Thanks for the Memories

I hope everyone enjoyed their Thanksgiving holiday. After three days of training for a support center (to be explained in another post), I left Wednesday night to brave the traffic at the airport. This year would only be my third Thanksgiving at home (in Indiana), so I am not used to flying for the holidays. (We are the driving kind of family.)

When I was growing up, we would go to Kalamazoo, Michigan to visit my mom's side of the family. (My Dad's parents were already in Florida for the winter by that time.) I don't know exactly what is the standard, but I think our family is slightly larger than the average (on my Mom's side... my Dad is an only child, so there wasn't a crowd when we got together.) Most people in my Mom's family like to cook (and are good at it, from what I've been told), so a lot of the day is spent in the kitchen (as I'm sure is true for other families on Thanksgiving). One thing I think is unique about my Mom's family is the musical talent. (I'd love to expand on this, but I think I'll save it for another post). After meals at family gatherings, there would always be several people playing music together. (Not quite the VanTrapp's from The Sound of Music, but I can see where you would make the connection).

Anyways, this year it was a bit smaller. My Aunt Margaret, Uncle Mark, and Cousin Phil came down to visit for Thanksgiving. This was our first Thanksgiving without Grandma, so it difficult for many of us. I was grateful that part of our extended family came down to spend time with us. Before we ate said a prayer and ate dinner, I asked everyone to go around and say what they were thankful for this year. (I know, I know... some of you probably think this is cheesy, but how will you ever know what other people think without asking them?) For dinner we had turkey, mashed potatoes, rolls, salad, cranberry relish (*loved* this- I need to get the recipe from my mom), gravy, green beans, and probably several other things I am forgetting. My favorite part of the dinner is that we had 5 pies for 7 people! Pumpkin, chess, snow-capped chocolate, pecan, and raisin cream. My favorite type of pie is chess pie (my Grandma used to make this one), which is basically eggs, butter, vanilla, and a lot of sugar (which explains why I like it).

Here are a few pictures from the day...

My cousin Phil and my brother Ryan playing music in the living room

Isn't this a good picture of Phil?

I don't like turkey, but it looked good enough to take a picture

My Aunt Marget, Uncle Mark, and Phil (notice my cat, Rocky, on Uncle Mark's lap)

I went over to Nick's parents' house (but forgot to take pictures! Sorry!), then he came over to meet my family

Here is the Christmas tree my Mom has in the entry way- this picture does not do it justice

A close-up of one of the ornaments she made

I promise to write more tomorrow night. I would stay up later and give more details about the weekend, but I have to get up a little earlier than usual to go to the University of Rhode Island for a lecture at 8 AM. (For those of you who have spent any length of time around me know that getting up early isn't necessarily my strong suit. *However,* I have made significant progress in this area. I know it sounds very juvenile, but I'm proud of myself for improving on something that I have struggled with for so long. I have been early every day for over a month now!)

Look for more on my extended weekend in Indy, which includes a night out with friends, the tree lighting on the circle, and seeing Lisa's brand new house!

What Do You Love?

One of my favorite parts of working out is perusing through the random magazines I get in the mail. I don't have time to read most of the articles on my own, so I squeeze them in while I'm in the gym or on a plane. As I look through them, I mark any pages that I like. It might be an idea, a quote, a picture, etc, and every once in a while, I'll save an ad that I love. So, when reading Glamour (this was a free trade after Domino stopped being produced (a very, very sad day), I found an ad that I think suits me quite well. You might think it is a little over-the-top (but seriously, who are we talking about here?!), but I happen to love it. (I also have subscriptions to House Beautiful, the American Journal of Health-System Pharmacy, and Travel and Leisure- I *love* T+L- the December issue talked about spending Christmas in other parts of the world, and it made me desperately want to visit Munich!).

Set-up: This is part of a two page ad for Blackberry. There was a picture on the left-hand page (not sure of what though... by the time I got back to my apartment I had forgotten, and I had already left the magazine in the gym for someone else to read). On the right-hand page is the following text:

LIKE is watered-down love.
Like is mediocre.
Like is the wishy-washy emotion of the content.
Athletes don't do it for the like of a sport.
Artists don't suffer for the like of art.
There is no I like NY T-shirt.
And Romeo didn't just like Juliet.

LOVE. Now that's powerful stuff.
Love changes things.
Upsets things.
Conquers things.
Love is at the root of everything good that
has ever happened and will ever happen.

LOVE what you do.


FYI- Apparently there is also a t.v. commercial (I don't have very much extra time, and I guess t.v. just doesn't do it for me). Click here to see the main advertisement, but this date night version my favorite.

