Tuesday December 15th

Breakfast - oatmeal, banana, strawberries, kiwi, pineapple
Lunch - tomato soup, 2 whole wheat rolls with white bean spread
Dinner - Enchilada casserole and salad with low fat green goddess dressing

Monday December 14th

Breakfast - oatmeal and fruit salad with banana, strawberries, kiwi and pineapple
Lunch - leftover pasta, white bean spread on whole wheat toast
Dinner - leftover tomato soup, salad with romaine, tomato, cucumber, broccoli, carrots, cranberries, sunflower seeds, low-fat green goddess dressing

More of Me & My Niece

Sunday, December 13th

The last couple of days was variations of leftovers.
Dinner last night was salad with baby greens from my deck garden, romaine, carrots, cucumbers, tomatoes and sunflower seeds with a small amount of Annie's dressing. Whole wheat rolls with white bean spread (McDougall's cookbook pg. 251) and tomato soup (Jennifer Raymonds - Fat-Free & Easy pg.69)

Fear vs. Love

In hindsight, it's pretty clear when one's approach is fear-based or love-based.

I try to come from a place of love, but sometimes, I slip into a fear derived mind-set without realizing it. During this time, I stop taking care of myself, I feel tired, depressed even. I don't journal, I don't practice yoga and I don't listen to my music or meditate.

Fortunately, once this is recognized, it's fairly simple to realign and get back to a heartful, mindful, intent and focus.

Bad Decisions Make Good Stories

No story in particular, just a thought....

Wednesday December 9th

Breakfast - bananas, strawberries, pineapple, kiwi, toast with corn butter

Lunch - Garbage Plate at Mama Kwans

Dinner - leftover macaroni and cheese and salad

Tuesday December 8th

Breakfast - fruit salad with bananas, strawberries, pineapple & kiwi

Lunch - black bean chili, 2 whole wheat rolls with corn butter

Dinner - Baked Macaroni & "Cheese" (16 oz whole wheat spiral pasta, added rest of can of drained tomatoes, some onion and jalapeno pepper to sauce & pasta before baking) and salad with romaine, shredded carrots, tomato, onion & cucumbers with small amount of Annie's Woodstock dressing (indulgent).

Monday December 7th

Monday was leftovers of the prior day.

Sunday December 6th

For breakfast I had a couple of hummus wraps (was out of pita bread). Lunch was more leftover chili.
Dinner, I sliced three large potatoes into "french fries", spritzed two glass baking dishes with oil, dusted the fries with a bit of salt, garlic powder and ground black pepper, laid them in the dishes & dashed with a very light coating of oil and baked until crispy (oven was at 430). While these started baking, chopped up some onion, jalapeno, red pepper, defrosted tofu cubes, cremini mushrooms and broccoli - squirted with a bit of Braggs and put these in the oven on a tin-foil lined baking sheet (a must for easy clean up) - toasted a couple of whole wheat rolls with corn butter and had a delicious meal that qualified as comfort food.

Got Water?

Too much rain recently has made my little swamp into a big swamp, as evidenced by the view from my deck.

Thursday December 3rd

Yup, leftovers again. Not only are they still tasty, it's economical.

Wednesday December 2nd

Oh Wednesday! The day of Leftovers!
Chili for breakfast? Of course! Perfect way to start the day.
Lunch was another hummus filled pita with all the fixins and dinner was leftover roasted veggies over brown rice.

Tuesday December 1st

Unfortunately, skipped breakfast again.
For lunch, had another hummus filled pita with lettuce, cucumber, red pepper, onion & carrots.
Dinner - I put 1 cup short grain brown rice in sauce pan with 1 cup water and 1 cup broth, brought a boil, covered sauce pan and reduced heat and simmered for 50 minutes, took off heat and let sit for 10 minutes still covered and then fluffed the rice. While this was cooking, I chopped up some mushrooms, onion, butternut squash, broccoli & cauliflower, spritzed them with Bragg's Liquid Aminos and roasted in oven at 425 until tender. Served the veggies over the brown rice with bread & corn butter.
I had poblanos in the veggies, but picked them out because the taste of the peppers didn't work well with the other vegetables.
Great meal, with leftovers for another.

Thanksgiving Photos

Our vegan feast!

