Cravings

  Oh Harrisburg, I've pretty much conquered you. You, with your commercialized restaurants and lack of innovative chefs, you give me nothing. The only ethnic food you offer is Italian, with the long "I". You leave me no choice but to cook for myself, and daydream of what once was.

And so I daydream. I daydream about picking blackberries from the backyard, of fresh seafood and produce just plucked from the earth; I dream of restaurants that at the very least have seasonal menus, not to mention weekly or daily changes. What is an inspired pseudo-chef to do in this very central Pennsylvania, Dutchish town. You don't aspire to culinary greatness because it’s not expected or asked of you. There are roadside produce stands, but no chefs in line for its selection. Sigh, sigh, sigh.

When I don't know what to cook, or where to get dinner, I usually have several things from Seattle that I'd be willing to venture out to get. The first would be teriyaki. And I don't mean that sweet, BBQ-y junk that its become. But, steamed, spicy chicken, thin juices soaked into fluffy rice, with a crunchy salad on the side. Ah, its Styrofoam heaven.

People here think pork and beef when they hear grill. All I long for is a whole salmon, stuffed with lemons and dill, cooked until its skin is crispy and its pink flesh is medium.

But, deep down, I know what I really need: anything that comes from Tom Douglas' restaurants. More sighs. Yes, I have his cookbooks and rubs-with-love. But, what I really want is the atmosphere, and the sample of Washington state pears with a bleu cheese and WA honey drizzled over it, that I got at Dahlia's that one time. A Lola breakfast. Mussels and clams steamed perfectly in a medley of wine and their own God-given juices. I want to partake in after-hour cocktails and happy hour at Palace on a Thursday night. Not to be noshing on chicken strips, but a beautiful soup or clam bake. Heaven, I'd be in Heaven.

Instead, it’s just up to me to try to infuse some of these elements into my cooking. So, I rub my chicken and steak with love, I check back often for new ideas from his kitchens, and I dream--how in 2 years I'll be sitting in one of his 5 (star in my opinion) restaurants, enjoying his food even more than when I always had it.

In Memory of

Please pray for the families of the 4 officers who were brutally murdered today in Lakewood, WA.  They were targetted and killed off-duty 0815 this morning. How can one person cause so much devastation?

Infamous Seattle

Living in Central Pennsylvania, but being from Seattle has its benefits. You always have an ice breaker at a party. You'll always have something interesting about yourself to talk about, something unexpected.  Because, not a lot of people willingly move to this area.  But, that's besides the point.

So, when I do let people know where I'm from, I'll usually get the following: "Why did you move HERE?", "Did you move here for a man?", and eventually, "Doesn't it ALWAYS rain there?" 

Yes, I did move here for a man, and that's working out swell.  And, no, it doesn't rain there all the time!  Did you know there's more annual rain fall in Philly, DC, New York, Boston, and Miami?  Miami!!! It does rain, thank God, because its so green.  If you're not from the Pacific Northwest, then you pretty much sum that area up as rainy.  So not the case.

However, recently there's a new subject that people are fixated on when you mention Seattle.  Sigh.  I didn't want to talk about it, especially now because everyone is.  But, I guess now is better a time than any: Twilight. Yes, that book series and now movie series.  My new hairdresser here asked me one time (after hearing I was from Seattle, and after I told her about the lack of rain) if Seattle's tourism has gone up since the books.  I didn't even know at the time where the story took place. 

Which leads me to the main point of this post.  Seattle is a gem. Seattle is a hidden treasure. Seattle is not just rain, coffee, apples, and salmon, and now some teeny bopper books.  Unfortunately, a lot of people have it in their heads of what Seattle is. Yes, we have Starbucks coffee, but did you know that Seattle's Best coffee is actually better? Pike Place Market is on everyone's list to see, but don't just go to watch the flying fish! They won't throw the fish if you don't buy anything!! Try the cinnamon-sugar mini doughnuts right around the corner from the flying fish. Travel across the cobblestone lane and you'll find another portion of the market, unattached, that has beautiful breads, multi-cultural cuisine, and produce.  Pick up the Chukar Cherries near the skybridge entrance. Hell, go outside and find Mt. Rainier! 

