Also, just a note

I have neglected this blog for several months now and would like to get more active on it. That probably won't happen too much in the next five weeks or so since starting Monday I'm finished with spring break and will still have five more weeks of hell...er...I mean, classes on top of working full time. In my absence from this blog, I was suddenly inundated with spam in my comments, so I have had to reset the settings so that you may have to sign into google to comment. I'm sorry if this is an inconvenience, but I'm really tired of the spam! (Ick! Spam!).

High Lane - the French version of an adventure gone wrong...

High Lane

Like, what could possibly go wrong here? *points up*

IMDB says: A group of friends on vacation decide to venture onto a trail high up in the mountains that has been closed for repairs. The climb proves more perilous than planned, especially as they soon realize that they are not alone. The adventure turns into a nightmare.

This is why we people who like horror and suspense movies can't have nice things. This movie could have been SO MUCH BETTER than it was. Once I got over the bad dubbing (I would have rather heard the French and seen subtitles), I got into it. The beginning was actually delightfully suspenseful. A few friends drive into Croatia to hike in the Balkans on a hike that has been shut down and blocked - what could possibly go wrong? Some tension in the group (ex-lovers, a new boyfriend, a reckless leader friend), some very near misses as far as very long falls off cliffs/treacherous footbridges, not bad. I watched with vicarious horror since there's no amount of money anyone could pay me to get on that bridge in the picture. 

Things start to go dreadfully wrong when one of the party gets caught in an animal trap and a few of the others are dangling off the side of a cliff. Well, the people off the side of the cliff are saved, but the dude in the animal trap? He's dragged off by a cannibalistic orphan who lives in a cave. Yep, you heard me right. And it just deteriorates from there. Actually it was very similar to the last Vacation Gone Wrong movie I posted (the Chernobyl Diaries).  Mutant cannibal sets traps and goes after tourists. Blah, blah, blah.

The main problem with this movie that I have, I suppose, is that I really didn't like or care about any of the characters except just maybe the main character woman who was the last one standing. She was the only one who wasn't either willfully putting her friends in a dangerous position or stepping into someone else's relationships or being whiny/wimpy.  Once in awhile, though, she would have this random flashback to a patient she had (I guess she was a doctor?) who did not survive in her hands and she had obvious guilt over it. But seeing how she was unable to save any of the lives of her friends in the slaughterfest that this movie became, I was not sure what it had to do with anything.

Vacation Gone Wrong Factor: ***** Yeah, pretty much nobody survives to tell the tale. Caution: If a hiking path is closed, there MAY just be a good reason for it.
Did I care about the characters factor: ** From the guy who tricked his friends into going on a dangerous hike that was closed to the whiny self-absorbed boyfriend of the main character to the badass ex-boyfriend who may have just let the boyfriend die toward the end, just. . . no.  Perhaps the cannibal did the main character a favor by getting rid of her friends for her.
Verdict: *** Not bad for the suspense, at least in the first hour. 

The title post of SHAME

Hi.

Yes, it's been a great while. I'm ashamed to admit that I actually sort of forgot that I had a blog. I would LIKE to get better at this.

Consider this one of the many goals I have for this year that is all mixed in with running a marathon, finishing my book, surviving the school year combined with having to take multiple university courses, figuring out my life post-divorce, etc.

Halloween approaches, and we all know how intrinsically creepy dolls are. I offer you:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sgfklKnOg4w


I challenge you to try to get that tune out of your head...;D

Happy Halloween, you all!

(I have about a million Vacation-Gone-Wrong movies to review! Let's see if I can knock some of those out before Halloween!)

Eccentric Auntie's Most Excellent Adventure

So, I'm going to talk in multiple parts about my Excellent Vacation (one that did not go wrong) that I took to Calgary, Canada, Seattle, and L.A. over a 2 1/2 week period of time. Today I am going to focus on Calgary!


This will have lots of pictures, so be forewarned. :D

So I visited a friend, let us call her J., who lives in Calgary. She was kind enough to pick me up from the airport at midnight as well as leave me a google map so that I could find a nearby plaza with cafes, etc.  while she was at work!

