Wordless Wednesday... on Thursday

Because that's the way the week has been going so far. Humor me, won't you?

[furballs enjoying a fire]

[a suddenly quite dog-sized former puppy looking handsome]

[two friends who would love to share that popcorn with you]

[a pair of good-looking guys]

[Toby the explorer gets a little boost by stepping on his brother's head. We're lucky I managed to capture this moment, what with the laughing-so-hard-I-almost-died.]

Love,

Meg

Style[ish]

I don't usually talk about fashion because, well, I don't really have any. I tend to lag behind the trends and you'll never catch me in an outfit that could be described as anything more complimentary than "safe." No matter how well I think I match each morning, I am always blown away by the style icon that is my boss, who looks like she's just stepped out of a magazine but also like looking so good is the most effortless thing she will do all day. I have made many a purchase with her impeccable taste in mind, and I hope that she hasn't caught on to the fact that her unique but adorable nail polish choice this week will usually be mine next week (I'm shameless).
Though I have no style sense of my own, I am certainly not deterred from passing judgement on others. It would be a shame to let the hours I spent yawning through the Oscars last night go to waste, and since I haven't seen enough of the movies to formulate an informed opinion, I thought I'd share my (similarly uninformed) opinions on the other big story of the night: the dresses. I'll hand you your grain of salt now, and then we can get started...

The Best

Ms. Octavia Spencer has a stunning personality and wore a dress to match. I love the draped shoulders and the classic color on her. Her nominee presentation was equally adorable, and I definitely chided the audience from my couch when they failed to laugh at her joke. Such a class act!

Despite some of the criticism floating around, I thought Amanda Seyfried looked incredible. The cut of that dress is made for her (enviable) figure, and while it might have been impressive in a bolder color, I thought this was beautifully understated and elegant. It certainly doesn't help that she is a pretty fantastic singer in the sea of mediocre Les Mis musical talent, either (I'm looking at you, Mr. Crowe).

 I have no clue who Lara Spencer is (ok I'm lying, Google tells me that she's an anchor on Good Morning, America, which explains why I've never heard of her), but boy did she do well with this little number. Apparently I have a thing for off-white, and the sparkle on this one hits just the right balance between boring and kid's crazy art project.

If you know me even a little bit, this doesn't surprise you at all... Jennifer Aniston could have worn a trash bag and still made my best list. Despite my bias, this dress is fantastic and she is probably the only person who could have kept me completely focused on the person standing next to Channing Tatum (I'm kidding, sweetheart!)

 

The Best Couples

 (I'm making my own rules here)

A couple who isn't a couple, but still an adorable picture of Zero Dark Thirty stars Jessica Chastain and Jason Clarke.

 Again, NOT a couple. I'm a sucker for anyone who brings their daughter to the awards, though, and Jamie Foxx's daughter Corinne Bishop was adorable and super poised on the red carpet.

 Bryan Cranston and Robin Dearden looking cute and not-at-all-strung-out-on-drugs... a little less Walt, a little more Hal.

And of course Bennifer, included mostly for the sweet shot of Jennifer tearing up in the audience when Ben announced to the world that their marriage was "work, but... the best kind of work." Amen to that.

The Worst

Swing and a miss for the usually gorgeous Halle Berry, who looks like she might have ridden in on the Enterprise with Mr. Shatner.

Amy Adams is adorable, no doubt about it, but the decision to wear 300 pounds of gray tulle was definitely not one of her best. I missed her on the red carpet but kept catching glimpses of her beast of a dress in the front row, and by the time I realized that it was her under all those layers, I was so sure that the dress was a ploy to get an awesome seat that I just couldn't forgive it. Try again next year, Amy.

The fact that this was the only picture of Anne Hathaway's dress PG-enough for this blog says it all. Did she look in a mirror before she left home?

There are really no words for the spectacular disaster that is Kristin Stewart. My favorite tweet of the night (retweeted via a friend): "Has anyone told Kristen Stewart that she's totally allowed to not be a movie star if she wants out?" Poor Harry Potter...

  

The Questionable

I'm honestly torn here. I love Sally Fields, but I hated her in Lincoln. I adore the top half of her dress, but the ruffles at the bottom make me ill. 

