New year, New blog post

Hello, 2013! In this new year I resolve to write more, worry less, dance more, and start finishing up my 30 before 30 list!

Rockaway Running

I went running a few times while I was on vacation in Montauk this summer, and I have never felt so much love from other runners. All along the road, runners passing the other way would give a "keep it up," a wave, a thumbs up. I loved it! Back in real life in Rockaway, though, runs are not quite as friendly.  Once in a while I’ll get a smile, but in general the other runners are very thin, very blonde girls who are super focused and running hard. So today I was surprised when a girl ran right up to me, tapped me on the arm, and what did she have to tell me? “There’s a weird man in the bushes about five blocks up.” Much more helpful, actually, than the cheerleading. Thanks for looking out, Rockaway runner!

Just My Cup of Tea

“She pointed this out to Mma Ramotswe, who laughed, and said that each of us needed to find just the right way to take our mind off our problems, and it did not matter what that was – a drive in the country, an expedition to a shoe shop, a quiet cup of tea under a cloudless sky; each of us had something that made it easier to continue in a world that sometimes, just sometimes, was not as we might wish it to be.”  -- Alexander McCall Smith, The Saturday Big Tent Wedding Party

Surfin' USA

In the past two years that I’ve lived in Rockaway, I’ve spent a lot of time watching the surfers on the beach, my little heart filled with envy. They always look so cool and like they’re having so much fun. (Especially when they’re hoisting their surfboards through the subway car on their way to the beach, and I’m dragging my tired self to work. But anyway…)

Ready to ride the waves!

On Saturday my friend Andrea and I finally joined them! We took lessons with Locals Surf School on Beach 67^th Street.  Our surfing may not have been as effortless or as pretty as the real surfers' looks, but we definitely had our groupon's worth of fun.

We started by learning the lingo and practicing our moves on land. Apparently my “pop ups” were sub-par and I was told I would “wipe-out.” Luckily we also learned an acronym, “CRAWL,” to teach us how to fall off the boards – pretty much what I got from that lesson was to cover my head right away and hope for the best.

Once we got in the water, I continued to wipe out. I’m pretty sure I got close to "popping up" a few times, but I never actually stood up before I fell right off the board. Oh well!

 

These surfers are not me. But maybe someday!

What I did learn, though, is that I am obsessed with surf culture and surf attitude. No matter how quickly I fell off my board, every time I paddled back out to the instructors, I’d get a high five and a little pep talk as they pushed me back into the wave: “I know you’ve got it! This one’s gonna be your wave.” Then, I’d wipe out again, but somehow, I felt so good about it!

The lesson ended with a talk about surf etiquette. How to know when it’s your turn to surf, paying respect to more experienced surfers, things like that. And we learned that the most important thing to remember in surfing is to “Smile. Have fun. Put good vibes out there and they’ll come back to you.” Words to live by if I’ve ever heard them.

 

I’ve got the good vibes part down, even if my pop ups need some work. I definitely want to try again – next time, I’m pretty sure, it really will be my wave!

 

 

One Fish, Two Fish

My mom never really cooked fish at home when we were growing up, so I always thought it was the biggest treat in the world when I got to order seafood at a restaurant. Then I went vegetarian for ten years, until I came to my senses and realized that fish is way too delicious to give up forever. Now I’m obsessed with seafood again. And whenever I manage to make a delicious fish dish at home, it's like all of my little kid food dreams are coming true.

To help me with my cooking quest, my genius-chef friend Sherry sent me a whole bunch of salmon recipes that she’s worked on with Good Housekeeping. I want to try all of them!!! For my August recipe-of-the-month experiment, I went with the pomegranate-glazed salmon. I substituted couscous for the bulgur, because I already had couscous in my cabinet... and also I don’t know what bulgur is. Otherwise, it was pretty easy, and it turned out DELICIOUS!

 

 

I made a kale salad to go with the salmon. Mine had blue cheese, cranberries, almond slivers, and was dressed in a light vinaigrette. I’d never had kale before, but I might just be a convert!

 

 

Who Runs the World?

I get so lazy so easily that I sometimes forget how much I actually like to work out. I mean, I like sitting on my couch and eating Cooler Ranch Doritos more… but still. 
 

I haven’t exactly been training like I should be for the marathon in Vegas in December. But the past couple of days I’ve gotten out and had some great runs. I always have to push myself to get out and start, but once my feet are moving, I’m so happy. I love the feel of sweat on my face, I love the sound of my feet rhythmically hitting the boardwalk. I love being able to tell myself – hey, look at me go!

My most of all favorite part about running, though, is listening to all my favorite songs over and over, until I end up learning all the words and making up dance routines in my head. (I’m an amazing dancer in my head.) As my runs get longer, I’m sure my imaginary dance routines will get even fancier. I just have to remember to pay attention to my running before I end up popping, locking, dropping down the boardwalk along with the music in my head.

Have to remember this!

My running playlist of the moment is called “I Got This,” inspired by Jennifer Hudson’s book about her weight loss. (If Jenny can do it, so can I, right?)

Top five songs in heaviest rotation right now are:
What Doesn’t Kill You (Stronger) – Kelly Clarkson
No Scrubs – TLC
Love Shack – Glee Cast
Million Dollar Bill – Whitney Houston
Run the World (Girls) - Beyonce

Things I love today

Sequins worn in the daytime
Beach volleyball
Running playlists made up entirely of cheesy pop music
Gold medal tears
Bouncy ponytails