Things I've Always Wanted to Do: Running

Some people have goals. Others have a bucket list. Others make resolutions. I don't really have or make any of these. I just have vague ideas of things I'd like to do some day. (Maybe I'd get more done if I made a list of some kind.)

I've always wanted to be a writer. I wanted to write a novel. As of this year, thanks to NaNoWriMo, I've done it. Twice (including last year's). Something else I've always wanted to do is run. A marathon would be nice...I think, but really I just want to put on some tennis shoes and walk out of my house and run. Fact: I live one mile from Memorial Park. Fact: I see runners EVERY day running past my house. Fact: I have driven to Memorial Park and walked the three miles around once...maybe twice, but you get my point. So to give me some motivation, I went to my local library and checked out several books on running, which leads me to my one amazing thing for the day. I am sorely out of shape. I am amazed at just how out of shape I have become in just a few months. Just climbing one flight of stairs winded me. I'm not saying I was in terrific shape to begin with, but I trekked all over Europe walking for miles each day, climbing who knows how many stairs. And that was just in May! Goodness.

Goal set ('cause maybe I do need to set goals): Train for a marathon in 2013 ('cause I'm that out of shape).

Frushi

My amazing thing for today is frushi. Imagine sushi but sweet. Imagine not fish but fruit. I say imagine because I can't take a picture. They were all eaten. Sorry. But in case you would like to try to make it, the recipe is as follows (Not strictly since I usually do it to taste having lost the actual recipe years ago).

2 cups of short grain rice or sushi rice
2 1/2 cups of water
Berries, like strawberries, raspberries, blueberries and other fruits like mango and/or kiwi
sugar
1 can of coconut milk

1 cup of sugar

Either follow the steps on the bag of rice you buy (only adding water and rice--nothing else) or dump it all in a rice cooker to do it for you, which I highly recommend. Rice cookers are amazing--and you absolutely do not have to go with the top of the line. Mine is the cheapest one I could find at Bed, Bath, and Beyond and it works great. The only issue I have with it is it will burn the rice if I let it sit too long after the cooking is done.

Once it is cooked mix all of the rice with one can of coconut milk (not the tiny one) and about one cup of sugar. Stir it all together really well. It will be pretty liquidy. Cover the bowl of rice with saran wrap making sure to lay the wrap directly onto the rice mixture. Let is sit for about an hour or so.

Next, slice some strawberries and kiwi and mango. You can even use blueberries and raspberries for the fruit part.

Next, with your very clean hands, scoop a bit of the mixture into one hand and form a nice rectangular lump of sweet rice with the first two fingers of your other hand. (I really do need pictures, huh?)

Place the neatly formed rectangles of rice onto a platter. Once you have all the rice formed, you can then add the fruit on top so it looks kind of like sushi. You can serve it immediately or put it in the fridge and serve the next day, but I would not expect it to last longer than two days. It kind of dries out a bit and is not as tasty. I guess I really should add some pictures. Guess I need to make some more. Yea!

One Amazing Thing

A few months ago I read a book called OneAmazing Thing by Chitra Divakaruni. It was very good and was about this group of people who are trapped and try to keep from going crazy by telling stories. Each person has to tell a story about one amazing thing from their lives. This post is not about that book, but I was thinking wouldn't it be nice if I could find one amazing thing every day and write about it or take pictures of them.

My one amazing thing for today is probably the colors the trees are displaying this fall. I remember several years ago I was living in North Carolina and I saw trees change in the fall. The colors were glorious, but all I could think was "Oh, my. What's wrong with the trees?" I thought something was terribly wrong with the trees because I had never seen fall colors in real life. I understood what was going on, but somehow, my brain did not seem to make the connection and not think there was something wrong. My brain is very silly sometimes, but I digress.

Houston has two seasons: summer and two weeks of "winter" where it sometimes freezes for one night. The trees typically turn green and then brown and then green again. There are a lot of oak trees and pine trees and magnolia trees, so there is often still quite a bit of green to see, but this year, all the other trees are really showing off the colors they are capable of making. I'll have to take some pictures.

And Research

As I was saying, my post-NaNo resolution this year is to write more--daily. I plan to spend at least an hour per day writing...and/or doing research for my novel. I'm really excited about this one. It's an idea I came up with five or six years ago. Today I spent time learning about making swords and the difference between European swords and Japanese katana. I also learned that swords were a weapon of last resort and not one of primary use. My next novel includes quite a bit of sword making and sword fighting, so I need all the books I can find on sword play and swordsmanship and blacksmithing. Movies might also be nice. I know I was watching quite a bit of Inuyasha when I had the dream that gave me the idea for the trilogy. Oh, yeah, did I mention this was going to be a trilogy? Yep. It'll be my first. Today I found a few good sources online that have a recommended reading list. I checked out my local library and discovered that the search functionality is not quite what I had hoped it would be, which is a shame. I'll have to bring that up to the right person at the right time.

Speaking of which, I have a job interview next Tuesday. Wish me luck!