1. I just realized that I prefer to chew my food primarily on the left side of my mouth. Is that weird? I mean, I know I’m left-handed…but could I be left-mouthed too?
2. A week and two days from today begins my amazing internship at the Milwaukee Public Library and my even more amazing Summer. I couldn’t BE more excited (cue the Chandler Bing voice)! Packing for this amazing Summer however? Yeah….even thinking about that makes me cringe. Anyone care to help me pack? I’ll pay you in delicious cookies
3. Who needs a bowl when you’ve got a counter, a carton, and a spoon?
4. Note to self: Do not leave chocolate unattended in a heated, non-air conditioned car for prolonged periods of time. A smelted piece of candy for anyone who can guess what this is!
5. Speaking of heated, non-air conditioned cars…leather seats + an open sun roof with access to direct sunlight + a sweltering Georgia summer day = one very burned bum. On the plus side, I can officially say that I’ve got the hottest ass of anyone I know without lying. YOUCH!
6. Honey Boo Boo, step aside. The Cheeseheads are moving in! Apparently TBS has greenlighted a TV show series which follows the greatest, most outrageous, fun, and crazy fans in the world. All I can say is…FINALLY!
Now, Chad likes to tell people what made him decide to go to school and the reasons why he traded in a job at best Buy for a few hard years of hitting the books.
See, on a whim one weekend, Chad packed his trunk and cruised down the highway to visit our friend Mike who was away at school. They didn’t have any plans but spent a couple of days going out for drinks and eating their fill of meals at the residence hall.
It was in that very dining hall that Chad first came face to face with a big and beautiful stainless steel object of his desire. Yes, he glanced up slowly and realized that he was starring straight at chocolate milk on tap.
His jaw dropped and his eyeballs flashed fireworks as he immediately filled three glasses with the sweet-flowing delicious liquid, his brain reeling with infinite possibilities.
“It’s like never-ending chocolate milk!” he said at the time, his eyebrows furrowed and his head bobbing in quick nods. “I gotta go to college, man!”
Yes, this really is a true story. Chocolate milk on tap convinced my dear, dear friend Chad to ditch his job and head down the highway the following year. Chocolate milk on tap changed his life because let’s face it, anything on tap is great.
Let me count down some other killer classics that would leave you and I saying, “I’d totally tap that”…
Slurpees: Flip the switch sideways and let the crystal soda slide smoothly into your cup like a snake. For bonus points, mix and match flavors until your drink looks like the surface of Jupiter.
Brown soda: Did you ever get behind an open bar at a wedding when you were a kid? Hey, if you remember mixing tall glasses full of fountain Coke, Sprite, Orange and Root Beer into delightfully tangy swill, you had a pretty amazing childhood.
Beer at a keg party: Forget the bottles and cans for a night. Not it’s time for some foamy pumping. If you’re the guy who actually knows how to tap the keg, the you’re the official dude responsible for keeping everyone’s red solo cups full tonight.
Maple syrup: Just toss on your hiking boots in the dead of winter, walk silently to the middle of the forest, and tap that tree to get it done, son. It’s time to get sticky. And if you’ve never had fresh maple syrup right out of the tree, you haven’t lived (no offense, Mrs. Butterworth).
Soft-serve ice cream: Don’t you love it when your local all-you-can-eat buffet has that soft-serve ice cream machine sitting right in the open? You can squeeze a little big swirl into your warm, plastic wet-from-the-dishwasher bowl, or go all commando and build the tallest, swirliest ice cream cone known to mankind. Brain freeze, beware!
Water: If you’ve got a drink in the kitchen, clean hands in the bathroom, and a hot shower in the tub, then today’s your day to say thanks.
Nacho cheese at 7-Eleven. Now here’s the heaviest hitter of all. When you swirl your salty 7-Eleven nachos under the hot pump of oozing cheese, you’re sure to be in for a good night. I once saw a guy fill up a Big Gulp cup with the stuff and take it home. Forward thinker, that one was. The cashier was so surprised that she just charged him for a drink. Good deal, man.
People listen up:when you come face to face with anything on tap, all Coke cans and beer bottles fade to dark black. You grab control of the boat and start pumping nozzles and squeezing triggers with reckless abandon, breaking free of the tight shackles of portion control and sailing deeper into a shadowy paradise of no rules…no order…and no limits.
AWESOME!
Question of the day: What are some things that you totally would tap?
Woo this week seemed to just fly by, didn’t it? Lots to do to keep me busy, but hopefully this weekend should be nice and relaxing. Yesterday I realized that I only have 6 more days left of being 25 (Really. Seriously. How did I get this old?!?!), two weeks until my baby sis graduates from college (Really. Seriously. How did she get so old?!?!) and a month until I get to pack up my things and head on up to Milwaukee for a summer full of fun (Really. Seriously. How did I get so lucky?!?!)!
