Poised for a comeback

Okay, so the whole not buying stuff week never worked out. Maybe I wasn't trying hard enough, or maybe it was because I just didn't really have a goal or motivation to do it. Maybe another day I will try it out.

As for ignoring my blog since March - whoops! Partly it was the busy nature of school, then it was my computer breaking down (just got a new [Free!] hard drive from the Mac store, woohoo!). But since I've started reading the blogs of friends, I am definitely in the mood to write.

The summer isn't exactly going as I imagined it would. In my late-winter era mind, I foresaw myself get a sweet internship, possibly one that paid at least minimum wage. I would be wracking up my story count, or at least learning how to use excel and writing some intra-office memos.

But, as the cold winter stumbled clumsily into a brisk spring chill, I was still short one internship. An awkward interview at the University followed an uninspiring face-to-face with some honcho at CBC.

And now, the job board is empty, the only mailed-out "self-identified" job offers are not remotely journalism, nor am I capable of creating the diversified and dynamic communications plans that they want me to make. As if.

So I am an intern shipwreck at sea, perhaps.

All through the winter I vowed that I will fill the potential gap (of no work term) with volunteering in a writing capacity, somewhere. And I am nervous about writing for the Journal, although that is not for any good reason, to be honest.

But I really do want to work on my portfolio because I don't want to be in the exact same situation a year from now when I am under the proverbial gun to do my work term.

I'll be fine though, I feel positive about the next three months.

In the meantime, I am bartending at Broken City. It should be a fun time once again, but it doesn't exactly develop integral journalism skills by any means.

Anyhow, I am going to go enjoy some fresh air!

Still not buying it

So, I spent $10.25 on my cab home last night. This was taken from tip money that I made last night, which totalled $52 before cab and after tipping out the doorboys. I don't think I really broke a rule there. Maybe stretched it though because there were other ways for me to get home: could have walked to the train, took the train, walked from station to home. But when it's cold and almost 1 a.m., I think a cab is a safe choice.

Today I spent four hours at the Jubilee Auditorium volunteering for the Kiwanis music festival. It is for an assignment on altruism. I didn't really feel very altruistic, but I know that my time did go to a good cause. Considering I would have probably just sat at home playing Valkyria Chronicles otherwise, I think this is a good thing. The volunteer coordinator suggested I grab lunch at a nearby food court (more money I didn't need to spend) while I waited for my first session to start. Instead I had a complimentary coffee (I even had cream in it! It's not as good as soy, but it was actually quite lovely) in the volunteer lounge and read some of Brave New World.

The rest of the day will include dinner with the boyfriend - cooked by us with ingredients from our combined pantries. I'm thinking asparagus risotto and somethin, but I'm not sure we have enough veggies to make it properly. I really want to pick up some mushrooms and/or chard. But I'll see what I have first. Part of this whole exercise, a big part in fact, is to clear out my over stuffed food stores. It's good to have supplies so I can whip up a meal anytime. But when I have so much food and just keep buying more, it means plenty of it goes to waste.

Then we'll probably watch some Firefly and take some photos before we both go to work at 9. There's a new menu at work and I'm sorely tempted to try the new homemade vegan burger, but there's no sense in eating at 9 pm anyway. I'll wait until I'm working next Saturday afternoon.

All the bus transit was paid for in my tuition months ago, so that isn't an expense either.

So far, so good, I'm thinking. But now I want some wine.

Things I want to Buy

Since 5 pm today, I have thought about purchasing:
- shower head
- french fries
- cup coffee
- a fancy briefcase
- hot air popcorn popper
- soy silk creamer
- michael rault cd
- slice of pizza

And I am going to break my rule a bit because it's really cold and late and I am going to take a cab home from work. And in the morning: hashbrowns!
Sent on the TELUS Mobility network with BlackBerry

A month after

Okay, I really did intend to post frequently in the days following the cleanse. Unfortunately, I got so busy eating and with school, that I neglected the blog completely.

The bad news: I'm slipping into snacking habits again, so I'm going to make a great effort to get outta that. I've been eating wheat bread a little more often than I should. I haven't baked a loaf of spelt bread since the cleanse, so I'll hopefully get on that soon too. Too much beer in my diet! I am not completely bingeing, but I will be cutting down even more on beer and pop-based hiballs. I'm digging red wine though. Check out a bottle of pinotage sometime soon, it's got a lovely sweetness. I've gained some weight back and my complexion isn't the glowing, smooth loveliness that it was in week 2.

