I don’t wanna wait

 

I have a confession.

I’m 31 years old and wish Dawson’s Creek was still on.

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Dawson’s Creek came on my earlier years of college but I never watched it. Then my second senior year I had one class left and when I came home each day from that one class, it was on for two hours on TBS. And that’s when I got hooked. At first I would just sit at home, watching it by myself, making fun of it. But then I really started to like it and couldn’t wait to get home from class so I could zone out and see what was going on in the town of Capeside.

So when I found out we would be going to Wilmington, where Dawson’s Creek was filmed, I was super excited.  I started searching for Dawson’s Creek stuff in Wilmington and found this picture of a mural

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But unfortunately couldn’t find it or really any other things when I went to Wilmington the other day. I saw Hell’s Kitchen but that was about it since it was dark outside and I didn’t want to get out of the car and ask strangers about Dawson’s Creek. I was looking forward to seeing the city but I think it would have been better during the day instead of night time. Oh well, perhaps another time.

So instead of searching for Dawson’s Creek memorabilia, we went to Carolina Ale House since it was $2.50 pint night and oh yeah, that little thing called food

This place was total sausage fest…..and men without wedding bands who were over the age of 24 not wearing pastels, it was great! So, $2.50 beers plus nice scenery, definitely a good place to go. I had a Stella and a Carolina Blonde and by the time we got out food, I was a bit full. I got the Greek Pizza topped with pesto alfredo, feta, kalamata olives, spinach and tomatoes.

Party on Creekers

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Did you watch Dawson’s Creek?

Team Dawson or Pacey?

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Team Pacey all the way!

Greetings from Chicago!

Happy Thursday party people! And you guessed it, I’m in Chicago. I got here yesterday afternoon and absolutely love it here.

 

The drive up from Indianapolis was pretty uneventful. If you’ve never driven through Indiana, you’re not missing much. It’s flat, farm land with not much to look at.

I stopped at Portillo’s in Merrillville, IN for lunch. I am originally from that area and it’s so weird seeing how built up everything is now. There just used to be the mall, a hotel or two and a handful of restaurants but not the road it’s on is jam packed.

When talking with my sister and my aunt this past week, they told me I have to go to Portillo’s and that my life will never be the same once I have it. They told me I’ve had it before when I was a youngin but I don’t remember any of it although the name sounded familiar. The serve hot dogs, sandwiches, salads, burgers, milkshakes and more. The inside is a bit kitchshy and reminded me of Coney Island kind of restaurants with the signs for hot dogs, soups on the paneling. The place was packed for a Wednesday afternoon-I almost couldn’t find a table but fought off some children for a single table that they were using as a jungle gym. I got the dry Italian Beef sandwich with hot peppers and a side of fries

You can get the sandwiches with the gravy on them but the idea of soggy breads skeeves this girl on. And when I heard gravy I was a bit confused because I was thinking brown gravy you put on mashed potatoes. The gravy they serve is more along the lines of au jus sauce and once I poured it on the sandwich and took a bite, I remembered having it before. And it was a good memory. Poor sandwich, it didn’t have a chance of having a long existence in this world. Gone in 10 minutes.

Of course I got a little lost while coming into the Chicago Metro area because you know, that’s what I do. I swear I don’t like the whole idea of a GPS ordering me around but I think that’s what I need. One of these days when I get lost in the hood, I will learn my lesson and buy one. But until then, I will keep looking out for landmarks and try to get myself in the right direction. I finally saw this and just kept trucking along, knowing I was headed in the right direction.

After an hour at Starbucks and some texts to Amy asking where I was, what time it was (Chicago is in the central time zone but my phone didn’t change time when I entered), I went over to my friends house……right after the Cubs game ended. Which fighting my way through traffic is a whole other story in itself and og my god—there is a midget who sells water-but yeah, another time for that story. Soon I was on my friends porch, enjoying new-to-me beers!

We went to Uncommon Ground for dinner.  They are a hippie-esque restaurant with local art on the walls, live music and use products that leave no or a low carbon footprint. And their vow is to “use seasonal, locally produced, family farmed & organic products”—how could I NOT love this place?

We sat outside and they have a quite a spacious patio area but most of all, I love the diversity of people walking around. Edit—diversity of people and their dogs—this is such a dog friendly neighborhood! I feel like every person we saw had a pooch and I think I saw some that Lincoln would like.

