Three Weeks Out

The half marathon is quickly approaching and while I have not completely stuck to the schedule, I have been able to get in some miles over the last few weeks; all the walking on the unit has not hurt either.  Most of my running What running I have managed to do has been on a treadmill, but as the weather gets cooler, I have been trying to explore new trails around the city.

The Inner Harbor from Federal Hill

Visionary Art Museum

The tall ships from the Star Spangled Spectacular event

 

Words of encouragement

Funky Street Art

And of course CRABS!!!

Bike and Build ABC's

Every morning on our trip across the country, riders ran through their ABC's i.e. air, breaks, chain.  Today, a handful of Bike and Build alumni got together and we had a different set ABC's; they included included Alexandria, beers and chamois. 

We all grabbed our kits and Camelbacks and headed out to enjoy the crisp fall weather abnormally warm September weather.  The meeting spot this morning was the North side of the White House and as we waited for riders to arrive, some of us posed for pictures with tourists.  Maybe they thought we were all a part of a racing team?

The first stop of the morning was the Albert Einstein Memorial where everyone rubbed the nose to get a little bit of his smarts.  We of course took an obligatory "jelly" group shot.

After some debate, the six of us made our way over to the Mount Vernon Trail.  The second stop of the day was the Jones Point Lighthouse.  Fun fact: the lighthouse is one of the last river lighthouses still standing today.  Bernard is happy to be on the road again and doing something other than the commute to and from work.

Arden with the National Harbor in the background.  Never fear lady, you are blog famous again!

And Dan hamming it up with the hand pump.

The final stop was National Harbor where most people saw the Awakening statue for the first time.  (Disclaimer this photo was taken from a different trip) 

State lines are always a big deal for B&B riders.  Every once and a while teams would hit two or three state lines in one day; SUS 12 makee it to the Four Corners so we got definite bragging rights.  Today we rode through two states and the District; Arden is leading the charge from Maryland into Virginia on our way back to DC.  

After a cool 35ish miles we headed over to the Wonderland Ballroom for lunch and a couple of beers.  The only thing missing to make this a truly Bike and Build day was a road side nap.

Summer in A Jar

This summer I have eaten more tomatoes than I care to think about, but on the upside things are slowing down.  Cooking for one can always be a challenge so I am big about using my freezer and stocking as much food as possible for the winter.  While in the bookstore the other day, I picked up Food in Jars and of course a whole bunch of canning supplies.

While tomato sauce is super easy to whip up, I also decided to make some salsa.  Nearly thirty pounds of tomatoes later (in combination with corn, peppers and jalapenos) I will have summer in a jar for meals to come.  The entire project is a pain in the butt, but it will pay off when there is snow on the ground.  I even found some time to pickle some carrots. 

  I have a couple of empty jars remaining so next up will be  bourbon infused peaches and applesauce (once I go apple picking). 

The US in Legos!!

All of the Bike & Build trips have finally reached the west coast; over the last three months riders from eight trips conquered everything from century rides to headwinds, weather extremes to wrong cue sheets.  Throughout the trip of a life time, everyone tries to find the best way to document their journey and share their experience with friends, family and donors.  While many updated blogs and posted pictures to Facebook others get a bit more creative; I got my team to dance across the country.

My good friend Jay (SUS '12 and CUS '14) took one of the top prizes for creativity as he incorporated Legos into the local scenery.  

Anyway I digress.  While perusing the internet I stumbled across a series of dioramas done by Canadian Artist Jeff Friesen.  Each of the 50 states are represented and the artist incorporated local culture, history and/or geography.  Maryland of course had the shore and some crabs. 

Urban Garden: Fall Edition

While gardening has taught me patients patience over the last few years, it has also taught me the importance of thinking ahead.  Sure I have always been one to create a five year plan or look to the next best thing, but it is a little different to wait for for seeds to germinate and get everything to the table.

Since there is only so much space in my plot, I am always struggling to figure out when I need to make room for the next wave of seeds; this time it was the zinnias.  I am going to miss their #nofilter color on my coffee table every week. 

As fall slowly approaches it means times for squash, lettuce, kale, swiss chard and beets.  Fall/winter greens are pretty fool proof and for little work you can get pounds and pounds of lettuce; just think of that volume wise.  Stick around for more pictures as things start to sprout and hit the kitchen.   

Farm to Table for US Veterans

I am definitely one who is always looking to try new experiences.  Two years ago Todd and I headed out to the country for an Outstanding in the Field dinner.  This afternoon, Christine and I headed to Arcadia Farm in Alexandria, VA.  The organization, located on the Woodlawn Estate, is "dedicated to creating a more equitable and sustainable local food system in the Washington, DC area."  The funds raised from this evening's dinner will go towards their Veteran Farmer Program.  Today's American farmer is on average 58 years which means there will be thousands of farmers retiring in the next decade.  This program hopes to train unemployed veterans to be farmers and ultimately have them start up their own businesses.  

Before the dinner started, there was an hour of cocktails and appetizers which gave us time to explore the house and the gardens.  Arcadia has a ton of different vegetables which ultimately go to their Mobile Market or to local shelters; they even have beehives. 

The table scape was great and set the scene for the rest of the evening.  The tables were filled with fresh picked wildflowers from the garden, okra and tomatoes; picture credit goes to Tini.  One of the great things about these kinds of dinners is that your dinner companions for the next few hours are total strangers.  

Arcadia got a great picture of everyone sitting down to dinner.  

Six of DC's best chefs prepared a four course meal with local ingredients, many of which came from the Arcadia Farm.  While I should have taken some pictures of the food, the conversation was flowing and the thought never crossed my mind.  FarmFresh Events did get a great picture of dessert - blueberry pie with corn ice cream. 

As the sun started to set and the dinner came to a close, Christine and I got a private tour of the vegetable garden from the head horticulturalist.  All in all the event was a total success!

Huzzah!!

The Baltimore metro area is filled with great day trips, everything from breweries to state parks to historic sites.  Every fall the Renaissance Festival opens its doors for nine weekends and you can drink some grog, watch some jousting and get some ideas for the next Halloween costume.  Dan and I probably picked the hottest day of the summer for my first trip back in time.

Of course there was jousting (we were on the winning team)!!

The Dueling Fools brought sharp wit, creative use of language and swordsmanship.  

Picture stolen from their Facebook page.

And there was a Wheel of Death.

   

The afternoon was rounded out by Barely Balanced; a trio who are self taught acrobats.  

Look closely and you will see three people in another stolen Facebook picture.
 

It's The Beginning of the Rest of My Life

Or at least the next couple of years.  Here are a couple of quick take aways from the last 10 weeks:

"I appreciate you, your help, etc."  Just a few simple words can make your day go much more smoothly and get you tons of good brownie points.  It is also nice to be on the receiving end of that phrase as well. 

Getting in 10,000+ steps: Recent studies have shown that Americans walk fewer steps than other people around the world.  For instance Americans walk an average of 5,117 where Australians come in at 9,695.  During school we heard that nurses walk an average of 5-6 miles during a twelve hour shift.  Although our unit is fairly small, I do hit over 10,000 steps consistently.  

Student Nurses:  As everyone starts to head back to school, student nurses are arriving on various units; ours is no exception.  Immediately I was brought back to my second semester when I had my "very own patient" and would do everything from the assessment to medication administration.  While I am the first to admit that I do not know everything and am the first to ask questions, it is remarkable to see the transition from level one to level four, from the first week of orientation to the first week on my own.  I also had a great time working with the students and started to think about teaching in the future.