Guilt and Jicama Salad

Every time I post; I feel guilty because I should be reading and working on my project for school. I made this refreshing jicama salad with corn, red bell pepper, and dill. It was fabulous.

When I first saw jicama, I thought it was a potato, but it is not a potato; it is more like apple.

Jicama's rough skin is not very appealing, but you have to peel or slice that away to reveal a delicious white flesh that has a slightly sweet taste with a texture similar to that of an apple. Jicama is great for raw dishes--Give it a try!

Tapenade Tacos

Corn tortillas are some of my favorite things to eat because they do not make me constipated. I know too much information. When I eat bread or pasta, I know that it will be a while before I go. So, I limit my intake of such foods, but I still want a bit of bread to go with my meals. I still want a sandwich that is why I use the corn tortillas. Basically, you can put anything you want inside a tortilla. I've put avocado and olive tapenade in my tortillas. Yes, it is a lot of fat, but it is good fat, and these are a decadent little treat. Just because I'm vegan does not mean I cannot have decadent foods--it's just that these tacos are good for my body too.

White Beans and Potates

I was tired of pinto beans and black beans and decided to do something different. White beans with potatoes--just like other dried beans I soaked them over night. Use kombu to flavor the bean water then I took the kombu out and added my seaonsings and tomato paste. Twenty minutes before the benas are dome I add the potatoes. Ummm..good.

The last few days I have been worried about my eyes. I think I am losing more of my vision in my left eye, but I don’t know for sure because I’m not a doctor. Usually, I try to ignore the blind spot, but it is bothering me more. The eye drops are not working, the crescent image or the part of my nerve that is dead is like a crescent shape seems to be extending, but I am prone to hypochondria.

I need to get a job with some health insurance, so I can see the specialist again. It is just so invasive and uncomfortable to be aware of someone touching my eye balls. I absolutely hate it that is why I like the holistic approach to healthcare. But, I think I am too old, and too lazy to learn brail, so I put the drops in.

Magnesium and vitamin C are really good for helping with the intraocular pressure. Lutein is a phytonutrient that protects the interior of the eye. Foods good for glaucoma suffers: avocados, Kale, spinach, blueberries, strawberries, watermelon, tomatoes, tofu, pumpkin seeds, lemons, mangos, bell peppers, carrots, parsley, broccoli, radishes, and Brazil nuts—this is a short list of course there are many more foods.

My glaucoma is one of the reasons I began vegan because from my research it appears a diet high in fruits and vegetables helps protect the eyes from my of the macular degenerative diseases that affect humans.

Ramen Noodles

I made some ramen noodles this morning. I am talking about the ramen noddles that cost 25 cents, or 5 for a dollar. It doesn't matter the flavor of ramen noodles because I throw the seasoning packet away--the season packet is not vegan it contains animal product.

I wanted something warm this morning. First I thought about having miso soup, but I didn't feel like opening a package of tofu. Then it hit me--why not make the miso soup with ramen noodles. Genuis!

I mix yellow miso paste with water, add splash of tamari and mushrooms. When it comes to almost a boil, I turn the fire off. Then I add ramen noodles, spinach, and scallions (green onions), and cover. Let the soup sit until noodles soften.

I ate this soup up. It was so good, and vegan. Sometimes, it is necessary to rethink breakfast.

God Helmet

I watched this show, Morgan Freeman's Through the Wormhole, clickon the link to wach the segment. I want to call it a documentary, but the show was too hypothetical to be called a documentary. The theme of the episode of Freeman’s show is “The God Experience;” I liked it. I wanted to share what I saw.

One of the show’s segments was “The God Helmet;” a helmet that simulates the religious experience of connectedness to God. When people wear this helmet certain areas of the brain are stimulated with magnets. People report the presence of someone or something. They have vivid and thunderous experiences. The scientist, whose name escapes me (I’m too lazy to look it up), states that if a human has such an experience while in church, or while meditating, it can be a profoundly life altering experience.

