Chris and Neale.net

~ 01:25PM ~
"...I ain't got a side..."
Last night, I made vegan Snickerdoodles, which Neale was surprised by as I believe she expects something oddly healthy when I use the word vegan to describe my recipes. I was in the mood for a cookie so it fit my materials on hand. Since I use steel cut oats, my choices were limited as every recipe I found asked for rolled oats as an ingredient. I should have some on hand and will for the holidays. Tonight, I am making tofu cacciatore, smashed cauliflower, and edamame gratin.
Yesterday, Ellis and I went to the park after my trip to the dealership and drop at Goodwill. With our collective weight loss and my watching of "Hoarders", I am purging extra items.
My Halloween decorations are coming together. I wanted to add holiday flavor to the place. I can't get use to Halloween on a Sunday though.
Vinculum:
edamame gratin
ultralight 50

.:: Monday, October 25th ::.

~ 10:26PM ~
"...chipping at the pile..."
Happy Birthday Mom. Very happy to hear you were having a great day during our phone call.
Back to Krav. We worked on a ground technique that I have not done before tonight. Also, the conditioning was good.
I had another big motivation to go through our collective stuff. I asked myself: Have I used this in a year? If not, why? Then, who could use this instead? So, Goodwill and another local shop for Neale's clothes are receiving donations. It feels good to do it on my levels.
Vinculum:
circle cats

.:: Sunday, October 24th ::.

~ 11:53PM ~
"...extra $20 off..."
Went to the outdoor range today. Since I have a few items I have not used yet, I was looking forward to using them. We had fun and the weather was great.
Neale and I went to Pi Kirkwood after the range. I tried and liked the Pi Schlafly Common. Very good stuff. Pizza and salads were excellent.
Once again, I spent the night grading. Had to be done.
Last night, I had an idea for our Halloween decorations. Neale like it. I also had my recurring dream about a local jazz guitarist that seems not to exist. Strange for this to be my current recurring dream. Much better than one I use to have years ago. Kinda miss the other one about the ocean.
Vinculum:
haunt
lift
magnesium and heart attacks

.:: Friday, October 22nd ::.

~ 03:36AM ~
"...he's crazy..."

I passed my Level 1 Krav test last Saturday. Pic of three guys that passed.
Our party was a success.
I have a touch of illness but it is clearly up.
Vinculum:
Crimson Hill

.:: Friday, October 15th ::.

~ 04:40AM ~
"...for a reason?....a legal reason?..."

Spent the day gathering supplies for the party. This morning I did the interior setup.
~ 01:36AM ~
"...damp as the dew..."
Yesterday, I had a rough start to the day. I was anxious about an afternoon event and wanted it to go well. I needed to get information at work to see if it would. I did get the news I wanted but starting the day anxious is never a good start. It turned out the best it could. Actually, it was a good day in the end. Maybe it changed a few minds.
Neale was able to workout and have the rest of the day to finish decorating. The main bedroom looks very good. She would like new curtains but she decided to wait.
Today, after I finally get some sleep, I have work to do on the house to prep for the party and catch up on grading. At midterm, I am in very good shape with grading. But, the first round of exams have come to my inbox. It needs to done.
Vinculum:
veggeroni
long live Latinos
dark as a dungeon

.:: Sunday, October 10th ::.

~ 09:26PM ~
"...Rejoice O young man in thy youth... - Ecclesiastes..."
Since Friday got busy, Ellis' birthday celebration was late Saturday.
Happy 5th Ellis.
Today, my left ankle stopped hurting from sparring on Thursday. My trainer really likes the health of the gym. Several guys able to make sparring nights so it is a working gym.
We decorated today. And decorated some more. Still happily married too.

RIP Burke.

Also, I was in the mood to bake and I made (not in this order):

'meat' loaf

protein bars

flax wheat bran muffins

seitan 'pepperoni'

eggplant for baba ghanoush

The seitan 'meat' loaf may be the best version of the 'meat' loaf I have made yet. I was bored or uninterested with lentil or grain based 'meat' loaf recipes.
Vinculum:
AT

.:: Saturday, October 9th ::.

