So many books!

I have a to-read list on my Goodreads account and the list is currently at 115! This makes the decision of choosing which book to read next VERY difficult. I might just use one of those random number generators. Then I’ll argue with myself about whether I should get a hard copy of the book or get it on my Kindle. Kindle books are much cheaper which is what I need right now but my book collection isn’t as big as it was when I was a kid (moving so much over the years I’ve lost many books) so I kind of want to build my collection. My other option is go to a thrift store/ Goodwill and see if they have any of the books on list available. Aha! Clever me.

I have work tonight at 6pm for the Heat game so It’ll be a long night then tomorrow I’ll be spending the day studying for my written Art History midterm. I love the class but a 14 week course crammed into 6 weeks means A LOT of material to learn. Hopefully I’ll do something productive on my day off this Saturday. Last Saturday we just spend the whole day laying around and watching TV and then I actually went out at night (shocking) but I’d rather go out during the daytime and watch movies all night this Saturday so let’s see how that goes.

World?

Well THAT was a rather long absence. 2013 has turned out be an extremely stressful bad year. It’s only 5 months in and so much has already happened and I’m already exhausted. Most of my internet time is usually spent reading other blogs, articles, playing games, reading fandom things or tweeting nonsense. My brain is too stressed out to write anything. I have a journal at home I write bits and pieces in but it’s mostly sporadic rambling because that is all my brain can do. I should be doing something productive now but I started reading something TheBloggess just posted and I fell into a rabbit hole of distractions and eventually decided ‘HEY! why not write in that blog you have and never use to talk to yourself.’

Summer has definitely arrived here in Miami it’s in the 80s everyday and the humidity has amplified. Monday night we had reallly bad thunderstorms until early Tuesday morning then by 2pm it was suddenly extremely hot and blindingly sunny. Welcome to typical Florida weather a.k.a inconsistent weather. That and trillions of mosquitoes and other evil bugs. The good thing about summer though is everything is flowering, Orchids, Gardenias, Plumeria and so on. 7 out of our 12 orchids are blooming right now and I’m going to attempt to plant Plumeria from a cut my friend is giving me. I say attempt because I’ve never done it before but it might be funny to try.

I have work tonight at 6pm and there’s a Miami heat game on so it’s definitely going to be a long night. Hopefully I won’t be too exhausted because I have an 8am 3 hour lecture class tomorrow morning. Now i’m going to go find something else to distract me productive to do. I leave this post with pictures of things currently blooming in my back yard. The Gardenias that were blooming got ruined Monday night due to the thunderstorm.

 

Plumeria. This is one from around the neighborhood. We will be either planting this or the candy stripe version in front of our house.

One of my favorites.

 

Cake bake

I seriously need to find a way to be less tired. I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve dozed off while sitting in bed, laptop on my lap and all! Boyfriend is on a gluten free  diet to see if it’ll help his stomach, which has been giving him problems for a while now. It’s been a challenge since he is a bit of a picky eater. Also we’re both big beer lovers so limited selection of beer is torture for him ha!

This past Thursday was his birthday and as usual tradition I baked him his favorite cake: Tres Leche (Three Milks) but this time I made it with gluten free flour which I have never used before but luckily it came out delicious! I used this recipe from Pioneer Woman. All I did was substitute the regular flour for gluten free flour & Xantha gum. My digital camera broke a while back and I haven’t been able to replace it so all these pictures are taken with my cell phone. I am also not a fancy cooking blog so the pictures are meh in quality but Hey, gotta work with what you have!

Again I am no master chef or photographer if you’re expecting a full out step by step fancy recipe guide click on the original recipe link. This is just me having a bit of fun with a new recipe I tried. Random blog remember?

I found this Gluten-free baking flour at Whole Foods. Bob’s Red Mill makes all types of baking aids, cereals, etc. many which are gluten free. They had a huge section of this brand at Whole foods.

Xanthan Gum which you will need to add to your flour mixture. The bag has recommended measurements based on what you’ll be baking.

