Juno Beach Evening

A few photo's from last week's Florida vacation. We celebrated my dad's 55th birthday with dinner and the beach.

stroll along juno beach

enjoying the evening beach breeze

charlie loves the beach

 

my awesome parents

Deidra & Music 4 More Make the BBJ

Big congrats to one of the my best friends in the world, Deidra Stevens, who was profiled this week in the Baltimore Business Journal. For those of you unfamiliar with Deidra's non-profit, Music 4 More, I encourage you to check out this profile, visit the website, friend us on Facebook, and come out to the next event. I'm so excited that Dede is finally getting the recognition she deserves. I'm so proud to be on the Board of Directors and elated to see the spotlight on the charity.

Living Social FAIL

I'm a Groupon-fanatic but I just recently signed up for Living Social. Yesterday, I got this Shenandoah Valley "deal" in my email:

$329 for a 2-night (weekday only) stay in the Shenandoah Valley (plus $60 dinner credit and $15 in gift certificates) doesn't sound so bad. I decided to check it out since visiting Shenandoah and photographing Skyline Drive is one of my '30'. But when I clicked "Find Out More" and went to the website for the 'By the Side of the Road Inn' I discovered they offer "Hot Deals" including the EXACT SAME DEAL for $149/1 Weeknight or $248/2 Weeknights. 

The $248/2 Night stay through the Inn's website includes a $60 credit to the same restaurant as the Living Social Deal and includes a bottle of wine. It does not include the $15 in "extras" but last time I checked $15 does not equal $81.

Not impressed Living Social. Not impressed. Always do your research. The good news is I discovered a potentially way fun 2-day getaway, purchased directly through the Inn of course. Or I could suck it up and just go camping...

The State Debate

As you know (or not), 1 of my '30' is to visit 1 of the 10 states I haven't been to yet. Here's the "need" list:

1. Alaska
2. Arkansas
3. Hawaii
4. Iowa
5. Louisiana
6. Michigan
7. Mississippi
8. Oklahoma
9. Nebraska
10. North Dakota

Now the big question. Where should I go?  

I've already nixed Hawaii and Alaska off my mental list. They are the most economically impractical. Never say never, but I'll say unlikely.

Louisiana appears the most practical in terms of a) finances and b) fun. New Orleans is the only city on my "need" list (outside of Hawaii) that I really want to visit. It's a Southwest city and I think I have a free ticket. I LOVE SOUTHWEST. Have I mentioned that? Now, if I want be really efficient I could go to the Syracuse-Tulane football game on October 8th. That would also cross the Syracuse Football Game off my '30'. I know Tulane football isn't a sexy choice but sometimes one must choose function over fashion, right?

Know what's really ideal? Caps vs Red Wings in the Stanley Cup Finals. That's what I call a great reason to visit Michigan, but I'm not holding my breathe. Another option is to visit Chicago (one of my favorite cities) and just drive to Michigan for the heck of it. You know, take a picture at the "Welcome to Michigan" sign for this blog and then turn around. Not that I have anything against the state that produced Silent Bob...

Kinda bummed that, aside from the Tulane game, the Orange and Ravens did not give me any options to cover both a "need" state and a game. The Ravens' 2011 regular season road games are all in "been to" states and Tulane is the only school that the Orange play in a "need" state. Even the Terps failed to give me any options.

Might as well nix North Dakota, Nebraska, Iowa and Mississippi right now. I have zero desire to plan a special trip to any of the above. My dad thinks it's possible we drove through Nebraska once, but since he really can't remember (and he remembers almost everything) it's probably safe to assume it's still needed. My best friend went to grad school at Iowa. I kept wanting to visit (mostly to see her, but also to cross Iowa off the list), but she really really disliked it there and didn't want to subject me to the area. Now the only reason to go is Dyersville, but not sure that's worth a special trip (don't tell Ray).

Probably safe to nix Arkansas too. I actually do want to visit the Clinton Presidential Library but it's not a top priority. Louisiana and Michigan are higher on the list.

The only reason I haven't nixed Oklahoma is because I'm into any state with endless stetsons and cowboy boots. I'd love to catch an Oklahoma high school football game. I wish I actually knew someone who lived in Oklahoma.

In all likelihood, here's what's going to happen. One of these days a $39 Ding fare will pop up (to Little Rock, Oklahoma City, Tulsa, Detroit, Omaha, Jackson or New Orleans) and I'll book a last minute 1-nighter. That being said, if you have any reasons for me to visit one of the 10... Holla!!!  I'm very open to friend and reader recommendations and suggestions.

Twilight Revisited: Fresh Outlook, Stale Taste

I watched Twilight again. Took 2 attempts to make it through the full film (fell asleep the first try). I thought maybe I'd enjoy it more now that I've read the book. Wrong. Movie was actually even worse that I remember. My point? None other than criticism of poor adaptation. Let's just say you won't see any 'Team Edward' or 'Team Jacob' stickers on my bumper anytime soon. Tis all for now.

Winner Winner Turkey Dinner!

