Tolerance Shmolerance

It's been my experience that people generally known as "tolerant," funny enough, are most intolerant of intolerant people. Going with that, my in tolerances:



1) Use of the phrase "waste of time," "what a waste," "wasting my time," etc. I don't know that there is much that is a waste of time. At least not from the rose-colored glasses side I look from. There is always a lesson in something, so while I may not like doing something, it certainly is not a waste. Just saying.



2) Words "gay," "fag," or, "retarded." I call these hate words. They are hateful, unproductive words that only tout ignorance and lack of kindness.



3) Mass-media published typos. I mean on obvious stuff, not a misplaced comma in a complicated sentence. Like the other day I read an article on MSN that spelled "paid" as "payed."



4) People who, upon finding out that I'm vegan, immediately proceed to argue the issue with me. Screw you.



5) The perpetually negative. Okay, okay, I'm making a list of things that piss me off, but keep in mind that I don't do this often and I also try and find the good in everything, even when I'm pissy. Voltaire and I could have quite the discussion, really. But people who have nothing good to say about anything are not high on my list of favorites.



6) Comments on how much/often I eat. I snack throughout the day. I bring large amounts of veggies, fruits, and other fun things to snack on all day long. This is not to attract attention. It's because I'm hungry. So comments like "you're eating again" or "you're so skinny for someone who eats so much" are rude and hurtful. They make me very self-conscious and uncomfortable (as a floret of cauliflower is held between my lips for chomping).



What are your ticks or peeves?

As an update: the holy/holey toe is doing great! I didn't get a chance to post the photo yesterday, so here you go!

The Girls and I got together last night for our preliminary meeting of the now-named Bad-ass Girls Bookclub. I've been really excited about this for awhile. It will expand my reading repertoire, which admittedly has gotten more snoody that it should have over the last year or so, and bring together wonderful women. What is most fun, though, is that our first book is Bonk: The Curious Coupling of Science and Sex by Mary Roach. I have not read it, but have heard great things about Mary Roach before.
When I say that my reading repertoire has gotten quite snoody, I should explain myself. For a very long time I was a card-carrying member of the Snoody English Major Club. Then I found out I'd have to like Beowulf to keep my membership and said "see ya!" and haven't looked back. To be honest, I got tired of chasing my tail. Beating something over the head. However you want to phrase it, I got tired of talking about literature. Analyzing it over 12 pages and giving sources. Ugh. I just was sick of it by the end. It came to a big head when I wrote 12 pages on how the term "magical realism" is actually a terrible term, inaccurate at best, and derogatory almost always. (Insert snoodiness here). Anyway. So I gave away or traded in almost all of my books, with very few exceptions, and took my 3-book case library down to about 2 shelves, and have been perfectly fine shluffing my way through.
I tend to read new-agey, vegan, spiritual non-fiction/philosophy, memoir (not by celebrities), or poetic fiction. I don't read sci-fi with the exception of the one book, Ender's Game, by Orson Scott Card, I don't read series books (except Harry Potter), and I don't read smutty mass-produced trash (though I did make myself finish The Devil Wears Prada and must say it's a terrible bit of total trash that doesn't compare to the film). Sorry, that is a very harsh word. . . mmm. . . "romance," chick lit" books. That is not to say I won't, I just never have and for the most part, was perfectly fine continuing down that path. I also don't like, usually, easy books. Books that make it so I can passively read. As I writer, I don't like writing for passive audiences, either. I like to engage and be engaged in what I do and read and write. So if there's no lyricism or figuring it out, I don't usually prefer it. However, I did read He's Just Not That Into You and gobbled it all up and loved every page. So, you see, I really need to expand my range of reading. I need to teach myself to open up a little. And remind myself that I won't die if a book doesn't have highlight-necessary phrases every paragraph. I'm excited. :)

Are you a picky reader? What genre(s) do you prefer, if any? Is there anything you absolutely won't read?

It's also because we had a meeting last night that my menu today consists entirely of snack left-overs plus an odwalla and some strawberries. Promises of more cooking to come tonight!

Mantra of the Day: Om apadamapa hartaram dataram sarva sampadam loka bhi ramam sri rama bhuyo bhuyo namamyaham. Translation: Oh, most compassionate Rama, please send your healing energy right here to the earth, the earth . This is apparently a healing mantra. I say apparently because yes, I've run out of mantras that I can easily recall, and I'm slightly lagging today, so I could use some extra healing love to get generated! Ugh.

