[082] Dear Hunter

Since Hunter's arrival I have been going straight to his family members blogs to catch the latest photos of that sweet face. I simply can't wait to meet the little guy. After the new parents get settled back in at home of course.

Borrowing this photo from H's momma's blog... There's that little painting I made for him. :]

[081] Interview 03: Valentina

Meet Valentina! An ovo-lacto vegetarian teen from Sweden. VFH's first non-U.S. interview! Valentina can speak English, Swedish, Spanish and she's currently learning Japanese in school. She simply amazes me and I hope you enjoy what she has to share!

*****

[Interviewed via e-mail August 28, 2011]

Jasmine: I'd like to start by saying, thank you for giving me a moment of your time for this interview! Please, tell me a little bit about yourself: name, age, where you're from, and how did you hear about Vegging for Health?
Valentina: My name is Valentina and I'm 17. I'm born, raised and currently living in Sweden although I my roots are from South America. I was actually searching on "Vegetarian" on tumblr, and a post about Vegging for Health appeared, so I clicked. :) And, since English really isn't my native language, I apologize for any mistakes that I may do!

Jasmine: How did you become interested in vegetarianism and how long have you been vegetarian?
Valentina: I have always been interested in vegetarianism, ever since I was little. I actually even tried becoming a vegetarian when I was around 9, but unfortunately it only lasted for a couple of days. And when I was 13 I saw this movie, called Earthlings, and it really settled it, so right after I saw that movie, I decided that this was it and I became a vegetarian.

Jasmine: You mentioned to me that you're the only vegetarian in your family/friends. Are your loved ones supportive of your choice to be vegetarian?
Valentina: My loved ones are all very supportive of my choice. Some of them admires me for it, because they would like to be vegetarians but they just can't do it for their own reasons. But I feel that I'm very lucky that my family and friends support me, because I think it's important that people support it instead of arguing with me.

Jasmine: Do you think it is easy to adopt a vegetarian life style? How did you make the change?
Valentina: Well, as I was only 13 when I became a vegetarian and I did it all alone without any help, it was very hard to adopt to the life style. I had to find out about what I should eat on my own, and since I really liked meat before, so it was a bit hard to change it to food that I didn't like so much (veggie's and stuff). But as I've been a vegetarian for 4 years now I'm starting to me less picky and enjoying my vegetarian meals very much. :)

Jasmine: What kind of difficulties do you face being vegetarian?
Valentina: The difficulties I face is my health. Since I'm a teenager I'm still pretty picky when it comes to food, which is not good since I need to eat things that replace the vitamins and iron that meat contains. But other than that I can't really think of any difficulties I've had.

Jasmine: In our first e-mail, you describe yourself as a lacto-ovo vegetarian. Thus meaning you do consume dairy and eggs. In addition to dairy and eggs, what kind of foods do you consume regularly?
Valentina: I have a hard time to think of something that I consume regularly. But I do eat a lot of rice and spaghetti.

Jasmine: As mentioned earlier, you're the only vegetarian in your family and friends. Has your vegetarian diet influenced those around you to eat more of the same foods as you do?
Valentina: I can't say it has. Although they are sometimes very interested in tasting the food that I am eating. But so far none of them has become a vegetarian or anything like that yet.

Jasmine: Some people seem to think that vegetarian food means: salads, breads, boiled veggies and spices. What would you like to tell them?
Valentina: That it's not true. Vegetarians can eat the exact same food as everyone else, all you have to do is just to remove the meat. I eat everything that I ate before I became a vegetarian, with the only difference that my plate doesn't have meat.

Jasmine: Living in Sweden, you said there is a very good variety of vegetarian products (soy and quorn "meat"). What are some of your favorite products available in your area?
Valentina: My favorite products is probably quorn fillet, cause it gives you a good chance to spice it your own way. And it's really delicious and it's done in about 5 minutes. I love it and I can it eat with anything, salad, regular meal, soup. It's absolutely delicious.

Jasmine: What are some of your favorite meals/dishes? (Homemade, store bought, restaurant.)
Valentina: I don't really eat a lot outside, so I often eat at home where my mom cooks for me. But something that I really like at the moment is potato gratin with either soy sausage or quorn fillet and then a fresh, delicious sallad with tomato, lettuce, avocado, cucumber and lemon.

