DAY FOUR POST COVID VACCINE

 First, I am feeling pretty much the same.  I am almost convinced that I have costrochondritis; inflammation in the cartilage.  Right now it is in my upper rib cage and under arm.  I am sure it will subside soon.

I looked back and I guess I never mentioned my tooth.  I wasn't sure anything bad occurred so maybe that is why I never said anything.  Last week I was eating a second day of the Black Bean Salad and I crunched down unsuspectingly on a piece of a walnut shell.  I thought it had dislodged a piece or broke off a piece of my filling. It didn't hurt but I tasted metal and that is never good.  A few hours later I went to sleep and didn't wear my night guard and I thought maybe I ground and clenched the filling back into my tooth.  

I called the dentist in the morning and made an appointment for today.  The dentist did x-rays and took a photo and sure enough, I broke my filling in half and I guess my grinding and clenching stuck the loose piece back in place and lodged it between my crown and the piece that didn't dislodge.  For once my grinding and clenching came in handy. Well, it means another crown.  She couldn't do it today and I have to go back in a few days but they used the extra time to clean my teeth!  

I made a lovely rift on Korean Mungbean Cream Pasta.  It is Mungbean pasta with mushrooms and spinach.  It was super tasty.  

Until tomorrow...

DAY THREE POST COVID VACCINE

 What a day!  I am still taking it slow but I don't think I am capable of taking it slow for more than a couple days.  I got up and took a shower thinking that would make me feel better.  It did not.  

I called my RA doctor to let him know what was going on.  He wasn't there but his staff informed me that I am under no circumstances to take my Orencia possibly until a week after my second shot. That will mean I will be without my meds for seven weeks.  The doctor called me back but I dropped the phone and it hung up.  Oops!

I am still feeling not so great.  The pain in my shoulder, back and neck has decreased.  The pain has moved to under my breasts.  It hurts when I breathe, sneeze, cough and laugh.  All of those things make me cough so you see the issue.  It is best when I keep quiet.

I had a distanced visit from my neighbors. They are moving from my neighborhood in a few weeks and they wanted to say goodbye.  Lucky went completely crazy when she saw them.  She is going to miss them so much.  I will too.  I will be invited to their parties but Lucky will have to stay home.  

I tried to work on my taxes but I kept getting interrupted. I got the contract from the solar company.  Did I mention I am getting solar panels installed? I made the decision and signed the papers.  Yay!  But this is a step closer to being sustainable.  I wanted to get solar panels when I renovated my house but solar panels weren't feasible at that time.  The panels were really big. 

Until tomorrow...

SECOND DAY AFTER VACCINE

Okay. I am feeling a little bit better. I still have the chills. I am just so cold. It was 75 degrees F here today and I am wearing a sweet shirt, long pants and I'm wrapped in a fleece blanket. I was on the couch so that was a step in the right direction. My neck still hurts as well as the pressure/pain in my shoulder, chest and back. It hurts to cough and sneeze. Plus I am tired.

I am wondering if I am having an autoimmune response from the shot and also from not taking my meds for now three weeks.  It is an interesting thing to think about. 

I called the doctor but haven't heard back. I might not since I told him don't bother to contact me if there is nothing to say. 

So another day of rest. 

Until tomorrow...

DAY AFTER FIRST VACCINE

Well, last night after getting my first vaccine I started not feeling great. I know it is typical to get headaches and aches. I was ready for that. I had pressure and pain on the side I got the shot. The pressure and pain is in my shoulder, chest and back. That was unexpected. I was also tired and fell asleep early. 

When I woke up this morning I had much more pain in my shoulder, back and chest. As the day went on I also had progressive pain in my neck.  I spent the day in bed sleeping and watching TV. I have been instructed by my doctor relatives to call my doctor tomorrow if I am not better.  I hope I will feel better tomorrow. Honestly, this does not make me look forward to the second shot. 😜

Until tomorrow...

GOT MY FIRST VACCINE

 I can't believe it finally happened!  I got my first vaccine shot.  