Flying Solo

Yesterday was my very first time as a pharmacist since I graduated in May. Well, not my first time working as a pharmacist (I guess I do that every day), but it was the first day I worked at a store as the only pharmacist. (It was almost like I took the training wheel off of my bike!)

Since the beginning of my residency, I've been paired with a pharmacist at my store to help make me more comfortable with what needs to happen to make everything run seamlessly. Kevin is the pharmacy manager, and Karen is the other staff pharmacist that works at the store. They have both been very understanding of my lack of speed in quality assurance and store processes. Because I am only in a store one day a week, it has been harder to get into a rhythm when I'm there. Plus, on top of that, I've been trying to enroll patients in my pain management study (that is a different beast altogether... if I've learned anything from this project, I know that I don't want to do research!) and finish filling prescriptions from my flu clinic that was at the beginning of November (I hate the flu!).

Fortunately, there were no crises when I was at the store but that had nothing to do with me and everything to do with my help. I would have been scrambling and running all over the place if I didn't have a very capable pharmacy student to help me (Thanks, Justin!). It is definitely true when they say you are only as good as your help. You can be a great pharmacist, but if your technicians and interns don't have good customer service skills and technical knowledge to go along with it, your ship will certainly sink.

Just a few more days until I head back to Indy for Thanksgiving. Things have been crazy at work, but I'm hoping that I'll have time tomorrow to write about something I've been waiting a *long* time to discuss.... the drivers in New England.

One Day at a Time

If there is one thing I definitely don't like about New England, it is all of the Patriot fans. Because it is the only NFL team for several states, it has quite the fan base. (Massachusetts, Connecticut, New Hampshire, Vermont, Maine, Rhode Island...) T-shirts, bumper stickers, hats, and other paraphernalia serve as constant reminders that I am in enemy territory.

As soon as I knew I was moving to Rhode Island, I had been looking forward to November 15- The Patriots vs. The Colts in Indy. I wanted to go home for the weekend to go to the game, but I would have had to take today off because the game was so late. When I was running errands over the weekend, I worse my #18 jersey on both Saturday and Sunday. I got a few remarks, but I was surprised no one said anything particularly mean to me. (No offense to my friends here in Rhode Island, but many of the peole I have encountered here aren't really that friendly.)

I sat down to watch the game and was working on Christmas presents (it will be here before you know it!). By halftime, I was glad that I had something to distract me from becoming upset. The Colts were *not* playing well- I was surprised the score differential wasn't greater than what it was. Interceptions, missed tackles, blah blah blah.

Then, like many times before, Peyton begin to work his magic. Two successful drives down the field brought the Colts within 6 points. After the Patriots missed the chance to get a first down on 4th and 2, I could hardly keep from jumping up and down. I had managed to stay fairly quite throughout the game, but I knew that might not last long. When we scored our final touchdown, I cheered so that every one of my Patriots-loving neighbors could hear me. (I normally would have felt a little guilty, but I felt it was necessary. I mean, once or twice a week my neighbors fight so loudly that I have to put on headphones in order to be able to fall asleep- it's ridiculous.)

I couldn't wear my jersey to work today, but I wanted to do something to show my Colts pride. I brought in my jersey and hung it up on the second chair in my cubicle. I am the first desk in the department (which is a very high traffic area), so Patriots fans that walked in and out all day had to look at my jersey.

When Nick and I went to the game the weekend before last, there was one thing that stood out to me. At the other end of the stadium, a large white sheet hung down over the padded area where large men jump up into the crowd after they score a touchdown (I don't know the technical name!). Spray-painted in blue, the sign read, "One Game at a Time." I'm not sure why I became so sentimental about it, but it reminds me of why I love Indianapolis. I've spent most of my years wanting to leave Indiana without really knowing why (well, for starters, there's no water). Now that I've moved away, I have come to appreciate the city (and especially the people) for what it is worth to me. Right now I am planning on moving back next summer, but who knows where I'll eventually end up. For now, I think I'll just take things one day at a time...

This is definitely one of my favorite pictures I've saved over the years

Good Morning, Sunshine

One of my favorite memories from my childhood is waking up in the morning. I've never been a morning person (at all!), so my mom would wake me up every morning (she's a saint). My door would open one of three ways:

1) I would hear Rocky pawing at my door knob, and my mom would let him and close the door.
2) My mom would open the door, and Izzie would come running in and leap onto my bed.
3) My mom would let me sleep in (on the weekends only, of course), and I wouldn't open my door until I woke up, which was usually after 11:00 AM.

