Wednesday, July 8, 2009

What a trooper!

My husband, that is.

Because I have the summer off, in between long bouts of lounging and lazing, I've been doing a bit of cooking. Specifically, I have been having fun with meat analogs (and watch out Vegandad, 'cause your concoctions are next on my list! Mwah-ha-ha!).

I made Snooty Joes with Yves soy crumbles, and let me tell you: Yves has become my new favorite fake meat vendor. I have stuck with Boca burgers alone for years and years, occasionally venturing into new waters, only to retreat, sadly beaten back by a strange texture or taste. But a vegetarian co-worker (really?? In Texas? In a public school that is in the 'burbs?? Bestill my heart, I thought I was alone!) alerted me to Yves The Good Dog and even shared one with me. I'm hooked! So, when I saw the crumbles on sale, I had to try them. Let me tell ya, they look like meat and taste like meat, it's so crazy! So, they might not be for you if you don't eat meat because it's icky, but if you like the taste/texture, just not the killing, dance in the streets!

The Snooty Joes were fabu, possibly because I used Isa's recipe from Veganomicon, and not scary Manwich sauce. Eek. What's in that stuff, anyway?

Next, I made Spaghetti with Bean Balls, also from the beloved Veganomicon (or V-con). These were great, although I discovered that they are better with a shorter cooking time than a longer one, since I tried one halfway through the recommended cooking time (starving, I was!), and nearly ate the whole pan and then was a little disappointed with the creamy texture (inside....outside was crispy) after cooking another 15 minutes, as suggested. J gamely tried them and said that although they tasted good, there was a texture issue. I wholeheartedly agree, and hope that he will give them another shot with a shorter cooking time. I'm pretty pleased about that, anyhow, since shorter cooking time equals quicker to my mouth.

Well, with my two experiments pretty darn successful, I decided to try making my own veggie burgers. I tried Black Bean burgers that are not only also in V-con, but actually on the same page as the 'Joe recipe! Seriously, folks. The laziness just doesn't end around here. Turn the page? No way, Jose! Not when I can take a sip of my margarita instead!

The black bean burgers were surprisingly easy to make, but I am a bit baffled by Isa's assertion that these would be "very firm" when cooked, since they weren't. Again with the texture!! Sheesh! J agreed with me on the texture once again, and yet that didn't keep him from rapidly inhaling a burger. Hooray!!

I'm doing happy dances, and you need to understand something about J: he is a meat and potatoes man to the core. Raised in the PNW by a working class single mom, meat is a source of joy and comfort. And although he fully supports me and eats primarily vegetarian (at least at home), he still loves meat and as you reformed meat-eaters know, meat analogs are best left alone until you haven't eaten meat in a while, since they generally fall just a bit short of what they are attempting to emulate. So, the fact that he is trying my experiments and even seems to be enjoying them somewhat makes me heart swell with happiness.

So, to reward him, I'm making him some Blueberry Boy Bait. Because if there is a boy I want to bait, it's one that eats fake meat happily!

Thursday, July 2, 2009

I really shine when....

Yesterday I was a bit mean to myself. So, I'm going to give myself some hugs today!

I really shine when:

  • I have just showered and my hair is still wet and I smell clean and look all sparkly.
  • I have a classroom full of teenagers eagerly listening to what I'm teaching (unfortunately, this doesn't happen too often.)
  • I'm making food! :D
  • I read my baby boy stories before bed.
  • I find something fun to do that costs nothing, or nearly nothing.
  • Similarly, when I take my family on an outing that costs most people lots of money but I have planned it to cost us very little.
  • I play dragons with my son.
  • I let my husband sleep in and make sure he has coffee for when he wakes up.
  • I check out a book that my husband loves, or (rarely) purchase one that he loves. (We don't share the same taste in books at all, so this IS a feat)
  • I try something new that scares me, but I do it anyway and just love it.
That's all I can think of while my adorable child pesters me to play Nick Jr. games. Heehee!

When do YOU shine?

Wednesday, July 1, 2009

Admiration

For all SAHMs. Seriously.

I've been out of school for about a month now, and lemme tell ya....the moms who get up everyday and get themselves and their kids ready for the day, do interesting and educational activities, and keep a relatively clean house....well, they are just superheroes!

I've known this for a while, but it's time to make a formal declaration: I am not fit to be a SAHM. I am no good at getting us going in the morning (it's 12:40 p.m. and I just got dressed and my child is lying on the floor, half dressed, watching Spongebob), tend to forget about educational activities in favor of surfin' the net while my kid zones out to tv, and my house is a WRECK, which I attribute to us being here all the time.

P was in swim lessons a week or so ago and will be starting his next session next Monday. Thank goodness for that! Something that gets us out of the house gets us MOVING!

Maybe it's because we've had the hottest June EVER. (Seriously, folks. Since records have been kept, this has literally been the hottest June in Houston's history. Yeah. Lovely. Maybe it's because it's only been a month, and if I had more time, we'd create a routine (I'd like to think so, I would). Maybe it's because we are just a big bunch of couch potatoes who can only occasionally rouse ourselves from the sofa. Whatever the reason, it's fairly obvious: we are a big ole lazy family, unfit for home-schooling or even summer educational activities! The shame, the shame!

Now, that's not to say we do NOTHING. We spent the entire day at Sea World the other day and had a blast! We've been to the beach, and in an hour, we are off to the library to learn about sharks, skates, and rays! P is on a soccer team that practices 3 times a week (lucky for us, it's neighborhood kids, so it's FREE!). We have read a BUNCH of books, and have learned some anthropology and science, thanks to the NatGeo channel and especially to the Travel Channel!

However. I'll conclude this by saying that I am in full awe of all SAHMs and think that you guys ROCK! As for me, I'm going to let my kid play Nick, Jr. games and start mentally planning for the school year.

Thursday, June 18, 2009

Deja Vu all over again

Why is it that we only fight about the same one or two things with our partners? You would think after having the same discussion over and over, it would get tired and we'd find new things to fight about.

Obviously, things are not being resolved, which is why we continue to have the same arguments. But how do you resolve those issues when you can't afford counseling, and all that you have tried is apparently not working?

Tuesday, June 16, 2009

Hurricane Preparedness

Sigh. It's that time of year again, folks. In the south, people that live near-ish the coast are getting ready for these lovely large storms that leave a swath of destruction in their wake. To me, the worst part about hurricane season (aside from the actual hurricanes) is trying to build up a stockpile of food.

Not eating meat complicates things, as most nonperishable entrees contain "meat" (or at least that is what we will call that stuff). Trying to eat healthy means that we don't eat a lot of canned veggies, preferring fresh, and in the absence of fresh, frozen.

We do eat canned beans (easier, faster, and honestly, BETTER than my attempts at cooking dried beans. And plus, they are still pretty economical), and canned tomatoes. We also have luxury canned goods such as olives, artichoke hearts, pesto, etc. Oh, to be an American during these times. It's great, I tell you!

(Ok, I have wiped the drool off my keyboard now).....

We don't have a grill (we did have one, and it exploded. Yeah. That was pretty scary.), so our only method of cooking is a camp stove. I'm thinking about making a solar cooker, but until that happens, let's not assume I would be able to cook with one.

What I learned from Ike is that a lot of people purchase chips and packaged bakery items (i.e. Hostess cupcakes). You know, I had honestly NEVER considered those as hurricane items. But they are nonperishables, eh? I don't think that chips would make it in this house. Hostess type snacks might not either, since it's something we literally NEVER have. But in a pinch, I'm going to remember that.

Here are the ideas I have so far:

-Instant oatmeal
-Couscous (fast cooking, and flavored if you want it)
-PB and J :D
-Bread (this would have to be purchased right before a storm)
-canned beans
-canned tomatoes
-canned fruit
-canned veggies
-those delish vacuum-packed dishes you find in the Indian section of the grocery store!
-Stovetop stuffing (I love this stuff, and it's comfort food....good after a scary storm)

I would plan on giving the veggies to a food bank after the season if we didn't use them.

But yeah. That's all I have. Not very good, is it?

I'm going to be thinking and stockpiling, and I'll continue to update if I have any ideas. In the meantime, leave me any comments you may have about what I should add to the list.

Sunday, June 14, 2009

Quick....Get shopping!

Hanna Andersson is having their Twice Yearly Sale. Seriously, folks. Get your kids some high quality, organic clothing at Big Box Store prices. But get it NOW.

Sale Sale Sale!

FYI....I don't get money or anything from them. Just awesome clothes. That I pay for. But at a discount. :)

Hippie happenings

Hippies get busy in the summer. Oh yeah.

What are they busy doing? Well....

Mama Duck's Dream Deserves an Oscar!

In My Crazy Life is seeking...herself?

Fashion, Evolved interviews Juliane Camposano of Roselwear.

Join us in a round of Electric Kool-Aid at Hippymom.com!

Melia Lore has a Vulva Skirt. No, I'm not kidding.

She's not sad...she's A Hippy Chick.

Gray Gaia invites you to Embrace the Goddess Soleil!

Happy reading, and enjoy! Now get busy yourself!

Tuesday, June 9, 2009

Delicious Asian Pasta with Spicy Tempeh and strange salty asparagus

I really like tempeh. I'm always sad when I meet veggies who do not like tempeh. It hurts me, somehow. Or maybe offends me. How can you NOT love the strange Linkflavor and texture that is tempeh? Yum. If you haven't tried it, go get some: I prefer mixed-grain or three grain or some sort of grain tempeh. But there are different kinds. I really ought to branch out.

