Sunday Morning

Can you think of a better way to spend a Sunday morning ?

Still Alive

Wow!  If anyone ever tells you that its a good idea to participate in your graduation, have both sets of family visit, start a new job and attend a conference in the span of one week, punch that bastard in the mouth!  I am officially tired.

So, to recap:

1. attended graduation in Columbia, SC (2 hours west).  I am now an official MLIS.
2. Of course, my folks and J’s family came up and down (respectively) for the ceremony.  My folks stayed a couple of days, his family is staying for 12 days.
3. I now have a really, real job in my MLIS field.  Digital archivist (or librarian), that’s me.  Though I’m actually doing more web/sys librarian kinda stuff in the short term.  Which is good as it all adds to the cv.
4. CONTENTdm Users Group Southeast.  Made a lot of great contacts, got some good ideas.  Best quote of the conference (and I’m taking it slightly out of context): “Leave Your Nerd Alone”  I want that framed in my office and on many, many t-shirts.

So that’s where I’ve been.

In non-professional/family news (ie: hobby news), I got halfway through Buttercup and finally tried it on only to realize that it was huge and I had to frog it all.  But I have re-started it.  I will win this war, Buttercup.  You and me.  I’d post a picture, but I seem to have misplaced my camera cord.  Which is a shame really as I have been taking pictures to share….So you will just have to wait.  I’ve got some knit pics, some garden pics, some Quincy pics.  Lots of good stuff.  For another day, apparently.

Also, Portal 2 has been released and its AWESOME.  Go out and buy it.  Now.  You won’t be disappointed.  Its better then Portal and significantly longer.

Not kidding around here.  Definitely worth the money.  The main story line is very good and very funny and the co-op mode is excellent (still haven’t finished it yet).  AND new Jonathan Coulton song at the end!  BONUS!!

There was cooking – vegan spring rolls, vegan red curry rice noodles (OMG, so good) and yummy vegan baked goods abounded!

There has even been quilting!  But alas, no pics to share and no FOs anyways, so maybe you aren’t missing much.

Sorry for the picture-less post.  Its a bummer, but one I hope to rectify soon!

Is It Wrong?

That all I want to do is sew and watch obscene amounts of Battlestar Galactica?
I don’t think so….

21 Day Vegan Kickstart!

Is anyone else doing this?

http://www.21daykickstart.org/

You can sign up for the challenge and beginning April 4th you get 21 days of e-mails with recipes and tips.

I just finished up doing 21 days based on Dr. Neil Barnard’s book:
21-Day Weight Loss Kickstart: Boost Metabolism, Lower Cholesterol, and Dramatically Improve Your Health which is basically the same thing as the kickstart.

I had been feeling pretty not-so-good for awhile now and when I really thought about it, I realized it went all the way back to last year when the doc had me taking iron supplements for my anemia.  I started eating meat and taking iron and that just really, really messed my digestion way up.  Since then I kept up the meat intake and tried to find different iron supplements, even tried eating significantly more protein, but I just felt blah. I knew I needed a change.

SO I tried this book.  Its actually day 23 now and I feel so much better! I feel lighter, my digestion is almost back to normal, I’m sleeping better, my skin looks better, I get way less headaches, I feel like I’m handling stress better and I just feel…well…good.

What Barnard advocates, if you haven’t seen his show on PBS or gone to the PCRM website, is a low fat, healthy plant-based diet.  I emphasize the healthy bit b/c its so easy to be an unhealthy vegetarian/vegan these days, what with all of the highly processed meat substitutes out there (Morningstar Farms CornDogs, I’m lookin’ at you!). The book is great, its a gentle introduction to eating Vegan the right way and the recipes are really good.

Giving up meat has never been hard for me, but I had gotten pretty used to eating dairy, quite a lot of dairy.  A little cheese in this, greek yogurt in the morning, cottage cheese for a snack, the occasional Starbucks latte (and morning bun), etc. etc. It wasn’t good.  So the dairy thing – that’s tough.  But like I said, day 23 and I’m still sticking with it!  Soy lattes are pretty good, with the added bonus that you don’t need to add sugar as the soy is sweet enough on its own, Whole Soy & Co. makes good yogurt that’s dairy free and the cheese, well there’s no great substitute for cheese.  Just skip it.  Also almond milk is excellent (I prefer it to soymilk)!

Anyhoo, I highly recommend it!!  Its a good challenge and a great way to keep your eating habits in check.  Personally, I’m going to stay vegan for as long as I can.  But it would be a good “clense” of sorts for anyone really.  Check it out!

Citron Complete!

I finally finished Citron.  Its lovely.  I won’t be wearing it like a shawl though as I am cursed with the shoulder span of Refrigerator Perry.  I will wear it as a lovely little neck scarf – perfect for tucking into a light jacket perhaps?

I think I know how Quincy would prefer to wear it….

How Is It March?

Well its March.  That means February came and went.  And I totally missed it.  Darn you school and work1 and work2!  With so little free time its tough to justify an hour or two blargging when I could be out playing in the dirt!

Remember that square foot garden I tried to plant in the fall that was a total bust??  Well, I didn’t pull it up, I just let it hang out.  Just to see what would happen.  And also b/c I was too busy and cold over the winter to do anything with it.  Well, this is what happened:

Almost all of it is from the Fall, when it didn’t grow.  Maybe there wasn’t enough sun or it got too cold too quickly.  The only new things are some mint in the back and some broccoli in the front.  I was so pleased that the garden didn’t die, but in fact started growing again I thought what the heck – might as well go for it and plant some tomatoes and flowers too!

Happy Spring Everyone!!!

Best. Vegetarian Chicken Pot Pie Recipe. Ever. Seriously.

