The Ride Along, Hardees and the Freakout

A long time ago, about 2007, I went into an office for an interview for a job. The job was a marketing company and I thought this would be an excellent entry level position for me. So, I put on my best professional outfit, curled my hair, put on my makeup and put on my heels and went to the interview. I met a charming but very young man at the interview and to my shock he was the hiring manager. We chatted for a while and he said based off just personality he would love to offer me a position. To get the job, however, there was something called a ride along that I needed to get through to be offered formal employment.

The job was marketing in the way of going from company to company and pitching idea's on how they could save money. Or this is what I was told. I came back the next day for the ride along and was on the ride along with 3 men. I wasn't all that comfortable with being out with three men I didn't know without any supervision but I was made to feel comfortable. On the ride along we went to a neighborhood and parked, then got out of the car and persisted to walk around the entire neighborhood knocking on doors and selling coupons to McDonald's and Pizza Hut. The price of the coupon books were decent when compared to the amount of the coupons but I wasn't told about this aspect of the job. I was under the impression from the hiring manager that we would be going from business to business. I didn't know about the neighborhood walking so I didn't dress for the job, I had on velvet and it was 105 degrees outside. I was burning up and had no water or anything on me.

As the day went on I got more and more overheated. I felt very sick but I still tried to fight through and continue on the ride along. I was told that at any point I could say that I wanted to stop if I didn't think the job would work for me. After 4 1/2 hours of walking around neighborhood after neighborhood and getting cramped and borderline feeling like I was going to pass out I finally said I was going to not accept the job and I chose to want to go back to the office to go home. The driver of the car understood and was more than happy to take me back to the company. One of the other guys we were riding with was very mad that I didn't want the job and stated that I was taking money out of his kids mouth because I wanted to go back to the office across town. I was told that I could stop and leave at any point so I was quite confused as to why he was acting like this and felt that if he knew this could be a possibility he should have driven his own car but his reaction was very unprofessional and further increased my want to go home and decline the job.

The driver of the car appeared to be a little scared of the dude in the back seat and never once opened his mouth to correct his coworker. He looked like he wanted to say something but he didn't. So, the plan was that they were going to take me to Hardees (a fast food burger restaurant for those who may not know what that is) and I would have to find my own way back across town. I was about 35 minutes off from the office and the city where I lived. I ended up having to call my then boyfriend and he came to pick me up. They probably should have thought their decision out a bit more because when my boyfriend got there he got a stick out of the trunk and charged at the car yelling at them about how they had no right to bring me that far out from my home only to try and abandon me to find my own transportation home. He was livid! The guys were so scared that they rolled the window up and locked their doors. I say good for them! None of them were real men!

When I got home I logged on to a website (I forgot which one it was) and looked the company up. They had a crap ton of complaints about how the interviewees were treated with the ride along and how it's all a large scam. I saw that someone actually sued the creator of the company. I believe the company shut down or changed their name. There was rumor that they were called something else before but they got so many complaints that they changed their name even though they were still doing the same thing. This was my very first real job interview and it was definitely memorable, I don't think I would ever forget how I was treated or the name of the company. Makes me wonder how the people I was riding with got hired. People will put up with anything when they need money, fortunately I have never been one of them.

Witchy Post: Natural Room Fresheners

At times we all get fragrances in the home that are, how shall I say it...less than savory. Be it the trash got taken out way too late, you cooked something that was very heavy and it leaves a lingering fragrance that's not as flattering as the first day, you may have cats, kids, etc. You don't want to burn incense or candles if little kids are around and you don't want to keep purchasing Glade plug-ins because the refills are astronomical (and they are). What can you do to freshen the house? Stove-top freshener! 

What Do You Need?
A small sauce pan, the smaller the better
Water
Spices
*optional* Fruit

What you would do is add all the ingredients together in the pan add add the water until just about to the top. Bring the ingredients to a boil then turn it down low and let it simmer for as long as you need or until the water runs out. I am not super rich, not even a little rich, so I didn't have anything fancy like cinnamon sticks or vanilla beans so I used ground cinnamon, allspice, a little vanilla extract, and a little ginger. The
fragrance is nice and it's pushing the unsavory fragrances out, which is a large plus. You can use oranges, apples, or whatever fragrant fruits you have around. I do have apples and could have used them but I am saving them for eating; my Granny Smith's aren't all that cheap and I'm on a serious budget. This is very versatile and I encourage you to experiment with different spices to find what you like. Have fun with it!