The first day I was there, I found this place, a perfect writer's cafe, not to dissimilar to Espresso Cafe:



A nice, sunny atmosphere, lovely tomato-feta scone, and much writing brainstorming!  I grew restless after a time and decided to seek out an ATM to get some Canadian money. What did I learn? Canadian drivers, at least where I am, are really, really polite to pedestrians. I was hovering on the side of a busy street with no lights in a short distance, with a road that sort of curved around so that if I went for it, I would likely take my life in my hands.  And what happened? FOUR LANES OF TRAFFIC stopped for me so that I could cross. The difference between that and where I live? Where I live, I would stand there all day because even if some nice person stopped to let me cross, nobody else would. Or I'd get honked at. And not only did all this traffic stop, but I noticed after I came out of the atm that there had been a proper pedestrian crossing only about a block away and all the traffic was STILL nice enough to stop for me. :D  Okay, so after that, I wandered about for a long time. I grew hungry in time and wanted to eat something locally, so I found a Brewery/lunch place and I went in.

Here was my lunch:

A pale ale mushroom soup (YUM!), a salad, and a local ale with raspberries in it. I couldn't finish it since I didn't want to be tipsy that early in the day, but it was good and I don't even like beer.

So I headed back to J's house, at which time I decided that I would meet her downtown, which involved following her map to the train station. This time I got a little turned around. In this town, in each neighborhood, streets are named very much the same. Let's say "Forest" was the name theme in a particular neighborhood. Well, then you would have "Forest St.",  "Forest Blvd.," "Forest Crescent," "Forest Drive" all in the same neighborhood. So this can lead to much hilarity in getting lost. I think the city planners have a good laugh over that one.

Here's a random pic of a park I passed on that walk when I was on the wrong street:


Next I took the train into downtown Calgary. It took about 30 minutes, but it was a great tour. I met J and then we walked around the plaza:


We took the train back to J's area. I got a running tour guide as we went on. And I learned something else. People in Calgary think that a building that is 75 years old is historic.

The next day, we went to Banff National Park.

I had decided that since I was in Canada, that I MUST see a Mountie.

J and I set off into the blue. Then I saw mountains for the first time in a LONG time.  Not since 2009 or so, the last time I was in California. These are impressive Rocky Mountains, with unique shapes and towering cliffs. We reached the park, and well, hmm, here we come upon a Ranger Hut where they will be very stern about letting us pass if we don't buy a day pass to the park:


Our first stop was one of the gems of the world, Lake Louise, a glacier-fed lake. Parking was a madhouse as everyone else in the world had the same idea as we did.

We parked and walked down to the lake, and behold the humble beauty. Yes, I'm going to show you multiple pictures of what I think might be one of the most beautiful spots in the world:


Take 2:


Take 3:


Proof that I am actually there...:D But what was missing?...Oh yes. Still no mounties.


Next stop was lunch and then Johnson's Canyon.  This was about a mile hike on a scary catwalks to see some waterfalls.

Over the edge:


There is a sign that says "Do not run on the catwalk." Ya think?


Here are the falls. There were so many people swarming around the area that I turned down the opportunity to climb through the muddy cave-tunnel to go out on another observation deck that was closed in, small, and wet, with little kids scampering about in a precarious manner.


Mounties would have been impressed by my strength here, but alas, they were not here.


We left and went on down the road. Along with mounties, I had been hoping to see some kind of wildlife, such as grizzly bears, of which there are many in that area.

We did see elks:




We did what any smart people do. We got out of the car and got super close to LARGE WILD ANIMALS with antlers and took pictures. Give us some credit, though -- they were calm, chomping away on food, totally aware that we were there and unimpressed -- and they were not grizzly bears.

Another wild animal friend:


So we met some friends of J's and went to a restaurant with a roof patio in the village of Banff called the Rose and the Crown.


The sun would be setting soon at the late hour of 10 p.m., and still I had not found a real mountie.

And then...THEN...THEN:

The End of an Era

I think I didn't want to chat too much this summer on this blog until most people in my life who might possibly look at this blog knew the huge and enormous news in my life, that I just got divorced from my marriage of nearly 19 years.

There is sadness, yes, and I'll go on a serious note and write something that I expressed a while back:
I've known M. since I was 20. We met at the college fountain one evening, and we lost total track of time for the rest of the night. We connected on some deep soul level, something that I don't think will ever go away between us. That first year, we were the cheesy couple that you see being lovey-dovey at a restaurant table, holding hands and staring into each other's eyes. When we first got married, we were one of those couples who did everything together. My oldest friends became his friends, etc. We went through so much together over the years, some good, some bad. We made bad choices at times, but we really enjoyed life, had adventures, and had our simple pleasures and traditions, like our Saturday movie night where we would rent two cheesy horror movies and get food from this certain food place with great Greek salads and cheese fries. We would cook together, dream our glamourous future together where we were going to be nomadic, traveling the world, working for one place in an exotic South Pacific island for a few years before moving on to another place, just as wild and wonderful. We did indeed live in three different towns in Illinois, one city in Florida, and two other countries. We had road trips and mini-adventures. 


