Melina and I have been talking (nothing remarkable there) and we seem to be on the same page about something. Somewhere along the way we lost ourselves.
It's sad 'cause I think we lost some pretty awesome stuff! I was music obsessed and now I never even bother listening. To look at me now I am the most generic of human beings. No style. Everything chosen just to 'make do'. I used to have awesome bright red hair. Now I pick a colour based on easiest upkeep. Honestly, somewhere along the line I completely stopped giving a rat's ass about myself.
Melina used to scare people, in a happy way. We used to go to nice bars and she would wear her metal shirts and giggle when she got looked at funny. She may have outgrown that now, but she misses that part of her.
I know for me the final nail in the coffin was starting at my new job. Being a banker is perfectly respectable, but if you asked anyone who really knows me what the LAST job is they could see me doing is, guess what they would say. BANKER. My last job was so much more 'me'. I was a cosmetician. Loved it! But I am where I am and it has its perks. The thing is that in doing something every day that so outside the box, it has killed a part of me that I liked. The part of me that could be creative all day long.
Now, how do you find your way back to caring? How do you get to the point where you feel like yourself again?
We made the plans for all our economies, we have the goal that it is supposed to help us achieve. And now it is clear that a plan on paper can do nothing to express how mentally tough it will be.
All of our time as roommates, Melina and I have made decisions that were not necessarily the norm. Our priorities? Self-reliance, creativity, power over where we will get to live. While our friends have been out doing other things, we have been working our asses off to get to the point where we are creatively free and independent.
Now, we are close. Now, we are to the point where everything is coming together—but it means a final push of epic proportions. Economizing to get rid of debts and accumulate savings. It all sounds doable, and then my princess-self remembers it means taking the bus every day. I loathe the bus. And it means finding innovative ways to make ends meet. Coupon queens, here we come!
The results will be worth it, I know this. But we need to stay focussed on the end goal. And what is our motto for the coming year?
No looking back!
As so many of you know, we have hit a block in making it towards our goals. Insurance companies SUCK and have led us to creating a bit of a debt and we are working on paying off every penny. We have had to find ways to make our money go a lot further. Cheap and delicious and healthy meals? Sure thing! Enter the Happy Herbivore.
We have recommended the Happy Herbivore to anyone who will sit still long enough to listen. The recipes are super easy, they are all healthy and rely on very easily found ingredients.
The first is probably our very favourite. Black Bean and Salsa Soup.
This
recipe looks so simple, but it is amazingly delicious. I have cravings for this soup. Cravings. Like, I-will-never-live-without-it kind of cravings. And it is so cheap! YUM!!!
Now, as we are vegan, beans are a big part of our lives. Love it! The next great, and cheap,
recipe we love is for Black Bean Burgers.
Now here is the thing about bean burgers - do not expect them to be the same texture as a faux meat burger. Make sure you cook them long enough, and I substitute the ketchup in the recipe for BBQ sauce. A nice bun and DEELISH! Who says vegans don't eat yummies?
And now for something completely different, or in this case without black beans, is this amazing
Chana Palak Masala.
This is super versatile. We usually have spinach and some other veg in the freezer. One time, I had already started cooking when I realized that we had no spinach but we did have some frozen asparagus. And you guessed it - DEELISH!! Seriously, these recipes are no fail!!
It makes me feel like we can do this. We WILL get out of debt and we WILL make it to every single one of our goals, and we'll be healthy doing it. Hells yeah!
** All photos come from the amazing
Happy Herbivore website. Do yourself a favour and check it out.
