Balancing act
I decided that it was time to get off my rear end and do some serious exercise this morning. I had purchased a three wheeler bike a while ago and it has sat idle while my body recovered from illness and surgery. But today was the day. And to be truthful, I had planned on riding it to town and back. But at about three am this morning it flashed into my mind that I should perhaps try it out in a less public forum. So I mounted the seat, which as all bike seats go, is roomy, but still horribly uncomfortable. I seriously need a tractor seat to make it more amenable to my proportions. Anyhow, off I rode across my front yard. Through a hoard of mushrooms. And almost mowing down the family cat. Now my front yard is not large. It can fit three cars parked snugly next to each other. And do you know what? One trip around the yard and I fell off and wobbled and wobbled some more for all of ten minutes flat. Yes folks, this is a three wheeler bike much like two year old children ride, not a two wheeled one or, Heaven forbid, a unicycle. No this has three sturdy wheels all nicely balanced and I still managed to fall off. But I am not going to allow this challenge to get the better of me. No, tomorrow morning I will try again. And the day after that and maybe even the day after that until I can ride without wobbling and even go out on the roads around town. I could ride to the supermarket and get my bag of groceries or down to the library. Oh wait, the library is closed. So is the swimming pool and even the museum. So really, my only outing would be to the shops. Actually this whole lock down thing might be over before I get the hang of riding. I am sure I have told you that my great grandpa Alf, rode a Penny farthing in races in England circa 1880 or 1890's. Obviously those riding genes have not been passed down to me. I did see that programme about keeping fit and someone thought that belly dancing might be for me. Yes, that someone was me, because quite frankly it is just me at home with the cats. And their opinion doesn't matter. I have sourced a nice belly dancing class online and will have my first attempt today. Or should I start with the couch potato special? Sit and be fit? I will see how the belly dancing goes before I decide. And I do have a belly and I do love to dance, so I should be all set.
Talking about Alf, I have been in contact with his great granddaughter, Helen, What does that make her? My second cousin? Whatever. Anyhow I promised her I would send her the photo I have of Alf and his Penny farthing bike. But do you think I could find it? I emptied out boxes of photos and looked through albums to no avail. I found hidden treasures but no Grandpa Alf. I even contacted another 2nd cousin to ask if he had a copy. But no reply was forthcoming. On my dining room walls is my family portrait gallery. There are photos of my parents, my in-laws and my siblings, there are photos of my children and grandchildren where I can see them every day. Well as I was making a video about how to write your memoirs, (which is another subject entirely) I had to find photos to fill up the time as I did a voice over thing; and you guessed it, there was Alf staring down at me all that time from above the hall doorway. Yup, hidden in full sight. And not even in a spot which I don't look at every day, no, it was literally opposite where I sit at my computer. I must have looked straight at him as I wondered where his photo could be. Talk about if you want something lost, put it in full view.
It is the time of the great fruit harvest at my home. The peaches and pears did not do well and neither did the mandarins, but the guavas are tasting great and the feijoa trees are dripping with fruit. Usually I would take bags of fruit around to friends and family, but this year various people have told me that I am not allowed to share the bounty in case I infect others. (No, I am not sick with the virus) There is only so much plum sauce you can make. But onward and upwards I shall go. I will bottle the fruit and make feijoa jelly and bottle some more. Thank goodness I am a bottle hoarder. Although I might run out of them because before my husband got sick he did a clean out of my bottle hoard and took it down to the dumps to the recycle centre. Oh how I yearn for my bottle hoard this harvest season. No matter. Since Barry died in June last year, I have re-started my bottle fetish and have a decent amount in the cupboards. Just maybe not decent enough though? When I go shopping for groceries, I will sometimes buy a bottle of pasta sauce that I know I might never eat, just because the bottle looks pretty. And do you know what? I have a fridge full of expired jams and sauces that I can throw out and then re-purpose the bottles for my own ends. Where there is a will there is a way.
During this time of worldwide stress, I have looked longingly at all those comfort foods that are bad for my diabetes. There have been times when the Liquorice Allsorts packet on the supermarket shelf has called my name. And they don't make them sugar free for some reason. I have found recipes that might feed the sugar fiend in me and made them. But is it too much of a good thing bad? I have eaten cocoa flavoured chia seeds and coconut cream till it has come out my ears. I have made pizza with a cauliflower base and another one made with almond flour when I couldn't stomach anymore cauliflower anything. A friend once advised me that if I wanted to lose weight, and I do, that my food should be bland and tasteless. She said that dieting was supposed to be a sacrifice of all the nice things in life. Well I disagree. I love some of my healthy foods and they are tasty. But that chocolate eclair is not on my allowed list of foods. I am not permitted to eat salads because of my intestinal hernia mesh thing, so I make a smoothy of lettuce and celery every day. Which I usually enjoy, but oh my goodness me, I have reached the point of no return and if I don't get something decadent to eat soon, I am going to go crazy. It is only a few days to Easter and those hot cross buns and chocolate cream eggs are sending out their siren song. Eat me, eat me; they are calling. I make a mean sugar free caramel slice and even a coconut ice that is yummy in the extreme. But no recipe for cream eggs, not even made with cauliflower or almonds. Should I succumb and then repent later? But no, I pay a hefty price if I go off script. You really do not want to know what my body does to me if I eat sugars. Apart from the sugar spike, there are other side effects that we will not discuss due to my hating to think of them. And realistically, the short time that I might enjoy that hot cross bun, is not worth the pain later. But does my brain care? No. In fact the supermarket hot cross buns are actually bland and tasteless without enough fruit or flavouring to suit me. I remember the ones my Gran made and my mouth drools and then I am reaching for the jumbo sized bag of buns before I know it. Pull yourself together woman. Slap my face and call me an idiot. I am on the hunt for a keto friendly hot cross bun recipe and maybe I should make my own cream eggs with my sugar free caramel and 90% cocoa chocolate? Yup. That sounds like a good plan. Easter is saved. Thank goodness I am still stronger than my brain and my cravings.
Have you given up anything for Lent this year? Well apart from the freedom to go out and about? It seems like a waste of time to give up things when the most important stuff in life is on hold anyway. I did start by doing the 'give stuff away' every day for Lent. But as the time has gone on, my focus has changed and I have been surviving from day to day. I might give away all my home bottled fruit when this crisis is over, but seriously folks, this year has been so strange that I cannot think straight. I hope you are doing fine in your bubbles. Stay safe and stay healthy if you can.
Recipe for Sugar free Coconut ice: 3 cups dessicated coconut, 1 1/4 cups coconut oil, 1 teaspoon vanilla essence and 1 cup of sugar free maple syrup. Mix and chill.
Recipe for Sugar free caramel: 50 grams of butter in a heavy bottomed pot, heat and brown. 70 grams of cream or coconut cream, 2 tablespoons of sugar free nut butter (I have used peanut butter for mine) 2 tablespoons of stevia/monk fruit powder and pinch of salt. Cook together with butter until thickened. About 5 to 10 minutes. I stir often to stop
sticking.
