{oopsie. oh, and camping.}

Hi, I'm Ashley. I used to write things here. It's been a solid 100 days since I last hung out with you all (digitally speaking, that is), so I feel the need to re-introduce myself.  Uber sorry for the hiatus. I have no real excuse.  But I'm back, so get ready...and get excited. Why? Cause I went CAMPING.

For many, heading out into the wilderness with a tent and bug spray but no technology is fun. Maybe even a somewhat regular activity.  For me? Not so much. My sister and I are referred to (lovingly, I hope) by our extened family as "the city girls." My uncle owns a petting zoo in rural New Hampshire (although I guess it's all pretty rural when compared to the nation's capitol) and couldn't believe we'd ever want to wear make-up or straighten our hair between milking goats (yes, goats. See below.) and feeding pigs (again, below). For the record, we won that battle and tamed the frizz.

{i doubt the goat likes it any more than she does}

{so small but so unpredictable.}

As the above photographic evidence would suggest, I'm not the most outdoorsy girl in the world. Thus, when we picked this card out of our "happiness challenge" jar, we all just sort of stared at each other.



{yikes}

After a collective guffaw, we pulled it together and set a date. Which subsequently got changed several times. Note: when one-third of  happiness challenge participants moved out of our home, it became a little harder to stick to our "one card per week" routine. And by "a little harder" I mean impossible. I think we have seven challenge cards posted on the fridge ready to be acted upon. Down to six now that we've embraced our inner Daniel Boones.

{the Kashi and yogurt were unrelated purchases - we're not THAT ridiculous}

I'm fairly certain we googled "camping for pansies" to get things started. We read reviews on assorted travel sites and set our sights on Prince William Forest Park. It may not have totally lived up to its tagline, "Experience a place where history and nature unite!" but it certainly fit the bill (3 minutes off the highway and seven bucks a piece for our very own "private" camp site). In reality, there were other families no more than 50 yards from us in every direction, but that fact gave us more comfort that it did disappointment. We figured someone would hear our screams if a bear and/or axe murderer threatened us during the night.

We parked our car (yes, this level of auto-proximity is how they define "camping" at PWF) at our re-assigned camp site and got down to business. There was a family of 10 (plus a boy scout?) on our original site when we got there, and after a minor altercation, but no progress made, we called in the camp ranger.  He was little help, although did inform us that the nightly presentation that evening featured "TURTLES!" We checked our watches, reminded ourselves we had precious little sunlight and no idea how to pitch a tent, cut our losses and trekked drove the Camry to a nearby vacant site. A short time later, the boy scout et al. drove past us on their way out (after missing "check out" by 4.5 hours). That was awkward. Mostly because an hour had gone by and all we'd done was unload the s'mores supplies from the vehicle.

{it took us ten minutes to get the tent out of the bag. i didn't help, just took pictures.}

{yes, they're cute, but this configuration was necessary for tent assembly too}

Earth to everyone: putting up a tent is ridiculously hard. It took the three of us a solid hour. The surprise daddy long legs visits didn't help, nor did the fact that proper tent set-up required four people. Our neighbor yelled that we looked like we "belonged in the circus." Mortifying.

After the Great Tent Adventure of 2011, we celebrated our victory with a little red wine and some card games. Then it got dark. Darn. When it's dark and you're camping, all you do is eat. Literally. We had popcorn, hot dogs, squash, baked potato, and of course s'mores (cue famous scene from The Sandlot). Then, in typical 20-something fashion, we took a series of automatic timer photos posing with each other and s'mores sticks. At this point it was 8:30, and in true 70-something fashion, we were all ready to turn in.

I put on my headlamp (I mocked my sister's boyfriend for forcing me to pack this, but it turned out to be the best decision ever), we hiked (a whole 100 yards!) to the bathroom, and got ready for bed (brushed our teeth in 30 seconds or less).  Because we're paranoid, meaning we've seen way too many horror movies, we brought into our tent a hammer (self defense, duh), a pan (to make noise when the bear/axe murderer came into our tent to get us), and several fire starters (not sure what our plan was here). After whining for ten minutes about how hard the ground was, we snuggled into our sleeping bags. Goodnight moon.

