Archive - Oct 2008 - Blog entry

Eco-batics, lets do it.

Made by Urban Fox “Lingerie for the Knockout”, these classytights are made of a mix of bamboo and cotton. Every undie is organic andhandmade by designers Lizzie Cook and Megan Power who started the tiny label in2006 when they realized the organic lingerie market was seriously lacking. Thegirls have created a free spirited and totally eco line modeled by femmefatales mid novel and circus stunt. Buy at Etsy. Or check out the designer’s website. 

Picture from urbanfoxeco

If I hear the word "maverick" one more time, I might finally lose my cool. Then again, Joe Biden almost did. Last night's VP debate wasn't the train wreck expected by political analysts. Palin met the low expectations set forth for her and Biden didn't come off as a know-it-all windbag. The most memorable quote of the night was Palin enlightening Biden, informing him that the chant isn't "drill, drill, drill," but is "drill, baby, drill." The most touching moment was when Biden choked up while speaking about the death of his first wife and daughter. And the most frustrating moment when Palin failed to name a single Bush economic policy that she disagreed with. All in all, the debate was entertaining, and slightly terrifying. 32 days until Nov. 4!

Rinsing the dark green grape leaves in the sink, fluffing the hot rice spiced with cinnamon, my mother was passing Lebanese heritage to me through pots and pans. For the labor-intensive recipe of dolmas, or stuffed grape leaves, we spent hours preparing and rolling little bundles of tastebud joy for the special occasion of my father's birthday. Stuffed grape leaves are his favorite. As a "chip off the old block," they are also mine.

Needless to say, as a college student, I do not have time to spend hours working on my great-grandmother's recipe nor the money to purchase "exotic" or fancy ingredients. I no longer have my own kitchen. My mom and I aren't cooking dinner anymore; I'm eating at a dining hall where everything is pre-selected and cooked for me. I want to eat healthy, but the environment and options have completely changed. The last thing I want to hear is the looming Freshman 15.

Simply put, convenience and nutrition don’t go hand-in-hand without some planning and good references. When you’re a college student, running from class to work to clubs to impromptu friend gatherings, it can be hard to eat right. With a whirlwind of brain-consuming activities, we tend to overlook one of the most basic yet important aspects of our lives: our health. (Especially around this time of year! Notice any classmates sniffling and downing coughdrops like M&Ms?)

Learn about food, and we learn about ourselves. We learn how to give our bodies enough energy to feel good and fight sickness. We learn about our heritage through family recipes passed down. We celebrate our holidays with feasts. We share conversation, memories, confidance over food with our friends. Food brings us together.

Now? Food is bringing me to you. My name’s Ann Cochran. In brevity, I’m a short, stubborn “health-nut” with a penchant for dessert, coffee, and cereal. (Make sense? Nooope!) Am I a bonafide nutritionist or gourmet chef? Nope. But I want to learn how to make good choices when I’m browsing the dining halls, when I’m overwhelmed by the zillion ways to dress up a cup of coffee at Starbucks, when I’m on the run and faced with fast-food chains. If I have access to a small kitchen, or even just a microwave, I want to know how best to cook easy, quick, delicious meals. I’m going to collect tips and techniques here, saute it with a little extra virgin olive oil, and spice it with some crushed red pepper for your convenience.

Don’t you want to live well, live long, live light? Live with zest. Live your life!

-Ann

P.S. Next time: The Skinny on Starbucks!

I'm excited.

The Bailout 2 is hitting The House tomorrow. Peeps have been amping its arrival all week, and word on the street is it's hotter than ever. Even The Senate approved it, and you know how hard it is to get their John Hancock's.

Amidst a terrifying financial crisis that many of us don't fully understand, there are still elections to look forward to. Elections that more or less have nothing to do with the financial crisis, as realistically the candidates are as clueless as the rest of us. As I compulsively check my Yahoo mail every hour, I only see news related to the economy. This is to be expected, of course, but I still want to hear about the candidates. I pass over ten or fifteen articles focused on the economy and then suddenly I see "Obama" and "McCain" mentioned in the title. Yes, the article is still about the crisis...but now it has a little more zing to it.

But they've got nothing to do with getting us out of it at the moment. All they can do is use the crisis as a talking point...which failed miserably during Friday's debate. We have to remember that we can't rely on our candidates to do everything for us. As of right now, they're only two Senators. But we can't help it when we see their names attached to a story. We love the words "Obama", "McCain", "Palin" and to a lesser extent "Biden". The words are all that matter.