Hungry Book Worms

Hello darlings! I'm staying at my friend's apartment so that would explain why I'm so late to post tonight, sorry :). Even though I was just out for dinner and drinks, and had a fantastic time I might add, I prefer to spend some nights (and days) here... does that make me a nerd? 

Ha, at school the local Barnes & Noble café is the only place I can truly study, and be productive to my utmost capabilities. Yes, I know, good times ;) but I seriously do have fond memories. So the morning after visiting the boy I was thrilled to stop by my favorite bookstore for breakfast. I had a green tea and the egg florentine sandwich on a whole-wheat english muffin.It could have used a little less cheese and a whole ton more spinach, but was overall good :). The boy and I sat for an hour or more enjoying our morning meal and catching up on our favorites - medical journals and the Economist for him, health articles and travel essays for me. On our way out I purchased this book: Expat, Women's Tales of Life Abroad. It's a collection of short stories from women who have not just traveled to foreign countries, but lived there, an entirely different and uniquely wonderful experience I can assure you :). I love it so far, it makes me warmly nostalgic and excited for future endeavors at the same time. This book worm has been bitten by the travel bug.Then I was home again, in the blink of an eye, home sweet home. And I say that sarcastically, even though it's not actually so bad at all :). If nothing else, the weather has been warmer and sunny for the past few days so I'm hoping that the worst of my (cold and rainy) New York summer is behind me. It also means that I am solely in charge of my meals, a luxurious responsibility that I missed while living with host families. Choosing what I eat means asking myself what will satisfy my taste buds in the most nutritious way possible, and that night, it meant seasoned broccoli, sweet yam slices, and a side salad. Yum! Enjoy your Friday!

Frozen Summer Treats

Last week when the health nut (aka my g-ma) was staying with us, she asked if I would like to go shopping. Now, you should know, that I love to shop, whether it's finding the perfect dress, wall hanging, mascara, or summer squash, but aside from groceries, I don't do it that often, my busy schedule and tight wallet just don't allow for it. So, I obviously said yes :).

We went to Bloomingdale's, a favorite of ours, and the location of the best "ladies who lunch" café, La Provence, and the scrumptious frozen yogurt bar, Forty Carrots. It had been more than a year since my last frozen treat so I was incredibly excited, then... disappointed.

Not right away, of course. The (huge) small-sized cup was tart and divine, it tasted better than I had even remembered! However, as we left, I felt it. My body did not like frozen yogurt anymore. You see, I, unintentionally, haven't been eating dairy for in the past month and a half.

As I focused on whole, unprocessed, clean vegetables and fruits, a diet that was more raw food-based , I stopped having my morning yogurt, afternoon café con leche, dinner with fromage. I did so without any deprivation, only noticing when I figured out why the lactose in the frozen yogurt was making me sick. And my new habit, or lack there of, may not be such a bad thing.

Did you know that red meat and dairy are responsible for nearly half of all greenhouse gas emissions from food for an average U.S. household? Eek. I'm not officially swearing off dairy, and gosh, even though I sometimes refer to myself as a vegetarian, I do eat fish and have a bite of steak once in a blue moon, but, as I've said before, every little choice makes a big difference.

Let's be serious, cookie dough'nt you want some? Oh wait, that's Coldstone. I miss it already ;)

(Edited to Add): Oh my gosh! Girls! I bought the wrong "ice-cream"... VeggieGirl, I don't like too eat much soy either, and Christina, I meant to buy the coconut milk version! This one must have been placed with the other new coconut flavors by mistake and I didn't even notice :(. It just goes to show you: even those who consider themselves health-conscious and observant need to carefully check labels.

Say Cheese

Good morning beautiful people! (How’s that for an upbeat Wednesday greeting?) I am feeling good today, very good, in fact. Thank you for being such a great help to me during this tough time. I almost wish I could share everything that is going on at the moment but I feel like I need to maintain some layer of confidentiality for my family’s sake and my own, I hope you understand. I’ve decided to bring a little more optimism back into my daily routine and life. All hope is most definitely not lost and I know that we can get through this together. Gotta love the positive big sister mentality :).

Another huge reason why I’m feeling so happy is because I spent my evening celebrating with this pretty lady. Remember that best friend I was telling you about? Well, she’s back, and last night we celebrated her 21 years of life.

I’ve got a very busy day ahead of me at work so I’ll let the pictures do the majority of the talking. What I will tell you is to make sure you read her new cocktail napkins correctly.

For dinner we made our very own margharita pizza, it turned out to be absolutely fantastic especially for something that was so quick and easy!

To quench our thirst, our dear friend Max took over with another of her birthday gifts, a mojito-making set.

What a fun celebration! I stuck to my one drink because I knew that I'd be paying for it today otherwise but her traditional 21st birthday fiesta will be taking place Friday. I'm very much looking forward to it.

Another upcoming friendly event is taking place tomorrow when one of my favorite recent graduates is coming down to visit myself and two other recently graduated friends.  We’re going out for dinner and drinks :). Oh and earlier that day I’m meeting the boy for lunch, he’ll be in the city for some last minute medical school visits. Poor thing, he has too many choices ;) hope you have a great day everyone!

America's Independence Day

I wish there was a stronger word that I could say to thank you all. Every single one of your comments was more comforting than you would even believe. Is everything alright now? Sorta, it's a process, and unfortunately it's really amazing some of the things I've missed after being abroad for a year. As for now, I'll admit, I can only stray a few hours from the blogosphere. But, something so emotionally draining has had its physical effects and sweethearts, boy do I feel it. I have the tummy-ache of all time, not good :(.