{the vote is in: they're so much better charred}

Reflecting on the trip, I'm still pretty shocked we a) pitched a tent, b) made a fire and c) survived in general. Most of the males in our lives had money on us coming home in tears with a trunk full of unopened food and a sad story about how we couldn't hack it. We did break the #1 rule of camping (sleep with your head uphill from your feet), so we woke up with wicked headaches, but otherwise unscathed.

We slept poorly (part nerves, part poor choice of body positioning) and woke up super early. We packed up and shipped out, straight to Dunkin' Donuts. Don't judge - we're domesticated women. Then we make the long trek home (read: a half-hour on I-95), patted ourselves on the backs, and busted out our cellphones to tweet about the weekend. You can take the girls out of the city, but you can't take the city out of the girls.

{oh, hay strangers...}

So sorry, loyal followers.  I've had a serious case of writer's block since my last post.  And by "writer's block," I mean changing (jobs and roommates), attending (multiple graduations), traveling (New Hampshire to North Carolina) and watching (no fewer than 127 episodes of "Criminal Minds").  Yep, I've been a busy busy bee.  Annnnnnd I'm still full-on obsessed with that show and the stuff that gives any normal human the creeps.  So you can imagine how psyched I was to get this pic last month:

{joe mantegna, you are fab}

What else have I been up to? Here are some visual aids:

There was sunshine and sundresses at the annual Foxfield Races in Charlottesville, Virginia:

{ten points if you can spot the intruder}

  Winery trips in Huntly, Virginia:

{big smile for a big glass o' vino}

{as purrrty as a painting}

 Family reunions in Bloomfield, Connecticut:

...and approximately 30 other days worth of stuff I didn't digitally document.

It's been a whirlwind month and a half, but I promise (cross my heart t's and dot my i's, hope to die blog!) I'll check back into the proverbial matrix and keep you posted on my goings on via... posting.  Hah.

{i got it from my mama}

Although I'm pretty sure none of my readers have children (save my mama), considering that today is the day devoted to mom's everywhere, I'll begin with a hearty "Happy Mother's Day!" announcement.  I just said it out loud, I promise.

The oh-so-fantastic woman who gave me life nearly a quarter of a century ago is, according to the day-by-day itinerary my parents sent over last week, right now...in... Paris.  Insert immense jealousy here.

The results of my Google search report that there are exactly 3,841 miles between my apartment building and the Eiffel Tower.  Hence, I'm not sure my mom could hear the above announcement I made.  Well, via this blog (and the card I sent that you won't get until you get back in three weeks) I send my love over the pond and then some.  I LOVE YOU MOM!

{here's a hug from four-month-old me}

I was lucky enough to inherit some pretty great things from my mom.  Among others, the ability to find something positive in everyone, the olive complexion which allows me to tan faster than all my friends (and to still have visible lines in February), my petite frame and speedy metabolism (please don't stop, please don't stop, please don't stop), my generous nature (I've been dealt a pretty darn good hand in life and she has taught me the value of recognizing/appreciating that and giving back), my organizational mindset, my talent for writing and making others feel good... the list goes on and on.

If only I'd gotten her patience, sense of direction, or knack for sewing, cooking, or crosswords. Those are all things I have to strive for I suppose.  She's a woman of many talents, and I can only hope I turn out half as great as she is.

My point is, folks, that my mom is the best mom in the world.  Yes, I know everyone says that.  And I say to you, we can agree to disagree.

{frame wall. finally}

Many of my friends and coworkers have commented that I have a chic sense of style.  Specifically, they're referring home decor (while I love to browse fashion mags and daydream about what I'd wear if I had the dollars to do so, I stick to pretty mainstream stores and have a typical twenty-something wardrobe).  Anywho, back to the matter at hand.  Sure, I may be above average in the home furnishing department, but in reality, I usually just copy what I see others do.  And if imitation truly is the sincerest form of flattery, Sherry and John from younghouselove should be on top of the world (read: pretty darn vain).  They're the chicest couple I've never met, and they transformed not one, but almost two now, older homes into modern/adorable ones on the cheap.  Reading their blog is one of the best parts of my day, and each time I fall in love with a DIY project they've done that I can actually see myself completing without injury or catastrophe, I do my best to re-create it in my own abode.  The most recent example?  A frame wall.

