Highlights from my recent trip to New Orleans (with pictures). I’ll write a separate post detailing the Crescent City Cup Scrabble tournament, but there was much more than Scrabble to be experienced here.
Banana Pudding & Ricotta Cheesecake
I’m still analyzing my Scrabble games from the Crescent City Cup and sorting through pictures of New Orleans, but I’ve been meaning to post these two recipes for a while so I don’t lose them. Here are two desserts I’ve made recently. The first is a cream cheese banana pudding, and the second is a ricotta cheesecake with caramelized apples. The pictures are of my own final creations. The pudding is fast and easy to make. The cheesecake takes significantly longer but is unquestionably worth the time and effort.
Doberman Pinscher – My Totem Dog Breed
One of the most interesting aspects of supervising a veterinary clinic is using my psych education to read people’s personality traits and work with them accordingly. The same must be done with dogs to be an effective leader. But today, the doctors, technicians and I took this a step further and attributed totem dog breeds to ourselves and others at the clinic (using personality and physical characteristics). The decision was unanimous that I’m a Doberman Pinscher.
This is About the Words
Next month I’ll be in New Orleans to visit a new city with jazz, Cajun cuisine, and the Audubon aquarium, and to compete in the Crescent City Cup, a Scrabble tournament sanctioned by the North American Scrabble Players Association. Much like the city of New Orleans itself, this tournament will be unlike any I’ve ever experienced. I’ll for certain write about the city afterward, but this is about the words.
Obeying the F.I.T.T. Principles
When I walk into a gym, the first thing I do is look for the person who is working the hardest. And then I make damn sure I work harder than they do.
Blossom, Bubbles, Buttercup, and Monkey
Here’s an overdue picture post of the kittens I’ve fostered over the last few months.
Scrabble Games of the Month (CSW07)
I haven’t had many opportunities to play live human beings (most of my opponents being the computer) but here are the human games I’ve played this month.
Game 1 vs Feargal Weatherhead (IRL): W 423-370
Game 2 vs Feargal Weatherhead (IRL): L 363-454
Game 1 vs Harshan Lamabadusuriya (GBR): W 485-329
Game 1 vs Ganesh Asirvatham (MYS): L 439-578
Game 2 vs Ganesh Asirvatham (MYS): W 506-380
Game 1 vs David Eldar (AUS): L 274-626
Game 2 vs David Eldar (AUS): W 607-427
Bingos: tREHALAS, TIMONEER, SPALLER, UNFIXES, DIAGNOSE, DEPONES, BARNACLE, REOILED, BEgINNER, DENTING, ALERION, DIPLOMAT, ANGULAR, ECdYSIS.
Six-Pound Jessie Brown – In Memory
On Sunday night, we put one of my best friends to sleep. Six-pound Jessie Brown was one of the cats who lived at the clinic, and the one I had bonded with the most.
ABS DIET POWER Equals Money in the Bank
Yet another reason not to carry credit cards: The Journal of Consumer Research recently published this fascinating study on the connection between the healthfulness of food purchases and method of payment. The study, conducted by Thomas, Desai, and Seenivasan (2011), found that consumers who paid for their food with cash as opposed to credit or debit spent less money overall and were more likely to ration their money toward more healthful food choices. The researchers suggest that the pain of parting with cash influences consumers to curb their impulsive tendencies, resulting in fewer unhealthful food purchases.
Lower Body Plyometrics
I’ve found that a great way to boost my cardio, activate more type II muscle fibers, and generate more power in my lifts and more explosion in my movements is to incorporate lower-body plyometrics into my legs routine, pre-workout. The best part about this routine is that it can be done anywhere with a soft surface (for shock absorption). Grass is ideal. The picture here is where I perform mine, right behind the gym, plus the routine I’ve been performing twice a week.
