would you like bone char with that?

As I mentioned in the last post, ever since middle school I've been obsessed with becoming a vegetarian. I say "becoming" and not "being" because I've never managed to actually go all the way into complete herbivoria. ( yes, I did just make up that word.) I tried giving up meat for Lent and eating only from the vegetarian bar in the dining halls, but I'd still always somehow make my way back over to the barbecue chicken pizza. My aunt and uncle eat mainly vegetarian, so I've been eating a lot of seafood and vegetables. You'd think I'd be relishing in this opportunity to live a completely meat-free life. But, also like I said before, the truth is, if I could have anything in the world right now it'd be a double double cheeseburger from In n Out Burger, animal style, large fry on the side with tons of ketchup and a root beer. AH I have to stop talking about it. I make a very bad vegetarian.


One of my aunt's really good friends is a vegan (no cheese?!), and gave her a vegan cookbook. My uncle and cousin have been very wary about trying the recipes, but my aunt and I were curious about them. Today, with my cousin in France and my uncle in Arizona, we decided try out a few recipes. The first to tackle was (of course) a cake. We decided on a chocolate cake with chocolate frosting. While assembling all the ingredients, I noticed that the sugar was labeled "vegan sugar". My aunt and I were a little perplexed about this, because, as far as we knew, sugar in general didn't contain any animal bi-products. While the cakes were baking, I googled the difference between vegan sugar & just regular sugar. Turns out, there is a difference. This is what one website says:

"...the organic sugar may – or may not – have been passed through  a bone ash filter. The method of whitening and purifying sugar by passing it through a bone ash filter was patented back in 1812 by one Louis Constant and has been common (though perhaps less so lately – or not) ever since. Bone ash filters utilize bone char, aka bone black or animal charcoal, produced by heating cattle bones at high temperatures in an airless environment to burn off volatile chemicals. Bone char, in return, has a high capacity for absorbing  lead, mercury, arsenic and other nasties."

Isn't that totally revolting and gross? The good news is it won't affect how I feel about eating sugar in the least, because sugar is too good to give up in total, and I can't afford to buy only vegan sugar. As of right now, I'm waiting for the vegan frosting to soften up because I put it in the fridge while the cakes were cooling. I'll post a picture of the cake when it's finished, so far it's not super pretty but it tastes delicious! Surprising, right? The main difference in the flavor probably comes from the fact that the sugar in it wasn't processed through heated ground cattle bones. Yum!

Alright, here's one of the cakes before it was frosted:

mmm, super appetizing. Fortunately, here's what the finished product looks like:

Yay! This cake took me almost an hour to frost. I hate this cake. Luckily, that won't stop me from still eating it.

cheers, 

Lauren

how I accidentally ate octopus

I'm not a picky eater. I'll basically try anything once, with the exception of veal, which I think is disgustingly horrendous. I've tried to go vegetarian multiple times, but In n Out Burger kept pulling me back into the omnivorous world. Arizona doesn't have an outstanding selection of different types of cuisine, but I try to get a little adventurous when ordering food in other places. Like I said in an earlier post, I ate shark the first night I was here, and last summer I had fish gut soup in Chinatown. The shark was delicious and I never want to taste, look at, or think of fish gut soup again.

Tonight, my aunt, uncle, and I went to a tapas restaurant. Having taken six years of Spanish, you'd think I would have eaten tapas somewhere along the line, but I hadn't. The menu was quite extensive, with lots of different meats, cheeses, and seafood. We ended up ordering a bunch of different things and sharing them all. One of the things on the menu was a dish called "feisty potatoes". I laughed at the name multiple times, including when my uncle ordered them. At the last minute, he changed the order to a different type of potatoes. We also ordered some shrimp, spinach, duck (I'd never tried that before either- yum), calamari, and an octopus potato salad. I'd tried calamari in Chinatown last summer, I had really liked it but couldn't get over the fact that I was eating tiny squid. I was ready to conquer anything, except I was slightly iffy on the octopus.

