I was a bit neglectful and missed my post yesterday – apologies! Being home is lovely but my schedule is way out of whack!

Last night I met some of my old friends from my time as a Borders Bookstore employee for a sushi dinner. The suburb of Cleveland that I live in is pretty blah in terms of restaurants but there is one sushi place that I just love. I think it’s my favorite sushi place of anywhere actually! The sushi is really delicious and their drinks are always so so good – nice and boozy :O).

My little sis came along too and we were there first, so we started with a cocktail while we waited for the others.

I ordered a Mango Vanilla Margarita which actually sounded a bit better than it tasted. I looove margaritas but I think they’re best unfussy. That’s what I get for being adventurous :O).

And then came the sushi. The four of us just ordered a bunch and shared.

We had a shrimp tempura, spicy tuna, Philadelphia and Little Delicious rolls. The Little Delicious was soooo yummy but it had a lot of elements and I’m afraid I don’t remember them all! We also had a sampler of  crab, mackerel, eel and yellow fin tuna. After so much turkey it was a nice break to eat something totally different. Yummm.

After dinner Louisa and I drove downtown for a glass of wine at my fave Cleveland wine bar which was quite the adventure! Apparently I lost all sense of direction in my year away.

So today is my last day in town before an early flight out tomorrow morning. I met up with my last friend I needed to see this morning so now I can just relax and enjoy a little family time before I take off. My dad is making a paella tonight which is my fave thing he makes :O). So expect some pretty pics of that soon!

I’ll see you back in DC.

- Beth

For the Thanksgiving weekend Ryan and I headed down to Portland to visit friends (Hi Beth, Matt, Adam & Danielle!) the first day was soooo nice we spent a few hours walking around – to the steel bridge, the rose garden, and a few neighborhoods before heading to dinner, drinks & 80’s night at the Crystal Ballroom. (so fun!)

Gender: Feminine
Origin: Hebrew
Meaning: “God is my oath; God is abundance.”

The name is a transliterated form of the Biblical Greek Ελισβετ (Elisabet), which is a Hellenized version of the Biblical Hebrew feminine name, אֱלִישֶׁבַע‎ (Elisheva).

Elizabeth appears twice in the Bible, once in the Old Testament as the name of Aaron’s wife and once in the New Testament as the wife of Zachariah and the mother of John the Baptist.

Elizabeth has remained fairly consistent in the U.S top 100 for over a hundred years. She currently ranks in at # 9 and the lowest she has ever come in the U.S. charts was in 1945 at # 26.

In Australia she is the 37th most popular female name (2007), in Canada, she ranks in at # 20 (2008), in England/Wales she came in at # 40 (2008), in Ireland at # 63 (2007) and in Scotland at # 68 (2008).

The name was borne by several saints and European royalty. Among the most notable bearers were, St. Elizabeth of Hungary, a 12th-century Hungarian princess who was known for her acts of kindness and charity toward the poor and Queen Elizabeth I of England, including the current reigning Queen, Elizabeth II.

The name Isabel/Isabella are relatives, but have becomes so far apart from its original source, that they often occur concurrently in many European countries with Elizabeth, hence is why I shall devote a different post to Isabel/Isabella, but I shall cite her several times in this article as a variation whenever needed.

I believe one of the reasons why Elizabeth has been a long time favorite, is because of her versatility. She can be shortened to a variety of different nicknames, especially in English. The most popular are: (I have cited the ones that have commonly been used as independent given name with a black club)

Bess, Bessie, Beth♣, Bets, Betsy, Bet, Bettie/Betty, Bezzy, Bit, Bitsy, Biz, Buffy, Elisa♣, Elise♣, Elle♣, Eliza♣, Ella♣, Ellie, Elsa♣, Elsie♣, Ibbie, Lib, Libby, Lilly, Lisa♣, Liz, Lizzie, Liza♣, Tetty, Tibby and Tizzy.

Other forms of the name include:

Latinate Forms
Forms found in Latinate/Romance languages

• Sabela (Asturian)
• Elisabèt, Lisabèt (Bearnais)
• Elisabet (Catalan)
• Babette (French: originally a diminutive form, used as independent given name, now considered extremely dated)
• Élisabeth (French)
• Élise (French)
• Lise (French)
• Lisette (French: originally a diminutive form but exclusively used as an independent given name)
• Bettina (Italian)
• Elisa (Italian/French/Portuguese: appears in Boccaccio’s Decameron as the name of one of the female story tellers).
• Elisabella (Italian: obscure)
• Elisabetta (Italian/Romansch)
• Elisa (Italian/Sardinian/Spanish)
• Elisanna/Elisena (Italian: obscure)
• Elisetta (Italian)
• Lelisa (Italian: obscure)
• Lisa (Italian/Spanish)
• Lisella (Italian: obscure)
• Lisena (Italian: obscure)
• Lisetta (Italian)
• Lisina/Lisinda (Italian: obscure)
• Lisanna (Italian)
• Elisabetha (Late Latin)
• Elizabetta (Liguru: a minor language spoken in Italy)
• Elisabeta/Elisèu/Eliso (Occitanian)
• Elisabete/Elisete/Elsa (Portuguese)
• Babèu/Eisabèu/ Lisabèu (Provencal: Babeu is a diminutive)
• Elisabeta (Romanian/Spanish)
• Lisabetta (Romansch/Corsican)
• Lisabbetta (Sicilian)
• Isabel/Ysabel (Spanish/Aragonese/Catalan/Galician/Portuguese)

