My Sunday Brunch

This is an absolute horrible start to "bike to work week". I had grand plans -- run on Monday & Wednesday, bike Tuesday, Thursday, & Friday -- and then bike the 67 mile "Tour de Cure" on Sunday after my symphony concert (as I won't be able to ride during the actual event, due to the fact that I have my first major concert with my band). So, instead of talking about biking, I'll talk about food.

I had an awesome brunch on Sunday. Normally, my Sundays are pretty structured - wake up early, take care of the dogs, try to convince the Mrs. that she should take the first shower so that I can sleep in, finally get ready for church, and then fight with the organ for a few hours. By the time I'm back home, I'm ready for a nap. However, as the Greek Festival took place this weekend, there was no choir, meaning that I had the "day off".

After a little bit of sleeping in, I had the dogs & CJ on the road by 9AM, and we went for a good 3 mile walk around the neighborhood. It was a beautiful day (as opposed to the dreariness that we're experiencing now), and it was just a fun time -- plus, it allowed Duffy to sleep in a little. After the walk, I came back to the house & decided to make myself a salad.

John's Super-Awesome Salad

• Spring Mix
• 1 Rome Apple (sliced, with skin
• 2 tomatoes, chopped
• 1 avocado, sliced & "mushed"
• 1 handful of baby carrots, chopped
• pinch of slivered almonds
• handful of croutons
• handful of snow peas
• handful of dried cranberries
• Sweet vidalia onion salad dressing

I got the idea, as I get most of my ideas for running, from "Born to Run", where the author talks about eating salad for breakfast (as opposed to more traditional breakfast foods). The thought it pretty straight-forward: salads have a lot of water, so hydration isn't really a worry; you can eat as much as you want without worrying too much about calorie intake (though I'm not sure anybody who says "eat as much as you want" ever has my ideas of food intake in mind); they're tasty. Well, it turns out that my salad was super-tasty. I enjoyed my great big salad before embarking on a 4 mile run.

Speaking of running, I had hoped to run this morning if the weather didn't cooperate in allowing me to bike to work (and, it turned out, the weather did not cooperate). My thinking was as such: I ran in the "Race for the Cure" in an absolute downpour - so how would getting a little wet change anything? Well, temperatures were at least comfortable during the "Race for the Cure". This morning? Downright frigid. So, I don't mind running in the rain. And I don't mind running in the cold. But, running in the cold, while it's raining? Not my cup of tea.

And speaking of tea -- I'm going no coffee for today, so, yes, I'm off to make myself a cuppa...