Yesterday morning I decided that I needed all the friends I could get to help me stay [...]]]> Good morning, all! Thank you so much for all the well-wishes.  I’m feeling 100% better now, especially after reading all of your comments!  It seems like most of you have had your share of food poisoning.  Blegh!

Yesterday morning I decided that I needed all the friends I could get to help me stay well, so Jim kept me company for breakfast.

This breakfast cookie was made with:

• 1/3 cup oats
• 1/2 banana
• 2 T skim milk
• 1/2 scoop vanilla protein powder
• 1 T PB2
• Toppings: cinnamon, dried craisins/raisins, pecan

I puttered around on the computer for a little too long, and by the time I was ready to go for a run, I was hungry again!  I grabbed a date on the day out the door.

This run was… not good.  It took a little while for me to get warmed up, and by the time I found my groove, I had to stop every 30 seconds or so because of the silly stitch in my side! It was in the same place as its been for the last couple weeks: above my right ribcage.  After 3.5 miles, I finally got so frustrated that I just walked the last mile home.  And I didn’t just walk… I walked at a snail’s pace.  Everyone on the street passed me, and I’m sure I looked furious about it.  When I got home, I plunked down on the computer and found this lovely Wikipedia entry explaining just what the Side Stitch is… I’m going to squelch this little bugger once and for all!

When exercising, a side stitch (also called a side ache, a side cramp, a side crampie, a side sticker or simply a stitch) is an intense stabbing pain under the lower edge of the ribcage. It is also referred to as exercise related transient abdominal pain (ETAP). This pain may be caused by the internal organs (like the liver and stomach) pulling downwards on the diaphragm, though an exact mechanism remains to be elucidated. Consistent with the suspected cause, it is more likely to occur in sports involving up and down actions – like running, jumping, swimming and equestrianism. If the pain is present only when exercising and is completely absent at rest, in an otherwise healthy person, it is benign and does not require investigation. There are a variety of published ways of alleviating the symptoms including adjusting at what point in your stride you inhale

Causes: Most of the time, side stitches occur on the right side of the body. This is due to the largest organ in the abdominal cavity, the liver, being on that side. Certain athletes also report a pain in the tip of their shoulder blade. This is believed to be because this is a referred of pain for the diaphragm via the phrenic nerve. When the side stitch is on the right published advice is to try to exhale when your left foot lands.

Prevention:

• Improve fitness
• Strengthen the diaphragm by using exercises such as those that aid respiratory rehabilitation
• Strengthen core muscles (abdominals,lower back, obliques)
• Limit consumption of food and drink two to three hours before exercising (in particular, drinks of high carbohydrage content and osmolarity (reconstituted fruit juices))
• Drink water beforehand to prevent muscle cramps
• Warm up properly
• Gradually increase exercise intensity when running
• Exhale when the left foot hits the ground, and inhale when the right foot hits the ground
• Run on soft surfaces

Curing a Side Stitch:

• Stop exercising. With the digits, push into the abdomen on the right side, and up under the rib cage. At the same time, forcefully let out a deep exhale while holding the lips closely together.
• Try belly breathing; inhale while pushing out the stomach, and on the exhale, relax the stomach muscles.
• While running, exhale when your foot strikes on the opposite side that the side stitch is located. For example, a side stitch on the right, exhale hard when your left foot strikes the ground.
• Reduce the frequency of breathing (e.g. in jogging, inhale for four steps and exhale for four steps)
• Lie down on the back and lift the knee on the side with the stitch up to the chest.
• Do not breathe too hard, shallow breathing for a few minutes at the same time maintain oxygen input levels.
• Relax the mind and do not focus on the stitch itself.
• Put pressure on the affected area, not enough to hurt, but just enough so the pain subsides

THANK YOU, Wikipedia!  I’m certainly going to try these out. As my mom said, stitches make you feel like you’re having a heart attack!

I ate my lunch in two parts. Part 1 was leftover Health Valley Corn & Vegetable soup with Bragg’s and Sriracha:

Part 2, an hour or so later, was a big salad with romaine, sprouts, carrots, hummus, a black bean burger & Annie’s Light Gingerly Vinaigrette.

