Oh the Holidays

Okay, I love holidays. Except for the "I eat different things than everyone in my family" part. My family members are accomodating, but it still sucks. While I have foods to eat, those foods aren't incorporated into the overall meal. Instead, they make "special" food just for me. I don't know why they sign on for more work like this. For example, instead of just making mashed potatoes with soymilk for everyone, the cook will take out some potatoes and make me my own batch of mashed potatoes with soymilk. Then the cook will make everyone else's mashed potatoes with dairy milk. WHY?! Who wouldn't think to just veganize dishes? It can be done! And the dishes would be healthier!

While I appreciate the consideration that people give, I am letting all of you know who may have a family member with different dietary guidelines, the nicest thing you can do is incorporate that into the meal for everyone. Having a dish that falls outside these guidelines, like in this case a turkey, is fine. But no matter what the dietary restriction, there is a lot of food that can be made. Why not incorporate those foods into your meal so that everyone can share food and feel the same? Make several dishes that are delicious that everyone can eat. Don't make the person bring his or her own food. While I would be happy to bring a dish to share, it's awkward to bring something just for yourself. For example, for Thanksgiving I offered to bring all of the desserts. I just called to confirm, and found that other desserts had been purchased, and I just needed to bring something for myself. This sends a few messages: 1. my vegan desserts were deemed to be not good enough. In fact, STORE BOUGHT pies would be better. Dude, the fact that they bought store bought pies when I said I'd bake some was a slap in the face. 2. I need to just take care of myself.

To help those of you who don't have first-hand knowledge of being a food pariah, here are some tips.

Ways you can accomodate dietary restrictions well:

1. Plan a meal that falls within the restrictions that everyone can enjoy. My sister once did this phenomenally. She had the whole family work together to make an amazing soup. Everyone shared the same meal, loved the food, and I was able to feel like part of the group. No matter what the restriction, there is an amazing meal that you can make. Take this as an opportunity to try something new!

2. Make enough parts of the meal to fall within the restrictions so that everyone can enjoy the majority of the same dishes. Recently we went to a friend's house for a spaghetti dinner. I was able to have the main dish, just choosing to not put parmesan on top. I skipped the garlic bread(butter) and dessert(butter, probably milk), but I never felt out of place. I had eaten the salad and the main course. It was enough food for me, and it wasn't awkward and I didn't feel singled out.

3. If something can be altered slightly so that everyone can eat it, make the alteration. I'm not asking you to go out and buy vegan butter or anything. Leave the cheese off of salad or pasta and let people put it on themselves. Use oil instead of butter. Use mashed bananas, applesauce, or ground flaxseed in place of eggs. For diabetics, use a natural sweetener like maple syrup, honey, or agave nectar in the place of white sugar. In the case of veganism, making that alteration makes the food healthier. Plus you might find that you like it better! Finding alterations or subsitutions is just a google search away. Taking a small portion and altering it for the one person with the restriction doesn't go over well. While it's better than nothing, it still makes the person feel different and not part of the group.

Let me put a disclaimer that I am not stating this to upset people, merely to inform. I remember being one of those "eat anything" people, and I didn't even consider other people's dietary considerations. Now, with my experience, no matter what the dietary restriction, I would make a meal to accomodate all guests. I could and would make a gluten-free meal, a meal that follows Jain principles, a nut-free meal, or anything else needed. The only thing I would NOT do is provide food to which I am morally opposed, such as meat. But I don't think people are morally opposed to mashed potatoes with soymilk.

Food, and eating together, is such a large part of community. I never realized how big of a deal it would be to me to not be a part of that. I don't even feel like I'm doing the experience justice with my explanation. I wish I could think of a comparable situation.

Perhaps it's like being in a foreign country where you don't speak the language. Even if you have the most considerate person translating for you, it's not the same as understanding the language and being a part of the conversation. I imagine you'd rather everyone spoke the language you understand, even if they don't speak it well. The kind translator is the cook who makes one-person portions that fit the restrictions. Everyone speaking the language is the meal being adjusted to fit the restrictions. Even if it's not an amazing meal, the effort taken to make the experience a shared one will be much appreciated.

Yardhouse=Fail

Sorry to digress from my normal posts, but I feel I must use this platform to get righteous and indignant.

