all writing

weekly write up: week of august 17

I recently left a job where we did weekly write ups, and I’ve been surprised by how much I miss them. Every week after writing I felt more clarity and urgency about what I wanted to do with the next week, and more often than not, one of my coworkers (readers?) had an insight or a clue that surfaced threads I probably wouldn’t have pulled on alone. Nobody is paying me for the work I’m doing right now, and I don’t know if there are in fact any interested readers out there, but I miss writing those weekly write ups, and I want to treat this break with the same kind of opportunity to learn, find clarity and uncover what deserves my urgency as I treated my paid work. If you end up reading this, and have anything to say, please, say it! You can reach me by email anytime!

Out of sheer laziness, I am mostly re-using the prompts I used for literal years at work. I don’t know if it works well for what I want to write now, but I wouldn’t know if anything else worked better until I tried it either, right?

Can you list the specific initiatives/experiments you're working on?

Most of my time off so far has been dumped into four categories:

Cooking, Reading and Writing, Running, Thinking about What’s Next with Work.

I had a disappointing Napa Valley Marathon in March. I didn’t take the time to build up my weekly mileage well, I was barely hanging on with sleep and recovery, I was waking up before 5am most days to squeeze extra work in before my toddler would wake up. Worst of all, I had my mind set on a race pace that was out of reach, and I didn’t let that go until race morning came along, hot and humid, and I ended my day early with a DNF and a ton of pain in my left leg. I almost immediately signed up for CIM this December, and with 105 days to go, I’ve been working on getting my weekly mileage up- I want to be hitting 50+ mile weeks during peak weeks. David is training for the Chicago Marathon, and my love language is carbs. I love it, I love the planning, the shopping, the actual cooking. I love trying to squeeze in anti-inflammatory foods and experimenting with new snacks and I love having a tangible way to support all the hard work he is doing mile after mile. Spending time doing the cooking and running that makes me feel physically most like myself has been amazing. I know it’s helping me show up as a better mom, and it gives me plenty of time to think, and settle in with my thoughts.

All I’ve really been able to write about since leaving work has been about food, cooking it, eating it, sharing it with friends. All of my wildest dreams about businesses I might start and companies I want to work with are all about food, they’re all about nutrition or connecting around a meal, or the joy of a really good chocolate chip cookie. I might end up working at a fintech company or a govtech company, or an AI company, or, maybe, just maybe I’ll end up somewhere that food and connection and fitness are the product. Maybe I’ll make that job up myself, hopefully it pays well. If it doesn’t, I hope whatever pays the bills next leaves me with the space to run well and cook often and eat joyfully and write about it all too.

What progress has been made since last week? What's the next milestone and by when?

Cooking: The standout meal this week was the Chicken and Veggie Enchiladas from Emma Coburn, they are such a hassle to make, but they are SO good. I’ll include some learnings about how to simplify this recipe a bit below- but expect that any trades would reduce the deliciousness. Because the sweet potato/tomato puree ended up making more than I used in two trays of enchiladas, I’m going to try and make version of beef enchiladas to use the rest of the puree, and I may try it pie style, to ease up on the overall time.

I made some turmeric spiced popcorn from one of the Run Fast, Eat Slow cookbooks too. It inspired me to try a furikake/hurricane popcorn style version next. I’ve never actually HAD hurricane popcorn, seeing as I don’t like seaweed, I don’t expect to love it, but David likes it, I’ll report back next week with a review from Mr. Amanda Ables.

Running: I hit 33 miles last week, and I felt great every day. My legs were definitely dead by Sunday, but in a lovely way that made me feel proud of the week I’d had. On Wednesday my workout was 2x10mins uphill- so of course I went to take a stab at my favorite climb in the headlands- Bobcat! I am going to PR that damn climb again this year… It sure wasn’t happening during this workout, but pairing that Wednesday workout with a Saturday trip up Twin Peaks, I’ll definitely be working on my hill climbing strength for the foreseeable future. A nice slice of humble pie with a scoop of self-awareness, almost as tasty as a PR.

Writing: I shared some of what I learned after working 1-1 with an amazing sports dietitian, which you can check out here. Next week I’m hoping to share more about how I plan a weeks worth of meals during a marathon training block. I’ve also been trying to write 500 words a day (at least!) and it’s been a great way to think through some other things I might want to write and share.

Reading: I finished my book club book- The Calamity Club. I remember reading The Help and thinking it was great, but I don’t remember liking it as much as Calamity Club. It was a long book, and it was slow to start, but once I got attached to the characters, I loved it. I also listened to The Lifeguard recently, and 10/10 would recommend listening to that one. I am not always an audiobook fan, but one that is read by the author is a sure way to catch my interest, and a memoir read by the author who has a Brooklyn accent and a ton of great stories is a sure way to keep my interest.

Have you changed your mind on anything? What have you learned?

Shortcuts in the kitchen might mean the final dish isn’t everything it could be, but they often make it easier to eat something balanced and fun during a busy week. Some shortcuts I’d take next time I make the Emma Coburn Enchiladas:

  • Use a rotisserie chicken, and don’t bother simmering it in the enchilada sauce before constructing your enchiladas. Less flavor? Probably. Still delicious? Certainly.
  • Buy pre chopped sweet potatoes and pre shredded kale- even in these troubling cyclospora times, you’re baking that kale, so you probably don’t need to worry as much about accidentally making parasite enchiladas.
  • Skip food processing the roasted veggies and cheese and sour cream, and just mash them up with a potato masher- it’s going to take some time and effort, but a totally smooth consistency isn’t going to make or break things here.
  • Make a batch and a half of things like enchiladas, so that you can pop a tray in the freezer, and get two meals for the effort of one.

What went well? What didn't go well? What could be improved?

WWW: I went with a group of people I adore and saw my friend Natasha do a set at Cheaper than Therapy, she’s as great as I expected her to be. Check out CTT next time you’re in SF with a free evening!

WDGW: Thankful not to have much to share here this week!

WCBI: I’ve really quickly made a long list of things I want to do around the house, and I have been even quicker to realize that I do not want to spend my time just cleaning house and organizing closets. I am going to have to intentionally carve out time and plan around doing more than just keeping my house in the order. Though damn, I do love my house being clean.

What's your top priority for next week?

In the last few weeks, I’ve recipe tested THREE of my own recipes, that I need to write up and share. Be on the look out for those :)