Anyhoo, I made this great pasta last night:

Asian Pasta with Spicy Tempeh

It was lovely and spicy indeed. I put in 2 tsp. of the chili paste (I get that stuff that has the rooster on the label. Not only do they make a lovely hot sauce (the large squeeze bottle) their chili sauce is fantastically spicy and tasty. Cheap, too. What's not to like?) and it was SPICY, brotha. Hoo. Admittedly, I made the teaspoons heaping, but still. Next time I make this (and there will definitely be a next time) I will probably ease up a bit on the chili sauce.

I don't like peas and didn't have shelled edamame (my pea substitute of choice....and notice that I said I didn't have SHELLED edamame. I totally have the stuff in the pods, but I was feeling WAY too lazy to cook it and shell it) so I just left it out. I made this strange asparagus as a side dish, so I felt like I didn't really need to peas, anyway. And honestly, I didn't miss the bulk they would have added. However, those little yummy baby peas in the pod (the ONLY peas I like) would be quite nice, as would the aforementioned shelled edamame. Which I enjoy saying. Edamame. Satisfying.

The sauce seems like it won't be enough, but it's the perfect amount. The flavor is ALL OVER the noodles, but this isn't a saucy dish. It's amazing. I highly encourage you to try it.

If you don't have the various seasonings called for, you should. They take your cooking to a whole new level and keep you from wanting to eat out, which ends up being frugal in the long run. Or so I tell myself.

Let me close by mentioning that strange asparagus. I got the recipe from Vegetarian Times, and it calls for miso and tahini. I make this wonderful salad dressing that I found in Veganomicom (thanks, Isa!) that calls for equal parts miso and tahini thinned with water. The salad dressing is shockingly good, but although this recipe calls for similar ingredients, it was just salty and thick and strange. I'm sad, because there's a half pound of asparagus in the fridge that no one will eat. J ate one stalk and said yuck, and P won't eat anything green, despite it being his favorite color. I ate my fair share, but I just don't want anymore. Any suggestions on using this stuff up? Maybe if I put it in unseasoned eggs, maybe it would be better. Hmm.....

I hate to end on a down note like too-salty asparagus, so have a laugh before you go:

Sunday, June 7, 2009

Ready for summer

I'm all detailed and ready to go! Take me to the beach, the pool, the bar, you name it, I'm there! Whee!

I've got painted toenails, hair's trimmed up EVERYWHERE, I've been working out and eating (Relatively) healthy. Hee-hee! I'm looking good and feeling good.

I love having some time off, and being able to think and contemplate and even miss my job a little (ok, not the job, but some of the kids). I love being able to go to the park and the museum with my son, preparing healthy meals (I'm thinking asparagus, peach-walnut pilaf, and something tempeh or stir fry for dinner, how's THAT for rock-your-socks delish and healthy!), and reading books. I just re-read Blue Shoe by Anne Lamott, and highly recommend it. She writes about normal people beautifully. The book makes me celebrate ME, even with all my faults.

Tonight, my family is heading off to see .38 Special, Styx, and REO Speedwagon! What fun! I only know one song by each band (that I know of, anyway), but I can't wait to put on a skimpy sundress and lounge on the grass while we rock out! Hopefully, I can make a buck or two today and buy one of those margaritas by the yard! If not, that's ok too....they're awfully high in calories and low on alcohol. :)

Saturday, June 6, 2009

Food for camping

My boys are going camping next weekend so that an out of town friend and I can catch up sans interruptions. Hooray! I have challenged the hubster to NOT eat at any restaurants along the way, only stopping at grocery stores if necessary. This is going to be a MAJOR challenge for my lovable yet lazy hubby, so I'm helping (of course).

They will be gone from Friday afternoon through Monday. So, that's 3 breakfasts, 3 lunches, 3 dinners, and numerous snacks.

Breakfast:
Pancakes (those just add water mixes are PERFECT for camping)
Eggs (crack the eggs into a heavy ziploc bag so they are ready for scrambles or omelets)
They might try this because it sounds like fun:
http://www.scoutorama.com/recipe/rec_display.cfm?rec_id=155

Lunch:
Sandwiches
Pasta Salad
Fruit
Chips

Dinner:
Chicken leg quarters (bought on sale)
Hotdogs (you gotta, right?)
Nachos, using leftover chicken
http://www.scoutorama.com/recipe/rec_display.cfm?rec_id=266

We are limited not only by funds, but by the fact that my child doesn't like casseroles or other "mixed" dishes. He does, however, LOVE nachos, and I like that you can make these in a skillet.

Snacks:
Chips (must have junk food for us....we don't get them often because we all LOVE chips)
Pasta salad
fruit
crackers
cereal bars (aka Nutrigrain bars)
s'mores fixins
hummus

What else do they need to take for food?

Sunday, May 24, 2009

Hey! Here I am!

Ok, it happened again. Life grabbed me, and I stopped blogging. For shame. Although, given my track record, I knew it was going to happen sooner or later.

However, it's nearly summer, which means more time! Hooray for some TIME! I'm on a 3 day weekend already, which is "summer lite".

I took a peek at my 101 goals in 101 days list, and I have some updates to make. Since that list was the reason for starting the blog, it seems fitting to resume contact via the list. Here we go:

101 in 1001
Start Date: January 2, 2009
End Date: September 29, 2011
Legend:
Not Started
In Progress
Completed

Health and Fitness
1. Eat vegan 1x/week for 2 months
2. Take a prenatal vitamin nightly for 2 months
3. Do yoga 2x/week for 2 months
4. Get pregnant
5. Lose 20 lbs before getting pregnant (5/20)
6. Complete Body & Soul’s healthy challenge
7. Set a new fitness goal—and meet it—for 12 months (not necessarily consecutively)
8. Record all food eaten daily for 3 months
9. Drink 6-8 glasses of water daily for 1 month
10. Private :)
11. Floss daily for 4 consecutive months
12. Reduce coffee to 1 cup/day
13. Eliminate coffee from diet
14. Add tea to diet
15. Track my monthly cycle
16. Use that information to better understand my moods and cravings
17. Perform monthly breast exams (3/32)
18. Find a naturopathic doctor (I have found a D.O. It remains to be seen, however, if he will stick as my doctor. He may just need a bit of training ::wink::)
19. Eat nothing after 8 p.m. for 2 consecutive months
20. Private :)
21. Get braces
22. Reward myself with something sensual each months that I meet a fitness/nutrition goal (ex: pedicure, manicure, massage)
23. Learn CPR
24. Private :)


Finances
25. Build up $1000 mini-emergency fund ($800/1000)
26. Pay off debt (2 of 6 cc's paid off.....still have student loans, car notes, and mortgage :sigh)
27. Build a 3 month cushion
28. Put all extra $$ (bonuses, raises, gifts, etc) towards financial goals
29. Eat out on special occasions only (birthdays, anniversaries, last day of school, etc)
30. Sell this house
31. Have a monthly finance meeting with J
32. See a financial planner
33. Open retirement accounts for J and myself
34. Make a Christmas budget
35. Keep the Christmas budget!
36. Live on one income for a year to simulate the actual experience
37. Use a cash economy
38. Add to P’s college fund monthly ($5/month is ok!)
39. Donate $2 per each goal NOT met to a charity of my choice
40. Set aside $5 per goal MET to do something fun at the end of the 1001 days


Love Life
41. Have a date night with J once/month
42. Private ;)
43. Private ;)
44. Private ;)

Social Life
45. Have a potluck dinner
46. Throw a dinner party

Travel
47. Take a cruise
48. Go on 5 day trips alone (1/5) I'm counting Dallas since I went by myself, and it's a drive!
49. Visit 5 Texas attractions
50. Camp for a weekend at the Ren Fest
51. Go to Las Vegas for my 30th birthday!
52. Take 3 day trips with P
53. Take 2 overnight trips with P
54. Leave the country!
55. Visit Galveston 4x/year (2/10)


Getting the stuff you want….priceless
56. Get a tattoo (A cool hippie star on the back of my neck, under my hair)
57. Find the most perfect pair of black boots and buy them, no matter the cost.
58. Find the perfect Little Black Dress
59. Get a vitamix


Being a good person
60. Make 2 positive parent phone calls/month for 4 months—2 now, 2 next year
61. Explore volunteer opportunities for P and I
62. Volunteer with P once/week during the summer
63. Give blood 6 times
64. Give 10 compliments to strangers
65. Pay for the person behind me at a drive-thru
66. Obtain no new plastic bags for 3 non-consecutive months

Spirituality
67. Buy one book about paganism and one about Wicca and read them both!
68. Meditate 30 min, 3x/week for 12 non-consecutive months

The House
69. Replace carpet in house with wood floors
70. Complete 6 home improvement projects (1/6)
71. Create a “work-week home management plan”
72. Follow said plan for 3 months!
73. Set a new household goal for 12 non-consecutive months

So Creative!
74. Update blog 2x/week for 3 months
75. Practice guitar 3x/week for 3 months
76. Knit a scarf
77. Make 3 things using my sewing machine
78. Create an altar
79. Create a gift book for J
80. Make all handmade gifts for one Xmas
81. Dress up for the Ren Fest
82. Create a wardrobe that I adore—no “meh” clothes allowed!
83. Create a family cookbook
84. Finish t-shirt quilt or throw t-shirts away!
85. Do a craft project 4x/year with P


Foodie Love
86. Make one new bread machine recipe per month for 6 months (1/6)
87. Learn to make sushi
88. Make one new recipe each month (5/32)


Miscellaneous
89. List those things in my life that I do out of a sense of duty, not love or desire.
90. Reduce that list by half
91. Make “sucks/rocks” lists every 6 months (1/5)
92. SAH w/ my kids
93. Develop a homeschool curriculum for P
94. Meet with a life coach
95. Get life insurance
96. Read 101 books
97. Complete “Brenda’s Wardrobe Companion”
98. Take a class (I'm taking a bellydance class!)
99. Write my will
100. Turn off computer nightly for 2 consecutive months
101. Be fitted for a bra and only own bras that FIT!

