Philly Bound

In a few hours, I'm hitting the road and heading to the Philadelphia area to spend the weekend with my friend Elena.  I'm oh.so.excited!  

The rental car doesn't have a navigation system, so I'm depending on my sidekick to step in as Magellan.  But not to worry, he's polishing up those map reading skills this morning!

Have a great weekend :)

RSS-PECT

Happy 100th post!

A couple of people have asked me about blog subscriptions over the past few weeks, so I wanted to share my (limited) knowledge.

When I first started reading blogs a few years ago, I saved each site as a bookmark in my internet browser. Whenever I had time, I would open each of the bookmarks to see if/what new posts were up. It was time consuming because I never knew which blogs were updated.

Out of curiosity, I looked up information on RSS feeds, since I had heard the term but didn't have any idea how to use them. The RSS symbol may look familiar, as most blogs (and lots of websites) have their own:

I think of RSS feeds as a format for capturing items that are regularly updated. When you subscribe to a blog, you are basically signing up to receive updates, via the RSS feed, as they are published. So when bloggers refer to their "follower" numbers, they are usually talking about how many people have subscribed to their RSS feed.  Here is an example of the RSS details for PDub (she's a popular gal):

In order to subscribe to an RSS feed, you need a place for the updates to be sent.  Most people sign up for an RSS reader, but some sites offer the updates to be sent via email.  I personally think the reader option is the easiest, especially if you follow multiple blogs.  I use Google Reader, since it is easily accesible via my Gmail screen.  Ta-da:

There are a variety of different options out there, so it's your pick.  The best part is having one place to read all the new blog updates as they come in, instead of having to check individual sites.  When new posts come through, they show up as new items in their own screen.  Easy breezy.  Here's my view this afternoon:

You won't generally see blog formats (backgrounds, layout, etc.) in readers, just the text and any pictures in new posts.  Also, you can't usually read or submit comments to individual blogs directly out of the reader (at least that I know of).  The reader will direct you the site if you click on the post title, and you can comment that way.  It's a bit cumbersome, but still a lot more efficient than visiting blogs individually. 

So that's the short and sweet.  I'm sure there is a lot more to readers and all sort of fancy stuff you can do, but hopefully this helps answer some of the simple questions.

Is Google Reader a good choice, or am I missing out on better options?!  I have a limited perspective...when it comes to technology, I've repeated the first grade at least five times.

Holy Burrito

I couldn't leave California without one awesomely-authentic Mexican meal, so this morning, after another long walk down on the beach, I headed to Lily's Cafe.

This place is amazing. It's a little hole in the wall, but cheap and so satisfying.  It's frequented by locals and somewhat of a hidden gem.  I had the breakfast burrito.  O.m.g.

Featuring: a fresh tortilla, scrambled eggs, cheese, refried beans and bacon.  And I also added some hot sauce and salsa to spice things up.  Two million calories later, I'm in a total food coma. But it was worth it!

It's just about time for me to shower and start packing (boo).  We are having dinner with one of my mom's friends, then I'm off to LAX to catch the red-eye back to DC tonight.   While the East Coast will always be my home, spending time in California reminds me not to take life (or myself) too seriously, and to just stop and enjoy the scenery once and awhile.

And what awesome scenery it is.

See you on the flip!

California Dreamin'

Hello from California!

After a busy couple days of traveling and meetings, I'm finally spending some quality time with my mom.  Remember how I said the weather was going to be gross?  I lied.  Or really, the weather forecast lied.  It's beautiful and sunny today, and I feel energized and can't wait for some warmer temps in DC.

We took advantage of the nice weather and walked along the beach for three hours this morning.  It was great workout, and we even stopped along the way to watch a local surfing competition.  If I come back in another life, I want to be a surfer.  It looks hard but so fun!

This afternoon we had lunch at the Country Mart and then headed to check out the newly renovated Malibu Lumber Yard.   It used to be an actual lumber yard and hardware store, and now it's a posh shopping area with restaurants and a great outdoor area with ping-pong tables, lounge chairs and even 12-foot tall fish tanks.  It's very California, but I enjoyed it.

Pretty, huh?  Before we left, I of course had to stop at Crumbs and get a treat for later! :-)

I hope everyone is having a great weekend, and good luck to my friends running the GW Parkway Classic tomorrow morning!  You'll do great!

P.S. Krista has a Larabar giveaway on her blog.  Check it out!

Converted

I know this makes me a bit of an odd ball, but I'm usually not a huge fan of yogurt.  Something about the consistency and the live cultures creeps me out.  But I'm happy to say that Greek yogurt has changed that.  In my best Paula Deen voice, "I'm converted ya'll!" 

I mostly stick to the Fage brand.  It's so good, but around $2 a yogurt.  As my Dad would say, "champagne taste, beer budget."  Well last week I hit up Harris Teeter, and saw there was a 4 for $5 special on Yoplait Greek yogurt.  I gave it a shot, and I'm so glad I did.

I've tried both the strawberry and blueberry flavors so far.  Both are great, and the nutrition stats are pretty good considering the fruit addition.

I think I'll still stick to Fage for cooking, but the Yoplait alternative is certainly cheaper for daily use.  Speaking of cooking with yogurt, I'm trying out this chicken slouvaki recipe next week.  It looks simple to make and delicious.

In other news... I'm heading to California tomorrow.  I'll be in business meetings on Thursday and Friday, and then spending Saturday and Sunday with my mom.  I'm so excited to see her, and to relax for a couple days to relax before flying back to DC.

Just to nip any of your weather-related jealousy in the bud:



Rain, rain go away...

If you have any favorite yogurt brands, flavors, recipes, etc. please let me know!  I definitely want to start using it more as a healthy substitute for some of the not so healthy things I love (sour cream, I'm looking at you).

Cherry Blossom Sunrise

On Saturday, I joined a group of local photographers for a sunrise shoot of the famed Cherry Blossoms at the Tidal Basin in downtown DC.  It was cold, but a lot of fun!

I got there around 5:45 a.m. and by time I had the tripod setup and started shooting, the sky was just starting to get light.  While we didn't actually get a sunrise (it was too overcast), I still got a few fun shots.  It's great being around photographers that have a lot of experience and can show you the tricks.

Such a beautiful morning!

Back to paper writing.  I can't wait to be done with grad school and have relaxing Sundays again!  Hope everyone had a great weekend.

It's Been Awhile

Hi everyone!  Sorry for the lack of posts lately.  I'm in the process of renaming and revamping the blog, so I'll post the new link when it's available.  Stay tuned!

Pipes

Awhile back, I blogged an inspirational video about Ben.  He had lost over 100 pounds and just ran his first marathon.  Ben recently posted this video on his blog, and I love it.  It's an acoustic performance of Pink's latest hit song, that he and a friend put together.  No big deal...

Pure talent.  Makes me feel like a dud.  Enjoy!



Someone needs to sign this girl, ASAP.