Resolution: Better than Yesterday

This past weekend I did a Resolution 5k Run.  At the end of the race, you got to write down a resolution and it will be mailled to you in July so you can access your progress. My resolution: Work towards doing an unassisted pull-up.  I would have loved to written: Do a pull-up but, according to the research, woman can’t do pull-ups. 

In a recent study, researchers at the University of Dayton put 17 women through a training program to increase strength in those magical pull-ups muscles.  After three months, only 4 of the woman could do a pull-up.    Researcher were very surprised, but came up with several reasons pull-ups elude woman:

*Lower testosterone means woman develop less muscle then men

*Woman typically have higher levels of body fat

*Also if you are taller or have long arms (this applies to men too), you are at a disadvantage

I have being trying to do a pull-up for over a year now, so reading this article should make me rejoice.  It’s not failure, it’s biology!  But the fact is, I see evidence that doesn’t support this every day at CrossFit. Most women, I know, can do pull-ups! And every trainer at my box fully believes that I can too.  Finally, this article gives me an out…but I don’t want an out, I want a pull-up. 

An unassisted pull-up was a 2012 goal that was not fulfilled (I even asked Santa for a pull-up).  Focusing on doing a pull-up brought me endless frustration and no real progress was ever made. So this year, I am changing tactics.  My goal isn’t a pull-up. It is to work towards being able to do a pull-up.  I am shifting the focus to the process rather than the result.

A trainer gave me two things to work on: doing strict pull-ups with bans to build my pull-up muscles and strengthen my wrists/grip with some dumbbell exercises.  I also found the tips in this video helpful :

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eP9CemlbImQ

Will I get a pull-up in 2013? I honestly don’t know, but I am sure as hell going to reach my goal of trying!

“Why Woman Can’t Do Pull-ups” article link: 

http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/10/25/why-women-cant-do-pull-ups/

Resolution: To Be a Kinder Cat

Have you seen this YouTube clip:  Cat-Friend vs Dog-Friend:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SdnKczUbcfc

The first time I saw it I thought, why would anyone want to own a cat? It was amusing enough, so I watched it a couple more times and started seeing people as either cat-types or dog types. Then I realized…I am a cat.   

Obviously, dogs are so much easier and pleasant to be around! Even I own a dog and not a cat!  Why would anyone want to be my friend?  I want/need to be less of a cat to the people I care about.

I thought about trying to be more like a dog: friendly, eager-to-please and loving.  As I cat, I can see how those qualities are desirable.  But being a cat, I can’t be a dog.   At best I can be a kinder cat: less aloof, more welcoming and making an effort to do nice things for others. 

So I am making a conscious effort this year BE KIND to others.

Meow….

Holidaze

I heard a doctor say that before the holidays, Neurology is busy and after the holidays Psychology gets really busy.  Seems the stress of the season brings out people’s ticks and spending time with family requires a counseling session.  The most wonderful time of year has become a survival skills test of modern life.  Why do we do this to ourselves? 

I think the biggest problem is we try to celebrate it too much.  In a concentrated frenzy, we shop for gifts, decorate, and cook for Christmas.  There are work parties, friend’s gathering and family traditions.  (Just from work alone, I got four invites for holiday parties!)  By Christmas Day, you’ve already been celebrating Christmas for 3-4 weeks.   All the sparkly lights and sugary treats become a holiday blur and it stops being fun and starts being a chore.  How do you enjoy the holidays, while not driving yourself mad?

Being on my own this season has made me very conscious of making good choices to be able to enjoy the holiday season.  My major revelation has been prioritizing what is not important and minimizing the time spent on it: 

-          Christmas cards. I skipped this. I admit, I was very tempted (to feel obligated) to send Christmas cards, at least to those who sent them to me.  I resisted.

-          Decorations. I started to rile myself up over decorations and then realized, decking my house out was not all that important to me. Instead, I volunteered to decorate the office.  I get to see lovely holiday decorations five times a week.

-          Gifts.  Shopping for gifts is a chore.  So I got my shopping done early. I simply asked people what they wanted and shopped online, as much as, possible. The day after Thanksgiving, I was at the post office, mailing off boxes.  That’s right, Rani Claus brings you exactly what you asked for!

-          Holiday parties.  I scheduled the important ones first so that I didn’t end up trying to juggle my time.   I also said no thanks to some invites.

