Finals, Procrastination, and Earthships

Right now seems an oportune time to blog. Do I have four finals to study for? Yes. Could my time be better spent reading the books, covered in a thin layer of dust, that I haven't cracked open in weeks? Probably. But I am in dire need of a distraction, so what better time than the present to gather some random thoughts?
Graduation is looming, only a week away, and I am surrounded by a fog of study guides and google docs. When the dust settles I predict a major quarter life crisis, but for now I am blissfully avoiding the nearing end of my four (and a half) year plan and setting my mind to auto-pilot studying. 
I started a documentary called Garbage Warrior today, and in an attempt to prolong my procrastination I watched the whole thing. 
The story centers around Michael Reynolds, an architect who's life work has occurred in New Mexico, building “Earthship Biotecture”.
 What is an earthship you may be wondering? You are not alone, I had no clue what it was either. It's basically a one man space ship designed to transport us off our dying planet. 


Ha. Gottcha! Don't tell me you seriously believed me? While the name suggests something extra terrestrial, it could not be more founded in the earth. It is a sustainable home made from, as the title of the documentary suggests, garbage. Tires, cans, bottles, dirt, and a number of other materials are combined to create a structure that cleans its own water, generates energy,  grows it own food, and looks pretty damn awesome if you ask me. 

Michaels vision is to create off the grid communities that are completely self sufficient and affordable. He has created a number of communities throughout the years, where people can put a relatively small down payment on the land and slowly build their homes. He has also created communities where the homes are built and people can simply buy the finished earthship. 

The documentary follows his effort to pass a bill through the New Mexican legislature to create land where builders can experiment with sustainable architecture, something that up until this point has been a huge challenge. For all the projects he has worked on he has had to jump through hoops and pay massive fines, eventually loosing his architectural license in the process.

It highlights how hard it is to go against the systems that we have in place in our society and the audacity of a man who wants to change the way we can live sustainably this earth.

As I sit studying for my last final's of my bachelors degree, standing on the precipitous cliff overlooking my  future, this film inspires me to go off the grid, get my hands dirty, and get a real education in sustainability.

Early Bird

My day started at 6:30. That sentence is painful to type, yet true. This morning was the perfect storm of miscommunication. I, without looking at my schedule, convinced myself that I was supposed to be at work at 8. I dragged my tired ass out of bed at 6:30 on the dot, took a power shower, brewed some french roast, and jumped in the car. I've never done the morning commute to Chula Vista, so I gave myself a full hour, wanting to make a good impression on my second day as the regional rep for Coach. It only took me about 20  minutes, so I grabbed a breakfast wrap and set up shop at Starbucks. I decided to go through my binder, seeing if I had forgotten to bring anything, and realized I was scheduled at 9. Great.

I checked my various emails, blog stats, and stumbled the hour and a half away. By the time i pried my eyes off the inspirational quotes of the day I realized it was 9:30, and I was still sitting alone at Starbucks. I double checked my schedule and decided to call my boss.

Apparently we are birds of a feather who have the wrong time together. She thought we were meeting at 10. So now I find myself in my second hour at Starbucks, getting dirty looks from the baristas, and pretending to be interested in some after coffee mints.

What better a time to blog than the present?

Ill start with a little summary of what has been going on in my life in the past week or so.

I am starting to see the light at the end of the midterm tunnel. One more tomorrow than I have one worry free week. Yey! I started a new job for Coach on Monday which I am really excited about. I am the temporary Regional Rep for San Diego, which entails a lot of time at Macy's, Bloomingdales, and Nordstrom's, making displays beautiful and a whole lot of that new purse smell. Ahhh the aroma of fine leather in the morning.

So now I either have school, Coach, or the Fishery every day. Its alot, but I keep reminding myself that Europe is fast approaching, and I have expensive taste in baguettes.

I think I have to make a purchase or these shifty eyed baristas might call mall security. Ta Ta for now

My name is jade, and I am a docu-drama addict

In the last couple weeks I have been having a not so secret relationship with netflix. We go to bed together, I spend an hour being entertained and we fall asleep next to each other. Who needs a man when I can stream docu-dramas about localized farming, the future of design, and capitalism conspiracies? 

