Oh, friends. Never, ever take anything for granted. My wonderful, amazing computer crashed and died on me yesterday. My life was on that computer (and apparently for the small, small fee of $175 BestBuy can get all that back for you).
She lived a good, long(ish) life. Born in 2006, she certainly got her fair share of miles.
I'm planning a memorial service soon.
... in lieu of flowers, please send money to the "buy Jennie a new mac" fund.
I had big plans to post the red velvet cupcake recipe, but alas, I can no longer do that. So things are on hold here for a bit. I am hoping to get a new computer next week.
Let this be a (big) lesson. Do NOT procrastinate on buying an external hard drive. Don't be like me.
Don't despair, I'll be back, I promise! You just might have to live on blogs without pictures for a bit.
Side note, why are macs so expensive? I am a loyal friend. Long time supporter. Why must they drain my bank account? No good, Apple. NO GOOD!
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
Day Trip # 1
I am off and running on the Day Zero Project! On the 9th, Matt and I took a quick day trip to downtown New Bern to visit the birthplace of Pepsi-Cola! Neither of us had visited downtown New Bern before, and I have to say, it is really a cute place! It's not especially large, which I like. It's just a simple, cute downtown filled with lots of quaint stores and historic sites (like the birthplace of Pepsi-duh!)
Unfortunately it was really cold and rainy, but gosh darnit we were determined to get ourselves a Pepsi float from the original Pepsi site!
Turns out, Pepsi was created in a pharmacy and was originally called "Brad's Drink"- named after the guy who created it, Caleb Bradham.
The store was filled with cute, little "Pepsi" trinkets. I loved these salt and pepper shakers!
Lots of these vintage-style signs.
We really loved all of the old Pepsi bottles they had on display (There were tons of different Pepsi glasses from around the world, too!). It was neat to see how the Pepsi look evolved throughout the years.
The style of writing on the bottle on the left was fantastic! I wish they would bring that back.
The original Pepsi formula. Look at all that sugar! There was a sign in the store advertising Pepsi-Cola as delicious, and nutritious! Bahaha.
After getting our fill of Pepsi history, we finally sat and enjoyed our Pepsi float. So delicious!
I wish we could have stayed and explored more of downtown, but it was freezing! We were ready to get our homebody selves back to our comfy, heated home. We'll definitely be taking another day trip to really discover all the downtown New Bern has to offer.
So, now that I've completed a few things, I've updated the Day Zero Project page with my recent activities. I feel like I've already started making a dent in this hefty list! Can I get a woot, woot??
... Hello?
... Anyone?
- I'll be back soon to post about movie watching adventures with Matt, as well as a post about the fabulous red velvet cupcakes I made! Mmmm. In fact, I think I may go eat one of those now.
Unfortunately it was really cold and rainy, but gosh darnit we were determined to get ourselves a Pepsi float from the original Pepsi site!
Turns out, Pepsi was created in a pharmacy and was originally called "Brad's Drink"- named after the guy who created it, Caleb Bradham.
The store was filled with cute, little "Pepsi" trinkets. I loved these salt and pepper shakers!
Lots of these vintage-style signs.
We really loved all of the old Pepsi bottles they had on display (There were tons of different Pepsi glasses from around the world, too!). It was neat to see how the Pepsi look evolved throughout the years.
The style of writing on the bottle on the left was fantastic! I wish they would bring that back.
The original Pepsi formula. Look at all that sugar! There was a sign in the store advertising Pepsi-Cola as delicious, and nutritious! Bahaha.
After getting our fill of Pepsi history, we finally sat and enjoyed our Pepsi float. So delicious!
I wish we could have stayed and explored more of downtown, but it was freezing! We were ready to get our homebody selves back to our comfy, heated home. We'll definitely be taking another day trip to really discover all the downtown New Bern has to offer.
So, now that I've completed a few things, I've updated the Day Zero Project page with my recent activities. I feel like I've already started making a dent in this hefty list! Can I get a woot, woot??
... Hello?
... Anyone?
- I'll be back soon to post about movie watching adventures with Matt, as well as a post about the fabulous red velvet cupcakes I made! Mmmm. In fact, I think I may go eat one of those now.
Tuesday, January 10, 2012
New project!
I promised an exciting new project, so here I am to deliver!
