Thursday already… Loving these short weeks! 😀
1. It’s official – I’ve broken out the pumpkin:
I usually try to wait until at least September hits before cracking open a can of the orange stuff, and now that summer is unofficially over with the coming and going of Labour Day long weekend, I’m free to start working on my orange glow by eating pumpkin to my heart’s content. I started the pumpkin-ing with a recipe experiment, which I’ll be sharing with you guys tomorrow.
2. Since we’re on already on the topic of the orange glow, let’s talk about another contributor to that phenomenon…
Roasted kabocha. I’m in love. Unfortunately, this little guy just so happens to simultaneously contribute to another phenomenon known as “squash belly,” but what’s pleasure without a little pain 😉 I kid, I kid. I’ve actually gotten a lot better at keeping my serving sizes more reasonable and avoiding the infamous squash belly. Fingers crossed that it stays that way!
3. And fingers crossed that the amazing batch of apples I picked up at the store the other day was just the beginning of things to come. You know when you come across those huge boxes of freshly picked orchard apples that haven’t even been waxed to make them look pretty?
Swoon. Pumpkin and squash tend to steal the spotlight around this time of year, but let’s not forget that apples are in season as well! Especially because they taste amazing right now. I whipped up a batch of applesauce using aforementioned orchard apples, and it was easily my best one to date.
4. Riddle me this… Why does my Starbucks only brew decaf coffee until 11 AM? You would think that more people would want decaf later in the day, so they would have it more readily available. Nay. Come after 11 and they have to brew you a special cup. And yes, I’ve been drinking decaf… or at least half-caf. I noticed that I was waking up with this annoyingly mild achey head, so I cut back on the caffeine (even though I was only drinking a cup a day), and it seems to have helped.
5. Speaking of Starbucks, did you know that this year marks 10 years of the pumpkin spice latte?
Neither did I. Confession time: I’m not a huge fan of the PSL. I know, I know… blasphemy. They’re not bad, but I definitely don’t wait around with bated breath for them to come out (the famous red cups, on the other hand… hurry up!!). Then again, I’m not a huge fan of sweet coffee drinks in general… or lattes.
6. Does this happen to anyone else?
I was out for a walk the other day, and when I looked up to see a group of policemen walking towards me, I seriously stopped for the briefest of moments and caught myself wondering if I was doing something illegal. Walking. On the sidewalk 😯 I blame this paranoia on the fact that I had my fair share of bad experiences with the police back in my not-so-legal street racing days. Hard to shake.
7. Also, does anyone else ever get an e-mail or text,  start coming up with a reply in their head, and end up thinking that they sent it out when they actually didn’t? Maybe I’m just getting old or something, but daaaang… this has been happening to me more and more lately. So if it takes me forever to get back to you, it’s not because I’m procrastinating (okay, it might be)… it’s because I probably think I already did.
8. Random post, random [but good] tunes…
[youtube=”http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6nQCxwneUwA&w=560&h=315″]
You can’t fill your cup until you empty all it has
You can’t understand what lays ahead
If you don’t understand the past
You’ll never learn to fly now
‘Til you’re standing at the cliff
And you can’t truly love until you’ve given up on it
9. Reading these facts about Candy Crush makes me incredibly happy that I lost interest in the game. Spending thousands of dollars on lives/cheats? A rehab program? Yowza.
10. And, as always, I leave you with some random facts. Have a happy Thursday!!
1. I believe it.
2. That’s… a good practice, I guess? But also somewhat disturbing.
3. 😆 There are definitely days where I suffer from that…
4. Maybe they need to start putting warning labels on the box…
5. Good to know my music obsession comes with benefits.
. – . – . – .
Will you be working on your orange glow this year too? 😉
What are some of your minor pet peeves? Loud breathing? Chewing? Swallowing? Sipping?
Are you ticklish?