I get it: if I had once been Bridget Jones, I would want to show off a newly-discovered teeny tiny waistline whenever possible, too. This dress flatters a little too much for my taste -- I'm not particularly interested in all the curves that it outlines so well. The color is great, but the spandex illusion isn't.

I loved the movie Ted, terribly offensive jokes and all. There's just something about a talking teddy bear that gets me every time, no matter how awful the words coming out of his mouth might be. I'm not going to get into the specifics of his appearance last night, but I do think that it might not have been the best venue for our little fuzzy friend to let fly. Mark Wahlberg's face in this picture really says it all. I can't lie, though: I'm absolutely dying for the sequel.

But the biggest question of the night: where in the world was Emma Stone? She helped Seth MacFarlane announce the nominees back in January, but she was nowhere to be seen on the big night itself. Did her limo get lost? Did Ryan Gosling say "Hey girl, lets spend a quiet night at home?" There's got to be a good explanation...

Happy Oscars, all!

Love,

Meg

Friday Favorites

After two whole days of airing my worst traits for all the internet to hear, I think it's time for a little positive energy around here. Contrary to what the past few posts might have you thinking, I'm not (always) a terrible person and I am lucky to have a lot of happiness in my life.
Today is a crazy day (a fitting end to a crazy week) at work, so this is going to be short, sweet, and a little random. Here we go:


Even though Valentine's day was last week, I thought this article (from the guy behind "Shit My Dad Says") was still worth sharing. It's funny, a little depressing, and probably not for the easily-offended, but the true message can't be beat. I'm so lucky to have found a love like this.

I got started on my February book (see: resolution to read one book every month) super late, but it only took me a few days to race through this one (not because I was in a hurry, just because it was too good to put down for very long). It's a fantastic glimpse into the mind of Asperger's, heartbreaking and heartwarming all at once. Marcelo is one of the most endearing characters I've met in a long time.

In my long history of posting terrible pictures of my food, I think this may be my worst offense. That one on the left is spectacularly bad. Please trust me that both of these taste a billion times better than they photograph... or than I photograph. Sincere apologies if these hurt your eyes (or your stomach).

I've been making a mess in the kitchen a lot lately, with a few noteworthy results: pesto chicken and whipped feta. They both fulfill the trifecta of requirements for a fantastic recipe -- a short list of ingredients (4 for the chicken, 2 for the feta), impossible-to-screw-up preparation, and an absolutely delicious finished product. Worth the mess.

This was the appetizer we ordered on our Valentine's date last week: bread, cheese, lemon-butter sauce, and caper overload (just kidding, you can never have too many capers). Holy heart-attack-on-a-plate, it was incredible.

I bought tickets yesterday for my fourth Peter Bradley Adams concert in March. Dan is taking off work so that we can go and I can't wait!

Speaking of music, I'm a little behind (as usual) but I'm loving this song. They are playing in our hometown soon and now I'm a little bummed that I didn't try for tickets to that, too.


And we'll close with a few funnies collected this week:

Happy weekend, everyone!

   Love,

    Meg

Confessional, Part II

... but wait, there's more!

