Cash for Clutter

I have finally found a hobby that isn't costing me a fortune.  My current hobbies like my all women's gym = $1,200 a year.  I know, I'm overpaying but if I'm going to sweat it out it's going to be at a place that doesn't make me want to cringe.  Running, since I really just got really into it = $400 this year already.  I know, you're like: oh my god, running is free just move your legs!  Well you need sneakers to run, and if you run a lot you will need a couple pairs of them, and then when you enter a fun race that's like $100, and then you're like Oh I truly need insoles $40, and now a water belt $30, yeah so it adds up for something that's actually Free.  But I've done it, things are changing in my wallet.  I've sold 11 books on Amazon in just 1 day!  Many of them were not the "cool" books, in fact I would like to say that my sci-fi/fantasy books sold first and fast.  The first book I sold was a Stephanie Meyer book (not Twilight) and I did really love the book and it was hard to say goodbye, but now...my bookshelves have more space.  Now all my books fit in the bookshelves without piling over into piles on the floor and in weird places.  This is the most fruitful hobby that I've ever had: making space and making money.  Also, I sold a Jillian Michaels dvd set.  Don't judge me...it was too hard!!  I ran a half marathon 2 weeks ago and a 30 minute living room workout was too hard, yeah it sounds crazy, but that women is just like way too strong for me.  I was sick of looking at the set judging me for not trying harder, so I passed it on to someone who might be more motivated.  I should have written him a note that said: this box does not say you need equipment but you do, also this box does not say you will hate your life, but you will.  Cheers dude!

The Great Pumpkin...

Ok, so Halloween is right around the corner and we do have a party go to but we do Not have any costumes.  Why not, you ask?  The theme of the party is: Mourning Patrick Swayze.  People will dress as characters from his movies or in black for mourning.  Sure, that's great, but I don't think I felt for Patrick Swayze the way that the hosts felt for him.  I could only think of two movies he was even in.  I'm approaching a time in my life where if I don't want to do something, then I'm just not going to do it.  Last year we went to a halloween party for the same hosts and the theme was (yes they love themes): Create Your Own Superhero.  It was a nice idea actually, but we never thought of costume ideas and then 2 hours before we were ripping stuff up from around our apartment.  You have no idea the bizarre shit we were coming up with!  At one point Abe wanted to take our tall standing lamp apart and use the shade to go as a Larva!  I'm not sure I've ever laughed so hard at a grown man squooshed into a tiny lampshade.  Later, he took apart our cow humidifier and was going to have me go as Cow Woman.  Now these ideas are all very good, of course, but in the end I dressed in all black and cut out a little eye mask and Abe put on a t-shirt that said: Wingman.  We were the lamest people there for sure, but I just wasn't feeling it.  So what are we going to do this year?  I have no effing idea, but we almost went as this:

And then I remembered that more than anything else, I really don't enjoy freezing my bum off at a party where I'm the DD so I can't even drink to keep warm.  I'd rather stay mostly bundled.  Plus, like who was going to be Chris Farley?  I couldn't really just assume that I would be Patrick, although I totally have the more awesome hair.

Podcasts

I just got really into podcasts lately.  I got kind of bored of listening to music on my ipod for many reasons, but mostly because I couldn't figure out how to get my new music from one mac to my other mac.  I know,  I'm that ridiculous.  It's also ridiculous that I never knew that podcasts were FREE!

One of my friends was like: you should listen to Fernando and Greg based in San Francisco.  So I did, and honestly, I wasn't really into them like at all.  I think the main problem is that this particular podcast is just taken from their daily radio show, and they aren't specially recorded so there's a certain element of organization missing.  I came across Two Gomers Run a Marathon and from the first episode I was totally hooked!  I listened to a bunch of episodes all in the span of a couple of days until I caught up to real time which actually was disappointing, it's like well now I have to wait?  I don't like waiting.  It's about these two regular dudes training for their first marathon and their trials and tribulations along the way, but the most funny stuff is just their casual conversations.  One episode they talked about Full House for like 15 minutes, but then they did this episode on fast food and eating habits, so it's all somehow related.  They're just really likeable guys too, you can tell they're nice people.  When I say they're normal dudes, they're like totally not athletes or anything like that so listening to their training is very interesting and motivating.  I've been searching for another podcast to fill my commuting time with other stuff while I'm waiting for their next episode so  I downloaded this podcast on people talking about the Glee episodes and it's kind of just the other side of the dork spectrum.  I gave it a shot and listened to 2 full episodes but found it was kind of like cats screaming in a metal trash can.  I would probably skip that one if I were you.