After lunch, I hopped on the subway and went into the city to get some groceries.  I usually go to Trader Joe’s once a month; it was time! I had to stop at Whole Foods for a few things TJ’s didn’t have (like pumpkin… although they say it’s “seasonal”, they don’t sell it until the end of October! Sad ).

At Whole Foods, I literally bumped into a sample station with my cart for Grandy Oats, who were giving us two flavors of cashews to try: Maple Roasted & Nori Sesame.  What interesting flavors!

They were both delicious, and complemented each other nicely.

When I got home, I laid out my groceries.  Here’s what $58.98 from Trader Joe’s looks like:

And here’s what $26.45 from Whole Foods looks like.  (I didn’t realize until I got home that the “canned pumpkin” was actually “pumpkin pie mix”, but oh well! I won’t need any sweeteners this way )

When I’m shopping for recipes, I usually get everything that I can at the cheapest store (in this case, Trader Joe’s) and get specialty items where I can find them.  The prices reflect this!  Thanks for helping me with my coffee question… I ended up listening to Averie and grinding my own at Trader Joe’s. I selected the Breakfast Blend, which is both Fair Trade and Organic, and makes me feel festive drinking something especially for breakfast!

While hustling around, I had a quick snack, using the quinoa crackle I’d made from Body + Soul magazine.

I’d made this, oh, a month ago?! At least it’s getting used up! I plopped two tablespoons with 1/2 banana on top of Trader Joe’s Organic Nonfat Vanilla Greek yogurt.

After whipping up a few things in the kitchen (to be enjoyed later in the week), I headed over to Caitlin‘s gym to go to an event hosted by SELF‘s Reach Your Goal program. On the way in, we passed yet another sample station.

Katie Graham – or the “Green Smoothie Mama”- is a holistic health coach who works with the Equinox gym to ensure clients’ minds, bodies & spirits are in sync.  She gave us each a shot of her wheatgrass/mango/banana blends for us to try. It was delicious!

Caitlin, her friend and I decided to go to the 30/60/90 class: it’s basically Step Aerobics using weights.  Holy moly, was this hard!  I’d already run today, so I had to channel my inner Melissa for the strength.  I did Step in college, and it was nice to get back into it again.

On the way out of the gym, we stopped by the cocktail table… they don’t usually have vodka lying around, so we decided to take advantage of the special event! I had clementine vodka with club soda.

We headed over to Caitlin’s house, where Nancy had prepared a lovely, farmer’s market fresh meal.  We started with a delicious salad (note to self: put lemon juice and parmesan in my dressing):

We also had a fabulous, whole wheat pasta with heirloom tomatoes, fresh herbs from the garden, and mozzarella.

I had 1.5 servings

No meal is complete without dessert, so Tasti D-Lite called… I got a small cup with half Peanut Butter, half German Chocolate Cake, covered with Heath Bar. Mmm. It was a Tasti Tuesday.

I collapsed into bed as soon as I got home, but couldn’t fall asleep.  Don’t you hate when you’re too tired to sleep? Oh well.  I’m off to my internship… have a lovey day!

Although we both managed to be in bed early- before 11:30- I had a terrible time trying to sleep, I was so excited! I woke up at 1:30 and thought it was time to [...]]]> Good afternoon! Thanks to all of your wonderful support and comments, Ilana and I had a great race this morning.

Although we both managed to be in bed early- before 11:30- I had a terrible time trying to sleep, I was so excited! I woke up at 1:30 and thought it was time to go… I made the same mistake twice more at 4:30 and 6:30.  When it was finally time to get up, I was pretty tired! I still bounded up, walked Charley, and sat down to a pre-race breakfast.

I had a piece of whole wheat toast with peanut butter, cinnamon, a banana and honey with a cup of coffee.

Ilana had a bowl of Mueslix, Puffins, and a banana.

We were tired, but ready to race!

We packed all of our necessities and hopped on the subway.  We found the Museum of Natural History, and made our way to the starting line outside the front of the building… along with 25,000 other racers!

