Happy Friday!

Remember last week when I complained about being tired all the time?  Well, I decided that before jumping to the conclusion that I had either A.) narcolepsy or B.) some other make-you-tired-all-the-time malady, that I would adjust my lifestyle habits.  Because perhaps drinking a liter of Diet Dr. Pepper and eating dinner at 9:30 and then staying up until 1:30 and getting up at 6:55 to leave for work at 7:10 and then sitting in a classroom full of screaming and jumping ninth graders and then returning home to inhale a gigantic snack and then take a 3-hour nap, only to start the whole cycle again--well, maybe that wasn't ideal.

So this week I've not been consuming caffeine after eight, I've been exercising (ellipting and walking with the pup), and I've been getting to bed by midnight.  And, I must admit, I've been feeling much more awake and alert.  So that's an improvement.

Now, my feeling awake and alert could also have something to do with the fact that I had a short week this week.  In fact, I only had students Monday through Wednesday, and even though the students were acting like crazy maniacs for those three days (is it the air pressure?  a full moon?  crack in the water?), the shorter week was a godsend. Today was a teacher workday, which never even feels like work because I get to wear jeans and flip flops and there are no screaming or jumping teenagers.  Sometimes I wonder if that's what an office job is like? 

Right now I'm so relaxed and happy and the house is sparkling clean and the windows are open and all seems right with the world.  Matt will be home soon.  There might be a family snuggle nap in our future.  There are definitely Fresh Market ribeyes and twice-baked potatoes (recipe courtesy of Cassie) in our future.  And there will be conversation.  And there will be wine. 

Here's what Friday's looking like in our neck o' the woods.

 cute neighbor dog, Rider

 my favorite spot in the whole world, where I've been devouring young adult literature

 it's been in dirt for like two weeks, and it's not dead yet!

We hate to be away from each other.  E.T. and Eliot, I tell you.

What's in store for your weekend?

When It's Good to Suck.

As Mitch has shared, I got a new vacuum on Friday.  It was one of those purchases that emphasized just how old and boring I have become, not so much because I bought a vacuum, but because of how happy the vacuum made me.

You see, I spent all of last week in some sort of weird haze/funk.  (Matt called it a "faze," but that seems too close to "phase" which is an actual thing.  And "hunk" doesn't work, either, unless I want to make people think something drastically different.)  I wasn't sad or upset or anything, but I was eating like shit, and I got drunk twice without planning to do so, and I just never felt "with it."  And the house was a mess and I just couldn't muster up the energy to do anything about it.  Plus, I couldn't find my tweezers, or my fingernail clipper manicure set thing, or Mitch's Kong, and it was really starting to anger me. 

Nothing major, of course, but just off.

So I was explaining my haze/funk to Cassie on Friday afternoon, and during our conversation she told me about their new vacuum.  She went on and on, praising the vacuum, quoting reviews, and providing anecdotal evidence of how awesome it is (i.e., "Hugh says the mop water isn't nearly as dirty as it used to be.").  We discussed how, perhaps, purchasing the thing would help me to escape my haze/funk, and Cassie advised me to buy it.

And I did.  (In fact, I didn't even go home from school before I went to Target and snatached one up--they were on sale for $99!)

For two days all I did was vacuum, and think of other things to vacuum.  Matt would be all, "Want to watch another episode of Breaking Bad?" and I'd be all, "Ummmm, can I vacuum the sunroom first?"  He'd be all, "Want to cook dinner?" and I'd be all, "Ummmmm, sorry.  I'm busy vacuuming out all of the window sills.  Check out this suction!"

What do all of these things have in common?

Oh yes, they're all things I retrieved when I pulled out the refrigerator to vacuum the coils. (Martha says this should be done twice a year.)  It was disgusting.  Look at it.

Is that cocaine?

Was there a murder that took place under our refrigerator?

Is that a receipt from 2005? (Mitch's first birthday, to be exact.)

Why did the people who lived here before us buy so much bologna?

And why did I pour about two cups of straight ammonia onto this mess (after vacuuming it, of course)?  Why didn't I think to open the windows?

So, high on ammonia fumes, I continued on my maniacal vacuuming endeavor, forgot to eat, and cleaned the shit out of the house.  I found the tweezers; I found $49 in a bag I haven't used in months; I found Mitch's Kong; I found a pair of shoes I haven't seen in since last summer; I cleaned out the refrigerator; I organized all of the closets; I packed up stuff for Goodwill; I cleaned the bathroom; I did all of the laundry; I reorganized the bookshelves; I dusted.

But I never found my damned nail clippers.  (Matt probably threw them away, fearing that if I had nails that were too nicely manicured that they might attract Seth Meyers or George Clooney.)

This place is sparkling, but I look forward to it getting a little messy again, you know, so that I can use the vacuum some more.

Annnnnnnnnnnnnnd, I'm old.

Giving Thanks Like the Publix Pilgrims

Horray for a two-day week!

The self-improvement plan has taken a hiatus until November 30. In the meantime, I shall be consuming mass quantities of meat, butter, pie, and wine. I shall be unproductive. I shall take naps at ten to the hour every hour. I shall neither sweep the floor nor put the clothes away. But that's what Thanksgiving's all about, right? That, and, of course, giving thanks.

