Category Archives: coffee

by | March 9, 2011 · 10:20 am

OBESE Tuesday!

     Today marks Fat Tuesday, aka “Mardi Gras” aka “eat-everything-you-can-fit-into-your-body-until-you-burst”, aka “New-Years-Eve”. Personally, I like to call it “OBESE Tuesday”.

I make it count!

     Call it whatever you want – to me it means the last day of imbibing in rich foods that I am about to give up for Lent as a small sacrifice for Jesus and the suffering He endured, resulting in His death and following resurrection, in order to give me eternal life with God. 

Guys, this is serious. I’m giving up…
COFFEE!!!
Please note, I did not say caffeine. Green teas and black teas and “please-Lord-force-my-eyes-open-this-morning” teas are all open-season!
I’M ALSO GIVING UP DAIRY!!!
I know you’ve heard this before, but since Lent is a little more important to me than the superficial quality of my skin, this will last.
Remembrance of His suffering, PLUS clear skin.
Blessed on all counts.

     In order to really appreciate what I’m about to give up, I overdosed on all the above.

Of course that had to include Indian buffet…
Including a dairy-stuffed mango lassi!
     The day was spent shopping. If you know me, this is something I NEVER do! I went on a frikkin’ SPREE today! My last paycheck was incinerated by my credit card. I now have jeans that don’t have holes in the rear, and aren’t shredding at the pockets! I also got some incredible sunglasses – they’re ridiculously lame and adorable and reminiscent of six-year-old Becki (aka Becky-boo).
The “Dos Beckis” is reminiscent of current-day Becki, not six-year-old Becky-boo.
I also consumed my weight in Sour Cream Chicken Enchiladas – recipe coming tomorrow, in case you’ve give up dairy and want to cry whilst looking at beautiful, milky (ewww) pictures.
MY PLEA FOR HELP!
     Guess what! I have a question (or twenty) that I’m hoping you can help me with. I’m prepping to start my own website and need advice from all ends. 
1. I have no smarts when it comes to technology. Which web host should I choose? I’ve been recommended WebHostingHub and told that it’s great for people who are technologically challenged.
2. Once I get a host, I have no idea what to do. I don’t know HTML, XML or any of the in-between. All I really want as of now is a blog that’s not run under Blogger or WordPress. Any recommended templates I should check out? Or anyone willing to design one for credit?  
3. I don’t know what else to ask about this – that’s how little I know about the process.
PLEASE HELP ME!!!

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Filed under coffee, dairy, Dos Beckis, Fat Tuesday, giving up dairy, help me, indian buffet, Jesus, Lent, mango lassi, Mardi Gras, NEW WEBSITE, shopping spree, sour cream chicken enchiladas

by | November 6, 2010 · 9:21 am

Ho Hum Road and Easy Street!

Told you I wasn’t lying!!
     I have a feeling the art show blogs will be mostly pictures, because I have taken SO MANY that I want to share, plus I’m exhausted and not feeling witty at all after a full day at the festival AND an hour on the treadmill in our little fitness room at the hotel. Phew, even typing that makes my brain sore. Okay, picture attack starts….NOW!
Veggie omelette with two eggs, bell peppers, onions, tomatoes, cheddar cheese and a side of home fries.
Freshly made biscuit drenched in honey.
THE ELIXER OF LIFE!!!
Our neighboring booth’s bronze sculptures and waterfalls.
Oil paintings.
Freeform pottery by Ken!
Creepy metal birds!
Appliqued mirrors!
Evil cactus that cut open my arm yesterday.
I’M GONNA KICK IT.
Lounging at lunch.
O’Dell’s Easy Street Wheat! And I just now realized why they serve it on EASY STREET.
Shut up. It’s been a long day.
Grilled veggie sammich again! These veggies are grilled in olive oil, then chilled before placed in this fresh, warm foccacia. I am in love with the hot/icy combo. Perfect for chowing down on an 85 degree day!
The genius artist herself. Eating 🙂. We make a good match!
Spider attack!
Fudge?
Fudge.
Fudge!
FUDGE!!!
So true, fudge. So true.
You can’t go wrong with Herbes de Provence! Or goat cheese…
My first time having Mediterranean food!
A promising start…
Baba Gannnouj – That’s how they spelled it. Three N’s means three times as good, yes?
YES!
     I got falafel in pita bread for dinner, but by the time it came, it was too dark and the picture didn’t come out at all. Just know that it was delicious – fried things always are.
     That’s all she wrote! She’ll take more pictures tomorrow to imprint into your minds. She’ll also stop talking in the third person, but hopes you’ll excuse her, seeing as she spent the entire day shmoozing with amazing artists, trying not to overheat in the Arizona air, eating massive amounts of food and wearing a dress.
Wearing a dress is very difficult for her.

