"house" stuff . . .

Today is day 1 of home ownership! I have a BIG day planned for the Berra's Beach House. It begins with getting water turned on, meeting the new HOA, moving some boxes, cleaning, and trying out some paint samples. I'm already tired. :-) lol.

Even weirder is hearing Matt talk about doing "house" stuff. I've never seen Matt do "house" stuff (like he's never seen me do house stuff). Sure we clean around the apartment but that's not real "house" stuff. He's talking about setting up the speaker system, buying a lawnmower, cleaning the pool, and getting things like ladders and tools. I'm painting (for the first time EVER) and lining cabinets for goodness sake. I don't even know how to work a house.

I have a feeling that this is a start to a wonderful adventure. If you have any "house advice or other "house" stuff I should be doing- let me know! I'm starting at zero.

:-)

today . . .

Today

is

CLOSING DAY!!!

Walk through is at 9:00 so I'm off to workout. See you on the other side of home ownership!

up . . .

If you haven't seen the movie "Up" then you need to get to the theater ASAP! It is the best movie ever. Seriously, you all know my obsession with "The Sound of Music" as being the best all time movie in the world. Nothing has ever come close to being in the same league. Last night, history was made. "Up" made it in the same ranking as "The Sound of Music." No "potty humor," a good message, and characters that you are rooting for = best movie ever. I cried no less than 4 times.

I've decided to use the movie as an inspiration for today's post. There may be some references/spoilers in this entry so if you are irritated with that then you have 2 choices, 1) don't read this entry, or 2) go see the movie and then read this entry. :-)

"UP"

"The Spirit of Adventure"

In our marriage I am more the "Carl" and Matt is more the "Ellie." While I do have Ellie's mouth (hello non-stop conversations with myself) Matt has Ellie's spirit. I remember when Matt lived in Colorado, in a tent, in the woods, mapping the forest, I went to visit him. I didn't even know if he knew what time my flight landed in Denver. I hadn't heard from him in weeks! I got off the plane and I didn't see him. I went to the bathroom to get myself together and figure out what I was supposed to do next. (This was before cell phones and wireless Internet). I came out of the bathroom and I walk past Matt, let's call him Mountain Matt. He was totally jacked (hello? is that my boyfriend with all the muscles?) and had a beard - a long one! I did a double take and wondered, "What has happened to my boyfriend?" He greeted me with a smile and said he couldn't wait to show me everything. I was so excited!

We make the 5 hour drive back to the mountains with me snapping photos left and right and gawking at the sheer wonder of it all. It looked so "loony tune." I half expected to see the road runner poised to drop something Acme on the coyote . Later, Matt took me on the first of many hikes. One hike we took along a river made me realize that he was not going to be just a boyfriend.

I love to hike and I love the outdoors. I'm very clumsy and I always find a way to fall, bang something, or get hurt. I plod along at a snail's pace when there are slippery rocks involved but I won't let it stop me. I love adventure! Matt was so patient and so kind. He let me lead as we scrambled over rocks and splashed in different sections of the river. We got to the cliff and Matt said, "I'm jumping! Are you coming?" I looked at his expectant eyes and said, "Of COURSE!" while inside I was FREAKING out. I hate jumping off cliffs into water. I hate it with every single bone in my body. I have skydived, SCUBA dived, I will do just about anything once but jumping off cliffs into the water is terrifying for me. I climbed up to the top and I looked down. Matt jumped with ease. He was encouraging me to jump.

I know you're predicting something romantic where I jump off the cliff into his arms and he says how proud of me he is. Nah- we're not like that. :-) I totally chickened out and climbed down the rock face again. But what I love is that he still let me lead on the way back.

mornings

Mornings have always been my favorite time of day. I remember being very little and waking up at 5 a.m. on the weekends to watch "Bullwinkle" while laying on my monkey pillow. I remember all of the Christmas mornings that I would wake up early with mom and we would drink coffee and open up gifts to each other. I remember hitting the practice rooms at 6 a.m. in college because that was the only time I could make it. Mornings brings a sense of renewal and rejuvenation.

I was always a morning exerciser. I love hitting the gym first thing to get it over with and jump start my day. As I have grown into being a runner (only since August) mornings become a must. It's too hot in Miami to run at any other time of day! You ask, "How can you get up at 5 and go running?" "You are insane!" Well, I'm not insane. When you know that your friends are meeting you at 95th and Collins at 5:30 (you know because of the onslaught of morning text messages that say, "r u coming" "leaving now" "tired but still on my way"). You can't let your friends down and you can't *gasp* stand them up! Then there is the other thing that gets you out of bed. Although it's dark now you know that in 30 minutes you are greeted with this . . .

