Fiber Monday

I can't be the only one who's cleverly thought of this phrase to describe what today's eating habits should be after the Thanksgiving weekend eating binge. I hereby declare that we consider "Fiber Monday" a healthy lifestyle alternative to Cyber Monday.

You may have been expecting a photo of a bowl of oatmeal, beans, grits, or Cream-of-Wheat, but after searching the archives, I'm going with a nature photo.

I took this picture of meadow barley (Hordeum brachyantherum) during a contemplative stroll through a gorgeous meadow on Sweeney Ridge in June a few years ago. I indulged in a catnap shortly after snapping this.

The nodding flower heads are the native meadow barley, and, as least as far as I can tell, the straight ones are those of Italian rye grass, an exotic species known to invade California grasslands. It seems meadow barley has a strong foothold here.

Hordeum brachyantherum, Sweeney Ridge, 2010.

Thanksgiving: let's eat

The holidays are here -- the cycle of overeating has begun that in one month and eight days will result in numerous resolutions to lose weight and improve our health.  Let's go!

I hope that people are eating turkey sandwiches for lunch these days. And still savoring stuffing and puckering with the taste of cranberry. And re-warming that apple pie a lot. Or just eating it cold next to a wedge o' pumpkin pie.

And I hope that others out there, like me, are finding creative uses for egg nog: today alone, I employed it as an enhancement to oatmeal, coffee, and this evening, a cup of chai. Tomorrow I'll repeat the coffee addition, perhaps spiking it a bit.

Piggy Butt, 2011.

Piggy bank face, 2011.

I took these piggy bank portraits at brother Kev's house last year at about this time. I was with family when I took this, so it makes me think of them. Happy Thanksgiving!

Shoreline Highway

California State Route 1 is famous for good reason. I plan to become more familiar with its ins and outs, and especially its ups and downs, starting now. As of last week, I've moved out of San Francisco, and into a small place in Marin. Highway 1 is now my driveway. Turning left out the front door, I can go to San Diego, or turning right, to Olympic National Park. I would love to do either of these trips, especially by bike, someday.  But for now it's my bike commute, and will be the road to exploration of beaches, valleys, mountains, and who knows what else.  

California State Route 1, Marin County, 2009.

 Still without internet service at home, I am using the Mill Valley Public Library's excellent free wifi. I biked here the long way,  opting for a +/- 1000 foot elevation gain, rather than the roughly +/- 300 foot elevation gain. (clicking this link might work - it will take you on a Google Earth 3D tour of the route if you have Google Earth plugin.)

Now my bike sits outside, unlocked, and I'm only a little nervous. Another person's much nicer bike was sitting next to it, also unlocked. This is a world of difference from the Mission, where on the weekend before I left, my "bar bike" was lifted. It was literally lifted -- It had been locked to a tree cage that, when disassembled at about six feet off the ground, allowed the thief to lift the bike over the tree stake.  I'm going to miss that bike.