Illustration Friday - Return

Charcoal & Pencil on Paper.  Annie. 

 A return to art. 
A return to art featuring Annie.
A return to Illustration Friday.


We are recently returned from spring break, a fun but somewhat exhausting trip to Disneyland and the desert. 

Andreas Canyon, Palm Springs

Desert Blooms

Intrepid Explorers

My Running Story or Why it's Never too Crazy or too Late

I was not an athletic child...I didn't do any sports and prayed for rain to get out of doing PE.  It wasn't until I was an adult that I started to exercise regularly.  I became a devoted gym member with occasional forays into jogging but never with much conviction.  I always tried to run, mostly because it is such an efficient use of exercise time and you can run with your baby in a stroller but my running never amounted to much. I lacked stamina and had knee aches almost every time I ran.  I was content with a fitness routine that didn't include serious running.

I started doing Bikram Yoga the year I turned 40.  I don't know if it was the stretching or building muscle holding poses but after a while I noticed that I could run without knee pain.  In the summer of 2010 became friends with Krista.  Soon we started to run a little together and next thing I knew she convinced me to sign up for a 10k.  I was skeptical...I had never been a strong runner and was not convinced that I could ever run 10k but we ran together every Saturday morning gradually increasing our distance.

10k finish, yeah, kinda slow but I don't care

After the 10k I felt a little lost without a goal so I decided to try for a half marathon.  It sounded completely crazy but then, so had 10k!  If I could work up to a 10k I was pretty sure I could work up to a half marathon.  I suffered from Achilles tendinitis while training for the half marathon.  Luckily it didn't stop me.

Waiting for the Wine Country 1/2 Marathon to start with my friend Maggie

I put my medal to good use!

After the 1/2 marathon my tendinitis became so bad that I had to stop running.  I concentrated on healing and strengthening, gradually adding the running back in.  It's been touch and go for the last 10 months and it's been hard to put running on the back burner.  Although I have been working out for years nothing ever made me feel as strong as running longer distances.  Nothing ever made me really feel like an ATHLETE until I started running.

Running in the Sierra last summer

Today I ran almost 5 miles with no pain, not even tightness or soreness.  I try not to get excited when I have pain free runs and over do it.  My fitness routine these days is 2 or 3 days of Bikram yoga, 2 or 3 days at the gym and 1 or 2 days running, walking or hiking each week.  I try to work out every day and run when it feels good. 

I don't know what my future holds as far as running but I do know this.  I didn't start serious running until I was 40.  I ran my first half marathon at 41.  If you had told me 10 years earlier or even 1 year earlier that I would run a half marathon I would have told you you were crazy.  It's never too late and no goal is ever too crazy.

I ♥ Monarchs

A few weeks ago while gardening I pulled up a clump of nasturtiums that were crowding out another plant and there was a monarch chrysalis on the bottom of one leaf.  I hung the leaf and chrysalis on a rosemary bush and there it stayed until yesterday when I noticed how close to hatching it was.  I love how you can see the beautiful wings folded up inside.

 

Today the butterfly emerged.

We love Monarchs at my house and lovingly tend to them all year.  My first blog post was an Illustration Friday entry on the painting below.  The word was stripes.

Winner!

The winner is Lara!

Congratulations!

Rainbows



Happy St. Patrick's Day!

I hope there is a pot of gold at the end of your rainbows.

All photos from Pinterest, please see captions for sources.

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Illustraion Friday - Yield

Brier Rose & Honey Bee.  Watercolor, acrylic ink, pen & pencil on paper.

A brier rose whose buds yield fragrant harvest for the honey bee. - Letitia Landon

This original watercolor by me is going to be a giveaway!  Please leave a comment if you would like your name in the drawing.  You must be a follower of this blog.  The winner will be chosen at random.

work in progress

bee practice

The BEST Beans Ever (Beans in Broth)

The BEST beans ever (Beans in broth)

Chop 1/2 cup yellow or white onions and cook in a 1 tablespoon each of olive and canola oil (I sometimes use coconut oil, too, but it can change the flavor of the beans so you can experiment which oil mixture you like best.)  Cook the onions until they are turning black, not just browned but burned black. You might want to open doors and turn on your fan. In the meantime, rinse 1 cup of dry pinto beans.  No need to soak but do rinse and remove any beans that don't look good. When onions are black add the beans and 4 or 5 cups of boiling water. Be very careful adding water to hot oil! Water should cover the beans. Add one bay leaf. Simmer partially covered for about an hour. Keep your eye on the beans, if too much water evaporates add one cup of water at a time (water should be hot before adding.) After about an hour when beans have softened add 1 teaspoon of salt. Make sure you do not add salt before beans have softened. Continue to simmer, adding hot water when needed for at least another hour or two until beans are cooked. There should be some "broth" left.  If too much water has evaporated, add more to make some broth. Discard the bay leaf. Discard the black onions if you like (I never do.) These beans freeze very well when cooked so I try to make huge batches. Use this recipe to make refried beans by smashing beans and reheating in a bit of oil.