Football and a Healthy New Me

Cupcakes I made for the game :)

First of all, my posts can't ever seem to stick with one topic.  I think I'm just gonna start giving up on sticking with one topic and just plan on writing most of what comes to mind, after all I'm too scattered brained and ADD to focus on just one thing...

To start, it's playoff season!  My beloved Steelers won their first playoff game yesterday against the Ravens.  I was definitely worried given we were down and the score was 7-21 at half time, but they managed to pull it together and now we're just one game away from the Superbowl.  Cannot express my excitement in words.

Went to the in-law's to watch the game and overheard my MIL and another young girl talking about how football season gets tiring, especially weeks where there are 5 or 6 games on in a week.  I never realized how much I love football and that while lots of girls like the gear and the socializing, I love the game!  I study it, try to learn all the positions, different plays and names of the players that aren't even on my team.  If there's a good game on, I usually pick watching it over anything else.  I even tried to convince the hubby that we should get the Golden Ticket, but he said it was expensive and unnecessary.  (I have to admit I think he's right on both counts, but it still seems really cool!)  I most especially love the big hits, making me your typical Steelers fan.  Heck, I asked for the NFL Training Camp game for Wii for Christmas!  (BTW, it's awesome! And not just for boys like a lot of the Amazon reviews mention.)  Anyway, I guess I never realized that this was a real rarity in a girl!

Other things going on in my life, I started a diet-ish.  I'm not a real fan of any kind of diet, but we've been making a real effort to eat healthy more often.  We still go out to eat and I still indulge, but I try to keep the indulgences to a minimum.  After all, I don't think I'd be even remotely successful if I couldn't eat a cupcake or two or something wonderful, fatty and fried every now and then.  (Had homestyle chicken from Cracker Barrel for after church lunch, it was amazing!)  Anyway, I've noticed a huge difference in how I feel and the energy I have.  Been following the MS Diet too!  More on that later...

Stranger than Fiction might just be my new reality...

I love this movie!  When things got depressing in medical school, one of the first things I would do is pour a glass of wine and watch this movie.  I could always relate with Ana Pascal and the scene when she explains to Harold that she actually went to law school as opposed to culinary school (for me, simply replace law school with med school).  I would even sometimes watch just that one scene.  That speech, about saving the world with your degree, only getting in because of your great dreams of saving the world and making a difference, and ending up making more friends in school by cooking/baking for them, was my speech too.

I remember the highlight of my week was planning Friday night dinners, complete with dessert, that I would make nearly every week for the three boys I hung out with, plus whomever else ended up getting invited over.  I probably should have figured out by then that maybe medical school just wasn't for me, but alas, I'm insanely stubborn.

Jeremi and I have been talking more and more lately about how to get started with a bakery/coffeeshop of my own, perhaps starting by selling desserts and other sweet treats at already established places.  Seeems soooo crazy, but in a good way I guess...

Anyway, with this new thought in mind, I've resolved to baking more often.  (And hopefully exercising more often to combat this.)  So, I thought I'd share some pics of the mini orange scones I made last night.  Well, really there's several pics of the process.  I think one more trial run and I might have this one perfected.  Hope you like them.  Been meaning to do this for a while, pictures really are so much better.  Message me if you'd like the recipe for yourself.

Dry Ingredients with Butter

 Butter is cut in using a pastry blender.  The result is a mixture that is suppose to resemble course crumbs.

This step can also be done in a food processor which makes it more uniform and is much faster, but for whatever reason I like doing it by hand.  (Gives me something to take out my aggressions on I suppose, lol.)

Orange Zest

Adding egg and milk to course crumb and orange zest mixture

Mixing

After adding the egg mixture and stirring, I rolled out the mixture and cut them into mini sized scones. 

Baking in my oven

The unglazed finished product

I used a double broiler system to make the glaze, which is just a mixture of powdered sugar, orange juice, and butter. (My secret to double broiling is to attach a binder clip to the bottom pan so it doesn't build up too much steam.)

