Playin' at the Savoy

It was a weekend of ups and downs, I'd say. Mostly fun with a bit of pain-in-the-ass-ness. Friday we decided to hop on down to First Friday in St. Pete. Lainey had TM'd me about going to Ceviche for dinner but Christen and I had decided on Italian for dinner (mmm, sweaty hairy men ...) so there was pasta and burgandy to be had before driving down there. We walked around, but it was very crowded and although I have a friend that lives down there at Hotel Detroit, I didn't have her number and didn't feel like yelling her name and hoping someone came to the balcony. :) So we went on down to Baywalk and stopped by Tastings, a way yuppie wine bar where you put money on a card and get mini-pours of any wine you want. It's a great way to try wines that you wouldn't normally try or wouldn't normally be able to afford, and we sat on an overstuffed sofa and felt like a rich middle-aged couple. We've both decided to embrace our yuppieness, especially since it doesn't entirely encompass who we are but rather a lifestyle that we choose to live.

And then we woke up, quite literally. Saturday morning we got up and took a shower and when we were ready to leave the house we realized the water heater was not only broke, it was pouring water into the garage. We both searched the unit but there wasn't an switch to stop the water from flowing into the heater, so we had to turn off the water to the house. We called the realty, but so far (now Monday) we still haven't heard from them .... I take it back; I called and the plumber is coming sometime today. But anyway, in the meantime we went out to the mall to return a pair of shorts (I don't know why I buy shorts, I never ever wear them) and to the German place in the mall for sandwiches. After we decided the realty wasn't calling back for the day we meandered out to Citrus Park to walk around the strip mall out there -- it was such an amazingly beautiful day. I got a stuffed frog with speakers that attaches to my iPod for my desk at work

-- so cute! I was so excited. We met with his parents at Ballyhoo's for dinner and drinks (grouper nuggets and wine) and went back home because my sister was spending the night.

Jamie and I watched a movie (First Daughter, yes we're lame) and hung out ... she spent all night on the computer talking to her friends until I finally told her she needed to start asking (I had a very bad headache, and it was starting to grate on my nerves) and we went to bed early (before midnight). Sunday we made cranberry walnut muffins and Jamie and I took the dogs to the beach (Christen was watching football). The beach was fantastic! Now, we all know that I hate the beach, but everytime I go I have such a good time I forget that I dislike the beach. I got a pretty good tan and I'm sore, but we swam with manatees!

(Not my picture, this was the one time I didn't bring my camera to the beach)

There were three manatees close to shore and we swam out with them, and one swam over my feet (it felt tough and sandy). A guy that was out there too kept "surfing" on one of them, and Jamie accidentally stepped on one's fin. It was very nifty. I have to admit that I'm not much of a creature person -- I'm not one of those girly girls that loves dolphins and manatees and all that -- but manatees are so much cooler in living color rather than at the zoo. It was one of the coolest things I've done in awhile.

Last night was just for laying around being sore and nursing my wounds (I stepped on a rock and cut my foot open, and tred through sandspurs so I have little holes in my thumb from pulling them out of my pants and shoes and toes and the dog's paws. And I made lovely chewy chocolate chip cookies. I lost my football pool, but it was still exciting because it wasn't definite that I lost until Pittsburgh was defeated last night. C'est la vie!

(I'd better have water when I get home from work today ... I'm only sayin' ...)

Ballade Vor Chue

Okay, so I know I said I'd tell you how the soup was ... it sucked. Pretty bad, actually. We poured it down the disposal and made something else, but I wasn't feeling well so he ate and I sat around. Kyle and Shea came over, but Shea was just as out of it as I, more so even, so we sat around watching tv and when she fell asleep in the chair I went to bed and left the boys to their work outside.

I dreamt last night of high school, but only sort of. In my dream I was my age, but I stopped by the school to take a shower on my from my grandmother's house to the Ringling Museum. Now's when you'd need to know that none of those places are anywhere near eachother, nor are they in line at all so that it may have been convenient to do this. But I got there and it was graduation and the marching band was doing a final show (which they don't do at graduation). They were playing The Magic Flute, and my high school boyfriend was the drum major (he wasn't, in high school) and he was wearing a robe that looked like the one Mickey Mouse wore in the animated version, and he hugged me and I felt his "cash and prizes", as Jamie puts it, up against my leg. But all my friends from high school were there and playing with the band, but somehow I was older than everyone ... I guess it's because I've moved on from hanging out with all those people and sometimes I miss then, you know how it is. I'm so different than the person I was in high school, definitely for the better, but I miss some of those relationships. Things were so much easier.

