R's Friday Food Porn

If you know me, you know my love for Asian foods - today, I'm craving dim sum.

R's Happy Day Post: June 28

Need I say anything else?

R's Happy Day: July 27

Summer nights + grilling out + sitting outside + red wine + favorite people = HAPPINESS.

N's Friday Food Porn

Roasted Tomatillo Salsa

R's Happy Day: July 26

My favorite thing about Tuesday mornings is starting my morning calls at home with a cup of hot chai.  My happy moment yesterday was sitting down at 7:45, with my laptop and a mug of chai while I started my meeting with a large gaming company.  It really got me in the mood to kick a$$ for the rest of the day.

All The Ways R is Adorable (Inspired from another blog)

One of the blogs on my Google Reader is yes and yes, and today she posted a question asking why its so hard for us to find something positive to say about ourselves.

I thought about that, and realized that I spend so much time looking for my flaws.  I thought this would be fun instead.  So, Miss N, I also challenge you to post 3things.

1. My arms have nice shape and show muscle definition
2. My eyes sparkle when I smile and show lots of emotion
3. I have good hair whether straight or wavy

What 3 things do you love about your body.

R's Happy Day: July 25

You know how the last 3 weeks of school used to feel before summer vacation? You'd have complete senioritis and you'd completely be checked out of your mundane day-to-day activities.  That's exactly how I feel at this moment.  I'm just waiting for August 17, where I'll be able to turn off my blackberry, get on my flight and fly over the pond for some much needed R&R.

Anyhoo, the happy moment of my day yesterday (Monday July 25) was:  having G$ deliver me a sugar free low calorie jello pudding with whipped cream on top in hopes to make my headache go away :)

It really is the simple things.

Head to Toe in San Francisco

12 days in, shall we go from top to bottom to see how the Bay Area is treating me?

• Hair: Zero frizz! 60% humidity is a whole new world.


• Brain: Settling down after info overload and enjoys being forced into action at work.


• Eyes: Surprised at how intense the sun is here. Seeing an excuse to shop for more sunglasses.


• Mouth: Getting more exercise, what with meeting new people and being able to yammer with R in person.


• Arms: Although enjoying the sun, getting chilled during mornings and evenings outdoors.


• Nails: Excited about wearing R's polishes and getting regular manis.


• Stomach: Growing. Too much good food, too little willpower.


• Legs: Getting a lot of use by driving and taking advantage of walking around the city.

The prognosis looks good to me. :)

R's Happy Day: July 24

Happy things of the day.  Yesterday (Sunday - July 24) was a really good day.  Mainly because I was able to spend the day doing what I love (except for the laundry).  I watched

• TV with Miss N in the morning while G$ slept
• Then went shopping with Miss N to Santana Row and soaked up some ray
• G$ and I went to Cinnabar Wine Room to pick up our wines where we were given 2 Riedel wine glasses for being members for so long
• Downtown Saratoga had a car show so we soaked up more sun while looking at fancy cars
• Then headed to get some chips/salsa and margaritas (low cal even!)
• Laid on the couch and watched Suits, Keeping up with the Kardashians, and RHoNJ

A perfect day, which can be rare sometimes :)

R's Happy Day: July 23

Something about sitting by the pool, with a cold beer, yummy sandwich and good friends makes it a great Saturday.  My happy moment(s) involved sitting by the pool with good friends and just hanging out.  Its nice that summer has FINALLY decided to visit the Bay Area.

Happy Day Post: July 22

The happiest moment of my day on Friday (July 22) was receiving my notice that my upgrade had been approved on my Delta flight back to SFO!  It was really coincidental that my friend from college (who I had dinner with the night before) was also in first class on our way back.  We joked around about how "we've moved on up" from our college years.

I slept the entire way back (a 56 minute flight) in my big comfy chair.

R's Happy Day: July 21

I was travelling for work last week, so I'm a bit behind on "happy day" posts.  On Thursday (July 21), the day started off really terrible.  But that's not the point of these posts :)  So my happy moment that day was having sushi with a good friend from college who I haven't seen since my wedding.  It was so great to hang out and just pick up where we left off.

N's Project 365: Week 16

July 17, 2011: Is there any better one-stop shop than Target?

July 18, 2001: I can't get this photo to shop up larger, it's the view R and I had when walking to dinner at Plant. Pretty awesome.

July 19, 2011: The crowd at Safeway right before a Giants game. I was the obnoxious woman with a cart full of groceries.

July 20, 2011: R and Gravy Train should start a welcome wagon business.

July 21, 2011: The gorgeous orchid that J-Woww sent to my office.

July 22, 2011: Obvi my photography skills still suck. The Bay Bridge at night.

July 23, 2011: Delish 1999 cab franc that R and G$ were kind enough to share with me during dinner at The Basin.

N's Friday Food Porn

Chocolate Roulade

R's Happy Day: July 20

My happy moment of my day yesterday was being able to soak in the jacuzzi tub in my hotel room (which is on the executive floor) and read my magazine.  It was nice to simply relax and decompress.

If you're ever looking for a hotel in the LA area (location isnt' fantastic, but its 1 mile away from my client), I recommend the Miyako Hybrid Hotel.  The fitness center has Wii's for all the guests to use!

N's Project 365: Week 15

July 10, 2011: Yum.

July 11, 2011: Pretty.

July 12, 2011: I'm sorry, but I just couldn't help snapping a shot of the man who slept in TJ Maxx for an hour while his wife shopped. Too funny.

July 13, 2011: Yes, that says 117ºF.

July 14, 2011: Mom, in the distance, waiting to wave as my plane took off. Yes, the airport is that small. It's kind of awesome.