I got the Capriole Goat Cheese Stuffed Portabella Mushroom Sandwich-
“artichoke, spinach, arugula, caramelized onions on cracked oat bun”

Aww yeah, look at that goat cheese! It was messy but worth the mess, I was very happy with my selection.

Even the bathrooms made me feel at peace with the world

I don’t want to go back to Charlotte, which I know I always say that anytime I’m away but for reals. I am staying in Lakeview and it’s awesome here. I love that people walk everywhere and you see people all the time although it’s not crazy rowdy. I have a few restaurants and bars I can walk to in Charlotte but nothing like this. I could totally see myself here, just need to figure out the whole job and how will I pay to live thing.

Have you ever been/lived in Chicago? What’s your favorite thing to do in Chicago? Help a sister out, I have a day to myself but I think the first thing on the agenda is finding some coffee!

Thr3e Wise Men Brewing Company

I love my nieces, I really do. And you know there is a but or a however coming……I am a girl who lives alone with a semi quiet eight pound poohuahua. I’m not used to a lot of noise or constantly around little ones. So when my sister told me she booked a babysitter for Sunday night- I was ecstatic.  We took advantage and went to check out Thr3e Wise Men Brewing Company in Broad Ripple section of Indianapolis. Thr3e Wise Men is relatively new, it opened earlier this year and I am always game to try a new brewery.

Despite it being Race Day, it was hopping for a Sunday night. They have an open seating area inside with regular tables and longer picnic like tables that you share with others along with outdoor seating facing Broad Ripple Ave. They provide popcorn and have a limited menu with goodies such as hot sandwiches, pizza, calzones and traditional appetizers.

They have a sampler that offers 3 – 6 oz. samples  for only $5. I hate commitment and beer commitment is horrible if you don’t know what they have. This was a great way to try their beers.

From left to right :

Two Lucy’s Blackberry Wheat

Snow Bunny Blonde

Black IPA (special of the day)

Our server suggested I drink in order from left to right and that was definitely the way to go. The Blackberry Wheat was my favorite mostly because of the color, duh and it was quite refreshing for a warm evening and not too hoppy. I liked the Snow Bunny Blonde but the taste was strong and think I would only be able to have one or two in an evening. The Black IPA was delicious and ideal for an after dinner drink-hello chocolatey hints!

We started off with an order of fried pickles with horseradish sauce, which was new to me because I always have them with ranch. It was fantastic and I can say with confidence I am finally starting to dig the horseradish. I hated it when I was younger but I guess I have a more refined palate now. I never tried fried pickles before living in Charlotte so I had no clue that they were on menus all over the country. I still fear one of these days I’m going to run into fried pickle spears again—blech! Our dinner came out shortly after downing the pickles. I wanted something with substance but also light so I went with the hummus pizza

MMMMMMMM! A perfect, light meal. The chunks of goat cheese were the winner of this pizza but also the hummus-it was roasted red pepper as opposed to plain hummus. I wasn’t a huge fan of the cucumbers on the pizza though (it reminded me of the seinfeld episode where Kramer wants to open up a make-your-own-pie restaurant place and he gets in an argument with Poppi over putting cucumbers on the pizza) Even so, it was still a terrific meal. The table next to us had their regular pizza and it looks wonderful as well with pleasing sizes.

Since I like to support local businesses, I got a growler of their Blackberry Wheat to go. My very first growler, I felt like a real adult when it was placed in front of me. Awwww.

They told me this will be good for two to three weeks  so it will be perfect for me to take home to Charlotte! Nothing like some ready to go booze when I get home. Right after I got it, I remembered I live alone so the night I drink this will be a fun one!

All in all, a solid brew pub to try if in Indianapolis. I love their selection of beers and I heard they are one of the only places around that you can buy beer (their growlers) on Sundays since I don’t think you can buy beer on Sundays in Indy.

What’s your favorite brewery? Favorite beer? I was a Natty Light girl forever (blame it on going to college in WV) but am starting to develop a palate for trippels and IPA’s. In the summertime, I love fruity beers and Abita Purple Haze and Sweetwater Blue are my two favorites.

