2000 - 2009 A Life and Times of Amanda Review

It may seem silly and cliche, but I love reading articles about the year in review and the decade in review. This seems like the appropriate location to review what my past decade has been like. I'm going to use my brother's set up, because it's a great one. This past decade has seen the biggest changes in my life and I don't think it could have ended up better. The decade encompassed my high school and college years. While they may not be the best years of my life, they certainly are some of the most important. I've learned a lot throughout the past decade and I'm looking forward to learning more in the decades to come!

*Some of these years may not necessarily be accurate, and that's because I have a bad memory.

2000

Finished middle school and started high school at Mounds View High School.

My mom borrowed 3 books from a coworker about a boy named Harry Potter. I started to wish my school was magical.

Said no to drugs and alcohol.

Made the competition dance line at Metro Dance and started getting serious about dancing.

Began my short career as a Cheerleader for the MVHS girls hockey team. They were the best group of people I cheered for (sorry Tony's football friends).

Went to the Homecoming dance with a boy who was 30 lbs lighter than me and 3 inches shorter than me. Felt like a giant. First experience hearing someone say "I love you" and being really freaked out by it.

2001

Without plans for our spring break, my parents send Tony and I on a mission trip to an orphanage in Reynosa, Mexico with a family friend. One of the best last minute decisions that has had a lasting impact on my life.

Became a football and soccer cheerleader for a school I increasingly disliked. Told football players don't like Twinkies.

Started getting into music and learning to love a variety of sounds.

2002

Spent a month living with a family in Cuernavaca, Mexico learning Spanish. Had a great time living relatively independently in a foreign country.

Able to take Spanish 5 at MVHS and unlearn everything learned in Mexico.

Joined the junior varsity track team at MVHS.

Started doing competition tap, ballet and jazz after many years out of practice.

Went to my first concert alone, saw Fuel, Sevendust at the Roy Wilkins Auditorium. Saved up $27 to buy a concert t-shirt from selling custom mix CDs at school.

2003

Found out that I could spend my last year of high school, not going to high school and attending college for free.

Got in to the PSEO program at the University of Minnesota, one of the best things that I've ever done. I learned to be independent, take risks, and explored a vast new place.

Continued to do tap, ballet, jazz and dance line at Metro Dance.

Got my first job at Proex, taking portraits of people and developing pictures.

Opened my first bank account!

2004

Declared a Spanish minor while still in high school.

Graduated from high school. Vowed to never step foot inside MVHS again. A promise I have since kept.

Accepted into the Carlson School of Management at the University of Minnesota.

Quit my job at Proex and started working at East Side Beverage, a challenging but rewarding job.

Moved into Middlebrook Hall on the West Bank of the Mississippi. A great place where I met some wonderful people and made new friends.

2005

Spring semester was the worst for grades as I didn't listen to the recommendation and took 2 difficult classes that I didn't like at the same time. Slacked off an incredible amount for me.

Learned that I can't always coast through classes and spent much of April and May catching up.

Got a lot of music from a fellow music lover and expanded my tastes in music. Though I still don't do rap.

Started a job at the Gopher Express and Post Office in the student union. Discovered a life-long love for Amy's Pizza Pockets. I am extremely knowledgeable about postal requirements. Mailed my first human body parts.

Joined the Student Association for Non-profit Enterprise (SANE). Voted president of the student group to start that fall.

Became a U-Crew in Middlebrook hall starting in fall semester. Got a single and a mandate to help the freshman residents on 6th floor adjust and enjoy their college experience.

Started drinking.

Realized that I didn't want to be an Entrepreneur and changed my major to Human Resources and Industrial Relations. Hoped that with that major I'd be able to help people.

Got a bicycle for my birthday only to have it stolen 2 weeks into the school year.

2006

Applied for study abroad and was accepted to go to the Quinn School of Business at the University College Dublin.

Declared a Psychology minor to fill in the gaps until I graduated.

Moved my parents to Covington, Indiana and helped sell the home I grew up in, in Arden Hills, Minnesota. My job for that summer was to pack up the house, take Chip out of the house when people came to see it, refill the ponds, and keep the house clean.

Worked in Danville, IL for 1 month as an audit assistant. Learned I don't like numbers job and that I must always stay busy.

Traveled to Ireland where I didn't realize until the plane touched down that I didn't know a single person in the country.

Had a great time in Ireland; drinking whiskey, making great friends, studied quite a bit, traveling around Europe, and bringing my family over to show them a good time.

I figured out that I do best when I am constantly learning something new.

