Goodbye

Today’s the big day.  After a morning Church service, and my Mom’s famous enchiladas, at exactly 3:00pm I will be saying my goodbye’s to Eric. It will be the last time I see him for 5 months.  I didn’t think this day would actually come. It never seemed real until now…and it is as if it snuck up on me. Time flew by, so my only hope is that the next 5 months will fly by as well.

I did find this quote that lifts the mood a little…

“Missing someone gets easier every day because even though it's one day further from the last time you saw each other, it's one day closer to the next time you will.”

But I still don’t want to say goodbye.

Steppin It Up

I can’t express how happy I am that it is Saturday, and I must of had some weird karmatic blessing because I escaped the dooms of getting up in front of class and making a fool out of myself once again. I didn’t even have to hide in the corner this time because the teacher forgot her grading sheets and postponed it to next week. Part of me just wanted to get it over with, but as time goes on, the more familiar I get with the people in the class, therefore making it a little less awkward. So there is some strategy that comes into play with my avoidance issues.

We have finally moved on in class from learning about modern aerobics, except the bad news is that we are now learning step aerobics. It is better in the sense that it doesn’t involve as many lame dance moves and requires a more robotic and mechanical motion but it is like 10 times harder skill wise. It’s a win lose situation. With aerobics, you feel like a dork even when you are doing it right, but with step aerobics it can be kind of fun and possibly even cool looking, but if you mess up once, it screws up your whole routine leaving you frozen like a deer in the headlights, or like your grandma trying to go up stairs with no handrails. Here is a an example of yesterday’s class minus Gilad in his sock stuffed tights, and his skanks.

 

I think this a more realistic example…

Anyone ever take a step class before? Did you like it? Hate it?

TGIF

Once again, it's Friday. You know what that means. Class from hell. However, the weekend is finally going to be here so that temporarily masks the unfortunate event that is about to take place. Yes ladies and gentlemen today is the day I will no longer be able to escape the traps of teaching modern aerobics in front of the class. This time I know for sure that there is no escaping.

On another note, Eric only has 2 more nights at home. I am hoping to be able to cook him and my family dinner because this will be the last meal I will be able to cook for him for 5 months. I have a few things in mind I want to cook but I know that vegetarian cuisine isn’t exactly what people look forward to on a Friday night. So it’s up to my family whether or not they want to sit through a meatless meal on their Friday. If they are up for the challenge I need help with choosing a genre of food…what would you most enjoy?

American

Italian ( including pizza)

Mexican

Asian

Indian

Greek

Suggestions?

Roller Coaster Day

I have absolutely no thoughts left in my brain…well at least none that I want to blog about, or think about at the moment. Yesterday was such a rollercoaster. Not the fun kind of roller coaster but the I shouldn’t of had that corn dog if I knew I was going to taste it twice kind of coaster…

Today ended up being okay, but I spent my usual blogging time finishing up an English paper that I completely B.S.’d on…and to top it off she ended up reading it out loud in class…anonymously of course, until she said my name. That was awkward, thanks teach. I will never procrastinate again, I will never procrastinate again…I will stop procrastinating tomorrow.

Oh and the day is young because I have a last minute meeting to attend at 7:30 in Lincoln. Least I have a little time to relax..but a little more is always better. Now for some blog reading!

No internet?

My internet is down right now…which is pretty much the worst case scenario for me at this time. I have a biography to write for work, and things to get done for school. Awesome, great timing. I suppose this is a lesson in technology dependence…Maybe they figure  no one needs the internet at this hour anyways…but I’m a weirdo with a crazy OCD routine and I’m about to freak out. I have reset every router in the house which includes the one in my parents room…I doubt they were to happy to see me ( or hear me ) walk in there at 4:30 in the a.m. scrambling around to reset it, only to discover that Mission Internet Recovery was a complete failure.

So here I sit, drinking my Go Girl and watching the news. No Blogger, no Facebook, and no glorious internet browsing. Just news about  the rainy weather, and a Car that crashed through a Big 5 Sporting Goods Store in a burglary attempt. Who wouldn’t want to steal cheap sporting goods? Exciting.

On another note, I watched American Idol last night… I know, why would I do such a thing? Well, I got tired of watching the Olympics <---I think I might go to hell for saying that, but when they tell you the outcome of every event on the news before they show it for our viewing pleasure it kind of sucks the fun out of it. I haven’t watched American Idol for 2 years, and it is a little strange seeing Ellen on there, and crazy Paula not there. I am tempted to keep watching it, but shhhh don’t tell. I think the most annoying thing about the show is the contestants sob stories that are presented to us overly dramatic in order to win our votes.  Stories like  “I lived in my car for _____ months.” or “ I couldn’t walk for months after a car accident”, “ I was born to use my gift of music and spread joy for everyone to hear.” “I am doing this for my ____relative that passed away..” So you lived out of your car, you couldn’t use your legs for a few months, or you have a dead relative counting on you, but face it people you are all chasing the same thing. Fame and fortune.

News Flash: My internet is back up!

I will say though that my favorite contestant last night was the girl with the dreadlocks who played the harmonica and the guitar at the same time. Did any of you watch AI? If so, who was your favorite?

Strange News

I just heard on the news that hot dog companies are thinking of changing the shape of hot dogs because they might be a choking hazard to young children.  ( By the way, wouldn’t that just make it Bologna?)

“The hot dog is just perfectly designed to act like a plug," said Deepak Mehta, director of the pediatric aerodigestive center at Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh. "The size, the shape, everything is just perfect to plug the breathing passage. It is just the perfect recipe for causing problems, even if the parent is careful."

All the nitrates, fat, and the 1,000,000,000 different animal parts that go into hot dogs are not the main concern? Not only will they act as a plug to the breathing passages, but also to your child’s arteries. I would say choking on a hot dog might be a better outcome than actually ingesting one.  However, if they do change the shape of hot dogs it might make for a less awkward meal for adults…

 

now  if  we could only change the shape of bananas.