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Filed under baba gannouj, biscuits, coffee, creepy metal birds, devil-possessed cactus, Easy Street, Easy Street Wheat, Efes, falafel, FUDGE, Ho Hum Road, O'Dell's, oil painting, Pottery, sculptures

by | October 13, 2010 · 9:14 am

Meet Frogface!

     I’m an awesome friend. Just to let you all know. I got up at 6am on my only day off to take a friend to the airport. It took almost two hours of fighting traffic to get down to LAX – lucky for us, we had gotten off the 101 before Imperial Stars decided to pull over their bus and give a concert in the three left lanes of the highway. Lucky me!

     After dropping my friend off, my roommate (who is also an awesome friend) and I took the coast up and stopped for breakfast at Paradise Cove.
COFFEEEEEEE!
Cinnamon french toast. This one ended up wreaking havoc on my stomach – too many carbs and too much sugar! I’m not used to such an overload!
Paradise Cove is a very swanky little trailer park…
With a beautiful backdrop!
     Tonight was my final pottery class for at least a month, so I decided not to throw any bowls and instead let my brain revert back to how it though as a preschooler.
This is Frogface.
Frogface is pleased (and surprised) to meet you!
My mom has a bit more talent than I do in the pottery department.
By a bit, I mean she has a LOT more talent than I do!
     A late dinner followed pottery class with a splash of splurge.
Chimay Red! I’m so spoiled! This beer is AH-MAY-ZING! Deliciously rich and smooth and full of joy. I can’t really describe this one any better. No notes stick out (maybe because I’ve had a glass and a half so far), just deliciousness. 
     We’re wrapping up watching Glee and sipping good brews, and tomorrey I officially start working for the artist and learning Excel and fun stuffs like that, followed by a night shift at work and lots of GELATO!
Please compliment Frogface. He’s quite insecure…

2 Comments

Filed under airport, beach, Chimay Red, coffee, french toast, Frogface, Imperial Stars, LAX, Mom, Paradise Cove

by | August 29, 2010 · 7:47 am

A Simple Kind of Life

     Summer tastes exactly like a tree-ripened peach, freshly sliced, sitting next to a mug of coffee.

At least to me. It was a wonderful way to begin my morning, overlooking the sunrise.
My Monsta had something different in it today! This had 5 cups of spinach, 1/2 a banana, 1/2 of a cup of unsweetened soymilk, 1/2 of a cup of frozen blueberries, 1/2 of a gigantic carrot, and 1/2 of a lemon. The carrot definitely added some sweetness to it. Boo to the yah for 6 veggie servings before 9am!
     Work was work. I whined, I complained, I commiserated with my fellow unhappy coworkers, and I ate cupcakes.
Yes, my work gives out junk food when you do something well. I don’t understand why they feel the need to make us all gain weight… I demolished this cupcake. Oops.
     Lunch was a mini spicy tuna roll with brown rice, followed by some speed walking. I had some company back at work which made the time fly by, then headed home with some mountain biking on my brain. I walked into my house and decided biking was a bad choice. Instead I decided on this:
Fancy nachos! Soy and flaxseed tortilla chips with leftover tri-tip, chipotle peppers covered in pepperjack cheese and guacamole. Guacamole from a bag. It looks awful, I know. Red wine, for the win!
     My alarm is set for an early-morning bike ride tomorrey, followed by an icy Monsta and a long day at work. Next week will be full of pictures of friends and foods and auditions, so stick with me! 
Enjoy the rest of your weekend!

2 Comments

Filed under biking, coffee, green monster, nachos, peaches, red wine, sushi, work

by | August 15, 2010 · 8:19 am

Summer Filming: Day 1

     Tired. So tired. I went to bed around 11pm last night, and woke up at 5am this morning to get to set. I set up all my Monsta stuff so I could wake, blend and go, but that didn’t happen. Breakfast was a banana and a big mug of coffee on the road.

