Friday, March 31, 2006
Thursday, March 30, 2006
Wednesday, March 29, 2006
 I can't believe I finally scooped Helen! On Sunday the Snook and I walked down to Darling Harbour to check out the big Greek Festival. It was beautiful and sunny and hot and crowded. We had some food and watched some dancers. I had a great time! (The Snook was less entranced: "I'm not emo; I just hate people." We saw that graffito once and it's become a catchphrase.) I even took my camera... [more...]
I just had a sudden realization. The path around Centennial Park is 3.7 kilometers, which equates to 2.29 miles. Last week with Albert pushing me I managed to finish it in 'round about 22 minutes... which means I ran a sub-ten-minute mile. Whoa! Remember back a few years ago when I was struggling to break 12:00? When the heck did this happen? I am so inspired I think I'm actually going to go the athletics field tonight and run on the track. I haven't run on a track since high school. Later: Do you know how many laps around a track you have to run to run ten kilometers? TWENTY FRICKIN' FIVE. And I did it! My longest run in probably eleven years. Unfortunately I forgot my pedometer so I don't have an accurate time for it, but going by the watch of the drunk maintenance guy at the field, it took me about 65 minutes or so. And that, my friends, is excellent. I wasn't pushing too hard at all so I definitely think the 60 is achievable. There weren't a lot of other people at the field, and towards the end it was just me chugging around while a bunch of guys had soccer practice in the middle. At one point a ball came flying towards me and I picked it up. "I'm American!" I yelled apologetically. "I can't kick for shit!" So I tossed it back to them as they laughed. "You run good though!" one of them replied. I'm gettin' there, buddy.
Tuesday, March 28, 2006
Monday, March 27, 2006
Sunday, March 26, 2006
Saturday, March 25, 2006
Not to make this all "RunningBlog" or anything, but you will not believe what I did today. I ran two laps around Centennial Park - that's 7.6km - WITH MY HUSBAND. Yes, the Snook actually ran. Those of you who don't know him do not understand the magnitude of my surprise. I have known him for six years now, and I have never seen him run farther than half a block without complaining of heart palpitations. Turns out he's been holding out on me this whole time! It all started a few weeks ago when I suggested he come to the park with me and walk a lap or two, and he said he thought he should get some actual running shoes. Being a tight-arse, though, he wanted to go to Kmart and get $20 trainers. Since I really didn't see where this was going, I agreed. (He nearly chickened out at the last minute. "I'll have three pairs of shoes! I'm becoming a metrosexual!") That day at the park, I ran my lap while he walked behind me. Afterwards he confessed that he'd jogged about a fifth of a lap when no one was looking. So today he came along with me to ostensibly do some more walking. "Let's have a bit of a jog," I said, "and you tell me if you need to stop." And we did two laps! We stopped probably about every kilometer or so to take a quick walk break, but our total time for the two laps was a decent 53 minutes. He even pushed me a bit since his natural pace is a little bit faster than mine. I just still can't quite believe it. "You're caught out now," I said. "You're going to have to do this all the time!" "I suppose," he said. "We're going to become those people." I guess we are. I finally have a running buddy. SQUEEEEEE! And yes, the first thing on the To Do list is to get him some better shoes. Friday, March 24, 2006
As I ran up Wilson Street to Newtown early this morning, watching the sun rise and chase away the storm clouds, I decided to declare last week's diet funk officially BUSTED. I feel really great. I ran two laps around Centennial Park Wednesday night and cut a minute or so off my time. (Albert pushed me to a faster pace than normal on the first lap, which made up for my very slow jog on the second.) Last night I went to boxing class and worked up such a sweat that I actually made the mat slippery. (Note to self: Find terrycloth sweatband.) Then this morning I had a great little forty minute jog up to Newtown and back. I'm eating well and tracking my Points again. I guess the lesson to be learned is that occasional lapses are totally okay, but that my body can't handle prolonged periods of rich food and drink like it used to. I was seriously out of it for four days.