We were not always perfect, we had our problems and dysfunctions, but we were us. Our bond was indestructible, bound together for better or worse, facing the world together and who knows what other adventures. Certainly there were ups and downs, but everything for sure changed after May 2008. I couldn't function, he didn't give me what I needed, I left, and things broke. I broke to pieces and then when I came back together again, things could never be the same. He didn't know me anymore and I didn't trust him on the same level. We still loved each other so much, and we still love each other deeply. Nobody in the future will ever love either of us as much as we loved each other, I'm convinced. We still had summer adventures for a few years, but our tie was frayed, no longer strong and golden, but ethereal and wispy. 


I just never thought it would break. When he agreed so readily to what I knew was inevitable, it was such a shock to my system. I think a part of me thought that no matter what, we were bound to each other, that we could TRY to end things but we wouldn't really be able to. So while this is a necessary thing, a relief, a breaking off from a toxic situation as things have stood the last four years, it still hurts on a deep soul level, where we were bonded. 


Yeah, we weren't perfect, but we were us.

Intermittent Fasting

Oh, fasting my old friend, you are back and I love you.  I have talked about fasting before, but it's been difficult to get into a routine, especially during the school year. Mostly because food is such a social event, and I tend to hate being the center of attention when I'm doing something a little "off."  I abhor being interrogated about my eating habits.

Eating in most cultures is so fraught with emotion and cultural habits. In other words, eating is not something you do in a bubble. It's everyone's business when an overweight woman buys ice-cream, a skinny person doesn't eat, whether you take seconds or not, whether you eat dessert, or whether you choose to eat only natural foods or no bread products or no junk or all junk.  People want to know if your eating habits have a purpose -- are you gluten intolerant or have other allergies? Do you want to lose weight? Are you sick? People are concerned about eating disorders. You're not eating? You must have anorexia. You're eating too much? You must have a binging disorder.  Food is love and sharing. If someone makes food for you and you refuse it, it's the ultimate rejection. I have been guilty of that kind of thinking before, ranging from feeling extremely annoyed when someone doesn't want to share something with me and has an almost pious snobbery about a certain food (omg, that has HOW many calories/fat grams/carbs?) to feeling bad when someone doesn't want to try something I've made.

This happened to me on the very last day of school. We had all brought food to share and I had brought the one thing that is my signature dish -- hummus. Among friends and some family it's a beloved dish.  In general, it did not go over super well at a potluck filled with people mostly of midwestern background who far preferred the typical midwestern fare of potato casseroles and three-bean salads and lavish desserts to something that is known as "health food." I did catch myself feeling offended when people didn't seem to be spooning MY food up or even trying it.

So yes. What you eat seems to be everyone's business.

When I've done intermittent fasting in the past during the school year, I must have about five people asking me every single day at lunch, "What? Aren't you eating? Why not? Isn't that unhealthy? Oh, I could never do that."  And if it was only one time, I could handle it. But when it's every single day. ("What? You're still not eating?") it gets so annoying that I want to throw my hands up and say, "OKAY! Uncle!!! I will eat a fricking salad!"

It doesn't matter if I try to explain the health benefits of fasting for me -- better hormone regulation, more energy, mental clarity, more time (think how much time is focused around food, preparing meals, contemplating what to eat next, etc), more money, better regulation of blood sugar (ironic, yes?), endorphin highs on and off throughout the day (just all things I've noticed for myself -- do your own research if you're curious for more scientific explanations of benefits of fasting), better exercise energy, less bloating, weight regulation.  Everyone is caught up in the whole breakfast is the most important meal of the day myth that the nutritionists brainwashed by the cereal makers have touted for a long time. And all this b.s. that your metabolism is stoked all day if and only if you eat frequent meals.  What in the world did humans do for all the many years that we didn't have the privilege of having so much food available to us twenty-four/seven? The metabolism being stoked thing may or may not be true. I suspect there is truth to it but that it's too minuscule to truly benefit us on a major level. What's more important is that a slower metabolism might actually be better for longevity and better health and the slowing down of aging as proven in some studies with mice with highly restricted calorie diets and low metabolisms as a result of those low-calorie diets (google stuff on CR studies and mice, there's a lot of research out there, as well as people who are trying to live that lifestyle).

