Teatopia

Mint Madness

Today I did something nice for myself. My mom, sister, and I went to Atlanta today and went shopping at Lenox Square Mall. While stocking up on shampoo and conditioner at Aveda, I noticed a sign advertising massages, so I paid a mere 5 bucks for a 10 minute massage. It wasn't that long, but I've never had one before. I was so relaxed I could barely walk out of the mall! The woman who did it put this peppermint oil called blue oil on my neck and temples. It wasn't greasy or anything-- she only put a teensy bit. The oil alone was so cooling and refreshing that I then spent $12 to get some. I am seriously tempted to keep it in my desk drawer in my classroom. During stressful days, I could just dab a bit on my temples and chill.

In other minty news, I went to Teavana and tried one of their drinks at the tea bar. The one that sounded the best to me was the "Be the Grasshopper"-- peppermint and Morrocan Mint tea blended with crushed cookies, cream and ice. It was awesome!

Memories, Regrets, and Mushrooms

I'm sitting here drinking a glass of White Reisling that I swear has an aftertaste of Shitake mushrooms while thinking about all the places back home (in Washington, D.C.) I wanted to go, but never did. Regrets suck, they really do.

I am sitting here thinking about the fact that I probably won't ever move back, but at the same time wanting to . . . Uncertainty sucks too.

There was the adorable Indian bistro across from my favorite hot spot, Xando, that I never got to try. And the many restuarants along the water in Georgetown-- I started to try some of those, but then 9/11 happened and the armed guards freaked me out and kind of ruined the ambiance of this classy district. I did, however, go to one I had long admired just before we moved. I can honestly say that it was not only the best Italian restaurant I had ever been to, but also the most unusual.

Anyway, the point of all this is, I am, once again, whining that I miss home and since I know I won't move back, I need to just get over it. So, can anyone tell me why Lindeman's 2002 White Reisling from Southern Australia tastes like mushrooms???

If I Could Be . . .

Lisanne tagged me, so here goes . . . This wil be fun!

If I could be a musician, I would create music for movies. I have always loved soundtracks and when I listen to music (any kind), I often picture what kind of scene it would go with.

If I could be a missionary, I would hopefully be less prissy so I could travel to exotic places to spread Jesus's love. I'm not one to "rough it."

If I could be a chef, I would work in an Asian fusion restaurant, creating the asian foods I love while still being up on the latest trends.

If I could be a librarian, I would enjoy the serenity and solitude of a quiet work environment at first, but then I'd probably get bored and lonely. I would, however, never get bored with all the books!

If I could be a writer, I would write travel books after visiting the countries I wanted to write about.

I am tagging Girl From Florida because I know hers will make me smile. Choose 5 from any of these below and pass it on:

If I could be a scientist…
If I could be a farmer…
If I could be a musician…
If I could be a doctor…
If I could be a painter…
If I could be a gardener…
If I could be a missionary…
If I could be a chef…
If I could be an architect…
If I could be a linguist…
If I could be a psychologist…
If I could be a librarian…
If I could be an athlete…
If I could be a lawyer…
If I could be an innkeeper…
If I could be a professor…
If I could be a writer…
If I could be a backup dancer…
If I could be a llama-rider…
If I could be a bonnie pirate…
If I could be a midget stripper…
If I could be a proctologist…
If I could be a TV-Chat Show host…
If I could be an actor…
If I could be a judge…
If I could be a Jedi…
If I could be a mob boss…
If I could be a fast food restaurant worker…
If I could be a preacher…

Japanese Fare

I've posted pictures of food from Osaka before, but we usually go here for lunch. Tonight we went for dinner and the entrees were presented just a bit fancier. James has udon noodles with shrimp and scallops and I opted for something a bit healthier: tender chicken and veggies with sweet teriyaki sauce. Although I've never personally been outside the Tokyo airport, my husband, who worked in Japan every other month when we first met, assures me that this is as authenic as it gets.

I also wanted to say thanks to those of you who helped me out with food ideas for my dinner party. The fajitas seemed to be the most popular, so this time around I think I'll make something everyone can help with.

Help!

Ok, so I am giving my first dinner party/get-together in ages (we miss you Stef and Mike). This weekend we are having some friends over and I can't decide what to make. Since cooking is my thing, but it's been a while since I've organized something like this, I need help! I have some ideas of what to make, but I'm not quite sure. Help! Any ideas for side items or other entry suggestions are welcome.

