This wasn't supposed to be this hard!

So what do two unashamed Backstreet Boys fans do when they come to town? Well we pack up and go, of course. But little did we know the long, painful, arduous journey we were about to embark on…

The day started off smooth. I made us French toast for breakfast. Sweet, unhealthy French toast with vanilla extract and cinnamon involved. We went to Target and TJ Maxx for even sweeter clearance deals and then had major girl makeup time. I demonstrated how wonderful Suave Dry Shampoo is. I know there are better more expensive options out there but this is less than $3 and AHH-MAZING. I used to only dream of what it would be like to not have to wash my hair every day and now I live it! It has a pleasant lemon scent and it doesn’t look chalky or flaky at all. Not only does it absorb oil, but it actually adds body to my hair, makes it so much more manageable, and provides a nice shine. I love it.

So there we were: a beautiful Saturday afternoon, very cute, free windshield cleaning at the gas station for customer appreciation day.. ready to go. When we arrived at the coliseum at a reasonable time, we unfortunately had to wait in the heat in a CROWD that just continued to multiply and surround. We turned into sweaty beasts that were desperate and this finally started making sense to me. It was so hot for so long but we made it!


Then there was the opening act for the opening act..


Next was Matthew Morrison who plays Schuester on Glee. He did a cover of Gold Digger, which I appreciated most.


Then it began. The screaming. The deafening, ear-exploding, painful, make-a-nice-girl-wanna-fight, screaming. Backstreet Boys were on this tour with New Kids On The Block (didn’t care/never got into them) and it became very apparent very early that they were the headliner and that their fans were there in great abundance. In crazy, screaming abundance.

See, Jamie and I got spoiled at our last BSB concert! It was outside so any unnecessary screaming got absorbed and we didn’t have to deal with that. We had fifth row seats and my favorite bsb offered me his hat when it rained. It was all so…. Easy. This was hard!


These guys and their fans made this so difficult for us.


New Kids fans brought it, though. They seriously took it back with 80’s outfits- neon tights, tie-dye shirts, side ponies, etc. ...And there we stood with our hands covering our ears as we had to go into full protection mode of our hearing. We just didn’t know what we were getting ourselves into. It was a testament of our loyalty. It really was.

Love running errands

I'm really enjoying running errands on my bike. Today I biked down to Earth Fare for some basil for a side pasta dish I was going to make (postponed until tomorrow) and by Target to check out the clearance situation. Unfortunately I didn't have any noteworthy finds. But I know that Target clearance success happens in waves. There will be great 70% off items week after week and then nothing.. just 30% off BS. I'm not interested in that. I'm a dedicated searcher.

Much of my travel is down a busy parkway and I've picked a couple of favorite/safe intersections for crossing. It's totally acceptable and necessary for me to navigate the sidewalks for my travel. Feels so safe being far away from cars.


It feels really good to not have to rely on my car so much. My basket is carrying tomatoes and herbs just fine but if I put something that weighs even a pound in there it just quits and falls to the side. I'm cool with it!

Fun stuffs

My first trip on my bike this week was to get a tomato that was needed for dinner. It's a good uphill climb getting out of my community, which I hadn't really paid attention to before, and it's a downhill breezy cruise back. I'm so happy about incorporating my bike. My little basket was perfect for tomato-carrying too.

I went to two parties on Thursday evening. First was my cousin's 40th birthday party in Durham and then a Luau-style sushi tasting at Mura in North Hills in Raleigh. Jamie, I found you some entertainment for your colorful, outside summer wedding- Fire Dancers. Just kidding.


North Hills is so crowded. Err.. populated. Self-portrait photo opp..


The nighttime lighting makes me look so tanned. A hair recovery had just occurred for me. I have been living the past few weeks with blond streaks in my hair. I never really came around to liking it. It's back to a beautiful brown color that suits me much better.

Getting hooked up

From the ever-inspiring Julie, I learned about the also inspiring BitchCakes. It’s so motivational to read her blog, because she looks great now from hard work and continues to maintain a positive and honest perspective on weight control and exercise. It’s helpful for women like me with similar concerns to empathize on issues like our legs, but it’s even more helpful to have that reinforced with such positivity. She’s basically like, “Look, these are you’re legs. They’re the legs you have to work with. They do a lot for you… think about that. Think about what all you’ve been through together, etc.” I'm like hell yes, I need to treat these puppies right!

