I missed a couple of weeks, but now that summer is officially here, I’m looking forward to getting into a regular rhythm.
Book I just finished: Deadliest Enemy: Our War Against Killer Germs by Michael Osterholm & Mark Olshaker. My pastor mentioned this to me a while back and I decided to pre-order the paperback, back when Amazon was still behind on book orders. It is a good overview of the general background for why COVID-19 turned into such a mess. In addition, he helps you understand how epidemiology works, and even has a chapter that eerily predicts how a pandemic would unfold. Since we’re never going back to a pre-COVID world, this is a good place to start on making sense of what the general issues are.
Recipe I’m using: I have a long history of using McCormick’s Grill Mates marinades. Recently, I’ve been putting Island Woodfire Grill in heavy rotation. Here’s how I do it:
- Get 4-6lbs of chicken breasts (or if there’s a meat shortage, cry into your crockpot)
- Using 1 packet per 2lbs of chicken, mix up marinade using the alternate recipe that calls for rum and lime juice (optional: take a shot of rum to get you through these unprecedented times)
- Put everything in a crockpot on low for 2hrs or so (time is relative, check back when it’s bubbling)
- Pull out the chicken and cut it up into bite-size pieces (think nugget shapes and sizes)
- Put the pieces back in on warm for another hour or so (or until you feel like portioning things out)
- Scoop out the chicken into glass meal containers, and if you care, weigh out specific portion sizes (I do 12oz, but I also aim for 200g of protein a day)
- Add some of the leftover to marinade to each container so it’ll be juicy when you microwave it later
Band I’ve been diggin: Owane, which I suppose is mostly jazz, but also kind of metal. Here’s a taste:
Article worth reading: “Queer Times” by Carl Trueman (referencing the much longer “Under the Rainbow Banner” by Darel Paul). Here’s a money quote: “The debate over LGBTQ issues is not a debate about sexual behavior. I suspect it is not really at this point a debate with the L, the G, or the B. It is the T and the Q that are carrying the day, and we need to understand that the debate is about the radical abolition of metaphysics and metanarratives and any notion of cultural stability that might rest thereupon.”
Game I’ve been playing too much: Mario Kart Tour for the iPhone. If you play too and wanna me, my player ID is 2942 8987 4913. I was mildly obsessed with Mario Kart back in it’s N64 format (and before that the SNES version at my friend Jon’s house). To say it is a little addictive is an understatement, and that was before the pandemic.
Podcast I’ve been catching up on: I’ve been listening to The Ringer podcasts since the website began a few years ago. I’ve really enjoyed The Rewatchables, as it is a great concept for a podcast. The episodes are of uneven quality, but generally if you’ve seen the movie, it’s worth checking out the accompanying podcast. Fair warning, if the movie is rated R, the podcast definitely is.
Supplements I need to restock: Gyms in Florida were allowed to reopen last week and my normal gym (LA Fitness) is reopening tomorrow. So, that means I’m about to start going through pre- and post- workout supplements again. I use Pulse and Recharge from Legion Athletics for my workout supplement needs. If you use this link you can get 20% if you wanna give them a try. I have found I hardly ever get sore anymore and to get supercharged for a workout without being up later, I use the caffeine free version of Pulse. I’ll have more to say about Legion in future posts.