A few weeks back, I ordered a new duvet for my bed from West Elm.  Before those fabulous and crisp stripes entered my world, I had a really bold purple comforter from Tar-jay, so when I made the switch, the look and feel of my room really did, well, switch.  First came the bed, then came the accessories.  I got rid of the purple accents and swapped them out for more neutral ones.  Still though, something was missing.  I had a lot of white wall space, and nothing to fill it with.  The design gods must have been on my side, because it was the same day that I first read about Sherry and John's frame wall project.  Could I do it (on a much smaller scale of course)?  Yes, in the immortal words of The Little Engine That Could, "I think I can. I think I can!"

Of the fourteen frames that ended up making the cut, only eight were born white.  A quick trip the hardware store, five dollars, and a can of satin spray paint later, all was well white in the world.  I used Sherry's tip and sprayed three thin layers to avoid dripping, although because I'm still an amateur when it comes to spray painting (yep, no vandalism in my teenage past), there was a run or two.  Thankfully, said runs were on the side/insides of the frames and thus nothing to fret over.

Next up? What to fill the frames with.  I used a combo of childhood pictures, recent photos, sketched drawings I found on the interwebs, and inspiring typography quotes from Pinterest.  I printed each of the quotes/pictures on cardstock (it's tougher and easier to work with), trimmed them to fit the frames, and voilà.

The arrangement of the frames was semi tough.  I followed Sherry and John's rules and started with the biggest frames in the middle.  I surrounded those with smaller ones and worked my way out.  This part was a lot of trial and error.  I'd set things, take a picture, switch something, take another picture, etc.  Rinse, wash, repeat.  I took the pics so I could always go back (in case I changed something, didn't like it, and wanted to return to a previous placement).

Once I picked a place for each frame, it was time to transfer everything from the winnnndow to the waaaallll (okay, no, actually from the floor to the wall, but I like that song.  Well, I did in high school I think).  Here's where John's expert advice came in handy.  I matched magazine pages to the size of each frame, marked an "X" on a piece of tape where the nail would need to be on each, and taped the pages to the wall so each was an inch apart from all adjacent ones.  Sounds complicated, but it's mostly just time-consuming.  Believe me though, it's worth the hour not to put tons of extra holes in the wall tweaking things post-hang.

Once the faux frames were up, I just hammered a nail through each "X," ripped off the stand-in, and hung up the real deals, one by one.  It was a slow process, but worth every second.  The only setback?  One frame toppled to the floor and got a little bent outta shape (literally) while I was nailing it's friend up next to it.  No worries, it was nothing a little tacky glue couldn't fix.

The final result was awesome, and I'm digging it.  I think I nailed it, if I do say so myself.  Hah.

Here's the journey, in picture form:

{the idea is born}

{all white = all good}

{faux frames, almost ready for their close-up}

{getting there...}

{before}

{nailed it}

{more than obsessed}

Facebook.
Twitter.
AIM (holy throwback to middle school).

They've all held the #1 spot in my heart (meaning browser bookmark list) at some time or another. Well friends, move over, there's a new social media platform in town, and she is sexy. Ladies and gentleman, I give you PINTEREST.

I've spent more hours on this website in the last two days than I've spent sleeping. Okay, that's a little hyperbolic, but it's pretty close to a 50/50 split at this point.

What is Pinterest and why do I love it so? To quote its creators:

"Think of Pinterest as a virtual pinboard — a place where you can create collections of things you love and "follow" collections created by people with great taste.  People use Pinterest to collect and share all sorts of things... You name it, people are pinning it."

My current stats:
5 boards
57 pins
6 followers

In case you are a visual person (as I am), here are some of my "pins" for you to feast your eyes on:

{i WILL make this}

{wanted one of these for a while now}

 

{could it even get any better than this?}

{typography is fantastic}

So there you have it, folks. That's a super simplified sense of my style.

Don't take it from me. Try Pinterest for yourself. You may have to wait a few days, because word on the street is the madness (also known as thousands of future fans requesting an invitation to the site) has necessitated a waiting list.   

Gotta go pin some stuff. Until next time...

{looks great! little full, lotta sap!}

Disclaimer: this blog post has nothing at all to do with the happiness challenge.  That being said, last night was one of the coolest/happiest nights of my life, so I think I've earned the right to brag blog about it.