Yay For Meatless Monday!

I admit I was having a tough time this morning trying to figure out what to blog about which is hard to believe because I lead such an interesting life right? ( I'm kidding in case you didn't notice ) but then I remembered it's Meatless Monday! I know you have been looking forward to this day allll week. In case you missed out last Monday, and have no idea what Meatless Monday is well, it is kind of self explanatory but the reasoning behind it is to help reduce meat consumption by 15% in order to improve personal health and the health of our planet.

So in order to help you give Meatless Monday's a try, I will post the meatless recipe of the day. It feels like a pasta night to me so here it is…

A classic combination of bitter greens and sweet golden raisins tossed with pasta and beans for a quick meal.

SERVINGS
4

COOK TIME
20

TOTAL TIME
40

INGREDIENTS
1 package (16 ounces) penne or ziti pasta
Salt
2 bunches broccoli rabe (about 12 ounces each), tough stems trimmed
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 garlic cloves, crushed with side of chef's knife
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1 can (15 to 19 ounces) garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained
1/4 cup golden raisins
Grated Parmesan cheese (optional)

PREPARATION
1. In large saucepot, prepare pasta in boiling salted water as label directs.

2. Meanwhile, in another large saucepot, heat 4 quarts water to boiling. Add broccoli rabe, and cook 3 to 5 minutes or until thickest parts of stems are tender. Drain broccoli rabe; cool slightly. Cut broccoli rabe into 2-inch pieces.

3. Wipe saucepot dry. Add oil, and heat over medium-high heat until hot. Add garlic and crushed red pepper, and cook 1 minute, stirring. Add broccoli rabe, garbanzo beans, and raisins, and cook about 3 minutes to heat through, stirring often. Remove saucepot from heat.

4. When pasta has cooked to desired doneness, remove 2/3 cup pasta cooking water; reserve. Drain pasta. Add pasta, reserved pasta cooking water, and 1 1/4 teaspoons salt to broccoli rabe mixture; toss well. Serve with Parmesan if you like.

Recipe Courtesy of The Daily Green at www.thedailygreen.com

Have any of you tried a Meatless Monday yet? Will this be your first time? Are you considering it? Or do you think it would be just plain crazy to give up meat on Mondays?

Combined Dining 101

Yesterday was all I was hoping it to be, and more. The only thing that could of made it better was a little sunshine. I finally got to spend the day with Eric, free from any sort of commitments and just do whatever the day led us to do. We spent most of the day just driving around because what else is there to do when it is raining and you have no money?

After driving around we decided it would be fun to make dinner together and ended up making Vegetarian French onion soup with a grilled caramelized onion, tomato, cream cheese ( Tofutti Cream cheese ) and herb sandwich. I loved every morsel of it, and Eric did too. Normally Eric is my biggest skeptic on anything I cook because it is not the kind of food he grew up with and the lack of meat is a turn off from the start…but I discovered if he helps out in the kitchen I can convince him to like pretty much anything he had a hand in making. He builds up a sense of pride and ownership over the meal and instead of tearing it apart, he builds it up.

The dinner table conversation was dominated by talk of the onion soup, what was in it, what it tasted like, and repeated. He looked almost nervous as he paid close attention to everyone’s body language as they sipped our product. It felt good to know that he wanted others to like the food as much as I wanted them too, and it was cute to see him care so much. There are a few rules that I forgot to go over with him first though.

Combined Vegetarian and Carnivore Dining 101

Rule #1

Never emphasize the fact that the meal is meat free. The Carnivores already miss the meat enough and to be reminded that is not there doesn’t help them to better enjoy your meal.

Rule #2

Never reveal mock animal products. If you use veggie cheese instead of real cheese, or in our case use Tofutti Cream Cheese instead of real cream cheese and nothing is said, leave it at that. Revealing a mystery product is setting yourself up for failure. 

Example:

Guest: “What’s for dessert?”

Host: “Cheesecake made with Tofu instead of cream cheese.”

You just completely ruined your dessert before they even had a chance to try it..and probably not even notice.

Rule #3

Avoid the 4 dirty words of vegetarian and carnivore dining while at the dinner table. These words include:

Tofu

Soy

Vegetarian

Vegan

The last one is especially dangerous and is like dropping the F bomb in the middle of Bible study. If you want a carnivore to instantly dislike your food this is the magic word to say. To carnivores being a Vegetarian is already a strange and restrictive lifestyle, but to them the Vegan lifestyle is just insane and only a bunch of loony’s would ever try it. They don’t want to dine with “crazy” people, or eat their food either.

Stay away from phrases such as:

This _______  is Vegan. <---Carnivores can here this word echoing in their ears from miles away.

Rule #4

Never serve a meat alternative and expect them to be tricked into thinking it is real meat. No matter how meat like it may taste to a fellow vegetarian, or to yourself, it may have been years since you have had the real thing making nearly anything taste “meat-like”. Carnivores have most likely been eating meat their whole lives and can surely tell the difference. There are a few exceptions but in most cases they will not like it. If you must serve a meat alternative, this can be the only exception to rule #2.

If you serve a meat alternative it is best to reveal it before hand, because when they notice ( and they will notice ) they will feel as if you thought they were actually dumb enough to fall for your mock meat prank. If you wish not to offend them you must let them know that it is not meat, and the secret to enjoying meat substitutes is to treat them as new type of  food, instead of a meat mocker.

Rule #5

Never bring vegetarian views or issues up at the dinner table. Unless you are asked directly no one wants to hear your views of  the world and why you choose not to eat meat. It is not a time or place to preach your lifestyle. The dinner table is a place to come together and enjoy each others company regardless of ones views and opinions.

