Just a little pericarditis...

Sporting a Holter Monitor

As I sit here on the couch feeling like an 80 year old I decided why not write about it. I'm hoping a lesson will be learned. It all started last about a week and a half ago with some heart palpitations. Now being that I work in the medical field and that I'm relatively young I brushed it off as stress or lack of sleep. Until it happened again the next day. This is when I told my hubby and as I suspected he says, "You should go have that check out." You see my immune system probably isn't the best around so its kind of a running joke that you might as well put a bullseye on my forehead cause if you got it I'm going to get it. But again I just brushed it off as stress or fatigue. The thought of a twenty something having something seriously wrong with her heart made me laugh. I should have known karma would come to get me the minute I semi-snorted. Then a few days later at work it happened. The dreaded chest pain along with the palpitations, ridiculously high pulse and high blood pressure. This landed me a one way ticket to the ER. Where they did all sorts of tests and dosed me up on pain meds in order to perform the tests. As I was sitting there (as laying down was just unbearable) I thought to myself you idiot first rule is never ignore chest pain! And then it hit me what if I really was having a heart attack? It sure felt like one!  My Grey's Anatomy look-a-like doctor, I swear he was the spitting image of Dr. Owen Hunt, assured me it wasn't a heart attack but that he needed to run some more tests just to make sure. So as we sat there waiting for the verdict all I could think of was geez I really do need that bullseye. I ended up having pericarditis which is a swelling of the sac that lines the heart. This landed me a one way ticket to rest for two weeks and the lovely fashion piece you see in the picture. One week of couch surfing down and another to go I'm grateful I wasn't having a heart attack and that the monitoring is over. I decided to share my story because I don't want other people ignoring their symptoms because they think nothing is wrong. It's always better to be safe than sorry. I count myself lucky that I did go get checked out and that what I have was caught in time to heal with rest, meds, and time.

Train rides and a little game spinning gone bad

You know being a native southerner I have never really used public transit before. If you needed to go somewhere you hopped your in the car. But now if I want to go anywhere it's a train, cab or walk for me. At first I was petrified! Riding in the car to work was my "me time" my zen moment. I was in fear that I would never have that again. Yet strangely enough I find that riding the train is kind of calming (mind you I say the train not the subway). It gives me time to enjoy the scenery and reflect on life (if I'm sitting facing the right direction), but mostly it indulges my guilty pleasure. What is that you might ask? Well people watching of course (insert evil laugh). This disclosure gives me the urge to share one of my people watching experiences. It's was a Friday night and I was on my way to meet the hubby in the city for dinner with some friends. As I board the train I realize every car is full except for, and to my surprise, I find an empty four seat pod. Little did I realize it was empty for a reason. There was a group of four guys who obviously were enjoying Friday night a little too much and trying to hit on a group of three teenage girls seated diagonally from me (perfect people watching position). The only one of the guys to have the guts to strike up a convo with the girls appeared to be a DJ Pauly Jersey Shore wanna be. Except for, might I add, DJ Pauly dresses slightly better. As I listened to this sinking ship I couldn't help but fear for future women everywhere. I mean is this the kind of men the world is creating? He opened with "hey dolls my name is Mcnasty." I mean seriously what kind of name is that. So to myself I think "dude get a new nickname and you could have used your real name." Then he uttered what I suppose was his hook line and sinker ... "so what's your sign? I'm an Aquarius." I wanted to stop him right there in defense of Aquarians everywhere (I'm a pieces, but I know a pretty amazing aquarius)! But I contained myself. I mean he was in his mid-twenties being a gangsta wanna be with his underwear flashing trying to pick up what looked like barely legal very nicely dressed and mannered young ladies. Of course they giggled and paid him attention, but I wanted to stop them all right there and give them a little bit of advice. Don't worry I didn't interrupt McNasty's game spinning, however I will state my advice here. 1) Get a new nickname or here's a thought how bout using your real name. 2) Dude you are old enough to know better. Grow up. 3) Barely-legal Ladies and McNasty let me tell you how this ends. Girls may date the bad boys heck they might even develop feelings for them but the bad boys never win. You want to know who wins the guy that calls you to see if you made it home safely. The one who gives you his real name and doesn't flash you his underwear as a fashion statement. The one who wins is the one you can call your best friend. I don't envy those who are still dating to be honest I think it's much more fun to spend every day with your best friend. And as I was staring at this desperate attempt for a hook up I was pleasantly reminded that I married my best friend and I will never have to endure a scene like this myself again. But that doesn't keep me from watching for entertainment ;-)

Chicken, Chorizo, and Super Bowl Sunday

So ... this post should have been made a long time ago but for some reason I never got around to it. But now that I'm confined to the couch I figured why not update my blog. So this is my belated post for Super Bowl Sunday (Which by the way ended just the way I wanted it to with a Giants win and happy tummies). It all started with Super Bowl Sunday the hubster not wanting pizza and wings the usual spread to celebrate the culmination of football season. That's when I decided I needed to use up the chorizo I had been clinging to. Which let me just say my love for chorizo dates back to my childhood when we would vacation in Spain and fresh chorizo was in abundance along with freshly baked bread and the Spanish afternoon air. So I resorted to perusing Pinterest. I eventually ran across a picture of chicken and chorizo. Which lit a light bulb because 1. I had chicken thighs and 2. I had chorizo. Though my picture isn't as high quality I like to think my chicken was just as good as this bloggers because it was delish and I got no complaints from my customer! The only change I made was that I added more orange zest than the recipe called for and I seasoned my chicken with salt and pepper. When I placed this meal infront of the hubby he said, "It looks like a restaurant plate." My mission was accomplished! I managed to get him excited even though the 49ers were not playing on the television. Then we quickly realized how amazingly tasty it was. Score for me and the Giants! Here's the link to the recipe
http://pickyin.blogspot.com/2011/07/spanish-chicken-with-chorizo-and.html
If you choose to make this follow the blogger's advice the better the quality of the chorizo the better the dish! Buen Provecho!

Intro to my life

So today is the day I write my first blog post. And it just so happens it’s also suppose to snow today. Which means I will be in one of those rare moods where I am in awe of natures beauty but also just plain mad that its frigid outside and pouting that I no longer live in the South. That’s right I am a Northern poser. One transplanted here because of love. I gave up the glory that is the south to follow my husband to the hustle and bustle of the city in search of a better more financially stable life aka the “American Dream.” So far that dream has turned out to be lack luster as my love affair with all that is southern charm will never be over. But I must say that my love for my hubby is stronger so I try to see the bright side of what people deem the greatest city in the world. My opinion so far the food is amazing (as I hoped it would be), Fashion is everywhere (which I LOVE) and the people … well let’s just say they take some getting used to. So if you would like to read about the experiences of someone who has a somewhat sarcastic yet optimistic view on life I’m your girl.