Face Your Kitchen Demons

So you kitchen leaves a lot to be desired. You haven't changed your dish sponge since you've moved into your apartment; you eat off of paper plates daily, you have cans of french string beans in your cabinet from 91, mopping the floors is something you only do when your grandmother comes over, you still eat wonderbread, drinks tons of soda, and the only oil that you cook with is vegetable.

Don't fret. But know that it's 2007 and that you need a serious makeover. All it takes is some tweaking, some openess to change, and a daily renewal that you life will be great no matter what. And the best thing of all is that you can have fun with this.

The kitchen is at the heart of impromptu entertaining. And if your kitchen game isn't tight, the only thing you will be welcoming to your home are the flies. Flies and you = Not good. When having friends over, people want to feel comfortable standing on your kitchen floors, looking at your shiny wine glasses, checking out your cookbooks, observing your seasoned cast iron pots and pan, having great conversation, helping out...you name it and it is done in the kitchen. Strangers even fall in love in the kitchen.

Step One.
It all begins with visualization. What does your cool kitchen look and feel like? Use magazine clippings for inspiration. Recruit help.
Step Two.

Personal Organization. Streamline your kitchen to the basics and get rid of oddities like old coins, rusty vegetable peelers, the Ronald McDonald glass, and that big gulp cup that you got from Taco Bell. And by all means, ditch the shameful sink sponge. Empty your drawers and organize from scratch. That includes what lies beneath the sink. A general philosophy that I use in my every day life: If you don't love it or don't use it everyday get rid of it. Just because you bought or inherited something doesn't mean that you should be its keeper forevermore.

Step Three.
Find color. Paint kitchen to cover up those grease stains and cooking disasters.
Step Four.

Get decent pots and pans. There's nothing worse than using your hard labor to scrub a cheap pan that bends and burns easily. You don't have to have a talk show's kitchen to function as an entertainer. You can get great deals from Marshalls, Macy's, IKEA, Martha Stewart's K-Mart, and flea markets. The best part is that you can do this all online.

Step Five

It's best to start with simple and understated and work your way up. For utensils: A Chef's knife for cutting. White plates. Roasting pan. A salad spinner. Wooden spoons, Box grater, Kitchen mitts, Pasta Strainer, and matching cutlery. I just bought a pleasing to the eye set from Target for under $40 dollars.

Step Six

Pat yourself on the back. You've just openend the door to a welcoming home and an eatable kitchen.

When's the right time?

Many people simply never get around to having friends over b/c they want all of their ducks lined up. They want all of their T's crossed and their I's dotted. Here's the familiar mental tune:

• My place is too small.
• If I invite friends and/or acquaintances over they won't come.
• I'm boring. Who would want to hang with me?
• I can't spare the expense.
• It's too much work.

Whoa. Whoa. Whoa. While many of you consider vegging in front of TV a night of relaxing, being with interesting people is simply much more rewarding. It's all about putting that pep in your step to share love. It's all about the creation of meaningful experiences that makes life simply worth living. After all...a well lived life will not be remembered by all of the lost "Sex and the City", "The Office", and "Soprano"episodes you've finally caught up with; neither will it be remembered by the fact that you've finally lined all of your ducks in a row and then and only then did you start living.

The entertaining I'm talking about here is the trial and error type. It's the type of entertaining where the only thing you are more concerned about is how to get that last friend out of your house at a decent hour. I don't know about you, but getting together with friends over chatty humorous dialogue and a good meal is so grown up, so mature, so progressive, and so cool...

We are not talking swinging from the chandelier. So breathe. Relax. Drink a glass of vino. Have a potluck. Have a wineluck. Invite your neighbors over. Make your signature dish. Even if it's meatballs. Buy glasses and plates that inspire you to eat and drink well. Buy fresh flowers. Often. Buy candles. Lots of them. Have your favorite movie party. Have a "sex talk" party. Ponder life's dilemmas. Get a bucket of fried chicken and pair it with an "out of this world" arugula salad. Buy an interesting cookbook. Go to wine tastings and bring an inexpensive bottle home. There really aren't any boundaries when it comes to having a great time.

Just remember: Life is short. And he who never made a mistake never made a discovery. So whens the right time to start living?

Get Togetha

When's the last time you've had friends over? A simple dinner party? A birthday party? An everyday celebration? A gurlfriend talk? This blog was created to inspire you to get moving towards creating lasting memories and great times.

Get Togetha is the place to get no fuss ideas on how to better enjoy life when friends are over. No frou frou food. No over the top decorations. Matching tableware-so unnecessary. Perfection? A silly unattainable goal. Get Togetha is more improtu meets creativty and a life intention of simply enjoying life. Period.

What makes a good time? The formula is so simple yet so many people dread the experience of doing things wrong. At Get togetha that's the wrong attitude to have, because the more you mess up, the more you have to laugh at...And the more you laugh the more you learn what works and what don't. Hooray! Gone are the days of being rigid and inflexible. Who cares about what fork goes with what salad?


Our blog is open to Q & A on all things created to enjoy the party of your life....

M.