Extreme Makeover: Entertainment Room

Blah.  That was the feeling that came over me when I thought of our downstairs.

Ever since Adam removed the sports memorabilia on the walls, they have stood naked.  It's been over five years since the walls were painted, they have lived through many roommate moves and there was enough tan in that room to make even Snooki jealous.

Tan couch, tan wall, wood built ins, wood trim...make it stop already!

Don't mind my little helper.

When I asked Adam about re-doing the downstairs after he removed his sports stuff, he told me that I couldn't paint, but that I could decorate the walls.  Well, quite frankly, the walls were what killed me the most.  No matter how many times I begged, the answer was still "no" week after week.  So what does one do in that situation?

Then the light bulb went off.  Well, as long as Adam wasn't the one that had to paint...then it was probably alright.  Right?  So why not just wait until he's out of town and then re-do the whole downstairs?  He'll be so happy that he didn't have to do anything...and he'll love it!  Can you tell that I'm a newly wed yet?

In the weeks following up to his trip I picked up ideas on Pintrest, made a list of "to do" bought some things off of Etsy, made some trips to Home Goods and made my final stop at Target and Home Depot.  

I might have done a project management course or two in my day...

Then the weekend came.  Instead of leaving on Friday he announced the night before that he wasn't leaving until Saturday morning and was coming back on Sunday afternoon.  This put a HUGE wrench in my plans, as you can see from my timeline.  

But, good thing I have great friends! While this wasn't the original intention of my friends coming over, Terren and Amber saved the day.  We got the room painted by the time we went to bed Saturday night and decorations hung on Sunday morning.  Only thing left was "the big reveal" to Adam!  I was so excited! 

Here's how it went: 

Adam arrives home, hungover with 4-6 hours of sleep.  

Ann Marie:  "I want to show you the crafts that me and Wallace did this weekend!".  

Adam: "Sounds great! I know you were excited to decorate for Christmas!"

We walk downstairs

Ann Marie: "Tah dah!!!"

Adam: Looks around with a serious look on his face,  "What did you do?"

Ann Marie: "Do you like it?"

Adam:  "Didn't I tell you not to paint?  I hate the color.", turns around, shakes head, walks back upstairs and takes a shower.

Now that went well (NOT).  The good news is, after the hangover wore off he admitted he liked it and was very happy with what we had done.  While next time I will consult with the other half about large design decisions before making them, this time, it turned out great!

Tah dah!  Oh wait, you hate it?  Oh, fabulous. 

Purchased a large stencil to stencil the backdrop of the book shelf and a pillow case to match, with Martha Stewart gold paint

Lamp, shade, frame, and bookshelf from Target.  You can see the stenciling a little better here.  The Christmas decor is from antique shopping in St. Cloud.  

Frames and TV tray from Target, prints from Dizzy Rhino Designs, has a store on Etsy

And they lived happily ever after in their new entertainment room..luckily!

Homemade Basic Potato Soup

I openly admit it and everyone close to me knows it.  I have a soup addiction.  This time of year is always quite difficult for me.  Especially when it snows.  Being trapped in our house with heavy snow falling outside, with the temptation of homemade soup is like brining an alcoholic to an all-you-can-drink New Year's party.  It's just not a good place for me.  With the 15+ inches we got this weekend, I did what I do best.  I made WAY too much soup.

Snow = Soup, Soup = Leftover, Leftovers = Wallace's Favorite

What I'm sharing below is by no means a perfectly measured recipe.  But in order to be a become a good cook, you need to taste your food.  Which is highly encourage towards the end of this recipe.  Also, this is "pick your own adventure" base soup that can be made to include your personal favorites from the list below.

Basic Potato Soup
Serves 8
Print a copy of this recipe here

Ingredients
4 medium russet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1 inch cubes
5 strips of bacon, diced
8 TBSP butter
Flour
10 cups milk
2 TBSP dry sherry
Chicken bouillon - to taste
Salt - to taste
Pepper - to taste

Choose your adventure options:
Onion (cook with roux), frozen corn, frozen peas, cubes of ham, frozen broccoli, shredded parmesan, shredded cheddar, green onions, dill, parsley

Directions

1. In a small pan, fry bacon until brown and crispy.  Reserve grease and bacon bits.
2. In the bottom of a large pot, melt the butter at medium heat.  When melted, gradually add flour one tablespoon at a time, while whisking continuously to create a roux.  Shouldn't need more than 6-8 TBSP of flour but may vary slightly.  Your end roux should look like the picture below.
3. One cup at a time, add milk and whisk.  
4. Add potatoes, bacon, bacon grease, dry sherry, salt and pepper.  Don't over do the salt at this point since you can always add it at the end.  Cook on medium heat for 20-30 minutes until you can easily stab the potatoes with a fork.  
5. Add your "adventure" options.  I usually do the following (corn and cheddar) or (peas and parmesan).  Cook until all ingredients are warm.  
6. Garnish and serve!

