Category: Foodie Map

23 for 2023

January 12, 2023 / Jen

I have been listening to Happier with Gretchin Rubin for years and I love her weekly newsletter 5 Things Making me Happier. Both are lighthearted and focus on something everyone can use a bit of help with— finding happiness. Every year Gretchin encourages her audience to make a list that identifies their ambitions for the year. I don’t view this as a list of resolutions, but more as I am going to get these things done this year. The goals can be fun, easy, challenging or whatever you want to take on for the year. My friends always remind me that I am the “get crap done” person. Between that and my obsessive love for lists, this is one of my favorite things to do!

As I was working on my list, my husband suggested that I brainstorm a few action items for each activity on my list. This way when I selected one, I would know exactly what steps to start with. I tried to categorize the items and prioritize them, but this was an exercise in futility. I have enough items to keep me busy all year long. When something strikes my fancy, I’ll tackle one of them. I know which ones are a priority to me and which ones are somewhat of a filler.

Here’s my 23 for 2023…

#1 Lose 10 pounds

Tom and I each lost 30 pounds in 2022. It’s astounding to look at pictures of us especially during COVID. I took a self portrait today for 52 Frames and it still surprises me to see the difference. I’m still 20 pounds from the weight I was when Tom and I met in 2000, but I would be happy with losing another ten pounds for now. After a bout of gluttony during the holidays, we are back on track with our healthy eating habits and regular exercise.

#2 Incorporate a regular yoga practice into my daily routine.

After losing my job, it became abundantly clear that I need to add self-care into my daily life to avoid a total mental collapse. Ever since I started running, I have loved doing Yin Yoga. I have not been good about staying on top of it. Now that I have an abundance of time, I have started doing a great Travis Elliot video every morning in The Oodlearium. It’s an awesome way to kick start my day.

#3 Start a side hustle

Anyone who knows me well or follows this blog knows that I have A LOT of interests and A LOT of different talents. While a lot of those are not things that could fully replace my teaching income, I can earn some cash from them. A little bit here and a little bit there will add up. I will start a side hustle this year. Just not sure which ones I’ll dive into and which ones will eventually bring in a bit of cash. Stay tuned! I am working on a book called Beautiful Moments– a journal for capturing the beautiful moments in life, a clothing line based on a piece of my photography, adding my paintings to my website, teaching a class on making photobooks and a cookbook and much more.

#4 Write 23 blog posts

Tom teases me so much about my lists, but they are my love language. I have a long backlog list of blog posts to write and I hope with the extra time to be more consistent with posting and sharing my adventures in creativity and life.

#5 Host Mobile Oodlearium Events

I am working on some graphics for Mobile Oodlearium events. I am hosting my first-ever kids birthday party tomorrow for a close friend’s daughter. If that goes well, I will open that up to the public along with my regular girlfriend night out painting parties.

#6 Stay connected with friends from Harlem

After almost 19 years teaching German at my school, I left E120 for the last time on December 16ht. I left behind some incredibly dear friends and I have committed to staying in contact with them. For now, my hair lady is still in that area, so once a month I have an excuse to catch up with someone.

#7 Start doing portrait sessions again

In my pursuit of starting a side hustle, I am looking at doing portrait sessions again. It is disheartening to do the math and see how many I would have to do to earn a relatively insignificant amount of money. When push comes to shove, I don’t know if this will end up happening, but I am considering it.

#8 Add more pins to the foodie map

The Foodie Map is one of my true joys and if that is the case we should be adding to it more often than we do. I have a solid backlog of recipes to try, but given that we are trying to be healthier, I have a bit of a mental block that I need to work through. I just need to focus on finding healthier recipes or enjoying those recipes on date night when we are a little less focussed on healthy eating.

#9 Make cutting board from scrap wood

I am absolutely obsessed with cutting boards like this one after I bought one for a friend. Tom promises me that he will teach me how to make one with a bunch of our scrap wood from various projects. I have a design picked out. We just need to find a time when he can teach me to use some tools.

