Thursday, March 31, 2011

Celebrity Crush

I wasn't a big Timothy Olyphant fan to start with. He was just another actor. But then I got into the FX show Justified AND Amazon had a mad sale on the complete series DVD box set of Deadwood, both of which star Mr. Olyphant.

and well... I was helpless. How do you not immediately develop the biggest celebrity crush ever on him? Seriously, try not to. You can't.

Justified
Deadwood


Google image search the crap out of him. It will make you melt. 
timothy olyphant - Google Search

Tuesday, March 29, 2011

Free Time and Chain Letters


I was let go from my job yesterday and at some point I will write a post about how it is probably for the best to be out of such a political organization and how I feel, at a high level, that environment is detrimental to engineering innovation. Though I may just link to youtube videos instead... the world may never know. 

Anyways, I have some free time now. Much of which was spent job hunting this morning and a good deal of which later this week will be packing my life into boxes and trying to figure out if I really do have to move back in with my parents. But I will take a short break to do this early 2000ish internet hate machine social networking chain letter thing. Enjoy.

Three nicknames:
1. My Name
2. Is
3. Short Enough

Three jobs I've had in my life:
1. Ann Taylor Loft sales associate
2. Viral Marketer
3. Software Development Project Manager

Three favorite (non musical) Movies
1. Elizabethtown
2. Fight Club
3. I Heart Huckabees

Three favorite drinks:
1. Diet Coke
2. Dr. Pepper
3. Whiskey?

Three TV shows that I watch
1. Sons of Anarchy
2. Chuck
3.  Justified 
(p.s. there are so many more like Community, Modern Family, White Collar, Royal Pains, Being Human, Glee etc etc)

Three places I have been:
1. Italy
2. England
3. Mexico

Three of my favorite foods :
1. Avocado
2. Boiled Eggs, whites only
3. Raspberries

Three things I am looking forward to:
1. Finding a job and being financially secure again
2. Playoff hockey
3. Joining a workout facility with a lap pool

Three Frequent Favorite Eating Spots:
1. Plaza Deli
2. Spicy Pickle
3. Nick's at the Pier

Three of my most Watched Movies
1. Elizabethtown
2. Almost Famous
3. The Last of the Mohicans

Three of my favorite smells:
1. Vanilla
2. Vine ripened home grown tomatoes 
3. Cream Cheese frosting

Three favorite dream cars:
1. Murdered out Dodge Challenger
2. My mom's old station wagon
3. A classic muscle car

Three Favorite Reality Cars:
1. VW Jetta
2. My broken ass saturn ion. We are good for each other
3. Hyundai Sonata? I am pretty sure I will just get some dumb car next and wish it was murdered out and gangster. 

Three Favorite Places in Your Town:
1. Newport Ave. in OB
2. The cliffs, Sunset Cliffs
3. Sea World!

Three Random Facts about you:
1. When I cook at home, I rarely make a full meal. I will make a main dish and just eat snacks to fill in the rest.
2. Over its 4 seasons, I have watched all of the tv show Chuck online. Thank you internet
3. My favorite relaxing activity is to have my hair done. 

Three favorite bands:
1. The Avett Brothers
2. Brand New
3. The Decemberists

Three favorite athletes
1. Corey Perry
2. Clay Matthews
3. Ron Artest

Three favorite singers
1. Butch Walker
2. Ryan Adams
3. Adele (recent addition)

Three favorite Colors:
1. Orange
2. Purple
3. Red

Sunday, March 27, 2011

Bad Moods

My mind has been racing for days and days. I would love to take a day off from life and really figure out what I want/need. 


Friday, March 25, 2011

Decisions

Someday, someone is going to break your child's heart with their actions. Next time you think about doing something, think about how you would feel if the person you are potentially hurting was your kid. 

Do unto others, yo. 

mood lightening bunny (via


Tuesday, March 22, 2011

To Live By

You weren't born cut in two. So why are you still looking for the other half?

Also this:

yep

Peep more here.

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Industry Experts

I was asking for advice about writing a press release for a major software release. I was told to have an great quote, for example:

"This software is revolutionary," company president Penis Van Fuckitstan said. "It solves the problem of people getting viruses with their internet porn."


Artist's Rendering: Penis Van Fuckistan

Sunday, March 13, 2011

I should really just sleep instead...

Sometimes it breaks my heart that I can count on one hand the number of times my friends from Los Angeles have come down to San Diego to see me.

I feel like I am fading away.

Saturday, March 12, 2011

Fantôme The Friendly Beer

Yesterday, we (me, Ashley, Matt and Michael) went out in Ocean Beach. Started with dinner and a drink at Nicks at the Pier with just Ashley and Michael, followed by a whiskey-ginger ale with the whole crew. Since Matt didn't join for dinner, we ended up going to Newport Pizza and Ale house so he could get a slice of pizza and we could still have some drinks.
We ended up getting a couple of beers from this small brewery in Beligum called Fantôme Brewery. Their Saison was AMAZING! One of my favorites of this style that I have tried so far. We also tried their beer called Pissenlit. It was equally awesome. And that word now strikes me as hilarious because I can only think Piss Lint when I see it. 

