Much of Nothing

I make myself wait until the official first day of Fall to indulge in candy corn.  It is a love-hate relationship.  Because I will eat & eat (& eat) them, along with lightly salted peanuts, until I am sick!  I bought a bag Friday and am almost finished with it!  Sheesh!! 

 

The apartment is beginning to feel more homey.  I can't explain why, other than time.  We have almost "completed" two months of the 12-month lease!  Our sleep, however, is constantly disrupted.  We are at our wit's end with this issue, especially after finding out the guy upstairs is NOT a legal tenant!!  We will have to consider a realtor about February, so we can take our sweet time making a purchasing decision and not be rushed. 

 

I have only enjoyed ONE Starbucks Pumpkin Spice Latte.  I treated myself Wednesday morning before working at Halloween City. 

 

Today feels like Fall!!!  It shouldn't get above 75 degrees, but it has brought some rain.  I have some windows open and was snuggled under my leopard blanket, while eating my salad & then coffee with pumpkin waffle cookies. 

 

I teach my first Express Kickboxing class at Matrix this Wednesday.  It is without the benefit of heavy bags, so I am going to use very light dumbbells.  I will call out combos, plus toss in burpees, sprawls, jumping jacks, pushups, some abs.  All beginning with 4-5 minutes of intense warmup and ending with several minutes of abs followed by stretches.  I am being given the chance to teach this Mondays and Wednesdays at noon.  I would like to see if I can change the Wednesday TRX class to Kickboxing b/c there is already a 5:30 TRX, I had no one attend last week and I believe there are people who would like the chance to take it that simply cannot make it over lunch break.

 

We hopped on I-25 Saturday to find the IKEA store.  We enjoyed some food samples, got coffees (75¢ each), a cinnamon roll for me ($1) and a hot dog for Chris (50¢).  We bought a 99¢ bag of whole bean coffee and an orange-elderflower marmalade.  Yes, I said IKEA, not Trader Joe's or Whole Foods!  HA!!  We really aren't interested in adding any furniture to the apartment.  We want to wait until we are in a place we own again and decorate around that space.  Tho, if we found a free kitchen-size table (nothing big), we would snag it b/c it would come in really handy for laptop usage. 

 

We walked to the library yesterday afternoon to return the CDs I had checked out the previous Sunday.  Chris got some more and I checked out a couple of Goddess books.  There are FOUR floors in this place!!!  I could have spent longer, but we were both tired, had the walk back and we needed to get a couple things done at home before the weekend was over.  And by taking a little extra time, I made us get caught in rain with about a quarter of our walk left!  It got windy and pretty chilly ~ we were in shorts, tanks and light jackets!  The weather can turn on a dime around here!

 

Halloween City is becoming a bit more fun.  While they aren't playing Halloween music constantly (and I am hopeful that come Wednesday, the first of October that will change), they are getting in more stuff ~~ decent animatronics.  I didn't have to get on the register immediately Friday, so I was able to walk around, see what we have, orient myself, be a little more prepared for customer questions....and check out the masquerade masks, as I want one if we decide to attend the Exotica Erotica Ball!!

 

We are planning to get a membership at the Denver Botanic Gardens.  They have a Chihuly exhibit we want to see, which is also available at night with lighting directed at the glass sculptures.  Another nighttime event is a Ghost Tour.  Getting a membership affords us two free tickets to an event, discounts to others and the ability to spend as little or as much time at the Gardens as we like.  My first Halloween City paycheck is less than $2 shy of the fee.  Cool!!

 

I think that's all the random rambling rolling around in my noggin right now. 

 

How have YOU been enjoying the change of the season??  Are you working on your Halloween costume (or your kiddos)?  Do you plan to hit some haunted houses?  Have you been making any fall creations in the kitchen?

 

 

 

 

 



Mabon Mashup Meal

For Mabon, first day of Fall, I made a delicious hash of sorts.  A mish-mash of squash, veggies & proteins.

 

I sliced an acorn squash, placed in a 9x13 baking dish, drizzled maple syrup, sprinkled cinnamon and rosemary and baked in 375 degree oven for 20 minutes.