So here is what I do:

I let myself a small eating window from about 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. Some people do 36-hour fasts. I've tried that once before and it's simply not for me. While I was proud of myself for doing it. It's too hard to not have any reward the whole day. So anyway, I do a 22-hour fast.  It's important to distract yourself when you first do the fasting. It takes a few days or even weeks to fully get used to it, and you WILL feel extreme symptoms from your body begging you to eat, eat, eat, especially at your previously usual meal times.  Your stomach might growl at embarrassing moments. You might feel headachy. You will feel irritable. Your body is not in danger. It's just being a brat. It hasn't learned yet that you WILL feed it, but later.  Drink lots of tea/coffee/water, even diet soda if you like (diet soda is questionable because of the fake sugar which I am suspicious of and it could screw up your blood sugar while fasting). Seltzer water is a good friend.  The fizz fills you up and it's just water. When it's time to eat, eat what you want. Don't yet worry about carb counts, fat grams, or calories. That can come later, if you choose to continue this as a lifestyle.  I always eat healthy stuff first (gazpacho made with farmer's market veggies - YUM, and fresh raspberries), then eat whatever you've been desiring that day. Eat until full. Notice I said FULL, not stuffed. You're not binging thoughtlessly, you're not stuffing yourself when you're full. You eat what is pleasurable to you UNTIL full, not while full.  If you want cake, have cake. If you want cheesy enchiladas, have those.  Be satisfied both physically and mentally. Nibble a bit before your eating window closes. Then stop. If you drink alcohol, wait until you've had food in your stomach to partake. Later you can tweak your diet so that it's more balanced/healthy etc. Right now, just get used to using the eating window to satisfaction.

So it's gone great the last few days for me. I feel better, and more importantly, I feel accomplished and disciplined, like I can follow through on something and do it. This is the first step of many in my quest to end my ADHD mind and live the life I want to live.

MAJOR DISCLAIMER: I am not a doctor or nutrition expert. I'm just my own guinea pig. Fasting isn't for everyone. Do not attempt if you have diabetes or other major health issue, have a history of eating disorders, are pregnant or nursing, are a child or teenager (still growing), or have other issues that might be aggravated by fasting, like migraines. If you try it and get dizzy or faint, eat something! This is not supposed to be torture or a way to end up in the hospital. Fasting might not be for you at all or you might have to start small (start skipping breakfast for awhile until your body gets used to that then increase by an hour every day).

Chernobyl Diaries - when Extreme tourism goes wrong....

Chernobyl Diaries

IMDb says: Six tourists hire an extreme tour guide who takes them to the abandoned city Pripyat, the former home to the workers of the Chernobyl nuclear reactor. During their exploration, they soon discover they are not alone.


I saw this movie in the theater and I had a lot of fun with it. I went in with absolutely zero expectations, since well, the title says it all. I knew ahead of time that the characters would likely be whiny American tourists for whom I would have little sympathy making dumb mistakes. In truth, the best part about this movie is the build up and character development. Okay, maybe not stellar, but for a horror movie, pretty awesome. I actually liked the main female character and actually connected quite a bit with her.


Things go dreadfully wrong when the shady tour guide's van doesn't start just as sun is beginning to set on this creepy, abandoned city.  The atmosphere is everything in this movie and it is indeed CREEPY. I had goosebumps. I was even saying to myself, "This has to be one of the scariest movies I've seen!"  Because I had gotten to know the characters, I was right there with them, feeling more and more trapped and freaked out as the sun went down. And there ARE things that go bump in the night. Major radioactive bump.


However, the movie ultimately disappoints.  The last third of it made very little sense, there were bizarre plot holes (like why, why, why was one of the girls able to get away one or two times when all other victims were ripped apart or taken away right away? Hint: Probably because she was blond and pretty and helpless.).  


The ending was horrible and dumb and well, rather laughable.  It ruined the whole movie for me.


Oh, there was a random bear at one point. Random bear was random. I just had to throw that out there, especially for Saturday Sequins and Mr. Sequins. 


Vacation Gone Wrong Factor: ***** Starting with random bear and ending with, well, ending, nobody gets out alive. Extreme tourism? Extreme ways to meet your maker, I'd say.
Did I care about the characters factor: **** Yes, for the most part. At least the main character. I so wanted her to live.
Verdict: ***  Yeah, those writers should be sent on an Extreme Tour of sitting on their butts in front of the computer to come up with an ending that doesn't suck. 

oh my gosh, has it actually been this long?