I arrived to set, which was cloaked in thick fog and wonderfully chilly.
I gulped down another cup of coffee and ate an Oats ‘N Honey bar while getting my makeup DID.
     We shot the master of one of the first scenes as well as a few close-ups which took a few hours, then broke for lunch.
Yay, catering! Thanks Jenny (our amazing producer)!
Check out how artsy this photo is! Oh yeah, I’m that good. I had a spinach and strawberry salad, a small scoop of chicken divan and a big old slice of garlic bread. Then I had another big old slice of garlic bread.
Hi-jinks were had. I took a walk around the park and checked out some of the trails.
We shot at O’Neill Regional Park in Trabuco Canyon. For those of you who don’t know, that’s FAR. I’m down in Orange for the remainder of the weekend.
Lots of gorgeous trails and buildings to see.
The interior of that car was HOT! Our awesome co-star/stunt driver Jordan kept stalling the stick shift. It was pretty epic – but to be fair, he did learn to use a stick over the course of 15 minutes this very morning!
Cookies were had. Multiple cookies.
     Now I’m chilling in my room, realizing that I didn’t have dinner and I’m pretty frikkin’ hungry, but too tired to go out and eat. I think tomorrey I’ll be raiding the craft services table for the first few hours. Now I’m going to go pass out! Call time for tomorrow (yes, we’re shooting on a Sunday :-/) is 7am. I will most definitely be sleeping on set, and taking pictures of co-stars. 
When’s the last time you spent an entire Saturday in a national park?
🙂

4 Comments

Filed under banana, Chicken Divan, coffee, cookies, filming, set, short film, stick shift

by | August 10, 2010 · 7:50 am

Death by Cheese!

     Our neighbor took a trip to Reno, Nevada, and brought back a gift last night for watching over her house.

Cheese bread. Our neighbor is evil… and so wonderful!
     I seriously ate about 1/3 of the entire loaf, then spent the rest of the night feeling like I was going to hurl. After practicing portion control all week, this was massive overload on my stomach. I woke up this morning with a greasy-cheesy-carbalicious hangover. Blah!
     Breakfast was a cleansing Monsta that made me feel all better, and then I headed to work. Coffee was desperately needed, so I headed to Nordstrom’s E-Bar to get a coffee. They have begun listing calories next to their drinks – my usual latte is 210 calories!!! Instead, I got a small brewed coffee with a little soymilk stirred in, and a Luna bar to tide me over until lunch.
“Nutz Over Chocolate” – not too sweet, with a little salty bite. Perfect for the five hour wait before lunch.
     I changed it up for lunch… well, kinda… I didn’t have sushi, does that count?
6-inch on wheat with turkey, extra spinach, cucumbers, tomatoes, green peppers, pepper jack cheese, a little mayo and mustard. A lot of the bread was discarded – the loaves are way too thick! Hooray for healthy Subway!
     When I got home, I poured a glass of “red wine” (Seriously, the bottle doesn’t say Zinfandel or Syrah, it just says “red wine”) from Trader Joe’s and had a KSS.
This KSS just had 1/3 of a bag of chopped baby greens, 1/3 of a chopped bell pepper, 1/3 of a container of egg white salad and a little dressing.
     It was a very healthy day! That is until…
Crap. Apparently overdosing on cheese bread last night didn’t kill my appetite for cheese and carbs. I had two slices of ham, caramelized onions and gruyere cheese tart. 
     Ah well, you can’t win them all! I don’t feel overstuffed, if that’s any consolation. Tomorrey is my day off, so I’ll be hanging with my cousin and friend Allie and doing some shopping, some eating of good foods (in controlled portions) and possibly facial-ing! We’re looking for some cheaper places in the area.

     Side note – my friend Heather has started a Green Monster mission! Heather, blog about it so we can cheer you on :)!

How do you spend your days off?

2 Comments

Filed under cheese bread, coffee, green monster, kitchen sink salad, Luna bar, Subway, wine

by | July 14, 2010 · 8:55 am

Last Class!

     Today, a Tuesday in LA, I ate real food! Shocker, I know!

