IMAGE HEAVY POST!

Weekends really are the best. Especially ones filled with friends and adventures. As I mentioned in my last post, I went to Cape Cod! For those of you who don't know me very well, I spent my beginning college years on the cape. I met my two friends Nick and Joe there (as well as Boyfriend), and I'm extremely happy to say we are still friends even after excessively long periods of separation.

Before the three of us separated to go home at the end of our freshman year we took some photos. We still weren't sure at that point who was going to be coming back the next year and we wanted some photo documentation of our time on Cape Cod:

 We decided to take some similar pictures this year to see how much we had changed (IF we had changed). It was quickly discovered that nothing has changed in almost three years...not even most of the facial expressions.

I discovered this weekend that there are two new TV shows for me to watch. Blue Mountain State and Kyle XY. This is perfect timing, as finals will be coming up and I can now fight myself over whether or not I should study or watch TV (ha-ha...I'm obviously going to study). I got to go into a liquor store for the first time as a legal customer on Saturday too! It was exciting, but I was obviously carded because I look like a child.

The weekend was over faster than I thought it would be... Boyfriend had to make a trip to the cape on Sunday morning to visit his family, so he picked me up on his way back and we went to this place on Cape Cod called 'the knob' since it was such a nice day out! It was absolutely beautiful! Boyfriend took a few pictures, unfortunately he isn't in any of them.

Background information on 'the knob': Since I didn't know the cape very well when I moved there, that is where Boyfriend  wanted to take me on our first date. We have gone back a few times since then, but it is a rather long drive and can get very cold

Beautiful, isn't it? This place is usually pretty quiet. It a pretty desolate area of Falmouth. Boyfriend also took a picture of me; unkempt and unshowered. Enjoy.

After our little excursion it was 'back to reality'...or Boston. Both? Anyways, we headed back to his apartment for dinner and a display of the Nordic god mask he made for school. It had a yarn beard! I love it, and as a special treat for you all I am going to post a picture of him wearing it.

Must repeat!

 Okay, well the thing about tonight's dinner is that it was amazing. I was really in the mood for something with a whole lot of flavor. I needed to blow my taste buds away, and I had no idea where to begin. I opened the fridge to being exploring the possibilities. Asparagus is in season now (and totally delicious) and my dad had given me some to take back to Boston with me. I only had a few stalks left...maybe five or six. Just enough to throw into a sauté pan with some onion, garlic, and the last handful of sweet peppers in the fridge (also brought from home).

While that glorious combination sizzled away I began searching for a grain. Quinoa! The perfect solution. Brown rice is probably my favorite grain but sometimes we are at odds because it takes too long to cook if I'm absolutely ravenous. Quinoa cooks in about 15 minutes, is chock full of protein, and has an amazing nutty flavor. I urge you to try it if you haven't already.

While the quinoa simmered, I added some balsamic vinegar to the vegetables in the pan and then cut up some fresh tomatoes, grabbed the last bit of spring greens for garnish, and grabbed a carrot and some peach soy yogurt for dessert. Will most definitely be making this again. I mean, just look at the picture! Does that not look amazing?

It was also the weekly Whole Foods grocery trip this afternoon, and I went with a few of the usual staples: carrots, romaine lettuce, daikon, almond milk, peas, granny smith apples, millet, and tomatoes. I also did something unexpected today. Sometimes I like to put something I usually get back on the rack and get something different. Today that something different was a jícama.

Jícama is actually a kind of fruity Mexican turnip, often referred to as a 'yam bean'. Strange. Anyways, I have been lusting after them for quite some time, feeling an insatiable need to experience their flavor. I had read on the sign that the jícama is very tasty when dipped in salsa. Well it just so happens, as my readers know, that I make fresh pico de gallo (pretty much salsa) every single weekend. I also now have a jícama sitting in my kitchen! You had better believe when I finally get to slice this bad boy up there will be pictures documenting the experience...the WHOLE experience.

The other news is that there may not be an update after tomorrow for a bit. My beloved macbook needs to go into the shop, as it has been giving me an incredibly hard time. The hard drive is beginning to collapse into itself, and I am unable to open anything save for Firefox (with inconveniently shuts itself down ever half hour), iTunes, and iPhoto. Luckily those open, but I'm not enjoying this. I can't open Microsoft word, I can't reach any of my documents or applications folders, and the computer is running so slow it's actually closer to crawling than running. I might have to leave you at the edge of your seats for the next update, so cross your fingers the laptop comes back from the hospital quickly!

It's actually with impressive consistency that my dad is saving me from impending doom. Within minutes yesterday he had an external hard drive headed to Boston for me to back up my stuff. I honestly don't know where I would be without him. Probably drooling in a gutter somewhere eating chapstick, I don't know.

