small things...

Month 4–Wrap up

So I’m 1/3 of the way through the year and about a 1/10 of the way through my list!  (I’m guesstimating that the books I’ve read and foods I’ve tried are moving me along a smidge).  I’ve got a lot to do in the next 8 months. jeez.

But I did knock two more items off my list this month and made some headway on the books and the hikes.  Also….it should be mentioned….I did create a budget….but I didn’t exactly stick to it.  so, that one will be a do-over.

Anyways…on to what I actually DID accomplish this month:

You already know about my fabulous art class, right?  Well here is a reminder

This past weekend I got to cross another item off the list!

#18. see a play at Steppenwolf  Complete!

My friend Peggy and I met up on Halsted to see a matinee of The Birthday Party, written by Harold Pinter.  Are you a theater buff?  CAN YOU PLEASE TELL ME WHAT THIS PLAY WAS ABOUT? please?

Don’t get me wrong, I liked it quite a bit…for something I really didn’t follow.  ah well.  The THEE-A-TER.  And I am moved to see more plays.  I left undeterred.

I know that trailer spooked you out.

Afterwards we headed down the street for tapas at Café Babareeba.  It was packed! It was 5:30 with a 2 hour wait for  table.  But with seats at the bar we were happy.  And I was like ‘YES!’ these people know how fun it is get your eating and drinking done when the sun is still shining and still be in bed by 10pm!  (it was pointed out to me that this was likely the pre-theater people and they were probably going out afterwards, but STILL.  And really, you don’t know…maybe these people were my tribe).

You don’t get tapas without getting the bacon wrapped dates, do you?  don’t be a fool. 

#3 – Eat or drink 10 things I’ve never tried before ( 4th new food tried) 

Pomegranate Alioli.  holy yum.

 

okay, now that I see this gleaming pile of alioli I realize that dips look disgusting when photographed.  So instead divert your attention to the sweet potato fries and the mouth watering Spanish beer (Estrella Damm).  But believe me when I tell you that pomegranate is the best thing to happen to Alioli since the ‘oli. 

#20 Read 40 Books.  11 books complete, 29 to go

And two added this month

A story about family members in failed searches for answers of their own.  (find it here)

and also

A terrifying story of a women’s descent into madness only to learn maybe she isn’t mad at all. (find it here)

#6 Hike 40 miles of trails in Illinois. 3.8 miles down; 36.2 to go!

I added 1.3 miles of trail this  month with a visit to the River Trail Nature Center with my friend Wynn on Sunday.  Several of the trails were flooded from the rains a couple weeks ago, but there was a nice dry bridle path surrounding the nature center.  We had conflicting feelings about the animals housed there – a Bald Eagle!  Wynn wondered if that was legal.  He was missing 1/2 a wing, but still…seemed strange.

Everything is still so brown on these trails.  I can’t wait to see a little life back in these woods.  Also, I seriously need to get some more miles in!  I’ve been battling a chronic calf strain which is hampering the hikes a bit.  Hope to get it sorted soon.

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On tap for May….

A themed party!

Learn to swim with my face under water!

perhaps a boring budget.

Begin 40 days of meditation!

I paint, you paint, we all paint for paint's sake. what?

#13 – Take an Art Class Complete!

One of the best things that has come out of creating and posting this list is the number of times I’ve been able to cross items off the list with friends.  This will be the second time I’ve actually had a friend provide the opportunity itself!

My friend Liz is an artist/painter/giggler/intuitive spirit and old friend.  When she moved back to Chicago from Amsterdam I remember clearly her transition into ‘Artist’, when she made the commitment to honor that true side of her self.  I don’t get to see her as much as I might like, but (like too many people) I’m able to keep up on small sections of her life over Facebook.  Over the last several months I’d noticed a few scant posts she’d made about offering private “Art Sessions” in your home. 

One of Liz’s paintings which you can view on her website: www.liztuckwell.com

There are a lot of art classes I’d like to take, but Liz’s Art Sessions are on another level.  This past Friday she came to my home for my own private session.  She brings everything with her: canvasses, paint, brushes, tarp for the table, muslin to cover the tarp, paper, markers, cups for water.  She also brings a playlist she’s put together for the session. 

After setting everything up Liz walked me through a meditation.  The goals of the sessions are to both connect to spirit and through doing so to discover and release your own creativity.  The meditation worked to ground me and slow down my monkey-mind.  We next moved into a practice where taking markers we wildly colored a large piece of paper.  No thinking, just movement. 

She then walked me through a few painting techniques, how to’s and clever tricks.  None of which were required to be mastered or even used, but just for me to know and play with.  The rest of the afternoon was spent painting together, talking about life and telling stories.  I ended the day with a piece of art I’d created and a peaceful inspired spirit.

glimpses of my painting.

Liz left me with a few glops of paint and a few brushes and the encouragement to keep painting.  Saturday morning I picked up a few small canvasses at the local craft store and spent the better part of the afternoon playing with paint.

 

 

 

 

I don’t know even know what I was trying to do with all these, but man it was fun.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If you live in Chicago or the greater Chicagoland area, you should do this for yourself.  You should do this for yourself, you should do this for a friend, you should invite a few friends over and do this for one another.  Let your inner artist out!  S/he needs some fresh air, honey.

Liz’s website again: www.liztuckwell.com

Email: [email protected]

Tell her I sent you!

xo

erin

Month 3 Life list “Wrap up”

Not as much was accomplished in March as I had planned.  What I hadn’t planned for was a month of birthday celebrations.  So that was a pretty good trade-off.

The month began like this…

A surprise party!  It was awesome.  And though the “surprise” of it came a few days early through the chance run-in with a friend of a friend – I was still thrilled and touched and surprised.  yay friends!

I dance for cake.

The next weekend I headed up to Milwaukee to celebrate the 40th birthday of one of my super-favorite-people-of-all-time-to-eternity.  Annie.  I have no photographic evidence handy to prove her cuteness, but I can tell you that she has a great house filled with lots of art and 3 handsome men (well, one man and 2 boys, but soon enough).  I had the unexpected opportunity to chat with her parents who’ve I’ve known since elementary school, but it was the first time her father ever told me the story of his voyage to America from India as a young man.  And how shy he was around women, but there were all these women on the boat and I think he said some of them were dancing and that was like whoa and also he tried beer for the first time and everyone knows beer for the first time is unbelievably gross.  how do we ever keep at it?  Annie and her husband and their friends were headed out dancing 80’s style, but I had to hit the road and head home to tend to a cat with a mysterious limp.

the NEXT weekend I went to Louisville, Ky.  And now I love Louisville, KY.  And feel like now I have some stake in the fact that one of their teams made it to the final 4, and that there is this one guy on The Voice who is from Louisville and when I see these things I think, “Totally, Louisville is everywhere these days.”

the next WEEKEND was my birthday weekend.  I was tired by this point, but I still made it out to dinner with another bestie, Leah – also a co-thrower of the aforementioned surprise party. 

The rest of the month has been spent with these two fine groups:

(source)

I totally caught the Downton Abbey fever y’all.  And that I’ve watched all 3 seasons I’m feeling the withdrawal. 

So what didn’t happen this month as that I still haven’t learned to cook a damn chicken.  And also, I’ve practiced swimming with my face in the water, but I’m still a sputtering blurry eyed panicky mess.  April it is!

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March also saw the passing of the father of an old and treasured friend.  She is the second friend to lose her second parent.  Please send a good thought to her family and keep a good thought for your own.