(new year's res) Roll of Film #2

Even though I try my hardest not to keep too much unnecessary "stuff" around the apartment (small-space living ftw!), I have been slowly collecting film cameras over the years. The most recent edition (given to me for my birthday by my most lovely fiancé) is a Lomography La Sardinia, a wide-angle 35mm no-frills camera. I loaded it up with a roll of film as soon as I took it out of the box but as it is wont to do, life got in the way and it took me a few months to shoot the entire roll. Nevertheless, I'm pretty happy with the new camera. It didn't handle shadows very well and a few pictures I took around dusk were so grainy and distorted that the subjects are barely identifiable, but shooting in bright daylight produced some vibrant colors and even few fun light leaks. I'd been toying with the idea of bringing a film camera on our upcoming honeymoon (does one person really need to bring three cameras on vacation?) and based on this first roll, I think I'm going to do it.

Film: FujiColor - ISO 400
Camera: La Sardinia 35mm
Photo locations: Central Park, Jones Beach, Coney Island, Astoria Park

(new year's res) Ride the Staten Island Ferry

You guys. When I added "ride the Staten Island Ferry" to my list of new year's resolutions for 2016, I a.) assumed it'd take me nearly all year to get my butt down to Battery Park to then actually get on the ferry and b.) figured I'd have to make it a solo journey or heavily bribe an unemployed friend to join me. So imagine my pleasantly quizzical surprise when I found myself on the Staten Island ferry on a blustery April day with friends who were more than eager to take the trip.

I was playing tour guide to three friends from college - two of them had never been to New York but didn't really care what we did or where we went as long as it didn't involve a lot of walking (a recent car accident had rendered one friend fairly immobile), and the third had been here a million times already and was over all the "usual" tourist stuff. And after a disappointing stroll down Canal St., we quickly realized that this city is made for walking and there are really not a ton of options that are affordable and provide seated views of something interesting. Oh, and did I mention that it was pouring rain?

I was about to throw in the towel and tell them to just hang out in a restaurant until they needed to catch their bus later that evening (I was not on my tour guide game) when Brian had a stroke of brilliance. "How about the Staten Island ferry?" he said. "Is that doable from here? I've always wanted to set foot on the 5th borough." And I was like, "YES THAT IS NOT JUST DOABLE IT'S THE BEST IDEA EVER!" because it was a quick train ride away from Chinatown, provided seated and covered views of New York, was free, and secretly knocked off another item on both mine and Brian's personal bucket lists. So without too much further ado or complication, we soon found ourselves on our way to that red-headed step child of New York.

We didn't have time to get out and explore the island (Brian and I put that on our "next time in NY" list) but even without a subsequent romp around town, it was still an utterly fantastic ride. Yes, I realize that if I were using the ferry as my daily commute I probably wouldn't be singing this song, let alone devoting an entire post to the trip. But as someone who once took the Ikea boat just to get meatballs with a view, the Staten Island Ferry is a delightful ride with exceptional views of Lady Liberty and lower Manhattan.  Also, standing on the back of the boat and singing "Let the River Run" as we sailed back to Manhattan is now easily in my top 10 favorite New York moments. Because #werkitgirl

(new year's res) Baking Bread #1

One of my (many) new year's resolutions is to bake four loaves of bread in 2016. And since I love nothing more than making a brash justification and blurring the definition of what "bread" really is just to be able to check off another item on my personal resolution list, I spent an afternoon baking an Americanized version of an Irish bread shaped like a British pastry. Why, you ask? Well, it all started with a deep moment of nostalgia for the Irish soda bread I grew up eating at my best friend Terri's house at their annual St. Patrick's Day dinner. While my Sicilian/Italian family paid more attention to the following day's St. Joseph's Day celebrations, Terri's family was more than happy to indulge in their Guinness-drinking, limerick-making Irish heritage. And as a result, each year her mother would make the entire traditional feast - corned beef and cabbage, potato soup, and the heartiest soda bread this side of the Atlantic. I haven't been able to partake in their dinner in quite some time (thanks, work schedule), but I found myself thinking of those nights around her dinner table in anticipation of this year's St. Patrick's Day.

I had to work on SPD this year and knew that I wasn't going to be able to commit to the full menu - but the soda bread was something I could handle. This would be my first time making the heralded bread, so I took to the internet for guidance and inspiration - only to discover that there are about a million different "authentic" family recipes that each claimed theirs was the "true" Irish soda bread. Ok, so I'll just ask Terri's mom for her recipe, that'll solve my problem! But I unfortunately didn't plan ahead and decided to start looking up recipes about five minutes before I left for the grocery, and didn't have time to wait for a response. I started to fret. How was I going to pay my respects to the patron saint of Ireland?? Then I remembered the gold mine that is Smitten Kitchen. Ahh yes. That's where I'll find my recipe!

