Currently - December '18

I just got back from a trip to sunny Florida, where it did not feel like December at all (sigh). But now that I'm back in the land of bare trees, heavy coats, and cold toes, I wanted to capture my thoughts about the last month of 2018.

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gifting - I'm looking forward to treating myself to a few things, but otherwise it's going to be a quiet Christmas around here. My family is very generous, but we're not big shoppers. Instead, we're all gifting each other the ease of not exchanging presents this year and will have a belated celebration during our next family vacation in May 2019 (destination TBD).

baking - Some of my favorite Xmas cookies and tweaking the recipe for No-Knead Bread with yummy mix-ins like kalamata olives and subbing in whole wheat flour for all-purpose. Unlike the summer months, having the oven on these days makes the kitchen the coziest place in the house to hang out in!

singing - In addition to the seasonal music that's just about everywhere, I've been listening to and singing along with Jason Mraz's "Have It All" a few mornings a week. The generous message and lines like "may you be as fascinating as a slap bracelet | may you keep the chaos and the clutter off your desk," help get the day started off right.

mailing - It's high time to get started on the New Year's cards we send each year, but in the meantime, I am loving the cards coming in from friends with photos of their growing families and funny messages.

decorating - Only a few things this year, as we're not hosting my parents and brother as we have the past two years. The tree will not be making an appearance, but the lights are up in the front windows, there's a garland on the TV stand, festive towels in the kitchen and bathroom, and mini-tree centerpiece in the middle of the dining room table.

Currently - October '18

I don't really like starting every one of these posts with a "holy cow, it's already [month]!" vibe, but seriously, how are there only three months left in 2018? Things have been particularly busy at work lately, and Keizo has been working most Saturdays so we end up trying to squeeze a lot in on our shared day off on Sunday.

wearing - I've had switching my closet from summer to fall on my to-do list since mid-September, but it continues to be in the 80's here on a regular basis. Bored with the clothes I've been wearing all summer, I've started pulling a few things out piece by piece from the fall box. Hopefully consistently cooler weather will arrive in the next week or so and I can complete the switch.

collecting - I'm trying not to collect as much these days; we should probably have a yard sale to unload the stuff we've been collecting in storage unit that came with the apartment.

making - Chili and homemade bread for the friends that joined us for dinner last night. Both dishes were "firsts" of the season; chili hasn't been on the menu for a while, and the oven has been off limits since using it will heat up the whole apartment.

taking - On a new role at work as the result of a promotion and some personnel changes. I've been asked to consult on more projects and went to an interview for a new project last week. It's both fun and stressful at the same time.

planning - Activities for those free Sundays, which quickly fill up since there are only so many in a month. Last week it was hiking, this week was shopping and cleaning before friends came over for dinner, next week it's a bikes-n-beer tour, and we have plans for a short camping trip at the end of the month!

Currently - September '18

I'm currently starting to wonder what I should make for dinner, so this introduction is going to be even shorter than usual.

starting - Somehow it's already mid-September, so I'm starting to worry about needing to study for the AICP exam in November. The actual studying has yet to begin, unless you count the half-day prep class I took last year. Maybe tomorrow...

buying - A new carry-on suitcase, since after almost a decade of traveling together, my hot pink rollerboard is starting to come apart. Not wanting to get stranded mid-trip with a suitcase sans handle or wheels, I ordered a similar one and it arrived just in time to take on next week's work trip to Baton Rouge.

sharing - A bit about my Pitzer College experience with prospective students as an alumni interviewer. In this new-to-me role, I've had great conversations with two very bright students which made me a little nostalgic for my college days, but mostly relieved not to be a high school student these days!

reading - Two books I've picked up lately and would recommend are The Longest Date: Life as a Wife by Cindy Chupack and We Were Eight Years in Power: An American Tragedy by Ta-Nehisi Coates. The first is an amusing, yet heartfelt reflection on marriage while the second is a collection of Coates' essays on race and the black experience for the The Atlantic during the Obama years.

recording - Progress on my goals for 2018 in my last post here.

2018 Goals: 4 months left!

I began thinking about this post in May or June as a way to check-in on my goals for the year at the halfway point, and was a little discouraged by the lack of measurable progress at that point. By waiting two months, I have more to report and a better vision for the rest of the year. Patience is a virtue, I suppose! Read the original post here.

2018 Goals

Visit Japan - We did it! This trip deserves a post of its own, but who knows when that will happen.  It took nearly 30 hours of travel plus an unplanned night in Osaka before we made it to Keizo's parents' house in Tokushima, then after a few nights with them, we took the train to the city where his sister lives, then back to his parents' before heading south to Fukuoka, the city where we met. We fit in some sightseeing and revisited a few of our favorite places, but hands down the best part was being able to spend time with people we see so rarely.

Read more than 27 books - As of today, I've finished 16 and have a few in progress. I was expecting to read more on our trip than I did, but have been making it a point to plan fewer activities and read more on the weekends since we've been back.

Train for and complete a half marathon - In a previous draft of this post, I had written about coming home from vacation excited to work on this goal. And I was inspired by a month of a lot of eating and not a lot of exercising to get back into a routine (and my clothes). However, with August being a terrible time to start running again and waking up to aching feet the mornings after even short runs, this goal no longer seems worth pursing right now. I'm still trying to run twice a week, but I'm not worrying about distance or time.

On a more fun note, I have a new bike (and my first pair of clippy-shoes) that I know will get lots of use!