Picture is a bit blurry but this little mixer is 30 years old! My parents received it as a wedding gift years ago and my mom left it for me when she moved away a couple of years ago. Yes it still works.. kind of. Sometimes you have to hold the cord that comes out of it in place or else it stops but other than that it still performs great even after all the use and abuse it’s been through. I’m keeping this guy with me till he finally croaks.. or someone just happens to give me a new one, whichever comes first.

I am only posting this picture because I successfully separated 5  eggs without it turning into a complete disaster! Yay me!

Observe awful cellphone picture. The cake came out more cooked than I wanted it. I only left it in for 35 minutes but it might have been because my over was left pre-heating for so long. The cake tasted fine either way but if it wasn’t for the tres leche soak I think it would have been a pretty dry cake. So lesson learned: don’t leave over on preheating for a freakishly long time.

The delicious staple to this recipe! The 3 milk mixture is made up of condensed milk, evaporated milk, and heavy cream. Yes I know it sound so unhealthy but it’s sooo delicious. My people love things super sweet and unhealthy!

Fun fact: My mom & I didn’t become huge vegetable freaks until my step dad came into the picture. My Cuban family rarely ate veggies unless they were slathered in some sauce or mixed into some heavy dish. We both LOVE all veggies now though!!

The icing. Made up of sugar and heavy whipping cream (I throw in a small dash of vanilla extract) Again not at all healthy and although it isn’t as delicious as the milk mixture it is still important.

Many people top their Tres Leche cakes with maraschino cherries but Boyfriend isn’t too fond of them and he loves strawberries so I layered the whole cake with fresh cut one. this is a picture of when i was trying to get all creative with the presentation. I ended up giving up and just doing rows of them all over the cake and then cleaning up the edges of the pan. Not exactly top chef presentation status but hey as long as it’s yummy Boyfriend doesn’t mind.

I always throw the extra milk mixture into a Tupperware to keep in the fridge just in case anyone wants to saturate their slice a bit more in that sweet sweet goodness.

Oh for Birthday dinner Boyfriend’s father took us to this little whole in the wall restaurant called Sushi Chef which was AMAZING!! Hopefully we’ll be going there again for my birthday in April I’m seriously in love.  I tried this canned Oolong Tea which was pretty good.

So THAT was my attempt at a recipe post. Not as fancy as most food blogs but hey I tried and also points for me for actually blogging!! I have been writing daily in an actual journal next to my bed so that’s a plus. Now I’m off to watch my new obsession Merlin.

Twitter has ruined me!

Between work, classes,reading,  the boyfriend & pup, I have been very busy and always tired. Also When I’m not doing any of the mentioned above I’m glued to Twitter being a fangirl and discovering new people and interesting blogs/articles/stories. Seriously I spend way to much time on Twitter.

Send help.

For real this time.

I imported all my post from Blogger, which no one ever read anyway but it was a step to show I’m back on WordPress and trying to very hard to start writing again. I started writing in an actual journal & I also write letters to my best friend in Navy boot camp so that’s a start. Now to motivate myself to start writing here and to do other productive things on a regular basis. It’s just still really hard sometimes to get through a whole day without giving up half way and doing nothing else. Depression lies and it’s an asshole that drains the energy out of you. I will get through this. Now to clean up a bit and try to get stuff done before work tonight.

Productivity

Today I was very productive. Among other things I built the bookshelf I bought at Target by myself, After carrying it up the stairs. Seeing as the box was my height and possibly weighed as much as me I am very proud of myself. After how miserable I was on New Years day unable to get myself to do anything but lay in bed staring blankly at the TV, it feels good to have made up for that day of nothingness. The little things, today those are what matter. The year just started. I must try and make the best of it.