I. Can’t. Wait.
Before all that happens though, I’ve got a weekend to enjoy!
I hope you’ve got some fun penciled into your calendar this weekend too and in the meantime, please enjoy my favorite finds from around the web in this week’s Friday Fav’s!
Click the light blue links to be taken to the original source.
Favorite Fashion: No striking out with these Baseball booty shorts. Are these for real? I need. I want.
Favorite funny: Spinning Hawaiian Monk Seal. I have no idea why this is so funny, but the longer you watch, the funnier it gets. BAHAHA.
Favorite bling: Kate Spade Idiom Pendant Necklace. I saw these at the Kate Spade store in Charleston and was this close to pulling the trigger, but didn’t for some reason and am now, of course, kicking myself for it. The shiny, colored-circle pendants are simple, classy and cute. Plus they all have different little sayings on the back - hello sunshine on the yellow, make a splash on the blue. Fun!
Favorite woah: Once in a Lifetime Shots. I’ve seen a bunch of these slideshows before, but this one is pretty cool and includes a flock of flamingos in the shape of, wait for it, a flamingo!
Favorite breakfast: Banana Bread French Toast. Banana bread pancakes I’ve heard of, but french toast?! Come to mama!
Favorite furball. Call me crazy (go ahead, we’ll wait) but I have always thought dog noses and mouths are so CUTE! Right?! Awww.
Favorite Funky Find: This is THE coolest chair ever! Just give me a book (or five) and a cold glass of lemonade and I’ll be one happy camper!
Favorite photo: I dare you to not smile after looking at this
Favorite scoop: Cinnamon Toast Ice Cream. I can now have a legitimate reason to have ice cream for breakfast. YES!
I don’t know about you, but I’ve got a love/hate relationship with many a thing.
For example: Public toilets.
I LOVE that they are relatively good for the environment, help to conserve water, and are nice when you are on the tad forgetful lazy side when it comes to remembering to flush.
I HATE that 99.99999% of the time, these friendly flushers do one of two things: they either surprise your bum with a lovely poo water shower, doing its thang before you are, um, done doing your thang, or, they decide to take a nap mid-poo and leave you waiving/pushing/hunting for a button to clear the bowl of all presents.
LOVE/HATE.
Some other things that I have a LOVE/HATE relationship as of late include:
Spring. I LOVE that it has finally decided to show up, gracing us with it’s warmer weather and sunshine. I HATE that I now have to start shaving my legs again. Darn you shorts and summer dresses!
Speaking of hair…long hair. I LOVE that my hair is now under-the-boob level, giving my a monkey barrel full of styling ideas and options (plus I can do that super cheesy but oh so dramatic Tyra Banks model-ish hair flip thing). I HATE that my luscious locks take me nearly an hour to comb through post-shower due to the massive amounts of snarls that are so kind in presenting themselves.
Spider-free bathrooms: I LOVE that the spider the size of a small baby who was living in my bathroom is no longer there. I HATE that the spider the size of a small baby who used to be living in my bathroom is now in some other location in my house. Which I have yet to discover. EEK!
Mega-Stuffed Vanilla Oreo’s. I LOVE that Oreo’s finally got it right with the creme-to-cookie ratio. I HATE that I just ate the very last one and am now left cookieless. Oh the horror!
Hanson. I LOVE Thinking ‘Bout Somethin’ by my favorite all-time hottie, hunk-a-licious boyband (and sharer of last name) Hanson!!! I HATE that, well, I don’t really think I can think of anything to HATE about Hanson. They are amazing!
I got to see my sista from anotha mista, Jana G! Easily the best part of my trip.
Pregaming with my girl Amanda. Cold shmold! We’re WI chicks!
Another year, another opening day with this guy Tradition at it’s finest (and funnest)!
Honey I shrunk the Brewer fans?
Nothing I’d rather do more…
And they’re off! The cherizo took home the win just in case you were wondering. Don’t worry guys; you don’t think I’d leave you in suspense, now did you?
Speaking of taking home the win, the Brewers beat the Rockies in a walk-off draw in the tenth inning! Go crew!! There may or may not have been some high-fiving, fist-pumping and screams of excitement from these two gals
And of course a trip to Milwaukee wouldn’t be complete without a trip (or three) to Culver’s.
This, That, and the Other Thing turns the big 2 today!
It seems like just yesterday that I started this little passion project of mine. What at first started out as an online diary of sorts, chronicling all of my crazy, funny, and amazing life moments, has really turned into much more than that. Over the past two years, I have grown.
