Decade in Review

Apparently, a lame blog year in review is not enough...seeing that I have now been reminded by countless "Decade in Review" stories on TV and the internet that we are closing out a decade.  Is it the 0s?  How do you say that...the "ohs"?  Or the two thousands?  Are we going to the tens?  Anyway, here is my very brief Decade in Review.  Too bad I don't have a picture to post from each year...that would be great!  But would have required a scanner and me remembering before today that we are closing out a decade.  Oh well.  Maybe next decade...

2000:  Y2k happens.  Or doesn't happen...depending on whether you thought the world would end or not.  I spend 2.5 months of the summer in Mexico with Campus Outreach.  Don't want to leave, but must finish college.

2001: I graduate from college, barely squeaking out a Cum Laude honor.  By .01 of a grade point.  I go 6 months without a real job.  September 11th occurs, further dashing my hopes of a real job.  In November, I begin what turns out to be a dead-end-for-me job at a bank.

2002: Turns out to be the hardest year of my life so far that I have learned the most from.  Heart gets broken by a boy, job is slow and not challenging, I am bored.  Life in the "real world" outside of college is hard.  Come to know God more for it, but somehow become bitter, too.

2003:  I discover that I need both athletic and musical outlets in my life, even though I am out of college.  Join a chorus and train for a half marathon.  Two decisions that have made huge differences in my life, even today.

2004:  Heart is broken again, but this time I leave dead-end depressing job at bank and SC (my home for 25 years)...and move my life to Annapolis, MD.  Best decision yet!

2005:  I am a little bit lonely, but am slowly making friends and adjusting to life in Maryland.

2006:  I go on last minute Bulgarian Carmina Burana tour to Florida with the chorale.  Make what I feel sure will (even today) be lifelong friends.  Spend too much money going out to eat and drink with said friends.  Move into Home for Wayward Chorus Girls to save money.  Another great decision.

2007: Run first marathon.  Get new, more likable, better paying, shorter commute job.

2008: Make off-the-cuff decision to sing in the chorus with operetta company in Baltimore.  Meet J.  Start dating J.

2009:  I turn 30 and buy my first diamonds, a pair of earrings.  Spend birthday in New York City.  Fall in love with J.  Train for Goofy Challenge.  Go to the opera a lot.

So that's it!  My Decade in Review...boy has my life changed!  Not quite as drastically as my friends who now are married with 3 or 4 kids, but I am in a different geographic location!  That should count for something.

Happy New Year, everyone!

Riding in the Motor Car...

My Dad has always loved trains, ever since he was a little boy.  Some years ago, he started volunteering with the SC Railroad Museum where they have real trains and track and run tourist trains most every weekend.   For his retirement, he bought a "motorcar".  When I first heard "motorcar"...I thought about an old style car from the 30s.  This type of car is a car that can ride on the rails and check track to make sure all is well.  Today, we met some friends of my parents and their kids to ride on the motor car and have a picnic.

My Daddy in front of his Motorcar

The whole fam

Daddy barking orders (just kidding!)

Heading down the track

A little further...

Motorcar driver in action...

After the motorcar ride, we sat down and had a picnic in front of the station.  It was another lovely day, if a bit cool.

Tomorrow, I get back on a plane and go home.  Oh well, it's been a lovely holiday!

The Magic of Cheese Straws

For the past 3 years, part of my Thanksgiving vacation at home has involved what my family and I have dubbed "The Cheese Straw Factory". I wrote about the Southern art of cheese straws a few years ago, in this post. In short, cheese straws are like a flaky cheese biscuit. Yummy, flaky, spicy, cheesy goodness. And they are considered a Southern delicacy...served anytime...but especially at events such as weddings, funerals, showers, etc. I like to give tins of them away as Christmas gifts. This year, the factory opened just like any other year:

With cheese grating.

Even my Daddy had a job in the factory this year.

After grating, the next annoying part is to mix the dough...which can really only be done by hand. It takes quite awhile to incorporate the flour, butter, cheese and other secret ingredients into each other (you didn't think I was actually going to give my recipe away, did you?)

In years past, we've made the cheese straws fancy by pushing the dough through a cookie press. Unfortunately, the cookie press we used last year got worn out. My mom bought a new one...but it was way too big to actually get any dough through. My poor hands would never have made it through 5 batches of squeezing out cheese straws! Instead, we made them the old fashioned way... with our thumbs!

After they get smashed...we added a stylish touch by imprinting the tops with a fork.

I bet you want to see the finished product, huh? Well, I don't happen to have a picture of the finished product yet. However, some of you will be receiving your own lovingly cared for and created tin of cheese straws soon. Enjoy with port, madeira, or just as a yummy snack. Bon Appetit!