First, I had coffee with my new peppermint mocha non-dairy creamer. FAIL! It tasted okay, but kind of chemically, then when I looked at the ingredients, I found there isn’t a single natural ingredient except for  water. This’ll be going back to the store tomorrow.
Breakfast was powerful! 3.5 cups of spinach, 2/3 cups of unsweetened soymilk, 1/3 a banana, 1/8 a cup of frozen berries and the juice of 2 small lemons.
     I toasted up a slice of my fresh bread and covered it with my new chimichurri sauce!
This tasted like a freshly cut lawn. I don’t know why it always turns out like this. The stuff I buy pre-made from the farmers’ market tastes amazing! I’ll try tweaking my recipe. Any tips to make it taste not-so-fresh-from-the-yard?
     It was a slow drive into the city. Luckily, I had the new Sky Sailing album to cruise along to: such a lovely album. Very relaxing and nostalgic. Go listen to “Brielle” as soon as you can! On the way in, I got hungry so I ate the single banana I’d brought with.
Banana. Exciting.
     Today was my last class for awhile. I’m trying to buffer my bank account, so my class is one of the first to be cut :(. Sadness. It was a great note to end on – adjustment day. We get a scene, perform it in front of the class, then get an adjustment (first half irritated, second half impatient, on this line, throw the paper down, on this line cross to the couch and sit, etc.) and apply it. It’s incredible to see how many actors can’t take direction. It’s much easier to work with someone who’s open to suggestion and able to handle surprises on the fly. After class, I got tons of good-bye hugs and well-wishes, and I was pretty bummed to walk away. Sniff.
     I got to interning around 4pm and had to fill out some booking info for clients. It was a busy day on the submission front and I was go-go-going! My boss wonderfully made me a ham and cheese sandwich when she found out I don’t eat on Tuesdays if I don’t have time to stop by the store, and I inhaled it!
Ham and swiss on wheat with a little mayo. Yum! Thanks, Terry!
     The drive home sucked massively, but when I got back, my roommate had made me a big KSS!
Lots of chopped lettuce, diced bell peppers, sauteed zucchini, warmed lentils and egg white salad with homemade dressing. I’m so spoiled!
I also had a glass of pear cider that I forgot to take a picture of. Take my word, it was delicious.
Dessert was another slice of bread toasted and drizzled with honey.
     I’m getting dozy and watching That 70’s Show, so since I have nothing profound to say, I’ll leave you be :). Good night!
What are some bands that you’re obsessed with? Owl City/Sky Sailing has my obsession over the last year!

4 Comments

Filed under Class, coffee, green monster, honey, kitchen sink salad, Los Angeles, sammich

by | June 13, 2010 · 9:35 am

A Morning of Firsts, and Lasts

     I didn’t mean to… I swear I didn’t! Last night, I promised you all that I’d eat two ice cream bars, but I failed. I only ate one. I guess it’s a good thing that one satisfied me, but after my promises of not lying to you anymore, I felt guilty. Just had to let you all know the truth.

     Bad news: I ran out of spinach. There was no GM for me this morning. Instead, I decided to try the overnight oats that I’ve read so much about. I used the vegan version from Oh She Glows. Luckily, I had picked up some chia seeds at Sprouts before the farmers’ market on Thursday, so I was able to throw all the ingredients into a bowl. It looked a little scary…

     
     When I woke up in the morning, it looked even scarier.
     Then I stirred in a tablespoon of flaxseed peanut butter and a drizzle of maple syrup and it looked like it was going to crawl out of the bowl and beat me up.
     I’ll say this nicely – I’m NOT a fan. Cold oatmeal and I just do not mesh. It was chilly and slimy, and after every bite, I took a sip of coffee like a chaser to get rid of the shivers it brought on. Maybe if I ever get the guts (ewww, that’s what it reminds me of) to make it again I’ll reheat it and try it warm. Have you ever heated up overnight oats? Did it make them inedible or better?

