I actually had a different post in mind relating to earning my black belt, until I saw what Google did with the photos that were taken on my phone in the last few days. When you take several photos in quick succession, Google takes the liberty of making an animated GIF out of some of them. This amused me, so I thought I’d share a couple of them.
After receiving our belts, we performed Sip Soo, one of the open hand forms we needed to learn before testing for the 1st degree black belt. This is a fairly small part of it, just what Google decided to clip together.
Part of Sip Soo (“Ten Hands”), the latest open hand form I had to learn to test for my 1st degree black belt
In addition to the excitement of earning my black belt, I received a sword as a gift. I started learning the first sword form a while ago, and practice it infrequently… it’s a black belt form. Now that I’m a black belt, I need to work on remembering it. I carried my sword to class the other night to show my instructor, and took some time after class to test it out on the mat.
Trying out my new sword.
Exciting times! I’ve already started learning the next open hand form I need for when I test for second degree black belt.
The movie Once, which I had never heard of until the Paramount Theatre announced their 2017-18 Broadway season, won an Oscar; the Broadway production won eight Tony Awards. This final show in the Paramount’s season is both heart-wrenching and inspiring.
Guy and Girl (they are never given names) meet on the streets of Dublin and quickly bond over a joint love of music. In less than a week, they share regrets about their past relationships, Girl pushes Guy into taking out a loan for a recording session, and they fall in love. But the unresolved issues of their past relationships loom over them, or as Girl puts it “You can not walk through your life leaving unfinished love behind you!” To find out what happens with their relationship and past ones, you’ll have to see the show.
They make beautiful music, both individually and together, and manage to draw Girl’s family and flatmates into their recording session, along with the banker who approves Guy’s loan. This is a show that will certainly inspire you to pursue your dreams. Much like the opening show of Paramount’s 2017-18 season, Million Dollar Quartet, the orchestra pit is empty – all of the music is produced on stage, showcasing once again an amazing amount of talent. Unusually for us, we saw it almost at the end of its run… this weekend will be the last at the Paramount. I highly recommend seeing it on stage if you have the chance.
My thoughts on Brandon Sanderson’s Oathbringer are long overdue, I actually finished reading the book in February. It’s been a busy three months. I will try to avoid spoilers for this book, but spoilers for the first two are inevitable at this point.
Most of the story follows the same primary characters encountered in Way of Kings and Words of Radiance, who have developed into Radiants. Sanderson does a fabulous job again of bouncing between their current situations and how their histories moved them to this point. Dalinar, in particular, is forced to explore the memories he had blocked of his deceased wife, and Shallan, her conflicted family history. Each of the characters has unsettling experiences, and each in some way challenges society’s rules. Discoveries are made that shake society to its core.
Shallan, still one of my favorite characters, develops unique personalities for each of the faces she draws herself. Among other problems, two of her personalities are attracted to different people; she has to determine which part is the real her and which heart to follow.
Szeth, the Assassin in White, rediscovers his passion for Truth, and reappears, along with Lift, who we met briefly in Words of Radiance, and more thoroughly in her own book, Edgedancer. And Venli, one of the remaining Parshendi, evolves in her understanding of the war between the Voidbringers and humanity.
In a couple years, I’ll re-read all of the books again, to prepare for the release of the next one.
Garden planning is one of my annual goals. Planning generally starts in January or February, since some indoor planting can start as early as mid-February, depending on what I’m growing that particular year. This year was a late start for me, I didn’t plant anything until almost mid-March.
I try to use up my old seeds first, so I sort through them when I begin garden planning, and then see what I need to fill in my planting gaps. This year, I have a lot of leftover seeds, so all I bought was a couple varieties of large tomatoes. This is where hope starts kicking in… I hope the old seeds will still germinate. This was the last year for the pepper seeds, none of them sprouted.
Seed starts, from planting to seedlings. With luck, many tomatoes will be produced and consumed.
As they sprout, I hope I remember to open the curtains, to get some sun in on the new growth. I’m actually fairly good at that. As it warms up, I hope the forecast is accurate… I check it each morning and decide whether to put the pots (well, yogurt cups) all the way outside, just outside the front door (where they’re partially covered), or leave them in the house. Every day they’re in the house, I hope the kitten doesn’t decide to knock any of them down or destroy any of the seedlings. Especially the tomato plants, since the leaves have a nice bounce to them. And I hope I pick the right days to put them out, and the right nights to leave them out to harden as it cools, but hopefully not too much. Here in Illinois, the nights can vary wildly – we may see a 10 degree drop one night, and a 30 degree drop the next – so I have to choose carefully.
