Kitchen and Food Updates

#44 - Research and acquire a combination blender/food processor (Completed) - Bought a KitchenAid Stand Mixer instead!
#45 - Research and acquire a working immersion blender (Canceled) - Turns out my works! Thought it was broken.
#48 - Try 24 new recipes and blog about them (14/24) - Been cooking, but only posted 3 recipes since the last update.
#55 - Go to 5 new-to-me non-chain restaurants (5/5).  Went to Luna (mexican near us) for my birthday, went to Bella Italia with a doubletakedeal coupon.  Probably went a few other places as well.  This one's done.
#56 - Do pick-your-own fruit (Completed).  Did this through my Strite's CSA. Yummy apples!

Money & Finance updates

#33 - Invest $5k into my Roth IRA ever year until I turn 30.(2/4) - Put in my 2011 investment today.
#36 - Make a spreadsheet with 2 months worth of receipts to create a loose budget (Completed).
#37 - Change over to a zero-balance budgeting mentality (Completed).
#41 - Finish consolidating half.com books (Completed).

Home and Hershey updates

Making a bulk update due to the fact that even though I haven't touched this blog in ages, things have still been accomplished!  I was waiting to have pictures, but that obviously isn't happening, so just checking things off at this point.

#23 - Re-pot my pearl plant and get it a trellis (in progress) - got a trellis!  Just need a pot large enough now.
#24 - Utilize the storage space in the couch (completed)
#25 - Re-arrange living room furniture to better accommodate new computer (completed)

#14 - Participate in the Hershey Library Summer Reading Program 3 times (2/3)

I participated in the Hershey Public Library's Adult Summer Reading program the summer of 2011.  Yes, I am only posting about it now.  Lame! 

My prize from the reading program.  Haven't read it yet, though.

Here's the list of books I read (and totally haven't blogged about):
Heaven is for Real (by Todd Burpo)
Crazy Salad: Some Things About Women (by Nora Ephron)
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (by J.K. Rowling)
A Thousand Country Roads (by Robert James Walker)
Anansi Boys (by Neil Gaiman)
Gentlemen of the Road - Audio Book (by Michael Chabon)
Dirk Gently's  The Long Dark Tea-Time of the Soul - Audio Book (by Douglas Adams)
One Fifth Avenue - Audio Book (by Candace Bushnell)
Onward: How Starbucks Fought for Its Life without Losing Its Soul (by Howard Schultz)

#48 - Try 24 new recipes and blog about them (11/24)

I've done 4 new recipes that are posted now.

Amazing Apple Muffins

Baked Pumpkin Oatmeal

Luscious Lemon Cheesecake

Rich Double Chocolate Torte

The muffins and the oatmeal were both for church functions and the cheesecake and the torte were for Easter Sunday. The Torte I had made a while back, but never managed to pots it for some reason. It was just as delicious as I remembered.

#66 - Do a complete organization on my gmail account (6500+ emails!)

I have purged my inbox down to about 40-50 items. Obviously this number fluctuates, but I have been keeping it down for the last few months. The last task that needs to be completed before I can call this item finished is to go through all my labeled items and consolidate and purge.

#55 - Go to 5 new-to-me non-chain restaurants (3/5)

Every April, some of the restaurants in Hershey get together for a Restaurant Week event. This usually means some great deals on local fare at the restaurants that will soon be packed with tourists. Mike and I decided to go to The Bears' Den at the Hershey Lodge. The atmosphere is fun and the decor is impressive between the faux rink boards and the section of the wall that looks like the outside of the Hershey Arena. Mike had a Chipotle burger and I had a delicious fish sandwich on ciabatta bread. We ordered from the special restaurant week menu, but there were a ton of moderately-priced items on the full menu as well. Popcorn was provided as a complementary appetizer, so we opted for dessert with our meals instead of more appetizers. The chocolate torte that I had was fabulous and Mike's dessert was delicious as well. All in all, a lovely dinner!

#40 - Develop a low-maintenance, passive-income side-hustle

Well, this item has taken a big hit.  I mentioned last time that my articles on Bukisa were earning between $0.20 - $0.30 a day.  Well, in December, Bukisa changed from having in-house payouts to utilizing Google's Adsense.  Bukisa already used Adsense ads, but now instead of being paid through paypal from Bukisa, our revenue goes directly into our personal Adsense accounts. The Bukisa payout level was $10.  The Adsense payout level is $100!  Also, I am no longer making any residual income on a daily basis (ie, per view income) and am only making per-click income.  At a total of $2.11 so far since December. 

Bummer.

So, I'm not really sure how to improve these earnings.  I'm branching out a bit as I don't want to put all my eggs in one basket, so to say.  So far, I have written a few articles for InfoBarrel which also utilizes Adsense as well as Amazon Associates (the amazon affiliate program).  My articles there have a total of 100 views combined, but I am still working on building my article base.

I've been back-linking using RedGage which also earns a bit of money... only about $0.80 in the last 3 months, but that amount will grow as I add more articles and photos.

I've also started reading a few blogs to get the ideas rolling of other ways to start passive income streams.  A few of the blogs include:
http://www.my4hrworkweek.com/
http://www.murlu.com/
http://www.escapingthe9to5.com/

http://cashcampfire.com/

I hope to continue to learn about passive income and find an inspiration (and motivation) to start a larger project.

#33- Invest $5k into my Roth IRA ever year until I turn 30. (1/4)

Moved $5k over last week for my 2010 contribution.  3 more years and 3 more transfers to go!

