Wine

So I enjoy wine. Particularly reds. As previously mentioned, I do not live in a cultural mecca and thus do not have local access to those who possess vast quantities of quality vino information. So I have resorted to scouring the internet for information after a recent trip to the vineyards of Long Island peaked my interest around different wine varietals. It has been challenging to find a site that gives information and tips for the "wine novice" and one that may suggest wines that are affordable and easy to find (any suggestions please comment!). So it has been a relatively fruitless effort at educating my brain and palate on the differences between say a pinot noir and a shiraz. So my question to the blogging world is....What is your favorite type of wine and why?

Recipe

Just wanted to post my new favorite recipe for people to try once people actually start reading my blog :) I found it on allrecipes.com and love it!

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
2 cloves of garlic
Olive oil

Put garlic and oil and saute for a minute or so. Add chicken and brown on both sides.

Paprika
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup red wine

Sprinkle chicken breasts with paprika and brown sugar. Pour red wine over. Reduce heat to simmer and cover 15 minutes. Take cover off and cook until liquid reduces to thick sauce.

I like to serve this with rice or pasta. Enjoy!

Question

So instead of posting a monologue today I thought I would just pose a question I have after attending a close friend's bridal shower this weekend.....As a single 20-something am I supposed to be jealous of her? Just wondering cause I'm not feeling jealous and something tells me I am supposed to!

mmmmmmm yeah

So I love food and one of the things that excites me most is finding a fantastic new restaurant. Now for those of you living in one of the many cultural hubs of America this may not sound like a "Christmas in July Moment" to you. I however live in a town in southern Maine with a minimum of culture. There are 2 restuarants that could be classified as "good". Tonight however, I discovered somewhere new! It was a bistro about 10 minutes away from my house in the next (even more rural) town over from where I live. I walked in with a friend expecting a family style restuarant with mediocre food. Not what I got....walked in and the place was wonderfully decorated with hard wood, many modern features, and get this....tablecloths!!! We were greeted immediately by the host who even pulled our chairs out when seating us....gasp! S0 we open the menu and.....not a hamburger in sight! So after pouring over the extensive cocktail and wine list we ordered wildflower sangria (as recommended by our charming waiter)...devine! Then we got an order of PEI mussels with chorizo and fennel finished with cream and served with crusty french bread....ooohhhh my gosh. We decided to forgo an entree during this visit as we simply weren't very hungry and got another appetizer instead. This time we ordered potato skins. What arrived at our table was not your ubiquitous pub fare however. Huge potatoes with high quality cheese, caramelized onions, and thick applewood bacon. By the standards in my area of the world I was in culinary heaven. Needless to say the entire experience made for a great and completely unexpected end to a run-of-the-mill Thursday.

Kids

So as a woman in her late 20s society expects me to want to have a baby in the not to distant future. Now I work with kids, love working with kids in fact, however I at this time do not believe myself capable of being a mother. Case in point, today I went to the new Super Wal-Mart in my town with my friend and her 5 and 2 year old children. Even though I have been out with them multiple times before, this trip was a particularly eye opening experience. First we stopped at the Dunkin Donuts to properly caffeinate and of course, the kids needed donuts. So they sat in the carriage side-by-side eating their donuts quietly for approximately 10 minutes. Then began the whining and screeching of the 2 year old. He didn't want his donut...took it away. He wanted his shoes off.....we took them off. Didn't want his sister sitting next to him...too bad for him. His sister didn't want him to touch her....we told him to stop (ha). His sister wanted to know why there were so many types of deodorant....I told her I didn't know (simply not acceptable!) And thus it went throughout the hour long trip. Now, this isn't to say that they are not the most adorable, well behaved and engaging children in the whole world...the definitely are. But they are still kids. The moral of the story is I am simply not ready to be a mother because I would be unable to survive trips to Wal-mart which is just not OK. So there societal norms.

How to start.....

So as I sit here as an "adult" in her late 20s watching "America's Got Talent" and drinking a glass of red wine; I began thinking that it would be helpful to just put some things out into cyber space. Maybe it will make me realize that my, albeit minimal, trials and tribulations are also being experienced by others. I pretty much want to use this blog as an outlet for all the things I am keeping in, just to see if I feel more empowered by putting it all out there. So thats my goal.....