Octopuses (dictionary.com says the plural can be octopuses or octopi) are gross. They're slimy and gelatinous. They're cool to look at in aquariums, and there was that one that always predicted the winner of the World Cup, but usually after looking at one for a few seconds I get the chills and have to walk away. They're just too blobby and their tentacles are creepy. Like, those things can stick to you and then you have this clammy growth just hanging on your arm. I don't enjoy the thought of octopi. So, when my uncle ordered this thing as FOOD, I was highly skeptic.

The waitress brought out the plates, and I started sampling everything. My aunt had ordered this one dipping sauce that was so good I ate like five pieces of bread slathered in it. I started spooning the dishes onto my plate, and reached for the potato dish. The potatoes were piled on the serving platter and sprinkled with a heavy dose of paprika. I poured them onto my plate, gathering an excessive amount of the thinner, more purple-looking pieces. Forgetting that my uncle had changed the order at the last minute, I figured these were the infamous "feisty potatoes". I speared a purple slice with my fork and eagerly took a bite. My first thought was "Hm, what great spices", my second thought was, "Why does it feel like I'm chewing on an eraser?" And then, it hit me.

I WAS EATING THE OCTOPUS.

I knew I couldn't make a scene at this hip tapas bar. I had to finish the piece of cephalopod. I pushed the thought of octopus to the very back of my mind and tried to think about feisty potatoes. After chewing on what was basically a solid piece of rubber for what seemed like an eternity, the octopus was gone. I looked closer at my plate, the skinny purple pieces were NOT potatoes. I couldn't believe what I had just put in my mouth, and I tried to convince myself it hadn't happened. Maybe it was just an overcooked feisty potato. Nervously pushing the purple pieces around with my fork, I managed to squeak "What is this?". My uncle glanced over and told me in a very non-chalant manner that it was the octopus. My worst fear was confirmed. I ate the octopus.

I'm going to go brush my teeth again.

cheers,

lauren

hockey

last summer, I posted this while I was in Boston. and yes, the feeling is still the same. I would love to stay here forever.

I'm not going to lie, if I had the money, I'd move to Boston permanently right now. I'd bring all my friends, family, and (of course) pets with me. I'd pretend like Arizona didn't exist anymore. when you get a taste of something so great, it's hard to be satisfied with what you had before. I love everyone in Arizona, but the place itself isn't all it's cracked up to be. Three more semesters at ASU & I'm out of thereee.

Right now, I'm sitting in my aunt & uncle's apartment watching the colbert report. 15 minutes until the bruins game is on! I'm not going to lie, I wasn't that much of a hockey fan before I got here, which you know, was just last week. I watched a lot of the Capitals while I was in DC over spring break, but then never really kept up with the season. Even though we have the Coyotes, it's kind of hard to get excited about hockey when you live in the middle of a desert wasteland. but everyone loves to watch hockey, even if the game isn't great there's always a few fights that keep it interesting. plus, they'll be back in Boston for the next game. Not that I'll be going (a girl I work with and I looked up tickets today, $100,000 for a box!), but it'll still be cool. and THEN if they win they'll be a great big celebration and parade. I haven't been to a sports victory parade since the diamondbacks won the world series in 2001, the last time arizona did anything worth noticing in sports (sorry cardinals).

A commercial just came on tv for some tablet, there was a guy talking really loud and annoyingly on his cell phone on a bus. It reminded me of all the interesting and sometimes annoying people I've seen on the T so far. A few days ago, this guy on the train got a phone call. He answering and insisted on talking loud enough for everyone in every car to hear. And it wasn't just a normal conversation. He was dressed like a respectable businessman, but he was obviously trying to impress whatever bro was on the phone. "Ya I'm just on the T bro, nah I think I'm going to chill at Josh's crib tonight". One of THOSE guys. Not so great. I could go on with more examples, but it's hockey time!

Also,  Cayla is FINALLY coming home from Europe on Monday. I won't see her for a while, but I'll finally be able to harass her over text and facebook again. hooray!

cheers,

lauren

p.s. THEY WON. HOORAY BRUINS!

an extremely mediocre blog entry

Throughout the day, I'll think of little things that I'd like to write, I guess that's the English student in me. Eventually, I forget all the little things and end up having nothing to say once I sit down at the computer.