Last night in DC, the National Wildlife Federation celebrated its 75th Anniversary with a big fancy gala (a cougar cub, golden eagle, and wallaby all walked (read: "crawled" / "flew") the red green carpet) and I was lucky enough to be there.  Also in our midst?  One CHEVY CHASE.  Color me giddy.

{if only you weren't older than my father...}

In preparation for the evening, I watched Caddyshack, Oprah's SNL reunion episode from this week, and reviewed my favorite Clark Griswold lines (hence this post's title).  I watch "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation" at least every week once December rolls around, and my sister and I can often be heard quoting the lines to each other and snickering at the dinner table during Christmastime.  What can I say, the man is a hoot and a half.

Some of my favorite lines from the night:

Thirty minutes after his arrival:
Me: We're gonna go take your picture with some of the animals now, if that's okay with you.
Chevy: Wait, there are animals here?
Me: Yes sir, lots of them.
Chevy: And you know you're one of them.
Me: I was gonna say the same to you, but I wasn't sure we were at that comfort level yet.
Chevy: (laughs) -- the fact that I made him laugh made my night.

After taking the glass of red wine I got for him:
Me: Here you are!
Chevy: Look at this girl! But, wait, what are you, thirteen?
Me: Very funny. I'll have you know I'm 24.
Chevy: Well you look thirteen. 
Me: Sigh. I wasn't sure if you liked merlot or cabernet, so I guessed...
Chevy: What? Oh hell, I don't care. It's wine.

During a photo opportunity with Robert Redford, his wife, and the president of NWF:
Mrs. Chase: Wait, I'll take off my coat for this.
Robert Redford: And I'll take off my jacket.
Chevy (to photographers and the whole room): If everyone could hold tight for a second, I'll just take off my pants...
 
When all was said and done (and laughed about), it was an incredible night.  It was an honor to meet the Chevmeister and I can honestly say he is as funny in life as he is onscreen.  He kept everyone in stitches for several hours - I will fondly refer to last night as WNL (Wednesday Night Live).  Different day, equally hysterical.

{Me and CC}

{april showers bring may...}

We've certainly had more showers than flowers this spring.  Thankfully, one of roomie #3's co-workers planted the seed in our heads (via her happiness card) and we evened the showers vs. flowers score with her challenge.  It read, very simply, "buy fresh flowers for your desk."  Editor's note: this challenge happened more than a month ago now, but it's been addictive and I wanted to wait to share it with you.  It's amazing how little flowers cost, but how much they can brighten a kitchen counter, windowsill, or cubicle.  I'm full-on obsessed - I've had some type of flora in my life ever since we first pulled that card outta the bunch.  Bring on the showers, mother nature, I'll take care of the flowers.

{baby daffodils at home}

{orchids in perrier bottle}

{mums in my cube}

{love the purple and green contrast}

{mozart is my homeboy}

It's Sunday night.  As per usual, I'm drinking tea (sometimes substituted for wine), cleaning my room, and making a mental list of the errands to run/bills to pay/tasks to take care of during the upcoming week.  The not-so-typical part of this evening?  No re-runs of Kourtney and Kim take New York can be heard.  Nope, I didn't temporarily give up my E! obsession for March Madness.  Wake Forest isn't even in the tournament this year, damnit.  In fact, I'm about halfway through the second of four movements in Mozart's Symphony #40.

This happiness challenge comes courtesy of my dear old dad.  I guess he took a liking more to the "challenge" part than the "happiness" thing, although I do have to give my old man credit, this music is kinda good.  I keep laughing at myself because between folding t-shirts (I hate laundry) I keep swaying my head and air-conducting.  You know, waving my fingers in the air all goofy like as if I am conducting the symphony and it's not just streaming out of my dell.  I'm sure it's a funny sight to see.  Thankfully I'm alone in my room, and no one can actually see it.

Gotta give it to ya pops, this classical stuff is a nice change from rap.  It's full of passion, strength, and energy.  Not boring or stuffy at all.  And that's music to my ears. Hah. 

I'm officially done with Symphony 40 now, and I still have cleaning to do.  Heck, I may even listen to another.  Wolfgang would be so proud.