Me & My Niece

Shelby has quite the talent for self portraits and the inclusion of a couple of other people. Here is one of the two of us (of which she changed my profile pic in Facebook)

Addendum to Monday November 30th

To the black bean chili, I added some TVP for texture and to absorb some excess liquid and some corn.

Monday, November 30th

Over Thanksgiving, I suggested to my mom and Wendy that I would try to post daily what I eat.
I skipped breakfast today, unintentionally. For lunch, I made curry hummus , toasted some pita bread and stuffed the warm pita with the warm hummus, lettuce, grated carrot, cucumber & roasted red pepper. While I was home for lunch, I prepped a black bean chili in the crockpot (sauteed some onion, garlic & red peppers with chili powder - put this in crockpot with 1 cup water, 2 cans black beans, 1 4oz. can green chilis, and 1 28 oz can of crushed tomatoes) and left it on low. When I get home tonight, I will have that with bread & Bryanna's garlic corn butter, and a salad.

Me & My Dogs

Mark S. took this picture of me, Chloe & George - a rare, peaceful, moment.

October 15th, 2009

Tom & Courtney Oliver's Wedding

It was about time - Congratulations to them both!

Don't Believe Everything You Think

The Big Sweep

The Muglia's joined me for the annual Big Sweep sponsored by the Surfrider Foundation. Worthy cause, yielded 3 bags of trash, just from our little Carlow Street access.

My Niece

I remember the day I got my learner's permit. I can't believe that day is already here for Ms. Shelby Lynn. There are not many things more exciting and more liberating than being behind the wheel and choosing where you want to go rather than having to depend on others. Congratulations Shelby! Love, Aunt Val

Passion Flower

Financial Crisis Update

Purchased 66 Duck Woods Drive, vacant lot, April 2005 for $305,000
Received offer of $330,000 three months later. (Turned down because $20,000 in potential closing costs didn't make financial sense at the time, wanted to sell for $350,000 - Gary Dunstan, the agent on the other side of the deal will never let me live this down).
Made last lot payment on April 1, 2008. Got foreclosed on February 20, 2009. Bank sold property April 9, 2009 for $140,000. This is 46% of the price we paid for it in 2008 - or a 54% reduction in price in 3 years.


147 Holly Trail - finished construction summer of 2006. Owed $999,500.
Bank foreclosed and sold the house for $600,000

Unfreaking believable.

My House (at least the house that the owners let me live in)

First of the Summer

This is what I encountered upon my return from Mark's.....

"Our lives are a sum total of the choices we have made"
Wayne Dyer

Lunch View

Beautiful day - lunch with Sonya on the deck of the Black Pelican Restaurant

“It is well enough that people of the nation do not understand our banking and monetary system, for if they did, I believe there would be a revolution before tomorrow morning.”
Henry Ford

The Tailess Wonder

Shish Kabob

My New Friend

Thus far, we've had 3 encounters. He is so not afraid of me.

Thoughts from the Mat on My Birthday

"Your hand opens and closes and opens and closes.

If it were always a fist or always stretched open, 

you would be paralyzed.

Your deepest presence is in every small contracting and expanding,

the two as beautifully balanced and coordinated

as bird wings."

~Rumi

I realized today that the practice is similar to a fist opening and closing, binding tightly gripped and then release, stretching out, over and over, in every possible way. Creation of a pose and destruction of the pose, moving on to the next, nothing is permanent, nothing lasts forever, but yet it still all the same. 

Life. 

Broccoli with Kasha and Black Bean Sauce

http://www.nutritionmd.org/recipes/view.html?recipe_id=695

(Wendy - you can subsitute brown rice or any other type of grain if you can't find kasha)

History

"History doesn't repeat itself, but it rhymes."

Black Bean Hummus

http://www.fatfreevegan.com/appetizers/black.shtml
Mary - easy..... takes two seconds - corn tortillas, baked at 350 until crispy....

Polar Plunge In The Burg

"No emotion, any more than a wave, can long retain its own individual form." 
— Henry Ward Beecher

Shish Kabob's Teeth

Rare OBX Snow Storm

Quick Southwest Skillet Dinner

http://www.fatfreevegan.com/pasta/quick.shtml

Crockpot Vegetable Curry

Too much food - giving half to Mary

http://www.fatfreevegan.com/crockpot/curry.shtml