All Things Supercinski

I am hoping to run the White Rock Half Marathon in December. There are a few reasons I am really excited to run this specific race. One being that I got to cheer on Thomas as he ran the full marathon when we first started dating six years ago, and the other that the race benefits Texas Scottish Rite Hospital for Children (TSRHC). TSRHC provides extremely high quality medical care for children with orthopedic problems and dyslexia, all free of charge. TSRHC is very near and dear to my heart, quite literally, but more like my spinal region than my heart.

I found out I had scoliosis in junior high, and I was treated at TSRHC for several years, ultimately having a rod placed in my spine to straighten me out. The care I received at TSRHC was amazing (and free!), and I am so thankful for all they did for me. I want to start giving a little back through this race and any sponsorships I receive.

The half marathon I hope to run is only three days before the tenth anniversary of my back surgery. Cool, huh? All that to say, if you feel like sponsoring me in my race and donating to TSRHC, just go here. Thanks!

Some of you may be shocked to hear that I am hoping to run a half marathon since I’m not much of a long-distance runner. This spring, I had a really difficult time getting the kids to sleep at the same time so that I could have time to workout. So I started jogging with them in the jogging stroller. As my friend Sally says, jogging is one of the fastest ways to burn a lot of calories while your kids are awake. So true!

When I first started jogging again in April, I could barely run for two miles (with both kids), but kept with it and began jogging two or three miles most days a week. This continued through the summer, and somewhere in the middle of all of that, I started to enjoy running more. Which brings me to seven weeks ago when I decided to train for a half marathon–13.1 miles from a gal who barely finished the last 10K (6 miles) I attempted in college. Training is going great. I love my alone time running longer distances. I think running with kids in the jogging stroller got me in shape so that running alone is so much easier.

The response to the Composting class coming up this Saturday has been great. So good, in fact, that the class is now closed. If you are interested in learning more about compost and composting and didn’t make this class, contact me and I’ll set up another class sometime this fall.

At various times the last couple of years having a 6 foot step ladder would have been handy, but I’ve managed to borrow one, improvise, or just do with out. On my Wednesday morning run last week, I came across a wooden 6 foot step ladder on the curb for trash pickup. I didn’t inspect it closely, but went back on my way to work and picked it up. It had one broken back leg that was missing about 5 inches. Otherwise, the ladder was in excellent condition and didn’t appear used much at all. Clearly, this would be an easy fix. I had to contain my excitement.

So, what do you get out of a discarded 6 foot step ladder? After about 45 fun minutes working with your son, lots of instructional measuring and a few cuts, a perfectly useful, roughly 5 foot ladder.

Our favorite place to eat these days has become Shiraz Shish Kabob. If you only eat the flat bread and hummus your trip will have been worth it. I’m sure there is better bread, hummus, and lamb kabobs somewhere, but this is here and good.

There is good hummus in Dearborn, MI, as you’ll see below. Also, I wonder if Matt could do any research to find out if Thomas Jefferson was a hummus fan.

If you liked that one, check out Tabbouleh Song.

For those of you who are interested in starting or just getting better at gardening, Producer’s Coop in Bryan holds classes on Saturdays throughout the year on a variety of topics, both for the ag producer and the homeowner. The fall schedule is available here.

Next Saturday, September 5th, Producer’s will hold a Fall Gardening Class.

Gardening is booming in popularity everywhere in the country. This is especially true here in the Brazos Valley. This past spring, it was tough to find many popular sets and seeds. Many garden vegetables can only be (or are best) grown as cool season fall crops. This class will cover how to best prepare your soil, what crops fit our area, and how to deal with disease, insect and weed pests, as well as the top ten mistakes people make in vegetable gardening. We will also offer a break out session for young folks and we plan to let them get their hands dirty actually planting some things to take home with them. This class will be taught by Dr. Doug Welsh, Professor and Associate Department Head of Horticultural Sciences at TAMU as well as Texas Agrilife Extension Horticulture Specialist . Dr. Welsh hosts the popular radio show Garden Success! on KAMU-FM. Copies of Dr. Welsh’s book Texas Gardening Almanac will be available for purchase and he will be available for autographs for his book purchases.

