Archive
Friday Fun! (Birthday BBQ)
Hello my lovely readers! One thing this summer has shown me is that your summer is as fun as you make it, and that largely has to do with who you surround yourself with. Now that I’ve been living in Boston for a longer period of time, I’ve come to have a wonderful circle of friends who just make everything more fun.
Last weekend was my party for my birthday. I held it at the end of the month partly so I could have a Cowboys and Aliens theme, but also partly because no one ever seems to be around on my actual birthday since it falls right next to a big national holiday. A friend treated me to the matinee of Cowboys and Aliens, and you guys it was AWESOME. I don’t think anything could make this wild west and scifi loving lady happier than wild west meets aliens. Well, the addition of Daniel Craig’s very fine ass didn’t hurt matters at all either. This is a movie I would go to see in theaters again, and I never do that.
After the movie, the same friend helped me prep for my bbq. I made homemade veggie burgers, which were completely a smash hit. We also made pasta salad from a cookbook my dad gave me that featured an olive oil/lemon vinaigrette instead of mayonnaise. That was also a huge success. There was also grilled corn on the cob, strawberries, PBR, and goldschlagger. All in all an excellent bbq. After some friends departed, others arrived, and we went out to a local pub for drinks. My friends enthusiastically got me some of my favorite drinks (white russians and cosmos). It was such a chill party full of lots of girl talk and ending with some fun flirting. It’s things like that that make being in your 20s really fun.
I already announced my plan to throw a party in the fall with a Japanese theme, largely influenced by my recent acquisition of a vegetarian sushi cookbook. Given the percentage of otaku geeks among my friends, the excitement at the idea was pretty high. ;-) What can I say. I love hostessing and party planning. It makes me happy.
This week also saw me finally able to return to the gym after being laid low by first a summer cold and then a sprained ankle. I managed to only gain 1 pound in my week and a half out. *phew* The first workout back was hard, but fun, and I’m glad to be getting back into the swing of it.
I haven’t fully decided what’s on the plate for this weekend, but I know it’ll be fun, because it’s the weekend after all. Happy weekends all!
Friday Fun! (Family Visit and Blood Pressure)
Hello my lovely readers! I hope your weeks have treated you well. Mine has been incredibly busy (I feel like I’m always saying that in these posts……) My brother and his family were in town taking their daughter to participate in a research study at Boston Children’s Hospital, so I got to hang out with them for an evening. My niece and nephew have both grown so much! My nephew (who is four) was very intrigued by my cat, and since his family has dogs, I got to explain to him the differences in interacting with a kitty versus a doggy. He eventually got the idea that cats scare easily and he had to approach her quietly. Then she let him pet her, which was adorable, because she hasn’t ever seen a miniature person since I adopted her (I don’t know about previously).
My brother also brought along a box of presents for me from my daddy, which included the most adorable father/daughter cookbook. (Plus tons of kitchen gear. I’m a bit obsessed with cooking). It also had presents for my kitty. She completely flipped out over them. I have yet to let her try the toy that blows catnip laced bubbles. I think that particular toy might call for some video, lol.
I also had two job interviews this week plus a doctor’s appointment (routine), which kept me running around the city like a chicken with my head cut off. It also meant a got a lot of kindle time though. At my doctor’s appointment, I finally got an updated blood pressure reading. Back in January, my blood pressure was extremely unhealthy, so much so that they wanted to put me on blood pressure medication. Heart disease runs in my family, and these stats freaked me out. So I made a lot of changes in my lifestyle–both eating and exercise level–in the hopes of fixing my blood pressure without meds. Well at the doctor’s this week my bp was 110 over 80, which is really excellent and healthy!! Yay!! :-)
My weekend is mostly going to be consumed with prep for the party I’m throwing that I’m super-excited about. Also seeing Cowboys and Aliens, which, um, is kind of part of the party. Don’t worry though, I’ll definitely squeeze some reading and writing time in. Happy weekends!
