Double Trouble with Prim and Harrier - Poker, Sports, Cooking, Gardening, Mixed Drinks and more

Der Suppenkasper (engl. "Augustus")

Well, Harrier: Here´s your challenge of the week!

Augustus was a chubby lad;
Fat, ruddy cheeks Augustus had;
And everybody saw with joy
The plump and hearty, healthy boy,
He ate and drank as he was told
And never let his soup get cold.

But one day, one cold winter’s day
He screamed out-‘Take the soup away:
Oh, take the nasty soup away!
I won’t have any soup today.’
(from: Hofmann, H. (1845), "Shockheaded Peter")

Augustus won´t have any soup, but YOU WILL, Harrier! You will prepare/cook and eat your soup (hot or cold)!

All right, so after talking the matter over with Prim once again, she much prefers having one specific challenge per week, rather than having a full list to be done in any order. This is also why she presented the above "Challenge of the Week" for me, even though she had already thought of a full list herself.

Well, fine with me. My previously posted list stays, but we will pick one item from it as our weekly challenge. And this week, it will be point #1, a spicy chicken dish. Prepare any chicken dish you like, Primrose - and make it spicy! ♠_evil:

Meanwhile, I will have to try to come up with a good soup, as she mentioned above.

You guys can still feel free to come up with something good for "Readers' Choice" already, so we can plan in advance.

Let´s check on the HOT STUFF!

As I have to make spicy chicken, I would love to make it with my OWN HOT STUFF. Let´s check on it, shall we?

Carolina Reaper

Well, as it was a pretty "cool" summer so far (was more of a spring than summer), the Carolina Reaper has at least grown a little bit. But no flowering yet. Next week it will be warmer, let´s hope that the warm weather next week will give it a boost!

AJi Charapita

Well, still pretty small, no flowers yet.

Dragon´s Back

Recovered well from the nasty snail attack in June, but still no flowers.

Lila Luzi

Yaaaay, fruits are growing, but they´re not ripe yet. Maybe one or two will be ripe after a warm and cozy summer week?

Thai Dragon

Like the Dragon´s Back: Recovered well from a nasty snail attack but no flowering so far.

Ornamental

First little flowers are showing up

Fire Kiss

Nice little fruits are growing, but don´t think they will be ripe by the end of next week ....

Big day at the Trollympics, in our last meetup before the break, which will last until August 26th. Many track and field events were done today, mostly field, but the main focus was on the one remaining track event, because I have yet to score a Silver in the area of Speed:

100 Meter Dash (Speed)
Bronze: 17.6 seconds
Silver: 15.9 seconds
Gold: 14.2 seconds

Olympic Record: 9.63 seconds by Usain Bolt (JAM) at the 2012 London Olympics, August 5th, 2012.
World Record: 9.58 seconds by Usain Bolt (JAM) at the 2009 IAAF World Championships in Berlin, August 16th, 2009.
Trollympic Record: 13.8 seconds by Harrier88 (PS) at the 2023 Trollympics, July 24th, 2023.

Harrier's time: 14.8 seconds

I knew that my thighs were still a bit achy, but I was still quite disappointed with my first time of 15.18 seconds. I ran again, after a bit more of a warmup, and at least got a time in the 14 seconds range, at 14.82 seconds. Still only a Silver, and a full second behind last year's Trollympic record. I didn't have a nice tailwind like last year either.

Standing Long Jump (Strength)
Bronze: 1.65 meters
Silver: 1.95 meters
Gold: 2.25 meters

Olympic Record: 3.47 meters by Ray Ewry (USA) at the 1904 St. Louis Olympics, September 3rd, 1904.
World Record: 3.73 meters by Byron Jones (USA) at the NFL Combine, February 23rd, 2015.
Trollympic Record: 2.28 meters by Harrier88 (PS) at the 2023 Trollympics, September 4th, 2023.

Harrier's distance: 2.35 meters
NEW TROLLYMPIC RECORD!

