Run What's In Your Heart and Other Internet Drivel

Drivel.  That’s what most of the internet is, right?  I’ve been a little quiet on the blog because I’m trying to not to add to this by blathering on about running and yoga and my #ootd.  

 

(Of course, my Instagram account is proof that  I’m not doing a very good job of not adding to the drivel of the internet.  I know in my heart that no one wants to see 4000 photos of my cat and my oatmeal but I can’t help myself. Sorry. Sort of.)

 

#1)  Run a Half Marathon:  Running has really done a number on my toes.  Look at the little guy on the right:

 

It’s hard to tell from this photo, but I also have calluses that look like corn.  Are these corns?  I can’t get a pedicure because it would just soften everything up and make it blister.  

My long runs have felt great while I’m doing them, but when I get back from 11ish miles the only thing I want to do is lay on the sofa and watch The Little Couple.  Further proof that it’s past time to cut off the cable (#31).  Nothing against Bill and Jen, but I’ve got stuff to do.  

BTW, the name of my half-marathon training plan is “Run What’s In Your Heart” and it eschews strict formulas and weekly goals in favor of intuitive running based on what you feel like doing on a given day.  Don’t bother looking it up, I just made it up. And if you ask me it bodes well for #4 on my list (Loosen Up).  

 

#7) Update my Style: On the opposite end of “loosen up” is my new approach to updating my style.  I found this book at the library and spent last night systematizing it.

 

 

I took the items from the style checklist and created a spreadsheet that codes them based on whether I already have the item, need to upgrade a cheapo version, or purchase one ASAP. For example, I’m all set on linen pants and black pumps, but I need a camel coat and an umbrella that didn’t come from the drugstore.

 

Then, I sorted and color-coded the crap out of this spreadsheet.  I plan to print it out and use it when shopping.  Because “buy what’s in your heart” has left me with a closetful of polyblend tops and no ladylike coat. 

 

#2) Learn to Bake Bread: I also borrowed The Bread Bible, but I can’t tell if the instructions are to be taken literally or if they are allegorical.  

 

#22)  Entertain:  This week we had a surprise party at our house for a friend and unfortunately the only picture I got was of this gorgeous basil-mozzarella plate that Suzy made:

 

 

 

The party was fun and I didn’t have much entertaining to do because Suzy and Janet helped so much.  I was able to spend my time chasing Emer out from under the patio and eating three pieces of Janet’s bourbon chocolate cake.  Not winning any hostess awards, but definitely acting on what’s in my heart.   

 

#5) Plant My Own Herbs: Speaking of Suzy’s basil, she planted hers about the same time I planted mine and she has bushels of it while I have this:

 

There are herbs here, but they are itty bitty baby herbs that smell good yet won’t grow.   I don’t think they’re getting enough sunlight, but if I move them to the back patio where they would get plenty of sunlight I know I’d forget to water them.  However, please note that the name of this goal is technically “plant” my own herbs, not “grow” or “cultivate” them.  The planting part is done.  Therefore, I might as well plop this pot on the back porch and forget about it. 

 

#6) Study Yoga:  The past couple of Tuesdays I’ve gone to the free yoga class at Washington Park.  Last week, the instructor was talking about the sun warming your skin and the wind tickling your hair and the beating heart of the city and I felt the kind of peace that yoga is supposed to make you feel.

 

Except later I saw on Twitter that there were so many people that there was a traffic jam trying to get out of the parking garage.  Clearly nothing says “Namaste” like a traffic report on Twitter.  

 

#30) Give up Diet Coke: Lastly, on the theme of doing what’s in your heart, I think I’ve finally got the Diet Coke out of my bloodstream.  I realized that what I liked about a fountain Diet Coke was the ice and the straw, not the caramel color.  

And if that last sentence isn’t random internet drivel, I don’t know what is.  

At least I didn't post a picture of my oatmeal. 




-K.   

#21) Dine at Boca

For three out of our previous six anniversary dinners we've splurged on a trip to Nicola's.  There, we drool over the mini Shadeau breads, I eat the gnocchi slowly to savor every bite, Donnie gets some kind of seafood pasta, and we split a bottle of wine and reflect on the years past and plan for the years ahead.

We've been meaning to switch it up and try Boca, because it's been at the top of Cincinnati Magazine's Top Ten Restaurant list at least a handful of times and everyone who goes says to go. But Nicola's.  How do we pass that up?

