Highway 12

There is an amazing highway here in Utah that is one of the most stunning roads that I have ever been on (not just my opinion, it is ranked as one of the top 10 drives in the country) and I just got back from a little trip that had me traversing it's entire length of 122.9 miles.   I had traveled a small section before, multiple times, but had never continued on. What a mistake!

I started on the south end, so I met Hwy12 from Hwy89 and a short time later was near Bryce Canyon National Park, one of my favorite parks!!!!.

It almost doesn't look real, does it?

Even the trees are calm, due to their yoga.  :)  It looks like warrior pose to me...

It almost looks like another world...

After leaving Bryce Canyon NP behind, it was time to continue on Hwy12 thru the little towns of Tropic, Cannonville, and the like til we reached our first day destination of Esclante, which is a gateway to the Grand Staircase National Monument.

The next day we drove the heart of the highway, which is an amazing feat of engineering and sheer determination in the last area mapped in the continental United States.

The road was carved into the rock

The rock almost looks like snow, doesn't it?

The thing that impressed me the most was the diversity of the scenery in such a small geological area: red rock, white rock, smooth, textured, it was all on display during this 60 mile section and when you looked for the river another aspect came into view...

Follow the river....the trees know where it is...

Even away from the river, life happens...

I love this desert wildflower.

So glad I'm able to visit places like this...

At every turnout, you just had to look and be in awe of this amazing planet and the slice I live near....

The road runs through Boulder, Utah and we stopped for a break and got an AMAZING tip to drive the Burr Trail.  So GLAD we did...

The beginning of a little slot canyon off the Trail

The echoes you could produce were insane

It always surprises me where trees can grow.

One of my favorite things about being out in nature is the silence and when I got out of the car and explored, it was there, and in that silence you start noticing the little things, like patterns in the red rock or a little nook tucked away...

Love this...

A porthole in the rock

We ended up not driving the whole trail, but if you did you would end up at Bullfrog on Lake Powell.  I think the next time I go down, I will.....

With scenery like this, I could drive forever

I love the diversity so close together...

It was time to leave the Burr Trail and Boulder behind and continue on to Torrey, home of Capitol Reef National Park.  I know that this has been a photo bonanza of a post, but I don't want to leave a section out....

First up, the animals of Capitol Reef...  A deer who posed for me

A very shy Marmot that was sooooo cute as he ran...

A bird that didn't want his face to be shown...

Capitol Reef NP is the smallest, youngest, and least visited National Park in Utah.  (How lucky am I to live in a state that has 5!!!!)  I even have a habit of skipping it, not being to it since I was a little kid.  I won't be neglecting it in the future!  It is beautiful and has a mixture of drives and hikes so I think it is easily accessed by anyone.

Ancient cliff drawings by the Fremont Indians

Twin Rocks

Amazing scenery as a storm rolled in...

A slot canyon for cars....

Overlooking the mesas of Capitol Reef

I was lucky enough to have perfect weather, low 70's and even the clouds worked for me for the photographs, and since I went before Memorial Day, the crowds weren't even out!  I will definitely be doing this adventure again, hiking trails I missed and roads not traveled....

And just another reminder, visit your National Parks!!!  But while you are there, respect them....

and just a little blog reading tip, if you want to see the photos larger, just click on them.

Melissa

Goiter Free in 2016

I'm betting you read the title and went 'Huh? What in the world is she talking about now?'.  I promise by the end this will all make sense and how iodine played a major role.

Yes, iodine...

It started with a simple statement in August of 'I just feel off....'  It wasn't even anything that I could put my finger on,  just something within me just kept saying something was not right, so I went to the doctor and they found nothing.  I chalked it up to everything that had been going on and vowed to take better care of myself and I did, but I never lost that 'off' feeling.

I won't go into all of the details, but let's just say there was a cycle of colds and flu's and each time my energy levels sunk to a new lower level of  normal.  I went to the doctor multiple times, but the cold or the flu got the attention and the treatments.

By the end of February, my energy levels were in the dump.  I felt like crap and was not in a good place health wise.

And then, it got worse....
they call it brain fog, but it's way worse than that...
I couldn't function.  I couldn't read (and if you know me at all, you know that was the straw that broke my emotional back).  For a couple of weeks, I didn't feel comfortable driving because I started feeling overwhelmed at all of the things I had to process at once, so I stopped driving.  I got rides to work, made friends drive when I went out, and then I stopped going out all together.....

Thankfully, a friend, around this time, suggested that I go to the doctor and beg them to run more comprehensive tests, especially the TSH, a test to check the individual thryoid hormone levels,  because it looked like I was going through what her sister had gone through...