Apply for and pass AICP exam - My application was accepted, and I've paid a small fortune to reserve my spot for the exam right before Thanksgiving. Now I guess I have to actually begin studying! Since this isn't exactly the most fun goal to work towards, breaking the process down into baby steps with multiple calendar reminders and an application due date right before our trip helped a lot - hitting submit felt so good after years of procrastinating!


Monthly Goals

• Try a new restaurant - (8) Blue Duck Tavern, Tail Up Goat, Lina's, Tico, Indigo, Tortas Tacos and Tequila, Shouk, Purple Patch

• Host a meal at our house - (5) Kimchi Nabe / Olympics Opening Ceremony, Ramen Night, St. Patrick's Day Brunch, Easter Breakfast, Brunch w/ cousins

• Do a project around the house - (2 complete, started on several...) Rug for bedroom - done; bought more houseplants and have mostly found homes for them; bought canvases for DIY art - still in plastic; made hexagonal shelves - sitting in the closet; new comforter purchased, but still a bit too warm to use.

• Volunteer - (4) City Blossoms School Yard Garden, iCanShine bike camp, alumni interviewer, plans for more gardening

• Visit a museum - (4) Renwick Gallery, National Museum of African American History and Culture, National Capital Trolley Museum, Freer Sackler Art Gallery

Weekly

• Work on blog post - For someone who struggles to publish even one short post a month, this is a pretty ambitious goal. I need a break from the computer in the evenings after spending almost all of my day at work in front of one, and I almost always underestimate the time it takes to put together a decent post. I would like to document more of our travel and return to this blog's roots with some recipe posts, but it's hard for me to make blogging a priority.

• Go to the gym - Our early gym dedication waned entirely once the weather got warmer and the days got longer. I've been back a few times this past month, and will probably go more consistently as it gets colder and darker, but unless there's a really good deal when it comes time to renew, my gym days are probably numbered.

Currently - August '18

After traveling for most of July, my last week or so has been spent trying to get back to my normal routines: work, chores, exercising, and joining the monthly "Currently" link-up a few days late. :-) Please stop by Anne's blog to see what others are up to this month.

Naruto, Japan

following - I'm not sure that completing one workout from a 12-week half marathon training plan really counts as following, but I intend to complete many more and finish my first half at the Baltimore Running Festival in October.

ordering - To help with the goal outlined above, I'll need some new shoes, running and otherwise. My feet have been letting me know they're not so happy walking around in flats and flat sandals with zero arch support; any recommendations for non-running shoes with good arch support would be appreciated!

pinning - "Vegetable-forward" recipes and houseplant collections; too bad we have very little natural light in our apartment.

watching - Just finished all the episodes of Jane the Virgin available on Netflix, including the shocking ending of Season 4! I have my fingers crossed that Season 5 isn't too far off, and would also really like to see more seasons of the Great British Baking Show.

counting - The time has come to add up what we spent on our month long trip in July so we have a baseline for future adventures. Since this was the first trip back to Japan for Keizo in three years and we initially spent less on plane tickets that I thought we would, we spent pretty freely while we were traveling with more dinners out and nights spent in hotels I wasn't necessarily anticipating. All in all though, we couldn't have asked for a better trip and I think we're both already looking forward to the next one.

Currently - June '18

Kudos to Anne and Sarah for the prompts (and being so prompt!)

traveling - Since the beginning of May, we've been camping twice, and I've had two trips to Ohio for work. No wonder nothing is getting checked off of my list of to-dos around the house! Things have been a bit calmer the past two weekends, and we only have one more at home before we're gone for a month.

grilling - After a few test-runs in the cast iron skillet at home, "chilaquiles" have become our go-to camping breakfast. I also "grilled" up a tasty quesadilla lunch last weekend with cheddar, apples, spinach and a swipe of sriracha mayo.

exploring - Murals and new DC neighborhoods with other enthusiastic, rule-following bicyclists on a mural ride hosted by WABA.

planting - At the beginning of the month, I finally replanted house plants that were purchased at the end of April. Then they sat on the kitchen table for about two weeks before I moved them to their current homes on a shelf, on the desk, and on the dresser in the bedroom. At least they're all still alive!

playing - I've been really into cover songs lately; acoustic to help focus at work, and Scott Bradlee's Postmodern Jukebox for kitchen karaoke/dance parties.

Currently - May '18

Let's get right down to it, shall we? Many thanks to Anne and Carrie for the prompts!

celebrating - finally purchasing tickets to go to Japan! We've been talking about it for years, lining up time off from work for months, and then last week, pulled the trigger and bought tickets. We'll be gone for almost a month, making multiple stops to see friends and family along the way; New Hampshire, Japan, Hawaii and California here we come!

creating - trendy tassel earrings at a Crafts & Conversation workshop. For a very reasonable fee, all attendees received snacks and drink, a set of tools to take home, materials to make two pairs of earrings and tutorial. The event was really well organized, and the tools to take home were an unexpected bonus.

wearing - fewer layers and skirts/dresses without tights. :-) Temperatures reached close to 90*F this past week, and are predicted to be back up in that range next weekend. So far I'm loving it; it's been a long time since I've been warm all day and I am soaking up all of the Vitamin D I can get.

sharing - although I baked a batch of cookies over the weekend, there were only enough for about half of my office, so I've been keeping them to myself instead of sharing them. Maybe next time...

going - camping next weekend. Though it's probably only going to be one night, it will still be nice to get out of the city and partake in some "nature bathing."