Free things in NYC

The great thing about New York is... although many things are expensive, there are many things to do for free, too...

Such as La Bohème pour La Bohème comme moi... 8-O lol

Check out more free events... http://www.nycgo.com/free/

Dr. Sholls insole

I do a lot of walking as part of my rehab and since that's really the only one exercise I can do.  Unfortunately, in addition to the problems along my spine, my knees are also not very happy.

Being on my feet for so long, the knees and feet usually get more and more grumpy towards the end of the day.

So, I decided to get myself some Dr. Sholl's insoles.

I had gotten a pair of it for back pains 1-2 years ago and it did help relieving my back pain except for I haven't been able to locate it since I switched to my MBT (because it didn't fit into my MBT snickers).

The one I started using since three days ago is the Dr. Scholl's Knee Pain Relief Orthotic insoles.

Do the insoles help?

After using it for 2-3 days, one thing I can tell you is that... it seems to make my knees feel less grumpy although there is nothing scientific about my statement.  8-O lol

I did recommend Dr. Sholl's insoles to my friends with aches and pains in all different places...

Gotta say, though, even though it seems to work for me, another friend of mine didn't think the pair she got for her specific condition was really of any help.


I've gotten my insoles from the cheapest source I could find all around town: Bed, Bath & Beyond.  I think the original price was 9.99 and another 2 dollars off with the manufacturer's coupon.... sweet!

Avocado Banana pudding

One thing I learned to make or made recently is the Avocado Banana pudding.

Essentially, you mix Avocado and Banana together... and... you get a nice and healthy dessert-- if not the meal itself since it is pretty rich.

Apparently, it is even good for babies... some baby food I made as I am taking my baby step in da journey towards cooking... 8-O lol

Perfect dish for me to learn to cook... since... doesn't involve too much of anything... 8-O lol

Bresaola con rucola

Bresaola con rucola

Bresaola con rucola or Bresaola with arugula is an Italian dish even I have learned to make.

I made it for the first time right after my friend with a broken foot got her foot surgery.... with her dictating each every step to take on preparing this dish.

1. Put Bresaola on the plate
2. Pour a whole lot of olive oil over the Bresaola
3. Put Arugula on top of the Bresaola
4. Pour much more olive oil onto the salad and some freshly squeezed lemon juice
5. Spray Parmesan cheeses on top
6. Pour even more olive oil or lemon juice if you wish
7. You can also add some pepper to it...

Dr. Teal's Epsom Salt

I came back to the place of my friend with a broken foot--- the house of disability won't be full without the contribution of my own disability, I figure... 8-O lol

She asked me whether there was something I need when she was about to place an order online last time.  Since I used out all of her Epsom salt, I said... Epsom salt... the cheapest kind that you can find

The Epsom salt, apparently, arrived with me yesterday... and some fancy kind as well...

Dr. Teal's Epsom salt it is, which contains also eucalyptus and spearmint essential oils.

How do I like it?

One thing I have to say is that, in addition to the fact that my body likes Epsom Salt bath, I slept like a baby even with the smallest part of the 25/4 mg dose of Seroquel... That is relaxing... gotta tell you...

My friend like it, too... apparently, the steam from the bath permeated the entire place and she could even smell it all the way from her room. 8-O lol

Che palle-- di spinaci

My mom and I had some palle di spinaci at my friend with a broken foot's the other day.  She had made them palle di spinaci herself and explained to me how it was made..

First of all, you cook spinach, drain it and mix it with ricotta cheese.  You might also need to add a bit of flour because it would make it stickier and easier to shape the ingredients into balls.  If you can't eat it all fresh, you can store them in the freezer.

To serve these balls, you have to first bring the water to a boil before putting these balls in, when them palle float to the surface, they shall be done.

Apparently, if these balls are wrapped inside of pastry, it would turn into Ravioli. (See... we learn something everyday...)

For the sauce, she added some herb into butter or the I can't believe it is not butter.

When serving the dish, you simply pour the sauce on top of palle di spinici and some parmesan cheese as well.

As usual, my mom was very impressed by the Italian immersion experiences!

Wyndmere Essential Oil- Breathe Easier

When I got the Breathe Easier Essential Oil by Wyndmere, it was when I was having some concerns about my dear respiratory system.

This oil contains: Basil, Niaouli, Eucalyptus, Pine, Rosemary, Lavender and Cedarwood essential oils.

One thing I can tell you after using it for almost a year is that, although I am not sure whether it helps my respiratory system, it surely calms my whole existence down when adding a few drops into either my bathing water or my foot soak.

Capers

My friend with a broken foot made us some Vitello Tonnato when I took my mom to visit her again...

This time, she decorated the dish with some gigantic Italian capers... if I recall correctly, she might have brought it all the way back from Italy herself.

Apparently, with these capers, you have to soak it in water for something like over night or a day.  Otherwise, it might be too salty.

As you can see, the capers are almost as big as the cornichon. When I first saw these big-behind capers, I though they were figs... lol

Ginger

My friend with a broken foot made my mom and I some vegi juice today and we had the tasty juice at lunch... including ingredients such as celery, apples, carrots, broccoli stem and ginger.

Not quite sure yet how well da juice will help me in the digestion department yet...

My mouth was runing... running... running.... like a waterfall....

It was not until later did I realize that... oops... I seem to be feeling something funny...

One thing I know is that... I was all energetic... OMG... so very overflying with energy on a day with the smaller piece of my 25/4 mg Seroquel.... and I think it might have something to do with the two huge chunk of ginger we added in there...

It works far faster than anti-depressants... and I became instantly all hyped up....

It reminded me of this experience I had back a while ago when trying to find relief for my insomnia though simple things such as foot-soaking.

One day, I read somewhere online that Ginger helps getting the damp xi out of our body and can help people relax as well.  So, I decided to try out foot soaking with slices of ginger... though don't quite remember whether I boiled it or not...

The outcome?

Well, it helped my insomnia... rather than my sleep...

I was wide awake after soaking my feet in the ginger water and was lying in bed counting them sheep till the cows came home... 8-O lol

The lesson learned... what works for the others might not work for us...

After observing its effect on me, I decided... foot soaking with ginger or drinking vegi juice with ginger might be a good thing early in the day rather than something to do after mid-day....

Thanks for taking interest in my sharing.

After my foot soaking with Epsom salt, time to go night night.