Delay, Don't Deny

I'm just going to keep this super quick, because I want to get to bed soon. I'd like to get up early tomorrow to work on the garage some more. It's been SO HOT outside (mid-90's) and I'd rather work on it during the morning.

Anyway, I posted recently that I was reading a book called 'Delay, Don't Deny' by Gin Stephens (Amazon affiliate link). It's a book about intermittent fasting, and several people were curious if I was going to give it a try again.

I wasn't going to post about it yet, considering my history with this kind of stuff--making plans and then not following through--and I don't want this to be just another one of those times. However, since several people have asked, I do think that I'd like to try intermittent fasting again.

I did it as a 30-day experiment last year, and I really loved it. For once, I wasn't thinking about food all day; and I felt better mentally and physically. The problem was that I wasn't losing weight. None.

My clothes weren't getting looser either, which some people said would happen before seeing progress on the scale. So, I was frustrated. I really liked the lifestyle, but I didn't like that I wasn't losing weight.

Jerry started doing it a couple of months ago and he's dropped about 25 pounds! He really loves it, and it's inspiring me to do it as well. I listened to the audiobook The Obesity Code by Dr. Jason Fung (Amazon affiliate link) and I really loved it.

I actually bought the book (in paperback) a long time ago, but each time I started to read it, it sounded like it was going to be a low-carb, no-sugar, keto-type of book. I will never quit carbs or sugar, so I couldn't get past the first couple of chapters.

However, in listening to the audiobook, it went by much faster--and I learned that it's much less biased than I'd thought. It's very factual in HOW people gain and lose weight and it's very different from all the stuff we've heard for decades. He touches on fasting, but only at the end. Most of the book describes how weight loss works (physiologically).

I'm reading Delay, Don't Deny now, which is a much shorter, more basic book about intermittent fasting as a lifestyle. This is the approach Jerry has taken (I'll describe that in another post) and so I feel like I'd like to give it another try.

After listening to The Obesity Code, I realized a few things I was doing "wrong" (or at least things I could have been doing better) the first time I tried intermittent fasting. Now that I feel like I truly understand how it works, I think that I can work it to my advantage better and hopefully lose weight.

Another reason I'd like to try it is because of the chronic pain that I have. I've read about the health benefits of using fasting for reducing inflammation, so I'm curious to see if it would work for me.

I'll write in more detail about all this soon, but right now, I don't even know if I'll stick to it, considering my track record--so I'd like to give it some time before I write about how it's going. But I will write about how Jerry's been doing and what his schedule is as far as his fasting times.

Whether you're considering intermittent fasting or not, I highly recommend the book The Obesity Code. It's fascinating and really helps to understand how the body works (which then helps when deciding what/how much/when to eat for whatever the ultimate goal is (health, weight loss, etc).

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The MAX Incident and Aftermath

I recently got some news from my friend Thomas, in Portland, that I found to come at a good time amidst all of the craziness of 2020.

This involves a hate crime regarding race (from a few years ago) and because it struck rather close to me, I still think of it every so often.

In May 2017, I went to Portland to visit with my BFF. Whenever I go visit, I arrive at the airport and take the MAX (a light rail train system for public transportation that goes all over the city). Each train only has two cars, and it's a simple step-on step-off type system. I was really proud of myself for learning how to use it and being comfortable enough to do it myself! Especially from the airport.

By 2017, I knew the deal... go to the front of the airport and purchase a ticket for the MAX from a kiosk. Then you just step outside and the MAX will arrive shortly after (they run every five minutes or so).

The plan is that I buy my ticket, hop on the MAX, and then take it to a station that is convenient for Thomas to meet me. At that time, I was probably hypomanic due to starting new medications. Regardless, I was in a great mood when I stepped in line to buy my ticket. I was so excited to get on the MAX and go hang out with my friend!

I went to the kiosk and was in line behind a man who was taking a very long time getting his ticket. I don't think he spoke English, because when I offered to help, he seemed confused. So, I waited impatiently for him to finish, because after nearly five hours on a flight, I wanted to get moving!

Finally, I was able to purchase my ticket and stepped outside just as the MAX was leaving. So, I sat and waited for the next one. I sat down and texted Thomas, letting him know that I was on my way. At each stop, I told him, "Hey, I'm at such-and-such station!"

At one station, the train stopped to let people off. It was taking longer than usual for the train to start again. Eventually, people on the train were looking around, confused as to why it was taking so long. After a while, the conductor said that there was a delay and we'd get going soon. So, I waited a little longer.

