Goathead Thorns!

Do you ever find it weird that there can be something in the world that you have never, ever heard anything about and yet, in very short order, events transpire that make you well acquainted with that very entity?

Wow, that sounds like a very deep rhetorical question and what prompted it was my adventure this weekend with two flat bike tires and a sore right heel. Mechen and I went for a bike ride this past weekend with the goal of making it to Carlsbad for a scenic local sight-seeing trip. My main goal was to find a lovely scenic bar at the end, which I probably could have easily talked Mechen into joining me. Instead, our tires went flat at the worst part of the 101. In between Leucadia and Carlsbad, there is nothing apart from little housing colonies. No ATMs, no bike shops, no cabs, no Coaster station. When Mechen examined his tires, there were all of these little thorns stuck in them. WTF? Shouldn't thorns yield before tires? Intuitively, I would have a tire beat a thorn in a revised version of "Rock, Paper, Scissors" but then I would be wrong. Because those little suckers were way tougher than our tires. I looked on my tires and said, "I have one too!" I promptly pulled it out which was a mistake, indicated by the audible hiss and rapid deflation of my back tire. Boo.

Fortunately! We were almost directly across the street from a 101 bus stop. This was lucky because, again, there was nothing on this stretch of highway for about 2.5 miles in either direction. We put Mechen's bike on the bus, locked mine up since someone had grabbed the other bike holder and merrily proceeded back to Cardiff. We then picked up my bike and walked to Blue Ribbon Pizzeria which was delicious, as always! We also rented Inception. We didn't watch it until yesterday afternoon. It was slightly hard to follow but excellent. Lest you think we were wasting a beautiful CA afternoon, it was raining. We had already done our outdoor activity of hiking Iron Mountain earlier that day.

The weekend highlights also included Ricotta pancakes from the Edible San Diego magazine. They were delectable!

Other March highlights included a trip out to Anzo-Borrego, a bike/hike to Torrey Pines and the Inservice. The latter was not really a highlight, but at least it's done. I'm a little worried for a surely got several questions wrong but it's out of my hands and as much as I can let the stress go (it's difficult), I'm trying for I won't get word until May.

Hasta!

Control Freak

It is really bothering me that my post below has two different font sizes. For the love of god, if I can't control the font size on my own blog, what can I control?!?!

Ok, so this is a brief blog break before I finish my last-minute studying for the inservice. The test is tomorrow. I am definitely a little nervous but I have studied a.lot. I'm hoping that I know the answers (duh) and that the questions asked happen to be the ones that I am brilliant at! Like spelling my name- I'm excellent at that!

But really, I feel like I'm in an ok spot and that I won't embarrass myself horribly tomorrow. Although the stakes are high after my abysmal score last year. But I need to stay positive and most of all, read the fucking question because they can be so tricky with their excepts/onlys/NOT/true/false. Bastards.

This week was fun. Lots of studying, an easy call night, two Bar Method classes and one spin class were involved. One of the highlights was cooking my lunch last night with Mechen. I made orange-glazed tempeh from 101cookbooks combined with quinoa and lightly steamed green veggies. Holy cow. The orange tempeh was delicious. I HIGHLY recommend it. The whole site is filled with delicious, veggie-filled dishes of goodness. Most of all, Mechen LOVED it which meant so much to me because I love eating healthily and low-meat and to share that with him is awesome! Oh, BTW, I made enough for two with an additional small serving for dinner tonight.

Ok, back to the books!

All work, some play!

This weekend has been pretty awesome. I've gotten a lot of studying done for the inservice and I've also had a really fun time with Mechen, especially since he was gone during the week. He was at a conference in Panama City, FL which sounds like it went well AND he got to see his brother so that was great.

I've decided I'm only going to drink twice a week because even the "moderate" glass of wine or beer on weekday nights has slowly but surely caught up to my waistline. Since I'm not interested in that effect AT ALL, I've decided to drink only on the weekends at two meals- either two dinners, a brunch and dinner, etc.

So, Friday, we just hung out, ate a delicious soup that Mechen loves and split a bottle of 2007 Lake Sonoma Winery Cabernet Sauvignon. It was pretty tasty and a nice mellow evening.

Yesterday, I spent all day studying and, right at the point that I was hitting "crazy lady" level, I stopped, showered and got ready to go out with Mechen. It was one of the best date nights in awhile. Not that there are bad ones but the food was holy hell good.

