30. Thankful For

This is my last post in the original "Smash Journal Challenge," as noted in post one. I'm certainly thankful for being able to complete this. I have a Thankful Board on Pinterest, which relates to this. I'm certainly most thankful for my wonderful and supportive family and the opportunities that they have given me.

29. Free Theme (list)

Some Things I've Written

Novels

• Kentucky Memoir
• Some Weird Thing on Trolls
• The Metaphysical Journey of Fredrick J. Seacum

Short Stories

• SLO Morning
• Wedding Weekend
• Disattachment
• SciFi Book

Poetry

• Waking the Dream
• Disattachement (Sestina)

28. Something Pretty

Here's a picture of a random waterfall in Costa Rica, from my travel bucket list. 

27. A Celebration

Best Wedding Cake Ever.

26. Mittens

This is Mittens. My uncle's neighbor had taken in a bunch of strays, and Mittens was one of the kittens.

25. My ride

After I moved to Paducah, the Cougar was on its last legs. I was driving between Paducah and Lexington frequently, which is about a four hour drive. One cold morning my car wouldn't start, and I had to have the car jumped. My Mercury was towed to a Toyota repair shop, where it wasn't fixed, but they did get it running, somehow. I limped back to Paducah, without the battery holding a charge. I replaced the car with a Blue Toyota Corrolla S, which has served me quite well for the past two years. No more worrying if I'm going to be stuck on the side of the road.

24. Makes me Google

Pinterest makes me Google more than about anything. It's a lot easier than finding magazines to cut pictures out to make vision boards.

23. Washi Tape

Washi Tape. I'm not really sure what it is. Here's a link to sheknows.com that explains it. Seems like a novel idea. Frankly, I didn't read the whole article. She knows, so I don't have to. :-)

22. In the Garden

Well, I don't currently have a garden, and it's the middle of February. If I were to have a garden though, I do live in an apartment, so I would have to make adjustments. The only thing I have kept alive here is a poinsettia. Perhaps, I can do some sort of porch jungle when the weather starts to warm up.

I seen a few really cool porch jungles. My neighbor has one, a friend of mine had one in Connecticut. It's a fabulous idea. Maybe I'll give it a try.

21. Chores

Over the past few weeks, I've really slacked off on chores. School and Skyrim have kept me occupied. I've managed to keep everything tidy but barely. Over the weekend, I updated my computer to Windows 8 and Office 2013. Office ended up loading on the wrong file, so it took me all weekend and a couple hours with the Microsoft help desk to figure that out, but, now that everything is working, both software packages are amazing. Moving everything around with Win8 is really fun, and Office 2013 has a citation package, which is really cool. As far as real chores though, my apartment could sure use a vacuum.

20. Something I miss

I do miss the snow. It sounds silly. Life is a lot easier without having it around. No slipping and sliding or being late places, but I do like to ski, snowboard and sled. A huge storm just hit the northeast, and we didn't get a flake here in Kentucky.

Something about snowmen and hot chocolate that is just an all around good time. Plus it reminds me of all my friends and family back in Connecticut.

19.Top Ten *Punk* Songs

In no particular order:

Underdog World Strike, Gogol Bordello
I Wanna Be Sedated, The Ramones
Float, Flogging Molly
Police Truck, Dead Kennedys
Astro Zombies, Misfits
Complete Control, The Clash
Welcome to Paradise, Green Day
You, Bad Religion
Psycho Killer, Talking Heads
Ruby So-Ho, Rancid

18. What I wore today

17. @ 3pm

I'm currently in an MBA program at the University of Kentucky. Today, I have Tereza Dean's class at 3 p.m. It's a supply chain management class. The class is part of a larger module. We're in the process of earning our Lean Six Sigma Green belts. This class has been coupled with other traditional classes, as well as  a course taught by LeanCor. I've been having a lot of fun in this module, and I'm hoping to launch my new career with supply chain management in May (Cross Fingers).

16. Snack Food

I've been really into nachos lately: Shake shredded taco cheese onto tortilla chips, like Tostitos Original or On the Boarder. Then spoon a teaspoon of Frog Ranch Salsa (Medium) onto each chip. Then top each chip with a slice of Serrano pepper. Shake more taco cheese on top. Bake at 375 for about 8 to 10 min, until the cheese is melted.

15. Favorite Color

Red. I think of love whenever I see it. This probably has something to do with my listening to hypnosis tapes on iTunes. I used to be really into green, and I still have a soft place in my heart for it. Green is a much calmer color. However, I do have a blue car. Definitely will go with red as my favorite color, for now.