They don’t all survive. You can see in the photo that I started with more cups than I have now. Some sprouted and then faded while still tiny. I planted at least 3 cups of basil; I have one left. And while there’s an overwhelming number of tomatoes, half of those are cherry tomatoes that are more likely to make it into the mouth than the house when harvested.
At some point soon, I hope I pick the right time to move them outside. As you can see, they’re getting a bit tall for those little yogurt cups, but we’ve had a couple nights where the temperature was still in the 40s. Once they’re big enough, they’ll probably be OK with a night or two that gets that low, so it’s entirely possible they relocate to a couple different spots this upcoming weekend. I think it’s safe… I took a gamble and planted peas about 10 days ago, and those are coming up nicely.
I recently visited Whiskey Acres, a distillery in Dekalb, IL. As I’ve mentioned before, I do like a good whiskey, and by chance had tried a Whiskey Acres Rye at Hardware recently. It was a bit of a random choice at Hardware, given that there are over 400 whiskeys to choose from, and I try not to repeat the ones I’ve had before. I mentioned to a friend that I had tried a rye from Illinois; he responded by telling me about this distillery that he wanted to visit at some point… I looked at the name and realized it was their rye. And it’s only 30 minutes away!
Whiskey Acres buildings, still (her name is Flo), casks, and the array of bottles for tasting.
We decided to meet for the last tour on a Friday night – it starts at 7pm, lasts an hour, and they close at 8:30. The weather was beautiful (not to be confused with “the weather is here…”), and apparently everybody else decided not to be there that night… we were the only people on the tour. And we learned a lot!
With the exception of the malted barley, Whiskey Acres grows all of their own grains. When they’re ready to start preparing the mash, they notify the farmers of how much corn they need, so it’s fresh off the farm when the start using it. The mash will sit for a few days before being introduced to Flo, their still. (Apparently all stills should be named. Please take note if you have an as-of-yet unnamed still.) The still is a full day process, unless they’re preparing vodka, in which case it goes through the still 3 times, so it’s a 3 (continuous) day process. We didn’t meet Nick, but apparently the vodka is made with his tears… 3 days of continously running the still is a long time.
After the distillation, the alcohol is barreled. We learned that to qualify as a bourbon, it must be 125 proof or lower at the point when it’s barreled, and the barrels must be new. The barrels for bourbon are burnt on the inside before the alcohol is added; that’s where it picks up the brown color.
The aging process of a whiskey varies. The smaller casks age faster, they may only take 18-24 months; the large casks can take 5-7 years. And some poor soul has to check them periodically as they approach the potential ready date. Part of me would love that job, but to be honest, my palate is not particularly discerning, so I suspect I would be bad at it.
The tour wraps up with a tasting of their rye, bourbon, and vodka. I am not generally a vodka drinker, yet was pleasantly surprised at how drinkable it was. It didn’t outweigh my normal preferences… in the end, I walked away with a bottle of their bourbon. (And yes, I am sipping some while I type. It seemed appropriate.) You get a souvenir shot glass with the tour, they’ll even wrap it up for you after your tasting.
The Whiskey Acres tasting room is open Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays through November. They don’t serve food, but have plenty of space for a picnic, if you pack one, or you can drive into downtown Dekalb for some lovely sushi or other food options.
Occasionally, I receive multiple review books together. They usually have different due dates, so I prioritize whichever one is due first. If they share a due date, I have to decide which one to read first, and I generally take a “save the best for last” approach. At that point, I only have the cover to go by, and since it’s an advanced copy, that’s usually the back cover, with the blurb, rather than a fully illustrated front cover.
This worked for me well last time, when I read a fantasy book before Side Life. This time, well, after the first chapter of the first (of two) book… I considered that I may have gotten them in the wrong order. The first book had an illustrated front and plain back cover; the description alluded to an existing world that I had no concept of. With no solid expectations going into it, I was rolling in laughter before I finished the first chapter. There were so many quotable quotes, I chose not to flood my Facebook friends with more than a couple. So I confess, I totally misjudged that book (and I’m not telling you which it was) based on the back cover.
And yet, as much as I liked it, I enjoyed the second book I had received that much more. This was what I’ll call a true review copy – plain covers on the front and back – so I only had the blurb on the back to judge by before I started reading. I may share that review at some point in the future; they publish elsewhere first. Based on the blurb, I knew that the protagonist was a half-orc, defending a borderland between the humans and the orcs, and that he discovers during the story that there are things he doesn’t understand. The character development is particularly well-written, you can understand both why the character is missing information and how he adapts as he learns. If you get the chance, read The Grey Bastards by Jonathan French. Then add the sequel to your want to read list; it doesn’t appear to have a publication date yet.