Here is a picture of what your goal roux should look like

Potato soup with peas, green onions and parsley

"Outlander" by Diana Gabaldon

Where Did I Find This?
I found out about the Outlander series from an old coworker of mine, Stephanie.  Since we have a similar taste in books and love for historic fiction, I knew I had to check it out.

What is the Book About?
Outlander is the first of seven novels under the same name.  Claire Randall and her husband Frank retreat to the Scottish highland in order to rekindle their marriage after being separated for years by World War II.  Frank, being a history professor, is excited to learn more about his ancestral roots linked to the area.

With Frank is occupied with old paperwork and dusty bookshelves, Claire decides to go and check out Craigh na Dun, a group of old standing stones, to find a rare flower that she is interested in.  While it's rumored to have been linked to mysterious powers and pagan rituals, who can really believe all of that?

While collecting the plant specimens, Claire starts to feel dizzy.  When she fully wakes, things look the same but different.  The landscape looks strange. Then, the people that she meets in the next hour spin her life in a completely different direction than what she was intending.  In the year 1743, 200 years before the morning that she had woken up from.

Would You Recommend it to Others? 
When I was about half of the way through the novel I recommended it to my grandma.  The woman might be a Catholic saint but I knew that she read novels that had a little bit of romance smut in them.  Right up her alley!

Then it happened about 3/4 of the way through.  Think sadistic, torture, disgusting...and the whole thing was totally unnecessary for me.  In a shocking turn of events, it was no longer grandma appropriate.  I told her at Thanksgiving NOT to get it!  When she asked what it was, I told her that it was too gross to even explain.

I did enjoy the following:

• The characters
• Bits of historic information
• Descriptions of Scotland in the 18th century
• The love and romance aspects

Liked it so much that I'm reading the second novel.  But, I'm having a hard time deciding if I'll be reading the third...and it all links back to the extremely dark scenes that surround a certain character.

So, while I want to recommend it, I'm just not sure it's possible because of the disturbingly graphic scenes.

Grand Theater, Wausau: Our Wedding Venue

This August we were married and I haven't shared anything about how it went on my blog yet!  So I thought I would do a few posts on some of the highlights and tips that I have for other brides planning their weddings.  First was the venue...and choosing a wedding venue was SUPER duper tough.

Adam and I both grew up in the country but we love our lifestyle in the Twin Cities.  So, picking a wedding venue back in Central Wisconsin was really difficult.  We wanted a vibe that we'd be able to find in Minneapolis but didn't want it to be so cutting edge that we scared our families and friends back home.

So after looking at a lot of expensive and boring bowling alleys, hotels and hall rentals decorated with antlers and cedar logs we had one last place to check out.  While we never knew anyone that's had a wedding there, we toured the ARTsblock/Grand Theater's "Great Hall" in downtown Wausau...and fell in love.

These pictures were taken by me when we were scoping out the location

For the first time throughout the whole venue search I could see myself in a wedding dress and could envision the starlit ceiling, the bar lit up with old neon and our guests hanging out on the patio, and the whole thing finally started came together.  In addition to their gorgeous backdrops, there were a few other things that made the decision easy for us:

• The staff was extremely accommodating and willing to work with all of my non-standard ideas and requests.
• The area around the Grand Theater is gorgeous.  Cobblestone streets, a park, a water fountain and a bright red British telephone booth...what more could you ask for?
• The Grand Theater allowed us to choose our caterer.  While they had a list of preferred vendors, they worked with us and were extremely flexible.  At many other venues you are given a limited list of choices (all of which are typically overpriced).  In those situations, they know that you have to choose one of them and are most times unwilling to negotiate pricing or work with you on a custom menu.
• You can choose your dessert.  You want an ice cream bar, cookie bar or brownie bar?  Great.  Also, you can choose who you want to cater it.  No cake cutting fees or any of that shenannigans that couples can get wrapped up in.
• Reasonable alcohol prices.  There were other places that wanted to charge us nearly $4/glass when you take gratuity into consideration, with no options for half barrels.  Based on the fact that we went through six half barrels that evening, and we had warned them that it could that or more, we're confident we made the right choice.
• We had a rain backup, since we were able to rent out the theater if we needed to with a few days advanced notice

Grand Theater's bathrooms, among many other things, are gorgeous!

