VERYYYYYYYYY PINTEREST-ING!!!

PINTEREST is one of my main obsessions!

It's a one-stop shop for pretty much anything you might want to do, anywhere you may wish to go, whatever you may need to learn... Name it, PINTEREST likely has boards and pins to motivate you, or inspire your existing creativity. I find myself perusing PINTEREST usually at night, when the house is quiet, and my imagination springs forth from its daytime hiding spot. As I browse the infinite (seriously, I don't believe there's an end to it!) possibilities to behold, I find myself calming... relaxing... 

Having finally begun picking life back up from a sickly slump since January 1st, I decided it's time to get on with 2013. It's been years since I made resolutions, because I was always proclaiming to reach unattainable goals and gave up, so why bother?! Now I've realized I can make subtle life changes, at least to start, that could end up being huge advantages for what I ultimately strive for daily: 

A LIFE LIVED WELL.

Recalling my stratospheric New Year's #Fails of past years, I've decided to begin slowly, and turned to PINTEREST for some of my fave pins to light the proverbial fire. Snap crackle pop! Here I go! Baby steps!

Having the proverbial 10 lbs to lose but hating exercise per se, I realized if I combine portion control with just getting off my butt, should combine to produce result enough to maybe even plunge deeper in the workout pool. I'm no longer a fan of Nautilus, stretch bands, or the tortures of P90x. Using my body weight is a productive idea for toning at least, and since it's there lying around doing nothing anyway, I figure fast walking, biking, and the routines above and below, should reap rewards for me!

Haven't yet made up my mind which to choose for my beginning, but I'm leaning toward the above, and doing them before a shower is a great habit to get into, since I hate 'working out' in the mornings and evenings and have no time in the afternoons for rigid routines. These won't take long, will tackle the core, and help keep me flexible. 

CLEANING. Bleh.... even the word makes me want to just hide in front of the computer for hours.

Like I'm doing now! But at some point I have to bite the dust bunny bullet. I found a 15 minute routine that isn't the best for my active OCD tendencies, but which will placate me until life frees up the time and energy to vacuum 3 times a day again. NOT. There's other facets of life I'd rather delve into than vacuuming, but this schedule will be 'good enough' until it isn't. 

The effort it's taken to just figure out this smidgeon of how to proceed effectively in this new month of this New Year, has made me feel like rewarding myself! PINTEREST has me covered, as always!

This handy little recipe is so simple, and so yummy (according to the comments and re-pins), it's a perfect way to round out a busy day. Quick and easy, my kinda stuff! (ROBA!)

I can already see myself with a cuppa milk, cozy couch side, diving into Season One of 'Downtown Abbey'! I read the reviews, thought it had possibilities, but when people went berserk over it, I didn't watch it. I always feel like such a sheep when I follow things that EVERYONE else is doing. Which has caused me to miss Seasons 1-3 of 'Sex and the City' before coming to my senses. 

And when I become a bit snoozy, I'll hit pause and head for bed, where I shuffle off to slumberland while leafing through my new book about Kate Moss and her life to date. Love me some Kate, since Day 1. An amazing story, amazing life, amazing photos. What a wonderful way to hit the hay and waiting for the Sandman to bless me with a serene slumber! And if he stands me up?!

Well, I just know there's a PINTEREST board for that!

WHAT LIES BENEATH~OBSESSION!

I take my cinephilia seriously, and I'm open to all movie genres of all provenance and times.

Now and then I come across gems that may not be masterpieces of film according to their

critics, but I view them so repeatedly, I memorize the dialogue of every character within! 

IMDB gives this little treasure only 6.5 of 10; I give it 8.5 of 10, 10 being reserved for 

only the very best of the best and seldom reached on my list, by any film. Released in 2000,

it stars Michelle Pfeiffer as a former concert cellist married to Harrison Ford's university research scientist. Claire (Pfeiffer) has recovered from a serious auto accident a year earlier, and is trying to

be content with their move into hubby Norman's (Ford) parents' home on a Vermont lake. Her daughter, Claire (Catherine Towne) is off to college, and with Norman spending long hours working on his new scientific theory, Claire is left alone with too much time on her hands. 

Then things start happening... *WINK*

Claire's mind begins playing tricks on her, or so she initially thinks... As the tricks add up, the truths trickle out, as she, and the audience, are in for a bumpy ride! That's all of the plot I'm divulging. With a great cast, gorgeous scenery, humorous situations, and a cool little thriller, I'm really surprised this wasn't a MUCH bigger hit!

