Day 4, y'all!

Day 4: Your Views on Religion

I was raised Mennonite. My mom is from Ohio and my dad, from the land of Mennonites & Amish, Lancaster, PA. They met in Sarasota, Florida, which is where a lot of northern Mennonites and Amish go to retire or for the winter.

I didn't really know what being Mennonite meant, like what their doctrine was. Because we're not as conservative as some other Mennonites, I dressed like other kids (though my dad is on the conservative side and didn't want us girls wearing pants -unless we were horseback riding- and we weren't allowed to cut our hair, though my mom cut hers anyway). My mom wore a covering for many years, but by the time I was about 10, she had stopped wearing one. So I didn't feel like we were any different than the Baptists, Lutherans, and other denominations. As I got older, I learned about how Mennonites are different for their pacifist and anabaptist beliefs (anabaptist means you don't baptize your babies, you let them get baptized when they are old enough to decide for themselves.). I have come to really appreciate my background. I compare Mennonite to Jewish, it's a culture as well as a religion, so no matter if you're a practicing member or not, you still consider yourself one.

I do consider myself a practicing Mennonite and I am definitely on the very left leaning side of the Mennonite spectrum. Like any denomination or religion, there's going to be people you disagree with. I was happy to find a great Mennonite church here in Portland and the church is welcoming of everyone (Though under the Mennonite conference we aren't allowed to marry gay people...which I hope is changing...).

I consider myself tolerant of other's religious beliefs. I want mine to be respected just as much I respect yours. I do not wish to force it onto anyone. I think it's impossible to change people's minds so easily.

Day 3

Day 3: Your Views on Alcohol and Drugs

I drink at least a couple times a week and I have a really hard time dancing in public without it. I was raised in a conservative Christian home and I don't remember being told not to drink, it was just assumed (like smoking and premarital sex) that you don't do it. What I found out much later was that my Dad thinks it's okay to drink wine occasionally. Not beer, which is only drank so you can get drunk (what? you didn't know that?). I didn't drink at all until I was 21 (okay, once I took a sip of my friend's drink, which I thought was just soda and I was, like, dude, your soda's flat! Apparently that's what vodka can do to a soda...), I hung out with rule-following Christian kids, so I never was around any sort of peer pressure to drink. It was in college where I met Christians that drank and then when I went to Germany, where beer is king and almost everyone drinks. (Germany is also where I started to use "bad" words. It's not seen as a big deal.)

I wasn't around drugs at all until I went to Amsterdam when I was 23. Since then the only other drug I've been around was cocaine at a party of someone I used to work with. That drug kinda freaks me out. Oh, I mean the thought of it, I've never tried it! I've not even tried pot. I hate the smell of it and just haven't been very interested in trying it. I feel like I'll be one of those people that gets really paranoid. I do think marijuana should be legalized. If alcohol is legal, marijuana should be even more legal. Have you ever heard of an angry pothead? I can't imagine someone high beating their wife or child. (I could be naive, maybe that actually happens, but you sure don't hear about it.) I read Eric Schlosser's book Reefer Madness and it made me mad of how much money our gov't wastes on locking up people caught with some pot. Meth and the like that actually ruin a person's life, sure, keep it illegal. (And why is hemp illegal to grow in the States??? It is such a damn useful plant and people don't smoke it!)

Time for a nonrelevant picture:

These be my sister's chickens. They were suspicious of the snow, but eventually left their Chicken Mansion.

Day 2 of 30 Day Challenge

Day 2: Where You'd Like to Be in 10 Years

I am horrible at planning ahead. Even 6 months is hard for me to plan for. Actually, strike that, make it 2 months. When I was in high school I had a hard enough time accepting that I would even graduate. It just seemed like something I would never get to. I'm not sure if it was because in youth group it's always pounded into your psyche that you could die at any time (and if you died "do you know for sure you'd go to heaven?").

So, in 10 years...I have no freakin' clue. I would like to be happy. I would like to be in love. I don't have the American dreams of owning a house (it sounds kinda like a pain in the ass) or having kids, they're not goals of mine. I may change my mind, I find that happens often. I want to find a job that I get some joy out of, or at least, doesn't completely suck.

And I hope these two niece dogs of mine will still be alive and well:

Isn't May (the Pit) the best at the Pathetic Puppy Dog Eyes? She breaks my heart every time I leave her at home. She was a rescue, she had been left in a parking lot and had saggy titties from the several litters she had already had. She also had been obviously whipped with a belt (she cowers when my brother-in-law takes off his belt...not to whip her, by the way). I just don't understand how people can do that to animals.

30 Day Challenge

Steffers, a PPK friend, fellow Portlander (if I consider myself a Portlander...which I do even though I don't technically live there right now) and blogger colleague, is doing this 30 day challenge on her blog, so I thought I might as well do it too.

So :ahem: Day 1...

