By Guus , 3 February 2008

This afternoon there are two major TV events, and I'm watching neither. In the US there's the Superbowl, and in Holland there's a special report on the Holloway case where a reporter claims to have solved the case of her disappearance in Aruba.

After a nice, long run this morning I'm getting ready for baking the Italian dish, with a beer and the Democratic debate in the background.

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By Guus , 3 February 2008

Today I ran 8 miles (12.5 kilometers), my longest run so far. Last week I ran on a trail, this time my run was mainly through downtown Durham, from Whole Foods to Northgate Mall, Brightleaf Square and back. It went pretty well, and without any major pains. I do feel my left ankle a little bit stiff, but not painful. I can definitely see the benefit on increasing mileage slowly and giving my body time to get used to these longer distances. I'm pretty optimistic about my chances of successfully running a half marathon in two months.

By Guus , 3 February 2008

Friday I went for a run at 6.15 pm. I was careful not to run too fast, since I have a long run today (Sunday). I took the usual 2 breaks with some stretching and my time was 37:23.

By Guus , 2 February 2008

I spent two hours shopping this afternoon for ingredients for an Italian dish I had planned, but at 8.00 pm I still hadn't started cooking.

Since the recipe involves making dough and baking it and it is at least two hours of work I decided to leave it for tomorrow and made something else. Inspired by a very enjoyable dinner yesterday night I grilled steaks and served them with baked potatoes and broccoli.

It was the first time that I've made baked potatoes and I must say that they came out really nice. I didn't take a picture of them, but they were smooth and delicious on the inside and with a crispy crust. They were in the oven for about an hour (350 degrees) and I had rolled them in kosher salt so they had nice salt flakes on the crust. I steamed the broccoli and coated it with sauteed garlic and a little bit of grated Parmesan cheese.

While cooking I watched Wednesday's Republican debate. It wasn't very spectacular but I enjoyed it. McCain didn't have a great night; he came across as arrogant and smug. Sasha also recorded the Democratic debate for me (I was flying when it was on), I'll watch it tomorrow.

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