The outdoor patio is fenced in and gives your guest a LOT of room to go outside .

So it was decided, the Grand Theater it was!  Now, how in the world am I going to do this?  Since I've never been to a wedding there...I had no ideas to work from and literally started from scratch, and only knew one thing...  DON'T FIGHT THE VENUE.  What I mean by that is:

• If there is a prevalent color, don't try to pretend it's not there or that you can cover it up
• If it has a certain style, don't try to pick something drastically different 
• If it has a certain aspect or flair, don't try to fight it
• If you don't like what it has to offer, then don't choose it

While I had originally imagined a rustic chic style wedding, that quickly changed when I saw the art deco elegance of the Grand Theater, and I decided not to fight it.  But instead flatter it.  Thus started my "art deco", "theater", "gold" and "1920's" wedding search.  Since I love that time period and musical theater, I decided to 100% embraced the direction that the venue was naturally drawing me towards.

In terms of the themed details, here were a few of my favorites I plan to talk about in other posts:

• Wedding Playbill
• Favorite Things Menu
• Cookie Cart
• Popcorn Bar
• Photo Booth

Here's a few of the details in pictures:

Can't wait to share more details in the next few weeks!  Here's the venue information in case you're interested in learning more.  

The Grand Theater
401 4th Street
Wausau, WI
54403

Website: http://www.grandtheater.org/
Great Hall Details: http://www.grandtheater.org/facilityrental/greathall.aspx
Theater Rental: http://www.grandtheater.org/facilityrental/grandtheater.aspx

Wedding Photos Taken at the Grand Theater:
M Photography
Carissa Christine Photography
The McCartneys
The McCartneys
The McCartneys

Restaurant Review Guideline and Ethics: It's Time

Earlier this week on his podcast, Andrew Zimmern gave his two cents about how much he dislikes Yelp, how it's on his "shit list" and why he feels that restaurant reviews should be left to the experts.  There is a summary of it here, and within his podcasts he goes onto mention that the site is dangerously unstable and that it gives a forum for uninformed morons to take down a restaurant.

After hearing this, I checked out a few of my favorite restaurants reviews on Yelp and shockingly, was appalled.  An alarming number of the people posting to my favorite restaurants were down right mean, biased, overly critical for no reason, and childish.  In short, Andrew was right.  There are a bunch of idiots out there taking down what have been, are, or could be successful restaurants.

While I agree with his frame of thought, I wasn't angry.  What I felt more than anything was disappointment and asked myself this question: if being part of a community website is a privilege, not a right, then why are we letting people like this ruin our community?

For example, check out some of the unclassy reviews from this "Elite Reviewer" who when reviewing a Jewish style deli, writes the following after having a four out of five star experience "Way to break the cheap Jewish stereotype with exemplary customer service" or comments about a waitstaff "staff who might as well be replaced by guard dogs or just goats".  Nearly everything that she wrote lacked class.

While I don't expect Urbanspoon, Yelp or any other community website to police every comment for their respective content guidelines since it's a totally unrealistic request,  I do expect more out of us.  As members of this community, we need to step up and start policing ourselves and keep it classy.

So listen up: foodies, casual restaurant goers, and 19 you year olds out there that know how to use the internet (but don't know your butt from a hole in the ground).  We're kicking it old school and bringing it back to the basics, with a set of restaurant review guidelines that we should all be able to pledge our allegiance to as functioning members of society.

As a responsible member of a community, when reviewing a business within the hospitality review website:

• Thou shall not write reviews online that thou would not say to the owner's face
• Thou shall not threaten nor extort a business in any manner
• Thou shall not add irrelevant content that won't affect a potential customer's experience
• Thou shall not only write about negative reviews if thou wants to be seen as credible
• Thou SHALL write reviews that thou would be proud to show thou's grandmother or boss
• Thou SHALL assume that thou's review is being viewed every time the business is searched for online
• Thou SHALL remember that service industry employees and business owners are people, that are part of families
• Thou SHALL be a good Samaritan and flag inappropriate reviews to keep thou's site clean of scum

While I know that the battle upon review websites has only begun, let's see what we can do to show the professional reviewers out there that we're not uninformed morons and that we can be responsible.  

As to those people that are uninformed and hateful morons... if they've proven that they're not capable of handling of the responsibilities and affects that the world wide web now offers...then let's ask that their irresponsible and potentially harmful reviews be removed. 

