Domestic Goddess

In Manhattan I was famous for not cooking. Meals out or in, I could never take credit for the delicious items I consumed. NYC's finest chefs made my friends and I some tasty yummies and when not out, I dined courtesy of genius's such as Stouffers, Smart Ones and Lean Cuisine.

Recently, I have done the unthinkable and started cooking. Yes. I cook. Starting last fall, I mastered a delectable pumpkin crumb cake that my family raved about. Moving on from there, I began collecting recipes from relatives, friends and my trusty magazines. I'm pleased to announce that I can now make several different poultry and fish dishes, not to mention my signature stir fry that is a go-to meal when I forget to plan one.

Yesterday my roommate, T, and I spent part of our day at Ikea purchasing some much needed household items. T is moving out at the end of this month and taking with her most of our kitchen. I never thought I would say this, but I had a rather amusing time picking out kitchen gadgets....but most important is the fact that I actually know how to use each item!

I do believe you can now refer to me as a Domestic Goddess.

The first Mrs.

It happened. One of us is now a Mrs.

S is the first of my college loves to walk down the aisle and say "I do." And with a reception as lovely as the bride is, my friends and I danced the night away.

A string quartet played in the church, the ring bearer stumbled and made a funny comment, J, S's new husband, had a glisten in his eyes when he said his vows, and their first dance together was the perfect Kodak moment. It was lovely. And then....my dear friend S....aimed her bouquet at me. Smack dab in my stomach. Supposedly that should bring me luck and whatever else the superstition means.....

It's a strange thing to know that S has a new last name. I'm going to miss the old one. But it's a new beginning....a new life together....and I'm so happy for her. As the MOH I gave a toast - and ended it with a quote from Dante: Remember tonight, for it's the beginning of always. And I know from the way they gazed at each other that night that they will always remember it and they will be happy.

This is the start of my wedding season. 3 more to go this summer - bring on the cake!

Having it all

Sometimes I think to myself "Self, how did I end up here?"

I go through periods of this. Thinking about my choices, my goals, and most importantly the things I love.

I love autumn in Manhattan. I love the cherry blossoms in DC. I love lazy summers laying on the trampoline in Pennsylvania.

I miss yellow cab rides and the Union Square flee market in Manhattan. I miss my friends in DC being able to eat lunch together every day. I miss watching my sisters grow into young adults.

I wish I could have it all.

Me

"I am beginning to learn that it is the sweet, simple things of life which are the real ones after all."

~Laura Ingalls Wilder

Family & Friends

Objects that come in a blue box

Sand between my toes

Classical music during dinner

Broadway, Greenwich & Soho

Orange & Black and Green, Black and White [Philly all the way]

Coffee ice cream

Benny's original margaritas

Taxi rides at 3 am

A good book on a rainy day

Sunsets over the water

Chocolate chip cookies

Shoes

Starbucks Caramel Macchiato

Big sunglasses

Singing in the shower

Red wine

Outline of my favorite city

Sing-along-car rides

Movies on Sundays

Road trips any day

Air kisses

Dancing the night away

Being and befriending the fabulous

Matchmaker, Make me a Match

The new season of The Bachelor began a few weeks ago. The new bachelor, Matt, is perfect. He's handsome, British, impeccable manners, a true gentleman. It's a shame I cannot say the same for the women competing for his "love." I don't think you can find love on a reality show. We saw that last season with Brad Womack choosing no one in the end.

Yes, I believe it's possible to fall in love after only a short time of being with someone, but then again I've never felt that way so I can't discuss the issue to great lengths. What I do know though, is that dating in the real world is hard. It's a world where traditional meet ups have expired and online dating had taken its place making the opposite sex profoundly accessible to find; dates based on a few simple questions and photos -this rarely turn into a fairy tale.

What happened to meeting men the old fashioned way? The last guy I met in a bar turned out to have a severe case of ADD and the one before him was a bit of an alcoholic - not the ideal man to bring home to mom and dad. Giving match.com a shot, I discovered that all you have to judge by is a profile filled with [occasionally] little white lies and outdated pictures.

A few posts ago, I introduced you to Mr. X, the borderline insane date I had last fall. I recently found out that Mr. X actually has a girlfriend - and has been with her well before and long after we had our date. How did I come across this information? He walked right into the gym I'm currently working at part-time and said "I'm here to pick up my girlfriend, can I go in?" - it took me about 5 minutes to place where I knew this guy from and when it clicked and I saw who the girlfriend was, I was astonished.

Jerk.

One of the photos he sent me before our date was a picture of the two of them. I'm not sure what he's playing at, but I do know that his profile is still up on match.com.

Match.com makes finding dates easy, but not love. I try to be optimistic but the thought that continues to cross my mind is that what if I seriously start dating someone from match and things start to get rocky, like most relationships do. Many times those relationships weather out the storm...but what is to keep that person from jumping back on match to look for someone new?

