June 5
I sleep late today, 8:15.
Then we do the usual morning stuff: lemon water, black coffee, smoothies made from pomegranate cranberry juice, peach lemonade, plain goat kefir, canned pumpkin, hemp protein powder, avocado, banana, plum, and canned papaya. Sounds weird, but it wasn't as weird as yesterday's. After breakfast (and it is late by now, at least 10:30) I have another cup of (decaf) coffee, with half and half, and read, and post stuff on Facebook.
So now it's after noon on Sunday, and pretty much nothing at all has happened. That's okay. For brunch/lunch, I suggest to my husband that we go to the crepe place in Silver Spring, and then walk around that neighborhood (which we like), looking at houses. So we do. We even eat outside at a little wrought iron table. We each have a savory crepe-- I have avocado, tomato, and cheese-- and then share a sweet crepe for dessert, just butter-and-sugar. And drink black coffee out of paper cups. It is pleasant, and I bring the rest of my coffee with me while we walk around. My husband and I disagree, but amiably, about which kinds of porch architecture are appealing or oppressive. We are thinking about buying a house sometime in the next couple of years.
Later I go off alone to write/read/fart around on the computer, and drink another cup of decaf with half and half. Ah, Sundays.
Dinner: I manage to get the Amy's frozen enchiladas (the ones I meant to make yesterday) into the oven around 6:15-- two entrees to share three ways, since kid is home tonight. Therefore they require a lot of side dishes. I bake the rest of the smallish sweet potatoes we got at the farmer's market-- just whole, with butter; mix up some fruit (lots of raspberries, some blueberries, strawberries, plum and cantaloupe-- cheat a bit by adding a sprinkle of sugar and lemon); and make a salad of lettuces and shelled peas from the CSA farm, with balsamic dressing. I really get excited about the rare treat of fresh shelling peas. The lettuces have been a little tough, from the farm; it seems like they are being allowed to get too big before harvest.
The dinner was really not so filling, even with all the side dishes, so later on we end up snacking in front of the TV (more Office reruns). I have about 10 saltine crackers that my kid has brought out to share, and then some plain yogurt with maple syrup before bed.
June 6
A bit of chaos this morning. Husband, trying to get out the door by 6 am, inadvertently interfered with kid's shower schedule, and I ended up driving kid to school when I would normally be eating breakfast. Had lemon water and half a cup of coffee before leaving, the other half cup of cold coffee when I returned. Afterwards, I have breakfast: leftover okra and rice from Saturday night, and a small dish of raisins and peanuts. Decaf coffee (a fresh hot cup) with half and half.
However, writing requires a cuppa, for me, so after my shower I make yet another decaf coffee to get me through the later part of the morning. At noon, another cup of regular. Somehow, I manage to delay lunch until after 1:30, at which point-- just as I am preparing to get up and eat-- the owner of my restaurant calls. We're two employees short, again, and there is no one to wait tables after 2:00. I reluctantly agree to come right in, changing clothes and walking out the door with a near-empty pint of vanilla ice cream from the freezer, and a spoon. 4 or 5 spoonfuls of vanilla ice cream before work. I toss the container in a trash can on the way.
After I've been at work half an hour or so, I know I need a real lunch, and order a bacon, egg, and cheese sandwich on an English muffin. That takes care of things, though it is somewhat decadent. It's a quiet afternoon in terms of customers, once the 2:00 rush is over-- although there's plenty of excitement in the form of health inspectors, to-go milkshakes and catering orders-- so I have time for yet another cup of decaf with half and half.
Back at home, I am thirsty-- the air conditioning at work is still broken, and a coworker brought in a thermometer in order to measure the air temperature in there: 97 degrees. If only OSHA inspectors showed up unannounced as often as health inspectors. I drink half a glass of peach lemonade and some (more) water. After a rest (during which my child reads me terrible, terrible Harry Potter fan fiction, including a fundamentalist Christian adaptation), I go over to the Co-op to buy a quick dinner.
Shopping (Co-op): Curried chickpea mango wrap, salmon avocado sushi roll, california roll, bag of Barbara's baked cheese puffs, bottle of red wine. $35. I don't usually spontaneously buy wine for dinner. My job is driving me to drink.
I sleep late today, 8:15.
Then we do the usual morning stuff: lemon water, black coffee, smoothies made from pomegranate cranberry juice, peach lemonade, plain goat kefir, canned pumpkin, hemp protein powder, avocado, banana, plum, and canned papaya. Sounds weird, but it wasn't as weird as yesterday's. After breakfast (and it is late by now, at least 10:30) I have another cup of (decaf) coffee, with half and half, and read, and post stuff on Facebook.