Breaking Free

Ever since I started blogging, I feel like I've gained this confidence that I never had before. I am so much more in touch with who I am and what I think. I've always been sensitive and I've always been a writer. I began keeping a diary in kindergarten and I wrote in it religiously until a few years ago. But now, I have my blog and I'm no longer simply writing private thoughts no one will ever see. Now I write for more than just myself. However, it doesn't always come as natually to me as writing in a diary did. I suppose I censor some of what I say, but that's natural.

I believe that everything I do is somehow and extension of who I am inside. This seems to be a time in my life for finding and defining myself. I want to go to Africa because I hope to find some part of myself there-- to grow. I remember when we were in Korea, part of me couldn't wait to get home and start living my life as the new me-- a peson changed since seeing new things in a land faraway. I told James recently that when I come home from Africa I know I'll never be the same person. It's the same with blogging. I feel so much more connected than I used to. I sit here now, at my computer, in my pajamas, typing words that will go out into space for many different people to see. I feel such a sense of freedom.

Spinach Dip

Last night I made some spinach dip in a sour dough bread bowl and wanted to share the recipe:

1 pacakge frozen chopped spinach, defrosted and drained well
1 cup Mayo (I use light)
2 cups sour cream (I use light)
1 small can of water chestnuts, finely chopped
1 packet of vegetable soup/dip mix

Mix it all together and let it chill for at least 2 hours in the fridge-- overnight is better and serve in a bread bowl and Voila!

River Fest

Today I went to River Fest. There were tons of booths selling all kinds of things from plants to jewelry. There was also tons of food. They actually had Thai food there, which is unusual for Columbus. I had pad Thai and fresh squeezed lemonade. I also bought a cute bamboo plant, a small vase, and a humane society t-shirt. It's really cute. :-)

The highlight of my day was meeting the 2 funniest folks on the radio-- Bob and Sheri! Does anyone else know who they are? They are out of North Carolina but they are syndicated all over the country. I talked to them for a couple mins and my friend "B" took my picture with them. It's not a great picture of me, but hey, I only had one shot.

TGIF Folks!

I am rejoicing in my own very tired dead-on-my-feet kind of way. I may be weary and typing about 2 keys per minute, but I have a smile on my face. :-) This week has been busy and the kids have spring fever at school. My voice is even hoarse just from exhaustion, but hey, I'm smiling!

Tonight the hubby and I are going to spend some quality time together. He has been so busy between work and his master's, so we are going to watch a couple movies (The Incredibles and a documentary on Rwanda-- yes I know, we're such dorks) and get carry out from a Thai restaurant (Pad Thai Woon Sen). Noodles are the official cure-all.

Dread

It is perfectly natural for a parent to think that their child is near perfect, but it is not natural to expect others to feel the same way. Remember this situation? I am meeting with him again in 13 minutes. Lord help me! Why won't this man leave me in peace! Grrrr . . .

Update: Ok, so it wasn't so bad. He had some questions that were not at all offensive. I guess I was justified in freaking out. I'm just thankful that things went ok! Thanks for the kind words. :-)

Happy Birthday to My Blog!

My blog is now a year old! It has been wonderful having space to share thoughts and dreams. Thank you to all of you for your friendship, support, and comments. Here's to another year (or more like dozens of years!)

Things That Make Me Laugh

1) Every morning, Wrigley, our poodle, (aka Mr. Boo, Boofus, FooFoo, or our poodlicious boy), insists on trading a toy for his breakfast every morning. It's the cutest thing. He won't eat his breakfast until he has given James a toy. He doesn't want to play or anything, he just wants to give something in return. :-)

2) I don't usually blog about private things, but this was totally meant as a joke. Tonight we were talking about our trip and I mentioned that Kruger National Park is one of the best known places for wild animals and James replied, "I'd have to say that our bedroom is the first!"

We're Really Going!

I had a dream on Friday night that we went to South Africa. If it's as amazing as it was in my dream, we are going to have a good time! In the dream, I was upset though because I had forgotten my music (I have to have my music when I travel). I plan on buying an pink I-Pod for the trip and I couldn't remember if I had forgotten my CD player or I-Pod becuse I wasn't sure if I had ended up getting the I-Pod or not. LOL. But I remember being so happy and when I woke up I was more excited than ever about our trip!

Then the next morning, there was this in my e-mail in-box . . .

