Tag Archive for: Paula Rizzo

Checklist for Bringing the Suburbs to the City

Dalas skyline and suburbs

(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I grew up in the suburbs so moving to the city was a bit of a culture shock for me. It’s always a bit of worry when you’re moving to a completely different town or city. You have no idea what to expect.

Grow your own vegetables – My dad has a garden that is his pride and joy in the summer time. He grows tomatoes, kale, basil, peppers, zucchini and lots of other veggies. So going outside to grab an eggplant or a squash was super easy growing up. But now in the city it’s a bit more challenging to grow a garden.

Host a garden party on your fire escape – Okay, so it won’t be your typical garden party with gazebos and fancy hats – but it is possible to bring a relaxed, outdoor vibe to a fire escape or roof deck near you.

Sign up for a farm share – To get that home grown feel in the city, why not join a CSA. Farm shares work with family farms to deliver organic and naturally-grown produce from a small local farm directly to your door. The shares allow you to become a “member” of the farm for a season. It’s great because as the harvest changes you get to discover plenty of new tastes and foods.

Watch an outdoor movie – You can’t get much more suburban the laying in the grass, stargazing and watching a movie with friends. Now you can experience this in the city too. Bryant Park runs a summer film festival every year showing all of your favorite classics.

How do you bring the suburbs into your life?

7 No-Cook Recipes To Try This Summer

sesame-chicken-salad_galThere are so many things I love about the summer like going to the beach, drinking wine and Summer Fridays (in theory because I don’t really get to partake.) However, on hot days the last thing I want to do is turn on the oven, which is one of the reasons no-cook recipes are so appealing. They also drastically save on cooking time, allowing me to make the most out of my evenings.

Here are a few go-to recipes to try out this summer from RealSimple.com.

Sesame Lime Chicken Salad

  • 1/4 cup canola oil
  • 3 tablespoons fresh lime juice
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
  • 1/2 red chili pepper sliced
  • 1 small head romaine lettuce
  • 2 carrots, grated
  • 4 cups shredded chicken
  • 1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds
  • 1 cup crispy Chinese noodles
  • 1/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves
  1. Whisk together the canola oil, lime juice, sugar, sesame oil, chili, ¾ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon black pepper in a large bowl.
  2. Add the lettuce, carrots, and chicken and toss to combine.
  3. Serve the salad sprinkled with the sesame seeds, noodles, and cilantro. Read more

7 Ways To Eliminate Time Wasters

hourglass_cropped

(Photo credit: openDemocracy)

When you think about how much time you waste, you tend to think of the big things, like the hours wasted binging on Netflix (I’m obsessed with Orange Is The New Black,) paging through social media or wandering
aimlessly around the mall. When something only wastes a minute or so we don’t think about it as much. But when you add all those things together you could potentially be throwing away hours of your day.

I’ve come up with a list to help you combat the small time sucks in your life: Read more

Sandra Bullock Is A List Maker Too!

Sandra BullockGuess what? I found another famous list maker!  This time it’s Sandra Bullock!

I stumbled across this quote from her recently and could totally relate. I suppose you have to have good time-management skills when you act in as many films as she does. (Did you see Gravity? It’s fabulous!)

In fact, there are many celebrities who are known list makers like Madonna and John Lennon.  On Pinterest I made board dedicated to productive celebrities:

Follow my Pinboard of Productive Celebrities Who Probably Keep Lists on Pinterest.

Whose your favorite productive celebrity?

 

Never Miss an Appointment Again!

1:22 at Grand Central

(Photo credit: nixter)

A few months ago I wondered when it became acceptable for people to be late to everything. Poor timekeeping is such a pet peeve for me, probably because I work in an industry where time is extremely important.

With that in mind here are some tips to help you always be on time for your appointments: Read more