Well, after last night’s post, I think Ecto and I might be friends. Jury’s still out, but I’ll keep updating you (whether you care or not).

This morning started with the rest of my Peppadew oatmeal. After heating it in the oven, I once again mashed in an Eggland’s Best hard-boiled egg (still working on the ones I collected at this event, if you’re wondering why eggs have been such a big part of my life lately). I layered the oats over a base of plain yogurt and then topped them with mango-peppadew salsa and homemade peanut butter. Yes, that’s right, I went ahead and made peanut butter last night after complaining that I didn’t have any for my oats. I happened to break my coffee bean grinder in the process. How many appliances must I destroy before I find one that can handle nut butter production?! Mr. Coffee got me through several good batches for only $15, so I guess I can’t complain. But why couldn’t he keep putting out?! I thought we had a good thing going …

Anyway, I smothered the oats in strawberries, unsweetened coconut, hulled hemp seeds, and nutmeg:

Unsmothered to reveal layering — left to right: peanut butter, mango-peppadew salsa, peppadew oatmeal, yogurt.

Deceptively beautiful and creamy (yet secretly lethal to kitchen appliances) peanut butter:

After breakfast, I set off with my grandma-cart in hunt of a new window shade for my bedroom (the old one has been ripped for two months — not pretty) and potting soil for the arugula and basil plants my mom sent home with me from MA.

Several hardware stores and hours and a very limp arm later, I returned. Window shade before and after:

Garden before:

Garden after:

We’ll see if these little sprouts survive the night! I hope so because I’ve been fantasizing about having a balcony overflowing with arugula. There’s probably not much that could make me happier.

What color is your thumb?

OK, I’m trying this Ecto again. Maybe I just need to get used to it before it starts to save me time. I do not love learning new things!

Before I left for my two errands this afternoon, I needed a little pick-me-up: another serving of mom’s Indian pudding, warm and toasty right out of the oven.

I followed the Indian pudding with two plummy gummy candies 😀

And then I was off! Four hours, six public transportation vehicles, 18 walked blocks, several grocery store food samples, and an umbrella-less rainstorm later, I am back home with my errands accomplished. (In other words, this was a day when I would not have minded living in a suburb with a car.) My computer has extra memory now (fingers crossed that the memory speeds things along, too), and I have my official Brooklyn Half Marathon 2009 t-shirt. That means I can prove I ran the Half without ever actually having to run it 😀 Muahahahahaha.

Anyway, since I’m cold and rainy and grumpy from the afternoon’s odyssey, I decided I needed oatmeal for dinner. I finished the Goldew Peppadew at lunch, and I had about a cup of Peppadew juice left in the jar. I dumped that into my saucepan with 1/2 cup whole oat groats and cooked until tender. When the groats were cooked enough, I added 1/4 cup oat bran, 1 tbsp ground flax, and a little extra water until everything came together. Half went into the fridge for later, and I mashed an EB hard-boiled egg into the other half which went into a bowl with 1/2 cup plain yogurt:

I topped the Peppadew oats with unsweetened coconut, strawberries, some mango-peppadew salsa, and a sprinkle of nutmeg. I really wanted peanut butter on there, too, but I’m all out!

Dessert #1 was a hunk of baked yam with cacao bliss in the middle and more unsweetened coconut:

(Amazing combo, in case you can’t tell!)

Dessert #2 was chopped strawberries, pineapple, and watermelon with a dollop of Indian pudding and yet another sprinkle of coconut:

On the side throughout all of this, I had several giant mugs of honeyed soymilked (the worst milk I could choose, apparently, which is sad because I love it!) yerba mate.

And another exciting tidbit — I got my final casework paper back in the mail today, and my professor wrote on it that I have “the gift.” This is reassuring to hear because I am investing a ridiculous amount of time and money and sanity into this social work thing!

P.S. Christina accepted the challenge and made s’mores french toast! Who’s next??

OK, I’m pressing publish again … eeeek, I’m nervous!

I just downloaded a trial version of Ecto, so this is an experiment to see if it really saves me time! (Wow, I can do colors :-D)

Breakfast this morning was another slice of french toasted kitchen sink muffin. It was also the last slice, sadly, since my first attempt today resulted in the toast falling in that scary space between the oven and the counter. I almost cried.

I topped the toast with Artisana cacao bliss (I will be very sad when this jar ends), unsweetened coconut, and cinnamon:

After that, I popped two more ibuprofen for dessert (gotta keep the swelling down!) along with my vitamins and headed to the gym for some leg strength and cardio. Oh wait, I was moving so slowly to get ready for the gym that I got hungry again. Pineapple and watermelon (from MA) topped with hulled hemp seed:

Then I went to the gym, came back, and made this random lunch:

Key players included a heated Eggland’s Best hard-boiled and peeled egg (getting down to the wire on these, so I need to use them fast!) sprayed with Smart Balance and sprinkled with fresh black pepper:

A Peppadew salad with strawberries, watermelon, pineapple, and feta from home:

The TJ’s rice and bean chips that Elisabeth sent:

With fresh Union Market salsa (thanks, Tara!):

And Peppadew Mango Salsa:

Speaking of this mango salsa … I love it! Probably because it tastes like dessert. It would be delicious over yogurt.

Now, I’m off to get more memory (birthday present from my parents!) installed in my little old computer and to pick up my official race packet on the Upper East Side (aka the other end of the earth) for Saturday’s half!

I’m going to press publish now, though I have no idea what will happen when I do. Forgive me if this post looks wonky — it’s so disorientating using a new system/format to put it together. Have you ever used Ecto or another blog-editing software for Macs before? What do you think?