After a fabulous two day school week (thanks, weird GA blizzard!), I am once again back in the comfort of my own home. The two day week was pretty nice, partially due to the delayed starting times (11 on Thursday, 10 on Friday). I haven’t been to Chemistry yet (it’s at 9:30 on Tues/Thur – thanks snow!), but my Food and the Consumer (focuses on current events in nutrition and how it affects consumers) and Quantity Foods classes seem really interesting (I’ll be working at a campus dining hall for my QF labs). Pre-Cal doesn’t seem all that bad (yet) either – my teacher is nice and seems eager to help us in any way he can.

I know this because I put him to the test after the second day of class – I haven’t done any “Standard Circle Equations” in about five years, so I’m a little rusty in the math department.

Anyways, this weekend has been pretty fun. On Saturday I went to the library (bookstores and libraries are my idea of a good time) and checked out a few books, two of which were cookbooks. One was an Everyday Living by Martha Stewart cookbook. It was filled with gorgeous pictures and simple, yet wholesome recipes. The other cookbook I checked out was authored by a dietitian. The intro seemed pleasant enough – you can eat the foods you crave, but be healthy, too.

Sounds reasonable, right? I thought so too, until I browsed through the recipes. Every single “sweet” recipe, whether it was a breakfast smoothie or cookie, was made with Splenda. No sugar, just Splenda. I’m sorry, but Splenda cookies do NOT sound like my idea of a crave-worthy food. I know Splenda is technically safe for consumption (this is all slightly hypocritical for me to rant about, seeing as I put a packet of Splenda in my coffee every morning, but starting today, I am going to ween myself off of it!!!!), but to use it as a substitute for sugar in desserts, let alone breakfast foods (and even coleslaw) is, in my opinion, the wrong way to go about satisfying your cravings. Sure, cookies aren’t the most nutritious things out there, but treating yourself to the REAL foods you’re craving is good for your emotional and mental well-being. Do yourself a favor and use real sugar – humans have been using it for thousands of years with no terrible side effects (as long as you’re doing it in moderation).

Anyways, yesterday I went and saw Beauty and the Beast at the Fox Theater yesterday with my mom and sister. It was totally amazing! The costumes and sets were a little sub-par in my opinion, but the songs and characters were spot on…except for Lumiere, who took the French accent a little too far (he was also a little too pervy…). Gaston was definitely my favorite character – he was such a ham! Lara and I got extremely nostalgic during the beautiful tinkling opening music, as well as during “Belle” and “Beauty and the Beast.”

Before we saw the epitome of our childhood on stage, we ate at a cool restaurant called Murphy’s, located in the Virgina Highlands, which is easily one of the coolest areas in Atlanta. It’s filled with cute houses, quirky shops and fun, unique restaurants. Murphy’s had an excellent brunch menu filled with all kinds of yummy breakfast dishes. I was tempted by the steel cut oats, malted waffles and the smoked salmon bagel. In the end I went with the smoked salmon – the salty capers and buttery salmon are treats I rarely enjoy.

Lara chose the Crab Cake sandwich

and my mom ordered french toast with cinnamon honey butter (yum!) and syrup.

All three meals were really excellent and I especially loved the citrus hint of my delicious smoked salmon. We were also treated to a free bread basket of sorts filled with muffins (lots of delicious brown sugar and grated carrot) and what I think were drop biscuits. The muffins were tender, yet slightly chewy and perfectly sweet. I liked the biscuits the best, though; they were buttery and crumbly with a hint of sweetness. They had a little something extra, but I can’t put my finger on what it was…

Anyways, I would go to Murphy’s again in a heartbeat – they had great music (classic rock/soft rock) with a classy, yet relaxed atmosphere and enthusiastic, attentive waiters.

All in all, it was an excellent three day weekend. Now I must mentally prepare for four days of school – ick! After all of these short weeks, a regular week of school next week is going to kill me!