Two Fat Ladies

Seriously. I had heard of these two ladies back in my college days but I didn't own a t.v. so I didn't pay attention.

Fast forward 12 years. The Cooking Channel. Two self-proclaimed fat ladies cooking English fare with reckless abandonment to cardiovascular health. They were frying fatty pork dredged in flour in pork lard. Love it!!! They said it's the only way to get a certain crispiness.

Next, a pie with raw, unseasoned lamb pieces and carrots in-between. The ladies have a wonderful accent. They travel along the most picturesque countryside of England cooking up a storm for folks along the way. Oh, and what do two fat ladies travel in? A motorcycle fit with one of those side carts.


At the end of each episode? Them sitting around commenting on how the fare went, usually one lady is seen smoking and the other having a bit of tea.

I absolutely love this show. I love how they don't give a crap about what's correct. They cook how they want. They smoke how they want. The travel where they want. I want to be like that.

Except I'm not brave enough to ride a motorcycle and I'd like to not be fat. And I don't think I could muster all the pork lard.

Although, I do like inviting friends and family over to cook and bake to my heart's desire because not sharing what I've learned is a waste...

...and a sensible gal like me hates waste.

Earthquakes. Tsunami. Nuclear plant explosions. So many dead, hurt and still suffering. I feel helpless each time I turn my Internet on and see the updates regarding Japan's massive disaster. We are praying for them.

Mononucleosis

I had been feeling "off" this past two months. Just super tired. So tired that I would fall asleep in the middle of the day...several times...and be in bed by 9pm and wake up still tired.

My workouts in February were sluggish at best so I went to the doctor to get bloodwork done to see if my thyroid medication needed adjusting.

I got my results yesterday...no diabetes, thyroid still rockin' at the dosage of synthroid I'm takin', no anemia, but I've got MONONUCLEOSIS. What?!! And then whewwwwww...

I was praying it was not diabetes because these past two years' change of diet and workout have been primarily motivated by the risk of Type 2 diabetes.

Let's review mononucleosis (mono)...kissing virus...that's how it's passed along. No treatment other than to ride through it...symptoms include fatigue, body aches, and headaches, and sore throat. I have had all three for at least a month or so and I thought I just wasn't "tough enough" now that I don't have beefcake trainer telling me to "suck it up".

This would explain my killer migranes and the body aches that gave me flashbacks of when I was in the 160's and was aching everywhere, all the time.

Okay. So I can deal with mono. I will still push on. Run. Laugh. Not kiss my boys. Be kind to myself. Make someone's day.

"Ancient" Asian Tip: How to pick good fruit

Nothing is worse than buying fruit at the grocery store and when you bite into it, it's bland or rubbery; it's worse when it's both. I have to admit, I rarely have this problem. Why?

My mama taught me how to pick out good fruit at the market when I was young and it still holds true. Even more so when fruit is offered off-season. How is this possible?

SMELL THE FRUIT. At the base of the fruit. Smell it. Really smell it. And while you are smelling it, squeeze it. It should smell like the fruit. If your first thought is "I really can't tell" put it back. It's not going to be sweet and tasty. Try again. And again. Really. It will take me more time to get past the fruit section of a grocery store than any other part because I have to smell it. The only exception are bananas. These ripen really quick once it gets home so I'm not as picky about bananas.

After smelling and squeezing it, give it a quick once look-ee-see (watch out for fold or bruising), then there you go. Sweet fruit.

Oh, and all this is nil if you let your fruit just die on your countertop. Eat it. Enjoy it. I certainly do.

2011 goals revisited

Remember these goals?

1) Run 20 miles per week
2) Run two 5ks with my kids
3) L0se 5 lbs
4) Run 2 marathons

Seriously? What was I thinking?!

Well, snagged up is what has happened. Being worried about my knees and when I was running 15 miles / week for two weeks, I could barely straighten my knees out at night. Worried and not being able to shake the pain, I've really cut back on my running. So, why do I feel so terrible about not meeting my goals?

I am learning to accept that working out is a lifetime goal, not a yearly goal. If I blow out my knees now-I won't have it later. I can have surgery...eventually but as I look around and there's not one person who've had knee surgery under 50.

So what have I been doing? Lifting more weights and strengthening the muscles around my knees. So, I won't be able to run a marathon in May. Just as long as I continue to run, I'm not going to sweat the big runs. For right now, I'm going to get my knees healthy.

I am thankful to not have to get out and run around with the kids today. I have such a bad migrane and it makes my jaw hurt. So today, I'm moving slow and trying to take enough Advil to ease the pressure but not get tummy ache.

As for little boys in swim lessons. S.E. is swimming from end to end in the big, lap pool. His front stroke is coming along and he just kicks his little chopstick legs as fast as they will go.

Koo has the underwater swimming down and can swim width-wise across a smaller pool. Swimming lessons, twice a week is the ticket. Previous to this, they were only going once a week and they would forget by the time the next class rolled around.

Express Cinnamon Rolls

When you don't have three hours. When you someone is coming over for a playdate and you want to have a nice, baked pastry for your guests. My recommendation is to make these quick and super easy cinnamon rolls. The flavor is slightly different than your typical cinnamon roll-it has a more biscuit flavor but for the time and labor-it's perfect.

www.the-still-waters.blogspot.com/2010/09/lovin-from-oven.html