19 for 2019

In 2018 I established 18 goals and resolutions to live by. I thought I'd do the same for 2019! 

I define a resolution as something you do a little bit each day - a small habit to change your life. I define a goal as a one-time achievable thing that you do and then it's done.

Resolutions

• See a member of my family each month
• Walk 10,000 steps per day
• Travel fearlessly
• Listen more, ask more questions
• Lift weights: develop schedule and track progress
• Get reacquainted with my recipe books and try new things
• Prep house to move; minimize, pack, intentionally decorate new home
• Play flute out in front of others more often
• Get below 160 lb. by January 31 and stay there all year
• Work outside the home once a week (library, tea shop, etc.)

Goals

• Move in summertime to south neighborhood of Chicago
• Watch all James Bond movies in order
• Make yarn fruit and veggie bowl for summer (complete by March 31)
• Make yarn veggie bowl for fall (complete by September 30)
• Read 100 books
• Submit an article to the Chronicle of Philanthropy
• Run the Shamrock Shuffle (March) in under 50 minutes
• Pass referendum for the library where I serve on the board of trustees
• Take meditation retreat with Dave

Here's to a productive and fulfilling 2019!

40 before 40

Longtime readers of this blog will remember my 30 before 30 list. The list was accomplished with mixed success, although since I turned 30 I did two things I hadn't completed by the age of 30 (get scuba certified and run a 5k). 

It's interesting to look back at that post now as a time capsule - I was on the edge of starting the job that would take me to great places in gift planning at Northwestern University, and I was feeling very thankful for everything I had in my life. (And I didn't know that the next two years would be the most challenging I had ever faced.)

I decided to create an aspirational list for my next big milestone - 40 before 40. It'll be a similar mix of fun and challenging, and will also be a good time capsule of this life era for me. (I also have six years to do it, so the list is both longer and contains some big ticket items.) 

And don't judge me that it sounds very self-centered - I am trying to list items that require me to depend on nothing and no one else, just my own actions.

Without further ado...

TRAVEL

1. Scuba dive in the ocean (Panama? Hawaii? Both?)

2. Stand in Red Square in Moscow

3. Travel to Turkey

4. Visit the Taj Mahal

5. Tour the Dana-Thomas House in Springfield, IL

FOOD

6. Eat at every taco joint on this list

7. Make chiboust

8. Eat at Calumet Fisheries

9. Eat at every Chicago restaurant on this list

10. Visit Al Bawadi Grill and The Halal Guys

HOBBIES

11. Read War and Peace

12. Crochet or knit a sweater I actually like and wear

13. Practice flute and perform someplace publicly

14. Finish the Time-Life World War II series

15. Participate again in NaNoWriMo

16. Complete wine cork tray craft project with saved up corks

HEALTH

17. Complete an Olympic distance triathlon

18. Complete a half marathon at 10 minute mile pace

19. Complete a 5k in under 30 minutes

20. Develop a meditation habit (at least 15 min. / day)

21. Get back to Salzburg weight range

CHICAGO SIGHTS

22. See a Bears game, Bulls game, and Blackhawks game

23. Visit historic Pullman neighborhood

24. Kayak in the Chicago River

25. Take another Chicago Architecture Foundation river cruise

26. Tour new yarn shops of Chicago, like Knit 1 LLC, Nina, and Sister-Arts Studio

CHARITABLE

27. Remain annual fund donor at alma mater institutions (Illinois State and DePaul Law), as well as employer (Northwestern University)

28. Give $100 to the drum bum

29. Serve on a charity's board

30. Earn a volunteer award somewhere

31. Do one race via Team in Training

PROFESSIONAL

32. Speak at a development conference or symposium

33. Author an article in the Chronicle of Philanthropy

34. Speak at DePaul Law about nontraditional legal careers

35. Figure out my next career step

MISCELLANEOUS

36. Start a diary in 2017 and keep it every day afterward

37. Watch Fail-Safe and Dr. Strangelove back to back

38. Watch Seven Samurai and eat sushi

39. Get another tattoo to expand one of my existing ones

40. At least once per month, see a member of my family

ChicAHgo

So, I took this dialogue quiz online and here were the results.

This should surprise no one.  63.9% Joliet for the closest match, and apparently Worcester, MA is my worst match.  

I wish I could see a map for the results for each individual question.  Some of them were really weird, like the day before Halloween being called "Cabbage Day?"  I did recognize Grandma's "you 'uns" in one question, though.  I have never heard anyone say that who wasn't from southwest Pennsylvania.  (I asked Grandma, what is that a contraction of?  Yeah, she couldn't answer.)

