by | June 30, 2010 · 9:21 am

Food On-the-Go!

     A quick warning to everyone: Do not attempt to recreate or consume the meals I had today! Today was definitely not a “balanced” food day :-/.

This be an omelette with 2 eggs and a massive sprinkling of sharp cheddar cheese. See what happens when I don’t have GM ingredients in the morning? I sabotage myself!
     I had two gigantic mugs of coffee, then headed out to pick up supplies from Trader Joe’s. The drive into LA took about an hour (traffic was horrific – lots of highway construction going on). I parked on the street with 15 minutes to spare, so I scarfed down my lunch.
Trader Joe’s Turkey Club Wrap: Turkey, lettuce, tomato, BACON, and some mayonnaise wrapped in a piece of lavash bread.
     Class today was “listening day”. We get our sides (scripts) with the our partner’s lines blacked out. We have an hour to learn our lines, but can’t rehearse with our partners at all, then the first time we run the scene is in front of the class. This exercise really forces you to listen to everything your partner is saying, instead of just waiting for your cue word to begin your next line. 
     I had an audition last year right after this “listening” class, and the casting director said to me, “You are the first actor I’ve seen so far that was actually listening to what I was saying, and not just waiting for your cue!” I got a callback for that role. Then they ended up doing a second round of auditions and hired a cast made entirely of models. Seriously, the entire cast was 5’9″ or above! Not that I’m bitter because I’m short or anything… 🙂
     On my way over to work at the management office, I scarfed down a Clif Bar.
Oooooh, yeah! Chocolate Brownie, baby!
     Work was really busy! There were about 34 different series/films casting out there, with a few roles in each project to fill. I spent a good four hours doing nothing but matching actors to roles, sending e-mails, and calling actors who got called in for a commercial that’s casting tomorrey! Woohoo!
     I fought some evil traffic on the way home, swung by Trader Joe’s (twice in one day!) to pick up some dinner makings. It was so wonderful coming back from LA: I drove into a wall of marine layer and got a nice misting from the low clouds. Heavenly! 
     When I got back I had a Mission St. Hefeweizen waiting for me in my new wheat beer glass.
So purdy! That glass is gigantic!!!
     Dinner was a wonderful gourmet coconut-butterfly shrimp. Recipe to follow:
Coconut Shrimp Recipe:
1. Go to Trader Joe’s.
2. Pick up box of frozen Coconut Shrimp.
3. Preheat oven, then put shrimp in.
4. Take shrimp out.
5. Serve with mango chutney.
6. DEVOUR.
     I hope you could all follow that recipe. I know it’s a little intricate, but if you just take the time to read it through a few times before you attempt it, it turns out to be quite delicious!
     Dessert was two (!!!) Trader Joe’s chocolate soy ice cream bars. I now feel slightly ill as I gulp down water and watch Chopped on the Food Network, hence my beginning warning: DO NOT ATTEMPT TODAY’S FOOD CHOICES!
     To recap: today was not my smartest in food choices, but I have the entire day off tomorrow, so I’ll be sure to make lots of homemade meals, and start the day off with 3 servings of veggies in my Green Monsta! Also, keep your eyes peeled for Friday! Something amazing is coming that will involve wood, salt water, lavender and tents! 
Go ahead, try to guess what that means 🙂

4 Comments

Filed under Acting, Class, Hefeweizen, Los Angeles, marine layer, Mission Street, omelette

by | June 29, 2010 · 9:45 am

Sick Days

     The beginning of the work week is always a little sad, isn’t it? Luckily for me, today was the END of mine! Kinda… I still have class tomorrow, and working at the talent management office, but that’s stuff that I really enjoy doing! Hooray!
I started the morning in the usual way: 3 cups of spinach, 3/4 a cup of unsweetened soymilk, the juice of half a lemon, 1/4 a cup of frozen cherries and 1/2 of a banana.
     Today was rough – I was feeling pretty sick the whole day – no fun! I sucked it up and went on an hour long hike in the marine layer anyway. It was nice and cool out for most of the hike because we woke up early and got out before 8:30am. The hike was rough overall, but I’m very glad I did it, because that gave me an extra excuse to do nothing all day!
My post-hike snack consisted of a big mug of unsweetened jasmine green tea and a tipperary bon-bon I had leftover from yesterday’s trip to See’s.  
     I did all my fun errands around the house – took out the trash, cleaned the kitchen, and heated up some lunch.
I’m sorry if it looks gross – that’s the Chicken Divan from two days ago. My roommate realized that she forgot to add one of the most important ingredients, curry (but who can blame her, she made her own dairy-free cream of chicken soup! And cooked for the other roommate and me! No complaints on my end!), so I sprinkled some on top and also added a little garlic/mustard aioli.
     The rest of my day was pretty much spent. I sat on the couch with a mug of tea and rotted my brain on some CNBC special about obesity (woohoo…), then took a quick 20 minute power nap.
     When I woke up, I had to throw on some clothes that were acceptable for work. Apparently pajamas won’t cut it. Bummer. I didn’t even bother with makeup, so you can really get a grasp on how I felt. I subject all the customers to that horror! I sense some traumatized complaints coming through management!
     I realized too late that I’d run out of time to eat dinner, so I decided to hit up Paciugo and treat myself to a small gelato.
Get ready for this: I ATE DAIRY! AAAAH! This had one scoop of peanut butter/caramel, one scoop of turtle cheesecake, and one scoop of amaretto chocolate chip. It actually helped me feel better, believe it or not! BELIEVE IT!
     My roommate, who had to leave the house to get away from my whining, apparently had stopped by on her way to a meeting, and left me a surprise in the cabinet where I stash my purse.
Two apple pie truffles and two scotchmallows from See’s! Best. Roommate. Ever.
    
