Tuesday, September 28, 2010

Sugar Rush.

You know that rule that you should never go grocery shopping while you're hungry?  Well I broke it last Saturday.  I was seriously craving some candy.  Not chocolate...but candy.

After an impulse purchase, I left the store with 300 Dum Dum Pops.  (The bag is HUGE!)  They have now found a home on my desk at work, and thankfully, my coworkers are helping me eat them all.  I think we have 250 left to go after 4 days of sucking.

My favorite flavors are the peaches, tangerines and oranges.  But what I like best is pulling one out without looking to get a surprise flavor.  It's a good thing 3 of the pops have only 59 calories because I've definitely eaten my share!


Fun Fact: The Mystery flavor has one flavor on the outside and another on the inside!  They are made when the machine is switching from one flavor to another...

Sunday, September 26, 2010

Proud to be a foodie.

Finding new hidden gem restaurants in the area is one of my absolute favorite things to do.  If you look at my monthly credit card statements, 90% of the charges are for food.  I'm a total foodie slash wino and proud of it!

Each weekend night, between shows, Csaba (a fellow foodie) and I seek out any and all non-chain restaurants we can to find some unique flavors scattered throughout Limaland.

Tonight we tried Keith's Landeck Tavern, famous for their fried chicken.  I can speak for both of us when I say we LOVED it.  The entire menu was dotted with surprises such as sweet potato fries, toasted ravioli, fabulous burger combinations, and of course, fried chicken.  I didn't dabble tonight for obvious reasons, but I did check out the beers on tap as well, which consisted of Shock Top among other fan favorites.

We shared the a bowl of sirloin chili, fried chicken, a diablo burger and sweet potato fries.  All recommended.  It's for this reason that it tops my favorite restaurants of the area. 

Here's what my top 5 look like (so far):
1. Keith's Landeck Tavern
2. LuLu's Diner
3. Bankok Bay
4. Hunan Gardens Chinese Restaurant
5. Las Palmas Restaurant

Saturday, September 25, 2010

Everyone's a Critic.

One of my favorite shows I Project Runway.  I love seeing what Michael Kors, Nina Garcia and of course, Heidi Klum have to say compared to what I think.  Sometimes I agree and sometimes I (or they) am way off.

Watching the interaction between designer's judging the work of their fellow competitors today reminded me a little of the environment here in the news room.

It's very easy to sit on the outside and point out the mistakes of others..it's a lot harder to recognize them in your own work!  It's because of this that the news business is one that requires a tough skin.  For me, it's important I take the critiques at face value, consider who they are coming from, and then either use them or dismiss them.

Either way, getting the opinions of others can do a couple things.  One, it can make your work ten times better...two heads are better than one right?  I think the flip side can also happen.  It can sway your vision to create a muddled story with no clear focus.  Too many chefs spoil the pot, right?

It was funny to me to see such a similarity in two very different industries.

Thursday, September 23, 2010

One of Lima's Best Kept Secrets.

Csaba and I checked out the Warehouse Produce & Grocery on East Kibby Ave. this afternoon and were very pleased!  It's a discount produce market with fabulous products and prices!  Today I picked up some pumpkins, peppers, yams, green beans, bananas and onions!  Plus there was much more.

I think this may be a weekly thing for me.  The shop is open Thursday through Sunday with fresh produce each week.

Check out their website at warehouseproduceandgrocery.com.
Peppers - $0.77!



Hello Fall, Hello Summer.

Even though to day is the first full day of fall, it still feels like summer with a high in the low 90's today!  Punch spent her morning sun tanning while I hung some rugs out to dry in the sun. 

I have to say, I am ready to be done with summer...I want some cloudy rainy days...and something a little more interesting to forecast, other than hot and sunny!

Darren, Kyle and I put our heads together to comprise a fall seasonal forecast.  It aired on the Wednesday 11pm news.  In case you missed it...here's a link to the website. 

Check it out at hometownstations.com and let me know what you think!

Sunday, September 19, 2010

Dog Day at the Beach.

Saturday afternoon for me was all about Punch.  It was the annual Dog Day at the Beach and Ottawa Metro Park just outside Lima.  the goal: wear her out!  There were so many puppies to play with, it was a little overwhelming for her I think at first.  We spent a couple hours splashing through the water and kicking up sand. 

When she started to spend her time with me at the picnic table instead of with the other dogs, we knew it was time to go home and take a nap.

Our favorite dog of the day?  (Besides our friend, Brutus, the yellow lab mix...)  The doberman.  He had lots of energy and Punch couldn't get enough of him!

I wish there were more days like this for the dogs...



Thursday, September 16, 2010

Late Night Muffin Making.

So I had a bunch of kiwi's that I bought from Sam's Club .  When half of them started to get with every intention of eating too ripe I needed to find a recipe to use them all up.  Here's what I came up with, courtesy of Stolen Moments...Strawberry-Kiwi Muffins!  The batter was so good, I could barely bring myself to bake them!

1 c. butter or margarine

1 1/2 c. sugar
2 eggs
2 t. vanilla
4 c. flour
4 t. baking powder
1 t. salt
1 c. milk
1 1/2 c. diced strawberries (about 1/2 a pound)
2 kiwis, peeled and diced

1. In a large bowl, cream the butter or margarine and sugar. Mix in the eggs and vanilla.

2. In a separate bowl, lightly mix the flour, baking powder and salt.  Alternately add the flour mixture and milk into the mixing bowl, stirring just until combined.  Do not overmix or your muffins will have tunnels through them!

3. Fold in strawberries and kiwi.


4. Scoop batter into greased muffin tins and bake at 400 degrees for about 15-20 minutes, until golden brown and cooked through.
They also have a recipe for Bacon Cheddar Muffins that are on my list next...




Re-re-decorating.

Yes, it was only two months ago that I made a new headboard for a new look to the bedroom.  Yet, today felt like a good day to re-do the look again.  A couple new lamps and some faux fur for the faux headboard did the trick...add a new mirror over the dresser and I'm satisfied once again.  For now, anyway.

Here's some pics.  What do you think?


Speechless.

There's no excuse for not blogging...I'm just saying I took a good long birthday hiatus...and I'm back.

First order of business...cheesy potatoes.  Thanks to boyfriend, Bryan, for doing my recipe enough justice to get a shout out on Bestie M's blog.  Yay!

Wednesday, September 1, 2010

Sunshine Breakfast.

So I've been working the morning show this week at the station while Kyle is on his honeymoon...that means breakfast, a meal I am usually not awake for. But seeing as my day starts at 3am this week, I need some breakfast. While coffe and a string cheese will hold me over until my break at 7, I need something more than that to continue the day! This is what I've come up with...very yummy!

English muffin, toasted
Apricot jam
Siracha sauce
Tomato, sliced
Egg, over medium

Put it all together in a sandwich and viola!