Happy birthday to me:

By the way, Monday was my birthday.

23.

We had an orange food night.*

"Orange food nights" originated when I was in high school, and my best friend Britt and I would go to the 24 hour grocery store and stock our cart with our favorite junk foods, which all happened to be in the orange-yellow-beige color palette. We'd go home, put in a disc of Gilmore Girls and stuff our faces in true Gilmore style.

We'd savor the sickeningly cheesy flavors of Velveeta Shells & Cheese, french bread with nutella, Wheat Thins with cream cheese and orange soda. Often followed by some midnight cookie dough (more than once without baking any cookies).

This year we made a few fantastic additions: Peanut Butter Cap'n Crunch and Garden Salsa SunChips.

A night with the girls is always worth the stomachache that inevitably follows.

*note: this is an exception to all of the food rules I profess in my life and all over this blog. But birthdays are the perfect occasion for breaking the rules.

image via

homemade

I just finished reading A Homemade Life by Molly Wizenberg. She's the writer of Orangette. She has this magical way of writing like she's had you over for lunch, and after your belly is satisfied like it's never been before, you ask for the recipe, and she, graciously, obliges. And then she tells you about that one time when she made it for so-and-so and suddenly you're off on some tangent that will, inevitably, lead you back to the table.

Since Sunday afternoon, when I started it, this book has been my late night dessert each evening. Not only have I loved curling up in my bed just before I go to sleep, to drool over the recipes and stories Molly tells, I have loved making time in my schedule to read. It has been too long, but it is such a treat.

I loved it. And I may just gain 200 pounds from trying all of the recipes. Although, to Molly's credit, there are enough salads in that book to balance out the butter, chocolate, and whipped cream that fill the rest of the pages.

So thanks, Molly, for confirming that a life centered around the kitchen is perfectly balanced. And that real life fairy tales actually begin with chocolate cake instead of poison apples.

career addendum

Okay, I love writing.

And copywriting.

Really, I do.

The fact that my future career will include sitting in an office full of interesting people and coming up with ideas is so exciting to me. Who else gets to watch random Youtube Videos, surf Twitter, and scribble in a notebook all day and call it work?

I can't wait for the late nights coupled with cartons of orange chicken and fried rice, rushed deadlines, last minute changes, rejections and redos, brain frustration, pages and pages of words reduced to one line, and finally, the success of knowing we nailed it.

I am also realizing how much I love reading, eating and writing about food.

So I'm trying to figure out how I could combine those two passions of mine into something that can support that orange chicken addiction, or the fact that I really, really stink at scrimping on grocery bills.

And this would, naturally, be the part where I tell you that I discovered a fantastic career option and have decided to become a _____. However, the point of writing all this was that I have no idea what sort of combination of copywriting and cooking would actually suit me.

Ideas?

Good Morning Green

"Green (or rather, purple) smoothies" in the morning may just be my new favorite thing.

I'll admit, I was a surefire skeptic at first. But I'm getting better at making them like anything but spinach. The one I made this morning was my favorite so far:

• big handful of spinach
• spoonful of whole flax seeds
• unsweetened almond milk
• mixed berries (black, blue and raspberries)
• two heaping spoonfuls of honey greek yogurt

I blended it until it was a creamy lavender whipped mess and it was the perfect breakfast.

Good food can be good for you.

foodie

If I knew as a child how much I would love to cook as a college student, I probably would have taken more advantage of my mom's kitchen smarts.

I can think of all those time she tried to teach my sister and I how to cook and we had zero desire to learn.
I guess some things you just have to learn out of necessity.

Somehow, when people ask me what I like to do, I never know what to say.

I mean,
I've done dance my whole life, so I guess that's one.
Like almost anyone, I love watching movies and going to concerts.
I like to write.
I like to read.
And, I guess, I love to cook.

And I like a whole lot of other things, but for some reason, they all slip my mind when people bring up "hobbies."

Today, Kellie and I made a peanut butter cheesecake and ended up with extra filling, so we made some chocolate brownies and marbled the batter on top...and still had some extra filling, so we're going to make some yummy cheesecake bites. I swear, this is like the neverending fountain of cheesecake.

Sundays are the best.


This is the brownie recipe we used. We haven't tried it yet, but i'm sure it's divine.

Un-Do List

Things I did NOT accomplish today:
-writing the thank you notes I need to
-addressing fundraising letters for this little trip
-laundry
-applying for a few more scholarships for next year.

However, I was able to:
-make a dozen homemade bagels (they were delicious)
-make a pizza to use up some leftover pizza sauce
-spend some quality time with the roommates
-listen to the words of some inspired leaders at stake conference and at the CES fireside. (L. Tom Perry is my hero).
-meet some new people and laugh...a lot.

