My Lovely Lady Apples...

OMG, after playing in the cranberry bathtub tonight at the grocery store, I found the cutest thing ever...they're called "Lady Apples"...here is one posing next to a regular apple:














Look! They had mini pears, too!! I might carry them around with me for the next couple weeks, that way I can look at them whenever I need a pick-me-up. :)













Carl made vegan pasta last night! You melt soy cheese and then just add your favorite herbs & spices. He steamed some fresh snap peas with it and served it with wheat toast. I've been on a huge toast kick lately....














Yeah toast!

Bite the Bullet...

I cooked up this recipe I found online tonight and served it over rice! It was fresh broccoli & tofu in a garlic sauce. I added some red pepper flakes to make it spicy and delicious!

Broccoli is an important veggie to include in your diet...ounce for ounce, it has more vitamin C than an orange, as much calcium as a glass of cow juice, and 3 times more fiber than a slice of wheat bran bread! It's also one of the richest veggie sources of vitamin A and it contains potent cancer-fighting components. All of that in ONE vegetable, my friends.














We followed our meal with a peanut butter/banana smoothie, featuring chocolate soy milk and agave nectar. If you don't have a Magic Bullet, you should totally get one, it's so handy! You just add all of your ingredients into one of their cups, attach the blade, and mix...it's like a high-powered blender.

Dairy-Air....

We haven't purchased "real milk" in I don't know how long. Years! And while the vanilla & plain soy milks take some getting used to, the chocolate is sooo good.

We always look forward to Silk Nog during the holidays. It has all of the festive flavor without the real eggs & dairy! It's only out for a limited time, so grab a quart!!

Girl's Night...

Went to see the hilarious & irreverent Kathy Griffin in San Antonio on Thursday! Fabulous show, fabulous girlies. I'm gonna start saying Brenda is my Mommy. ;)

Herbivore...

We got a package in the mail last week from Lynsey that contained a "gummy dinosaur". I enjoy random things like that. We had it at work and told Diego he could have it if he put it in his veggie sammich.

Da Bears...

Our friend, Jim, sent me this video and it's far too awesome to keep to myself.

There are many unfortunate things about this video, but I think the biggest is that they let the white dudes rap and "dance". Enjoy...

Mystery Solved...

A bunch of people emailed me with guesses, but the sweet and innocent Mrs. Daskalos was the first to answer correctly. I should've done a prize. Next time.

The Mystery Item is...

A fake boobie insert!!! Some people call them chicken cutlets. The funny thing is that Carl saw it on the street, took a pic, and when he walked by again after about 10 minutes, it was gone. Somebody scored a dirty B cup!

Rhythm & Blues Clues...

This video features Sam King on drums...I think he's about 3ish in the vid...and he's a total badass.

We met his Dad, Ross, during a once-in-a-lifetime experience that we can't disclose, but I think most of you know what I'm talking about. ;) He's a total badass, too. (that's him singing)

The Sixers...

Yesterday was our big 6 year Anniversary and we had the loveliest of days...

We slept in, then got up and chilled on the couch for a bit. When I got out of the shower, Carl surprised me with a little living room picnic for us! And he found my favorite Disney movie on DVD, The Little Mermaid. :) Don't hate!!!













After that, we got ready to go hear Matt McCloskey play some music downtown at The Belmont! And then we scurried off to have a tasty dinner at Manuel's. Somehow I ended up looking twice the size of Carl in this pic:













I'm HORRIBLE at keeping surprises from Carl...ok from anyone really...so I ended up spilling the beans early...but for our Anniversary, I got us tickets to the filming of a new Jim Gaffigan Comedy Central special, coming up in December!


I heart you, me loave.

Condomnation...

Miss Beatrice, the church organist, was in her eighties and had never been married. She was admired for her sweetness and kindness to all.

