A Few Of My Favorite Things...

I love putting it in my mouth and swirling my tongue around to get both the salty and the sweet flavors. I savor the taste, and the cool sensation as it slowly warms to body temperature..because we all know if it’s too cold it just doesn’t taste or feel right. I love rolling the nuts around one side of my mouth and then the other before biting down. What??? Get your minds out of the gutter people…We’re talking Pistachio Ice Cream here!!!

Pistachio nuts. I love them! I prefer them in their shells so I have to work for the tasty morsels. If they’re pre-shelled they just aren’t as much fun…kind of like eating crustaceans (I LOVE Dungeness and King crab, along with lobster)…what’s the point if you can’t have fun cracking the shells and working for the sweet flesh inside?

I also love ice cream. I’m pretty picky about ice cream and love a really good vanilla because I can make whatever I want from vanilla, i.e. grab some fresh fruit from the fridge, or your favorite jam, chocolate sauce, etc. However, there is one flavor of ice cream that I absolutely love, but it’s hard to find a good brand. Pistachio ice cream is difficult because the industry standard is usually flavorless, and I eat pistachio ice cream to taste pistachios and to enjoy an ice cream with some crunch. I have a couple of recipes for homemade pistachio ice cream but I rarely make it because…I’d eat the whole thing and my waistline would be more difficult to maintain than it already is!

The funny thing is…I’m NOT a peanut fan! I can rarely do stuff with peanut butter. There is one idiosyncrasy I do have, and it’s an extremely weird one! I like to open a fresh jar of peanut butter and with a butter knife, break the smooth surface and taste that first bite. I prefer extra crunchy, but it really doesn’t matter. After that…I want nothing to do with the jar! Beware if you purchase peanut butter and see a tiny bite taken from the top….I’ve been there! When I was married and the boy lived at home, we always had peanut butter in the pantry, and the boys let me indulge in my weird little habit. Now, I just don’t buy it. If they only made pistachio butter, I’d be all over that!

I love the smell of Tide! Yes, the laundry detergent. It’s funny, but we all have those little things that we’re willing to spend extra money for. And buy generic in other things to save money. For me, I love Tide! I will spend the extra money so that my clothes have that Tide smell. The only way I’d ever change it is if my favorite perfume (Calvin Klein’s Euphoria) came in a laundry detergent!

I love Euphoria. I love the bath gel and the perfume. I had a hell of a time replacing the bath gel because no one seems to have it anymore. I used to get it through Macy’s and they totally flaked on me. I had to go through Fragrance.Net and order up a supply. This is a scent that both men and women always compliment me on, so it must smell good on me. To break things up, I’ll also wear the Euphoria Forbidden scent which is a little more complex and musky. I tried the Euphoria Blossom, but it was just too flowery for me. I gotta stick with a sure bet!

I love to drive, and I love the speed and power that goes with it. Something about being behind the wheel, pressing down on the accelerator and feeling my vehicle respond makes my pulse race and my knees weak! It’s almost akin to sex. If I’m not getting lucky (which almost never happens), I’m speeding around Northern California with my windows down, the wind in my hair, rockin tunes and a good luck charm around my neck to ward off the officers that should be ticketing me. The only times I tamp down the urge are when my angel Beanster is in the vehicle with me, and when weather conditions warrant it…and I’m not talkin’ a few raindrops…

I love Mexico! Yeah, yeah…I hear the spiel all of the time…”Oh, don’t travel to Mexico…the drug cartels will get you!” I’m home when I’m in Mexico (We won’t touch the illegal immigration issue here…). The people are friendly and upbeat, the weather is phenomenal, the food is incredible, the beaches are stunning and the tequila….well, Tequila and I have a very special relationship. I don’t know what the Mexican people were thinking when they invented tequila…but they must’ve had divine intervention by God. Cuz when I drink tequila…it’s as close to God as I can get (well, except for sex and fast cars...) and I feel blessed. Granted, I’ve done some really really (did I say really?) stupid things under tequila inebriation, but then again, I’ve had some magical moments with tequila involved. Don’t get me wrong, there’s a time and a place for all alcohol and I’ve cut back on my tequila consumption on a grand scale. I just broke the tequila seal a week ago after going without for a month! And I only had one shot last Friday night, so I’m doing great! Given that my marriage ended over alcohol dependence…I’m just not frakking going there! Back to Mexico…the evenings are magical! Just the right temperature and a walk in old town San Jose Del Cabo seems like paradise. If I had my way, I’d either retire there or on a boat. I can lead SCUBA tours and build websites on a beach (well after I get my Ranger BC refitted) and my retirement money should go a lot further. I’m gonna have to call my buddy Sammy Hagar and have him hook me up!

Anyway, these are a few of my favorite things. Sometimes my blogging turns a little dark and I need to open up the windows and let the sun stream through. Because in the grand scheme of things, I’m doing pretty damned good (knock on wood). I have my buddies, my health, my job, a home, etc. And the blog does help me keep my head clear. When I write about the dark things, it’s like my blog is my personal pensieve (Potter reference) and I can pull these things out of my head and store them here so they don’t bug me any longer. I do the same thing with my heart thoughts, but those are on paper and stored away in my nightstand! Good luck getting to those… Bitches!