After a few jumps within the range of last year's PB, I eventually went to get a good distance of 2.35 meters on my last attempt. New TR, nice one! I didn't need another Gold in a Strength event, but new personal bests are always welcome.

Long Jump (Coordination)
Bronze: 4.10 meters
Silver: 4.40 meters
Gold: 4.70 meters

Olympic Record: 8.90m by Bob Beamon (USA) at the 1968 Mexico City Olympics, October 18th, 1968.
World Record: 8.95m by Mike Powell (USA) at the 1991 IAAF World Championships in Tokyo, August 30th, 1991.
Trollympic Record: 4.10m by Harrier88 (PS) at the 2023 Trollympics, July 3rd, 2023.

Harrier's distance: 3.90 meters

Goodness gracious, not even a measly 4 meters? This remains my weakest event by far, but outright failing to qualify for even Bronze is a bit pathetic. How can the standing long jump go so well by comparison? Good thing there is the old sling ball throw for the coordination part. Speaking of which...

Sling Ball Throw (1 kg) (Coordination)
Bronze: 28.50m
Silver: 33.50m
Gold: 38.50m

Not an Olympic event.
World Record (2kg): 86.92m by Alwin Wagner (GER) on August 21st, 1982.
Trollympic Record: 39.10m by Harrier88 (PS) at the 2023 Trollympics, July 10th, 2023.

Harrier's distance: 37.95m

I mostly did it because other people were participating, but it would have been cool to expand on this year's record of 39.00m a little, which was barely good enough for Gold. TR would be within reach too. I got a pretty good one after some shaky attempts, but not beyond this year's best, or even within the threshold for Trollympic Gold. It's okay, we have this one locked up already.

Shot Put (Strength)
Bronze: 6.75 meters
Silver: 7.25 meters
Gold: 8.00 meters

Olympic Record: 23.30 meters by Ryan Crouser (USA) at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, August 5th, 2021.
World Record: 23.56 meters by Ryan Crouser (USA) at the World Athletics Continental Tour Gold in Los Angeles, May 27th, 2023.
Trollympic Record: 8.04 meters by Harrier88 (PS) at the 2023 Trollympics, September 4th, 2023.

Harrier's distance: 7.30 meters

Not so great, though I didn't receive a lot of attention from the coaches and examiners. In fact, I was advised to take a break after my third or fourth attempt, after which I gave the sling ball a try instead. At least it's a Silver distance, but I would like to try again after the summer break.

Lastly...

Medicine Ball Throw (2kg) (Strength)
Bronze: 9.50m
Silver: 12.50m
Gold: 14.00m

Not an Olympic event.
No known world records.
Trollympic Record: 14.60m by Harrier88 (PS) at the 2024 Trollympics, June 17th, 2024.

Harrier's distance: 14.60m

I just wanted to do a quick throw while people were reeling in the measuring tape from the sling ball throw, but then one of the people who helped out the examiners had a look at the impact spot, and estimated the throw to have been at a distance of around 15 meters. That would have been a Trollympic record! Still, without anyone confirming it, I'm afraid we can't let it count... but I just had to try again, at least a few more throws.

Next one was only at around 13.50m, and then the final one was pretty good again... and landed at the exact distance of my previous best this year. Well, at least we repeated our TR, but we didn't get a new one yet.

So that was it, busy day, but for a good reason. It will be almost two month until the next meetup in the Trollympic stadium. Until then, I can try to improve in the aquatic events.

Harrier's "Medal Table":
3,000 Meter Run (Stamina): Gold
10,000 Meter Run (Stamina): Silver
Medicine Ball Throw (Strength): Gold
Standing Long Jump (Strength): Gold
Shotput (Strength): Silver
25 Meter Freestyle (Speed): Silver
100 Meter Dash (Speed): Silver
Sling Ball Throw (Coordination): Gold

Primrose's "Medal Table":
400 Meter Freestyle (Stamina): Gold
25 Meter Freestyle (Speed): Gold

Harrier's Current Progress
Stamina: Gold (3,000 Meter Run) - 3 points
Strength: Gold (Medicine Ball Throw) - 3 points
Speed: Silver (25 Meter Freestyle) - 2 points
Coordination: Gold (Coordination) - 3 points

11 points in total, 11 points are required for Gold.

