Current Favorites

I know there's supposed to be a "Part 2" to the Cali blog buuuuuuuuuut... it's time to lighten things up.  I missed the September issue (for obvious reasons) and now have LOADS to share.

Fact: Zooey Decshanel rocks. This show is hysterical, no joke-- watch it.  And if you're like me and don't have TV (tragic!), you can watch the episodes online (hooray for internet).

The Americana in Glendale, CA.  One sexy outdoor mall made to look like a ritzy European (probably French) shopping district.  There's a movie theater, Sephora, Barnes & Noble, Kate Spade, and a fountain (anything with water and cobblestones wins me over every time).

Though you don't know this, I have GREAT hair.  I might be exaggerating (only a little) but I do have healthy and soft hair. Sexy Hair's tri-wheat leave in conditioner is what I've used since high school.  I stopped using it for a couple weeks-- just used crappy normal conditioner-- then got my haircut. It was the first time EVER a stylist told me my hair was dry. Never again!

(and your actual shower is shorter since you don't have to condition)

Plus you can look awesome doing this:

Moving on... this is Monkey Picked Oolong-- my FAVE loose tea ever. It helped me lose 17 pounds (until I gained it back exploring the restaurants in my new area... don't judge).  It aids in digestion, boosting the metabolism, and has fluoride for your skin and teeth.  It's $25 per 2 oz at Teavana BUT I found this website that has it for $15.30 per 2 oz.  I haven't had a chance to verify if it's the same tea but I'm pretty confident it is-- I'll get back to you on that.

Nails Inc. rocks, and not just because it's British but that's a huge part of it.  This particular shade I love for fall (and winter, let's be honest) is Piccadilly Circus.  Found at a Sephora near you.

Starbucks's newest fall treat: the Salted Caramel Mocha.  It's delicious hot, iced, blended... and the whipped topping is fabulous. To kick it up a notch, make it a WHITE MOCHA. My drink this season: Grande nonfat 2 pump white mocha 2 pump toffee nut Salted Caramel Mocha without whip (what? I'm watching my girlish figure).

For all you cat owners out there... Tiki Cat is the best stuff around!  My cats won't eat any other wet food (except Mack and Jack by Weruva) and frankly I don't want them to.  No preservatives, chunks of real tuna, crab, chicken, salmon-- YOU could eat this with your cat.  Major pet supply stores don't carry it, but I've found Tiki Cat at a few independent stores, as well as Kriser's, and it runs about 98 cents a can.  You can also get it on Amazon in 12 packs.

My husband is the true gamer in our household, but I'm a sucker for this PS3 exclusive: God of War. It's a hack and slash (you bet I'm hip to the gamer lingo, yo)-- which means I get to viciously kill everything without aiming and worrying about combos plus it's super violent.  Definitely a girl's game.  It follows Kratos, an angry Spartan royally fucked over by the gods and out for blood.  The dude's a bad ass.  The technical term is adventure game with some puzzles mixed in for good measure.  There are 5 games total: God of War 1 and 2 (remastered for the PS3), 3, and "Chains of Olympus" & "Ghost of Sparta"-- both for the PSP and now remastered to the PS3.  So. Much. Fun.

Lana Del Rey. 

Her music is my new obsession thanks to this gal.  Check it out on Grooveshark but make sure to YouTube the music video for "Video Games." It's all LA and reminds me of video footage from the 60's.

What are you in love with at the moment???

Journey to California

Like the new look?  I figured with the new location, new life, new beginning... a new template was in order. And so... we moved. Hubby and I made the trek cross country with our two cats and are officially residents of California. As I write to you, I'm surrounded by boxes, bags, crap strewn everywhere (I should really be unpacking)-- it's lovely chaos.  To most people it looks like a damn mess, but to me, in my current reflective state, it's the evidence of change, growth, the future... my dreams becoming reality.  Sure, there are still the logistics of daily life: health, bills, jobs, networking (can't forget about those); however, we took the first step.  Many people never even make it out here-- half the battle has ended with our gorgeous new apartment.

Can you believe it's over?! Four years of hoping, planning, stresses-- done. Finished. Of course there'll be new ones in this new place and new culture-- such is life-- but God guides the way and hasn't led me astray yet. 

