Surprised by Roses

July 17, 2013 / still a dreamer / 6 Comments

I can’t even tell you the last time I can remember being sent flowers. So when these beauties arrived by delivery yesterday I was beyond surprised!

Take a look at them – the selection is called Sorbet Roses and the colors are just amazing. What was equally amazing is how they blossomed in water overnight. (I’m sure the heat doesn’t hurt.) The scent of roses permeates the room … ahhhhhhh! I thought to share a photo or two I took because, really, how often does one receive roses? (And if you’re someone who does, lucky you!)

As the roses opened, I noticed something interesting – one of the roses, the pink one below, has a double center – almost a tiny rose within the rose. I’m taking that as a good-luck sign. (Why? Because I can!) And my thanks to my very thoughtful friend for sending such a lovely surprise.

Of course, we are always worthy of treating ourselves and buying flowers just for us. We deserve it! And indeed, I had taken to occasionally treating myself to a small bouquet of fresh blooms from the local market when I went shopping. That became short-lived due to one busybody feline named Gypsy Rose. Overnight, and never in front of me, to be sure, she made her way up to whatever counter, table, etc. I’d placed them on, and proceeded to dismantle them. I’d find petals all over the table, sometimes complete flowers broken off. I even tried putting them on top of the fridge at night, but she just jumped higher to wreak her kitty havoc. I tired of finding what was this small treat to myself in disarray each morning, so just gave up.

And while I still greatly miss the departed Miss Rose, of course, it was almost a surprise to find the roses in the morning all in one piece!

Crossing Our Own Bridges

July 10, 2013 / still a dreamer / 7 Comments

When I first saw this photo, I had to swallow hard. That is not a bridge I’d be able to cross. The photograph is of the Carrick-a-rede-rope bridge in Northern Ireland and connects the mainland to a tiny island. It is now a tourist attraction, but was once used by salmon fishermen for over 350 years. It is 98 feet, above rocks and the sea, built only of wood and ropes. It is easy to imagine how it would sway when one crosses to the little island on the other side.

It reminds me of bridges in my own life … the sometimes difficult paths that I am traveling to places I want to go. Just like real bridges, some of these can be crossed in hours, days, or maybe years. Some are nice and secure and amazingly happy, like when I used to walk over the Brooklyn Bridge, and some are much more challenging, like this one would be. Some feel like they have a sheer drop to the sea and cliffs below.

We all have bridges we need … or want … to cross. I’d had a discussion of this metaphor with a friend a few years ago; a particular challenge I faced, (and still do), seemed the equivalent of crossing this rope bridge. How would I get where I wanted to go? She suggested I imagine the rope bridge bathed in white light, one continuous safety net. I accepted this in theory, but it didn’t banish my fears. And then I had a thought. If I really, truly wanted to get there, I could crawl. Maybe not a bold or terribly brave move, but if that’s all I can do right now? Then I can crawl.

And sometimes that’s what we have to do. Some days we can dance around and through wherever we want to go. Others we can walk with our head held high. But if we sometimes have to crawl to get there, at least we can say we never gave up. One day, one step at a time.

We’ll all get there.

Vegan 4th of July Picnic Salad

July 4, 2013July 4, 2013 / still a dreamer / 2 Comments

This was so easy it’s almost silly to even post it as a special dish! My picnic host, (a meat eater), was open to having our meal vegan style, so I said I would make a “main dish” salad, he would make a variation of his famous potato salad without eggs or dairy, (i.e. mayo), and he’d make a fruit salad for dessert. Since I know he likes meat, I offered to bring my own veggie hot dog and bun while he grilled whatever inspired him. Surprisingly, he said “I’ll have a veggie dog, too.” So there we have it … an easy vegan picnic!

The salad, completely organic, consists of whole wheat chioccioli pasta, (look like little snail shells), orange pepper, lightly steamed fresh asparagus, zucchini, and chick peas in a dressing of EVOO, lemon juice, a nice amount of garlic, salt and pepper. I also ventured into the world of tofu to replace what I would have normally added … feta cheese. I crumbled a bunch in, but I think in the future, I would marinate it in the dressing ahead of time. I adjusted the seasonings and added a bit more lemon juice when I packed the salad up.

Voila! Easy-peasy, delicious and healthy!

Happy Fourth of July!

Street Food

June 25, 2013June 25, 2013 / still a dreamer / 2 Comments

Now here’s something that no longer means what it once did … street food. I recently came across an article on how the most amazing foods can now be found curbside in just about every city. This article focused on the Mid-Atlantic states.