Well, now that we've had he pep talk...I leave you with two hilarious videos of real actors, reading real Yelp reviews and a story about a unique use of one restaurant's negative reviews:

Can you think of any guidelines that I've missed?  Do you think that I'm dead wrong?  If so, why?  Any thoughts on the issue?  

Your Name is Ann Marie Too? Wha?!

This is the story about last weekend, when I got to meet my blogging idol, The Pioneer Woman.

While Ree started out blogging and still does, she has also branched out a bit.  She now has multiple books that have been on the best-sellers list, has been featured and performed guest appearances on quite a few TV shows and now has her own Food Network Show.  Oh yeah, .and she's been challenged to (and won) a "Throwndown with Bobby Flay" which is what I'm most jealous of!

When I read on Twitter that she was coming to the Mall of America to do a book signing, I was beyond excited!  So I packed grabbed her cookbook, my iPad so that I could read while waiting (which I found out was dead in line---super), and ventured off to the MOA, where no sane Minnesotan goes from November-January.

While in line, since my iPad was dead, I compiled my list of things that I wanted to tell her.  As the hours rolled, by I got more excited by the minute to tell her all of these things cooking in my head:

1.) First, to ask if that is Marlboro Man watching over you, very husband-like, from the balcony? If so, when I get out of this line, do you think that he'll sign my cook book on the page that showcases his cowboy butt?  Is that weird?  Sorry...

Might not look like him in this photo, but, sure did in person...plus, the CASE hat had me wondering.

2.) Thank you for introducing me to hound dogs!  She was the person that got me to fall in love with hound dogs...and now I have one that she's signing a "Charlie and the Christmas Kitten" book for.  Yeah, I know that it's pathetic, I don't even want to hear about it.

3.) Thank you for running around field filled filled with poo to take pictures!  Sometimes her pictures of the farm life make me hurt for small town life (and even tear up on certain days when city life is really getting me down).  This country-girl-gone-city enjoys it more than you know!

3.) Thank you for introducing me to blogging!  I have been reading her blog since 2007 when I was forwarded a link to her "Black Heels to Tractor Wheels: A Love Story" series that she had written about how her and her husband met.  Which is now a published book and apparently is no longer posted on her website (tried to find today).

Back in 2007 I didn't know what blogging was and I sure has heck didn't know who these people were.  Yet, I found myself spending hours reading witty, quirky and funny commentary on things that I thoroughly enjoyed.  While it took me quite a few years to start, I ended up with one blog that I didn't like, and took over a year to establish  what I want to write about...I think that I've finally found my stride.  So, thank you for opening this door for me!

Now that you can see how excited I was to meet The Pioneer Woman, let's get back to last Sunday and all of these oozing compliments that I wanted to share with my idol.

She is probably the only thing that would get me into the Mall of America during this time of year.

Holy horse poo, I'm almost there!  There she is!

I made it!  It was my turn to tell Ree how great I think she is and ask my questions!  Here's how it went:

Ree: opens her cook book to page where my name is 
Ree: "You're name is Ann Marie?  Mine too!?"
Ann Marie: "Oh my gosh, I had no idea!  That is crazy!"
Ree: "It's even the same spelling, with no "e""
Ann Marie "Yeah, I've had quite a time changing my name this summer without the hypen in there."
Ree: opens the Charlie book
Ree: "Who's Wallace?"
Ann Marie: "He's my dog, I don't have any kids...so he's the next best thing."
Ree: "What kind of dog"
Ann Marie "He's a cute little beagle mix."
Ree: "That's great!"
Ree & Ann Marie: taking one picture that was a fail and then one better one

Ann Marie & Ann Marie

Here's how the the commentary running through my head went, illustrated in purple:

Ree: opens her cook book to page where my name is 
Ree: "You're name is Ann Marie?  Mine too!?"
Ann Marie: "Oh my gosh, I had no idea!  That is crazy!" OMG, now she thinks that I don't read her blog and I'm some kind of creep getting my book signed because I watch the Food Network or something!?
Ree: "It's even the same spelling, with no "e"" Seriously Ann Marie, how could you have missed this one?
Ann Marie "Yeah, I've had quite a time changing my name this summer without the hypen in there." Honestly Ann Marie, WHAT ARE YOU DOING? Why in the WORLD would she give a donkey's behind about your silly issues with your name change??
Ree: opens the Charlie book
Ree: "Who's Wallace?"
Ann Marie: "He's my dog, I don't have any kids...so he's the next best thing." And now she thinks I'm a weirdo because I'm having her sign a book for my dog.  Holy crap, I am a weirdo, what am I doing??
Ree: "What kind of dog"
Ann Marie "He's a cute little beagle mix." I am so nervous I could puke, why am I sweating?
Ree: "That's great!"
Ree & Ann Marie: taking one picture that was a fail and then one better one
Ann Marie: Oh my goodness.  I totally forgot to ask her about Marlboro Man, among everything else.  I wonder if I can turn around and go back and ask?  Oh man, there is a security guard packing heat there that will probably take me down if I try to turn around and ask.  CRAP.