Question of Gratitude: Who, or what, are you grateful for today? Today I am grateful for my dear, wonderful, good friend Chelle and her fiance for leaving snacks at my house. This is a very simple bit of thanks, but really, today you saved me from sure starvation since I woke up late and did not have the desire to make lunch. Also, you are both wonderful, awesome people and I'm so excited for you both! Congrats!

Wake Up Friends, We've Got the Dreamer's Disease

Fun Facts that I'm quite sure less than five people on the planet know about me:

1) When I was in the 1st grade I told my teacher that I wanted to be this:

2) The other night I dreamed that I was a Saudi Arabian woman swimming along a rocky coastline with a yellow-painted face, pitch black skin, and I sang a song where one line was "the pieces of the melody in my head. . . " I recognize that it doesn't at all make sense that a Saudi Arabian woman would be swimming naked along a rocky coastline, or that her face would be painted yellow, but hey, it's my dream.

3) When I was four I did try digging to China under a tree in my front yard. I didn't get nearly as far as this girl

All I accomplished was killing the tree.

4) As far as I'm concerned, Zack Morris is the ideal man. No, I'm really not joking on this one. And no, I don't mean the actor Mark-Paul Gosselaar *swoon*, but Zack Morris, the entirely fictional character.

5) I've always thought Converse shoes are ugly as hell. Worse then Crocs.

What quirky facts do you have floating around?

On that note:

I went to Costco last night with MEH. I was in an overwhelmingly goofy mood yesterday, also. Which means I embarrassed the crap out of him the entire car ride there and did my best to continue said embarrassment throughout our trip to Costco.

(Semi-important side note (really only important since it will help you understand why I don't go to Costco often): I rarely shop at Costco. It's not only because I rarely find it necessary to bulk buy a 12 pound sack of Yukon Gold Potatoes, or, say, a 2 gallon jar of artichoke hearts when it's only myself and MEH living at our house, but because I usually do my grocery shopping on the weekend. And I went to Costco once on a Sunday and felt like I needed blinkers and a cattle prod, not to mention, maybe, a Valium to prevent me from shooting up the whole damn store. I don't care for large groups of people, nor do I care for rambunctious large groups of small children, or big box usually, or the fact that their organic section is minuscule. So, coupled with my distaste for large busy groups of people, the preference to shop on the weekend, and the non-need to buy in bulk, I tend to avoid Costco).

Upon walking in I put on my shiny eyes and said in a voice much akin to a small child in FAO Schwartz: "I'm being bombarded by all the great deals!"

And really, literally, we were. When you don't shop (unless you absolutely must) beyond the confines of the natural food section at Fred Meyer, you forget what stores like this have and at what prices they will just hand them over to you. Queen Pillows for 15 dollars? Rugs for 10?! Collapsible colanders for 15?! I was in bargain heaven. I danced among the strawberries (6 dollars a crate!), cartwheeled by the bananas (1.89 a bunch!), praised the organic meats that are significantly cheaper than Natural Pantry (sorry, guys).

Some 200 dollars later and much good food bought, we ventured home. I happy car danced the whole way, especially when "Benny and the Jets" came on the radio. Go Go, Elton!
Now, even more fun news:

I drilled a hole in my toe last night. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I, Aly, drilled a hole in my left big toe. There is a story here, obviously.

Several months ago, I want to say April-ish, so only a couple months ago, I rolled an office chair

over my left big toe and it hurt. It hurt a lot. But there really isn't a lot I you can do about rolling over your big toe and giving it a huge, gross, blood blister, other than try to let it go away. Or so I thought!

Last night, after being tired of looking at an ugly bloody toe, and also after being tired of explaining a rather uninteresting event, I looked at MEH and said:

"Do you know if there is any way I can get rid of that thing?" I pointed at my toe.

He said:

"Yeah. I can drill a hole in it."

Whoa whoa whoa. Stop right there, sir. You want to drill a hole in my toe?. Ahem. But I have to be honest: I was anticipating this to be his answer and my only option.

"But I'm scared of drills. I don't like that sound."

"It doesn't hurt and it will relieve the pressure. I promise it won't hurt, my grandfather used to do it." (Side note: MEH's grandpa was a farmer for 60+ years. Farmers don't get hurt. Nothing hurts them. So imagine my belief in MEH that this would not hurt based upon his overwhelming attempt to calm me down).

"Uhhhhh. Fine. Go get the drill." Yes, those words really did come out of my mouth.