It is with me! 

I can still recite almost verbatim, and I'm behind on my viewing schedule!

If you enjoy tight little mysteries that throw you for a loop, watch 

WHAT LIES BENEATH!!!

BACK TO THE BASICS FOR THINGS TO COME!

As I mentally move the junk from the trunk of my right and left cranial hemispheres, I'm learning that moving into 2013 just FEELS better already when I apply the quality over quantity aspect of my thought process, to every facet of my life in general.

It appears that I'm not the only one who feels that life has been too-too for a long time now. As a former bartender, I'm pleased to see a return to the cocktail classics! Justine Sterling, from FOOD&WINE magazine, interviewed several mixologists across the country to ascertain this train of thought for 2013:

"...F&W interviewed bartenders from across the country, who predict a world of restrained and sophisticated low-alcohol cocktails, tequila at brunch and tableside drink service...."

The most elegant cocktail I ever saw was the Martini of James Bond *SIGH*...

Shaken, not stirred, he brings martinis to life!

In the movie, 'Vanilla Sky', Penelope Cruise's character says of Cameron Diaz's character at a party, 'I think she's the saddest girl ever to hold a martini.' James could've given her lessons in sexy and sophisticated, never the more so than when he's blithely sipping!

Back in the day, martini was THE classy cocktail of worldly imbibing, and everyone knew you made the basics with 5 parts gin, one part vermouth. Dry or dirty? Optional. Martinis ruled the world in those days, as did the movers and shakers who drank them. Don't get me wrong, because I love a Green Apple Martini as much as the next frisky femme. But the time for classic martinis has returned. Gin and I are no longer simpatico, so I'll be switching to vodka martinis, Sobieski Vodka martinis in particular, but it will be a smooth transition!

The 2nd fancy drink I learned to make, and very en vogue, was the Manhattan. In an glass made for Old Fashioned's, soak a sugar cube in 4 or 5 drops of angostura bitters. Using a small splash of water, muddle together til sugar is disolved a syrup forms. Add a maraschino cherry, an orange slice, and a tiny bit of the cherry syrup, and gently muddle. Take your time, Old Fashioned's aren't meant to be rushed! Add 2 ounces of your fave whiskey, stir everything together til mixed, and top off with a dash of soda water. Ahhhh... feel the luxury of those cushy red leather sofas yet??? Lively and easy convos? Hip atmosphere? Take your time... it'll hit you!

Manhattans are less time-consuming to make than an Old Fashioned, and as sexy as a Martini. Whether created for a banquet hosted by Winston Churchill's mother for Presidential candidate Samuel J Tilden in the 1870s, or by a bartender named Black on Broadway in 1860, those in the know all agree it claims the name of one of New York's 5 boroughs. Frisky and easy, Manhattans are simply 2 and 1/4 ounces bourbon or rye, 3/4 ounces sweet vermouth, 2 dashes angostura bitters, shaken or stirred over ice til chilled, then strained into a chilled cocktail glass and topped with a maraschino cherry.

Meet another old school friend of mine, Tom Collins!

Shake 2 ounces of dry gin, 3/4 ounce simple syrup, and 3/4 ounce lemon juice with ice.

Pour into a chilled Collins glass and kiss it with some soda water.

Garnish with a cherry and an orange slice.

YUM. Big girl lemonade!

My friendship with whiskey soured almost as quickly as it had begun, due to an unfortunate incident involving 7 celebratory shots of a former OG fave, The Floater (3/4 shot glass of Crown Royal topped with Peppermint Schnapps), in 30 minutes. Rookie bartending mistake: NEVER LET THE CUSTOMERS TALK YOU INTO ANYTHING! :)

Now Margarita's are my feisty drink, and they're best at their old-school basics:

Shake 2 ounces of tequila, 1/2-1 ounce of agave nectar, and 1 ounce fresh lime juice 

over ice. Strain over ice into a chilled glass, or without ice into a martini glass that's salted or not. I prefer clear tequilas, maybe it's a myth they don't cause hangovers, maybe it's the placebo effect, but so far Patron and I are still friends!

2013 has only begun, and I'm excited to see where it leads us!

Predicted trends often never see fruition, but I'm betting that getting back to basics 

will indeed make its mark on our lives. 

And why not? Old days, old ways... Some traditions are meant to be kept!

TIME AFTER TIME...

HAPPY 2013!!!

No disrespect to Mick Jagger and The Stone's awesome song,

but Tiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiime, ain't on our side!

