Currently - April '15

Linking up with In Residence and Dearest Love for this month's quick look at what I've been wearing, sipping, wishlisting, writing and exploring.

All of last week I wore my glasses due to a case of pink eye that started in my right eye and moved to my left one. The last time I had pink eye was probably in elementary school; I didn't think that adults got pink eye! As of yesterday though, I am back in my contacts and I am enjoying having peripheral vision again.

I sipped on eleven different types of beer at Wild Wolf Brewery last weekend on an overnight trip back to Charlottesville. My favorites were Blonde Hunny, which I'd had before and the Strawberry Schwarzcake. Keizo's favorite was the Wee Heavy. I found the rest of the beers in the sampler either too light or strangely reminiscent of other foods like sesame seeds and dashi (broth for dipping cold soba noodles).

We've been looking for a counter height dining table for almost a month now, without much success. The ones we've found are either too big for the space or the budget. There are a few places left to browse, but I'd like to make a decision soon. We also rearranged the living room furniture to create more distinct 'zones.' I like the result, but think the right rug would really help pull it all together.

My work tasks have all been heavy on the writing lately - multiple reports, a monthly newsletter etc. so I haven't been writing much more than a grocery list at home. Letter writing and blogging are two of my on-going goals that I would like to get back into this month.

Two weeks ago, Keizo and I met my friend Scott to watch UVA lose to Michigan State in the second round of March Madness. It was a disappointing two hours, even more so because it was a beautiful day outside. We redeemed the afternoon by jumping on bike share and exploring the Georgetown Waterfront and biking over to the Jefferson Memorial. Bikes are a great way to explore that part of town, and I am already looking forward to more adventures as the weather continues to improve.

New Recipes: February

I am writing this post just before lunch, and it's making me pretty hungry. I hope you can find some delicious inspiration from this month's recipes too.

A 2 for $4 mango special helped inspire these Fish Tacos with Mango Salsa Verde from Cooking Light. I think fish tacos are a great weeknight meal because they come together quickly with minimal effort and are quite satisfying without being heavy. The mango salsa verde was a yummy addition, and I added a bit of sriracha mayo for a little tangy heat.

Making these Peanutty No-Bake Truffles from BH&G was my attempt at making something festive for Valentine's Day. They were not the most beautiful chocolates I have ever seen, but they were rich and tasty. I have some assorted leftover ingredients and have been thinking about making a hybrid peanut butter/chocolate version soon.

Black Bean, Corn & Turkey Soup (link to a similar recipe). This was another meal from the several freezer-crock pot dishes I brought home back in January. In this one, the turkey was pre-cooked, which reduced the cooking time to only 1-2 hours on high instead of all day. The first round was a little bland, but nothing some extra hot sauce couldn't fix. The reheated leftovers the next day were much better. Served with tortilla chips, and gobbled up in its entirety both times without a photo.

I can't take any credit for this last recipe, but it's been a long time since the second betsu bara has been featured on here. Keizo made a batch of Secret Nishiura Family Recipe Pickled Onions this past week, which we enjoyed along with fried rice and as a flavorful addition to my regular lunchtime salads.

I find myself wanting to repeat a lot of old standby recipes lately--maybe it's the cold weather we've been having, or just wanting dinner to come together quickly--but it's going to require a little more effort to find some new things to try in March.

Me + Chocolate = Forever

There really is no time when chocolate is very far from my mind, but Valentine's Day is a wonderful excuse to indulge even more than usual. 

While I would generally refrain from keeping chocolate in my desk at work, I was in a festive mood and decided to pick some up during my usual grocery run last week. I headed to the "seasonal" aisle of my local grocery store, and was very confused when I found a lot of green, yellow and lavender marshmallow animals lined up on the shelves. Seriously, this was almost a week before Valentine's Day and all of the pink and red-wrapped candies had already been consolidated into a smaller section at the front of the store that until recently had been occupied with broken candy canes. 

As if the prominently displayed Easter candy wasn't enough, I also noticed some patio furniture stacked on top of the dairy cases in the back of the store. Considering the temperature has been in the single digits lately, I think the whole store is getting a little too far ahead of the calendar...

Purchasing pre-made chocolate wasn't enough for me this year, so last Friday I decided to try my hand at making some truffles. I went back to the store, where my basket ended up as the picture of health, with Nutter Butters, Oreos, two kinds of chocolate chips, agave syrup, peanut butter and some hazelnut spread (not actually for the truffles, but I had just finished a jar and it fit nicely with the teeth-rotting, flab-inducing theme of my basket).

I followed the "Peanutty" and "Indulgent Chocolate" variations of this No-Bake Truffle recipe with a decent amount of success, if I may say so myself. The crumb setting on my blender did a nice job reducing the cookies to dust, and after that everything else just gets dumped in a bowl and mixed together. 

