30 Days About Me: Day 9

Day 09 — A photo you took




So how do you choose 1 picture, just 1, of all the pictures I have?? But this is actually the first that came to my mind. This photo is from our big fun group cruise back in 2007. I've always thought about getting it blown up, but what would I really do with a large print of a tropical scene? Doesn't exactly fit with our decor :)

Foodie Monday

Sorry for the 30 Day Challenge interruption. I’ve been tagged by Deviled Megs and I feel that I must respond…

What is your favorite dessert?
Hmm… well I’m honestly not much of a dessert person. If I’m out to dinner, then usually. And most of the time for holiday/special occasion dinners. But on a normal, everyday sort of thing, no. I think maybe because I’ve filled up to much on the dinner food, who knows. So when I do have dessert… I would have to say my favorite is this Sweet Mascarpone with Strawberry puree that I get at my parents’ favorite restaurant – Carmello’s. It is amazingly delicious and our waitress (yes, we get the same one every time because her and my mom are friends) always makes sure one is saved for us when we come to eat.



A side dessert note – I think the BEST dessert I ever had was when I was in London for work a few years ago. I had a warm strawberry and rhubarb cobbler, served with my own small pitcher of warm custard. Oh my goodness if you have ever had the warm custard in London (or thereabouts) that I am referring to, you know it is so good that you don’t even really need the cobbler for it. But I didn’t want to be super fatty and just drink the thing down. Yum!!

Ever try to cook something and fail miserably?
Well I’ll have to say it was the 2nd time I tried to make Bruno’s favorite dessert – Brigadeiros. It’s a Brasilian treat of yumminess made from condensed milk, butter and cocoa. To make it, you mix all the ingredients over heat, constantly stirring, for about 30-40 minutes. Once the mixture is “good” you let it cool and eventually roll the mixture into small balls. You then coat the balls in cocoa or sprinkles and enjoy!



The tricky part is getting the timing right on how long you cook the mixture. What happened the first time is that I didn’t cook it long enough and the treats were super gooey, but still edible. Why I failed the 2nd time is because I cooked the mixture too long and by the time it had cooled to form into balls, it was as solid as a rock. Obviously completely inedible. But I didn’t give up and by the 3rd time, I had accomplished the treat. And Bruno loved it!

Is there a dish you haven’t made yet that you would like to?
After seeing Julie and Julia I was set on making the famous Beef Bourguignon that poor Julie slaved over in the movie. The fact that it was such an intense process that turns out to be a food masterpiece is a challenge I hope to embark on some day. When I have nothing else to do. For days on end.



What is your favorite food?
Pasta. Mmmm pasta. But to be exact, I would have to go with my mom’s homemade cavatelli. She calls it gnochhi, but technically, it’s not. But boy is it delicious!!! It is a Thanksgiving tradition to have cavatelli before our turkey feast, one that I neglected to inform Bruno about the first time he came over for Thanksgiving. “I guess they just eat pasta – no turkey here!” So of course he filled his stomach on pasta and groaned when the actual traditional Thanksgiving meal came out. Luckily, my aunt gave me my own cavatelli machine a few years ago and I have been able to make it myself. It tastes good, but never as good as my mom’s!




What is your least favorite food?
PEAS!!!!! Peas Peas Peas are gross gross gross. I’m sorry for all of those people that love them… I just can’t stand them! Through deductive reasoning we determined that my hatred for peas started when I was about 3 years old. I have just finished a big plate of them when my uncle decided to twirl me around. I was having a grand old time… until I projectile vomited on the living room wall. Peas and I were not friends after that.




Do you have any seasonal meals that you like?
I will have to follow Deviled Megs on this one with crabs. I really love them, and I love going to crab feasts. Sure, it’s a lot of work. But all you need to do is pile up the meat and eat it at the end and it’s a delicious treasure. My softball team holds a crab feast every year, and we even snacked on crabs for my friend’s birthday this past September. Eating crabs not only tastes yummy, but brings fond memories of being with friends. I like those.



What is your comfort food?
See “What is your favorite food.” I also “go-to” the Trader Joe’s French Onion Soup. Yum.




Chocolate: milk, dark or white?
Well, I tend towards the dark, but I mostly eat milk chocolate because it’s more readily available. White… eh… only if I’m desparate.

30 Days About Me: Day 8

Day 08 — A photo that makes you angry/sad

Well initially I wasn’t sure if I would find a picture to go with this because I couldn’t think of a picture that would make me feel angry or sad. I guess most of the pictures I remember are of happy memories… but then this one came to mind.



It makes me more sad than angry, but the 2 feelings are definitely there. My friends and I drove to Blacksburg the Saturday after the shooting in 2007. It was a spur of the moment trip, obviously. But 5 of us hopped in my parents’ van and drove directly to campus. The drillfield was filled with people, students who were still in school, alumni, family, friends. Just a lot of people.

I didn’t really know many people who were still at Tech when the shooting occurred since I had graduated long before it happened. But I found my friend who was in Vet school and though I knew she was ok, though I knew she wasn’t anywhere near Norris Hall when it happened, I immediately burst into tears when I saw her. I think it was more of a relief and some of a “Wow, this really did happen.” Up until we actually visited the campus, the whole event was still surreal.