As a person.
As a writer.
As a friend, and a sister, and a student, and a dreamer.
I have gone through so much these last two years, the highest of highs, the lowest of lows, and all of the in-betweens. Looking back, I can’t believe how much has changed, how much I have changed. And you guys have been there with me, every step of the way!
To all of my friends, my family, my readers and fans.
Thank you for sticking with me, for inspiring me, for making me smile and laugh and strive to be better.
If the last two years are any indication, the next two years are sure to bring many surprises and I for one cannot wait to share them with you!
Now.
You can’t have a birthday without cupcakes, right?!
Right.
To celebrate This, That, and the Other Thang’s 2nd birthday (or the fact that it’s officially a week before the Brewer’s opening day, or that it’s Sunday, or that you successfully fulled off matching socks today, or, well, do you really have to have a reason to make cupcakes? I didn’t think so.), I decided to share with you one of my fav’s
Ahh, who can resist a cute mini cupcake with colorful confetti sprinkles?? A simple vanilla cupcake with vanilla buttercream frosting is my absolute, 100%, no-holds-bar favorite kind of cupcake.
They’re cute and tiny and colorful and remind me of the Easter parties we used to have in elementary school. And…the good thing about making them pint-sized is that you don’t have to feel guilty about eating 2 5.
I used Sweetapolita’s Fluffy Vanilla Cake recipe for these cupcakes, and I’m going to just send you over there to get it. The cupcakes were gorgeous, light, airy, fluffy, and impossibly moist. Everything that this girl wants in a vanilla cupcake. Even when made mini — and that my friends is hard to do! A perfect vanilla cupcake.
I topped them with my new obsession: Cool Whip frosting, guys!
I am telling you, this stuff is lethal. I’m talking grab-a-spoon-and-go-to-town lethal!
It’s so light and fluffy and tastes ahhhmazing!
Once your cupcakes are cool (wait at least a half-hour to an hour to let your cuppycakes completely cool down), lather on some of that delicious frosting, making sure to lick the spoon once you’re done, and then sprinkle your, um, sprinkles on top
Pour yourself a big ‘ol glass of milk, plate up a couple of these diddies and ENJOY!
Have a great rest of your night everybody! And thank you again! You all are the bomb.com
And boy am I glad. I’ve been suffering from a serious case of next-dayitis; my Monday was my Tuesday, my Tuesday was my Wednesday, etc.
One more reason why I am super excited that it’s Friday?
There is only one more Friday that stands between me and Opening day of the Milwaukee Brewers!!!! I may or may not have already started packing. Speaking of packing, I’ve noticed that most of my luggage consists of winter coats, long underwear, Brewer hats, mittens, scarves and boots. Judging from the lovely Wisconsin spring weather that they have been having up there, this game is going to be a bit chilly, feeling more a Packer game than a baseball game.
But that’s okay.
Even more reason so drink beer and eat lots of hot dogs/nachos/giant pretzels to stay warm, right?
But between now and then, there stands this amazing weekend I’ve got planned. Tomorrow I’m having a gals’ day with my girl Eric, shopping till we drop and then on Sunday, I’ve got a long day of playing DVR/Nook catch-up. It’s supposed to be rainy and icky out both days and I can’t think of anything better than cuddling up with a good book, an episode of The Office (can you believe its that last season?!), and my pup to keep me company (and by keep my company, I mean sitting on my lap on the ready just in case a piece of my cookie or sandwich happens to fall within his drooling grasp–gotta love him).
The. Best.
I hope you’ve got some fun activities on the horizon too, and in the meantime, please enjoy my favorite finds from around the web and beyond in this week’s Friday Favorites. Have a great weekend!
Favoritesweet: Chocolate-covered Pretzels. Cookies. Chocolate-covered pretzels IN cookies. Yes! Yes! My goodness yes!
Favorite furball. I’ve looked at this photo at least 100 times this week, and it cracks me up every single time. I love how he (or she) is staring at a spot on the wall, concentrating SO HARD on getting that little tongue to curl. Precious!
Favorite devour: Italian Drunken Noodles. The only thing I like better than this blog post (it’s a great read) is the recipe for Italian Drunken Noodles within it. Total comfort food – I am so down!
Favorite artsy-fartsy: Come with a story and leave with another. This artist creates artwork that have your favorite storybook characters hidden within storybook characters! How neat! Any guesses as to which story/character this guy comes from?
Favorite funky find: This is such a cool idea: a bean bag for your book. I must admit I sometimes have the darndest time finding the right position to comfortably read a book, and this seems like a pretty amazing way to solve that.