Homeland Thanksgiving 2008

Well, I had a very relaxing and typical Thanksgiving. When I got up this morning, my Daddy had coffee ready...as well as ham biscuits and fresh-squeezed orange juice. Since I'm the turkey expert at the house, I spent the morning basting and roasting our turkey. As usual, it was moist and perfect. :)


My Godmother came to join us and brought the McCulloch special...Broccoli Spinach casserole. Yum!


Dinner was delicious, and my Mama set a beautiful table, as always.









Dessert was fantastic, as well. It's her secret recipe for chocolate mousse with my Daddy's yummy chocolate chip cookies.





After eating we sat around and chatted for a bit until all the food settled and we could go for a quick walk around the neighborhood. The high today was about 65...quite a change from last Thursday in Annapolis when I don't think we got above freezing!


Once we got back, the four of us turned the gas logs on in the living room and played a fun round of Scrabble...which eventually led to Round 2 of the food. Magnificat had 4 rounds of turkey...his favorite. All in all, a successful Thanksgiving for everyone!

You Know You're a Southern Belle When...

...you celebrate the 100th anniversary of your sterling silver. Of course, I haven't had it for 100 years, but this set of sterling has an interesting story.

A few years ago, I complained that it wasn't fair that you have to get married to have fine china, sterling, and crystal. My Southern Mama agreed, so she spent 6 months searching antique malls and auctions for affordable fine tableware. So, my Christmas present that year was a set of crystal, 2 sets of fine china, and 4 place settings of sterling. The sterling had an interesting story...my mom bought it for almost nothing at an estate auction of a 100 year old friend of ours from church. It was such a unique pattern, no one seemed to realize it was sterling. The pattern is Cairo, and was inspired by the fact that Egyptology was all the rage at the turn of the century. The motif engraved into the silver is quite Egyptian.

One of the neat things about Ms. Huggins' set is that the knives are engraved with "Thanksgiving '08". Obviously, that is 1908!

Unfortunately, we didn't know to ask Ms. Huggins about the story of the silver before she passed away, but the pattern came out in 1908, so I imagine it was a Thanksgiving gift to her parents. I used the silver at one of the first Thanksgivings I hosted in 2002. Anyway, this was the 100th anniversary of the silver, so of course, we had to use it for this year's Thanksgiving dinner!

Ummm...FAIL!

So, I have officially failed at NaBloPoMo. Oh well. When I missed posting Saturday, I knew it would all be over. Don't worry, I didn't fall off the face of the earth, I've just been zipping up and down highways to and in SC. After a super fun housewarming party that I attended on Saturday evening, I got up Sunday morning and drove the 8 hours to Spartanburg. I stayed with my old roommate, Ashley. Monday, I drove to Greer to spend the day/evening with my college roommate, Rachel and her family. I got the bonus of seeing my dear friend Holly and her son Andrew for a few minutes! Tuesday, I drove to Charleston and visited with my college friend Amy and her 2 sons (one of whom is 3 weeks old). Tuesday evening, I went to dinner and stayed with my high school friend Sallie and her husband. Yikes! It's been a wild few days, and I didn't really want to miss out on "people time" to get on the computer and blog. Now, I'm at my parents' house in Columbia in a content mood since I ran, had a yummy dinner, and my parents are making desserts in the kitchen.

Here are a few highlights from the past few days:

1. Meeting 5 new babies/children (whew!) and getting to see what it's like to have a family (spent the day with Rachel).

2. Having adult time with adult beverages after meeting 5 new babies/children!

3. A tasty French dinner in downtown Chaaaaasssston.

4. Sleeping in (relatively).

5. Having a good audiobook to listen to on my iPod.

6. Good food!

7. Catching up with old friends that I haven't seen in way too long.

8. Not having to tell the same stories about my life over and over again (Thank you to everyone who reads my blog!)

9. Remembering that there are some things I still love about SC.

10. Warmer weather than where I left!

Road Trips

As cranky as I can be when I get home from a roadtrip, I really do enjoy them. There is something very freeing about being alone in the car, on the open road, with an audiobook playing on my iPod. With 6 or more hours in the car to think, I always find I can solve problems, figure out what I think about various issues, and get a healthy perspective on my life.

Thursday evening, I grabbed a Pumpkin Spice Latte from Starbucks (yay, Fall!), and hopped on 301 S to Richmond, and then 95 to 85. Once I got into NC, there was a gorgeous crescent moon, sunset, and lovely blue turning to midnight blue sky. Anytime I drive South, I always feel any tension drain out of my shoulders and my head. While my life in South Carolina was somewhat boring, it was not particularly stressful!

Anyway, I enjoy my roadtrips South, and am looking forward to my next one in November.

Visiting the Homeland

I'm off to South Carolina today for the long weekend. I'll be visiting my parents, attending a family reunion, singing at church, enjoying a dinner party, and seeing an exhibit at the State Museum. While it won't be a "relaxing" weekend, it will be fun, and busy is just what I need right now.