I feel like at this point it is no longer even necessary for me to comment on the kabocha…but I will say that I am experiencing just a bit of squash belly from yesterday…teach me your squash control ways. 😉
I love pumpkin…no matter WHAT time of year, but I just can’t do the pumpkin spice lattes…or really any sweet lattes for that matter. The first drink I ever had from Starbucks was actually a PSL and I swear I thought I’d died and gone to Heaven. My obsession continued all through college along with a daily cinnamon sugar doughnut or a pumpkin spice cream cheese muffin (see? told ya!)…hmm, maybe THAT’S where my “freshman 15” came from! Lol While I don’t do the sweet stuff much anymore (hello dizzying sugar high), I do make sure to keep my orange glow in full blossom throughout the fall and winter. It’s funny, I never even noticed it until last fall when the clerk at the grocery store asked me if I eat a lot of carrots. I wasn’t even BUYING carrots! I was like, “I’m sorry?” and he pointed to my hands and said, “Well, you’re kinda orange!” Omg, I’ll never forget it! Lol
Seriously?! DEATH by Twister?! I’m not even going to ask. I happen to have an extreme case of misophonia…but only when I’m PMSing! 😉 But honestly, one of my biggest pet peeves is whistling. It hurts my head just thinking about it…here’s looking at you Andy Griffith!!
I also busted out the pumpkin the other day… baked a batch of pumpkin spice cookies with a struesel topping. Mmm yes perfection, especially because when I brought them into work in the evening, there was a feeling of all in the air. Fall + Pumpkin = Durr. 🙂 You are already into apples too, jealous! I haven’t tried orchard fresh apples in sometime now, but I am going to the farmer’s market tomorrow morning so I shall be on the hunt!
I’m not a huge fan of Pumpkin spice lattes or too fancy coffee drinks either… so I will contradict myself with a drink that makes me swoon, iced caramel macchiato. The only issue is I suck that sucker down in about 2.5 minutes and THEN, I’m sad lol
😆 We must be on the same wavelength, because I baked some pumpkin spiced muffins with a streusel topping. Great minds 😉
I’m ready for pumpkin!! I haven’t broken down and bought any yet though!
You can never go wrong throwing in some Rise Against.
Apples…so excited!! Much more excited than pumpkins. My Macintosh are back in season so I’m a happy girl. We’re probably going apple picking this weekend, in fact. And this will probably lead to copious amounts of apple-y baked goods. My new fave is zucchini apple blueberry bread. To die for.
A pet peeve of mine is totally chewing with your mouth wide open. Disgusting to listen to and watch. But I’m not ticklish, so that’s a positive! 😉
That’s strange that your Starbucks only serves decaf until 11! That makes no sense, haha. I used to not really like PSL’s but they kinda grew on me in the past few years. I still think the Christmas-y drinks are my favorite 😀
I’m not a huge fan of the lattes but I love pumpkin spice cappuccino..or their oatmeal with a shot of pumpkin spice syrup in…its so good!! I’ve already broken out a tin of pumpkin too and so far have made some protein pumpkin cheesecake + oats + protein bars!! I’m addicted already.
Touch wood I haven’t suffered from “squash belly” for a while..I used to get it all the time!!
I can’t stand people who walk realllllyyyy slowly in front of me or just randomly stop in the middle of an aisle so you almost walk into the back of them – it drives me insane!
Haha I am Danish and was not aware that you are required to look for sleeping children under your car! Nice to know though, I am always glad to learn new things 😉
Thank you for providing the laughter fit of the day!
Love your posts by the way !
Another commenter mentioned that she had never heard of it either, so maybe Twitter just needs to check it’s facts. Still makes for a good laugh though 🙂
This is what you need to do. Order a latte (or Capp in your case) and ask for just ONE pump of pumpkin. It’s PERFECTLY sweet.
I shouldn’t be allowed to drink coffee at all but some taste sooo good! I woke up feeling a bit queasy the other day and bought a caramel latte on my way to uni. It was delicious and I paid a sleepless night and a horrible day after for it. It happens every time I drink any type of coffee drink (except for decaf, of course) and I still can’t resist the craving.
Thanks for the song 🙂
I’m from Denmark, and I can assure you, I’ve never seen or heard of anyone checking for sleeping kids under their cars. I’m pretty sure it isn’t a legal thing, and besides we tend to bike everywhere anyway 😉
I was hoping someone would shed some light on that! It does seem a little far-fetched, but that’s Twitter for ya 🙄
I know exactly what you mean about kabocha & squash belly. It’s just sooo good and hard to stick to a normal portion size.. as for looking forward to fall foods early, is it weird that I”m already excited for Thanksgiving?!
I’m not a big fan of Pumpkin Spice Lattes either- GASP. I actually prefer their Gingerbread Lattes if I’m going to have one. They just remind me of Christmas time (which I may or may not be ridiculously excited for already).
