Brussels Sprouts with Dijon and Balsamic Vinegar

I've been trying to nail down different ways to do Brussels Sprouts. The vaguely Chinese-style is pretty easy (minced garlic, ginger powder, soy sauce, sesame seeds, maybe some rice vinegar or cooking sherry), but I really like Balsamic with them, too. I was aiming for vaguely French-inspired, although I don't do much French food since it doesn't play well with veganism as far as I can tell.

Trader Joe's Brussels Sprouts in the microwaveable bag (1 lb.)
2 large shallots, thinly sliced
Olive oil
Balsamic vinegar
Sea salt
Dijon mustard
Cooking sherry
Black pepper
Fresh thyme

1. Microwave sprouts for 4 minutes, with a piece of bread to absorb a little of the ass-smell. Cut in half, lengthwise.
2. Heat 2 tsp olive oil in large pan on medium-high heat. Add shallots and sautee until they begin to brown.
3. Add sprouts and sautee until they begin to steam. Add a healthy splash of balsamic - 2tsp, maybe 1 TBSP. Sprinkle with 3 or 4 pinches of sea salt.
4. Cook about 5 minutes, then add about 1 tsp of mustard and a couple of healthy splashes of cooking sherry.
5. Stir well and cook for 2 more minutes. The vinegar, sherry and mustard should make a sort of paste that clings to the shallots and coats at least part of the sprouts. If it's too thin, keep cooking it down; if it's too thick, add more sherry.
6. Remove from heat, grind some pepper on top and tear the leaves off of a few sprigs of thyme. You don't need too much. Stir together and serve immediately.

Procrastination Triggers, Tips & Tricks

The last several weeks have been rough. Chaos at home, insanity in the family, nearing the end of the contract, boss traveling and the ever-dreaded job hunting.

I don't want to get into all that but suffice to say the end result = lots of procrastination, little accomplished. There have been a few relevant posts on Lifehacker recently that have got me thinking about ways to fix this. The basic problem for me is anxiety & depression make me want to hide and not think about real-world things, which make the real-world things worse. Blah blah blah. Here's what I've been working out about my causes, stages and possible solutions:

Procrastination Triggers
Depression: This is tied into anxiety (see below), but if things aren't going well it can make you depressed and take away your energy and positive outlook on working. For me, I sometimes deal with this via self-punishment. I procrastinate so that I have another reason to feel bad, and berate myself for my bad choices. This is where cognitive-behavioral therapy comes in. Other solutions in general are giving yourself a pass for socialization, fun-time, 'me-time', exercise and sunlight. Don't push it off as a reward for getting things done, and don't feel guilty while doing it. It's part of getting work done and it'll help you push through the problem. Talking it out can help as well.

Anxiety: External life events or project-specific, either way this is the biggest problem for me. As my overall anxiety level increases, so does my urge to hide and hope everything goes away. Project-specific anxiety is somewhat easier to deal with, but it has to be examined first to determine the cause. This can be difficult given the run/hide habit, but it's a good first, distancing and depersonalizing step.

Solutions
Being Overwhelmed: The next step in the project is big, murky, full of things I'm not sure how to approach, information I don't know how to get, or seems impossible to complete in the amount of time left. The first step is to identify any low-hanging fruit that doesn't fit the above descriptions and do that first. It needs to be done anyway, and once you're working you can look at the rest of it and ferret out even more low-hanging fruit that you didn't realize was there.

The next step is further breaking down the big project into little projects. As you do this you'll find more easy stuff and the hard stuff will make itself known; leave that until a bit later. As you complete the easy things, further diagram the big things. You can break almost everything down into smaller pieces. If for some reason you can't break things down into completable blocks, or it doesn't make sense, break them down time-wise. Work 30 minutes on an easy thing, then spend 5 minutes looking at or working on the hard thing. Also, think about that hard project when you're winding down into relax time; dabble in it when you're watching a movie you've seen before or a low-intelligence TV show. You're not committing to working on it, there's no need to complete it today, but it'll help you start to digest it, plan an approach and won't be the big scary thing you haven't looked at in weeks.

