! Ridiculously yummy and I have a love affair with any food that requires poor manners, a huge mess and eating with ones hands. Socially acceptable inappropriate table behavior is all good in my book.
9. Cheese. If you need an explanation you also need therapy. That is all.
10. Turnovers. My fave dessert and what I always seem to crave on a cold winter day. Again, with fruit. Throw in some coffee and a foot massage and I can pretty much guarantee that I can be bribed to do an obscene number of things.
So, add these ten to the gazillion other things I love to eat and the surface may be scratched. I'm a firm believer that food is a universal language, an ultimate gesture of love, an adventure just waiting to be born and a blissful way to return oneself to cheerful.
Cheers!
Nom nom nom
I, personally, find this almost insulting. Ten?! Really?
There is a WORLD of amazing deliciousness out there and I intend to eat my way around the world and back.
How about ten "crave-ables"?
1. Cheesy chili dip. Y'all know its what's up. Truth be told, it's actually a lovingly modified version of a recipe from Tammy D. Appropriate, as she is my partner in food-ness and willing food adventurer.
2. Tater tot casserole. Straight up shamelessly stolen from Tammy D. See above mentioned reference.
3. Fruit. I adore fruit. I love it on its own and in all manner of goodness. Besides, it is a fantastic way (when used as an appetizer) to assuage the guilt of my indulgences. It's kinda like putting black beans in something and allowing yourself to believe said beans made it instantly healthy. I'm all good with that delusion. Keep that vile melon away from me though. Pffffffttt
4. Salads. I love salads because so many ultra cool things can be added to make them more fabulous. They also, despite the amount of calories I pile on top of greens, help me labor under the delusion that I'm eating healthy. Add fruit? Awesome!! Add bacon? Utopia.
5. Bacon. Need I even expound? Moving on ...
6. Thai food. Bring on the peanut sauce and rice noodles. Don't EVEN get me started on the healing powers of Pad Thai and ALL manner of curries. Heaven.
7. Chinese food. The ultimate in comfort food. Give me a rainy day, warm blanket, lit candle, excellent book and a BIG OL mess of Chinese food ANY day. Instant docile ninja.
8. Crab legs. Don't mind if I do!! Ridiculously yummy and I have a love affair with any food that requires poor manners, a huge mess and eating with ones hands. Socially acceptable inappropriate table behavior is all good in my book.
9. Cheese. If you need an explanation you also need therapy. That is all.
10. Turnovers. My fave dessert and what I always seem to crave on a cold winter day. Again, with fruit. Throw in some coffee and a foot massage and I can pretty much guarantee that I can be bribed to do an obscene number of things.
So, add these ten to the gazillion other things I love to eat and the surface may be scratched. I'm a firm believer that food is a universal language, an ultimate gesture of love, an adventure just waiting to be born and a blissful way to return oneself to cheerful.
Cheers!
Nom nom nom
Wednesday, May 14, 2014
Best Trip of My Life
Blog Challenge Day Ten: Best Trip of My Life
This is another one that I find impossible to narrow down to just one. I've been a few places and I've had a few adventures. But I think of my trips like I think of songs. Each one has a meaning and a feeling and a special something that binds it to me. Even when I traveled on business I tried to fly in early and leave a bit late just to wander around on the terrain and see what the world had to show me. It's long been a favorite thing of mine to rent a car wherever I am and gather up a cup of coffee, a map, my cell phone and an open mind and just set out to get lost for a bit.
It terrifies my mother when I do that.
It makes me feel free.
When I travel for pleasure I like to turn off clocks and NOT pay attention to time. I like to eat when I'm hungry and sleep when I'm tired and move about when I feel like being in motion.
It's my personal rebellion to being a slave to time, my phone and the relentless ticking of the clock.
So I've loved most of my trips. Most.
But from Baton Rouge to Boston, L.A. to Florida, Phoenix to Providence, St. Louis to "almost" Cancun one vacation sticks out as being my ideal type of vacation.
New York City.
I adore New York City. I love that its old and worn and as established as it is new and modern. I love the buildings. I love the people. I love the enormous amount of diversity. I absolutely love that you have to do New York City on foot or you will miss all the good stuff. I love it's secrets. I love corner neighborhood grocery stores, coffee shops, theater, art and parks nestled right in the middle of the big bad city. I love it all. I love that you could live and breathe the city your whole life and never know all that she has to offer ... All twelve WHOLE miles of her.
And on one very crappy day at work I took about 7 seconds to spontaneously decide that I was going. So I bought a backpack, bought a ticket, called a friend and made it happen.
Spontaneous definitely meets perfect vacation criteria.
So I dropped myself smack in the middle of Manhattan and decided to let the city carry me wherever it felt I should go. I had a very loose idea of what I wanted to see and absolutely no time frame in which to do anything at all. Or everything. Or nothing. Or something. Or have everything change at the drop of a dime.
No concept of time and / or agenda. Criteria two.
I walked. About 150 or more blocks a day.
Here are some of the highlights of a little vacation that left a huge mark on me:
Ended up in the middle of the pit at Ground Zero on September 11th. It was a happy accident and I was glad to be there on the anniversary.
Thought it a brilliant idea to wear flip flops and then thought better of it. I ended up slipping into a very shady shoe store and purchased my beloved Green NYC Haitian Drug Cartel shoes.
Almost got trampled by a horse drawn cart while I stared in awe at the city rising up to me and rushing all around me.
