When Disaster Strikes

I have been lucky enough to never experience a tornado firsthand. Though we have had tornado warnings several times, both in Virginia and here in Illinois, we’ve never had our house actually hit by a tornado. So when I heard about the huge tornado that struck Oklahoma yesterday, I could only imagine what it must have been like–the shrieking winds, the debris flying around, buildings being reduced to piles of rubble, and a wild sense of fear and anxiety as you frantically searched for friends and family members, praying that they survived. And it angered me to read some of the comments beneath news stories on the internet–comments that blamed the victims for not evacuating sooner, stated that it was the fault of school officials for creating an elementary school in Tornado Alley without a basement, or even comments that somehow led into petty political, religious, or even ethnic debates. When disaster strikes, we have a tendency to look wildly around for someone–anyone–to blame for it, be it the government, a political group, or even God. Yes, sometimes such disasters are partially caused by a specific person (or people), such as the Boston Marathon bombings were. But in the case of natural disasters, it seems a bit unfair to pin the blame on one certain person or group. There is rarely, if ever, only one cause behind catastrophes, whether it is a bombing, murder, tornado, or tsunami. Or some people, even if they don’t necessarily look for a scapegoat behind each disaster, use tragic events to push forward their own political agenda–be it gun control or tighter immigration laws.

But in some cases these disasters–weather-related or not–bring out the best in people: the ones who shelter loved ones from a killer or a storm, often sacrificing their own lives. The rescue workers who dive into crumbling buildings to search for survivors. The volunteers who comfort and assist the victims. The people who donate money, clothes, toys, or even the precious gift of time to the people affected by the tragedy. When disaster strikes, so many people drop their day-to-day worries and reach out to the people around them, radiating love, kindness, and compassion. And these people should certainly be respected and honored for their willingness to help out when tragic events happen. They are truly heroes in every sense of the word. The only question is this: why should this sense of unity, this nation-wide feeling of compassion, this breaking down of racial or political differences, be limited to disasters? Why can’t we harness these warm acts of kindness and apply them to everyday life? Certainly, many people DO manage to perform “random acts of kindness” every day, and help others even when there hasn’t been a bombing or a tornado. But I think we all could work harder to do this. Maybe try to go an entire day without gossiping about your classmates or coworkers behind their backs. Maybe try to say a kind word to each person you meet. Maybe try to reach out to that one person whom all your friends dislike and avoid for some reason. Maybe try to find a volunteer organization that you can spend time at this summer. Maybe try to catch yourself before making a snap judgement about a person, asking yourself “Is this really a good idea? Maybe this person has a good reason for being rude/snobby/irritating.” Or maybe simply try to smile more at people during the day. These acts, as small as they may seem, are just as important and meaningful as rescuing people from piles of rubble or donating money to disaster-related charities.

So I suppose what I am trying to say is that we shouldn’t respond to disasters with anger, spite, or bitterness. We shouldn’t think that blaming someone will solve the problem. Yes, sometimes political and/or governmental action is necessary to prevent the frequency of certain disasters. But we should work toward preventing them with a respectful and open-minded attitude, not being close-minded and assuming that one position is always “right.” And most importantly, we should try to seize that post-disaster sense of unity and compassion, and use it every day–it shouldn’t take people being killed or injured for us to reach out to others and spread kindness wherever we go. It is true that simply being kind and compassionate will NOT necessarily stop terrorists and serial killers, but it certainly CAN lead to more happiness and compassion among your family, your friends, your workplace, your school, or your community. World peace won’t magically occur, but we need to remember that it all starts with us.

Spicy Lentil, Veggie, and Salsa Medley

I know, my recipes have the most creative names ever–not. But I didn’t feel like spending days trying to come up with the “perfect” name for this recipe, so I stuck with this one. Anyway, this recipe is a fairly quick one to prepare as long as you cook the lentils and rice ahead of time. And it is very flexible in terms of the vegetables added; I just used up whatever was in our refrigerator.

Spicy Lentil, Veggie, and Salsa Medley

One cup of lentils

Three cups of water

One tablespoon of olive oil

One onion, chopped

Five cloves of garlic, peeled and minced

Three to four carrots, cut into thin rounds

One zucchini, chopped

About one 8-ounce package of mushrooms (any type), chopped

Several cherry tomatoes, chopped (or one regular tomato)

One-fourth a cup of nutritional yeast

One teaspoon of salt

One teaspoon of chili powder

One teaspoon of Penzey’s Arizona Dreaming spice blend (or more chili powder)

One cup of salsa

Cooked brown rice (as much as you desire–I used a rather small amount, since that was all we had leftover, and as a result the mixture was slightly soupy. I would recommend using more than one or two cups). 

First, combine lentils and water in a pot and bring to a boil. Then reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for about 40 minutes, until the lentils have absorbed all the water. Make sure to stir the mixture frequently to prevent the lentils from sticking to the pot. When the lentils have finished cooking, set aside to let cool.

Then heat the olive oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Add onions and garlic, and cook until golden-brown.

Add carrots, and cook until slightly softened.

Then add the zucchini and mushrooms, and cook for a few minutes more. After they have begun to get soft, add the cherry tomatoes.

Then pour in the spices, and stir to coat the mixture.

Add the salsa, and simmer for a few minutes to blend the flavors.

Then pour in the cooked lentils and rice, and stir thoroughly to mix all ingredients together.

