Winter break so far 12/16/10

today
was my day of official rest.
and it felt nice.
i sat in all day and read a book
that was not related to school.

and guess what.
i'm done with school.
i pretty much consider my college years to be in SanLuisObispo
but i had some more knowledge to acquire here in SantaBarbara.

and now i'm on a winter break til the end of February.
which is legit.

this entire break i'm traveling.
traveling is the only thing that keeps me sane.

i love visiting different towns every weekend
if i get a chance to
i mainly visit family and friends.

tomorrow i'm leaving for San Luis Obispo again.
then back to Santa Barbara Monday possibly
then possibly to Los Angeles area hopefully tuesday/wed?

who knows.
spontaneity is key.
who knows what will happen tomorrow.
who knows what will happen the next day
or even next week.

life is full of surprises.
we all want to make something happen
but you know what.
you can't force it. you can't expect it.
life will flow the way it wants
whether you like it or not.

toughen up. life is going to be hard sometimes.
all you gotta do is LIVE.
.
anyways. ...


last night i went out to Isla Vista to check out a fellow Atascaderian's musical talent.

Check him out.
music page: http://www.myspace.com/morganenos/music

facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Sea-Birds/159910107381179?v=info

He goes by Sea Birds and his name is Morgan Enos

but also, while i was out there I discovered a new place to listen to eclectic underground styles of music.
and that sort of stuff makes my heart jump
i'm glad i found out about it!

Appearently, Isla Vista does have an Underground Music Scene. The house is called Biko garage.
and anyone can probably play here.
and outside a few people were playing with fire with techno music.
totally cool!

wish i had a better camera to take pictures.

but if you live in Santa Barbara, add Sb Diy as a friend on facebook: http://www.facebook.com/santabarbaradiy
so you can learn more about indie artists playing around the area!





there was art on the walls inside.



















i had to take a picture of these owls :)

Happy Hannukkah!

I havn't really gotten to celebrate Hannukkah so much this year.

But my brother sent me this awesome video



and then I just recently found this one



hope everyone else had a great Hannukkah this year!

B'Ahavah
SuzanneMarie<3

Pizza Picnic! & being a goof...

Tis the Christmas Season!

So while on a "study break"
my vegetarian friend, Sofie, and I went out to get a vegan pizza at Lazy Acres here in Santa Barbara


and here is our Pizza!


Lazy Acres in Santa Barbara
has options for you to make a Vegan Pizza!
so that is what we ordered. we did a 'make your own' with lots of veggies.
you get to choose like you would in a deli with the check boxes on paper

afterwards we walked around downtown and killed time before we got to see Burlesque in theaters!

this is what we did.
we walked into Claires and made fun of ourselves in nerdy glasses & accessories. :)










WithLove
<3

New Frontiers San Luis Obispo

Last time I was in San Luis Obispo, I had to pick up a couple of things I forgot to bring with me from Santa Barbara to make for Thanksgiving dinner. My mother told me that the New Frontiers relocated to a new location. I was upset when I heard about this. Because when I lived in SLO, I used to walk to the nearest grocery store to buy my food and the closest grocery store nearby within walking distance was New Frontiers. Its the memory that I loved and missed.




I decided to check out the new location and realized...Wow! This isn't so bad! Actually, its way better than it was before! Turns out, this grocery store is now bigger than a Whole Foods! Plus! They even have more vegan and raw items than a Whole Foods would have!



If I moved back to the Central Coast, I would survive. :)
I now love the fact that San Luis Obispo is open-minded to a healthier lifestyle :)

















































.P.S.
I love remixes.
.with a passion.
Kids at the Bar makes wonderful sounds.
My favorite song from them is: Rapture (KATB remix)
and i actually thought that was just their song, but no, its a remix
and the remix is way better than the original version.
Check out their songs! Its best to get hyped up to their stuff when getting ready for the day! :D

myspace.com/kidsatthebar

Thanksgiving 2010 with mis familia!