I know, I sound a little grinchy.  Like the majority of people, I really want to enjoy the holidays, but the list of “to-dos” and “should dos” has become a burden.  I minimized or eliminated the things I wasn’t really enjoying.  I was left with time to focus on the people and things, I do enjoy:

-Spending quality time with family.  I used to go back to Hawaii for Christmas, but people were busy there too. To spend time with them, I practically had to follow them around while they did the Christmas chores.  Now, I plan my Hawaii trips during non-holidays for maximum quality time.  I direct my attention to the family I do have here.   My sister and I have an annual Christmas lunch with my Aunty.  This year, there are some popular Hawaii entertainers coming to Cali to do a Christmas show, which my sister and I got tickets too! So I get quality family time and taste of Hawaii.

-          Event Traditions.  There is no shortage of events you can participate in for the holidays. Instead of trying to do them all, I decided to pick a couple and really enjoy them.  My picks for this year are Holiday of Lights at Folsom Zoo and ice skating. Ice skating last through January, so if I don’t make it before Christmas, I will be okay with that. 

-          Christmas Feast.  I try to make good eating choices prior to the holiday. By saving special food for the special day, it is well- actually special.

-          Sweets and Treats. Oh the temptations are endless, but I have my favorites like- peppermint mochas. Yes, I realize you can get these year round, but I only get them during the holiday season. That makes it taste even better.  It is amazing how much the little things matter.

So far my post-Thanksgiving time has been manageable. I suffer some residual guilt for saying no to party invitations and not sending out Christmas cards.  But mostly I relish the calmness that allows me to enjoy this season.  This may be the first Christmas, I’ve actually had time to enjoy since childhood.

Perfect is the Enemy of Good

Here I am again… weeks have gone by without me posting a blog. I have no good reason for not crafting a weekly post, but let me try out a few theories: 1) The weather changed- it got dark and cold and I just followed my instincts to seasonally slow down. 2) Life is peacefully, so nothing fired me up to get a good piece going.  3)  Writing both thrills and scares me into inertia.

While all of these excuses make up the truth, #3 is the biggest part of why I haven’t been writing.  Honestly, I haven’t even attempted to write a blog, but I thought about it- a lot. I feel pressure to produce and publish only perfection.   That kind of pressure creates avoidance, because I hate to fail.  I thought about just deleting the whole Rice Kracker blog and stop stressing myself unnecessarily.

But I just can’t quit writing because it is my outlet for creating something. I am not artsy or mechanically inclined, but I can use words to build something.   I love the way you start with a blank screen and sentence by sentence a piece gets created.   You arrange, rearrange, delete and revise until thoughts are shaped into a symphony of words.  

Another reason I can’t quit is writing is an adventure.  I often start writing not really knowing where I am heading and then ending up somewhere I never thought I would.  For example, I wrote this blog intending to expound upon how you shooting for perfection can paralyze you, but instead it has evolved into how much I love creating with words.

Having a blog to write is a good thing for me. It exercises my creative muscles.  I need to get pass perfect inertia and just write. I need to take the time to do this regularly.  I need to face that blank screen and see what adventures are in store.

November Thanks Givings

November is my month for making key commitments- this week makes one year at CrossFit and twelve years at UC Davis. Happy Double Anniversary!  Both institutions have had a huge positive impact in my life. You could say, it is how I spend my days and nights.

UC Davis has allowed me so many professional opportunities. To date, I’ve worked in 3 colleges, 5 departments and have had 7 job titles.  All that experience without having to switch employers.  It was my parent’s dream for me to be a “state employee” and they may have just been right about something. UC Davis has been there for me when I was young and into fun, when I went back to school for my MBA and now when I want a work-life balance. 

CrossFit has been an amazing transformational force.  It has given me fitness, challenge and social opportunities.  My first six months were about survival.  After I came back from Hawaii, I really dedicated effort to improving and as someone said “it is like someone turned a switch on and you lit up.”  I started thriving. I mastered some of my weaknesses (wall balls, box jumps, and the barbell), I entered a CrossFit competition, I did a strength program for 10 weeks and I ran a Zombie Mud Run with obstacles!   Doing CrossFit is just as much a mental as it is physical.  I’ve discovered I am capable of so much more than I thought. I do hard things because they are hard.  Perhaps the most unexpected gift from CrossFit has been mental fortitude, which has applied to every aspect of my life.

Stable employment, a challenging social activity, good health and having my own place are the reasons my life is so satisfying.  It gives me a strong foundation, so I can be a good daughter, sister, friend, employee, pet owner etc.  November is a month for being thankful and UC Davis and CrossFit are two things I am extremely grateful to have in my life.

Minestrone Soup

The best thing about a rainy forecast all week- soup weather! 

 Here is one of my favorite recipes from Giada deLaurentiis.