Bad Habits: I've found that sitting in one place means I can often, but not always get work done. Going to a cafe or sitting outside (where I can't get internet access) is effective 90% of the time but can be quickly draining. Sitting on the couch almost never works. Scheduling a meet-up at a cafe can work, enjoying a lovely day outside is a reward for getting things done, and moving your workspace to the right place before bed can help you get on track the next morning. Make sure things are charged overnight so the next day you have no excuse to stay in the non-working space because your phone/computer battery is almost dead.

Procrastination by Accomplishment: When I finally move out of the miasma of Not-Work back into Work, it's often through a transition period wherein I accomplish things on my general to-do list before I actually sit down and get started. Yardwork, cooking, cleaning, laundry, errands - while these can take up significant amounts of time and further delay getting work done, crossing them off your mental list can also reduce your general anxiety level and boost self-esteem. Just knowing that you can complete tasks, shorten your to-do list, see your progress, all of those start good, positive feelings moving through your system, clearing out the negative, "Can't Won't Never" thoughts that have been clogging everything up. Just be careful not to stay in this state too long - when you're making a decision between running an errand that could take a while and sitting down to get work done, decide what your true motives are. On the other hand, if you're still not ready to get work done and will just waste time instead, run the errand and just make sure to get a few minutes of work done when you get back.

Minimum Standards: This was brought up in the Lifehacker article recently. Joni uses it to get herself outside for a run on even crappy days when she really doesn't feel like it. Start with just 5 minutes. Just open the document and read the first paragraph. Just start drafting the e-mail. Once you start, another few minutes won't seem so hard, and you've already accomplished your goal so it's all bonus work from there.

Letting Go: A major problem with me is that I get so backed up, or I waste so much time, that I feel that I somehow have to catch up on all of it before I can proceed. Starting with a few minutes, or even a couple of hours, each day just won't cut it - I need to work for 8, 10, 12 hours straight to get caught up! I need to read all 10 chapters before I read this week's assignment! Sometimes just deciding to start at the most immediate need and work your way backwards is what it takes to unblock the dam. Often you'll find that you can just skim those chapters because you've covered most of it in class already, or the time you thought you needed to spend on a project is better spent elsewhere anyway. This isn't to say that there aren't consequences to procrastinating, but if that's what's keeping you from moving forward, just deal with them later. You're good at that, right?

Too Much Coffee

I've been having trouble waking up at a decent time lately. My day didn't really get started today until nearly 4, at which time Matt and I did a coffeehouse tour of several Seattle neighborhoods. It was 8 o'clock by the time I drained the rest of my cold soy latte and headed home.

Joni was a little drunk on wine and in her cooking addict mode, so after baking a pastaless zucchini lasagna and mixing up egg salad sandwiches for her hike with Jami tomorrow, she made vegan chocolate chip cookies. I think I had about 6, some tortilla chips and a Mai Tai. We still have about 482 little umbrellas left so I'm trying to get more creative.

Suffice to say my intention to restart Weight Watchers isn't going well.

Went to a show this past Thursday. I've been listening to Erin McKeown for several years and really enjoy some of her songs but can get bored with others. Still, thought she'd be good live and tickets were cheap. Figured we'd be in the company of several lesbians given she's gay but didn't realize the first opener, Timmy Straw was a transman. Makes sense. Gorgeous voice, very talented, needs to vary his style to keep interest (in my decidedly inexpert opinion).

I knew all the hipsters were there for Emily Wells. They cleared out after her set, as predicted. But wow, major new artist for me. Total accidental discovery and I'm super happy about it. iTunes purchase the next day and no regrets so far. Can't believe she layered and mixed her violin (viola?), harmonized background vocals, electronic tones and drum beats right there on stage, then sang on top of it. And played guitar and ukulele too? Ah-mazing.

Erin was great, true professional rocker. Some of her stuff is still about 30 seconds too long for me, and could use some more variety/change-ups, but she's obviously doing fine as-is. Good on her.
Glad we got a chance to get out in the city. It's all well and good to brag about the music scene in Seattle over Pittsburgh and Charlotte, but then I'm twice as lame for not going.