     I actually spent the entire night working: can you believe it? I found a way to sit down the entire time: organizing all of the cabinets that hadn’t been touched or dusted in years, and recycling a bunch of old papers that were out of date. The night actually flew by! Who would’ve guessed that working would make the time go by faster?

     I got home and had a gigantic cup of Vanilla Sleepytime tea (I used to live directly across the street from Celestial Seasonings in Colorado, so I’m partial to their teas) as well as another plate of Chicken Divan – heavy on the broccoli. After putting the leftovers back in the fridge, I noticed that we were… OUT OF SPINACH!! Oh NO!!!

     I guess tomorrow will be excessive amounts of coffee, and I may swing by Trader Joe’s to pick up a prepackaged green-juice-drinky-thingy, as well as a sandwich and some fruits before I begin the long drive in so I’m not subsisting on chocolate tortilla chips like last week, which would be difficult in itself because I ate them all last Tuesday.

     I really need quick and easy to-go food options that stay good without a refrigerator. Any suggestions?

Here’s to hoping for good traffic!

1 Comment

Filed under broccoli, Celestial Seasonings, Chicken Divan, curry, green monster, See's Candies, sick, work

by | June 28, 2010 · 8:16 am

A Complete 180!

     Isn’t it amazing what a few hours of sleep and one GIANT Monsta can do?

They’re baaaaaaack!
     Sorry for the bummer post last night, but sometimes you’ve got to have a bad day to make you contemplate your life and the future and get real deep into your soul to think things through. Today, I woke up feeling a million times better, AND I had ingredients for GMs again! I made a big one with 3 cups of spinach, 3/4 a cup of unsweetened soymilk, half a banana, 1/4 a cup of frozen cherries and lots of lemon juice. I slurped it down with a big smile on my face :-D. It really helped me start the day off on the right foot.
     I still had a full day at work ahead of me, so I had to fuel up.
My usual: an omelette made with one egg, 2 teaspoons of chopped sun-dried tomatoes, 2 teaspoons of goat cheese and a handful of wilted spinach.
     The one thing I really hate about working on Sundays is that I can’t attend church. My entire day is sucked away by the schedule, so I tend to feel a little spiritually unfulfilled and bummed out. Today, however, I had a good prayer session beforehand, PLUS my friend Vicky (the one who helped me create a spit to roast the Zsu Zsu pet on) got to come over and work with me! When I’m at work I generally read…. I mean, focus on my work…. but we girls spent the time cracking ridiculous jokes and laughing until our sides hurt, then wandering the store and making up errands to run – one of them being See’s Candies for some chocolate energy. 
     I only had one mug of coffee this morning before I had to run to work, so that had to be remedied as well.
A small (I learned my lesson yesterday) ice blended mocha with soy.
Look at the spirals! I felt like a creative photographic genius at this moment.
     My friend Griffin’s birthday was today, and he was stuck working. The poor guy deserved a break and a celebration, so Vicky and I took him out to lunch. There was one place neither of them had been, and I just happen to be a big fan, so I led our little group to Lazy Dog Cafe. First things first:
I had a 16 oz. Lazy Dog Honey Blonde draft beer. My lunch required a lighter brew so it could complement the dish rather than overwhelm it.
I chose the Hawaiian Ahi Poke.
This was, in one word, HEAVEN! The fresh tuna, creamy avocado and spicy Wasabi on top of the crispy wontons simply melted in my mouth. I may have drooled a bit while I took this picture…

     The birthday boy chose a simple cheeseburger and a glass of Merlot – good mix, right?
Simple and delicious!

     Vicky was craving a BLT, so she went with the classic chicken club sandwich.
BACON!
I think she liked it.