I got up and started to work on my taxes.  I have them almost ready to send to my preparer.  It is going faster than I thought because there was only in-person work for less than three months.  So parking, mileage, tolls, public transportation, and taxis are barely anything.  I barely went anywhere.  So it is taking less time than usual. 

Then mid afternoon I got ready to go get my vaccine.  I was taking a taxi so I needed to make sure I had everything (ID and confirmation page), money, masks and hand wipes.  I got in the cab.  I was more stressed than I expected.  Not because I was getting a shot; heck I get shots every week.  But because I was leaving the house and I was going to see the area for the first time in a year.  What would I see?  

I was pleasantly surprised.  The area was not as bad as I expected.  From the news reports I expected to see a ghost town. There were businesses open and people were out. Not as many people as normally would be out on a Saturday afternoon but still people.  There were businesses open. There were a lot of commercial lease space for rent.  A lot!  Some businesses were gone like The Gap and Marshalls and Walgreens.  But it was in a shopping area and I assume the area hasn't had people shopping for months.  

The arena where I went was very organized.  I only came close to the guy who looked at my ID and the woman who gave me the shot.  Otherwise I was 6' away form folks the whole time.  There were tons of people directing me so there was no cross walking.  I got my vaccine and I was told that because I am immune compromised my vaccine would not be fully effective.  They don't know what percentage effective it will be since they didn't study compromised people. So I was told to be careful.

Then I took a taxi home and jumped in the shower and put my stuff in my UV machine.  

I feel where the shot went in but so far I feel fine.  I am a bit tired but I was stressed all day so I expect this.  I hope I feel fine tomorrow so I can finish my taxes.

Crazy day! 

Until tomorrow...

DAY SEVENTY-SEVEN OF COOKING COURSE

 It happened! I have a vaccination date.  I thought it would never happen.  Today after spending 30 minutes looking for a date, I called my doctor because I read on a facebook help group that people were being asked for a doctor's letter for the tier for Individual at higher risk.  I read that I didn't have to bring any proof and that I just had to say I was in the tier but then I read that people were getting doctor letters.  I contacted my doctor's office to get a letter and his office called me and said it is illegal to ask any medical information and that I can certify myself at the vaccination site.  If they do ask, it is a HIPAA violation and I should call the state and complain.  

The doctor's office also explained that in one week another tier was going to open up and I should hurry up and get my vaccine while there are fewer people waiting for vaccines.  She told me one place she knew had appointments open and explained how to get an appointment.  I did what she said and sure enough it worked.  I got an appointment for tomorrow afternoon.  It is not a drive through but I need to get a shot before next Thursday when thousands and thousands more people will be looking to get appointments.  I have a second appointment three weeks later. 

Today was another crazy day.  On Monday my week was pretty empty.  Then I don't know what happened. Today there was a discussion on email about solar panels with my brothers.  I met with a client.  I attended a webinar.  I contacted my dentist because I may have injured a filling.  It hasn't fallen out but it bothered me last night and I tasted metal.  It feels better today but I probably ground it all night and I was afraid to put my night guard on. I have an appointment on Wednesday to get it checked just in case.  Meanwhile I am not chewing on that side.

Then I made dinner.  I made Korean Mungbean Cream Pasta.  It is my first time making Cashew Nut Milk and Mungbeans.  The pasta is tasty with mushrooms, mungbeans and the cashew nut milk.  I really enjoyed this dish and would make it again. 

That was about my day.  

Until tomorrow...

DAY SEVENTY-SIX OF COOKING COURSE

 This is probably the busiest day I have had in months. First I had deliveries.  Then I had to figure out my fruits and veggies that I was going to order for my bi-monthly delivery.  I ordered my food and then took a quick shower.  Then I began the nut milk production.  

First I made the cashew milk which consists of taking the cashews that I soaked overnight and putting them in the blender with some water.  I got about 2 cups of cashew milk. 

 Then I took the nuts and oats that I soaked overnight and did basically the same thing.  It was a bit more involved since it also had oats and it was a larger quantity.  I got about 4 cups of nut/oat milk.  

