My, oh, my. I always feel like I am playing “catch up”! I’ve got another double-whammy of a post for you today, so without further ado, let’s look at FRIDAY!
I started my day the Greek way with a cup of peach Chobani and some buckwheat flake cereal.
I’ve gotta say, I am mad jeal of all the bloggers who have been sent Chobani samples recently! And Vitalicious sampler packs, too! What gives? I would love to have the opportunity to try more of these products, but have a hard time finding the whole product lines–I can’t find the new Chobani flavors and I want to try more Vitalicious things than the Deep Chocolate tops (which are the only things I’ve found in the store).
After playing on the computer a bit, I got ready for my day, and went out to meet a friend for lunch.
I had a hankerin’ for Indian food (one of my faves!), and had agreed to dine with my friend Ben, who is into spicy, so it worked out perfectly! We went to Shalimar India, which makes some really good food. And, I’ve got to admit, the lunch special pricing is hard to beat 😉
We started with a cup of mulligatawny soup:
Then we did a little mix-and-match action with our main courses. Ben ordered the spicy beef curry, and I got saag paneer (homemade cheese cooked with spinach), and they were served with saffron rice. We also shared an order of naan, which is flat bread.
And, of course I had to get a mango lassi, a spicy yogurt drink made with mango and ice, then topped with crushed pistachios.
The food was delicious. Indian is one of my favorite cuisines, but I don’t have it very often. Shalimar has always been one of my favorite restaurants, as well. Plus, it was nice to catch up with Ben, whom I have known since the 4th grade (!) but haven’t had a chance to connect with in a long while. We had a really pleasant, filling lunch and then went to a local record shop, which had already sold out of The Upwelling‘s new CD! Wow, in little old NH! (And, yes, I am currently wishing I were hanging with my girl LVP in NYC listening to Ari. The CD release party and show are literally right now! Gah!)
After that, I needed to run some errands. When I was starting to drag, I stopped by my beloved Dunkin’ Donuts for an iced coffee. And I may or may not have gotten a donut, too… I’ll admit to the fact that I love donuts. Love them. I haven’t had one for a really long time so I figured it was past time for a treat. (Dunkin Donuts or Krispy Kreme?? I’m a Dunkin’ girl through and through.)
For dinner Friday my stepmom made a chicken stir fry. It was full of broccoli, cauliflower, bell pepper, carrot, onion, mushrooms, and ginger. It was served with brown rice.
After I caught up on email and blogging. I also got really hungry about an hour and a half after dinner for the 3rd time this week. What gives? I snacked on an apple and peanut butter. I mixed things up in the topping department, too. On the closest row of slices I sprinkled on a chocolate caramel sugar, and on the others I used Cinnamon Spice Blend, which also has cloves and nutmeg in it.
Hmm. I wasn’t really into either of these new toppings. The sugar thing I didn’t realize was sugar until it came out of the shaker (I thought it was some sort of cocoa thing, I hardly looked…) and it was kind of weird. The Cinnamon Spice Blend was too …spicy? I felt like I was eating Christmas potpourri. I guess if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. I’m sorry I ever doubted you, straight-up cinnamon!
Today, SATURDAY, my dad woke me bright and early (kind of) to go shopping for a new computer and camera. He wanted to get going and said we’d get breakfast on the way. Uh, that meant the Dunkin’ Donuts drive through. Yikes, 3 times in 3 days!!! I got a multigrain bagel, and applied just a little cream cheese (I won’t let them do it, though, because they always glob on 8X more than I want). I didn’t take a picture because I was trying not to get crumbs all over Pops’s car. And I’m sure you know what a bagel looks like, right? 😉
We poked around at Best Buy and picked out a couple winners. Of course, they didn’t have the exact ones I wanted in stock, so we had to get them online at home, anyways… Can you guys believe that I have gone this whole summer without my own computer? Yep, a blogger without her own laptop. Not anymore! And my new camera was not purchased a moment to soon. My old camera decided to stop working properly today. (But you might have to deal with a few phone pics while I wait for the new one to arrive… Oops.)
All the shopping worked up our appetites. My dad asked me if Chipotle was any good. “Well,” I said, “You’ve got to try it to believe it.” Actually, I didn’t say that, but I did think YESSSS! And dragged him in. I got my usual salad, and was feelin’ the steak today. (Other toppings included fajita veggies, corn salsa, tomatoes, and guacamole.)
I think my dad liked his lunch, but felt a little overwhelmed by the crowd (lined up out the door! WHAT?) and he wasn’t sure how to order… That’s okay, Pops, we’ll just have to go back and try it again…. Muah ha ha!
