Mask Pick Up Lines

From the looks of things, masks might be around for a little while longer.  Who would have thought that we would be wearing masks everywhere?  And yet here we are, almost one year later, wearing plain or colorful masks over our face.

Wearing a mask and trying to flirt must be difficult.  I thought I would try to help out all of the single people out there.  I mean, it must be tough to find a date when you have to keep a six foot distance from people.  And trying to talk to people with a mask on isn't as easy as it sounds.  When you finally do get within that six foot range, how do you strike up a conversation?

If you are single and in the dating scene, I came up with a list of pick up lines that might help you break the ice.  Now, I haven't tried out any of these lines so I can not guarantee that they will work.  If you do try any of the lines and they work, let me know!

Let's get started:

"I saw you from across the room in that sexy mask and had to come over and say hello."

"That mask shows off your sexy nose cleavage."

"What are you hiding behind that lovely mask of yours?"

"Can I peak behind your mask?"

"I'd like to get you alone and slip off that mask."

"Is that your nose in your mask or are you just happy to see me?"

"Lets go someplace where we can slip out of our masks."

"I think your mask is getting thicker."

"Hey baby, I think you left your mask on my nightstand."

"That mask just oozes sexiness."

I think there is quite a variety of lines that you can use on that list.   Try them  out and see which line works best for you.

I really hope these pick up lines help you.  If you can think of any other pick up lines to add to the list, let me know in the comments!

Vegan Diaries - Vegan Brownies

I thought I would try my hand at making some brownies and use up some mint chocolate chips that I had in the freezer.  

OK.  The truth is, the troops here have been begging for some sweets and I wanted to get them off my back  make them happy and use up the mint chips I had on hand.  I did not mention that these were vegan (shh!  Don't tell my family!).  They didn't ask and were quite happy with a nice sweet treat.  

Here's the recipe:

Vegan Brownies

ingredients:

4 TBSP ground flax seed

3/4 cup water

1/2 cup butter, melted (vegan)

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 cup flour

1 cup cocoa powder

1 tsp salt

1 tsp baking powder

1 cup chocolate chips (or mint chips)

directions:

In small bowl, mix flax with cold water.  Let sit for 10 minutes so it can thicken.

Oven 350. 

Line 8x8 pan with parchment paper.

Melt butter. 

In large bowl whisk melted butter and sugars.  Add flax eggs and vanilla until combined.

Add flour and cocoa powder, salt and baking soda.  Stir until just combined. 

Bake for 35 minutes. * 

Remove from oven and let cool in pan for 15 minutes.  Let cook for another 30 minutes before serving.

 

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * 

* brownies will firm up once you let them cool

*if you want more sweetness, adjust to 1 cup sugar and 1 cup brown sugar

You can use chocolate chips instead.  I had the mint chips on hand and thought I would try them.

If you like fudgy brownies, these are for definitely for you.

Enjoy!

My Weird Dog

 It's been awhile since my last weird dog post.  Probably because Curly has been doing some strange things that have almost convinced me that my dog isn't that weird.  

But, this post isn't about Curly, it's about Pippen.

This story starts with RT (of course) and his Costco runs (by the way, the Costco runs could be an entire series).  Today we will just talk about this one incident  Costco run that ended tragically with RT dropping a bottle of mango juice.  The cap flew off the bottle and mango juice spilled on the driveway.  Luckily the bottle was plastic and RT was able to grab the bottle before all of the juice spilled out. (I was wondering why the bottle was in our refrigerator without a cap)

After the incident, every night when RT let the dogs outside before bed, Pippen felt the need to put his mark on the mango juice.  It was bad enough there was no rain to wash the mango juice off the driveway.  Now Pippen had to put his mark there, somehow laying claim to that mango juice.

Eventually the rain (and snow) came and cleaned the driveway and Pippen went back to marking the trees.

Hand Sanitizer

 During this quarantine/pandemic, there has been an increase in the purchase and usage of hand sanitizer.  Due to the concerns of individuals (and lawmakers) about the spread of COVID germs, hand sanitizer has been pretty popular.  In fact, when this whole pandemic started (with the quarantine) hand sanitizer was hard to find because people were hoarding it (along with toilet paper and hand soap).  It really makes me wonder what people were doing prior to this pandemic?  Was hand soap a knick knack or something you have on hand  for show?  Did people wash their hands before all of this hit the fan?

Hand sanitizer has finally made it back on the shelves (I think the market is over saturated).  Stores have hand sanitizing stations where customers can get a glob and rub it into their hands.  We even have some at the registers at work.  Customers can sanitize when they walk into the store, sanitize again at the register and then at the door as they are leaving.  I have witnessed customers enter the store, sanitize their hands three or four times before they enter the store.  I'm not sure if the first two don't count or are just practice runs and the third time is the charm?  This also happens at the register.  I'm beginning to think it has become a nervous habit for some people.  See how many times they can sanitize their hands.  

Again, it really makes me wonder if these people were hand washers before the pandemic. 

