Monthly Archives: January 2011

Peace, Love and Understanding

Posted on by Run DMT
19

I hate war, but I respect and admire a soldier’s sacrifice to protect my freedoms.

 

Because I fear guns, I support stricter gun laws, but I also understand the 2nd Amendment will never be abolished.  However, in light of the Tucson shootings, something must be done so that mentally unstable people can never possess a handgun.

 

I may disagree with a person’s political views, but I would never use the term Nazi or any other ethnic epithet, racial slur or hateful imagery to emphasize my point.

 

I love this country just as much as any conservative or libertarian even though I adopt a different belief system.

 

I’m not trying to destroy America.  I just want this great land to be even better than our forefathers envisioned.

 

By sharing my wealth, I feel I demonstrate loving thy neighbors.

 

Supporting social programs doesn’t make me un-American, a socialist or a communist, but suppressing or silencing my ideals would be un-American.

 

So I ask you,

“What’s so funny about Peace, Love and Understanding?”

 

 

As I walk through
This wicked world
Searchin’ for light in the darkness of insanity.

I ask myself
Is all hope lost?
Is there only pain and hatred, and misery?

And each time I feel like this inside,
There’s one thing I wanna know:
What’s so funny ’bout peace love & understanding? Ohhhh
What’s so funny ’bout peace love & understanding?

And as I walked on
Through troubled times
My spirit gets so downhearted sometimes
So where are the strong
And who are the trusted?
And where is the harmony?
Sweet harmony.

‘Cause each time I feel it slippin’ away, just makes me wanna cry.
What’s so funny ’bout peace love & understanding? Ohhhh
What’s so funny ’bout peace love & understanding?

So where are the strong?
And who are the trusted?
And where is the harmony?
Sweet harmony.

‘Cause each time I feel it slippin away, just makes me wanna cry.
What’s so funny ’bout peace love & understanding? Ohhhh
What’s so funny ’bout peace love & understanding? Ohhhh
What’s so funny ’bout peace love & understanding?

 

I’d also like to share another classic because its lyrics and meaning also ring true in today’s world.

 

 

 

Visit Amanda, Xmas Dolly and Hairbows & Guitar Picks for more Music Monday fun.

Greenwise Burgers are THE BOMB!

Posted on by Run DMT
21

With my decision to lose 40 pound before I turn 40, I’ve decided to incorporate more meatless dishes into our family menu.   However, this is no easy task since my oldest daughter is a hardcore carnivore.  To keep everyone happy when planning our menu for the week, I plan a couple of meat dishes and a few vegetarian dishes.  But eating the same family favorites over and over is tedious.  My taste buds crave trying new foods.

 

Last week, while strolling through the freezer section of my supermarket, I spotted Publix’s version of veggie burgers.  Memories of eating and enjoying veggie burgers during my vegetarian days B.C. (before children) flooded my mind.   Since I love several of Publix’s store brand products, I decided to try the Greenwise Garden Style Veggie Burgers to see how my family would respond to the reasonably priced beefless burgers.

 

 

As I guessed, the Greenwise Garden Style Veggie Burgers were the BOMB!  The combination of flavors (mushrooms, carrot, red and green bell peppers) was delicious.

 

 

I grilled the burgers under the broiler to give them a little crisp and served them to my family on fresh Kaiser rolls (from the Publix bakery, of course) topped with some lettuce.  I ate mine on a wheat Kaiser, topped with a slice of low fat Provolone cheese, red onions, tomatoes, guacamole, some lettuce and a side of cole slaw.

 

 

I enjoyed every bite of my veggie burger and it was better than I remembered.

 

Now link up and see what If I Could Escape and Gone Bananas are serving for this week’s Friday Food Fight.

 

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Bring on the Beads!

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21

Last Saturday, our scurvy crew loaded into The Black Pearl for a voyage to beautiful Bayshore Blvd, Tampa for the Gasparilla Children’s Parade.  For Grandma Elizabeth, Papa Rusch, Uncle Erich and Cousin Meghan, this would be their maiden voyage as they had never experienced a Gasparilla Parade before.

 

 

The parade forecast was freezing by Florida standards, therefore, warm winter coats covered all our pirate apparel, but Meghan’s hook and dress were still visible.

 

 

 

Our new pirate recruits quickly caught on that the Gasparilla Parade is all about the beads.

 

 

 

Grandpa Rusch and Allana tucked in close to the railing, however, Emmalynn and Meghan had an unfair advantage sitting on their Daddy’s shoulders.  Even Grandma and Liam tried their hand at catching a few beads.

 

 

 

Although the girls decided they’d collected enough treasure, the Dads and Grandpa decided they need just a few more beads.

 

 

At the end, the girls proudly posed with their new found treasures.

 

 

 

 

Even Liam licked liked his booty.

 

 

Argggg!