Pessimism isn't very becoming and I'm trying to flush those thoughts away.

I suppose that since life isn't always easy to navigate, then love shouldn't be either. It will come when it's supposed to. Still, sometimes I wish to sing out like Hodel from Fiddler on the Roof....
"Matchmaker, Matchmaker, Make me a match, Find me a find, Catch me a catch......Look through your book and make me the perfect match....."

*sigh*

Silver & Gold

If you were ever a girl scout I'm sure you will remember a very particular friendship song. Taught while in Daisy's [which, for those that aren't familiar with the hierarchy of Girl Scouts, is the youngest level], the song goes a little something like this.....

Make new friends, but keep the old

One is silver and the other's gold

I can't remember if there was more to it, but the lines above have remained tucked away in the back of mind for all these years. When you're growing up friendships come and go as easily as spring rain showers. Each year you're in a different grade, different activity, and sometimes a different school. But the older we get the more we develop a stronger sense of who we are and what we want out of life; the inevitable being that our friendships will change.

For me, college set those ideas into motion and I was able to follow through with them after graduation when I moved to New York. Looking back, I've met some very interesting people, some leaving a huge footprint on my life. You learn to take the good with the bad in friends, and when times are rough you know that if they are truly meant to be part of your life for the marathon that it is, then they will come around and reach out to you. If they never reach back then you know they weren't meant to be a fixture.

Friends are like soul mates. I cherish my friends from NYC as much as my friends in DC.....and nothing can compare to those friends from college that I still make time for with lunch, emails and phone calls. I accept changes in their lives, embrace their new loves, and support them in any way I can. Acceptance is the big one. Friends are bound to change in their mannerisms and ideas....but stick with them long enough and you see they are still that same person.

I was cleaning out some keepsakes the other night and stumbled across a thank you card a dear college friend gave to me when we were 19. She had broken up with a boyfriend and I stayed the night with her, helping her move on by making her watch Sex and the City [FYI: it works every time]. Re-reading that heartfelt letter led me straight to a box of tissues. She and I have had our moments where we fight, laugh, call each other out on our BS, and then laugh again. We always come back to each other......

So, friends of A Charmed Life...never forget that silver and gold are a perfectly acceptable color combination, but also don't forget that to be a friend's soul mate you have to give it your all, as they should be giving the same to you.

xo

Blossoms in my Charmed Life

After being absent from my Charmed Life since December [and it's now spring - Cherry Blossom season to be exact] I decided it was time to get back on the wagon. I'm amazed that a full year has gone by since the big move to DC. Many things have happened - some good, some bad, some I can't explain.

For starters, DC is still a big neighborhood that should seriously consider extending its metro hours and possibly adding some taller men. Good thing: the Mayor is enforcing meters in the taxis [FINALLY], however, the taxi drivers are protesting it, but then again, it's DC - the peps here will find anything to protest.

Bad thing: Every guy I've gone out with just hasn't worked out quite so well. On the way to one date a bird got its nasty right on my head, which supposedly means good luck. Uh....not in this case. Mr. X turned out to be borderline insane and believes that our fine country is headed toward anarchy. Hmm. Mr. Y turned out to be socially awkward despite his outgoing initial appearance. I suppose there's a level of intoxication that creates that illusion. Mr. Z sent me a cute text after the date saying that if it hadn't been so cold out his next step would have been a kiss. Mr. Z fell off the face of the Earth after I responded. Wow. Aside from XYZ, it's hard to date short men, which is exactly the kind of man that usually pursues me.

Moving on. Last month I attend a fabulous party at the German Embassy - it was Germany's Karneval celebration [details courtesy of Things to Do DC -http://www.thingstododc.com/events.php?show=719]. What did I learn from this event? That Germans know how to throw a PAAARRRTTYYY! The open bar was delightful, the music danceable, the food German [obvi] and the men....well, the men short, tall, strange, outgoing, and unexplainable. One serious note about the event though: if you've been invited to a black tie affair PLEASE please please dress appropriately. Being under dressed is never acceptable.

Moving on again. My personal life is utter chaos right now. One friends wedding cancelled, another moved her date up, three more weddings to attend this summer, oh and two babies on the way from two very fabulous friends. On top of that work is crazy, my apartment is literally falling apart and will be moving soon, but the positive is that I've decided to stick it out in DC for another year.

Sidenote 1: Was the protest on K Street yesterday really worth it? Why can't they just stick to the parks and sidewalks? Quite an inconvenience during my rainy day cab ride to Dupont Circle.

http://wonkette.com/369968/even-more-photos-of-worst-iraq-war-protest-ever

Sidenote 2: baseball season is starting and I must say that the Nationals pitcher J.B. is a cutie. Perhaps I can lure him to one of my work events?? That would be quite lovely indeed.