Confessions, Part II

 -- I spent hours designing thank you notes for our wedding gifts, my mom got me the sweetest return address stamp, I even bought a new pack of pens to use... and I've written all of four. I also haven't put any of our wedding pictures on facebook (and I've only shared one on here!) There are still several boxes of wedding decorations, hundreds of tealight holders, and one pair of formerly-white heels lingering in the corners of our house. I really need a weekend devoted solely to wedding aftermath.
 -- More nights than not, I make a pit stop at my freezer before heading upstairs to bed. I wash my face, put my pjs on, and crawl into bed to read and enjoy a Magnum ice cream bar. These things are super expensive, incredibly bad for you, and most definitely the reason that I am not losing any weight. They are also one of my very favorite things in life. My husband knows that bringing a box home can absolve all manner of sins, and his response to "I've had a bad day" is often "One box or two?" (Love him.) My poison of choice is the double chocolate, and if you haven't tried these yet, I really suggest that you don't because they are incredibly addictive.
 -- Most of my friends went through a "what on earth am I going to do with my life?" crisis during college. Some fit it in before they ever picked their major. A few had one just in time to switch their major. A handful squeezed in just under the wire, managing to find a grad school for something completely different than they studied in college. And then there's me. In high school, I was pretty sure I knew exactly what I wanted to do with my life. I stuck by that in college and for the first year or so after graduation. Now, almost three years out, I'm finally starting to wonder... what on earth am I going to do with my life?
 -- Since I've already come clean on one of my unhealthy food loves, we might as well go all out. I very rarely eat fast food, with one major exception: I crave Taco Bell at least once a week. Go ahead, cringe... I usually do as we pull into the drive through. But when my hubby hands me the bag of warm, delicious burritos and I take a sip of my cherry pepsi, that guilt is pretty much forgotten. And when I bite into that first burrito and get a perfect combination of beans, cheese, and mild sauce... well, in that moment all is right with the world. In my defense, I never eat their meat. But there are few dinners I look forward to like a big fat burrito... followed by a Magnum bar. And now no one is left wondering why I go to the gym every day.
 -- I am the classic example of someone who would probably enjoy life so much more if I could just bring myself to push that "Deactivate" button on Facebook. It's not that I spend so much time on social media (although I will admit that if I'm bored, I check it more often than I probably should). It's more that every time I log in, I see posts that make me angry, upset, or just plain concerned about the future of humanity. As a rule, I stay far away from politics, religion, and ridiculous drama on my facebook page (and in my life). I wish I could say the same for others. So often, it seems like this site has become a forum to spew hate, intolerance, ignorance, and thinly-veiled lies for everyone and their brother to see (and "like"). Gone are the days when people would take the time to ask themselves "Is this something I would actually say to someone in person?" Nope, these days people are so open about attacking each other, making fun of each other, and revealing how witless and abhorrent they truly are. I have lost so much respect for a large number of people simply because of their "Facebook persona" lately.
 -- The showers in my gym's locker room are right next to the entrance to the pool, and twice in the past two weeks I've found myself dancing along to the aquatic exercise group's Ricky Martin mix in the mornings. That's definitely a blast from the past.
 -- I am terrible about remembering to shave in the winter. I can easily go over a week without the thought even crossing my mind. When I do think about it (or when my sweet husband catches a glimpse and makes his wookie noise), I tell myself, Who cares? I wear long pants to work and no one ever knows that I am a wooly mammoth underneath. But then, I think of the poor people who frequent my gym, where I don shorts daily. I don't doubt that I've caused a few people some worried moments... did I just see yeti run by on the track?
 -- I am a paper towel fiend. I try hard to use green products when possible and do my best to recycle, reuse, etc. But anytime I cook, I whip through rolls of paper towels like no one's business (except now it's your business. You're welcome.) Need to wipe off that counter? Just grab a paper towel. Rinsed my hands? Well that one's clearly dirty so I definitely need a new one. Speck of dust in that pan? Just swipe it with a paper towel, but be sure to use a clean one! I think my extreme towel consumption is related to a hypervigilance about cross-contamination and bacteria when it comes to my kitchen. I'm super careful about raw meat, eggs, etc. (I will totally be the horrible mom who doesn't let her kids eat cookie dough), so I'm forever wiping things off, washing my hands, and scrubbing dishes in between uses. I definitely owe the environment a few trees.

Well. That's definitely enough of that. I think everyone should be brutally honest about themselves every once in a while (something about building character), but don't expect me to be doing this again anytime soon... it's going to take a while to restock the pride I used up over the past few days. At the very least, blogging is certainly cheaper than therapy (although so is wine, and I think I may go that route next time). Thanks for sticking with me... here's to being imperfect!

   Love,

    Meg

Confessional

So here's an awkward situation. I was feeling kind of down on myself yesterday (for reasons that will soon be obvious) and didn't feel like blogging. At some point during the evening, though, I decided that it might be fun interesting possible to turn my bad attitude into blog material: namely, a few confessions. "It'll be great," I told myself, "writing about it will make me feel so much better!" So I opened up a new draft and started a list. I typed a little, did some other things on the internet, came back to add a few more ideas, read a couple blogs, added more to my list... rinse, repeat. Before I closed my laptop for the night, I saved that sucker and slept a little more soundly, knowing that I had a post all ready for today. 
Imagine my surprise when I logged on this morning with two more brilliant confessions to add to my post and realized that I had myself one heck of a long list of terrible things. Just reading through the list made me a little squirmy, and I seriously considered cutting a few items trashing the whole idea to preserve a little dignity. But in the end I decided to break it up into two posts, so as not to overwhelm you me by detailing too many of my character flaws at once. So with a little bit of a wince, I present to you...

