Raw Pad Thai

As you read this, Roberta is probably shredding up a warm right hander down in Mexico, but before she left, she shared this delicious recipe for raw pad thai. It's a perfect salad for a hot day or a quick healthy lunch. One of the things I've missed the most while road tripping is having my own kitchen. When we get back, you can bet I'm making this immediately. 

Ingredients

2 zucchinis, sliced into strips with a food processor with a slicing disk

2 large handfuls of bean sprouts, approximately 2 cups

3/4 cup chopped nuts (such as almonds, peanuts and/or cashews)

1 red or yellow bell pepper, sliced into strips with food processor with slicing disk

4 green onions dices

1/2 cup fresh chopped cilantro

Juice from 1 lime

1 tablespoon raw olive oil

1/4 teaspoon sea salt

Instructions

Toss all ingredients together in a bowl until well coated. Add a dash of salt if desired and enjoy!

Roberta shredding Mexico

Catfish Nuggets

     I honestly had to excuse myself so I could go to the bathroom and collect myself. I didn't want to look like a high maintenance baby in front of everyone and get upset over catfish nuggets.
     Dave had told me we were going to an organic buffet called Casey's for dinner that was expensive at $10, but worth every penny. He even encouraged Scott, Jason and I to lighten up on lunch and any snacks to leave room for this "healthy" feast. We had been in North Carolina for almost 24 hours and had been on a few Dave adventures already, including a half mile paddle across a busy boating channel with a river like current, hiking across an island with our boards and camera gear, and surfing. It was the exercise I had been missing and craving, but by 7:00 p.m. I was exhausted and hungry starving.
     Casey's was anything but organic, however. I didn't see a single thing in there that wasn't deep fried, besides the gravy which you could have served with a fork it was so thick. There were pictures on the wall of assorted outhouses and real pig feet in the buffet; I'm not making this stuff up. After we approached the serving area, I was sure there wasn't anything I would eat and made my way to the bathroom to cut down on the amount of time I would have to spend smelling and looking at the apparent pigs parts on people's plates. 
     This is how Dave was, though. He lived for shock value. He loved seeing how we would react to these heart attack inducing animal parts when we were expecting a Whole Foods salad bar. He would tell us we could sleep in only to wake us up at 6 a.m., jumping on our bed singing hollering an ACDC song he had blaring on an i-pod speaker while wearing a vest, cowboy hat and using a broom as a guitar. 

     Dave lived with Scott, Jason and a handful other dudes over the course of five years during college in a weathered two bedroom apartment in south Mission Beach, San Diego. He was in our wedding and is probably the most unique person I have ever known. He loves a good story, a good laugh and a good adventure. 

     I guess Dave was delivering the lesson I had been waiting for. The one I knew was in some crack or around a turn on this road trip. The lesson where I had to learn not to rely so heavily on expectations because life likes to surprise you.
     I wrote this all down while I was in line for the bathroom and when I realized it was my turn, I didn't even want to go. The floor was covered with toilet paper and the handle had what I hoped was soap and water on it.
    I couldn't feel bad for myself anymore, though. Not over catfish nuggets I expected to be kale. It was time to move on. I had to go back to the table with a smile. So I did. I can't believe I did.
     Later that night, Dave took us on a walk. He made us slog across low, wet paths saying things like "step lightly to avoid water moccasins" and took us tiptoeing behind peoples' houses that had residents he said had killed people and other things like "don't talk as we go behind this house, this women is a proud confederate with a gun!" 
     I never could tell if he was telling the truth, but one thing I was sure of was that you always came away with good stories when you were with Dave.
     I made a million observations of him and the reason was, he had given so much thought to living right and always seemed to be having a good time. I look up to him a lot. 

Trip Tale Index:

The Beginning: My Concerns

The Beginning: My Hopes

Car Tour Vlog

Yellowstone, 1

Yellowstone, 2

South Dakota-Pennsylvania

Rhode Island

New York

Surfing USA 

Carolina Surf

Catfish Nuggets 

New Orleans 

Recap

Carolina Surf

     I don't need to tell you that the waves were small while we were in North Carolina, you can see that from the pictures, but boy were they warm and pleasant. I caught a handful of lefts that had this punchy little end section and then stepped off my board right onto the white sand. 

     We surfed a spot on an island we had to paddle to by crossing a harbor mouth. There were a few obstacles. One was the boats and the other, the tide. When the tide was going out it pulled you to sea and when it was coming in, it pushed you towards the boat docks. Neither outcome was favorable, so you had to paddle your heart out to make it to the island going both ways, while also keeping an eye out for oncoming boats. 

     I'd like to say it was scary, but to be honest, I loved every second of that paddle. It was a challenge, and I couldn't help trying to race the boys. And even though one of them was swimming and pushing his surfboard and the others weren't trying to race at all and were paddling with the dog, it still gave me a rush and the exercise I had been craving after a few long days of driving. I also attributed the evident presence of excitement to the fact that we were surfing with our San Diego friends, Dave and Jason, on the East Coast like we used to on the West. 
     Dave and Jason were Scott's roommates in San Diego for five years. There were others that lived with them during those years and to us, they are the brothers we never had growing up.  I never call them "Scott's friends", though, I call them "our friends" because I'm happy to think they are mine too. 

