News from the Stephanie
There are a few things I haven't openly discussed that have transpired over the last few months. The biggest of those is that I quit my job as an academic advisor in August. I'm currently teaching online classes for two schools from the comfort of my own home and I couldn't be happier :) No morning commutes, no late nights and no more corporate insane troll logic! On occasion I have student insane troll logic, but it's not as bad when you control their fate instead of the other way around ;)
I also found out in September through a new kind of blood test that I do not have Celiac or any type of gluten intolerance! Woohoo! When I was young, they only used symptoms to diagnose, and then they developed an expensive biopsy that had a lot of risks associated with it. So the fact that they now have a blood test is totally awesome. I jumped at the chance to take it before I quit my job and lost my benefits. I nearly cried at the results.
The downside is, they're back to the drawing board on what it is I actually have that makes me periodically violently ill. But at least my food budget has gone down as eating gluten free is expensive as all hell.
So I'm rediscovering foods I haven't eaten in years, which has been awesomely fun. In honor of losing one food restriction (still have to keep off sugar and high carbs), I'm taking a food meme I swiped off of damoyre
Behind the cut tag: Foods I have loved and hated...
Bold places you've been, underline the ones you like and strike out the ones you don't like.
001. Applebee's
002. Arby's - of the fastfood places, this is my favorite.
003. Arthur Treacher's Fish and Chips
004. A&W - Used to love this place when I was a kid. I haven't been to one in 20 years.
005. Baskin-Robbins
006. Benihana - I've only been there twice, but I've always had a good experience.
007. Black Angus
008. Bob Evans - MY grandma used to LOVE this place for their chicken and noodles. This will sound strange, but I used to like their spaghetti.
009. Boston Market - This is the only way I will eat fast food chicken. I also love their cheese spinach side.
010. Buffalo Grill
011. Buffalo Wild Wings
012. Burger King - MY least favorite of the fast food places.
013. California Pizza Kitchen
014. Captain D's
015. Carino's Italian Grill - I really like the food, but the open kitchen is loud and distracting.
016. Carl's Jr./Hardee's
017. Checkers/Rally's Drive-In
018. Cheeseburger in Paradise
019. Chick-fil-A
020. Chili's
021. Chipotle
022. Chuck E. Cheese's
023. Church's Chicken
024. Cici's Pizza
025. Claim Jumper
026. Cluck-U Chicken
027. Cold Stone Creamery
028. Cracker Barrel
029. Culver's
030. Dairy Queen/Brazier
031. Damon's Grill
032. Del Taco
033. Denny's
034. Domino's Pizza - not only do I hate their pizza, but I try not to support fascists.
035. Dunkin Donuts
036. Eat 'n Park
037. El Pollo Loco
038. Fatburger
039. Fosters Freeze
040. Fox's Pizza Den
041. Frisch's Big Boy
042. Fuddruckers
043. Godfather's Pizza
044. Gold Star Chili
045. Golden Corral
046. Hard Rock Cafe - way over priced mediocre food. I only eat there when visitors are in town and want to got there.
047. Harvey's
048. HomeTown Buffet
049. Hooters
050. Houlihan's
051. Huddle House
052. Hungry Howie's
053. IHOP
054. In-n-Out - sounds vulgar.
055. Ivar's
056. Jack in the Box
057. Jamba Juice
058. Joe's Crab Shack
059. Johnny Rocket's
060. Kelsey's
061. KFC - I've not been there in forever. I always get sick on the chicken. =P
062. Krispy Kreme - I prefer Dunkin Donuts if I want to be poisoned *g*
063. Krystal
064. LaRosa's
065. Little Caesar's - they just opened one near my house. I thought it was disgusting.
066. Lone Star Steakhouse - It's become so over priced in the past year.
067. Long John Silver's - Good if you like beer batter grease.
068. Luby's
069. Macaroni Grill - I was only there once, and I wasn't impressed.
070. Marble Slab Creamery
071. Max & Erma's
072. McDonald's - I go there seldomly. I get a craving for their cheeseburgers about every six months. After that I have an aversion to it.