2007

Moved into a closet in Minnesota.

Struggled a bit to adjust to the change from study abroad.

Over Easter I ran my dad's ATV into a tree. Thought I was about to die and then got afraid of driving and motor vehicles after that.

Met and started dating Andy Harvey. Our first date encompassed riding in Critical Mass and dining at a Thai restaurant in St. Paul. We watched a barge in the Mississippi during sunset.

Completed my Emerging Leadership Program on principle and couldn't continue with the honors program if I graduated early.

Pete came for a visit over the summer and I tried to show him a good time around Minneapolis. It ended up that he was able to create a good time for himself here as well!

First time I questioned a grade I received from a teacher and went into mediation. Was able to move my grade up and felt more confident.

House got broken into the day after I moved in. I lost my laptop, camera, and sense of safety.

Graduated from the University of Minnesota in 3 1/2 years. Had to do my graduation ceremony in the spring, despite finishing in the winter. Happy to be done with school!

Got my first car that was my own! A wonderful 2008 Honda Fit. It fits a lot.

2008

Got my first job as a Human Resources Assistant at Mall of America. Learned to love MOA and learned a lot about people.

Called the city on my landlord a few times for dumping. Dealt with Thursday night garage parties 2 houses down, roomies that didn't always do their dishes, and the wonderment of a house that could be so cold in the winter could be so hot in the summer.

Got my first promotion 5 months after being hired, now an HR Representative, I started doing interviews.

Andy and I moved in together in a small house in South Minneapolis.

Andy proposed on the train ride home from a visit to Indiana. Started planning a wedding. Bought a wedding dress a couple weeks later.

Moved work offices from upstairs in Nickelodeon Universe to the basement of MOA in December. Stopped seeing daylight for awhile. Enjoyed a bigger "office" and being around the rest of MOA employees.

2009

Learned that planning a wedding takes a lot of time and effort.

Made a plan with Andy that in 2010 we would start looking for jobs out of state in earnest and move out of Minnesota within 2 years.

Started gardening and grew our own tomatoes, carrots, beans, radishes, lettuce, squash, and peppers. Ate more vegetables and fruits than ever before.

Learned how to can and preserve summer food.

Received a canoe for a wedding present from my parents and paddled around the Mississippi and Minnesota Rivers and Lake Nokomis.

Took my first trip to the BWCA with Andy and he didn't end up as bear bait. He passed the family test with flying colors.

Got married on October 10, 2009. Had a great time seeing everyone and I realized that the best thing about weddings was seeing all of my family at once.

Honeymooned in Portland, OR and had a wonderful time. Came home knowing that's where we'd like to live in the future.

2010

I don't usually make resolutions, but this year there are some things that I would like to accomplish.

• The first is to keep better track of my finances. I don't usually pay much attention to them, but I've realized that's a bad idea.
• Get a dog! For Christmas Andy and I saved some gift money for each other to put to adopting a greyhound.
• Move away from Minnesota. After living here our whole lives, Andy and I think it's time to try someplace new. Preferable that will be Portland, OR, but we're open to other places.

But it rains in Portland

I've got a few things on my mind today. Let's start with the cold.

When we've talked to people about wanting to move out west to Portland, Oregon. A common reply is "but it rains in Portland." This is usually coming from Minnesotans, who can't imagine wanting to live somewhere else. I'm a true blue Minnesotan myself, I was born and raised here, I spent my childhood building snow forts, skiing and sledding. But I could die right now if I went outside in my pajamas for any length of time. I love going outside, but not when the outside could kill me! Death from exposure doesn't really happen all that often in Portland. Doesn't that sound nice? Portland is pretty mild all year round. And some people say they'd miss having all 4 seasons. I would miss winter more if it wasn't trying to kill me. The best thing about Portland is that it's surrounded by mountains and you can choose when you want to visit winter. Plus you don't have to shovel all the time.

Suddenly this week, Minnesota decided it was going to be winter. After trying to drive to work, shoveling the drive way and walking to the train when its -20 degrees, I've decided that winter is a season for kids. Kids get to bundle up and make snowmen, wish for snow days, build forts, fall over in the piles of snow made by plows. For adults, snow means snarled traffic, spin outs, and shoveling. Lots and lots of shoveling. But at least its pretty now.

