Spicy Mac & Cheesy

So for those who know, i cook. I love to cook!! And I'm a pretty damn good cook at that! If i do say so myself, usually it's what everyone else says though. ;) I've worked hard at becoming a decent cook. It's one of the most simple pleasures for me. It's where i can let go of my stress and enjoy the moment!

I cook for the most part by taste. I don't like to follow recipes much. I typically use them as a base and add what i want based on my likes, or omit stuff based on my dislikes. My spicy mac is no different. However, to be fare, i never had a recipe to go from. It was really trial and error until i had something pretty great.  I've made it for Brooks a couple months ago and he thought he'd died and gone to heaven.

I love homemade mac and cheese! And in the south it's practically a staple! If you can make a good mac and cheese, you are good people! BUT...too many people make it and it's very bland. Not my cup of tea. I like flavor in my food. Mac and cheese is no different. The things i cook are full of flavor and most of it is all fairly simple.

So...I've made this a million times and been asked what i do to my mac to make it spicy. Well it's not hard, and it's actually a recipe that I'm willing to share.

Here it is:

1-2 cups of dried macaroni (dependent on how many people you want to feed)
1 large or 2 small poblano peppers (also called an Anaheim pepper) chopped into small pieces inluding some of the seeds
1-2 tomatoes (again, based on how large of a pan you want)
2 cloves of garlic finely minced
1/2 sweet yellow onion chopped in medium chunks
1 1/2 cups of mexican style grated cheese
1 1/2 cups of pepper jack cheese
3 Tablespoons sour cream
2-5 tablespoons of Sriracha (that awesome hot sauce that people put on everything!)
1 teaspoon of sea salt
1-2 teaspoons of freshly ground pepper

Directions:

Boil macaroni until desired done-ness. Drain. Put back in pot and add 1 cup of each of the cheeses, sour cream and hot sauce. Stir until everything is well blended. Next, add the onions, garlic and poblano pepper. Mix to combine. Pour into a baking dish. Sprinkle the top with the rest of the cheese. Add another dash of salt and pepper. Bake at 350 degrees 45-55 minutes until bubbly and veggies are tender. Serve while hot. Enjoy!!

Hope everyone likes this!! The spiciness is really dependent on your own taste, so add the Sriracha a little at a time and taste as you go. Or omit the hot sauce. It's still a damn tasty recipe!!

Brooks doesn't like tomatoes, so i'm careful to mix
them only on one half of the mac

Greens-iversary #3

Today i have lived in NC 3 years. It's my anniversary. I post something every year about it on Facebook. The last two i talked about how much the move has changed my life for the better, even with the trials and tribulations. This year is no different, except for the fact that in the last year things have changed for the better in the most amazing ways!

I mean, don't get me wrong. I'm usually a pretty upbeat person. I try to always find the silver lining of stuff. Sometimes, depending on the situation, it can take me a few days or so, but i always find it. I'm one of those "things happen for a reason" people. Brooks is too. Which is really nice so i don't have to explain myself.

Over the last year I've met some truly amazing people, made a bunch of really awesome new friends, gone back to school (even if i am struggling in some classes) and met the love of my life. When i look back on the last year it's crazy to me that all of it's happened in a year! 365 days of change. Along with the trials and tribulations, I've also had some amazing opportunities and experienced some of the best times of my life!

Last December i was almost homeless. I had no income at all, and almost was evicted from my apartment. I had lost my car the previous April and was walking and taking the bus everywhere i needed to go. Which in most cities isn't a big deal. Here...ugh! It's a freakin disaster! I won't go into that though. It's not the point. But it added to the crap i was dealing with.

In January I started back to school. I did ok considering i hadn't been in school in about 5 years and it was hard! Much harder classes than the ones back home at community college. I'm still plugging away at it. It's gonna be a long 3+ year road, but a decision i'm glad i made.

 In April i went to another Shakori festival. It rained most of the weekend and that part was terrible. The weather made the massive spiders of the forest come out and were everywhere! Those two things alone made me almost not want to go back. Lol.

May marked my 33rd birthday and the following weekend was my nephew's college graduation. I borrowed my friends car and drove up to VA for the celebration. It was great to see family i hadn't seen in quite a while!!

Me, my nephew Patrick and my sister Raylea

Patrick and I after his ceremony

I met Brooks at the end of May and things have never been the same!! I've never been happier! He's an incredible man whom i am thankful for every day!! I can honestly say that camping trip changed my life!! I feel truly blessed for having been a part of it and for meeting the new friends and chosen family i have in my life!!

In June i moved in with my friends Jess and Ed for the summer. It was nice to have friends who would offer their spare room to me for a few months. My old apartment had WAY too many insects and the landlord wasn't interested in eliminating them. Among other issues there. I do miss my neighbors from that building because they were pretty awesome!!  

Me, our friend Lulu and Brooks at his birthday party in June

A week later i went to Brooks' birthday party. It was SO much fun!! It's where it all started for us. I'll have a post about that in the coming weeks. It's a good story! :)

Sunrises on the east coast are something else entirely! So beautiful!!