Rocky would jump onto my bed and knead around until he found a comfy spot to take a nap, which usually was right in front of me (a little spoon!). His second favorite spot was behind me, which I never understood, but he seemed to enjoy it. Ever since we got Rocky, he has purred *constantly* and very loudly. I would fall back asleep listening to his purring. When Izzie would come into my room, she went straight for my face to give me kisses. If I was more awake than usual, I would let her sit on top of my hip (I sleep on my side) and look into the mirror or out of my three windows (I think I had the best view in the house). If I was still really sleepy, Izzie would curl up and lay behind my legs, which generally took up most of the bed. Her second favorite spot was at the foot of the bed. My favorite was the first spot, which kept me warm and made we fall right back asleep.

Ever since I was a little girl, my mom would come into my room to talk about our dreams. When she was growing up, she would go into her parents' room and talk about her dreams with her mom. Since I wasn't prone to getting myself out of bed, my mom had to come into my room, too. She would either sit on my bed (see the illustration below) or sit on the floor (which she did for the most part, as my bed started to become a zoo with all of the pets).

Maybe this will help to show everyone's spots

My mom, brother, and I all dream very vividly. Most people say they don't remember their dreams, but I think it is a simple discipline. All you have to do is talk about them every morning as soon as you wake up. I miss being able to do that now that I live on my own. My mom and I still trade dreams when we talk on the phone several times a week. Not that I want to have children anytime soon, I look forward to doing the same with them.

Although I am no expert in the meaning of dreams (I mean, who is?), I think it is so interesting about what appears in your dreams. How does something get into your dreams? Is your brain sorting out thoughts? Sometimes my dreams have to deal with whatever happened to me that day, but at other times, there is absolutely no relevance to what is going on in my life. For example, last night I dreamt about being a camper at a camp based out of a farm. The camp was a combination of sports and theater (I think, not really sure). We were supposed to meet every morning in a large barn, but I sneaked off to work on a project that was going to be entered in a competition later that day. A camp counselor found me, and instead of getting upset, in a British voice, asked me if I wanted to buy a watch from his girlfriend for $1.50. (Please don't think I am crazy! Besides, this is quite mild for one of my dreams.)

Like most people, there is a general theme to many of my dreams. I am frequently being chased or trying desperately to finish something before a deadline. From The Meaning of Dreams, here is an interpretation of what being chased implies:

"Folklore interpretations say that if you are looking at a chase or participating in it, you will have a comfortable old age. Although this may be comforting, there is a more realistic understanding of this activity in a dream. If you are being chased, maybe you are running away from or trying to escape those things that are frightening and unpleasant (possibly your own habits and negative behaviours). If you are doing the chasing, it may be that you are expressing some aggressive feelings toward others or are pursuing a very difficult goal. On the deepest level, if a stranger is chasing you it may represent your chasing a part of yourself, the unconscious attempts to catch up with the conscious in order for you to become more aware of yourself and your own multidimensional nature."

Yes, I am aware that the website probably isn't the end-all, be-all of dream interpretation but at least it's something. While they are not frequent, my favorite dreams are when I see family members and friends that have passed away. They are always very comforting, never scary, and I feel very relaxed when I wake up. Here is the website's interpretation of seeing deceased relatives:

"At times we dream about deceased relatives or friends simply because we miss them. These dreams may be disturbing but most likely are a form of wish fulfilment or are based on memory through which we relive old experiences. Some people believe that in dreams they meet up with the deceased on the inner planes and engage in "real" interactions with them. It is normal to miss and long for the people that we loved and that have left the physical body. Therefore, it is not surprising that they will pop up in your dreams from time to time."

Do you remember your dreams? What do dream about most often? If you have trouble remembering your dreams, talk about them with someone as soon as you wake up. It may or may not help you figure out what your dreams mean, but it does create lots of memories.

One Game at a Time

I can't believe it is already the middle of November and that Thanksgiving is only two weeks away! Five months have passed, and there are still so many things I want to do. I've been fighting a cold/exhaustion/etc for the past week, but I still managed to fly home Friday to spend a long weekend in Indy.

On Saturday, my mom and I went to McNamara's in Carmel. They have gorgeous Christmas decorations every year, and even though we've gone almost every year, they still manage to come up with new ideas. My favorite tree this year was covered in silver, glittery ornaments (I love anything sparkly!). If you are ever looking for a good florist in the area, I highly recommend them.

Our favorite tree this year had a Sock Monkey theme!

My mom really liked the felt and knit poinsettas

How cute is this reindeer?