     Griffin made me swear on pain of death that I wouldn’t mention that it was his birthday to anyone at Lazy Dog. Oops, my bad…
Free ice cream!
He pretended to be irritated, but I didn’t hear any complaining while he ate!
Their mints be awesome! Why do I look like I’m going to suck your blood, you ask? I blame my latest vampire book, Insatiable by Meg Cabot, which I finished last night.
     The rest of work took a long time. It was the most fun day I’ve had in a long time, but still seemed to creep by. Vicky and I grabbed some tea samples and sat on the couch to recuperate. I read my latest beer book: Michael Jackson’s Beer Companion. No, not the late pop star: the beer genius. I’ve added it to my favorites to the right –>
     When I got home, the roommate had made a healthy taco salad.
Pardon the guacamole: it was squeezed from a plastic bag. This was a toasted corn shell covered with refried beans, taco-seasoned turkey meat, Tofutti sour cream (dairy-free, baby!), spicy guacamole and a big handful of lettuce.
     I chatted with the roommates about life and their day of freedom, read some wonderful comments from YOU guys, and decided to blog before I got too zoned out. Tomorrow I have the day off until work at 6pm, so I’ll finally be getting back on the trail for a hike, and if I have time, taking a long bike ride to stretch out my legs. It’ll be nice to get my heart racing again – this time from exertion and NOT from too much caffeine.
     This week, look for more cooking, fancy beer tasting, exercise and happiness! I have something amazing on the schedule for Friday! I can’t wait to share it with you!
Happy eating, Happy Sunday, Happy life.

2 Comments

Filed under beer, birthday, friends, Griffin, Hawaiian Ahi Poke, Lazy Dog Cafe, Michael Jackson, Sunday

by | June 27, 2010 · 10:36 am

Lost in a Silent Ballet

     Title is an Owl City reference. Did you get it? If you did, you win! If you didn’t just go buy the album, okay?

     Today was an awful day. Have you ever had one of those? There was no specific reason, everything was just overwhelming to me. Customers were impatient and mean, certain coworkers were jerks who kept calling everyone “jerks”, and it was a beautiful Saturday and I was at work. Need I say more?

I think I’ll blame the fact that I had no Green Monster in the morning.
I’m not saying my breakfast wasn’t wonderful – it was! I had an omelette with 2 eggs, the last few pieces of spinach that were edible, 2 teaspoons of chopped sun-dried tomatoes and 2 teaspoons of goat cheese. De-lish!
     I got to work feeling very subdued, despite my mug and a half of coffee, so I ran out and grabbed another cup, plus a mini-muffin to keep my energy up.
Okay, so this muffin is only mini by American standards. I was just in a horrible mood and needed some chocolate comfort. Note to self: this does NOT fix bad moods!
     After my monster coffee – Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf makes coffee by adding 9,392 shots of espresso to one ounce of water (estimation on my part), I got the shakes. This coffee seriously made my heartbeat RACE and almost sent me into a panic attack! I was sweating bullets and couldn’t catch a full breath of air. I’m definitely sticking to my home-brewed coffee from now on!
     Lunch rolled around and I was still feeling sick and miserable from my mid-morning snack, so I took my book outside and read for an hour. My daily vitamin-D requirement was met via sunshine.
     The minutes crept by, then after 293 hours (another estimation on my part), it was finally time to clock out, so I made a quick purchase to brighten my day, and headed out.
I got a set of beer glasses!!! I’ve heard that having the correct type of glass can enhance the taste of the beer that’s poured into them, and now I can appreciate the beer to its fullest extent!
     I didn’t have the patience to hand-wash these quite yet…
An Old Rasputin did the trick, even if it wasn’t the correct glass.
     Dinner was a dairy-free Chicken Divan (Chi-Ken Dee-Vahn). Baked, shredded chicken, broccoli, a homemade “creamless cream of chicken soup”- (check back tomorrow for the recipe), and curry, baked until golden brown on top.
Don’t diss it until you’ve tried it! It’s a truly healthy comfort food!
I was invited to go out tonight, but was in such a foul mood that I didn’t want to inflict it upon any innocent bystanders, so I sat out back and sipped my brew with a lovely city view.
I am floating away…
     I’ve been doing a lot of soul-searching lately, trying to figure out my life. At heart, I really am a small-town girl, and, at the moment, I don’t think LA is my true calling. I used to get excited every time I went to set to film at 5am, headed to a class or got called out for an audition, but lately I feel like my heart has been pulling me in a different direction. I’m going to give myself another month or two of acting focus: which basically means I’m going to scour the breakdowns, film and submit for every single role that fits me. The only times I seem to get called in for a role is after I send in a filmed audition – my pictures just don’t seem to be working anymore (which sucks because I JUST got new ones), and I think if I work my ass off and determine my submission:audition ratio, this will help me decide where I’m headed.
     If I go through these next two months and still feel myself at a stand-still, well, we’ll see what happens then. Who knows where I may end up? I’ve felt a calling from Ventura, a place I’ve always loved, or Northern California in a small town where there are people who are more down-to-earth like me, who love to be out hiking, biking, camping, brewing and EATING, and I’d love to find a church that I’m excited to attend every Sunday (i.e. with people my age!).
     For now, I’ll trust that God has a plan for me, and if I keep leaning on Him (which seems to be all I can do lately – I feel like I have no strength or direction of my own), He’ll eventually guide me to my true calling. I apologize if this has been a bummer post, but since almost no one reads it, I’ve decided to treat this post as my journal.
Trust in Him and keep your eyes on the stars!
Or the pretty Christmas-y lights 🙂

10 Comments

Filed under Bummer, Cider, guidance, lost, night view, Old Rasputin Russian Imperial Stout, omelette, stars

by | June 26, 2010 · 8:47 am

In Love with a Russian… Stout!

