#autumnlife

October has flown by! I don't know where the days have gone honestly. I cant believe next week we will start November, then December and another year will be done. Not too many super exciting things happening lately, but I have been doing a few things to keep busy/amused. Lets start out with a few recipes I have made in the last few weeks which I loved so much I want to share:

Butternut Sqush Risotto: This was a great fall dish! I really really enjoyed it and so did my friend Allie when she made it last week by my recommendation. If you cant find pancetta, use prosciutto and cut the amount of salt used in the recipe because prosciutto is saltier then pancetta. I also did not use a dutch over, just did everything on the stove and it came out fine.

Broiled Salmon with Peppercorn Lime Rub: This was quick, easy, and really healthy. I didn't have cracked peppercorns, so i put some whole peppercorns in a little zip lock baggie and crushed them with a rolling pin. The peppercorn/lime combination really cut down on the fishy taste of the salmon.

Butternut Squash Lasagna: Another great fall dish and a modern twist on a classic recipe. Joe and I really enjoyed this one over and over because it made so much! It would be great for a dinner party, or if you have a busy week ahead and do not want to think about cooking a bunch of different meals.

Broiled Tilapia Parmesan: This was a recipe I found when I was googling easy tilapia recipes. Don't be fooled by the weird combinations that make up the sauce, once you put it in the broiler it turns into a delicious cheesy cream sauce that is light and flavorful!

The past few weekends have been fun. The second weekend in October we went to the Phillies Divisional playoff game. It was a fun night, but a disappointing loss for the Phils that ended baseball season.

The following weekend, Joe and I were hanging out in NJ at his place and he decided to take me out to Union Trust Steakhouse for a nice dinner. Union Trust was a restaurant I had tried during restaurant week in September with Brendan and had told Joe it was one of the best steaks I had ever eaten. So, when he received an applause award bonus from his job, he was excited to try Union Trust completely on their dime. We had a great dinner and a nice night out. On Saturday my old roommate, Laura, came into town for a conference, and to visit. We had a nice night out to dinner and met Sara out for a drink at the bar. It was nice to have the old roommates back together once again!

This weekend Joe and I went to his parents house at the shore. It was a beautiful fall weekend and we had a nice time hanging out with them. We arrived late Friday night and just hung out and relaxed. On Saturday, we went out for sushi with his parents and then to Atlantic City to gamble/people watch. I ended up winning $275 bucks which made me super happy! I decided to be super un-fun, and put that money towards some bills.. wooohoo free electric this month! On Sunday, we went to Ocean City, NJ and walked the boardwalk. It was a beautiful fall day and great to be outside. Here are some pictures I took of the ocean.

  

Wishing you a joyous fall season & Happy Halloween! xoxo

Connecting the Dots

Until yesterday, to me the founder of Apple was merely the name behind anything starting with 'i', from ipod, to ipad, to iphone. However, upon his death I started reading about him, and his life story. The truth is, he was a brilliant man who was years ahead of his time, obviously we all know this. But what I wasn't aware of was the unique path he took to become successful and the many inspirational words he said as he navigated personal struggles such as being fired from Apple and having cancer.  At a Stamford commencement speech he said the following:
You can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something – your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. Because believing that the dots will connect down the road will give you the confidence to follow your heart even when it leads you off the well worn path; and that will make all the difference.

“Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma – which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of other’s opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.”

These two quotes especially hit home for me because I spend a lot of time trying to rationalise with myself that the path I've chosen is the 'right' one. I often doubt myself based on what others have chose... the choices that are painfully obvious thanks to social media. Jobs was right though, I think the key is that you do have to follow your inner voice and don't let it be muddied by what is around you. Follow your path and hope that some day the dots end up connecting you to the place that you wanted to be. Although it is sometimes hard to see how life will end up in the future, amidst the everyday struggle, when you look back you can see the obvious path that led you to where you are today.

As for me, my hate for the end of high school led me to choose a school far away. Looking at a map, I happened upon UDEL because it was exactly 6 hours from my front door and a comfortable days drive. Choosing to be an Accounting major at UD, a very good business school, got me the internship at Deloitte in Philadelphia, which ultimately landed me a permanent position upon graduation. My move to Philadelphia brought Sara into my life and made Philly my permanent home. Without Steve meeting Sara, I wouldn't have met Joe. Without meeting Joe, I would have never bought a house. When I was looking for a new place to live in Philly during the recession, I was going to rent again, but Joe convinced me to buy so I  can thank him for Chez Terrace. And so, my life is firmly planted in Philly, a place I never really planned to be, but ended up through a connection of dots.  

I dont know what will happen in the future, but I know that so far listening to my gut has never failed me. Now that I've accomplished all that, I sit here waiting to see what the next major dot is that will shape my life.... in 86 days, I will let you know...