food

atthequillsmercy

Update: Words and Runs

Even though JustRun was supposed to be a 25-minute session, I did some more walking after it was done. I just don’t feel right doing less than 30 minutes. I also did a 40-minute Wirk session at my desk at work as I went through some books. Pretty soon, I’ll have a clearer desk.

One of the big decisions I made was to stop my weight loss medication. If you follow me on BlueSky, I’d mentioned this and as I’ve only been off it for a two days, I haven’t noticed a difference in my hunger. It takes at least 3 days for it to completely leave your system (typically). Tonight, that salad – that was sadly disappointing which is a shame because I was really looking forward to it – was too much and I handed the rest off to my kid (who also was disappointed). I am hopeful that I can be just as active and keep in control of my eating without the drugs.

Now, on to the writing stuff.

While I am technically behind, I finally finished the part of the book where I had to dig back three books to find the exact scene and get the details right. The next step is new things I’ve mentioned in previous books, but never really dug into the details. And since I was out from work for a bit, I spent a good chunk of the day catching up on whatever was waiting for me. I don’t want to think about how much more is left for me (how all these books built up without anyone asking me if they should be pulled in the first place is a mystery) but I’ll still manage to get my words in somehow. Even if I had to park it on the desk bike instead of running. Technically, my goal is to finish this book, not to hit 50k words in a month. I’m already hip deep in this book and it’s probably 30-40k words already.

Don’t be impressed. I started this story in 2018.

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Blessed Samhain and Happy Halloween!

I have been working out over the last few days and gave increasing my speed a try. I was able to hold it really well, but after two days in a row of running, I decided a long walk was in order for yesterday (not pictured). Today, other than hitting up a Pokémon Go raid, I didn’t workout. I did my annual Samhain cleaning and smudged the entire house with sage. I’m ready for the wheel to turn and hopefully better times as I remember those who have gone on before me.

Since I’ve been getting more active in general, I treated myself to my little at home, bootleg hotpot/grill. It’s just so much fun to do and so delicious. And no, that’s no too much garlic. There’s no such thing.

But the real star of the show is the Samhain stew.

I got the recipe from the above book and of course I tweaked it. I use rice instead of barley. I set up the rice cooker and that cooks while I put the stew together. By the time it’s done simmering, the rice is ready. Personally, I like my scallions crunchy when I eat them, but I love this meal. I usually only make this once a year. To be fair, it’s just chicken and rice soup and I could make it whenever. I like it when it’s special, though. Whether your Pagan like me or not, may we all have a better year.

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Today’s (and yesterday’s) workout: Aww, it’s over?

With these two runs, I’ve completed the new Zombies Run! missions that came out, and I’m a bit sad about it. I have a bunch of Venture missions I can do while I wait for any new material they’re cooking up, but I can’t wait to see what they come up with. Will they continue with the storyline from before the change in management or continue down the line with something completely new? Even so, these short runs are still pretty easy, and I feel like that’s a good thing. I would rather know my stamina has room to improve slowly as these runs get longer than have been reset back to one again. I like the feeling of the slow progression of speed and time. It makes me feel like I’m accomplishing something.

I am a sucker for Fall products, so I gave the Trader Joe’s Pumpkin Croissants a try and they’re pretty good. It came in a pack of 2 and I gave the other one to my son, who basically had the same reaction. I didn’t find them disappointing! Just not sure if they’re worth the calories unless I have a specific craving; like for the Caesar salad that I ate for lunch. I still have some cherry tomatoes from the yard to use up since the cold has made the plant wither. Together, that was plenty of calories for the day. Today, I had some spicy chili naan for lunch and lemon pepper chicken wings with spicy rice. I’m probably breaking a bunch of cooking rules by cutting up a jalapeño and throwing it in the rice cooker from the beginning, but it tastes amazing. Mix a bit of salted butter and some of the lemon pepper from the wings for in it… That’s going into the rotation, for sure. Since I’m still scraping together money for a new oven, I’ve been cooking everything in the air fryer. I’m hoping I can get all that in order before the end of November: prime cookie baking season! It’s tiring because I’m getting old but I love cooking for people and giving these cookies as gifts. I’d hate to miss a year again because of not only being short on money, but not having an oven to make them in.