Germanic Forms
Forms used in Germanic languages

• Elsabe (Afrikaans)
• Liesel (Alsatian)
• Elisabet (Danish/Faroese/Swedish/Norwegian)
• Elsebeth (Danish)
• Else (Danish)
• Lise (Danish/German)
• Lis (Danish/Norwegian/Swedish)
• Lisbet (Danish/Norwegian/Swedish)
• Lisbeth (Danish/German)
• Els (Dutch: a diminutive form, occasionally used as an independent give name)
• Elsa (Dutch/German/Swedish)
• Liesbeth/Lijsbeth (Dutch)
• Liesje (Dutch)
• Eliza (English: originally a diminutive, exclusively used as an independent given name)
• Elsba/Elsbet/Elsuba/Elusbet (Faroese)
• Elspa (Faroese)
• Lisabet/Lisbet (Faroese)
• Elsebe/Elsche/Eske/Telsa (Frisian)
• Bettina/Bettine (German: a borrowing from the Italian)
• Elisa (German: a borrowing from Romance languages)
• Elisabeth (German/Dutch)
• Elise (German/Danish/Dutch/English/Norwegian: a borrowing from the French)
• Elli (German: diminutive form, occasionally used as an independent given name)
• Elsbeth (German/Swiss-German dialectical form)
• Ilsa/Ilse (German/Dutch: initially a diminutive form, popularly bestowed as an independent given name, now considered dated. il-SEH)
• Lies/Liesa/Liese (German/Dutch)
• Liesel/Liesl (German: originally a diminutive form, used as an independent given name, now considered dated)
• Lilli (German: originally a diminutive form, used as an independent given name due to its association with the flower)
• Lisa/Lise (German/Dutch/English/Swedish/Danish/Norwegian)
• Sabeth (German: obscure)
• Aileisabaiþ (Gothic)
• Elísabet (Icelandic)
• Ellisif (Norwegian)
• Lieken, Lüke, Lücken (Plattdeutsch)
• Bettan (Swedish: originally a diminutive form, occasionally used as an independent given name, but now considered dated)
• Lisen (Swedish: originally a diminutive form, used as an independent given name)

German diminutive forms are Betti, Elis, Elli, Elschen, and Lieschen.

Slavic Forms
Forms used in Slavic speaking countries

• Elisaveta Елисавета (Bulgarian)
• Elizabeta (Croatian)
• Alžběta (Czech: alzh-BYEH-tah)
• Eliška (Czech: originally a diminutive form, used as an independent given. eh-LEESH-kah)
• Elisabeti Елїсабеть (Old Church Slavonic)
• Eliza (Polish: eh-LEE-zah)
• Elżbieta (Polish: elsh-BYEH-tah)
• Halszka (Polish: archaic. HAHLSH-kah)
• Halżbieta (Polish: archaic. halsh-BYEH-tah)
• Elizaveta/Yelizaveta Елизавета (Russian)
• Jelisaveta (Serbian)
• Alžbeta (Slovak)
• Ažbeta (Slovene)
• Betina (Slovene)
• Elica (Slovene: originally a diminutive form, used as an independent given name. eh-LEET-sah)
• Elisa/Elis (Slovene)
• Elizabeta/Elizabet (Slovene)
• Elza (Slovene)
• Jelisava (Slovene)
• Lizabeta (Slovene)
• Špela (Slovene: originally a diminutive form, exclusively used as an independent given name. SHPEH-lah)
• Hilža (Sorbian)
• Lisaveta/Yelysaveta (Ukrainian)

Czech diminutive forms are Běta, Bětka, Bětuška, Betynka, Bětuše, Betyna, and Líza. Slovakian diminutives include: Beta, Betka, Betuška, Betinka, Betuša and Betina. Polish diminutive forms are Bieta, Ela (the most prevalent), Elka, Elunia and Elżunia. Slovene diminutives are: Beta, Beti, Betika, Ela, Eli, Elzi, Špelca, Špelica, Špelka, Jelica, Lili, and Lizika.

