Auld Lang Syne

'Tis the season to reflect on the year that is coming to its close. For the last couple of years, the reflecting hasn't been easy or comfortable. I never really got back on track with my working out and tracking my eating in 2013 after going off the rails in late 2012, after we lost my mother-in-law. I'm still somewhat active, with walking dogs and doing stuff at our ranch, but it isn't goal driven activity.  I feel like I was a different person that year, and truthfully, I kind of miss her.  So, to borrow the words of the great poet Robert Burns, she's an old acquaintance who shouldn't have been forgotten.

Should old acquaintance be forgot,
and never brought to mind ?
Should old acquaintance be forgot,
and old lang syne ?


A friend recently posted about the pendulum swing of the Gemini psyche. It made me think about how my own pendulum has swung too far away from "health" mode and I've gotten off balance. I'm not happy about it, either. Emotional eating doesn't make the stress go away, it just adds something else to make me unhappy and stressed out about.

It's time to dust off my running shoes, charge up my Garmin, and take back control of my whirlwind life. Extra motivation comes from the fact that I registered for a half marathon in April, so I don't want to waste the money by not training. I've also contributed to a yoga Kickstarter program that debuts this spring. I've meant, time and time again, to start practicing yoga, so this will also be motivation. Hopefully nagging from another friend will help, too. Another area I need to focus on is healthy eating, cutting back on the grains and junk foods that I know aren't healthy for me. I used to eat so much better, but I really have let things slide this year. And no more GF goodies, either. Just because it's gluten free doesn't mean I should be eating it.

And there’s a hand my trusty friend !
And give me a hand o’ thine !
And we’ll take a right good-will draught,
for auld lang syne.

May you have a blessed 2014.

What's that smell??

It's a little bit whiffy in the Foodie house today. Actually, it's been whiffy for the last 24 hours. The mention of slow cooker ketchup came up yesterday on FB. A long while back, I got a HUGE can of crushed tomatoes from my happy place. I thought I would make sauce, or some such thing, since I had no tomatoes from the garden this year. Hmm. Slow cooker ketchup sounded right up my alley. The recipe mentioned, and another I found online, were for small batches with 15-28 ounce cans. Waaay smaller than the can I had. I adjusted the vinegar, spices and sugar accordingly, but man, it smells like vinegar in my house. Last night I banished my slow cooker to my garage to keep on cooking down. The result: now my garage smells like vinegar, too. I'll keep you posted on how it turns out.