The Wanderlust Librarian | Thanksgiving WHOAs

Is it November already? Wasn't it summertime only a breath ago? I guess in California, you know it's getting to be autumn when the high dips down below 75 degrees. 

As many of you are planning a meal with friends and family, so is this Bloggess. Right now, my mother and I are planning our Thanksgiving meal for our family. This will be the 4th time that my mom and I will sit and come up with a strategic plan for dinner.

I do, though, would like to share why this is only the 4th time and not the 34th time that we're having Thanksgiving dinner. 

Once upon a time, the mother of the Bloggess got married. She decided that, as a married woman, she wanted to make Thanksgiving special and cook a turkey for her husband. She found the recipe for all of the sides she wanted to make and made all of the preparations for a fantastic feast. 

On Thanksgiving eve, she thawed out the turkey. On Thanksgiving morning, she prepared the turkey as per the recipe and was excited to pop the turkey in the oven. Things went well for a little bit. Until....

***!!!!!!!!!!BOOM!!!!!!!!!!***

The sound sent her running to the kitchen where she saw smoke pouring out the sides of the oven. She turned the stove off and opened the oven door to find her beautiful turkey still fairly raw... with a gaping hole. The issue? She sewed up the bird too tight and none of the built up steam had anywhere to go. From then on, my mother decided that she would just....sidestep the issue of making a turkey. We had other Thanksgiving delights: meatloaf, pizza, steak, fried rice. 

Thanksgiving wasn't a big deal until I was a little older and wanted to start some traditions of my own. My mother had to come clean with her story. I took it upon myself to cook the first turkey our household had seen in years. Needless to say, it went well. A year later, my brother decided he wanted to make the centerpiece bird. 

It ended up looking like this: 

Inedible, fried turkey

Burnt to the very core

As a family, we decided that turkey just wasn't for us. Our family has a new Thanksgiving food tradition: prime rib. It's a delicious change to the turkey. To be honest, if I was my mother, I'd be gun shy about seeing a turkey go in the oven. 

Over the years, I've collected recipes from various books and websites. I hope you find your delicious mains and sides for this upcoming holiday season from some of my favorite places! 

Pioneer Woman: before she was a Food Network star, she had this great (WITH PICTURES) website for her recipes! 

Bon Appetit magazine: delicious food with simple ingredients. You'll be surprised at the simplicity of the dishes! 

Food Network: I love to see the different ways dishes are made. Check out the varieties of Macaroni & Cheese!

You're Doing it All Wrong: Who knew?!?!?!? I learned to make deviled eggs and grilled cheese sandwiches the right way from watching these videos! 

Share your food successes and failures here! We've all had them and we all learn from them. Enjoy the time and food with your loved ones!  Cooking adventures are out there! 

The Wanderlust Librarian | How I survive ComicCon

ComicCon is an animal like no other. It's like no other convention I've ever attended. Nor is it like any place I've ever visited in my life.

For those who have read my blog, you know how much I LOVE lists! Here's a new one just for you!

Here are my tried and true tips for surviving ComicCon... or ANY convention you're going to:

1. Plan ahead

So. Many. People! There are tons more to
the side and behind me! Bring snacks.

At ComicCon, there are many panels and discussions happening at the same time. There are times where things you want attend are conflicting. Make sure to put BOTH of these items down on your agenda. A contingency plan is always key when trying to get through a big itinerary. There are times when venues are not emptied between each panel or discussion...so you may have to listen to other panels while waiting for the one you really want to see.

2. Bring sustenance
Snacks and hydration are the thing when hiking around. I'm proud to say that I've made a breakfast burrito last for 5 hours! Convention food is usually unhealthy and expensive. Bring a refillable water bottle and many portable snacks. I've learned that trail mix is great because it has a little of everything. Chocolate, chips and crackers will inevitably get pulverized in your bag...so don't attempt it. You're better off with sturdier foods like energy bars, granola bars, rice krispie treats and cookies! 
**note** Bring a little extra to share. A little kindness goes a long way. Some of the best people I've met and are still friends with, I've met in line or waiting for a panel.