Well, clearly I have my work cut out for me. In some cases, I need to start setting aside the money for charity since it ain't gonna happen, like the Body and Soul Challenge. But in other cases, I'm bettering my life and can set aside $5 per goal to have a blast! Whee!

Monday, March 23, 2009

Back to reality

I just spent the most magical weekend at a hippymom retreat in Dallas, where the food and drink were abundant, a smoky haze filled the air, a crazy artist sang opera and painted my portrait, and amazing women came together to talk, laugh (so much laughter), cry (just a little), dance (one amazing dancer and her loving admirers!), meditate and basically just plot to take over the world!

However, I'm home now. Back to reality and all the myriad little annoyances that come with reality. Sigh. Things like a broken car (but I'm told it should be a minor repair), a dead battery in a rental car and a husband who is slow to take back said car and gets charged an extra day at DOUBLE the rate I rented it for. Plus, there's the stress of work, a messy house, and never enough money.

However, even though these little annoyances seem quite abundant at the moment, I have decided to approach them with a new outlook. I know that they are little things that are stressful NOW but are hardly worth remembering a year from now.

Compare that to the smile of my son, or the look on a teenager's face when she gets the right answer 3 times in a row, or seeing an amazing sunset. Those are things that I will remember, that I want to remember. I suppose I need to not "sweat the little things" or whatever the title of that book is. :)

For a while, I thought that it would be enough to cultivate gratitude in my heart and life. And it works wonders, believe me! But it's not enough. Just because I am grateful to be healthy and have a roof over my head, enough to eat, a loving family, etc etc etc (and I could definitely go on!) doesn't mean that I won't get worked up over a dang car. I have been known to overreact. Yes! Me! Shocking.

The thing is, because I have this tendency (I think many of us do) to get so annoyed, I have to start laughing at those annoyances, and consciously focusing on the fact that they are minor setbacks. Even if it costs money, money is only a tool, free to flow wherever it needs to go.

It won't be easy. I'm not good at NOT being Type A, and I don't have a lot of practice. But maybe with a new mindset I can be free to Type A on the things that DO matter, and relax about the things that just don't.

Sunday, March 22, 2009

I'm a muse!

I am the subject of a gorgeous portrait. That I will be buying at a later date and paying for for the rest of my life. Hooray!

Thursday, March 19, 2009

"Free" time?

You'd think that I'd have some free time this week to update, but it doesn't look like that was in the cards.

I've been really busy this week! I rented my regalia for the Doctoral Hooding Ceremony (yes, they are REALLY on this....it's only March! But it worked well for me, since I was able to take care of this during my spring break!), got my cat fixed and also discovered that my gorgeous girl kitty is actually a handsome BOY kitty! Oops! It was all the fluff! (giggle)

I've been working out this week, which feels great! My goal is to keep this nonsense up when school starts, and actually LOSE SOME WEIGHT! Crazy ideas, I know.

I'm also getting ready to drive to Dallas for a retreat with some amazing Hippymoms! If you haven't met the Hippymoms yet, head on over and holla! Unfortunately, my car is acting all wonky. Look, it's even a relatively common problem! Boo-hoo-hoo! So, I'm taking J's car. Except that the inspection expired in.....JULY. So that needs to be fixed. The Universe has been trying to tell him this and he's been blatantly ignoring the message, so yesterday he got a ticket. Gah. That man irritates me. He redeems himself by being handy and nice, but honestly, the irritation to pleased ratio is highly skewed towards irritation.

So, I'm off to try to clean myself up a bit, and hopefully I'll have some really awesome stories about crazy hippymoms! Hee-hee!

Oh, remind me to tell y'all about how my phone was stolen by my kiddos at school. You know, some inspiration for the aspiring teachers out there. Snicker.

Monday, March 16, 2009

Spring Break!

Oh, hallelujah!!!! Thank goodness it's finally here! I was going nuts!

I'll be back soon with updates, but the past few days have included a trip to Chuck E. Cheese that left me trembling and the theft of my cell phone.

And I made cupcakes, too!

Sunday, March 8, 2009

A bad influence

Resides in my house. This one is sneaky, making it harder to resist her charms. Usually, when I see Nutella at the grocery store I am able to resist. It's the #1 reason why I eat a snack before going grocery shopping, after all. But on those rare weak occasions, when Nutella whispers from an end cap so invitingly, "Hey, let's have some fun...." I find that she has snuck into my grocery cart.

When we get home, I try to hide her in the cupboard, but she always ends up near Peanut Butter. After PB wants to be Nutella when she grows up. All silky and smooth, with chocolatey whispers and hazelnut dreams, poor PB just can't compete.

Now, Nutella isn't brass and bold, like some of the other characters I hang out with. That's why she's invited around more often than, say, Chocolate Cake. Chocolate Cake just chills on the counter, yelling "Hey! I'm in here! I'm lonely and lovely. Come eat me, baby! There's cold milk in the fridge. We can do it nice and slow!" Rawr. That's nice when you're younger, but as you mature, you want friends who are more refined. This is why Nutella is so sneaky. She pretends to be refined and Ooh-La-La French, but really she's just a slut in a beret. Not that there's anything wrong with that, since she does clean up nicely.

Whenever I open the cupboard, she's there, peeking out at me from behind PB, who's giggling at my gaping mouth. She flirts and reminds me of her charms, and how great she would be on a piece of multigrain bread. I tell her I've just eaten a delicious meal that was filling and balanced, and she tells me that NOTHING is balanced without chocolate. Point taken.





Mmmm. Yummy.

Saturday, March 7, 2009

The Zen of Silence and Lentil Stew

I've been silent all day. It's been strange and peaceful and slightly surreal, but I attribute that to the fact that I've got some weird snoozy kind of cold.

I wanted to make a yummy dinner using only what I have on hand, since I don't have a car (mine is currently broken. Sigh) and didn't want to venture out into the world, anyway. Plus, my texting skills are rudimentary, at best, so I don't like texting J a big ole grocery list.

Whic leads me to my lentil stew: zippy yet healthful, vibrant and alive, it allowed me to use up kale that was valiantly holding onto whatever life force it still had in vain hopes that I would eat it. Thank you, lovely kale. Thank you. While the little green lovelies bubbled away on the stove, I sauteed red onion, added crushed tomatoes and jazzed things up by adding 1 cup of red wine and 1 cup water, instead of 2 cups of water. I added the softened lentils, and the chopped kale (that had revived nicely after being cleaned, de-ribbed and soaked in cold water). That's it! Crazy!!

To really make it sing, I made the saffron cream included in the recipe, but I used sour cream, since I didn't have yogurt. It was lovely and makes me feel rich, since I have SAFFRON!

I served this with slices of grain and seed bread spread with real butter. Oh, yummo.

Lively Lentil Stew

No voice.....

I've lost my voice! I have no voice at all (well, a little today, but nothing yesterday and I'm not talking today to give my sad vocal cords a chance to rest), and I've been sick since Tuesday. I think losing my voice is a result of me pushing forward and taking DayQuil to be able to teach when really, I should rest. But at my school, we get berated for having subs. Sigh. I'm definitely a firm believer of the idea that when you are sick, you should stay home and rest, but that's really not a part of the American psyche, unfortunately. I have received a lot of flack for this my whole life, and as a teacher, it seems like you are a "bad teacher" for taking a day off when you are sick. So, now I'm being punished by having no voice.

This is excruciating for me, since I love talking. I definitely feel like I have a disability, since I don't want to go anywhere public, as I feel rude by not talking to people, and have to write out notes to communicate. I can understand why people who use ASL (that's American Sign Language to you, bub) often prefer to stay within small communities, where communicating is easy because everyone speaks the same language, so to speak. Oh, the puns are not intentional, and man, are they bad! Sheesh! Sorry about that.

Fortunately, J and P are dealing with this remarkably well, probably because I don't have to care for P all alone right now. If I did, I can imagine that the poor kid would be irritated with me.

Sunday, March 1, 2009

St. Patrick's Day without meat

I want to make some traditional Irish food for St. Patty's day, being half Irish and loving a holiday that celebrates green, Spring, my son's birthday (well, his birthday is on St. Patrick's day, so they are forever linked to me), and beer! I also love corned beef. But, I don't really eat meat anymore.

I want to make colcannon and soda bread, but have never made either. I'm looking to you, dear readers (yes, all four of you!), to help me out here. Sure, I could turn to allrecipes, and looking for the recipes with high ratings and reading reviews usually steers me in the right direction. But if you, important reader, can provide me with a recipe that you know to be delicious, I would appreciate it ever so much. And I will take pictures, too!

Hippies being hippies

The hippies are always up to something. It may be weird, it may be transcendent, it may be mundane, but really, it's always interesting!

The Inside Life grows a spark during her latest meditation.

Lament the End of an Era with Grabba Cuppa Joe.

Gray Gaia loves Cute Rainboots!

In My Crazy Life reflects on her relationship with her mother.