You can see that I decided to bring my camera after all… I ran with both my iPod and camera in my right hand, leaving my left free.  Hopefully I’ll have a new iPod for the next time!

We played around a little…

Stretched…

Then we got in line.  They were broken down by pace, so I decided to try and push myself and got into the 9-minute mile lane.  Worst case, I’d fall behind!

We listened to speeches by breast cancer survivors, Uma Thurman, Gabrielle Union, Gov. David Patterson, Mayor Michael Bloomberg, and Cyndi Lauper (among others), who sang the National Anthem.

I started off pretty fast.  Every article I’ve read about racing has said not to do this, but I couldn’t help myself.  I was excited! I ran past the first mile-marker and saw that I’d been running for 9 minutes and 30 seconds. Woohoo!

I started getting a stitch in the middle of my right ribcage during mile 2, but remembered what K said and inhaled through my nose, exhaling through my mouth.  It still hurt, but eventually went away.  I finished my second mile at 17:30, making that an 8-minute mile. What?!

Although I knew the end was in sight and that this was not the longest distance I’ve run, my legs started getting tired.  Adrenaline pushed me on, though, and I sailed through the finish line after 27:40, with an average pace of  8:55/ mile.  That is definitely a PR for me!

Ilana and I found each other, sweaty but victorious.

We headed over to the swag tents…

Found out some more about the Susan G. Komen Foundation…

Sampled Fuze (too sweet for my tastes)…

… and came home with POUNDS of swag.

We immediately broke into our samples of Dove milk chocolate… I’m not a huge milk chocolate fan, but this was a pretty sweet reward.

When we got back to the apartment, we were tired and hungry.  We decided to enjoy a celebratory lunch at Picnic!  We sat outside to dog people watch.

In honor of my dad and grandparents, who are in Nice eating the real deal, I enjoyed a slice of baguette with butter.

Ilana and I both ordered the same thing: quiche & salad.  I had the Alsatian Tarte, which was filled with potatoes, leeks, onions, and gruyère cheese. It was a great post-race treat!

When we got home, we fell into bed and slept for a couple hours.  As Ilana said, “That’s what Sundays are for!”  I agree.

Yesterday I got up bright and early to do some work.  I had a big bowl [...]]]> Morning and happy Thursday! I love Thursdays, because even though I don’t have a “traditional” schedule anymore, Fridays are always exciting.  This weekend has a few surprises in store, so I’m excited! Now, to just get through today…

Yesterday I got up bright and early to do some work.  I had a big bowl of fruit: 1/2 banana, 1 plum, and cherries.

I met my lovelies, Lyle and Lindsay, for lunch at Alice’s Tea Cup.  There was a little wait, so in true NYC-fashion we got some iced coffees (skim milk & Sugar In The Raw) and plopped down on a stoop for some quality chit.

When we were finally seated, we ordered a plate of scones to share: it’s unfortunate the photo is so bad, because these were SO GOOD.  We split carmelized banana and chocolate almond.  Why have I never been a scone person before?! I love scones! (And I know the answer to that question, and it needs to change!)

I got my usual: the “Light Fare” with a bowl of tomato basil soup and their amazing bread:

And the warm endive, carmelized pear & onion, and stilton cheese salad.  Best tea party ever.

After saying our goodbyes (sniff), I had some time to kill before work While I was moseying around, I happened upon a cart giving away free Popchips!

You can find the nutrition information for Popchips here.  These are snack-sized bags (50 calorie servings), and I gobbled up a package of the original flavor as I dodged raindrops on the way to work.  They reminded me a lot of soy crisps; they’re very light and not greasy at all, but still flavorful.  Cons? Try to eat these holding an umbrella and two bags in a torrential downpour! Would I buy these? Yes, but I think they’d be pretty addicting and potentially dangerous to have around

At work, I had a small (2-inch slice) of pizza with olives.  I drew a gallery-worthy picture of it, but left it in my apron at work. Use your imaginations!

For dinner I got off the healthy chip train and had freshly-made tortilla chips! The man who makes the pizza saw me eating my salad and thought I needed some deep-fried taco and plopped them right into the fryer.  I guess I’ll be getting my fry on a lot!

