rainbows

it's been pretty warm and dry in georgia lately - although not nearly as bad as it was this time last year. we are still in a drought but we seem to be getting rain more often. yesterday was a strange weather day. it was bright and sunny all day then around 6pm it got really dark and cloudy and it poured for about 10 minutes. the whole time johnny and i were stuck at another chamber of commerce shindig for my mom, but we got to witness the best part of it all. as we left the building, we noticed a vibrant rainbow right in front of us. then we realized holy crap - we can see the whole thing! it was truly a magnificent rainbow. then i saw another rainbow on top of the first one - like a double rainbow. we could see the whole thing so clearly, it was just beautiful. i wish i had a camera at that moment, but johnny and i watched the rainbow the whole way home because it seemed to follow us. we even saw it clearly from the highway. as we got closer to home, we noticed that the end of the rainbow seemed to be right over our neighborhood. in fact, the end of the rainbow seemed to be right over our house....

sometimes it's hard not to believe in god cause there are just some things quite unexplainable. i can't imagine what better sign from the heavens than a beautiful rainbow leading the way home. it made me happy to think we already have a pot of gold.

on the other hand, johnny pointed out, someone might have already followed that rainbow and is ransacking our house.....

roasted corn peanut salad

**imagine gorgeous close-up photo here**

have you ever been to f2O? it's a casual fast-food fusion restaurant franchise that serves salads, sandwiches, etc. i went there for the first time a few weeks ago and ordered a wedge salad with the roasted corn peanut salad on the side. the wedge salad was okay, but the roasted corn peanut salad rocked my socks off. it was sweet, tangy, and salty but really fresh and crisp. the flavors complemented each other so well!

well, i've searched high and low for the recipe and couldn't find it. so i hacked it myself. a lot of this is to taste cause i just basically fiddled around with ingredients and measurements but i got the concept down and it turned out pretty damn good. it's a very satisfying side dish or snack on its own. without further ado...

Roasted Corn Peanut Salad


4-6 ears of fresh corn

1 big red bell pepper, finely diced

1 white onion, finely diced

3 medium carrots, fresh and julienned (or coarse grated)

2 or 3 cups dry roasted peanuts (more or less, depending on how crunchy you like it)

handful of fresh basil leaves (from your fabulous herb garden...)

1 cup balsamic vinegar

1/2 cup olive oil

1/2 cup agave nectar (or honey would probably work just fine)

2 tablespoons of toasted sesame oil

coarse ground sea salt and pepper to taste

1 lime, fresh squeezed to taste


okay, first thing to do is roast the corn. we ran out of propane on our grill so i just lightly brushed the corn with olive oil and broiled them in my oven. either way is fine! don't over-roast them, though - you still want the corn to have some fresh crunch to it.

finely dice the bell pepper and onion, combine with julienned carrots in big bowl. you could probably get really creative here and add fresh bean sprouts or maybe some fresh jalepeno if you want to add some kick. pretend you're making salsa...

in another smaller bowl, combine the vinegar, sesame oil, olive oil and agave nectar. whisk together and taste. if you like the taste, you're done - if it needs more sweet or tangy, add nectar or vinegar until you're happy :)

by now the corn should be done so take those out and carefully cut the kernels off the cob with a knife. be careful with the knife, i was impatient so i cut my kernels off before the corn cooled but you might want to wait until they are cool enough to touch. i just set the corn on it's wide end and cut vertically down the sides, rotating the corn as i go.

combine the corn with the other veggies in the big bowl, add peanuts and toss. drizzle in the vinegar mix, sprinkle some salt and pepper, squeeze in some lime juice, and throw in your chopped fresh basil and toss your salad some more, baby!

the result is yummy crunchy fresh sweet tangy salty delishiousness. you might have to play with the amounts of seasoning to your liking. i would say this dish would go great at barbeques. it's best served cold but ya know.. it's okay to eat it once it's done for quality control purposes...

sorry about not having a picture, not only did i misplace the stupid charger for my camera but the salad didn't stick around long enough to be photographed, anyways..... if i make some more, i'll definitely have a damn picture to show for it next time..

the big 3-0

today is my 30th birthday.

