#10. Put together a weekly flower arrangement for myself, for one whole month.

Week One: $3.99 bouquet from TJ's.

I've learned a lot in grad school, but one overarching concept that we learn both in classes and at our internships is that of self-care. This idea certainly is not rocket science, but it was still foreign and unfamiliar to me when I first heard about it. Self-care, at least as it relates to social work, involves the idea that you can't be a good practitioner unless you yourself are sound mentally, physically and emotionally. 


In other words: be nice to yourself. 


Or, as they say on Parks & Rec, treat yo'self.

Week Two(lips).

(disclaimer: I highly recommend being nice to yourself and watching that video because it is amazing and you will laugh and then probably want either a mimosa, a cupcake or a crystal beetle brooch)




"Be nice to yourself" is something I first started saying to my therapy clients, and then began saying to some of my friends, especially when they started getting hard on themselves about stuff like work, relationships, even dieting. Be nice to yourself. Don't be so hard on yourself, you're a good person, you tried. Compliment yourself, value yourself and when you deserve it, reward yourself. 

But then I had to remember all this, too.

Week Three: happy yellow flowers.

I added this item to my list for a few reasons. First off, flowers are pretty and smell nice, and those are both good things. Secondly, I have somehow accumulated a weirdly high number of vases that occupy a rather neglected shelf in a kitchen cupboard. And third, sometimes you just have to be nice to yourself. And when it doesn't always come naturally, sometimes you have to add it to your to-do list...

Week Four: $5.99 bouquet from TJ's.

...but big ups to grocery stores,  for putting their fresh flowers right when you walk in -- a couple times it slipped my mind, but ambushing me with bouquets as soon as the doors open certainly helped remind me. Also, if you're looking for affordable flowers that won't die before you get them back to your house, I highly recommend Trader Joe's.

There's not really much to say about this item, except that I'm glad I did it. Every time I look at my flowers in my no-longer-relegated-to-the-dark-corner-of-the-cabinet vases, I smile. As I prepare to move from the world of social work potentially into a more corporate setting, I plan on taking this idea of "self-care" with me, and making sure the people around me take note. It may not be practical or cost-efficient to always have fresh flowers around, and I get that. 


But every once in a while, you just gotta treat yo'self. 

The Quest for #1: On my way (at least technically...)

Basset Hounds running...what greater joy is there.

So, this whole time I've been talking about running the Marine Corps Marathon, I've sort of neglected the fact that I actually have to register for it. I'd heard it was a competitive race to get into, so in typical me fashion, I penned the registration date into my calendar, and kept a close eye on the website when the day came. As soon as registration opened I zipped through the process and $93 later, I had my confirmation. Long story short...


I'm registered for Marine Corps Marathon 2012!


Last year's race sold out in 28 hours. This year's race sold out in 2 hours and 41 minutes! Soooo trendy.


I so appreciate the people who have congratulated me when I tell them this news, especially those who have run the race before and have nothing but positive things to say about the course and the overall experience. But hearing those "congratulations" only reminds me how much work is going to go into the next 218 days, 16 hours, 7 minutes and change, and of course the 26.2 miles after that.


So, as a first-time marathoner who at this moment feels GROSSLY unprepared to run even a 10k, let alone over 4 times that, I have decided that I am going to use this space to keep track of my training efforts. School is almost over, I'm not sure where I'll be or what I'll be doing come this summer, so right now I'll focus on what I can control: become less grossly unprepared.


I'll start with a confession: I hate running. I hate the way I think I look when I'm running. Sometimes I get frustrated when my iPod switches to a song I don't like and then that reminds me how tired my legs are and then I just want to stop. I sometimes catch glimpses of how fast other people are running on the treadmills next to me and fall into a deep shame chasm. One time, I even convinced myself not to go to the gym because the treadmill TVs don't have closed captioning and I really wanted to watch the next episode of House Hunters International (disclaimer: this show is on HGTV no fewer than 14 hours a day). I could go on, but I think you get it.


Here's another confession: I really want to love running. So far, I love the feeling I get after I finish running. Crossing the finish lines of the races I have done are waaay up on my list of best memories. Right now, I run for the finish line, for the "Workout Complete" message on the treadmill. But my goal, my hope, is that somehow along the way, I'll become a runner.

#12. Buy a bottle of wine that should be consumed only for a monumentally celebratory occasion. Drink it on a Tuesday night, for absolutely no reason.

A couple months ago, I shamelessly admitted that I love cheap beer. Now, I stand before you to admit something else about my libation tendencies: I don't think I could tell you what good wine tastes like. 


