A California Girl's Journey: exploring God's creation and enjoying all life has to offer.
Sunday, May 18, 2008
Sunday, May 11, 2008
My top 25
I read in Entertainment Weekly this week one of the authors top 20 playlist, so it got me thinking of what my 20 would be and what it actually is. Well since it's finals time and I don't have time to put together about what I think it would be I thought I'd just post my top 25 from iTunes. Below is the Song, the artist and the number of times I've listened to it. Minus the Legally Blonde, it's a pretty good list--Don't get me wrong I love, I LOVE Legally Blonde, but it's the majority of the list, so look past it and there are some gems!
So Much Better, Legally Blonde The Musical, 49
Omigod You Guys, Legally Blonde The Musical 45
Serious, Legally Blonde The Musical 38
Take It Like A Man, Legally Blonde The Musical 38
Nothin' to Lose, Josh Gracin 34
Suds in the Bucket, Sara Evans 34
Austin, Blake Shelton 30
Chip On My Shoulder, Legally Blonde The Musical 30
Bend And Snap, Legally Blonde The Musical 30
Legally Blonde, Legally Blonde The Musical 29
You Alone, David Crowder Band 28
Taylor, the Latte Boy, Kristin Chenoweth 28
Goin' to the Dance with You, Kristin Chenoweth 25
Stays in Mexico, Toby Keith 25
Good Morning Baltimore, Hairspray 24
I Will Go Sailing No More/Just Around the Riverbend/Strangers Like Me, On The Record 24
What You Want, Legally Blonde The Musical 24
There! Right There!, Legally Blonde The Musical 24
God of Rembrandt, Shine Like Stars 24
Leavin's Not The Only Way To Go, Big River 23
You Oughta Be Here With Me, Big River 23
Positive, Legally Blonde The Musical 23
Undignified, David Crowder Band 22
Passenger Seat, SHeDAISY 22
The Girl in 14G, Kristin Chenoweth 21
K.. Back to studying!!!
So Much Better, Legally Blonde The Musical, 49
Omigod You Guys, Legally Blonde The Musical 45
Serious, Legally Blonde The Musical 38
Take It Like A Man, Legally Blonde The Musical 38
Nothin' to Lose, Josh Gracin 34
Suds in the Bucket, Sara Evans 34
Austin, Blake Shelton 30
Chip On My Shoulder, Legally Blonde The Musical 30
Bend And Snap, Legally Blonde The Musical 30
Legally Blonde, Legally Blonde The Musical 29
You Alone, David Crowder Band 28
Taylor, the Latte Boy, Kristin Chenoweth 28
Goin' to the Dance with You, Kristin Chenoweth 25
Stays in Mexico, Toby Keith 25
Good Morning Baltimore, Hairspray 24
I Will Go Sailing No More/Just Around the Riverbend/Strangers Like Me, On The Record 24
What You Want, Legally Blonde The Musical 24
There! Right There!, Legally Blonde The Musical 24
God of Rembrandt, Shine Like Stars 24
Leavin's Not The Only Way To Go, Big River 23
You Oughta Be Here With Me, Big River 23
Positive, Legally Blonde The Musical 23
Undignified, David Crowder Band 22
Passenger Seat, SHeDAISY 22
The Girl in 14G, Kristin Chenoweth 21
K.. Back to studying!!!
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
Winner Winner Chicken Dinner
Well first thing is first. I want to tell you all about the most exquisite dinner I've had in a long time. On Sunday evening we went to the Napa Rose to participate in one of the Disney's California Adventure Food and Wine Festival special events. We attended the Guy Fieri celebrity chef dinner. It was a five (well actually 6) course wine paired dinner. Now before I get into the individual courses let me tell you that Michael Jordan (not the basketball player) is the Master Sommelier of the Napa Rose and he is awesome. I am a big fan of him and his wine pairings couldn't have been more perfect. Ok so here's how the night went down.
We arrived and sat in the lounge and we were served the Lasorda Pinot Grigio with 3 appetizers.

One was a lettuce wrap (well more like a lettuce cup) with delicious chicken filling. There was a piece of salmon that had been cooked on a cedar plank with a cracker. Now I don't usually like salmon, but man this changed my mind. The infused cedar flavor in the salmon was unbelievable. The third appetizer was a tapioca rice paper roll with sushi rice, avocado, BBQ pork, & a garlic chili mayo sauce. It is called the Jackass Roll and it is served at his restaurant Texwasabi's. This place is definitely on my list of places to visit... and soon!
Ok so then we go into the dining room and we have a great table close to the center of the room and close to the kitchen so we could see everything that was going on!
First course:
Bacon wrapped shrimp with a chipotle BBQ sauce.
I think that speaks for itself. You will see that I took pictures of the rest of the dishes, but well this looked too delicious and I ate it up before I could take a picture, so you will just have to imagine. The wine that it was paired with could not have been better, it was Riesling from Germany. The smoky-spiciness of the BBQ sauce and the sweetness of the wine--BEAUTIFUL!!! Like I said, I ate it up!
Second Course:
Lemon Grass Chicken with Green Papaya Salad

