Rants, Recipes, and Running

Tucson has been trying to increase the Farmers' Markets scene. And this is something I support 100%! We have great farmers doing great things, and this should be celebrated. I think my appreciation is heightened, as I have had many-a-failures on "Tucson Gardens". Stay tuned, however. I have been picking brains of every single gardener I meet, and I am heart-set on growing a tomato garden this year! Seed planting begins in January! ( indoors ) Ryan and I have a great love for food, and good food. So after church on Sunday, we decided to check out a festival in town that celebrates local farmers, food, and entertainers: Viva la Local Tucson. We had so much fun, and will definitely start attending this bi-annual festival!! The 1st section of the festival is the farmers market portion. This had local farmers/vendors selling their produce, olive oil, teas, ranchers selling their meat, local bee-growers with their honey, tamales, and the list goes on. We go to the loc...

Finally, the temperatures in the Sonoran Desert have dropped below 90 degrees Fahrenheit! Excuse me while I break into a fit of dance and attempts at cartwheels. (I never figured out how to do a cartwheel) My girlfriends Michelle, Heather, and I decided to co-host a fall-themed party. We co-hosted the "White Party" right before Labor day, and loved entertaining together so much - that we decided to do it again. All 3 of us love parties, love cooking, and we just work together so well. Menu theme: Chili bar. Heather made a traditional chili with ground beef and beans. Michelle made a chili with beef tenderloin . And Ryan and I made a Green Pork Chili with tomatillo and roasted chiles. (I have to give Ryan credit since we came up with the recipe together) We had a bar of various "chili toppings" (chives, black olives, cheese, tomatoes) For the desert we had s'mores. There was a bon fire, and Michelle made miniature mason jars filled with s'more f...

My 3rd Ragnar is in the books! The thought of these 24 hour races is rather daunting. But the more you do, it becomes addicting. This was my 1st "trail" Ragnar. For a refresher: Ragnar is a company that sponsors 24+ hour relay races. It's a company that makes tons of money. Because it attracts insane people from all over the country to pay hundreds of dollars to run with their friends for 24 hours on zero sleep. All for a medal, tshirt, and car decal. But great memories are always included! I've done the Ragnar del Sol (Wickenburg to Phoenix), Napa (San Francisco to Calistoga), and now McDowell Mountain trail. I must say this trail Ragnar was my favorite. Here is my recap: Trail Ragnar is made up of a team of 8 instead of 12 runners (like on the road). It is also 120-160 miles instead of 200. Instead of going from Point A to Point B, you stay in one area and run 3 different trail loops . This race had 3 loops: 3.1 miler, 8 miler, and 4 miler . Every r...