This weekend's weird gym story

I posted before about James’ streak of seeing uncommon sights at 24 Hour Fitness. He often sees local news anchors (not that extraordinary) and once saw an entire NBA team there. On Saturday he returned with yet another gym story.

A naked guy in the pool.

The pool area is clearly visible to people working out in the weight area – the wall dividing the two rooms is glass. Oh, and it’s not a clothing optional area. Apparently many people had the pleasure of seeing a lot of a wet, oblivious man walking around the pool and spa.

This is the same pool that a corpse was found in several months ago, I recently learned. I saw the signs that said the pool was closed and wondered what was up… yeah, someone died while swimming! How sad! The person died of natural causes but it took a long time (a day or so, I think) for anyone to notice.

Ah, 24 Hour Fitness, the stories you give me.

Dublin!

Yesterday my sister Rose was accepted to the study abroad program through Dublin City University! She’ll be a foreign exchange student in Dublin, Ireland next year, and I couldn’t be more thrilled for her! She’ll be in Ireland September 2009 through May 2010. I’m absolutely visiting – probably at the end of the school year in May. Congratulations Rose!!!

The Biggest Loser, Week 12

Weight lost this week: 2.2 pounds
Total weight lost: 6.3 pounds

Hey Dad

You said you were going to leave me a blog comment. Where are you?

I just wanted to burn some calories

Today after work I was feeling restless. I needed to exercise, but I wasn’t quite motivated enough to go to the gym. The sun wasn’t setting for a few more hours, it was 70 degrees, so I decided to take a bike ride all by myself.

I rode through downtown and Old Town Sac, down the bike trail and all the way to Discovery Park. The whole trip was probably 3.5 miles or so, and it was lovely. The weather was great.

On my way back I went back through Old Sac and that’s where the fateful event occurred - the event I’ve warned James about no less than 3 times.

My front tire got caught in the railroad track. And I bit it. My handlebars and tire got bent to the side (luckily I was able to fix it), and my left knee and both hands got scraped and are actually bleeding!

I feel like I’m 11 years old again. What adult has a freaking skinned knee?! I wanted to wear a cute skirt tomorrow, but now that won’t be happening for a long time.

Then, I had to ride the next mile home. Alone. So sad.

The Biggest Loser, Week 11

We always do our weigh-in on Wednesdays. Today the scale says I gained almost a pound, but I refuse to acknowledge it! Yesterday I was 2 pounds lighter than I am today - meaning I lost a pound. St. Patrick's Day beer and pizza is a bitch (last night was fun though).

Goal #67: Buy a bike rack for my car

Today I purchased this beauty.

from WalMart

We're planning a weekend trip to Santa Cruz in a few weeks, and I'm really excited to take our bikes! The more I ride my pretty cruiser, the more I love it. I'm looking forward to taking it, and James' mountain bike, on lots of future trips.

On Friday, Rose and I rode around downtown after work. We also played volleyball at Southside park and drank wine at my house. It was pretty much the perfect day.

Us enjoying the beautiful Spring weather

>List of 100 goals<

The Biggest Loser, Week 10

Weight lost this week: 1.7 pounds
Total weight lost: 4.8 pounds

The biggest loser so far has lost 9.1 pounds.

Baked Sweet Potatoes

These are my newest obsession. I've made them about 5 times in the past few weeks. They're so, so good.

Sweet potatoes are the best, but you can also use potatoes, yams, parsnips, carrots or zucchini.

Tonight's sweet potatoes, yams and potatoes

1. Prehead the oven to 425.


2. Cut the vegetables into one-inch pieces.


3. Cover a baking sheet with foil, and brush it with olive oil. Place the veggies on the foil and brush them with olive oil too.


4. Bake at 425 for 30 minutes. Flip over, then bake another 30 minutes.


5. When the veggies are done, toss them in a bowl with these seasonings: 2 cloves minced garlic, 1/4 cup basil, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper.

Spicy Garlic Lime Chicken

Last night was my first attempt at cooking a whole chicken breast in a skillet. I was always afraid that I'd leave it raw in the middle and went with recipes that use an oven. It was really easy though, and this chicken was amazing. I’m going to make it again in a few days, maybe with lemon instead of lime because I have one already.

Photo by ME!

The green beans are from this recipe (I added cashews).

They were good, but not blog-worthy.

Ingredients:
2 teaspoons salt
3/4 teaspoons black pepper
3/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon paprika
3/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
3/4 teaspoon dried thyme
3/4 teaspoon dried parsley
4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves

2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 teaspoons garlic powder
3 tablespoons lime juice (I used the whole lime… not sure how much that is)

1. Mix together salt, black pepper, cayenne, paprika, 3/4 teaspoon garlic powder, onion powder, thyme and parsley.

2. Sprinkle spice mixture on both sides of chicken breasts.

3. Heat butter and olive oil in a large heavy skillet over medium heat.

4. Saute chicken until golden brown, about 6 minutes on each side.

5. Sprinkle with 2 teaspoons garlic powder and lime juice. Cook 5 minutes, flipping frequently to coat evenly with sauce.

Fat: 11
Calories: 220
Protein: 28

Goal #38: Be involved in the fight for gay marriage equality

Last week Rose and I attended March Forth on March Fourth.

Being involved in this movement was one of my 100 goals.This is the second rally I've attended. Of course, I'm not done being involved in the fight for gay marriage equality. I won't be done until the right to marry is granted to all citizens in every state.

Photo from SacBee.com

It's important to me to attend events like this because it personifies how important this issue is, and to how many people. A lot of people have said "Give it up, Prop. 8 passed. It's over." No, it's not over. This is not just a one time issue. Prop. 8 passed, but that was far from the end of this fight.

We can't just give up - this is so much more than any other law or vote. Rights were stolen from thousands of people. Basic human rights that everyone should have access to. It's a right that prisoners have, but gays do not. It's a civil rights outrage.

I continue to support this issue because human decency demands that all Americans be granted equal rights. Attending rallies is important to me because every person who is there shows the public that we care. Thousands of people care and will continue to rally for equality. I am just one person, but my presence at civil rights rallies makes the crowd that much more commanding. We are showing the world that we will not give up until they recognize equal rights.

Free Noah's Bagels

I go to Noah's bagels with the girls in my office pretty much every Friday. For the next few weeks we're getting free bagels - woo hoo! I'm sharing the free bagel coupon here to help my readers out. It was advertised on the news, but really hard to find. Enjoy.
http://www.fox40.com/images/0902-163_cs_noah_advo2sac_2.pdf

The Biggest Loser, Week 9

Gained .4 pounds. Not a lot, but I know I haven't been putting enough effort in.