And find a recipe I did - one that looked delicious, not-too-complicated to make...and was for an Americanized version of Irish soda bread. In scone-form. But whatever. I've learned to put my trust in the wise words of Deb Perelman, and figured that if this soda bread was good enough for her, it'd be good enough for me (which, obvi, it so was). So there you have the story of my first of four loaves of bread made in 2016, even though the loaf of bread I made was neither a loaf nor a bread ;)

2016 new year's resolutions

I always say "I'm not one for New Year's resolutions," but honestly, I only say that because I think it's what I'm supposed to say, like I'm better than or have evolved from making resolutions. In reality, I love resolutions. They're giant goals that I can work towards achieving all year long, and I love nothing more than accomplishing medium-level challenges by breaking them down into small, attainable steps. And then I can check in on myself at various points over the year and grade myself on how I'm doing. I mean, who wouldn't love this process!

I'm trying something slightly new this year - a bunch of really specific, quantifiable goals. I've learned that I work best when given strict directions and parameters, and I realize that when I say things like "get healthier" I'm only setting myself up for failure because a) I never defined what I meant by "healthier' and b.) I didn't lay out the particular steps I'd take to get said healthier. In theory, this will allow me to plan ahead ("in June I will try ___ recipe") and not have too many surprises along the way. Although yes, I know, the best way to make God laugh is to tell her your plans, so we'll see how all this pans out.

Take 4 rolls of film
Analogue photography is not just a moderately expensive hobby (processing and printing a roll is around $15), it's also unpredictable and a bit cumbersome (I have to remember to bring my Diana or pinhole cameras in the first place, and then who knows what kind of pictures will actual come of them). The thing is though, when I do go on an analogue photo trek, I find such joy in the entire process and am often so happy with the results. So I'm evoking the spirit of Ansel Adams and embracing the unexpected and making a point to take 4 full rolls of film this year.

Choose 10 countries and read a book or play by a writer from each
I'm an avid reader, but I tend to read books written exclusively by American or British writers. There's a whole word out there, and it's time I took a look at what everyone else is writing about. I haven't decided which books or countries yet, but I want to hit all 6 continents (can Antartica claim any writers?) and I'm only claiming the UK if it's a "classic" I never bothered to read in high school (I'm looking at you, Jane Austen).

Stop biting my nails
I'm 31 and I bite my nails and they're a mess and it's ridiculous and it needs to stop now.

Mediate and/or journal 3 times/week
I wasn't sure if I should combine these two actions, meditation and journaling. I realize that they are two completely different things, but I'm not good at meditation and I am good at journaling, so I figure that maybe the journaling will be a jumping off point for the meditation? I've got some research to do on this one.

Expand my bread-making repertoire with 4 new rolls 
I can do challah and the no-knead, but I really want to try different types of bread. I think I can manage four new recipes, no?

Ride the Staten Island Ferry
This one is a bit silly, but I've lived in New York for 6 years now and have never set foot on Staten Island. It's the only borough I have yet to visit, and I should probably do it if I want to consider myself a true New Yorker. Also, it's an incredibly cheap and easily achievable goal, and we all need one of those ;)

What are your goals for 2016?

New Year's Res recaps

2015 is almost over, and I can say without irony or sarcasm that it's been a nearly perfect year. The high points were plenty - booking my first Broadway show, getting engaged on the beach in Mexico, meeting dear friend's children for the first time, wandering around Ireland and Paris with friends and loved ones, starting the wedding planning process, and discovering the wonderful world of Zumba. But don't worry, this isn't a post detailing how awesome my life is (because that would be obnoxious). It's time for me to see how the goals and resolutions I set way back in January have held up - did I make an effort to better my life in any way, or did I just sit on my butt all year and maintain the status quo?

Read more non-fiction
Grade: A  While this wasn't necessarily the hardest goal in the world to achieve (I simply had to switch one type of book for another), I still had to make the effort to do so. And I was more than pleasantly surprised by the results! There's a whole world of non-fiction out there, and much of it is very good. Some of my favorites: Blue Mind (Walace J. Nichols), a look at how water affects evey aspect of our lives; Maphead (Ken Jennings), about the history, development, and current relevance of maps; and The Almost Nearly Perfect People (Michael Booth), an insightful and in-depth study of the people that make up the five Nordic countries.

Volunteer
Grade: D  Outside of an annual one-day charity event and the requisite four-hour CSA shift, I did not volunteer an extra minute of my time. I again found it incredibly difficult to find opportunities that worked in tandem with my schedule, abilities, and interests. Note to self: fix this for 2016.

