My thoughts on Paula Deen

A lot of people have had a lot to say about Paula Deen recently.

They have said a lot of not very nice things about her and the business she has built. I'm sure you've read or heard many of them, so there's really no need for me to go into any detail.

I'm not a fan of that. I understand why people would think it is ridiculous, the woman has an empire founded solely on sugar and butter (mmmmm.....butter......). And it is a very very delicious empire, if I do say so. Thus, a lot of people think she deserves what she 'got'.

I'll let you in on a little secret, I'm not one of them.

Don't get me wrong, those fabulous recipes of hers are in no way healthy, albeit delicious, and no woman in a kitchen cooking all that amazingness could resist tasting it all these years. So, yes, the doctor in me recognizes that she got herself into this mess.

But, Paula Deen has never told anyone to use her recipes on a daily basis. If anything, she promotes moderation, which is really the only way to live. And she has openly recognized that she has not lived the best lifestyle possible and attributes her Diabetes to exactly that.

Also, Paula Deen was diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes at age 60. I couldn't tell you how many patients I have diagnosed with the same disease at significantly younger ages! Most of them before the age of 40. And a large portion of people over the age of 60 who don't have a cooking dynasty suffer from Diabetes, so what's the big deal about her having it? She's not alone and she is definitely not the minority. Come on, Venus Williams has Sjogren's Syndrome, which is very rare.

I think the thing that really peeves me about this is Anthony Bourdain's commentary on the subject. He called Paula Deen "the most dangerous woman in America" because of her recipes and her lifestyle. As if he's one to talk. Have you ever watched his show? Yes, his food choices are healthier, but he drinks like a fish!

I digress.

I really like Paula Deen. From what I know of her, she's made a lot of good out of a poor deal of cards. And she has such a positive and enjoyable outlook on life! One of my favorite quotes from her was when she was on Oprah:

O: What do you say to your health conscious fans?

PD: AHAHAHAHA! I'm not a doctor!

Anywho, I think we should all lay off "The Lady" and give her some mad props for the delicious recipes that make our mouths water and remind our current pant size that this is only temporary. On that note, here is my favorite Paula Deen recipe!

Sweet Potato Bread Pudding

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Generously butter a 13 by 9-inch baking dish.

In a medium saucepan, combine 2 cups milk, 1/2 cup white sugar, 1/2 cup brown sugar, 1 1/2 cups sweet potato puree, 2 tsp vanilla, 1/2 tsp cinnamon, and 1/4 tsp nutmeg. Cook over medium-high heat, just until the mixture begins to boil. Remove from the heat and set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk 6 egg yolks until smooth and combined. Using a ladle, pour 1/2 cup of the hot milk mixture in a slow, steady stream into the yolks, whisking constantly. Add another 1/2 cup of the hot milk mixture and whisk to combine. Pour the egg mixture into the milk mixture. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring constantly, until it’s thick enough to coat the back of a wooden spoon, about 3 to 5 minutes. Strain the custard and reserve.

Cover the bottom of the baking dish with 1 layer of bread slices. Pour about 1/4 of the custard mixture over the bread. Repeat with remaining bread (total of 2 loaves) and custard, ending with custard. Cover and refrigerate for 8 hours or overnight.

Sprinkle the bread pudding with the pecan crumble (below). Bake until the crumble mixture is golden and the custard is bubbly, about 45 minutes. Serve warm.

Pecan Crumble:

In a medium bowl, combine 1 cup flour, 1 cup brown sugar, 1 stick butter, 1/2 cup oats, 1/2 cup chopped pecans, and mix with a hand mixer on low speed, until well combined.

How to Pinterest?

My current obsession : Pinterest.

Where have you been all my life?????

I don't know what my life was without you! I was so lost! There was no organization! There was no way to keep track of all those fun things I like without taking up valuable space on my hard drive!

It has become my life. I have no time for anything else!

If you have not signed up for Pinterest and you have other things to do during your day, please do not do it! Stay far far far away! Please, for the love of your family, your budget, your waistline, RUN AWAY!!!

Are you still there?

Have I lost you to Pinterest yet?

Hello?

Well, for those of you who are new to Pinterest or have absolutely no idea of what I'm talking about, below are some tips and tidbits about Pinterest that might help you figure the crazy thing out.

