Book Review: The Help

Like many people I saw the movie and then decided to read the book. I highly recommend the movie. I think some of the characters were nominated for awards and I agree with that decision.

I liked the majority of the book more than the movie. I appreciate the change they made to Skeeter's maid story. I was surprised that Stuart did not come back in the end.  I guess it make sense but I always hope for a little more romance. 

The most disappointing part was the ending.  True to form, I always appreciate a 'fairy tale' type story where good completely conquers all. You will have to read it to find out.  I can see why the author ended it that way.  I would have appreciated a five to ten year fast forward.  I enjoyed hearing the different characters perspective. I also wonder what any former maids would have to say about the inter thoughts of Minny and others.

The ending made me question how much we really have changed. Of course now there is not the white verses colored barrier but there are others; dare I say gay marriage, pro-choice verses pro-life, Republican verses Democrat. Perhaps this is all cropping up because I have been watching more news lately.

I would like to end this post with this quote: 

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that.”
― Martin Luther King Jr., A Testament of Hope: The Essential Writings and Speeches

I am going to try to love out the hate although it can be challenging. 

Celestial Seasonings Tea

Well since it is getting colder and I am getting a little tired of coffee I have started to experiment with tea.

While I was away from work and spending time with family we toured the Celestial Seasonings' Tea factory.  It was really cool to see the product line and here about all their various types of herbal tea. It turns out there are only three true kinds of tea- black, green and white. They each have varying amounts of caffeine. The tour also gives you the chance to taste their teas. I liked the Green Tea Peppermint holiday blend. 

It turns out they have a room to house the peppermint because it is bully in the seasoning world. It can over power just about any other scent. Which brings me to my last lesson learned, if you have different flavors of tea do not store them right next to each other because they flavors are likely to blend. 

I know I learned a lot on the tour and I would go again.

Their website is here. If you are ever in the mood for tea check them out!

  Check out their dress made out of their tea boxes and bags.

 Each one of their teas has a unique painting on the box. I liked this one.

Santa to the SEA! (5k)

I was actually in town for a little bit of December before I got to go see snow. 

One of the very cool things I did was the Santa to the Sea 5k race. Maybe next year I will train for the Santa to the Sea 1/2 marathon. I got really lucky and one my age group with a time of 23:20! It's new PR for me. I think I had the home turf advantage because the race route was very close to the 10K I ran on the 4th of July this year. I also blame the cold. As much as I hate working out when it's cold outside I think it was to my benefit.

This race was also cool because they wanted you to give a donation to Toys for Tots. And they had a contest for costumes. Seeing Santa run is quite a sight!

I got a sweet hoodie for winning. Every finished received a medal. I highly recommend this race to anyone it is a pretty course right along the ocean. 

At the finish line, I got to try out some delicious snacks. My favorite were the new Jamba Juice coconut water and fruit drinks. I had a bad experience with pulpy coconut water but I highly recommend this as post workout recovery drink.

Happy Thanksgiving

Well this year I made my traditional thanksgiving pumpkin pie. It almost turned into a disaster. I was so excited to be making it. I thought I was all ready to put it in the oven and then I saw the condensed milk on the counter! So what did I do, I poured it back into the bowl and added the milk. It was so full, I managed to spill it when I put it in the oven. Within a minute my fire alarm was going off!

I waited for over 50 minutes in fear my stray from the recipe.

As you can see it turned out. Fun fact the brown spots are from when the outside bubble because the inside is complete.

This year I was lucky enough to drink some champagne and wine. Eat some pie and play Nintendo Wii games. All after my first Turkey Trot! I have to say I really enjoyed the turkey trot. I highly recommend that more people try it on Thanksgiving before eating all that food! I did my Turkey Trot in 24:08:8. It was a new best time for me! I definitely want to do another Turkey Trot. I also recommend the Wii post all the Thanksgiving food.

Happy THANK YOU More Please

I saw this movie on an airplane going somewhere for work. I asked my co-worker about it and said he didn't like it. Fully wrinkled his nose. I have to say I really liked it. 