 

It is a slightly spicy, hearty, and delicious meal that can be made as thick or as soupy as you desire, depending on how much rice you add. You could even add some diced and fried tempeh or tofu cubes, a can or two of rinsed and drained kidney beans, or any other vegetables. Just like most of my recipes, this one can be easily customized to suit your preferences—which isn’t necessarily a good thing; I suppose it makes my recipes sound rather vague and unclear at times. Anyway, I hope you all have a wonderful Sunday!

The Great Education Debate

Should you send your children to public school, or pay the extra cost for a private school? Should you homeschool them, or enroll them in an online “virtual” school? What is the right way to educate them? What is the best way to educate them? Unfortunately, there is not yet a universal agreement on what is the “best” way to educate children. And there probably never will be. But I will say this: if you randomly survey about 200 students from high school, the odds are fairly good that many of them will say they “hate school.” There are various reasons for this: too much homework, too much emphasis on testing, unpleasant teachers, nasty cliques, having to wake up early, etc…But before I get into too much depth, let me briefly explain my own educational journey…

My mom homeschooled me and my four siblings for several years, before my three younger siblings decided to start attending public school. I absolutely loved homeschooling, and have so many wonderful memories of it: doing science experiments in the kitchen, checking out piles of books from the library, going on nature walks and collecting unique stones and feathers, writing in journals and diaries about my day-to-day life, putting on plays with my siblings, and not feeling constrained by a rigid schedule. The only tests I remember taking were the standardized CAT tests that homeschoolers were required to take–otherwise, the focus was not on achieving high test scores, but instead developing a love and passion for learning that I have held onto throughout my life. So no, I have never attended public school, but have heard quite a bit about it from my siblings and friends. And I shall refer to their testimony in this post when describing the negative sides of public school.

First of all, I am NOT trying to say that school is inherently “bad” or “evil.” There are certainly some people who love attending public or private school, and who greatly enjoying learning. Also, there are some schools, either public or private, that do a great job of providing an encouraging and positive learning environment for students. Unfortunately, though, these schools are not as prevalent as we may wish they were. One main issue with schools, in my opinion, is that there is far too much emphasis on standardized tests–or just tests in general. Yes, I understand that educators want there to be some generalized state– or country-wide standards that students should be measured up against. But doesn’t it seem unfair to expect all students to have the same level of achievement in each subject? And is it really fair to measure how well a school is performing based on standardized test scores? What about those students who excel in one subject, but struggle with another? If you put too much emphasis on tests, all you are doing is filling the heads of students with information that they will apply to the tests–and then forget about afterwards and never think about again. How is this cultivating a love for learning in students? And then there are the ACT and SAT tests, which tend to incite a brutal sense of competition among students who long to get into the “best” colleges. No, there is nothing wrong with aspiring to get into a particular college. But students should remember that they are more than a test score–and also that what makes a “good” college  varies from person to person. Since I was homeschooled, I chose to self-study for the SAT test; I got the prep book and developed my own study plan. I ended up getting a 2080 on the test—not extraordinary, but not too terrible either, I suppose. In regards to the people preparing students for such tests, there are some fantastic teachers out there who are quite passionate about the subject they teach, and manage to both inspire and encourage students to learn for the sake of learning–not simply for the sake of gaining good grades. But it seems as though in many schools, these teachers are the exception rather than the norm.

And then there is the question of homework. Ah, homework. Don’t get me wrong–I think it’s great to challenge students and encourage them to do work at home. But piles of homework tend to bring about piles of stress–which doesn’t do much to make students enthusiastic about learning. When students are trying to balance school, work, dance, sports, a social life, extracurricular activities, etc…, too much homework overwhelms and frustrates them, and often makes them despise school even more. And after nine-ish hours of being in school, the last thing most students want to do is spend a few more hours doing homework. Perhaps it would be better to either (1) assign less homework, or (2) devote some class time to working through homework problems together as a group. These are just random ideas, though, since I don’t have the experience or wisdom to propose large-scale changes to our educational system. I am not smart enough for that!

Anyway, too much homework, especially when coupled with after-school activities, often leads to sleep deprivation–a problem that many students deal with. And a sleep-deprived student usually doesn’t come to school cheerful, optimistic, and ready to learn about whatever the teachers throw at them. Not even close. Instead, they are tired, stressed out, and incapable of paying attention in class. They would rather be ANYWHERE except sitting in a classroom, struggling to focus on what is being taught. And then it comes to the weekend, and those students sleep in to gain back those hours they lost during the week, struggle to find time to finish homework, get stressed out again, and the whole vicious cycle begins again Monday morning. Of course, this is probably more applicable to high schoolers (or middle schoolers) than to elementary-age children. But even in elementary school, children struggle with the long school day. When my mom worked as a substitute teacher in elementary schools, she would describe students who could barely hold still in the classroom; all they wanted to do was run around and release their pent-up energy. Which is completely natural–children that age often just want to move, to play, to run, and to explore.