One afternoon the pastor came to call on her and she showed him into her quaint sitting room. She invited him to have a seat while she prepared tea. As he sat facing her old Hammond organ, the young minister noticed a glass bowl sitting on top of it. The bowl was filled with water, and in the water floated, of all things, a condom!

When she returned with tea and scones, they began to chat. The pastor tried to stifle his curiosity about the bowl of water and its strange floater, but soon it got the better of him and he could no longer resist.

'Miss Beatrice', he said, 'I wonder if you would tell me about this?' pointing to the bowl. 'Oh, yes,' she replied, 'Isn't it wonderful? I was walking through the Park a few months ago and I found this little package on the ground. The directions said to place it on the organ, keep it wet and that it would prevent the spread of disease. Do you know I haven't had the flu all winter.'

Waffle House Wedding...

This is totally awesome:

Mystery Item...

Carl saw this on the sidewalk outside our office today. Guess what it is!!!

My Brutha...

My brother, Matthew Michael Singer, turned 29 yesterday. Happy Birthday to this guy who turned out opposite to me in most ways. He's 6'3" with blonde hair and green eyes, I'm 5'4" with brown hair and blue eyes. He enjoys hunting and fishing, I'm a vegetarian. He lives in the boondocks, I like the city. I won't even get in to the more controversial topics, because the important thing is that we can still get along despite all of our differences! That's the beauty of how diversity and acceptance go hand in hand.

So here's to the next year of your life, Mr. Mattypants! I hope it's the best one yet. :)

***

Eating raw corn from our garden in Sandy, Oregon:























Playing in the freshly cut grass with our cousins, Tami & Kristi:























With our pretty Mommy back in the 80's:

It's bananas, b-a-n-a-n-a-s...

We had some bananas that were turning brown, so I thought I'd make banana bread! I looked up a vegan recipe and chose this one because I had all of the ingredients and they were different than anything I've tried before, with applesauce and pure maple syrup. Being that it's sugar free, it wasn't as sweet as normal banana bread, but it's absolutely delish with a little peanut butter on top!

















Speaking of buhnahnaz, we've been taking a whole slew of 'em to to church the last couple of weeks. They typically only have donuts and various "Little Debbie's" products (bad bad bad), so we wanted to contribute something healthy and wholesome. People gobbled them down and the lady in charge of refreshments said she's going to start bringing them every week. Score one for the magical yellow fruit!

Creativity...

I LOVE this talk!! It's so worth your 19 minutes.

Sir Carl E. Miner...

I was reading about Winston Churchill earlier and Carl leaned over and happened to notice that Churchill's father was named "Lord Randolph Henry Spencer Churchill". This made him wonder how people get those fancy titles.

And we found the answer!

If you just visit this website, you can choose from many illustrious titles, such as Count, Baron, Duke, etc., for only $197!!!

And here are some of the benefits of a "life of privilege":

• Credit cards emblazoned with "Lord (or Lady) Smith"
  
• All identification confirming the new royal title.
  
• Doors opening professionally and socially.
  
• There is no faster way to climb the social ladder.
  
• A unique and thoughtful gift which can pay for itself.
  
• A fantastic icebreaker which gains instant respect and credibility
  
• Unlocking doors which were previously unknown

I don't know about you, but I certainly look forward to climbing the social ladder with my new title.

Love,
Duchess Elisabeth J. Miner

These are a few of my favorite things...

Diego saw this blog post of mine and replaced me with two of Carl's very "favorite" things, the Papyrus font and the Jonas Brothers. ;)

What the Dell???

Carl got a sexy new computer today!! He certainly deserves it and I'm excited to get his old one...mine is straight from the ghetto right now...it's missing keys and the cord has to be at a very special angle to get power.

I asked him to give me "crazy eyes" for this pic:

Scars Remain...

This is one of my scars. I had a tumor on my kidney when I was little that was mis-diagnosed as "growing pains" after years of trips to the emergency room. When they finally figured out the problem, I had 8 surgeries to remove it all. I have a long scar stretching horizontally on my side, too, that you can't see very well in this little pic.