Primrose's Current Progress
Stamina: Gold (400 Meter Freestyle) - 3 points
Strength: -
Speed: Gold (25 Meter Freestyle) - 3 points
Coordination: -

6 points in total, 11 points are required for Gold.

Poker Update

I probably wouldn't have noticed without Vorpal's post here, but the MicroMillions are underway on Pokerstars. I have been meaning to get back into poker for a while now, so this seems like an excellent opportunity, especially with the sports schedule easing up a bit next week.

Because I am likely to forget otherwise, let's compile a list of the games I intend to play, or which I am at least considering (all times are CET - may contain errors):

July 10th (WED): $3.30 Stud at 18:35 - LIKELY
July 13th (SAT): $2.20 8-Game at 21:05 - LIKELY
July 14th (SUN): $3.30 2-7 Triple Draw at 21:05 - UNLIKELY
July 15th (MON): $5.50 NL Five Card Draw at 18:35 - VERY LIKELY
July 17th (WED): $5.50 PL Badugi at 18:35 - VERY LIKELY
July 17th (WED): $3.30 Razz at 20:35 - UNLIKELY
July 19th (FRI): $3.30 Stud Hi-Lo at 20:35 - UNLIKELY
July 20th (SAT): $3.30 6-Card Omaha at 21:05 - UNLIKELY

Sports Update

Prim and I plan to meet up some time next week again, ready to take on the big swimming exam for our "Shark Quest".

- 50 meters of breaststroke swimming in under 1:00 minute
- 50 meters of front crawling in under 50 seconds
- 50 meters of back crawling in under 1:00 minute
- a head first dive from a height of 3 meters, or a front flip from a height of 1 meter
- dribbling a water polo ball for 25 meters

I have been on the phone today with the swimming coach who would also be our examiner for the so-called Shark badge. Unfortunately, he won't be available on the day we had in mind. He should have time in the first two weeks of August, so Prim and I will see if it fits into our personal schedules. We still plan to meet up next week, but without any swimming challenges now - though we would still love to go swimming outside, if the weather permits.

Quick poker update, I did not play the MicroMillions Stud last evening. I wanted to, but there was just too much stuff to take care of first when I returned from tennis practice in the evening. My first MM event will likely be the $2.20 8-Game on Saturday.

I did play Badugi last night, and while I got a bounty, I finished a few places short of ITM again. Prim always tells me that I am too quickly discouraged by short-term lack of success, so I will try to be disciplined and stick to my goal of getting out of the red for the year by the end of summer. If I fail to pull that one off, I shall be free to whine all I want.

To get back to the subject of tennis for a short bit, Prim also mentioned that she will finally have another "Trolland Garros" tournament this Sunday, when she and her husband will compete in doubles once again. We will hear more about that this weekend, but we have another sports update coming up shortly...

25m Freestyle (Speed)

Bronze: 35.00 seconds
Silver: 26.50 seconds
Gold: 18.50 seconds

Not an Olympic event.
Olympic Record (for 50m Freestyle): 21.07 seconds by Caeleb Dressel (USA) at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, August 1st, 2021.
World Record (for 50m Freestyle): 20.16 seconds by Caeleb Dressel (USA) at the International Swimming League in Budapest, November 21st, 2020.
Trollympic Record: 19.06 seconds by Primrose6789 (PS) at the 2024 Trollympics, July 5th, 2024.

Harrier's time: 21.78 seconds

For reference, last year's PB, which is no longer the "Trollympic Record", was at 21.45 seconds, so I was about 0.33 seconds behind it. Not quite within the margin of a timekeeping error, maybe, but close enough. I should definitely be able to beat my PB.