I need the piece of wisdom from this movie. WARNING I am going to ruin the title for you:

One character says she is told by her cab driver that the universe wants her to have happienss and she needs to be more grateful. 

Asking: "How do I do that?" 

He says "You just need to say 'thank you'" 

She says "that's it?" 

And he says "yes, and then you need to say "more please"".

The story is a crazy little tale with several characters. I have to say I have been feeling a little okay a lot overwhelmed at work lately. 

I also have this idea to apply for graduate school which seems to add on to my already busy schedule. You can maybe sense that I"m not exactly very grateful right now. So from today forward I am going to try to remember- "Yes, Thank you.. MORE Please" It is true even looking back at college when I thought I had too much on my plate the opportunities that came along taught me more than if I had let them slip by. 

I hate to make an analogy but if my life is a crazy roller coaster ride I want to actually enjoy it. Instead of feeling like I am holding on for dear life!

thank you more please :)

RAGBRAI

RAGBRAI - Register’s Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa

Possibly the coolest and strangest vacation I have ever taken. It all started about a year ago when my co-workers found out that I like to ride my road bike. So February 2010 came around this year and I signed up for RAGBRAI. While I felt like I may have made a hug mistake. I went for it. We did several training rides. It also helped me train for my triathlons. 

The actual week was hotter than I don't know what. I road my first century (100 miles) in 107 degree heat!

My biggest regret is not eating more not so good for you food. 

Some of the highlights included fresh squeezed lemonaid, touring a farm, eating ice cream slow churned. I also saw the 6 year old Jake and Jake's Mom. They had signs on but he biked 57 miles in one day! It definitely showed me it doesn't matter who you are or what you do. Get out and ride your bike!!

 I hope I can do it again!

  Me on the first day

What every town looked like

Bike buses. There were several of these. Each one had their unique traits.

Olypmic Triathlon # 2

Perhaps I am a bit crazy but I signed up for the same triathlon I did last year again. This year, race day's weather was awesome. Compared to the sprint triathlon I did two weeks ago, the lake water was warm. My swim felt awesome. 

I ended up with a best time but I know my weakness is the run. I wonder how long it will take me as a non-runner to feel confident about the run. 

I have to say it is always great to go back close to San Luis Obispo. I miss it and it is probably one of my favorite places. The volunteers make this triathlon possible and a lot of them are Cal Poly students. Thanks again Cal Poly! I highly recommend this triathlon to any newbies to triathlons. It was my first triathlon and I'm hooked.

 I hope this summer I will find the time to do another Olympic distance triathlon. 

I find it is much easier to keep training than to stop and start all over.. Keep the progress going!

Good Books

Even though I am a college graduate, I am still learning that there is a ton I do not know. I am thrilled that I now have time to read for fun. I am also finding reading a lot more enjoyable than watching TV.  However, I am realizing with the ability to read anything. I need to be more selective on what I am picking off the shelf. There are a ton of good books out there.

I want to be reading the really good books. I also want to do a better job of keeping up with the news. In addition, it would be great if they challenged my thoughts on the world. 

I just finished Water for Elephants. I highly recommend it. I am looking forward to seeing the movie but I am afraid it will not be as good! 

I hope everyone finds time to read.

Just A Fan

Today I realized that I am mostly just a fan.

There is some statistic: 20% of people make everything the rest (80%) of the population enjoys. It is funny how as fans we are all entitled to our opinions but when it comes down to it 

we just watch/listen/observe. 

We never create.

I would argue it is so much easier to judge than to get judged. I was recently given the opportunity to tell and artist about their latest music. Thinking about that experience, I could barely tell them in the right terms why I liked one song better than another. This is just one example but it is rather ironic that most of us have very little musical knowledge/background but here we are with all the power to choose what song gets played on the radio. Which songs top the charts and which songs are left off.  It almost seems like the creators who are more crazy/wild to watch are really the ones who have figured out how to captivate our attention and make the money. 

I am just curious what would happen if we evaluate anything on it's actual talent/merit or if all of what we watch is based on shock/awe/wild factor.

Bottom line for the most part I am just another fan.

