Trying New Foods

Last week, I went to a haunted house that my friends put on every year. It is an extremely elaborate production. They get a kick out of scaring little kids (and big kids). The can adjust the scariness level for the visitors' sensitivities ~ Level one (not very scary) would be for a three-year-old; I suppose Level Infinity would be for the typical middle school boy.

I did not know what level they were going to use on me, so I put my hands on my daughter's shoulders and walked her in front of me, using her as a human shield. I got teased about it later, but hey, you do what you need to do.

I do the same thing with new food.

I had heard all kinds of good things about Ezekiel Bread. It's supposed to be so much healthier than regular bread. So I bought some a while back. When I got home, I stuck it in the freezer. It was unfamiliar to me. When I am hungry, I tend to reach for the familiar.

Yesterday, my daughter stopped by, and was about to make herself some peanut butter crackers, but she forgot to bring the crackers.

I said, "I have some Ezekiel bread ~ you ought to try that ~ I hear it's really good for you!"

She waved it off, knowing that my bread would probably have freezer burn. But I persisted, pushing the bread on her. "Try it ~ if it has freezer burn, you don't have to eat it."

It turned out to have only minimal freezer burn, so she ate the bread. Now I feel like I can eat the rest of the loaf. It's in the fridge right now, and I am going to make a peanut butter sandwich in a little bit, with my new kind of healthy bread. Now that I know it's safe.

I need to get in the habit of trying new foods. My eating has gotten boring lately, and I have even fallen back into eating more convenience foods, because they are easy and cheap and familiar.

Recently I was inspired by a blogger who is trying one new recipe per week. The idea has been percolating, and I am ready to take it on as a goal now. (Thanks, Lesley!)

I'm going to start with the crock pot. That's always good this time of year.

Cooking new foods is always a multi-step project, not a simple action, so I'm going to have to be organized about this. Today I will zero in on a new recipe, and make a shopping list. I might not be able to get to the store until as late as Monday, but I hereby commit to having a new food creation no later than Tuesday. And I will do this at least once a week. It's going on my Sciral Consistency right now. I will let you know how it goes! (And I won't make my daughter be the first one to taste it.)

Our Country Finally Has a Leader

I feel a great sense of relief. Over the last few weeks, I had some hope that I would feel this way, and a few days ago, I even dared to start expecting that it would finally happen.

Eight years ago, when our current Resident was elected, I was in despair. I remember saying, "He is going to be a disaster of a president!" I didn't know how true that would turn out to be, and that it would go on for eight nightmarish years.

I've always voted for whom I thought was the better candidate, but there's always been a "lesser of two evils" quality about it. They've always been just "good enough." I approached this election with that same mindset, although I did think this candidate was better than the previous ones.

Now I'm starting to see Obama as more than that. He has conducted himself with dignity, spoken with thoughtful intelligence, and hasn't made any major blunders. He strikes me as someone who is not driven by his ego.

I hope that the people who opposed him will give him a chance. He seems to be very much a pragmatist, who will work cooperatively with people who hold different opinions, rather than pushing his own agenda.

This election is momentous on so many levels. Seeing so many promising signs in the days leading up to the election, I was finally able to relax enough to reflect on some of those.

It is impossible to miss the fact that he is the first African-American president, although I have been joking that I hadn't noticed that. ("He's black??! I thought he was Irish! I thought I was voting for the Irish guy! ~ O'Bama.") What is surprising to me is that "First African-American President" is not the headline. OK, I know it was the headline in some newspapers, but it was not mentioned in most of the headlines, and it is not the headline in the newspaper in my head. (My headline says, "Whew. We Finally Have a Leader.")

But when I do think about it, it is so amazing. Obama is just a year older than I am. Early in our lifetime, he would have had to ride in the back of the bus. I vaguely remember the civil rights era, and have seen our country evolve in its wake, often through violent events and ugly rhetoric. I know there is still racism. I was sure we could elect a black president eventually, but I didn't think it would happen this soon. I am gobsmacked.

But it is not just about how far we've come. Some of it is due to the fact that Obama is not just one of the "good enough" candidates. He seems to be in a different category. It struck me, during his victory speech, that he talked about the 106-year old woman, seeing the past through her eyes, and then spoke about what would be said 100 years from now. He has a vision that extends beyond our immediate lifetime. That is something that has been lacking in the leadership of our country, even in the "good enough" politicians.

I hope that he lives up to the promise of the extraordinary human being that he appears to be. I don't take any stock in the overblown expectations, or "deification" silliness that I've been hearing about. I'm just regarding the way he has handled everything during the campaign. I think if he just continues in the same manner, he will be not just good enough. He could be one of our Great Presidents.

I hope.

I Don't Get Daylight Saving Time

Apparently, the idea is that you can save energy by chopping an hour off the end of the day, and tacking it on to the beginning. (And in the Spring, vice-versa).

I've never gotten that. I don't benefit from the time change. Even in the Fall, I don't get an extra hour sleep. It takes me an hour to figure out how to change all the clocks, and change the battery in the smoke detector. In the Spring, I lose two hours. And both times, I end up feeling like I have jet lag all week. I'm sure I'm losing energy, not gaining it.

But the government thinks it's a good idea.

I don't like it, because it gets dark earlier now. I like to get my running done before it gets dark, especially with the weather getting cooler. I'm not a morning runner, so that's not the answer.

There's gotta be a way to turn Daylight Saving Time to my advantage for running.

So I figure, by a similar kind of logic, maybe I can get more running done, and use less energy, if I cut a mile off the end of my run, and add it to the beginning of my run. That last mile is often the hardest, after all. Might as well get it over with first thing!

In the Spring, I'll turn it around, and put the first mile at the end of the run.