This area should not be defined by Forks, WA, an abandoned logging town.  It should be defined by the Hoh rainforest (right next to Forks, WA).  People should read about our mountains and our waterfronts. They should travel for our cuisine, for our wild mussels and blackberries.  We should talk about the history of this place, about our lifestyles, and about our connection to this land. 

That vampire story has been told before.  There have been better movies and better television shows devoted to its metaphors and passion-filled tales.  For goodness sake, please don't come to Washington because you want to take the Twilight tour.  Especially since its being filmed in Canada now.

Get it together, kid

You're all thinking that, right? More posts! More posts! All the both of you who follow this are thinking exactly that. I don't blame you. 

Most days, I wonder if I'm doing the right thing by advancing my nursing career.  I think about all the lives that I've helped, all the elderly hands that have patted my bottom (literally), and all of the bodily fluids that I've come into contact with.  And I wonder, is this what I want for the next 30 years?  My gut says no, but my wallet is like, "yes, yes!!!!". So I continue, because I do believe in medicine and I like answering questions from my family members about this drug and that disease.  I also believe that with more education, I'll really get to a place where I'm meant to be.

Then, something happens that makes me question all of that good reasoning again.  Take last night for example:  I hear this blood curtling scream at the nurses station from way down the hall. Just a horror-filled scream.  I'm thinking---someone has fallen, someone's been stuck in a bathroom for 30 minutes with the call light on, I don't know....maybe a mouse??? 

These kinds of screams are pretty common in a nursing home because you have a lot of hallucinations (probably brought on by the calcium pills that we're shoving down their 95 year old throats).  But, I rush anyways because the sooner you get there, the less you have to clean up. Ha, no I was really concerned.

I hear it again as I get closer, and decide its coming from this one room, which is inhabited by this schizophrenic Jewish lady.  She's propped up in bed, red as a beet, her facial expressions mimicking her earlier screams.

So, I ask her what's wrong.

"They didn't put MAYO, on my TURKEY SANDWICH!!!!"

What? Is that all?

Yes.

To which I proceed to look down at her plate--her empty plate. She already ate it. There was nothing that I could do. 

Times like this are the times I want my money back from nursing school.

November already?

Yikes, my last post was way back on Oct 12th. Not that anything has happened since then, its just principle. What can I say, I'm livin the life: Full time work and part time school, mixed in with a little sleeping.  I wish I had some funny stories from work and/or nursing school, but alas, everything is all a blur. 

K and I are seeing less of each other lately, but not by choice. He's got the same schedule as I do, and next month we will have even less time together. And less money, also not by choice. You see, my school has decided to schedule classes Monday thru Friday next semester, and having them end between 2-3 pm. This means day and evening shift are out of the picture.  I will be working the weekends only pretty much for 3 months. Not ideal for a single girl living by herself in Harrisburg. This mecca requires rent and all utilities be paid out of pocket. The solution: I'm movin in with my guy.

Sin!  Calm down, the good Lord isn't going to condemn me. 

So it will be interesting.  Two dogs coming together. Date nights spent with the xbox.  Two soulmates working on the days they're not going to school. Its going to be a fun year.

Sick as a dog

This was a bad weekend.  A stressful weekend, a weekend that I'll probably never forget.  That little puppy up there had to have emergency surgery.  She ate part of a towel last weekend, which isn't that unusual for her.  What is unusual is that she stopped eating.  My dog is a vaccum cleaner when it comes to food.  She doesn't chew, she just inhales.  So, when she wouldn't touch her food, we started to get really concerned. And when she wouldn't walk down the stairs, I knew something serious was happening.

We took her to an emergency vet in York, PA on Friday afternoon. She had blood tests, xrays, and they indicated she needed surgery.   The doctor called half way through and told us that he needed to remove 2-4 ft of her intestine because she had such a bad blockage and it was causing her insides to kink.  We had 5 minutes to decide what to do.

