Yea for me; I'm running again.
I've been nursing an Achilles tendon injury since mid January. At one point I went 4 weeks without running which for me seems like forever. I've been running 3-5 times a week since 2005; to go without was torturous. I'm on my way back now, slowly ramping up my mileage, but I had to bail on a half iron distance race I had scheduled in May. I'm going to do an Olympic distance race instead and should be able to train for and complete that one just fine.
Saturday, March 27, 2010
Sunday, March 21, 2010
Roasting my nuts
This week for 52 Projects I've taken on a culinary challenge; cashew butter. I LOVE cashews and have always wanted to make my own nut butter, so I did. It was pretty easy and there were quite a few "How to's" online.
I wanted to start with raw pieces and roast them myself. My wonderful wife volunteered to pick them up for me as she was making a run to Wegmans and they have a nice bulk section. I wanted 3 cups of raw cashews. She came home with 3 pounds of roasted cashews :) Good thing we like cashews!
She redeemed herself by going to a local nut store, The Head Nut, and got the 3 cups of raw pieces while I was out on a bike ride this morning.
So here's the process:
Get nuts (I swear, it was full!)
Roast them @ 350 for a few minutes until brown (mine went about 9 mins)
Have food processor
Throw them in the food processor and let it do its thing.
Add some extra virgin olive oil as needed for creaminess (I used about 3-4 teaspoons for 3 cups of nuts.
You'll need to keep checking the consistency and scrapping the sides. Mad scientist face is optional.
Put it in an air tight container to keep it fresh
Enjoy!
We spread some on fresh apple pieces using the sunshine plate Jane created. Yummage!
Things I learned:
* Don't put 3 cups of nuts on a single baking sheet. Only put on enough to cover the pan in one layer.
* Make sure to stir the nuts every few minutes while roasting. Keep an eye on them so they don't burn.
* Let the nuts cool before using the food processor.
* Be patient. Let the processor do its thing. It will take a while and you'll need to scrape the sides often. At first the nuts will just get chopped into bits. Eventually the bits will start to clump. This is when to add the oil, but remember the Brylcreem adds; a little dab'll do ya. Use as little oil as possible to get the consistency you like.
I will be enjoying this project for days to come. Yea for nuts!
I wanted to start with raw pieces and roast them myself. My wonderful wife volunteered to pick them up for me as she was making a run to Wegmans and they have a nice bulk section. I wanted 3 cups of raw cashews. She came home with 3 pounds of roasted cashews :) Good thing we like cashews!
She redeemed herself by going to a local nut store, The Head Nut, and got the 3 cups of raw pieces while I was out on a bike ride this morning.
So here's the process:
Get nuts (I swear, it was full!)
Roast them @ 350 for a few minutes until brown (mine went about 9 mins)
Have food processor
Throw them in the food processor and let it do its thing.
Add some extra virgin olive oil as needed for creaminess (I used about 3-4 teaspoons for 3 cups of nuts.
You'll need to keep checking the consistency and scrapping the sides. Mad scientist face is optional.
Put it in an air tight container to keep it fresh
Enjoy!
We spread some on fresh apple pieces using the sunshine plate Jane created. Yummage!
Things I learned:
* Don't put 3 cups of nuts on a single baking sheet. Only put on enough to cover the pan in one layer.
* Make sure to stir the nuts every few minutes while roasting. Keep an eye on them so they don't burn.
* Let the nuts cool before using the food processor.
* Be patient. Let the processor do its thing. It will take a while and you'll need to scrape the sides often. At first the nuts will just get chopped into bits. Eventually the bits will start to clump. This is when to add the oil, but remember the Brylcreem adds; a little dab'll do ya. Use as little oil as possible to get the consistency you like.
I will be enjoying this project for days to come. Yea for nuts!
Sunday, March 14, 2010
A Visit
Today is the first anniversary of our wedding. Yea! Hard to believe it's only a year. Seems like Jane and I have been together our whole lives. Such a good feeling; so connected, so united, such the Same.