The planning seems so long ago... almost like a dream...

Okay I'll tell you about it (if you're going to twist my arm).  

After switching our moving company at the last second-- like... a week before the move-- because of their scheduling error, we gathered our things together in loads of boxes. Not without help and not without me pulling an all nighter the last day.  Oi.  Too old for that shit.  Saying goodbye to Appleton was more difficult than expected, especially for my husband. He has two grade school age siblings that he loves very much and vice versa (and I do too fyi); we've spent tons of time with them since we moved back to Wisconsin and have grown close.  I miss those kids-- they're great and watching them grow up the last few years has been amazing.  It makes me excited to have my own (some day WAY down the road).  Fortunately the chill of fall also crept into northern Wisconsin as we prepared to leave-- perfect for pumpkin spice lattes, evening walks, and a reminder of why we love the Midwest so much.

Once the movers came and went, we headed down to Chicago to spend a week with my family and say "so long" to friends.  This was also harder than expected. No I didn't cry when I said goodbye to my parents and drove away in the minivan-- I have a heart of stone, remember?-- but I still felt this sadness. On the Wednesday before we left, I listened in to the choir rehearsal at the church where I was baptized, confirmed, taught chimes, sang in choir myself, got married... yeah... that hit me. Though I haven't been involved in the church for a few years now due to location, it always feels like home when I return to Algonquin.  As I stared at the stained glass windows that open slightly to let in a little air when it gets warm (especially on Easter Sunday), wood beamed ceiling, the creaky wooden pews where my brothers and I drew pictures in the sign-in book during the services as kids and where I later observed the smiling faces of my loved ones when I married the love of my life, I felt an overwhelming calm with a hint of heartache.  God was telling me to let go and find my own home, my own place, my own church in which to plant roots.  Such a bittersweet beginning. Yet it meant so much to see the friends we did, to have home cooked meals with family-- my mother-in-law made an awesome Mexican lasagna and my mom cooked a Thanksgiving meal since we'll be on the West Coast for the holidays this year. How blessed we are to have such amazing people in our lives. And it is such a gift to be missed.

And so... we left for Cali in our own procrastinated time.  You see, my family always left for long road trips at the butt crack of dawn. Make a bunch of checklists, pack the day before, cross off stuff on the checklists, load the van with what you can, double check the checklists, and make sure there are drinks and bakery goods for breakfast in the car.  This routine is probably usual for most people actually, but we march to the beat of our own drum.  You see, hubby and I are night owls. So the Friday we were to leave... we slept in, gathered our things up, had brunch with my parents, then loaded the van (which took an hour!), and left at 2pm.  Go us.  But honestly, we had the BEST timing ever during the whole road trip: hardly any construction slow downs, we missed all the rush hour traffice, and we got to see a Midwestern, Mountain, and Desert sunset-- how wonderful.

I won't bore you with details about the hotels, rest stops, etc. but I will offer a few words of advice based solely on my recent experience (in others words, if you think this advice is complete crap that's A-ok):

1. Mountain driving through Denver is scary and intense if you've never done it before and don't know what to expect. Just sayin'

2. AAA is awesome and totally worth the membership fee. Do it.

3. Get a Next Exit book for any road trip.

4. Always always ALWAYS call ahead to check if hotels take pets. Each individual hotel is different. And double check that they know you've got animals when you check in.

5. If your animals are fine in the car there is no need to sedate them.

6. Even if you don't have to go that bad, pee when you need to pee.

Not only was this move to California all the amazing things I stated above, but it offered me the chance to drive across the United States. My one regret was not being able to turn it into a week long road trip to stop and see the sights (we did Colorado, Utah, Arizona, Nevada, and California in one day).  It's impossible to do with two cats.
I know there is so much crap going on with our country right now in terms of politics, culture, economy, etc... but man... the USA is one GORGEOUS place. You don't realize until you drive through plains, mountains, canyon land, desert, and end at the ocean, how lucky we are to live in such a vast and varied country.  

Life really is one hell of an adventure.

Four Year Cycle

I should be sleeping.  It's 3am, I work at 1 tomorrow (today), and I'm tired.  But there's a lot on my mind...