Why do we need God? According to the show, because we (humans) have anxiety because we are aware of death. We can forecast our deaths. We know that eventually we too must past. This awareness cause great anxiety in humans; it causes us to seek a connection to infinity, something that is without end for beginning. If we can connect to infinity, we do not die. People seek the connection to infinity through prayer, control of the mind/body, through drug & alcohol.

Juice for Breakfast

Today, I feel really grateful for my life, and for my family. I started the day off feeling sleepy like I did not want to go to the gym. But, I got my butt out of the bed, put on my work out clothes and went to yoga. I was late, but at least I made it.

While I was doing the poses and focusing on my breath. I thought about the earth. I saw her in space with the light of the sun giving her energy. I saw the earth spinning in space and yet still. I saw her blue oceans, white clouds, brown earth, and green plants. I saw the earth connect to all the other planets and stars in a mess. Everything moving in concentric circles in time. I saw myself surrounded by people. I saw a thread connecting me, or rather a web connecting me, to everyone in the class, then to everyone outside of the class, then to everyone in the street, then to all the people and animals and plants living and spinning on earth. I am grateful I am alive.

With that being said, I made a green juice for breakfast. This juice contains: carrots, celery, jalapeno pepper, apple, ginger, lemon, parsley, and spinach. Give it a try. Juicing is a great way to feed yourself at the cellular level. Peace

Pancakes

I made pancakes for my brother this morning. Instead of using eggs and milk, I used one ripe banana and vanilla soy milk to make the batter. He loved them so much that he did not save any. so, if you make these pancakes makes sure to hide a couple for yourself.

Sakura - Japanese Store

"Hey Nicole where do you get the stuff you put in your sushi maki rolls, and miso soup?"

At Sakura: Japanese Groceries & Gifts 4343 Pacific Ave. #A4, Stockton, CA 95207, (209) 477-3939.

I like this store because when I first went vegan, the people here helped me get the ingredients I needed to make dishes without animal products. I got my first tubs of miso paste here, and my first packages of seaweed. I learned about making soup. Sakura staff is knowledgeable and friendly. I recommend this place.

I went to the Japanese Store yesterday to get a few. I found vegetarian oyster sauce. I stood in the aisle just looking at the bottle in disbelief for 3 or 4 minutes.

I am reminded why I am vegan

Today, someone told a story about a dog. How he had a terrible day and when he came home his dog was happy to see him. This story sounds lame; who cares about a dog? That is exactly the point. Animals feel like we do. They love like we do. They hurt like we do. They feel pain like we do.

I saw images of people hurting animals. They were chained. Animals were being clubbed, beating, stabbed, killed. I started to cry.

Now, I get to the point of this post. The other day, I was actually salivating over the flesh of a cow. But, the flesh was disguised: it was cooked; it did not have blood on; it was perfumed with herbs and spices to hide its rancid smell. I wanted to eat pastrami and corn beef till I couldn’t stop my mouth watering. In my mind’s eye, I saw myself driving in my car to the deli to order a sandwich filled with cow. I actually got my car keys and my purse. It took all my restraint not to eat meat the other day. I thought to myself, “This vegan thing is stupid. People all the time start eating meat after being vegetarian and vegan. You can eat meat Nicole.”

Something stopped me—it was this thought—nonviolence. I kept thinking nonviolence--AHIMSA.

Now, today I hear that story about the dog, the feelings of animals, their oppression, and I know why I did not eat meat. Because I resisted the meat an animal’s life was saved.
I’ve got to do more yoga. I’m starting to lose it. Check out this link.

Thoughts on Gluten

Up this morning with the eyes of three hungry cats staring at me. Yesterday was really productive. I signed up for some food blogs and communities. I realize that I have to get the word out about my eatingvegan thing. I must participate, and writing on these blogs makes me write. I have not been dedicated to my vegan project as I promised I would be at the beginning of summer.
What have I done the last three weeks? Not much.
I woke up thinking about gluten intolerance. I have not been tested, so I don’t know if I have such an allergy, but I do know that when I eat any type of pasta or bread product I tend to be constipated later. I often have to eat copious amounts of vegetables with the pasta or bread. I have not eliminated wheat products from my diet; I just eat them in moderation.

