Funny!

Not much going on here at work.

Trying to entertain myself and found this video. Enjoy!

Winter Time!

Flurries started last Saturday. Not much accumulation then. Tonight, still flurries but it stayed on the ground this time! I couldn't help but smile. Winter is one of my favorite season. Everything is crisp and when snow comes, all is white! It's great for cuddling and yummy stoups and soups. Cloudy days are no fun though. It's dreary and makes me feel gloomy. But today was great! All day the sun was out and the snow didn't come until later in the day. I was already in the comforts of home and my ever famous pj's... sipping a cup of hot cocoa while watching my all-time favorite rerun - Gilmore Girls!

Kiss the snow, Hello!

In My Kitchen

Have been browsing the net yesterday trying to find easy ways to decorate a cake. Making desserts is part of my job at the hospital. I make cookie dough, bars, cake and other sweet stuff. They all come out pretty decent. In other words, it's edible. I heard talks though of how my cakes are so blah. They taste good but not pleasing to the eyes. Therefore, they don't sell very well! It didn't upset me because I know they were boring. I simply follow the instructions on the box, put on some frosting and that's it! So now I want to spice it up a little bit. I thought I'll find some help online. But I was wrong. All I saw was professionally done decorations. They were too hard to duplicate. I'm not giving up on my quest though. I know it's out there.

In my browsing, I stumbled upon quite a few personal blogs. A lot of the blogs talks about food. They feature their own creation with pictures and a recipe for those who wants to try it for themselves. It was really inspiring. Makes me wonder why I never feature any of my dishes. Most of my cooking is copied from Rachel Ray. Her recipes are easy to follow and they're delicious too. I do have a few of my own. Nothing too fancy because I like it quick and easy. Here's a sample of my own creation. Below is my Tater Tot Casserole. Brown the ground beef. While meat is cooking, cook tater tots according to package directions. Add mushroom slices to beef. Pour cream of mushroom soup. Season with pepper. Let simmer until everything is cooked through. Transfer meat mixture to prepared baking dish. Top with the cooked tater tots . Sprinkle some cheddar cheese and bake until cheese is melted. You can add any vegetable to the meat like corn and green beans. We couldn't wait for the cheese to melt. Enjoy!

My Weekend

Another weekend has gone by and I still feel tired. Back to work tomorrow and I am so not looking forward to it. I love my pj's too much. Didn't do much while at home. Was a domestic diva for the weekend. I cooked the meals, cleaned up the kitchen, did the laundry and oh! was a massage therapist too. That's the glory or being a housewife. No, I am not complaining. I love playing housewife once in a while. I am too much of a workaholic that I feel guilty about leaving Rick at lot. Pampering him once in a while is my way of paying him back for the patience and the understanding he unconditionally gives me. It's really a nice feeling to be loved...

Anyway, did a little shopping yesterday and I got a pretty good deal with my loot. Paid a total of $6.58 for nine items. Including a pair of jeans! I know! It's crazy! Couldn't believe it myself. Wanna hear something else that's crazy? This afternoon, while preparing supper, I watched the last few minutes of the Vikings-Packers football game with Rick. The Vikings were behind 27-21. Rick was all upset as usual because his team is going to lose again! Tried to lift up his spirits by telling him they're going to score a touch down and they did! The call was challenged by the other team and so he was all upset again. Told him don't worry, the call was correct... and it was! I was all smiles and told him to have a little faith... So the score was 27-28 Vikings. But the Vikings were still in trouble, the other team is in a scoring position now and is definitely going to win the game. They were going for the field goal (that's three points) with only thirty something seconds left on the clock. He gave up and started mumbling about how his team sucks. I told him the kicker is going to miss the goal. What do you know... the guy DID! I laughed. Who knows I have ESPN?! Unfortunately, he believed my ESPN word. I meant ESP my dear... I guess I am very unpredictable huh. :)

Misery Loves Companion

Are you volunteering?

My days had been filled with so much stress lately. Rick and I are at the point in our lives where we have to make a decision in what to do with our future. In four more months, he can officially retire. But he doesn't know if he can last that long at his current job. Government funding is really limited and his resources is running low. He's tired of looking for grants day in and day out. Having a democratic president means that funding for environmental projects will be good again. But even if Obama won, CHANGE wont start happening anytime soon. I think it will be too late for Rick when it does.

Another dilemma we are facing is the health care. He gets his health insurance through work, right now, therefore not working means no health insurance. Not having health insurance in this country is a definite no no. You will be buried in debt if you don't have one. There are government programs, but it is for families with low income. We wont qualify even if we are just getting his pension money each month. A possibility we are considering is moving to the Philippines. Health care is affordable there, but I am not too sure if they are reliable. He had an emergency appendectomy the last time he visited me in the Philippines. A local doctor told him it's just constipation and prescribed him a laxative. He didn't get better overnight, so we decided to go to a bigger hospital. Well, turned out his appendix is about ready to rupture! That's why I am a little apprehensive about the idea of moving there for good.

Retirement and health care. That's basically the topic of our conversation nowadays. We mostly end up arguing and me getting upset. He is a very realistic person while I live in the "lala" land. I love shortcuts and quick fixes. He likes to dissect every idea to the core and always manages to find a flaw. While I drift into my wonderful world of fantasy, he always manages to pull me back to reality with a big thud! The eternal optimist in me hates it. But I have to agree, we have to be realistic sometimes. Friends had shared their ideas too and we are very thankful for the input. We would love to stay here and we will exhaust every possibility to make that happen.

Oh, if only life was easier then we don't have to argue or be crabby at work. I don't like sharing my misery. But the stress is sometimes too much to handle. We will have to decide and hopefully whatever we come up with, is the right choice. I leave it all in God's hands... Being a grown-up is really hard. I am not used to the thought of being responsible. I have always been dependent on my family. But now I have to stand on my own two feet and use my own mind. I know I have Rick and I can rely on him. But we have to make the decisions together. He likes it when I get involved. Therefore, he relies on me too to make decisions for us. I never had anybody rely on me before. Now, I have to grow up, suck it up and stop complaining. This is life!

So enjoy your youth while you can. Take advantage of the opportunity that is being given to you. Life gets harder as years go by... Carpe Diem!