 

 

Even More Random Thoughts about Running and Weight Loss

Posted on by Run DMT
3

Alternative Title – Janathon Days 22, 24 and 25

 

Well, Tiffany and I made it through 8 miles.  It wasn’t the best run, but we did it.  At least, I got to catch up with Tiffany for an uninterrupted 2 hours and burned 746 calories in the process.

 

Day 22

8 Miles

Time 1:57:12

Ave Pace 14:39

Max Pace 9:12

 

Sunday I rested and then on Monday I missed my 5:00 a.m. “Me Time”, so I decided to load up Liam and the stroller for a Mom’s Mid-Morning Run at Suncoast Running.  Tracey (the owner), Amy (a new running friend) and I ran 3 miles with a screaming baby in tow, but at least I got my miles in that day.  He eventually fell asleep.

 

Day 24

3.1 Miles

Time 36:43

Ave Pace 11:51

Max Pace 9:21

 

This morning I found the energy for 4 miles at 5:00 a.m. and I’m so glad I did because the forecast called for severe thunderstorms for most of the day.  But I think I had a little too much energy this morning, because my knee has been bothering me all day.  Since I volunteered to chaperone my daughter’s field trip, I had planned Wednesday to be a rest day.  Now, I’m glad I did so I could give my knee a rest.  I hope it’s nothing too serious and that I just need new shoes.

 

Day 25

4 Miles

Time 46:32

Ave Pace 11:39

Max Pace 9:31

 

On my day of rest on Sunday, I decided to bite the bullet and register for the Gasparilla Half Marathon.  So, naturally my knee would start bothering me afterwards!  UGH!

 

As for my weight loss, I did really well this week despite eating out twice. My sister and I enjoyed lunch at Moon Under Water and I ate the tuna sashimi, seaweed salad and a side of edamame.  YUM!   As much as I could have killed for a glass of wine, I only drank water.

 

Then, after the Gasparilla Parade (Pics will be posted tomorrow for Not-So-Wordless Wednesday, so stay tuned!), my family and I ate at Bella’s Italian Cafe.  DOUBLE YUM!  Again, no wine and I only ate a small piece of bread, a small portion of Ceasar salad and I only ate half of my Lasagna Con Pollo.  Funny thing, after weeks of portion control, I could only eat half of my dinner and I couldn’t even stomach the thought of dessert.  I was FULL and that rarely ever happens!

 

Truthfully, I think another dry week caused me to get the DTs and that is what helped me lose another 4 pounds for a grand total of …WAIT FOR IT…10 POUNDS!

 

You would think weighing less would be less of a burden to my knees.  Not so much.

 

***Proudly submitted at The Un Mom’s Random Tuesday Thoughts, because when I blog about my runs, it’s usually pretty random.***

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Little Lion Man

Posted on by Run DMT
15

Since the day he was born, I have called Little Liam, “Little Lion Man”.  With his birth date at the end of July, he fell under the Leo zodiac sign just like his mama.  Having another Leo in the house would add another fun, energetic person in the picture and in his little time on Earth, Little Liam had already begun to display many of the Leo characteristics.

 

But then the Earth had to go and change its tilt and screw everything up.  Now my little Leo is a Cancer which makes my Little Lion Man a Little Crab Man and it just doesn’t have the same ring to it. In fact, it makes me think of Darnell from My Name is Earl, a.k.a The Crab Man.

 

 

Oh well.  I don’t care what the stars says.  Liam is still my Little Lion Man.

 

 

 

 

 

Visit Amanda, Xmas Dolly and Hairbows & Guitar Picks for more Music Monday fun.

 

Mexican Lasagna

Posted on by Run DMT
18

My family and I love food with a Tex Mex flavor.  Anything with the earthiness of cumin, the heat of chili pepper and mountains of cheese is always a winner in this house.  The other night I made one of our favorite Tex Mex dishes: Mexican Lasagna.

 

It’s so simple to make, too.  Instead of taco sauce, I use Muir Glen Fire Roasted Diced Tomatoes, as suggested in the recipe.  Instead of a cup of frozen corn, I add a whole can of corn.  

 

 

The recipe recommends oiling your pan with olive oil, but I coat my baking pan with Pam cooking spray to avoid the tortillas sticking to the bottom and it works just fine.  For the lasagna’s layers, I cut one tortilla into quarters, lay those pieces in the corners of the pan and lay a whole one in the center.  To make this lower in fat, you could sprinkle your layers with low fat cheddar cheese, but I use full fat colby-jack cheese.

 

 

 

 

I also omitted the scallions, because I knew my kids wouldn’t eat them.  The girls ate theirs with dollop of sour cream on top.  Allana and I added some salsa to our servings for a little extra heat.

 

 

This dish is great for a crowd as there are more than enough helpings.  I froze our leftovers for a fuss free dinner another night.

