Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Self realization
After waiting half an hour for my train, only to have it be too full of people to get on, I realized something. I am generally a happy-go-lucky, optimistic person. Most people would say I don't get angry very often. However, I GUARANTEE that at least 75 percent of the times that I am angry have to do with transportation. Back in Arizona, it was cars who drove too slow, or wouldn't make yellow lights, or wouldn't turn when they were able, or would leave 10-car gaps on the freeway during rush hour. Here in the city, it's the Subway, the most inefficient method of transportation known to man. It's not uncommon to wait 10 minutes for a train and then for the train to take another 10 minutes to go maybe three stops. Doesn't seem so bad, right? If you were to actually measure it all out, that three stops is probably equal to maybe one-and-a-half miles. THAT'S 20 MINUTES TO GO ONE AND A HALF MILES.
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
the 80s
Photo not actually in NY, but instead in south New Jersey, trees are flowering. Photo taken by moiToday is a sunny, beautiful day in New York City. Temps are in the 80s. Dogs are barking. Children are playing. Chess-players are out and about. People just look genuinely happier, walking around with their iced coffees, neon-colored Rayban Wayfarers and cut-off jean shorts. People are sitting outside on the Columbia lawn reading books, eating chicken waldorf salads and playing frisbee.
Life was meant to be lived in a warm climate. Welcome, real spring!
*** Edit: I stand corrected. High of 90 today.
Thursday, February 4, 2010
the end of my vegan days
Day 4 – Tuesday, Feb. 2, 2010
Today I felt a lot better than yesterday. I woke up pretty late, around 11 a.m., and made myself a salad using most of the leftover ingredients from last night’s dinner – arugula and romaine lettuces, shredded carrots and baby mushrooms, but this time I added half a can of 3-bean salad I got from Trader Joes. It was quite delicious and actually surprisingly filling. In the afternoon, I got a little bit tired, so I made myself a cup of ice coffee with soy milk and no sugar.
I got pretty hungry around 5:30 p.m., so I fixed myself up a bowl of Cheerios with soy milk. At 7:30 p.m. I went to dinner with my roommate and some friends at Neo, a Japanese sushi restaurant at 83rd and Broadway. It was definitely a swanky sort of place, and it was interesting choosing vegan items on a regular menu. I soon realized the only things I could order were: miso soup, tofu salad (but I would have had to hold the dressing because it was a creamy dressing), kelp salad, edamame, mixed vegetable kotafuki (basically a veggie roll), veggie tempura and grilled vegetables on a skewer. Since it was such a high-end restaurant, I refused to pay $6 for some grilled vegetables on a stick or $4 for a bowl of soup that came from a packet. I got edamame and the veggie roll (which was very much not filling – only five rolls) and with my friend’s gift certificate, the total came to be about $15 total, including tax and tip. I definitely thought there would be more options at a sushi restaurant for vegans, since there’s not much dairy used in Japanese cooking, but I must say it’s a lot easier to be a fish-eating vegetarian since everything is sushi or sashimi.
I came home and promptly had a bowl of granola with soy milk because I was still hungry. :(
Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2010 -- THE LAST DAY!
Cereal for breakfast, salad for lunch, pasta with spicy marinara for dinner.
AND NOW I CAN EAT MEAT :D
Today I felt a lot better than yesterday. I woke up pretty late, around 11 a.m., and made myself a salad using most of the leftover ingredients from last night’s dinner – arugula and romaine lettuces, shredded carrots and baby mushrooms, but this time I added half a can of 3-bean salad I got from Trader Joes. It was quite delicious and actually surprisingly filling. In the afternoon, I got a little bit tired, so I made myself a cup of ice coffee with soy milk and no sugar.
