I just ate eight oreos

My coworker and I agreed last week that we would join weight watchers tomorrow. I hadn't planned on having a go-crazy-you're-about-to-lose-your-freedom binge, but i just ate everything in the kitchen. And had a beer.

But i decided this is ok, if i'm all puffed up from too much sugar, i'll weigh extra tomorrow. Which means when i go back in a week, and i don't weigh extra, i'll feel like i lost a whole bunch more weight than i actually did! Right? It's all about setting things up for big confidence boosts.

I don't feel like drawing any pictures today, but here's a picture of green beans i planted, after only 7 days (they're even taller now!) That's my thumb, as a size gauge.

And here's a close-up of how they open, the leaves come right out of the seed! Looks like an alien, or maybe that bird from "Up!" bagobblegok!

Spring is here!

Last Fall, i embarked on several experiments planting seeds i got for free from my kitchen. Thanks to this, i have several gimpy baby lemon trees, some crazy tall ginger (with a really ugly, but unique flower), and 2 pots of bell peppers! Unfortunately, i planted the bell peppers in September... one pot red, one pot green, so they got to be about 4 inches tall and stopped growing for the winter. I got about a bajillion plants in one pot, and one, single, lonely plant in the other. Since they haven't had a chance to take a stab at making babies yet, i have no idea which is which! They weren't so happy about the whole "winter" thing, but lately they've perked up. That's how i know spring is here!

This year, since i have a teeny tiny bit of outdoor space, i'm attempting to grow my own food, round two! It will probably absorb all the scary chemicals and pollutants out of the city air, but hey, can't knock it till you try it. Who knows, maybe pollution is a super flavor booster!

So far i'm hoping to grow an assortment of herbs including parsley, lavender, and chives (basil, rosemary, and lemon verbena survived the winter in my windowsill! They're really, really ugly right now, but alive and green!), bell peppers, tomatoes, hot peppers, and green beans, and strawberries! I would grow a whole lot more, but my balcony is only about 10 square feet. And i'm hoping i'll be able to sit on it once in a while. Husband and i have been debating whether or not there is room for 2 chairs and a small table. Considering that the balcony has 4 sides, 3 of which are doors, and one of which is railing... it's not looking good. But i think we'll do it anyway :)

Bread Fail

I broke out Mom's ancient bread machine. It looks like R2D2, only white. Who ever thought a bucket shaped loaf of bread was a good idea? Well i'll tell you this, it sure smells like a good idea.

I've never used a bread machine before. But lately i've been trying to make bread, and making an enormous mess, so i figured, why not? For similar reasons (ie, why not) i've decided to make rye bread on the machine's maiden voyage. Ok, so it's not really a maiden. But 15+ years of sitting on a shelf have given it back it's virginity - it's out of practice. Unfortunately, it seems the machine really is out of practice. Either that, or the recipe i used for rye bread was crap. Tastes like fresh bread... but not very rye-y, nor delicious. Tastes like wheat bread, and a little bit burnt.

Bread Machine (similar robot model):

R2D2:

I wonder if r2d2 can make bread? Wasn't really a skill showcased in any of the movies, but could be useful. Stranded on a cold desert planet? No worries, robot makes delicious fluffy bread from scratch. I'll have to ask husband, he'll know.

Coffee Love

I think the coffee boy has a crush on me.

I don't drink coffee very often (only when i feel like i won't make it until lunch time) but apparently that's been happening a little too often lately. I've never observed the coffee boy to be particularly social, but this morning when i walked in later than usual (wasted 90 minutes upstairs trying to convince myself that i didn't need coffee) he said "oh, hey!" and had memorized my order! And then he gave me a special cardboard cup colder advertising nurse jackie (you know, so you don't burn your hands) before going over to get more milk out of the refrigerator. All the while, continuing to look at me and smile. Which was awkward, since there was a tower of super processed packaged pastries in the way.

It made me smile. Too bad he's not the register boy, then maybe i could get free coffee...

Don't worry husband, all you have to do is learn how to make coffee and i'll stick with you. (Just kidding! I love you! You made me brownies!)

Meal Time, all the time!