Baltic Forms
Forms used in the Baltic States

• Eliisabet (Estonian)
• Elts (Estonian)
• Etti (Estonian)
• Ilze (Estonian)
• Liisa/Liisi/Liis (Estonian/Finnish)
• Liisu (Estonian)
• Eliisa (Finnish)
• Elizabete (Latvian)
• Līze/Lizina (Latvian)
• Elžbieta (Lithuanian)
• Eliissá/Liisá/Liissá (Saami)

Celtic Forms
Forms used in Celtic based languages

• Elesbed (Breton)
• Eilís (Irish: IE-leesh)
• Ealisaid (Manx: ALE-is-sed)
• Ealee (Manx)
• Ealish (Manx)
• Ealasaid (Scottish)
• Elspeth (Scottish)
• Bethan/Betsan (Welsh)

Other forms

• Elizabeta (Albanian)
• Ilizabith إليزابيث (Arabic)
• Il-Shvai ܐܠܝܫܒܥ \ܐܠܝܫܒܚ (Aramaic)
• Elsapet (Armenian)
• Yeghisapet (Armenian)
• Zabel (Armenian)
• Elixabete/Elixabet/Elizabete (Basque: former are pronounced eh-LEE-sheh-BEH-tah and eh-LEE-shah-Bet)
• Elixi (Basque: eh-LEE-shee)
• Elisheba (Biblical Hebrew)
• Eliso ელისო (Georgian)
• Lizi (Georgian)
• Elisavet Ελισαβετ(Greek: Modern)
• Zeta (Greek: Modern)
• Ilsipat (Greenlandic)
• Elikapeka (Hawaiian)
• Elisheva (Hebrew: see Hebrew script above)
• Lizzamma (Hindi/Indian)
• Erzsébet/Orzebet (Hungarian: ER-zhey-bet)
• Aley/Aleyamma/Aleykutty (Malayalam)
• Eli/Eliamma (Malayalam)
• Elizabetta (Maltese)
• Erihapeti (Maori)
• Elizabet (Turkish)

Hungarian nicknames includes Bözsi, Erzsi (ER-zhee), and Zsóka (ZHO-kaw).

Medieval Forms
Forms no longer in usage from Medieval Europe

• Ysabel/Ysabet (Catalan, Valencia, 16th-century)
• Elisaued (Cornwall, England, 10th-century)
• Elizabez (England, 13th-century)
• Lylie/Lilion (England, 13th-century, possibly nicknames)
• Elisota (England, 14th-century)
• Elseby (Finland)
• Isabelot (France, Paris, 13th-century)
• Yzabé (France, Bordeaux, 15th-century)
• Besina (14th-century Italy, Venice, possibly a diminutive form)
• Isabetta (Italy, Florence 15th-century)
• Bechte (Germany, 15th-century, most likely a diminutive form)
• Beth (Germany, 15th-century, diminutive form)
• Bettlin (Germany, 15th-century, probably a diminutive form)
• Bytzel (Germany, 15th-century, diminutive form)
• Els (Germany, 15th-century, diminutive form)
• Elsslein (Germany, late 15th-century)
• Elsslin (Germany, 15th-century, probably a diminutive form)
• Eltzabet (Germany, late 15th-century)
• Lyse (Germany, 15th-century, diminutive form)
• Elsebeth (Germany, 15th-century)
• Elzebeth (German, in Silesia, 14th-century)
• Nele/Neleke (German, in Silesia, 14th-century, most likely than not, diminutive forms)
• Elysant (Normandy, 1190)
• Helisent (Normandy, 1221)
• Isabellis (Normandy, 12th-century)
• Ysabels/Yzabels/Yzabela (Occitan, Saint Flour, 14th-century)
• Elitze (Sweden, 15th-century)
• Elsika/Elsiko/Elzeke (Sweden, 15th-century)
• Elsby/Elzeby (Sweden, 16th-century)
• Aleseta (Switzerland, Sion, 14th-century)

Name-days are: November 17 and November 19.

Breaking Free by Beth Moore

The remake of Breaking Free will be offered in the Spring of 2010.  This study will lead us through the scriptures to discover the transforming power of Christian freedom.  Based on Isaiah 61:1-4, this in-depth Bible study draws parallels between the captive Israelites and today’s believers.  Beth uses scripture to help identify spiritual strongholds in your life, no matter how big or small.  She explains that anything that hinders us from the benefits of knowing God is bondage.  Breaking Free is Beth’s life message that she wants to share with all of us.  Bring a friend and join us!  Workbooks – $14.00

For more information or to sign up for the class,  please e-mail inaweofhim.wordpress@gmail.com.

Hope everyone’s enjoying their Black Friday!

We woke up to the most gorgeous blanket of snow this morning – yay!!! I am so happy to see some snow while I’m in Ohio since I don’t think DC gets anywhere near as much. Now it feels like Christmas!!

My sister and I were brave and faced the mall this morning in search of bargains, but sadly didn’t see much. I’m sure there were some very good deals to be had but all those people makes everything quite overwhelming! Luckily there are many, many more days left in the shopping season :O).

