Chris-Tien in the Goblin Cave

[Chris-Tien Jinn]

 
"I'm going to kill him ..... " Chris muttered to herself, eyes warily watching the cave troll.  At least, that was her best guess as to its species.  It was huge, head almost touching the roof of the cavern, and seemed to be dark grey, although the dim light robbed everything but the flickering torches of their color.  At the moment, the troll seemed to be rather perplexed as it regarded her.  Apparently, it had not expected to find something in the underground chamber they currently occupied.  Chris appreciated that bit of confusion, as she herself had not expected to run face to face with something out of a fantasy novel right here where she had hoped to take a few moments' rest.  

 

She had, in fact, hoped to turn the corner and find the exit to the cave system, or, barring that, a surprise "Welcome Back, Chris" party just waiting of her arrival to get the action started.  The troll standing there had dashed her hopes to pieces as easily as it had disarmed her with a single blow.  A blow that she hoped had not broken her arm .... but that was a worry that she'd put a pin in until she was no longer in danger of being squashed to jelly by either that club or the rock-hard fist that the troll was clenching and unclenching.

 

".... as soon as I get out of here, I'm going to f*cking KILL HIM!" she repeated, working on getting good and angry.  Anger drove out the fear that was gibbering in the back of her brain, letting her take stock for a moment and think through her options.  As a Time Corp Agent, she was used to thinking on her feet and accepting that the laws of the universe she currently occupied were different from those of her home universe, physicists be hanged.  

 

The problem at the moment was that she wasn't sure what universe she actually was currently inhabiting.  She had been expecting to be dropped in a near match for her home universe, somewhere in the central United States, at some time in the early 21st century.  Where they do not actually have trolls of any subspecies.  So, the fact that she had just been clubbed by one meant that someone had royally screwed up.  Or Lazarus was messing with her.  Either way, someone was going to have a bad day as soon as she managed to get home.  But, first, she had to get home.  One problem at a time.

 

When universe hopping, you did sometimes get lucky and .... magically ..... manifest abilities that, like the troll which was starting to swing his/her/its club, did not exist back home.  This had allowed her to be a Jedi Knight for decades, relying on the Force and her lightsaber to get her out of scrapes like this.  And with her - rather mundane - sword lying out of reach in the corner, that left the local equivalent of the Force as her only possible weapon.  Chris thought furiously and decided to gamble that she was in some sort of sword and sorcery universe, complete with magic spells and wizards .... which she sincerely hoped was what she was .... or at least close enough to pull the last option out of her non-existent hat.  

 

Having no idea if this would work or not, she took a deep breath and ran through possible spells.  "Fire", she thought.  Almost everything other than salamanders feared fire, and the troll's sparse clothing would catch even if that rock-like skin did not.  "Incendium!" she shouted, as she made a throwing motion and prayed to Gary Gygax for success.  

 

Going to do a short and different challenge for the next week or so.  I jumped back into Habitica too and am playing D & D with my self-improvement activities and goals.  

 

Mostly, I am focusing on getting into the habit of doing the basics:  running/walking and some weight training.  Eating food that I actually cook from materials that I got from the CSA or the Farmer's Market.  Meditating.  Etc.  

 

And right now, I'm fighting off a summer cold!!!  I pushed through the entire school year without taking a day off; now, I'm swilling medicinal teas and taking naps on the couch.  

[Elastigirl]

Welcome back!

[Thom Stépan]

Another dear friend sorely missed.

Welcome back dear friend.

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[Chris-Tien Jinn]

16 hours ago, Thom Stépan said:

Another dear friend sorely missed.

Welcome back dear friend.
 

 

Hi, Thom!!!  How are things down under???

[Xena]

Sorry about the cold, but really happy to see you back!

[Chris-Tien Jinn]

With an impressive --- and a bit frightening, considering the close quarters --- "WHOOSH", pure fire sprang from Chris' hand and arced neatly in the middle of the troll's chest, igniting the filthy, tattered shirt and leathers.  For a heart-stopping moment, both the woman and the monster regarded the smoldering material in mutual disbelief.  Chris-tien couldn't believe that it had worked; the troll seemed annoyed that his trespasser not only hadn't left yet but was now audacious enough to be throwing things.   

 

The moment passed, and the little tableau shifted.  With a howl, the troll swept up his club and started to advance on the puny, little human.  Which gave the smoldering cloth just what it needed to burst into full flower: air.  The howl rose a couple of octaves as fire spread across the troll's chest.  He dropped his club and started swatting at his shrit, attempting to put out the fire .... which only seemed to increase the intensity of the flames as he continued to howl and shout words that meant nothing to Chris -- other than underscoring that this would be an excellent time to flee the scene.  