Now, this looks like a regular salad, right? Not so! Hidden under a thin layer of parmesan are little shrimpies! I love you, chef Ramon.

This was made with a lot of garlic. Delicious, but sometimes you need to freshen yourself up, you know? So I pulled out my handy-dandy Eat Whatever mints.  Have you guys heard of these?

After eating something gnarly (like said garlicky salad), swallow the two jelly capsules with a glass of water.  Then, suck on the white mint until it’s dissolved.  Results? “Kissible breath”!  It worked for me, which is a blessing to know considering I work in an Italian restaurant.  Even better? They’re 100% vegan and gluten-free.  I’ll have to keep my eye out for these!

Work thankfully ended without drama, and I grabbed a fruit cup on the way to the subway.

Well, time to go get my pretty on and head to my internship.  I have to go to the restaurant after I’m through with that, so it’s going to be a long, long day, and I didn’t get to sleep until after 3 last night. Bah. No more complaints… have a happy Thursday! And please wish Heather a belated Happy Birthday!!!

Evening and happy Monday night! Well, somehow it’s now Tuesday morning… it’s been a pretty long day, but luckily I got my morning “nap” in. From your comments, it seems like you all understand the need to take breaks from blogging… thanks, as always, for your patience and support. I love you guys!

I [...]]]>

Evening and happy Monday night! Well, somehow it’s now Tuesday morning… it’s been a pretty long day, but luckily I got my morning “nap” in. From your comments, it seems like you all understand the need to take breaks from blogging… thanks, as always, for your patience and support. I love you guys!

I got to the gym just in time for an hour-long Vinyasa yoga class.  I hadn’t been to an actual class (I’ve just been doing Yoga Downloads) in more than six months, so I was a little nervous.  It turns out I’m in better yogic shape than I thought, although there are still some things I can’t do (like Crow), but I really liked being back in a class setting with other students and a helpful instructor.  My schedule is a little inconsinstent right now, but hopefully I’ll be able to go at least once a week.  I’m going to be totally crazy and challenge myself: I will be able to do Crow Pose by the end of the summer!

I packed up leftovers from dinner last night: 1/2 Ahi tuna wrap with lettuce, tomatoes, onion, and ginger wasabi mayo. (In the future I’ll ask for it without the mayo… I really didn’t need it, and it just ended up making a big mess.) I also had an apple, which I ate before yoga.

I played with my Greg for a little after leaving the gym, and he kindly used his precious Starbucks card to buy me a Tall Caramel light Frappuccino (only 130 calories!).  I still didn’t have my camera charged at this point, but rest assured that I sucked down every last sweet drop.

I was still feeling snacky when I got home, so I had an apple.  I couldn’t decide which kind of nut butter I wanted, so why choose? I had cashew, almond, and peanut butters smeared on top. Mmm!

Ari decided he wanted to go to Panera Bread before going to see Up.  I’d never been to Panera before, but I was impressed with the lighter vegetarian options that were offered (a rarity, as I’m sure you’re aware, for chain restaurants).

I got the soup/sandwich combo, so I had a cup of chandelier garden vegetable soup:

Veggie sandwich with feta and cilantro hummus on sundried tomato bread.  The bread made this sandwich… it was so thick and fluffy!

Ari’s turkey sandwich had mayo all over it (a banned “white and creamy” food) so I gave him my apple.  I’d already had two for the day, so it wasn’t much of a sacrifice.

I was craving chocolate, and we were in the no-man’s land around the movie theater.  There were no delis, but there was a Starbucks! Lucky for me, because not only did I find my dark chocolate, but they were giving away samples of lemon pound cake! Who can turn that down?

Up was one of the best movies I’ve seen in the last few years.  It was smart, funny, and surprisingly dark! (Have you noticed that “kids” movies seem to be made more for adults recently? Maybe they’ve always been like that and I’m just now picking up on it.) See it!

Time to get in bed and watch Heroes.  Hope you had a nice day! Bonne nuit

It’s one of the first songs I remember seeing on Pop-Up Video. Whatever happened to that show? It was so good! I also remember seeing Marcy Playground and Meredith Brooks on there… oh, I hate getting old.