And sure enough, he came back with a drill, three different drill bits for my choosing, and some rubbing alcohol since, you know, drill bits aren't usually the most sanitary tool to dig down into your toenail. He went slowly, was careful, and didn't make me watch until I told him to stop, it was kind of starting to hurt, and by then he'd broken through enough nail that I could pick out the clot with tweezers.

Yes, I picked out my blood blister clot with tweezers. And eventually drilled more of a hole in my own toe to get at said clot. I probably looked like a wacko. MEH looked at me like a monkey picking my own fleas. But at one point he also said:

"I have to admit that's actually really sexy." Me and my big monkey feet held close to my face with a drill in hand, concentrating hard on not putting a hole through my entire toe.

I now have a holy toe. HA! and a much better story, which is really what it's all about.

I have a theory that there are things in life called "Writer Experiences." These are experiences that you know weren't bad, but you aren't quite sure if they were good, but definitely make a great story. Do you have any great Writer Experiences?

Mantra of the Day: So ham. Translation: I am that. Yes, it's quite simple. I read about it first in the amazing, holy crap life changing book Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert soon to be a Julia Roberts film, coming out in August. Gilbert used the mantra while at an ashram in India. It can also be used in the reverse, of "ham sa," but so ham is more widely practiced. It is a voiceless mantra (meaning you repeat it in your head with your breath). On the inhale, think "so," on the exhale, think "ham" (more like hom). Traditionally it is repeated 108 times, though clearly it can still be of benefit without the rigorous practice. It encourages the dissipation of the ego and an awareness of the divinity of the self. Woo!

Question of Gratitude: Who or what are you grateful for today? I am grateful for MEH. He loves me goofy, gross, gaseous, gabby, and grabby. He's willing to do just about anything I try to drag him through. That includes trekking across 11 miles of terrain with a 75 pound pack on his broken collar bone. It also includes eating vegetables. It really includes everything. And I love him for it all. Even when he does "forget" to wash the dishes for an entire month.

Happy travels, everyone!

Nom's The Word

Haaaapppy Monday, everyone!

Many good things happened this weekend. A quick recap:

1) The Girls and I did a hike up Flat Top on Saturday morning, followed by a visit to Middle Way Cafe.

2) I made food!

3) Food making necessitated cleaning out my fridge/freezer!

4) I found out that my Beautiful God-Daughter and BBF will be moving home for a year while BGD and BBF's dad/hub is in Afghanistan (the not exciting part). One full year of uninterrupted BBF and BGD?! Super excited.

5) I started an amazing new book called The Intention Experiment. More info to follow. So, to start.

To encourage recreational reading, and to get my body moving a little bit more before I hike it up a mountain, I haul my happy butt to Kaladi Brothers Coffee down the street for an all-natural coconut americano and some light reading. I love KBC. I also love the baristas. Really, I do. They are all wonderful, fabulous folk who also happen to make the best damn americano on the whole planet.

They also started selling a fabulous new travel mug that mimics their regular coffee cups. The ceramic cup with rubber top is my favorite ever for two really great reasons: 1) It looks exactly like their paper cups, and I'm quite attached to them, 2) it's only 10oz instead of the regular 12, so I get a) a bigger discount than most, and b) I don't drink so much damn coffee!
The two books on the right posed a dilemma. The Prophet by Khalil Gibran has been a favorite since high school. This particular copy I bought at a book store in Firenze during my charmed summer of 2006 and it has a facing-page translation in Italian (which I cannot read, but like to fancy that I can). The book inspired the sing "God Rests in Reason" by Jason Mraz which is also a big favorite of mine. The Intention Experiment is a sequel of sorts to The Field, also by Lynne McTaggart. The Field posits the idea that all beings/things are connected to each other. It, in its ending poses the question of whether or not intentions can affect those around you (human and non-human). The Intention Experiment focuses on that question entirely.
Dilemma: Which to read? Neither is particularly light reading. That also wasn't what I was going for. But which would hold my attention and also, which would be more beneficial before sallying forth on this hiking adventure with dear friends? I proceeded with The Intention Experiment and read the preface and introduction, and then skipped the the essays in the Prophet that I knew I liked, and read several of those. Thoughts on The Intention Experiment to come.

So the six of us met up in the parking lot of the Chugach National Park all bright eyed and bushy tailed. All told, two of us had never made it to the top, four of us were admittedly afraid of heights, and all six of us were impressed that Professional Library Lady's new manfriend was running the hike, while the rest of us were definitely not running anywhere.