Get out of my culinary rut
Grade: B+  I was a bit worried that I would fail this goal completely - but then I joined that fateful CSA and was immediately transported into a world of strange and wonderful vegetables. In addition to adding things like beets, kohlrabi, rutabagas, turnips, and bok choi to my weekly home dinner menus, I also forced myself to carry that spirit of innovation when dining out. A previously unfamiliar dish is now one of my go-to Thai orders (Pye Boat's Beef Boat Noodles), and I also found the nerve to try a shark sandwich from a stall at a street fair  - something I cannot wait to eat again next summer.

Make time for doodling
Grade: C  Except for the few nights I played with a new set of watercolor pencils, I really didn't spend any time putting pen to paper. I even bought two books to help me (an adult coloring book and a cartoon drawing guide), but they sadly remain unopened. This is a shame, because I found a lovely sense of relaxation simply fiddling with the watercolors - but every subsequent time I thought about bringing them to the table again, I let myself believe that other matters and concerns took precedence. I will make more of an effort to find some doodling zen in 2016!!

Quality, not price
Grade: B-  Three times this year I made the choice to spend a little more money on a quality product (Pyrex casserole dishes, Tom's shoes, and a London Fog coat) and I'm so glad I did - they're already outlasting their cheaper alternatives, and I notice I take much better care of these items than I would if they were cheap knock-offs. I gave myself the (-) though, because there were a few times in which I caved and bought some cheap t-shirts from Old Navy and a scarf from a street fair. So really, it's all about finding a balance that works for me while keeping in mind that in the long run, it pays to spend a bit more money on quality goods.

Unsubscribe
Grade: B+  I made a HUGE effort to remove myself from every nonessential email list in my gmail account, and except for a couple pesky companies that resurrect themselves every few months (I'm looking at you, overstock.com), I ran a pretty successful campaign. I think this is an ongoing project though - I'll never be fully done with unsubscribing (these email listserves are like cockroaches, I swear), but the push I made this year cleared out a whole bunch. In fact, I'm going to pivot this project over to my junk email account and see if I can't make at least a small dent in the hundreds of promotional and random messages I get each day.

How did you fare on sticking to your resolutions?

New Year's Res - midpoint check-in

Somehow the month of June has come and almost nearly gone, which means that 2015 is almost halfway over - so I guess it's as good a time as any to do a bit of a check-in regarding my New Year's Resolutions. Back in January, I made a few bold statements as to what I was going to work and focus on during the year - and while they weren't major, swooping resolutions,  I did identify five small areas that I felt could use some improvement. So how am I doing?

Read more non-fiction

This one gets a resounding yes! I've read 9 non-fiction books since January, which is about 8 more than I usually do. It may be silly, but I made a really focused attempt at loading up my library loan requests with non-fiction choices. I haven't loved everything I've read (but I don't love every fiction book I read either, because, duh), but pleasant surprises include Man Seeks God (read it for comparative religions), Blue Mind (read it for a scientific look at all the water in your life), The War of Art (read it for a creative kick in the pants), and Maphead (read it for the love of maps). I feel like I opened the door on an entire library full of possibilities and I am beyond glad I did so.

Volunteer

Back in January, I worried that this would be the hardest-to-achieve goal, and sadly, I'm proving myself right. Thus far, I've spent exactly one day volunteering - and while it was for a good cause, it was a recurring gig for an annual event - so not exactly a stretch in terms of developing a relationship with a new cause or group. The difficulties haven't changed - my erratic schedule doesn't allow for a consistent block of time in which to volunteer, and outside of that one aforementioned event, isolated and/or one-day volunteer opportunities are few and far between. That being said, there's a chance that my schedule will even out in the near future, and with that will (hopefully) come a wider range of volunteer options.

Get out of culinary rut
I could be doing a whole lot more to fulfill this goal. While I did make a beef stew for the first time in February AND added pickled daikon to my Just Salad the other day, the Chipoltles and mac & cheeses greatly outweigh any other exciting culinary choices I've made this year. The outlook for at least the rest of the summer is good, however, thanks to my one-third share of this CSA. I've already incorporated turnips into two separate dishes, and even though I'm not new to leafy greens, figuring out how to use the massive amount of kale/swiss chard/spinach/dinosaur leaves is proving to be a really interesting challenge.

Make time for doodling

Even though I haven't quite made it to the "sit at a giant empty desk while I mindfully doodle charming and heartwarming designs on a gorgeous sunlit afternoon" stage (what, your daydreams don't look like that?), I have managed to make some (very small) headway on my next knitting project, I finally bought a gym membership and have logged some much needed hours on the treadmill, and I've spent more than a few afternoons turning off the TV and doing nothing more than curling up with a good book. I'm learning that the times in which I engage in an activity that falls along the lines of what I WANT to do versus what I SHOULD do, I end up happier, more relaxed, and more ready to face whatever I do actually have to do later that day. I still haven't filled a notebook with idle doodles, but I certainly have given myself permission do do something just for me, even if it's for only 15 minutes at a time, and it's made a difference.