Wednesday, March 22, 2006
 At long last, I have the footage you've all been waiting to see: me and the ladies from the Knitter's Guild rockin' it on Sunrise. It's a fairly big file (about 10MB) and you may have to download the whole thing before it plays. Yeah, we're like postage-stamp-size and the sound isn't perfectly synced, but you get the idea. You can see all four clips from when they cut to us, including the final one where I get to sit next to Kochie. A massive thank you to Snookums for the editing and encoding! Here it is...Addendum: Ack! I just tested it and noticed that - on my iMac, at least - when I click the link I get a page of gobbledygook. Right-click and Save As, however, works fine. So do that if you have any trouble.
I have a new lunchtime addiction: Vermicelli's rice paper rolls. They just opened around the corner this week and they're great! I've had the lunch special twice now, and my favorites would have to be the Sesame Beef rolls (they taste like bulgogi!) and the Portuguese Chicken salad. My only regret is they don't have any nutrition information so I can accurately add up my Points. (I'm going to count them as slightly higher than the Sumo rolls, since they seem to have more meat.)
Tuesday, March 21, 2006
Monday, March 20, 2006
So diet-wise, yeah... It's not going to be a good week. But I just need to write it off and get back to work, right? Friday, March 17, 2006
Thursday, March 16, 2006
Wednesday, March 15, 2006
The Snook kept our dinner destination a secret to the very end, helped enormously by my ignorance of Sydney geography. I knew we were going to Randwick... to Belmore Road... and then suddenly we pulled up to Restaurant Balzac. "Oh!" I said. "I know this place!" It was an inspired choice. After our last fancy dinner, I was looking for real food cooked exceptionally well, and that happens to be Matthew Kemp's forte. We seriously considered the degustation, but frankly there were too many good things on the a la carte menu that just weren't included. (Our menu was slightly different from the one posted.) I was also feeling adventurous. (This is probably fodder for a whole 'nother post, but I've been reading Jeffrey Steingarten and I've decided to GET OVER my food phobias because they're silly.) So in the end I had the "Wagyu Minute Steak with Café De Paris Butter, Gnocchi, Sweetbreads and Snails," followed by the "Risotto with Fresh Truffle." The Snook had the "Raviolo of Braised Quail and Chestnuts with Roasted Breast, Bacon and Sage" followed by pork neck (not listed) with "Boudin Noir, Pumpkin, and Brussel Sprouts." Everything was fantastic. I'm serious; this was one of the best meals I've had in Sydney. My starter - including the snails and sweetbreads, of which I'm pretty sure I had both pancreas and thymus - was incredibly moreish, all caramelized meats and yummy carnivorousness. (I ate offal and I enjoyed it! Mr. Steingarten should be proud.) My truffle risotto... Well, to be honest when I read that truffle risotto was available, I envisioned the most delicious idealized truffle risotto ever, and quickly realized that it was not likely to live up to my expectations. I was wrong. I don't even have the words to describe how good it was. There's probably a German word of seventeen syllables that means "something that unexpectedly lives up to expectations you didn't even think possibly could be realized." It was that good, and it was a generous portion. (Goodbye, BMI!) The Snook and I were, of course, trading tastes of each other's dishes, and his were just as good. Before our official dessert - bread and butter pudding for me, chocolate fondant for the Snook - they brought us a taster of Rhubarb Eton Mess that actually BROUGHT TEARS TO MY EYES. Is there anything better than crumbled meringue and real, heavy whipped cream? No, there is not. The service all night was excellent, not least because they brought my dessert with a birthday candle in it. We polished off a bottle of Penfolds Bin 128 Shiraz (courtesy of Toast - thank you sir!) along with dessert wine and a gin & tonic each... which explains the clumsy and disjointed nature of this review. Suffice it to say that while Tetsuya's was the height of modern art, Restaurant Balzac (courtesy of Matthew Kemp) was a damn fine meal. I can't wait to go back.