Oh well. There is always tomorrow.


ps: two of my favorite women in the whole wide world are coming to visit me this week. and I couldn't be more excited!

the kitchen

the darkest chocolate couldn't compete with the brown in her eyes as she wheeled that horn of plenty to the kitchen door.

the kitchen,
where tomatoes marry milk, butter and basil
to make a pot of soup
to share at the dinner table
across from the man with salt and pepper hair.

they talk about the city, the state, the world
theories are touted, and definitions are discovered

an encyclopedia is the entree
that complements the creamy tomato soup.

their conversation continues long after
the soup spoons are cold
and the bread is no more than crumbs
and water droplets have dripped down the sides of the water goblets.

and as she stacks the two bowls in one hand and walks over to rinse them in the sink,
he remembers how she wanted a house with a big kitchen
and why he was okay with that.

for my mom, my dad, and our kitchen.

eat it up

I love to cook.

At 16, when my mother was anxiously trying to pass on some of her food wisdom, I never would have expected the above statement to be true.

To be honest, I was intimidated by the measuring cups, the saucepans and the kitchen stove.

The idea that with a prayer and a great recipe (or no recipe at all!) one could whip up something delicious was completely foreign to me.

When I moved into my first apartment (after living in the dorms and eating cafeteria food all year..,remind me, how is the first year of college any different from high school?), I lived off of grilled cheese sandwiches, condensed tomato soup, and cheese quesadillas.

(I know, Mom, you taught me better than that.)

It wasn't until a couple of years ago that I had an epiphany I could almost taste:

I can do this; cooking really isn't that hard.

I learned that the worst that can happen is that you have a great story to tell about the time when you burned the toast three times in a row, or when you forgot to grease the cake pan.

And the best than can happen is that you make a batch of brownies that sort of become legend in some circles, or you sit down to a Sunday dinner that actually resembles your grandmother's cooking.

But more than just cooking, I really learned how to eat.

I learned to like* salad.
I learned that almost any vegetable tastes delicious if it's sauteed in olive oil and salt and pepper.
I learned that the best chocolate cake doesn't come from a box, but from my grandmother's recipe book.

This is all just to say that I'm feeling pretty confident with the knowledge that my future children will not starve, and even better, won't survive solely PB &J and macaroni and cheese.

*read: tolerate
**A couple of weeks ago, I discovered Orangette....oh to make delicious food and write about it all day.

Would you believe me if I told you this was my homework?

Because it was.

For my advertising concepts class tomorrow, we are having a creative food potluck of sorts.

And this is what I'm bringing.

And if you were wondering, I did eat the bite out of the corner at 1am when I finished this baby.

Baking is my yoga.

*this photo, taken by myself (this is new...) proves several things:

1. I am a copywriter, not an art director, meaning the concept is great. The visual execution....well let's just say I'm not a perfectionist.

2. I actually do own a camera. And I just discovered that my laptop has a memory card slot thingy...well, look at that.

3. I make dang good brownies.

Food Rules

Oh this just came in the mail yesterday.
And I might have read all 64 "rules" before I went to bed last night.

{But I'm saving the explanations and fine print to savor later.}

Favorites:
"Eat all the junk food you want as long as you cook it yourself."
"The banquet is in the first bite."

"Spend as much time enjoying the meal as it took to prepare it."

Go eat something you love.

And really taste it.

*Maybe this will help with #17 on this list.

An Eater's Manifesto

I love Michael Pollan's thought: "Eat Food. Mostly Plants. Not Too Much."

In Defense of Food is definitely on my list of books to read in the near future.

But today I am coming up with my own manifesto.

{Sit down.

Eat slowly.

There is no need for dessert with every meal.}

Three simple rules I am trying to live by.

What is your food manifesto?

swimming

This week I get to play catch up on all the responsibilities I skipped out on last week. Which means taking a test, learning at least a minute of a Viennese Waltz routine, relearning the foxtrot, loads of reading, and thinking of ideas for a commercial.

Oh well.

My room is clean.

My bed is made.

And I'm ready to conquer the world.

{Last week at this time, I was walking around the financial district, eating pizza at Grimaldi's and feeling like a real advertiser. I feel like I understand just a tiny bit how people who come back from study abroad feel. I feel no shame in saying I lived in Harlem for six days, and I'm allowed to miss it just a bit.

Someday, NYC, I'll be back.}

these lights will inspire you

I just got chills realizing that, this week, I'll be checking #6 off this list.

I've daydreamed about soaking up those big city lights since at least the first time I saw You've Got Mail.

But probably before that.

On the list of things I really want to do are, among other things:

Eating at least one hot dog every single day.

