Summer Nights, Everybody Are You With Me: Rascal Flatts Concert

*Rascal Flatts


So yesterday I went to the Rascal Flatts concert, and it was awesome as expected. I think the only concert I've enjoyed more than Rascal Flatts was when John Mayer came to Regency Park back when he was first starting out. Back before he turned into a douche bag and his songs were still good. But enough of that.

My friend Megan and I had been looking for a group of 4 so we could get the 4-pack and save like $15 a piece. That didn't work out, we only got 3, so we ended up buying our tickets separately. But even though it was more expensive, it was so worth it. We were going to meet at work and then ride together, but just before I got there, Megan had some bad news. Her friend had their tickets and was driving in from Michigan. They were going to be late. Not wanting to tackle the traffic and the lawn by myself, I tried to get a last minute buddy to go with me, with no avail.

Fortunately, I remembered that another friend was going. So I gave Sarah a call and asked if I could ride with her. "Of course," she said. So I headed to her house. Sarah is 16, and was going with her friends who are also 16. At first I felt a little bit like a creeper being a 26-year-old hanging out with a group of girls that are all younger than my youngest cousin, but I got over it because it was really fun.

They drew all over the car windows with glass markers. Lyrics and music notes. They took me through the mob that was Pole 3 (where all the shwasted high schoolers convene). And when we finally found a spot just big enough for the 4 of us, plus Megan and her friend when they arrived, they ran through all the summer gossip.

We were all the way to the left, a spot I wouldn't think was desirable, but turned out to be perfect. No poles in our way, and these ladies...

They were grinding on each other the whole time. Not really in line with the songs, but they were unapologetically having a ton of fun. Probably because they were toasted. They even got Sarah to dance with them, even if it was only a second.

Now normally, I like to just sit down at concerts and listen, but not last night. And it wasn't just because the rain had soaked through the blanket and the backside of my pants was wet top to bottom. The energy was contagious. I'd so go to a concert with a bunch of 16-year-olds again.

If you've never seen Rascal Flatts in concert, you need to go whenever you get a chance. I'd venture to say that they're better live than on the album, which almost never happens. And to top it all off, their encore started with a Beatles song.

"And they come from miles around, for that moment when the lights go out. And they scream" -Here's to You, Rascal Flatts

Will You Have Some Tea at the Theatre with Me: Mom's Birthday Tea Party

*The Who

So yesterday was my mom's birthday, but I had to work so we scheduled a celebration for today. Ever since we went to London when I graduated college, my mom and I have continued to enjoy hot tea and she always talks about having an afternoon tea party. Since she still hasn't had one (even though she's collected some of the equipment), my sister and I thought this would be the perfect time.

Over the last week or so, Laurie and I have been fine tuning the details. Getting recipes, forming the list of ingredients and props we would need, creating a formal invitation. We wanted this to be as authentic as we could make it. So we did research on the traditions and how to make the menu all English-y.

We decorated with ink sketches of the places Mom and I had been in London, tea lights, and flower-ish things I yanked out of the monkey grass in the front yard. And for ambience, I turned on the very same Mozart cd I listened to after my massage to get some culture in my life. It was perfect.

The food we decided on was: store-bought creme puffs, cucumber sandwiches, scones, pumpkin bread from a Pilsbury box, strawberry soup, and grapes. (We went a little overboard with the food. But it was delish, and I'm gonna have leftovers for a week.) Laurie has been collecting tea cup and saucer sets for such an occasion as this. None of them match, but they're all shabby-chic style so they go together. And we hijacked my mom's tidbit tray, tablecloth, linens, and silver.

So we had all the necessaries. It should have been smooth sailing. Laurie and Coco got here around 10:00. We should have been set and dressed for the occasion when my mom arrived at noon, dressed for the occasion. I mean all we had to do was stir up the pumkin bread mix and pop it in the oven; mix the ingredients for the strawberry soup in the blender and pop it in the fridge; and bake the scones (a process which the recipe said took 10 min prep time and 15 min cook time). Easy breezy. Sike!

Problem no. 1: My mom is the baker in the family. A trait that did not pass to either of us. But Laurie was doing the soup, so the scones were up to me. The recipe looked quite simple. Mix, roll, cut, bake. After a few rounds with the spoon trying to "cut in" the butter, I decided I should be using a mixer. I looked around a bit to no avail before realizing problem no. 2: Grandma is also not a baker. So not only does she not have a mixer, but she doesn't have a rolling pin either.

