Somewhat Plans

Happy Friday everyone! I hope you all have exciting plans this weekend.

My plan was to go to a Texas Winery with a friend and have dinner there. But the plans fell through.

So instead I will be hanging out at home, painting and puttering around. I may do some exercise. Ha ha. Watch out world!

To inspire myself, I reader the latest Reader's Digest and read some fitness related quotes.

Here are my favorites:

I really don 't think I need buns of steel. I'd be happy with buns of cinnamon. Ellen DeGeneres.

I don't exercise. If God wanted me to bend over, he would have put diamonds on the floor. Joan Rivers.

No one ever went to their deathbed and said, "you know, I wish I had eaten more rice cakes." Amy Krouse.

So there you have it.

What are your plans this weekend?

Runaway

Yesterday, I wanted to run away from home, go to Mexico and open up a cantina. And live on the beach forever.

I just have too much going on and sometimes I simply don't have the time to do all of it. I feel overwhelmed. Weekdays are consumed with work and commute. What's left of the day, I eat, watch TV and blog surf. And sleep. There is lots and lots of guilt to deal with all day long. Rinse repeate, rinse repeat.

Lots of things brought this on. First, there was this fabulous post that a fellow blogger Nan wrote. It was about the importance of having a job right now. Click here to read it. She is absolutely right about what she says. I couldn't agree more.

But then I got a call from a girl friend who was job hunting. She's been looking for a job for about 8 months. And for a while, there were no leads. But all of a sudden, in September, she started getting leads and interviews. She got numerous offers. One job was high paying and offered all the benefits. She was very torn about it and in the end decided to go for a job that was just 40 hours of contracting. It was a very brave and scary decision to make.

She has a wonderful 18 month old daughter and decided that working 60 hours a week just would not cut it for her. She wanted to spend time with her daughter. 40 hours of work, coming home stress free, not having sleepless nights was a bargain. Sure she would get less money, but in the end it was worth it. I am so proud of her.

To her I say bravo! I was a stay at home mom for years and I can never ever feel any regrets for that.

To all the Moms who chose to stay at home or opted for lesser hours so you could spend time with your family, I say bravo! My hats off to you.

Then I heard from another girl friend. We were planning on going out for dinner with our spouses to celeberate her birthday. She cancelled it. She said she wasn't in the mood. She was tired of work and everything else.

I proposed to her that we run away to Mexico and open up a cantina. Dress code would be bikinis, sarongs and flip flops.

She laughed and said, "I wish."

Le sigh!

So my question to you is, who wants to run away to Mexico with me and open a cantina? Jobs for everyone!

The only decisions we would have to make is, should I serve margerittas or a mexican martini?

Sounds good?

Encaustics Supplies

So I finally got around buying all the supplies for encaustics.

Let me tell you something. That it is not an inexpensive hobby. You need lots and lots of supplies. Most people have stuff like that sitting around in the house. But not me. I am not a tools kinda gal. I mean who has a heating gun sitting around in their house?

Not me.

You'll see the supply list at the end of this post and then you will understand.

I am kinda broke right now and so I dragged and dragged my feet about it. But I got a paycheck recently so I decided to buy all the supplies for encaustics. Heck with it. Life is short.

And although I was struggling with a stomach virus this weekend, I managed to get the supplies and create some pieces. They are still drying so I'll take photos and post as soon as they are done.

So here are the supplies you will need. The prices of courses will vary depending on where you live.

One time purchase..

Electric Griddle: 10-25 dollars @ Target
Heating Gun: 23 dollars @ Home Depot
One omelete pans: 6 dollars each at HEB

More supplies...

Encaustics medium: A kit at an art supply store cost me approximately 50 dollars.
Soy Wax to clean brushes: 10 dollars at an art store
Natural Brushes: 1 dollar each at an art store
Panels: Home depot. That is another post coming up soon.

So there you have it. Encaustics is expensive. But it is so much fun and rewarding.

If you try it, do tell.

Love Burgers

So what is it about burgers that they are so popular?

Beef burgers, chicken burger, tofu burgers, veggie burgers, turkey burgers, bocha burgers, hippie burgers, kabab burgers... the list goes on and on.

And then the toppings... lettuce, tomato, onions, grilled onions, sauted mushroom, cheese, mayo, mustard, ketchup, bbq sauce...

So many choices!

Here is my favorite recipe. I call it spicy burger.

Ingrediants

1 pound ground beef (low fat)
dash of olive oil
quarter onion chopped
salt
pepper
2 teaspoons tandoori masala or garam masala
Half teaspoon red chilli powder

Mix it all together.
Make hamburger patties
Grill
Eat

Yummy!

So do you like burgers? What is your favorite kind? What kind of toppings do you like?

Grapes

Wordless Wednesday.

Raising Kids

So last weekend I got a visit from my cousin sister and her two kids. A son, 5 years old and a daughter 3 years old.

And I had a great time. But as soon as they left, I crashed.

Ooo lah lah...

And I am still tired.

How in the world did I raise 2 boys? And how glad am I that they are grown up and in college?

Don't get me wrong. I was a stay at home mom when my kids were little and I always had a great time. But now? I cook when I want to and nap when I want to. And paint when I want to.

And I certainly don't have to run around chasing them. They chase me. For salsa and money mostly but hey... I trained them well. When they visit home, they cook all the time. I don't even have to feed them. I don't even have to buy groceries. They do it all. I simply have to show up and their faces light up.

Somewhere, somehow, I must have done something good.

So that's my story. I have been absent from the bloggy world but I have a good excuse.

Now I must go drink some more coffee.