The Q Speaks has a simple video explaining the credit crisis.

Fashion, Evolved highlights the organic health and beauty line of products called Miessence.

Get updated on the Moisture Resolution from A Window on the Rez.

Bunny Glitter's Interesting Person of the Week? Rachel Angel!

Luscious Decadence has A Treat for the Soul that costs NOTHING!

Melia Lore has rediscovered Righteous Indignation in the thesaurus.

Saturday, February 28, 2009

Like a rolling stone...

We are actually FREE to leave this state (well, not quite, but soon enough). For the last 6 years (6 long years) we've been stuck in Texas because this is where I have gone to school, and I couldn't leave till I was done.

I finished up this summer (whew!!!) and am now working. We're still stuck here for a couple of reasons, but it finally dawned on us that we could actually PLAN the next place we move to. We've always just been like dandelion fluff, going where the wind blew, and we've really felt stuck in Texas. We don't like Houston much, although it has its appeals....lots of jobs, low cost of living, lots of culture, etc.

So, we're trying to narrow down our search. Here are some of the things we are looking for:

1. A mild climate, although seasons are nice, so we're willing to deal with snow if the town is awesome.

2. Good public transit. This indicates a desire to help the people, and also to help our Earth.

3. Liberal politics.

4. An artsy vibe.

5. Beauty. I want to live somewhere that inspires me.

6. I'd like a small town feel, but close enough to drive to a larger city.

That's enough to start.....any suggestions? Thanks!

Tuesday, February 24, 2009

Don't be a hater

Eat a salad!!

I have a lovely friend who is jovial, funny, and loves to cook (not a vegetarian, but she'll come around, in time). All of these things just make my heart smile!

And yet.....she was berating the beloved SALAD! Oh! The horror! Salads are so amazing! Full of life and vibrancy. Crunchy and silky, sweet, salty, savory. Fresh and delicious. I love salads.

Now, I'll admit that salads can be downright terrifying. Those old salads, sitting for who knows how long, made up of limp iceberg lettuce and white (Heavens, NO!) tomatoes. I mean, WHITE!!! Maybe a sad little sliver of red cabbage, if they are trying to be "fancy." Shudder.

Plus, the dressings! They can be nightmares! I mean, I never that ranch could be good until I tried a friend's Hidden Valley Ranch (and I realize that homemade would likely be superior, but you have to understand that I've always thought that ranch was gross till I tried this stuff, only a few months ago). Thick, gloppy, gloopy, full of sugar and chemicals. Yuck!

But a nice vinaigrette, made with citrus juice and olive oil, or even a store bought dressing that does not taste so processed (and hopefully, isn't processed to death), can be wonderful.

So, that brings me to MY salad. Yum! I love salads, and love to have big, decadent salads for dinner (did you hear that!!??!! I said, have a salad for DINNER! What? No meat? Crazy!). I recently made an especially inspiring salad, and I want to share it with you now.









Yummy! That looks divine, no? There are organic mixed greens, topped with red onion, kidney beans, grated carrot, a bit of shredded cheese, and some organic grape tomatoes. Some lovely artisan bread and roasted red pepper hummus are my side, filling me up and adding some protein.

Not too long after this was shot, the salad was lightly drizzled in a dressing of fresh salsa mixed with the current guilty pleasure, Hidden Valley Ranch (even the light version is good!!!).

Oh, how happy I was, just munching away on this salad. Yum yum yum!

Now really, can you honestly tell me you wouldn't eat that for dinner? And happily forego meat? Look deep inside yourself, now....

Sunday, February 15, 2009

Trials of Life

As an evolutionary biologist who loves animal behavior most of all, I really, really, really love Sir David Attenborough's Trials of Life series. I have them all, on DVD even (because I had access to a DVD burner. For some stupid reason, these are only available on VHS. That's practically Beta)!

So, today's Natalie Dee comic just amuses me to no end....
















Please check her out! She's a funny lady, yo. And it will only take 30 seconds out of your day. You know you spend more time contemplating your split ends than that, and she's funnier than split ends!

Saturday, February 14, 2009

What are the hippies up to this week?

Let's take a peek, shall we?

MamaBirdie offers you a transcendental meditation:
The Inside Life

BunnyGlitter has found a fairy tale that doesn't need a prince to have a happy ending:
Because we're fabulous

CrazyCase is making some amazing changes in her life:
In my crazy life

Luscious Decadence has some great ideas to pamper yourself that are recession-proof:
Top Ten Indulgences Under $10

Just because Melia has lost some weight doesn't mean you need to shout about it:
Total Embarrassment

Fashion, Evolved tells us about a new shoe line that is designed to help, not hurt, your feet!
Vive la Vivo Barefoot Revolution!

Braided Diva tells us about the use of pot as a weapon of political corruption. You wouldn't think that stoners would have that kind of devious ambition.
An Uncommon Occurrence

A Hippy Chick gives us a reminder to live our lives as if we had what we want:
As if

The Q tells us why we are fat and scares us with baby pictures:
10 things

Moving, Shaking, and Breaking it down reminds us of Jump Rope for Heart, which was my favorite fund raiser when I was in school (I used to be able to jump double dutch!):
Money, Money, Money....

AuroraHope is blessed!

Have a fabulous love day, everyone!

Friday, February 13, 2009

File under: Kids These Days

Sigh. Remember how when you were in school, if you (or your friends, if you are the honest sort) were going to cheat, you'd be all sneaky? Well, things are both the same and different.

I gave my kiddos a test this week. Scores were not great, for the most part. The highest score was about an 84%, from my very best students. Plus, it took the kiddos between 1-1.5 hours to complete the test (unless the bombed it and were willing to give up the ghost).

Enter Beth. Beth missed school on Tuesday and I don't see her Wednesday. When I saw her Thursday, all but a handful had taken the test. So, it's definitely possible that answers had leaked into the populace. Heck, I remember getting the answers to chemistry tests before we took them at all! (I should probably explain myself about that at some point)

Beth asked to take the test in the hall, and since this is common at my school and she has never cheated before, I said ok. The test then took her 20-30 minutes, 50% less than the average student. I graded the test, and missed only 2, which netted her about 11 points more than my BEST students....you know, the ones who study, who pay attention and are engaged, who come to tutorials.....Well, Beth is none of these things. Her current average in my class is a 60, and when she DOES turn in work, it's not good quality. She received a score lower than a 50 on a recent quiz. During class, she enjoys yelling across the room to friends while I'm talking (a lovely habit, to be certain).

With this evidence, I told her that I wanted her to retake the test. I told her why, and she understood why I thought that cheating was a possibility (that I can't prove, since she was in the hall). She refused to retake the test, telling me that she didn't want to prove herself and that I could just give her a zero. You see the added suspicion here? We went round and round, I had her call mom, who she conveniently couldn't reach. At this point, I was not going to continue to discuss this with her, so I told her she could leave. I wasn't angry at any point, just trying to figure out why all of a sudden she was the smartest kid, as far as evolution was concerned. Oh, she did better than a preAP teacher's "nerdiest" student, too. Hmm.

I emailed my AP, telling him the situation. The I called Dad, who told me he was on his way.

We had a lovely conference, with mom in some slight denial about her daughter (not dad, though!), and Beth continued to refuse to retake the test. Nothing could get through to this child!

Finally, I told her and her parents that my suggestion was that she think about this over the weekend. I would make the new test, and if she wanted to take it, it would be ready for her. We'll see what she decides. I hope she chooses to be smart, rather than stubborn and dumb. If she chooses not to take this test again, I predict her behavior worsening in my class, and her effort declining to the point of nonexistence. Sigh.

Adding to this is the fact that her answers to her review sheet where mostly incomplete or flat-out wrong, as least as far as evolution is concerned.

The sad part is that if she were a better student, I would have undoubtedly given her this grade, as I had another student "lose" her answer sheet (she was THERE on Tuesday, I have no grade, no answer sheet for her) and she had to retake the test and ALSO got a 95%. Which, in light of these events, is obviously highly suspicious. However, although I know her to be two-faced, I also know that she is very intelligent and her work can be quite good. So, in this case she gets the grade.

It's unfortunate that Beth is getting caught up in this, and my mistake was in letting her go into the hall where I couldn't see her. I apologized to her for that, as well as for her being in this situation.

Nevertheless, I think I just gained one more flunky. Sigh.

I hope I'm wrong.

Wednesday, February 11, 2009

Warning: Stress leads to bad decisions

News flash! You didn't know that, right?

I do, too. And yet, I keep making those bad decisions when I am stressed out. Usually, my stress leads to some comfort eating, and since I doubt that my life will ever be stress-free, I need to figure out how to deal with my stress in healthier ways.

Yesterday, I had a long day. My kids were taking a test, and it's always a bit depressing, since they don't study and won't do a review, and then do poorly. After school, I had a meeting that lasted 2.5 hours! Thud!! By the time I got outta there, I was getting panicked from being cooped up too long, and also because I was afraid that I was going to be late to pick up P. He goes to school so early that I like to pick him up early, and it bums me out when I can't.

I got stuck waiting for a train, and then something was wonky with the traffic lights near P's school and traffic was backed up! By the time I got him, I was so panicked and unhappy!

I didn't have anything QUICK at home (well, I probably did, but not instantaneous and honestly, it wouldn't have mattered if I did at this point, since I was so stressed out) so I decided we would eat out for dinner. I've been trying to avoid that to save money and also so that P doesn't think that we can just eat anywhere we want, at any time.

