a life beyond running shoes.

i miss it. it is cold outside and sometimes all i think is that is would be great weather for a run. i had lunch today with my running partner - which is such a lame term since she was my boss first, then a friend, then my running partner..... but as i learned many miles shared can make your running partner one of your nearest and dearest friends. there is a story in this month's runner's world titled " someone to run with ." while it doesn't necessarily apply to stef because it talks about partners that have come and gone, it did make me think of her... i know that one day i will have someone that is my new stef and she will have a new me because our lives won't always intersect.... even while they do intersect she has endured two seasons of gestation.... and yet one day we will get out there again. best quote: "any friendship that is based on running is, in essence, about accrual -- of time, of miles, of intimacy built over a lot of small steps forward....

this is a great article to read. one of my respected reading endeavors ... michael pollan.... wrote in today's new york times magazine, " farmer in chief: what the next president can and should do to remake the way we grow and eat food." addressed to the president elect - who ever that might be. of course, i find this all very interesting - especially since it is my dream to have my own vegetable, herb garden & compost pile in my backyard - but it is a good summation of his political/ethical agenda.... and for those not wanting to read his book the omnivore's dilemma (which you should read anyway but it has taken me a year to get through) it gets to the heart of some of his arguments. anyway, just thought i would pass that along. especially since i have not figured out how to get two kids and a pregnant belly to the farmer's markets.... i just read about it now.

today asher is two months old. it makes me miss running. i read an article in my runner's world that really struck me in relationship to my own running. while in no way can i compare myself with someone that has over come substance abuse or homelessness, i do understand the small pangs of addiction. food is my demon. the article, entitled "home run," recounts the experience of a running club that has used the discipline of running to replace old addictions. in my own life the discipline & camaraderie of running has helped balance out old/bad habits. it helps my food issues, it helps my short temper, and it helps keep my head in a healthier place. pounding pavement is therapeutic & helps me be a better wife, mom, and warrior. i am all clear for exercise now that i have had my check-up....but running is still months away - until i am done nursing. swimming will have to be the poor substitute, especially since it is individual and part of what i miss is transv...

a rticle from the NYT Magazine entitled: " Unhappy Meals. " it is a very, very, very long article but it really got me to thinking & evaluating the way my family eats. there were a slew of principles that i will list here that challenged me a great deal. the main point he makes is this: "eat food. not too much. mostly plants." then he proceeds in a couple thousand words to unpack that. he also goes through some of the history of finding nutrients in food and the science of nutrition. it basically thinks it is pretty bogus because what you need in terms of vitamins & minerals are in "real" foods, not created foods..... so eat an apple. here are the main things that i am evaluating (he had 9 rules of thumb; i'm not listing them all): 1. eat food - not foodlike items (such as non-dairy creamer and cereal bars - your great-grandmother would have no idea what that was) 2. avoid food products that have ingredients that you can't pronounc...

i actually got a bit of reading done yesterday. thought i would post about some of my adventures in magazines.... the new yorker: as i am a new reader, i am only a couple of pages into this week's edition. but fun little snip it that i ran across - " tables for two " did a write up about a restaurant in our neck of the woods called nono kitchen. it was in fact asher's first meal out, and is literally around the corner from us. i could have walked by it on the way to the hospital but i went up a different street. we actually took my mom for lunch and split the red beans and rice....yum-o! john's raves about the jambalaya but claims it to be a bit on the spicy side. even though my heartburn appears to have disappeared post-labor, i am still avoiding anything too spicy. runner's world: even though i have not put my shoes on since late april, i am still a runner. i get great satisfaction & pleasure from reading my monthly taste of the world on the pavemen...