i cut my bangs!

I think they're a little crooked and borderline hipster. But at least they're out of my eyes. What do you think?

birthday cake

Today is my good friend Amy's birthday. In the hallowed tradition of making birthdays last three days at the absolute minimum, Nathan and I brought gifts, flowers and a vegan birthday cake to her house last night. My usual method for baking a vegan cake is to buy a box of Duncan Hines cake mix (which is vegan, as is), substitute applesauce and soymilk for eggs and cow's milk, and bake as directed. This usually results in a cake that, while tasty, falls apart as soon as it's lifted from the pan it was baked in. I like to refer to this phenomenon as "volcano cake."

It finally occurred to me that maybe, just maybe, the cakes weren't staying together because applesauce, while vegan and healthy, is not the best substitute for the binding power of eggs. Yesterday I grabbed my copy of La Dolce Vegan, found a simple recipe for chocolate cake, and gave the whole "from scratch" thing a shot.

The results were amazing - my cake was firm, chocolaty and cooked to perfection. While I can't find the recipe online, and don't want to be the first douche to publish it without permission, I can share with you the recipe I used for the frosting. Sweet yet subtle with a touch of raspberry, it was the perfect compliment to the chocolate and ridiculously easy to whip up. Consider my fear of homemade frosting a thing of the past.

Raspberry Swirl Cake Frosting (adapted from vegweb.com)

Ingredients:

3 heaping Tbsp Earth Balance (I always err on the side of more butter)
1 cup vegan powdered sugar
2 tablespoons raspberry jam
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

1. Using a hand mixer, cream the butter in a bowl until it's smooth and pale in color. Add the jam and beat again until combined.

2) Sift the sugar and add it to the bowl 1/4 cup at a time. Beat after each addition, until the sugar is completely incorporated.

3) Add the vanilla extract and beat the mixture until very soft and smooth.

My version will give you enough frosting for one 9-inch cake, with a little extra to lick off the spoon. Happy baking!

calling all texas vegans!

Delicious avocado rolls from Nijiya in Nacogdoches, Texas.

I've decided to create a blog/resource for vegans traveling in and around East Texas. The impetus for this project is the fact that 1. I live in East Texas, 2. I am a vegan, and 3. there are no blogs/resources for East Texas vegans currently in existence (that I could find - and seriously, I'm a librarian). This means that when I have to travel to workshops and conferences in Kilgore, Hemphill, or Crockett, I have no idea where to go or what to order once I get there. Since work sends me on the road quite a bit, I figured I have the unique opportunity to create just such a resource.

So far, I have four posts on the (currently private) blog and I'm planning to add a few more before it officially launches. I realize that I probably won't visit ever little town along the back roads, so if you're traveling or have some input, recommendations, and reviews that you'd like to share, let me know! Also, if you're a vegan in Texas and want to exchange links, I'd be happy to add you as a resource. In case you didn't know, Texas is a big state and I can't possibly cover the whole thing myself.

Naturally, I'll let y'all know when you can read my reviews and see pictures of all my hits and misses. Until then, eat well!

why i'm happy today

+ Pump it Up class, which I am taking three days a week during lunch. Between running in the morning and doing resistance training at lunch, I get to go home at 5:00pm three days a week!

+ Going to the park and drinking a beer with Nathan and Seamus at 5:00pm. Since we don't have a lawn on which to relax, the park has become our surrogate yard. It's actually pretty awesome.

+ Travel plans! Soon I'll be on the road more than I'm at my desk. Exhausting, but exciting.

+ Hennesseys in Texas! Mom and sisters arrive this Sunday for a full week of hot and humid quality time. I'm excited to show off the life I've made for myself here, as well as convince them that deep down, they really do like tofu.

+ Summer fruit. I'm sure I've mentioned this before, but I've consumed enough blueberries, strawberries, and watermelon the last few weeks to feed a small country.

+ New clothes. In an effort to look more like the head of a library department and less like a sophomore, I've been looking at some fashion blogs and planning purchases to round out my wardrobe in a more grown up way. Current favorites include WhatIWore (I want all of Jessica's dresses) and Polyvore (a website where you can put outfits together digitally). I searched Polyvore for "librarian" and found a ton of super cute ideas. Here's a favorite:

A Day...to be a Librarian by SeaGreen featuring kate spade sunglasses

I wish the Internet could dress me. Life would be so much easier.

What's making you happy today?

weekend: the edible edition

It's Monday, which means my glorious weekend has ended too soon, as always. While I didn't quite get to everything on my list, I did make the most of my two days. Here is some proof.