Flop it like it’s hot

I packed up on Wednesday to go to the west coast of Florida. Even though we moved to Florida when I was seven years old, the west coast is pretty foreign to me. We vacationed there a few times and I remember it being more mellow than the southeast coast of Florida with not as many NY/NJ people and not as much to do. My sister recently moved to the west coast of Florida and I wanted to see her before I trekked back up to Charlotte so on my way I went. While I was making multiple trips back and forth between the house and car (with a lot more stuff than I remembered bringing), I saw this huge turtle sitting up my car.

And when I came back he was gone. At least I have visual evidence he was there and that I’m not losing my mind. I had to make sure I had all of Lincoln’s stuff packed up and treats ready to go.

I had to say my good bye to this guy

Oi vey, that face. Mickey is going to be 13 this summer and I don’t know how many more times I will see him since he his health isn’t what it once was. This is one of the saddest good byes I’ve ever had to say. I know he is a dog but in my family, dogs are family. He has been there with me through college, mini, breakups, happy times, sad times, etc. I held him in my arms, rubbed his belly and said good bye. It was so emotional that I had to put Lincoln in the car beforehand so I could have some time with my Mick.

After that heartbreaking scene, we were on our way ready to go west side. It only seemed appropriate that we jam to Tupac not Biggie

 Like his momma, Lincoln is all about the east coast and not west,. RIP Biggie Smalls. Mental note to self: Must download Get Money by Junior Mafia, that used to be my job!

I got to my sisters place is no time then we took a drive over to Punta Gorda

 

 

Yes, I most definitely think I need to move to a city near the water. I miss it so much! What I don’t miss? The sketchy creepers that come with the beach. As my sis and I were walking onto the pier our dresses were flying everywhere with the wind and this creeper in daisy dukes walked past us andleaned over and whispered “Beautiful dresses” then walked to the end of the pier. We were in the middle of the pier at that time and we stopped there to take pictures because we didn’t want to become a CSI episode.

We stopped by a few stores and shopping centers, tried samples of fudge and perused shops

We stopped for a drink at the Wyvern Hotel roof top bar, which had an amazing view of the water. Give me a nice view, cold drink and cushioned seats and I really don’t need much else in life!

We had a great bartender who was quick with a pour (or twist of a cap) and gave us the 411 on the Punta Gorda area with solid restaurants and spots to check out and others to stay away from.

One of his recommendations was Asuka Japanese Steakhouse in Port Charlotte.

We sat at the sushi bar and when we came in there were two people making sushi then it dropped down to one right as the dinner crowd was coming in. Sushi chef was helpful but seemed a bit in the weeds cranking out the sushi. I don’t like when you go to a sushi place and there is a roll on the menu with no description—especially if it’s an obscure name that doesn’t give you any clue as to what it is such as the Snow White roll. WTF is a Snow White roll? Could it be white and black or full of seven dwarfy things? The sushi chef seemed a little irritated when we would ask him what something was then he finally got one of the waitresses to bring a menu. Annoying people is one of my strong points so push me to and I will. They had your traditional rolls along with special rolls for the evening. Most of their specialty rolls feature avocado which makes me shimmy since I heart omega three’s! I got the Chili Roll and Port Charlotte Roll—I love seeing both made right in front of me and both were on point with freshness and spiciness!

My sister go the Dynamite roll and a salad

I don’t know what’s up with Florida but the main thing that irked me was watching the sushi chef make all the rolls…..without gloves. Do food prep workers not have to wear gloves in Florida? I should know this but I have no clue. I saw him wash his hands a few times but it still skeeved me out.

How many siblings do you have? I have two older sisters but always wished I had an older brother.

Proud Tiffany

For the past week I’ve been humming or singing the line “Left a good job in the city” from Proud Mary (The Tina Turner one of course, not the CCR one. Speaking of which, whats Tina Turner been up to these days?)  I would say it’s an appropriate song to have in my head since I did have a good job in the city and as you know, I left it.  I threw deuces at corporate America and just left…..and it feels good.

My last day at work was actually a good day. I didn’t get any going away cakes or lunch from my co-workers but I did get three free drinks from Starbucks.

I had to say goodbye to my Starbucks crew since I won’t be going Uptown anymore. Pay for parking? Hell no. I will just learn to love the Starbucks crew at the one near my house. It took me awhile to get in good with the baristas at the one in my building so now I am going to have to work double time to establish report in two months. Time to bring out the witty remarks and quips!

I stopped by my hippies to say goodbye to them and collect some produce for the weekend.

But turns out they set up at different farmers markets in the area so I will get to see them again! That’s what I call winning!

