Here's what I checked off the list this month:
#33 Go to a hot air balloon festival
Josh and I went to the Hot Air Affair balloon festival earlier this month, and it was amazing. I will jump at any chance to attend another hot air balloon festival.
#63 See my out-of-state friends at least once a year
My trip to Washington, D.C., earlier this month completed this goal! I didn't visit these friends simply to check an item off the list, obviously, but keeping this goal on the list reminded me how important it is to take care of these friendships.
#88 Participate in a soup exchange with friends
A few weeks back, Sara and I planned a soup exchange that she hosted at her house. Here's how it worked: six or seven households each brought a pot of soup and several containers. Sara had soup on the stove when everyone arrived, and we enjoyed soup and bread and salad before the soup exchange began. Then everyone introduced their soup (I brought a Moosewood chili), and each person got to choose three soups to bring home in the containers they had brought. It was very fun to have different soups for lunch that week, and it felt like a little treat from each person. Speaking of the guests: another neat aspect of the party was that none of the guests knew more than a couple of the other guests - we all just knew Sara - but the soups were a good icebreaker. I think it'd be a fun way to bring friends from different parts of your life together for a party.
In progress or about to be in progress:
#23 Visit the dentist four times
This month I notched my third visit since beginning the list. One more trip in August and I'm done! (With the goal, not with visiting the dentist.) Honestly, it has been good to have this item on the list to get me in a regular routine (because there's no good reason not to).
#38 Learn 10 phrases in a new language. I haven't picked my language yet, but when I was in Washington, Ellie showed me this website, Transparent Language's Word-a-Day, that she likes. I'm going to explore this goal soon.
#42 Research three issues in current events. I wrote this goal with the moment in mind when you say to yourself, I have absolutely no idea what's going on with [fill in the blank]. This week I am learning all about bitcoins.
#82 Cook one new recipe per month. This ongoing goal has been one of my favorites, both as motivation to seek out new recipes and a place to collect them. (And I just realized I haven't tried a new recipe yet for February! Luckily and coincidentally, perusing Cooking Light this morning yielded a ton of prospects.)
Here's the list so far: January 2012: bacon-butternut pasta, February 2012: samosa pie and daal with vegetables, March 2012: mini ham and cheese quinoa cups and quinoa mac and cheese, April 2012: sweet corn and quinoa with honey-lemon vinagrette, May 2012: salted nut roll bars, June 2012: caprese lasagna, July 2012: blueberry corn muffins, August 2012: pulled pork tacos, September 2012: Jamaican pumpkin soup, October 2012: pumpkin bread, November 2012: tortellini with pumpkin alfredo sauce, December 2012: chewy ginger cookies, January 2013: roasted potato soup, February 2013: spicy sausage pasta, March 2013: best birthday cake, April 2013: lemon blueberry marble cake, May 2013: southwestern quinoa and black bean casserole, June 2013: cilantro pesto, July 2013: zucchini-basil lasagna, August 2013: tomatillo salsa verde, September 2013: sweet corn and bacon skillet mac and cheese, October 2013: lasagna soup, November 2013: pecan pie, December 2013: vanilla-bourbon peanut brittle, January 2014: slow-cooked carnitas
#96 Learn three poems by heart. I have a few poems sitting next to my computer on my desk, ready to be memorized.
In the "oops" category:
I tried to make a snowman one day last week (that's #13 on the list) when it was warmer and the snow around me was too deep to get it started. Yikes. There are 21 inches of snow on the ground. The snowman will have to wait.
This has been a very long and cold winter, and having a ready-made list of ideas and projects on which I can draw has been just one of the list's unexpected added bonuses. But I am ready to shift my focus to the spring and summer goals. Cartwheel, here I come?!
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