Finally, the best part of this brewery is their mascot. He totally looks like Casper .

Casper Beer
Casper The Friendly Ghost

Also Casper

Monday, March 7, 2011

Hiking

I went hiking yesterday with Michael and Ashley. This was the first time I had done such a thing since I hurt my ankle in the Grand Canyon. It wasn't half bad and San Diego has some beautiful areas to explore. I can't help but feel like I am not really enjoying the scenery because I constantly have my head down looking where I am stepping next so I don't trip on a rock or something.

Never Forget. Spring Break 07

Saturday, March 5, 2011

I Feel Unmotivated



p.s. I am on a blogging roll today.

Related.

Baked Salmon, Potato Pancakes and Cauliflower

I baked some salmon tonight for dinner. The usual process and I used italian seasoning, onions, salt, pepper, olive oil and a tiny bit of butter to season.

The more interesting part of dinner was the potato pancakes. I bought this mix because it was extra on sale and didn't have too many calories per serving. It was really easy to make, but the results were mediocre. You mix an egg, water and the potato mix packet together. Let it stand to thicken, then stir once more and fry in a thin layer of oil (I used low cholesterol veggie oil). Cook until golden brown and serve. Note: you should drain off the extra oil by placing the pancakes on paper towel when you take them out of the pan. They tasted okay - kind of bland and I ended up using a bit of ketchup on them. If I ever make these again, real potatoes for sure.

Salmon, Potato Pancakes and Cauliflower
Finally, the veggie tonight was cauliflower. I have become addicted to the Green Giant Just For One single serving frozen vegetables. They have a few different varieties and they are low calorie items. I am sure the cheese sauce is fake, but it doesn't taste terrible. I am hoping they come out with Just For Ones that don't have the sauce so I can season the single serving steamed veggies with other things. Fingers crossed! Other steamer bags of veggies always end up being too much and the left overs never keep well. Maybe I am destroying the environment with the single serving packaging, but these are just so damn perfect for me.

New Office and Joy

I spent the late afternoon today moving my desk into my roommate's old room. Since she moved out about a week ago, I have been contemplating if I should just leave things the way they are or move my bedroom into this larger room etc etc. I finally settled on just keeping my room where it is since it would be too much hassle to move everything just to up and move to a new place. So I moved my desk into hers so I can have a space to work and do stupid things on the internet (like blog). I only have a small amount of time left in this apartment and will most likely get rid of much of this beat up college furniture, so I figured what the hell, why not have an office for a month and a half.

Here is the result of the move:

Lighting is bad for photos, but the window is great
I used my old, rickety, soon to live in a dumpster TV stand as a home for my printer, paper, a couple accessories and my spare linux laptop. I tried to keep the desk minimal and ready to accept either my work or home laptop depending on what I am doing. I might be keeping this desk (really a kitchen table from Ikea) depending on how apartment hunting goes and the space I can get for the money. If I do, I will probably resurface since it a ton of the laminate has chipped off over the years. 

And now as the sun is starting to go down, I am realizing that I need to come up with a lighting situation for this room as it doesn't have an overhead light or lamp. uhhh, hate to say it... but Charlie Sheen was right. Plan Better!

And to close out, this picture = immeasurable joy: 

Dan + Monkey + Ryan = Marvelous




Thursday, March 3, 2011

Turkey Rice Bowl

I have become a big fan of cooking some ground turkey with minimal seasoning and dressing it up in different dishes as a way to have a home cooked meal quickly. Tonight I did just that.

I combined about 1/2 cup of Basmati rice, fresh diced tomatoes, my pre-made ground turkey with a dash of soy sauce to create a quick little dinner bowl. It was a bit of bland one, but not too awful. I will probably have some veggies or fruit after my workout to finish this meal off. 
Warning: Spice Well to Avoid Blandness


My always on hand ground turkey recipe:

1.25 lbs ground extra lean turkey
1/2 cup diced yellow onion
salt
pepper
Store bought seasoning mix (I mix it up with Italian, Poultry [less salt in that case], lemon pepper etc)

In a skillet, heat up about a teaspoon of olive oil and add onion. Cook until slightly translucent. Add turkey, salt, pepper and seasoning. Cook until done. Be sure to mix well as you cook to ensure even distribution of flavors. Cool and store.

It is important to note that turkey can be pretty bland, so you should not be afraid of spicing it well. Also make sure you have some bold other flavors when you use it as a base for your other meals or in bowls like the one I made tonight.



Wednesday, March 2, 2011

Bad Streak

Monday: OB Pizza and a Caesar Salad and Cuvee des Jacobins Rouge Flanders Red Ale and Pizza Port Dark Wheat Beer
Tuesday: Tuna Poke and Salad
Wednesday: Crunchwrap Supreme, Fresco Soft Taco, Raisins

Thank god for the gym.