Eating legit New York pizza (my jersey girl roommate raves about it)

Finding a free concert.

Mets game.

Broadway!

Pretend like every night is my birthday.**

And, most importantly: live and breathe the world of advertising. visit big agencies, and little boutiques. take copious notes in the new journal I just bought, and soak up as much knowledge about this industry as my mind can contain.

And I just might buy myself a bouquet of freshly sharpened pencils.

**Because, oh yeah, the day after we get back I turn 22. Madness.

I won't have a ton of extra time, apart from the business of Advertising Week, but if you only had one day to do whatever you wanted in NYC, how would you spend it?

image via google

this lovely little poem has been running through my head all day:

I went to a release party for a creative writing journal last night, and I heard the author read this poem.

It was lovely.

And so simple.

And I wanted to share it.

Because I've been thinking about it all day.

And I want to be able to write like this.

So here it is.
Go check it out.

image credit to this little blog.
there are some lovely pictures of food, and delicious-looking recipes. I'll definitely have to try some of them.

footsteps

I dream of living in a place where all I need is within walking distance.

I love getting to know a city on foot.

It's not the same story when you drive everywhere.

Today I walked down to 5th and Center, where the lovely Provo Farmers Market makes its home every Saturday.

I walked around the whole market and smelled the tamale and empanada booths, bought a loaf of Asiago Cheese Bread (and pulled off a hunk to eat, so delicious), got some raspberry lemonade and sat on the grass to enjoy the first day it really felt like summer.

It was so therapeutic. There is just something about a bunch of creative, hard-working people from your community, coming together to share what they love with you.

Everything taste sweeter when you know the hand that made it.

So I challenge you to walk a few steps further, take a left turn where you usually go right, and really see the world from a human's-eye-view.

"The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step." -Lao Tzu

image via deviantart

Don't lay a finger on my Butterfinger!

I love Butterfingers.

You might love Butterfingers.

And, of course, Bart Simpson and Seth Green love Butterfingers.

This might happen if someone took your crispety, crunchety, peanut-buttery treat.

Tell your friends.

Tell your roommates.

Tell everyone you know.

Because it might not be the League that Butterfinger wants right now, but it's the one they need.

Any day like today

Love-to-be:

I don't know what your favorite food is.

So I think I'll learn how to make everything*, just in case it's something I've never tried.

In fact, I hope it is something I've never tried.

I hope you convince me to try lots of things that I've never tried before. And not just when it comes to food.

We can create our own little adventures, even if it's helping me to get over my fear of heights. Or getting me to eat more leafy greens.

We can share some firsts together. Like going to Africa. Or learning how to build a house. And a life.

And we can be each other's last first kiss.

*I just might not let you try my mother's or grandmother's cooking until we've been married for a little while, because they've had many more years of practice.

{i actually made this cake.

it was pretty delish.

natalie took this picture.

she's pretty awesome.}

the weather/me

I feel like I might be getting sick.
Generally, my pattern is that I feel pretty sick for a day or maybe two.
And then I feel better.
So, I guess we'll see how tomorrow goes.

For tonight:
-tomato soup will replace brownies as my "fourthmeal."
-a humanities paper will be submitted by midnight , about something that has yet to be decided.
-hopefully I will get to bed around midnight, or before. that would be a nice change.

Hope you're all healthy and well!*

*(as opposed to wealthy and......which is what I almost typed)

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Survey time, again!

I'm getting ready to turn in my advertising application and one of the questions relates to the chain of Costa Vida restaurants in Utah.

I created this survey, using Qualtrics, and would love for any or all of you to take it! It's only 8 questions, so it takes no time at all.

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

Costa Vida Qualtrics survey

'Tis the Season...(well almost)

Yes. This is one of those totally typical Thanksgiving gratitude lists. But I don't care. I like them anyway.

Reasons to keep breathing every day:
1. My family is incredible and I get to see them [except Christine :( ] tomorrow!
2. Family. Friends. Work. School. Every aspect of my life is a gift from God.
3. Excellent roommates
4. I think I've found my niche. Let's just hope it {the Ad Program} accepts me.
5. This song. Still playing it on repeat.
6. The Doogie Howser M.D. theme song.
7. Undeniable optimism.
8. The AdLab won the Canned Food Drive Sculpture contest. :)
9. All of my classes were canceled today.
10. Finding out curry is not that hard to make.
11. Music. Always a good reason to breathe.
12. Finding a great job.
13. Dinner group.
14. New friends.
15. Professors/TAs who care.
16. Late night Smiths runs.
17. Seeing/talking to old friends.

18. Family stories.

19. Listening to my grandparents and parents reminisce.

20. Spending time with my little brother.

21. Being home. There is nothing like it.

Happy Thanksgiving to you all!

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