Handy Candy

This weekend while at CVS, I make the mistake of walking through the candy aisle.  I should have just looked straight ahead and kept moving, like those horses in Charleston with blinders on their heads.  But alas, I turned, I looked, and I was hooked.

Peanut butter M&Ms are a vice for me.  A big one.  If you've ready any other blog posts, my pb/choco obsession will not come as a shock to you.  Plus, mainstream grocery/convenience stores don't always carry the PB variety of M&Ms (whomever makes these foolish inventory decisions should be fired), so when I do spot that b-e-a-u-ti-ful bright orange bag among the ranks of the candy display, my heart races and I inevitable scoop up a bag or two.  Or, in this weekend's case, a one pound sack.  I know, my gluttony is semi-gross, but they were on sale.  For THIRTY NINE CENTS.

At first I assumed there was a cruel typo on the price tag, and was going to employ what little self-control I maintain in the face of such amazingness.  Just to be sure though, I price-checked a bag, and after the rock-bottom cost was confirmed, I rang that sucker up quicker than you can say "sugar high."  In the name of balance (and over-indulgence), I also threw in a bag of Starburst jelly beans.  Some may say it's overkill, but since I got all two pounds of sugar for under two bucks, I just like to think that I jumped on the budget bandwagon. Happy Easter, kiddos.

{my tummy hurts}

{bake me a cake as fast as you can...}

This just in: the baker's man got it wrong.  Baking a cake as fast as you can doesn't actually produce a quality product.  I now know this from experience.  And I won't do it again.

Teacher roomie won the "who got the weirdest Christmas gift from a distant relative" contest this year.  The prezzie? An oversized chocolate cupcake kit. Yeaaaaaaaaah.

Considering even the baking bowl was included in the one-stop-shop, the only ingredient requirements for the "recipe" were nine tablespoons each of vegetable oil and milk (seems suspiciously specific to me), and three whole eggs.  If I wasn't feeling weird about this whole situation before, I was after I added said ingredients and attempted to stir them together.  Oil and milk don't mix well, and neither were this recipe and me.

{eggs, oil, and milk don't play well together}

I stirred and stirred and finally just gave up and plopped the whole thing in the microwave.  I spent the cooking time (yep, all five minutes of it) laughing with my roomies and trying to guess what the product would taste like.  I remained semi-optimistic, despite our consensus that something starting with three raw eggs could not possibly end up edible in under thirty minutes.

{maybe our weird wisk was the problem?}

I watched the whole shebang cook with my forehead pressed against the microwave (that whole brain damage side effect thing stopped years ago, right?) and was pleasantly surprised when I discovered that the final product was in fact more a solid than a liquid.  But, as Snow White and the Wicked Queen taught me a few years back, appearances can be deceiving.

{innnnnnnnteresting}

Yeah, the cake was gross.  And not really edible.  Roomies and I tried to cover the bitter, not-sweet-at-all taste with various toppings ranging from frosting to whipped cream, with little success.  None of us made it past bite #5 before throwing our forks down in defeat.

{rescue attempts...unsuccessful}

Oh well.  Lesson learned.  Final verdict: we should change the words to "patty cake, patty cake, baker's man, take your time making a cake with an actual oven and a pan."

{five favorites}

Five food & bev things I'm loving right now:

1) TAZO Calm Herbal Infusion Full-Leaf Tea

I drink it in the morning, I drink it in the afternoon during the sleepy hours at work, heck I'd drink it at midnight if I wanted to (yep, it's caffeine free so it won't jeopardize any of my beauty rest).  As the tin says, it's a "comforting blend of chamomile, rose petals & soothing herbs."  As I say, it tastes like happiness.  And flowers.  But in a good way.  And how could you not love a teabag that is that pretty?

{so zen}

2) Cadbury Creme Eggs

Yep, it's officially Easter season.  Well, in the local Giant anyways.  I couldn't resist picking up a cute little four-pack of the classic Cadbury eggs today.  I've eaten them every year since I can remember, and I just can't get enough.  I know they're a love or hate thing for most people, but I'm definitely in the former of the two camps.  The first second you get through the milk chocolate and into that delicious and creamy center is like a little slice of heaven.  Yes, there are only three eggs in the picture.  Because I couldn't wait to eat the first one.