I got pretty hungry around 5:30 p.m., so I fixed myself up a bowl of Cheerios with soy milk. At 7:30 p.m. I went to dinner with my roommate and some friends at Neo, a Japanese sushi restaurant at 83rd and Broadway. It was definitely a swanky sort of place, and it was interesting choosing vegan items on a regular menu. I soon realized the only things I could order were: miso soup, tofu salad (but I would have had to hold the dressing because it was a creamy dressing), kelp salad, edamame, mixed vegetable kotafuki (basically a veggie roll), veggie tempura and grilled vegetables on a skewer. Since it was such a high-end restaurant, I refused to pay $6 for some grilled vegetables on a stick or $4 for a bowl of soup that came from a packet. I got edamame and the veggie roll (which was very much not filling – only five rolls) and with my friend’s gift certificate, the total came to be about $15 total, including tax and tip. I definitely thought there would be more options at a sushi restaurant for vegans, since there’s not much dairy used in Japanese cooking, but I must say it’s a lot easier to be a fish-eating vegetarian since everything is sushi or sashimi.
I came home and promptly had a bowl of granola with soy milk because I was still hungry. :(
Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2010 -- THE LAST DAY!
Cereal for breakfast, salad for lunch, pasta with spicy marinara for dinner.
AND NOW I CAN EAT MEAT :D
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
Being vegan.
For a consumer journalism class I'm taking at Columbia, I'm doing a story on things a consumer ought to know before going vegan. To make the story more interesting, I, a dedicated meat-eater, decided to go vegan for five days (I would've gone seven, but the story deadline is Thursday, c'est la vie) so I could report directly what I learned. So far, it's been an experience.
Here's my log (so far):
Day 1 – Saturday, Jan. 30, 2010
First day as a vegan. Don’t really feel any different. Woke up this morning and had to get lunch with roommate and her friend. I had some instant ramen at home that I could eat. I read the label (probably the first time I’d ever actually checked the label for something) and found that the noodles were wheat noodles, and besides all the crappy artificial stuff, instant ramen is actually vegan because it contains no animal products. However, roommate and her friend wanted bagels for lunch (we were heading down to the Financial District for a day of shopping), so I decided to join them.
At Absolute Bagels (107th and Broadway), I discovered that bagels are actually vegan. Absolute Bagels also has this thing called “tofutti,” which is essentially tofu cream cheese. I got a pumpernickel bagel with plain tofutti and tried it, quite skeptical of my first “tofu replacement” – and it was actually good! The taste was milder than real cream cheese, but I could definitely eat tofutti for the rest of my life and be OK. And the cost so far, wasn’t bad either-- $2 for the bagel and the topping, same as regular cream cheese. I got a coffee with sugar along with my bagel.
For dinner, I decided to make my first vegan meal. I found a recipe for vegan rustic bread and eggplant lasagna on veganyumyum.com – one of the sites my vegetarian friend referred me to – and decided to try my hand at it. I had my friend who just started a job at CNNMoney.com help me. I purchased tomatoes, breadcrumbs (harder than you’d think to find vegan breadcrumbs because a lot of them contain milk fat), eggplants, sourdough bread and canned tomato puree. My friend and I were highly skeptical—and hungry—so we were crossing our fingers the recipe would work out. My friend even brought some bagged arugula in case our meal went awry and we had to fill up on salad and Italian dressing (my honey mustard dressing will have to wait til next week). We ended up loving it! And the total bill came to $16.73 (including tax) for all the ingredients, and we made eight to 10 servings … definitely enough for two to three meals.
Decided I want to:
1. Eat out at a vegan-friendly restaurant and see how much more/less I end up spending
2. Eat out at a nonvegan restaurant and see what lengths I have to go to in order to get the appropriate food and see how much more/less I end up spending
3. Make something “normal” into something vegan and see how much healthier it is and if it tastes any better or worse
Day 2 – Sunday, Jan. 31, 2010
Day two of being a vegan. I can already tell that my energy level has fallen dramatically because of the diet change. I don’t think I’ve ever had ONLY vegetables before (not even things containing animal products) for this long – like I said, I am a diehard meateater! However, I think it would be a lot easier if you actually CARED about being vegan – that is, you had a moral or ideological reason to be vegan, as opposed to just doing it for a story/class. That being said, I interviewed a vegan today (who has been vegan for one year, vegetarian for more than 10) and she said that a drop in energy is the first thing that you notice when you switch your dietary lifestyle. She encouraged me to eat a lot of protein in some other form to keep up my energy levels, and also to make a conscious effort to get more iron, because we consume a lot more iron through milk and butter than we might expect.