Anyways if you're bored with your current music selection and need something a little bit more entertaining try out a podcast.  

So many nightmares

So of course I slept really horribley after watching Haunting in Connecticut last night.  Why do I do that to myself?  I'm super sensitive to scary movies so I don't usually watch them, but I put it on my Netflix anyways and made my husband watch it with me.  The movie itself wasn't bad, I felt like actors were very good which almost never happens in this type of movie.  The circumstances were really just what I found so scary: it was a true story.  I do believe in ghosts and I believe in that really horrible unknown place before final resting, so mock me all you want but I stand by my opinion.  Abe was really sick so he was coughing and snoring out on the couch and so when I woke up at 5am and he wasn't there...I turned my light on and slept you know, like a scared little kid.

We started our day with pancakes.  Abe loves to make these Wallet Pancakes from Esquire.  The only difference being that I try to have him use wheat flour.

Wallet Pancakes
recipe seen here

• 1 1/4 cups flour
• 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 egg
• 1 1/4 cup milk
• 3 tablespoons melted butter
Combine dry. Beat egg. Combine wet. Mix wet into dry. Stir until barely mixed. Can be doubled, tripled, etc.

After this breakfast I thought it was a good idea to get back out there and start running again.  I took a full week off after my half marathon.  My intentions were to do a long 5-6 mile run nice and easy.  What really happened was that I discovered a week off was too long.  It turned into a 4 mile run and walk struggle to get home.  In the first few steps my left knee hurt and my right shin hurt, both of these pains were unexpected.  I think I just kind of shocked my body, so I just need to ease back into it.  I don't think that it will be like starting from square 1 but it will be like starting from say week 5 of my training as opposed to week 15 when I ran the race.  It does feel a bit strange running without a purpose though, I really do need something to train for otherwise I'm just not in the right mindset.  Maybe I should find a Turkey Trot somewhere : )

Juice and Cookies

Thanks to today's nasty Boston weather I got So Much Done around here. 

I finally broke out our new Jack Lalanne juicer.  First I made a basic tomato and carrot juice.  It was 1 full tomato and 3 full carrots.  It was good, but it was missing something but I only bought so many juice-able veggies.

The next juice that Abe made was much better: 1 tomato, 4 carrots, and 1 orange.  This one was nice, very refreshing thanks to the orange.

It never really occured to me how many veggies went into one cup of juice.  I mean really, I get it, but it's going to be an expensive habit.  I think I'll just juice on the weekends and just make really good ones.

I did make biscotti earlier in the day...but I have a bit of a sweet tooth today!  After my crock pot dinner that was Really Bad (don't use this recipe...it was super disappointing!)  So what fixes a bad dinner better than a better dessert?  I decided to make chocolate chip cookies with the basic Toll House recipe with both semi-sweet chocolate chips and butterscotch chips.  It was a nice combination, everyone should try mixing the chips once in a while!

Now that I've taken a bit of a break from running, I am going to have to be more careful on my calorie intake.  I will start that tomorrow : )  But also tomorrow I plan on doing an easy run to see how I'm feeling and gauge how things are looking for the fall.