At this point, I could have taken us somewhere health-ish, like Subway. But no! Do you think that my mind would let me do that?? Heck no!! It was gonna be a buffet. It had to be. Sigh. I was out of control. Either Cici's, Souper Salad, or the Chinese Buffet. Souper Salad would have been slightly healthy and may have calmed the beast, but I didn't take that route. Cici's isn't healthy, but at least the choices are limited. Pizza and a kind of sad salad bar. But Chinese Buffet.....drool. The cheese puffs, eggrolls, noodles, jello, sushi....YUM!!!

I succumbed to the buffet and just shoveled in that food like I hadn't eaten in weeks. I don't usually eat to bursting, and tonight was not an exception, but that is the only redeeming feature of my bad choices.

I need to think of some healthier ways to deal with my stress. The problem is that food is something I have to eat daily, multiple times a day even, so I can't get away from it! If I was an alcoholic, I could simply not drink. But every day I have to make healthy food choices. And I just don't have willpower to do it every time. I obviously need some better strategies.

Any ideas?

Monday, February 9, 2009

Well, so much for the lovey-dovey stuff

Because I'm now seriously irritated. I didn't J hardly at all this weekend, and he was supposed to come over last night so that he could take P to school. He never showed, so I called him this morning to tell him he is still expected to take the child to school. Well, I'm now going to be late for work, starting off my day on a seriously sour note, because he was on the phone--his cell phone, mind you--with work. And he somehow can't talk and move.

Thankfully, I don't have a first period. Still, this starts my day on a down note. I'm supposed to be planning with my team--teachers who teach the same subject I do. And I have a long day, as I run after school detention on Mondays, and now I'm wondering if I will need to get P as well, since J is being incredibly unreliable these days.

Any lovey-dovey feelings I had have run for the hills.

Sunday, February 8, 2009

Happy Anniversary!

Today is my 6th wedding anniversary! Honestly, I'm surprised to be here. J and I are still living separately, but not for long. We have gotten MUCH better at communicating, and I am much better at being honest about what I want and need, and telling him when he does things that make me angry.

Take yesterday: because he is moving home soon, we need to clean out our garage to have more space. So, we were going to begin this scary process yesterday. He had to go into work for a bit, but after P and I went to the market, I called him and he was going to come over. He was also going to bring me a rootbeer with vanilla flavor from Sonic. Well, he fell asleep. When I was finally able to wake him up, it still took him forever to get here because he had to go BACK to work. Since today is our anniversary, we were going to go out to dinner. Recall that because we are trying to pay off debt, we are only going out on special occasions.

I was so frustrated by the time he got here, I wasn't in the mood to have fun. We did go out to dinner (Red Robin, which is not romantic, but IS delicious with the best Boca Burgers in the entire world! Plus, it's child-friendly, and since we don't have a regular baby sitter, we generally take the kiddo with us), but it just wasn't as fun as I had hoped. I did tell him that I was upset and told him that it is things like this (flaking out on me) that have made me angry in the past.

The difference now is that I'm not holding onto those grudges. I'm telling him about them, and then letting them go. This is definitely healthier, and I think that it helps me become secure in the knowledge that I can indeed get upset and not be left. Part of why I'm not good at communicating is because I think that if I voice my grievances, I will be left all alone. My parents did not fight in a healthy manner when I was a child, so I don't have a healthy example to follow. I do know that what they did was not appropriate, so I don't do that, but I just don't know WHAT to do. That is slowly changing, as I allow myself to be upset.

With all of that said, I'm very happy to say that today is my wedding anniversary. I'm glad that J didn't give up on us, and I'm glad that I wasn't too stubborn to let him in. My relationship gets better each day, and while there will be rough spots, I hope to have a good enough suspension to weather them relatively comfortably!

Tuesday, February 3, 2009

A day in the life...

Today was an interesting day at work. My days are full of ups and downs, and today was no different.

I talked to my department head, who asked if I would be staying at our school next year. I honestly told him that I'm not sure. He asked me what classes I would like to teach, since he would really like me to stay. He told me that he's been very impressed with my teaching and classroom management, which is very flattering, although I know that I certainly have a long way to go. However, all teachers can always learn and change and grow. If you know any that don't believe this, run, because you are not in the presence of a good teacher!

This interaction made me feel really good, and I have been thinking a lot about what I want to do next year. I get incredibly frustrated with my students lack of motivation, desire to learn, and just the general apathy that surrounds the campus. It's also very frustrating to have to teach to a test, which is a problem most teachers face (I envy electives' teachers).

However, I then had an interaction with a student that has left me stewing all night (off and on. I do my best to leave this stuff at school. I can't seem to drop this, which is partly why I'm posting. The other reason is so that you can get an idea of what it's like to be a public school teacher now-a-days). I have this student who can't stop talking. I'm not sure what is wrong with him, but he does not appear to be able to stop talking. Seriously. I've had a lot of issues with him about this. I've moved him ALL OVER the room. I've talked to him. I've talked to his coach. I'm talking to a parent tomorrow. I've threatened. I've kicked him out. I haven't tried to bribe him, but that's because he's so arrogant that it can be hard to even be nice to him. This is really sad, because when he came to our school (he transferred in a few months ago), he was really nice, polite, and intelligent. He made a thoughtful and worthwhile addition to the classroom, and I was really excited.

I don't know if our campus got to him (really. There's a serious apathy problem here), or if he was just acting, only later revealing his true self. However, he quickly became very arrogant and rude, and the incessant talking began.

Today was an average day. He was talking, but it wasn't too bad (I mean, I do have to deal with him daily. Most of the time it's fine). Now, I ought to point out that HIS voice really gets to me. He has a really deep voice that goes under everyone else's voice, and it distracts me. It's like this deep, rumbling, insect buzz that is incessant. It literally kills my train of thought, and I find myself having to really concentrate on what I am saying in that class. In addition to that, if ONE person talks, another person is listening. And replying. And that leads to another person talking. And another. And another. . . . You get the drift.

Things took a very bad turn, however, when this student informed me that I had "better wrap things up because we only have 10 minutes left." I was flabbergasted. Are you really going to tell ME that I need to wrap things up? And 10 minutes? Well, I can do a whole hell of a lot in 10 minutes, but that's not even the point. Even my other "bad" student was shocked that he said that to me, and that's saying a lot (typical questions from this other student include, "Can I have an Oreo?" and "How do porcupines have sex?").

Well, I just lost it. I started yelling at him for what he said, and demanded that he stop talking till the end of class. Dumb move. Do you think he's going to do it? Oh, heck no! So, he starts talking. Immediately. I tell him to move to the back of the room (I have a lab area where no one sits unless we are doing lab). Does he move? Of course not.

At this point, I called the office and informed them that they had better send someone up to get him before I hurt the boy. Now, I'm a pacifist. But these children can drive me insane!

My AP came and removed him, and I'm not sure what happened after that. Probably not much.

I know I should have handled that better, although I'm not sure how. I think that is why I can't seem to stop dwelling.

I also know that I need a game plan for the next time I see him. Fortunately, that's not until Thursday. I also have a conference scheduled with his mom tomorrow. I don't know what good that will do, but I'm willing to give it a shot.

To wrap up the day, I held tutorials, and more students came than is typical, because I told them that if they are failing, it is mandatory that they attend tutorials (I still didn't have NEAR as many students as I should have. In most of my classes, 1/2 are failing). I was able to talk about evolution in a small group, which was fun for me and I think helped clear things up for the kids. Then, a student asked if I wanted to see this video he had on his phone that they were all laughing about. I watched it, and it was one of those "Ring"-type videos where a little girl rushed the screen. I screamed, and the kids thought it was hilarious.....it really WAS hilarious! I left that tutorial feeling really good, and headed to the park to get some exercise on a gorgeous, sunny, 70 degree day (it was 2 this morning in Chicago, where I nearly moved a few years ago. Brr!).

My days are like a roller coaster, full of ups and downs. When I think of all the students who say "hi" when they see me in the halls or in the morning, when I think of tutorials where I feel like I'm HELPING, when I think of my kids who WANT to learn, I love my job. But then I have students like the one above, and I have AP's who are inconsistent, and I have all these demands that won't teach the kids but might gain us a few more points on a test, and then I hate my job.

If I could only get to a 60-40 love-hate relationship, I think I would be ok. Right now, however, I think I'm at 40-60. That's better than a few months ago, but is it good enough? Only time will tell.

Sunday, February 1, 2009

February Recipe

I know! It's only Feb. 1, and here I am, with my new recipe! I can't help it, I love to cook! (Also, I like to update my blog a lot at once, and then ignore it for a while. It's how I approach exercising, too)

I made Orecchiette with Roasted Broccoli and Walnuts from Real Simple, except that I had to use pecans because I had thought that my pecans were walnuts, and when I recipe calls for 1/2 cup nuts, you can't leave it out.

It was exceptionally good! The garlic gets all roasted and yummy, and this broccoli would make a really excellent side dish on its own. This is the first time I've had orecchiette (except possibly at a restaurant) and I feel very sophisticated!

I also feel cool because while everyone else is currently gorging themselves on hot wings, pizza, chips and dip, and any number of foods that make ya fat and sluggish, I'm here eating this lovely light pasta! I also made some Italian greens, which basically means chop up a bunch of garlic, saute lightly in some olive oil till golden, remove with a slotted spoon, add greens of your choice (I had kale) and saute till kinda crispy and good. All right, all right. I could give a better recipe. And if you want it, let me know in the comments. :)

Plus, I did Pilates today and took stuff to the thrift store! Hooray! It makes up for eating a piece of pizza and half a Reeses Whipps at 9 p.m. last night.