Then, of course, there are the issues of bullying, gossip, cliques, unfriendly teachers, drug use, and other social-related issues. Certainly, such issues are not isolated in schools–they are problems in the “real world” as well. But they tend to be condensed and magnified in an environment with hundreds of children or adolescents, all going through different stages of development. Yes, there are anti-bullying campaigns in many schools. But I think many students consider these campaigns to be something of a joke, especially with the rise of social media and the ability to bully people online without being caught or punished. As for the cliques, these are bound to form anywhere: schools, workplaces, colleges, dance studios, sports teams, etc…In schools, they tend to create a divisive atmosphere in which gossiping and back-biting trickle like poison throughout the halls and cafeteria, making it even more difficult to concentrate on learning and studying. And it’s not only the students who gossip–according to my siblings, the teachers often do quite a bit of it as well. Also, in regards to teachers, I understand that what makes a “good” teacher depends on the person–some people enjoy having strict or no-nonsense teachers, while others prefer to have more laid-back and relaxed ones. But I have heard stories about teachers who are constantly rude or disrespectful toward students, which can be an issue. Of course, it is often the students who are rude toward the teachers, which begins a cycle of disrespect and apathy that goes from the students to the teachers, and then back to the students.

I wish I could say that there was a simple solution to this problem–but, of course, there isn’t. I don’t have any novel and brilliant ideas to instill in students that love for learning which I believe is present in everyone to some extent. It just saddens and frustrates me to hear people talking about how they “hate school” or “just don’t care about learning anything.” When I was a senior, I remember many of my friends (who attended public school) saying how they couldn’t wait to be done with high school; they were just completely sick of it. Something needs to change in the educational system in the U.S.–if only we knew exactly how to change it. I am not trying to say that we should all be homeschooled–I completely understand that this is not an option for some families. And just because homeschooling worked for me doesn’t mean it would work for everyone. But I hope that someday all students will want to learn for the sake of learning–not just to pass exams, get good grades, or impress a teacher or family member.

WIAW–Vegetarian or Vegan?

When someone asks me “Are you vegetarian or vegan?” I usually respond with “vegetarian.” The immediate follow-up question is usually “Oh, so you eat eggs and cheese?” I generally respond with a hesitant “Yeah, sometimes…” This is because while I don’t consider myself a strict vegan, I prefer to avoid eating animal products whenever possible. So what does this make me? An unfaithful vegan? A sometimes-vegan? A 90% vegan? A better question might be this: why must I label myself in regards to the food I eat? I occasionally eat products with honey, I sometimes eat food with cheese or eggs when on vacation, and I don’t examine the labels of every product I use to make sure there are no traces of animal products. But at the same time, almost all of my recipes are vegan, and I truly do believe that we can be healthier without eating animal products. But why do I need to label myself as either vegetarian or vegan? I am not trying to say that categorization or labeling are inherently bad–after all, they can be quite helpful in many cases. But when it comes to a person’s diet, I don’t think we need to conform to one label or another. It would be a falsehood to state that I am a vegan, since I occasionally eat food containing small amounts of animal products. But at the same time, labeling myself a “lacto-ovo vegetarian” implies that I have no problem with eating eggs or dairy, when in fact I strive to avoid them except when it would be a great inconvenience to do so. So for now, I shall remain officially label-less in regards to my dietary preferences.

On another label-related note, I am constantly irritated by the labels on packaged food, ranging from “guilt free!” to “low calorie” to “reduced fat.” First of all, I don’t think food should EVER be associated with guilt. Food is there to fuel our bodies and minds, not to make us feel guilty about eating a cookie with more than five grams of fat or “indulging” in (gasp) regular peanut butter as opposed to that somewhat frightening powdered reduced-fat PB2. As for the reduced-calorie and reduced-fat labels, are they really trying to convince us that eating a package of chemical-laden 100 calorie cookies is healthier and more satisfying than eating, say, an entire avocado? Yes, an avocado has more calories and fat, but it also contains vitamins, minerals, fiber, antioxidants, and healthy monounsaturated fat. Plus, it doesn’t have any strange ingredients that look like they should belong in a chemistry lab. My point is, the ingredient list is often FAR more important than the nutrition facts or the splashy claims on the front of the package. I understand that people who are trying to lose weight might be attracted to these “diet foods.” But there are plenty of whole foods that naturally contain fewer calories or fat than an avocado: certain fruits and vegetables, beans, lentils, rice, etc…But enough of my ranting, which really has nothing at all to do with “What I Ate Wednesday.” On to the food pictures…Thanks as always to Jenn for hosting WIAW and allowing me to gain culinary inspiration from other blogs.

First of all, I made these Banana Bread Protein Bars from Oh She Glows, and was quite impressed by their flavor. I wasn’t expecting them to be terrible, of course, but they turned out even tastier than I had thought they would–always a pleasant surprise. I made the following changes: (1) I used oat flour in place of the buckwheat groats, (2) I omitted the walnuts and coconut, since I had neither, (3) I used ground flax in place of the chia seeds, (4) I used carob chips instead of the chocolate chips, (5) I used about 1 teaspoon of cinnamon, (6) I used almond butter in place of the peanut butter, and (7) I used agave nectar for the sweetener. Yes, I made a lot of changes. But they tasted amazing–sweet, doughy, and banana-ish, with gooey bits of melted carob chips scattered throughout.

I also made this dish–a sort of curry with vegetables, chickpeas, kidney beans, lots of spices, and cooked brown rice. It turned out quite well, even though I didn’t really follow any recipe or make precise measurements.

We recently got this quinoa salad from Costco; it is basically like tabbouleh with quinoa instead of bulgur. I wasn’t sure how it would be, since pre-packaged salads tend to be hit-or-miss, but was actually impressed by its tangy, fresh, and light flavor. Plus, it doesn’t contain any strange preservatives or a ton of oil. The fact that it uses quinoa and brown rice also makes it gluten-free for those sensitive or allergic to wheat.

