P-town Peach

Turkeylishious

2007-11-20T19:24:00.000-08:00

Y'all, this is so wrong. Have a great week!

Integrity

2007-11-18T16:15:00.000-08:00

Yeah, I slipped up a bit. Not so much out of weakness, but just pure forgetfulness, which I guess is kind of a weakness. I was at Starbucks ordering a drip coffee (not a Mocha as that is considered dessert) and right there in front of me sat a tray of samples of cranberry bliss bars, and I thought "yum, I like these" and before I knew it, doh! I just popped it in my mouth without even thinking, and I was not about to spit it out when I realized my error. I mean come on, there's blog challenges, and then there's Karen Carpenter behavior. So in the interest of integrity and (not quite) full disclosure, I have to reveal 1/8 of my before picture, since I ate about 1/8 of a dessert.

Hopefully it won't happen again, because I am really loathe to show any more.

Cat Man Do

2007-11-16T23:27:00.000-08:00

Please please please click on the Weekly Saccharin video to see it in full screen through YouTube- this is the best animation I've seen in a long time. The animators name is Simon Tofield (genius!), and I have never seen such a hysterically accurate depiction of a cats nature. I go through a similar routine with one of my cats nearly every morning (minus the baseball bat part).

Enjoy!

Cupcake Challenge: Day 3

2007-11-16T12:19:00.000-08:00

So far so good. I have resisted temptation at every turn, and have had to be a little creative in my circumvention. Last night for instance, I decided to eat some mandarin oranges (in their own juice, not syrup, cause that would be cheatin), but they weren't sweet enough, plus I was having a hard time eating them with the coffee stirrer (didn't have a fork) so I dumped them in a glass of diet sprite, and muddled them up a bit for a frothy, orangey treat. Probably sounds kinda gross, and would have been more fun with some alcohol, but gimmee a break, i was working with the limited resources of my hotel room.

Which brings me to the topic of exercise on the road. Not an easy thing. Especially if you despise treadmills like I do. In the milder months of the year, there's usually enough sunlight for me to run outside after I teach, but in the winter, I never see sunlight, and I'm not too crazy about running in the dark in a strange city or on a treadmill, so I have to be creative. And in lieu of running I will focus on strength training which I often times ignore when I'm at home. I have found a great resource for strength training pilates-type exercises on the Washington Post website. They've got tons of picture demos, for free! Kind of like having a virtual personal trainer. Many of these exercises you can do without equipment right on your hotel room floor (eww). Nice because the fitness centers at most 3 star and under hotels leave a lot to be desired.

So give it a shot! And I recommend one of those big balls for home workouts- they're a lot of fun (especially if you have cats...)

Yay Dr. Diane!

2007-11-15T12:32:00.000-08:00

Okay, I'm breakin my rule just this once...but it's for an important announcement...

So, thanks to everyone who sent out their smarty vibes - it worked! (and maybe with a little of her own smarts ;) She did it! What an awesome accomplishment. And I know how hard she worked for it.

So, as she says, cupcakes for all!

And that picture is about the closest I'm gonna get to a cupcake for awhile...

Dr. Di

2007-11-14T08:16:00.000-08:00

Just a quicky reminder that everyone needs to send out their smartest smarty pant vibes to Diane today as she defends her dissertation, the final rung towards her becoming the most insufferable academic ever (jk, love ya!).

I hope you knock the socks offa their asses, girl!!

The Cupcake Challenge

2007-11-13T12:33:00.000-08:00

Alrighty, so I was checkin in on one of my new favorite girl blogs, and was reading about this challenge, where dessert will be eaten only once a week until January (holidays being the exception thank god), to help get the "sugar monkey" off her back. I've been needing just this type of challenge since I've gotten a little sloppy lately with my points. My Google calendar where I record my foods has been kinda spotty lately. And this past weekend I managed to eat not just pizza (four huge drippin slices), but chocolate cookies, brownies, AND peach cobbler (that I made for a pot luck...why do I do these things?). Now, I was on my bike all weekend, both days, riding for several hours (serious riding too, not just toolin around), so I just managed to negate the good I did by eating every last calorie (and perhaps more) that I burned. While the scale hasn't budged up, it also hasn't budged down, which is what I need it to do dammit! So, I am going for the challenge myself to rid myself of the evil Cupcake of Doom.

And if I fail, I will post a really scary "before" picture of myself. You thought this was scary, well, it ain't nothin compared to the one I will post.

If you're concerned about my honesty, well, you're just gonna have to trust me to hold myself accountable. Because after all, this is about me, and not about y'all. And you can count on B to help with the policing, since it's usually his fault when I transgress (hmm...that might piss him off enough to finally comment here).

I'm considering any sugary treat a dessert, and that includes my staple 100 calorie packs. The only sweet goodness I'm allowed outside the once a week is fruit and sugar-free, because like one commenter posted over at the Fitness Fixation blog, "If it makes you poop, it ain't dessert".

Words to live by.

Cupcake Free Zone

2007-11-09T14:20:00.001-08:00

From this point forward, cupcakes are banned from this blog.There will be no posting or commenting about cupcakes, cupcake-likes, cream cheese frosting on red velvet cupcakes, chocolate filled cupcakes, moist white cake cupcakes with vanilla frosting, mango cupcakes, or even splenda cupcakes.

Cupcakes are the enemy.

Super Shuttle Chronicles: Part 2

2007-11-09T13:33:00.000-08:00

I will never, ever, ever again take a Super Shuttle. You may remember my last experience with this sucky suck ass company. You would think I had learned my lesson, but nooooo.

I was trying to save the company a few bucks when I was in Houston by not taking a $90 taxi ride to my hotel, and instead got on the bus for $28. Stupid! I landing in Houston at 6:30 pm hungry and tired, ready to eat dinner and kick back and watch hotel tv. I waited an hour for the shuttle, then when it finally showed up, I squished in with 9 other passengers whose hotels were scattered all across Houston, and as you probably already know, Houston's sprawled out from like Louisiana to Nevada (it is really obscene). Evidently, their computer system that helps to plan efficient routes was down, so our driver took us on a grand tour of the city from north to south, east to west, and back east again, and oops-I-forgot-someone! back west again. And meanwhile, as I'm crammed in some guys armpit, the driver has switched off the basketball game on the radio and turned on gospel. And I'm not talkin about down-south-raise-the-roof-hallelujah kind of gospel (which I like), but rather Whitney Houston/Celine Dion-style Diva gospel, which frankly...sucks. And it was loud too.

So to entertain myself and prevent "the message" from brainwashing me :), I tried to come up with new curse word combos. Boy, this makes the time fly! Just start with some everyday, generic kinds of words like stick, chop, toe, worm, and mix with curse words. After awhile you will have some real winners. The one that nearly had me pee was "ass biscuit".

This was fun until my concentration was broken by the cranky old lady sitting in front of me who started complaining (in this really annoying whiny Seinfeld character accent) about how she's always the last person on the bus, so to shut her up, the driver changed course (away from my hotel), and dropped her old mothball smelling butt off first. So I was the last person to be dropped off, two hours later, at 9:30 pm, with no restaurants nearby but Denny's and McHeartAttack. So I chose the lesser of two evils, and ate about two bites of semi-edible tilapia, and corn/mash potatoes, and called it a night.

Anyway, let this be a lesson to me. Three hours of my life is worth more than the fifty bucks I saved. Especially if I can expense it.

Kids, cover your eyes...

2007-11-09T11:13:00.001-08:00

B just emailed this to me from the Portland Mercury- it is titled "Worst...Tattoo... Ever."

I'll never be the same again.

Sicko

2007-11-06T17:59:00.000-08:00

I think I've gone and done got sick. So this is gonna be a lamo post because I didn't do anything interesting today, nor did I have any interesting thoughts, except maybe my idea for cupcake pans. I would like to invent some that have the cups a little shorter and maybe a little wider, because what normal human being can get their mouth around both the cake part AND the frosting part without getting frosting all aver their face? You can't do it! (I tried) So, I think I will develop a prototype for the "Squatcake", and make a million on QVC. Any potential investors?

And the picture below is absolutely apropos of nothing, I just think it's funny.

New York Wants to Marry Portland

2007-11-05T19:24:00.000-08:00

The most emailed article right now in the NY Times is about Portland's bike culture. And this is like the third or fourth article this year in the NY Times singing the praises of my new home. Which tickles me on the one hand, but on the other, I'm like "stop telling people how great it is here! It's near impossible as it is right now for anyone of modest means to buy a house in Portland, so shut up already, stop writing things that make people want to live here! The gates are now closed!"

Funny coming from someone who's only been here a year and half, huh? Which just goes to show ya how amazing this place is; people quickly become really attached to this place and possessive- like jealous lovers. Think how the native Portlanders feel. I think I've only met one or two since I've been here. Everyone else is from the Midwest.

Well, for those of you who are considering moving here, as far as I'm concerned, you're welcome here with open arms... if you don't mind that it gets dark at 3:30, or drizzly weather for 8 months out of the year. Don't worry, you'll probably get used to it. If not, you'll just want to hang yourself. Because nobody actually leaves their house in the winter. We just cozy up underneath a big warm quilt and read Moby Dick (doesn't that just sound delicious!). When we do venture out, it's only to canvass for some political cause, like the rights of the sea cucumber, all gussied up in our galoshes and rain hats. Or if it's a special occasion, we might go to a poetry reading! Or make a big batch of potato soup and invite our friends over for a game of Scrabble!

Sounds great, doesn't it? Come on out! And bring your D&D dice with you! There's plenty of room for all of us.

Yay for Girlz!!

2007-11-04T15:18:00.000-08:00

Used without permission from the New York Times...please don't sue me :)

Aren't they just glorious? Those three were the top finishers of the New York City marathon, and I am so incredibly inspired. Would ya look at them gams?!

So I ran my 7 miles yesterday, and it was not easy. I had to walk a few times, although I didn't walk for long- 30 seconds to a minute at most. And boy, later last night after I'd settled on the couch for a movie (Chariots of Fire, appropriately enough, which I had never seen before...and how cheesy!), my legs were so sore! I had to struggle to get off the couch and to bed. It's been a long time since I've been that sore. Which I guess means I really needed that to get out of the running rut I've been in.

This morning I went to a restorative yoga class that was almost as good as a massage, so now my legs don't feel like the Tin Man's after a rain. But I really should have a massage once in a while. I've heard from so many people that it's almost a necessity for runners. But it just seems like such a luxury. I guess since I'm making a grown-up salary now I can afford one every once in a while, but still.

Anyway, you may notice that I'll be posting more nonsense with more frequency this month since it's NaBloPoMo (National Blog Posting Month), and while it's too late for me to sign myself up for the challenge of one post per day for the month (plus y'all know I'm just too lazy), I will try to post a lot more than usual. So prepare yourselves for the onslaught of mediocre triviality! I promise to keep you in the titillating loop of my ongoing search for love (of cupcakes), my herculean journey as an aspiring "athlete", and my riveting quest for the perfect mixed metaphor (so far, 'blowing smoke up my sleeve' is a potential contender). So, stick around my friends, and prepare yourself for....

Ryan Shay

2007-11-03T14:22:00.001-07:00

I was in the running store this morning, where they had the US Marathon Olympic trials on tv, and as we were watching, the announcer on tv mentioned how odd it was Ryan Shay stepped off the course after 5.5 miles. I didn't stick around to watch what happened, because I had my own run to do, but when I got back home from my run, I find out the poor guy died. How does this happen? I don't understand why people in apparent perfect health just drop dead during these races. What the hell? What a goddamn tragedy.

Cranky Pants

2007-11-03T09:21:00.000-07:00

I don't know what happened to me. I used to be a friendly, patient, tolerant person. At least so I thought. Yeah, not so much anymore. I've turned into a cranky, don't-touch-me!, old lady. I am frighteningly close to becoming a crazy cat lady hermit. How did this happen?

I think it started when I worked as a bartender, and I routinely saw the worst in people. Alcohol does really ugly things to our personalities, even when we think we're the most charming thing since Cary Grant. Trust me, from a bartenders perspective (a sober one that is), you are not charming. You are a slobbering, babbling child. And after a while, the only way to cope with these children is to join them in their drunken bubble. Which is what I did. Then I snapped out of it and got the hell out of that damn bubble. Now, I admit, it was the most fun job I ever had, and I met some fantastic people, made some lifelong friends, but it did help to tarnish my previously naive shiny perception of people. Part of it might just be growing older and less tolerant of irritating people, but wherever it came from isn't so much the point now. I gotta figure out how to get up with people again.

I've been thinking about this a lot lately because of my travel. I think I have disproportionate reactions to the annoying habits of complete strangers. Take last night for example; I was sitting at the gate in the Austin airport waiting for my plane to board, and a few seats down from me there was a gentleman who was breathing too loud. He did not appear to be sick, disabled, or obese, or anything like that, he just made too much noise when he breathed. But it was so annoying to me that I actually got up and moved to another seat. It wasn't like he was snoring loud or doing that really-annoying-snot-clearing-in-the-back-of-the-throat thing. He was just breathing for fucks sake!

I also get squirrelly on the plane when my seat mate's elbow touches me. And when someone stands too close behind me in line. Or when on the moving sidewalk, people who are clearly capable of walking, stand and don't walk. Is walking really that exhausting!? It's a moving sideWALK people! Shit! Move the fuck out of my goddamn way!

See what I mean? I'm a total Miss Cranky Pants.

Maybe it's a sign that I need a break from all this traveling and being around people. Maybe I should go stay at one of those monk retreats for awhile. Maybe I just need a vacation from airports and hotels.

Or maybe I should just get the fuck over myself and remember that I am not perfect either, and try to be more like Jesus or Buddha. It's so hard though! People are such a pain in the ass.

I just noticed that I used "fuck" and "Jesus" and "Buddha" in the same sentence, so in one fell swoop, I probably managed to offend most everyone, plus I am SO going to hell.

*********

Anyway, thought I'd just get that off my chest. In the meantime, to help me deal with my crankypants mood, I'm going on a seven mile run today as a kick in the pants, since I've hit a bit of a running plateau. I've gotten into a kind of comfortable groove of running four milers a few times a week, with a six miler as my long run. I haven't gone beyond six miles in part cause I'm skeered, but also because I took the half marathon off the schedule for Thanksgiving, and I haven't actually decided on a replacement, so I'm not actively training for one right now. I was considering Austin, but my schedule isn't looking good for that race. I may do one in May/June instead, and maybe I can convince my siblings and stepmom to run one with me. I know my sister will be itchin to work off the whole two pounds of her bebeh weight. And maybe Erin and Katy will be ready by next year to run that distance...(whatchoo think missies? :)

No major bike plans for the weekend. I opted out of a bike camping trip this weekend with ECT because they're goin all primitive and shit to the hot springs (damn!), since I'm more of a girly kinda camper. But I will probably go for a ride by myself tomorrow.

And as far as eatin news, I had some good eats in Austin this week, including two cupcakes (i totally get the craze now), but no BBQ or Tex-Mex. I know, it's a crime, but it just didn't work out this time.

And now that I'm back in my hood, I am anxious after my run to hit a newly opened bagel shop nearby that apparently makes real New York bagels (like boiled, ya know). Like BBQ, it is very dificult to find good bagels here in Portland, so I can't wait to find out if these are the bagels I've been missing. Hopefully it won't be necessary after all to open up my bagel joint, which I was planning to call Shiksas Bagels, but I'll let you know after I try one of theirs...

Hot for Teacher

2007-10-27T09:29:00.001-07:00

How bout another blast from the kinda scary past?

So, I seem to have just crossed some kind of attractiveness threshold, because after a bit of a dry spell regarding getting hit on, I got a double whammy this week. First, one of my students in his evaluation wrote that the best part of the class was that "teacher was hot". WTF? When I read that, I actually turned around to make sure there wasn't some other teacher standing behind me. That's just not an adjective I hear very often when people describe me. And yes, he was pretty hot too. Unfortunate that he lives in Phoenix. So that was a total ego boost. And then the shuttle driver from my hotel hit on me! He wanted to know if I'd go out with him when he comes to Portland to see a basketball game next month! Not gonna happen, cause he's too young, but still. Wow. Been a while since I've been hit on. So I may not be as far as I thought from JBB status....

Totally cool.

The Incredible Shrinking Woman

2007-10-24T19:06:00.000-07:00

Check out her snazzy shoes!

Does that picture date me? You know, that movie was supposed to be a comedy, but it actually kind of scared me. Why do you suppose? Maybe because I was like 10 years old?

Anyway, I'm feelin a little like ol' Lily lately what with the pounds droppin like flies (I know, not the most appropriate use of that metaphor), and family members calling me worried that I'm losing too fast, will lose too much, etc. It's kind of a funny thing I've become aware of recently; when someone you have known for a long time looks a particular way (i.e., fat) and then changes (seemingly) drastically (i.e., loses weight), you think (and sometimes vocalize) concern that they're going to fast, not eating enough, look sickly, blah, blah, blah. Especially if we don't see that person regularly because maybe they live in another state... So, just to reassure everyone who might be concerned about that, I'm losing on average less than 2 pounds per week, which is considered healthy. And I am still considered overweight with a BMI of 25.4. The .4 is what stands between me and a "healthy weight". I am kinda secretly tickled though, because it means it's working! And it hasn't been that hard! I have learned to eat like a thirty something woman, and not like a teenage boy, and have finally gotten to the point where near daily exercise isn't a chore anymore, but rather a "let's see how far you can run today" kinda thing, which I never thought possible. And that's how it's supposed to work folks- it's not supposed to be a great sacrifice or burden- although the first few weeks of eliminating bad habits and starting healthy ones can be a little rough. So for those of you trying to lose weight, exercise more, whatever, try to make healthier decisions 90 percent of the time, and fergodsakes don't beat yourselves up for the 10 percent of non-healthy choices. Shit, you guys have read here about my bad choices, and I'm still able to get that number to slide downwards.

