Hi Bloggies! Remember me? Posting apparently wasn’t in the plans this weekend. Despite the beautiful 80* blue skies and sunshine, I wasn’t able to take advantage of the warm weather as much as I would have liked. I did squeeze in another outdoor run [~4 mi.] and gave my car a bubble bath. I also enjoyed roaming the famer’s market, sipping an iced latte or two, and dinning al fresco with my aunt and uncle last night at Sierra Nevada Brewery… so, I didn’t totally miss the summer teaser.

However, my priority for the weekend was to wrap my brain around Organic Chemistry – and make as much sense of it as I could – before today’s [4th!] exam. I actually had a nightmare about today’s test and, unfortunately, my dream may come true. That is to say, I did not have the greatest day at school:

It sure is pretty though.

It was an awfully long Monday. The pre-rain weather was stuffy – cloudy yet warm – and I got unusually nauseous in the afternoon. Then my evening bus ride home felt like eternity – goodness!

Before I get too ahead of myself, however, let’s talk about today’s eats:

I started my morning with a bowl of whipped banana coconut pecan oats – something ya’ll have seen before. I can’t get enough of this tasty combo.

• 1 cup water
• 1/2 c. rolled oats
• 1 small banana – “whipped”
• 1/2 T ground flax
• 1 T pecans
• 1 tsp. brown sugar
• 1 tsp. unsweetened coconut

I didn’t have much in the way of school snacks to bring today, nor did I have time between my morning ritual and cramming for chem, so during my “lunch break”, I took a stroll downtown to Pluto’s. [Enter salad: spinach, apple, gorgonzola, onion, candied walnuts, raisins + balsamic vinaigrette]. My post-meal craving for something sweet was no different today; I needed something to polish off my savory salad. Luckily, Powell’s Sweet Shoppe was a convenient stone’s throw away.

Hello beautiful dark chocolate sea salted caramel!

…as was Peet’s and the paper:

This is indeed the front page of my school’s [award-winning] newspaper. [Our president is thankfully recovering; I actually saw him out and about this weekend.]

What’s your preference: Peet’s or Starbucks?

After picking up TP at Target, I put together a simple dinner with whatever I could find in the fridge: 1/2 can baked beans + 2 tofu dogs + raw carrot & cucumber sticks. I was pleasantly surprised to see that 2 Smart Dogs = 16g of protein!

I can add color to anything!

Healthy, satisfying dinner… definitely necessary after such an indulgent weekend! Have I mentioned that I consumed fro yo, banana coconut pecan stuffed French toast, a handful of homemade chocolate chippers, and onion rings in the course of just two days – YIKES! After reading this article, I’m persuaded to pull the reigns on the sweet treats. I know it’s mostly a mental addiction. Any tidbits on an anti-sugar regimen?

That’s it for now, lovely readers. I’m about to crawl into bed and read Pollan’s In Defense of Food.

Look for a POM post soon…

Ta ta for now,

The Nutrition Nut

P.S. Happy Golden Birthday, Caitlin!