Alligatorob's Diary

10 laps! It wasn't so hard, I almost went for 11, but remembered LaMa's motto, moderation in all things, even moderation. The bad news is I am having truck problems, its in the shop, so I may not be able to carry the bike out for a flat ride this weekend. But I will when I can.

Rob and LaMa you have burst my bubble, no more muscle? Here I thought I was on my way to looking like Charles Atlas, guess those bullies will keep kicking sand in my face for a while. However no one would ever call me a 97-pound weakling.

Emily, pear butter is just long boiled down pears, kind of like apple sauce but chunkier. It might be spreadable, haven't tried that. Petal, fresh apples are good, we have a bunch right now.
 
Well done! You´re definitely getting there and riding on gravel your muscles are definitely going to enjoy the benefit, not just for endurance. I had to google Charles Atlas and decided that´s a level of bodybuilding I find aesthetically pleasing. Unlike modern champions. Am I mean when I say if you start now you might give these guys a run for their money?
 
I had to google Charles Atlas
I remember the Charles Atlas ads from when I was a kid. You are probablyCharles-Atlas-ad.jpg too young, and maybe they didn't run in Europe, but they were in a lot of US magazines. I'll bet Flyer remembers.

Thanks for the video, it gives me some hope. Actually I am not in this for looks, just health, I don't need a six-pack.
 
What a strange ad, if the book was really free? One of the guys is doing bodybuilding to avoid going through the health problems his parents had. It´s a fascinating thing to watch.
 
It was a good day, all except my truck broke down. I ate a lot of apple sauce and pear butter, and the friend with the pear tree dropped off a bunch more pears. Tomorrow we will probably do the final peach harvest, make some more juice if we have the time and energy. Had a great pozole for dinner tonight, I ate a little more of it than planned, but I am ok.

Friday

breakfast
yogurt 80
cereal - grapenuts 110

snack 2 peaches 98

lunch homemade applesauce and grapenuts 270

snack
homemade pear butter with grapenuts 270
jerky 20

dinner
pozole 342
sprinkling of cheese on the pozole 40
a little chicken on the pozole 46

total calories 1,276

In 1276 a 23 year drought began in the area that is now the four corners (Utah, Colorado, New Mexico, and Arizona) that would eventually drive the Anasazi people out of the region. The Anasazi were cliff dwellers and built some very impressive towns, Mesa Verde is probably the best known Anasazi ruin. Mesa Verde.jpg

What a strange ad, if the book was really free?
Don't know I never sent for a copy. But I am sure they asked for money at some point. If Charles were still around he'd probably be spamming our forum.

It is a strange ad, but the world was different then.

I will watch your full video, it does appear to have some good information.
 
Sorry about the truck , going through similar here this year with it in and out of the garage . I had to look up Pozole I never heard of that before . Was it made with pork or chicken ?
 
Hey Rob,

I’ve just caught up on your diary. I’m honestly blown away by your progress!

Don’t be scared to give yourself a rest day. I know it can be addictive; especially when you’re making progress and seeing results but your muscles recover, get stronger and you get fitter when you rest; not when you work.

Also distance really doesn’t matter so try not to worry if you can or don’t want to get to 10 laps (or whatever your target at the time is). HIIT will deliver you great results. Perhaps not the best idea to do HIIT on gravel but if you have a nice flat section of road; maybe 200 yards sprinting up it, coasting down it, sprinting up it, coasting down it a few times will deliver the same results if not better than moderate intensity over a long duration.

Personally I prefer moderate intensity so I don’t bother with HIIT but some people swear by it.
 
Hi, Rob. That's a bugger about the truck. I hope it can be fixed easily. Taking just one day off your bike is probably a good suggestion. TM should know.
Do you know where the Anasazi people moved to? 23 years is a long drought!
 
Hi, Rob! I'm a bit out of it, being behind with reading here, but I've just seen the ref to Charles Atlas, which made me smile.
Sorry about your truck - will it take long to fix? and is it your only way to get to town, wherever town is?

The Asanazi ruins look fascinating. The world and its history - there's so much out there - not necessarily to see, but to read and think about. More than a lifetime'sworth, alas!
 
It was a good day, I did not ride my bike I was too busy harvesting fruit. I picked about 2 bushels of peaches and 4 bushels of apples, that was probably more exercise than a bike ride. We are drying and freezing the peaches, will juice the apples tomorrow. This is the end of the peach harvest, and in a few days I will have to eat my last fresh peach for the year. I'll miss them. This is also the end of the apples, we have only 2 trees. Tomorrow will be busy juicing and processing. We also have peppers in the garden to salvage, and our farmer told us we were welcome to salvage all the tomatoes we can find from his plants. It looks to me like there are lots of ripe ones that will make good sauce. The frosts have killed most of the plants, but the peppers and tomatoes still on the vine are still good. We are supposed to get a hard freeze in a few days so have to get everything done before that.

I cannot post my food tonight, grandkids descended on us and my computer with my food spreadsheet seems to be busy with something called robolox tonight. I'm on my work computer. I'll get it tomorrow morning. My recollection was about 1,100 calories.