Last night we went to Yardhouse Restaurant for a friend's 21st birthday. For those we don't know, Yardhouse is a restaurant/bar that has a wide selection of beers on tap. The friend, we'll call him "A" was turning 21 at midnight.

I won't bore you with all the details of the evening, the only important part is that they wouldn't serve him a drink when he turned 21 at midnight! This is NOT because he was too drunk, either. It was because the restaurant has a policy that someone must be 21 during the business day, which after midnight is the day prior. What kind of bs is that?! He was legally old enough to drink and the restaurant wouldn't serve him. That, plus the bad service and small portions, leads me to say I am not going to Yardhouse again. And I drink a lot of beer, so my business could have been sizable. Take that stupid Yardhouse!

And the rant is now over. :-)

Better Late Than Never...

I was tagged by Ashley of Sound of Silent for a survey. I don't think she realized just how special she made me feel by tagging me! Yay! So by popular request, or at least Ashley's request, here is my survey:


1. What books are on your favorite shelf?
The Harry Potter series, Mrs. Dalloway, and photo albums. I'm kind of a minimalist, and I have moved a lot, so books are usually not kept. The ones I do hang on to are the either ones I will re-read, or ones with hardcore emotional significance. The HP books get re-read a lot, Mrs. Dalloway was a life changer. I hated it at first- now I love it.

2. What DVDs are on your favorite shelf?
So we are super cool and we have all our DVDs in an external hard drive. Meaning we don't have DVDs at all, just data :-) I have to be proud of our technological advances- they're all thanks to my husband. Of our movies, my favorites are the Star Wars movies, all of them. I can watch them over and over. Recently I've wanted to watch WallE, which i haven't seen since it came out. Overall I have a very low tolerance for violence or disturbing thoughts (ex: Clockwork Orange) in movies. That stuff sticks in my mind and bothers me for weeks. Will Smith's I Am Legend gave me nightmares. So I stick to the stuff that isn't obsence. If we start a movie that is too much for me, I stop it and I will not watch any more. I feel that it is important to actively consider what I'm putting into my mind. Watching disturbing stuff conditions people to think it is okay. And I'm not okay with that.

3. What are your two favorite cookbooks?
Diet for a Small Planet- this one's old, but good! It has the best carrot and onion soup recipe. I love homemade soup.
How to Cook Everything Vegetarian, by Mark Bittman. This book is a great resource for how to make all the basics: potatoes, baked beans, black beans, and hundreds of other things. I love that it has several options associated with one basic recipe, so you can choose the option that your family would like most, or do like I do and choose the one that matches whatever ingredients/seasonings you already own.

4. Select 1-3 recipes you will cook for your special guests
I'm currently planning a holiday dinner with friends, so here is what I plan to make. I try to use seasonal food, so you'll notice a lot of root vegetables.
Appetizer: crackers with olive tapenade
Soup Course: Carrot and onion soup
Main Course: mixed green salad, baked sweet potatoes, lentil roast with cranberry sauce, roasted garlic and french bread, and some other TBD vegetable
Dessert: pumpkin pie or brownies and vegan ice cream

5. What will we be drinking that's available?
Rice nog, Champagne, Whatever Trader Joe's white/red wine we currently have, or pumpkin beer (it's a holiday favorite around here)

5 Random Facts:
1. I can't stand tile countertops. I'm now living in my second place with them, and they're just impossible to clean! Food gets stuck in the grout when I try to wipe off the counters. Then the grout gets stained. There's just no winning with tile.
2. I'm an obsessive cleaner and organizer (see Fact #1 for proof)
3. I can fall asleep just about anywhere. Once I fell asleep while getting a filling at the dentist.
4. I'm loving the tv show Modern Family. I think it's hilarious.
5. I like to sew. I love being able to make useful stuff like curtains and pillows.

That's it! Now you know me a bit better, I hope.

17. Write a letter to my Congressperson

DONE

Well, it was an email, not a letter. But that counts. Yesterday I was so upset that the Senate voted to discuss the latest iteration of a health care reform bill, I emailed both my CA senators. I told them both that I do not support any aspect of the health care reform ideas being discussed in Congress, etc....