This photo is of Norris Hall. I still can’t drive by it without my heart dropping…

30 Days About Me: Day 7

Day 07 — A photo that makes you happy

First off, let me apologize for the slacking these last few days. I don’t feel that I have failed the challenge just yet because as my friend Deviled Megs pointed out, “It’s not 30 CONSECUTIVE days.” I’m sure you noticed that I didn’t post on Sunday… well I’ll tell you that A) posting a blog every day is pretty exhausting and B) Sunday is a day of rest anyhow. Not posting the last few days was mostly due to the fact that I just didn’t have time. It’s been a busy week and since this post relates to a picture, well, I couldn’t do it during the day because my pictures are at home. Anyhow… moving on…

It is pretty hard to find ONE picture that makes me happy, because there are really so many. Obviously pictures evoke memories, which is why we take them. I have a lot of happy memories, so how do I choose??



This picture is from our wedding… obviously. No doubt there are many pictures from this day that make me happy, but this is one of my favorites. This is during our best man’s speech and I’m pretty certain he’s telling a funny story about Bruno. I mean, that’s what BM speeches are for, right? This photo makes me happy because it’s just pure joy and honest laughter – nothing staged. My photographer did an excellent job of capturing a lot of true moments, and I love her for that. This is the wedding picture I have at my desk at work. I love to see my husband smile and well, laugh. Laughter is a strong part of our relationship so there’s definitely no surprise to see it here.

30 Days About Me: Day 6

Day 06 — Whatever tickles your fancy

A few weeks, er, probably months by now, my friend left the States to embark on a 2-year adventure in Egypt. She was offered an opportunity to teach over there and decided, “Hey, why not?” So for her friends that miss her dearly, she started her own blog to keep us up to date with the happenings in that far off land.

I of course, started to follow her blog. And by follow, I mean click the little button that says, “Follow this blog.” Pretty simple. So she in turn gets a notification that a certain Blythepoo is following her blog.

“Is this you?” she asks. “The profile seems to say that it is, but I’m not sure.”

“Yep, it’s me.”

I am Blythepoo. So where does this name come from? Well, quite a random story actually…

A few years ago I was shopping in Carytown, (Richmond) and wandered into one of my favorite stores, World of Mirth. Perusing the shelves I came across a small rectangular book that caught my eye, This is Blythe. Who was this Blythe? I had to know!

Turns out, Blythe is a doll, much like Barbie, but with a big head and booming in the Asian culture. Seriously. My mom’s friend went to Hong Kong and brought one back for me – he said it was a madhouse in the toy store for this thing. But what is there to really love about Blythe, because a big head and fun clothes just aren’t going to cut it. Gina Garan, author of This is Blythe and a few other books in the series, uses her time to pose Blythe in various scenes, wither various clothes, and take pictures of her. Yep, she models Blythe and photographs her. It sounds creepy, and most people think it is, but it is also hilarious. The scenarios she photographs Blythe in are so random and funny – it’s great.

So I became slightly obsessed with Blythe shortly after discovering her (again, another trend with the obsessions) and spent my time buying all sorts of things associated with Blythe off of Ebay. It was awesome. Naturally, when I needed a blogger name, I went with Blythepoo. The “poo” at the end roots all the way back to high school, but was definitely appropriate in this case.

30 Days About Me: Day 5

Day 05 — Your favorite quote

Hmm… now this one is a toughie in a sense that I don’t often refer to quotes, or think of them in my daily life. But if I had to pick one (which I do) I would chose:

“Only through imitation can we achieve originality.” - Travels with Charley by John Steinbeck

I read this book I think in college, again to fulfill a reading requirement. I’m pretty certain I chose this book because it was short and involved a dog. Turns out, I really liked it. This book is a non-fiction work that follows John Steinbeck through a drive around the country.

I don’t remember where in the book this quote was, or what it was referring to. But I remember liking it. I like it because I feel like it directly relates to my line of work – Interior Design. In our industry, there is so much competition for the best design and honestly I feel that a lot of the top award winners have very similar designs – whatever the trend is. Everyone is imitating everyone else, but adding their own twist. Then sometimes, the twist really stands out and apart from the crowd. Initially there is imitation, but it leads to originality in a design. It has to start somewhere.

30 Days About Me: Day 4

Day 04 – Your favorite book
This was a very easy one, and I figure it’s because I don’t read that much.

Lost Boys by Orson Scott Card

No, it’s not the Lost Boys everyone thinks about, that I think they made a movie of. This is a science fiction novel about a Mormon family in North Carolina. Writing that out, it sounds like a pretty odd book. Science Fiction about a Mormon family? But trust me, it’s amazing.

I first read this book in high school, I think to fulfill a reading requirement. I came across the book randomly and decided it looked good. I’ve decided that most of the books I like have children or teenagers as the main character and this book was no different. But when I took this book, I had no idea how much I would love it. I remember reading it and being so enthralled in the story, staying up late to finish it and expressing all emotions as I read through it – happiness, fear and I definitely cried.

And I still do. This is the book I’ll pick up every so often when I need a book to read (mostly at the beach) and I still breeze through it and love it just as much. I told my friend about the book, and she mentioned that Orson Scott Card had a well-known book called Ender’s Game that SHE loved, so we traded. I did enjoy Ender’s Game a lot (a child is the main character, again), though it was way more sci-fi then Lost Boys. I think the only reason my book is classified as sci-fi is because of the author. Apparently all of his other books are very sc-fi. Either way, HIGHLY recommended.

Side note, although Lost Boys is my favorite book, my favorite author is Augusten Burroughs. I have read all his books (ok not his latest one yet) and I really really enjoy them.

Close 2nd

Bee Season by Myla Goldberg (I was SO pumped when this book became a movie)