Now I have lived with men before; I grew up with my little brother and two commercial fishermen in my family. So I know fairly well the breadth of topics male-exclusive (or near male-exclusive) conversation include. It's because of this that I declare that nothing, absolutely nothing, surpasses the bizarre nature that is female-exclusive conversation/ranting. Farts, egg donation, gay rights, poop, overwhelming fatness, cupcakes, being "The Shit," shampoo, breakfast, future plans, not to limit the list to these few things, topped the conversation while on the side of that mountain. For the record, reflecting myself: Frequent, will do, go you!, I'm a fan, ick, yum!, well of course I am, I like my Giovanni, we've discussed this, I don't plan per say.

I love these women. Entirely and truly, I adore all of them. Not one of us is remotely similar. That is not to say that we don't have anything in common; we are all just entirely our own person. And I wouldn't have it any other way.

So we MADE IT, sweaty and tired, to the top. Celebrations of dirty hands, smiles of accomplishment, and nostalgic-looking-in-the-distance photos were had. It was a blast. And after we made it back down the slippery slope, we were off to my favorite Vegan-Friendly Ho Down: Middle Way Cafe!

The DivineMrsS and I woofed (really, woofed is an accurate statement here) down a Neopolitan Cupcake each followed by luncheroo, Lovely Writer Friend partook in a chai and lunch, and Sweet Caroline had a Chocolate Cream Cupcake with some java.

DMsS, LWF, SC, and I gabbed along for a good ol' time, and then parted ways for the day. Thank you, my dear friends, for such a fun Saturday!

Are you and many of your close friends similar, or very different? What are some of the more strange things you talk about? Do you have any ritual/traditions/habits you have created with each other over the years?

The rest of my Saturday passed with little consequence, other than watching Sweet Home Alabama and drinking the better portion of a bottle of wine.

But! On Sunday! I cooked!

On the menu: Spicy Peanut Sauce with Veggies & Rice, a snack of dates and PB (holy crap), and the last small spoonfuls of Coconut Dream Dark Chocolate ice cream (holier crap).

So I started off by thinking "what on earth can I make for dinner. I'm lazy. I'm tired. And I don't know that I have all that many grocery items from which to choose." But! I had all I needed, I discovered, after scrounging around in the freezer.
Chopping of some sweet spring onion, half a head of cauliflower, and broccoli commenced

(Note: I do not/did not microwave steam the broccoli.
We do not actually own a microwave anymore. ha!)

I threw it all in a large saucepan with some EVOO and gaaaaaalic and let it steam a little bit while I put jasmine rice in the rice cooker (my most frequently use kitchen tool to date).

While it was all steaming away, I took a short snack break. I know, I know, I snack while I cook dinner. But I wanted to try these peanut butter stuffed dates!
Now, if you read my post about making my chocolate cream pie, you'd know that up until a week ag0, I'd never actually eaten a date in my life. So this was an experiment indeed. I pitted a date, took a spoonful of my dark chocolate dreams and put it in the date, and voila!

a chocolate pb date poop nugget. At least that's exactly what I thought it looked like. And it was AMAZING DELISH!. I mean, really. The sweetness of the date only added to the rich chocolatey peanut buttery greatness of the pb. I'm in love. The downside to this love affair, however, is that there are 110 calories in 2 dates alone and one serving of the pb (which, albeit is a long) is 180. So two dates and 1 serving on pb and I'm done. At least they are both nutrient dense? . . . .

Back to the Peanut Dish. The veggies were a'steamed, so I added in a little bit of basil tomato sauce, sriracha sauce (affectionately known in my house, and that of the DMsS, as "Cock Sauce"), chunky pb, and some H2O .
Aaaaand took a second snack break to enjoy my long-forgotten 4 small spoonfuls of Coconut Bliss Dark Chocolate ice cream. Mmmmm Dinner was ready shortly thereafter, much to my excitement. Clearly, Kayden was enthralled, too:

So thus was my weekend.

On The Intention Experiment:

Several years ago I watched the film What the Bleep Do We Know (in all of its versions). The film asks many questions, answers some, and introduced to me the idea that intention actually has physical affects on people and our surrounding world. Dr. Masaru Emoto introduced his findings of intentions/affirmations affecting water molecules. Dr. Emoto found that different emotions/intentions affected water in dynamic ways. Such a discovery changed my perspective regarding intent in one very specific instance: What tattoos would I get, now? And what would they say about me? How would it affect me? I chose the Om/Aum almost immediately.
In Yoga practice and in other belief systems/rituals, Om/Aum is a most auspicious symbol and sound. For those who believe that intentions/affirmations can strongly affect the intended body/being, putting this symbol anywhere on me/them/you is another way of bringing some very intense and positive energy my/their/your way. And oh, believe you me, it has.
Lynne McTaggart is also previewed in What the Bleep Do We Know. To be honest, I didn't remember her at all. I made it about 50 pages deep into The Field before I realized that, at the time, I just couldn't manage my way through all of the technical speak. But this weekend I picked up The Intention Experiment, ready to take on her very science-based questions and conclusions. I am not a physicist, chemist, biologist - hell, I barely made it through Bio 101 - there's a reason I'm an English major. However, McTaggart writes in a way that I can understand, even as she's describing Bose-Einstein condensate and other fun facts about subatomic particles.
Basically, she asks if it's possible that, not only on the subatomic scale, but on our real-life, seeable-tangible scale, intentions can affect others. Not even just targeted others, but everything. She recently discussed, in chapter three, a study done by Cleve Backster where he showed that plants (like, his office plants) react to intentions. In his study (again, not a scientist here, and Backster was actually raked against the intellectual coals for this one) Backster wanted to see if plants reacted to their surroundings, other than on a heat/water/sunlight level. The long and short of it is that they do. He found that plants reacted heavily when someone in a room thought about poisoning or burning them. That they reacted and formed attachments to regular caretakers, and that they even reacted to our actions toward other people/things. Holy CRAP. Oh, did I mention that he found this in the 1960's?
Another study she brings up is that when photos were taken (special photos, with long technical names and implications you can read about in the book if you are that interested) of plants, people, and specifically energy healers, that light literally emanated from their bodies. When a sugar snap pea was severed in several places and placed next to it's severed pieces, the picture revealed that light was still being passed from piece to piece. The separated parts were still interacting with each other and communicating. HOLY CRAP.

So, you can see I'm entirely into this book. I love it. I adore it. I think it's damn brilliant. And I also love that McTaggart doesn't stop at just a single book printing. Her website for the book asks readers to follow other mass-intention experiments to see what they can find. After I'm done, expect more info on those. Needless to say, I'm really excited. It really brings to mind the statement a yoga instructor made in one of my favorite classes: "Your hands are an extension of your heart. Be careful when touching the world around you."

Mantra of the Day: E ho Mai. This is not a "mantra" per say, but actually a Hawaiian invocation. Several services I attended while living in Kauai kicked off with this, and when sung by large groups, well, shoot, by anyone with a pretty voice, it's haunting. The full of it is

E ho Mai
Ka ike ma luna mai e

O na mea huna no eau
O na mele e

E ho mai
E ho mai
E ho mai
(repeat the whole thing three times)

In English it translates as:

Grant us
knowledge from above

All the wisdom
Of the songs

Grant us,
Grant us,
Grant us.

Obviously this invocation is asking more than it is wishing. But in many instances, aren't they similar if not the same? When sung by groups, much like a mantra, I've felt the invocation ask of everyone to look into what they are capable of, who they are, a little deeper than they would otherwise. To be gentle with each other, and also to push each other to dive in. And when sung or thought with intention, not passivity, the affect is near magic.

Question of Gratitude: Who/what are you thankful for today? I am thankful, truly, for The Girls. We are a wayward bunch, indeed. And I have known you in ages and stages varying from awkward-7th-grade-girl-swimmer-obsessed-with-the-Backstreet-Boys, to 9th-grade-super-nerd-still-obsessed-with-the-Backstreet-Boys, to over-worked-college-student-drinking-may-way-through-senior-year-and-buying-Backstreet-Boys-albums. And you have all been unrelenting friends. You are in every sense of the word, barring biologically, my family. Hell, I'd give you my eggs. Thank you for all being such beautiful people and such true companions. I love you.

PS - I still have "California Girls" stuck in my head. . .

Do You Remember The Time, Billie Jean?

The good thing about the anniversary of MJ's death today is that most of the radio stations in Anchorage are playing his music all day long. Three Cheers! It resulted in one very rockin' drive to work, full of silly faces, fist pumping, and getting laughed at in the car for 20 full minutes (come on they played Thriller).

MEH and I watched This is It last week and I must say, it made me a much bigger fan than I was beforehand. To both of us, it was clear that he was an absolute genius who had a true passion for his work, a childlike soul, and the ability to inspire a lot of incredible artists to keep on truckin' against, perhaps, their better judgment. MJ, you're awesome.