Emailing them was suprisingly easy. A google search took me to a U.S. Senate contact information page, which included links to each of their websites. I perused the sites to learn about the senators' stance on health care, and then I was email each of them from their sites.

So go contact your senators now! Make sure they're respresenting you!

I'm Alive!

Sorry for the long time, no posts. I was in Hawaii for 12 days! The rest of the absence was due to getting ready, and then catching up on life when I got back. Now I finally have a few moments to blog! Yay!

Well, Hawaii was very nice, of course. I missed my little dog, though, and I worried about everything I still had going on at home. It's hard to go on vacation when you have a bunch of open projects like I do. While it was nice to get away, I must admit that more than once I wished I was taking that time to just work on projects and catch up! I'm a freak, I know.

I think I'll tell you more about the trip later, but for now here's a picture of just one of the many empty, gorgeous beaches we visited on the lovely island of Kauai:

27. Volunteer at Animal Acres

DONE

Isn't this place pretty? It's Animal Acres, a farm animal sanctuary. It provides a home for many animals that were treated like commodities rather than living creatures.

My hubby and I spent half of Saturday helping out here. We mucked out stalls, shoveled a lot of manure, layed down straw, and tried to help out. In return we were able to hangout with pigs, geese, chickens, goats, sheep, donkeys, and cows.

What struck me most was how distinct every animal's personality was! There was the goose, Buffy, who was the "watchgoose" and followed me around. Then were was Macy the pig, who would run up and find out what we were doing whenever we were in the pig area. Honky Tonk the donkey was very friendly and loved being petted, while Harley the donkey was more aloof.

Checkout this picture of a cute girl in her food:

I look forward to helping out here again. I think we're going to coordinate a trip with the Pathfinders (youth group) so they can practice volunteering and learn why we don't eat animals!

5. Eat all meals at a table without doing anything else for one week

DONE
Well, I blogged about this a little while ago, and this is officially done. I'm glad we broke the habit of eating and watching TV!

40. Pass all 3 subsections of the Math CSET Exam

DONE
Today I received confirmation that I passed the last of the Math CSET exams! Yay! For those of you who don't know, the CSET exams are California Subject Education Tests or something like that. They can be used to demonstrate subject matter competence for potential teachers.

For example, I want to be a high school math teacher. In order to do that, I must demonstrate that I know math well enough to teach it. This can be done through completion of a Bachelor's degree in math. Well, I don't have that. So the second way to show that I know math is to take the Math CSET exams and pass them, which I did.

The CSET exams are a pain because they're not just one test per subject. Well, some simple subjects just have one test. For most subjects, though, you must take between 2 and 4 tests on the subject. Each "subtest" focuses on a different area of the subject. In math, the first test covered algebra through precalculus, and number theory. The second test was on geometry and statistics. The third was calculus and the history of math. Each subtest took me a good 4+ hours to complete. Hence the reason I am so happy to be done with them!

5. Eat all meals at a table without doing anything else for one week

IN PROGRESS

Big news: We have eaten every meal at the kitchen table since Sunday! This is huge. We are awful about eating while watching some show on hulu or some movie from Netflix. Such is life without kids. Even though I KNOW eating while watching stuff is unhealthy, it's just so easy and relaxing! Plus I feel like I'm not wasting my life watching TV. The problem is that I eat for maybe 10 minutes, and think I just sit on my butt watching untold hours of stuff while being unproductive.

So for health and productivity reasons, I wanted to cut back on this eating and watching habit. I will consider this week a success, and this item accomplished, if I can make it through noon on Friday without falling back into the old routine. I'm not as upset by spending watching shows on the weekend because my hubby finds it very relaxing, and I need to give him a break. If we can cut down on it Sunday evening through Thursday on a weekly basis, that'd be really nice.

12. Transition Dog to Vegetarian Diet

IN PROGRESS.

When I adopted my dog Noah, it was without a lot of prior preparation. Getting a dog was something I'd obsessed about for a long time, but when it actually happened, I didn't have a lot of time to prepare. I wanted to feed him a vegetarian diet, but I hadn't researched it. Plus, I had no idea where to get vegetarian dog food. I didn't have the luxury of ordering online and waiting for delivery, so I went to Costco.