14. Love

Some family and friends among many

13. Hobbies

The truth of the matter is that I have a lot of hobbies, and this is a far from an inclusive list. I just like to do a lot of stuff. Variety is the spice of life, at least mine. The first picture I have put up on my computer desk top. I figured I would try it for a house, as it worked for a car. I have a blue car similar to my computer wallpaper I had previously. I love to write and everything that relates to writing.

Vision Boards

Novel Writing

Journaling

Wandering around in the woods and finding beaver dams

Visiting historical sites for the purpose of nostalgia

Skiing and snowboarding

Running

Picking fruit and berries that are grown by professionals

Tarot, Astrology and Symbolism at Large

Costumes

The occasional thing that scares the $#*! out of me

Cookouts

12. Receipe

This is my super secret (a.k.a., I don't pay attention to my cooking.) recipe for butternut squash soup that everyone asks for, and I'm just like "throw a bunch of stuff into that Kroger butternut squash soup with apples." However, I can't find that recipe anymore on the Kroger website, but it is on the U.S. Apple Association website (Smokey Apple & Butternut Squash Soup). So, I admit, making my soup is a little more complicated than just making some quick changes to a recipe, but that description is exactly how the process works in my mind. I love altering butternut squash soup recipes. I usually add celery, carrots, apples, chili pepper, and cumin.  I don't think I've ever used nutmeg, as this Food Network Recipe suggests. Italics are my additions. Strikes are my subtractions. Disclaimer: This is not an exact recipe; I cook to taste, but this is as close to my recipe as I can replicate.

Butternut Squash Soup Ingredients

• 1 (2 to 3 pound) butternut squash, peeled, seeded and sliced (diced not necessary)
• 2 tbsp unsalted butter (or Pam or whatever really, just wing it) (can sub one tbsp olive oil for one of butter)
• 1 medium onion to 3 large onions, chopped
• 0 to 5 cloves garlic (how adventurous are you feeling?)
• 0 to 3 Bay Leaves (likewise)
• 2 stalks celery, very lightly peeled to remove loose strings and then chopped (more is better)
• 2 carrots, peeled and chopped (at least 1, more is ok)
• 1 apple to 1 lb of apples (usually 2 apples), peeled, cored and sliced (I've subbed apple sauce, not as good)
• 6 cups chicken stock
• 1 c. to the whole (32 oz) container of Swanson (gotta be) chicken broth (low sodium is good)
• (add 1 c. apple juice if only using 1 c. chicken broth and add juice or broth as needed for proper viscosity)
• Nutmeg (might try adding this next time)
• 1 tsp chili powder (was using a tbsp, a bit spicy, note says to use chipotle chili powder, not sure what that is)
• A few dashes of cumin (have used as many as 10)
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper (to taste, about--at least-- 1/2 tsp)
• (Garnish Options: toasted pecans, sour cream, and/or additional apple slices)

Directions

Cut squash into 1-inch chunks. In large pot melt butter (and heat oil, if using). OPTION: Add onion, garlic and celery and cook until translucent, about 8 to 10 minutes, if desired. Add squash, carrots, apples, and stock broth (and juice if using). (Throw it all in the pot, option to add Bay Leaves here.) Bring to a simmer (low heat) and cook until squash, apples and carrots are tender, about 15 to 20 minutes an hour. Add first round of spices (all the spices but on the light side if unsure, ok if these were put in earlier). Remove squash chunks with slotted spoon and place Cool, remove bay leaves (if used) and pour the whole concoction in a blender and puree (will take more than one full blender capacity). Store for later or return blended squash to pot and heat, cook down to proper viscosity (add juice or broth if too thick). Stir and season with nutmeg, salt, and pepper to taste. Serve.

Option to garnish with toasted pecans, sour cream swirls and/or thin apple slices.

(I don't know any of this other stuff.)

Serves 6  (Probably serves at least 8)

Calories: 125

Total Fat: 5 grams

Saturated Fat: 2.5 grams

Protein: 3 grams

Total carbohydrates: 19 grams

Sugar: 4 grams

Fiber: 3.5 grams

Cholesterol: 10 milligrams

Sodium: 1044 milligrams

11. Stamp

It's official. You're effort has been stamped and filed. Thank you for contributing. :-) hehe.

10. What Makes Me Happy

My friends have always treated me very well, and I'm very lucky to have them in my life. Going hiking, playing video games, watching football or just tossing a ball around are some of the happiest times I've had in my life.