it's weird but i always considered 30 to be the age where you HAVE to grow up. i kinda lumped the 20's in with the teenage years and 30 is the official milestone into adulthood. wow, was i ever wrong. i've been an adult since i was a kid. now that i am an adult, i am more like a kid. i think "adultness" is way over-rated. i still want to have fun and do silly things. i seem to be way more into it than i was as a child. i mourned the idea of turning 30 because i had given myself a deadline and that was my first mistake. i'm re-connecting with the things i missed as a kid and i love it. i want to see and do and learn and play with enthusiasm because i want my kids to have a childhood like an adventure. how can i give them that if i can't recognize it myself? so now, my 30's is going to be all about happiness - what it takes to be happy and going there. i learned my lessons the hard way in my 20's and now i think it's time to reap some rewards.

my firends have come to visit me. i even had some old firneds i haven't seen in a while visit... it is nice to see them again. we went for a hike around the lake this morning and had indian buffet for lunch. we took naps and played with babies and puppies. i'd say that's a happy day!

syrus to the rescue!

today we took the dogs to the lake - again. those dogs really are spoiled. but the lake is gorgeous and peaceful so we enjoy it very much too. B and i went first with louie cause johnny was at the vet with syrus and bibi getting shots. afterwards, they met us at our favorite spot on the lake. when B and i strolled up to the spot, johnny was standing on the edge of the lake with his wallet, keys, cellphone, and cigarettes on the ground beside him. he was about to jump into the lake!

we arrived just as syrus was saving bibi's life. johnny had thrown the ball out onto the lake and bibi got caught up on a branch and couldn't escape. she would have drowned if left alone - but syrus dove in and swam to her! he swam right up and bumped into her so that she could break free of the branch and swim back. johnny was getting ready to rescue bibi but decided to see what syrus would do first. i am very proud and impressed with syrus because he always acted like bibi was a pain in his ass. now if that had been louie drowning out there, syrus would have pushed him under himself!

so, we realized that syrus's grumpy disposition is really just a facade because deep down inside, he truly loves his little sister....awwww....

this is one of the first photos of bibi and syrus, right after we adopted bibi and brought her home. syrus was moping. he's like, "is she seriously staying here?"

it's gonna be a little quieter

so, a lot has happened in the past week. but i choose to view all of them as good things, despite what it may sound like. you know that saying, all things happen for a reason? well, i believe it. i, of all people, need lots of good reasons for everything. which is why it's OK that i no longer have a job. yes, i lost it - which makes me the fourth adult living in this house that has become unemployed within the last four months. we are a bunch of very intelligent, highly capable and qualified people without any jobs. i can't quite blame all of this on the economy, but it definitely played a part. so, where's the silver lining? well, we had to make a silver lining ourselves. johnny and i decided to put 110% of our effort into starting the business we have been thinking about for a while now. we have been brainstorming like crazy and made some moves in the past few days to get the ball rolling. and we are very excited. scared, but excited. is it completely insane to start a new business right now? or is it a smart move? will we be able to get financing or are banks scared to loan money to anyone right now? we shall see what the next couple of weeks holds for us, but we'll either make the business float or we'll be desperately searching for a new job. the stakes are pretty high but i'm willing to bet on us. if you're curious about what kind of business it may be, i'll give you a hint - it has to do with printed media :) wish us luck!

RIP stewie.

we had to kill one of our cockerels this weekend. he was not doing so well. his butt turned black and he wasn't as interested in eating as before. we knew he was sick so johnny got to kill his first chicken. i didn't feel that bad cause it was a mercy killing but still - it was a little sad.

as for the remaining 8, they are on borrowed time. those little *&^%# destroyed my garden by roosting in my squash and pecking everything else to death. that's ok, though. i'm learning.

and yet - no eggs.

but i am happier than normal because i have managed to take a big step in personal improvement and started an exercise regimen with B that we have stuck to pretty well. i live in a beautiful neighborhood with lots of hills, some of them pretty steep and for about 45 mins, B and I walk around the neighborhood. lately, it's been a bit tougher cause of the humid heat, but we still do it. it feels quite good afterwards, too. i'm a little proud of myself by exceeding my doc's recommendation of exercising for 30 mins. 5 times a week. we've been walking nearly everyday.

i am a little worried about this heat, though. our utilities are going to be really high at this rate. plus, we are still in a drought. and the price of gas is really hurting. time to up the ante and make myself healthier, stronger, more frugal, and more thankful.

