Monday, March 23, 2009

Day 51

I could have sworn I vacuumed that corner yesterday.

As awesome as the first day of break had been, the last day was the opposite. I'm just really not looking forward to losing the free time I've had, and it really doesn't help that it's that time of month when my bras don't fit and that sappy Taylor Swift song makes me teary. I've been peckish all day, which sounds cute and dainty, until you realize that it means I've spent half the day with my butt hanging out of the fridge looking for yet another snack.

It was one of those days when everything was a little off. I had planned to be out on the trails at ten, but lacked the motivation until almost noon. I attempted to make sunflower milk, but have come to realize that no one makes sunflower milk because it tastes like a plant. I got out my tools to mount a ceiling hook for a three-tiered hanging fruit basket in the kitchen (we have plaster ceilings so the hook needed to be anchored. It took my drill, hammer and pliers) only to put the apples in and have one of the chains snap. It was just the apples! I had mangoes, plums and avocados that were meant to go in there, too, Though even I wasn't ambitious to hope that the four bunches of ripening bananas would also fit... I'm going to have to take it back to the store and hope that I can get a refund.

To be fair, though, it was really a productive day overall. I have realized when I said the other day that I don't have any more energy than before, it's because I'm still tired at the end of the day. What I hadn't taken into account was everything that I've been doing during the day. Pre-raw, a normal day off would have found me typically sleeping in, knitting and catching up on shows on the DVR. I would have showered and gotten something ready for dinner eventually, but really, that would be it. This is what I did today (and keep in mind, it was a grumpy, pms-y day):
  1. Woke up at 8:30
  2. Set walnuts and sun dried tomatoes to soak for dinner. Set clover and lentils to soak for sprouting.
  3. Attempted (and failed) to make sunflower seed milk
  4. Went for a 90 minute hike
  5. Stopped by the produce market to top up the fridge
  6. Hung the fruit basket and watched it fall (it's extraordinarily difficult to hammer and screw things into the ceiling)
  7. Removed the microwave from the kitchen and set up a sprouting station in its place
  8. Did two loads of laundry (requires 4 trips up and down four flights of stairs)
  9. Took out the garbage (more stairs)
  10. Prepared zucchini pasta with puttanesca sauce, not-meat balls and sunflower parmesan for dinner (comfort food)
  11. Made lunch for tomorrow
  12. Made zucchini hummus for the rest of the week
  13. Washed three sinkfuls of dishes (what I wouldn't give for a dishwasher...)
I sat down for ten minutes while eating lunch, but that was about it until Madeline got home and we had dinner. No wonder I'm tired! I do admit that as reluctant as I am some days, I always feel better after I get out and go hiking, or even just take a walk. It's important.

More kitchen news: our raw kitchen is soon to be complete. Mad decided we couldn't wait any longer, so we ordered a dehydrator. I do admit that more than anything, I miss my crunchy, carby foods. We got a really good deal by purchasing a refurbished model from Excalibur. It's not the model with the timer, but I'm going to purchase one of those automatic Christmas tree light timer, so hopefully that will work. I have a list of recipes to try, starting with this corn chip recipe. It's challenging, though, to find recipes that are more vegetable, rather than nut based. As good as they are too eat, I try not to eat too much heavy food.

When we first went raw, setting up the kitchen was the most daunting part. We estimated that it would cost us around $800 to purchase the appliances we'd need ($400 for blender, $250 for dehydrator, $150 for food processor). By shopping around, reading reviews and figuring out where we could cut back, though, our grand total is around $400. Not pocket change, certainly, but by budgeting, we were able to make it work. I'm so excited for the dehydrator to get here!!

-Eloise

3 comments:

Anonymous said...
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Anonymous said...

Ooh! Fancy new dehydrator on the way, how exciting! I also have an Excalibur, a 9-tray thing of beauty. It has become my "oven" since going raw. It runs pretty much non-stop :)

You were pretty busy and productive for a day off -- that's an impressive list!

I make sunflower seed milk for my kids, my baby especially looooves it. I whiz up some sunflower seeds in the blender with some flax seeds, a date or two, and some pure vanilla, and blend til creamy. Tastes good, not too plant-y :) Sometimes I add a pinch of raw cacao for a treat, to jazz it up a bit.

have fun with your new appliance!

Maybe we are rabbits said...

Hi Sheri! I know, I'm so excited! Today's dehydrator day, and I can't wait for it to get here.

I'm curious: do you used the reusable ParaFlex sheets on yours? I couldn't shell out the extra money for them at the time, so we're going to try parchment paper to start, but I'm wondering if they're worth the investment.

I might have to give sunflower milk another try. I think I was already put off by straining through cheesecloth, which was a messy pain, and I didn't sweeten it. I was used to drinking unsweetened soy and almond milk, so I didn't think it would be necessary, but maybe that will make the difference between plant and drinkable (and I like plants, I eat plants... It just wasn't what I wanted out of my milk!).