     FRIDAY! What a wonderful word! I’m sitting on the couch listening to one of my favorite bands, Mumford & Sons and typing while a cool breeze rolls in through the windows and candles flicker on the counter. It is possibly my favorite way to spend the evenings – I’m such a homebody!

     I set my alarm for 7am today and woke up to my lovely Owl City tone (a GREAT way to wake up!). I rolled out of bed, brewed a cup of coffee and rudely awakened my roommates with the blender.

I NEED my GMs in the morning, especially on a work day! This had 3 cups of spinach, 1/2 a cup of unsweetened soymilk, 1/4 a cup of frozen berries, 1/2 a frozen banana and LOTS of lemon juice – the spinach was on its last day and needed the lemon to make it drinkable :P.
     The spinach has almost turned, so I don’t think I’ll be Monsta-ing tomorrey… I don’t know what I’ll do! Maybe I’ll try Vegan Overnight Oats again? I’m not sure, I’m pretty scared after last time!
     After a thrilling rally at work to get company moral up (give me a break, seriously! I could have still been in bed during this!), I opened all my registers and was berated by my stomach for not feeding it often enough. I grabbed a coupon and headed to Subway for a cheap Sunrise Melt.
This was an english muffin with an egg, turkey, black forest ham and goat cheese, toasted. It was edible, but I much prefer a scramble with lots of veggies!
     I got a lot done at work! Very, very productive, if I do say so myself.
I made these cool little paper ladders and read about 100 pages of “Insatiable” by Meg Cabot over the course of the day.
     I was craving unhealthy things at lunch, but restrained myself and instead had some sushi.
A mini-spicy tuna roll with brown rice.
     After lunch I took to my couch and read even more of my book, and also found some time (and room in my stomach) to fit in Paciugo.
I had a child size of soy chocolate and strawberry-balsamic sorbet. If you think strawberries and balsamic vinegar sounds like a bad combo, you need to try this right away!!! It will change your life – it’s that good!
     I stopped to pick up ice after work because my roommate had called to let me know that she found Magners Cider locally!!
This was the beginning to my Friday night. Notice the cool new Pumpkin Ale glass – a gift from my wonderful mom! You’re jealous, I know.
     For dinner, my roommates and I ordered Pizza Hut. Personally, I think some Fridays just beg for junk food and brews.
I got a personal pan with double pineapple and green bell peppers. There’s green on it, therefore it is healthy. I ate half of this. 
And then I ate the other half…
     Yesterday I decided that instead of drinking my standards in beer – Fat Tire, Franziskaner, Spaten Optimator, etc., I would start purchasing different beers that were well-rated in my beer book, review them and learn even more about the brewing process via tastings.
    Tonight, I got to break open the first of the fancy beers I picked up yesterday – Old Rasputin Russian Imperial Stout.
WOW! This beer is incredible! It’s similar to 1554 by New Belgium, but a lot richer and thicker. This had a dark coffee aroma, sweet, but not overbearingly so, and a very light bitter aftertaste. I normally don’t enjoy any bitterness in my beer, but this was very well balanced! The aroma and taste became a little more bitter over time as the beer came up to room temperature. 
I’m in love!
     After sipping this beer for over an hour, I feel like someone wrapped a warm blanket around me and covered my eyes with fluffy pomeranians.
Who wouldn’t like that? Awww, my baby Buddha!
     I am ridiculously content now after a single bottle of that beer (it is 9% alcohol though, so drinkers of legal age, beware!), and am now ready to retire to my book while listening to some relaxing music. There is no other way I’d want to spend this night. How do you typically spend your weekends?
Happy Friday to you all! Relax, breathe and LIVE!

3 Comments

Filed under Buddha, Friday, green monster, homebody, Old Rasputin Russian Imperial Stout, pomeranian, sushi

by | June 25, 2010 · 9:23 am

Sexy Mannequins!

     Ahh, the weekend is so close I can smell it! It’s just too bad I can’t enjoy it – I work six days in a row! It’s going to be painful on my feet, but feel so good on my wallet!

     This beautiful Thursday started with a Monsta.