Then for our sixth anniversary last year, we weren't able to go to Nicola's because we were driving to the cottage for a week's vacation and Donnie ate cold spaghetti out of a Snapware with his fingers.  And I figured that if we could pass up Nicola's for that, we should at least give Boca a try.  This is the year.   

 

Actually we had tried to go to Boca for my birthday dinner this year, but somebody didn't realize you needed to make a Saturday night reservation with more than a week's notice.

That somebody wasn't me.

And lucky for somebody, our anniversary fell on a Monday.

Which meant while we had no trouble getting a reservation, the downside was that I had to get ready in the bathroom at the office and take my pre-date selfie in my cubicle:

Donnie picked me up at work and we drove over to Sixth Street.  We were seated directly under the restaurant's most impressive feature, a massive gold and crystal chandelier:

Unfortunately, when it came time to order our drinks I realized that I had my fill of wine over the weekend and wasn’t feeling it.  Instead, I chose an IPA from Strongville, Ohio, which was good, but really, who orders a beer at Boca?  (Answer: A Classy Broad.)  Donnie had a nice pinot noir:

 

 

Next, we ordered the sourdough bread from Blue Oven Bakery, which we smeared with Vermont Creamery butter and little spoonfulls of salt.   

 

 

I had been studying the menu online ahead of time and had pretty much resigned myself to what appeared to be the one vegetarian dish--some kind of pasta.  I don’t love pasta, and so I was thrilled when I asked the server for vegetarian recommendations and he brought out an entire vegetarian menu.

 

We started with the pomme soufflees, which are little pillow puffs of fried potato served with bearnaise sauce.  The presentation was impressive but there wasn’t much flavor to the potato and the bearnaise was also sort of bland.  Although I had been leaning towards the caramelized brussels sprouts, our server sold us on the pommes with a story about how they are a tribute to the Masionette, which occupied the space for decades.  He also said that on a good night only two-thirds of them actually puff up.  

Next, we had had the grilled romaine salad with an anchovy garlic emulsion, big shaves of parmesan cheese, and grilled toast.  This was my favorite thing.  I eat romaine lettuce every day of my life and this puts each bite to shame.  

We also split the beet “Mezzaluna” salad with hazelnuts and goat cheese. The flavors here were great, and the presentation was the cheeriest out of all our dishes. Donnie talked about trying to make this at home and wondered how he could recreate the way the beets were sliced thin and folded over the goat cheese like little raviolis.  I told him that’s why people go to culinary school and to leave it to the experts:

 

For our entrees, Donnie had a lobster tortellini with butter sauce and I had mushroom risotto from the vegetarian menu:

 

The risotto doesn’t look pretty in this picture, but it was rich and creamy with just enough bite from the cheese and the pepper.

When it came time to choose dessert, Donnie gave the menu a cursory glance, saw that there was cheesecake, and settled on that.  This sparked a long conversation in which he insisted that cheesecake was also my favorite dessert. 

I’ll spare you the details of this conversation but the truth is, cheesecake doesn’t even make my list of top five favorite desserts (a vanilla cupcake, ice cream, cookies, brownies, custard).  Cheesecake is fine, but it would really rank towards the bottom of my top ten, somewhere behind rice pudding, plain dark chocolate, and a York Peppermint Pattie.  Plus, we can get cheesecake any day, anywhere, and I wanted to try something different.  Something we could only get at Boca.
 

Which is how we ended up with this:

This indistinguishable blur--pardon my poor photography--was a creative dish called “The Candy Bar”:  peanut butter nougat between two layers of brownie, covered in dark chocolate and peanut butter powder.  It was served with caramel ice cream and a chocolate lace cookie on the side.  We had it with black coffee to cut the sweetness. 

 

 

About the time we were polishing off the candy bar, a handsome stylish man walked in and the couples at the nearby tables started murmuring.  Apparently this was someone named Don Cheadle, who I had never heard of, but looked up online later.  

Although Mr. Cheadle shares my fine taste in restaurants, I can  pretty much guarantee he didn’t get ready for the evening in his cubicle.  Which just goes to show that fine dining is a luxury that is relatively accessible to the Everyman.  An opportunity for someone like me to crawl out of their cubicle, smear on some Burt’s Bees, and sit within earshot of someone who spent the day shooting a movie about Miles Davis.  

Even if exactly one year ago they were eating spaghetti with their fingers.