This Little Piggy and the "M" Word

----WARNING: THIS BLOG CONTAINS A PHOTO WITH BLOOD------

Well, those who remember I blogged earlier this year about a series of challenges that I was going to be accomplishing. Welcome to Challenge #1 and how it went horribly wrong!! ;-) Challenge Duplicate Recipe: Chick-Fil-A Sandwich and Waffle Fries . Andy and I had gone out the night before to pick up all of the supplies. Once everything was assembled, it was time to get cooking! First thing was first...take the chicken breasts and make cutlets and then flatten them. Then, marinate them like Chick-Fil-A does...in pickle juice!! (PS...if you do this, don't leave them in longer than 20-30 minutes as the acid in the juice will begin to cook the chicken).

I then shifted to making the breading stations, with a pan for wet and a pan for dry ingredients. Delicious!!

After I began the waffle fries everything turned south. I assembled my mandolin (a very sharp kitchen device used for slicing). I was working and then...BAM!

I got about half way through the potato and I cut my pinkie finger. Well, not actually cut...

I basically cut a chunk out of the pad of my pinkie and after the initial shock...it hurt like a b*#$%. After searching for first aid items (and discovering that we really don't have any) and finding that we couldn't stop the bleeding, we got in the car and headed to the ER.

An hour later, we were out of the hospital with a bandaged finger (no stitches...since there wasn't anything to stitch together :-/) and in search of a First Aid Kit...and dinner.

I still got my chicken sandwich...though it wasn't from Chick-Fil-A like I promised. But, we will be trying this again...with a little extra attention paid to that damn mandolin!!

And Then There Were Sixteen...

At the end of Day 6 of the NCAA Tournament, we reached the Sweet 16. Oh yes, it's been a nail-biter of a tourney, that's for sure. Of course there have been the few blow outs, but most of the games are being decided in the final seconds with a difference of a few points! The upsets have been many and the tension high. Ah March Madness, how we love thee!


I readjusted the office brackets this morning and the teams just keep disappearing. We are down to the top 16 teams, out of the original 68. That seems so crazy that were are down so much in such a short time. It seems like yesterday when this all began and it was really almost a full week ago.


I'm still in second place but it will all come down to these last games. I did, unfortunately, lose a final four (damn you Florida State taking out Notre Dame!!) but the rest are still there, as are my final two! I tell you...just crazy!!!


Take a look...





More to come...the Elite Eight, Final Four and the NCAA Tournament Champions (plus the Office Champion...there's a Nerf Basketball Hoop on the line people!!)

Visiting with Friends

It's always wonderful when friends come to visit. This weekend was about Fomby! It was so amazing to get to hang out with her, get to tell her a little more about what I do, hear more about her and her husband, compare the similarities in our lives, etc.

When she got here, we got a great lunch and really got the chance to catch up. We then headed home so she could meet the roomie and we relaxed a bit more before heading back into downtown to see the show at work. She really enjoyed it!!

Once we got home, I set up her bed and we watched some Food Network (bad idea when we hadn't eaten dinner) and then went to sleep.

Today was an adventure as well. We began with breakfast with both my girls. Once Robyn headed into work, I introduced Fomby to the wonders of Eddie Izzard! Then it was all about the road-trip...

You all know that I'm not shy about taking a road trip to grab food. I do it when I head out to Massachusetts for Qdoba. That craving hits you and you just want to go. I'll even end up doing that with Andy for some Chick-fil-a. Can't help it. This trip was no different.

We headed down to Fairfield, CT to try Pinkberry, a tart frozen yogurt place and to take in the town. A little over an hour later, we were in southern CT standing in line to get the tasty treat!

The options at this place were numerous and looked fantastic. The flavors varied from original to chocolate, from pomegranate to mango, from coconut to lychee. And then the toppings...savory and sweet, chocolate and fruity. Yum!

I ended up with the original flavor with a bunch of fruit (blueberries, strawberries, kiwi and mango). Delicious!

We then headed out for a walk around the little main street area in search of warm drinks (enter Starbucks) and began our walk back, taking in some history along the way.

Of course Fomby ended up finding a handsome gentleman and hitting on him...though I did think he was a little stiff.

