A great day in the city

First of all, I successfully participated in another Buy Nothing Day. All I purchased was breakfast and lunch for a total of $14. I did not set foot in a single store.
I finally went to Occupy Wall Street. I marched. I chanted. I was (and still am) incredibly inspired, and a little more hopeful than I was this time yesterday. I stood in front of the New York Stock Exchange and exercised my First Amendment rights and it felt so liberating. My first time on Wall Street, and I was protesting the very existence of Wall Street. Perfect. I wish I could write more about it but it's difficult for me to put into words. Here's a photo:

I also saw my first opera today, Faust. I didn't love it but I liked it a lot. The Met is pretty impossible to describe but I'll try: breathtaking, gargantuan, sparkly. Haha. Sounds like I'm talking about a diamond. My best friend is in the student ambassador program at the Met so he gets free tickets to dress rehearsals and performances sometimes. We went to the final dress rehearsal of Faust. I'm thinking about asking for tickets to see The Barber of Seville (don't feel like typing out Italian, sorry) in February. Hmmmm.
My Thanksgiving was great. I ate reasonable portions and enjoyed every bite! Also, the only things I ate that weren't vegan: whipped cream and a tiny sliver of apple pie. My 5K didn't go quite as well as I hoped it would (I finished in 37:06) but that's alright. It's still much faster than any of my 5K training runs have been in the past month so I'm not too unhappy. All the participants got free apple pies! Here's a photo of my boyfriend and I from the morning of the race:

I ate as close to vegan as I could today. The only things I ate that weren't vegan: a pat of butter and a little bit of whipped cream. I ain't even mad. Calories are way too high for a rest day but I didn't binge and I made good choices while eating out. Sometimes that's all I can ask of myself.
Tomorrow: hitting the gym (or the pavement for a walk) early, breakfast with a friend from high school,  cleaning and packing, possibly grocery shopping, visiting grandparents, heading to my boyfriend's for an entire week (yay!)
This week I am going to the elementary school his mom works at (she's a speech pathologist). I'm going to shadow her for a few days and then volunteer in some classrooms. I'm really excited! I haven't spent time with kids in a long time and I'm hoping spending some time in elementary schools over break will help me start to figure out whether I want to get my elementary or secondary teaching certification.
Going to read a bit before bed. Goodnight, whoever is reading this! :)

Mega-update

I haven't updated in almost a week! Yikes. In my defense I have been busy. It was the last week of fall term, and although I finished most of my assignments early, I was busy seeing friends, packing, and getting ready to come home for six weeks!
I am writing this from my living room at home. It's so nice to be back. This weekend my boyfriend and I baked bread (first time for either of us). We somehow destroyed the sourdough flavor but it's good bread all the same. He made me a vegan dinner on Saturday! And we went out for a nice dinner last night. Yes, a lot of our relationship involves around food. We also watched many hours of the Food Network yesterday (it's the only TV I actually enjoy watching).
I think my favorite moment from the weekend was on Saturday night. I was playing guitar and he asked me to play "that song" from Juno. We sang "Anyone Else But You" together and it just felt really perfect. I was crying by the time we stopped singing.
This week is going to be great. This afternoon I'm going to the gym with my sister, and then we're drinking some vegan peppermint hot chocolate, eating candy canes, and watching Christmas movies. On Wednesday I'm going to pick up my number/shirt for the 5K I'm running on Thanksgiving morning (and hopefully getting some autographs from Joan Benoit Samuelson and Bill Rodgers..EEEEK!!)...as well as doing some Thanksgiving cooking. What's on the menu?

• Vegan stuffing
• Vegan pumpkin pie
• Apple pie
• Fish (for the non-vegans/vegetarians)
• Baked sweet potatoes/regular potatoes
• Salad
• Roasted vegetables
• Cranberry sauce
• Tempeh (for my sister and I)

I LOVE THANKSGIVING! We were originally going out to eat but I am so glad my parents decided it made more sense to stay home. It'll be cheaper, more fun, and there will be food I can eat (I don't think there was anything vegan at the buffet we were going to). I'm baking the pie on Wednesday and making the stuffing too, since we only have one very small oven and my mom needs to use it Thursday morning. 

And on Black Friday, my best friend and I are going to NYC to see an opera...and then we're going to participate in Occupy Wall Street. He went last Thursday and almost got arrested...and was photographed by some reporter. His photo was on CBS and CNN. I am so proud of him. I really need to go to OWS...I've needed to for so long. I will regret it forever if I don't go, and honestly, I'm not afraid of getting arrested. The more I think about it, the more I realize getting arrested is a small price to pay for standing up for what's right. Sounds corny but it's true.

In other news...MY BOYFRIEND GOT INTO COA! Wow actually a lot has happened since I last updated. He'll be starting in January! We're hoping we can get an apartment together but still not sure if that's possible...I'm waiting for the housing person at OUR school to get back to me. Regardless it's going to be amazing to be there with him...and amazing for him because he'll be at a school that's right for him (versus the huge state school he's at right now).

I ran four miles yesterday! Longest run in a while, and it felt great. During the last mile and a half I was running at a pretty consistent 9:30 pace (!!) Idk if I've ever maintained that pace for so long..it felt really good and not that difficult. 

I am determined to run the half-marathon in February. My parents are paying for my registration as part of my Christmas present. And next fall? I will run my first marathon. Watch me. 

To sum up, I am very happy right now. The end. :)