After shopping I spent the rest of the day helping my mum decorate the house in holiday trimmings. Because I’ve had my Canadian college roommates in town for US Thanksgiving the last 4 years or so I haven’t helped decorate in forever!! So it was kind of fun to get into it this year.

After decorating for a few hours, we had worked up quite an appetite for dinner – and I’m sure you can guess what we ate!

Just as delicious as ever.

So now I’m just relaxing for a little bit…tonight my 12 best friends from high school are coming over to drink some wine and such in my parents’  basement – just like the good old days! I’m super excited to see everyone.

So that’s it for today! See you for the weekend.

- Beth

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

Thanksgiving is not a huge deal in my family since we’re British, but I love our little celebration nonetheless :O). My mum, dad, sister and I started our day off with “The Phillips Trot.” Just like The Turkey Trot except it’s shorter and starts at 11AM instead of 8. hehe.

After our run and showers it was time to get cooking! My contributions to the meal were Sweet Potato Casserole and Corn Bread. The casserole was the same as the one I made for my work party last week and the cornbread was a new recipe, which my friend Jamie’s mom gave me. My dad says this is the best cornbread he’s ever had!

My little sis worked as my beautiful assistant and with her help everything came together wonderfully. Although I must say after cooking two dishes (with help) I have no idea how people pull together an entire meal on their own! I have a whole new level of respect :O). While everything was cooking up, we enjoyed some champagne, shrimp and nuts.

Fab. And then it was time for the main event :O).

And my plate:

A bit of everything except the sweet potatoes which I’m sick of after eating leftovers all week :O).

After some clean up and rest, it was dessert time.

Louisa was in charge of dessert and rumor has it this was the third attempt after a couple mishaps :O). hehe. But this one was delish!! It contained candied ginger which added a really nice touch to the standard pumpkin pie.

After all of that food I was more than happy to sit and watch “Love Actually” (love that movie!) for a few hours while we all digested. Then my sister had her best friend Ann over and me my best friend Emily. The six of us had a super fun evening of Cranium playing, which Emily and I dominated :O).

S o there you have it! Happy Happy Thanksgiving. I hope everyone enjoyed their day, whatever you were up to.

I will see you for a Friday recap very soon.

- Beth

You are invited by the Women’s Ministry of Purcell Baptist Church to join them for a GREAT Six Week Bible Study called Anointed, Transformed, Redeemed:   A Study of David which features Beth Moore, Priscilla Shirer, and Kay Arthur.  This study STARTS Thursday, January 14, 2010 at 5:30 p.m. at the Alba Filling Station Restaurant in Alba, MO.  You’ll laugh with them, cry with them, and learn to love God with them.  These authors’ messages are divided into three segments, two lessons each.  Each segment focuses on the life of David at a different stage of his life:  as a young man (by Priscilla Shirere), as a middle-aged man (by Beth Moore), and as a man facing the final third of his life (by Kay Arthur). 

The Restaurant will feature sandwiches and soups prior to the study.  You’ll LOVE this winter study!  Cost for the workbook is $12.00 payable at the first session.  For more information or to sign up for the study e-mail Pam Melton at inaweofhim.wordpress@gmail.com.

NEWEST Beth Moore Study…Heart Connection’s (Women’s Ministry) of First Baptist Church of Carl Junction, MO will offer the NEWEST Beth Moore Bible Study from Revelation in January, 2010.  With all that is happening in the world around us, this is a very timely study.  Do you want to know more….do you want to understand the last Book of the Bible in a greater way…join us for this GREAT study!

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

BREAKING FREE

The remake of Breaking Free will be offered in the Spring of 2010.  This study will lead us through the scriptures to discover the transforming power of Christian freedom.  Based on Isaiah 61:1-4, this in-depth Bible study draws parallels between the captive Israelites and today’s believers.  Beth uses scripture to help identify spiritual strongholds in your life, no matter how big or small.  She explains that anything that hinders us from the benefits of knowing God is bondage.  Breaking Free is Beth’s life message that she wants to share with all of us.  Bring a friend and join us!  Workbooks – $14.00

For more information or to sign up for the class,  please e-mail inaweofhim.wordpress@gmail.com.

The Women’s Ministry of Purcell Baptist Church will offer a GREAT Six Week, Thursday Evening, Bible Study called Anointed, Transformed, Redeemed:   A Study of David which features Beth Moore, Priscilla Shirer, and Kay Arthur.  You’ll laugh with them, cry with them, and learn to love God with them.  These authors’ messages are divided into three segments, two lessons each.  Each segment focuses on the life of David at a different stage of his life:  as a young man (by Priscilla Shirere), as a middle-aged man (by Beth Moore), and as a man facing the final third of his life (by Kay Arthur). 

STARTS Thursday, January 14, 2010 at the Alba Filling Station Restaurant in Alba, MO. at 5:30 p.m.  The Restaurant will feature sandwiches and soups prior to the study.  You’ll LOVE this winter study!  Cost for the workbook is $12.00 payable at the first session.  For more information or to sign up for the study, please contact Pam Melton by e-mailing inaweofhim.wordpress@gmail.com. 