Anyway, happy [...]]]> I couldn’t find this on YouTube, but it’s worth watching for a trip down memory lane.

It’s one of the first songs I remember seeing on Pop-Up Video. Whatever happened to that show? It was so good! I also remember seeing Marcy Playground and Meredith Brooks on there… oh, I hate getting old.

Anyway, happy Friday night! A week from today my family will be here (!) so this is pretty much my last “real” Friday in college.  Appropriately, this will be a doozy of a photo post… I’m going to have to get a space upgrade for my Wordpess account soon!

I went to Whole Foods today and pretty much stuck to my list, which is something to be celebrated.  There were tons of samples:

Trout spread:

Spicy guacamole (I really wanted an avocado but these were all really hard, so a really nice WF man went “to the back” and found one for me. Thanks, WF man!):

Spanish cheese:

Food Should Taste Good chips:

More cheese:

I went to the cafeteria for lunch today. The had big soft pretzels; even though these are on every street corner in New York, I never really crave or eat them! Ever since Meghann, Jenna, and Caitlin have been raving about their Greenwise pretzels, though, I’ve been craving them.

I made a salad with spinach, carrots, cukes, cauliflower, celery, and a jalepeño.  They had dijon (my favorite mustard) for the pretzels, so I made a delicious mustard/lemon juice/olive oil vinaigrette.

Tofu cutlet with “salsa verde” :

I ate about 2/3 of the pretzel; half with mustard and half with peanut butter and jelly.

… and finally, a grapefruit.

I first read about black bean brownies in Hungry-Girl a few years ago. After seeing Angela’s batches a few weeks ago and Lindsay’s yesterday, I decided to try them myself.

I used the Happy Herbivore recipe, and followed her directions with the exception of swapping brown rice syrup for agave nectar.

I also, once again, didn’t read the directions properly and forgot to mix in the oats until the batter was already in the pan.

The batter was really good, but when baked the brownies themselves didn’t have a whole lot of taste and were kind of dry. Sad, but I’m not giving up yet!

I snacked on an orange while I was eating batter baking and cooking.

My friends Becky and Sarah had a lovely potluck tonight.  I brought the “brownies” and some cheesy green (read on).

There was red vino:

Spinach salad with strawberries, cucumbers and gorgonzola:

I made a plate with a Barefoot Contessa pasta salad Becky made, salad, oranges and quiche.

Gina has been raving about quiche recently, so I decided to whip one up.  I used the same original recipe that she did, but also made my own substitutions.  For the cheese and dairy, I used 1/2 cup manchego, 3/4 cup nonfat cottage cheese, 1 cup nonfat yogurt, and 2 tbsp 4-cheese blend; for the spices, pinches each of nutmeg, cumin and cayenne.  The color was a little too light, so I added 1/2-1 cup broccoli florets to the mix.

It was really good! It ended up tasting more like a soufflé; whipped and very light and an excellent side.

I also had a bowl of black bean soup with cheese that Sarah made:

More oranges, salad, and chips (potato + yellow corn) and salsa.

For dessert, I had a frosted pumpkin square my friend Krista made:

She’s writing a cookbook called “The Book of Nom.” Genius. Nomnomnom.

Finally, even though I was insanely full, I had a dark chocolate truffle that Carlye brought.

I definitely ate a lot tonight and didn’t make it to the gym as I’d planned, but I had a really nice night with my friends. There is so much love in sharing a home-cooked meal!  Anyway, I’m going to hit the hay and get up early to work, work it out, pack, etc.  Hope you had a faaabulous night.

Afternoon! Well, it’s evening now, but when I started first trying to post this it was 3.  The internet has been pretty funky for the past week… how’s a girl supposed to surf Shopbop do important research?

I had a couple of things to pick up at Target today, but for once [...]]]>

Afternoon! Well, it’s evening now, but when I started first trying to post this it was 3.  The internet has been pretty funky for the past week… how’s a girl supposed to surf Shopbop do important research?