There is still a lot of room for improvement. I highly doubt that I would already be able to get an advantage out of dolphin kicks at the start, but I should probably find some kind of good way to pick up speed after the starting dive, it feels very slow. I think I got a little shaky on the final meters, and my breathing must have been a little awkward too. It should be possible to crawl through the full 25m while only surfacing once to breathe, not sure how often Prim did it on her attempt, but I kind of messed up when I did it, leaving me gasping for air later on and forcing me to surface a second time.

Still, this is at least not a time to be ashamed of anymore, so I will let it stand in the final week before the break. There should be an attempt at the 800 meters this weekend, probably Sunday. I already practiced a little by crawling for half that distance, without timing myself.

Harrier's "Medal Table":
3,000 Meter Run (Stamina): Gold
10,000 Meter Run (Stamina): Silver
Medicine Ball Throw (Strength): Gold
Standing Long Jump (Strength): Gold
Shotput (Strength): Silver
25 Meter Freestyle (Speed): Silver
100 Meter Dash (Speed): Silver
Sling Ball Throw (Coordination): Gold

Primrose's "Medal Table":
400 Meter Freestyle (Stamina): Gold
25 Meter Freestyle (Speed): Gold

Harrier's Current Progress
Stamina: Gold (3,000 Meter Run) - 3 points
Strength: Gold (Medicine Ball Throw) - 3 points
Speed: Silver (25 Meter Freestyle) - 2 points
Coordination: Gold (Coordination) - 3 points

11 points in total, 11 points are required for Gold.

Primrose's Current Progress
Stamina: Gold (400 Meter Freestyle) - 3 points
Strength: -
Speed: Gold (25 Meter Freestyle) - 3 points
Coordination: -

6 points in total, 11 points are required for Gold.

Trolland Garros is back!

And finally: After a little break due to injury, Trolland Garros is back now! Coming up this Sunday: mixed doubles 30plus!

How will Homer and Prim perform? And will they manage to win a match? We will find out ................ soon!

Chicken with a fire kiss!

So, my this week´s cooking challenge was spicy chicken? Well, here we go! And just right on time, my first little "Fire Kisses" (dwarf chili) are ripe:

Here´s the first little harvest of the Fire Kiss

This little dwarf chili is a spicy one and just perfect for the spicy chicken. Made chicken wings with everything, our garden could offer at the moment (the first carrot, bush beans).

We had home-made grilled bread with it and a salad made of own-grown (zombie-)"Kohlrabi", the first tomatoes and cucumbers.

Homer´s verdict: "YUMM! VERY GOOD!" I liked it too!

And how about the "Fire Kiss"-chili?
It´s a spicy, not too hot and sweet tasting one: perfect for dishes which should be spicy, but not too hot! And I personally can eat it just right away like this. I like it! Will I grow that one again next year? YES! Already collected the seeds!

Is this a poker or a food blog? A lot of pictures with plants and food

Originally posted by spid3rix
Is this a poker or a food blog? A lot of pictures with plants and food
Well, both. And a bunch of other stuff. As the title implies, main topics should include poker, sports, cooking, gardening and mixed drinks.

Admittedly, poker fell a little short, mostly because I was taking several hiatuses due to bad traffic, scheduling issues or just disappointing results in general. This will hopefully be about to change, though. The MicroMillions are underway on Pokerstars, and I have been informed that Primrose is playing some tournaments on PartyPoker right now as we speak. Besides, my sports schedule should be lightening up considerably starting next week.

Mixed drinks are something we haven't seen at all yet, I guess the not so sunny weather didn't put me in the mood yet. But I should make some of them soon too. I was thinking about that topic earlier today already.

Originally posted by Primrose6789
Chicken with a fire kiss!

Your chicken dish looks great... but it puts me in a bit of an awkward spot. You see, I was challenged to make soup this week, and I had a very specific one in mind that requires shiitake mushrooms, but I couldn't find any at the stores. I kept thinking that when I go to another store later this week, I should probably find some... but I never could, and now the weekend is here, and I am mushroom-less.

I was already thinking about some other soup I could make, but I didn't get any ideas with the stuff I have at home, without resorting to some instant stuff which I am not supposed to use in this challenge. I don't usually eat a lot of of soup, you know.

