• Books,  Fitness,  Knitting & Crafting,  TV

    Sunday Salon: World Cup and Chores

    June 29, 2014

    Sunday Salon

    Hello, all!

    Since last Salon, I haven’t had time to think about the blog very much. In fact, I didn’t even know the comments were broken and a visitor kindly contacted me about it. Thanks, Susan!

    Yesterday, I finally did write a couple of posts on some books I read in May. I have a couple more posts to write then I’ll have caught up for those posts. I am still not reading though. I’ve been too busy.

    I’m working at home these days which is not something I have done in awhile. I made progress this week, and did some cleaning and laundry as well. In fact, I still have to clean some more.

    Knitting: Haven’t done any in months. I have to be careful otherwise my muscle memory will forget like it did five years ago. I’ll have to make time for it.

    Fitness: Started running again on Thursday and I ran this morning. Just 4km each time, and today was better. I’ve got a 5km race in September, but I find running in summer difficult because of the heat. Hopefully I can get back to doing a regular 6km on weekends.

    TV: Finished the new season of “Orange is the New Black”. I enjoyed it, possibly more than season one.

    Later today, more chores, maybe some gelato, but now, finish the Netherlands vs Mexico World Cup game. I would have posted this post much earlier if I hadn’t been watching. I’ve got a soft spot for the Dutch!

    Have a great week!

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  • Books,  Fitness,  Movies

    Sunday Salon – Veronica Mars

    March 30, 2014

    Sunday Salon

    Hello everyone! It has been awhile since I did a Salon post or even blog. I have been very busy this month: ran my 10km, celebrated a birthday, worked a lot, socialized, and worked out.

    The last week was rough as I injured myself so am resting my leg and a bunch of other silly annoying things happened. I’m glad it was done with. Yesterday, I ended it by watching the new Veronica Mars movie. I really enjoyed it and

    Today, I went to hot yoga and rewatched the movie and read some fanfiction. I couldn’t resist. I remember watching the show for the first time eight years. It reminded me how addictive I found it. I also downloaded the Veronica Mars: The Thousand Dollar Tan Line ebook and audiobook. I’m listening to it now. I’ll put up a review of the book when I’m done. I’ll probably devour the ebook at some point.

    I have not been reading very much this month either. I’ve been too busy doing the aforementioned activities. I’ve lost some reading mojo as well. I really need to start my Classics Spin novel: Kim by Rudyard Kipling. Will tonight be the evening?

    Hopefully I can read and blog more in April. I know I won’t be blogging in May because I will be in China. I will not be taking my laptop. I’ve loaded my Kindle though and bought a new camera lens.

    Now back to some books. Have a great end of March!

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  • Books,  Fitness,  TV

    Sunday Salon: January Catch-up

    January 19, 2014

    Sunday Salon

    Hello, everyone! It’s been a busy time for me, both with work and personally. I have been recovering from this cough that I’ve had for a month. It was very cold earlier in the month, but we had a milder week. Still, I’ve felt a touch of the January blues with my work load and personal responsibilities.

    Today, I am going to read John Green’s The Fault in Our Stars.

    Yesterday, I went on my first run in about 5-6 weeks. It felt good, but the last 1km of the 6km was a bit tiring! I hope to get back to shape for my first 10km race in two months time. I started swimming lessons which were really difficult for me. I didn’t go this week, but I really hope I get proficient soon as I want to become at least decent at it.

    In book news, I read Georgette Heyer’s The Talisman Ring over a week ago. It was average and had some nice Heyer moments, but nothing worth a blog post.

    This week, I watched Netflix’s Norwegian-American comedy show “Lilyhammer” based on a friend’s recommendation. It is quite funny and I enjoy watching a foreign show with a touch of American influence. Sometimes, it was a bit too violent and dark more than funny, but still entertaining.

    How is your January shaping up?

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  • Books,  Fitness,  Food

    Here comes summer

    April 30, 2007

    A fairly productive day for me as I went to the hygienist for a cleaning (must return next week for dental checkup though). I spent a lot of time reading The Omnivore’s Dilemma; it’s good, and I’m almost done. What really made my day was that I actually ran today in the late afternoon. I like running in the early mornings, but I have yet to get up early enough for it. It was a good run though since it was windy which means I worked a little harder due to resistance, and cooling. It makes me want to run again tomorrow, but that’s too soon. So I’ll do pilates as I did that today too. Hopefully, I can really kick this fitness program.

    I finally took out a library copy of Dorie Greenspan’s Baking: From my home to Yours. It’s beautiful. I want to have a four seasons fling with it and all the recipes. Not only does it have a plethora of essential and tasty looking recipes, but there are loads of tips about baking in general and a nice glossry at the back. It’s definitely going to the top of my big cookbook wishlist. Going with it is is Amy Sedaris’s I like you: Hospitality under the influence. Hilarious, but I haven’t looked through it enough yet.

    Back to some reading.

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  • Fitness

    Spring/Summer Workout Plan

    April 7, 2007

    Just finished an hour of pilates and yoga. Legs feel like jelly since it’s been a few weeks. Time for the fitness post though.

    Goals: Overall fitness/in shapeness, weight loss, body toning, de-stressing, and through cardio, lower heart rate. I have a pretty fast heart rate due to genetics; I can lower, it’ll probably require a lot of it and a long time.

    Stretching (daily): Yoga, Pilates
    Strength (daily): Pilates
    Cardio (every other day): Running, Pilates, and Dance

    Yoga: I love yoga, and this was my first yoga DVD. I’ve been using this for years on and off, but my hamstrings are still quite tight. I use to do the AM workout everyday, but now, I find it a tad too easy and ineffectual for me. I don’t enjoy the PM workout either. The version of this DVD I have includes a Stress Relief workout with Patricia Deason which is the one I use most often now. This DVD does not cut it anymore, and I wouldn’t really like a new one.

    Pilates: I just got this a couple months ago, and I love it. It’s five ten minute workouts (abs, buns/tighs, cardo, flexibility, and arms) that you can mix and match. I’ve never done pilates before this, so it’s always tough to get started, but you really feel it. The only one I haven’t tried is the one for arms because I haven’t bought weights yet, and my arms don’t need the workout as my lower body does. I usually do this for 3 sets (30 min), and relax with yoga afterwards. I try to do this everyday.

    Running: I did it last summer: The Couch to 5K Running Plan. Sadly, I stopped running in September due to knee problems (hopefully won’t happen again because I bought proper shoes), and I hate going to the gym. I did get to the 3x a week for 30 minute target. The plan gave no trouble as I never got cramps, but I got overheated running in the summer mornings. I’m trying to do it either really early (6AM) or later in the afternoon. I’m addicted to the runner’s high, and when I get started again, I’ll write a whole post on it. My goals are to run every other day for 45 minutes or everyday for 30min in the end.

    Dance: This is just me moving around to the dance playlist on iTunes so my heart rate is raised for at least 30 mins.

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