Viva la Weekend! Tomorrow several girl friends and I have decided we will truck our butts up Flat Top at 9:30am. To follow will be a juice and vegan cupcake from Middle Way Cafe. Woo! Some of us are afraid of heights, some afraid of the hike, others just want to do it for a good fun bonding and exercise time. Either way, it will be a bunch of fun and I'm super excited.

It's also a favorite barista's birthday today: Happy Birthday Nick! Have fun!

Last night VeggieMama thought I might be dead. Story:
I pull into the driveway to find our front door open, but not MEH car and no clear sign of MEH. "VeggieMama, I need to go . . . I just pulled up and found (see above)." CLICK.
Well, I start to walk into the house to find out that everything is fine, MEH's car is just getting detailed.
What I didn't do was immediately call VeggieMama and tell her all is well. So, while I'm halfway through cutting my spring onion for my vegan chili, she calls. I pick up.

"No, I'm not dead."
"Oh Good! I was afraid that you were hiding in a closet somewhere and I was going to get you killed! I wasn't sure what I was going to do if you didn't answer!"
Laughing ensued.

As did my chopping of my spring onions and roma tomatoes for my vegan chili. Num!

I needed to use up some chili sauce that MEH mistakenly bought awhile ago after being instructed to go get taco seasoning. (An aside: I really think that men lose their regular brain capacity when they walk into a grocery store for something they have been instructed to get. Without specific instructions on where to go, what row/aisle/shelf, I will inevitably receive a phone call saying "they don't have it," or the wrong item brought home. ahem.) So, considering I had extra black beans and the veggies above, I went forth with some nom nom chili!

Here was my result:

I added some chives and curled parsley fresh from our garden that we just put in 2-3 weeks ago,
some extra firm tofu, basil tomato sauce, and there we had it! Yay! And it was, of course, deelish! MEH loved his meat-filled version that I topped off with some melted mozz.



Do you have any favorite add-ins to chili? Or do you generally stay away from the music fruit?

So today I feel it necessary to expound upon my love for ORANGE JUICE, especially after explaining to you all how much I love breakfast!

I LOVE orange juice. MEH and I go through at least 2 gallons a week of the stuff. And while I know it is not organic, the only stuff I love this much is Tropicana Pure Premium No-Pulp with Calcium. It is amazing. I adore it. I also sing to it. And I blame it entirely on my grandfather.

Growing up, pop drank OJ like the stuff was disappearing through his hands. My grandparents had (and still do have) an entire freezer in their basement dedicated to cans of frozen Minute Maid. (blech). He drinks damn near a pitcher a day. He has his own OJ glass. All of us grandkids know this glass. It is Pop's OJ Glass and no one else uses it. Ever. Ever. I made him a new one this Christmas, seeing that his old one is nearing it's quarter life. So when it comes to my infatuation with this lovely citrus zing, I blame it on him. He says I shouldn't, that I'm picky about it. Oh well.

Do you have any foods you are particularly fond of in this obsessive way? Do you have any silverware, table settings, etc, that are *yours* and yours alone?

Anywho, breakfast was as it's been for the last several months, including my bootiful OJ.

And on the menu today:

From left to right: more tortillas, pluot, the absolute last piece of my chocolate cream pie, left over vegan chili. I have my mango and daiya cheese here. Nom nom nom!

I'm working on posting more thoughtful commentary on here, but am so jazzed about FOOD that it hasn't gone anywhere. Getting there. Had some good thoughts and want to work on an old piece, so look for that in days to come! On to the yoga/spiritual part of the day:

Mantra of the Day: Om Mani Padme Hum. There are many was to transliterate this mantra. Heck, there are many ways to translate this mantra. I first was exposed to it at the Free Tibet concert in Anchorage a little over a year ago. It was sung by the entire crowd and was absolutely amazing! It is used to invoke compassion and particularly so by those who follow Tibetan Buddhism and the Dalai Lama. I've found it helpful for myself when doing poses in yoga where I am being particularly hard on myself. Compassion is also something to show yourself, not just others. Be kind to yourself. Yesterday we did arm balances including firefly and sideways crow (which eventually turns into this, which I can't even come close to yet). At first I thought that meant inversions. I had images of forearm balance which terrifies me, or even more, a full hand stand. But then I calmed down and listened to the instructor saying "you are stronger than you think." And realized I needed to be kind to myself; I needed to have compassion for myself. So this mantra is very handy in reminding oneself to be kind to all, but firstly to you.

