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equipment win
I’ve been trying to eat better in 2023 and while a lot of that is based around willpower and making better choices, some of those choices are aided and become more successful choices because I’ve given myself access to the right equipment and tools.
For example, I keep a little cast iron egg pan on top of the stove for my breakfasts.
Having quick and ready access to an egg pan means I eat a simple pair of eggs on toast for breakfast in the morning.
Eating eggs on toast for breakfast means I don’t eat sugary cereal at all anymore. It also means I feel fuller longer.
Feeling fuller longer means I don’t snack during the morning.
Not snacking means I’ve lost a few pounds since the start of the year.
And I’ve lost a few pounds (partially) with credit to a little cast iron egg pan on top of my stove making it easy and convenient to eat healthier in the mornings.
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list guy
I didn’t think I was, but if I sit down and think about and if I’m being honest with myself then it turns out that I’m a list guy.
Shopping lists. Task lists. Packing lists. Wish lists. Idea lists. Reading lists. Lists of things I need to do and lists of things I’ve already done. Lists. Lists. Lists.
Lists help me stay organized and productive, and probably keep me sane.
It’s actually remarkable that such a simple thing, an ordered collection of whatever, can be such a useful tool to get through life. I guess that’s not such a bad thing after all.
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sushi rice
We’ve eat sushi once or twice a month.
Twenty years ago we lived on the coast in Vancouver, and sushi was fresh, plentiful, cheap, and delicious.
Now we live on the prairies, and fresh fish needs to traverse the rocky mountains from the ocean, a feat that no matter the advanced we make in supply chains will not rival simply being walking distance from an ocean pier for freshness, at least not in my life.
We normally order takeout, and the places that deliver are good, but not great. But last night, being Valentine’s Day, we went out and ate in a restaurant.
The place we went last night was great… and it occurred to me that not only was the fish excellent, but that the reason I enjoyed it so much was that they had amazing rice.
Like almost anything, good ingredients make a lot of difference. For bread maybe that’s flour. For cookies maybe that’s chocolate. For sushi that’s rice and fish. Maybe that’s an obvious statement, but I think often we just focus on fast or cheap or volume, especially in lean times. Occasionally, it’s nice have a rare luxury to focus on quality.
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another chocolate day
I won’t say that I was obligated to go out and buy a lot of chocolate the other day, but it certainly seems as though there are limited options for expressing affection for someone special on Valentine’s Day.
Flowers. Stuffed toys. Chocolate. Um… what else?
Have you ever thought about how some holidays just seem like days designed for trifling gifts?
At Christmas we tend to put a lot of thought into exchanging gifts. For a birthday, maybe you get something personal and nice. On an anniversary I often dig into the piggy bank and splurge a bit.
But Valentine’s Day? I tend to lean into the candy.
I watched this movie once called Stranger Than Fiction where Will Ferrell’s character gave a girl he was interested in, she was a baker, a crate full of different flour blends. “Flours.” He said. “I brought you flours.” Clever. That seems a lot more like my jam than a box of chocolate.
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sourdough loaves
I’ve stopped counting how many loaves of bread I’ve made with my starter. It passed the three hundred mark about six months ago, and I ran out of room for tick marks on the lid of the container where I keep the magic.
I made two more last night, sandwich loaves in little cast iron loaf pans, crispy on the outside and fluffy and delicious on the interior.
This morning, there are about one and a quarter loaves left. That’s what happens when four adult (or at least three adults and one not-quite-but-eats-like-an-adult) lives in your house. Fresh bread does not last long.