OK, I’ve cracked it!  I’ve finally made a kick ass vegetarian chicken pot pie. Like, seriously good.  Like, don’t miss the meat kinda good.  Though I’m sure you could adapt this recipe into a real chicken pot pie very easily.  Also, fair warning, this is not a cheap recipe.  So I think this perfectly appropriate for a festive occasion or even a cruelty free holiday dinner.  OK, here’s the deal:

What I used:

1 really big carrot, peeled, diced small
2 small parsnips, peeled, diced small
1 potato, peeled and chopped
3 small shallots, chopped
1 tsp diced garlic
1 box Mepkin Abbey oyster mushrooms, chopped  (you could substitute any mushrooms here.  Think about 1 cup chopped)
1 cup frozen peas
1/2 roasted, chopped Quorn meatless turkey roast
olive oil
butter
2 heaping tsps flour
12 oz  broth made from “No Chicken” Bouillon Base
splash white wine
rosemary
sage
poultry seasoning
celery flakes
half and half
Whole Foods frozen pie crust (top and bottom)

What I did:

1. Make Quorn roast according to directions on box.  When cool slice and chop half for the pot pie.  Save the rest for another day.  Or for sandwiches.  Or whatever.  Its probably the best fake turkey/chicken roast I’ve tried so there will be a good use for it.
2. In big saute pan heat 3-5 tbsps olive oil on medium heat and add celery flakes, garlic, shallot, carrot and parsnip. sweat until carrot gets some color, maybe 5 minutes.
3. Add potato, rosemary, sage and poultry seasoning.  sweat another few minutes until everything has some nice color.  Lid on for another few minutes.  Carrots should have lost their crunch, but still be undercooked.
4. Add mushrooms and stir.  Lid on another 5 minutes.
5. Add frozen peas and salt.  Lid on another 5 until peas are thawed.
6. Add 2-3 tbsps of butter or margarine.
7. Add chopped Quorn roast.  Add flour and stir in to mixture.
8. Add splash of wine and broth and stir until broth thickens.
9. Take off heat and add a splash of half and half and gently stir to combine. If you like more “sauce” add more broth and stir over heat to thicken.  Add s&p to taste.
10. Pour mixture into 9″ deep dish pie crust lined pie pan.  Put 2nd crust on top and seal very, very well.  Poke a couple of holes for ventilation and put pot pie onto a foil lined cookie sheet (trust me).
11. Bake at 350 for a hour or until crust is fully cooked.

BABOOM!  Try not to eat the whole bloody thing at once.  Also, its best to give it a few minutes to cool and let the sauce thicken up, so….good luck with that.  B/c I can never wait. And its still good.

Furniture and the Obligatory New Year’s Post

Our new furniture is in place and we love it!  Here’s a peek:

See the blue chair? That's my knitting chair!

The only thing is that now that I have a knitting chair, Quincy is seriously unhappy.  I used to sit on the couch and Quince could just curl up next to me, under a blanket.  Well in the new chair its a bit of a tight squeeze for both of us.  And he is quite pouty about the whole thing.  I don’t mind squeezing in with him, but he just takes forever to get comfortable and the constant rearranging makes knitting my mittens difficult.

But we will figure it out in the end, I’m sure.

SO, totally off topic, but this year is going to be difficult.  Or at least the next 4 months are going to be difficult.  Working at College of Charleston while trying to balance my other job is one thing.  I’m going to have to institute Saturday hours for my business and that just hurts (I love my weekends).  But in addition to that I’m taking 2 classes (and graduating in May).  And building a new website for LISSA (Library and Information Science Student Association).  I’m a bit worried I’ve bitten off more than I can chew….

Regardless, I will finish my mittens and find time for some time for more knitting and/or quilting.  I think that will be important to my sanity.  And I will keep up this blog.

I deactivated my facebook account on Sunday.  It was such a huge time suck.  And I did next to nothing on it.  The only thing I’ll miss are the handful of friends that I actually communicated with regularly and some of the amusing status updates that gave me the illusion of being connected to people that I actually wasn’t.  Those who are my friends can find me (web, e-mail, text, phone – I’m around) and I can find them.  And hopefully I’ll have more time for, or at least less of an excuse to not do, my work.

That’s what my new year is going to be all about – wasting less time and getting more accomplished.  I think its a simple but worthy goal.

 

Quincy had a good one too…

Gratuitous Doggy Photos:

Quincy loves new ball!

OMG! Quincy really loves new ball!

OMFG!! QUINCY REALLY, REALLY, LOVES BALL ALOT!!111!

And then there was Christmas…

Christmas was good.  Quiet, but after the last few months, quiet is very, very good.  Lots of tasty food was eaten (we made Mario Batali’s lasagna recipe sans meat) and presents were exchanged.  Josh loved his gifts, I loved mine.  Highlights include a Kindle (w00t!) and a new winter coat (which I desperately needed.  And the coat is purple.  This makes it extra, double good.

Wow. Is that mirror dirty or what? I blame the tiling.

From Mom and Dad we’re getting the gift of $$ towards a new couch.  Thanks to the huge sale at a local furniture store, we’re getting a new couch and, AND, I get a knitting chair.  This makes me (and my very sore hips) very, very happy.  Pictures forthcoming as its not delivered yet.  But soon.  And we bought an ottoman and pillows in preparation!

The couch is beige/cream so we want the pillows to POP!

Not very exciting, I know, I know. But as I haven't had an ottomon (or any foot resty type thing yet), I am thrilled. Its the little things, I tell ya.

How was your holiday and your new year?  Lets hope 2011 isn’t such the throat-punch that 2010 was, eh?