I took the nut/oat milk and used it to make Yam Soup.  I chopped up part of a yam and blended it up and added some of the nut/oat milk.  Then I heated it up. It is really good and creamy. 

Then I had a meeting with my social media guy.  Then straight into a video conference to see/hear my friend speak on a panel.  Then I could clean up my mess, workout and make some dinner and watched a video school on whales for a few minutes. Whew!  What a day!

Until tomorrow...

DAY SEVENTY-FIVE OF COOKING COURSE

This was a crazy day.  I literally had zero on my calendar.  I thought I would get so much done today.  Nope!

First thing I get a notification from my credit screening company (I have it because my info was in an employee's briefcase and the briefcase was stolen a number of years ago) that someone was trying to get my credit report.  I tried to log in and my account was locked.  Ugh.  I had to call and talk to a person.  That now added on 30 minutes of him figuring out why my account was locked (from the credit report request) and then I had to get a new login.  Once that was cleared up, my dog walker showed up with 30 rolls of toilet paper.  Thirty rolls!  I haven't seen thirty rolls of toilet paper all at one time for one year.  I feel that is a sign that things are getting better.

 Fed Ex finally came and picked up the 25 lb of dog food.  I thought it was never going to leave my porch.  Then they dropped off my new box of dog food.  Yay!

I made Black Bean Salad - Kongjaban.  It is black beans cooked with walnuts, cashews, sesame seeds, and a sauce made from soy sauce, sesame oil, agave and some other stuff.  The black bean mixture is mixed in with salad greens.  I can't believe it is so good.  I have some leftover for tomorrow.  

I have 1,000 followers!!  I am so excited.  That is a good accomplishment. 

I am soaking nuts for two reasons today.  I am soaking cashews to make cashew milk and soaking nuts and oats for Yam Soup.  Next I am fermenting some things.

Until tomorrow...

DAY SEVENTY-FOUR OF COOKING COURSE

 The food I made today was good but spicy.  I ate a helping but it took me awhile.  It was Tteokbokki pasta.  This is a Korean dish that is usually made with rice cakes but can be made with other things.  We made it with penne pasta and tofu.  The sauce had gochujang (Korean pepper paste) sauce and soy sauce. It was supposed to also have Korean pepper powder but it was already spicy enough for me.  I portioned it out and gave some to my friend S and the rest goes to my dog walker for his dinner tomorrow.  

I had a zoom class on a photo software Pixlr. It was interesting what you can do with photos these days.

Until tomorrow...

DAY SEVENTY-THREE OF COOKING COURSE

 Bibimbap!  It is a Korean bowl that has rice and usually meat.  The vegan version has rice, shocked spinach and sprouts and sauted carrots and zucchini.  Then there is some Korean pepper paste in the middle (Gochujang).  I liked all of it but the pepper paste made my eyes tear.  I made two bowls and on the second I did not include the pepper paste.  It is really tasty and light.  

I was very excited when I woke up today.  Yesterday I posted on my Instagram a photo of an Amy's brand vegan wrap.  This morning I woke up and the company Amy's wrote back to me, liked my photo and said "So glad you enjoyed!" with a heart emoji.  That was my first try at tagging a company and they wrote back to me!  So exciting!  

Well, the 25 lb bag of dog food is still on my porch.  Fed Ex did not show up today. The woman at Chewy obviously did not make a Fed Ex pick up appointment for me like she said she did.  I called Fed Ex late in the day and they had no record of any pick up.  Seriously?!  I fixed it and they are coming tomorrow.  She also put 1 pound on the label.  Boy that delivery driver would have been surprised when he got a 25 lb box instead.  

I haven't slept well the last two nights with this box on my porch.  I need to go to bed early tonight. Night.

Until tomorrow...

BLUEBERRY BUSH UPDATE

 It was a nice Spring day today. It has been raining a lot recently so it was nice seeing some sunshine.  Of course I had to see it through a window as I worked on my taxes.  