I have been going to the gym for the past few weeks and I believe I’ve reached a pretty dedicated point. I usually go after work so in order to motivate myself I always do the exercise bike first. The bike is fun and I like to increase the resistance as I get into it. Then I spend approximately 30 minutes on the treadmill walking and jogging. And I’ve been ending with the Stairmaster. An hour total and it feels great. Once a week I like doing something different to keep it interesting. I’ve been taking my dog, Ebi, to a no-joke trail near Duke. There are a few hills and one that is pretty steep. There’s no way I could run up it! It’s HOT in NC right now- like 90’s every day, but this trail is shaded and breezy in areas.

I have reached a point where I think about things differently than I used to. I wouldn’t say that I was never concerned about these things, I’m just paying attention more to what I put into my body. I want to make sure that the things I eat are beneficial to my health, and not just satisfying an instant gratification of good taste. I hope that through exercise I can tone my arms and legs, but most importantly I understand that I have to keep the most important muscle in my body, my heart, pumping and my joints strong.

A couple of years ago my aunt gave me a Specialized bike that she wasn’t using when I told her I was going to buy one. I like this bike pretty well and I am getting it ready to be used much more frequently than the occasional trail ride. I live adjacent to a big and wonderful shopping center and I know that I can cut out much of my reliance on my car by using my bike. It’s just unnecessary to take my car every time I need something from across the street. I could also easily walk, and I do sometimes, but like I said it’s HOT and this would just be more fun anyway.


My basket situation leaves a lot to be desired. I found this basket in a thrift store for $1, tied it on with some wire, and wrapped a turquoise ribbon around for good looks. This could probably carry some cilantro home, and that’s okay for now. Most of my trips are to cruise Target clearance, or the grocery and craft stores. I won’t be hauling a lot of stuff very far but I would like something more secure. The problem I found is that all the gear wires are in the way, and it’s probably not intended for this bike to have a basket up front. This one fits perfectly because it’s peanut-shaped so the wires can live free like they need to.

New old stuff!

My mom just recently moved into the most adorable little home that has such a vintage flair!


It has built in shelves in the kitchen and a "phone nook" in the middle of the house (no hallway). My mom has always collected antiques and old things from family. She invited me to see if there were some things that I'd like to have because she has limited space. It was like shopping in an old antique store for free, except the old things all have personal, special meanings!

My favorite thing she offered me was this wooden heart-shaped wall shelf that my Grandfather made for her for Christmas one year. The thought crossed my mind to paint it but I'm not going to because I love the little imperfections (although, there are few because he was such a perfectionist). It's just so beautiful to me that he carved out the heart shapes and even had the desire to do so. She said that my Grandmother had bought a shelf very similar and my mom said she liked it to which he replied "Oh, I can make that," and then surprised her.


I also got a wooden spoon that my Great Grandmother used to cook with. I remember her vividly and she was a sweet lady and I'm happy to have something that belonged to her that she used so frequently. It looks like it was made, not bought. She loved to cook and had so much positive energy surrounding her.

These little heart mirrors were in my room when I was little. I'm going to paint them.

I love me a day trip to Wilmington

A visit's not complete without downtown-wandering..







We ate dinner at Front Street Brewery. Really, really awesome. There are so many reasons why I need to go back there.

There was just enough front-porch sittin' and fly-swattin' in the evening to make me wish I had more of that simple country-style activity in my life. These bug bites on my arms, however, are contradicting that feeling now.

Ebi was so exhausted from all of his fun and playing. He snuggled up very adorably with his new Scooby.

Pretty great week, pretty Good Friday

Yesterday after work a group of my co-workers and I volunteered to help with the clean-up of an area of downtown Raleigh that was severely damaged by the tornados last Saturday. I had been hearing damage reports and seeing images on the news but the area that I live in was, thankfully, destruction free. It wasn't until Monday morning on my walk to work that I personally saw signs of the tornados- pieces of insulation in yards and on the sidewalks. Just a few blocks over from that were uprooted trees, shattered windows, destroyed vehicles, all the signs of a fierce storm. It is wonderful and comforting to see so many strangers come together to help one another.