I cooked my first turkey!!! It was relatively painless, minus the mid-dinner bloody nose/busted lip (which had nothing to do with cooking, I'll explain later). Since it was just 3 of us (plus the dog) for dinner my mother bought a little guy (11.5 lbs). I wanted to try a turkey injection. My mom had never done an injection before so we experimented. I selected an uber-low-calorie Goya Mojo Criolle marinade. I love love love Goya products. It was not coarse so I figured it wouldn't get stuck in the injector. The injector was conveniently on clearance at Target for $.98. Bonus! I used one side of the kitchen sink as a turkey wash. Got a little grossed out with all the raw mess. I was pleased though that the gizzards were all wrapped up (I assumed they were just loose in there) though I definitely gagged when I pulled out the turkey neck. The worst part was cleaning out of the inside. My mom suggested I run my fingers through the ribs to get out all the gunk. I tried to get moms to do this, but she gave me the "no way" look and I just went for it. For the injection, I used about 1/2 cup of the Goya marinade. I made 2 injections in each breast and 1 in each thigh. Also poured some extra inside and on top. I think ideally you'd let the marinade sit, but not this time around. Used a little butter and lots of Goya Adobo seasoning (my idea) and paprika (mom's usual) on top. Even though my health-nutty family usually doesn't do stuffing, I really wanted to stuff the turkey so I did that (just easy Stovetop). 
I put the turkey in an oven bag in a pan (my mom makes it in the oven bag because it's "less messy"). Stuck it in the 350 degrees oven. According to Reynolds the turkey is supposed to reach 180 degrees which should take about 2 1/2-3 hrs for 12-16 lb. I figured 2 1/2 hours for this one. The turkey didn't have one of those pop out things on it so I used a temperature fork that I bought my dad for father's day circa 1995. Apparently it hasn't been used since 1995 because the batteries were totally corroded. Fresh batteries solved that problem. I basted the turkey twice during cooking. At 2 1/2 hrs I put in the temp gauge and it said 160 so I let it go longer. Well, after 20 more minutes it was 189. Not sure if I read the thermometer wrong the first time or if it just got really hot really quick but I def dried it out a little.

My First Turkey

It was still tasty. I could definitely taste the injection. Stuffing was good too. Add in some sauteed spinach, mushrooms and garlic and it's a complete meal. Another '30' checked off! And now I won't be so scared when it's my turn to host Thanksgiving dinner. 

So where does the bloody nose come in? Between my parents' patio (where we were eating) and the house there is a wall of huge sliding glass doors that slide to open the whole wall. The sliders are usually open when we're home. I went to walk inside to get ketchup and I think I was distracted by the Caps-Lightning game on the TV because next thing you know BOOM. Glass is vibrating in my face and there's blood gushing out of my nose. I was in a total daze for a couple minutes with blood dripping down by face and hands. My mom said she initially thought I fell into the glass and hit my head. The first thing I asked in my daze was whether I had broken my nose. I poked around the outside of my nose and there was no pain, just soreness, thankfully. An hour of ice and my nose doesn't look nearly as bad as it initially sounded. My dad said the blood down the glass looked like a crime scene. Awesome. It's been over 48 hours since the "incident" and aside from a little sensitivity on my nose there's no obvious signs of having walked smack into glass. And I didn't break the glass. So there you go. Turkey dinner = pass. My attempt to be less of a klutz = fail. Thankfully the latter is not one of my '30'.

Twilight Conquered

After 6 long weeks I've finished Twilight. I could actually write a quality dissertation on the relationship between Bella and Edward, but alas this is a blog, not an educational adventure, so I'll keep it brief. The good news is that the book was enjoyable and, unlike the film, I didn't fall asleep every time I went to read it. In fact I'm planning to watch the film again now that I've read the book. It was a good read especially considering my usual distaste for fantasy. I enjoyed the attention to detail in the storylines/history (conversion to Vampire, sixth senses) of each of the Cullens. There were a few things in the book that I didn't like. I felt some parts were really rushed, while others were given extensive detail. Also, I have trouble believing that Bella, even experiencing true love for the first time, would become such a different person. She makes reference to the fact that she doesn't even recognize her 'new self' which eases me, knowing it was in the plans. I also have trouble with Bella going along with everything Edward says/does. I understand it in terms of her infatuation and love, but she is so so quick to be ok with his lifestyle and the concept of vampires. Based on her early actions I would have bargained that she'd have more trouble coming to terms with (and believing) that the Cullens are this fantastical coven. I'm surprised she doesn't make more references to going a bit crazy. You're probably thinking, Manda, this is just a book. Yes, I understand, but it's a book with which people are absolutely obsessed. I kinda get it, and have to look past my disinterest in fantasy, I'm much more of a realist, but for what it's worth I'm glad I read it. I'm almost mad at the filmmakers who ruined the whole series for me ahead of time. Perhaps when I watch the film again, now that I've read the book, I won't find it so inconsequential. As far as reading the other three, it's not in the immediate plans, but never say never. Another '30' down.