This sucker had 3 cups of spinach, 3/4 a cup of unsweetened soymilk, the juice of 1/4 of a lemon, 1/4 a cup of frozen cherries, 1 tablespoon of flaxmeal, and half of a frozen banana. I think the frozen banana really makes it smooth for some reason – there were no big chunks or strings today!
     I was all set to go on my morning hike, and then… I didn’t. No reason. I just didn’t. I woke up SUPER late (after 8am!), had a coffee, made my GM, and by the time I looked at the clock again, it was just too late to go. I had a lot of errands to run today and starting after noon just makes me feel unproductive and stressed.
     Instead of hiking, I went with my roommate to The Natural Cafe to use a buy-one-get-one coupon for lunch. I picked my favorite, the Local Favorite :).
This is avocado, alfalfa sprouts, tomatoes, red onions, lettuce and a thin layer of garlic mayonnaise on toasted 9 grain bread.
     My roommate chose the special of the day.
This had grilled chicken, pinto beans, lettuce, sprouts, onions, salsa and cheese in a whole wheat tortilla, topped with more salsa and jicama, and a side of vegan split pea soup.
I demolished mine.
     Next we headed to Barnes and Noble to glance around. I found a book that interests me very muchly – I’ve put it in my favorites to the right –>
It’s called The Flexitarian Diet by Dawn Jackson Blatner. I think I’m going to become a flexitarian. Flexitarians live a mostly vegetarian lifestyle, but still allow themselves the occasional burger or piece of chicken. I’ve wanted to lower my meat intake and focus on veggies, grains and fish, so this seems to fit my lifestyle right now. I haven’t bought the book yet though – I requested it from my library instead – I’m very cheap!
     Menchies just happens to be next door to the bookstore.
I got a SMALL amount of dairy-free mango sorbet and topped it with strawberries, kiwi, blueberries and a spot of marshmallow creme, just because I had to try it once! It was GOOD!
     I stopped by a specialty wine/beer store and picked up some Old Rasputin stout and a beer that’s been brewed like champagne (don’t ask me what that means, I’ll look it up and tell you tomorrow) so I could have a tasting with some friends tomorrow night. When I got home and threw the bottles in the fridge, I remembered that I’d wanted to try a recipe for a sweet omelette that Heather (Heather Eats Almond Butter) had posted about a few days ago. 
     I beat two egg whites with a hand-mixer until they were big and fluffy, then mixed in an egg and two teaspoons of vanilla. I poured the pretty batter into a frying pan that had a thin layer of (gasp!) butter in it.
So fluffy! And it was a LOT bigger than I was expecting!
And very delicate as well. The flipping didn’t work out how I imagined…
I filled it with a berry mixture – I thawed 1/4 a cup of frozen berries then mixed in a little agave-maple syrup, folded them in between the omelette and drizzled more agave-maple on top. Seemingly weird combo, but I was impressed! YUM!
     Work was the usual – lots of reading, walking around, trips to Paciugo…
(I got another blurry soy chocolate. Not picture-worthy)
     There are summer concerts going on in my town now! Tonight was a tropical rock band.
They were okay. I like Black Carl better :).
All the little kids were dancing up a storm! Pretty cute!
     I went to a clothing store to try on a few shirts – I need some more for work since we have to wear all dark colors – boo! 
     Florescent lighting is a horrible invention. I picked a shirt I liked after cursing at all the other ones that looked horrible in the light, and as I turned to walk out of the dressing room, I saw this:
Isn’t that lovely?
     After I paid, I was walking out and saw something that made my day even BETTER!
Teehee, the mannequins are clenching – I’m such a dork!
     There was only one more thing that could make this day absolutely perfect – a sunset.
Okay, it’s just the rays of a sunset shining on a hill, but I’ll take it!
What one thing would make your day perfect?
And now I’m off to crash so I can wake up early enough to make a GM, coffee and attempt to look pretty for the opening shift at work. Wish me luck! I’ll need it!

Comments Off on Sexy Mannequins!

Filed under Barnes and Noble, mannequins, Menchie's, Natural Cafe, sunset, work

by | June 24, 2010 · 9:27 am

TV Stars and Chocolates

     I loves me the hiking!!! If I don’t get on the trail in the morning, I really feel like something is missing from my day without that burst of endorphins. Yes, I realize I complain about the heat and the bugs, but I always end in a much better mood and have a MUCH better day than I would if I’d just sat on my butt and had a third (or fourth) cup of coffee. I begged my roommate to let me have the third cup of coffee: she told me to shut up and get my hiking gear on.

     First things first: MONSTER!