#55 - Go to 5 new-to-me non-chain restaurants (2/5)

This weekend, Mike and I went to the new Chinese buffet restaurant that is in the Colonial Commons shopping plaza.  It combines Chinese buffet with hibachi with sushi and comes out a winner (okay, so I didn't have any sushi).  I didn't catch the actual name of the place (it is something convoluted), but the food was delicious. 

We had some of everything but went back for seconds on the cheese wontons (as usual), egg rolls, and lo mein. They have hand-dipped ice cream for dessert which was very good as well (we stayed away from the other strange desserts that were next to the oysters).  Lots of options for kids or those who want a more diverse dinning experience: pizza, fries (including sweet potato), a carving station, and more.

The dining area was nice and drink service was prompt and accurate (Mike's Coke-with-no-ice often trips people up, but his order was correct and refilled correctly as well).  The seating areas are divided up to create less of a cafeteria atmosphere and it is executed well while still making it easy to get to the main buffet area.  They have a koi pond/fountain in the lobby that is very beautiful. 

The prices were normal for dinner ($10/person-ish) and lunch is about $6/person I believe.  They also have take-out which is priced out by the pound. 

This might be my new favorite buffet in the area (my old favorite is actually across the street, equally great food, but much more cramped and slightly run down).

#60 - Update & keep updated our DVD tracker spreadsheet up-to-date

Mike actually suggested that we work on this one.  He typed and I read off the names of the DVDs on our shelf and then he went back through and added info from IMDB.  We now have separate sheets for DVDs and BluRays as well.  So, the first part of this is completed.  The keeping it updated part will probably take some getting used to, but we both have access to the google spreadsheet, so hopefully it won't be that difficult to remember.

The Harry Potter Series

Well, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 1 came out in the theaters a few weeks ago and we went to see it opening weekend.  As is my tradition, I re-read all the books before seeing the movie.  And I did it in less than 2 weeks.  And then I got a migraine.  Oops. 

Every time I re-read this series, I discover new foreshadowing (intentional or not) and a new love for the characters.  I love seeing how the characters grow into their rolls.  I love the way the stories are told.  I still have to make a conscious effort to read every single word instead of skimming through the parts I know like the back of my hand.

I haven't decided if I'm going to re-read the entire series again in 6 months when Part 2 arrives in theaters or if I'll just re-read the 7th book.  Seems like I should give myself more than 2 weeks to read them all if I decide to do that.

#72 - Take a trip to NYC

This is in the works!  We are going to go to the City with my family the week after Christmas.  The plan is to see Times Square, Rockerfeller Center (the tree should still be up!) and more as well as see the Radio City Spectacular Christmas show.  I am so excited!

#79 - Start and maintain a flossing routine (daily)

I have been flossing daily for over 2 months now!  I missed only 1 day because I was feeling very sick (I had a migraine for 2 weeks) and just could not stay awake for another 2 minutes to floss.  I am only finding a speck of blood on occasion (mostly because of digging out popcorn hulls, lovely, right?) and it doesn't hurt at all anymore.  I will check this off entirely after another few months of solid flossing.

#90 - Keep a list of special occasions and gifts given for future reference

I started a spreadsheet for gifts given.  I've also got a column called "Given?" so that I can keep track of gifts purchased (or planned for) in advance.  I'll count this item as completed after I've kept up the spreadsheet for a while.

The Bridges of Madison County

The Bridges of Madison County is not really about bridges or Madison County.  It is the story of two people who have a chance encounter that changes their lives.  It is a moving, emotional, romantic story that is told in a kind of matter-of-fact sort of way that made me think it must have been true.  The story is presented as a true one, and that only helps to lend to the validity of the story.  Whether the exact events transpired, the truth of a true love that is passionate, strong, enduring and serious is there.

Definitely a 5 tissue box book.  Highly recommend it.

Till We Have Faces

I really should have written this right after I finished the book when it was fresh in my mind!  I was excited to read something by C.S. Lewis other than the Chronicles of Narnia.  I knew that it wasn't going to be Narnia, however, I didn't realize how different it would be.  Lewis' writing takes on the voice of the main character who is writing down the story of her life.  The ancient and somewhat primitive culture that is created reminded me of bits and pieces of Narnia, but without the magic. 

The magic doesn't exist because the story is being written from the point of view of someone who has always lived in this world and knows nothing else.  The interesting thing is that the "magic" in Till We Have Faces is that of Gods.  The main character struggles with believing in the Gods of her culture, and in the end is forced to come to a resolute decision about their existence. 

About 3/4 of the way through this book I started to lose interest in the story, but I powered through and really enjoyed the ending.  I think the story does start to lag a bit, but the full impact of the final chapters makes up for it.

#48 - Try 24 new recipes and blog about them (7/24)

I've done 2 new recipes that are posted now.

Kraft Mac and Cheese Pie

Kraft's Taco Bake

Both were very yummy and Mike has requested that they be made again!  I guess I'll be keeping an eye out for sales on mac and cheese.

#79 - Start and maintain a flossing routine (daily)

I found a great resource for printing out a calendar which I now have hanging in the bathroom.  I've been flossing since October 1st!  Okay, so that is just 3 days of flossing so far, but it is going well.  "They" say it takes 30 days of doing something for it to become habit, but that has not worked in the past for me and flossing, so if I have to keep printing out calendars (or maybe figure out how to make one reusable) I will keep doing it!

#75 - Keep my hair maintained (ie, 1/2 trim every 2 months)

This has not been happening so far!  I missed my first hair cut in August, and now I am already a week behind for the 2nd one (which is more like 9 weeks behind for the first one).  I'm hoping to have my first trim in before the end of the month and then I will need to adjust my 2 month reminders.