I’ve pissed off the cupcake gods

Hello friends! How in the hell is already Sunday afternoon–where did this weekend go?

We are supposed to get hit with major snow (read seven inches) tonight and I’m hoping I won’t be able to go into work tomorrow. The south freaks out over any kind of snow, even if it doesn’t stick, but I am interested to see how it pans out tomorrow. So until there, I am actively doing a snow dance every 15 minutes in hopes of a lazy day with a weekend extension tomorrow.

Last night, I made a trip  just to check out Sweetcakes Bakery.  I’ve seen rave reviews about this place on Yelp and had plans to go to that side of town to meet a friend for dinner.  My friend was running late so I went over there to see what the deal was. The store is right off the main road so once I figured out the parking sitch in the back (heeeeeeey) I walked up and saw a sign in the window saying they were sold out of cupcakes. Isn’t this the main product they offer? If it was closing time I could see this but two hours before they closed? Me no likey. If you may remember, I had another cupcakeless occurence this summer when I went to Crave Dessert Bar. Maybe this a higher power trying to tell me that I don’t need cupcakes? From the size of my ass, I know damn straight I don’t need any cupcakes but wanting cupcakes is a totally different ballgame. Somewhere along the line in my cupcake adventures, I’ve  pissed off the cupcake gods. Must fix ASAP.

So what’s a girl to do when she can’t get cupcakes? Shop! Don’t worry, I didn’t break my resolution of not buying any new clothes until March. I saw a Salvation Army I hadn’t been into and figured what else but low prices could fix my negative cupcake experience? I was in and the place was absolutely huge. I like to jam when I shop and they had a mix of hip hop and gospel music to raise my spirits for all the good deals I found. This one is  near the lake where all the rich folk live and apparently, donate all of their stuff.

I found some shoes……

$4.99-ugly but comfortable for the work place.

Aerosoles that are also good for the work place. Chapped by ass to pay $7.99 for these but oh well, they will last me a while.

Ralph Lauren wool pants for only $4! They are a little snug but I will make it work one of these days, I just couldn’t pass them up for $4. And some random label of jeans for $2.

Cute summer-y top (or dress?) for $2.50

Very Bradley head band. Don’t hate me if I tell you I got it for free. The cashier there recognized me from another Salvation Army I frequent and he didn’t feel like calling to see what the price was so he said it would be our little secret (well, not anymore!)

When I got back to my car, my friend called and asked if I still wanted to go to Sweetcakes. I told her the story about them running out of cupcakes and she was a bit disappointed as well. We brainstormed for a few minutes about other cupcake venues in her part of town and we called some places but everything was closed. We did dinner as planned since I had a BOGO coupon. We went to Asiana Fusion Sushi. The menu is huge with separate listings for appetizers, rice dishes , noodles, entrees and sushi. They have sushi rolls that are only $3 to $5 in addition to their regular sushi menu. I wanted sushi so badly after scanning their extensive menu however the cold chill tonight had me looking for something to warm me up. I looked and looked and everything looked delicious so I went with old faithful—shrimp pad thai.

If you mess up pad thai, that’s how I know you’re a bad place. And it was quite tasty!! I like how they put peanuts on the side and it is enough for two or three servings so I could enjoy it there plus take some home for leftovers one day. The pieces of shrimp they threw in there were huge and fresh, score! I am just bummed that I don’t live closer to this place because I won’t be able to hit it up as often as I’d like.

Besides that, this weekend has been low-key. I had plans to go to two yoga classes, one on Saturday and one on Sunday. The one on Saturday was a free class at a local jiujitsu studio but when I got to said location, there was no sign on the door or name written anywhere so that was a fail. Then today, I had planned to go to a $5 good karma class and really wasn’t feeling it. I feel like I have a cold coming on so felt a little heavy in the head and when I got there, they told me it was canceled. I was happy about this because I just wanted to get back home and do nothing. But I made a trip to Trader Joe’s before going home since I needed to pick up some fresh produce and my hair was looking good so if I saw the cashier I went out with, I wouldn’t mind.

I got a nice selection of veggies, fruits and pizza dough

and something new……

Ohhhh lala! Now I can make cold and hot Chai at home, which will most definitely assist in my quest to spend less money on Starbucks. And boy was not there so I didn’t have to worry about stepping into his check out line then having an awkward moment…..even though my hair was kinda hoping for that moment.

I got some good news on Friday night—I am going to be joining the YMCA. There is some bad blood between me and the Y. I refuse to pay $65 for a membership of my own but my friend told me her and her other friend are wanting to go splitsies with someone else on their membership so my cut will only be $26/month. I can’t wait to get back to something consistent and eek, going on an elliptical again! It’s been over a year since I’ve been on one–I wonder if it will be like riding a bike??