We went to New York Saturday morning and spent the night. We did all the touristy stuff; Times Square, 5th Avenue, St. Pat's. The highlight of the day was seeing Avenue Q. That was fun! It was a great trip and we had a great time, but none of it was really new for me. Not that familiar is a bad thing, but I was planning on using parts of the trip for 52 Projects.
What I really wanted to do was go out for a run on Sunday morning. I've always wanted to run down the middle of Broadway and run in Central Park. I was going to run through Times Square, run up 7th Ave to Central Park, and take a loop around the park. But my ankle is sore from running Friday and walking a lot on Saturday and as much as I want to fulfill a fantasy, my long term healing is more important. So, no NYC run for 52 Projects. This time. It WILL happen!
The other part of my plan still came to be. Jane and I drove down to lower Manhattan to visit the site of the World Trade Center. Ground Zero. I have never visited and have always wanted to. Now I have.
I will never forget that Tuesday in September. I was to fly out to San Diego that afternoon and had gone in to the office to get a few things done. Of course, I never made my flight. We crowded around TV's and radios. We surfed the web for news. We called loved ones. We went home to be with family. We prayed. We wept.
I became very angry in the days after the attack. I wanted someone to blame. I wanted someone upon who we could seek revenge. I was confused and twisted inside. As twisted as the steel that melted that day. I wanted to forgive and hold thoughts of peace and love but I was livid. I wanted to fight. I even called the National Guard to volunteer but I was too old. Eventually I calmed down. The anger subsided and the grief stung less each day.
This morning I started to feel it again. As we parked the car and walked towards the site my heart began racing and I felt my throat tighten. Tears came to my eyes. The memories of the horrible day come flooding back into my mind. Yes, we will never forget.
To honor those who lost their lives on that day and in subsequent days as a direct result of the attacks, and to never minimize the huge impact that event had on our country, I will always refer to that day as September Eleventh. I do not say nine one one. I do not say nine eleven. Do we call Independence Day seven four? Do we call Pearl Harbor day twelve seven? Why shorten, or abbreviate, or minimize in any way the day we experienced the most horrific attack on our own soil?
In Memory of September Eleventh Two Thousand and One
We went to New York Saturday morning and spent the night. We did all the touristy stuff; Times Square, 5th Avenue, St. Pat's. The highlight of the day was seeing Avenue Q. That was fun! It was a great trip and we had a great time, but none of it was really new for me. Not that familiar is a bad thing, but I was planning on using parts of the trip for 52 Projects.
What I really wanted to do was go out for a run on Sunday morning. I've always wanted to run down the middle of Broadway and run in Central Park. I was going to run through Times Square, run up 7th Ave to Central Park, and take a loop around the park. But my ankle is sore from running Friday and walking a lot on Saturday and as much as I want to fulfill a fantasy, my long term healing is more important. So, no NYC run for 52 Projects. This time. It WILL happen!
The other part of my plan still came to be. Jane and I drove down to lower Manhattan to visit the site of the World Trade Center. Ground Zero. I have never visited and have always wanted to. Now I have.
I will never forget that Tuesday in September. I was to fly out to San Diego that afternoon and had gone in to the office to get a few things done. Of course, I never made my flight. We crowded around TV's and radios. We surfed the web for news. We called loved ones. We went home to be with family. We prayed. We wept.
I became very angry in the days after the attack. I wanted someone to blame. I wanted someone upon who we could seek revenge. I was confused and twisted inside. As twisted as the steel that melted that day. I wanted to forgive and hold thoughts of peace and love but I was livid. I wanted to fight. I even called the National Guard to volunteer but I was too old. Eventually I calmed down. The anger subsided and the grief stung less each day.
This morning I started to feel it again. As we parked the car and walked towards the site my heart began racing and I felt my throat tighten. Tears came to my eyes. The memories of the horrible day come flooding back into my mind. Yes, we will never forget.