I didn't have any trouble rolling the mixture into balls, but I did choose to give them a quick rest in the freezer before dipping them in melted chocolate. 

The dipping part was definitely a little messy, and the coatings were far from perfectly smooth. I topped the peanut butter ones with appropriately colored peanut butter M&Ms and stuck them back in the fridge to set.

I packed up a bunch of truffles to take to dinner at a friend's house on Saturday. They made for an indulgent after-dinner treat. At two (or three) bites a piece, these truffles are pretty rich even for this chocoholic. I don't do a very good job of savoring them as I am eating, and then regret it later when I have eaten too many all at once. This is all to say I should be sharing more of the leftovers, but they're so good I just want to hoard them for myself.

Currently - Feb '15

It's time for another Currently link up with Anne and Jenna. 

I've been in a bit of a funk this week, but I am "hearting" that we are one day closer to the weekend! I am also "hearting" the new mattress I finally invested in last month after 3.5 years of sleeping on a futon. The whole experience has been rather similar to when I got glasses in 7th grade -- I had no idea what I'd been missing!

I recently finished the novel, The Marriage Plot by Jeffery Eugenides, and started two non-fiction books: How to Win Friends and Influence People and Seabiscuit. The Marriage Plot was a good read, although I did not appreciate the lack of chapter breaks in the prose. Without natural stopping places to guide me, I was able to finish the book much faster overall, but each "session" was much longer than my usual 15-20 minutes before going to sleep.

I picked up my copy of How to Win Friends and Influence People at a used bookstore, and I had no idea how long it has been in circulation! While I am sure the principles still apply today, some of the text is a bit dated. I have set it down at least temporarily after reading a paragraph in which the author explains that he only knows of two people making over $1 million a year, surely a direct result of their incomparable people skills! There might be something to that, but I have moved on to a book that is actually intended to be historical. I've learned a lot about Seabiscuit and the sport of horse racing despite being only about a quarter of the way through the book. I am thankful for the regular breaks in the text and the occasional picture, and in awe of the talent and pure grit exhibited by the main characters.

I only joined Pinterest a few months ago, and will often ignore it during the week. It has been inspirational in helping me get rid of some clutter, and I have recently been pinning images of gallery wall ideas to help add more personality to my otherwise very standard looking apartment.

I rediscovered miso soup this week after picking up some take-out sushi on my way home yesterday. I used to make it pretty regularly as part of my dinner when I lived in Japan, and it's a nice way to warm up on a winter's evening.

On the other end of the temperature spectrum, I have been enjoying Whole Food's house brand gelato as though it were 28*C outside instead of 28*F. I've tried the Salted Caramel and Hazelnut flavors, and I would be hard pressed to choose a favorite between the two.

Keizo will be coming to visit in just two weeks, in what we hope will be his last annual, post-rugby season trip! He's been making these trips since his very first trip to the US in February/March 2010, but I really hope to put an end to the tradition later this year when he gets his visa and can relocate more permanently. I haven't planned much of anything yet, but there are plenty of places in my neighborhood and beyond that I am looking forward to taking him to, as well as spending some quality time hanging out at home in our sweatpants.

Thanks for reading!

New Recipes: January

Even though I am already looking forward to spring, I can't quite believe that February is here already! January was busy in a good way with more outings with friends, some time and effort spent organizing my apartment, and stepping up my running routine for my first 10K in March. So far, signing up for that race has done exactly what I'd hoped - helped focus my workouts and, to a lesser extent, my eating habits (isn't the whole point of exercising more so you can eat more?) Here are the new recipes I tried this month:

Tuscan Tuna Mac Casserole

A fancy twist on mac-n-cheese with crusty panko topping, this was a warm and tasty dish. I substituted the almond milk I had on hand for the dairy milk called for in the recipe, which resulted in a thinner sauce. I think dairy milk would help make this dish a bit more filling. The recipe says it serves eight, but it was closer to 4-5 dinner sized servings for me. I also think a nice, melty cheese like cheddar or mozarella would be a nice substitute for the fontina. Writing about it makes me want to make this again...right now! 

Cilantro Lime Crock-pot Chicken (similar recipe)

A few weeks ago, before the arrival of my cousin's baby, I joined my aunt and cousins to help assemble six different crock-pot freezer meals. I was lucky enough to bring home 1/2 recipes of all of them, and I put this one to use right away! The best parts were the delicious aroma and the convenience, and a 1/2 recipe was plenty for several, single person meals. Despite using what seemed like a ton of cilantro and lime juice during assembly, I think this recipe would be improved by reserving some of the cilantro until the end of the cooking time and by adding more lime juice.