My next topic: Southwest Airlines. When we took our honeymoon to Portland, OR we took Southwest to get out there. Since I checked in pretty late, we were slotted to get on the plane last. If you know anything about Southwest, you know they don't have assigned seats. Boarding the plane last would ensure that we would probably not sit near each other in the 4 hours to Portland. Andy asked the attendant at the desk to see if we could sit together for our honeymoon and surprisingly they agreed! We got 2 seats next to each other in the 2nd row and the flight attendant offered us free drinks and gave us extra drink tickets for our flight home! It was amazing and definitely unexpected. It was a great start to our honeymoon.

Since they were so nice at Southwest, Andy wrote in to tell them the story and recognize the flight attendant for her service. A couple weeks later we got a package in the mail from Southwest with a letter. They thanked us for being customers and sent a wedding gift!! I couldn't believe it. They sent us a candy dish with a little heart in the center. So essentially, we asked for something from an airline and they provided that and kept on giving. That is something that we don't experience with all airlines.

That's all I have for today! It's cold outside and I'm glad to be warm!

I'm Married! Now I have to change my name.

One important thing for me to do after I got married was to change my name. I'm taking on Andy's name because we were united in marriage and I'd like to show that. To change my name I have to show our marriage certificate around to different places. The Social Security card office, DMV, bank, work, stuff like that. After a disastrous attempt to go to the Social Security office, I decided to get my name changed on my driver's license and bank accounts before I mail my information to Social Security. So we spent our Saturday afternoon getting my name changed.

I believed the name changing stuff should go pretty easy, just show them your marriage certificate, fill out a form and your A-OK. Problem with us is that our marriage certificate doesn't look quite official. This is probably the biggest issue we've experienced due to getting married in a rural, Indiana county. Our marriage certificate is a hand-written, fill in the blanks, 1/2 sheet of paper. The seal that was embossed on to the paper is barely visible. But, it's our certificate and we'll do with what we have.

Unfortunately the fellow at the DMV didn't think so positively about our certificate. He at first thought we handed him our commemorative, fancy-looking certificate and didn't want to take it. I assured him that it was the real certificate and pointed out the embossed seal. He checked with his supervisor who looked over the certificate, pointed out the seal again and noted that our certificate didn't have a "date filed" line. Despite this grievous miscarriage of filing a marriage certificate, the supervisor told the DMV person to accept it, that it's just fine.

After this, our DMV friend proceeded to point out all the areas where he found fault with our marriage certificate. "They did a really bad job," he said, "you should order another one, and make sure it has the date filed on there. Wow, they just did a really bad job, it's just so cookie-cutter. The didn't even put 3-4 things on here that we look for. I mean, they did a bad job on this." After which he tossed the certificate back to me and I had to pretend to be happy when he took my picture for my new driver's license. Once we're back at the booth and finishing up paperwork, the DMV worker continues. "You know who has really nice marriage certificate? Dakota County. They do a good job."

This is what I wanted to reply, "You know what the problem with that is? I didn't get married in Dakota County. I wanted to get married in a small town in Indiana which doesn't have the same pompous expectations in official documents as you do."

I, of course, didn't say that. Mostly because I'd like to think I'm too nice, but probably more because I don't have the guts. I got my revenge when he asked for payment, I gave him my credit card. He said that the county prefers if you pay with cash or check, and I didn't have either. If I did, I wouldn't have given it to him anyway! So there!

Anyway, I think I got the short stick when it comes to DMV folks to deal with. But I'm not sad about my marriage certificate anymore. I'm proud that I got married in a unique place that still hand-writes out official documents. To get the marriage application I didn't have to take a number and wait 15 minutes. Plus, the people at the Fountain County court house were much more pleasant people than those at the Hennepin County DMV.

Harvesting Pumpkins

This past weekend was the last weekend the Midtown Farmer's Market would be open, so Andy and I thought we'd swing by and see what we could see. We rode our bikes over since it was a wonderful day. Once there we saw lots of delightful foods available, so we made some purchases and we rode home with 2 pumpkins, a bunch of potatoes, pork chops, carrots and lettuce.

This is what Andy did with his pumpkin. He got lots of compliments from trick or treaters.

I used a bigger knife on my pumpkin.

Earlier this fall I decided I wanted to make something with pumpkin from a real pumpkin, not out of can. So today was the day and I made a pumpkin pie! It was an interesting experience, especially since our cheap blender sucks and a food processor would have worked a million times better for pureeing the pumpkin stuff.

But first I had cut open the pumpkin, which was a task. The directions in the old version of The Joy of Cooking instruct you to "hack" the pumpkin into 4 inch pieces. Hack I did. Next I roasted the hacked up pieces for a good while. Then I scraped off the soft flesh and then "processed" it so it wouldn't be stringy. This is me scraping my roasted pumpkin pieces.