I had to fight to get it done, but when the test came back all of my levels were messed up, dangerously messed up.    And it explained everything, all that I had been feeling for a long time, for you see, most thyroid issues don't happen overnight, it is a long slow decline, which is one of the reasons it takes so long to get a diagnosis....

Now here is the part, where I tell you some very frustrating news, for a lot of people, there isn't a definitive reason why their thyroid goes crazy.  There might be contributors, but one specific cause, not so much.  I have a family history, but that didn't guarantee that I would have issues, it just gave the doctors something to look into...  And it gets even more frustrating, treating the thyroid isn't a one size fits all treatment plan, it can take a long time to get the right medication, dosage, and health plan.  (If you really want me up on a soapbox, ask me about the #1 drug prescribed for thyroid issues).

My tale is a bit different, due to the fact that not only was my thyroid a mess, my entire endocrine system was in trouble and that got them doing a bit more investigating and research and asking me questions, and for that I consider myself very lucky.  A simple question of "Do you use salt?" and my response of "NEVER, I can't stand the stuff...." led to questions about the foods highest in iodine which resulted in an urine test which is the best option for testing iodine levels  and it showed that I had NO traceable amounts of iodine in my system which is very bad for the thyroid.

Iodine is ESSENTIAL for the thyroid to function properly, granted it's a delicate balance of if you have too much it can mess up the thyroid and if you have too little it can't function, but ESSENTIAL none the less.  I am in the small minority of not getting enough, and hence my goiter title because a goiter is the last symptom in low iodine levels.  Here is a LINK that has a list of iodine rich foods and what iodine does for you.  One thing to remember, your body can not produce iodine, so it HAS to come from your diet.  I ate some of the foods on the list, but not consistently enough to maintain my levels.

So, you see, my intuition was right, there was something wrong...
it just took a while to find it.

It's going to be a slow, steady upward climb to normal for my body, and it has to be done that way, because adding too much iodine back in my system at once can be as damaging as my low levels, but I already feel soooooooooooooooo much better.

I'm also thinking, now, that it may of been a good thing that I hit the rock bottom the way I did or they may of missed the iodine part of my problem, which was my key to solving my health issues.

So, why did I write this blog?  For one simple reason, these bodies that we live in are in a delicate balance and if something goes even a little off, it can have dramatic effects.  You are your best indicator when something is wrong.  Trust your gut, intuition, or whatever you may call it and if you have learned not to listen to it, start trusting it again.  Relearn to listen.  Your quality of life depends on it.

Now comes the part, where I remind you about the whole balance thing, do not panic and start self diagnosing and treatment planning, so do not just add an iodine supplement without your doctor's knowledge.  If you feel like this is an issue, start a dialogue with your medical professionals!  I have a very specific plan put in place by my doctors, nutritionist, and myself (cause I'm the one who has to do it) to build my iodine levels.  Be smart and find your balance of advocating for your health and trusting your medical team (whether traditional Western medicine or holistic or a combination, which is what I use).

I hope you never have to travel down this road, or any health crisis road, but if you are struggling, I hereby offer my hand, advice and encouragement to hang in there, because as I have learned your health is nothing to take for granted....

Healing...
Melissa

Foodie Adventures...

I figured since I gave updates about my reading challenge that I would do it as well for my 2016 Food Challenge as well....  Here is a link to the Full Challenge

2.  Learn a new cooking technique.

     I made Baked Alaska in February for Baked Alaska Day, February 1st if you were wondering.  It was adventure!  The new technique came with the meringue that would be topping the dessert.  This is what I learned, sometimes the right tool can make all the difference!  I had two batches of mini Baked Alaskans and with the first one I used a hand mixer to whip up the heated egg whites and sugar.  I mixed and mixed and mixed and finally got it to what I thought was the right consistency and applied it to the ice cream and cake.  When they came out of the oven, they looked like bunny slopes, not mountain peaks......  Round two, I figured out a way to heat up the egg whites and sugar in my bowl of my kitchen aid mixer and then used the whisk attachment and whipped up the meringue in no time flat and when they came out of the oven, mountain peaks!!!!  If you want a more details and photos, here's MORE

3.  Go meatless on Monday for a month.

     In January, I made a point of eating more vegetarian meals, not just going meatless on Mondays, but at least 2 other times a week as well.   I continued this in February, March, and April...

40. Do a pantry clean out challenge.  (Don't buy anything except fresh veggies for a month)

      The month of February was when I tackled this and will do this once a year...  Details about it are here....