I bought a big bag of lamb & rice food, and some meat-based treats. Noah liked the food, and everything was fine. Still, I felt bad serving him this food for a few reasons. First, Noah resembles a lamb; he's all white and fluffy. I felt like I was making him a cannibal. Second, I worried about the unhealthy things that get into conventional dog food: all the poisons that were in the random meats made into the dog food, other additives, etc. Third, I felt like a hypocrite: I think eating meat is unhealthy for me, and I refuse to support the meat industry with my meals, but I was feeding my dog meat and explicitly buying it for him.

When the bag of dog food was running out, I did my research and found a vegetarian dog food. Interesting note: the dog food says vegetarian, but looking at the list of ingredients, it's vegan. I think the manufacturers chose "vegetarian" because it's more universally accepted. I, being a cultural anomaly, was excited to see that the food contained no animal profucts.

Now to be honest Noah is not a full-fledged veggie dog yet: he still eats treats with meat in them. After all, we did get a Costco-size container of them. While I don't like him eating meat, I also can't support the wastefulness of just throwing the treats away. Giving them to another dog wouldn't address the fact that I don't think dogs shouldn't be eating meat. So I just suck it up and give them to my dog.

To make mealtime more enjoyable for Noah, and to make sure he's getting all the good nutrients he needs, I try to mix in healthy stuff. Ground flaxseed provides Omega 3's. Wheatgerm or Oatbran is another good option. I've also mixed the food with some apple cider vinegar. Noah eats it, but the smell is a bit much. Molasses is a more popular liquid, both for taste and smell. In the morning, if I have the time, I make Noah breakfast by mixing his food with some oatmeal, flaxseed, and molasses. I know he's spoiled!

We also give the dog scraps of human food when we'd otherwise just throw it away. I feel that "whole foods" provide more nutrition (and fiber!) to him. The only trouble with this is that he likes to take his food out of his dish and eat it over the carpet, making a mess in the process. Sometimes he even tries to hid bits of food in all sorts of fun places, like under sofa cushions, in the bed, or even under me while I'm sitting down! Oh silly dog.

41. Start working as a substitute teacher

In Progress.

This is proving to be difficult. I had hoped to get hired on as a sub in a couple school districts. I made these wonderful application packets with copies of all of necessary the paperwork (teaching has so many requirements!) and I went to the district offices and submitted them. I haven't heard back from a single district.

I've also called districts to find out about whether or not they're hiring subs, and no one answers the phone, and then no one responds to my voicemail! It's driving me crazy.

I'm looking forward to teaching, but not to dealing with this BS bureacracy.

34. Release a Beach Trip Book

DONE! Check out www.SeeItsMeBooks.com and enjoy the wonder that is our third book!

30: Accumulate a decent "nice work clothes" collection

I going to consider this one DONE because I now have quite the choice when getting ready in the morning! I was inspired by some friends to visit Goodwill before visiting retail places. Going to Goodwill weirds me out, but I was able to get 2 skirts for a grand total of $13! That made the trip worth it.

Then I hit up T.J. Maxx and found a bunch of tops. Going to places like this (ex. Ross, Marshall's) is a little weird, but the deals are so good! I spent $80 and retail the items would have cost about $200. Again, it's such a good deal that it's totally worth it.

In a related vein, I'm so proud of myself for finally being in a place where I know my own style. I am finally saying goodbye to all those years of awkward outfits that people said looked good on me, but weren't me. I'm also finally learning how to say NO to something that's a great deal, but isn't flattering.

What works for me includes feminine cuts, solid colors, simple patterns, layers, sheer fabrics, and classic cuts. I'm going to be honest: I'm not cutting edge or bold. But I am proud that I'm also not frumpy or old lady. No sweater sets for me!

AMAZING Chocolate Chip Cookies

A couple weeks ago I made these amazing chocolate chip cookies. They're vegan, and delicious! Novel Eats is a great recipe blog, especially because most of the recipes are really simple. This is one of those simple recipes. The only substitution I made is replacing the oil with applesauce (1 to 1 ratio), and I did triple the recipe to make sure I had enough cookie goodness (well, really I was giving a lot of them away).

One more note: I didn't have molasses in the house until recently, and it is amazing. The dog loves it mixed in with his food, too! It's supposed to have some healthy nutrients in it.