I solved the first problem, and averted the second, by melting the butter in the microwave just as Mom walked in the door...totally decked out. She was even wearing a hat with a netted veil over her face. Yay for enthusiasm. After apologies for not being ready, I reluctantly had her help me. "You should be using a fork instead of that spoon." Told you she was the expert. I handed her the fork and let her mix in the egg and milk until she determined it sufficiently moist. Then she went to go play with the baby and I was left to knead it into a "1/2 inch round" and cut it into wedges.

As stated before, there was no rolling pin, so I flattened it out like pizza dough...and then cut it into pizza-like slices...with a pizza cutter. I know what I know, and apparently it's not very classy.

Because pizza slices look nothing like scone wedges, I rolled them up like croissants. And then squished them out, trying to shape them with my fingers. They ended up resembling Bat-Signals more than wedges, but Mom appreciated the effort.

While they were baking, Laurie and I slipped into our dresses and I finally got an opportunity to wear my mini Kentucky Derby hat I bought two months ago. And then we had Afternoon Tea.

I thought we should be talking about the latest fashions and cricket, but we knew nothing about those things so we settled for stories about ninja class and my baby niece learning sign language. Unfortunately, I only thought of using British accents when we were done. Next time, it will be a requirement!

Yes, these pictures are posed. Even more fun, I think, than actual candid shots.

"Each cup of tea represents an imaginary voyage." -Catherin Douzel

And I'll Grab my Guitar and Play: Learning a New Instrument

*Zac Brown Band


So today my friend Sarah and I made a pact. We thought about making it blood brothers style and adding to our wolf packs (if you don't understand this reference, you need to see The Hangover), but in the end we just decided to write up contracts for each other to sign. We did so on little square notepaper we have at work that has some other company's name on it.

What's the pact, you ask? She will teach me how to play the guitar and I will teach her sign language. At the moment, I don't know sign language. But my plan is to acquire lessons from my mom and teach Sarah what I learn along the way. This ends up being a win-win situation for me, as I get to learn two new things instead of one...and also, I get to spread the goodness around. You never know when you'll need to use your hands to efficiently communicate with someone. Communication more sophisticated than flipping the bird (something I do not do, for the record).

So let's keep our fingers crossed that 1) Mom has time to give me sign language lessons, and 2) she can find it in her heart to overlook all those years she tried to teach me through repetition and I complained about how annoying it was for her to sign while she was talking to me.

Below are pictures of our contracts.

(I've misplaced them. Pictures to come, when they turn up.)


"My guitar is not a thing. It is an extension of myself. It is who I am." -Joan Jett

"Sign language is useful to the deaf but vital to the Italians." -Paul Carvel

When I Dip, You Dip, We Dip: Black Bean Hummus

*69 Boyz


So while on my trip to Charleston with Kaitlin, she kept talking about how all she had to eat at home were hummus and chocolate soy milk. After making fun of her for sounding like a hippy, I got to thinking about this black bean hummus I got at Brixx Pizza a while back. It comes in a sampler appetizer, along with traditional and red pepper flavors and warm pita triangles. The black bean is hands down the best, and I really wanted some.

Being the Google addict that I am, I researched a recipe online and was pleasantly surprised to see how easy it looked. The only big requirement called for was a blender. Come to think of it, I'd never seen a blender at Grandma's house before, but surely she must have one with all the food preparing that she does. Since she's out of town at the moment, I was on my own to find it. And I did so with little difficulty. The hard part was getting it out, as it was hidden in the recesses of the deepest cabinet known to man.

Not to be foiled when my hummus is at stake, I climbed in and retrieved my prize. A 1950s General Electric glass blender with 3 settings: Low--Off--High. This should be easy to operate. I was so excited.

The recipe called for some things I had, but also several things I didn't. So I was off to the store to get olive oil, cumin, garlic and of course, chickpeas (the ingredient that defines hummus). Big Lots is right beside the Food Lion down the street from my house, so I stopped in there first. You can get lots of spices there for only $1, and fancy olive oil that's the same price as the Food Lion brand. The rest, I got at the grocery store and headed home with my mouth already watering.

The city had picked this particular day to cut the branches off the tree in my front yard away from the power line. So I had to park my car across the street and ask the hard-hatted man permission to pass. Then hike through the jungle of branches that was previously my driveway.

Wasting no time, I gathered the other ingredients from around the kitchen and started dumping them in the blender. I don't know if the machine is too old for this kind of work, or if I'm just an inexperienced user, but it took some elbow grease to get it all mixed and smooth. Oh, but it was worth it. I didn't even get it out of the blender first. I just started dipping my cucumber slices and triscuits in there. But I could eat it with a spoon.

Later on, I discovered that in my haste I had forgotten to add the garlic. We'll just have to see how it turns out with it next time. The blender was a bit of a pain to wash, since Grandma and I don't have a dishwasher hooked up yet. But I didn't mind.