Friday Fun! (On the Heat Wave and Musings on Self-control)
Hello my lovely readers! Sorry this week was a bit short on reviews. I actually finished a second book, but didn’t have time to write up the review. It’ll be up Monday! Sales of Ecstatic Evil
We’re having a disgusting heat wave in Boston this week. The temperature has been regularly hitting 98 degrees (which is unfortunately not as fun as the boy band of the same name. Yes I’m a child of the 90s). I’ve been told by people not originally from the northeast that 98 degrees here feels insanely worse than 98 anywhere else in the US because we have horrible humidity to go with it. I wouldn’t know, having never lived elsewhere in the States, but I believe them. I’ve mostly been hiding in my living room with my window ac unit watching this show from Australia on Netflix. (Um, it’s about three teenaged mermaids……It’s kind of awesome).
I’ve been thinking a lot this week about why doing what’s best for yourself can be so damn hard at times. For instance. Not only is fried food bad for people in general, but for me, it has a tendency to make me sick. (I have IBS, which I discussed at length during Invisible Illness Awareness Week). Anyway. I know this. I know that fried food tastes amazing but is bad for me and will make me sick. Yet this week I still tried deep fried mac and cheese. It tasted amazing, yes. I also puked it right back up an hour later after having a stomachache for that whole hour. All I could think for the whole hour was WHY did I do this to myself? What is it about instant gratification that makes you ignore things like “this will make you sick stop it.” I’m 25. You’d think I’d have this whole self-control thing….well, under control by now. But periodically I don’t, and I don’t know why that is. I suppose it’s just part of being a person. We all do stupid things sometimes. I just…..wish we wouldn’t? Lol.
This weekend I’m hoping to see Captain America, get in some gym time, and maybe sell back some books to my local indie bookstore. There’s also going to be a lot of time spent writing smack in front of my ac (if the cat will give me that primo spot back). Happy weekends all!
Friday Fun! (Updates Ahoy!)
Hello my lovely readers! I’m so sorry there were no new reviews this week. I’ve had less reading time as I’m currently working on a super-secret project that I plan to announce this weekend. Keep your eyes open for that post! Next week things should return to normal around here, since I plan on doing a lot of reading this weekend.
This week has been its typical busy busy busy, you know, when I wasn’t occupied with the super-secret project. For my birthday last weekend I went on a really long bike ride and picnic with a friend then out for a few celebratory drinks with another friend. For the 4th of July I hosted a 100% vegan bbq. It was awesome! I wound up deciding not to go out for the fireworks since they weren’t starting until 10:30pm, and I had to get up early the next day. I could see some from my window though, which was nice. This work-week felt really long, even though it was only a four day one. I’m so excited for the weekend!
Keep your eyes peeled for the announcement this weekend. ;-)
Friday Fun! (My Bday and the 4th)
Hello my lovely readers! So this weekend is not only one of my all-time favorite holiday weekends–the 4th of July aka AMERICA FUCK YEAH–it is also my birthday. Tomorrow to be exact. I’m turning 25. People have asked if I’m having a quarter-life crisis. I…..don’t think so? I mean, I reflect on my life on every birthday, and it’s always a mixed bag. There are things I’m happy with and proud of and things I wish were different, but then I come to terms with it. At first I was upset that I’m turning 25 and am single, but now I’m cool with it. Honestly, it’s fun to be single in a city. Relationships are fun, but so is being single, y’know? And thankfully I live in a time period where I wasn’t deemed an old maid the instant I turned 20, haha. ;-)
This weekend will be full of fun as per usual. I’m planning a bike ride, picnic, some drinks, the gym, and of course FIREWORKS. I’ve still gotta figure out my red white and blue outfit for Monday…….
Happy weekends all!
Friday Fun! (NAMI Walk and Best Friend)
Hello my lovely readers! Sorry we were a bit short on reviews this week. I just finished up a chunkster (758 pages) that will be reviewed on Monday. It slowed me down a wee bit!