Lots of pretty red cherry bits and purple raspberry seeds in this one!
     We hopped on the trail around 10am and did our fastest pace ever for this year – 49 minutes. My roommate and I used to take a trail that took us two and a half hours, and as awesome and that was, time constraints from real life got in the way. We’ll take what we can get nowadays.
Marine layer (covering the ocean) views!
I’ve been to the top of that mountain three times, and plan on making a sunrise hike up before the end of summer. My Jet Boil and some instant coffee will be joining me on that trip.
     We got back and I had just enough time to rinse off and make a quick omelette in a feeble attempt to keep me full throughout a long work day.
This has two eggs, a handful of wilted spinach, 1 tablespoon of chopped sundried tomatoes (the kind that are soaked in oil, then drained) and a tablespoon of goat cheese.
DROOL!
     I got to work and was greeted by my lovely coworker, Briann, with this:
That would be a strawberry cheesecake truffle from Godiva. She is evil… and lovely…
     Work was very dull. I know I keep saying this, but TODAY was the most dead I’ve ever seen the store! I read about fifty pages of my current book, Insatiable, by Meg Cabot (it’s about vampires, but it makes fun of the current media craze. I must admit, I do love her writing!) and went on lots of breaks.
     I had big, bad cravings all day – I blame Briann for initiating it with the chocolate. There’s a sandwich I used to be obsessed with – the garlic basil chicken sandwich – that I was pining for today for some reason. I decided to give in to my desires, and have planned a long, hot bike ride tomorrow to pay for it.
This thing is HUGE! Fresh-baked bread with a garlic-basil mayonnaise, chicken, tomatoes, lettuce, swiss cheese (baaaad lactose), avocado, red onions and chilled pasta salad on the side.
     Don’t freak out, I only ate half of the sandwich, had two bites of the pasta and was totally full, so I stored it in the employee fridge for my dinner. The rest of lunch was spent on my couch, which I feel I should name because I am so fond of it and basically own it. I walked back to work in a daze, as I always do after forty minutes of dozing in a food coma.
     I decided that I needed to create another Paciugo addict to help keep the company alive, so I took Briann to get some gelato. She got a combo of Italian Trifle, Chocolate Chip and Tiramisu, and I got a child size of soy chocolate – dull, but delicious! And very blurry!
     The rest of work dragged by. I read a lot, reheated my sandwich and devoured it, did some pushups against the counter, saw the kid who plays “Rico” on Hannah Montana, got checked out by the kid who plays “Rico” on Hannah Montana, visited with a friend who works at a very expensive store where the kid who plays “Rico” on Hannah Montana was shopping at, and read some more. It was quite a thrilling night.
     I bolted from work as soon as I could, called KIIS 102.7 pretending to have “Bieber Fever (Beiber? Bieber?)” to try and get tickets for his show, just because I’d like to win tickets from the radio at some point in my life, then got home and had a chilly Fat Tire while watching the Food Network: A wonderful night to make up for a long, boring day.
     Tomorrow I’ll be going on an intense bike ride in an attempt to burn off the huge sandwich and pasta salad I ate today, as well as a hike, and visiting the Farmers’ Market to pick up some more chimichurri sauce supplies. 
What are your favorite things to get at the local Farmers’ Market?

2 Comments

Filed under gelato, Godiva, Hannah Montana, Insatiable, Justin Bieber, Meg Cabot, Paciugo, sandwich

by | June 23, 2010 · 9:30 am

An L.A. Kind of Day

     Happy Tuesday everyone!!!

     To me, Tuesdays say:

MONSTERS (of course every day says monster for the past 3 weeks)! For some reason the GMs I’ve been making have been getting really, really thick recently. I think my blender is on its last legs: two of the five motor-prong-thingies have broken off. I may have to empty my entire savings account to get a Vitamix blender!!! IN MY DREAMS!
     Tuesday ALSO means a day off from work! I made a lovely mini-breakfast – an omelette with one egg, a teaspoon of goat cheese, 2 teaspoons of chopped sun-dried tomatoes and a handful of wilted spinach.
 
     Unfortunately, a day off from work doesn’t mean an actual “day off”. It means fighting the freeways so I can make it to my acting class in Los Angeles by noon.

     Holy crap. Here’s the thing – I don’t live IN Los Angeles. I live a short distance away on the outskirts, but add rush hour traffic into that and it equals HELL. LA freeways and I have had a very strained relationship. We were on good terms when I lived in the center of it – WeHo (West Hollywood) area, but now that I’ve cheated with one of its close relatives, it makes me pay dearly.

     Once I finally pass the traffic, I receive a lovely LA welcome.

I love overhead wires!
I love anti-landslide plastic!
Hollywood!
Aaah, the beautiful panorama of white skies, smog and palm trees!
     Honestly, I don’t have any real issues with LA. The thing is, I’m a small-town girl! I love the blue skies, clean air, traffic-free side streets, bike paths, clean rivers and FREE PARKING that small towns have! The crazy part is that to have the career I really want, I need to be in close range to this town. Until I’m working here on a consistent basis, I’ll live in my clean-aired, small-ish town paradise and make the painful commute. Then I will proceed to whine about it to you :).
     I didn’t have time to pack a lunch, so instead I had some super-healthy chocolate tortilla chips in my car.
On Tuesdays, I’ll accept calories from any source because I don’t have enough time between class and work to stop for a real meal! Pitiful :(. What “on-the-go” meals do you make for days when you have no time to stop and eat?
     Class was the usual – we get a scene, go outside with our partner to rehearse for 30 minutes, then head in and perform in front of the class and get critiqued. All the lines are memorized by performance time, but we keep our sides at hand just in case we need them. 
     This class is more of a business class than an acting class – we focus on the networking aspect, and learn how to sell the product that we’re offering (ourselves, in a non-hooker way). In the real world, it’s not about the art anymore: It’s about business – making connections and making producers/directors realize that they would enjoy spending two or three months (or more for TV shows) on set with you.
One scene of the day. 
Faces are blurred out of respect for our famous actors :). (We actually do have a few that have starred in some network shows. The Old Spice commercial guy, the “Swagger Waggon” Toyota girl and one of the leads from “Arli$$” may or may not also be three of them 😉 ).
Today was “easy day” in class. Last week was “casting director workshop” day which makes everyone incredibly nervous and awkward unless they’ve had a lot of experience in the audition room, so this week helps everyone realize that even though they may have bombed last week, acting is still fun!
     I had a scene with the lovely Rosanna which involved lots of ghetto head-bobbing and girl-fighting – FUN! Note on that: there are NEVER good fighting scenes out there for actors unless they are the stars of the show. I got some good screaming scenes in Lonelygirl15 though, so I’m one of the lucky ones!

