Thanksgiving in two days!

I'm going to attempt to cook a vegan Thanksgiving meal on Thursday. I only have to heat up the vegan turkey which is nice, but all other things will definitely take some effort. I'd love to bake a pie, but there isn't much room in my kitchen so we'll see how that goes. I really do love following a vegan diet, and I feel that it allows me to express a lot of creativity when it comes to cooking. If I'm able to do the cooking, I'll post photos. I'm excited! It's going to be great :)

Things I've noticed about myself since going vegan

I posted this on reddit just now, but I figured it also belongs here.

I will start off by saying that I have been a vegetarian my whole life, thanks to my awesome mom. However, after driving on I-10 between Las Cruces, NM and Anthony, TX during a road trip and seeing (and smelling) the dairy cows walking on mounds of their own shit, I had an epiphany and went vegan. These are some changes I've noticed with myself since I have made the lifestyle change. Oh I'll also add that I am a 23 year old woman because that might be relevant. I'm also a pretty lazy vegan: I eat a lot of frozen meals, soy products, salads, soups, cauliflower, and carrots. I don't really do any cooking because I hate doing dishes. I know this is just some anecdotal evidence, but I just thought it'd be neat to share it with y'all.

• I don't seem to have much body odor anymore. It used to be that if I forgot to put on deodorant, my pits would stink so bad. Now, they don't really smell like anything if I forget.
• Less acne.
• I've lost weight even though I haven't been much more active. I was teetering on the edge of being overweight before I went vegan, but since then I've lost 10 pounds without even trying and my stomach is pretty flat. I also eat TONS of carbs; the difference is that now I just eat stuff that is lower in calories and I eat lots of fiber too.
• No more chronic constipation and hemorrhoids. This was a serious problem for me before I went vegan and I hated going to the bathroom because of it. I am genetically predisposed to constipation and hemorrhoids, but going vegan has made the problem rare, only occurring once or less a month.
• I am a lot gassier. But if it means no constipation and hemorrhoids, I'll take it.
• I'm more emotional about animal suffering. I walked by the meat counter at whole foods and I started crying when I saw the animal parts. Poor things didn't deserve that :(

Photo time

A few weeks ago I got a new phone, a Motorola Moto G. Great phone, fantastic. I grade it A+. Before then, I had a crappy $30 Walmart phone because my demons cats spilled water on my wonderful Nexus 4, ruining it. Now that I had a decent smart phone, I have a much more active presence on instagram. I especially enjoy taking pictures of vegan food and cats, which surprisingly garners a sizable amount of "likes." I figured I'd share some photos here since I don't post too many.

Ah yes, my lovely brown couch that is a convenient shade of dookie brown.

 

 My vegan pizza from Blaze Pizza. It's like a chipotle for pizza. Such a great concept and my pizzas are always delectable.

Galadriel is one of my two cats. She is such a cuddle bug.

Andromeda enjoys sleeping on the most inconvenient places. She has even been known to sleep on my rear.

So whoever you are, whether you're a friend or someone I haven't had the pleasure of meeting yet, or even some weird internet stalker, I hope you enjoyed some pieces of my life.

 

Drugs suck.

I'm still sick, but you'd better believe that I'm popping decongestants faster than an pill addict pops hillbilly heroin. Which brings me to another topic I'd like to discuss: drugs.

I have never had the urge to do drugs. I have never done any drug. The most I've done is drink an alcoholic beverage, but even that is done extremely sparingly. I had a fruity alcoholic drink the night I got engaged, but I stopped at that one and I haven't had a drink since (8 months). I honestly don't see the appeal of it. Why should I drink something that tastes horrible and has tons of calories? Because I get to loose my mind for a few hours? No thanks, I'm not interested in paying for it in the morning with a hangover. That's pretty much the worst trade-off ever.

Also, lighting up something and inhaling it is bad for you, no matter the substance, because it damages your lungs. I could get behind eating it, especially if you wanted it for medicinal purposes to replace opiates, but I'm still not going to use it recreationally.

What drug users don't realize --either because they're ignorant, selfish, or too addicted-- is that when they buy from trashy dealers, they are funding drug cartels that rape, murder, and torture innocent people. But I guess as long as they get their dope or crank it doesn't matter to them.  To me, that is what makes drugs so immoral. If they were all legalized I wouldn't be so adamantly against them. I certainly would not consume them however.