During my break from school I have had so much free time, I honestly don't know what to do with it. I can't decide if being bored is better than being stressed and busy or not. Earlier this week I was browsing the internet and I came across this project idea. After reading more about it, I decided that it looked so neat that I couldn't pass it up.
The Day Zero Project is basically a list of 101 goals that you come up with to complete within the next 1001 days (1001 days works out to be approximately 2.75 years). I LOVE that this gives you a realistic amount of time to complete your list of goals. It's not a the typical "year" and allows you a longer period of time to really set up some great and sensible ideas/tasks for the future. You can do any type of goals you want- big goals, small goals, in between goals- no discrimination on the type of goals you want to set!
The catch? All of your goals need to be measurable. As the project explains, you can't use ambiguous wording like "lose weight". If losing weight is one of your goals, it's best to specify how much weight you want to lose- that way you are more likely to set a realistic goal and be able to better track your progress.
I am so excited to start this project! But let me tell 'ya- a list of a 101 things is a lot! It took me so long to come up with all those different goals! I was seriously struggling towards the end there!
You can see the list of all my personal 101 goals on my Day Zero Project Page. I'll be updating and (hopefully) crossing things off as they happen! I really feel like this will be a great way to fulfill the next 1001 days with fun projects, trips, and important responsibilities, and help me keep track of all that I've completed! Everyone loves to set goals for themselves and then check those goals off their list, so I can't wait to start crossing those babies off!
Has anyone else heard of the Day Zero Project? If not, I challenge you to start one of your own! We can do it together! DO IT!
... No pressure.
:)
During my break from school I have had so much free time, I honestly don't know what to do with it. I can't decide if being bored is better than being stressed and busy or not. Earlier this week I was browsing the internet and I came across this project idea. After reading more about it, I decided that it looked so neat that I couldn't pass it up.
The Day Zero Project is basically a list of 101 goals that you come up with to complete within the next 1001 days (1001 days works out to be approximately 2.75 years). I LOVE that this gives you a realistic amount of time to complete your list of goals. It's not a the typical "year" and allows you a longer period of time to really set up some great and sensible ideas/tasks for the future. You can do any type of goals you want- big goals, small goals, in between goals- no discrimination on the type of goals you want to set!
The catch? All of your goals need to be measurable. As the project explains, you can't use ambiguous wording like "lose weight". If losing weight is one of your goals, it's best to specify how much weight you want to lose- that way you are more likely to set a realistic goal and be able to better track your progress.
I am so excited to start this project! But let me tell 'ya- a list of a 101 things is a lot! It took me so long to come up with all those different goals! I was seriously struggling towards the end there!
You can see the list of all my personal 101 goals on my Day Zero Project Page. I'll be updating and (hopefully) crossing things off as they happen! I really feel like this will be a great way to fulfill the next 1001 days with fun projects, trips, and important responsibilities, and help me keep track of all that I've completed! Everyone loves to set goals for themselves and then check those goals off their list, so I can't wait to start crossing those babies off!
Has anyone else heard of the Day Zero Project? If not, I challenge you to start one of your own! We can do it together! DO IT!
... No pressure.
:)
Saturday, January 7, 2012
Quick fix
This is a life lesson for me:
This is where I come in. We have lived with the scratches for a while now, and honestly, I just couldn't take it anymore. They were starting to stare at me.
See, no more scratches or bump marks showing through:
* Things don't have to be perfect *
I sometimes (okay, most of the time) have trouble remembering this. My friends and family would not hesitate to use the word "perfectionist" to describe me. I'd like to think of myself as simply thorough.
.... Please stop laughing at your computers. I can hear you.
Which brings me to my latest project. When husby and I bought our bedroom furniture we found it off of a yard sale website and bought it from a wonderful woman who lived one town over. She was a single mom with 4 children living in what looked like a one bedroom house, and they were obviously a little down on their luck. She and her family were some of the nicest, most polite, and hopeful people we have ever met. The set was in very good condition and she even dropped the price over a hundred dollars for us. We called her before we even got home and said we would take it. This set is perfect for us, and just needed a little cosmetic work (some of the drawers had come off their tracks- which my main squeeze fixed fairly easily). The set also has quite a few scratches in the finish due to regular wear and tear from the original owners.
This is where I come in. We have lived with the scratches for a while now, and honestly, I just couldn't take it anymore. They were starting to stare at me.
