Thinking of Boston

Marathoners are crazy people.  People who miss out on sleep, time with friends and family, relaxation and other things in exchange for pain, $150 shoes that last only three months, black toenails, sweat,  and mile after mile after mile of wishing for a bathroom.  We are a band of odd, spandex-clad masochists who spend hours and hours chasing a goal with no hope of remuneration or reward, and it is a miracle that we, in our many thousands, get up at 5am on race day to get from starting line to finish line for really no good reason.

But the greater miracle by far--by far-- is that we are not alone.  Our friends and family encourage us through months of training, our partners suffer through the 5am alarm on summer Saturdays before a long run, so that our craziness, however baffling and annoying, finds support and understanding and love.  And even more amazing: on race day, our loved ones are joined by hundreds, even thousands of others.  Members of the community, runners, friends and family of other athletes, neighbors, sports fans, women, men, kids, dogs... thousands and thousands of strangers come together to reach out and cheer, to shout and wave, to hand out beer or gummy bears, to hold hand-made signs or swish pom-poms, or just to smile.

All those people are miracles.  My first half marathon was cold and wet and, against all laws of physics, uphill the entire way.  And when I started out, I kept thinking that if I could just get to the end, to see my friends, it would all be worth it.  But at each mile, or at each step, whenever I felt tired or hurt or began to doubt I could finish, a stranger, a total stranger, would tell me to keep going.  Keep Going!  You can do it! And I believed them. Those strangers, every one of them, made the journey possible, and more than possible: transcendent and affirming.  And then, at the end, after that upswell of totally unexpected support, seeing MY people, the faces in the crowd who belonged to me, holding a sign with my name on it... it was indescribable.

And every race since then, I looked to the crowd for inspiration.  Every kind of support can be found in the marathon crowd, from the genuinely heartwarming, to the silly, to the punny and profane.  They represent the very best of community and of humanity.  You never hear a marathon spectator boo anyone.  There is no trash talk, no blame, and no partisanship.  My fans cheer for everyone else on the course, and everyone else's cheer for me.  We are all in it together.

I can't stand the thought that anyone would harm those people.  Those people are my people.  Those people who made me laugh when I could barely put one foot in front of the other, who made me smile as my blisters swelled in cold wet socks, those people who were the miracles I needed when I most desperately needed them.  Those people are my people, and I am theirs.  That someone would harm them is unthinkable.  I am so so very sad, so incredibly sad, for all those killed, injured and traumatized at the Boston Marathon, and for anyone who loves or knows them, and for all the total strangers who became connected to them through the special magic of the craziness of the marathon.

Crunchy Hippie Post! Shampoo Alternatives!

I've posted before about how I mostly make my own household cleaners, and I try to make most of my food from scratch.  I generally also buy natural personal products.  I try very hard to be sure that my cosmetics, soaps, haircare, etc, are not tested on animals and don't contain carcinogens or teratogens.  I read the crunchy hippie blogs with a skeptical eye, but I do try out many of the all natural, do-it-yourself ideas to keep from buying so much packaged, chemically, expensive stuff.

Sooo, this weekend I tried the thing that I've been putting off for a while: "No-Poo."  I refuse to use that term again, because calling shampoo alternatives "no poos" makes them sound like anti-diarrheals.  In any case, I don't have the kind of life or job where I can take 6-8 weeks to allow my scalp to readjust to not washing at all, and I love the feel of clean, scented hair, so going cold-turkey was not an option.  Accordingly, a Shampoo Alternative.  I tried Baking Soda.  And is it any surprise that this handy substance that I use to clean and deoderize my house and brush my teeth and deodorize my laundry has yet another use?  I guess not.

It seemed totally counterintuitive to condition my hair with apple cider vinegar, though, which is the next step.  I mean, yes, baking soda to clean things.  I'm with you.  But vinegar is the opposite of the substance I normally use to condition.  Conditioner is creamy and oil-based and ... not vinegar.  But, what the heck, thought I.  If it's awful I'll just take another shower and use my regular shampoo and conditioner.

I mixed a tablespoon or so of baking soda with about a cup of hot water and put it in a spray bottle.  Then I mixed a few tablespoons of vinegar with hot water and put it in an old conditioner bottle.  I sprayed my wet hair at the roots with the baking soda stuff and let it sit for a few minutes before rinsing.  Then I awkwardly squirted the diluted vinegar on the ends of my hair and gradually more toward the scalp, without soaking too much near the scalp because I have oily hair.  Then I rinsed it.

And... voila!  I am convinced.  This works as well as shampoo and conditioner.  My hair looks and feels great.  Another crunchy hippie win.  I can cross shampoo and conditioner off my shopping list permanently.

Homemade Tortillas and "refried" Pinto Beans

I've posted before about how wonderfully transformative it can be to make the food you eat instead of buy it.  I realize that time is precious, and that not everyone has the wonderful resource of time that I have, but I luxuriate in the wonderful privilege of being able to craft my food.  For example, tonight, I ate tortillas, pinto beans, and a small dollop of salsa and greek yogurt for dinner.  And it was heavenly.  It was fantastic.  I cannot emphasize how wonderfully simple, nourishing and delicious it was.  I made the tortillas this afternoon,  watching each one puff up and blister on the skillet, and slow-cooked the pintos in vegetable broth with garlic, cumin and chiles until they were soft and could be smashed together for a wonderfully textured "refried" feel without adding more fat.

Oooh, yum.

Butternut Kale Noodle Casserole

This is a healthy, quick meal that keeps well and reheats well for lunches.  I made a big batch and ate it on and off all week.  Yummm.

Orange and Green Noodle Casserole
Time- about an hour
Makes 8 servings

Nouns-
1 lb whole wheat pasta- I used penne
1.5 cups nonfat Greek yogurt
1 medium butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cubed
1 bunch kale, rinsed, de-stemmed and torn into pieces
1 cup grated Gruyere cheese
1 cup walnuts
1 onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp nutmeg

Verbs-
Preheat Oven to 400. Lightly grease a large casserole or 9-13 baking dish.   Roast the squash for 20-30 minutes, while preparing the rest of the casserole.  Boil and drain the pasta according to package directions, but add the kale about 1 minute before draining the pasta.

In a large bowl, stir together the yogurt, garlic, cheese and spices.  Thin with water or with a little milk or vegetable broth if it is too thick.  Add the noodles, kale, squash, onions and walnuts and toss to thoroughly combine.  If the yogurt mixture does not cover the other ingredients, add a little milk to thin it.  Once the mixture is well combined, pour it into the baking dish, cover with aluminum foul or the dish lid, if it has one, and bake for 15-30 minutes, until bubbly and hot in the middle.