Summer Bucket List

It's been awhile since I've posted.  Things have happened.  I've been busy trying to get started on the BEST SUMMER EVER.  It's silly, but my friends and I have all decided this is THE one.  That is, until next year.

Summer starts tomorrow, June 20, I know.  But in Los Angeles it feels like it has been here for weeks.  I remember being a kid and in May, everything changed.  More things were going on after school, more slurpee runs happened, and the air was charged with the excitement of the fun to come.  I'm pretty sure this still happened this year.  From January to April, all of my friends and I had crazy schedules and we weren't seeing each other as much.  But all of the sudden, come May, we're going to happy hours on Monday nights that spontaneously last until 1 AM.  We are having beach days and potluck brunches.

I'm not sure if it's us getting older, or us starting to get afraid that we all won't be in the same place for long, but we keep talking about making this the BEST SUMMER EVER.  I'm not following the calendar, so I'm going to make this summer go from April to October.  That's basically how it feels anyway right?

Let's talk about things that have happened or that are on my bucket list for this summer.

Bake Sale!  It was a success!  I made frosted sugar cookies, black bottom cupcakes, red velvet cakes in mason jars, and mini apple pies. It was stressful, but I had help from my sister, her friends, and our friends: gin and tonic.

 

GRILLED CHEESE FEST.  It was my third attendance.  Every time I love it.  Every time I leave thinking why I ate so many grilled cheese samples.  Glorious all in all. 

I want a lot of this to happen this summer.  Every time I have one of these bags of spicy juicy fruit in my lap, I feel like swinging my feet around and doing dances with my hands.  I LOVE spicy mango and pineapple.  They are a sign that summer is HERE.

I've been infusing alcohol.  It started with cucumber vodka and grapefruit vodka.  Of the vodkas I've done, they are probably my favorite.  I made jalapeno tequila.  Mind blow.  See below.  I also want to try pineapple rum and to start dabbling in bourbon and whiskey.  Found: one vanilla cardamom infused bourbon recipe here.

I want to drink as many spicy cocktails as I humanly can.  I've been obsessed with chile infused drinks and my friend and I have been ordering them wherever we go.  I took a stab at it on cinco de mayo with a blood orange jalapeno margarita.  I think the best one I've had so far is at the Corner Door.  Their Miner Incident: bourbon, honey, apricot, lemon, and Thai chiles is bonkers.  Don't eat the chile garnish though.  I am a beast with spicy stuff, and I was coughing and suffering because I thought I could do it.  The shame!

More popsicles. Whole fruit ones.  Coconut chunks.  I think yes.

I want more beer floats to happen.  Ice cream and beer.  Enough said.

Spontaneous lazy board game Sundays are always welcome.  Mostly I just like hanging out with friends in my pajamas.  Quirkle, Bananagrams, Spoons, and Uno are added bonuses.

More things that are on my bucket list this summer? Reading. Excessive amounts of sundresses. French-bulldog sitting? (i need to make friends with someone who has a frenchie that goes out of town all the time!) Picnics. Palm Springs. Night bowling. And keeping up with this dang blog!

Happy Summer!