Remember that good news I mentioned the other day? Or maybe you wondered why I suddenly moved into Manhattan this weekend? I started my new job today. I’m a kind of marketing analyst for a small startup. So far – awesome.

This morning I woke up jittery so I went out for a jog. I did about 1.75 miles (?). When I got back I picked up my breakfast from Metro Cafe – a 12 ounce oatmeal made with skim milk + cinnamon, banana, and blueberries.

I finished it, but it wasn’t very good. I’m not getting it again. What the what Metro Cafe? I’ll stick with your bagels. Tomorrow’s breakfast is going to be instant grits from a hotel we stayed at on the road trip. Hehehe.

After a long day at work I opted for the hot foods bar at a random deli on my way home (I walked; about 1.5 miles or so). I met up with Bobby in the middle. (He got pizza.) I dumped honey mustard dressing on this.

This meal was kind of oily but really good. I had grilled chicken, random prepared salads (something with broccoli, one with mushrooms, a sealeg salad, tomatoes, etc…), a sweet potato (I think), and some other things that I can’t remember right now.

Dessert was rice with honey mustard dressing (a little random) and these carob chips that my sister gave me. Um… more than pictured. I might still be eating them now.

I’m off to snuggle and get some rest before work tomorrow. I apologize for the lack of commenting as of late; I’m sorry to say it’s going to continue. I’m still reading of course.

What was your favorite job?

Yesterday (Friday) was a hectic day! Bobby and I drove into the city to drop off a bunch of stuff at our apartment (we’re moving in this weekend), got a parking ticket ($95 – wtf), picked up Bobby’s new suits (they’re beautiful – Michael Kors), ate out twice, I got a mani cure, and we both got ready for my friend’s wedding today (Saturday).

We did the lunch special at Edo Sushi. I got chicken and broccoli again ($5.75; steamed) and Bobby got Salmon Don ($12). These are Droid pictures. The special comes with soup (miso for me)…

And then you get your entree. Mine came with rice on the side but I saved it to make fried rice later.

Edo’s is my favorite Pennington restaurant.

Dinner was at a new place called Pho 99; it’s Vietnamese. It’s up on Route 27 past Princeton. I opted for the papaya salad with shrimp (my usual). It comes with peanuts and a nice Vietnamese dressing. I also add hoisin sauce.

It was actually quite average and much smaller than I’m used to. Bobby offered to share his very large bowl of pho with me (beef noodle soup) and I happily obliged.

The pho was delicious. The broth was really good; so was the beef; the noodles were just average though. I’m like Heather; I don’t have beef often, but sometimes it just hits the spot. This was super lean and thinly sliced.

I have to go get dressed and ready for the wedding (it’s at 2:30pm)… after the reception we’ll do some more moving or wait until tomorrow.

Holding myself accountable – I have not gotten in a good workout this week or last week at all. I want to get back on track with that. I haven’t even been able to do my standard walking or yoga. I’m writing this here for answerability. Maybe I’ll try to get a walk in before the wedding. I have also been eating grapes by the pound, and I need to stop for the sake of my skin, tummy, and wallet (grapes are expensive; they make me bloat; I just had a facial – I don’t want to ruin it). The facialist said to cut back on sugar and I want to listen to her (I know she’s right).

What are you doing this weekend?

Bobby’s cousins are so sweet. I’m going to miss them a lot. On our last night in California (Monday, November 9th) we went out together to Blue Mango (our favorite restaurant) in Santa Clara. Blue Mango is a Thai restaurant and they have a separate vegetarian menu (I haven’t used it in a while). We shared a bunch of dishes…

Appetizer: Heavenly Stuffed Wings – de-boned chicken wings stuffed with ground chicken, silver noodle, cilantro, water chestnut and black mushroom. They came with this great sweet dipping sauce. This was kind of scary at first (fried! processed! breaded!) but the deliciousness made up for it.

For dinner we shared 4 dishes. The Blue Mango Fried Rice – a big house special: chicken fried rice topped with sweet garlic pork.

The Green Curry – eggplant, bamboo, and bell pepper are soaked in coconut milk, with a hint of basil (cannot be mild).

