Sometimes it feels good to shake things up a bit. Not in a major way, but enough to get you thinking and acting a little differently.
I had an opportunity to switch around my work schedule to a much earlier one and I decided to take it!
Previously I would awaken at 6 AM, have a cup of coffee and go to the gym. Then I would come home, eat breakfast and shower, then head into work for 9:30 AM, to work until 6 PM. This was all good, I was used to it and I enjoyed working out before work, it felt good to get that done first thing.
Starting last week my schedule flipped around. I now get up at 4:30 AM, have coffee and breakfast and head out to work for 6 AM. I am done with work at 2:30 PM (this is the awesome part!) and then stop home, go to the gym, come back with plenty of time to cook dinner, shower and early to bed.
The first week was definitely rough, the first day was fine but I got progressively tired as the week went on. It felt good to just wake up, eat and head to work, but by 2:00 PM I was starting to drag. Plus it took effort to go to the gym right after work, especially if I needed to pick up groceries or do any other errands. This was the danger of working out later in the day, the longer you wait the more things try to pile up and stop you...
I decided that what was most important was to do everything that I would ordinarily do each day, just do it at a different time. I made sure that I went to the gym everyday and did my normal workout. It made more sense now to shower and wash my hair at night, to save time in the morning. All of this felt odd and it was hard getting used to going to bed at 9 PM instead of 10 or 11.
I have made it to week two and it is feeling much better ! The roads are nice and quiet at 5:30 AM, and it feels wonderful to be done with the work day by the middle of the afternoon. I am getting used to working out later in the day , and I love having time to cook dinner and not feel rushed and stressed when I get home. I definitely think that this is a good thing. Sometimes, it is good to shake things up.
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
New Year's Eve Eve at New World Home Cooking !
I never go out on New Year's Eve. I really don't know why, it just doesn't seem to work for me. Actually slept right through it this year, and rather enjoyed it ! Of course, having to be at work by 7 am New Year's Day kind of put a damper on any New Year's Eve revelry...
So I started thinking, what would be the lamest night of the year to go out to dinner ? Why, New Year's Eve Eve, of course ! All of the cool people are going out on the Eve, why not take advantage of the uncoolness and venture out on the Eve's Eve? Brilliant !
So my husband and I decided to head out to one of our favorite local places, New World Home Cooking. Apparently, we were not the only practiced uncool people around, the dining room was buzzing when we arrived around 8 pm. Waved hello to chef Ric and wife Liz as we walked in, greeted by a pretty impressive model of the restaurant done up in gingerbread.
One of the things that we love about New World is that it is more like dining at a friend's house rather than a formal, stuffy restaurant. This is a place to go where you can come as you are. People are here to savor food, laugh, drink and talk with their friends. This is slow cooking at its finest, your meal is made for you and it will take a little time. If the drink orders are getting backed up, chef Ric might just step in and deliver them himself, keeping it real...
The worst part is deciding what to eat, there are so many varied and interesting dishes that it is hard to pare it down to what you can reasonably eat ! We started out with a couple of appetizers, Cajun peppered shrimp and feta stuffed olives with red pepper tzatziki. We have had the shrimp before and love them, spicy but not overly hot. The olives were a new item for us and were delicious, lovely green olives stuffed with feta, then battered and fried until lightly crispy, so good with the creamy tzatziki sauce. I could have eaten them all myself, but that would have been just rude...
Thai Italian Love was my husband's choice, pasta in a Bolognese sauce with the fun addition of lime, curry and coconut ! He decided to ask the waitress to up the heat a bit, and the result was a seriously spicy dish, suiting his fiery palate. This looked seriously good...
I opted for the Tandoori salmon with curried winter vegetables, tamarind coconut sauce and brown rice. The salmon was perfectly cooked, with a crackle of spices on top. Lanky sprigs of cilantro just added to the seduction. The curried brussel sprouts and sweet potato were a nice compliment to the rice and tarmarind sauce. Only some rice was left on the plate by the time I was done, a testament to the fine flavors.
Somehow, I still saved some room for Vegan Chocolate Raspberry "Access" Cake. Now, I really don't know what the name of this cake means, but it was one very vertical, very fine cake ! It had rich chocolate flavor, not overly sweet, and the raspberry sauce was one of the most intense berry flavors that I have ever tasted.
I restrained myself and ate half, then gladly took the rest home.
So I started thinking, what would be the lamest night of the year to go out to dinner ? Why, New Year's Eve Eve, of course ! All of the cool people are going out on the Eve, why not take advantage of the uncoolness and venture out on the Eve's Eve? Brilliant !
One of the things that we love about New World is that it is more like dining at a friend's house rather than a formal, stuffy restaurant. This is a place to go where you can come as you are. People are here to savor food, laugh, drink and talk with their friends. This is slow cooking at its finest, your meal is made for you and it will take a little time. If the drink orders are getting backed up, chef Ric might just step in and deliver them himself, keeping it real...
The worst part is deciding what to eat, there are so many varied and interesting dishes that it is hard to pare it down to what you can reasonably eat ! We started out with a couple of appetizers, Cajun peppered shrimp and feta stuffed olives with red pepper tzatziki. We have had the shrimp before and love them, spicy but not overly hot. The olives were a new item for us and were delicious, lovely green olives stuffed with feta, then battered and fried until lightly crispy, so good with the creamy tzatziki sauce. I could have eaten them all myself, but that would have been just rude...
Thai Italian Love was my husband's choice, pasta in a Bolognese sauce with the fun addition of lime, curry and coconut ! He decided to ask the waitress to up the heat a bit, and the result was a seriously spicy dish, suiting his fiery palate. This looked seriously good...
I opted for the Tandoori salmon with curried winter vegetables, tamarind coconut sauce and brown rice. The salmon was perfectly cooked, with a crackle of spices on top. Lanky sprigs of cilantro just added to the seduction. The curried brussel sprouts and sweet potato were a nice compliment to the rice and tarmarind sauce. Only some rice was left on the plate by the time I was done, a testament to the fine flavors.
Somehow, I still saved some room for Vegan Chocolate Raspberry "Access" Cake. Now, I really don't know what the name of this cake means, but it was one very vertical, very fine cake ! It had rich chocolate flavor, not overly sweet, and the raspberry sauce was one of the most intense berry flavors that I have ever tasted.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)
