The Comfort of Vegetable Lo Mein

I was sick last Tuesday, so I stayed home from work coughing and napping and napping and coughing; then I had pre-scheduled Wednesday off because it was my birthday. (Although I coughed a bit, I did feel infinitely better for my celebration after resting the day before and sparing my co-workers any further exposure to cooties.)

So, since my new glasses -- 2 pair, so now I have a back-up -- had come in on Monday night, Thursday was the first time I'd worn them to work.

The prescription is stronger -- much stronger. And I've got progressive tri-focal lenses, which I'd had in my last pair; so I was used to the concept, but have been learning where my eyes and head should be positioned when I look through the new specs.

So, given that I'd been at home for 2 days doing nothing but eating and sleeping and typing and talking and coughing, I hadn't given a proper challenge yet to my notorious motion sickness. My head had been pretty stable with those reasonably sedentary activities, with everything I might have had to focus upon resting comfortably within a 2' radius. And so, though I was still a little fuzzy in ye olde vision department as I adjusted, I was doing okay.

And then on Thursday I went back to work.

I am embarrassed to say that I've gotten sick in cars, on school buses during field trips, and even -- God help me, it's true! -- on a swing once when I was little. And it was only because Tom came to pick me up at 1 p.m. on Thursday afternoon that I didn't manage to get sick at work. 'Twas close, I have to admit!

Things started badly almost from the beginning as I looked down a long hallway and couldn't focus on the end of it. My head wobbled as I looked across the main office to talk to my co-workers, hoping I'd find the right niche and suddenly be amazed by clarity ... but not having any success.

I bent down to the left to reach under my desk and turn on my computer, then turned right to check my voicemail. I swung to the center to look at the monitor (and it's a wide screen, which only complicated matters), and felt like a bobblehead trying to find the right fraction of lens to peer through in order to make anything legible.

I pulled the monitor closer to me, then enlarged the text size. The doorbell rang and I instinctively swung to the right to answer the intercom. I had to make up an email group, which consisted of following a chart to find the necessary names and then pulling my head up to look at the screen, then peering down again, and .... You're getting the idea. Back, forth, up, down, left, right ... and no ability to focus on any of it because I couldn't figure out how to tilt my head in each moment as I moved in familiar ways while wearing unfamiliar glasses.

So I became queasier and queasier, until I finally had to go home. I accomplished everything that had to be done that day, but barely. I went home, sucked on some ginger candies, and took a nap. And I was still a tad shaky 'round dinnertime, but dinner was a necessity since I'd had no lunch.

And so, a simple and benign meal was concocted -- Tom chopped a beautiful array of vegetables; I stood at the stove focused (both mentally and visually) on one thing, the skillet. That I could do.

We had leftover angel hair pasta which was transformed from Italian cuisine to pseudo-Asian. I drizzled a bit of sesame oil into the pan, then added a dollop of chili sauce, a generous splash of teriyaki sauce, and a dribble of rice vinegar.



I sauteed the vegetables, plopped them on top of the reheated noodles, and a nutritious dinner was ready within about 5 minutes. And with a bit of sustenance in me, I felt better ... :)

Vegetable Lo Mein

3 cups leftover angel hair pasta
2 teaspoons sesame oil
2 tablespoons Thai chili sauce
4 tablespoons teriyaki sauce
1 teaspoon rice vinegar
1 carrot, peeled and sliced thin
1/2 small onion, chopped
splash of water
2 scallions, chopped
2 large handsful baby spinach

Pour boiling water over the pasta to reheat it; set aside to soak while cooking the vegetables.

Heat the oil in a 10" skillet over medium heat. Add the chili sauce, teriyaki sauce, and vinegar. Add the carrot and the onion, and saute for 1-2 minutes until the carrot softens.



Add a splash of water to thin the sauce a bit. Add the scallions and the spinach and cook just until the spinach is wilted.





Pour the vegetables and sauce over the pasta, and serve immediately.

Serves 2.

"Be Nice to Mary" Week

Well, for some reason, this seems to be "Be Nice to Mary Week" to make up for the previous week in which both my laptop AND my glasses broke. Anyone who knows me is aware that I wear tri-focal progressive lenses; thank God for Tom, tape and Krazy Glue!!! If I thought being incommunicado was bad, finding my glasses in two pieces on Thanksgiving morning -- split at the bridge -- was far, far worse. My vision is bad enough that I could not even have patched my own glasses, if it weren't for my hero having saved the damsel in distress.

