Today was such a rush rush rush day, but I was rushing to un-stressful things and didn’t mind! My prediction about having to use a spoon to get more fluff out of the jar came true — that just seemed like too much effort, and I contented myself with three handfuls of peanuts from the candy jar instead. Each one looked something like this:
Or this:
Lunch was the same as yesterday: 1/3 cup cooked brown rice/triticale berries mixed with 2/3 cup of the chicken caciatore mom and I made last week when I was in MA.
I also heard fifth-hand from Deborah about a barbecue happening on the patio outside the first floor, so I went down with her for a quick peek. Sadly, I had to be in like two other meetings at that very moment, so I had to grab and run. I filled a cup with baby carrots, grapes, and a superbly delicious sausage link that Sam had masterfully charred on the grill:
How cool is it that my agency randomly decided to have a mid-day barbecue?! And how sad that I couldn’t stay and take full advantage!
I was quite a sight wandering around with my water bottle, sizzling hot chicken caciatore, and spoon in my left hand and my camera, a notebook and pen, and a cup of grapes and overflowing sausage in my right hand. I was riding the elevator and scouring the stairwell (and trying to open doors more or less with my teeth) all over the place for the people with whom I was supposed to meet. When I finally made it to the room where the psychiatrist was waiting, she probably thought I was absolutely nuts. Then, we dove right into talking about the case, and I really wanted a picture of the sausage before I ate it, so I had to sit with it there taunting me through the whole meeting. Torture!
We finished with that meeting and went right into another, but I did manage to inhale my BBQ goods somewhere in between! Post-meeting dessert was chia-tapioca pudding with banana and berries:
If I haven’t mentioned that I love this pudding, I love this pudding.
Somewhere between the pudding and my next appointment, I had two Now & Laters from Belkis’ candy jar (I had to root around under the peanuts to find them!):
Finally, there was a super random salad in there that consisted of chopped cucumber (previously cucumber spears meant for a snack on Monday), TJ’s salsas (previously meant for cucumber-dipping on Monday), my last hard-boiled Eggland’s Best egg (today was its last day to be eligible for consumption!), and some feta:
Just before I left for the day, Nydia mentioned that Rosey had brought her some spaghetti (made by Rosey’s mom, of pasteles fame) that she wouldn’t be able to eat since she was going out to dinner.
I jumped on that like it was my job and packed it all into my emptied lunch tupperwares 😛 I tasted some when I got home — this spaghetti was sooooo good with all the seasonings, ground beef, and some peppers.
However, I knew I needed to expand it because it would have taken all three cups to make me full! I added spinach, roasted broccoli, roasted purple cauliflower, and feta:
Perfect! It will be ideal for dinner in class tomorrow night 😀
Do you prefer your nuts with shells or without shells? I think I prefer nuts still in their shells. They’re so much more fun to eat because it’s like opening a present each time … especially when I didn’t have to pay for them!
Tales of Expansion: Baby Butternut Edition 
I love seeing all your eats, glad things are back to normal!
And I love them in shells too. Definitely best!
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I’m lazy, I like them shelled! Also because I mostly only use nuts as toppings.
The pudding looks so good, as usual. I’m caving in and ordering chia seeds right now!
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I don’t eat nuts a lot but I think I like the ones in the shells best. More fun!
Mid-day BBQs sound amazing! Your description of having to maneuver your way back to the office was too funny. 🙂
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Only a true blogger would save a sausage for a picture!!! Awesome.
Love how you expanded that pasta!
I prefer my nuts shelled for me. Too lazy to do it myself!
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i used to love cracking nuts open at Christmas time when we could get all the mixed nuts still in their shells. I don’t do that often enough anymore 🙂
now’n’laters!!! i haven’t seen those in forever.
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I’ve said it once, I’ve said it twice: I want to work where you work because the food is just nonstop!
I also prefer to eat nuts when they’re shelled. The effort of getting them out makes them tastier 🙂
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roasted peanuts in the shell are the best! Messier food always are right!?
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that pudding looks really good!! i really need to find some chia seeds around here. Thanks for the PB2 suggestions- I tried out your yogurt idea and it was pretty good!!
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it is AMAZING how much food ends up in your conference room!!
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Sausage, yes, I love it!!! Company BBQ? Cool to bad you couldnt take advantage. I havent had now or laters in years!!!
~Justine
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Your work place sounds so awesome! I love that they randomly had a barbeque. That pudding looks great, too!
I like nuts in their shells. It forces me to slow down and enjoy them, and they taste better cause I had to work for them 😀
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You must have the smallest hands ever. Your “handfuls” of peanuts include 3 or 4 at most!!! Manny can grab more than that at a time and he’s a Boston Terrier!! xo
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I don’t really like the bother of getting rid of nut shells. But they’re fun on special occasions. Cracking nuts reminds me of Christmas as a kid. My dad would by walnuts in the shell every Christmas and we’d crack the walnut shells together every night.
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I like them in shells because I have to take my time eating them and am forced to really enjoy them. I’ve been packing pistachios in my life and really like them!
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Mmm, grilled sausage might be the best thing everrr… I love how crispy it gets on the outside. SO GOOD. Damn straight it was taunting you through that meeting, hahaha. Great job adding veggies to the spaghetti to bulk it up; I keep forgetting to do things like that and just go for more pasta. 😉
I like my pistachios in shells, but they’re pretty much the only shelled nuts I eat… (I suspect that’s only because I still don’t know how to open a peanut shell properly/quickly.)
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Hi there
I’ve been ‘stalking’ through the blog world for the last couple of months and my journey has brought me here in the last week or two…
I LOVE YOUR BLOG!
I love that you have what you fancy and balance it with exercise. I need to take leaf from your book.
Absolutely love your work!
Goldie
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Your spaghetti dinner just looks yum. No other word for it.
I like nuts without shells because I’m lazy. I go for easy access 😉
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Your agency is so cool to randomly organize barbecue!!! 🙂 You’re continuing making us jealous of your job!
I like to have nuts in their shells too, but it’s hard to find here I think.
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