 

Rachel Ray’s Mexican Lasagna

Ingredients

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

2 pounds ground chicken breast, available in the packaged meats case

2 tablespoons chili powder

2 teaspoons ground cumin

1/2 red onion, chopped

1 (15-ounce) can black beans, drained

1 cup medium heat taco sauce or 1 (14-oz) can stewed or fire roasted tomatoes

1 cup frozen corn kernels

Salt

8 (8 inch) spinach flour tortillas, available on dairy aisle of market

2 1/2 cups shredded Cheddar or shredded pepper jack

2 scallions, finely chopped (optional)

 

Directions

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

 

Preheat a large skillet over medium high heat. Add 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil – twice around the pan. Add chicken and season with chili powder, cumin, and red onion. Brown the meat, 5 minutes. Add taco sauce or stewed or fire roasted tomatoes. Add black beans and corn. Heat the mixture through, 2 to 3 minutes then season with salt, to your taste.

 

Coat a shallow baking dish with remaining extra-virgin olive oil (about 1 tablespoon oil). Cut the tortillas in half or quarters to make them easy to layer with. Build lasagna in layers of meat and beans, then tortillas, then cheese. Repeat: meat, tortilla, cheese again. Bake lasagna 12 to 15 minutes until cheese is brown and bubbly. Top with the scallions and serve.

 

Now link up and see what If I Could Escape and Gone Bananas are serving for this week’s Friday Food Fight.

 

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Janathon Days 19 and 20

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11

Janathon/Juneathon
Day 19, I ran 4 miles.  My time was o.k.

4 Miles

Time 48:06

Ave Pace 12:02

Max Pace 9:40

 

The run wasn’t too bad, but I had forgotten that I needed to fast for my blood work later that morning , which meant no tea, no protein shake, no banana.   NOTHING.  Just lots of water and by time I arrivde at the doctor’s office, I was pretty hydrated despite the color of my urine sample I left behind for my physical.  Needless to say, I was STARVING by lunch time.

 

This morning (Day 20) I overslept and missed my 5:00 a.m. run.   So, after the girls left for school, I did 25 minutes boot camp stuff with my BFF Sharon Mann and afterward I decided to run 3 miles with the baby in the stroller again.  Thankfully, Little Lion Man cooperated and actually fell asleep.  Phew. However, I still HATE running with a stroller.  When I tweeted my time on Twitter, I whined about running with a stroller and @clairgp suggested doubling my distance when I run with a stroller.  I really like that idea!  When you think of it as 6.2 instead 3.1, I totally kicked ass!

 

Day 20

3.1 Miles (a.k.a 6.2 stroller miles)

Time 38:10

Ave Pace 12:38

Max Pace 8:54

 

Tomorrow I will work out again with my BFF Sharon Mann. Saturday, I take on 8 miles with my running partner, Tiffany and I’m really looking forward to it, which sounds like an odd thing to say when you’re running 8 miles. But It’s been WAY too long since we’ve run together and I’m looking forward to catching up with her for an hour and half of uninterrupted chit-chat time.  Believe me.  It will fly by.

Florida Snowmen

Posted on by Run DMT
26

Since it rarely ever snows in Florida, we usually make our snowmen out of sand. But over winter break, Auntie Kirsten and Meghan taught the girls and me how to build snowmen out of Ivory soap, toilet paper and a little warm water.

And as if that wasn’t messy enough, the girls made edible snowmen out of marshmallows, pretzel sticks, orange Tic Tacs, black decorating gel and jelly beans.  A little icing between each marshmallow glued the snowman’s body together.

Meghan, Allana and Emmalynn loved their sticky, soapy, “snowy” day fun.

More Random Thoughts About Running and Weight Loss

Posted on by Run DMT
6

Janathon/JuneathonBetween a cranky baby and doctor appointments, my running routine got all screwed up suffered.  But the good news is I lost another 2.5 lbs for a total of 6.5 pounds and my belt moved over another notch.

 

Go me! Go me!  Long live Janathon!

 

During the Janathon and the first month of my Weight Loss Challenge, I promised to avoid dining out, which means no MNO (Mom’s Night Out) or LNO (Ladies Night Out). But the sacrifice will spare me from all those extra calories and help save money too.  A fat wallet is good, but a fat butt not so much.

 

Saturday night, my husband and I attended a business-related dinner at Café Ponte with his work colleagues and I tried to be so good.  I only had one glass of red wine, limited my helpings of the Hors d’oeuvres, ate only one slice of bread, ordered the Chilean sea bass instead of chicken or the filet, and ate half of my chocolate torte.  After the dinner, we attended our friend, John’s 40th Birthday shindig and throughout the whole party, I only drank water during and avoided the food.  Shocking, I know.

 

But enough about the food I did and didn’t eat.  Onto my Janathon running stats!