• Pinterest is an online pin board. This means, when you find things you like online (a blog, a recipe, a hilarious pic) you can save it on your Pinterest board.
• You have several pin boards on Pinterest. You can label them to keep track of your pins. I have boards for recipes, pics, crafts, shoes, you know, the usual.
• When I want to go back to something I've pinned (let's say a recipe), I just go to my boards, select the recipe board, it brings up all my recipe pins. Then I click on the one I wanted and the link connects me to the original recipe online.
• You don't have to just 'pin' things that other people have already pinned
• I often find a lot of things online that I 'pin' to Pinterest.
• I also have pinned a lot of things other people have already pinned.
• There's a lot of pinning going on....
• You can also "like" things. This is kind of similar to a Facebook "like"
• This is not really a social site.
• Note: if you 'pin' something, people are likely to also 'pin' it, and Pinterest will send you an e-mail notifying you of the "re-pin". If you 'pin' something totally awesome, say a Lego Storm Trooper baking muffins, it might get 're-pinned' several times.
• I get an unnatural satisfaction from people "re-pinning" something I've pinned.
• In fact, I find so much fun in it that I purposely spend hours and hours of my day searching the internet for awesomeness just so I can 'pin' it.
• I need help.
• I need an intervention.
• I should be medicated......

Enough about me. Moving on.

Sometimes I actually make the things I pin on Pinterest.

Currently, I'm knitting a cabled cowl. Here's my progress thus far:

I also made this cute baby hat:

I made these leggings from an old sweater:

And this skirt from another old sweater:

These Butterbeer Cupcakes were AMAZING!!! Make them for any party you're going to and you'll be the belle of the ball. Don't take the leftovers home with you. That would be waistline suicide!

Melted Snowman cookies Chocolate Chip Grinch Cookies

Cute Star Ornament

"Drink Break" aprons for my siblings. It's a family joke thing.

A pretty T-shirt scarf/necklace

These AWESOME fleece headbands!

In other news, have you heard of The Berry? I spend much of my day here and find a significant amount of my 'pins' here. Yep, and now you're never coming back because you'll be wasting all your time on The Berry and Pinterest.

Say goodbye to your families. And your books. And your wallet because you'll be spending so much money at the store...

My Favorite Building in Detroit

I have only lived in Detroit for a year and a half, but I've made my way around the city.

I have spent ample time downtown doing some work with my church. I love the buildings down there! There's so much history, and the architecture is superb!

I have driven around the historic neighborhoods and seen all the epic houses from the heyday of Henry Ford and his contemporaries. Did you know there's a Frank Lloyd Wright house in Detroit? It's made 100% from glass and cement. It's beautiful!

But none compare to the Michigan Central Station.

It's just stunning!

As you drive north into the city of Detroit, it is one of the first buildings you see. It is huge and definitely makes an impression.

Back in the day, this building was state of the art!

It was designed by the Warren & Wetmore and Reed & Stem firms who also designed New York City's Grand Central Terminal. It cost $15 million to build!

The last train left the station on January 6, 1988, and the station was permanently closed.

Now it sits in ruin.

It is used from time to time for movies, music videos, and tv shows.

Some of these pictures make me cry. I imagine all the beauty this building used to behold. And seeing the way it is being treated now/has been treated is so sad.

Although, I have to admit, some of the graffiti is pretty interesting.

It adds a sort of "Detroit Charm"....

And this last pic is just awesome!

If you want to learn more, go to:

http://www.marchandmeffre.com/detroit/index.html or http://www.forgottendetroit.com/mcs/index.html

"Ruins are the visible symbols and landmarks of our societies and their changes ... the volatile result of the change of eras and the fall of empires. This fragility leads us to watch them one very last time: to be dismayed, or to admire, it makes us wonder about the permanence of things."

Also, if you haven't watched the Eminem video "Beautiful", please do so now.

Falling Leaves

I went for a run the other day. Remember when I told you how much I used to hate running? I don’t feel much different these days….. Anyhoo, twas a blustery day (said Pooh) and the fickle wind was picking up and dropping leaves willy nilly. It got me to thinking, as I am want to do when I run as I can’t seem to successfully run with a musical device.

How do the leaves feel about this wind treating them such?

Are they pleased to be blown about here and there at the discretion of the wind? Does it make them happy to float on the breeze? Does it remind them of when they were young and still attached to their parent tree/bush swaying in the wind? Do they dream of the places the wind will take them, the new leaves and plants and inanimate objects they will meet? Are they dreamers? Wishers? Travelers at heart?