19. Learn how to sharpen a knife.

24. Learn a new French knife skill.

       On March 9th, I took a Knife Skills class at Harmon's, who knew they had a cooking school, but they do and it's AMAZING!  I learned how to sharpen knives and a whole lot of other great tips.  It turns out that the way I had been holding my knife was not the safest and the difference in the grip while cutting is huge!  I got a new knife out of the class, plus I got to take all of the veggies I had chopped up while learning home....  A great experience.

1.   Clean out and reorganize your fridge.

      This has been  on going and was also partnered with my Pantry challenge.  I found I had 7 different bottles of salad dressing in my fridge.  One of them had solidified....  I now have one and am working on eliminating that one by finding a homemade version I love.  I used up items and really thought about my preferences and tastes.  The best part about it, I know exactly where everything is in my fridge at the moment...

7.  Slow cook something.

     Even though I do not eat a lot of meat, I still find on holidays that I go with the traditional meal, which is generally founded on meat.  St. Patrick's Day with its corned beef and cabbage is no different and I make mine in the crock pot.  Throw it all in the morning and 8 hours later, dinner!  That is why I love slow cookers and use them often!  And if you are a vegetarian, don't feel left out, there are a ton of cookbooks for slow cooking vegetarian.

41.  Master pie crusts

     I made a HUGE step forward in this on pi day, March 14th, when my crust turned out both delicate and flaky!  It was a big improvement from my last attempt.  I found a recipe on Pinterest, of course, that walked me through the consistency part (how much water to add so you have enough to hold it together and not crack, but not so wet that it gets tough).  The other thing that I did was a 1/2 ratio of cold water and cold Vodka.  The vodka keeps gluten from going berserk when beginner crust makers like myself work dough.  I'll make another one this year and see if it holds, but this just makes me happy!

31. Create a well-stocked pantry.

     My pantry challenge made me realize what I want and need in my well-stocked pantry.  This was an eye opener, but now I can make multiple dinners with items I keep on hand.
 
15. Cook dinner at home at least three nights a week for a month

     I view going out to dinner as an event or gathering with friends, so on a daily basis, I cook and eat at home, so this really is not much of a challenge for me.  I achieved this in January, February, March and April and will probably achieve it all the rest of the months of the year.

16. Make perfectly poached eggs.

      Eggs Benedict, here I come....April 16th was Eggs Benedict Day, so that's what I had for dinner and poached eggs are necessary to that meal.  I can't say they were perfect, but they were pretty well formed and were cooked to the right consistency.  :)  Tip of the day...don't crowd the pan, do them in batches...

25. Pack your own lunch for a week.
35. Follow a recipe to the T without making any changes.
47. A salad for dinner at least once a week

     I won't go into details on these as it would be a bit boring, but they were done.

14. Deep-fry something

      This is something that I do not do often, but I have frozen mozzarella steaks in my freezer that I made that need to be fried, so viola, I deep fried something.  It's a quick easy meal that I pare with a salad.

36. Grow something.

    My early garden is in with peas, carrots, lettuce, radishes, kale, and broccoli thriving, and with May here, my other veggies will be going in

This has been an interesting adventure that has made me think more about the food I buy and prepare.  I still have quite a few to go but if you are looking to mix up your eating and food routines, try a food challenge....

Still cooking,
Melissa

The Sentinels of Spring

They come in many shapes and colors,
yet all are beautiful.

They arrive in a rush and some only last a few days,
while others linger for a while.

They push up through the ground
or
unfurl from the trees.

They follow no time but their own...

They are the Sentinels of Spring and their job is to let you know that a new cycle of growth is here,

and if you have time and take a closer look...

You won't be disappointed....

Admiring the change of season,
Melissa

A Literary Discussion, Part One...

As I approached my book challenge this year and chose the classics, I knew that I would be reading some pretty heavy books, however, the benefit of doing this for fun is that I don't have to analyze the books to death, unless I want to, and can just read and enjoy or survive the books.   This year I thought I would also include in these posts books that are not on the list that I read for my book club or just for fun.....

Here we go again!

--Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke

I am not going to lie, the first 200 hundred pages were so slow and hard to read that I really did not think I would finish my book club's selection, and then something happened that I can't really explain and  I inhaled the remaining 600 pages, yes it's a long one.  A story based in history with magic woven in as if it was real.  Two magicians battle egos, misconceptions and politics in this engaging book.  Characters grow, plotlines are taken to completion and the footnotes are just really fun.