Help make my bedroom magazine worthy!

Because right now, it's pretty uninspired. Take a peek at these photos and make some comments on how to fix things....preferably on the cheap!

Bedroom Photos

Reeses Whipps

They sound awfully kinky, don't they? Unfortunately, Reeses has not expanded to the sex market. Wouldn't that be a pretty day?

I tried this candy bar last night, courtesy of CVS. It was free, since I had a coupon and they were on sale! I've gotta tell you, though, they aren't that good. They are nougat-y, which I like, but just not peanut butter-y enough for my tastes. If you are a big Reeses fan, I don't think you will like these.

However, I'm really proud of myself because I actually only ate half and threw the other half away! For you, this might not be a big thing. But I've been a member of the "Clean Plate Club" since I can remember, and I'm also pretty $$ conscious, so it's really hard for me to "waste" food. Throwing away something that I don't enjoy is a huge step in a great direction for me. It's a step towards trusting that the Universe will keep me fed (has all my life, I've got no reason to believe that will change soon), and it's a step towards believing that I am only worthy of food that nourishes me, or that I love, and preferably both.

Saturday, January 31, 2009

Love is in the air in February!

Which means that I get to fulfill my "goal" of making a new recipe! Hooray! What should I cook? Oh, the possibilities are endless! I scored an Alice Waters cookbook today (she of the famed Chez Panisse and just an amazing person who emphasizes fresh, local ingredients that are simply prepared) for $1! Holy cow! Can you believe that? Barnes and Noble was having a big sale, and I promised P that we'd head to the mall for some Thomas fun (never mind that he has a train table at home).

While at the beloved book store, I grabbed the February issue of Vegetarian Times to peruse while P played with the trains. The trains, as you may know, are located in the kids area, so unless I want to read a kids book (not so bad, but I like to pretend I'm an adult sometimes), I gotta grab something QUICK before I'm dragged by a surprisingly strong almost 4 year old to the magic area.

Let me tell you something about Vegetarian Times. Every single recipe made me want to eat it. NOW. Wow! I had never looked at that mag before, and it was definitely cool to have every single recipe be meat-free! I'm not used to that, as I'm used to more mainstream mags that will always include chicken, fish, beef, and pork and since "times are tough" and we're all "trying to eat healthier" may include some token vegetarian recipe, usually with a butt load of olive oil, probably to make it "taste good" since it doesn't have any meat. (Can you sense my sarcasm? Sorry. Living in Texas is NOT conducive to a vegetarian lifestyle, illustrated by the fact that I am ready to shove the next person who tells me that they couldn't NOT eat meat, or who asks what I could possibly eat! All right, all right! I get it! You like meat! Now shut up and leave me alone with my kale)

I simply had to great the magazine. I had to. And fortunately for me, I have slightly more money than I thought, due to a budgeting error that worked in my favor (when does THAT happen??), so I could afford this little splurge! You see, I've decided that getting out of debt is a gigantic goal, and I've been doing exceptionally well at avoiding extras. But bookstores are my kryptonite. So, I suppose I should be glad they were having a sale!

That Body and Soul Challenge

BTW, I always want to write "sould". Hmm. Wonder what that means?

Anyway, how's that going? Yeah. Not well. Totally off that wagon. Oops!

I think the problem is twofold. First, the second week was all about eating better, adding fruits, veggies, and whole grains to your diet. I don't eat as many whole grains as I would like, pretty much stopping with whole wheat bread and brown rice, tossing in couscous occasionally and every once in a while some whole wheat pasta. Other than that, I already do those things! When I'm feeling well (and that's the second problem, but more on that in a moment), I eat lots of fresh fruits and veggies. I go to a local farmer's market on Saturdays (and you would be surprised just how many farmer's markets there are in Houston. It's odd, really. Such a yuppie, Walmart-y town, but there are some serious pockets of resistance! And not all of it is the rich, spend $300/week at WholeFoods crowd) and get a HUGE bag of produce for about $17. All of it fresh and organic, most of it local. Nice! I then purchase some basics and use that produce for my meals.

Another thing that I do is get a giant box of organic salad blend from Sam's Club for about $4, which is only .50 more than the 4 oz you can get at the grocery store. I also get a lb. of prewashed organic spinach for about the same price. Then, I eat salads all week, mixing the spinach and greens. I also need a quick breakfast that is filling, so I make a "breakfast sandwich". I get English muffins from Walmart (I know, I'm part of that dreaded Walmart crowd, but times are tough)--12 for about $1.50--and briefly saute a handful of spinach, then cook one egg, toast an English muffin and spread it with chipotle mayo (take a can of chipotle peppers and puree the whole thing. Then use the puree! To make chipotle mayo, add between 1 tsp to 1 tbsp to about 1/4-1/2 cup mayo (can you tell I just eyeball this?), depending on how spicy you want to make it). Top with the spinach and egg, and you are eating! Yum!! I get a really fast breakfast that has some greens in it!

Because I already eat relatively healthy (and by relatively, I mean that I still love chips and have been known--ok, ok, I am known for--to overindulge on the margaritas and chips and salsa at my favorite dive Mexican restaurant), I really didn't take the second week seriously. That was the beginning of my derailment.

Then, I got sick. Over and over again. Sigh. First, I got a UTI. In order to get rid of it, I took antibiotics. This just wiped out my healthy flora and fauna, and I got a cold. After the cold, I got this really nasty virus that knocked me out for about a day and a half, and I'm still recovering (bland foods,such as white bread, noodles with butter and parm cheese, and pb&j sammies, have been my preferred diet for nearly a week, and I'm just getting back to my regular spicy and flavorful diet). This was the second blow to that challenge.

This week was supposed to be the exercise week, but I have barely moved at all, aside from my regular dancing throughout my classroom, alternately trying to motivate and yelling at my students.

I've decided that if I want to try that challenge again, I'm going to need to revamp it. Obviously, it's called a challenge for a reason, and if something isn't challenging to me, then it shouldn't be a part of a challenge, right? So, this may be an unfulfilled goal, or perhaps I will come up with my own variation of the challenge, and proceed accordingly. Either way, I'll keep you posted.

Friday, January 30, 2009

Hoo, baby!

TGIF, man. Wow. The past couple of weeks have just been insanity. That's not my idea of a good time.

I've had a UTI, a cold, a horrendous virus (that is currently crippling J), I went to the Dallas Museum of Fine Arts and saw the King Tut exhibit (really awesome!), J's job is in peril (possibly) and my child has entered this really annoying stage where he is alternately demanding, then whining. When I'm lucky, he sleeps.

The museum was great, and the best part was spending the day with a select group of students who are pleasant, motivated, and friendly. It made me remember why I wanted to teach in the first place. The kids were really funny. They didn't want to leave Dallas and come home, so they suggested we take them to the mall. Then, when that didn't work, they wanted to go to a park. Next, they suggested we go to a parking lot and hang out. Really. Just hanging out in a parking lot with a bunch of teenagers. You know us chaperones were thinking, "Great!! Let's go!" Finally, they tried to get us to stop at Walmart! Those poor kids would have done ANYTHING to prevent getting home! I remember that age, and I don't miss it one bit!

P is trying to sleep on my arm, so I better get him to bed. I'm looking forward to a few days off, and I hope to be able to update a bit more regularly. That is, if my life can settle down a bit!

Thursday, January 29, 2009

Blog by!

This is a blog by. Like a drive by, but bloggier.

Let's just say that life has been crazy. And I'm quite tired, and need to get the kid ready for bed, but I'm actually still here and still remember that I have a blog. Which means that the chances of me updating substantially are marginally in your favor. Yay!

Nite, all!

Sunday, January 18, 2009

Leaky tub, no more!

One of my goals was to complete 6 home improvement/home repair projects. Well, I'm ashamed to admit it, but my tub faucet has been leaky for the better part of a year. Oh, what a bad hippie I am. Horrible! Finally, yesterday I decided it would be fixed.

We removed the panel out of P's room to turn off the water to the tub. What a surprise! There was no water valve, just wall. What??? Apparently, the shoddy construction of this house never ends. I assume there is a valve behind the wall, it's just closed it. Sigh. So, we went outside and opened the other panel, only to discover a hole that had literally been punched in the wall, giving us access to the main water valve. Wow. Just wow.

After I got over my anger towards the now defunct Royce Builders (who went out of business for good reasons, obviously), we turned the water off and removed the faucet handle. Yanked HARD on the thing-a-ma-jig (which is why I can never be a plumber. My lack of technical terms) to get it out and commenced to the hardware store to get a new one. Oh. Except that people decided to crash into one another, completely shutting down a major highway and forcing us to take a scenic detour on a two lane road. And it was dark, so the detour was not all that scenic. When we finally reached the store, long after we should have been home, we could not find the exact part. What we found was pretty darn close, so we crossed our fingers and prayed. Also, we hoped for a good return policy.

Back home, things were uneventful as the part fit, we put everything back together, and turned the water back on. Ta-da!

The most beautiful part was when I woke this morning and did NOT hear the drip-drip-drip of water from the tub! Ahhhhh. A good steward of the Earth, am I.

And I'm completing goals in the process. Yay!

Saturday, January 17, 2009

Concluding Week 1

Well, I haven't been around both because this week has been a bit of a whirlwind, but also because part of my detox week was a media detox, meaning that I was supposed to limit my various media intake, including the lovely 'net.

