Category: Life in the cube

Lunch on the lam

by Karen, posted in (it's all about the) food, books, Life in the cube, quest for the best, restaurants

Sometimes life in the cube can get overwhelming. Have you ever been at work and just wanted to take a break? I mean, really, take a break. Change the scenery for a half an hour? Not make small talk? Not force positivity for just a little while?

This is when an audio book can come in handy; it’s particularly conducive to hands-free eating. Okay, so the price of gas is prohibitive, I know. You wouldn’t want to sit in your car with it running for 20+ minutes every day (especially in the winter when you need to have the heat on, but once in a while it can be very restorative).

If you brought your lunch you will gain extra precious minutes of solitude in  your car (read: oasis of calm); just grab your lunch bag and go. Otherwise, try to choose a place from which to buy that is not known for its lunch time crowds. Standing in line for 10 minutes can make a serious dent in your alone time.

If you have to purchase your meal and you have any control over the timing of your lunch break, that’s even better. Choose a time that is off-peak: perhaps 11:00am or 2:00pm. This ought to get you out of the store and into your car more quickly. Don’t forget extra napkins. Eating in the car can be fraught with peril, what with the gear shift and the steering wheel to navigate and all. Also your choice of meal can make things more tricky (hel-lo, meatball sub?).

On this day I chose soup from Kamasouptra in Portland. The curried Pumpkin Bisque Soup won out over the other five options (so okay, maybe it’s winter-almost-spring, but it feels like fall-almost-winter). The real draw for me (even though the soup is excellent) is the bread, still warm from the oven. What can I say? The value of comfort food cannot be overstated.

Especially during the work day.

🙂

Catching someone in a lie

by Karen, posted in (it's all about the) food, friends, Life in the cube

Have you ever caught a someone in a lie?

When I use the term “lying“, I’m not referring to “a song by an Australian band”, or “a 2006 film”, or even “a horizontal position” kinds of lying. Nope; I’m talking about the good ol’ fashioned kind of lying: when someone tells you “a deliberate untruth”.

Recently this happened to me. I sort of pushed the envelope. I asked questions to which I was receiving vague answers and had actually just decided to drop the line of questioning altogether when the universe intervened.

Well, the universe by way of a table of bystanders (sitstanders?) who may or may not have overheard the conversation, the particulars of which I won’t publish here One of them made a statement to the person that I was talking with and she was forced to acknowledge it, thereby giving away that what she had been telling me was not true. A big, fat lie.  She could not have been and not have been some place at the same time. Turned out, she was there. After she told me that she was not there.

So. She didn’t comment at all after answering the bystander, thereby contradicting what she had told me just a few minutes prior.  What should I do about this?

I ultimately decided not to do anything. Why should I, now that we both know that she was not telling me the truth?  I have been giving some important information about her character (and perhaps our friendship) that I did not have before. I guess that’s enough.

Interestingly, she was not the only person in this particular week that I realized was lying to me. Right to me face. When asked a direct question. Unbelievable, right?

For now, I think that I’ll keep that in the back of my mind.

Moral: I guess there’s a lot of lying going around…so be careful out there!

Put the ‘OM’ in O(at)Meal

by Karen, posted in (it's all about the) food, health, Life in the cube, restaurants
McDonald's oatmeal

McDonald’s has a new(ish) menu item. Believe it or not, it’s oatmeal.

I know! I mean, seriously, right?

If I’m going to McDonald’s, I’m going for a quarter pounder (no cheese!), not  “health” food!

But one day I needed a quick breakfast and my nice friend Pauline had given me a coupon for a free McD’s oatmeal, so I gave it a try.

Well. It’s GREAT. All I did was doctor it up some with about a tablespoon of cinnamon. Hey, cinnamon might lower blood sugar and it might lower cholesterol, so what the heck?

McD’s says that it’s available to order all day, so if you’re trying to lose (or just to stop gaining) weight and are short on time, it might be a better choice for a meal than some others available to you. (Note: they add cream to their oatmeal which I would ask them to leave out next time: saves about 20 calories).

Of course, you could always keep a box of oatmeal in your desk at work for emergencies too (if you have access to a microwave, that is. Oh, and a bowl, spoon, and half a cup of water. 🙂 )

Re-entry; it’s a…(well, YOU know)

by Karen, posted in fitness, friends, health, Life in the cube

So, first day back to work after a few (or many) days off is always difficult, right? Add to that being sick and having major dental work the day before, and you’ve just added a heap of insult to injury.

The sound of that alarm going off for the first time in days was a rude awakening.

Here’s what I did to ease my transition back to Real (working) Life:

  1. I skipped the gym. I am always looking for excuses to back out of my Tuesday workout but today I got permission from an impartial bystander (my husband!) whose advice was, “I wouldn’t go; why look for trouble?” Point well taken. I didn’t go.
  2. Instead of woofing my usual Tuesday Vitatop and cold coffee for breakfast as I ran out the door, I made some scrambled (fresh!) eggs and packaged it up with my leftover home fries from The Good Table in Cape Elizabeth (the portions are so big that this is the third meal I’ve made with them!) and even was slowed down enough to remember to bring a little container of ketchup (what are eggs without ketchup? I ask you) to accompany them.  When I got to work (early!) I discovered they had my (current) favorite coffee, Spicy Eggnog. I had a good book, good food, and good coffee. Things were looking (somewhat) up.
  3. Reminded myself: Go slow!!! It will all still be there tomorrow (and the day after that, and after that…).
  4. Look for any positive things you can find in your day. Look hard. They’re there somewhere. I had a nice ‘thank you’ phone message from someone for a Christmas gift waiting on my voicemail at work, which totally gave me a positive energy boost.
  5. Coffee. Make sure you have plenty to get you through the day.

Of course, don’t underestimate the value of support from friends,  in person or even via email. Sometimes, a bit of empathy from a friend is really all you need. 🙂