Things I Did in March 2014

Somehow this was a very busy month that seemed to go by in five-and-a-half days. My family required my help with several (relatively) minor emergencies, plus I ended up spending some fun time with them. Also, I've been building a drainage system/raised vegetable garden in the side-yard that would probably take a sane person a couple of afternoons but has cost me several days with no end in sight, so there's that. Here's the little bit I did accomplish goal-wise:

BOOK REVIEW:

I didn't finish any books this month, but I did finally open the nook I got for Christmas. It encourages you to click on topics you're interested in, then suggests books to "sample" (not really much more of a sample than what you can see on Amazon, but okay). I ended up buying and digging into two of my samples, American Terroir, by Rowan Jacobsen, and Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail, by Cheryl Strayed. I plan to review both in April.

HEALTH AND FITNESS GOALS:

Dropped the ball completely on exercise. Didn't even do my fitness test. As far as food goes, I tried guava for the first time! It was pretty good. I read in Eating on the Wild Side that wild guavas are small, sour and full of seeds. This guava was small, sour and full of seeds. If it wasn't wild, I shudder to think. Anyway, I think it would be great in any kind of fruit salad, but I ate about a pound of them plain, just cutting the ends off. Got my first strawberries of the season, too. A bit early, but at least they were organic and tasted more like strawberries than water.

GO TO 50 NEW PLACES GOAL:

Not so ambitious this month. You'd think this was all about trying new restaurants, not about being braver and getting out more. Lazy.

Place Nine: A Thai Restaurant

I was hanging out with my parents one evening (I'd been to my grandmother's with my sister that afternoon to deliver a birthday present, then I went back later with my parents when they delivered theirs) when they started to argue over whether my mom should cook dinner or not. My dad's argument was that she had not cooked in a few days; my mom's that she was tired from doing other chores. I piped up with a vote to go out, and my dad relented. He suggested a particular Thai restaurant; I said I'd never been there; he said I'd been there long ago when it was a Long John Silvers. I decided that it counts as "Going to a New Place" since they really have made it new. There are potted plants and paintings of coconuts and dust-catching decorations made of sticks, and the only thing that suggests the building's former life is the little wall between the seating area and what used to be the ordering counter but is now a stainless steel staging area where the waitresses pick up food from the kitchen. I ordered Pad Thai with tofu and egg at "two-and-a-half stars spicy." "We'll round up to three," the waitress said. My dad insisted that they were lying to me and that it was probably only a one or a zero (he didn't taste it--he was just teasing me) but whatever it was it was just right. The bean sprouts were a few days past their prime, which tainted the dish somewhat, but other than that it was good. The best part was that I got to chat with my mom and dad. And even though I waved around some cash, they paid for my meal (about $12). Hooray!

Place Ten: A Panera

Because they're everywhere and it's something the entire family can usually agree on without too much of a fight, I tend to associate Paneras with things like a relative being in the hospital or the disappointing return leg of a family vacation. This time I ended up at one after suggesting to my mother and sister (after a morning spent at my mom's horticultural club's biannual show) that we "go out to lunch for fun." It ended up being okay. I got a You Pick Two with the Tomato & Mozzarella Panini (it was only one (half) sandwich, so can I please say panino?) and my usual Mediterranean Veggie Sandwich. Both were very good, and I especially liked the red sauce in the panino. I realized after my meal that getting a whole sandwich of either version would have cost substantially less than getting halves of both, but I liked the variety, so I guess it was okay. I paid for my own meal since I had been the one to suggest going out, but I didn't pay for anyone else because cheap.