New Shelf

Well, today we got our new shelf. It actually isn't the one from the picture yesterday because I found this one at Pier 1 today. I am able to fit more on it and also, it holds books much easier. I really like it. :-)

Pooped

Whew! Today was a long day! I was up early preparing for the carpet people, who didn't end up arriving until 10:30. The carpet installing took a lot longer than they said. The crew was here until about 5:00. Then, James and I scrambled to put our house back together. I had to leave for my "date" (see previous post) and left poor James to finish. I had a great time and I think the guys really hit it off. I really didn't know "B2" before, but he is so cool. I could seriously be good friends with him. He was so cool and we had a lot in common! It's also neat, because he is a news anchor and well-known. I think they really liked each other. :-) After Rebecca and I left, we stood around giggling in the parking lot about whether or not "B" and "B2" liked each other and we saw them leaving the restaurant together.

Then I headed off to Pier 1 where I saw this shelf. I have this bare spot in the living room where our fish tank used to be and I could use somewhere to put some books. I want something that I can prop a nice picture on top of and I'm not sure this will work. You know how rather than hanging pictures, some people prop them on the mantle or on a shelf? It's kind of a trendy look. I want to do that on the top shelf of my shelving unit. Would this work?

Busy Busy

I was hoping to have the time to blog before now, but alas, I have been a busy girl! After work, I met my mom for coffee, then counseled a friend about his big date tomorrow night (I'll get to that later), and then changed into a Hawaiian sarong, put flowers in my hair, and headed to school where I was a chaperone for a Hawaiian luau! Now I'm home, we have a Hawaiian pizza on the way (no connection to the dance theme) and we are moving everything around for the new carpet tomorrow!

Tomorrow will be a busy day. Anal-retentive person that I am, I will work hard at getting everything back exactly the way it was after the carpet is in. I think I might even become one of those people who makes you take off your shoes when you enter their house, not sure yet though. Then, I'm off for a date. No, not with my husband, and no I'm not cheating. My friend Rebecca set up our good friend "B" with another friend "B2" (that was dumb, but they have the same initials). The catch is they are both male. That's right, my good friend just told me he's gay, which is totally cool, so Rebecca promptly set him up with another great guy she knew. They are both neat guys and I really hope they hit it off. We are tagging along on the date at their request and then assuming things go well, we'll leave and let them get aquainted. :-) I hope no one is weirded out by that. I don't know how you feel about that type of thing, but I figure they deserve to be happy and I'm glad that I can help. :-)

Life is Like a Box of Choclates

I can honestly say that I want my life to be like this box of chocolates--exotic! Jin Patisserie offers boxes with assorted flavors and many of them are quite unusual! I saw these in today's Daily Candy and boy do these flavors sound good-- Earl Grey Feuilletine, Lemon Grass, Sea Salt Caramel, Mango Basil, Black Roasted Sesame, and Lychee. Oooooohhhhh . . . I want some now . . . (It's dangerous to look at these while having PMS!)

A Good Wednesday

Today was a really nice day. I odn't usually do much on weekdays, but I got a lot accomplished between getting off work and now. I cleaned out and disassembled a 40 gallon fish tank and put it in the storage shed. The fishies went back to the pet store and I now have space for a shelf to hold more books. I had to take it down for the new carpet on Saturday anyway. Then, I got my hat (see previous post). I bought it in the store on sale. :-) I have never thought of myself as a "hat" person, but it looked better than I thought it would. :-) Next, we went for Korean food (ramen, yummy!) and then came home to watch Hotel Rwanda. We are about to watch it now. Has anyone else seen this movie? It's a must see!

Head Up Young Person

I absolutely love this line from "The Object of My Affection" and I have decided to get myself out of this funk and focus on something good like my trip. Because we are going on safari, I must have a hat. You can't go in a safari without a hat, so I started looking online. :-) I really like this one. It's on sale and quite cute I think. It would match anything and it's wide enough to keep the sun and dust out of my face without being big and dorky. What do you think? Should I order it?