After the frustrating experience with the blender, everything else worked out pretty well. The pumpkin pie turned out great! Though I wouldn't recommend listening to how The Joy of Cooking tells you to check how it's done, sticking a knife in the center would work much better.

This is what I came up with today after an afternoon spent hacking, scraping, whisking and baking. On the bottom is the pumpkin pie, above that is extra puree for pumpkin muffins and on top pumpkin seeds to be roasted later.

But you can't eat pumpkin pie without whipped cream! We didn't have any cool whip on hand, but I had leftover heavy whipping cream from the pie, so I whipped up some whip cream. It's fast, easy and delicious!

Here's the finished product (with a bite missing)!

Overall, my making a pumpkin pie from a real pumpkin experience was a lot of fun and I got to try out some new things. I learned more about baking and took the first tentative step to cooking with winter squash. Also, I learned that it's helpful to have the right tools in the kitchen. Sometimes improvising with what you have works well, like using coffee filters to strain the pumpkin puree instead of cheesecloth. But other times, a blender just doesn't do the trick.

Having fun at Seaside, OR!

It was a windy day on the coast and we had as much fun as we could.

Army of Applesauce

Mott's can eat it! I've been making my own applesauce recently and here are the results of my latest effort. I feel that this beats out any pre-packaged applesauce any day. It's delicious, fresh, natural and comes in cute, reusable, single serving containers.

Also, I'm getting married in 1 week! I'm getting kind of nervous for it, there's a lot to make sure I do. It's a lot of attention. Andy and I are starting to pack for the trip to Indiana and our trip after to Portland, Oregon. It's going to be a lot of fun and I'm looking forward to seeing everyone who is going!

Today is my first big day of October, I will be running in a 5k as part of the Twin Cities Marathon. I couldn't do a marathon, the 5k seems hard enough. Andy and I have been training for the past 3 weeks though, so I'm in lots better shape. When I was putting lotion on last night, I found a muscle that I didn't have before! That's quite exciting. Here's hoping it doesn't rain too hard this morning!

Adventures in Canning

Hello!

Andy and I have spent a lot of time this summer picking food out of our garden and perusing the aisles of various farmers markets. Which means that we get a lot of fresh produce, very often. We have more peppers and tomatoes than we know what to do with. So what do we do with them? We can them!

So far we have made dill pickels, canned tomatoes and salsa! We've eaten some of the extra salsa and it was delicious! It's really exciting to have a supply of food if armageddon comes. Canning is exciting and easy once you get the basic steps down. Laura was nice enough to get us a wonderful canning book that explains the steps in basic language.

Here is a photo montage of our pickling and canning tomatoes efforts.

Consulting the canning literature while the pickling spices steep.

That's a lot of cucumbers! Turns out, it was too much cucumbers.

Andy looking pretty with our fresh dill flowers.

Canning tomatoes all shiny and clean! Ready to be skinned and chopped!

Andy filling jars and adjusting headspace.

Out and About

Andy and I have recently joined a club, the Twin Cities Bicycling Club. It's a lot of fun. So far we've only gone on 3 rides, but it's been a great time. The first ride was a bit slow, but the second ride we went on last weekend was perfect! We went on the same ride again today and I learned a good lesson about the speed at which I ride. The thing about this ride, is that the group is large and it tends to split up into a few groups going at different speeds. Last week we stayed in the back bunch at went between 14 - 16 mph. This week, Andy wanted to keep up with the first group going the fastest. I can't ride as fast as Andy, but I still tried. I was sort of able to keep up with the group as they did their warm up of 20 mph, after that I was toast.

After awhile Andy was dropped from the fast group and we maintained with the middle group. I was pretty tired though. Andy determined that I do pretty good until 17 mph, then I fall back. It'd be neat if I could keep up with the fast people at some point. Right now, I know what pace I can ride at and I will try and keep up to that. Usually when I ride I'm pretty poky, so I know I can pick up the tempo if I want.

Also today Andy and I visited the best bike shop in the Twin Cities, Freewheel Bike. I've thought Freewheel was a great shop and the place I felt most comfortable, but today really solidified that feeling. A couple years ago Pete (from Ireland) got me a gift card from Freewheel, which was really store credit. I didn't use all of it up, but kept my receipt which showed the $9.52 I had left over. Today I went to Freewheel to make some purchases and I remembered I had that receipt, but I wasn't sure if it'd still be valid. So after we shop around a bit and make our picks someone from Freewheel approaches us to check out and I show her my faded receipt from 2007. She recognized it was her handwriting that marked how much I had left and honored my $9.52! It was great, I couldn't believe either!