Note: Traditionally, hummus contains tahini. I didn't know what that was, so I googled it and discovered that it's a paste made from sesame seeds. Apparently, besides being a bit expensive and harder to find than the other ingredients, it also adds quite a bit of fat. My recipe didn't call for it.

Here it is:

1 can black beans
1 can chickpeas
2 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp dried parsley
2 tsp cumin
2 cloves garlic
salt and pepper to taste

Throw it all in the blender and blend until smooth. The whole thing only had around 800 calories and it makes quite a bit.

So it was a minor adventure, but I feel super healthy and posh snacking on homemade black bean hummus. And I sound like some culinary artist. Oh I made some black bean hummus the other day. Maybe next time I'll add grape leaves and kalamata olives to my presentation...

"Wake up and smell the hummus!" --Genie, Aladdin

How Are Things in Charleston: Road Trip

*Cyndi Thompson


So I just went to Charleston for a two-night adventure with my friend Kaitlin. I have been wanting to visit for a while, and put a much happier memory in the place of my last Charleston experience, where

1. I started out by forgetting my dresses for my friend Emory's rehearsal dinner and wedding. I realized my mistake about 40 minutes down the road.
2. I went home to retreive them, but then on the way back down, busted a tire. This resulted in me sitting on the side of the highway waiting for my roadside assistance, then driving 12 miles down 95 at about 40 miles an hour, and waiting in the tire shop for an hour and a half til it was my turn to get fixed.
3. I missed lunch with my old boss--which I have yet to make up--and the rehearsal.
4. I rounded out the night by falling victim to the Texas Turnaround (if you don't know what it is I'm not explaining it to you here). Let's just say it was not an experience I would wish on anyone, except maybe Osama bin Laden. But only long enough for us to find him and inflict milder forms of torture. Like waterboarding.

*Side note: I support no form of torture! Statements made in previous paragraph were exaggerations intended for the sole purpose of emphasizing my discomfort and dispair throughout my last trip. Please don't send me hate mail, sue me, or lecture me on how terrible various forms of torture are. I'm already with ya!*

I am pleased to say that this Charleston trip was a complete 180 from the last, and thus a very pleasant experience. Since Kaitlin and I had never hung out outside of work, we spent the 4-hour drive down discussing life. Topics included the events leading up to my phone being in a casserole dish full of brown rice at my feet in the car, how she hates shopping at Harris Teeter because they are so judgmental, and various things we wanted to do on our mini vacay.

We arrived at 1:30 am, so we just went to bed. The next day, around 10, we got up and ready to go to breakfast at ACME Cantina--a plan that was foiled as I did not know breakfast served until 2pm was only a weekend thing. Ugh! But we had delicious mexican lunch instead and found ourselves appeased. Next, downtown thing, the market thing, the Loose Lucy hippy store, and a visit to Emory's office at my old church. Kaitlin was excited when Emory didn't answer the phone and we tackled a B&E (but not really since the building was unlocked and open for business hours) to get up there.

Dinner was at my personal fav, Coconut Joe's. Home of the best beach drink on earth...the Almond Ecstacy. We waited on the rooftop bar overlooking the beach, sipping our little pieces of heaven, and listening to some guy play the guitar while we waited for our friends to join us. Unfortunately, they were REALLY late, and we ended up at the table looking like we had been stood up for an hour. Trying to make friends with Norm, our server, but all the while knowing that he secretly hated us for taking up his table. Good news is that I learned (sort of) how to put a lime in my beer, and Kaitlin learned that she likes red rice and absolutely adores fish tacos (despite the fact that she thinks the name sounds inappropriate).

Later on, we had planned to go out on the town, but much to our chagrin we had not received the memo that this specific Tuesday night was the one where nobody would be out. It was like a ghost town. In lieu of the bar scene, that for some reason was not in existence that night, we picked up some Warm Delights at the trippy and judgmental Harris Teeter downtown, and watched Pride and Prejudice at Molly's (aka my old house).

Wednesday found us waking up around noon, laying on the beach around 3 and mosying over to Poe's for dinner (more fish tacos!) before heading back home to Raleigh.

All in all, I give it a 2 thumbs up. And I'm proud to say that we both came in under our budget of $100 a piece. Including gas. And 2 Almond Ecstacy's each. Yum! Tomorrow we're attempting to make them ourselves. Wish us luck!