A lot of people have been asking what my goal is, and I usually respond with "my drivers license weight", but since that was what I weighed when I first got my license (yes, at 16) that may not be the ideal weight for me at thirty-something. So I've been trying to decide a non-poundage measure that will signify the end, and I'm torn between when I reach a size 6 (almost as arbitrary as weight), when I look like a James Bond babe (JBB), and when I stop shouting "My thighs are so fucking fat!" in the shower. It's a toss-up.

So, that's the last I'll bore you with such an indulgently self-absorbed "Self" magazine post about my weight issues for awhile (at least until next week), and instead I'll write about more high-minded things...pffthttt!!! Yeah, right. You can go read the New York Times for that kinda schwag.

So, until next time...

p.s., check out the new kitties --------------------->

Piroshkys, Donuts, and Bike Moves

2007-10-22T10:51:00.000-07:00

Whew! That was quite the fun-filled weekend.

I was teaching in Seattle this week and got to visit the girls (Di and Laura) who have just moved up there. So on Friday after class I got to see their new house, and we had a blast catching up, drinking wine, and of course, eating. Laura is such a good cook. I don't know how she does it, but she keeps it super simple, and everything comes out fantastic. I try to keep it simple, and it comes out bland and boring. That's why I add garlic and red pepper flakes to everything- your mouth is on such fire that you don't notice that there is not a whole lot of "seasoning" beyond that.

Anyway, the next morning we met at Pike Place Market which is totally fun. I don't care if the locals scoff that it's too touristy (which it is), there is just so much good food crammed into a relatively small area. I ate my way through the market starting with coffee at the original Starbucks, stopping to toss a few bills into a busker's guitar case (they were a little bluegrassy band with washboard and hounddogs who let me scratch their bellies - the dogs, not the buskers), next moving on to Piroshky Piroshky for a beef and onion pastery (don't even want to guess how many points), then to the fish guys for my first taste of smoked salmon (pretty good, except tasted too bacony- I know for some, this is just not possible), then met up with the girls, and followed them to the tiny donut stand where they fry the little donuts in front of you and toss them into a bag with cinnamon or powdered sugar. I have a history with these devil donuts. I wish I'd never heard about them, but what can you do? (If you're trying to figure out how many points I've so far consumed, I think somewhere north of 50 would be a safe bet- but the day's not over yet)

For the drive home (as if I hadn't eaten enough), I picked up a loaf of bread from the French bakery and then bought some cheese from the cheesery (?)- a cheddar gruyere creation - as well as some big fat black grapes. Oh, almost forgot- I also bought some mini lemon pasteries from the French bakery place. Crap, they were good.

But the weekend was not all about eating- there was a tiny bit of exercise. Yesterday B and I participated in another bike move- this time helping move one of the guys who was on the bike camping trip. There were about eighteen people who showed up, and I made some new friends, had lots of laughs, hard lemonade, and pizza. Ugh. Anyway, on the way to the bike move, two kittens ran out from their yard to greet us (apparently not frightened by bikes), and proceeded to jump into B's trailer and play! Check out the pics below...

They were so precious, and I was tempted to take them home...(Also, notice how slim B looks!)

Here's about half the group at the intersection of a very busy boulevard waiting for the light to change. Surprisingly, no drivers honked at us, but we did get a lot of people grinning and rolling down their windows asking what was going on. I think everyone was so nice cause it was a Sunday and after church...

That's me looking very cold next to the bike with the crazy yellow floaties.

This was the guy we were moving and he hauled that giant chest of drawers on his bike. (The rest of that sign is "...Engine" and notice the "Diesel" crossed out)

Now, I'm dealing with a cold this week, so I haven't run but once the whole week, so I wasn't exactly surprised to see that I gained two pounds this week. But I'm okay with that, because for the next few weeks, I'll go back to trying to stay within my points limits, get back on my running schedule, and will probably lose a few more pounds before Thanksgiving, which I will promptly regain and lose again before Xmas. As long as the overall trend line is heading down, a few little bumps don't really worry me.

Today I'm planning to crock pot a Chicken Chili Verde stew and bake low-fat corn muffins (I'll post recipes if they turn out) to accompany my first Spanish lesson using this new software I got. I am considering going on a bike tour of the Iberian peninsula next year with some folks, and since I already have a background in Spanish (plus a sister in law who is Columbian), I thought I'd work on becoming fluent in Spanish. And then after that, Swahili!

Jambo friends!

Isn't She Purty?

2007-10-20T18:23:00.000-07:00

Meet my new niece, Layne! Isn't she a little supermodel? My sister Megan popped her out last week all natural like (crazy one, she is). Okay, "popped out" is not exactly accurate, it actually took about 50 hours of labor (after Layne decided she wanted to come out about 18 days early- she just couldn't wait!), but everything went swimmingly.

Congratulations you guys- what an amazing thing you've done!

Now I really need to organize the baby pic folder on my computer named "Babies".... so many babies!

This is More Like It

2007-10-15T08:11:00.000-07:00

Why bother about dating when there's Bike Camping to do!

This weekend I loaded up the Blue Tortoise (just now came up with that one off the top o' my ass) and followed a diverse group of bike fans called Exchange Cycle Tours about 40 miles up to Ariel, Washington to participate in a potlatch hosted by the Lelooska Foundation. It was so much fun! We met Saturday morning with our bikes all loaded up for an overnight of camping, which I'm now a little more comfortable with since I've got one trip under the belt (or chain!). There were nine of us, and I'd previously met half before on other rides, but most of us didn't know each other well.We arrived at our campsite late Saturday afternoon after a fairly smooth ride (with the exception of a few flat tires and brake issues), worn out, but excited to see the show, so after setting our tents up and cleaning up a bit, we rode uphill for about 5 miles (yeesh...with the hills already) and got to the place just in time to get seated and watch the show. It was a beautiful show featuring the stories, dances, and masks of the coastal Pacific Northwest tribes. I now have a much greater appreciation of the cultural significance of masks, where previously they never held much meaning for me. But for so many other cultures, the masks and accompanying music and dances is to them like what TV is for us. Sad, but well, there you go. After the show we were starving since we hadn't had time to eat dinner, and must have looked pretty pathetic, because we managed to get ourselves invited to join the performers for a feast. We had wonderful conversations with the members of the Lelooska family- it was a true cultural exchange.

The next morning back at camp, we had hot chocolate, coffee, and jo-jo's! (fried potato wedges for you southerners) around the fire and had pretty intense conversation about the world.

Two of the ECT members are from China, and one is from India, plus we seemed to have different regions of the US represented, so it was fascinating to discuss world events with people from such diverse cultural heritages. I think we all learned quite a bit from this "breaking of the bread", and while we didn't quite bring about world peace, all nine of us at least now have a better understanding of each other and by extension, the world, from the stories we each told. And that, plus love, my friends is all you really need.
Okay, and some snazzy shoes too!

I Hate Dating

2007-10-08T17:58:00.000-07:00

Okay, Megan. Not nice to make a pregnant woman wait. But there's not too much to tell from the big date. Nice guy, funny, was excommunicated from the Catholic Church, hates Bush, likes animals...wait a minute...excommunicated? Yeah, he actually wrote letters to the Bishop of the parish where he was baptized several times to convince them that he was an atheist, so that they would excommunicate him. Which I found to be really fucking funny. Especially since I myself am a recovering Catholic. I didn't know that you are still counted as a member of the church if you've been baptized (so what the hell is Confimration for?) unless you're officially excommunicated. If it wasn't such a hassle, I'd totally do it myself. Funny that it's actually hard to be excommunicated. Kinda like the Mafia I guess. "They just keep pullin me back in!"

Anyway, guy was fine, but no chemistry, and I had dreaded the date so much that I've decided to take a hiatus from dating for awhile. What? But you just started! But I don't want to do it! (said in my best whiniest I'm-such-a-baby-voice) Really. Not only does the thought of going out with another Match person make me want to poke a pencil in my eye, but I actually decided that I should probably meet some girl friends first, so that when my date goes terribly wrong, and he turns out to be a republican who loves four-wheelin in his Chevy, I can go have drinks with one of my gal pals and commiserate. So where is the Match for pals? I was actually looking at the girl portraits on the website and saw many girls that I have a lot in common with. But, probably not the best forum to email one of them with a proposal of friendship. Might creep 'em out actually.

There are actually lots of good opportunities to make pals here; I just need to get out of the damn house to find those opportunities. I'm waiting a bit longer for the running club (won't meet many people at the back of the pack, plus talking while running is still quite a challenge for me), but there is the Church of Craft, a monthly Sunday meet-up of those who worship DIY craftiness (yup, this town is full of nuttiness!). And I just met the 'minister' of said church (who happens to be a real-life minister too!) at a craft swap meet this past weekend, and she was very warm and friendly. There's also my kickboxing class, but to meet people there, I actually have to show up for class once in a while.

So, I hate that I am denying the three of you the juicy entertainment of my latest in dating disasters, but it's only a temporary hiatus, I promise. Like my mother drives me to drink, so will she drive me to date...and drink more. (Good thing she's got a sense of humor!)

By the way, he asked me out again after our date, I told him I'd love to meet him again (because he was a perfectly nice guy, and I didn't want to say no), then I was so nauseous about going on another date, that I emailed him and canceled. I'm such a dillhole.

(Y'all can thank Erin for the new Word of the Day!)

Even better than Puppies...

2007-10-02T14:47:00.001-07:00

Walk around town with a popcorn maker under your arm, and you will meet people. Really!

Yesterday I was out and about running errands, and popped into this little shop that sells vintage kitcheny things, and found one of those old UFO-lookin popcorn makers that I remember using as a kid. You know the ones with the big yellow plastic tops? Yeah, well, I got one! Cause I hate microwave popcorn (unless it's the Orville low fat kettle corn), and I'm tired of burning it on my stovetop.

Anyway, I tucked my new purchase not so gracefully under my arm and proceeded down the street to run a few more errands, like picking up a book recommended by a new friend! (calm down there- not a guy, but a girl), and finding a cat food bowl placemat- I know, thrilling! So as I was shopping, I had at least 5 different people comment about my popcorn maker. One asked where I got it, another said (to his girlfriend unfortunately) "look! a popcorn maker!" like it was a UFO. And one girl asked me what it was! I guess she was probably too young to know that there was a time before microwaves. So I struck up a few conversations because of a stupid appliance. What an icebreaker, huh?

So that's really the most interesting thing that's happened to me since I posted last.

Well, I guess I did go to Hawaii. That was pretty cool. (My job really blows ya know). I drove up to the North Shore of Oahu and ate garlic shrimp from a roadside truck, and watched surfers. Dude!

Then I went to the Big Island and hiked in a volcano (it was raining, which is why my hair looks like a squirrels nest). Neato. But not really blog-worthy, you know? And after Hawaii, I flew to Des Moines. And the only interesting thing about Des Moines is that Bill Bryson comes from there. As he says, "Somebody had to".

Then, I made a new friend here in Portland. She likes to read and talk about books and drink bloody mary's. Excellent.

I promise things will get more interesting in the next few weeks. I've got a date tomorrow, and am going bike camping up to Washington next weekend to see an Indian show. That should be really cool. And I'll tell you all about it.

Matchmaking

2007-09-16T09:27:00.000-07:00

Now that I'm officially single, I've been perusing some of the online dating sites; just browsing the aisles, checkin out what kinds of fish are out there. So I began creating a profile on one of the sites with the intention of posting it officially in a few months. You are supposed to post photos of yourself and just for fun I uploaded this one above until I could get a better picture taken. This one was taken at a historic firehouse museum I visited during a Small Museum tour of Portland by bike, it's one of those big cutouts that you stick your face in. I just picked this one because it's so dumb- I didn't actually intend to use this as my official photo, more like a private joke with myself.

So anyway, I happened to go by the site last night to browse the bachelors and I noticed a message on the page that said I had a wink! A 'wink' is what you can send for free to someone to express interest, so this took me a bit by surprise since I didn't realize anyone could see my portrait yet. And then it dawned on me that they saw the stupid fireman picture! And still winked at me! Oh holy crap!

Well, let's just say I've begun corresponding with the 'winker', and have paid my fees to the site, so now I guess I am officially back 'on the market'. So this should be interesting for the four of you who read my posts- you know I'm going to have some interesting adventures (and of course misadventures) to report. So stay tuned...

Almost an Athlete

2007-09-10T08:05:00.000-07:00

BP = 113/75 Pulse = 55

Those beautiful numbers are my blood pressure today. I've been off my bp medicine for weeks now and it looks like she's holdin steady. And my doctor said I'd be on medicine for the rest of my life...pffftt. Eat your heart out doc!

My resting pulse is what really gets me though- a year ago my resting pulse was typically in the 80's and 90's, but now I've got a pulse closer to an athlete's pulse. So you know what that means?

I'm almost an athlete!

Athlete or even athletic is one of those descriptors I never thought I would use for myself, kinda like Astronaut, Philanthropist, Transvestite, etc., but here I am 20 years later after nearly failing the Presidential Fitness Test (passed only because of sympathetic gym teacher), and am almost an athlete. I'm not sure when or if I'll ever be comfortable enough to describe myself as such, maybe when I can finally do a pull-up, or maybe when I run a half-marathon, but I'll always probably think if myself as geeky bookworm with crafty proclivities who also happens to run. Not that it's important how we or others decide to label ourselves, but one of the most important things I learned in that transition from adolescence to adulthood (i.e., the 20's) was that it is what we do that defines who we are, not what we think we are or what we hope to be.

So if you run, you are a runner. If you make art, you are an artist. You don't have to be a particularly good artist to be considered one (think Jackson Pollock), nor do you have to be an elite or fast runner to be called a runner (and the term 'jogger' is so 1980's, so lets banish that term immediately).

Even if you go out for a 6 mile run, and only manage 5 miles (1 mile of which is walked) because you feel like such crap, and you come home and throw your shoe at the wall because you're so disgusted, you are still a runner. Sigh.

Ripping the Band-Aid

2007-09-05T09:06:00.000-07:00

Well, B and Possum have finally moved out. After breaking up more than 6 months ago, we are now officially broken up. The reason it took so long is that we've got one of those weird relationships that was always more like a friendship than anything, and a very close friendship at that. We were one of those couples that could always finish the other's sentence, we never fought, and it was just really easy. So why did we break up? It was mainly about kids. I had decided that I would eventually like to start a family, whereas B decided that he has no interest in kids, so we knew then that we weren't the perfect match like we had previously thought. So, we decided to stay tight friends, and we thought we could continue to be roomies for awhile (since we don't know many people here), but we both would like to start dating again (okay, I'm not really looking forward to it, but it's gonna have to happen soon), and after long consideration and lots of advice from family and friends (and repeated phone calls from Mom), we decided to rip the band-aid.

We're still going to be close friends and riding buddies, so I'm not too sad about breaking up. But I am very sad about Possum. That's the worst part about it, you know? Oh well, cats always seem to come and go in my life, just like....well, you know. In the meantime, I've got the two old biddies to keep me company. They're not as much fun as Possum, but well, I can't exactly trade them in. (I tease!)

Stupid Brie

2007-09-03T20:09:00.000-07:00

No loss this week.

(it was totally worth it)

Labor Day Weekend

2007-09-02T18:06:00.000-07:00

Hey y'all, I sure have been busy this holiday weekend, laboring my way around Mt. Saint Helens (click on picture for more), and running an 8K race!

Friday we went for a hike around the famous volcano, and what a sight! The landscape is breathtaking for both its beauty and the absolute devastation. Twenty seven years later most of the north side still looks much like a lunar landscape, but vegetation is beginning to colonize, with the wildflowers the most dramatic; bright orange indian paintbrush and purple foxgloves (don't you just love that name?) against a backdrop of ashy grays. The trail we took was pretty quiet, and not too challenging, at least that's what I thought until the next day when I could hardly stand my calves were so sore. Great. And I've got a race to run.

After the hike we were planning on eating all our newly earned activity points at a steak joint, so we pulled very hungry into this place that advertised steaks, only to find a not-friendly-smokey-drunk-redneck type of place, so we get back in the car in search of another steak joint. But as we soon discovered, looking for restaurants in small towns while starving does not make for judicious dining decisions, so we ended up at Burgerville, where I ate...guess what? You got it, a burger. And onion rings....and a blackberry milkshake (only half of a small!). But, fear not, I was still within my weekly points range, so despite the greasefest, I didn't completely blow it.