We also made a batch of my dad’s homemade salsa, which is loosely based on a recipe found online, but with multiple changes. I am not even sure what the exact measurements are; it seems like they change every time…I do know it contains tomatoes, cilantro, peppers, avocado, garlic, onion, and a few other spices. It is incredibly fresh and delicious, and beats out Pace salsa any day.

I made more of my Cinnamon Orange Vanilla Oatmeal, which was a great breakfast and reminded me that I need to make more oatmeal recipes for my blog, seeing as I only have a couple on my recipe page. I have plenty of ideas, but haven’t yet turned them into recipes. Perhaps I will experiment with overnight oats this summer, since the weather will likely be too hot for regular oatmeal to sound appetizing.

I enjoyed one of my Spiced Carrot and Lemon Smoothies yesterday morning, since it shot up to nearly 90 degrees that day–and to think it was only 50 degrees just a few days ago…

And I made a batch of baked sweet potato fries using the last two sweet potatoes we had sitting on the counter–and promptly ate the entire batch in one sitting. They were delicious.

That’s all I have for today; I hope you all have a wonderful Wednesday!

More Strange Search Terms and Thoughts On A Certain Website

First of all, I offer an enthusiastic Mother’s Day greeting to all moms out there–I hope today is a lovely one! I feel so incredibly blessed and lucky to have such a wonderful mother–her compassion, wisdom, guidance, determination, strength, and inner beauty never fail to inspire me, and I can never thank her enough for everything she has taught me over the years. She has never given up on me, and always gives me such insightful and wonderful advice when I am struggling. If you happen to read this, mom, please know how much I both love and admire you:) Moving on to slightly less sentimental things, here are some more interesting search engine terms that have apparently led people to my blog…

1. Chocolate broccoli recipe: Well, this is an interesting one. Sure, I’m all for chocolate-zucchini oatmeal, green smoothies with cocoa powder, and other strange combinations, but this particular chocolate/veggie mash-up seems a bit odd even for me. But who knows, maybe it would be delicious! Roasted broccoli with chocolate sauce, anyone? Or perhaps a delicious chocolate/broccoli pudding? Maybe it would encourage people to eat more broccoli, though it seems that the chocolate would somewhat counteract the health benefits of the vegetable…

2. Strange recipes: Depending on your definition of “strange,” and how willing you are to drink smoothies with spinach or eat baked goods with chickpea flour, I would say that you have come to the right place. Here are some of my strangest recipes:

Green Monster Almond Butter

Creamy Garlic Sweet Potato Dip

Sweet Potato/Black Bean Salad with Cheezy Almond Dressing

Spiced Carrot and Lemon Smoothie

3. Vegan bake shop candied yams: I actually Googled this one myself, and it seems that “Candied Yams Vegan Bake Shop” might be an actual business…But even if it is, I have no idea how this search term would lead to my blog. I have never posted about candied yams, nor do I plan on opening a vegan bake shop anytime soon–though that sounds like a fun idea.

4. Raw cacao and cashew butter slice photos: Ummm…I have no idea what this is supposed to mean. Was this person looking for a picture of a “slice” of cacao or cashew butter? Generally, I don’t think cashew butter is cut into slices.

5. You know you’re a ballet dancer when: I did write a post about this a while back, so that explains this particular search term.

6. Pumpkin birthday waffle: Well, I DO have a pumpkin waffle recipe, but it is not exclusively for birthdays–is that a new trend or something? Birthday waffles instead of birthday cake? I think the reason it led to my blog was because in the post with my Pumpkin Waffle recipe, I also mentioned my vegan birthday cake.

7. Oatmeal homemade shampoo: I have mentioned my homemade shampoo recipe once before on my blog, but it definitely does not use oatmeal. That certainly sounds like an interesting idea, perhaps I will do more research on that…

Now I am going to turn to a more serious topic, albeit one that has probably been over-discussed in the blog world. Nevertheless, I thought I’d share my thoughts anyway. It has to do with that infamous website, Get Off My Internets. For those who have never heard of it, it is basically a forum-type website where people can rant and rave about bloggers that they wish would “get off the internet.” And, of course, there is a special forum “reserved” for healthy living bloggers, which has generated quite a bit of controversy. First of all, I am completely aware of the fact that people have the freedom to say whatever they want to on the internet, regardless of how cruel or cutting it may be. And yes, I am also aware that there are many bloggers out there whose “healthy” habits are anything BUT healthy, and who are possibly trying to hide disordered eating issues. So yes, I can grudgingly understand why certain bloggers are the perfect targets for GOMI ranters. But this begs the question: do you need to be so harsh and cruel toward such bloggers, when you don’t even know them personally? Do you need to write scathing comments that mock their recipes, ideas, thoughts, profession, etc…? Do you need to abuse your freedom of speech in order to criticize other bloggers? How will your vicious words solve any problems?

This “digital age” in which we live has made it extremely easy to anonymously criticize and taunt other people whom we may or may not know personally. It is so tempting to release frustrations by ranting about a person (or blogger) on Facebook or sites such as GOMI. But in a world tainted with so much cruelty, prejudice, and hatred, we should strive to overcome these temptations. If you don’t like a certain blog, just don’t read it. Don’t post nasty comments on a GOMI forum stating how “disillusioned” or “stupid” some blogger is. Don’t make judgments when you truly have no idea what that person may be going through. Yes, we are free to develop our own opinions, and I don’t doubt that many bloggers out there truly DO have serious issues that need resolving. But that doesn’t mean we should create a website devoted to bashing such bloggers. The same goes for other social media websites such as Facebook. Sure, they may just be small black words typed onto a screen. But such words will often come back to haunt you in the worse ways possible. And words DO hurt other people–so think before you speak, and don’t underestimate the importance of kindness and compassion in a world that often seems bleak and cold.