A day at the beach! I love this pic!!

I went to visit him in Wilmington at the end of June. It was my very first trip to the east coast beaches. It was beautiful and now i know why every summer all my friends in the Boro seem to go there in droves!!

In September i moved out of Jess and Ed's place and into Brooks' parents finished basement. Brooks asked me to move in with him in late August and we are in the process of looking for a house to rent in Greensboro. He still has his apartment in Wilmington until the end of next month, so we are waiting that out. Sherrie and Brooks II, live in the country. It's gorgeous out here and very peaceful!! If it weren't for the gas money of going into Greensboro every day, it would be perfect!

We went to Shakori a few weeks ago together. Our first official camping trip as a couple!! While we had a great time when we went to listen to music or go on walk-abouts, the trip wasn't what we had expected. I'll post something about that maybe another time. But needless to say, when we go back, A) we're paying for our weekend and not volunteering, and B) finding a new campsite.

Brooks keepin me entertained on our shift at Shakori

I love this pic!! On our Shakori shift

Seafood, Blues and Jazz Fest

His and Her's Koozies

At the Fat Pelican

 The following weekend we went to Wilmington over my short fall break and to the Seafood, Blues and Jazz fest. Brooks and i danced under the stars while Gregg Allman serenaded us. It was beautiful!! The weekend at the beach was the vacation we very much needed! 

After dinner at Elijah's

The view at dinner

So far, we've had some really fun times together! I am very much looking forward to what this next year has in store with Brooks by my side.

It's been an interesting 3 years. While it hasn't turned out how i had imagined, i wouldn't trade it. If i had to do it over, the only thing I'd change is I would have left Oregon sooner. North Carolina is my home. ❤

Fall Colors

I have the sweetest boyfriend!! Yesterday Brooks drove me up to the Blue Ridge Parkway in Virginia to see the fall colors. The other day he had told me that he knew that we had a change of seasons out in Oregon and he wanted to share the seasons here with me.

After breakfast, we got ready and hit the road. We drove about an hour and found Lovers Leap. The view was breathtaking!!

The view of Lovers Leap

Afterwards we drove about another mile down the road and found an adorable country store. We stocked up on a few essentials like apple butter, strawberry preserves and a few snack items and a couple honey crisp apples, all fresh from the farm! Oh and a mini-apple pie!! That was fantastic!! I easily could have gone nuts and loaded up on a bit of everything they had there!! In my drunken-stooper of "OMG LOOK AT THAT!" I grabbed a bag of funnel cake mix and accidentally put the pancake mix i had in hand down to look at something else i just had to have. Hmm...perhaps it was the preserves. Well so much for an amazing breakfast tomorrow. Now we'll just have to settle for store bought mix instead. ;)

My sweetie and I

It really is the little things. I've dated guys who could care less about anything that i liked, thought was beautiful, wanted to do, or places i dreamed of seeing. Brooks is definitely one in a million! He's thoughtful, kind, sweet, romantic (which let me just tell you i NEVER thought i'd find a romantic guy!! I heard they were all extinct!), and wants to make me happy. I definitely don't take any of it for granted. Been through too much crap for that. I'm a very lucky girl and i know it!!

♥

A 33 Year Old Student

So as I've said in my profile, I'm a student again. At the age of 33, I'm back and having to start totally over with it.

I was a graphic designer at one point. I lost my job after a year and a half in 09'. My senior designer, myself and out trade show manager were laid off. It was a mess! That's when I decided to pack a moving truck and move across country. From one coast to the other. Took me 7 days to cross 9 states alone. Yackin to my plants and singing to my iPod along the way. It was one of the best decisions I've ever made. I had no job, barely a place to live, I knew no one and had left everything I've ever known behind me. In about a weeks time i was hired at a publishing company as their new graphic designer. I worked there about a year and a half. Last July I was laid off from that company along with 7 other people.

In August of last year (11') i wound up in the ICU with DKA, a diabetic complication (a story for another time). The experience was terrible and the doctor who was in charge of me while i was there was to be blunt...a total bitch! But the diabetes educator was fabulous!! After a conversation with my sister, i realized i'd always wanted to be a diabetes educator! More for children and their families than for adults. When i was diagnosed at 11, there was a lot that they didn't tell me due to my age, but things i should have been told! Like if i didn't take care of my blood sugars very well i could end up blind, or lose a limb. Harsh truth, but the truth.

I had already decided i wanted to go back to school, but at the time i wasn't sure of my major. But again, after that conversation, i knew what i wanted to do. I looked into the requirements. I'd have to get a bachelors in Nutrition first. And pass the boards.

I applied to UNCG in October and waited for their decision. I wasn't what they would call a 'typical' student. I was an older student compared to their regular applicants, I didn't have mommy and daddy paying my way, and they put me through the ringer! I had a lot of forms to fill out, an interview with one of their admissions counselors, more forms, and more discussions on what my plan was. They finally decided to let me in. I was ecstatic!!!  I cried! I was terrified that they wouldn't let me in and things would continue to go downhill and ultimately would wind up going home. Another conversation with my sister who got me to agree to come home in May if i didn't get into school (something she didn't think would happen), and if things weren't working out on the job front.