"I'm going back to dignity and grace. I'm going back to Charleston, where I belong." -Rhett Butler

Imagine She Was 36-25-34: Glamour Challenge

*Nelly

So I started the Body By Glamour Challenge yesterday. I've done this before and never finished it, but I figure if I'm going to be a Personal Trainer, I better get in better shape. I mean you want your chef to be chunky, but not someone who's job is to tell you how to get in shape. So I re-registered for the program.

It's a 12-week challenge that basically has you log all your food and workouts. Most people can get healthier and lose weight simply by documenting what they eat and do. That in itself is a motivator. But they also have a food and exercise plan laid out week-by-week, which they email you but are available in your account page on their website. Things like This Week's Food Goal: Learn the Food Plan Basics. Find that and other health related topics on my other blog, Health if I Know. (The format is still a work in progress. Bear with me, folks.)

It's kind of a pain to document the ins and outs of every food item, but the good news is you can save it all in your Favorites, so later you can just click on it. For example, I have a protein shake most mornings, so I created a Favorite that is all calculated out the way I prepare it. Now when I want to add it, it's just one click away. They also have popular foods listed in their Food Search tab. And it's the same with the Fitness Journal.

I had to answer a bunch of questions, like What is your target area? and put in all my measurements. One of the cool features now is that all that information is stored to track my progress. As often as I want I can redo all my measurements, and it will show me a graph of my progress. There are also graphs for my caloric intake (based on the food journal) and my calories burned (based on the fitness journal).

They also offer motivational articles by TV's Toughest Trainer, Jillian Michaels, a Shape Up blog, and a tip-of-the-day. Today's tip is: "The easy-listening tunes that most supermarkets play slow shoppers down, and the longer your visit is, the more likely you are to add some unnecessary junk to your trunk—er, to your cart. Want to avoid unhealthy impulse food purchases at the grocery store? Make a list and stick with it."

The one thing I miss from the first time I signed up is my virtual model. They used to have a feature where you could put in your stats--including hair, skin and eyecolor, and facial features--and it would make a little model of you. Just like the graphs, you could change the stats on the model and it would change. I guess they just figured you could look in a mirror.

The best part about it all is that it's FREE!! All this trying new stuff can get expensive, but this one only costs time and concentration.

I'll keep you posted...

"If you don't do what's best for your body, you're the one who comes up on the short end." -Julius Erving

Oh Yes, Wait a Minute Mr. Postman: Getting Packages in the Mail

*The Marvelettes


So, I love getting packages in the mail. I think everybody does. Since everything is all email and text messages and gift cards, getting something in the mail is so exciting. Recently, I've been getting a lot of stuff in the mail. A yoga mat, a tumble mat so I can practice my ninja skills at home, protein shakes I ordered off CheapVitamins.com, and today: my course materials for a personal trainer workshop so I can get certification!! Even though I know what they are, I still get really excited when I pull up in the driveway and there's a box waiting for me by the door.

And I'm really excited about my last package. It was there on the steps when I got home from running errands and taking a trip around Lake Johnson, where I got lost for about 10 min. How many times have I done that loop? Enough that getting lost shouldn't happen. Anyway, I pulled into the carport and there it was. I knew immediately what it was. My textbook, study guide, workshop reference guide, and two DVDs. I also found a Membership Benefits package tucked in the bottom of the pile when I started unloading my new stuff. I haven't looked at it yet.

What I have looked at is my textbook. It's really big. I was so excited I opened it up to the first page of the first chapter and started reading out loud to my kitchen like I was teaching a class or something. But after the first paragraph, I got nervous. I haven't been in school in 4 years! And this isn't just some simple little prep course and some simple little exam. This is the National Council on Strength and Fitness. Arguably, the best and most extensive prep course and exam for Personal Trainer Certification. That's why I chose it. If I'm going to be changing career paths, I'm going to need a good start.


I also went with the workshop option, which is 16 hours of "high-energy instruction, where you will participate in interactive lectures and engage in a variety of activities under the guidance of expert NCSF Instructors." This is spread over 2 days...in New York City. Well, that's the one I chose. For two reasons: 1. My aunt lives in Manhattan, so it's the only workshop location where I'd have a free place to stay, and 2. I haven't been to NYC since last spring. That's the Spring of 2008. I miss it. And I want to see a Broadway musical. I simply cannot get enough of those.

But in spite of my excitement, the reality of it is setting in. I just put a hefty sum on my credit card to get a self-paced independent study course that covers things like Functional Anatomy and Biomechanics. This is my scared face. I may not have a social life for the next couple of months. Wish me luck!

"Your ability to learn faster than your competition is your only sustainable competitive advantage." -Arie De Gues

"Nine tenths of education is encouragement." -Anatole France

"It is a miracle that curiosity survives formal education." -Albert Einstein