What's Cooking in the Kitchen?

I am a little sad because it is that time of year when we have finals and then people go their separate ways for the summer. I am especially sad about my favorite Asian Joe going to Kansas for the summer to sell pest control. I hate Kansas and I hate pests! I am pretty sure that he is taking a little piece of my heart with him too. You know those friends that call you for no reason just to see how you are doing? This is Joe. I will miss him a lot this summer. There is also the possibility of another one of my favorites leaving Logan permanently, but I just can't think about that one...I know I will survive, and I am pretty sure that I am even more sad because it has been SNOWING for the past couple of days and by now I am just over snow. But, we are having a party tomorrow night, so I will be happy by then and take lots of pics.
On a happier note, I have decided that I really love to cook, so I have been looking for some good recipes and creating my own custom cookbook with recipes that I like. I have had some help in this along the way by my co-workers who have found some really fun websites! The first one is: http://www.hotgarlic.blogspot.com/ It is the sister of my friend Kate and she loves to cook as well. She posts her favorite recipes and adventures of creating them. We have tried the salsa, chocolate sauce and sugar cookie cake and they are all to die for! The second one is http://www.hungry-girl.com/ I think that I love this one simply because it is called Hungry Girl! They post all of the nutritional information on each recipe and they also post reduced fat options on everything. I have tried some of the tips for reducing the fat and eating healthily (is that a word?) and so far they have not led me astray. The last one is http://www.crockpot365.blogspot.com/ I have only perused this one a couple of times, but my friend has tried the breakfast potatoes and says that they were easy and wonderful. The girl who writes this one has decided to try cooking in the crockpot at least once a day for a year! I can't wait to try some of her recipes!

You can take the girl out of the city...

So, as much as I truly love living in Cache Valley, I never cease to be amazed at the things that still surprise me. I have learned a few things about small town living:
1. Do not be shocked when driving on the highway going 60 mph if a tractor pulls out in front of you going 3 mph. This is usually a bright yellow contraption with a bucket on the front and tires as big as the Jeep. Sometimes, though, the happy farmer will be chatting away on his cell phone completely oblivious to the fact that he has the potential to totally stop traffic.
2. That some people's definition of "grasping the English language" are very different than the rest of America. Now I used to work for the redneck of all rednecks, so I consider myself pretty fluent in redneck, but I still cringe a little when I hear phrases like "I usedta could" "Get 'er done" (more than just Larry the Cable Guy actually say this), and just the all together use of expletives in place of normal words.
3. While driving, there are a few things to know to survive in Cache Valley: First, when the light turns yellow, you better step on it to get through or you will be waved at wildly with one finger by the driver behind you. Second, speaking of waving with one finger-apparently this is an acceptable way to say hello if you are from a small town. Third, even though there are center lanes to make turning off the road easier for others to get around you, it is also an option to just go ahead and stop in the middle of the lane. Fourth, at any given time-especially when it is snowy, be prepared to swerve off of the road to avoid some idiot in 4-wheel drive who thought he was invincible and is now careening across all lanes of traffic out of control.
4. Finally, when travelling anywhere outside of city limits, be aware of the wildlife around you. Just recently, one of my friends was hit by a deer whilst driving in their car. That's right, around here, the animals hit you-not the other way around.
So, while I choose to live in the small haven called Cache Valley, I will always be reminded of the small town-ness of my surroundings. I will also keep the pledge to never ever sound like I am from a small town:)

I Heart Baseball!

I am so excited that it is finally nice enough to play outside! We got to go to the Salt Lake Bees game on Saturday and watch our first baseball of the season. We loaded up and headed out of Logan at noon and got the the game just in time and I think that I will have to have a favorite player on the Bees so that I can get my baseball fix...we sat on the left field line and the left fielder is very cute AND a good player! I was with all boys, so that kind of sucked the fun out of having a new baseball crush, but it was fun all the same!

Who says a haircut won't make all the difference?

Okay, so my favorite performances from last night are tied between the Davids! I think that they are quickly becoming my top 2 picks. I am waivering as far as Brooke goes...she's becoming a little boring and predictable. I definitely thought that Sayesha did a great job although the judges didn't think so. But the biggest news of the night was the haircut by David Cook! He looks sooo much better now that he is a little less greasy and I think he has a chance to go all the way! My bottom picks are still the same-dreads, asian girl and blonde bratty girl...we'll have to see.

April, American Idol AND Baseball!

Really, does it get better than this? Today is Tuesday, April 1 and although we got 4" of snow yesterday and it is arctic temperatures today, I can't help but be happy because of things to come...mostly baseball! I love baseball season and everything about it. I love the smell of the stadium-including the freshly cut grass, hot dogs and even the beer...I love the game itself and the fun that it brings. I, of course, love the beleagured A's, but have started to follow the White Sox simply because I also love Swisher-but I will always wear the green and yellow proudly.
The other thing that I love about this day is American Idol is on Tuesday nights. I have to say that I haven't been surprised by anyone that has been voted off so far, I have just been surprised by the order. I would have liked to see what Amanda could have done with a ballad, but other than that, I have agreed with the cast-offs. My bottom three are now: Kristie Lee Cook (although I liked her last week's performance, I still don't think she's that good) Ramiele (she is just plain weak and I am shocked she hasn't been in the bottom so far) and Jason Castro (besides the fact that his dreadlocks freak me out, he just isn't that strong). My top three favs are David Archuleta, David Cook and Brooke White-and I do not think that Sayesha should be in the bottom yet. My biggest surprise from last week was the Australian guy-he had a strong performance finally so hopefully he keeps it up.
Anyways, I will be watching the performances tonight and probably humming my favorite songs tomorrow, so all in all it is a good Tuesday.