Favorite thrill: The First Flyer – Grindelwald, Switzerland. I have always wanted to go ziplining through a jungle, but I think speeding down a mountain on a 2,400 foot cable, reaching speeds of 55mph just about sounds like the most fun thing ever. Look at those views!
Favorite yum: Krispie Treat Pinwheels. Snap, crackle, pop into my mouth! How cute (and easy to do)! With Easter just around the corner, these tasty little guys are sure to be a big hit!
Favorite Life Lesson: My friend Chris posted this on Facebook the other day and it really resonated with me. “There are two types of people in this world: those who are inspired, and those that inspire.” Which one are you?
Favorite project: Travel Keepsake Kits. I always have the best intentions of making photo books when I come back from fun trips but it rarely ever happens. A fun keepsake kit to hold maps, ticket stubs, and other fun mementos is an awesome alternative!
Favorite funny: And that, my friends is how baby carrots are made. Cannot. Stop. Giggling. And yes, I have the maturity level of a five year old.
While at work one night this week a co-worker of mine broke into a story about his one-year old daughter. Apparently while feeding her a bowl of mushy peas she suddenly started sticking her tongue out, slowly and suspiciously peering down at it, and then wiggling it around.
It was like she suddenly came to the starstruck realization that “Holy Toledo, I can control this thing!”
And what an amazing day that must be, for you, for me, for anybody. After all, we grow up inside these flabby blobs of flexy muscles, whirring organs, and gurgling parts, and then discover what everything does along the way.
The mysteries of your tongue are sort of discovered along the way, too. And what beautiful mysteries they are, my friends.
1. Tongue got your cat. Yes, the muscles at the back of your tongue help make certain sounds while talking, like hard g’s and c’s. Try saying the word “go” or “cat” really slowly and you’ll feel that pink puppy push across the root of your mouth.
2. Bubble blower. Hey, that wad of chewing gum ain’t gonna balloon into a thin ‘n shaky pink bubble on it’s own, not is it?
3. Whistle while you work. Think of your mouth like the cold garage where your lips and tongue come together to jam after school. Your lips make a small opening and your tongue gets the bumping going. Also works for singing.
4. Taste the rainbow. When you’re a one-year old baby, you’ve got around 10,000 taste-buds covering your tongue and when you’re a wrinkly old fart, you’ve got only around 5,000. These tiny flavor-detectors are why mushy bananas and macaroni taste so good when you’re a kid and why bloody steaks and olives do the job when you’re older. On top of all that, your tongue helps move food to your chompers and then down the gully for digestion. He’s basically the whistle-blowing traffic cop of your body.
5. Clean your fur. If your entire body is covered in fur, your tongue acts like your very own lickable bath machine. Hopefully you won’t have to find out how remarkable this bath machine is, but, to each his (or her) own.
6. French kissing. Apparently swapping spit is a common gesture of affection throughout the animal kingdom, with lovers kissing with their tongues in jungles, in deserts, and bat caves around the world. Evolutionary biologist Thierry Lode even argues that tongue kissing has a real function–to explore a partner’s immune system through their saliva. Yeah, I know: hot!
Once upon a time you discovered your tongue with a profound sense of eye-widening wonder and amazement. Over time you began using its magical powers to try new foods, learn how to speak, sing in the car or snuggle up with a young love. So today, give three cheers to that fleshy, pink slab of greatness sitting inside your hot, disgusting mouth. Use its noble powers today to sit back and scream forward one big, booming word with me….
Reading…this book by John Green. Y’all, this one is doing a number on my heart. The Fault in Our Stars is brilliant, and made me cry over and over again, not just because it was sad, but also because it was joyful, funny, uplifting, metaphorical and just so… real.
Looking for…a bandaid. I think it would hurt less to cut off my whole arm than to get a paper cut on the tippy top of my little pinky finger. OUCH!
Listening to…this song by Fall Out Boy. This rock band from Chicago was the bane of my college experience; I wasn’t so much a fan back then but am really liking their new stuff! Check out this song and tell me that you don’t want to get up and dance. It’s nearly impossible.
Laughing…at my dog who seems to have gotten peanut butter on the tip of his nose and can’t for the life of his sweet, sweet self get it off. Poor guy; I feel his pain. It’s just like how I feel when I get a piece of popcorn stuck in my teeth and am floss-less. No matter how hard I try to tongue it out, that darn kernel is steadfast, resilient in remaining lodged in between my bicuspids.