External batteries

3. Bring the juice... 
Energy, I mean! With the explosion of smart phones, everybody is in touch with everybody all of time. This colossal use of cellular power really drains batteries. I do have a lot of alternate power sources to give me the extra phone power. Far be it from anyone to miss a prime picture opportunity because the camera ran out of power. I've learned to just save the pictures and post them all at once, later on...when I'm near a computer. 

4. Take your time
Rushing only makes you worry. If something doesn't work out your way, just make the best of a bad situation! (see rule 1). I've seen so many cool things and happened to run into so many cool people when things didn't work out on my list. 
Don't ever make apologies for the things you like. There's a convention, so obviously, there are others who like what you like. Enjoy the experience and share it with everyone when you get home! 

5.Picture proof....or it didn't exist! 
You go to a convention for something you're interested in. It doesn't always mean that people will know or understand that interest. I take pictures with people I know and am interested in. Most of the time, that's met with "Who's that?" Here are some of my favorites from this year! Bonus points if you know both! 


One of the best descriptions of a ComicCon experience is told by the awesome, Simon Pegg in his book "Nerd Do Well"  . Enjoy!! 

Until then, Convention Adventures are out there! 

He also smells delicious! 

Waking up early means you get the awesome pics! 

The Wanderlust Librarian | Tips for Trip Planning

As a young traveler, I was obsessed with planning things down to the last detail: getting somewhere at JUST the perfect time, sleeping from X hour to X hour, visiting things in the "correct" (to me) order, eating at a certain place on a certain day...

Needless to say, this method of trip planning never worked out. In fact, if only one thing went wrong, it would throw a wrench in things and stress me out. This method also stresses out any travel companions. Nobody is happy.  This type of trip planning never worked out... ever.

Since I adopted a lot of these tips, things have (for the most part) worked out pretty well. I definitely haven't stressed out on trips and my travel companions are happy, too! 

Please keep this one mantra in mind:

There is no perfect way to plan any trip.

This mantra comes from years of planning and going on trips with other people (including family). Here are some helpful tips I'd like to share.  

• Have a meeting with all of your travel companions and get on the same page (or at least a respectful understanding) about the trip expectations. If you and your travel companions are hindered by distance and time, consider using a free group chat program like Google + to plan. Negative feelings during a trip are never a good thing.

• Have everyone make a list of the top 10 things they want to do on their trip. Talk about it at the meeting. At some points, the lists will have the same items. If not, plan a day to break up the group and then get together to talk about your adventures! Keep in mind, it's also okay to break away from the pack and go solo if nobody is interested in going where you want to go.

• Do your research. When looking for things to do in Europe or Asia, try a book by Rick Steves! He has a lot of helpful information. Traveling in the United States? The library carries a lot of Frommer's Guides for different states and cities! 

• Make sure you are aware of operating hours for places you want to visit during the time you'll be in town.  There's nothing worse than arriving somewhere just to find out it's closed or getting ready to close. 

• Have at least one point person to help keep vital travel items together: reservation numbers for hotels and airline reservations, vital phone numbers, list of things that the group discussed, hours of operation for places, tickets for events, list of restaurants that the group talked about.  This person is not in charge of holding things like passports or IDs, just vital trip information! I like making a binder to keep these things together. I usually leave it out where any companion can take a peek at it. 

• Something will always go wrong. It's the way of the world. Have a couple of contingency plans at the ready in case  when something goes wrong. 

• When something goes wrong, don't freak out. You have a contingency plan, remember? Get the group together and talk about what you all would like to do based on that plan. It's all about compromising! 

• Relax. Vacation is about having a good time, right? You're away from home! You're with friends, family or both! 

Some of the best memories you can take away from a trip are usually the little things. Take some time to enjoy the experience. Traveling should always be about learning and seeing new things. 

Adventure is out there (with good planning and a level head!)