#10 Have conversations with other artists/creatives

I so badly want to start a podcast, but I dread the idea of recording myself talking. I keep telling myself that I can just get together with other creatives and chat with them– and not record anything. I have a video chat scheduled for next week with a fellow creative from Israel. I’m hoping that will spur me to schedule some more. If you are reading this and you want to chat– please reach out!

#11 Finish scanning photos

Sometime last year I grabbed all my containers of albums from the crawl space and I started going through the prints. What a waste to have them sitting in bins in the basement. There were so many HORRIBLE images that were just wasting space. I did a massive purge and got the images down to a couple of shoe boxes with the promise to myself that I would scan them all and make a few photo books that I could store upstairs. I am more than halfway through the boxes and just need to stick to doing a few stacks each week.

#12 Host Oodle in the Park

Last year I put my heart and soul into developing an awesome event that brought together a bunch of creatives for an entire day of art in the park. I was so disappointed that the event didn’t pan out, but I am committed to doing a version 2.0 this year and making a solo go of it. Stay tuned for details! I have a voucher for the park until the end of May.

#13 Find a new job/career

The irony of the fact that this is #13 on the list is not lost on me. It’s a priority, but all these other things are helping me in pursuit of finding out what will be my next chapter.

#14 Visit family in Arizona

I haven’t been to Arizona to see family since the summer of 2021. With every day my sweet little niece grows a bit more. I can’t believe she is going to be four this coming August. I must get out there to see them!

#15 Visit Taos, New Mexico

Our original retirement plan involved us finding a piece of property with a small house for us, a cottage that we could AirBnB and a space for a workshop where we could hold classes and maker type events. A friend told me to look at Taos because it is an artist community and would welcome this type of venture. We need to check it out.

#16 Explore new art forms

The fact that I have paintings stacked three deep in The Oodlearium is a constant reminder that I both need to and want to explore other mediums. I just haven’t had the time to do so until now. Just a few days ago, a dear friend gifted me a huge box of beautiful beads. I am so excited to dive into them and make something special with them. I also discovered this awesome fabric art video on Instagram. If I can figure out how to do it, I think it will be a beautiful canvas for pouring. Once Tom gets the downstairs shop set up, I’ll be able to dive into wood burning as well.

#17 Random acts of kindness

I am trying to find ways to give back to my community more regularly. Random acts of kindness are an easy way to do that. Tons of ideas out there and I want what I do to be spontaneous.

#18 Take the Domestika Cookbook Writing Class

I am obsessed with the idea of writing a cookbook based on the Foodie Map idea. However after signing up for this Domestika cookbook writing class I am not sure that this is something I am going to do right now. Even if I don’t write a book now, the teacher introduced me to some amazing cookbooks that I have already gotten from the library and sampled recipes from. Claudia Roden’s Mediterranean is stunning and the recipes are amazing– especially the Sicilian Lemon Pasta.

#19 Spend more time in nature

It’s January in Illinois, so this one is going to be tricky. As a year round outdoor runner, I will do my best to get outside 3-4 times a week– especially as I start training for my next half-marathon. Now that I am not getting all my steps walking around school, I have started walking as many errands as I can. It’s not quite getting out into nature, but it is getting me outside and into the fresh air.

#20 Sell five paintings

My pour painting is one of my mental health go-tos. That means I have A LOT of paintings stacked up. While people graciously receive them, you can’t assume that every person is going to want one of your paintings. So I am looking to get them out into the community. Today I started a list of local spots that let artists hang art. I’ll start contacting them next week. Even if they don’t sell, they will hopefully bring joy to people in the community. And perhaps they will help draw some attention to my pour painting Mobile Oodlearium classes.

#21 Look into etsy or something similar for selling some art

I have had so many people over the past few months tell me that I could totally open an Etsy shop. After dismissing these compliments for ages, I am going to at least sit down and see what is involved in doing it and what I might actually be able to sell. I would love to sell some paintings just to get them out of the house and then I am thinking of trying out stickers with my Oodle Doodles. I have a whole mess of stuff pinned on Pinterest to read and see how it all works.

#22 Birthday running goal

Every year since 2020, I have set a running goal for my birthday. In 2022, I ran 100 miles during the month of October. As I head towards my 50th birthday in a few years, I am thinking of edging closer to the idea of running a crazy amount of miles in one long weekend. I have a bit of time before I need to decide on it, but I’m sure it will be something that pushes me and also allows me to spend time with friends doing something we love during the whole month– a beautiful gift indeed!