As I mentioned in my post about Blue Apron, I also tried out HelloFresh. I actually plan on trying a couple other delicious looking meal kit options, just to see what sort of variances are available, but in the end, I only really need one (if that).
My first impression of the HelloFresh recipes was that they were blander than the Blue Apron ones. I rescinded that impression with the second set of recipes; it must have just been the particular recipes I picked.
HelloFresh bags the ingredients for their meals (other than meats), and here are some of the results.
There are many similarities between the two meal kit services. You log in and pick from a variety of menu options for a given week. The typical box has ingredients for three recipes. In the Blue Apron box, most of the fresh produce is separate from the “knick knacks” bag for each recipe, and any meat is packaged separately; you store the produce as appropriate and refrigerate the knick knacks and meat. The HelloFresh box splits out the meat from everything else; all of the other ingredients for a given recipe are in a brown paper bag (labeled “this bag is greener than a salad”). An interesting difference between the two is that HelloFresh will send you two peeled cloves of garlic in the bag, whereas Blue Apron will send you an entire bulb even if you only need two cloves. We’re three Blue Apron boxes in… we’re never running out of fresh garlic.
The meals in both cases are tasty, and the recipes are easy to follow. In fact, there’s a real pleasure as a parent of being able to hand over a single sheet and pile of ingredients while I run off and do other chores.
There are minor differences in the website that could sway you to one or another – the HelloFresh website lets you skip meals far ahead of their menu planning, whereas Blue Apron dates become available as the menus are posted. We’ve decided to stick with Blue Apron for the moment, more because it was the first of the two we tried… that and I like their Mediterranean recipes.
Coming sometime soon… our thoughts on Meal Village, where instead of a meal kit, somebody else does all the work and you just have to reheat the meal.
Tonight, I will test for my Cho Dan, or 1st degree black belt, in the World Tang Soo Do Association. As part of our preparation, we take a written test (up to twice, if needed; I passed on my first attempt… both times) and write a thousand words about Tang Soo Do.
I failed my sanity check and wrote it as a poem. Enjoy!
Twas two weeks before Dan Camp when my teacher and friend,
as I was leaving the dojang after a fabulous class,
asked “Are you testing this cycle” Thus the planning began.
Was this a thing I could do, could I make it and pass?
If I test in September, and again in the spring,
I would visit Tikal as a new Cho Dan Bo.
Pre-Testing next Dan Camp could be a real thing,
But I found in October one goal had to go.
January’s test is usually late,
So we relearn what holidays help us forget.
Last year it fell on my own birthdate,
Testing so soon would be a close bet.
With regular practice and no real chance to rest,
Was I being too ambitious or just slightly insane?
I gave it my all, I gave it my best.
My knife skills were iffy; my shoulder, in pain.
My breaking was lousy, I can’t say that’s new.
But my one steps were solid, and I knew all my forms,
I was happy to pass and then learn Sip Soo.
But how did I reach this point that transforms?
When Cassandra, my daughter, had turned almost four,
we went to the fair to enjoy rides once again,
stopped at some booths, thought about them no more,
till a phone call came in, we stopped to think then.
Was karate something she wanted to try?
It’s truly hard work, not like Kung Fu Panda,
while really quite fun, Po’s too goofy a guy,
earning a black belt’s more than Hollywood propaganda.
Cassandra’s first karate class
Her first class looked great, she had a fabulous grin,
When I look back at it now, I see many a friend.
Some still do karate, others have left it since then,
I didn’t know yet that our hobbies would blend.
I promised her when I saw the first buddy week,
I’d try it with her, take my turn on the mat,
I didn’t know then that my body would speak,
to say my appendix was a bit of a brat.
I woke up that Christmas in a hospital bed,
worried in two months for my stair climb,
ninety-four flights up I would tread,
forty-some minutes was quite a slow time.
I sat three more months with my books or my hook,
crocheting or reading as she learned some new skills,
watching the classes my daughter partook,
while I thought about crafts and paying the bills.
Hugging Cassandra after my first karate class. This was before I even had a uniform.
Winter became spring, as May rolled around,
I was invited to class, to my delight and surprise,
not just for a week, a whole month I had found,
celebrating mothers with some pain in my thighs.
There was pain in push-ups and again in each crunch,
though I’m flexible enough, I always could kick.
I found there’s no pain in one single punch,
unless there’s a board or even a brick.
I know that my desk job does me no good,
sitting all day is hard to offset.
Needing more exercise, I understood,
karate was something I could not regret.
Training beside that cute smiling face,
spending time exploring one steps together,
driving towards one or other new place,
these are things that we would certainly weather.