 

I sautéed red bell pepper, red onion & celery.  (I may have added sea salt and pepper.) 

 

I sliced bacon and cooked it, along with chicken sausage, to crisp, and set aside. 

 

I removed the squash from the oven, sliced and peeled away the skin and cut into chunks, which I added to the sautéed veggies and continued to warm on the stove. 

 

I added a drained & rinsed can of cannellini beans,  a few generous spoonfuls of cooked quinoa and a splash of water to the skillet of veggies & squash and continued to warm to meld all of the flavors together.

 

I spooned the squash-veggie-quinoa into bowls and sprinkled, generously, with the bacon & chicken sausage.  We had cranberry-raisin-walnut bread from Sprouts, which I smothered with pumpkin yogurt I quickly made (Fage Greek yogurt, pumpkin puree, honey & pumpkin pie spice).

 

It has made for wonderful leftovers for lunch!!

 

Today, I am making my Sweet Potato Hash!  Mmmmm!!!

 

So, as I was looking back to find a post where I gave the recipe for the sweet potato hash, I found an entry from October 6, 2013, where I made both of these recipes!!!!!  I guess they are my Welcome Fall faves!  The link(s) will provide both recipes, tho I always encourage you to make the dish your own! 

 

 



Sometimes....

Sometimes, life isn't kind.

 

Sometimes, a revelation is so hurtful.

 

Sometimes,  you have to ask yourself if you have been stupid, kept your head buried in the sand in denial, too trustworthy,  accepting the "happiness" of the familiar.

 

Sometimes, you have to look at yourself and wonder if WHO you are and WHERE you are is who and where you want to be.

 

Sometimes, you have to look to see if you have lost yourself, contorted yourself, compromised yourself.

 

Sometimes, you have to ponder if you are living YOUR best life....

 

or has it all been a ruse????? 

Denver Haunts

We have begun the search for the Halloween happenings in the city!

 

I found readings by dead authors at the Molly Brown House Museum, which satisfies the bibliophile in me!

 

We can attend 'Spooktacular! Spooktacular!', a concert by the Mile High Freedom Band.

 

So far I have come across a few party options:

~Tracks Denver is hosting Freakshow, for 3 nites!  We have been wanting to hit this club and Halloween nite is the perfect time for our inauguration!!

 

~Paranormal Palace, being held at the Civic Center on November 1st, features three floors of entertainment and alcohol is included in the $79 ticket price!!

 

~For a risqué masquerade, we can attend the Exotica Erotica Ball, the Saturday before Halloween. 

 

In all actuality, with the various dates for each event, we could attend every.single.one.

 

If it tickles our fancy.....

 

 

 

"Lazy" Sunday

Begins with a homemade scrambled egg, sauteed veggie, bacon mash-up and coffee. 

 

Head out ON FOOT about 11: 

1st stop ~ City Park Farmers' Market where we buy a beet brownie and chat with our friend, Mark (Colfax & Esplanade)

2nd ~ Whole Foods for coffee to drink with beet brownie (11th & Ogden)

3rd ~ Denver Public Library to get library cards and check out some CDs (14th & Broadway)

4th ~ Sally Beauty for shampoo and a color charm (16th Street Mall)

5th ~ Happy Hour @Tony P's for Left Hand Milk Stout, mini meatball sliders and eggplant rotoli(17th & ...)

6th ~ Soul Haus to buy skull for decorating contest (17th & ...)

 

Home by 5!!! 

 

Sunny and cool; shorts & tee kinda day.



"The Happiness of Pursuit"

"The Happiness of Pursuit" is the title of Chris Guillebeau's newest release.  I am sitting at Tattered Cover Bookstore reading and thinking and strategizing!!!

 

Our move to Colorado was bold!  After a short visit in 2011, we knew what we had been saving for!  We sold our home, got rid of many things, moved into a rental in preparation.  We looked and applied for jobs, to no avail.  We packed up in September 2013 and haven't looked back!

 

I left a career in the criminal justice field, the same for which I have a bachelor's degree.  I felt trapped, stagnant, uninspired.

 

I have embarked on a fitness career.  I have met many new people and made new friends.