Freewheel is great for many reasons. They have awesome customer service, they're friendly. They know and love bikes without being pretentious about it. I'm the type of person that doesn't have a type of person, so I feel weird when I don't fit in somewhere, like many bike shops in the Twin Cities. But at Freewheel, I don't feel uncomfortable, I feel welcomed. Not to say other bike shops are bad, but that Freewheel is awesome.

Anyway, off of the bike topic. The garden is doing great. We've harvested all of our bush beans and our crazy pole beans have finally flowered. I made a delicious dinner last night with tomatoes, summer squash, carrots and thyme from our garden. It felt good to eat all that and know we grew it ourselves. Plus it was tasty.

BWCA Videos

I recently discovered that I can do time lapse videos on my camera, and I think that's pretty neat. So on our recent trip to the Boundary Waters I made use of this new discovery. Here are the results.

In this one you can really see the wind go across the lake. Tony and Dad are paddling.

Tony is taking his time getting into the lake.

I'm on a boat!

As I have mentioned before, Andy and I got a canoe from my parents for a wedding gift. Andy and I have taken the canoe out for many trips. We've gone out on Lake Nokomis, Andy likes to fish. We paddle around slow and watch the fish jump out of the water but not bite the line. We've gone out on the Minnesota river a few times. We even paddled around Pike Island where the Mississippi and Minnesota meet. That was a rough day.

Today we went out again on the Minnesota at Fort Snelling State Park. This time we launched from the canoe launch, which has seen better days. Here are some pictures from our trips!

Andy was so excited that we got a canoe!

On the maiden voyage of the HMS Tanashoe (temporary name).

The canoe sitting pretty on a sandbar in the Minnesota River.

This is my graduation picture.

Andy conquers all.

Andy caught a fish today! We're guessing it's a White Bass.

Andy is responsible for steering the boat.

We're really close to the airport here, so airplanes on their descent went right over us.

Happy Birthday to Me

It's not my birthday for a few more weeks, but it's never too early to show off the awesome early gifts I got. From my parents, I got new bike shoes. From Andy, I got new clip less pedals so that I could use my new shoes. Here's me in Oakdale yesterday after Andy and I stopped for lunch. That tube is from my Camelbak, it works really well rigged up like that. I'm pointing at my awesome shoes.

These are my new pedals!

The ride was a tough one, I haven't gone on a long ride in a while. We traveled up the Gateway trail to a pizza place in Oakdale. Then back down the Gateway Trail, along Lake Phalen then Bruce Vento trail back to Summit to Minneapolis. It wasn't a tough route, I was just out of shape. The trail through Swede Hollow was really pretty and full of cool old buildings. I'll be enjoying more rides this summer. Possibly even some bamping (bike camping).

I'll post canoe pictures later!

A Day Off!

Today I got the day off for 4th of July. I'm excited to hang around and not do too much. Andy and I are going for a bike ride. For my birthday my mom got me new clip less bike shoes and Andy got me new pedals for my Trek (Maddy). It feels great to be able to pedal down and up! I've been practicing my upstroke, it's wonderful. I haven't fallen yet, but I almost did once. I forgot what kind of pedals I had and when I was getting off my bike in the driveway, my feet wouldn't leave the pedals. I got out of them before I fell down though.

After our bike ride we'll probably go for a paddle in the canoe, one more time before the big trip. Andy might haul it out before Tuesday, we need all the practice we can get.

Work is going good, the hiring is slowing down and so I can focus more on training. I'm working on revamping the trainings and making orientation more interesting and effective. It's the sort of thing I really enjoy doing.

Off to go biking!

Goings On

Recently I've been camping for the first time in the year and I've been to the Indy 500!  I have a few pictures from each event, but my internet is crappy and can't upload anything now.  Those will have to wait.

Andy and I went camping in St. Croix State Forest.  State forests are free to camp in, and if worse comes to worse, you can camp anywhere (not in a designated site).  Thankfully for us, it was high tick season, and most people stayed away from camping that weekend, we got our pick of sites!  Not after getting lost though.  St. Croix State Forest has terrible maps, intersections are not marked and exist and we were tricked into going on a path full of ticks that wasn't on the map.

The state forest is also home to lots of horse trails.  We encountered many horse riders along the trails and stood aside to let them pass.  It was really fun to see them around.  One rider asked us if we lost our horses.  Another rider told us that a beautiful, open campsite was not far away, and we got really excited.  The rider failed to mention that the beautiful site was across a 20 foot river, running with frigid water.  We had no horses to cross the river.

