Poem-worthy

It has only snowed once in the 8 years I have lived in Alabama, and today makes twice, so I thought it only appropriate to write a poem on this very special occasion. Enjoy!

ALABAMA SNOW
Some call this a “dusting” or “powdering”
(Sounds more like a day of cleaning),
But
This white rain
Falls down in miniscule pieces
Of swollen sugar granules,
Mending itself flake-by-flake
Into a blanket—not a blanket
For hiding or thumb-sucking,
but one that settles,
Comforts,
And Sweaters the soil.

Appearing ex nihilo from a white
Sky, like all the clouds huddled
Together to stay warm,
The snow falls at sprint-speed and lands
As graceful as a
Dove.
The branches, in their silent pride,
Don a cloak of white
And the grass—now a seamless blanket
Is too pure to damage and
Too rare to blink.

The Wiification of Little Me

Today I felt technology-old. I played wii for the first time today, and was certainly entertaining to the 15-year-olds with whom I was playing. Beyond figuring out that you only need to point the remote at the TV instead of finding select and hitting arrows, I was baffled by the word wii. How is it used as a verb? Do you say, "I'm going to wii" or "I'm wii-ing" or "I'm playing wii"? I was quickly informed that it was the latter, although I'm partial to "wii-ing" myself. Is there any other word with three consecutive i's? And can the word wii ever be used as an adjective as in, "That game system is "wii-esque" or "wii-worthy"? Can a gaming systerm go through a "wiification" process? Deep thoughts.

I'm thankful to be teaching teenagers for a lot of reasons, but one of them is the exposure they give me to the latest technology, cars, clothing, and movies. Today I had a taste of what my grandmother must have felt like the first time she tried to use Email. After a rousing 2 rounds of wii boxing and bowling, I realized that I'll need a lot more practice to actually beat my young competition and a lot of stretching so that I don't wake up with sore muscles the next day. While I was the comic relief today, I'll definitely be honing my wii skills in the near future, so teenagers everywhere: beware. Me like wii.

Barbecue Roasted Salmon

Here's one of the -so-delicious recipes I tried:

Barbecue Roasted Salmon
1/2 cup pineapple juice
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
4 (6-0z) salmon fillets
2 tablespoons brown sugar
4 teaspoons chili powder
2 teaspoons grated lemon rind
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Cooking spray
Lemon slices (optional)

1. Combine the pineapple juice, lemon juice, and salmon in a Ziploc bag; seal and marinate in the refrigerator for 1 hour, turing occasionally.
2. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F
3. Remove fish from bag; discard marinade. Combine the brown sugar, chili powder, lemon rind, cumin, salt, and cinnamon in a bowl. Rub over fish; place in an 11 x 7-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Bake for 12 minutes or until fish flakes easily when tested with a fork. Serve with lemon slices, if desired.

Weighty Thoughts

If you couldn't guess by my massive amounts of muscle and "bulk," I really enjoy lifting weights. I'm not kidding. It's theraputic for me. I turn on my ipod and go at it, blocking out all other gym-goers and letting my mind go wherever it wants. Of course, at some point, my mind goes to "This really hurts" or "How many more reps of these do I have to do?" but for the most part, it's a great way for me to release stress and feel stronger even if I don't look it.

So, for Christmas, my sister-in-law, a personal trainer, gave me Cindy Whitmarsh's book, 101 Ways to Work Out With Weights, and it was probably one of my favorite gifts. Let's just say I tried several of her "moves" and was feeling it in every muscle the next day...and the next...and the next. Apparently I had missed some areas in my previous work outs. The book took no time to read since it was mostly pictures and by the end of it, I wanted to go make a protein shake and bike 20 miles. Of course, I did neither, but I did think about asking for a bike for my birthday...

In addition to the 101 ways to lift weights, she also includes a few recipes in the back, which are delicious. Since I love to cook, I did actually try most of the recipes this week and I recommend them all. I also found myself buying sweet potatoes--the one food that made me gag as a kid at Thanksgiving--because they're fantastic for you...and my adult taste buds liked them pretty well. Not sure they'll be a staple in our diet, but definitely thrown in the mix.

So, next time you see me, it could be on American Gladiators...or at your local Starbucks reading a book.