This would be so fun for a kid's room

I spent a little bit more time at home... My mom was working on invitations for a wedding, so I try to help with a new perspective. After you look at one thing so many times, you start to run out of ideas. (Well, at least I do.) While we were looking at the invitations in the dining room, Izzie (our golden retriever) and Rocky (the ancient cat- he's 17) were standing at the door looking at something together (note: this is rare- they usually don't get along). Izzie was almost pawing at something, so I decided I had better take a look at what was going on. I saw something brown and skinny and then shouted, "Mom! I think there is a snake in the door!" She thought I was crazy, but when we went to look, there was a snake inside the door! Mom was going to save the snake to show Dad and Ryan by trapping it between the glass storm door and the real door, but I convinced her that might not be the best idea. The last thing we need at that house is a snake running loose in the halls... When Mom first tried to get it to move, we thought that the snake was injured. Just a second later, we learned it was playing dead when it moved so fast it startled us (well, me, for that matter- I screamed). Mom successfully got the snake outside just a minute later- whew! Izzie and Rocky were both very excited about their recent encounter with another creature.

On Saturday night, Nick made my *favorite* appetizer before we went out to dinner. Almost a year ago (December 1), Nick and I had our first official date. We made dinner together (read: Nick made me dinner and I attempted to help) and then went to a Jon McLaughlin concert at the Murat. He made his signature baked goat cheese appetizer for the first time that night, and I have been hooked ever since. It's very simple, but oh so good. I've tried to re-create it since I've moved out to Rhode Island, but it just isn't the same. Here's the basic recipe...

Baked Goat Cheese Appetizer

-1 log goat cheese

-minced garlic (the kind in a jar)

-diced pecans
-balsamic vinegar

Toast the pecan pieces until slightly brown. Roll the goat cheese in the minced garlic. Cover the cheese with a large amount of the garlic. Next, put the pecans over the garlic. Bake the goat cheese for approximately 15 minutes at 325 degrees. Remove the cheese from the oven and put on a plate. Pour balsamic vinegar over the baked goat cheese. Enjoy!

You can spread the cheese onto whatever you like, but we like to put in a loaf of half-baked bread and serve the cheese with warm bread. Be sure to use a high-quality balsamic vinegar- it will make a noticeable difference if you use something without flavor.

A view of the Soliders Monument on the circle downtown at night

On Sunday, Nick and I went to the Colts game against the Houston Texans. Last winter, I was working at a pharmacy with Joe, the pharmacy manager, when he told me that he had an extra pair of Colts tickets. He was going to call a friend to see if he knew anyone that would want the tickets, but before he could pick up the phone, I told him I would gladly take them off his hands! (*Note: At this point in the year, I did not know I was going to be moving to Rhode Island to be a pharmacy resident. My brother and I were originally planning on splitting the tickets- they are not cheap!- but he has been able to go to most of the games since I have moved here. The only other game I'll be able to make is in December against the Jets.) This was my first time in the new Lucas Oil Stadium. The weather was gorgeous on Sunday (I could have worn a skirt!), so the retractable roof was open. The Colts won 20-17 after the Texans missed a field goal in the last minute of the fourth quarter.

Here's a view of the city skyline from the stadium

Helicopters flew over the roof after the National Anthem but I didn't get my camera out in time to get them in the picture

Because Peyton Manning uses audibles (calls plays on the fly), the stadium is quiet when we're on offense and LOUD on defense- the differential is amazing

Manning always picks up his leg before the center hikes him the ball

I thought this was another decent action shot

I don't think Nick has had this many pictures taken of him in a long time

My favorite picture- see the story below

Like most guys I know, Nick isn't crazy about having his picture taken. Like most girlfriends, I want a picture of us for everything we ever do or go to together. We already had the first picture of our faces, and I was pretty happy with how it turned out. I wasn't going to make Nick wait for someone else to take our picture with the stadium in the background. After the game, we were walking out of our section when we saw a couple having their picture taken with the field in the background. I told Nick that we didn't have to get one this time, and we kept walking. When we got to the next level, he pulled me into the concourse and asked a security guard to take our picture just because he knew that's what I really wanted. Maybe no one else thinks this, but I thought it was very sweet of him.

Lisa just moved back to Indy from Dallas, so I visited with her on Sunday night, and she took me to the airport on Monday afternoon. She will be starting a new job in an emergency room next Monday and hopefully closing on a house soon after that- how exciting! I haven't seen a picture of the house, but it sounds like it fits her just right. Can't wait to take pictures of it and maybe help decorate!

*Happy Veteran's Day. A special thank you to all of the men and women who have served our country. I feel very blessed that we have people willing to sacrifice their lives to protect our country's freedom.

Happy Birthday, Anthony!