My blueberry bush is in full bloom and I think I will have a good crop this year.  My previous gardener gave me a good secret: coffee grounds.  Putting coffee grounds in the soil brings lots of blueberries. 

I passed my goal of 800 followers.  I am super happy.  I got 300 followers in 6 days.  That is amazing.  I have been working really hard on my social media.  I really like it.

Until tomorrow...

DAY SEVENTY-TWO OF COOKING COURSE

 I continued Korean food today by making Mango Vinegar Pickled Limes.  It is vinegar that has vinegar, limes, mango, and sugar all in a jar and it is kept for two weeks.  At the end of the two weeks, the vinegar is used in another recipe.  I have been told the mango is good to eat.  We shall see.

I found out that another jar is not made out of tempered glass.  I poured boiling water in the container to sterilize it and it cracked the glass.  I guess the jar is for containing only.  

I opened up my box from Chewy and found a 25 pound bag of dog food.  I don't remember buying a 25 lb bag of dog food nor is it the correct brand.  It also has a hole in it.  I called Chewy and they are taking it back not only because it is not what I normally buy but also because it has a hole in it.  They are sending me my normal 8 lb bag of dog food.

I started to hear noises.  Weird noises.  I thought it was the bird.  But it wasn't.  Then I thought it was the ice maker but it wasn't.  It was coming from the 25 lb bag of dog food.  I put the bag back in the box it came in and sealed it back up and put it on my porch.  If there is something in the dog food, they can have it back.  I do not want it in my house.  There is enough food in that box to keep it busy for about... 25 lbs worth of time.  If it gets out, it will be outside and it can go frolic with the rest of the animals in the wild.  Just not in my house.  Maybe it was just my imagination but I swear I heard something and Lucky kept circling that box and barking at it.  

Until tomorrow...

DAY SEVENTY-ONE OF COOKING COURSE

 Today is my third day of cooking Korean food.  I made Gimbap - Korean Sushi. I used stir fried carots, sauted spinach, cucumber and sushi rice.  It was all rolled in nori sheets.  I have so much experience now rolling sushi, I free hand rolled it.  I made two rolls and after eating a few pieces, I gave the rest to my friend S.  So far it is my favorite sushi but don't get excited, I still don't like sushi. 

 I am up to 700 followers on my Instagram.  So exciting! 

I got a large food delivery today.  I needed so many things and it had been a long time since I had a food delivery.  For once I got everything I asked for and nothing wacky showed up or was missing. 

Lucky update: she went on her first walk since Monday.  She seems fine.  I think she is healed.  

Still no luck getting a vaccine date.

Until tomorrow...

DAY SEVENTY OF COOKING COURSE

 I made my second Korean dish today, Ssambap. It is like a lettuce wrap. Inside was Bulgogi which is a vegan version with cauliflower, red pepper, mushrooms, and carrots.  Then there is a sauce called Ssamjang that was a bit spicy and made my eyes tear.  It is my favorite Korean dish so far.  

It took a bunch of pots and pans and dishes to make but it was worth it. I have some leftover for tomorrow's lunch.

Lucky update: She seems much better today. I am definitely sending her for a walk tomorrow.  She didn't go today and I am happy since it poured cats and dogs all afternoon.  She would have been miserable.  This evening she wanted to play fetch over and over so it is time for her to get out of the house.

Until tomorrow...

HAPPY ST. PATRICK'S DAY

 For St. Patrick's Day I made brownie cupcakes with green icing. I thought this would be a fun.  Only one thing went wrong. The cupcake tins I used are really old and they stuck to the brownies.  So now I may have to rethink what to do with the brownies.  It put me in the mood for St. Paddy's Day.

I used my new re-usable pastry bag and tips from my brother and sister-in-law from Christmas.  It worked perfectly.  I am still working on my technique but I thought I did pretty good for a first timer.  Watching all those baking shows paid off!

Lucky Update: Lucky seems to be doing better.  She doesn't growl when I touch her backside. She slept most of the day since she was drugged.  She is walking better.  I think she should be good to go tomorrow with the dog walker.