As you can see, while my intentions were there.  But, the execution was extremely poor.  Dangit all to dog biscuits.

Maybe the next time that she comes to the Minneapolis, I can just cut to the chase and give her a letter with my "thanks" instead of acting like a freak-o-la.

Or, maybe I'll get just as mental and sweaty as I did this time.  Oh man.

Mrs. Captain Crunch?

You know how that school yard taunt went, "well if you love it so much, why don't you marry it?".  As a kid growing up I always thought that was such a stupid saying. But today I found myself wondering if that might not be such a bad idea.  Because I'm addicted to Cap'n Crunch.

Once I have one bite, I can't stop.  It's salty.  No wait SWEET.  No it's CRUNCHY.  Mehhhh...my mouth hurts and the roof of my mouth is bleeding!  Hold up...or are those my tastebuds being put into overhaul? 

While I'm trying to figure out which it is, why not have yet ANOTHER bowl of Cap'n Crunch?

Back to original question.  I mean, if Captain Crunch were an actual navy man that led the charge on crunchy, salty, sweet goodness...is there a possibility that I could marry him?  While I thought at first this might be a spectacular idea, the more research that I did, the more that I thought marrying an imaginary cereal superhero might not be such a good idea.

What does "Crunch-a-tize me" even mean?

1. First of all, I found out his real name.  It's Horatio Magellan Crunch and his current job is "Commander of Crunch" for Quaker Oats Company.  No this is not made up and he actually has a facebook page.  While his full name demands respect, he comes across as being kind of lazy and markets himself as "Cap'n Crunch".  For me, that is just not going to cut it.  I need a man that speaks proper English and is proud of his name and heritage.
2. Horatio is definitely my senior, being born in 1963.  While my hubby is two years old than me and I have no issue with people dating older or younger...a few years is different than a few decades.
3. Chances are good that the Cap'n has a life supply of his namesake's cereal.  In turn, that means that I would eventually have so many cavities that the need for full mouth dentures would be required.  In addition to that, I would weigh a metric ton.
4. On Family Guy, they portrayed him as a cereal killer...and I just don't have time to get caught up in all of that drama or legal hassle.

So for now it looks like the Cap'n will have to wait.  But in the meantime, I've found some recipes for you that looked WAY too good not to mention:

Cap'n Crunch Recipes
Cap'n Crunch French Toast by The Hungry Housewife
Cap'n Crunch Cookies by Miss in the Kitchen
Cap'n Crunch Cupcakes with Peanut Butter Marshmallow Frosting by Confessions of a Cookbook Queen
Cap'n Crunch Chicken Tenders by Jennifer Richmond on SHEKNOWS

Wallace's Ruff Week

Wallace has had a pretty ruff week and a half.  Between naps and meals, he's had some other occurrences that proved to be the bain of existence.

Forget the Treat, this is a TRICK
As I mentioned on facebook, Wallace found trick-or-treating very confusing and against everything he stands for.  First, people in strange outfits with flashlights come in our yard and we proceeded to open the door for them. Then, they say one of the only recognizable words in his four word vocabulary,"treat" and they THEY get the candy. He thought the whole thing sucked and that it was a pretty raw deal.

Doglight Savings Time

Since Sunday our dog has been been even lazier than normal (if that is even possible).  He doesn't get it and all that he knows is that his internal clock is seriously out of whack.

Party Lines

Unfortunately for Wallace, our house is next door to a polling location SIDERANT: ours is at a church.  Ever wondered why we vote where we pray?   Click here in case you're interested in reading a great piece about it!  Since the traffic starting at 6:30 AM and ending at 8:00 PM was crazy, little pooch was not allowed outside without strict supervision and his standard walking agenda was severely affected by us, and our neighbor's, civic duties.

Where do you think you guys are going at 6:45 in the morning?  Walking?  No?  What does voting mean?