I am sure there are more rules to be added but I find these to be the most important. Vegetarian or Carnivore, are there any rules that you would like to add to the list?

One Week to Five Months

I feel like I am in need of a vacation. Not an itinerary laden vacation, but one of those vacations where you go on to get away from schedules, just to relax and let whatever happens, happen.  Eric and I were planning on a little weekend trip before he left for training but unfortunately it took us longer to move out of our house than we thought and time flew by. ( as well as our money )  Now he only has a week left until he leaves, and school and family commitments will prevent us from a goodbye trip. I can’t believe he will be gone for five months.

The day he has to leave is now only a week away and it is becoming more and more real to me. He likes to say “it’s only 5 months”, but 5 months is nearly half a year. A lot of things happen in 5 months and according to Google 5 months = 152.184249 days. A lot of things go on in 152 days. The average heart will beat 15759360 times in 5 months, and we take about 3040000 breaths. That is 3040000 breaths that will go uninterrupted by a kiss, laughter, conversation, or the burning sensation his scent brings to my nostrils when he forgets his deodorant. I’m going to miss him…and it will be 5 months until we get to take awesome pictures like these together…Christmas card worthy?

The Great Escape

I have been dreading this day for two weeks. Thankfully, it is almost over. Today is the day I was supposed to get up in front of my Techniques in Exercise class and perform a ten minute modern aerobics routine. Once again, I got lucky and was saved by the bell…others however, were not so lucky.

I spent my morning as a panicked wreck. I couldn’t sleep, and swallowing my cereal was harder than usual due to the boulder in my throat and lack of saliva.  Everything I did seemed to be in fast forward and time flew by. My usual blogging time was filled with searching the internet for aerobic dance routines, which is actually a lot harder to find than you would think. I needed a routine for a beginner, and for the rhythmically impaired such as myself. I gathered all that I could from my friend Google and before I knew it, it was time to leave for class.

Upon arrival the parking lot was nearly empty and it looked the same way inside the classroom.There was an instant feeling of tension upon entering the gym and  there was about 10 out of 30 students there, and only two, including myself were women. I guess it is kind of entertaining to see a room full of men performing modern aerobics. Most of the guys were sitting a long the wall with their head in their hands, and the others stood in a group awaiting their doom saying they were “tired of this Richard Simmons shit”. At least we are all in this hell hole together.

A few more people trickled in as the four hour class went on. People took turns doing their 10 minute routines…and lucky for the rest of the class, (besides the constant babbling of our teacher) we got to do four hours worth of modern aerobics. Awesome.

My nerves are finally starting to calm down but I am still having trouble thinking straight. So sorry for such a dry post…you can sleep now, I think I will to.

TGIF!

Test on Food Prep

I am still going strong on my goal to post a blog everyday for a year…I am determined, but at the same time I have a test today so in order to blog and study at the same time I will share with you some awesome information that I know you were dying to learn. In all reality it is actually quite useful…especially if you cook or bake…so put your learning caps on boys and girls here we go!

I will start with Food Safety

1. E Coli 0157:h7 is most often found in raw meat, (especially ground beef), raw milk, un- pasteurized soft cheeses, apple juice, fresh produce (sprouts, green onions, spinach).

2. Trichinella is a worm that is sometimes found in pigs and some wild animals.

3. Salmonella poising mainly has what symptoms? Nausea, fever, vomiting, cramps, diarrhea, and headache.

4. Clostridium perfringin is sometimes called the restaurant food poisoning disease. How can you avoid it if you eat out a lot? Be aware of sanitary surroundings…are the employees washing their hands enough?

5. Describe beneficial bacteria and what it does for us- It lives in the intestine and helps fight harmful bacteria and infections, aids in digestion and used to make things like cheese, yogurt, sour cream..etc.

6. Botulism poisoning has what symptoms? Why is it so dangerous? Symptoms include double vision, impaired speech…it is so dangerous because it affects the nervous system and is often fatal or can have prolonged symptoms.

7. Which groups of people have the greatest risk from food poisoning? Children, elderly, immune deficient and pregnant women.

8. Hepatitis A is found in fecal matter and may cause liver inflammation. 

9. Poisonous plants are not destroyed by cooking. What is the best way to avoid getting sick from them…Don’t eat them. Duh.

10. When measuring sugars, how should one ( brown, powdered, etc. ) be measured for the most accurate final product? – In a dry measure cup. Brown should be packed, powdered should be sifted, and granulated should be poured and leveled.

11. Oil, shortening, melted shortening and margarine can all be used interchangeably.. true or false? FALSE they have different weights.

12. Examples of Vermin are: Mice, cockroaches…other insects..

13. A paring knife is mainly used for peeling tough skinned fruit. Where are a chefs knife used for? Basic food prep such as, chopping, slicing…

14. A microorganism can only be seen by- Magnification.

15. The difference between roasting and baking is: Roasting usually refers to meat, or cooking over an open fire. ( Although I disagree because there is a big difference between a baked potato and a roasted potato. I would say the difference between baking and roasting is that roasting involves using a fat…like roasting veggies with olive oil..Mmm.

Food Safety Continued…

1. Name some hazards to food safety. One of these is a bacterium: define what bacteria are: Some hazards to food safety are molds viruses, parasites. Bacteria are: one-celled microorganisms abundant in air, soil, water, and/or organic matter ( bodies of plants and animals ).

2. Only about what percent of bacteria are pathogenic ( disease causing ). The remaining are harmless and may be used for: Only 4% of bacteria are pathogenic the rest is used for things like; cheese, yogurt, soy sauce, butter etc.

3. There are five environmental factors that effect growth and reproduction of bacteria, name them. Oxygen, water, temperature, PH, Time.

