You guys.

This is serious.

WHEN DID IT GET TO BE ALMOST MAY?

I hate to yell, but seriously, where is this year going? I think I blinked and 3 months had passed.  And now it’s already almost May??

What the hell time, why ya gotta be rushin things so much?

I mean, look, there’s a lot of really exciting stuff going on this summer that I’ll be thrilled to have happen–anniversaries and trips and meetups with blog friends and more. And of course, summer itself is my favorite time, filled with long evenings, weekends at the beach, and the general relaxing feeling that tends to come from warm weather, lots of light, and days with the windows open and breeze blowing. So it’s not like I’m dreading it or anything.

But still. Time. SLOW THE HELL DOWN.

This past Saturday, at around 11pm, I started Game of Thrones.

In retrospect, that may have been a mistake.

Ok, I just downloaded a four book bundle of the Game of Thrones series. Here’s hoping it lives up to the hype.

— rambleginger (@rambleginger) February 12, 2012

Actually, it wasn’t just Game of Thrones. It was an ebook from my library of the first four books in the series. Which means I have 21 days to read all 3500 pages of the four books–my library doesn’t allow renewals of ebooks, and if I have to go to the back of the line for any of the books in the series, I’ll be somewhere around person 89 in line. So, yeah, it’s read them all, or don’t finish the series anytime soon. Which we just can’t have–once you start a series, you must read every book available in that series. Duh.

In a life B.K. (before kid, of course), that wouldn’t have been a problem at all–I’ve always been a really fast reader and can immerse myself in a book for hours given the chance. But A.K., reading is harder. I find it comes in fits and spurts, and with everything else going on in my life, I rarely have/find/make the time to sit down for hours and hours and read.

But these books have me spellbound, and I don’t want to do ANYTHING but read them. I am ADDICTED to them, in a way I probably haven’t been since the Harry Potter books. Even the Hunger Games books, which I adored didn’t have me THIS addicted (maybe because they were so much shorter?). I have stayed up until 1, 2, 3 every night this week but one to read. I’ve read on my lunch break. I’ve read instead of blogging, or reading blogs, or watching tv, or cleaning the house, or doing ANYTHING besides taking care of my kid (and my job, duh. But don’t think I haven’t been tempted). I’m 1300 pages into my 3500 pages, and I can’t wait to get to the next page.

And despite the fact that I’m exhausted and my to-do list is piling up, I’ll be honest, it feels amazing. I’ve missed this level of involvement in a book. I’ve been reading more the past year or so, and reading really good books too, but this addiction is something I haven’t felt in a really long time. And I’ve missed it. It’s like coming back home after a long vacation away.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, a book is calling to me.

This is how I spent Sunday. Granted, we avoided putting up holiday decorations because it didn’t feel right, but still.

Don’t hate me too much.

I don’t really like beer that much.

I never really drank beer in college, or after. Except for fruity lambics, me and beer just didn’t get along. Finally a few years ago I got to where I enjoy a good Hefeweizen, but even now, I’d rather NOT drink than drink most beers (and I’m ok with this. Although living in San Diego, which is so heavy into craft brews, I do sometimes wish I liked beer more.).

However, my usual easy drink of choice is totally a beer. Just…doctored.

A type of a Michelada, a Mexican cerveza preparada, this is my favorite thing to have after a rough day at work (or a nice summer afternoon. or a good bbq. Or, you know, whenever). Now, there are a ton of recipes out there for how to make a Michelada. The typical Michelada is thought to have tomato juice, but my variation I learned on our honeymoon doesn’t have that particular ingredient. That would be a much heavier drink I think, and part of what I like about this is the lightness of it.

I will say, this drink is HEAVY on the sodium, so you know, I probably shouldn’t drink it as often as I do, but hey, my blood pressure isn’t bad yet so it’s still my drink of choice.

Onward to the booze! (please ignore my crappy iPhone pics and kitchen counters. I was in a hurry to ENJOY my beer).

Ingredients:
Corona (or other light Mexican beer. I guess you could use domestic beer, but I wouldn’t)
1-2 Limes
Worcestershire Sauce
Tabasco
Salt (what’s on the plate. My margarita salt container was empty, so this was my solution). 

Instructions:

1. Rim your glass with salt.

2.  Juice your lime(s) into the glass. I like mine REALLY lime-y, so I usually use two limes, but my husband will often just use 1/2 a lime. It’s really up to you. This picture only has one lime, because it’s all I had.

3. Pour Worcestershire in to taste. I usually put about 8-9 glugs. In my opinion, the mix at the bottom should be a dark, rich brown. But again, I like salt like WHOA, so adjust to your tastes accordingly.

4. Add Tabasco to your heat preference. I usually put two dashes, unless I have a cold and then I add 3-4. HA! You can skip the Tabasco if you MUST, but it really adds a nice touch.

5. Add your beer. Be careful, as Corona will completely fizz over if it touches the salt. Pour slow to avoid this if you can.

Voila, the finished piece.

You end up with a salty, savory, beer cocktail with a slight hint of heat. A perfect way to finish a long day.

A couple of weeks ago, I was lucky to be invited to a Moms Night Out with some wonderful local ladies at the Del Mar Races. For those of you who aren’t local, the Del Mar Races are a BIG part of summer in San Diego. There are concerts, family events, opening days, and, yes, hats. I’ve wanted to go to the races since we first moved to San Diego, and this year even put it on my To-Do list. So when the opportunity came to enjoy a ladies night, at the races? Yes, PLEASE!

I had an amazing time. We had amazing seats. The weather was GORGEOUS. We got to go to the paddock. We got a hands on lesson in betting (um, hi, betting on a horse race? WAY more intimidating than I was expecting! There’s so many variables!). We had drinks. We ate. We had a great time.

Thank you San Diego MOMfia and Del Mar Racing for helping me check something else off my 2011 To-Do list, and for such a great time doing it!