Today after church, I went to Zen Palate, a vegetarian/vegan Chinese restaurant at 46th and Ninth Avenue. It was a bit pricier than I anticipated a vegan restaurant being (what with the whole no-meat thing and all…) but it was still good. I ordered a Portobello burger on a whole wheat bun, topped with alfalfa sprouts, vegan mustard and other veggies. It came with a side of yam fries and ketchup, all for $8.50. My lunch companion ordered veggie dumpling soup for about the same price. I didn’t think a bunch of veggies, half a mushroom on some bread, with some fries would cost almost $9 without tax, but I guess it is still New York after all. A decent meat burger elsewhere would probably cost about the same anyway, if not more, so the price points were still about the same.
For dinner I had leftover eggplant lasagna from last night. I also went grocery shopping for the next few days, and decided to buy some random vegan items from Trader Joes, since I was in the area. I purchased coffee, mango green tea, shredded carrots, baby button mushrooms, soymilk, bean salad, dried fruit bars and balsamic vinegar (so I don’t have to keep using my roommate’s Italian dressing). Total bill came to about $17.57. Trader Joes is always cheap and I always manage to get a ton of stuff there for not very much money, but I noticed the amount of items I got is significantly less than what I normally spend there (about $30, when I buy meats and frozen dinners).
It is only 7:10 and I feel like I am going to pass out from tiredness. I went to bed around 2 a.m. and woke up earlyish today for church (around 9:30 a.m.) so that may have contributed to it, but I think my diet definitely has played a role in my energy level.
Day 3 – Monday, Feb. 1, 2010
Day three as a vegan and I’m starting to feel it. Woke up late this morning so I just had some Chinese onion-flavored instant ramen for lunch (since it contains no animal products). It kept me kind of sort of full, up until about 4 p.m. I was having tremendous luck reaching sources for the many stories I’m juggling, when the hunger pangs struck me. I remembered what my vegan source told me about making sure to eat lots of snacks, so I chowed down on a fiber fruit strip and the remaining bag of some potato chips.
I had class tonight, so I knew I was going to have a late dinner. During class, around 7 p.m., I started to feel extreme pangs of pain in my stomach. It wasn’t the normal hunger pains I’ve felt before when I’m just hungry; this was more like sick to my stomach sort of pains. I wonder if they are related to my diet.
When I came home around 8:30 p.m., I cooked a small bowl of pesto pasta and made myself a HUGE chopped salad with romaine and arugula, corn, shredded carrots and mushrooms, drizzled with balsamic and sprinkled with some salt and pepper. The meal actually filled me up, unlike most of my other meals so far.
Here's my log (so far):
Day 1 – Saturday, Jan. 30, 2010
First day as a vegan. Don’t really feel any different. Woke up this morning and had to get lunch with roommate and her friend. I had some instant ramen at home that I could eat. I read the label (probably the first time I’d ever actually checked the label for something) and found that the noodles were wheat noodles, and besides all the crappy artificial stuff, instant ramen is actually vegan because it contains no animal products. However, roommate and her friend wanted bagels for lunch (we were heading down to the Financial District for a day of shopping), so I decided to join them.
At Absolute Bagels (107th and Broadway), I discovered that bagels are actually vegan. Absolute Bagels also has this thing called “tofutti,” which is essentially tofu cream cheese. I got a pumpernickel bagel with plain tofutti and tried it, quite skeptical of my first “tofu replacement” – and it was actually good! The taste was milder than real cream cheese, but I could definitely eat tofutti for the rest of my life and be OK. And the cost so far, wasn’t bad either-- $2 for the bagel and the topping, same as regular cream cheese. I got a coffee with sugar along with my bagel.