 

Grabbing her discarded sword, she quickly started jogging down a passage, hoping and praying that this would lead her somewhere more peacefully unoccupied.  After a brief search, she collapsed into the corner of a small alcove and tested her arm.  Definitely not broken, but she had trouble holding onto the sword.  Lifting it reduced her to shaking, and swinging it was nigh onto impossible.  With a sigh, she turned toward the knapsack and started rummaging in it.

 

The pack was  a leather bag divided within into several compartments.  It would not have looked out of place at an SCA event or Ren Fest, although Chris was sure that it had been ferried here with her and left by the pilot of the continua craft.   Which further reinforced her suspicions that being set down in a fantasy setting rather than small-town Iowa was no mistake.  And which brought a pressing question bubbling up to her attention: what had they left for her to work with, besides a serviceable sword  and complete ignorance of what she was facing?  Maybe they had left her a hint .... or better yet, a book.

 

Sure enough, as she moved bottles carefully aside (some, she noted, claimed to be healing potions), and set a package of something that looked like thin bread or crackers, she located a small leather-bound book, filled with small, neat letters.  If she had expected to be given a guidebook to her current universe ... she would have been sorely disappointed.  But she knew better than to expect that much of a hint.  Instead, she seem to be presented with a spellbook, written in a language that she should not have been able to read, except that she could.  And, as she flipped through the first few pages of the book, she recognized a description of the spell that had just saved her life.  "Scorching ray", Chris murmured thoughtfully and then sucked in a long breath.  This meant that she was in one of the table-top role playing games .... but she wasn't sure which one.  Not that it mattered a great deal.  She had played a few different ones, and more computer RPGs besides. But she had not been one of those people who memorized entire rule books.  No, she was going to have to experiment and figure things out as she went.   

 

But first, it might be a good thing to be able to wield that sword. 

 

Picking up a bottle of red liquid, she quipped ".... here's to you, Alice ... " and took a cautious sip.

 

Today, I'm still wrestling with cold symptoms, but I was a bit more active.  Possibly more active than I should have been, but I'm getting tired of the couch.  

 

Wisdom

• I've been writing in my journal for the past year.   @annyshay got me started with 4thewords, and I find that is a good place to just .... vent ... when I can't really do so with my daughter.  And I hate to burden hubby with these things when he is 200 miles away most of the time.  
• When to church

Strength/Cardio

• I did some gardening, which included hauling mulch and dirt around to the backyard.  
• Took a walk.  I'd intended to be out for 1/2 hour, but it ended up being only 25 minutes.  Still, it was a beautiful day!!

Charisma

• For Father's Day,  my daughter, son-in-law and I took hubby out for brunch.  And the restaurant had "misplaced" our reservation.  Again.  This time, I had the confirmation in my email on my phone --- and I had also called two days ago to confirm -- and so I was not obnoxious, but I pushed a bit.  It's a small town, and the place was not that busy.  We did get seated, which I considered a minor victory.  

Constitution

• I cooked breakfast.  Eggs, spinach, and cheese.  The rest of the day was not as virtuous.  

Intelligence

 

Nothing really.  I finished In Defense of Food by Michael Pollin and am looking for another good book on research into good nutrition.

 

Dexterity

 

Any day when I don't trip over my own two feet is a good one.  

[Thom Stépan]

 
Hi, Thom!!!  How are things down under???

Hmm, cold. I am single these days. Put on a bucket load of weight since the break up. Weekend dad of my youngest three step kids. My son lives with me.

I am trying to study Life Coaching (funds are tight after losing my job), and getting back into a shape other than round.

Doing a 10km fun run in September.

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[Chris-Tien Jinn]

6 hours ago, Thom Stépan said:

Hmm, cold. I am single these days. Put on a bucket load of weight since the break up. Weekend dad of my youngest three step kids. My son lives with me.

 

 

I am SO SORRY to hear this news.  

 

[Elastigirl]

I read In Defense of Food a long time ago and enjoyed it. I don't remember much, exceptthe  fact that we tend to appreciate and enjoy foods more when we actually make them (nd maybe even grow or raise it)  

[Thom Stépan]

 
I am SO SORRY to hear this news.  
 

Thank you. I am trying to make this year a moving forward year.

I returned to NF at the beginning of the year. Working my way forwards.

Now I seem to recall you saying something about a new job?

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[Chris-Tien Jinn]

13 hours ago, Thom Stépan said:

Now I seem to recall you saying something about a new job?

 

Yes, I moved to Iowa (central USA) and am teaching computer science at the local college.  I really would not have made the move except that my daughter teaches here too .... in fact, we now live in the same block!!