There is a big reason for my silence, and all will be revealed soon, but let's just say in a very cryptic manner that huge things are happening. As a result, have not been much in a blogging mood.  But as I would like to get back into regular blogging, I am going to organize some thoughts and pick something to blog about every other day, even if it's the minute and boring details of Mo and I's six-mile walks.

But today I am doing something amazing for myself. This will sound like the silliest, cheesiest thing ever, but I am creating a big poster board filled with pictures of things that I truly love in my life and that I want in my life. The only problem is that my printer is only black and white and so I find these amazing pictures of my future cottage by the sea, for example, and it just doesn't look as impressive on my posterboard without the turquoise sea in the background. I think I would suggest that anyone who is  depressed, grieving, or at a big life crossroads or even if you just have a vague wish for something specific for the future, this project is amazing and it makes me feel amazing to do it. I just keep looking at it and thinking of other things that I could add to it. Eventually I'd like to figure out how to make the pictures colorful and how to write my comments on it in something other than scribble-scrabble handwriting (never my forte, never my forte). Then again, I suck at scrapbooking, and this is essentially like scrapbooking, only it's like you're making a wish for your future instead of scrapbooking things that have already happened.  I will never show this thing to anyone, ever, so no pictures.

Hope everyone is doing well!

Summer vacation starts today!

And yes, I'm as excited as the kids.

Oh, the possibilities. Now, as I've said to some other friends recently, my muse has been on a lovely tropical vacation and has been refusing all communication with me.  She did promise, however, that she will return when Mo is here and settled and school is out. So I'm holding her to that promise.

I have done some deep cleaning in the house. Kitchen on Saturday, living room and front area on Sunday and started the dining room area.  Today I need to at least do the bathroom because SS and Mr. SS are coming over and they don't deserve the horror that is my upstairs right now.

Hopefully when the muse returns from vacation, my entries will become a bit more interesting than blah-blah-blah-cleaning-blah-blah-blah-yayvacation. :D  Stay tuned...

3 1/2 more days!

Yes, I just have 3 1/2 more days before the school year ends. I have been craptastic at updating in this blog, but I promise to be better, especially because PinkAudrey is gone for the summer *CRIES*, and the only way she can hear my brilliant words of brilliance is if I keep writing in this blog. Because I know she is waiting on the edge of her seat. :D

 One of the reasons that I'm having difficulty writing in this blog regularly is that I feel like this blog needs a bit of a consistent theme. Yes, I have the "when vacations go dreadfully wrong" theme (and I have a list of movies built up in my head to critique on here, especially a really bad one from the Lifetime channel I watched recently!)

 But I feel like mostly I babble in this blog a bit without purpose, and I think blogs that are actually followed by more than your immediate circle of friends and family actually have something to teach the world on an interesting topic. But I am literally ALL OVER THE PLACE. Hmmm...So I will need to think on this when I have the time and inclination to think (which is in THREE AND A HALF DAYS! Did I happen to mention that I'm done in 3 1/2 days?)

 Also Mo will be coming home a week from Saturday, so that is weird and exciting and fun all at once.

I did it!!

Yep, I ran my first half-marathon! My time was 2:34:26. Not bad for a firstie!

Again, it's been awhile! :)

I can't seem to get the hang of blogging. I've had a lot of Serious Stuff on my mind lately and thus haven't really been in the mood for blogging and pretending to be all happy and upbeat. Heh. I know a lot of you people write blogs that have a "theme" or better, a purpose. Like Saturday Sequins has her beading stuff, and Health Amateur focuses on health. I need a bloggie purpose. Except that I tend to have MANY interests and can't just pick one. Will it be running? Will it be writing? Will it be any number of obsessions I have? Will it be healthy eating? Will it be international recipes? And if I do any of those, do I still get to write ominous Vacation-gone-wrong posts and movie reviews? :D I kind of like the whole self-improvement thing, like from the perspective of deep breathing, morning writing pages, running, healthy eating, etc. Will think on this some more!

On another subject...

This is the 100th Anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic. If you don't know me by now, let me just say that I am Titanic history obsessed, and so this has been my WEEKEND. The television stations are filled with programs about the Titanic, that famous, big film from 1997 with Leo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet has come back in the theater (in 3D, which is kind of annoying, I'm not a 3D person at all), and there are all kinds of cool things. My Titanic obsession got me through a bad period of time in the fall of 2008, so it just has all this emotional stuff surrounding it for me.

Random Titanic Fact: Cats were considered good luck on ships AND they helped control the rodent population. There were no cats on the Titanic. I forgot where I read that, I think on some trivia website about the Titanic. :)

Another random fact: The binoculars that were supposed to be in the crow's nest to help them look out for icebergs were lost.