2011 Oscars

Well, I always try to watch the Oscars. I like the celebration associated with film. The fancy gowns and the acceptance speeches.  We all know who the critics picked. I am not going to bore you with how I feel about them. I am happy for Toy Story 3 and Alice in Wonderland. I feel both their Oscar wins were well deserved. I just want to take a moment to recognize some recent movies I have seen and enjoyed. In no particular order:

Love & Other Drugs - Yes there are several sex scene but it really is just a love story.

Morning Glory - Sometimes I feel a lot like Rachel McAdam's character.

No Strings Attached - It's a chick flick but it's good. It reminded me of 500 Days of Summer.
The Social Network - How many people are on Facebook now? Need I say more?

The Tourist - Clever. I want Angelina Jolie's wardrobe. If anyone has it, please send it to me.

RICE Thai Cuisine

First a thanks is do to my friend Brian. He pulled me out of my apartment for the night and we tried RICE Thai Cuisine. It was delicious. Unfortunately, I didn't take any pictures of the food. We had flavored tea, Pad Thai and spicy orange curry.  I am always debating whether Thai food or Indian food is better. I have to say this place is swaying my vote to Thai. The restaurant had neat sky lights painted blue and fans. Fans like the one below.

I think I would like to have at least a couple in a place of my own. One more thing I ate the leftovers. For me that is a pretty big deal. Sometimes I let leftovers go bad. I hope to visit RICE again soon. If you are in the area I will take you.

SLO weekend

Last weekend, I went back to San Luis Obispo for a mini reunion to see some of my friends from college.  We had an excellent time. Wined and dinned, or I should say 'champanged' ourselves at several places.  The Cliffs in Pismo Beach for a great sunset.  Novo Restaurant and Lounge on Higuera in SLO for a dinner on the patio. It has such a great vibe. Some of my best college memories are from that place. The back fence and tree are wrapped with white lights. Finally, Seaside Cafe & Bakery in Pismo Beach for brunch.  They have bomb pumpkin bread and huge omelettes.  

It was so good to see many of my college friends, again.  There is a quote somewhere the older you are the more you need the people who knew you when you were young. I completely agree. Reflecting on the weekend, it was a small fantasy. Same place as school except we have all slowly moved on towards what we might one day call our careers. 

Well the bottles minus the clear wine bottle and blue one are what remains from this happy weekend. The good news is they make good apartment decorations.

Snorkeling with a Sea Turtle

It was Sunday North Shore on Oahu, Hawaii. This spot called Shark's Cove. I captured this footage.  It doesn't do actually swimming with sea turtles justice but it's great to see the memory.

Published ?!?!

I wrote an article for someone else's blog discussing triathlon training. He decided to publish it. I should also mention if you are interested in surfing reviews check out his blog. (I like it, but I might be bias)  I hope you enjoy reading.

To the article (Triathlon 101)

I copy and pasted it below..

Triathlon 101 – Guest Post

July 28, 2010 by The Surfboard Man · Comments Off
Filed under: General 

What is a triathlon?
It is a distance event which consists of three legs- swim, bike, run.  The distances of each leg vary.  Typically, a sprint triathlon is 400 yd, (1/4 of a mile), 12 mile bike, and 5k (3.2 mile) run.
An Olympic distance triathlon is .93 mile swim, 24.5 mile bike and 10k (6.4 mile) run.
First you have to think about how far you think you can go then pick an event. For sprint be sure you can swim 1600, bike 24 miles, and run a 5k. For Olympic be sure you can swim close to two miles, bike 40 miles, and run at least 8 miles.
What are your goals?-
To finish, to have a personal best time on the swim, bike, or run? Personally, I have always been a swimmer. I always try to start the swim out on a great note. My secondary goal is to improve my run time. Running is my weakest leg.
To train for a triathlon I would suggest swimming three times a week, and the three other days running and biking.  One day a week after working out hard always give your body a rest. It is common mistake to over train but you will be able to train harder with the break.
The distance and time spent training should exceed the time you predict it will take you to race. I compare it to surfing. You do not expect become Laird Hamilton at Teahupoo, if you don’t know how to ride 4ft waves.