*****

Isn't she just the cutest? I was so excited to have Valentina on Vegging for Health after I received her e-mail. I hope you all enjoyed her interview! If you, or anyone you know, would like to be featured in a VfH interview please contact me at veggingforhealth@gmail.com.

[080] Music Monday: Between the Buried and Me, and Portugal. the Man

Today's Music Monday features two bands from my most played Last.FM Top Artists. The different music styles between these artists doesn't even come close to defining my taste in music. Fun fact: I grew up listening to pop, reggae, rap, hip-hop, and R&B. Over the last 10-15 years I have gone on a roller-coaster ride of music preferences. I'm glad to say that I hardly limit myself on what I listen to these days.

Between the Buried and Me is an American heavy-metal band from Raleigh, North Carolina. If metal isn't really your genre of choice, I strongly suggest you search for songs from their album The Anatomy Of which features BTBAM's tribute to their diverse influences (ex: Metallica, Queen, King Crimson, Counting Crows).


Selkies: the Endless Obsession from their album Alaska (2005).
One of my all-time favorite BTBAM songs.



Fossil Genera - A Feed From Cloud Mountain is from their album The Great Misdirect (2009).
This song makes me think of a circus-dreamland.



Portugal. the Man is an American psychedelic rock band based in Portland, but originally from Wasilla, Alaska. I admit, this can be sort of an acquired taste. I had their album Waiter: You Vultures! for nearly a year before I truly got into their sound. Over the years, as each album was released, I grew even more in love with their sound. Even to this day I have a hard time explaining their sound to new listeners.


Created is from their album Censored Colors (2008).
John Gourley has such a great voice.


Do You is from their album The Satanic Satanist (2009)
and acoustic versions on the album The Majestic Majesty (2009).

[079] Recipe: Pumpkin Cookies

Fall is around the corner! Stoked to start making more pumpkin cookies. :]

Prep Time: 15 min  Cook Time: 15 min  Ready In: 45 min
Servings: 36

Ingredients:

• 1 cup butter flavored shortening
• 1 cup white sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 cup canned pumpkin puree
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 (3.4 oz) package instant vanilla pudding mix

Optional: 1 (16 oz) container cream cheese frosting

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Grease cookie sheets.
2. In a large bowl, cream together the butter flavored shortening and sugar. Beat in the egg and vanilla, then stir in the pumpkin puree. Combine the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and vanilla instant pudding mix; gradually mix into the pumpkin mixture. Roll into walnut sized balls and place them 2 inches apart onto the prepared cookie sheets.
3. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes in the preheated oven, until lightly browned at the edges. Allow to cool completely before frosting with cream cheese frosting.

[078] Sunday (Part II): Irene's Aftermath

Be sure to read "Sunday (Part I): Irene Arrives"

After Shawno finished saving our apartment, we relaxed in the bedroom. I read a chapter from my book while Shawno cooled off from working hard on the patio. I had the window wide open to let the breeze roll in. Our apartment hasn't been this cool all summer long and we were both loving it.

As the rain started to clear, the birds came out to play. Shawno was sneaky and got this blurry picture of them, haha.

11:41AM

I brought Shawno's desk chair into the living room so I could have a comfy reclining chair to sit in as I read Awakened.

12:49PM

I pulled out my fish-eye lens and snapped a few shots. It was such a peaceful afternoon.

1:02PM

1:04PM

1:35PM

1:56PM

A short video of the wind blowing the trees.

2:03PM

That middle tree leaning against the trees to the right... we were certain this tree was going to come crashing down.

2:03PM

2:04PM

We don't usually sit on the side of the building as our apartment is on the opposite side, but we made and exception for a potential disaster. Aren't we nice?

2:05PM (This photo does zero justice for the 21 lbs I've lost.
I should stop hunching over when I sit.)

We ate Fettuccine Alfredo Tuna Helper for dinner. Having a gas stove certainly came in handy. Dinner by candle light as we slowly ended our night.

8:42PM

After dinner, we both stretched out on the couches and entertained ourselves with handheld games. As Shawno went out to his car for a third round to charge his phone, I headed to bed to read Awakened by flashlight. LED flashlight, so you know it was super bright! Shawno came to bed and I put my book down but we both knew we weren't ready to fall asleep just yet. We entertained each other with jokes, dry humor, hilarious bathroom work stories, and one round of I-Spy (which he totally won).