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September 20th, 2009

12:42 pm - The Mother Of Dreams The Mother Of Dreams Goddess supreme, Mother of Dream, by thy ivory doors when thou standest, Who are they then that come down unto men in thy visions that troop, group upon group, down the path of the shadows slanting? Dream after dream, they flash and they gleam with the flame of the stars still around them; Shadows at thy side in a darkness ride where the wild fires dance, stars glow and glance and the random meteor glistens; There are voices that cry to their kin who reply; voices sweet, at the heart they beat and ravish the soul as it listens. What then are these lands and these golden sands and these seas more radiant than earth can imagine? Who are those that pace by the purple waves that race to the cliff-bound floor of thy jasper shore under skies in which mystery muses, Lapped in moonlight not of our night or plunged in sunshine that is not diurnal? Who are they coming thy Oceans roaming with sails whose strands are not made by hands, an unearthly wind advances? Why do they join in a mystic line with those on the sands linking hands in strange and stately dances? Thou in the air, with a flame in thy hair, the whirl of thy wonders watching, Holdest the night in thy ancient right, Mother divine, hyacinthine, with a girdle of beauty defended. Sworded with fire, attracting desire, thy tenebrous kingdom thou keepest, Starry-sweet, with the moon at thy feet, now hidden now seen the clouds between in the gloom and the drift of thy tresses. Only to those whom thy fancy chose, O thou heart-free, is it given to see thy witchcraft and feel thy caresses. Open the gate where thy children wait in their world of a beauty undarkened. High-throned on a cloud, victorious, proud I have espied Maghavan ride when the armies of wind are behind him; Food has been given for my tasting from heaven and fruit of immortal sweetness; I have drunk wine of the kingdoms divine and have healed the change of music strange from a lyre which our hands cannot master, Doors have swung wide in the chambers of pride where the Gods reside and the Apsaras dance in their circles faster and faster. For thou art she whom we first can see when we pass the bounds of the mortal; There at the gates of the heavenly states thou hast planted thy wand enchanted over the head of the Yogin waving. From thee are the dream and the shadows that seem and the fugitive lights that delude us; Thine is the shade in which visions are made; sped by thy hands from celestial lands come the souls that rejoice for ever. Into thy dream-worlds we pass or look in thy magic glass, then beyond thee we climb out of Space and Time to the peak of divine endeavour. 1908-1909 by Sri Aurobindo Tags: other people's poetry

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January 15th, 2009

01:13 pm - favorite lifts I am neither a top fitness bloggers nor a strength coach (yet) but hell, I haven't been writing here at all and thinking about this half-inspired me to post. So, my three favorite (not necessarily most effective) exercises: 1. The deadlift. Could you have guessed? I love deadlifts because they allow me to lift more weight than any other exercise (255 lbs. was my last heavy deadlift and 300 lbs. is my short-term goal). I feel like a badass standing there with that much weight in my hands (no straps, no belt, no equipment whatsoever). Additionally they have made my back thick and heavily muscled, and I do love the aesthetics of a muscular back on either a man or woman. I will take new back photos by March, which would be one year since the photo in the icon. I'm lazy about taking photos but I'm looking forward to seeing what another year of heavy deadlifting has added to what I think was a pretty damn good foundation. 2. Pullups (all the variations I can do, which is currently just chins or parallel-grip). I don't think I've had a moment in the gym as exhilarating as my first chinup. Again, I love these because they make me feel like a badass. I've just installed a pullup bar in the doorway to my rec room and am going to start doing them several times a day. Hopefully the frequency will help me work back up to sets of 5-10, even though I weigh fucking 75 kg. Yes, I can only do sets of two right now. :-P 3. Overhead press. It was tough to decide which lift to include last; there are so many which have endeared themselves to me. But I had to go with overhead press because I'm still riding the exhilaration of the 100 lbs. overhead press I got in Nov. I did sets of five with 90 lbs. last week! So my one rep max is clearly over 100 lbs. now. Even though I knew overhead strength was supposed to be a particular challenge for women, how many times did I tell myself, "I'm not truly strong until I can lift 100 lbs. over my head?" I will most certainly continue to keep this lift a priority. ( and the runners up ) What are your three favorites? Current Mood: hungry Current Music: Franz Liszt - La Campanella (performed by Gabriel Cano) Tags: feats of strength