Until tomorrow...

DAY SIXTY-NINE OF COOKING COURSE

 Okay, not every recipe works out the way it should. Today I cooked Korean Savoury Pancake - Pajeon.  It all started out right.  I made all the ingredients correctly and laid them in the pan right. But then I had to flip the pancake.  It was a mess. The lady in the video made it look so easy.  I tried a second pancake and that did not go much better. 

It tastes delicious but looks like a mess.  There was a soy sauce that went over it.  Basically it is a tempura pancake with purple cabbage, red peppers, mushrooms and chickpeas. Then a chickpea flour and chickpea water combination poured over that and fried in a pan.  

I had a friend stop by for a distanced visit before he heads back to Hawaii.  It was good to see him.  We all thought we would be visiting him this spring in Hawaii.  Maybe next year.

I checked on getting a vaccine today.  I checked a box and an appointment came up. I was so unprepared.  I went through the MANY pages to give them my information. By the time I got to the end where I hit confirm, it said it gave away the appointment.  It was about 1.5 minutes.  What?!??  I guess they don't use a system like Ticketmaster where they hold your spot for a few minutes until you finish filling out your information!  This is crazy. No wonder people are frustrated.  By the time I went back to start over the appointments were all gone.  ERGH!  I am frustrated and I wasn't even trying to get an appointment.  I will try again tomorrow.

LUCKY UPDATE:  The vet called and they think Lucky may have overdone her walk.  They suggest I give her Gabapentin, keep her home tomorrow, let her sleep and recover.  They think it may be a muscle strain but they said to watch and make sure she didn't hurt a vertebrae. Today she tried to play for a few minutes so I think she will be fine.  I think drugging her for a day or two will do her some good.  Let her rest and recover.

Until tomorrow...

NO INTERNET MOST OF THE DAY

 I got the internet back during the night but then lost it again around 7:30 am.  I was frustrated.  I called the company and let them know.  I got the internet back again around 10:30am.  I also got an email explaining that something went wrong with a tower.  

Then I lost the internet again.  I got it back again.  It is weird how much of our lives now revolve around the internet. 

Lucky went for a long walk with the dog walker today.  She came back and was limping.  Not really limping more like stiff.  Her back leg is sort of stiff.  She doesn't want to walk and just wants to sleep.  I called the vet but they had already left for the day.  I will call again tomorrow. I hope she just strained a muscle and it isn't something serious. 

Until tomorrow...

DAY SIXTY-EIGHT OF COOKING COURSE

Happy Pi Day!  I did it!  I finally made pizza dough!  I figured out how to use yeast to make the dough.  The pizza came out terrific.  I already ate two pieces.  I make a pizza with sauce, vegan cheese, red peppers, black olives, spinach and fresh basil.  

I found out my very old oven has a section that is perfect for proofing.

This time my pizza dough making was less traumatic.  

Once I finished the pizza I took my Italian section test and I passed.  I have my certificate.  I now have 4 certificates.  Now I am starting the Korean chapter.

My internet service went down and has been down all day.  A few months ago I downloaded some movies onto my iPad just in case.  I had something to do during my long hours of no internet service.  I watched The Meg and Mulan II.  I hope I have internet service tomorrow.  I have work to get done.

Until tomorrow...

HAPPI ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY

It has been one year since Happi passed away.  I miss her every day. Some days I almost call her because I forget she is gone.  She was the best dog. She was the love of my life.

I can never thank my friend S enough for coming with me on that day when I had to put Happi to sleep.  I was a mess in the car going to the veterinarian's office and Happi was panicking because she hated being in a car since our car accident.  S was so sweet listening to me talk to Happi and tell Happi her story.  Happi loved hearing her story of how she came to live with me.  Her story of how strong she was to escape her circumstances so many times.     

It is just me and Lucky and Sunny (the bird) now.  Lucky is a sweet little dog who tries real hard.  She has really blossomed in the last year.  She likes getting all the attention and getting her way.  