Now, that's not to say I haven't had good wine. I have. It's just that my definition of "good wine" is more like "wine that I like". And wine that I like has, at any given point in my 8+ years of wine drinking, varied from Arbor Mist Sangria Zinfandel (yes that's a thing) to this brand of boxed wine that I haven't seen in forever, but was definitely called "Party in a Box". In the last couple years, thanks in large part to the influence of my dad and visits to several upscale wine bars in DC, I have come to like a few bottles of wine that actually cost more than a copy of People magazine. I've also been branching out: I used to prefer only whites, but have made the bold leap into appreciating, and even sometimes ordering, pinot noirs. Baby steps.


I came up with this entry on my list after hearing about a similar one on another person's 30th birthday bucket list. It appealed to me because of the decadence, and the idea that sometimes you need to celebrate just making it through a Tuesday. To make this one extra special, I enlisted the help of my college friend Jon, who truly lives a life worth envying: not only is he a sommelier in California, he also boasts titles like "wine director", "wine consultant" and "wine badass" (okay I made the last one up). He also just launched his own brand of wine, Amos Cellars! And to round out the awesomeness, we share the same birthday.


Anyway. I told Jon about my mission and asked him to point me in the direction of some good bottles. I told him I wanted a bottle in the $30 range, white, and on the sweeter side. Jon had the truly inspired idea of getting a vintage from my birth year, 1982, and then, in a total baller move, he said he'd send me a bottle. I have awesome friends.


True to his word, Jon sent me an awesome bottle of 1982 Jordan white from the Russian River Valley in California, along with a note that this wine isn't made anymore. My dad, quite the wine guy, was impressed, so I figured I was off to a good start. Jon sent the wine to my parents' house in NC so I could enjoy it on the Tuesday of winter break, when Wednesday wouldn't matter.


And enjoy it I did. It was definitely sweet, but was still really rich. It wasn't like any wine I'd ever tried. I could make comments about "berry notes" or "floral bouquets", but I honestly have no idea how I'd describe it except that I liked it. But this time, thanks to Jon and the delightful year of 1982, I actually know what I was drinking was "good wine". Sorry, Arbor Mist.


And you know what else was good? The idea to drink a fancy bottle of wine on a Tuesday. I recommend all of you try it.

Updates!

I realized it's been a number of weeks since I last updated here, and before I take off for a long weekend in New Orleans (!!!) I thought I'd prove to the internet that I'm still around by providing a few updates, in bullet formation:

New shoes!

The Quest for #1...

• After a LOTTTTT of trips to Running Fit, I have finally settled into some Saucony Omni's. To anyone in Michigan who's looking for a new pair of running shoes (or really any other running accoutrements), I highly recommend Running Fit. Everyone who works there is super in the know not just about their merchandise, but about running in general, and seemed genuinely interested in getting me the right equipment and not just making a sale.
• I also got some $9.99 earbuds from Meijer after some sage advice from my dad that really, all exercise equipment should be looked at as disposable. These earbuds have definitely done the trick, and I'm ultimately glad I didn't spend $40+ on fancypants athletic headphones.
• I'm signed up for two races in the next few months -- the Shamrocks & Shenanigans 5k on March 11th and the Big House Big Heart 10k on April 15th. I'm also lucky to have awesome friends (shout out to Allie who's doing BOTH with me) to run these with. Matching t-shirts are in the works...
• Thank you SO SO SO much to all my amazing friends who sent me emails, blog comments, Facebook messages and texts with suggestions about running gear. I feel like I might compile a future blog post with everyone's tips and tricks because it really was so useful to me. Maybe I'll do that if I survive Mardi Gras...

Delicious beers at Founders in GR.

Another Michigan day trip...

• So, so many thanks to Heather & Matt for hosting me and Lindsay in Grand Rapids a couple weekends ago. This day (well really, overnight) trip was such a highlight of my winter, complete with a trip to Founders Brewery, the most amazing homemade butternut squash lasagna, martinis at a super nice bar, pickle back shots at an amazing dive bar, late night tacos combined with a photo shoot, and a melt-your-face-off-with-deliciousness brunch. Please come back to Ann Arbor ASAP, H&M.

BIONIC FLOWERS!

Other items...

• On a January 31st trip to Trader Joe's, I decided I'd make February my month of weekly fresh flowers (see: #10). I bought an amazing bouquet, put them in a vase on a side table in my living room, and smiled because a bouquet of bright red and yellow flowers really doesn't make you want to do much else. 
• I did not, at the time, realize that I'd purchased the most bionic flowers on the planet; 2+ weeks later, these flowers are just now starting to lose their luster, right as I'm about to head out of town. So it's looking like March is going to be Fresh Flowers Month, whereby I attempt to purchase flowers that are not made out of titanium.
• I'm planning on checking a few more items off my list during our winter break week in a couple of weeks. If only I thought there'd be snow in North Carolina for #13, because we certainly aren't getting much here in Michigan, at least that is snowman-building worthy.

Alright, now you're updated! I am off tomorrow to laissez les bon temps rouler in New Orleans! If I can't say anything else while I'm in Paris, at least I know that one...

#13: Take a Michigan day trip.

Destination: beer.

