First a little update on my crazy couple of days. On Friday at about 4:12 PM I was sitting at the computer and I heard this loud pop. I mean loud. Then super loud buzzing started and there was a second pop and blue sparks shot out from the side of my computer toward me. I jumped back, hit the floor and pulled the cord out of the wall. The power went out briefly in the house and then came back in most of the rooms. I went outside to check the fuse box and found 1 breaker tripped. I flipped it and went back inside to check. Part of the house was still dead. I went outside again and by then several of my neighbors were outside. They had similar stories... one had lost their microwave, one had her furnace go and her computer tower was on the floor and the rug underneath was black, one lost their ceiling fan. My next door neighbor had the same situation as me... blue sparks from their computer. I heard tons of sirens.
I head over to Starbucks (a block away) to get online, on the way I saw cops and fire trucks everywhere. I found out from a pal on twitter that it was a huge power surge and hundreds of homes were affected. I also talked with a few more neighbors. One lost 3 computers, 2 DVRs. I went home to my computer, speakers, cable Internet box, surge protector all toast and part of house still in the dark. It was interesting peeing by candlelight. I hit Costco Saturday AM and got a new tower and picked up the rest of the things that were destroyed, new cable box and all that. I'm several hundred dollars in the hole. The power company better reimburse. When I was removing all the fried equipment I noticed the carpet under the surge protector was scorched so it could have been way worse. I was thankful. I finally had full power restored at 5 PM today.
In the middle of all the electricity drama, my cat Charlie had to go to the vet. $300 later she seems to be on the mend, she brought me her stuffed mouse as a gift a few minutes ago so I think she's doing better. It's been a very expensive $$$ few days. I might have to start singing on the street corner. Any requests? I do a mean Bohemian Rhapsody.
Well, enough about my drama, let's talk food. Thankfully the kitchen was not one of the rooms affected so I was able to make coffee and cook. Here's what powered me yesterday...
Breakfast: With so many errands to run I tossed a 1/2 of one of those new Double Chocolate Vanilla Crunch Pure Protein bars (OMG yum) in my purse and stopped at Starbucks for a few minutes of Internet access and a Sugar Free Cinnamon Dolce Soy Latte
Lunch: Here was the bright spark in my day (electricity pun) I made a to die for bean salad. So good. This will be a summer staple at my house.
Shelly's Garbanzo and Green Bean Salad
1 (15 oz) can Garbanzo Beans, rinsed & drained
1 (15 oz) can Cut Green Beans, rinsed & drained
1 cup Cooked Chicken Breast, cubed
1/4 cup Feta Cheese, crumbled
2 Tablespoons Red Onion, finely diced
2 Tablespoons Black Olives, chopped
Salt and a few twists of Black Pepper to taste
Mustard Tarragon Dressing
1 Tablespoon Grainy Mustard
1 Tablespoon Tarragon Vinegar (near salad dressings)
1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
Mix dressing ingredients together till well combined. Pour over salad ingredients and blend till well combined.
Tip: This would be a great use for leftover rotisserie chicken or when you BBQ next time throw an extra couple of pieces of chicken on for this salad the next day. I think it would be yummy with tuna, cooked shrimp, leftover steak too.
Dinner: Another favorite staple at my house: my Butternut Squash Casserole I buy the peeled, cubed butternut squash to make making this faster.
Snacks: Coffee, lots of it and a bowl of Pistachio Protein Ice Cream. Next week it's St. Patty's Day this one would be perfect or Mint Chocolate Chip.
More days in my pouch.