2012's most-valuable lesson to me is that lousy cliche:

ANYTHING CAN HAPPEN IN THE BLINK OF AN EYE.

The younger we are, the more invicible we feel, and invariably, life will hand us a huge dose of

gotcha usually as soon as get comfy believing we've gotten it all figured out. We bust our backs burning the candle at both ends trying to be productive. We starve ourselves of some of the BEST joys of life, our fave foods and drink, trying to sculpt bodies worthy of sample-sized perfection. We follow the Golden Rule and do unto others until we're blue in the face, and they still don't include us in their thoughts, much less their lives. We fall into a Hallmark moment spiderweb of 'If only I _____, then life will be PERFECT!'. 

2012 sent me on my life's biggest hairpin rollercoaster, and in 2013, I plan to come out the other side.

I've learned some pretty basic and logical things along the way:

I'm 30 lbs heavier than my hubby ever knew me. He loves me anyway.

Whatever my blood type, body type, or geographic diet region, weight loss occurs at calories expended more than calories in. MOVE IT!

It's ok to work on things about myself that bug me, but it's not ok to try to be someone else to please others. If any relationship takes 24/7 work, maybe it's not meant to be 'that kind' of relationship?! Treat those closest to me as kindly and civilly as I would a stranger I've just met.

Loss will take you to your knees. Life will never be the same having lost my baby brother. There is a permanent percentage of sadness that underlies every thought and action in my life. But that shall be balanced, off and on, by happiness, smiles, laughter and love. As I once told him years ago, 'If we all have to go sometime, why not just hang around and see what happens?!'. I don't try to get over his death, get through it, forget it, leave it behind, etc. Wouldn't be able to accomplish those Herculean efforts were I Hercules! But I'll learn to co-exist with the void he left, and fill it with the gratitude of the years we enjoyed together, and the memories we made therein.

When the tears come, let 'em. They'll just find another way out, and it may be even less pleasant than rolling down the cheeks. Then go to the beach. Read. Ride a bike in the fresh air. DANCE. Have you ever just danced for the hell of it? Alone? With the abandon of a gypsy woman (Bryan Hyland, I still LOVE that song!) gyrating by the nite fire? It WORKS!

We seem to revel in conforming our lives into what other's wish, what we think we wish (usually based on what other's wish for us), and what society deems 'correct'. Eff that. ChChChChanges are where it's at! Predictable lives get to be boring. Cloned people? Boring! Shake it off and shake it up! The world is such a huge vast place, with all its differences, its options, its beauty. Life, with all its curve balls, is meant for the LIVING. It's ok to plow through EXISTING when your day has just dragged you to the depths. But YOLO didn't become so annoying without being fact based! 

CARPE DIEM!!!

Stress has been one of my fave research topics for decades. Cos I have too much of it. To the point I have a double muffin top from the extra cortisol I always carry around. Enough is enough. When it comes to material things, I've had a little and I've had a LOT. In hindsight, I can say I'm happiest when I pare STUFF down to less. In every aspect of my life. Oprah couldn't even top that lightbulb moment for me! The biggest puzzles of life seemed to fall into place once I realized that we can have too much, do too much, be too much to too many... 

Pick and choose.

If the relationship is that important, accept it as it is and move forward.

Forget fashion rules, make your own STYLE!

The sky doesn't fall if we have to propel forward from negativity & toss the toxic!

Decide your REAL priorities!

If you want the mac and cheese, have some. Balance it by staying on your feet more than off them!

Move it or lose it!

Realize that if your efforts haven't changed people/things/yourself by now, move on! It's ok!

Mix metals!

Just Keep Living! (Isn't Matthew still hot?!) All we REALLY know is, we've got THIS life!

It's not often the universe lets us be our own boss, or so we think. We have a lot more say so over what happens to us, than we are able to discern at first. Watch a child or a kitten or puppy. They stick to the basics, then branch out from there! They play, love, eat, sleep, on the time tables that work for them. It's when we age and grow up, that we begin adding unnecessary to-do lists to our days' repertoire!

Listen to your body; it will tell you what it needs. When it feels right, when it doesn't.

Listen to your instinct. It will guide you when your brain tries to overthink.

Love with your heart and lessen the strings.

Be still. Boil away the ephemera and find what makes you you, and what makes you happy to BE you.

Then roll with it, Baby!!! It's sooooo liberating, so simple, you won't even need wings once you let go of the chains! You'll simply SOAR!!!