I'd be interested to see how the hubby would answer this, as he has lived in more places than I have.

Poetry o' hops

Today Slate posted an article on how the craft beer movement needs to calm down on the hops, already.  One line from the article said that hops enthusiasts "wax poetic" about the bitter little blooms, so I challenged some beer-loving friends to a poetry slam over e-mail.  Here's what we came up with.

Tom's iambic pentameter verse:

When I do taste a hops that rapes my face,

The flow of tears: one bitter, one joyful.

My haiku:

I inhale the scent

Of freshly cut juniper, 

Then taste: NO NO NO

My limerick:

Dave and I brew beer,

Yet hops I still do fear.

   They hurt my palate,

   But Dave writes ballads

And keeps a 90-minute near.

[Reference: Dogfish Head 90-minute IPA]

Tom's limerick:

I once drank a beer from Aurora,

Jam-packed with indigenous flora.

   More drinks I demanded

   Of sweet Heavy Handed,

Until carried home by Laura.

[Reference: Two Brothers Heavy Handed]

Dave's SONNET:


I wish I could but speak to him, myself
At one-and-twenty: "Listen not to lies
Of 'triple-hops' that sit upon that shelf:
Subsist no longer on water and rice!

Take this instead: a pale ale, more or less -
No ‘smoothness’ here, no ‘drinkability’ -
But what is sweetness without bitterness?
Or craft without thought; complexity?

But sip them slow, these citrus notes of spring,
Proud songs of green grasses and summer sun.
For these!  Not delicate nor forgiving,
Assault the palate; numb the novice tongue."

Much else we'd say as we two quenched our thirst,
But that would wait, for love for hops comes first.

Quote from a coworker

So far, I have loved working at Northwestern.  One of the only drawbacks is that with so many people in the department where I work, it seems like people are always coming and going.  (And the ones you wish would go are never the ones that actually go.)

Today I learned that someone I heavily rely on in the finance department is leaving.  I wrote her an e-mail wishing her congratulations, but adding that I had no idea who I was going to ask for weird questions about vendor payments.  She responded that I was sweet and thanked me, and added the following:

"I will miss your baking and the crowds you know how to gather around you."

I think I am going to remember that one forever!

Top 5 things that make Christmas Christmas

Another one from Kate Takes 5!

5. Christmas music

Call me crazy, but I do love Christmas music. Last year I had Christmas music on for about 5 hours while we re-painted our condo. I only got tired of it after they started repeating some stupid ones. But singing along to Christmas songs always puts me in the holiday spirit.

4. Christmas lights in the neighborhood

Especially colored ones, and especially the big, old kind!

3. Buying a Christmas ornament at the Christkindlmarkt

A new tradition for me is to visit the German Christmas market in the Daley Center plaza. It has a lovely tree, bratwursts for sale, and shops that sell crafts and ornaments. Most of it is too expensive for me, but I always pick up an ornament or two.

In past years, I have bought a pickle, a redbird, two mushrooms, a peacock, and a white squirrel. This year, I bought a garlic bulb and another small mushroom. Next year Dave wants a devil head. (Only the Germans.)

2. Decorating the tree

My sister and I always decorate the tree at my parents' house, and I'm happy to help Dave's parents decorate their trees on the years that we are at their house for Thanksgiving. My sister and I would make "I spy" games out of finding Christmas ornaments.

1. Christmas videos with my family

This is the big one, and it isn't Christmas without this. My mom taped a bunch of Christmas shows in the early-to-mid-1980s, and we watch it every year. The tape contains:

• Frosty the Snowman
• How the Grinch Stole Christmas
• A Charlie Brown Christmas
• A Garfield Christmas
• He-Man and She-Ra: A Christmas Special
• A Claymation Christmas Celebration
• Looney Tunes Christmas Special
• Santabear's High Flying Adventure
• Mickey's Christmas Carol

I can't even read Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol" without picturing the characters as Scrooge McDuck, Mickey Mouse, and Jiminy Cricket. The best part are the commercials, too. They just did things differently in the '80s.

Another 5 meme - gadgets

Another one from Kate Takes 5: What are your top 5 gadgets?

I almost didn't participate in this one, because there are too many gadgets that we really need these days - computers, cell phones, etc. I will go for some non-typical ones.

1. Hand mixer

I just bought this one (in chrome) to replace the old Sunbeam one that my grandma bought me as an engagement present (in 2004). I worked that thing so hard that it recently started making sad funny noises.

