Changes

Yesterday I made this blog private and began to mess with some of the features. One thing I certainly want to change is the blog title. I haven't settled on a new title, though, so I used the word change as a placeholder.

This morning, I realized that the word change is quite apropos for our lives right now. We are in for a season of major changes.Changes are always exciting. They bring with them a clean slate and a chance to reexamine my routines in order to upgrade my habits. I love to consider new possibilities and plan for new and better habits. I want to use this season of change to take a big step to having a fuller life and fostering more appreciation my blessings.

My big change goals for this fall include:

1. Finish the first chapter of my thesis.
2. Take more responsibility for the housework.
3. Make a fun fall bucket list and cross many things off the list.
4. Figure out exactly how much total debt we have.
5. Make a plan for retirement savings.
6. Finish a craft project.
7. Walk more along our local trails.
8. Blog.

The Best Things in Life: Casseroles

Maybe it's the lingering after-effects of the numerous church potluck dinners I attended as a child, but I love casseroles.

And really, what's not to love? It's warm and comforting. You can put the leftovers in refrigerator and then scoop it out and heat it up until its gone. And a casserole dish can go in the dishwasher--no dirty dishes!

Most of them are a complete meal in one dish: protein, starch, veggies. Lots of them include cheese, which is such a hot commodity in this household of three that I buy the huge 8 cup bags of shredded cheese. The two cup bags are for wimps. One notable exception is my favorite casserole, chicken and rice. My husband doesn't like it so I make it just for me. I would eat it for every meal. It reminds me of my childhood and my grandparents. Home is where the chicken and rice casserole is.

I also love how people from the Upper Midwest call them hotdishes. How great is that?

I like to make casseroles on Sunday because then I have lots of good leftovers to start off the week. 

The Best Things in Life: Michael Ian Black

Michael Ian Black is one of my favorite people-I-will-never-meet right now. Why? Let me tell you...

First, Wet Hot American Summer, of course. The poster for First Day of Camp has a totem pole-like stack of Paul Rudd on a motorcycle, Michael Ian Black's head and Amy Poehler's head right in the middle. It's so awesome that my husband texted me while I was at work to look it up.

But more importantly, Black hosts this podcast called "How to Be Amazing" and it's amazing. There is a new episode every other Wednesday and he interviews the most interesting people. The guest on today's episode is Nate Silver. Other guests have included Frank Rich, Carl Tanner, Amy Schumer, Tavi Gevinson, Lin-Manuel Miranda, and Elizabeth Gilbert; fascinating people who have really interesting ways and have taken an out-of-the-ordinary path. Black asks great questions and ends each episode with a query of the "amazing five" (an amazing book, movie, food, music, and catch-all), which is a lot of fun.

The Best Things in Life: Harry Potter Book Club of Two

Today, J. K. Rowling announced that it is James S. Potter's first day of Hogwarts. To celebrate, I made a lazy person's version of pumpkin pasties. I also used this fact to convince my husband that we should start our Harry Potter Book Club of Two. We bought the set of Harry Potter paperbacks earlier this year so we could read the same book at the same time. He wanted to wait until it gets cooler, while I argued for starting at the start of the school year. I'm sure we would have waited until the holiday season if it hadn't been for this announcement.

I'm stoked to climb into our new bed with my hubby and start reading Harry Potter from the beginning. After a cup of tea and a pumpkin pasty, of course.

As we move through our book club selections, my plan is to make as many of these Harry Potter foods as is feasible. I am absolutely not going to make my own jelly beans or buy frog molds, but licorice wands, treacle tarts, and rock cakes I can do.

Savor or Spree

This morning my little compartmentalized worlds collided for a brief moment. Typically, I have one of three reactions when this happens. All of them could be summed up with a phrase my dad uses often, "Well, I'll be darned."

One reaction, is "huh," as in, "Huh, my third cousin knows someone I went to high school with." It's when "Well, I'll be darned" means, "That stands to reason, but I never would have considered the possibility." The second reaction is "eeew," as in "Eeew, my third cousin is dating someone I had a crush on in high school." It's when "Well, I'll be darned" weird means, "I didn't really want to consider that possibility." The third reaction is my favorite. It's when "Well, I'll be darned" is punctuated with an exclamation point. "Well, I'll be darned!" It's a rare moment of kismet.This morning I had that "Well, I'll be darned" exclamation point - kind of moment.

Last night, I noticed a book Tim had been reading about Nikola Tesla sitting on top on the bookshelf. He hadn't read it for a long time because he didn't want to finish it. He didn't want it to end. I have always been the opposite. I race through the end, no matter what it is. As a preteen, I hid a flashlight under my pillow so I could finish the book I was reading. I clean my plate to the point that I don't even need to rinse it before I put it in the dishwasher. I binge-watch television. I was thinking about that difference between us last night and also how--even though I like to get to the end of the story, season and sleeve of Thin Mints--I have been more apt to savor things as I get older. Or maybe it isn't that I'm older, it's just that I'm choosing things that are worth savoring more often. For instance, as much as I was loving reading One More Thing by B.J. Novak, I couldn't rush through it. It is just too good. Lately the only books I've read in less than 48 hours are ones that I didn't enjoy very much.

This morning, after I was in my car, but before I pulled out of the driveway, out of reach of our wifi, I made sure that the latest "Happier with Gretchen Rubin" podcast had downloaded. I got about 15 minutes into my 50 minute commute when Gretchen and her sister Elizabeth Craft started into a segment they refer to as "Know Yourself Better." The topic they were discussing? "Do you prefer to savor or spree?" I thought, "Well, I'll be darned! I was thinking about this last night."

It was one of those unimportant, inconsequential things that brightened my day.