Ingredients:

1 onion

2 carrots

2 celery

2 cloves of garlic

3 ounces pancetta

1 pound swiss chard

1 potato cubed

1 can diced tomatoes

1 fresh spring rosemary

1 15 ounces can of cannellini beans

2 14 ounce cans of beef broth

Preparation:

Sauté chopped onions, carrots, celery, and garlic in olive oil for about 10 minutes.
Add pancetta and cook another 10 minutes.
Add cubed potatoes and salt. Cook another 10 minutes.
Add swiss chard. Cook for 2 minutes.
Add rosemary and can of diced tomatoes.  Cover and cook for 10 minutes.
Puree cannellini beans with beef broth.
Add puree and cook 20 minutes (or til potatoes are soft).
Remove rosemary.

Use salt and pepper as needed.

My Modifications:

• For the onions, carrots and celery, I cheat and buy the pre-cut mireproix mix from Trader Joe’s.  I cook them in bacon fat to give the soup even more flavor.
• If you can’t find swiss chard, try using kale.
• I’ve used dried rosemary rather than fresh and didn’t notice a huge difference.
• This recipe also freezes well, so I usually make two batches at a time. 

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/giada-de-laurentiis/winter-minestrone-recipe/index.html

Good-Bye Adventures in Yumminess

     My journey into the kitchen was a loooong one... but it took me from can't cook/don't wanna cook to writing a food blog. I am sharing my story, for those of you out there who think "I can't cook," because I believe anyone can learn.

     10 years ago, I barely knew where the kitchen in my apartment was.  This was ironic, since I did the new hire training for Serv Safe, which covered how employees should handle and prepare foods.  I didn't really like to cook back then, but I loved eating good food. Having to talk about food preparation three times a week, I began to suspect, you can't fully appreciate food until you've tried preparing it. So I started trying..

     My strategy was to learn how to make at least one item from each major food categories.  I started with stirfrys because they were easy as 1-2-3:- 1. pick a protein (beef, chicken, pork), 2. pick some veggies and 3. pick a sauce and wallah- you've got a meal. I progressed to other food categories, one at a time.  For pastas- I mastered a lasagna, for soups- beef stew, for breads- my mom's cornbread recipe, etc. Soon I could actually cook something for any occasion.

     My next source of inspiration came from- of all places- the gym.  Why is it that the TV channel in gyms is always set to the Food Network? ( I still haven't figure out how being tempted with delicious foods helps with getting in shape). It did get my attention though and the Barefoot Contessa and Giada spurred me to the next level of cooking.   I learned about flavoring foods and using in-season produce.  This is when I got excited about cooking. Which is exactly around the time I met Food Muse and our first outing together was the San Francisco's Farmer's Market.  The Farmer's Market was an all-out showing of how fabulous food is and full of enthusiastic (sometimes slightly famous) kitchen magicians. 

     When I think back, the game changing item for me was the Heirloom Tomato. I have always been a fan of tomatoes and to find out they come in such variety and color- each with their own flavor was amazing!  Inspired- I started sprinkling fresh herbs like basil and oregano on tomatoes, I started roasting tomatoes, I started making my own marinara sauce with the roasted tomatoes. Marinara sauce led to homemade meatballs and minestrone soup and on and on and on...until one day I realized that my cooking actually tasted better than eating out. With that realization, I stopped saying "I can't cook" and started my Kitchen Magician apprenticeship.

     What started this blog post was a recent article:  What's keeping America out of the kitchen?

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/whats-keeping-americans-out-of-their-kitchens-national-survey-reveals-the-top-excuses-for-not-cooking-2011-09-08.  

28% Can't cook

25% Don't want to clean up mess

21% Don't have enough time

     It reminded me of how far I have come in the kitchen. I have been a part of these statistics and I missed out by not getting into the kitchen sooner.  I know cooking can be intimidating.  I know it takes time. I know you are afraid of ruining food. But America, cooking is a basic life skill, which 28% of us don't possess?  Start small and keep building your repertoire.  Make learning to cook an adventure and  use it to build relationships with others (people love to talk about food). Surely, my passion for food outweighs my skills.  But hopefully, my story shows you that even the most unwilling can be converted into a decent ambassador for food. 

This was my favorite post from my blog "Adventures in Yumminess" which I have decided to delete. It tracked a year in my life, in which, I really focused on crafting my kitchen skills.  However, it also captured a relationship, which I don't really want to memorialize. It served its purpose because the kitchen is now my favorite room and I really do enjoy cooking.  If I can become comfortable in the kitchen, anyone can!