July 15, 2011: An unclear shot of the Bay Bridge, right outside my apartment!

July 16, 2011: I officially now love Mexican Train Dominoes, thanks to R and G$.

R's Happy Day : July 19

I can't post a picture of yesterday's happy moment because its confidential for work.  But - I will share :)

Last quarter, I was tasked with creating a new tool for our group and this tool had to be approved by majority of our management team.  So, in true "R" fashion - I overprepared, freaked out multiple times, reviewed prior to the meeting for days on end.  The meeting went well, and I received a check for having completed the box.

Fast forward to yesterday, when we had our quarterly tasks rolled out (for bonus reasons).  Slide 4 includes a "Use R's Toolkit!"  I was SO excited!  I later learned that my tool was unanimously chosen from the entire management team - which was also super exciting.

Its great to be able to share my excitement on the blog and with G$ and N - I tried to keep it muted while at the office.

Ok - that was my happy moment, especially since I LOVE seeing my name in print :)

R's Happy Day Posts: July 18

Yesterday was a good day.  I had a normal day of work (with minor work related annoyances) and then a "normal" evening.  My happy point of yesterday was dessert at dinner.  N and I walked along the water around 7:00 and ended up having dinner at Plant Cafe on Pier 3.  We had a normal dinner and ended up with a hazelnut roulade, which was a fancy word for "adult swiss cake roll"with two glasses of champers.  That was my happy moment, especially with the candied hazelnuts on top.

I did not take a picture and will try to take more pictures of my happy moments :)

R's New Project

On one of the other blogs I read, I saw the blogger start doing "30 days of FUN" where she finds one moment a day that defines FUN!

I was completely inspired by it, and want to do the same.  So, start tomorrow til August 16, I will do my own days of Fun.

Stay tuned!

N's Project 365: Week 14

July 3, 2011: The neighbor's fireworks.

July 4, 2011: More fireworks, this time on my parents' TV.

July 5, 2011: South GA billboard humor.

July 6, 2011: Diet Coke through a Twizzler "straw," an idea from Ree.

July 7, 2011: Breakfast of champions, according to Mom. This isn't even all of the food.

July 8, 2011: I could get used to this.

July 9, 2011: Zilch.

Journey

I will soon put my thoughts together about leaping across the country. In the meantime, this sums it up nicely. :)

N's Friday Food Porn

Snickerdoodle Muffins

R's Friday Food Porn

Source: foodformyfamily.com via Roshni on Pinterest

Changes to the Blog.....Coming Soon!

So, today is the big day.  Miss N has boarded the flight from our small town (where there's only one gate, easy security, and 3-4 flights a day to ATL) and has a long travel day ahead of her.  She will be traveling as I spend my day working.

It feels so surreal that she's moving here.  I woke up this morning and thought "how fun Miss N will be here" but still feel like its a visit. 

So, after Miss N moves here, we have lots of fun new ideas for the blog which will incorporate our adventures in touristy activities on the west coast, reviews on new restaurants, and just general ramblings about our separate and joint activities.

Travel safe Miss N - here's what's waiting when you land (the shrimp in the pasta will not be in yours of course):

N's Friday Food Porn

Pink Grapefruit, Strawberry, and Champagne Granita

R's Friday Food Porn

Even though I'm not a huge fan of fruit in my food, this has been sounding so good to me for the last few days:

N's Project 365: Week 13

June 26, 2011: The first living thing I've kept alive for a significant amount of time. Now returned to Ms. M, its original owner.

June 27, 2011: Here's hoping!

June 28, 2011: Bye bye, stuff. See you on the other side of the country.

June 29, 2011: Sparkly toes with my favorite 3-year-old.

June 30, 2011: A pretty ATL morning.

July 1, 2011: Headed to the party town of the south!

July 2, 2011: A pretty little cardinal at my parents' birdfeeder.

Irrational Fears

All of us have fears - whether its a fear of rejection, failure, or spiders - they exist and fears make us all human.  However, I think there are definitely some fears that I have that are completely irrational.

1.  When I was a kid, I was convinced I was going to be killed in my neighbor's house.  My neighbor (who was a grade older than me) lived in this spanish style home with stucco (which is rare in the south).  She'd invite me over to play, but I'd be paralyzed by fear of dying in her home, so then I just told her to come to my house.

2.  My head rolling off my body randomly one day, without an injury causing my head to separate from my neck.

3.  Being killed in the bathroom at work.  We recently moved up to the 4th floor at work and now share a bathroom with a pyschiatic office and real estate company. Now whenever I go in the bathroom, I check all the doors and corners to make sure no one is hiding out to kill me. My co-workers think this is so funny.

4.  I forgot my biggest one.  I do not like anyone/anything sharp touching the inside of my wrists where my veins are.  Whenever G$ wants me to give in, he'll just try to "tickle" me there, and I'll concede any battle.

Those are some of my irrational fears in a nutshell.

6 Years!

Man - I can't believe its been 6 years since I first moved to the Bay Area.  I can't decide if it feels like its been shorter or longer.  I will say that I'm finally starting to settle in and have a hard time imaging myself moving anywhere else. 

I love ATL and probably always will, but the Bay Area is feeling like home.  I'm even more excited that in a week Miss N will be here too!

Must. Have. Cupcake. To. Celebrate. 6th. Year. Today.

R's Friday Food Porn

In honor of the 4th of July, I present you with:

N's Friday Food Porn: ATL Edition

King of Pops

Patatas Bravas at Eclipse di Luna

Spinach Wraps at Tuk Tuk