New Address - Arctic Circle in the District of Canada

Day 5 and counting! I woke up to a white out, unable to see more than .10 miles away and the snow was (and still is) coming down horizontally. DC is under a blizzard warning til 7pm tonight. I'm seriously starting to rethink this whole East Coast thing! I have 0 motivation to leave my apartment today and am enjoying the week of sweatpants and leggings!

Yesterday before the storm hit I set out to run a few errands and be away from my apartment. After a quick run for an important necessity (hint: team under or team over) I practically bounded down the slushy and sometimes icy sidewalks to the gym. I needed to run out a serious case of cabin fever!

I did 2 miles in intervals on the treadmill at a 24 minute pace. I set the incline to 1% (to account for being inside) and did a pyramid workout:
0 - 1.5: 6.0
1.5 - 3, 3.8
3 - 4.5, 6.5
4.5 - 6, 3.8
6 - 7.25, 7.1
7.25 - 9, 3.7
9 - 10, 7.0
10 - 12, 3.8
12 - 13, 6.9
13 - 15, 3.7
15 - 16.25 - 6.8
16.25 - 18, 3.8
18 - 19, 6.6
19 - 21, 3.8
21 - 22.5, 6.4
22.5 - 24, 3.8
I then hopped on the elliptical for 35 minutes of interval sprints, rounding out my machine totals to 5.25 miles. After a nice long stretch, I was ready for lunch!

I met up with 2 friends, and together, we braved the snowy streets and sidewalks, some littered with downed trees, for a yummy Thai lunch. No photo but I enjoyed a steamed tofu and veggie delight (guaranteed GF pick). It felt great to have someone else cook one of my meals for a change and laughs and fun were had by all. The highlight of our lunch happened as we were leaving the restaurant. A car was stuck in snow banks (aka what used to be street parking before 3ft of snow) and we decided to help push him out. The 3 of us were able to unstick the car! I think everyone is being nicer as a result of the storm. We are all in the same situation and sick of the weather so we might as well be pleasant!

After my errands, workout, and urban hiking extravaganza, the snow began once again and I was ready to hunker down for a while in my apartment. Along the way, I snacked on an apple, and had a late dinner while watching my favorite Tuesday entertainment - the Biggest Loser! I had a 1/2c of Amy's baked beans, spinach and squash, and a slice of toast with 2% Mexican cheese.

 

 

I snacked on some Chex later on and called it an early night.

This morning I awoke to a white out! I reheated some Starbucks coffee (half-caf) that I picked up yesterday and stored in my fridge while staring outside at the arctic tundra I apparently now live in!

I had a warm bowl of BRM hot cereal with 1/8c smashed sweet potato, 1/4c frozen blueberries, cinnamon, vanilla, cinnamon, a few raisins, and 1/2 T mix of AB and PB, with a drop of fig jam. I added more than I usually do to this bowl but was feeling the need of a pick-me-up.

The morning has been cozy and uneventful - what else can you do when you live in the arctic circle!?

We survived!

The snow finally let up yesterday evening and left behind quite a lot of snow! 

On Friday, the university closed early and I made my way home just as the snow, which had been falling since late morning, was beginning to stick. It was a pretty low-key night and I whipped up a light dinner to enjoy. I had a salad with beets and carrots and a "veggie sampler" plate of 1/4c of my brussel sprout risotto, peas, and the rest of my roasted kale and brussels.

I decided to go for a walk before things got too bad - I was curious to see what the accumulating snow looked like. I soon found out!!

 

  

 

I thawed out watching a movie and went to bed kind of early.

When I woke up yesterday the snow was still falling!  The inches definitely started to pile up!

I had a huge craving for something nice and warm for breakfast and made a bowl of blueberry hot cereal. In the mix: 1/4c BRM hot cereal, a generous 1/4c frozen blueberries, smashed sweet potato, cinnamon, vanilla, and 1/2T PB.

After tackling some of my snowed-in to-do list, I bundled up in plenty of layers and headed outside for another walk. Destination: Dupont Circle for the snowball fight. I had no desire to participate but it was definitely fun to watch! And, I found a friend!

 

  

 

Lunch was nice and warm - a cup of Amy's Chunky tomato soup and a serving of greens. The storm is a great chance to use up all of my leftovers!

I tackled a few more to-dos and then it was time for some exercise. The plan: Jillian Michael's 30-Day Shred and using the 10 floors of stairs in my building.  After taking much of this week off from the gym because of feeling under the weather, this 20 minute workout definitely kicked my butt!  I started feeling sore as soon as I finished the workout.  I ran the stairs twice and cooled down, quite literally, by watching the sun set and surveying the snow damage from the roof! It's quite the scene!

 

  

 

Dinner was a turkey burger with a lettuce bun and a mix of roasted beets, parsnip, and acorn squash.

Cabin fever kicked in and I'm about to head out with friends for a birthday party!

Snow!

Happy Saturday everyone!  It's kind of funny how the mind works.  All day yesterday I was wishing and wishing for snow and after deciding on using this morning to run errands, the snow has of course arrived today instead.  It was falling pretty heavily about an hour ago so I'm hoping to still be able to venture out in a bit. I do have to admit that it's kind of pretty :-)

I had an egg white sandwich with a sliced pear for breakfast while lounging on the couch.  One mug of green tea down, it's time for a second (and decaffeinated) mug soon to stay warm!

Yesterday was a strong contender for best work day so far. The office was unusually quiet and empty and I felt like my old self - able to focus and be productive! The Type-A in me really enjoyed this unusual treat AND made me forget about the frigid temps!

