Sunday, sunny Sunday

Yesterday was a beautiful day – we are getting rather spoilt with all this spring-like weather but I love it! Now if the warmth could be turned up a notch or two (or ten) then I’d be a very happy CJ. However, the next bout of sub-zero frosty days with winds whipping off the alps must be just around the corner I’m sure.

Yesterday Strewth and I were helping at the monthly vets run at Urambi Hills – a gently undulating 7km course – NOT! That’s why we were helping and not running. This course is one of the toughest monthly runs and after running it a couple of years ago I have since elected to help out instead (wimpy I know). My very important task was to give out the place cards to runners as they finished the long course. Its very interesting viewing the race from this perspective – the sights and sounds you witness as tired runners come hurtling down towards the finish line – with little ol’ me standing back hoping not to get steamrolled in the rush! Fortunately there were a few helpers to ensure that runners finished in some sort of order and I was able to hand out the cards without too much bother (tho’ my hands were frozen and I found it difficult to get them to function properly). Afterwards it was off to Babars for a well-deserved coffee (well it is a very important job handing out place cards!) – mind you, not that I need an excuse to go out for coffee.

I still had a long run to do for the weekend and somehow I managed to find time to nip out the doors after lunch – about 3.30pm. The plan was to run about 20-21km since I do have a half marathon next weekend and I haven’t run that distance since the end of July.

Session – long run
Distance – 21km
Time – 1hr 49.33min
Av pace – 5.13min/km
AHR – 156; MHR – 192

A good run – I ran down to Lake Ginninderra, around the lake and then home again along the cycle path. I had eaten about 7 large Darrell Lea liquorice allsorts (only the best) just before starting out and these repeated on me the entire way – all I could taste was liquorice (possibly not the best pre-race nutrition *LOL*). There were plenty of people out running and walking, with or without dogs, including one person with a little white fluffy ankle biter that was trying to take a chunk out of my ankles as I passed. I was pleased with the run and the fact that I pulled up okay, just a bit tired. However I don’t think I’ll be setting any PBs next week – I haven’t put in any consistent training.

CJ’s Cooking Misadventures (my latest project)

As a result of a 12 week challenge which I finished several weeks ago now I am trying to maintain my healthy eating habits (prior to this I was possibly the world’s laziest vegetarian – toast with peanut butter was my idea of a nutritious evening meal and chocolate goes with everything, doesn't it?!). This has meant becoming acquainted with my kitchen and all its utensils – I am the type of person who will buy the latest whiz bang piece of equipment and then it will spend the rest of its life in a cupboard until I have a garage sale and get rid of it (you know, the juicer, the sandwich press, the waffle maker, the vertical grill - tho, in all fairness, I did inherit that!) For example, we have an espresso machine (used a couple of times in the last 6 years), dripolator, several plungers, and a stove top percolator but guess how we make our coffee – yep, instant! Anyway now that I have a brand new modern kitchen I have decided that I need to be a bit more creative with my meals and so I have been….COOKING! My family have been amazed at this transformation into kitchen goddess (actually that’s probably not what immediately springs to their minds) but I’m still in two minds – a) it’s time consuming and b) it makes a lot of mess (but that might just be me) – so thank god for dishwashers.

This weekend I managed to make the Apricot Loaf, strawberry pancakes (though yesterday I decided to make a strawberry sauce using that Braun stick thingummy I was given several years ago but never used - I somehow managed to get strawberry gloop everywhere – there is obviously an art to using one of these things) and Layered Pasta Bake.

I can’t say I enjoy cooking yet but there is a certain feeling of satisfaction of producing something edible – even if the production is fraught with many little calamities along the way (running a marathon is easier). Anyway the plan is to try at least one new recipe a week.