Ok, I know this is a totally dorky, OCD post, but I have to share with my dorky, OCD friends. I was playing around on Pinterest a few days ago and found this “clean your microwave with a glass of this” post. If your microwave is anything like mine, it looks like the inside of a room Dexter’s had his way with. I even bought this little thing that you put over the top of your plate to keep stuff from splattering all over, but most of the time it just gets left somewhere outside the microwave.
Then, when I finally get fed up enough, I stand on my tippy toes, cursing whoever I think may have left the lid off (totally never me) scrubbing as hard as I can.
Well folks, scrub no more. It really is this easy:
Get a measuring cup or bowl.
Add one cup hot water and one cup white vinegar.
Put in the microwave and turn on for 10 minutes.
When the microwave goes ” beep, beep, beep” wipe it out with a paper towel.
Seriously, wipe it. No scrubbing necessary. The way it works is that the water and vinegar basically steam clean the inside of your microwave. It’s so freaking easy!
I’m not gonna lie, I haven’t paid much attention to music this week. That said, there is one song I’ve heard a few times on the radio that I really like. It’s called “Mirrors” by Justin Timberlake. It has a very 80’s power ballad sound to me… I love it! Can’t wait to see JT this summer!
This weekend we were invited to join our good friends the Waters’ and the DeBenedets at a beautiful cabin in the Sequoia National Park. We drove down on Friday morning and spent the rest of the afternoon hanging out, enjoying some drinks, and cooking some of those awesome street tacos my hubby makes. I felt terrible that everyone had to put up with my post-Alcatraz cold all weekend – I alternated between Dayquil and Nyquil as appropriate and tried to contain myself.
On Saturday, armed with Dayquil, we headed out for a little hike. The view at Panoramic Point was stunning – you could see the whole valley, including Hume Lake:
Hume Lake
I loved the cabin – it’s a real log cabin, with all of the amenities, with the exception of WiFi and cell service. It was kind of nice to be disconnected from the world for a little bit! My favorite part was the gigantic fireplace – we made s’mores every night!
LOVE This Fireplace!
Click on over to my Facebook page to see more pictures!
Finally, I want to reflect on the reason for having today off… it’s not just another day off work and a chance to spend time with family and friends. We need to remember all those who gave the ultimate sacrifice to ensure that we have the wonderful freedoms that many of us take for granted every day. So thank you to all of our service members who gave their lives, to all those who have served or are currently serving, and to their families, who also sacrifice. Happy Memorial Day!
Well, today was the big Sharkfest Alcatraz swim… I’m proud to say I not only completed it, but did it in 36 minutes and 42 seconds, much faster than I was anticipating! For those of you who don’t know, this is a 1.5 mile swim that starts at the Alcatraz Island, crosses the San Francisco Bay, and ends at the Aquatic Park.
Yesterday before we left town, I headed over to get a mani/pedi and decided to go with a shark theme. I think it turned out really cute, especially considering I had to explain what a shark was to the nail lady. I did get some compliments on the ferry this morning, so I consider them a hit!
Shark!!!
After that, we dropped Shadow at the kennel and headed for the Bay. Little did we know until about a week ago, but today San Francisco hosted the Amgen Tour of California, Sharkfest, AND Bay To Breakers. No wonder we had a really hard time finding a hotel! We ended up at a shady place out in Alameda, but it was clean and we got there late, so all we did was sleep.
This morning started with a 4:30am wakeup. Those of you that know me know that I get really nervous before races. I normally have an upset stomach, a hard time eating, and sometimes a headache. This morning actually felt pretty good… honestly, the best I’ve felt in a long time about any race. We headed over the Bay Bridge (note to self: they don’t take credit cards, so if you don’t have the cash, you get a $30 toll violation) and into the city. One thing I have to give the race organizers credit for was being very clear on what roads were closed – they gave fantastic directions into the city and listed out the times that the different roads would close.
Once we got to the Bay and parked, it was time to walk in. We had about a mile walk to the check in, but it was along the shore and was really nice. The weather could not have been more beautiful today… clear (no fog at all!), warm, and calm. We stood in line to get our hands marked (you had to have your numbers on both), get our mandatory yellow swim caps, get our timing chips, and pick up the very important t-shirts. My favorite part of any race is the t-shirt/medal!
Swim Shirt
After that was the inevitable wait… the sucky part. We hit the porta-potties and then did what I’ve now termed as “the wetsuit wiggle”. Those of you who have ever watched someone try to put on a wetsuit know that there is generally a lot of wiggling, sweating, and pulling. Now imagine ~800 people doing that. It was pretty hilarious. We had the pre-race briefing and then it was time for what the organizers called the race “parade”, which basically consisted of all 800 people walking about a mile to get on the ferries (there were 2).
Once we got on board, we headed out to the Bay. Everyone was excited and talking – either asking questions about where to sight (you have to pick a point to swim at and stick to it – if you’re not careful you can get caught in this funky current that sweeps you towards the Golden Gate Bridge) or sharing past Sharkfest experiences. At this point, I still wasn’t that nervous. Once we got out to the island we had to wait for about 20 minutes and then they opened the doors. This was where shit got real – you made the jump from ferry to water. Mike and I were some of the first swimmers in the water. It was not nearly as cold as I had expected… my hands and feet were a little cold, but I had been expecting to feel like I had hypothermia.
We waited about 10-15 minutes for the rest of the people to jump and then the ferry horn blew. Everyone started cheering and screaming and swimming. The beginning was a little scary only because everyone was all bunched together and swimming over the top of each other. Once I got into my own space and my rhythm it felt pretty good! I even made a point to stop about halfway across to look back at the island and to look over at the Golden Gate – how many people get to see those things from the water in the middle of the Bay?