I trained most of a year, and at a regional event
saw Grandmaster destroy a piñata with skill,
after our demo teams to great lengths had went
to show their moves, devotion, and will.
The next spring was a setback, unfortunate for me.
It would not quell my passion, this thing with my shoulder,
I pulled something wrong when cutting a tree,
it felt more like I had lifted a boulder.
Six months I sat out, sad to just watch,
knowing it would take time to achieve,
the skills she would learn as she stepped up a notch,
knowing my health would give no reprieve.
On the plus side I’m older, I had a clear goal,
she wasn’t quite six, she was quite content
to learn something new, she was on a roll,
as a Little Dragon, she made her ascent.
The next summer, my health again wasn’t that great,
I wound up in therapy for pulling my hip,
I sat for two months, as it messed with my gait,
and acquired a walking stick on our road trip.
Two thousand fourteen was a year full of jaunts,
Disney, Hawaii, and Guatemala anew,
some were a first, some were old haunts,
this time though, my skills travelled too.
With some consternation and also great joy,
after extensive searching and some interview pain,
I quit my old job for a new employ,
not working at home, but still, quite a gain.
The downside I found was I had a commute,
the length of which would not let me teach;
the earlier class I would overshoot,
the later classes just in my reach.
As time went on, I found my job shifted,
I bought a new house, left for an earlier drive,
the timing restrictions were happily lifted,
I could plan out karate, make sure I arrive.
I knew by this point that I do like to spar,
and I’ve come to enjoy even hapkido.
I’m not quite the addict that my instructors are,
that may be a change I yet undergo.
It took some time, moving’s always a mess,
and a birthday piñata claimed some of my time,
my first Prep class helped me obsess
on the skills I would need to advance my belt climb.
October added another workout,
bimonthly, with black belts, all of them skilled,
I gather there could be a larger turnout,
the space we were using is nowhere near filled.
The day crept closer to the August pre-test,
one skill, then another, I learned on the mat,
with time to spare, I completed my quest,
Ninety one-steps were learned, some fell a bit flat.
There was just one month till the test in the Dells,
just enough time to refine and improve,
and appear before judges with no whistles or bells,
working hard that day to make them approve.
Three days before, a crash dragged me from the mat,
my car was totaled by a distracted pick-up truck.
The doctor said your concussion will prevent testing for that.
Between the diagnosis and car shopping, I was stuck.
At Valpo, five months later, I pre-tested – again,
enjoying myself despite a horrible cough.
I’m ready for April, it’s time to ascertain –
can I break two boards in this final face off?
Sometimes, words get in the way. Or they aren’t right to convey the meaning. That’s when we turn to more creative expressions. If a picture’s worth a thousand words, what’s a song worth?
This song was composed on Noteflight.com, which is a pretty amazing website.
Shortly after moving into this house, I tried Blue Apron for a little while. Unfortunately, I tried it as we moved into harvest season with a surprisingly large number of squash… I couldn’t keep up with both of them, so I cancelled my Blue Apron subscription.
Blue Apron ingredients, recipes, and some of the meals produced from two boxes.
Last summer was… complicated. I never got around to re-starting the subscription. Now that things have finally calmed down a bit, we decided we could try it again.
Each box comes with ingredients and recipes that you order – my box had three recipes for two servings each. You can pick recipes each week or accept the defaults (if you forget to log in), or skip weeks when you won’t have time to cook them. All of the ingredients arrive in a freezer bag, with a pack of ice by the meats to keep them extra cool.
In addition to pretty pictures, the recipes are available on the Blue Apron website when you select your menu options for the week, so you can get a feel for how long each meal will take to cook. Two of this week’s recipes were 45-55 minutes, so I had to make sure I had that time to cook.
All of the recipes come with step-by-step directions, so you just follow along, preparing bits and cooking other bits generally in the recommended order. In my case, I occasionally add steps like “hide raw meat in microwave until oven is heated” and “hide cooked meat in microwave until side dishes are ready”… anything to protect the food from Arwen.
I normally cook from ingredients, rather than prepared foods, so that part isn’t really a change. The big differences are having the exact amount of ingredients needed to prepare the meal, and the ease of access to a variety of recipes, particularly with their recent addition of Mediterranean recipes. It allows me to explore new ideas – such as including capers and raisins in the same dish – without a remnant jar of capers remaining in the fridge. (To be honest, I think I already have one.)
So far, it’s a successful experiment. For comparison, I’m working through a HelloFresh order. In the end, I only want to order recipes and ingredients from one website… watch this space for my thoughts on HelloFresh.
