A Foodie December

I love shopping at the farmer's markets. But once you have the wonderful fresh food you realize, you need to cook it. And because it is only Skye and myself(remember Cindy is unfortunately out of town more than she is in town) we can't keep up with the consumption of our culinary creations.

As an interesting side note, since we got rid of our chickens, aka backyard garbage disposers, I have been painfully aware of the enormous amount of food waste that goes on.

Back to the inability to keep up with our food adventures. We try to find opportunities to share, park days, potlucks, parties, etc.

And when those situations don't coincide with our cooking throw-downs, we eat like little piggies and try to compensate with aerial arts, TKD, jujitsu and the like.



This was Skye's first pie that she made entirely on her own. She made it completely from scratch including the crust. It tasted absolutely amazing.



Home-made deliciousness.



We bought these two beautiful winter squash to use as an alternative to pumpkins for pumpkin pie. The one on the left yielded two pies and an amazing soup.



Learning to cook on an open fire and in embers.



This was the beginning of one of our little piggie sessions.

FB post:

Jon Danniells made a fire last night, took radicchio and broccoli that I lightly coated with olive oil & garlic, wrapped it in foil, threw it on bed of embers, took a bunch of mussels, set them up on a grill over that. Meanwhile inside roasted a bunch of baby carrots, drizzled them with a sage,butter, melted more butter with cilantr...o then drowned the grilled mussels. Radicchio and broccoli had a slight char when I dug them out.

The mushroom guy hooked me up with these amazing truffles, my first time cooking with nuggets of yumminess.



Earthy wonders

And the culmination of our third kingdom adventures....





Another fb post sums it up,

Jon Danniells is loving some fungi. No not someone Cindy brought home from San Francisco,get your mind out of the gutter people (no offense to fun guys from Nor Cal).

After enjoying an amazing assortment of wild mushrooms last night, am now putting together some Eggs sunny side up on toast with porcini mushroom coulis and truffle sau...ce, only substituting some wonderful local pine forest mushroom for the porcini.

These were just a few of our local foodfest wanderings.

Sparta Race- The Aftermath

Post Race

So I finish the race all gimpy leg at 45 minutes which was still considered a good time. Went over to the first aid tent. When I asked for ice, they told me they had run out. And upon seeing my ankle asked, "Is your ankle usually this swollen?" They did wrap it though.



They said they were going to get some ice, so I headed over to the "shower", really just a poorly rigged hose system, but definitely worked, got changed and went back to the 1st aide tent.

They had ice now but were busy attending to a guy laid out on a stretcher, the same guy that I had started the race with and he was gone, I mean they were having issues with his vitals. He ended up getting carted away to the ambulance. I sincerely hope the guys OK.

I hung around in part because the first aide guys said I stood a good chance to win best injury award, apparently you have to finish the race to qualify.

So, the first contest was for Best Abs Female. I'm sure the race coordinators were hoping for a bunch of ripped hotties but at first no one, and I mean no one volunteered. Finally one brave soul went up, prompted by a bunch of her crossfit buddies. Then in a very sweet gesture a couple of very funny gals dressed in their bridesmaid dresses stepped up as well.




Beer in hand, dress more than a bit muddied shows of her abs.




Good, not-so-clean fun.

OK, so maybe not the line up of hard-bodies expected but it was a lot of fun. Let's see how the guys washboards look.



It was looking to be a pretty tough call, until....



This guy brought a keg to a six-pack contest and ended up taking the prize.

This crowd definitely had a sense of humor.





The funny option continued to be the way the crowd would go. And the best costume goes...




The guy in tighty-whities and a teddy bear headpiece.

And for best group costume....



The funny ha-ha's almost made a sweep of it, but with a little urging by the Spartan MC, the convicts just narrowly lost to the Spartan warrior couple.



They do make a nice couple after all.

After all of these shenanigans and because they were losing the crowd both in spirit and in number and I think they must have realized they didn't have any real good/bad injuries they didn't do a best injury, which was fine by me as I was already feeling lame about the idea of showing off a taped ankle as the "best" injury.

I did end up taking third in their photo contest online a few days later for the shot of my ankle.





This guy won the race. He is a cross-fit trainer which is a good base for these kind of races.



I managed to give 3 pair of old sneakers away. All part of the big downsizing.

Sparta Race

I woke up to this sunrise. I decided to post it on facebook, one of the responses was, "Red sky at morning, runners take warning."