My sighting was almost dead on – I came in pretty darned close to where I wanted. The problem was that I was about 100 yards off and right in the really strong current, so for a minute I had to swim like hell to get away from it. I actually had the conscious thought “this is how people drown in the ocean!”. After that it was smooth sailing in… the finish was lined with people cheering and a bunch of guys dressed like prisoners (get it? Alcatraz?). I headed over to the refreshment area where I had the best cup of water and trail mix of my life! Then I met up with Mike (who finished about 2 minutes after me).
Post-Swim Car Shot
This race was so much fun! I’m so glad I did it and I might even do it again next year!
It’s that time again, and this week’s song has seriously been stick in my head. It’s from the Pistol Annies album and is called “I Feel A Sin Comin’ On”. It’s one of those bluesy, all girl songs and I can’t get enough of it!
Unfortunately, there’s not a video yet, so we’ll have to make do with the lyric video below.
Tonight we finally tried the panini portion of our favorite grill pan (Le Creuset). We have a great panini cookbook and I wanted to try the muffuletta recipe… it was so delicious… almost as yummy as the ones I had in New Orleans (almost).
Enjoy!
Muffuletta
Ingredients
2 round Italian rolls
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup Sicilian-style mixed olive salad (I made my own – oregano, black olives, green olives, and garlic chopped and mixed)
2 ounces mortadella, thinly sliced
2 ounces provolone cheese, thinly sliced
2 ounces capicola (or Italian ham), thinly sliced
2 ounces mozzarella cheese, thinly sliced
Directions
Preheat your sandwich grill or pan. Place the rolls, cut sides down, on a work surface and brush the crust sides with the olive oil. Turn, oiled side down, and divide the olive salad between the bottom halves of the rolls. Layer on the mortadella, provolone, capicola, and mozzarella on top. Cover with the top halves of the rolls, oiled sides up, and press to pack gently.
Place the panini on the grill and close the top plate. Cook until the bread is golden, the meats are warmed, and the cheese is nearly melted (3 to 5 minutes).
I know I said that I would be reviewing Blake Shelton’s new album, but while I was buying music, I decided to give the Pistol Annies new album, Annie Up a try.
Annie Up
I love, love, love this album. The songs are all written by some combination of the three girls in the band, which I love. The first track, “I Feel A Sin Comin’ On” is possibly up there as one of my favorite songs ever… it’s a bluesy and has some amazing harmonies. I love the lyric, “Give me tall, dark, and handsome, mix it up with something strong, I feel a sin coming on”.
The rest of the album covers everything from broken hearts to true love. I seriously love this album – I give it two very enthusiastic thumbs up!
Favorite Songs: “I Feel A Sin Comin’ On”, “Blues, You’re A Buzzkill”, “Loved By A Workin’ Man”, and “Happily Unmarried”
I can’t wait until Friday to post this… ever since the concert last Friday this song has been stuck in my head!!! I love Blake Shelton on The Voice, and seeing him sign live made me love him even more… this song is seriously catchy! I really want to be a Pistol Annie so I can sing “Ooooooooh, let’s ride” over and over again in perfect harmony! No, seriously, I love the harmonies and the cool little guitar groove. I gave in and bought the album – review coming once I listen to it.
The video is hilarious… how can you go wrong with a cow, a blinged out rooster, a pig, and a bunch of rappers doing the Dougie?
Happy Mother’s Day to the best mama in the world! We may not always see eye to eye, but sometimes I think that’s because we’re the same person! 🙂 Thank you for all of your love and support! I love you!
Last night was the first concert on the country mega ticket… Miranda Lambert and Dierks Bentley on the Locked and Reloaded Tour. We headed out to the Sleeptrain Amphitheater for the first show that I’ve been to at that venue since high school. We got there a few hours early and enjoyed some tailgating time. The people watching was amazing and we got to see a ton of really impressive trucks.
Brigitte & I
I absolutely love concerts on the lawn… don’t get me wrong, some shows are not set up for that, but this one was perfect. We had a blast hanging out and really enjoyed the atmosphere and the show. Dan (Brigitte’s husband) took a moment between artists to educate me on where real cowboys keep their money…
Cowboy Boots
The show itself was really good… the opening act was Joanna Smith, who I honestly hadn’t heard of before this. She was pretty good and sang for about twenty minutes. She was followed by Randy Houser, who I absolutely love. I was a little bummed… he didn’t do “Anything Goes”, which is my favorite song of his.
After that, Dierks Bentley came out. He was super high energy and although I was a little skeptical of his live singing ability before this (I wasn’t all that impressed with both his and Miranda’s performance on the ACMs), they both kicked butt live. He did a really good job of interacting with the audience and I think my favorite song he sang had to be “5-1-5-0”.
Finally, it was time for Miranda Lambert. She was absolutely amazing – like much of her music, her show is centered around strong women who are normal people (she even said at one part “I’m a normal girl – I eat chicken fried steak, I drink beer, and I shop at Walmart”). Brigitte and I even commented that she seems like someone we would hang out with – just a normal girl who loves what she does. She had an amazing amount of energy and sang every one of her big hits, along with some newer songs from her latest album. About halfway through her set she was joined on stage by the Pistol Annies, her country girl band. They were so good… they have these really tight harmonies and sing some great songs!
It seemed like Miranda was finally done and was getting ready for her encore. The stage went dark and we heard “red red red red red red red red redneck”. Yup, out came none other than Blake Shelton himself, accompanied by the Pistol Annies to sing “Boys ‘Round Here”, which is his newest song on the radio that is constantly stuck in my head. It was such a great finale!
The weather was absolutely beautiful and perfect to kick off this concert series… I can’t wait for the next one!
Down The Road I Go 