2. iPod Shuffle

I still have my classic clip-on shuffle, which I mostly use for working out.

3. Chest freezer

OK, this is more of an appliance and less of a gadget, but what else would I do with tons of CSA meat and veggies, plus about 150 pastry shells at the moment?

4. Wine corker

You can really tell that someone has just moved if they don't have a wine corker. My friends and I have been so desperate in such a situation that my very resourceful friend Jackie has stabbed her way into the bottle with a knife. Through the cork. Yikes.

5. Kitchen scale

I was getting to the end of this list and was having trouble coming up with a final one, and even though my list is already kitchen-heavy, I have to put this on there because it has so improved the way I cook. What is two pounds of potatoes? Now I know! And I just do not think that I would have been able to can as prolifically as I do without it.

* Some astute readers of my food blog may remember that I did just purchase a food processor, but I do not think that I use it more than the other ones, and I was able to go without it for so long.

Cornucopia

I've got some great yarn project photos coming up, but I thought I'd post something fun that I finished for my fall decor:

This is a felt kit that was kind of labor intensive. The kit comes with the felt pieces, sequins, and patterns. You have to cut the felt pieces from a template, sew on the sequins, sew the pieces together and stuff, then sew the whole thing together.

It is the first one of these kits that I've made, and it took me a few months, so I don't know if I'd do another one unless it was really cute like this one. But look, it looks just like the photo on the kit!

I admit, I did use hot glue to assemble the finished pieces, but other than that it was all sewing. My goal was to finish this thing by Thanksgiving, so I'm happy!

30 before 30

A friend of mine recently blogged about 30 things she'd like to do before reaching the age of 30. I thought it was a neat idea, and since she and I are about the same age, I thought I'd make a list of my own.

1. Learn from my mom how to sew quilts.

2. Give $100 to the drum bum.

3. Go to a concert, either Decemberists or Fleet Foxes.

4. Take my first trip to New York City.

5. Get back to my Salzburg weight (about 5-10 more pounds).

6. Do another 5K, but this time run the whole thing.

7. Get a raise.

8. Decorate our living room in fabulous mod pieces a la "Mad Men."

9. Do another painting.

10. Get rid of half-finished craft projects I've totally lost interest in.

11. Eat at every top-five burger restaurant in Chicago on this list.

12. Buy Rosetta Stone for German and brush up on mein Deutsch.

13. Donate blood.

14. Buy an original piece of artwork.

15. Write letters to my immediate family telling them why I love them.

16. Learn how to pop a champagne cork.

17. Paint at least one room of my new home a fabulous, strong color.

18. Get scuba-certified.

19. Cook a boeuf bourguignon, Julia Child-style.

20. Donate my hair again.

21. Give away at least one bridesmaid dress to The Glass Slipper Project.

22. Train for, raise $1,800, and complete the Avon 2-Day Walk (already signed up).

23. Brew my own mead and beer.

24. Buy my first full-size Christmas tree.

25. Watch "Halloween," "Friday the 13th," and "Nightmare on Elm Street" for the first time.

26. Pare my Goodreads "to read" book list down to below 70 (currently at 99).

27. Execute powers of attorney for property and health care.

28. Get my resume website up and running.

29. Get acupuncture.

30. Eat a type of animal I've never had before (ostrich, alligator, etc.).

I guess I need to update my readers (a.k.a. Mom and Diane) on my progress (and hopefully success!) on April 1, 2012!

New blog!

Faithful readers may be interested to know that I began a new blog, Muddle a Mint Sprig, which is devoted to the exploration of recipes in my huge stack of cookbooks. Beginning with Better Homes and Gardens, I'm cooking and chronicling every recipe in my cookbooks. It might take years, but years I've got.

The blog you are reading now will continue as normal; I just thought that constant posting about recipes from my cookbooks might start to overshadow the stories, rants, tributes, and thoughts that have characterized this blog, so I should start another one.

Enjoy!

I want one.

Some people may fear three and a half stone bunnies, but I do not.

I want to own a bunny this big, throw huge heads of lettuce at it, and run away before it gnaws my leg off. Awesome.

Apparently this woman owns the two largest rabbits in the world - what is she feeding them, radioactive carrots?

What's THAT smell?!

Here is the much-awaited bunny volunteer day post, for those of you who have been eagerly awaiting news of the 180 bunnies confiscated in Watseka (being held in Chicago Heights).

