cast iron tastebuds

Well I am glad to say that I survived my encounter with the PORK ON FIRE. To be honest it didn't seem all that spicy to me, I never felt the exquisite balance between pain and pleasure the reviews promised.

My date on the other hand was in quite a bit of discomfort. He got another highly recommended dish, the larb gai, which he couldn't even finish eating. I tried it, but wasn't phased at all by the seasoning.

Therefore I crown myself queen of all hot foods, warrior of the spice. My gullet may not be able to handle too many raw vegetables on any given day but by god I can eat spicy food. Bring on the next challenging dish!!

Oh, and btw yes you did read that I was on a date. So if on a second date the person talks about their job from sit down, thru ordering, appetizers, and then dinner do you think that is much? No varying from the subject either, my job (or life) didn't get a single inquiry. It was so bad that after finishing the main course I excused myself to the powder room and requested that upon my return we change the subject.

Not a good sign, right? Yeah.

To be fair I'm open to the possibility the excessive one sided convo could be chalked up to nerves on his part. So date number three will be in effect. A movie next Tuesday when I'm back from Detroit. Granted we won't get a chance to talk until after the flick...so we'll see then.

be brave

Ah, tonight I dine here. And do not be fooled, I will indeed try the Pork On Fire.

Can I take it? Well I guess we'll have to see...

filler

Well I did it. I ran my nine races to qualify for the 2010 ING New York Marathon.

To be honest I'm kinda 'meh' about it. You would think I'd be all proud, since I couldn't run at all at the beginning of the year and once I could I had to literally run every race (save one I was sick for) that was a qualifier to get where I am now.

This year I ran every NYRR race from July on. Even the last two weekends in the freezing cold weather. This past Saturday was a 20 degree 15k. That is a really cold temperature to run over an hour and a half.

Do I even want to run the marathon? I still don't know. I think I'm just looking for a new goal, something significant to work towards and another 26.2 acts as good filler.

You know, maybe I should make a really kick ass vacation my next goal. Believe it or not I only used half of my vacation time so I could carry the rest over. This means I have 22 vacation days to use in 2010. That is a whole month.

Or I cash out as much of my vacation time (which I can do, $$$$!) when I quit the corporate life to be my own boss.

Or maybe I could make some extra cash on the side as my own boss and still take that month long vacation. But is that the chicken way out? Doesn't everyone say if you want it you have to dare to do it? Conventional wisdom says that only those who take big risks get big rewards.

The naughts are over, seems like I need to get my priorities in check and pick a direction to head in. Enough of walking in circles, I've got places to go.

back to the drawing board

Well, it seems the raw diet really doesn't heal all.

Since doing the raw until dinner I have felt good about myself, proud of eating such healthy foods.

Unfortunately my Crohn's didn't feel the same way. I've had a couple of mini flareups. Nothing to send me to the hospital, just a couple of sleepless nights. Including last night.

So I'm going to back it up a bit. Still going to be as unprocessed as possible (now that I have the knack) but will eat myself cooked meals like the rest of the universe. Ayruvedic methodology never really supported the raw lifestyle, so maybe I'll read up more on that kind of diet.

But before I go back to whole foods I'll need to liquid it up a couple of days to rest the ole' intestines. Kind of like RICE therapy for running injuries (rest, ice compression, elevation) you gotta stay off the gimp leg while it heals.

Too bad I just got a fresh direct delivery...let's see how long that food can keep.

nature vs nurture

Are there certain things about us that are inherent? Great philosophers have debated this idea for centuries.

Me, I decide to give up coffee and start running in the morning and I come to some surprising conclusions.

Coffee makes me happy. There, I said it. This morning I woke up kind of dragging with a slight case of the stupids and I decided to treat myself to a cup of java. Just a small cup from Dunkin Donuts, nothing crazy.

One little beverage later and I am in a terrific mood. My thoughts are clearer and my work ethic has doubled.

Why did I even stop? The detox. And I did the detox was because I was so tired I relied on up to six cups of coffee a day just to feel baseline normal. Once my body was free of caffeine and toxins I promised myself to maintain my new found health. Meaning that I swore off my favorite beverage.

Yes, you read that correctly. I love coffee more than I love booze.

Also against what I perceive as my nature I decided to start getting up early in the mornings to run. So I began going to bed early and doing exactly that.

This lead me to realize that I hate my life when I go to bed early. Really, it is that simple. My life just seems so boring to me if I hit the hay before 10:30. Which just brings me down altogether. Once the thrill of being that person who gets up in the morning for a run wore off I realized I really didn't like being an early to bed kinda gal.

Thus I've decided that my state of mental well being outweighs my drive for certain kinds of ideals. I like being a happy, hardworking, energetic night person.

So is that my nature? Or is my nature to strive to be content? Then again maybe I'm just too judgemental about myself. I tried a couple of things out that didn't stick, there are things that have changed about me over the years. How quick we are to forget our accomplishments.

The key I suppose is to keep trying new things, because amidst the failures we can find the things that indeed will change us to better ourselves.

For me that journey will happen all the while drinking coffee (tempered qtys now, that is new) and staying up late.