I am also in the midst of finishing up my Environment and Society minor, and the amount of documentaries we see in class is enough to make Michael Moore beg for a different genre. But I, for some reason, cannot get enough.

Due in large part to my recent docu-craze, tonight I found myself sitting in the auditorium of a prep school in La Jolla chatting with Megan as we waited for a documentary screening to start. I had battled the rain, taking a wrong turn as I ran from parking lot and now sat, my wet jeans clinging to my shivering legs.

The film was called Carbon Nation. I didn't know what it was about exactly, but judging from the title alone, I felt pretty confident I would be nodding along for the next two hours. I have these moments in my environment and culture class that, mid movie, I find myself enthusiastically nodding and adding commentary. Thoroughly embarrassed I usually spend the rest of the class looking around pretending that I, like everyone else sitting near me, am turning to see who had really screamed "amen!". Sometimes I'll even through in a convincing eye roll if anyone around makes me makes eye contact.

Tonight it seemed I could have said about four or five "Amens!" and I would have been the quietest commentator in the room. The pack of fourteen year olds behind us kept making farting noises whenever  someone in the film would start speaking. Classic.
I wasn't even bothered, and secretly wished they were enrolled in my environment and culture class.

The documentary seemed to pick up where an inconvenient truth left off, taking a tone of hope for the future, and outlining ways we can stop the carbon crisis before we hit the rubicon. The point of no return. 

It outlined clean energy models that are at work in different places all over the United States and attempted to foreshadow how, if implemented on a large scale, might contribute to the 16 tera watts of energy we consume on a daily basis. 

It had a recurring theme of father son relationships. Most of the major characters in the film had a seed planted in their heads by their father, or we looking towards a future for their sons generation. A Carbon movie with heart, who'd have thunk it.

Dessert First...You only live twice.

Im a big fan of bathrooms. I often find myself thinking back to a great restaurant and visualizing the bathroom tiles. Strange, probably, but my heart beats faster for a beautifully designed WC. This morning I found myself at Claire's on Cedros in Solana Beach, reading the writing on the bathroom wall. It read, "Dessert First...You only live twice". I promptly went to my table and ordered lemon ricotta pancakes.

Claires is a lovely little breakfast and lunch spot a couple blocks from the sand of Solana Beach. I've been hearing about this place for months. Every time someone brings it up, they immediately launch into a critical analysis of the excellence that is the lemon ricotta pancakes. Last night was the last straw, my room mate brought up these magical pancakes and it was settled, we were going to Claire's for breakfast. 

We got to the little cottage of a restaurant, and it was immediately apparent that we weren't the only ones who like pancakes. The place was packed. We grabbed a coffee at the counter inside and went and sat out in the garden. 

About 25 minutes later we got a little table inside. Not as nice as the little back patio, but we were starving and patio or not we were ready to eat. We decided on the Claire Cakes and the Tuscan Eggs Benedict to split. The Benedict had spinach, roasted tomatoes, pesto and hollandaise on a crispy croissant. Delish. The pancakes were every bit as amazing as everyone had made them out to be. Ellen had eaten half before I could even snap a picture.

I was surprised to find out that Claire's is one of the only restaurants in San Diego that is Platinum LEED certified.  It's sustainable from floorboards to roof. Some of the sustainable attributes include