Quality over price

I get a B+ for this - I did say no to Payless and yes to a pair of Tom's AND I plunked down a few bucks to get some really nice Pyrex bakeware, but I also fell down the Old Navy rabbit hole and bought a bunch of cheap shirts and dresses. So, I still have a bit of work to do. It's just REALLY hard to walk away from those colorful $5 tank tops!

Unsubscribe
I'm convinced that emails are the cockroaches of the internet. I swear that I hit "unsubscribe" on every last unwanted promotional email that shows up in my inbox and everything is all fine and good for like two wonderful days - and then slowly but surely the "Promotions" tab in my gmail fills up with all sorts of junk. It's a Sisyphean task, but my vigilant unsubscribing has made a noticeable difference, so it's not entirely in vain.

Bonus resolution - Fitbit every day ;)
On January 1, I charged J's old Fitbit that had been sitting in his desk and slapped it on my wrist. Six months later, I've hit the 10,000-step mark 124 times (I use this fantastic goal tracker to log my steps along with the Fitbit iPhone app) and I am a Fitbit fanatic. Irrational choices I've made as a direct result of the tracker on my wrist include: getting off two subway stops earlier to increase the distance I walk to work, choosing to go to the salad place instead of the wrap place simply because the salad place is farther away, and marching in place during commercial breaks to get those last five hundred steps. I will undoubtedly have a separate post solely dedicated to all things Fitbit at the end of the year, but for now I'll say that while I had no idea of the rabbit hole I was throwing myself into, my Fitbit is pretty much my favorite thing ever and I'm considering having it permanently attached to my wrist. (#kidding). Now if you'll excuse me, I have to do some laps around my coffee table.

How are you doing on your new year's resolutions?

new year's res 2015

I'm not the biggest fan of New Year's resolutions because I think they very often set people up for eventual failure and self-hatred (I said I was going to lose 10lbs. a month and I haven't yet so I should just eat this cake), but setting reasonable goals can be a healthy way to kick off a new year. I've learned that anything I want to accomplish needs to be written in a list form, so I sat down the other day and drafted some things I'd like to work on in 2015. None of these things are major, life-changing goals, but I think that if achieved, they'll help to make me a better and more well-rounded person. And who wouldn't want that?  ;)

Read more non-fiction I usually have at least two different books going at the same time, but approximately 95% of what I read is fiction (with the remaining 5% going towards a Vanity Fair or National Geographic Traveller magazine). There's nothing wrong with devouring the latest Dan Brown, but there's a whole world of really important non-fiction out there that I need to start sinking my teeth into.

Volunteer This one is a bit complicated. Places that need volunteers require a lengthy and consistent time commitment in order to be a volunteer (one Sunday a month for six months, for example), but my work schedule is so consistently inconsistent that I quite literally can't commit to any kind of volunteer gig. I don't know if I'm just looking in the wrong places or for the wrong types of volunteer work, but volunteering used to be a very big part of my life and I miss it a lot. I need to do some serious research regarding places that will accept either one-time or last-minute volunteers.

Get out of culinary rut There is more to life than Chipotle. And macaroni and cheese. I live in one of the most diverse cities in the world, and yet how many times do I order the same burrito bowl between shows? I need to break this bad habit and try something new. At the very least, I need to switch up my lunchtime sandwich and use some roast beef or something - I've been making the same turkey and provolone sandwich for about 15 years now and it's got to stop. If I can't pronounce it, I should try it.

Make time for doodling Or knitting or sewing or whatever crafty hobby I seem to be into at the moment. So often I tell myself that there are far more important activities I should be doing before adding some more rows to my scarf, but I need to remember that it's actually healthy to just let myself play for a while.

Quality - not price The old cliché is true - you pay for what you get. And that needs to be my mantra every time I walk into a Payless and applaud myself for getting such a great deal on a new pair of shoes - only to have them fall apart or cut my heels to shreds a week later. From now on, I'm going to stop wasting money on cheap items. I went through four different pairs of galoshes before finally getting a pair of Hunter boots - and while each $30 pair of no-names was initially much easier on the wallet, I clearly should have just bought the expensive, yet reliable name-brand from the get go. I'm not going to start spending thousands of dollars on expensive handbags, but I'm just very done with spending money on poorly made items only to have them fall apart before I'm done wearing them.

Unsubscribe Rather than just delete them, I am going to make a very focused effort to hit the "unsubscribe" link from the bottom of every American Eagle and Gap email that crowds my inbox. If it's a promotional email I do want (those Michael's coupons do come in handy sometimes), then I need to take the seven seconds and change my address within that company's system to send it to my junk email address (and check that only when there's something I actually need to buy). My goal is to have complete email control in 2015 - the primary email address shall receive only work and personal emails, the blog address will be for blog-related business, and the junk address will be for everything else. I know it's a tall order, but I'm determined to make it happen.

What are your hopes and dreams for 2015?