Question of Gratitude: Who are you grateful for today? I am grateful for MJ. His music helped for my childhood, taught me to rock out, showed me that you can still be childlike long into adulthood, and his songs still make me cry like a baby. (Aside: "Man in the Mirror" makes me bawl every time I listen to it. Weird, I know, but I'm a pansy/pansy).

Have a beautiful everything, everyone!

I'm a Daiyan'!

Today is Yoga Thursday. Woot! And it couldn't come at a better time considering my hips and lower back are going "and why exactly did you decide to do your cardio workout on a 2-7% incline at that speed for that long?"

Yesterday was a day full of good, wonderful surprises. I discovered, driving through the ever-pleasant Anchorage rush hour traffic, that a dear friend from high school has moved back to Anchorage. In fact, said friend has been working right around the corner from my house. What a coinky-dink. Another friend has discovered the beauty of yoga and is doing well in his new location, and I had the joy of accompanying my Lovely Writer Friend (from here on out referred to as LWF) on a walk with the happy go lucky/drag queen looking male poodle she is dog sitting. Yesterday was full of so many surprises, it appeared, that passing out at 10pm, dead cold, was the best thing for me.

So. The menu for today.

I'm a breakfast person. When I say that I'm a breakfast person, I mean that I'm entirely sure I could eat all things related to breakfast food (excluding meat, I will say) all day, everyday, and have done so before for months on end with a smile on my face and a song in my heart. I've been known to sing off-tune and short arias to my oatmeal. They go something like this, to the tune of the opening of that song in the Phantom of the Opera where Christine's friend is asking her "Christine, Christine . . . where in the world have you been hiding": Oatmeal, oatmeal! You are so good, tasty, and yummy. Truly you are perfect! I cannot heat you in the microwave, so you must go with yogurt!"

Really, it sometimes gets out of hand. Just add some potatoes O'Brien to it, and I'd have a full blown musical on my hands. Jazz hands and tapping included.

Anyway. I dig breakfast. I wake ravenous, almost always, for breakfast. For the last year, though, I've been in a crazy toast kick. I work this way, also: I find a food I like and I will eat it until I can no longer bring myself to eat it everyday. I'm not there on toast yet. It took three years of exclusive oatmeal for breakfast eating, to move on from it. Toast with peanut or almond butter. Nom. Nom. Nom. And MEH got me hooked on this great peanut butter from The Peanut Butter Company. Get this folks: it's Dark Chocolate peanut butter. Oh. My. Paired with some trusty orange juice and spelt bread, it's quite deelish:

Two tablespoons (which, for anyone who's actually tried eating two tablespoons of any peanut butter on anything knows this is just a ridiculous amount of peanut butter) only have 170 calories, 6 grams of protein, and 4 grams of carbohydrates. that's almost half the calories of regular peanut butter and the same protein/carb content. Woo! And here is the real clincher: It's all natural and certified vegan! Ah! Amazing! Greatness! Holy Buckets of Strawberry Jam!

I've gotten several coworkers in the past hooked to this stuff. You can even order it by mail. Or get some of their other fun stuff on their website . Yay!

And on the at-work-need-food-menu, we have:

From left to right we have the second to last slice of my chocolate cream pie, Daiya Italian Vegan cheez, vegan quiche ala VeggieMama, organic mango, organic cucumber, and organic cantaloupe.

It's no wonder that the most frequently asked rhetorical question in my office is "are you eating again?" Goodness. I discovered Daiya through my good friend Allison last week, who discovered it through the Green and Crunchy blog. I actually called her elation from Natural Pantry saying "THEY HAVE DAIYA! AHHH!" and have found myself saved thanks to the Italian shredded and non-shredded cheese. Melt it on some tortillas, add some salsa, and voila!, bliss!

Are you a frequent snacker, or a big meal eater? Or, are you somewhere in between?

Mantra for the Day: "Gate gate paragate parasamgate bodhi svaha," translated, it means: "gone, gone, gone beyond, gone utterly beyond, Enlightenment, hail!" I discovered this mantra, which is actually from the Heart Sutra, when reading The Heart of Understanding by Thich Nhat Hanh. I have found it to be peaceful, albeit a little longer than some I use frequently, and when read in conjunction with the rest of the Heart Sutra, absolutely wonderful. The Heart of Understanding really expounds upon this, and is a beautiful short (maybe 90 page) read.

Question of Gratitude: Who or what am I thankful for today? I am thankful for my dear friend who has relocated to Idaho this past year. Every time I talk to him, he is fully of a joy and enthusiasm for life and friends that I have yet to find equalled by anyone. He is a truly beautiful being and I am so thankful to call him a friend. Thanks, D, for being so . . so . . . you!

