Fear

Did you happen to notice that I started this blog, posted once and waited more than 2 1/2 years to start posting regularly?

It turns out, I started the blog on an impulse and I didn't really think the whole thing through. I quickly realized a blog would mean putting myself out there for the whole world (and the Internets!) to read.

I wasn't ready for that kind of pressure. What if I had nothing to say? What if people thought my blog was boring or worse that I was dumb? What if I offended someone? What if someone I didn't want to read the blog read it? What if no one read it? The list of reasons not to blog was endless.

In the end, the biggest reason I did not blog was my own fear.

This may surprise some people, but I am an insecure person. I do not like to be vulnerable or show my foibles. Also, as a people-pleaser by nature it is hard for me to act without worrying about what others think or how they will react.

However, I am working on my insecurities. I am learning to love myself and working on accepting the things I cannot change about myself as well as exploring some things I would like to change without altering the person I am on the inside.

I am committed to blogging and I hope you will continue reading. I love all of your support!

Miscellaneous Monday Musings

Mondays are never my favorite day of the week, but today was especially bad since it was coming off a nice long three-day holiday weekend.

Sigh.

Enjoyed a nice Easter with the family. Even the Easter Bunny stopped by to say hello or hide her head in shame. You decide:

  

I went to the gym after work today to work off that deee-licious piece of leftover carrot cake I indulged in following lunch. It was totally worth it. If you like carrot cake, check out yesterday's post because that is a seriously good recipe and the icing alone is To. Die. For. I died. It was that good. 

I think carrot cake would be on my "last meal" menu. You know, if I'm ever on death row, and I get to pick a last meal. That carrot cake would be on the menu. Just keep that in mind.

I bought some new nail polish tonight - Buy me a Cameo from Essie:

I think I am going to like it. It has a nice pearly, brownish-pink, neutral color to it that seems to compliment my poor pale skin.

I'll wrap this up by saying that I saw the Adjustment Bureau over the weekend. I liked the movie, it was very thought-provoking and there was some intense chemistry between Matt Damon and Emily Blunt. I swear, Matt Damon will be hot even when he is super-old and gumming his food in the nursing home. Am I right?

Happy Easter!

Just popping in for a quick post. We are headed to an Easter barbecue at my parents' house. The whole family will be enjoying items from the grill and I made dessert:

Carrot cake - recipe from thepioneerwoman

I hope you all have a wonderful Easter! I won't even complain about the rain since we desperately needed it..

Let Your Freak Flag Fly

We are big fans of our local NBA team, the Oklahoma City Thunder. We bought half-season tickets this season and have upgraded to full-season tickets for the 2011-2012 season.

Pre-game festivities outside the arena before Game 1 of the NBA playoffs

Lucky for us, the Thunder made the playoffs this year and we have tickets to all the home playoff games. The atmosphere at these games has been electric and the fans have been absolutely dedicated to making our arena the loudest in the country.

But I digress.

The real purpose of this post is to share a cautionary tale.

At a recent home game, Thunder car flags were given away to all in attendance. Tonight, my husband insisted on putting up one of the car flags on the passenger side of the car to show our support for the team. As I drove down May Avenue, my husband apparently forgot all about the car flag and proceeded to put his window down.

Can you tell where this is going?

As the flag went flying, there was immediate cursing from my husband's side of the car, and I knew exactly what had happened. "Oh, no!" I said. "What should I do? Should I turn around?"

"Quick, quick, turn around!" my husband said. I hurriedly made a U-turn and drove back down the street to see our car flag lying dejectedly in two pieces in the middle of May Avenue. I pulled into the nearest empty lot and my husband jumped out of the car, barely checking to make sure the coast was clear as he rescued the car flag from a certain death sentence.

He ran back to the car with the car flag and we looked at each other only to burst into laughter, high on an adrenaline rush and struck by the absurdity of the situation as well as our reaction to it. It was hilarious thinking about any of the passing motorists that could have seen the car flag go flying and/or our subsequent rescue mission.

Luckily this cautionary tale, has a happy ending. I am happy to report, the car flag seems to be recovering nicely, after a little TLC from my husband. We'll try to take better care of it in the future.