Foodie Post: Pizza Pockets

I came across a recipe on food.com about pizza pockets and I got intrigued. I made them for dinner tonight and they were amazingly good, a lot better than I thought they were going to be. I did add Italian seasoning and onion to the pockets, which really made this taste like actual pizza. This recipe is very versatile so change or add ingredients as you see fit.

Materials:
Cookie Sheet
Small Bowl
Knife
Spoon

Ingredients:
3 Flour Tortillas
30 small pepperoni (15 normal size)
1/3 cup onion, strips
1/3 cup mozzarella
6 slices provolone
6 teaspoons olive oil
6 teaspoons Italian seasonings

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Take a tortilla, brush 1 teaspoon of olive oil on the tortilla. Sprinkle a teaspoon of Italian seasoning over the tortilla. Layer 2 slices provolone cheese, 10 pepperoni (5 normal size), sprinkle with 1/3 of the mozzarella, sprinkle with 1/3 of the onion. 
3. Fold burrito-style, making sure to tuck both ends of the pocket. Place seam side down on the cookie sheet. Repeat with the other two tortillas and the remaining ingredients.
4. Brush/spoon olive oil on top of the pockets, evenly.
5. Cook in preheated oven for 12-15 minutes, or until tortillas have browned slightly but making sure to not make them too dark.
6. Remove from the oven, let cool for a few minutes. Enjoy with your favorite beverage. Tastes amazing with beer!

Foodie Post: Dorito Casserole

Doritos...casserole, shouldn't be in the same sentence right? Well, let me tell you, it goes together beautifully. I came across a recipe and thought "this won't work, what will people come up with next!" I actually adapted the recipe and I enjoyed every bite of it. The only changes I would make is to maybe use half Velveeta and half cream of mushroom. I would also use a combination of cool ranch Doritos and regular nacho cheese Doritos. I say make the recipe, adapt it to whatever you like, and enjoy!

Mini Review: I ate this last night and drank a glass of Arbor Mist Exotic Fruit and while I loved the flavor of the wine I did not like the pairing. It gave the dish a sunflower seed-like aftertaste I was not all that fond of. I just had the rest tonight for dinner and I had a Bud Light Platinum beer with it and it tasted amazing. If you are of age and want a little alcohol with your dinner try beer or try other wine's that are not fruit based.

Materials:
1 10 inch frying pan
1 9x13 pan
1 medium pot
knife
spatula
spoon
sheet of aluminum foil

Ingredients:
1 lb ground beef
*2 10.75 ounce cans cream of mushroom soup
**1 large bag Doritos, crushed
1 1/2 cups chopped onion
1 1/2 cups water
1 can Ro-Tel
***1 cup cheddar cheese

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Get the 9x13 pan on stand-by but out of the way.

2. Heat the frying pan on medium heat until hot, then add the ground beef and onions. Cook until ground beef is no longer pink. While the ground beef is cooking, add the water, ro-tel, and cream of mushroom (and Velveeta if used) to the medium pan on medium high heat until the mixture begins to boil.

3. Add a thin layer of Doritos to the 9x13 pan. Top the chips with ground beef, ending with some of the cream of mushroom mixture. Continue to layer in that order until you are either out of ingredients or the pan is getting too full. Use your best judgment. Top with cheese and cover loosely with aluminum.

4. Cook in preheated oven for 15 minutes. Remove the aluminum and cook for an additional 10-15 minutes or until very light brown on top, taking care not to let the cheese get too dark.

5. Let cool for approximately 10 minutes to ensure that the casserole holds together. Enjoy.

Note: You can serve this along with sour cream, if you like.

*Instead of 2 cans cream of mushroom you can use 1 can and substitute a small log of cubed Velveeta for extra flavor and more cheesiness. 
**Instead of using a large bag of nacho cheese Doritos you can try using half a bag of cool ranch and half a bag nacho cheese to add dimension to the flavor.
***1 cup of cheese is not a lot when using a 9x13 so you can add another cup of cheese. For added gooey-ness between the layers you can also sprinkle, lightly, some of the cheese throughout the layering process then use the rest to top.

Different Shades of Liars

Everybody knows one. You know, someone who can't tell the truth to save their life. It could be the smallest of lies and they still feel the need to tell them. There are different levels to lies. White lies, pathological lies, and "just don't care" lies to name a few.