For dinner, I decided to make my first vegan meal. I found a recipe for vegan rustic bread and eggplant lasagna on veganyumyum.com – one of the sites my vegetarian friend referred me to – and decided to try my hand at it. I had my friend who just started a job at CNNMoney.com help me. I purchased tomatoes, breadcrumbs (harder than you’d think to find vegan breadcrumbs because a lot of them contain milk fat), eggplants, sourdough bread and canned tomato puree. My friend and I were highly skeptical—and hungry—so we were crossing our fingers the recipe would work out. My friend even brought some bagged arugula in case our meal went awry and we had to fill up on salad and Italian dressing (my honey mustard dressing will have to wait til next week). We ended up loving it! And the total bill came to $16.73 (including tax) for all the ingredients, and we made eight to 10 servings … definitely enough for two to three meals.
Decided I want to:
1. Eat out at a vegan-friendly restaurant and see how much more/less I end up spending
2. Eat out at a nonvegan restaurant and see what lengths I have to go to in order to get the appropriate food and see how much more/less I end up spending
3. Make something “normal” into something vegan and see how much healthier it is and if it tastes any better or worse
Day 2 – Sunday, Jan. 31, 2010
Day two of being a vegan. I can already tell that my energy level has fallen dramatically because of the diet change. I don’t think I’ve ever had ONLY vegetables before (not even things containing animal products) for this long – like I said, I am a diehard meateater! However, I think it would be a lot easier if you actually CARED about being vegan – that is, you had a moral or ideological reason to be vegan, as opposed to just doing it for a story/class. That being said, I interviewed a vegan today (who has been vegan for one year, vegetarian for more than 10) and she said that a drop in energy is the first thing that you notice when you switch your dietary lifestyle. She encouraged me to eat a lot of protein in some other form to keep up my energy levels, and also to make a conscious effort to get more iron, because we consume a lot more iron through milk and butter than we might expect.
Today after church, I went to Zen Palate, a vegetarian/vegan Chinese restaurant at 46th and Ninth Avenue. It was a bit pricier than I anticipated a vegan restaurant being (what with the whole no-meat thing and all…) but it was still good. I ordered a Portobello burger on a whole wheat bun, topped with alfalfa sprouts, vegan mustard and other veggies. It came with a side of yam fries and ketchup, all for $8.50. My lunch companion ordered veggie dumpling soup for about the same price. I didn’t think a bunch of veggies, half a mushroom on some bread, with some fries would cost almost $9 without tax, but I guess it is still New York after all. A decent meat burger elsewhere would probably cost about the same anyway, if not more, so the price points were still about the same.
For dinner I had leftover eggplant lasagna from last night. I also went grocery shopping for the next few days, and decided to buy some random vegan items from Trader Joes, since I was in the area. I purchased coffee, mango green tea, shredded carrots, baby button mushrooms, soymilk, bean salad, dried fruit bars and balsamic vinegar (so I don’t have to keep using my roommate’s Italian dressing). Total bill came to about $17.57. Trader Joes is always cheap and I always manage to get a ton of stuff there for not very much money, but I noticed the amount of items I got is significantly less than what I normally spend there (about $30, when I buy meats and frozen dinners).
It is only 7:10 and I feel like I am going to pass out from tiredness. I went to bed around 2 a.m. and woke up earlyish today for church (around 9:30 a.m.) so that may have contributed to it, but I think my diet definitely has played a role in my energy level.
