Laugh: Snot You, It's Snotty Everyone

Why me?!

Just like the stereotypes suggest, I'm a snotty girl. I'm not afraid to say it.

And my snot problems multiply by ten-fold during the winter months.

So cold.

Why?

It's dry and my celia have become sluggish. 

Like this.

Cilia, or the hairs on mucus (aka snot) glands, normally sweep everything to the back of the throat.

Goblet cell = mucus/snot cell.

Okay, but in cold whether they tend to slow down or stop. So in addition to increased amounts of snot produced to combat dry air, it all wants to evacuate the wrong way.

That's right.

However, I don't want to be a Debbie Downer. There are reasons snot is useful.

For instance, it catches dirt and lint so it doesn't go into your lungs.

You can compare and compete with others.

Keeps you full.

Wards off enemies.

Provides a talking point.

And more...

Think: Merry Christmas from all of us!

God bless you! -From the Allergic Husband, Kaiya, Kent, and me.

Cook: Video of Gluten-Free Corn Bread Dressing Recipe

Read: Divergent Series by Veronica Roth

The latest set of books that I couldn't put down (while on my stationary bike) was Veronica Roth's Divergent series.

I've identified spoilers below for those who'd like to skip that section, but I can't give away the ending anyway. Roth hasn't completed the third book in the series yet. Grr!
Well, let's review.

If you read the cover description on this book, you're probably thinking "this is soooo Hunger Games." And I would have to agree that there are a lot of similarities.

There's a female protagonist, Beatrice or "Tris," and a governmental system set up to control the masses using unpleasant means (ie. a dystopian society).  Tris is un-trusting of those around her, and for a good reason. Her parents didn't trusted her with some important information during her childhood.

But I would also add that there's an element of Harry Potter involved.

The citizens are sorted into different communities based on their personalities and vocational aptitude.While there's no "sorting hat" and the citizens are free to choose their community on their 16th birthday, their future is limited by their decision. Once they make their choice, they must favor aspects of their personality valued by the community and live with those people until they die.

Spoiler paragraphs coming up!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Skip to me with the green flag.

Like Harry, Tris chooses to move to a community of the brave (the Dauntless rather than Gryffindor) even though she is considered "Divergent," or doesn't favor any one personality trait over the other.

Once with the Dauntless, Tris makes friends and enemies like Harry at his school, but her enemies are not only a part of the other communities; they're also within the Dauntless.

In addition to Harry Potter and The Hunger Games, Roth's story utilizes the idea of "simulated realities" like in the popular movies Total Recall and The Matrix.

Although Total Recall and the Matrix have people plugged into a machine without their knowledge, Tris and her community of Dauntless are voluntarily injected with hormones and chemicals that make them face their worst fears and conquer them. Essentially, they're training modules.

However, like The Matrix and Total Recall, this altering of perceptions can and is used for evil purposes, but in this case by the Erudite (people who value intelligence).

...End of Spoiler

But beyond the obvious similarities with some big-time hits, Roth's writing is engaging. The characters are rich and complex. You can expect the unexpected from their "diverging" personalities (hardy, har, har).

I really feel for her characters just as much as Katnis. I hate when Tris hates, love when she loves, and I want her and her group of friends to survive the coming upheaval of everything they know. I want them to become the leaders of a new world order (in the non-Biblical sense).

I don't remember any language problems in the first two books. However, just like the Hunger Games, their is some violence, a few life or death situations, and a brief touch on sexuality.

So if you're an adult who likes fantastic realism, go for it! Because of the sexuality, and my religious persuasion, I would recommend the book for anyone 18 and up even though this series is meant for a teen audience.

And if you're thinking about a Christmas present, I'm sure these two books will please. I'm holding out for the third so I can potentially buy the set.

Why, Roth, why have you not completed the last book in the trilogy?!

Age Recommendation: 18+

Running Shoe Rating: 5 out of 5

Laugh: It's Windy Here, But...

Laugh: Many Faces of Me

Craft: How to Clean and Oil a Sewing Machine

Cue angelic choir. This is a beautiful piece of equipment.

This weekend, I did a little sitting. But it was active! I cleaned and oiled my newly adopted sewing machine!

The things I know about the sewing machine include what I've learned from
a) my community class on sewing when I was 14-15 years old,
b) my Mom, or
c) the instruction manual on my newly adopted machine (thanks Rick and Dot).

Pick me! Pick me!