So we set off back the way we came, to look at a deciving map and figure out the next best campsite.  Turns out, the next best one was pretty awesome!  It wasn't too far from a marked intersection, it was down a little hill, on a curve in the river.  It was probably one of the prettiest sites I've camped on.  We were able to use our new water pump in the river and got cooking water.

It was a wonderful camping trip, no rain, nice people, a good 2 1/2 hour hike.  Except the aforementioned high tick season.  I've never gotten so many ticks in my life, in so many inconvenient places.  I felt like ticks were crawling over me as I slept, which they were and I thre them out of the tent.  It was probably the most insect-filled camping experience I've had.  This was a great learning experience on when and where to camp and not to forget the bug spray.  We high-tailed it out of that site as early as I thought decent to wake Andy.

Laundry

Don't you hate when you're doing laundry and you forget to turn the dryer on?  It's really disappointing to open up the dryer expecting warm, fluffy, dry clothes and finding cold wet clothes.

That's my thought for the day.  I will post pictures from our first camping trip of the year and the Indy 500 soon.

Bicycles

I'm going to be very open here, because I feel it's necessary sometimes to express yourself. Today in Minneapolis there was a terrible bicycle accident involving a semi-truck. A cyclist was killed while riding in a bike lane when a semi-truck was taking a left-hand turn and crossing over the bike lane. This is a horrible tragedy and no one feels good about this, but it's frustrating for people who do ride bikes. This is a frustrating accident because we see and experience these sort of actions all the time, thankfully, without the consequences of this incident.

It's frustrating to not be seen while riding a bike when a lot to biking is be observant and aware of others. I want that same respect from drivers. It's impossible to get that from drivers though because they are cooped up in a shell and cannot be as aware of their surroundings. Especially in large vehicles, like semi-trucks. I cannot tell how many times I've yelled at cars who've cut me off, and made last-minute swerves to avoid car doors and lane-changes. When I'm at my best of riding, I can be very defensive and I know how to get around without being hit. I'm sure the cyclist who died today did as well. But in this world of large vehicles and complacent drivers, it's exhausting to be on your toes all the time.

For full disclosure, I do not like driving. Ever since I got in to the accident with my Dad's ATV, I've been adverse to motor vehicles. People have told me it's silly to be afraid of driving a car and such, but they have never felt what it's like to have something that large and powerful become completely uncontrollable while you are on top of it. It is hands down the scariest moment of my life. I realized I loved riding bikes before this incident, and after this incident I didn't feel like I really wanted or needed a car. I have a car now and I appreciate it for where it can take me. But I don't go out for joy rides and I still get scared when I'm going around high corners. It's silly, but it's how I feel.

And I feel as though I shouldn't ever be looked down upon for riding bikes or taking the train. Sure it takes me longer to get places, but I exercise more without really trying. I get up and move and I get outside. It seems like people who ride bikes are looked down upon as hooligans and people who break the law. Sure, I don't stop and put my foot down at all stop signs, but 90% of the cars I see don't make a complete stop at a stop sign either. I am more likely to honor the rules of the road if the vehicles around me are doing the same thing. I think drivers and cyclists on both sides of the debate need to get off the soap box and start compromising. Drivers need to be more aware, definitely. And all cyclists and drivers should be taught better how to use the road. There is no consensus or logic in bicycle safety and laws in this state. As the city with the 2nd highest percentage of commuters, Minneapolis has a LONG way to go before it's a safe and logical city for cyclists. And I hope to hell that more innocent cyclist don't have to die before Minneapolis wakes up and makes some logical bike lanes.

Drivers don't know how to ride with bikes along side them and it's high time to begin a discussion with open minds.

Food and Fun!

Yesterday I made the most delicious lunch that I probably have ever made. Check it out:

It is prosciutto wrapped asparagus with focaccia, olive oil dipping sauce and some Honeyweiss! I've never had prosciutto before and it's delicious! It's like very thin bacon without being fried. It was really peppery and had more flavor than a little strip like that should.

Andy has been doing some cooking as well. He's become our bread master and we rarely buy packaged bread anymore. Here are some of his delicious creations:

Braided bread and pretzels! They were delicious.

We've also been planting stuff and it's been growing. Here is what our parsley seedlings look like:

We also went to the Green Expo last weekend and had a lot of fun! We tried out segways, looked at wind turbines and electric cars. We saw a demonstration for very expensive pans but ate lots of delicious food. It was a fun event. We even saw Don Shelby! Without his pinstripe suit, he looked sort of grumpy. I was awestruck anyway.

