![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
interim update
Aug. 3rd, 2010 06:12 pmI am trying to get out of the habit of only posting when I have something major to post about. Not that I plan to tell you daily what is in my fridge. (That's for Twitter. And no, I am not on Twitter - well, I have a couple of accounts, but I use neither.)
- On Saturday we did a guided edible and medicinal plant hike, which was pretty nifty. The most useful things I learned were that the berries of this plant (Twisted-stalk) are edible and taste like cucumber, and that harebell flowers and sweet cicely are yummy in a salad. I can also identify arnica and valerian and know to bind open wounds with the mossy stuff that drapes from the trees, and can poison you with Death Camas if need be, la la la. The volunteer instructor didn't know mushrooms, though, so we gleefully pointed out (and picked) the boletus edulus and scaly urchins we saw. Still on the early side for mushrooms here, but it was nice to come home with a pound of scaly urchin (hawks' wing).
- On Monday Britt left for a week of backpacking with some guys. He's sort of the guide. I would be annoyed at not being invited on the trip, but it's been raining a lot and expected to continue raining. So la la la, have fun, I am hanging out at home with the kitty, drinking wine and eating wild mushrooms.
- I am running! Still feel a little twingy in my peroneal tendon, but it doesn't actually hurt, and I got in a beautiful 15-miler on Sunday morning up Junction Creek and the Colorado Trail. Junction Creek was flooding the color of tomato soup as I ran along it, quite dramatic. I didn't get a super-early start but was still ahead of all the mountain bikers so only saw them while I was heading back down. 37 miles for the week, finally up in respectable territory again, although I would really like to get back to the 50-65 mile range and 6 days per week. Probably not until late fall, though.
- Speaking of running (I know, I speak of running a lot!) I ran a tempo run today which leaves me cautiously optimistic about my fitness. I was worried that I had lost a lot over the summer of injury recovery, but I was able to run 3 miles at an average 7:35 pace, which is about what I was running my (longer, though) tempos at in the winter. I have signed up for a 5K on Friday night and although I know I am not in PR shape, am hoping for at least better than the 23:58 I ran last year on the same course. In fact if I can hold 7:35 I will run 23:30, so that is my goal. The race course is hillier than my morning's run, but on the other hand, races are always faster for me. So we'll see.
- I made lemon squares with this recipe (that I had printed out from rec.food.cooking at least 15 years ago) and somehow the lemon topping slipped around the edge and under the crust (guess my oven isn't exactly level) and made half the pan turn into lemon upside-down bars instead. Not that they are bad, mind you; just that it was unexpected. Also, as some of you know I recently got an ice-cream maker, and I have all the ingredients for chai ice cream. Britt thinks I am going a little overboard with the weird ice cream flavors and so I was going to make it this week, while he is gone, but somehow the idea of ice cream is less attractive when it's cold and rainy. Also when I am still 5 pounds up from my March weight, despite my increased running and mountain biking. Phooey.
- I got two phone calls from political campaigns or organizations today. Yesterday I got one political call and a call from a polling organization. I think we answer on average one poll per week; I know it's random, but I think they are trying to sample all Colorado counties, and there just aren't that many people out here in the SW corner of the state. I am really looking forward to this election season being over just so the damn phone will stop ringing.
- On Saturday we did a guided edible and medicinal plant hike, which was pretty nifty. The most useful things I learned were that the berries of this plant (Twisted-stalk) are edible and taste like cucumber, and that harebell flowers and sweet cicely are yummy in a salad. I can also identify arnica and valerian and know to bind open wounds with the mossy stuff that drapes from the trees, and can poison you with Death Camas if need be, la la la. The volunteer instructor didn't know mushrooms, though, so we gleefully pointed out (and picked) the boletus edulus and scaly urchins we saw. Still on the early side for mushrooms here, but it was nice to come home with a pound of scaly urchin (hawks' wing).
- On Monday Britt left for a week of backpacking with some guys. He's sort of the guide. I would be annoyed at not being invited on the trip, but it's been raining a lot and expected to continue raining. So la la la, have fun, I am hanging out at home with the kitty, drinking wine and eating wild mushrooms.
- I am running! Still feel a little twingy in my peroneal tendon, but it doesn't actually hurt, and I got in a beautiful 15-miler on Sunday morning up Junction Creek and the Colorado Trail. Junction Creek was flooding the color of tomato soup as I ran along it, quite dramatic. I didn't get a super-early start but was still ahead of all the mountain bikers so only saw them while I was heading back down. 37 miles for the week, finally up in respectable territory again, although I would really like to get back to the 50-65 mile range and 6 days per week. Probably not until late fall, though.
- Speaking of running (I know, I speak of running a lot!) I ran a tempo run today which leaves me cautiously optimistic about my fitness. I was worried that I had lost a lot over the summer of injury recovery, but I was able to run 3 miles at an average 7:35 pace, which is about what I was running my (longer, though) tempos at in the winter. I have signed up for a 5K on Friday night and although I know I am not in PR shape, am hoping for at least better than the 23:58 I ran last year on the same course. In fact if I can hold 7:35 I will run 23:30, so that is my goal. The race course is hillier than my morning's run, but on the other hand, races are always faster for me. So we'll see.
- I made lemon squares with this recipe (that I had printed out from rec.food.cooking at least 15 years ago) and somehow the lemon topping slipped around the edge and under the crust (guess my oven isn't exactly level) and made half the pan turn into lemon upside-down bars instead. Not that they are bad, mind you; just that it was unexpected. Also, as some of you know I recently got an ice-cream maker, and I have all the ingredients for chai ice cream. Britt thinks I am going a little overboard with the weird ice cream flavors and so I was going to make it this week, while he is gone, but somehow the idea of ice cream is less attractive when it's cold and rainy. Also when I am still 5 pounds up from my March weight, despite my increased running and mountain biking. Phooey.
- I got two phone calls from political campaigns or organizations today. Yesterday I got one political call and a call from a polling organization. I think we answer on average one poll per week; I know it's random, but I think they are trying to sample all Colorado counties, and there just aren't that many people out here in the SW corner of the state. I am really looking forward to this election season being over just so the damn phone will stop ringing.