#12 . One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez

What a crazy, wonderful book!!  It mixes magic and tradition with tragedy and change.  What happens if generation after generation keeps making the same mistake?  If we never learn from the mistakes of the past?   I am surprised how much I ended up enjoying this book and when I have time will read others by this author.

--The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins

I finally jumped on the bandwagon and read this book and now I can't say that I'm happy that I did.  The paradox of it is this, by page 20 I knew I would dislike and loathe most if not all of the characters by the end and I KEPT READING.  It is well written, for the style, but I am going to be very happy when the 'Gone Girl' replicas and homages are done.....

#24.  Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad

After I finished this novella of about 120 pages, I did something I normally do not do and searched the internet for information about it.  I understood the allegory of it, but I wanted to see why critics loved it so much when I couldn't wait for it to be over......and then I found the piece of information that made me go 'aha!'and it was this, one of the more famous adaptations based on it is the movie 'Apocalypse Now' that I have suffered through as a part of my top 100 movie bucket list adventure. I can now say I read it and never have to again.

#3.  Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes

Have you ever lost yourself in a book?  I do, all the time.  I lose time and I leave my reality and live in the characters' world, but what happens if when you emerge back into your life, your sense of reality is changed?  For Don Quixote, the allure of romantic knight tales becomes real and he begins his quest of becoming a Knight and to be honest it doesn't really go that well.   His vision that allows him to see the best in things, like a castle instead of a ramshackle old inn, also causes grief when he sees dangers in things that are innocent.  The other characters also cause troubles by playing jokes on Don Quixote and Sancho, and for that reason the following line from the book sums it up the best.... 'For jests that cause pain are not jests, and entertainments are not worthwhile if they injure another.'

A fool can be wise; a wise man can be a fool; a simpleton can have the best answer for a complex problem; and an expert can cause all sorts of trouble, so go deeper and find out the truth of what is being presented...

--H is for Hawk by Helen Macdonald

Three books in one?  How in the world will this ever work?  Just trust me when I say that just does.  Part book about grief, part hawk training adventure, and part biography of author T.H. White rolled into one.   I know nothing about hawks, but was thoroughly intrigued about the goshawk that Helen trains.  I knew little about T.H. White, but was immediately drawn in to his life.  I've been through grief and know that it's a deeply personal process and was surprised how deep she was willing to share.  I inhaled this book and can not recommend it enough..

#14.  The Iliad by Homer

Throw in a family that does not put the fun in 'dysfunctional' (Zeus and Hera, euwwww) with
men at war who trash talk and sulk like moody teenagers (with Achilles leading that list) and add a dash of blood and gore (splattering brains and pierced organs with spears)

and you have the Iliad....

A classic poem that may or may not of been written by Homer that may or may not of been based on actual events.

It was more interesting to read than I had thought it would be and I found that it ended up mocking the glory of war it set out to portray.  The Gods, Kings, and Commanders of the rank and file come of as petulant, whiny, and stubborn when innocent lives are on the line....  The rank and file as they are listed off are honest men who were called to arms by their leaders.

#8.  The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

This book starts out as fluff....the roaring twenties, youth, and parties, but by the end it turns into a deep and thoughtful examination of the way we treat others and judge their actions and what is acceptable within society.  Extraordinary writing!!!

#7.  The Odyssey by Homer

aka  The Iliad, the attempt to return home.....  Every time Odysseus is mentioned in the Iliad, the phrase 'A Brilliant Tactician' or the like is used, but on the way home from war, the phrase did not apply.  Follow him into war, yes....  Go on a road trip, can't recommend as he is the only one to make it home, everyone that left with him from the war, DIED...

Characters from the Iliad pop up through out this tale of woe and struggle.  My personal favorites, Helen's 'my Bad for starting a war' dialogue and the I don't want to be dead group in the underworld.   We are also introduced to Odysseus's long suffering wife, Penelope, who has a group of suitors to deal with, and his son who just can't wait to be king (sorry couldn't help myself) but really just needs some answers about his Dad...

I didn't love this, but I didn't hate it either....  I won't be reading it again, but I will recommend it to read as an experience...


#17 . Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky

This is not a read in one evening book....  It forced me to slow down my reading by A LOT, by that I mean I read a chapter a night if that.  It is a book that makes you think and ponder and challenges your perceptions.  It was definitely not an easy read, but by the end I came to appreciate it.

#44.  Leaves of Grass by Walt Whitman

I read about a poem a night over the span of a couple of months.  Some resonated, others not so much, and some I could see where the controversy came from back in the day....

