I am starting to think that this money situation came at a really good time for us (if that is at all possible.) Since last Friday, we have really been evaluating all of our expenses and looking for places to make temporary cuts. We have been eating at home more and making new dishes which makes eating at home exciting. We did spend $140 on groceries, but that was for three weeks of meals and snacks. We are only allowing a couple of old meals onto the schedule in order to keep things fun. We filled the car up with gas which will last at least three weeks and we paid all of the bills so other than rent we shouldn't need any more money for awhile. Living is expensive, I didn't really realize until I tried to live on nothing, but we still have enough for rent and a small emergency fund. The bank sent me a new card, but there is still no sign of the paperwork I need to fill out to get my money back so the card is just a useless piece of plastic now.
This weekend is the Diversity Festival downtown which we are vending again. Philip and I made some stuff especially for the weekend so hopefully it will do well. I will take pictures and post after the weekend.
6.29.2007
6.28.2007
Yummy sammiches
It is officially summer here which means warm weather, crazy thunderstorms, walks with Philip and Astrid to the park, and best of all- sandwiches. The other night, I sat down with four different cookbooks and planned out our meals for the next two weeks before going to the grocery store. We ended up spending $140 on groceries, but that is because we were out of several staple items. After the grocery trip, we made our first meal which was a curry soup that we haven't made in almost two years. It was delicious and left us wondering why we don't make it more often. Last night we made something completely new, the tempeh reuben from Vegan with a Vengeance. We cheated by using Nasoya Thousand Island dressing instead of making our own, but only because we had some left over from a salad night. Other than that, we followed the recipe exactly and the resulting sandwiches were amazing.
These were big sandwiches so we could only eat one each, but we have plenty of leftovers for two more sandwiches. The only thing that I would change about the recipe is I would halve the tempeh. The recipe calls for 16oz which is two packages of tempeh and we had tons leftover so to cut down the price of this recipe, you can just use one package. We will definately be making these sandwiches again and next time we will try making the thousand island dressing.
On the subject of food, I have long been struggling with the lunch away from home dilemma. Whenever I work away from my home I am at high risk for buying lunch. The problem is that I pack my mornings so full that there is never enough time for me to make a lunch before I leave the house. When I work in the office I have the temptation of vegan meals (delicious, but unhealthy) delivered three days a week. When I work at the store I have several vegan options close by (some relatively healthy, but expensive.) My goal is to come up with a series of lunches that I can assemble at work that will be filling and keep me away from restaurant food. Another requirement is that they not be those "just add water" noodle bowls or those Ives dinner bowls. I want something cheap and relatively healthy.
My first success came today in the form of a banana and peanut butter burrito. I found whole grain tortillas on sale at the grocery store last week so I bought an extra pack to leave at the store. I already had a jar of organic natural peanut butter there so yesterday I put the peanut butter on a tortilla and ate it for lunch. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't very filling. Today I brought a banana in with me and threw the slices into the burrito and it was amazing.
These were big sandwiches so we could only eat one each, but we have plenty of leftovers for two more sandwiches. The only thing that I would change about the recipe is I would halve the tempeh. The recipe calls for 16oz which is two packages of tempeh and we had tons leftover so to cut down the price of this recipe, you can just use one package. We will definately be making these sandwiches again and next time we will try making the thousand island dressing.On the subject of food, I have long been struggling with the lunch away from home dilemma. Whenever I work away from my home I am at high risk for buying lunch. The problem is that I pack my mornings so full that there is never enough time for me to make a lunch before I leave the house. When I work in the office I have the temptation of vegan meals (delicious, but unhealthy) delivered three days a week. When I work at the store I have several vegan options close by (some relatively healthy, but expensive.) My goal is to come up with a series of lunches that I can assemble at work that will be filling and keep me away from restaurant food. Another requirement is that they not be those "just add water" noodle bowls or those Ives dinner bowls. I want something cheap and relatively healthy.
My first success came today in the form of a banana and peanut butter burrito. I found whole grain tortillas on sale at the grocery store last week so I bought an extra pack to leave at the store. I already had a jar of organic natural peanut butter there so yesterday I put the peanut butter on a tortilla and ate it for lunch. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't very filling. Today I brought a banana in with me and threw the slices into the burrito and it was amazing.
6.24.2007
My sister
Yesterday, my sister's dance troupe had their yearly workshop and show. The workshops were all day with Princess Farhana and list night was the show. I have been attending my sister's shows for a few years now and helping out at the door. For the last two years I have been shooting the shows, mainly because it is a good time to practice with movement and light. I caught my sister right before the show and a got a rare image of her not rolling her eyes or sticking out her tongue. Isn't she lovely?