What do I know? I know thread is fed through the top and combined with thread at the bottom. It's metal, some plastic (newer models), and it needs to be maintained. Singer (the company who made my machine) is one of the oldest and well known manufacturers of machines. The moving parts are incredibly complicated. And...that's it. :)

So let's look at a little history first via Wikipedia.

Did you know that the first sewing machine was created in order to work with leather and extremely thick cloth like canvas?

Ooooh!

Or that Isaac Merritt Singer stole ideas from at least three sewing machine inventors to create what we now know as today's at-home machine?

Mr. Howe's Invention

Did you know that Singer's first love was acting, he tried to create a rock drilling machine and a wood cutter, or that he was "married" at least five times (sometimes two or three at the same time) with 16 children?!!!!

Isaac Singer. Not sure what's so great about this guy. Nice clothes?

Or the key indicator that you need to clean your machine is a build-up of lint in the bobbin seat?

Yuck! It'll look like this, but in the bobbin seat.

Neither did I!

Now that we're officially wowed by the sewing machine, take a look at the steps I took to clean and oil this very complicated and well-known machine.

First, I bought or just gathered:

• sewing machine oil (with a long spout)
• q-tips
• canned air
• paper towels
• trash can
• newspaper
• screw driver (came with my sewing machine)
• lint-free brush (came with my sewing machine)
• light, lots of light

So then I read my instruction manual. It showed me how to remove panels of the sewing machine to get to the moving parts.

Not sure why this is sideways!

Then I blew out some of the lint with the canned air (trying not to blow lint further into the machine).

Bottom of the machine with newspapers underneath.

I used q-tips to get rid of the stubborn lint and gobs of old oil (will look dark or yellow...like poop...had to say it) with lint. Several people will tell you that it'll only take 4-5 q-tips, I used about 20-25 because my machine hadn't been cleaned in a while. So just grab the container in preparation.

Special disk seat (for embroidery).

Drive shaft area above the needle.

Bobbin seat.

The nether regions.

When I removed the bottom panel of the machine, I noticed a fine layer of blackened oil (that had dripped from the moving parts above over time) on the panel. I squirted it with oil and rubbed it off with a paper towel. I didn't want to use water because it might encourage rust to form.

Then I oiled. Thankfully my manual showed all of the exact points to drop the oil. If your manual doesn't specify, adding one drop to each moving joint or gear face should take care of the job. I also brushed some of the exposed metal pieces with oil to prevent rust.

Now it's time to sew! And a little more reading of my manual. :)

Safe as Houses

Feels good.

Sorry for the long hiatus. Here’s something new:

It’s 9:00 pm. And we’re ready for a run. As I take my first step onto the pavement in front of our house, I breathe a sigh of contentment, or maybe relief. I start to jog while Kent starts to pull, because heaven forbid the imaginary threats in our neighborhood catch his tail. Or are they my demons? I breathe comfortably from my nose and stare at the pavement in front of me. Not another twisted ankle this year. Uh-uh! We run pass families “safe as houses” behind white-washed doors and brick.

It’s time to pick up the pace. I open my mouth to take in more air left baked from the heat of the day. Dry as a bone. Kent leans his powerhouse shoulders right at the end of our street. He knows the way and goes with gusto. He’s also the most trusting and most fearful dog I’ve ever known, rarely both at the same time.

While his anxiety’s high, I’ve let go for the moment. Let go of high pitched ringing that’s returning to my right ear. Let go of the week-long daily headaches that have attacked me since I’ve stopped the steroid and the muscle cramps that return with the diuretic. Let go of the Meniere’s disease and food intolerance. 

I let go of the inconclusive test results and the four pieces of paper that say I have no allergies. Let go of the doctors who prescribe me unrelated medication to take care of sniffles and inflamed sinuses that I’ve lived with for, well, forever. Let go of Google searches for side effects and recommendations that a so called “doctor” conducts in front of my eyes. Will the medicine hurt our future baby?

I let go of the dental pains, the migraines, the thyroid problems, the digestive issues, the rashes, the shingles, the depression, and the cancer in family and friends. I don’t think about these things. Well, maybe a for a little bit.

Instead, I think mostly about rosemary and how extraordinarily it lives in our front flower bed. It just sits there, day after day, soaking up 104 degrees and full sun. Although I can’t run in those temperatures in full sun, I can watch TV at home in 90 degrees. Gives my little mitochondria a workout. But mainly it’s to save up for those crazy/wonderful/harebrained-idea type purchases that Kevin convinces me to make. You know, the ones that at the moment seem like a waste of money, but later become our next hobby that we can’t put down.