Confessions, Part I

[We start with confessions that are specific to my day off on Monday. It was a doozy...]
-- Since I had a lot planned for the day, I thought it would be a great idea to take pictures of what I was up to each hour for a "day in the life" post. I was super excited and right at 7:00 I took my very first picture, curled up in bed reading with the cat snuggled at my feet. A little later I headed outside for a run, and even though the sun was shining and the light in our neighborhood was gorgeous, I was only focused on my numb fingers and just how far I was willing to lower my standards of the run before I could head for home. It occurred to me while I defrosted that I hadn't snapped a picture for my 8:00 hour, but I decided I could at least post a screenshot of my RunKeeper app. Around 9:00, I took a picture while I cleaned our bathroom (exciting!), and at 10:00 I snapped a shot of my chai latte and a cozy corner of Starbucks. And then... that was the last picture I took. It didn't even hit me until 3:00, after I'd failed to document several errands, 30 minutes at the Chick-fil-a drive-through (I have one lucky husband), and several large credit card swipes (more on that later). Oh, and there was an hour's worth of history reading for class... and this is where you, dear reader, think "Boy, I'm glad she didn't follow through on this because it would have been pretty boring." All-around fail. (But you're welcome for sparing you the bathroom-cleaning picture.)
 -- It's probably a good thing that I didn't even make it until noon of my "day in the life," because the afternoon was a little rough. First, I got sucked into the vortex of one of my favorite clothing stores and emerged with two pairs of pants (needed), an over-priced sweater (not needed), and a rather large hole in my wallet (I bet you can guess). I did not, however, manage to acquire either of the two items I needed in the first place... excellent. Still reeling from what can only be explained as an expensive blackout, I chose to eat my feelings and made myself a huge bowl of pasta for lunch. It's really a shame that I didn't manage to catch photographic evidence of that gluttony... especially because the pasta was chased just an hour later by a milkshake, brought home by my (enabler) husband. I went to bed Monday night overly full and more than a little guilty.
 -- Before we move past the day that was Monday, I should also confess that my run that morning -- the first outside in over a month -- nearly killed me. I sorely misjudged the temperature, and for the first two miles my hands and face were so cold that I was actually in a lot of pain. By the time I finally warmed up, my endurance (what endurance?) had run out and I was struggling. In the end, I pushed through 3 and a quarter miles before finally giving up, and I collapsed into a sweaty heap just inside the front door. The days of casual 8-milers on a weekday afternoon are clearly looong gone.

[We've (thankfully) exhausted Monday's confessions, so from here on out they get a little general... but certainly no less embarrassing.]

 -- On Sunday, we signed Teddy up for his very first puppy obedience class. One might think that I'd be looking forward to taking this important step towards a well-behaved pup. One might be wrong. In fact, I'm pretty terrified to give up the "he's just a puppy, he doesn't know any better" excuse. Once we start classes, Teddy's behavior becomes a very obvious measure of our parenting skills, and while I have a lot of confidence in him, I'm not sure how much I have in myself. I'm already having nightmares about our first class that usually involve Teddy running around and jumping on everyone and everything while six other puppies sit, stay, and make judgmental faces at me.
 -- On average, our clean laundry stays in the dryer for at least three days. Most loads are subject to at least one case of "Well, they've been sitting in there for a while... let me just turn that back on for a few minutes to get those wrinkles out." My poor husband's shirts are perpetually wrinkled.
 -- Am I the only one who can't stand Kristin Wiig? How about Conan O'Brien? Cameron Diaz? Should I just stop?
 -- I am terrible at meal planning. Every few weeks, I write out a menu and a grocery list, trying hard to judge things like shelf-life, prep time, and leftover potential. I usually go to (cringe) two grocery stores to get everything on my list and more for a reasonable price (and also because I have an unhealthy obsession with Whole Foods). Then two days into my plan, I get a craving for something and start playing tetris, trying to shift my meals around to accommodate whatever it is I'm absolutely dying for. That's always the beginning of the end, because even if I do manage to reorganize and get back on the train, within a day or two something has gone bad and I'm back at the store to pick up three more things. It's truly embarrassing how often I darken the door of our closest Harris Teeter.
 -- In a related confession: I am terrible about cleaning out our refrigerator. The back half of the fridge is where leftovers go to die. It's not pretty.