Do you know where the Anasazi people moved to? 23 years is a long drought!
That is a good question, and I have read a little about the Anasazi, enough to know there is no clear answer. Based on tree ring studies we know that drought was just the beginning of a kind of climate change here and 300 years of intermittent drought. The theory is that the Anasazi were not able to sustain their agriculture needed to support the folks in their cliff towns. The most accepted theory seems to be that they moved to other areas in the southwest, and their descendants are what we call Puebloans today; this includes the Hopi tribe. The Indians who live in the cliff dweller area today, but no longer in the cliffs, are the Navajo and it is agreed that they are not decadents of the Anasazi, in fact the word Anasazi is a Navajo word meaning "enemy ancestors". The preferred word today is "Ancestral Puebloans" but it is not widely used. And the word Puebloan was given by the early Spanish explorers who were impressed with the buildings and villages. The Hopi call them Hisatsinom, meaning ancient people, and given that the Hopi are likely Anasazi descendants that is probably the most correct name. Piecing together native american history is tough, I suspect you have similar problems trying to understand Australian Aboriginal history and culture.

I use the word Indian interchangeably with Native American, we all they are not really Indians, but it has become an ingrained word in our vocabulary and easier to write and say.

Amy, I agree it is fascinating, I only know enough to appreciate it and understand how little I really know.
 
I only know enough to appreciate it and understand how little I really know.
Sometimes knowing how little you know makes things all the more interesting. Sounds like you'll be more than a little busy harvesting and processing everything the coming days!
 
Thanks, Rob. I love the way you share historical facts in a down-to-earth & interesting way. It reminds me of the way my BIL used to explain really complicated things (like neurophysiology) to me that was never patronising or ever made me feel silly or stupid. It's a real skill.
 
I agree with Cate and I have learned so much by reading your facts . Really enjoy them . Sounds like you are going to be a busy chap for the next few days . But what a fabulous way to be occupied . Did you envisage all this food production when you bought your house ?

Tomatoes sound great . I had hake served on a bed of roasted baby tomatoes last night. Can recommend it
 
Thanks all, I enjoy doing a little historical research, I like learning in little pieces.

Petal, no we didn't really think about the peaches in that way, I just liked the looks of them. And did not realize the connection we would have to the farmers and the neighboring produce. We have long done gardening, but it is different here where we have real seasons. In Florida our garden probably produced more food, but it was a year round thing, no end of season harvests. Our fruit trees were a few citrus, which I miss. Citrus is kind of unique in that you can leave it hanging on the trees for months and it will still be good, so again less seasonality. I had to look up hake, not a fish name I knew, sounds good.

Finally got to my computer.

Saturday

breakfast
yogurt 80
cereal - grapenuts 110

snack
1 1/2 peaches 73

lunch
pozole, less than last night 228

snack peach, probably the last one I'll be able to pick and eat right off the tree, for this year anyway 49

dinner
pasta stuff 531
small pear 78

total calories 1,149

Could not find much interesting history from 1149, but I did find this on the "Numeroscop Net", did not know that existed:

"The message, encoded in number 1149 relates to the field of relationships and money and says that A marriage of convenience will not justify your hopes and will end in a complete collapse. Wealth or even luxury can be the most important accessory of harmonious relations, but it will never be their basis. If this happens, accept the inevitable losses, and wait for the true feeling to come. Remember: love is always hard work. Do not relax."

The typical mix of common sense with a little nonsense found in these things. I am probably safe from the marriage of convenience thing.
 
It was a good day, a busy one, but I ate well. I did not ride the bike, I decided I have to get done with the apple juicing and worked straight through to dark. I even forgot lunch, a rarity for me. Got done with the apples and now have a little over 7 gallons of apple juice in the freezer. Apple juicing is hard work, a bit harder than peaches. We are done juicing, I cleaned up the grinder and press and put them away in the garage. In total we got about 30 gallons of peach juice, half went in the freezer and half is on its way to being peach wine. And now 7+ gallons of apple juice. We should have plenty of juice to drink until next season.

We also got a bunch of peaches dried and frozen and still have more to dry. And have a bunch of pears we got in trade for some of the peaches, I think my wife will make more pear butter. The end is in sight, all we have left in the garden are a few peppers to salvage. Went to try and get some salvage tomatoes, but was too late, the frost did them in. Did find a few salvageable squash.

Sunday

breakfast
yogurt 80
cereal - grapenuts 110

lunch
few bites of apple and tastes of juice whilst juicing 80

dinner
larger bowl of pozole 456
a few slices of dried peach 40

snack
crackers 40
apple juice 84

nightcap
Laphroaig 164

total calories 1,054

The first reported observation of a supernova occurred in 1054. Observations were recorded by the Chinese, Arabs, and perhaps Native Americans. It was bright enough to be seen in daylight; its remnants form the Crab Nebula. The possible Native American observation is based on an Anasazi pictograph that some believe to represent the supernova. There is also evidence of its description in Aboriginal Australian oral tradition. There are no verified accounts of its observation from Europe. It must have been quite a sight.
 
That is odd that there are no known European sightings. You have me off doing research with your posts AG (Alligator George). Apparently there was little knowledge in Europe back then of Astronomy.
Good for you having a day off the bike. I await the next round eagerly :) Is your truck fixed?
 
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