 Birthday Cupcakes!So much for the healthy BMI rating. I picked these up this morning at Cupcakes on Pitt and brought them into work for the staff. There was much rejoicing. I had the one with the Oreo on top. *grin* Sooooo good. Much lighter than I expected, both the cake and the icing. I recommend them!
Tuesday, March 14, 2006
My brain is still reeling. At Weight Watchers tonight I met Ken, the husband of our new leader Barbara. He was filling in as weigher. While chatting I found out that he's actually an American... from Indiana... from Goshen... and grew up three doors down from where my Dad lives now. I nearly fell over. HOW RANDOM IS THAT? I feel like I'm going to discover the Infinite Improbability Drive in the bottom of my sock drawer or something. Next week I fully expect Ken to tell me we're related. It's just too, too weird. Anyway, all Twilight Zone-ishness aside, I have an important announcement to make: I am not fat anymore. Did everybody hear that? I AM OFFICIALLY NOT OVERWEIGHT. I lost another 900g to bring me down to 78.5, which gives me a BMI of 24.8 - and that is just this side of normal. Normal! I really don't think I'm processing this at the moment. I turn 29 years old tomorrow... and I'm not overweight. Those facts just can't be right, can they?
Monday, March 13, 2006
We just got a call from Channel 7, and apparently they need someone to go on Sunrise tomorrow to teach the anchor Mel how to knit. Guess who got the job? I hope I'm skinny enough for the morning show! (If any other Sydneysiders are interested in joining me, they need more people knitting in the background. Of course, you'd have to get up at the butt-crack of dawn...) Sunday, March 12, 2006
 Marianne's cardigan is finished!And it only took me two months longer than I expected. *sigh* Of course, that's to be expected when you completely change patterns halfway through. After struggling through a fairisle cardy of my own design, I shelved that WIP in favor of something I could actually finish in time for Marianne to get some use out of it. This little hooded, cabled cardigan is my second project from Sirdar's Denim Book of Aran Knits, and it's knitted out of Denim Sport Aran (in "Purple Heather," which has since been discontinued, I think). For once I didn't bother with altering the pattern to knit it in the round, or make it longer, or switch anything around. Instead I just cast on and did exactly what the damn thing said. I was a little worried about the sad state of my mattress stitch, but luckily since I was mostly sewing moss stitch to moss stitch, you can't even tell where it's wonky. I made an excursion to All Buttons Great and Small yesterday for the buttons. Isn't it cute? This was my first experience with both pockets and a hood, and I'm really proud of how well it turned out. I hope Marianne's Mom and Dad like it! (Note: I deliberately knitted it two sizes too big. I figured she'd grown a bit since the last measurements I had - which were six months old by now - and this way she'll hopefully get to wear it next year too.) Saturday, March 11, 2006
The Dove is trying to get me to think about "cycles" in my workouts, such as cycling between easy days, medium days, and real tough grueling days. Then there are larger cycles, like easy weeks and hard weeks. I get the concept, but I'm having a little difficulty with the execution. Having an "easy" week feels too much like I'm slacking off. So I've settled for having "different" weeks. Last week was quite focussed on running, with two long runs to Centennial Park. This week I'm doing shorter runs but more kickboxing and strength work. I'm also working in more fartlek this week, doing sprints and generally just running faster when I can. It keeps me interested. I did my Pyrmont-to-Glebe run today in forty-five minutes, but since that includes the time I spent waiting at stoplights I figure I've definitely cut a few minutes off that route. I don't feel like my pace is so glacial anymore. I think I'm finally seeing some real improvement! I still have my mental setbacks though. Last night I ran up through Newtown to the top of Enmore Road, and on my way back I passed one of the guys from my WW group. We shared a wave and I sort of sheepishly said, "I'm being good tonight!" And he was all laughing, like "I'm not!" And so afterwards for like ten minutes, I was trying to think of excuses I could give him at the next meeting for why I was working out, stuff like "I'm saving up Points for my birthday" or "I'm trying to meet a weight deadline" or something. But then I realized that's bullshit. Why am I making excuses for doing stuff that's good