Y3 – Day 309 – Sunday Vegan Blitz

I have been prepping and cooking all morning.

In between, I have been catching up on taped shows and the news.

Also, I have been practicing my painting whitewashing technique on an old table. If it turns out any good, then who knows?

Today, so far, I put together vegan parmesan, cashew cream, baked mac and cheez and vegan burgers. I ate soooooo much I could just burst! Yesterday, I even had the audacity of partaking in two, not one, berry cheesecakes topped with fresh raspberries. I didn’t expect my husband to come home with vegan treats from a drive, but lo and behold, I didn’t let it last long.

The recipes today were culled from my new favorite vegan cookbook I picked up at the vegan fair called, Eat Like You Give a Damn – Recipes for the new Ethical Vegan by Michelle Schwegmann and Josh Hooten whom I met. They are the founders of Herbivore Clothing in Portland and have been vegan since 1999 and they have easy recipes, helpful tips and entertaining stories to introduce each recipe. The book holds more than 100 recipes and tons of photographs they took themselves. Of course, I tweaked their recipes and it’s even encouraged.

Y3 – Day 308 – Progress on ReDo

I have been covering up our French doors with shades and drapes for years because of moisture that got trapped between the double panes which destroyed the whole point of having them. They look into our covered patio that looks over our expansive yard and I have missed the view. Finally, my friend suggested just getting new glass, not just whole new doors! And so, the glass man came and measured, quoted me a decent price and next week we will have new (no panes in the middle like a graph that might obstruct the landscape) low E, double paned and insulated windows installed on our dining room French doors! Of course the only drawback to this is: Now I have to keep the patio swept and dusted at all times!!

The stair man came and next is the quote for new banisters, skirt, spindles and post. We need to do this before the stairs get new flooring. I am dreaming of grey washed oak grain and decorative iron.

By the way, you must know what you like and want because these installers have no clue who you are and what your vision is, they haven’t lived in your house for more than an hour and cannot dream creatively or outside the box like you can. I bring this up because it is a trend I am noticing and I was especially taken aback by the stair man’s taste. Most are not artistes, designers or visionaries, they are contractors.

Our new AC/Heating unit was installed yesterday and it took three guys all day. Literally from 10am-8:30pm they were here. They took just one break around dinner time because they had to hit Home Depot. So now, our bathroom finally has a register, our side of the house (where we live and sleep mostly) has its own ducting, we own an LED thermostat and we have a modern (read-more efficient) AC/Heating system.

Our order for our block out, honeycomb, remote controlled blinds for our Master Bedroom is in with our local Budget Blinds and I chose Mushroom Linen as the color. It is a neutral greige/sandy color. I believe it will go with everything. Our Levelor Silhouettes were gorgeous but alas, they have been ruined by the sun, worn by use, do not have block out so I had to add drapes and Lavender is just not what we are going for anymore.

I suppose I should be adding before and after pictures, duh.

Our look is turning into contemporary cottage/French country/modern glam if that’s a thing.

This weekend hopefully will prove fruitful. I would like to declutter some more, go window shopping with the love of my life so we are on the same page when the time comes and make a few vegan dishes to last me the week.

Have a great weekend, Y’all!

Oh – and we got rid of a dead pittosporum (variety Victoria Box) tree that had been here since I imagine 1958 when the house was built and were planted all along the perimeter of our lot – and added four bushes that will fill in quickly, supposedly.

The picture below illustrates the ugly mess of redoing anything and the hole where the tree once was.

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Y3 – Day 306 – Believe

Believe who people show you whom they are by their actions. When people are impatient, stubborn or mean, take it at face value. Don’t make excuses.

I don’t care what your background, childhood or situation is, you can always be kind, courteous and respectful. Of course – enough is enough sometimes, but in general, you can depend on repeated rotten behavior to be the norm for some.

And some are just not genuine and they exhibit false advertising all day long depending on whom is in front of them and who is looking.

Integrity is doing the right thing even when no one is looking.

It takes self awareness to identify your character flaws. Then, it takes acceptance to wrap your head around it and process solution. Finally, it takes action to change the things you CAN change, which is only usually yourself, your attitude, your response or your perspective. And, the hardest thing for a human being to grasp, is changing themselves.

I call it the triple A or AAA. Awareness, acceptance and action and – in that order.

Y3 – Day 305 – The News

You are going to see people behaving badly in the media or making it in the news reports.

But there is another side. I see people behaving heroically and generously all the time if you look for it. Yes, the barage of info we get is usually negative, but look for the good and more of it will show up.

That being said, there are some items that are omitted from your radar because these entities do not want you to know about them. I am specifically aiming this light on Big Agra, Big Pharma and Big Animal Agra. You can be better informed if you dig deep for it, but don’t expect the violent ideology to stop unless you are willing to be in a lot of pain, anger and disgust. It takes guts to stomach what goes on behind stronger than penitentiary walls, in the slaughterhouses.

Y3 – Day 304 – Quick Fix

Here is a quick vegan salad fix:

Tomato, avocado, black bean and cilantro with vegan dressing of your choice.IMG_0035

There are so many ways I have salad without animal product. I add seeds, nuts, my own “parmesan”, toasted or fried tofu, potatoes, cabbage, olives, hummus, artichoke hearts, beans, salsa, vegan chili and/or french fried onions to my base of greens(usually romaine or baby lettuces with herbs). Actually, the list is endless. Many people add fresh or dried fruit in their salad. Experiment and no two salads ever need to be the same or boring again.

Y3 – Day 303 – Yesterday

IMG_0039Yesterday was World Vegan Day and the very first So Cal Vegan Fest. What  a Blast!

It was held on the Orange Coast College campus and it ran from 10am to 4pm.

There were exhibits, speakers, samples, food demos, music, books, book signings, t-shirts, informative leaflets and tons of food booths.

Maybe next year, I will have a table and a tent !!

“Make the most of yourself by fanning the inner sparks of possibility into flames of achievement.” – Golda Meir

Y3 – Day 302 – zyogatime

I am blessed to have had the opportunity to pursue a practice in yoga, train for yoga teacher training and then instruct others in the embodiment of meditation, body and movement.

Sharing yoga with my yogini ladies is creative, revitalizing and profound.

With them, I have connected deeper to the sacredness and the discipline of yoga ethics. It brought me back to my values and true self.

These women and our time together has enhanced and liberated my being.

My spirit speaks to me. I am elevated. My insight is raised.