Weekend Report: Mother's Day and EU Embassy Open Houses

I feel like this blog is unofficially dedicated to my mama.


She's the reason I love to cook. Some of my earliest memories involve Sister1 and I "helping" my mom in the kitchen. We each had our own kitchen stools, and installed ourselves on either side of her as she chopped fresh veggies for salsa, rolled out blackberry pie crusts, and baked sheets and sheets of biscotti and chocolate chip cookies.


She's the reason I love to read. Every night before going to bed my mama read us books - from Goodnight Moon to Frog and Toad to Little Women. Since I started reading on my own, we're constantly trading books - almost everything I read comes from my mama's recommendations.


Both my parents are the reasons I love to run. My mama is an amazing athlete - my goal is to someday be as good as she was. (That's to the tune of a 2:46 marathon...oof...we'll see...) She ran every day for years, and now does Bikram yoga every day. That is dedication. (Read more about my running family here.)


And she made me the writer I am - the hours and tears and frustration spent ripping through my elementary school and junior high papers taught me how to edit and write coherently (Mollie, what exactly are you trying to say here???).


So Happy Mother's Day Mama! I love you!


But since I'm in DC and my mama's in CA, my weekend involved no actual Mother's Day activities...


Saturday morning LOTR-Emily and I started early on the EU Embassies Open House tour. We learned our lesson from last year, and this time strategically planned our attack. We started at Belgium - kicking off a day of sampling with some delicious chocolate and a mini Belgian waffle.

Next we went to Finland. Their embassy is LEED Gold Certified and so freaking cool inside! They're also the only embassy I know of that is always open for tours, so if you visit DC definitely check this out.

At Great Britain we toured the gardens, chatted with accented soldiers, and were given a book of short stories by British authors.





Luxembourg's embassy was small (much like the country), but very nicely wood-paneled inside. The Dutch ambassador's residence was gorgeous, the Slovenian embassy offered maps and delicious cinnamon roll-like bread. 

The Estonian embassy had one of the coolest buildings ever, and we finished off with the Bulgarian embassy. (10 points for whomever can place all those countries on a map!)

I felt quite accomplished after completing so much tourism in just one day. Followed by a run with SpeedyKate and check! Saturday was complete.


Sunday's morning long run was gorgeous...but absolutely awful. We started at Carderock, just 20 minutes outside DC, and ran up past the Billy Goat Trail. 


I hated running through my 8-mile slog (it was supposed to be 10, but there was just no way that was going to happen). SpeedyKate and I re-fueled with Cosi squagel egg sandwiches (SpeedyKate as we're about to order: "I'm annoyed that I have to say 'squagel' right now.") that despite their ridiculous name were de-freaking-licious. 



I spent the afternoon practicing French then hanging out with my refugees (translation: making a 4th grader sit and do multiplication for an hour and a half. Ick - when do they get to use calculators? When was the last time you had to do 496 x 55 by hand???).


Then we hit up my favorite Ethiopian restaurant (Madjet) for dinner - it was sooo tasty and satisfying!


Hope you had a good weekend too!

Best of the Week #19

The wheels were put in motion last week.
Big life changes were on their way.

And now…

Dun dun dunnn...

It’s finally official.

I’m leaving my job! 

I’ve been working at NatGeo TV for almost 2 years with really awesome people, doing some awesome and a lot of not so awesome things…It’s time to move on and finally the months and months of rejection are over – someone wants to hire me! 

I’m so psyched – the sun is shining, a weight has been lifted, happy dances have been danced. YAYAYAY!

Anywho, just had to get that out. I’m not sure yet what this means for the future of Eat Run Read, but I’m not too worried. I’ll keep you updated…

And now for Best of the Week! (Catch up on previous Best of the Week posts here.)

My most popular post this week was my ACLI Capital Challenge Race Report.

The big news story this week is Bin Laden’s death. People are psyched, and that’s great, but let’s not forget that Bin Laden wasn’t the first or only terrorist. He didn’t do things on his own, so now is not the time to forget that a system created the individual. His death does not end that system.  But I am loving the Obama posters! 