I tried a special yoga class today made for people with arthritis.  The instructor was super nice and showed us how to do the poses in a chair, on the floor or standing.  I tried, I really did.  It is just so hard for me to do yoga.  Here's why: I can't put weight on my hands, wrists, knees or hips.  So almost all floor exercises are impossible.  I can't do much with my left shoulder because I think I tore my rotator cuff last year when I fell and I reinjured it during the lockdown.  So almost all movements in the chair and standing are impossible.  I tried for about 20 minutes and I was able to do about 30% and then I gave up.  What fun is Sun Salutation when you can't lift your arms.  I can't do downward dog or the one where you are a table and lift one leg and one arm.  And forget the one where you look like someone praying on the ground.  No can do.  My hips and knees can't take that.

It was a zoom so I muted and faced the camera toward the ceiling and watched TV until it was done and then joined the social part.  I may try the tai chi.  I know I can do tai chi, I used to do it on Sunday mornings in the park.  I really liked doing tai chi.  I stopped because my friend stopped going with me.  We were the youngest people in the group and I felt silly going by myself.  

I took my Vietnamese cooking course test and I passed with a 90%.  I got one answer wrong. But I passed and I got my certificate.  Now I passed: Vietnamese, German, Japanese/Ramen,  and Thai. I need to finish Italian.  Moving on to Korean!

Until tomorrow...

DAY SIXTY-SEVEN OF COOKING COURSE

 I made two dishes today for the cooking course.  First I made Fried Tofu with Tomato Sauce.  It tastes SO good.  The tomatoes and tofu were sauted with vegan fish sauce and vegan oyster sauce.  

Then I still had some time so I made another dish.  The recipe was Steamed Eggplant with Ginger Sauce.  Of course I can't eat eggplant so I swapped it out for Shitake mushrooms. I steamed the mushrooms and put the ginger sauce on them.  I have never had such amazing tasting mushrooms before.  

It was a very tasty afternoon.  

I had a friend date with S to watch a Netflix movie.  We both started the movie at the same time and text throughout the movie.  We watched I Care A Lot.  It was not exactly like we thought it was going to be. It was billed as a comedy.  I would say a Dark Comedy if anything.  It is not a laugh out loud movie.  It is a unique movie. Dianne Weist is not in it as much as I thought she would be.  Peter Dinklage was in it a lot.  I enjoyed it a lot but it was just not what I thought it was going to be.

Until tomorrow...

DAY SIXTY-SIX OF COOKING COURSE

 I met with my social media guy again today.  He is so helpful with all my questions.  Today we talked about rating social media.  Do I use Instagram?  What about TikTok?  Should I post videos on Youtube?  Is Facebook in or out? Are blogs still a thing?  It is all so much.  But if I want to do this and be serious, I have to learn how to do it all and really dive right in.  I think I have a serious social media plan for now. We are meeting again in two weeks.  

I made the best salad today.  I made a Vietnamese Rice Noodle Salad.  It has stir fried vegetables, fried tofu, and rice noodles.  Then there is the dressing.  It is so good.  I ate it for dinner.  It was so flavorful with the veggies tasting so great.

Poor Lucky has not been feeling well.  It is weird. She doesn't want to eat but she wants to play.  I think she is having the stomach thing again where she has gas in her intestines.  After 24 hours I got her to eat a little tonight. I am sure she will be fine.

Until tomorrow...

DAY SIXTY-FIVE OF COOKING COURSE

 Well, my hand is almost healed. I am down to four band-aids.  The band-aids went from the big band-aids to the middle sized band-aids now I have three little 2.5" band-aids and one medium sized band-aid.  I am working my way down.  I continued to wear a plastic glove to keep it clean while I cooked today.

I made an interesting dessert today. It was Banana with Tapioca Pearls.  First I had to make Tapioca Pearls. Basically I took Tapioca flour and made little balls.  I assume this is what is at the bottom of Bubble Tea.  I don't get the attraction but some people love them. Then I boiled the bananas and added some more tapioca to the water.  I put the banana concoction in a bowl and put the tapioca balls and peanuts and toasted coconut on top.  It is tasty and not too sweet.  