Confession

I fixate on the distant future and what it may hold instead of focusing on the present. It's an awful tendency. For example, my most recent fixation is a move to Northern Virginia that I would like to have happen in two or three years. I spend time looking at house listings, reading the Washington Post, looking at maps of the area, Wikipediaing the cities, and overall planning my future life. Instead, I should be working on my classwork, working on my business, or doing any number of other urgent tasks. Why oh why do I waste my time?!
This habit is nothing new; I've been doing it for years. In college I was able to control it a little bit because life was so chaotic that nothing went as planned, so I planned less. Now planning is good, but the insane obsessive long-term planning I do is NOT good. I realize this, and I am trying to stop. One day at a time.

Masters Degree

As I've mentioned before, I'm currently in a post-bacc teacher credentialing program. I am getting a credential to teach high school math. Well, high school or middle school math. I'm not sure which I'll do yet. But I digress.
I am already thinking about what kind of masters degree I'd like to get upon the completion of my teaching credential. I've always been a bit of an over-planner. This time, planning far in advance will be helpful, though. Since I'm already going to school, it's relatively easy for me to complete any pre-reqs for a masters program. Plus I'm already on-campus to speak to advisers.
I thought about doing a masters in math with an emphasis on math education. The problem with that is that my college degree required exactly one math course. That means I'd have major work to do to complete the 24 units of pre-reqs, especially considering the sequential nature of math classes. Specifically, it'd be like 4 semesters of Calculus. That can't be rushed. Speaking it over with my husband, we decided a math masters is not for me. To be honest, the reason I'm going to teach math is that there's a huge shortage in the subject and therefore there are a lot of jobs. I've always liked math, but it's not my passion.
Maybe something like Environmental Science or something to do with animals would work. Those are both things about which I am quite passionate. Any recommendations?

My weekend

1. church
2. painting a picture
3. painting picture frames
3b. Hanging up the picture frames
4. watching USC beat WSU in football at a local pub
5. Tutoring
6. Watching too much Lost
7. Cleaning up
8. Painting and moving in a little bookshelf
9. Sleeping
Details and pictures to come!

I love Mondays

Yes, getting up is really hard. And lately I've been noticing how dark it is when I walk the dog. But I enjoy getting out of the house. Monday is also Pathfinder night, so I get to go to church and whip those kids into shape! I also enjoy socializing with the fellow leaders :-) I'm such a nerd- Pathfinder leaders are my social life.

Reasons I want to leave LA

A list of all the reasons I feel that I must leave LA. I won't be leaving anytime soon, I can't. But eventually, we'll leave. I can't imagine raising kids here!

1. Houses can cost $2Million and not have a yard
2. A sidewalk nearby has a penis etched in it, like wet cement-style
3. Another sidewalk has a martini glass in it (are initials not enough?!)
4. Homeless people
5. Signs in spanish
6. Traffic
7. The 405
8. Taxes
9. The freeloader attitude that is pervasive
10. Everyone breaks the law ALL THE TIME. I see people talking on cell phones and driving DAILY. These same people vote for these extra-liberal lawmakers who enact too many laws. It's obscene.
11. Materialism
12. The expense of everything
13. No space
14. Smog

That's it for now! Stay tuned for updates!

And the bureacracy begins

I've had the pleasure of calling several school districts over the last few days. The primary reason I've called, and a very time-sensitive one, is that I need to get into classrooms to being performing the observations required for me class. I have yet to get a return call to any of my many calls or two in-person visits. I have deadlines for these observations, and I'm starting to freak out a bit. It's not that I've procrastinated, it's that no one gets back to me!

I've also been calling to find out the details of applying to be a substitute teacher at many districts. I've received all of one return call.

I'm excited about the prospect of teaching, but I'm not excited to work for a school district.

New Clothes :-)

Last night dinner plans fell through, so I used my free time to do some much needed shopping. Does anyone else feel like you have plenty of clothes, then all of a sudden you have nothing to wear? I felt like all my business casual stuff was suddenly gone. So out I went!

Shopping was good. I had dreaded the occasion (who am I, I dread shopping?!) but it was actually quite fun! There was a lot of good stuff available, which I think is what improved my mood. I had brought along my hubby as I tend to be indecisive and he has good taste, but he was really unnecessary. There were so many good options it was easy for me to make choices, and everything I liked he did too.

