Red Velvet Encapsulation

I tried making red velvet cupcakes this week. On Friday I made some and, well, I forgot to add the eggs. I used the Red Velvet Recipe that I came up with back in May. The only modifications that I made were 1: lowering the baking temperature to 340 degrees, 2: Adding an extra 1/4 cup of buttermilk, 3: Baking for 15 minutes. Today I made another batch and remembered to add the eggs. They are so much better. The first batch was flat and a little dry and crumbly. The second batch actually has domes, glistens, and is moist and tender. The photos show the first batch and then the second batch. Notice the cupcake in the middle of the second photo. The frosting was put on with an ice cream scoop.

Rock Climbing

Joey and I were awake before everyone else this morning, so we went rock climbing at Main Event. I didn't even know that they had rock climbing there. We signed up for 30 minutes because I didn't want to push it. I'm so glad that we didn't do a full hour. We really enjoyed it, but we will definitely be having some sore forearms tomorrow.

See, I Did It!

Here is my headstand. Tiffany took the picture at her house. We went to yoga together and it was a good class. Ethan got to webchat with Uncle Ross, Grandma, and Grandpa. Yesterday was a really good day overall.

Weights

The other day I caught a glimpse of my triceps as I was combing my hair. Check it out! That jade means that is my left arm! i guess those weight classes are working.

Damn That's Hot

This is the best picture I could find of a handstand on a diving platform. I watched the men's diving semifinals and finals. I was finally inspired by the Olympics. I loved the handstands and watching them (oh so gracefully) get into the position. I love how they drop their heads so that they are in a perfectly straight line right before they take off. Awesome.

So, this inspired me to try a headstand. When I was little I was in gymnastics and would do handstands and headstands all the time. Since then I have let fear creep into (and sometimes flood) my life. I haven't tried a headstand in years. On my first try I flipped right over. I don't want to do it against the wall, because I know I would become dependent on it. On the second, third, and fourth tries I did it! It takes a LOT of core, and I did it! Doing a headstand totally gets me pumped up.

One of my long-term fitness goals is to be able to do a handstand push up (also called military press). I think I really need to work on my core and upper body strength before I can get there, but this is a start. I can do a headstand! Woohoo! I wanted to post a photo of my headstand, but I'm not sure how to work that. I'll have to see if I can get Margot or Tiffany to take a photo of me and then I'll post it up.

Ethan

So, my boy is obsessed with the Nightmare Before Halloween. I can't even remember the movie. All I remember is that we saw it with Joey and a couple left in the middle of the film. When the lights came on there was only one seat where the couple had been sitting. Yeah, really.
What I do know is that Ethan is obsessed with pumpkins, Jack, skeletons, skulls, and Halloween. Lately he likes drawing skulls. I taught him the word skull because he kept calling it a skeleton. We went on Google images to see pictures of skeletons and skulls. He phonetically typed the words into the search bar. He did a great job. Then he wanted to see a skeleton movie. I went to YouTube. The first video was of a ventriloquist and had foul language, so I stopped it. Then we watched an old black and white cartoon of skeletons dancing. He doesn't really react, he just takes it all in. Then we watched an old Mickey Mouse haunted house cartoon. It had been dubbed over with "This is Halloween" by Marilyn Manson. Oh, Ethan was so excited. He was jumping up and down and singing along (the first time he just took it all in). The same song is in the Nightmare Before Halloween. We watched the cartoon at least 4 times and then he sang/hummed the song for the rest of the night. I think his skeleton and skull drawings are mighty fine.

Single Life

Ross left for Canada one week ago. I've been living the single life since then. At first I was doing very well with the set up in the photo. I'm only using those dishes and utensils and cleaning them after each use so that I don't ever have to do a load of dishes. That went well until this weekend. I got lazy and the whole house turned into a pig sty. I haven't been doing so well with my mid-year resolutions. That is why the house got so dirty. I've also noticed when seeing myself in the webcam that my teeth have shifted. I need to start wearing my retainer again. I spent a few hours today cleaning the whole house. Now let's see if I can keep it that way.