I didn't follow ANY aspect of the detox week 100%, but I don't feel bad. For once, I'm giving myself permission to do something without having to do it 100%. Whew. That feels nice! Who knew that you could actually cut yourself some slack! So, let's do a recap, shall we?

Diet: Low fat, vegan. Steamed veggies, little seasonings, brown rice, etc. I effectively eliminated coffee from my diet and replaced it with an equal amount of green tea (1 traveler's mug). That was not an issue in the slightest, surprisingly enough. I do miss coffee....the taste and the ritual.....but I think I am going to try to keep my coffee drinking limited to the weekends, when I can savor my cup. During the week, I think green tea is a smarter choice that I can easily live with.

Breakfast was oatmeal with fruit and a bit of cinnamon, and this was bland, but doable. Kept me full, too. And oatmeal is supposed to help you lose weight, it's heart healthy, and keeps ya regular, so really, there are no problems there!

Lunch was supposed to be steamed veggies, a whole grain, and a legume. Equal parts of each. Well, I started the week eating a delish black bean stew with tons of veggies. It was low-fat and high flavor, thanks to the beauty of those ugly little chipotle peppers, so that got me my legumes and veggies. Now, I broke the rules because I think it was more highly spiced than it was supposed to be, but whatever. It wasn't a double cheeseburger, right? I added brown rice to complete the trifecta. When the stew was gone, I switched over to that Chickpea-Broccoli casserole I had made, and while I was able to eat it, last night I threw away most of it. This stuff was just WAY too "health-food" for me. It was chickpeas, broccoli, carrots, onions, veggie broth, and bread crumbs, baked together. Yeah. That doesn't sound like the best casserole ever, does it? I mean, it WAS good, in its own way, but after a while I began to shudder when I thought of it. Oh well. I tried.

Dinner was more veggies and whole grain. I did this, but instead of steaming my veggies, I had baked sweet potatoes, or sauteed kale, or saurkraut. I also had some steamed broccoli. So, my veggies were a tad more flavorful than I think they were supposed to be, but I kept with the program, and that's important. Steamed veggies may have made me go AWOL. Also, I made some prepared cous-cous that had seasonings. Whole grain? Yes. Plain? Not so much.

Snacks: I snacked on fruit, raw veggies, and nuts (cashews, almonds, and macadamia nuts. It doesn't get better than that). I probably went overboard on the nuts, but that's what I do! I'm nutty! Hee hee!

My thoughts on the diet: I feel great! I feel level headed and I didn't get so angry with my classes as I normally do. Now, I did make two classes do silent book work, but that was more because they need to learn how to act than me flying off the handle. However, I struggled with wanting junk food and thinking that this diet is boring. It really isn't, and every time I ate I thought my food tasted great, but my brain kept wanting tortilla chips, or chocolate, or whatever other junk food might pop into my head. This may just be a habit. However, it's a life-long habit, and it's STRONG. I'm hoping that this week has helped to weaken that habit somewhat.

Media detox: Well, this wasn't that hard. Partially because I was busy at school, and then P got sick and I got a UTI (ugh! Is there a connection?), so I was often quite tired and ready to go to bed by 7:30 (which we did on a few nights). I did listen to the radio somewhat, but it was public radio, so there are few ads and I am only able to listen during times when the main programming is music, so I felt like it wasn't a huge conflict. P watched movies, and so I saw them, too, but again, I'm not sure that is the media that is meant. I think that media meant news, ads, etc. Obviously, all media is stimulating and part of the goal was to reduce stimulation, but movies are definitely better than tv shows that are laden with fast-paced, loud, bright commercials. Talk about OVER-stimulation! Not watching the news in the morning helped me move a bit faster and feel less stressed. That was surprising, although it makes sense that I would move more slowly as I watched the news.

My thoughts: I'm going to continue limiting my screen time of all sorts during the work week, as I need a lot of sleep to be fresh and clear headed. This was painless for me.

Exercise: Ok, here's where I ought to hide! I didn't exercise one lick this week. Like I said earlier, P got sick this week. In fact, he's still sick! And he doesn't get sick often, so when he does, he does so in dramatic fashion. In addition, I got a UTI (which had been a-brewin', but I chose to ignore the tell-tale signs of slight discomfort while urinating and waited till I felt like I needed to pee WHILE peeing. Sigh). Further, I had various after school duties AND P had a dentist appointment this week (and he has a cavitiy, boo!). With all of that, I just couldn't find the time to squeeze it in. This is a weak spot for me. I like to exercise, but I can't find the time. I really need to start doing small things in 5 minute increments. I'm just not quite there yet. Oh, and my iPod broke, so now I have no music or podcasts to listen to while I exercise! Boo-hoo!

Next week of the Body and Soul Challenge focuses on diet. Adding more fruits and veggies (I currently have about 12 grapefruits thanks to a co-worker!), whole grains, herbs and spices. Yum! I can't wait!

Monday, January 12, 2009

Starting the Body and Soul Challenge!

And I've gotta say....I'm tired! lol You can find the Body and Soul Challenge here, and the first week consists on a slow and lovely detox, which means cutting back on caffeine! Dear me, can I do it? Last night, when I set up my coffee pot to make only 1 cup of coffee, I was quite upset. That tells me that I need to cut back on caffeine! However, having only one cup of coffee, combined with the continuous effort of watching my crazy teenage students and keeping them from trashing my room, has left me exhausted!

This week, I will be cutting back on caffeine, abstaining from alcohol and junk food, limiting my sugar to that which is found in fruit, and eating a low-fat, vegan diet. As we speak, I'm baking a Chickpea-Broccoli casserole from my current fave, Vegan with a Vengeance. I'll also be doing a bit of a media detox, limiting my TV, internet, and newspaper habits. This won't be that hard, since I'm generally so busy that by the time I get P to bed, there's only enough time to keep the house from becoming a hovel and preparing for tomorrow before I collapse into bed.

I have done the Master Cleanse before, where all you drink is a strange (and strangely GOOD) lemonade sweetened with maple syrup and spiced up with cayenne pepper, and while that detox was AMAZING, I can't afford the time and side-effects of that kind of a detox right now (side effects including fatigue, moodiness, and lots of time on the toilet!), so I'm very excited about this gentle detox regime. This is also one of my 101 goals, so scratching another goal off the list always feels great! :)

I'm currently relaxing with a cup of herbal tea, and I feel very serene and like the hippie I strive to be. So, go brew your own cup of tea, cuddle up to your lap top while I keep you posted, or, better yet, join me in the challenge! What have you got to lose?

Sunday, January 11, 2009

Adventures in waffle-making, part 2

I've become obsessed with waffles, as I am sure that every person in the history of the world who receives a waffle maker must be, in the beginning of their waffle-making career.

I love waffles, but I've only ever had plain waffles, at restaurants. While those waffles are amazing (there's a little diner in New Orleans--that I can't remember the name of, but I know my friend could, so if you want to know, let me know and I'll find out--that makes the best waffles in the whole wide world. Yes. Really.), they are plain, and probably contain about a stick of butter per waffle.

My vegan cookbooks have really neat waffle recipes that I've always wanted to try, and thanks to Santa, I now get to! Whee!!! Last week I made Lemon-Corn Waffles, which had an interesting texture due to the cornmeal, but didn't turn out that well. Likely because I didn't add enough batter to each waffle-well. Or whatever you call where you put the batter to cook.

Today, I made Ginger Pear Waffles. FYI, this is a recipe from Vegan with a Vengeance. The link takes you to Recipezaar, but it's the exact same recipe. And, once again I de-veganized it by using regular milk instead of soy milk. Doesn't that sound great? I added some finely chopped crystalized ginger (which is one of mankind's greatest achievements, in my opinion), and used a red pear, since that's what I had. Now, a super cool thing about these waffles? They have only TWO, count 'em, TWO tablespoons of oil. Da-zam!! That's what I call low fat! (I did top them with a big ole pat of butter, but hey, I probably would have done that anyway, and if you are really being healthy and good, you don't have to do that)

These bad boys filled my house with the most amazing spicy smell! It didn't make me hungry, like some smells can, but did make me want to smell only this smell for the rest of my life.

Learning from previous mistakes, I added more batter to each well. As you can see, this made a bit of a mess.

I freaked out a bit at this point, but it was really too late to turn back. The strange thing is that I used to work at Ben and Jerry's, and we made waffle cones, which would make a mess that looked a lot like this. Apparently, I had forgotten that waffle making does make a bit of a mess. Anyway, when the waffles finished cooking, they looked AMAZING! You know, like waffles should look!

Eat up, friends!

Monday, January 5, 2009

First day back

...Almost. The kids weren't back yet, so it was a day of preparing and training. Blech. No fun. Especially since the training was to basically help us identify the "bubble kids" (and holy cow, she actually USED that phrase, even though she was saying that is what people USED to call these kids. Umm-kay.)--those kids who would pass the TAKS test with a little extra help, versus those who absolutely will not pass regardless of what we do and those who will pass regardless of what we do. The answer does not seem to be in spending more money, in obtaining more data. The answer lies in reducing our dependency on a single test score, on wanting to TEACH children how to think, how to learn, how to be curious. When our focus is on what the students want to learn, and the students are engaged enough to WANT to learn, we will be successful. But not until then.