4. The temperature (food) danger zone is what temp to what temp? What is so dangerous about this temperature. 40 degrees F to 140 degrees F it is so dangerous in this temperature zone because 40 is not cold enough to kill or prevent growth, and 140 is not hot enough to kill bacteria.

5. Explain the Two-Hour Rule- Perishable food left out for more than two hours in danger zone should be discarded.

6. Under the category of Bacterial food infections, one of the main bacteria is Salmonella typhi; Salmonella typhi is responsible for nausea, cramps, diarrhea, vomiting, fever, headache. What type of foods are most susceptible  to Salmonella contamination? Eggs, Chicken… What type of animals are likely to carry Salmonella? Reptiles; wash your hands after handling!

7. Another bacteria are called Cammplyobactor jejuni; what types of foods are most likely to be affected by these bacteria? Raw meat, poultry, raw milk.

8. One bacterium that we have heard a lot about lately is E. Coli. What are some of the foods implicated  in E. Coli outbreaks? Ground Beef.

9. What is the difference between a food infection, and a food intoxication? Food Infection- an illness resulting from ingestion of food containing large numbers of living bacteria or other microorganisms. Food intoxication- An illness resulting from ingestion of food containing large numbers of living bacteria or other microorganisms.

10. Name three bacteria that create a toxin- E. Coli, camplyobacto jejuni, and vibrio.

There are also some food prep notes but I think I already got those down and don’t have time to type them out…so sorry guys I know you were dying to know that there are 3 teaspoons in 1 Tablespoon, that there is 2 pints in a quart, and that you measure solids and liquids with different measuring utensils… I know rocket science huh?

Hope you all have an awesome day! I hope my notes will help you avoid food poisoning in the future.  Wish my luck on my test!

New Toy

It is obvious to me this morning that I have not been getting enough sleep. I passed out last night at the late hour of 8:30 and am still feeling a bit groggy this morning. Unfortunately I have to fight my large urge to vegetate, but I am sure I will feel energized after a run. At least we are done moving, yay!

I am also finding it hard to think of anything interesting to blog about...then again none of my blogs are really interesting and it baffles me that anyone would even waste their time to read it. Why in the world are you reading this right now? These are a  few minutes of your life you will never get back.

I guess the most exciting thing in my life right now is the new toy I get to borrow from my Dad while I am here. It is a EOS Canon Digital Rebel.

Oh how I have longed for a Digital SLR Camera. No more having to buy film, or waste money on developing it. And the wonder’s of the delete button…the possibilities are endless… I am sure I will be posting pictures soon!

Sizzlin Valentines Day

Last week was a little bit on the crazy side trying to get all of our junk out of the house, and getting it cleaned up, but as of Sunday evening we were officially done. This was the greatest Valentines gift I could of ever received, but the second best was dinner at Sizzler. If you think I am kidding…well I’m not. We didn’t get done with the house until late and ended up going there out of near starvation and desperation, but luckily I love Sizzler and all the senior citizens  that I got to dine with. ( they were out way past their bedtime I might add…and so was I ) Sizzler is a vegetarians dream with its endless salad bar options it was a great V-day dinner indeed. Not only did I get to fine dine at Sizzler my husband also surprised me with two dozen red roses in the morning after I got back from my run. I was definitely surprised and it was very sweet of him. It surprised me even more when I realized he made the bed, now that my friends is straight from the heart.

The strangest part of this week has been the complete flashback I am having by living back at home with my parents. It is so weird running on my old running route, seeing my old friend Mr. Jack rabbit, observing the scenery I once took for granted, and the smell of breakfast coming from the old folks home. The mere scent of  maple syrup pancake goodness and egg breakfasts gives me enough fuel to keep on running every morning. The scent of bacon on Saturdays tells me weekends are special.

It is only Tuesday but I can’t wait until the weekend. If all goes well so far I have Saturday completely free. Maybe a trip to the farmer’s market? A chance to cook dinner? The possibilities are endless! ( well kind of ) I am itching to cook another dinner but that depends on my families willingness to submit their taste buds for an evening.

How was everyone’s Valentines Day?

You Know What Day It Is

I have decided to start a Monday theme. I know, great… a theme day I must be running out of things to blog about…well yes and no. This theme is something I actually find very important. My new theme day will be called Meatless Mondays, so obviously it will take place every Monday. What does this Meatless Monday theme entail? You might ask. Well, every Monday from now on I will be posting a meatless Monday recipe for you to try out, stare at, mock, or ignore. It is your choice what you do with it but I encourage you to give it a try. It’s just once a week, but it can have some awesome benefits to your health, and the environment. If you don’t want to try my recipe but still want to give Meatless Monday’s a try, then that’s awesome! I am only lending out ideas, the possibilities are endless! The only rule of Meatless Monday is that you go meatless.  *High Five

You may have already heard of Meatless Mondays but just in case you haven’t, here is a brief little description of what it is.

Meatless Monday is an international campaign that encourages people to cut out meat on Mondays to improve their health and the health of the planet. Reducing meat consumption by 15% (the equivalent of one day a week) lessens the risk of chronic preventable illness and has a strong positive impact on the environment.

For a more detailed description you can go to www.meatlessmonday.com to explore more recipes and the rest of the story behind Meatless Monday.

So now for my recipe for Meatless Monday

Vegetarian Shepherds Pie

4 or 5 russet baked potatoes, peeled and cooked
    2 teaspoons olive oil
    4 cloves garlic, minced
    1 medium onion, chopped
    1 cup mushroom or vegetable broth
    3/4 cup plain soymilk/milk
    8 oz. slice mushrooms
    1 head broccoli, chopped or grated, stems and all
    2 carrots, chopped or grated
    2 celery ribs, chopped
    1 teaspoon cornstarch plus 1 teaspoon flour
    2 handfuls French fried onions

Directions:

1.Mash cooked potatoes with as much soymilk/milk, butter/margarine as you need to make them nice and creamy. Add some salt and pepper and a sprinkle of garlic powder.