So, in the universe's greatly appreciated effort to make the inconveniences and expenses up to me, my friends (both in the real world and in cyberspace) seem to have just inundated me with lovely compliments and invitations and gifts ... I am humbled. Even my ex-husband -- whom I hadn't seen in 4 years until this past weekend, now that he's back in Michigan -- apparently told Jeremy after I'd left that "Your mom's a babe!"

And then, because my ego apparently hadn't been stroked enough, along comes the fabulous Robin of Your Daily Dose to dedicate a highly entertaining tidbit from "Friends" to me, in honor of my having moved in with Tom. (And, as always, she has a psychic gift, knowing full well without ever having met me that I would be in a tizzy about having my stuff moved!)


Robin has strength I cannot even conceive of, being able to write and envision BIG IDEAS and maintain a sense of humor despite suffering debilitating migraines. And she has love and generosity of spirit in abundance, despite her chronic pain. She is priceless!

But, as though all of this weren't sufficient, Robin also gave me an award:

And here is the lovely compliment she paid me while doing so:

Yenta Mary ~ Whose blog is the least like mine? Well, that would be Mary's blog. It is a cooking blog and I don't hardly cook anymore. However, she does manage to throw some living in there and she is the best commenter. She is an amazing person. I might be a magnet for horrible boyfriends, but I am a magnet for the best blogging buddies. And Mary is TOPS!

Well ... wow. I, the verbose one, am rendered speechless.

Except that I'm not permitted to be speechless for very long. I have to find 7 folks -- only 7, which is always hard; not finding that many, but narrowing it down to so few -- and then share 7 fascinating blurbs about lil ol' moi ... hmmmm.

So, let's get started 'cause this is hard work and I'll need to reward myself with a treat afterwards!

1. Amy's Dinner: Amy puts bbq pork into macaroni and cheese ... 'nough said!

2. The Culinary Cellar: Debbie generously shares her love by giving away cookbooks, those most prized possessions that are so dear to me.

3. Eat Drink Wash Up: Karen loves Roxy Music as much as I do, and is most witty and entertaining ... :)

4. Foodie Road Show: Angela is a fabulous cook, and a fellow bleeding heart and peanut butter addict.

5. From Chaos Comes Happiness: Leanne has an exceptional sense of humor and perspective of what's important in life, and warmth and wisdom to match.

6. Mini Eats: Allie makes the cutest jewelry and luscious-looking tidbits from clay, and I get lots of compliments on my dangly earrings that look like miniature pieces of yellow cake with dark chocolate frosting.

7. Positive Kismet: Elizabeth shares positive thinking and inspiration, which are much needed in the clutter of noise and stress we all endure.

And now, for the soul baring (or inanity, whichever you prefer):

1. I have a bit of an OCD; I like things in their proper place (as Robin already guessed!). I will walk around the house straightening, tidying, putting items back where they belong. Not so much a "neat freak" as a control freak, I think.

2. Although I am normally someone who makes about 20 different kinds of cookies for the holidays to give to loved ones, I have yet to make even one batch yet. Being behind -- let alone this far behind -- is very disconcerting. I don't like it.

3. I am currently wearing gold nail polish, which is as "neutral" -- to go with everything -- as I get.

4. Now that I live near downtown, I have started taking the bus to work. I love it!!! I grew up in NYC taking the bus and walking, and it's wonderful to return to my "city girl" roots instead of feeling like a Suburbanite just for having lived in an area of town not as accessible to the bus routes.

5. I am not quite done with my Christmas shopping, but I am very, very close to it ... yay!!! Still have a ways to go on Jeremy's birthday presents -- he'll be 20 on January 10 (and with any luck we won't have a blizzard, as we did when he turned 2 and again when he turned 18) -- but I'm making progress.

6. I love peppermint -- candy canes, peppermint patties, ice cream, tea, you name it. I was shocked -- shocked! -- last night to find out that Tom doesn't like candy canes but will eat peppermint if baked into something (presumably like brownies). Good thing he has other amazing qualities, or this might be a deal breaker!!!

7. When I had t.v. (no cable at Tom's, 'cause we're not t.v. watchers though he likes to watch movies), my guilty pleasure was watching "Hoarders." It made me feel infinitely better about my own housekeeping abilities (I find people either cook or clean, but rarely are inspired by both)! And it served as a warning to Jeremy, who has distinct hoarding tendencies because his father and maternal grandmother are hoarders, and his maternal grandfather is a Martha Stewart-like hoarder who at least has everything packed and labelled properly.

So, there you have it -- have a fabulous weekend!!!