This, ultimately, is why I want to homeschool my child (hopefully, children). I see how much P loves to learn, and I love being able to tailor what we do to his interests. No matter how good a public school is, there is no escaping the fact that he will be one of many, and his individual needs simply cannot always be met. And honestly, with education, that is what I want for my child. When I went to college, I was able to obtain a tailored education by choosing my major, my classes, etc. And during graduate school, it was basically a free-for-all--I chose exactly what I wanted to learn about (now, I didn't do the best job of CHOOSING what I wanted to learn about, and then got stuck with that subject, but that's a completely separate issue). But why should people have to wait until COLLEGE to obtain this kind of individualized education? Sure, if I had oodles of money I could send P to some fancy private school where class sizes are smaller, his interests are valued, etc. That is unlikely to happen, though.

And, if I am being completely honest, I am being selfish. I love to teach. But I really don't enjoy teaching in the public school system. Sure, I have good days. But those good days are too few and far between to sustain me. By teaching my children, I will have a vested interest in their education (as I would even if I was not the one teaching them), and I will be able to explore what they would like to learn. Plus, there is the added bonus that the interests of my child are far more interesting than the interests of some random child. :)

In addition, I really don't like this schedule. Heck, P slept 14-15 hours at a time over this break! This tells me that he's exhausted! I had noticed some black circles under his eyes, but just disregarded it. Now, I'm feeling like a bit of a jerk because my kid is so tired! I hate that!

He's going to have to "suffer" (and I put that in quotes because he adores his pre-school) for the rest of this school year and almost certainly next year, as well. But, if I get my way, he will NOT need to enter the public school system, where a child is a commodity that can have value added or taken away, test preparation can begin as early as kindergarten, and recess and physical activity are reduced in order to add time for such worthwhile activities as worksheets over the letter A (which he is already doing, incidentally, in addition to his play time).

Lucky for me, I love anticipation and plan to enjoy the process of becoming financially solvent so that I can stay at home. Yay for the bright side, the silver lining!

Sunday, January 4, 2009

Trying a new recipe!

Aka #86. Hooray! And heck, it's only the 4th. Good job, me!

This morning I made "Lemon Corn Waffles with Blueberry Sauce" from Vegan with a Vengeance, which is a great vegan cookbook. I'm not vegan, by the way, although I do get a smug little feeling every time I eat vegan, but I really enjoy cheese. Anyway, this recipe ALSO allowed me to use my new waffle maker, which is another neat thing! I'm not great with waffles, apparently. Mine didn't look so great, although they tasted nice. Next time, I'll add a bit more flour to thicken up the batter a bit, and I will put MORE batter in the waffle holder-cooker-thing. Oh, and I de-veganized this recipe by using cow's milk and yogurt, and I'm sure that's forbidden. So, let's keep it between us, ok? Thanks.

These waffles were really yummy, with a bright flavor. I used Meyer lemons, since that's what I had, and it was very hard to zest these since they have such a thin skin. Keep that in mind! Also, the blueberries were kind of icky (they were frozen, WM brand...probably the problem right there). The sauce tasted good, but I imagine that was due to the fancy Whole Foods syrup and organic vanilla extract (wow! I'm such a yuppie!). Also, the sauce called for arrowroot powder, which I don't have. So I used corn starch, and that worked just fine. I subbed it in a 1:1 ratio.

In summary, I would TOTALLY make these again. I would make the sauce, too. Heck, I would eat the sauce over ice cream! But I would use better quality blueberries.

Saturday, January 3, 2009

More about the list

I was really surprised by J's reaction to my list. I had told him I was making it, and aside from 2 entries, I let him read it all. I caught him reading and re-reading it. This was definitely a surprise to me! Usually, he kind of rolls his eyes at whatever notion I have, possibly thinking, "Ah, youth!" or other nonsense. But this time, I think he was impressed! He is also a list maker, and definitely one of those people who has random things like, "Scoop the cat box", "Get paper towels", and "Go to business school" all on the same list!

I asked him if he would make a list, and I think he is now planning on it. The cool thing is that if he does, some of our goals should be the same (financial, mainly). And as far as I am concerned the more people actively engaged in obtaining something, the more likely they are to get it!

This activity might be really perfect for J, as he IS a list maker but tends to get bogged down in the present and doesn't think much about the future. 2.5 years isn't that far away, but it's far enough away that it's fun to dream about and make some grand sweeping gestures. ;)

I'll let you know if he makes his list, and I may even post a few highlights, with permission, of course.

For now, I need to go get dressed and head out to the Farmer's Market, where lovely organic and often, local, produce awaits! (If you are in the Houston area and interested in learning more about this market, let me know!)

Friday, January 2, 2009

The list!

I did it! It took about a week, and I have a few more categories than I originally intended. But that's ok. :)

Making this list has been an interesting activity. Some of the goals came to me so easily and readily. Some were shy, hiding behind louder thoughts and only peeking out when I was quiet or otherwise occupied. While reading other lists for inspiration, I realized that this list is very telling of a person's character and personality. I didn't expect to expose so much of myself by making this list. You may notice that some of the entries are marked private. Those entries expose more of myself than I am willing to share here. However, I may write about them upon completion. You never know! You may also notice that one of my goals is to update this blog. I am hoping that this helps me actually CONTINUE to post, even when life gets crazy.

So, without further ado, may I present.....the list that will guide my next 1001 days.

101 in 1001
Start Date: January 2, 2009
End Date: September 29, 2011
Legend:
Not Started
In Progress
Completed

Health and Fitness
1. Eat vegan 1x/week for 2 months
2. Take a prenatal vitamin nightly for 2 months
3. Do yoga 2x/week for 2 months
4. Get pregnant
5. Lose 20 lbs before getting pregnant
6. Complete Body & Soul’s healthy challenge
7. Set a new fitness goal—and meet it—for 12 months (not necessarily consecutively)
8. Record all food eaten daily for 3 months
9. Drink 6-8 glasses of water daily for 1 month
10. Private :)
11. Floss daily for 4 consecutive months
12. Reduce coffee to 1 cup/day
13. Eliminate coffee from diet
14. Add tea to diet
15. Track my monthly cycle
16. Use that information to better understand my moods and cravings
17. Perform monthly breast exams (0/32)
18. Find a naturopathic doctor
19. Eat nothing after 8 p.m. for 2 consecutive months
20. Private :)
21. Get braces
22. Reward myself with something sensual each months that I meet a fitness/nutrition goal (ex: pedicure, manicure, massage)
23. Learn CPR
24. Private :)


Finances
25. Build up $1000 mini-emergency fund
26. Pay off debt
27. Build a 3 month cushion
28. Put all extra $$ (bonuses, raises, gifts, etc) towards financial goals
29. Eat out on special occasions only (birthdays, anniversaries, last day of school, etc)
30. Sell this house
31. Have a monthly finance meeting with J
32. See a financial planner
33. Open retirement accounts for J and myself
34. Make a Christmas budget
35. Keep the Christmas budget!
36. Live on one income for a year to simulate the actual experience
37. Use a cash economy
38. Add to P’s college fund monthly ($5/month is ok!)
39. Donate $2 per each goal NOT met to a charity of my choice
40. Set aside $5 per goal MET to do something fun at the end of the 1001 days


Love Life
41. Have a date night with J once/month
42. Private ;)
43. Private ;)
44. Private ;)

Social Life
45. Have a potluck dinner
46. Throw a dinner party

Travel
47. Take a cruise
48. Go on 5 day trips alone
49. Visit 5 Texas attractions
50. Camp for a weekend at the Ren Fest
51. Go to Las Vegas for my 30th birthday!
52. Take 3 day trips with P
53. Take 2 overnight trips with P
54. Leave the country!
55. Visit Galveston 4x/year (1/10)


Getting the stuff you want….priceless
56. Get a tattoo
57. Find the most perfect pair of black boots and buy them, no matter the cost.
58. Find the perfect Little Black Dress
59. Get a vitamix


Being a good person
60. Make 2 positive parent phone calls/month for 4 months—2 now, 2 next year
61. Explore volunteer opportunities for P and I
62. Volunteer with P once/week during the summer
63. Give blood 6 times
64. Give 10 compliments to strangers
65. Pay for the person behind me at a drive-thru
66. Obtain no new plastic bags for 3 non-consecutive months

Spirituality
67. Buy one book about paganism and one about Wicca and read them both!
68. Meditate 30 min, 3x/week for 12 non-consecutive months

The House
69. Replace carpet in house with wood floors
70. Complete 6 home improvement projects (1/6)
71. Create a “work-week home management plan”
72. Follow said plan for 3 months!
73. Set a new household goal for 12 non-consecutive months

So Creative!
74. Update blog 2x/week for 3 months
75. Practice guitar 3x/week for 3 months
76. Knit a scarf
77. Make 3 things using my sewing machine
78. Create an altar
79. Create a gift book for J
80. Make all handmade gifts for one Xmas
81. Dress up for the Ren Fest
82. Create a wardrobe that I adore—no “meh” clothes allowed!
83. Create a family cookbook
84. Finish t-shirt quilt or throw t-shirts away!
85. Do a craft project 4x/year with P


Foodie Love
86. Make one new bread machine recipe per month for 6 months (0/6)
87. Learn to make sushi
88. Make one new recipe each month (1/32)


Miscellaneous
89. List those things in my life that I do out of a sense of duty, not love or desire.
90. Reduce that list by half
91. Make “sucks/rocks” lists every 6 months (0/5)
92. SAH w/ my kids
93. Develop a homeschool curriculum for P
94. Meet with a life coach
95. Get life insurance
96. Read 101 books
97. Complete “Brenda’s Wardrobe Companion”
98. Take a class
99. Write my will
100. Turn off computer nightly for 2 consecutive months
101. Be fitted for a bra and only own bras that FIT!