Hello Friends!

Happy almost Thanksgiving :O).

Sadly, I have no delicious eats to post today because I’m on my way back to Cleveland to visit my family and my very favorite friends.

I hope everyone has a safe and happy holiday and I will be back with some very yummy home-cooked meals tomorrow :O).

- Beth

Thanksgiving is here again! Hard to believe another year has passed so quickly. We’re not going to tell you what you can’t eat this holiday season….instead we’re going to offer suggestions so you can enjoy the choices you make at the dinner table.

We’re always so frustrated when clients say they can’t enjoy the holiday season because they’re on a diet. Wikipedia states diet to mean: “In nutrition, the sum of the food consumed by a body is it’s diet. Proper nutrition for a human requires vitamins, minerals, protein, and fuel in the form of carbohydrates and fats. Imbalances between the consumed fuels and expended energy results in either starvation or excessive reserves of a body fat.” Diet is what we eat day in and day out, healthy and not so healthy. The word diet doesn’t need to be negative, and it shouldn’t be!

We all need calories or we wouldn’t be able to function. Calories are how we get energy. We get our calories from all the foods we eat and drink (except water). If you have some pounds to lose then you have been taking in too many calories and not expending enough energy through activity. You won’t gain weight in just one day of over-eating, so just make sure to get back to your normal diet after the big feast.

Enjoy your Thanksgiving dinner, but be aware of the amount of food you pile on your plate. Portions are important because ALL calories count. Below we can show you a savings of 1,394 calories just by cutting your serving size!

Turkey

1. 4 oz. dark turkey meat with skin = 240 calories
2. 4oz white turkey meat without skin = 173 calories

Mashed Potatoes

1. 1 cup = 200 calories
2. 1/2 cup = 100 calories

Gravy

1. 1 cup = 300 calories
2. 1/2 cup = 150 calories

Stuffing

1. 1 cup = 600 calories
2. 1/4 cup = 150 calories

Candied Sweet Potatoes

1. 3/4 cup = 300 calories
2. 1/4 cup = 100 calories

Cranberry Sauce

1. 1/2 cup = 200 calories
2. 1/4 cup = 100 calories

Green Beans

1. 1/2 cup green bean casserole = 150 calories
2. 1/2 cup steamed green beans = 20 calories

Roll with Butter

1. 2 Rolls = 360 calories
2. 1 Roll = 180 calories

Wine

1. 2 Glasses = 170 calories
2. 1 Glass = 85 calories

Pumpkin Pie

1. 1/6th of a 9″ pie with 2 Tbs whipped cream = 280 calories
2. 1/8th of a 9″ pie with 1 Tbs whipped cream = 197.5 calories

So you CAN have your pie and eat it too! Even with the significant caloric savings, the total calories of this meal are still 1405.5 and can be a full days worth of calories for some. Remember to skip seconds! You’ll be glad you did when you don’t feel full and bloated later in the evening. Then enjoy the rest of the day with family and friends – take a walk, help with dishes and be thankful for all you have. Happy Thanksgiving from everyone at Total Woman!

Being a “stay-at-home” mom (who doesn’t stay home that much) is still a bit strange. I’m out and about during the day, when so many people are at work. It’s kind of a nice time; the city feels much less crazy when most of its denizens are sitting at their desks.

However, it means I see the leftover folks, many of whom are “leftover” because they’re taking care of kids. Some of these people are moms like me. A smaller number are the dads, and I see a lot of both kinds in our own neighborhood as well as nearby ones — Noe Valley, Bernal Heights, the Mission — when we take walks. The rest are nannies, many of them non-Caucasian women pushing strollers stuffed with Caucasian kids, ages ranging from 6 months to 3 years or thereabouts.

You see them walking — as slowly as humanly possible — through these neighborhoods. Some are humming to the children in the stroller, or sitting with the child and doing something that actively engages them. Not all of these conversations are sound; I heard one nanny today telling her young charge that hyenas “didn’t exist anymore.” (I hope that boy learns otherwise before too long.)

Unfortunately, many others are not really engaging with the kids at all. They’re sitting on a bench somewhere, talking into a cell phone and absentmindedly handing their charge a toy/book/bottle/piece of food. I’ve heard about people who take nannying jobs so they can get other things done while the babies sleep. These are people who make nearly as much money as I used to make as a reporter (more, if they’re taking care of two kids, usually). You’d think they could at least make an effort.

I see so much objectionable behavior from local nannies that I’ve secretly fantasized about starting some kind of Private Eye business where moms hire me to spy on their nannies during the day. You know, for $10 an hour I’ll tell you where she goes with your kid, what she does, and jot down the phone calls she makes — and the jist of what she talked about to the person on the other end.