Numb

Tonight I watched "Father of the Bride" which I believe to be one of the best movies ever and it made me so sad. I thought about when I got married 2 and a half years ago. My engagement was a hard time for me. I know most people wouldn't say that, but I went through a very hard time moving here. I never thought I'd come back to Georgia after leaving at age 5. I never wanted to, but following my family seemed like a logical decision because I wasn't finished college and I still lived at home. And when James said he was coming too, it just seemed like the right thing to do. But the truth is, I missed my friends and family in Maryland so much and I still don't like it here. When I got engaged, I had no friends to celebrate with. I had lived here 3 weeks. I was thrilled to be marrying James, but so much of me was hurting that it clouded everything else. I planned my wedding with the help of my mom and grandma, but few friends here. And when I packed up my room to move into our new house weeks before the wedding, I was more numb than ever. There were no tears. It's weird. I'm a very sensitive and emotional person, but during times of extreme emotional stress-- something that would normally tear me up-- I shut down. Then finally, on the night of our rehearsal-- during the rehearsal-- it all came to a head. I broke down and ran out. Sure I was happy, but so overwhelmed with other feelings too. It was hard to see friends and family I loved so much, who I hadn't seen in a year, and know that after tomorrow, they'd all be gone. And although I didn't *feel* the feelings I knew I had, it was so hard moving out. I love my family. I was a very non-emotional bride. I was happy, but it was whistful and my heart was aching knowing that I was all grown up. It was hard watching my mom try to conceal tears for fear of upsetting me when I knew her heart was breaking. I suppose I wasn't the typical blushing bride eventhough I was thrilled to be marrying the love of my life.

I think seeing "Father of the Bride" tonight made me re-live many of the emotions I knew I had, but wasn't able to feel. Why on the "happiest" day of my life was I such a wreck? Although the day turned out beautifully, I wish I hadn't been so numb-- hiding all the stress and sad emotionns I was afraid would come out. James doesn't know I felt this way, because it would make him think I wasn't happy marrying him. I don't mind if he reads this, but I doubt he will. He's been so busy. :-( I truly was happy, but sometimes I have so many feelings, I just shut down-- I become numb. I guess that's just me.

Charles & Camilla

Ok, I've resisted the urge long enough. I have to give my opinion. :-) They don't really affect my life in anyway, but I have enjoyed listening to the newscasters' sarcastic remarks and the whole thing is quite amusing. I have to give them credit though, although both fooled around on their spouses. They did, however, wait a respectable amount of time after Diana's death to marry. Personally, if I may be so bold, I think they both look like horses. And what was up with that hat?

Neat Freak

I spent a few hours yesterday organizing all our travel paperwork: all our flight info, itenerary, JFK hotel reservation, forms, etc. I went to Staples and bought a pretty aqua clipboard and some highlighters in assorted colors. I had fun highlighting key info and putting the forms in order. I like doing this type of thing-- organizing, highlighting, taking notes. I always have. In fact, I keep flipping through the paperwork, admiring how organized it all is. I know I am annoying my poor husband. "Honey, look how organized it is now" and "Do you want to see the notes I took when I talked to the travel agent?" Poor man. I can't help it-- it's the teacher in me. :-) I like having things in order. In our house, everything has it's place. I don't like shoes on the floor or dog toys everywhere. Do you consider yourself a neat freak? Does chaos and disaray bother you?

Accents

I was thinking about accents last night-- probably because someone told me I sounded like a hick since moving here (thanks a lot). Most of you all know that I am from the Washington, DC area. I know every region of our country has an accent, but I never could hear it when I lived there. It's not an obvious one because it's such a melting pot there. One of the accents I dislike the most is the southern accent, and I don't mean any disrespect because I have certianly picked one up living here. Some people like it, think it's cute, etc, but not me. People here butcher the English language (not all Southerners by any means, but many).

I think the most beautiful accent in the world is British, or anything similar to it. When I was in England in college, I loved hearing people talk and I hoped some of the accent would rub off on me, as I tend to pick up accents easily. Now, we are going to South Africa, where I believe they have one of the lovliest accents I've heard and I sound like a friggin' farmer!

Thai Tea in a Can

I bought some of these at the World Market yesterday. I really love this stuff. Have you had Thai iced tea before?

Update: A Day in Hotlanta (and more)

I had a fabulous day in Atlanta with my mom. We had a nice lunch at Eatzi's. I had a roasted veggie sandwich and I also brought back some goodies-- a cold udon noodle salad with black bean sauce, bread pudding, and some Swiss yogurt (brings back memories of my semester in Europe). Next we headed to The World Market where I bought the above teapot. Stef gave me 2 lovely teacups that matched it when she moved and I thought it would be nice to buy this to go with it. Actually, my mom bought it for me. :-) Oh, and the thing in the back is a tea cozy my grandma got for me for my birthdayl. My family rocks!

BTW, my bloodwork came back and everything is ok now. I was worried because the last test showed that my liver wasn't functioning properly, but the doctor said condsidering how sick I was (104 fever) it's not at all unusual. A big sigh of relief!