My point for sharing this is that when I was a teenager, I felt like I could never be comfortable showing my body to someone because of these wounds. But when I married Carl, he made me feel so loved and accepted that all of my insecurities went away. Now I'm naked ALL the time!

Too far? I know. I have a problem. Anyhoo, I wrote a new song called "Scars Remain":



LIFE TOOK A TOLL ON MY BODY, ON MY SOUL
I ALWAYS HID UNDER COVER ON MY SKIN
WE'RE ALL A LITTLE TORN AT THE SEAMS
YOU HAVE BEEN THE TAILOR I NEED

WHEN YOU SEE ME, YOU SEE EVERYTHING
EVERY FLAW I KEEP
IS SUDDENLY A LITTLE LESS PART OF ME
MY GUARD RELEASED
I'M FREE TO MOVE ON, THE HEALING BEGUN
SCARS REMAIN, BUT THE ONE ON MY HEART IS GONE

I'LL NEVER BE MS. PERFECTION BEAUTY QUEEN
BUT YOU'VE SHOWN ME HOW TO WEAR YOUR LOVE AS MY CROWN
SHOES DON'T MAKE THE MAN IN MY WORLD
PLASTIC SURE DOES NOT MAKE THE GIRL

Food For Thought...

Two tofu recipes for you! I know you're excited. But don't be hatin' quite yet! I used to think it was creepy until we learned how to cook it properly. Now my body craves it. The perfect way to get your protein!

This Kung "POW" Tofu recipe is one of my favorites:














My girl Lynsey commented on my last food posting that she needs to teach me how to take food photos so they look appealing. I do apologize! ;) I don't know WHAT the problem could be! I mean, aside from not being a photographer or a food stylist, I bought our 10lb digital camera like in 1995 for $1100. I kind of wish it would die so we'd be forced to get a new one, but I don't want to be wasteful!

So this "lovely" photo is Tofu Scrambler with onions, topped with fresh avocado. And vegan English Muffins on the side with Earth Balance:

One in a million doesn't always mean you're unique...

Since we're lucky enough to work in the creative industry, we constantly have to seek out inspiration. One guy that I find intriguing is Hugh MacLeod, a cartoonist and professional blogger. Here is one of his musings that caught my attention:

Tolerance...

“Your greatness is measured by your kindness; your education and intellect by your modesty; your ignorance is betrayed by your suspicions and prejudices, and your real caliber is measured by the consideration and tolerance you have for others.”
—William J.H. Boetcker

“We should therefore claim, in the name of tolerance, the right not to tolerate the intolerant.”
—Karl Popper

“Tolerance implies a respect for another person, not because he is wrong or even because he is right, but because he is human.”
—John Cogley Commonweal

“The test of courage comes when we are in the minority. The test of tolerance comes when we are in the majority.”
—Ralph W. Stockman

Diversity...

“Human diversity makes tolerance more than a virtue; it makes it a requirement for survival.”
—Rene Dubos

“It is time for parents to teach young people early on that in diversity there is beauty and there is strength.”
—Maya Angelou

“We need to give each other the space to grow, to be ourselves, to exercise our diversity. We need to give each other space so that we may both give and receive such beautiful things as ideas, openness, dignity, joy, healing, and inclusion.”
—Max De Pree

“We all should know that diversity makes for a rich tapestry, and we must understand that all the threads of the tapestry are equal in value no matter what their color.”
—Maya Angelou

***

Amen.

Chik'n...

An easy veggie lunch! A wheat roll with mixed greens, a homemade avocado vegenaise, and "Chik'n" nuggets....my favorite brands are Morningstar Farms and Quorn, available at most grocery stores!

Religulous...

I'm totally going to go see this next week!!!

Go Ask Alice...

I read this article today and apparently melamine was just found in White Rabbit Creamy Candy.

It seems to me that if you saw this package, paid for it and then consumed it, melamine is the least of your worries.