This was great, and while it was my least favorite course that's just because the others were FANTASTIC and this was just REALLY REALLY GOOD. It had a lot of flavor and half way through I forgot that I was eating papaya, so that was cool. Guy said that he got this idea from going to a chinese restaurant and ordered a green papaya salad and was pleasantly surprised by it so he used the idea and added the chicken. Well done, Guy! Very good. It was paired with a Sauvignon Blanc from Sonoma Valley, very good as well.
Third Course:
Crispy Fried Red Fish with Mojo Sauce and Sofrito Potatoes.
Ok so this first picture is of the fish itself:

Here is how it was served to us:

Now this fish was UNBELIEVABLE. The pairing with the Albarino (a white wine) was so great. I couldn't get enough of both. Now I haven't told you this yet, but well... let's just say we were sitting at a VIP table so they gave us, in addition to the plate above, an actual whole fish to eat as well, and a refill of this wine. As you can see below, we ate that UP! SO SO SO SO GOOD! I want some right now! The fish was great and crispy on the outside and flakey and juicy on the inside. The flavor was fantastic.

Fourth Course:
"Gaucho" Steak wiht a 4 Herb Chimichurri and Green Beans

I don't think that I've had a more delicious steak EVER! I know that sounds exaggerated but the 4 herb chimichurri was so delectable and just added so much flavor and layers to the steak that... well... I just can't describe it. This course was paired with a Negroamro red wine, which had some chocolate undertones... I know that sounds weird but it really complimented this dish. Of course let's not move on before saying how much I love green beans and clearly Guy wanted to impress me and let's just say that it worked :) I like beans.
Fifth Course:
Guido's Flaming Banana's with Tahitian Vanilla Bean Ice Cream and White Chocolate & Pecan Cookies

I love banana's foster and so this was so good. The Bonny Doon Pacific Rim Riesling Eiswein from Colombia Valley really went well with this dessert. It brought out the carmel flavors in the bananas and complimented the ice cream too.
Well I could go on and on about the night, about how he got people to sing and act silly the whole night; how MJ got the room chanting "Napa" "Rose"; how Guy got 5 people cooking in the kitchen with him; and how Gwen patted Guy on the butt when we left, but well.. I won't. I will tell you that Guy is just like he is on TV and is a real and very personable. He definitely loves what he does. This was a fantastic evening and the food was so money! Thank you, Guy, for a wonderful meal! I can't wait till next year! I will leave you with this picture:
Me, Guy and the fish (Michael Jordan is holding it up in the background :)
We arrived and sat in the lounge and we were served the Lasorda Pinot Grigio with 3 appetizers.

One was a lettuce wrap (well more like a lettuce cup) with delicious chicken filling. There was a piece of salmon that had been cooked on a cedar plank with a cracker. Now I don't usually like salmon, but man this changed my mind. The infused cedar flavor in the salmon was unbelievable. The third appetizer was a tapioca rice paper roll with sushi rice, avocado, BBQ pork, & a garlic chili mayo sauce. It is called the Jackass Roll and it is served at his restaurant Texwasabi's. This place is definitely on my list of places to visit... and soon!
Ok so then we go into the dining room and we have a great table close to the center of the room and close to the kitchen so we could see everything that was going on!
First course:
Bacon wrapped shrimp with a chipotle BBQ sauce.
I think that speaks for itself. You will see that I took pictures of the rest of the dishes, but well this looked too delicious and I ate it up before I could take a picture, so you will just have to imagine. The wine that it was paired with could not have been better, it was Riesling from Germany. The smoky-spiciness of the BBQ sauce and the sweetness of the wine--BEAUTIFUL!!! Like I said, I ate it up!
Second Course:
Lemon Grass Chicken with Green Papaya Salad

This was great, and while it was my least favorite course that's just because the others were FANTASTIC and this was just REALLY REALLY GOOD. It had a lot of flavor and half way through I forgot that I was eating papaya, so that was cool. Guy said that he got this idea from going to a chinese restaurant and ordered a green papaya salad and was pleasantly surprised by it so he used the idea and added the chicken. Well done, Guy! Very good. It was paired with a Sauvignon Blanc from Sonoma Valley, very good as well.
Third Course:
Crispy Fried Red Fish with Mojo Sauce and Sofrito Potatoes.
Ok so this first picture is of the fish itself:

Here is how it was served to us:

Now this fish was UNBELIEVABLE. The pairing with the Albarino (a white wine) was so great. I couldn't get enough of both. Now I haven't told you this yet, but well... let's just say we were sitting at a VIP table so they gave us, in addition to the plate above, an actual whole fish to eat as well, and a refill of this wine. As you can see below, we ate that UP! SO SO SO SO GOOD! I want some right now! The fish was great and crispy on the outside and flakey and juicy on the inside. The flavor was fantastic.