I got some free samples from the Trident girls working the corner at the intersection my office is located

I came back to find a note from one of my coworkers on my whiteboard

Teardrop. I’m really going to miss my co-workers.

Then I was instantly inspired on where to go for lunch—sushi of course! I went by myself since everyone seemed to be really busy (I guess with me not having work to do, forgot what that was like?) I went to RuSan’s for their $9.99 sushi buffet. RuSan’s is questionable, so much that one of my friends calls their sushi McSushi since it all seems to be fried and all the sushi chefs are from south of the border. When I walked in, the place was bumping for lunch time and knew I made the right selection of where to go. For $9.99, I could get a couple of plates and have a sushi food baby sitting in my tummy.

And sit in my belly it did. And now in a “I think I have food poisoning” kind of way but more so in a satisfied way. It’s a great place to stop by if you’re looking for a quick fix.  I sat around the rest of the afternoon going for walks and reading at my desk. My manager was in a meeting so I couldn’t just scoot. I had to set up my voicemail and give him my badge so I wouldn’t have access to my building further. Because if I could go anywhere in the world, it would be work, not Europe.

Sigh, look at that 25-year-old girl with such hope and aspiration.

Then the fun began! And by that I mean happy hour! Well, after work drinks since happy hour in North Carolina is illegal. Instead of limiting it to a few hours in the afternoon, NC is baller and allows all day drink specials. So I say blame the government if people are drunk all day! 

I need some crackers with my cheese

I declined on the car bombs

PBR ring

 Good times had by all! I can’t believe it’s over though. I keep wondering what’s going to happen on Monday–am I going to wake up early like I always do and get ready for work until I realize that there is no work? Then when we were out last night, it dawned on me I’m employed–eeks! I haven’t been unemployed since I was 25 so this is going to be a major adjustment for me and have to brush up on my interviewing skills. It was difficult saying good-bye to people though and some even snuck out without saying bye–what’s up with that?? It’s my party and you will say good-bye when I tell you to, thank you. I started to get teary eyed when telling people how much I would miss them and how I wasn’t going to see them again at the office. Every emotion was coming out, it was ridiculous. I just hope this leap of faith I’m taking works out in my favor because even though I know this is what’s best for me right now, I go back and forth when it comes to confidence in myself. It has to work out, right?

After all those drinks last night, I’m feeling quite ripe. I got home went to bed and then woke up at 3A and been up ever since. I don’t know why I didn’t get a nap in this afternoon but I just wasn’t tired so I’m waiting to fall asleep as I’m typing.

Do you socialize with your co-workers outside of work or do you keep things professional?

Occupying the night

Happy Friday Eve! Glad to see you all liked the post about Cecil’s stay in Charlotte. We had some great times and even though Cecil drank alot, he wasn’t hungover not one bit….strange. I’m happy to say that Cecil’s next stop will be in Boston, he is so excited for it since he is a huge history buff (ok, ok and Sad Adams fan!)

So this week has been a long one, which is weird since this weekend went by so quickly. Days have been dragging on at work and I am getting everything finalized there. They haven’t announced my last day yet but my whole work crew knows so I’m just counting down the days at this point (16 more days if you’re curious). I’ve been absolutely exhausted when I get home so my nights have consisted of:

*Quick meals

I love to cook but this entire week have just felt unmotivated to do so or have been mentally exhausted. I wanted to order in a couple of times but I stuck to my guns (and wallet) and decided to dine at home.

 Leftover enchiladas and salad

Seriously, how is Mexican food even better leftover?

-Easy, half assed chicken parmesan

I used whole wheat flour, chopped parsley, garlic and red pepper flakes, coated the chicken in it then cooked on the stovetop

I think this was the first time I didn’t have any shredded mozzarella on hand so I just topped with grated parmesan cheese. I also had cooked spaghetti sitting in the freezer so I microwaved that for about six minutes. That definitely helped me time wise since I didn’t have to wait for the water to boil, cook, drain, etc. And  there you have it-a quick, easy meal that I could also eat for lunch!

*Vino

*New restaurants

On Wednesday night, I went to the Crepe Cellar in NoDa. I’ve heard fabulous things about the Crepe Cellar from friends and reviews for both brunch and dinner. I love crepes any time of the time-whether it be sweet or savory so I was excited to finally check it out. This is a very small place with only nine tables in the entire restaurant with a small bar area so you have to be sure to get there at the right time or be prepared to wait since they don’t take reservations.