I'm a wind turbine, love me!

Andy is a wind turbine too.

An array of home-use wind turbines in front of Sweet Martha's cookies.

Trying out the segway. I didn't fall flat on my face like our former president.

Andy on the segway. He was a pro, but still a little stiff.

More pigs!

I never thought about seeing pigs at a zoo either, but there are some at the Minnesota Zoo.  They're looking to be the new St. Paul Saints mascot!  They're really cute.

Poor Little Pig

I've never felt such sympathy for a pig.  But this article is the best.  I love the BBC.

Bring Your Own Lunch

I make my own lunch for work pretty much every day.  Anytime I don't make a lunch, there's a good reason; such as I'm getting lunch for free that day.  It's work to make a lunch everyday.  Especially to make it not the same boring thing all the time that I'm going to get tired of eating, or worse, that Andy will get tired of eating.  Sometimes I don't want to make lunches and I'd rather sit around in the morning and read the news.  But then I think of the consequences.  If I don't make a lunch, then I'm going to have to buy a lunch.  Even with my mall discount, a comparatively delicious lunch would cost me between $6-7.  To me, that is expensive and money could be better spent in other ways.

One thing I really dislike: microwave meals.  I have probably not had a microwave meal for the past 10 years, and that is something I really appreciate.  If you try and think what process food has to take to get to the point where it can be frozen and regenerated like that after being shipped thousands of miles, gross.  Also, I like the idea of a person making my food, not a machine.  I'm not a "locavore" or anything.  I just like buying ingredients and making food from scratch.  Cooking is a skill that is in short supply and I like to learn how to cook new things. 

Granted my best recipe that I created myself is butter noodles with seasoning, I still like to learn.  Cooking good food is a challenge with delicious rewards, and I like anything delicious.  Andy has been a great help in getting me to be more experimental and try new vegetables and recipes.  When I was little I really wanted to be a vegetarian for animal rights, except that I didn't like vegetables.  So I'm getting there.

For some reason I just feel a lot better making my own food than going out and eating.  Sometimes it's lots easier to just get some food, but it's more rewarding to me to just have my own food that we make.  Andy is really good at cooking, so I'm lucky to have him around to make fresh bread and buns.  It's nice to take my own lunch to work and tell everyone that Andy made the bun that my sandwich is made on or the salad dressing I'm using is a gluten-free recipe from Andy's mom.

My biggest food problem is planning ahead for each dinner, it's really hard to make a menu a week in advance.  Then we have to go out and get a bunch of ingredients and stick to the plan. I like flying by the seat of my pants sometimes.  But it gets hard when there's nothing in the cupboards and we're hungry.

I'm open to hearing new recipes from anyone if they'd like to share!

Two Years and Counting!

Andy and I have been together for 2 years now and I decided to make a photo montage to celebrate!  It's really kind of crappy, but I like it.  It's my first video I've ever made with pictures, so it's got a lot of odd crops and strange captions.  Since it uploaded on YouTube, it's also really blurry.  I'll make things better.  It's not easy to fit two years worth of pictures into one Carol King song!

Enjoy!

Children Hate Me

I've never had much luck with kids.  They just don't like me, I don't know what it is.  Take today for example.  I was working up in Nickelodeon Universe for awhile this afternoon.  A lady was filling out an application with a child and I thought I could entertain the child for the time.  At a loss for what to say to a child, I picked an abundant topic at the Mall of America.

"Do you like Nickelodeon?" I ask, a valid question for a 3 or 4 year old.

"It's too noisy here. I hate this place," she responds, turning away.

Well, so much for conversation.  A little while later, my co-worker, Harry, just looked at the kid and she smiled.  Some people have all the luck.  Like my brother.  I don't know what's so special about him that kids like him so much.  It must be that since he's so tall, kids think he's a playground.

In general, the feelings I have with kids are mutual.  They don't like me, and I don't like them.  But every once in awhile, I warm up a bit.  Then things like today happen and reaffirm my feelings.  I'm glad to live in a child free zone.

I wish I had a dog.

April Snow Showers?

This is why I hate spring:

What the heck is that crap?!  I was done with snow a month ago.  I started thinking about a garden. Thanks a lot weather for dumping on my home-grown vegetable dreams.  A couple weeks ago I was outside raking leaves in a t-shirt with my pants rolled up.  I didn't realized I would need to keep my snow boots out until May.