Butternut Squash Soup (similar recipe)

This might be the winning recipe from this month. Like most people, I spent the first ten or so days of January cutting back on sweets and trying to eat more vegetables, but by mid-month I wasn't following any kind of plan anymore. I chose this soup to help me reset.

Butternut squash can be kind of a pain to prepare with all of the peeling and chopping, but in this instance it was part of the reset process. It was nice to be back in the kitchen, preparing something I knew was good for me, and even better to be rewarded with a soup that continued to improve as I ate the leftovers.

Lemon Thyme Chicken

This recipe is another example of where I felt really good about the "making" part of it. After traveling for work Monday - Tuesday, and eating out on Wednesday, I buckled down after work on Thursday. I ran errands on my way home, knocked out two miles on the treadmill, put the chicken in the oven and finished my strength training while it baked (if only everyday were this productive!) This recipe came together really easily, the chicken was not overcooked, and while flavorful, I have plans to use the leftovers in a several different dishes - over pasta, chopped on a salad, in a soup etc.

I also did some baking this month - carrot cake and coffee cake - but neither recipe impressed me enough to be included here. Both came out drier than I prefer, probably from over baking. After having to add baking time to most recipes, I've concluded that my oven runs a little cool. I've started to compensate by adding a few degrees when I preheat, but it will probably take a few more tries to get it just right.

Currently - Jan '15

Last week got pretty busy at work, with even more time spent staring at a computer screen than usual. I know my eyes and brain appreciated the break in the evenings, but I am disappointed to have missed the "Currently" link-up with Anne and Jenna this month. Better late than never, here's what I've been up to of late: 

...to run my first 10K on March 1, provided the ground isn't completely covered in ice or other wintery precipitation.  I have a training plan taped to my fridge, but I have only gotten in about half of the prescribed workouts for the first two weeks.

...the work project I spent 20+ hours formatting last week doesn't need any revisions. With my track record though, maybe I won't be the one asked to do them.

...carrot cake. I was excited to try out a recipe my mom gave me over Christmas, but the second step called for three ingredients that were not included in the list above the instructions. I pulled out another cookbook and found a very similar recipe that made a dozen cupcakes for a dinner get-together and a single 9" round cake to take into work the next day.

...low heeled ankle boots. They go with skirts/tights as well as pants for work and keep my feet warmer than my usual flats and wedges. I've started looking for a second pair to put into the rotation for the cold months ahead.

...to continue working on my 30 before 30 list and general monthly goals. I am also trying to be more decisive and act on items from both my to-do and want-to lists.

30 before 30: 12 month report

Happy New Year! I hope everyone's 2015 is off to a great start! 

A year ago, I finalized my "30 before 30" list and created a page for it on this lil' blog.  I also proclaimed "I will be crossing off items as I finish them"  and "assessing my progress every six months." And just like June, I haven't really done the first part of that, but the six month check-ins are there for a reason, so let's get to it.

As the daughter of two lawyers I feel obliged to start with the following disclaimer: my deadline for completing this list is December 31, 2015.  Technically this three months and seven days after my 30th birthday, but who's counting anyway?

Blog
1. Edit labels - 12/2014 - Not so much editing as figuring out how to make them a look a bit neater, but that was mostly what I was going for anyway.

4. Photo site --> Post 1X/week* - As in June, I am allowing myself to edit one goal.  I've been trying to streamline my digital life by unsubscribing to offer e-mails, unfollowing blogs I don't consistently read and enjoy, and generally avoiding facebook, so starting a photo site didn't really make sense.  As an added bonus, this is now a two-fer goal!*

Cooking
6. Bake bread from scratch - Chocolate Almond Swirl 4/2014

8. Try 5 new/unusual foods - (2/5 - chipotle chiles in adobo sauce 10/2014, dragon fruit 12/2014 ) This one is actually harder than I thought it would be; I guess I know what I like and stick to it. Neither of the foods above is terribly exotic, but I had a hard time finding the chipotle chiles (and had no idea they came in the sauce) and I got pick the dragon fruit right off of the cactus, which I think should count for something.

9. New recipe 1X/week* - (33/52 - 2014)  I am really satisfied with this number! And very glad that I have started blogging about them every month, because there were definitely not that many blue circles on my wall calendar. 

Fitness
10. Run color/electric race - (Rainbow Rush "5K" 5/2014) This race was sponsored by an arts collective, started 20-30 minutes late, and was really only half as long as it was supposed to be. I went mostly for the experience of running through clouds of colored cornstarch, so at least that part went as planned.

14. Yoga 1X/week - (33/52 - 2014) While there is certainly some room for improvement here, yoga at least every other week is much better than than little or no yoga at all.