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December 9th, 2008

12:31 am - eating well Tightening up my nutrition has had me eating well the past week. Part of this is that having rules and restrictions can foster creativity for me--it's sort of like writing a poem within the bounds of a form. It's also because eating out is difficult to do and I'm trying to eat more often--recently I'd reverted to only eating 3-4 times a day--so I really need to cook a tasty variety of food to keep myself happy. Here are a few of my creations. Protein Kaiserschmarrn This is not quite Kaiserschmarrn but the taste and cooking method really remind me of this German/Austrian dessert. I created this recipe by accident one morning when attempting to make protein pancakes. Our sea shipment from China, which had my good nonstick skillet in it, had not yet arrived. So I cooked the pancake in a not-very-nonstick skillet which I had left behind in Germany. It stuck like crazy, so I couldn't flip it. I broke the pancake up into pieces and continued flipping them around in the pan until everything was just barely cooked. This concoction was pretty amazing, like eating dessert for breakfast. It would make a delicious dessert--if you wanted to be decadent you could dust it with powdered sugar and/or serve it with applesauce, another fruit sauce or barely (or not at all) sweetened whipped cream. I do make this in my good nonstick skillet now, intentionally breaking the cake into pieces as it cooks. 2 scoops low-carb vanilla whey protein powder 3 eggs about 1/2-1 cup rolled oats about 1/3 tsp. salt about 1 tsp. ground cinnamon about 2 Tbsp. milk or water (optional: about 2-4 Tbsp. milled flaxseed, or this milled flax mixed with dehydrated berry powder that I found at Costco) about 1/2-1 cup frozen blueberries a large handful of chopped pecans (I just break them by hand into the bowl, no need to get a knife and cutting board dirty) unsalted butter In a large bowl use a fork to whisk together the protein powder and eggs. Stir in the oats, salt, cinnamon, milk or water and if, desired, flaxseed. Add the berries and nuts and stir again. The batter will be pretty gloopy. You can use the blueberries frozen since they're small but if you use some other kind of larger berry it's best to at least partially defrost them first. Rub a stick of unsalted butter over the bottom of a skillet, a thin layer to cover. Heat the skillet over medium, then add the batter. It will be very thick so you'll need to spread it out to cover the pan. Cook it for about 3-5 minutes, or until the bottom side is browning like a pancake. Use a spatula to flip the pancake in parts, breaking it into pieces. I like to have some nice large pieces as well as smaller ones. Cook for a few more minutes, flipping and breaking the cake more as needed, until it is just cooked--still moist in the middle. This serves two very hungry people. It has substantial carbs so I like it for breakfast or for a post-workout meal. Five-Spice Tilapia This is a variation on my Baked Salmon with Magically Delicious Fish-oil Drenched Onions. I have yet to get tired of this recipe, as there are so many variations possible. Another variation is to use basil and substitute sliced tomatoes for the citrus. 1 Tbsp olive oil 1 large yellow onion, sliced 2 bell peppers (I like one red and one orange), sliced about 5 cloves garlic, sliced thin about 1 Tbsp. thinly sliced ginger (I like to make matchsticks) about 2 tsp. five spice powder (I may have used more, I kind of spilled it into the pan) a little salt fresh ground pepper 4 tilapia loins, rinsed and patted dry 4 or 5 mandarin oranges (or other variety of orange), unpeeled, sliced thin Preheat your oven to 375F. Heat a large ovenproof skillet over medium. Add the olive oil and after it's hot, add the onions, bell peppers, garlic, ginger and some of the five spice. Saute until tender and turning translucent, about 5 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and lightly salt the vegetables. Rub the tilapia with a little salt, pepper and allspice and place it over the vegetables. Arrange the orange slices over the fish. Slide the pan into the oven and bake about 15 minutes or until the fish is cooked. Vaguely Greek Spinach Burgers I really wanted feta in these but I didn't have any. This is only the second time in my life I've made hamburgers. I know adding all sorts of things to burgers was a bit of a fad a few years ago I'm behind the times as I made up this recipe Friday afternoon. about 1 Tbsp. peanut oil about 5 cloves garlic, more or less to your taste, minced 1/2 yellow onion, minced a lot of fresh spinach, as much as will fit in your wok, washed (you want some water still clinging to the leaves to help it steam a little in the wok) a dash of salt oh, let's say something like 16-20oz. ground lean beef. I don't really know. It was about 1/3 of a huge package we got at Costco. 1 egg about 1 tsp. dried oregano, crushed 1/2 yellow onion, minced a few cloves of garlic, minced about 1/4-1/3 cup grated monterey jack cheese about 2 tsp. salt fresh ground pepper Heat your wok over high heat. When hot, add the peanut oil in a swirl to coat the surface. Add the garlic and onion and cook 20-30 seconds. Add all the spinach and a little salt and continue to cook, turning and stirring the spinach often (I like to use tongs) until it is wilted. Set aside to cool. In a large bowl, stir together the beef, egg, onion, garlic, cheese, salt and pepper. Squeeze the excess water out of the spinach, mince it, and add it to the mix. Let rest for at least 30 minutes for the flavors to meld. Form burgers--I attempted to go for about 5oz. each but who knows? This made seven burgers for me. I just got a new cast iron stovetop griddle/grill, so I cooked them on that. You can cook them in a skillet or grill them or whatever you prefer. Serve with sliced tomato and stone-ground mustard. (Or whatever your desired condiments are). Palava Chicken I made this one this afternoon. I particularly liked how the peanut butter made the sauce creamy. The flavors were quite harmonious. 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, rinsed, patted dry and sliced fairly thin 1 Tbsp. olive oil 1 medium yellow onion, chopped fine about 4-5 cloves garlic, roughly minced 6 small or 4 large tomatoes, chopped 2 Tbsp. natural peanut butter (just peanuts and salt people!) about 2 1/2 cups water 1 tsp. dried thyme, crushed lots of fresh spinach, probably 6 cups or so about 1 Tbsp. extra hot New Mexican red chile powder salt and fresh ground pepper to taste Heat a large skillet (or chef's pan, which I prefer) over medium. Add the olive oil, then the chicken. Season with a little salt and pepper. Cook until the chicken is browning a bit on all sides, then remove to a plate with a slotted spoon. Add the onion, garlic and tomatoes to the pan juices and saute for about five minutes or until they are soft. Reduce the heat to low and add the peanut butter and half the water. Cook, stirring pretty much constantly to keep the peanut butter from burning, for about 4-5 minutes. Then add the remaining water, thyme, chile, spinach and, if desired, a little more salt and pepper (I didn't add more as there was plenty of salt on my chicken and in my peanut butter). Stir the spinach into the liquid until it is starting to wilt enough that there's room to add the chicken back to the pan. Add the chicken and cook the whole mess, stirring often, until the chicken is cooked through, about another 5-10 minutes. If your chicken breasts are large you can probably get about 6 servings of stew out of this recipe. Current Mood: trashed from EDT Current Music: Coil - Black Antlers (Where's Your Child?) (vers 1) Tags: beef, chicken, food, main dishes, recipes, tilapia