Oooook, I think that's quite enough for one day. Be sure to tune in tomorrow for another dose of self-confidence (for you, not me). And if you're feeling kind, feel free to leave me one of your own confessions. Unless you're perfect, in which case... why are you reading about me?

   Love,

    Meg

How to Make Valentine's Dinner for a Man Without Losing Your Mind (Almost)

There's a recipe in here somewhere, I promise.

 -- Get home from work/running errands and immediately collapse into bed turn on laptop to get some work done, only to discover that 1. the internet is out for the third time this week and 2. the laptop is acting suspiciously like it still has that virus that you spent four hours trying to vanquish last week. Give up, collapse into bed.

 -- Take blissful hour hour and ten minute hour and twenty minute nap. Struggle mightily to wake up. Jump for joy that the day's headache is, in fact, still with you. Pop a few Advil.

 -- Sleepily stumble downstairs in sweatpants and slippers. Grumble at the cat, who has a thing for scurrying under feet that are sleepily stumbling downstairs.

 -- Move piles of dirty dishes around the kitchen and stack precariously until you have a small workspace.

 -- Take one block of sharp cheddar cheese, 1 bag of pepperoni, and two cans of buttermilk biscuits from the fridge. Try not to look last night's dinner in the eye.

 -- Spread out a silicone mat.

 -- Go back to the fridge with a spoon, eat a few bites of last night's mashed potatoes directly from the tupperware. 

 -- Cut/hew/chisel surprisingly solid cheese into roughly pepperoni-sized squares. Complain to a napping puppy about your new blisters. Feel a little bad for yourself that not even the puppy cares.

 -- Freak out a little when you realize that you've never actually opened a can of biscuits by yourself. Follow instructions carefully while wincing and  holding can as far away as humanly possible. Chuckle a bit when can opens easily with a anticlimactic "pfffft."

 -- Remove one biscuit of dough. Cut in half. Roll one half into a ball, then flatten in a circular shape with heel of hand. Spread until the diameter is 5 or 6 inches.

 -- Stack a pepperoni and a square of cheese in the center. Gather edges of dough and bring towards center, pinch together to seal.

 -- Place ball (sealed side down) in a greased 9"x13" pan (or 8"x14" pan or 12"x12" pan or 26"x50" pan, whatever floats your boat... and fits in your oven.)

 -- Repeat approximately a billion times.

 -- Suffer a minor heart attack when the second can of biscuits pops open in your hands with a sound like several thousand fireworks exploding at once. Worry about puppy's hearing, as he barely batted an eyelash.

 -- Continue cutting, rolling, flattening, stacking, and pinching.

 -- Bid adieu to the cat, who has decided that even he is bored with the process and wanders off to stare at a wall somewhere.

 -- When the pan is finally full, stretch your arms and pour yourself a glass of wine in celebration. Pull out a second pan. Keep trucking.

 -- Frantically remember that the oven isn't even on yet. Set it for 450. Extricate the shredded biscuit can from the trash. Turn oven down to 350.

 -- Fill second pan. Raise white flag, place two remaining biscuits on a cookie sheet for tomorrow's breakfast.


 -- Brush biscuits with olive oil and sprinkle with garlic powder.
 
 -- Put pans in oven. Check every 30 seconds to ensure that crazy, tempermental oven is not a. on fire or b. set to “Easy Bake.”


 -- Remove one pan after 14 minutes, the other after 22 (from the same oven rack). Ponder the fact that the first pan is significantly more cooked.