Post-Birthday, I'm Back!

Craziness! I can't believe it has been over a week since I have updated! I just got so into being home, then it was my birthday, and then I had to make the trip back to Boston. It was a fun filled week and the good news is that means I have lots to say!

Let's begin with my sister making it safely to France! As soon as my dad got to the train station to pick me up my sister called his cell phone to let him know she had made it to her host family's house. It was truly perfect timing because I got to talk to her! When my dad and I finally got home I got to mom, my brother, and my dog! I haven't seen my dog or my brother since I moved to Boston a few months ago and my mom since she visited me a couple weeks before, so it was all very exciting. My dad and I spent the afternoon doing the weekly grocery shopping and chatting, and I made fried udon noodles with cabbage for dinner. It was delicious and even my older brother enjoyed it (he's a skeptical eater). It was a perfect first evening home, and my dog got to lick my plate when I was done so everybody was happy.

The next night I recreated Olivia Wilde's vegan bolognese recipe, and this was a big hit (especially with my parents). I tried it the first night on some fresh spaghetti squash and then a different night I spooned it on some actual pasta like a real human would. Spicy and full of awesome.

Onto the rest of the week! As some of you may know, it was my birthday on Thursday so now I am old. Twenty one! I hope you guys can believe it, because I am still having trouble wrapping my mind around the whole thing. I spent Tuesday night and Wednesday morning making chocolate vegan cupcakes and coconut frosting. They were absolutely delicious, and I used some green food dye to tie in the whole 'St. Patrick's Day' theme. 

My original intent was to find a vegan cake at the Whole Foods near my nana's house, but they didn't have any! They did have a larger produce section than the one I frequent in Boston, but I wasn't terribly impressed with their bakery section. Win some and lose some, I suppose. This led to the creation of my own birthday treat. I love cake, but having an entire cake sitting in our kitchen is never a good idea. 

The perfect idea was then suggested: bake a batch of cupcakes, set aside four for our family on my birthday, and bring the rest to my mom's school and feed her class! It was fan-tab-ulous. Only thing was, I made six more cupcakes than I needed and this resulted in their immediate consumption. I have no self control and ended up with a serious sugar-hangover. Though I did get to see my friend Steve, so that made the whole thing incident fade into the background a bit.

Cut to my birthday! I don't mean to make this moment all about me, but it kind of is, right?

So this is me...using my dad's shoulder as a birthday snack. If you thought my turning twenty one was going to signify my debut into adulthood you are going to be sorely disappointed. So we spent the first part of the afternoon after returning from my mom's school lounging, taking pictures, and discussing how I am now decrepit.

Now once you look past the fact that I am so pale I look dead, this is actually a cute picture! That's my mom on the right, and my daddy on the left. Aren't we cute? I am totally wearing my sister's prom dress, but I will attempt to justify this by explaining that I couldn't bring any clothes home with me since I took the train.

Since I know you're all here to read about me getting drunk on my birthday. I'm not sorry to report that drunk isn't quite the word I would use. Pleasantly incapacitated might be more appropriate. According to my family, it is incredibly difficult to tell if I am drunk or just being myself. I can't tell if that is good or bad. We went to P.F. Chang's for dinner, as that is definitely one of my favorite restaurants.

 Chris (my brother), me, and my dad in front of the restaurant.

I tried the stuffed lettuce wraps for the first time. I didn't used to be a tofu person, but the chefs there have really turned me to the dark side. It is spicy, flavorful, and totally delicious. Plus, anything wrapped in lettuce automatically gets five points. Interestingly enough, this was my brother's first experience with P.F. Chang's. I am happy to report he enjoyed it, and also that I ordered a Mai Tai for my first drink.

Me, still deathly pale, consuming my first [legal] alcoholic beverage!

The party continued after we left Chang's. We relocated to a bar near my house called 'the Ancient Mariner'. It's a small place and has been around since before I was born! It was there that I came to meet my new favorite drink: the whiskey sour. Ohhhh my goodness. I love sweet and tart, and this drink definitely didn't let me down. I had a few...maybe more but it was so worth it. It was honestly the most fun way I could have spent my birthday. It has been brought to my attention that most people wish to spend their twenty first birthday passed out in an alley, but I'm fairly certain my family is about 500 billion times more fun than that. Boyfriend couldn't make the party (he wasn't on vacation so he had to stay in Boston) and my sister was still in France, but aside from that this was definitely one of my better birthdays.