I’m sure there are many fantastic nannies (we have a pretty great babysitter, I must say), and I’m sure that some of the ones I see out & about have their more-engaged and less-engaged moments, and it’s possible I’m seeing them in a bad moment. But I’ve also wished a few times that I could tell a mom or dad what I saw their nanny doing that day. Maybe this is a sign that I should mind my own business.

Speaking of which, we haven’t updated much because Laurel is working on much the same stuff we reported last time — pulling up to standing, over and over, all day long. After about six weeks of pulling up, she’s finally working on getting back down again. And she’s almost sitting up by herself these days, although not really getting into a sitting position on her own unless it’s to get down from a standing position and then scoot off to whatever has most recently caught her attention. She still has no interest in sitting still for long periods, and she definitely doesn’t want to be bothered with crawling on her hands and knees.

She also produces a great variety of sounds these days, including a burbling raspberry noise when she’s concentrating, and plenty of laughter. She also loves squealing and chatting, as well as clapping.

We also think she’s starting to sign. I’ve seen her sign “milk” several times this week, although mostly when she was already having the milk in question. The few times it seemed like a request, she turned out to be a bit perplexed (and not all that hungry) when presented with actual milk. It doesn’t seem like she realizes this is a way to get what she wants, which is something we’ll have to fine-tune.

– Beth

Hello! It’s almost like today is Thursday right?? How much fun is that.

A while ago a couple of my friends from work went to Zola Wine & Kitchen for lunch and raved about it. Ever since I’ve been wanting to try it out. So when I got invited along today I just had to say yes :O).

It’s a pretty tempting deal – you can go on the Zola site, pick out what you want and order it. Then it’s all ready to eat by the time you arrive at the restaurant. For only around $10 a meal you can have really quality food in a much nicer setting than your usual quickie lunch spot. You can also order to-go, although we sat in.

After some debate I ordered the Entrée Salad with Seared Tuna (romaine lettuce, tomatoes, portabello mushrooms, crispy blue cheese ravioli, tomato vinaigrette) and a side of Goat Cheese Tots which came highly recommended.

Despite my enthusiasm, I must say I wasn’t really blown away.  That’s actually exactly what happened when I went to Zola (the main restaurant) a while ago. The menu looks soooo tempting, but then the food is just a bit lacking. The fish was cooked nicely, but the coating on the outside was very spicy and thick and totally overpowered the taste of the tuna. The salad itself was mostly a pile of lettuce and I didn’t find a single portabello. Sigh :O/. The tots were good – I didn’t love them – I felt they could have used a bit more goat cheese flavor. But one of my friends is a major fan so maybe that’s just me.

Anyway! Not to be a complainer! The atmosphere is very nice and the service was super friendly. So there’s that.

After lunch we strolled around the wine store a bit and they did have a very nice collection of wines, so I’d be happy to go back and explore that area some more.

So there’s much lunch for today. A lot fancier than what I usually pack myself anyway :O).

See you tomorrow for the last working day of the week!! Woooo.

- Beth 

Quando il personaggio è più forte della musica. Siamo abituati a vedere star patinate la cui credibilità crolla una volta messe sul palco. Sorprende quando questo accade con chi, come i Gossip, trio americano dance-funk-punk che ha suonato ieri al PalaSharp, arriva dall’underground. Beth Ditto è un personaggio: oversize e orgogliosa di esserlo; lesbica e determinata nella difesa dei diritti degli omosessuali (durante lo show sventola più volte uno striscione con il triangolo rosa); una voce potente con sfumature nere che ha pochi concorrenti.

E qual è il problema, allora? La band. La batterista Hannah Blilie è l’anello debole, ripetitiva e scolastica. Monotoni anche chitarrista-tastierista e bassista (nuovo innesto) che non riescono mai a far decollare i pezzi. Anche Beth, capelli rosso fuoco e abitino fasciante, ci mette del suo interrompendo il flusso delle canzoni con inutili chiacchiere e i soliti (andrebbero vietati) «ciao Melano, mio italiano non è bene». Ritmi dance più attitudine punk dovrebbero dare vita a una irresistibile miscela ballerina. E invece, tranne le prime file, tutti fermi.

Il concerto si sveglia soltanto nel finale. Quando arriva Heavy Cross, tormentone pubblicitario di questi mesi che ha lanciato l’album Music for Men: il suono si riempie per magia, la band acquista dinamica e ci si dimentica anche che il giro di chitarra sembra un plagio dei Franz Ferdinand. Nei bis Beth non molla e nella cover di What’s Love Got to Do with It fa concorrenza a tutta voce a Tina Turner. Standing in the Way of Control, il successo del disco precedente, finisce con Beth in mezzo alla platea a cercare l’abbraccio dei fan. Troppo tardi.

Andrea Laffranchi
Fonte: www.corriere.it

Aww, back to the grind. At least it’s only a three day week! It’s always nice to have something to look forward to when returning from a particularly good weekend.