I started off with a much-needed beer-Belhaven Twisted Thistle

Ok, so everything on the menu looked good. They had po boys, french baguette pizzas, pastas and more but I couldn’t go to the Crepe Cellar without order some yummy, warm crepes so  I got the Queen City crepes-roasted chicken, bacon, cheddar topped with oven roasted tomato dressing.

Check out that lovely purple slaw!

The crepes were good but nothing out of this world. Perhaps I had my heart set on some crepes that would make me want to re-enact the deli scene from “When Harry Met Sally”  but sadly this wasn’t the case. They tasted like a hot wrap I could’ve ordered at an Applebee’s or elsewhere and was missing the magic touch.  Also, they didn’t have that much of a selection of crepes-about five or six entrees and the same number of dessert crepes. I would expect a place with the name Crepe Cellar to have more of a variety of crepes but I guess that’s not what they are going for.

*Workouts

Some lackluster….

When I went on Tuesday night, I just could not get into it. I did 30 minutes on the Precor elliptical and then just left-no cool down, strength training, nothing. I wasn’t in the mood to work out so I’m glad I got a little movement in but it was definitely a meh workout.

On the other hand, tonight was a kick ass workout!

It was a complete 180 from my workout the other night, I did 35 minutes on the Precor AMT then various upper body strength training such as chest press (40 lbs 13 reps x 3 sets), row (80 lbs 13 reps x 3 sets), lateral pull down (60 lbs 13 reps x 3 sets) and shoulder press (20 lbs 13 reps x 2 sets). When I walked out of there, I felt rejuvenated and ready to take on the world! Even if the dude on the AMT next to me smelled of sweat and sweet man juice and the other dude next to me was hacking up a lung. Hello, if you’re hacking up a lung, maybe you shouldn’t be working out? That’s why there is a thing called rest.

Speaking of fitness, for those of you who blog about fitness, have you joined FitFluential yet? FitFluential is a new company founded by Kelly Olexa and Jennifer Edwards  and it’s a wonderful way to put your blog out there while connecting  with some of the best brands around. I highly suggest you all check it out, you can sign up here ! You can also find FitFluential on Facebook and Twitter.

What’s been occupying your nights?

South Side Shenanigans

I spent a good deal in South Side Pittsburgh on Friday and Saturday. On Friday night, we went to the Hofbrauhaus.

 I’ve never been to a German restaurant before so I was looking forward to both the beer and the grub. When you walk in there is a main dining hall that has long tables set up in the middle, booths along the sides, an outdoor patio and stage in the front for the house band.

We started off with the soft pretzels with homemade  bier cheese.

I was a bit full from the appetizers and beer so I got the potato pancakes for dinner since I wanted something more in my tummy to soak up more beer for the evening.

I wasn’t sure how to eat these, do you put both the apple sauce and sour cream on them or just one? I had no idea so I just double downed and went with both. And you know what? I now love potato pancakes! I need to make them sometime at home.

The cool thing about this place is once the band starts playing, people get up and stand up on the chairs and sing, dance and drink along!

It was so much fun watching everyone and singing along to the songs. Any establishment that plays Neil Diamond is a wonderful one in my book. Plus it was total sausage fest, men everywhere, mama like. The Penguins game was also playing and the whole place went wild when they scored a goal. And I mean wild, I’ve never seen anything like it before since Charlotte is very transient and there isn’t a lot of team loyalty. At first I wasn’t sure why everyone was going crazy but then looked overhead to see the game and I thought it was awesome that a sport could bring people together like that.

Then enter the creepers.

We were getting ready to leave and the men at the table next to us offered to buy us a drink. We all pondered the idea for a minute since on one hand they were older men who we would have to then talk to but on the other hand, free beer! So yeah, we stayed. One of the older men took a liking to me and kept rubbing on me with his booty. I kept yelling out “No butt rubs!” then I started yelling out “No dancing, no babies” since apparently I thought our dancing would soon lead to Lambada, which  in turn with me getting impregnated.

 

Then I started crying because I was laughing so hard. I think I was crying for real though because dude would not leave me alone. He put his hands on my shoulders from behind then stroked my hair *shivers* Oh, have I mentioned he was old? Yes. Oh, have I mentioned he had a wedding ring on? Gross.