#37.  Great Expectations by Charles Dickens

I wasn't expecting to like this book as much as I did, but this is once again why I do these types of challenges, to discover books that I may not of read otherwise.  A cautionary tale of being careful of what you wish for and what you turn your back on, but what stuck with me the most is that your experience can harmfully impact another if you choose to believe that is the only possibility...

As this first quarter comes to a close, I have to admit that reading all of these heavy, dense, thinking novels is a little taxing at times and I have taken breaks and read 'fluff' books just to not have to think or pay attention to the plot.....

Still with my nose in a book,
Melissa

The State I'm in....

A couple of weeks ago, I took a 24 hour pause from my life.....

I prepared and took care of my responsibilities before I left, but in essence, I ran away from home.

I knew that I wouldn't be gone long, so I did not want to spend my entire time driving to and from wherever I chose, so I decided to head north from Salt Lake City and ended up in Box Elder County.

The drive up took less than an hour!  Wahoo, so now it was time to play...

First, a visit to the Golden Spike National Monument.  

It was interesting, but since I was visiting in the off season, the trains were not out.  :(  I was very surprised that the Golden Spike was only in the ground for 15 minutes before they took it out.  There is, however, a plaque at the location.   I learned a lot about the building of the railroads and how hard it was to do.

The Plaque on the tracks...

the way of the tracks...

On the drive to Golden Spike, I saw a sign for the Spiral Jetty, so I asked the Park Ranger if my little car could make the trip on the dirt roads and he said yes, so off I went.  It's about a 12 mile drive on grated roads through open range land, with some opinionated cows....I got glared at when I took their pictures..

See the attitude...

The Spiral Jetty is an earthwork sculpture at the edge of the Great Salt Lake that was constructed in April of 1970.  I alway thought it was on the West side of the lake, but it's not....it's on the northeastern side, the things you learn when you travel.  I expected it to be a nice drive out and 'Ya' I finally saw it, but it turned into one of the highlights of my adventure.  For one thing, it is just really pretty and it doesn't smell.... (if you live in SLC or the Wasatch front, you know all about lake stink). I walked out to the edge of the Great Salt Lake, which was at least 1/2 mile out on the salt.  It was that kind of silent you can only get in nature.  Bliss...

The Spiral Jetty

a little spiral in the big one...

The Great Salt Lake with ripples in the water

a really cool formation in the salt on the shore

My next stop was the Bear River Bird Refuge.  I heard a lot of birds, but didn't see any, but that was ok, I was all about taking pictures of the sunset and the reflections in the water.....

It was a little overcast, so it was a little dreary

and subdued for a sunset

but still stunning and peaceful

Now it was time for the reason I chose this area, Crystal Hot Springs in Honeyville...  Soaking in the hot springs while it is cold outside, can it get any better?  As I checked in, I learned that Crystal Hot Springs has the highest mineral concentration of any hot spring in the world.  Way to go Utah!

I slept in a bit the next morning and as I drove home I realized a couple of things....

I live in an amazing state for scenery and diversity of the scenery.

I am lucky enough to be able to visit these areas without a long drive.

24 hours away can do wonders for your state of mind...

Utah,

the state I'm in...

Melissa

Pantry Challenge...

During the month of February I completed a  pantry challenge...
in a world of buy, buy, buy, I took a break.

The goal:

To see what I really use and what is just wasting my money and space by sitting in the cabinets and in the fridge.

The Rules:

The only purchases allowed are fresh produce and dairy products.

The plan:

To clean out and use things in my pantry and freezer.  I had a menu plan that didn't assign days, but listed recipes to make during the month.  I made favorites and new recipes and even made snacks and desserts.

The most surprising thing was this...

my cooking habits have changed, a lot.  I don't eat a lot of meat now, so even after not buying any meat for a month, I still have quite a bit in my freezer.  I use black beans at almost a 3 to 1 ratio to  kidney beans, who knew?  Condensed soups have now been banned since I have found a healthier, less processed, version that I can make from scratch with ease.   I love popcorn as a snack or dessert, coconut oil and dill.

I learned the following....

I would rather spend a bit of time to make something from scratch and know all of the ingredients instead of buying a pre-packaged options.  The breakfast and lunch burritos that routinely fill my freezer are cases in point.

I love to cook.

I love being creative to vary a menu and in finding new recipes to try.

I even had food to eat when I went down with a flu for almost a week....

The Results....

There was a little cheating when my favorite brand of herbs and spices went on sale at 50% off and when I ran out of yeast and couldn't make bread.


In terms of saving money, I did, but I used it to get ahead and do some extra things this month, which was very nice!

I am very glad I did this and will do it again in the future!

Off to plan my next meal...
Melissa