Yay for busting out your pumpkin! I haven’t touched mine yet but it’s definitely coming. And I’ve actually never tried kabocha squash but all you blogger-friends have me verrrrry intrigued. (:
How do you die playing Twister!?! That is definitely a random fact! Interesting but random! I love me some pumpkin spice lattes but am not in the mass majority waiting at the door for them. I can make a pretty good one at home without the calories or soy milk 🙂
When I started working at Starbucks I wondered the same thing about decaf. But I soon realized that what we brew is based on if it’s selling or not. After the morning rush (after 10 am) we maybe get 5 people max who order a decaf coffee. Since we dump our coffee after 30 min, if we continued to brew decaf all day or even past the early morning we would be wasting so much coffee and time. Where I work we brew Pikes (disgusting), Dark, Blonde (my favorite), and Decaf. We stop brewing based on our sales in reverse order. After 2pm we only have Pikes. Just ask for a half caf pour-over. It’ll take just a few minutes longer and is far better quality than a flat-bottom brew anyways. Often if a person says they can’t wait we’ll offer a decaf americano for the same price.
Ooo good to know. Thanks for the tip!
I’m working on my orange glow too! I think the other day I had pumpkin in my oats, baby carrots as a snack, & roasted kabocha for dinner. I think I’ll be a pumpkin by Halloween. 😉
I’m with you on the apple love too! So good!
I am a fan of pumpkin, but not as much as some people. The last 2 years, I tried out a bunch of new pumpkin recipes, but I didn’t like some of them very much. I also tried out a bunch of apple recipes that I happened to love. If only it’d actually get cooler here in Texas.
And I’m not a fan of paying for coffee in a coffee shop. Keurig all the way. And I will probably be buying another box of pumpkin spice this year.
YESSSSSSSS pumpkin!!! Best time of the year. I still have yet to make my own applesauce, but I need to because I am obsessed with apples. I have one every day 😉 I have been doing half caf, half decaf lately and I’ve been sleeping better at night and feel goood! Yay!
I haven’t broken out the pumpkin yet! I’m resisting because I’m still enjoying summer berries in my breakfasts. Soon though… soon. I’m not a fan of PSLs either – they taste like chemicals to me! I prefer vanilla and chai lattes. I’m thinking I might experiment with homemade pumpkin spice lattes though.
Also, pumpkin, kabocha, and apples are 3 of my favourite things about fall! Homemade applesauce is definitely going to be happening soon. And roasted kabocha too, as soon as I can get my hands on it. It’s so hard to find around this neck of the woods!
Oh gosh, I swear I’m like the most easily irritated person – especially by people who easily irritate me in the first place (if that makes sense haha). I get annoyed when people bug me when I need alone time, when people ask too many questions, and when people clang their utensils on their teeth when eating. <– I swear I'm not a grouch haha!
I am skeptical about checking out tomorrows post. I have no doubt its going to be an amazing recipe which will ignite another obsession. I made your crack bars again 2 days ago and a bigger batch. Lets just say 3/4 is gone. Strange.
those Danish folk are a very smart bunch- what a great rule to have implemented! I’m with you on the reply front- so many times I mentally reply to texts after reading them and only until later do I realise….oh crap I haven’t!
Off to have another crack bar to fuel some statistics. Well, thats my excuse anyway.
They do seem to have this strange habit of vanishing… I can’t explain it either, but if you figure it out, let me know 😉
Pumpkin Spice Lattes are amazing! If you didn’t have such great tips then I would stop reading the blog 😉 Jk but I can understand that the beginning of them isn’t good – they froth milk or something and it isn’t good. :/ After you finish that part, they are so good though!
Not a big fan of (oh my god a bird just flew into my window as I was typing–sorry that was so random! I couldn’t not share that!)…anyway, I’m not a big fan of Pumpkin Spice Lattes either. I like pumpkin, I like spice, I like lattés, but they are way too sweet for my taste buds in general.
David’s Pumpkin Chai tea is even better than starbucks PSL!!! If you haven’t tried it stop what you’re doing and go buy some…if you happen to be writing an email response leave a post-it note reminding you to come back to it 😉
Oh girl, I’ve already got my baggie of pumpkin chai! I’ve been crushing on that stuff for -years- and it’s probably one of my favourite fall time teas.