Lunch was a mix of leftovers - tofu and rice from Java Green as well as roasted kale, beets, and brussels.

After work I came home, cleaned up a bit, had an apple, and then was off to meet up with a few friends for dinner.  We tried a new restaurant called Rice and were underwhelmed with the experience.  I am not sure if I ordered wrong or what, but I had to send my 1st dish back and pick something else. The dish I ended up with was so-so but not very filling.

A couple of us crossed town back to Foggy Bottom for a former colleague's birthday party and then it was time to head home.  I had a fitful night of sleep because I think I got glutened (or something else) and wound up with an allergic reaction before bed! No fun but feeling much better today.

Alright, it's time to brave the elements! Have a good day everyone!

White Christmas... in Dallas of all places!

Merry Christmas and Happy Chinese Food and a Movie Day! It's a white Christmas here which brings my snow storm count to two storms in a week. Brrrr. The good news is that the sun is shining and the snow is beginning to melt!


It's been a great vacation so far! I've seen family, friends, and had plenty of time to relax (and exercise too!). Yesterday was the start of the snow, so after the gym, we spent the afternoon at home. In keeping with tradition, my mom and I set to work in the kitchen, baking and relaxing. My 2 creations of the day were dark chocolate drizzled gluten-free pretzels and chocolate dipped strawberries.

We went for Chinese food (I had steamed chicken and veggies with brown rice) and came home on icy roads to watch Julie and Julia with a fire going in the fire place.

Today will be nice and relaxing. So far, another movie in pjs and maybe out for one this afternoon. Tonight, we are heading to a neighbor's holiday party. Tomorrow morning we will head to Houston for our family's Chanukah celebration, and then it's almost time to head back to the tundr, I mean DC!

The amazing gluten free aisle at Central Market:And amazing salad from their prepared foods bar:
Happy birthday Stenz!!Some yummy eats!
A few bowls of hot cereal w/ 1 tbsp sweet potato, 1/2 tbsp PB, and 1 tsp fig jam have been consumed this week:
Erev Christmas:

DC's Snowpocalypse 2009

The snow has arrived!! The thundersnow began around 9pm last night and I don't think it's stopped since then. I was kind of excited to see how much snow we'd get overnight, but it doesn't look too different from my last peek at 1:30am. Then again, I have a birds'-eye view.

The winter wonderland is quite pretty and I actually enjoyed being out in the storm on my way to and from my party last night. I had a great time - it was soooo nice to catch up with my Cali friends and old neighbors after not seeing them for a few months!

Here's some pictures I took on my "hike" to and from the party. You can definitely tell the different in accumulation after just a few hours!

I hope that those of you who have snow are staying warm and safe. If you're in warmer weather, I'm pretty jealous :-)

Today's agenda consists of:

• ABC Family's holiday movie line up - currently watching Home Alone 2, next up is Happy Feet!
  
• cleaning the apartment
• writing a couple of special blog posts
• playing in the snow!!!
• working out in my apartment - maybe pilates or a workout DVD, courtesy of youtube
• lots of hot tea and warm, cozy foods
• packing for Texas tomorrow!!
  

Snow is on its way?

The big talk of the day is the impending snow storm that's expected to hit DC tonight and tomorrow. They're predicting 10 - 15 inches, yikes!! I am definitely not too excited about the snow but we shall see how much we get. Tonight is the last night of Chanukah - I can't believe that the 8 nights have come and gone! It was a great holiday this year filled with friends and fun. I'm looking forward to stretching the celebrations even longer by celebrating with my family in Texas next week :-) Tonight I'm off to my final holiday party of the week and then I'm getting ready for my trip!

This morning I had toast with an egg white and PB, and a pear and then took care of a few errands including laundry and adjusting my cable bill. Woo hoo!

I then headed in to work for the afternoon, with the university holiday party on the agenda. My breakfast held me over until the party began (surprisingly) and I didn't leave feeling stuffed at all. There was a carving station with turkey and roast beef, salads, Asian food - egg rolls, friend rice, General Tso's chicken, etc, and dips with pita, chips, and marinated veggies. I had a small sampling of spinach artichoke dip with tortilla chips, a bunch of salad, and some frosting from a piece of red velvet cake. Otherwise, I just enjoyed seeing some co-workers and meeting a few other university staffers.

I went back to the office for a bit, then left with a couple of errands to run before the storm hits. I came home after picking up a few essentials and have been relaxing on the couch, trying to catch up on my posting, etc. Exciting news - my Larabar sampler box arrived today! I was part of a holiday giveaway that Larabar did online earlier this week and was happy to have received my treats so promptly! The pack included 4 bars - Cashew Cookie, Lemon Pie, new Peanut Butter and Jelly, and raw Coconut Cream Pie. I've only tried one of these (PB&J) so I look forward to expanding my repertoire! Thanks Larabar!

Dinner was the start of trying to use up some leftovers - acorn squash, salad, and then brown rice and lentils mixed with some roasted chickpeas. I roasted them on 400 degrees for about 15 minutes. They're sprayed with cooking spray and seasoned with cinnamon, garlic powder, and paprika. The mixture was actually a bit dry so I added hot sauce and then some curry sauce I discovered in my cupboard, but I didn't like it and dumped about half of the serving.

Now it's time to get ready for my party. I'm hoping that the snow isn't too bad so that I can get in a workout tomorrow but we shall see.

Happy Friday, y'all!