Cranberry-Pistachio Biscotti

I'm in full nesting mode today.  We've cleaned our apartment, I have an Asian chicken dinner in the crock pot and I just pulled some biscotti out of the oven.  I've never made biscotti before, but I can tell you that mine looks nothing like the Real Simple photo!  I bet it tastes the same though.  This was an easy recipe from start to finish.  The only problem I had was cutting the biscotti during Step 4, mine crumbled a lot which made for less than perfect looking pieces:

Cranberry-Pistachio Biscotti
From Real Simple - November 2009
Makes 40 cookies Hands-On Time: 15m Total Time: 1hr 30m

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter (1 stick), at room temperature
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon almond extract
• 1/2 cup dried cranberries
• 1/2 cup shelled roasted pistachios

Directions

1. Heat oven to 350º F. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, and salt.
2. With an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugar until just smooth. One at a time, beat in the eggs. Mix in the almond extract. Add the flour mixture and mix until just incorporated. Mix in the cranberries and pistachios.
3. Divide the dough in half and shape into two 10-by-2-inch logs. Place on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake until just golden around the edges and firm to the touch, 22 to 25 minutes. Let cool for 30 minutes.
4. Reduce oven to 300º F. Using a serrated knife, cut the logs into ½-inch-thick slices. Arrange in a single layer on the baking sheet. Bake until dry and crisp, 15 to 18 minutes per side. 
   

That Was Way Complicated

Tonight we went to our friend Lauren's birthday dinner.  It was great, we drank from beer towers and I got roasted duck for dinner.  Anyhow, suddenly people are unloading gifts and cards and I'm like:

Me: oh, I feel bad we didn't bring anything tonight. 
Abe: didn't you mail her a card?
Me: no, I mailed your niece Lauren a card.
Abe: WHAT??
Me: WHAT??

Rewind to the day we left for San Francisco.

Abe: it's Lauren's birthday, we should send a card.
Me: ok, I have some here at work.
Abe: Great.
- 2 hours elapse - 
Me: What is your sister's address, I don't have her new one.
Abe: [emails the address]
Me: [Mails the card!!]

So obviously there was some serious miscommunication here.  We have a friend named Lauren and we have a niece named Lauren.  Also we have 7 nieces and nephews and 7 siblings plus 4 parents to keep track of.  

Married life is complicated sometimes.

Nike Swag Bag

By request: all the goodies in the swag bag...not many.  When I went to pick up my number there were plenty of samples all around, but they really were just that: sample sized stuff.  I felt a bit guilty taking more than I was offered, so I didn't!  I will tell you though, I've been loving the Yes To Carrots products.  The lip butter is really amazing.  It moisturizes really well and it stays on for hours better than Chapstick or Burt's Bees.  I can't wait to pick up more of their paraben free products!

There were a lot of free services in the tent that I didn't take advantage of because I was with my husband and didn't want to wait around, but there were:
Manicures
ipod engraving
Foot/running analysis
Smoothie samples
Kashi samples
Ghiradelli chocolate samples

At the finish line there was a Tiffany's silver necklace being handed out by firemen in tuxedos and later a finisher T-shirt.  I really like the necklace, it has the date engraved on the back, and it's just kind of nice.  Was it worth all those miles?  Yes.  The shirt is really good quality it's training and race quality, I expected it to be just a basic cotton shirt and it's much nicer than that.  Also at the finish line I picked up 2 bottles of water, chocolate milk, 2 bananas, a bagel, a bag, and a luna bar.  There were also many free services here too, but since I was trying to find Abe I didn't do any of them: massages, stretching, photos, and all sorts of other crazy things.

I'm sure you get lots of cool swag at other races, but I doubt they're this cool.
 

Last Nike Post!

2,616th!  that's pretty darn good right?  I know, you're all like: Enough with the stupid race already!  So this will probably be my last update on that because I have things like turkey meatballs and pink ipods to talk about.

Nike Half Marathon - The Conclusion

After we picked up my race information we were kind of torn on how to spend the day.  We knew we were meeting friends later in the afternoon so maybe we should get some touristy things out of the way.  So immediately we hopped onto a double decker open air tour bus!! 

I never really thought that these things were a good idea, but on a day where we had a few hours to kill and a lot to see it worked perfectly.  The weather was nice, 65 and sunny, although we quickly learned that the weather can go from 62 to 50 at the flip of a coin.  Really, that's no joke, once the fog comes in you better pull out your scarf. 