A Day in Hotlanta

Today (in just a few mins) my mom and I are leaving for Atlanta to go to Eatzis for lunch and then go shopping at the World Market and Ranch99, an Asian grocery store that Stef introduced me to. I can't find all my Asian ingredients here, so I bring up my cooler and stock up every so often. I just love the entire area surrounding Ranch 99 because it's so cultural. I love the Vietnamese stores and the Indian restaurants. (I'll update with pics later from today)

I go on and on about ethnic food and traveling and I'm wondering, what countries are you interested in? If you could go anywhere, where would you go?

Herbs

This week I have enjoyed working on my potted herb garden. Some herbs have gone back outside since we have warmer temperatures and I have also planted some new herbs, from both plants and seeds. Right now I have a very happy rosemary plant, who seems to prefer being indoors in front of the bay window. Outside, I have parsley, basil, cilantro, 2 types of mint, lemon balm, and lavender. And then today I just planted some chamomile seeds. I love herb bouquets and also cokking with herbs. Do you grow any herbs? Do you have favorites for cooking?

More Travel Plans Confirmed

Yesterday I spent a few obsessive hours trying to book a flight to JFK and back using our frequent flyer miles. The funny thing about redeeming them is that you naturally have a limited selection of flights available and strangely, they seem to change every few seconds. I'd look at a flight that cost 25,000 frequent flyer miles, call James to come see and a minute later it would cost 35,000. So really, it was a race against the clock, not really knowing what I'd find or what it would cost. Finally, last night, I hit the jackpot.

Our flight from JFK to Jo-burg is going to be, let's face it, probably one of the longest, most dreadful flights I've been on. And having a number of layovers between here and JFK is probably going to tire us out before we've even left for the "big" flght, so . . . for lack of a flight that worked for us on the day we needed, we decided to leave the 9th (our flight to Africa is the evening of the 10th). Any free flight was going to have numerous layovers, that's a given, so this way the travel time is broken up. We actually got a good deal. We leave the morning of the 9th from a small airport down the road, fly 30 mins to Atlanta, then to Philly, then to JFK. We arrive in time to check into the Comfort Inn, where we can get a good night's sleep, eat a free deluxe continental breakfast, and then take a free shuttel to the airport around noon. We'll have an early check-in, nose around JFK, and have plenty of time to board around 5:00. That way, rather than being rushed, I can enjoy being excited, look out the window at the colorful South African Airways planes and just enjoy. Also, I won't be going so long without a shower!! Very important! :-)

A Good Day Afterall

So today didn't end up being boring after all! I went to lunch at a cute Japanese place and had a Bento box (they are so cool). I ordered chicken teriyaki as my main dish and it was yummy.

Then I went antique shopping at a new antique place downtown and found a really cool antique sugar bowl-- something I've been looking for forever it seems.

Then tonight, I made Massaman curry. I used canned curry paste, which was really good. I made some steamy jasmine rice and topped it with the yummy curry.

Lonely Me

As you know, I am off this week for spring break, but I just don't have a lot planned. Sure, there is house cleaning to be done and some other things here and there, but I don't have any crafts or prjects at the moment and frankly, I am worried about being bored. I usually love to read, cook, watch tv, etc., but this time off is so precious this week and I just can't seem to find anything that seems important enough to fill it. I'd usually be thrilled having time off and no plans, but not this time. And I feel guilty because I know James would love a few days with NOTHING to do. Tomorrow I am having lunch with mom, Meggie (my sis), and James and then I am going to go to some antique stores, which wil be fun, and I'm going to Atlanta on Thursday, but . . .

I feel like I should have more friends here. Most of our friends have been military and have left (I miss you Stef) and my single friends, who I hang out with when James is busy, are out of town for spring break. Poor Hannah has no friends to hang out with. And besides, I really don't have too many friends here anyway. When I lived in Maryland, I had a nice circle of friends, but I realized last night, when I was trying to make plans for the week, that I really don't have too many friends here and it made me sad.

Oodles of Noodles!

When we were little, my sister asked my mom why some people are so fat. My mom jokingly replied that it was because some people ate too many noodles. So a few days later when we were grocery shopping, my sister pointed to a very large man and loudly asked, "Mommy, do you think that man ate too many noodles?" The poor man heard her.

If I don't cut back on my noodle eating, I'm going to be one of those people! For lunch, my mom and I went for Thai food and I had my favorite-- Pad Thai!

Then this evening, James and I went to The Golden Chopticks, a small Korean restaurant. We ordered Spicy Korean Ramen (or Ramyun as they pronounce it). It's a spicy broth with veggies, beef, and cheese. Yum!

Two Good Things

1) Spring Break! No work 'til April 11th!

2) We reached the "under 100" mark on our South African countdown. Woo hoo!