On a happier note let's look back to July 4th and my father's Mexican ceviche. It was light and spicy and the best summer appetizer to date.

I also picked on some of these crudités and by the time the meal was served helped myself generously to my aunt's famous salad.

This is a picture of my father's plate, which was similar to mine in some regard and different in others. For one, my plate was piled high with salad. I just adore my aunt's dressing and cannot get enough. Then, there was no chicken breast but a sole ear of corn that was sweetened to summer perfection. Dinner was delicious.

One of my puppies, Colby, just couldn't get enough of lying on my lap for the entire afternoon. In his defense I haven't seen him for a week, my cousins were dog-sitting but boy did he miss me and it goes both ways :).As night fell the kiddies made s'mores while we waited for my uncle and his friend to prepare the fireworks in the backyard.

I opted out on the sugar high and stuck to my Jakie mug (that's my cousin) with delectable hazlenut coffee.

And later on in the night snacked on fresh cherries that I'd purchased from the farmer's market earlier that morning.

It was a beautiful day and holiday and I thoroughly enjoyed myself while surrounded by friends, family, and the boy. I hope the same for you! Hopefully I'll be feeling better enough to eat something photogenic tomorrow, you know how I like sharing my meals :). Take care! Oh and P.S. Happy Birthday Mark and Congrats Maggie!

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Hi darlings, I hope you've enjoyed your celebratory weekend. I just wanted to let you know that something's come up and I won't be able to post for a few days. Please keep my family in your thoughts and prayers. And, if you have a moment, or 15 minutes actually, please watch my video review of Food Inc. or visit their website or better yet, go see the film yourself. Thank you, I really appreciate it.

HUNGRY FOR A CHANGE

As I sat down to write my "review of Food, Inc. I found myself at a complete loss of words. I wasn't sure if was capable of sharing my thoughts on the film and beliefs about the issues it discussed in a literary way. Nor did I know if I had the patience to sit down and try to do my best. So... I made a video. For anyone who has not yet seen the documentary and has the intention of doing so, I cannot promise you that there aren't any "spoilers," so please watch, me, at your own risk. Otherwise, I'd have to ask that you please excuse my ums, random pauses, likes, and those pieces of hair that continued to fall in front of my face in the filming of this video post ;).

Yes, I know, it was long, possibly too long, but I never claimed to be a great story-teller (I ramble) nor an expert so I hope you made it through. As I'm sure you could tell, I'm very passionate about many of the the reforms that this film supports and encourages. Nevertheless, in my entire 15 minutes, I failed to mention anything specific about pesticides, diabetes, the environmental impact, cloning, and/or, the most heart wrenching of all (in my opinion), the global food crisis. Jeremy Rifkin, president of the Foundation on Economic Trends in DC, said frankly, "People go hungry because much of arable land is used to grow feed grain for animals rather than people," just last year. Something has got to give. I highly encourage you to go see Food Inc. and, at the very least, to check out their website. There's so much to be done, and, there's sooo much we can do.

God Bless America... and the whole wide world. Have a very happy and safe Fourth of July!

Mother Earth

"This is a beautiful planet and not at all fragile.

Earth can withstand significant volcanic eruptions, tectonic cataclysms, and ice ages.

But this canny, intelligent, prolific, and extremely self-centered human creature had proven himself capable of more destruction of life than Mother Nature herself....

We've got to be stopped." -Michael L. Fischer, Harper's, July 1990

In addition to the countless health benefits from eating a clean, plant-based diet, I'm motivated to eat this way for many environmental reasons. Farmed animals produce more greenhouse gas emissions (18%) than the world's entire transport system (13.5%)! Even so, I know you've seen me eat meat and fish from time to time because I also have a passion for trying new things and tasting good food. When I do, however, I aim for organic, grass-fed, free range, etc, all those terms that signify a happier animal, a healthier meal, and a more sustainable planet.

Mostly I eat veg-friendly meals 3x a day though. Tonight I had a fantastic plate of brown rice mixed with water chestnuts, carrots, broccoli, and sugar snap peas alongside a mixed green salad with sprouts, bell peppers, radishes, celery, and tomato. It was delicious... everything organic, the majority of ingredients local, and just the way I like it :). As for now, I'm headed over to the movie theatre to see the much talked about film, Food, Inc. I'm very interested (and nervous) to see how it transforms my foodie opinions. Have a great night darlings!

Yum today, healthy tomorrow

Good morning everyone, I slept in today since I have the day off from work... making for the longest celebratory fourth of July weekend I think I've ever had! Oh and as we're on the topic of holidays, Happy belated Canada to my friends up north :). For yesterday's breakfast I stuck to blue as my primary patriotic color. Now, ready for your AM news dose?

A study in the British Journal of Cancer found that while 33% of the general population will develop cancer during their lifetime, for those who don't eat meat that risk is reduced to about 29%. These researchers from universities in the UK and New Zealand followed 61,566 British men and women including meat-eaters, those who ate fish but not meat, and those who ate neither meat nor fish. Overall, vegetarians had notably fewer cancers of the stomach and bladder, non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, and multiple myeloma. The reduction was less impressive for fish-eaters with all of these cancers except for that of the stomach. Researches have hypothesized that potential mechanisms could include viruses and mutation-causing compound in meat or alternatively that vegetables confer special protection.

But the same reduction for vegetarians was not found with bowel cancers nor with cervical cancer of which fish-eaters and vegetarians had twice the relative risk of meat-eaters. The original BBC article can be found here. I usually follow a vegetarian diet, about 50% raw, sometimes vegan, but I do have the occasional fish when eating out. Does health influence the way you eat?