Pupcorn Mayhem
Wallace would make the worst hunting dog on the face of the earth since he nearly pees himself whenever he hears anything that sounds remotely like fireworks or gunshots.  So, you can imagine the scene that occurs in our household when I want to make my one of my favorite things in the world, homemade popcorn on the stove.  

When I went to make popcorn this week I was really excited to use one of our wedding presents, a non-stick ceramic pot.  After the popping was done and the kitchen was filled with the amazing popcorn smell, I slid the pot off the stovetop.  BOOM!!.  And I don't mean "BOOM" like the popcorn that I made was amazing...I mean "BOOM" as in the ceramic pot exploded right in front of me and Wallace.  He beelined to the nearest corner and shook for about a half an hour.

Sorry to whoever gave this to us for a our wedding!  Opps!

Since I had just taken the pot out of the original package, I referred back to the instructions to see if there was anything that I had missed.  Turns out that a ceramic pot that is microwave, oven and dishwasher safe....does not mean that it is stovetop safe. So back to square one with our old pot.

On a high note, he learned how to catch popcorn in his mouth after we made a new batch!

Friday Houdini Fiasco
Well, not exactly sure why or what possessed him to do this...but...Wallace escaped his kennel on Friday.  Luckily our neighbor recognized the sad looking little beagle limping around the park howling his buns off at 3:00 in the afternoon and brought him to her house to call us.

In the process of escaping, Wallace injured his front paw.  I was genuinely concerned about it and was planning on taking him in on Monday...the next incident happened this morning.

Big Buck Hunter
While raking leaves hungover this morning, a four point buck strolled into our yard.  Imagine my shock when our "injured" dog that has been hobbling around for 24 hours went into a dead sprint and proceeded to chase a buck through our yard, into the park and then multiple blocks while Adam screamed his lungs off.

In closing, it's pretty hard to have sympathy for this gimp after witnessing the big buck hunter scene. 

Why You Should Vote Tomorrow

I don't give a flying hoot who you vote for, but, you sure as heck better vote tomorrow. And after hearing a myriad of excuses over the last few months, I made a small list of reasons that I think that everyone should:

1.) Do you like to complain?  

Then voting is a great way to ensure that for the next four years, you have that right.  If you don't, then you sure as heck can keep your mouth shut until the next election since you made the decision to not to do anything about it and sit on the couch.

2.) To beat the stereotypes of people under 30.

Do your parents and grandparents think that you don't have a clue about what is going on in the world?  Then prove them wrong, take some time to research your candidates and do your civic duty to shut them up.

3.) Do you care about someone that does or could get access to public funding?  

For example, do you know someone that might benefit from Breast Cancer or HIV/AIDS research?  Well, a lot of those programs get federal or state funding.  By voting for candidates that support your causes, you're helping to make sure that your causes are considered.

4.) Do you have any idea how ridiculous the general public is?  

There is a reason that candidates are spending money on those silly negative commercials.  Because there are TONS of people out there that believe them!  Yeah, I know.  It might sound ridiculous but it's true.  While I know that it might seem like you're just canceling someone's vote, at least you're doing that!

5.) It's your money.  

Chances are that you pay thousands of dollars a year out of your paycheck in taxes.  So why wouldn't you help to ensure that your money isn't being p*ssed away?

6.) Do you have kids, ever want to have kids or have grandkids?  

Well, where do you think that decisions are made for education programs, school budgets, teachers unions, daycare regulations and school lunch programs?  Turns out it's primarily by the local, state and federal government that WE put into office.

7.) Do you know a Veteran? 

While some veterans don't mind either way if you vote or not and I even personally know multiple veterans that don't exercise their right to vote for various reasons, their VA benefits are provided by the government.  Which means that our government decides what they get.  Shouldn’t you have enough civic duty in you to take some time to vote for people that you feel are going to ensure that veterans get good healthcare and pay?  

If you're still reading this that you probably saw something that made you think you should vote tomorrow.  But it turns out that you're only half way there and don't know where to start.  So let's continue with the most common excuses that I could think of with some solutions.

But I'm Too Busy To Learn About Politics This Late

What is that?  You say that you're too busy and you don't want to "waste" a vote?  Well, then take 30 minutes to look at your candidates websites tonight and decide who you think most accurately represents your causes and ethics…and who you would trust with your wallet.  At the end of the day, that is what the large majority of America does so don't feel bad.  So instead of sitting on Facebook or Pintrest tonight, why not find out a little bit about your candidates and take the time to vote tomorrow?