I had a couple of things to pick up at Target today, but for once I actually stuck to the items on my list.  They usually have samples on the weekend, so my timing was ideal! I got a little slice of cheese quesadilla with salsa.

It tasted so good and quenched my shopping stress-induced hunger.  I hadn’t been planning on having one for lunch today, but what with my new hummus purchase…

Crack wrap it was! I saw that K used American cheese yesterday so I tried it out.  Not quite as good as the cheddar, but still pretty darn delicious.

I had it with an orange…

… and a small Green(ish) Monster to get some veggies in.

Green(ish) monster:

• 1 cup kale
• 1/2 cup skim milk
• 1 diced apple, warmed
• 1 tsp flax meal
• 2 ice cubes

Then the baking bug hit.  Ever since middle school, baking has been my favorite form of procrastination.  I’d been planning on using my brown bananas to make bread, and today was as good a day as any.

Veganomicon‘s Lower Fat Banana bread, Lilveggiepatch-style

• 2 mashed bananas
• 1/2 cup NSA wild berry applesauce
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup canola oil
• 2 tbsp agave nectar
• 1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 3/4 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
• 1/4 cup nuts (I used walnuts and pecans), chopped
• optional: more nuts (I used hazelnuts) for garnish

Preheat oven to 350 and coat a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan with cooking spray.

Mash bananas very well and mix in applesauce, sugar, oil and agave nectar.  Gradually stir in flours, spices, baking soda and salt.  Stir in nuts.

Garnish with nuts and bake for 35-45 minutes, or until knife inserted in center comes out clean.

Enjoy the fruits of your labor with butter and jam (not pictured, but I used Stonewall Kitchen’s Wild Maine Blueberry)

I also finally, after over a year of lusting after them every time they appeared on a new food blog, made Dreena’s Super-Charge Me Cookies.  Sarah (happy birthday!) posted the link to the famous recipe the other day, which just about made my week.  Sad but true!

(If I were staying longer than two more weeks I’d invest in some steel wool to get those burn marks off my cookie sheet, but…)

Of course I had to taste one (délicieux).  I’ve been playing the  let’s-see-how-many-times-I-can-do-the-dishes-in-one-day game… I’m  up to four.

The cookies went into my salad tupperware… you can see where my priorities are.

Unfortunately I used up the last of the almond butter

There’s really no point in buying a new jar for the next two weeks, but I don’t know that peanut butter will be quite the same on my dates and figs.

Anyway, time to get to work.  Hope your Saturday is going wonderfully and you’re doing something fun tonight!

Today was beautiful.  It was hot (I really need shorts!) and the birds were chirping, and I ended up falling asleep outside! So, the responsible senior that I am, I shlepped all my [...]]]> Hiya! Just checking in before my Friday nap… it’s a very important thing to have, if you haven’t tried it already.

Today was beautiful.  It was hot (I really need shorts!) and the birds were chirping, and I ended up falling asleep outside! So, the responsible senior that I am, I shlepped all my bags of books to the library where I would be less likely to doze (although it’s been done many, many a time).

I was having a bit of writer’s block so I broke for lunch on the early side.  I brought a big salad with romaine, a small diced apple, peas, tomatoes, black beans, leftover Chipotle guacamole, and a little crumbled feta.

Also brought a SFOSPNF yogurt (got that?) and some Annie’s Lite Honey Mustard vinaigrette.

I went to the gym a little later for a quick workout.  I ended up staying longer than I’d planned (which was initially, um, 20 minutes) but when the telly is on, I’m powerless…

I did 10 minutes on the Stairmaster, and 25 minutes on the elliptical.  Then I did some abs, stretched, and gave my legs a good roll-out.  (I forgot to turn my HRM off when I started stretching, so the stats are a little off.)

Total time: 54:26 minutes

Maximum heart rate: 160 (80%)

Average heart rate: 130 (65%)

Calories burned: 370

I’ve gone to the gym six days in a row and am probably due for a rest day soon… there might be some light yoga in store for tomorrow.