     After class I worked at the talent manager’s office for a few hours. I called some actors that received auditions for tomorrow, sent some e-mails, submit many, many actors for different roles on the many feature films that are casting right now, and got to eat a banana!!!

(Picture omitted because I was so hungry I inhaled it)
     When I FINALLY got home at 8pm after fighting yet another rush hour, my wonderful roommate had made me a gigantic KSS!
AND a Fat Tire! She is honestly the BEST roommate ever! This KSS had about 4 cups of chopped lettuce, 1/2 a cup of warmed lentils, 1/2 a cup of egg white salad, 1/2 a cup of chopped bell pepper, a teaspoon of goat cheese, and homemade dressing made with 1 teaspoon of balsamic vinegar, 1 teaspoon of whole grain mustard, and 1 teaspoon of olive oil.
     Now I am completely stuffed, completely exhausted, and completely ready to fall into bed and crash – and yes, I realize it’s only 10:30pm Pacific Time, but I’m an old soul and exhausted and not ashamed to admit it. 
I’m off to sleep before yet another full shift at work!

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Filed under Acting, banana, Chocolate, Class, green monster, kitchen sink salad, Los Angeles, SUCKS, Tortilla, traffic, Vitamix

by | June 22, 2010 · 9:32 am

Chocolate Tortillas and Zucchini Mush

     I’m currently sitting in a cloud of dust, staring far, far ahead at the wagon that I fell off of this weekend. It was a long, hard fall. Today I started to climb back on, but lost my footing and got some more gravel in my knees.

     The day started off well enough.

I had a big Purple Monsta with 2 cups of spinach, 1/4 a cup of frozen cherries, 3/4 a cup of soymilk, 1/3 of a banana, a tablespoon of flaxmeal and some lemon juice.
     I hopped back on the trails for a hot hike wearing my new WHITE Nike Dri-Fit shirt (my black one has been absorbing the sun and killing me in the summer heat). It was nice and quiet, with very few people, and no breeze at all! The air was completely still and quite torturous. 
     All I could think about on the hike was the coconut cream cake that I ate last night after we got back from Ventura, so I caved and had a teeny-tiny piece from the freezer.
No guilt. If you truly take the time to taste, enjoy and appreciate something and don’t just mindlessly stuff your face, then guilt should never factor in.
     Those chocolate tortilla chips I got for my dad were crying out to be tried, so I took a nibble of one.
Yes, they’re tortilla chips, and yes, they’re chocolate. YES, they’re incredible! Sweet and salty is one of the best combinations ever.
     Lunch was very simple – baked ziti.
This was 1/4 a cup of whole wheat pasta, turkey meatballs, diced orange and red bell peppers, onions, chopped tomatoes and a teaspoon of goat cheese.
     I ran out to Costco to get some more spinach and came back to attempt making zucchini birdnests that caught my eye from my library book, Cooking from the Farmers’ Market. I started by shredding 4 green zucchini (zucchinis?) and 3 yellow squash (squashes?) – Let’s just call them by their New Zealand/British English name: Courgettes. After adding a pinch of salt and letting them sweat for five minutes, I wrung them out to get rid of all the liquid – courgettes have LOTS of water in them! Next, I shredded a small yellow onion, minced 2 cloves of garlic and broke an egg.
     I’m not a fan of having a lot to clean, so I broke the egg in the center of my mixture, and then lightly beat it in the bowl so I wouldn’t have another dish to wash.
     After mixing it all together and stirring in a tablespoon of whole wheat flour, I plopped them into a frying pan that was sprayed with a thin coat of canola oil and heated over medium-high.
Lookin’ good so far!
Hmmm, maybe not…
     I think these still had too much moisture in them, even though I wrung them out over a strainer multiple times. They totally fell apart, then burned on one side and stayed raw in the middle, so I threw them in the oven with convection to try and dry them/cook them.
They do not look pretty :(.
     This is what they’re supposed to look like:
And here’s mine:
Yeah, so it completely fell apart and became a zucchini scramble. It was edible…ish. I tried to make the recipe healthier by using whole wheat flour instead of white flour, and using spray oil instead of the recommended 2 tablespoons to fry them in. Sometimes healthy just isn’t worth it!
     …And sometimes it is. For dinner I had my good old standby – a wonderful KSS.
2 cups of chopped baby greens, 1/2 of a diced bell pepper, 1/2 a cup of warmed lentils, 1/2 a cup of egg white salad and dressing made with 1 teaspoon of balsamic vinegar, 1 teaspoon of whole grain mustard and 1 teaspoon of blood orange olive oil.
     I had the closing shift at work so I headed off with my beer book to study… I mean work… yes, work.
I just got to the “Beer Appreciation” chapter – tasting! So cool!
     Looking back over this post, I’m realizing I wasn’t THAT bad in the eating area. That all changes now. I went to Paciugo and got a child size of their soy chocolate. Hint: at most places you can request a child size and it will still fill you up! No more American-size portions!
So creamy and delicious! Can’t believe it’s soy – a lot of soy ice cream is grainy and gross, but this is heaven in a dainty cup!
     One of my coworkers went to Godiva and decided to share – darn you, Kyle! I was very happy, but very upset at the same time. My happiness definitely overwhelmed the upset :).
That’s half of a chocolate-covered strawberry and banana stick, plus one of my dad’s chocolate tortilla chips. I shared the other half of the stick with my roommate. Everyone wins when you share!
     Tomorrow will be a little difficult in the eating area again. I have my acting class in LA, followed by running a talent manager’s office completely by myself all afternoon into the evening, so I won’t be able to sit down and have a nice, well thought-out meal. Hopefully I’ll have time to grab a big salad to-go from Trader Joe’s or something.
I shall go sleep now and hope for an early waking to squeeze in a hike before I head to LALA Land. Ciao = CHOW!

