Yesterday I woke up and stumbled to the kitchen to make breakfast, only to discover that I’d completely decimated my supply of rolled oats! Good gracious, what’s a girl to do?  Make a big batch of steel-cut oatmeal instead!

I used four cups of water, 1 cup of steel cut oats, 1 sliced banana and 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract. While the oats cooked, I drank some coffee and mailed my Netflix to distract my grumbling tum.  When the oats were ready, I portioned out a serving for myself and put the remaining three servings in the fridge.  Three breakfasts I won’t have to worry about later!

In college, usually on a Sunday, I’d make big batches of things like oatmeal and rice to enjoy later in the week. Sure, it takes a little longer than microwaving your breakfast one morning, but saves time in the long run and tastes a lot better.

For my bowl, I diced up a not-quite-ripe pear and microwaved it for 90 seconds.  This softened the pear right up, and released some of its natural fruit syrups.  Sometimes fruit is enough of a sweetener on its own, but yesterday I needed a bit more.  I added a little brown sugar, cinnamon, and walnuts to make my breakfast a little more interesting.

The rest of the morning was spent applying for jobs.  Unfortunately the entire city seems desperate for an “assistant” position, but I must press on! I think I need a really tall, straight-back chair.  It’s so easy to just hunch over the desk, and sometimes I catch myself and notice my posture and I am literally almost lying on the table. Terrible! Erin helped me with this about six months ago, but I really need to be better about it.

Finally I broke for lunch to bring the feeling back to my legs and back.  I’d read Diana’s (then) most recent post, which looked fabulous, and decided to give Gena’s Maple Cinnamon Vinaigrette a try.

I quartered the recipe to make just enough for my lunch.  I didn’t have any maple syrup, so I substituted raw agave nectar instead.  I added a little fresh lemon juice as well.

Each recipe of Gena‘s that I’ve tried has been mighty fine, and this was no different.  It was really good, and turned what would have been an ordinary salad into something unique and special.  The salad itself was almost worthy of Raw Wednesday… while tempeh was traditionally prepared raw, I’m not sure that’s still the case in all commercially prepared varieties.

In the mix:

• collard greens (local)
• red chard (local)
• 1/3 block TJ’s 3 Grain Tempeh
• 1/2 avocado
• 1 kiwi— a reader asked if I eat the skin of kiwis.  I do! I didn’t used to, but tried on a whim this summer.  The skin is thin, and really doesn’t change the taste of the fruit.  However, when possible I buy organic kiwis. I try to go organic whenever I’m going to eat the outside of a fruit or vegetable.  Obviously, this isn’t always possible for financial reasons.
• 2 carrots
• Agave Cinnamon Dressing

I decided to make my carrots a little less “rebellious”, and peeled them with the asparagus (or spargel) peeler I received free in Berlin at the Spargelfest.  Spargelfest!

This salad was perfect.  Good ingredients and quality dressing really do make all the difference.

I had a glass of red with lunch.

Juuuuust kidding… although I wouldn’t be opposed! No, this was POM‘s new Pomegranate Kiwi juice, that the company sent me a few weeks ago to try out.

This was a lot sweeter than the straight pomegranate variety.  It tastes a bit like fruit cocktail, but I really liked it! This is also 100% juice, which I like.  Don’t you hate when you buy “juice” only to get home and see that there’s actually very little fruit in there at all?

After finishing up my job search for the day, I laced up my sneaks and headed to the gym.  These are the new shoes I got… they’re the same model as my old pair (Asics Gel Kayanos), but I asked for pink instead of read this time. I’m not really a “pink” girl, but I don’t even remember the last time I wore pink sneakers!  Probably my pair of butterfly light-up L.A. Gears. Remember those?

I biked for 30 minutes at the gym while reading my book.  The stationary bike is not the most exciting thing, but I just need to get myself through 30 minutes.  I didn’t like the treadmill, either! There’s nothing wrong with making the most of things, from time to time.