Oh, dear, it's been awhile!

Yikes, it's been awhile.

So meanwhile, vacation ended and I had to go back to work and already a week and a weekend has passed since being back!

I feel a bit unraveling at the seams -- overwhelmed by tons of things right now.

So also during the break, I visited Thailand. Not literally, alas, but through cooking. I found a really excellent pad Thai recipe on the jar of a pad thai sauce jar, and I just added a bit to it. I will go into more detail later perhaps. I am too lazy to hunt down the jar of pad thai sauce and write down the recipe at the moment. Let's just say it was divine and just as good as restaurant pad thai! I have also visited the Philippines via a recipe from my good friend Katie (she has lived there before). That also came out very yummy, but I forgot to take a picture of it. No, really, I WILL make a post that involves travel food again with pictures and recipes and everything, but this evening is not that day.

Healthamateur asked about fasting in a comment. To tell you the truth, I haven't done fasting much since coming back from vacation. It's hard because there's a big social element to our lunch hour at school. Everyone gets together and if anyone does anything weird (like not eating) there is instant attention on you and questions. So I haven't done it, as I get weary of talking about whatever I'm doing on any given day. I would rather not be the center of attention. I will probably go back to experimenting with fasting more in the summer or possibly on occasional Saturdays. Anyway, the question was about hypoglycemia. As far as I know, I have a tendency toward hypoglycemia. As a result, I have trouble if I eat anything high carb for breakfast (like bread or fruit or cereal). Here's what I think. I think that if you are having normal hunger pangs while fasting and just feeling mildly light-headed and uncomfortable, that that's normal. If you have such bad dizziness and shakiness that you can't function? Then probably fasting isn't for you. Also someone else mentioned (can't remember who right now) migraines, and since Healthamateur tends toward migraines, it might be a risk not worth taking because migraines suck.

Writing. Yeah. How's that going for everyone? For me, it's going ok. Not great, not horrible. The writing itself is great. It's me actually sitting down and doing it that's the problem. Once again, I will need to back off from the internet for a bit to allow more time.

Oh. And as for running? I signed up for the half marathon. Am I insane????

Cooking around the world -- Myanmar (Burma)

So one of the things I thought I would do during my break is to pick a few random countries and cook a dish from them. This is not as formal as the blog that I think Pink Audrey talked about where someone cooked around the world on a regular basis. This is just sort of random and obviously I can't do this super regularly because of time factors.

So yesterday I made a dry shrimp curry from Myanmar (Burma).

I used this recipe:

Dry Shrimp Curry

I did add a few things. I added about a half can of straw mushrooms and a handful of bean sprouts, just to have some veggies in there. Also, when it said to blend the onion, garlic, and ginger, I knew my blender wouldn't be having any of that without some liquid, so I added a bit of chicken broth to the blender. I only had brown rice to serve it on, and as healthy as brown rice is, I don't really like it that much and it takes forever to cook. Eh. But whatever.

Here was the result:



It was not fantastic and I probably would tweak a few things (less broth, maybe add some coconut milk even though it's supposed to be a dry curry). But it was pretty good. I enjoyed eating it. It is all I have in memory since today is a fasting day for me, haha.

Happy to be home

The last week has been awfully busy for me, so I just haven't been in these here blog parts. I was at a conference for a few days and am SO happy to be home with my kitty and in my own private house with no crowds of people all around me constantly.

I am on the eve of my spring break right now, which makes me blissfully happy, but we all know that will pass WAY too quickly.

So I've taken to doing a few 36-hour fasts a week. I have heard that this is good for you, as far as getting rid of crap in your system and helping with digestion and even doing stuff with mental clarity. That latter thing? I need it desperately. Well, the first 36-hour fast I did was last Monday. I knew I had a wildly busy day that day, so it was a good day to start. I go through it with minimal pain. I mean, there were difficult times when I was thinking longingly of food during my usual meal times or when I smelled food. I did get very hungry a few times. I did go through a spacey time when I felt overly tired and out of it. But these things passed quickly.

Mostly any negatives I feel about it have to do with feeling uncomfortable about dealing with other people who don't get it, who think it's unhealthy or pointless to fast. Of course these are often very conventional people who think I'm a bit weird anyway, haha, so who cares, right? I've tried to choose fasting days based on times when I know I am unlikely or do not have any social plans that involve food so that it will not affect my social life at all.