This morning the fun continued as I ran the 5 mile portion of the Champoeg Half Marathon event in beautiful pastoral countryside. It was a pretty small race with what looked like less than 200 people, and only about 20 running the 5 mile. Which worried me a bit, because I was afraid I'd be last, but alas, I was probably about 12th or so, and I PR'd! I ran a 10.5 minute mile! Okay, not so very fast for most runners, actually considered a bit pokey, but for me, and other newbies like me, a very good time. I'm especially surprised because I had seriously damaged my calves hiking on Friday. I wonder if it's the hill workouts I've incorporated lately... I read an article recently that recommended hill repeats to improve speed. Not very much fun, but perhaps it pays off...

Anyway, I got my first medal (!) and of course the t-shirt, and a nice glowy feeling that took me all the way to the Nike outlet store for a new outfit as my reward. I'm actually wearing real running shorts after a year of baggy cutoff gym pants and old soccer shorts, and what a difference it makes. No more of the embarrassing 'crotch gather' and subsequent 'butt-pick'. I decided that I don't care if my legs are still a little on the jiggledy-wiggly side, I want to run and not think about my damn clothes.

So the weigh-in is tomorrow, and I'll let you know what happens, but don't expect too much because despite all the activity, this was a week of serious food debauchery. Next week shouldn't be too bad since I'm at home most of the week, with one day out by the airport in Albany *shudder*, so not too worried about temptations.

Dining Dilemma

2007-08-28T19:20:00.000-07:00

Okay, so I'm in San Diego, I have 16 points left for dinner, and right around the corner from my hotel is a restaurant one of my students recommended highly- especially for their Pipian crusted brie (what the hell is a pipian?) with jalapeno jelly, honey roasted garlic, grilled nopales, and scallion flatbread. CRAP! Plus, they apparently have really good creme brulee, which is like my kryptonite. I think I may have to just live a little and use the rest of my weekly points in one shot. I hate using them up before the weekend (I've been using them towards a small oreo blizzard on Sundays), but when's the next time I get to dine in a fabulous restaurant in San Diego on the company's dime? Believe it or not, I rarely get to eat this well in other cities. These last few weeks in California have been such a treat, and I've been eating well, and still losing, so to hell with it! I'm totally gonna eat cheese and creme brulee!

I knew you all would understand, so thanks for your support.

6 Miles, Take 2!

2007-08-26T09:51:00.000-07:00

It's been a whopping 4 months since I last ran 6 miles, but this morning I did it again (for those of you who measure your runs in feline sightings, it was a 12 cat run!). As you may remember, I don't tend to do well in the morning, but I was up at 6 this morning since B was on his way to ride the Portland Century (100 miles!). So I ate a Clif bar (blueberry crisp flavor...my new addiction), drank two cups of coffee, a big glass of water, and at 8 was out the door in my cute new spiffy green Oregon Ducks shorts (hey, you gotta look cute, ya know). Well, I think I hit upon a winning strategy for morning runs, because I felt great, and only stopped twice to walk briefly (for one minute). It must have been the Clif bar, because when I've run on just coffee, I tend to feel a little nauseous. And the key was to wait until the Clif bar left my tummy and do my....well, you know...business.

I'm still counting points and still losing steadily- another two pounds for last week. I had to wear a diaper pin to hold up my suit pants this past week (ladies suit pants rarely have belt loops- what's up with that?) Since I was in San Francisco this week (one of my favorite cities to teach in), I had saved up my weekly point allowance (35) for the trip, and boy did I have fun using them! I ate mini donuts on Pier 39 (holy crap, those should be outlawed), sourdough bread, and all sorts of chocolate. Totally worth it. I burned off quite a few points running along the Embarcadero, which is so much fun! Good people watching there. I felt like such a schlup though compared to all the foxy gals that look like they popped out of Vogue. I should really get my eyebrows waxed...

So this week I'm off to San Diego, which should have some good running spots. My hotel is right next to the harbor, so maybe I can run and look at boats!

How much does my gas weigh?

2007-08-20T13:19:00.000-07:00

Seriously though, I'm amazed that I go to bed one weight and in the morning, I've lost 5 pounds! Apparently it has everything to do with water retention, but that still baffles me; I know I didn't pee 5 pounds worth of water last night. Whatever. I'm pretty sure it's because yesterday I made a concerted effort to drink more water than usual (funny how in order to lose the water weight, you have to drink more water, I think it's something to do with cell osmosis, or somethin...), which seems to have done the trick today, for I am down another couple of pounds. Excellent...

I'm astounded though cause recently I seem to have crossed some clothing size threshold even though I haven't lost that many pounds, and I'm now a comfortable (maybe even a bit loose) size 12. Yesterday I went to Nordstrom Rack (the outlet store for all the pootzy last season clothes) and bought some new threads, including a cute Ann Taylor suit for under 100.00, and I practically hooted with joy in the dressing room as I tried it on. Not something I would normally do in a dressing room. Weep, perhaps, but not hoot.

So, today I decided to go through clothes in my own closet (shudder) and see what treasures I could find that haven't seen the light for several years. Let me tell you: I can now fit into every single article in that closet (except for one anthropologie dress that was purchased way too small because it was on sale and so cute) , even some of my Star Bar days vintage dresses that, I don't care what Stacey and Clinton say, I will not get rid of. Yippee!!!!

So I guess countin' points is workin. By the way, B lost three more this week, so we're pretty stoked. Here is a lunchtime favorite I've been making when I'm in town and a sandwich doesn't sound appealing (I've included point values for WW folks that might stumble in here):

7 Point Lavash Pepperoni Pizza
This is a single serving extra thin cracker-crust pizza- great when craving a 'bad' pizza

1/2 Trader Joe's lavash (2 pt) sprayed lightly with olive oil and broiled until starts to turn brown.
Flip lavash upside down (oil side down- this helps keep it firm rather than soggy)
Thinly spread favorite tomato sauce (I like Newman's Own Sockarooni - 1 pt)
Add turkey pepperoni (and/or whatever veggies you like- 10 slices of the pepperoni is 2 pt. I add garlic, red pepper flakes, and onions)
Sprinkle 1/4 cup of 2% mozzerella cheese (2 pt- if you like a bit more, add 1 more pt)
Place under broiler until cheese is bubbly and beginning to brown.
Enjoy!

Hobo Cats

2007-08-17T23:08:00.000-07:00

Oh. My. God. My two favorite topics, hobos and cats, have a cartoon. I found this link from my favorite website EVER. Why didn't I know about this sooner!?

The Laugh-Out-Loud Cats.

This is even better than the Mutts Shtinky cat (unless Shtinky is singing about his treasured "lil pink shock!" it's a cat with a lisp and sock fetish, get it?)

My, your points sure do look tasty....

2007-08-17T21:53:00.000-07:00

Hey everybody! (said in my best Will Ferrel does Harry Caray voice)

So I've just returned from my San Jose leg, and barely squeaked through the last few days without totally blowing my points. One of my 'tricks' is to eat packets of oatmeal in the hotel room for breakfast (4 points), avoiding the minefield of points that is the hotel breakfast buffet. Also, that stuff is nasty. I don't care how many stars a place has, the eggs are always weird and rubbery, the bacon is so thin it's transparent, and whatever you do, don't eat the muffins! They have been in that case since 1983!

So for lunches on the road I usually have to rely on the sandwich cafe found in many of the buildings I teach, but if I order a turkey on wheat with mustard and all the veggies they have, I can keep my lunch down to 6 points, which leaves me with 14-20 points for dinner (grilled or broiled fish/chicken/pork and steamed veggies plus popcorn for dessert!) depending on whether I exercised or not that day. Still, turkey gets really old. So, for this last trip I thought I would be smart and request a microwave and fridge in my room so I could bring my famous (okay not really, but it makes it sound tastier) 4 point black beans and brown rice from home to eat for lunches instead of sandwiches, and it would have worked beautifully had it not been for the increasingly ridiculous dog and pony show that is the TSA. There was liquid in my beans! (which were in my carry-on luggage) So they took my beautiful homemade with enough garlic to kill a camel cuban-style beans! Sigh. Next time, I plan on freezing the beans and checking them. Stupid liquid rules.

*****

In case you're wondering about my current running status... I am still running diligently, have worked up to 5 miles again, and am getting faster! My 'normal' pace is now a 11.5 minute mile. Before I know it, I'll be at the 10 minute mile, which is where I will be happy, and the point at which I'll feel comfortable enough to join the local runners club.

When I'm not running, I'm still riding the blue beast. Our most recent outing was the Bridge Pedal, an annual event where the city pretty much shuts down all the major bridges over the Willamette River to most vehicles except for bikes (and peds) for a few hours on a Sunday morning. It's an organized ride which requires registration and a donation to the Bicycle Transportation Alliance (BTA) here in Portland, and this year close to 20,000 bicycle riders showed up, from the wee'est of kids to the gramps and grannys, the lycra clad, and hipsters, clowns, and everything in between.

(Doncha just love the groovy vest we had to wear?)

We chose the 10 bridge option which was close to a 40 mile ride, but we got to ride on bridges that are normally too scary for me to ride in traffic, and on a few of the bigger bridges, there were parties! Food, music (bagpipers!), and Starbucks! Check out the line!

It was a very hard ride, and I like to have died the last few miles, but boy was it worth it. Worth at least 15 points, anyway.

My New Favorite Thing

2007-08-14T22:30:00.000-07:00

Haagen-dazs fat free raspberry sorbet vanilla yogurt bars. 100 calories, zero fat, and only 2 points.

It's the best thing ever.

The Popcorn Incident

2007-08-14T10:15:00.000-07:00

So, I promised I'd post about the Popcorn Incident of 2007, an event in the continuing saga of the not-so-savvy traveler, yours truly. Although it's really not so much an illustration of poor travel choices, but rather a demonstration of how cranky I get when I try to diet. But first a little background...

I began counting Weight Watcher points last week in an effort to finally once and for all get down to my drivers license weight. I had naively thought that running alone would do it, but I had reached a plateau since losing the 20 post-quit-smoking pounds. So B and I decided that if we can quit smoking together, then surely we can lose weight together (especially since we're still living together as roommates, and often eating together), so now we're in this together, which makes it sooo much easier. Especially since I don't go to the meetings, which engenders accountability and support, but can be really annoying. In the (almost) three years that we've lived with each other, I have attempted to diet approximately 12 times, and not to place blame on B, but my efforts have always been easily derailed by the innocent bag of cheese puffs lying on his desk, or the "hey, you wanna make some chili-cheese dip?" Very tough to resist. So imagine my delight (and surprise) when B (after seeing a shirtless picture of himself), decided to make a concerted effort to diet with me.

For those of you unfamiliar with the points system, it's Weight Watcher's proprietary method for calculating daily food limits- it combines calories, fat, and fiber to develop a point value for any given food item. And based on a chart of weight ranges, you are assigned a daily points target (mine is 24). Many have found it's actually more effective than just counting calories.

So we started last Sunday, and my first big test was in Los Angeles. So before departing, I stocked up on 100 calorie snack packs, fruit, instant oatmeal, and mini bags of low fat Kettle Corn popcorn (only 2 points per bag!). The popcorn being the most significant item, in case you haven't figured it out already. So my second night at the ghetto hotel, I got the munchies. And normally, I'd have plugged some change into one of the vending machines (part of the reason I can't seem to lose weight. go figure), but I remembered I'd packed a delicious low point treat: microwave popcorn! But, alas! No microwave in the room. So, I called down to the front desk to see if there were any microwaves in the building, and they told me the restaurant kitchen was the only place with microwaves, so I bopped down to the restaurant (it was after the dinner rush at this point), and asked one of the staff if there was any way they would be kind enough to pop my bag for 1 minute/thirty seconds. "We don't have no microwaves" (Huh?) "But, the front desk...", "We got a microwave in the employee lounge, but it's off limits to guests" (umm, thinking at this point, I'm paying 150.00 a night, and you won't let me use your damn microwave?) "Listen, I'm on a special diet and I'd really appreciate it if you could help me out here", "Well...okay, I get Tony to go up there for you", "Hey Tony!" So, Tony takes my bag (with a look that suggests he'd rather be text-messaging his pals, instead of helping this crazy chic) and nods his head when I say "just a minute and a half is all it takes, and thank you so much!" So, 5 minutes later (do you see where this is going?) he returns, sheepishly, with a bag that looks vaguely like mine, only if it had been torched to a crisp. He apologizes for burning my popcorn, but they will be happy to give me a bag of chips in return. I shake my head no, and take my shriveled, smelly bag out to the lobby and stuff it into the garbage, and trudge back to my room, fighting back tears (I'm telling you, the first week of a diet is hell on my emotions). I call B in a fit of rage and rant about the damn popcorn, and probably scare him a little. After I get off the phone, I dig through my stores, and wait! here's another bag! So, I head out to my rental, drive up to the 7-eleven, and pop my popcorn in their microwave, drive back to the hotel, and eat my damn popcorn. Looking back on it now, I see clearly that I am a crazy person. But dammit! It shouldn't be that hard to pop a damn bag of popcorn!

And yes, from now on I plan on requesting a microwave in my hotel rooms.

*****

And in case you're wondering - in a week I have lost two pounds and B has lost four. So unfair.

Rick Steves I am Not

2007-08-10T18:46:00.000-07:00

Sometimes, I'm not the most savvy traveler. Like when I double book myself at two hotels (of the same chain) in the same city, stay at the ghetto one unawares until the day I'm to leave, when I look through my email and notice a confirmation from the better hotel that I somehow missed, so I have to call the better hotel and explain that I wasn't exactly a no-show, I just ended up at their other (ghetto) property across the street, for four days. I'm not going to name names, but the hotel name starts with "S" and ends with "N" and in the middle "herato". The 4 Points is the ghetto version. And this hotel does everything wrong. From the cigarette burned carpets, to the repulsive potpourri "plug-ins" in the lobby (I guess to cover up the stale cigarette smell), to the lack of microwaves in the rooms (or anywhere else in the hotel, which incidentally led to the "Popcorn Incident" which I'll describe in a later post- yes it deserves its own post), to the surly attitude of the front desk staff, to the air conditioner that rattled so loud I asked to move to another room, only to discover the rattle was a feature in the new room too! No extra charge! To the shower head that didn't work properly, ect..... Don't even get me started with the fitness room that has the treadmill shoved into a corner, so that you're facing a wall, with a stationary bike directly behind it, that will inevitably be occupied as soon as you think you've got the room to yourself, get on the treadmill to stare at the wall, only to find that someone else has just come in and is now on the exercise bike directly behind you staring at your bouncing bum. Which then leads you to quickly dismount the treadmill after 5 minutes and head outside to run in the urban blight of a wasteland that is the LAX neighborhood. I'm lucky I wasn't shot. At least I didn't have to look at a wall. Anyway, what a shitty trip this has been. And it only gets better....

I'm now in LAX waiting for my 8:30 (but delayed) flight home to Portland with a growly stomach. This has got to be the most miserable airport in the whole wide world. It just sucks the soul out of you like one of those dementors. Now, I have a routine on my last day in a city, where I leave the lab after class, head directly to the airport, and find a nice sit-down restaurant to eat and relax in until it's time to head to the gate. So, I take my bag to the check-in counter, and the lady behind the desk informs me that my flight is delayed by 30 minutes, which is fine with me since I'm going to have a nice leisurely dinner at one of the restaurants in the terminal. I have 2.5 hours now before my flight leaves, so I head through security anticipating a not-great, but somewhat decent dinner, since I can expense it. Well, the terminal I'm in has no nice restaurants. Burger King, a sausage stand, and a noisy, packed sports bar with tvs everywhere. Have I mentioned that I'm doing Weight Watchers again? (I'm just counting points- not going to meetings) So, not too many healthy choices. But I have to eat, so I order a chicken sausage dog, and look for a place to eat it. But all the places to sit are taken up with other people who's flights have been delayed, canceled, ect. So I end up sitting on the floor. I take a bite of the dog and immediately throw it away it's so repulsive. I try my luck again with a pre-made chicken sandwich, and wouldn't you know it, can't eat more than a few bites it's so soggy and nasty. So while I'm wandering around hoping to find something edible, I hear an announcement for a final boarding call to Portland. Huh? Oh shit. There was an earlier flight I could have flown out on. I usually check with the check in counter people to see if there are any earlier flights, but I was so hungry, I wasn't as concerned with getting out on an earlier flight. So at this point, I'm so mad and upset, I'd punch a unicorn, both at myself, and at the bitch at the check in counter who didn't mention an earlier flight I could have tried to get on rather than be delayed in smelly LAX. So I decide to vent in an email to a friend, and damn! after sending it I reread it and realized how insane I sound. Below is an excerpt from my rant:

i can literally feel my blood pressure spiking to new heights. you
thought the popcorn incident was bad? the only thing that's keeping me from bursting into tears is that i can't decide whether to throw myself on this rotten foul carpet and burst into tears, or take a garbage can and throw it at the @#$%^&* behind the counter. so, i'm trying to decide which public spectacle would make me feel better: a childish temper tantrum, or a violent act that will surely make me instantly famous.

So, I thought maybe it would be more constructive to post to the blog, since I haven't posted all week, and it will keep me busy until the danger of my making a scene passes.

So far, so good. I've calmed down quite a bit. I think the gate agent is now out of danger.

So, what lame excuse do you use?