2.Heat the oil in a large pan and sauté the garlic and onion over medium heat until soft and translucent. Add the broccoli, carrots, mushrooms and celery and cook until veggies start to wilt.

3.Add the broth and soymilk along with the cornstarch and flour. Let the mixture come to a boil, stirring frequently. Sauce will thicken up a bit. Season with salt and pepper if you need to. When all the vegetables are cooked, remove from heat.

4.Spray a 8"x8" baking dish with nonstick oil spray and spoon the vegetable mixture onto the bottom. Cover with the potatoes and smooth them down.  Sprinkle the top with French fried onions. Heat in oven for 10 minutes or so until top is slightly firm and onions are browned.

The best part about this recipe is that you can use pretty much any vegetables you have, it doesn’t have to be the vegetables called for in the recipe, so you can use whatever you like!

Serve with garlic toast or fresh bread. Enjoy!
Another way to prepare this is to spread half the potatoes on the bottom of the dish, add the veggies on top, then spread the remaining potatoes on top of the veggies. Either way it is delicious!
Serves: 6
Preparation time: 30 minutes

I hope you enjoy your Meatless Monday, let me know your thoughts, or if you tried out the recipe. Feel free to post some Meatless Recipes as well!

Search and Rescue

Happy Valentines Day everyone! The day has hardly started and it has already gotten off to a rocky start. Last night before I fell asleep while watching the Olympics I asked Eric if he could put the remote on the nightstand before he went to bed so that I would be able to find it in the morning for easy access in my early morning breakfast eating, TV watching routine. Well, morning came and not only was the TV still on loudly blaring Apollo Uno’s name over and over, there was also no remote by his bedside. I looked everywhere until I had no choice but to go fishing for it in the sea of blankets. Still no luck, I had no choice to but to go deep sea diving into the blankets. I caught something but It was not what I was looking for and am a firm believer in catch and release.  ( I know your dirty mind was thinking somewhere along these lines so I thought I would get the dirty joke out of the way ha, ha...ok now wash away those thoughts ).   He mumbled a few unrecognizable words before he began digging for the remote flinging the blankets around in a drunken like rage while he said over and over “ I didn’t even change the channel it was right here. It was right here, it was right here.”  After deciding that it had in fact magically disappeared or grew legs and walked off  in some sort of Darwinian fashion,  I called off the search and rescue effort and took my cereal to the living room. Here, I easily found the remote for my TV viewing pleasure, and a nice cushy couch to sit my bum on. All was good.

Now that I got to eat my cereal and enjoy some TV I am ready to start my day…well kind of. We are still in the process of moving out. We are pretty much done but still have a few things left to finish up…lets just say we weren’t allowed to have pets and we had two big white dogs with an unlimited amount of energy and hair to shed. Smart? No, not really but I think we figured that out already.  So it looks as if we will be spending our Valentines Day scrubbing, mopping, raking, mowing, punching, sweating, and swearing. Every woman’s dream right? So for those of you who are single don’t worry, Valentines Day can still suck when you are married.

But if I am lucky, Eric will get me this for Valentines Day…

Passin it On

So I was lucky enough to have a little something passed onto me yesterday by Amanda Armstrong over at Tales From The Kitchen Coop: A Day In The Life of Mrs. Chicken. She passed onto me a blogger award, so it is my turn to pass on the torch ( can you tell I watched the opening ceremony of the Olympics last night? ) Thanks Amanda, you made my day, and I will be accepting this award in my pajamas as well, but mine don’t have cute lil cherries on them.

So now to the rules of accepting this award:

Rules:
1. List 6 things you are a master in.
2. Pass it on to 6 bloggers you think are masters at friendship & make blogging so awesome.

1. Running- well I still don’t consider myself a master but i’m a master at getting a run into my day no matter where I am. Yes, I even ran on my honeymoon in Puerta Vallarta Mexico. If you want me to be in a good mood, it is best to just let me run.

2. I am a master at my routine. You wouldn’t think a routine calls for mastery but when you are as anal as me about what you do before a run then mastery is a must. Here is how it goes down…Wake up usually 4:00-5:00am

Eat breakfast ( Honey Bunches of Oats – no exceptions)

Drink Caffeine and read blogs

Blog

Run

Repeat

3. I am a master at Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3 and 4, and Tony Hawks Underground 1, and 2.  I don’t know anyone that can beat me at trick attack, and I am oh so proud of this.

4. Procrastination- The fact that I don’t even have to try at this one is evidence of my mastery.

5. Knowing where the bathroom is in nearly every building around town. ( I pee a lot ).  And if it is a new town or new building I have a sixth sense of where the bathroom is.

6. Grocery Shopping- My ability to maneuver a shopping cart with such precision up and down the grocery store aisles often cuts my shopping time in half, saves the finger’s of small children, and prevents  bruises on the pyramid stacked apples in the produce section.

Wow, that is a lame list of things I am a master at, I apologize. But here are some blogs that are not so lame, in fact they are awesome and you must check them out.

Although she gave me this award it would feel wrong not to mention her because her blog is definitely one of my favorite blogs to read…

1. Amanda Armstrong- Tales From The Chicken COOP: A Day In The Life of Mrs. Chicken.

2.  Amanda- La Blondie Peruana

3. Margaret – Green Beans and Little Things

4. Ashley – Industrius Me

5.  TheBigShowAtUD

6. Cheryl- Confessions of a Twenty-Something Year Old

New Recipes and Fulfilled Dreams

I finally got to cook dinner for my family last night. I made zucchini lasagna with homemade Focaccia bread. It was great being able to actually get all of the ingredients I needed for the recipe. It  has been a dream of mine to go to the grocery store and get all of the ingredients I needed. Thanks Mom, you helped fulfill a dream of mine! Unfortunately I didn’t get to start grocery shopping until about 4:00pm and I had taken on a new recipe. Not so smart.

