Turtlepace

What My Kids Do When I Am Not Looking

2010-08-20T15:48:00.000-07:00

Oma's Schneckchen

2010-05-25T20:10:00.002-07:00

This is a recipe from my mom, Oma Brigitte.

Ingredients
Dough:

150g Quark (substitute with Greek Yoghurt)
6 tblsp milk
6 tblsp vegetable oil
75g sugar
1 pk vanilla sugar (Dr. Oetker) or vanilla extract
dash salt
300g flour
1 pk Dr. Oetker baking powder

Mix all dough ingredients well. Roll out on a floured kitchen towel to a rectangle (35x45cm).

Filling:

30g soft butter
50g sugar
1 pk vanilla sugar
125g raisins (or other dried fruit - cranberries or chopped apricots work well)
50g chopped almonds

Brush dough rectangle with butter. Sprinkle the other filling ingredients evenly onto the dough. Using the towel, roll rectangle into a long roll. With knife, cut of 1.5 long pieces. Place onto grease cookie sheet and press down to prevent filling to fall out. Repeat. Makes approx 12 Schneckchen.

Bake for 15-20min at 175C.

Icing (optional)

175g icing sugar
2 tblsp hot water

Mix icing sugar and water to smooth paste and spread on hot Schneckchen. Let cool.

Enjoy.

The Ongoing Project: XS-NRG Documentary

2010-04-27T22:50:00.000-07:00

The Ongoing Project: XS-NRG Documentary

Last Day at Grouse

2010-04-18T17:58:00.008-07:00

What a perfect end to the ski season - ahem beginning and end that is for me as today was the only day I skied this year.

My quads were screaming a bit and fighting the heavy slushy snow, but by the last run I was managing well on my new to me skies.

Beet Green Soufflé

2010-04-17T17:43:00.003-07:00

This is the first recipe I ever made cooking with beets. I found beets a bit intimidating and never bought them...until I received a bunch in a box from Urban Organics (a delivery service for organic foods that we subscribed to when the kids were both in diapers and lugging a lot of produce, a stroller and two toddlers was a bit much. It ensured that we always had some fresh stuff on hand and opened up my mind about beets. Luckily, the box of fruits and veggies always was accompanied by a newsletter with recipes for the more exotic things....

This recipe is from theFebruary 15, 1999 edition of the Urban Organics Today newsletter:

Ingredients:

2 tb Parmesan cheese grated
2 md beets, cooked and peeled
2 tb butter
2 tb flour
3/4 cup chicken broth
1 cup beet greens, chopped and sautéed
1/2 cup Cheddar cheese, grated
3 egg yolks (I use 4)
4 egg whites

Butter a 1qt soufflé dish (granny's corning ware works fine). Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Slice the cooked beets and line the bottom of the soufflé dish with them. In a saucepan, melt the butter, stir in the flour, add the hot broth and continue to cook until slightly thickened. Add beet greens along with the Cheddar cheese.

In a separate bowl, beat egg yolks; blend with beet green mixture. Beat egg whites until they form peaks. Fold into bowl with other ingredients, blend well. Transfer all to buttered soufflé dish. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

Bake at 175C (Convection) for 30 minutes or until soufflé is puffed and golden.

Running in East Sooke Park and Harvesting Spaghetti Trees

2010-04-09T10:22:00.002-07:00

I packed my bags during Friday's howling windstorm and amidst stories of power outages, canceled ferries and closed roads. While I was looking forward to the run, sailing to Vancouver Island through high waves was very low on the list of my favorite things to do...

Assuming the weather forecast would prove right and we'd run in cold rain for most of the 16km of the Spaghetti Tree run, I threw my rain gear and warm stuff for afterward into the ever growing pile for the road trip and added some Gravol to my breakfast menu for good measure.

A sleepless night despite the sudden calmness outside. I tossed and turned fearing I would miss Kat's carpool scheduled to pick me up at 5:30am...or did she say 5:00am? At 4:00 I finally rolled out of bed to toss the last forgotten items into my bag, switched on the coffee machine and swaddled Active Porker, the golden pig and club mascot in a warm blankie for the trip. Just as well, Kat, after not sleeping a wink herself, arrived 10 min early. Next stop, Reagan, near the city centre - then Claudia near the highway in Richmond. The happy bus was loaded!

We were plenty early for our 7am ferry reservation in Tsawassen. Porker decided to get out of the car and enjoy the ferry ride on the passenger deck. Nobody objected having a pig on BC Ferries and he got quite a bit of attention when he posed for photos in Active Pass. The skies were dry and beautiful, but the forecast called for more rain for the afternoon and by the time we drove off the ferry in Swartz Bay, the rain was coming down again.

Reagan and Active Porker had never been in Victoria and we gave them the whirlwind tour of everything important: Elk and Beaver Lake, location of the annual Elk/Beaver Ultras and 2010 ACU 50K National Championship, Thrifty Foods to stock up on food, the Empress for afternoon tea, the Parliament Building, the Royal British Columbia Museum and the Gorge (where we watched UVic win a rowing race over UBC).

Just so happened that Lysanne, one of the Spaghetti Tree Run organizers, was also on the Trestle Bridge watching the rowing race, and we were able to follow her car to the start in East Sooke Park. By the time we arrive at the little parking lot in the middle of nowhere, we were all cold and tired and eager to start running to get rid of the cobwebs.

Teagirl, aka Katie, had organized everything beautifully. There were maps and sign-in sheets, handheld radios and the little mainlander's group even ended up with their very own guide, non-other than the famous Jackal. Active Porker greeted everybody and then decided to wait in the car. Patty promised to keep him out of trouble.

Our little group soon fell to the back of the pack with an islanders group around Linda, Elaine and Fergus just ahead of us and fasties Doug, Lysanne and Katie disappearing immediately in the distance. The single track trails climbed steadily up and no one stayed cold very long. The trails were in exceptional condition, especially given the major windstorm that blew through just a day prior. All intersections were marked with big wooden trail plaques. Together with Katie's perfect route descriptions we didn't really need Carlos ;-) but it sure was nice to sit back and relax.

The chit chat centred around the scenery, past bagging mishaps and helicopter rides as well as April Fools pranks and looking for the elusive Spaghetti Trees. Did we find them? Did we harvest Spaghetti? This video might shed some light on these questions:

While Katies route description was impeccable, her GPS measurements were thought to be off. Because of all the ups and downs and zig and zags, the distance turned out farther than the GPS had us believe. The route wound its way past mossy rocks, Arbutus trees, wild strawberry plants in bloom, strange succulent, semitropical ground covers and ancient, abandoned copper mines, west to the shore line where the waves crashed against high cliffs. The views more than rewarded for the constant ups and downs. The weather had cleared up and the Olympic Peninsula in Washington, USA was visible in the distance. I scanned the horizon for the tell tale sign of whales, but couldn't see or hear the spray from their blow holes.

Somehow, we missed the cut off for the shorter route. Because Claudia hurt her knee in a hard fall I had considered taking the shorter route back, instead of heading further west on the Coast Trail. Thanks to Carlos' unintentional (or so he claims) oversight, we all ended up committed to the long course - and were glad we did. Just before a little ghost cabin high over the water, Carlos pointed out that this part of the course was an out and back - the girls opted to visit the cabin next year and headed inland...only to discover that they missed the Bobbington Hill loop when the group ahead of is appeared from another trail at the next intersection. A bit confusing, but we waited for Carlos and Reagan and sorted it all out.

Despite my lack of training - resting an injury - I was feeling good and didn't fizzle out at the end. We clocked in at 3:40h. As soon as we stopped, the rains started. Perfect timing. Porker was happy to get to the pub, for some well deserved beers and a burger.

If you'd like to run the Spaghetti Tree Run next time, please find details here.

International Food Night

2010-01-17T10:10:00.004-08:00

What a great idea. A potluck dinner party with an international food theme. All guests were asked to bring an international dish, appetizer, entree or desert of their choice. The invite from Des and Liselotte also specified to wear a hat or head covering...I wasn't sure were that would fit into the evening, but I have a collection of hats and didn't sweat it too much.

What to cook was the question. I love most ethnic cuisines and we frequently steal recipes from other countries for our dinner creations. After considering Ethopian, Indonesian and Vietnamese I settled on a curry dish. Afraid I would mess up when trying new recipes, I figured, there was nothing to go wrong with a curry. I usually create my own versions of curry, depending on what I have in my fridge and larder. This time, I choose to "research" curries and loosely follow a recipe. I had hoped to used some fruit in it as well, as I enjoy the tangy surprise and unexpected texture fruits add to curries. Alas, the recipe I finally settled on didn't call for fruits, but used almonds in it's curry paste. It was called Badami Murgh or Chicken Curry with One Hundred Almonds and was from Northern India.

Ingredients:

Paste:

finely chopped garlic
finely grated fresh ginger
fresh, green chilies
teaspoon fennel seeds
ground almonds
oil

Process in food processor to paste. Fry in oil until fragant and popping. Add spices

Spices

ground coriander
ground cumin
ground turmeric
Star anis

Fry for one more minute, then transfer into large skillet. Add

chicken (cut into cubes)

Coat chicken with curry paste and fry chicken until browned and cooked through. Puree

fresh tomatoes

and add to chicken mixture. Add

cinnamon stick
star anis
gloves
fresh fennel bulb cut in wedges

Bring to boil, then simmer for 30 min. Remove star anis, gloves and cinnamon stick. Just before serving add

fresh chopped coriander
diced tomato
yoghurt

Serve with

naan bread
roasted almonds
fresh coriander
chopped green chilies

There were no left overs....so I assume everybody liked it. Other creations included Vietnamese spring rolls, a Maroccan dish with chicken and philo pastry, a very flavourful Iranian rice dish with safron, Indonesian chicken satay and Cornish pasty.

As for the head gear. I chose to match the dish and wore my Nepali Sari - wrapping the scarf around my head. Got two votes. Maureen's Vietnamese hat - matching her Vietnamese spring rolls - won 1st with three votes.

My Running Start to the New Year!

2010-01-03T12:56:00.000-08:00

My idea of a good start to the New Year includes running 50km. Doing anything less among our ultra friends always makes me feel like a couch potato.

Now, there are good reasons to opt out of a full 50km on New Year's Day:

The distance is insane on any day, but on New Year...you got to be kidding!
Then there is the weather. It always is lousy one way or the other. Conditions are usually perfect for curling up beside the fireplace and ponder the things to come. Conditions are never perfect for a 50km run...in previous years we braved snow storms, hail, Gail force winds that uprooted numerous trees along the course, freezing rain and freezing temps. This year was no exception. The weather man had posted a heavy rain fall warning for the region along with strong winds.
Physical fitness after a month of feasting usually is not quite where it should be to run an ultra
...and lastly there are injuries, that always seem to pop up toward the end of the year when my body tells me to rest but training to run 50km takes precedence

Despite having enough reasons to turn around in bed when my alarm went off at 6:45 on New Year's Day, I rolled out of bed, pondered what to wear to be comfortable for 7 miserable, wet hours and gulped down a cup of coffee while processing the last registrants for this insane endeavor.

Just before 8:00 Carolyn Goluzza arrived at our place to car pool to the start. It's hardly raining, she happily proclaimed as we dashed down the stairs trying to avoid to get soaked before the run started. Ean was rather quiet on the drive over...his nickname rightly is "Rain-No-Train-Jackson and if the event wouldn't be his baby, he would definitely have wished me a good day and hit the snooze button a few more times. But alas, it was supposed to be his 100th ultra, 116 registrants expected him at the start line and some members of the media had set their eyes on his accomplishment, too. Not a day to make excuses.

Smiling faces met us at the start in Stanley Park. I am always amazed at how many people want to run 50km on New Year's Day. We had a line-up at sign-in...

Just before Ean send us off I decided to pull on a plastic poncho. I had decided to wear shorts, my favorite long sleeve CFA shirt and my (not so water proofed - despite the claims) MEC Jetstreak jacket. Figured that the poncho might come in handy if the rain would last all day. I only lasted about 1km with the noisy plastic cover before I stripped it off and thrust it into the hands of Glenn, who was cheering us on at Prospect Point. I was running in a group of people: Karl, Wendy, Neil, Carolyn K. and others. The mood was upbeat as we twisted our way through the old growth forest of Stanley Park. A few times I directed the group ahead of us to the right path or hollered after runners that went down the wrong trail. The pace was crisp and Karl and I agreed that it was too fast - before Karl took off never to be seen again that day.

Popping out of the woods and on to the Seawall near Second Beach Pool the skies didn't look too bad. We introduced ourselves to Laura and Rachel, who didn't know each other, but who had fallen into a steady rhythm. Laura had Ray accompanying her on a bike. His knapsack looked like he could support a few runners and I figured it be good to keep close to him ;-) Laura also looked like a chick on a mission and especially after Wendy and Carolyn turned around at the Aquatic Centre it was good to have some company, motivation and strength nearby. Somewhere along the way, Craig, who didn't look too good at Prospect Point, caught up again. So did the rains... Torrential rains. We all were sopping wet and cold. Until Anthony caught up with our little group, I was the only one wearing shorts and I started to doubt that decision. Question was if I would be any warmer in soggy tights? I also wished I had hung on to the poncho...

At the 2h mark I munched on a granola bar and had some vitamin I. I always enjoy running along Jericho and Spanish Banks, this year however, the view was obstructed by low hanging, heavy rainclouds. Greeting Curb, out for a stroll was a welcome distraction, as was Kirsten, shivering in the wind at the last concession. She was manning the Kintec Aidstation and because her car broke down, she hitched a ride and couldn't bring the tent. The coke and pretzels hit the spot. Thanks, Kirsten. In years past the course moved into Pacific Spirit Park after the aidstation. Because of trail maintenance we had been asked to pick up Admirality trail a little further down the beach. I made the mistake of staying on the beach path a bit too long and ended up running across a soggy grass field. Ick, more water in my shoes.

Heading into the park we passed a gaggle of Coquitlam runners and all huffed and puffed up to Admirality Trail, which follows the ocean along a rim high above the water. The trail was extremely muddy and slippery until we veered onto the wider Salish Trail.

I was happy to leave the flat gravel trails behind us and have a bit of variety to keep my calf muscles and hips happy. The uphills though, were difficult on my legs. The cold and lack of training had caused them to be quite tight and each step started to hurt. Luckily, the weather improved just as we hit the long downhill stretch after crossing 16th Avenue. I was able to produce a bit a body heat and limber up. Craig was not having a good run and knowing that his partner, Ethelyn, would be at the turnaround, I asked him if that would be a temptation to bail. He didn't think so.

The downhill to the turnaround at 41st and Comosun seemed longer than usual - this was were I injured my calf some 7 weeks earlier and I wistfully remembered how well trained I was back then. Ethelyn was sheltering in her car as I approached the turnaround and she didn't see me. I decided not to linger like the rest of the group and get started on the long uphill. My plan was to walk most of the uphill and try to loosen up the ankles and hips. The plan did not include to bail, which given the pain in my Achilles Tendon probably would have been the prudent thing to do.

Slowly the rest of the gang (but not Craig) caught up to me, but mercifully, nobody got ahead too far, or if they did, I caught up at their various stretching, food and bathroom breaks. I figured that stopping wouldn't serve any purpose for me at that point and I was better off to keep moving. I wondered aloud what happened to Craig. None of my new trail buddies recalled him leaving Ethelyn's aidstation. Did he bail. No he wouldn't. But where was he?

The weather, which was cooperating during the 14km through Pacific Spirit Park, took a turn for the worse as soon as we hit the open beach. It was head down and dig deep mode. Our conversation became sparse and I was hoping that Kirsten would still be fighting the elements at the aidstation as I was craving salty stuff. Kirsten wasn't there anymore (who could blame her) but wisely had left behind an assortment of coke and water. I briefly questioned if the stuff (open cans parked beside a garbage bin) was hygienic to drink, but we all agreed that the taste of coke was worth the risk of contracting H1N1 (I didn't tell my new friends that I was vaccinated). As we lingered around the coke for a few minutes, I had a chance to look back to scan the course for Craig. Surely, I would see his yellow jacket from far away. But no Craig was in sight.

In previous Vancouver New Years Day 50km runs, I experienced a high somewhere between Kits Point and Sunset Beach. This year I was anticipating this high and relying on it to get me to the finish starting somewhere along Spanish Banks as the wind and rain was whipping my face. I was also hoping for a little pep talk from Craig and digging up memories of New Year's Day 2008. Where was Craig? Back to the anticipated and sorely needed runners high. It didn't hit. I was telling my running buddies, Anthony and Rachel at this point, that once we hit Kits and can smell the finish the pains will miraculously disappear. Anthony probably figured I was totally off the rocker and started to pull ahead. Rachel kept her distance, too and fell back. Laura was nowhere to be seen and did I mention that Craig was missing?

Dodging the splashing water when cars passed me on Point Grey Road got my mind off my aches and I started pretending that my legs were feeling really limber and I could stride out easily....Hahaha - it felt like I was sprinting when I was probably crawling. Where Point Grey turns into Cornwall Ave and the route dips back down to the ocean, Ray, Laura's bike support, caught up and asked if I needed anything. How sweet. Laura had to call it a day because of a shoulder injury. Ray offered to go to a 7-Eleven to grab some salty stuff for me when his knapsack only revealed bars and gels and electrolyte drinks. Had enough of those, thanks ;-) Note to myself, pack some real food next time I embark on an ultra run.

At the sailing club before Kits Pool I decided to wait for Rachel, who I had heard groaning as she descended a set of stairs down to the beach... Figured we were both ready for the company.

The sky in the west started to brighten considerably as we made our way past Muscle Beach and around Kits Point. But the light was deceiving as the skies opened up yet again to empty buckets of cold water on our weary heads. Maybe runners high was finally kicking in, maybe it was the beautiful light over English Bay, the double rainbow over Stanley Park or the hooting and hollering from the start of the Polar Bear Swim across the water, but I started smiling at the rain and all the folks out in the elements. Didn't stop smiling across Burrard Street Bridge. Said hi to Wade and Jackie, who had finished their run and were honking and waving as they passed in their car. Weaving through the costumed revelers just coming out of the water after their Polar Bear Swim at English Bay Beach was entertaining to say the least - was I hallucinating or was there a butt naked flame thrower?

Back in Stanley Park we picked up the speed and Anthony, who had taken a wrong turn. Still no sight of Craig. We cruised past Lost Lagoon and a couple of beautiful swans, the Rowing Club, the Olympic Rings on the barge east off the seawall until finally turning around the bend at the little lighthouse to see the finish in the distance. My hope (before I got injured) was to get a 6:30 time and believe it or not, with our little last km sprint, we made it back to the fire hydrant in exactly 6:30h - Imagine what could have been without injury ;-)

Ean, happily waiting for me was a welcome sight. He had planned to hitch a ride home, but it sure was nice to have him there. He took the finish photo and goaded us into the chilly waters of Burrard Inlet. I can't remember how many times I have run the 50k on New Year's Day, but this was definitely the first time that I went into the drink...only regret: I didn't stay in long enough to soothe my sore muscles. Next Year!

I guess you wonder what happened to Craig... I thought for sure that he had bailed at half way, but he actually made it back to Stanley Park and almost to the finish before an approaching cold forced him to bail.

10 Points for Effort - Zero Points for the Bagger Challenge

2009-10-04T10:27:00.000-07:00

Mid September, the family had planned and hoped to camp at the Frosty trail race and enjoy a last late season camping trip...but circumstances saw us throwing a birthday party for a freshly minted teenager and hauling dirt for the never ending backyard project...

No wonder that when this weekend promised glorious sunshine and dry skies, we were plotting an escape into the back country, tent and kids in tow. Since we are all a bit wound up with the amazing Bagger Challenge, why not try to hike with the family, camp out overnight AND bag some peaks? I had some reservations about being left alone with the rug rats in the cold mountains, while ActionJackson and a few other Fat Asses would be bagging peaks, but I couldn't say no to a weekend away.

Friday night, Wendy Montgomery confirmed that she'll join us and we quickly figured out a menu and a packing plan to avoid hauling up two of everything. I was in charge of dinner, Wendy took on chocolate and coffee. Which worked out great, since my stash of chocolate miraculously disappeared.

The Happy Bus left shortly after 9:00am Saturday morning. In retrospect, that was a tad late, but after a busy week, we all felt we deserved to sleep in a bit. By 10:00 we were on our way from Porteau Road up the Howe Sound Crest Trail towards Deeks Lake. By 10:15 Neil and Caroline Ambrose confirmed that they would be catching up to us and keep Wendy company while bagging Hat and some other mountains. Jackson had committed to climb Hat with us but then had his eyes on Hanover Mountain. But I am getting ahead of myself.

The trail follows a rough gravel road steep up into the mountains. We were moving at a good clip, but my heavy pack soon slowed me down. EJPowderhound didn't like the gravel road and kept me company, but as soon as our path turned into a rough little trail he sped up too and left me in the dust. I was cursing not to have loaded some more gear into the kids packs...mine was definitely too much for me.

After what seemed an eternity of steep uphill along a rushing river (Deeks Creek), countless waterfalls and millions of mushrooms, the trail emerged at Deeks Lake and into some sunshine. I was hoping that my crowd would have waited for me, but I only heard a brief, "there you are" in the distance and continued alone along the lake. My water bladder nozzle was leaking and stopping the cold water from dripping on me was becoming very aggravating. I tried to enjoy the marvelous views of the mountain ranges around Deeks Lake but was too caught up feeling miserable and lonely.

Finally, Ean was waiting at what would otherwise have prompted me to sit down and cry...a log jam river crossing...and the logs were very slippery. Luckily, Ean was kind enough to relieve me of my pack, so that I could elegantly bum slide across and quietly mumble something about turning around. Things looked up from here though. I am not fond of lone hikes and company soon revived my spirits...didn't even flinch when we had to climb up a slippery rock face with the help of some frayed rope. The views got better by the minute and soon we saw beautiful, turquoise blue Brunswick Lake appear through the trees.

We made camp just up from the lake near a tiny emergency shelter. Ean, Erik, Caroline, Neil and Wendy decided to make a dash for Hat Peak. But considering my slow speed and the fact that we were at the snow line, my daughter and I decided to hold the fort and stay put. We had hot soup ready for the cold climbers when they returned from their semi successful mission (I let Caroline elaborate on that). Caroline and Neil said their good byes and returned to their car.

A feast of Mac'n Cheese, peperoni's, chicken and chocolate filled our bellies. We even got a good fire going thanks to some fire starter and the macaroni boxes. We saw the first stars and a full moon but by 8:00pm we were tucked into our sleeping bags. Wendy, JoJo and Erik complained that they were cold, but Ean and I were toasty in our down bags.

It was hard to get going in the morning. Every thing was frozen solid and only a cup of hot coffee finally got us in gear. Wendy and Ean decided to attempt humble looking Wettin Peak to the west of our idyllic spot. EJPowderhound and JoJo and I packed up and then explored the shoreline. Down at the water the sun was blazing and tempted EJPowderhound and me to a brisk dip in the ice cold water. Brr, very refreshing.

Early afternoon, and the two baggers returned full of adventure and bum sliding stories. Our return trip was relatively uneventful: blue skies, more views, a lot of downhill...oh, and the kids didn't even notice that they carried a bit more downhill than they had uphill - it certainly made a difference for me

More photos are posted here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/turtlepace/sets/72157622529951410

Successful lost clothes recovery Mission

2009-09-17T12:03:00.002-07:00

I lost my favorite Club Fat Ass Wear shirt. For two days I've been completely stumped as to where and how and when - and of course miffed, as the bag that I lost also contained my favorite MEC pants, a fleece sweater and a brand new pair of wool running socks.

But let me start from the beginning. I rode my bike to work on Tuesday. Given that the weather is finally getting a bit more unstable and the fact that I already got soaked twice on my bike commute I started packing a change of clothes. So far so good. On my way home from work I deviated from my usual route to run some errands. First stop was on Lonsdale near 20th. I locked my bike up, took my valuables (leaving the bag with the clothes in my pannier's) and dashed into two stores. Came back, stowed bought items (a bag with bread) into pannier's. Clothes bag is now on top of the bread bag. Push my bike a few blocks up Lonsdale and lock it in front of the MacDonald fast food outlet (what do you call these places...it's NOT a restaurant) and dash into the New Apple Farm for produce, again taking my valuables along, but leaving the clothes and the bread in the pannier's. There is a pan handler sitting beside the bike rack and lots of pedestrians on the sidewalk...but I generally trust people - besides, who wants my sweaty Club Fat Ass shirt and stinky socks. After buying produce I have to reload the pannier's to make everything fit. I distinctly remember placing the bread and clothes bag on the sidewalk. No recollection of packing everything, but also no recollection of leaving stuff on the sidewalk. I am eager to get home and cut down to Chesterfield, up to 23rd and down to Westview.

When I arrive home all three of my charges great me with different needs and wants and before I even unpack my bike I go inside to sort things out for them. Back to unpack my bike with EJPowderhound helping me to lug stuff up. Later that night I want to change from my shorts into the before mentioned MEC pants... but can't find the clothes bag. Hm. I turn the house and garage upside down, ask all the little and big Jackson. No luck. I went over my commute back multiple times, but just can't figure out what happened to my clothes. Option A: somebody swiped them out of my pannier's. Option B: I forgot them on the sidewalk. Option C: they fell out of the pannier's on the way home. Can't visualize any of this.

Fast forward to today. I figured I better retrace my steps and ask at the stores on Lonsdale if anybody turned in my clothes. On the way out I took the scenic route, as I swung by my son's school to deliver forgotten math homework. To my dismay, New Apple Farm was still closed, but MacDonald next door was open and bustling. I have never eaten at MacDonald's and don't even like to set foot in there...but hey we are talking about my favorite shirt. I suffer through the long line up and hope none of my friends walk by and see me. Scan the seated customers and promptly discover Rune who is hoovering down some fatty items to replace calories lost on Mt. Hood. Busted! Anyway, I tell the nice girl behind the counter my dilemma...figuring if they have the CFA shirt I can figure out how to explain the funky name then. No luck. Same at Seven Seas next door and New Apple Farm, which just opened. Argh. I decide to follow the route I took by bike on Tuesday in the faint hope that the bag did in fact fall out of the pannier's...No luck on Chesterfield, 23rd and Westview...but then, cutting into the little trail crossing Mosquito Creek Park (about 1 block away from my home), there is a bag hanging in a tree. YES. I hardly can believe it. All my clothes are in there. I whoop and holler all the way home.

LolaWusel's Erster Tag in Kanada

2009-07-08T13:20:00.001-07:00

Ich konnte die ganze Nacht vor Aufregung kaum schlafen. Lolawusel war unterwegs nach Kanada. Ganz alleine.

JojocheesePig und ich wollten um 8:45 losfahren. Das Flugzeug sollte um 9:20 ankommen. Genuegend Zeit, um rechtzeitig an den Flughafen zu fahren. Allerdings hatten wir nicht damit gerechnet, das das Flugzeug frueher landete...

Zum Glueck hielt sich der Verkehr in Grenzen und wir waren in Rekordzeit beim YVR. Als wir in der vor der Eingangshalle Deutsche Stimmen hoerten, dachten wir schon, wir seien zu spaet, aber zum Glueck war noch keine Lolawusel in Sicht.

Die freundliche Dame bei der Information bestaetigte, dass Lolawusel aus dem Flugzeug begleitet und dann in der Ankunftshalle mir uebergeben wird. Nach ungefaehr 20min Warten, taucht endlich eine strahlende, aus dem Ei gepellte Laura auf. Wir verdruecken ein paar Traenen, die Begleiterin macht Augenkontakt mit mir und Lola verabschiedet sich. Gut gelandet.

Auf der Fahrt nach Hause stehen die Muender nicht still. Lola erzaehlt vom Koffer der erst nicht ankam und dann von den Verstandingungsschwierigkeiten beim Zoll. Einer der anderen alleinreisenden Kinder half beim Uebersetzen. Hunger schiebt sie, da es nur ein Broetchen und Reis mit Huehnchen gab. Die 4 Filme, davon zwei Liebesschnulzen waren dafuer aber toll. JoJo babbelt ununterbrochen und spielt Deutsche Reisefuehrerin.

Die beiden Kusinchen beschaeftigen sich den ganzen Nachmittag...Nagelpflege, Fahrradfahrt ins Dorf, Spaziergang zum Mosquito Creek, Koffer auspacken (danke fuer die tollen Socken, Mama, und die Trikots, Katja) JoJo hat Spass mit ihrer Tasche und Erik mit den Fliegern (einer ist "bis uebermorgen auf Nachbars Dach), Frisbee und Lampe.

Kurz vor dem Abendessen dann ein Nickerchen. Wir bekamen sie fast nicht wach zum Essen und alle Anstrengung sie bis um 19:00 Uhr wachzuhalten, halfen nichts...um 18:30 lag Lola im Tiefschlaf und schnarchend im Bett!

Stress Eating

2009-05-21T14:17:00.001-07:00

Some people lose weight when they are stressed. Makes sense to me. Wouldn't that be a natural response. You are stressed and anxious, your stomach gets into a know...you don't eat. This holds not true for me. I eat to fight stress. Funny that this is a fairly new realization of mine. When I am relaxed and don't have a worry in the world, I lose weight easily. When stressed, my thoughts centre around food and I don't have the energy to fight it.

I am quite aware of what my stressors are:

Sleep Deprivation: This is huge for me. I have been an insomniac all my life. My sleep is poor, easily disrupted and fragmented. In my younger years, I probably was able to cope better with the exhaustion and sneak in a nap during the day. With the demands of work and my family, naps are out of the question now. I have read that scientists have identified different sleep patterns inherent to specific people. One of the more common pattern were two sleep cycles per day, i.e. sleep from 11pm to 3am and again from 5am to 7am. And here I thought I was an insomniac. The above describes my natural sleep pattern - not that it plays out like that every night... What to do with that information? I am not inclined to get up at 3am and busy myself...too cold and I might wake up the rest of the family.
For now, I try to be in bed by 11pm. I need 7 hours of uninterrupted sleep to fill my bodies need for sleep. Getting up at 7am allows for an hour of toss and turn...
Fighting children: Ever have the feeling after the kids are finally in bed and all the bickering has stopped to just stuff your face? I always feel that once they are tucked in, I am in need and deserve something sweet. Very dangerous. My tactic to fight that right now is to keep busy after dinner. I am also following the rule of no more food after dinner (difficult with a grazing, skinny husband).
Abdominal discomfort: this is almost counter intuitive, but I often eat when my stomach/intestines feel irritated, bloated or crampy. I think I have a bit of IBS and when I do have symptoms I tend to put more food into my system to fight the uncomfortable feeling. Weird one. Eating veggies and fruit eliminates my abdominal issues almost completely, maybe because they are easier to digest?

They say that knowing your enemy is winning half the battle, but I have known most of my stressors for a long time...

Double Dipping Moms

2009-05-06T14:14:00.000-07:00

The cooks in this world deserve a pat on their shoulders for staying thin or attempting to lose weight. Think about it, you are supposed to cook healthy, nutritious and tasty meals for your charges, what is more natural than lick a spoon here or sample a little something there. How can you cook without sampling? Don't you have to test your product?

I try to limit my nibbling during cooking, but boy, it's not easy. First of all, I am hungry when I am cooking. It's dinner time after all. And of course, I want to make sure that the dish is balanced and passed my taste buds. Cooking and baking to me is an art. I love experimenting with spices, consistencies and combinations. I hardly ever cook from a cookbook or if I do, I change the recipe to suit our tastes or availability of ingredients. I grow my own herbs and some spices and love to use them. I pick up new ideas from books, conversations or just standing at the grocery check-out looking at the covers of magazines. I am proud of my cooking... and a ruined meal is a stain in my reputation as good cook.

But even if you just try to get dinner on the table without any culinary aspirations, how do you avoid turning into a double dipping mom? During the last couple of weeks of intense dieting, I have stuck to tried and true recipes, where I didn't feel the need to sample before serving. But I know the day will loom when I am tempted to experiment and need to sample. One might say that if you sample during cooking you'll limit what you eat at dinner...well, that has never worked for me.

Come to think about it, I am not just a double dipping mom, but more like a triple dipper...What to do with all the leftovers. I was raised in a time where you ate your peas and finished your plate. Never a problem for me, unfortunately. I admire people who for reasons nebulous to me cut the crust off their pizza or the fat of the meat. Since I raised my children to listen to their hunger indicators in their bodies, I have never forced them to finish what is on their plate...so they regularly have leftovers. Danger zone for me. It just hurts to throw food out. Are you a triple dipping mom? And what are your tricks to avoid the pre and post dinner sampling?

To Die For Chocolate Cake

2009-04-29T22:31:00.004-07:00

My daughter dug this recipe up (Internet) and we adjusted a bit to replace egg substitute and white flour... Absolutely to die for, moist and rich but not too sweet!

Devilish Raspberry Chocolate Cake

Ingredients:

Dough

2 cups whole wheat flour
3/4 cup brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 1/4 cup vanilla yoghurt
1/2 cup canola oil
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract

Raspberry Sauce

3 cups raspberries
1/3 raspberry jam (PC or Smuckers)
1 tsp lemon juice

Topping

whipped cream

Combine all the dry dough ingredients in a large bowl. In another bowl using electric mixer mix wet ingredients for 30 sec. Combine both mixtures and mix with electric mixer first on low speed until blended then on high speed for 3 min.

Fill into greased spring form. Bake at 165C in convection oven (180C /350F in normal oven) for 35-40min. Let cool completely.

To make the sauce, slowly heat the raspberry jam. When hot add lemon juice. Add fresh raspberries just before serving. Serve with fresh whipped cream. Yummy!

Fighting Injuries

2009-04-12T16:06:00.002-07:00

For the last few month I have been running fairly regularly 2-4 times a week. Injury wise, I stayed out of trouble, but my calves have been getting increasinly tight and for a week or so, the side of my heel bone has been excruciatingly painful at night, early in the morning at at the beginning of my runs. I never have been a great uphill runners, but with my calves feeling like they are bursting on the slightest incline, I hardly have been able to walk uphill yet alone run. It's been a bit frustrating, as my overall running and speed has improved over the last few months.

I did a bit of digging and assessing my routines. The biggest downfall probably has been, that I didn't stretch during and after my run over the winter month (too cold, too wet, etc.). My half hearted attempts at stretching didn't do a thing and when the outside of my left heel started to throb, I knew I had to do something.

Lacking coverage for physio or massage therapy, I tend to self treat...maybe not the best solution, but I've had pretty good success. With a background in nursing and 35 years of running behind me, I've learned a trick or two.

Massage: Proud co-0wner of a Myofascial release ball I started to massage my calves every evening. The first time, I felt I was just trying to figure out which areas responded best. When finished, I was surprised at the feeling of release in my muscles. Definetely working in breaking up tightness.

Stretching: Ahem, I try to stretch extensively each evening before bed. I should probably add 1-2 more sessions throughout the day. Working on it. I go through a routine of common calf stretches, taking about 10 minutes.

Ice: I feel icing the side of my heel, would be benefical. I swear by icing anything that is slightly irritated and half had good success...this time around, I just haven't been to keen putting cold ice on my body...it's been a long winter ;-)

Strenghtening: Once my acute heel pain is under control, I will start on heel drop excersise, sets of 3x20 3 times a day.

Ibubrofen: I don't like taking drugs, but sometimes it helps to get the healing process started.

Wish me luck in getting over this.

Nutrient Values of Some Common Foods

2009-04-03T09:52:00.003-07:00

This is a great resource from Health Canada: http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/fn-an/alt_formats/hpfb-dgpsa/pdf/nutrition/nvscf-vnqau_e.pdf

The Nutrient Value of Some Common Foods lists 19 nutrients in 975 foods marketed in Canada. The nutrient values are taken from the 1997 version of the CNF and are given in terms of the common household measure of the ready-to-eat form of the food. The nutrients listed in this booklet are:

Energy in kJ

Protein

Carbohydrate

Total Dietary Fibre

Total fat

Cholesterol

Calcium

Iron

Zinc Sodium

Potassium

Vitamin A

Vitamin C

Vitamin B6

Folate

Thiamin

Riboflavin

Niacin

Values for total saturated, total monounsaturated and total polyunsaturated fatty acids are given for some foods in an appendix to the main tables.

Use this quick and easy reference as a guide or a teaching tool towards forming better food choices through an understanding of the nutrient content of the foods you eat.

Obtain Nutrient Value of Some Common Foods

PDF Version

You can view or print the PDF version of the publication , Nutrient Value of Some Common Foods. You will need Adobe Acrobat reader to view this file.

Order a booklet:

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ISBN 0 - 660 - 17784 - 6

Price: $9.50Cdn +GST, Shipping and Handling, per copy
Payable to the Receiver General of Canada
Issued by Health Canada
Date: 1999

Tired of the Auto Industry Mess

2009-04-01T15:15:00.000-07:00

I just about choked the other day when I read yet another report about the auto industries demise. No sympathy here. The writing was on the wall. Big, honking SUV's from the big North American Automakers are gas guzzlers, environmental disasters and most people who drive them, only need them to boost their ego not to navigate the rugged back country or transport their tools. I guess the margins where bigger than for smaller, economical cars and why not milk it to the bitter end? But what got really got me was one line where an hourly wage of an autoworker was mentioned. Are you sitting down? $79! You are kidding me. To put it into perspective, a registered nurse makes less than half that. Sorry guys, time to get real and cut those fat pay checks. You had enough time to put away a nest egg or pay down the mortgage and if you haven't, well, welcome to the real world.

Lebanese Spinach Buns - Fatayir

2009-03-29T09:06:00.002-07:00

I came across this recipe for spinach buns a while ago and thought they might be worth trying...if only to get some spinach into my children...

Yesterday, we were invited for an after dinner glass of wine to my neighbor with Lebanese background giving me the perfect opportunity to dig out the recipe:

Crust:

1 envelope dry yeast
1 1/2 cup warm water
1/2 cup olive oil
1 tsp salt
3-4 cups whole wheat flour

Filling:

1 package frozen, chopped spinach (or equivalent fresh spinach)
1 cup finely minced onions
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1/2 cup of pine nuts
juice of 1 lemon
1 Tbs. dried marjoram
1/3 cup olive oil

Preheat oven to 200C (175C in Convention). Make a yeast dough with the crust ingredients, let rise while preparing the filling. Blend all the ingredients for the filling. When dough has doubled, knead for a couple of minutes. With a rolling pin roll it out very thin, but not too thin that it will break. Cut 10cm squares with a pastry wheel, place heaping teaspoon of filling on each square and fold into triangle. Pinch the edges together and place on slightly oiled baking sheet. Brush with some olive oil and bake in oven for about 20-30 minutes or until light brown. Cool on rack or serve hot.

The original recipe is from "Breads of the World" by Mariana Honig. However, like quite a few of her recipes, the ingredient measurements are off. She only called for 1 1/2 cups of flour which isn't nearly enough. I also had to adjust baking temperature and time.

My neighbor thought the buns were pretty good, although I think she was being polite as I had skimped on the salt and the buns definitely needed more flavour, salt or otherwise. She also mentioned that Lebanese have different fillings, i.e. meat. The spinach buns are traditionally eaten with a dip that sounded very similar to Tsatsiki.

And did the kids eat them? Yes! Eureka...

Naan Bread Recipe

2009-03-24T21:31:00.004-07:00

By popular demand here is my naan bread recipe:

Ingredients:

1 pk dry yeast
4 tsp sugar (I use 1 or none)
2 tsp salt
1 cup warm water
1 egg beaten
3 tbsp milk
4 1/2 cups flour
2 tsp minced garlic

Make yeast dough with these ingredients. Let rise for 30min-1hour. Form naan patties, make them about 0.75cm thick. This recipe makes about 8-12 depending on size. Brush breads with melted butter (I use olive oil). Grill 2-3 min each side (20min at 200C or 400F in oven works fine, too).

The recipe I made up in a hurry today (very yummy) was very plain. I used about 400g flour, tsp salt, 1 tbsp dry yeast and warm water (@350ml) to make a workable dough. Made 8 paddies, brushed with olive oil, sprinkled with minced garlic and dried herbs from my garden. Perfect fit for the wicked curry...

I have no idea where the original recipe came from. I hand wrote it in my recipe book.

Eliminating Household Chemicals

2009-03-20T14:22:00.000-07:00

It took a while and I still cringe when I am buying new supplies of expensive, but non-toxic household cleaners, but I am proud to say that I have eliminated most harsh daily household cleaning products.

Motivated by skin irritations in family members, I started with the laundry detergents. Because I was a sucker for the nice smell of fabric softeners, I weaned myself very slowly from the product. Using less and less and finally diluting the product with water...until my last bottle was used up...Gulp. I don't think anybody in the family noticed.

Next on my list was the laundry detergent. I researched and shopped around and found VIP laundry soap at the local supermarket was affordable and met my criteria. VIP is a local company based in Mission. Their laundry detergent is Scent free, dye free, comes in a recyclable bottle (I actually used the granules that come in a plastic bag), biodegradable, septic safe, no Phosphates, no NTA or EDTA, not tested on animals and no optical brightener. The other product that I since have found is by Nature Clean. They have a whole line of household products which now are available at my local supermarket.

Laundry under control, I moved to find a general cleaning product. I do use Baking Soda and Vinegar, but do find that for dishes, floors, toilets I need a bit of sudsing action. Nature Clean, also a Canadian company (based in Ontario), has a great All Purpose Cleaner. I replaced my household cleaner, bathroom cleaner and dish detergent with this one procuct. Apparently, one can also use it for laundry. Eureka.

The last item on my list was the dishwasher detergent. The natural products for this purpose seemed shamelessly overprized. I finally caved in and bought a box of Nature Clean dishwashing detergent.

Because the products are quite a bit more expensive, I am using minute amounts. Luckily, the softness of Vancouver's water lends itself to that practice. Using about a teaspoon of dishwasher detergent per load, my box has lasted almost a year, or about 150 loads. Ditto for the laundry detergent. I eliminated the cost of softener and have cut down on the amount of granules used per load. A teaspoon full is about all I need for a normal wash.

Since embarking on this quest, sustainability and ecofriendliness have become part of everybodies vocabulary. Hopefully, with more and more people switching to less toxic alternatives, these products will become more affordable and widely available.

Dealing With Rejection

2009-03-19T15:17:00.000-07:00

It's been a week of ups and downs...closing with a down it appears!

How does one deal with a rejection after interviewing for a job? I am not talking about the usual non response (how rude) or polite expression of "not interested" (thanks for being respectful). This is an established, growing (or so they said) company. The position was a good fit for my experience and qualifications. After the obligatory phone interview, I was invited for an in person interview at their office. It went very well and I was asked to continue the process and interview with the person I would be reporting to. That meeting was positive as well and I was told that a decision would be made before week end. They were moving fast, I had established a rapport, they seemed honest and personable. To my surprise the next phone call informed me of a change in pace in the hiring process, a change in the job description and closed with an invite for a third interview. Apparently, there were a handful of people left in the race. Not bad for today's job market. I considered the changed job outlook and decided that the company still represented a good career choice for me and I was willing to go with their slower outlook and downsized job tasks. They admitted they were flying by the seat of their pants, things were changing constantly and this position could be molded by the candidate...that sounded positive to me. I had a good feeling about the third interview, which was reinforced when I arrived home to find a request for references from the HR department in my inbox. No problem there, as I had lined up a handful of professional and character references. I confirmed coordinates and willingness to act as a reference with my list before emailing it to HR later that day. This was early in the week and again I was told that the decision would be made before week's end. Two days later - early in the day - I received a brief email informing me that the company decided to move forward with another candidate. After my initial surprise, I discovered that none of my references was called upon. What was going on here? It's hard to deal with a rejection when feeling so close to a "Yes". I am a level headed and balanced person, but my initial reaction was quite intense from stomach cramps over nausea todizziness. Wow, haven't had such a strong emotional reaction since my first love dumped me...

It's the day after and I am trying to rationalize. Taking into account that I am very good in reading people I've come to the conclusion that the position was pulled from underneath them. Too bad that they didn't have the courtesy to be upfront and honest about it. Yes, I invested a lot of time in travelling to these interviews and yes, they probably felt embarrassed about the situation. But who are they trying to fool?

My friends and references have been very supportive and expressedsimilar thoughts: "Think about it, would you like to work for somebody that acts like that and worst, be in on it and required to do the same thing?" No! "Their loss, you'd be such a gain for any company that would hire you". With that in mind, I try to keep a positive attitude and am still looking...

Elfin Winter Wonderland

2009-03-19T08:18:00.008-07:00

We timed our annual trek to the Elfin Lakes perfectly. The forecast called for clear skies and crisp temperatures. Despite the favorable weather nobody had taken us up on the call for other adventurers to join our clan for this CFA Flash family adventure. Maybe no surprise given that we picked a Sunday departure and Monday return to avoid the weekend crowds at Elfin Cabin.

Considering that we lost an hour of sleep in the "spring forward" time change we were making good time, hitting the road at 9:30 and ready to rock at the trail head by 11:00.

My pack was immensely heavy. Everybody carried their own emergency gear, food, clothes, sleeping bags and mats. Ean had the honor of lugging lunch for all, breakfast and dinner, plus a chocolate bar or two. My pack held the "kitchen", but I swear, next time the little Action Jackson will get a bigger load.

Weighed down by my pack, I was the slowest on the long trek up the access trail to Red Heather. The boys had charged ahead, but luckily JoJo kept me company. For the first time ever, there was no whining what so ever. At Red Heather, we should have eaten our lunch in the bright sunshine outside, but ran into a gaggle of friends and attempted to get the stove in the cabin going. By the time the fire starter had kicked in and the freezing cabin started to warm-up, we said bye to our friends and continued toward Paul's Ridge. It's about a 2km climb from the warming hut to the highest point of the hike on Paul's Ridge. At 1660m JoJo was wondering if the thin air would affect her performance ;-) I doubt we felt any effects of the altitude, but foolishly promised a good nights sleep...

Menacing clouds started to move in, but fortunately, the views of Diamond Head, Mount Atwell, the Gargoyles and the Tantalus Range remained unobstructed. The trail meanders along the ridge for about 5km, every once in a while revealing the end point of our hike, Elfin Cabin, in the distance.

Nobody was at the cabin when we arrived around 4:00pm, but by the time dinner was served there were about 10 people vying for snow melt water and cooking spots. Speaking about melt water...ever noticed how a huge amount of snow results in a minute amount of water??? I had the production line going, the kids kept the melt pots full of snow and new arrivals were able to get a hot bevvy in no time flat. Chicken Noodle soup hit the spot in the appetizer departments and Macaroni and Cheese never tasted that good.

While the boys played a rather rowdy round of Monopoly and I unsuccessfully tried to finish my book club novel, more and more hikers and skiers arrived, filling the cabin with excited chatter. Word was that a school group of about 20 teenagers was also in approach. Bets were made if they would make it before midnight - apparently their pace was extremely slow. I didn't envy the teachers..imagine being on the mountain with a group of grumpy, cold and hungry teens. Mercifully, they pitched tents at Red Heather for the night.

Before heading upstairs to the bunk beds, we secured our food on hooks from the ceiling. A few years back, a little wood rat was busy all night trying to reach our food supply (unsuccessfully) and we rather not have any unpleasant surprises in the morning. On that note, the cabin was very clean this year (we'd like to think it was our friends around Rebecca who we met descending earlier in the day, that cleaned up and left everything spic and span. Unlike in past years, where food was left on the counters attracting mice, there was no food and no garbage sitting around. I had brought up an extra rag and garbage bag to be prepared for a clean-up...but we just had to deal with our stuff. Nice!

Action Jackson was tasked with telling "funny stories" as we huddled in our sleeping bags. I started drifting away very quickly...but a loud snorer interrupted our bliss. JoJo thought he was sawing through the supporting beams of the cabin .

Morning dawned very cold and foggy. Through the fog one could sense crystal blue skies...and by the time we had breakfast wrapped and the packs zipped up (I managed to get rid of the kitchen and lighten my load), the fog had lifted, revealing amazing 360 degree views of the mountain ranges around us. There was a new layer of about 5cm of powdery, light snow...when did that happen (unbeknowst to us, Vancouver also had been hit with more snow, resulting in morning traffic chaos)?

The plan was to hike back, have lunch at Red Heather and then tobaggon down to the parking lot to make it back to town before night fall. I was slightly stressed about keeping to the schedule as I had left a trip plan with two friends and didn't want to end up the subject of an unnecessary search and rescue mission. The sun was beckoning, though and the big and little Action Jacksons took the opportunity to slide down gentle virgin slopes. We found the perfect lunch spot in a protected little meadow. Oma's Frikadellen, boiled eggs, cinnamon buns and chocolate - we could have fed an army.

Where the ridge ends and the trail descends to Red Heather, the kids took their snowshoes off, strapped them to their packs and unrolled their sleds. Record time to the parking lot....I think the tobaggoning on the return trip is the major reason the little Jacksons like this trip so much.

Back at the car, the last remaining obstacle was the perilous drive down the access road. We've almost gone over the cliff a few times. I was laughed down suggesting we should put on the snow chains. Luckily, the new contractor in charge of clearing the road has been doing an amazing job. We inched our way down, past the steep and slippery pitches, but our little car and Action Jackson at the wheel had no problem.

Here are some more photos of our Winter Trip to Elfin Cabin.

Grocery Shopping

2009-03-04T15:19:00.000-08:00

What does your family budget for your monthly grocery bill? I bet if you add it all up, you'll be close to $900 for a family of four just for food.

I did my bimonthly mega grocery run yesterday. Painful experience to say the least. It seems, every month I am noticing huge price increases in yet another product. I used to be able to get 1 litre of 100% pure Maple Syrup for CAN $9.99. I always grinched when I had to buy a new bottle...imagine my surprise when I discovered about 6 weeks ago that the prize had gone up to $16.99. I've remained hopefull and checked yesterday if the cost had gone down (yeah, right) only to discover that The Superstore has hiked the prize yet another dollar. Say bye bye to Maple Syrup - at $17.99 for a litre it is unattainable.

What's Growing In Your Hydration System?

2009-02-07T21:45:00.005-08:00

I dug out my hydration pack today to get packed up for the Squamish Scrambler tomorrow. To my disgust I found the thing was overgrown with specks of mold....Yuck.

I have been taking great care to dry out the bladder, tube and mouth piece after each use... but after Mike and Melissa's run in November I was so bushed that I must have just dumped the water and lovely Action Jackson packed the thing away. It's been rotting quietly in the basement storage ever since.

Action Jackson, observing me cleaning my pack with the wooden handle of a cooking spoon and a rag a couple of years ago, wisely went to the MEC and purchased a set of flexible hydration bladder cleaning brushes...I was very excited to be able to properly clean my Source hydration bladder only to discover that I wasn't able to remove the tube from the bladder or the mouth piece from the tube to gain access with the brush. Every time I used the bladder, out came the brushes. Fingernails were broken, swear words deployed, but the tube didn't budge until I finally gave up and resigned to my wooden spoon and rag method.

Facing the growing mold in the bladder today, I let out a shriek... Always practical Action Jackson suggested I search the web for cleaning instruction/instructions on how to detach the tube. Websites abound covering the mold problem in water bottles/bladders and how to get rid of it. MEC site didn't offer any instructions on how to disassemble the Source Hydration bladder...

A variety of other websites recommended bleach for serious infestations. Problem is that since I switched to all natural cleaning methods, I do not stock bleach in my house. The second often mentioned alternative was a mixture of baking soda, water and lemon juice. Anybody who cleaned anything with baking soda and vinegar knows that the third and most important ingredient in that combination is elbow grease... which brings me back to my wooden spoon and rag...Sounded like a lot of work, mess and questionable results.

Before whipping out the baking soda, I gave one more tug on that hose...and voila, it came off. Eureka. The tube brush and bladder brush together with soap and hot water did a beautiful job. All set for tomorrow!

BTW, other than the cleaning issues, I love the Source Hydration bladder. I bought the 3l one a few years ago for $12 at the MEC. It has a wide screw top, a non-leak mouth piece and it fits (filled with about 2l) into my small MEC running hydration pack (the bladder in that one always leaked and also developed holes not too long after purchase). I also use it in my day pack or big knapsack for overnighters.

Lions Gate Bridge

2009-01-26T23:15:00.002-08:00

Sourdough Starter

2009-01-19T16:58:00.000-08:00

This takes a bit of time to get ready, but not much work. My kids claim it is disgusting...but they do like the bread and it is so much cheaper than if I'd bought the equivalent at a bakery.

The original recipe comes from "Breads of the World" by Mariana Honig. If you are into baking breads this is a great resource. The book was published in 1977 - not sure if it is still in print.

2 cups warm water
3 cups flour
2 tsps salt
2 tsps sugar
1 envelope yeast (this might be cheating a bit, but it works to get everything going)
1 1/2 cups grated, raw potatoes

Using a glass, earthenware (not metal or plastic) bow, mix all ingredients well. Leave bowl uncovered in warm place for 24 hours. Then stir down, cover with saran wrap and let stand for 3-4 more days. Stir down several times a day.

The starter should now be foamy and has a sour smell. Pour into a glass jar with a lid (mason jars work great) and store in fridge. You can begin to use the starter when a layer of clear liquid appears on top.

The night before you want to bake, take the starter out of the fridge, pour into a bowl (not metal) and stir in 1 1/2 cups flour and cold water. Blend well, cover with saran wrap and store in warm place over night. The next morning stir the starter again and pour off 2 cups into a clean mason jar. This becomes your starter for next time (I try to keep two starters in the fridge in case I forget to set one aside). The remaining 2 cups of starter are what you will use for your immediate baking. See my sourdough bread recipe here.

Sourdough Bread

2009-01-18T21:59:00.008-08:00

I have baked our own bread for a number of years now. I started with a fool proof whole grain yeast bread, unsuccessfully dabbled a bit with sourdough until about 2 years ago, when I cam across a sourdough starter recipe, that worked right from the get go.

I now have two starter batches in the fridge, just in case I forget to set a new one aside when baking. It's a big pain to set up a new starter and you want to avoid that at all cost. I was told that some old restaurants, who have their own, old sourdough starter, actually advise their staff that in an event of fire one of the things to save is the sourdough starter. Anyway, I will post my starter recipe here another time.

Here is the recipe for my sourdough bread:

Pre Dough

500ml of sourdough starter
500g whole wheat flour
1000ml warm water

Mix all ingredients well in a wooden or plastic bowl with a wooden or plastic spoon. do not use metal. Metal and sourdough do not mix. I don't know the chemistry behind this, but the dough won't rise in a metal bowl, so don't try. Cover bowl with lid or saran wrap and let stand overnight in a warm spot (38C would be perfect), but normal room temp works as well.

The next morning, take about 500ml of the starter dough and fill into mason jar, close lid lightly and store in fridge for your next batch.

Sour Dough Bread

sourdough starter dough (minus 500ml)
500g whole wheat flour
500g of mixed grains, seeds and or nuts
1 Tblsp salt
warm water to make a mushy dough (if you use loaf pans) or a non-sticky dough if you make loafs

Mix all ingredients well (again, don't use metal). Let stand until late afternoon. Dough should have risen and almost doubled in size. Either fill in loaf pans (3) or form 3 loafs. Preheat convection oven to 175C (200C/400F for traditional electric oven). Bake loafs for 1 hour. Let cool on wire rack.
Note: all amounts are approximate. I don't usually weigh the ingredients, not do I measure the water.

Pfannkuchen

2009-01-12T20:04:00.003-08:00

The other day I couldn't find my standard pancake recipe. Disaster... The pancakes I usually make are not the thick, North American kind, but rather thin, not quite a crepe, but halfway there. You can fill them with sweet stuff like maple syrup, sugar and cinnamon, applesauce, yogurt or make them savoury and fill them with mushrooms or even curries. My kids like them for dinner and not with curry. Loosing my recipe was not good... Pancakes was one of those things that I had made a thousand times, but unlike breads and pies, I could never remember the ingredients and amounts. Loosing the recipe made me improvise and I remembered that somebody once mentioned that they just followed the 1:2 ratio. OK, 1 part and 2 parts of what?

Basic ingredients are whole wheat, eggs, milk, salt and sugar. I experimented around and found that 5 eggs, 500g flour and 1000ml milk worked perfect. This isn't really 1 part eggs, one part flour and two parts milk, but the 5 and the 500 are easy to remember ;-)

So here is the basic recipe that is easily remembered:

500g whole wheat flour
5 eggs lightly beaten'
1000ml milk (soy milk works too)
1 dash of salt
1 tbsp sugar

Combine all ingredients and mix well with electric mixer. Add a little vegetable oil to two frying pans and turn heat on high. When oil is hot, add a ladle of dough to each frying pan and distribute evenly by tilting the pan in all directions. The dough is fairly runny. Once dough sets, flip pancakes and fry on other side until golden. Adjust heat as needed (medium high to high).

Store pancakes on plate in preheated oven (100C) until all dough is used. Serve warm with applesauce, sugar and cinnamon, maple syrup or savoury fillings like mushrooms or curries.

Extreme Weather Running

2009-01-08T11:54:00.005-08:00

Let me qualify the title before I get the laughs of denizens of harsher climate zones...Based in Vancouver, I cherish the temperate climate of the Pacific Coast. It never gets too hot or too cold, we don't have blizzards or suffer through slush for 6 month of the year. Until the winter of 2008/2009 rolled around!

Mid December saw us shiver in a cold snap with temperatures not getting above -10 degrees C for a week or so. Vancouverites get puzzled as to their clothing choice in conditions like that. We don't own overstuffed full length down jackets, heated boots and whatever else keeps the rest of the country warm. What to wear when heading out for a run during this deep freeze was a favorite topic of discussion among my running buddies. Some didn't even consider braving the elements and headed to the gym.

For my part, I love running in the cold, crisp air. Nevertheless, it was a challenge to dress appropriately. Bottoms were the easiest part. My usual alpaca wool running socks and trail runners did the trick for my feet. I dug out a pair of MEC thermal tights usually worn under my ski pants. My kids claim they look like long johns and they are probably right, but who cares about looks at minus 10. How to layer shirts and jackets was a more complicated issue. I overheat easily and hate having too many layers. In the end I found the perfect combination with the Chitosante Club Fat Ass shirt, that I have come to love not only for design, feel and no stink features, but also for it's thermal regulation qualities (no matter the temperature it always feels great) as the first layer, followed by another goodie, the hoodie matching the thermal tights. For the outer layer I went with my bright green MEC Jetstreak jacket. I had no experience with the jacket as, after suffering through years of monsoon running in not much more than a windbreaker, it is a recent addition to my running wardrobe. The product info recommended it as a waterproof, windproof jacket for cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, winter running, or other cold-weather aerobic activities. Bring it on. My wardrobe choice was perfect. The snug hoodie (combined with a rather large fleece neck wrappy thing) kept my ears and chin cozy. The jacket kept the wind and the cold out and looks snazzy to boot. Only complaint is that the zipper didn't consistently stay up all the way (maybe had to do with the bulk of the hoodie and fleece wrap)

The next weather challenge came just before Christmas. Snowflakes as big as mosquitoes in Winterpeg started to blanket Vancouver. You might laugh, but snow is normally a once a year occurrence in Vancouver. It hardly ever stays on the ground for longer than a day, but is washed off by a nice Pineapple Express. Not so this season. Blizzard after blizzard added to the snow cover and in my back yard, we measured about 70cm. While I did sympathize somewhat with the whining about road and sidewalk conditions and that the stuff was challenging for the elderly, I loved it. Running wardrobe now included gaiters and snowshoes or - during the Vancouver New Year's Day Fat Ass 50- Yaktrak type attachments (thanks for lending them, Michele). The temperatures had risen slightly and I managed with only two top layers, my CFA shirt and my Jetstreak jacket (which is quickly becoming a favorite of mine).

On to the current weather situation...incessant, hard rain. Together with rising temperatures there are flood warnings out for the valley and some communities are handing out free sandbags. Luckily, we live on higher grounds, and short of clearing the storm drains from snow and fearing for the roof to hold the mass of heavy, wet snow, we are not threatened by flooding. The trails are a slippery mess, though and I abandoned my usual trail running loop in favour of a road running session. To avoid traffic and darkness, I ventured out during my lunch break armed with my bright green jacket (great for visibility and a reflective, flashing band around my upper arm. Because of the sidewalk conditions, I chose to run facing traffic (i.e. on the left hand side) on the roads in my neighborhood. I couldn't totally avoid busier roads, but the drivers were in general friendly and I moved out of their way as much as possible. I was looking forward to test the waterproof qualities of the Jetstreak jacket, but alas, the rains stopped for my run (I swear I didn't plan that ;-) and the water test will have to wait...With daytime temps of around 9, I was worried that I would overheat in a jacket designed for cold weather and I only wore an ancient short sleeve Club Fat Ass shirt underneath. Perfect again! I am quite impressed with the heat regulation and breathability qualities of my new jacket.

Let's see what the coming months have to offer on the extreme weather front...and I promise to report in if I manage to stay dry.

2009 Fitness Goals

2008-12-30T12:02:00.001-08:00

I've been rather timid announcing any athletic goals for 2009. After my injury streak from last year, I didn't want to jinx my training with any lofty aspirations...

But, I guess I should put my plans for 2009 down, it's so easy to loose track:

Goal #1: Vancouver New Years Day Fat Ass 50km, ideally beating my time from 2008 (please note, because of the adverse conditions we will experience for this event, I will give myself credit for partial completion)

Goal #2: Marathon under 4h. I would like to find a spring or fall marathon somewhere less than 1h drive from Vancouver.

Goal # 3: Increase my running pace. Speed workouts 1x a week

Goal # 4: Participating in following other events/races:

Squamish Scrambler Snowshoe Run
Capilano Canyon MardiGras Night Run
Mountain Highway Madness (2 laps)
XTC 50K
Bill's Great Peak Ascent
Capilano Canyon Midsummer Nite Night Run
Go Deep or Go Home
Sunshine in September
M&M's
Pure Satisfaction

Goal # 5: weight training in the gym 2x a week

A Tight Dilemma

2008-12-12T16:01:00.001-08:00

Don't you love running during the balmy days of spring, summer or even those crisp, sunny days of fall?

Unfortunately, it's monsoon season on the wet coast. It's also getting cold. With a heavy heart, I have tucked my shorts into the back of the closet. Problem is, I don't like running in tights. I don't like the restrictive feeling and the heaviness when they get wet.

Well, the tights have been out for a while now and got some good miles in during the CFA fall events I was able to participate in. Poor Arthur got the brunt of my rant on my "old" tights during the M + M Fun Run. It was raining on and off and the fabric got so heavy, it stuck to my quads and drove me to distraction.

Now, I have to come clean here: my tights are a men's size S. As my running buddy, Caroline, pointed out, "What do you expect, they are men's tights". I bought them a few years ago at the MEC (I am a MEC kinda girl for most of my outdoor gear). All their women's tights were flared and I didn't even give them a glance - who wants wide cut pants for trail running? The men's S seemed to fit. They are what they call mid weight and they are great on dry days...but when it rains, they just get heavy and since the fabric doesn't have much stretch they feel restrictive. My old pair needed some repairs and last Christmas I got a back-up, this time in men's M. Again, they are great dry, but when wet they are even worse than the small ones, as they get so heavy, they slide off my hips.

Browsing through the MEC Fall/Winter catalogue, I noticed a pair of women's tights, midweight and narrow cut. Had MEC clued in (when I bought the men's S they were down to the last pair, probably not because a bunch of small men purchased them). Unfortunately, when I looked at them at the store and tried them on, they were not what I was looking for in a pair of tights for running in our wet, but mild winters. They were rather thick (better suited for snowshoe running) and the legs in both the L and M sizes were way to long on my average height frame. Reluctantly, I turned my attention to the wider cut styles and ended up buying a very nice looking pair of Dash Pants. The product info praises them as a great garment for those who aren't fond of tights (yeah, right) but want quick-drying mobility for warm-ups and running.

So far so good. I like the fit. They are not terribly low cut and have a wide, flat waist band with a inconspicuous drawstring cord. The cord needs to be tied together or a toggle as it disappears in the waist band during washing, but that's a minor nuisance. I expected the wider cut legs to be annoying and not very practical on the trails, but surprise, I actually like them and they haven't snagged on anything yet. I like the material. They are made of 100% polyester, in, as MEC puts it, a comfy flat face knit. Looks quite flattering, falls nicely and has a bit of stretch. It's also not too heavy, flimsy, shiny or slippery. Only beef I have so far, is that the fabric gets slightly clingy when you get sweaty. I like the extras. There are two flat, low-profile pockets and an internal mesh key pocket. I like the workmanship. When buying MEC gear I have come to expect good quality, and these pants so far are no exceptions. The seams don't look like they are going to come apart during washing. Speaking about washing... these pants are fast drying. Very convenient.

It remains to be seen how they perform on a long wet and muddy run. So far, I only wore them for shorter runs and the gym. I guess that's what they were designed for...hence the name - Dash pants

Foolish Gerbil 6 Hour Run

2008-12-09T12:23:00.000-08:00

Running in circles is not necessarily my kind of thing, but when the motley Fools posted the Flash Foolish Gerbil 6 Hour run, proposing a 10km loop 6h run in Pacific Spirit Park, it fit nicely into my plans to run a longish stretch on the Vancouver New Year's Day 50 course. Others seemed to think along the same line, as pre-event saw a flurry of online activity: Rick posted a map, old timers mused about the opportunity and newbies committed to join us for a loop or two.

The morning dawned crisp and clear, with amazing views of orange glowing Mount Baker on the eastern horizon as I was making my way over Lions Gate Bridge to the start in Pacific Spirit Park. Surprisingly, I was met by a large group of keener's already assembling at the park center... and I thought I could snooze a bit in the warm car before setting out. It was great to see so many new faces brave enough to join some more or less serious gerbils.

After greeting everybody and making sure we all had maps and course descriptions, Karl sent us off on the trails, with Gilles bringing in the rear, offering to stay with the slowest runner to make sure nobody got lost on the first loop. This was a kind offer, but not many took the opportunity and soon the group stretched out, everybody falling into their own pace in several little groups.

I headed out with Lorraine and Claudia, soon realizing that the pace was to brisk for me to maintain on a long run. But the conversation and company was good and I hung on until the quasi turnaround on Marine Drive and Camosun St. where Arthur caught up to us and I decided to slow down a bit. The last time I ran that route was during the Vancouver New Year's Day Fat Ass 50, when utterly undertrained, the slight incline up Salish trail seemed like Mount Everest. I was pleasantly surprised, how gentle the ascent appeared during the Foolish Gerbil. Connecting back to Salish trail proved difficult for the majority of runners unfamiliar with the route and not having taken up Gilles' kind offer, a number of them put in some extra distance. Arthur kept me on track, though, and after a little stretch running with Karl and John, we finished the first loop in just over an hour.

The second loop started at the same - way to fast for me - pace with Claudia and Jennifer, one of the new Fat Asses. After not getting lost the first time around, we somehow managed to include a little detour together with John. No harm done, though, and we soon were able to pick up the correct trail again. Approaching the powerline, I had to say good bye to my running buddies and knew that I wouldn't head out for a third loop, as my quads and calves were starting to tighten up.

I finished the the second loop in 2:16. Happy with my run and pace, I saw the Fools leaving for their 3rd loop and waited for Lorraine, Cynnimon, Rhonda et al to finish their run.

Hoping for a repeat plus one on December 6th during the Foolish Gerbil 12 hour run. See you there.

Talk about a weird run!

2008-11-10T20:10:00.002-08:00

I had the weirdest run this afternoon.

It all started harmless enough. The sun was shining and I made the decision to go for a longer loop through Capilano Canyon, down Cap Pacific, along Bowser, MacKay Creek and then back home via Mosquito Creek. A modified Night Run loop with a few twists and turns thrown in to get my distance up. There were lots of people on the trails including a lost Japanese tourist, a semi lost group with small children, other Fat Asses (Paul, Action Jackson and Penny) and then the weird ones...

I was minding my own business, when coming around a corner on the CP, I passed two guys...one happily peeing against a tree. Walking distance to the next washroom maybe 1km. Come on guys. How urgent can it be??? And if it is urgent, is it too much to ask to scramble off the trail a bit to get out of sight?

Just as I was getting over the first incident, I come across the second guy also relieving himself. This time, I am out of the trails on an urban road, close to Maring Drive...we are talking busy here. There probably were about 10 store/restaurant locations within spitting (maybe I should say peeing) distance were one could have asked to use the facilities. Heck, there even is a public washroom in the adjacent park.

Unfortunately, I did not have my camera with me - I usually do carry it around on my runs and I promise that I will take a photo of the next guy I see peeing in public on our busy urban trails. I bet there is a Flickr group just waiting for my submissions.

By now I am on the last 2km of my run. It's past lunchtime and my gut is growling. Eager to get home, I am shuffling up Mosquito Creek. A black shape hanging of a branch beside the trail catches my attention. It looks like a squirrel...no wait, it looks like a squirrel hung up by its hind legs, um, it looks like the fur of a skinned squirrel hung upside down by its hind legs.

I am not faint of heart and rather curious by nature. Debating who would detest squirrels so much to go to the trouble to catch and skin one...Action Jackson? Just kidding! I get closer to the black thing and start thinking that maybe I should start feeling sick...Well, what I saw was a squirrel alright, but it was alive and well and jumped away when I was so close I could have touched it with my outstretched hand (it was still looking rather weird and motionless).

I've seen a lot of squirrels trying a lot of antics (have you ever seen them trying to get to the food in a so called squirrel proofed bird feeder?), but I have never seen a squirrel hanging motionless, upside down in a tree. I swear it was napping ;-)

Next time I will bring my camera along for sure.

Second Annual T/J Chili Cook Off

2008-11-09T17:13:00.007-08:00

For Action Jackson's 50th last year we organized the Nifty 50 Triathlon as a Club Fat Ass event. The third discipline was a chili cook off at our house - it was so much fun, that we decided to make it an annual event in a smaller setting.

Last night saw a group of friends and chili aficionados arrive in our kitchen, chili pots in their arms, tortillas, lime, cornbread and beer at the ready. Because of timing and space constraints we asked that all participants have their chili ready to be reheated. Electric Crockpots work great and my chili has been bubbling away since the night before.

Unlike last year, when we had 14 chili's and an even greater number of appetizers, side dishes and deserts - and ended up too stuffed to taste everything, we had 7 chili's and decided that we would taste the chili's one after the other. The rules were easy enough: Each taster scored each chili on it's own merrit on a scale from 1-10. 10 being the best score.

It's amazing how different the chili's all turned out. All were yummy, but my favorite was Rick's Hot'n Smokey Chili:

Hot'n Smokey Chili

2 lbs beef chuck, cut in 1/4" to 1/2" cubes
1 lbs pork shoulder, cut in 1/4" to 1/2" cubes

Marinade:
1 "star" star anise
1 - 3/4" to 1" long stick of cinnamon bark
1 dried chipotle pepper

1 tall tin Guinness beer
2 tablespoons Japanese sweet mirin
1 tablespoon wine vinegar
5-6 cloves garlic, finely minced
2 - 1" cubes fresh ginger root, finely grated
zest of one large naval orange, just get the surface rind, as little of the white pith below as possible
juice of one large naval orange
2 large fresh orange habanero peppers, finely minced
2 green onions, finely sliced
4 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, finely chopped
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander

Grind first three ingredients to fine powder with mortar & pestle.
Mix all marinade ingredients in large glass bowl and marinate meat in refrigerator for a few hours.

Chili:
1 tablespoon cooking oil
1 large sweet onion (like Walla-walla or Maui), chopped
Marinated meat, see above
Reserved marinade
1/2 cup Guinness beer

1 teaspoon sweet smoked paprika
4 large roasted sweet red peppers, peeled, seeds removed and pureed
2 tablespoons unsweetened dark chocolate, grated
2 tablespoons liquid smoke
2 tablespoons dark molasses
2 tablespoons chipotle-raspberry barbeque sauce
Sea salt and ground chipotle pepper to taste.

Fresh lime and chopped cilantro to garnish

Saute onion in cooking oil on medium heat in large cast iron skillet. Transfer to large dutch oven or non-stick pot when cooked to transluscent. Drain off marinade into large pot with onion and set to medium heat.

In same skillet, increase heat to medium-high and brown meat in small batches so to truly brown meat. (too much meat at once reduces skillet heat with liquid and "steams" the meat rather than browning it) Tranfer each batch of browned meat to the large pot as it is done. Work fast and in small batches to keep bottom of skillet from getting too burnt. When all meat has been browned and put into large pot, deglaze the hot skillet with Guinness, scraping bottom of skillet well. Pour liquid into large pot with meat.

Add remaining ingredients to large pot with meat and marinade. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to bubbling simmer. Partly cover with lid to keep temperature up but allow liquid to boil off and chili to thicken. Stir and taste occasionally. Add salt to taste. Add ground chipotle pepper to increase heat a little at a time, if a spicier chili is desired. This chili seems to start out quite bitter tasting, getting sweeter as it cooks. Simmer for about 3 hours until very thick and dark. Meat should be very tender and chili almost thick enough to stand a wooden spoon in.

Serve hot with a squeeze of fresh lime and sprinkle of chopped fresh cilantro.

Rick tied for first place with Glenn's Bin 666.

The Cool North Shore

2008-10-08T21:22:00.002-07:00

As some of you know Club Fat Ass had environmental friendliness on our schedule long before it was in the news. It's a good thing that sustainability is now part of our vocabulary and hopefully soon part of all our actions.

I realized how much of an early adopter of environmentally friendly living I was when I was invited by my neighbor JoAN to participate in the Cool North Shore.

Many of us know that climate change threatens the future health of the planet, our community and the future we’re leaving for our children. Figuring out how to respond to these concerns can be overwhelming and confusing. A diverse group of North Shore citizens called Legacy North Shore Society (), has decided we can do something powerful NOW to tackle climate change and work together to make a real difference.

They adapted the stimulating, simple and effective Low Carbon Diet model created by the Empowerment Institute (which has been used in hundreds of communities and organizations across the world) for the North Shore. They are partnering with local governments and BC Hydro to spread this across the entire North Shore over the coming year. This is a ground‐breaking opportunity for citizens and neighborhoods to make a concrete and satisfying difference on the North Shore.

Cool North Shore (which is part of Legacy North Shore) is all about building a low carbon community by engaging North Shore residents and organizations in taking action to measurably reduce our CO2 emissions.

Our first meeting was a couple of weeks ago. We were asked to come as a team. JoAn, who has been involved with Legacy North Shore, invited our neighborhood to form a team. Sandra, Heather (an almost around the corner neighbor) and myself responded. We carpooled to the Bella Candela restaurant, whose owner sponsored the evening (good pizza and salad, btw.) and settled down. I wasn't quite sure what to expect. Soon after David, Bryan and Charles introduced themselves and the idea behind Cool North Shore, we were asked to switch tables. Oops, I thought I was operating in the safety of a team... After intros we were asked to reflect on our fears with regards to our environment. The tables were covered in blank sheets of paper and we jotted down our thoughts. Another switch, intros and more brainstorming on fears. After the next switch we were asked to look at our hopes. Luckily, my table mates were very hopeful that the increased visibility of the environmental issues facing us would translate into action and change on a personal, community and political level. I sometimes have my doubts...Another switch saw us looking at what we have done on a personal level to reduce our carbon foot print.

During the last part of the evening, we rejoined our original teams and were asked to plan ahead following a plan of action laid out by the Cool North Shore folks and the "Low Carbon Diet" publication. We committed to an immediate personal action. Mine is to reduce my weekly clothes dryer loads by setting up a clothesline. The other action items were in preparation for a team meeting that we scheduled among the 4 of us: Using the Low Carbon Diet booklet set a carbon reduction goal in pounds (the book was published in the US). Complete the carbon calculator at: and read chapters 1-16.

We were all pretty psyched at the end of the evening. I shall report in with further updates on Cool the North Shore and my personal action items. For now, I challenge you to take the carbon calculator at www.earthlab.com and ponder how you personally can reduce your carbon footprint.

Lastly, one of the next steps for our teams is to look at personal household reductions and then at involving our neighborhood and the community...I figure with Club Fat Ass I have a outdoor oriented, attentive community at my fingertips: if you are interested to participate in Cool North Shore, please let me know. They arranged a second meeting (like the one I attended) To register, please send your name and names of your fellow attendees (North Shore residents only), with their emails, by October 13 to: bryang@sfu.ca. Space is limited to 50 people (overflow will go to an early 2009 session).

The Omnivores Hundred

2008-09-23T22:14:00.002-07:00

Check out this http://www.verygoodtaste.co.uk/uncategorised/the-omnivores-hundred/

Here is what I've eaten from that list:

The Omnivore’s Hundred

Here’s a chance for a little interactivity for all the bloggers out there. Below is a list of 100 things that I think every good omnivore should have tried at least once in their life. The list includes fine food, strange food, everyday food and even some pretty bad food - but a good omnivore should really try it all. Don’t worry if you haven’t, mind you; neither have I, though I’ll be sure to work on it. Don’t worry if you don’t recognise everything in the hundred, either; Wikipedia has the answers.

Here’s what I want you to do:

1) Copy this list into your blog or journal, including these instructions.
2) Bold all the items you’ve eaten.
3) Cross out any items that you would never consider eating.
4) Optional extra: Post a comment here at www.verygoodtaste.co.uk linking to your results (this is were this

The VGT Omnivore’s Hundred:

1. Venison
2. Nettle tea
3. Huevos rancheros
4. Steak tartare
5. Crocodile
6. Black pudding
7. Cheese fondue
8. Carp
9. Borscht
10. Baba ghanoush
11. Calamari
12. Pho
13. PB&J sandwich
14. Aloo gobi
15. Hot dog from a street cart
16. Epoisses
17. Black truffle
18. Fruit wine made from something other than grapes
19. Steamed pork buns
20. Pistachio ice cream
21. Heirloom tomatoes
22. Fresh wild berries
x 23. Foie gras
24. Rice and beans
25. Brawn, or head cheese
26. Raw Scotch Bonnet pepper
27. Dulce de leche
28. Oysters
29. Baklava
30. Bagna cauda
31. Wasabi peas
32. Clam chowder in a sourdough bowl
33. Salted lassi
34. Sauerkraut
x 35. Root beer float
36. Cognac with a fat cigar
37. Clotted cream tea
38. Vodka jelly/Jell-O
39. Gumbo
40. Oxtail
41. Curried goat
42. Whole insects
43. Phaal
44. Goat’s milk
45. Malt whisky from a bottle worth £60/$120 or more
46. Fugu
47. Chicken tikka masala
48. Eel
x 49. Krispy Kreme original glazed doughnut
50. Sea urchin
51. Prickly pear
52. Umeboshi
53. Abalone
54. Paneer
x 55. McDonald’s Big Mac Meal
56. Spaetzle
57. Dirty gin martini
58. Beer above 8% ABV
59. Poutine
60. Carob chips
61. S’mores
62. Sweetbreads
x 63. Kaolin
64. Currywurst
65. Durian
x 66. Frogs’ legs
67. Beignets, churros, elephant ears or funnel cake
68. Haggis
69. Fried plantain
70. Chitterlings, or andouillette (who can be sure ;-)
71. Gazpacho
72. Caviar and blini
73. Louche absinthe
74. Gjetost, or brunost
75. Roadkill
x 76. Baijiu
77. Hostess Fruit Pie
78. Snail
79. Lapsang souchong
80. Bellini
81. Tom yum
82. Eggs Benedict
83. Pocky
84. Tasting menu at a three-Michelin-star restaurant.
85. Kobe beef
86. Hare
87. Goulash
88. Flowers
89. Horse (who can be sure...)
90. Criollo chocolate
91. Spam
92. Soft shell crab
93. Rose harissa
94. Catfish
95. Mole poblano
96. Bagel and lox
97. Lobster Thermidor
98. Polenta
99. Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee
100. Snake

Python Man - or Duathlon Fat Ass style in Germany

2008-07-24T03:19:00.004-07:00

Because of a sudden and persistent Achilles Tendon injury I have not been able to run for the last 2 month. Have gingerly tested the waters a few times, but since I did not want to make this another chronic injury, I did not push very hard (not difficult to do as it feels like the tendon is going to tear when I am running more than 10m).

This injury did not fit well into my plans of running lots in the wonderful beech forests in Germany during my summer visit. I tried to get not to frustrated and managed to get out on a mountain bike a fair bit. The plan also was to participate in the Phyton Man, a CFA style Duathlon consisting of 1.8km run - 14km mountain bike - 1.8km run. A few weeks ago I figured that I surely would be able to run 3.6km by then...well Phyton Man was held yesterday and I am still not able to run. Here is my report:

I heard about Phyton Man last year, when our friends from Falkenbach, Germany, visited us in Vancouver for a week. It sounded a lot like a CFA event, complete with colourful characters and a party to round things off. When I received an invite to this year's Phyton Man and realized the date coincided with my visit in Germany I committed to participate.

The start details arrived by email, but were a bit sketchy, as several different start time were circulating. Turns out, the organizers wanted to make sure that everybody arrived in time (unlike the previous year) and therefore "faked" an earlier start time. Needless to say, my sister, my husband and I arrived via a 15km bike ride, well in time. Opportunity to catch up with our friends, Armin, an accomplished Triathlete (turned Cyclist because of busted knees) and Andrea, also a long time Triathlete. We learned where the name originated...something about milking a Phyton - don't ask. Despite her snake phobia, Andrea had donned fake phyton skin shorts and Armin sported a boa around his belly.

The hosts had organized cake and coffee for before the start and the whole thing seemed quite relaxed, despite some pretty chiseled looking bodies showing up. The boxes of bottled Franziskaner Wheat Bear under a table on the porch indicated a long party after the event.

At 15:00h sharp the neighborhood boy - Falkenbach is a village of about 200 and Phyton Man seems to be the social event of the year - sent us off by banging a garbage can shut and waving a German flag. Armin had assured me, that he would walk together with me since he cannot run anymore...well, the competitive spirit must have gotten the better of him. I saw him sprinting away and soon found myself at my customary spot at the end of the pack. The road led steep uphill out of the village into rolling meadows and fruit orchards. A brief dogleg allowed me to see everybody briefly again, before they left me in the dust for good. I limped-ran my way to the transition zone and figured that I could close in on Andrea during the bike ride. Down a steep 2km road stretch and then onto a forest road, known as Lahn Hoehenweg. I "learned" running on that path a mere 36 years ago ;-). It contours the Lahn Valley and winds it's way steadily upwards through dense beech forest for about 5km.

My hopes to catch up to Andrea did not materialize. Her bike skills were better than her running. I pedalled for all my might trying not to brush the stinging nettle plants lining the path, but by the time I reached transition again, some participants were already finished with the second run leg. Off I went on a lonely walk to complete what I had started out to do. The opportunity to turn around earlier appeared for a split second, but I wasn't sure if the German Phyton Man rules allowed for custom courses like Club Fat Ass events. Everybody greeted me at the finish line before fleeing a sudden rain shower and congregating under a tent in Armin and Andrea's back yard.

Husband and sister had done well, in case your wonder. Old Back in Action Jackson was still nursing his half severed toe (read his KK blog to find out what happened) and I had fixed him up with a beater bike with hopes I could catch him ;-) Despite the handicap he toughed it out and finished way in front of me. Sis, also rides a beater bike, but her faster run securely put her into second last position.

The post event party beat all my expectations. More cake and coffee, bionade (a new fashion drink, surely to hit North America next year) and an awesome BBQ of Pork steaks and German sausages, accompanied by potluck dishes we had brought along. Only hiccup was the weather, which changed from hot to stormy and wet and the fact that I had mistakenly poured myself an alcohol free wheat beer (another new fashion - not sure if it will catch in North America, though). The evening was rounded of with live music by the local bluegrass band Foxchase. Photo are here.

Oatmeal Granola Bars

2008-07-23T08:25:00.002-07:00

These are great granola bars to take along hiking. I vary the type of nuts and dried fruits I add:

2/3 cup (150 mL) butter, softened
1 cup (250 mL) packed brown sugar (less is fine too)
1 egg
1 tsp (5 mL) vanilla
1-1/2 cups (375 mL) rolled oats
1 cup (250 mL) all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp (2 mL) baking powder
1/2 tsp (2 mL) baking soda
1/4 tsp (1 mL) salt
1/2 cup (125 mL) chopped dried apricots (or prunes, figs, etc)
1/2 cup (125 mL)chopped almonds (or walnuts, peanuts, etc)
1/2 cup (125 mL) dried cranberries
1/2 cup (125 mL) sweetened shredded coconut

Preparation: Grease small baking sheet. In large bowl, beat butter with brown sugar until fluffy; beat in egg and vanilla. In separate bowl, whisk together rolled oats, flour, baking powder, baking soda and stir in apricots, almonds, cranberries (prunes work well too) and coconut. Fold into butter mixture. Spread evenly in prepared pan. Bake in centre of 180 C oven for 30 minutes. (165 C convection) Let cool on rack for 10 minutes. Cut into bars. Keeps in container or saran wrap for a week.

I think I originally saw this in a Canadian Living magazine.

What Do Church Bells, Disposable Coffee Cups, German Advertising And Smokers Have In Common?

2008-06-05T01:45:00.007-07:00

Nothing much, really...those are just a few things that I noticed since arriving in Germany three days ago. Read on to find out the connection.

We left Vancouver late Sunday night. Getting through security was an unexpected snap. No shoes to take off, laptop to be turned on, violin to unpack or permission for the children to travel with just one parent scrutinized. I hadn't flown for 3 years, maybe I can't remember the departure lounge, but it seemed greatly improved and the time to boarding passed quickly looking at the artificial salmon creek or ocean aquarium. There even was wireless access and the kids wrote their first email to Papa. The flight left YVR in time around 23:00. The kids were already tired, but got a second wind with the excitement of take off. The airplane was only 1/3 full. Because of balancing issues, all passengers were crammed into the last third of the Airbus 330, but we were told by the very attentive crew that 40 people could move to the middle of the aircraft and stretch out. Unfortunately, my kids did not want to move and we were very cozy for the next 10 hours. How did I end up with the seat in the middle? Before kids I always flew aisle or window...

Touch down was a bit wobbly. EJ and I didn't feel so good and JJ fled into one of the empty seats, but otherwise the flight was exceptional, especially considering AirTransats reputation as a cheap, no frills airline. Getting through customs and picking up our luggage (all three bags were already waiting for us) was a breeze.

Little sis and niece waited for us once we cleared customs. Tears and emotions all around.

I guess I better get back to the church bells and advertising and coffee cups...The jet lagged seemed to be harder to deal with this time around and I didn't venture far the first 2 days. Between chatting with my sis, being shuttled to and fro my parents place and getting the kids settled into school there was hardly anytime to head out...and running is off the books because of an Achilles injury.

All to say, that I didn't see much of Germany yet, what had changed and what was the same. The first thing I did notice once I managed to set my sis wireless network up and access it with my laptop, was that Facebook greeted me with a big pop up announcing that it is now available in German. What a coincidence, I thought ( I am so naive). The next time I noticed that the friend checker now offered all the big German email provider addresses. When I noticed the ads in German, I finally clued in. Facebook had me pegged via my IP address. Flickr, btw, asked me if it can route my info via a server in Great Britain to avoid delays...

Coffee cups, you wonder. Well, this morning I went for a walk over the hill to the next village to pick up a bike from friends for my daughter. Huffing up the road, I noticed a guy driving his car with a disposable coffee cup at his lips. Now in Vancouver I wouldn't blink an eye. But this is Germany. Aren't you supposed to sit down at a table to enjoy and savour your coffee? I guess you can call this change.

Smoking in Germany always bothered me, as there never were any protective laws for non-smokers and I hated the smell and stench you encounter where ever you venture in Germany. I was anxious to see how the tough new smoking bylaws are panning out. I guess, I need to wait a bit longer. I still see cigarette butts everywhere and I haven't been in a restaurant yet to see if the law is applied. What I hear is that restaurants and pubs are up in arms because of perceived drop in customers. Some states have loosened up the laws and made allowances for small neighborhood pubs...NOOOOO! Hang in there, please.

Church bells are easy. Every full hour, you here church bells ringing. Always was like this and still is...Memories.

Missing The Fools

2008-04-25T20:42:00.003-07:00

The morning started with a loud knocking waking me out of deep sleep. "Oh shoot", I thought, "that is my running buddy... why did I not hear my alarm?" Still half asleep I glanced at my watch (but being half blind I didn't realize that it was way too early for my running partner to be knocking at my door), jumped out of bed, raced downstairs, opened the house door, set off the alarm, had trouble resetting it without my glasses...only to realize that my friend was not there.

The knocking came from a pesky Flicker woodpecker, attacking the side of our house. Yawn. Love the Flickers, but cannot tolerate them destroying our house...so out comes the sling shot (no worries - I have a poor aim, but it helps me get a pebble high enough to scare the bird away). Flicker taken care of I realize I still have an hour before my friend is scheduled to pick me up to meet the fools somewhere on the BP.

I reach Cheryl, who has been crewing through the night, via cell phone. She reports that the Fools are a bit ahead of schedule and she is expecting them around 8:00 at Lynn Canyon. Perfect.

We arrive at Lynn Canyon Suspension Bridge well before 8:00. No sign of Cheryl, so I call her up again to find out that she is at the Pipleline Bridge...ahem. I thought the Fools decided last night to stay on the BP opposed to the KK course. Still not quite awake, I ask Cheryl if they had run downriver on the BP. Cheryl, of course is absolutely sleep deprived and I shouldn't ask her any questions at this point. Figure, we'll meet the Fools if we follow the BP upstream.

We set of down the stairs into Lynn Canyon. The morning is crisp and dry. Too cold for the seaon, but at least it's not raining. After a few minutes of running, it occurs to me that if the Fools were at the Pipeline Bridge, they probably were following the KK course. Oops. I call Cheryl again to confirm. Cheryl is ready for bed. I offer her to take a rest at our house before driving home, but she feels awake enough to drive... She confirms that the Fools crossed the Pipeline Bridge...

We turn around and hope to still be able to meet the runners. Hey, I even run up those stairs to the Suspension Bridge. On the other side of the Suspension Bridge, I make the mistake and turn left right away...instead of a right and then a left. We end up following the trail to the 30ft pool until I realize we are wrong...by which time it's too late to turn around and still meet the Fools. Sorry guys. I shall try again later today.

Double Black Diamond

2008-03-29T04:04:00.000-07:00

Not much new to report about my running training these days. Hip is still inflammed, so my runs have been rather half hearted and unmotivated. Luckily there is lots and lots of fresh pow in the mountains behind my house... Now, I ski like I run, slow and careful ;-) BUT, yesterday saw me hurtling down my first, second and third Double Black Diamond ski run at Grouse Mountain. Yippeh! Thanks to EJ Powderhound for the hours of training and ActionJackson for pushing me off the ledge!

Tomorrow, the little Jackson's, OverTheHill Jackson (aka Action Jackson), the Montgomery's and this Turtlepace are snowshoeing up to Elphin Shelter in Garibaldi Provincial Park to spend the night. My only concern is the access road to the trail head (seems every year we almost go over the cliff) and how our language student from Japan will survive his first back country trip ever.

Hopefully, running form will return soon.

Shirt Packing Party

2008-03-06T04:09:00.001-08:00

Your Chief Executive FA and the past membership chair, Michele, relaxing after 3h of stuffing the 2008 Club Fat Ass no-stink, environmentally friendly, long-sleeve shirts into envelopes for mailing. Thanks to Vanessa for handling the design and sewing of the new Club Fat Ass Wear line. Thanks to Jess for helping with the artwork and the Club Fat Ass Wear labels (so cute) . Thanks Michele for keeping me on track during the packaging.

The red shirt I am holding is the men's shirt, Michele is holding the purple women's shirt. Emails have been sent out to the proud new owners of the shirts either with pick-up instructions or to warn you that the shirts are on their way to your mail box...

Now, I need the poster children to pose. I hear Vanessa and John and Danielle and Ryne are going to strut their stuff.

Back on the Trails

2008-02-28T04:12:00.000-08:00

Today is the last day to register for Kneeknacker. If you have been sitting on the fence and contemplating... better get your FA into gear...

Considering that I have barely run since early December - January 1 being the notable exception ;-) - I have decided not to register this year. It is still on my horizon for another year, but I have to be realistic in my goals...and I am just to slow. I had been hoping to use the last 2 month building some ground speed, but a hip injury didn't allow me to run.

I am back (sort of) though. Ran a couple of times for 20 min and as it often goes, it seems to be that moving is helping the hip - or maybe it's just the time. Today will be my first time back in the trails of Capilano Canyon. I have been missing these trails so much...watching Carlos' movie and reading about Rhonda's and Cheryl's plans to run the Juan de Fuca Trail run almost hurt ;-) At least there was good skiing to be had and the hip didn't hurt while on the boards.

Time to put the trail shoes on...

Avalanche and Backcountry Safety

2008-02-04T04:17:00.000-08:00

With the recent and repeated avalanche warnings and the high number of avalanche fatalities this year, our family has been talking about taking a back country safety course and avalanche safety training.

Both Action Jackson and I are drawn to back country skiing. As of yet, we do not have any equipment, but it is on our radar... Craigslist watch out! I have a low risk tolerance and like to be prepared...

Can anybody recommend a good general back country safety course and avalanche training in Vancouver/North Vancouver? Are there members out there who would be willing to organize something for other Fat Asses? I have just started my research and not looked at any hands on courses...I got as far as finding a great resource by the Canadian Avalance Centre. Check out http://access.jibc.bc.ca/avalancheFirstResponse/index.htm

Seymour Snowshoe Sleepover

2008-01-20T04:21:00.001-08:00

As a child, one of my winter projects always was to built an igloo. Lacking enough snow, I never succeeded beyond lining up a couple of layers of snow bricks. The closest I got was one year, when an unusual 70cm dump of fresh powdery snow caused the government to proclaim an emergency situation and called in the troops. Schools were closed and I was digging a snowcave. It never got big enough to actually crawl into, but I was able to light a candle in it and delighted in my miniature cave.

Fast forward almost 40 years (gasp). One of my goals for this winter was to be up on a local mountain peak at sunrise. Friday afternoon the weather forecast looked good for the weekend and since I am still nursing an injured hip and didn't feel foolish enough to join the fun at the Pure Foolishness I put the word out to join me for an early morning snowshoe hike to Dog Mountain. Over dinner the plan morphed into taking the family up for a winter camping expedition...Ugh, was I seriously considering packing up the gear and the troops in order to avoid to rise at 5:00am on Sunday?

Saturday morning was spent packing up the gear and food for 2 little and two big winter campers. We set out on the trail around 2:30pm. Doug and Troy joined us for the afternoon. The sun was trying to peak through the clouds and there was a 20cm layer of fresh snow - on top of the 4m plus that have already accumulated this winter. Conditions looked good and we were excited.

The hike to Dog Mtn. is long enough to get you warmed up, but not long enough to get you tired. We found a protected little spot with easterly views and rigged up the tent. While it is not a monster tent, it is still pretty big and I wouldn't classify it as a backpacking tent. Luckily, Ean's knapsack is huge and the old man has practised carrying concrete bricks all summer long...

While I set up the interior decorations, complete with thermo rests and sleeping bags, the kids and Ean started to dig a snowcave into a huge snowbank. By the time dinner was ready, the cave could hold 2 of us easily. Macaroni and cheese never tasted so good. And the chicken noodle soup was very warming.

After dinner the skies started to clear and we could make out the city lights below us. While the boys continued to dig, the girls took some photos and got very cold.
By the time bed time rolled around, the cave was big enough to hold all four and featured a little bench and a cooking platform. Wow, maybe I finally get my childhood snowcave.

The night was cold. Very cold. EJ's matt had deflated due to a puncture hole. Anything slightly moist froze solid. We all snuggled up close. Two Fat Asses and two little tushes on 3 thermo rests. It seemed I was working all night to keep warm. Maybe next time (what am I thinking) we should come early and dig a cave big enough to sleep in. If constructed properly, it stays fairly warm in a snow cave.

The sun rose just after 8:00am and we happily greeted the new day. The sky was lighly overcast, so we didn't get to see an amazing sparkling sunrise, but it was special non the less. I cooked breakfast in the cave and pondered how I would like to sleep under a couple of meters of snow....

By noon we were back at the car (we had left a note in it indicating that we were out for the night - so that CFA member and North Shore Search and Rescue volunteer Allan wouldn't have to come out looking for us). It was a challenging outing, not quite painfree, but it left that good feeling of accomplishment!

Photos are here.

Post 50km Recovery

2008-01-16T04:24:00.002-08:00

Running 50km on New Years Day with limited training was probably not the smartest thing I've done in a while, but definitely very exhilarating and motivating.

I've taken some time off to recover and get the inflammation in my hip under control that has been plaguing me since early December. Instead of running, I've been snowshoe hiking, working out at the gym, took a Yoga class (the first one in years left me sore in muscles I didn't even know I had) and skied a bit.

Attempts to finally get out and hit the trails again have been very reluctant, but it is time to get serious! Next goal on my 2008 list is a spring road marathon - I have some aspirations for time/PB, which means I need to get on the road, rather than plod along on the trails...maybe that's why my motivation is lacking ;-) Time to dig up that training schedule.

50km on Will Power

2008-01-02T04:28:00.000-08:00

Late last summer I foolishly pronounced I would line up for the Vancouver New Years Day 50Km again. Training was going well until life got in the way, my daughter got sick, my friends took a break from long runs and to top it of my right hip started to be very painful.

I eventually resigned to run the 25km yesterday and try the 50km another year. Deep inside, though, I didn't want to run the 25km. I wanted to do the 50km.

Packing for this day is always a bit chaotic as we traditionally have dinner guests and go snowshoeing the night before. Was the weather forecast to be trusted. How much water and food would I need, which shoes, which shirts, jacket, hat. Cellphone with cab numbers - check, emergency blanket - check, money and car keys - check, camera - check, dry gear and shower stuff for afterwards, check. Course description - check.

The morning of the event dawned cold, but dry. My clothing choice was right on and I soon fell into a rhythm in a group together with Lara, Rhonda, Arlene and Craig. As we were marvelling at the snow covered north shore mountains from Locarno Beach, Rhonda mentioned her car was parked at one of the parking lots on Spanish Banks. What... you are not running the full 50km? A quick check made me realize that I was the only one (who was planning to run to the turnaround and then play it by ear). Bummer. Running alone has never been my forte. And running alone for 50km on no training seemed impossible.

But, all of a sudden I knew that I would not stop at the turn around. Craig, who had fallen back a bit, caught up. He had earlier said that he'll do a shorter out and back. All my hope was resting on me talking him into running 50km. "Ok, we have the whole day" was Craig's reply to my plea.

I begged some "Vitamin I" from Rhonda to deal with my painful hip and left the rest of the gang just before the super duper aid station that Danielle from Kintec had set up at Spanish Banks. Craig tended to his hot spot on his little toe with pink chap stick (gotta be flexible), I retied my shoes and hoovered down some chips and soon we were off into the trails of Pacific Spirit Park.

Craig continued his system of run-walk and would leapfrog me every so often. I plodded along, trying not too fall into a walk. My right hip was becoming extremely painful and my gait got shorter and shorter. Seeing the faster runners on the return trip got our minds off our little problems and made the time pass fast. Everybody was all smiles and encouragement was passed out freely.

The turn-around was very lonely. We didn't hang around. A quick stretch, more chap stick on Craig's toe, some food and off we were again. I was beginning to think that talking Craig into this was not a good idea. At least, if I'd be alone, I could bail without feeling bad...My run felt like a shuffle, Vitamin I wasn't working and the stretch back was looking very, very long. Crossing path with a couple of friends from way back when we lived in Kits was a welcome distraction. Running a couple of kms with Robert, who was out to start his new years resolutions on the right foot with a run in his blue Club Fat Ass shirt and intentions of participating in more events this year, was great. Sorry, Robert, if I was sounding a bit weird...I was in another zone.

Walking along Admirality Trail before returning to the beach was frustrating. Craig was getting way ahead and I decided that there was no way I could finish this. Plans for a bail out at the aid station took shape, then evaporated when I reached the parking lot and a waiting Craig but no tent or aid station. Humph. Craig sort of ignored my rambling about bailing. He also did not listen to me when I told him to go ahead and I would somehow find my way back...

The view over English Bay towards the city and Stanley Park was beautiful, but discouraging, as it showed very clearly how far away the finish was. Craig told me not to look ;-) I focused on reaching Kits Point. Then Burrard Street Bridge. At the end of the bridge was Sarah, waiting for John (not to be mean, but I was glad she missed him and fed us instead). Bananas, water and kind words got us going again. Soon we were negotiating the revellers leaving the Vancouver Polar Bear Swim at English Bay.

I could smell the finish and was trying to estimate how much further. Craig thought I was a bit optimistic in my assessment, but it didn't matter...we would make it now - even if we had to crawl in. The wind picked up as we passed the Nine O'Clock Gun, but the skies stayed dry. We picked up the pace - will power is an amazing thing - and almost sprinted to the fire hydrant. Our final, grand total time was 6:55. Much slower that I had hoped for in the summer, but hey! We've done it.

Arriving, still sweaty and ruddy cheeked, at the Mosquito Creek Bar and Grill, I couldn't wipe the grin off my face. Endorphins were cursing through my veins ;-) The icing on the cake, aka a wonderful day and way to start the New Year, was the trophy, a bunch of my fellow Fat Asses planned and made. Craig, who had run with me all day, hadn't said a word, and now presented to me this great trophy: an engraved glass plate mounted on a heavy, rustic, coppery looking stand. The engraving reads: "Thank you Ean and Sibylle for being the most awesome promoters of oddball endurance events and a healthy outdoor lifestyle. Your hard work and passion are always appreciated!"

Thanks, fellow Fat Asses and especially Craig Moore, Tim Wiens and Cheryl Johnson, who rumour has it were the movers and shakers behind this surprise.

Run For Your Life

2007-12-12T04:33:00.000-08:00

Run for your life:

Go Home, Where Else Would I Go...?

2007-11-22T04:38:00.000-08:00

Well, uphill for one...The first part of the Go Home course winds it's way from sleepy Deep Cove at sealevel up to the Lookout Parking Lot off Mt. Seymour Road. A calf busting climb on the best of days.

I had started with the hope to be able to hang on to the slower ladies, but had to let them go once we reached Indian Arm Rd. I've been training a lot and have worked on my speed, but lately, there just isn't any "umph" in those legs.

The trails were beautiful. Bright yellow mushrooms sprouted in a few spots and gurgling creeks and clear waterfalls greeted me behind every corner. Kept my mind off the fact, that I would be arriving alone, wet and tired in back in Deep Cove with no car and no ride...Hm! Couldn't keep my mind off that one for long. I pondered running most of the course, but turning towards Lynn Canyon once back on the BP and calling my ride from there - if I would get stuck there, at least I would know which bus would get me home before freezing to death. Thought about running the whole course and dropping in on a good friend in Deep Cove while waiting for my ride. Nothing really appealed to me as the rain was falling harder and colder. My brand new test Club Fat Ass Wear technical shirt (boy do I like that new fabric) kept me cozy, but at the historic mushroom parking lot I decided to cut back to the BP in the hope of running into some of the faster runners. Bingo! After a nasty slow motion tumble on a downhill stretch I first greeted Ann, then Curb, then Dom and Cheryl. Things weren't as lonely anymore. Running down into Deep Cove a whole group of Fat Asses passed me on light feet.

After fuelling up at Honey's with mudrunner and Penny we headed home. That hot shower never felt that good.

Buy Nothing Day

2007-11-22T04:37:00.000-08:00

Hey, that's an easy one! Buy Nothing Day. Who wants to be stuck in a stuffy store, Christmas tunes jingling in the background, cranky people whacking their shopping carts into you, stressed cashiers trying to be friendly (or trying hard not to be snarly). Go for a run during lunch or after work instead.

The Chili Dilemma (continued)

2007-11-08T12:07:00.001-08:00

I went to shop for some of my chili ingredients today. Jackson accepted my challenge to concoct his own "authentic" chili. He found a rattlesnake meat supplier, but the rattlesnake got stopped at the border. I am not kidding. Instead of rattlesnake I got beef for Jackson, not the ground kind...apparently he is chopping the meat up to desired bite size pieces.

I had studied the lore of chili's over the last couple of days and went shopping with the thought in mind that I am going to create an "authentic" chili (no beans no ground meat) but use my bastard recipe (beans and ground meat) as a base to work from. Just before the checkout, I realized that I don't really give a darn about authenticity when it comes to chili. Sorry, Texans! Who gives you the right to claim the yummy chili as your own, exclude beans and ground meat? Back went the chunk of beef and with determination I paid for the ground beef.

Really, you chili snobs, what it comes down to is the taste...I have my secret ingredients at the ready. Let the battle of the chili's begin.

Oh, one last word. With all this purist talk about Texan chili's, I fear we are scaring off the vegans and vegetarian. Please do not feel intimidated and bring your vegetarian chili version before the judge. It's the taste that counts. Rules are there to be broken ;-)

Club Fat Ass Wear - A Sneak Preview

2007-11-06T12:14:00.000-08:00

Excitement is in the air. I got my hands on the first mock-up ClubFatAssWear shirts. Vanessa has been busily designing the pattern, running the fabric and mock shirts through the oven at the screener, calculating shrinkage and driving patterns and fabric to and fro.

Today she dropped off a men's and a women's test shirt. I am wearing mine right now. The material feels luxurious, very soft. If you have read the newsletter, you'll know that the shirts are made from a environmentally friendly, non-toxic, anti-microbial material called Chitosante. So far, I am thrilled with the look and feel!

I love the colour...uh uh...this is secret territory. We have not disclosed the colours yet. We'll probably go for different colours for men and women's shirts, just because I was told men don't wear ... (oops, can't say more!).

Ean and I will be "testing" the shirts over the next few days for functionality and fit. I'll take mine for a run tomorrow. Ean will place particular emphasis on the no stink feature - so far so good. I'll run them through the washer and then test again.

The ClubFatAssWear shirts will be a very special edition and only available for members on record 1 January 2008 (that's when the order goes in). To make sure you'll get yours don't forget to register or renew your Club Fat Ass membership before the end of the year. As a special incentive to sign-up early, we will enter everybody registered by 1 November in a draw for a refund of their membership dues. Don't miss out!

Saturday Morning Runs

2007-10-01T14:19:00.000-07:00

I can’t remember how many years Pat and I have been running together on Saturday mornings. It probably started with a marathon clinic after my son Erik was born 7 years ago.

The clinic day and time didn’t fit our schedules. Pat attends mass Sunday mornings and I would like to have my run done and over with by 10:00am to be able to spend the day with my family. The clinic was Sunday morning at 9:00am… needless to say, after the 18 week clinic and finishing the marathon (Pat’s first and my first AC - after children) we started meeting on our own terms, usually Saturday morning, as early as possible, depending on the daylight hours, the distance we were training for and our general energy level.
Locations vary. First we’d alternate between Stanley Park, Pacific Spirit Park, Southland and the beaches. Eventually, my family moved to the North Vancouver and now it seems we almost exclusively run on the rugged trails of the North Shore mountains.

Pat and I are slow runners. We have done a number of marathons and a few ultras, but we are end of the pack slowpokes taking in the scenery, stopping to look at a woodpecker, an owl, wildflowers, the rushing waters below a canyon bridge, helping lost hikers, collecting trash…you get the picture. Our runs are relaxing, no stress, no pressure. If one of us has a bad day, the other sticks with her and adjust the pace. We are however religious in keeping our planned runs. If we plan a run, you can count on us being there. Torrential rains, snow, ice, no sleep - it doesn’t matter. We are committed!

Over the years, I invited other slowpokes along. Often, they join us a few times, sometimes folks express the desire to run with us, but in the end other commitments get in the way and it is just Pat and I again.

Today, was an exceptional day. I had invited a new Club Fat Ass member, who felt she hadn’t trained enough to come out to our events. I also had mentioned time, distance and start location to my neighbour and another friend. It is always an open invitation to join Pat and me on our slow, peaceful runs and today 5 of us showed up to do the Night Run course. Definitely a record in numbers.

The morning dawned misty and moist, but the forecasted rain never materialized. The trails in Capilano Canyon were magical, fog hanging between the trees, rays of sunlight fighting their way through the canopy of the rain forest, coloured leaves floating down to the forest floor. The air smelled earthy and fresh.

The Night Run course is my favoured run, both for its distance and terrain. From my house it cuts west through residential neighborhoods and green ways to hook up with Capilano Park. Capilano Canyon always changes. Today, the water from the heavy rain we had a couple of days ago, was rushing over the rocks, making it difficult for the spawning salmon to fight their way up river. The trails parallels the canyon for a few kilometers, undulating, but steadily loosing altitude and eventually descending to the river bank. Down here the water flows quieter, slower. The river is wide and will empty into Burrard Inlet just a couple of km further south. My route, however, veers eastward, hooks up with another trail system and eventually follows Mosquito Creek north back to my house. A perfect loop for a perfect run and for perfect company on the trails today. I hope Pat, Michelle, Gabi and Louise enjoyed it as much as I did.

Want to join us? The invitation is always open.

My first blog Post

2007-09-10T14:17:00.000-07:00

Finally being pushed over the edge and decided to start blogging. No idea what this will turn into and if I am going to keep it up…really no time for self centered posts…and not that philosophically inclined to write meaningful things about the mundane we encounter everyday. So, lets just wait and see where this will take us

My Sorry Fat Ass

2007-07-07T16:55:00.000-07:00

After last years epic 50km on New Years Day I had my heart set on a repeat, but alas it wasn’t meant to be. Despite an increase in our training runs, Michele, Pat and I just couldn’t get our mileage up enough to realistically attempt 50km. When the snow in late November and the storms of early December put a damper on some of our runs we finally declared defeat and aimed for the 25km distance.

The question in the final preparation of this run always is how much partying and drinking can you handle without suffering too much the following morning. Well, my neighbors child decided he can handle a hell of a lot of partying and didn’t consider my need for sleep after an evening of snowshoeing and chocolate fondue on Seymour Mountain (Dom, take note, you can get altitude and snow and still brave the wet elements to start the New Year) and before a 25km run.

I crawled out of bed with a splitting headache, feeling like I was the one who emptied all the beer bottles that littered the street. Luckily, there is always vitamin I By the time Ean send us of around the east side of Stanley Park I felt slightly better and enjoyed the morning scenery around Coal Harbour and Lost Lagoon.

Photo: Turtlepace, Michele and Isabelle rounding Kits Point

Like last year, we kept leap frogging Baldwin, who followed some version of the run/walk schedule. As we approached Burrard Street Bridge, he was definitely ahead of us and I started to feel my hips and was looking forward to the trails of Pacific Spirit Park.

Turning onto Chestnut Street right after the bridge we picked up a lost lamb. Turned out Isabelle Thielen missed Kits Point and backtracked, loosing her front position. Thanks for staying with us for a while, Isabelle. You certainly pushed us to be much faster than usual.

Photo: Approaching Burrard Street Bridge, not the pack of Fat Asses crossing the bridge

Despite the forecast for rising temperatures, it felt like it was getting colder. The rain was now mixed with snow and a steady icy wind blew in from the ocean. Getting into the protection of the trails felt good. My strides were getting shorter by the minute. Michele was going strong, but kept me company. Thanks, Michele.

Photo: Karen Smith cheering on the Fat Asses

After crossing 16th Ave, we began to see the faster runner on the return leg. A welcome distraction and the first sign that the finish was in reach. Boy, do I love that slight downhill on the trail parallel to Marine Drive just before hitting the turnaround, or in our case the finish. Pat and Gottfried welcomed us and supplied hot beverages. I would have liked to hang out longer to see the few runners that were behind us, Sharon, Rhonda and Danelle and her friend, but we realized that we needed to get out of our wet clothes quick and took Owen and Joyce up on their offer of a ride back to the start.

As always, despite the adverse weather we seem to have every New Years Day, it was a great way to start the New Year.

Of Fabric Softeners and Plastic Bottles

2007-06-12T14:20:00.000-07:00

I am a sucker when it comes to nice smelling fresh laundered clothes. It's like comfort food for me. Maybe it brings back childhood memories or it makes up for the years travelling or using washing machines that left the laundry gray and murky looking and smelling. Several years ago I was able to buy a second hand Asco frontloader and there is joy in doing laundry again (just kidding).

While always limiting the use of chemicals in my life, I find it hard to say no to the fabric softener. The other day I needed more fabric softener and realized that the store where I buy most of my household items and dry groceries, did only sell softener in big plastic bottles. I was looking for those refill packages that make a mess, but use less packaging. No such luck. I almost walked away without the product...but as I said, I am a sucker for that nice smell. Ok, I thought maybe I can do without the smell, but who likes stiff, hard laundry? I settled on a product without perfumes...laundry is soft, but no fragrance.

Did I really need to research to find that fabric softeners contain chemicals that can be toxic to humans...no. For those reasons I have never dyed my hair, bleached my teeth or used pesticides in the garden...but duh, I am a sucker for that smell. I found an article on the Grinning Planet outlining the dangers and alternatives.

I will slowly cut down on my softener and will not buy a new bottle (funny, all I wanted to begin with was not buying yet another plastic bottle). Have to try adding vinegar to the rinse cycle. Vinegar is not necessarily my favourite perfume. Over the summer I will also hang my laundry outside more frequently to conserve energy on the drying.

Any hints and tip on how you deal with your laundry without damaging our environment or health are appreciated.

Out Of Balance

2007-06-10T14:17:00.000-07:00

I've always felt compelled to wag my finger at the person tossing garbage out of a driving car, idling their SUV while sitting in a parking lot, driving around the block to drop the kids of at school and doing other stupid things that would harm nature and my enjoyment of it.

Unfortunately, my personal pet peeve is not so personal anymore. Our globe is at risk. The earth is warming, species are becoming extinct, habitat is lost, humans are getting sick. I believe, we can change. I believe it is possible to change the direction we are heading. All of us are in this together, but rather than wait for our governments to implement change toward sustainability (and believe me, as soon as it hits the pocket book, change will come) we can start changing small habits of ours... think before hopping in the car, using pesticides on your roses or heating the house with the windows wide open. Small changes by each of us can have a huge impact.

Chocolate Poppy Seed Bars

2007-05-16T08:25:00.001-07:00

Ingredients:
Dough:

300g whole wheat flour
150g sugar
200g unsaltedbutter
1/4 tsp baking powder

Poppy Seed Filling:

250g butter or unsalted margerine
200g sugar
vanille extract
5 eggs
400g yoghurt
200g whole wheat flour
3 tblsp baking powder
200g poppy see

Chocolade Icing

30ml milk
200g dark chocolate (melted)

Mix dough ingredients and press into the bottom of a high baking tray. Mix everything for the poppy seed filling and spread onto dough. Bake at 200C (180C convection) for 20min. Gently and evenly pour 30ml of milk on the hot pie. Spread chocolate over pie and let cool. Best to bake a day or two ahead.
(note: the original recipe calls for 300cc cream to be poured over cake and 300g sugar and 400g sour cream in the filling - turns out way too heavy, fatty, sweet and soggy)

The Story Of the Stolen Bike

2007-03-25T08:29:00.000-07:00

The Story Of the Stolen Bike, originally uploaded by Turtlepace.

You may remember that a few weeks ago I found my stolen Norco Hybrid bike in the ditch off Capilano Road. It was quite battered and needed some love, but the frame, crank, pedals etc seemed still ok. I had already replaced the bike with a used Norco Mountain bike and offered the bike to whoever could use the frame.
The response was overwhelming. Not only did my bike find a new owner, we also got a very kind offer from Dave the bike guy at DeD Metal Cycle Repair : “Hi, Saw your add was wondering if you would like me to fix the bike for you? At least that way whoever gets it will have a decent running bike just thought I would throw a little good karma back into the situation…I would be willing to do the labor for free the cost of the parts however would have to be picked up by yourself or the lucky person that gets it. Cheers, Dave”
Sounds like the new owner is taking Dave up on his kind offer.
A nice ending to this story.

Bad Boys, Bad Boys!

2007-03-11T08:37:00.000-07:00

Bad Boys, Bad Boys!, originally uploaded by Turtlepace.

I’ve always had a special relationship to the bikes I owned over the years. My first memory of riding a bike is my dad holding on to my hand-me-down bike just after he had removed the training wheels. I was scared and screamed “Don’t let go!” and then realized that he already had and I was just fine. Flash forward to my first full size bike, a brand new shiny purple bike with three gears. Was I ever proud of my bike…Nobody was allowed to touch it. My little sister decided that she wanted to test drive it anyway. She crashed my bike into a parked car and bend the fork. My parents tried to cover up and the bike was repaired without my knowledge…Of course, the new fork colour didn’t match and I found out anyway. The mismatched colour always made me sad.

I owned that bike until I decided to cycle the Panamerican Highway from Mexico to Argentina and purchase a cheap 18 gear Specialized mountain bike. That bike was my home for 19month. I learned how to fix tires, brakes, gears, chains and derailers. After settling in Canada it became my commuter bike, but its heydays were over. I still feel I was disloyal to my travel buddy, but I didn’t have room for two bikes….

The replacement was a Norco Hybrid all tricked out for commuting in the city. It was stolen together with half our wordly belongings in the great heist of 1997. Another replacement, a Norco hybrid. It wasn’t a flashy bike, but it was sturdy, survived some trails, but mostly I used it to haul the kids in a trailer, haul the kids in a bike seat and haul groceries and library book. It was perfectly fine for my everyday commuter needs.

Alas, my trusty (not rusty) Norco hybrid bike was stolen in the fall of last year. I kept looking for it when running on the trails or walking in the neighborhood. Eventually, I replaced it with another Norco, a used mountain bike. My “old” Norco was in perfect condition, tricked out with fenders (we are living on the Wet Coast afterall), a bell, lights, a rack (to attach bags for my groceries) a bottle holder, a rearview mirror and a kick stand. My bike was my transportation!

Yesterday, Ean drove up Capilano Road noticing a green bike in the bushes. He couldn’t stop, but called me to check it out. Sure enough…it was my bike. Wrecked and stripped bare. Brakes are gone, fenders half gone, rack gone, bottle holder gone, kick stand gone, mirror gone. Spokes wrecked, tires/rims replaced and wrecked….a total write off (but for the little light clip that I can salvage and use on my new bike).

I guess the positive fall out from this story is that when I was checking out the abandonded bike off Cap Road, a man approached my and asked if I was ok. He had driven by and thought I had a tumble. I told him the story and he offered to help me get my bike home in his pick-up. I declined as I knew I would be able to get the bike into the trunk of our Subaru Forester. When loading the bike I was approached by a second guy, inquiring if I was ok and helping me getting the bike into the back. Thanks to all the nice folks on this earth! Thumbs down to thiefing, stealing, vandalizing scum.

The bike is of no use to me as it is no longer functional, however, I suspect that the frame could be salvaged and used to put a new bike together. It’s a 19″ Norco Arctic Hybrid frame, as far as I can tell the derailer, pedals/crank, chain are still ok. If any of you is into rebuilding bikes and could use a frame (and some tangled components) let me know and it’s yours.

Almost There

2007-02-05T08:38:00.000-08:00

Almost There, originally uploaded by Turtlepace.

We were all quite tired, but walking along the rim towards Elfin Cabin stimulated all our senses. The sky was endless and changed colours every minute. The sun was still illuminating the surrounding peaks from golden to orange to pink to purple.

Abandoned Cross Atlantic Bridge

2007-01-26T08:39:00.000-08:00

Abandoned Cross-Atlantic Bridge, originally uploaded by Bemep.

Gotta love it!

Stolen Truck

2007-01-20T08:40:00.000-08:00

Stolen Truck, originally uploaded by Turtlepace.

This just in from my friend Gary in Squamish:

Hi everyone,

Not all of you know Adam Protter, but I am passing this along just in case any of you see his truck.

His daughter is severely handicapped and the equipment she needs to be able to ride in a vehicle was in that truck.
Read below for more info and to see a picture.

Maybe people with blogs and websites could help pass this along as well?

Thanks,
GR

Hello
Someone stole our truck tonight. Out of our driveway while we were eating dinner. No kidding!
The real problem is that Mary’s Van was at Barney’s for a repair, so Morgan’s Easy-On Vest, her ONLY car harness, was in the truck and stolen with it, along with my�aluminum wheelchair ramp.
Morgan is grounded. She cannot travel unless it’s by cab. She’s a prisoner.
We are a minimum of 4 months away from a wheelchair van, and only if funding is approved. It took a year and a half for Transport Canada to Approve her Easy-On Vest/Harness and 4 months for it to be custom made in Florida and shipped here.
No school bus will take her to school, so she doesn’t go unless we cab it, 11 KM each way.
Talk about a mobility issue.
Spread the word. If you see it, in a ditch, a field or lane, call the police! Please!
Thank you
Adam

River Thieves

2007-01-18T08:48:00.000-08:00

Just finished “River Thieves” by Micheal Crummey, an unsettling, hopeless story set in the Newfoundland of the early 1800’s. Here is a review from the Guardian:

Saturday October 12, 2002
The Guardian

River Thieves
by Michael Crummey
371pp, Canongate, £10.99

This is a novel with a vast epic sweep, a tale of racial conflict set against the harsh and beautiful backdrop of Newfoundland in the early 19th century. John Peyton and his ageing father set their traps and fishing lines in a country whose native inhabitants, the Beothuk, have been driven to the verge of extinction by the activities both of the European settlers and the neighbouring Mi’kmaq tribe. The narrative centres on one incident, the murder of two Beothuk men by a raiding party which includes the two Peytons.

It’s an unsettling tale, not least because of its author’s admirable refusal either to moralise or to simplify. There’s a telling ambiguity in the very title: are the “river thieves” the raiding Beothuk - the embattled warriors who steal traps, destroy salmon nets and at one point plunder the Peytons’ loaded boat - or the usurping settlers, pillaging native dwellings and burial sites as they move clumsily through a land they can never honestly call their own?

One of the settlers, Reilly, has in fact been transported to Newfoundland after a misspent early life as a river thief on the Thames, and it’s through this shadowy but important figure that Crummey most fruitfully explores the complex patterns of possession and dispossession that run through the novel as a whole.

Doubly displaced as an Irish Londoner exiled from England, Reilly is in some respects the counterpart of the frightened and bewildered Beothuk girl whom Peyton remembers being exhibited on a tavern table during his own childhood in England. Yet at the same time he is, of all the settlers, the one most truly at home in the wilderness: married to a Mi’kmaq woman and on reasonable terms with his Beothuk neighbours, he seems to hint at the possibility of some more humane and accommodating existence. But then - and it’s in such twists that the novel’s unsentimental realism is most strikingly apparent - he is crucially, if not entirely culpably, implicated in the murder.

Woven in with this bleak account of displacement and genocide is another, more intimate story involving Cassie, initially taken on by the elder Peyton as his son’s tutor and now housekeeper to the two men. Shy, inexperienced and hampered by the belief that Cassie may actually be his father’s lover, Peyton struggles variously to suppress and to articulate his own slow-burning passion for her. But Cassie’s reasons for staying in the house are darker and more complicated than he can possibly guess, and this strand of the narrative offers only the chilliest of resolutions.

Crummey has a sharp eye for detail and an often breathtaking lucidity of expression, and much of the novel’s power derives from his skilful delineation of his chosen territory. Snowflakes shining like flint-sparks as they drift through the firelight, the play of shadows on the wall of a makeshift tent, the pressure of icy water against a swan-skin cuff as Peyton works wildly to free a man dragged beneath broken ice - such details bring us sharply into contact with a land which the law-enforcer and map-maker Buchan disturbingly conceives of as “devoid of any suggestion of design”.

Crummey’s attention to detail isn’t invariably rewarding: occasionally the narrative flow is clogged by inert catalogues and tediously precise statistics. But the overriding impression from this novel is of a remarkably gifted writer working with passion and imagination as he recreates the interplay of vanished human lives in a spectacularly inhuman environment.

The Kite Runner

2007-01-18T08:47:00.000-08:00

Our new pick for this month is “The Kite Runner” by Khaled Hosseini. His website is at: http://www.khaledhosseini.com/

I’ve only just started but am already enmeshed in the intricacies of the relationships that are portrait.

Isabel Allende writes:

“A wonderful work… This is one of those unforgettable stories that stay with you for years. All the great themes of literature and of life are the fabric of this extraordinary novel: love, honor, guilt, fear redemption…It is so powerful that for a long time everything I read after seemed bland.”

The Kite Runner

2007-01-18T01:48:00.001-08:00

Our new pick for this month is "The Kite Runner" by Khaled Hosseini. His website is at: http://www.khaledhosseini.com/

I've only just started but am already enmeshed in the intricacies of the relationships that are portrait.

Isabel Allende writes:

"A wonderful work... This is one of those unforgettable stories that stay with you for years. All the great themes of literature and of life are the fabric of this extraordinary novel: love, honor, guilt, fear redemption...It is so powerful that for a long time everything I read after seemed bland."

Dusk Over Vancouver

2007-01-17T08:50:00.000-08:00

Dusk over Vancouver, originally uploaded by Turtlepace.

Copycats

2007-01-17T08:49:00.000-08:00

http://www.bubbleshare.com

Are they trying to copy Flickr? Tough luck!

Mama's Fries

2007-01-17T01:52:00.001-08:00

Here are healthy fries that don't put money into the pockets of fast food chains. They are easy to make but take a bit of time.

For two small baking trays and to feed a family of four use about 10 large potatoes. Peel the potatoes. Slice them into wedges. The wedges should be able to sit on the tray without falling over. Spray the wedges with vegetable oil. Sprinkle with salt and curry powder (or other spices to taste). Bake at 175C for 90min or until browned and crispy.

Links - Library Elf

2007-01-16T01:55:00.001-08:00

http://www.libraryelf.com/Default.aspx
Cool site to track your library books and manage all your library loans (on different cards) and hold. No more late fees.

Consuming Less

2007-01-15T01:58:00.001-08:00

After spending half the day trying to clean-up my kids playroom and having read the article about "compact" - people who vow to not buy anything new (excluding underwear and food) for a whole year - in the Globe and Mail on Saturday I have to admit I am ready to further travel down that road. Not that I haven't taken the turn in the road already (just haven't cleaned up the playroom in a long time and left it up to the kids - mistake).

I am not your typical consumer. I frequent two big box stores out of necessity (food and underwear) and buy my produce at a small neighborhood store. I don't regularly go to a mall or any other stores for that matter. Fashion and fads blissfully pass by me. Frankly, I don't care my dear! We more often than not buy second hand electronics, garden tools and clothes (I have been very fortunate that mother and mother in law dress both me and my husband (we are happiest in fleece and t shirts that we wear to death) and supply hand me downs for the kids from the cousins). We've never owned a new car. We are craigslist afficionados and always post stuff we have grown out off for sale on craigslist.

Yet, there is still too much stuff in the house. Time to clean...once I finish with the playroom of course!

No Traffic on Burrard Street

2007-01-07T16:51:00.000-08:00

No Traffic on Burrard Street

Originally uploaded by ClubFatAss.

Ever seen Burrard Street that lonely? Try getting up early on New Years Day and run the Vancouver New Years Day Fat Ass 50…

Melting the Chocolate

2006-12-31T16:57:00.000-08:00

Melting The Chocolate

Originally uploaded by Turtlepace.

Our traditional New Years Eve snowshoe hike on Mount Seymour. this time we came prepared with chocolate and fruits and all the camping gear to make a chocolate fondue. Great friends, great food, perfect weather!

Winter Wonder World

2006-12-09T17:19:00.000-08:00

Winter Wonder World, originally uploaded by Turtlepace.

Magical snow world on Dam Mountain. Magical snowshoe hike with Pat and Michele. We live in a wonderful world!

Zwiebelkuchen

2006-12-09T17:18:00.000-08:00

2006-12-06 Zwiebelkuchen 002, originally uploaded by Turtlepace.

This is a recipe from the area where I grew up in the area between the Black Forest in Germany and the Alsace region in France.

Ingredients:

dry yeast
a pinch of sugar
250ml warm milk
500g flour (I use whole wheat)
1 pinch salt
80g margarine or butter

Filling:

200g Creamcheese
2 Tblsp breadcrumbs
200g bacon
4 Tblsp oil
1000g onions
salt pepper and caraway seeds

Glaze:

3 eggs
400g sour cream
150g shredded cheese
1 Tblsp minced parsley
pepper and salt

Dice the onions and the bacon and sautee (do not brown) until well cooked (about 30min). Season with salt, pepper and carraway seeds. Set aside to cool.

Prepare a yeast dough and (after rising) press into a large baking pan (with high sides). Spread cream cheese onto dough, sprinkle breadcrumbs on top and with onion mixure. In a bowl mix glaze ingredients and spread over onions. Bake at 200C for 40min.

Serve warm with new white wine.

Kartoffelpuffer

2006-11-14T17:25:00.001-08:00

2006-11-12 Kartoffelpuffer 001, originally uploaded by Turtlepace.

An old standby from my mom, Kartoffelpuffer (Latkes). I believe my mom cheated, she made them from a mix in a box. My kids like them, but I rarely made them as I don't have time to grate a kilo of potatoes and I hate anything made from mixes.

Well, I finally (after looking on the Buy and Sell and more recently on Craigslist for about 3 years!) found a used Cuisinart food processor complete with slicing and grating discs. I have used the wonder machine everyday since. Yesterday, to the joy of my children, I grated/shredded potatoes for latkes. Served with apple sauce they were a big hit.

Ingredients:

1kg potatoes, peeled and grated
2 eggs
1/3 cup of flour
tsp salt

Mix ingredients. Place about two tablespoon fulls of the mixture in a frying pan with hot oil. Pat flat. You can fry several latkes at the smae time if you are using a large pan. Fry on medium to high heat until edges are crispy, then turn latkes over and fry the other side. Place on paper towel when done to drain oil. Keep warm on a plate in oven until all latkes are ready. Serve with apple sauce.

Post Jack O'Lantern Pumpkin Baking

2006-11-14T17:05:00.000-08:00

Post Jack O'Lantern Pumpkin Baking, originally uploaded by Turtlepace.

Every Year, I fret about throwing the Jack O'Lanterns we carved for Halloween out into the compost. Last year, I laboured for hours, peeling pumpkins and making first pumpkin puree, than soup and pie.
This year, I was told that nobody in my familiy really likes pumpkin soup (and the pie was a disaster anyway). I had resigned to dispose of the pumpkins in the compost, only to find a recipe for muffins at the gym yesterday. They turned out great. Encouraged by the success I looked up a recipe for a pumkin loaf. It just came out of the oven. Not sure yet what the verdict of the testers will be...

Of Thieves and other Lowlifes

2006-11-06T17:31:00.000-08:00

My bike got stolen. My trusted Norco commuter bike, complete with rear view mirror, fenders, bell, bottle holder, rear rack (for my panniers, which by sheer coincident for the first time in years were not on my bike), kick stand, attachment for a lamp and my helmet disappeared from my children's school yard.

My stupid fault for leaving - or rather forgetting - it there. Unlocked, left overnight...who wouldn't feel invited to take it for a spin? Oh, wait! This was not a fancy, expensive new bike unattended in a crummy neighborhood. We are talking about a 10 year old, dark green ladies bike that served as my transportation for buying groceries and getting the library books home left in supposedly one of the best neighborhoods (the Elementary School ranks as one of the best in the country) in Vancouver. Which leaves me to think that whoever took my bike did not need it. No more than they needed my nerdy helmet that I found the next morning smashed into a million little pieces.

No, whoever took my bike took it for the sheer thrill of it, maybe went on a joy ride and then tossed it into the bushes. Or worse, as happened to my little boys bike a few years back, vandalized it for the sheer thrill of destruction. Alas, I have not found any trace of my bike, despite constantly being on the lookout and having searched in all the local parks.

Now, this bike was a replacement for one stolen 10 years ago, when our apartment in Kitsilano was burglarized. I have gotten somewhat used (if you can call it that) to loosing property through theft. The police calls it minor property crime and it taught me not to get too attached to my material things.

What bugs me is not so much that my bike is gone...what bugs me is that there are people - probably young ones - out there who see a bike in the courtyard of a school and feel invited to take it. Apologies to all the honest, upstanding young citizens that I am sure must be out there somewhere. Just haven't noticed you lately.

The same night my bike was taken from the school, the school experienced - once again - vandalism. It's been about a month that my bike disappeared. A month of several incidents of vandalism and most recently, two accounts of arson. The week before Halloween the staff room at school got torched and Halloween night a store in the neighboring "village" was gutted by a fire. In both incidences it was sheer luck that the fires were relatively contained.

I finally found a second hand bike at a reasonable price to replace my commuter bike. It's a newer model mountain bike and came with a bottle holder and rear rack. I still need to replace the helmet, bell, rear view mirror (I am so used to navigate traffic with it) and kick stand (a must for parking my bike when the pannier are full).

What's the morale of the story? Is there one? Don't leave your stuff unattended (statistically, it's going to happen again - I am using my bike a lot, never forgot it anywhere and the one time I did it disappeared). I do feel the urge to find the people who are vandalizing our neighborhood, so do my neighbors. Eventually, they will get caught and the crimes will catch up to them...or so we all hope!

Beyond The Horizon - Expedition Canada

2006-10-26T11:03:00.001-07:00

For the last two years I have been following the adventures of Colin Angus, Tim Harvey and Julie Wafaei who set out to circumnavigate the earth using human power. Last night, I attended their presentations at the Denman Theatre downtown. If you don’t have any plans for tonight yet, I highly recommend you attend their last engagement in Vancouver (then they are crossing Canada to present in different cities). You can find more info on their website at: http://www.expeditioncanada.com/index.html

The following is a brief excerpt from their site:

“On May 20th 2006, after 720 days, Colin Angus and Julie Wafaei completed Expedition Canada - the first human powered circumnavigation of our planet. Colin traveled 43,000 km by rowboat, bicycle, canoe, ski, and foot - a journey that voyaged across 3 continents, 2 oceans and 17 countries. Julie traveled with him for most of the expedition, including rowing 10,000 km unsupported across the Atlantic Ocean, making her the first woman to row across the Atlantic from mainland to mainland and the first Canadian woman to row across any ocean.

The team used zero-emissions travel to highlight issues with global warming and to inspire others to use non-motorized transportation.

Colin and Julie are currently traveling across Canada in speaking tour and film premiere. Colin’s book, Beyond the Horizon, will be released in March 2007 (for those of you that can’t wait he has two other books on previous adventures). An adventurer’s resource centre divulging hard-to-find information (cold weather travel, ocean rowing, etc.) and on-line store offering expedition films and books will soon be available on this website.”

Inspiration

2006-10-13T11:05:00.000-07:00

I haven’t written in a while and don’t have much to report without going into whining about a nasty bout of bronchitis turned asthma that put a damper on my running since February. But before you feel pity for me, I thought I share a story with you that circulated on the Ontario Ultra Group today. Make sure you watch the video (link at the end of the story)

[From Sports Illustrated, By Rick Reilly]

I try to be a good father. Give my kids mulligans. Work nights to pay for their text messaging. Take them to swimsuit shoots. But compared with Dick Hoyt, I suck.

Eighty-five times he’s pushed his disabled son, Rick, 26.2 miles in marathons. Eight times he’s not only pushed him 26.2 miles in a wheelchair but also towed him 2.4 miles in a dinghy while swimming and pedaled him 112 miles in a seat on the handlebars–all in the same day.
Dick has also pulled him cross-country skiing, taken him on his back mountain climbing and once hauled him across the U.S. on a bike. Makes taking your son bowling look a little lame, right?

And what has Rick done for his father? Not much–except save his life.

This love story began in Winchester, Mass., 43 years ago, when Rick was strangled by the umbilical cord during birth, leaving him brain-damaged and unable to control his limbs.

“He’ll be a vegetable the rest of his life;” Dick says doctors told him and his wife, Judy, when Rick was nine months old. “Put him in an institution.”

But the Hoyt’s weren’t buying it. They noticed the way Rick’s eyes followed them around the room. When Rick was 11 they took him to the engineering department at Tufts University and asked if there was anything to help the boy communicate. “No way,” Dick says he was told. “There’s nothing going on in his brain.”

“Tell him a joke,” Dick countered. They did. Rick laughed. Turns out a lot was going on in his brain. Rigged up with a computer that allowed him to control the cursor by touching a switch with the side of his head, Rick was finally able to communicate. First words? “Go Bruins!” And after a high school classmate was paralyzed in an accident and the school organized a charity run for him, Rick pecked out, “Dad, I want to do that.” Yeah, right. How was Dick, a self- described “porker” who never ran more than a mile at a time, going to push his son five miles? Still, he tried. “Then it was me who was handicapped,” Dick says. “I was sore for two
weeks.”

