First Sunday February

I made a big fuss about no alarm clocks, but I rose at seven. I did the good morning writes and sits and reads on the couch. In HIIT I did the most burpees in the class. I did box jumps like a true beast fueled by the previous night's gig in Indiana and the oatmeal creme pie I ate on the way home. I was so spent I couldn't imagine eating yet. I texted Puhg and we walked through the snow to the grocery store. Everyone was buying chips and dips. We passed a pop-up brunch at our favorite veg cafe. Cruelty-free chicken & waffles. I don't remember what we talked about. I responded to a promising email. I organized my sweaters and laid down. Lesson plans over two eps of Big Love. A little watching the guy play Until Dawn. My bus didn't come, so I met my girl on the train platform. We were both late for our own meeting. I saw three other comedians standing at the Red Line. Sometimes Chicago is the smallest. The bar we walked to was closed, so we sat in the balcony of Whole Foods with serious faces and then outlining our new project. Oh, it's good. I can tell. I walked across the street to i_. My Harold team goes on every week, but there's a jubilance when we arrive to the same green room. I cherish the night and play an overbearing marketer. Our coach says, "I'm glad you worked through the Winnebago scene" and if that's not priceless improv garbage, what is? I couldn't interact any more, so I sat next to two people riding home, not speaking. The bus would take five minutes. I was cooked. I stood looking out for it. It arrived, empty save a man sleeping on it with a six pack next to his head. The driver got up and shook him. The man took his sweet time debarking. It was fine. There but for the grace of God. I forgot my keys and had to call up. I wasn't just ready for bed. Reddit posts until the blanket of tired tucked around me.

Another Upbeat Animal Post

One logical fallacy I certainly entertain in order to justify eating dairy products is thinking, "Maybe THIS product is was actually made without harm." Like, cows are painfully raped so they keep producing milk, but sometimes they're legitimately pregnant...so THIS yogurt I'm eating today is from a cow that wasn't raped. Or maybe a cow that actually just doesn't have many pain nerves...probably for some other screwed up inhumane reason, but the POINT is no animals were harmed in the making of this breakfast?*

When it comes to animals, this is a numbers game we will certainly always lose. Sure, maybe that cup of milk actually did come somewhat harmlessly in the moment it was taken, but that's a major fluke, and overall, that cow was miserable, and it's feces put a giant carbon trashbomb into our environment. ADDITIONALLY, there are certain things that there are no question about. If you eat chicken, that chicken's beak was cut off while it was alive. Not every 10 or 50 chickens' beaks. Every chicken's beak. If I cut off one dog nose, I'd go to jail. And you'd probably hate me.

*It's funny that we freak out about animals being harmed in the making of art (which is beautiful and lasting), but we're cool with animals being harmed in the making of fast food (which is generally sad and extremely fleeting).

Vegan Month 2013

My 5th Vegan Month has come to a close! It was a tremendous success.

General News:

-January is pretty low holiday/special event-filled holiday. An island in the seas of Reese's Trees and Hearts.
-My school and work schedule is actually made so I can eat a distinct lunch and dinner every day. It is so much simpler to be vegan if you can actually sit down and eat planned filling food. Constant snacking as a vegan just makes you slowly loathe mixed nuts.
-Every time I do it, more people remember and more people are excited to help in my dining needs. The conversation flows from "Let's get pizza. Oh, you can't." to "I found a place where you can get vegan pizza! We should go!" If you are happy about your commitments, I find people are generally happy to help you succeed at them. Pals joined me for no less than four vegan milkshakes during the month. Hill made veggie chili for our standing lunch date. Ro found vegan almond joys.
-I live within a two mile radius from amazing Thai, Indian, Med, Ethiopian, etc. Going out is not difficult.
-Whereas in the past I have had near (and, let's be real, actual) meltdowns over desserts, this year I was pre-emptive in sweet tooth cravings. I made huge batches of vegan treats and slowly ate through them during the week. I never felt lack. Lack is the devil's device, and removing that concept is key in...probably everything.
-I cheated twice. Once on accident. Once on purpose. I'm okay with that.