• Bicycle racks and a shower/changing room to encourage employees to bike
• 90% of the landscaping is edible and used in the preparation of the food
• A green roof that reduces irrigation and stormwater runoff. 
• The parking lot is paved in pervious concrete improving nearby coastal water quality and reducing stormwater runoff.
• Low-flow toilets and urinals and sensor-activated faucets reduce water consumption by about 40 percent compared with traditional bathroom fixtures. 
• The commercial space and apartment are heated by hydronic floor.
• Two installations of photovoltaic panels produce enough renewable energy on site to cover 37 percent of core and shell energy use.
• The restaurant appliances are Energy Star–qualified units. 
• Choosing concrete block with 16 percent recycled content as a main building material combined interior finish, structure, and exterior finish in one material, eliminating the need for maintenance or refinishing. 
• Recycled blue jeans are used in the insulation for the walls and ceilings. 
• A cool aluminum roof aims to help reduce heat island effect.
• Recycling and composting practices are utilized and they are recycling kitchen grease into bio-diesel. 
• All of the wood products used in construction were free of urea-added formaldehyde resins, reducing VOCs in the indoor air. In addition, low-VOC paints, stains, and interior finishes were specified. 

Impressed? I know I am. Claire's is by far the most sustainable restaurant I have been to in San Diego thus far, and I am inspired by what they have accomplished architecturally, and yes...I admit it...the lemon ricotta pancakes are amazing. This is one bandwagon I'm happy to be on.

Mission Accomplished

It has been a dynamic week to say the least. I moved out of my lovely little Emerald apartment, and into the life of a homeless nomad. All of my belongings are packed into a concrete storage unit, patiently awaiting their move to my new house in Mission in about a week. I have also been coming to terms with the departure of one of my best friends to the east coast. I have been quietly mourning the loss of my bright little apartment and friend, living out of two Steve Madden bags, and self-medicating with expensive seafood.

Tuesday morning was a difficult one. It had been a long Monday night, toasting (and shooting), to Hannah's departure to NYC. My head screaming, I was desperate for caffeine and carbs, so Lauren, Hannah, and I headed to the Mission. 

The mission is a cute little breakfast/lunch spot tucked between 12th and 13th street in Mission Beach. They boast, "Intensely flavored eclectic dishes" and boy do they deliver. 

First order of business was caffeine intake. I would have injected myself with a coffee filled syringe at this point had the tools been available. My head was pounding to hard to navigate the coffee section of the menu so I asked the waiter to bring me his favorite. Ironically, something I absolutely despise being asked to do at my restaurant. 

What he brought me still haunts my dreams and the occasional daydream. They call it the Vincent Vega. 

Imagine what survivors in a post apocalyptic San Diego might scrounge together and drink out of dire need and you'll be close to the consistency and color of this foul concoction. Out of pure regret and understanding of how it feels to bring a table something they clearly hate, I took a sip. I immediately regretted the decision. The rancid combination of coke, espresso, chocolate sauce and milk could be substituted for water boarding at Guantanamo. So, so bad. The poor waiters face as I inched the cup to the farthest corner of my peripheral vision. Showering him with sorry's I ordered an iced chai latte and embarked on the side of the menu I was really here for.

Bypassing my usual Zen breakfast I scanned the pancake section for something that would really stick to my ribs. I ended up choosing the plain old pancakes with a side of eggs and potatoes. 

The artistically decorated plate with swirls of berry compote and fruit bits immediately won me over. The pancakes were exactly what my head and heart desired. Good old-fashioned goodness. Simple yet delectable. I dove into the eggs and potatoes and was pleasantly surprised by the rosemary and sea salt flavors of the potatoes. So flavorful, so filling.

As I began to slip into a carb induced mini coma I grabbed a bite of Lauren's French toast.

I got the perfect bite, blueberry, syrup and toast. Yummy.

 Full, a lot less hung-over, and excited to share my experience, I rebuttoned the top of my jeans and headed out the door to take on the day.

Brain Power

There’s an old photograph of a woman hanging by my bed in my room. Most people who see it comment on how much the woman in it looks like me. She does. We have the same eyes and curve of our nose and in so many pictures of myself I see the same soft smile spread across my face. This woman was my Grandma Linda.

Last night after a long shift at The Fishery I went to see Friends with Benefits with Ari, Brittney, Bri, and Katie. As I'm writing this (recalling them as they were sitting to my left) I realize they were sitting in alphabetical order. Good job ladies!