Last weekend I participated in the NAMI walk with my hospital. Thanks to generous contributions from friends and twitter followers, I raised $100 for the National Alliance on Mental Illness. Yet I felt of more value than the money raised by all the participants was the walk itself. Mental illness is still so stigmatized and here were people living with mental illnesses, people who routinely treat it, people who love people with it, gathered together and being loud and proud in the middle of Boston. My absolutely favorite team tshirt I saw was “Stamp Out Stigma” followed by “Stigma Stings.” People are people, and it is hard enough for those with a mental illness to live with it and attempt recovery without facing stigma from society. I am so glad out of all the walks in Boston I chose to participate in this one. It was very moving.
Also this week, I had to say goodbye to my best friend who’s moving from Boston back home to Colorado. I fully support her decision and know it’s the right one for her, but I will miss her dearly. We are still working together on a secret project from a distance though. The internet is amazing like that. Also, I hope to be able to save up to visit her sometime next winter. It’s still sad though. Nothing is the same as getting to see your best friend every week, you know?
So it’s been a bit of a rollercoaster emotional week for me, but I at least have a three day weekend this weekend for Memorial Day. Happy weekends!
Friday Fun! (Provincetown)
Hello my lovely readers! Last weekend, two of my friends and I decided to take a one night vacation to Cape Cod–Provincetown to be exact. For those of you who don’t know, Ptown, as it’s more commonly known, is not only the first landing place of the Pilgrims before they moved on to Plymouth, but also is the gay mecca of the Eastern seaboard. Coastal town plus fabulousness everywhere? What more could we ask for?
My lovely weekend included wading in the Atlantic, a run along the beach, flipping off a lighthouse, hilarious window shopping, hot tubbing, some whiskey, and possibly the best knock-off of a chain restaurant ever–the Burger Queen, which included Larry the most fabulous gay man I’ve ever met. We became their first customers to get our picture taken for their book. Every time I go to the ocean, I know I’m going to end up living on it eventually in my life. It was exactly the vacation the doctor ordered. Thanks, ladies, for the epic weekend!
This one won’t be quite so epic, but it will involve a charity walk, meeting GameCouch, and a party for a Team Unicorn member. What are you all up to with your weekends?
Friday Fun! (Quirky Wolfy)
I’ve always had this problem that I just don’t quite fit in anywhere. I’m what they call an odd duck. If I was a house, you’d say I was decorated in an eclectic fashion. I’m kind of a big bunch of contradictions. I’m a huge reader, so people think I’m a nerd, but then they find out that I scoff at D+D and WoW. Suddenly, the nerds don’t know what to do with me.
I love going out to sporting events and cheering on the home team, but I don’t wear makeup. Suddenly, the jocks are wondering how on earth I got into a sorority. Um, I didn’t.
I recycle and garden passionately, but I shave my legs. The hippies become very confused.
I am highly educated, but I’m more comfortable drinking at a bonfire and roasting veggie dogs over the open flames than I would ever EVER be in a fancy restaurant.
All of this has led me to make a pretty eclectic bunch of friends, and I love it, and I love them for it. It really has enhanced my social circle to the umpteenth degree. I have my hippie friends and my artistic friends and my nerd friends and my girly girl friends, etc…. I love them all for their own reasons, and I can pretty much always find someone to do any of my various pursuits with. The problem, of course, comes when I’m trying to date.