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December 5th, 2008

03:55 pm - training two bodies After I wrote about my new training plan, maramaye let me know that she's been reading my weightlifting posts and wants to make a similar transformation but feels pretty clueless about what to do. After writing her quite the long reply, I realized that we could help each other out. She can't afford a trainer right now but I can train her for free and learn from the experience. This is a good opportunity for me to try my hand at personal training and see how well I do and how much I like it. I started having thoughts about this path only a few months after I fell so in love with weightlifting--I love to teach and I also like telling people what to do. ;) V has been encouraging me to get on with it but I've had some hesitation because I know I need to learn more and I'm also worried that I'm too bossy/mean/hardcore for most people. maramaye accepted my offer and we've already set her up with a program. So far the entirety of our discussion is contained in the comments to that previous post because we thought it would be helpful to allow others to join in and critique our process or learn along with us. But I'm not sure anyone noticed. It's time to bring this project out into the open, hence this new post. We're going to continue our discussion in the comments to this post. Additionally, I'm going to create a filter and tag for future posts on this subject (I'm thinking once a week, depending on the volume of comments). LJ probably isn't the best format for this but I think it will work well enough. This will be an opt-in filter, so let me know if you would like to follow maramaye's transformation. maramaye's main goal is to speed up her metabolism, so she'll be lifting heavy weights, increasing her general physical activity, and eating much and often. Tags: maramaye's transformation

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March 31st, 2006

04:38 am - Pappardelle con Sugo di Coniglio What kind dinner does one cook the night after a success such as my pizza? Bunnies! Pappardelle with Rabbit Ragu 4 rabbit shoulders sea salt and fresh ground black pepper 1/4 cup olive oil 1 anchovy 1 medium onion, diced 2 small carrots, diced 1 stalk celery, diced 3 dried peperoncino, crushed about 9-13 cloves garlic, minced 2 Tbsp tomato paste about 1 cup Chianti 1 can whole tomatoes about 1 cup chicken stock 2 bay leaves 2 tsp. dried thyme 1 tsp. dried basil pappardelle Parmesano Reggiano ( recipe and a couple more photos ) Tags: food, food photography, italian food, rabbit, recipes