But I Don't Know My Candidates

Well, luckily I've found a few resources that will help sum it up.  Essentially you type in your address and it spits out your options on candidates.  Then you can go to their website to see what their agenda looks like.   Or even better, google them and see what others are saying after checking out their website. 

Find My Candidates in Minnesota (by address) 

Find My Candidates in Wisconsin (by address)

But I Don't Know Where to Vote Tomorrow

Not sure of where to vote or what you need to bring?  Luckily I've found some sites that you punch in your address and then give you your nearest voter location: 

Where to vote in Minnesota

Where to vote in Wisconsin

But I Still Can't Figure it Out

I'm putting a unique offer on the table.  If you have read this, went through all of the steps and for whatever reason you can't figure out who your candidates are, what you need to bring to the poll or where your local poll is, PLEASE  email me at annmariescupoftea(at)gmail.com.  I will be watching my email all day and will provide you with a list of your full list of candidates, where to vote, and what you need to bring to the polling location.

So, a big "THANK YOU" to everyone that is going to be going out to the polls tomorrow!  As to those of you that are making the choice not to vote, I challenge you to think long and hard about why you won't be partaking in something that millions of other people across the world wish that they had the right to do.

Can you think of other good reasons that people should vote?  Do you have a good reason that you won't be voting?  I encourage comments!

Operation Fridge Was a Success!

I was going through my blog post history and realized that I never said if I had kept off the pounds for two months in order to win my French double door fridge...

Well, I did people!  I lost the 15+ pounds and kept it off for more than two months (now six months).  While my hubby hasn't ponied up yet on the French double door fridge, there are some architectural issues that came between me and my dream fridge.  Namely, the spot where our current fridge stands is too narrow and too shallow for my dreamboat fridge.  Which means that a kitchen renovation will be necessary to install my dream fridge.  Yeah, that is not going to happen right.  

SO while my fridge dreams are currently on hold, I'll live.  Turns out that it really isn't as bad as I thought it was that most of my issues had to do with sharing a fridge with roommates versus having a crappy fridge.

The Social Security Administration, Wowsers

 When I started the name change process after getting married, I thought the Social Security Administration trip would be the worst.  Boy was I wrong.  After my trip there this week, I'm wondering why they don't have a reality show and give a shot at trying to create a revenue stream for those of us that have NO hope of ever receiving benefits in our lifetime.

The trip started out with driving into the ghettos of Minneapolis.  After doing a few laps in a packed parking lot, I was finally on my way in.  The only thing between me and my disgusting wait was the metal detector.  So I took off my earring and necklace, put my purse in the bucket and went through.  The security officers were in shock.  From what they said, apparently that never happens there.  I knew that I was in for some good sh*t after that.

After punching in my social security number on a large touch screen with my back to a row of 20 complete strangers and likely some criminals looking at the same screen, I took a seat in their luxurious waiting area.  The SSA's luxurious waiting area is conveniently chalked full of amenities and features like: 

• ergonomic metal prison chairs
• solitude (no need to worry about things like windows, fresh air or circulation)
• digital informational messaging throughout your stay (featuring movie stars!)  See my favorite video here.
• a man with raggy clothes sleeping in the corner....that mysteriously never gets called

Then there are the classy cliental that frequent the Social Security Administration.  Within five minutes of sitting down, the following exchange occurred after an overweight 65 year old woman wearing a 1989 Mickey Mouse sweatshirt beeped going through the metal detector:

Security Officer: "Mam, could you go back to spot where the tape line is and walk back through the metal detector please?"

Bertha: Begins grabbing at the bottom of her sweatshirt and starts pulling her top off while saying "Do you want to frisk me and violate me!?  Go ahead!?"

Security Officer: "Mam, that won't be necessary.  There is no reason to get upset".

Bertha:  "Do you want to violate me, just go ahead!?"

Security Officer: "Mam, that won't be necessary, please put your shirt back on".

After seeing a lot more of Grandma than I had bargained for at 2:00 PM in a public place on a Wednesday, I was thankful that this particular Security Officer had advanced negotiation skills.  He successfully talked her into keeping her top on.

While I wish that was the only body part that I didn't wish to see that day...it wasn't.  

Photo from www.winningateverything.com

During my hour while waiting from number N121 to 185, I saw and smelled the following:

• A couple that smelled like they hadn't showered in three and a half weeks doing a drug deal over the phone
• The same couple talk to each other about their half way house experience and how it was way better than going into rehab
• Multiple people's stomach's that I never ever needed to see
• An Asian girl sporting a copycat of a Beauxbaton School of Magic outfit (but pink). She even had some kind of a hat on!