The Sparta Race

The Sparta Race is almost the last of my own special race series, the L.A. Marathon being the finale. (I have since signed up for several other races, but in regards to the original Danniells Epic Eclectica Race Series that was it) I had not been training regularly, but I was in decent shape, more importantly I was well rested and didn’t have any injuries. So while I certainly wasn’t looking to win, I envisioned a really good finish time. The race was local, at elevation, ideal weather and was short, a 5k.



I found this juxtaposition of the giant ferris directly behind the Sparta finish line to be pretty funny.

The crowd was pretty typical for these events. A lot of cross-fit types, runners and then a lot of people just looking to have a fun time. I chit chatted a bit before the race as one does. I would say most people are there in groups or have family with them, so I tend to seek out other loners like myself.

I ended up lining up for the second heat of the day alongside a fellow who got lose a few pounds but was a nice guy. I looked down at his shoes, they looked brand new. Now I know better than to judge a book by its cover as I have been bested by many that I would never thought could beat me and I’m sure that is true of me as I do not look as in shape as I am, especially when lined up next to a ripped cross-fit dude or bulging muscled Marine (I beat those guys on a regular basis and it makes me feel quite good.)




My tactic on this race was going to be to go as fast as made sense but to definitely take a slower pace to be the tortoise as opposed to the hare and to walk the up-hills if running would only gain me a slight bit of time but cost me a significant amount in terms of out put.

My portly friend had something else in mind. He left me in the dust.




This guy is all smiles cause pretty soon he’ll be blasting people with a fire hose. The first time I read about these being used in a race, I conjured up images of a full blast knocking people of their feet. It’s set on spray which ends up being like a sudden cold shower, bracing but not debilitating.



I had the same thoughts to fire elements which are really more of a photo-op than anything else.


I past my friend on the hill a couple of minutes after the fire. After climbing up hill for what seemed much further than I’m sure it was, we headed downhill, which I used to love, it was specialty. But now with the ankle, it has become a cause of concern. In fact, I was so focused on not twisting my right ankle, I ended up stepping on a loose rock and turning my left ankle.


Did I quit? Well that wouldn’t being very Spartan-like. So I hobbled on down the hill, limp-running as best I could.


I thought of one of my favorite Lance Armstrong quotes, “Pain is temporary. It may last a minute, or an hour, or a day, or a year, but eventually it will subside and something else will take its place. If I quit, however, it lasts forever.”


My tattoo which means “Perseverance, never give up” and is a few inches over the area where the pain was emanating from helped me continue on.


There were a lot of hills to go up and down and they were steep. They had a bunch of obstacles and several real muddy areas. I had a lot of fun.



This was the second to last obstacle and was slippier than you can imagine.




Check out the guy who slides down before even getting the rope.


The final obstacle was to run past a couple of "Spartans" and get pummeled by a pugil-stick. Again sounds much worse than it really was and in fact sometimes the "Spartans" got the worst of it when confronted with warriors that out numbered them. Not quite like "300".

Three Weeks in a Nutshell

Three Weeks in a Nutshell

Disclaimer-I've spent over an hour putting together a decent entry to try to encapsulate the going-ons of the last few weeks since we left Cindy in Chicago, only for it to get lost in cyberspace. Only for it to be whisked away in cyber-world oblivion.

This next post won't be nearly as thorough, which some of you may appreciate.

After returning from Chicago much of the first week was unpacking and catching up on a number of things. Much of my time and energy was devoted to helping Skye with her speech for her Public Speaking club and working on her lines for her Shakespeare group.

Still managed to find time to hit the local farmers' markets.



A portable wood-fire oven made incredible pizzas to give us fuel for or morning shopping.

We've been doing a lot of cooking and good eating, but that will be for another post.

Am also in full speed ahead downsize mode, culminating, hopefully sooner than later with the dail of our house and then our move to....???

In the meantime, I have been trying to get rid of stuff without adding to much to landfills. So when Environmental Change Makers were hosting a garden swap, I started grabbing and compiling stuff to contribute, pretty much anything that I deemed to be even closely appropriate and loaded up.



Beverly Hillbilly style

The inside was packed to the gills as well.




A good friend of mine was having a show, headed downtown for some culture, in part to counter balance the next evenings plans.





A friend of mine was having a few people over to cheer on St.Pierre and just hang out and enjoy some MMA competition. I have been a UFC fan since almost the beginning. It was a big reason for me getting in to Brazilian Jujitsu. And several years ago when we were in Montreal I was lucky enough to train a little jujitsu with St. Pierre. Wonderful and humble kid and an absolutely amazing athlete. He must of been around 20 at the time.

I had my own battle coming up the following morning, The Sparta Race.





Some how the Sparta Race finish with a big feris wheel in the background was a litt incongruous.