The car flag during happier times - prior to the first playoff game.

P.S. ThunderUP!!

Yoga

After running today, my husband talked me into going to Yoga class tonight. I think he was worried about being the only guy and he wanted me to go with him.

I don't do Yoga regularly, but when I do make the time to go to a class, I find it supremely relaxing.

The stretching is fabulous. The lights are low or even turned off. The instructor has a soothing voice. There is calming music playing in the background.

What I find most relaxing, however, is being unplugged from everything. No television, no computer, no smart phone. Just me and my thoughts. This might sound strange, but I think about nothing and everything all at the same time when I am doing Yoga. I reach a level of relaxation that is rivaled by few other activities in my life. I find it refreshing, and it helps re-fill a well that can become dry in the busy lives we lead.

I should go to Yoga more often.

What kinds of activities do you find relaxing?

Miscellaneous Monday Musings

This is going to be a great week. I love Holy Week leading up to Easter Sunday for many reasons - singing Easter hymns, checking out the cute spring fashions, baking some delicious goodies and spending time with my family! Another perk - it's a short week/three day weekend for me and my husband since our offices will both be closed for Good Friday.

We saw True Grit at the cheap movies this past weekend. It was a good movie and nicely cast. The crowd could have been better. I almost had to beat down the woman sitting behind us. Inexplicably, in the middle of the movie she decided to start filing her nails. Filing. Her. Fingernails. In a dark movie theater. I could not believe it. I kept thinking she would stop, but no! Finally, I turned around and said, "Could you please stop that?" I saw her husband nudging her leg and she leaned over to whisper to him, "What did she say?" Apparently he relayed the message because she quit and I was able to resume watching the movie in peace. Sheesh!

Also, I am just now getting around to posting a picture from the Red Bud Classic 5K I ran in last Sunday. Last year was the first time I had ever run in the Red Bud Classic and it was my first 5K run. The weather ended up being very nice as the Oklahoma wind cooperated by gusting less than 20 mph. This is me with my running buddy co-worker. Warning, you may want to turn down the brightness level on your computer. I am rocking some seriously WHITE legs.

I can't believe I am going to share this with you, but today I think I accidentally ate some moldy cheese! The horror! The humanity! Here's a little secret about me, I have a bad habit of sneaking bites of cheese while I am cooking dinner. Tonight, I had a bag of shredded Italian cheese blend out to garnish our pasta. As I waited for the pasta to boil I opened the bag and took a pinch of shredded cheese out and popped it in my mouth. Hmm, I thought. That tasted a bit strange. But I was undeterred. I stuck my fingers in the bag for another pinch and noticed the peculiar consistency of the shredded cheese - sort of clumpy. I looked into the bag and realized there were some moldy pieces of cheese in the bag. EEEEEK! I threw the bag away. I immediately confessed my cheese sins to my husband. He may or may not ever kiss me again. Hopefully, I won't face damaging repercussions from my cheese sins.

But don't worry, I still LOVE cheese!

Popcorn Nostalgia

My dear aunt is a fabulous cook. I always look forward to visits and family get-togethers at her house in Kingfisher because I know the food will not disappoint.

Of all the fabulous meals and desserts my aunt has made over the years, the food that sticks out most in my mind is her popcorn. This popcorn is such a novelty because who even makes homemade popcorn anymore? Microwave popcorn is easy, but trust me when I tell you it cannot hold a candle to my aunt's popcorn. Homemade popcorn just tastes great and it isn't all that hard to make, either. It is light and fresh without the processed taste of microwave popcorn and its faux butter flavoring.

My husband loves my aunt's homemade popcorn, and he decided we needed to start making it in our own home. A few years ago, my aunt gave me one of her extra popcorn pans to make homemade popcorn and I am ashamed to say that until recently, I had never used it!

Simple ingredients - kernels, canola oil and salt

Add oil (1 Tbsp) and kernels (1/3 C) to pan over medium-high heat

Add lid and wait for oil to get hot

When you hear the first kernels popping, quickly close the lid

Shake the pan over the burner and turn the crank on the lid at the same time. Listen to the popcorn pop, pop, popping!

The finished product! Add salt or your favorite topping and enjoy!!