Recipe: Banana Bread

Ingredients:
2 1/2 cups flour

Banana bread

1 cup sugar
3 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
3 tbsp salad oil
3/4 cup milk
1 cup mashed bananas (about 2-3 medium bananas)
1 egg


Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 F.  Grease and flour 9 x 5 x 3" loaf pan.
Measure all ingredients into large mixing bowl.  Beat on medium for 1/2 minute, scraping sides and bottom constantly.
Pour into pan.
Bake for 55 - 65minutes or until a wooden pick comes out clean.
Remove from pan and cool completely before slicing.

Suggestions:
Adding 1/2 cup - 1 cup of chocolate chips makes a delicious chocolate chip banana bread as well!

Being Secure

I used to be so insecure about myself.  If I was at home by myself, I'd think I was uncool and I should be with friends, like at a party or something.  Or I'd be self conscious about what I was wearing.  Maybe I should be showing more, or less ... either way.  But it is all the same thing, being insecure, self conscious, whatever.

It finally changed when I moved into the city.  Finally I had options.  I had things to do all the time.  I could go out whenever I wanted.  Tuesday night?  Wednesday night?  It doesn't matter, there is something I could be doing!  And now, even if I don't necessarily have someone to go with (say friends are away, boyfriend isn't around, whatever), I can still do something and I don't feel like a loser so much!

Now I feel comfortable turning down invitations instead of thinking 'this might be the only thing I can go to'.  Because there will be many more opportunities.

In fact, I'm finally comfortable staying home on a Friday night - by myself!  If I'm too tired or something, why can't I just stay home, watch a movie, relax, and go to bed early?  If for some reason I feel like going out, I can always just head out whenever, the buses and subway run forever, parties run forever!

I'm just so happy that I don't have to try and impress people by going out.  I can just do what I want to do and I don't have to worry about others judging me.  I can simply enjoy myself because I am secure with myself!

Happy Birthday To Me!!

It's my 21st birthday today!  I'm super excited to see my family (including my sister who lives in Michigan now due to university) and I get to hang out with my boyfriend all day today too!  It's going to be wonderful!  My sister's birthday is in two days too, so we get to celebrate twice as many birthdays!  I'm not sure what we're going to do today but it should be decent weather anyway!

And then tonight I get to go out to a party with some of my friends - woot!  I'm so excited!

Oh, and my sister's birthday card is hilarious!  I love making birthday cards.  On the front of the card, I edited a couple pictures so it looks like my sister (instead of riding on top of a cow), is riding on top of my pet hamster!  What can I say, I'm weird like that, but I know she will love it and think it is hilarious!  I may edit out her face and post the picture sometime though, it is too funny!

:)

One Month "No Meat" Challenge

I'm about three weeks into the "no meat" challenge.  My boyfriend and I decided to do this and try and live a "healthier" lifestyle this way.  Basically, we stopped eating meat a few weeks ago.  October 22 (or is it 23) is the end of our "no meat" challenge.

The goal of this is that we see an end.  Giving up meat for a month ... that doesn't seem that bad, does it?  I mean, most people could do it if they set their mind to it.  Ahh, it's just a month, there is an end date, so not a big deal.  But the goal is that, by the end of the month, we will realize that it's easy and healthy to give up meat and we will not eat meat again.  However, if we notice ourselves getting unhealthy or something, we will figure out what we need to do and possibly start eating meat again.  Or even just eating meat on special occasions.

I've always loved meat, to be honest.  Mostly chicken and turkey.  My mouth is literally watering while thinking of this.  Thanksgiving (which is in mid to early October for us Canadians) was very difficult for me!  My whole family eating turkey and me ... not so much!

I've realized that I really REALLY crave meat.  A ridiculous amount.  I've tried to eat veggie burgers to satisfy my craving but that is not very successful.

There are actually a number of surprisingly good vegetarian recipes out there.  My boyfriend and I have tried making a few different "dishes" and some have been pretty successful.   It is kind of cool though, what else is out there!  I like experimenting with different recipes, I just miss the meat!

But I'm going to hold out for another week!  On my birthday though, it ends, and I guess we will see how things go then!

Birthdays!

Okay, you may have guessed it, but it is my birthday in a couple weeks!  I'm so excited about it!  Everyone always tells me that I won't be as excited about it soon enough.  I don't know though, I am excited every year.  I love a reason to celebrate, I think that's all it is.  Oh, and the attention has to be on me, hah!

Birthdays are fun.  I remember when I was younger, I'd have my classmates over to my house and we'd play games and I'd get lots of presents and we'd have "swamp water" and birthday cake!  Now I will go out with some friends to a party or club or something and then I usually have a "birthday dinner" with my boyfriend and family.  I like that it is another reason to spend time together, right?  And I'm always ridiculously happy on my birthday because, hey, it is my birthday!

What did you do for your last birthday?

Going "Home"

I hate it when people are always "when are you going home to visit your parents?"  I'm always like ... I don't go home to visit my parents ... I live at my home.  My "home" is not a place where I used to live, it's the place I currently live.  I don't even visit my parents all that often ... once every month or two.  Technically that address is my "permanent address" and the one that is on my license and stuff but that's just because I'm not staying in this location for very long and it is a pain to change addresses every few months.  So I'm not going to until I am going to stay in one place for at least a year.

That being said ... I didn't even feel "home" in that place when I lived there.  It's just not a "homey" feeling when I'm there.  It's just a miserable place!  A place where I feel awkward and just like something isn't right.  Thus why my home is the place where a) I live, and b) I feel at home.

It's almost Thanksgiving so people have been like "are you going home for Thanksgiving?".  My answer "yes I'm staying at home" meaning MY HOUSE not my parents house.

I don't even understand why people think it is "going home" because I haven't lived there for a few years.  I guess I get when I was in college / university.  But when I'm living somewhere else for a job or basically for anything that isn't school, I don't see why it isn't my home anymore!

All in all, I wouldn't visit home ... I live at home!

Some People Have Crazy Luck

So there are some people and things just "happen" to them.  I used to lead a super uneventful life.  One of my previous bosses ... things were always happening to her!  I always said to myself ... how does all this happen to her?  Most other people I knew ... "things" didn't happen to them.

What do I mean by things?  Well like ... pipes leaking, car breaking down, winning prizes, old exes coming into their lives, getting picked to go on stage, being scammed ... I don't know, just random things like that!  A combination of good and bad things.  But things that are relatively "big".

I'm pretty sure this has become me now.  Things just keep piling up!  I don't even know where to start anymore.  I can't say much here BUT I got some crazy information today.  It added to an issue that has been going on for a while.  Just more stuff to pile on to it!  Of course, it is very rushed too.  "Gotta be done asap"  Ahh, tell me about it!

Sometimes I think ... oh wouldn't it be nice to have a calm, simple life.  Excitement can be good, for sure.  I love it when it's all good, positive, exciting things.  That's nice!  BUT it never seems to work out.  When life calms down, I'm like "ahhh well isn't this unique" and then the next day something happens again!  There is never a break!

The thing is, it's not necessarily "only good" or "only bad".  There are tons of good things that happen as well as bad things!

Crazy, crazy!