Sleep isn't happening so I'm typing long-ass blog entries on the snozzberry and listening to The Deadly Snakes. So good. Some songs make my toes curl and eyes roll back. My luck they broke up a few years ago. God effing dammit.

I haven't been stupid drunk in a while and I kind of want to be. I wish you could guarantee full control of bodily functions but I suppose that's the chance you take. Ah well.

I need more of my bad decisions to include fun things. Lately all they contain is stress and recrimination. LAME. Eff that noise, it needs to change and soon.

Tomorrow: first new shoes in 3 years.

When working isn't a problem

Things have taken off, and my schedule has stabilized. This may be, in part, due to roommates waking up insanely early even on the weekend to go showshoeing and mountain climbing and other alien pursuits. Also this cold hasn't helped, I've been waking up before my alarm from the sound of my tongue cracking (since my nostrils don't work).

The thing I am still having trouble with is getting things done around the house, and sticking to an exercise schedule. My new thought is that if I have fun new video games to play, it will get me down in the exercise area and function as a non-food reward (those are hard to find). Of course I can't afford to buy new games so instead I made a small investment so I can do a little h4x0ring. Stay tuned.

The other day, when the pantry was a bit bare, I decided to try cooking up some of this grain mix that's been sitting around forever. It's a combination of Trader Joe's harvest grains mix, some buckwheat groats, and assorted unknown dried beans, legumes and grains. Possibly rice? Who knows. Here's what it looks like:

 

So I cooked it up with some Italian spice blend (no salt when cooking lentils) and it came out tasting like mashed ass. After that initial disappointment, I decided it was a perfect time to make some burgers to freeze for quick protein. Lately my joints have been extra achy and my brain malfunctioning what with the cold, so I decided I might be low on Omega fatty acids. Hence this recipe:

Omega Burgers
Makes 10+ burgers depending on how big you make them. 

1 cup walnuts
4 cloves garlic
6 green onions, white parts only
3 cups mixed, cooked grains
1/4 cup ground flax seed
2 TBSP soybean oil (aka vegetable oil)
2 TBSP soy sauce
1/4 can beer
1/2 C chickpea flour (or other flour)
1/2 C cornflake crumbs (or breadcrumbs or panko)
olive or vegetable oil
season salt
black pepper

Combine walnuts and garlic in a food processor and run until fairly well chopped. Add green onions and puree. Scrape the sides and add grains, flax, oil, and soy sauce. Process until it starts to freak out or a large clump starts circling, then slowly pour in beer until it has a paste-like texture. Scrape into a bowl and mix in chickpea flour and cornflake crumbs, adding more beer if it becomes too thick to work, or more flour & crumbs if it's too wet. You're aiming for something that you can shape into a patty in your hand that sticks together, but doesn't stick too badly to your hand. 

It'll look about like this (note I used Busch Lite because it's not like I'm going to be drinking it or anything):

You can either panfry these or bake them. Panfried are squishy in the middle, but have a nicer color and a crisp crunch.

To bake, preheat oven to 400 (or maybe 425, I had them at 375 and it was too low). Brush a baking sheet in olive oil. Shape burgers by about a 1/3 to 1/2 cupful in your hand. You can squash them flatter on the baking sheet. Brush the tops with olive oil and shake on a dash of season salt and grind some fresh pepper on the tops. Mine looked like this:

Bake for at least 20 minutes and keep checking until they're firm, starting to brown on the bottom and hopefully will release easily from the sheet. It might take longer so adjust times/temps accordingly.

For panfrying, cover a plate with paper towels or torn pieces of a paper bag. Heat a skillet on medium heat and add enough vegetable oil to cover the bottom of the pan. Drop in a burger (I did mine one at a time but you can be daring and try more), and cook a few minutes until you can see the bottom edge starting to brown. Flip and cook the other side for a minute or two and cook until it's as brown as you like. Here's about the color after the first flip:

Put the cooked burgers on the paper-covered plate to absorb the extra grease. Use the leftover oil to caramelize onions, if you like.