Berry Medley

Not only was I craving meat today, but I also wanted some candy. I saw a bag of snickers and jolly ranchers in my brother's room. I admit that I opened the bag, and I sniffed the candy. It smelled so good--sweet and chocolaty. I put the bag of candy away, and made myself a bowl of berries. The berries satisfied my sweet tooth and filled me up. Pictured to the right are blueberries, raspberries, and strawberries.

Drooling for Meat

While I was watching Man vs. Food, I started drooling over the pastrami and corn beef sandwiches from Katz Deli in NY. It has been almost two years since I ate meat.

I have convinced myself that I am a committed (yeah, commit me) to the vegan lifestyle. Today, I had to be strong. I kept seeing myself at my favorite deli in downtown Stockton ordering a hot pastrami sandwich.

I couldn't believe that my mouth was actually watering. I was salivating looking at the crusty, pink meat nestled between two pieces of white bread. I had to eat something, so I had some fried rice that I made earlier with veggie dogs.

The fried rice is pictured in the photo above. The ingredients are yellow squash, veggie dogs, mushrooms, parsley, red onion, green onion, garlic, olive oil, soy sauce. It was pretty good and satisfied my desire for meat.



The hardest animal products that were hard for me to give up are cheese and sea food. Even when I ate meat, I did not have beef often. The pastrami/corn beef combo looked so good, especially when that dude, Adam Richman, was chewing down on it. I love to watch all the food shows, but the Man vs. Food is too much for me.

Time for Hoola

I decide that today I've got to get to work. I don't want the summer to pass me by and I haven't done anything for my health. So this morning I am going to Hoola at the gym. You'd think that shaking your legs and hips is not an exercise. Listen my friends, Hoola is a workout that will you leave you drenched (in sweat).

So far on my plan to exercise two hours everyday, I have not made progress, but I am getting there. I'm doing six days a week for one hour a day.

After the gym, I will make a nice green juice and put my farmer's market video together.

Farmers' Market

Sunday I went to the Farmers' Market in Stockton. I got there around 1pm, and almost all the produce was gone. Lesson: If you are going to the Farmers' Market, make sure to get there early. I'll try again this Sunday. I hope I will have copious pictures of farmer fresh produce besides my cherries.

Coconut Scared Me

This is the coconut that I hacked opened. Never again! Never again! I need a coconut opener. When I am rich, I will hire someone just to hack open coconuts for me because I am afraid of the thing. Until I win the lotto, this food option is out of the question for me.

Coconut Incident of 2010

Last Friday, I opened my first coconut.

One, the whole idea of opening a coconut scares me.

Two, I had to use a knife to hack at the thing, which scared me because I had to get pretty violent with the knife, and I did not know how to hold the coconut in a safe manner.

Three, when I did open the coconut, I spilled half the water on the table; I had to suck it up and lick it up with my mouth off the table (yes, I am that cheap). After that, I could not drink the water that came out of it.

Four, I could not completely open the coconut. I wanted to use the meat to make a raw-vegan maki roll. After the hacking of the thing, the slurping up of spillage, the storage of the remaining coconut water, and then the clean-up. I felt grossed out. I still have the coconut water in my refrigerator; I trashed the coconut without harvesting the meat.

Five, I need someone to teach me the ways of the coconut because I cannot learn it from watching a video, or reading a book. I need a real, live person to hack the coconut, pour out the water, then prepare a meal from the meat.