First of all-- how are you?  I know I've neglected you, my readers and strangers passing by, and I apologize.  There's plenty going on in all our lives so the excuse that "I'm busy" is insulting to all you parents, career peeps, students, full time job-bers (it's late-- expect non-words)... I've just been away. Soul searching and ignoring social media.

The BIG MOVE is 3 weeks away.  Holy shit.  There's so much to do. Sign a lease, fix the couches, set the move date, rummage sale our crap (yes I just turned "rummage sale" into a verb), make a few last minute preparation purchases (new glasses-- yay!), PACK, say goodbye... I think I'll save the "Goodbye Blog" for another night when I'm awake in the wee hours of the morning.

Life is good though.  New friends, a great part time job, the tragic loss of my engagement ring turning into a blessing.  God is moving through my life, these plans, my spirit... in every way possible.  Our marriage is getting stronger by the day.  We talk about everything anyway, but lately Michael and I have talked daily about our troubles and joys and hopes and dreams and plans.  Word of advice: ALWAYS be open about finances with your significant other: it will cement your relationship (and save it too if it needs saving).  I grow stronger by the day.  God has opened my eyes so I can finally see my potential and know that as long as I trust in Him... I'm golden.  :)

Tonight on one of our long walks around the apartment complex, I realized God has taught me life lessons in four year increments.  What the heck am I talking about?  As per my usual analyzation of the Past-- we can learn so much from it if we pay attention and are open-- I determined the last 12 years have culminated to bring me to this moment... this point in my life where I'm finally ready to face the hardship of Hollywood.  Finally ready to realize the potential I've been blessed with, grab it by the balls, and hold on for dear life (you enjoy that image).

First came high school.  Those 4 years were all about AMBITION.  Using that brain God gave me to climb to the top of my class.  Yuppers, I was valedictorian of JHS... along with 10 other people mind you (my high school didn't have weighted grades).  Of course I had to defend myself because I took art and music classes which are normally worth less in a weighted system.  Some students felt those of us valedictorians in choir, creative writing, and drawing classes didn't work as hard as the ones who took all AP classes (I only took 1: AP English.  I would've taken AP Calc if it'd fit in my schedule, as well as done Spanish all 4 years if the schedules hadn't been messed up.  Yes, NERD would be the appropriate term for me at this time... okay... always).  Well, choir took tons of extra hours, the guts to perform, and the skill of reading music.  And drawing?  Anyone who'd seen my work knew I wasn't turning in stick figures.  Anyway, I digress.  The pursuit of straight A's taught me the value of learning, hard work, patience, and going the extra mile.  I worked my ass to the bone studying for tests, perfecting projects, memorizing music for concerts. Plus I was active in my church's music program and taught a children's chime choir once a week.  I didn't sit on my hands every day.

College was different.  I met a wider circle of people and began dieting/ working out.  The weight came off and God showed me that yes, I was damn good looking (sexy beast is more like it).  I never believed it before.  Then I met great girlfriends that explained makeup and hair techniques, as well as how to develop my own style (aided by "What Not To Wear" as well-- Stacy and Clinton are life savers).  I progressed from awkward teen to confident young lady. I learned weight can be lost, exercise helps with depression, and there are more important things than grades: friends (seems obvious but I was anti-social).  That's when I discovered what it means to appreciate my physical self.

And now my first 4 years of marriage-- this was the transition from young lady to woman.  When I took on the grown-up (HA!) responsibilities of managing finances, becoming semi-domestic, balancing relationships, and fully understanding what sharing my life with another person truly means I became moved into the next phase of my life.  It's been through God's eyes and Michael's that I now see myself with LOVE.  In turn I have developed a deep-seeded confidence in myself that transitions to how I see life.  Appearance and Ambition are all well and good, but they're nothing without total belief in oneself.  Now I am a triple threat; yes I'm still heavy but I look great in spite of it. No I haven't taken advantage of past opportunities but that stops now.  I love myself inside and out, and now it's time to work my ass off at a thriving career in Hollywood.  I'm ready to work, to create, to network, to be a LEADER. Film is what I'm meant to pursue no matter how hard everyone says it will be.  That's fine-- I like a challenge.

It's 3:43am. "Maps" is playing. Nice.

