Confessions

Confession: I hate to admit it (no I don't), but I probably quote this movie at least 10 times a day. And that's an off day. Sometimes I keep quoting it even when people don't understand the reference. "Savannah would be better for ya. You'd just get into trouble in Atlanta."

(Spoiler alert! Mammy was right)

Confession: I am addicted to this. I've just accepted this fact. If you want to be my friend, you will bring me coffee.

Confession: I watch way too much of this channel. Housewives, and chefs, and fashion, oh my!

Confession: I typically only listen to Kanye, Jay-Z, and/or Beyonce on my way to work. I'd like to think that we'd all be the greatest of friends.

Confession: I have been compared to Liz Lemon more times than I would like to admit.

Confession: I probably sing at least a section of this song at least 5 times a day. I also may or may not re-enact some of the scenes 5 times a day.
"Do mi mi

Mi so so

Re fa fa

La ti ti!"

Time Travel Tuesday - Let's JO Back In Time! (See what I did there?)

This is the first in what I hope to be a weekly segment on this blog.

As you can see by the title, Tuesdays will be dedicated to traveling in time. Maybe we will discuss the past. Or maybe we will contemplate what the future holds. Or maybe it will just be a bunch of random memories bunched together.

To kick off Time Travel Tuesdays, I'd like to introduce you to my bestest friend foreverest, Joanna, aka: DJ Jazzy Jo.

Jo is fun. Can you tell? (pictured with our friend Matt. In a bathtub. Fully clothed. For a house warming party)

And now for the time travel!

Jo and I met at church when we were 12, started going to the same high school when we were 15, and somewhere around age 17 we became bff's.

Obviously, we bonded over really important things like the awesomeness that is 80's pop music, the incredible legacy of The X-Files, the deliciousness of Amigo's, and our love of never making normal faces, as displayed below.

Jo and I have done many things over the last decade. We've been to two U2 concerts (2!). We've hosted multiple X-Files marathons (X-Mas Files! ThanX-Files! SeXual Tension Files!) We've gone through dozens of bags of Peanut Butter M&M's. We've been known to dance to TLC in the kitchen. Don't worry, we've also done really serious things, like watch The Real World, Wife Swap, and Being Bobby Brown (too soon?).

One time in high school, Jo dressed up as Michael Jackson. She also named her first car Jackson (RIP, Jackson. You were the coolest 1994 Ford Escort that I've ever had the privilege of riding in).

Jo lives in Lincoln, and I live all the way in Oklahoma City, so unfortunately our coolness is separated by a very un-cool state (sorry, Kansas) and 7 very long driving hours.

One time I told her that she should marry her boyfriend, because he bought her season 1 of Dr. Quinn Medicine Woman on DVD. (Side note: They did get married. They probably got married because he is awesome, and together they are the coolest couple in the world, but I like to think that Dr. Quinn and I played a role in their union).

I hope you've had as much fun during this brief re-cap of our friendship as I have. If you live in Lincoln, or even if you don't, you should be friends with Jo. She's always up for a party!

PS - you should listen to Jo discuss Russian literature and her possible Native American heritage here.

PPS - I realize that this post only focuses on the ridiculous things that Jo and I have done/love. That is mainly because this is a quick blog post and not a long chat. We aren't really this shallow. I don't think, anyhow.

PPPS - This picture:

Europe On My Mind

I've been missing Europe quite a bit lately.

Not that I was there for an extended period of time, but I have been there twice in real life (and millions of times in my head).


Whenever people tell me that they are planning a trip to Europe or that they just got back from one, I'll always smile and be excited for them, but there is always a twinge of jealousy in me.
I just love Europe. A lot.


I mean, how could you not? Have you seen what it looks like over there?

On the first trip, we had a driver named Igor. He was supposed to take us to Salzburg. We reminded him we wanted to go there every 5 minutes. And we would make comments like, "I can't wait to see Salzburg!" And then we'd ask what our E.T.A was to Salzburg. I think it was pretty clear we all wanted to visit Salzburg.

And then Igor told us that we passed Salzburg about 30 minutes ago.


And then my heart broke into a million pieces.

But then we stopped and ate a huge piece of lasagna, so there's that.

One day I will make it to Salzburg, and I'll say, "Take that, Igor!"

I'm being serious.

Also, I want to see this sign on the way to work.

Let's all go to Europe, OK?

I'm a Fashion Blogger! Or Something.

If the title of this post was a thing that was true, I would probably post pictures like this:

And say things like, "I just bought this coat. I wore it to go grocery shopping this morning!"

Or I would post this picture and say, "I just bought plaid glasses for every day of the week."

Or I would say, "This beauty just became the newest member of my closet collection!"

But in reality, this is what my closet looks like:

And I say things like, "Is this clean? OK, good. I'll wear it today."

I have a long way to go.

Meet Scarlett.

Everyone has that one object that they simply cannot live without. Maybe it's a dress. Or maybe it's a book. Perhaps it's a makeup product or that one CD you could listen to over and over again.

Mine is my Kitchenaid mixer.

Her name is Scarlett. And, yes. You are correct. She was named after the Gone With The Wind character.

We've been together for almost 3 years, and I honestly don't know how I survived without her for the majority of my life.

