Rants and Raves #7

I feel like I have absolutely no time right now. What with planning meals to make sure we use up all our food, planning what to wear and what needs washing and ironing last minute so not to mess up the packing situation, last minute housework (who wants to come back from holiday to a messy house??) and my normal day job…I feel a bit time-limited. Though I will hastily qualify that statement with anyone who has children makes me look very pathetic. Kudos to all you parents.

So when better to have a good old rant and raves?

Rave: Generally I’m a very tidy person. Though Ben likes to push my boundaries on this one (apparently trousers can be allowed to drape on the banister if he’s going to wear them in the next ten years…that would be no, Benjamin). However I’ve let things slip in the fitness clothing drawer department. I do have a lot of fitness apparel (as I’m sure a lot of you do too) and it was getting to be a struggle to comfortable fit everything in…so, I’m embarrassed to admit, in the end it’s been a bit of a “shove it in” affair.

But enough was enough. I sorted through the drawer and made a big pile of clothes to donate to charity that I just don’t wear anymore since upgrading a few item which left me with enough space to make nice neat and organised folded piles within the drawer.

IMG_9003

Ahhh, so much better. And so much easier to access. My soul sleeps happily at night now.

Rant: I’m a dog person as you might have guessed, but I don’t hate cats or wish them ill. I just find certain ones around where I live annoying and very cunning. They leave little paw prints on my sunroof so I know they’re walking over my car at night. And this may be my imagination but I swear they goad and taunt Alfie.

Alfie, bless him, is not a particularly smart dog or very ferocious. He will give chase to a cat (and promptly yanks himself on his lead) but if the cat just sits there he sort of freaks out and doesn’t know what to do. I imagine in his head he’s giving the indifferent cat a menacing stare. Basically I think these cats are taking liberties. They sit close to our front door, they slink slowly past our living room windows…

IMG_9017 And they sit on our bins! I feel like they are being passive aggressive and are waging psychological warfare on us. OK maybe not, but seriously, cats please hang out elsewhere as dragging a frenzied Alfie around on his lead is fun for no one (except the cats perhaps).

Rave: This is hilarious and probably very true:

Female runnersI definitely imagine that I look better running than reality. Race photos are always quite a horrifying shock.

Rant: This is rather gross story so apologies in advance. I was walking Alfie at the weekend and I often wear my iGloves as then I can use my phone without getting cold hands (I normally listen to some music or a podcast). Anyway, Alfie did his business and I picked it up with a poo bag and as I tied it I noticed Alfie poo on my glove. Yuck. And then found the poo bag had a hole in it and was leaking – wonderful! Luckily there was a poo bin close so it wasn’t too bad in the end. Obviously my glove needed to be washed so I took it off and turned it inside out and when I got home it went in the wash with some other bits and bobs and then in the dryer later.

IMG_9030

And it shrunk!! It looks like a very small child’s glove now (I actually think it looks quite cute). How annoying though! It does kind of fit but it’s a lot more stretched. Hmph.

Rave: I know I keep saying this (sorry) but I’m loving going to the gym. I know that might sound incredibly sad but I’m really enjoying it. It might be because I do so many different things when I’m there that it’s never boring. I do a certain number of reps of something before moving on to something else. And I know this sounds weird but being in the gym at 5.30am makes me feel hardcore. There are a few other people there (probably less than 20? It’s quite a big gym) and I feel like we’re hardcore gym goers to be there so early. I also get the choice of any space, equipments and weights that I like. IMG_8992And getting there for 5.30am means I’m done by 6.30ish and as I walk out I can just see the Spin class starting and, I won’t lie, I do feel very relieved to not be doing it! Spin is a brilliant cardio workout and I do enjoy it (sort of) but I much prefer doing my own thing at the moment and I feel like my entire body is getting a good workout so it’s a better use of my time and effort to get stronger overall.

Rant: Those first few minutes at the start of your commute when the car is FREEZING and you’re desperately turning the heating up as far as it will go. At 5.20am in the morning it is possibly the worst 5 minutes of my life. Even my steering wheel is freezing! I tend to wear a hoodie and a coat and then leave the coat in the car and make a mad dash to the gym as I hate carrying excess of stuff to the gym but lately it’s just not possible.

IMG_9028 This was from this morning, not nearly as cold as yesterday but still not that warm!

