Gratitude Post

Though the end of July has been pretty tough I've managed to come up with yet another gratitude post this week! Bam! (^^^)

1. July Ending!: I'm grateful that the month of July is finally coming to an end. This month has been pretty tough financially but I'm thankful I barely paid most of my bills and was able to have enough food to last the month. Instead of dreading the beginning of August I am looking forward to what opportunities it has to bring and if it will be even better than July!

2. Meeting and Exceeding My July Goal! : My goal every month since I graduated (a year ago) is to put in at least 30 applications a month and this month I exceeded it with 40-some applications! Granted the majority of them are for part time positions but I am hoping that I will hear back from some of them in August.

3. Interviews: This month I had a few interviews for temp and retail positions, none of which I snagged but I'm grateful in this economy to have had them nonetheless! One of the interviews I had was a group one that was set up different than others I've participated in before. I'm thankful for the experiences I've gained from the interviews I did have this month. After each interview I always reflect to see if it is the right position for me, the right fit in the company (if its a professional position), and overall will I be able to physically handle it.

4. (Seemingly) Never Ending Detergent! Earth Friendly Organic Laundry Detergent that I snagged at Sam's club the other month is still going strong! I'm grateful that at the time I picked it up that I had the funds to do so as I've barely made a dent in the bottle. I'm glad that it will be one less thing to worry about going into August. Using household products that are eco-friendly is something very important to me so I'm grateful I will be able to do so with laundry waiting to be washed, no seriously I have at least 3 loads to do today ;)

5. Power Outage! It may seem strange but I'm kinda glad there was a major power outage in Scranton the other day. I was able to get so much done around the house, since it wasn't bright enough to read indoors, and the time without power went by so quickly because of it. Though I kept repeatedly wanting to vacuum the rugs I have in my living room I pretty much was able to focus on chores that only required human energy. I'm grateful for the men and woman that worked tirelessly to restore power back to the "electric" city.

Wordless Wednesday: Cakey!

Gratitude Post

Bam! Five things that I am grateful for this week!


1. Farmer's Market: I am grateful and oh so happy that the farmer's market in Scranton is finally open! I was able to get some fresh veggies that I haven't had for quite a while. I'm glad too that I had the hindsight to put $20 away when I was working a temp job so I'd be able to have one big haul from the farmer's market. Hoping that I will be gainfully employed by August so I may go again several times :)

2. Coconut Oil: I use this for so many things around the house that I'm grateful that I had an extra jar on hand this week! When I first bought a twin pack of Nutiva Organic Extra Virgin Coconut Oil from Amazon I was debating on whether I should have gotten a single one, but after pricing it all over Scranton I decided that Amazon was the best deal for my money at the time, and I'm glad I did!

3. Vegetable Garden: Finally the fruits of my labor are being rewarded! At least what the neighborhood gopher hasn't snagged off the vines. I planted several types of tomato plants this year and my plum and cherry tomato plants are producing lovely little creations. I'm grateful that my fussy tortoise loves the fresh tomatoes as that is one less thing I have to worry about buying, at least for the rest of the summer months.

4. Social Networking Sites: I am grateful for social networking sites that allow me to keep in touch with friends from high school, college, grad school, and for random peeps I've clicked with on Twitter. It's a free way to keep in touch and to network while I'm currently seeking gainful employment.

5. Green Tea: Aww just thinking about green tea makes me thankful for its calm and soothing effects it has on me while I keep hitting virtual brick walls on job boards. I love to stop and pause while taking a sip of hot tea to cool my mind from whatever earthly worries I have at that moment in time. It is frustrating a year out of graduate school being dead broke and jobless but I am grateful that during school I loved green tea so much that I have enough to last me at least two more months while I continue to job hunt.

Quick Iced Green Tea

Quick iced drink on a hot summer day! I love to drink green tea but during the summer months I prefer this method over just a cup of hot tea.

 Brew a cup of double strength green tea aka two tea bags or twice the amount of loose tea. I'm trying to use up the bagged tea I have sitting around my cupboards, with this heat wave it may be gone soon!

Brew the double tea as long as you would for a single cup, green tea tends to get bitter the longer it brews so brew according to your own tastes. While its hot I add a teaspoon of honey to dissolve.

Fill up a glass with ice! Behold its cooling glory!

Once your tea is brewed to your liking add to ice and ta-da it magically becomes a delicious iced beverage! If I have herbal tea on hand sometimes I'll add a bag while brewing the green tea to add even more natural flavors to the mix!

Farmer's Market Haul!