I texted Thomas, asking what I should do. Then the conductor said that there was in incident in the train in front of us and that he wasn't sure how long it would take to get moving again. He didn't tell us what the "incident" was. Thomas texted me and said to just get off the train and walk to a particular building nearby and he would pick me up there in 20 minutes or so.

It was nice outside, so I dragged my suitcase over to a nearby building and just sat in the shade, enjoying just being there in Portland.

Eventually, Thomas showed up to pick me up, and all was good. The MAX still hadn't moved.

I totally forgot about the incident until the next day when I was scrolling through Facebook on my phone. I saw a headline that totally shocked me:

The story wasn't 100% clear that point, because the article was written just hours later. But here is the gist of what happened via this recent article.

There were two teenage black girls, Destinee Mangum, 16, and her friend, Walia Mohamed, 17. Mohamed is an immigrant from Somalia, and was wearing a hijab while on the MAX.

(Note: Because this post is regarding the sensitive topic of racism, I am not sure what words are politically correct because it seems to constantly be changing. So I really do not mean any offense if I use the wrong words regarding race--please correct me if I'm wrong).

According to the article, Jeremy Christian [the suspect] launched a racist, xenophobic rant on the crowded MAX train on May 26, 2017:

Witnesses said Christian [the suspect] unleashed a vile torrent about Muslims, Christians and Jews dying, spoke of beheadings and shouted, “Go home, we need American here!” Christian said he was exercising his right to free speech, and trying to get a reaction from the crowd.

Later, in an interview on LitHub.com, the girls described it like this:

"Destinee Mangum: We weren’t even supposed to be on the train that day. We got lost. We were on the train in the afternoon, when Christian got on at Lloyd Center. It’s a main stop in central Portland. For like eight minutes, he just yelled at us: “You’re nothing”; “Kill yourself”; “Get out of this country”; “Burn.” 

Walia Mohamed: “Muslims should die.” “Go back to Saudi Arabia.” As soon as he got on the train, he started yelling at us. It’s like our faces were a trigger. I felt like he was attacking me because I was wearing a hijab; Destinee was wearing something on her head, too. He was yelling stuff about Muslims and Christians as well. Plus, we’re both black. He was racist and didn’t like that either."

Two men on the train stepped between Christian and the teen girls--Taliesin Namkai-Menche, 23 years old, and Micah Fletcher, 21 years old. A man named Ricky Best, 53, was standing near Christian. Christian then shoved Namkai-Menche and Fletcher. Fletcher responded by shoving Christian a few times and telling him to get off the train.

(There are a few articles that said Best also stepped in, but the evidence presented at trial said he was "an innocent passenger standing next to Christian"; so I'm not sure which account is correct.)

Very quickly, Christian pulled out a knife and stabbed Namkai-Menche and Fletcher in their necks. Then Christian stabbed Best as well, even though Best had only been standing near him; Christian later stated, "I just assessed he was a threat," Christian said. "...He ended up collateral damage."

Namkai-Meche and Best each died of their injuries. Fletcher was wounded, but survived and testified at Christian's trial, which took place January 28, 2020. The sentencing was Wednesday, June 24.

Christian blamed Fletcher for the stabbings, saying, "Where I was brought up in North Portland, we defend ourselves. I did not commit an act of violence on that train."

He continued: “I do regret that two people died, but I do not regret my actions.”

And most shocking (to me): He said he unfairly has been labeled a racist.

Here is a photo of Christian at trial:

Several witnesses gave victim impact statements at the trial, some saying that they suffer from nightmares and PTSD.

This is why it hits me so hard, I think. The conductor had said there was "an incident" on the train in front of us, which was why we couldn't get moving... and I always wonder if that man at the airport hadn't taken so long to buy his ticket, would I have been on that train? What would I have done if a man started harassing two teen girls because of their race? I would like to say I'd try to be a hero and step in, but I honestly think I'd be too scared to.

I'm very lucky that I wasn't on that train because I can't even imagine the horror that the other passengers felt. I think it's amazing and heroic that the men stepped in for the girls, and so tragic that two men lost their lives while trying to help.