2007-08-03T15:44:00.000-07:00

For not exercising that is. I got a whole sleeve and hat full of 'em- we all do apparently (this has been a topic of conversation with friends and family lately). But this morning I was planning to tell myself to f*** off and get over it already and get the hell out of bed. So, it sorta worked since I actually went running this morning on a treadmill, at my hotel. See, normally I run in the late afternoon/evening, at home and on the road, cause I have a really hard time getting up in the morning early when I'm traveling, due to time zone shiftiness, and trouble falling asleep before midnight. But my new half marathon training calls for running 5 days a week, which means that I have to run on the road more than I'm used to, and that means the occasional morning run before I teach.

Anyway, this morning I had set my alarm to 5:30, planning on doing 3 miles, which would leave me just enough time to shower, change, and drink coffee, before my taxi arrived at 7:15. That would have worked beautifully if I had actually woken up at 5:30. When the phone started ringing (don't trust wake-up calls), the bad Peachy grabbed the alarm clock and somehow managed to wake up enough to turn it off and reschedule it for 6:15 (a pretty complicated maneuver, I might add), so the bad Peachy fell back asleep while the good Peachy attempted, unsuccessfully, to guilt the bad peachy into waking up to run. Well, it didn't work so well. But! When the 6:15 alarm went off, good Peachy punished bad Peachy by forcing her to put on running clothes and head straight down to the treadmill with no coffee for a quick run. Boy, was bad Peachy pissed. But, it turned out for the best, good and bad reconciled because the run was actually really good (although only managed two miles due to compromise with bad Peachy). I was sad to have to cut it off early, but also glad that I finally broke out of the old lame excuse of yore. So, I am going to try it again next week! In the meantime, I'm stickin to my usual early evening schedule, since I seem to do best at this time of day, although you never know, I may become a morning runner yet...

By the way, have I mentioned how much I hate the airlines? All of them. I was posting this entry at the Indianapolis airport when I heard my flight home was going to be way too late for me to make my connection home, so they kindly put me up for the night in a fleabag. At least I'm next to an Awful Waffle, which I've missed since leaving the South, so I just HAD to order a scattered, covered, smothered, and peppered, cooked very well. Yum. And Eww, all at the same time! How is that possible?

Aquafina is Tap Water

2007-08-02T19:01:00.001-07:00

Wake up people, and stop buying tap water from these snake oil salesman.

Here's the article

Updated: Unless you're in Florida or South Georgia, because your tap water tastes like butt.

Hobo-globes

2007-08-01T12:04:00.001-07:00

Hey! Take a look at some of my hobo-globes (now hyphenated thanks to someone who thought it said "hobgoblins"). Check out the pirate scratchin his butt (mom found him at a flea market).

Bike Camping

2007-08-01T10:17:00.001-07:00

A few weeks ago we went bike camping for the first time with B's friend Reese from Seattle to Oxbow Park. Were stayed only one night since it was a last minute, day before "hey let's try camping by bike!" impulsive thing. We loaded everything up on the bikes, including 345 pound cooler (with absolutely no alcoholic beverages because they aren't allowed), camp chairs, and other heavy non-essential comfort items (because I'm a pansy girl). B volunteered to haul the trailer (since he's the strongest rider), while Reese and I had less heavy (but by no means insubstantial) panniers on our bikes...

Note the running shoes tied to my bike , just in case the 25 miles of HUGE HILLS weren't enough friggin exercise.

He was cussin up a storm the whole time, but I couldn't blame him since he was hauling the equivalent of a baby elephant up and down these hellacious hills. We'd have broken up... if we hadn't already.
That's Reese from Seattle. He has cool tattoos.

I did manage to get a few shots of the country side, but not as many as I'd have liked because we were either flying down hills at 40 mph, or painfully slogging up hills cussing murderously at each other and passing cars.

I'd do it again, but to do over I'd need some of that lightweight backpacker gear, cause my stuff is too damn heavy. And I'm gonna have to learn to camp without the inflatable mattress...

Please, put me out of my misery

2007-07-31T18:28:00.000-07:00

Did anyone else happen to notice a recent headline in USA Today "White House sees black gold in melting sea ice"?

I'll let that "sink" in for another moment...

Okay, anyone else want to tear their hair out of their heads now? I know I do.

The article discussed how a little treaty may stymie BushCo access to a bonanza of oil that may be accessible now that Arctic sea ice has decreased by close to 20 percent in the last twenty years. And there was not even a hint of the overwhelming, slap-on-forehead irony of all this.

And why has the Arctic sea ice decreased so quickly? Hmm...(Conversation between uninformed USA Today reader and myself ensues) Maybe something to do with the burning of fossil fuels? Oh! I know! It's the natural fluctuation in climate! Yeah! Except that all the evidence points to human caused global warming. Oh, well, that's just lib'rul propoganda. You know, you're right. Liberals want everyone to give up their cars, to stop all manufacturing, and go back to eating grubs in the dirt....

I really need to stop reading that Entertainment Tonight disguised as a newspaper.

Oh, the Shame!

2007-07-30T21:15:00.000-07:00

I know...bad blogger! Sorry I took such a long vacation from blogopolis, but I'm back now...

...with not a whole lot to report. Except that I'm working on a half marathon training program in preparation for a race in Atlanta on Turkey day, and if it goes well, I'm signing up for the Austin Marathon in February. Eee!! But before all that takes place, I'm running in a little 8K near Portland in September. So, the training is going well so far, I'm just concentrating on running 5 days a week with my long one on Sunday, two cross training days (one x-train day is on a run day), and one full rest day, and believe it or not I'm finding it hard to actually rest on my rest day. My schedule's been goofy lately, with me home on some Fridays, and when it's nice, what do I want to do?

You got it: bike ride'o'rama! This past Friday B and I rode with some bikey friends up a big ol' cinder cone called Rocky Butte with some serious elevation gain. The whole trip was 30 miles (that was heading up to north Portland to meet our buddies), but the major hill climbing was about a 500 ft gain in less than a mile. Yee-ouch! But once we got to the top, we could see 360 degrees of Portland! We could see Mt Hood, Mt. St. Helens, and the new IKEA out by the airport (now open!) Well worth the cranky knees and sore buttocks.

What else have I been up to.... oh yeah, I had a booth in a local craft fair selling my "hoboglobes" (snow globes made from random misfit trinkets rescued from Goodwill and flea markets 'repurposed' using recycled jars and lotsa glitter). The fair was kinda lame, none of the other vendors sold much. I sold four jars and traded two with a potter for one of her coffee cups. Shitty sales nowithstanding, it did give me an opportunity to get an insiders look at the crafty underground here in town, and boy lemmee tell ya: those gals are serious business! But they're also lots of fun, and I met some fabulously talented women who can do wonders with all sorts of materials (much of it recycled by the way). I may post some pictures later (I'm in Boise now away from my personal computer), so that you can see what folks out here do, as well as some pics of my jars.

That's about it for now, but I promise I'll be back soon...

Happy Fourth!

2007-07-05T15:27:00.001-07:00

Boom! Bam! Pow!

(Those were your exciting fireworks)

We did it! We completed the Peachtree 10K all in our own way. Step-mom and brothers, Colin and Mike, ran the whole thing. Pregnant sister Megan, niece-to-be Lainie (sp Meg?) and hubbie Brent waddled, while Dad and I walked a very brisk pace set by Dad. Jeez, he nearly killed me! It's funny, I decided to walk kind of at the last minute, for a few reasons (mainly cause I was so slack in my training these last few months), and it was a lot more fun to walk with Dad than to slog up those dang hills by myself. But, lemme tell you: walkin ain't exactly a picnic- I am sooo sore toady. Still, the 6 miles flew by as we watched all the crazy bystanders cheering us on with their goofy outfits, signs, and very patriotic pets (not just dogs, either; we saw a cat in one woman's arms!)

I'll post pictures as soon as I return to Portland, cause I'm still in the ATL hanging out with the fambly....

I forgot to mention...

2007-06-28T17:46:00.000-07:00

Check out the new saccharin video on the right! And watch for the bear!

WHAT THE @#$%?

Not Made in China

2007-06-27T19:14:00.000-07:00

I'm takin votes on what I should spend my money on: this or this.

You know, I don't really need either one, but every so often I find some toy that I just HAVE TO HAVE. And right now I'm dying to have both the bike and the iPhone. But I must show some restraint. It's so weird- I haven't been so entranced by an electronic device since the iPod. I think Steve Jobs puts some kind of fairy dust/crack in his products. And it's not the ad hype that I've succumbed to- I put my name on a waiting list a YEAR AGO, when I first heard that my carrier, Cingular (now AT&T) would be the exclusive dealer. It's just such a COOL phone! And such a pretty bike! Ugh.

*****

So, I've been notably absent from posting since coming back from China. Not quite sure why, except that 1) I've been a little on the depressed side and haven't felt like writing (no cause for alarm- I think it's hormonal), and 2) I'm still not sure how to distill the China experience, it's so overwhelming. Not that anyone cares at this point, but I think I'll not worry about telling all the stories, but will just try to touch on a few interesting observations/cultural comparisons.

The first has to do with the bikes. If you've seen my pictures, you probably noticed the bikey theme dominating my shots. I can't help it. I like bikes. The bikes were one of the first things I noticed upon arrival (actually, the first thing we saw getting off the plane in Beijing was a Starbucks and a KFC), and not actually the bikes themselves (which were ALL beaters), but the people riding them. The bicyclists in China are spectacularly diverse. Not a huge surprise- we all know that bikes have been a dominant mode of transportation in many Asian cities (and an absolute necessity for what little air quality they have left) - but to see old men, women in heels, dressed up couples all riding next to six lane boulevards in a pretty modern city (Beijing) was fascinating to me. And completely and utterly foreign. Bicycles/scooters have their own very wide, dedicated lane along many of the main boulevards, and while there is typically a fence separating 4-wheeled vehicles from the 2-wheels, there was such a large number of cyclists (up to 5 deep), that they seemed perfectly natural riding alongside the cars. And in many cases, they traveled just as fast (if not faster) than the cars and trucks.

I saw only one bike helmet the entire time I was in China. When I told B, he said, "probably a foreigner". I guess that's what happens when you have 1) a critical mass of cyclists, and 2) the infrastructure that allows cyclists to ride safely. I was constantly comparing what I saw to what I experience in Portland- one of the bike-friendliest cities in the country- where there is a constant tension between huge F-series (you know what the 'F' stands for) type vehicles and tiny completely vulnerable cyclists. We've got it much better in P-town than in cities like the ATL, but it could be sooo much better.

And speaking of air quality...yeesh. We saw blue sky only once in the two weeks we were there. And I am not exaggerating. Evidently, the air only clears up for one day after a weekend of factories being shut down. The few times I ran outside I could feel the dust in my lungs- not pleasant.

And speaking of running, I did manage to run a total of three times in two weeks. Sad, but true. One of those times was in the Beijing hotel fitness center (where incidentally, you were not allowed to swim in the pool without a cap, if you had any communicable disease, or had "mental instability"- I swear that's what the sign said!). In this fitness center, I had my first (of many) Chevy Chase on vacation moments. See, the units on the treadmill were in metric, and since I'm a dumb American, I got confused and underestimated the equivalent miles per hour, by the time I realized my mistake, it was too late, I was dangerously close to flying off the end of the treadmill like a cartoon character. And this is with an audience, mind you, of three Chinese business men, who are already baffled at the sight of a slightly chubby American woman in the fitness center.

Which brings me to my next observation: I must look very funny to many Chinese people. I had girls snickering at me everywhere, little boys pointing, and old men laughing! I had such a complex the whole trip. I would probably kill doing stand-up over there. I wouldn't have to say a thing, just stand on stage and rifle through my purse, or make a call on my cell phone, and the audience would be rolling in the aisles. I still can't figure it out, although the same thing happened to me in Kenya.... Do tell if you have any clue. And be nice about it.

In the next installment....the worst smell ever! And what it's like to eat Chinese food for two weeks solid (except for the last day when you get desperate and eat at California Pizza Kitchen).

China Photo Album

2007-06-23T13:14:00.000-07:00

This is my second favorite photo from the trip. It was a billboard advertising...popsicles? This is a good example of the style used in many ads- pastely, ooey-gooey sweet, and sparkely.

Click on the pic and this will take you to the album of 200-plus pictures, most of them with captions. Later today (or tomorrow), I'll start with some stories.

Back in the USA

2007-06-17T23:27:00.000-07:00

This is one of my favorite pictures from the trip. I think it captures the essence of urban China. I'll need to digest everything for a few more days (plus recover from jet-lag), but then I'll share some of the more interesting experiences in bits and pieces. I will regale you with stories of dumplings, street hawkers, squatter toilets, and the worst smell ever. And I'll show you LOTS of pictures.

It was an incredible trip, but I'm happy to be home, and happy that Italian food is so ubiquitous in this country. Oh, and ice cubes. I will never take them for granted again.

Happy Belated Memorial Day!

2007-05-30T18:21:00.001-07:00

I'm sorry I've been gone for so long, but I've been busy getting ready to go to CHINA! So I've been running around in circles (very disorganized, I am) trying to get everything together.

Actually, I've been running around like crazy these past few days, cause I spent all weekend having FUN. I went on an organized bike ride (for fun, not speed) out to Sauvie Island, for the sole purpose of picking strawberries at Kruger's Farm. In addition to being a blast, it was a pretty good workout too- about 40 miles roundtrip. There were about 15 of us, plus two kiddies, and after scouring through the first crop of the season, we loaded our berries on the bikes, and headed to Peninsula Park Commons for a berry bikey bash :), complete with strawberry blender spirits, brisket, grilled asparagus and garlic buds (kinda like baby garlic?...), and great conversation about bike advocacy and activism. Jonathan Maus, the energizer bunny behind BikePortland was there with his lovely family, and we got to chat a bit about mapping out bike-related data (I offered to help if the need ever arose). It was such a wonderful day. This is why I love this town so much; any given weekend, there is an organized bike ride with really smart, passionate, and interesting folk. (Pictures coming soon...but for now, check out me and B on Jonathan's site)

In addition to the big ride, I rode the bike every chance I got this weekend, now that my bike is much more comfy since getting my handlebars adjusted (I was leaning over too far). Also, I went for a few runs. I haven't posted a lot about the running, but mainly cause I'm working my way back to running 6 miles (which is totally boring to talk about...again). I had to drop out of PFit after missing three weeks, but I plan to continue to train on my own towards a half mary this fall.

I hope to post again and give more details about my upcoming trip to the Middle Kingdom, but for now, I'm so excited, all I can say is...

Eeeeeeeeeeee!!!!

Okay, one more...

2007-05-23T18:22:00.000-07:00

(ohio sucks)

Now, I'm done. I promise.

Why Shitty Parents Suck

2007-05-23T18:11:00.000-07:00

Okay, I gotta make up for my shitty last post's title, which implied veganism is, well, sucky. I don't really believe that. The worthless Atlanta couple used veganism as an excuse for abusive neglect, which sucks.

Now I have to make up for all the shitty, sucky, suck words I used in the last few posts:

sugar, smiley, silly, serendipity, SWELL, slappy, salsa, seraphim, SHOES, seashore.

Okay, that's enough. Now my blogging karma is set right again.

Why Veganism Sucks (for babies)

2007-05-21T17:05:00.000-07:00

I just saw a piece in the NY Times about a vegan couple convicted of manslaughter because their 6 week old baby died of malnutrition...yes, malnutrition. These idiots fed their baby soy milk and apple juice INSTEAD OF BREASTMILK! A six week old! I can't get over that.

The author went on to point out that a vegan diet is not an adequate diet (especially for pregnant and nursing moms), which I certainly won't argue with, cause I ain't got the credentials and there are plenty of people that will, but I find it interesting that I stumbled upon it after my post earlier today. Balanced nutrition aside, I know it wasn't a good diet for me, because I spent more time and energy wondering where my next protein fix was coming from; more energy than the stupid beans could provide in the first place!

But, I'm still not convinced that it's an inadequate diet for adults... Lord knows, if you spit in this town, you'd hit at least two vegans, and they seem to be quite sprightly.

Working Too Much Sucks

2007-05-21T15:29:00.000-07:00

Here's a great article B sent me about why working fewer hours would be good for the planet. I've already learned how going from a 50-60 hour workweek to a 30ish hour workweek has improved my well-being, but if our whole culture would chill out just a bit more, not only would we be helping our physical health (less stress), but we'd be producing less junk that when it comes down to it, doesn't really make anyone happy. I mean, come on, does this voice-operated remote control make your life any easier?
In eating news...

Veggiepalooza has ended early (a month is sooo long!), but really because it became near impossible on the road. I had a really hard time finding beans/soy when I needed them, so I resorted to chicken or turkey a few times to get my protein....and dang it sure tasted good. So I'm now practicing 'almost vegetarian', still staying away from dairy (I haven't had hardly any milk/cheese/eggs...oh yeah, except for a teaspoon of Miracle Whip here and there on my turkey sandwich...but it's so GOOD!), and pork and red meat, and eating fish/chicken/turkey maybe a few times a week. In other words, I'm going to mainly use meat and dairy as condiments rather than the main course. I'm also still avoiding sugar/white flour and salt, but the caffeine had to come back, because I missed it too much.

The good news is that my blood pressure medication made me faint every time I stood up, which means that my blood pressure has dropped... it is now 120/70 and pulse 60 without the meds. Yippee!! We'll see if that holds steady...(fingers crossed)

*****

In running news...