I'm not the biggest romantic comedy junky, and normally wouldn't have spent the 12 big ones (highway robbery if you ask me) to see it, but it had been a long night, I had consumed far too much coffee to relax, and watching JT on screen for a couple hours isn't the worst way to end a night.

It was an entertaining movie, with some good laughs, but Richard Jenkins, who plays Justin Timberlake's father with progressing Alzheimer’s, caught me off guard. His portrayal of someone struggling with the realization that his mind is slipping away from him, while in some of his "moments of clarity" was ridiculous, hit close to home for me. It was a far too familiar feeling I felt creep over me watching his scenes. I found myself sobbing while everyone around me was hysterically laughing.

Quite often my mind wanders to the photo of Linda on the wall of my room; more often than it wanders to the actual memories I have of her. I wonder if behind the curves of our nose and the shape of our eyes, we share the same genetic make-up. I wonder if one day I will be the one who doesn't remember my granddaughter’s name.

I've been doing research on Alzheimer’s for a while now, and most of the sources agree on three things that can be used as preventative tactics. Diet, Exercise, and Stress Management. For this post, I’ll focus on Diet.

With the right diet, you can actually influence the health of your genes. The main things to stay away from are trans-fat and saturated fat. These fats are found in animal products, especially red meats, and multiply the free radicals in your body. Free Radicals kill healthy brain cells. Antioxidants help to eliminate these free radicals and are found in vitamins A and C as well as superfoods such as blueberries, spinach, seaweed, salmon, tea, and many other foods.

In a similar way, scientists believe that a vast intake of fruits and vegetables, eating fish rich in omega-3 oils and vegetarian protein substitutes (like soy) are protective against memory loss.

Halle-freaking-lujah. At least I've been doing something right.

There are also supplements that can improve your overall brain health, these include:

·  coenzyme Q10

·  alpha lipoic acid

·  ginkgo biloba

·  phosphatidylserine

·  DHA (an omega-3 oil)

·  acetyl-L-carnitine

Hope this post will ease at least one other mind than my own. Ta Ta for now.

Sbucks...Friend or Foe?

This morning was an early morning. No snooze button. No coma shower. I was up and out of my house by 7:45, which for me, is a small miracle. 


Priority one...my Starbucks fix. I drove down Garnet, pulled into the drive through, ordered my skinny vannilla latte and decided to splurge on a veggi artesian brekfast sandwhich. 
Yes Splurge. Ten dollars for a drive through brekfast usually doesnt sit well with me, but I was up earlier than I had been in a month, and I was hungry.

Ten minutes later, and halfway through my latte I open the sandwhich bag and inspect. 


When I order something with the word veggi preceeding it, call me crazy, but I expect a vegtable or two. What I discovered inside looked more like half a pimento from inside a miniature coctail olive. One sad little red spek swimming alone is a sea of melted cheese.


I realized that I had been lured in; hook, line and sinker. Starbucks had sold me on a "delicious pairing of veggies, egg and Monterey Jack Cheese", but I now sat with a singular flake of red confetti on my roll.


I rode this train of thought for the better half of my morning (clearly it was a slow day at my internship). While I ate the whole sandwhich, which to be honest (and severely diminish dramatic effect) was pretty good, I had expected more from you Sbucks. 


Judging purely on the clientel I experience at Starbucks on a daily basis, vegetarian pseudo-hippies are a major cornerstone of your buisness. I for one will be taking my brekfast sandwhich cravings elsewhere. Throw us a tomatoe, a pepper... a freaking squash Starbucks! We need a hearty brekfast too.

OB Farmers Market

It's Wednesday. You know what that means. OB farmers market day! Holy Green Drink I love this market. Its every Wednesday from 4-8 on the 4900 block of Newport, between Cable & Bacon Street.
Why, might you ask,  is the OB market steps above the sea of farmers markets we are lucky enough to have in our amazing city? Two Words. Ocean Beachers.

You've got to love the eclectic mix that roams Newport Street. One minute you're tripping over an eight year old and the next you find yourself in the sage smoke cloud surrounding a man dressed in a full-on sergeant pepper costume. 

