Indoor activities

Like I said at my previous blog post, winter is rather upon us, which brings the need for more indoor activities. I cannot think of myself watching TV or surfing the Internet all day (ok, I don't know about the surfing part), and I realized that I have a good number of board games and the like to make time pass when scraping snow off the car's windshield is just not worth it.

I've always enjoyed playing Scrabble, both in English and Greek, and it felt awesome beating hubby once or twice. (in English. In Greek I win by default because he's clueless). Last week I picked a card game variation of Scrabble called Scrabble Slam, in which you have to create a 4 letter word by changing letters on a word already played by another player. It looks like it's gonna be fun for 2 people.

Another game that I have missed playing is backgammon. Hubby never learned how to play, being a chess type guy. I tried to learn chess when I was a kid and let me tell you, I sucked like nobody's business! I can't think that much in advance to strategize effectively. So, he's reduced into playing chess against his laptop, while I've played backgammon against my iPhone. However, just the other night, he mentioned that he was willing to learn backgammon to play with me. We have a nice wooden set that I bought for when my sister visited, and it should really get some action!

Then, there are games that require 3 or more people, which means that our (remarkably few) friends would have to brave the elements to come visit and play. One of my favorite such board games is Apples to Apples, in which you have to match cards with various nouns to a card with an adjective; thus, G. W. Bush can be fluffy, the Grand Canyon can be dangerous and Michael Jackson can be patriotic. I have spent many hilarious evenings playing this game.

For last, there's this DIY game that my friends back in the 'burgh called it "The Best Game Ever". The players divide a piece of paper (A4 or 8.5 x 11) into horizontal divisions - then they write a random phrase on it and pass it on to the next player, who has to draw a picture of said phrase, then pass it on to the next player that has to make a new phrase out of the drawing. It's like Broken Telephone on paper, and as a matter of fact it's available as an online game here.

This post is getting rather longish, so I'll make a part 2 for console games and the like in a future post.

Naked branches

Tinsie and I were discussing about the brutal winds that both our locations suffer from, and how it'd pretty much wipe any leaves left on the tree branches, and I remembered this snap I took yesterday after hitting golf balls at the range.

Now all we want is the minus temperatures and the snow, and we can call it winter alright!

In Nashville, Tennessee, it's Xmas season already.

This one was taken by hubby while participating at the AiChe conference held at the Gaylord Opryland Hotel in Nashville, TN.

Normally, one would expect that the tree is put not earlier than Thanksgiving, but apparently there's no such thing as "too early"!

Truth to be told, the stores are already selling ornaments. But actually putting a tree up? Maybe a little overboard..

No cooking today!

Hubby has been out of town since last Sunday (which is a main reason for me running rampant in the kitchen) and he's returning tonight. Since he'll be eating at the airport, I was not going to bother with cooking for myself - I microwaved a pouch of biriyani rice for lunch, and had bread and butter with tea for a snack. I decided to autumnize my tea by adding the following spices into it, in small dashes:

cinnamon
clove
nutmeg
lemon peel

I brewed the tea double strength, added the spices with a sachet of Splenda (I'll have to try this with brown sugar too though) and then added half a cup of pulp free orange juice.

Then, I took them for consumption at my favourite place - my computer desk. The spices and the citrus flavors are currently battling in my mouth. Yum!

Initiating Cooking Mode - Grilled Veggies Pitta Wraps

I had this craving for grilled veggies for a few days, so when I went to the store the other day I got a couple of portabella caps and a medium sized eggplant. The plan was to just grill them on my small Foreman Grill and have them with a bit of bread.

So, thinking some in advance, I sliced the veggies, plus a yellow bell pepper that I happened to have around, and grilled them on the Foreman till softened, then put them in a container with a simple vinaigrette that I whipped on the spot (balsamic vinegar, olive oil, garlic powder, pepper and sugar), but any vinaigrette would do. I closed the lid on the container and threw it in the fridge. Then I went shopping.