We went to the Blue Ribbon Artisan Pizzeria in Encinitas. We walked along the beach to get there, although we had to go up the D St stairs since the tide was up to the rocks around the Swammi bend. We put our names on the list and grabbed a beer at the Lumbaryard. I had the beer of the month, an ale that was citrusy and flowery while Mechen had a Firestone ale. Both were good but it was mainly to pass time until we got our phone call. We were called about 25 minutes later and had seats at the bar. It is a tiny restaurant but the view at the bar was great since we got to look at the oven across the room.

We ordered the albacore crudo for an appetizer and it was delicious. Four pieces of perfectly ripened, diced avocado with a slab of tuna topped with a perfect, de-pithed slice of grapefruit. Olive oil and citrus vinegar were drizzled on top. It was amazing. We also got the truffle oil popcorn with Parmesan that was good, but really, just popcorn with lots of delicious oily goodness.

Then, we split the Californian pizza with tomato sauce, mozzarella, ricotta, parm and fresh arugula on top. I'm running out of superlatives at this point but I am STILL dreaming of that pizza and I am seriously considering ordering take-out tonight. We also had an Alagash Dark and Stormy Stout which was really delicious and filling. We finished by splitting the butterscotch pudding which was a beautiful balance of sweet, creamy and a touch of sea salt. Yummy!

But since we hadn't had enough beer, we finished up with a flight and a pint at the Encinitas Ale House that has some mighty delectable looking burgers- they're huge and even though I was beyond stuffed, they still looked pretty tasty.

So, that was my ridiculous sensory gorge-fest on Saturday! I had so much fun and felt fine this morning thanks to a middle of the night multivitamin and Ibuprofen with water. Now, I'm back to studying although a little less diligent than yesterday since I took a Lulu Lemon shopping break. But now, it's time to hit the books (again). I'm on target so I feel pretty good although there is still a lot more work to be done!

I'd rather be skiing!

But I'm being responsible instead. Lame! My inservice test is next Saturday and since it encompasses all of ENT, I really can't study enough. I also need to ace it so that's a little added pressure! My first year I did AMAZINGLY and last year I did HORRIBLY (really, the emphasis is needed for both) so I need to prove that I am amazingly amazing, not amazingly stupid.

Mechen is gone for the week so that helps me focus a little bit more on studying. He's really supportive and doesn't mind letting me be distraction-free while he's here but still, I make myself distracted thinking of him being so close (and I hope that feeling never changes!).

Last weekend was a lot of fun. Friday night, we met up with some of my work peeps for drinks at Martini's Over 4th. It was a lot of fun and both of us had a good time although there was a LOT of shop talk. We left to go get a healthy dinner and ended up at Blue Water Grill on India St. The fish was delicious and fresh, but not cheap. The restaurant is more of a self-serve type where we stood in line, ordered and sat on outdoor-style furniture. That can be totally fine, but considering it was dinner and we were paying restaurant prices, I think I'd rather go to a more sit-down, atmospheric location. So, I won't be rushing back although it certainly wasn't bad by any stretch.

Saturday, we went downtown and I went to Bar Method and Mechen golfed. We hung out around the house in the afternoon and had a really mellow day. I got some study time in which was needed.

Sunday, we biked to Del Mar (11 miles total) and then I went up to San Clemente for Brooke's Dirty 30. The house was amazing, right on the beach and water. New addition to my life list- own a house like that!

Standing on the back deck, Catalina Island in the distance

Monday was a holiday for President's Day. I dropped Mechen off at the airport and then studied all day. Today we have off due to huge base drills going on so instead of skiing with Brooke and Brady, I'm back in Cardiff after a SHITTY night of call so I can study the day away.

Happy Valentine's Day/Weekend Wrap-Up

I'm sitting in my kitchen right now, slightly buzzed off of my delicious wine waiting for Mechen to give me the 15 minute signal so I can start cooking...lobster! Augh! I have been reading a lot of veg/vegan blogs lately and I would really like to incorporate that more into my diet. Also, the "clank-clink-clank" of the little lobster claws against the pot weird me out, but for now, meat is still in my diet and lobster it will be. But I am wondering how I can convince the man to go veg/vegan. It might take some doing but also, he is sometimes so enraptured by me (I have no idea why), that I just may be able to convince him.

But, while I'm waiting for my Valentine's Day surprise(s), it's time for weekend wrap-up.
Friday: Happy Hour with live music at the Belly Up didn't happen, but The Third Corner for dinner did. It was delicious, although Mechen liked the food a little more than I did. I had a flavorful bass with asparagus hash but I thought the dish was tainted by a dijon mustard slather-bath all over the delicious fresh fish. But it was still really good, I just thought the fish could have been less adultured. Mechen had mussels that were also tasty so it was a turf feast for the two of us.

