7.28.2008

Cheesecakes, Push Ups, and Reagan's Temper Tantrum

Just to prove that I'm not a liar. Voila, I give you jam:


I'm not really a Jam Person, so my jam had alterior motives. Those motives would be one of my favorite desserts of all time... cheesecake.

I really wanted to make mini strawberry swirled cheesecakes. The recipe called for strawberry jam... I had 2 lbs of strawberries and a recipe for jam, so that's how I ended up here.

My first batch had a little too much jam:



But my second batch were perfection:


I tried one first thing this morning and it was wonderful.

I'm having visitors tomorrow. I will force feed them cheesecake and send them home with jam. This is why everyone should come see me... because I bake delicious treats!

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Since I have the day off, I plotted out a 14 mile bike ride on the east side of town that began and ended in our local state park.

It was a total pain to get to, but once I found my way in and began my ride, I knew it was totally worth it. The scenery is beautiful...







About 10 minutes into my ride, I hit a killer hill. I was pedaling my little heart out and started to shift gears. But the gears weren't shifting right and suddenly, Reagan's chain fell off.

My knowledge of bike-fixing skills is minimal, so I was really at a total loss as to what I should do.



I must've looked quite the idiot pulling at the chain and getting grease all over me. Poor Reagan probably wished she had a different owner right about then.

With the chain replaced, I was back on my way. I began pedaling again when I noticed that my tires were low on air. I had totally forgot to check them before I left.

So I turned around and headed back towards my car. I figured I would just pump up the tires and then go back to my 14 miles.

I leaned Reagan against my car and got out my air pump. But when I unscrewed the cap on the wheel, I was confused. It didn't look like the valve I was used to on my road bike. And the nozzle on my pump didn't seem to fit it...



I played around with it for a while and just could not figure it out. I may have even let MORE air out of the tire. My afternoon was over. I was frustrated and dissapointed with my 15 minute ride.

Well, at least this trip can't get any worse...



Grossss. Who spits green gum out in the parking lot at a state park? SHAME.

Did I do something wrong to deserve this? I swear I'm not a bad person.

I had "Take Reagan for a Check Up" on my To Do list for next week, but it looks like it will need to be sooner. She's gonna go see the doctor tomorrow.

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At least push ups don't require any confusing equipment. Today officially began my 100 Push Ups challenge.

As a refresher, it's a 6-week program (3 times a week) to get you to do 100 consecutive push ups. Since today was Day 1, I had to perform the Initial Test to see at what level I was. You just do as many push ups as you can do without stopping...

... Which is only 5. I'm pathetic.


After that, I performed the slated push ups for Day 1:


2 push ups
60 seconds rest
2 push ups
60 seconds rest
2 push ups
60 seconds rest
2 push ups
60 seconds rest
Then my maximum, which was 6.

1 day down... 17 to go.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Well your day sounds like mine, flat tire on my car first thing Monday Morning!! Not a good way to start the week.

Keep your head up, things will be better tomorrow, you get t see me.

Rainmaker said...

Both versions of the cheesecakes look great! The first ones actually have a neat marbled look to it. Either way, good stuff!

As for the chain - what you may have already determined...just move forward the rear derailer to create extra chain slack (just push it, it moves easily), and then just put the chain back on either ring in the front. Fixed in about 5-10 seconds.

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