Last night after posting my photo of my Pho soup, I saw that someone on Instagram took my post and my photo and stole it and posted it on their Instagram.  For those of you who don't know, that is not allowed and illegal.  Photos are copyrighted and are intellectual property. I actually pay a company to scan the internet to locate my photos if they are being used without my permission.  After spending half the day, I got Instagram to take the photo on the other Instagram down.  The good guys won!!   

That was basically my whole day!

Until tomorrow...

DAY SIXTY-FOUR OF COOKING COURSE

 Well, my hand is not as bad as it looked yesterday.  Most of the cuts are healing already.  Two of them will take awhile. One of them is because it is between my fingers and it keeps getting ripped apart.  I am going to be fine.  I just look funny with 5 band aids on my hand.  I wore a plastic glove today when I cooked to make sure I kept it safe.

I finally got around to making the Pho soup.  It turned out okay.  It took a long time to make it since the stock took over one hour to cook.  I have a bunch leftover for a few days.  It was perfect timing since it started to rain just as I finished making it.  It has mushrooms, noodles, tofu, spinach and radishes.

Until tomorrow...

ITS BEEN A YEAR

 Today is my one year anniversary of being in my home.  Yes, I have left a few times for emergencies (emergency room, dental emergency, car inspection, my dog passing away, etc.)  but essentially I have been in my home for one year.  I have found many ways to keep myself occupied. First I had more work to keep me busy. Then once work dried up, I binge watched SO many things and now I am participating in the vegan cooking course and social media.  

At first I ordered takeout food about three times a month but now I don't remember the last time I ordered takeout food.  I am cooking the items I would normally order.  I mastered ordering almost anything online. 

Today is Lucky's 13th birthday.  I surprised her with some doggie ice cream made from banana, peanut butter and almond milk.  She loved it.  Her dog walker gave her a present: a new toy!  She adores it.

I had a little mishap in the kitchen today. I was going to make Pho today but while I was washing a bowl, the bowl slipped off the drying rack.  I tried to catch it and it shattered in my hand.  I have five cuts and band-aids on my hand.  I decided to lay down with my bandaged hand and skip the cooking today.

Until tomorrow...

STARTING TAX PREPARATION

I was going to start my tax preparation last weekend but I wasn't feeling well. Now that I am feeling better I started my tax prep this weekend.  This is not my favorite thing to do.  Between invoicing my clients and tax prep, they are equally my least favorite thing to do.  

Poor little Lucky is having one of her upset stomach episodes today.  She hasn't eaten today and is walking around doing yoga stretches and sleeping.  She is so unhappy and uncomfortable.  She stands in front of me and just stares at me imploring me to fix it but I am unable to.  She just has to get it out of her system. Poor baby.

 Last night I watched the movie The High Note. I really liked it and really enjoyed the music in the movie.  

Until tomorrow...

DAY SIXTY-THREE OF COOKING COURSE

 Happy National Oreo Day!  I made an Oreo treat to mark the day.  I took Oreos and opened them up and put peanut butter and almond butter on alternating cookies.  Then I dipped the cookies in chocolate ganache.  They are really amazing.

My new frying pans arrived and this makes me so happy.  I have been using the same frying pans for probably 20 years.  I got this set from a neighbor who worked at Macy's and he would give me the returns that they could not return to the manufacturer.  I got some really good stuff.  But it is time to get rid of these frying pans.

I made a Papaya (Cucumber) Salad.  I say cucumber because I could not find a papaya at this time of the year.  It was a sweet but spicy salad.  It had tofu, tomatoes, cucumber, carrots, and mint.  The sauce was what made the salad.  It was sweet but spicy from the sugar and red chili.  It was so good I added more tofu and veggies and had it for dinner.

 Until tomorrow...