{easter came early this year!}

3) vitaminwater zero "rise"

I'm not usually a diet sports drink kind of girl (I always find the "fruity" taste too fake), but this stuff changed my mind.  And bonus, it's calorie free and packed with vitamins c, b, a, and e.  The orange flavor tastes authentic, it's a good alternative to soda and other void-of-any-real-nutrients flavored waters, and if you're lucky, you can score the bottles for just $1-a-pop at the grocery.  Frugal and fantastic.

{tastes like a million bucks}

4) Dried Cherries

My mama turned me on to craisins a couple years back, and they're awesome on salads, in muffins, etc.  But then I found the Mecca of all dried fruit: CHERRIES.  Sure, they're super expensive (my typical brand is $5 for five ounces, which translates to ~3.5 servings), but they're also somehow tart and sweet and superrrr addictive.  When I bought my first bag a few months ago, I finished it off in less than a day.  Roomies and I used them for the brie en croute cherry sauce during our dinner party last month.  Truth be told, I'm eating some right now.  I tell you, they're ubiquitous.

{sweet as candy}

 5) Girl Scout Cookies

Need I say more?  When toothy Victoria visited our office last month with her order form and her adorable smile, I couldn't help myself.  Most of my coworkers chipped in for a few boxes.  Most of those people also have families to share their heart attacks cookies with.  I bought five boxes.  I don't have a family.  I just have two roomies with more self control than I have.  Got the cookies a week ago today, and since then, I've eaten 39 tagalongs.  What can I say, chocolate and peanut butter are my weaknesses.  Put them together and I'm done.  Thank goodness those girl scouts only come a knockin' once a year.

{all that's left one week later}

So that's what I'm digging these days.  Thoughts?  Suggestions?  Want a tagalong?

{dinner party? what are we, adults?}

Happiness challenge #2 (we did them out of order, sorry kids) came from a female co-worker and in the form of a dinner party.  Considering that I started this blog to write about new recipes I was trying in 2011, I'm not going to complain even a little bit that the first three challenge cards we picked were all related to food in some way (or in every way, for that matter).  The level of deviation from my original plan is minimized this way.  Shout out to all of you who haven't yet given us back your cards -- make 'em about food, please!  Also, get them in, the year is flying by!  But back to the matter at hand...

Step one: choose people.

Step two: choose food.

Admittedly, we probably should have done those two items in the reverse order, but the first step was way easier to complete, and we're "path of least resistance" girls, generally speaking.  The original idea was for each of us to invite one person (for a total of six eaters), but whaddya know, we ended up with nine.  Once we sent out the formal invites (read: BBMed and texted our way to a semi-confirmed guest list), it was time to hit up Whole Foods.

Our plan was to ask the experts at the seafood counter what they recommended, both fish and recipe wise.  The reality?  We just held up the line while staring blankly at several men in rubber gloves.  We ended up with two pounds of cod, which we figured was a whitefish that is hard to screw up, and whioh our friends and relatives found it to be good fodder for mockery.  "Who the heck gets cod?" was a common utterance from said loved ones.  WE DO, darnit.

After the fish incident, we stopped asking people for approval and just whipped out our plastic left and right and shopped til we dropped.  Well, dropped a lotta money anyways.  Three girls, three days, three stores (Whole Foods, Balducci's, and Harris Teeter), and waaaaaay more than $25 a piece later, we had a whole lotta food and a whole lotta work in front of us.

Final Menu:

Appetizers:
-Brie En Croute with Cherry Sauce 
-Spinach and Artichoke Dip with various dippers (heck yes for the Pepperidge Farm Entertaining Quartet!)

Main Course Meats:
-Backyard Bourbon-Marinated Flank Steak
-Tequila Lime-Marinated Cod

Sides:
-Grilled Asparagus
-Steamed Haricots Verts
-Ina Garten's Rosemary Roasted Potatoes (I love her like a fat kid loves cake)

Dessert:
-Paula Deen's Double Chocolate Gooey Butter Cake (This is why the above kid who loves cake is fat)


We cooked this monstrous menu on a typical Tuesday night.  I raced out of work (definitely a minute or two early, but I just couldn't contain my excitement) and began making the above cake heart attack at approximately 6:02 p.m.  While I did this, teacher roomie made an excel spreadsheet of all our dishes, including prep and cooking times, and taking into account oven temperature and cooling period requirements.  I make no apologies for our nerdiness here, this is where we went to school together, after all.