Current Favorites: August 2011

Though this is a bit over due, I still have 2 weeks of August left for you to indulge in a few of my favorite things.  I must warn you this is a far more girly edition than I've done so far but I've been feeling rather feminine lately.

Sephora by OPI "Arm Candy" nail polish.  It's a sexy shade of pink with a bit of vamp thrown in for good measure.

Turquoise plaid button down.  It's a rugged feminine look perfect for fall... and moving out west.

Sephora Moonshadow Baked Palette (the great... or maybe terrible thing about working at a mall is that I'm right down the lane from Sephora).  These have a lovely shimmer to them when applied dry, but when applied with a wet brush (just found out I could do this!) they're rich and metallic.  I've been experimenting thanks to my friend Lori and having a great time with tons of new "looks."

As part of the move to California, I decided to trade-in my laptop for an iPad 2 then my husband and I will share his iMac.  No, a tablet isn't a substitute for a computer, but financially and mobility wise this made more sense. And I love it.

"Jane Eyre" starring Michael Fassbender and Mia Wasikowska. This was just released on video today and if you love these types of films (and books) as much as I do, just buy it! It's the perfect mix of tragedy and romance highlighted with fantastic British performers.

"Raindrops" by Basement Jaxx. I heard this song on the last performance episode of SYTYCD-- Tadd and Sasha danced a pretty poor Cha Cha to it.  The routine stunk but this song is such fun to  have blaring through your car's stereo.

And did you watch the Season 8 finale? AMAZING!!!

White Chicken Chili

This week, though in the midst of the August heat even in Wisco, my husband requested comfort food (aka Fall Food that's great when there's a chill in the air).  He especially loves anything made in the crockpot because it's less work for me and 90 percent hands off-- not to mention our apartment smells FAB all day (usually). So I turned the A/C down to 66 degrees and pulled out my recipe for White Chicken Chili.  It's tested and approved from my mother-in-law (a mad cooking genius) that I adapted to make even easier (because I too wish to be a mad cooking genius).

I'm telling you-- it's delish.  Try it, even if you don't like beans (you need your fiber, people!), but the best part about this chili is that it's flexible, forgiving, and affordable-- and it makes a bunch!

White Chicken Chili: Crockpot Style

4 chicken breasts
3-4 garlic cloves, pressed or minced
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 Tbsp cumin
1 med to lg yellow onion, chopped
2 - 14oz cans Northern beans (undrained)
2 - 14oz cans Navy beans (undrained)
Juice of 1 lime
1 - 4oz can diced green chiles
1 packet white chicken chili seasoning
1 Tbsp lemon pepper (or Pampered Chef's Citrus and Basil rub)
3-4 cups vegetable or chicken broth
1/4 to 1/2 cup fresh cilantro, finely chopped (optional)
1-2 avocados for garnish (optional)
Shredded cheese-- I recommend finely shredded cheddar or cheddar jack

Combine all ingredients-- except cilantro, avocado, and cheese-- placing the chicken breasts on the bottom. Cook on High for 4 hours OR Low for 8 hours.

Once the chili is done cooking, remove the chicken breasts and shred using 2 forks (mine was so tender I used a fork and a spoon).  Dump back in and add the cilantro-- mix and serve into individual bowls.  Garnish with cheese and avocados.  Enjoy!

FYI:
Yes, the chicken breasts go in raw, though you can par boil them for 10 minutes before and shred if you're afraid you'll kill your company.

The recipe normally calls for 2-3 cups of broth but in the past has ended up too thick for my taste.  This time around I didn't measure and had an almost full box of veggie broth going old in the fridge so I dumped in the whole darn thing. I think it was almost 4 cups... Like I said, this is a forgiving recipe so feel free to add more less liquid depending on your own preference.  That's how it became "Choup."

If you don't have lemon pepper, add about a tsp of lemon juice, pepper, and salt individually-- that should do the trick!

The liquid in canned beans is a great thickener for soups, stews, and chili.

Fresh cilantro is easy to find in the produce sections (make sure you don't grab parsley) at most, if not all, grocery stores.  Although you can buy a smaller amount in those plastic fresh herb containers in the herb section near the lettuce, buy the BUNCH instead.  It's a better deal.  "What else can I use cilantro for?" you might wonder... Well as you may have known from past entries, I'm a cilantro fanatic so my answer is EVERYTHING. Salads, guac, Asian, Mexican, Southwestern cooking, toss it into other soups for more flavor.
The best way I've found for storing it? Remove the tie and place the bunch in a small cup filled with cold water.  Set in your fridge and pull out when needed.  I can get about 2 weeks out of it which is pretty amazing considering how near death most commercial grocery store produce usually is.