Trip Tale Index:

The Beginning: My Concerns

The Beginning: My Hopes

Car Tour Vlog

Yellowstone, 1

Yellowstone, 2

South Dakota-Pennsylvania

Rhode Island

New York

Surfing USA 

Carolina Surf

Catfish Nuggets 

New Orleans 

Recap 

The Search

Lost...

Found...

 The beauty of this country has blown me away, but I'm always my true self at sea.

New York, New York

 Dear New York,
     We've only just met, but I feel like I know you. You've only been in three dozen of the movies I've seen, after all. I can only imagine the adventures a person could have in this city. I'm so used to having mine at sea, but after visiting your concrete playground filled with underground mazes and over-water bridges, I understand that adventure can happen just about anywhere. After our first meeting, I can't wait to see you again so I can get to know you better.

Lady Liberty

sisters talking and getting ready to go out

the Gold Bar, get it? It was creepily awesome!

subway sisters [left to right/oldest to youngest me, Danielle, Maddie]

vegetarian meatballs with pesto and risotto at The Meatball Shop on the Lower East Side. It was killer!

Sister in the city; Danielle lives here full time

9/11 Memorial

my first attempt at hailing a cab

a rooftop view of the skyline

Eataly and Birreria

[clockwise from left Lindsey, me, Scott, Danielle]

Rockefeller Plaza 

tired, can't you tell?

brother and sister

     Take care of my sister, New York. I love her so. I've noticed you've taught her many things already. She is stronger and she has grown.

~

another note from the road: We're off to the South. You'll be happy to know I haven't lost my mind yet. I was shocked too. It's been almost three weeks, and my gills have nearly dried up, but we're headed for waves and you better believe I'm happy about that.

Trip Tale Index:

The Beginning: My Concerns

The Beginning: My Hopes

Car Tour Vlog

Yellowstone, 1

Yellowstone, 2

South Dakota-Pennsylvania

Rhode Island

New York

Surfing USA 

Carolina Surf

Catfish Nuggets 

New Orleans 

Recap

Rhode Island Was...

Rhode Island was a sail boat ride with family. It was almost crashing into a small fishing boat on said sail. It was cleaning stains off wedding attire we had worn only one week earlier. It was happily sitting at the kids table again and messing around. And it was observing love that is new and love that is enduring. 

Trip Tale Index:

The Beginning: My Concerns

The Beginning: My Hopes

Car Tour Vlog

Yellowstone, 1

Yellowstone, 2

South Dakota-Pennsylvania

Rhode Island

New York

Surfing USA 

Carolina Surf

Catfish Nuggets 

New Orleans 

Recap

South Dakota to Pennsylvania

"I will have to pull my heart away,

Cause if I never leave, I'll ruin yesterday" 
~Jack Penate

     We woke up this morning to a semi-truck noisily unloading burrito contents into a Chipotle in Pennsylvania. It was one of those mornings where I wondered if I even slept at all. We basically argued our way through Ohio the day before over directions and other things that only become trivial with hindsight and when I swore my stomach was going to eat itself if we didn't get food immediately (I get dramatic when I'm hungry, can I get an amen?) we called it a night just outside of Pittsburgh in a suburb called Wexford and slept in the car behind Chipotle after eating dinner there. 

     It's hard to start your day with a smile when your neck is so sore that you can't look left, and you still have six hours until your next destination (Philadelphia), but I needed to look at this moment as if it were already a part of my past. I needed to see myself and Scott from the eyes of my 70 year old someday-self and appreciate how funny it was and how glad I would be that it happened. If we never left the comforts of our home by the beach to sleep in the car in a strip mall off the Pennsylvania turnpike, I wouldn't have as many stories to laugh about on the inevitable down days that life provides. Last night's experience, along with the rest of our trip moments, will be a treasure trove of quiet smiles in years to come. 

This trip rocks! (corny, I know) Mt. Rushmore and me

Scott at his father's childhood house in Muscatine, Iowa

Our friends Kate and Mike on their big day! The wedding was perfect and we love them immensely

Deep dish pizza at Gino's in Chicago

Gotham city, ha. Or, rather, biking through Chicago with our friends in the rain

Vegetarian pierogis made by my friend Basia's mom// Starting the morning with a hot breakfast on this trip has been rare. You better believe we enjoyed it!

cranky

humm...

Next? Visiting the brother and family of a grandfather I wasn't fortunate enough to know, then off to Wedding number two in Rhode Island. 

What have you been up to?

Trip Tale Index:

The Beginning: My Concerns

The Beginning: My Hopes

Car Tour Vlog

Yellowstone, 1

Yellowstone, 2

South Dakota-Pennsylvania

Rhode Island

New York

Surfing USA 

Carolina Surf

Catfish Nuggets 

New Orleans 

Recap