This week we also had a special "Goodbye Party/Lunch" at the Lebanese restaurant, Sitti. They provide great soft bread puffs with an olive oil and herb dipping mixture. It's great because it's different and affordable, but the food critic in me felt like the description of the Grilled Chicken Pesto Sandwich I ordered was a bit misleading. It used an extravagant list of ingredients to really pull you in. Pine nuts?! What! And roasted?! Why, yes! MORE olive oil?? Okay!!! Some other kind of infused ingredient I've never heard of but sounds so authentic!? Amazing! And all combined to make a wonderful pesto on this Chicken PESTO sandwich- I'll take it! In reality, the pesto was thin, tasteless, minimal. The chicken was dry. I needed ketchup. When somebody gets the ketchup out on your food and it's not french fries, that's a problem.

Today has been one the most relaxing. I'm off due to the holiday and I slept until 11:00am! I don't even feel bad about it because I have to wake up at 4:45/snooze til 5am almost every single day. If I'm not careful or if I don't have a plan, I can sleep dangerously late like that. My day was boring- cleaned a little, did a little laundry, watched a little Martha Stewart. She did a puppy special and she talked about making your own dog treats and I will be making Ebi some treats. She also made an adorable poodle skirt and, of course, made it look so easy! Lately my mom and I have been talking about her sewing machine, my lack of knowledge, and my interest. I'm going to get her to help me make one of these for my neice.

I had so much time to spend on my hair and makeup before taking my Grandma an Easter Lily since I will be out of town on Sunday.


Then I had to dig through this mess looking all pretty for a shoe mate...


I am not proud of this situation. It is stressful and embarassing for an organized person like myself. This is not an indicator of a girl with too many shoes, I promise. It's a result of limited space. I have to find a soltuion.

The Run Down

I got my hair cut and it's pretty cute when I fix it nicely. This was kind of a transition cut, I guess. I'm getting my bangs cut shorter in a week or so. This length meant that they were immediately in my eyes and I ended up having to pin them back with a PAPERCLIP at work one day because I got so frustrated.


It got LONG in a few week's time and now I'm just okay with it. I liked the lady who cut my hair more than anyone I've ever visited. We went to high school together and I sought her out on Facebook when she uploaded Before and After pics. In a few days I'm going to get this same sort-of cut again with a thicker, shorter bang. My bangs mostly stay pushed to the side because that's all I can do with it now.

I ate some exciting pizza at lunch with my co-workers at Lilly's Pizza in Raleigh. They have you get your water out of one of those dentist office-style water things with the big jug turned upside down on top. My pizza had pistachios on it. Their decor is wild/random.


In other food news, I'm making our own sushi these days. This is a sushi lunch of a simple seaweed-outside California roll and then a fancy, difficult rice-outside roll with salmon and tuna inside. I even made Eel sauce!


My weekend trip to New York City earlier this month was super fun. Right now I only have iPhone pics so I will give a complete step-by-step by this weekend when I expect to have my "camera cord drama" (I can't find it) solved. But highlights included...

The Metropolitan Museum of Art..


Tina Fey at her book signing..


And the view from Top of the Rock..


Tonight I am making cards with this kit I completely forgot I had.


This, of course, has opened up a whole new door of interests. I want to make all my cards for everything now.

Stay tuned...

I have so much to tell about. Makeup I've bought and love (both expensive and inexpensive), how my new haircut is working out for me, my weekend trip to NYC, new household appliances, my homemade sushi-making skills, awesome items I've found on clearance, etc. as I launch myself back into dedicated blogging mode! Right here tomorrow (when I have the hours to dedicate to getting myself caught back up)!


Pretty, poppin' iPhone photo from Top of the Rock this weekend!

Happy and free

This chocolate came from my boss on Friday- an appreciation gift for all of my hard work this week. Feels so good.

I ate lunch at Gravy and didn't need or even desire dinner. I had Eggplant Rollatini. It's basically a rolled eggplant with tons of melted mozzarella cheese and marinara sauce. So bad. So unhealthy. So delicious.

Friday was beautiful and everything fell into place so nicely. I even had time to relax before going to my part-time job hangout. I opened the patio door and let the Spring-time breeze dance around my apartment. Ebi and I talked about our days and he told me he was sorry for eating the heart-charm I made but clay and glitter combines to make such an enticing treat.


I ate a piece of special chocolate, put my flowers outside for some real light, and enjoyed the gorgeous afternoon.

Valentine's Day Eve

Durham is pretty freaking awesome. Technically speaking, I am probably the most Durhamite-est of the Durhamites. When I was younger my mother worked downtown and during the summers I would go to her office with her quite a bit. When I wasn't cutting up the National Geographic and making collages of the pictures, I was walking down to Brightleaf Square, buying myself a frozen coffee from the vendor on the side of the street (I still remember the taste and have never had a frozen coffee beverage as good as those), and roaming around the bookstores, music shops, art galleries, and soap shops that were there during that time. AND I can get myself from one area of town to another but cannot give strangers adequate directions because I don't know street names (I do believe that is an unofficial requirement).