4 Comments

Filed under Godiva, kitchen sink salad, sharing, Tortilla, work, zucchini

by | June 21, 2010 · 9:12 am

HAPPY FATHERS’ DAY!!!

     I repeat what I said in the title. BEST. FATHERS’ DAY. EVER. Honestly, epic! Many, many pictures to follow: Hopefully you can handle the awesomeness…

I started with a mini-Monsta. This had about 2 cups of spinach, a little soymilk, frozen cherries, half a banana and some lemon juice. I had to have an appetite for lunch!
     First, I had to give my pops all of his loot. He was very, very spoiled :).
We have (from the top left, going clockwise) chocolate tortilla chips, a Guinness mug, a grill pan from Williams Sonoma, a stationary bottle opener, and some authentic British pub mats.
     For lunch, we headed out to… INDIAN FOOD! I had two gigantic plates: don’t judge! It’s a weekend of celebration. I can get back on track tomorrey. (I say and spell the word “tomorrow” like tomorrey. Deal with it.)
I had gigantic servings of saffron chicken, daal, vegetable korma, LOTS of naan, and for dessert, carrot-butter pudding and one of those doughy-syrup-covered balls. YUM!
     After lunch, we walked around for a bit and ended up in a furniture store. Woohoo…happy fathers’ day :P.
     Then, we wandered over to Dargan’s, the local Irish pub, and had some drinks.
My pops had a Black Velvet (Strong Bow cider and Guinness), my mum had a Strong Bow cider, and I had a Bass Ale.
We were COMPLETELY stuffed, but we somehow managed to fit in some potato skins :). HEY! It’s a weekend for celebration!
     There happens to be an amazing used bookstore on Main Street, that I must stop in every time I’m in Ventura.
     We saw a new pub that we’ve never tried before, called Bernadette’s – LOVELY Bernadette, the owner, showed us around and made us feel entirely welcome, and Allison helped us with everything we needed – I sense a new Sunday tradition! They had live music, so we decided we had to sit for a spell.
I’d like to introduce you to Black Carl. Seriously, go to their site and listen. They are incredible!
That’s the drummer using a beer bottle as percussion. BOOYAH!
Everyone needs to go to their site and subscribe and follow and listen and LOVE them! Tell them the Bexter @ HikeBikeEat sent you :). I bought their CD onsite and got a bunch of awesome pins and matchbooks.
     We all seemed to enjoy the music. <– Video goodness!
There were lots of feet bouncing to the beat: rhyming makes me happy :P.
My pops, trying to read the Black Carl button. “BLACK CATS???”
We get along very well…
…Most of the time :). 
Tattoo courtesy of Paciugo, baby!
I found one of my new favorite drinks, recommended by my cousin Allie who is currently traveling all over Europe! Magners = deliciously crispy, dry, and not too sweet!
My dad definitely had a great time. My mom enjoyed it once the music got started, teehee!
     After an amazing day, we headed back to have some awful, awful dinner…
White Castle burgers and Franziskaner – my dad wanted it, so I had to have some – it’s Fathers’ Day!
…And cuddle with the Buddha!
(No, I’m not actually strangling her) She gets VERY possessive over her chips! I almost lost my entire hand after this picture.
     And now I will leave you, having forced many, many pictures unto you, and watch the rest of The Next Food Network Star. I finished The Death and Life of Charlie St. Cloud: meh. I have a feeling the movie will be better, at least based on the trailer. It was a good/okay book, but wasn’t anything too memorable.
Happy Fathers’ Day to all the dads out there!

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Filed under Bernadette's, Buddha, Dargan's, Fathers' Day, Indian Food, irish pub, Magners, Potato Skins, Ventura