I haven't flown anywhere in about a year, so packing was an interesting project last night! I had to dig out all of my 3oz or smaller liquid containers (3 days is not long enough to go through the hassle of checking a bag), and think about which outfits could do double duty so that all of my stuff would fit into a carryon. I think I was successful...

Well, I plan on having a great Labor Day Weekend, and I hope all of you do, too!

Roots and Wings

"You can have roots and wings, Mel" -Josh Lucas as Jake in Sweet Home Alabama

This quote really resonates with me, especially having been visiting my hometown in SC for the past few days. Roots keep you grounded, and coming back to SC often does that for me. Wings allow you to fly, to have new experiences, to learn new things and see the world.

I love SC. I love being from SC. I'm just not sure if I can ever live here again. As a friend of mine originally from the Mid-Atlantic said in an email the other day, " Here in South Carolina, it seems as though nothing exists outside of SC, maybe because so many people stay here and never leave. In the Mid-Atlantic area, you have D.C., Maryland, Virginia, and are closer to New York, etc. It just seems as though the world is bigger up there." I agree. However, there is still a bit of excitement as I drive over the state line into SC. Suddenly, things slow down. Some of the traffic that I've been fighting all the way from Virginia disappears. I even feel myself relax.

I realized something very important on Christmas Eve. In the past, I've always felt very at home singing in the church I grew up in on Christmas Eve. It felt right and natural. This year, I looked out at faces I've known my whole life. I saw people I went to high school with and had no desire to speak to them. I felt like a guest, not a part of things. The reason? I wanted to be with my friends in Annapolis. I absolutely love spending time with my family, but 90% of me is more at home at my "adopted Episcopal" church in Annapolis (I actually attend a PCA church on a regular basis) than the church where I grew up. I was receiving voicemails and texts from my Annapolis friends and it made me a little homesick. I've never really felt that way before.

Yet, at the same time, being at my parents' house is so comfortable and familiar. I know where everything is, and I can still find my way around Columbia. Being here still feels right- but I think it feels right to the part of me that wants things to be easy. Last night, a thunderstorm came through about midnight and I was lying in bed being quite reflective and loving the sounds of rain in an old house. Something about listening to a thunderstorm in our townhouse is not quite the same. Now, don't get me wrong- the South has fine culture! My family and I had our Christmas dinner at a 5 star restaurant in Summerville, SC. While I know DC has equivalent restaurants, I doubt they have the charm that I experienced yesterday. I also love the people in the South. They are eccentric, odd, lovely, and charming all at the same time.

The next question is whether or not I'll ever come back to the South. It's definitely not one I can answer now. Right now, I can't see myself leaving Annapolis for any reason- especially not to move back to SC "just because". I always wonder if I fall in love with someone in the South, would I move back? I don't know the answer to that one either. I don't think I've really ever been enough in love to drastically change my life. If that right person came along, I think I'd be willing to give up the life I've built in Annapolis...but I can't be sure. I guess it's good that I clearly have plenty of time to think about what I would do in that situation!

All in all, I think you can have roots and wings. Actually, I think you need both to be successful. I also think that somehow, we always come back to our roots in some fashion. So if I'm back in SC 20 years from now I don't think that should surprise anyone....especially me.

A Homeland Thanksgiving

Well now. It's been nice to be back in SC for another Thanksgiving. I'm on 3 years in a row, and each one has been a little bit the same, and a little bit different. My family is good at making and breaking traditions.

Yesterday, we had a typically delicious Thanksgiving meal. I made the turkey (sticking with tradition...I've been the turkey girl since I was in high school). In the early evening, my mom and I began the cheese straw factory. We did the same last year. After 3 hours, I must say that I am very tired of cheese! However, this year we had the process down pat, so it was not as strenuous!

Today, Mama, Daddy and I went to the State Museum to see a few exhibits. I really love going there, but it is a bit spooky because I'm expecting to see the ghost of 8 year old Page around the corner...oh wait. That's just the SC history movie that was made for the museum. I am just around the corner! Seriously, my Dad used to work at the museum, and I spent countless hours there as a child- exploring, playing, and hopefully not getting into trouble. So, I could just see young Page wandering the halls again. It made me smile.

Afterwards, we went to an old mansion down in Lower Richland county. It's called Kensington, and is an absolutely amazing house! We took a tour, and looked around the grounds. I'll post a picture or two tomorrow.

Then, my Dad and I headed out to a trail through the woods along Congaree Creek. It's a beautiful trail, and we got some exercise! I'll post pictures of those tomorrow, too. Currently, Daddy is in the kitchen making cookies. I'd better get in there if I want to get a spoonful of dough before they all get baked...