Well, thus ends my ranting for today. I hope you all have a wonderful Sunday!

What I Learned From My First Year Of College

My first year of college is finally finished, so I thought I would share some random bits of knowledge that I have acquired over the past nine months or so. Yes, I am attending a community college, so I am aware that my experience was probably far different from a person attending a four-year university. Also, I know that some of my advice will NOT necessarily apply to every person, every professor, every school, or every class. It is just my personal opinion and reflection, and I am not by any means “forcing” anyone to accept it or agree with it! Just as a disclaimer. Anyway, here are some lessons I have learned…

1. Pay attention in class: This may seem like a sort of “no-brainer,” something you might tell a bunch of rowdy fifth-graders who refuse to focus in class. But I have found that truly focusing during a college class (yes, this means no texting or checking Facebook during lecture) greatly improves my ability to retain and analyze the information. Another reason I say this, though, is because many professors truly appreciate it when you are attentive, focused, and engaged during class. Their job is not an easy one, and I definitely don’t envy them in that respect! So when you at least try to solely on the material being taught in class, and not on other superfluous distractions, they will, in many cases, appreciate that. Yes, I understand that there are some classes in which you are simply NOT interested. And yes, I know that we all have days during which we’d rather be doing anything but sit in a classroom and try to think only about cellular division, Pascal’s Triangle, or Spanish verbs. I definitely had some of those days. But my point is, try to keep an open mind, and don’t automatically assume that you will hate a class (or a professor) before you have given them a chance.

2. You can’t always believe those “Rate My Professor” Reviews: Yes, that particular website can, in many cases, be quite helpful. And yes, I did use it to check out the ratings on my professors. But everyone has a different opinion as to what makes a “good professor,” so take those reviews with a grain of salt, so to speak. For example, one review on my math professor said that she could be rude and got “an attitude” when asked for help. But my experience was quite different–she actually loved it when people asked her questions, and was more than happy to help individual students with problems. Not all the reviews on Rate My Professor are inaccurate or biased; I found some of them to be fairly objective and helpful. But be careful, and don’t immediately dismiss a professor just because he or she has a few negative reviews.

3. If you need to memorize a ton of facts/terms/vocabulary words, try doing it before you fall asleep: I have found that studying things such as Spanish vocabulary words or parts of the human skeleton right before I go to bed greatly helps me memorize them. I know studies have supported this as well. For some reason, thinking about them or picturing them in my mind right before I fall asleep helps “lock” them into my memory, and I can easily retrieve them from my brain the next morning when I wake up. This may not work for everyone, but it definitely helped me.

4. Don’t rush through quizzes, tests, or exams: Again, this may seem like an obvious one, but it is often tempting to just “get it over with” as soon as possible, and not double-check your answers. Many times, I lost points on my Pre-Calculus quizzes simply because of basic errors with multiplication or division–if I had been more careful, and less rushed, this probably wouldn’t have happened. Fortunately, I quickly realized this mistake and was very careful on later quizzes to recheck my answers. Also, if you are stuck on a problem or question, skip over it for the time being, and then look back on it later–you just may be able to come up with the answer. Of course, if you only have a certain period of time in which to complete a test, you may have to rush a bit. But even then, try to use up all the time you have. And whatever you do, try not to leave questions blank–I know some professors (though not ALL), dislike this. If you can eliminate at least a couple choices from a multiple-choice question, then you have a good chance of getting it correct. As for open-ended questions that stump you, try to at least write SOMETHING–who knows, it might give you at least partial credit.

5. Step outside of your comfort zone: During my first semester, I took two classes that weren’t exactly “my thing”: Speech and Spanish. Well, I only took Speech because it was required, but I chose to take Spanish even though I was aware that it might be “too late” to start learning a foreign language–I had never studied any other languages during my years of home schooling. But even  though I was dreading the Speech class, I actually ended up enjoying it quite a bit, and even got 100% on two of my speeches. As for Spanish, I found that I truly loved learning another language, even though it could be tough at times. And I plan to continue taking Spanish for as long as I can. My point is, don’t be afraid to take classes that might frighten or intimidate you a bit–you never know how much you may enjoy them.

6. Don’t forget about your health: I will admit that there were times when I didn’t eat enough, drink enough, sleep enough, or de-stress enough. When I was anxious about upcoming tests, assignments, quizzes, etc…, then taking care of my physical and mental health became less of a priority. But I have learned the hard way that your brain generally functions much better when you are well fed, hydrated, and not sleep deprived. Many people tend to neglect proper nutrition in college, but it is SO important to fuel your mind with the proper nutrients. And skipping meals is a terrible idea, since your brain basically runs on glucose–so no food=no brain power. Also, my personal belief is that you should NEVER drink alcohol, do drugs, smoke, or engage in other risky activities during your college years–which makes me quite different from many college students.

7. Create a “To-Do” list or some other schedule: At the beginning of almost each week, I would write a list with the due dates of any quizzes, assignments, essays, exams, etc…that happened to be taking place that particular week. Then I put the list on my bulletin board right above my laptop, so that I would see the list each morning and be reminded of what was going on that week. I found this to be  extremely helpful in helping me keep track of the various assignments due in each of my four classes–and helped ensure that I never turned in anything late.