I had mine with caramelized onions, salsa and avocado, or the next day with some ketchup and mustard on a cracked wheat sourdough roll. Both are good.


If you have a dog that does well with onions and garlic (they can be toxic), or you leave those out, get the dog to clean your hands for you:

Thanks Lulu!

Stress!

Freelance tip #1: Just because your paycheck arrived super-quickly the last time, do NOT budget for that to happen again.

My last mailed paycheck arrived on the same day that I thought it would be mailed, so I assumed it would be that quick again. Not so! Now my rent check was mailed Saturday and is probably in the hands of my landlady already. Will my check arrive tomorrow? Not until Friday? I have no idea. And I have $12 to my name. Bad scene!

Also, I'm making sure we have everything set for our big long meeting next week, and remembered that way back in October before I took time off to finish my thesis, the GIS guru and I had discussed installing HAZUS on one of the computers in the office so that I could run some scenarios and do some analysis. For the most part, I don't need this until next month, but I suddenly realized that actually, having a couple of maps would be useful right now, and I'm kicking myself for not taking care of that earlier.

There's also this bit of imbalance where I'm not sure if I should take the initiative in contacting people or if I'm overstepping my bounds as a contractor. It makes me question my actions in a way I didn't anticipate.

On a more positive note, here are some tips that are helping me get some work done from home, many of which were gathered from Lifehacker:

• Make a schedule that works with your natural schedule
• I found myself only able to get down to work around noon, but then I was able to crank away until dinner time. So I set that as my work schedule, rather than trying to force myself to wake up every morning at 8 or 9 and get right to work. Before I start work that gives me some time to wake up, take care of house chores, cook, work out, etc.
• An aside to this: if I bring my computer up to my room when I go to bed, this schedule will fail. I'll stay up late doing stupid stuff, sleep in through my alarm, then spend hours the next morning in bed doing stupid stuff on the computer. My Precious stays downstairs at night now and I can check e-mail on my blackberry so I don't have to worry about missing a time-sensitive e-mail.
• Set up a work space
• It's not a private room where I can close the door and remove distractions, but our cafe setup is made for working, and not as comfortable for relaxing. It helps to have others working at the same time. I can leave my Wacom tablet and hard drive in the same place, and the printer is there, too.
• The pomodoro method (set a timer for 25 minutes, work until it's done, take a 5 minute break)
• I just started this and today had so much to do that getting myself to focus wasn't an issue, so the jury's still out on this one. I can see how it would work well, though.
•  Task list
• At the beginning of the week, I make a task list with several items, grouped by deadline or project. Throughout the week I cross them off as I go, and if I hit a wall on one item, I check my list and switch to something else. Whatever is left at the end of the week goes on the next week's task list. I e-mail a copy to my client so she knows what I'm working on, and can add items if she thinks of something that would be useful.

I'll add to this list as I discover more or tweak these things. Hopefully I'll also figure out some stress management ideas. I was on the Wii Fit for an hour this morning but I don't feel like that helped.

Stuffs to be working on

Hopefully you'll see blahg posts about all of these exciting things in the next few weeks. By exciting I mean pretty boring.

Painting: I have to finish this one that I started yesterday. At least I finished the fruit bowl so we can use the fruits now, but I'm not sure what I want to do with the background. Ink wash? Pencil or charcoal? The background's mostly black so I hesitate to do more pastels.

Gardening: I'm sure it's just being a tease, but the weather's actually been... sunny? Not raining?! In Seattle, in January, so I should take the opportunity to put down some mulch and maybe a few bulbs, since daffodils are apparently already sprouting. I bet there's a blizzard.

Various restaurant and cafe reviews: How to eat out as a vegan in non-vegan places is always a fun topic. The best coffeeshops to work in, their pros and cons are another useful one.