Apple Snack

Well, the picture doesn't make it look very appetizing or interesting. I added up the calories and cost of my apple snack v. buying the baby food container. My version has 85 calories v. 70 calories (I think) in the packaged version. Mine is also 4 ounces v. 3.5 ounces in the package. I split up the cost of the ingredients and my version costs about 26 cents per serving and the package cost 63 cents per serving. Not bad I guess. Here is the recipe:

Apple Snack

1/2 c. unsweetened applesauce
1 tsp. whey
1/2 tsp. flax meal
1 Tbl. mixed cereal
vanilla

Mix it all together, that's it.

Webchat

Before Ross left for Canada we bought two webcams so that we could webchat. This week I tried Yahoo Messenger and I love it. It was so cool for Ethan to be able to see Ross and talk with him. My dad and I just got my mom set up and I am hoping that next week My mom and Ethan will be able to webchat. Of course the best thing about all this is that it is free! Every day when Ross gets back to his hotel after work we can webchat. I think Bailey even likes it. She gets to hear her Papi's voice. I thought it was cheesy when Ross bought the cameras, but I'm having a lot of fun with it.

Yoga

Just a quick post. I have to leave the house soon to go meet someone about another job. This is going to be my third yoga class and my third gym location. I'm hoping that this is a brand new Gold's Gym and that it is more up to date than the one in Arlington. This gym is in Crowley. I applied for a non-yoga job, but I haven't heard anything. I get paid more to teach yoga, so I'm not too upset. Okay, here we go.

Then and Now

I'm not sure when the first photo was taken. 1999 possibly. The second photo was taken 8/16/2008. I really wish we had Aaron Camp in the second photo.

Career Path

Well, I have no idea what my career is so I have no idea where my path is headed. I had a long discussion about this in the wee hours of the morning on Saturday with Lisa Diane and Jacob. I have no idea what to do. I think one of my dream jobs is being some sort of food writer. I don't know anything about food, but I do know what I like. I think the fact that I don't eat treyf would somewhat hinder a career in the foodie business. I'm not really strict, but all those foods laced with prosciutto would be out. Then there are scallops, shrimp, and of course bacon wrapped scallop and shrimp. Anyways, here is my foodie post for today.

Baby Food:

I eat baby food as a snack the way most people eat a cup of yoghurt. My favorite is Gerber Hawaiian Delight flavor. Another one that I recently found that I like is Apple Vanilla Mixed Grain with DHA. I don't know if the DHA does anything for me, that is just how it comes. I mix it with a little whey powder and it makes the perfect snack. Well, I feel a little bad about all those little containers. I recycle them, and the paperboard that they come in, but it just seems like such a waste. I can't recycle the lid (which never even gets used) or the peel-off seal. The other issue is that they come in number 7 plastic containers, so they probably contain BPA, which is bad for me and even worse for babies. Each container costs 50-60 cents--about the same as a cup of yoghurt. Still, I feel a bit guilty buying them. Last week when I ventured to Wally World I decided to buy some apple sauce and some baby cereal. Man, there were so many choices! I remember when it was just oatmeal or rice, now they have all sorts of things. I ended up buying the whole multi grain with apples and yoghurt (and it comes with DHA). Today for snack I mixed up my own batch of baby food using unsweetened apple sauce, flax meal, the multi grain cereal, whey, and vanilla. It was pretty tasty. I have no idea how many calories were in my mix. The store bought container has 70 calories I think. Next time I will have to measure and add up the calories. I think mixing it up myself will be a lot less expensive. The cereal cost like 3 dollars, but I didn't use very much of it. Applesauce is cheap and I always have whey, flax, and vanilla in the house. I just realized I can't recycle the cereal container either--it is waxed. Oh well, you can't win them all.

