planning for the purgatory

The Pineywoods Purgatory, an organized bicycle ride through East Texas, is this weekend. If you read my other blog, Long Distance Vegan, you know that I signed up for the 72 mile route. Yes, that's right. 72 miles. If you are reading this for the second time, I apologize, but in case I don't make it to the top of every hill, and instead collapse on the side of the road somewhere around mile 61, or reach the rest stop with the waffles and call it a day, or pass out from exhaustion, never to blog again, I wanted y'all to know why.

Why? Because I am crazy. Because I have no sense. Because for some reason, 72 miles sounded like a good idea, and god damn it I will finish that ride if it kills me. Keep my waffle warm, y'all. I'll see you at the finish line!

hidden beaches

Thanks to Amy, we happen to know the location of a beautiful place for camping, lake swimming, and hammock sleeping. Best of all? This oasis in the forest is less than an hour and a half drive from our apartment, and we spent the past weekend basking in it's calm beauty.

Seamus doesn't particularly enjoy camping. A dog of luxury, he prefers a comfortable couch to a sandy beach, and he harbors a great fear of flying insects. On this trip, however, he overcame many of his "issues," and seemed to - dare I say it? - thrive in the wild. He also enjoys wearing his camping backpack and carrying his own food, tennis ball, and blanket. He is a very good dog.

I made vegan pancakes on the stove! Before we left home, I mixed together the dry ingredients and wrote the wet ingredients on the outside of a plastic freezer bag. At breakfast time, I added the wet ingredients and, in two easy steps, we were able to enjoy vegan chocolate chip pancakes with agave nectar, while gazing out over the lake, sipping percolated coffee, and watching Seamus nap by the fire. Best. Idea. Ever.

Nathan's obsession with fungi continues.

This is quite possibly my favorite photo of all time. I love how excited Nathan is to go swimming, and how Seamus would blindly follow either of us anywhere.

On Sunday, I rolled out of my hammock and was treated to a gorgeous sunrise before packing up to head home, relaxed, content, and ready for a shower. I hope you had a perfectly thrilling weekend as well, and that the next one isn't too far off.

selfish superpowers

Today while eating lunch, I figured out what superpower I would choose, given the choice. First, a disclaimer:

My power has been chosen under the assumption that super-ness is limited to abilities purely selfish - that is, a power that would do you, personally, a lot of good, but couldn't necessarily be used to save the world, spread education, feed the masses, fund the libraries, prevent pollution, repopulate the ocean with whales, etc. No, your power would be used for you, and you alone, to elevate your life in some fantastic and glorious way.

Now that that's out of the way.

If given this choice, I would choose the power of Spontaneous Food. Picture it: you sit at the table, close your eyes, and imagine what you would most like to eat at that moment. Sweet potato rolls from the Japanese restaurant in town; your Mom's chocolate pudding pie; Tofu Benedict with home fries, cooked to the perfect crisp; succulent kiwis, green and juicy; a vegan banana split; steamed and salted edamame. Any of it, all of it, instantly, served at the perfect temperature and plated beautifully, and you'd never have to lift a finger or wash a dish ever again.

Yes, Spontaneous Food is the way to go - at least for me. What would you choose as your selfish superpower?

how the brain works

Chrissy sits at her desk, looking over an extensive to-do list, which she has been clever enough to make for herself. Item number ten reads: "Email [redacted] about time." Here, Chrissy's brain begins to turn and churn.

Hm. I wonder what this means.
Why would I have to email [redacted]?
Time? Time for what?
What does this mean?
Well, it's in my handwriting. So I probably wrote it.
Aha! A clue!
This list is written in blue ink, except for item number ten, which is written in black.
See, I would never do that - purposely mismatch my ink colors.
One document, one color.
It's only natural.
So.
What could have possessed me to suddenly switch to black ink?
Aha! A memory.
Yesterday, someone was in my doorway...
And I remember writing something down...
And I scratched my head...
And found my blue pen, which I'd stuck in my ponytail and forgotten about!
And the person at the door said, "Was that pen in your hair?"
And I said, "Duh."
So the person in the doorway probably asked me to do something, which is what this number ten business is about.
But who was in my doorway?

At this point, Chrissy leaves her desk and walks around the office, asking which of her coworkers saw her take a pen out of her hair yesterday. Her office mates look confused until finally, Karl says, "Oh, that was me." "You!" Chrissy cries. "Of course! Can you tell me what number ten means?"

And Karl can.
Mystery solved.
And number ten is crossed off the list. 

The brain is a very strange place.

weekend recap - after the rains

How do I love weekends? Let me count the ways.