I left a Chocolate Chip Z bar in the car while I worked out so it would be warm and gooey when I got out. Scrumptious! Don’t mind my pasty legs… hopefully they’ll be a little less so in the near future, but I don’t tan well so I’m not making any promises.

To brighten an already sunny day, I got this package in the mail today:

When I mentioned that I wasn’t able to find Flat-Out Bread around here, Ola from Flat-Out was kind enough to offer me a few samples. I had no idea she would be so generous! There are two sizes and four flavors to try…  I can’t wait to test ‘em out! Thank you so much, Flat-Out!

Betty Ford was pretty interested in the bread, too!

Alright kids, it’s that time. Hope you’re having a fantastic Friday!

I got a HUGE box in the mail today from Foodbuzz.

Inside an elaborately wrapped styrofoam cube was a sample of Wild Mushroom Agnolotti from Buitoni’s new Riserva line. [...]]]> Woot woot. As the title suggests, not a thing got done after 3 PM. Tomorrow is going to be TOUGH… but let’s get back to today!

I got a HUGE box in the mail today from Foodbuzz.

Inside an elaborately wrapped styrofoam cube was a sample of Wild Mushroom Agnolotti from Buitoni’s new Riserva line. Can’t wait to try it out!

I finally found my iced coffee, and I didn’t even have to go to Starbucks! Dunn Bros. came through in the end.  It was pretty bitter, so I added skim milk and sugar.  Oh, that’s Nate’s site in the background.  If you haven’t discovered the This Week in Blogs feature, check it out… it’s scarily (and hilariously) accurate!

I also snacked on an Iced Oatmeal Raisin Luna bar while I was working.

These ended up coming home with me when I went to Wallgreen’s to pick up some stuff… It was either that or Doritos! I had a big handful in the car, and was sad to discover that there was only ONE dried peach and TWO apple rings (NO pears!) and the rest of the bag was filled with apricots and prunes.

And then… Springfest! Every hear my college has a sort of mini festival and has four or five bands come and play on the lawn.  This year Blackalicious, Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin, Japanther, Lucy Michelle & The Velvet Lapels, and The Muskies played.

I had a Finnegans (disguised as a Miller Light) in the beer garden.

My friend Greg and I decided to order Pizza Luce for dinner.  I got my favorite sandwich EVER (well, one of my 573 favorites): Mock Chicken Parmigiana.

I didn’t realize how hungry I was until I started eating… it was gone in under five minutes!  It wasn’t the healthiest thing, what with the fried patty and three different types of cheese, but it was Springfest.  My last Springfest EVER, might I add.

That mentality carried me to the Dairy Queen line, where I got a chocolate blizzard with Reese’s PB cups and cookie dough. Oof.  That I’ve waited this long to get my DQ on is actually quite a feat, considering that it is literally around the corner from my house.

There were also some cheese samples at the grocery store (where I didn’t end up buying anything… it was all about the cheese) and pineapple chunks at my friend Katey’s piano recital (she kicked serious booty).  I’m in a bit of a food coma with my food baby right now, but at least it means I should fall asleep with relatively no problem! And, as I say, tomorrow is another day.  With no beer. Or Dairy Queen. Night!

Greetings! Sadly another weekend is drawing to a close. Sunday might be my favorite day of the week, even though it means another school week is fast approaching.

My grandparents and I forgot that today was Palm Sunday (whoops!) which meant that almost every restaurant was packed for brunch. We finally got [...]]]>

Greetings! Sadly another weekend is drawing to a close. Sunday might be my favorite day of the week, even though it means another school week is fast approaching.

My grandparents and I forgot that today was Palm Sunday (whoops!) which meant that almost every restaurant was packed for brunch. We finally got into D’Amico & Sons, which was surprisingly (or not so surprisingly) empty. Although I like their to-go sandwiches at Target (they’re only about $3), I’m not a huge fan of their sit-down restaurants. They do serve “salads,” but they’re already pre-mixed and loaded with oil and creamy dressings and usually require a spoon to dish out. Nevertheless…

I ordered a small cup of tomato basil soup…

… and a trio of three salads: mixed greens (which they loaded with dressing before I had a chance to ask for it on the side, but that was probably my fault), roasted golden beets with feta, and mixed vegetables with mozzarella.