073. Miami Subs Grill
074. Moe's Southwest Grill
075. Olive Garden - I like to go there for lunch and order the endless salad and bread sticks *G*
076. Oporto
077. Outback Steakhouse - another steakhouse that's gotten way over priced in the past year. Plus I don't like my steak seasoned for me.
078. Panera Bread - they have some yummy sandwiches and soups. And if you're strapped for cash, they have a good PB&J deal.
079. Panda Express - I used to LOVE this when I was a kid. I find the food disgusting now.
080. Papa John's - I used to love the garlic dipping sauce. Then I realized I was making a food that was already pretty bad for me a lot worse *G*
081. Perkins - I'm mixed here. Love the muffins, hate the eggs. I like my eggs fluffy when scrambled and they insisted on thin eggs that look like they modeled on shale.
082. P.F. Chang's
083. Planet Hollywood - Not impressed. Like Hard Rock but even more pointless.
084. Pizza Hut - I used to work there as a teenager and I find it difficult to eat it now. If I do, I try to only eat the thin crust.
085. Popeye's - used to love Popeyes when I lived in New Orleans. We have one in Denver, but it's pretty out of the way.
086. Port of Subs
087. Quaker Steak and Lube - Best! Wings! Ever! I love this place and always associate it with going out with my sister and brother-in-law when I'm in Ohio.
088. Quizno's - I boycott this place because it's a scam on the franchise owners. Most end up going bankrupt as the Quizos make huge profits off their losses.
089. Rainforest Cafe - I'd recommend only going here for breakfast as lunch and dinner are way over priced. But the Breakfast is good and reasonable. And it's a cool atmosphere if you happen to be in the Animal Kingdom at Disney World *G*
090. Rax
091. Red Lobster - Good if you're in a land locked state and it's the only show in town in terms of reasonably priced seafood that isn't necessarily fried.
092. Red Robin - They have many varieties of burgers and vegetarian choices as well. Good if you're in the mood for burger style food. A bit over priced though.
093. Red Rooster
094. Round Table Pizza
095. Roy Rogers
096. Rubio's
097. Ruby Tuesday - I mostly like them for their salad buffet, but I prefer Sweet Tomatoes for that.
098. Ryan's Family Steakhouse
099. Sbarro - This is my favorite mall food ever. Give me a slice of their cheese pizza and I'm good for the day *G*
100. Señor Frog's
101. Shoney's. - Hate Shoneys! Hate it!
102. Sizzler
103. Skyline Chili
104. Sonic
105. Starbucks - I have to admit, I like Starbucks. I used to order a latte and fruit & cheese plate in the mornings of paydays.
106. Steak 'n Shake
107. Subway
108. Sweet Tomatoes - I totally LOVE this place. Load up on lots of yummy salad and then hit the soups, breads, pastas, and desserts. It's like a Las Vegas buffet minus the meat.
109. T.G.I. Friday's
110. Taco Bell - Always makes me sick.
111. Taco Del Mar
112. Taco Time
113. TCBY
114. Texas Roadhouse
115. The Old Spaghetti Factory
116. Tim Horton's
117. Togos
118. Tony Roma's - Our's closed here, but they have amazingly good ribs.
119. Waffle House
120. Weinerschnitzel
121. Wendy's
122. Whataburger
123. White Castle - I'm not a fan. I only went to the one in New Orleans when I was with my roommates.
124. Yoshinoya
125. Zaxby's
My own choices:
These are all chains, as my favorite places are usually local so you're not apt to find them near you.
126. Old Chicago - This is the only chain pizza I really like. They don't deliver, but you can take out or dine in. It's a sports bar atmosphere, which I don't generally like, but the pizza makes up for it :)
127. Piccolos - This is an Italian/Mexican restaurant - they do both ethnic foods beautifully. My favorite dish is their Eggplant Parmesan. They're also reasonably priced.