After showering, I headed over to Curly’s Vegetarian to meet Lauryn for an early dinner.   I can’t believe I’d never been here before! It’s right near where I used to work, and has so many options.  Lauryn and I sat and stared at the menu for a good long while before finally deciding on what we wanted… everything looked delicious, from their Mexican fare to their “Public School Lunch” (mac & cheese with panko).  We both ordered the Dragon Bowl Q, a special salad with mixed greens, quinoa, fake chicken, black beans, mango, tomatoes, avocado, jalepeño, corn chips, vegan parmesan… with each dive of our forks, we discovered a new ingredient.  I asked for the carrot ginger and mango poppy dressings on the side, but it was such a loaded salad that I really didn’t need any extra.

It was massive.  I didn’t really eat the corn chips because I got so full!   While we ate, we made art.  Lauryn’s clearly the more talented one (on the left)… see how coy her chick looks?

All of their drinks and desserts sounded amazing (Mexican hot chocolate, peanut butter bomb), but we decided to save our money and have a treat at home.  We did, however, go to Trader Joe’s to get some essentials.  I left the store having spent the lowest amount I’ve ever spent there ($19.79!), and won’t be needing any yogurt or pumpkin anytime soon!  I need to go shopping with this girl all the time.

When I got home, I caught up on Gossip Girl while munching on a slice of banana-pumpkin-date tea loaf with almond butter and dark chocolate.

Well, back to the grind.  I’ve got to send a few more applications out, then clean up a little because Ari is coming home tonight!

See ya later, alligators.

Breakfast yesterday was my new standard bowl of tastiness: one banana and one apple bathed in homemade raw almond/walnut milk.  Man oh man, this stuff is GOOD.  I don’t know what I would do without Gena‘s recipes!

Before I went into the city for yoga, I grabbed this Botanic No. 7 Kombucha that I found on sale for $2.99.  Still pricey, but it’s hard to ignore cravings.  Look at that cute little foot in the background!

I got to the gym with time to spare, unlike last week.  Tina recently posted about ways to make sure you actually complete your exercise goals, and she’s right: an overbooked class is one of the surest ways to sabotage your workout! Anyway,  I found a mat (although I should really start bringing my own) and reserved a spot on the floor, then looked around at my neighbors.  That’s strange… why did everyone have barbells next to them? As more and more people filed into the room, weights in hand, I started to worry that perhaps I was in the wrong class.  I went outside to check the schedule, and I was right: I wasn’t in Vinyasa Flow, I was in Buff Yoga, the class before.  I’d seen the Buff Yogis on their way out as I was on my way in before; they were always pouring sweat and looked as if they’d just gone through military training.  I decided to stick it out, and let me tell you: it was SO HARD.  There were a few things I couldn’t do, like a Three-Legged Dog Vinyasa series while keeping a barbell balanced in the crook of my leg, so I just sat those out. I was mostly just proud of myself for staying in the room, because there were times when I really wanted to leave.  I’m not sure if I’ll go back to that class; I was really in the room for something a little more relaxing,  but it was a good experience.  All of my muscle groups are currently reliving the experience now… this girl is SORE.

After showering, I went to the park to eat lunch.  I’d packed two salads: curried mashed tofu and spinach with sprouts and hummus.

I also had an apple.

A little later, my stomach was really bothering me (it’s been a little off all week) so I stopped at Whole Foods for a cranberry walnut roll to eat on the way to work.  I find that carbs, either simple or complex, often settle an upset stomach.

At work, I snacked on a ChocChip Trailmix PURE bar.

Pros: Tastes like a chocolate chip trail mix cookie! The chunks are small and perfectly blended, but each flavor is distinguishable.  You know I’m a sucker for tart/sweet combinations, and this was great.  It kept me satisfied through my shift and until dinner.

Cons: I would have liked the tart/sweet to move to salty/sweet, but this was just about perfect.

Would I buy this again? Fo sho.

Dinner was a big salad with mixed greens, apples, tomatoes, walnuts, beets and peppers. The best part? “Mexican salad” that Mario made, with cilantro and jalepeño peppers, that he plopped on top. So good!

Work was pretty slow, so I got off early enough to meet Caitlin and her friends for drinks at the Blue Owl. Their cocktails are reported to be some o the best in town, but unfortunately they’re pretty pricey.  Lucky for us, Wednesday nights they are 1/2 price!  I decided to get the Ellison Cocktail.

This was so delicious! It was cool and refreshing, and totally different from anything I’ve had before.