#23 Run a 10:30 mile

Aside from completing the Great Western Half-Marathon in 2:30 (15 or so minutes faster than the Ooh Lala in 2021), I want to break my mile record and hit 10:30. My PR thus far is 11:04. I’ve got time to work on this goal and my coach knows I am pushing for it, so he’ll keep me accountable.

When in Spain…

August 8, 2022 / Jen

One of the tenants of a creative mindset is learning new things. What better time to do this than while on vacation in Spain? For as many times as we have stayed in an Airbnb, we had never tried out an Airbnb experience. I think that in my heart I knew that Barcelona was not going to hold the magic charm for us that it did for many others. So I started poking around for ideas of things that we could do— experience. My eye caught on a paella cooking class. It had amazing reviews and it was ridiculously cheap given what we had paid for cooking classes here in the States. I clicked “book it” and told Tom we would end our trip with a paella class in this guy’s backyard. Cool.

There was something more that stoked the creative fires in both of us than just learning something new. Our host, Miguel, made us feel incredibly welcome in his beautiful home. The ambience was magnificent. We immediately noticed all the little extra details that made the space special. The garden was stunning— a true sanctuary from the world. Inside, he went above and beyond to set the scene. The music, appetizers and sangria made learning and conversation easy and lighthearted. Before we even started cooking, we were relaxed and felt like we were visiting an old friend instead of a total stranger.

Everything about the experience tickled our creative juices. Music played in the house and garden. Miguel was a fellow creative. He was a police officer by day and shared his love of cooking with strangers from around the world on his days off. He has found a way to be creative, meet new people and make a bit of extra money. Almost all of the ingredients in the paella were items we had never cooked with. We prepared four different types of seafood and vegetables as well as a sauce for the paella. Left to our own devices we probably would not have cooked with all these different types of seafood, but we LOVED trying them all. We were forced to try something new and unexpected. We were absolutely in a new and stimulating environment that made us want to learn more and try more. And of course while we were engaged in all this fun and stimulating learning we were not attached to our phones and social media.

I don’t know that we would have gotten all of this creative jolt from just any class. This was something special and we knew we were very lucky to be there experiencing it. If you find yourself in Castelldefels, Spain (or you want to get out of Barcelona), I highly recommend you check out Miguel’s class. You won’t regret it.

Magical Paella with Miguel in Castelldefels

Travel- steroids for creativity

July 11, 2022 / Jen

We recently returned from the trip of a lifetime to Spain. We spent eleven magical days enjoying the Spanish countryside and soaking up every last drop of life spice. It seems hypocritical to talk about feeling inspired after taking a dream vacation, because who wouldn’t? It makes me think of the time I had the chance to ask world-famous photographer Art Wolfe to tell me his favorite place to photograph. He responded with Myanmar. Only someone who is able to travel internationally regularly would give such a response. Because it will be a long time before we are able to take such a trip again, I did reflect on the aspects of our trip that inspired a creative mindset so that we can try to recreate those types of experiences here at home. Over the next few weeks, I will post a series of blogs about our experiences in Spain. Here is a sneak peak…

Our food experiences were by far the most amazing. For years we have been asking for recommendations in restaurants. Check out my post Why I’ll never order off a menu again. We continued to do so while in Spain. We tried so many foods that we never would have ordered on our own—duck, partridge, clams, mussels, cuttlefish, octopus, prawns and much more. I now know that my day is always better if it starts with a café con leche. As soon as we got home, I decided to host an international potluck. Everyone is bringing a dish from their heritage to pass. Foodie potluck

New experiences are obviously easier when you are in a new place where everything is new. Our adventures started with the invitation of a lifetime— one we could not turn down. Some of our explorations were simple (Spanish doors) while others were much more elaborate. One of our most memorable days was when our friends took a day to share their “favorites” with us. What would be on my favorites list if someone were visiting us? We did something similar when my bestie and her husband were in town for the day from Connecticut. Could I ask others to suggest an itinerary for a day in their area? Staycations