I bought Self Magazine, an entertaining book about female friendships, and Scrabble Slam, a card game. Then, I bought some ground clove and vanilla extract in case I decide to initiate Baking Mode in the future, and a waterproof mascara because the previous one I had purchased wasn't and I found out the bad way.

Then I returned home and realized that I forgot to buy bread. Or gruyere that I was also fantasizing about. However, I had pitas and crumbled feta, so that had to do.

I heated the pitas in a pan with just a bit of oil in it, while microwaving the vegetables. I divided them and the feta crumbles between the two pitas, though there was enough vegetables for possibly 3 of them. I didn't want to eat a 3rd pita, but I was hungry so I ate the whole thing, and it was delicious.

Initiating Cooking Mode - Turkey BLTs

I came home from the gym positively exhausted, and since my lunches are a situation of cooking for one, I didn't want to be with leftovers for the weekend, since tomorrow I'm going to a medieval reenactment event and I'll sample an abundance of period recipes during the day (far from diet friendly, but it's only for a day!)

Upon opening my refridgerator, I quickly noticed that I had the following items.

Strips of turkey bacon
Tomatoes
Spring mix greens

I employed my faithful toaster and proceeded to toast 4 slices of wheat bread in it. Meanwhile, I heated my pan on high heat without any oil in it and put 4 slices of said turkey bacon in. I don't like my bacon extra crispy, so I removed them after they started curling a bit.

Once the bread was all toasted, I layered between 2 of the slices,a handful of spring mix, round slices of tomato and before I added the bacon I splashed the veggies with a dash of balsamic vinegar, since I don't like mustard and I don't keep it at home. I had them with the rest of the tomato (I could add some more spring mix greens for a more wholesome side salad - maybe next time).

Initiating Cooking Mode - Pretend Mushroom melt.

Spending time at home being unemployed really puts me in the mood to cook. However I have two major obstacles in said endeavour. 1. I'm lazy and don't want to spend 1 hour in the kitchen for a plate of food that will be eaten in 10 minutes, and 2. I'm still on a diet, which means that I need to be careful of what I eat.

Mushrooms are awesome, and so is cheese. Add garlic and bread to it and it equals into a dish of awesome, diet and speedy preparation.

You will need:
8 ounces of sliced mushrooms (small supermarket container)
3 slices of reduced fat (I used 2%) swiss cheese, cut in small bits
1 teaspoon of olive oil
clove of garlic, pressed, or garlic powder for the forgetful types like myself.
2 slices of bread. I used wheat but any type will do.

Heat oil in small (but big enough to contain the mushrooms) pan. Dump in mushrooms and toss around to heat thoroughly. Cook till they shrink and release their liquid. Add the garlic and let them cook some more.

Meanwhile, toast your bread as much as you prefer it - I like it only slightly browned.

Add the cheese to the pan and toss so that it goes everywhere. It'll bind with the mushroom liquid producing a glorious cheesy goo.

Once said goo happens, remove the bread from the toaster, plate it and immediately pour the mushroom and cheese mix on top of them. Serve hot.

It was delicious and the whole deal was 374 calories per my calorie calculator. Alas, as with most of impromptu made foods, it was barely photographable!

I'm back, through planes and cabs!

I had a lovely time, there was laughs and good food and a couple of really silly costumes. Kudos to the guy that dared to come as Chuck Norris! There was also the oxymoron that I'd call Comfortable Domestic Flight.

I opted to flight with United since their scheduled flight and price suited me. However, when I went to self-check in, since I would not check in any luggage, I was offered with a service they call Economy Plus. To wit, a type of seating with more leg space (5 inches, per their advertising) than their standard Economy. They were asking for $14 for an hour long flight, so I thought "why not? My knees usually suffer during domestic flights with the narrow space that is usually provided" and opted for the upgrade.

It sure made all the difference in the world. I didn't fidget in my seat like I normally do trying to unlock my knees, and I could actually use my tray without pushing it with my stomach.