128. McCormick's - This is an upper scale chain and can get very pricey, but the seafood is amazing. I'd suggest it for a special night out.
At least some aspects of life are good right now :)
I also found out in September through a new kind of blood test that I do not have Celiac or any type of gluten intolerance! Woohoo! When I was young, they only used symptoms to diagnose, and then they developed an expensive biopsy that had a lot of risks associated with it. So the fact that they now have a blood test is totally awesome. I jumped at the chance to take it before I quit my job and lost my benefits. I nearly cried at the results.
The downside is, they're back to the drawing board on what it is I actually have that makes me periodically violently ill. But at least my food budget has gone down as eating gluten free is expensive as all hell.
So I'm rediscovering foods I haven't eaten in years, which has been awesomely fun. In honor of losing one food restriction (still have to keep off sugar and high carbs), I'm taking a food meme I swiped off of damoyre
Behind the cut tag: Foods I have loved and hated...
Bold places you've been, underline the ones you like and strike out the ones you don't like.
001. Applebee's
002. Arby's - of the fastfood places, this is my favorite.
003. Arthur Treacher's Fish and Chips
004. A&W - Used to love this place when I was a kid. I haven't been to one in 20 years.
005. Baskin-Robbins
006. Benihana - I've only been there twice, but I've always had a good experience.
007. Black Angus
008. Bob Evans - MY grandma used to LOVE this place for their chicken and noodles. This will sound strange, but I used to like their spaghetti.
009. Boston Market - This is the only way I will eat fast food chicken. I also love their cheese spinach side.
010. Buffalo Grill
011. Buffalo Wild Wings
012. Burger King - MY least favorite of the fast food places.
013. California Pizza Kitchen
014. Captain D's
015. Carino's Italian Grill - I really like the food, but the open kitchen is loud and distracting.
016. Carl's Jr./Hardee's
017. Checkers/Rally's Drive-In
018. Cheeseburger in Paradise
019. Chick-fil-A
020. Chili's
021. Chipotle
022. Chuck E. Cheese's
023. Church's Chicken
024. Cici's Pizza
025. Claim Jumper
026. Cluck-U Chicken
027. Cold Stone Creamery
028. Cracker Barrel
029. Culver's
030. Dairy Queen/Brazier
031. Damon's Grill
032. Del Taco
033. Denny's
034. Domino's Pizza - not only do I hate their pizza, but I try not to support fascists.
035. Dunkin Donuts
036. Eat 'n Park
037. El Pollo Loco
038. Fatburger
039. Fosters Freeze
040. Fox's Pizza Den
041. Frisch's Big Boy
042. Fuddruckers
043. Godfather's Pizza
044. Gold Star Chili
045. Golden Corral
046. Hard Rock Cafe - way over priced mediocre food. I only eat there when visitors are in town and want to got there.
047. Harvey's
048. HomeTown Buffet
049. Hooters
050. Houlihan's
051. Huddle House
052. Hungry Howie's
053. IHOP
054. In-n-Out - sounds vulgar.
055. Ivar's
056. Jack in the Box
057. Jamba Juice
058. Joe's Crab Shack
059. Johnny Rocket's
060. Kelsey's
061. KFC - I've not been there in forever. I always get sick on the chicken. =P
062. Krispy Kreme - I prefer Dunkin Donuts if I want to be poisoned *g*
063. Krystal
064. LaRosa's
065. Little Caesar's - they just opened one near my house. I thought it was disgusting.
066. Lone Star Steakhouse - It's become so over priced in the past year.
067. Long John Silver's - Good if you like beer batter grease.
068. Luby's
069. Macaroni Grill - I was only there once, and I wasn't impressed.
070. Marble Slab Creamery
071. Max & Erma's
072. McDonald's - I go there seldomly. I get a craving for their cheeseburgers about every six months. After that I have an aversion to it.
