I want to find myself in this movie.

I love it. For so many reasons:
#1) I love winter even more than I love fall. Cold weather makes me so happy. The possibility of snow, lots of coffee, hot cocoa, sparkling lights in the dark, all the WHITE. WHITE EVERYWHERE. I obviously have a very specific mental image of winter.
#2) Of the places on my "places to live" list England is one of them. I love the cozy cottages (see above because this too applies to winter), and the accent, the art... What a nerd. I know.

This photo some what captures ONE of my mental images... Lights....

And then there's this... The snow. Google ALWAYS has the answers, right? Yeah. Not today. I have this image in my head that I so want to share. Oh well. This is one of the many reasons that I need to look into Pinterest. Hopefully, you get the idea.

The other place on my "places to live" list is above.... That's St. Lucia just in case you wondered....

I went out last night!

Well, I didn't go out out last night. Just out for a friends birthday celebration, and well not so much a rip roaring wild celebration, but a nice semi-calm dinner... At Baja (just so it sounds spicy) and I had a delicious Mambo Margarita(it had sangria swirled in it). Oh my gosh. It was delicious. After all the stress of these past few weeks the laughter was so fantastic!  That's about all I have to update on this.

30 Day Challenge...

So I've caught wind of the "30 Day Photo Challenge" and well here's DAY 1!
Day 1 is a photo of yourself with 10 facts.
1. I don't drink sodas, but I do drink A LOT of coffee. I don't really drink cows milk, but I do drink coconut milk
2. I'm convinced that NO MAN is a better man than my Daddy. End of story.
3. I can cook better than you. If I'm super stressed I'll "bake the day away."
4. I have just enjoyed the BEST relationship free year of my LIFE.
5. I believe that there's a place for everything, and everything should be in its place. Clutter makes me nuts if I'm stressed out.
6. I am currently letting my hair grow long after having very short hair for 5 years.
7. I believe people should just be real. I'm real.
8. If you make me extremely angry I'm done with you.
9. I don't have time for games, besides, I already know them all. (see #8)
10. I find that people are generally disappointing. This is why you should never put all of your faith in mankind, and that brings me to this final portion... All faith should be put in the Lord.

It's Super Bowl Sunday?

So, I was feeling a bit "Southern Domestic" this evening so I cooked. Boy did I ever cook. Baby Lima Beans, Creamed Potatoes, my Grandmother's BBQ Chicken, and corn bread. Served with sweet onion and sweet tea. I feel like the corn bread was so amazing that I need to share it with you all.

2 1/2 cups Cornmeal
1 3/4 cup Milk
Salt, Sugar
3 tbsp oil
2 eggs
cheese and Jalapenos (to taste)

Mix and bake at 450 F for 20 minutes.

Now, let me make a suggestion with the jalapenos. ..Don't put half a bottle in there. I mean it's beyond delicious, but it will for sure spice up your mouth and clear out your sinuses.
So, if you're hungry let me know. There's A LOT of food here.

uprising

You know...
I think that "V-Day" is probably the most retarded holiday ever. I see all these count downs "OMG only __ more days until me and my boyfriend get to celebrate Valentines Day..." blah blah blah so on and so forth with more nausea. Now, I may seem like the bitter cynic, but wasn't St. Valentine murdered? No, wait, he was martyred by the Roman Emperor. And then there's cupid...He's a full grown person in baby form and shoots ARROWS at people. This holiday is beginning to seem more and more violent with each passing minute. Then, there's the "Valentine's Day Massacre." MASSACRE!!! I'm not sure that actually occurred on Valentine's day, but 7 people were murdered. I mean yes, it had to do with Al Capone and mobs/gang activity, but whatever. There's still blood involved, and it isn't from a beating heart!
So let's break this down, okay? So there's this "special day" so that you can profess and express your love/like/crush and it be "special" right? Could someone PLEASE tell me what's so special about showing affection on a day DESIGNATED to express affection. It seems more like OBLIGATION as opposed to sincerity. When  you think about it, I mean it really looses its "specialness" when you realize that someone didn't just think up these things on their own to do especially for you. Instead they are following in the footsteps paved by some retailer who says "buy/give this." Real special there Romeo.
I've heard that Valentines Day is really only for kids, and lovers. Well, I'm neither. Let's think about this "special day" in the eyes of a child/teen/tween (what IS a tween, anyway?) These little girls get up UBER excited about this day of amore. Thinking that some magical thing is going to spark away and that their crush is going to magically turn into a romeo/prince charming. (Well, little girls I hate to tell you this, but there is NO Romeo. There is NO Prince Charming. The ONLY place they exist are in Shakespeare, and Disney.) These gals sit excitedly waiting to see if this boy sends them a Valentine. Nerves on high, anxious as the day is long, ready to peel the paint off of the walls only to go home empty handed and to go to bed absolutely DEVASTATED because this fairy tale they've been fed didn't come true. Where's the love in that? And this, this is the point where females begin to realize that it's called a crush because it hurts. The "like" is only like you as a friend, and that love, well, that you'll only feel love for your parents and family and close friends.
So this excited little holiday all of you are counting down for, I hope you enjoy your selfish little day.
I'm protesting. In the past we've cleverly renamed February 14 as Singles Awareness Day. This year, well, we'll see how we "celebrate". I'm sure I'll stick true to tradition and wear all black.We all know how much I LOVE to rock out black threads, anyway :).
Maybe I am bitter. Maybe I am a cynic. Maybe, just maybe I need to be proven wrong. I remember being a little girl (shut it with the old jokes), and there was always one little crush that I had. One year he gave me Hershey's Kisses, and one year I got a rose delivered to the school. I wonder if those are the best ones?
So, as you count down (8 days now - better get to shopping for that special gift) do you still feel special, or do you feel generic?

