03.31 - Gatorade Shmatorade Test

I'm not one to post twice in a day, but this was a special circumstance (a.k.a. my dearest friend who happens to have Gatorade as a client wanted me to put this up). This is only a test.

03.31 - Triple J Evening

I was graced with the presence of JCK and JTK last night as we went out for some $5 pizza. We had goat cheese pizza, mushroom pizza, and cheese-covered tater tots—and it was all quite yummy (cheese galore!) and super cheap. I love food specials. I hear this place has pretty darn good burgers as well, so I’ll have to be all about that in two weeks.

I felt bad, though, that the boys didn’t get some kind of meat topping on at least one of the pies but, apparently, a lot of people can go without meat. Haha. That’s news to me because, normally, every meal I have will include some form of meat. But this past month has really trained me to live without it. Of course there’s that initial pain in my heart at not being able to eat some delicious form of protein, but then I get past it. Like this past weekend, we had lunch after church and they were serving Popeye’s chicken. I love Popeye’s, but I sucked it up and said to myself, “What? All I can eat are mashed potatoes and salad? Awesome!” (Then I stuffed my face with oatmeal cookies and chocolate cake to make myself feel better.)

So yeah. This lifestyle isn’t half bad—and I hope to continue exercising even moderate independence from the beloved animal after Easter. :]

Eatery Info: Beer Bistro, 1061 W Madison, Chicago, IL 60607

03.27 - The Walkout

D came to have lunch with me today since she needed to run an errand downtown, and I thought it’d be cool if we went to this one yummy crepe place by my work. We had already talked about sharing a savory one and a dessert one, so we were quite excited. Ha. Sadly, the experience was absolutely not exciting. In fact, it was pretty appalling. It took forever to order, our waiter forgot that we even existed because he failed to acknowledge us the many times he passed by after, and we still hadn’t gotten our food after 35 minutes (which is absolutely unacceptable for lunch downtown). So, after some debate, D and I walked out. We felt a little bad about it—but we honestly don’t think they cared or even noticed. That was only the second time I've ever walked out of a restaurant, and for good reason.

The first time was . . . sometime in college when my two girlfriends and I were in NY for a weekend trip. We wanted to have a yummy Italian dinner one evening, so we walked around and settled on a restaurant in Midtown (big mistake right off). When we sat down and looked at the menu prices, you could see imaginary sweat dripping down our faces. The waiter had already poured us glasses of water and set out the bread basket . . . but after much contemplation, and while our waiter had his back to us, our broke college student selves ran out of there with a quickness and headed straight for a hot dog cart. *shrug* You gotta do what you gotta do.

03.24 - Milk and Saliva

I was over at A & J's apartment last night and, after having some ramen, I needed something sweet and decided to help myself to a bowl of Lucky Charms and milk. But then I witnessed A drinking out of the milk container. I generally don't mind sharing beverages with people, but there's something about milk that weirds me out. Something about mixing liquid from a cow with human saliva just seems gross to me. It's weird because I'm okay with sharing ice cream (obviously 'cause it's more solidified), but sharing splishy splashy milk is pretty unsettling.

So I yelled at A, and he retorted by saying I've never really lived if I've never drunk from the milk jug. Haha. I tried to get J on my side since he lives with the guy, but they both told me that if their lips don't touch the mouth of the container, it's all good. I begrudgingly agreed in my head, but then I had visions of wobbly arms and saliva-covered lips accidentally brushing the mouth of the container. *sheepish look*

After much contemplation, I decided that the Lucky Charms were worth it.

03.20 - Be Very Afraid

This is what I had for lunch:



There was absolutely no flesh of any sort present. Dude, what's going on? Is the world coming to an end? :\

03.18 - Bane of My Nostrils

So . . . the parents really like fish. They especially like to fry dried fish on random Saturday or Sunday mornings. If you know anything about dried fish, you know that the smell is not pleasant. With that said, the smell of dried fish frying is really not pleasant. The parents know I hate it—so when they decide they absolutely can't go another day without it (ha), they appease me by shutting the kitchen door, lighting scented candles, and spraying all forms of air freshener. Over the years, though, I’ve realized something. Smells from the kitchen get trapped in my room (no matter what anyone does)—and they happen to especially like my closet. *sigh*