\

you'd be there too.

Talk about a Good Morning! When I see this I immediately consider how many Glory Be's I should recite! Runners are so blessed in Miami. Yeah it's super hot and humid, (a wise runner said, "think of it as a free facial"). The views can't be beat. The gorgeous sunrises over the Atlantic, the sand shuffling underfoot, the other early risers taking advantage of the morning, You'd be up early too.

being blonde . . .

. . . I've learned to take a joke.

"How do you drown a blonde girl? Put a mirror at the bottom of the pool!" *insert lame laugh*

Being from West Virginia I've learned to take even more offensive jokes . . .

"How do you know the toothbrush was invented in West Virginia? If it was invented anywhere else, it would have been called a teethbrush."

*insert even lamer laugh*

Being a blonde from West Virginia- well you get the drift.

Given the circumstances of being used to hearing terrible jokes, being made fun of mercilessly for my weight through middle school and high school, and being Catholic, you'd think that I'd be able to tolerate a night at the Improv. I can clearly take a joke. Apparently I can not. Well, let me rephrase- I can take a joke just about anything but last night was OVER THE TOP with the "I hate Marriage" jokes and the "My wife sucks" and the "My husband can't . . ." jokes. BAER*

"Oh lighten up," you say, "It's supposed to be funny! They don't really feel that way!" "Oh you're such a newlywed, you'll appreciate this one day!" No. No, I don't think I will. Honestly- of the 5 comedians- 4 (!) relied on the same marriage jokes over and over. Just to clarify- My G-spot is not in Matt's wallet and his credit cards are not weapons of Mass destruction. L.A.M.E.

Of ALL the things going on in the world that are funny- bosses, neighbors, jobs, etc.... why have we taken to mocking the most sincere relationship? You never hear people joke about their friends like that. When did it become acceptable to mock marriage? I just looked at my vows and nowhere in there does it say, "make fun of your marriage and tell everyone that your wife is an idiot/your husband is a lazy asshole."

I know you are thinking that I'm way obsessing about a harmless act but before you roll your eyes and stop reading think about it. Our words are powerful. Our words can change us. When children hear bad language, they repeat it. When we have negative self talk it brings us down. If you have a negative track playing about yourself in your mind you will LIVE the negative life. When you say something negative to someone they internalize the comment. I read that adult women remember negative comments made about them and their appearance made in their teens MORE then they remember an accomplishment in the same year!

Married people- it's Ok to have a sense of humor. I just think that with all the negative marriage talk out there (hello John and Kate, the SC governor, and the Edward's family and all of the other people we know in real life dealing with marriages that aren't working) married people have the responsibility to show what a gift marriage is! It's a beautiful work in progress. We have to stop the negative talk about marriages.

*stepping off soap-box*

Sorry for the deep thoughts/rant this morning. After hearing three women comedians bash their husbands last night I felt the need for my own tongue lashings. So let's stick to the blonde, WV, religious jokes and leave marriage out of it.

*Big Ass Eye Roll

huh?

Yesterday afternoon I was totally geared up for what was supposed to be a fabulous afternoon of organizing magazines while watching Obsessed from DVR. If you aren't familiar with the show I can sum it up by saying it's a show where people with various obsessions (OCD and the like) learn how to deal with their obsession. I love this show as I do have a touch of the OCD.

"Off, off, off, off, everything is O-F-F, off, off, off, off, everything is OFF! (this is my stove chant)

Poor Matt has to listen to me ask if I locked the door about a hundred times a day!

You obviously see why spending a stormy afternoon organizing and catching up on Obsessed would be so FUN for me! (I am neurotic). Yesterday's project was to organize the magazines into these nifty magazine boxes from Ikea. No, they don't come looking like they do in that link. I open the flat box and pull everything out . . .

Look closer . . .

My sentiments exactly.

Did you know that there were 24 nuts and 24 bolts in each box? I had three packages, 72 nuts and 72 bolts. Who knew you needed a screwdriver to put together a paper box? Typical Ikea. Two hours later I finished the boxes. My fingers were ripped to shreds but I did feel a sense of accomplishment. I pulled out all of the magazines that we can't bear to part with and grouped them by category and date. National Geographic and Adventure are green, scuba and travel are black, and cooking is white.

The finished product:

Now you know when you come visit the Berra's Beach house where to find which magazine! Anything to make you feel more at home. :-)

do i smell curry?

It's 6:30 in the morning and there is still a faint scent of curry (!) still lingering in the air of our apartment. It does not go well with my coffee. I light a candle and cozy up with my laptop. A typical South Florida storm rages over the ocean and I think to myself about how much my life has changed since Matt and I moved to Miami.