8. Learn the difference between “fake” studying and “real” studying: I have definitely been guilty of the “fake” studying before–when you study for five minutes, then check your email or some blogs for five minutes, then listen to songs on YouTube for five minutes, then get distracted by some delicious food in the kitchen, then go back to studying for three minutes, then realize that you just got the latest issue of Vegnews in the mail and begin reading it, etc…Yeah, not very productive. Generally, I was able to do “real” studying for the most part, but I definitely slipped into “fake” studying at times. When you are truly studying. you need to be able to give your full attention to whatever you are doing–and you should be able to do that for more than five or ten minutes. Yes, it is extremely easy to get distracted, especially in today’s multi-tasking society. So if it helps, study in a place without fewer distractions: the library, your front porch, or an isolated hut in the middle of a forest. Personally, I think the hut would be the best idea;) I don’t think there is necessarily wrong with listening to music while studying; some people study better with music. Find the method that works best for you, and stick with it.

9. Prioritize your studying: Learn what subjects give you the most trouble, and try to spend a little more time studying them than on other subjects that may come naturally to you. For example, I had to devote more time to my Pre-Calculus class this semester than on anything else, since I hadn’t done pre-calculus since my junior year of high school. I had decided to take this class in order to refresh my memory on concepts such as matrices, functions, polynomial division, etc…And I am definitely glad I did; it was a great learning experience. I struggled a bit on the first few quizzes as my mind slowly kicked into “math gear,” but I managed to steadily improve throughout the year and raise my grade from a B to an A. And I ended up getting an A on my final, which both shocked and excited me. In general, my advice is not to avoid studying the subjects that frustrate or confuse you, but instead vow to spend more time studying them.

10. Don’t take college for granted: Yes, there are plenty of negative aspects to the whole “college system” in the United States. And yes, it is easy to get frustrated with mountains of homework, unkind professors, or dull classes. But don’t forget that just being able to attend college makes you far luckier than thousands of people in the world who would give almost anything to be able to get a college education. Don’t go through college with an indifferent, careless, “screw this” attitude, and don’t ever assume that good grades will be handed to you on a silver platter. I am a firm believer that college is “what you make of it,” and I don’t think that going through four years of college at a prestigious university is necessarily the best path for everyone. There are some skills-based jobs that only require an Associate’s Degree, so it is not always necessary to spend four-plus years at a college.

Well, that’s about all the advice I can offer; I hope at least some of it seemed slightly practical or useful. I hope you all have a wonderful day!

WIAW–Finally Finished

I had my last final yesterday, so I am now officially finished with my first year of college! I haven’t gotten all my grades yet, but I am hoping for A’s…Regardless of my grade, though, I am extremely grateful for everything I have learned in the past year–the knowledge and learning process, to me, are far more important than the final grade. I will probably be taking two online courses over the summer in order to gain some more credit hours–probably a humanities course and an English literature course. I am definitely looking forward to the literature course, since I absolutely LOVE to read and write. So much, in fact, that right after my last final I went to the library and checked out Julius Caesar and The Grapes of Wrath to read for pleasure during the next few weeks. Now that the stress of finals is over, I will be able to post more frequently; I have definitely missed being able to share my rambling thoughts and recipes with the world. Today I will share some food-related products and recipes that I have consumed over the past couple weeks, in the hope that they may provide you with some culinary inspiration. And I plan on writing a “What I learned from college” post in the next couple of days or so, just to reflect on the lessons I have learned over the past nine months. But today, it’s all about the food:) Thanks as always to Jenn for hosting this “event.”

First, I made this Sweet Potato Lentil Chili from Dreena Burton’s cookbook, Eat Drink and Be Vegan. I have made this recipe several times, and it is definitely one of my favorites. I always make slight changes every time, but generally follow the recipe fairly closely. Even though it is getting warm here, I still enjoy eating winter-y stews and chili such as this one.

I also made some Strawberry Lemonade Almond Butter recently; I simply used my blueberry lemon almond butter recipe, but substituted strawberries for the blueberries. I know the picture looks somewhat like churned up cement, but I promise it tastes much better than that. It has a thick texture that reminded me of cream cheese, and a sweet/sour taste due to the lemon juice and strawberries. Here is the recipe for it:

One-third a cup of almond butter

One-third a cup of chopped strawberries

2 tablespoons of lemon juice

Almond or soymilk, as needed to thin out the mixture

Simple blend all ingredients in a food processor until smooth.

I have also been enjoying several of my favorites snacks–because even though life IS about more than just food, eating delicious food certainly can make studying for finals more enjoyable…

Now that it’s getting warmer, I have been drinking more green smoothies in the morning, as well as some different brands of GT’s kombucha and freshly made juice from Whole Foods. I definitely crave fruit a lot more as the weather gets warmer, though I have to be careful not to eat too much of it–or risk getting a terrible stomach ache. Eating several bowlfuls of watermelon may seem like a good idea at first, but my digestive system usually ends up paying the price.

I have also realized that most of my favorite breakfast recipes involve cocoa powder in some way: whether it is oatmeal with cocoa powder, my chocolate-coconut pancakes, or green smoothies with cocoa powder. Needless to say, our stock of cocoa powder is slowly shrinking…

And I made some of these Vegan Energy Bars again that I have mentioned before–they are delicious enough that my family devoured them within a couple of days; even my far-from-vegan siblings loved them. I highly recommend them, which is why I am mentioning them for a second time.