Despite teacher roomie's laudable attempt to keep us organized and our pulses from reaching "target heart rate" status, chaos ensued and we all almost lost our minds (and at one point, the entire uncooked cake).  Taking into account the novice-level culinary skills we possess, as well as the cramped kitchen we were working in, I think the dinner was a wild victory for us.  Not so sure Gail from Top Chef would agree, but our friends did (or at least they're good liars).  And I don't like Gail anyways.

Pictures of Note:

{coulda eaten only this and been happy}

{always a crowd pleaser}

{you say potato, i say YUM}

{two veggies? mom would be so proud!}

{perfectly pink}

Events/Things of Note:

1) Paula's cake begins with a chocolate cake mix.  Oh, and a stick of butter and an egg.  Also an entire box of powdered sugar, a whole package of cream cheese, another two eggs, and another stick of butter.  I couldn't even believe the recipe as I was following it, although I also couldn't believe how incredible good all that fat/sugar/cellulite tasted, so I guess I'll promise myself only to make it for very special people and very infrequently in the future.

2) Roomie #3 (I need an awesome nickname for her) remained in her work wear during the entire cooking process.  Maybe "work wear" is a good alias for now.  I, on the other hand, took a page out of Pebbles Flinstone's book and put my hair up like this (sans the bone):

{where's bam bam?}

 Also, I changed out of my chef's attire of choice (flour-covered yoga pants and an old sorority tee) just seconds before my invitee arrived.  We were quite the pair zooming around the kitchen. Our antics/outfits made things just a tad bit funnier for our guests.  It was like dinner and a show.

3) After all the cod mockery, it was a hit (and the favorite dish of several dinner guests).  Ha! Take that, haters!

4) There is such a thing as too much spinach and artichoke dip.  I ate it for lunch yesterday.  The original dinner party?  Nine days ago.  Thank goodness for modern refrigeration. 

5) On the contrary, you can never have enough wine. Ever.

{new fare, new fun}

Last night (yep folks, I mean on Valentine's Day), my roomies and I went on a triple date.  No boys allowed.  Just the three of us, Korean food, and a whole lotta floundering.

Throughout the course of the evening, I tried no fewer than 10 new dishes, took no fewer than 25 pictures (do you think my camera flash ruined the romantic atmosphere for the patrons around us?), and accidentally snorted from such intense laughter that those same patrons turned and stared no fewer than five times.  But more on that later.

I can honestly say it was one of the best V-days I've had in years.  Props to teacher roomie's half-Korean co-worker for providing us with happiness challenge #3.  We arrived feeling immensely challenged, and went home feeling happier than ever. Yo go, girl.

As soon as we pulled the card this weekend, we promptly realized that with our powers combined, we had exactly zero knowledge of local Korean restaurants.  Maybe less than zero.  Well, a few hours and an iPad later, we had yelp-ed our way to a location and a last-minute 7:00 reservation on the 14th.  Guess Korean isn't a popular genre on the most romantic of all days?  No worries, that fact worked in our favor (meaning there were fewer people there to witness our utter bewilderment with every aspect of the meal).

We showed up, we sat, we ordered wine (hey, we could do that successfully on the moon).  Then it came to food.  In the words of Scooby Doo, "Ruh-roh."  Thankfully, half-Korean co-worker didn't leave us totally out to dry - she provided us with several suggestions of what to order.  So what did we do?  Ordered exactly those dishes without giving it a second thought and without really reading the menu.  I did, however, take a picture of it (shocker, I know):

{only needed the wine list}

We were first presented with pretty simple salads (think iceberg lettuce, shaved carrots, a few rings of onion, and a ginger dressing reminiscent of type you'd get in any good sushi restaurant).  It was delish.  And bonus, it didn't raise my blood pressure.  Granted, watching roomie #2 eat with (and I use that term very loosely) chopsticks was beyond funny.  I reminded her at one point that, generally speaking, you hold the pair in the same hand, not one in each.  I'm practically giggling right now just thinking about it.

{salad, wine, and mystery sauce}

Now is about when things started to get really Korean (aka unfamiliar and awkward for us). Our waitress brought out bowl after bowl of nuts, beans, vegetables, etc. until the whole table was covered.  Each time she plopped something new in front of us, I peered across the table at my friends, hoping for a glimmer of recognition from one of them.  No dice.  Other than kimchi, we couldn't identify a single thing.  And wouldn't you know, we were 0 for 3 on liking that.  So began the "you try that one and I'll try this one...okay...ready...go" game, until at least one of us had tried everything (kimchi excluded).  During this time, teacher roomie took several covert cell phone pics, sent them to half-Korean co-worker, and provided us with some second-hand text message knowledge of what we'd just eaten.  For the most part, things were tasty (or at the very least edible by my uber-picky-eater standards).  Check out our table with all the goods:

Next up: main dish(es).  As I mentioned, we didn't veer very far (okay, at all) from half-Korean co-worker's suggestions.  Three girls, three dishes, one great gamble.

First dish: Chap Chae (meaning vermicelli noodles stir fried with beef and vegetables in special seasoned sauce).  Verdict: amazing.  Not too spicy, not too sweet, but just right.  The noodles gave chopstick-challenged roomie a little trouble, but in the end, we all got our fill, literally, and were more than happy with the schmorgasboard of veggies (carrots, onions, spinach, mushrooms) that is Chap Chae.

Dish #2: Dolsot Bibim Bap (meaning grilled and marinated beef and vegetables topped with a fried egg and spicy bean paste). Verdict: also scrumptious, although for me, not as good as the Chap Chae.  I have to admit, my stomach churned a little when I saw our waitress pop the fried egg over the whole bowl.  In 24 years, I've only ever eaten eggs hard-boiled or scrambled, and I'm not sure I ever mentally got over the yellow gooey yolk explosion.  However, all in all, I did somewhat savor the "mixed meal," which is precisely what bibim bap means in Korean (according to my good friend Wikipedia).  Sidenote: I think I said "bibim bap?!" two hundred times throughout the two hours, each time in an increasingly higher-pitched voice.  What a fun word to say.

{dolsot bibim bap, pre egg explosion}

Final dish: Bul Gogi (meaning thin slices of tender beef).  Both teacher roomie and I had eaten some form of this before and loved it, so we made an executive decision to save it for the end of the meal and pig out in case we didn't like anything else.  Is it just me, or does watching food cook in front of you make it taste that much fresher and more delicious?  I'm fairly certain I drooled at one point.  As one Rachael Ray has said a time or two (or ten thousand), "Yum-o!"

{open flame}

{bul gogi}

The final course was smooth sailing for us.  We were in our groove and were feeling good.  But hold the phone.  After we had plucked every last shred of Bul Gogi off the grill (we abandoned our chopsticks at one point and just went at it with our hands), our waitress presented us with one bowl each of a light yellow liquid.  So you have the visual:

{to drink or not to drink?}

				Teacher roomie immediately poises herself to daintily dip her fingers in the bowl (as if she was getting a manicure).  Considering we had just forsaken our forks, she figured this was like a palate cleanser, except made of soap and for your hands.  As this finger-dipping was occurring on one side of the table, I proceeded to cup the bowl in both hands and prepare to drink the contents.  Only when the liquid was about to hit my lips did teacher roomie and I lock eyes.  It took about .2 seconds to realize one of us was about to make the error of a lifetime.  Cue an eruption of laugher from all three of us.  Yep, this is when I snorted.  Several times.  We sat there for a few minutes (which felt like an eternity), paralyzed in fear and totally unsure of what to do.  Wide-eyed, we looked around, desperate for help from other patrons, but no one else had made it past main course, and our waitress/only beacon of hope in the situation was nowhere to be seen.  Crap. In the end, we pulled ourselves together, stopped the snorting, and summoned the courage (thanks roomie #2!) to ask the waitress what exactly we were supposed to do with our bowls of bubbles.  She mocked us with her eyes a little bit, but then politely let us know we had sweet water in front of us and not Palmolive.  Phew.  Crisis averted.  We resumed eating, drinking, and being merry. {my valentines} We had a great night.  Lots of laughs, and lots of love.  Thank you again to half-Korean co-worker for the excellent idea.  Here's to hoping our other challenges this year are as much fun as your was.  I'm thinking they might be.  And hey, I'll drink to that. {cheers}