I really enjoyed wearing my tourist hat around the city.  I've been to San Francisco two other times, but I've never seen as much as I did this time.  The tour was $35 per person but good for two days, so we did actually hop on and off the bus a few times to get where we needed to go. 

Abe really likes to take pictures super close up of my head for some reason.  Behind me are the sea lions at Pier 39 where they're all fighting for a spot to sunbathe.  I actually dry heaved a little bit when I started to smell their very intense Stink.  They're very cute though, so I've seen them every time I've been to the city.  Honestly, this might be my last time.  That smell is just too much for me.

Abe had to get his fortune from Zoltar, like on Big, but I don't think that he made a wish.  I was like: have you seen Big??  I didn't want to use it, I don't care if it was just a movie!

We met up with my friend Richard.  We were besties back in high school, and I think because of that he was willing to take a trolly ride with us and the millions of other tourists waiting in line.  Our trolly driver was Not a nice guy, I was kind of mortified since 99% of the city is so friendly.  He was kind of angry, but I guess not everyday can be Your day.  I'm not going to lie, going downhill in a trolly is pretty Effing scary.

After our trolly ride, we made our way to Little Italy to have dinner at the Stinking Rose with Richard's wife and daughter.  She was so well behaved and she didn't even say one word the entire time, although he says that she is usually really loud.  I think maybe she was shy.  So this restaurant specializes in garlic: loads and loads of garlic.  Garlic cocktails, garlic icecream, garlic everything!  I really enjoyed my meal, I thought it was tasty but as I felt a little queasy after.

On Sunday Abe walked me to the starting line in the dark at 6:30am and I found my starting group.  Next time, I need to start with a faster group, I spent 80% of the time trying to get past people.  My first goal was just to finish, but when I realized that I could actually do really well of course I got a bit more competitive.  Not that I was going to win or anything, but I wanted to get ahead and be in the pack of faster runners.  It was not as easy as though, I mean 20,000 runners made things a little difficult.  The race was awesome though, I loved it, and it really made me love running.  The course was beautiful and challenging at the same time: yes there were hills.  Most of the hills were very steep but not very long, however, there was one hill that was very steep and for the love of God so very long.  I was swearing in my head.  It was also really inspiring, there were women of all ages and abilities and they were all having fun.  There were people cheering on the sidelines everywhere and there were plenty of water stations and bathrooms and all that.  I think it's probably the most fun race out there, and it was a perfect first half marathon for me.  I felt really good the entire race until the last mile, that hurt, but I was able to maintain my pace so it was a very good sign.  I mean, I really Raced, I was all out.  Unfortunately, there aren't any pictures of me running.  Abe couldn't find me!  There were seriously that many people there.  He endured some tough times trying to get to cheer stations and find me, only to realize that I must have run right by him, and he didn't even see me race.  We met at the family meetup past the finish line 40 minutes after I had finished and picked up my Tiffany necklace and finisher's t-shirt.  Next time I'll just have him wait at the very end and not bother with the cheer stations!  This was a first for him and me.

What's the first thing we did after my race?  We went right to In-and-Out so I could get a cheeseburger animal style.  Abe got a 3x3 animal style.  20 minutes later, what did we do?  We went and got...

Another Burger.  Yes, we ate two burgers in 1 hour.  Abe heard that Taylor's in the Ferry Building had the most amazing burgers in town.  You know, whoever told him that was right.  That burger was fantastic and huge and totally worth every bite!  We bought t-shirts, that's how much we liked it.

We were able to meet up with another one of my friends for a drink and then for dinner we went back to the Ferry Building and had dinner at the Slanted Door.  We heard it was one of those places you must try.  Both of us really enjoyed it.  It's very light and flavorful Vietnamese food, but it's a style of Vietnamese that I havne't had around here or maybe it's just much fresher.  We got the green papaya salad, the shaking beef, and the pan-seared day boat scallops.  I loved the salad and the shaking beef, they were so unique in their flavor.  The scallops were good, but they weren't stand out in comparison.  I ate a lot of beef over the weekend! 