 -- Put cookie sheet with two extra biscuits in the oven. Heat up leftover spaghetti sauce (from a jar, who are we kidding?) for dipping. Serve dinner. Sigh as you pretend that each bite of pepperoni roll is actually lobster, and that you're really in a fancy restaurant with candles, expensive wine, and an extensive dessert menu. Come crashing back to reality with every blaring car commercial. Remove cat from lap at least three times. Remove cat from table twice.

 -- Freeze. Remember biscuits in oven. Jump up from couch and race through thickening smoke to open oven door. Sprint to smoke detector and start frantically waving your arms. Make a face at the puppy, who is looking at you like you've finally lost it. Wonder if perhaps he's right. Extricate two rather hard, rather blackened biscuits from oven. Mourn for a moment over the passing of tomorrow's breakfast. Turn off oven. Pop another pepperoni roll. And maybe another Advil.

(Adapted from this recipe and this recipe. I made these super simple this time around, since it was my first try and I was hoping to thrill my pizza-loving husband (he wasn't disappointed). I will definitely branch out next time with different pizza toppings, and I'm envisioning a yummy barbeque version of these, too.)

*For those of you who worry, rest assured: I consumed only a half glass of wine and just one Advil over the course of the evening. I do know that these two things don't mix well in regular-sized doses. Also, know that I didn't actually set anything on fire and had not left the biscuits in the oven for an unreasonably long time... I just have a particularly crabby oven.

Happy (almost) weekend, everyone!

   Love,

    Meg

Be Mine?

Valentine's Day gets a bad rap. Cynics everywhere whine, "But you should show people you love them every day of the year!" Well, I do (or at least I try really hard to). But give me an excuse for a nice date with the guy I love, a reason to get dressed up (or not, some years we don't), a reason to wrap up something small (or not, some years we don't do this either), a reason to hold hands and sneak in a few extra kisses? I'm all in.
I miss Valentine's Days gone by: making homemade Valentines (for everyone in my class) with my mom, gifts from the very first guy in my life (my dad, of course), overdosing on lollipops and candy hearts (yick) and chocolates from a Whitman's sampler box. Cards from grandparents (thankfully, one tradition that continues today: my sweet grandmother never misses a holiday and this year's V-day card arrived in the mail on Monday). Homemade mailboxes in elementary school. Carnation deliveries in middle school. Singing telegrams in high school. Red jello shots in college (uhhh... how did that last one sneak in there?) Valentine's Day as a kid was always so fun and wholesome (except for those college years).
Not that this year going to be any less fun or wholesome (no jello shots here). Sadly, my sweetheart has to work until late tonight, but I've planned a cozy evening at home with a few surprises for when he gets off (hi sweetheart, hurry home!). We'll make it up tomorrow on our first date night of the year... we haven't been out to dinner together since New Year's Eve. I got us reservations at a (relatively) new restaurant that we haven't tried yet, and I'm looking forward to a fun evening.
So if Hallmark really did invent Valentine's Day, then hats off to them. It's fun (and important) to celebrate those you love every day, but a little excuse for a date night never hurt anyone, either. And if you don't have a valentine this year, look on the bright side: you don't have to share the Whitman's sampler!

PS: If you haven't already, mosey over to Google today... too cute! My favorite has to be the squid & bear. 

Happy Valentine's Day, everyone!

   Love,

    Meg

What I'm Up To Lately

After a little bit of a break from writing around these parts, I thought I'd jump back in by catching you up on what I'm enjoying these days!

What I'm Watching:

This was my "single lady weekend" this month (ie the hubs was at training), and I used the few minutes not spent cleaning to indulge in a little non-husband-friendly viewing. First Position has been in my Netflix queue for so long, and surely did not disappoint. It's a real-life Center Stage, as wonderful as Dance Moms is terrible, with a cast that will make you wonder what exactly you've been doing with the past 10-15 years of your life. I spent most of the movie lamenting to the cat that I'd never in my lifetime be as successful as 11-year-old Aran nor as mature as 14-year-old Michaela... but beyond the self-esteem issues it might provoke, it really is a fantastic movie and definitely confirmed my conviction that in my next life, I'll be a dancer.
I also started Parenthood and made it through the first two episodes while folding laundry/finding excuses not to put that laundry away. I'm definitely intrigued so far, and I can even get over the feeling that Lorelai Gilmore has a secret second life, but someone please tell me: am I supposed to like Erika Christensen? I can't put my finger on quite why, but as much as I love the rest of the cast, I just can't stand this girl. I'll definitely keep watching, but I may be (not so) secretly rooting against the baby sister.

