Red Pencils and Running Shoes

We’re about a month into busy season now, and I wanted to talk about having fun.  This seems like an oxymoron when used in the same sentence as busy season, but I promise it is possible.  Remember a few weeks ago when I mentioned a beer pong tournament we were having after work?!  Let me tell you – it was the best idea ever!  I know that sometimes it’s hard to imagine socializing with the same people you spend 60+ hours a week with, but it is different when there is competition+alcohol involved.

We had the best time that day – I was on a team with one of my seniors… and we lost every time we tried to play.  But there was the requisite smack talk, and in between rounds, I got to learn some fun things about my co-workers.  Robert stopped by too, and even joined the fun at one point.  It was the best way to spend the first Saturday in busy season!

Another good example of having fun was this past Friday.  It was a pretty slow day, and we decided to go to a team lunch.  About six of us went, and spent an hour telling stories about pranks we’ve pulled on various staff and interns.  They got pretty bad – one year they hooked up a wireless mouse to a girl’s computer, and told her that she’d have to pay for a new computer since her cursor was broken!

Anyway, what I’m trying to say is that busy season isn’t all just no sunshine and spreadsheets.  I met some of my best friends at work, and learning how to laugh with them is key to making busy season fly.  And if all else fails, and no one wants to go out to lunch… start blasting miley cyrus from your computer, and wait for the dance party to start.  Trust me on this one.   Hands up!
Do you ever have fun at work?!

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1) I’m grateful for my girlfriends – talking to them about anything makes every day better.  I had a phone date last night with one of my best girls, and another one tonight on the way home from work.  It gives me something to look forward to during my car ride!

2) I’m grateful that it’s staying lighter later… spring is so soon! 

3) I’m grateful for vanilla chamomile tea from Celestial Seasonings… I had to find a new decaf tea to replace my beloved Candy Cane Lane Green Tea from Trader Joe’s, and this hits the spot.  This is something else to look forward to after work tonight!  I love tea time with my fiancee.  <3

Have a great night blog friends!

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Yesterday was one of the best days I’ve had all year.  I got up to run in the morning – and wasn’t hobbling around on my high heels for the rest of the day!  I could walk downstairs, I could bend down to untie my shoes, and I didn’t have to spend all day elevating my knee on my trashcan!  (use your imagination for that one if you want a good laugh)  Best of all, my run felt almost effortless, and it was one of my fastest yet.

Yee haw!  I owe it all to my knee brace (which is so stylin, I can’t even handle it!) and the week of rest that I unintentionally took all last week lol.  Now that it helped heal my knee, I’ll just pretend it was a week off for the sake of injury.  Sounds good, right?  I’m glad to be back to running normally, now I just have to get back in the swing of going to the gym more than once a week. 

Anyway, yesterday was a true test of the BYOD method of Surviving Busy Season.  I didn’t have a chance to make a new soup for dinner this week, so I am relying on two servings of Butternut Squash soup or salad for the week.  Last night the whole team decided to eat their chinese take-out family style – all 10 of us gathered around one table to eat dinner.  I had so many people ask “why didn’t you order with us?!”  or “what’s in your salad?!”  And I really really really wanted fried rice.  But I stuck with my salad, and made it through… somehow.  I felt accomplished after dinner – really proud for not caving and eating with my emotions.  Besides – my salad was damn good   I’ve got to channel my inner high-schooler and avoid all this peer pressure once and for all!

On a totally random note…. GO HAWKS!  My beloved Saint Joseph’s Hawks are on a 3-game winning streak, including a thriller against Dayton on Saturday.  Robert and I had so much fun being in the crowd for the game, and I’m so bummed out that I’ll be missing the game tonight.  Nothing beats a great game in a LOUD fieldhouse!

What’s your favorite sports team?  I’ve always been partial to the Phillies, and once I got to college I fell in love with the Hawks (obviously!)  Since dating Robert, I’ve also developed a soft spot for the New York Rangers - not quite a popular stance to take here in Philly!

