Lovely Weekend

Another weekend has passed us by... sigh. It was much to short but eventful. On Saturday we started our morning by going to the Portland Farmers Market. There we bought some kale and Oregon cheddar and a pear and an apple. As some of you may know I have so far been disappointed by Cheddar on the left coast. It is orange and not very sharp. I have tried to find some in the stores but so far I have had to get Cabot which isn't from the great state of Oregon but Vermont. This time though we have bought some raw milk white cheddar from the Willamette Valley. Yum!. I haven't had any kale yet. Last time I ate kale was in college and I thought it was gross... so we shall see. I am making it into an "autumn burger" even though it is spring. Joe then took me to the downtown library. It like most city libraries has some nice architecture. I returned my Simpson's DVD that I borrowed from a different branch. We then headed to the Hawthorne Neighborhood. We tried a new sushi place called Toney Bento. Joe had a tuna roll and a 'Philadelphia' roll (salmon, chives, and cream cheese.) I had some real Ramen. I until recently thought Ramen only came in a 10 cent package from Nissin Top Ramen. Joe and I are opposite from when we first started dating. He is now eating the fish and I am the one seeing what tofu is on the menu. We finished our evening with a walk to the top of Mount Tabor to watch the sunset over the city. Sunday we went to Bridal Veil Falls. It was a nice little picnic area with a great waterfall. It is a two tiered fall that is about 100 feet high. We went back to Hawthorne and had some awesome Mexican food from a place called Cha Cha Cha. I finally had some nachos (which I have been craving) and Joe had a huge burrito. We are finishing our night with some Chickpea Gnochi and a salad. I couldn't ask for more.

Pop Pop and Away.

Monday was the last Femderday (pronounced Fem-Der-Day)/ Romantic Movie Monday. Sigh.. Such fond memories. It all started when Joe and I moved to Portland. I had a job he didn't. When I left for work he was home. When I got home from work.. he was home.. When I had a day off.. he was home.. I think you get the picture. So when he got a job Monday became mine! Manderday or whatever was his.. but my day was better. It started in the winter. Burr Cold.. I would wake up late.. not change out of my pajama's eat popcorn (and nothing else.) and watch movies that Joe would call girly. Hmm it was wonderful. I sometimes made red sauce on monday. It evolved over time.. I would wake up late.. and go shopping.. and eat popcorn with hot sauce. or I would wake up late.. eat popcorn.. and just watch my soaps or 10 reruns of Wil and Grace. perhaps season one of Grey's Anatomy. Eventually monday became soup day. Soup takes a long time and is not best prepared after a long day at work.
But all of that is ended. I went all out this week.. I slept in. I went shopping ( bought a really cute skirt).. I made cookies and popcorn (with soy sauce, hot sauce, and nutritional yeast) for lunch. I watched the best romantic comedy "When Harry Met Sally" .. I watched the last 5 minutes and the first five minutes of two soaps. I made a very yummy Baked potato soup. All in all a very good day. Now Joe and I have the same two days off. Manfemderday? Femmanderday (ohh I like the sound of that.!)

Rip City

Most of the time I forget that I live in a city. Besides hearing city buses accelerate up the large hill in front of our house our neighborhood is very quiet. Joe and I have been doing a lot of walking around the hood recently and we see things like neighbors talking to each other, kids playing together, and people working in their yards . It really doesn't feel like the city life I imagined at all. Then today on my way to work I started to compare my commute to when I worked at the Rock. My commute from Madison Ave to Stockbridge was about 25 minutes. I had to drive.. yuck!.. I passed 5 gas stations.. North street in Pittsfield... strip mall Lenox.. downtown Lenox.. then there were pretty rolling hills.. Tanglewood.. Kripalu.. and finally work. It was always rushed. I was always late. Instead of enjoying the beauty I was speeding going 50 in a 30 trying to get to my desk before my boss got to his. Now my morning has a pretty set routine of email and tea. Cleaning up the clutter in the house.. feeding Alice.. I meet my bus at 8:26am every morning. Greet the bus driver and sit in the third row of seats by the window.(if someone else is sitting there I give them a dirty look) then I have about 80 blocks of relaxation. Today I tried to remember what I pass on my way to work which takes about the same 25 minutes as my old commute. I pass three laundries.. more than 6 coffee shops.. countless restaurants. From Indian to Italian.. Balkan to Thai... breakfast joints and pub food.. to one of Portland's fanciest eateries. I passed sports bars and music bars... dive bars.. and a dance clubs. Of course there are a few banks.. a bowling ally.. a movie theater.. hippie stores.. hipster stores.. a tea shop.. at least 4 convenience stores.. 2 dentists.. plus houses, apartments.. condos and buildings under construction. oh and the county election offices. I could go on but I am sure you are already bored. So then as my bus pulled into downtown and the scene changed from building not over 3 stories to high rises and I realized that yes I do live in a city.. but no.. It's not like one I have been to before.