So now it's after noon on Sunday, and pretty much nothing at all has happened. That's okay. For brunch/lunch, I suggest to my husband that we go to the crepe place in Silver Spring, and then walk around that neighborhood (which we like), looking at houses. So we do. We even eat outside at a little wrought iron table. We each have a savory crepe-- I have avocado, tomato, and cheese-- and then share a sweet crepe for dessert, just butter-and-sugar. And drink black coffee out of paper cups. It is pleasant, and I bring the rest of my coffee with me while we walk around. My husband and I disagree, but amiably, about which kinds of porch architecture are appealing or oppressive. We are thinking about buying a house sometime in the next couple of years.
Later I go off alone to write/read/fart around on the computer, and drink another cup of decaf with half and half. Ah, Sundays.
Dinner: I manage to get the Amy's frozen enchiladas (the ones I meant to make yesterday) into the oven around 6:15-- two entrees to share three ways, since kid is home tonight. Therefore they require a lot of side dishes. I bake the rest of the smallish sweet potatoes we got at the farmer's market-- just whole, with butter; mix up some fruit (lots of raspberries, some blueberries, strawberries, plum and cantaloupe-- cheat a bit by adding a sprinkle of sugar and lemon); and make a salad of lettuces and shelled peas from the CSA farm, with balsamic dressing. I really get excited about the rare treat of fresh shelling peas. The lettuces have been a little tough, from the farm; it seems like they are being allowed to get too big before harvest.
The dinner was really not so filling, even with all the side dishes, so later on we end up snacking in front of the TV (more Office reruns). I have about 10 saltine crackers that my kid has brought out to share, and then some plain yogurt with maple syrup before bed.
June 6
A bit of chaos this morning. Husband, trying to get out the door by 6 am, inadvertently interfered with kid's shower schedule, and I ended up driving kid to school when I would normally be eating breakfast. Had lemon water and half a cup of coffee before leaving, the other half cup of cold coffee when I returned. Afterwards, I have breakfast: leftover okra and rice from Saturday night, and a small dish of raisins and peanuts. Decaf coffee (a fresh hot cup) with half and half.
However, writing requires a cuppa, for me, so after my shower I make yet another decaf coffee to get me through the later part of the morning. At noon, another cup of regular. Somehow, I manage to delay lunch until after 1:30, at which point-- just as I am preparing to get up and eat-- the owner of my restaurant calls. We're two employees short, again, and there is no one to wait tables after 2:00. I reluctantly agree to come right in, changing clothes and walking out the door with a near-empty pint of vanilla ice cream from the freezer, and a spoon. 4 or 5 spoonfuls of vanilla ice cream before work. I toss the container in a trash can on the way.
After I've been at work half an hour or so, I know I need a real lunch, and order a bacon, egg, and cheese sandwich on an English muffin. That takes care of things, though it is somewhat decadent. It's a quiet afternoon in terms of customers, once the 2:00 rush is over-- although there's plenty of excitement in the form of health inspectors, to-go milkshakes and catering orders-- so I have time for yet another cup of decaf with half and half.
Back at home, I am thirsty-- the air conditioning at work is still broken, and a coworker brought in a thermometer in order to measure the air temperature in there: 97 degrees. If only OSHA inspectors showed up unannounced as often as health inspectors. I drink half a glass of peach lemonade and some (more) water. After a rest (during which my child reads me terrible, terrible Harry Potter fan fiction, including a fundamentalist Christian adaptation), I go over to the Co-op to buy a quick dinner.
Shopping (Co-op): Curried chickpea mango wrap, salmon avocado sushi roll, california roll, bag of Barbara's baked cheese puffs, bottle of red wine. $35. I don't usually spontaneously buy wine for dinner. My job is driving me to drink.
Dinner: My husband has the chickpea wrap, my kid has the salmon avocado roll, and I have the california roll. We share the cheese puffs, about 1/4 of the bag each. I have a glass of wine, which of course then lasts me well into the evening. In the summer, when I have some seasonal allergies anyways, wine always makes them worse, so I end up following my glass of wine with a little Benadryl. Fun times. Come to think of it, that probably isn't the best combination.
June 7
Breakfast: lemon water, coffee with half and half, smoothie made from grape juice, plain goat kefir, hemp protein powder, avocado, frozen peaches, fresh strawberries and blueberries. I used quite a bit of the kefir, so it had a much creamier, dairy consistency than usual. Pretty good, thick, not too sweet. I don't notice a lot of goaty flavor in these, either. The goat kefir is a nice option.
