HAVE YOU EVER HAD AN UNREQUITED CRUSH?

Yes, I have been missing in action for a while for various reasons, but here I am with another crazy question. (lol)  Before I forget, I have to give a major shout out to my girl Mary, from Dark Thoughts at http://scarymarythehamsterlady.blogspot.com/ 
and my fellow Freebie finding friend who stops by even when I'm slacking to find out out what's going on with the blog.  *Waving Hello and Thanks to Mary*

We've probably all had celebrity crushes at one time or another, and mine include Jason Statham, Michael Ealy and Roman Reigns.  But nope, I'm not talking about those kinds of crushes.

Have you ever really liked someone who had no clue you ever existed?

When I was around 13 or so, right about the time I was moving from tomboy status into the girly-girl world, I had a serious crush on this guy called Jon.  Yep, that's his real first name, but no way do you get his actual last name. *heh*

Back then, I was a hottie with a bangin' body. He was absolutely gorgeous AND funny AND smart. To me, he was just this perfect guy, and we hung out a lot studying, playing baseball, or talking on the phone.  One day, I gathered the courage to tell him that I really liked him and wanted to be his girlfriend.  BIG mistake!  He liked me, and had fun spending time together, but no way would his parents ever accept me.  He also told me that he wasn't looking for anything serious, and just wanted to be friends.  There goes that dreaded "Friend" word.  Needless to say, I was devastated.  How could he not feel the same way when we had so much in common? I was madly in love, or so I thought anyway. We still hung out for a little while longer, but things just felt awkward, and we eventually grew apart.  We graduated from a private school, and soon went our separate ways to high school.  Later, I heard he was arrested for a DUI, and was married.  I often wonder what happened after that.

What about you?  Have you had a crush that never turned into anything serious?  Are crushes real?

JAMES BEARD AWARD
If you're a foodie, or watch a lot of cooking shows you may have noticed that many of the chefs have been nominated or won the coveted James Beard award. It's like winning an Oscar or Emmy for food!  Who in the heck is James Beard, though?

"Anointed the “Dean of American cookery” by the New York Times in 1954, James Beard laid the groundwork for the food revolution that has put America at the forefront of global gastronomy. He was a pioneer foodie, host of the first food program on the fledgling medium of television in 1946, the first to suspect that classic American culinary traditions might cohere into a national cuisine, and an early champion of local products and markets. Beard nurtured a generation of American chefs and cookbook authors who have changed the way we eat." https://www.jamesbeard.org, Chef Heyer Recipe, Joan Garvin Photo

PEACH TARTE TATIN

Ingredients

• 1 cup sugar
• 2 tablespoons water
• 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter at room temperature
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• Pinch salt
• 6 peaches, ripe but firm, quartered or halved into 3-inch pieces
• 1 sheet puff pastry

Method

Preheat the oven to 400°F.

Combine the sugar and water in a 4-quart stainless steel pot. Cook over medium heat to dissolve the sugar, stirring gently. When the sugar has fully dissolved, turn up the heat to high and continue cooking to caramelize the sugar; swirl the pot occasionally to ensure even cooking, but don’t stir. This will take about 10 minutes; the sugar should be amber in color when finished. Remove from the heat and very gently stir in the butter, lemon juice, and salt.

Add the peaches and cook for about 5 minutes over medium heat. (If your peaches are on the firmer side, they will require a few more minutes of cooking time.) The peaches should be tender but still hold their shape.  

Using a slotted spoon, carefully remove the peaches from the caramel and transfer them to a 9-inch pie dish. Spoon about 1/2 cup of the caramel over the fruit.

Cut a 10-inch disk out of the puff pastry sheet. Drape it over the peaches in the pie dish.

Bake for 10 to 15 minutes, or until the puff pastry is golden brown. Remove from the oven and let cool for 5 to 10 minutes. Carefully place a plate on top of the tarte, slide your hand under bottom of the pie pan (be sure it’s cool enough to handle, or use a pot holder), and flip over the tarte. The caramel should ooze out and pool around the tarte. Serve with vanilla ice cream.

OLYMPICS

Have you been glued to the Olympics like I have for the past week and a half? What are your favorite events?  Were you surprised to know that certain events are considered Olympic sports? Here's some cool trivia.  These athletes stay in Olympic Village where there is a beauty salon, post office, florist and more.  Even better, they have access to a gym that's open around the clock, and a dining hall for those who want to eat healthy (also open 24-7).  When everything is over and there's time to cheat on those strict diets,  McDonald's is available for FREE for any member of the Olympic Team! Wow!  

Sadly, what is NOT free are those medals.  Winning athletes are responsible for paying a Victory Tax for Gold, Silver or Bronze medals, and according to Forbes, a gold medal is worth about $564.00 these days.  Cash bonuses are also awarded AND taxed. Gold winners receive $25,000, Silver winners will get $15,000 and Bronze winners will receive $10,000.

It may be warm outside, but that doesn't mean that the homeless are comfortable in 100+ heat index weather if they are outside, or happy that they are living with someone who can't wait for them to get off the couch and go someplace else.  They still need help, support and hugs....