for me? It's like I morphed back into my high school self, trying to shrug off my good grades and going to pains to explain to the other kids that I hadn't, like, studied or anything. Because it's obviously not cool to TRY for anything. But how else are you supposed to lose weight? It's not like it's some magical process where it just melts away if you wish hard enough. So I decided that I'm through making apologies for trying to improve myself. That's just stupid. Oh, but get this - I was talking to my Dad on the phone today and he asked me what my weight was in pounds, so I worked it out for him. Later I had this nagging feeling that I had missed something big... and then it hit me. For the first time in, like, ten years, I actually weigh LESS than the amount listed on my driver's license. For real! That number used to be my *wink wink, nudge nudge* "Oh, sure you weigh 180, riiiight..." and now I'm actually below it! I am very proud of that. Friday, March 10, 2006
Thursday, March 9, 2006
Me: Hi, I had a message to call you regarding our cleaner, Nurgul. Her: Yes... Nurgul contacted us this morning. Now, I understand you have a cat. Me: Yes. Oh God, did she get out? Is she lost or something? Her: No. Your cat is making Nurgul anxious. Me: What? Anxious? Her: Yes. She's sent the job back to us to find you a new cleaner. Me: That's so weird. She's really skittish, I swear! Her: *laughing* Well, she must have done something to scare off Nurgul! Me: That little shit... So yeah, Nurgul lasted all of ONE visit. I even made sure to let them know ahead of time that we had a cat (so we didn't get a cleaner who's allergic or anything), so it's not like it was a surprise. I wonder what the hell the little monster did.
This week dozens of "Absolut Kravitz" posters popped up in Sydney. I noticed several of them on my way to work Monday. They show Lenny Kravitz with a headphone cord wrapped around him, and there's a line of text at the bottom with a website address. It was only as I was passing my third or fourth one that I realized that a few of them - notably not the ones on the automatic rollers - actually have three little headphone jacks built in. "Huh," I thought. "I wonder if there's actually an mp3 player in there or something." So on my way home last night, I decided to pay the price of looking foolish and assuage my curiosity. I unplugged the iPod and plugged in. They do play music! All three seem to be playing the same song. I wonder how they do that. Must have cost them a bundle. But anyway, Sydneysiders now apparently have a free source of Kravitz should they feel the need to rock out in the middle of the footpath. Wednesday, March 8, 2006
Tuesday, March 7, 2006
Me: WAIT. IS THAT A SEVEN? DID YOU JUST START WITH A SEVEN? Weigher: Can you stay still please? Me: OH MY GOD, IT'S A SEVEN. YOU'RE KIDDING ME! It's official, folks! It was the most beautiful seven in the world. It was Seven Costanza. It was amazing. And you know what the seven means? It means I have lost over twenty kilograms. (20.7 to be exact, which is about 45.5lbs.) I have left the eighties behind and I'm in the Land of Sevens. I still can't really believe it. It hasn't sunk in. After basically staying the same last week, I dropped 1.4kg this week. Who's the Biggest Loser? Kris is the Biggest Loser! After the meeting I talked with our new leader Barbara about setting my official goal weight. She recommends I set it for the top of my weight range - that's 78kg; only 1.4kg to go til I'm not fat! - simply because as long as I stay under that number, I get my meetings for free. So once I hit 78, I'm starting the Maintenance phase. I can still keep on losing though; I'm thinking 75 looks like a nice round number. I just can't believe it. One week before my 29th birthday... and somehow the future seems a lot brighter!
Monday, March 6, 2006
That's it folks; entries have officially closed! You can follow along and see how well you did here. We ended up with 597 entries in total! Good luck... Can those of you with TiVo leave a comment with the number of dead people? Thanks. Later: Clooney? Well, that was a little unexpected. Later still: Dude! "It's Hard Out Here for a Pimp"?! Now that broke the deadlock. Much later: It looks like we have a winner! In sole first place with ALL TWELVE CORRECT is Craig, who put his entry in a mere ten minutes before the show started. (Which sounds dodgy, I know, but as far as I can tell he's legit.) So congratulations, Craig! You'll be getting an e-mail from me shortly. Thanks to everyone who played along this year. You may now commence grumbling about Crash winning Best Picture...