I rushed around the store like a mad contestant on Top Chef, only instead of facing a quick fire challenge, I faced the challenge of dodging small children and little old ladies. Good thing I didn’t have a time limit because it ended up taking me forever. My parents were probably famished and about to fight the dogs for their food,  but they seemed to ignore their hunger pains quite well. On a more positive note, since I took forever Eric got to eat dinner with us even with is late arrival.

Besides being able to cook, the best part of the evening was being able to share what I made, and despite a few recipe discrepancy's no one projectile vomited on the table, or spit out their food in protest.  Hey, they may have even liked it a little. Even my vegetable hating husband, who reached for seconds I might add. Do I feel a cooking blog in the making? What do you all think?

Lastly, I would also like to thank my Mom for cleaning  up the disaster I made in the kitchen afterwards.  I promise I won’t make such a mess next time!

On My Own

Yesterday was quite a day. I was expecting it to be a day full of cleaning, but instead it ended up being a day full of training. I got to train clients on my own for the first time yesterday.

Long story short, the Manager/trainer at guiding fitness was double booked and needed me there to train clients…alone. Yes, I was completely terrified, but I somehow pulled through and was able to help her out. It was really stressful but amazing at the same time. I learned more yesterday then I did in any class I have taken so far and figured out that it is nearly impossible to grasp the concept of personal training until you physically do it. I probably sucked and sent clients running for the hills ( or trying ) but I can’t wait to do it again. I think it will get easier each time and I am very grateful, and feel very privileged to be getting the opportunity to  learn this way.

Since I was at the studio until a little after 6:00pm we didn’t end up getting completely moved out yesterday as planned. I ended up grabbing us Subway on the way home from the studio. We ate, discussed how tired we were, and our plans to get it done by Saturday, then headed to Auburn where I made cookies and watched American Idol. Unfortunately my cookies sucked worse than AI…so that’s pretty bad. I tried making them with half the fat the recipe called for and replacing it with mashed banana. It would of worked for me but I know that it was not a cookie that normal people would find tasty. It’s a process of trial and error I suppose. That is what you get for trying to healthify junk food.

Sorry Mom and Dad, I promise they will be better next time!

Anyone have any good Cookie recipes to share?

Pho Sure

I finally got to cook yesterday. It was for my nutrition/cooking class at school so it was not as relaxing as it would of been at home, but I still enjoyed it and it was a success!

This week we are covering soups and one of the soups we made yesterday was a Vietnamese soup called Pho. I made the vegetarian version for the class. This is kind of what it looked like.

 

Not only did I get through the recipe without brain farting and doing something to drastically alter it, but the teacher said it had more flavor than the non-vegetarian and that she liked it better.  She  came up to me and said I did a great job so I mentally patted myself on the back, go me.

I love cooking, and have found that is kind of like an artistic outlet for me. I have blogged about my creative constipation  in the past but maybe I am not so creatively constipated after all, and have just been using my creativity in another form. One of the benefits of cooking is that you get to share your creation using every sense. Not only do you appeal to the sense of  sight, but also with  smell, taste, touch, and hearing ( you know that sizzling sound ).  Although, sometimes people probably wish that I didn’t share all these senses with them. ( This can be the downside of my newfound art form ). Another great thing about the art of cooking is the nourishment that you can provide for your observers and cooking healthy meals is especially important to me. This brings me to my next thought:

Being that I am so passionate about nutrition it has been my goal for quite sometime now to become a nutritionist. But now, after giving someone at Guiding Fitness a little nutritional advice I realize that the best way to reach people is not by telling them what to eat, but to teach them how to eat. By teaching them what to eat  I mean physically being there with them and teaching them how to cook, shop, and use the foods God gave us on this earth that don’t involve a plastic wrapper.

After observing my teacher in my cooking class, and hearing her story I have realized that she has helped so many more people by just teaching them how to cook. It is a more personal, and enjoyable process that you do not get to experience as a nutritionist or dietician. How effective is it to teach someone about food in an office?  ( Culinary school here I come? )

So here is my new goal: I want to get down to the nitty gritty and teach people how to exercise and how to eat in the most effective way possible; being there in person, face to face, hands on, and not in an office handing out reading material and slips of paper.

I am beginning to think I should of posted this to my nutrition blog, but this is not really an informative post about nutrition, and more like an all over the place blurb of an “Aha” moment. (Sorry!) Most importantly I would like your thoughts on the matter. If you were looking to change your exercise habits, or dietary habits, what do you think would help you the most?

Just Feel Like Cookin

The move is almost complete…we only have a couple of days left to clean, and get the rest of our crap out. Oh Joy.

I miss cooking the most right now. I haven’t been able to with all our utensils and food packed up. I want to cook so bad, and I am tired of fast food and microwave burritos. What I would do to cook a homemade organic meal right now, or even just  to have a piece of fruit…or fresh vegetables.

I could make a vegetarian lasagna with homemade french bread…

or

Vegetable Jalfrezi…

Or…

Roasted Root Vegetables

Whole Wheat Pasta with dark leafy vegetables

Or my go to meal of homemade pizza. 

Do you like to cook?  What is your favorite meal to cook? Feel free to share any recipes! :)

Sleepy Eyed Confessions

As I sit here staring at the morning moon, I can’t help but surrender to the fact that I feel unusually tired. For the first time since I can remember, I didn’t want to get out of bed. ( or off the floor in my case )  It is probably due to the fact that I have a lot of work to do today, or maybe it was because it’s freezing in here. I can’t wait to be done with moving so I can be warm, sleep in a bed, and be able to relax a little bit. The only thing I have to look forward to today is going to the fitness studio.