A photo of Taliesin Namkai-Meche, who passed away after being stabbed for stepping between Christian and the two targeted teen girls:

A photo of Ricky Best, a military veteran who also passed away after being stabbed by Christian. He left behind a wife, three sons, and a daughter:

A photo of Micah Fletcher, who survived the attack, and had a happy reunion with Destinee, one of the targeted girls on the train (along with her family):

The whole thing had me reeling when it happened, and like I said, I still think of it often. I was very curious to see what Christian's sentence would be, but since it's been three years, I hadn't searched for it much anymore on Google.

Thomas texted me after the sentencing to say that Christian received a life sentence without parole! I was thrilled to hear that. While there really isn't "justice" for a crime like this, at least he won't ever again be out on the streets to attack people for no reason other than the color of their skin. My heart breaks for the families of those that were impacted by what had happened. Reading the interview with the two girls was hard--I can't imagine what it would be like to be in that position.

Despite the horrible incident and the aftermath, I'm glad that this guy was sentenced to life in prison!

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RECIPE: Super Convenient Jambalaya

This recipe is kind of a "cheaters" recipe, because it uses a box of Zatarain's rice. However, that's what I love so much about it--it's super convenient and easy to throw together, and I almost always have these ingredients on hand specifically for this dish.

I started out using just sausage and the boxed rice; then I added corn; then I added tomatoes. You can obviously just add/subtract whatever you'd like! This recipe goes over well with my family. I rarely eat leftovers of anything (I get grossed out by leftovers for some reason!) but this is one that I really like to eat the next day.

Super Convenient Jambalaya:

Here is a printer-friendly version!

Ingredients;

1 Tbsp. olive oil
14 oz. package of smoked sausage (I like the Butterball Turkey smoked sausage)
1 box of Zatarain's rice, Jambalaya flavored (I will usually make this with two boxes to stretch it further... so if you do that, you just need to double the water. I leave the other ingredients the same, whether I use one or two boxes of rice)
2-1/2 cups water
1 (15 oz) can of diced tomatoes, drained
1 (15 oz) can of corn, drained

Directions:

Heat oil in a medium to large pot over medium-high heat. Cut the sausage lengthwise, and then lay the flat sides down and cut lengthwise again (so you have four long strips). Then slice it into bite-sized pieces along the length of it. (You'll have a bunch of little triangular shaped pieces.)

Add the sausage to the skillet and stir, cooking until it starts to brown on the edges. Then add the rest of the ingredients to the pot and bring to a boil. Cover the pot and reduce the heat to low.

Allow it to simmer for about 25 minutes, without stirring or removing the cover) until the rice is cooked. Turn off the heat and let it stand for about five minutes before serving.

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Fun progress with the garage!!

I know I've been writing about this a lot lately, but there isn't much more to write about. This garage has taken over all of my free time!

Like I wrote before, I bought the paint for the garage. Since we have so much random "stuff" in the garage, I've chosen to work on it in sections. Even with painting, I decided to do one wall at a time--with both primer and paint.

Today, I sanded one wall--I used sandpaper for the tougher spots and a damp sponge for the spots that looked pretty smooth as it was. Surprisingly, it was mostly smooth! There are a few spots that I am not happy with, but I did the best I could with what I had to work with--and because the studs gave me problems in certain areas, the drywall gave me problems. And since I'm not a professional, I had to just try my best.

Basically: It's not perfect. Nowhere near perfect. But I still like it much more than before!

Anyway, I wish I'd gotten a better "before" photo of this particular wall, but here are some progression photos:

The very beginning:

After adding insulation:

Adding the drywall:

Taping and mudding:

Finally... painting!

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The last two photos are nearly identical, only without/with paint (and Jerry, who had just woken up and come outside to see what I was up to). I sent the photos to my brother...

Hahaha! I wanted a color that was light enough to keep the garage from looking dark, but not SO light to show all of the scuffs that are sure to happen from moving things around in there.

From here, I still have to prime and paint the ceiling and the other three walls. Once I get all the painting done, I plan to put some sort of bead board or something to cover the concrete on the bottom part of the walls. And I will hang trim around the doorways, windows, and even the little ledges above the concrete wall.

I can't even describe how excited I am to get it done and have my garage back! There are a few projects I really want to work on, but I don't have access to my tools. I am hoping to be done within a week or so :)

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Fireworks, Noah's Birthday, and Independence Day Walk

Last night, we went to my brother Brian's house to watch his fireworks display. The cities aren't doing fireworks displays this year, but even if they were, they don't compare to Brian's. He puts work into his all year, and as a bit of a perfectionist, he makes sure that it's amazing. The house that he and Becky have been building is done, and their whole property is just awesome. Perfect for a fireworks show!