What I'm Reading:

I finally (finally finally) finished All the King's Men (which I erroneously referred to as "All the President's Men" once or twice... oops), after two long months. I ended up liking it a lot (it certainly earned its Pulitzer), but I'm a little relieved to be free from the heavy weight of the 1930's south. I am looking forward to watching the movie versions, even though usually all that does is make me long to read the book again.
This weekend, I started a book I've been wanting to read for a while: Marcelo in the Real World. It's great so far and certainly won't take me another two months (my goal is to finish it in time to catch up on my book-a-month resolution, even though I neither started nor finished All the King's Men in January... again, oops).
I'll spare you the pain of recounting all the dry history I've been subjected to lately thanks to my coursera class... but rest assured that it's dry and painful.

What I'm Listening To:

I downloaded a bunch of old purchases to my iPhone a few weeks ago, and so I'm rediscovering some great songs like Foy Vance's Gabriel and the Vagabond and Tina Dico's One (both of which were originally discovered with the help of Grey's Anatomy). I'm also pining over Simon and Garfunkel's Live from New York City, 1967 album, which features stunning performances of so many of their hits, including The Sound of Silence.

What I'm Eating:

Yep, that's right: I just took a wild left turn from entertainment to food. Hang on, friends. As always, I've been snapping badly lit pictures of especially yummy meals, including  pasta (with shrimp and squash and a side of red wine), an impressive super bowl spread (I'd be lying if I told you I exercised self-restraint with the homemade cheese sauce and herbed sour cream. I'd also be lying if I told you this wasn't snapped just before the pizza arrived...), a turkey sub from the best sandwich place in town (a lunch treat thanks to my sweet delivery-husband), and the most incredible white bean chicken chili (please go try the recipe). Thankfully unpictured are the blackened chocolate chip cookies that suffered from a momentary lapse in oven awareness yesterday, on which I'm currently feasting. Crunch, crunch.

What I'm Loving:

You didn't think you could actually get out of here without a pet picture, did you?? I was lucky to have these two to keep me company over the weekend... and to keep things interesting, as Toby interrupted my relaxing Saturday night by sliding off his napping perch and crashing to the ground, taking a lamp with him. At this point, I'm not sure whether these guys are adding or subtracting years from my life...

Happy Monday, all! What are you up to these days?

   Love,

    Meg

Sometimes...

Some weeks run you more than you run them. Some days, the only time you actually feel awake is the moment you step into the shower after a run and discover all those places where your sports bra rubbed. Some weeks, you look down at your poor toes every morning and think "Okay, I really need to repaint those," but you know you won't because really, who even cares in the winter? Some days, when you pass the sunny park on the way to work, it's all you can do not to call in sick, take a quick left turn, and spend the day on the swings. Some weeks, watching the drama of others on Facebook makes you relieved that your own life is actually quite boring. Some days require two cups of coffee... before 10:00. Some weeks, the process of writing a to do list is so exhausting that you don't have any energy left to actually do any of the things on the list. Some days, most exciting part of the whole day is rolling over to go to sleep at night. Some weeks, falling asleep at one's desk is a very real possibility. Some days, you catch a glimpse of yourself in the mirror leaving the gym and are surprised to see cooperative hair that you actually had time to fully dry, a matching outfit that even includes the single pair of pants you own that fits, and successfully masked dark circles under your eyes... so you celebrate with a trip to Starbucks. Some weeks, the only thing that's keeping you hanging on is a three day weekend... two weeks away. Some days, you reheat and re-spice a few random leftovers, throw them together in a bowl, squeeze a lemon over it, and call it dinner. Some weeks, you spend most of your time Monday through Thursday wondering why on earth it's not Friday yet. Some days, you'd rather just stay asleep on the couch than get up and walk all the way to bed.
Some weeks, there are exciting, important, blog-worthy things... happening to other people. This is clearly one of them. See you next week, friends!

   Love,

    Meg