In other news, I put the Jack Johnson album on my iPod last night, but when I put the CD in my laptop to upload it, a message came up to pick which album it was:

• On and On
• In Between Dreams
• In Between Dreams

So I picked the first "In Between Dreams" and that was evidently the Spanish-language version, because now all the song titles are in Spanish on my iPod. Not that I care too much, but it's interesting. :) I also put Ben Folds' Rockin' the Suburbs and Evanescence's The Open Door. I don't know about Evanescence -- they're alright, but Lacuna Coil is so much better that in that genre (the beautiful-chick-voice-over-scary-dark-music genre) they just pale. But I'm giving the new album a chance. The guy in the next cube said he liked it better than the last one, so I'll try it out. I in turn am making a copy of Camalies for him so he can see how Cristina Scabbia does it.

I've decided I need stock in Chick-fil-a. I stop there every single morning. Yesterday I decided to skip the one near my house and ended up stopping anyhow at the one near work. I have an addiction, I know, but I just can't stop. Those damn chicken minis and sweet tea ... awesome. Pure ecstasy in rush-hour traffic. Today I gave up the ghost and stopped immediately (althought running late for work) thus giving me time to savor those doughy bisquit wrappings ....

Up up and away

Cramps must be caused by all the possible children from a month kicking my insides. That's what it feels like, anyhow. This week has been uneventful -- but wait, that's a good thing! I was so exhausted and overworked the past few weeks that it's been nice to work at my leisure, calling people as needed and arguing with lawyers when I feel like it.

Friday night I went to Theresa's bachelorette/bridal shower soirée at Limey's Pub -- great fun, lots of Strongbows. I met several very cool people who subsequently made it onto my MySpace friends list ... as if that's hard ... but I hope to hang out with them again soon -- like at Theresa's wedding reception at the sports cafe near my house! And Christen will be there, so I'll have license to drink as I wish, because really I could walk home if I wanted.

The weekend was slow but fun; Christen and I walked about in downtown St. Pete looking for a cute retro ashtray so that he can ash his cigars in style. We saw a few, but they were far overpriced (everything at the store down there is) but we got a couple ideas. I think we'll probably pick one up at Rick's Picks this weekend; cute and inexpensive is the name of the game this time. At the apartment with Brad I had a nifty square candle holder that we utilized as an ashtray but I don't know what happened to it in the multiple moves since then. Sunday was football, and I lost the pool after the 1 o'clock games, so I retired to play Oblivion in the library for a bit. It was a lazy weekend, all in all.

I'm so looking forward to dinner tonight -- we picked up some she crab soup at the market Monday and haven't had a chance to eat it so tonight's the night! I hope it rocks, but I'm not too sure ... I'll let you know! Shea and Kyle are coming over after dinner to hang out, so maybe a little wine or whine will help the cramps -- sulfites unite!

Puppy Power!

Jazzy came for a sleepover last week and of course, crazy drunk pictures were taken. Aren't they taken at every sleepover?

another week, another dollar

I'm so relieved.

It is 4:26pm. Friday. I have finished everything on my diary for work (I was 2 weeks behind when I started this week). I have filed all my claims and all my mail is up to date and filed (I had to borrow a cart to get all my files from my desk to my cabinets). My desk is clean, my work is done, and I have 59 minutes left to be at work. Life is finally stuffing lemonade down my throat.