The show was fantastic and since this is my third year attending I am starting to recognize some of the performers. This year's guest performer was Princess Farhana from California who was absolutely amazing.
The show was fantastic and since this is my third year attending I am starting to recognize some of the performers. This year's guest performer was Princess Farhana from California who was absolutely amazing.
6.22.2007
I should have stayed in bed
This morning I called the bank to balance my account like I do every pay day only to discover that some asshole got my check card number and went wild. There were several hundred dollars worth of fraudulent charges which completely wiped out my checking account. They closed my account, but not before my current paycheck could be completely used by these charges. I filed a fraud dispute and the bank will get all my money back, but it will be something like three weeks before I get it and regain access to my account. I hate the world today!!!
ETA- Okay, I am a little less angry now. I have been thinking and maybe this is life's little way of telling me to slow down and spend less. Philip and I have already started making more meals at home and this will force us to continue with that. We are going to try to spend very little over the next three weeks and see if it is possible to pay our rent and all of our bills without having to use the credit card or borrow money. This is going to be hard, especially since we are losing two of my paychecks plus the money that was in the account until all of this is over, but I think we can do it. If we make it, we will save the equivalent of two paychecks and maybe we will develop some thrifty habits that we can stick to.
ETA- Okay, I am a little less angry now. I have been thinking and maybe this is life's little way of telling me to slow down and spend less. Philip and I have already started making more meals at home and this will force us to continue with that. We are going to try to spend very little over the next three weeks and see if it is possible to pay our rent and all of our bills without having to use the credit card or borrow money. This is going to be hard, especially since we are losing two of my paychecks plus the money that was in the account until all of this is over, but I think we can do it. If we make it, we will save the equivalent of two paychecks and maybe we will develop some thrifty habits that we can stick to.
6.20.2007
Bob Barker
As most of you know, Bob Barker officially retired last week. They are looking for another host for the Price is Right, but no one will ever live up to the amazing Bob Barker.
Bob Barker was an animal lover and who promoted spaying and neutering at the end of every episode. Two years ago, Barker donated $1 million to Northwestern's Animal Law program and has given to promote the study of animal rights in several other universities across the country. Anyway, on Monday night Philip and I made Bob Barker's Vegan Enchilada Bake to celebrate the end of an era (and because we have to eat something.) It was amazing!! The recipe is very simple, kinda like a Mexican lasagna, and the preparation was quick. This is no small meal, we ended up getting three meals and several snacks out of one pan. The recipe says to serve with vegan sour cream which is delicious, but completely unnecessary.
Bob Barker was an animal lover and who promoted spaying and neutering at the end of every episode. Two years ago, Barker donated $1 million to Northwestern's Animal Law program and has given to promote the study of animal rights in several other universities across the country. Anyway, on Monday night Philip and I made Bob Barker's Vegan Enchilada Bake to celebrate the end of an era (and because we have to eat something.) It was amazing!! The recipe is very simple, kinda like a Mexican lasagna, and the preparation was quick. This is no small meal, we ended up getting three meals and several snacks out of one pan. The recipe says to serve with vegan sour cream which is delicious, but completely unnecessary.
6.14.2007
My Yellow Bike Log
Our city just started a community bike program in which they released 80 yellow bikes into downtown for the community to use. As soon as I heard about the program I went down to the High Street Y and signed up. I have lived in other places with community bikes and I love the way a simple machine can bring the community together. Lexington is using new bikes and they are locking them to prevent theft and to help offset some of the expenses associated with maintaining the bikes. The first few weeks didn't go so smoothly, several bikes went missing, some people took bikes out of downtown (which is against the rules of the program,) and there were several instances of bike part theft. The paper ran an article about all of the problems with the program and after that, it seems that these problems are disappearing. This is an awesome program and I encourage you to support it even if you don't actually use the bikes, though it is more fun if you do.
I have decided to start keeping a record of the bikes I ride for the summer so you can refer back to this entry to see my progress.
Thursday, June 14- Bike #67, I picked it up in front of the High Street Y and left it on S. Limestone in front of ReBelle.
Saturday, June 22- Bike #19, I found this bike chained to a telephone poll on High Street and I left it in front of CD Central on S. Limestone.
Sunday, June 23- Bike #55, I found this bike left outside of Common Grounds and I left it in front of Kashmir. This was my first female bike encounter and I have to say that I prefer the higher male bikes.
Wednesday, July 4- Bike #45, I found this bike behind that office complex on the corner where Main and Vine join and rode it all around downtown. I left it on Grand St between Old Vine and High street.
Wednesday, July 4- Bike #4, I found this bike behind Christ Church apartments (unlocked!) and Philip rode it all around downtown with me and left it locked on Grand St between High and Old Vine. Technically, this was Philip's bike ride, but I am logging it anyway.