Austin and Fiesta Texas

So last weekend we went to Austin and got to visit with lots of folks. Of course we saw Joey and Lisa Diane--we were staying with them. Jacob was also staying with them, so I got to visit with him. On Sunday we got to visit with Team Serrins-Springfield. On the way out of town I even got to hug Troy and Christine when I ran into them at HEB. We missed Aaron Camp and Sujata, maybe I'll see them next time.
On Saturday we drove down to Fiesta Texas and rode a few rides. I even rode the Texas Rattler--a huge wooden coaster. After the first few rattling moments I really enjoyed it. At first I thought that I had had enough wooden rollercoaster to last me the year, but now I think I'll ride the Texas Giant here in Arlington before the year is over.
On Sunday I went to Atomic Tattoo and had a conversation with Justin, one of the piercing artists, about the piercing that I am going to have done over the Labor Day weekend. Justin showed me my jewelry options and I feel much better about the whole thing now. I still want to get a Vertical Madison piercing. For some reason it seems to freak people out more than other piercings.

Of course we stopped off at Amy's on our way out of town. I had Mexican vanilla and Ross had white chocolate and flan. There wasn't any Guinness or Bourbon Custard for me. Still, it was as good as it always is, and we saw Kori, our favorite Amy's girl.

Oatmeal Gelato

Last week I made oatmeal gelato. I've always wanted to make oatmeal ice cream. I don't know why. I used the Basic Gelato Recipe and flavored it by steeping the oatmeal (half a cup I think) in the warm milk, cream and sugar. I let it sit so long that the oatmeal was cooked. I strained the solid oatmeal out and I ate some of it the next morning for breakfast. I added some vanilla and some nutmeg to the mixture before freezing it. The gelato definitely tastes like oatmeal. I would like to create a more oatmeal cookie flavor. I think I would need some more nutmeg, a little cinnamon and some brown sugar. Maybe I'll try that in a few weeks when this batch is gone.

Random Updates

I'm taking a break from work to put up a post here. We went to Austin this weekend and also to Fiesta Texas. I'll post some photos tonight. I have been craving cupcakes, and I was going to bake some on Friday, but I didn't get around to it. I'm not sure if I will have time this week. I am teaching 4 classes and I am probably going to Irving on Wednesday.

We are finally getting rain. Last year it rained nonstop. This year we had a drought. I am glad to finally get some rain--our front lawn is golden straw. Well, I took a break from writing this post to go take a picture because I really wanted a picture of a hummingbird in the post. The hummingbird feeder in the photo has been on the tree outside our bedroom window since we moved into the house. I have only filled it a couple of times. Last week I saw a hummingbird flying around it and I felt bad that it was bone dry. The feeder didn't even have water in it because it had not rained in weeks. I brought the feeder in and cleaned it and actually filled it with some hummingbird food that I bought ages ago. This morning I looked out the window to see two hummingbirds. I was so delighted. When I laid down for my nap I saw at least two more. Today I also saw a tiny gecko in the bathroom. Nature makes me smile. The little gecko was trying to get up under the bathroom rug. I warned him that the rug isn't the best place to hide out, but he didn't seem to care what I thought.

Can you spot the hummingbird?

Sewing Patterns

So, in an effort to find the perfect vintage dress I've been searching sewing patterns on ebay. The pattern size that fits me is size 16 or size 18. Okay, I'm not too stuck on that number. It's not my dress size, even if I am sewing a dress. The number that gets me is the waist. Size 18 is usually a 36 inch bust. I'm not sure if that will fit me because I'm a 36C, but my tape measurement is more like 37 lately. Okay, so back to the waist. The waist on these patterns is often 28 inches! At last measurement my waist was 30.5 inches. Most of the patterns I find online are size 12 (30-25-33). Were people really that much smaller in the 1950s? I have three patterns now, and one in the mail. So far they run 36-30-39. I'm going to mix and match parts of patterns to come up with the dress that I want for my dessert party. I'd better get to work on it soon. It is going to take me a while.