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So it’s Tuesday… but Friday’s dinner is still rolling around in the back of my brain, so I HAVE to share it with you guys!  As I mentioned last week, it is restaurant week here in Philly, and I was lucky enough to follow up my Three Course Thursday with a Four Course Friday! 

My Friday was pretty excellent, if you’d allow me to back up for a minute.  At 4pm, my seniors decided to send us home!  Considering our dinner reservations weren’t until 7 (and the fiancee doesnt get out of work until 6:15…) I did what any normal girl would do with a few hours to kill would do: SHOP!

I started here, at the cutest little second-hand shop on Chestnut Street.  Everything was an additional 50%!  Unfortunately I didn’t find anything in my size, despite my most valient efforts

Next on my shopping tour of Center City was Ann Taylor Loft in Liberty Place.  I may or may not have walked out with this cutie… picture it in black though.

I found banana republic too, and got an olive green turtleneck for $13!!  Fabulous.  No pic though… it was only a turtleneck!

Right outside of Banana was a gorgeous stretch of Broad Street… check out the sights:

The Union League is one of my favorite buildings in Philadelphia.  I attend an SJU dinner there every year, and the history and beauty of the building blows me away. 

Finally, it was time for dinner.  I was meeting Robert at the restaurant we chose – Smokin’ Betty’s on 11th and Sansom.  It was a cute place, with a bbq theme.  While I was waiting for Robert to get there, I sipped on a raspberry lemonade cocktail, which was DELICIOUS!  It was so sweet and light, and it reminded me of summer!

Unfortunately, this was the last picture I took of the evening.  I’m still a  little camera shy, even around my darling fiancee.  Any suggestions for getting over this fear while blogging?!

Anyway, our dinner was ah-maz-ingg!  The whole meal reminded me of my childhood.  My first course was a cheesesteak springroll.  While it wasn’t very bbq-y, it was so good!  The chinese restaurant in my hometown used to make something similar, and it brought me back to the good ol’ days!  It was paired with a yummy tomato jam that gave it a nice tangy flavor.  Robert’s appetizer was enough for a whole meal… 3 bbq sliders.  He didn’t seem to have any problem polishing them off though!  One was pulled chicken, one was beef brisket, and one was pulled pork.  I stole a few bites – I think the brisket was my favorite! 

There was a quick garden salad course, which freshened our palattes for the humongous plate of ribs heading our way.  I have always had a soft spot for good bbq, as my family vacationed in the south every summer of my childhood.  These ribs were perfect – delicious tangy bbq sauce, and the meat just fell off the bone.  Just thinking about them makes my mouth water!   About 6 big ribs were paired with grilled asparagus, and mac+cheese.  I ate all of my veggies (and Robert’s too!), and most of the ribs.  The mac was actually very garlicky, and not what I was hoping for… but I certainly didn’t miss it amongst all the other great food on the table! 

By the time dessert came around, we were both stuffed.  I only had room for a few bites of my chocolate mousse – it was so rich.  It tasted just like chocolate gelato, but it had such a fluffy texture.  It was truly divine.  Somehow I managed to find room for the whipped cream and berries that came with it though  

All in all, our dinner at Smokin’ Betty’s was so much fun, and a great dining experience.  Our server was so happy and enthusiastic, and the service was fast.  Both Robert and I agreed that it was a fun change from the typical italian BYOB that we usually frequent during restaurant week.  I highly recommend it!

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I’m still getting in the swing of the bloggie thing… so I admit I’ve been slacking.  Here are some more tidbits that I am thankful for – hopefully this will hold you over until I can get a good post up here

1) I am thankful that Robert and I were able to get season tickets to SJU basketball games this year… or else I wouldn’t have seen SJUbeat Dayton in the fieldhouse, and my Saturday wouldn’t have been nearly as fun

2) I am thankful to have a fiancee who is as encouraging and supportive as Robert.  If it wasn’t for him, I probably would have blown my ‘saving money’ resolution out of the water last night at the outlet mall!