On another note, I have a confession to make. Due to lack of food, cooking utensils, time, and money,  I was forced to consume fast food. I am talking real fast food…the kind that you drive through. Eric and I went through the  Burger King drive through yesterday. No, I didn’t eat meat, so you can put those assumptions aside. However, I did have their veggie burger. They have a veggie burger made from Morningstar Farms veggie patties which you can also buy at the grocery store. It is good that they have a little healthier options, and choices for vegetarians in emergency situations, but I still feel a little dirty. Sorry Michael Pollan, I failed you this time.  Eric loved every second of it though. Especially seeing me eat something that came from a drive through. It is great that he is so easily amused.

Well, back to packing. Happy Monday everyone! Have anything exciting planned for the week? How about for Valentines Day?

Still Moving

There is still so much to be done, and this is probably the last time today that I will be able to sit down. This is less of a blog post, and more of just me trying to fulfill my goal of posting a blog everyday for a year.

I can feel the tension in the air rising. Eric set his alarm for 7:00am so I know he is serious…but if he actually gets up when it goes off, then I know he is really serious. I think I might try and get some stuff done before he wakes up in order to lesson my stress. It is complete chaos up in here. Pray for me.

Moving Day

Well, it’s about that time again. Moving day/Weekend is here and off to Auburn we go. Luckily it is not a two hour drive this time and things should go a little smoother…we should be pretty good at this whole moving thing by now.

I must say that it will be a little sad to leave Lincoln. I will miss the huge bike lanes, the close proximity to my school,  the mall, Trader Joes, Whole Foods, and most of all…sunrise, and sunset.

 

Of course Auburn has some great sunsets as well, but Lincoln’s lack of hills leaves the sunset more exposed and left more easily observed. But there are a few things about Auburn that I am looking forward to. Like hanging out with my mom, and….

Hiking with my Dad ( yes that is a frog next to his camera bag, he didn’t step on it this time ).

Trail running

I can’t wait to make use of the trails in auburn, but first I have to stop stalling and pack up all my junk. I can’t wait until it is all done.

What do you hate the most about moving?

Just My Luck?

This week has been uncharacteristically good. Too good. I feel like a huge lightening bolt  is going to strike me dead at any second, or the ground beneath me is just going to open up and swallow me whole. I am not this lucky…it’s just not possible. Inevitably something must go wrong.

I am still in shock that anything could even remotely go the way I want it to.  I think God finally got tired of hearing me whine and beg, or maybe all of those lucky pennies I picked up finally paid off, or perhaps all of those years of bad luck earned from walking under ladders and opening umbrellas in the house have finally worn off. I should buy a lottery ticket.  This week, not only did my dream job get within fingers reach, but I got a new phone, and avoided having to teach in front of class this morning. But wait, it gets better…there is no class next Friday. This confirms my week of pure luck, and gives it a chance to carry into next week. Double score.

Now that I have recognized my new found luck, Karma is going to be after me as if I laughed at someone else’s misfortune, or parked in a handicapped spot.

So what is one of the best things that has happened to you lately?

Homework Post

I didn’t get to post a blog this morning because  as usual I saved my homework to do until the last minute. So that means you get to read my homework. Critique it, tear it to shreds…let me know your thoughts. Feedback is my best friend so don’t hold back :)

Our assignment was to write a paragraph, ( or more if we felt inspired to do so ) about a process. So this is about one of my first experiences in the process of making coffee.

 

The Good Smell of Bad Taste

I held the unsealed, punctured, and badly crinkled bag under my nose. How can something that smells so good taste so bad? I thought to myself as I stared down the coffee maker that had been previously used only as a decoration. I had tried to use it a few times, but was quickly discouraged by my lack of patience and overall ability to follow directions. Normally my daily caffeine fix came from a more easily accessible source; a source from a can that sat in my refrigerator ready for me to grab at any moment. My canned source of caffeine had been depleted and I was as desperate as a thirsty dog in front of a closed toilet lid. I would have to look elsewhere for a caffeine fix, and unfortunately my only option was a 3 month old bag of coffee sitting in my cupboard. I scooped up the brown, grainy, dirt-like substance from the bag, managing to get more coffee on the counter than in the coffee maker as I read the barely legible directions on the back of the bag that read “Recipe for Great Coffee”. I was unsure great coffee really existed but I was determined to try and make this the greatest coffee that I had ever made.  After placing the carefully measured amount of grounds into the filter, I continued by filling the coffee pot with cold, filtered water, and poured its contents slowly into the top of the coffee maker. Only thirty minutes later, I found out how to turn it on.  My stubby finger’s hastily pressed the buttons in anticipation and it began to brew. Mission accomplished.

The aroma of coffee soon filled the air, and a loud beeping sound penetrated my ear drums. Finally, the coffee was done. I brushed off my dusty coffee mug and proudly poured in my muddy creation. As I held it gently below my lips I felt a comforting warmth brush against my face.  Hesitantly, I took my first sip. The hot liquid flowed through my mouth, burning my tongue, and attacking my taste buds with bitter vengeance.  I shook my head in disgust and knew there was only one way this substance was going to make it past my taste buds, and into my stomach. I quickly plugged my nose, and tilted back my head. Bottoms up.

For Real?

“We all really liked you.”

Those words continued to play over, and over in my head. They liked me? What?

My luck finally changed for the better yesterday. Or perhaps God was just teaching me patience. Either way, I received a very unexpected phone call.

I was on my way home from school, when my phone began to ring. Hmm must be Eric. I thought as I glanced down at my phone. Unfortunately for Eric I had just watched the episode of Oprah about not talking on your phone while driving… and was not going to answer it. Oprah would surely find out, and sick one of her cocker spaniels on me…or maybe Gale. To my surprise the name Hubby ( Eric’s cell phone name in my address book ) did not pop up in it’s usual place.  It was a 916 number, but it wasn’t Eric. I didn’t recognize the number at first…but then I remembered that it was the number of the fitness studio I had just shadowed at on Monday. Sorry Oprah, this call I had to take, I don’t have “people” to take my phone calls for me. I nervously picked up the call assuming I may not be going in tomorrow. Maybe her clients cancelled on her, or maybe I just totally blew it and they hate me.