Some of you may never understand this decision. You may look at it from strictly a financial perspective.  We looked at everything. The odds were stacked against her statistically, but we knew that she had the fight and the energy to make it through. I didn't care how my lifestyle was going to change. I didn't care about cleaning up after her more or buying different food.  We told him to proceed.  She was in surgery for 7 hours.  She didn't eat all of Saturday. Finally, on Sunday,when she was given less pain medicine, she inhaled her food again and we got to take her home.

That was this weekend.  Today, we spent the whole day together and she is doing great.  I don't regret one decision.  She is happier now, more comfortable than before, and just wants to play.  The next few weeks may be tough, but I know that her lifestyle isn't compromised and that I made the right decision. 

Lilly is a special dog.  She is empathetic and affectionate, she's gentle and spunky.  She's my first dog as an adult and it didn't seem right to give up on her at 10 months old. She has so much to do and to see.  I'm so grateful for the chance to play with her again, and I'm so thankful for the doctors and techs who helped her this weekend.  I was very close to loosing her. 

From now on, everytime we take a hike together, play in the snow, go for walks along the pond near my apartment, and cuddle in bed, I'm going to remember this weekend and cherish the time that we have that much more. 

Love Happens

Normally, I wouldn't comment on a movie, but I will on this one because it was in SEATTLE!!!! As far as romantic movies go, I give it a 5/10. I didn't really buy the characters or a lot of the plot line. BUT, the shots of the city were so gorgeous.

I mean seriously now, how can you not fall in love at first sight with Seattle? It’s a city on the water. Go in farther and it’s a city of artwork. Did you know that Seattle has to devote 1% of its budget every year to public art? Many fiscal conservatives, like me, would think this is a waste. It’s not. It’s essential. It only adds to the splendor of Seattle. I'm biased though.

The movie got horrible reviews, but that's because they weren't written by Seattleites. Many of us would appreciate the many nods to Seattle. Yes, there's the obligatory shot of Pike Place Market and the Space Needle. But there was more. Emphasis on the ferry pier. A shout out to Mt. Rainier. A cameo by the Fremont Troll. Even Bruce Lee's tombstone made an appearance. I loved it all.

And yes, I'll admit it: I teared up a little when they showed the city. It’s one of my great loves.

A couple of side notes: No, you can't climb stairs up the Space Needle. I don't think they even exist! Also, a taxi would not drop you off at Pike Place in order for you to get to your hotel. And never, ever release a tropic bird into the chilly coniferous woods of the Pacific Northwest. It cannot adapt. It’s not a seagull.

Good movie though. It showed that we are a people of good music, beautiful surroundings, and comfy, fall clothing.

2 years down

As promised, here is my post about what it was like and is like to move to PA.

First of all, let me just tell you how fast the last 2 years have gone. Probably not for my parents, but looking back it has flown for me. I made the decision to move to Pennsylvania late in 2006, which was less than a year after K and I started officially dating. He and I go way back, almost 10 years now, but we stopped talking for a bit and started up again 2/06. After several agonizing good-byes in multiple airports, I had had enough. With my job being so flexible, I decided to go ahead and give the East Coast a shot. So, on Sept. 18th, we loaded up my little Hyundai Elantra, and drove across the country.

It took us about a week, and it could have taken less, but we visited family on the way. On the first day, we drove from Seattle to Bozeman, MT. It was September and we got caught in a blizzard. We stayed in a dinky Best Western, arrived very late, and awoke to the mountains the next morning. We had no idea how beautiful the place was.

Next we drove from Bozeman through Yellowstone, finally arriving in Jackson Hole, WY. This is now one of my most favorite places on earth. Seriously, there's something about Jackson Hole that just makes me feel alive. That's really cliché, huh? Well, make fun of me, and continue to do so, because we're totally honeymooning there someday!!!

Yellowstone was beautiful, but we much preferred the nearby Teton Mountain range.

We woke up early to a chilly 40 degree morning, and drove through the most boring part of our country (the rest of WY), and ended up in CO with my aunt and uncle. The next day we drove to Nebraska to visit my other aunt. The next two days we drove through Iowa, Illinois, and Indiana, finally Ohio and Pennsylvania. There's nothing to share about those states because you can only say so many things about corn.