Finally the Farmer's Market opened in Scranton this Friday and I was able to get some fresh veggies that I didn't plant or have yet to receive from my own humble garden this summer. I snagged eggplants, Italian green beans, string beans, fresh homemade bread, cucumbers, and corn oh my! I didn't see any increases in prices this year, to the dismay of some naysayers prior to the opening of the farmer's market. Also snagged some baked goods, it's been so bleh temperature wise that I haven't been up to baking much this summer.
Overall it would have cost me a lot more in the grocery store to snag everything that I did. Spent under $20, which I have been saving during my unemployment so I can at least go once (before finding another job) with a big bang!

Eggplants, cucumbers, Italian green beans

Yum more beans!

Bread, small whoopie pie, and chunk of apple pie!

Corn!

One bag is never enough! ;)

Wordless Wednesday

Deliciousness

Miso Tofu Soup and Green Tea slowly brewing

Mmm tea

Homemade Croutons!

I originally wanted to use the 10 grain bread I made for croutons but sadly the bread did not have a long life in my household and it quickly disappeared. Luckily I had some two day old Italian bread to slice and dice into some croutons!


You'll need:
 
Bread (at least a day old)
Olive Oil
Salt & Pepper
Parsley Flakes

Slice and cut bread any which way your heart desires! I tried to keep them somewhat uniform in size hoping they would bake up evenly. Note if you do not create a mess you are doing it wrong ;)

I added the bread pieces in a bowl and lightly coated them with oil, then added in a bit of salt&pepper and a few dashes of parsley flakes. Next I tossed the bread pieces to try to make sure all where nicely coated. Spread them out evenly on a sheet pan or two if you are making a large batch.

I baked mine for about 15 minutes on 400degrees. Allow to cool completely before storing in a container. I had enough from 1/4 a loaf of Italian bread to make croutons for a big and tasty salad for three!

Review: Bob's Red Mill 10 Grain Bread Mix

I’ve wanted to make fresh bread but was hesitant till I decided to pick up a pack of Bob’s bread mix!

 

I knew it would be a time consuming process so I waited for a day that I wouldn’t have to run errands, go to interviews, take parental unit to doctor appointments, etc. The first step was messy yet fun at the same time. 

Emptying out the package on my kitchen table and following the instructions I hand mixed and kneading the dough to let rise for 1 ½ hours. Next step was my favorite where you “punch” down the dough to let rise again and again.Then finally placed dough in a bread pan to bake for about 40 minutes. I greased the top of my loaf with coconut oil.

 My loaf had a bit of a light golden brown finish to it that my camera didn't capture well. I allowed the loaf to almost fully cool off before slicing off a piece to try. Overall the bread turned out very good and most importantly tasty! I’d love to try some other varieties of the bread mixes Bob has. Since I can’t afford right now to buy anything other than all-purpose flour it was much more economical for me to grab a mix with several different flours/grains mixed together. If I were to buy all 10 grains separately I wouldn’t have been able to get any other groceries that day when I decided to pick up the mix and give it a whirl! And best of all that it cost about half to make compared to loaves of similar breads at grocer bakeries.

Gratitude Post

Taking part in Let’s Take the Metro’s gratitude post yet again this week! 

 1. Cleaning Cupboards!  While cleaning my cupboards this week I found teas, soup mixes, and pasta that I thought I ran out of a while ago. Few things that were expired got tossed but was able to use most of it. I go through the cupboards every other week and still get surprised at some of the things I find that I thought was gone already. 

2.    2.    Green Tea: I’m thankful that I still have plenty of green tea to drink while I’m still searching for employment. I have both loose and bagged green tea left, trying to use up the non-loose tea first. In the future I plan on getting loose teas only since it will be slightly more environmentally conscious in that I won’t be tossing out wrappers, used tea bags, and those little strings I tend to break ;)

 3.   3. Rice: Two months ago I bought up a lot of brown rice that was on clearance at Price Chopper and still have plenty to go around. I’m grateful that rice not only keeps for a long time but that it pairs so well with many dishes. Lately I’ve been making semi-fried brown rice with frozen veggies for lunches. 

4.    4. Ramen! The meal of champions! I have a few packages of ramen noodles left. I’m grateful that such cheap food exists despite how unhealthy it may be. If I have fresh carrots I like to grate a bit on top to add some sort of nutritional value to them.  

5.    5. Interviews: This past week I had two interviews; both of which jobs I wasn’t suited for, apparently. Though I was really hopeful about the one position upon further reflection I don’t think it would have been something that would have been for the long term. Whenever I have a negative interview experience I turn it around and use it as motivation to keep searching and going forward.