My first semester back was interesting. I'd never gone to an actual University before. I had gone to a community college back home and things were very different this time. Some of my classes had over 200 people in them and professors rarely knew your name. Some of my classmates got on my very last nerve! Stupid questions because they didn't pay attention. Texty-McTextersons, always on their phones. And bitching about how their parents wouldn't let them drive the Mercedes. Really? Oh please!

I made the decision to attend summer session so that i could afford to go home. However, that didn't work out and i wasted a much needed break. The classes were daily 4 days a week, and the history of North Carolina class was a MAJOR challenge!! An undergrad class with an instructor who taught it like it was a graduate class. Class-wise, we were all very annoyed. I emailed the history department head at one point and told him how it was. He was less than pleased and told her to cut out her shit which didn't go over well for her and she made it known that she was pissed. She actually called out a classmate and blamed him for emailing the department head!!

At the end of the summer session, i had a mere 3 weeks off until Fall semester started. Knowing fall would be hell on earth, i really needed a break! A bigger break than 21 days. That didn't happen. And i wasn't ready for fall. My fall consisted of Algebra (which i wound up dropping. The instructor was a German woman who i could barely understand and instead of showing us how she got the answer, she would just give us the answer), Chemistry lecture and a lab, Statistics and a Nutrition class. Chemistry is where I'm really struggling. I'm terrified that I'll lose my financial aid for Spring semester if i fail the class. Since i dropped algebra, I'm still locked into needing to pass 9 of the 13 credits.

Here's another great part...my unemployment will end at the end of December due to the government. Seems i'm on tier 4 which will end at the end of December for everyone unless the gov decides to extend it. I'm crossing my fingers!! SO...if i lose my financial aid, and can't attend spring semester, i will have NO income whatsoever! So to say that I'm stressed is a bit of an understatement. Though I did get a bit of better news today. I figured out on my own that even if i get a D in my chemistry class (which would mean i'd have to repeat it...i need to do that anyway due to ALL the chemistry i need in the future, so i need a good base or it'll be a major struggle all the way) I'll still pass the needed credits. So that is a bit of a small relief.

So there ya have it. My fall semester in a nutshell. A nutshell of crap on a cracker, but a nutshell nonetheless. Trying to stay positive and knowing that i have some great support from Brooks and my friends that I'll get through this and continue to seek out my big goal. Love and support is something that is priceless!!  ♥

The Guts

I've tried a few times to blog. I've had one for my adventures in running. But sadly...i lost interest after a few runs and stopped running altogether. I've had a couple others over the years as well, all soon to be tossed aside to the point i can't even remember what email they were attached to! It's not that i don't have anything interesting to post, (which from what i hear, i am quite fascinating) but it's more...does anyone really care? I mean, who are those people who have the blogs that are making TONS of money? What the hell do they write about anyway? But the other day while looking for ideas on cute hair styles for growing out my very short hair style, i came across a blog that i just love! She does crafts, she posts about her life, her house, her son and anything else that she wants to. It got me to thinking...I have a lot going on in my own life. Why not write about it? Better yet...why not blog about it? So here i am.

But the real question is...where oh where do i even start?! I mean, ok...I'm not as young as i used to be. I'm in my early 30's. Still wrinkle free for the moment! But i have some life experience behind me. But i guess I'll start in the moment and work from there. Perhaps I'll fill in some blanks as i go and y'all can catch up.

So a little background of me...I'm originally from Oregon. I moved to NC almost 3 years ago. In fact, my anniversary is in 4 days! Wow!! Where has the time gone? Oh, right...anyway...so there's that. I moved across country to a place I'd never been. Didn't have a job. I knew no one. I drove across country alone, talking to my avocado plant Pete and Lola (she has since died...RIP) along the way. Once here, i did get a job but was laid off last summer and i decided to go back to school. Which right now...is a major thorn in my side. But I'm pushing on one day at a time. I also do look at the opportunity and MASSIVE WORK that it took to get back into school, as a blessing. So please don't get me wrong. I do appreciate being back in school. It's just been very difficult with the class load that i have this semester. And the semesters to follow won't get much easier. But ya know what they say...anything worth having is worth working for. Isn't that what is said? Hmm...

The other really great thing i have in my life...the love of an amazing man!! Hence the name of my blog. Love Happens. I had just about given up and decided to just be single when i met Brooks this past spring. I had always thought that the people who say "You just 'know' when you meet the one" were full of total crap! However, i am now one of those people!! This i know. I knew at the end of our first phone conversation he was the one. I can't even put into words how happy I've been since meeting him and how my life has changed by having him in it!! It's a fantastic feeling!

So...there you have it. Really simple beautiful things that are going on in my life. A little bit of where I've come from and where i hope to go.