Mushroom Mountain, as usual – soft tofu, baby corn, bamboo, straw mushroom, and bean sprout stir-fried with a bit of green curry paste. Sesame seed are sprinkled on for a beautiful finish.

And Basil Chili Chicken, also as usual – with bell pepper and onion.

After dinner we went out for dessert (frozen yogurt) at Golden Spoon – pumpkin pie and chocolate flavors. The toppings were raspberries, mango (not ripe, unfortunately), and crushed brownie bits.

Blue Mango never disappoints. And neither does Golden Spoon. If you ever get a chance, go there! (I’m talking about the Blue Mango on Stevens Creek – I hear the other one is not so good.)

Now that I’m in NJ I don’t have Blue Mango. But I do have Edo Sushi! Bobby, Julia, and I all went out for dinner tonight. I love this place. Edo Sushi is a Japanese and Chinese restaurant on Route 31 in the same shopping center as Pennington Market. It’s about a 10 minute walk from my parents’ house.

First is the tea… (unlimited and free – my two favorite qualities). Notice my cool NY key chain – it’s kind of vintage because it has the twin towers on it. I think I got it back in middle school.

I got chicken and broccoli with the sauce on the side (brown sauce).

The other pictures didn’t come out, but Julia got veggies and tofu with the sauce on the side (also brown sauce). Bobby got the Dragon vs. Phoenix – chicken, shrimp, and veggies stir-fried with yet another brown sauce. He also got a big pot of rice.

We finished everything. The check came with pineapple cubes and fortune cookies. Yum! I love Edo’s.

This dinner was nice after my indulgent afternoon… My parents gave me a massage + facial combo for my birthday and I finally used it. I went to Sydney Albert Salon Spa in Princeton. I’d highly recommend this place – I’ve been going there for years and I’ve always loved everything. Their haircuts are amazing, the facials are fantastic, and the massage was wonderful. Bobby also got a massage and he loved it.

While we were getting pampered, our Relocube arrived. Now we have to unpack it. I’m going into the city tomorrow, but when I get home I think we’re going to try to start sorting through all of our stuff. It’ll be a big project.

What’s your favorite restaurant?

Yesterday Bobby and I went to Whole Foods to pick up a few things for our road trip and a few things to eat until we leave. We’re out of grits and oat bran, which is a little tragic. We decided to try a new cereal that both of us would like. We settled on Bob’s Red Mill Mighty Tasty Hot Cereal. This makes a delicious breakfast.

The nutritional info (in 1/4 cup serving): 150 calories, 1.5 grams of fat, 31 grams carbohydrates, 4 grams fiber, 4 grams protein. The cereal is wheat-free, gluten-free, and dairy-free. Ingredients: whole grain brown rice, corn, white sorghum, buckwheat.

Neither of us have food allergies, but we love trying specialty foods. We’re both a little lactose intolerant, but we kind of ignore it. I love trying all kinds of foods though, and gluten free products are usually mighty tasty. This cereal is made of brown rice, corn, sorghum (?), and buckwheat.

It was great mighty tasty. I made 2 bowls of it this morning. I soaked each serving in water before cooking. I didn’t drain them; I just added the soaking cereal to boiling water. Bobby’s bowl was savory:

• 1/4 cup cereal soaked in 1/2 cup water + another boiling 1/2 cup water
• dash of salt
• 1/2 shredded string cheese
• 11 sauteed shrimp (olive oil, garlic powder, chili powder, sesame seeds)

My bowl was sweet:

• 1/4 cup cereal soaked in 1/2 cup water + another boiling 1 cup water
• dash of salt
• 1/2 of a wallaby organic raspberry yogurt
• a few handfuls of nature’s path smart bran
• sesame seeds
• maple syrup (unpictured; added later)

You boil water and add the cereal. Then turn the heat to low and cook it (covered) for 5-10 minutes or until it’s the right consistency for you. You have to stir it occasionally. The more water you use, the bigger the cereal will be. Bobby doesn’t like volume foods for breakfast so I didn’t use as much water for his. I used lots of water for mine.

Mm, mm… mighty tasty. I feel like there might be this whole new world out there of amazing hot cereals that I didn’t even know existed. My staples have always been oat bran, oatmeal, and grits. What should I try next?