It's been an interesting week. Monday I took my mom grocery shopping, and hung around doing nada. Tuesday I wasn't feeling well so I laid around watching my Monday shows on the DVR and feeling ill. Wednesday I went to Shea's with Shell and we went to a sushi place out in Land O Lakes on Collier Parkway ... the sushi was fantastic (I'd say top 4 -- tied with Bonsai, Toki, and Soho sushi) but the service was terrible -- I'd say we were forgotten because it took us an hour to get our food, and we only got half of it because it was on two pages and they forgot the second page. But the sushi was great, so we'll definitely give it another shot. Plus, it's not like we're ever without stuff to talk about. Afterward we walked down to Marble Slab and then I went home ... so late, no sleep but oh well :). Thursday I had to go see the florist, and I figured out she's actually the mother of a friend of mine from high school. Not that I'm getting a discount or anything, but it's funny nonetheless. Suzanne came with me because I hate doing such things on my own and everyone else had previous engagements (haha, I made a funny!). Before and after I had to go see my sister because she was being her usual hormonal-puberty-craziness with my mom, and drama ensued. Everything's cool now, I guess, but it was pretty bad. I'm so glad I'm out of that stage. If my kids start that with me they'll be locked in their rooms until they turn 18. Not dealing with it. I don't know how children live through their teenage years. I was supposed to meet up with Kyle and Christen at the Zone last night, but I didn't end up getting there until 9:30 or so (about the time I had planned on leaving) so I stayed until 11:30 or so. Craziness. Then I got home and couldn't sleep, so I slept in this morning and I'm staying a little late.

Tonight I'm supposed to go to that bridal shower that I tried to go to last week and realized I had the wrong date, so I'm out drinking again tonight! Woohoo!

A Monday Morning Meme

1. What time did you get up this morning? 6:30am (should have been earlier)
2. Diamonds or Pearls? mostly diamonds, a smattering of pearls are nice though :)
3. What was the last film you saw at the cinema? Last Kiss
4. What is your favorite TV show? Without a Trace, CSI, My Name is Earl ... whenever I get to catch them.
5. What did you have for breakfast? A Bagel and sweet tea
6. What is your middle name? Lynne
7. What is your favorite cuisine? Italian, or whatever I'm cooking
8. What foods do you dislike? mayonnaise
9. Your favorite Potato chip? I don't really like chips -- too greasy.
10. What is your favorite CD at the moment? Jack Johnson's yellow cd (i don't remember the name of it)
11. What kind of car do you drive? Toyota Corolla S Type
12. Favorite sandwich? Grilled Cheese
13. What characteristics do you despise? conceit and selfishness
14. What are your favorite clothes? I'm with Stacy -- my heels! And my Loft dresses
15. If you could go anywhere in the world on vacation, where WOULDN'T you go? anywhere there's a more than likely chance of being killed
16. Favorite brand of clothing? Loft Ann Taylor or NY&Co
17. Where would you want to retire? Charleston or Memphis -- I adore those two cities
18. Favorite time of day? lunchtime and afternoon
19. Where were you born? Good ole Dunedin
20. What is your favorite sport to watch? NFL and hockey
21. Who do you think will not copy and continue this? I don't know, probably everyone
22. Person you expect to send it back first? hehe ... I'd say Stacy, but she's the one who sent it to me ...
23. Pepsi or Coke? Coke
24. Beavers or Ducks? ummm ... sounds like something sexual
25. Are you a morning person or night owl? morning once I drag myself out of bed.
26. Pedicure or Manicure? pedicure. I do my own nails
27. Any new and exciting news you'd like to share? Not really ... same old, same old
28. What did you want to be when you were little? A forensic psychologist ... before that was the "in" thing to be. Then a teacher, then a writer, then an editor. I still want to be the last two, but I'll get there eventually.
29. What is your best childhood memory? taking my brother on the back of my bike to the library, and the antique stores and up to Shoney's for lunch
30. Piercing? Ears and Tongue
31. Ever been to Africa ? Nope
32. Ever been toilet papering? actually, no
33. Been in a car accident? Yep
35. Favorite restaurant? Moe's and Flemings
36. Favorite flower? yellow roses and tulips
37. Favorite ice cream? Monkey Bites from Cold Stone
38. Favorite fast food restaurant? Chick-fil-a or Evo's
39. How many times did you fail your drivers test? none, but I did lie to the instructor and told her I didn't drive over the cone when I did the parking part ...
40. From whom did you get your last e-mail? Stacy, as per usual :)
41. Which store would you choose to max out your credit card? Loft Ann Taylor or any shoe store
42. Bedtime? Whenever I get sleepy, unless I want to stay up anyhow. Then I fight it.
43. Who are you most curious about their responses to this? Whoever decides to answer it
44. Last person you went to dinner with? Christen and I went for Chinese this weekend
45. What are you listening to right now? my iPod -- Bllue Plate Special is on with "Track 10"
46. What is your favorite color? Blue or Green or Tan
7. How many tattoos do you have? one
48. How many people are you sending this to? just the usual suspects
49. What time did you finish this e-mail? 10:41 am
50. Favorite magazine? People

Dreaming again.