I think about how the moon tonight looks like the one in the old DreamWorks promos. You know the one with the boy who’s sitting on the edge of a waxing crescent, dangling his fishing rod into a pool of water below. That could be our kid, in the mountains, in cooler weather, in a few years.

I think about marathons. I know my neighbors see me run. But for those few seconds of consideration as they drive past me or I run past them, do they feel compelled to exercise just like me? Are they as obsessed with staying healthy as I am? Could we do a “couch to 5K” right here in our neighborhood where people show up? Or am I pushing fitness and wellness too much. My bad. It’s my job.

I think about the sprinklers where Kent is getting a drink (and his sticker-riddled coat soaked). Our water is slowly drying up out here in west Texas. What a luxury this little oasis is! I soak my legs it the water and pat me down before carrying on. Can you believe two blocks away and most of its already evaporated?

I think about fame. I wonder if it’s just a job for the people on American Idol, the Big Bang Theory, and 24, or do they get caught up in the superficial whirlwind of it all. It took me forever to find an interest and even mild talent for clothes and appearance, and I have problems with wanting to buy shoes and clothes I don’t need. They’re so shiny! I can’t imagine what a focus on image would do to a person if thought about 24/7.

I think about Lindsey and our first “true” run together on this very street. Gosh she was fast for no training at all! I wish I had a better mind for numbers, distances, and time. I had to ask Kevin the best route to run a mile with her. Good thing I married the man. :)

And I think about God.

How “fearfully and wonderfully made” we all are! Truly, “Your works are wonderful.” And I pray for the strength to focus on the wonderful more often and respect the fearful.

So, pretty productive run.

Thanks for watching out for me little Kent. You got me home safe as houses.

Photo Update Extravaganza!

Been a bit busy lately, so here's some pictures to get everyone caught up.

Bought the "T-Rex." He's quite handsome and Gwendolin's a fan of her garage-mate.

Fell down on a cross country run. Bruised and skinned both knees, but nothing broken so kept running. Thankfully Kent stopped to asses the situation before plowing along.

Stopped adding this to food because apparently I have Meniere's Disease in both ears.

Inside that normal looking ear is a cochlea that's swelling, causing hearing loss, and of course the ever exciting random episodes of vertigo. Going to a specialist in San Antonio this week.

As usual, the rosemary is out of control. We're drying them to give away. Let us know if you want some.

Saw this with the in-laws. Very exciting 4 X 400 relay!

Planted a garden. Well, we didn't remove all the grass in our garden area. Thought we should start small, so we planted 1 zucchini, 1 cucumber, 2 tomatoes, 1 bell pepper, and 1 cantaloupe. All are doing great, except for the cantaloupe, which hasn't sprouted yet. Yea us!

Air conditioner wasn't cooling when we turned it on for the first time this season (this weekend). But it's all good! Gettin'er fixed up as we speak for no charge.

Still running (obviously because of bruised knee). Won third place in my age category during a local fun run. Not my fastest time, but it'll do. Got a free gallon of grape juice to go with the medal.

I Had a Dream

Van Gogh

So it was the day of the marathon and I started out in a mall. A really huge mall with marble floors, high ceilings, and chandeliers. Gotta be somewhere in Dallas or London even. I'm running and I'm running through the mall. I'm excited because my parents, Kevin, and Lindsey plan to follow me along the course. I've got company on the run too, which is great. But while I'm running they're walking. Don't know who this person is, but it's all good. So I'm running and running.

Then I get to the swimming obstacle part of the course because all marathons come with one swimming obstacle. We're still in the mall. I have a problem, though. I'm wearing my new GPS watch and I'm afraid of completely submerging it during my swim. I start looking around for my family members, but I can't find them. I think, this can't be helped, so I jump into the water. So I'm swimming and swimming in this completely tiled pool which looks like a super-sized water fountain structure right in the middle of a main thoroughfare. In the middle of the swim, I notice man is sitting next to the pool and tinkering with something. I don't think much more about it and I finish the swim.

However, when I look down at my watch, there's a hole where the face of the watch should be. I swim back to the man on the side of the pool and ask him where the rest of my watch is. He says that "if you lose part of your watch during the swim, I'm allowed to pick it up, fix it, and sell it in my shop." I'm freaking out because it's a really expensive watch. So I ask him if I can look for it and find it before him, and he's okay with that. I begin looking for my watch, but I never find it.