One of the best things about the last 2 years is that I’ve realized how much I enjoy writing.  I love writing Eat Run Read and have learned a lot through the process and practice of sitting down every morning and coming up with something to write (added challenge: ideally something's that people want to read!). I don’t know yet if I want to be a Writer…but maybe…From Blattman:

“My advice is so basic. Number one: Read. I feel like it’s amazing how many people I know who want to be writers who don’t really read. I’m not convinced someone wants to be a writer if they don’t read. I don’t think the problem is that they need to read more; I think they might need to readjust their life goals. Reading is the nourishment that lets you do interesting work. To be reading good things. I feel that you should be reading what you want to write. Nothing less.” 

6x6 somehow always manages to find the ecards that capture my existence.

I like this, I believe it. Next time you're bored, think about it... (source)

This collection of must-reads of "Nearly 100 Fantastic Pieces of Journalism" from The Atlantic is, in the words of ex-co-worker Megan, “like Christmas for nerds!”

I kind of want this t-shirt…too ridiculous?

In running news, I’ve raced twice in one week! Here’s me in Friday night’s race…they're two of my “best” pictures (meaning ones where I look the least like a 500 lb torture victim/ogre). (source)

And from Runners World Daily:

race verb

1 : to believe that one can move forward just a tiny bit faster than one is currently moving, regardless of how fast one is currently moving, and then to try

This article asks, Could a marathon ever be run in under two hours? Haile Gebrselassie, the current world record holder, says "No question. The first sub two-hour marathon will need 20 to 25 years, but it will definitely happen."

But others disagree, "You watch these great athletes up close, an athlete as great as Haile Gebrselassie... and you could see the strain, he looks magnificent through 20, 21, 22 miles and then it starts, and then the body starts to break itself down and maintaining pace is hard enough," he said. They both believe the record will come down to two hours and two minutes, at which point it will plateau.

Call in the scientists!


By analysing actual performances and extrapolating, Francois Peronnet, a professor at the University of Montreal, calculates that the first sub two-hour marathon will be run in the year 2028.
Whenever it happens, it would mean running each mile at a four minute 35 second pace. By comparison, a decent club runner might run at a seven-minute mile pace, and a casual runner at nine or 10 minutes.

Read the whole article here.

My weekend plans include the EU Embassy Open Houses tomorrow morning. SpeedyKate is house/dog-sitting across the street from me, so I have a weekend running buddy! And don't forget to call your mama! It's Mother's Day on Sunday!

Literary Bite: Dancing in the Glory of Monsters

Most people don’t know about the Congolese wars. You’ve heard of Darfur, everyone knows about the Rwandan genocide, but did you know that in the DRC (Democratic Republic of the Congo) over 5 million people have died war-related deaths, and over 3.4 million Congolese were forced to leave their homes??? (I just think people should know about this!) 

I’ve been recommending Dancing in the Glory of Monsters to everyone. (And I’m going to see Jason Stearns talk about it tonight!)

It’s difficult for me to judge this book objectively, since I think anything related to the DRC is absolutely fascinating…and of course my refugees are Congolese…but if you like non-fiction, give it a try!

The main reason the DRC is not media-genic is its complexity. “How,” Stearns asks, “do you cover a war that involves at least 20 different rebel groups and the armies of nine countries, yet does not seem to have a clear cause or objective?” 


The DRC is bigger than Western Europe and arguably has been in turmoil for 40 years. The conflict is not about race, nor economics, nor power nor politics – it’s far more complicated than that and includes aspects of all those issues. “Like layers of an onion, the Congo war contains wars within wars.”

Stearns is an expert on the DRC and does an amazing job of combining interviews, personal portraits, and historical facts to paint a clear portrait of the DRC. He’s interviewed victims and perpetrators and has amazing access to all sides of the conflict. Dancing in the Glory of Monsters is (of course) a history book, but it’s a page-turner! I think Stearns has made it accessible to everyone, not just Africanists like me.

This book starts in 1994 with the Rwandan genocide and its affects on the Congo. Then, in 1996 the “first war” overthrew Congo’s (then Zaire’s) dictator Mobutu Sese Seko. That was closely followed by the “second war” in 1998, when Rwanda and Uganda invaded the Congo. 

