Thoughts

Eating Should be Enjoyable

/ jennced15 / 10 Comments

You know what . . . you should really enjoy what you eat. I think if we enjoyed what ate all of the time we would have a better relationship with food and by default a better understanding of food as well. I am sad to say that there has been things that I have eaten that were less than sub-par. I am slowly learning that if it isn’t enjoyable; I walk away. It saves a lot of calories to walk away from the less than stellar items. That is a bonus in my book.

But I am not actually here today to talk about your relationship with food or calorie consumption—I am here to tell you about the best things that I have eaten lately. Some I made at home and some I bought out but all of them had me savoring each bite and looking forward to the next “good” meal.

So here is your assignment for the rest of the month—Enjoy the Food You are Eating!!

  1. Chicken Pad Thai from Cooking Classy (Side Note: Tastes great even as left-overs 4-5 days later)
  2. Simple Lemony Chicken & Spring Veggie Soup from The Cozy Apron (Side Note: I added fresh asparagus as well)
  3. Homemade Hot Pockets from Happy Money Saver (Side Note: I inserted mine with pesto and fresh veggies. Nothing else and they were fantastic!) 
  4. Otis Cafe in Otis, OR: This place is VERY small and you probably will have to wait but you should and without a doubt, try their German Potatoes. HEAVENLY!!
  5. Pacific Way Cafe in Gearhart, OR: I love that this place is not in one of the main coastal tourist towns. In fact you could completely miss it but I wouldn’t recommend it. They have wonderful calm chowder (seasoned the way I like) and a WONDERFUL Dungeness crab open-faced sandwich.

The Joke is On You

/ jennced15 / 2 Comments

Yes . . . today is the day when it is completely allowable to play a joke on someone and retaliation won’t follow . . . presumably. Of course that usually means your jokes should be limited to something of a less sever nature so people won’t want to retaliate. J

While I am not a fan of cruel or gross jokes; I do love a good joke. It is fun and I love seeing people smile and laugh. So below are some links to websites that could offer everyone encouragement to do something fun today. Some of these I have tried with success and some of these I really want to try in the future.

Have Fun!!

  1. I love this run down from BuzzFeed because it is a great listing of jokes to play on your kids. Just remember: the more jokes you play on your kids the more jokes they will play on you and you could be creating a battle ground for the future.  
  2. I work 5 days a week in an office where you know there has to be that one co-worker that is going to enjoy this day the most. Be that co-worker! This website gives some great ideas for the office.  
  3. I can’t help but post this website and their top 100 April fool jokes of all time. Some of these you might remember some of these might be a surprised that they happened.
  4. I love this one the most because it usually means someone is going to taste something very salty or very sweet when they think it is the opposite. Little kids are the best to prey on with this one but some of these is nothing more than a trick of the mind. This website has some great ideas with jokes with food. 
  5. I can’t leave this day with posting at least a couple of actual jokes that I have played on people. For those of you who know me well; you know that this is by far the tame side but I don’t want to give anyone the wrong ideas here. J So my first joke involves 2-3 Jolly Rancher candies inside the shower head. It works the best on men since they usually take the shortest showers. Unscrew the shower head and add the open Jolly Ranchers inside. Screw the cap back on. When the next person comes in to take a hot shower, the candy will naturally melt and leave a sticky residue on the person. It is enough to get people trying to figure out what is going on and possibly take another shower but not so much that you have to clean up a mess. The second is the age-old trick of Icy Hot or Bengay on the toilet seat. Cover the toilet seat in a very thin layer as invisible as possible. Just wait for the next victim to use the toilet. Afterwards the unsuspecting person will begin to feel a warming-cooling sensation just as the product describes. It is funny to watch the person start squirming in their pants and the clean-up is relatively easy on the prankster.

Turn Up the Volume

/ jennced15 / 7 Comments

So guess what happened . . . I got busted with my music. I was cleaning and working in the kitchen when I decided to turn on some music. I needed to stay focused but I didn’t want to be distracted either so I turned on Jack Johnson. I know what you are all thinking, “don’t go overboard Jenn”, am I right? Well apparently I did and I actually got my upstairs neighbor to come down, knock on my door, introduce herself and tell me to turn it down.

Huh?!

Good night nurse! Someone put some salt on her Cheerios this morning. J

I get it—I live in an apartment and we have to be respectful to everyone around us but I am probably the most silent tenant ever and I got in trouble over Jack Johnson? Good thing it wasn’t Metallica.

So in honor of music and fun. Here are my current top 5 upbeat songs that every one of you should play at loud volumes and I will just listen to in my car.

  1. DNCE: Cake By the Ocean (To avoid some choice words; I choose the live TV version to share)
  2. Rachel Platten: Stand By You
  3. Panic! At The Disco: Victorious
  4. Walk The Moon: Shut Up and Dance
  5. Elle King: Ex’s and Oh’s

Bonus: Here is a couple of fun Irish Pub Songs given that it is March!

  1. The Dubliners: The Sick Note
  2. Makem & Clancy: Mary Mack

And if you hadn’t already thought of it . . . HAPPY EASTER EVERYONE!!

Bloom Where You Are Planted

/ jennced15 / 2 Comments

I can’t seem to help it; spring is making me very happy this year. I am ready to spend my time looking at beautiful flowers, trees and shrubs. I am ready for the assault of color that spring brings after the dreariness of winter. In fact, I have to share with you some of the best places I have been to in order to see blooms.

  1. The Butchart Gardens located in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada
  2. Woodburn Tulip Festival located in Woodburn, Oregon
  3. International Rose Test Garden located in Portland, Oregon
  4. Ballymaloe Cooking Garden located in Shanagarry, Ireland
  5. Avoca located in Wicklow, Ireland