I loved every second of being in San Francisco.  I saw the city in a different way and think it's just amazing.  I learned that I love running and I might even be a runner now, next year I want to run the Chicago marathon! 

Nike Half Marathon - Part I

Our flight was very delayed and we got in much later than anticipated from San Francisco.  More to come later!

It's Here!

It's been really quiet around here this week.  We're leaving for San Francisco on Friday.  I'm actually excited now!  I was kind of uncertain of how I'd feel for a few months, but the time is upon us, on Sunday I'm running 13.1 miles and there's no stopping me!  I'm going to catch up with a couple friends while I'm on the west coast too, hopefully they'll humor my grand ideas of riding trolly cars and eating Rice A Roni...ok not not that part.  Maybe we'll even go to Chinatown and get some dim sum and later see some really smelly seals and get an In-and-Out animal style indulging after a decent race finish.

My only problems now are 1.  how can I get my coconut water from here to there without checking my bag?  2.  how can I get my almond butter there without checking my bag?  The almond butter might be easy enough, but the coconut water...yeah I might need to try and find some once I get out there.  They say not to do or eat anything new the day of your race so I need to eat the same pre-run breakfast I always eat and drink coconut water during my run from my water belt.  I think it's normal to be this paranoid over food.  Deena Kastor had a little toilet problem in the Chicago marathon last weekend, and I'm sure it happens to Average Josephina's like me too.  I have a really fickle belly but somehow I've been able to go the 3.5 months of my training without any sort of horror story - praise the lord.

I'm really looking forward to going to pick up my number and time chip.  I hope there is lots of good swag for me there too, if not I'll just buy some cool stuff and call it even.  San Francisco here we come! 

The triangle of death!

 

Today we DVRed Dr. Oz's new show.  I'm not sure how I feel about him at all, I think that his saving grace is his guest specialists that come on to give more insight.  He's really good at putting people on the spot and making them feel really uncomfortable.  He made a woman cry, and then he asked really personal questions to a couple who were in a libido crisis on national television.  A woman asked him a very good question about adult acne and he sort of brushed her off telling her to use salicidic acid and benzoyl peroxide.  Anyone could have told the woman that.  She wouldn't have gotten up and asked that question if she wasn't looking for deeper answers.  However, one thing he is good at is making people accountable for their own health and actions.  I don't have a real problem with that, I mean if you are morbidly obese then you should see your BMI, but when people are brave enough to go on tv to talk about their poor eating habits it's a bit harsh to use the word "blubber" while speaking about them.  Yes, BLUBBER!  Later he discussed "The Triangle of Death".  He is telling people not to touch the nose in any way.  No nose hair plucking, no picking your nose, no popping zits anywhere in that area, because: YOU COULD DIE.  Seriously, that is what he said.  Also, he wants us to spread the news on the triangle of death.

I'm not yet sure if I'm board with Dr. Oz yet, but I am going to record next week's show to compare...

Fire Fire!

Do you feel like burning your tongue off today?  Let me introduce you to the spiciest chips that I've ever eaten.  It's the kind of spice that seems sweet at first and then it just burns you stupid.  15 minutes later and I still feel the pain, I'm not sure why I continued to eat them! 

A Chilly Mini

I woke up this morning and ran 10 miles with the wind blowing in my face for the entire time.  It seemed like every time I changed direction the wind did as well.  I mean really now.  I was dressed in pants, a short sleeved shirt, and a long sleeved shirt with the arms pushed up and I was kind of hot and sweating but my ears were completely frozen.  Somewhere around mile 3 there was a group of college boys running in shorts!  Nothing else, I mean they were running in a summer outfit, I felt a bit over dressed after that.  I'm a serious wimp.