• Mountain biking on Saturday morning. I haven't ridden my Trek - aka, Gloria - since acquiring my new used road bike at the beginning of the summer. Needless to say, she needed some loving and we spent two hours on the trails in town. It was a perfect day for biking - overcast and humid, and since it had rained so much the last two weeks, the dirt was soft and there were leaves everywhere. It was very fall-like, if you could ignore the 90 degree weather. Which I could, because Texas has trained me well.
• Shopping in Lufkin. We had to return some things to Target, which meant that naturally, I had to score another jersey dress, considering the first one fit me so well. I also got a square cake pan, which I'm probably slightly too excited about. I have been eating brownies with rounded corners for far too long. 
• Suffering ennui. This is not really a reason to love the weekend, but I spent a few hours on Saturday feeling kind of down. I couldn't put my finger on a rhyme or a reason, but alas - it was there. Fixing a plate of comfort food helped (tofu benedict and homefries!). Also helpful? Please see number four. 
• Going to the bar and staying up late! At the last minute, we decided to see a friend's band play at the bar. I also made a decision to stay up late, drink as much beer as I wanted, and not feel guilty about it. Because I've been doing a long run every Sunday morning, I've been very well behaved on Saturday nights and sometimes a girl just has to party. Which brings us to... 
• Sleeping in on Sunday. There is no better way to start the day than by sleeping until 9am, walking the dog on the trails, and then making gingerbread waffles and drinking tons of coffee while reading essays. Oh yes. I am serious.
  

• Picnic party. And not just mimosas at the park, which is our usual idea of a "picnic." No, this was the real deal, catered by the Mrs. MRT, and featuring an array of snacks, a polka-dotted blanket on which to sit, and a perfect, sunny day.
• The result of rain, rain and more rain. After two straight weeks of rain, we finally got to reap the rewards. Our front garden is in full bloom and there are hordes of mushrooms in every nook and cranny of Nacogdoches. Here's some proof: 

 

bits and pieces

It's been raining steadily for a week now. I'm not complaining, considering the drought that was the Summer of 2009, but it's making me tired and lazy and not wanting to do anything but curl up on the couch and consume bowls of soup and scads of crackers.

Work has been a mess these last two weeks, but things appear to be calming down. Being in charge is tougher than it looks and require an amount of courage not listed in the initial job description. So far, so good, but seriously - when's my next vacation?

After three sessions of my creative nonfiction class, I realize how lucky I was to start my experiment in graduate classes with John M. and the mostly great group of writers from last semester. While I'm enjoying the challenge and the chance to experiment with a new form, I am a little... disappointed... by the... caliber... of some of the other students. (I'm trying to phrase this without sounding like a total snob. I think I'm failing.) I'm not necessarily talking about the writing, but the discussion and conversations that occur. Next week will be the first time we officially workshop a story, so I'll have a better handle on the situation then. In the meantime, I am steadily working on a piece about that time I had dreadlocks for three years in college. I'm still toying with structure - do I want to write a lyric essay? A straight up narrative? Something that weaves in the history of dreads, including an examination of race and white privilege? Or a combination of all those things? My story is due on October 7th, so I need to decide soon.

I recently watched the first two episodes of Glee. If you haven't seen this show yet, and are a person who enjoys corny entertainment, singing, and choreographed dancing, may I highly recommend it?

weekend recap

This morning my friend Rachel asked me how my weekend was. I told her that it was relaxing and then proceeded to ramble off everything I'd done. She said, "I love that that's your definition of relaxing." What can I say? Sitting still is stressful. :-)  My weekend:

+ On Friday night, Nathan and I got dressed up went out for sushi before heading downtown to the opening for the faculty art show. This is one of my favorite shows of the year, because it does a beautiful job of highlighting the talent and art that is being produced right here in Nacogdoches. Inspiring, and not just due to the free wine!

+ We woke up to rain on Saturday, which was fine with me. I love rainy weekend days. I decided to go to yoga, which is always a lovely way to kick off the weekend. The CSA started the fall season, so I picked up my basket of veggies at the Farmers' Market. Tons of garlic, basil, squash, corn, potatoes and carrots. I'd almost forgotten how much I love the CSA! We spent time at home, doing chores, reading and drinking coffee, until it was time to head to the bowling alley for Brad's birthday. I bowled terribly, as usual, but had enough beer that I didn't notice or mind. It ended up being a perfect evening, and I recall one moment in particular, when I looked around at my group of friends - so funny, so sweet, so eccentric, so unique - and thought to myself, Wow. I am one lucky human being.

+ I was not as hungover as I'd feared on Sunday morning, which was good, considering I had a 12 mile run to conquer. This run had thwarted me two weekends in a row and I was determined to complete it once and for all. The first six miles were pretty smooth and easy, but the second half of the run... not so much. At mile 9 I actually stopped for about ten seconds and just stood there, tired and frustrated. But then I started running again and I didn't stop until I hit the 12 mile mark. An overall pace of 10:53 minute miles. Not too shabby, considering.