I don't know why, but I've been dragging ever since I got back from lunch. I keep staring at the bottom corner of the computer screen but it doesn't seem to make the time pass any quicker. Why is that? I've finally got 10 minutes left -- hallelujah!

I've been having weird dreams again lately. I had a dream two nights ago that I was abducted by terrorists. Shelley, me and some guy were abducted and shoved into some hotel room, and they hit me and thought I was dead because it knocked me out, but when I came to I just had a broken jaw and a broken arm. Then we escaped and found out that we were in Atlanta so we were trying to find our way home. Then Stacy was there trying to navigate for us and she kept getting us lost and we were mad.

Last night I had another nightmare about my wedding. I dreamt that it was day of and we still hadn't finalized our honeymoon plans (in the dream we were going to Japan) so I'm in my dress trying to do my hair and flipping through these cards at a flea market trying to find a hotel room in Japan. Crazy crazy.

We've got my mom's dog for the weekend -- it's so nice to see Lola having fun without having to be the main source of her fun. It's breaktime :) They patter through the house back and forth and Christen says, "Well, I did only want two kids ..." and I was all "See? They amuse themselves!" Not that it's like that with kids or anything, but still ...

I woke up this morning to what I thought was a hurricane, but evidently was just 5 inches of rain falling in less than 3 hours. Oh joy. I went back to bed to listen to the rain before I had to ship off to work.

Because of my missed days of work last week, I am now up to my eyeballs in work -- I've separated it into piles. There's the "do before anything else" pile, the "do before it's due" pile, the "transferred to me and I don't care" pile and the "where did this come from?" pile. Plus, you know, mail and phone calls and all those other things I'm supposed to take care of. I worked an extra hour yesterday, and I will probably work late all this week to try to get a handle on things. Bah. I wish I was a housewife. But that's Christen's job right now.

I stopped by B&N yesterday to check if they had Paint it Black by Janet Fitch yet. Turns out they do, but it doesn't go 20% off until next week. I can wait until next week. I'm reading Just an Ordinary Day by Shirley Jackson, and it's divine. It's just the type of short fiction that I long to write. Tasty little morsels that leave you intrigued about the characters and always wanting more. Always leave them wanting more ...

After Barnes to the Noble, I went to Bed Bath & Beyond to get a friend a bridal shower gift. I have to say, I now understand why no one buys off the registry. You know how hard it is to find those things? I am traumatized from having to stare at the gadget wall (you know what I'm talking about) for a half hour looking for a cheese plane only to find out they're out. First I tried to get some of the dishes she wanted -- those are easy, no? Yeah, they're out. Then the gadget wall -- I figured I'd just get a bunch of gadgets. Very traumatic. But an hour later I was finally done. Hurrah!

Bah

I'm sick. Missed work yesterday, and came in today because I needed to pack up my stuff -- they're moving me to another floor. I'll probably go home after that.

Bah. I'm such a baby.

The Buzz

So have you guys seen this? I do feel bad that her son died, but unfortunately the whole article is overshadowed by this one sentence. “The couple, who met while working together at Jim's Krispy Fried Chicken in Mexia, Texas, divorced in 1987.” Hehe. That’s all I’ve got on that.

My throat is absolutely killing me, and I don’t know what to do about it. I was sucking on a cough drop, but since I’m not coughing I don’t know how much help it is. It started hurting yesterday at work, and I don’t know if it hurts because of work or it just happened to start hurting while there. It didn’t hurt last night so much, but it hurts now so bad that I’m having a hard time concentrating on anything.

I’m reading John Irving’s Trying to Save Piggy Sneed, and the memoirs part was really good, but I’m trying to power through the short story part to move on to another book. The short stories aren’t bad, or I would just stop reading, but they’re not … compelling. The next book on the roster is John Steinbeck’s Tortilla Flats. Hopefully I’ll start that by today at lunch or tomorrow. I haven’t gotten through the amount of books I had proposed as my New Years resolution, but I’d say I’ve read 50-75, so I don’t think I’ve done too bad. And there’s still 3 ½ months left of the year. It’s been a good year for reading, I’d say.

