The downward spiral

What I eat directly affects how I feel. That's true for everyone actually, but I'm either more sensitive or more aware than most people. Which is why I don't slide on the downward spiral very far. A day or two of eating junk usually leaves me lethargic but craving better food.

That said, today is day two and the final day of junk consumption. I did have a salad yesterday for lunch, but after I had only some of a freezer-burned frozen dinner (it'd been in there for two years--don't judge me!), I pigged out on tater tots. But hey, they're vegan. As are the Jujyfruits I bought to give away at Halloween but opened yesterday.

Today, I had more Jujyfruits and though I had a decent sandwich, I had a huge box of Raisinets. They were really good. But now I have a headache and really, really need a nap. I've had my fill of junk for now. I'm back on track starting with a planned salad for dinner. I'm still happy with the Pomango salad dressing and am planning to add some of the season's last affordable strawberries to it, too. Maybe that will be sweet enough to keep me away from the Jujyfruits (side note: I worked in a movie theater in college and lived on popcorn, Coke, and Jujyfruits for a year; I have no idea how I stayed so thin doing that, though).

All that to say that when I get back from a weekend trip to Memphis Sunday, I'm planning to get cooking again. A comment from Lannae about sweet potato samosas has me thinking about the butternut squash I've had in the freezer since February. I got fairly burnt out on the squash last winter, so the last one went into the freezer. I'd been trying to think of what to do with it other than soup, so I think I will sub it for sweet potatoes and make samosas. I'm just trying to decide how sweet or savory I want to make them. I'm open to suggestions. I also remembered that during a visit to see my friend, Christy last year in Las Vegas, I had some really tasty sweet potato tamales. Perhaps some butternut squash tamales are in order? I've never made tamales, so I'm a little intrigued and a little scared.

It was a really big squash, in case you are wondering. And I hope it's not freezerburned.