mokouniverse

[mokouniverse]

My greatest salad creation to date. 

Field greens, dandelion greens, sunflower sprouts, sprouted lentils, shredded beets, cucumber, avocado, cherry tomatoes, and pepitas in my home made cilantro-lime dressing. I love how the beets turn the cucumber pink and make it look like dragon fruit!

#Salad #Vegan

[mokouniverse]

Sandwich Sundays

3 cups of coffee pumping through my veins and I'm craving something delicious.  Considered left over green curry but I thought that my special order of "super thai spicy" would not be so kind to an empty stomach.  I needed the perfect combination of carbs, spreads, and veggies to satisfy the grumbles and give me the energy to hit the treadmill later.

Marinated eggplant and sundried tomatoes as the flavour base.  Pickles, cucumber, and lettuce for the crunch factor. Veganaise and dijon for the added kick.  

Perfectly layered and assembled.  I am a sandwich artist.

Nearly ruined it by forgetting the avocado!  Stuffed the buttery smooth goodness in and voila.  Now I have to go run it off.

#Vegan #Sandwich

[mokouniverse]

Thank you to all the wonderful people in my life who made this one of the best birthdays ever. Love you xox

(photo cred @laurenonizzle)

#Birthday

[mokouniverse]

Saturday Night Special

I was planning on having a low key weekend.  Movies, wine, P90X, and some healthy eats.  I was doing well until 6 pm hit on Saturday night. 

Little did I know that one of my favourite Toronto bloggers, Raymi the Minx, was turning 29 and celebrating down the street.  So I put on my party pants (dress) and slipped into my glass slippers (Frye boots) and headed out.  Since I was already out on the town Ravi and I decided to meet up with a friend at Hrvati Bar, a cute little Croatian bar just off of Bloor Street.  Kitchen was closed so we sipped on strange brews and headed back out.  Stomachs growling we scoured the city begging bartenders to feed us.  Dude at the Victory told me I shouldn't be eating so late at night.  Seriously?  After giving him a scowl we hopped into a cab to Toronto's most famous 24 hour diner, The Lakeview.  $3 mimosas, $4 pints, and veggie poutine.  Booya.

Looks like vomit but tastes like slop.

Just shy of last call I jumped into a cab to meet up with Casie and Lauren at the Cadillac Lounge for one last drink before heading to Raymi's birthday at Salvador Darling. 

Great tunes, old friends, new friends, balloons, toy scooters, disco balls, rocking horses, and a million cell phone pics (not one of me). 

Raymi you are a snowflake, beautiful and unique.  Happy 29th Birthday beautiful.

#Birthday #Toronto #Poutine

[mokouniverse]

Was handed a $5 off to Panego pizza down the street. Ordered the meat free pepperoni. Veggie bliss? YES!

#pizza #vegerarian #toronto #panego

[mokouniverse]

Sometimes I like to dress up when I play guitar.  It inspires me.

#Yoko #Guitar #Dress up

[mokouniverse]

Friday night fun with sparklers and a long exposure.

#Sparklers #Photography

[mokouniverse]

Kony 2012

"What is this Kony thing that's going around the Internet?" I asked Ravi earlier today.

I've been away from the Internet for over a week and have been catching up all day.  Browsed Facebook, flipped through Twitter, glanced at the dailys for a bit.  But it wasn't until I settled into the Tumblr dashboard did I begin to see a trend.  

The word "Kony" was plastered on every other tumblr blog post.  So I finally watched the video.  

KONY 2012 from INVISIBLE CHILDREN on Vimeo.

If you don't have 30 minutes to spare watching it right now then here's a quick synopsis:

Joseph Kony is a war criminal.  He abducts children, puts a gun in their hands, and turns them into child soldiers - after he forces them to kill their families.  The girls, after they are raped, are turned into sex slaves.  Over 30 000 children have been abducted.  The US is currently looking for him but he is difficult to find as he is invisible - no ones knows about him.  We have the power to make him visible.  Help Kony be the most famous name and face of 2012.  

http://www.kony2012.com/

#Kony #Kony 2012 #Invisible Children

[mokouniverse]

Home made Thai coffee with skull and cross bones ice cubes! My pre-yoga fuel

#thai #coffee #awesome

[mokouniverse]

Do As They Do In Key West

Woke up to birds chirping and hearing splashes from the hotel pool.  Jumped out of bed and ran downstairs after I realized I was 2 minutes late for the free hotel coffee and breakfast.  Loaded my arms with coffee, juice, and Key West baked goods and made my way back up to the room to surprise Ravi and Colin with tasty delights.  This was enough to kill off the residue from the previous night's escapades.