The pros:
1. there are random times of absolute euphoria that you get while fasting
2. nice empty feeling in stomach, no bloating
3. feeling of accomplishment, like I have discipline
4. frees up more time (think of all the time you spend preparing, cooking, eating, cleaning for meals)
5. lots of research out there about calorie restriction and better health (like less asthma) in mice/rats
6. weight loss (I would really like to get back down to my ideal weight - it's tough to be short AND over 40 AND on hormone medication! You have to watch it like a hawk and I refuse to use my age as an excuse to let myself go)

The cons:
1. hunger on fasting days can be pretty intense sometimes and distracting
2. Stomach growling during inappropriate times
3. A few slump periods in energy
4. awkward for potential spontaneous social situations
5. I don't like dealing with naysayers
6. People think I'm weird enough, here I am doing yet another outside-the-box thing

Speaking of vacations gone wrong...

With spring break coming up, I have to admit that I was craving an all-inclusive beach-bum sort of vacation again. You know, the kind where EVERYTHING is taken care of for you, and all you have to do is lie on the beach or go snorkeling.

Upon doing some research, I found this interesting site on traveling to Mexico.

Mexico Vacation Awareness

It's not your usual travel warnings...but the stories listed on this site are pretty horrifying in general and would make me think twice about traveling there, even to the resort town of Cancun (although I have been there before with no incident, but isn't that the case anywhere? Statistics don't matter when you're the victim). It's not so much about the fact that crime and accidents happen there. Those things happen everywhere in the world (muggings, rapes, robberies, accidents, drownings). It's just that in certain places, visitors are sometimes particularly targeted for crime OR when an accident or crime happens and/or you need medical help, the people you rely on to help you (police, EMTs, hospitals) are corrupt or incompetent. This can be especially true on resorts or places where tourism is heavily relied on because the authorities will want to push whatever happens under the rug as to not hurt their bottom line.


(Author's Note: Naturally, this is not a problem exclusive to Mexico. And I should point out that this is in no way a slam on average Mexican citizens, whom I have found to be lovely and warm. There are gems, turds, and everything in between in every culture, country, and place around the world.)

As for my spring break, it looks like I'm having a Staycation. I have some plans, such as possibly cooking around the world, doing a writing boot camp, catching up on some books and movies. The week will pass too fast, but you know what? Summer is coming. I am very lucky to have a very low-paying job where the one benefit is having 2 1/2 months off in the summer! My goal for this summer is to try not to get roped into much as far as professional development either. I'd rather just do that during the school year. Am I not going to a literacy conference this coming week? Why, yes I am! Professional development = CHECK.

Timber Falls - yay, another Vacation Gone Wrong movie!

This one was. . .interesting, but definitely a vacation gone dreadfully wrong...

Timber Falls



IMDB says: A weekend of camping in the mountains becomes an excursion into hell for a young couple, who become pawns in a grotesque plot hatched by deranged locals.

In a horror movie, whenever a young couple are being all lovey-dovey and all excited to go into the wilderness on a hike together, it's just a matter of time before someone gets eaten by a bear or accosted by deranged locals who believe that you should be married before fornicating on their sacred lands.

Much like the vacation-gone-wrong scenarios that take place in exotic third-world countries, this is a home-grown version of the same kind of xenophobia. This takes place in exotic Appalachia where of course everyone is backwards and creepy. Yep, perfectly normal to kidnap a couple and force them to procreate for them and make them get married ahead of time so that the baby will be not born in sin.

That being said, this was actually a good horror flick that surpassed expectations. The SyFy channel had given it one star, which is pretty funny from a company that produces movies like Sharktopus on a regular basis. Now to be fair, there WERE things that were completely over-the-top horror movie tropes and ridiculous. There were times when I really didn't get why certain characters were doing certain things. However, the premise was actually very clever and terrifying. The acting was not too bad either, and I really did wonder up until the end how in the world the couple was going to get out of that situation (sign of a good story).

Vacation Gone Wrong Factor: * * * There was torture, there was over-the-top lunacy, there were fetuses in random jars, there was the creepy not-quite-right-in-the-head brother of the main antagonist with the distorted face and animalistic sex drive. The only reason I'm not giving four stars is that the main characters did escape in the end.

Did I Care About the Characters Factor: * * Somewhat. They seemed a little annoying and bland and self-centered, but they seemed to pull it together when the going got tough.

Verdict: * * I'm being far more generous than Sy Fy channel rating, but hey, it was okay entertainment. Do I want to watch it again? No, probably not.

Mmm...lazy sunday!

Oops it's been awhile, hasn't it?