In addition, on my sold out flight back, they offered to check in my quite large carry on for no additional cost, since I'd be of the last to board and as such I might not find space on the overhead compartment to store it. I thought momentarily that I might get Murphy's law by finding my sack to be the last on the baggage claim blet, but since it was of the last to be loaded in, it was of the first to be placed on it.

So I might actively try to flight with United in the future. As for the cab part of the post, it makes me really happy that getting a taxi in Chicagoland is so less complicated than in Pittsburgh (where people just don't take taxis, period). I have a company's phone number in my cellphone's contacts list, I'm in their database, including my home address, so it might be that they sent me a driver that knows my suburb well and needs little direction.

Ah, little comforts that make for a Marg that gets home just mildly tired instead of trip-induced cranky!

The silliest things can be found in airplanes

You never know when you might need one of those!


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Happy Halloween!

Why am I not wishing you tomorrow? Because I will be flying to Pittsburgh for a costume party. It's only for the weekend, but it'll be fun being back none the less.











Have a great one!

Adventures in dieting.

I have started dieting and exercise again - after a trip to my doctor who gave me a surprisingly clean health bill, and the realization that part of the rent I'm paying is towards the clubhouse gym, and though the exercise part is easy (go downstairs, get on the elliptical, work out, get off, go home), the dieting part is another thing altogether.

Good food is one of the things that get me going. I enjoy eating out, discovering cuisines, and cook at home when I can. I am taking a healthy approach when cooking at home but even then, dieting often means letting go of some favourite foods for a while.

One thing is for sure though. I cannot do without carbs. I can minimize fats from my diet, but carbs? Forget it! Living only on protein and vegetables is not going to happen. I never feel full after a no carb meal and their lack from my system makes me pretty cranky too.

So, I am following a moderately low calorie diet - I am using an iPhone app called LoseIt!, in which you set a weight loss goal, then log your food and exercise and keep track of your daily calorie quota. Pretty simple, it's like Weight Watchers w'out other people. Which is good for me, dieting with strangers would not motivate me in the least. And it doesn't tell you "du must eet zis and zis and zat" with a Frau Helga accent.

Today I was craving roasted vegetables, but the fridge was sadly empty. I only had a couple of tomatoes that don't roast well at all. So I opted for the second best thing which was:

1 of said tomatoes
1 bag of instant microwave basmati rice
1 good tablespoon of shredded parmesan
1 dash of my Italian Herb Mix

Instant comfort food that will stay with me for a while. Unfortunately, it doesn't photograph very well!

Made it to the trees!

The weather forecast was right for a change, and this Monday afternoon came with a temperature of 14oC and lovely blue skies - a perfect setting for visiting the Morton Arboretum as mentioned at my previous post.

If you do the clickity on the link you'll find out that it is quite a vast piece of land in the township of Lisle, IL, hosting trees and shrubs from all over the world. For $11 a person (adult price) one can stay on the premises till its closing at sunset. It is trailed with one way paths for cars with a no-rush speed limit of 20 miles per hour, which is great if you want to take the car half way and then get down and walk in one of the walk-only trails around the main paths.

Hubby and I got snap happy and took about 70 pics, and we liked quite a few of them. We hope to go back in the spring when the trees will be blooming again - I don't think that it'll be of much interest in the winter other than for the evergreens.

Resting at the mall

I unearthed my real camera just the other day and renewed my habit of carrying with me just in case. I'm loving my iPhone, but the quality is nowhere near the real thing.

Location's the Fox Valley Mall in Aurora, a nearby township. I normally avoid shooting towards people for a variety of reasons, unless I'm out at some festivity or something, but I don't think shooting ceilings from below fits into that :)

I had plans to visit the Morton Arboretum today, but the weather was less than cooperative (the nice blue sky that you see in the picture turned into a nasty overcast in less than 30 minutes!). It is supposed to be better on Monday, though.

Fall

It's fall for real. The colors on the trees and bushes around my apartment complex speak for themselves :)


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A new day yesterday

I rediscovered this blog and thought that maybe it's time for a post and a pic.



view from my bedroom window

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