Eating…the most delicious peanut butter, banana and granola sandwich (Okay. I may have been the cause of said dog’s current peanut butter battle). Sweet, salty, crunchy and just plain goooooood, this is a definite new lunch fav of mine
Excited about…my upcoming trip to Milwaukee for the Brewer’s opening day. Like, REALLY excited! Great friends, great team, great food, great times! Yeahhhh buddy! Not that I’m counting the days or anything
Hope you guys are having a great Tuesday!
Question of the day: What are some of your “currents”?
Seriously, these are ALL of the disgusting. Never eat them. Like, ever.
If you know me, you know that I probably have the biggest sweet tooth (err, teeth) EVER. It is physically impossible for me to go a day without noshing on some sort of cookie, chocolate, fruity-tuity, sugar glob of goodness.
However…
…there some things even this girl won’t go near with a ten-foot pole.
These, my friends, are the 17 types of candy that should be bubble wrapped, packaged up, and shipped off to planet 152.
1. Black Jelly Beans–The ABSOLUTE worst!
WHY IN THE WORLD DOES THIS EVEN EXIST AMONG ALL THE OTHER FRUITY FLAVORS??? It tastes like tires and is reminiscent of rabbit turds. Gross.
2. Laffy Taffy (not salt-water taffy because everyone knows that that is delicious).
Is it just me or is THE WRAPPER IS IMPOSSIBLE TO REMOVE!!!!!!
3. Three Musketeers
JUST NOUGAT. NOTHING ELSE. HOW BORING ARE YOU? What would your crime-fighting, sword-buckling counterparts think of you, bucko?
4. Dubble Bubble
CANDY THAT YOU CAN’T EVEN EAT?! Or chew for that matter?! I’ll pass. But thanks.
5. Dum Dums
THEY GIVE THESE OUT AT THE BANK AND THE DOCTOR’S OFFICE. ENOUGH SAID. You’d be a DUM-DUM to eat one of these suckers (you knew it was coming, guys).
6. Good & Plenty
My Grandma Hansen always ALWAYS had a bowl of these next to her. Growing up, I always ALWAYS thought I could get over how disgusting these little pill-sized black licorice bites were, following my G-ma’s lead and popping a few in my mouth. And always ALWAYS I ended up spitting out a Good & Plenty amount of candy sludge into the garbage. Blech!
7. Runts
Fruit-shaped candy that doesn’t even remotely taste like the fruit it’s shaped as. Just give this girl a real banana and we’ll call it good.
8. Rolos
LOOK AT THIS. IT SHOULD BE OBVIOUS. IF IT ISN’T OBVIOUS, LOOK AT THE PICTURE AGAIN.
9. Milk Duds
COULD THIS CANDY BE ANY MORE CLINGY????? IT’S A STAGE 5 CLINGER
10. Junior Mints
They’re LIKE CHOCOLATE-COVERED TOOTHPASTE NUGGETS. WHY WOULD YOU PUT THEM IN YOUR MOUTH FOR PLEASURE?! Take a cue from Kramer…eating these can literally be hazardous to your health.
11. Bit-O-Honey
HOW CAN THEY LEGALLY CALL IT CANDY? It looks like soap. Are you sure it’s not soap. I’m pretty sure it’s soap.
12. Raisinets
THESE ARE JUST RAISINS WEARING MAKEUP. WE KNOW WHAT THEY REALLY ARE WITHOUT CHOCOLATE. You can’t hide, raisins!
13. Lemonheads
SOUR LITTLE BLOBS OF NO THANK YOU MA’AM.
14. Dots
WHY DON’T YOU JUST GET DENTURES MADE OF HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP AND RED NO. 6. It’s be a lot easier.
15. Chunky Bar
THIS LOOKS LIKE POOP. ACTUAL POOP. And the name alone…CHUNKY Bar. I don’t to be putting anything into my mouth that is chunky.
16. Whatever these are
THEY LOOK A LITTLE BIT LIKE STRAWBERRIES AND TASTE EXACTLY LIKE COUGH DROPS. Ick.
17. Peanut Butter Kisses
More like KISSES of Death, am I right folks. Who here has received these little barf-balls in their Halloween bags as a kid? More importantly, who here has received these little barf-balls in their Halloween bags and actually ATE them? I rest my case.
No, I think I will stick to my M&M, Skittle, Kit Kat, Twix, Starburst, Gummy Bear, Snickers, Milky Way, Sour Patch Kid, Almond Joy, eatin’ ways.
Have a very sweet rest of your Friday night, all! And an even better weekend!!
Question of the day: What sweet treats make your list to send to the moon?
Hey guys! Welcome to This, That, or the Other Thang! Check out my blog and follow me as I share funny stories and thoughts about my wonderful, random, amazing, and sometimes crazy life!