The class is from 11-12. I plan to be in attendance to pick up a few tips and to get my copy of Doug’s book autographed.

**UPDATE** Tuesday, September 15

This class is full. If you are still interested in attending a class, please contact me and we can set up another class this fall.

I will be holding an introductory class to composting Saturday, September 19th at 2:30pm. The class will include a short ‘lecture’ and some hands-on activities as well. Children are welcome and the event will last about an hour and a half (you are welcome to stay as long as you like). The location will be determined when I get an idea of how many sign up. If there is an overwhelming response, there may be a class size imposed. Things to bring along: something to drink, something to sit on if you like, and clothes you don’t mind getting dirty.

Leave a comment or email me if you have questions.

You can sign up here.

It’s my turn to share a few of my favorite links this week. Not the same kind of reading as you get from Thomas, but maybe somebody will enjoy these.

• Death is Not Dying
  - I loved this talk by Rachel Barkey sharing about her hope in the midst of terminal cancer. I learned so much in such a brief talk, it is well worth the 55 minutes spent. Just listen.
• Recipe Bridge – tons of recipes in one place. Search by ingredient or dish. I am really enjoying this site since we are flooded with produce. I found a recipe yesterday that used four different ingredients from our garden in one dish – it was delicious.
• Granola Bars – I have tried several different granola bar recipes and I think I found a keeper (thanks, Geralyn.) I follow the recipe exactly, except I do not bake the bars, though I do toast the oats and nuts. Press your mix into your pan and let it cool completely before cutting. Nice chewy bars, full of flavor.
• 30 Day Shred – I am a closet Biggest Loser fan. This workout video by Jillian Michaels (one of the trainers on the show) has gotten me into shape faster than any other workout program I have ever done. The workouts are only 20 minutes long, and there are three levels of workouts combining cardio, strength training and abs. You need some hand-weights, but you can’t beat $9 for such a great video.

Much has been written about the needs and challenges facing fathers who desire to raise real men, and not the macho caricatures that are perpetuated in our culture and unfortunately in many churches. The following article might just get you fired up to raise your boys to be true men. If so, the next article might give you some practical steps to take along the way.
Still Looking for a Few Good Men

Today, we have too many churches who have abandoned rites of passage.

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Back when America was largely agrarian, children meant something: the survival of the family. But today, children have no genuine purpose except to be children. So why should we be surprised when today’s child-men never outgrow that perception, never developing into the kind of men some of us older guys still remember.

How I Have Helped My Boys Become Christian Men

Almost every culture in the world has something to mark the difference between a boy and a man. A boy goes through a “rite of passage,” after which he becomes officially a man. The rite of passage may involve an ordeal, a test, or a training period of some kind. The boy who has reached a certain age must kill a crocodile, or train with a bow and arrow, or go on a long journey alone, or join in a dangerous hunt with the men.

When does a boy become a man in white American culture? When he gets a driver’s license? When he graduates from high school? When he moves away from his parents? When he can vote? When he gets his first full-time job? When he is 21? When he gets married? When he owns his own home?

No one can say. There is no clear point of transition. There is no one “rite of passage.” One of the unfortunate effects can be that boys are insecure. They don’t know when they are men. Again and again they may try to prove that they are “grown up.” Sometimes they may choose destructive ways-join a gang, go hotrodding, learn to smoke, get drunk, take a girl to bed.

What do we do to give proper guidance? I know and you know that there is no magic formula. God must be at work in teaching us and our boys, and he must be the one who causes them to grow (1 Cor. 3:7). But you and I can plant and water.

Another humorous look at the most recent so-called ‘stimulus’ package passed.