Now I just need to do laundry so that I can wear all the pretty clothes! Tonight will be "fashion show night" where I'll try on all my stuff, trash the wearable items, and rearrange the rest. My closet has become quite the mess!

Why I'm Going Vegan

My current transition from a vegetarian diet to a vegan diet will be the impetus for many posts, so I figure I should give the background here.

About two years ago I became a vegetarian. Prior to that, I had been a pretty average American meat eater. I stumbled across some facts about the meat industry, and it changed my life. I learned about the conditions in which animals are kept, the cruel slaughtering methods, the detrimental effect on the planet in so many ways: fossil fuel use, greenhouse gas emissions, water pollution, etc., and the statistics regarding health. Let me take just a minute to elaborate on the health thing, as it may save your life: the leading killers of American adults are heart disease, cancer, and stroke. Vegetarians are significantly less likely to have the underlying problems that lead to these conditions, and they are less likely to die from these things. Vegans are even less likely to suffer from these awful (and oftentimes preventable!) diseases.

To be honest, the biggest motivation for me to make the switch was the Animal Rights (AR) issue. I love animals. I love all animals: dog, cat, pig, etc... I actually really love pigs. I think they're the cutest things! I learned what the lives of those animals that were now meat on my plate were really like. They're not off frolicing in some farmer's field, FYI. I couldn't support that type of industry. My undergrad was in business, and I am a fan of capitalism. So I put my money where my mouth was and I stopped buying and eating meat.

I consider going veg one of the best choices I have ever made. I feel healthier. Being a vegetarian costs less. I've learned how to make all kinds of amazing meals and I probably wouldn't have been so inventive if I wasn't vegetarian. I think the biggest benefit, though, is the sense of empowerment my choice gave me. Every day I'm standing up for something I believe in. Every day I am not blindly following the norm. I believe that this ability to throw off society's standards and truly evaluate what was right for me gave me the courage to leave my unsatisfying job in finance and find what I truly love: teaching.

My first step in vegetarianism was actually pescatarianism, meaning I would eat fish. This would be an occasional, out for sushi-type of thing. Eventually, though, I cut that out completely and was completely vegetarian. I also cut milk and eggs out of our household, but we would purchase products that contained those items, or we would eat them at restaurants. Cheese is the only direct animal product we would actively purchase.

About a month or so ago, I began thinking about veganism. I knew it was even better for you, but I had never had a strong desire to purse a lifestyle that I viewed as too restrictive. I wanted to try it for a month, just to see what it was like, but I didn't expect to continue such a lifestyle forever. Well, my thinking about veganism led me to do some research on the subject. Let's just say what I learned isn't pretty. That knowledge, plus my openness to veganism, if even only for what I viewed as a temporary time period, has caused me to begin going vegan.

The process has had a few setbacks, including a failed battle with chocolate covered macadamia nuts, but I have been pretty good about having meals that are cruelty-free! I really don't feel that my diet is restricted at all. The only things I can't eat are things I don't really want to eat! There are so many vegan options out there, from hot dogs to ice cream to ground "beef". These analogs are healthier and better tasting than the real thing, in my opinion.

I also should note that my husband has been very supportive of all my dietary decisions, and for that I am very grateful. When I went vegetarian, he chose to do the same. I don't think he'll go vegan, but he is completely supportive of having only vegan things in the house. That's really a big help because it's very difficult to resist food in your own fridge!

Vegan Dog Muffins

Recently I made my dog some cornbread vegan muffins from this recipe on it's a vegan dog's life. I would recommend that blog for dog owners looking to have happy, healthy pooches. My dog loved the muffins! It was like he could tell I was making them for him: he was eagerly watching everything I did as I made them! As soon as they cooled I gave him one, and he devoured it.

To give you a bit of analysis on the recipe, the mix seemed dry, but it cooked just fine. I ended up getting 16 smallish regular-size muffins out of it. The recipe was really easy, and since I plan to give the dog one muffin a day, I have over two weeks worth of muffins!