The main thing I wanted to accomplish this weekend was sewing, fixing, and moving around the curtains in my apartment. I spent all of Friday afternoon and evening working diligently on my sewing machine while nursing a beer and listening to old Rilo Kiley albums. Blissful.


The curtains ended up being pretty close to perfect, which is good enough for me. Tonight, we're going to the hardware store to get new rods and a set of blinds. I am very excited about this endeavor, and will probably take a second photo this evening. For now, this should suffice.


On Saturday, I rode my bicycle to yoga and class was awesome - lots of movement and stretching. I need to go to Saturday morning classes more often. After yoga, I rode to the Farmers' Market. I planned to pick up my CSA basket, load the produce into my messenger bag, and ride home. When I received my basket, plans suddenly changed.


Biggest. Basket. Ever. This is literally twice as much as we usually get but, as Farmer Greg explained, the plants are in full swing and so is my basket. I would have had to make two or three trips back and forth if I was carrying this all on my back, but luckily I ran into R and M, who graciously offered to deliver my crop to my front door while I rode home. I gave them a squash for their kindness.

In the afternoon, I went swimming in a salt water pool with Sonnie (so lovely) and in the evening, Amy and I got together at her new place to make dinner and a pie. We sort of invented the dinner - soba noodles, with CSA veggies, and a side of Italian Marinated Tofu from Veganomicon. It was delicious, and we ate outside while the sun started to go down.


Sunday morning I woke up at 5:15am and met T, who is going to be my new running partner. She's a nice young woman but pretty new to running. We ran five miles at a slow pace and then she called it quits and I continued on for another three miles. By the time I got home, I had run eight miles before 8:00am, and this pleased me.

Nathan got home from his Adventure Race around lunchtime. (They came in 2nd place, and it only took them 12 hours!) He cleaned up, we had a beer, he told me all about the race (very exciting!) and I proceeded to turn the newly cleaned kitchen upside down while crafting a delicious and ambitious dinner. It was worth it, though. Just look at this plate of vegan awesomeness!


Homemade fried "chicken" (a much better attempt at DIY seitan); lemony roasted potatoes from Veganomicon (my favorite cookbook, as you may have noticed); and steamed asparagus ($1.59 a pound this week at the Kroger!). The seitan was very chicken-like, so much so that I almost got uncomfortable while devouring it. I got over that quick enough. (And thanks to Bobbie for recommending the recipe! You never steer me wrong.)

I hope you had a great weekend as well! And now, I'm back to a week of coffee and work and grant writing, which is sort of great in a different way. Adieu!

wild, wild life

Nathan is competing in Adventure Race in Mineral Wells State Park this weekend. He's very excited about the race, and I'm very excited about having the apartment to myself for a whole weekend. Don't get me wrong - I love Nathan, and I love sharing a home and a life with him. But I am a person that needs space and alone time, and it can be hard to have those things in 900 square feet.

Naturally, I plan to take advantage of this time alone to do and start and finish all the things I always say I am going to do and start and finish. This includes, but is not limited to: sewing new curtains for the bedroom, baking bread, cleaning the hell out of the house, reading The Book Thief, drinking wine, writing a story, and watching Gilmore Girls. I won't be completely alone - Seamus is a constant and wonderful companion, and I'm sure I'll spend a lot of time walking, talking and playing with him. Speaking of dogs, I much enjoyed this Indexed entry from earlier in the week.


Dogs are the best, but weekends come in at a close second. Hope you have a happy one!

at the office

I spent the better part of the last two weeks going to out-of-town meetings, eating mostly terrible lunches, and exploring cemeteries with the educators hired to write lesson plans for TIDES this summer. I don't really blog about my job that much but since my job has been taking up more time than usual, a paragraph seems right.

And speaking of my job, it's about to change. As of July 1st, I will be head of the Digital Projects department. I'm still a librarian - the only change is that now, I'll be a librarian who attends a lot more meetings, makes a lot more decisions, oversees a few more people, and makes a bunch more money. I'm nervous about this new challenge - I've never been the boss of anything before - but mostly I'm excited. I love my department, I love the people I work with, and I'm really looking forward to the upcoming changes and challenges that we're facing together. We've got plans for Digital Projects, and they are no less ambitious than redefining the way the faculty and students on our campus view and use the university library.

When I first decided to get my MLS, it was more out of boredom than an actual passion for the profession. Even when I started my career two years ago, I looked at librarianship as something I would do for a while - it was a nice, stable way to pay the bills and afford a few luxuries, like beer and paying off student loans, without screwing anybody over or compromising my ethics. But since then, things have changed. Since then, I've learned a lot - more than I ever learned while studying reference interviews and MARC records - and today, I realize that I like being a librarian. I like working in the field of education and information, and ensuring access to those things for all citizens. "Activist" isn't the first word that comes to mind when you think of a librarian, but in our own way we're fighting the good fight. We're making a difference in our communities and on our campuses. And so I'll keep being a librarian. I'll be head of my department. I'll pay back my student loans, and drink expensive beers, and write grants and work with faculty and try to find new ways to get information to the people who need it most. I never thought I would be a librarian, but I'm glad to have ended up here.