Friday, July 13- Bike #56, I picked this bike up at a bike post on Grand St. and I left it in front of Two Keys Tavern on Limestone.
My tips for using the yellow bikes
1. Always carry and allen wrench. Four of the six bikes I have ridden so far have had loose handlebars so having a wrench on hand makes for a more enjoyable ride and leaves the bike better for the next rider.
2. Check the tires. I heard that many of the bikes were being left with flat tires. I haven't seen this, but it is a good habit to check the air in the tires, especially since there are only 2-3 places downtown where you can get air. If you leave a bike with flat tires, please call the maintenance number so someone will fix it.
3. Give yourself lots of breaking space. The community bikes have coaster brakes which don't stop as quickly as the rim brakes that most of us are used to.
4. Don't leave the bike in an area already saturated with yellow bikes. Try to find new places to leave the bikes so more people can enjoy them.
I have decided to start keeping a record of the bikes I ride for the summer so you can refer back to this entry to see my progress.
Thursday, June 14- Bike #67, I picked it up in front of the High Street Y and left it on S. Limestone in front of ReBelle.
Saturday, June 22- Bike #19, I found this bike chained to a telephone poll on High Street and I left it in front of CD Central on S. Limestone.
Sunday, June 23- Bike #55, I found this bike left outside of Common Grounds and I left it in front of Kashmir. This was my first female bike encounter and I have to say that I prefer the higher male bikes.
Wednesday, July 4- Bike #45, I found this bike behind that office complex on the corner where Main and Vine join and rode it all around downtown. I left it on Grand St between Old Vine and High street.
Wednesday, July 4- Bike #4, I found this bike behind Christ Church apartments (unlocked!) and Philip rode it all around downtown with me and left it locked on Grand St between High and Old Vine. Technically, this was Philip's bike ride, but I am logging it anyway.
Friday, July 13- Bike #56, I picked this bike up at a bike post on Grand St. and I left it in front of Two Keys Tavern on Limestone.
My tips for using the yellow bikes
1. Always carry and allen wrench. Four of the six bikes I have ridden so far have had loose handlebars so having a wrench on hand makes for a more enjoyable ride and leaves the bike better for the next rider.
2. Check the tires. I heard that many of the bikes were being left with flat tires. I haven't seen this, but it is a good habit to check the air in the tires, especially since there are only 2-3 places downtown where you can get air. If you leave a bike with flat tires, please call the maintenance number so someone will fix it.
3. Give yourself lots of breaking space. The community bikes have coaster brakes which don't stop as quickly as the rim brakes that most of us are used to.
4. Don't leave the bike in an area already saturated with yellow bikes. Try to find new places to leave the bikes so more people can enjoy them.
6.12.2007
Show your UFO's
In the spirit of full disclosure, here are all of my unfinished projects. Those of you who know me, know that I am a compulsive project starter and here is proof. The projects range from just started to almost finished.
Let me walk you through what I have here. First, in the upper left-hand corner is the owl condom holder. I made a mistake in the seam and had to set it aside- for two months! The pink and brown thing next to that is a sock I am doing for my sock class, the cuff is done and I will turn the heel with the class next Saturday. The big brown blob on the right side is my sweater which I am making slow progress on. The front is done up to the sleeve and I have about 10" done on the back. The bobbles are for a bracelet that needs to be finished for a store sample. The rest of the mess is the cupcake parts I could find for my shelf of cupcakes. I actually have 7-8 bottoms and 4 tops done, but none have been sewn together.
Now my goal is to finish at least one of these projects by the end of the week. Will I do it? Tune in to find out. Anyone else want to show your UFO's?
Let me walk you through what I have here. First, in the upper left-hand corner is the owl condom holder. I made a mistake in the seam and had to set it aside- for two months! The pink and brown thing next to that is a sock I am doing for my sock class, the cuff is done and I will turn the heel with the class next Saturday. The big brown blob on the right side is my sweater which I am making slow progress on. The front is done up to the sleeve and I have about 10" done on the back. The bobbles are for a bracelet that needs to be finished for a store sample. The rest of the mess is the cupcake parts I could find for my shelf of cupcakes. I actually have 7-8 bottoms and 4 tops done, but none have been sewn together.Now my goal is to finish at least one of these projects by the end of the week. Will I do it? Tune in to find out. Anyone else want to show your UFO's?