Yesterday, my cousin moved to France for the month. It seems that everyone is going abroad except me! I'm going to try to save & go to Greece next summer. We'll see how that goes though, sometimes I struggle with saving money, especially when Coach makes such pretty things.

I moved into my cousin's room since he's going to be gone for so long. There's a nice big comfy bed and I can see some of the city from my window. It's quite nice if I do say so myself, plus he has an extensive collection of lego figures from his younger years that I've yet to investigate.  I'm still trying to get used to all the noises of the city, especially since there's a fire station across the street. That would be the only downside, if you can even call it that, of living here, but I'm sure it'll all be background noise soon enough.

I had my first day of work at Boston University today and it went very well. So far I haven't had to know anything about Chemistry, so hopefully it stays that way. I took the T after work, and, after waiting for the wrong train twice, I finally made it home. Maybe I am a city girl after all.

Cayla is in Liechtenstein today, which basically looks like a tiny little watermark on the map of Europe. I'd never even heard of it until she told me about it. It's super gorgeous though, and today they're going on a tour of all the castles. She's been sending a few emails, like these from Paris:

"Hey guys

I am in Paris right now and it is so pretty! I am having a great time, they have a different keyboard here though, so I am really struggling to type! i also cannot find the period!"

"the effiel tower was AMAZING! it sparkles with a bunch of strobe lights every hour at night and we watched it from the grass after we WALKED down from the second level because the "lift" broke!"

I was actually a little confused when she seemed so excited until she explained the period fiasco. Cayla isn't really one to send enthusiastic messages, even when she is feeling especially enthusiastic. But basically, she's having a great time and is going to sleep for about a week when she gets home. 

Since all of my good blog-thoughts drifted out somewhere between BU and home, I suppose I will go find something else to do. I should probably try to do something at least a little productive, but I'm not going to lie it probably won't happy.

cheers,

lauren

city living

Yesterday I moved to Boston. I was always doubtful that it's possible to fall in love overnight, but now I know it definitely happens. This place is awesome.

Last night, on the way home from the airport my family took me out to dinner. We went to this restaurant called Beer Works, just your basic little brewery. Then I open the menu, and one of the first appetizers I see is Mako Shark skewers. Shark?! Needless to say, we ordered it, and it was delicious. Then I felt really bad about it because sharks are so cute, especially mako ones.

sorry about your cousin

Today I took the T, which is what they call their subway/train situation (train = t), to Boston University to get all the stuff set up for when I start work on Monday. Taking the train, walking around busy streets, and even having keys to my "building" all make me feel very city-like. I think I'm in loveeee.

Right now Cayla is in Europe. So far she's been to London and right now she's in Paris. I haven't gotten the chance to talk to her yet, but she's called my parents. She is having a fabulous time, although she says all the people smoking in Paris make it really smoggy. Gross. I can only imagine all the experiences and stories she is going to have when she comes back, and I am insanely jealous, even though, as stated before, I'm in love with Boston. I'm sure she'll post a gazillion pictures and such once she returns to the States. 

Jet lag has caught up to me, and no amount of Dunkin Donuts coffee can make up for a nap. But, before I go, I must share one more thing that I almost forgot about.

This is Alfie- he's my aunt and uncle's bird. Alfie is an interesting character. He is not keen to most guests, but has taken a certain liking to me. He doesn't like Cayla or my mom, or my cousin that lives here for that matter. Alfie is quite a spoiled bird, much like Pebble is a very spoiled dog. Here's a picture of him eating my leftover strawberry pancakes last summer.

nom

Alfie is very inquisitive, and likes to sit on my lap while I do my make up. This would be all fine and good if he wasn't so scary. As you can kind of see in that pancake picture, his beak is incredibly sharp. Today I was transferring him from my lap to his little perch on a small pillow, and he decided that my thumb looked like a very nice treat. I'm not going to lie, he almost took it with him. It was not a great experience. So, for now, Alfie is chillin in his cage as I prepare for my nap. He keeps chirping at me to let him out, but I'm sure once I open the door he'll come after the rest of my thumb. 

Alright, nap/avoid alfie time.

cheers,

lauren