Pho Awesome

I finally made my own pho last Friday and.....it was delicious! Tasted just like what I've had out! I added lots of veggies, kale, and all the toppings and it was really awesome! There were a lot of strange ingredients like diakon, star anise, and fish sauce, but it all came together deliciously. It is a lot of work though. And I still haven't figured out if it's more cost effective to make it at home (by the time you drive to the specialty stores to get what you need, the noodles, and add up the cost of fresh produce for topping, and the plum sauce and siracha...) or to just order it out! Either way, it will  be fun to make once in a while for a big dinner or something.

Dammit Run!

I did another race last weekend! It was the toughest one yet. It was the 5 mile Dammit Run in town.The race went on the trail up the dam, then up again onto St. Josephs Hill. It was really difficult because it's the first race I've tried to run with an elevation gain, and it was REALLY hard!   It's Tuesday and my calves and ankles are still sore! Both the up and down were hard on my legs, and the trail was also really dusty from all the other (faster) runners in front of me. But I managed to finish in 51:30, and I didn't fall down the hill, so over all it was a good experience. That being said, I don't think I'll do this one again.
I have two more races planned for this season, and then I'm done until next spring. It's been a pretty successful running year for me. So much fun!

Me and my cheering committee!

Getting in "the zone".

Ready to get started!

The climb up the dam.

The climb up St. Josephs Hill.

Almost there!

I'm a finisher! I'm a finisher!!!

Snack time.

Super thirsty!

My race number.

I'm Pho Happy!

I have developed an unexplainable and insatiable addiction to Pho. I crave it daily, and feel desperate to eat it at least three times a week. And when I do have it, I feel so happy! I don't believe this is normal, but I am at a loss to stop it. What's happening to me?!?!

Bear! ... Humans!

When I was in northern California we saw a reasonable amount of wildlife. Hawks, and owl, blue jays, squirrels, deer, a variety of insects, and one freaked out bear. We were actually in the car riding down the road from camp to "town, when it came tearing across the road in a panic, kicking up a huge cloud of dust. Were like "Bear!" and I'm guessing by her pace the bear was thinking "Humans!" and raced for the hills and off into the woods on the other side. We were all so surprised that it was practically gone before I even thought to reach for my phone to snap a photo. I got two. They are kind of blurry and the bear was far away, but I think you can at least tell it was a bear, and not a bunny or a bigfoot. I had no idea they could run that fast. It was pretty amazing to watch.

Seiad Valley, CA

I'd considered calling Seiad Valley a "one horse town" since the only thing marking it's place on the earth is rustic country grocery store, post office, and attached cafe that closes at 4:00. But it turns out there are about 12 horses that live there (just across the street) that I ran into a couple days later at our camp, and so I'm left wondering how to describe it. It was our closest link to civilization, and the store had everything a person could need. From socks to baked beans to laundry detergent it was all there, but without ANY variety, which left you feeling strangely at peace, not having to compare prices or ingredients, or any of the other things we do in regular stores.
Anyway, here are a couple photos from around "town". Enjoy!

Downtown Seiad Valley

Fine dining options

Mulder and Scully watching you pee.

A real live payphone!

Post office

Northbound I-5

Mt. Shasta

Dragon sculpture in field

I was drawn to this sign...

Mt. Shasta again.

Beautiful Bugs!

I thought I'd post a couple photos I took while I was on my camping trip in Northern California. There were a LOT of bees, and yellow jackets up there, but there were also some really beautiful "bugs". It truly is amazing how many weird and beautiful things you can find when you just take a second to look.