The above picture was taken at 9:11 am.  The following picture was taken at 6:36pm that same day:

Talk about strange!  The snow melted so fast it sounded like it was raining.  I'm done with kooky weather.

Here are some fun things we've done recently:

It's Maple Syrup time!  At least it was, until we went to the Maple Syrup demonstration.  Andy and I enjoyed the information, along with 20 children and their parents.  And we actually took a decent picture together!

We've also gone on a few bike rides:

My two favorite forms of transportation together!

Lake Nokomis by our house.

Iowa?

I've never been more proud of Iowa than now and I feel as though I've been a bit too harsh on the state.  Maybe it's time to actually visit.

The Iowa Supreme Court rejected a ban on gay marriage.  The court said things that sound amazingly logical; such as: “We are firmly convinced the exclusion of gay and lesbian people from the institution of civil marriage does not substantially further any important governmental objective,” Justice Mark S. Cady wrote for the seven-member court, adding later, “We have a constitutional duty to ensure equal protection of the law.”  (From the New York Times)

I enjoy reading new that is happy whenever possible.

Spring!

Spring has finally arrived in Minneapolis and it's quite an amazing sight.  It came slowly, with days above freezing followed by days below zero.  But now it's quite warm, most of the snow piles are fading into the ground, and there's hope in the air that maybe this weather is here to stay.

Spring isn't my favorite season, but here's what I do love.  I love the fact that in fall 40 degrees feels like freezing and we all bundle up in coats and scarves.  Then in spring, when it is 40 degrees we're outside in short sleeves and feeling hot.  I also love seeing people again.  I've seen more people out and about in my neighborhood in the past week than I did all winter.  When warm weather comes people start emerging from their homes and exploring outside.  That house down the street isn't actually a foreclosure, it's just a family of homebodies in the winter.

I enjoy seeing grass again. I can't wait until I can see buds on the trees and the first tiny leaves of the year.  We've been out and about on our bikes and we didn't want to die from the cold.  Warm weather is truly amazing.  It amazing me that I walked home Friday in the rain. That's the form snow takes when it's too warm to freeze.  In the winter I forget what it's like to live in the summer.  I can picture going to the beach and people wearing swimsuits and wonder why the heck people would want to wear so little outside.  Now that spring has started, I can image what heat from the sun feels like, and it's amazing!  It'll be swimsuit weather before long!

Andy and I are already planning our first camping trip of the season.  We're planning on going bike camping, possibly in May.  I look forward to planting things, my lavender has 2 sprouts already!  I'm really excited about eating fresh foods, tomatoes, corn, and trying new vegetables.  I plan on spending as much time as I can this summer outside, because this time is limited and everyone should take advantage of it while they can.

Watching YouTube

It's how I've spent quite a bit of time recenlty.  Andy and I found this gem this evening.  It's rather amusing and set to a really good song from a Minneapolis band, Radio On.

I've also enjoyed watching videos of pandas sneezing. Look it up, you'll not regret it!

An Update!

I know it's been a long time since I've updated, but I kept putting it off because there kept being more and more to update.  So I'll ignore a lot of things that have happened to me since the last update.  Maybe I'll post more often that way.

Here are some things that I like:

Blood oranges! They're my new favorite fruit, they're delicious!  Slightly tart and still citrusy, it's good stuff.  I wasn't a big orange eater until recently, Andy got me into it.  I suggest trying a blood orange at some time.  The organic ones have more taste than the regular ones.

The New York Times Health news.  I'm an addict when it comes to reading the news.  Most of the time I skim over the major headlines because I hear enough of it on MPR.  Some of these articles are really interesting and fun.  I haven't found a recipe I'd try yet, but I'm sure there's one out there.

One thing that I constantly like is the BBC's In Pictures.  They have a lot of very good pictures from around the world.  When there are crises, then they have pictures that focus on those.  I've tried to submit my own pictures a few times with no luck.

CBC's As it Happens.  Who knew that Canadian radio could be so interesting?  I'm a sucker for their theme song.

In other updates, I'll be flying to Indiana Friday morning for my grandpa's birthday party on Saturday.  I look forward to seeing my family!  Also, we in Minnesota got snow dumped on us on Thursday.  Winter is getting frustrating.  It had been quite warm and we were running out of snow, which was really great; until Thursday.  I really dislike spring, because it's like a tease.  One day it's super nice and you're walking around with a light jacket. The next, you're trudging through 6 inches of snow on your way home from work.  I just want summer.

That's all I have for now.  Maybe next time I'll post pictures.