Glaze in the bowl

Glazed Scones

After the glaze dried

Couldn't resist adding a picture of Caesar who was sitting behind me waiting for me to drop something... anything...

Frankly, it weighs on me and I just can't help it.

If you know me even a little, have talked to me recently or read some of my previous blogs, you'll know exactly what I'm going to talk about.

I'm not really sure if anyone reads this anymore, but my life is so all over the place I feel like I'm constantly updating people on what we're doing.  So, here's the update if you're out there, otherwise I'll just consider it an outlet and form of therapy.

Another round of the ever dreaded, what's going on with you...

I didn't get into the post-baccalaureate pre-med program I had applied to.  The plan was to use this one year program to boost my grades and application to the medical school affiliated with the program, but it didn't work out.  I did find it somewhat comforting to find out that the associate dean of the program simply said it's just not the right fit for someone who's already attended medical school.  Now, if only they could have told me this before I applied to the program and got my hopes up.

However, after paying attention to some of the words spoken and sung at mass tonight (sung by me, the cantor, who got through the entire mass without any major mistakes... small hoorah!) I'm beginning to wonder if perhaps God is trying to tell me that being a doctor isn't for me.  (Crazy thought considering I am a Filipino and quite frankly who knew they had other occupations to consider at all, haha)  So, on to the bigger and badder and bolder questions... What am I being called to do?

Here's the update/thought process...  Feel free to weigh in...

- Open a Coffee Shop/Bakery.  This idea seems fun and ridiculous.  I love to bake, but I would never want to own a bakery that would require me to churn out pastries and other delights at a ridiculous pace. Hence, a coffeeshop/bakery.  I do loooove coffee, and I love the idea of owning a place for people to gather, connecting people through great food.  Plus, I figure I can bake on a first come first serve basis and I'm a pretty decent baker (see the pic of the pseudo-black forest cuppies I made someone as a late xmas present).  The scary part of this plan is I never wanted to own my own business, seems like entirely too much fluff to deal with and I'd hate to get into this and have it financially tank. As if I don't already have enough student loan debt...  Besides, I don't even know where to begin on this type of thing, especially since I've never even worked at a bakery.  But if you're out there, and independently wealthy, feel free to contact me...

- Be either a psychologist or therapist, depending on the schooling involved.  This sounds crazy, but I kind of love the crazies.  I feel for them.  I relate to them.  I believe I can honestly help them without being judgmental like many others are.  Plus, I never realized how down-to-earth, together and levelheaded I actually am.  It sounds cocky to say that, but I suppose it's true, might as well recognize it and use it as an asset in my life.

- Be a physician's assistant with some wicked specialty like surgery, pediatrics, or pediatric cardiology.  This idea fulfills my want/need to work in the medical field, without the added hassles of becoming a doctor.  At least this way there is less school, no residency or at least not like a medical residency, and a somewhat better and more family friendly lifestyle as compared to a physician.

- Finally, go into some version of research.  I did a little (and I do mean a little) research in undergrad, and I loved it.  Plus, I think my brain is well suited for research.  I most certainly don't think like anyone else I know and as big muffin says, I'm a bit anal in the strangest ways.  Watched a National Geo Documentary thing on Stress courtesy of instant netflix and couldn't help but think...  Hmmm, it would be pretty awesome to work for that guy.

Anyway, this wasn't exactly what I had meant to post about, but when I began to write it's what came out, so it must be what truly does weigh on me.  Something lighter and more fun to follow.  (I'm resolving to write on here more often.)

Some Random Tidbits
What I'm Reading: Izzy and Lenore, The MS Recovery Diet
What I'm Listening to: The song in my head, which is a 3 second loop of a song whose name I do not know
What I'm Planning to Bake Next: Dog Treats, Orange Scones
What I'm Craving: Chicken in a Biscuit
What I thought most while writing this: I use ellipses in all the wrong places and in all the wrong ways, but I just can't help but enjoy using them to represent my trailing thought processes.