Of course the end is not happy, but hopefully will make you care, even just a little bit.

And I love the title, it comes from a speech by Laurent Kabila, the DRC’s first president after the dictator Mobutu:

 “Vous Zairois…,” He would begin, a finger thrusting upward, berating the crowd for having pu tup with the country’s moral decline for so long. “Who has not been a Mobutuist in this country?” he asked during one press conference. “Three-quarters of this country became part of it! We saw you all dancing in the glory of the monster.” (p.9)

Check out Stearn’s blog, Congo Siasa.

Read this interview with Stearns, and the NY Times book review.

And if you do pick up Dancing in the Glory of Monsters (please do!), let me know so we can discuss!

ACLI Capital Challenge 2011 Race Report

This morning marked the second installment of the Mollie Races Into Shape plan. I did the Capital Challenge 3-Miler on Hains Point with my office team.

I checked the weather late last night: rain. 100% chance. Ick. (The picture below is from last year when the weather was nice.)

But I am nothing if not reliable, so I braved the spring showers and showed up at work at 7am to meet my co-workers/teammates. (Basically, I didn’t workout last night, so if I skipped the race I would have to guilt myself into doing a tempo run anyways…)

 

The conditions weren’t THAT bad, but I must admit, I wasn’t exactly bringing my super competitive race-face…My office team was incomplete, so we were in it more for the end-of-the-race-pastry than to show off NatGeo's extreme running prowess...

I warmed up 8 minutes easy, then lined up to start. The whistle blew and we were off, the wind at our backs for the first half of the race, and in our faces for the end. The course is an out-and-back, flat as a pancake (yumm pancakes…). 

I settled into a 6:30-pace stride for the first mile. My second mile was pretty slow: 6:50, but my last mile picked up a bit to be about 6:40. My average pace was 6:39, and I finished in 19:57. Official results aren’t out yet, but I think I was the 6^th woman…

It was the race's 30th Anniversary...kind of sad that they got such rotten conditions. We left immediately after everyone finished, skipping the awards and speeches.

I jogged a 15 minute cool down, stuffed an apple and chocolate croissant into my race t-shirt (it was still raining) and by 9:30 was showered and at my desk. Just another Wednesday. 

I used to fear blue cheese. Cheese is a process of separating curds from whey and aging milk. So blue cheese, in all its pungent splendor, is (dare I write the word on a food blog? I do…) a very special kind of mold.

When I was little, my parents took my sisters and I to picnic at The Cheese Factory on the weekends. We fed the ducks in the pond, picked blackberries, and “rode” the ancient abandoned tractor. And at some point in the afternoon, those of us brave (or foolish) enough to go with my mama, would tour the factory.

I say “factory,” but it is far more farmhouse than industrial. Visitors step inside the cool dark stone house and are immediately hit with the odor of large quantities of aging milk. The tour guide describes the process, from sourcing the milk to adding the rennet to aging the cheeses and finally wrapping them up for distribution.

The tour always ended with my mama buying discs of breakfast cheese (Sister2’s favorite), brie (Sister1’s preference), and camembert (mine!) and eating them with crackers outside. 

It wasn’t until much later that I embraced the awesomeness that is blue cheese. My palate needed time to mature into the coffee consuming, dark chocolate devouring, strong flavor seeker that I am today. And now I just can’t get enough of blue cheese – sprinkled on salads, grilled into burgers, baked inside tarts, and now…in crackers!

The Newbie made these crackers/shortbread when she visited to run Cherry Blossom. This is an Ina Garten recipe, so clearly it’s going to be awesome! The original recipe makes a lot, so we halved it. Be careful with the salt though! I think it might be best to omit it completely, since blue cheese is pretty salty on its own.

Blue Cheese and Walnut Crackers

Ingredients

1/4 pound (1 stick) unsalted butter at room temperature

8 ounces Stilton cheese, crumbled (about 12 ounces with rind), at room temperature

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 extra-large egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water for egg wash

1/2 cup roughly chopped walnuts

Directions

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and Stilton together for 1 minute, or until smooth. With the mixer on low speed, add the flour, salt and pepper and mix until it's in large crumbles, about 1 minute. Add 1 tablespoon of water and mix until combined.