I’m thinking about volunteering at the library on Saturday mornings. A friend of mine does it and it sounds like something I’d really enjoy, so I think I might check out the library around the corner from my house. I think I owe them $10 from a book-on-tape I lost in high school, and I hope that doesn’t keep me from getting the job :)

My dad found a friend of his to do the photography for my wedding. I’m super excited because it’ll make it a lot cheaper, but super-nervous, because I haven’t seen his work yet. I’m going to see if he can do my engagement photos so I can see his current work, because he only works for friends now so he doesn’t keep a portfolio. He has an album from way back, and I guess I’ll check that out to see.

But that’s all that’s happening right now. Back to work – Toodles!

It's been a long time since I've done a meme ...

But I’ve been tagged by NPR Junky!

1) You have been selected as the next super hero in your city. What power will you choose to have? the power to fight all crime through video games!

2) Lemon or Lime? - Lemon with water, Orange with Blue Moon, and nothing with Tea. Nothing's a simple answer

3) How many speeding tickets have you recieved? - I've had a bundle, but none since 2000 -- I've been a good girl! Or I've gotten better glasses, one of those ...

4) It’s last call for alcohol what will you order? - probably a Shiraz or Zinfindel -- I'm stuck on this Bogle Petit Syrah that's fantastic, and their Zinfindel is equally delish.

5) Which video game character would you want to be? I only play one video game religiously, but in that I'm a high elf. I'd love to be a Spriggin, because they're so cute (and deadly for me) or a battlemage ... fun fun!

6) What event do you think has had the most effect on this country?a) every war any president can come up with.

7) What was the street name you lived on the majority of your childhood? For a while I moved once every year or two -- Eastwood, Crest Ave, Falcon Dr., but when I was 12 we moved to Pennsylvania Ave and the fam still lives there.

8) The name of your first pet? - I had a dog named Tippy, but the first one I remember was a German Shepard named Pi that was way bigger than me (I was 3) ... and I still miss that dog.

9) Your first grade teacher’s last name? ... No wait, I'm thinking ... she was older than dirt ... Gerard, I think. I can usually remember, but right now I'm stuck and can only remember to second grade, and then I remember my preschool teacher's name: Ms. Cathy.

And the final one…10) What color are your current undergarments? - Ah ... navy blue panties and a black bra.

And I'll tag VegasGustan, Autumn, Jamie, Random_Speak and Ordinary Girl. Fun fun!

Laborous.

I don't know what to say about my Labor Day weekend that won't offend one person or another. All I know is I'm in a bad mood, and I don't want to be at work. Hope you enjoyed yours!

Sometimes you just need the coffee

I need to start remembering not to drink so much on a school night ... or work night, whatevs. Shea and Kyle came over last night and we did cheese (havarti w/ dill, garlic & herb cheddar, and muenster) and summer sausage and slightly burnt bruschetta (okay, so I kept forgetting it in the oven) for dinner. Christen really wanted to do a wine and cheese night. It was actually pretty good, and we had about 1 1/2 bottles of wine between 3 of us (Kyle had thoe Bacardi fruit drinks). Later we went to The Zone and hung out with my favorite bartender ... I'm going to be so sad when that place finally catches on... I love the hole-in-the-wall bar feel, and it's going to end up being dance club loudness. I understand what they're trying to do, and I don't begrudge them trying to succeed, but I've never found a bar that I would actually go to on a regular basis, and that I would enjoy just hanging out at. It makes me understand some of my Tampa friends that are always going out to some of the small bars. It's so nice! But we had a couple glasses of wine there too -- a "super Tuscan" which was okay, a little weird at the end, and an Argentinian merlot which was fantastic (and I've never had a Merlot that I like)

But it was indeed too much of the drink, and I was a little tipsy, and Shea-Shea was more than pleasantly tipsy ... I had to keep getting her water because she kept getting the hiccups. So fun! But we really need to hold off on weeknights, I'm telling you. We were out until about 11:30, and then Christen and I had a little romp in the hay, so I didn't get to sleep until 1am ... and up at 6:30. Technically I should have been up earlier, but it wasn't happening. I stopped at Starbucks for a raspberry mocha, and dragged my butt into work. I'm fully awake now, but I still don't want to be here :) It's raining, and I want to be cozy in bed watching a movie or reading next to Christen.