“Hello?”

“Hi Amber?”

“Yep”

“Hi this is ***** from Guiding Fitness how are you?”

“Good how are you?”

“Good…I was calling to talk to you about something, do you have a minute?” I could sense a bit of seriousness in her voice.

Oh lord, what did I do.

“Yea” I said as cheerfully as possible.

“Great, so my husband and I sat down and had a good talk, well and everyone else in Guiding Fitness…”

Great..here it comes. Brace yourself for the blow. They don’t want you back.

“And we were discussing who was going to replace me when I go on maternity leave…and well.. we all really liked you.”

Wait what? No, I think you meant to say you really don’t like me.

“I think the main thing is though that we have to get you talking more.”

Just talk more..simple…right? I can do that.

“Yea definitely” I said laughing.

I was in such disbelief that the rest of the conversation is a bit of a blur. I don’t think I could continue to quote it accurately so in a brief summery; she continued to talk to me about what I would be doing by taking her place, and what needed to be done to teach me how to do so.

I still can’t believe it. It is such a surreal feeling. I feel like I won the lottery…well In my eyes it is even better than that. I finally get to do what I want to do. Granted I still have the opportunity to jack it all up, and the negative head chatter is trying to take over my thoughts, but for now I am not going to let it. I just want to let the positive thoughts flow through my mind for once. 

I am really looking forward to going in today, but now I am even more nervous because this raises the expectations of me even higher. The pressure is on. Pray for me.

Mind Games

“Her head has always messed with her. For as long as she can recall, it’s thrown hammers at her feet. Some runners have trick knees or fragile hamstrings. She has an undermining psych. When she toes the line in a 10-k, the runners around her wonder if she’ll set an American record. Inside her head though, she’s wondering if she can finish without walking.”

This is a little snidbit of an article  I just finished reading in Runner’s World magazine called Mind Games. It is an article about Kara Goucher an elite runner who is extremely talented, but still struggles with confidence. It captures her journey of training her mind to quell negative thoughts, battle doubts, setbacks, and mental demons that sabotage her big races. I found myself easily relating to this article not just in running, but in my everyday life.

I soaked up every word of the 10 page article, and a quote from Goucher sounded all too familiar. “I have a lot of negative chatter in my head, if I don’t rein it in, my mind will tend to obsess about what everyone else is doing in the race around me.”

These words could of come out of my very own lips. I have unlimited amounts of negative chatter in my head, but I have yet to figure out how to rein it in. Wherever I go I can’t help but compare myself to others. When I am in my English class, I instantly wonder if I should even be there. What if my writing is incredibly elementary and the people around me are on the verge of  being published writers. When I am in my cooking class, I find myself doubting everything I do even though I cook everyday, and seem to have more knowledge than most in the class. ( at least at vegetarian cooking ) <---now I am feeling self conscious that this line sounds too cocky. When I am in my group exercise class hiding, I know that I actually do know what I am doing, I just seem to forget that in front of large groups of people, and think about how much better everyone else did. While I am shadowing the trainers at Guiding Fitness I know exactly what to do, I just doubt myself so much I lack the confidence to do it and find myself standing there like an idiot.

 Standing There Like an Idiot. Now I know what to name my first book. ( if I am even capable of writing a book ).

Lately, a lot of my blogs have been about my lack of confidence in life. I think it is mostly because these past three weeks have been pushing me socially more than I have ever been pushed in my life. I am slowly, (very slowly) learning to push myself mentally as hard as I push myself physically. Running is very mentally and physically demanding, it would be great if I could take some of my running mentality and apply it to my everyday life. 

Although I now hate all this unintended “exposure therapy”, and it causes copious amounts of anxiety, exhaustion, and headaches, it  is probably the best thing in the world for me right now. I don’t want to stay in this bubble forever.

My Gaga Moment

So I contracted Herpes yesterday…No, not the cold sore/genital kind, but the herpes of craft goods…glitter. You always here people talking about having their Oprah inspired "Aha Moment" but I had an unintended "Gaga Moment". Eric and I spent the majority of the day avoiding packing up all our junk by wandering the mall. Of course we can’t really afford to buy anything but it is fun to pretend right?

Anyways, we ended our day at target to pick up dog food and rushed home to watch the Grammy’s. ( I missed Lady Gaga’s performance..not gunna lie I was a little bummed ). Immediately upon arriving home I do my usual rush to the bathroom to pee because I have been holding it all day and caught a glance of myself in the mirror. Hi me…wait…what the hell is on my face? Double take. Oh my Lord. I was horrified.  There I stood standing in front of the mirror with a massive amount of green glitter flakes ALL OVER my face. I immediately opened the door and called Eric over to the bathroom.

“What?” he asked.

“Eric, how long have I had this glitter on my face?!”

“All day.”

“ALL DAY? Why didn’t you say something!?”

“ I thought you put it there yourself.”

“Put it there myself? Since when did I start applying green crafting glitter to my face?”

“I thought you were trying something new and didn’t want to offend you by saying something.”

“You should of offended me.”

We both started to laugh as I wiped the globs of glitter off my face.
My mind tried to retrace my every step that day. How in the world did I get all this glitter on my face? Where did it come from? Did I get kicked in the face by Lady Gaga?

I am still wondering this morning how all that glitter got on my face,  but I can’t help but laugh at what the people must of thought of my fabulously green glittery face. Perhaps they thought I was an avid Lady Gaga fan showing my support for her on Grammy night…or maybe I just loved glitter. Either way…embarrassing.