Vasilopita Bread - Greek New Year's Bread

 This year I went in search of a new Vasilopita Bread recipe.  I wanted something a little easier.  I also wanted to get a little closer to my Aunt Vi's Vasilopita recipe.  My Aunt Vi made the best Vasilopita.  I know my bread won't be number one, but this recipe definitely takes second place.  Sadly, I don't have my Aunt Vi's recipe, so I took to the internet and found this recipe here.

 

Here's the recipe:

Vasilopita Bread

ingredients:

1 pkg active dry yeast

3/4 cup milk, lukewarm

3 eggs, beaten

1.5 tsp grated orange rind

1/2 cup sugar

4 1/2 cups flour

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp ground masticha

1/2 cup melted butter

1 egg (for glazing)

blanched split almonds or sesame seeds

directions:

Dissolve yeast in 1/4 cup of milk

Add remainder of milk, eggs, orange rind and sugar.

In a warm bowl, add 3 cups flour, salt and spices make a well in the center.

Pour in yeast mixture and stir to blend in flour.  Gradually add warm melted butter.

Mix dough with hands until it comes away from the sides.

Turn dough onto a floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, adding remaining flour as required.

Knead for 10 minutes.

Place ball of dough in bowl that has been greased with butter.

Turn dough over to coat top with butter and cover bowl with a cloth or plastic wrap.

Leave to rise in warm place until doubled.

Punch down and turn onto lightly floured surface.

Knead lightly and shape into a round loaf.

Place onto large greased baking sheet or greased 10" round baking dish

Cover and let rise in warm place until doubled (1.5-2 hours).

Glaze with beaten egg and arrange almonds or sesames onto the bread (pressing lightly).

Bake at 375 for 45 minutes until golden brown and cooked when tested.

If bread browns too quickly, place greased parchment paper on top.

Cool on wire rack

 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

I used the 1/2 cup of sugar and it turned out wonderfully.

I did not add the orange rind and the world did not end.

I used oatmilk instead of milk and the bread turned out great.

I have yet to try it with a flax egg, but I did use vegan butter.

This bread turned out wonderfully.  My family devoured it quickly.  This bread is a sweet bread.  Tastes great plain or with a little butter (regular or vegan).  I did catch a couple of family members eating this bread with dinner.  Of course, my family loves good bread, so, I took this as a compliment.

Let me know if you try making Vasilopita.  I would love to hear how your bread turns out!

Enjoy!

Political Hatred

Every four years there is a Presidential election.  Every four years (most) people vote in the Presidential election.

Sometimes the candidate you voted for wins, while there are years that the candidate you voted for loses.

There are people who are upset or disgruntled because their candidate did not win.  They get into heated discussions with other people (family, friends, etc.).  But, life continues on.

I remember various elections in my lifetime where I was around people not happy with the current president.  

Did they spew out hatred?  No.

Did they say he should die?  No.

Did they say he should be out of office?  Yes.

Did they try to force him out of office?  No.

Did the country cry and complain about it for four years?  No.

The moaning and groaning and crying that has been going on for four years.  The spewing of hate over the President.  The words.  The actions.  It's all being watched and observed.

You might be in public or at home.  Your words and your actions are being watched very closely.  And, no.  It's not the government that is watching you.  It's other people.  Mainly children.  They may be your children or children that happen to be near your public rant.  They might even see your rant on social media.  They see the hate that flows so easily from your mouth.  They see the disgust and anger in your voice and body movements.  And from this, they learn.  They learn hate.  They learn that if they don't get their way, they can complain until they get their preferred result.  They learn disgust.  They learn to express their anger in negative ways.  They learn that it's perfectly acceptable to hate and to publicly show their hate and anger.

It took four years and another election for people to wake up and proclaim that this new president is going to "heal the country through science, hope and love."   That's a pretty tall order for any one person to fulfill.  

Don't get me wrong.  One person can change the world.  But, that one person is you.  Don't rely on someone else to make the changes.   The healing and change has to start with each individual.  You have to decide that you will react with kindness and love.  That you will not spew hatred at others.  And, most importantly, you have to be willing to change.  

Happy New Year!

 Well, we survived 2020!  It's time to look forward to 2021!

I don't know about you, but, I think I will hold off on buying a planner for this year.  

I do know that I will definitely be celebrating by making a big batch of Hoppin' John.  Eating black eyed peas on New Years Day is supposed to bring luck in the new year.  If you are in need of a vegetarian Hoppin' John recipe, click here.  

I also enjoy making a Greek sweet bread called, Vasilopita.  The tradition is as follows.  When the clock strikes midnight, the lights are turned off and then turned on again to mark the end of the old year and the beginning of the new year.  The Vasilopita is cut into slices.  Inside the Vasilopita there is a hidden gold coin.  The custom is, whoever finds the gold coin in their slice of bread will have good luck for the whole year.   Click here for the recipe.  

How do you start of your New Year?  

Do you do anything special?