DAY SIXTY-TWO OF COOKING COURSE

 I woke up and felt better today.  I decided it was time to get back to cooking after three days of a hiatus. I made Vietnamese Fresh Spring Rolls and Dipping Sauce.  It was fun to make them.  I am getting really good at rolling spring rolls/burritos/wraps.  I used to be horrible at it but when you have to make 15 spring rolls in 30 minutes, you get pretty good super fast. 

The spring rolls are the fresh kind with tofu, mushrooms, carrots, lettuce, cucumber, noodles, mint, cilantro, and I put purple cabbage for some crunch.  They were super tasty alone but with the dipping sauce they were even better.  The dipping sauce was sugar, lime juice, vegan fish sauce, and water.  On top of the dipping sauce I put cucumber, peanuts and cabbage.

 

This filled up my whole afternoon.  I passed along two spring rolls to my dog walker and I ate six for dinner.

Then I watched Raya and the Last Dragon. I bought an early viewing for myself.  It is very entertaining and the story is empowering.  We need to put our differences aside and get along.  Perfect timing!  

Until tomorrow...

FEELING BETTER

 I am feeling better today.  For over a week I have been having heart palpitations.  I think I was just tired from those heart palpitations for so many days.  It is exhausting to have your heart race for so many days. The last two days I took it easy on doctor's orders and now I feel much better. 

The doctor called and nothing has changed from years past. She is going to give me some medicine I can take when I get another day where I have hours of palpitations. The medication will stop the palpitations. Turns out I had 117 super ventricular tachycardia episodes in two weeks.  The longest was 17 seconds.  17 seconds doesn't sound long except when it is your heart or an earthquake, then it seems forever!

I had a meeting with a social media guy who is helping me with my project.  He was so helpful and kind. He seemed surprised how far I got on my own.  I think he thought he was going to start from square one "this is instagram".  We are going to meet again next week and go over some other stuff.

Until tomorrow...

SLOW DAY

 Yesterday I didn’t feel 100% and I went to bed at 7:30 pm. I woke up and didn’t feel 100% again today.  I decided to take it slow and not cook or do much of anything but watch tv. I had a piece of brownie ice cream pie. 

I’m going to head to bed early again tonight.

Until tomorrow...

DAY SIXTY-ONE OF COOKING COURSE

 The dessert I made turned out amazing! It was a vegan Raw Brownie Crust with Coconut Ice Cream and Chocolate Ganache. I made the crust yesterday and kept it in the refrigerator overnight. I made the ganache yesterday so it would be ready today. Today I got busy making the third ingredient coconut ice cream.  I got it made and in the freezer just in time. 

Right before my friend showed up I assembled the pie. 

It tasted so great. My friend ate her whole slice. I have plenty to eat for days. 

Until tomorrow...

DAY SIXTY OF COOKING COURSE

 I did just a little bit of cooking today. In fact I did baking today. It was my friend's birthday on Sunday and I wanted to make a sweet treat to share with her when she stops by tomorrow for a distance afternoon break. I started by making the Chocolate Ganache.  It is so chocolately and silky.  Then I made the pie crust. Now, I know I have said how I hate pies in the past but this is a Raw Brownie Pie Crust.  It is made out of nuts, dates, and cocoa powder.  It is SO good.  I have nuts soaking for tomorrow to make cashew ice cream to put in the pie crust. The ganache goes on the ice cream and I may put some peach glaze on top that I have in the freezer. 

This is a short cut that I saw on a cooking show. You use a jar or glass to shape out and flatten out the "dough" in the pie crust.  

I have to start doing my taxes but to do that I needed to clear off my folding table.  Currently it has my puzzle on it.  I moved my puzzle but not without a puzzle accident.  I thought I had cleared off a large enough space on the dining room table to move the puzzle felt onto it.  I started moving the felt only to find out the space was not big enough and puzzle pieces started jumping onto the floor. I had to stop the process and move somethings and then move the felt.  Once I moved the felt I saw that some of the edge was messed up so I had to sit down and fix the edge.  I think I messed it up but I got frustrated and decided it was best to do the rest later when I wasn't frustrated.

Until tomorrow...