Faceplant!

I'm not the most coordinated individual. At the end of a run this morning, I'm jogging along the sidewalk in Beacon Hill, when I trip, fly in the air, and *splat* land flat on the ground. My knees are banged up, my left arm and elbow are a mess of road rash, and my palms are scraped. But the most bruised part of me is my ego.

With everyone staring at me, I got up quickly, smiled and laughed nervously, and kept on going.

Race Karma

That's me -- right after finishing the Wild Dog Triathlon this weekend. No makeup, sweating like a pig... yup that's me! 13th out of 21 in my age group. I'll take it!

I believe in Race Karma, if that's what you call it. Races are supposed to be fun. We're all out there to do our best. So, I like to cheer for people. Usually, it's best done on the run, and works quite well on an out-and-back course. I yell for people on their way out, or for people I pass. "Way to go girl, you look great!" The crappier they look, the more I cheer for them, because they definitely need the motivation. My favorite people to root for are older folks, like the 76 year-old woman who finished the triathlon. Now *that* is awesome!

There's no point in racing if you can't have fun, right????

Breastfeeding is Definitely Vegan!

Breast milk is produced for the purposes of feeding babies. It's the healthiest thing to feed a baby, as opposed to formula.

The purpose of veganism is to reduce suffering of animals, live a healthier lifestyle, and to help preserve the environment. Breastfeeding does not negatively impact any of these things.

On the other hand, humans are the only species that consumes the milk of a species other than our own. What if your dog drank giraffe milk? Wouldn't that be weird? Same goes for humans consuming cow's milk.

Chole with a Twist

I've made this before, but never with kidney beans. It came out well.

Wild Dog Triathlon -- Race Report

This morning, I did the Wild Dog Triathlon, a sprint triathlon. My friend's girlfriend took pictures, but hasn't sent them yet, but when she does I'll share.

We barely made it in time to compete. My dear friend picked me up 25 minutes late, and then took a very wrong turn on the highway. Start time was 8 am; we arrived at 7:59. I was beyond livid at him. As we pulled up, I sprinted out of the car, over to the registration table, and was able to get our race packets just seconds before they were to be put away for good. As things were fortunately running a bit late, I had time to throw together my transition area and put on my wet suit.

For the swim, I decided to start toward the front, which proved interesting since the ocean water was quite choppy. I did the breaststroke for at least half of the way out. It was crowded enough that there were people behind me who I kept kicking; I felt bad, but really, they should have moved if I kept kicking them. Does that sound harsh? Then out of the water, onto the bike for a pretty flat course where my legs felt so heavy. And finally, a 3 mile run, where crazy me cheers for everyone behind me on my run back.

So in my age group, I was 8th place on the swim, 14th on the bike, 11th on my run. How many people in my age group? I don't know yet. But, I did get a nice finisher's medal.

After all, we are all winners, right? :)

Silly questions deserve silly answers

I'm out to dinner with a friend. She orders a calamari appetizer. I am sipping on a glass of wine.

The server brings out the calamari. My friend says "I'd share with you but you can't eat this."

Server says, "Oh why can't you have any?"

Me: "I'm a vegan."

Server: Points to my wine. "But you killed all these grapes."

This is not the time to discuss the difference between sentient beings and fruits and vegetables, let alone the suffering of animals that factory farms cause or the health consequences of animal products. Our server could care less. So here's my response:

Me: "Can I tell you a secret?"

Server: "Sure...."

Me: "I hate fruit. I like to kill and stab fruit to death and then eat it. I hate vegetables too."

I got a few laughs after throwing him off with that response. Thoughts? How do any of you handle similar idiocy?

Stuffed Pepper

I made a green pepper stuffed with quinoa and portobellos. The quinoa was prepared in advance in my rice cooker, with vegetable broth instead of water. Then, I sauteed some baby bellas in a little oil, and added the quinoa toward the end of cooking. The peppers were stuffed with the quinoa/mushroom mixture and baked for about 30 minutes.

On the side is mashed sweet potatoes with a little Earth Balance Buttery Spread.

Why I went to California

This is my adorable niece Samantha. She just turned one, and her first birthday party was this weekend. She's the only lifelong vegetarian that I know.

How about some food posts already?

Salad for lunch, with a couple slices of Amy's vegan pizza. Lettuce, carrot, onion, corn, and chick peas with sesame soy ginger dressing.

I made a BIG trip to Trader Joe's yesterday, so there will be more food posting to come.

