More food stuff, but this is important

Asking for your participation. This is what the petition below is about:
Beef slaughterers on the industrial scale Beef producers, in an effort to save money and find a way to use all of the cow and not waste any deliciousness, have been grinding up all the yummy meat left over after butchering, dousing it in ammonia to sterilize it, freezing and packaging it, and then adding it to a wonderful burger you can purchase in such fine dining establishments as McDonalds, Taco Bell, etc. Sounds disgusting to you, I hope. So disgusting, in fact, that the said dining establishments stopped using it in their so called burgers after the public outcry.

Oh, did I mention that USDA approved this "pink slime", as it's called, as safe? Of course, what could be harmful about ammonia-treated cow entrails? Yum.

Now, that the major fast food corps are not using it, what would you think is the best possible placement for the horrible ammonia-treated pseudomeat? 

The "pink slime" is coming to a school cafeteria near you!!! Yes, US school lunch programs just bought this filler to feed our children at schools across the country.

I object. So do the other 200 K plus people, who CARE about what their children are given to eat and who are asking USDA Secretary to stop feeding "pink slime" to our children. Please, sign the petition.  

zaiki and co.: Running and aging, or don't shoot the old(er) hors...

zaiki and co.: Running and aging, or don't shoot the old(er) hors...: Spring is in the air. Kinda. And it could only mean one thing - let the season of races begin. This past weekend I participated in the obl...

Running and aging, or don't shoot the old(er) horse

Spring is in the air. Kinda. And it could only mean one thing - let the season of races begin.

This past weekend I participated in the obligatory, hilly, and vomit-inducing St. Patty's Day 5K. Obligatory - because my friends and I run it every year and I feel guilty if I don't sign up (I missed last one due to post-surgery recovery), hilly - there is a big freaking hill smack middle of it to squash any hopes of PR for me, and vomit-inducing - well, it's because I run it much faster than my normal pace and inevitably end up dry heaving after.

This year, the run went pretty painfully - that hill nearly killed me and the muscles in my legs are still complaining pretty loudly two days later (I think going line-dancing that night didn't particularly help matters). The race was PACKED. I don't remember it being that crowded. 1358 people!! Wow. The course is really not designed for this number and the beginning was a huge clusterfuck (yes, it's my blog and I can curse if I choose to!): the road was so packed you couldn't even pass people, let along get up to speed quickly. Add wind and cold weather to that, and I was fucked. The crowd dispersed eventually and I was able to fall into my stride without risking tripping on someone and going ass over teakettle.

Every time I race, the first 5 minutes are spent silently asking myself "why?", as my body groans and moans. Once I get going it's all good, but the starting point is usually rough. This year was not an exception, and my shin was hurting pretty bad too. I didn't have as much momentum as I hoped for, but I beat my first post-baby 5K time by about a minute. So we are improving, but  in 2008, I ran the same race and finished with 7.5 minute mile pace. Four years added about 40 seconds to that.

This year's ego boost was me  beating a 13-year old boy to the finish line. Yes, yes, I did. And it made me happy. Because, you know, nothing says "I'm soo-o cool" more than passing teenage boys in a family-friendly race...Hey, at least I didn't elbow him.

As I get older, I'm noticing a definite shift toward slower pace, but my endurance is much-much higher than 4 years ago. 5Ks are the domain of younger people, in my opinion. I'll stick to 10Ks and half-marathons. This year, my goal is to finish 13.1 miles in May under 2 hours. Last year I finished in 2 hours 2 minutes, so I think shaving off about 2 minutes off of my time is doable. :)

The day was finished by watching a parade, cooking and then going out zaiki-free to line dance to Colorado Cafe, where I indulged myself by drinking club soda with lime and imagining I was a cowboy while trying not to trip on my own feet. Yee-ha. There's another sign of aging: I did not ride the mechanical bull at the joint unlike 4 years ago, when I'd be first in line. :)

zaiki and co.: Where is my rainbow flag?

zaiki and co.: Where is my rainbow flag?: As predicted here , Christie vetoed the bill . Disgusted but not surprised and wondering (yet again) how that man won the election. Was it h...

Where is my rainbow flag?

As predicted here, Christie vetoed the bill. Disgusted but not surprised and wondering (yet again) how that man won the election. Was it his finesse and charm? Was it his respect for his opponents? Or maybe the eloquent manner in which he expresses himself? Or maybe respect for the fallen soldiers? *Insert sarcasm anywhere* Bleh.

zaiki and co.: Daddy's Love and Mean Puppies

zaiki and co.: Daddy's Love and Mean Puppies: My girls have the most wonderful Papa ever. Papa who paints smiley faces on their bellies, shows them how to throw rocks in the river, reads...

Daddy's Love and Mean Puppies

My girls have the most wonderful Papa ever. Papa who paints smiley faces on their bellies, shows them how to throw rocks in the river, reads stories and sings songs and makes sure soap doesn't get in their eyes when he washes their hair. Papa whose chest is so comfortable to sleep on during the lazy-tired Saturday afternoon, and whose furry arms are just perfect for cheek rubbing, and who tells them it's ok to be mad at the whole entire world while he rocks them in his arms.

He really goes out of his way for them. One morning, Maya needed to eat a prune (btw, highly recommend for toddler poop issues) but it was too cold. So Papa stuck it in the microwave (which got a raised eyebrow from me). Then he determined it was too hot so he went outside (at 7 am!!) and started to wave it up and down to cool it off. Now that's love. And, I found out, he does the same thing with zaiki's pickles. Yes,yes, they like to have their pickles slightly warm. His objective, as explained to my, by that point, two raised eyebrows, is simple: to get them to eat the stuff that's good for them by whatever means necessary. I wish I had that kind of dad. :)

But don't feel bad for me - I get quiet a share of zaiki-love when they need comfort. We were walking in a park on a beautiful Monday afternoon to see a local waterfall so we could squeal and throw rocks in the water narrowly missing each other's noggins.

Nice weather = dog walkers. Lots of them. Zaiki like dogs, most dogs are nice, docile creatures who patiently wait while zaiki pet their fur. But no matter how nice the owner thinks their dog is, they are animals. With teeth. After saying hi to a particularly nice Peruvian Mastif, who could probably swallow them whole if he wanted to but licked their faces silly instead, we skippity-hopped down the path, and saw a man walking his little, fluffy and innocent-looking Corgi. The man just started  talking about how gentle his dog is, blah blah, when the "gentle" thing snarled and bit Sonya on the arm. Actually dropped her onto the ground. Thank God for the down jacket. It tore the jacket and got Sonya muddy. No blood, no bruises. And I got to carry screaming Sonya for about half a mile. She wanted Mama and the comfort that Mama provides. It was sweet. No more strange dog petting though.

And the week got finished with Sonya (the kid is a walking accident, I swear!) falling down face first onto a concrete patio from a slide. I'm not even counting bruises, nicks and cuts on their legs. Bring on the warm weather - can't wait to see what kinds of accidents we get to have this year.