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04:10 am - Pizza with pink kiss apples, caramelized onions, mascarpone and gorgonzola Inspired. I cooked onions slowly until they began to brown at the edges, then added a small spoonful of brown sugar and just a tiny dash of grated nutmeg, turned up the heat, and continued cooking until they were dark and caramelized. Then I pushed all the onions to one side of the pan and melted about a tablespoon of butter in the other side. I brushed this onion-infused melted butter over a pizza crust (ready-made, but still good), then topped it with sliced apples, mascarpone and gorgonzola cheese and the caramelized onions. Gods, it may have been the best pizza I've ever had. Tags: apples, food, food photography, pizza, recipes

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February 28th, 2006

03:14 pm - Cinnamon Popcorn Any time the subject of popcorn comes up, I will tell anyone who will listen about this fantastic discovery of mine. If you don't like sweet popcorn, read on! I'm not talking about sweet popcorn. If you do like sweet popcorn, read on! This is seriously delicious. About three winters ago, I had made mulled wine one night and later wanted popcorn. The pan I use for popcorn was also the one I had mulled the wine in, and I had a crazy idea that it might be interesting to not wash the pan out (it was still sitting on the stove with a thin coating of thick wine goo on its insides) before making the popcorn, letting the popcorn have a bit of the flavor of the wine and mulling spices. I did so and when it came time to season the popcorn, after adding melted butter and salt, my intuition told me to add cinnamon. So of course I did, and created the greatest popcorn known to humankind. (The mulled wine residue didn't actually flavor the popcorn very much...but the *cinnamon* was a discovery!) The flavor of cinnamon is so warm, it makes this popcorn perfect for winter. But I've found it so addictive that I add cinnamon pretty much every time I make popcorn. I vary the amount though; sometimes I like just the tiniest bit, sometimes quite a lot. A year or two after the discovery of cinnamon popcorn, I discovered olive oil popcorn and improved upon my recipe. One of the times I was travelling in Italy with my family, we were staying in a villa kind of in the middle of nowhere, Tuscany. My nieces were always in need of snacks, so we had bought some popcorn at the grocery store when we were in town. Nobody in my family had ever made popcorn on the stovetop, besides me. There was no oil in the villa but the olive oil from the grove right outside the door, so I made the popcorn with olive oil. There was no cinnamon, either, but it was delicious with olive oil and salt! Of course when I next made popcorn at home, I tried olive oil with cinnamon and found a whole new level of popcorn-tastiness. I eventually found that it's even better to top the popcorn with a combination of olive oil and melted butter, along with the cinnamon and salt. I change the proportions of olive oil and butter to suit my tastes, just as I change how much cinnamon I add. But this basic combination is the most divine popcorn can possibly be. Current Music: Frederic Chopin - 3 Mazurkas, Op. 56//iii C min Tags: food, my stories, recipes

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February 16th, 2006

10:14 pm - Mushroom and Wild Rice Soup I'm coming down with some sort of sore throat/cough/fever/wooziness sickness and this evening I no longer had any desire to eat what I had planned for dinner. I didn't have a lot of ingredients to work with but I came up with a delicious and soothing soup. 3 cups chicken broth 1/3 cup wild rice, rinsed and drained 3 green onions, thinly sliced 1 cup milk 2 Tbsp flour 1 tsp. dried thyme, crushed about 1/4 tsp. spicy (not sweet!) paprika about 1 cup sliced ubiquitous brown mushrooms salt, to taste Combine the broth and rice in a medium saucepan, bring to a boil, reduce the heat, cover and simmer for 40 minutes. Stir in the green onions and simmer another 8 minutes or so, then stir in the mushrooms, thyme and paprika. Whisk the flour and milk together in a bowl or large cup. After another 3 minutes or so, pour this mixture into the soup, slowly, while stirring. Bring back to a low boil and continue stirring until it has thickened a bit. Current Mood: sick Current Music: Banco de Gaia - Fake It Till You Make It Tags: food, mushrooms, recipes, soup