White Lies

A white lie is saying something untrue because you think telling the truth is going to hurt the person more. Cliche lies: "You don't at all look fat in those jeans", "I think you have the voice of an angel when you sing", "My family absolutely loves you (after receiving a call from their mother who was all but strangling you through the phone about your choice in mate)". These lies can seem harmless but they are very harmful. In particular, the family part. The lie fills you with a false sense of acceptance. That person may get on the phone and call the mother, thinking all is fine, to check on her only to get an "I don't want to talk to you" tone from the conversation which can be very hurtful. The same goes with the singing lie. Say that person is full of confidence over the gushing review from their friend, mate, or whomever and they decide to sing in public in front of strangers. The reception can be worse than terrible, the responses would destroy that persons self esteem. 

Pathological Lies

Pathological can be defined as being compulsive and obsessive. When someone pathologically lies it's because they don't understand the concept of what the truth is. It's actually considered a sickness, whether it's been formally diagnosed by a doctor/therapist or not. People who are pathological tend to lie for no reason and about everything. For example, the sky outside could be midnight blue with stars and they will tell you it's somewhat gray and raining. Now, logically you can poke your head out the door and debunk their statement immediately but they don't care, they said what they said and that's all there is to it. In my experience pathological liars will respond to a confrontation about their lies with "oh", "wow", or they will get extremely mad because they feel you are always checking up on them and questioning everything they say. There is no reasoning with pathological liars, they feel they have the right to spin their stories and may make you seem crazy for being mad about their lies, and trying to get them to see the light about how hurtful the lies are will only bring you misery and unhappiness. 

In most circumstances it's best to remove yourself away from that person. If you choose to keep them around, do so with the understanding that you may never get a truthful statement, or an entirely truthful statement out of them ever. They may tell the partial truth to make you happy, but there will be so many weaves and roads of lies interwoven that you may not be able to distinguish the truth from their lies.

"I Just Don't Care" Lies

I just don't care. Says it all, right? These type of liars know what the truth is, they are under no circumstance confused, they just tell you whatever they want to tell you because they honestly don't care. For example, hanging out with friends. Say you have a mate who claims that they are hanging with the girls, or hanging with the boys. They are hanging out alright, but they are leaving off the fact that it's not plural, it may just be one of the opposite sex and it's an actual date. Not only are they cheaters, but they lie by omission as well because they don't care to give you the rest of the details for whatever reason they have in their head. 

I honestly think this is worse because it's not like it's a white lie to save your feelings, it's cheating. It's not like it's a pathological mental illness, they know what they are saying. They just don't care about hurting your feelings, or you catching them in the lie. When caught they come off as aloof, as if to say "you found out, oh well, what's for dinner?" This is the most unhealthy of all because they make the conscious choice to spin a lie so long as it appears to work for them. This is toxic and the probability of them changing is slim to none because they just don't care to.

As you can see there are many different categories for liars, depending on what you're dealing with. I believe there are many more definitions but this is the three that I typically come across. It's not really even a question as to why they lie, it's more or less how much are you willing to deal with. Liars can come in the form of friends, lovers, family, potential lovers, managers, supervisors, even the president of the United States. When it comes to managers, supervisors and the president you can get mad however most of the time you are not in a position to quit your job and, of course, there's not much that a disgruntled person can do about the president. For him you would have to be one of a rather large group and the group doesn't matter if no one takes a stand to do something about it (in the form of drawing attention to the lies and calling for impeachment). 

Friends and family is a totally different ballgame. You have the ability to place a cap on how much of their lies you are willing to accept and still have them in your life. Family, in particular, can be difficult for some to cut off. Some have the feeling that family is all they have, nothing's better than family, so they are given Cart Blanche to treat you any way they want unchecked. Friends can also be given the same reign by some. It's difficult because these are intimate relationships you have taken the time to develop so cutting those people off for their lack of integrity can become a torturous process that may very well not ever get dealt with.

How do I deal with it? I don't. At this point in my life I have no need to surround myself with people who feel the need to lie to me constantly. I have my own threshold that once it's crossed I will cut you off. Normally I will have one good blow up and then cut you off in silence, never go back to the situation. I may be cordial later on down the road and ask how you are but as far as being close again, it will never happen. I have had issues with liars before that I felt really close to. The lies, in my situation, led to a horrible ending that I don't want to go in to just yet. In this case this person will be a part of my life for the rest of my life because of the child involved but I have next to no contact with him because I know that ultimately everything I tell him will result in it being twisted against me (with some creative lies tossed in for good measure) and nothing good will come from that confrontation. 

