Ho Hum, Pig's Bum.

This is a mish-mash post:

We've been busy-busy lately, doing all the usual summertime activities.  However, this week I find myself a little bit bored.  I hate to admit this, because of course there are a zillion people that would love to have a teacher's summer schedule.  Additionally, I could probably better spend my time being productive instead of writing a blog post about being bored.  It's my time though, so I'll whine if I want to ;).

I think I'm bored for two reasons: 1) I'm on a training taper this week, and 2) my daughter is spending the summer in Portland.  Summers past we have always spent tons of time together.  I've only seen Lyara twice since June, and I miss her!  I visited with her today, but I missed her before she even left the car to go.  Oh, I do hope my sweet girl comes back to stay so soon!

Last weekend Greg and I got to participate at a triathlon in Coeur d' Alene.  Many of our teammates also competed at the race, making it a blast!  I only had one goal for the tri...to be faster than last year on the same course, and I was.  I'm not sure Greg had a goal, since he hadn't done this race previously.  Nonetheless, he raced fast and strong!  This season he's been more laid-back about his training than ever, yet he seems to garner terrific results and remain just as speedy as always.  My teammies raced very well too and sure added loads of excitement to the race!

Since last October, two darling friends of mine and I have been doing a weekly "Dinna Club."  Tiffany, Jessi and I take turns making dinner for each other one night each week.  When it's my night, I prepare the food with all its fixings and then deliver it in time for dinner.  Tiff and Jessi do the exact same.  And we make enough for at least two meals.  Meaning, I only really cook dinner three nights/week!  It's genius and has certainly simplified nightly meals for us all. The three of our families are athletic and health-conscience, so we make sure to provide meals of high-quality lean meats, whole-grains, fresh veggies, low-fat and low-cal food.  Participating in the club has caused me to become more creative and knowledgeable in the kitchen.  Greg and I definitely look forward to the dinner deliveries, because we know that Tiff and Jessi are fantastic cooks!

One meal that was a "Dinna Club" crowd pleaser is fish tacos.  I'm not a big fan of fishy tasting food, and it took me making my own tacos to like the idea.  So, please give this healthy, fresh dish a try!

Fish Tacos

Ingredients:
1/2 red onion, sliced thin
1 cup red wine vinegar

1 pound of white flaky fish (cod or mahi-mahi)
1/3 cup olive oil
1 teaspoon of ancho chili powder
1 teaspoon of smoked paprika
1/2 teaspoon of cumin
1/2 cup of cilantro, finely chopped
salt
1 avocado, sliced
1/2 cup shredded colby-jack cheese or crumbled feta
16 oz. bag of fresh coleslaw salad, undressed
1 lime, cut in wedges
8-10 corn tortillas
1/2 cup Mexican crema (homemade)

Preparation:

Marinate the Onion:  Put the onion in a small bowl and pour in enough red wine vinegar to cover well. Set aside for at least 30 minutes or up to several hours. 

Marinate the Fish:  Pour the olive oil into a small bowl and add the ancho chile powder, paprika, cumin, chopped cilantro, and a bit of salt. Mix well. Place the fish in a tupperware container and pour the marinade over it, making sure to coat the fish well on both sides. Allow to marinate for at least 20 minutes, I marinate mine for an hour or more. 

Cook the Fish:  Heat a nonstick sauté pan over medium-high heat. Remove the fish from the marinade and place in the hot pan (I lightly spray the pan with olive oil). Cook the fish for 4 minutes undisturbed, then turn over, and cook for another 4 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and flake the fish in the pan with a fork, making sure to mix in all the marinade that has stuck to the bottom of the pan. Check for seasoning and add more salt if necessary. Set aside. 

Heat the Tortillas:  Place four of the tortillas on a plate and sandwich them between two slightly dampened sheets of paper towel. Microwave on high for 45 seconds.  Repeat with the remaining tortillas.