Where's my camera?

So, this weekend I prepared a pretty delicious dish...and I don't have to say so myself. I realized after the food was devoured I didn't photograph the beautifulness of it all. After going over many "ideas" over what to cook I decided on the following: Mixed green salad, tilapia, asparagus, and sweet potatoes. We all know that the asparagus, and sweet potatoes were baked and the tilapia was pan seared and THEN baked. :)
I'm going to have to say that Friday was probably the most fun I've had in a semi-long time.

In other news due to the crappy conditions of the roads I missed seeing my Mommy on her birthday. It's funny how things can change so much over time. We were never super duper close, and over the past few years and months we've become so close and I couldn't get home for her birthday. :( It's funny how something like that can cause that snowball effect. Now, I find myself a little homesick. 
 

Apartment life

So, I've now been in my "new" apartment for probably a good 30 hours. Spent my FIRST night here, and it was good. Now, some things have gone a bit wrong, but that's just going to happen. Firstly, I woke up at 5:50 am - dislike. However, I think that was due to the fact that my electric blanket DIED and I was FREEZING!! Small potatoes, but I still have to give that a dislike. No big deal right? Well... I sort of have no bedroom furniture so I'm sleeping on my oh so comfortable air mattress. I'm not kidding it is super comfortable, however you'll freeze to death on it. It's just temporary until I find what I want. :)  Oh and the master of ALL dislikes: no coffee maker. I mean, we only have 3 "at home." Did I think to bring one? Nope. So, I'm coming off cold turkey and that means WATCH OUT. Anyway, I cooked a yummy dinner. Spaghetti with whole grain noodles. They are okay, but I won't use them again. I may just have to stick to the white noodles from here on out.

The delicious sauce (yes, that is ground turkey).

this is the final product. Sorry for the bad presentation. It was delicious. Ha ha.

Oh and I'm rather proud of myself.... I went to ALL my classes today, got there on time, AND I paid attention the entire time. Big deal for me provided I had no coffee. 

I have two awesome roomies and I think it's going to be wonderful. I'm excited.

Goodbye 2010

Well, 2010 was great and all, but I have a feeling 2011 is going to be much better. 
I've done my "reflecting" on the year and all it held, and I'm thankful for many things. First off, I'm SO GLAD that my parents and I established a much stronger relationship. Secondly, I'm super happy that the VanillaCaramelWhiteChocolate became as close as we have. I honestly have some of the most amazing friends in this world (I may be a little biased though). It's sad that some friendships faded away, but it is what it is. 
Everyone makes Resolutions for the New Year and about a week or so into said new year they've already broken them. So, I'll make my resolution later in the year. Pretty sound idea, huh?

Anyway, one of the last nights of '10 was spent with some AMAZING people. I LOVE them. That's us there. Me, Christina, Jennifer and Priya. :) 
I hope EVERYONE had a fun and SAFE New Year's Celebration. The dog and I stayed home and I cooked some delicious homemade beef stew. Perfect for me!
Happy 2011.