After my chilly but successful run, we headed to an afternoon wedding.  We arrived at 2:30 for the 3:00 wedding.  Wait, What?  Oh, nobody actually checked the invitation...the wedding was actually at 3:30 so we were super early!  It was totally unlike us to do something like that, but better early than late.  I never can figure out what to wear to a fall wedding.  It's cold, yet you want to wear a nice dress, my solution was a bit off.  I chose to wear a really short short silk dress.  It was inappropriate but sometimes you just have to break a rule or two for the sake of good fashion.  To off set the mini dress I kept the top half covered, which actually worked out perfectly since it got so bitterly cold tonight.  We did a little drinking and a little dancing, it was a fun time.  

My husband gets tomorrow off, while I don't.  I'm not really happy about not having the day off, but only 5 days until sunny San Francisco!  Also, he volunteered to do our grocery shopping tomorrow for the week.  It's a general house rule that I do all the food shopping because A. I'm better at buying sale items and adjusting our healthy dinner and lunch menus to that, and B. once Abe left 2 full bags of groceries at the store and we've kind of never forgotten about that incident.  He did go back and get the items when we realized, but still, it was too hilarious to ever let go.  Oh and C. sometimes he gets a little carried away and buys way too many things!  I have hope that this time he will come through a winner. 

Zing Pizza

There's a new kind of pizza in town, Zing Pizza in Porter Square.  It's very unique, the pizza comes in a rectangle box, their menu is actually a blog, and it's all very healthy.  Most ingredients are gluten free, organic, and locally grown.  For my first pizza I ordered:

Half Blue October

Roasted Butternut Squash Sauce
Fresh Baby Spinach
Mozzarella Cheese
Caramelized Onions
Bleu Cheese Crumbles

and Half Sundance Kid

Our own Tomato Sauce
Mozzarella cheese
Caramelized Onions
Sundried Tomatoes
Turkey Sausage
Parmesan Cheese

Most people say that the Blue October is their favorite.  I can't really say the same.  It was good, but I was really thrown off by the roasted butternut squash which is actually just pureed squash used as a sauce.  I thought I loved squash, it just didn't work here for me.  The Sundance Kid was better to me because it was just more traditional and I like pizza with a red sauce.  The turkey sausage was very good, and the pizza itself was nice and light.  Zing pizza is very thin crusted and the pieces are huge.  I would like to go back soon and try another a couple other pizzas (you can order half and half, I love that).  The people there are very nice, but beware the shop is tiny so seating is limited.  

It's Puppy Time!

It's not really time for puppies, but I do love me some doggies!  Some day I'm going to come home and there is going to a bow on one of these animals and I'll never need anything else in the world.  Ok, maybe I'll need a few other things but one of my major life dreams will have come true.

Shiba Inu

I'm going to take one of these.  He's like the supermodel of the dog world.  When we see this dog walk down the street, everyone turns their head to stare...even other dogs, even humans, even pigeons.

Teacup Pomeranian.

I'm going to take 2 of these because I mean they're so tiny that I could fit two in my pocket.  Ok, honestly this dog might be way too small for me.  So I'll just pretend "take two" because I would def. squoosh them. 

Long haired Dachshund

I've found a deep love for these tiny little dogs and the way that their tummies almost brush the ground as they run down the street.  Their legs move at triple the speed of any other dog, it's So Cute!  This would be a terrible running companion though, so I'll just take one of these. 

Norfolk Terrier

This dog is just the best dog ever.  I've seen them, and they're like the kind of dog that everyone likes - good for girls, good for boys, good for kids and little people alike. They're like that stuffed animal we all had as kids.  This is actually the dog that I think fits my personality the best out of the chosen ones.  They're just really good dogs.  I might just love one to death!