Essential Equipment:
All of these pieces should go to the transition area.  The transition area is where you as an athlete store your triathlon equipment. Only athletes are allowed in the area but make sure you keep track of your valuables. You will come back to this location to grab your bike and other equipment.
Photo ID
Race registration confirmation
USTA $10 one-day pass or your membership card
Know the triathlon’s rules
A tri-suit
Googles
Spare swim cap
Bike
Bike helmet with approved safety rating
Spare bike tube
Tube repair kit
Small bike pump that will fit on your bike frame
Broken-in pair of running shoes
Sunglasses- for the bike and run
Sunscreen
Food
Water
Recovery drink
Clean set of clothes
First-aid kit
Big towel
A hand towel
If the water is cold
A wet suit
Body-glide or Vaseline
NEVER use brand new equipment at a race – stick to what has worked for you during training. I have seen some pretty nasty blisters from new running shoes during a triathlon just as one example.

Detailed descriptions of equipment:
Tri-Suit – they are basically bike shorts, and a spandex top. If you want to you can wear a swim suit and put on bike shorts for the bike and a t-shirt for the run. If you buy a tri-sui TRY it on before you buy. You will be in this the entire race if it’s not comfortable it will make the race no fun.
Swim cap – In your race packet you should have the swim cap you are supposed to wear.
Bike helmet – It has to be CPCS approved. Replace a bike helmet at least every three years. If you don’t take good care of your helmet you will have to replace it more often.

During the race you HAVE to have your helmet buckled in the transition area, if not you will receive a time penalty.

A small bike tire air pump which fits on your bike frame. Unfortunately sometimes no matter what you do you will end up with a flat tire. Come prepared and know how to change your bike tire and regular bike maintenance.
Food-
I always tape some power gels to my bike handle bars because I never know when I’ll need it. Although solid food might sound like a good idea on race day with extra nerves eating gels or drinking liquids is a lot easier on your body.  Avoid white starchy food. Know what fuel works for your body; I compare it to putting the wrong kind of fuel in your car.
Water – figure out how much you need. Everyone tends to sweat a different amount.
Recovery drink – After about an hour of the race you need to start thinking about replenishing your fuel source. I have two bottles on my bike. One with water and one with recovery drink.
Clean set of clothes – Lots of people will just chill out in their spandex but I think it’s a lot more comfortable to change into lose fitting clothing.
Body-glide – looks like deodorant but it’s so that your wetsuit doesn’t leave your skin rubbed raw.  Apply it liberally to your neck, lower legs, lower arms, and your lats. From personal experience I received a very nasty looking wetsuit hicky on my neck because I didn’t apply enough Vaseline.  It can also help you get your wetsuit off.  You do not want to have to wear it the whole race.
Wish list items:
You do not have to have these but they are very nice to have.
A bib band clip – you will be given a number which you have to wear on the bike and run portions of the triathlon.  This bib band makes it easy to put on your number so you don’t run the risk of stabbing yourself with safety pins after finishing the swim.
A road bike with clip in shoes – they will help to increase your efficiency but they definitely are more challenging than a regular bike
A water proof watch – it is nice to know how long it has been during the bike and run. If you are aiming for a particular time then at least you will have a rough idea.
Now good luck training, and go out there and TRI!

About the Author:

h2o_gage was a competitive swimmer growing up with over 10 years of competitive swimming experience she decided to try out triathlons. She is currently training for her second Olympic distance triathlon. When she’s not training for a triathlon, she can usually be found near the ocean, hiking or spending time with her family & friends. By day she is a mechanical engineer.

Follow H20_Gage on Twitter

Triathlon #2

I finished my second triathlon.

 This one seems like less of an accomplishment than the last one. It was sprint distance -- 1/2 mile swim, 12 mile bike and 10K run. Swim and bike went well but my run and transitions were slow. It looks like I need to go train on the track more, even though I don't like it.

Before the swim

I saw dolphins before the swim which always makes me happy.

  On the bike

The results- 1:13:12 (hr:min:sec)

 I finished 3th in my age group!