After we left the bar, I met up with Ari and we took the subway home together.  We were both snacky, so we split this TJ’s boysenberry dried fruit bar.

Yesterday was one of those days when I felt like I barely took a breath to stop eating. I think my choices were pretty healthy (except all of the undocumented noshing at work… whoops), and if I’m hungry, it means my body needs the fuel.  The only problem is when I find myself eating out of boredom, which happens at the restaurant when we don’t have many customers.  Oh well! Life is meant to be delicious.

I’m off to get ready for my 4.5 mile run… I’m still pretty stiff from yoga yesterday, but hopefully it will feel good!

A couple days ago I ordered my first Road ID. Caitlin and Kelly have both been posting a lot about outdoor exercise safety, and although I use a shoe wallet (which is great for holding keys and cash), I wanted something a little more sturdy.  Should you decide to buy your own Road ID, the code ThanksKatherine538792 will take $1 off your total purchase price.

BE SAFE and have a great day!

Last night I went out to dinner with my friends Megan and Max.

We went to a Vietnamese place called Mai Village. There is a lot of inexpensive Vietnamese, Cambodian, and Thai in the Twin Cities, which I definitely didn’t take advantage of!

I ordered a noodle salad with grilled shrimp.  Underneath the massive tangle of noodles was a lot of lettuce; the top was garnished with carrots, mint, and peanuts. It was so good, and even though it was an enormous portion, I ate almost all of it!

After dinner, Megan and I went to Izzy’s for one last (well… probably not the “last,” let’s be honest) hurrah. I got the Dizzy Izzy in a Cup: 5 mini scoops of ice cream (Oreo, salted caramel, strawberry cheesecake, chocolate, and chai) with hot fudge. Mm-mm GOOD!

Well, I didn’t end up staying up all night to write my paper yesterday… I went to bed at 10! At least I can say that I haven’t pulled an “all-nighter” (to do work, in any case) since sophmore year.

This morning I popped right up at 6 and decided to go on a run.  I had half of a brownie Z bar before I left:

My heart rate monitor was being all kinds of crazy, so other than the time I don’t have accurate stats.

Total time: 30:31 minutes

Distance: 2.82 miles

Calories burned: 250-300?

Hopefully this problem will resolve itself soon…

Eggwhites with ketchup and Tobasco:

Honey Wheat English muffin, 3/4 with vegan marjarine, 1/4 with sunflower butter and 1/4 with cinnamon and sugar for old times (I used to eat this EVERY day).

With coffee and the paper.  It’ll be so nice to have time to enjoy a luxurious breakfast again!

Around 10 I snacked on an I-can’t-believe-I’m-the-only-one-in-the-library pear.

I broke for lunch around 12:30 to eat in the cafeteria with some friends.  I got stewed tempeh and chickpeas (to which I added raisins and coconut):

I also had a salad with spinach, peppers, carrots, peas, and lemon juice: 

Ants on a fiery log:

And my last (I hope) magic bar. 

At 1:30, there was a special Champagne Toast and Sendoff Lecture for the seniors.  A glass of champagne was enjoyed, briefly… then back to the library it was! 

I shared an orange with my friends Luke and Megan in the library… we probably made up 50% of the library’s business. 

I celebrated finishing school with a trip to Whole Foods for fruit, yogurt, and apples.  I still had some Oikos coupons, so I only ended up spending $5! That has to be some kind of Whole Foods record. 

There were lots of delicious samples.  I had my first Dr. Kracker today! This was the sunflower cheddar flavor… it was really good.  It’s a hearty cracker, sort of like a Wasa or Ryvita. 

A sample of Food Should Taste Good (more like a tortilla chip): 

Cod filet: 

“Robust” gouda:

There’s a senior event at Stella’s Fish Café tonight.  There will be “light appetizers” and a cash bar, which could mean anything, so I just wanted a light snack. 

I steamed up some rebel carrots:

I did something blasphemous: I didn’t drink the carrot water (or the Kool-Aid )! I figure I’m going to be consuming a fair amount of liquid tonight, and I don’t want to be bloated before I even get there! Lilveggiepatch will be back to her old self soon, I promise.

Have a lovely night!