Here is a short clip (about 15 seconds); but the whole show was probably about 10 minutes long.

My sister and Shawn came in from Illinois (they both had COVID tests the day before) so it was really good to see them. I hadn't seen Shawn in three years. I've always been close with Shawn--I actually have more in common with him than I do my own siblings!

We also celebrated Noah's birthday (just my family at my parents' house) because that way Jeanie and Shawn could celebrate with us, too. Noah is going to be 16 years old in nine days!!! I can't believe it.

Noah wanted a cookie cake from Mrs. Fields. When we get cookie cakes, we always try to get the most frosting on it by extending the typical "Happy Birthday"--so "Happy 16th Birthday Noah Benjamin" would yield more frosting. Haha! (Usually, they write much bigger than they did on this one--it would have covered the whole cake)

Riley definitely approved of the frosting :)

Today, the scheduled walk for my Cookies Summer Run/Walk Challenge was the Independence Day Walk--walk four miles (for the 4th of July) while wearing red, white, and blue. This proved harder than I thought--practically NONE of my running shirts fit me. And I didn't have any that were red, white, and blue.

So, I settled for wearing my American flag compression socks.

Unfortunately, it was HOT today. I wore capris for the walk, but my socks came up to where my capris ended, so it looked ridiculous. But like I said, I'm determined to complete the list!

Jerry came with me and we brought Joey. About a mile in, we stopped to let Joey jump in the lake and cool off. Then we ended up walking him home because it was just too hot for him to be walking with us. We dropped him off at home and then walked a couple more miles on our own.

It was nice to go for a long, relaxing walk together without any real agenda!

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June Recap and July To-Do List

I like that I wrote a "to do" list instead of a list of goals last month. For some reason, calling it a "to do" list seemed less intimidating than setting goals. So, if I can manage to remember, I'd like to do this monthly.

For June, my To-Do List was as follows:

• Finish hanging the drywall in the garage
• Dye my hair (my grays were horrible!)
• Spring clean the house
• Read one book
• Use up all the meat we have in the freezer
• Open the box with my new serger and actually try it out!
• Start the annual Runs for Cookies Summer Run/Walk Challenge
• Clear out my inbox

I did fairly well with these! I didn't complete them all (or at least entirely) but I did knock a few off.

- I finished hanging the drywall (both walls and ceiling) and I actually got most of the taping and mudding done, too! I didn't expect to get that far with it at all, but I worked on it a LOT. There was a period of about a week where I just didn't want to even look at it, so I didn't; but I made up for that time tenfold once I started the mudding. This is what it looked like while I was hanging the drywall on the ceiling (and the insulation):

- I did color my grays--finally. The box of dye had dust on it because it sat there for three months during the quarantine! Unfortunately, I also decided to cut my hair differently than I usually do, and it was WAY too short for my liking. I just want it to grow back right NOW.

- I did not spring clean the house to my liking, but I did do some things that needed it. I don't feel bad about this, however, because I got a LOT of the garage done. The taping and mudding is done, and now I am ready to sand and paint!

- I've actually been reading two books, and I'm in the middle of both of them. So, this is a yes/no as far as whether I completed it. I'm reading "The Happy Runner" and "Delay, Don't Deny" (Amazon affiliate links) I like them both so far!

- I used up about half of the meat we had in the freezer. I think all I have left is the seafood--salmon, mahi-mahi, and shrimp. The problem is that we all (Jerry, Noah, Eli, and I) have different tastes, and it's hard to make a meal out of one particular item. I like all three of those; Jerry will eat them, regardless; as far as the kids, one of them likes salmon, the other does not (and the same for mahi-mahi and shrimp).

I used some frozen chicken breasts to make some Chicken Taco Soup. (Actually, while I was working the drywall, I told Noah to make it--it's so simple! You just throw everything in the slow cooker. And Noah felt proud that he made it himself.)

- I did open my serger and I tried it out for a short period one day. But today, I actually used it to mend a couple of shirts! The armpit seam came apart in a shirt of Eli's and a shirt of mine, so I used the serger to fix them. I couldn't believe how easy it was and how good it looked! SO much easier than using the sewing machine for that.

I also unthreaded the multi-colored threads (shown below) that came with the machine and I threaded the machine myself with white--which is a big step! With four spools, it's intimidating. This is what it looked like straight out of the box, and I did the practice piece just to keep note of what each color did in the stitches).