I'm a runner again!

I ran yesterday for about 45 minutes with a few minute walk break near the end, cause otherwise I would have DIED!

I've only got a few more weeks to work back up to 6 miles, but this, I can do. Eating vegan for a month? Not so much. Oh well. It was worth a try. I just love Miracle Whip WAY too much.

I guess it's the hillbilly in me.

Unregulated Free-Market Anyone?

2007-05-20T10:45:00.000-07:00

You want cancer with those fries?

Here's why it won't work. You will have to register to read (it's free and it'll get you fired up), but if you don't want to bother, the upshot is that many Chinese food exports- for human consumption- are also poisoned with chemicals the FDA (they're certainly far from perfect, they can only look at less that 1% of imported regulated food items) deems unfit for human consumption.

The article also talks about how chickens raised and slaughtered here in the U.S. can be shipped to China, processed there, and shipped BACK to the U.S. for our consumption. That's messed up in my opinion. And why do we put up with this? Because we shop at Wallyworld, we don't support small farmers, and we don't know or care where our food comes from! And the corporations know this.

To avoid the potentially dangerous products that don't get inspected (over 99%!), try to buy local, organic, non-processed as much as possible. In other words, know where your food comes from. Yeah, it's a pain in the butt, but how much of a pain is the alternative ignorance? Some may think, well somethin's gonna kill us anyway... Then why bother quit smoking/drinking/eating twinkies, going to the dentist/doctor? That defeatist attitude is complete cowardice in my opinion. And lazy. What the hell is more important than your health anyway?

Man, I'm pissed.

Neal Boortz can bite my butt.

Mixed Tapes

2007-05-15T08:50:00.000-07:00

Do the kids still make mixes for their friends? I know they don't make tapes anymore, duh. But CDs? With the nutty RIAA folks running around roughing up those trying to share purchased music, what do the kids do these days?

I'm thinking about this because I'm making a CD mix for a friend this morning, which can be such a nostalgic activity. As I scroll through all my music on my computer (all my CD's are now in my iTunes library), I see other mixes people have made for me in the past. Friends and ex-boyfriends have turned me on to SO much music. One of my favorites is from Paul, a friend from school who gave me a New Orleans mix that is so much fun (he also introduced me to the the classic Byrds 'Sweetheart of the Rodeo', which if it was vinyl, would be totally worn out by now); and there's Henry, who routinely gave me music from his zine business bounty, and then there's the girl I used to work with who was from Austin and made copies of all her KGSR Christmas CD's.

Music mixes are not only an art (does 'Sweet Home Alabama' really work next to Curtis Mayfield?) but because music is so personal, they are like a little piece of us, shared with our friends. This is music that's meaningful.

God, how sappy. Can you tell I'm missing my friends?

*****

It was sooo beautiful here yesterday. B and I went for a bike ride in Forest Park, the largest urban forest reserve in the country. We rode the Leif Erikson trail up and up and up for 7 miles or so, and then back down and down and down. Up was tough, but it wasn't nearly as bouncy as down, which is no fun if you don't have shocks on your bike. So afterwards I felt so rattled and jangled that my teeth were numb, but it was still loads of fun. And it was a good workout, which I've been missing for several weeks, due to annoying cold that is finally clearing up, which means... I can RUN again! We saw tons of runners on the trail yesterday, so time to dust off those trail shoes, say goodbye to the pavement, and hello dirt! But it may be a few weeks before I'm ready for all that uphill. Right now I can just barely manage 2 miles of flat. I hate starting over again.

*****

If you've got critters, the FDA list of tainted pet foods has been updated, so make sure you're not feeding poison to your pets. I got lucky, but so many were not.

We Love Our Mommas

2007-05-13T09:22:00.000-07:00

To all of our mommas out there: You rule the planet! You're the cats pajamas, the bees knees, the sun and the moon, and a chocolate quadruple layer cake. We may not always show it, but every day we think of our mommas, and today we offer up our thanks for all the pain and grief and gross diapers they've endured for us, the lessons they've taught us, and the thousands of meals they've cooked for us. It's like a Mommy Thanksgiving today! They worry about us constantly and love us even when we're shitheads, so I hope you can tell your mom today how much you love her.

I sent mine a card and donated to one of her favorite causes, The Elephant Sanctuary, and gave her a call. It's hard to live so far away from my mom, especially on days like today, but sounds like she's happily puttering around in the garden, which is good.

So Happy Mom's Day!

Chocolate and Cheese

2007-05-12T19:41:00.000-07:00

Just so you know, I am human. I am not perfect. So, you'll understand when I tell you that I fell off the wagon a bit in Milwaukee (you're probably filled with glee). I was so huuungry when I got to the airport after a long day of teaching and eating only fruit and dehydrated bean soup at the lab, so after I checked my bags, I went in search of a place that had something yummy I could eat (and not a stoopid salad- sick of salads), but the Milwaukee airport is LAME.

So I ate a cheese pizza from Pizza Hut. And M&M's. Chocolate and cheese. It always comes back to chocolate and cheese, doesn't it?

You see, I was so desperate, with a nasty headache, so I had no control over my decision-making, the body just took over from the brain and ordered that cheesy goodness (No! Nastiness). And chocolate. So, rather than bash myself to death over it, I just shrugged my shoulders and told myself I'd be better the next day. And I was. It's a whole lot easier to eat healthy at home.

So we'll see how I do next time I go outta town, but I'm gonna keep at it, because I already feel a lot better- my skin's clearing up, my clothes are looser, and *WARNING: TMI ALERT* my poo is wonderfully fluffy and copious.

*****

I finished Barbara Kingsolver's newest book, Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, and now am all psyched to buy a house so that I can dig up the yard for a big garden. Right now I'm looking out on my huge (rented) backyard, and the huge patch of grass that I can't dig up, so it is completely worthless for anything other than aesthetics and the grass bugs that Possum loves to pounce. Will greener than green grass ever become unfashionable? Here in Portland, a lot of folks are landscaping with native bunch grasses and flowers- and staying away from neon green carpeting- which is really beautiful and low-maintenance (saves a bunch of water too). It just seems more logical to landscape that way. I don't get the grass thing.

Anyway, back to Kingsolver. She's been my all-time favorite author since high school, when she came out with the Bean Trees, and I've devoured every one of her books since. Her appeal is that she's a naturalist with schooling in biology and ecology, but she writes with a down-home style and gentle quirkiness about people and their relationships with each other and their natural environment. Her books shaped many of my developing thoughts about how we should behave on this planet. So, I was mystified (and a little ticked) when I learned that she'd ended up on this stupid list/book of 100 people that are 'screwing up' America (which includes my personal hero, Jimmy Carter- if that tells you anything about the moron who came up with this list). So, if you'd like to buck the right-wing propoganda machine, hop on over to your local bookstore and buy as many of her books as they sell. She's a beautiful writer, kills her own chickens, but I'm pretty certain, not a terrorist.

Still veggin' out!

2007-05-07T16:35:00.000-07:00

It's day four of the veg-tacular experiment and so far all's goin pretty well. My thoughts so far?

Well, first I'll just say that sugar comes from the devil. Cause it's HELL to get off of. But I've been able to go sugar-free for four days- this includes white, brown, honey, AND white flour, plus artificial sweeteners. Which alone is really hard to do, but I couldn't stop there, instead I decided to go all masochistic and give up meat and dairy products as well. Oh, and coffee.

Why, oh why this insanity you may ask? Well, several reasons, but I can share what I've learned so far:

My diet (and most Americans) is overly reliant on processed/packaged stuff. And I previously thought I ate pretty healthy- i.e., I don't eat a lot of cookies, chips, frozen pizza, lunchables, ect. But a lot of stuff in boxes nonetheless.

I (and most Americans) eat WAY too much sugar. Anyone who has seen me prepare coffee or tea inevitably gasps in astonishment at the number of spoons it takes to sweeten my coffee (full disclosure: three heaping spoonfulls. *gasp!* see, I told you) And I can drink several cups of coffee/tea a day. I gave up sugary soda's several years back, but I replaced them with the 'diet' version, which many docs will tell you, not such a healthy replacement. I've tried to give up sugar in the past with poor success (worse symptoms than quitting smoking), so to lose the pounds, it's time for another go.

I (we) eat meat and dairy too frequently. Now, this is problematic for health reasons as well as other reasons which I mentioned previously within the fuzzy category of "environmental". I decided shortly after I moved to P-town that I would try to buy meat and dairy products from 'happy' local farms only, since they are in relative abundance here. These are smaller, family-run farms that practice sustainable non-concentrated animal feeding operation methods, which not only make for happier farm critters, but also reduces the crap (literally) that ends up in our streams, preserve top-soil, and actually produces more nutritious meats (more Omega 3 for example comes from cattle that graze on grass) than industrial CAFO methods. The problem I have run into though, is that some days, I'm feelin lazy and really just want to walk down the street and buy 'regular' chicken from the conventional grocery store for a stir-fry. And while traveling, it is near impossible to eat meat/dairy that is non-CAFO, but I'm so huungry, and I just have to have that yummy bbq. So, I have concluded that I need to first wean myself off ALL meats and (most) dairy's for a few weeks until I get used to eating mostly vegetables/fruits and grains. Once the experiment is complete, I will eat as a vegetarian who will occasionally eat fish while on the road, and when at home, I will occasionally indulge in the bounty from happy local chickens and cows.

Traveling while trying to eat responsibly is really tough...but doable. Tonight I'm sitting on the bed in my hotel room in Baton Rouge (yes, had to come back) surrounded by the remnants of my dinner, all brought from home: vegan instant black bean soup, flax seed/whole wheat corn chips, homemade salsa, and an orange for dessert. Yum. I did walk across the street to go to the grocery for b'fast and lunch items for tomorrow, but I was so disheartened that I walked out with just a canteloupe and a green smoothie. Just about everything in the store is meat/cheese/white flour/sugar based. The produce didn't look that much more promising, cause it was all industrial ag produce, and I don't exactly have the means to prepare a meal from scratch in my hotel room (and I'm already sick of salads). What I need is a Whole Foods- they have a much better selection of prepared healthy foods. So, in lieu of Whole Foods, tomorrow night I'm treating myself to a Ruth's Chris Steak House (wait for it) vegetarian meal of grilled portobellos, garlic mashed potatoes, and asparagus. Now, that's a meal I can get excited about.

So, how am I feeling? Well, Day 1 was not so bad- felt okay. Day 2: I thought about french bread first thing in the morning, and by later in the day (after a bike move too), I was pretty grumpy. Day 3: grumpy and really spacey (like putting frying pan in freezer instead of cabinet spacey). Today (Day 4): Better. Not so grumpy, and a little more alert. Also, I only slept 5 hours last night and I was not the slightest bit groggy when I woke up (may be due to lower caffeine since I've switched to tea). Overall on the grumpy scale? (1 = Richard Simmons and 10 = the devil), I've been about a 6, or Oscar the Grouch. Tomorrow I'm shooting for Ernie, but may have to settle for Bert.

And in fitness news, I have still not run. This chest/coughing thing is still a problem, but I plan to run tomorrow no matter what. I was able to ride a bike this weekend helping out on one of these, but I felt like crap afterwards and hacked up half my lung.

I'll just leave you with that lovely image.

Day 1 of Veggiepalooza

2007-05-04T19:48:00.000-07:00

Was not too bad!

The hardest time was this morning after no coffee (green tea sweetened with stevia instead), and a bowl of oatmeal sans brown sugar. So sad. It took me FOREVER to choke it down- and that was with the bananas, raisins, walnuts, sunflower seeds AND stevia. How long before I can enjoy my oatmeal without the brown sugar? After breakfast I went back to bed partially cause I'm still feeling coughey/sniffely/sickly, but also because I was missing my usual coffee-sugar wake-me-up routine, and just didn't want to be awake. Can you blame me?

So I slept until noon.

I finally woke up just so I could eat again, fixed a boring salad/soup lunch, ran a few errands, whined about not being able to run for almost TWO WEEKS (don't want to talk about it), and fixed a pretty decent dinner. Omigod, fresh asparagus is totally the bomb!

If you're curious, below is everything I ate today (next thing you know, I'll be posting my b.m. events) and it's probably the healthiest I've ever eaten in a day. Ever. The tablespoon of hummus by the way was for my low-fat homemade dressing (hummus, balsalmic vinegar, black and cayenne pepper), the recipe adapted from this group of hotties.

Now, I'm curious to see if I can get enough energy eating this way when I start running again.

*Sniff*

Do not adjust your dials...

2007-05-03T19:49:00.000-07:00

I got tired of the previous lame template, and in a fit of typical impulsive behavior, I changed it.

This one feels more organized and seems to have better feng shui.

It's also a nice analog to the dietary change/experiment I'm about to embark on...

...which is to go whole-hog (Eee!) vegan for 6 weeks!

I've been working towards this in my thoughts and (to a lesser degree) my actions for awhile after reading about and ruminating on (can't help it!) many aspects of our food production culture. I began with Wendell Berry, now Michael Pollan and Barbara Kingsolver's newest have become my latest 'teachers' about food and how it relates to the health of the planet and our bodies.

In addition, I just read a copy of Eat 2 Live which promotes a mostly vegan diet for optimal health. Furhman, the author, dares his readers to try 6 weeks of no meat/dairy/sugar/salt/processed foods, and you know about my weakness for dares... It appears the vegan way has helped many folks drop weight, AND get off heart/cholesterol/blood pressure meds, which I've been trying to do since I quit smoking, so what's the harm? Not only is a vegan diet better for our bodies, it's also much better for our planet. So you know that just makes me giddy with the potential for virtuousness.

Now, I have consulted with two vegetarians I know, but mainly to ask, can I do this even though I dislike tofu? They both seem to think I'll develop a taste for it. We'll just have to see about that.

But for now, I'm mainly focused on how to eat salad, fruit, beans, more salad, beans, and salad, without getting bored. I've been collecting recipes all week online, my fridge is stuffed to the gills with springtime produce, my cupboard is stocked with new-to-me things like Braggs Liquid Amino seasoning, oat bran, vegetable stock, tarragon (?), and so I think I'm ready for the next six weeks.

But can she give up bbq?

Stay tuned...

Kill Your TV

2007-05-02T13:18:00.000-07:00

Just stumbled on this video from a college student. This will probably elicit an emotional response from the women who read my blog, while the men will probably just think it looks cool.

Videos by Andrew Huang | More VMIX videos
View more Indie Movies and Shorts videos | Embed this video

Fun in the Sun

2007-04-30T11:19:00.000-07:00

I wish that were me.

But I'm still sick.

(Dontcha just dig my 'new' chaise lounge? Sammy sure does)

Sick sick sick

2007-04-29T09:29:00.000-07:00

I've been down for the count due to very annoying cold that has turned into laryngitis. I came down with it before leaving for Baton Rouge, but I thought it was just allergies. Boy was I wrong. At the end of my first workshop I had completely lost my voice and all I wanted to do was curl up into a little ball and roll away. So, after a miserable night in Hotel Ghetto, I had to go back to the computer lab and 'tell' (more like whisper) the students who showed up for the workshop that class was rescheduled for May. Many of them had driven up the day before for the workshop from New Orleans, and had stayed overnight, so were therefore a little testy about class being canceled. But most were sensible and realized that I had not lost my voice intentionally, so were very nice and understanding.

So I get to go back to Baton Rouge week after next (this time will not be booking at Hotel Ghetto again), and will get to drink more Community Coffee (yum) and maybe eat some scrimps.

What sucks about all this is that I've not been able to run since Tuesday (hey folks, my snot is bright yellow and I still feel like turds), so not sure how to handle next Sundays 8 mile run.

And you know, it occurred to me recently that I started to feel oogey the day after my 6 mile run. What does that mean? Does running make me sick?

Maybe I should just give up running, blow off the Peachtree race, and instead head up to Washington instead for Willie's Annual Fourth of July Picnic.

Okay, not really (just wanted family members to momentarily freak out). Hopefully, he'll live another year and I can go to his picnic some other time.

I hate being sick.

Sheryl Crow Kicks A**

2007-04-24T10:20:00.000-07:00

Did you read about the encounter between Sheryl Crow/Laurie David and Karl "The Creep" Rove?

They were trying to engage him in a conversation about global warming, and, well... he doesn't appear to be a very engaging dinner companion.

He's such a schmuck.

Ain't Got No....

2007-04-24T09:44:00.000-07:00

Hair!

Y'all better be happy, cause my own mother hasn't even seen it yet (she'll probably cry when she does)

I think I kinda favor Rizzo... Whaddya think?

(Don't ya just dig the subtitles?)

What the...?

2007-04-24T09:33:00.001-07:00

Why doesn't the comments option appear in my last post?

*Stomps feet*

Me name is Hobble "The Gimp" McDodder...

2007-04-22T21:02:00.000-07:00

AARRRRRR!!!

Why can't it be Talk Like a Pirate Day? I never feel like talking like a pirate when the day finally comes around. I'll bet me good friend Cutthroat Katie McKyle never has that problem. She's a REAL pirate. Not like me- I'm a pretend pirate.

Okay, cut me some slack folks, I ran SIX MILES today. So, I'm feelin a little woozy in de membrane.