(This one just shows the general roughness- the scratches really aren't all that noticeable with the exception of the first picture)
So I took the easiest route possible. I grabbed a sharpie and started filling those suckers in! It did take some time- probably just over an hour to do our two dressers (still need to finish the headboard and night stand), but the end result is pretty great!
This picture is of the major crack in the finish. This is literally the only section where I can still see the scratch in the finish, but at least I was able to cover the light wood showing through.
See, no more scratches or bump marks showing through:
Needless to say, it certainly is not the most glamorous fix, but it definitely got the job done! The end result is a smooth, flush, and completely finished look. Now I can relax in my room in peace again. Has anyone else done any quick fixes recently? Got any good stories of super easy home repair? I'd love to hear about it!
Come back soon, I've got a really exciting project I am working on that I'll post later for you lovelies!
Thursday, January 5, 2012
Whirlwind.
Happy New Year! I can hardly believe it is already 2012! I know this post is a few (ahem, five) days late, but better late than never, right?
This holiday season has surely felt like one big blur. It came after the busiest semester I have ever experienced- which I blame for how quickly Christmas and New Years snuck up on me :)
2011 was an amazing, stressful, lovely, frantic, tiresome, and memorable year. It was filled with good times, and certainly with difficult times, but it was by far the biggest year of my life.
Ever since I can remember I have always gone out and participated in a big ta-do for New Years Eve, and I have always had a blast, but this year the Hubbles and I decided to stay home. We relaxed in our pajamas, watched our favorite TV show (Big Bang Theory), and nibbled on snack foods.
Of course, we also watched the ball drop in Times Square- it just wouldn't be New Years Eve without it!
I don't really believe in resolutions as they tend to be thoughts bordering on fantasy wishes that end up forgotten a week after we make them. I do, however, always think it is a good idea to continue to better ourselves as people and to work on maintaining our happiness and peace of mind.
That being said, I "resolute" to try and stay positive during stressful times, remember that there are always reasons for why things happen, and to continue the gallant effort to maximize my patience (my husband surely appreciates this one).
I have also solemnly sworn off biting my fingernails. I am guilty. Sad, but true, friends. I firmly believe it is a sub-conscious outlet my body has picked up to deal with stress, or nervousness, ... or boredom. So I am putting it all out there onto the world wide web in hopes that I will actually stick to this particular "resolution". I feel it's a necessity.
I hope everyone has had a great start to their New Year! Any closet nail-biter's out there? Feel free to express yourself and allow me to feel a little less freak-ish! I'd love to hear other "resolutions" for the new year as well. Happy 2012!
This holiday season has surely felt like one big blur. It came after the busiest semester I have ever experienced- which I blame for how quickly Christmas and New Years snuck up on me :)
2011 was an amazing, stressful, lovely, frantic, tiresome, and memorable year. It was filled with good times, and certainly with difficult times, but it was by far the biggest year of my life.
Ever since I can remember I have always gone out and participated in a big ta-do for New Years Eve, and I have always had a blast, but this year the Hubbles and I decided to stay home. We relaxed in our pajamas, watched our favorite TV show (Big Bang Theory), and nibbled on snack foods.
(Nothing like pigging out under a warm, fluffy, comforter!)
Of course, we also watched the ball drop in Times Square- it just wouldn't be New Years Eve without it!
I don't really believe in resolutions as they tend to be thoughts bordering on fantasy wishes that end up forgotten a week after we make them. I do, however, always think it is a good idea to continue to better ourselves as people and to work on maintaining our happiness and peace of mind.
That being said, I "resolute" to try and stay positive during stressful times, remember that there are always reasons for why things happen, and to continue the gallant effort to maximize my patience (my husband surely appreciates this one).
I have also solemnly sworn off biting my fingernails. I am guilty. Sad, but true, friends. I firmly believe it is a sub-conscious outlet my body has picked up to deal with stress, or nervousness, ... or boredom. So I am putting it all out there onto the world wide web in hopes that I will actually stick to this particular "resolution". I feel it's a necessity.
I hope everyone has had a great start to their New Year! Any closet nail-biter's out there? Feel free to express yourself and allow me to feel a little less freak-ish! I'd love to hear other "resolutions" for the new year as well. Happy 2012!
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