Instead I'll be here at work nursing my Starbucks and counting the hours.

A proper blur

This past week has been a bit of a blur, and somehow I haven’t even noticed that it’s been more than a week since I last posted. Don’t feel unilaterally ignored, it has been across the board. I have somewhere in the neighborhood of 50 emails left unread (one is from Manny, and Manny if by chance you read this, yes I got your email and no I haven’t had time to properly respond!) and I go on MS lately just to see if I have any pending messages but other than that it’s equally ignored.

The funny thing is, I haven’t really done anything of note the past week. Christen has been a proper househusband while he’s looking for a job; I haven’t had to wash a dish or do the laundry in two weeks. I’m going to miss him when he finally gets out of the house, but I do hope he finds something he wants soon. I don’t want him to get discouraged. Other than spending time with Christen, I’ve been vaguely playing Oblivion – not to the same degree that I was playing before. Christen and I take turns playing eachother’s games on parts that we have trouble – I pick locks for him (I’m really good at it, even on his character who sucks at it by nature) and he fights the Minotaurs for me, because I can’t seem to get a handle on how to fight without getting my ass beat. I made a tempura batter last night to cook zucchini – just an experiment, but it turned out pretty good. I’ll have to experiment a little more with that – too much water in the batter, I think.

My tire decided to split (I think I ran over something) and started leaking. We couldn’t get the tire off because the lugs were stripped from when they were last changed – about 2 months ago, so we had to make a trip to Tire Kingdom to get the lug off. The guy there went ahead and changed out all the lugs on my rims … as someone who worked in the customer service industry for many years and arguably still does (isn’t every job where you speak to people a CS job?), I was impressed – I went so far as to fill out an online comment thingie this morning, which I rarely do. Christen was able to patch my tire last night so that I can drive! Woohoo!

So we put off our girls’ night until tonight, and we’re going to get the girls fitted for their dresses so when Autumn comes in on Saturday they can just be ordered. I’m so excited! I’ve stopped planning for the wedding for the past month, mostly because I don’t like planning in an unstable environment. But now I really need to start working – I need to book the dj, florist, hair person, cake, and photographer. Stat. I’m getting married in 7 ½ months!!! I finally sent out the save the dates on Sunday – Christen made me do it. I guess I should start working, eh?

She keeps jumping from high places because she's an idiot ...

I'm seeing Oblivion in my sleep now. I hit the snooze and go back to bed to "power up."

Last night was an uneventful night. I found a copy cat recipe for Macaroni Grill's pasta Milano, so I made that for dinner -- it was fabulous; I brought the rest of it for lunch today with an orange. The rest of the night was time for Oblivion. I'm unhealthily obsessed. Christen and I have made a deal where I can play until bedtime and then he'll play when I go to bed, because he stays up a lot later than I and that way we both get our time in. Although we're playing probably far too much, it is cheap entertainment, because he likes watching me play, and I just get other things done while he's playing (or sleep ... hehe). I'm up to about 24 hours in 3 days ...

The job hunt is going slowly for Christen. He gets emails from people offering jobs he doesn't want anything to do with, but none from the people he'd really like to work for. Yesterday he was pretty depressed (also because he didn't eat all day, and he has a big problem with that -- I think he's hypoglycemic), but he applied to a few more while I was playing the game and he seemed happier once I got home. I keep emailing him from work with random job postings -- I think I've emailed him 15 companies in the area looking for people.

Anyhow, back to work! I've been doing good with getting a lot done when I first get here, and then taking a short break to visit my adoring public before shooting back to the many things I have left to do. It's a lovely balancing act, really ... no really, it is all an act ... :) Toodles!

Please remind me ...

Not to order ribs from the cafe at work when wearing a white sweater. Thanks, I'll owe you one.