 

Last Wednesday morning was a wet one, so I decided to run in the afternoon, but Little Lion Man didn’t like that idea and only let me finish 2.5 miles.  Running with a stroller offers a decent amount resistance training, but I don’t enjoy it very much and obviously neither does Liam.

 

January 12

2.5 miles

Time 33:02

Ave Pace 13:14

Max Pace 10:14

 

Thursday I visited my allergist and wasted hours sitting in his office.

 

On Friday, I joined my BFF Sharon Mann for another 50 minutes of boot camp.  I think Sharon was happy to see me again because she treated me much nicer than she did previous week.  The 1000 squats and lunges didn’t hurt as much, but it might have had something to do with muscle memory.

 

All those squats and lunges really helped prepare my legs to take on 7 miles on Saturday.  I ran much faster and at 6 miles, I noticed that I beat last week’s time by 5 minutes (1:13:02).  NICE!

 

January 15

7 miles

Time 1:24

Ave Pace 12:08

Max Pace 8:51

 

Here’s the best part.—> Calories Burned: 697 (So freaking AWESOME! All that running made room for DH’s business dinner.)

 

Sunday, I passed on the yoga and walked 2 miles with my family.  It felt good to get out and move again the day after a long run.

 

Monday morning brought some scary thunderstorms and heavy rain.  I swore that I would run later that evening, but that never happened.  Why do I even kid myself? I am always way too exhausted to run in the evening.

 

Today, I woke up at 5:00 a.m. to fit in 3 miles because I was NOT going to lose another day, not after I’ve been doing so well.  And no joke, I AM doing really well.  I shaved another minute and a half off my time.  SWEET!

 

January 18

3.1 miles

Time 36:15

Ave Pace 11:41

Max Pace 9:13

 

At this point, I am really proud of my progress and my Gasparilla half marathon goal appears attainable.

 

***Proudly submitted at The Un Mom’s Random Tuesday Thoughts, because when I blog about my runs, it’s usually pretty random.***

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Pride

Posted on by Run DMT
18

Despite our polar opposite political views, my friend, John, and I share a common love for random trivia facts.  In any given conversation, we can offer a lesser-known bit of knowledge related to the topic at hand, like the time when John gave a brief history lesson behind the music of U2’s Pride (In the Name of Love).

 

Like many starched conservatives, John is a huge Ronald Reagan fan and prides himself with all historical facts related to President Reagan.  Remarkably, John is a walking World Book Encyclopedia when it comes to anything historical, American or World.  Wikipedia has nothing on him.  Therefore, I rarely ever challenge him on anything historical, particularly after I’ve had a few drinks.

 

But this one night about a month ago, I called bullshit balderdash to his Bono story.  According to John, Bono originally wrote Pride (In the Name of Love) about Ronald Reagan’s love for America.

 

Being a huge U2 fan and having always admired Bono’s humanitarian efforts, this information struck me as odd and I gave him a glance reflecting my disbelief since it sounded like an urban legend.  And just to annoy him, I told him I would consult Wikipedia and Snopes later.

 

After extensive research, John was somewhat right much to my chagrin.  I hate it when that happens.

 

Upon my research, I discovered that Bono indeed write Pride (In the Name of Love) about Ronald Reagan’s desire for America to become a nuclear power.  However after reading, Let the Trumpet Sound: A Life of Martin Luther King, Jr. by Stephen B. Oates, Bono decided to dedicate the song to Dr. King.

 

“I originally wrote Pride about Ronald Reagan,” Bono explained. “Reagan and the ambivalent attitude in America. It was originally meant as the sort of pride that won’t back down, that wants to build nuclear arsenals. But that wasn’t working. I remember a wise old man said to me, “Don’t try and fight darkness with light, just make the light shine brighter.” I was giving Reagan too much importance. Then I thought of Martin Luther King; there’s a man. We build the positive rather than fighting with the finger.” (1001 Songs: The Great Songs of All Time, the Artists, Stories and Secrets Behind Them, Tony Creswell 2006)

 

With pressure from the producers to finish the album The Unforgettable Fire, the lyrics for Pride were overlooked and one historical fact left uncorrected.  In Pride, Bono sings “early morning, April 4,” but Dr. King was assassinated in the evening.  When U2 performs the song live, Bono acknowledges the mistake and sings it as “early evening, April 4.”

 

Despite being one of U2’s most popular and acclaimed hits, Bono felt the song never truly developed to its potential in his mind.

 

“I looked at how glorious that song was and thought: ‘What the fuck is that all about?’ It’s just a load of vowel sounds ganging up on a great man. It is emotionally very articulate – if you didn’t speak English. – Bono

 

With Bono’s guttural sounds and a brief history lesson, I had been schooled.

 

 

 

 

Visit Amanda, Xmas Dolly and Hairbows & Guitar Picks for more Music Monday fun.