The race didn't go as planned, but that will be for future posts.

To Be Continued:

Goodbye Chicago

Chicago, Chicago, that toddlin' town. - - - Fred Fisher "Chicago," (1922)

Our last day in Chicago and we had some last minute things to check off the list. Cindy wanted us on the road by 3 pm, so we'd have to get moving.

After Cindy left for work, we packed and started hatching a plan.

We'd only scratched the surface of Millennium Park, and we hadn't even ventured over to Grant's Park. So much to do.

"Proudly referred to as Chicago's "front yard," Grant Park is among the city's loveliest and most prominent parks. The site of three world-class museums -- the Art Institute, the Field Museum of Natural History, and the Shedd Aquarium -- the park includes the museum campus, a 1995 transformation of paved areas into beautiful greenspace. Grant Park's centerpiece is the Clarence Buckingham Memorial Fountain, built in 1927 to provide a monumental focal point while protecting the park's breathtaking lakefront"

Ok, I knew there was no chance of actually going into any of the museums, but I at least wanted Skye to see them, plus we still had money left on our "L" passes.

Let's Go!!!!!



These boots are made for walkin'?

But seriously Chicago has so much wonderful public art, really loved and enjoyed it.



I marched Skye down to the point and what does she start taking pics of?




Geese...yes her poultry fascination continues




The view was worth the walk, but the clock was ticking and we had so much more to see



The photo-ops were endless, if only I were a better photographer.



Cindy went on about the fountain, probably much more impressive when there was actually water in it.



Honest Abe agrees, "Really it is much better with water in it, I promise you. Cross my heart and hope to...."



My obsession on urban gardening continues



So happy to be part of a movement, go artists, go farmers, go chefs,

No time to smell the roses, okay, go ahead take a whiff, alright already, let's go.

We marched our way through beautiful public parks, weaved through city streets, and then made it to the 103rd floor of the Sear's, I mean Willis Tower.

But just before we got to the Tower we came upon a Garrett Popcorn Shop with no line, hey wait that's on the "to do list".



Didn't get to try some until we got back to the apartment, and then, yeah it's all that.




Amazing view, I didn't make her climb up the many steps I did the week before...mostly cause we didn't have the time.




The pictures are awesome none the less.





Skye you are so cool.




So many photo-ops

In case people were wondering why Contagion was filmed in Chicago instead of LA...



It's got a film making history, it has nothing to do with tax incentives....

OK that's BS it has everything to do with tax incentives, which came to my mind in the intro video when they explained how great it was that the British-based Willis company bought up controlling interest in the tower and brought even more jobs, hence giving it the much better name Willis which is what all Chicagoans call this building now....not!!


What else was on that to do list?

Oh yeah the pizza taste test




Due day one, Uno on the last day, seems like we got things turned around doesn't it?

Did we really get that all done before Cindy came by to pick us up?

Hell Yeah!!!

Goodbye Chicago

Sunday--So much to do on our day of rest

Facebook post to start the day:

Jon Danniells is about to head out for a morning jog through downtown Chicago. It says its 26F out there. Lake Michigan here I come.

Yes I did go out for a run and it was amazing. So crisp and beautiful. When I got back my girls had breakfast ready.

Then off to the Museum of Science and Industry and a world of propaganda. The whole experience freaked Cindy and me out. It started out with a decent into a coal mine and then went to a happy factory farm.....



Everything was brightly lit in tons of primary colors, with boat loads of propaganda, half-truths and distortions.



Was there a big demand for corn and soy beans before or after the massive surplus after the subsidies?



More cost efficient?




Go on....



Check out the farms on the video cause like polar bears and glaciers they're disappearing



Really?






Pigs actually are quite efficient on there own and if you were to look at the feral pig population you wouldn't find a lot of fatties.




Gtimo for sus



WTF???



Does not mention that cows stomachs don't efficiently process grains, tad of an oversight.



missing the point



making the most of a toxic situation



Making it orange and yellow doesn't change this disturbing stat, "Livestock are responsible for 18 per cent of the greenhouse gases that cause global warming, more than cars, planes and all other forms of transport put together."






Where's the cow?




Enough to make anyone lactose intolerant.

This museum was really not working for me.



They even made the circus seem sucky.

The genetic exhibit was cool but freaky beyond belief.



We travel across the country and one of Skye's favorite exhibits is baby chicks. Something we did in our hallway and garage at home.

We finally realized that none of us were really enjoying this world class museum and left.

I asked Cindy to cruise down Michigan Ave so I could get some cool pics



She did, I didn't.

I did however end the day on a good note...

Local and purchased down stairs, thanks Wholefoods