After heading out for an appointment, I come home and have a cup of decaf while I finish up my morning reading and planning.
In the late morning, I start making an extensive grocery list, consulting the half-dozen recipes I intend to make in the next week. It takes me about 40 minutes to get it together. By the time I get out the door, it is almost noon, and I am getting hungry for coffee and lunch.
Shopping, first stop: the small Indian grocery on University Ave., whose name I cannot figure out. I am looking for "kashmiri masala paste," as my cookbook referred to it-- a prefab spice blend, I assume, but I cannot find anything by this name at the grocery, even though they have a million different masalas and packaged spice blends. No luck there. I do buy some vegetable oil, basmati rice, and cilantro, the last of which I proceed to ruin entirely by leaving it in my car for several hours until it wilts and turns black. $9.
Shopping, second stop: the liquor store (again, nameless as far as I am concerned) at the Langley Park plaza by the CVS. I've been to this liquor store before and it pretty much sucks. But its location is convenient at this particular moment. I buy some dry sherry and a bottle of white wine, having to guess at the latter because hardly any of the prices are marked on the bottles: irritating. $36. Which it wouldn't have been, if I'd known how much the wine cost.
Shopping, third stop: Whole Foods. Except, it is prime lunchtime and their cafe is packed. I proceed onwards past the Whole Foods and cross the street to BurgerFi. I brought a book. I finish my book while eating a cheeseburger with grilled mushrooms and the smallest size of fries, which is still huge. They don't sell coffee, more's the pity. I just drink water.
Whole Foods, again, now properly fortified: whole milk ricotta, house-made tomato-basil sauce, 2 cans cat food, cream cheese, Greek Gods plain Greek yogurt, a fancy salmon-avocado sushi roll, Biscoff cookies, fresh linguine, parmigiano reggiano, firm tofu, heavy cream, olive oil, lasagna noodles, salted butter, burrata, fresh asiago cheese (softer, not aged, it seems), another Italian cheese called Piave Vecchio, can of whole tomatoes, paper towels, almond butter, sesame oil, white bakery bread, "rustic wheat" bakery bread, 2 family packs of chicken legs (10 legs in all), eggs, bacon, raspberries, blackberries, 2 avocados, 2 red bell peppers, 5 tomatoes, 6 individual Oh My Yog! yogurts, 3 bunches organic Swiss Chard, 4 lemons, 2 packages mixed sliced mushrooms, 1 bunch organic kale, 1 package "baby bello" mushrooms, 1 package white mushrooms, iceberg lettuce, organic medjool dates, fresh marjoram. $200. I was relieved it wasn't more.
At home, after unpacking the groceries, a little after 3:00 (yes, grocery shopping seemed to have taken up the bulk of the day), I finally had my cup of regular coffee. Then some decaf. This whole day seemed to pass in a kind of blur. Before I knew it, it was 6:30 and time to make dinner. At some point during the late afternoon, my kid went over to the Co-op to buy chocolate chips for some cookies they were baking, and I asked them to pick up some rhubarb (which hadn't been available at the Whole Foods) and a replacement bunch of cilantro.
Dinner: fresh linguini with tomato-basil sauce from Whole Foods. I sauteed the kohlrabi and some onions and peas from last week's CSA box to add to the sauce. Side salad of CSA lettuce with sliced almonds and chopped dates, and balsamic dressing. Not a lot of protein in this dinner, and my serving of pasta was small because I was still full from my big burger lunch. So of course I got hungry again later.
It's Tuesday, so after dinner it is time to pick up our CSA box. We arrive at 10 minutes to 9:00, and our farmer is only just arriving to drop off the boxes. This seems rather extremely late to me. Anyway, though, we get to meet him: an older guy than I expected, and not the radical young hippie farmer I figured he was. Caked-in dirt. Horrified by the idea that we put his lettuce in our smoothies-- "Lettuce smoothies?!" He suggested that we shred it, and use it for salads or tacos. The box contains: more lettuces, strawberries that smell amazing the minute you open the lid of the tote, beet greens, sugar snap peas, more asparagus, garlic scapes, kohlrabi. None of the chard or sage that was promised, unfortunately: I need them for recipes.
Later: 1/2 glass of red wine, then a small bowl of mixed raspberries and blackberries sprinkled in sugar, with a splash of goat kefir. After that, an Oh My Yog! lemon yogurt.