Holey Mole'

To introduce my acro-pseudonyms as of now:
M.E.H. is my Meat Eating Husband. While I have chosen a vegan lifestyle, fate did not have me fall in love with one so similarly minded. I make vegan food, he adds meat. However, keeping in line with our decision to be more planet and body friendly, we buy organic/free-range/hormone free/grassfed meats exclusively.

VeggieMama: My wonderful, beautiful, fabulous Mother. She finds herself unable to give up cheese. Sometimes, in moments of weakness, I can't say that I blame her.


Moving right along


M.E.H. and I threw a pre-solstice bash this weekend. I took on the challenge of creating a fabulous dessert and dip, both of which recipes I'd never tried, both with ingredients I, surprisingly for most vegans, have never eaten. After a trip to dear ol' Freddy's down the street, I was in raptures over my bounty: Pecans (not usually a fan), dates (never eaten one), coconut shreds, avos (mmm!), many strawberries (woohoo sale!), vegannaise (never had it), vegan sour cream (diddo), artichoke hearts (holy cow!), and baby spinach. Oh yes, and a baguette. On the menu: chocolate cream pie and artichoke spinach dip. Fruit to follow.


And so I started with the cream pie. I have to say that I have made this before, at Christmas time, for dinner at my lovely in-law's home. It was a huge success: The finger swipe through the second pie, on behalf of M.E.H, before it ever left the house, was proof enough for me. But I've never made a true to form raw crust, I've never eaten a date in my life (I know, I know), and I've never particularly cared for pecans. I went forth with my handy dandy food processor, and added my soaked pecans, dates, coconut, and itty bitty dash of real deal Hawaiian sea salt:

It all did look very nummy. And after I blended it to a crusty pulp, even the M.E.H. conceded that "holy crap, that's really good." So into my pie glass it went:

What followed was a messy short 10 minutes of melting chocolate chips with a wee bit of vanilla hemp milk, and then blending in firm tofu with an immersion blender. I added some huge-o strawberries to the mix to take away some of the richness, because believe you me, this stuff is rich-tastic and creamy as can be. The result, according the group, was glorious, tasty, and addictive:
Unfortunately, I have no pictures cataloguing the spinach-artichoke dip making. But let it be known: It was warm, gooey, and tasty as can be. In fact, I'm still consuming leftovers from the large batch o greatness.

My dear VeggieMama made a vegan quiche, which has accompanied me to dinner for the last two nights:

with some melted italian daiya and Corona Light. I'm digging this vegan quiche idea, even more so now that I have so much left over tofu from this weekend! Looks like I might be giving VeggieMama a call for her recipe. Do you have any uber-delish tofu breakfast favorites?

To close: Here's what's on the menu today:

Cherries, strawberries, and cantaloupe (all organic!), artichoke dip, spicy thai chips, tortillas, and vegan taco filling (a mix of peppers, tofu, and spices).

Mantra for today: Lokah samasthah sukhino bhavantu.
From what I've been taught through my yoga practice is that the mantra translates as "May all beings be happy and free." It's become my favorite mantra over the last several years and is my constant companion while running. It certainly helps to take the mind off of how darn tired I get! Check out Amma's link here for more info on it!

Question of Gratitude: What or who are you grateful for today? Studies on giving gratitude have shown that thanksgiving can have dramatic affects on your health and well-being. As a simple suggestion of thought, consider who or what you are thankful for today and acknowledge it or them during little times of pause. See what it can do for you! Today I am especially thankful for VeggieMama: Thank you Mama for the wonderful quiche; not to mention your wonderful loving friendship, humor, and, of course, BIRTH!

And so, it all vegan

Made with the startdust and good will I came with, I am sallying forth into blogdom. In theory, to come are photos leaping off your screen with vibrant veggies, talk of dogs and travel, and presentations of all that I find great about the booming metropolis of Anchorage. Perhaps more; we shall see.
So the title comes from a friend who told me she often ends up referring to me as "her vegan friend," and amongst my social circle, there aren't that many of us, so it's easily narrowed down. I am Aly. Lover of my pups, my man, good food, and many other things. I dig yoga. Family is good. I find roots in most places I visit, specfically heart-rooted in Kauai. I sneeze often. Fan of chocolate over vanilla, outside over in, positive over negative, wine over beer.
Writing has been a passion in the past, a discipline in the more distant. I figure it's about time I sit down to the discipline and make it a little more colorful this time around.

For now, all I can offer are my sweet, sweet poopers: