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Month: May 2011

Shared today on Twitter

@Lawannafjzst Reporting you for spam.

RT @imdominating: Baahaahaa. I got Mother’s Day card too. Kind of http://bit.ly/jDMxbS // HAHAHA. I want that one too!

@drkknits Hey, fancy academic! I’m reading this over lunch: http://bit.ly/l8fTFO and thought of you…

@drkknits @witty_knitter Ensuing MetaFilter discussion is here: http://bit.ly/l0WLK5. Worth a look too.

@witty_knitter And apologies for forgetting you with the link in the first place. I forgot I know TWO wonky ivory tower academics. 😛

@drkknits @witty_knitter In my experience, someone who doesn’t sell ieber ringtones for a living. (Think of it as a metaphor, if you like.)

@drkknits @witty_knitter BIEBER, I mean. Maybe academics don’t have their brains rot out of their heads so quickly. 🙂

When all else fails, pick the PHYSICALLY LARGEST gift on the wedding registry. At least then it’ll be memorable! HA.

RT @jenbishopsydney: Anyone who attended @businesschicks breakfast with ON-J want to be quoted on @dynamicbusiness online? // CC @knitterjp

May 9, 2011
Shared today on Twitter

Got some encouragement before the race from two special friends. (I guess that makes me Princess Peach?) http://twitpic.com/4uszlx

Me, Snookums, and @kunaal84 just after finishing the Mother’s Day Classic 8K. Beautiful day for a run! http://twitpic.com/4ut0ap

@knitabulous Way to go! 5K is a great milestone.

Ran 12K, then a hot shower, then FaceTime with my lovely Mom, then lunch, then Game of Thrones, and now heading for a massage. #sundaywin

Jamie’s 30 Min Meals #14: Piri Piri Chicken, Dressed Potatoes, Rocket Salad, and Quick Portugese Tarts. http://bit.ly/jcwB25

Successfully playing the first couple verses of the uke version of “Somewhere Over the Rainbow”!

@thisismywww The uke version by Israel Kamakawiwoʻole that was everywhere a few years ago.

@DDsD Filter. “Search” for everything in Inbox, mark as read, and include existing conversations.

May 8, 2011
Mother’s Day Classic 2011

This morning marked my 5th year running the Mother’s Day Classic 8K in Sydney’s Domain. (Previously: 2006, 2008, 2009, 2010.) This year I was joined by the Snook and by my friend Kunaal. I actually had 7 miles on the schedule for today, so the Snook and I decided to run the 2 miles to the start of the race. We did 3:1 intervals the whole way. It was pretty cold out there at first, but eventually we warmed up. We met up with Kunaal at the Cathedral and then headed to the starting line. As usual, it was a complete and utter circus. I’ve run this race many times and I like the vibe and the cause, but the organisation is just a MESS. There are too many people running on a course that is far too small for them. We had to run all the way to the Art Gallery just to get across the course to the starting line (since they had it all fenced off). Luckily we made it to the start with a few minutes to spare. They seemed to be releasing the group in waves. We were towards the back, which was fine with us. It probably took us 10 minutes to get across the line, but eventually we were off!

Kunaal ran with us and we kept up our 3:1 intervals. It was hard at the start because of the immense crush of people. We’d only just completed the 1st km and were heading back down Art Gallery Road when we heard sirens behind us. The lead runners had already completed 4K and were lapping us! It was utter confusion. Art Gallery Road is fairly narrow there, and you had lanes of people running in both directions with a crowd of people watching at the fence on either side. We moved out of the way to let the motorcycle and the lead runners past. Up ahead though, I could see that NO ONE was moving aside! The motorcycle siren was whooping, but people just didn’t get out of the way. The lead runner actually caught up to the motorcycle and passed it (while shoulder-charging some woman out of the way). It was madness. I bet the elite runners were pretty pissed about it.

Anyway, once we got past the Art Gallery things opened up and it was fun again. The Snook and I chatted the whole way. Kunaal kept up with us for the first 5K or so but then dropped back a little bit as his shins were hurting him. My legs felt a little tight, but I knew we were nearly done. The Snook and I decided to skip the walk breaks on the last kilometer and run it in. We finished in 60:10, which is pretty good! Definitely not my PB, but the goal was just to have fun and not injure myself, so I’m happy. (Plus I did run an extra 3.8km before the start!)

Happy Mother’s Day!

Me and Snookums waiting at the Cathedral for Kunaal before the race.

As we were slowly moving towards the starting line, I noticed Mario and Luigi entertaining the crowd on the sidelines. I immediately handed my phone to Rodd and told him to take my photo with them! Luigi’s face CRACKS ME UP.

More serious now. I’m showing off my red WWBD? bracelet. B stands for Barb, and she’s the toughest, nicest person I know. I wrote WWBD? on my hand for one of my long runs a few weeks ago and posted a photo on dailymile. Another amazing local runner named Kirsten decided to get actual bracelets produced and sent me one! How cool is that?

And lastly, here’s me and the boys after the race. Such a great day!

May 8, 2011
Jamie’s 30 Minute Meals #14: Piri Piri Chicken

This is our 14th cooking/blogging experiment from Jamie’s 30 Minute Meals. We chose Piri Piri Chicken, Dressed Potatoes, Rocket Salad, and Quick Portugese Tarts. We’d been looking forward to this one for a long time, because who doesn’t like Portuguese custard tarts? Nobody.

Substitutions: We couldn’t find yellow peppers/capsicum anywhere (must be out of season), so we just used a single red one. We used just white vinegar instead of white wine vinegar. And the sugar for the tarts was just plain rather than “golden caster”. Other than that, everything was as-written.

Quick verdict: This is the first recipe where I think the time is an outright cheat. We were both working flat-out the whole time and we didn’t come anywhere close to the deadline. Our time was 39:50. (Sure, having everything memorised would save you a couple minutes, but not many.) Also, we found a mistake in the recipe! That was annoying. In terms of flavour, I thought the potatoes were the highlight. I’d never had sweet potatoes done in that way before, and I can see myself repeating it in the future. (The Snook thought it had too much lemon, but he also thinks Jamie tends to go overboard on lemon everywhere anyway.) The chicken was very good, and the tarts turned out surprisingly well (with a couple caveats). The Snook rated the meal overall as 8/10, while I gave it 8.5/10.

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May 8, 2011
Shared today on Google Reader
- The Frankenhood… It’s Aliiiiiive!
May 8, 2011
Shared today on Twitter

@witty_knitter @knitterjp OH! I forgot all about that. I just checked the old SSK site and saw the date. I’m still up for it. 🙂

@knitterjp I think it’s just you and me then! I’ll see you there. 🙂

@knitterjp Just have to unpack groceries and then I’ll hop a bus to Newtown!

@knitterjp okay, heading to bus now! Will head upstairs when I get there.

Quick stop in Granny Square turned into 90min visit with Mrs Morris. Coffee and homemade cheesecake! Next best thing to my own Grandma. 🙂

@henrytapia They’re tasteful enough. I just thought a Harvard-educated psych major wouldn’t have gone in for such objectification.

The day has finally arrived: We’re tackling Jamie’s Piri Piri Chicken with Custard Tarts tonight!

Meeting point for tomorrow’s race: at Mary Mackillop statue at the Cathedral. Before and/or after? @kunaal84 @mrs_sockvictim Anybody else?

HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY, MOM! We’re eating and caffeinating before today’s Mother’s Day Classic 8K race in your honour. 🙂

@miftik No. That’s one of my problems with flash mobs. Also, 99% of them are stupid and unimaginative.

May 7, 2011
Patchwork U.S. Wall Hanging

Patchwork U.S. Wall Hanging. Ooh, neat. Mom will like that. Although I do think the shape of Indiana looks pretty dodgy…

May 7, 2011
Knitting Camp 2011

Last weekend was my third time attending the Wollongong Knitting Camp put on by CR&K Daisy Designs. It’s held at Mount Keira Scout Camp overlooking Wollongong. We had a much smaller group this year, but it was still a lot of fun to relax with friends for a few days in beautiful surroundings. My photos are here. I didn’t take very many this year, so if you want to see more then visit Margarita, Lyn, and Kylie to see theirs. Thanks to everybody who attended, and especially to the Camp organisers who turned some pretty trying circumstances into a fun and happy adventure!

May 7, 2011
Korean Feast

Korean Feast
Last week the Snook pointed out that we were accumulating cucumbers from our weekly veggie box faster than we were eating them. That was all I needed to hear. “Pickles! I’ll make Korean pickles!” I’d seen this oijangajji recipe on Maangchi’s site some time ago. It was pretty easy to follow (I halved it since I didn’t have 5lbs of cukes), and I had them fermenting away in a big jar in the fridge for the past week. To go with them, we made my all-time favorite Korean dish: bulgogi. It’s basically beef marinated in sesame and garlic and then barbecued or grilled. I used Maangchi’s marinade recipe but substituted an apple for the Asian pear. I mixed it up before work on Friday and then left the beef to marinate in the fridge all day. Friday night the Snook cooked it in batches on the stove while I finished off the pickle. I sliced a couple of the pickles up and added chilli flakes, garlic, green onion, sesame oil, sliced fresh chilli, honey, and toasted sesame seeds. YUM. The crunchiness and heat of the chilli contrasted really well with the silky sweetness of the bulgogi. We also sauteed some zucchini with soy sauce, chilli flakes, sesame oil, and green onion. Really excellent meal!

May 7, 2011
RunningBlog: Week 17-18

I wasn’t able to post last week’s RunningBlog because I was stuck on a mountain in Wollongong with no electricity at Knitting Camp! But on the plus side, I also got in a great run while I was there. So there’s that. Okay, let’s recap the past fortnight. First there was my 23 mile long run, which was AWESOME. I actually didn’t pull up too sore from that, but the effort of running with a virus really wiped me out. I took a few days off to recover. I did manage a 5K at work on Thursday though. Friday through Sunday was Knitting Camp, and I did a 10K run down and up the mountain on Saturday. It was actually quite a technical (and dangerous) run, given that I was running on the road along switchbacks without much visibility on a rainy and foggy day. Yeah, I had to jump in the ditch a few times to let cars pass, but I felt great when I finished. On Tuesday I went for another easy lunchtime run, and on Thursday I had a brutal workout at Spudds that left me sore for days. I just had another easy run around the neighbourhood to hopefully shake out the stiffness before tomorrow’s Mother’s Day Classic 8K.

Apr. 24: 37.91km
Apr. 28: 5.03km
Apr. 30: 10.08km
May 3: 5.46km
May 7: 5.37km
Total in week 17: 42.94km (26.8mi)
Total in week 18: 20.91km (13mi)
Total in 2011: 444.06km (277.5mi)

To meet my goal of running 1100km in 2011, I should be at 380.7km right now. Yeah. Big cushion. 🙂

In other fun running news, I just had my first official call with the Adam Tinkoff (aka the Zen Runner) as part of the Slow Runners Club Coaching Program. Adam and Eddie are providing online coaching for a group of 11 runners (including myself) for the next three months. We have a private Facebook group where we share workouts and encourage each other, as well as a weekly Skype call to check in. I’m really looking forward to it! I think this is going to be just the encouragement I need to rock the winter running season.

May 7, 2011