Fourth Course:
"Gaucho" Steak wiht a 4 Herb Chimichurri and Green Beans

I don't think that I've had a more delicious steak EVER! I know that sounds exaggerated but the 4 herb chimichurri was so delectable and just added so much flavor and layers to the steak that... well... I just can't describe it. This course was paired with a Negroamro red wine, which had some chocolate undertones... I know that sounds weird but it really complimented this dish. Of course let's not move on before saying how much I love green beans and clearly Guy wanted to impress me and let's just say that it worked :) I like beans.
Fifth Course:
Guido's Flaming Banana's with Tahitian Vanilla Bean Ice Cream and White Chocolate & Pecan Cookies

I love banana's foster and so this was so good. The Bonny Doon Pacific Rim Riesling Eiswein from Colombia Valley really went well with this dessert. It brought out the carmel flavors in the bananas and complimented the ice cream too.
Well I could go on and on about the night, about how he got people to sing and act silly the whole night; how MJ got the room chanting "Napa" "Rose"; how Guy got 5 people cooking in the kitchen with him; and how Gwen patted Guy on the butt when we left, but well.. I won't. I will tell you that Guy is just like he is on TV and is a real and very personable. He definitely loves what he does. This was a fantastic evening and the food was so money! Thank you, Guy, for a wonderful meal! I can't wait till next year! I will leave you with this picture:
Me, Guy and the fish (Michael Jordan is holding it up in the background :)
Quick Update
So I got my grad check back already.. I'm going to see if I can graduate by August.. yea!!! That would be better than January :) I can't believe how fast that went. Someone likes me :) and I think it's Tuffy :)
Also I had an amazing dinner on Sunday and I will post all that information probably tomorrow. Also a post dedicated to my maternal grandmother soon... long story, stay tuned. Well that's my quick update. I'm so glad the grad check went through quickly :) I will sleep better tonight!
Have a good night and love to you all!
Also I had an amazing dinner on Sunday and I will post all that information probably tomorrow. Also a post dedicated to my maternal grandmother soon... long story, stay tuned. Well that's my quick update. I'm so glad the grad check went through quickly :) I will sleep better tonight!
Have a good night and love to you all!
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Stupid piece of paper
So lots of papers and reading to do this week. Did some research yesterday and I also filed my grad check. Now I would've sworn that I had turned it in before, but I guess I didn't. Ok so you have to fill out this form of how your name is spelled and your major and what-not. Anyway you have to pay a fee with the form. Ya, you read that right, you have to pay to graduate. Shouldn't that be included in your tuition?!?!?!?! A diploma fee?!?!? I have to pay for the piece of paper!
Stupid stupid stupid stupid stupid!
BTW--the date on my diploma will be January of '09! Cool... it takes 9 months to print a piece of paper.
I love state schools........ well at least not right now.
Stupid stupid stupid stupid stupid!
BTW--the date on my diploma will be January of '09! Cool... it takes 9 months to print a piece of paper.
I love state schools........ well at least not right now.
Monday, April 21, 2008
Lock and Loaded
Sunday, April 20, 2008
Update
I'm doing better.. still sad and still kinda hurt. I'm not mad anymore, so that's good. I think I will feel the sting from this for awhile.
Here's what I don't understand... why can't we act like adults? Why don't people talk civilized to each other? Give each other the benefit of the doubt. Let the person react to what you have to say instead of "knowing how they'd act." You're not going to know until you say it and they experience it. And--how do you know what you have to say is relevant or not? I think that if it's in-between you should ask the person, you shouldn't make that call.
I think it's a lot like how Christianity should work. So often people make judgement of what they "know is right or wrong." How? How do they KNOW?!?!? Isn't that God's judgement? Who am I to say? Isn't it better if we're all truthful from the start and then we let God or the other person react instead of making the call yourself?
Ok well those are my thoughts today.
I bought myself flowers so that I would cheer up a bit. I hope I can sleep tonight.
Here's what I don't understand... why can't we act like adults? Why don't people talk civilized to each other? Give each other the benefit of the doubt. Let the person react to what you have to say instead of "knowing how they'd act." You're not going to know until you say it and they experience it. And--how do you know what you have to say is relevant or not? I think that if it's in-between you should ask the person, you shouldn't make that call.
I think it's a lot like how Christianity should work. So often people make judgement of what they "know is right or wrong." How? How do they KNOW?!?!? Isn't that God's judgement? Who am I to say? Isn't it better if we're all truthful from the start and then we let God or the other person react instead of making the call yourself?
Ok well those are my thoughts today.
I bought myself flowers so that I would cheer up a bit. I hope I can sleep tonight.
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