Today I went more to munch than stock up (trader joes got the best of me yesterday...never go grocery shopping hungry!)

The Smell of Annel & Drews Kitchen lured me towards their stand. They have a number of veggie dishes, as well as meat options. One whiff of the balsamic roasted artichoke and I was sold.

Then I found a little stand selling tacos and tamales and ordered a Chile Relleno Taco with mango salsa...enough said.

Talia and Alex opted for Tamales from Gourmet Tamales in Oceanside and even bought a bag to take home and freeze.

Talia & the Black Bean Tamale

Then I stocked up on my Butt Naked and Pussy incense (both surprisingly smell fantastic...i was shocked too)

20 sticks for a dollar

Got my usual Green Drink...

Green Drink <3

and made friends with a Llama.

 met a Llama

Now Im home smelling of sage, fat and happy, and I cant wait for next wednesday. 

Sipz

Respecting the world...respecting the earth...respecting one another...This is the Sipz's motto, and I just may adopt it as my own personal mantra. I have eaten at Sipz a few times, and every time I go I find something unique and special that I didn't notice the time before.

So just a little overview about Sipz. It is 100% vegetarian and a good amount of the dishes are vegan. Opened in 2002 by Win and Sylvia Le, it has since doubled in size and in addition to Thai/Vietnamese/Japanese/Chinese/Italian fusion they have a vegan sushi bar. It always takes me about fifteen minutes to pick, because there is so much to choose from (a departure from most menus at veggi restaurants). The prices are very reasonable, with dishes ranging about 8 or 9 dollars, its really affordable. The interior is eclectic, the highlight being a huge mural along the wall with the sushi bar.
But lets get down to the important stuff...the food.


My Tom Yum, my favorite Thai dish, the broth has a coconut/lemongrass/citrus flavor with all sorts of veggies mixed in. Simply Delectable

Our Dumpling appetizer, with ponzu dipping sauce

Ellen's chikn stir fry with broccoli and Bok Coy

I love Sipz because it takes cultures whose cuisine generally centers around a meat and makes them about the other fantastic, fresh ingredients, sometimes with a meat substitute and sometimes without. The vegan sushi bar and desert options just tip Sipz over the edge, I give it an 8.5, cant wait for my next fusion meal.

Spread

I just got home from Spread and holy quinoa...it was fantastic. I have been waiting for this dinner all week and have been stalking their website in class all day. We finally got to the restaurant at about eight, a bit past our reservation, but it didn't seems to be a problem because there were only a few other parties there. The exterior is very unassuming tucked between a neon lit chinese restaurant and a beer bar. If you didn't know where you were going you might miss it. 

The interior is simple with moss covered branches flanking the main dining space and white fabric swept across the ceiling. Its almost as if you are underneath the root system of a tree.

Every morning they buy the ingredients for the food they prepare at the farmers market and the entire menu is a mix of vegetarian and vegan dishes. They bring the menu; a chalkboard with the nights spread (it was just too easy), right to your table. There were seven of us so we decided to get everything on the menu, guess I can cross that off my bucket list. 

I ordered a apricot, guava, and pomegranate cocktail and we began our tasting menu. We started with a red and chioggia beet salad with hearts of palm, cucumber, shallots, and arugula with a thyme shallot vinaigrette. The sweetness of the beets was complemented with the tangy vinaigrette and fresh basil.

Then came a panzanella salad with cherry tomatoes, maple croutons, avocado, and romaine with a dill yogurt dressing, the crowd favorite. The maple croutons were divine little bursts of rich sweetness that paired with the creaminess of the avocado and yogurt dressing  didn't overpower the salad

Next was an assorted cheese plate drizzled with olive oil and served with vegan bread. The creamy brie was my favorite and was perfect on the oiled toast.