 

The living situation has good and bad aspects.  I'm living here while hubby still lives near HIS job.  So, I often don't feel like cooking.  On the other hand, I really could probably pull off a Whole 30 .... 

 

During the past year, I mostly kept my head above water .... new everything including class preparations soaked up all my attention, but now, I'm starting to think about setting up good habits.  

 

19 hours ago, Elastigirl said:

I read In Defense of Food a long time ago and enjoyed it. I don't remember much ...

 

"Eat food, not too much, mostly plants" is the slogan he came up with to summarize the book.  The first is something that NF embraces, and I am working on cleaning out the processed foods in my cupboard and life.  I may keep Soylent on the shelf (and in my office) to deal with the days when plans get derailed.  

 

"Not too much..."  also working on.  I catch myself eating just because there is still food on my plate.  Or for all of the non-hunger reasons.  I did rejoin Weight Watchers, but I get so tired of LOGGING foods .... not sure that this will continue after the summer.  

 

"Mostly plants ...."   or animals that ate plants (and not grain and seeds) for most of their lives.  Harder to do since I was really raised on eating a lot of meat .... and not so much those pathetic veggies that Mom made me put on my plate.  I'm a member of one CSA, grow food at a community garden, trade CSA foods with neighbors, and shop more at the Farmer's Market than HyVee these days.  

 

So .... back to trying to create healthy habits ....

[Elastigirl]

3 hours ago, Chris-Tien Jinn said:

Mostly plants ...."   or animals that ate plants (and not grain and seeds) for most of their lives.  Harder to do since I was really raised on eating a lot of meat .... and not so much those pathetic veggies that Mom made me put on my plate.  I'm a member of one CSA, grow food at a community garden, trade CSA foods with neighbors, and shop more at the Farmer's Market than HyVee these days.  

 

I did try the eating less meat for a while, but I actually find I do better eating protein at eat meal and  hitting a protein goal each day (100 grams, I weigh 120 pounds)

[Chris-Tien Jinn]

6 hours ago, Elastigirl said:

I did try the eating less meat for a while, but I actually find I do better eating protein at eat meal and  hitting a protein goal each day (100 grams, I weigh 120 pounds)

 

I think the hidden message of his book (and others, like the Blue Zone series) is that there is no one right way and that you should listen to your body .... but also examine how your ancestors ate, particularly what (and how) your family tended to eat before WWII introduced us to a lot of packaged foods.  

 

I had a grand time sitting down and thinking about what my grandparents would talk about making and eating back when I was a kid.  I'm pretty sure that I'm not going to eat much pickled herring and head cheese.  But fermented foods (like saurkraut) featured heavily in what they recalled making and eating.  

 

 

[Elastigirl]

6 minutes ago, Chris-Tien Jinn said:

 

I think the hidden message of his book (and others, like the Blue Zone series) is that there is no one right way and that you should listen to your body .... but also examine how your ancestors ate, particularly what (and how) your family tended to eat before WWII introduced us to a lot of packaged foods.  

 

I had a grand time sitting down and thinking about what my grandparents would talk about making and eating back when I was a kid.  I'm pretty sure that I'm not going to eat much pickled herring and head cheese.  But fermented foods (like saurkraut) featured heavily in what they recalled making and eating.  

 

 

Interesting I thought in more general terms of what people used to eat, rather than my grandparents. I'm not really sure what my grandparents ate when they were growing up. I remember  my grandma made sausage and sauerkraut, and that we used to eat Kentucky Fried Chicken with them My husband's grandparents were farmers.  They had big breakfasts of biscuits and eggs and bacon, but then they worked on the farm all day. And they had a huge garden. And  during the depression, they would  go out occasionally to the diner for 25cent hamburgers, and that was a real treat. I think a lot of it was without all the pre packaged food, it took more effort to cook food.  So you had to actually be hungry for it, not just grab the cookies because they were in your pantry. I actually think my grandparents ate less vegetables than I do (and they cooked them until they were slimy and disgusting)

[Chris-Tien Jinn]

The easy .... too-easy ..... calories are what I think really are alarming.  And the way that food is EVERYWHERE; I can hardly go to a meeting without being confronted by high-calorie snacks.

 

On 6/18/2019 at 5:41 PM, Elastigirl said:

They had big breakfasts of biscuits and eggs and bacon, but then they worked on the farm all day.

 

And, in some ways, I think the habits of my grandparents still really shape mine.  Most of my family had been farmers (or construction workers) and the big, heavy meals were necessary.   But shifting away from that without falling into the empty calories advertised constantly is a challenge.