Nicole Eats!

What can I say about Mellow Mushroom- except that they’re awesome! When I lived in Brandon I used to go here when I could, but that was pre-vegan days. It’s only recently (as in the last six months or so) that I realized they serve Daiya cheese! With the addition of a vegan cheesey topping I have found a safe haven for my pizza cravings. Not to mention they make one of the best spicy bloody marys, with extra olives, that I’ve ever had.

Honestly, I’d love to write a long, drawn out review of this place, tell you some ins and outs, etc. but there’s not much more to say than: they are effin’ amazing and you should check them out!

*Well, ladies and gentlemen, it has finally happened.

I BOUGHT A CANON 5D MARK II!!!

Whew. I have been waiting to blog that ever since last Friday when I made the purchase. I have been waiting for this update for nearly four years. I have been ready as a photographer but too poor to make it happen. This year is different for me. I am seeing the fourth year of my maintained weight loss, I have made my debt manageable, switched to a new (higher paying) job, etc. It was time- especially since I heard Canon is discontinuing this model.

I could go into the details of how and why but they’re boring and ultimately the important part is that it happened! I am still getting used to all the new settings (and reading (and re-reading) the manual). I could not wait to take photos though, so Saturday morning Erika and I headed to Empress Tea Room for some high tea and photos. It was a blast.

I’m not one hundred percent thrilled with all the photos and like I said, the settings are new to me. I had Dante (my old XTi) for going on six or seven years. This is a big change for me. One I couldn’t be happier about, but it’ll take some getting used to. Look forward to sharing my progress and enjoy the view of our tea time. :)

* I made some bomb-ass food this week- no joke. I finally got around to picking up some star anise and cinnamon sticks to make pho broth, additionally I got some rice paper to make my very own spring rolls at home. I ended up making spring rolls twice! The second batch was a plan on bánh mì with a Vegenaise, Sriracha, cilantro, lime mayo sauce. Seriously guys- this was a week of weeks when it came to my eats!

Whole Foods Gardein ciabatta sandwich
January 29, 2013

Pho and tranditional spring rolls
January 30, 2013

bánh mì spring rolls
January 31, 2013

* For this week I decided to do a 2012 recap of my most popular Meatless Monday posts from 2012. Not only are they some of the most highly visited on my site, but they are also some of my personal favorites. Take a look below and remember you can always check through my All Recipes tag for additional vegan recipes!

Asparagus Quiche with Tomatoes and Tarragon

Mom’s Curried Lentil Soup

Pizza Galore
(pesto pizza and an asparagus lemon pizza)

I thought I liked medieval novels. I thought I liked characters and stories out of this time period. Oh right, I do like those things, I just don’t like Mistress of the Art of Death. This book is wretched. Seriously, I’m not even sure I have much else to say about it. I know that all over the internet it boasts a whopping 5 star review, everyone raves about the character development, the dramatic setting, the strong, independent, bold main (female) character, etc. But I swear to you this was the most painful 400 pages I have read in years.

– Spoilers –

The plot was convoluted, the characters were obtuse, the relationships between them were ill defined and implausible, the setting was drab and un-engaging. I mean seriously. I really wanted to like Adelia, “doctor to the dead”, the rich adopted daughter of a renowned Salerno doctor. At first she seemed truly self-reliant, recognizing the disdain for her gender in the regions and time period she was living in, but not allowing herself to be tamed. She had a sharp tongue, a determined attitude and a callous resilience to the testosterone driven men recently returned from the Crusades. It all falls apart about two thirds of the way through (I can’t even believe I made it that far) when she (instantly? as in, the course of one to two pages) falls in love with the man she dislikes the most. What. The. Hell?

Additionally the killer she is sent to find, uncover, convict, whatever, is found around the same time as this love is revealed and gets the backseat. We spent 300+ pages trying to find this guy and now he’s hardly worth the paper and ink? I want to know why he did it, what, where, when, who, how? You know the drill, Ariana Franklin! Don’t leave me dissatisfied and longing for explanations and answers! Or do. You know, whatever you want I guess.

Bottom line? It’s all very contrived. I can see that there must be a population of readers that’s into this kind of thing (I mean, it is a National Bestseller and all (then again, Twilight still sells a billion copies a day, so what do I know?)). Ugh, I can’t even come up with a small, fleeting amount of joy that I got from this. It was Abramham Lincoln Vampire Hunter bad but on steroids.