Sunday, March 5, 2006
Saturday, March 4, 2006
As today is one of my "hard" days - the Dove has me cycling my workouts between easy, medium, and hard - I told the Snook to put on his walkin' shoes. We headed out towards Centennial Park. The sun was coming out and people were already turning up for the Mardi Gras after-party at Fox Studios. We made it to the Park in 45 minutes flat. Then I planted him on a bench with a Baker's Delight Cheesymite Scroll and The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen while I hit the jogging track. I noticed that I was definitely fresher and faster today, and I finished the 3.7km loop in just over 24 minutes (cutting two minutes off my usual time). After a quick stop for a sip of water, I started slogging my way through a second lap. I was definitely slower here, but I wasn't hurting and I actually felt like I could run a fair way. I jogged about half of it and then decided I might as well do some Fartlek. Repeatedly I picked out a spot way ahead of me and then sprinted as fast as I could til I reached it. Then I'd walk and wheeze and puff like a freight train, scaring all the adorable children out on their training wheel bikes. It felt really good though. I finished the second lap in 26 minutes, which put me on pace for finishing the 10K in 67 minutes. Not bad! Ideally I'd like to do it in sixty minutes when I run it in a few months. Do you guys think that's doable? I feel like it's totally reachable. I am encouraged. Afterwards we walked home again, which means that I earned - no joke - like 11 extra Bonus Points today. (I really, really want to get down to 80kg this week!) Friday, March 3, 2006
Oh, and as for enforcing the rules, I just went through and discovered about a dozen people had entered more than once. A few were obviously just due to hitting the submit button twice, but there were several where the person had revised their entry a few weeks afterwards. I figured since the rules clearly state you only get one shot, I was justified in deleting their later entry. (Just in case you were wondering why you might not do as well as you're expecting, cheaters!)
8:15 - Woke up an hour late because someone forgot to set the alarm. 10:00 - Accidentally deleted a significant chunk of the products on the shop website. 10:05 - Discovered that Danny's backup system was more, um, "hypothetical" than, say, "existing." 10:10 - Sent e-mail to website host praying they have a recent backup. 10:30 - And this is the WORST. My knitting nemesis - the old lady who runs the clinic in the shop - stopped me on her way downstairs. "I really like your hair," she said. "Oh, thanks!" I said. "It looks much nicer," she added over her shoulder. UM, EXCUSE ME? That is the most backhanded "compliment" I've ever gotten in my life. Next I fully expect to get hit by a bus. Thursday, March 2, 2006
Wednesday, March 1, 2006
"I've got a fever... and the prescription is MORE COWBELL!" I did another long run tonight (as mentioned below), all the way to Centennial Park, around the jogging track, and back home. My time on the track was exactly the same as last week - 26 minutes. I felt a lot better this time though. My breathing wasn't as labored; I was going slow but I felt like I could go on forever. The best part of these long runs is that I finally get to hear the ends of Max's mixes! There I was chugging along tonight to this vaguely Latin sounding percussive mix, when a light bulb went off in my head and I nearly fell over laughing as I realized what the voice was singing over and over. (It was the aforementioned line about cowbell.) Well done, Max. And well done me!
Later: Actually, what's more disturbing is the Snook's reaction to these bouncing breasts: "You know, this Flash technique they're using is really interesting, because Flash doesn't really have a way to process images to distort them on the fly, so..." And it became a whole discussion. Surprising.
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archives
You can search through the archives by post keyword using the form on the left, or you can browse by month using the links at the bottom.
"Moblog" refers to posts and images posted directly from my mobile phone.
"PW Blog" refers to posts recovered from my very first weblog, which dealt with news related to my college dorm. |
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