darknessprevails's Profile

This used to be a very upper class thing to do, fresh fruit from greenhouses was super expensive. And I actually prefer this sort of desert to something more processed, let the fruit shine and it is completely guilt free.

@RUCY: I would love that for desert, I am going to do that for my next dinner party. Thank you.

I had a cat problem before, just put some citrus peel where they were doing their business and the problem fixed itself.

I second the tablecloths, no way my table could stand the beating of daily life without them.

I got divorced over this issue (and others in all fairness). I worked full time, went to school, cleaned, did laundry, and cooked two meals a day while he worked one full-time job and rarely did anything besides pair socks and put the clothes away. Marriage is a partnership, no one deserved to be taken for granted.

This is way classier than what my grandma makes, she uses Velveeta - absolutely vile.

I can't see a ton of detail from the picture above. But the first thing I would do is probably add railing and some fragrant, floral vines (check with a local nursery to see what grows well in your area) along the lattice to grow up and over the railing. Once I had the vines started I would work on a path and vignettes. I can sort of see this garden looking a bit like a secret garden with lots of green, flowers, and statues partially hidden by foliage.

I have a pressure cooker, so 20 minutes I go from a bag of dry to fully cooked without all the salt of canned. And you really cannot beat the price, I stock up when a pound goes on sale for $0.88 (black and pinto I buy in bulk for less than that). People really don't realized just how cheap it is to be vegan when you don't go for all the fancy specialty items, which you don't need anyways.

Wow... your experience with Russian bathrooms is far different than mine, I studied aboard and never saw a bathroom that nice. My host's was particularly bad. You had to step over the toilet to get into that raised shower stall which had a tarp on the walls to protect them. You could also wash your hands while sitting on the toilet.

I am all about the brown rice porridge made with green tea and nori when my stomach is feeling off. Homemade "instant" miso soup balls are another go to item for me when I can't be up and about long enough to figure out porridge.

Keeping it light and brief is generally a good idea. What I normally say is I went vegetarian years ago because I don't like meat and vegan for health reasons, and it really wasn't a big deal because I haven't been able to eat dairy in years.

And if they want to know more I let my geek out and tell them that the real clincher for me was a study that I was reading about in a nutrition class. The study compared blood triglyceride levels of omnivores, vegetarians and vegans. The levels of the vegetarians and omnivores were virtually identical but vegans had levels on par with children, so I decided since I have a lot of family with heart problems and I was practically vegan anyways I would just go for it :) Putting it in those kind of terms tends to be helpful, like you actually are a smart person and if they want more information they could ask you but you aren't looking for a fight.