So Much For Censorship

Last night was my first night teaching at Gold's Gym. I was nervous for some reason. I was about five minutes off and decided to add in some crescent lunges with a twist. Everybody is twisting and all of a sudden out of the speakers comes "Oh my god, she's so hot. She's so fucking hot, she's like a curry." Aaaaaaaaaah! People laughed and I apologized profusely. I didn't really pay attention when I was making that music mix a couple of weeks ago. In fact, it was a terrible mix. The whole routine was terrible. I'm going to ditch it all. It was a really small class and thankfully no one seemed terribly offended. This job pays better, but I don't particularly like teaching at night (745). Gold's Gym is a little archaic. They have actual time sheets and sign in sheets and you have to staple things together and put them in a notebook. 24 hour fitness is all electronic. The scheduling is online. Gold's Gym sends out emails. Can you substitute Body Pump? I hate it. Tons of mass emails that aren't relevant to me, and then I get even more when people hit reply all just to say No. I'm applying for a third job. We'll see how that goes.

Questions

So, my yoga students ask me a lot of questions. Apparently they think I have all of the answers. I get a lot of questions about wrist pain. I give them the option of doing plank and chaturanga on their knuckles. I have told a couple people about some wrist stretching and massaging techniques. Then I thought--Could I get in trouble for this? I am sort of giving medical advice, but my students don't know that I am a doctor. One lady even asked me for a recipe for something she could eat to help cleanse her system! Today I gave her the recipe for kicharee. That is innocent enough, right?

Then I started thinking about manip. Manipulation isn't just medical advice, it crosses the line to medical treatment. I really felt that Tiffany needed manipulation when she came to my class, but we didn't have time. Then I started thinking ... I have to draw the line with manip. But where do I draw the line? Is it okay if I massage someone's wrist? What about strain-counterstrain and myofacial release? No matter how tempted (by good looks (boob-in-the-face technique haha) or outright need), I'm going to resist popping people's joints. A lot of my students would benefit from some sort of manipulation, but they are there for yoga, not a doctor's appointment. And hey, I'm not getting paid for any of this extra stuff!!! I want to be helpful. I want my students to be as healthy as possible, but I don't want to get into any trouble. How much should I do? Look who's asking the questions now.

The funny thing is I never even thought about any of this when I was a (medical) student. When it came to medical advice I usually said (and still say) "Go see your doctor." When it came to manipulation I did it anytime. I did it anywhere too. I remember people looking at me funny when I popped Ross's neck on a bench in Arizona. I didn't care. Now I'm afraid of getting busted for practicing medicine without a license. Can I get in trouble if I don't charge? I think I'm being a little paranoid. I'm still going to remind people to drink lots of water. I'll still tell people about things that they can do for their plantar fasciitis or sore wrists. I just won't do (too much) manip.

Prep Time

So, as you probably know I am a perfectionist. I spend hours prepping each hour long yoga class. I think of it like cooking. I use recipes for inspiration now, but I followed them closely when I first started cooking. The problem with yoga is that I have to come up with the recipe! I know it will get easier, but for now I spend a lot of time prepping for each class. Last night I was choosing songs for the music mix. Yep, I make a new mix of music for each new routine. That takes me another hour. This week's routine is going to be upper body. I want really strong motivating music--not new age relaxation. So I was choosing what I thought were some good songs, but then I started listening to the words. Oops. Bitch, Whore, Mother.... Eeek! Now, I'm completely against censorship, but to save my own ass I'm making sure there aren't any (many...haha) "offensive" words in the songs. I don't really hear the music when I am doing yoga (unless it is jazz, which totally gets on my nerves), but I know some people really listen. The last thing I need is somebody complaining to management that my music was offensive. So Kid Rock's Cowboy is out (breasts, pimp, bitch), as well as Lily Allen's Take What You Take (fuck). Oh well, better safe than sorry.

Ross's Corndog Adventure

I didn't grow up eating a lot of corndogs, but I know that I liked them. I can't remember the last time I had a corndog. It has been at least 10 years, maybe even 20. When we go to the state fair we always stare longingly at the corndogs. I told Ross that we had some hot dogs and he decided to finally try and make a kosher corndog. Well, he made corndogs with kosher hot dogs. Because the batter has milk in it the corndogs aren't totally kosher, but we don't follow the milk-meat rule anyway. Ross made the corndogs and I baked some Ore-Ida onion rings and rosemary potatoes. I think the corndogs were a delicious success.