3) I am thankful for my first commenter!  Shout-out to Heather at Side of Sneakers!  Thanks for stopping by – it’s fun to have readers.  I hope everyone that stops by leaves a comment!!

4)  I am thankful for Bob at the Ardmore Apple store.  I had a mini freak out Saturday, when I tried to have a dance party in my bedroom with Lady Gaga, and Lady Gaga didn’t show up.  My ipod just wouldn’t turn on, even though it had been on 20 minutes prior and it was fully charged.  I tried to reset it, I tried leaving it plugged into my computer overnight, and still no response.  My poor purple ipod!  I took it to the doctor (aka genius bar) on Sunday morning, and Bob replaced it free of charge- even though my warranty had expired last month!  (isn’t that typical?!)  I am still in shock by the generosity of the store and the company, and have nothing but good things to say about Apple.  I didn’t even ask for a replacement, he just offered up the exact same beautiful purple ipod for free.  So to Bob and Apple I say “thank you thank you thank you!”

what were you thankful for this weekend?

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Hey guys…

I know I’ve been slacking with this lately, so today my gratitude journal gets a special post to get back on track:

Gratitude Journal 1/22/10

1)  I’m grateful for actually listening to myself this morning when I couldn’t sleep.  Instead, I got up and did some yoga – and I am much happier and energetic than I would have been if I stayed in bed and stressed about not sleeping.  Also, my shoulders are resting at their proper place instead of up by my ears like they have been

2)  I’m grateful for my dear friends and their families who have been showering me with lovely cards and texts and phone calls since I got engaged.  They make me smile each day when I go home and see all my cards.  It’s like each one of you is there with me, and I really need that during this long busy season.

3)  I’m so thankful that I got to talk to my family last night, and listened to daddy tell me a story about how he and the dogs ran into an owl on their walk last saturday.  It was an awesome story, and it was awesome catching up with my dad!

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Yesterday was a good day.  Actually, this whole week has been a good week.  You see, it’s restaurant week in Philadelphia, and it puts everyone in a good mood.  Our team had made lunch reservations for Mission Grill in Philadelphia yesterday, and everyone was so excited to go. 

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The restaurant week special is always three courses (or more, depending on the restauarant) for $20 for lunch and $35 for dinner.  Since I rarely eat dinner out in the city, we always make it a point to go out at least once for restaurant week – but this was my first time going out for lunch during restaurant week .  It was a blast!

My meal was very yummy.  We had a choice for appetizer – either butternut squash soup or roasted pear salad.  Since I was having butternut squash soup for dinner (recipe coming soon!), I chose the salad.  I’ve never really been a fan of fruit in my salad, but this changed my mind.  Beautiful glazed pears topped off a bed of arugula and romaine, drizzled with a light vinegarette dressing.  And [the best part] two goat cheese crostini.  I have been OBSESSED with goat cheese lately, and these were perfect.  I hope I can remake this salad again at home! 

My main course was salmon over a mix of spinach, radiccio, and butternut squash (of course!).  The salmon portion was HUGE so I jumped at the opportunity to save half for dinner.  The other half of the salmon and all of the vegetables were a perfect lunch portion, and it was delicious.  The salmon was moist and well seasoned, and the squash… well I could eat squash every day!

Dessert left something to be desired though.  In my opinion – dessert makes or breaks the restaurant week choice… and this is a choice I take very seriously.  (I may or may not have been known to make a color coded spreadsheet one year!)  Since I don’t eat dessert in restaurants frequently, I like to make it count!  There were two options for dessert: chocolate volcano cake, and a chocolate/banana bread pudding.  I feel like chocolate lava cake is a little played out, so i went with the latter.  I was a little disappointed though… the pudding wasn’t nearly warm or chocolatey enough, and it reminded me of breakfast.  It was for the best though - this way I didn’t gorge myself on indulgent sweets at 2pm!  A few bites of this treat was certainly enough for me.

