Trust Issues with a Side of Pancakes

I cannot believe how many people I know going through relationship struggles right now. No, that's putting it too lightly. Let's try this again:
I cannot believe how many girls I know getting screwed over by their bastard significant others!

And I'm not talking about "boys being boys" or minor indiscretions. I'm talking about people who have been in long term relationships with pathological liars. I'm no expert in relationships (I'm picky and can't tolerate men with flaws. Even my mother told me to lower my standards. Seriously.), but how do you SLEEP at night when you pull this crap on someone you supposedly love? Or do you truly convince yourself that the lies are true? Like, you've told the lie so many times, that you, yourself, buy it?

Anyhow, this certainly isn't going to help me get out of my single, cat lady ways. I'd much rather spend a night on the couch with some popcorn (Orville Redenbacher's Simply Salted...yum) with my dog and cat than out on a date with someone whose telling me what I want to hear, while simultaneously setting me up for heartache. No sirree bob...I know Jakers and Mabel will never break my heart (especially since we've made a pact -- that they're both going to live forever).

Sorry Mom & Dad. Looks like you'll still have to send me flowers on my birthday, 'cuz ain't no man in my life gonna do it. :)

Alright. On that note, lets eat something fatty and carb-filled to make us feel better. My binge food of choice these days? PANCAKES. Seriously. These pancakes are SO GOOD. I make them really thin, so they almost taste like a crepe. And I eat them with butter and sugar...rolled up like the fattiest treat you can find! Like we already established, I ain't got no one to impress. :) So give these a try. Breakfast, lunch, dinner...there are no rules here. And not a lick of animal suffering in these bad boys.
I made them for Mom this past weekend (she opted for syrup on her pancakes. weirdo.) and she agreed that this is a delicious recipe!

5 Minute Vegan Panacakes
(Courtesy of RecipeZaar.com)

Makes 6-8 pancakes (aka just enough for a this fat kid)

1 cup flour
1 tbsp sugar
2 tsps baking powder
1/8 tsp salt
1 c soy or rice milk
2 tbsp vegetable oil

Combine dry ingredients. Add milk and oil. Pour onto preheated skillet or pan. BINGE AWAY.
PS Don't judge my plates. I love my dishes. My dad bought them at an auction. I always say I'll keep these until I get married and can register for something more modern and less Town & Country...but if this blog post tells us anything, it could be awhile. :)

Slacker's Back

Wow. I've really let myself go. In the blogging sense, that is. An friend from high school (hi Sarah!) emailed me today, letting me know she read my blog, and I was like, "Oh to focus on this post?! Let's talk about Mom.

My mom came out to DC to visit!! I think it was triggered by an emotional home-sick call I made the =yeah...I have a blog."

Anyhow, so much to talk about. What night I arrived in DC. After the 19 hour drive, arriving to an empty apt, SO over tired, I called home crying. I was never going to admit to that, but there. It's out there. :) So I think that very night my mom booked a flight out to keep me company!

We had such a nice time! We ate excessively (Thai, Italian, Chinese, Japanese, Mexican and vegan restaurants -- we covered 'em all!), spent all day Saturday on The Mall, saw a movie, did some driving around downtown...just enjoyed a weekend in DC! We both agreed that the WWII Monument was our favorite. We also agreed that pasty white girls shouldn't spend an 80-degree day on The Mall in tank top and no sunscreen -- you should SEE my sunburn!
My mom really loved DC. She also loves my apartment and thinks the area I work in is really cute. It's always nice to have a parent's approval, right? Now, just need to convince Dad to come out to DC - I think he would love it, as well!

I'll stick some pics in. One is of Mom and I at the WWII Memorial -- each state is represented, so we (of course) got a pic by the MN pillar. Then I also need to stick in the pic from the drive to the airport. Jake rs just loved having Grandma visiting him! He insisted on snuggling up next to her in bed each night -- I tried no t to get offended -- and wanted to sit on her lap on the way to the airport. For those of you who don't know, Jakers ALWAYS sits on my lap in the car. So I very safely, while driving, took a photo of the two of them in the car. Awww, loves it!