Day 3 – Monday, Feb. 1, 2010
Day three as a vegan and I’m starting to feel it. Woke up late this morning so I just had some Chinese onion-flavored instant ramen for lunch (since it contains no animal products). It kept me kind of sort of full, up until about 4 p.m. I was having tremendous luck reaching sources for the many stories I’m juggling, when the hunger pangs struck me. I remembered what my vegan source told me about making sure to eat lots of snacks, so I chowed down on a fiber fruit strip and the remaining bag of some potato chips.
I had class tonight, so I knew I was going to have a late dinner. During class, around 7 p.m., I started to feel extreme pangs of pain in my stomach. It wasn’t the normal hunger pains I’ve felt before when I’m just hungry; this was more like sick to my stomach sort of pains. I wonder if they are related to my diet.
When I came home around 8:30 p.m., I cooked a small bowl of pesto pasta and made myself a HUGE chopped salad with romaine and arugula, corn, shredded carrots and mushrooms, drizzled with balsamic and sprinkled with some salt and pepper. The meal actually filled me up, unlike most of my other meals so far.
Monday, September 7, 2009
Rain booooots!
I'm so excited: I just ordered my first pair of rain boots! New York, which actually has weather and seasons, necessitated it. :) And of course, I was only so happy to oblige.
I decided on a pair of black ones from DSW, using a free shipping code and birthday gift certificate to help alleviate the cost. $39.95 boots became $20 boots! Best part is, they look just like riding boots. :)
I decided on a pair of black ones from DSW, using a free shipping code and birthday gift certificate to help alleviate the cost. $39.95 boots became $20 boots! Best part is, they look just like riding boots. :)
Thursday, September 3, 2009
Long time no post!
So I'm bad at posting regularly, I apologize. In the past month, I've since moved to NYC to attend graduate school. I'm already loving the fashion I see on the streets here. People aren't afraid to take risks. They wear whatever they feel like, even if it appears straight off the runway.
I also love that depending on where in Manhattan you are, the style is different. If you're on the south end, near Wall Street and Battery Park, office attire reigns, for obvious reason. At Union Square and East Village, it's all indie free spirit attire. Upper east side, brand names. I live on the UWS, and I've yet to see an actual style here ... maybe as the weeks go by, I'll see something more definitive.
Today, I went to go run errands and shop a bit. I scored these Ray-Ban G-15 aviators for $40. They go for $130 everywhere else.
Ray-Ban G-15 gold aviator sunglasses, $129 (photo courtesy ray-ban.com)
Also got a coat for the winter time (have been looking for a cute and warm one for awhile, so I was happy to finally find one!) from Miss Sixty, and a birthday present for a friend. And on the way home, I stopped by Crumbs for a vanilla cupcake with chocolate cream cheese filling, topped with cream cheese frosting and chocolate ganache. Delish.
I also love that depending on where in Manhattan you are, the style is different. If you're on the south end, near Wall Street and Battery Park, office attire reigns, for obvious reason. At Union Square and East Village, it's all indie free spirit attire. Upper east side, brand names. I live on the UWS, and I've yet to see an actual style here ... maybe as the weeks go by, I'll see something more definitive.
Today, I went to go run errands and shop a bit. I scored these Ray-Ban G-15 aviators for $40. They go for $130 everywhere else.
Ray-Ban G-15 gold aviator sunglasses, $129 (photo courtesy ray-ban.com)Also got a coat for the winter time (have been looking for a cute and warm one for awhile, so I was happy to finally find one!) from Miss Sixty, and a birthday present for a friend. And on the way home, I stopped by Crumbs for a vanilla cupcake with chocolate cream cheese filling, topped with cream cheese frosting and chocolate ganache. Delish.
Saturday, July 11, 2009
The Uniform Project
So, so sorry for the posting hiatus! I've been swamped with trips to Hawaii, new jobs, graduation and all that fun stuff.
Here's my latest find:
www.theuniformproject.com
This girl is wearing the same black dress every day for 365 days and mixing it up by wearing different accessories.
Here's my latest find:
www.theuniformproject.com
This girl is wearing the same black dress every day for 365 days and mixing it up by wearing different accessories.
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