So, I was a total pooz and slept through my alarm this morning, so I missed the group run (but I totally had a good excuse- I didn't get back from airport until late the night before, and that was after a day of missed connections due to stupid fog in Houston). But, I still ran the 6 miles later, with my own personal support vehicle (that'd be B on his bike of course) on the Springwater trail.

Gosh, it was hard.

I was really slow too- it took me an hour and fifteen, so I'm hoping to shave off a few minutes of that by the P'tree (also a 10K), but I'm not gonna cry if I can't, because I can run for longer than an hour! Absolutely blows my mind.

So now I'm really really sore (hence the title of this post)- will have to do yogurt tomorrow since I can't afford a massage, but yoga does the trick pretty good. And frozen peas. Can't forget the stupid peas.

In traveling news: I was in Montgomery Al for just one day, but I got to see the lovely and sparkely girls from Auburn (Diane and Laura) for an entertaining evening of margaritas and too many chips and salsa. Laura is graduating this week with a Masters degree in Landscape Architecture (and no, she said she won't do your backyard) and Diane is diligently (ahem) working on completing her PhD in Forestry- she's going to save our forests from nasty pollution (wave to everyone, girls). I'm so proud of them. I could just kick myself because they invited me to stay for one more day to accompany them to a Blues and BBQ fest the next day, which was really tempting, but I was concerned about not finding another flight out without having to pay too much in change fees, so I sadly declined...

...and then ended up stuck in a plane on the tarmac of the New Orleans airport for half the afternoon. And, yes I said New Orleans. That's because the flight from Montgomery couldn't land in Houston (my connecting city) due to fog, so the plane was diverted to New Orleans (sad flying over it by the way- still too many blue tarps) until the fog could clear up. By the time we were able to continue on, I'd missed my connecting flight, so had to hang out at the Houston airport for six hours. Doh! I could not stop thinking about how I could have been eating bbq and listening to excellent music sitting out in the grass on a beautiful southern spring day. Stupid!

Oh well. At least I had all of Season 2 of Grey's Anatomy on my computer (oh, I love me some pirates), so I settled in next to an outlet and watched 6 episodes back to back whilst fighting off other stranded passengers in the terminal who wanted to watch with me (not kidding).

So, it's good to finally be home, although I turn around in a few days and head to Baton Rouge. Should find some good eats there. Maybe I'll meet a Cajun pirate too! Maybe someone like Ragin Cajun Carville. Only not so creepy.

Orewar! (That's 'goodbye' in Creole, yo)

Best Salad In The World...and Beans!

2007-04-17T12:51:00.000-07:00

So how come no one told me about this before?

Mixed baby greens
Blue cheese crumbles
Candied walnuts (or pee-cans)
Basalmic vinegarette

Jiminy cricket! It's so rad! And healthful!

Part of the problem might be that I have always hated nuts in things. Don't mind them by their lonesome, but as soon as you sprinkle them on brownies, or pies, or salads...ACK! So to give everyone the benefit of the doubt, you probably just knew this about me, and didn't feel like arguing.

I found out about this salad when one night, much to my surprise, I tried a bite of B's salad that he ordered in one of his braver moments (he's like I am about unlikely food combos), and to my even bigger surprise (because I've also got an aversion to cheese that is blue/bleu- whatever), I loved it! So, that is how Ptown Peach now gets her leafy greens via this oh so frenchy frou-frou manner. Who knew?

Since I've been trying to phase meat out of my diet, I've been looking for protein replacements, and have settled on black beans and rice (brown, since white is a no-no) as something I can eat frequently. It has been so rockin my world. Here's how I prepare it:

A few healthy scoops of dried black bean bought from the bulk section of grocery
Soak beans overnight after picking out rocks (!) and weird shrively things
Place in big ol' pot submerged by water (you'll want water at least 2 inches above beans)
A few bay leaves, a teaspoon (at least) of cumin, a few tablespoons of kosher salt, black pepper, cayenne pepper, and tons of red pepper flakes (if you like it spicy, yo)
Bring to a boil, then let simmer all day, adding water as necessary to keep them submerged
At end of day, when beans are still hard, call Mom in a panic and ask her what to do
Follow her instructions regarding bringing back to a boil and cook on medium high for next 3 hours until beans are soft and edible* (yay!)
Saute a coupla cloves of minced garlic and diced yellow onion in a few tablespoons of olive oil and dump this in right before serving
Serve with Trader Joe's amazing frozen brown rice (nuked first of course)
(don't forget the Beano)

* Mom also says next time to soak for two days...or buy beans in a can.

*****

So I ran for thirty minutes today per the almighty VFit schedule, would have been able to go longer except that I included a pretty sizable hill, which totally kicked my ass, so I stopped right at thirty minutes. Because I'm following the schedule. With no deviations.

I'm such a wimp.

*****

And lastly for your viewing pleasure, since it's been awhile...

Mmmm...endorphins...

2007-04-15T14:41:00.000-07:00

Hi!

Today was the 5 mile run with the Pfit group (I should start calling it VFit, since I'm running on the Vancouver side, but, oh well) , and it went swimmingly. Our route was a gradual uphill the first four miles that wound by a military base and through a pretty college campus (oh, the cherry blossoms were spectacular!) and the last mile was a steep downhill. I am so proud that I made it up all the hilly parts without stopping, even though I haven't encountered such hills before. I was running in a cluster with about 5 other folks, and even though we didn't talk much to each other, it was really comforting having them around. I've decided that I really like running with other people- something about it just feels very right. Maybe it's an evolutionary thing. Maybe we were all gazelles in a former life. Yeah, that must be it.

Anyway, I don't think this was the elusive 'runners high' people talk about, but after about 3 miles, I began to feel tingly and a little chilled (in a good way) and all of a sudden, I wanted to run up to someone and tell them something like "this is so much fun!, and isn't everything beautiful today!" But my better judgement prevented me from looking like a total dunderhead (but I know I had a stupid grin on my face for at least a half a mile).

I only really felt tired at around mile 4.5, at which point my body started to put the brakes on, because, well, that's about as far as I've ever run. It started in on that whole annoying refrain again, what the !@#$ are you doing, idiot? This is waaay too far! Of course that just made me want to run faster. Stupid voice. It should know better.

So our little gaggle finished in exactly one hour. And what that means is my pace has finally increased from really slooow to just plain slow. Woop woop! And for those of you that need a little help with the math, that's a 12 minute mile, and I was holding back a bit. Nothin to write home about (obviously doesn't stop me though), but it's a little bitty milestone (heh, get it?) for me. Previously, my not pushing it pace was closer to a 13 min/mile. Now I can at least run faster than most (but not all) of the walkers out there.

After the run was over, and we were all laid out in the parking lot stretching, a lovely girl in my red group introduced herself to me, and we chatted a bit, so I may have a new friend!

Oh, and one other thing- I have been having issues with my head feeling like it's overheating, so I cut my hair off. (sorry, no pictures will be posted yet) And you know what? I didn't even cry because it's kinda cute! B even said it looked good, which is something, cause he never gives compliments. And the running with my newly shorn Joan of Arc hair-do? It was dee-vine. I love it.

Land of Sweet Tea and BBQ

2007-04-12T17:44:00.000-07:00

Did you know that Birmingham, Alabama has more bbq shops per capita than any other US city?

So, wouldn't it be silly if I didn't sample some of that dee-licious bbq while here?

Although 'sample' implies that I only tried a small amount...Pffft!

'Oh wait!' (Looks around) 'Did I click on the wrong link?' How did I end up on this bbq blog? I thought this was a blog about running!'

Sorry. Especially to those of you linking from the RBF. If you stick around here, you'll notice that there is not much I won't talk about, but I do try to mention running at least every other post. So, just for you RBF folks, let's talk about running...

I have some advice: don't run after guzzling a gallon of sweet tea. You will deeply regret it, and you'll be lucky if you don't hurl it up everywhere. Today I was to run 30 minutes- easy peasy, or so I thought... Shit! I only made it 25 minutes on the stupid machine before I had to stop or else I totally would have barfed all over cute European boy running next to me. Shit! Now he thinks I'm a total pooz. But it was SWEET tea!!! I have zero self control. I was waiting in the restaurant for my bbq to take back to my hotel room, and I hit the sweet tea refill jug about three times while waiting, cause it's SWEET tea! So, what is it? Is it the sugar or the caffeine that makes your tummy hurt so? I mean I can drink a gallon of water and not feel like hurling.

*****

Oh. Wow. I just completely burst into tears while sitting here minding my own business in the hotel room. I have the tv on (half watching "Shockwaves!: The Imus Effect!" - please shoot me now, cause Paula Zahn makes me want to stick things in my eye) and I just saw the ASPCA commercial that shows video clips of puppies and kittens looking so sad and sweet while Sarah Mclaughlin sings "In the Arms of an Angel" in the background. I barely managed to wipe the snot up before I called and donated $3,000.00 to the ASPCA. Okay, not really, but I want to save them all. I really did cry by the way. If you don't at least get a little choked up while watching that commercial, then you're the devil.

*****

ANYWAY. (Stupid tv) At least I managed 25 minutes- tomorrow I'll do 30. (I'm tryin to stick to the Pfit schedule, mkay?)

And I found my mantra (because 'just keep swimming' doesn't work for me, Brad). So, here it is: 'Run to eat bbq, run to eat bbq, run to eat bbq...'

Has kind of a nice cadence, dontcha think?

On Civility

2007-04-11T16:08:00.000-07:00

I've been thinking a lot about this these last few days since the Don Imus thing...

Since when did "politically correct" become the phrase we use for civility? And if they are now one and the same, when the hell did it become fashionable to be uncivil towards each other?

I get pretty irritated when folks whine and wax nostalgic about the time "back when we didn't have to worry about being so politically correct".

Really?...You mean back in them good ol' days when we could use words like the 'N' word?

Sorry, but for all those idiot 'shock jocks', who can only make a living by appealing to the worst in us, and 'entertaining' through insult and derision, tough noogies. Sometimes, enough is enough, and through the power of our collective 'best side', we will vote you off the island.

Hoppy Easter!

2007-04-08T15:59:00.000-07:00

Get any yummy Peeps in yer basket? I got my Peeps last week when I was home, plus a lovely easter bonnet from Mom. Try putting the Peeps in the microwave for 10-15 seconds, and watch them turn into huge Stay-Puft marshmallow chicks. It's a great party trick.

I didn't go to church this morning (cause I'm a heathen), but I started the holy day today celebrating my one year anniversary of being smoke free by beginning marathon training with Portland/Vancouver Fit. I have to run with the Vancouver, Washington (no, not Vancouver BC) group on the other side of the Columbia on Sunday mornings, cause the Portland group runs are Saturday mornings, which are hard for me to make since I usually get home really late Friday night. But I'm actually kind of happy about that since I heard that approximately 1200 people showed up for the Portland run on Saturday, and there were only about 120 people this morning in the Vancouver group, which is much more manageable and intimate. I think I'll have a better chance connecting with some people in a smaller group.

So, we met outside this restaurant on the banks of the Columbia at 8am, and after a seminar on safety (don't run in front of cars), we split into three groups: the speedy colors of yellow, blue and green, the purple walkers, and my group, the poky red runners. Go red! (And actually, the reds are anyone who runs 10 minute miles or longer, so not necessarily all that pokey)

We ran for four miles today, and I chatted briefly here and there, but no connections yet with anyone, which is okay since there will be 24 more weeks of this to get to know folks better. After the run, one of the coaches (a physical therapist) led us in a group stretch, and promised that the massage therapist would be on hand starting next week (we get 5 minute massages as part of the deal). Which is good, since we're adding a mile every week, working our way up to 26 miles. YIKES!!! But I'm excited. There are many coaches and assistant coaches who run with us and are there to guide, inspire, and help us avoid injury while training. We've got a strict weekly schedule that we all follow together, which is running for a certain number of minutes three times during the week on our own, and then on the weekend we do our long mileage run together as a group. Plus we get t-shirts!

After the run, I took a long bath, cooked a healthy veggie scramble, then crashed with the cat for a long nap. So it's been a good day.

Hope yours has been too.

Traveling Sucks

2007-04-07T20:09:00.000-07:00

Flying to a different city each week gets really old sometimes. And some weeks are much worse than others, depending on a variety of factors.

Take transportation for example. I landed in Baltimore Wednesday night around 8 pm looking foward to getting to my hotel as quickly as possible after a really long day in airplanes. So I bopped down to the Super Shuttle desk to wait for my ride to the Hilton in Pikesville (burby area westside of Baltimore). After 45 minutes, the driver shows up, and I get in the van and join two other passengers. The driver pulls out from the airport and slowly pulls onto the interstate- and I mean slowly. He's going about 40 miles an hour on the Beltway. With his brights on. And drifting to and fro like the white lines have grown kinks. I look at the military-looking guy sitting next to me with alarm, and he returns the expression with an added shrug, but he does ask the driver if it's possible to speed it up a bit. So the driver complies for a few minutes, until he forgets, and slows down again, while resuming his game of 'hit me if you can' with the other cars on the freeway. At one point, as I'm looking at the rearview mirrow at the driver, I notice his eyes begin to close like he's about to fall asleep...

So in a panic, I clap my hands next to his head (I'm sitting right behind him) to wake him up and shout "what the hell is wrong with you?!" He spins around and yells, "What are you doing?! I'm trying to pay attention to get you people where you need to go!" To which I reply, "Well, you're OBVIOUSLY not doing such a great job of that, and how much does it take to go the speed limit and stay between the lines?" By the way, at this point I'm only getting support from the guy sitting next to me, the other passenger has been in the back of the van talking on his cellphone the whole time (in Russian), seemingly oblivious to the current situation.

So I'm getting completely freaked out and I start whispering with the guy sitting next to me about what to do, and as we're trying to devise a plan, the driver has just gone through a toll booth, and is now driving in reverse (still on the freeway by the way), to our horror and the irritation of a few semi's that blare their horns at us as they nearly jackknife to avoid us. Evidently, he was too far to the left to get off at the exit he was looking for, so he went past it, but decided it would be more convenient to just pop it into reverse and get off that way. So I'm in a real panic now, heart thumping, wildly looking for a gas station or anywhere to get off this Shuttle from Hell, but there is nothing, and I have no clue where we are (and neither does the guy next to me- I asked him if he knew and he told me he'd just moved to Baltimore a week ago...yeesh).

So, we are now driving through this dark industrial wharf area at about ten miles an hour, and I've begun to try to dig my cellphone out of my bag to call 911 because I've become convinced that the driver is going to rob us, and then kill us in brutal Quentin Tarantino style...but alas, the blob in the back pipes up to tell the driver he's missed his turn. So the Russian guy lives on one of the boats in this scary place. He gets out and while the driver is out back pulling his luggage free, me and the other guy are furiously whispering about what exactly is wrong with our driver, and how do we get out of this in one piece. We don't get much worked out (other than that soldier boy will kick his ass if he doesn't get his act together), and next thing I know, we're back on the road heading to where soldier boy lives. I'm still on the lookout for semi-safe looking places to get out, but we're back on the interstate...and more of the same, but I'm actually a little relieved that he's not going to chop us into little pieces, but that he's just drunk or high, and dying in a crumpled and blazing automobile is sooo much better...

Anyway, to wrap this story up, I ended up getting off before my stop and calling a cab to take me to the Hilton. So, the lesson here is, well, don't hire Super Shuttle in Baltimore.

Okay, not really, there's actually no lesson here, because you can't plan for everything, and you can only control how you react to a situation that's beyond your control. Which anyone who travels often knows, much of what you encounter traveling is beyond your control. The lady who insisted on bathing in Chanel before boarding the plane, the asshole who takes up a whole overhead bin with his too large luggage, the other asshole sitting in front of you who throws his seat back with little warning, the stupid automated toilet flusher in all the airport bathrooms now that flush before you've had a chance to get off the pot (I really hate this one- more on this later), the taxi driver who's windows advertise that he takes credit cards, but when you try to pay with one, the swipey machine is conveniently broken, the bitch at the reception desk who doesn't care that you've paid 161.00 a night for the room, the stupid blanket on the bed that's not even fit for a hobo, and on and on and on....

Now, the best solution I've ever heard for most of these problems and more: a squirt gun.

Yep.

That suggestion was from Brad, who is convinced that a little pfft pfft action from a five and dime squirt gun is the only tool you need to deal with the assholes of the world. Picture it: you arrive at your hotel and the twat at reception can't "find" your reservation (because those assholes routinely overbook), so you just pull out your trusty squirt gun from your pocket and pfft pfft right on her forehead, and voila! after a few seconds of stammering and confusion, your reservation has miraculoulsly appeared.

I wish I'd had one to use on the Super Shuttle driver... But, I don't recommend you use this on everyone; the guy in the seat in front of you on the plane is okay, but the flight attendant...not so much. Unless you want to be frog-marched on CNN.

Also, it won't work on those dumb automatic toilet flushers. Actually it will make it worse.

God, I hope the Birmingham trip next week goes better.

And the race is on!

2007-04-02T09:08:00.000-07:00

So it looks like all of our checks cleared! We're in!

Whew!

For those who don't know what the heck I'm talking about, the whole reason I started running was kind of a dare from my Dad and brother that we run the Peachtree Road Race on July 4th in Atlanta to celebrate the transformation from bad-eating-smoking-lazy-general-poor-excuses to fit and healthy human beings. So I've been running since October and loving it.