~ 09:26PM ~
"...keep popping up..."
Nothing Gold Can Stay
by Robert Frost
Nature's first green is gold,
Her hardest hue to hold,
Her early leaf's a flower;
But only so an hour.
Then leaf subsides to leaf.
So Eden sank to grief,
So dawn goes down to day.
Nothing gold can stay.

Up early for breakfast at First Watch. Then, off to drop Neale's car at the dealership. Once at home, she left to have the straightening treatment on her hair and I worked it the yard. The house is ready for winter while at Oktoberfest next weekend. She did shopping for the new home decorations after returning home. Tomorrow, the house will have its new look.
We celebrated Ellis' 5th birthday. Photos soon.
Vinculum:
savvy
ex

.:: Sunday, October 3rd ::.

~ 09:27PM ~
"...can't handle the game..."

Creepy guy and scared kid.

Happy happy.

Vinculum:
savvy

.:: Tuesday, September 28th ::.

~ 10:27PM ~
"...keys in her purse..."
Spent an hour and half painting the main bedroom. Probably one of the last acts of work on the Selma house. Listened to KDHX during the painting and it helped. When I was Indiana (ISU years), I discovered Jack Logan.

Vinculum:
God who?
the goods

.:: Sunday, September 26th ::.

~ 08:09PM ~
"...redzone..."

Second bedroom has been painted. Main bedroom next.

We went for a quick 2 hr. at Chubb. Empty. No hikers. A few trail runners.
If you like the NFL, Redzone is worth the additional to your channel line up. Fantastic service.
Vinculum:
lord
Wild Backpacker

.:: Friday, September 24th ::.

~ 09:06PM ~
"...what have you got in hands reach..."
I put the living room back together this morning. Neale checked the room's paint job last night. I felt like a movie this morning so I went to go see Catfish. Tense and I was cringing the last 40 minutes. Worth a look. Then, I did errands, walked Ellis and cleaned the living room. Neale was very happy with the new look in the living room. She is off seeing a band tonight. Since I was not a fan of the band (and tickets were $45), I took a pass. Worked out instead.
She had just finished a big case that taught her a few things and getting a word out of her this week was tough. Yesterday, she was done with it and wanted to hang out. I took a night off from sparring and we had dinner at Robust. Then, we walked to and ran at the track. We did not walk & run together at first. I did my run, which was just a mile at 7' 22". We caught up to each other and we did run a lap together. She is running better. Overall, it felt good to spend time together.
More painting to be done. Starting the bedrooms soon.
Vinculum:
Campbell House
AA

.:: Wednesday, September 22nd ::.

~ 02:20PM ~
"...small talk sucks..."
First Diversity event of the season yesterday. Went well. Good crowd. Afriky Lolo will be back in the spring.
Tough night in sparring. Legs were stiff despite a good stretch. Got through it.
Spent the day grading. Time for some exercise.
Vinculum:
Blues City Deli

.:: Sunday, September 19th ::.

~ 04:04PM ~
"...chance to grind some of the clock..."
Yesterday was Webster's Jazz and Blues Fest. I parked the car downtown to store the cooler and walked back with Ellis. Neale and I walked down to see Gumbohead. After picking up the chairs and beverages, we settled into the lot next to the stage. When Gumbohead was done, we tried Milagro, which I traded emails with earlier to see if they were veg friendly. The owner's wife I was informed was a veg so there are a few items on the menu that fit our needs. Excellent food and service. Great place that we hope succeeds in Webster.
Rainy after we arrived home. Decided to shot video of the storm last night. Worst lighting of the year.

More painting today. On Friday, I painted the living and dining room. Good coverage but fixing a few spots today.
Vinculum:
ain't noise pollution
kit
zapped
the fighter

.:: Wednesday, September 15th ::.

~ 02:58PM ~
"...hot puss..."
For everyone afraid of heights: Check out the video below.

~ 10:44AM ~
"...old dogs, children and watermelon wine..."
Happy to read that I finished in the top 15 at my 5K last weekend. Official time was 24' 38", which was better than I thought when I finished. #13 overall male. Since I am painting the next few weekends, I am probably not running another 5K until October. Planning two for November. One on my birthday and the Thanksgiving Trot.
My amber (AKA clean out the grains brew) is bubbling. Sampled the pumpkin beer and it was very good. Better than last year as I did not overpower it with spice.