How drastically have things changed? When I was a kid and we used to go in the city, there were food vendors here and there, and one of my favorites was those who sold roasted chestnuts. I remember there was always a “chestnut man” outside the Museum of Natural History, much like the one pictured here, (who is actually selling chestnuts in Spain.)

When I was older and worked in NYC, you didn’t have to go too far to find a street food vendor – they usually sold Sabrett hot dogs, hot pretzels and somewhere nearby there was always a souvlaki truck. selling souvlaki, (pictured), gyros and falafel. As I recall, everything was pretty tasty. And then more recently, working on a dead end street in an industrial area of a NJ city, (long story), we had a real food truck. It was standard silver and served a variety of pre-packaged lunch foods and sweets and on this truck, a few homemade Portuguese dishes cooked by Tony’s wife – they were always pretty good.

Now? There has been a meals on wheels revolution. Standard silver no more! Food trucks are rolling works of art and they are selling every type of food imaginable and are located all over every city – international cuisine, main dishes, desserts and beverages. What’s more, you’re going to find a line up to that truck, with fans waiting for their favorite food. Aside from cooking up fabby cuisine, the vendors are taking advantage of the digital world and tweeting the time and location when their truck will show up and/or posting it on their Facebook pages.

The food truck world has grown so that they even have their own accolade – the Vendy Award. These are awards given in a variety of cities where vendors sign up for a big food fest in a spacious location. Fruckies, as fans are called, buy tickets to the event and sample as many foods as inspire them. There are judges voting on the best food served and a People’s Choice award.

If you’re a foodie and want to check out this new expanded world of street food, check out this link for the Vendys – awards, events and how to find a great food truck near you.

p.s. There’s a Vendy event coming up in NYC on September 7th in Brooklyn!

p.p.s. Check out the NYC 2012 winner – a vegan, organic truck called Cinnamon Snail – operates in NYC and NJ – not what people – myself included – expect when they hear vegan!

Transitions

June 22, 2013June 22, 2013 / still a dreamer / 2 Comments

Just like life is filled with dreams and plans, so is it filled with transitions.

Over the last 2 months, I’ve had a number. The most recent, though initially stressful, has been the now-happy upgrade of my beloved Mac, the primary tool of my trade. Reliant as I am upon my Mac to make a living, I was not happy to find it behaving increasingly squirrelly as of late. It’s stood up to the test of time, but has missed a few OS upgrades as well as the accompanying program upgrades. My Mac superhero, Steve, told me that right about now is when hard drives often start to fail. Gulp.

It seemed the time had arrived. So off it went to Steve to have a new hard drive and double the memory installed as well as the latest OS and other upgrades. He brought it back, did his on-site magic, and then the biggest transition began, my learning all the (sometimes) improvements of the latest and greatest software. Trust me … a transition! (I’m much calmer now.)

But the bigger transition has been – and will be – in my diet. While not really horrible by any means, my cholesterol was found to be sufficiently high that it needed addressing. Before you could say “lower your cholesterol,” I found myself plopped on 3 drugs — me who takes no meds at all, just vitamins and supplements, and eats largely organically, relatively low-fat and 99% vegetarian is suddenly infused with three. And so began a series of escalating side effects, med changes and so on … not a happy experience.

Meanwhile, at a recent picnic I was pleased and surprised that a friend bought me a book – Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease by Caldwell B. Esselstyn, Jr., M.D. – which she read because of the benefit of the suggested diet to the prevention of cancer. I started reading. The regimen the author describes is beyond vegan in its restriction of fats, and a possibility, but has some very strong limitations. Still, I want to find a way to change my diet sufficiently to get off the meds, so I ordered additional books, one of which is pictured here, plus 2 cookbooks, Forks over Knives and the Joy of Vegan Baking and The Skinny Bitch Book of Vegan Swaps.

If I’m to consider going vegan, I need to know I have options … lots of them. I’m a bake it with butter, sugar and eggs kind of girl, and this is going to be a HUGE transition. And so I’ve begun reading, investigating, considering and shopping. That I already eat animals rarely makes one part easier, but giving up dairy? Now THAT’s tough. So I’m cutting out more dairy and animal fat than I already have and wading in.

I know plenty about the quality, or lack thereof, of our food supply and the toll it is taking on the health of millions of people as well as the planet and the horrendous suffering it is causing billions of animals. I’ve never wanted to be a part of that and have taken many steps over the years to limit my participation. Apparently, the next step – this transition – is mine to take.