I guess growing up isn't so bad after all.

blueberry drama pie

Saturday was the annual Texas Blueberry Festival, also know as The Day of Reckoning for the pie contest which I've been talking and tweeting about for weeks now. Even though this was my first ever attempt at a blueberry pie, I couldn't help but have high hopes. The pies were judged on presentation, taste and creativity. I was excited and nervous as I approached the place where my pie would meet it's fate, but I was also confident. My pie was vegan. It contained lemon zest and nearly two cups of vegan buttery spread. It had stars! What's more Texas-y, more creative, more awesome, than a pie topped with delicious, buttery stars?

Friends, meet my competition.


Um, yeah. A blueberry pie, topped with a blueberry road, which winds past an oil derrick and a billboard spoofing the Chick-Fil-A's advertisements that are ever-present in East Texas. When I saw that pie (not to mention the equally dazzling ones surrounding it) my heart sank. My blueberries wept. I entered my pie, but my hopes had been dashed.

Needless to say, I did not win the blueberry pie contest. I did, however, bake a pretty kick ass pie, which Nathan and I devoured over the course of two days. There is some solace in that. I also have ideas for next year's pie (hint - it will NOT feature an oil derrick) and I had a lovely time at the Festival itself. Despite the heat and humidity, it's always nice to walk around the square, visit vendors, people watch, and stuff my face with seasonal fruit while running into all my friends. For some really wonderful photos of the day, check out my friend Eralda's blog. She is amazing with a camera (not to mention her talents in the kitchen!).

I hope y'all had a fine weekend, filled with your own starry eyed treats, sweets and adventures. I'm off to finish this cup of coffee and dream of summer days, swimming holes, and fresh pies.

this and that (and photos!)

Things have been busy around The New Me! Here are some photos and random sentences that should get y'all up to date.

At the library, my department is partnering with the City and a million other people to complete a Preserve America grant. The grant focuses on cemetery preservation and heritage tourism, with education and GIS components. Digital Projects is in charge of the database into which the research will be organized as well as some other thrilling bits. I'll spare you the details, but this will explain why most of last week (and most of next week) was spent (and will be spent) in cemeteries along a five county stretch in East Texas.


Getting out of the office, running around the countryside in a van, and documenting the hell out of historic places, educational sites and now, random cemeteries, is but one of the perks my job offers. I really like my job. I also really like East Texas. I used to think Nacogdoches was a pretty backwards place - Texas accents! Swimming holes! Brick streets! - but visiting some of the even smaller towns in this area has made me appreciate all the things Nacogdoches does offer, while at the same time marveling at the beautiful and bizarre things just down the road.



The above two photos were taken at a restaurant/antique store/musuem for Republicanism, located in Crockett. When we began our road trip, I was considering starting up a vegan resource for the hapless and hungry that find themselves traveling through East Texas. Then I realized that I was basically taking photos and crafting reviews of a lot of baked potatoes. (In Crockett's defense, they did offer chives. I accepted.) I considered abandoning my idea and telling my fellow vegetarians to pack their own snacks, but then we had lunch at The Bistro in Hemphill.

Hand-tossed crust. Spicy tomato sauce. Mushrooms, spinach and olives. Be still my heart! This was definitely the best cheese-less pizza I've ever eaten. If I ever decide to go back to Hemphill, it will be soley for another delicious lunch. Maybe I'll start my vegan resource blog after all.

Outside of work, I've been just as busy. I learned to ride a road bike while on a 35 mile long ride (want); made seitan from scratch (bland); bought fabric for new curtains (yay!); and started planning things to do while my mom and two younger sisters are visiting (they arrive June 28th!). I am most excited to see my family, and plan on doing lots of fun, weird, Texas-y things while they're here (suggestions?). You can't tell from this post, but East Texas is more than just cemeteries, and I intend to keep them very entertained.

gone, but not forgotten

Hello friends! Between changes and challenges afoot at work, travels that have been pulling me back and forth across East Texas, and the gorgeous Summer weather, there has been little time for the writing and reading of blog posts. I promise you that I've been thinking of you, wondering what adventures you are all filling your own days with, and taking lots of photos of my own comings and goings so that I can share them with you later.

I hope you're having a picture-perfect Sunday. I know I am, and I promise to post a picture of it - and of many other things - later this week. Until then!

<3