Day of Recovery

You've probably guessed by now that I take Halloween seriously, as do my Halloween colleagues Layla and Sara. Although we like to put a ton of time, work, and energy into Halloween, some years we just mess it up a little bit. Example: the year the three of us saw a Guns n Roses and Poison cover band show the night before the big Halloween party. Whoops a daisy. To make a long story short (and less detailed, since me mudder will be reading this - sorry Mom), we drank too much at the show and barely made it through the party the next night. My favorite memory is watching Layla and a ridiculously cute guy deep in conversation. Right as he finished asking her a question with great interest, she looked him right in the eye and yawned the biggest, most insane yawn I've ever seen. Halfway through her yawn, she realized what was happening, but it was like the yawn just wouldn't end. It just kept going, Layla's mouth (and eyes) open wide, right in that cute guy's face. Yeah, that party did not see us at our finest. We practically begged guests to leave around midnight. Waa waa!

It has taken us awhile to figure out the perfect system of how to get through Halloween weekend. Not only are the costumes a lot of work, but we usually cook a ton of food, decorate in great detail, and make a zillion runs to Target. After a few years of getting used to this routine, Layla and I finally figured out that it would be worth it to fly home Monday morning instead of Sunday night. Our post-Halloween Sundays at Sara's house, then, became sacred. We'd wake up at our leisure, pick at leftovers and lay on couches recounting the events of the night and judging our favorite costumes, and eventually around 2 pm, start cleaning up the house. Later that night, we'd do sushi at Ru San's and make it back home in time for The Simpsons. It is a perfect and much-needed way to end the weekend - The Day of Recovery.

Now, even though I didn't have to fly anywhere or cook any food or anything this year, I still needed the sacred Day of Recovery. Halloween stretched well over Friday and Saturday nights this year. Because I'm a bit last minute with things, I was working on two different costumes during the week and kind of let my apartment turn into a craphole. Here's how it goes:

My coffee table becomes awesome.
Bras and suspenders and a giant ace bandage everywhere - whoops a daisy.
Just some vampire teeth and cut up pantyhose in the bathroom.
The usual.
I don't take out the trash or recycling for days and days.
Dishes do not get done.
Every pair of tights I own is on the floor.

You get the idea. Thankfully, this hot mess resulted in two good costumes, I think, and a really fun weekend. Friday night I was Mondo Guerra from Project Runway:

And Saturday night I was Lorena with her head on backwards from True Blood. I didn't really get great pictures of this, but it was fun.


So needless to say, after two costumes in two nights, 3 bands, 2 parties, and a few bars here and there, I needed my own Day of Recovery. Although I missed terribly the gossiping and sushi and picking up empty, smelly bottles off the lanai and wonderful Sara and Layla that would have usually filled my day, I was surprisingly productive today! I did a bunch of cooking for the week and tried out a new recipe for banana chocolate chip muffins. Holy crap. Here are some food pictures because that's what I love:
Steel cut oatmeal. This is one of my favorite breakfasts. Add in a touch of maple syrup and some sliced bananas and blueberries and you've got an amazing meal!
Rice and beans concoction my sister made up. It's one of those box mixes (Roundy's - keeping it classy) with corn, spinach, and tomatoes mixed in.
Add some sharp cheddar and plain Greek yogurt (instead of sour cream) - delicious!

The banana muffins recipe was so easy and quick. Check it here.
Eggs, vegetable oil, vanilla, and more plain yogurt.
Flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
Mashed up near-rotten banana. Lovely.
I mixed in chocolate chunks which are heartier than chocolate chips and do the job well.





They're really delicious, and I'll probably make this recipe again some day. In the meantime, I'll be eating these muffins and watching Child's Play on television because that's what's on instead of The Simpsons. To that, I say "Booo-urns," but I know deep down in my heart that it's really not all that bad.

P.S. Bonus picture of Mondo eating a burrito! Just now sent by Genia.