Thursday, December 8, 2016

Exercise Class

Wednesday, I went to the exercise classes for the first time in a while and much to my delight I managed to do everything without much problem. We also had a stand in trainer who was so much better than the woman we have permanently. She really doesn't have a clue and her classes are boring because we do the same exercises every time plus she doesn't do them correctly - when compared to all the other instructors we have had - I have thought of complaining but I don't want to be a sh*t disturber. With the result that I don't go very much which is cutting off my own nose I guess. The regular woman is a nice enough person, but just not very good at running an exercise class. The woman who moved in across the hall from us, came twice and hasn't been since. She told me about their boring classes at another location so she probably thought the same here.

My good friend Alex J. Cavenaugh has a short story out today called Cassa Dawn. It is a prequel to
the successful Cassa stories and if you click on the link it will take you to Alex's blog and the information on where to purchase.

There is a video on Alex's blog too. I will certainly be picking up a copy. It turns out that yet another of his books, Dragon of the Stars is now on audio as well. I personally prefer not to listen to audio, but if you enjoy audio books, I can highly recommend the story.

Bowling for us today of course. I do hope we make a better showing than we did on Monday

Christmas is coming and what a wonderful time to have mulled wine. Such a traditional winter drink in England although not so much these days. I had never heard of a Lady Apple. They appear to be European so probably not available in North America.

Mulled Wine

20 whole cloves
2 tangerines, clementines, or small oranges
2 750-ml bottles Merlot
3 cups fresh apple cider
8 Lady apples (optional)
2 cinnamon sticks plus 8 for garnish (garnish optional)
2 green cardamom pods, cracked
2 cups tawny Port

1. Press stem (pointed) end of 10 cloves into each tangerine, piercing through the skin. Place tangerines, wine, cider, Lady apples (if using), 2 cinnamon sticks, and cardamom pods in a large pot. Bring to a bare simmer over medium-low heat; cook gently for 20 minutes. DO AHEAD: Mulled wine can be made 2 hours ahead. Cover and let stand at room temperature. Rewarm gently over medium-low heat before continuing.

2. Stir in Port. Divide among glasses; garnish each with a cinnamon stick and a Lady apple, if desired.

Servings: 12

Source: Bon Appétit

Have a great day
 

18 comments:

  1. Hi Jo - well done on the exercise .. that's good news. Alex's books are amazing ... now mulled wine is another story in front of a log fire ... cheers Hilary

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    1. Thanks Hilary. Yes, for a man who swears he doesn't want to write, he has written a lot of good stuff. Long time since I had a mulled wine and over here, you rarely see a log fire.

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  2. A good instructor makes all the difference to how much you enjoy an exercise class but you have to take what you can get, I suppose. I hope they find you a better one soon.

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    1. You're right Helen. I think we are stuck with this one for a while. I want to complain, I just don't want to do the nasty.

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  3. We have Pink Lady apples in stores here. Not bad. I searched quite some time to find a yoga instructor I liked. Not sure what I would do if she stopped teaching.

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    1. Interesting Denise, never heard of them before. The trouble is, this instructor is provided free for the people in the building (basically the oldsters) so it's difficult to do too much about it.

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    2. Nothing wrong with free. But I would likely speak to someone about the class, assuming someone is paying her for her time and she is not delivering quality.

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    3. I assume they are being paid Denise, but I am not sure. Apparently the regular woman who is in charge is on pregnancy leave, was given the name of someone else but....

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  4. Ha! Better to be a sh*t disturber than cut off your own nose. An instructor should get you interested and motivated, not just walk you through the same boring motions (and poorly, at that). Hopefully the stand-in becomes more of a regular.

    I've mulled over whether I should have wine or not, but I've never had mulled wine. That sounds quite good.

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    1. I agree Bryan. The stand in was great.

      Mulled wine is very good especially on a cold winter night.

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  5. Instead of complaining about her you could get together with some of the others and give her a list of suggestions. Sometimes a bit of positively framed feedback can be helpful. It's good to hear you are feeling better though.

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    1. Except we did that when she first started, but she has a list of her own, didn't incorporate any of the things on our list and follows her own list slavishly. Thanks Pinky

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  6. HI, Jo,

    Thanks for stopping by my blog earlier.... I agree, a bad instructor will not motivate ANYONE to go to a class...

    Hope you did well in bowling today.

    As for the Lady apples... could it refer to PINK LADY apples... We do have them here in Chicago. They are a delicious sweet, tart, and crisp apple. So I would think it would totally work in a mulled wine.

    HAPPY HOLIDAYS to you!

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    1. Hi Michael, thanks for returning the favour. You are so right about instructors. Not too badly although Matt beat me twice even when I thought I was winning.

      Yes, I think the Pink Lady apples are the ones but I don't know for sure. Must check it out locally.

      Happy Holidays to you too.

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  7. Sorry her class is so boring. I hope you can find a way to tell her or leave a comment. Or something. Maybe she doesn't know any better.

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