My point is, don't do drugs. Instead, think of a more useful way to spend your free time.

Sometimes, a title isn't necessary

I'm cringing at my last post, but I think I just needed to vent. Depression really is not fun. But on a brighter note, I've been feeling great lately! I finally got a job! Granted, it isn't a full time job, but it pays really well per hour and I love it.

A little rant here... but I hate cooking so much. Or perhaps I just hate doing the dishes that are a byproduct of the cooking. I have no dishwasher so it all must be done by hand, and Matt sure as heck ain't going to do it so I do it all.

I've been having a sore throat lately. I'm pretty sure I got it from Matt because he's been pretty sick and he won't go to the doctor, despite my insistence. How annoying is that? I don't understand why men must be so stubborn all the time. I swear, it drives me up the wall. But that could be my grouchiness from the sore throat talking.

Me feeling sorry for myself

I really do wish I was smart. I am so average in just about every single way that it drives me to tears. I wish I had more potential in life. I wish I was prettier, richer, skinnier, taller, and whiter. It seems like nothing comes easy to me in life, absolutely nothing. I take out loans and go to college, but what does that get me? A worthless degree and $40k in debt. I go vegan and I exercise more but have I lost any weight? No, I'm still in the overweight range for my height. I have no money because I can only find a part time job and I was born and raised at slightly above the poverty line so I've never been able to enjoy anything in my life. I'm still only slightly above it because I'm too dumb and untalented to get a real job. I wish I could have gotten a STEM degree but I was too stupid in high school and I didn't understand anything I learned in math or science so I made B's and C's, and the only reason my grades were that high was because I at least tried. I have no idea what my fiance sees in me, seriously. He is the complete opposite of everything I am listing about myself. Other than my fiance I have no friends because I've grown extremely socially awkward over the years and I cannot seem to relate to anyone (other than my cats), no matter how hard I try. I have no skills or expertise in anything. My parents didn't let me be involved with music growing up, even though I know I could have been great at it. I'm 23 and I feel like my life is basically over. I had a job that I loved but I didn't make much money and then I had to move. It wasn't much, but at least I had that. Sometimes I feel like I shouldn't have gone to college, but I'm glad I did because I met Matt. If I hadn't then my life would definitely be 10x worse.

I'm not sure what the point of all this was. There are moments when I just need to lament and get all of my feelings out and I guess this is one of them. I mourn for the way my life could have been had I just been smarter. Ugh this is so depressing to think about. I'll just go to bed now.

Moving to California, take 2!

Matt and I are heading to California on Saturday. It will be a two day trip and I'm excited, but at the same time worried about finding a job. I've applied to many places but I haven't had much luck, but I will keep at it. It is quite tedious to type the same information over and over again on these applications, even though it's all the same information on my résumé! But it's got to get done somehow, so that's what I've been up to. I am only able to bring my cats with me to California sadly, as dogs are not allowed where we will be living. Stacy (my dog) is staying with my brother and his girlfriend Brittany until Matt and I move into a dog friendly apartment.

I'm going to bed, goodnight!

Kittens!

I probably should have mentioned this earlier, but on Saturday, May 31st Matt and I found 4 small kittens, all girls. Three calicos are from the same litter, but one little gray girl is unrelated. The gray girl is a bit older, maybe by a week or a few days. They are so precious, but it's been pretty difficult. At first they were very dirty and would get poop EVERYWHERE but they improve every day! Plus my older cat Galadriel has taken them under her wing and has been very sweet with them.

Aren't they just so precious? <3 I love them so much, but I really need to find them homes. With these girls, we have a total of 7 cats in the house :( if you live in Northwest Arkansas and will provide one a good home, let me know. I'll give you one free if you can provide a vet reference!

Rambling

I have a rule of thumb to never trust anyone that does not like animals.

Other than that little tidbit, I've been thinking about starting a summer bucket list. I feel that this is an especially relevant thing for me to do, seeing as how I will be moving back to Southern California this fall.

I'm sad to be leaving the south permanently (or for the next 5 years at least) but I think I'm leaving for a good reason. Matt going to grad school is pretty important, I'd say! My mom says I shouldn't go because we aren't married yet, but come on... I'm 23 years old and this isn't the 19th century. but geeze, I am totally going to miss being able to rent a decent place at a low price. That's one thing I hate about the greater Los Angeles area.