Corndogs

hot dogs (Ross used Hebrew National 97% fat free--7 weenies in a package)
flour
skewers
oil for frying

1 c. milk
2 medium eggs
1/4 c. oil
2 Tbl. sugar
1 tsp. salt
2 tsp. baking powder
1 1/3 c. cornmeal
2/3 c. flour

1. In a large bowl whisk together milk, eggs, oil, sugar, and salt.
2. Sprinkle in dry ingredients and mix together.
3. Start preheating the oil to fry the corndogs in.
4. Pat corndogs dry with paper towels.
5. Dust hot dogs with flour so that the batter will stick.
6. Push skewers about half way into the hot dogs. Ross trimmed the skewers so that they would fit into the deep fryer.
7. Pour the batter into a tall glass so that you can dip the hot dogs in to coat them.
8. Dip hot dogs into batter and then drop them into the hot oil (about 375 degrees).
9. Only cook 2 or 3 hotdogs at a time.
10. Ross cooked the hotdogs 2 at a time for about about 2.5 minutes.
11. Remove the corndogs from the oil with tongs and let cool and drain on paper towels.


We had quite a bit of batter left over since we only made 7 corndogs and this recipe is supposed to make twice that. I think this recipe is a little too watery, and if we do it again I think I'll have Ross cut back a little on the milk, and maybe even try soy milk. Anyway, we might try and make some corn fritters or something with the leftover batter.

Estate Sale Singers

Lately I have been going to estate sales. I'm on the hunt for a tea set. I also just like to look at all the stuff and check out the old houses. Yesterday I noticed a sign advertising an estate sale up the street and I looked on the online classifieds and found a large estate sale near our house. This am we walked up the street and checked out the sale. It was lame. Then we hopped in the car and drove to the other sale. They had a cute set of dishes--German, but no tea pot, so I kept looking. Ross went through the house pretty quickly, as he really isn't interested in these things. He's looking for a Curta--maybe one day we'll find one. In the first room I noticed an old Singer treadle sewing machine. I talked with the old lady sitting there about the value of the treadle.

You see, about a month ago I went to one of these sales and they were selling the treadles (sewing machine bases) for 50 dollars each. The particular treadles were rusted and I hesitated. My mom and I want the treadles to make tables. The treadle is used as the base and a slab of marble is attached to the top. It thought I'd go back on Sunday and pay half price for them (most estate sales sell things for half price on Sundays.) When Ross and I went back they had already sold. I kind of kicked myself for being so cheap, but today I found a better deal.

The Singer sewing machine that I was eyeing was marked 45 dollars. I had Ross take a look and we agreed to buy it and turn it into a side table for the grill. Ross had it marked sold and we went out to the garage to see if there was anything of interest out there. Ross noticed another sewing machine with treadle base. This one was actually a modern electric sewing machine that had been stuffed into an old fashioned cabinet. We decided to take it so that my mom could also have one. That particular machine was marked 25 dollars. I went to the front and paid and Ross brought around the car so that we could load the machines (we ended up making two trips.)

I called my mom on the way home to tell her we'd bought her a treadle base and she was very excited. I told her the prices were great...I paid 55 dollars for two sewing machines and two bases. Ross looked at me and said "Uh, you can't do math." I took out my receipt....54 dollars and change. Okay, so they charged me 25 dollars each. I wasn't going to complain.

The old singer sewing machine is very nice. I'm going to keep it. The more modern machine is pretty dirty, and I think I'll set it out on the lawn with a "Free" sign on it. The cabinet on the old machine is in okay shape. The cabinet on the other machine is falling apart. So I need to rip off all the wood and then clean the treadles really well. After cleaning them I think I'll just paint them with clear spray paint. I think they will look better that way than repainted black. I'll leave it up to Ross to find the piece of marble and attach it. Woohoo. I got a good deal today.

When we came home from lunch there was a card in the mail about an estate sale next week (I've signed up to a couple of mailing lists.) We are going to Austin, but I can go to the sale on Friday morning. That tea set might just be waiting for me. You never know.
You can see both machines here and what the treadle base looks like.

The old singer sewing machine.


Detail shot of the Singer sphinx.