A little bit of awesome

I woke up this morning and my husband made me an egg sandwich and I had my commuter coffee all ready to go.  We drove to work through the rain so my hair wouldn't go flat in that misty jerkery of moisture.  I arrived at work at 9:00 on the dot, checking my email while sipping my coffee and making a to-do list for the day.  The morning was filled with an in depth project where I was able to make the creative decisions that made other people's lives healthier and more fulfilling.  Oh my, an intern came to refresh my coffee at 10:30, what a peach!  At noon, I ate lunch with my group in the kitchen because everyone likes everyone.  All of us pack our lunches in little tote bags because we all care about keeping things cost effective and healthy, sometimes we even trade.  I know my lunchroom is wild sometimes.  There are No snack cakes in my lunchroom.  The afternoon is consumed with meetings with clients where everyone's expectations are met to the fullest and more items are added to the to-do list for the next day for followup.  At 4:50 I water my office plant and then my husband calls me to tell me he can drive me home from work.   

None of this happened with the exception of the egg sandwich.  That is my dream day. 

I'm also pretty sure that Kurt is my boyfriend in another life.  Perhaps in another life where I'm not married...and also not a woman... and also not 27.  I love this little guy, he's just the funniest thing on Glee!  I don't really enjoy any of the episodes all that much, but whenever Kurt is on he makes it worth my time to be watching it.  He's just the super cutest thing.  I'd like him to take me shopping someday.

Scatterbrained Post

Not much going on here this week.  I was able to successfully freeze some chili and beef stew for the winter!  That of course is exciting to nobody but myself.  But if you knew me at all, you know that the second the first snowflake hits that I'll be hunkering down in our apartment hiding from that god awful frigid winter.  Although I am thinking about running through November this year...I know it's kind of insanity.  A new crock pot and a new juicer have arrived.  I'm very happy with the crock pot, it has a digital timer which is nice although I do tend to set it and leave it so it's not necessary.  I just need to pick up some veggies for the juicer, I'm hoping that I can handle all the cleanup that's involved with juicing because I'm sure the benefits are worth the big fight.  I'm really craving carrot!

I feel that I should put a photo will most posts whether or not they're good or bad.  This is Abe learning about home grown scallions at the farm.  This has nothing to do with anything at all, but look how his brain is going there.  You can almost see him thinking and listening:  Scallions Scallions!

I'm trying to find a half marathon for the spring.  I'm just not sure if I should stick around New England or if we should travel again.  I think it's a nice excuse to get away for a long weekend, but maybe I shouldn't disregard races that are so close.  There is the Willow Tree Half Marathon in Providence, RI.  That might be where you find me on May 2 since it's just so convenient.  Although, I shouldn't count my chickens before they hatch.  I still have 5 short runs and 1 long run left before we head to San Francisco!  We got reservations at The Slanted Door for dinner out there, so not only can I reward my run with a nice juicy In-and-Out burger but we can also indulge in some vietnamese.  My mouth is watering just thinking about it. 

Running is a Good pain - sort of

Today's long run went much better than last weeks bucket of horrors. The weather was perfect for me: 62 degrees, cool yet mild, lightly raining at the beginning and then completely clear but cloudy. Everything felt right and I was only in pain for the very last mile.

I tested a new product today: Clif Shot Blocks

I previously was using Powerbar gels but I just wasn't really feeling them. They tasted so/so and they didn't do much but upset my stomach. These are great because they are 1 inch squares that you can eat quickly one at a time when you feel that you need them. Did they help me run faster? No, they just helped me not feel empty and hungry during the run. I really liked them and I'll be bringing them to San Francisco with me in 2 weeks for my half marathon.

Now I'm running with 1 bottle of coconut water to naturally hydrate me, and 1 bottle of water, and in my little pouch I have the little Clif Shot Blocks. I ate only three during my run only because It's a little hard for me to chew and run at the same time! I love the coconut water, it's so hydrating and it gives me a little boost of energy that the water alone doesn't do. I've been finding it harder and harder to buy at the grocery stores though, people must be catching on to my secret...or there are a lot of really hungover people out there replenishing because it's also an excellent cure for a night of partying. Note: it must be coconut water and Not coconut juice.

My longest run yet!
11 miles in 1:43:00
It looks like I'll be finishing my first half marathon in just over 2 hours this time around if all goes right.