Music makes my heart skip a beat. Matt and Cassandra asked their guests from 9 different countries to share 3-4 songs for the DJ to play during the reception. I don’t have any of the names of the songs that were played, but I remember how much I smiled when I heard music from Ukraine, India, Mexico and even Sweden. My Pandora stations are so perfectly curated that they play only songs that I know and love. This, of course, is a double edged sword. I need to explore some new music avenues. Music

Learn something new. We ended our trip with an Airbnb Experience to learn how to make paella, which combined our love of food, culture and learning. Paella. While we cannot take a cooking class every week, I do have a stack of recipes from a great book I checked out from our library called The Kitchen Without Borders. It features stories and recipes from immigrant and refugee chefs from around the world. Our Foodie Map is eagerly awaiting more pins.

The best thing about vacations is how they make you appreciate home. This trip was no different. While we would love to figure out a way to have our “olive farm” right now, we have ways to inject joy and creativity into our lives every single day.

Banitsa

November 7, 2021 / Jen

The Foodie Map had been hanging for a few weeks and we still had not tried a new recipe when Tom mentioned that we should have some friends over for breakfast. That was just the inspiration I needed to try and find a breakfast recipe that would be perfect for our first pin. Off to Pinterest I went. I looked at recipes for everything from shakshuka to baked Swedish pancakes with blueberries, but eventually selected a recipe for Banitsa, a Bulgarian breakfast cheese pie. I liked that it had a very simple ingredient list that I could find in a regular American grocery store. I picked up the feta, Greek yogurt and phyllo dough and I was ready to “hit the culinary road!”

This was my first time working with phyllo dough and I thought it was more similar to puff pastry, but I was wrong. It is not nearly as sturdy and well, you need to defrost it ahead of time. Oops! I mixed up the filling and after a quick defrost of the pastry sheets I was ready to assemble the pie. The recipe details three different ways to assemble it and I opted for the traditional spiral. This recipe is unbelievably easy— it took longer for me to defrost the pastry sheets than to do anything else. Once everything was assembled, I poured a bit of melted butter over the concoction and popped it in the pre-heated oven.

25 minutes later, Tom and I were SO excited to try our first entry onto the foodie map. I cut two slices and we dove in. You might expect that the filling would be more like a dense cheesecake, but while it was rich, it was also light. It had a great balance between the filling and flakiness of the pastry.

We talked about how this recipe would pair well with either a meat or even a fruit, but we opted to keep it traditional. Overall, we really enjoyed this recipe and highly recommend it.

Until next time.

Making the map

October 31, 2021 / Jen

Earlier this year, Tom and I were sitting on the “raft” in the family room when he tossed out the idea for a Food Map. His idea was similar to the map we have upstairs where we track our travels around the world, but this one would track our foodie adventures. If I could find a map, he wanted to take on creating a custom frame for it—his first fine woodworking project. It was the perfect collaboration. When complete, it would hang in our dining room as a conversation piece.

I set off on an internet adventure to locate the perfect map. My search brought me to Conquest Maps and this is the map we selected. We opted for a simple customization and a week later we had our map. In order to protect the map, I had it laminated with a mat finish at a local Kinkos. Our next step was to design a frame. I found one I liked online (if I can find the link, I”ll share it here) and Tom set off to figure out how to build it. Once he had a plan, we made a trip to a Great Spirit Hardwoods in Dundee to find wood for the project. After looking at their beautiful stock, we selected pieces of walnut and sapele. This was tricky for both of us since we didn’t have a lot of experience with raw wood and what it looks like after it’s finished. Tom researched and purchased a planer (he has talked about one for years!) and he was ready to start building the frame. A few weeks later, our frame was finished and ready to hang.

Once the frame was finished, we decided that we would not retroactively add pins to the map, but rather start fresh. The map has three sets of pins to document our adventures: 1) Gold- in country 2) Silver- at home 3) Bronze – in a restaurant. Whenever we are in the mood to try something new, now we can look at the map and see what region we haven’t explored. Each time we try a new recipe, I’ll include a link to the blog post here with photos and links to the recipes. We are incredibly excited to see where this idea takes us. Stay tuned!