I also created this random dish yesterday, composed of chopped and roasted potatoes, mushrooms, bell peppers, zucchini, chili powder, and salsa. It was delicious, despite me basically making it up on the spot. I guess sometimes my experiments DO turn out well…

 

Well, that’s all I have for today in terms of food. In case it wasn’t obvious, I changed the theme of my site, since I wanted a change from the other one that I’ve had since July. I will probably keep it for a while, unless I find another one that I like–I tend to be a very indecisive person, and thus I was slightly overwhelmed by all the different theme options. At least  I could immediately eliminate the ones that weren’t free–why would I pay fifty dollars for a site theme?? Anyway, I hope you all have a wonderful day, and I hope to be back tomorrow with another post!

Green Smoothie “Challenge” Recipes/Recap

I recently heard about this 7 Day Green Smoothie Challenge, and decided to unofficially take part in it this week. I technically “started” on Sunday instead of Monday, and didn’t really sign up for it or anything, but I thought it would be a fun way to create some new green smoothie recipes. It wasn’t exactly a “challenge,” per say, because I love drinking green smoothies, but consuming one a day for a week truly did seem to help de-fog my mind and give me a bit more energy–though that might be just a placebo effect. Anyway, here are the recipes for the green smoothies I have created and consumed over the past seven days…A quick note: for all of these recipes, you could always add some sort of sweetener if you prefer sweeter smoothies.

Sunday: My Chocolate-Cinnamon Green Monster smoothie, the only change being that I added less soymilk and cinnamon. This was the first green smoothie that I created, and is still one of my favorites.

Monday: This one wasn’t technically a “green” smoothie, since I used carrots instead of leafy greens, but that is a mere technicality. Carrots are still a vegetable, so it’s similar. This one turned out better than I expected, and I would definitely make it again. Here is the recipe:

Spiced Carrot and Lemon Smoothie

2 small carrots, shredded

Half a cup of vanilla soy or almond milk

1 frozen banana, chopped

2 tablespoons of lemon juice

Half a teaspoon of cinnamon

Tuesday: This one was definitely one of my favorites, though I am aware it looks like mud…Actually, most of my green smoothies look like mud. Except for the few that actually turn out green.

Cinnamon Blueberry Green Smoothie

2 cups of baby spinach

1 frozen banana, chopped

About three-fourth a cup of vanilla soy or almond milk

One teaspoon of cinnamon

One-fourth a cup of blueberries

Wednesday: For this smoothie, I decided to add some fresh juice that they sell at Whole Foods (it is made and bottled at the store). This particular juice was called “Fog Cutter” juice, and contained carrot juice and ginger. Just a quick warning–it definitely has a gingery kick, so it is not for those who dislike ginger. But I thought the juice was absolutely delicious just on its own–though it seemed a bit TOO strong in the smoothie for some reason. Here is the recipe I used, but I probably won’t make it again.

2 cups of baby spinach

One frozen banana, chopped

Half a cup of Whole Foods “Fog Cutter” juice

2 tablespoons of cocoa powder

Thursday: This combination wasn’t my favorite either; I thought lemon and chocolate would be delicious together, but the recipe needs a bit more tweaking before it is perfected…

2 cups of baby spinach

1 frozen banana, chopped

2 tablespoons of cocoa powder

Half a cup of vanilla soy or almond milk

2 tablespoons of lemon juice

Friday: Luckily, Friday’s delicious combination more than made up for the somewhat disappointing smoothies of the last couple days. I used more Whole Foods juice, this one being called “Green Aid” and containing green apples, celery, kale, and spinach. I definitely recommend trying this particular brand, though it is a bit tart.

Tangy Green Grape Smoothie

2 cups of baby spinach

One frozen banana, chopped

Half a cup of Whole Foods “Green Aid” juice

Half a teaspoon of cinnamon

One-fourth a cup of chopped green grapes

And last, but not least, Saturday’s smoothie…

Blueberry Lime Green Smoothie

2 cups of baby spinach

One frozen banana, chopped

Half a cup of vanilla almond or soy milk

2 tablespoons of lime juice

One-fourth a cup of blueberries

 

I probably won’t be posting again for a week or so; the next several days will be quite hectic as I am preparing for my finals. I won’t bore you with any details, but let’s just say that I will be very glad when everything is over–I love school, but there comes a point when even I need a break. I am, of course, anxious and stressed out about all my final exams and tests, and am desperately hoping that I won’t fail any of them. But I suppose all I can do is to “do my best,” a mantra that I have heard recited for probably the past ten years of my life–and still have trouble believing. Anyway, I hope you all enjoy your Sunday, and I will be back sometime within the next week or two.

Trying to Fix Everything

It has been a rather hectic week, to say the least–not necessarily just for me, but for many people in America. First there was the terrible bombing in Boston last Monday. Then there was the fertilizer plant explosion in Texas. And around that time, there was the intercepted poison-tainted letters that were supposedly going to be sent to the president. And for us people in Chicago and its surrounding areas, there was a huge rainstorm Wednesday night and into Thursday that caused rivers to overflow, roads to flood, and basements (like ours) to become soaked with water. And to make it even more “interesting” for me and my siblings, our parents left to go out of town for a few days right before the storm came–so come Thursday, we were at home with a drenched basement, a lake forming in the park beside our house, and places that we had to go. So that morning, I ventured out on the roads in order to drive to my biology class–only to be sent an text message alert after I arrived at the college that classes had been cancelled. For someone like me, who doesn’t really enjoy driving in the first place, driving there and back in terrible traffic and rain flooded roads was rather stressful, to say the least. But the good part, I suppose, is that I got some experience driving in bad weather conditions…Anyway, it could have been much worse–we did our best to soak up the excess water in the basement with all the rag towels in the house, and put fans down there to dry it out. We were very lucky that at least our house didn’t flood.