Alternative Outfitters

I have blown some serious $$$$ at AlternativeOutfitters.com, on purses, belts, cell phone cases, and other accessories. So, this week when I was in LA visiting my brother and his family, and I received an e-mail about their new showroom in Pasadena, I *had* to go.

I've found other vegan shoe and accessory web sites often to be too punk. Alternative Outfitters, on the other hand, has trendy items that a fashionable, or even professional, vegan will love.

I bought a purse, a belt, and a wallet, while my brother bought Mary Ruth a black purse and wallet. If you're in California, visit them, or wherever you are, check out their goods.

Perfect Vegan

If you take birth control pills, or just about any pill for that matter, there's a lactose binder.

If you develop photos, I believe gelatin is still used in the processing.

If you ever drive a car, you're going to splatter a few bugs on your windshield. Heck, even riding my bike I'll get a few bugs splattering on my face or even in my mouth. It happens.

As a doctor, I treat patients with heparin, which is pork-derived. It is often the best option medically for them.

Please know I'm not *that* lax. I went out Tuesday night to an Italian restaurant. I ordered a mushroom pizza without cheese, said please make sure there's no butter at all on this. And for dessert had some sorbet. At the end of the meal, I was sure to thank our waiter plentifully for taking care of my vegan needs. I didn't annoy my waiter or my friends I was eating with, kept it simple.

Did the dough conditioner have mono-diglycerides derived from an animal? How about the source of the lecithin for the bread -- soy or animal? Was there some honey in the crust? Was the pizza prepared on the same surface as animal products, and was there possibly cross-contamination? Don't know. What's important to me is that by avoiding the dairy in the pizza that I didn't contribute to the suffering of dairy and veal cows.

To the person who posted that she only eats at vegan restaurants, I wish I could do that. But I live in Boston, with a limited supply of veg/vegan restaurants and a vast majority of friends who do consume meat. Every so often I can take them out to Grasshopper or Buddha's Delight (two vegan restaurants), but not every time.

To me, it's all about the big picture. It's nearly impossible to be perfect.

Selling Out?

As of late, I've been less strict about the vegan thing outside the home.

When I go to a restaurant, I'll eat the bread. If something is probably vegan, I assume it is. I had Chinese food a couple nights ago at a buffet place, including miso soup, white rice, stir-fried veggies, and veggie lo mein, along with some cucumber sushi.

The obvious questions: Does the miso soup have bonito flake in it (possibly)? Are the stir-fried veggies prepared in broth (probably not)? Does the lo mein have oyster sauce in it (very possibly)?

I didn't ask. The way I now think about things is, if I pepper these people with my annoying questions, I make my vegan lifestyle look exceedingly difficult. And, what is the incremental amount of animal life that I'm saving by choosing not to eat these items, which may have a trace of animal product in them? Probably not even one thousandth of an animal.

I may be the only vegan that these people have ever met, and as such, I am an ambassador for all those who choose a compassionate lifestyle. I don't want myself or those who make the same choices as I do to be seen as being a big pain in the ass.

Thoughts? Have I sold out?

You see, I'm not that fast

Yesterday I was talking to someone who was a competitive swimmer in college. I mentioned that I do swim, and that "Actually, I do triathlons."

Shortly after that, I caught myself adding, "But you see, I'm not that fast."

I've noticed that any time I tell anyone about my running, biking, or swimming adventures that I add that caveat. And I don't ever dare say "I'm a triathlete". As if they might assume that I'm a world-ranked ironwoman when in fact I'm just someone who does sprint triathlons for fun and does okay at them. Okay of course meaning that I finish and I'm not dead last, though earlier this summer I did place third in my age group.

If I were a man, would I temper any mention of triathlons with self-deprecation?

Boys who do well in school attribute their success to being smart. Girls, on the other hand, attribute their success to luck. Is this an extension of the same mentality?

Why as women do we not give ourselves the credit we deserve?

Breakfast Burrito

Inspired by PETA's Vegetarian Recipe of the Week, I made breakfast burritos! But, my version doesn't have the Gimme Lean Sausage, and instead has lots of protein-packed mushrooms.

Here's how I did it: Pour a couple tablespoons of canola oil in a skillet. Add olive oil and garlic. Take one pound of firm tofu. squeeze out the water, and mash to a scrambled-egg like consistency either with your hands or with a fork. To the skillet, I added chopped tomato, orange pepper, mushrooms, and tofu. Add salt, pepper, turmeric, and paprika to taste. Sautee for 5-10 minutes. Serve on warm tortillas.

Sweet Potato Fries

Easy enough. Peel and chop up a sweet potato. Mix it with salt, pepper, and whatever spices you like -- I like cumin. Then bake at 425 for 30 minutes.