Or are they grumpy old men? Hoping to stay on the same ground next to the roots of their origins. Irritated by the pushing and pulling wind that won’t ever just let them be. Homebodies at heart. Happy for the rain and snow and ice to weigh them down and speed up their decay. Angry at having to make new friends when they are swept from their pile without notice.

Yep, I’m anthropomorphizing them and I think it’s totally valid. Don’t you?

The Things that Really Matter

There is a very sweet couple in my church who have a 2 month old son.

They bring him to church with them every Sunday, they never miss a mass.

They sit toward the back in case he cries (which he never does) and, from my seat in the choir, I get to watch them play with him and make faces at him during the service.

He grins at every parishioner who stops by to smile at him or talk to him.

He coos.

He cuddles.

They dress him up like a little gentleman, ties and sweater vests and so on.

He started wearing winter hats (as it is now November in Detroit) and I can't get enough of seeing the monkey and baseball and newsboy caps.

They have waited a long time for him and he is their only child.

They make sure that every Sunday during communion they have him blessed by the priest.

This Sunday we celebrated the Annointing of the Sick Mass. This couple brought their sweet baby boy forward for healing. I cried.

All 3 priests spent several minutes praying over him and his mother and father. They annointed him with oil and laid hands on his little body.

This precious sweet baby has a very extreme form of Down Syndrome. His poor little heart has such a large hole in it you can hear the murmur when you stand next to him. He is undergoing surgery tomorrow to repair it, pray for him. But he will never be the son they dreamed they would have.

He will be so much more.

so much more

Update:

The baby tolerated the surgery well. His parents were able to take him home this past Saturday and he is progressing as expected. Blessed.

How to Survive New York City without looking like a Tourist or spending money like a Reality TV Star

I had this great plan to do this fantastic blog all about New York City, but I lost my notes on the subject....so please bear with me.

The original thought was that I would have this initial blog post with links to my other posts on specific subjects. This may still happen, but I am nowhere near technologically savvy so it will be taking me some time....I'm sorry.

Nonetheless, without further ado, the following is my recommendation for ways to survive your next venture to the Big Apple

1. Ride the Subway! I know it's scary, especially if you read my previous post on Subways...but it is worth the money you'll save on taxis and parking! Trust me. And it can be pretty and quaint!


2. $2 breakfast. On any street corner, in any bodega, you will find the small coffee with cream and sugar paired with a bagel with schmear or donut for $2 (or thereabouts). DELICIOUS!!! And absolutely perfect for the subway ride. It comes in a paper bag ala Breakfast at Tiffany's. **NOTE** If it is important to you that you have a well-balanced breakfast, this is not for you.
3. Site see on foot. Don't take those silly bus tours (unless you have severely limited time or you broke your leg the week before your trip), just walk. You'll save $$$ and burn serious calories. Plus, you never know what you'll see while walking around the city!
   
4. Go to Macy's. It takes up an entire city block. It really is the Biggest Store in the World! You can walk around for HOURS. And their holiday decorations are fantabulous!
5. Visit the memorials. There are hundreds in Manhattan alone, and they represent a very important part of our national history. Plus, they're free!
   
   
   
6. MUSEUMS! I love museums. Almost all of them have a free day or have a 'donation' box instead of a per visitor fee. 'Nuff said, just go.
7. Eat the street! Don't bother with all the frou frou restaurants (unless you're a total food snob, or you have tons of $$), you can get a lot of those famous chef's entrees in your local grocery store. China Town (I really hope that is the correct term for this neighborhood) is a great place to find cheap eats! I found 8 dumplings for $2. YUM! There are so many little hole-in-the-wall places to go to that have fantastic food for less than $5. I ate all 3 meals from bodegas or restaurants and spent less than $10 a day on food. Totally worth it and you feel like a New Yorker.
   


8. Visit Rockefeller Plaza. It's way cool! They do have the store and the observation tower, but you don't need to do those. I stopped by and ate breakfast with the Today Show (while waiting for my train) more than once.


9. Go to the Empire State Building. I didn't go up. $20 was out of my price range. But if you have a sweetie, definitely do it. I thought I'd save my ride up to the land of "An Affair to Remember" and "Sleepless in Seattle" until I had someone to go up with.
10. Stay with friends. Ok, so I kinda cheated when I went to NYC. I didn't stay in a hotel, and I saved a ton of money. But I was there for a MONTH! It would have been ridiculous to pay for a hotel or even a hostel for that long, especially when I was still paying for my apartment in Michigan. Nonetheless, hostels are great to stay in and totally worth the money you'll save, but be sure to do your research on the quality of hostel. And the hotels in Manhattan are much cheaper (if booked in advance) than the ones outside of Manhattan. I know it doesn't sound right, but it's true!