Anyway, there are new restaurants popping up all over the place! I have been chasing dreams of eating brunch at Watt's Grocery for weeks. We tried to visit last week but there was a 90 minute wait for the BAR. This week we got there at opening and the Hostess said the wait was 30 minutes. Just enough time to visit Joe Van Gogh for the best Latte of my life.


I've never had heart-shaped froth! Or anything-shaped froth! It was delicious/pretty and I will treat myself to that heart-frothed $4 latte again. I mean it was even the perfect temperature at the first sip. The really do know "the art of the bean".

It looked like this inside..


And there were lots of people wearing those outfits that look like they picked various articles that under no circumstances match one or any of the other items in the mix. Example: Black leggings + brown hiking boots + purple lace tiered skirt + green down vest + red flannel shirt. True story.

I went all out at Watts Grocery. I got Benedict with crawfish tail hollandaise and andouille sausage.


I abandonned the grits because they were plain and next time I will get the hashbrowns. I could only eat half of the benedict entree pile of cream. It was delicious and the kind of rich that makes you feel full after 3 bites.

What I appreciated most about this restaurant was the fact that they could totally get away with charging more for their food but don't. There were whole blueberries in the jelly and everything was wonderfully fresh. I want to go back for lunch and dinner and brunch again!


Happy Valentine's Day from me and the cute turquoise charm I made to wear today!

Okay, so...

I'm going to start telling you about some of the foods I eat. The good, the bad, and the pretty. I'm on a pretty serious mission to eat healthily so it's mostly good/pretty/colorful. But there are bad times too.. like tomorrow night's homemade nachos for the Duke/Carolina game. Tomorrow night I will be an emotional eater. Bad. Bad. Bad.

Last Thursday I had a single wisdom tooth pulled and by Saturday I had graduated to foods of texture. Craving something sweet, I made this delicious little snack. I considered this a splurge because of the peanut butter..


This is one slice of Nature's Own Honey Wheat Bread Light (just 35 calories), one Tbsp of JIF Reduced Fat Peanut Butter, One-half a banana, and a little honey drizzled for sweetness. Heating this on the oven for a few minutes to toast the bread and warm the peanut butter-honey-banana mixture makes this a tasty, indulgent little snack for right around 200 calories (I'm not sure about honey-depends on how much)

I like shrimp because it's low fat/high protein. I don't know how bad this buffalo sauce is. It's probably a little Carby.


We get frozen uncooked shrimp from Harris Teeter when it goes on sale for either 1/2-0ff or Buy 2-Get 3 Free. It's so easy to store and prepare like that and you can get a TON for around $25 which is a sweet, sweet deal.


Buffalo Shrimp and Cilantro Lime Rice Dinner. The rice is Jasmine rice with lime juice and chopped cilantro for added flavor.


Shrimp and Broccoli Lunch. This is one of my favorite lunches to take because it's healthy, easy, and colorful. Shrimp was boiled on Sunday and refrigerated for use over the following couple of days. Broccoli is the frozen kind and I heard that frozen vegetables are actually better for you during their off-season because they were prepared and packaged during their peak- Not sure how true that is? All sprinkled with lemon pepper seasoning for flavor.


This was another shrimp lunch. Shrimp and green beans with egg noddles tossed with a little olive oil, and sprinkled with paprika and parsley flakes for flavor. These seasonings - Lemon Pepper, Paprika, Parsley, Dill.. I like them because they add flavor without adding fat.

This weeekend I found this frozen Joe's Crab Shack dinner. This version- Mahi Mahi with Tropical Salsa and sides Coconut Rice and Sugar Snap Peas. Just 350 calories. This is made all in the microwave and was about $6.50 for the bag.


There's just enough work involved in preparing this to make you feel like you did something without really doing anything. The salsa is delicious. So easy for busy week nights and it looks like I made something special. I'll get this time and time again.


My breakfast today was borederline-bad.


Everything bagel thin with 2 eggs and a slice of Muenster cheese. It's a tasty & filling 350 calories but tomorrow I will opt for one egg instead of 2 and 1/2 a slice of cheese. If I'm still hungry I'll eat a piece of fruit. I need to make this good, though, and just eat the whites and no cheese.