I ate my lunch an hour ago. It's like i'm in high school again! Maybe that's why i can never make it all the way between meals without a snack, i was trained through 12 years of public school education that breakfast is at 6:45, and lunch is at 10:45. 2nd lunch is at 3 or 4, and dinner is at 6. That's pretty much the same schedule i still adhere to, only most meals shifted slightly such that 1st lunch is now called 2nd breakfast.

chili for chile?

All these news reports about Chile have been making me want chili. I know they're unrelated, and that's probably insensitive of me, but they sound the same! Plus, at least it means i'm thinking about the trouble in Chile. It's my equivalent of praying... i'm not religious, so i don't say prayers for people, instead i send my thoughts, and things like that. So last night, we ate chili, inspired by Chile.

Ok, so maybe it's REALLY inspired by Mexico. Regardless of where it originated, chili is a wonderful thing. It comes in so many varieties, and they're all wonderful in their own way. In it's simplest form, chili (or chile) refers to the peppers themselves. A bowl of green chile is basically a bowl full of chopped up stewed green peppers. A bowl of tex mex chili is basically a bowl full of meat stewed in dried chili powders and tomato. MY chili is of my own making, with no specific recipe.

My general plan involves a bit of oil, garlic, onions, bell peppers, sometimes a spicy pepper of some kind, diced tomatoes, at least one can of beans, cumin, and chili powder. And I usually prepare some kind of meat on the side, as simple as browned ground beef, for the husband to mix into his serving. Sometimes i cook it with meat, but usually not. I'm a veggie chili kind of girl (I prefer my meat on a bun with cheese and ketchup). There are many nice things about this dish, one being that it's so easy to prepare, with no real rules, and a fairly short cooking time. Basically i throw everything in a pot (starting with garlic and onions in oil), and let it cook until it's the right consistency, somewhere between 15 and 60 minutes. Flexible, my kind of cooking.

Another good thing about cooking chili is that it always, without fail, makes me feel better. Whether it's mental or physical, wielding a knife, reaping the delicious rewards, and clearing out my head a bit with the spice never fails to improve my status. Mood problem? chop chop chop! Sad? Emotional and guilt free (super healthy!) eating. Sick? Lots of vitamins and sinus clearing.

Last night i tried adding chipotle peppers in adobo to the chili, something i've never cooked with before. I didn't realize that the tiny cans contain more than one WHOLE chipotle pepper! Seeds and all! I wasn't sure what to do, so i tried my best to scrape out the seeds, and chopped up the rest of one pepper, adding it and a couple of teaspoons of sauce to the chili pot. Holy cow what a spicy mess that made on the counter! I wonder what the normal way of using chipotle is? I'd already added a bunch of chili powder to the chili, so i'm not really sure what it would have tasted like using chipotle instead of chili powder, but i did notice that it made the chili much more smoky-sweet than usual. I also used fire-roasted tomatoes instead of regular diced tomatoes, so it's possible that they contributed to the smoky sweet flavor. I'll have to try again using only 1 unknown ingredient! All in all the chili was a sucess, sprinkled with shredded cheese for me, and over rice and meat for the husband. I wish i'd had some corn to throw in, i think that would have made it a more complete bowl of flavors. Still, it made a great burrito for lunch today!

Grocery Store vs Those Other Stores

Somebody's lunch smells delicious! Unfortunately, it isn't mine. I've got a boring, healthy lunch, with the hopes that it will help me fit into my pants a little better. On the plus side, i finally finished those gross "greek" yogurts, and restocked on non-gross greek yogurts at the grocery store last night.

I love the grocery store. It's one of my favorite places to go! It's much more fun than regular shopping, since i don't have to worry about whether the food will fit in my mouth (as opposed to over my thighs), of COURSE it will!

Aisles and aisles of possibilities... most of them delicious. Also, in the grocery store, i feel like i'm rich. I'm not, i'm a normal person, but if i wanted to, i could buy anything in the grocery store. Not EVERYTHING, but ANYTHING. Not that i would, but that i could if i found something i just had to have! I don't feel that way when i go regular shopping, i'm a sale rack shopper. I cringe if an item of clothing is over $10. But in the supermarket, hardly anything is over $10! And if it is, it feels like a tremendous splurge, how's that for bargain endulgences? $10 fancy olive oil, $1000 fancy jacket... easy decision.