The Weekend

Well, this little recap is overdue, but forgive me for being a bit behind after having witnessed in person the sad, second loss in a row by my beloved Pittsburgh Steelers. Despite the loss, attending the game was really one of the best experiences I've ever had! And it was fun being there with my Dad and siblings, despite the fact that my brother wore a repulsive Bengals' shirt. There is nothing like watching a game that close-so exciting! Now I just need to experience a game in Heinz field and I'll be all set!

Anywho-here are some photos of all the fun. I took a ton, but these were the only ones I could upload in time before work!

Yum. I love stadium hot dogs. Check out those fantastic earrings (thanks Dad!)! That little Bengals' truck was cute. I liked the cute Tiger mascot, too when he came out to dance with the Ben-gals. However, that song you all play when the Bengals score a touchdown? Lame. Really lame.
Obligatory picture in front of the stadium. That shirt is BAD luck. Back to 2005 tacky AFC Champs shirt next weekend.
Ahhh Princess Fiona and her subject Dingo finally get along! Thanks to the Dog Whisperer aka Steve.
Dingo needs to learn how to beg for treats like Fi. She is a pro.

Here we go!

The day after tomorrow I'll be in Paul Brown Stadium cheering for the greatest team in the land! I cannot wait. It's my first ever regular season NFL game and the first time ever seeing the Steelers in person.

I'll be the girl with the Terrible Towel earrings. Look for me on SportsCenter.

Note to Self

Dear Self,

Do not give Fi a large, meaty knee bone to chew on right before bed. Otherwise, you'll end up waking up at midnight, 1:30AM, and 3:30AM to clean up dog throw up off the carpet.

Love,
Liz

P.S. Bright side-I will be at the Steelers' game, in person, in T-4 days!! Yesssssssssssss!!!!!

Brr.

I am always cold in my office. Do you think if I ordered this in black, I could wear it at my desk?

7 going on 17

On Thursday my nephew, Logan, will be 7 years old. He plays in a wee football league (seriously, they are called the Wee Elks) and Saturday I went to watch a game for the first time. He plays in the age group for 1st and 2nd graders, and this is his second year.And they do not mess around. Wow! They have to know plays and they tackle and it's fun to watch. They even have cheerleaders and announcers! It was fantastic and his team trounced the Eager Beavers (I kid you not, I did not make up that mascot name).

My brother is a coach and I couldn't believe how the parents swarmed him after the game. I can only imagine the kind of crap a high school coach has to deal with and these kids are 6 and 7.  

Doesn't it look fun? Logan is number 33.

A beer at 18.

I just read an interesting commentary about lowering the drinking age from 21 years of age to 18. You can read it at CNN here.

I've never understood why 21 is the magical number. 18 makes much more sense, particularly in light of the fact that we allow men and women to be in the front lines of battle at 18, and perhaps even scarier, allow men and women to marry (he he) at that young age. Interestingly, a state could lower the drinking age on its own-but, the federal government will take away 10% of its highway funds if the state so chooses-so obviously no state will until that Act is repealed.

Obviously the consequences of drunk driving (the original impetus for raising the drinking age) are horrific. But those consequences are horrific no matter the age of the offendor. And I do believe that today we (and college students) are much more aware of the dangers of drunk driving than people were a quarter century ago.

Would binge drinking at colleges decrease by lowering the legal drinking age as the author seems to suggest? I'm not sure, but I think lowering the drinking age is definitely something to consider in order to completely overhaul the attitude most young Americans have about drinking. Other countries (where the drinking age is significantly lower) don't have nearly the issues with binge drinking-and the consequences from it-that we do in America.

Nobody puts Baby in the corner.

Patrick Swayze died today.  He was one of my first movie star crushes, in both Ghost and of course, Dirty Dancing. I am pretty sure I can recite every line in that movie (for better or for worse!) and when my niece and nephew spend the night they always want to watch it before they go to bed. Yes, I know, I am a fabulous aunt, always making sure the content is appropriate for their ages.  Until very recently we'd watch it on VHS! 