Your Current Relationship, if Single Discuss How Single Life is:

I'm a singleton. Single life is...not the worst thing ever, but I do long for a partner-in-crime. The single life isn't something I enjoy. What I enjoy: cuddling and holding hands. I don't meet new people very easily and online dating is lacking in guys that I would be interested in. Cute boys are a dime a dozen here in Portland, but me and my girlfriends have noticed they aren't big on making the first move. The feminist in me says I can make a move, but, dude, I am sick of initiating stuff, I already initiate conversation, most of the time. I want to be pursued, I'm old fashioned like that.

Got a secret, can you keep it?

Oh, I don't have an actual secret. I've just been watching Pretty Little Liars...

I haven't posted in along time because...well, I am a great procrastinator.

There's a new pizza place in town called Sizzle Pie. The former owner of the delicious super-vegan friendly bar Tube has opened a late night pizza place with a lot of vegan options. Toppings include Daiya cheese, flavorful soy curls, vegan pepperoni, and creamy basil cashew spread. I've gone several times now. I usually get the $6 slice and salad deal.

This here is a New Maps Out of Hell slice (soy curls, basil cashew spread, 3 veggies- which this time was black olives, green peppers and onion) and the Caligula salad, which is just their name for a Caesar. Their Caesar dressing is made vegan and it's quite yum. Currently they only have bottled/canned beers, but when their bar (Quality Bar) opens next door, I can only assume there will be draft beers.

The pizza isn't the best ever (my favorite crust is still Hot Lips Pizza), but it's tasty. Normally, the two vegan slice options are New Maps and Spiral Tap (carmelized onion spread swirled with marinara sauce...good, but boring- i want toppings!), but occasionally they have others, such as Thunder & Lightning (vegan cheese with pepperoni!). They're open until 4am (I can't remember what the weekday hours are), so if you're out late downtown or at Rontom's on Burnside, it's a great after hours place to go. I just wish they had Dr. Pepper on their sode fountain...

I just made myself the yummiest boozy milkshake. I was mixing Silk Chocolate with some Kahlua when I remembered I had Coconut Bliss ice cream. Delicious combo, y'all!

Meat is for Pussies, the book

Before I get into that, I just wanted to comment on my last post regarding Nature's Path. After I reviewed that I was emailed soon after to inform me that they were going to reconsider their packaging when sending to get reviewed. So happy to hear that they are doing that!

Ok, on to the book! I was given the opportunity to read a copy of John Joseph's book titled Meat is for Pussies. Honestly, I am not a fan of the term "pussy" when used in this way. Not because I'm someone who thinks political correctness is absolutely necessary all the time. I just don't care for it and it reminds me of douchebag guys that call their friends pussies if they can't do something well and would also say shit like "you throw like a girl." So, yeah, I didn't have high expectations that this book is something that I would like for myself.

Before the book's foreward there is "acclaim" by several well known vegans, such as Chef Tal Ronnen, Moby and Rory Friedman (writer of Skinny Bitch). The book is written by 47 year old John Joseph, known for his punk rock back The Cro Mags, and has been vegan for over 30 years. With chapters (and sections within the chapters) titled Beat the Meat, Diets are for Jerk Offs, and Kick Cancer in the Nuts, you know that you won't be getting this for your parents (unless your parents are the opposite of mine). I suppose you could say it's the masculine version of Skinny Bitch, which is a book that is written in a style I don't care for.

Joseph goes through all the different reasons one should go vegan (environmental, health, etc) and then gives you a week's menu with exercise plan. There are recipes (which I wanted to try out, and why it took me so long to blog about this, but I still have yet to make anything. Sad face!) included. I would really like to try the Veggie Chicken & Rice Casserole and Sweet & Sour Tofu Balls Over Quinoa.

This book is not made for the likes of me, but perhaps there is a young lad or butch in your life that would be changed by this book, and for that reason, I'm glad it exists.

If you are like me, might I suggest The Food Revolution by John Robbins or Meat Market by Erik Marcus?

Nature's Path Ancient Grains Granola with Almonds

Nature's Path sent me their new Ancient Grains Granola, which was a collaboration with Kirkland Signature. I was confused about this, but what I've read around the Internets is that this was done so that the product would be more widely available and that Nature's Path was still independently owned, so whatever, good for them.

They sent me the Costco-sized box of the cereal (it was 2 separate bags in one large box) in the mail in a huge box that was supposed to look like an old suitcase/wooden box. I thought maybe there was a good reason for the huge size

My cute niecepup Tilda to show size comparison.

but no...

There were some papers on top of that blank space (recipes and info on the cereal), but really it was just a bunch of hay-type filler. I just thought it was a ginormous waste, it seemed like something that would've been the idea of a Kirkland rep. But it's their money, I suppose?

Anyways, on to the cereal...

The grains involved are spelt, kamut, quinoa, amaranth and oats. The almonds are a tasty inclusion for those of without an allergy to them (like my poor sister). The flavor is good and I enjoyed it with soymilk or my yogurt. It was also nice not to have to deal with an annoying vanilla flavor. With 5 grams of protein and 9 grams of sugar per serving, it's a pretty healthy choice as far as granolas go and I would definitely eat it again.

Have y'all had it?