I probably should have just gotten a big bowl of soup, since I enjoyed it the most (with one of the three slices of bread). The beets weren’t bad, either, and I always love big balls of mozzarella. The vegetables were so greasy, though, and the chickpeas were barely cooked through. Regardless of the less-than-stellar meal, it was really nice to see my grandparents, as usual. I’m spending the night on Wednesday for Passover, which I’m really excited about. Because it always falls right after spring break, I haven’t been able to spend Passover with my family or friends since college started (although we did create our own mildly disastrous seder freshman year). I’m really looking forward to it!

I stopped at Target on the way back from lunch to pick up some supplies. They were giving out samples of the new Chocolate Mocha Fiber One bars… they were okay, but I probably wouldn’t buy a whole box.

While I was shopping I started to get really stressed out about all my schoolwork, and I knew there was only one thing that would really make me feel better. Although I wanted to pretend that thing was chocolate-covered graham crackers from Starbuck’s, I canceled my coffee date with Greg (very sad) and went for a run instead. My calves were really tight so I didn’t go too far, but I felt so much better. I decided to run on the grass today to challenge myself a little more, and I really liked it! The snow was melting so it was a little muddy, though.

Total time: 29: 50 minutes

Total distance: 2.85 miles

Maximum heart rate: 194 (97%)

Average heart rate: 171 (86%)

Calories burned: 330

I was going to do some yoga but I’d left my laptop in the car so I just did some plank holds and ab exercises instead. As usual, Betty Ford tried to “help,” but I was feeling kind and let him roam around instead of locking him in the bedroom.

I had an I-miss-my-momma snack afterwards: a Fuji apple and some extra-sharp white cheddar afterwards. I definitely OC-ed (Over Cheese-ed) today!

I was still feeling snacky and remembered I had these nuts that my grandmother passed on to me about a month ago.

Product Review: Planter’s Nut-Rition Energy Mix

Ingredients: ALMONDS, HONEY ROASTED SESAME STICKS (WHEAT FLOUR, SOYBEAN OIL, SESAME SEEDS, BULGUR WHEAT, MALTODEXTRIN, HONEY, SUGAR, WHEAT STARCH, SALT, XANTHAN GUM, BEET POWDER AND TUMERIC {VEGETABLE COLORS}, SOY LECITHIN, POPPY SEEDS, MILK), PEANUTS, WALNUTS, PECANS, SEMISWEET CHOCOLATE (SUGAR, CHOCOLATE, COCOA BUTTER, MILKFAT, SOY LECITHIN, VANILLIN – ARTIFICIAL FLAVOR), SUGAR, OIL ROASTED SOYNUTS (SOYBEANS, SOYBEAN OIL), PEANUT AND/OR COTTONSEED OIL, SALT, HONEY, CORN SYRUP, ARTIFICIAL COLOR (BLUE 2 LAKE, YELLOW 6 LAKE, YELLOW 5 LAKE, RED 40 LAKE), GUM ARABIC, CONFECTIONER’S GLAZE, CARNAUBA WAX, BEESWAX, XANTHAN GUM. CONTAINS: ALMOND, WHEAT, SESAME SEED, SOY, POPPY SEED, PEANUT, WALNUT, PECAN. MANUFACTURED ON EQUIPMENT THAT PROCESSES OTHER TREE NUTS.

I portioned out half a serving (1/8 cup) because this stuff is like CRACK. It’s more than just plain ole nuts- it has salt and honey-roasted topping on it, among other things! It’s really good, but I think it could be potentially dangerous to have around so I don’t know if I would buy it myself. I’d have to portion out individual servings, because I’m the girl at the party who stands with her hand in the chip bowl the whole night! (I just went back into the can as I typed that.) So, Planter’s, I love you, but we need to take it slow. There are some other varieties of Nut-rition that look interesting (smoked almonds, anyone?) that I might be more apt to buy, I just don’t trust myself when chocolate and sesame sticks are in the same container!

Okay, play time is over… time to put away the nuts hit the books. See you later, sugarpies!