I am weird. Guys never know quite what to expect, and just when they think they have me figured out, I do something that to them is out of left field, but to me is totally perfectly normal. I can go from discussing Kant to swearing like a sailor in five seconds flat. I seriously get why it’s confusing. The problem is that that’s just who I am, and I ain’t gonna change it to suit nobody. I can’t pretend to be a classy lady when I’m not most of the time. I can’t pretend I’m comfortable just sitting around drinking beer and watching the game every weekend, when sometimes I want to go to the museum. I love who I am and how I am and the fact that it makes my life so varied and unpredictable. The problem is that’s a lot of quirks to match someone up to. Or at least to find someone who thinks they’re all cute. I’m sure that quirky guy is out there somewhere. I mean, after all, my father and uncles are all similarly quirky, and we can’t be the only family like that on the planet. (please oh please oh please universe)
But, you know, waiting for him kind of sucks. Even if I do get to pump iron at the gym, go out for beers to watch the Bruins, read on a riverbank on my kindle, and then hit up the MFA all in one weekend in the meantime.
Friday Fun! (MIA Reading Challenge Update)
Hello my lovely readers! Since we have just one week left of April, I thought I’d provide an MIA Reading Challenge update! I’m so pleased with the enthusiasm for the challenge shown by the participants, particularly since this is its first year existing.
By far our most prolific participant so far is Karen. Her reads have covered everything from OCD to Antisocial Personality Disorder. So far she has read and reviewed (links to her reviews): Saving CeeCee Honeycutt, Devil in the Details: Scenes from an Obsessive Girlhood, An Unquiet Mind, Cut, The Bell Jar, Darkly Dreaming Dexter, Dearly Devoted Dexter, Dexter in the Dark, Missing, House Rules, and I Don’t Want to Be Crazy. She’s only one book away from completing the highest level of the challenge. Go Karen!
Jules is keeping up a nice, steady pace so far, having read two books (links to her reviews): The Bell Jar (Depression) and Alias Grace (Dissociative Identity Disorder). Keep it up, Jules!
Jessica also has finished two books (links to her reviews): The Silver Linings Play Book (recovery from mental break-down) and The Madonnas of Leningrad (Alzheimer’s). Excellent pace for the level you signed up for, Jessica!
I’ve also completed two books that fit into the challenge description (links to my reviews): American Psycho (Antisocial Personality Disorder) and Hunger (Anorexia Nervosa).
Thank you everyone for your participation so far this year and for raising awareness on mental illnesses. We may be a small group so far, but hopefully each year will grow!
If you’ve read books for the challenge and I did not list you, please comment and let us all know! Unfortunately with the way my blog is, you commenting and telling me is the easiest way for me to keep up with what everyone has read.
It’s not too late to sign up for the challenge if you’re interested! Check out the MIA Reading Challenge page to find out more.
Happy weekends all!
Friday Fun! (What’s Important to Me)
Hello my lovely readers! I’ve been spending a lot of time thinking the last few months about what really matters to me. I guess you’d say what values I hold dear. I didn’t just stick with the ones I was raised with. I’ve done a lot of research and soul-searching to figure out what’s important to me. That’s what makes me stick so strongly to my guns on things I truly believe in. The more time that has passed since I’ve gotten back on my feet from the awfulness that was winter, the more I realize that what it all boils down to, for me, is that I haven’t lost hope in the world. I have hope that we can change the world. I have hope we can make it a better place. I have hope we can fix the trajectories of previous generations’ bad decisions. I have hope that the cycles of violence, grief, and pain can stop. We only have to want it. I firmly believe that Gandhi was right when he said “Be the change you wish to see in the world.” That is at the core of my belief system. I don’t have faith in a god or spirits to fix things. I don’t have faith in government to fix things. But I do have faith in myself. I have faith that I can change for the better. The cycles of violence and pain stop with me. That basic philosophy extends out into everything else I do, from my firm belief in vegetarianism (that is gradually moving toward veganism) to my commitment to someday adopt at least one child. And I just can’t be around negative people anymore. I can’t be close to people who are willing to just give up. Humanity didn’t struggle and evolve so much to just quit evolving. It’s just that maybe the next step of evolution has more to do with our minds and our behaviors than how our bodies work.
Namaste, yo.
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This work by Amanda Nevius is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
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