Breakfast: lemon water, coffee with half and half, smoothie made from grape juice, plain goat kefir, hemp protein powder, avocado, frozen peaches, fresh strawberries and blueberries. I used quite a bit of the kefir, so it had a much creamier, dairy consistency than usual. Pretty good, thick, not too sweet. I don't notice a lot of goaty flavor in these, either. The goat kefir is a nice option.
After heading out for an appointment, I come home and have a cup of decaf while I finish up my morning reading and planning.
In the late morning, I start making an extensive grocery list, consulting the half-dozen recipes I intend to make in the next week. It takes me about 40 minutes to get it together. By the time I get out the door, it is almost noon, and I am getting hungry for coffee and lunch.
Shopping, first stop: the small Indian grocery on University Ave., whose name I cannot figure out. I am looking for "kashmiri masala paste," as my cookbook referred to it-- a prefab spice blend, I assume, but I cannot find anything by this name at the grocery, even though they have a million different masalas and packaged spice blends. No luck there. I do buy some vegetable oil, basmati rice, and cilantro, the last of which I proceed to ruin entirely by leaving it in my car for several hours until it wilts and turns black. $9.
Shopping, second stop: the liquor store (again, nameless as far as I am concerned) at the Langley Park plaza by the CVS. I've been to this liquor store before and it pretty much sucks. But its location is convenient at this particular moment. I buy some dry sherry and a bottle of white wine, having to guess at the latter because hardly any of the prices are marked on the bottles: irritating. $36. Which it wouldn't have been, if I'd known how much the wine cost.
Shopping, third stop: Whole Foods. Except, it is prime lunchtime and their cafe is packed. I proceed onwards past the Whole Foods and cross the street to BurgerFi. I brought a book. I finish my book while eating a cheeseburger with grilled mushrooms and the smallest size of fries, which is still huge. They don't sell coffee, more's the pity. I just drink water.
Whole Foods, again, now properly fortified: whole milk ricotta, house-made tomato-basil sauce, 2 cans cat food, cream cheese, Greek Gods plain Greek yogurt, a fancy salmon-avocado sushi roll, Biscoff cookies, fresh linguine, parmigiano reggiano, firm tofu, heavy cream, olive oil, lasagna noodles, salted butter, burrata, fresh asiago cheese (softer, not aged, it seems), another Italian cheese called Piave Vecchio, can of whole tomatoes, paper towels, almond butter, sesame oil, white bakery bread, "rustic wheat" bakery bread, 2 family packs of chicken legs (10 legs in all), eggs, bacon, raspberries, blackberries, 2 avocados, 2 red bell peppers, 5 tomatoes, 6 individual Oh My Yog! yogurts, 3 bunches organic Swiss Chard, 4 lemons, 2 packages mixed sliced mushrooms, 1 bunch organic kale, 1 package "baby bello" mushrooms, 1 package white mushrooms, iceberg lettuce, organic medjool dates, fresh marjoram. $200. I was relieved it wasn't more.
At home, after unpacking the groceries, a little after 3:00 (yes, grocery shopping seemed to have taken up the bulk of the day), I finally had my cup of regular coffee. Then some decaf. This whole day seemed to pass in a kind of blur. Before I knew it, it was 6:30 and time to make dinner. At some point during the late afternoon, my kid went over to the Co-op to buy chocolate chips for some cookies they were baking, and I asked them to pick up some rhubarb (which hadn't been available at the Whole Foods) and a replacement bunch of cilantro.
Dinner: fresh linguini with tomato-basil sauce from Whole Foods. I sauteed the kohlrabi and some onions and peas from last week's CSA box to add to the sauce. Side salad of CSA lettuce with sliced almonds and chopped dates, and balsamic dressing. Not a lot of protein in this dinner, and my serving of pasta was small because I was still full from my big burger lunch. So of course I got hungry again later.
It's Tuesday, so after dinner it is time to pick up our CSA box. We arrive at 10 minutes to 9:00, and our farmer is only just arriving to drop off the boxes. This seems rather extremely late to me. Anyway, though, we get to meet him: an older guy than I expected, and not the radical young hippie farmer I figured he was. Caked-in dirt. Horrified by the idea that we put his lettuce in our smoothies-- "Lettuce smoothies?!" He suggested that we shred it, and use it for salads or tacos. The box contains: more lettuces, strawberries that smell amazing the minute you open the lid of the tote, beet greens, sugar snap peas, more asparagus, garlic scapes, kohlrabi. None of the chard or sage that was promised, unfortunately: I need them for recipes.
Later: 1/2 glass of red wine, then a small bowl of mixed raspberries and blackberries sprinkled in sugar, with a splash of goat kefir. After that, an Oh My Yog! lemon yogurt.