Since the Peachtree is such a popular annual tradition, they limit the race to 55,000, and accept the first 45,000 applications they recieve in the mail; the remaining 10,000 are chosen lotto style. And the only way you know if yours was accepted is when the 28.00 check clears.

So it's official. I have to run in Atlanta in the summer. Bleh.

I had a semi-preview of what that would be like earlier last week during my visit home, and I went for a jog on a beautiful day of 80 degrees. The thing is, that's the hottest temp I've ever run in. Remember, I'm in Portland and I started running in the fall, so this whole heat/humidity thing is a new experience. No wonder I didn't start running back in Atlanta. How the hell do you people in Florida do it? Not only did I have to deal with breathing in water, but my poor lungs went into overdrive sifting out bazzilions of pollen particles. Jiminy cricket! And in addition to all that, my old new Goodwill running shorts insisted on giving me runners wedgie. So I spent more energy blowing out snotballs and digging my shorts outta my crotch than actually moving my legs back and forth. Fun! And don't even get me started on the hills. *Shudder*

But outside of my painful running escapades, my visit home was lots of fun. Got to see the folks, see dear friend Erin with baby ( so cute!!!), eat bbq, and go shopping with mom (by the way, I don't recommend shopping after watching a marathon of 'What Not to Wear'. You'll just end up spending way too much money thinking it's absolutely necessary to buy that necklace to go with that blouse, and if you buy that necklace, well, you gotta have the earrings too, ect.)

So I'm off to Baltimore next, but don't expect much (couldn't find guided John Waters tour). Although there is a cemetary behind my Hilton, which might make for a fun run report...and then I tripped over the gravestone in front of a funeral procession...

p.s. check out the new 'silliness' video- it'll make you pee it's so funny

Moving Sucks

2007-03-27T08:25:00.000-07:00

I know it's been eons since I posted, but hey, I'm buried up to my ears in cardboard and newspaper, and my fingers are swollen like lil' smokies sausages from the lifting of heavy boxes and cracked from all the scary cleaning chemicals.

Plus, in the middle of all that I went to Philly to teach.

Dad was right. What a bunch of assholes. Noisy ones too.

In running news, I haven't run since last Wed, when I attempted to run on my bum ankle in Philly. It didn't hurt too much while I was running, but as soon as I finished, I could barely walk on it....what's up with that? Is that some weird endorphin thing? I've heard about other injuries that don't hurt while running, but are painful when still. That's completely illogical if you ask me.

So I've been going crazy insane this last week due to not running, and I would be even crazier if I hadn't spent the last three days lifting and moving heavy objects to and fro. But I decided to really lay off it until I can't feel the ankle any more, so that I don't completely screw myself for Pfit in two weeks. And I think it's been working, because the last two days I haven't felt the slightest twinge, so I plan to venture out today for a very slow jog....

...after cleaning the garage out at the old house...sigh. When will it ever end?

Oh hey! I'm heading back to the ATL tomorrow morning! I'm scheduled to teach two classes there, so I'm extending my trip by a day so that my folks can see that their wayward daughter hasn't grown 'femmelocks', and so that I can see Erin and her new baby!!! So it should be interesting to see how violently I react to driving in the big turdville again.

... So I just got back from a run, but before that (and since that last paragraph), we cleaned out the garage, took stuff to B's storage space, other stuff to Goodwill, and dumped trash. So I didn't have a lot of energy to spare, but I put the Brooks on and did it. With no pain. Yay! I'm a runner again!

Cowabunga Dude

2007-03-18T21:31:00.000-07:00

I'd like to shout out to my dear friends Troy and Jen in Tuscon whom I just found out are the proud parents of Lydia Christine. I am so happy for you guys- what amazingly cool parents you'll be!

So while everyone else is doing adult things like having babies....here's what completely childish thing I did today (Mom, Dad: cover your eyes)
WeeeeEEEEeee!!!!!

The pictures don't do that hill any justice- it is a LOT steeper than it looks. Besides, I'm usually terrified of hills. But B was at the bottom goading me, so I took a deep breath, pulled out the pixie dust, and FLEW!

I've been doing a lot of biking these last few days since my ankle has been super sore- I'm afraid to write the words, but I'm thinking it might be this .

What is with all the injuries lately? By the way, Caligula thinks my problem last week was Compartment Syndrome (what a dumb name) rather than a shin splint...but now my problem is Hurts Like Hell Ankle Syndrome. I really need this to go away soon since my training with Pfit starts in less than two weeks. What a bad way to start. So, again I become friendly with the bag of frozen peas. I hate those stupid peas.

Yay Spring!

2007-03-16T22:09:00.000-07:00

Okay, well, it's not official yet, but glory be, today was absolutely gorgeous! B and I went up to NE Portland so I could run in a new spot, Blue Lake, while B accompanied me on his bike (lazy bum).
It was a nice easy run through a really picturesque park (click on pic for link to more pics). After a 27 min run (don't ask), B took off to go on one of his epic bike rides (okay, not so lazy after all), while I got in the car to begin my quest for cheap bookcases.

No such luck finding bookcases, but I did buy some nifty running shorts at Goodwill, since I currently have been running in either tights or Target men's "active wear" pants. So I need some shorts. I highly recommend Goodwill for running wear, since it's possible to find the Cool Max stuff for a few bucks- compared to a bazillion bucks brand new. Anyway, after Goodwill, I headed to new apartment to drop another load off, and take some pictures...Isn't the daffodil just the perfect harbinger of spring? They're just so dang perky, and they practically scream "Hey everybody, IT'S SPRIIIIING!!"

These are a sentimental favorite of mine and my family, since years ago my grandfather planted hundreds and hundreds of bulbs in his huge front yard, so that come March, there would be acres of yellow bobbing heads for all the neighborhood to enjoy. He was well known around the community for his daffodils. So I think it's a sign of good luck that I have several blooming in my new backyard. Click on the daffodil pic for more shots of the new place.

What's the craziest thing you've ever done?

2007-03-15T15:17:00.000-07:00

Something like signing up for marathon training when the furthest you've ever run is 4.5 miles, maybe? That'd be the craziest thing I've ever done for sure.

But on their website they say if you can run, walk, or crawl at least 3 miles, then this is the training program for you. Plus I've read many good things about Pfit. Now, the disclaimer: I don't intend to run a marathon this year. My goal is to run a half marathon sometime late summer/early fall, but train as if I'm running the Portland marathon in October. The purpose of signing up for this is that I need to make some friends out here, and what better way than to share the pain? Along with the added bonus of becoming a better runner.

I may sign up for this race in the Redwoods in October, since I went camping in that park last summer and didn't get to fully appreciate the grandeur due to annoying circumstances beyond my control. Holy smokes, that place is beautiful. And I rode my bike through much of the route when I was there, and let me tell you, it'll be a really really sweet running route- think shaded canopy of majestic, ancient, and HUGE redwoods. I'd take that over city streets any day.

So, I'm still moving stuff over to the new place, and getting excited (like girls will do) over silly things like what color curtains to hang in the kitchen, and not so silly things like how the hell am I going to fit all my small kitchen appliances in this tiny-ass kitchen? Erin, I promise, pictures are coming- I will probably need much advice from you about storage solutions (to those who don't know Erin- she's the maven of gettin-it-all-to-fit). During my usual coffee/morning internet perusal I stumbled across this fun site that has some nifty ideas for 'hacking' Ikea stuff, and making smaller places as efficient as possible. By the way, Portland is getting one in June...Eeeeeeeeee!!!!!! I hate to admit it, but I kinda like Ikea's stuff. Not so much for the style (I typically prefer the mexican flea market hodge-podge look), but for the inexpensive, sturdy functional pieces like shelves and cabinets. I hate their couches, but I'll probably have the coffee table I bought there for many many years (it has cubbyholes!). Has anyone else noticed how sucky their website is? It's impossible to navigate! Do you think that's a Dutch thing? It is about as comfortable to navigate as the stores themselves are, which are designed so that you cannot leave until you've walked through the entire store. They make the exits intentionally difficult to find, which I have a bit of a problem with, but I'll forgive them because their products are affordable, and they're pretty conscientious of sustainable methods of production.

Anyway, I must flee. Thanks for stoppin by!

Back in da Saddle

2007-03-12T17:46:00.000-07:00

Well, I guess I'm healed! I did an easy 3 miler and had no shinny problems. Weird. Maybe it was not a shin splint, but something else. The pain was so bad, I could barely walk just a few days ago. Maybe it's a tumor?

So posts may be few and far between for the next week or so since I'm moving, but I'll be sure to pop in every once in a while to say "hey"- by the way, where's the comment love, people?! Mom?

So, the real test of shin begins in 30 minutes, where I get to kick some serious buttocks with my kickboxing homies. Hope he goes easy on us tonight....

Deep in the heart of Texas

2007-03-10T17:00:00.000-08:00

I think I have a shin splint. I discovered this while running in San Antonio day before yesterday. That occasional shooting pain on my shin suddenly got much worse after running two miles downtown, so I'm takin it easy for the next few days. I'm going to continue my weight training per Caligula and cross-train on bike or elliptical machine. But I was really hoping to try and run for another hour plus this weekend, but not gonna happen. So I'm kinda grouchy. Plus, I missed my big Pee Wee re-enactment opportunity. I did see the Alamo, but I didn't get to streak by as planned.

San Antonio was nice- had a good time despite splinty shin, ate delicious black and white soup with a prickly pear maragarita (to dull the pain!) at Boudro's on the Riverwalk, which was kinda cool, a little more touristy than I was expecting, but nice all the same. My favorite though, was El Mercado, right across from my hotel.

It was like stepping across the border and shopping in Mexico. Lots of inexpensive, colorful mexican crafts, piled up everywhere. I even ate at the supposed most touristy ticky tacky tex-mex place there- Mi Tierra a 24-hour restaurant that has decor that looks like mariachi band of christmas trees exploded all over the walls and ceiling (see pic above).

But I loved it.

The cab driver who took me to the airport later groaned when I told him I went there. He said, "don't you know there are much better places to eat tex-mex?". Yeah, but they're not near as sparkely as Mi Tierra.

Now I gotta figure out what to do with the 5 pounds of red chard I got in my produce delivery. Has anyone ever cooked with chard before? I need some ideas.

Fear of Flying

2007-03-07T19:35:00.000-08:00

Can anyone tell me: is it absolutely necessary after some turbulence to drop a plane like a hot potato 5,000 ft within 1.5 seconds, and then make the announcement that we will now be flying at this lower altitude because the "flight began to disintegrate at 30,000 ft"?! Disintegrate?!

Since when did "disintegrate" replace "encounter turbulence"?

Don't all you pilots out there know better than to use those kind of words, especially after a major plummet?!!

It really doesn't help the blase/seasoned frequent flyer like myself (your bread and butter, dear sir or madam) who only half listens to announcements, and only then when there's fire, to hear "wawawahwahhhwa....DISINTEGRATE...wahaa" Whoa there! THE PLANE IS DISINTEGRATING?!

Maybe you're just testing us, to see if we're paying attention. Well, it worked. I failed.

Plus I nearly wet my pants.

Plus I totally embarrassed myself by asking the sweet old man next to me if the pilot really said the plane was disintegrating, at which point I noticed (too late) that he was wearing a hearing aid (but he still heard me), at which point he then turned to his wife on the other side and shouted (remember he is wearing a hearing aid) with glee that "this young lady thinks the plane is going to crash. Isn't that a riot!?"

Great. My cover as the seasoned-traveler-always-in-a-big-hurry-to-get-somewhere-important is now completely blown.

Oops, I did it again...

2007-03-07T15:43:00.000-08:00

But I'm in Texas again...and remember, they have bbq in their airports! I'm sitting in the Dallas airport, and dinner looked like a choice between Mickie D's, Taco Smell, and a boring looking sports bar with a bunch of tools in golf shirts at all the tables, so....I drifted on down the concourse at the suggestion of very nice official looking airport guy, who recommended the Dickey's brisket.

So, how can I resist? It has been a whole WEEK since I last had bbq...

AND! I've only eaten a half a bagel all day.

I pretty much left the sides alone...okay, well...I probably should have left more of that potato salad alone. But the brisket wasn't bad- didn't rock my soul like the stuff in the Austin airport, but not too shabby (and by Portland standards, someone would erect a statue). OH! I forgot to mention- they had SWEET TEA TOO! Plus I get to keep souvenir cup.

Anyway, I'm headin to San Antonio tonight, have a free day there tomorrow (yay! I get to play at the Alamo!), teach on Friday, fly back to PDX, then ostensibly will be moving to new apt on Saturday. Ahem. If only I had packed. Oh well, at least I have all next week off to move my crap over there.

So, Dallas was pretty boring. The most exciting thing that happened to me (outside of teaching a kick-a** class!) was getting to watch "Return of the Jedi" (the eewok (sp?) scene) in the workout room while wrestling with an ancient universal workout machine, so Caligula (who has magical powers, by the way) wouldn't yell at me for missing my weight training day.

There was a cute-geeky couple in the workout room with me who put in a video of the movie, so that she could walk/run on the treadmill for an hour and he could sit on the stationary bike and watch the movie with her, pedaling very slooowly (I don't think he really wanted to exercise- he was wearing jeans after all).

Anyway, after getting hopelessly tangled up in the machine (stupid contraption!), I skulked out and back up to my room to finish my exercises sans equipment. Caligula would be impressed by how resourceful I am with things found around a hotel room.

After working out, I ordered thai food, which when it came, I noticed, strangely had hot iceberg lettuce and tomato halves mixed in with the chicken and noodles- and those were the "vegetables"? Sigh. So supper last night was disappointing.

Well, sorry for boring trip details. But, whaddya expect? I'm in Dallas fer gawdsakes! I promise tomorrow's report will be more exciting- plus, I'll have a running report, since I plan on running a route that will take me past the Alamo, at which point I plan on channeling Pee Wee Herman and singing at the top of my lungs, "The stars at night are big and bright, *Clap*Clap*Clap*Clap* DEEP IN THE HEART OF TEXAS!!" while streaking by.

And then you can watch out for them pigs flyin outta my butt. Oh well, it's a fun thought.

I was Runnang!

2007-03-04T14:11:00.000-08:00

Happy SUNday all!

B and I woke up this morning to SUN!!! Which has apparently been playing hard to get here in Drippytown, but I wouldn't know that if B hadn't brandished a knife at me for being so damn cheerful, since I was in sunny Tejas all week. (Don't worry, friends of B- he's not quite that bad. And it was only a butter knife.) Anyways, I decided to put off packing (I'm SO bad), and head out to the Springwater for my "long" hour run (stop with the snickering) with support by B and his swifty bike.

It was a fabulous run, I felt light and bouncy (probably had something to do with a sudden drop in ten pounds in the last few days due to starting blood pressure medicine again. *sigh* It makes me pee ALOT), and there were TONS of people out on the trail grinning like they had just won the lotto (I guess in P-town, the sun coming out in the winter is almost as good). I was able to keep up my end of the conversation with B, unlike last time, when just an innocuous comment like, "how ya feelin?" would disrupt my chi to the point of near collapse, and a mere glance from me contained such malice that it could knock him off his bike. So, today was much more pleasant, and I actually ran three minutes over the hour, which is not the 5 minutes I wanted to add, but there was a huge puddle at the end that stopped us in our tracks. He was gallant enough to carry me over the puddle on his bike, so I wouldn't get my feetsies wet. So, I feel fantastic, and fairly confident that I can do an hour a few times a week, and work on building up my weekly mileage.

Now I must run (figuratively) to Goodwill, since it is getting warmer, and I only have the long sleeve technical running shirts- I tried running in a regular cotton t-shirt once... f*** that. They make that fancy material for a reason, so I'm fairly confident I can find a few shirts at Goodwill- this is such a running town, that I bet I can find some there instead of paying $100 for one. Then, when I'm done with that, I will pack. I promise...

LTFRMAO...

2007-03-03T11:47:00.000-08:00

I hate those stupid abbreviations. So I'm going to make up my own, such as "laughing on the floor, rolling my ass off."

So, I just got back from Austin, TX last night. Had a nice time- fun students, good meals, my second favorite city in the country. Unfortunately, my hotel was in a northwest burb with nothing close by, and no car- really annoying. The hotel was stuck between a major interstate on one side and a railroad (with huge fence) on the other side, and even if there were places nearby, I wouldn't have been able to get there, because there were no DAMN SIDEWALKS. That kills me. I rarely have a car when I travel, so I have to rely either on cabs (expensive) or my feets to get me places. Also, since I'm traveling three days a week, I gotsta run on one or two of those days, and we all know by now how much I despise dreadmills, so it sucks when I'm in a dead zone with no access to neighborhoods or parks. What have we done to our landscape? Why do we hate pedestrians so? Ugh. Okay, enough with the rant.

Anyway, I lucked out the first night cause the hotel was putting on some promotional catered "social" with a rockabilly band and FREE BBQ!!! Jiminy Cricket, Batman! FREE BBQ!!! And it was goooood. Pulled pork with sweet/spicy baked beans, mustard potato salad, and chocolate cake. I listened to the band for a few minutes until they ran me out with a lame version of "Hot Rod Lincoln". Well, I guess any version of that song is lame. I hate that song. But, it could be because that song was on the jukebox at the bar I used to work at, and all the rockabilly boys had to play it every. damn. night. But, whatever. I got to eat good bbq. Which is a rare thing here in Soggytown.