• And last but not least.  Two of the most disgusting female plumber's cracks that I've ever seen.  Actually, one of them was more of a "moon" than a "plumber's crack" based on the real estate I was privy to.  And if that wasn't nasty enough, it had some kind a rash all over it.  I dry heaved for you yesterday, don't worry.

And while I wish that I didn't have to hear from Bertha again that day (the aspring elderly topless dancer)...that would be an incorrect assumption.  

SIDERANT: Lately I've been noticing that I have the uncanny ability to quickly pick out which people in a crowd will be voting "no" to our upcoming amendment on requiring photo ID to vote.  Well...I was right in this case and had her immediately pegged as a "no" during the metal detector/violation scene.

So, after sitting her plus-sized stripper buns down on the plush metal bench, Bertha let it be known to everyone around her how RIDICULOUS it was that people be required to present photo identification to vote and that if we let his amendment to happen, the government will require anything that they want next year and eventually women won't be able to vote again.

SIDERANT: So no matter your political party or cause, while I can't imagine that this office is a cross section of our nation, I am pretty sheltered and have a feeling that for the most part...this group is indeed our general public.  Congratulations.  This is the same general public that in a few short weeks...will be voting alongside you.  So get your buns out and vote!

But wait, there's more.  When I finally got to window #14, I found out some more shocking news. Guess who has an incorrect name recorded with the social security office that didn't match any other government issued identification that she had?????  You guessed it, the chick that has two first names...me.  Luckily it wasn't too big of an issue and after showing him six different credit cards and types of identification he changed it within the government records instead of making me go through any hassle.  But I really need to talk with my parents about this!  None of my government issued identification has matched yet!

All and all, while the whole thing was a rather interesting experience at the end of the day I completed what I set out to.  I began the process to get my married name!  Thank you to all of the kind employees at the SSA that were kind and helpful that day and I'm sorry that you have to work with crazy people!!! 

White Horse: St. Cloud, MN

White Horse
809 W. Saint Germain
St. Cloud, MN 56301

Website: http://www.whitehorsemn.com/
Menu: http://www.whitehorsemn.com/menu

Nice photo bomb Amber ;)

How Did We Find Out About This Place?
While browsing through yelp.com, I saw a couple of things about this spot that we just had to check out.

Like I said, completely understated bar interior for a menu that punches like it does.

What Makes This Place Unique?

Well, considering it has Thai, Indian, Minnesota and American classics all on their bar menu…that should be enough.  But that's not it.  Their witty and helpful service, large beer selection, extremely inventive menu and likeable atmosphere make it a must stop if you're in the St.Cloud area.  I mean, how can you not like a townie looking bar that serves peanuts and popcorn, that also home makes many of their dressings and serves a mean Murgh Makhani?  

What Did We Have?
We started it out with a up Nort' bar classic appetizer (free of course):

Well, we had to try them, right?

 Then we moved onto the dinner salad that came with our entrees:

Dinner Salad

This dinner salad seriously has it’s own zip code.  Tip: get the bleu cheese dressing, they make it themselves and it rocks.

Almond Encrusted Walleye

Almond breaded topped with Amaretto butter sauce, and a side of baked potato.  This size and quality of this Walleye is unreal for the price.

Miso Chili Glaze Tuna

Rice wine, miso paste and a special chili sauce reduction accent this Ahi tuna steak and a side of Jasmine rice

Wasabi Cream Tuna

Pan seared Ahi tuna steak with a cooling cream sauce and a hint of wasabi with roasted rosemary red potatoes

Would You Go Again?

Yes, yes, and yes.   After seeing the facebook daily specials they have been posting (that feeds onto their homepage), I’ve been contemplating doing the trip up there again just to try a few more things on their menu.  In addition to their array of American and global dinner entrees, their lunch menu looks pretty darn tasty as well.

Out of the dishes that we had that night, I would highly recommend the blue cheese dressing (homemade) and the Miso Chili Glaze Tuna (while the Wasabi Cream Tuna was good, the Miso Chili Glaze was a clear winner).  Also, if you're a person that likes seafood dishes that are on the sweet side, the Almond Encrusted Walleye and the Amaretto butter sauce is awesome.

Overall what I adore most about this little gem is that it's all about letting the food and beer selection be the stars of the show, in a very "no frills" approach.  Love the concept and how it's been blissfully executed here at the White Horse.  They make it look so easy.