Saturday was a fun day with a late sleep-in and then travelling to San Diego for the airshow. First we went to Cabrillo that was too far out to have a good view, and then we went down to Harbor Island and watched the last bit from Johnny's Famous while drinking Bloody Mary's. The Stenis CAG flyover was pretty impressive although to be honest, there were a few fly-overs above the Kitty Hawk that beat it. Sorry, but I didn't see any stealth bombers over San Diego Bay! Then we went to the Linkery and had dinner with Cat. Then, we came back to Cardiff and watched most of Tropic Thunder although someone was an old man and fell asleep 2/3rds through!

On Sunday, we went to the Farmer's Market by car after I was so excited to go by bike. I pumped up the tires, all the while singing, "I love the Farmer's MArket, I love to ride my bike, Toodley Doo!" But then my inner DJ went "ERRRRRRKKKKKK!" when Mechen said he didn't want to ride my bike (which is comically small for him) and especially without a helmet since he bonked his head last week falling down a mini-cliff. Well, fine! It was sort of hilarious since it was a moment that definitely highlighted that, sigh, I have some work to do on communicating while living with someone. He can't read my mind and if I wanted to ride bikes and get all excited about it, we should have spoken about it. Instead, we drove to the Leucadia Farmer's Market, where Mechen asked what exactly was so big about gluten-free since there were about 2:1 gluten-free stands to normal pastry/bread stands. It was sort of weird. It was a very SoCal/North County Market. I want to make a mockumentary. Bratwurst lovers vs. gluten-averse vegans. Iiiiiiiieeeeeeeeeee!

But then, after the Farmer's Market, I was mad. Dammit, we lived in North County. Mechen NEEDED a bike, his budget be damned. So, I decided that I would buy him a bike for Valentine's Day and HOORAY, there was a VERY reasonably priced one on Craigslist (because nothing says Valentine's Day like bargain-priced gifts). We went down to Chula Vista to get it (boo!) and then rode the Silver Strand for a lovely 15 mile ride break-in. His bike is awesome and pretty to look at- just like him!

And now it's Valentine's Day, which I've always have a soft spot for, even when single. And now I have the best boyfriend so it's super awesome!

*This post was written under the influence of two glasses of wine. As if you couldn't tell. I did try to correct all the typos though- there were lots!*

Fair warning, I don't think I'll be able to walk tomorrow

Just before lunch, I went to the gym with Anil, my co-research resident-in-crime. He had been talking about CrossFit workouts so I figured I was game. I asked, "Are we going to go for a run too?" Silly, silly me. Anil was kind and said, "Well, these workouts are sometimes longer than you think."

Holy heck. The workout was 15 hang cleans, 15 box jumps and 15 kettleball swings x 7. I started out slightly behind since my attempts to do pull-ups during warm-ups had already put the hurt on me. I was whipped! It was so hard. I did all the sets, mainly because another guy who was there had little self-motivating phrases such as "Don't be a bitch" as he was working out. Well, I didn't want to be a "bitch" then either! Hey Mister, I can do this workout too. Ok, maybe with a lot less weight but still.

So, that was my first day of Cross-Fitness madness. I think it'll be an ok workout to do now and then. Some of their daily workouts are require really esoteric equipment that would be difficult to find outside a gymnasium. Also, I really don't want to bulk up at all. The workout today was good b/c of so many sets but I'm going to stick with Bar Method as my primary means of strength training.

Super Bowl...of chili!

Mechen and I hosted a great Super Bowl party yesterday. It was fairly mellow but we did end up having less beer than when we started, which is the sign of a party not completely for grown-ups. Although that might be offset by the fact that if the three people who brought wine actually brought a six-pack each, we would have been pretty close to a zero sum event.

I went to foodandwine.com and raided a few recipes from their Super Bowl party guide. I now have a new and awesome go-to cornbread recipe, a delicious chili recipe that I modified heavily but left the secret ingredient (oh, ok...BACON!!!) and mojito jello shots that were simultaneously disgusting and captivating. We also had black bean sliders, steak tacos, salsa/guac/chips and 7-layer dip. Brady and I had a brownie-off which she may have won but that's because the people I invited have no taste. But that's ok- that's why we're all friends.

The BEST part about yesterday is that it finally gave Mechen and I the motivation to finish unpacking and cleaning. I love our house now and it feels so awesome and homey. Hooray for our new place!

Link
http://www.foodandwine.com/articles/super-bowl-blowout