I hope I get to do this triathlon, again. It is exciting that I got to do another triathlon close to where I live.  The best part was my parents came to watch. Now I have plenty of sudo embarrassing pictures of me racing.

Bottom line triathlons are addicting and it's great to hear your parents cheer you on.

Wineries South of San Luis Obispo

With the long weekend, I had the pleasure of going wine tasting. Our first stop was Edna Valley Vineyard. Their tasting room has an amazing view.

Currently, the yellow in the field is mustard which helps to fertilize the soil. My favorites were the 2008 Pinot Gris and 2007 Viongier.

Second stop was Chamisal Vineyards formally known as Domaine Alfred. Don't worry it's the same wine under a different label.

Their stainless steel chardonnay was pretty good. For those that don't know wine is aged in oak barrels but this chardonnay was aged in a stainless steel drum. I enjoyed their chardonnay with a hint of grapefruit. It was slightly bitter but still good. Beware their tasting portions are big.

Finally, the day came to a close with Tolosa Winery. It practices sustainable wine growing!

They have an outdoor seating area where you can watch the planes land in the San Luis Airport or just enjoy the afternoon sunshine. All of their wine is good. They have No Oak Chardonnay, same concept as stainless steel chardonnay, too.

Check out their cool 10th anniversary bottle!

Spotlight on Shin's Sushi & Fremont theater

Sandwiched next to the old Fremont theater with its signature neon colored sign, Shin's is a busy sushi bar. On the weekend it is populated by college students who noticeably come in waves every hour. I have always thought it would be a prime date location. Go to sushi and then swing next door for a movie at the theater. The Fremont is beautiful with it's Art deco painted walls and ceiling. I admit I have never tried this date idea but it has a great place for me to catch up with friends.

Best part about Shin's is their birthday celebration. An Asian happy birthday song is played for at least a full two minutes. The lights are dimmed and the disco ball spins. They have been known to take your picture with a Shin's frame. Old pictures still line the walls on the way to the bathroom. In summary, if you want to embarrass your friend for their birthday go to Shin's.

Personal favorite order- meso soup, spicy tuna roll, and a cucumber roll.
My friend loves their tea. Did I mention it is really affordable?

Their All In Combo. (Yum)

Wineries in Napa

After turning 21 I happened to be near Napa so my family and I ventured up there for a weekend. The pictures correspond to the winery listed below.

Mumm Napa - excellent champagne and the view is spectacular.

Groth - for red wine. It was so good.

Domaine Chandon - informative champagne tour and nice atmosphere. There are gorgeous old oak trees on the property.


Darioush - Beautiful architecture. It seems to be the place where the young and beautiful check each other out.


Sterling Vineyards- Ride a gondola and reach a tasting area inspired by villas in Greece. You can see most of the valley from here. Castello di Amorosa is across the way.


Castello di Amorosa - It is a castle! Do I need to say more? Tastings are in the cellar after wandering this authentically built castle. Apparently, they have fantastic Halloween parties.

Good Movies

I enjoy movies. Don't w0rry I am not like a critic. I won't make you read my opinions of every movie I have ever seen. I like all sorts of movies except for horror films.

The List:
If someone asked these are what I would recommend. I hope to make this list grow. If you have a great film recommendation, please share.


1 500 Days of Summer- from the movie- "This is not a love story."
2 Riding Giants-- big wave surfing documentary, if you like Hawaii watch it
3 U-571-- submarine action flick
4 Triples of Belleville-- the closest modern day animators have gotten to creating something as great as Walt Disney (yeah i like Disney)
5 Something's Got to Give-- romantic comedy about older adults
6 The Nancy Dairies--makes you appreciate your parents
7 Enchanted--new age fairy tale in New York
8 The Lord of the Rings-- based off the book, very fantasy (read the book first!)- It's epic!
9 Star Wars-- every movie it has almost every genera covered- sci fi, romance, action, etc
10 Hitch-- for relationship advice (Hitch really does exist. I saw him in person.)
11 The Bourne Identity Series-- great plot, great action