Unfortunately I wasn’t feeling so great this morning – I think all this weekend’s booze caught up with me :O/. So, breakfast was fairly simple.

1/2 cup of Dorset Cereal (like really yummy muesli) with a tbsp. of flax, 1% milk and a banana. OJ to drink. Simple and just what I was in the mood for.

So after work today I think I’ll be heading to the gym to try and sweat the last of the alcohol out which should help tremendously!! Hopefully by tomorrow I’m 100% again. <– old lady.

I leave Wednesday night to go home to Cleveland so I think the next few days are going to be quick quick quick!! I’m particularly excited for this visit because lots of my friends who are also out-of-state will be returning home too. Now that we’re getting older I feel like visits are so infrequent and it makes me very sad!! So this weekend will be fab. What is everyone else up to for Thanksgiving??

See you tomorrow :O).

- Beth

Myyy goodness. Last night most certainly ranks in the “top 10 DC moments” :O). I am so excited to share. So let’s begin! 

Here we are outside of  VOLT- I really placed myself front and center in that pic. hehe. 

We didn’t make reservations and just decided to eat in the lounge which actually worked perfectly. It was less formal than the dining area which was a very good thing since our night involved a lot of these:

The drink menu looked absolutely delicious and I just could not pick. So I asked the bartender to make me “something like a martini but not a martini.” I don’t know what inspired to me to request that but whatever he did end up making (the one with the lime wheel) was delightful! He was an awesome, friendly bartender and kept giving us extras and mistake drinks. I take any and all hand outs when at VOLT :O). 

Right above the bar, there’s a TV so diners can see into the kitchen. You would not believe who we saw when we looked up!! 

That’s right my friends Bryan Voltaggio himself was cooking!!! I think I’ve officially become a groupie. 

So, now let’s look at some food. We ordered a lot of plates and then shared tastes among all five of us. It was a great way to do it I think because we got to have little samples of a lot of things. 

 yellow fin tuna tartare lulu avocado, yuzu vinaigrette, chili oil, culantro, soy air, sesame lavash 

charcuterie tasting pork rillette, iberico pork head cheese, fennel sausage, pepperoni, copa, toasted country bread, house made pickles 

cherry glen farm goat cheese ravioli sweet corn, chanterelle mushroom, king of the hill lima beans    

tasting of artisan cheeses

And unfortunately the last few aren’t on the online menu, so I can’t describe them exactly. This was a delicious steak.   

Goat cheese cheesecake with honey dew sorbet.

Chocolate ganache with peanut butter mouse.  

Gahhhh, everything was amazing! I can’t fault a single dish. It was so cleverly put together and absolutely beautiful. We devoured every last bite :O).   Oh but it gets so much better. Look who we got to meet!   

So he didn’t offer to leave his wife for one of us, but he did invite us to the season finale party in a few weeks which I think means he’s thinking about it.  It was clearly the highlight of our night :O). I reallllly think he won!!

One last group pic before I go :O).

Hope you enjoyed reading. See you tomorrow!

- Beth

Good morning! Happy weekend!

First, last night. After work I went for a nice run outside. It feels so good to get moving after sitting still at my desk all day. I had a lot of energy and it was a fabulous 40 minute run followed by a bit of ab work back home. Normally I’d have done my arms too but I think I overdid it at the gym the other day because they’re sore!! I thought I’d be nice and give them a rest :O).

A while ago, Shady Brook Farms sent me a few of their turkey products to try. I’ve been craving meat lately, like I might be lacking a bit in the protein department, so it seemed like a perfect time to cook some turkey meatballs! It was a pretty simple meal as they are pre-cooked - I just sautéed half an onion in olive oil for a few minutes, added tomato sauce and some spices and let everything simmer while I cooked up some whole wheat pasta.

Once everything was ready, I combined 4 meatballs, the pasta and sauce in a bowl and added some parmesan cheese.

You know when a meal is simple but very satisfying? That’s what this was. I really liked the flavor of these meatballs and would happily purchase them again. Good thing too, because there are a lot of leftovers :O).

I slept for something like 10 hours last night which is pretty lazy but also pretty amazing I must say. What better way to wake up than with pancakes and coffee? PUMPKIN pancakes and coffee :O).

This is the basic pancake mix cut in 1/4. To that I added 1/4 cup pumpkin, cinnamon, a splash of vanilla and a tbsp. of flax. Once cooked, I topped them with a tbsp. of cranberries, a serving of dark chocolate chips, a tsp. of almond butter and a tbsp. of maple syrup.

Now that is a gorgeous Saturday morning breakfast :O).

Okay! Time to work out, shower, acupuncture, get ready and meet my friends for VOLT!! Today has many good things in store so I’m ready to get off the computer and into the action :O).

See you Sunday!

- Beth

Today is a very special day because it’s VOLT-Eve! We are sooo excited for tomorrow because it’s dress up time and delicious food time and try to marry one of our co-workers off to the surely soon-to-be Top Chef time. eek!

