Bitchin' Blog

UPDATE: Corrected Kristen Painter's New Publisher. OOPS. Sorry. Fuzzy Brain!

Welcome to my bitchin' blog...That's right...it's all my bitching today.

Woke up this morning sneezing. Not JUST a SNEEZE. It was sneeze, sneeze, sneeze, sneeze. (Sidenote...now that I've written that "sneeze" so many times in a row, isn't it a funny looking word?) Finally, I gave up at 6:15 and got up. Still sneezing but now, it's runny eyes, stuffed head, and itchy nose. I can't breath. I'm tired of breathing through my mouth. In fact, I'm just tired of breathing in general (this morning...not like FOREVER!) Can my head just explode and get it over with? Sniff. Sneeze. Wipe eyes. Sniff.

Next bitch...shopping for clothes. I'll be the first to admit...I hate exercise. I love food. These two things together do not make for a healthy life style. Having said that, I'll also admit, I need to lose some weight. (The number of pounds don't matter). Mom took me shopping this week for clothes. In fact, she had $500 to spend. Did I spend $500 of my parents' money? No, I did not. Why? The clothes in my size were SO BAD. Why do clothes designers think that larger women want to wear: 1) jackets with HUGE bright flowers on them; 2) skirts that are made of polyester or that think chintzy material with satiny underskirt; 3) Shorts that are cut to be tight around the knees; 4) blouses that are cut so low that I could breast feed with a simple adjustment, etc. Why can't I find a simple denim skirt?

Last one - I am SO tired of hearing about Michael Jackson. His death was a surprise, sure. But give me a break. NBC's The Today's Show toured his empty Neverland Ranch with Matt Lauer walking through pointing out where things USED to be...here was a large painting of whatever...here was a sofa...The entertainment center was here..etc. Good lord. The ONLY interesting thing was the electronically coded secret room. Do not take the time to write me hate mail about Jackson. I don't care and you won't change my mind. He was talented, but he was also Wacko Jacko. I feel so sorry for his kids. I predict f*cked up for life.

That's all I have time for. Hubby wants to go to Walmart. I'll sit in the car and send him in. Sneezing my way down the aisles doesn't appeal to me.

One last thing...Not a bitch but a HUGE CONGRATULATIONS:

• to good friend Kristen Painter, who just inked a 3-book Urban Fantasy deal with Orbit Books. WOO-HOO.
• to wonder author Roxanne St. Claire for her new 3-book deal with Grand Central
• and to the one of the most deserving people - Leigh Duncan, who just signed her first book deal with Harlequin American Romance for her book, Romancing The Stone.
  

Way to go, Ladies!

Until Next Time

Guest Blogging!

I'm guest blogging at Everyone Needs A Little Romance

I'm talking about gambling and paying off gambling debts. Drop by and tell you what you do when you lose a bet.

Until next time

Come to My Party!

You are invited to a very special Pampered Chef party

WHERE: MY HOUSE

TIME: Next Sat, 7pm

CAN YOU COME?

I know how busy you all are and that you probably hate being invited to any home parties, but I assure you this is no ordinary home party. And to be honest, I haven't had a party like this in ages, and I need to update my kitchen gadgets.

Pampered Chef has come out with new consultants and products that are fabulous.

I have attached samples of the new home party products...

Lenny will be making Peach Cobbler
Yes, yes, we all know how fattening desserts can be, but can't you just taste his cream?

Brian has a very special chopped salad recipe to share, but be careful with the knife.
It's sharp.

Will is famous for his 80-Proof Steak. He can really handle his meat.

Christian's Stir-Fry sizzles. Can't you tell?

So, Can I put you down as a "yes?"

Until Next Time

Italian Beef (Edited)

Looking at this post and the last one, I seem to be on a food kick. But this time, it's actually USEFUL information!

It's getting hot here in Arkansas. It can be difficult to keep the house cool even without running the oven. But using the oven in June puts quite a strain on air conditioner.

Last Christmas (that would be Christmas 2008), I got a new crockpot. Somewhere in the move from Memphis to Little Rock, my crockpot was "lost." I kept thinking it would show up. After 9 years in Little Rock. I moved to Hot Springs and I thought it might shown up during THIS move. It didn't. Just as well. It was old and a hassle to wash. So mom got me a new one, except I never used it.

Kait Nolan, a friend from Mississippi, has a blog dedicated to cooking. On Thursday, she posts crockpot recipes. She inspired me to unpack my crockpot and give it a try. I pulled out one of my favorite recipes. Italian Beef. Hope you enjoy it.



ITALIAN BEEF

1 3lb sirloin tip roast
1 jar pepperoncini peppers (I used sliced peppers this week. Added more flavor)
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp garlic powder
1 beer
2 beef bouillon cubes
1 cup water

Salt & pepper roast well. Put in Crockpot with water, bouillon cubes & beer. Pour oregano, garlic powder & pepperonini around roast.

Cook on high for 4 hrs or on low for 8hrs

Remove roast - cut into slices & cook additional 30-45 minutes on low.



NO CROCKPOT? NO PROBLEM!
If you don't have a crockpot or don't want to drag it out, I have made Italian Beef in the oven for many years. I do everything as listed above in a dutch oven. Cover. Cook 3-4 hours at 350 degrees.

Let me know if you try this and what you think

Thanks for visiting

Until Next Time.

Gettin' Ready for Summer

It's that time...time to pull out the grill and move all that hot cooking outside. To get you "in the mood," I have just the thing... Hanging Out at The Grill

Memorial Day 2009

Happy Memorial Day!!

Stay safe.

Leaving MySpace

I find I can be most creative when procrastinating. Some time ago, I set up a page for ArkansasCyndi on MySpace. Even in my most procrastinating mood, I don't go there. It has become quite out of date and I find I have no interest in keeping it up. So, today I left notice that as of May 31, 2009, I will be closing my account.

I'll still have Facebook and this blog and my website (which needs attention). Of course, I also have my favorite...Twitter. So if you followed me on MySpace, look for me in one of those places.

What about you? Have you found yourself starting to limit where you spend your time on the internet? Have you given up some sites?

Until Next Time.