- I did start the annual Runs for Cookies Summer Run/Walk Challenge on the day of the summer solstice. I didn't do as many walks/runs as I would have liked so far, but I am still working on them. I feel really determined to complete the list this summer! So far, I have only been walking (no running) and I'm okay with that. As long as I complete it, I will be happy. Here is a photo from my "Penny Pincher" walk yesterday:

- I did not clear out my inbox; nor did I even come close. With making the face masks and then having so many of them get lost in the mail, I was emailing a lot of people about those. But I need to schedule a day that I dedicate solely to working on my inbox. If you've written me and are awaiting a reply, I am SO sorry... I will get to it soon!

I want to say that I don't avoid my inbox for negative reasons; I'm just the type of person who likes to reply individually to people that write me and I tend to get wordy (surprise surprise! My blog posts aren't wordy at ALL, hahaha). So, emails are not a nuisance (except for the spam ones)... I just need to set aside time to dedicate solely for that purpose. If I haven't gotten back to you, I promise that it's not personal.

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So, I think of June's list as a success. I'm happy with what I've done, even if it's not "complete". As far as July goes, here is my "to do" list:

Prime and paint the garage

This is the fun part! Now that the mudding is done, I can start making it look like a "finished" garage. And then I'll get to hang trim and do finishing touches. And then FINALLY have my garage back again!

Clear out my inbox

As I said, I didn't do this at all in June. So, I'm going to try to make it a priority in July. Now that Jerry is working nights, it'll be easier. I can use the evenings to work on my blog and emails and all of that. (Not that I couldn't do it when he was working days--but I liked spending time with him in the evenings.)

Touch up paint around the house

This sounds odd, but I've noticed a few nicks and scratches here and there in the paint from moving things around (even from when we installed the flooring) so I want to touch that up. I still have the leftover cans of paint for this purpose.

Make a plan for the front porch

This is SO frustrating! We've had several people come out to give us estimates on how much the porch will cost, and we've asked a couple of them to do it; however, they don't call us back. I really want a concrete porch, but if we can't get someone to give us a definitive date soon, then I might just have to build a porch with wood. Then maybe in a few years we can try again. Our porch is literally falling apart and it's a hazard to even step on! We literally cannot wait another season to do it.

This is horribly embarrassing to post, but this is what it looks like now, so you can see why I am desperate:

My dream was to have a 10x16 concrete slab close to the ground (so we wouldn't need a railing). I wanted to put some chairs out there so I can sit and drink my tea in the mornings. Right now, I just sit on the steps of our porch that is falling apart. The porch itself makes the exterior of the house look shabby.

Pull out the enormous bushes on each side of the house

These things are daunting, but they need to come out. The guy who sprayed the house to keep the spiders away said that these bushes are basically "spider magnets". I also want to pull the weeds from the landscaping. Basically, we need to redo the landscaping altogether, but for now, I just want to take care of those bushes. (Shrubs? Bushes? I don't know the difference, and a Google search wasn't very specific.)

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Okay, I'd say that's a pretty big list for July. I might even have to start cross country practices this month! Technically, I can start them whenever I want to, but last year we started in mid-July. Renee is going to coach with me with year(!) and I'm so excited about that. We are going to get together soon and talk about it.

Well, I am going to my brother's tonight to watch his fireworks show (which is amazing--literally, it's better than the city's fireworks). Have a great 4th of July tomorrow! (And if you're doing the Cookies Summer Challenge, I can't wait to see your red, white, and blue running/walking outfits!)

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Penny Pincher Walk

I planned on writing my July "to do" list today, but I have been so busy that I haven't even had a chance to think about my list.

I woke up at 6:00 and felt really good. I slept through the night from 12:00 until 6:00! That's a huge improvement for me. And I know exactly why it is, too--Jerry's first day back to working on midnights was yesterday, so I had the bed to myself. When I woke up at 6:00, I was surprised to see that I actually felt energetic.

I saw the list on my nightstand for my Cookies Summer Challenge, so I decided to pick an item from the list and go out for a walk. I chose the "Even Split Walk", where you walk 3+ miles with each mile time being within five seconds of each other.

When I went outside, I saw that the fish flies were bad again. I thought they were done hatching, but I was wrong. Still, I was dressed to walk three miles, so I just kept going. A few minutes into the walk, I noticed that I hadn't turned my Garmin on!