That day changed Rick’s life. “Dad,” he typed, “when we were running, it felt like I wasn’t disabled anymore!” And that sentence changed Dick’s life. He became obsessed with giving
Rick that feeling as often as he could. He got into such hard-belly shape that he and Rick were ready to try the 1979 Boston Marathon. “No way,” Dick was told by a race official. The Hoyts weren’t quite a single runner, and they weren’t quite a wheelchair competitor. For a few years Dick and Rick just joined the massive field and ran anyway, then they found a way to get into the race officially: In 1983 they ran another marathon so fast they made the qualifying time for Boston the following year. Then somebody said, “Hey, Dick, why not a triathlon?” How’s a guy who never learned to swim and hadn’t ridden a bike since he was six going to haul his 110-pound kid through a triathlon? Still, Dick tried. Now they’ve done 212 triathlons, including four grueling 15-hour Ironmans in Hawaii. It must be a buzz kill to be a 25-year-old stud
getting passed by an old guy towing a grown man in a dinghy, don’t you think?

Hey, Dick, why not see how you’d do on your own? “No way,” he says. Dick does it purely for “the awesome feeling” he gets seeing Rick with a cantaloupe smile as they run, swim and ride together.

to be held by a guy who was not pushing another man in a wheelchair at This year, at ages 65 and 43, Dick and Rick finished their 24th Boston Marathon, in 5,083rd place out of more than 20,000 starters. Their best time’? Two hours, 40 minutes in 1992–only 35 minutes off the world record, which, in case you don’t keep track of these things, happens the time.
“No question about it,” Rick types. “My dad is the Father of the Century.” And Dick got something else out of all this too. Two years ago he had a mild heart attack during a race. Doctors found that one of his arteries was 95% clogged. “If you hadn’t been in such great shape,” one doctor told him, “you probably would’ve died 15 years ago.”

So, in a way, Dick and Rick saved each other’s life. Rick, who has his own apartment (he gets home care) and works in Boston, and Dick, retired from the military and living in Holland, Mass., always find ways to be together. They give speeches around the country and compete in some backbreaking race every weekend, including this Father’s Day. That night, Rick will buy his dad dinner, but the thing he really wants to give him is a gift he can never buy.

“The thing I’d most like,” Rick types, “is that my dad sit in the chair and I push him once.”
Here’s the video…. PLEASE watch it… http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ryCTIigaloQ

Harrison Lake Camping Trip

2006-10-10T11:08:00.000-07:00

2006-10-09 Harrison Lake Camping Trip 099, originally uploaded by Turtlepace.

Can anybody tell me why anybody would travel to a beautiful wilderness area and leave their trash on the beach, in the water and in the woods? Are humans in general disrespectful of nature. Why do people who disrespect nature seem to have the urge to come to a beautiful wilderness spot. Why not add some trash to the pile under Burrard Street Bridge (not that I think people should litter there either!).

During our recent trip to a wilderness campsite on Harrison Lake we collected countless beer and pop cans and bottles, oil cans, plastic packaging and other junk left behind by people who probably drove in with a much bigger car than we used to haul the stuff out.

We like to go wilderness camping. Because of the age of our children we have been restricted to “close to the car camping”. Which means we are frequenting unmaintained, unsupervised sites accessible by car. I guess, yahoos who leave their junk pick the same kind of spots not because of their remoteness, beauty and serenity, but because there is nobody supervising their actions. They can let it all hang out, be rude to nature and other campers, be loud and obnoxious, be unaccountable, be irresponsible.

We are looking forward to resume our hiking/kayaking/cycling camping routine as our children are growing bigger and strong enough to carry their packs. In the meantime, we visit these “party” spots during the week, off season and always come prepared with ample supplies of garbage bags, a rake and work gloves.

Black Tusk

2006-08-27T11:14:00.000-07:00

2006-08-27 Garibaldi Lake Hike 021, originally uploaded by Turtlepace.

Ever since abandoning a hike up from Cheakamus Lake to Helm Creek BC (before children) for reasons I no longer remember, I have wanted to hike in Garibaldi Provincial Park. On the last weekend in August I got a “Out of Jail Free Pass” and the weather and friends schedules lined up perfectly to attempt an overnight hike. In fact, this would be the first overnight hike for me in a number of years.
My suggestion to hike to Garibaldi Lake was accepted by my partners in crime, Pat and Michele. Nobody objected when I favoured the Helm Creek approach over the much shorter climb up Rubble Creek. I had read that the Rubble Creek ascent was one of the most popular hikes in southern BC and attracted hordes of hikers on weekends. That was enough for me to push for the 18km hike from Cheakamus Lake. 18km didn’t sound to bad. After all, we run this routinely (well maybe less routinely this past summer) before breakfast. Little did I remember that carrying your overnight gear puts a damper on your speed and endurance, especially, when I (not my husband) was the one carrying the tent and other heavy gear.

I volunteered to organize the food for everybody, to avoid doubling up. Well, we did end up doubling up a bit, I guess neither Michele and Pat wanted to get stuck without chocolate and I didn’t want to be the one to blame for not bringing enough nourishments. Needless to say, that we carried way to many supplies.

The morning dawned clear and mild and the weekend promised to be all sunshine. We left Vancouver shortly after 6:00am. Pat volunteered to drive the Sea to Sky Highway and the 9km of gravel road to the trailhead.

It took us a while to get our ducks in a row, food distributed, bug spray and sun tan lotion applied, shoes tied and retied, outhouse break… but finally we were off on the well groomed trail that meandered to the first junction before heading steeply down to the Cheakamus River. Pat had a rough time with her pack. She had never carried an overnight pack before and to make matters worse, the pack she had lent from a friend was a large frame. Pat is petite. We stopped a few times to adjust her pack, but Pat continued to be in pain and uncomfortable. Not that Michele and me were comfortable. I had not carried a big pack in years and even back then, my husband carried the tent and other heavy stuff.

After crossing the Cheakamus River on a nice bridge (there used to be a rickety cable car) the trail started to ascend. The grade was not very steep and I kept hoping it would remain that way. Progress was slow. We waited for Pat who took it one step at a time and stopped frequently to eat and drink.

I was starting to get worried that we would not reach Garibaldi Lake before nightfall.

Abundant Chili Peppers

2006-08-10T21:18:00.000-07:00

Abundant Chili Peppers, originally uploaded by Turtlepace.

This years crop of chili peppers is going to be amazing. I planted about 6 plants. The "Super Chili" in the photo is the winner with lots and lots of fruit.

Zucchini Loaf

2006-08-10T21:14:00.000-07:00

250g butter or unsalted margerine

150g sugar (original recipe calls for 350g)

a few drops vanilla extract or vanilla sugar

3 eggs

1 small level tsp salt

1.5 tsp cinnamon

50g ground nuts (almonds or hazelnuts)

320-350g shredded zucchini

500g whole wheat flour

2 tsp baking powder

Mix everything well with electric mixer. Fill into 2 small loaf pans. Bake at 175C for 1 hour (165C for 45min in convection oven) Cool down in loaf pan.

Schwabenbroetle

2006-07-10T17:13:00.001-07:00

Schwabenbroetchen, originally uploaded by Turtlepace.

These are cookies that my grandmother, Tinsel Oma, and then my mom used to bake. They are my favorite Christmas cookies.

The recipe I have in my binder is a photocopy of Oma Tinsel's handwritten original. Here is the recipe (in German)

3/4 Pfund Mehl
1/2 Pfund Butter
1/2 Pfund Zucker
1/2 Pfund ungeschaelte, geriebene Mandeln
1 Ei
etwas Zitronenschale
20g Zimt

Diese Zutaten arbeitet man auf dem ....brett zusammen, stellt den Teig kurz kalt, wellt ihn mit Mehl aus, sticht beliebige Formen aus und lasst sie ueber Nacht liegen. Den anderen Tag bestreicht man sie mit Eigelb, bestreut t sie mit feingewiegtem Mandeln und Hagelzucker und backt sie in nicht zu heissen Ofen

165C (Convection) - 12 min

2006-06-14 Making Pancakes 006

2006-06-16T01:15:00.001-07:00

2006-06-14 Making Pancakes 006, originally uploaded by Turtlepace.

2006-06-14 Making Pancakes 008

2006-06-16T01:15:00.000-07:00

2006-06-14 Making Pancakes 008, originally uploaded by Turtlepace.

Clematis in the rain

2006-06-14T04:47:00.000-07:00

2006-06-13 On our porch 011, originally uploaded by Turtlepace.

Funny weather. It's been extremely muggy and hot. We even had a few thunder storms, which are rare in Vancouver. This shot was taken this morning on our porch when an almost tropical rain fell.

Mexican Corn Muffins

2006-06-12T21:51:00.000-07:00

Mexican Corn Muffins, originally uploaded by Turtlepace.

Ingredients:

140g cornmeal

120g wholewheat flour

1 Tblsp. baking powder

1 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp sugar

1 medium onion, diced

1/2 tsp hot chili powder

1/2 green pepper diced

2 eggs

250ml buttermilk (or yoghurt)

125ml vegetable oil

200g shredded cheese

1 can corn

Mix flour, cornmeal, baking powder, baking soda, salt and sugar. In blender pulse together onion, pepper, chili powder, eggs and buttermilk. Add to dry ingredients. add oil, cheese and corn. Mix well but not too long.
Bake at 210C for 18min. Yields 12-18 muffins.

Easy Pumpkin Muffins

2006-06-11T17:03:00.000-07:00

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup sugar
6 tbsp wheat germ
4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup dried cranberries
2 cups pumkin puree
2 eggs
1/2 cup orange juice
2 tsp pumkin pie spice
vanilla
4 tbsp chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 180C (165C convection). Combine all ingredients (except of walnuts) and mix until combined. Spoon the batter into lined muffin tins, sprinkle with walnuts. Bake for 25 - 30 min, until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Remove from the pan, serve warm or cold.

Sour Dough Bread

2006-06-01T21:35:00.000-07:00

Sour Dough Bread, originally uploaded by Turtlepace.

Ingredients:
- 3/4 cup sour dough starter
- 6 cups whole wheat flour
- 1tblsp salt
- 1 tblsp yeast
- warm water to make a soft, non-sticky dough

Mix ingredients and let rise in warm location until the dough has doubled in volume. Knead dough and form 2 small oval loafs or one large one. Place on greased baking sheet and let rise again. Bake at 200C (400F) for 50 minutes. In convection oven bake at 165C for 40 minutes.

May - Progress Report

2006-06-01T01:51:00.000-07:00

Despite worsened asthma symptoms and a long recovery from a cold virus, I have been positive about training and running this month. Given that I lost all the endurance I had built up earlier in the year, I focused on getting back on track and running shorter distances.

The weekend long runs are down to about 1:30h to 2h's of slow hike/runs. Earlier in the month, I would find myself exhausted after these runs, but my energy seems to be slowly coming back. During the week, I have been getting up early, to get a 30-40 min run or gym workout in before the daily routine. This is working well and I am hoping to keep it up over the summer. Being a long time insomniac, it is actually nice to stop the tossing and do something productive.

Tomorrow, I will get my asthma assessed. Big deal, because I don't like to take any medication. It is almost as if taking regular meds for this is an acknowledgement that I have asthma. Still hoping that my symptoms settle down once the spring pollen season is over. One thing is certain, I won't be winning the New Year's Resolution contest ;-)

Lions Gate Bridge stretching over Burrard Inlet

2006-05-31T19:30:00.000-07:00

Lions Gate Bridge stretching over Burrard Inlet, originally uploaded by Turtlepace.

German Vollkornbrot

2006-05-31T19:20:00.000-07:00

Ingredients:

- 500g whole wheat flour
- 500g oats
- 200g seeds (ground flax, sesame, pumpkin, sunflower, millet, amaranth etc)
- 1 tblsp salt
- 3 tblsp yeast
- 1000ml warm water
(you can experiment with different flour and seeds, the dough should be soft and sticky for baking in loaf pans. If you like to make oval loafs, add more flour to make the dough smooth and non-stick)

Mix everything with the dough hooks on your electric mixer. Let rise for 1h. Spoon into 3 small loaf pans. Bake in preheated oven at 200C (400F) for 50min or in convection oven at 175C for 45min. Let cool slightly then remove from loaf pan and let cool on wire rack. Can be frozen.

Marathon Shuffle

2006-05-01T17:09:00.000-07:00

Here is one for next year!

Some of you might remember the "city boys" tackling the 180km Sunshine Coast Trail back in 2003 (the trail won) and again in 2004. I heard all the tales, saw all the photos, film trailers and met some of the Powell River crew. I have, however, not been beyond the second ferry on the Sunshine Coast in years.

This past weekend our family schedule allowed us a trip to Powell River for the annual Marathon Shuffle on a 29km stretch of the Sunshine Coast Trail (SCT). The weather forecast looked glum with 70% chance of rain for Friday, our travel day and Saturday. I was still fighting a lingering cold virus and felt pressured not to miss another run. Details of the Shuffle were sketchy. Was it 24km, 30km or even a full marathon as the name might suggest? With all these questions in my mind and wobbly knees from the cold, I decided not to run and just take in the atmosphere with my children.

The trip north west was magnificent. A short drive brought us to Horseshoe Bay and the ferry to Gibsons on the Sunshine Coast. On windy roads, often overlooking Georgia Straight and Vancouver Island in the distance, we made our way to the second ferry in Earls Cove and then on to Eagle's house north of Powell River.

Eagle takes credit for conceiving the Sunshine Coast Trail, to connect existing trails, stands of old growth forest and to raise awareness to the threat logging poses to this amazing landscape. Eagle and his wife Laura very kindly invited us to stay at their house for the weekend. The room were we camped out was facing the ocean and had windows on three sides. I instantly felt like being on holidays and listening to the trail stories I started to consider to hike the Half-Shuffle with my children. Luckily, they were on board, exited by the prospect of being first Half Shufflers and arriving before the rest of the field (more on that later).

Thanks to Laura and Eagle we sorted out the logistics of getting to the finish to carpool, then back to the start of the Half Shuffle somewhere in the boonies up a rough forest road for the kids and myself and getting to the start for Ean.

Equipped with a guide book, food to feed an army, water, spare clothes, camera and lots ot energy (the kids) we set out on a mossy, single track trail through old and second growth forest. We were immediately mesmerized and I forgot about the worried comments and looks from other runners that realized I planned to set out by myself with two kids in tow. The path was well marked and the book's descriptions matched every turn. Frankly, there were no chances to go wrong, as we were on the only trail in the middle of a dense forest. Soon we passed Elphin Falls and Troll Bridge and I felt like Frodo during his journeys in Middle Earth. The trail meandered gaining and loosing minimal altitude. The kids were happily running ahead, respecting my rules about staying in sight and earshot. They didn't fight. I felt like wonder mom, alone in the wilderness. Approaching a Theyeth Lake we were greeted by a frog concert. We were awestruck and crouched above the water on rocks covered with thick, spongy moss to listen to the strange music. Funny enough, as soon as we moved away from the water, the croaking stopped.

Past Kayach Bluffs with beautiful views of Sliammon Lake, Kokanee Creek, Dogleg Pond and Little Sliammon Lake we venture along. My son is getting tired, or rather he claims his heel hurts. We stop for a massage and some food. We are about half way and our speed slowed down considerably. This could take a while. I started to get concerned when we didn't see trail markings for a while. We traced our steps back to an abondoned shelter and looked for any missed turns. Nothing. We continue on the unmarked trails and double check landmarks in the guide book. Looks alright.

Eventually we hit a system of forest roads, but the promised aidstation was not set up yet. Good that I carried all our supplies. All of a sudden, Erik's enery returned. A woman hikes past us, as I made a pitstop...wouldn't you know it. We didn't see a soul for 2 hours. The kids get all excited. Their goal was to be first at the finish line. They race ahead and question the hiker. Yes, she is doing the full Shuffle. I am confused. Why is a hiker first. Where is Ean and his new buddy Dennis. Did Ean's knee buckle? No time to ponder this one, though. The children are bouncing ahead, determined not to let the hiker or any one else pass again. "Come on, mom!" Now, keep in mind that I was carrying this obscenely heavy knapsack, didn't wear my runners or a running bra and was cooking in my long pants. To add insult to injury the terrain all of a sudden changed and I found myself scrambling up a never ending mountain. Scott Mountain, as I read afterwords in Eagle's book. I panicked, as the children got further and further ahead of me, disregarding my pleas to slow down. Apparently, the hiker had told them that they could continue with her...which would have been fine with me if I had known. Eventually, my frantic screaming made them stop and wait, very upset about loosing the first place. It turned out the the lady had set out early then the rest of the runners/hikes, so technically the kids still were first.I had calculated, that we would finish around the same time than the first finishers of the Full Shuffle. Sure enough, we had just started the descent from Scout Mountain into Shingle Mills, when I heard Ean whooping and hollering behind us. I told the kids to go for it and they flew down the open trail. The sun was out, the air was scented from the dry grass and pine needles and life was good. Not letting anyone finishing in front of them included their daddy ;-) I was amazed to see my son and daughter fly up the last hill and off to the finish line. Ean and Dennis hardly could keep up. To their credit I have to say that they stopped 100m short of the finish to wait for me. My legs were shaking from the lingering cold and the blistering speed those guys put forward during the last 5km. Nobody offered to take the knapsack, though.

(No) Progress Report April

2006-04-25T01:54:00.000-07:00

Not sure where my running training is going this year. At this point it seems to be going no where fast...

March I was lying low because of an recurring Achilles injury. Luckily, the rest and no running regime helped and so far the Achilles tendon is pain free.

After completing the Burnaby Mountain Run (12km) early April and fighting some motivational issues, Pat and I were back on the trails on Easter Saturday, enjoying the late season snow that greeted us in the Lower Seymour Conservation Reserve. April started looking good...until the flu bug hit hard. Missed out on the sunniest CFA run of this year last weekend. While a bunch of Fat Asses enjoyed the brilliant blue skies over Coquitlam at the Run To The Clouds (which clouds), I spent the day coughing and hacking in bed. Bummer.
Feel like any endurance is long gone by now, legs still feel rubbery from fever and doing nothing all week...we'll see how tomorrows planned run with Michelle plays out. What does not kill me only makes me stronger... Or so I hope!

Asleep and Trusting

2006-04-13T00:15:00.000-07:00

Asleep and Trusting, originally uploaded by Turtlepace.

This is one relaxed fellow. Not only does he groom and eat when in my children's hands, he also falls asleep at times. Having his head rubbed makes him all drowsy until he drifts off. During this particular session he ended up sleeping on his back. Talk about trust!

Moon Over City

2006-04-13T00:14:00.000-07:00

Moon Over City, originally uploaded by Turtlepace.

Burnaby Mountain Run

2006-04-06T22:03:00.000-07:00

Burnaby Mountain Run

Originally uploaded by ClubFatAss.

Gewuerzkuchen

2006-04-06T17:46:00.000-07:00

Gewuerzkuchen, originally uploaded by Turtlepace.

After looking on ebay, Buy and Sell and Craigslist for years, I finally found exactly the convection range I was hoping for.

I've been baking up a storm since I brought the beast home last week.

This Gewuerzkuchen is the latest creation. BTW, family loves the stove...or should I say the end results ;-)

Ingredients:
125g butter
150g sugar (original recipe calls for 350g - yikes)
320g whole wheat flour
1 tbls baking powder
125g grated dark chocolate
4 eggs
1/2 tblsp ground gloves
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp nutmeg
1 cup milk

Combine all ingedients with electric mixer. Pour into greased bundt or 2 loaf pans. Bake on 175C or 75 min (less if using 2 loaf pans) or on 200C for 60 min. In the convection oven I baked at 175C for 50min.