6:24 AM? That can’t be right. But lo-and-behold, I awake feeling clear headed and bright, if a little chilled from my first night’s sleep here at the new house. I got to bed around midnight after a busy day of moving, unpacking, kitchen re-organizing, food shopping, and cooking, before finally starting the first season of True Blood. I figure I’ll catch up alongside the new season, which starts tomorrow.

I am very proud of myself for accomplishing what I have this morning. I rarely get to tell myself that. Good job Doug.

I surprised myself by deciding, after a glass of iced tea I had brewed the night before, to sit at the end of the dock and attempt to meditate. I’ve never, so far as I can tell, successfully reached a “meditative state”. I’ve always been confused about what that is supposed to feel like, where your thoughts belong, etc. None-the-less, I sat in my familiar Seiza position from my martial arts days, and focused on my breath, on the stillness of the lake, the chattering of the insects and the bird calls. I am so pleased by the peace of mind and stillness of it all, that I’ve decided to make it a regular morning practice. I started with about 15-20 minutes, but I hope to move to half an hour or so, and if it feels appropriate, move up from there.

7:15 AM and it’s time for my workout. I told myself I’d do this. I will do this. I brought the weight bench and the power blocks. There’s no excuse. Yes – I’ve taken a “before start of workout” picture. No, you can’t see it unless the results are meaningful enough after 12 weeks of this.

So after some yogurt and another glass of tea, at 7:30 I’m doing declined chest presses and bicycle crunches and the like. Half way through I snack on a granola bar. At nearly 9 AM the workout is done. I couldn’t do another pushup if I tried. So off to the kitchen to make a strawberry-banana shake and a couple of eggs.

Now it’s time to bake. I don’t have blueberries today, so it’s to be Strawberry Muffins instead. Why not? I adapt Julia Child’s recipe, and by 10 AM they’ve popped out of the oven. What a wonderful thing a KitchenAid is. The muffins aren’t as raised as I’d like, and the cooking time was considerably shorter than expected, but they seemed to be browning too much. Perhaps the oven runs hot.

I also lack proper cooling trays. This will be fixed. For now paper towels and plates will have to do.

They taste…very good. A little, mealy? The flavor is lovely, but they have that “stick to the back of your throat” quality. Why do I want to say they taste like a corn muffin? No corn went into them. Maybe it’s a function of the sour cream? Hmm… bit of an aftertaste now. Maybe my cream of tartar isn’t good anymore? Maybe the blueberries are what make it work.

In any event, we’re off to a good start here by the lake. More to come.