     When I got to work, I diligently focused on my responsibilities.
     That’s one of the pages of The Death and Life of Charlie St. Cloud. The only copy that was available in my library was a large print. When I want to read something badly enough, I’ll settle for this, but large print takes some getting used to! Personally, I find it harder to read than regular.
     I also got to hang out with some of the boys.
     They hang out with me when I have a snack break and guard my purse from the delinquents who may try to steal it. They’re chill.
     My annoying stomach started going off an hour into work, even though I’d had massive amounts of cold, clammy protein in the oats and peanut butter, so I swung by See’s Candies to get a sample. The workers at See’s know me. They know me well. I paid for two pieces, and this is what they gave me:
     I ask for two, I come out with five. I hate those workers so much…and yet I adore them! Double caramel FTW!
     For lunch I had a mini spicy tuna roll with brown rice and sriracha soy sauce, yet again. I met up with my friend Brittany and we sat outside in the beautiful sunshine, enjoyed the fresh air and dreamed about what we could be doing if we had money and weren’t trapped doing retail. Girls gotta dream 🙂
     I bailed on work early. I just couldn’t take anymore standing around and reading, plus I had to pick up the roommate from the train station. I got home, sat in a comfy chair, tweeted about how I never wanted to get out of it, then finally got up and made myself a mini-KSS.
     This baby had lettuce, warmed lentils, half a bell pepper, half a container of Spicy Ranchero Egg White Salad, a sliced and sauteed zucchini all tossed with about 2 teaspoons of homemade dressing. I feasted. I smiled.
     I headed on down to the train station, picked up the adored roomie and came back to catch up over a Franziskaner (for me) and a glass of wine (for her). Then I realized I needed to write my blog before I fell asleep in the aforementioned cozy chair, so I opened up a coconut milk ice cream bar, and here we are.
     Tomorrow begins a week of housesitting, so my blogs may be slightly sporadic because I don’t get internet connection over there – BOOOOO! I hope you all enjoy your Saturday nights, and aren’t as lame as I’m about to be – passing out in said chair before dragging myself to bed.
Bon Nuit!

2 Comments

Filed under books, Chocolate, coffee, Franziskaner, kitchen sink salad, overnight oats, reading, See's Candies, sushi, The Death and Life of Charlie St. Cloud, vegan, work

by | June 4, 2010 · 2:11 am

Costco & Fro-Yo

Well, it turns out that bell pepper slices with hummus aren’t enough for dinner for a normal person – silly me. As soon as I got to work, my stomach turned on me with a vengeance.

I belong to the Godiva Rewards club, which means I get one free piece of chocolate per month. Godiva ain’t cheap, so this is the only time I’ll ever enter the store – my wallet learned from my addiction a few years ago. To try and calm the wild beast that was screaming from inside my abdomen, I selected the Spring Rasberry Truffle. It has a thick, velvety rasberry center and is draped in white chocolate. So freakin’ amazing! It didn’t comfort my stomach for more than half an hour though, so I headed over to our trusty new Subway and got a 6-inch roast beef and turkey on whole wheat with spinach, tomatoes, cucumbers, green bell peppers and mustard. I picked away all the excess bread that I didn’t want to eat and made the local birds very happy.

This morning began with Emergen-C, coffee and a breakfast scramble. I promise there will be something new for tomorrow! Just wait! We also went on another lovely hike that was again overcrowded with people. Good for all of them getting their fitness in – I guess I’ll just have to head out earlier to enjoy the peace and quiet!

Looking up towards the halfway point.

After a quick shower to attempt and rinse all the bug spray I’ve been accumulating during every hike, we headed off to Costco to stock up on some much-needed veggies.

But FIRST! We just had to stop for some frozen yogurt from Menchies! After my last fro-yo stomach pain, I stuck to the dairy-free Mango Sorbet, and topped it with fresh strawberries, kiwi, blueberries, and a touch of Mochi – a yummy rice candy that’s full of sugar and carbs :)! It was a perfect way to fend off the lunch-hunger that needed to be filled with free Costco samples.

At Costco we picked up a MONSTER bag of spinach which I’ll show you tomorrow, and a big box of coffee pods. Can’t live without my coffee! Samples were very low, and I skipped the baby brie on crackers and just had some stir-fried chicken on a toothpick. Not quite enough for lunch…

At home I caught up on my current favorite blog – http://eatliverun.com, and made myself a big Kitchen Sink Salad.
This one has an entire bag of Trader Joe’s baby greens, half of a bell pepper, an entire container of Spicy Ranchero Egg White Salad, and half a cup of warmed lentils and was drizzled with a balsamic-whole grain mustard dressing. This baby is gonna have to tide me over until tomorrow – I head back to work for another 3 hour shift tonight :-/.

Tomorrow will mark my first attempt at a GREEN MONSTER!!! A green monster is a massive blend of spinach, soy milk, bananas, ice and blueberries. I’m going to get in 4 servings of veggies before 8am! Wish me luck 🙂

KSS MAKES ME HAPPY!!!!!

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Filed under coffee, Costco, Emergen-C, green monster, hike, kitchen, salad, samples, sink