Six, When I was in my early twenties, I tried to open a coconut, but ended up cutting myself pretty bad. I did not go to the hospital, and maybe I should have because when I went to work the next day, my supervisor Cami Chan had me see Ming (Color 2000’s first aid man). He spoke little English, but he did ask how I did it. I told him, “I was drunk, and I wanted to open a coconut, so I tried and almost sliced my finger off.” Ming disinfected it and gave me some antibiotics while he gave me a lecture, in his thick Cantonese accent, about using knives when drunk. He wrapped my hand, and gave me some bandages & meds to take home.
So Friday, I had some flash backs even though, I had one of those young Thai coconuts. It has been 18 years from the first coconut incident to the one of 2010. I can still see the mark between my ring and middle finger on my left hand.

Too many Hobbies

Ah, the first post of the month. Since school has started, I realize that I have too many hobbies. I’m doing the yoga, the zumba, the hoola, the guitar, the raw vegan eight week experiment, reading about food, creating recipes. It is too much, and my grades are starting to be affected. So, I have to let something go. Besides school, I am doing classroom observations (I’ll tell you about that--I met a vegan at the community college), which is at 8am. So, until I l get my hours done and feel confident in my reading, I have to change my extracurricular activities, so I am keeping the hoola and switching to salsa (that class starts at night). I will exercise a minimum of five days a week. I will do yoga on my own in the morning. I feel good.
But the real problem is the television. I am addicted to the noise. I cannot do my work at home—need to find a place near my home that I can go to, sit, and do my work for like five hours without getting kicked out. There is the bibliotheque, but the one downtown is not a place I feel safe at in the dark. So, I think I’ll try the one near the malls.

Pissed about my Grade
I guess I am upset because I got a check for my grade, and not a check+. Why the hell grade with these symbols when there is a legend at the bottom of the page that tells what each check symbol means? Why not give the letter grade? I knew it was going to suck because of the quote the instructor wants us to begin our reading responses with. I hate that! I really, really, hate starting my text with someone else’s words. Plus, I take notes for response. I have to cook for a while before I formulate my response.
I tried to talk to the instructor then she asked if I wanted to talk about it right then. I was not about to talk about my personal private stuff in a public forum (my classmates are still in the fucking room). Remember, English students are always trying to prove how smart they are—competitive. I have to find a new place to sit in class because I cannot concentrate. Most of the time, I don’t pay attention anyway. I just nod my head, and act like I am paying attention.
Now that I have whined about it, and made my excuses, I can get on with it.

Delta Community College
Yesterday, while I was walking at a rapid pace to make it the class I am observing on time. I saw this kid ( late teens) standing in the pouring rain with a stack of booklets that he was handing out. Something inside of me said, “Oh, look there is a vegan” then another part said, “No way, here, in meat central, he’s probably handing out some type of Christian literature.” So, I decided to give him a polite, but firm “No” if he spoke to me, or tried to give me one of his booklets. My defenses were up; I walked by, and he tried to hand me something. I said, “No thank you” and start to speed-up my walking pace.
Then as I was almost away from him, he said in the gentlest voice, “It’s for the animals.”
I stopped in my tracks, turned around, and said “It’s for the animals?”
I saw his face light up and he smiled brightly, “Yes.” I walked back to him, and took one of his booklets. He was with Vegan Action, spreading the word about the oppression and the violence farm animals endure, and the reasoning behind a vegan diet. My instincts told me this guys was a vegan. Another lesson on when I should listen to my little voice.

Plum Tree

I like this tree.

Nuts, Just Say No to Candy

Nuts are a life saver. Sometimes I want something meaty and fatty, the nuts feel the need as well as providing me with protein.

The past few days I’ve had some interesting experiences working my 8 week raw vegan experiment. I went to the Trader Joe’s to pick-up some raw Brazil Nuts. On my way into the store, there was a little girl (she was about 10 years old) selling See’s candy bars. She asked if I wanted to buy candy; immediately I said no. Then I saw her face sink with disappointment. I felt like a dick! Sometimes I can be rather rough without meaning to be; I stopped because I wanted to explain that I want to buy something from her, just not candy. I explained that I am a strict vegetarian, and the candy contains milk, eggs, and butter. I asked her if I can give her a buck, and we can call it even. She agreed to that.