Assemble the Tacos:  Place a corn tortilla on a plate, add 1-2 ounces of fish, drizzle lime juice on the fish, top with cheese, marinated onion, coleslaw and avocado slices, then drizzle mexican crema over the top.  Bueno!

I may be "bored" this week, but I DO have a long list of things I'd like to accomplish around my home this summer.  And I'm not sure I've done any of them yet!

Humility.

I apologize.

Lately, it has occurred to me that I spend  entirely too much time talking about myself.  This blog included.  Ya, I know it's MY blog and that's what people do.  BUT.  My original intent for this space was to talk about my loved ones and what every one is up to, how THEY'RE doing, even how WE are all doing together perhaps.  Then, it became this thing where I posted all my triathlon training highlights and race results with an occasional, but heartfelt post regarding someone else in my life. 

That is NOT who I want to be.

Recently I've been around some amazing people, that do ridiculous things with their lives and they don't spend forever updating their status with their latest race stats, or blog about that superfluous info. either.  They use their time to BE.  With the people they like and love.  I respect that, a lot, because it's respectable.

Please understand that I am NOT in any way judging, outing, demeaning or condemning folks that do enjoy updating their status with their stats, or blogging about their accomplishments.  No. Not doing that.  Nor am I stating that I won't ever update on FB or write a new blog post.  I just won't be focusing on my exact training or racing statistics or newest accomplishments. 

I was chatting with a friend the other day and sort of jokingly said, "I still want to make my momma proud."  I wasn't really kidding though.  When I look at life and I think about what my purpose really is, I know that God's plan for me is to just care deeply for people, to be a positive presence wherever I am.  Not to go around showcasing my so-called "accomplishments."  Yes, doing triathlons and hitting new athletic milestones is part of my life, and of course I want to improve as long as I can.  But do you REALLY need to read or hear all the extraneous details about me?  Do I really expect you to care?  I'm sorry that I spent so much of your time writing about myself before. 

There are so many genuinely important events to talk about.  Like when my daughter came to town last week, after being away for three weeks to Portland, and we got to spend some glorious hours together.  Just chatting, catching up, loving on each other.  My daughter is an amazing young lady, with artistic talent and charisma galore.  She's beautiful inside and darling too.  She's nothing like me, but so much like me.  No one else makes my heart jump and start like her.  She's a tremendous gift.  I dropped everything to see her that day, I always will.  Lyara REALLY matters.

And when my mom went to Seattle with me for the weekend.  We live in the same city, twenty minutes apart.  She is always telling me how busy I am and she hates to call and interrupt me.  One day I realized she meant it.  So, we planned a trip together.  Drove to Seattle, shopped, visited her brother, talked endlessly and focused on each other.  We're planning a trip to New York for next summer.  My mom's a tough lady and someone I admire and adore.  Her life hasn't been an easy one, but she is vibrant, funny and lovely.  Oh, my mom, she matters.

As for my uncle, I hadn't seen him in a year and he just lives on the other side of the state.  He lives alone and my mom and our family are his only surviving relatives.   He has a memory so poignant that it shocks me sometimes.  He loves to reminisce about the past and can recall great stories about all of us.  His laugh is hysterical and infectious.  Uncle Eric matters.

My brother, Ernest.  I rarely talk about him.  He died over four years ago, so it's fairly painful to mention him.  I miss him terribly, he was my only brother.  We used to build forts and ride bikes together.  My dad would take us fishing at Seven Mile and then we'd enjoy donuts and hot chocolate at the Spud Nut.  He was an inventor and had patented and sold three different inventions before he left.  He loved cats, just like my mom.  He mattered to us all, he still does.

A list like that could go on and on.  I've got a husband, sisters, a step-father and endless others that matter in my life.  The point is, I spend an extraordinary amount of time DOING what I mean to be doing.  I don't need to go around and display it for you all.  I want to get this blog back to what it was intended to be.  About my people, not my self.