My Blog and Thoughts on Education

Sometimes I like to look at my ClustrMap of this blog and see where the visitors that come here are from. Then I feel kind of sad when I realize that the vast majority of visits are from myself, but I suppose it's my fault, since I don't really put this blog out there. Maybe if I decided to dedicate this blog to vegan cooking and/or baking I'd get more hits. But then I realize that cooking really is a chore when you do not have a dishwasher, and I'm also kind of lazy soooooooooo.... it doesn't look like that will be happening anytime soon.

And you know what I just realized? I basically got an M-R-S degree. Political Science. And I currently work a low paying job, and I am engaged. I have not done much worthwhile from my time in college besides meeting Matt and that sucks. So I decided to do something about it and get my Masters degree! I may start next winter if I can work this all out. It would make it easier to find a job, plus I'd look better next to Matt who is getting his Ph.D.

Life These Days

Things weren't going so well in Los Angeles, so I moved back to Houston. Then, things weren't going very well there either, so I moved back to my college town of Fayetteville, Arkansas to work my old job. I sure am glad to have it, too. I love working with people with disabilities; it makes me feel like I am actually making a difference in this world.

Also, on March 25th I got engaged to the love of my life! I'm so excited to start my life with him. We will be getting married in July of 2015. It's been almost two months since our engagement, but I still can't stop staring at my ring when it's on my finger. So pretty :)

Look at all of those cords!

An emerald with two diamonds on each side. The diamonds belonged to Matt's granny, which makes the ring even more special.

As you can see from the first photo (given his cap and gown), Matt also graduated from the University of Arkansas Summa Cum Laude (with highest honors!) and I could not possibly be more proud of him. This September, we're off to Pasadena, California so he can attend California Institute of Technology. He is so intelligent, it blows me away.

holy crap

I just found out that I paid over $2000 in interest for my student loans last year. That really sucks.

Another Day in The Bahamas

I am currently in my hotel room with the glass balcony door open, listening to the sound of the angry waves crashing down on the beach. It's a bit overcast and the beach is mostly vacant; a rare treat for a massive resort like Atlantis. The sounds of the ocean seems to have cast a spell over me that makes me feel pensive. Last night I took a long walk on the empty beach. As I dug my bare toes into the sand with the water flowing and receding over my feet, I pictured my dear friend Stephen walking next to me. He passed away nearly two years ago, but I still feel his presence at times, especially when I am alone and in a peaceful location. I miss the talking to him for hours on end. I wonder if he found my naïveté charming, or humorous. It doesn't really matter, of course. But I do remember begging him to go to college, and I still think that he was meant for college. He was the most intelligent person I've ever met and even after meeting so many people I still hold that opinion. I also remember what a shame it was that we would so often lose touch. The reason for that was his girlfriends always seemed to find me threatening, despite the fact that our relationship was platonic. I really do regret that... but it is what it is.

There isn't much of a point to this blog posting, but I just wanted to share my thoughts. I am enjoying myself here and I love that I have finally been outside of the United States.

Happy New Year!

Hello all, sorry for the lack in updates! I just haven't gotten around to it. I've been busy, and when I'm not busy all I want to do is sleep and go out and explore.

Matt (my boyfriend) came to visit me in LA for Christmas, and I really enjoyed spending time with him. I miss him a lot, since I basically jumped from seeing him all the time, to never seeing him. We got to go around Los Angeles and check out different areas. We even went to a really dangerous area to donate some cat and dog food to a non-profit vet.

Since December 26th I have been working and I'm so tired of it. I just need a day off to myself. I'm sleep deprived and I just feel so rushed and generally exhausted. I was in West Palm Beach from the 26th-30th and then I was in Ft. Lauderdale from the 30th until I left for the Bahamas on New Year's Day. I did not get to do anything in West Palm Beach or Ft. Lauderdale. I'm in The Bahamas right now and it is beautiful here, the only downside is that I'm here for work so I won't get many opportunities to go out and enjoy the resort (Atlantis).
The scenery alone is breathtaking. The water here is clear, but from a slight distance it has a gorgeous turquoise tone to it. It's one of the most beautiful sights I have witnessed, with it rivaling Monterey Bay, California.

I'm off to bed, but I hope to have some fun tomorrow at this lovely resort.