On Saturday, we heade back to South Side for  a Pittsburgh blogger meet up. You know I’m not going to visit a city without meeting some local bloggers and I was stoked to meet Whitney and Natalie! We went to Fat Heads in the South Side along Carson Street.

Me & Natalie

Whitney & my friend

I ordered the Mo Betta Beef & Chedda with potato chips on the side.

So Whitney warned me that the sandwiches were the size of your head and she wasn’t kidding! Enter Tiffany vs. Food

 And I failed because I could only finish half of the sandwich but took the rest home with me!

Natalie, me & Whitney

We were all near food coma after that and headed to the Beehive to get some java goodness.

OMG can I say how happy this place made my inner hippie? All the funky, eclectic decor was just what I needed to see tucked away in Pittsburgh, I loved this place! I ordered a large skim latte and they serve it to you in large mugs (probably bought from a thrift store, which made me love it even more)

I had such a fun time in the South Side, it was my favorite area of Pittsburgh! We really don’t have any areas in Charlotte where you can walk to restaurants, bars and shops on end so this was a pleasant 180 from Charlotte. There was a mix of people from young to old and no one looked the same like how they do in Charlotte.

South Side Pittsburgh-you had me at hello.

Any good creeper stories out there??

Ugly Christmas Sweater Party

 I attended the Yelp Elite Ugly Christmas Sweater Party last night and it was a super fabulous time! When I heard about the event back in November, I got off my butt and went to Value Village to find an ugly sweater. I could’ve asked my mom for an ugly sweater but then she would ask what it was for and I didn’t want to hurt her feelings. So I found an ugly Christmas sweater…..and an ugly Christmas moo moo.

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I heart any soiree that requires drinking bracelets. Makes me feel like a young pup again!

The event was at Dressler’s and had tasty libations from sponsors New Belgium, Country Vintner & Palm Bay International plus a few complimentary appetizers like hot sausage and spinach and artichoke dip to nosh on while socializing. 

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There were many ugly sweaters

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 And some people wore the same sweaters!

Or as I like to call it a Christmas miracle!

Yours truly won 1st place in the Women’s Tacky Sweater Contest and won a nice swag bag 

Such a fabulous time, I can’t wait to attend another Ugly Christmas Sweater party and find something even tackier!

 And the winner of the Einstein’s Free Bagel coupons …..

nic – the auspicious squirrel December 7, 2010 at 9:45 pm Edit #

I used to eat at Einsteins whenever I could… which wasn’t nearly as often as I wanted b/c they never seem to be close to me. Now there is one up the street and I haven’t visited because I’m a vegan now… figures. I know that, obviously, the schmear isn’t vegan… I wonder if the bagels are… oh cool, just looked up the ingredients, many of them are milk & egg free.

Favorite Christmas song… “Carol of the bells”, both with words or just instrumental.

I also like one (I don’t know what it’s called)… that’s instrumental also, and there are sounds of horses hooves and the cracking of a whip at specific spots in the song.

Least favorite… While I’d have to agree with the hippopatmus song being a non-fav… I really can’t stand “All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth”. Ugh.

Congrats Nic! Please email me your address so I can send them out to you 🙂 

 Thanks all for participating!!

Fun

So….it’s been an interesting week. The “fun” started on Wednesday when I got a flat tire on the way home from work….in the rain….with no AAA…..with barely any battery left on my cell phone. I frantically called one of my friends who lives near the gas station I was stuck at  and she came right over and dialed AAA for me. While waiting on them, we went to The Melting Pot to get a glass on wine so that made the whole ordeal go a little smoother but in the back on my head I was thinking about the extra expenses such as a new tire or two that I would soon be dealing with. Oh. I didn’t mention how work screwed up my paycheck last week due to me changing jobs did I? Yeah, my official start date was 10/18 but human resources didn’t have it until 11/1 so the check I received on 11/1 was still my old rate and I have to wait for a separate check to come with the difference plus a few days missed pay.That’s supposed to be in my checking account on Monday. We can view our paychecks three days in advance online and it’s not showing up right now so I’m a bit skeptical about it being in there. All I know is I can’ really roll with less than $90 in my checking account for over a week. That being said, I will be living ghetto this next week. I am using any Groupon I have to get some free meals, coupons and will be cooking a bunch. I think I may have a free sub at Harris Teeter as well so that will be two free meals for me. It just sucks feeling like I can’t due anything due to lack of money, I hate that feeling so much. If only I didn’t have the little thing called rent or mortgage getting in my way each month. I would love to be able to live free from that for a year and save it so I can feel like I have a solid savings.

