10 Day You

1. The Perks of Being a Wallflower - Stephen Chbosky.  I can't even tell you the ways I love this book.  It just speaks to me.  They are making a movie, and Emma Watson (aka, Hermione Granger) is playing Sam.  I'm half excited and half scared to see how this turns out.

2. The Book Thief - Markus Zusak.  I just finished this recently and I could not believe how much I enjoyed it.  As I reached the end, I wanted it to keep going. 

3. The Lovely Bones - Alice Sebold.  Some people think it's really dark and weird that I like this book as much as I do.  But I love Ms. Sebold's interpretation of what heaven is. 

4. Harry Potter series - J.K. Rowling.  I wanted to pick one of the books, but I just couldn't.  Each book is so amazing because of it's interaction with the other books.  Each book builds and develops the other books. 

What are your favorite books?

10 Day You

Oh boy, this is gonna be tough.

1. Chicken puttanesca.  Chicken sauteed with olives, capers, and cherry tomatoes.  I love me some salty food, and this dish is just packed with it.  Most recipes call for green olives, but I make mine with kalamata.  It is delicious.  I'd never had it until I randomly came across a recipe for it.  And now I'm hooked.  Usually, I guess, it's served with pasta, but I usually serve mine with brown rice.  Yumm...

2. Pizza.  A good slice of plain or pepperoni pizza is always delicious, but I like being adventurous, too.  Chicken basil pesto?  Definitely.  Chicken bacon ranch?  Absolutely.  Hawaiian?  Bring it.  As long as the crust is thin and somewhat flexible (especially with the plain pies - must fold it in half!), and the sauce (if it's a regular pie) is not too sweet and just a little bit spicy...I'm in.

3. Ravioli alle noci.  Ie, ravioli with walnuts.  O. M. G.  I had this at a tiny little restaurant in Florence, Italy, while there with my sister.  We were hungry one night and started wandering around our neighborhood near the hostel.  We stumbled upon this little restaurant and I ordered this, thinking it sounded interesting.  It was the best meal I've ever had.  No, really.  I wish that we had written down the name of the restaurant, but we didn't.  It's something like Di Pepe.  I have tried to replicate the recipe from memory, but have always failed.  It's close, but no cigar.

4. Creme brulee.  Dudes, this dessert is amazing.  The texture.  The crunch.  The sweetness.  The creaminess.  I die.

5. Steak.  A good, medium rare, perfectly seasoned steak can make me melt.  Our engagement dinner will forever be one of the best meals I've ever had.  Not just because I was basking in the glow of the beautiful diamond Matt had slipped on my finger not 3 hours earlier.  I mean, I realize that I probably could have eaten a grilled cheese sandwich and been happy.  But this dinner.  Oh my God.  We ate at Del Frisco's Double Eagle Steakhouse in Philadelphia.  I got a filet, medium rare.  It was the most perfect steak I've ever eaten in my life.  One of our friends got us a gift certificate for a wedding gift, and I honestly can't believe we haven't been back yet  

*all images from google

Edited to Add: I thought I'd try to search again for that restaurant in Florence, and wouldn't you know?  I found it!  It is called da Pepe!  Holy crap, I'm so happy I found it!  If you are ever in Florence, you must - MUST! - go to this restuarant!!

10 Day You

1. Sydney, Australia - Hands down, my favorite place on the planet.  Beautiful city, friendly people, yummy food.  I went there once when I was 16, with People to People student ambassador program.  32 students, 4 chaperones.  I went again when I was 20 with my mom and sister.  Both times we started down South and made our way up to East Coast.  Canberra-Sydney-Brisbane-Gold Coast-Cairns, with a camping trip into the Outback on my first trip. 

2.  Paris, France - Lovely, historical, fancy.  Sweet Paris.  My sister and I squeezed so much into our 2 days there and I feel like we could have easily spent 2 weeks.  I definitely want to go back.

3. Charleston, South Carolina - Matt and I went here for a friend's wedding 2 years ago, and I instantly fell in love.  I am absolutely determined to retire here one day.  I love old Southern cities, with all their Southern charm and friendliness, and Charleston does not disappoint.  It is chock-full of the typical Southern beauty - old churches, delicious food, gas lamps, pretty parks. 

4. Hershey, Pennsylvania - Chocolatetown, USA.  Home.  I grew up in Hershey and will always be a Hershey girl at heart.  Matt and I will probably end up back there at some point in our lives.  It is a small town but has big-city appeal - an amusement park (Hershey Park), a major concert venue (Hershey Park Stadium and the Giant Center), an AHL hockey team (Hershey Bears), Broadway-style theater (Hershey Theater)...it's got a lot of opportunities!  Plus, it's 3 hours from New York, DC, and Pittsburgh, 2 from Philly, and 1 from Baltimore.  Have I sold you yet?

