I need to get my act together. I need to get serious about getting healthy, particularly in light of the re-do of the PVI (pulmonary vein isolation, a/k/a cardiac ablation) and my hip injury, which has seriously impacted my physical activity.
I spent about 3 hours yesterday listening to the replay of a workshop that I missed (what with my sister and all...) on hip labral tears. It was really interesting, and I'm eager to know more.
And it's not that I want to go vegan. I love cheese too much, honestly. But I think if I can "partially" vegan it all, that might help. I do feel lighter when I eat less meat.
I asked Kid #2 for the recipe for the bean salad we had when we were in Kentucky. Wrapped in sprouted or whole wheat tortillas, they were a great on-the-go lunch with an apple as we traveled.
So here's my take on it. Vegans, feel free to add all the red/green/yellow peppers and red or yellow onions you want.
1 (15 oz can) EACH: Garbanzo beans, kidney beans, black beans (your choice, but have at least 2-3 kinds)
1 (4 oz) can Yellow corn
3 stalks celery, chopped fine
1/2 cucumber, peeled and sliced into chunks
1 small can EACH: sliced bamboo shoots and water chestnuts
1 bunch spring onions, chopped white parts and green parts
Penzey's Sunny Paris & Mural of Flavor spice blends, to taste
Salt & pepper
Field + Farmer Lemon Garlic Basil dressing (or your favorite vinaigrette)
Drain the canned veggies and rinse. Dump into a large bowl (I used a Rubbermaid bowl with a lid so I could shake it all together). Chop the celery fine, slice the spring onions, with the white part, and about 4-5 green ends chopped for spice and color. Add them to the bowl with the cucumber.
NOTES: Refrigerate for best taste blending, but you can also eat this right away. Think about light and dark red kidney beans, canelli beans, Great Northerns, black-eyed peas, pinto beans...the combinations are pretty endless.
Mushrooms: I had sauteed mushrooms, so I added them to my wraps.
Dressing: Don't drown this!!! Go light on the dressing and remember you can always add a teaspoon more. You can't take it away...at least not easily!
Original Version: The Kid uses red onions, yellow peppers, chopped parsley, sometimes chopped mint. Homemade vinaigrette, too. You could toss some previously cooked tofu in there if you have it handy.
Tomatoes: I wouldn't, unless you have several people eating this. I'm the only one, so the tomatoes actually have too much water in them; by the time I get thru this salad, they'll be mush.
Cheese or avocado: As you dish this up, chunk up an avocado and add it to the wrap, or if you're inclined, sprinkle on some shredded Asiago cheese.
Other veggies: Go nuts... add leftover chunks of boiled potatoes. Add cooked rice, farro, barley, quinoa - whatever you have. Get spicy and try different peppers: yellow banana peppers, a jalapeno if you're feeling brave... Cut up olives and add them. Shred carrots (they'll be better and easier in a wrap if they're shredded), canned or fresh peas. Add fresh parsley or basil, in season. Sliced radishes would be amaaaaaaaaaaaazing in this dish!
You can even cook up spaghetti squash or regular pasta (your choice) and then top it with this salad as a wonderful single-course meal. Technically, except for the cucumber, you could warm this bean salad up. Serve with some crusty bread and then maybe some berries as a dessert, and you're good to go.
Anyway, I know that here it's still cold, the snow remains on the ground, but the object was that I'd have something easy and relatively light to eat after teaching my evening yoga classes. I don't like to teach after I've eaten, because I don't just stand there and call out poses. I was getting tired of eggs (one can only eat so many), I've been trying to avoid deli meat (inflammation, sugar and all the preservatives), and was kind of over yogurt and the original PBJ...
I remembered how much we enjoyed these wraps, and while my wrapping skill is minimal, I'm ok with practicing.
Orchids blooming...
The cattleya does have a scent, but I can't smell it. It seems that the return of my scent was only temporary. I have about 50% of it back, but it was only 100% after that huge dose of steroids and antihistamines, and it lasted about a month.