073. Miami Subs Grill
074. Moe's Southwest Grill
075. Olive Garden - I like to go there for lunch and order the endless salad and bread sticks *G*
076. Oporto
077. Outback Steakhouse - another steakhouse that's gotten way over priced in the past year. Plus I don't like my steak seasoned for me.
078. Panera Bread - they have some yummy sandwiches and soups. And if you're strapped for cash, they have a good PB&J deal.
079. Panda Express - I used to LOVE this when I was a kid. I find the food disgusting now.
080. Papa John's - I used to love the garlic dipping sauce. Then I realized I was making a food that was already pretty bad for me a lot worse *G*
081. Perkins - I'm mixed here. Love the muffins, hate the eggs. I like my eggs fluffy when scrambled and they insisted on thin eggs that look like they modeled on shale.
082. P.F. Chang's
083. Planet Hollywood - Not impressed. Like Hard Rock but even more pointless.
084. Pizza Hut - I used to work there as a teenager and I find it difficult to eat it now. If I do, I try to only eat the thin crust.
085. Popeye's - used to love Popeyes when I lived in New Orleans. We have one in Denver, but it's pretty out of the way.
086. Port of Subs
087. Quaker Steak and Lube - Best! Wings! Ever! I love this place and always associate it with going out with my sister and brother-in-law when I'm in Ohio.
088. Quizno's - I boycott this place because it's a scam on the franchise owners. Most end up going bankrupt as the Quizos make huge profits off their losses.
089. Rainforest Cafe - I'd recommend only going here for breakfast as lunch and dinner are way over priced. But the Breakfast is good and reasonable. And it's a cool atmosphere if you happen to be in the Animal Kingdom at Disney World *G*
090. Rax
091. Red Lobster - Good if you're in a land locked state and it's the only show in town in terms of reasonably priced seafood that isn't necessarily fried.
092. Red Robin - They have many varieties of burgers and vegetarian choices as well. Good if you're in the mood for burger style food. A bit over priced though.
093. Red Rooster
094. Round Table Pizza
095. Roy Rogers
096. Rubio's
097. Ruby Tuesday - I mostly like them for their salad buffet, but I prefer Sweet Tomatoes for that.
098. Ryan's Family Steakhouse
099. Sbarro - This is my favorite mall food ever. Give me a slice of their cheese pizza and I'm good for the day *G*
100. Señor Frog's
101. Shoney's. - Hate Shoneys! Hate it!
102. Sizzler
103. Skyline Chili
104. Sonic
105. Starbucks - I have to admit, I like Starbucks. I used to order a latte and fruit & cheese plate in the mornings of paydays.
106. Steak 'n Shake
107. Subway
108. Sweet Tomatoes - I totally LOVE this place. Load up on lots of yummy salad and then hit the soups, breads, pastas, and desserts. It's like a Las Vegas buffet minus the meat.
109. T.G.I. Friday's
110. Taco Bell - Always makes me sick.
111. Taco Del Mar
112. Taco Time
113. TCBY
114. Texas Roadhouse
115. The Old Spaghetti Factory
116. Tim Horton's
117. Togos
118. Tony Roma's - Our's closed here, but they have amazingly good ribs.
119. Waffle House
120. Weinerschnitzel
121. Wendy's
122. Whataburger
123. White Castle - I'm not a fan. I only went to the one in New Orleans when I was with my roommates.
124. Yoshinoya
125. Zaxby's
My own choices:
These are all chains, as my favorite places are usually local so you're not apt to find them near you.
126. Old Chicago - This is the only chain pizza I really like. They don't deliver, but you can take out or dine in. It's a sports bar atmosphere, which I don't generally like, but the pizza makes up for it :)
127. Piccolos - This is an Italian/Mexican restaurant - they do both ethnic foods beautifully. My favorite dish is their Eggplant Parmesan. They're also reasonably priced.
128. McCormick's - This is an upper scale chain and can get very pricey, but the seafood is amazing. I'd suggest it for a special night out.
At least some aspects of life are good right now :)