5.  Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania - I went to grad school here, and it's where I really felt my life had started.  I moved there on my own, knowing not a soul there.  I made friends, found a job, got a degree...I built an actual life.  It broke my heart to leave it.  I wish I got back there more often than I do, but every time I set foot in that city, it feels right.  Also?  Go Steelers!

6.  Madrid, Spain - May 2004, I went on a little trip through Europe.  I flew to London and spent time in London and Dublin by myself.  I took the Chunnel Train to Paris, where my sister flew in to meet me.  We spent two weeks traveling around France and Italy, then headed to Barcelona.  I instantly loved Barcelona.  It has such a wonderful, pulsating energy.  And then I got robbed.  I was pickpocketed on the train and lost my credit cards, 300 euro, and my passport.  Gone.  I felt destroyed.  We had planned to go to Madrid, anyway, and we had to to get to the American Embassy.  And Madrid saved me.  Madrid made me feel safe.  Madrid reminded me that I am strong and I can survive.

*all images from my Pinterest

10 Day You

1.  Panini grill and press.  I've been wanting one for months but have yet to bite the bullet and buy one.  I love paninis and would love to be able to make them at home.

2.  A basement.  We need just one more room for storage and stuff.

3.  My Death Cab for Cutie tickets.  The show is on Friday and I still don't have the tickets.  I have called and emailed the company.  In looking through the forums, it seems that this is a common problem.  I'm nervous!  I'll die if I don't get them.

4.  To lose 8 pounds.  I'm working on it, but it's not happening as quickly as I'd hoped.

5.  Hand-in-hand with #4, I'd like to stop getting injured.  In the past 6 months, I've hurt my back, my left knee, my left ankle, and my wrist.  And now my right knee is hurting.  It slows my workouts down.

6.  Vacation.  I'm in desperate need of a week off from life.  Our anniversary trip to Orlando in October really can't get here fast enough.

7.  For my friends to be happy.

*images from Pinterest

10 Day You

1.  Ferris wheels.  No, I'm not kidding.  I hate ferris wheels.  I have yet to be on one that didn't feel completely unsturdy, and I hate that feeling.  I won't ride them anymore. 

Nope, not even the Eye of London

2.  This is probably obvious, but losing someone close to me.

3.  Our children being bullied.  I know there are a lot of other terrible things that could happen, but bullying seriously terrifies me.  It can cause so much damage.  Lasting damage.  

4.  Sharks.  Which is funny, since I've been snorkeling and seen sharks and didn't really care much.  But probably because it was a reef shark, and they're pretty harmless.  Or maybe because I was on the Great Barrier Reef and nothing could have taken away from that.  But, like, great whites?  Yikes.

5.  Losing our home.  Not, like, we can't pay the mortgage and we have to foreclose.  But physically losing it, like in a fire.

6.  Bats.  If I'm outside and a bat is flyng nearby, I guarantee you, I am freaking. out.  

7.  Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS).  Also known as Lou Gerhig's Disease.  It is just a heartbreaking disease.  I have a deep, deep compassion for our patients with ALS, and the thought of ever receiving that diagnosis is so scary.

8.  The economy crashing.  I know, heavy, right?  But seriously, if the US has to default on its loans, it will be an enormous disaster.  It will be the Great Depression, revisted.  It's a very scary prospect.

*all images from google

10 Day You

Nine loves.

1. This weekend.  I loved this weekend.  It started Thursday night, with the U2 concert, and is still going strong today.  More details (and pictures!) to come.  Stay tuned...

2.  Harry Potter.  Saw the final movie on Friday.  Cried through a large chunk of it.  An absolutely perfect ending.

3.  Lazy Sundays.  With the exception of running a couple errands, I intend to be fairly lazy today. 

4.  Buffalo chicken pizza.  The boys made some for a late-night snack on Friday.  My sister and I enjoyed it for breakfast.

5.  Dive bars.  Friday night, we were in the city, and a friend took us to this little dive bar in South Philly called Bob and Barbara.  They have a think called the Working Man's special - a shot of Jim Beam and a PBR for $3.  Not exactly delicious, but crazy cheap.  And in Center City, that's nearly impossible to come by.

6.  Big outdoor concerts.  I hadn't been to a big outdoor show in years before Thursday night.  I'd almost forgotten how much I love them.  There's nothing quite like being outside, with 50K people, singing along to your favorite song.

7.  Homemade egg sandwiches.  We made them for breakfast Friday morning.  Yummo.

8.  Trying new restaurants.  Friday evening we headed into the city and I got to eat at a restaurant I've been wanting to try - Ladder 15.  I had a delicious proscuitto and fig jam flatbread pizza.  Which leads me to...

9.  Proscuitto.  This stuff is seriously amazing.  If there is something on the menu that has proscuitto, chances are, I'm going to order it.  Yummy, delicious, salty goodness.

Happy Sunday, guys!