(ps...that's a bronze of Mark Twain reading Huck Finn)

Lastly, we headed into an awesome candy shop that I have to admit I walked out with two small bags of goodies!

It was so amazing to have Fomby with me, even for such a short amount of time. I've missed her! We had great conversations about out pasts and even our futures! Hopefully we can catch up again much sooner!

NCAA Bracket Update - Day 3

While I don't really consider Thursday, March 17 as Day 3 in the NCAA Tournament, it technically is due to the 60-68 teams fighting for the 60-64 slots (i.e. Win to Get In). But, I will say that it was Day 3...

Anyway...yesterday was INTENSE! Now that I have actually filled out a bracket, I'm intently watching the scores, hoping against all hope that the teams I picked move on.

The games were:

West Virginia vs Clemson - Clemson led early, but couldn't hold on

Princeton vs Kentucky - Kentucky lucked out with just a two point lead in the last seconds

Louisville vs Morehead State - Morehead State hits a three with seconds to go for 1 point lead

Butler vs Old Dominion - Butler pulls out 2 point lead beating the buzzer with crazy layup

Vanderbilt vs Richmond - Richmond sinks a 3-pt at the 18 sec mark to seal 3 pt lead

San Diego State vs Northern Colorado - Colorado kept up with SD until 2nd half

UCLA vs Michigan State - Spartans had a late surge, but it was still too late

Pittsburgh vs UNC-Asheville - UNCA put up a good fight, but were no match for Pitt

BYU vs Wofford - BYU almost lost out, but Fredette's 32 points helped edge out Wofford

Connecticut vs Bucknell - unfortunately, no contest

Cinncinati vs Missouri - Missouri kept up with Cinnci, but couldn't pull it out

Temple vs Penn State - Temple pulls out a 2 point win over the Lions

Florida vs UC Santa Barbara - UCSB wasn't even in the same league

Utah State vs Florida State - they kept it close, but Florida State were the winners

Gonzaga vs St. John's - Gonzaga put the hurt on St. John's

Wisconsin vs Belmont - Belmont didn't really have a chance

I'm currently in 2nd Place in our office, which is cool. We'll see how long it lasts...

Here is my updated bracket:

Stay tuned for more NCAA action!!

March Madness

'Tis the season....for NCAA Tournament brackets!

Yes...March Madness...where people across the country (and in some cases the globe) become engrossed in college basketball.

Honestly, I've never filled out a Tournament bracket nor really paid any attention to any of the games, minus the finals maybe, so this was a first for me.

Andy brought in brackets for us all to fill out...and below is mine:

Our scoring will be simple: 1 point awarded for every correct pick we make. The prize for winning: a Nerf basketball and hoop for a door.

We'll see how close I actually come to being correct, as the games have officially begun.

Only time will tell...I'll keep you posted!!!!

PM/CM Qdoba Fail...and Success! (Boston, Part 2)

So....once Andy and I left the aquarium we had a plan. The plan was visit all of the fishy and then head to a nearby Qdoba. There were two reasons:

1) Andy had never been to one...and he wanted to try it. :-)
2) I'm OBSESSED with Qdoba...and this would allow me to get my fix since there aren't any in CT.

So, I had done my research on what the closest Qdoba would be to the New England Aquarium and with my trusty new iPhone, I could guide us there.

So we head out on our walk, taking in all of the drunk people participating in the Boston Irish Pub Challenge, and enjoying the sites.

Finally, we get to our destination...QDOBA. And then it happened...


It was closed!!!!!!!!!!!! We arrived at 5pm and it had closed at 4pm! I was so upset and disappointed in my lack of checking the hours! I couldn't believe it had actually closed that early!

We checked on the other location, which was back in the other direction and beyond. We decided that we would hit the Hard Rock Cafe, so Andy could get a shirt and I would get some pins.

On the way, we came across the Old State House along the Freedom Trail. It was very cool and a great historical side-trip.

And we past Quincy Market just as we were about to reach the Hard Rock, that we decided to visit after dinner....if we ever got that far!

It was determined that the other Qdoba wasn't that far. It was actually right across the way from the Boston Garden, and was open until 10pm! (I called and looked online to double check!!)