I’m also getting acupuncture for the first time tomorrow. I’m very interested to see how it will go. I have a lot of pain in my left shoulder which I have tried just about every treatment under the sun for – muscle relaxers, steroid injections, oral steroids, physical therapy, massage therapy, electronic stimulation, ultrasound therapy – and NOTHING has worked. I am beyond frustrated at this point because it’s a lot of invested time and money and no relief. So, although I have always been skeptical of alternative medicine, I am completely willing to try anything by now and I am realllllly hoping this will be the trick.

If it is, tomorrow will be ultra-amazing :O).

But first, today.

Breakfast was extra fruity today. I had the majority of a can of frozen oj concentrate left over from Wednesday’s sweet potato casserole, so I took advantage and made some juice. I hardly ever have juice and so this tasted amazing! Plus, I think we could all do with a vitamin C boost this time of year!

• 1/3 cup each oats/vanilla soy/water
• splash of vanilla
• tbsp. flax
• cinnamon
• banana
• sprinkle of brown sugar
• 2 scoops of almond butter

Yum! I haven’t had brown sugar on my oats before, which seems weird since I think that’s a fairly standard topping. Trust that now it will be repeated.

So okay! That’s it for now, but be sure to check back for VOLTalicious details this weekend :O).

- Beth

So while everyone else is participating in the ultra-healthy vegan-for-a-day challenge, over here I’m celebrating Thanksgiving a week early!

Today was our work Thanksgiving party and oh my was there a lot of food.

Last night, I baked a Sweet Potato Casserole from EatingWell.com. Growing up our sweet potatoes were never very fancy, so this was my first time making a casserole like this. It turned out lovely! Although I love sweet potatoes I am so not a fan of those horrible marshmellowey casseroles, so this one was perfect. I even volunteered to make it for real Thanksgiving in Cleveland next week. If you’d like to see a pic, please refer to my last post. Last time I posted the same picture on my blog twice I was accused of being drunk, so it’s not happening again :O).

With such a delicious array of food it was hard to pick! Here’s what I ended up with:

Of course I had to try my own to make sure it wasn’t poison, plus some spoon bread casserole, a spinach and feta stuffed mushroom and some salad with spinach, feta, cranberries, pine nuts and pears. I was very happy with my selections :O).

And then for my favorite part: DESSERT.

As you can see in the photo above, that was also hard to choose.

Caramel Apple Cheesecake and a Pumpkin Ricotta bar. So good. Note: that is a small dessert plate, they weren’t that huge!

And a small cup of warm apple cider that I just love!!

A delicious, delicious lunch, I must say. And I don’t feel too full or gross which is always a plus. After these two celebratory posts I suppose whatever I put up tomorrow is going to look pretty bland, so I better start planning something fun now :O).

See you then!

- Beth

Okay so last night! My goodness I’m behind.

As mentioned, last night was my roommate Nicole’s birthday celebration. It was a fun, fun evening with lots of wine and lots of delicious food. I have pictures galore, so let’s get started.

We began the evening with champagne and cheese, courtesy of Nicole. We had gouda, brie, and homemade red pepper goat cheese (which was divine.)

After the cheese “course” was over it was time for me to get in the kitchen and cook! I had everything prepped beforehand, so it didn’t pull me away from the action for too long.

Vanilla Bean and Butternut Squash Risotto was my contribution. Many have asked for the recipe, so here it is! A Giada De Laurentiis original. It was my first time cooking one of her recipes and I’m certainly impressed. Not too difficult or time consuming and absolutely delicious. It contains a whole, real vanilla bean which gives off the most amazing scent ever as it cooks. Very enticing :O)

While the risotto was cooking, Allison was busy prepping our salad. It was spinach, cranberry goat cheese, orchard apples, walnuts and burgundy poppy seed dressing.

And then, dinner was served!

The salad was fab! The risotto was so good I had seconds. Served with my favorite wine, Cabernet. All in all, that meal rocked my world :O).

So at this point, we were down a bottle of champagne and a bottle of wine. Everyone was feeling very chatty and everything became a whole lot more hilarious. Which makes for a perfect time to bring out dessert!

Beth’s (other Beth’s) homemade pumpkin pie with whip cream and dessert wine. Again, amazing. I’m impressed with our collective efforts :O).

So to be truthful, this is not my piece. Mine was first out of the pan and was a bit messy, so I used Allison’s for the photograph’s aesthetic quality. And then I complained her whip cream looked too measly. So she did this:

And ate it just like that :O). hehe.

Suuuper good, super delicious night of roomie bonding. Clearly what began as a classy evening faltered a bit 3 bottles of wine later but what matters is togetherness and fun. And we had a lot of both :O).

I hope you enjoyed the recap! Back tomorrow to share our work Thanksgiving feast and my contribution to that. Here’s a preview!

 - Beth