atlanta botanical garden

last weekend a good friend and i visited the gorgeous atlanta botanical garden and took these marvelous pictures... i really can't add much commentary to these pictures so i'll let them speak for themselves... enjoy! :)

i do have to say this little guy is so green and cute! i love lizards. he almost looks like a baby iguana but he's just a little garden lizard. he sat there for a second eyeing me but let me take his picture before scampering off!

there were a bunch of moving sculptures around the botanical garden, this being one of them. we didn't take a whole bunch of pictures for some reason, but i really love the look of rock gardens...

isn't this orchid gorgeous? the orchid display was my second favorite - right behind the rainforest exhibit. you'll see why...

isn't this just breathtaking? well, i guess you'd have to be there in person to really appreciate it. those are roots hanging down from the really high ceiling above in this rainforest greenhouse. the roots hung almost to the ground, you have to walk through them and it's fantastic!

and finally, the piece de resistance! this absolutely gorgeous blown glass sculpture by artist Dale Chihuly is on display in the green house, and it's truly magnificent. this guy is awesome.

announcement

in total contradiction of my recent post where i talked about blogging less, here is an important annoucement i need to make.

i am now a proud member of the atlanta pet chicken meetup. i seriously want to attend the next meeting because i have very important questions to ask, like:

how do you keep them from pooping all over the coop?

how do you get them to try new foods?

what really is the best method of slaughtering a chicken?

what do you do about the flies?

will all the roosters crow, or just the alpha male? are there alpha males?

when will i get any damn eggs?

does anyone have problems with their neighbors over the chickens?

the return of the housephone

last friday on my day off i went to a check-up with my doctor and in the process somehow managed to get my cellphone disconnected. let's just say, VERIZON SUCKS. yes, they do. the lady called me up while i was IN the exam room and tried to corner me into paying my bill right then and there. well, i told her i couldn't pay her at that moment so she disconnected my line and johnny's. the funny thing is, she tone of her voice indicated that she really thought she was hurting me by shutting off my service. like she had a gun to my head, and i should be frightened and beg her not to cut it off. i honestly didn't care. in fact, i was fine with it. the only person that needs me to have a cellphone that bad is my mom and i feel no obligation to pay that much money to be at her beck and call. this woman obviously had no clue how much i didn't care about my damn cell phone. so it got turned off.

it was actually quite refreshing to not hear the annoying ringtone and then feel obligated to answer it whenever it rings. i rather dislike talking on the phone in general(excluding my bff's and my sis, of course). so we had to rely on the house phone for communication. we only have one house phone, and it is on the 2nd floor, in the office. it's mainly a fax machine, actually, and the only purpose it serves is to establish a DSL connection for my internet. I hate COMCAST, too. unfortunately, we have learned to tune out the sound of the house phone ringing so we never answer it. and if you do manage to hear it, you have to dash upstairs to answer before the fax kicks on. if this was to be our only means of using a telephone, it obviously wouldn't do.

so johnny installed a new jack and set up the cordless phone in the living room. this is the first time since i have lived in the house that i had a phone in any other room besides the office. and it was nice. i liked it. in fact, i LIKE having a house phone better than having a cell phone now. it's non-committal. i don't have to answer it. why? cause i could be out. or i could be not near the phone. or i could be outside. i have excuses not to answer!! this will work great on my mom.

well, she wasn't so happy about the blackout and made it clear that this will not do for her. she told me that i have to have a cell phone.

so i called up verizon on monday and paid the stupid bill and got my phone back on. ugh.

lazy lazy weekend

i hardly did anything over my 3 day weekend. it was great. johnny and i basically lounged around the house. well, i mainly napped while johnny did random things like re-inforce the chicken barrier and screw handles on the coop. we are having a bit of trouble keeping the chickens from roaming onto the street. a few of my neighbors have come by to check out our birds so i think they'll be cool with having a mini chicken farm next door. unfortunately, jerky has begun to practise his crowing. right now he sounds like he has a sore throat.

i think i need to take a little break from blogging while i get certain things in my life straightened out. i have to re-examine my career/job issue and plan for my future a little bit. i am also trying to lose 15 by the next time i see my doctor which is in 3 months. i've been walking around the neighborhood and eating less so i a optimistic about losing weight but don't wanna jinx myself.

in the meantime, i will be posting less frequently. cause ya know, i blog way too much.