Hope you are having a great birthday! This picture is from early 2007 at Purdue- lots of good memories over the years. Too bad I'm not at my parents' house- I have some cute pictures from when we were growing up. I'll save them for next year. Love you, Borg!

Nuts for Sugar Cookies

There are so many wonderful things about the holidays: being with family and friends, remembering all of life's blessings, festive decorations, kindness and good cheer, and one of everybody's favorites, baking.

I've never been much of a foodie, even when I was little. I think there are less foods that I like than things I won't eat. It's mostly a texture thing, but I also don't like the smell of meat. (I know, kind of crazy.) But there is one thing I've always loved: sweets... candy, cookies, cakes, pies, ice cream.

When I was growing up, one of my favorite things to do was decorating sugar cookies with my mom. We would make cookies for Halloween, Easter, and Christmas, along with events that called for treats to be shared with others. I remember being so jealous of how creative my mom was with decorating her cookies- they always looked so perfect!

When my mom came to visit me a few weeks ago, I thought it would be appropriate to have decorated sugar cookies with a fall theme (this was part of the theme of her gift basket, which I forget to take pictures of- go figure!). Below is the recipe my mom has used for over twenty years.

Sugar Cookies for Decorating

Ingredients

-1 cup soft butter

-1/2 cup sugar

-1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla

-3 cups flour

-1 teaspoon baking powder

-1/4 teaspoon salt

-1/4 teaspoon lemon juice

-1/2 teaspoon grated lemon rind

Directions

Mix together sugar, butter, egg, and vanilla. Set aside. Mix flour, baking powder, and salt. Add gradually to butter mixture, blending well. Add lemon juice and rind. Wrap in wax paper and chill. Roll out dough and cut into shapes. Place on an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 400 degrees for approximately 8 minutes. Decorate!

I think what makes this recipe stands out is the addition of the lemon juice and lemon rind. You don't need to use fresh juice or rind. I actually prefer using prepackaged lemon juice and dried lemon rind. This recipe makes about 4 dozen, depending on how think you like your cookies.

When decorating the sugar cookies, I recommend using Wilton's coloring dyes instead of the red, yellow, blue, and green liquid droppers you get at the grocery store. Although the liquid coloring does the job, the pastes create colors that are much more rich. For example, when decorating this batch of cookies, I was able to make several shades of orange, red, and brown to make the leaves look more realistic.

Other things needed for decorating:

-flat spreaders (a.k.a. butter knives)

-toothpicks

-wax paper

-plastic bags

-colored sugar, sprinkles, etc.

-other candies to put onto the cookies

I use the plastic bags to pipe frosting. You can put a small amount into the bag, cut a small hole in the corner of the bag (I emphasize SMALL- you can always cut the hole bigger if you need to, but you can't 'make a big hole smaller) , and gently squeeze the bag for piping. Toothpicks are another staple. I use them to marbleize two or more colors together. *Note: I forgot to buy toothpicks at the grocery store (not just once but several times), so I used plastic forks as a substitute. Toothpicks are better by far, but if you don't have anything else (and are too lazy to go to the store), plastic forks are okay, too.

The frosting is really simple: powdered sugar and water. Just add water (a little at a time) to a large amount of powdered sugar until you have the right consistency.

Look at all of the colors!

Below are instructions on how to marbleize the frosting:

Frost the sugar cookie with a regular coat of frosting (but slightly on the thin side)

Use a toothpick, bag, spreader, or fork to carefully place lines across the cookie horizontally or vertically.



Use a toothpick (the jank option: a plastic fork) to draw lines in the opposite direction that the second color is spread. (Note: Don't put too much pressure on the toothpick because you can end up with a line with no frosting down the cookie.) *Note: You can draw lines in just one direction, but alternating directions also looks good.

The finished product!

Here are some more pictures of the cookies I decorated....

I thought the acorns turned out to be really cute, but...

The squirrels were even better! The eyes are made of sugar- found them by accident at the grocery store.

I am a messy cook!

I got all of my cookie cutters at Home Goods, which is next to the Target where I shop here in Rhode Island. If you're reading this from Indy, there is a Home Goods in Castleton. Although things can be a little random, they have a pretty good selection of, you guessed it, things for your home. The kitchen/cooking section is fairly large, and they have some cute holiday decorations. The set I got had a squirrel, an acorn, a pumpkin, and several kinds of leaves. While I was there, I found a set of cookie cutters that look like Christmas ornaments- can't wait to use them in December!

Let me know what you think of the cookies if you make the recipe! I promise you won't be disappointed!

Here's a sneak preview of some of the other cookies I'll make in the coming year...