(my plate: Stuffing, Butternut Squash Ravioli, Falafels, Israeli Salad, Sweet Potato Fries!)
So I know I'm super late on this!!! Considering now its totally Hanukkah.
Anywho, I was in SLO for thanksgiving vacation spending 24/7 with my parents.
There was like one or two times i had any free time with friends!
But anywho!
My dinner was delish!
Made a Mediterranean/Israeli style dinner!
(my favorite type of food...ever)



Spinach Balls, a family tradition to make. My mother made them vegan :)


Baked Sweet Potato Fries!
I have never liked Sweet Potatos. Ever. And the fact that my mother made them into fries?! I became addicted to them!














Potatoes!













Butternut Squash Ravioli from Rising Moon Organics! :D
!
















Israeli Salad!

















Falafels!

















Moroccan Tea!
















Hi!
I'm holding the Falafels & Spinach Balls!

















For Dessert!
Binah Balls!

Thanksgiving Dinner with Friends!

Last night I made a vegan dinner for my wonderful friends!
I wanted to show my appreciation for them!

What I Made For Them:

Soyrizo with Veggies
( garlic, onions, red & green bell peppers, zucchini and cooked with olive oil in the pan)



Results:
THEY LOVED IT
one of my friends, who was visiting here from the SF, wanted me to send her the recipe so she could make it herself!
I'm glad they loved it! :D

FOR DESSERT

The Nutbutter Buttercups!
&
a HUGE container of fruit! strawberries, blueberries, blackberries.
Farmers Market fresh
My roomie bought Soy Yogurt so we could make a parfait :)

It makes me happy to know they loved what I made them!
A friend's boyfriend said it was better than store bought peanutbutter cups,

i loved the fact that they got so excited over the food and desserts i made them! Yee!



Here is a video from when I was chopping up the veggies.
My roomate totally took pictures of me with these googles on. ha!



The reason for the Chemistry googles were for when I was chopping up the garlic and onions.
Do not hate.

:)
WithLove,
SuzanneMarie

I need to start activating if I should activate.

ok. "Turkey Day" is coming up.

Do you even know what the reason of Thanksgiving is??

Do you know why we gather family and friends together and eat?

Yes, food is involved. Lots of it too.

And yes, back in the day Native Americans and Pilgrims sat together giving Thanks.
And then the Pilgrims slaughtered the Native Americans.
Thus generations later creating factory farms for butchering animals in this country
Thus also extincting them. Awesome, right?
You may think so.
I probably have more of a heart though and sympathize with the Native Americans and Animals,
especially the Turkeys for this season.

Oh yeah, "But i love the taste of Turkey!"
Sharks and Bears feel the same way.

I've actually created a tradition with my family lately of having Un-Turkey Thanksgivings.
And focusing on what we're really blessed with.
I like to make food that comes from my genetic background.
I'm creating Israeli-inspired food for this Thanksgiving.
Because it comes from my culture.
I'm proud of who I am.

I'll tell you what I'm blessed about:

I'm blessed with the life that I have.
I'm blessed with the family I was born into.
Especially the newer ones I've found out about within the last year or so.
I'm blessed with the friends that are in my life. The old ones, the current ones, and the new ones.
And with people I know as well in general, even if I don't know them too well.
I'm blessed to have met them.
I'm blessed with the opportunities i have been given. And now getting!
I'm blessed with Jesus Christ in my life, for He who has kept me sane through my difficulties.
I'm blessed with what I have. Who I am as a person.

I am so incredibly thankful <3

Here's a reality check.
If you want to take action on saving lives, check out this link
https://secure.peta.org/site/Advocacy?cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=1644



Note:
I know a lot of my friends, who read my posts, are not vegan.
I love you as who you are as a person. And I'm blessed with knowing you in my life regardless.

This weekend I'm having a Thanksgiving dinner with my close friends here in Santa Barbara!
Of course, knowing me, I'll be bringing non-meat, and non-dairy foodies!
I'll keep you updated and take pictures!

WithLove,
SuzanneMarie
<3