Ate some of the best Indian food I've ever had from a family owned hole in the wall. Yummmm
Got lost on the subway, got locked into a subway car and promptly got my lil Texas butt hollered at to leave said subway .... Much to the amusement of native New Yorkers.
Got "dirty water" hotdogs in the park and when I tried to take a picture of George Clinton looking homeless man he tried to charge me 5 bucks for the picture. Awesome.
Walked from Times Square to the Metropolitan and took in some art. Lovely!
Laid on a park bench and stared up at Rockefeller Center ... Enthralled.
Wandered Battery Park.
Wandered Greenwich Village and got lost. Super awesome.
Stumbled across the NYC sex museum and went .. Just cuz I could .. And got the underwear off the mannequin in the lobby.
Went to Strawberry Fields and took in the silence with great respect, wonder and reverence.
Stood on the Hudson River and watched the city vibrate and sparkle against the night sky. Mesmerized.
Sang out loud in Central Park ... Cuz I didn't feel the need not to.
Sat in Union Square park listening to old men fight and bicker around the cement tables while sipping coffee.
Best. Blisters. Ever.
Let the vacation guide you. Do not guide the vacation. Definite criteria.
Came home after four days actually rested and longing to come back again and again.
Coming home better than you left in all ways possible. Absolutely necessary criteria.
That's the way I wish I always traveled. My backpack, my music, a universe of new experiences, a world of food, excellent nights rest and full full days of complete submersion.
I'd like to see all the cities I'm curious about in just that way. All in. Open to everything. And I want to come home feeling completely full and still wanting more.
This is another one that I find impossible to narrow down to just one. I've been a few places and I've had a few adventures. But I think of my trips like I think of songs. Each one has a meaning and a feeling and a special something that binds it to me. Even when I traveled on business I tried to fly in early and leave a bit late just to wander around on the terrain and see what the world had to show me. It's long been a favorite thing of mine to rent a car wherever I am and gather up a cup of coffee, a map, my cell phone and an open mind and just set out to get lost for a bit.
It terrifies my mother when I do that.
It makes me feel free.
When I travel for pleasure I like to turn off clocks and NOT pay attention to time. I like to eat when I'm hungry and sleep when I'm tired and move about when I feel like being in motion.
It's my personal rebellion to being a slave to time, my phone and the relentless ticking of the clock.
So I've loved most of my trips. Most.
But from Baton Rouge to Boston, L.A. to Florida, Phoenix to Providence, St. Louis to "almost" Cancun one vacation sticks out as being my ideal type of vacation.
New York City.
I adore New York City. I love that its old and worn and as established as it is new and modern. I love the buildings. I love the people. I love the enormous amount of diversity. I absolutely love that you have to do New York City on foot or you will miss all the good stuff. I love it's secrets. I love corner neighborhood grocery stores, coffee shops, theater, art and parks nestled right in the middle of the big bad city. I love it all. I love that you could live and breathe the city your whole life and never know all that she has to offer ... All twelve WHOLE miles of her.
And on one very crappy day at work I took about 7 seconds to spontaneously decide that I was going. So I bought a backpack, bought a ticket, called a friend and made it happen.
Spontaneous definitely meets perfect vacation criteria.
So I dropped myself smack in the middle of Manhattan and decided to let the city carry me wherever it felt I should go. I had a very loose idea of what I wanted to see and absolutely no time frame in which to do anything at all. Or everything. Or nothing. Or something. Or have everything change at the drop of a dime.
No concept of time and / or agenda. Criteria two.
I walked. About 150 or more blocks a day.
Here are some of the highlights of a little vacation that left a huge mark on me:
Ended up in the middle of the pit at Ground Zero on September 11th. It was a happy accident and I was glad to be there on the anniversary.
Thought it a brilliant idea to wear flip flops and then thought better of it. I ended up slipping into a very shady shoe store and purchased my beloved Green NYC Haitian Drug Cartel shoes.
Almost got trampled by a horse drawn cart while I stared in awe at the city rising up to me and rushing all around me.
Ate some of the best Indian food I've ever had from a family owned hole in the wall. Yummmm
Got lost on the subway, got locked into a subway car and promptly got my lil Texas butt hollered at to leave said subway .... Much to the amusement of native New Yorkers.
Got "dirty water" hotdogs in the park and when I tried to take a picture of George Clinton looking homeless man he tried to charge me 5 bucks for the picture. Awesome.
Walked from Times Square to the Metropolitan and took in some art. Lovely!
Laid on a park bench and stared up at Rockefeller Center ... Enthralled.
Wandered Battery Park.
Wandered Greenwich Village and got lost. Super awesome.
Stumbled across the NYC sex museum and went .. Just cuz I could .. And got the underwear off the mannequin in the lobby.
Went to Strawberry Fields and took in the silence with great respect, wonder and reverence.
Stood on the Hudson River and watched the city vibrate and sparkle against the night sky. Mesmerized.
Sang out loud in Central Park ... Cuz I didn't feel the need not to.
Sat in Union Square park listening to old men fight and bicker around the cement tables while sipping coffee.
Best. Blisters. Ever.
Let the vacation guide you. Do not guide the vacation. Definite criteria.
Came home after four days actually rested and longing to come back again and again.
Coming home better than you left in all ways possible. Absolutely necessary criteria.
That's the way I wish I always traveled. My backpack, my music, a universe of new experiences, a world of food, excellent nights rest and full full days of complete submersion.
I'd like to see all the cities I'm curious about in just that way. All in. Open to everything. And I want to come home feeling completely full and still wanting more.
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