Disturbing -- Blood and Guts Course

These photos are from a Blood and Guts course at the Virginia Governor's School. The course is taken by gifted high school students who aspire to careers in medicine. Students dissect several animal species for the sake of learning the anatomy of the animals.

Compassion for my patients was one of the most important lessons that I took away from my medical training. The opposite lesson is being taught here -- I find these photos disrespectful and absolutely inappropriate. We know that dissecting animals is an inefficient way to teach about human anatomy. Students could see actual human bodies in a cadaver lab, for example, or use a computer simulator, and would probably learn more that way than from dissecting non-human animals.

If you're as disgusted as I am, please visit here. The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine is trying to stop this gruesome dissection course. From this web site, you can get links to express your concern to the people responsible for this so-called educational experience. I already have.

Veggie Stew

With a little spare time in my apartment on call this weekend as the Boston area remains heart attack-free, I had an hour or so to make a veggie stew.

These are easy to make -- any vegetables will suffice. I used what I had on hand, which was an eggplant, onion, cut baby carrots, and peas. Take a large pot and heat about a quarter cup of oil. Here, I used canola. Then add the veggies, and simmer for about 5-10 minutes. Next I added the seitan, beans, and two cups of vegetable broth -- add another cup of water or broth if more liquid is needed.

Simmer the mixture for about 30-35 minutes. Then, add a quarter cup whole wheat flour, a quarter cup of tamari or soy sauce, salt, pepper, and a little turmeric or whatever spices you like. Simmer for another ten minutes.

Running with Friends

This evening, I ran a five-mile road race in South Boston that I signed up for at the last minute. Normally when I run races, I go solo, with the exception of the Chase Corporate Challenge, when my good friend Karlyn caught up with me for the last 3/4 of a mile and we pushed each other to finish strong.

I ran tonight's race with another friend. We ran together, of course with him saying that I'd probably be faster than him, and me realistically knowing that he would be pushing me hard to run faster than I normally would, and that I might have to drop behind him. As it turned out, he was a good pace, and we finished the race together. My official time was 47:29, though we started 30 seconds later, and so I really ran it in 46:59. That's about 9:20 per mile.

That's why I like running/biking/swimming with other people -- they push me to be a better athlete.

What's In My Fridge

I'm a single vegan chic with a job that has weird hours. Unlike a lot of the other vegan food bloggers, I don't spend a lot of time cooking or preparing foods. Nothing I make on this site, unless stated otherwise, takes more than 30 minutes, because I want people to know that being a vegan who eats healthfully isn't a hard thing!

So, these are the top 2 shelves of the fridge.
Top Shelf (from left):
Leftover Trader Joe's Punjabi Chole (aka Indian Food in a Bag)
From top to bottom in middle: Pre-packaged Black Bean and Wheat Pilaf, Baba Ganoush, and Hummus
Stir fry leftovers from Tuesday
Spinach spread

Middle Shelf:
Protein for sandwiches, wraps, or stir fries -- Tofurky, Seitan, and assorted mushrooms
Avocado -- great spread on pita bread
Polenta
Organic strawberries and blackberries
Arm n Hammer -- to keep the fridge from smelling funky

Other staples that I like to have on hand:
Natural peanut butter
Soy milk
A few stir fry sauces
Vegenaise
Ketchup (to mix with Vegenaise to make vegan Thousand Island Dressing, or to put on a veggie burger)
Barbecue sauce -- great on Chik'n Nuggets

Tri Training

I've been telling myself for weeks that I'm going to start working out in the morning. This way, if things get late at work, I'm not riding my bike on the trainer in the living room at 11 pm, running through Chinatown in the dark, or doing something equally crazy.

So, this morning I set the alarm for 6:30 to go for a 45-minute hill repeat run. My normal thing lately has been to reset the alarm for 7:30 to get to work by 8 am and bag the workout until later. But today, I woke up on my own at 6:15 am, had my raisin bran, and was out the door by 6:40. Ran through Chinatown, across the Theater District, into Boston Common, to the hill in the park that runs parallel to Beacon Street, then decided that wasn't challenging enough and ran up Beacon Street itself three times. 45 minutes later, back home, showered, and off to work.

My next goal is to get faster on the bike. That's my weakest sport; swimming by some fluke is my strongest. My friend Gideon, who claims to be fast on his bike, is going to take me on a couple of butt-whoopin' workouts. I can't wait.

With this summer's tri training, I've only missed one workout. This with all the craziness of my life -- moving, new job, and weird hours. Pretty cool.