I know the list isn't very long, but it's worth remembering when you travel! And if you go, say hi to the Lady for me!

How to start running...

I'm a runner. Surprise! ha.

I am. It's true. I have loathed running my entire life. Yes, LOATHED.

My mom 'encouraged' all of us kids to participate in sports all growing up. I played soccer until I graduated from high school, and yes, soccer does entail quite a bit of running, but if you play your cards right and get selected as sweeper or goal keeper, you don't run as much as everyone else.

In college, I rowed crew. So I basically sat on my butt for 2-3 hours a day pulling an oar. Doesn't sound very athletic does it? Try it sometime. Tell me how you feel after pulling as hard and as fast as you can for 2000 meters. Yeah.

Then after college, when I was nice and fat because I had ceased all forms of exercise and continued to consume my 4000 calorie a day diet, my mom challenged me to a 1/2 marathon.

Don't ask me why my mother does the things she does. I love her for exactly who she is because I wouldn't be the same without her. But, she comes up with the weirdest crap sometimes! There are so many wonderful stories to tell about my mom, but I'll save those for another time.

Anywho, she called me up one day and said, "Honey, I've signed us up to run the P. F. Chang's 1/2 Marathon in Arizona for the hospital."

"Oh cool! You and dad are doing a half marathon?" note the hope in my voice that 1. my father was actually going to do something athletic and 2. I was not going to be doing any running.

"Well, your father is going to go, but he won't run, you know how he is." yes, yes I do. "So I figured you and I could run together!"

"Oh. Fun! I hope I don't die. If I die in Arizona, please don't let Luke have my car"

She forced me into it, really she twisted my arm! But I love her, so I did it. And I finished the half marathon! AMAZING!

Then she made me do a full marathon. And then another. And another. And in total, I've done 6 full marathons and G-d knows how many half marathons. I can't get enough. UGH! What's wrong with me? My mom has run 10 marathons! SHE'S NUTS! I love her.

Recently, she conned my little sister into signing up for a marathon in Traverse City, Michigan, with the two of us. (If you've never been to TC, please go!)

Please ignore my sister's lazy eye....this truly was the best picture of the 3 of us after the race.

Yeah, yeah, enough about my family and how awesome of a runner I am (which I'm really not, but I digress). Back to the topic at hand: How to start running

This is a no-brainer for some people. For the rest of us mere mortals, it seems worse than climbing the Himalayas without a sherpa or a parka!

• The honest truth is you just have to get off your butt. It seems like a terrible thought, right? But it's true.

• I always tell people, in the clinic and in the real world, that if you get outside every day and go 2 steps further than you did the day before, you are improving! And day 1 may just entail opening the door, that's ok.

• But you do it. Don't push yourself to the breaking point. But don't slack off either. You need to sweat. You need to get somewhat winded. There should be tightness in your muscles the next day. This is NORMAL. Don't freak out. It's a good thing :) You're getting stronger!

• I started with half-walk half-running around my block (and it was a SHORT block, mind you). It was everything in me to keep going. Each day I increased the distance I ran and shortened the distance I walked.

• Find an eating pattern that will work well with your running. I can't eat for at least 2 hours before I run and I pretty much have to devour most of what I can reach as soon as I finish. You might be different: you might have to change your pre-run snack to cheese if you get loose bowels while you run. Trial and error. Find what works, but do it before you run any races!

• HYDRATION!!! HYDRATION!!! HYDRATION!!!

• Each day you get off your butt and go outside. Every. Single. Day. You have to. And if you feel like crap, that's ok too, just get outside. You don't have to run a 7 minute mile each day or run 20 miles each day, but you do need to get out there. The more you stick to your guns at the beginning, the faster it will become a habit and you'll actually miss it when you don't go.

• If you are training for a marathon or a half marathon, I recommend using Hal Higdon's training guide. It's flexible with your schedule and prepares you really well.

• Finally: I had a really hard time not thinking about what other people thought of me, I still do. Am I wearing the right clothes? Do I run like an idiot? Am I really that slow? Keep at it. No matter what, you're doing something good for you! And that's what really matters!

Now, get out there and kick some asphalt!