I spent most of the rest of the afternoon ordering my new techno-goodies online and then packing up my room. As if I haven’t had enough packing in my life recently! I guess the floors are being redone, so everything I my room has to be moved out. Hmph.
Dinner was a comfort food kind of meal. Turkey meat loaf, sauteed veggies, and broccoli rabe. I also had a random breadstick and skim milk.
Wow, that picture from my phone turned out better than a lot from my camera… Yikes!
And I had a SO Delicious mini ice cream sandwich for dessert.
My little stepsister is waiting for the computer, so I’ve got to sign off quick…
But first, your Russian tidbit of the day!
Russian writers! Most people know that Russia has a really strong literary tradition, but here are some writers you should know beyond Dostoyevsky and Tolstoy! Much thanks to the bf, Luke, for helping me!
Anna Akhmatova–Soviet poet, who opposed and was then purged by Stalin. Read: Collected Poems.
Mikhail Bulgakov–Beloved Soviet writer, who opposed Stalin, yet was one of his favorite writers. Read: The Master and Margarita, which wasn’t published until decades after it was written.
Anton Chekhov–19th century playwright and short story author. Read: “Sleepy,” “Lady with a Pet Dog,” and/or “Misery” (Luke’s recommendation). See: The Seagull and/or The Cherry Orchard (also Luke’s suggestion).
Nikolai Gogol–(Crazy) Ukrainian 19th century writer, best known for pieces with a magical element, yet, ironically, he is known as the founder of Russian realism. Read: Dead Souls and/or “The Nose”
Vladimir Nabokov–Incredibly intricate writer in the 20th century, who escaped political turmoil and eventually lived in the US. Also a lepidopterist and professor! Read: Everything. Not kidding. But start with Lolita.
Victor Pelevin–One of Russia’s most popular contemporary writers, a post-modernist who tackles the meaning of post-Soviet culture. Read: Homo Zapiens (aka Generation P, aka Babylon)
Alexander Pushkin–Russia’s most celebrated writer of all time. Every Russian school child must memorize Pushkin’s poems. He died in a duel defending his wife’s honor. Sweet! Read: The Bronze Horseman and/or Eugene Onegin (which does not have an English translation that does it justice. Sorry!)
Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn–Soviet critic and dissident. He was forced into exile for presenting his views and revealing the atrocities of the Soviet prison system (Gulags). Read: The Gulag Archipelago
Tatiana Tolstaya–She is related to another famous Tolstoy, but not Lev. She is a current poet, essayist, and novelist. She is an interesting critic of both Russian and American culture. Read: The Slynx and/or Pushkin’s Children
Ivan Turgenev–A chronicler of the changes in Russian social and political life in the 1860s. Read: Fathers and Sons
Happy reading! I hope there is a new author or book for you to discover!
Anna Karenina is one of my favorite books I thought it was so funny that each character had 10 names or so, all of which were really hard to remember. I actually had to keep a list of the characters and all the names they go by so I could keep track!
It’s a little frightening to me that I’ve not only heard of a lot of those writers, but actually read their work. Eep.
I love the polka-dotted plate with the stir-fry… colored dots make me smile, for some reason!! Yes, I am weird. :p
❤ ❤
You should also add Vladimir Sorokin, I’ve only read his first book, The Queue, but it is excellent. Oh, and this is Joe, not Carlye.
THIS is Carlye. hehe
Okay, I’M mad jeal of Dunkin Donuts three times in three days. Yummerz!
And seriously, Sarah, I do NOT know what a bagel looks like, so next time, you’d better take a pic. Or there will be consequences.
I love you!
have you emailed the companies whose products you wanna try? that’s how i scored my vitatop loot!
Indian food=mad delicious! Hope you enjoy the rest of your weekend!
I need to try authentic Indian one of these days – I don’t know what I’m waiting for! I’m all over that breadstick 🙂 I love me my carbs!!
peach chobani?! never seen it. i make my own with peaches and plain though haha. LOVE indian food, now you have me craving it again…
I love Indian food! I think Chipotle needs to be my first stop when I get to NY… Man, it looks amazing!
Yay for new computer and camera! Wow- you have been blogging this whole time without your own computer?!! I am impressed!
Dang girl, you’ve definitely been having some tasty eats! I especially am a big fan of your Indian food and the comfort food 🙂
I’m MIGHTY jealous of those bloggers getting those chobani and vitalicious samples, too, hahaha! Hello? What abt me? I’m a blogger, too! Me mee me!
Anyway. holy cow, YOU are a lucky thing too to me enjoying such great food! Saag paneer? you are one after my own heart, that would have been what I’d ordered, too! YUM!