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04:39 pm - Mango Chicken Salad The concoction I created for dinner last night was yummy. I was already thinking about chicken salad when I went grocery shopping in the late afternoon. V had mentioned that he was in the mood for something with fruit, such as mandarin oranges. I thought I could make some sort of chicken salad, serve it over greens with the mandarin orange slices and perhaps something else as garnish. But on my way to grab the oranges I noticed a display with cans of mango slices. Thinking that V surely wouldn't be opposed to mango rather than orange, I grabbed them. So the items of inspiration: chicken breasts, canned mangos, walnuts, baby chard. I started by poaching the chicken breasts in chicken stock which I spiked with ginger, peppercorns, coriander, garlic and onion. Meanwhile I began assembling the salad: 2 green onions, minced 1 can mango slices, mangos chopped, juice reserved about 1/4 cup mayo about 1/4 cup plain yogurt a handful of toasted walnuts (would have been better with almonds, I think) a fair amount of powdered ginger a bit of garlic powder enough cayenne pepper to give some pleasant heat a bit of crushed red peppercorns a couple of splashes of rice wine vinegar mango juice &/or poaching liquid, to taste salt, to taste When the chicken was done (after about 25 minutes of simmering in the stock), I cut it into bite-sized pieces, let them cool a bit, then stirred them into the salad. The yogurt I used was seriously thick, and the mangos were very sweet, so I ended up with something both thicker and sweeter than I wanted. I added a few spoonfuls of the poaching liquid to up the chicken flavor and thin it out a bit. Then the chicken flavor was a bit too pronounced, so I added a little bit of the reserved mango juice. I put the salad in the refrigerator to chill for a while. I served it over the baby chard. It looked so pretty! I really should have garnished with a few green onions or some nuts but I forgot about it. I snapped a couple of photos really quickly--they didn't come out so great but I wasn't interested in taking the time to get a good photo. I was hungry and this dinner was satisfying and so tasty. ( one more photo ) Current Mood: restless Current Music: Kebnekajse - Skänklåt Till Spelman Tags: chicken, food, mango, recipes, salad

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February 1st, 2006

04:44 pm I   ♥ dark matter

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January 27th, 2006

10:18 pm - yum yum yum (cheese and mushrooms and greens oh my!) This white cheddar polenta with sauteed greens and garlic-roasted shrooms was a seriously tasty dinner. I used ubiquitous brown mushrooms, quartered, rather than the big bad portobellos called for. Otherwise, I pretty much followed the recipe (well, except I used far more garlic and didn't measure anything). It was perfect after a long, stressful, activity-filled day in the coldest heart of winter. Current Mood: horny Current Music: Since I Laid My Burden Down Tags: food

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December 21st, 2005

04:31 pm - Posole! It's that time of year...in my family Posole was a tradition on the eve. (serves about 8-12) 1 lb. posole corn, rinsed thoroughly (if posole is too hard to find hominy can be substituted) 10 cups water about 1 lb. pork or beef roast (I prefer pork) 5 more cups water 2 Tbsp salt 1 medium onion, chopped 5 cloves garlic, minced 1/2 tsp. crushed dried oregano 1 tsp. fresh ground cumin 3-6 dried red chile pods, rinsed and crumbled (or about 1-4 Tbsp red chile powder, to taste) Put the posole and 10 cups water in a large pot and bring to a boil. Turn down the heat and simmer for 3 hours. After about 2 hours, brown the pork in a large heavy skillet over medium heat. Add the browned pork to the posole with another 5 cups of water and continue cooking on low heat until the pork is tender. Add the remaining ingredients and continue simmering until the posole pops (the kernels break open). (In the end posole takes quite a long time to cook). Adjust seasonings and serve. Posole is even better after it sits in the refrigerator for a day or two, as it gets hotter and the flavors deepen and meld. :) It also freezes well. Serve with fresh flour or corn tortillas, lime wedges, minced onion, chopped cilantro, maybe some chopped avocado--all the garnishes heaped in bowls so everyone can have as much or as little as they want--and Mexican beer. :) Current Mood: festive Current Music: Coil - North (Winter Solstice: North, 1999) Tags: feasts, food, new mexican food, pork, recipes

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December 12th, 2005

11:31 pm - pizzzzzzza Tonight I made a pizza with sauteed red potatoes, kalamata olives, anchovies, roasted garlic, garlic oil and mozzarella. I *love* potatoes on pizza. ( wanna see? ) Current Mood: desirous Current Music: Hedningarna - Täppmarschen Tags: food, food photography, photography, pizza

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