School is testing my commitment to this raw experiment. Monday, I brought a few chopped vegetables and a bag of mixed raw nuts for lunch/dinner, and planned to purchase some lettuce at school to make a salad. Once I was done with the tutor workshop, I went to get my pay check then headed to the student union for food. The cafeteria was closed! I stood there for a while just staring—trying to process the meaning of the closed doors, and the closed sign. I had to eat with my fingers because I was hoping to get silverware in the dining area, and even the silverware was gone. Luckily, that morning I went to Jamba juice and had a wheatgrass shot and bought a juice for breakfast. For that experience, I realize that I have to make an effort to get a side salad ($1.69) before the cafeteria closes, and that I have to bring my food.

Salad with Blueberries

I had this salad the other day. It was awesomely delicious. This salad contains cucumbers, yellow bell pepper,Greek olives, jalapeno peppers, blueberries, broccoli, tomatoes,and citrons.

Carrot Juice

Went to the gym today and I did step for an hour and a half. The instructor was late—Why? Because she thinks we (the students in the class) do not like her. Oh, that sucks! Listen this is only my second time with this step-teacher, and I don’t know what has gone on in previous classes, but I tried to assure her that it was not true. But, I think deep down it was true because people where dropping like flies. By the end of the class there were only four of us left. And, I was tore up from the floor up. I could not wait for the class to be over, so I could go home and take shower. I did my best to spread love.

Today, I want to talk about carrots. I am thankful for carrots because they contain phytonutrients lutein-helps to reduce the build of plaque in the arteries and zeaxanthin—protects against macular degenerative diseases such as glaucoma. Carrots have anti-inflammatory properties, and can help relieve some of the inflammation involved in Arthritis Since I have glaucoma and my mom has arthritis, I like to make carrot juice regularly.

Get yourself a 5lbs bag of carrots an juice! Peace...

Magical Radish Shoots

My new favorite sprouts are radish shoots. Please try them. They look like clovers, and have a peppery taste. It is like eating a radish in a leaf. Radish shoots or sprouts add additional flavor to a salad or a wrap, and they are full of enzymes.

I like to add berries to my salads. This one has raspberries in it. Delicious.

This is my dinner for tonight. The salad, apples, and citrus fruit (pink grapefruit & limes).

The injured leg:

My leg is really getting better. In yoga today, I used my block only once because I had strength when I moved into pigeon from downward facing dog. Of course, after yoga class I had to do the Zumba. Sorry to say, my new name is crazy-arms. I could not coordinate my arms with my legs. The instructor and class were moving right and I was moving left.
I had loads of peppermint tea today; it’s cold and overcast, and I feel snugly. I have not drank enough water; feeling the thirst.

On the Spirit:

Yesterday, I had my first music class. It was so awesome to be in the music department. I miss being with artists. In the English department, most students are involved with showing how smart they are. When I entered the building I could breathe--a wave of relaxation flowed over my body. I was happy. I made a friend the first day; it is hard for me to make friends in English. We hung out after class and played with our guitars then we met this dude who is a musician; he plays stings and woodwind instruments. He played and sang to us for half an hour. He also showed us some cool stuff on the guitar. This was all possible because I told myself before I left my house to love the people and not to be an asshole.
Peace...

Mustard Greens, Watercress, and Dill Salad

The salad spinner has the mustard greens and watercress inside of it. On the plate, there are whole olives, grape tomatoes, chopped dill, cucumber, blood red orange slices, avocado, and lemon. In the bowl, I have some sliced mango, and in the sealed container I have garbanzo beans. This is what I ate last night.


Pictured here are the ingredients for my salsa ( I use this instead of salad dressing): tomato, tomatillos, jalapeno peppers, and garlic. Put all ingredients in a food processor with a little salt, half a cap of apple-cider vinegar, and lemon juice, blitz then refrigerate. It tastes better cold.

It's dill.

Watercress

mustard greens, be adventurous with your salad. You can eat other greens besides romaine lettuce.
Peace........