Too long

Heh. Only a couple of you get the reference in this post's title, but I'll keep it obscure. Simply said, it's been a while since I had a general information post, and I'm sure my loyal readership, all 5.38 of you, need some FOOD PORN!

And actually, check out the labels for this post: it has a little bit to please everyone! (food porn, travel, bikes, fundraising, onions, homebrewing)

It's been busy, but also pleasantly slow-ish (as much as I let myself take things easy, I have.) The fall protest travel season is on the near horizon, and I'm out of town every weekend in October, and at least three in November.

The travel starts with riding in the Wapiyapi Classic in Aspen next weekend, which I'm very excited about. (And which I'll throw out one last pitch for you to please consider donating, as I talked all about in this post.) I'll get invited to a pre-ride party hosted by Lance Armstrong and Anna Hansen if I'm one of the top 10 fundraisers, and currently, thanks mostly to the lovely and generous people who read this blog, I'm #8 9 (but by a thin margin.) Please consider donating: http://www.active.com/donate/wapiyapi2011, and type my name into the boxes at the top next to "Find a fundraiser to support".

Okay, okay, to make this worth your while, how about some images, including FOOD PORN, and ONIONS!

Due to popular reader demand, how 'bout some FOOD PORN, and ONIONS! Conveniently co-located with tofu, which almost deserves its own label on this blog, and featuring a visit by some freshly chopped sage leaves.

File this one under the "J is a genius" category. And not just at her chosen profession. So, our (apprimxtaley 8 or 9 year old) washing machine has increasingly been stopping mid-cycle. Basically, for no obvious reason, the lid got bent, and so the contact that tells the machine the lid is closed and it's okay to start spinning all the water out was regularly not engaging.

So I started feeling around in the works, and the craptastic plastic assembly literally started crumbling in my hands, out of sight. I pulled half a dozen pieces of plastic crap out, never again to be properly reassembled. I avoided dropping any of them in the washer full of water (clearly shown in the picture.) Oh, and I got lightly electrocuted.

Enter J's genius. And her small hands. She started feeling around, and determined it was basically a single crappy connection, and hypothesized (which fancyschmancy scientists do) that all we needed to do was pull it out, twist it together, tape it up, and stuff it back in.

I took this one level further easier, and proposed we just twist and tape it above the hole.


Which we did.

And it works a charm!


Non-sequitur #1: Grilling peaches, pineapple, and.... I can't really tell for sure.

Grilling peaches, pineapple, and pears!

No, those aren't vegan organic hand grenades. They're eggplants studded with rough-cut garlic and then baked, which infuses them in a truly extraordinary way to make baba ghanoush. Another shining example of "J is a genius."

Eating healthy. WOOT.

Drinking creatively, even if not, ummm, healthy. Friends and I did three all-grain batches yesterday, which was honeslty too ambituous, but I'd already smacked the yeast smack packs, so we'd have lost almost $8 if we didn't brew the third batch.

From left, that's a bourbon oaked imperial stout, then a spiced pumpkin strong-ish (7.7% ABV) ale, and a witbier.

I made an outstanding decision and didn't drive home after a long day of Rule #1.

Okay, need to ride to the library and drop off donations for Friends of the Library, then think about dinner. It'll definitely involve onions (I bought a ten pound bag today) and spinach (I bought 2 pounds of organic spinach.) Mission: cookbook shelf!

Another fundraising pitch

[apologies for cross-posting if you already received this via e-mail!]

Hello friends and family,

So, here's the thing: I really hate asking for money. Seriously.

And since I mostly don't do social media, it's hard to reach out semi-anonymously. (Though I'm going to blog this well... again.)

I'm going to ask anyway, and if you can give even $5 or $10 (or more!) that would be fantastic. And if not, and I know many of you don't have a lot of money to give, no problem at all.

I'd like you to consider donating to the Wapiyapi Classic, a 50 and 25 mile bike ride that J and I will both be riding later this month in Colorado. You can donate by going to this page and typing in my name at the top. My mom made a really extraordinary donation, so I have easily met my fundraising goal, but this is really a great cause that I'd like you to consider.

As you might recall, I rode last year's Courage Classic in memory of J's best friend from medical school, Gretchen Life. Gretchen and her husband died in a boating accident on Lake Ponchartrain shortly after Hurricane Katrina. I blogged about it, and that post explains a lot of the background of why this ride, and the Courage Classic, are so important to me. Please check it out.

The Courage Classic was an amazing experience: summiting Colorado mountains with Richard, Gretchen's dad. Patients from Children's Hospital waved us out at the start, and into the finish line. And gave great high-fives. Literally dozens of times throughout the weekend, I was struck by how important Gretchen's loves, children and pediatric medicine, were.

The Wapiyapi Classic is a little different, but very much in the same vein. 100% of the proceeds from the ride benefit Camp Wapiyapi:

Wapiyapi is a Colorado based nonprofit organization that offers a community of hope and support to families affected by childhood cancer. Wapiyapi hosts free summer camps and year-round family retreats to provide a respite for children with cancer and their families.

Gretchen volunteered at Camp Wapiyapi, and changed the lives of children living with cancer, and their families. J and I are doing this ride as a small part of trying to help carry on this beautiful mission.

Please consider donating. And if you have already, or even if you can't this time around but made it this far: THANK YOU!

I hope you are well, and happy, and excited, and challenged. If we haven't been in touch recently: please, let's change that!

Love,
d