I start running again, and I realize that I'm famous or used to be famous. I'm like a former rock star or movie celebrity of some kind and I'm actually on a circuit of speaking engagements while I'm running the marathon. Every once in a while, I make a stop, usually at a university, sign autographs, shake hands, and don't really say much besides "good job everyone" like a politician. I even stop at Abilene Christian University to give a "presentation." By the way, ACU has really tall-back pews instead of normal classroom seating; red upholstery. I kept wondering how students took notes or tests in class.

Time speeds up to where I'm about 6 miles from the finish line. People are passing me left and right and I realize that I'm going pretty slow. I'm not meeting my target time of 5 hours (not sure how I know my time since I'm missing a watch). I believe my slower time is a result of the flood (and not because of my speaking engagements). I'm now running through a flooded street that runs parallel to a small river. I'm just struggling to pick up my feet and make any forward progress. I also realize that my slower speed must be why my family hasn't been able to meet me anywhere on the course. But I'm still running and trying to finish when I notice that I'm approaching a woman in her mid 50s. She's sitting in a lawn chair slightly submerged in water and she's fishing. I had some sort of small-talk conversation with her as I ran by, but continued on my run while she continued to fish. I'm running and I'm running.

Finally I arrive at the finish line where my family was waiting for me. It's a Six Flags parking lot. I apologize profusely for finishing in 7 hours because I told them I would make it in 5. Then I wake up.

The End.

Best Beans and Tricky Trails

These are happy beans.

 With the topics of obesity, diabetes, and heart health on the mass media radar for more than a decade, we're obviously not getting 'er done and we need to start thinking outside of the box. I think our local state park has a great wellness program that more organizations and cities should utilize to motivate the populous into staying active. Let me share with you their exciting new discovery. I think you'll be inspired to start a program in your own community.

Our local state park has many trails of all different types of terrain and distances, but what's unique about their program has everything to do with cartography (maps) and way finding (signs). Imagine yourself on a run in the park and let's say a 6 mile run is your goal. With the superior state park wellness program, your six mile run will end up turning into ten miles. It's not because you've made the choice to keep running. But it's because the map they hand you at the entrance hasn't been updated since the 90's, it's as clear as mud in some areas because of the number of times it's been photocopied, and the signs along the trail are either missing their stick-on wording or they bare no relationship to the map or current reality.

There are several staggering benefits that spreading this type of miscommunication can provide .

• you'll run/hike/bike farther than you ever anticipated
• your body will learn to cope with far less water 
• you'll learn to do without nutrition (food is quite pesky and pricey anyway)
• you might even get lost for a day or more, and therefore maximize weight loss
• you'll increase your chance for injury and therefore workout your body's repair system
• you'll commune with nature: you'll truly "feel" the dirt (or maybe it's "feel like dirt" when it's over)

In an age of GPS watches, Google Earth, and the Internet, wellness programs don't need to take advantage of new technologies to improve their communications. From our research this past weekend, we've concluded, here at the Allergic to Sitting Institute, that the best solution to the bad-health epidemic is bad technical communications.

Don't have a state park near you where you can get lost? No problem. Create a local park of your own. All you will need is:

1. miles of land with lots of trees and bushes (the pricklier the better)
2. signs (doesn't really matter what's on them, just put them out there)
3. a bike or two to start marking down the trails (the more trail intersections the better)

With these tips in mind, you'll gain maximum confusion and increase the amount of exercise in your local population. I hope these tips and ideas have inspired you action. Together, we can all make a difference.

Best Beans
So this weekend, I attempted to create (for like the 3-4 time) gas-less beans. This is one of my ultimate cooking goals, you see. I believe I have succeeded. My recipe is below and I must say that I stole the idea from my mom and souped it up a bit more for maximum cooking power.

But remember, "friends don't let friends eat beans and run." We consumed these beans the day after our 6, I mean 10 mile run in the the park this past weekend. :) Thanks Kevin for suffering with me. I'll remember our adventure as, Lord willing, I run the Austin Marathon. Enjoy!

Ingredients

• 1 cup of beans
• 2 cups of water
• 1 tsp salt
• 1-2 cups of chicken or turkey broth

Directions
Soak dried beans in water over night. Rinse beans in a strainer. Cook them with broth and salt for at least 8 hours in a slow cooker on high. Add more water to make sure that all of the beans are submerged throughout the cooking process. Make sure you use fairly new dried beans. The older they are, the less they'll want to soften.