Do you go to a gym or workout at home? If you do go to a gym, do you spend an insane amount for membership or do you think it’s reasonable?

Phun with Phyllo

 I have an announcement……..

Are you ready?

Sure?

Wanna hear?

Ok, so I’ve decided to stop riding the bus. I know not earth shattering news or anything but I’m excited. With my new schedule at work (i.e. having to actually take an hour lunch break), the bus schedule is just not working in my favor. When I get out of work, I have to wait another 20 to 30 mins for the next bus to come because Charlotte is non-public transportation friendly. A bus every 30 to 40 minutes on a work day? No sir, not cool. I figure since I got a raise at work, I can cough up the $50 difference for parking it would as opposed to buying my bus pass each month and it’s only two blocks away from work. Plus, I can park there on the weekends and at night if I want to go out so that will save me some money over time. I rarely go Uptown since you have to pay to park everywhere so maybe I will hit it up more often? We’ll see. I just needed to say it aloud since I’m excited.

Another thing that I’m excited about it my swag I got in the mail yesterday

Wai Lana Yoga Mat and Metro Bag

My company has a rewards system which is a little more incentive to do a good job at work. My points were expiring soon and this girl has been in need of a yoga mat badly. Instead of spending $40 of my own money, I am letting work buy it for me.

I enjoyed reading everyone’s comments from yesterday’s post–I’m happy to see I’m not the only one who has an issue with finding boots. And if you lied about it—no worries, you made me feel better so there’s your good deed for the day. Lincoln also appreciates the comments about how cute he looks in his Howl-O-Ween costume. I believe “Arrrrrrrr woof woof” were his exact words.

Another day of learning new systems at work. Oh yeah, I didn’t mention they were DOS based systems huh? Because it’s 1985 and I work for one of the largest banks in the company, why not? The good thing though is that I am starting with nine other people so we are all in the same position with having to learn new work and systems. And I got to take an hour and a half lunch today! Unheard of! Any, my coworkers invited me to go to lunch—-my old team never went to lunch together. Instead, we choose to slave away at our desks trying to hit funding deadlines and such so this is just fabulous. I walked over with a couple of the guys to Harris Teeter since it is $2.99 sub day and then we walked to an open patio area near our office. If someone could tell me how the conversation with two men who I just met yesterday turned to my love life (or lack thereof), I would to know. One of the guys asked me why I wasn’t married which in turn I came back with my normal response to that question: “I don’t know but if you would like my mom’s phone number, I’m sure you all could have a nice conversation about it” Don’t worry, I say it with a smile and people think it’s cute 🙂 Regardless, it felt good to just get out of the office, sit in the sun and converse. Must do again!

Once again, I played the role of Martha tonight. I saw this recipe for Upside Down Mushroom Tartlets in the latest issue of Martha Stewart Everyday Foods which is one of my favorite cooking magazines.  I love mushroom and the word tartlet intrigues me  so I was sure to buy all the ingredients needed for it during this weekends shopping excursion. Seeing that it only has seven ingredients, I had most on hand (extra virgin olive oil, thyme, salt and pepper) but I forgot to buy Gruyère cheese this weekend—mostly because I’ve never cooked with it and had no clue what to look for. I had mozzarella on hand from making my lasagne so I subbed that but I am sure the Gruyère would’ve been divine.

I started with cooking the shallots and mushrooms on the stovetop.

Then spooned into a greased muffin pan

Topped with phyllo dough

I got phyllo because super ghetto Wal-Mart I went to didn’t have puff pastry dough….or their employees had no clue what I was asking for. They had phyllo and I figure it was similar enough so when in Wal-Mart Rome

Then let bake for 25 minutes

The result?

Gorgeous little babies.

However they didn’t gel well together—not sure if it was because of the lack of Gruyère or what but they kept falling apart.

It didn’t stop me from eating the entire pan though. I thought I had some roasted acorn squash in the fridge and had my heart set on making mashed acorn squash as a side but no go and I was not in the mood to wait another 45 minutes to let that bad boy cook.

It was so on though. I topped with grated parmesan cheese because cheese makes everything better. The taste was great and I would definitely try this again but will be sure to have a side dish set next time for a more satiating meal. All in all, a taste bud and vegetarian friendly dish.

Now the question is–what do I do with all this phyllo?? I have plenty to go around and have no clue what to do with it—suggestions please!

And can anyone tell me why I love this commercial and keep singing Pookie Bear to Lincoln?

Off to watch Millionaire Matchmaker and enjoy a big bowl of popcorn with hot sauce. I was telling my new coworkers how this is my favorite way to eat popcorn and a few of them found it disgusting. Oh well, more for me.

Stay tuned…..there may be a giveaway tomorrow, just sayin’.