It was a blur of a trip for me. I already missed home and I was so scared of how I would adapt. And yet, it was smooth sailing on that trip relationship-wise. He drove, I slept, and we supported each other.

I'm not going to go into great detail about the last two years, except to say this: I'm glad I took this chance. I'm glad that I took a chance on a boy from the East Coast, ten years ago, 2 years ago, and today. I'm glad that I took a chance and went for what I wanted in my life. I'm glad that I had the confidence in myself to take that chance. Fear holds us back and makes us regret life. 2 years ago, I turned my back on fear and got into that car, and I'm so grateful for what came after.

Crazy life

I have neglected my little blog this week.  Life is pretty busy right now. I'm going back to school to get a higher nursing degree, still working, and trying to keep a puppy-ruled house in order. 

Getting into this nursing program was unbelieveable.  Actually saying yes, I'll get a higher degree is unbelieveable as well. Do I want to continue in such a crazy field? I'm over worked, underpaid, hurting,  punched and kicked at, constantly watching my back, and going home every night worrying about what I missed or did wrong that day. And yet, I keep coming back. I keep making connections with people. And I keep wanting to go a little further. 

So, yes, I am nuts for going in deeper, but that's how we nurses are. 

My Weekend

Ah, to be away from it all, spending your time lounging, laughing, and drinking. This was my weekend with K's cousins. The good ones. Not the douchey ones.

We went to Pittsburgh this weekend to visit his family, and of course, go to the Steeler game. If you didn't know, which I don't know how you can't, the Steeler's won the Super Bowl last year. If you didn't know that, then you definitely don't know they have won 6 of these, which is more than any other team. So, that's pretty darn impressive. We went and we enjoyed. And they won, thank God, because if they didn't, there would be less enjoyment, and at the same time, more drinking.

I'm not a big drinker. I don't like the taste. Most of the time, it gives me a headache. I don't think there's anything wrong with it, as long as you're safe and plan ahead. There is something wonderful about having drinks with people who you love, who make you laugh hysterically, and who allow you to let your guard down and not care how you look. That's what this weekend, and every weekend with K's cousins, is about. So, this is my shout out to them for being so darn wonderful.

I took over 300 pictures on this trip. It was pretty darn impressive. I don't have any downloaded now, of course, but expect some in the next post.

I'd like to end this post by saying that yes, I am now a Steeler's fan. I am a Steeler's fan because this team is about Pittsburgh, and Pittsburgh is about loyalty and knowing where you came from. There's nothing better than that.

The weather seems to change every 3 months

We are now approaching my favorite season: fall.  As a born and raised Washingtonian, I very much like my crisp weather. Especially after a sweltering East Coast summer.

Fall is so wonderful because it has such great textures and tastes. Warm, wooly sweaters and spicy drinks make fall the best season, hands down.  And its also a great excuse to make soup.

Its an exciting time of the year for an aspiring chef (did you know that about me? Yeah, aspiring self-taught chef), because its harvest time and its comfortable enough to cook indoors and out.  My boyfriend gave me a bright red, shiny grill for my birthday last year, and it hasn't gotten enough use. Probably because its so humid and grilling requires a shower afterwards.  So, now I have lots of produce because of the time of year and its cool enough to grill. How messed up am I?  I wait for it to cool to grill....

I just love what this time of the year brings.  I think its more inspiring than New Years.  You have a new school year, which doesn't really apply to me, but you still get that feeling.  You have a bounty of good food.  Everyone's back from vacation, so you are entitled to have more at home parties.  You get to cover up a little bit, which is always more comfortable.  And all of the college kids have gone back to school, so going out is much more enjoyable!!!

Fall, I really love you that much. 

The title of this post is kind of an inside joke.  We were watching the horrible Harrisburg news the other day and that's what the weather guy said.  And I said, "Yeah, they're called seasons. There are 4 of them."

On a side note, I'm approaching my 2nd year anniversary of my move from Washington. Its bittersweet.  I'll post more when that day approaches (9/18).  In the meantime, I'm going to go enjoy this beautiful weather!!