While on vacation this past weekend, I packed a whole bunch of stuff because I like to be ready for whatever occasion might arise on a trip. The first night I was there, I realized it was a bit chilly so I put on my light jacket . . . only to be overwhelmed by the smell of fried, dried fish. *heavy, heavy sigh* I tossed it into a plastic bag with disgust. The next evening, I wanted to wear a v-neck top because I acquired a bit of an awkward tan line . . . but after some excessive sniffage of my luggage contents, I realized that 60% of my clothes had the same dreaded smell. *sigh*

Somehow, I made it through the weekend. But the past few days now, I can’t leave the house without being paranoid and sniffing my clothes like crazy. Has this always been the case? Have I always walked around smelling like dried fish?? I’m very sensitive to smell, but I also often have a stuffy nose. So, if you were ever around me when I smelled like an anchovy . . . I truly truly apologize. :( I wonder if Febreeze comes out in a pocket size . . .

03.12 to 03.15 - When in Mexico . . .

eat a whole mess of cheese, refried beans, and various carbs. Eat fish and seafood when available.

I went on vacation to Puerto Vallarta with some girlfriends this weekend-- to celebrate the end of singledom for two of the girls who are getting married this summer. The weather was amazing though the sun was a bit brutal on the skin; the people were so nice though I spoke to them in some bootleg high school Spanish; and the food was great though I was only able to try a very small percentage of it. All in all, good times (and food...) were had. :}

Some yummy things I had for breakfast


Some yummy things I had for dinner


And the best way to end every day was with a fabulous Mexican sunset...

03.10 - Random Tuesday Thoughts

1. Do you know what’s a bit depressing? Going to a burger joint and having to order a portabella mushroom in place of a big, juicy red meat patty. Luckily, the place I went to offered fried egg and yummy cheese toppings which helped my make-believe burger taste pretty darn good. Still a little sad, but good nonetheless.


It certainly looks like the real thing . . .

2. We get free fruit at work every Tuesday and Thursday morning, and my latest fave is grapefruit. It's just so yummy and refreshing. :} Mmm. I can't wait for Thursday. ;)

3. The friend I went to the burger joint with asked me what kind of meat I was giving up for Lent. I said “anything that walks.” He thought that was amusing so he pretty much got on my case the rest of the time. “So what, does that mean you can eat snake? Are you going to eat snakeburgers now? Huh?” Yeah yeah . . .

4. I’ve come to realize that once a girl passes the age of 25, she becomes a free-for-all for older men. Blech. Like seriously, what makes these 40+ year old men think I want to hang out with them? If I was a little bit younger, I could be their daughter—so why the heck is the older IT guy at work or the older guy at my bus stop asking me to lunch? Eww. Really really eww. Sorry, but I don’t want to share my favorite pastime with you.

Eatery Info: Please see link above.

03.09 - Rainy Days Have Come

Cold, dark, rainy weekends are so depressing that all I want to do is stay in bed wrapped up in a big blanket-- either sleeping or with a good book in hand.

There are few things that will get me out of the aforementioned bed. Beautifully simple, inexpensively delicious, comfortingly bougie early morning brunch is one of those things. :}





Eatery Info: Sweets and Savories, 1534 W Fullerton Ave, Chicago, IL 60614

03.04 - Notes to Self

1. Stay away from Pilates class. It is evil and will not only make you hate your life, but you will suffer from excruciating foot cramps.

2. You shouldn't have ordered the bridesmaid dress too small. It's nearly impossible to reduce the size of your hip bones.

3. It's a good thing you're addicted to frozen yogurt with health benefits. If not for that, your addiction might be considered an eating disorder.

4. Stop staring at your "Fast Food" calendar. Just because you love it and think it's cute, doesn't mean your coworkers do. They actually think you're a little strange.

03.02 - The Other White Yummy Thing

I have replaced meat with fro-yo. :\

This Canadian chain just opened up kiddie corner from my office, and I checked it out last Thursday and have been back every workday since. :\ There's something extra about it that I just love. It has the same yummy tanginess that everyone likes plus there's an essence of crackers or condensed milk or something. Haha. I can't quite figure it out, but it's delicious and I can't stop going back. I even asked if they have a frequency card and the dude at the counter looked at me funny.



Eatery Info: Yogen Fruz, 303 West Madison, Chicago, IL 60606