I may not be the biggest fan of pumpkin…but I’ll definitely be working on that orange glow thru kabocha. hehe
And i soo know what you’re talking about with the police! For some reason, I find that my foot automatically goes to the brake whenever I spot a police car. And I’m not even speeding!
Love #10. I always learn new things on Thursdays! 🙂
gosh all I want is squash.. also i should note that I had to scroll a long time to get down here haha
Haha! Yes to the cop thing! I always get nervous when a cop is around. Glad I’m not the only one. 😉
I’ve been so busy with this and that, that pumpkin spiced lattes were not even a thought till I saw it on someone’s instagram! I’m pretty excited now 😀 Like you, I’m not normally a fan of sweet drinks but once in a while something seasonal like that is good in my opinion. Also, there is ONE sweet latte that I’ll always always love! And it’s the spanish latte from Urth Caffe in LA which you have to try next time you’re down here! As long as the coffee taste is stronger than everything else I am one happy gal. 😉
I don’t drink coffee so I don’t get all cray cray over the PSl. When I do go for caffeine, it’s in the form of a green tea latte or a chai. More so chai in the cold months.
Squash belly, what about sweet potato belly? Because I get that. I actually picked up a small kabocha squash at a new market that opened up. I’m going to roast it but listen to this – I have never had kabocha before. Butternut, Spaghetti, acorn, yes, but never kabocha so I’m taking your word for this. Will report back on my thoughts. 😉
I may have rocked the SP belly myself on a few occasions… I think it’s just a veggie belly in general 😉 And I have a feeling you’ll -love- kabocha! It’s so smooth and sweet, and especially good when sprinkled with cinnamon and eaten with nut butter.
Misophomia, eh? I totally have that. Loud chewing (gum or eating), slurping, slow walkers.. it’s normally only the small things that really bother me, haha!
Already working on my orange glow too! Can’t wait for your recipe tomorrow. Nothing really annoys me too much, lately….. I think having kids will do that to you. My husband, however, gets so annoyed with chewing. His annoyance drives me crazy….. I’m just like, “I’m eating these chips, so DEAL!” 😉
I’m not ready for full on fall, but I’ve been enjoying some canned pumpkin in cookies and oats and coffee-recipe on my blog today!
I am definitely super duper excited for pumpkin, but I have yet to break out the orange can. I’m waiting for *that moment.* (Totally don’t what that means or when it will be…but it should be soon!) I’ve also never tried the PSL. Actually I don’t like coffee that much, so I’m more of a hot apple cider person 🙂
I’m with ya about feeling guilty when seeing the police, even though I haven’t done anything. Their presence just sorta stiffens the mood slightly.
I LOVE every single food-related thing about this post :). Yay Fall!
Hate to be pernickety but that definition of misophonia is slightly misleading. It relates just to sounds not ‘little things’! I still suffer from it badly – especially loud breathers and eaters but, yes, just sounds! Anyway *tut tut* to Twitter!!! 😉
I used to lurve the ‘Bucks drinks until I started to hanker after good, strong coffee. Now I can’t stand the flavoured lattes because you can’t really taste the coffee. If I’m feeling that way inclined, I go for a hot chocolate! Minty ones at Xmas are good!! 🙂
Yeah the Twitter version definitely makes light of how serious of a thing it can be, but that’s Twitter for ya 😉 And that’s my problem with the flavoured lattes as well – not nearly enough of the strong coffee flavour that I love.
orange glo is my game this week! I am headed down to Arizona for a few days tonight & I made my plane meals last night: steamed sweet potato, steamed cubed Kabocha & home made protein bars (but not orange as they have zuchinni in them!) I am going to look for new -to-me veggies when I am gone, I shall have two almost empty suitecases to fill with produce to bring back to Alaska, yay! Since its over 100 degrees down there, I will be enjoying my pumpkin chilled out of the can in icy cold greek yogurt next week 🙂 thanks for the reminder!
I love pumpkin! I think I’d prefer a pumpkin hot chocolate over coffee, though. I love putting pumpkin in my oatmeal during the fall 🙂 I’m going to try it in breakfast shakes this Fall, though! I definitely have misophonia. I’m usually polite when someone’s doing something that annoys me and I’ll ignore it. If I hear someone eating or breathing loudly, I lose all self-control and begin to have a panic attack. I just can’t. I’m also super ticklish…and in bizarre places.