Moving Forward:

In previous years I have missed certain foods very much, but, at the same time, I have lost the desire for others. Like, I don't drink milk. I never have cheese in the house. I look at contents of soup cans. I Can't Believe It's Not Butter. This year I missed almost nothing. Really. Vegan month felt simple, freeing, joyful. I knew after this month veganism would be the rule and animal products the exception to it. Since the official date, most of my days are still all-veg, and the days that aren't often only include one cheat.

What I Eat:

-Endless combinations of beans + salsa, beans + marinara
-Tortillas filled with nut butter and fruit
-Oatmeal piled high with cinnamon and berries and cashews
-At school burritos without sour cream or pitas stuffed with falafel
-Hummus and veggies
-Salad with balsamic dressing
-Bagels and peanut butter and bananas
-Wheat pasta/rice and veggies
-Vegan cookie dough dip and cake puffs
-Soups!

It's not hard at all. I feel fresher, healthier, happier, more ethical!

But, Some Fun:

At midnight on the last day of Vegan January, Bisque presented me with a banoffee pie, which, despite everything I just said, I ate ravenously. The next morning in class, Hill pulled out a brown paper Dunkin bag with "Welcome to dessert month" written on it. Inside was a heart-shaped pink donut--three of my favorite things in one pastry.

 

It IS nice to have a planned bruchetta date with Ro and Shells. Sometimes, for the sake of culture, you gotta enjoy a lil goat cheese and tomato jam.

Today I Am Binging On:

-Next to Normal soundtrack
-vegan cookie dough dip
-rainy naps
-writing in my diary
-The Palgrave Handbook of Childhood Studies

School has been very challenging in a totally manageable way. But, still. There are days when I try to make a list of everything coming up, and I get a little finicky. Next to Normal is such a good show because when I watched it last night/when I listen to this music, despite it being fraught with themes of anxiety, I myself feel competent and able, at peace, and loved.

I am the one who knows you.
I am the one who cares.
I am the one who's always been there.
I am the one who's helped you,
and if you think that I just don't give a damn,
then you just don't know who I am.

Twenty Thirteen

Obvi, I want to improve tremendously in 2013, but, a lot of those changes require vague goals like "get sleep."

Touchable Goals 2013:

-attempt doing the splits every single day until I can (or it's like August and I've gotten nowhere...then I can give up)
-write in my gratitude journal every night
-eat more vegan--to help start 2013 right, I may do my annual vegan month in January

Christmas has felt like last chance non-vegan hurrahs. Observe my mom's pumpkin cheesecake with Oreo crust.

For self assigned penance.
For problems with easy solutions.

On This Per-Fect Day-Ay

Yesterday was a horribly unproductive wonderful day.

It is amazing how fast a promise of "We will all grade and study at my condo until 4 and reward ourselves with vegan milkshakes even though we just had lunch at Thai Basil" between Ru, Kale, and me turns into "Except isn't it time for Alice to get a new ringtone?"

We got the shakes anyway.

Someone planned a theatre mixer for professional/academic reasons, but the main thing is Hill, Ru, and I got together for free spanokapita and lemon bar reasons. Ru stuffed his pockets full of brownies for our long walk home.

At night there was sketch comedy and my improv team beat our rival sister troupe in a battle show. Last of the semester. I was awarded some Top Ramen with "MVP" written on with marker. It smudged onto my fingers. I washed them in the In N Out sink.

Ru, Ro, Shells, Dronin

"Aren't you coming to the party?" texts. I reply, "No, thank you!" and it is time for bed.

The rest of the weekend will be so full of production, you may as well call me a sweatshop.

The Person Who Birthed Me's Birth

Yesterday was my mom's birthday.

This summer when we were both in Chicago, we were on our way home when she peeled into a Jewel Osco parking lot. "We'll just pick up the staples," she said. Five minutes later, this is what we were buying. I made her pose for a picture. This is how I know I wasn't adopted. These are my genes:

"Staples."

And this. This is one of my favorite pictures of her I've ever taken:

The Chicago Diner, waiting on a veggie burger.

Happy birthday, Momma!