LAHVOSH!

Tonight I made myself a pseudo replica of the delicious lahvosh I had at Zanzibar in Menomonie on Saturday night! It is basically a cracker flatbread that was topped with melted cheese, carmelized onions, sundried tomatoes, arugula, and cherry tomatoes. My version was a bit impromptu with spinach instead of arugula, salsa subbed for tomatoes blah blah blah....

After this past weekend of over indulgence, I have gotten FURTHER from my weight loss goal. Annoyed. Also spent a bunch of money. Even more annoying.

On the plus side, I did learn a bit about veganism and gluten free lifestyles from two seperate friends. Kendra is vegan by choice. As I told her (probably more than once after several drinks) that though I could never be vegan, I admire her dedication to her cause. She fills her facebook with videos and articles that I cannot bring myself to watch but have still given me a healthy dose of awareness of animal cruelty. If I remember correctly, she shared that her choice to be vegan is mostly due to her love of animals, not necessarily the health benefits. In Menomonie there is an adorable coffee shop/restaurant called the Raw Deal that is now in a big space right across from mine and Tony's old apartment (above a bar) where Lucy resided her first three weeks of life. The Raw Deal is 100% vegan. Kendra, Alison and I stopped through on our pub crawl and Kendra shared a piece of vegan pie with me. Surprisingly delicious and avacado based. I intend to give it a try sometime soon.
On a side note, I noticed Kendra has amazing skin and the whites of her eyes are the whitest I've ever seen. I remember many years ago seeing Alicia Silverstone on a talk show sharing her experience as a vegan and mentioning the whites of her eyes being brighter. I assume this isn't a coincidence. While I still don't see myself making the lifestyle change, I am very interested in learning more about it.

Chase, Tony's friend from high school and college roommate of four years is now gluten free due to Celiac's disease. Chase is by no means gluten free by choice. I told him I was looking into it and he says, and I quote, "Don't do it!". It seems everytime we've seen Chase in the past few months I have been grilling him about his diet. I am very grateful for the information he and Kendra have shared with me. I feel a bit enlightened and it changes the way I look at food.

After spending a couple of days watching my intake, I noticed a huge difference in the way I feel after a weekend of travel including fast food and cheap cheeseburgers. I have to assume the large amounts of beer didn't help either.

Other than anniversary cake, I am back on track with my "diet". I went grocery shopping today and I am making a huge effort to break the meat-and-potatoes pattern. Fruits and vegetables are coming to the forefront of every meal now.

I think I'll end my posts from now on with a way to measure my progress for the day. What do you think? Smiley face? Scale of 1-10? Any other suggestions? Also, comments from family and friends are what keep me going. Please share feedback and help me stay motovated. I appreciate it more than you know!