So we enjoyed our burritos (Chicken Queso for me and the Ancho Chili BBQ for Andy)...and they were beyond delicious!! Andy even decided that he couldn't eat at Moe's anymore...bc its just so tasty!! I loved it!!

So, we headed back to Quincy Market to look around, and Andy found the "Red" Auerbach bronze statue! I felt it appropriate that I got a picture of him with a member of Boston Celtic history!

The day was so amazing. We've even started to think about what to do on our next visit to Boston. I can't wait!!!!!

Just Keep Swimming (Boston, Part 1)

Last March, Andy and I took a trip to Mystic Aquarium (see blog entry in March, 2010). It was such a great trip and we saw a whole bunch of cool animals. Yesterday, we took a drive to Boston to visit the New England Aquarium!



One of the things we knew we had to check out was the Penguin Exhibit! We happen to catch these particular penguins (one of three different kinds) as they were being fed.

These two were mates and they couldn't keep their beaks off each other. It was beyond adorable!

This creature was called a Dragon of the Sea. They were funky sea horses that had almost twig like appendages and just floated along in the water (not moving fins or its tail). Very awesome.

We next visited the 25,000 gallon tank, that held everything to bitty fish to huge ones, including three sharks, two sting rays and three huge sea turtles.

We actually got to see some of the feedings happen here too, and listened to a Q&A session...though the girl was less than knowledgeable. Oh well. The tank was cool...particularly from the top. (PS...the coral was made of fiber glass)

We moved on from the giant tank to see some of the other exhibits, including this tide pool with some anemones.

And these weird looking creatures...

This was a neat octopus that was moving along its habitat. You can also see the lock box to the bottom of the tank...it was his toy. (Sorry for the craptastic pic...there were a lot of people around this guy!)

This is an electric eel. There was a speaker that would play the enhanced sound from sensors in the water that would pick up a "pop" every time the eel released any electricity into the water. They do it when sensing their surroundings and food.

Last year, I had a video of jelly fish that I really liked. I basically duplicated it with another video from this year...but chose not to share it here. Instead, I got another cool video of these little guys. I still don't know what's running through their bodies, but whatever it is, its super cool.

I had to put this video on here due to the shear size and visual craziness that this school of fish created. If you remember that part in Finding Nemo when these guys appeared, you would understand why I was so mesmerized!

Oh Flotsam....or Jetsam....hmmm, whichever one you are....

I found Lovelace (from Happy Feet) with his body guard.

A b-e-a-utiful lion fish!!

This little guy was the third type of penguin that we found...a Little Blue! So cute...and cuddly-looking. Wish we could have held or at least touched one!

An hour and a half, and two stuffed penguins later....we headed out of the packed aquarium to walk around the wharf before we went in search of food (that was another adventure itself...so check back for that later today!)

I like this yearly aquarium visit...next stop, maybe Norwalk or New York City! Only time will tell...and I don't think I can actually wait a full year before doing that!!!

Sweet Smell Of Candles...and Christmas?

This past Monday was a sad day for me (and one I don't really want to relive, so I'll just move on with my story). So, as a result, I consoled myself with roomie time.

This roomie-time consisted of hanging out with the roomie (duh) but more specifically, it meant getting to have lunch at a new place and spending the afternoon somewhere I had never been.

YANKEE CANDLE!

Sure, I've been to a Yankee Candle store, but never the flagship...and never to the mother load of candles, fragrances, candy and Christmas items.

To a place that had walls upon walls, and shelves upon shelves of candles...

To a place that had miniature Christmas villages, including one of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol...

To a place that snowed every 4 minutes (see below)...


To a place that boasts having Santa's Workshop...

To a place with a gianormous countdown clock...

To a place where my roomie decided to drive a tug-boat/pirate ship...

To a place where said roomie was happily looking out for something on the horizon...maybe really bad eggs...

To a place where 'you'll be sorry if you do'...



To a place where there are Chuck-E-Cheese animatronics for adults...

To a place where you can dip your own candles...

And to a place where cows can play Frisbee...

All this and more can be found in South Deerfield, MA...and I can promise you that I will be going back and hopefully soon.

I highly recommend it!