thisismydisease.com

two computers died. not one, but two. the mbp officially bit it. the imac officially bit it. i’m now the proud owner of two dead macs - and a mb - which i may or may not get reimbursed for - and which cost over $1K (unlike the original of the computer with lesser specs, which cost over $3K). the lenova, at about $400 or so, i could’t get arrroved for. at all. i never even got the monitor because it was given to me *after* my furniture left raleigh and i had no room whatsoever for it in my car. so i gave it to a colleague and now, picked out my own. per me and thanks to the dead imac. i picked an hp due to the fact it’s an incredible monitor - and the fact that it’s 1/3 the price of the equivalent apple. hell i couldn’t get an apple for under $699.  or is it $599? regardless, i got a new monitor for far less money than i should have paid because i paid too much for a computer i may or may not get reimbursed for. and truth be told, i don’t want to be. i bought 3gigs of RAM - which amounts to 2gigs more than i originally had. i bought a monitor - one worth viewing my photos on and certainly not what would have been purchased for me or given to me. that one would have cost under $100 for a major-assed square box with no colour control.

in other developments, it was only herceptin this time (and next). my skin is so naturally smooth now - and my teeth don’t hurt as much (but cannibal junior is starting to look for a dentist for me as the chemo has destroyed my mouth - and i’m still not allowed to go to the dentist without getting knocked out).  my feet still hurt - but not need-an-oxycodone-every-four-hours hurt. i can get by with six. sometimes seven. besides, they’re only 5mg each, so what do i care? hell my little nephew takes a stronger dose. my hands still ache, though. no nails worth talking about. it’s going to take 4 full months for them to grow out *if* they grow out at the normal rate. anyway…

i hope the next cocktail will be different. this past one was horrible to the 85th power. now i can eat (sort of). and bake. and did i mention eat? things are still more than a bit strange - but it feels good to *almost* taste things the way they’re supposed to taste. it’ll take about a year post-chemo to get my tastes back - but this will do for now. couple this with everything else and, well, you have what you have.

oh, my brain is still really fuzzy. really, really fuzzy.

syd likes me though. he follows me around and gives me kisses. he stinks, but he gives me kisses.

i do like his kisses, even when he stinks.

ms. a took most of what my sil sent to hand out to the folks at the shelter. i really can’t eat a lot of is due to bad teeth and having different tastes by the minute. that’s fine. good, actually. people who can use it are getting it - and that’s all that matters (especially with this economy). i appreciate having someone to go out and feed those whose eating habits are bad because of that’s transpired with them. so brava to sil and ms. a.

so now it’s sleepy time. must relax. eat pumpkin pie (with or without crust - depends on a lot of things). drink my favourite drink (sans chocolate - i crave chocolate  but cannot eat it to save my gimpy soul). sleep well. and throw small soft toys at the tv. michael symon is on - and i do want to mame him. severely. good news is robert irvine is coming back to di in march.  does that mean he gets to come back to iron chef too - or do we have to endure any amount of that creaton? and if so, can we hurt him and get away with it?

somedays are potato broccoli cheddar soup days. today was one of them. and although it was a feel really good day it was also a “take care of this and that” day, so i didn’t really have the time or inclination to swish and swoosh things in pots for hours. so i took the cheater’s way out:

1 permapack organic chicken broth
1/2 bag frozen potatoes o’brien
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper (or to taste)
2 pinches nutmeg
5 shakes choulala sauce

throw everything into a 4-quart crock pot and cook on high for 1 1/2 - 2 hours (until the potatoes are done but not falling apart).

place contents into a blend safe container and blend fully.

add the following:

1/2 cup sour creme or plain, greek-style yogurt (can be low fat)
2/3 cup creme cheese (can be light or low fat)

blend fully.

return contents to crock pot.

add the following:

2 cups sharp cheddar cheese
3/4 bag steam select broccoli spears, cooked for 5 minutes in the microwave

mix well.

cook on low for 1 hour.

serve immediate or set crock pot temperature to warm and serve whenever.

granted this is not the most low-fat meal in the world (even if made with low fat ingredients) - but sometimes you just have to give in to your cravings and say the heck with it.

soup is one of my relatively safe foods - but i don’t always have the time or energy to make homemade. and campbells doesn’t cut it (except when i’m craving it badly - like i did at 5:30 this morning). here’s a little something i threw together the other day that worked out extremely well. it’s quick. it’s easy. and it requires no brains. what could be better?

1 four-cup permapack organic beef broth
1 pack green giant immune boost vegetables - thawed but not steamed
2 handfuls homemade egg noodles
pepper (to taste)

(1) Throw it all in a pot.
(2) Cook on medium until noodles are tender.
(3) Enjoy!

what could be easier? ok take-out *could* be easier, but…

Woman does not live on fruit smoothies alone. Sometimes some other options are in order. But with so many things tasting strange, it’s hard to pinpoint what works and what doesn’t. This is a tried and true recipe that has a lot of “tastes good” flavour and is simple enough to pull together on a whim. Oh, and it’s good for you. Imagine that.

Beatsa Pizza

What’s needed:

1. Garlic Naan or Pita - one piece per pizza
2. Basic Pizza Sauce (recipe follows) - 1/3 cup per pizza
3. A mixture of italian herbs (fresh is best - but dried will do)
4. Green Giant Immunity Boost Steam Vegetables - one box per pizza
5. Miniature Bocconcini - 1/2 cup to 3/4 cups (more or less if you’d like) per pizza
6. Turkey Pepperoni - 10 - 12 pieces per pizza
7. Fresh Parmesan (to taste)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Spray the rounded side of the naan with olive oil spray - place the oil side down on a baking sheet.
Bake for 7 minutes or until the bottom starts to firm up.
Remove from the oven and let it cool until you’re able to be handle it easily.

Cook the Immunity Boost vegetables according to package instructions.
When cool enough to handle, pour into strainer and strain off as much of the garlic sauce as possible.

Spread 1/3 cup of sauce on the naan out to within 1/4 inch of the ends.Sprinkle with herbs.
Spread the Immunity Boost vegetables over.
Cut each miniature bocconcini in half and spread evenly on top of the vegetables.
Top with the turkey pepperoni slices.

Bake for 15 - 20 minutes or until cheese is bubbly and pepperoni crispy.
Let sit for 3 or so minutes before cutting.
Top with fresh parmesan (and anything else you’d like).

Enjoy!

Basic Pizza Sauce

1. One Tablespoon Olive Oil - or - Spray of Olive Oil Spray
2. Two - four cloves of Garlic, crushed
3. One cup Water
4. Twelve oz Tomato Paste
5. Scant 1 teaspoon sugar

Heat olive oil on a medium high flame.
Add garlic.
Saute 2 -3 minutes.
Add water and tomato paste.
Stir well to combine.
Add sugar (or, if you prefer and have about an hour to let it cook, a few baby carrots).
Cook until it starts to bubble.
Turn heat down to low.
Continue to cook 20 - 30 minutes (or an hour if using the carrots).
Use immediately or refrigerate/freeze.