In other news, we are officially in our PETA DC office. It's in such a fun location and it forces me to see more of the city. When I was able to work from home, I was bordering on crazy recluse. :) Now I can stare at the Washington Monumet every day, take the Metro in with the rest of the working world and find reason to change out of PJs...not sure if that last one is a good thing or a bad thing... :)

I'll try to be better about blogging. Thanks for continuing to read. :)

Budget Taters

Since moving to DC, my budget is oh-so tight! I took a week off between jobs for the move and this whole process has been so expensive! I went to this little market across the street after work on Wednesday so I could get some produce and basics. It was a unique little market, but so convenient and inexpensive! I'm trying to be smart and make my dollars stretch a bit until I get my first paycheck from PETA. So I utilized the potatoes that were on sale and made a dinner of roasted garlic potatoes. No real recipe, since it was more eyeballing the seasonings, but I chopped up the potatoes into bite-size chunks and put them in a mixing bowl with some minced garlic, extra virgin olive oil, salt, pepper, Old Bay Seasoning, parsley and oregano. Stir everything up, spread mixture on a pan (I like my Pampered Chef baking stone) and cover with tinfoil. I baked at 400-degrees for about 30-45 minutes, checking on it after about 20 minutes to turn over so the sides brown evenly.

I didn't take a picture, but I don't think you'll need a visual on this one. :) It's filling, satisfying, flavorful and a pretty darn good dinner. I paired it with a spinach salad to get some greens in, but it could also be a side dish to any main course.

Work went well this week. I'm loving that my daily work is directly affecting the cause I am most passionate about. I think week 2 will give me even more insight as to my role with PETA, but I think I learned a lot over my first week. Also still loving DC! :)

Back And Better Than Ever!!

Hi!! I've been MIA for so long!! I made the move across country and have begun my new job with PETA. First, let me tell you this: NEVER use movers when making an inter-state move. Not worth your time, money or the hassle. I picked the SHADIEST moving company ever, apparently. They never showed on Monday, as they were scheduled to. Then, they told me they weren't sure when they could get a driver and truck out to me. So I was forced to find another company, last minute....however the first company never gave me my deposit back! (Get A Moving Company is the name of the a-holes.) And while the second moving company was slightly better, they also had a lot of empty promises and left me hanging until Saturday night. My mom was forced to host me, Jakers and Mabel for an entire week! She doesn't appreciate Mabel's naughty-baby-kitten ways as I do (ie climbing curtains). I was so grateful to be able to stay with her during that stressful experience.

Anyhow, so they show up on Saturday at 7pm and take about 15 minutes to get that first couple of boxes out. They could not figure out how this dolly they had worked. So I ended up just taking charge and carrying things out at mach-3 speed. After a long, sweaty 3 hours, we finish loading the truck and my condo is empty. At that point, my mom arrived and brought me Jakers & Mabel and me and the babes hop in the little Ford Focus and take off. Because of the time crunch, we had to drive 19 hours STRAIGHT...stopping only for gas and to potty...across country. It was miserable. But we arrived at 5pm on Sunday and got into our apartment. Cutest apartment ever!! I'm in the Ballston neighborhood of Arlington, VA.

I took Monday off - it was supposed to be my first day, but due to the mess of a weekend, my boss encouraged me to take a day to rest and get settled. Loved that idea. My brother, Andy, came over and kept me company while the movers did there thing. Jakers and I took some long walks and saw the neighborhood. So many friendly neighbors. And there's an Arlington County cop in my building...so I feel REAL safe. :)

Today was Day 3 of working for me. Since our DC office isn't ready yet, we're working from home. BUT since there are a few of us who are new, 5 of us are working from one coworker's apartment in DC (Logan Circle). It's been a bit of trial by fire, but so far so good. I think I'm really going to love my role with PETA. My days have been long, though. It takes about an hour to get to this girls' place and we work 9 - 5:30. So I get home close to 7:00. I think long working hours won't be bad, though, knowing I'm working for the sake of animals. It's such a passion!

Alright, I will try and stay more on top of the blogging. I have very little money for groceries until my first payday...so recipes may be in short supply. :) Have a great night!!!!