We made our way back home after a while and then popped open a bottle of Nihonshu (Japanese sake) my dad got me for my birthday. We sipped on this while I opened my presents! My parents and sister got me a book called 'Clean Food'. I know, perfect. My parents also made me a photo album with pictures from every birthday I've ever had. It was the best! I'm glad I enjoyed the night so much, because I hear that it all goes downhill after twenty one. 

As I'm writing this I feel the need to address the above saying for a quick minute: isn't going downhill better than going uphill? I don't mean to shine a spotlight on my natural laziness, but really... That expression seems so misplaced.

My last night home we went to the Applebee's bar for a few drinks before going to see the new movie Paul. I tried my first non-virgin piña colada. Consensus: seriously sugary, very delicious. Due to the extreme sugary nature of the drink, for my next drink I traveled a slightly lighter route with a 'Hurricane'. It was rum mixed with pineapple juice, sweet & sour mix, orange juice, and grenadine. Eughmygod so good! Very strong, though. I have to say, Paul definitely lit up the evening. It was witty and had great references, so comic book reading dorks (me) and anyone born before 1990 would definitely enjoy it.

So I'm back in Boston now. The morning following the trip to the movies was filled with whirlwind packing and squeezing in a breakfast with my friend Chelsea. I hadn't seen her since Christmas break, so it was really fun. After a prolonged farewell, Chris and I headed for Boston. I quickly unpacked the goodies my mom sent me and hopped on the subway to see boyfriend. It was a joyful reunion, filled with dinner at Panera, a pit stop at Newbury Comics, lots of hugging, and a walk outside featuring the biggest moon seen from earth in twenty years. It was SERIOUSLY huge and gorgeous, everyone! I hope you all got to see it... Thankfully the night was devoid of anything alcoholic. I'm not a big drinker to begin with, but I think I'm boozed out for at least a week :)

When I got back to my apartment this morning I munched on some kale and mochi for breakfast (still feeling the aftereffects of all the drinking/sugar) and then walked to Whole Foods to restock on some perishables. I needed apples, garbanzo beans, edamame, and some arame (for those of you unfamiliar, it is a sea vegetable). The second I got back from Whole Foods? Created a sizeable tub of edamame hummus. Is hummus not the best thing ever? I don't ever forget that I like it, but I do forget just exactly how much I enjoy it. I always make mine a little extra garlicky and throwing some edamames in there gives it a really interesting and fresh flavor. I meant to go to school to update this blog and to do some work, but it was already three o'clock and apparently the shuttle to the school closes earlier on Sundays than usual, so it didn't end up being worth the trip. The good news? I had that extra time to make this update extra long! Will be updating on a more regular schedule now that vacation is over, so fear not. This is not the end.

Honestly...

This week might kill me. I refuse to use business as an excuse to let any of the many things I have to do slide, but I think it may come at the cost of exhaustion. I know I promised to update on the train ride home, but I have a feeling I may end up napping through that entire ride. As vacation draws near there are a myriad of exams and papers due (thankfully, most of these had been studied for/written previously) but touch-ups to reports and regular studying have to go on top of the new material teachers would like for us to learn before the break. This way we can forget it all and then re-learn it when we come back! Doesn't that sound lovely?

I was studying on the elliptical this morning, looking something like a crazed maniac, when I noticed in the margin of my Roman Civilization notes that there is an Italian archaeologist coming to speak today at 4:15. Obviously I'm going to see this, so I need to find a way to work it into my schedule. With some moderate acrobatics, it should be fine. I have an exam later this afternoon before the archaeologist comes to speak. Wish me luck? I'm too nervous for lunch. Perhaps I will be hungry when the archaeologist gets to talking about perfectly preserved late Pleistocene hominid flesh... I should pack a snack, yes? I'm thinking carrots and hummus, then I can pretend the carrot stick is a decomposing prehistoric bone and the hummus can be the sediment I found it in! Nom nom nom.

On another note: still counting the hours until I arrive home. Right now we are at approximately 96 hours and 15 minutes. Jealous? You should be.

Did I mention I got an 'A' on my first Roman Civilization exam? That's how we do it here in Boston. Yay!

So much excitement!

I remain in good spirits today, despite the red alert from my school about a MEASLES outbreak! Apparently a professor was diagnosed with measles, so those of us who can't verify immunity are not allowed to participate in public activities (like the gym, going to clubs, etc.). Lucky for me, I am immune. Thank goodness.

I almost wish I wasn't allowed to go to the gym, though. Apparently I'm a spaz and can't handle any kind of thigh-weights. Tried some a few days ago and have been very sore. Yesterday I thought I would suck it up and work through it. Bad idea, because this morning when I went to put pants on I fell over and ended up crawling back over to my bed like a wounded animal. I wasn't aware that I had that much muscle that could hurt THAT much. Needless to say, I skipped that particular set of weights during this morning's workout.