Debt management: One of these days I should have enough money for both bills and creditors. I may also switch to a credit union so that Bank of America doesn't keep stealing $35 overdraft fees from me every time I'm short a few bucks (AND HAVE PLENTY IN MY SECONDARY ACCOUNT YOU FUCKING BASTARDS). If I have any tips for dealing with collections I'll post my experiences.

My current schedule involves attempting to wake up at or before 9 (today it finally happened!), playing until about lunchtime (should not be on the computer though) and working until dinner or so.

Now... a little Wii and then I get to work!

V-con dinner

This is curry-marinated baked tofu, garlic saffron rice and cornmeal-masala roasted Brussels sprouts from the Veganomicon. 3 mix and matches, all vaguely Indian spices inspired.

Sam, the thieving bastard, has been hoping I forgot about my large glass casserole dish for the past several weeks so I've been going crazy trying to figure out where it was and making things in smaller containers. Tonight it would have helped, but instead I baked the tofu in my George Foreman G-5 for a hella long time on medium-low, which kinda worked.

The cornmeal sprouts really didn't turn out as advertised. Way too much oil, I got a batter rather than crumblies, and it never really toasted up in the oven. This may be because the rack was a bit low, or maybe it would have done better on foil or a cookie sheet. I cooked it for an extra 10 minutes, too.

I used brown jasmine rice instead of white, so I cooked it for 40 minutes instead of 20, and then forgot to move it off the heat and open the lid after 10 minutes so it got a bit squishy.

All in all, though, still yummy, just some things I would change for next time. Like, say, use 3 tablespoons of oil instead of 6 in the sprouts.

Blueberry Almond Scones

Joni accidentally opened an extra box of soymilk, so I thought I'd make some scones. Of course in our house, we call them sconces - back in my Starbucks days there were a few customers who were unaware of the difference between pastries and home decor. I can't find my copy of Vegan with a Vengeance for some odd reason so I had to use my google-fu, and altered this recipe to match my ingredients.

Cherry Almond Scones

1 C. All-Purpose White Flour
1 C. Whole Wheat Flour
1⁄2 C. Turbinado/Raw Sugar
2 t. Baking Powder
1⁄2 t. Baking Soda
1⁄2 t. Kosher Salt
1⁄4 C. Margarine
1⁄2 C. Soymilk (plain or vanilla)
1 t. Vanilla Extract
3⁄4 C. Fresh or Frozen Wild Blueberries
1⁄2 C. Slivered Almonds
Extra Soymilk and Sugar, for topping

1. Preheat the oven to 400º.

2. Mix together the flours, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add the margarine and cut into the flour mixture using a pastry cutter (two butter knives held together) or your fingers, until the mixture resembles a coarse, crumbly meal.

3. Add the soymilk, almond extract, blueberries and almonds. Mix well with a wooden spoon or your hands until the mixture comes together to form a dough. You may need to add an extra tablespoon of soymilk if the mixture is too dry.

4. Scoop the scones in approximately half-cup mounds onto a cookie sheet and press the tops flat; round the edges if needed.

5. Brush the tops with a bit of soymilk (I used my fingers) and sprinkle with sugar. Bake for 15 to 18 minutes, until the edges and bottom are golden. Place scones on a plate to cool.

Makes 9. 

Blogging: Redux

I've been thinking about getting a new blog going for a while. "I have enough content that it can be something other than angry, drunken rambling", I thought: the best cafes in Seattle to work from, how to freelance when you suck at time management, getting along as a professional when still broke... plus fun things, like creative projects, vegan recipes, restaurant reviews, and perhaps the occasional story about crazy friends and family, or tales of living with 4 very distinct personalities, a dog and a cat.

Since I had this and used it for a while, I thought I'd resurrect it rather than taking up yet more space in the tubes. There are some parts about this layout that I really like, and some parts that are really dated and lame. Some of those things are the same, because I'm a little bit dated and lame, myself.

Also, I will attempt to use the labels function effectively for navigational excellence. 

6 Years of Posts

I stopped using this back in 2003 and switched to livejournal and have been posting from there for the past six years. If for some strange reason you feel the need to have a complete picture of my life, go there.