I can't remember what color the next one is...We have the pink one here, a yellow one, and ... my mind is blank! Anyway, that should be about 3 more weeks till that one blooms.
The Chicago Orchid Show is on now, through the end of March. Hubby and I decided the temptation was too great. We try to avoid going to the local orchid house, because we don't have a lot of room for the plants.
The Knitting...
Not much to report. I've started the toe on the blue striped sock. Not much to look at right now. Just round and round. I can tell you that the crazy-tight tension is kind of a pain when you're decreasing,but I can't manage to loosen it much.
Knitting always tells you how you're feeling, regardless of what you tell yourself.
I should have that sock finished this week, and will be able to start frogging the finished one shortly thereafter. That one should go quickly. I need to remember that I did Eye of Partridge heel, so that the heels match! Though I've done socks before with mis-matched heels. Maybe I can start a trend?
Even though the "about-to-be-frogged" first sock has an absolutely perfect star toe, I chose a regular round toe for Sock #2. The toe instructions I pulled had the needles in a different order (the #1 needle was one over from what I had) and I didn't realize it...so I re-wrote the instructions. It wasn't too hard, except I had to remind myself:
SSK = left-leaning decrease
K2TOG = right-leaning decrease
It's important, because you don't want to put the toe decreases on the top of the foot and the bottom (hey, it happens!), and you don't want your lefts to go right, etc. It won't look right and likely won't feel right on your toes.
The Reading...
I'm currently reading "Pastrix," by Nadia Bolz-Weber. She's fantastic. I've watched many of her videos, and honestly, I can hear her in the words on my Kindle screen. In my recent experience, it's pretty rare to read someone's autobiography and hear them as they actually speak, if I've had the experience of seeing them in person or on the computer. They tend to get more formal when they're writing, which to me stifles their personality.
She doesn't. It's right there as if you're watching her on Facebook. I love that.
And of course, I couldn't ignore Thich Nhat Hanh's books, "No Death, No Fear," and "How to Live When a Loved One Dies." I haven't cracked those, having actually just had them delivered today.
In the week we were waiting for her wake, I downloaded true fluff... Literal romance novels. I occasionally indulge in this stuff as a "brain cleaner." I tried some new authors. Some of the romance scenes were totally overwrought, but what do I know? All I knew at the time was that I wanted to read, and it had to be pretty much nothing I had to think about. I couldn't even concentrate on my beloved mysteries. That was too much.
Random Picture...
There was lighting there, which was compatible with the tiny critters, and my phone camera did a pretty good job. I did carry the bigger EOS with me, but didn't always have time to haul it out of the bag while we were in the caves. The rangers kept us moving along pretty quickly. I mean, you got to experience the caves, but they weren't dallying. I was able to get the big camera out for the Rotunda pictures, because they let us spread out in that vast space. I got all tingly hearing them talk about how they held concerts (pre-covid) in the space at the holidays...Wow...
I tended to use the EOS for the outside shots. The only time I didn't was when we took that mis-matched hike to Eagle Falls...the one labeled "moderate" that was really "advanced." Kid #2 is still going to pay for that one!
This trip was one of my favorites...it was a quick one, but we did have fun.
Looking for yoga but not ready to come into a studio?
We have Zoom options.
Contact us at info@just-breatheyoga.com or text/call (815) 546-2770 to find the class that best suits you.
If you're in the Will County, IL area, we're starting workshops again! Yoga 101 is in-person, starting Wednesdays in March for 5 weeks. This series will give you the basics and you'll be ready to step into a basic class with confidence; 6-7:15 p.m.
Yoga Nidra is a Karma class. We're collecting donations for the Elizabeth Morman Nursing Scholarship being established at Joliet Junior College.
Friday, March 25, in-studio, check our website at www.just-breatheyoga.com to register.
Private sessions (in-person or Zoom), small group classes (in-person or Zoom) and all our classes are open for drop-ins.
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