Pull up a chair

So this is my about me post for the week or so.  I was thinking the other day how weird it is to describe your hobbies at this age. When you're little, or hell even in high school, its easy to answer this question. Kids have hobbies: they're learning how to play instruments and like collecting junk and stuff.  As adults, you're more limited in a way.  Especially when you're 24 and you're trying to establish a savings account.  So what are my hobbies? Or, a better question, what do I really like to do but don't do very often because I work a lot and have to pay bills?  Very good question.

1) Camping.  I like to camp because its gives me an opportunity to get out of the hustle and bustle of apartment life. I also like camping because food never tastes as good as when its made over a fire.  The air is fresh. It can be romantic.  In my opinion, you sleep better because you follow the sun and you wake up to the outdoors.  You get to build a big fire and poke it.
Why I don't go camping very often: My boyfriend hates it.  Pennsylvania is either very hot and sticky, or snowing. There are lots of ticks here.

2) Hiking.  This is the best way to exercise. There's a clear start point and you are rewarded at the end.  You hike and hike, then end up with a beautiful view somewhere (otherwise, what's the point of the trail), and then after you eat your lunch with that view, you get to go DOWN hill, which isn't so bad. 
Why I don't go hiking very often: See above. Oh, and there are no mountains here, duh. Shut up you PAers who are reading this, they're hills. HILLS!

3) Tennis.  Tennis is the 2nd best way to exercise.  Its a game of short sprints and uses practically every muscle you have. And more.  In tennis, you have many opportunities to make unbelievable shots, and sometimes, sometimes when the stars align, you can aim straight for you opponent and knock them right in the torso.  So satisfying.
Why I don't play tennis very often: I don't really know.  There's no excuse.

4) Photography.  This is something I picked up a couple of years ago.  I decided one day that I wanted to try it, and the photos weren't half bad.  I mostly take pictures of nature, because its just so beautiful.  My photography usually comes in spurts. I'll take about 100 if its a big event, or I'll take 5 if I have some new flowers in my garden. This is a hobby I do the most consistently.  Here's a picture from July, when I last took my camera out:

The Space Needle is so photogenic

5)  I also like to play the piano, but don't own one right now because of space. We tried to get one off of craigslist, but this old lady didn't understand the concept of how to haggle.

6) Cooking, music, road trips, writing, having themed parties, and dancing.  More to come.

What my puppy knows

So my mom keeps bugging me about getting my pup to obedience class. Which first of all is 1) not going to happen because of my schedule and 2) probably unnecessary. (And as I write this she's chewing on something she shouldn't.) Money aside, I just don't think she needs to go to Petco to learn stuff.  I'm capable, I'm at least as smart as her to train her.  Besides, I think she knows a lot of things already.

For instance:

1) She knows how to sit.  Mainly when I'm holding a treat in my hand and telling her repeatedly to do so. But she will sit.
2) She knows how to shake sometimes too. It occurs a while after she finally sits and I tap her paw.  This also works really well when I grab her paw, shake it, and in a high pitch noise say, "SHHHHHAAAAKKKKEEE!!!
3) My puppy knows that when she sees a black dog in the mirror with a purple collar, which looks eerily enough like her fur and collar, that she should bark. Repeatedly. And growl sometimes.  If the dog barks and growls at the same time, she knows to run away with her tail in between her legs.
4) She also knows that other dogs aren't as interesting as other people. Other dogs don't have anything to offer. In fact, they can be very violating. But people, people are friendly and will hand out food.

(Oh, she has discovered that black dog again)

5) Our morning routine is engraved in her mind. She knows that she gets to go in the bathroom first, and once we're inside, I get to go.  She goes right for the bathroom door, and keeps me company until I'm done. Its so lovely....
6)   Lilly knows somehow knows what the doorbell means. Although, I'm not sure how because no one ever rings our doorbell. However, whenever a doorbell rings on tv, she runs for our front door.  TV has raised my dog. 
7) She has learned, somewhat mistakenly, that all food must be inhaled, not chewed.  I think this is a genetic trait, as she is wired to eat her food as fast as possible. I'm not going to take it away, but she doesn't know that yet. She knows its time to eat when I ask her if she's hungry. She hears this and proceeds to run around our apartment, in an excited little prance.
8)And finally, she knows that the best possible place to sleep is anywhere that I am. Whether its in my lap, on my head, or right next to my body, giving me as little room as possible, I am a heat source and that therefore is the most comforting.