After that, rosemary and black sesame roasted heirloom tomatoes, morroccan spiced quinoa with fava beans and the sauteed broccoli. The quinoa was toasted so it had a nice crunch with a earthy spice flavor but was paired really nicely with the sweet roasted vegetables. The broccoli was simple but so flavorful. I asked the sous chef what the sauté sauce was later and he wouldn't give up his secret but I tasted curry and lemon.

Then came the last two savory dishes of the night, a mushroom, thyme, potato, and almond cream ragu and a fettuccini with spinach, white wine, capers, and tomatoes. The ragu has so many layers of flavors the earthiness of the mushrooms with the sauteed tomatoes and cream was so rich and hearty. The fettuccini, which i had to fight to get a bite of, had the most fantastic little pops of capers with a creamy and full flavored sauce. 

Every new course that came I thought couldn't be topped, and then the next thing came. Every dish could stand on its own as a great meal, but one after another was almost too good, if its possible. The two stand out dishes of the night were the ragu and the panzanella salad with maple croutons, simply divine.

Then desert came...

Strawberries, apples, mandarin oranges, and guava covered in grated chocolate with dark and white chocolate pretzel and butterscotch toffee spread. There are no words....

I left the restaurant pleasantly full, with such an appreciation for the level at which they prepare vegetarian meals. Each ingredient is fresh, organic, and highlighted in all the dishes and while the tastes are very complex the ingredients are so simple. We were happy to hear that Spread is branching out and opening a peanut butter bar in Times Square and a restaurant on Melrose. Spread you get a 10, and will be damn hard to beat.

rancheros

I sat in my photography class quietly humming a song I had just composed with my ballpoint pen about fajitas. My teacher was mumbling about "shutter speeds" and I all that was on my mind was salsa."Adjust the exposure," he said. It reminded me of enchiladas. I started salivating. The drive home on the 8 was unusually crowded. I stared out my open window and fantasized about a cold corona in my hand. 

Finally home, threw my keys down and went straight for my happy cow list. I scanned it for the mexican restaurant in OB i have been eyeing for weeks. It was time. 
Megan came and picked me up in her little 4runner, and we grabbed Ellen and Alexis, and sped down Ingram as fast as we could. A right on Sunset Cliffs blvd...straight for two minutes. Here we are, Rancheros.

We pull into the parking lot behind the renegade strip mall, I catch a brief glimpse of a palm frawn covered patio with hanging green and red chili pepper lights. Perfect. 
We more run than walk through the parking lot, down the alley and through the doors of what looks like a take out counter. I realize quickly how much bigger the restaurant is than I originally  estimated. Off the entry there is a large dining area to the right and a patio outside. We are walked to our table, passing sponge painted walls of Frida Kahlo reproductions and pounded tin mirrors. Complied in an oddball, thrown together sort of a way, there are large barren tree branches hung from the ceiling, and dropped ceiling tiles covered in large burlap sacks.

I scan the menu and immediately am drawn to a "chicken" dish covered in a mushroom tequila sauce. Tequilla sauce... I'm sold. 
The chips and salsa with large chunks of peppers is sat down in front of me and it is chips to face for the next five minutes. 

A cold Dos Equis with lime in hand I enjoy the conversation, mostly consisting of Ellen's sexual escapades, always an interesting topic, and a camping trip to San Clemente Megan and I have just gotten back from.

megan and alexis got pretty excited

decisions...decisions

My food comes and looks much like most mexican restaurant plates, piled from side to side with a mess of chicken smothered in sauce, rice beans, guac and lettuce. I dig in.
The seared "chicken" has a great consistency, it cuts nicely, but without to much effort. The sauce is nicely layered. The spicy sting of the tequila is paired perfectly with the earth mushroom flavor. The rice and beans are good, better when I spoon some of the tequila sauce over both. I am halfway down with my plate, full, and adamantly trying to take just one more bite.

Overall, with a slight beer haze surrounding the restaurant, I am impressed. Rancheros has managed to keep with traditional mexican flavors with all sorts of meat substitutes, portabello patties, non animal broths. It is a vegetarian mexican food lovers dream, tequila and tofu,  paired harmoniously together

lots of leftovers