Overall, restaurant week lunch was a success.  I got to spend time with some coworkers outside of our cubicles, and I got to know some of the new staff a little better (very important when you spend 55+ hours a week together!)  I was a little disappointed that my meal in a mexican restaurant didn’t have more of a mexican flair, but it was so delish that I couldn’t be upset!    It was a nice 2 hour (!) break from busy season, and since I didn’t overindulge, I never slipped into that dreaded food coma.  What a fantastic lunch!

p.s. I’m sorry for not sharing pictures of my beautiful meal with you all.  I’m still new to the whole blogging thing, and not yet ready to bust out the camera in front of my co-workers!  I promise to start including pictures soon!

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Top o’ the mornin to ya!

Sorry I’ve been slacking the past two days – I just have not felt motivated at all!  This morning though, Robert dragged us out of bed to get to the gym.  I have to say that I am SO glad he did!  I feel better than I have all week – and I owe it all to my run.

During busy season (and work in general), everyone always puts their health last.  “I don’t have time to work out,” they say.  “I don’t have time to make a good dinner.”  I say MAKE TIME!  Your body is the only thing you really have.  You spend time and money putting oil and gas in your car.  You buy food for your dog and you put effort into your work.  Why don’t you do the same for yourself?

Since I’ve started working, I’ve tried a bunch of things.  I’ve worked out in the evenings, I’ve worked out at 9pm after a long day in the office.  This past summer I decided that I was going to try to workout before work, and I’ve never looked back.  I’ve found that if you wait all day to work out, you will find a million excuses to skip your workout, and you’ll be so tired that you wont be able to work to the best of your abilities.  It also leaves you with no time to spend relaxing and eating a healthy meal with the ones you love.

Working out in the morning has solved all of these problems for me.  I wake up, sweat my butt off, and stretch out all before most of my co-workers even wake up.  I feel so accomplished by 7am, and I have a ton more energy than I used to.  I get to come home from work and not worry about anything but spending time with my fiancee… who has recently converted to being an early bird at the gym too.  It’s a QT double whammy  

I know working out in the morning might not be for everyone.  But it’s definitely a good option for those who feel too crunched for time after a grueling 14 hour day at the office… trust me on this one!

Anyway, my workout this morning consisted of a nice 2 mile run on the treadmill.  I was trying out a new knee brace, and it seemed to work pretty well.  No pain during my run, but it still hurt afterwards.  I think with a few adjustments though, the brace will work out pretty well!

I hope this helps you find time to focus on your health for a few minutes every morning.  I was never a morning person (right mom?!) but lately it’s becoming easier and easier.  Waking up early has truly changed my outlook on working out – I almost look forward to it.  Now wake up!  Go for a run!

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Happy MLK Day lovies!

In this episode of BYOD, you will see how things might not always go as planned.  Last night I planned on making a  HUGE pot of broccoli and cheese soup from this recipe in Cooking Light.  I shopped for all the ingredients, and got going with the soup.  As the soup was cooking, I was getting so excited.  My mom used to make pasta and broccoli soup when I lived at home, and the smell of the broccoli simmering in the chicken broth brought back so many memories.  It really is true – the sense of smell is the most directly tied to memory!  I kept eating all the broccoli out of the pot, and looking back, I really wished I had just added a box of pasta to the soup and called it a day.  But NOOOOO… why would I follow my instincts?!  I just really had my heart set on cheesy soup. 

The soup looked amazing.  It turned out perfectly creamy and beautiful.  But there was one thing that just wasn’t right: VELVEETA. 

Guys, I knew this was a bad idea.  When the recipe said use Velveeta, I hesitated.  But I thought “cass, what do you know?  the recipe says it will melt better.  just suck it up and use it.”  And then I almost bailed.  I couldn’t find it in the dairy section.  The staff told me to look in the packaged food section, and all I found were boxes of mac and cheese.  I should have just walked out then.  But I’m stubborn, yo.  I went back to the refrig section… and I found it alright, but it wasn’t in the refrigerator.  I was so skeeved out.  I should have walked out again just then.  But the recipe had four stars!  And it is my favorite!  And it was the “light” version!