To honor those who lost their lives on that day and in subsequent days as a direct result of the attacks, and to never minimize the huge impact that event had on our country, I will always refer to that day as September Eleventh. I do not say nine one one. I do not say nine eleven. Do we call Independence Day seven four? Do we call Pearl Harbor day twelve seven? Why shorten, or abbreviate, or minimize in any way the day we experienced the most horrific attack on our own soil?
In Memory of September Eleventh Two Thousand and One
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
I went for a run today
First run since Feb 1. It was short, and slow, but I did it. The weather was beautiful and I felt really good. Some discomfort in the Achilles but no real pain. It didn't get any worse as I went along and it feels no worse now than it did before the run. I stretched well before and after and iced it for a bit.
Totals:
22:25
2.2 mi
10:11 avg
Totals:
22:25
2.2 mi
10:11 avg
Monday, March 8, 2010
Fast - Ease Out
Today marks the first day on the road back to normal eating. Well, what I hope to become normal for me because normal for me usually means too much crap. I intended to limit sugary foods, dense high calorie foods, high fat foods, and highly processed foods. Damn, I'm hungry just looking at the list of stuff I want to limit.
Weight this morning was 157.8. Interesting that it went up a bit from yesterday. For breakfast I had some red grapes, a red grapefruit, and ate some of the steamed veggies I made to take for lunch. I took the grapes in to work along with some baby carrots and the aforementioned steamed broccoli, cauliflower and carrots. These were steamed with low sodium chicken broth from Wholefoods (365) and I added the warm stock from steaming to the veggies with a chopped up boiled egg. Had to nuke it for lunch at work but it was pretty good. I have a small piece of catfish to eat for dinner and I'm thinking of adding some brown rice. I wasn't going to originally but I think I want to eat something with some substance.
I felt really good this morning. I'm glad I did this since I've been wanting to for some time. I think I could have stayed on for a few more days, but that was not the intent and I want to my triathlon training. Can't do that and fast at the same time.
Weight this morning was 157.8. Interesting that it went up a bit from yesterday. For breakfast I had some red grapes, a red grapefruit, and ate some of the steamed veggies I made to take for lunch. I took the grapes in to work along with some baby carrots and the aforementioned steamed broccoli, cauliflower and carrots. These were steamed with low sodium chicken broth from Wholefoods (365) and I added the warm stock from steaming to the veggies with a chopped up boiled egg. Had to nuke it for lunch at work but it was pretty good. I have a small piece of catfish to eat for dinner and I'm thinking of adding some brown rice. I wasn't going to originally but I think I want to eat something with some substance.
I felt really good this morning. I'm glad I did this since I've been wanting to for some time. I think I could have stayed on for a few more days, but that was not the intent and I want to my triathlon training. Can't do that and fast at the same time.
Sunday, March 7, 2010
Out of the Fire
This week for 52 Projects I've ventured into new territory, dabbling in some natural material art. Wood, to be exact. Last fall Jane and I went in with her parents on a cord of wood. We have a fireplace in our house and we love fires. I had never bought a cord of wood before so I didn't know that it's a lot of wood. We stacked a bunch of it for her folks and loaded up her Santa Fe with as much as we could manage. We've had lots of fires this winter and we still have more to burn. And there's still some sitting in her parents driveway. We'll get it out of there eventually.
So, how did I get from there to here? A particular piece of wood caught my eye as we were stacking it on our porch. It was a log with a sort of hole in it. The hole was round and was probably from a branch that grew out of the tree at some point. I remember thinking how cool it was and that I should do "something" with it. I had no idea what, but I was drawn to it. Skip ahead to cold, snowy, winter night. A fire is going and needs more wood. I grab this particular log and figure, what the hell. Might as well burn it since I'm not really going to follow through with doing "something". In it goes, and begins to burn. In a few minutes I have a surge of regret. I beat myself up for putting it in the fire, for not following through with things, for not listening to that voice within; again. So I pull it out of the fire and it's charred pretty good but still intact. I take it outside and cover it in snow. I figured it would put of the flames and maybe have some magical effect on the wood. What the hell do I know. Well it snowed more this winter than we've ever had and the wood got buried and almost forgotten. Almost.