Blueberry Crumble Bars

Another wonderful contribution from Erica's Sweet Tooth, only she made hers with mixed berries.  I did that the first time I made a batch but they were far too moist-- even though I kept the strawberries to 1 cup-- and turned to mush after a day.  I highly recommend keeping it straight blueberries AND sprinkle a bit of sugar on top for crunch.  Yum!

Quick Fire Movie Reviews: July

With the exception of Harry Potter, I can't justify spending movie theater prices for the less than entertaining films Hollywood has released lately.  So this review round is for RENTALS.

Burlesque: Normally, a concoction of Xtina, Cher, Stanley Tucci, stilettos, and peek-a-boo outfits all wrapped in a musical package with an over-the-top glittery bow is a recipe for fantastic.  And let me say, Burlesque has its moments (not really) BUT... I was bored.  It's the same Cinderella story about the same small town girl with the same big talent (hey! this gal can sing-- give her a record deal!) trying to make it in show business-- all of which I knew-- but the lack of Cher and overabundance of Xtina made the film more painful than fun.  See it if you like this sort of thing, but have your fast forwarding finger ready.

Faster: Originally we rented Faster as a "Good Bad Film" rental, aka a movie that takes itself seriously yet is completely ridiculous and cheesy.  Surprisingly... it was actually a serious film with a powerful story about revenge and a great performance by Dwayne Johnson (how far he's come from Smackdown).  If you like a darker, grittier story then check it out.

Dylan Dog: Oh my... what can I say about this movie... don't bother.  It's not horribly offensive, gory, scary, funny, entertaining-- nothing.  Dyaln Dog is simply boring.  It's so dull I can't even make the review interesting.  The jokes fall flat and I'm not sure if that's because of the writing, directing, acting, or everyone was hoping for a quick buck.  Brandon Roth is usually great. I have a feeling the graphic novel about an investigator for the undead "living" among us is far more interesting than the film.  

Limitless: First let me say-- Bradley Cooper is the type of guy who will become more and more delicious as he gets older... and those eyes.  Back to the point, Limitless was a good film and has me intrigued for the book (yes, like most interesting plot-based movies, this too was an adaptation).  It's intense and has you asking: what would you do if you could take a pill that made you limitless?  And I wasn't entirely sure about where the film was going and if it would work out, but the last 30 minutes really brought everything together.  A must rent.

Source Code: If you love Chicago and have a blu-ray player... SEE THIS IN BLU-RAY!  It's beautiful. At first I really liked the film-- I became invested in Jake's character, the story (even though it was incredibly predictable... all the way through the end)-- but then it ended.  The ending went just one step too far and that's when I became confused... like Inception confused.  But with Inception I'll allow it because you know going into the film that there are layers upon layers of realities to be discovered; with Source Code they take the time to explain what's going on throughout the movie... then contradict it at the end.  ARGH!

If you like to think about films after you watch them, avoid this movie-- it will just make you angry.

Sucker Punch: This film is HORRIBLE.  Being from the director of Watchmen (awful) and 300 (good) you can expect great visuals: color themes, unique costumes, and lots and LOTS of slow motion.  While slow motion can be a great visual accent in action scenes, Zack Snyder's overuse of it made the action boring and repetitive-- we fast forwarded after awhile.  And then there's the sad sack of a story: you need a stiff drink after watching this film.  Yikes. Part of the problem could be that Snyder wrote, directed, and produced the film; in other words, he bit off way more than he could chew. Definitely felt sucker punched after watching this movie.

And finally...

The Mechanic: That's right, it's Jason Statham in a typical Jason Statham film!  How can you not love Jason Statham doing what he does best: kicking ass and taking names?  Well... he didn't kick that much ass and took almost no names in this film.  It's more about him training a younger "Jason" to be an assassin-- nothing we haven't seen before.  And then there's the usual random sex scene.  This is definitely not a worthy "Good Bad Film."