The good news: I am eating better and healthier than before the cleanse. It's hard to eat as much veggies as I was before, but I think I am doing a decent job of incorporating them and will keep going. I still remember how good I felt and looked when I was eating that awesomely healthy food so I have a great incentive to get back on the wagon.

Unrelated: today is day one of my week without buying. So far, so good. But it's only 2:30. If there are groceries that I need, I will buy them, but nothing else is allowed. I have so much food in my house, it's ridiculous for me not to have SOMETHING to eat. I'll make my lunches so they're ready to take to school. I'm excited for this little challenge! I don't really think it will be terribly challenging but a good experience nonetheless.

First day off the cleanse

Well, the day has finally come, I am done the cleanse!

After waking up early and tidying up a bit, I brewed my first cup of coffee in more than 3 weeks. I put a heaping teaspoon of raw sugar in there and a few tablespoons of Rice Dream rice milk.

It was a steaming mug of liquid gold.

Mmmm. I'm waiting until my boy shows up before I indulge in another cup. Dr. Rau's "Maintenance Diet" says I should limit myself to 1 cup of coffee or decaffeinated tea in the morning and then only herbal/decaf after that. I'm giving myself some leeway. I have no intention of following his maintenace diet religiously, but there is some good stuff in there.

Today in the Globe & Mail my horoscope said

Avoid trying to ram your opinions down other people's throats today. Not only wll you not succeed but you will almost certainly turn even your friends against you. You are entitled to your views, of course, but there are many other ways of looking at world.

I think that is both eye-opening and reinforcing to my current state of mind. I've definitely been a bit preachy while I follow this cleanse, because I feel strongly about what we as Canadians eat on a regular basis. I'm going to concentrate on toning down the gospel of Dr. Rau and not try to cut people off of cow's milk, get them hopped up on whole grains and reduce their intake of processed white flour and wheat in general.

My new method will be conversion through gentle coercion. That is, I will invite people to eat whole grain vegan/vegetarian with me and feed them awesome and wholesome food that is far beyond the realm of boiled veg and bread.

Today is the cook-a-thon! I started early so that the Boy and I could eat a lunch of fresh Mexican goodies: spelt (mixed with a bit of whole wheat and white flour) tortillas, Mexican rice, Guac (I have so many avocados!), refried beans (cooked overnight in my crockpot. I accidentally bought Romano instead of Pinto beans and it turns out that they look identical, but are slightly different. They taste fabulous though), and salsa.

I also roasted some veggies and boiled bejeezus out of them for veggie stock. It was a good way to use up veggie scraps (dying red pepper, asparagus ends, fennel trimmings) and have a healthier stock for the soup I'm going to make (probably Pea Soup).

I'm off for now, it's time to work on the tortillas!

Let them eat tarts!

Tomorrow is the last day of the cleanse. It isn't getting easier right now because the cleanse keeps giving me delicious things to eat like the spelt cookies, creamy polenta, risotto, lentils with feta cheese and sundried tomatoes. I have been eating extra cookies...

It's so close...on Monday I get wine (because I say so) and I'm spending a whole whack of time cooking and baking healthy but delicious food. The biggest annoyance with this cleanse is that all the recipes are for about 4-6 portions and the dips especially are inconvenient because we only get to eat it once, or in the case of dips, once and then not again until 4 or 5 days later, when it's gone off. Ergh! I feel like a lot of food has gone to waste :/

Anyhoo, on the bright side, I'm making a tart tomorrow! There is catfish on the menu for lunch, yuck. Not sure exactly what I will have, probably extra asparagus and a little bit of feta or goaty gouda! Mmmmm

I bought grapefruit juice to finish up the week, instead of buying another grapefruit (I'll wait until they go on sale). It's not as delicious at all but it'll make for a quicker breakfast.

The cooking has been wearing me down, I am so ready to clean my fridge and start a new, college-style healthy eating. I'm excited to sign up for The Good Food Box, it's SO cheap and the drop off is super duper close.

And as I've mentioned before, I bought 3 cookbooks, and there is a plethora of opportunities for eating too too much.

But honestly, I do intend to stick to these large doses of vegetables and whole grains. FYI: Quinoa is tops!

Plus, it's about time that the boy and I go to Buddha's Veggie or some such place of deliciousness.

It's time for bed, happy munching!