Strawberry Cheesecake recipe

1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
3 tablespoons butter, melted

2 (8-ounce) and 1 (3-ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
2 teaspoons grated lemon peel
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 large eggs

1 cup granulated sugar
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1/3 cup water
1 1/3 cup strawberries, mashed


For the Crust: In a bowl stir together graham cracker crumbs and 2 tablespoons sugar. Mix in melted butter and turn 1/2 into a 9-inch springform pan. Use the remaining crumbs up the side of the pan by about 1 inch. Make sure to cover the entire bottom of the pan. Bake in a 375°F (190°C) oven for 10 minutes. Cool. Reduce the oven temperature to 300°F (150°C).

For the Filling: Beat softened cream cheese in a large mixing bowl on high for at least 20 minutes until cheese itself becomes fluffy. Gradually add 1 cup sugar; beating until fluffy. Add grated lemon peel and vanilla. Beat in eggs, one at a time. Pour into the shell and bake for 1 hour, or until the center is set. (center may be a little jiggly when done cooking, it will set while it cools. Do not over cook!) Cool then spread with the strawberry glaze. Chill for 3 hours.

For the Strawberry Glaze: Blend 1 cup sugar and cornstarch together in a small saucepan over medium heat. Stir in water and mashed strawberries. Cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens and boils. Boil and stir for 1 minute. Cool thoroughly before spreading over the cheesecake.

To remove from pan, run knife around outside of pan before unlocking spring form.

Couldn't stay away

I tried to stay away, but it turns out I can’t. I’m like the cat – came back, couldn’t stay away ... knew she a goner, etc. etc. Things are not as bad as I made them out to be – I just had issues that I was dealing with and Tuesday was a rather fragile day for me. I posted before leaving work early. So please disregard – I’m baaaaaack!

This past week was actually pretty nice, other than the mini crises early in the week. Tuesday we went to Shell’s house for couples’ night. It was a picnic dinner of pulled pork pitas (amazing), purple Peruvian potato salad (yummy), baked beans and cheese and fruit. It’s entirely possible that there was other food, but since it’s been a week, I don’t remember. I made a strawberry cheesecake for the occasion, and I dare say I think I outdid myself. The recipe to follow. I think the trick, though, to making the cheesecake so light and airy (quite possible to eat the whole pie) was that I whipped the cream cheese on its own for about ½ hour, and then started adding the sugar and continued to whip it.

Wednesday night all were supposed to come over to our house, but Shell and Richard bailed to have together time … the nerve! Haha. Imagine, married for 3 months and wanting personal time. You don’t get that anymore! But Shea and Kyle came over and we had stuffed green peppers and Bogle Zinfindel and meringue cookies for dessert. We went to The Zone, but between 2 weeks ago and this week it became a dance club. I guess whatever to pay the bills, but it was muy disappointing. Shell & Richard would have hated it, so it's a good thing they didn't end up coming. Kyle liked it because he could do his networking thing for his DJs ... the rest of us were just hoping that the boys had somewhere else to play that we could go listen. Thursday I went with my ex and Shell & Richard to see our friend Manny who lives in Japan. He was in Orlando for the week, so we met up with him at Islands of Adventure. The park was a bit of a bust, because it rained until after 4, so we rode a couple things right before we left and that was about it. But seeing Manny was awesome, and meeting his family and his boyfriend was very cool. The trip started out a little weird, and I kinda felt squeezed out by someone, but by the end it was a lot of fun and I’m very glad I went. We dined at Jungle Jim’s, which is my favorite Orlando burger joint. They have the peanut butter bet (they bet you’ll like it or they’ll get you a new burger), which I had to bring home one to Christen because he would have been very upset if I had dined there and not brought him back one. It’s what I ate as well. Yum!! Jim had the headhunter, which is a ridiculously monstrous burger. Which he, of course, ate the whole thing.

Friday was my off day, and Christen and I went for a stuffed pizza at Old Chicago. We didn’t really have anything in the house, and it’s pretty inexpensive – they have delicious spinach artichoke stuffed pizza there (well, I pick out the artichokes because I don’t like them).
At this time, I would like to bring your attention to the most engrossing game on the face of the earth.