Commence the shopping

I just spent a little over $330 on car maintenance the other day. It was awful. Because of this I’ve been slowly spreading out my Christmas shopping. Today i’m going by Joann’s to get a few materials to make Christmas cards because regular cards are freaking expensive!! I’ve also been looking at gifts online for most people and instead of actually buying anything my wishlist on Etsy  & Amazon keeps growing O.o Luckily my depressing bank account keeps me from spending. I also have no idea what to get The best friend since she leaves to the Navy on Tuesday(seriously un-amused) She can’t take anything to boot camp so I might just get her a gift and when boot camp is over and they station her I’ll just ship it with all her other things I’ll be sending. I made an appointment with a Psychologist… sort of.  Ugg too many other things I don’t want to think about going on. Kathy needs wine.. or beer.

Thankful distractions.

Had a minor panic attack thanks to the whole ‘big empty house, strange noises, and over protective dog that barks at any noise’ thing so I’m going to distract myself from the possibility that someone might break in while I’m sleeping. Anyone who follows me on Twitter probably thinks I’m nuts with what I’m posting. Isn’t that the point of Twitter? Post random ridiculous-ness?

My mother and stepfather came down from Philly and we had Thanksgiving dinner with the family at my uncle’s new place in Hollywood beach. The house is amazing. It’s an old house built in 1952 with a very Art Deco feel on the outside and cozy slightly updated bungalow vibe inside. Although the house is considered a historic home my uncle doesn’t want to keep it registered as one because once you do  it is a HUGE hassle to get any work done on it (and the house is in major need of new windows and doors especially since the original ones are not hurricane proof) They live walking distance from the beach in an amazing area. I will definitely need to visit them more often!!

Today was all about good food,  family, and being happy with what you have. So because it seems like the thing to do and I need to keep myself distracted I present to you a random list of things I am thankful for. In no specific order.

I am thankful for…

The delicious Banana bread my mother brought me from Key West from Blue Heaven.

A dog who warns me when strange noises occur around the house & who can scare people away with his big loud bark.

The possibility to watch any TV series online in one night. (also a curse)

A comfy bed to sleep in.

British TV shows.

Writers with creative minds.

The fact that real hard copy books are still available.

My dysfunctional family…. most of it.

All the misfits in the world.

The few friends who have stayed by my side through all the madness.

Red velvet cake.

Craft beers.

The few good people left on this planet.

and much much more. Life had been… eventful? over the years and sometime I felt/feel like it’s all just too much but compared to many others my life problems are nothing. There is always someone who has it so much worse. Try to remember the little good things because if you dwell on the bad , trust me when I say it will destroy you from the inside out and dig you in to a deep dark hole.
Cheers to the misfits, silver ribbon warriors, and anyone fighting a very hard battle no matter what for. Chin up and keep fighting there is still good in this world.

I am still alive

I may have lost me marbles.. slightly

Elections are over

They’re over but I’m still avoiding Fbook for a few days because now all the real stupidity starts. Although it is helping with the spring cleaning i’m doing on Fbook where i’m deleting “friends” who I don’t even speak too or who just fill my news feed with stupidity.

 It was bad enough during election time people forcing their beliefs and views on you. Seriously on the way to work the other day there was a crowd in the middle of the street across from a voting location holding up signs declaring “vote Romney” and “Fire Obama”. FIRST, It was traffic hour get off the roads and banging pots and pans together and waving your signs at our windows while were stuck at a red light will not make us vote for your guy! Second seriously get off the damn road this is Miami where people can’t drive you’re asking to get run over, just sayin’.

Now that elections are over though are people whining like children about Obama getting a second term and attacking those who supported him. It’s never right to be rude and obnoxiousness or  to attack people who don’t share your beliefs. If the tables had turned these people would have expected us to stay quiet and accept Romney. I do not like politics honestly and I understand if this isn’t the president you wanted. You’re entitled to your own opinion and beliefs but don’t stomp your feet like a child and be hurtful to those who don’t see it your way. We all need to pull together and remember to just be proud of our country not turn against each other.

Again I don’t like talking about politics but I’m just getting annoyed of all the stupidity and dramatic ness. Someone actually said they hope the movie 2012 actually happens this year so we don’t have to live in a world where Obama is president… Seriously just move out of the country don’t wish death and destruction on the rest of us fool!  My ass is not down for  the end of the world. So everyone get the hell along and stop attacking each other or I will throw pineapples.