Anyway, I wasn't far into the walk when I noticed a dime lying on the ground. I picked it up and decided to count it as my Penny Pincher Walk (finding a coin while out walking/running) instead of doing the Even Split Walk. It's not always guaranteed you'll find a coin while out walking, so now I was able to knock that off my list.

Shortly after that, I found another dime (it was hard to tell whether it was a dime or a penny, because it was SO scuffed up and dirty. A little ways later, I found a penny. And then another. And another! All of the coins were spaced throughout the route. It's clear I haven't been running in a while, because I certainly would have picked them up!

I did see another penny, but it was embedded into the asphalt and I couldn't pull it out.

At first, I was walking at a fairly comfortable, enjoyable pace. After a mile and a half or so, I noticed my heart rate was 118 bpm. I was curious how fast I'd have to walk to get it into the MAF training zone (at my age, 38, my zone is 132-142).

I started walking really fast, and my heart rate was barely climbing. I picked up the pace as quickly as I could, and I saw that as I was approaching the end of mile two, I was able to dip into the MAF zone at 132 bpm. Out of curiosity, I decided to see if I could do a full mile in my MAF heart rate zone.

It was tough! I was walking as fast as I could throughout the whole third mile, but I actually did it! I even got toward the top of the zone a couple of times.

I don't know if I'd want to do that all the time (it's not easy!) but it'll be nice to see if walking regularly will help me get faster. I'll have to go faster if I'm able to stay in that zone. Or, just start running again.

Anyway, it was a great walk and I love that I was done with it nice and early. (Also, it was 93 degrees this afternoon!) I had enough energy left to work on the garage some more. I am 99% done!

Tomorrow, I am going to sand it. Today, I bought the paint for it (and I was in sticker shock--I forgot just how expensive paint is). I had to buy a five-gallon bucket of primer, a 5-gallon bucket of paint, and a few gallons of ceiling paint (I'm sure I'll end up needing more, but I didn't want to buy a five gallon bucket if I don't need that much).

I had absolutely no idea what color to choose for the walls. I wanted something light, so that the garage wouldn't look dark and dreary. But I didn't want anything so light that all the little scuff marks from things in there will show up easily. So, I ended up picking Sherwin Williams Argos, the same color that is in my kitchen and dining room (a very light gray).

I can't wait to get started with the painting! I hope I did a good enough job on the taping and mudding so that the paint looks good. As my brother always reminded me when I was working on my house, "Paint doesn't hide the flaws, it just changes the color of them". Haha! Very true, I've realized.

Okay, I'll recap June and write about my July checklist tomorrow.

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Creative Ice Cream Flavors Day Walk/Run

After working so hard on the drywall in the garage on Monday, I was SO sore. When I woke up on Tuesday, I declared that it was going to be a total rest day.

So I literally didn't do much of anything yesterday. I set up a cozy spot on the couch, watched a couple of documentaries and played Best Fiends on my phone. I should have been replying to emails or something, but I truly just didn't want to do anything productive.

And you know what? It felt great! I felt a little guilty at first but I got over it and enjoyed the day.

Today, I woke up sore again and I was tempted to do another "nothing" day; but I couldn't do that. I really am looking forward to finishing up the garage. I went out there late-morning and worked into the mid-afternoon. I am SO happy that I finished getting all of the drywall tape over the seams and put the first coat of mud on them. Just a little left to go!

To totally finish the mudding and sanding, I probably have about four hours of work left. Then, I'll be ready to prime and paint!! I can't even tell you how exciting that will be. By the end of next week, I should be ready to add trim to the windows and attach the light fixtures.

Anyway, today is one of those odd made-up holidays... Creative Ice Cream Flavors Day. Fun, right?

When making my checklist for the Cookies Summer Run/Walk Challenge this year, I added a run/walk on this day... basically, do your run or walk and then follow up with an ice cream (preferably a creative one!) and share it to the Facebook page.

After working in the garage again today, I was hot and tired and I really didn't want to go for a walk. However, I really want to complete the challenge this year, and today's walk wasn't optional if I want to complete the entire list.

I decided to go for a "stroll". If I hadn't taken Joey with me, I probably would have liked to walk a few miles; but I had Joey, so I just did a few blocks of my neighborhood (a little over a mile) and called it quits. Joey just pulls on the leash and then starts jumping when he sees another dog (he never barks--but he gets crazy excited). It's a workout just to walk him, and I just wanted a relaxing stroll while listening to an audiobook.