I have a picture of last night's dinner for y'all. I had a date with myself and made an amazing but simple brown rice pilaf. It was just some short grained brown rice sauteed with some toasted pine nuts and maple-caramelized onions. This was topped, of course, with some shoyu (soy sauce). The picture doesn't really do it justice, but trust me when I say it was fantastical.

This morning I woke up a little bit early since I went to bed a lot a bit early last night. Since I was up with some extra time I decided to make some home-made granola out of toasted rolled oats, some sea salt, and some maple syrup. It smelled SO good while it was in the oven, and I didn't take a picture since it was enthusiastically consumed within three minutes. I am a pig. Though it was delicious, I'm not sure if I would start my day like that often. It was very sweet/salty and almost overwhelming for a morning treat. Definitely kept me full for a long time though.

Cut to lunch. My second class of the day was canceled and I ended up home earlier than usual. This was a bit of a mixed bag, as it allowed me to eat what I pleased but also meant my quiet 'me time' I get at school was nixed for the day. I was feeling like maybe I could go for some alkalizing vegetables to counterbalance the granola episode of this morning so I made some miso with mushrooms, broccoli, onion, carrot, green beans, and the ever present daikon. Delicious. I paired this with some spinach sauteed in balsamic vinegar (my mom always served spinach in vinegar when I was a kid and whenever I eat it I get a pleasant throwback to family dinners in the kitchen).

Don't tell anyone, but I may have eaten some of my leftover pilaf from last night as well... it was just SO good! Generally the whole meal filled me up completely and I felt much more balanced after that. On the other hand, since I just recently finished eating it and it is past five o'clock I have a feeling that was more of a supper than anything else.

I talked to my mom last night for a bit on the phone, and I was just getting so super excited for my birthday. I can't believe how close it is! I think I'm mostly just excited to be home. I still get to talk to and see my family when I'm not living at home, but the hardest is leaving my dog. She's the sweetest thing and obviously can't understand what 'going to college' means, so whenever I go home she follows me around for days until she's fairly certain I'm not leaving again. I always do, and that is part of what makes it so hard. I'm also bummed that my sister won't be home for my birthday. Did I mention she is going to France that week? How cool is that? She's going to take a lot of pictures because if she doesn't she knows I will kill her. Ha-ha. But really.

Did I mention the fun thing that happened to me on the subway this morning? A lovely older gentleman selling Boston Globes gave me one for free on the condition that I kept showing the world "my beautiful smile". How cute is that? I think I was just working off of my granola-high so the smiling may not have been intentional. It was also a bit funny because, as I looked at the front of the paper, I noticed that my very own school had made the front page for the whole measles debacle.

Am currently multitasking. I'm both studying for a midterm I have on Tuesday and am also browsing recipes to try when I go home to visit. Just found one for a vegan coconut-lime pie with a raw almond-date crust. Yum!

It's a Sunday kind of day...

So the better part of my Sunday was spent moseying. I kept myself a safe distance to the heater since it snowed last night. Again. My theory? February would like to get a few last words in before it turns into March. Typical.

The good news is that I made the prettiest lunch ever that was SO good and SO filling that I'm still comfortably full and it has been about 6 hours. I wanted to use the last handful of romaine I had in the fridge before I started in on the lettuce my mom brought me, so I decided on a salad. I had half of a red pepper in the fridge and some carrots that my mom brought. Ever since I was a little kid I've had the hugest thing for balsamic vinegar, so it guest stars on almost every salad I make. Since it was so cold here in Boston today I decided to cook up a vegan apple sausage and some green beans. Delicious. I think I'm so full because of the apple sausage. They taste heavenly and are very hearty soooo... I took another picture!

Now that I've started with the picture posting I just may keep putting them up! It's surprisingly easy. I'm also going to post a picture to give you all a visual to go along with yesterday's blog post. My mom took this picture of me with my sister and my dad on her new droid. We were briskly walking through Boston Commons trying to get to the car! I'm the one on the left with the cranberry juice sticking out of her pocket...

Besides sitting next to the heater studying all day, I also spent a fair amount of time folding laundry. Turns out when you do tons of laundry in one night it means folding the same tons of laundry the next day. Who knew? At least now my room is super clean with not a single piece of dirty laundry in sight. I'm excited for school tomorrow because I have my first exam for Roman Civilization. I want to see if my studying paid off... Plus after hanging around the house all day I could use some time at the gym to burn off this extra energy!