Here is me, holding literally the biggest bunny I have ever seen

My law buddy Tiffany went with me to volunteer at the South Suburban Humane Society, where they are holding the 180 rabbits confiscated from a weirdo who was keeping them in a barn.

The trip down was pretty funny, since Tiffany hasn't been south of the Loop for a while. When we started encountering some pretty strong factory stenches, Tiffany said, "What is that smell?" Then five minutes later, "Now, what is THAT smell?!" To which I could only say one thing... "South Side!"

We hung out at the shelter for a few hours, cleaning cages and floors. We also got to socialize with some bunnies, which was obviously our favorite part. There were big bunnies and small bunnies and soft bunnies and, well, bunnies we couldn't touch because they have worms.

Amazingly, the bunnies were mostly very well-behaved, and extremely relaxed after their ordeal. As soon as we cleaned their cages, the bunnies went to sleep (or started attacking the fresh paper).

(In the top photo, I'm holding a 15 lb. Californian; at left, Tiffany's holding a regular old 6-7 lb. Siamese; at bottom, I'm holding a 2 lb. silver fox dwarf. Keep in mind that my own bunnies are around 5 lb.)

All in all, we cleaned about 12-14 cages for about 32 rabbits. The shelter staff was pretty happy about our presence there - and we hope the bunnies were, too.

Me and the tiniest bunny ever

So, mostly that was our day. I felt really good about helping the bunnies, who really needed some affection and some clean cages. The shelter is very good about cleaning the cages every day, but the poop is simply overwhelming with so many bunnies in one place.

After that, Dave and I met up with Julie, Jamison, Alex, Kate, and Julie's mom for a special ISU alumni viewing of Body Worlds 2, which was an amazing exhibit and one which convinces you of three things: (1) I don't want to die fat, (2) I don't want to smoke, and (3) I don't want to inhale coal dust.

So, that was our day - for more photos of the bunny volunteering, click here!

And now for bed. It's pretty bad when you enter your home, see two bunnies, and think, "Why are there only two?" I will be jaded about bunnies forever - there could be a pile of 179 of them, and I can say, "Ehh, I've seen more." I wish those little guys the best.

Photoshop Fun

Scalia and Thomas, together forever.

Alphabet soup

Took an online quasi-Myers-Briggs personality test that Dave told me about - he's an INFP, which is what I was the first time I took this test in freshman year of college. I have apparently since changed into an ESFJ, and the descriptions online were pretty dead-on.

In summation: since college, I now 1) care what people think of me, 2) enjoy hosting parties, and 3) am driven to succeed. Yeah, sounds about right...

ESFJ - the Provider Guardian

Guardians of birthdays, holidays and celebrations, ESFJs are generous entertainers. They enjoy and joyfully observe traditions and are liberal in giving, especially where custom prescribes.

All else being equal, ESFJs enjoy being in charge. They see problems clearly and delegate easily, work hard and play with zest. ESFJs, as do most SJs, bear strong allegiance to rights of seniority. They willingly provide service (which embodies life's meaning) and expect the same from others.

ESFJs are easily wounded. And when wounded, their emotions will not be contained. They by nature "wear their hearts on their sleeves," often exuding warmth and bonhomie, but not infrequently boiling over with the vexation of their souls.

Providers are extremely sensitive to the feelings of others, which makes them perhaps the most sympathetic of all the types, but which also leaves them rather self-conscious, that is, highly sensitive to what others think of them. Because of this Providers can be crushed by personal criticism, and will work most effectively when given ample appreciation both for themselves personally and for the service they give to others. This is not to say that Providers are afraid to express their own emotional reactions. They are quick to like and dislike-and don't mind saying so-tending to put on a pedestal whatever or whoever they admire, and to come down hard on those people and issues they don't care for.

Strong, contradictory forces consume the ESFJ. Their sense of right and wrong wrestles with an overwhelming rescuing, 'mothering' drive. This sometimes results in swift, immediate action taken upon a transgressor, followed by stern reprimand; ultimately, however, the prodigal is wrested from the gallows of their folly, just as the noose tightens and all hope is lost, by the very executioner!

As caretakers, ESFJs sense danger all around - germs within, the elements without, unscrupulous malefactors, insidious character flaws. The world is a dangerous place, not to be trusted. Not that the ESFJ is paranoid; 'hyper-vigilant' would be more precise. And thus they serve excellently as protectors, outstanding in fields such as medical care and elementary education.

A fun political quiz

Here's a fun political quiz to take - very short, only 10 questions.

I scored as a centrist, bordering on libertarian. I think I have actually taken this quiz before, with similar results. Is anyone surprised?