6.05.2007
Columbus hates vegans
Not all of the time, but certainly on Sundays and Mondays. Sarah and I went up to Columbus on Sunday for the TNNA trade show and since my favorite thing to do in a new city is try out the vegan offerings I came with a list. The two main veg restaurants that we tried to eat at, the Dragonfly and the Whole World Pizza & Bakery were closed when we showed up. Then, we decided to try some Ethiopian offerings, but on Sunday the Ethiopian restaurant was closed for a graduation and on Monday it was just closed (even though it was supposed to be open.) We did get some sweet goodies from the Patty Cake vegan bakery. I got a cookie and a muffin, a bar, and a bottle of their fermented green tea drink which were all very good. I highly recommend the vegan tollhouse cookie; it was the best chocolate chip cookie I have ever had.
For dinner Sunday night we checked out Aladdin's Eatery which is a local favorite with the vegetarians and vegans. It was a Mediterranean restaurant with very beautiful cakes in the dessert case (though I am pretty sure that none of them were vegan.) The menu had a decent selection of items we could eat which was nice. Since I had only eaten pastries, I was craving something heavier, preferably with beans so I decided on the falafel wrap with hummus. It was brought out like a to-go order (all wrapped up) that was just thrown on a plate. The falafel was very dry and had a horrible aftertaste. I tried to just eat it with more hummus, but that didn't really work. I am not sure why this restaurant received such good reviews, the food was mediocre at best and the waitress was really rude. On Monday, after two failed attempts at finding good food we just settled for burritos; they never disappoint.
In our desperate search for food we stumbled upon Wholly Craft, an indie craft shop. Everything in the shop was handmade or used for making stuff. They have stuff from crafters from all over the country and lots of one-of-a-kind goodness. If you are in or around the Columbus area you have to check this place out. They will be moving to the space next door so there will be even more craftabulousness in the near future.
On our way out of town we had to get a picture of this advertisement for auto insurance. I am a big fan of fun marketing schemes. This was just an ordinary city parking lot and I guess that they were renting part of it to place the vehicles covered in paint. The really funny thing about this ad was that the parking lot was completely packed, except for the area with the paint. It was almost as if people thought the paint was going to come down on their cars. I admire the driver of the red car for taking a chance.
TNNA was great too; we saw lots of new patterns and yarns and found a new line of hemp that we are adding to the store as well as some exciting changes with our current hemp provider. We met Jenny Hart and saw the additions to her line, and much more. We have lots of exciting things coming to the store over the next several months.
The TNNA summer show is going to be in Columbus again next year so we will go back to our favorites and hopefully have an easier time finding new stuff to try. We will go up on Saturday to assure a meal at the Dragonfly.
For dinner Sunday night we checked out Aladdin's Eatery which is a local favorite with the vegetarians and vegans. It was a Mediterranean restaurant with very beautiful cakes in the dessert case (though I am pretty sure that none of them were vegan.) The menu had a decent selection of items we could eat which was nice. Since I had only eaten pastries, I was craving something heavier, preferably with beans so I decided on the falafel wrap with hummus. It was brought out like a to-go order (all wrapped up) that was just thrown on a plate. The falafel was very dry and had a horrible aftertaste. I tried to just eat it with more hummus, but that didn't really work. I am not sure why this restaurant received such good reviews, the food was mediocre at best and the waitress was really rude. On Monday, after two failed attempts at finding good food we just settled for burritos; they never disappoint.In our desperate search for food we stumbled upon Wholly Craft, an indie craft shop. Everything in the shop was handmade or used for making stuff. They have stuff from crafters from all over the country and lots of one-of-a-kind goodness. If you are in or around the Columbus area you have to check this place out. They will be moving to the space next door so there will be even more craftabulousness in the near future.
On our way out of town we had to get a picture of this advertisement for auto insurance. I am a big fan of fun marketing schemes. This was just an ordinary city parking lot and I guess that they were renting part of it to place the vehicles covered in paint. The really funny thing about this ad was that the parking lot was completely packed, except for the area with the paint. It was almost as if people thought the paint was going to come down on their cars. I admire the driver of the red car for taking a chance.
TNNA was great too; we saw lots of new patterns and yarns and found a new line of hemp that we are adding to the store as well as some exciting changes with our current hemp provider. We met Jenny Hart and saw the additions to her line, and much more. We have lots of exciting things coming to the store over the next several months.
The TNNA summer show is going to be in Columbus again next year so we will go back to our favorites and hopefully have an easier time finding new stuff to try. We will go up on Saturday to assure a meal at the Dragonfly.
6.01.2007
Vegan RAK
When we came from Oregon, our mail was slightly overwhelming. Since I paid all of the bills that were due before the middle of June, I didn't thoroughly sort the mail, I just grabbed a few interesting items out and left the rest for later. Well, last night I decided to sort everything out and hidden amongst the junk mail was a cute little RAK envelope filled with PETA stickers and goodies. I assume by the postmark that it cam from Charlotte. Thank you so much and I am sorry that I missed it earlier!!!
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