Work has been over-the-top stressful and it seems I can only focus on so many things at the same time. I've become a library book junkie, though. I just love checking out a bunch of non-fiction books about various topics (seriously, non-fiction because there's so little commitment required...if it's not my style or not interesting, I have no trouble just skimming a bit and giving up. With fiction I feel more an obligation to read every word). I love reading about nutrition and survival stories and self-help ideas and even stuff that does not apply to me AT ALL, like dating advice. I love to read stuff like that for ideas for my characters and just for amusement (and gratitude that I'm not IN the dating world, haha). Writing books, too, although they start to annoy me after awhile, most of the time. I check out anything that just catches my fancy at that moment.

A great book that I've just finished is called The Survivor's Club. I read that book absolutely riveted. It's about people who have survived amazing things, and some of the science behind it. What makes some people do the right thing in a crisis, and what makes others flail or freeze. Really fascinating writing and well written.

Well, it's Sunday morning and the coffee is good, the cat is purring, and there's still a full day spread ahead. *raises mug*

Day off!

Yay, so today is President's Day and I have an extra day off, which is exactly what I need! In fact, after I write this post, I'm going to banish myself from the internet for the day and write all day! Yes, I can do this. I got seriously into it for a few hours yesterday and the only reason I stopped was because I was going to bring some dinner over to my dad! Otherwise, I might have gone into "forget to eat" mode (which, believe me, does not happen that often).

As for my whining in the last post, as usual, Write Group represents with awesome advice and support. It's so true. I tend to expect perfection whenever I'm trying to change my life. I get frustrated when my inner toddler takes over and kicks everything and whines and wants to eat cupcakes all day. And if you got to try any of Pink Audrey's oreo cupcakes, then you would understand why I would want to eat cupcakes all day.

One of my non-sugary/non-floury concoctions I'm working on perfecting is sugar-free, flour-free pancakes. I got this recipe somewhere and adjusted the ingredients to my taste, but here it is:

1/4 cup almond flour (expensive stuff, but if you're only using 1/4 cup on weekends, it will last a long time!)
1/2 cup coconut milk
2 eggs
pinch of baking soda
1 teaspoon vanilla

Pour onto griddle or whatever you use to make pancakes greased with butter or olive oil or coconut oil.

Top with fruit or eat savory!

If you're the kind of person who MUST have sweet pancakes, then I imagine you could add sugar or honey to it or even mashed bananas to keep it naturally sweet (I might try that today as an experiment). And add syrup if sugar isn't a problem for you! :)

I actually really love my new way of eating and honestly? The only stress about it is feeling very limited when dealing with social situations or going out to restaurants where there are so many hidden ingredients in things. (Who knew that KFC put MSG all over their green beans, for example??? Why? Why? Green beans are awesome by themselves. Not that I ever eat at KFC, but since I brought some over for my dad yesterday, I was looking at the nutritional information)

Also, I find that a square of very dark-dark chocolate (like over 70% dark) really helps with sweet cravings!

Now, as for my writing, I want to end this beautiful day off knowing that I am on a super sonic roll. So wish me luck!

Whiny McWhiny pants

As always, I'm a very sad work in progress.

I say I'm going to do one thing and I get all determinedy and I'm actually very good at sounding full of conviction so that other people actually believe I'm going to succeed and follow through. Then I go and do the exact opposite. I break. I fizzle out. I rebel. Then I feel bad for awhile, but I quickly forgive myself and promise to do better. This has been a pattern for as long as I can remember and it must stop.

Let's just say that both my eating plan and my writing plan failed utterly this past weekend. I am SO scattered right now. I keep making excuses for myself and promising to do better the next day. Meanwhile I have success on no fronts. I'm even being a bit anti-social with my friends in order to banish myself from distractions so I can accomplish these things that I am not doing -- how insane is that?? Also, the main problem is that no matter what I claim I am determined to do, I keep changing my mind. Inconsistency has always been a huge weakness, but this is getting ridiculous and far worse than it used to be. First I'm going to eat in a particular way, then two days later I get bored so I switch to eating a different way. My body gets confused. I lose a few pounds, I gain a few pounds, I get in great running shape, I stop running and get out of shape. Or I'm going to write on this project, but no, this other project is better, more exciting. But no, I should go back to whatever I was doing before. And by the way, I should start over, from the beginning because it's been so long. Ugh, if there was only some way to force my brain to do whatever it takes to get to where I want to go.

I want the satisfaction of bringing a project to completion. Admitting it is the first step, yes?