I know this sounds absolutely crazy, but I actually haven't been into ice cream lately. Like, I can't even remember the last time I ate it! I haven't even been eating many sweets--I've been all about potato chips this year (dill pickle Lay's are the BEST). And the thought of ice cream just didn't sound very good, but I figured I could just have a little to count it toward my ice cream walk.

I let the kids pick some out at the corner store (they chose chocolate chip cookie dough). Since that didn't seem creative, I put a couple of small spoonfuls in a bowl and then added some toppings. I decided to make it a "monster cookie" flavor--I added dry oatmeal, chocolate chips, coconut, raisins, and peanut butter.

I didn't really expect to like it, but it was surprisingly good! Hopefully it won't start me down an ice cream path again ;)

I'll recap my June "To Do" list tomorrow and write a new one for July. Today went by so fast!

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RECIPE: Keema

I feel like every time I post a recipe, I say that it's my favorite food ever. But this dish is truly on my top five list. I have no idea what "Keema" really is, but I found a similar recipe years ago on SparkPeople and it sounded interesting, so I gave it a try. (The original uses beef, but my family prefers ground turkey instead.)

It is SO GOOD. It sounds a bit odd when looking at the ingredients, but I promise it's worth trying. I never would have thought to put these ingredients together. I'm so glad I tried it, though! It's very simple but it tastes amazing.

Here is a printer-friendly version!


Keema

Ingredients:

2 tsp olive oil
1 pound ground turkey
1 onion, chopped
1-2 large peeled diced potatoes (about 10-12 oz) (the potato in the photo looks yellow because of the curry powder--but I just use regular russet potatoes)
1 cup frozen peas
1 (15 oz) can of diced tomatoes
1 (15 oz) can of crushed tomatoes
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ginger
1 Tbsp curry powder
Cooked white rice for serving

Directions:

Heat oil in a skillet over medium high heat and add the onion and ground turkey. Cook until the turkey is browned. Add the potatoes, tomatoes, cinnamon, ginger, and curry powder.

Bring to a boil, then cover and reduce heat to low and simmer for 25 minutes. Add the peas halfway through cooking time. (Add water if it becomes too thick. It should have the consistency of chili).

Serve over rice. Makes 4 generous servings.

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My Aching Muscles!

Today has been an exhausting day--my body hasn't ached this much in a long time!

Since we got the garage set up yesterday to make it easier for me to work on the drywall, I decided to start on it first thing this morning. I went out to the garage at 8:00 and got right to work taping and mudding the drywall.

Being Monday, a couple of my favorite podcasts released their weekly episodes, so I was excited to listen to them. I also downloaded a couple of new podcasts to listen to as well, and I really like one that I listened to today. It's a true crime podcast called Going West.

At around 10:00, my parents came over with Luke and Riley (my nephew and niece). The kids had stayed the night at my parents' house and my mom wondered if they could come over and swim in our neighbor's pool. I checked with him last night to make sure it was okay (he put up the pool a couple of months ago and told us we could use it any time--we hadn't taken advantage of that until today).

I don't like to swim, but I stopped working on the garage so I could go watch Luke and Riley swim. They are so cute! I cannot believe how fast they're growing. My mom and Eli got in the pool with the kids.

When they were getting ready to go back to my parents' house, Luke asked if he could come inside to see the kittens, so I brought him in the house. When he was leaving, we was waving bye to everyone, including the pets. As he was walking out the door, he called out, "Bye! If you need anything, just give us a call!"

I was dying laughing. I'm assuming that he's heard Brian and Becky say that as they leave people's houses. It was so cute! Kids really do pay attention to every little thing that we do and say, that's for sure.

After they left, I went right back into the garage to work. Jerry took Eli fishing and I wanted to get as much done as possible while they were gone to hopefully surprise Jerry with my progress. I couldn't believe how much faster it went now that we made more space in the garage!

I was able to finish taping about 90% of the garage. I stayed out there all afternoon, and finally came inside at around 4:00. My legs felt like I'd been doing squats all day (when I'm on the ladder, my legs are constantly flexed while I keep my balance). It's a tough workout.

I took a cold shower and then just plopped myself on the couch and didn't move. My muscles were dead. It was nice to just chill and play Best Fiends on my phone while Jerry made dinner. Tomorrow, I'm going to see if I can get a second coat of mud on everything that I taped today! If I can even get out of bed--right now I feel super stiff, haha.

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