When I got home after the flat tire situation, I wanted pizza. And not homemade or Papa Johns, I wanted the authentic stuff. I’ve heard great things about Luigi’s Pizza, a NY style pizza joint throughout Charlotte. When I was in NYC this summer, I never got a slice of pizza so the time was finally right to try NY style pizza….even if I am in Charlotte. This place is right near me but I’ve never stopped there because any time I drive by it, I can’t see inside and that kinda skeeves me out. Feeling great from the wine, I went over to Luigi’s and ordered a small pepperoni pizza to go.

That is what I’m talking about!! When I opened the box I couldn’t believe that was a small pizza but I was loving what was in front of me. It was huge for just one person so there was guaranteed to last me throughout the week! My only gripe was that it was *eek* $14. I never pay that much for a pizza and don’t remember pizza being that much but I kept repeating to myself that I was supporting a local business and it would last more than one meal so that made me feel better. The pizza was absolutely wonderful cheesy yummy deliciousness. When I took a bite, it melted right in my mouth and the sauce was traditional but with more oregano than anything. It was just the right amount of grease but not swimming it in but visible and I had to fold it in half to eat most of it and that’s exactly what I was looking for. I added some grated parm onto my slices and kept singing “Me So Parmy” to “Me So Horny”. That was Wednesday and that’s still in my head.

The next night I met up with some friends at Loco Lime. I say I could eat Mexican any day of the week but I really was feeling sushi that night so was in a bit of a toss-up. Once the chips and salsa came, everything was right in the world. The $2.50 Dos Equis didn’t hurt either (I didn’t know they had an Amber? I loved it!) One of my friends ordered the guacamole and said it was the best in Charlotte. It was good but not as good as Vida, which was smoother and creamier. Regardless, if it has avocado and sour cream in it, I’m going to eat it. I’m equal opportunity like that. I got the combination plate of barbaqoa tostada and flautas but by the time it rolled around, I was a bit full. I had the tostado and some of the rice and beans and got the rest to go. The tostado was interesting–it was served with a hard boiled egg on top along with avocado slices. It was good, I just wasn’t expecting to see a hard boiled egg. The barbaqoa was delicious and tender and when I tried the flautas they were crispy and tasty as well.

My friend ordered the Tres Leches Cake for dessert and I didn’t want to be rude and not have a bite. It was so cute and so tasty! We somehow got to eating it with our arms intertwined. I remember thinking of the idea but don’t know what brought it about and thought it was the funniest thing in the world….again $2.50 beers.

The leftovers were super the day after

I tried to make chili last night but it was a huge fail. Until this past year, I’ve only made chili in the crockpot but lately by the time I want it, it’s too late to put it in the crock so I’ve just been making on the stovetop. One of my co-workers had a surplus of peppers and gave me a huge bag to take home with me so figured I could use the variety of the peppers in the chili

I was getting excited about the chili with the scent of all the different peppers. But then the evil can opener made an appearance. I will buy a can opener and it’s fine but then it turns racist whenever I want to open a can of black beans and won’t open it. Then from there, it won’t open anything—wtf?? Seeing I wanted to add beans, tomato paste and diced tomatoes, this was no bueno. I kept getting a small opening in the can then repeat about 10 or 11 times then forced open the top with a knife. I was a bit frustrated. I wasn’t even going to eat the chili that night but wanted to use the peppers before they went bad. I bought a new can opener today so let’s cross our fingers and hope it’s all about the love.

I don’t know if I didn’t add enough stock or the setting was high but it was not looking good by the time it was done. I wouldn’t call it so much as chili but as chili dip. I put some of it into small containers for this week but think I will be scooping it up with pita chips or something instead of eating it soup like.

I was up at 6A to go get my tires checked out and was back by 9A. It was around 40 something and it felt super wonderful. I love this season so much but feel like we aren’t really going to get a fall and will have a few nice days then jump right into winter. It was sunny out though which with my Florida mentality, think that whenever it’s sunny, it’s warm which I really need to stop that school of thought. I headed to Freedom Park to go for a run/walk on the greenway. I usually go walk around the lake at Freedom Park but wanted to check out the greenway there. The greenway goes along a little stream next to the hospital and has a gorgeous view of the skyline. I walked but got some running in there also but the thing I loved the most was no one was out. I maybe passed by 5 or 6 people which was a breath of fresh air since the greenway by my old apartment consisted mostly of people with their out of control minions. I will definitely be going back for a run or a nice stroll soon.

