Hello to New Readers!

I know I have a few new readers to blog so I thought I would add a little better intro. Here we go...

1. I'm 30, and I think it is an awesome number. It has been a really great year thus far. I hope it keeps going. Picture to come of my awesome birthday brunch! I just can't remember where my friends' pictures are posted online.

2. I'm pretty crunchy. Honestly, I'm really crunchy. I recycle like it is my job, carry my own bags and use them, and avoid power vampires all of the time. Yes, my family and friends know that if I am not using my microwave or lights, they are unplugged. My farmers are my friends, and I love buying local.  I try to live a smaller footprint.

3. I love to cook, and you could probably consider me a foodie. Best gift from my mom...teaching my brothers and I how to cook. I inherited her crazy cookbook collection, and I read them for fun. Just to get ideas! My love of cooking has definitely connected with my love of all things local and sustainable. I gave up store bought bread this fall and cook nearly all of my meals. I am even known at work for bringing my own lunch almost all of the time. A little sample of my craziness from this past weekend:

In this picture, you will see the following homemade items: 1) loaf of wheat bread, 2) hummus made with reconstituted chickpeas, 3) lentils from dry that are ready for soup, 4) lentil cooking water to use as soup broth, 5) flour waiting to be turned into pumpkin lavender bread, 6) leftover from-scratch pie from Thanksgivings, and 7) tin of cookies from my friend Julia's Cookie Day.

It is not always this crazy, but pretty close.

5. I live in two places each year: 1) NC during the school year and 2) the Best Place Ever (aka my summer camp in a different state.) Sometimes, I laugh when I really think about this, but I love my crazy life in two places. Add in the Great Lakes tour while growing up, undergrad, work, and grad school...I'm a girl on the move. It has given me so many opportunities to see different parts of the country and build amazing relationships with friends all over. I feel so blessed and lucky!

I think this is it for today, and I should probably get back to work!

Thanksgiving aka Friendsgiving aka...

a lot of other random names that were dreamed up at the table in between tons of laughter and tons of food. Just as it should be!

With Christmas just a few weeks away, I stay in NC for Thanksgiving. Don't worry...I head home for about two weeks at Christmas so there is plenty of family time.

Two years ago, my friend/sorority sister Carrie and I hosted Friendgiving for 8-10 people. Quite the undertaking! While I had helped with Thanksgiving while growing up (including cooking my epic first turkey at 15 years old), neither Carrie and I had never been the primary hosts. It was fun and full of warm fuzzies but exhausting!

Last year, I ventured to New Bern, NC with my friend/sorority sister Julia. I had never been to eastern NC so it was quite an adventure. We saw a recently killed black bear, ate my first fried turkey, and then toured around the colonial capital of NC.

                 Reproduction of Tryon Palace, built by the last colonial Lord Governor of North Carolina

      New Bern is named after Bern, Switzerland. Bears are the symbol of Bern and also roam around NC.

                                                A dugout canoe? Of course, I have to get in!

This year, Carrie and I again reprised Friendsgiving. It ended up only being four of us, but it was a fantastic, relaxing, not stressful day at all. We learned our lesson two years ago...start prepping earlier. I made my pie, thawed the chicken, prepped the green beans, and made the squash on Wednesday night and Thursday morning. One of the benefits of a friend who is also a professional photographer...a blog full of great photos. You can learn more about Friendsgiving 2011 here.

I'll update on the yarn wreaths later!

Fall Decor

I am not the most skilled when it comes to decorating my apartment, but this fall I was stung by the crafting bug. I think it is part inspiration from super crafty friends and part wanting a cozier apartment befitting a 30 year old.

Prior to this fall, this was my only Fall/Halloween decor:

 I always put small pumpkins or the funny looking little gourds in my trifle bowl.

This year, I added a few touches...

Only $4.75 at Kohl's After Thanksgiving sale last year!

While cleaning out a cabinet, I found 4 yellow candles. I did not need all of my glass jars for food storage so a coffee table centerpiece was born. I knew I needed something else, but I did not like any of the fall garland at the craft stores. While visiting Texas earlier in November, I found these cute little garland/candle rings. Love them!

And, finally...

My wreath. I'm going to try and get a better picture. It is black tulle with orange sparkly ribbon. It needs something (sparkly ghost, BOO!, etc.) but I have not found it yet. Maybe I'll find something at the after Thanksgiving sales, or I'll have to make something.

I'm not Martha Stewart, but I'm certainly giving it a try. The fun is the best part, right?

I Didn't Open These Credit Cards?!?!?!?!

It's time for a little PSA...

When was the last time you checked your credit report? I am sure for my friends who have recently bought houses or cars, it was not too long ago, but what about everyone else?

For me, the answer is Wednesday morning.

Tuesday night, I figured out that someone compromised my identity and opened five credit cards in the NY/NJ area. We know that it was with a fake driver's license and credit card with my address and birth date, but otherwise incorrect information. A police report, 7 phone calls to the credit reporting agencies and credit cards issued, and two hours of my morning...I am on my way to restoring my kicka** credit score. 

They said that there are so many possible places where identity information can leak due to the technology that it is hard to track. You can still do all of the right things and have this happen. The moral of the story is to do our best to protect your information and be alert. 

My biggest fear was that the companies would not believe me leading to a showdown. Fortunately, it was pretty clear from the method used that I was a credible fraud case. I really appreciated how the fraud office staff were helpful in sharing info about the situation and walking me through the paperwork that I will need to complete. They connected me right on the phone to the credit bureaus to get things confirmed and all free fraud protections set up right away.

Here are some tips, especially with the holidays:

1. Open all of your mail - Even if it looks like it is just a credit card offer...open it. Because I open my mail to recycle envelopes and shred everything, I was able to figure this out pretty quickly. I received a bunch of credit cards in the last week and two bills on Tuesday.

2. Check your credit report - Everyone is now entitled to one free report per year from each of the three companies. This does not count against your score! Here is where you can find the info...https://www.annualcreditreport.com/cra/index.jsp (Barbara at Citi will be so happy to know that I have shared this info!)

3. Just keep an eye on everything! Luckily, my personal credit cards and bank are not compromised. I have added fraud alerts and extra verification to my accounts just to be on the safe side. Luckily, my money and my cards are okay at this point. 

4. For more information about protecting yourself, your credit, and your money...http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/microsites/idtheft/index.html

There is a lot of paperwork to track, but I'll get it fixed.  With the holidays around the corner let's keep our money safe!

Information Overload!

I have always wondered if there is a limit to how many usernames and passwords a person can remember. Seriously....emails, bills, finances, info managment systems, Net.flix, etc. 

I have tried to be good...never writing anything down, changing them, making them complicated with letters, numbers, symbols, etc. This weekend...I hit the wall. The signs were out there....I have had trouble all fall with my camp's info system. This weekend, I could not keep it straight, and this morning has been a mess with my email accounts.

Why not combine them? Because I need to keep the work and personal accounts separate. I seriously have to compartmentalize the info to avoid going crazy. I like being able to leave some of it behind!

Have I mentioned that I don't own a smart phone and plan to avoid it as long as possible? Yes, I am an old lady griping about technology. ;)

Seriously? I'm Writing a Blog?!?!

Even as I write this, there is a little voice in my head saying, "I really cannot believe you are writing a blog." I love reading other people's blogs. I would even go so far as to say that I am the Queen of Lurkers. I'll own it.

I think part of this is guilt...I shouldn't read the blogs of other's without having my own. The other is convenience...a great place to post and share. I cook and craft and travel. Now I can easily share the details.

Here's to blogging!