Dump the dough onto a floured board, press it into a ball, and roll into a 12-inch long log. Brush the log completely with the egg wash. 

Spread the walnuts in a square on a cutting board and roll the log back and forth in the walnuts, pressing lightly, and distributing them evenly on the outside of the log. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes or for up to 4 days.

Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Cut the log 3/8ths-inch thick with a small, sharp knife and place the crackers on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper. Bake for 22 minutes until very lightly browned. Rotate the pan once during baking. Cool and serve at room temperature.

We spread them with fresh ricotta. Because why not add more cheese to your cheese?

Weekend Report: 5K Friday Race report

On Friday night I left work, hopped on the Metro to Crystal City, and raced a 5K.

It was hard...as all races are...but I guess overall it was fun?


Let me explain: It's been a long time since I've raced a 5K. I've been on-and-off injured for what seems like forever, so I've avoided racing. I couldn't see the point of paying money to run a mediocre 5K. 


(Though I did tempo a Cranberry Crawl back in November, and before that did an all day relay in July.)


But the thing is, the best way to get ready for racing is to race. It's impossible to replicate that oh-so-special raceday feeling in a workout, no matter how dedicated you are. In a race you will automatically prepare better and push yourself harder than on a normal day. And the mentality of racing is tough - not only do you need to be physically able to run fast, but you need to be mentally prepared to really push yourself.


I want to get back into racing so I need to practice racing more often. (It's the dreaded race-yourself-into-shape formula. It rough...but it works.)


I knew that I wasn't in my best shape before Friday's race, but I wanted to do a 5K to gauge my fitness. Knowing my current pace will help me focus my workouts and set goals for the next race...basically it's all uphill from here! (A very long, very difficult, very tiring hill...but it will inevitably result in me running faster, so that's a hill I'm willing to climb.)


On Friday I met SpeedyKate at 5:40 pm to warm up. We jogged a couple miles and did drills and strides in front of the start line. Then, at 6:30 pm, it was no excuses, too late to back out: Runners set....GO!


We took off in a herd of mostly men, most of whom went out waaaayyy too fast (per usual...oh people). That was my greatest fear - I'm not confident in my race-pace stamina right now and the last thing I wanted was to feel my legs burning in a non-sustainable way before the first mile-marker.


I kept it comfortable. Maybe a little too comfortable. The course switched back, so as people I knew passed me on their way back from the mile marker I cheered. Loudly. The man next to me gave me a bewildered glare and I wondered, Hmm, maybe I should try a little harder...


So I picked it up a bit. (My watch died before the race and no one called splits, so I don't actually know how fast each mile was.)

The course is without a doubt one of the ugliest races I've ever participated in...Crystal City, though it may sound like a mythical place straight out of the Wizard of Oz is actually just a business district in Arlington. We ran under parking garages...behind huge cinderblock buildings...you get the idea...


Midway through mile 2 I hit a momentary point of, Eww this is hard. What am I doing? Ugh I hate racing! But I maned up (or womaned up?) and got over it.


The last mile was the usual no-man's-land of are-we-there-yet? mixed with me kicking myself for not looking more closely at a course map beforehand.


Kicking myself to run faster, that is! I picked it up in the last 800 meters and passed a few people, always a fun way to end a race.


I wasn't absolutely wasted when I crossed the line, but I was significantly tired enough to feel I put in a strong and respectable effort. I ran 20:02, and placed 6th.


SpeedyKate, Jessica, and I cooled down together and then headed to the showers provided for the racers.  (Such an awesome set-up for a Friday night race! Run, then fancy gym showers, then food. Perfect.)


And then the important part: Dinnertime! We got half-price pasta (a deal for racers) at Kora that totally hit the spot. SpeedyKate and I split:
Seared Salmon Penne Pasta penne with salmon, spinach and tomato in a vodka cream sauce and Orecchiette with Italian sausage, mushrooms, mozzarella, and marinara


It was a great way to kick off a good weekend! 


And I'm racing again on Wednesday, this time on my office team at the Capital Challenge 3-Miler. Racing myself into shape, one race at a time...