On the bright(er) side, it no longer takes me seven hours to recover from these long runs. After a huge plate of blueberry pancakes, I was ready for the day. I did some homework, walked the dog, and cooked up a storm. I'd volunteered to cater our weekly Mad Men watching party, and ended up experimenting on my obliging friends. East Coast Chocolate Chip Coffee Cake (from Vegan Brunch), pesto pinwheels and olive tapenade (from La Dolce Vegan) and cubed watermelon. So good! And this week's episode of Mad Men was just as great. Lots of drama and action, which had been building since the season premiere. I went home full, happy and buzzing with the memories of an excellent weekend behind me.

thank you, mr. president

You see, our predecessors understood that government could not, and should not, solve every problem. They understood that there are instances when the gains in security from government action are not worth the added constraints on our freedom. But they also understood that the danger of too much government is matched by the perils of too little; that without the leavening hand of wise policy, markets can crash, monopolies can stifle competition, and the vulnerable can be exploited. And they knew that when any government measure, no matter how carefully crafted or beneficial, is subject to scorn; when any efforts to help people in need are attacked as un-American; when facts and reason are thrown overboard and only timidity passes for wisdom, and we can no longer even engage in a civil conversation with each other over the things that truly matter - that at that point we don't merely lose our capacity to solve big challenges. We lose something essential about ourselves.

Full text of the President's speech on health care here. 

long weekend

Y'all, I have been BUSY. Between working, running (half marathon in just over a month! Eep!), and my dwindling social life (re: work and running), I have not had time to sit still, let alone conjure up any adventures to share with you. This past three day weekend could not have come at a better time.


On Friday we went to the art gallery for the First Friday Film. This month, they were showing a flick called Breaking the Maya Code. It was a little school-marmish, but interesting never-the-less. Did you know one of the people to make the most progress in understanding Mayan writing was a librarian? True fact!

On Saturday, Nathan and I went riding with the bike shop. I rode just over 20 miles and it was hard. I need to be more consistent with my riding. In the afternoon, we went to Lufkin with Amy for some honest American consumerism. I both hate spending money and like having new things. It's a conundrum, but as I desperately needed a number of essentials, new things won out.

On Sunday, Nathan and I went for a 12 mile run. This 12 mile run ended up being an 11 mile run for me, which was okay but not great. You can read about it on my training blog, if you are so inclined. Basically, I learned an important lesson in pacing myself.

In the evening, we headed to Scott and Chay's for our weekly Mad Men soiree. There, we enjoyed lots of delicious food, fancy drinks, and good friends. One of the highlights was Mary T.'s fresh, homemade freezer jam. I was so impressed and inspired that on Monday...


I made some freezer jam of my own! Delicious and easy as pie. Or jam. It doesn't matter. What does matter is that this week, raspberries are 4 pints for 5 dollars at the Kroger. Get thee to a grocery store and make some jam, stat! You won't be sorry.


And lastly, check out this Cicada Killer that was killing a cicada (shocking, I know) right outside our window. Nature is so crazy!


Nathan made a video, too. He's such a scientist.

I hope y'all had a pleasantly busy and refreshingly relaxing weekend. I know I did, and I can't wait for the next one.

creative nonfiction

Last night I attended the first session of the class I'm taking this semester - Creative Nonfiction. It's a graduate level class, writing and reading intensive, and focused on workshopping the essays we'll be producing. I can't even tell you how much this is my favorite thing ever - I love sitting in a classroom, talking about words with other people who like words, while reading and discussing literature. I wish I could do it all day long, every day. I already like the professor, which helps. He speaks softly, with pauses, but then gains momentum and volume as he gets into his story and he's funny to boot. Again, I feel so lucky to be a part of this community, this department of English, even if it is only on a one-class-per-semester basis.

When I signed up for this class, I had a vague idea of what "creative nonfiction" meant. Writing about true things, in an interesting and artful way. I was, for the most part, right. I don't doubt the fact that I can write - I wouldn't wake up early to work on stories, spend evenings in workshops, or plan for eventual MFA's if I didn't believe I was talented - but I am worried about the whole nonfiction part. Sure, I have stories. I've had experiences. I love to talk about myself. But I worry about talking and writing about other people. I worry that writing stories about my family, my relationships, my past will hurt somebody's feelings. I worry so much about other people's feelings. And I suppose I could tell myself that so-and-so will never read this essay, this story, but I don't write to hide things away once they're done. I write for an audience. I write for eventual publication. I want people to read my words, and I need to find a way to balance that need with those feelings.

I'm hoping this class will help me figure that out, and I'm looking forward to another semester of words and words and words.