Banana Bread

I used to make banana bread for Ross all the time. It is easy to make, and he can eat the bananas because they are cooked (he is allergic to bananas.) So, the other day he was whining that a coworker had banana bread--but with nuts. Ross does not like nuts--any kind, but he does LOVE peanut butter. So last week I made some banana bread and we ate it with leftover gelato for dessert. Ross likes to warm it up in the toaster. This week I had a couple of BLACK bananas, so I decided to make more bread. I think it turned out better this week. The riper (blacker) the bananas, the better. Of course I altered the recipe that I used to use...so here is the recipe that I used yesterday.

Banana Bread

2/3 c. milk

juice of half of one lime

2 c. flour

1/4 c. whole wheat flour

1/4 c. ground flax

1 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. baking soda

3/4 tsp. salt

6 Tbl. butter

2/3 cup sugar

2 large eggs

2 very ripe bananas, mashed

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Grease a 9x5 inch loaf pan. Line bottom of pan with parchment paper and then grease the paper.

3. Add the lime juice to the milk.

4. In a small bowl mix together the dry ingredients.

5. Cream the butter and sugar with electric mixer at high speed for about two minutes.

6. Add eggs one at a time.

7. Beat in bananas until the mixture is well combined.

8. Add flour and milk alternately to banana mixture while mixing at low speed.

9. When mixture is thoroughly combined pour into loaf pan.

10. Bake for 55 minutes, or until tester (I use a chopstick) comes out clean.

11. Leave pan to cool and then pop the bread out.

12. Remember to peel the parchment paper off the bottom of the bread.

Of course you can contaminate it (as Ross would say) by adding some walnuts or pecans.

Quinoa--I Love It

A while back I read about quinoa in Men's Health magazine. I gave it a try and I really like it. I've cooked it with water or chicken broth and used it as a side, put it on salads, and made Spanish quinoa with it. I need to try and make pudding with it also. It could be breakfast or dessert.
I buy my quinoa at Central Market and they also sell it at Whole Foods. The last time I went to buy it CM was out of it in the bulk section so I bought a box of red quinoa. Tonight I cooked up some Spanish quinoa (using the red quinoa). For some reason I feel a lot less guilty when I eat quinoa than I do when I eat rice.

Spanish Quinoa

1 c. quinoa
1 Tbl. oil or butter
1 cup water or chicken broth
1 8 oz can of tomato sauce
Comino
Cilantro

1. Pour quinoa and oil into pan and toast over medium-high heat for about two minutes.
2. Add water, tomato sauce, comino, and cilantro.
3. Stir mixture just enough to ensure that the sauce and spices are evenly distributed.
4. After the mixture comes to a boil reduce heat and simmer for 25 minutes. When the quinoa is done it will be slightly clear (more apparent on the regular quinoa than the red) and a ring will be visible around each grain. I have had some trouble with this lately. I cook it for a long time (I think the box says 15 minutes) over low (but not the lowest it will go) heat. As with rice, do not stir it while it is cooking.
5. When most of the liquid has evaporated stir and serve.

Note: I have heard that some quinoa needs to be rinsed. This is a complete pain in the ass and then makes the toasting part harder because the quinoa is wet. The first couple of batches I bought said nothing about rinsing, then about a month ago the label said to rinse it. What a nightmare--each grain is so tiny that I didn't have a mesh sieve fine enough. The stuff my mom bought in the bulk section of Whole Foods didn't mention rinsing. I think I'll buy it from there next time. The boxed quinoa didn't have to be rinsed either, but it was more expensive than the bulk stuff. Also, I know the photo doesn't make it look very appetizing, but it tastes pretty good.

Nutrition Information:
I just looked up the nutrition information for uncooked quinoa v. uncooked rice (100g).

Quinoa......................................................Rice
Cal: 374....................................................365
Fat: 6g......................................................1g
Carbs: 69g................................................80g
Fiber: 6g...................................................1g
Protein: 13g..............................................7g

So, looks like quinoa may be a bit better for me, provided I don't add a bunch of fat.