Feeling good after my cookie success last week, I picked up a box of Sun Maid Oatmeal Raisin Cookie Mix at the supermarket this morning. It was only $1.50 and I had no plans tonight so why not?

 

Mmmmmmm….chewy and delicious.

Besides that, work has been a killer. And I’m still in training so wtf?? The last four years, I was in a set process with my job and sad to say, really didn’t use my brain too often. I had a set process every day and my work was very redundant so I’m not used to thinking anymore much less using analytical skills. The position I took it going to be a lot more work and they are changing their current process so current and new associates are all learning something new. I am just curious on how we are going to manag the amount of work we are getting. I’ve heard the current team is overwhelmed so we are there to take some of the work off of their hands but our group is supposed to get another 15,000 accounts within the next few months. Multi tasking is one of my biggest strengths so I should be fine with it but still, I get worried. Good news is that I got all the vacation I requested off. I am taking Monday off since I had an extra day to use then time off for my birthday in December (going to NYC!), time around Chrismtas (going to FL) and for New Years Eve.

 Fall back!

Da Bears

I’ve been in Charlotte for a little over four years but haven’t developed any loyalty to the teams here. I’ve tried–been to games, even bought a Panthers jersey to show my support and such but when it comes down to it-the teams here suck. The Panthers are 0-5 this season which is just pitiful and I don’t even consider the Bobcats to be a real NBA team. Which then leads me to thinking what is with the city of Charlotte and their obsession with cats? Panthers? Bobcats? CATS—the public transportation system? I guess Charlotte is pussy whipped.

One of my co-workers was selling his Panthers tickets for yesterdays game and asked if I knew of anyone who was interested. I asked him who they were playing and he answered with “The Bears”. I started freaking out right there since the Bears are my favorite NFL team. I was born and raised 30 minutes from Chicago so growing up, I rooted for all things Chicago. I remember playing the VHS of “The Super Bowl Shuffle” over and over again at home (sadly that is from 1985 and I don’t like dating myself).

I asked one of my friends if she was up for going although she is a Patriots fan and she said yes so with tickets in hand we were ready to go! And check out the seats! I texted my co-worker when we got there with “OMG these seats are amazing!” and told him to keep me in mind if he ever needs to get rid of them again.

Oh, I didn’t mention how it was 87 degrees did I? And yes, it’s October so a big WTF is in store. When I think of football, I think of cooler weather and layering it up but not at this game. We were shaded for the first half but then Mr. Sun decided to make an appearance right after the half and it was just miserable.

The Bears scored within the first two minutes—woo hoo! I can honestly say, I think I saw more Bears fans than Panthers fans. There was orange everywhere. And I am gonna put this out there, the male Bears fans were hotter than Panthers fans. Just saying, in my opinion men from north of the Mason Dixon line are hotter and have better dental hygiene.

So…….almost the end of the first quarter

And the third quarter….really Panthers really?

We left at the beginning of the fourth quarter since we had a feeling there wouldn’t be a lot going on after that. And we were right Bears won 23-6! Another win for them, another loss for the Panthers. Boo hoo.

I did get some nachos though so I was a happy gal.

Afterwards, I went home and took a much-needed long nap (five beers will do that to you) and found it was only appropriate to celebrate the Bears win  by having leftover chicken pad thai in a Bears bowl.

I also started a new book—this chick is kind of a tamer Chelsea Handler but funny nonetheless. I recommend so far!

And today….well today is fabulous since I have off. I love having Columbus Day off since no one else really does and I feel like I am a normal person out living and having fun. What’s not fun is when my Internet connection is so horrendously slow and I have to go to Panera to get a good connection. But it’s all good because they have free refills and now they have a My Panera rewards program. I don’t go to Panera too often because I find their food to be dull and overpriced but I do dig their coffee and free wi fi. Ok, I also the dig the pastries but it’s been forever and a day since I’ve have one from here. But I love any place that offers either punch cards or reward programs so Panera is ok in my book. Who knows what else the rest of the day will bring?

So the question for you all is….working or lounging today?