Great night in fight and cardio kick. However, my legs are feeling it today.
Vinculum:

.:: Sunday, September 12th ::.

~ 07:41PM ~
"...and there you are..."
We had breakfast at First Watch. Our server complimented us again. I did my best to deal with it. Neale could not remember her name so I asked again. I should remember since she is so nice to us. After breakfast, Neale had work to do and I headed to Target for supplies. Ellis and I went to Blackburn to play ball and a walk. Then, mowed the front and back lawns. Finally, I painted, dried, and rehung the basement door. After a short trip for supplies, I was ready to brew an amber and rack the Oktoberfest pumpkin ale.
Driving around this morning and listening to "Breakfast with the Beatles" on XM was very nice. Thanks Little Steven.

Bears win (?). Rams lose.
Vinculum:
+ present

.:: Saturday, September 11th ::.

~ 10:45 PM ~
"...I hope their skin in tough..."
After the 5K this morning, we had a moment of silence given the day. The weather was cool and overcast. Despite the humidity, the cool temperature was ideal for me. I finally broke the 25 min. mark. I was expecting to do well as my prep miles were at 7 min. 30 secs. during the week. Plus, Tower Grove is flat and the course is straight forward. The winning time was 20 mins. 9 secs. Since I was not too far off that pace, I felt good about my performance. The event is small and does not attract the area "professional" runners. Usually the winning time is closer to 17 mins. After the event there was a series of door prizes and I missed the Captain D's seafood gift certificates. I would have been grateful but I was also thinking "who do I know that eats fast food seafood?". I did win an iTunes gift card so Neale has some money to spend to stock her iPod. I am hoping for the new Interpol.
Neale had a full day. She had to help Debbie at the Kirkwood Police as she had a break in the other day. Criminals made off with jewelry. The story is developing.
Neale also attended Grandparents Day at Jack's place. I would have attended but Ohio State was playing the Canes. The Buckeyes won. Good game but I can't a season of games like today.
She is hanging out with a friend tonight. I had painting to do. Almost ready to start on the living room.

Vinculum:
twillight zone
albion basin
tree & milk way

.:: Thursday, September 9th ::.

~ 11:24 PM ~
"...I know you won't refuse because we so much to do..."
Videos from our weekend trip to the Cubs and Mets are up.

All the videos are on my YouTube channel or HERE.
Vinculum:
Compass Points
Gear X
Trail Eats
Eat This Not That: Mexican
vegan ziti

.:: Monday, September 6th ::.

~ 01:45 AM ~
"...A closed mind is like a closed book; just a block of wood..."
Great weekend. We headed north to the Chicagoland area. The area I grew up in was once pretty bare but now is practically a far west suburb of Chicago. We have a new hotel to stay in when we visit the area. I remarked that people wanting to spend the night in my former hometown was unusual to see. When I was younger there was one motel and it sat empty. On Saturday, we went to the Cubs v. Mets game. Neale's first time at Wrigley. Nice place but clearly has been passed by time. Busch is preferred and I am sure I will love Citi Field when we get the chance. Mets lost on Saturday. Good game and got to see young talent. Excellent seats as we were 30 yards away from home plate. Afterwards, we gave my parents a ride home as they were there for a company trip. We visited my brother and his son at their home. It was fun to see them.
On Sunday, Neale went shopping. I was excited as I could be about her new purse but mostly happy for her. A part of me knows the life of the purse will be brief. We both went to IKEA as my parents joined us. I had an eye on the clock as we needed to head out in the afternoon. Trip home was smooth as the weather was clear and the traffic decent.
Vinculum:
vegan backpacker
trail building
pepper fool
out of air

.:: Wednesday, September 1st ::.

~ 12:47 PM ~
"...I am in charge here at the White House...."
Good night at cardio kickboxing and fight class. It wore me out.
Neale's work trip to Atlanta has been delayed.
Vinculum:
altrec

Photo from our trip to Hawn State Park. More on our photos page.

T O P

PAST JOURNALS