So, no, I'm not going to shell out the money and get her properly trained. This is good for now.

Ho Hum Tuesday

The best ideas seem to come to me when I am driving or walking somewhere. At a time when I don't have anything to write them down on. I'll think about something, and then think that was witty or funny and belongs in a blog. Sometimes it happens at work when I'm giving 95 year old women calcium pills. I think to myself about all the great things I'd rather be doing, or deep thoughts that go above "when was the last time you washed your dentures."

I'd like to be one of those people who perpetually carry a nifty journal around.  But I'm not, and I don't, so I'll try to compensate now.  Maybe I'll start tomorrow with the journal carrying though.  I do have journals. Lots of journals. Lots of incomplete journals.  The reasoning behind this is, its fun to start a journal: crisp pages of possibility. Its boring to keep it up. Especially when you date it, because there's always a 3 month span of empty pages, where you wonder if nothing happened, or you were just incredibly lazy.

I have kept up with one particular journal for the past 3-4 years. Its different in that I don't date most entries, and I write sporadically in it.  I guess its more of a mood journal, and a collection of funny quotes, inspirational pictures, whatever.  I do think that its a poor representation at times because I always have in the back of my mind that my children may read it someday.  So I don't drop f-bombs (or f-word bombs, like I read the otherday on facebook), or write about my thoughts on sex and how rotten so and so is.

My favorite thing about this journal is my list of things to do before I die. This was written before it was fashionable to do so.  I was ahead of my times. 3 years ago.....

Anyway, I've got over 100 things, probably 10 accomplished, which isn't bad.  I tried to make them attainable and realistic.  Its kind of a testament of who I was more than who I am. For instance, #1 is see Italy. Yeah, I don't really care if I don't do that. I'd rather see more of the US before other countries.  #52 learn how to play the guitar. Yes, I very much want to do that.  #61 Vacation in a log cabin. Waiting...

Some of the things I have done:
16. Have a relationship with my father......Yeah, that's pretty good now. Not that it was bad.
26. Make my own candles.....Disaster.
53. Dig for clams.....the only way to have clams. 
91. Visit Montana.....we did this on my move from Seattle to Harrisburg.  I'll talk about that someday. 
104. Learn to crack an egg with one hand.
117. Adopt a black labrador puppy.....crap, I just read this and I did that in February. I haven't read this in awhile.

New approach

I'm back.

Its been a very crazy month filled with ups and downs. We had two big losses in our family this month and it really got me thinking. Life is not defined by where you are physically or emotionally in it. Life is happening whether you like it or not. You can take a hold and go with it, or you can loose precious time.

With that in mind, I'm taking a different approach to this blog. I'm still going to focus on Seattle, because its just that great and its a part of me. But, instead of the Seattle life being the central theme, I'm going to let it hang out in the background. It will still pop up: today for instance, I went to Costco (which is from Seattle), and bought three, yes THREE different kinds of salmon. You didn't know that was possible, did you?

I'm going to write more about my life. My thoughts, my experiences. What's going on during the week. Somedays it might be boring. Sometimes life is boring. Most of the times, however, its quirky and funny. So, instead of once a week, or God forbid, once a month, I'm going to shoot for 3 times a week. Which in nursing talk is T.I.D. Oh, you are learning so much already.

I'll start by revealing that I live in Harrisburg, PA. I've done pretty much all there is to do. I wish people would visit me more because it gives me a chance to go to Chocolate World.

I also want to mention that my guy, K, is reading this post now. I kept it a secret because I didn't know if I was going to commit or not (to the blog). But, I made up my mind, and now he is probably my first reader. I may invite friends to read, so if "Would you read a blog if I wrote one?" pops up on facebook in the next couple of days/weeks, I decided to really open up.

