A Year In Review

Three hundred and sixty four days ago I turned forty-nine and started this blog. The whole aim of the blog was to set myself a challenge that, while doing, would prevent me from slipping into a 'woe is me--I'm so old' mentality. And on that, I can say I succeeded. No, I didn't hit the magical number of fifty in all my categories. And I'm okay with that. My challenge, my grading scale.

To summarize:

I read way beyond my targeted fifty books, although I nowhere near hit twenty-five classics. Classics are time consuming. Sometimes very beautifully descriptive, but not a quick read. It can take them a whole chapter describing what a meadow looks like, and I must admit my mind wanders a bit to my grocery list, or some other task that needs doing. I also discovered speed reading the Bible is probably not likely to confer upon one wisdom and spiritual enlightenment. I proceed along with this at a more prayerful and respectful pace.

I have truly enjoyed visiting new places. The sense of curiosity I felt as I ventured into a new place was, in a way, childlike. And it didn't matter if it was a gift store or a restaurant or a hiking trail. It was new to me and I delighted in the discovery.

In the foods eaten category--I did my best. The difficulty came in trying to find something new to try. I wanted to try foie gras, but couldn't find a restaurant nearby that served it. I have to admit, in my kitchen right now is tofu (no I've never eaten it), seaweed (had sushi maybe once) and sake. Even if I went right now and sampled those three, I still would not reach the fifty. But hey, I tried. And I know that in the future, I will say yes to weird foods, as long as they are gluten free. And not too stomach turning. I mean, really, there's a sense of adventure and then there's just plain disgusting.

The things learned category was actually the hardest to quantify. I suppose I could go to the dictionary right now and find a handful of words I didn't know and top off the list, but what's the point? What I discovered is that as long as you push yourself into uncharted territory, learning happens. I didn't know last October that I would be a chicken owner. All the learning involved with that alone I feel allows me to say sure, I've learned fifty things.

And now onto contests. I see these contests in magazines and hear about them on the radio, and
wonder, does anyone ever really win any of those? And the answer to that is YES. I have known people who have entered and won contests. I haven't personally, but I have come close. And so it is with great humility that I announce that I was a finalist in the Vlasic Pickle contest. And the winner of $100. I found out this morning, and what a fitting and slightly weird way to end this year.

For those of you who have stuck it out with me on this journey, I thank you and ask you to check back to this site in the future. I haven't yet determined what direction to take the blog, but you all will be the first to know. Till then keep dancing.

Dashing Toward the Finish Line

Birthday countdown is rushing toward single digits and I am scrambling to complete the lists. I may not be successful but I'm going down fighting.

I have recently sampled Arugula and some Trader Joe's baby greens. How did I miss the Arugula craze? I must have spent the last decade in a cave. I liked it okay, no big drum roll, though. The baby greens made for a cute salad, and really, don't we love it when our food is cute?

We journeyed over the mountain to the far eastern side of the state to visit family and along the way went to quite a few places I have never been.

We went rollerskating and I channeled my inner fifteen year old. What a blast to feel the breeze in my face as I gained confidence and sped up. It was possible I looked like a fool, but guess what? One of the few things that is good about getting older is the worry about what people will think of me is practically nonexistent. I had fun and that's all that mattered.

We spent the next morning across the state line in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho. We walked the longest floating boardwalk, browsed some of the cool shops, and ate lunch at the Bonsai Bistro. Thank you Bonsai for the extensive gluten free choices. Eating out can truly be a pain when you're gluten free, and having a restaurant understand this is a blessing. On the way back, we spotted a nut factory and zipped off the freeway to check it out. This was my kind of day. No real schedule, no plan, just wander where you want and go into any place that catches your eye. Perfect.

The next day our daughter-in-law took me to one of the best places on the planet. Greenbluff. It is an area of around thirty farms in an easy driving loop, that feature gift shops, U-pick orchards and farmstands. I could have spent the entire day or even week exploring and spreading my oh-so-endless stack of cash around to as many of them as possible. Thank you, Sarah. This may have been a new place visited for me, but I guarantee I will be back.