Peanut Butter Banana Oatmeal Chocolate Chip with almonds

Stack of cookies

My roommate got a cat. An adorable, orange striped cat. I’m not much of a cat person, since I think they’re frigid animals with the inability to love, but this one is the most precious thing that I’ve ever seen.

So when I’m not at work or school, I’ve been playing with him a ton, probably to my roommate’s chagrin. I can’t help it. He’s just too damn adorable.

Pumpkin Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cranberry Cookies

Super healthy, you don’t even know.

I’ve been baking up a storm lately, mainly as a means to procrastinate. Accounting homework? That can wait. Midterm tomorrow? Cookies need to be made first. Applying for jobs? Well, let’s not get crazy here. But in all seriousness, baking has been a nice outlet. With the pressure of working, trying to find a job, running a student organization, maintaining a pathetic semblance of a social life, and not flunking out of graduate school, things get a little hectic at times (read: all the time). Baking’s been a great way to relax, even if it means pushing back readings for half an hour or so. So take that, accounting homework, you’re not getting done today. Or ever.

Chocolate Chip Chia Seed Banana Bread

Carbo-licious.

I could be studying for my last midterm. I could also be applying for more jobs or emailing strangers, begging them for informational interviews. I could at least be cleaning my room. I could be doing a lot of things. But no. I’m making banana bread. Why, you ask? WELL WHY NOT.

True fact: I’ve never made banana bread before, I’ve just always allowed for others to make it for me. Last year, my roommate made banana bread on the regular, so I never had to learn how — I just mooched off his kindness.  So now that I moved and my current roommate isn’t as much of a banana bread baker as my previous one, I had to learn to fend for myself.

Peanut butter dark chocolate almond granola with Chia seeds

Yum. It’s like dessert. Almost. Who am I kidding. But at least you won’t feel bad eating it.

Wake up in the morning, usually not feeling like P. Diddy. Definitely don’t brush my teeth with a bottle of jack before I leave (if I brush my teeth at all before I leave the house. Gross? Yes.) Jokes aside, most mornings are rough. When I say rough, I mean hear-the-alarm-put-it-on-snooze-can-I-pretend-to-have-a-terminal-disease-so-I-don’t-have-to-go-to-school/work rough. Part of this is because I voluntarily wake up at 4 AM to go to rowing practice that starts before the majority of the population wakes up. Yes, you are correct, dear reader, I’m stupid. Another part of this is compounded by the fact that I’m in grad school, which means that my nights are spent curled up next to esoteric readings about God knows what. In short, mornings are shitty, but for me, mornings can be made less shitty by having a good breakfast. Or by putting cognac into my three mornings coffees to help me get through the day, but that would be considered alcoholism.