Three Down...

I feel I need to preface this post with how I have been feeling to somewhat explain why I chose to complete these three challenges.  This week was more difficult than anticipated.  I had a lot of fun with friends, but truth be told, I really miss being in a relationship.  Despite the significant problems that were evident from the beginning, there was nothing better than venting to my husband after a long day at work, planning a future and spending time together, and sleeping next to and cuddling with the one I loved.

So, here is a photo that makes me both angry and sad, a song that makes me cry (or nearly cry), and the music video on YouTube.

One of my favorite pictures of us together.
Taken August 2006 in Pacific City, Oregon

The song is "Only One" by Yellowcard.  We sang it together on our first date, as Sean describes here, and it became one of our songs.  It seems more applicable and significant now than it did then...



Please do not get me wrong; although I miss the relationship, I recognize the first few weeks are the most difficult, and I realize better times are ahead.

The Blog Challenge Revisited

Quite some time ago, I posted The Blog Challenge and the list of 30 topics.  My goal was to complete one or two a week, but that did not happen...  So, I am going to try it again.  Again, the topics are numbered, but I will do them in no particular order.  Here is the list again:

The Blog Challenge Topics:

#01 - my favorite song
#02 - my favorite movie
#03 - my favorite television program
#04 - my favorite book
#05 - my favorite quote
#06 - 20 of my favorite things
#07 - a photo that makes me happy
#08 - a photo that makes me angry/sad
#09 - a photo I took
#10 - a photo taken over 10 years ago of me
#11 - a recent photo of me
#12 - something I am OCD about
#13 - a fictional book
#14 - a non-fictional book
#15 - my dream house
#16 - a song that makes me cry (or nearly cry)
#17 - a piece of art (drawing, sculpture, painting, etc.)
#18 - my wedding
#19 - a talent of mine
#20 - a hobby of mine
#21 - a recipe
#22 - a website
#23 - a Youtube video
#24 - where I live
#25 - my day, in great detail
#26 - my week, in great detail
#27 - my worst habit
#28 - what is in my wallet
#29 - hopes, dreams, and plans for the next 365 days
#30 - a dream for the future

New Beginnings

Happy New Year!  I hope everyone had a safe and enjoyable holiday.  I did, despite spending way too much money, as well as a few unfortunate mishaps.  It was my first time hosting an adult party on New Year's Eve, so I learned a few lessons, but I enjoyed celebrating the end of 2011 with good food, drinks, and friends.

I have not committed to any resolutions (yet), but I do intend to blog more.  I also plan on excercising more and watching what I eat, not to lose weight, but to stay physically healthy.  I will post a list of my goals, if I get around to making some.

A lot has happened since the last time I posted an actual update.  I went on three vacations (New York City, New York; Oceanside, California; and Capitol Reef National Park, Utah), I turned 27 (no, I am not looking forward to turning 30), I put my cat down (Sean did a good job documenting his life on his blog, Cocoa (1996 - 2011): Tribute to a FAT CAT!), and the person who broke into our house was caught (but nothing was recovered).  The biggest change happened more recently.
 
As most of you know, Sean and I are no longer together.  I do not enjoy airing dirty laundry or posting passive aggressive comments on a public blog/website such as mine (at least for now; I may make it private, but I would rather not do that), so I will not say anything more about this, but if you want to know why (from my perspective, of course), I would not mind explaining over dinner or drinks.  I will say I am certainly sad the relationship (including, it seems, the friendship) ended, but I am not depressed, and for the most part, I am happier.  The good that has and will come of this experience far outweighs the bad.

This year will definitely be full of "new" -- new people, new places, new adventures, new opportunities, new beginnings -- and I am looking forward to it.

2011 Birthday Wishlist

Here are some things I want for my birthday this year, categorized and roughly in the order of importance.  I only want new, unused items, please.  I'll add to this list as I think of more stuff I want.  There are more items on my Amazon.com wishlist, too.  (Yes, I pretty much copied and pasted my 2010 Christmas Wishlist post.)

Miscellaneous:
Clothes (Pants: 32W 32L; Shirts: Medium)

Board and Card Games:
The Settlers of Catan

Stratego Onyx Edition

Gift Cards:
iTunes Gift Card(s)
Amazon.com Gift Card(s)
Ruth’s Chris Gift Card(s)
Fleming's Gift Card(s)

The Melting Pot Gift Card(s)

Electronics:

Suikoden Tierkreis (DS)

Mario Kart w/ Wii Wheel (Wii)
Blue 16GB iPod Nano

Recipes

The mortgage broker we used when we bought our house (Kevin Horrocks, Olympus Funding) occasionally sends us postcards with recipes.  Here are two we recently tried:

Shrimp Paella

Prep Time:  10 minutes

Cook Time:  30 minutes

Serves:  10

Ingredients:

• 4 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 onion, diced
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1 14-ounce diced tomatoes
• 1 8-ounce bottle clam juice
• 3 cups chicken stock
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 2 teaspoon paprika
• 1 12-ounce bag arborio rice
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 24 large pre-cooked shrimp
• 2 scallions, diced

Directions:

Heat 3 tablespoons of the oil in a large skillet.  Saute the onions, garlic, and thyme for 5 minutes.  Add the tomatoes, clam juice, stock, pepper, and paprika.  Stir in the rice and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat to medium low and cook uncovered for 20 minutes or until the rice is tender.

Saute the shrimp in the remaining tablespoon of oil and the oregano for 3 minutes.  Place the shrimp and scallions over the rice and serve with salt and pepper.

Lemon Basil Chicken

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time:  20 minutes

Serves:  6

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 8 ounces of sliced mushrooms
• 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, chunked
• 1 teaspoon each salt and pepper
• 1/2 cup white grape juice
• 3/4 cup fresh lemon juice (4 lemons)
• 8 Roma tomatoes, chunked
• 1/2 cup fresh basil leaves, chopped
• 1/4 cup grated Asiago cheese
• 1 pound cooked penne pasta

Directions

In a large skilled, brown the garlic and mushrooms in the oil.  Add the chicken, salt, and pepper and cook until done, about 10 minutes.  Add the grape juice and simmer 5 minutes.  Add the lemon juice and tomatoes, and simmer 2 to 3 minutes.  Remove from heat and stir in the chopped basil.  Serve over the pasta and top with Asiago cheese.