I hate to do it so early, but I guess I will have to postpone my challenge and prepare my soup early next week, probably with another kind of mushrooms as a substitute. Or without any at all, if all else fails. Feel free to give me another challenge for next week anyway, then I will just have two of them to deal with.

Originally posted by spid3rix
Is this a poker or a food blog? A lot of pictures with plants and food

Let´s answer it this way: It´s a fun-blog of two recreational players.

...and here we go again with poker

Let´s start with Baby Peach´s Omaha! We played the 3 p.m. Free to play PLO on Partypoker and Baby Peach had a really nice start with a set QQQ:

and a funny one-outer:

and some misclick-equity and the Blooper of the day

Well, the thing is this: I decided to get some food. Villains were donking around in one hand and that was the perfect timing, to get a little plate of food. When I got back, I saw this hand. I was just about to act, a small plate of food in one hand and stretching out my right hand, when I noticed that I accidentally had min-raised after two limpers. One Villain min-3-betted to 3 BB and there I was. I had to call. Decided to go "all or nothing" on the flop, when I found my set and there we go. That´s what it´s called misclick equity.

Anyway, altogether a great result for Baby Peach in this tournament: 18th place and a 0,22 $ Big Quarter satty ticket!

Bowser jr. had a great start in the 4 p.m. NL Holdem Free to Play, too. And this nice little set was no misclick.

A great start but then, long time card-dead. We almost gave up on the tickets but there are such great moments in poker: like when you get AA just shy before ITM

After we got ITM, Bowser jr. had a couple of nice double ups, but then again a card-dead phase hit us: as desperate shorties we ran into JJ with TT and that was it. But great result for Bowser jr. as well: 12th place and also a 0,22 $ Big Quarter satty ticket!

Looks nice

Originally posted by VorpalF2F
Looks nice

The chicken, or the poker? Personally, I think they both look nice.

Originally posted by VorpalF2F
Looks nice

What looks nice, Vorpal? The hands, the food or both?

Harvest of the week

Lots of cucumbers, lots of apples, blackberries, green onions, zucchini, green beans and tomatoes.

If the "Shark Badge" won't work for us, maybe we should give synchronized swimming a try some time?

I will not complain about my Badugi results.
I will not complain about my Badugi results.
I will not complain about my Badugi results.
I will not complain about my Badugi results.

Let's take a look at what's in store for Primrose this weekend, shall we?

Pre-Match Analysis

It is finally time for Trolland Garros again tomorrow, and Primrose and her husband will compete in mixed doubles! There are two matches in store for our brave Tennis Trolls, once against a team they should be evenly matched with, and once against a team that is clearly favored to win based on their rankings.

The schedule was not immediately clear, so I was hoping that Team Prim would go against the higher ranked opponents last, so they could earn a win through stamina... but no, this game will actually be the first one of the day. Primrose already told me that if she starts noticing that she has absolutely no chance in her first match, she may try to take it a little slower to preserve her energy for the more beatable second game. Personally, I don't think that this will be necessary, but let us take a closer look at tomorrow's opponents first:

Both of Team Prim's opponents in their first match-up are only slightly younger than them, and the man is only minimally above Prim in his ranking. The woman, however, is ranked quite considerably higher, at a ranking that implies a good regional level, only a few rankings below what could be considered a national level player. Not an easy task for sure...

In the second match, meanwhile, both opponents have a comparable ranking to the grindette, and the man is also at around her age... but the woman is about 13 years younger. Will youth prevail over experience? If not, this should be a quite even match-up.

That's the situation tomorrow, Team Prim will be the clear underdog in the first game, the second one should be anybody's. They may have neither the age nor the rankings on their side... but I know that they can troll.

Therefore, I am going to predict a clean sweep for Prim and her husband tomorrow. I don't care about the odds, I have a feeling that they will pull out ahead somehow. We will see tomorrow, but we wish Primrose and her hubby the best of luck!