Busy Saturday

My partner is out of town this weekend, so I took the opportunity to go do some things I've wanted to do for a while. I went to a Jewish Sabbath service, which is something I've always wanted to do. I enjoyed it. Then I went downtown to try Veganoplis, a vegan cafeteria. I had the buffet. It was pretty good and filling. Then back home.

Used my free from work bus pass for all this traveling. It was a nice day and not a bad way to see your city.

On another topic, I'm still saving money. I have an Emigrant Direct savings account, which I am steadily adding to. What I am also doing is whatever is left in our joint checking account when the next pay period comes around, goes into savings. That in addition to our $25 monthly savings deposit, is helping increase our joint savings.

Barbara

Saving

I have started saving money from each paycheck already. It's not a lot but it's more than I had a month ago. This check also started taking out for my 401k (no match, sadly). I love pretax deductions. I put in 27 bucks and change in, and it only cost me 16 bucks in take home pay reduction. We're also saving money from our joint account.

Barbara

Bike commuters

I just wanted to share this tidbit from Willamette Week, a local weekly.

"According to the latest Census Bureau data, Portland has more bike commuters than any other US city, but that's just still 3.5 percent of Portland traffic."

Portland is very bike friendly and the weather isn't bad, although the cold damp of winter does discourage a lot of commuters, I'm sure.

I had a nice birthday weekend. Back to work this week all refreshed and ready to go. Made some New Farm Mac and Cheez for lunches this week. I love this recipe.

Barbara

Waste not, have tasty soup!

I took a page from my favorite blogger, frugalveggiemama. (Hi, Katie!)

We went to a southern food restaurant last night after a concert at church and picked up some food to go. I got fried okra and a large container of red beans and rice. The okra was fine, but the beans were mostly beans and very little rice and pretty tasteless. So, what was I to do with all those beans?

I did what Katie would do! Today I put some of the beans and rice in a sauce pan, added 1/2 cup water, put in some Braggs, onion and garlic powder, a little salt, and a small amount of cilantro paste that I had bought a month ago but hadn't tried. I heated up the soup, crushed some tortilla chips in a bowl and poured the soup over it. Very tasty! I'm going to make more with the rest of the beans for later.

Barbara

Saturday Brunch

Today was Saturday brunch, brought to you by Vegan with a Vengeance : Over 150 Delicious, Cheap, Animal-Free Recipes That Rock. I made herb roasted potatoes, Fronch toast and scrambled tofu.



Everything was tasty. My partner tried the tofu, didn't care for it. She liked everything else though. Tofu is not my favorite thing, but it was good.

Eating vegan McDougall style is working out well.

Barbara

So far...

So far, my McDougalling ways are working out fine. I've been eating healthy and not starving. Cooking hasn't been much of a problem so far.

I got myself and my partner hooked on Nature's Path Optimum Power Cereal. It's super healthy, with lots of fiber and whole grain, but it's sweet enough for my partner but not too sweet for me.

I have been eating the red lentil loaf and mushroom gravy I made over the weekend. Today for lunch it's some homemade sourdough bread (my first try!) and spaghetti and meatballs. Golden Grain multi grain spaghetti, Trader Joe's Tomato Basil marinara (tasty!) and Trader Joe's mock meatballs. Oh yeah and some grapes. :)

Barbara

Weekend cooking

I was busy this weekend cooking. I'm going to start eating the McDougall diet. I used to eat that way a long time ago and I felt great and I lost substantial weight, for pretty much the only time in my life. So I'm basically going vegan.

First, for lunch, I made Red Lentil loaf, from frugalveggiemama's recipe. Looks pretty doesn't it?!



To moisten it and make it even tastier, I made some mushroom gravy. I used some veggie broth powder I have around the house. I'm getting low on it and I don't remember where I bought it at. I need to mark the container.

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I got a bunch of sourdough starters and I am trying one, it's called Carl's 1847 Oregon Trail starter. Yes it's really that old. I made a whole wheat loaf. As expected it took longer to rise and I don't think it will replace my usual whole wheat bread, but it's pretty good. You can taste more of the wheat and just a bit of the sourdough flavor.



Lastly, for my last omni meal, I had grilled chicken breast and Yorkshire pudding, which is a particular favorite of my partner.



So tomorrow I start, eating starch and veggies and fruits and grains. For my health and to lose weight, which I need to do desperately.

Wish me luck!

Barbara

The Debt to the Penny and Who Holds It

I thought this was interesting (and a bit scary). It comes from the US Treasury Department. This webpage is called The Debt to the Penny and Who Holds It. Go take a look!

Barbara