Updates

After driving around in circles (so much for Google...) and becoming furiously frustrated I found Gold's Gym and signed my paperwork. They pay more than 24 Hour Fitness, but I will be an independent contractor, so I'll have to worry about the taxes and they don't provide much in the way of benefits (not that I really need them, but it is nice that 24HF offers them.) I'm going to attend the class tonight to see what it is like. I'm hoping it isn't too wimpy.
I came up with a balance routine for today's class. I hope it is long enough. When I did it with Ross last night it was about 10 minutes short, so I've added some things. I'll run through it before I get ready for work. I have so much to do today. The car inspection is past due so I should make that a priority.
I'm leaving Nada Esto Fue un Error as stuck in my head, because it still is. Strange thing though--I was singing it the other day, but I was singing the words to Jose Marti's Yo Soy Un Hombre Sincero to the tune of Nada Esto. Strange. Ross was freaked out that I know enough of a poem in Spanish to be able to do that. I only know a few of the 18 stanzas of the first verse. I found it online, with a translation, but the translation is made to rhyme, so really, I don't think it does it justice.
Well, I'd better get to work.

Substitution

Today I taught my first class as a sub. Ross had to go to work today, so I signed up for 2 classes in Bedford. I was nervous, but things went alright. I did the same routine as I did on Tuesday. So I was demonstrating hip opening poses two hours in a row. I didn't do the whole routine with them, but sometimes you have to demonstrate. I was sore on Wednesday, I'm sure I'll be sore again tomorrow. Anyways, so far the yoga teaching is going well. I will be teaching three classes next week. Next weeks theme is balance, but I haven't come up with the routine yet. Oh, Tiffany and Robert came to my class and did very well. They said that they liked it. We had Thai food for lunch afterwards. Spicy!

Pet Peeves

One of Ross's pet peeves is contractions. He thinks they should be banned. People have no idea what they are really saying when they use contractions and it irks me when they use them and mess up subject-verb agreement (one of my pet peeves). I think the word there's should be banned. I keep hearing over and over again "there's (insert plural of noun here)." I heard it on the news the other night "There's trucks here." or something like that. I found myself pointlessly telling the television that "There are trucks here!"
We all have our pet peeves. I just think I'm right about all of mine and everyone should do as I say. So stop saying there's. Thank you.

Tzatziki

We had Greek food last night and I decided to make tzatziki. I called up my mom to ask her how she usually makes it. She mentioned the option of sour cream, which is just blasphemy. I read a tip online about how to thicken up the yoghurt and it worked really well. So here's how I made tzatziki:

Tzatziki
yoghurt
English cucumber
garlic
lime
salt
pepper

1. The yoghurt: Drain some water off of the yoghurt by placing one coffee filter inside another and then scooping some yoghurt into the filters. I have very small filters, so I used 4 total. Place the filters with yoghurt into a collander and then set the colander in or over a bowl. Put the whole contraption into the refrigerator for at least two hours. There should be water in the bowl and the yoghurt should have thickened. I think I started with about 2 cups of yoghurt.

2. The cucumber: Peel the cucumber then cut it in half lengthwise. Scoop out the seeds using a spoon. Shred the cuke (this was so fast with the food processor). Using a dish towel (I use a surgical sponge) wring out all the water from the cucumber. This was always my job when my mom made tztz. I'd keep asking her if I'd squeezed it enough, and she'd say no 4 or 5 times. So yesterday, each time I thought I had drained enough water off of the cucumbers I would set them aside and go do something else. Then I would come back and squeeze them some more. I did this at least 4 times. My point--the first time you think you've squeezed all the water out, you haven't. Try again. It is phenomenal how much water can come out of one cucumber.

3. The garlic: My mom said to grate the garlic, but to save my nails and knuckles (I had a premonition) I diced the garlic very very finely. I resisted the urge to use 4 cloves of garlic and only used one.

4. Putting it all together: Mix the thickened yoghurt, squeezed cucumber and diced garlic in a small bowl. Add juice of half of one lime and salt and pepper to taste. Stir it all up and you are done!

It was really tasty. I'm sure it will be stronger today. I tried to take a photo, but it just looks like a white lump.... Oh, and I don't know why, but I insist on spelling yogurt with an "h."