I am thankful for:

• My little family, Matt and Mitch. Those boys sure do make me happy.
• My wonderful, smart, funny friends. I am especially grateful for those friends who will give me an honest answer when I start a conversation with, "Now, tell me if I'm being a bitch here. . ." or "Tell me if you think I'm wrong." A truly good friend is more than just a member of the cheering section.
• All of my great kitchen equipment
• Having a wonderful mother and father in-law. I've heard many a horror story, and I'm happy that I don't have to worry about having a crazy mother-in-law or a creepy father-in-law. Truthfully, the ones I got couldn't be much better.
• Having a job, however frustrating it may be at times.
• Facebook. How else would I spend hours per day stalking people, many of whom I don't even like?
• Our health. Let's keep it that way. (Maybe I should get back to that self-improvement plan?)
• My bigger (extended, not fat) family: they're loud and crazy, but full of love. And all of the annoying things about them are going to be useful when I write my tell-all book.
• Cupcakes
• Boxes of wine
• Turkeys
• Naps
• My down comforter
• Having a president with a brain (even if Congress can't seem to grow one)
• Martha Stewart and Real Simple
• My camera
• Dogs in general
• TV shows on DVD
• Pajama pants
• Parks
• The internet
• Publix
• Season-specific salt and pepper shakers. For example, the Publix pilgrims, Paul and Polly. I love breaking these guys out. Their arrival means turkey and naps and love.

I want to use them to season mashed potatoes.

T minus thirty hours until the family arrives. Uh oh.

We need a nap.

We're not sad, just tired.

We have had a long week, and the self-improvement plan permits naps on Fridays and Saturdays.

See you in about three hours.

XOXO

Mandy and Mitch (a.k.a. E.T. and Elliot)

It's [almost] the [second] Most Wonderful Time of the Year!

(Because we all know that summer is the most wonderful time of the year.)

The Christmas/Thanksgiving combo is a close second, though.

Hey, is it time to start watching Elf yet?

[source]

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Fifth day of self improvement plan. So far, so good. To reward myself for keeping to the plan, I allowed myself to spend money on useless stuff. For the record, spending money on useless stuff directly contradicts the principles of the plan.

My Target shopping experience tonight was one of those moments where I judge myself. Kind of like when I say "cute" too many times in a conversation, or when I talk too much during a movie, or when I leave dishes in the sink overnight, or when I accidentally say "ax" instead of "ask" (it has happened), or when I use too many exclamation points.

Tonight, on November 5, I bought Christmas ornaments. Do I need Christmas ornaments? No. Not in the least. At 28 years old, I already have two large boxes of holiday crap.

But these little felt friends are so fun!

Just wait until they meet Salty Snowman and Pepper Penguin!

I'm a damned hypocrite.

A Bolognese Recipe for You, from Cassie and Hugh

I'm obsessed with meal planning right now. Not only are we saving money (no trips to the grocery store for one thing that end with us spending $60), but we're enjoying a wider variety of foods.

We have a list hanging by the stove of meals to make, meals we have all of the ingredients to make. Last night, we tackled Hugh and Cassie's bolognese recipe.

The bolognese was f'ing amazing, and we made five servings for less than $10. Are you f'ing kidding me? That's cheaper than a Spicy Chicken Crunchwrap! (Per serving, of course. Nobody in their right mind would pay $10 for a Spicy Chicken Crunchwrap, unless it was a Diamond Spicy Chicken Crunchwrap. . .)

You'll need diced onions, celery, carrots, and minced garlic.

And some pancetta (1/4 lb. of Wilbur!)

Cube Wilbur.

Cook the onions for five minutes with some olive oil. (I was also pretty happy to make this meal because it afforded me the opportunity to use my beautiful gigantic blue Le Creuset dutch oven, this year's birthday gift from Matt's mom, who spoils me.)

Add the carrots, celery, and garlic. Cook for another five minutes.

Add the pancetta and cook for another five minutes.

Then add your ground beef. Matt's really good from here on because it's no harder than taco night. (Which is not to bemoan Matt's cooking skills--he's not only master of the grill, but he makes about half of our meals now.)

Matt wanted to just eat this part with some, I don't know, tortilla chips.

But I convinced him to keep on keepin' on. He added the milk. . .

. . .and the wine. . .

. . .and all of the spices. . .

. . .and the cheese (can you spot a dog?)

. . .and the tomatoes and the tomato paste. . .

. . .until, finally, we had this.

He gave it a good stir.

And then we let it simmer for 45 minutes.

By the end, we had a little piece of heaven.

Seriously, we make some pretty good food. This bolognese, though, was in the top three. I'm going to make the bolognese fight Fresh Market steaks to see which one comes out on top. Then, I'll have a feast of the winner and the loser.

I think this one looks delicious; Matt thinks it looks like brains (also delicious).

Fettuccine with Bolognese Sauce
Makes 4-6 servings
Hands-on Time: 20m, Total Time: 1hr 25m
Ingredients
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 large yellow onion, diced
• 3 stalks celery, diced
• 1 carrot, diced
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• ¼ pound pancetta, chopped
• 1 ½ pounds lean ground beef
• 1 cup dry white wine
• 1 cup whole milk
• 1 6-ounce can tomato paste
• 1 14.5-ounce can diced tomatoes, undrained
• ¼ teaspoon red pepper
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh oregano, or 1 tablespoon dried
• ½ cup fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped
• 2 ½ teaspoons kosher salt
• ¼ teaspoon black pepper
• ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
• ¼ cup grated Parmesan

Directions
1. In a Dutch oven, over medium heat, heat the oil.

2.Add the onion and cook for 2 minutes.

3. Add the celery, carrot, and garlic and cook for 5 minutes more.

4. Add the pancetta and cook for 5 minutes, then add the beef and cook until brown.

5. Add the wine and the remaining ingredients and simmer for 45 minutes or until sauce is thick. Serve with cooked fettuccine. Sprinkle with Parmesan.

Tip
Mix pasta and sauce together before serving so all the strands are evenly coated and the flavors marry.

I'm now planning on serving this to my family on Thanksgiving Eve. Cassie says I can make it in the afternoon and allow it to sit, during which time the flavors will blend even further, and then I can just heat it up when it's meal time.

I'm in awe. So so so so delicious, and it's cheaper than Taco Bell!