Jimmy Eat World- The Middle

The Road Not Taken

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth.

Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same.

And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I--
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.

Robert Frost, 1915

R.I.P. Caylee Anthony

Hey Everyone,



If you are truly upset by what happened in court with Casey Anthony, channel this energy to a positive.



It is incredibly repulsive how many people have posted how disgusted they are that Casey did not get convicted of murder and how they want to get Caylee Anthony justice.



BE PROUD to know that in our justice system the verdict is not based on emotion or opinion. As it should, verdicts and convictions NEED to be based on FACT, and if you paid attention to the trial, there was absolutely, NO PROOF and NO FACTUAL EVIDENCE to prove without reasonable doubt Casey Anthony committed this crime. You should be happy to know that if you are being TRIED for anything that you won’t be put in jail because someone simply thinks you are guilty of whatever crime or someone is upset & you are the scapegoat for their emotional energy. (That being said, I am not PRO-CASEY ANTHONY, nor do I think she is necessarily NOT GUILTY, but I do believe it is our ethical and moral obligation to base accountability of a crime on fact).



It is hypocritical for any person to complain consistently that they care for the death of Caylee Anthony when they only paid attention to this case because the media glorified and broadcasted the trial religiously for over a month. It is hypocritical to say; well I care because I watch the trial from day one. Had this trial not been advertised and covered by almost every form of media possible, would you had even known or cared? How many cases of child abuse/neglect and/or other children’s death have you read about, caught up on, and followed through until someone was tried in court? How truthful are you being about how much you care about the welfare and justice of children, when you only truly post anything or care because everyone else has jumped on the bandwagon of caring for ONE child vs the thousands of children that are facing similar tragic experiences.



We can create millions of candlelight vigils, host a mob to attack Casey Anthony, complain on facebook and join groups that show just how much you hate Casey Anthony, but let’s face it. We cannot bring Caylee back from the dead, and we can’t retry Casey for the death of her child. It is over. What is NOT over is the children suffering every day without a single media source covering the damage that is happening to them and not a single person caring THAT MUCH to personally involve themselves in ways to change the system. To fight for their rights since they are incapable of speaking up for themselves, and putting them first. Don’t wait until it’s too late to try and make a change for the children who still need YOUR HELP and YOUR VOICE. Read, research, find a way to make a difference, use Facebook as a tool to unite a group to save the children of our country, our world. Fight for the children to save their lives, don’t lazily write posts on facebook that will do nothing positive or make any change.



Think about it.

http://news.yahoo.com/caylees-law-petition-drive-missing-child-laws-change-234203533.html

http://www.socialworkers.org/pressroom/2011/070711.asp

http://www.childwelfare.gov/systemwide/statistics/can.cfm

Grilled Porkchops with Chilled Bean and Tomato Salad

As found in Sandra Lee Semi-Homemade magazine (May/June 2011 Volume 3 Issue 2)

1/3 cup red wine vinegar

• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, divided
• 1 teaspoon ground pepper, divided
• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 (15 oz) cans of cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 cup cherry tomatoes halved
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
• 2 tablespoons minced celery
• 2 tablespoons chopped celery leaves
• 4 (1 inch thick) bone in center-cut pork chops (about 2 1/4 lbs)
• 2 teaspoons dried Italian seasoning

1. In a medium bowl, combine vinegar, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 tsp pepper. Gradually whisk on oil. Add beans, tomatoes, parsley, celery and celery leaves. Cover and chill 1 hour.
2. Heat a grill pan over medium-high heat; coat with nonstick nonflammable cooking spray. Sprinkle both sides of pork chops with remaining teaspoon of salt and remaining 1/2 teaspoon of pepper. Add pork chops to pan; cook for 4 minutes on each side, or until desired degree of doneness, reducing heat to medium if necessary. Sprinkle pork with italian seasoning. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.
3. Stir bean sala. Spoon onto serving platter, and top with pork chops. Garnish with celery leaves, if desired.