Saturday in the rain

We had a really fun Saturday starting with the Somerville Harvestfest! Ok, so we didn't really know what this event was. We knew it was some kind of arts festival in the newly restored armory. There was live music and no less than 10 beer companies handing out shot sized samples. It was a glorified power-hour and we did not last as long as we anticipated. I did try a lot of new beers that I was really fond of like the light Mayflower Brewing Company's Golden Ale. We arrived at about 2pm, so I wasn't about to drink all the beer and leave none for the rest of the young people. - there were lots of young professionals.

Later we made it to Highland Kitchen, the home of my favorite burger of all time. We ordered every single appetizer on the menu! I'm not even kidding, but it was totally by accident. We didn't coordinate what people were going to get and all of a sudden there were plates and plates of food piling on top of us. We got the Mexican grilled corn, the meat plate, the pumpkin and sage ravioli, mussels, shrimp and grits, and potato and leek soup. I really enjoyed the shrimp and grits, they were served with smoked bacon and really tasty mushrooms. The texture of the grits with the shrimp was perfect. My second favorite was the meat plate because it came with tons of homemade pickles! The soup was nothing special, I wouldn't waste my time on it again considering all the other really good food. Of course I got the Highland cheeseburger for my entree! I ordered it medium and it was definitely on the rare side. However that didn't change the flavor and how awesome it tasted. It was worth every bite and it was worth the 45 minute wait for a table too!

Moving on, we had people come over to play mario kart after dinner because we're obviously teenagers. Have you ever seen boys do shots of Worcestershire sauce? As in the condiment? Well now you have:

I know, I still don't understand why. Seems like a bad idea to me...
Even with the out of the ordinary condiment shots and all the horrible New England rain, we had a really fun Saturday!

Alaska for idiots

Me: There is this giant truck in my garage, like a huge 70s style big thing with an Alaska license plate. The day it arrived it was hauling a small Uhaul off the back. Have you Ever seen an Alaskan license plate? That's such a long drive.
Stasha: Wow yeah...can you even drive from Alaska?...
Me: What... are you thinking that it's an island?
Stasha: Yeah.
Me: [laaaaaaaa vindication!] It's actually attached to Canada. (I also went on to explain how and why although somewhat incorrectly) I know this because about 7 years ago I said that it was an island and my friend Megan never let it go. We still talk about it and what a silly comment it was.

I'm just glad that someone else thought the same thing! I know that it doesn't make us Right, but it feels better to have someone in the boat with you. Everyone has a thought like that deep down, there are in fact many other things in the world that were never taught properly to me. Like I had to spend some time on Wikipedia learning about what in the heck the American Samoa is after the recent tsunami.

Me: What is a Samoa?
Abe: It's a cookie.
Me: I thought it was a dog.

That was a real conversation.

This is why my days aren't filled with more productivity.

Myers & Chang

Wow, out to dinner twice in one week! Tonight my fab friend Betsy was in town so we got together at Myers & Chang in the south end of Boston. This place is a little bit of everything in the Asian field: Thai, Vietnamese, Chinese, and Taiwanese. I heard that the dumplings were to die for so we got the Mama Chang's pork and chive dumplings. Were they to die for? Not really. They were good but nothing to write home about. I also got the hot and sour soup. I've never had a hot and sour soup like this. It had a nice flavor, but it also had giant cubes of tofu. There was probably enough tofu in there to feed a small family and I am a huge tofu person. I liked it and I would order it again, but I wouldn't go there just for the soup or anything.

I had some high hopes for this place. It has been getting a lot of hype and people seem to really enjoy it. The atmosphere is nice, it feels like a lively little cafe with Asian food and chopsticks. The waiters are super hipsters, and for some reason nobody is Asian which is kind of funny. There is a nice beer list with many Asian beers that I've never even heard of before which was exciting. They have french press coffee on the dessert menu which I thought was very intriguing. I wanted to order it just for the pressing action. Everyone was super nice and the place is very fun and you should go give it a try. I don't really want to give more of a review than that because I feel like people should go try it for themselves.

Atmosphere B+
Number of Lucky Cats 3