Panduh!

A few weeks ago, I went and got yet another tattoo. I was pretty thrilled about the idea because its only been two years since I’ve had proper ink time. I do not include the 10 minutes it took to get my 13 dollar tattoo a year and a half ago. That was just filler!

Anywho, I have been wanting to get a panda for quite sometime. I am kinda obligated to get a panda tattooed onto me, it has only been my online alias for a bajillion years. Don’t forget my obsession that I’ve had with the cute (and not so cuddly) bears for the past 10 years. I had it coming.

I shared a blurry iphone picture on Facebook a few hours after I got it, but I haven’t really written about it or anything. But really, I don’t talk about my tattoos too often, not unless I know you well enough. I feel violated when a stranger pokes and prods me about them, but I guess I did sign up for that.

I flew down (Thanks, Delta, for effin up so I could get a really cheap flight!) south and was there for a day, got my ink, and flew back home the next day. It was pretty much a whirlwind trip that I enjoyed. I didn’t even take much luggage and what I did take, I just left there for me to pick up when I drove down the next week for the holidays.

I ended up getting it bigger than I pictured in  my head, but I am ok with that. The bigger, the better. Right? It took about 3.5 hours total. The pain was alright, except for a couple of tender areas. Other than that, all good in the neighborhood. Oh yea, it was a christmas gift from my parents. Sweet deal.

I am pretty happy and can’t wait for summer when I can show it off.

Essentially everyday for me is meatless, except for those rare days where I cheat (oops!). I’ve been meaning to share for Meatless Monday for awhile, but I’ve been lazy or either I forget. Or both. I want to show that being vegan or a vegetarian doesn’t have to be bland or boring.

Anyway. Today for dinner, I made Lentils & Brown Rice with a side of Lemon Asparagus. What I like about the lentils & rice combo is that I can add any spices and/or veggies into it to create something different each time. However, everytime I’ve made it, I always spice it up to make it taste like Refried Beans that I used to get at Mexican joints.

Here’s a not so good picture of my asparagus before I put them into the hot oven that turns my kitchen into a fire pit of hell. But yea, I washed and cut the hard parts off and then drizzled with olive oil. Salt. Pepper. Then Lemon Pepper seasoning. FANCY.

There is the finished result. You can’t really see the lentils and rice because I was dumb and forgot to take a picture before I put the Asparagus on top. Its really not anything exciting to look at, just brown mush THAT TASTES LIKE REFRIED BEANS. I probably should’ve picked a more photogenic dish to do for Meatless Monday, but I didn’t. Maybe next week?? Yes? Yes!

I’ll go ahead and share the recipe since I don’t really have too much to say about it other than that is tasty and there wasn’t any leftovers.

Lentils & Brown Rice:

3/4 cup lentils – picked through & drained

3/4 cup brown rice

3 1/2 cups vegetable broth

1/2 cup water

1.5 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp chili powder

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1 tbs onion powder

1/2 tsp oregano

1/2 tsp salt (more or less to taste)

fresh ground pepper

Put everything into a pot, bring to boil, cover and bring down heat to medium-low. Cook for 45 minutes. Stir occasionally. Its done when tender or most of the liquid is absorbed.

For the Asparagus, do what I said I did up above. Put on a baking sheet and bake at 450 degrees for 5 minutes and under the broiler for 2. The end.

Enjoy!