We decided to hit Duval Street, one of the most popular and famous streets of Key West.  In addition to Ernest Hemingway, Jimmy Buffet, and Tennessee Williams, Key West is known for its New Orleans-type culture.  Not that I've been to New Orleans but it appeared to have the same sort of architecture as many pictures of buildings and houses I've seen in New Orleans.  

Duval and surroundings streets are lined with shops, restaurants, and cafes.  It was easy to spend the entire day and night walking around this quaint town.  After resting up in the hotel and catching a bite to eat we were ready to hit the town again.  

Unfortunately it appeared that everyone in town was staying in that night.  Somewhat relieved after the previous night and long day of walking we made our way back to the hotel and crashed early.  

#Key West #Florida #Duval Street #Pelican #Hemingway #Tennessee Williams

[mokouniverse]

Sometimes You Need To Get Away

I've been gone awhile.  Have you noticed?  Needed to get away from cold weather, deadlines, traffic.  Hopped on a plane to Miami and met up with a friend at the airport.  Ravi and I were worried that he would have problems finding us so we made a little sign.

After meeting up with Dr. Sexi Tyme we hopped in a rental car and drove south a few hours to Key West.  KEY WEST!  Why have I not been here before?  Stayed in a small, boutique hotel in the heart of old Key West.  Bought beer and wine at the grocery store then spent a night out partying with locals, fellow visitors, and seasonal locals.  

A passerby on a bike bestowed this fantastic hat to me on our way to the bar.  I had to wear it until I found someone else who would agree to take it and wear it.

(Take note of the couple dancing on the right).

 It took a few hours but finally this gentleman stormed into the bar and begged for it so I said goodbye to the hat.

Being in the Florida Keys we had to sample some of the local fare.  Ravi researched the local drink and a round of Rum Rummers was soon ordered.  

I had no idea what was in this drink (other than rum).  About 1/12th into the drink I decided to order something else as the room grew foggier.  

I sipped mojitos for the rest of the night while schmoozing with the local talent and partying with Key West locals.

#Florida #Key West #Rum Runner #Vacation

[mokouniverse]

Veggie corn dogs! VEGGIE CORN DOGS!!!!!!!!

#vegetarian #food #yves #corn dogs #awesome

[mokouniverse]

Lying on the couch in my gym clothes reading the internet from cover to cover.  Despite the 4 cups of coffee pumping through my veins I can't gather the energy to get my slowly atrophying muscles to the gym.  But played this video with the speakers cranked and I've moved from a reclined to an upright position.  May this video energize and motivate you too.

[mokouniverse]

Kitty Potter.

#cat #kitty #caturday #harry potter

[mokouniverse]

Champers and Walker

It's been one week in the burbs and I'm surviving.  I even shovelled the snow this morning and chatted with the neighbours.  I'm totally fitting in here.  Kitty is also enjoying herself but refused to frolic in the snow today.

But unfortunately the liquor store is not within walking distance like at home...

...and we ran out of champers.

Yes, on a Friday night.  

And with the treacherous roads I was banned from driving to the LCBO.

No booze for Moko.  The horror.

So we decided to raid my BF's parents' liquor cabinet (keep in mind they are not big drinkers like my family).  

Came across a bottle of champers that may have been from the year they were married or conceived my BF or something.

It was so undrinkable it caused an instant headache.  I was very sad (very, very sad).

BF's Dad saved the day with some Johnnie Walker Double Black.

The Queens drink.

Wow.

See ya in a week.

#champagne #Johnnie Walker #Suburbs #Booze

[mokouniverse]

Outta the city for a bit.  I have been spending the past 8 days repairing, painting, moving, cleaning, stressing.  Bought a new loft last week with a really early closing date so felt rushed to list my current condo.  

Relaxing in the burbs with a giant slice of pizza and an even bigger glass of wine.  I'm gunna fill my gullet, sleep, and watch movies until Monday.  Planning on living here 'till my place sells.  Gimme a shout if you're looking for a kick-ass 2 bedroom condo in downtown Toronto.  In the meantime I'll be couching it.

#Condo #Toronto #Pizza #Wine #Suburbs

[mokouniverse]

I imagine that Courtney Love and Drew Barrymore used to party the way we do now.

CC: @raymitheminx @casiestewart