Christen and I played this game for the entire weekend. Less about 7 hours on Saturday night when we went to Shelly’s house for an engagement party for her and Simon, we played this game all friggin’ weekend. It was awesome. Awesome. I’m still way far behind Christen, and I think I played a lot more than he (but he had an additional week of play before I started). It’s so fun! You probably shouldn’t get it – it’s far too engrossing. You’ll start losing weekends left and right.
Shelly and Simon’s party was very fun. The boys (previously from The Zone) were there and set up to jam (Simon joined in on bongo drum) and there was a lot of food and Belgium beer (very tasty) and I got to catch up with Shelly’s family and play with my godbaby Rachel (not really a baby anymore, she’s 7 and a total handful but lots of fun). Shelly was toasted by about 8:30, but I think she had a good time too. :)
And now I'm back at work and I've gotten a lot done, so I think I'm going to go downstairs and get breakfast before starting up again!

temporary hiatus

Hey. So some things happened last night that I don't want to get into, but I won't be around much for a little bit. Might be a week, might be longer -- I'm not sure right now. I'm fine, everything's fine -- don't worry about it. Just wanted to explain if you stop by wondering where I am -- I'll be around.

Rosebud ... wasn't that the sled?

I don’t understand the prospect of coming to work on Monday more tired than when you left on Friday. I had a great weekend, but really I think I should have gotten some sleep sometime … right? Friday I had planned on a quiet night of laundry and hanging out with Lola, but Stacy ended up coming over for pesto pasta with asparagus and wine instead. We had a great time, just hanging out and drinking and talking. Saturday, Christen and I did some shopping and just basically hung out being silly and not doing much of anything. I bought a shirt and a dress on clearance at The Loft Ann Taylor, and a couple shirts on clearance at NY & Co, both of which are a couple of my very favorite stores. I was looking for a birthday gift for a friend of mine and made the trek down to Baywalk because I knew The Buzz would have what I wanted but alas, everything I liked had chips in it or was otherwise not acceptable. Still looking for that birthday gift … I made steaks in a red wine sauce that night (left over Bogle Petit Syrah, a fantastic wine) and fresh green beans. Sunday I woke up to Christen making banana pancakes (if only it were raining I’d start quoting Jack Johnson again). I wasn’t really in a breakfast mood – I can’t eat right when I wake up – and we went out again, this time for a larger trashcan and to get my pearls cleaned at Jared’s and to see if they could fix a ring of mine, but it turns out they can’t … and I got to try on some necklaces to see if there was anything I couldn’t live without. Hehe. Not that I could have gotten anything, but it’s nice to look. I think he’s pretty intent on getting me a necklace for the wedding, which I’m psyched about. I love jewelry. I never knew I was such a girl, and now I’m so into shoes and purses and jewelry … if I wasn’t so spastic about my books you wouldn’t know I’m the nerd that I am. Well, maybe you would know, but whatever. :)

Sunday night Shea and Kyle came over for shrimp and rice pilaf and more wine (sensing a trend? Thought so) and we all hung out and acted stupid. I made peaches flambé! for dessert (I thought the dessert needed an exclamation point) although I think it needed more brandy -- there was just a little blue flame -- I was hoping for something a little more sensational. All tasted good though, and that's important. Shea and I looked at invitations for the wedding and the boys went outside and smoked their cigars … it was a pretty typical Saturday night – except that it was Sunday. They didn’t stay real late, but I still didn’t get much sleep last night and I think I consumed more than 3 bottles of wine by myself over the weekend. I do know the wine refrigerator is mighty light right now. I might take a trip over to the wine store for replacement … :) There’s a wine store in Tampa that is really very inexpensive – the Bogle there is $8.49, but it’s $9.99 at Ed’s Fine Wines (my usual wine store) and $11.99 at Kash ‘n’ Karry. So it’s great, I just have to know what I want. The people there seem helpful, but I don’t know that I trust them for good recommendations just yet. It’s just cheap, and I appreciate that. But this morning I woke up still recovering from this weekend. Never with a hangover, but I do feel like crap, I know that. Hopefully my water will help.

I’m still working through A Cook’s Tour by Anthony Bourdain. I only read 3 pages over the weekend, while I was watching War of the Worlds (I know, I know, I’m sorry). But I plan on getting back into the swing of things today, and I’ll probably finish at lunch (I only have 48 pages left). So next will be The Nasty Bits, also by Bourdain. Then I get to start in on my bag of books from Jordan.