You see, I've had other mixers. There was my mother's hand mixer that I used until I moved out. Then I got my own hand mixer, and I was thrilled. I remember thinking how wonderful it was. I baked my fair share of food with them, but neither one of them can compete with Scarlett.

Whether we're whipping up a quick batch of cookies or preparing a menu to feed a party, she's got it covered with her muscle, prowess, and beauty.

We're a good team, Scarlett and I. Sometimes we hang out in the kitchen for hours just baking and listening to Beyonce.

I'm sure you'll see Scarlett much more in my posts to follow, and I hope you come to love her just as much as I have.

Now if you'll excuse me, Scarlett and I have some baking to do.

In Which I Talk About Cafe Good Stuff

Remember that one time I told you how I visited this girl in DC? Well, I wish I could visit her in DC every single day. In fact, sometimes I really just wish I lived there. I mean, she gets to walk by this beautiful building every single day. It might be about .01% cooler than the car dealerships I pass during my morning commute.

I am by no means an expert of the city, but due to my adventurous spirit (?) and the fact that I have to entertain myself while my hard-working friend is running The Hill during the day, I've had many wonderful experiences in DC.

I know you've all heard about all of the historic areas to visit in DC (The Mall, the museums, the memorials), but has anyone ever told you about Good Stuff Eatery? If they have, you can attest to the fact that your life has been changed for the better. If, however, nobody has told you about this wonderful place (which I will forever refer to as "Cafe Good Stuff"), I'm afraid your life has been left wanting and you don't even know it. And you might need new friends. In case you need convincing of the powers of Cafe Good Stuff, just look at this burger. Yeah, I'd vote for that. But it's not just the burgers, folks. It's also the shakes. Oh, the shakes.

When you do finally make it to Cafe Good Stuff, do not be deterred by the line of people snaking out the door, because there will most certainly be a line. Just use that moment to Facebook and Tweet about how your life is about the be changed. The people will thank you.

Basically, what I'm trying to say is - you need to eat here. If you're currently planning a trip to NY. Stop. Go to DC instead. Going to Seattle? No you're not. You can get coffee in DC after your Cafe Good Stuff order has settled.

Would these faces lie to you?

In Which I Talk About DC

Last week I went to go visit my friend Jenny. She's pretty swell. Sometimes we like to be ridiculous. (OK, all the time)



She's lived in DC for about 3 years, and I've been lucky enough to visit her 3 times! (For any of you who are wondering, DC is a fantastic place to visit. So many beautiful sights, lots of quirky/fun areas, and a wonderful public transportation system). Since one post on DC would be doing the great city an injustice, I decided that my first post would just be about the museums I visited.

Aside from a visit to The Holocaust Museum during my last visit, this was the first trip that I was able to visit the plethora of museums that DC has to offer. (Sorry, Post Office Museum. I'll visit you next time. Or something). Since trying to pick a favorite museum would be pointless, here are some of my favorite items/moments from each of the museums I visited:

Portrait Gallery - The courtyard area is breathtaking. It's the perfect place to give your feet a rest, look at the gorgeous architecture, and update your Facebook status. Also, the Electronic Superhighway. Look it up.

The National Archives - I saw the Declaration of Independence, but I did not see Nicolas Cage trying to steal it.

Natural History Museum - Mummies (!), "guess the spinal deformities (!!)," dinosaurs (!!!). OK, this was one of my favorite museums. I am sad that I missed the Titanoboa exhibit.

American History Museum - The Star-Spangled Banner, and having a conversation with a random guard about Big 12 football and the nation's best BBQ. I mean, why wouldn't that happen at the Smithsonian?

National Gallery of Art - It's fun to watch a bunch of people pretend to be interested in art.

US Botanical Gardens - Unexpectedly delightful.

Air and Space - Luckily, I was able to hear a grown man say (very seriously): "WHAT?! The Russians beat us to space!?!?!"

American Indian Museum - Don't worry. They had an exhibit about the Quileute Tribe. You know, the tribe from Twilight.

National Aquarium - Unless you need to kill 20 minutes and you have $10 burning a hole in your pocket, do not, I repeat, do NOT go to this aquarium. I've seen more aquatic life in Oklahoma on my drive to work.

National Zoo - Giant pandas, a lion pride, a green anaconda, Cuban crocodiles, a giant octopus. What more could a girl want?

There you have it. What is your favorite DC museum?

The First One

So, I’ve created a blog. Now what? After many years of encouragement from friends, I decided 2012 should be the year to take the blog plunge. Thanks to Jenny I have that banner.

Most of you know me quite well. In fact, I’m going to guess that if you’re reading this blog (all 3 of you) you know me very well. Just in case you are wondering, here is a list of what one might expect to read if they check my blog on occasion:

- Food.
o I love food. Baking it. Eating it. Talking about it. Food wins.

- Places.
o Sometimes I go to real places. Other times my friend and I hop in the car and just drive. I recommend that if you’ve never done it before. What I’m trying to say is – places are fun.

- Bravo
o I’m a self-diagnosed Bravo addict. Just wait and see.

- Apex predators.
o I love them. Hopefully you’ll start loving them, too.

- Music
o I mean, duh.

I’m sure I’ll talk about other things, too. For instance, I will most likely quote Gone With The Wind far more than any human should. It ain't fittin'.

What thoughts or words of wisdom do you seasoned bloggers have?