The food in South Florida is much different from the food I grew up with. Hot peppers quickly became my new obsession. I love to try new recipes and experiment with flavors and spices. Thankfully I have a husband who thinks he has a stomach of steel and definitely has a sense of adventure. On Matt's last trip he bought me a new cookbook. "It's the perfect cookbook for you honey," Matt explains, "it even has the nutritional information for each recipe next to it!" *swoon*

Naparima Girls' High School Cookbook

Last night's feast . . .

Curried Shrimp

2 lbs. shrimp (shelled)

1 tsp. minced garlic

1/2 cup finely chopped onion

2 tbsp. green seasoning

2 tsp. curry powder or more

1/2 cup water

2 tbsp vegetable oil

1 tsp. salt

hot pepper to taste

Method:

1. Season shrimp with garlic, onion, and green seasoning (that's green curry).

2. Mix curry powder with 1/4 cup water.

3. Heat oli and add curry paste and saute for 1 minute.

4. Add shrimp, salt, hot pepper, and stir to coat shrimp for a minute or two.

5. Add remaining water and cook on high heat for about 3 minutes. DO not overcook as shrimp will be tough.

Adjust salt and pepper.

I served mine with sauteed green peppers and cous cous whereas Matt just had cous cous. It was great! If I did it again I'd use a little more water and curry paste. I'd also use more hot pepper.

eeny meeny miny mo . . .

Seriously- is THIS what it's going to come down too?

I am just finishing an amazing book,

Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking

I won't attempt to summarize the whole book for you as I can't do it justice. There is one idea that I found to be quite interesting. Research done in the area of decision making shows that on trivial, every-day matters it is best to weigh all of your options and make a decision based on the evidence. However, when it comes to big decisions that are of great importance it may be better to go with your first instinct. I know- it sounds totally backward but I read and re-read. That is what it says! Now, most of you who know me well know that I could be the most indecisive person in the world. When it comes to ordering something at a restaurant I'm "that girl" who changes her mind thousands of times and then goes back to what she first said. Don't go shopping with me. I'll agonize over which of everything to buy and end up walking out with nothing (unless I'm with Megan, Cara, or heaven help me, Kateri). Imagine what is happening now in my life as the Berra's are planning a move into an all white house that must be painted.

There I am, standing at the end of the aisle at Home Depot. I'm staring at the lit wall of tiny pieces of papers all in different colors- mocking me and my decision making skills. "Michelle," they whisper, "pick me!" Another says, "no- pick me!" Another and another . . .

Beads of sweat form on my forehead and my heart starts beating quickly. I'm thinking to myself,

. . . Do I pick pool party or crystal water? I like the name better of pool party but crystal water is a little lighter, is it too light? Wait- didn't I see a really cool aqua before? What? No aqua- it's called tropical lagoon. Oooohhhh I LIKE that- tropical lagoon- wait- there's an AMAZING color- what is that called? What? Nevada Sky- never mind. Hmmm... Fountain Spout! There it is- wait no- that's lame. Icy Flower- what is an "icy flower." Whatever- snowdrop is out of the question. I can't invite someone over to the house and say, "Oh you like that color? Oh yes, us too- it's salty tear . . . "

***screams***

Are paint colors for your first home a trivial decision or a major decision?

I'm thinking major so I'm going to close my eyes and say, "eeny meeny miny, mo."

Or just go with tropical lagoon. :-)

in anticipation . . .

In anticipation of closing on our new home on June 29th ("cautious optimism" as our amazing relator says), Matt and I have been increasingly obsessed with Ikea, Home Depot, and new drinks to serve at our new pool! Untrue. I have become increasingly obsessed with Ikea and Home Depot whereas Matt is increasingly obsessed with inventing the perfect rum punch to serve on the "lido deck" (our new pool area). This weekend we perfected rum punch inspired by, "some guy in Trinidad." It is as easy as 1,2,3, and 4.

The Lido Deck:

1 part lime juice

2 parts lime sugar (the Berra's prefer Splenda) :-P

3 parts rum

4 parts water.

Let me know how you like it!

Another amazing drink we saw on the Food Network. At first glance I was a skeptic but at first taste I was amazed! We call it . . .

The Promenade

1 part Merlot (use a good one)

1 part seltzer

1 shot Peach Schnapps

serve in a tall glass over ice.

*delish*

In other Berra news, I will spend tomorrow figuring out where we put the combination (or was it a key) to the storage locker lock in our apartment. F.U.N. Any ideas where we put it? :-)