FAIL.

My food loving fiance took a bite and said “well, this isn’t the best thing I ever had.”  He ate approximately 4 spoonfuls before he felt sick.  And you know what guys - his nose swelled up!  The velveeta is so nasty it caused an allergic reaction.  I tried to perservere.  I ate 2/3 of my bowl and said I was full.  But I wasn’t full… I had a pit in my stomach of rubbery cheese.  I couldn’t bring myself to eat this again for 3 days this week!  I had to get it out of my kitchen.  The final kicker?!  The damn soup started to clog up my sink.  It got flushed, which is probably where it belonged anyway.

Lesson learned:  follow your instinct, and don’t compromise a diet you base around whole foods just because a recipe has four stars.  And when your recipe doesn’t work out so well, take a deep breath (or as much as you can get when you have a rubber cheese ball impeding your lung capacity   )  and find something else to take for dinner that day.

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Happy Saturday!

It’s beautiful today here in Philadelphia – almost 50* and sunny!  I’m a little bummed out because I’m stuck at work right now, but at least I’ll see the sunshine later this afternoon.

Yesterday was gorgeous too.  I started off the day with a run – but it was inside.  I ran on the treadmill, doing Fitness Mag’s Bikini Body “Slim with Intervals” podcast from Motiontraxx. 

[ 1.67 mi : 10:05/mi ]

I was planning on running for 2.5 miles, but my knee started bothering me again.  I really don’t want to push myself too hard and really injure my knee so I walked for a while after that.  It really sucks not being able to finish a workout, but one of my goals for the year is to be better at rolling with the punches.  Sometimes life just doesn’t go as planned!  I made myself feel a little better by taking a little walk at lunchtime.  I hadn’t seen the sunshine in a few days (I’ve been eating my lunches at my desk lately), so it was good to move around… and it was GORGEOUS weather.  I’m hoping to take a quick walk every day I eat at my desk now.  (remind me I said this when it’s 20* outside!)

Lunch was good too.  I’ve come to rely on Annie Chung’s noodle and soup bowls for quick lunches.  I was getting a hunger headache so I supplemented the light soup it with some snap peas, one slice of roasted chicken, and asparagus from the salad bar next door… oh and two dark chocolate covered pretzels!

After work… well thats when things started to go downhill.  Remember date night?  That didn’t work out so well.  I went out with my friends to get a mani/pedi right after work so I’d miss the traffic out of the city, and Robert went to the bar with his work friends too… where I met him after my mani/pedi.  And had 2 beers on an empty stomach.  (Ithaca Apricot Wheat beers at least… my favorite!)  Well I’m usually not the biggest lightweight, but when there is no food in my belly, it hits me like a wall.  Needless to say, I didn’t drive home. 

We were still going to go out and get something healthy-ish… but by the time I got home to get changed, all I wanted to do was curl up on the couch… so we got delivery!  Unfortunately it wasn’t my brightest moment, as we got the cheesiest meal ever – mozz sticks and chicken parm stromboli.  Whoops!  It was SO GOOD though… and I guess you could say I did alright… I mean I used to wolf down half of the HUGE stromboli… last night it was only a quarter.  Plus three mozz sticks.  Umm… baby steps towards healthy changes, right?  …Right?!  Oy.

Anyway, we ended up watching some tv (Robert wouldn’t let me watch jersey shore )  and passing out so I could wake up on time for work today.   It was still a great night… tonight will be more fun though!  The asset management teams at my firm are having a beer pong tournament, and then we’ll be celebrating a friend’s birthday later.  I can’t wait!

Gratitude Journal – 1.16.10

1) I’m grateful to have a fiancee who is so willing to come into the city to hang out with my friends from work this afternoon!

2) I’m grateful for the millions of people who have donated their money, time, manpower, and prayers to the people in Haiti. 

3)  I’m grateful for the thought of spring weather… winter always seems too long!

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