So, how should you address it? If you feel like the person is open to hearing what you have to say about the lies and how they make you feel, by all means address it. If, after you have addressed it, the same actions continue, the ball is now completely in your court. You know it's not going to change, they don't see anything wrong with the lies (obviously because even though they acknowledge they lied and may even apologize they are still lying), and you are facing constantly being hurt because you probably aren't wired to accept someone being less than truthful with you. If you stick around, do so with the understanding that nothing may change but could possibly even if the probability is very low that it will.

The kind of person I am, I tend to be very observant. I won't call you out on the discrepancies in what you are telling me, I am simply watching, listening, making mental notes and staying on my toes with that person. The down side to this is when you finally tell that one last lie, no matter how small it is, it may push me over the edge and when that happens I am going to go clean off verbally about everything that you have lied about. When I'm done speaking I am done with the person. I don't want an explanation because it's nothing but lies anyhow, right? I used to be more tolerant in my teens and early twenties. Turning thirty and now thirty-one, my ability to reason with bullshit is getting less and less.

Ultimately the choice is yours. You teach people how to treat you. If they go unchecked on their lies and you accept their lies then they will get it in their mind that it's okay. They will keep spinning lies with the knowledge that you may get upset for a moment but you will calm down, accept their half-assed apology and everything will be fine again. You don't deserve that; don't take that from anyone! Call them out and make sure they know it's not okay and if they do it again kick their ass to the curb! However, again, the choice on how you get treated is ultimately up to you and you alone have to deal with the emotional and mental fallout that you are allowing yourself to go through.

Foodie Post: Simple Egg Salad

I have been making egg salad for years, and I originally saw my mom make it on more than one occasion. She used to make it so simply, with minimal ingredients, but it was so delicious! This recipe can be changed, scaled up for many people, or scaled down for one. This recipe, as is, makes 2 very hearty sandwiches or 4 smaller sandwiches.

Materials:
Medium Pan
2 bowls
Spoon

Ingredients:
4 large eggs
1/3 cup mayonnaise (more or less, depending on taste)
1 tablespoon mustard
1 tablespoon black pepper
1 teaspoon salt
4 slices bread (or 8)
*You can add any other ingredients you like, have fun with it*

Directions:
1. Place the eggs in a medium pot, fill the pot with water making sure that the water comes just above the tops of the eggs. Boil the eggs for 15 minutes.

2. After 15 minutes take the pan off the stove and dump the hot water out, then sit the pan in the sink and allow cold water to run over the eggs for about 5 minutes.

3. Once the eggs are cool enough to handle peel the shell off the eggs and place the eggs in one of the bowls. One by one cut the eggs in half, remove the yolk and put in the second bowl, leaving the whites in the original. 

4. Add the mayonnaise, mustard, salt and pepper to the yolks and mix thoroughly, making sure that you mash the yolks up without leaving large pieces.

5. Once the mixture is done, with your hands or a fork, mash up the whites and add to the yolks. Mix until whites are completely incorporated.

6. Make sandwiches and enjoy!

Note: You can place the egg salad in the fridge instead of eating right away if you would like. I like my egg salad immediately as opposed to cold.

Foodie Post: Nutella Oatmeal II

I made nutella oatmeal before and it was pretty good; chocolaty. I only used water because I am not a large fan of milk in the morning (I'm weird like that). So, I figured, I have plenty of milk that I need to use and I can use some of it to create a richer oatmeal. This is a very quick recipe!

Ingredients:
Yields 1 serving

1/2 cup oats
3/4 cup milk (I used 1%, a higher percent may make it more rich)
1 tablespoon nutella
2 teaspoons chocolate powder or syrup
splash of additional milk
walnuts or whatever type nuts you like

Directions:
1. Bring the 3/4 milk to a boil, taking care that it doesn't boil out of the pan. Add the oats and cook for the standard 5 minutes.
2, Take the pan off the stove to ensure the oats don't stick, and mix in the nutella, chocolate, and additional milk. Mix thoroughly and either return to the stove to heat through or you can just pour the oatmeal into a bowl at this time. Add the nuts on top and enjoy!