Anyway, due to the terrible tragedies in Boston and Texas, the rainstorm, the flooding, my parents being out of town, and several other odds and ends, I was in a bit of a mental turmoil last week. First of all, I wasn’t sure how to react after the bombings occurred. I wanted so desperately to do SOMETHING to help, to fix the problem, to prevent such events like this from ever occurring again. Of course, I knew that I couldn’t simply wave a magic wand and cause world peace to happen–preventing violence and hatred is too big of a job for one person alone. Also, I felt guilty every time I laughed or enjoyed myself in the days following the tragedy; I felt as though it was insensitive and disrespectful to the people who lost loved ones in the terrible event. I couldn’t help but wonder “How am I supposed to react?” “Is it OK to be happy after something like this happens?” “What should I do to help?” But I slowly began to realize that, try as I might, I can’t fix everything. Yes, I can find ways to support or comfort the victims of such tragedies, and I can do my best to spread kindness and compassion wherever I go. But I have to accept that some things are out of my control; that I can’t try to solve all the problems in the world. I try to make everyone happy; I try to ensure that everything goes smoothly, and that nothing goes wrong. It’s just another part of my perfectionist nature. When my parents were out of town, I was anxiously and frantically trying to make sure that all the laundry got done, that all the dishes were cleaned, that our dogs got walked and fed, that nothing got too dirty or disorganized, etc…Of course, my siblings helped with all those chores as well, which I was very grateful for. But since I was the oldest at home during those five days, I felt like it was my responsibility to make sure that everything was “perfect.” Or else–what? I didn’t really know. It’s not as though my parents expected me to do everything flawlessly.

It’s not as though anyone puts pressure on me to fix all the problems in the world; I put it on myself. When one of my siblings or friends is upset or stressed out, I myself become upset if I can’t cheer them up or help them. If one of my students in the ballet classes I teach becomes frustrated or bored, I blame myself for not being a better teacher. If some of my family members or friends get into an argument, I feel as though it’s somehow my responsibility to resolve it. And when terrible tragedies occur like the Boston Marathon bombings, I find myself feeling guilty and lazy if I am not to everything possible to help the victims. I know I need to learn that it’s not in my power to fix everything that goes wrong in the world, and that I only need to do my best. But I am constantly setting unreachable expectations for myself, and getting frustrated when I can’t reach them. This past week has taught me many things: That life is precious and shorter than we realize. That patience and flexibility are important attributes to have. That sometimes things will not go as planned. That I am truly lucky to have such wonderful siblings. That tragedies often tend to bring out the best in many people–or sometimes the worst. So even though I may have been frustrated, stressed out, and upset at times during the last seven days, I definitely learned a lot–and that I am grateful for.

Well, so ends my rambling for today. I will perhaps be back again soon with another post, if I am not too busy preparing for exams or tests. Finals are coming up soon, and before I know it, summer will be here. I hope you all have a wonderful day!

Journey Bar Review

I first tried a small sample of a Journey Bar when I went to a vegetarian food festival last year, and was intrigued by the concept of a savory–as opposed to a sweet–energy bar. A few weeks ago, the Journey Bar company was generous enough to send me three of their bars for me to sample and review. They recently “revamped” the ingredients bars, and now all of them are vegan and gluten free. They currently offer five different flavors: Sesame Ginger, Sea Salt, Rosemary, Pizza Marinara, and Coconut Curry. They sent me the first three, and I was definitely looking forward to trying them. Each bar has around seven grams of protein and three to four grams of fiber per serving, for those of you interested in the nutrition facts. They are also made with several whole grains/seeds including oats, buckwheat, quinoa, flaxseed, and brown rice.

 

 

The first one I tried was the Rosemary flavor. It had a soft texture, somewhat like that of a soft granola bar, and had a great flavor. I loved the Italian spices that were in it, and I can imagine the Pizza Marinara flavor would be even better. Despite the fact that it is a “savory nutrition bar,” it did have a slightly sweet flavor to it. But the only sweetener they use in this bar (and the other ones) is plum puree–nothing else, which is a bonus for people trying to avoid refined sweeteners. I know that particular ingredient may sound a bit odd, but it certainly didn’t taste strange in the bar.

 

Next I tried the Sesame Ginger flavor. This was probably my least favorite–I still enjoyed it, but it seemed a little blander than the other two flavors. Though it had a subtle ginger flavor, I think I was expecting it to be a bit more pronounced. Still, it was tasty.

 

Last, but not least, was the Sea Salt flavor. This was (of course) the saltiest-tasting one, with a simple-but-delicious flavor that I greatly enjoyed.

 

I would definitely recommend trying all of these bars; they make a nice change from the sugar-loaded energy bars that usually flood the stores, and have a great mix of ingredients. Also, there are many other creative ways you could eat these bars: crumble them on salad, dip them in hummus or guacamole, put them in a burrito, etc…I hope you all have a wonderful Wednesday!