I'd like to take a moment to highlight that dogs (and cats) can be perfectly healthy and happy on a vegan diet. While my dog is transitioning over right now, I have seen no adverse effects from his new diet. For you doubters out there, I don't see what is "natural" about a dog eating meat byproducts from animals much too large for any wild dog to catch, much less my 20 lb. guy! Plus mainstream meat dog food has a lot of awful additives and is designed for cost efficacy, not healthfulness. There are many books on the subject if you are interested in learning more. Obligate Carnivore is a highly recommended book that I intend to read in the near future.

My dog does eat a commercial vegetarian dog food. On any given day I will supplement it with a few healthy nutritious items. Nutritional yeast, ground flaxseed, molasses, fruit/vegetable parts apple cider vinegar, and oatmeal are common additions. I am now looking to add a daily muffin to the mix to ensure nutritional variety.

Goals- 50 in 500 list

You may or may not have heard of the Day Zero Project. For this project, people create a list of 101 things to do in 1,000 days. I like the idea of such a list: it promotes working toward goals, helps people avoid ruts, but personally I feel like 101 things is a lot, and 1,000 days is a long time for which to plan. So I created my own list: 50 things to accomplish in 500 days! With my busy and unpredictable life, 500 days is about the furthest I can comfortably plan. As I accomplish tasks on the list I will blog about it here! Here is the list:

Health

1. Run a 7 minute mile

2. Lose 5 pounds and keep them off for a month

3. Speak at church about the health benefits of a vegetarian diet

4. Floss daily for one month

5. Eat all meals at a table without doing anything else for one week

Food

6. Go Vegan for a month

7. Make Vegan Ice Cream

8. Make Vegan Cheesecake

9. Make Vegan pumpkin pie

10. Get a new "in a pinch" dish

11. Bake something and Give it to Neighbors

Dog

12. Transition Dog to Vegetarian Diet

13. Train dog to NOT bark at people who walk by the house

14. Find a person to do dog-sitting vacation-swapping with

15. Get dog boots

Random

16. Donate Blood

17. Write a letter to my Congressperson

18. Go To the Theatre

19. Win a contest at DefCon

20. Throw a Party

21. Go to a shooting range (again)

22. Use only reusable bags for one month

23. send out Christmas cards (on time!)

24. visit LACMA

25. Write letters to one friend/family member per month (1/16)

26. Get a Pedicure

27. Volunteer at Animal Acres

28. Travel somewhere new

29. Make a photo album

30. Accumulate a decent "nice work clothes" collection

31. Start a blog

32. Go Camping

33. Change my name to my married name on all accounts

Business

34. Release a Beach Trip Book

35. Release a Football Book

36. Make a Birthday Book

37. Get written up in a magazine

38. Promote book at a local fair

Teaching

39. Earn my teaching credential

40. Pass all 3 subsections of the Math CSET Exam

41. Start working as a substitute teacher

Home

42. Make best friend those utensil pouches I promised him

43. Make decent throw pillows

44. Plan 2010's vegetable garden so that it's really productive

45. Do a full house cleaning

46. Reorganize closets in house

47. Install storage shelf in utility closet

48. Hang pictures up

49. hang a ball that tells me how far to pull in the garage

50. Paint a picture

Alternates

Find a wood chair to replace one of the old upholstered one

Visit Huntington Gardens again

FYI

Italics means in progress

strikethrough means completed

Some of the items are in progress or completed because I've been thinking about this list for a while.

My goal is to complete the whole list in 500 days, meaning the deadline is Saturday, February 5, 2011.

Anonymity

I must admit, one of the things that's been enticing about having a blog is the anonymity of it all. I want it to stay my secret- something my family doesn't see, something just for me. I feel like now that Facebook and every other social networking site is now inundated with parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and every other family member (who in my family, will judge) I want a new place to be myself. Don't get me wrong, I love my family. I would be lying if I said that I don't think about what they'd think before I post on FB though.
So this will be my little soapbox, on which I can stand and proclaim whatever I like :-)

Why This Exists

As someone who has been lurking on other people's blogs, I feel it is time for me to start my own. I hope that I will be able to post things that are helpful and relevant to others! This blog will chronicle my life, highlighting my interests and adventures. I anticipate that I will write about the following topics a lot: veganism, dogs, vegan dogs, teaching, education, California, personal fulfillment, cooking, and whatever else may come to mind. Enjoy!