In honor of Patrick Swayze, here is my favorite clip from the movie (it was so hard to pick-I also love when he teaches her to dance by walking on that huge tree!)... where they so smoothly mesh 1980s music with the 1960s setting. Fantastic.

Yay technology.

Edited to add: And I just found out Patrick Swayze died today via facebook. 

Steve and I were eating a delicious dinner out on the water at the Outer Banks when I learned that Michael Jackson had died. How did I learn this? Oh, Facebook status updates sent directly to my telephone, of course.

The same thing happened last night with all the Kanye/Taylor Swift drama. 90% of people's status updates mentioned something about Kanye being a giant tool, so instead of looking it up say on CNN, I proceeded to read enough comments until I had figured out exactly what happened. And then this morning, again avoiding "real" news reporting, I did a little searching on YouTube until I could see for myself what happened.

Yay, technology. I may have to sift through updates about what someone's child ate for dinner or how someone gets no sleep or how another person has the sweetest hubby (barf- I hate that word)...eventually I'll also find out some current events. Fantastic.

Totally unrelated-but, is anyone else excited to read Ted Kennedy's memoir which comes out today? I'm ordering it now!

And so it begins

Well, I began my day witnessing the man in front of me in the parking garage stairwell "lose his lunch" or maybe breakfast, as it were. Sick. Sick. Sick. I'm pretty sure he was as mortified as I was disgusted.


BUT-the day can only get better from here...the Steelers are on tonight! Yes. And it also begins my first attempt playing fantasy football with a league at work-should be interesting. Luckily, Steve gave me some good tips on the draft and I should have an o-k team. We'll see.


In light of all the football festivities, I thought I'd share a delicious "game day" recipe. Who doesn't love a pulled pork sandwich?


Slow Cooker Pulled Pork Sandwiches

Ingredients

3.5-4 pound pork shoulder roast, boneless is preferred (though I can never find boneless at my ghetto Kroger and just use bone-in. The bones are super easy to remove after cooking)
Vegetable oil
1 can Condensed French Onion Soup
1 Cup ketchup
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
3 tablespoons firmly packed brown sugar
Sandwich rolls

Directions
Heat oil in skillet (about 1 tablespoon) over medium-high heat. Once hot, add pork and sear each side (this means all four sides) until well browned on each side.

Stir soup, ketchup, vinegar and brown sugar in crock pot. Add pork and turn once or twice to full coat the meat. Cover and cook on Low Heat for 8-10 hours or on high heat for 4-5 (I really think it's better to cook longer, meat is easier to shred.)

Remove pork from crock pot and let stand on cutting board for about 10 minutes (otherwise you will have a juicy mess everywhere). Using two forks, shred the pork meat and return it to the crock pot. Spoon the mixture onto rolls and, if desired, top with a little bbq sauce.

Yummy.

Dingo!

I went up to Toledo on Saturday for my mom's birthday. I also got to spend some quality time with their new puppy, Dingo! He is adorable and playful. I looove puppies.

Running Faves

This weekend I have a 9-mile training run scheduled. I am training for the Columbus Half Marathon on October 18. In light of that, and the upcoming Race for the Cure on September 12 (anybody else running that?), I thought I'd share some of my favorite running "necessities".

1. Good Shoes. Obviously, you need good shoes to run comfortably. I bought some mediocre shoes this past spring and am feeling the effects of them now. Well-fitting shoes does not mean they need to cost you $100. My best tip would be to go to a local running store, like Bob Roncker's Running Spot or Fleet Feet and have someone there measure your foot and analyze your stride. Knowing what type of foot you have (i.e. do you pronote, supinate, have high arches or flat feet) makes a tremendous difference in your comfort level when you run. Once you've found a few recommended shoes there, head over to Roadrunner Sports online and see if you can find the shoe on sale and/or on clearance. Often, a different colored-model will be on sale. Nine times out of ten, I purchase my running shoes online, mostly because most running stores carry very few models in my size and I usually get a better price. But, fit is sooo important-so make sure you know what kind of foot you have before purchasing online.

Me, I pronate slightly and have a very high arch, so I look for a shoe with medium stability, cushion and decent arch support. I tend to find the best luck with Ascics. Remember-comfort over color! Style should not matter when picking out shoes!

2. Attire. I used to wear whatever when I was younger. Old t-shirts, grubby shorts, it didn't really matter to me. However, towards the end of high school and into college I started appreciating having "running clothes" distinct from my cotton t-shirt collection. This is definitely a place where you don't have to spend much money. Target's C9 brand has an excellent selection of running shirts, tank tops, shorts and pants. The material is what is most important here. If you're running 9 miles and you have a shirt that rubs your arm funny, you can bet that 9 miles will be highly uncomfortable! I'll never forget running the NYC marathon in a cotton t-shirt and ending up with chafing marks completely around my arm and neck. It was AWFUL, and a mistake I will never make again. Dryfit 4 Life!

The second thing that is important about attire other than comfortable runs, is that you look cute! How much more motivated will you be with a cute matching outfit waiting for you in your drawer when you're trying to get out of bed at 5:30AM to run? It might sound silly, but it gets me going. And, if you're so inclined, try out the running skirt. Very cute-but I haven't been swayed from shorts yet.

3. Music. Of course, this is entirely optional. I didn't start running with an iPod until I was well into law school. My first year of college I would run on the treadmill some days with a tape player walkman. The only tape I had was Best of Bruce Springsteen-it got really worn out. Some days I really like to run without distraction, just enjoying the sunrise and my thoughts. Other days, music is essential to me finishing my mileage. My favorite is my little iPod Nano. Small enough that I don't notice it while running, but large enough memory to hold lots of songs so I can create several playlists. For my OBX marathon, I had hours and hours of playlists set up and it was soooo helpful!

How to wear the iPod while running? Well, I see lots of people who do the armband thing-but for me, I prefer the clip that attaches to the waistband of my running shorts. The arm thing either feels too tight (a la blood pressure machine at KMart) or too loose and it's falling down my arm. The clip is perfect.

And, if you're like me and you threw away those silly ear buds you got with your iPod because they are worthless, let me recommend these headphones (now on sale at Amazon.com for 19.99):

They are awesome. Behind the head works best for me. Great sound and they do not jiggle while running or pop out like those stupid ear buds. Seriously, those things SUCK for working out. I am always in shock when I see someone using them.

4. Socks. I think it's imperative to invest in some good quality athletic socks. And you don't have to invest much-just head over to TJMaxx where they always have a wall full of athletic socks at least half off regular price. I prefer the type that are thin on top and cushion-y on the bottom. I like mine to be as low as possible. And if you're really looking to be fancy, get some with the CoolMax in them to prevent super stinky, sweaty feet after a run. I'm serious that my shoes don't smell like some athletic shoes do, and I attribute it to my CoolMax socks!

Who said your socks have to be white? These pink ones are adorable!

**Of course, the best thing about running is you hardly need anything to run! A pair of shoes, some old clothes and you're off-exploring your town or a city where you are vacationing. I absolutely love running. If you're looking to start a running program or just starting to get into running, I'd recommend Hal Higdon's website (for training schedules) or the Couch Potato to 5K website. Both offer great tips about running and I think most people who commit to starting a program and complete a race get hooked!

Shocking!

Imagine my surprise when I spotted my fall J.Crew catalog in my mail basket (yes, I do not have a mailbox) and observed the cover page model sporting a denim shirt! I have not seen a denim shirt in a clothing store for women since, oh say, 1990? They might call it chambray, but it looks like a jean shirt to me.

And on the cover, the model was wearing it over a white turtleneck. Yikes. This reminds me of my sister's 4th grade school photo in which she wore a jean shirt, white turtleneck and the biggest earrings ever! This was right around the time that my school photos all had laser beams in the background. Remember?

J.Crew-I adore your clothes, but please, pretty please, don't bring back the jean shirt. It should remain in the 80s.

Get used to a chill in the air.

If you're like me, you've been loving this weather the past few days-chilly at night, but warm (and not humid!) during the day. Perfect for sleeping, perfect for running, perfect in general! It gets me all excited for fall.

Until I remember that after fall comes winter. Ugh. And, I heard on the radio this morning that the Farmer's Almanac is using the words "ice cold" to describe the Midwest's winter this year. We should expect "numbing" temperatures and lots of snow. Grrrrrrreat.

Why can't it perpetually stay fall?

Cheerful flowers.

I adore sunflowers. I've loved them since I was a little girl. My favorite shirt forever was this shirt with a huge, glittery sunflower on it. Behind gerber daisies, they are my favorite. There's just something cheerful about them. Roses are lovely-of course-but there's nothing like a bright, colorful sunflower or gerber daisy. There is just no comparison.

Anyway, I have these two empty plant stands on my deck and I planned to put two small potted mums there for the fall. BUT, yesterday, at Kroger they had these beautiful (too big for the plant stands!) potted sunflowers for $8.99. I resisted, but now I think I should've bought them.

What do you think? Is it ghetto to buy flowers at Kroger? And is it silly to spend $8.99 (which I know isn't much) for a pot of sunflowers that likely will die once the first frost hits?

Maybe I should just carry the sunflowers into work. Instant cheerful office...hmm.

Random Pictures of the week

I'm really trying hard to take more pictures! Here are some from this week.

Jabs and I were lucky enough to be invited to watch the pre-season Bengals' game last night in a suite no less! This was my first NFL experience, and I must say, this is the way to watch a game. I'll take a glass of Merlot over a warm Miller Lite anyday while watching football! Not to mention the Donatos set up at half time. Yum.

Here is pie #1. I am entering a pie contest (veeerrrry low level!) on September 26 and was working on my recipe. Don't judge my lattice work-I didn't have my pretty pastry cutter yet, and I didn't roll out the dough thin enough. The verdict on this one was that it was a bit too lemon-y. Suggestions noted! (Do you love my ghetto cooling rack? Yes, that is a muffin tin.)

Here is Steve with his true love. Notice how she is "sitting". She loves this position-weirdo!

Pie #2. The good old crumb topping. Delicious, but to me, maybe a bit sweet? This was the taster's choice; however. Don't judge the low crust-obviously I'd make it prettier for the judges! This was for taste only!! By the way, handmade crust is the way to go. It's not as hard as you think. The key-coooold water and coooold butter.

I couldn't leave this one out. I'm glad she's getting groomed this weekend-way too scruffy!

The twitch.

I have had an eye twitch for 9 hours straight now. Yep, since I woke up. It makes writing this motion I'm working on awfully tough. I keep squinting, but it doesn't get any better. I'm using it as my excuse to periodically (read: continually) peruse the onslaught of Kennedy-family pictures covering the internet. I seriously love looking at them and can't stop!

Completely unrelated, tonight I will have my first real sushi experience. I'm going more for the company than for the food. I've had one bite of sushi and was very less than thrilled. I just don't understand why you'd want all your meal rolled into one item? I like to savor my food, not eat it in 6 bites! I've been advised to stay away from the eel. The fact that it's even on the menu kind of grosses me out-and I love seafood!

Oh well. The restaurant has a great wine list, so if all else fails, I'll enjoy that!

Wish me luck.

Yikes.

Stop texting and driving. This video freaked me out.

2 years.

From this:

To this:

Ok, hmm, we look pretty much the same.

Happy Anniversary, Steve!

Lazy Blog Day

I received the following in an e-mail today from a friend and thought it was pretty funny. I've bolded and added my personal comments to the ones I found to be particularly true! Yes, I am a lazy blogger.

Random thoughts from people 25-35 years old..
-I wish Google Maps had an "Avoid Ghetto" routing option.

-More often than not, when someone is telling me a story all I can think about is that I can't wait for them to finish so that I can tell my own story that's not only better, but also more directly involves me.

-Nothing sucks more than that moment during an argument when you realize you're wrong.

-I don't understand the purpose of the line, "I don't need to drink to have fun." Great, no one does. But why start a fire with flint and sticks when they've invented the lighter?

-Have you ever been walking down the street and realized that you're going in the complete opposite direction of where you are supposed to be going? But instead of just turning a 180 and walking back in the direction from which you came, you have to first do something like check your watch or phone or make a grand arm gesture and mutter to yourself to ensure that no one in the surrounding area thinks you're crazy by randomly switching directions on the sidewalk.

-That's enough, Nickelback.

-I totally take back all those times I didn't want to nap when I was younger. AMEN!

-Is it just me, or are 80% of the people in the "people you may know"feature on Facebook people that I do know, but I deliberately choose not to be friends with?

-Do you remember when you were a kid, playing Nintendo and it wouldn't work? You take the cartridge out, blow in it and that would magically fix the problem. Every kid in America did that, but how did we allknow how to fix the problem? There was no Internet or message boards or FAQ's. We just figured it out. Today's kids are soft.

-There is a great need for sarcasm font.

-Sometimes, I'll watch a movie that I watched when I was younger and suddenly realize I had no idea what the f was going on when I first saw it. Um, Dirty Dancing?? I had no idea there was an abortion in it until I was in college!

-I think everyone has a movie that they love so much, it actually becomes stressful to watch it with other people. I'll end up wasting90 minutes shiftily glancing around to confirm that everyone's laughing at the right parts, then making sure I laugh just a little bit harder (and a millisecond earlier) to prove that I'm still the only one who really, really gets it.

-How the hell are you supposed to fold a fitted sheet?

-I would rather try to carry 10 plastic grocery bags in each hand than take 2 trips to bring my groceries in.

- I think part of a best friend's job should be to immediately clear your computer history if you die.

-The only time I look forward to a red light is when I’m trying to finish a text.

- A recent study has shown that playing beer pong contributes to the spread of mono and the flu. Yeah, if you suck at it.

- LOL has gone from meaning, "laugh out loud" to "I have nothing else to say".

- I have a hard time deciphering the fine line between boredom and hunger.

- Answering the same letter three times or more in a row on a Scantron test is absolutely petrifying.

- Whenever someone says "I'm not book smart, but I'm street smart",all I hear is "I'm not real smart, but I'm imaginary smart".

- How many times is it appropriate to say "What?" before you just nod and smile because you still didn't hear what they said?

- I love the sense of camaraderie when an entire line of cars teams up to prevent a dick from cutting in at the front. Stay strong, brothers!

- Every time I have to spell a word over the phone using 'as in' examples, I will undoubtedly draw a blank and sound like a complete idiot. Today I had to spell my boss's last name to an attorney and said "Yes that's G as in...(10 second lapse)..ummm...Goonies"

-What would happen if I hired two private investigators to follow each other?

- While driving yesterday I saw a banana peel in the road and instinctively swerved to avoid it...thanks Mario Kart.

- MapQuest really needs to start their directions on #5. Pretty sure I know how to get out of my neighborhood.

- Obituaries would be a lot more interesting if they told you how the person died.

- I find it hard to believe there are actually people who get in the shower first and THEN turn on the water.

-Shirts get dirty. Underwear gets dirty. Pants? Pants never get dirty,and you can wear them forever.

- I would like to officially coin the phrase 'catching the swine flu' to be used as a way to make fun of a friend for hooking up with an overweight woman. Example: "Dave caught the swine flu last night."

-I can't remember the last time I wasn't at least kind of tired.

- Bad decisions make good stories

-Whenever I'm Facebook stalking someone and I find out that their profile is public I feel like a kid on Christmas morning who just got the Red Ryder BB gun that I always wanted. 546 pictures? Don't mind if I do!

- Is it just me or do high school girls get sluttier & sluttier every year? Seriously!

-If Carmen San Diego and Waldo ever got together, their offspring would probably just be completely invisible.

-Why is it that during an ice-breaker, when the whole room has to go around and say their name and where they are from, I get so incredibly nervous? Like I know my name, I know where I'm from, this shouldn't be a problem....

-You never know when it will strike, but there comes a moment at work when you've made up your mind that you just aren't doing anything productive for the rest of the day.

-Can we all just agree to ignore whatever comes after DVDs? I don't want to have to restart my collection.

-There's no worse feeling than that millisecond you're sure you are going to die after leaning your chair back a little too far.

-I'm always slightly terrified when I exit out of Word and it asks me if I want to save any changes to my ten page research paper that I swear I did not make any changes to. This happens to me with my briefs all the time!

- "Do not machine wash or tumble dry" means I will never wash this ever.

-I hate being the one with the remote in a room full of people watching TV. There's so much pressure. 'I love this show, but will they judge me if I keep it on? I bet everyone is wishing we weren't watching this. It's only a matter of time before they all get up and leave the room. Will we still be friends after this?'

-I hate when I just miss a call by the last ring (Hello? Hello?Dammit!), but when I immediately call back, it rings nine times and goes to voicemail. What'd you do after I didn't answer? Drop the phone and run away?

- I hate leaving my house confident and looking good and then not seeing anyone of importance the entire day. What a waste.

-When I meet a new girl, I'm terrified of mentioning something she hasn't already told me but that I have learned from some light internet stalking.

-I like all of the music in my iTunes, except when it's on shuffle,then I like about one in every fifteen songs in my iTunes.

-Why is a school zone 20 mph? That seems like the optimal cruising speed for pedophiles...

- As a driver I hate pedestrians, and as a pedestrian I hate drivers,but no matter what the mode of transportation, I always hate cyclists.

-Sometimes I'll look down at my watch 3 consecutive times and still not know what time it is.

-It should probably be called Unplanned Parenthood.

-I keep some people's phone numbers in my phone just so I know not to answer when they call.

-Even if I knew your social security number, I wouldn't know what do to with it.

-Even under ideal conditions people have trouble locating their car keys in a pocket, hitting the G-spot, and Pinning the Tail on the Donkey - but I’d bet my ass everyone can find and push the Snooze button from 3 feet away, in about 1.7 seconds, eyes closed, first time every time...

-My 4-year old son asked me in the car the other day "Dad what would happen if you ran over a ninja?" How the hell do I respond to that?

-It really pisses me off when I want to read a story on CNN.com and the link takes me to a video instead of text.

-I wonder if cops ever get pissed off at the fact that everyone they drive behind obeys the speed limit.

-I think the freezer deserves a light as well.

-I disagree with Kay Jewelers. I would bet on any given Friday or Saturday night more kisses begin with Miller Lites than Kay.

-The other night I ordered takeout, and when I looked in the bag, saw they had included four sets of plastic silverware. In other words, someone at the restaurant packed my order, took a second to think about it, and then estimated that there must be at least four people eating to require such a large amount of food. Too bad I was eating by myself. There's nothing like being made to feel like a fat bastard before dinner.

Ok, so it's not Graeter's...

But, I made a delicious dessert last night that isn't so hard on the waistline like a delicious double scoop of Mint Chocolate Chip. And I bet you have all the ingredients in your kitchen right now!

I was watching an episode of Raechel Ray and was inspired by what she made, though I changed it a bit as she made it with different ingredients.

Ingredients
Bananas (however many you want! I made one per person)
Peanut butter
Honey
Cinnamon/Sugar (I used crystalized cinnamon/sugar mix I had on hand)
Optional toppings: crushed granola, drizzled melted chocolate, sprinkles, chopped peanuts

Directions
Cover serving plate with wax paper. Cut bananas into bite sized pieces. I cut one medium banana into 4 pieces. Stick tooth picks into center of banana. In a small bowl, place one cup of peanut butter and heat in the microwave for 30-60 seconds until it's warm and easy to stir. Add 2 tablespoons of honey and mix together until completely blended together. Dip banana bites into peanut butter and cover with a coating of the peanut butter/honey mixture. Place on wax paper and top with cinnamon/sugar (or whatever you choose to top with-I think it'd be delicious with some streaks of melted chocolate). Place in fridge for one hour to set. ENJOY!

Yummy...a healthier alternative to dessert if you're like me and feel like dinner isn't complete without something sweet!