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Today’s Workout: That was too easy

I thought that restarting the 5k trainer in Just Run would be better for me after taking a break for NYCC. Today was day 2, and it has been deceptively easy so far. Not easy enough for me to jump back to the 10k trainer, but apparently, all the work I’ve been doing so far was effective. My form was good, my pace held steady, and other than the aches and pains of being 45, I wasn’t even sore after! I’m just gonna keep to the 5k trainer for now, finish it, then maybe move on to the 10k trainer. My focus should be on strength training. I keep saying that, then completely forgetting to do it. I’m sure my son wouldn’t mind if I used the weight bench I bought for him sometimes. He’s trying to bulk up.

Other than some snacks (I still love my wasabi almonds), I didn’t eat much today. This was my only meal, and it was plenty for me. I just wasn’t that hungry. And one of the main things I stick to is that if I’m not hungry, I don’t eat. It may seem like a very low-calorie amount for an entire day… That’s what the Saxenda is for, right? And I figure as long as I have energy to get through the day and I take my vitamins to keep my nails from separating (I can’t tell if my hair is thinning, because I rock a buzz cut happily), I think I’m doing ok. I believe I have blood work coming up soon. If I have any deficiencies, my doctor will tell me.

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Today’s Workout: Save the dog!

I debated on titling this entry “send in the clown” but – spoiler? – the clown isn’t a major player in most of this episode. However, these aren’t reviews of the episodes (even though they’re great); it’s about Lenni’s Legs. Which, surprisingly, not only made it through this workout, but they didn’t feel like they’d been through a cheese grater. And I didn’t feel the need to crawl into bed after the runner’s high wore off. Maybe I can actually keep this up? I still want to make sure these intervals are easy for me before I try the longer ones. The next week sessions are 15 minute intervals, not 10. Any other runners out there will tell you, those 5 minutes are a BIG difference. There are two sure fire ways to feel every second of time passing: when you’re waiting for the microwave to finish, and when you’re running an interval. I am trying to maintain my form and use my thighs more instead of my calves. Not to be completely gross but if you’ve ever seen My 600lb Life, when they start to lose weight, skin/fat hangs oddly. That’s what’s happening to my inner thighs and I hate it. I’m hoping that I can fill out my thigh muscles like my calves to offset whatever the fuck is going on.

I’m sure some auditors will say that muffins aren’t healthy and probably not. But, I love trying seasonal items and these were okay. Kinda worth the calories. I like the Trader Joe’s pumpkin muffin mix better; especially when you dump some dark chocolate chips in before baking. But my oven is broken… I am sincerely hoping I sell enough books to get out of debt and get it either fixed or replaced before baking season really kicks into gear. As for dinner, I’m working on clearing out the freezer. I had a random skirt steak, so I decided on steak and eggs to replenish my protein. And because it’s delicious.

And I gave the rest of those muffins to my son. He loves them, apparently.

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WIP Wednesday: Kitchen Sink and Patreon Update!

I’ve been behind, so this update is a bit of everything:

I figured that doing these long runs back to back may feel like something that productive but will likely not be effective. So, I took a break and had a nice walk to break things up. These runs are getting easier and I don’t wanna fuck it up by overdoing it and hurting myself. Also, I feel WIPED after those long runs. My body hits a wall around 4-6PM and all I wanna do is sleep. I’m taking that as a sign my body needs the recovery.

There are different tomatoes growing in my hard now! No clue how but I’m not about to question free food in this economy. And it’s just nice to pick things out of the yard and put them in a nice salad. But sometimes, salad doesn’t cut it. It’s fall, I feel the cooler weather, and out comes the slow cooker! That chili is ground beef and elk with some delicious chips as a side. Sometimes you eat something and it just heals your soul. I have a good sized batch of this, so it’ll be on repeat and I’ll freeze some for days when I need something quick.

As for writing, I released another erotica short under the other penname and updated my Patreon with the start of the “There, I Fixed It” series! It’ll have it’s own category on there and once it’s complete, I think I’ll offer it for free on my blog. I did do some lazy Googling about the copyright and the stupid AI that won’t let me turn it off said that what I’m doing is original enough to probably not get sued, but I’d rather not risk it by charging for it. Putting it for free will give anyone interested a chance to have the entire thing in one go rather than go through the Patreon posts once it’s finished. Or maybe, if I can figure out how it works, I’ll do an optional tip deal through Buy Me A Coffee or something. I would like to finish it, run through some editing, then release it in one go. As far as I’m concerned, the Patreon posts are clean drafts but not final drafts, if that makes any sense. But perhaps I’m getting ahead of myself. I should actually finish something instead of starting something new before I start pondering how I’m going to deal with the finished product. Hopefully, I can blast through my word goals over the next couple days.