I'll be the first one to admit it: I love cheap beer. I unapologetically drink Miller Lite, and I love it. I guess if I was to credit -- or blame -- anyone it would be my friend Anthony, but really, it's just what we drink. To this day, when I see a group of people who prefer anything else -- especially Bud Light, and especially Bud Heavy -- I judge. I know, I know. Glass houses.

In the last few years, however, I've started to expand my horizons a bit. Visits to Pizzeria Paradiso in D.C., including beer-and-pizza tasting events I organized for my old job, made me appreciate craft beers, most notably the verrrrrry difficult to find seasonal Winter Solstice Ale from Anderson Valley Brewing Company. (Seriously, if I've been able to find a place that actually sells AVBC beer, which is rare, they have always been out of the Winter Solstice by the time I get there. This beer is my unicorn.) And when Janet, Tim and Rujuta came to Ann Arbor this summer, we had an awesome day drinking/sweating at the Summer Beer Festival in Ypsi. Something like 400+ beers, all brewed in Michigan. Pretty sure at least some of those were brewed in basement bathtubs, but whatever.

Straw, please.

So in the course of all this, I began to develop actual preferences (which may or may not make any actual sense). I love citrus-y beers that are inexplicably and dangerously as thirst-quenching as lemonade. I love dark, rich porters, especially with chocolate or coffee notes -- which makes no sense because I don't actually love chocolate or coffee. I love beers infused with fruit flavors. And I love Belgian ales made by Trappist monks, particularly from this place. 


I'd heard of Bell's before I came to Michigan, but didn't start really paying attention until I got here. Bell's is located in Kalamazoo, which is basically 2 hours due west of Ann Arbor, and I'd heard from various people you could do brewery tours and get beer samplers and food there. So I threw out the idea to a few people to do a Sunday Funday there, and boom, a day trip was born.


Josh, Ariel, Trevor, Allie and I piled into my whip and hauled out to Kzoo to the tune of Childish Gambino and The Glenn Miller Band (surprisingly complimentary). We got there with enough time to spare before the tour to enjoy a beverage, and I picked a beer called Raspberry Wild One, which they only had on tap at their restaurant. It. Was. DELICIOUS. Not super sweet, a little sour actually, but light and refreshing at the same time.

Pure Michigan.

The tour was actually quite interesting, led by a girl named Sarah who both works at Bell's Eccentric Cafe in their kitchen and apparently has quite a burgeoning enterprise home-brewing ciders. We learned about all the essential components of beer: hops, yeast, barley, water and kitten tears. We learned about how small things -- the mineral profile or temperature of the water, the amount and type of grains, for example -- can drastically influence the beer. Apparently there are a bobillion types of yeast, but Bell's only uses one or two, which is what qualifies them as producing a true "family" of beers. Wow, I literally and figuratively drank the Bell's Kool-Aid, huh?


Side note: there's a performance area attached to the brewery/cafe at Bell's and GUESS WHO PLAYED THERE THE NIGHT BEFORE? THE VERVE PIPE. That is all.

Lots of beer on tap.

Other fun stuff we learned: Larry Bell is still alive and kickin'. Which I guess makes sense since he was like 23 when he started brewing and that was in the mid-80s. Oh and they currently only serve their beers in kegs and bottles but are starting to can their beer, so summer 2k12, Oberon cans are happening. And Bell's is the largest craft brewery this side of Colorado! Seriously, can someone at Bell's pay me?


After the tour we went back to the Cafe to sample some of the delicious beers we'd heard so much about. You get 6 beers in a sampler, and can pick from anything they have on tap (see chalkboard picture). I got the Porter, the Cherry Stout (not on the board, but I asked nicely), the Milk Stout, the Sparkling Ale, Hopslam and more of the Raspberry Wild One for good measure. They even served it in wooden cut-outs shaped like the state, which was a lovely, festive touch. 

The beer was terrible,
we didn't drink any.

The beers were amazing, but my favorites (aside from the raspberry one which we've already established is the bomb) were definitely Hopslam and the Cherry Stout. The stout was sour and rich, but in the best possible way. And the Hopslam is a really strong, fragrant beer with lots of hops. I didn't think I liked hoppy beer, but Sarah assured me that I may just not like certain types of hops. She was right. Hopslam is the best.


Speaking of Sarah, she and our other tourmate Paul joined us for our meal and samplers, and we ended up getting a lot more information about beer, home brewing and Kalamazoo in general from them. We got one last round of the beers we'd figured out we liked the best (I went with a combo of the Raspberry Wild One and the regular Wild One). And Sarah even fetched us the last few bottles of Hopslam over in the General Store to take home before they sold out.


So even though we didn't get to see much else of Kalamazoo, I'd go back in a heartbeat if it meant I could have one more sweet sip of the Raspberry Wild One. Miller Lite will always hold a special place in my heart, but now Hopslam holds a special place in my fridge.