Once the snow started to melt I dug out my little charred friend and set him out to dry. By then Jane had already begun 52 Projects and that was exactly the push I needed. Now I had a reason to actually do that "something". This was to be the week. I cleaned all the loose bits off, sanded it down, and washed it. Then I set it out to dry in the sun; the beautiful sun we've been having for the last several days. I knew I wanted to mount it vertically somehow, maybe on a wood base like a trophy. Jane needed to go to Michaels and suggested I might find something there. I was going to just go to a trophy shop and get a base but my beautiful bride was right; I found just the right thing at Michaels. A bit of drilling, some Sedona Red 222, and a squirt or two (or six) of polyurethane later and I give you...
derivation
So, how did I get from there to here? A particular piece of wood caught my eye as we were stacking it on our porch. It was a log with a sort of hole in it. The hole was round and was probably from a branch that grew out of the tree at some point. I remember thinking how cool it was and that I should do "something" with it. I had no idea what, but I was drawn to it. Skip ahead to cold, snowy, winter night. A fire is going and needs more wood. I grab this particular log and figure, what the hell. Might as well burn it since I'm not really going to follow through with doing "something". In it goes, and begins to burn. In a few minutes I have a surge of regret. I beat myself up for putting it in the fire, for not following through with things, for not listening to that voice within; again. So I pull it out of the fire and it's charred pretty good but still intact. I take it outside and cover it in snow. I figured it would put of the flames and maybe have some magical effect on the wood. What the hell do I know. Well it snowed more this winter than we've ever had and the wood got buried and almost forgotten. Almost.
Once the snow started to melt I dug out my little charred friend and set him out to dry. By then Jane had already begun 52 Projects and that was exactly the push I needed. Now I had a reason to actually do that "something". This was to be the week. I cleaned all the loose bits off, sanded it down, and washed it. Then I set it out to dry in the sun; the beautiful sun we've been having for the last several days. I knew I wanted to mount it vertically somehow, maybe on a wood base like a trophy. Jane needed to go to Michaels and suggested I might find something there. I was going to just go to a trophy shop and get a base but my beautiful bride was right; I found just the right thing at Michaels. A bit of drilling, some Sedona Red 222, and a squirt or two (or six) of polyurethane later and I give you...
derivation
Fast - Day Nine
Last day of the lemon maple water. Tomorrow I ease back in to real food. I feel good this morning. I woke up thinking that this isn't so bad and that I could keep it up for a few more days. I'm not, but I feel like I could.
I need to get back to my training. My ankle is still hurting me at times and I don't know if I can run. I had to chase a ball yesterday and I could feel it for sure. I've been doing my stretching pretty regularly but I know I could be more consistent. Tomorrow I go back to see the sports medicine doc. I miss training but maybe I needed a break. I'm concerned that I've lost some core fitness so I have to make sure I esae back in. I still have Harryman in the back of my mind. It may be crazy to think I can do a half iron in late May, but I haven't given that up 100% yet.
Weight this morning was 157.2
I need to get back to my training. My ankle is still hurting me at times and I don't know if I can run. I had to chase a ball yesterday and I could feel it for sure. I've been doing my stretching pretty regularly but I know I could be more consistent. Tomorrow I go back to see the sports medicine doc. I miss training but maybe I needed a break. I'm concerned that I've lost some core fitness so I have to make sure I esae back in. I still have Harryman in the back of my mind. It may be crazy to think I can do a half iron in late May, but I haven't given that up 100% yet.
Weight this morning was 157.2
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