A lot out of a little.

Just about every time I went to the grocery store in recent memory I have gotten 'in trouble' for spending to much money. At the time we were living on easy things to make, a potato, a veggie, some protein (pre-made veggie burgers, cutlets, nuggets and the like.) After dinner and peeling ourselves off the couch we would then have to make lunch for work the next day... ugg. All in all, it was not a fun process. So I have heeded the call and made some changes to our diet and grocery bill. It started with casseroles.. they were easy ( I used a lot of fake soup) and if I made the right one we could eat it the next day for lunch. Now after yet another change of heart I no longer want to eat fake soups, fake meat products or anything processed. I actually spend less time in the kitchen now and less money at the store! It all starts with my planning. I sit down once a week and plan out every meal. I now cook like there are 4 of us leaving enough for dinner and lunch the next day ( no more making two meals at night!) So this week the menu is.
Sunday: Breakfast: Eggs/toast Lunch: Saturday market! Dinner: Carmel Tofu with veggies
Monday: (Joe fends for himself for lunch) and for dinner a split pea soup and some popovers.
Tuesday: Lunch- Split pea soup Dinner- Indian food (somosas , naan, and navratan korma) .Eric gets credit for giving me this idea.
Wednesday: Lunch- Indian .. Dinner- rice, beans and deep fried plantains
Thursday: Lunch- bean and rice leftovers in a burrito Dinner- homemade pasta with homemade sauce
Friday:Lunch- pasta Dinner- chickpea and sweet potato enchilada casserole.
Saturday: Lunch- casserole Dinner- perhaps a fishless tuna casserole.

When we were on our old diet I would spend 60-75 dollars a week at the g-store. This week will be under 50. Not only does it include all the ingredients for the above but also extras like Joe's breakfast / bananas, yogurt, nuts and my after lunch dessert /nanas, oranges and apples. Also strawberries so I can make a pie, oil so I don't run out, cat food so Alice can eat too and TP because we are in need. This is 40+ extra dollars a month we now have. We can put this money into savings, or spend it at the Saturday Market since we have our eyes on some Oregon honey and organic jam.. or maybe at the Farmers market... hmm the possibilities.... I would like to imagine that we are healthier too... well maybe minus the pie.

It's Spring!

Spring has sprung! Hopefully this time for good. In February it felt like spring because it was sunny and 60. I thought it was here to stay. March was different though with some chilly nights, rainy days and well a spot of snow. I have high hopes for April. The flowers are blooming, people are mowing their lawns, and all the trees have little leaves.. all of this must mean something good is coming. Tonight I get to watch my first Red Sox game of the season! (thanks Bonnie!) It is a west coast game so it will start here at 7. Just the right amount of time for me to go to the gym, get home, put supper on the coffee table and sink into the couch. ( the dining room is just to far away from the red sox.)
Since I have become an adult or well at least since I have had a 9-5 I have stopped watching my stories. At some point in my life I have been addicted to Days of our Lives, General Hospital, or All My Children. Last year I did not have Femderday to devote to girly things so I needed something new. The Red Sox were the answer. I had sat down and watched games in the past but not as extensively as last year. It filled my soap void very well. Just like soaps there are lots of questions to be answered. Would Dusty or Cora play? Is Manny really being Manny? Will Ortiz hit this walkoff home run? What will Remy and Don say next? Those two guys are also very funny as well as informative. I still giggle to myself every time I picture Remy playing air guitar and falling down. I just youtubed it because of the memory. It doesn’t get old. It is 2pm now and I am at work. Thinking about how GH is on and counting down the 5 hours til the Sox. I am totally going to watch Remdawg fall down again.. it will keep me entertained for the time being.