 

I am filled with wanderlust....

 

Guillebeau's book has re-awakened that stirring to see new places.  Not a move (yet!!), but a vacation!  Our last vacation, June 2012, to Key West seems a million years ago!  I had gotten used to a vacation or two a year, when we were living comfortably with two decent paying jobs, a small mortgage, etc.  We can still travel, but I plan to be even more frugal when making our arrangements.  We have points on our credit card, which we can use for airfare.  We have our timeshare in Mexico and we haven't traveled back there since the purchase in 2006 or 2008.  (I need to research selling it, actually.  We didn't renew our RCI membership, which offers the ability to trade, and I really don't know if we are going to utilize either.)

 

We have struck out on our new path and we know that before us lie miles of roads, ones which we will consciously choose to travel.

The only question now is:  Where do we want to go?

 "I'd like to repeat the advice that I gave you before, in that I think you really should make a radical change in your lifestyle and begin to boldly do things which you may previously never have thought of doing, or been too hesitant to attempt.  So many people live within unhappy circumstances and yet will not take the initiative to change their situation because they are conditioned to a life of security, conformity, and conservatism, all of which may appear to give one peace of mind, but in reality nothing is more damaging to the adventurous spirit within a man than a secure future.  The very basic core of a man's living spirit is his passion for adventure.  The joy of life comes from our encounters with new experiences, and hence there is no greater joy than to have an endlessly changing horizon, for each day to have a new and different sun." 
Journal entry by Chris McCandless
excerpted from "The Happiness of Pursuit" (pp 84-85)

Personal Growth

My new fitness gig at Matrix has had me a tiny bit on edge.  I was immediately handed my own classes to teach and have been asked (and accepted) to sub for others.  With all of that, I have had to create workouts for abs, TRX and small group training.  Soon, I will sub for a treadmill class and a Power Sculpt, an hour-long class devoted to strength training.

 

I have been trying to attend many classes to get a feel for what each entails, plus learning new techniques while also being reminded of exercises I have done in the past at LAB/UFC Gym. 

 

Coming up with what I hope will be a hard class is....well, hard!  I have boards in Pinterest.  I have watched some TRX videos.  I have pulled from my brain.

 

All in the hope that I give the kind of workout I would want to receive.  That said, the fitness levels of many in attendance are probably lower than my own, yet, I want to keep them progressing and the best way to do that is to get them to push beyond their self-imposed limits!

 

It's a tad difficult to read these members, tho.  At UFC Gym, I knew the crew.  We pushed, we wanted new exercises, we encouraged one another (instructors included).  We were sweaty messes at the end of every class and we LOVED it!  (That has been my hardest loss....)  I have hit the (one) heavy bag for a personal workout and I believe I need to get in there and work out some of my stresses, at least once a week.

 

When leading Power Abs, I am doing the exercises with the members.  When doing TRX, I have been working right alongside the members.  However, when I teach (sub) Power Sculpt and/or Cardio Blast, I will do the warm-up, demonstrate the exercises and do the stretches.  Similarly, when I do Group Training, I am instructing the members on what I want them to do, at times doing a couple reps in demonstration. 

 

One other reason for me to be a "student" of other trainers' classes, so that I can get the fitness results I want & need!

 

So, I am just sharing some personal insecurity here....that I am a bit stressed over making effective & fun workouts.  I want people to want to attend MY class!  I don't want them walking out (which I had happen in an abs class last week:  about mid-way thru, a lady walked out...she said it was because she had eaten late, taken a cardio class before mine, her stomach was a bit "off" and the structure of my class that day was a fast-paced crunchless cardio abs.).  I do believe that many who attend group exercise classes don't like to be challenged or try new things too often ~ they want to work in "traditional" exercise fashion, using a few tried & true movements (but expecting continued results).  It will be interesting to see how my Express Kickboxing classes go for the lunch time crowd! 

 

I will continue to speak with my fellow trainers for tips.  I will take classes to push myself and to learn new techniques.  I will give myself a break and know that I am working hard, always learning, continually improving.  I will step outside of my fitness comfort zone to teach and grow.