Sometimes I question why I'm doing this. Is it narcissistic? Do people care? Is it a form of therapy, or am I really on to something. I've decided that people have been writing their lives in some form or another. Nowadays, we have blogs. Its a more accessible form of writing your thoughts. For me, its working. And besides, this is way more productive than twittering what you ate for lunch today.

Humor me

So what is it about Seattle/Washington that's so different from any other place? I'm hopefully going to put that into exact words throughout this blog. Its just a special place. And as cheesy as that sounds, its so true. Ask any outsider who's visited. First, they get over the initial shock that its not raining (that's right, it doesn't rain as much as you hear). On sunny days, its the most beautiful place in the world. My favorite places in Washington are when you can see the mountains framing a piece of water. Spectacular. That's not very hard to find either since Seattle is nestled in between the Olympic and Cascade Mt. ranges. On these days, you can also see Mount Rainier. Its, and I'm not kidding you, breathtaking. The first time my boyfriend saw it, he couldn't believe that it was a mountain and not clouds. On my last trip to WA, we flew right over Mt. Rainier:

Crazy big right??

Anyways, Mountains+ water=beautiful.

So what else sets us apart? Well, I think that's enough right there.


Let's talk food next. I'm no chef, but I do pretty well for myself. That's because a) my mom is a lousy cook and for the survival of my dad and brother, I learned how to make some dishes in high school, and b) Seattle makes it easy. I really think that in the next couple of years, Seattle cuisine is going to be the next food trend. Mainly because organic and local farming is so popular, but also because its really amazing food.

My favorite chef in all the world is Tom Douglas. He has 5 restaurants in Seattle, and hands down, serves the best breakfast at his one restaurant, Lola. Whenever we visit my family, we visit Lola. They also serve great Greek food for lunch and dinner. Try it. Put a Tom Douglas restaurant on one of your things to do before you die.

The Seattle palate is clean. Its refreshing. Its creative. We use what we have, but that's not hard because we have a lot. Our produce and seafood make the meal. One of my favorite things to do when I was living in my studio apartment in Seattle was to get a pound of clams, a crusty loaf of bread, and a crisp white wine (Chateau St. Michelle), and there's your meal. Excellent.

And finally, what makes Washington, Washington is the love for everything outdoors. I'm not talking green living and environmentalism, which we have plenty of that. I mean camping. Hiking. Kayaking. Canoeing. Backpacking. Outdoor sports. White water rafting. Hell, even just taking a stroll outside. We do these things because we have nature in our backyard. And the weather doesn't suck. I miss this the most. PA's weather is pretty harsh compared to Washington. The joke is they have 3 seasons here: summer, winter, and construction season. Winters are bitter and summers are humid. Plus, there's ticks. AH.

But, these things are important to me. Its a central part of me. Hiking isn't just exercise. Its a stress reliever. With the start of this blog, I'm going to start recording my hiking excursions. Pennsylvania is a beautiful state, and there are trails here too! So I'm going to hike and write.

And I hope you read along. Are you out there? Let me know!! I'll write anyways though.

Intros and such

I think this is silly too, but oh well, I'm going to try it anyways. Maybe its because I just got back from a two week vacation to the Pacific Northwest. Or, maybe its because I'm reading that Julie/Julia Project book and she started a blog, and I'm witty too, though less with the f-bombs. Either way, I want more Seattle in my life, and there's no better way to get yourself to do something nowadays than with a record for everyone to see. And besides, I need something else to do online other than Facebook.

So here's the backstory, which I'm going to try to keep anonymous as possible for safety reasons. I'm 24, living in Central PA for nearly 2 whole years. I was born and raised in the Seattle area, outside of the city. My boyfriend is the reason I moved to PA. He bought me a Labrador puppy to make up for it, so its all good. I'm also a nurse, but that has nothing to do with this blog. (Maybe that's why I'm writing? Nursing isn't getting my rocks off).


My goal is to just bring the things I loved back into my life. I'm positive that this is going to help me in many ways.


Plus, less interesting people have blogs, so I'm entitled.