Rave: Trying to make sure we don’t have to waste any food means a lot of careful planning. Happily this has meant more soup eating! I had half a butternut squash I wanted to use up quickly so chopped it up and popped it in my slow cooker with some chopped onion and vegetable stock. I left it to cook away for about six hours on low and then just whizzed it up with a hand blender. I added in a tablespoon or so of cream cheese as well to make it extra creamy and a tin of chickpeas to increase the protein.

Butternut squash creamy soup I got two large portions of soup out of this.

This is a similar story for sweet potato too, which I enjoyed a bit more as it had a deeper flavour.

Creamy sweet potato soup (Apologies for appalling photos)

And that’s my lot. I won’t be blogging in America (though I will be Tweeting – follow me HERE if you’re interested) so won’t be back blogging now until February. I’ll still try and keep reading blogs when I’m chilling by the pool after a hard day of roller coasters 😉

What are your rants and raves this week?

Are you a cat or a dog person?

Are you tidy and organised…and do you have a secret ‘Monica cupboard’ like my fitness drawer was to me?

20 Replies to “Rants and Raves #7”

  1. I just had to move all of my running stuff into a new dresser due to it not being organized enough! I don’t like messy stuff.
    I love dogs! Cats are annoying. Anything that someone lets piss in a box in their house is just weird. I mean cleaning up outside is enough for me, but in my house??? Nope! (no offense to any cat lovers…just my opinion!)
    Staci @ Hoosier Running Mom recently posted…Running, spin and a trash talking Garmin!My Profile

  2. Rant for this week: the weather. That is all.

    I have to say I’m a cat person 100%. Like you, I don’t wish other animals any ill (although sadly dogs seem to hate me, particularly when I’m running – I’m not sure what I ever did to them. I’ve concluded I must have been a cat in a past life :P), but I identify with cats so much. I find them inherently adorable and elegant in equal measure, and I love the way that they are somewhat devious, particularly when they decide to mess with humans’ minds. I feel as though they could survive without people (which I’m sure they could – if we died out they’d all go feral and hunt for themselves) and you really have to earn the affection and respect of a cat. They do like to manipulate dogs, but I like to think that’s because cats are on a higher spectrum of intelligence to any other species. When I’m out running cats always seem to follow me as well ~ last week I was waiting to cross the road and one just came up to me and rubbed against my legs…I wanted to pick him up and take him home with me!

    Have a fantastic holiday, and don’t forget to enjoy some extra sunshine just for me 😉
    Jess recently posted…Just One More MileMy Profile

    1. I completely understand what you mean and I do agree that cats are more intelligent than dogs. Dogs blindly give their devotion whereas cats you have to work for it. And yes, cats are far more elegant whereas dogs are a bit crazy and haphazard. I don’t think that Alfie would survive very long in the wild, bless him. He’s not the sharpest tool in the shed and I’m sure that’s true for most domesticated dogs (though perhaps the more ‘hunting’ style dogs would fare better). That being said, I still prefer dogs. Not all dogs though as some are scary or wild and crazy and badly controlled by their owner. I truly believe no dog is innately bad, it is the owner’s fault for not training them or looking after them properly).
      I will try and bottle some up for you!

  3. Ha! You would be shocked to see my workout clothes draw. Every now and then I make it all tidy and I vow to keep it like that, but it just doesn’t happen.

    I am a cat person (even as far to say a crazy cat lady) but I do love dogs and we want a pug. I just don’t think the cats will get on with it.
    Dannii @ Hungry Healthy Happy recently posted…Comment on Crushed Mustard Potatoes and Leeks Topped with Poached Eggs by DanniiMy Profile

  4. LOVE this, and I hear you! i feel like I don’t have enough time either and my life is gogogogogogo! I have not had enough time to do my usual blog reading, and I miss it, but other things have to take charge. I love that picture, SO true! Very impressive about getting up and going to the gym, I bet that feels good to get it done early….but the cold car, yep, not fun!
    Tina muir recently posted…Scallop & Crunchy Coleslaw Tacos with Homemade Spelt TortillasMy Profile

  5. Dan leaves the banister clear but plonks his suit jacket down on the bed every night and then whinges when Bella leaves her hairs all over it…he doesn’t learn!
    I pointed out to Dan this week that we need to take blankets out with us to the car each morning to place on the seats. His car has leather seats…WORST INVENTION EVER! Boiling hot and sticky all Summer and freezing in the Winter!
    Hope you guys have a fantastic holiday! Looking forward to reading all your recaps when you return. 🙂
    Mary recently posted…Working hard and determined to succeedMy Profile

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