The next night I took a very expensive cab ride to the South Congress Neighborhood to experience Austin's relatively new thing, First Thursday, an idea they got from Portland as a matter of fact. It's basically a big street party where they open galleries and shops up until late, artists sell their goods on the sidewalks, buskers converge, and street food vendors sell giant turkey legs. Austin is the only town I know where you can eat amazing chocolate cherry torte on the sidewalk while listening to a fantastic bluegrass band. And that was after eating the crack steak at a new restaurant, Woodland, which came highly recommended by one of my students. So, if you ever find yourself in Austin, you will not regret a meal from those folks.

So after eating 12,500 calories, I went shopping. I stopped into one of my favorite boot stores and panted over gorgeous vintage-style cowgirl boots (my graduation present from mom look like the third boots from the right on the top shelf, only they're red/yellow/blue),

but instead settled for these things (plus a "Texans for Obama 2008" t-shirt, not pictured)...

The red bull, "Ferdinand" (of course) was found at the exact same place I found "Edgar" the elephant, 5 years ago when mom and I went to Austin for the first time. Don't they make a cute couple?

B made fun of me for buying a "Georgia" glass in Texas. And he was not at all impressed by the pink cat nail brush (with a tounge for really digging under the nail). I think it's the cutest thing EVER.

So, for those of you wondering after the debauchery of steaks and torte's, "well, did she run?" I can say with pride, yes. I ran. I only lasted 40 minutes on the dreadmill (10 of that was walking). I just don't have the mental fortitude for the incredible boredom of running in place.

So I plan on another hour run tomorrow, maybe with 5-10 minutes added, so I can work up to the 10K distance. I wanted to run today, but (WARNING: gross bodily function description ahead) I ate some jelly beans with Splenda earlier today, feeling very virtuous, until an hour later, pure liquid was pouring out of my rear. I thought for some reason that if it had Splenda in it, then it wouldn't have that evil Maltitol in it, which causes many folks to have torrential anal explosions. I was so wrong. So, I've been close to a potty for much of the day. B and I had been talking earlier about the herb Stevia; he wanted to know why it wasn't used as a sweetener in grocery products. I told him that the FDA banned its use as a food product, probably because of the sugar (and artificial sweetener?) lobby. So after my episode, he pointed out the irony that the FDA would approve a sweetener that causes explosive diarrhea, but wouldn't approve a harmless leaf to be used as a sweetener, which has been used safely in other countries for years.

In happier news, I got some really exciting news a few nights ago, from soon-to-be grandparents (again) of a baby on the way! I'm going to be an auntie again!!! Yay!!!! My little sister M is having a tot in the early fall. How much fun is that! Now, my niece, the angelic Hannah, will finally have a cousin, since her Auntie P-town Peach, does not yet appear to be ready for mommyhood.

Seems to be a bug goin around- my dear friend, Erin (whose most embarrassing song is Journey's "Open Arms") back in the ATL just had a drop-dead gorgeous baby girl several weeks ago. Meet Elise Jewell... (and no, that is not a wig.)

Most embarrassing guilty pleasure song

2007-02-27T15:13:00.000-08:00

So, I'm a big ol' music snob- not nearly as bad as some (WARNING: language is very colorful there)- but pretty bad nonetheless. And I've been on the receiving end of scorn by other music snobs. Which is really kinda shitty; makes you want to say, "who the @#$% made you Dick Clark? asshole." So, now I try to take the "live and let live" attitude towards musical taste.

But...I can't help but find most sappy, slick, heartfelt-type music kind of offensive and insulting- you know, the kind of stuff some of your parents listen to. Sincerity in a song for one person may be percieved as insincerity by another (does that make any sense?). So, for example, Celine Dion's "My Heart Will Go On" can bring some people to tears, while others throw up in their mouths when they hear it. Another example: I am a big fan of roots-type music (alternative/insurgent country, americana), because I appreciate the down-to-earthiness of it, but some may think (in a bad way) of hillbillies and Pabst when they hear it.

But regardless of your musical proclivities, we all have that song (or like me, several) that you are too embarrassed to admit you like- for whatever reason. I would be MORTIFIED if my iTunes library went public. But- I don't mind sharing one or two of some of my embarrassing faves, because you know, we all have them. For example, earlier this evening, "The Eagle and the Hawk" by John Denver was stuck in my head. Boy, that one is sooo corny. And I know, it's probably okay to admit I like him now that he's (god rest his soul) passed on, but I liked him even when it was patently uncool. Another example: I have the Rocky theme song on every one of my iPod running playlists. How astonishingly embarrassing is that? I'm cringing right now! But it gets me through every time, so who gives a damn?

So, what's your most embarrassing guilty pleasure song? No judgement will be passed (by me anyway- I can't guarantee what others will say...) And Erin, you are limited to one or two :)

Mmmm...meatballs...

2007-02-26T13:22:00.000-08:00

I am usually pretty opposed to product placement, but who am I kidding? There are like three of you that ever come here, and one of those is mom (thanks mom!). But these meatballs (sorry mom- not vegetarian) are like crack. I just heated some up for lunch with some lovely spinach from my CSA box, and "yummo!" (ouch! poor unicorn!) And they're not very high in calories (190 for 4), probably because they're chicken. Anyway, that's all for now. I know, you've peed yourself with excitement!

Bear with me....

2007-02-25T23:11:00.000-08:00

I'm learning html whilst watching the Oscars (boring! and I don't mean html...), so hopefully soon I will have my pad painted and decorated just the way I like it.

Does anyone else think this was the most boring year in the movies? I need to watch some John Waters. Heard him today on NPR talking about how developing his soundtracks were as important to his movies as anything else. Pecker is one of my all time favorite soundtracks- I highly recommend this twisted movie. I'm due to teach in Baltimore soon, which I'm super excited about since I've never been before, so I'll have to look into a John Water's Baltimore-type tour. I wonder if such a thing exists. How fun would that be?

Breakfast is Good for You!

2007-02-25T12:16:00.001-08:00

Good morning! (well, it is out here on the correct coast) So, here are a coupla breakfast ideas if you're tired of the cheerios. The first one is super-duper healthy carb'fast (I try to eat this one most days) and the second is a probably-not-so-healthy-but-really-delicious protein'fast (good for weekend treat):

Super Hero Oatmeal
I put this oatmeal recipe together when trying to create a power food b'fast that didn't taste like butt.

Steel-cut (not rolled) oatmeal (I like McCann's Irish) cooked according to package

Toss in 1/2 handful raisins a few minutes before cooking is complete

Before serving add a few spoons of flax seed meal, dehydrated blueberries, agave nectar (if you like it sweet), and a teaspoon or so of brown sugar. If you want it crunchy with protein, add crushed walnuts or pee-cans (not pik-hans)

Pioneer Scramble (serves two) This recipe was inspired by the trend of "scrambles"that seem to be common at the restaurants here in the PNW. We have several favorite breakfast spots that make good scrambles, but to save some dough, we stayed in and created our own.

Whisk 5-6 eggs and set aside
Grate a pile o cheese (cheddar works great)
Fry up (well done) 6 slices of thick-cut peppered bacon (cruelty-free will taste better and is better for your soul) and set aside on paper towels
Stir fry a clove of garlic and diced sweet onion in a little bit of olive oil (or butter)
Add chopped bell peppers, garlic, broccoli, mushrooms (or whatever veggies you get from your CSA box) and basil, lots of coarse ground pepper, and red pepper flakes- set aside to fold into egg pan
Begin to scramble eggs in a big fry pan, and once they are no longer runny, fold in the stir-fry veggies, crumble big chunks of the bacon into pan, and add shredded cheese to the mix.
Serve with chopped green onions on top (this is a key ingredient)
Toast with black raspberry jam on the side will complete this "Pioneer" breakfast

Ode to Discomfort

2007-02-25T10:23:00.000-08:00

D's comment and link to the swimming site yesterday got me thinking about discomfort and its relationship to fitness success (or success in general). Our culture of plenty thrives on the avoidance of discomfort, so we don't have to work too hard to find food, shelter, ect. but the cost to our health has become too high. And you're really out of luck if you're not a big fan of sports or have a competitive nature (me and most of my friends), so you have to force yourself to be more active. And as I've discovered these last few years, if you want to take off pounds in your thirties and beyond, you have to be active to the point of discomfort (and I don't mean injury).

But the good news is that once you find the activity that you least despise (e.g., swimming for D. and biking for B., running for me), you are halfway there. The next step is to set goals within that activity. For me, the Couch to 5K was what pushed me beyond discomfort to an addictive habit. I would have failed (and I have in the past) if I had no plan and just ran until I got tired. I now believe that benchmarks are critical to success (for those of you that are saying, "Well, duh!", just back off! It may have taken 34 years, but at least I get it). Also, as I've learned from Caligula the Trainer, you can't get too complacent once you've reached a goal- it doesn't stop there, you must constantly move the bar up higher, because your body will reach the point of equilibrium where unless you push it harder, it won't bother doing more work that absolutely necessary. And doing that extra work is really f'ing uncomfortable! I hate being out of breath! But, it is totally worth the feeling I have after I'm done.

And speaking of breath.... B decided it was time to cut the cord and take our old ashtrays to Goodwill. I have been reluctant due to a stupid superstition that as soon as you toss them, you start smoking again, but they've got to go. Man, we had some good lookin ashtrays...POOTIE PIC ALERT: Sammy's still exhausted from her vaccination trauma yesterday...

One Hour Runner!

2007-02-24T17:56:00.000-08:00

I made it! Broke the four mile barrier!! Got back from Denver last night, had the first good night's sleep in a while (with no help from pharmaceuticals), B. and I took the cats to the vet, came back, took a nap (wore out from the vet experience), then got up, saw blue skies (!), and went for a jog. B. rode his bike with me and kept me entertained by pointing out every cat he saw. So I ran for an hour with a few minute break halfway at the community center to take care of a sudden clenching in the gut (boy, am I happy I can run in a neighborhood with plenty of toilets- one of these days I will tell the story of getting the runner's trots in the corn fields of Indiana...*shudder*), so my time is still really pokey, but I don't care. I ran for one hour. Yay!

Queen City of the Plains

2007-02-21T18:17:00.000-08:00

So I'm in Denver for the next few days. No big plans for excitement, just teach my two classes and skedaddle.

Why is the Denver airport in Nebraska? And why is it every time I'm here I end up on the ugly side of town (although the view from my room isn't too shabby if you ignore the big boxes from hell)?

At least I don't have to look at this.

In fitness news: Tomorrow I will probably hop on the dreadmill (since I'm in scary burbs surrounded by highways and no car to get to a nice park) and try to break the four mile barrier. Not only do I have dear brother (click with caution) to contend with, but I've also got dear step-mom and sister triathletes (not kidding) to deal with. I know, I know, we must all run our own race, but a little interfamilial competition is healthy and natural. I'm resting today since I can barely walk after personal training session with Caligula. I know a personal trainer seems a little extravagant, but the "gym" I just joined (it's not a typical gym- more like a martial-art-kickboxing-yoga mecca) had a really good deal, and I thought a little help in the weights department would be a good thing. Turns out, he's eventually gonna help me be a faster runner, but that's down the road a-ways. So, anyway, had kickboxing class on Monday, ran the next day, plus had training session with The Evil One later that day- oh! and I forgot to mention a teensy-weensy 40 mile bike ride that I took with B. on Saturday. So my legs are screamin- and that's after two ice baths this week! When will it stop? And speaking of ice baths: if you're ever in the mood for a lively pick-me-up, I can't recommend ice baths enough. They're a lotta fun- especially for whomever is close enough to hear the ear-piercing wails through the bathroom door.

In food news: Being East coast girl, I wasn't really aware of the Trader Joe's phenomenon, but since I've moved out here I'm beginning to understand the hooplah. Right now my most favorite quick 'n easy eat healthy at home foods are TJ's frozen brown rice and their Greek mango and apricot yogurt (not together mind you). Holy smokes! As Rachel Ray (whose laugh apparently requires the punch of a unicorn), would say, "delish"! Apparently, TJ's have begun opening shops in the ATL, so y'all back home can check it out for yourselves.

In other news: I'm moving in a few weeks to a new apartment due to not-really-sad-but-it's actually-a-really-good-thing redefining of my current relationship from boyfriend-girlfriend to let's just be pals. We're so much alike that it was a completely mutual thing. So, anyway, we're gettin separate pads, and mine is in this excellent neighborhood- Sellwood/Moreland- just a few minutes away from where I am now. My apartment (see pic below) is a block from cutesie coffee shops, restaurants, antiquey boutiques, ect (kinda like a small, more laid-back Va-Hi for my ATL homies). The only downside is that there is a coffee roaster right across the street, so it will perpetually smell like burnt toast, but the coffee's supposed to be good, so might be a fair trade-off.

Now, it looks like I've got some kooky neighbors (not unusual in this town) who like giant ironic sculptures in their front yard, which could be a lotta fun, but probably not nearly as much fun as these guys. A few more blocks away is access to Oaks Bottom Wildlife Refuge and the famous multi-use Springwater Corridor trail (on which I was running the other day when it began to HAIL!)Anyway, it's a trail that runs along the east bank of the Willamette River for several miles, and is one of my favorite Portland things. It's along this trail that I catch myself saying things like, "I love this friggin town!"

Well, that's enough ramblin' for the night, gotta hits de hay. Nighty-night friends.

Happy Birthday Mom!!! (and Brad!)

2007-02-20T22:30:00.000-08:00

She thought I'd forget...

Well, she's got good reason... because I did forget last year. Which is really bad because it was also my boyfriend's birthday, who I LIVE WITH. Luckily, he's not all that fond of being reminded he's one year closer to death, and mom acted like it didn't hurt her feelings all that bad (but I know better...)

So I plan to celebrate the fact that on this day, two of my most favorite people were born.

La la la la la la la means I love you...

2007-02-19T11:35:00.000-08:00

Per Jen's request, here they are. I'm so smitten by my new shoes. It's hard to tell from the pic, but the soles are neon lemony-lime. They are certainly show stoppers.

So the picture is a great way to illustrate my transformation from cynical-high-blood pressure- smoking-grouchy-grouch-road-ragey-sour-puss to Let-the-sun-shine-in-happy-technicolor-mood-no-I've-not-replaced -one-smoke-for-another-
cheerful-type. Part of that transformation came from moving out here to Puddletown from Get-the-F!$%-Out-of-My-Way Capitol of the South, but more significantly, I've been transformed by my newfound addiction: running. It all started when my dear brother put down the smokes and picked up a pair of shoes. So since I can't come up with an original idea of my own, I thought, what a great way to lose the extra 20 I gained from quitting smoking. But the real clincher: after Dad had some major scary heart issues (also an ex-smoker) last year, the family decided wouldn't it be fun to celebrate our new status as healthy non-smokers by running the Peachtree Road Race in ATL in '07. Yeah. A blast.

But it was like a double dog dare, so last October I went and got fitted for shoes (no, I don't run in the Sesame Street shoes pictured above), followed the Couch-to-5-K plan, finished it (!), ran/walked a 5K, then began the One Hour Runner plan, and now, I'm on week 7. Running. Not fast mind you, but Webster's defines running as "to go by moving the legs faster than in walking", so I'm not going to quibble over jog vs. shuffle vs. run. Whatever. All I know is that my heart pounds, my face turns bright red, and my brain screams "WHAT THE !@#$ ARE YOU DOING?!".

So since I've gotten past the initial shock of running (I can now shut the brain up on occasion), I have discoved the lovely floaty cheerful feeling that lasts for the rest of the day, and typically annoys anyone around me ("Why are you so f'ing happy"?)

In addition, since last Oct, I've lost 10 pounds of the post-smoking god-I-can't stop-putting-things-in-my-mouth phase, but more importantly, I'm happier than I've ever been, and most importantly of all, I now have a smidgen of a chance to smoke my brother at the Peachtree this July (oh, it's so on now).

Be the shoes.

Update: Didn't like the grandma's wallpaper template, so I'm trying out the kermit one instead for awhile. Lemmee know if it's gross.

Howdy!

2007-02-19T00:58:00.000-08:00

Welcome to the inaugural post!

So, why a blog? Well... a few reasons:

1) It's a great way for my now distant friends and family (all back East) to keep tabs on my doings.

2) I've never been able to keep up a traditional handwritten journal, so for some crazy reason, I think a very public online journal will work better for me. Yup.

3) I am on a journey...No, wait. A pilgrimage of the mind-body towards health and fitness everlasting. Eww. Okay, really...I want Angelina Jolie's body. Okay, not really (but I DO!). The real deal: I have recently discovered that reading blogs of others who try to live better is a whole lot more fun than tv, so on a lark, I thought I'd add my bits to the collective voice of self-improvement. In other words: everyone else is doing it, so why not? Besides, I might meet some neat people out here on the internets.

So, there will likely be something for everyone here, including slow runners, recreational cyclists (even wobbly ones), fans of alt country, fans of pootie pics (that means cat pictures, my friends), chow hounds, and WARNING: as I have a tendency towards tacky poo-related humor, there may be something for the frat boy in all of us.