 

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Workout Catch Up: They make me eepy…

While these longer runs are getting easier, they make me so sleepy. I opted to repeat week one in Just Run to make sure I can get through the intervals without a break and yes, it’s working. But if I do these runs first thing in the morning, I crash before the end of the day. By the time I have to cook dinner, my eyes are at half mast. I did a run on Saturday, fully intending to run again on Sunday before I went to work, but I slept through my alarm because my body went “Nah, you’re resting. End of discussion.” Maybe running daily will help my screwed up sleep schedule…

Since I’ve been working so hard, I’ve been stressing protein in my meals. That’s a chicken Caesar wrap and a bison burger with homemade fries. My son wanted to try one and I figured it’d be a nice new experience for him and a treat for me. Other than that, it’s been the usual stuff or very small snacks. I have extra time this week, clearly. If I ever learn to roll a wrap properly, I’ll probably be eating those all the time but that was a pick up order. It’s heading into crockpot season and I can’t wait to start making chili and stew again. All in all, I’m sure earlier on in the day, I had something super profound to say but now my brain is mush and I need to be in bed. Tomorrow I’d like to post the first “There I Fixed It” part to my Patreon and for that, I need my two brain cells to be on the same page.

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Workout Dump: New Missions!

I needed a break from running for almost an hour on Sunday, so I did some walking and the Wirk peddler up till today. It was still rough going, but I was able to hold my pace well. My form, not so much. I need to work on that. And I got the chance to get into the new missions on Zombies Run! It still sucks that the original Abel is gone… But as for my actual fitness, these long runs are a bitch to be motivated to do. Once I get on the treadmill, it’s fine. It also gives me a chance to catch up on my very long list of things I wanna watch.

Sadly, the Hello Kitty collab is done, so now I go back to not even thinking of McDonald’s as an option for food. But I seem to be all about the sandwiches lately. If I ever save up enough money for a new oven, I’ll be baking my own bread instead of buying it. I love to play around with flavors, and it’s cheaper! Win-win! Not that I should be having a lot of carbs anyway. I’m not the type of person to demonize carbs, but I do need to keep them under control if I want to lose more weight. Making more things at home puts more control in my hands. I can literally make half a loaf or a couple of buns instead of buying expensive bread from the store and feeling pressured to use it all up before it grows fur. And even though I’m tired after work and overtime and all my side stuff, I do enjoy baking! I make little gift bags of Pagan cookies for the Solstice for my friends and everyone at work nearly every year. I think I’m doing pretty good overall. It’s been a long week.

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Workout Dump: Doubling up

It’s probably not the best idea to do the desk peddler and a run on the same day, but I feel like if I have the energy, I should take advantage of it. I don’t do that every day, though. I’m sure it’s terrible for my joints to do so, and some random professional will come across my little blog and scold me, especially as I go through menopause. But a calorie burnt is a calorie burnt, and I’ll take it.

Yes, I was bad and made another trip to McDonald’s to see what toy I could get, and I was not disappointed. I should probably stop now, but I really want the Cinnamoroll x Destoroyah toy. It’s dumb, I know, but the little gremlins make me happy. Other than that, my usual Itaki meal is making the rounds, and the price of lettuce is surprisingly going down, giving me more chances to have a nice salad. I did pick bacon as a protein, and I am aware that’s not the healthiest choice. I just need a break from tuna sometimes. I still have to chill out with the salt, which I tend to go ham on when I’m stressed out or on my period. That’s always been a struggle but I’m doing better.

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Today’s Workout: Much needed whimsy

Not that I would ever be happy working late every day, but it is really nice to get a workout out of the way first thing in the morning, then go about the rest of my day. I did slow my pace this time and didn’t wear the weights, but I bumped up the incline. And I still love this set of Venture missions. They’re so interesting!

Soooooo, McDonald’s is doing a Hello Kitty and Godzilla collab, and much like with the Kpop Demon Hunters collab, I headed out to see if I could score a cool toy. I didn’t get the one I wanted, but it’s still cute! And a kid’s meal of 4 nuggets and tiny fries is only around 300-400 calories. Other than feeling blegch for eating McDonald’s at all, it didn’t destroy my caloric deficit for the day. I was able to score some yu choy on sale, and the little tweak of using the mini ramen still worked for keeping overall calories under control. It’s so sad how tickled I am about that toy. I will take any bit of cuteness I get my hands on. Yes, I will try a different store to see if I can get the Hello Kitty or Cinnamoroll toys. They just tailor-made this to mine my wallet, didn’t they…

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