Half Way Through NaNoWriMo

...And I certainly am not half way through to my goal of 50,000 words. Sigh.

It's so difficult working from Google Docs, because it means I have to be online to write. And when I'm online, I get distracted with things like Repro Depot, Knit Knit, 101 Cookbooks and Hungry Nation.

Also, I can't stop thinking about 99¢ cappuccinos. I really want one. Right now. At 10:20pm.

I should be writing...

"Bake Something With Maple Syrup and Almonds!!"

I was sitting at the computer last night, in my darkened living room, glancing out the window into the dark night, and thought it must be time for bed. But no, it wasn't - it was barely 8pm.

I huffed about the ridiculously early sunsets, and then resolutely decided that I wanted to bake.... something. I didn't know what! I pulled out my book on baking and glanced at a few of the recipes.

Scones. That's what I wanted to make. Nothing too sweet, nice and flaky, and good with butter. Mm-m. Scones. I told Angelo I was making scones. Angelo isn't big on sweets, or baked goods, so he doesn't usually care what the hell I do in the kitchen, but last night, he seized the opportunity and added: "Bake something with Maple Syrup and almonds in it!!"

Eureka! Something that peaked his interest??? Well, he didn't have to ask me twice, I immediately Googled "Maple Syrup and Almond Scones" I was directed to 101 Cookbooks and this recipe.

I started with a 1/4 cup of liquid heaven...


I don't know if it's my French Canadian roots or what, but maple syrup is hands down my favourite sweetener (favourite food? perhaps) of all time. Everything about it is so good - the texture, the taste, the sweetness, the stickiness... Oh man, I love maple syrup!

"Pulse until resembles little pebbles in a beach of sandy flour"

So the recipe didn't call for any almonds, but I just substituted the oats for almonds. I added them to the fo-pro and it turned them into almond meal mixed in with the flour.



I also coated the scones with more maple syrup instead of the egg wash, because I didn't have any coarse grained sugar on hand. The scones were very tasty, not too sweet, and you could definitely feel the texture of the almond meal. They are exceptionally good warmed up with a spread of butter (aka Earth Balance).

And, as always, it was very therapeutic to get my hands dirty and use the fo-pro again...

"Is It A Scarf Or A Necklace???"

Last night I pulled out an old t-shirt that I hadn't worn in a while, and I took my scissors to 'er.

I wanted to make a t-shirt scarf/necklace like I had seen on Threadbanger and other sites. I think the originator of the project is cucumbersome and though her tutorial is no more, I was able to make my own just by looking at the pictures and reading some comments from the Instructables site.

This project was super easy, but nevertheless, it really helps to have good equipment. I just bought these scissors, and they are THE BEST.

I also bought a pretty inexpensive chalk heart, and it's made tracing and cutting SO much simpler! These two items have reduced my level of sewing-induced stress dramatically!

I cut 1" strands starting from the bottom of my t-shirt, all the way up to the armpits.


Once I was done cutting, I stretched out each individual strand and they immediately curled up on themselves. Then I cut two more lengths of t-shirt and covered the seams.


I really like the way it turned out, and it's nice and soft around my neck.



Yay. I contemplated sleeping in it last night, but decided against it. I'm wearing it now, and Angelo has also commented on it a bunch. It always helps to get boyfriend approval on things like this.

Turning the Corner

I've slowly recovered from my hard 10k from a few weeks ago. I really psyched myself out for a while, and I was scared to run for any length of time, for fear that I would get injured. My training schedule really went out the window, and along with the added exertion and lack of sleep from early morning bootcamp, I all but stopped running for a couple of weeks.

But not anymore. I'm back on the wagon. I knew I had to get over this mental hump, so last week I decided to go for a run just for fun. I didn't set a course, I didn't set a time goal, I didn't even wear my heart rate monitor. I just went out to run. And it was fun, which was a huge relief. I was probably out for about 15-20 minutes, not super long by anyone's standards, but who cares, it was good just to feel good about running.


I didn't manage another run until the Friday, and then I banged out a long one. Continuous running, too. It was great.

So now I'm back on track with the exercise. Though I do have a couple of thoughts on the upcoming change of weather:

1. I need to get my cross country skis waxed. My goal for the winter is to get out there twice a week, sometimes in lieu of a run (when the weather is really bad).

2. I need to find some running trails. I ran 28 min around my neighbourhood last night, on sidewalks, and it KILLED my calves. OUCH!!!

3. I need to reconcile with the treadmill. Just yesterday I checked out the gym at work for the first time in forever, and I was surprised to see that they bought a second treadmill, as well as a couple more pieces of new equipment. When the snow falls, I'm going to have to bite the bullet and head indoors.

Quick Halloween Recap

I wanted to give a quick recap of last night before I get all caught up in NaNoWriMo and focus all of my writing energy there...

The RVRG had a practice last night, though because it was Halloween, there weren't THAT many girls out. In fact, there were so few girls that I was a designated Jammer during our scrimmage. The only thing I have to say about that is that it was very fortuitous that Ange and I spent 45 min cleaning my Fugitives (those are wheels - fast wheels) and Reds bearings and swapped them in for my Pure's (which are outdoor wheels and much slower) right before practice. I felt very light and fast last night. Training on outdoor wheels is great, because it gives you more traction and lets you improve your skating technique, and then when you do throw on some fast wheels, you can zoom ahead with little (perceived) effort.

I got home and started on my costume. Angelo and I had decided a long time ago to go as Corey and Trevor from Trailer Park Boys. But as the day approached, I started to get pretty bummed about my costume, because I don't have the body shape required to look like a gangly skinny boy. My hips don't lie, sisters!! But Angelo was really great and helped me fix my hair into a mullet, and even bought me a bag of Chicken Flavoured Chips as a prop. In the end, our costumes looked great, and most people who knew the show recognized us right away.

Angelo's Corey was bang on. He looked SO GOOD! (P.S. Mullets are GROSS!)

The costumes in general this year were only sort of so-so. Ange and I focused more on getting drunk and talking really loud in the bar.

Photo taken by Angelo.

I had 5 beer and 4 oz of gin. Oh, and a Jager shot somewhere in there too. Phewf. We stopped for a shawarma on the way home, which was NOT a good idea. First of all, there was something weird going on when I ordered it, and the guy behind the counter INSISTED on feeding me my first bite of it (creep much?). I only ate about half of it, and once home I poured myself a nice hot chamomile tea. Then I promptly fell asleep with the thing untouched on my night table.

Nugget went as the Paper Bag Princess. High Five!

Merrill started out as a regular ol' flight attendant, but by the end of the night, she got splattered with some blood, and became a bloodied flight attendant.

This morning I was feeling a little rough, but Angelo made the best breakfast ever, which helped restore some nutrients lost from the night before.


Things to do today:

1. Walk in the woods with my dad
2. Community garden plot - we HAVE to clean it out and ready it for winter.
3. Grab the laptop and head to the local café to WRITE! First day of NaNoWriMo!!!
4. Dishes and junk.

Holy, lots of stuff to do. Thank god we gained an extra hour today!!

Writing Meme (hopefully first and last)

Memes... Meh. But on the eve of NaNoWriMo, I figured I'd let you all know what I'm thinking (or meme-ing) about with regards to my novel...

This week has been particularly melancholic (lack of sleep, lack of exercise, lack of self-reflection) and so there is a hint of ennui in these themes...

1. Coffee.
2. Trains.
3. Traveling (the journey from here to there).
4. Death (yeah, it's a thing. It's been on my mind lately - not surprising).
5. Spirit Quests.

So we can sort of see where I'm starting from... I particularly like the idea of the spirit quest. I was given a totem when I was a girl guide, and at the time I thought it was just about the most wicked awesome thing in my whole life. We got woken up in the middle of the night, taken from our tents and lead by torch to a campfire. We were then made to go through a series of "challenges" before each of our names were revealed to us. The next morning, after I had lived with my new totem for a few hours, I felt... I don't know, "chosen", "special". The idea that this name had been conjured up just for me, made me feel really terrific. I wanted to live up to my totem name, and to some extent, I still do to this day. And the fact that this name was given to me nearly 20 years ago, and I still remember it, and try to live by it, really tells you something, doesn't it?


Picture Meme:

The Rideau Canal (Sep 09). That awkward time of year after the summer boaters have left, but before the beavertail huts have been put in for Winterlude.

Taken from my back deck at 6:30am. I had just come back from Bootcamp and was feeling pretty low. This helped.

Taken on route to London, ON. October 2009.

CHEO Dream Home

I had breakfast with my mom and some friends this morning, and afterwards, we all piled into a car and drove out to Winding Way, to the development of million dollar mansions and the location of the annual CHEO Dream of A Lifetime Homes to check out this year's Grand Prize. This is something my mother ABSOLUTELY loves to do. The houses are always so beautifully decorated and the opulence is way over the top. It really is, for many people, a dream of a lifetime.
All of these photos were taken from the CHEO website. I don't think cameras were allowed in the home.


However, I'm not one of them. I always find the houses WAY TOO BIG. Each floor is like its own house, and my friend Tess and I complained that the Master Suite is much bigger than any of our university apartments ever were.

In fact, I actually wrote a letter to the CHEO Foundation in 2007, stating my concerns. Here is how it read:

CHEO Foundation
415 Smyth Road
Ottawa, ON
K1H 8M8

Thursday, December 06, 2007


To Whom It May Concern:

Firstly, I would like to sincerely congratulate you on your continued success with your Dream Home Lottery. The funds you raise for your programs and services are truly awe inspiring and your achievements are so laudable.

My mother purchases three of your tickets every year for the CHEO Dream Home draw, one for herself, one for my brother, and one for me. And every year she takes us to the home to revel in its splendor. It’s something my mother looks forward to every year.

However, I always have reservations with your Dream Homes because of their shear size, the fact that they often take two furnaces to heat, and the overall indulgence they represent in an era of hyper eco-awareness.

Therefore I am suggesting, in absolute all due respect, that your Foundation look into creating a different kind of Dream Home, one that is more ecologically viable. I was thinking that you could spend the same amount of money fixing up and refurbishing an existing home in the downtown core (perhaps even a heritage home) with lavish eco-embellishments such as a grey water recycling system, solar panels, a green roof, sustainable flooring and furniture, etc. Also, having it in the downtown core would attract a large number of individuals who have made an ethical choice not to live in the suburbs.

When I think of your Dream Home, I think solely of the money it represents. The idea of actually living there and making it my home does not even come to mind, because of the impracticalities it represents. However, if your Dream Home was in a central area of the city, close to the business district, within walking distance to my amenities, had cost efficient heating, and where the property taxes were a little more in-line with my income level, my friends and I would be way more willing to purchase tickets, and would have more interest in the draw.

I do understand that you already have a formula that works extremely well, but I urge you to give thought to the kind of initiative I’m proposing, especially in light of the fact that Green Living as a concept is gaining more and more ground in the mainstream. You may be surprised to find yourself with a whole new targeted market that would gladly endorse your trailblazing way of thinking.

Thank you for your attention to my suggestion and very warm regards,


Marlène Barré
marlene@artengine.ca

More Thoughts on Running

So I've taken the week off. Yep, my legs hurt that much. It's not so much my knees (thank God) but more my calves that are just screaming! So that's it. I took a whole week off. No Derby, no Running, I even skipped Bootcamp on Wednesday.

Aside: I attended my cousin's husband's funeral on Tuesday. What an intense, heavy, overwhelming experience. There were SO MANY people in attendance, and all of the eulogies left indelible marks in our hearts. Lance was so well loved by all who knew him, if the sheer number of people present is anything to go by. My cousin even spoke, which I think is incredible of her, and by the end of her eulogy, everyone in the room was in tears. R.I.P. Lance. As the preacher said, today we say "Goodbye" to you, but one day you'll say "Welcome" to us!

So yeah, maybe I was a little emotionally drained as well as physically drained... Physically drained by the race on Thanksgiving weekend. That race was hard, and I really bottomed out before the finish line.

Problem number 1: This was my warm up.


It was so cold out, I couldn't get myself out of the car to warm up. Boo! I should know better.

Sleepy Angelo drove me to Cumberland way early in the morning (especially for a holiday!)

Once I did finally make it out of the car, I grudgingly got in line for the race.


I did some light jogging-in-place, and hopped around a bit, and did some shoulder stretches and neck stretches (I seem to hold a lot of tension in my upper back in general, and especially while I run).

I also had a mad game face on:


Not that it lasted. I soon as I spotted Ange on the sidelines, I went over to him and hopped around some more. I was feeling pretty loose by then...


I also shook my little booty for him, because I know how much he likes it!


Little did I know that would be the last time I would smile for the next 52:30 min!

Once I was off, Ange went back to the car and spent the hour patching bicycle tires, and so I just met him there once I was done. I didn't linger at all at the finish line, and I think that might have been problem number 2: There was no cool down, and only very minimal stretching.

Then I went to the cottage and sat around drinking beer and eating Turkey dinner for the rest of the WEEKEND. So no wonder I'm feeling less than stellar, even two weeks later.

So as for the training plan, all it means is that I've added another week to my schedule. I've bumped everything down and will pick up again probably on Sunday. Until then, lots of epsom salt baths and trips to the Plant.

Weekly Roundup - And In Loving Memory

I haven't written in a few days as a silent memorial to a great man who died well before his time. My cousin's husband was really a terrific person, a wonderful father, and the best husband to my cousin. To have him taken so suddenly is a tragedy, and my deepest sympathies go out to my cousin, their children, his family, and my family, too. I must also mention that this is the second death in the family in the last few months, which adds to the tragedy. Both men were under 35, loved by partners, family, and friends, and will be missed - sorely.

This week has been emotionally and physically draining, as you can imagine. I ran my 10k on Sunday, which was Captial-H-Hard. The course was different from last year, and was an "out-and-back" route, which I don't particularly like. The race started out well enough, sloping downhill right off the start. I made the mental note to make sure to reserve enough energy to climb the hill on my way back, as it would be the very last part of the race before the sprint to the finish.


The weather for the race was fantastic, again. Sunny, with just enough of a chill in the air to keep us from overheating, but not uncomfortably cold. I ran well, I thought, through most of the run, and by the time I reached the 8k mark, I was pretty happy with my time and thought I'd finish quite well. Unfortunately, that 8k mark was my turning point. I somehow lost all steam after that. My legs got heavy, and I had a hard time keeping my pace. And then I turned the corner, and faced the last hill. I put my head down and went for it, but just as I was starting to climb, the wind really picked up, and though I was struggling with all my might, I felt like I wasn't moving. I reached the top of the hill, but had nothing left for the sprint. I kept up a slow jog, praying I wouldn't pass out or vomit on the last 500m, in front of all the spectators. One lady tried to encourage me to keep up with her to the finish, but after a few seconds, it was clear that I really couldn't, and told her to go on without me. She kinda didn't let it go, saying that I could do it on account of my long legs and all. That kind of ticked me off, because I was really going as fast as I could at that particular moment. I hadn't exactly given up, I just physically had nothing left in my leg muscles.



Once I got to the finish, I grabbed a bagel, a banana, and my medal and headed straight for the car. I took a bite out of the bagel, and thought I could throw up if I kept eating. I threw it in the garbage. In the car, I managed a bite of the banana, but it was underripe, so I had to settle for some almonds I had stashed in my bag. And water. Lots of water!

The race timer wasn't working, so it was a few days before I learned my time and ranking.

Are you ready for it?

Here it is!

52:30 min. Ha! That's almost EXACTLY between my first 10k time of 51:57 and my second 10k time of 53:01. how completely... average.

I ranked 100 out of 377 participants, and 10 out of 50 women in my age range. The real kicker is that I got bumped to the 30-34 year old category this year, and I checked the first place finisher for women aged 24-29, and their time was 52:24!!! That means I would have been SECOND in my category had I been born 1 month later!!! Grrr!!!

I had bootcamp early the next day, and went for a run in Almonte, ON the next day too, which I think was a mistake. My legs stiffened up real bad like about 20min into the run, and I ended up quitting after 35min. Sat around drinking beers all night instead.

Then it was back to work, and lots of family stuff went down. It was pretty draining, and with a late night on Tuesday, bootcamp early Wednesday morning, I just stumbled through the rest of the week, working out as much as I could, but not anywhere near completing my training program.

This morning's Bootcamp was crazy. We had a Team Challenge, where we were divided into groups and had 25min to do as many kettlebell swings, bar shoulder presses, sandbag squats, wall ball tosses, rope skipping, and push-ups as we could, for points. At the end of the time, we tally the scores, and see who wins. Well, I gave it my all. I did more push ups (the half push ups, which are half point) in that 25min than I had in all of bootcamp. I did a huge number of wall ball tosses, and I even managed to learn the boxer rope skipping and pounded out 300 skips of the rope!!! Aye-Ariba!!!

Our team ended up with 1937 points, which was the highest score. We averaged around 322 pts per lady, which is AWESOME. I was drenched in sweat by the end of it.


So now I'm off to do my short run, and I'm going to take it nice and easy. I realized this week that there's no point in just dragging yourself through your days. Yes, I strive for things and have goals, but I can't miss the forest for the trees. As you can imagine, the stress from work, the stress from the family crisis, and the lack of time for normalcy in regards to meals, grocery shopping, and routine exercise, have lead to crap eating, poor sleeping this week, tiredness, anxiety, and mood swings.

I've had a low week. But of course then I think of my cousin, her three babies, and what she must be going through, and I think, "Sure, but not as low as some..."

Boot Camp

This week's training was altered somewhat for two reasons: I'm running a 10k tomorrow, and wanted a little taper at the end of the week; and I started Boot Camp this week, and it kicked the sh*t out of me.


I'm sitting here, feeling every muscle in my upper back in full revolt, and my legs feel different. Changed.

Monday's bootcamp was alright - it really didn't take too much out of me... We did a running exercise which was fine, I could do it...

That's me on the left, in the maroon t-shirt and grey shorts.

But when we got to class on Wednesday, I realized that Monday's class was just a "hi-how-are-ya?" kinda class, a getting to know you, and that the real stuff starts NOW! We did a Tabata circuit, which is 20 seconds of intense activity, followed by 20 seconds of rest. (I think a real Tabata is 20sec on and 10sec rest, but we did a modified version). The thing that really killed me was the medicine ball station. We had to squat down and then extend up and throw a big heavy medicine ball against the wall up past a certain height, and it KILLED my arms.

Other stations included sit ups, push ups, kettlebell swings, sandbag squats, skipping rope, and barbell chest presses. It was good and TOUGH. And as you can see, I postponed my run to Thursday, because I could not get enough energy to hit the road after that Bootcamp class! (Also, had an exhausting day at work on Wednesday, so the training break was very welcomed).

But something very strange happened on Thursday. I woke up DYING for a run. I had been invited out to dinner, but I declined because I WANTED to get my run in. It was a revelatory moment, for sure. So after work I laced up and went out for a 49 min run - my longest of the training program to date. And it was AMAZING. I felt so strong. There was minimal pain in my calves, and it wore off after my warmup. I ran hard and at a steady pace for the whole run, and I felt so good. Especially great since it's my last run before Sunday's 10K.

Then Friday morning we did a shuttle run at Bootcamp. It was H-A-R-D. You're supposed to run from one end of the gym to the other, then pivot, wait for a beep, and then run back to the other end. The beeps get progressively closer together, forcing the runners to sprint faster and faster. Once you miss two beeps in a row, then you're done. I made it to the end of level 6, and then quit. There was nothing left in the tank. So much for tapering!!

The trainer ran with me for a little bit, which was great, because he set a good pace for me in the beginning. The trick is to keep it nice and slow at the start, and to gradually increase the speed as you need it. It's also an exercise in deceleration and sprinting, which is EXACTLY what I need to train for in Roller Derby. I'm very slow to get up and go from a fall or block, and I NEED to increase my speed work...


Big sweaty mess... I always feel like I'm the ONLY one sweating in these classes. Look at those other girls, they're fresh as the morning dew!!