Engagement Chicken and "Please a Crowd" Salad

As found in "100 Recipes Every Woman Should Know"

For Chicken

• 1 whole chicken (approximately 4 pounds)

• 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice, plus 3 whole lemons—including 1 sliced for garnish
• 1 tablespoon kosher or coarse sea salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• Fresh herbs for garnish (4 rosemary sprigs, 4 sage sprigs, 8 thyme sprigs, and 1 bunch fl at-leaf parsley)

1. Position an oven rack in the upper third of the oven and preheat the oven to 400°F. Remove the giblets from the chicken, wash the chicken inside and out with cold water, then let the chicken drain, cavity down, in a colander for 2 minutes.

2. Pat the chicken dry with paper towels. Place the chicken breast-side down in a medium roasting pan fi tted with a rack and pour the lemon juice all over the chicken, both inside and out. Season the chicken all over with salt and pepper inside and out.

3. Prick 2 whole lemons three times each in three different places with a fork and place them deep inside the cavity. Chicken cavity size may vary, so if one lemon is partly sticking out, that’s fine. (Tip: If the lemons are stiff, roll them on the countertop with your palm before pricking to get the juices flowing.)

4. Put the chicken in the oven, lower the oven temperature to 350°F, and roast, uncovered, for 15 minutes.

5. Remove the roasting pan from the oven. Using tongs or two wooden spoons, turn the chicken breast- side up. Insert a meat thermometer in the thigh, and return the chicken to the oven and roast for about 1 hour to 1 hour and 15 minutes or until the meat thermometer reads 180°F and the juices run clear when the thigh is pricked with a fork. Continue roasting if necessary. Keep in mind that cooking times in different ovens vary; roasting a chicken at 350°F takes approximately 18-20 minutes per pound, plus an additional 15 minutes.

6. Let the chicken rest for 10 minutes before carving. And here’s the secret: Pour the juices from the roasting pan on top of the

For Salad

• 2 pints red or yellow cherry tomatoes
• olive oil for drizzling
• salt and freshly ground pepper
• leaves from 6 thyme sprigs
• 1 bag washed baby spinach
• 3 Belgian endives, thickly sliced
• 6 ounces blue cheese

Dressing

• 1/2 shallot, finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
• juice of 1 lemon
• 1/3 cup olive oil

1.) Preheat oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit. Spread tomatoes on rimmed baking sheet lined with foil, and drizzle with olive oil. Season with salt and pepper and thyme toss tomatoes gently to coat
2.) Roast the tomatoes for 15 minutes, or until almost bursting. (Check carefully during the last 5 minutes to avoid bursting. If any do burst remove them from the pan with a slotted spoon.) Remove from oven and let cool.
3.) While the tomatoes are roasting, prepare the dressing: in a small bowl, combine the shallot, mustard, and lemon juice, and add a little salt and pepper. Whisk in 1/3 cup olive oil in a slow, steady stream.
4.) In a salad bowl, combine the spinach, endives and roasted tomatoes. Crumble the cheese over the salad and add mustard-lemon dressing. Toss Gently.

NYC FOOD

So this past weekend I went to New York City to visit college roommates with my sister. The food was amazing. The walking of the city was fun. I visited Brooklyn, Manhattan, Bronx. I went to Bushwick, Williamsburg (which I plan on living in when I AM RICH), Union Square, Chinatown, Little Italy, and even Harlem (So sad to not have run into Bill Clinton). It was very excited & tiring, but I will update with some pictures of our eats.

Changing my sleep clock.

I think I have successfully trained my body to want to go to bed around 11pm. Usually I am tired or relaxing by that time and head to bed, which is great compared to my biological sleep clock wanting to go to bed 1-4am. Not cool, which made it so I had to sleep in til the afternoon.

Next step: Getting it so I am used to waking up earlier in the morning. Today I set my alarm for 9am. I am used to getting up around 10, so this change wasn't too drastic and I went to be at midnight so I got 9 hours of sleep. I would like to train my body to get up at 7 am. So a couple weeks at 9am. A couple weeks at 8am, and then up at 7am. Especially for the summer, so I can enjoy as much time outside as possible.

Let's see if it works!!