Personal Growth
17. Attend 2  professional conferences - (2/2 - National Women's Bicycle Bicycling Forum 3/2014; Safe Routes to School National Partnership Regional Meeting 10/2014) Both of these events were a bit different than the average professional conference, but then again, the growing field of active transportation planning (bicycle and pedestrian planning) is a bit different than other fields.  At the Women's Bicycling forum, I heard inspirational stories from female bicycle advocates, competitive cyclists and the CEO's of companies that manufacture and sell bicycle-related projects.  It was really interesting to see bicycling from the non-infrastructure perspective. Mark Fenton was the keynote speaker at the Safe Routes to School Regional Meeting, and hearing him speak seems like a requirement for anyone in my field, so that was pretty cool.

18. Find & commit to a regular volunteer opportunity - (Girl Scout Troop 788 Cookie Manager/Volunteer 1-6/2014) These girls, and my fantastic, fearless co-leaders are some of the things I miss the most about leaving Charlottesville.  Sure, we crammed an insane amount of stuff into one semester (seriously, cookies alone kept us busy for three months) but it was really fun, and fascinating to be around a bunch of 5th graders. Are they kids? Teenagers? Whatever they are at any given moment will be sure to change in the next 30 seconds.

19. Read 12 non-fiction books - (5/12 - Consumer's Guide to Effective Environmental Choices, Visual Display of Quantitative Information, Bikenomics, Blink, At Home) I feel like there's another one to add to the list, but I can't place it at the moment.  Oh well.  

20. Donate blood - (7/2014) Of all the goals on this list, this might be the one I most proud of so far.  I was really nervous walking from my office to the little conference center where the donation room had been set up. The finger prick hurt A LOT, and I had to avert my eyes most of the time but I survived and will likely donate again anytime its as easy as walking across the street.

Relationships
21. Plan wedding - (I now have 3 bridal magazines in my possession, and I joined Pinterest 11/2014) A year later, this goal and the next goal seem out of order. Read more below.

22. Get married - (Engaged 8/29/2014; Fiance visa paperwork filed 10/2014) Yes, I am trying to just casually slip in the fact that Keizo proposed in August, and I have never posted about it on any form of social media. I tried to let everyone closest to me know over the phone, and I hope no one feels left out if you are just learning about it here.  Maybe its selfish to keep such exciting news a relative secret, but honestly I find it much harder to be engaged to someone 8,000 miles away than just date him (even if it's been headed this direction for a while). There are so many questions we don't have the answers to yet: 'When will he be here?' 'When/where will you get married?' 'What will he do here?' and believe me, I wish I knew. The hardest is 'What do his parents think?' because I honestly have no earthly idea, and really worry about how often Keizo will be able to see them after he moves here. 

Here's the gist of it looking ahead: Last we heard, the application for Keizo's fiance visa was received by the processing center in Texas.  Once it is reviewed, they will forward it to the US Embassy in Tokyo, where he will go for an interview and have a medical exam. After he gets his visa and arrives in the US, we will have 90 days to get married.  After we're wed, he will apply for a "change in status" i.e. a green card so he can get a job. The current train of thought is a small civil ceremony with my immediate family shortly after he arrives, and a bigger reception at a location yet to be determined down the road.

24. Write letter 1X/week* - (37/52 - 2014)  I confess to beefing up this total with the 16 Christmas cards I wrote in December, but again this is something that I do manage to do slightly more often than I make note of on the calendar.

Travel 
Blergh! I hate that I don't have anything to show in this category yet.  There was definitely not as much travel as in 2013 for several reasons, but now that I have a job squared away it will be a bit easier to budget funds and paid time off for some adventures in 2015.

*Monthly Goals (Two-fers)

Exercise for at least 30 minutes 5X/week (162/260 - 62%) I set this goal thinking that 30 minutes was very achievable and I would work out more often. I logged 192 workouts in 2013, so my logic didn't exactly hold up. In my defense, I couldn't find my calendar among the moving boxes to record any workouts for most of August or September...

Cook a new recipe 1X/week (33/52 - 63%) I am still rather impressed with myself for this one! I wonder if this rate will increase when Keizo is living here; we will be consuming more food, and perhaps cooking more often thus more opportunities to try out new things?

Blog 1X/week (29/52 - 55%) This one turned out better than I thought it would. I will probably never have another 2011 with 93 posts (seriously, wow) but I would like to be in the 40's next year.

Write a letter 1X/week (37/52 - 71%) Including 16 Christmas cards in this count feels even more like cheating when I see the percentages, but they were all handwritten with personal messages. I think this year I will amend this goal to "Write a letter or call a faraway friend 1X/week."

Do something interesting/new 1X/week (5/52 -10%) I will be the first to admit that I have taken to staying in on these dark, cold evenings but I know I did more than the five "interesting" things I happened to record in 2014. Especially living in a new city with a ton of free things to do, I have no excuse not to dramatically improve this number in 2015. I think making a DC bucket list might help, but I also need to come up with a better tracking system.