joys of the week, ep. 15
Okay, who else loathes daylight savings? Whenever the time leaps ahead an hour I wake up the following morning disoriented, fogged up, and an extra level of grumpy, and grumpy me is pretty much standard in the early hours as is. I think the notion of time change is outdated and just plain irritating. States and countries who don’t observe seem to be doing just fine without a big fat time tinkering. Not to mention, when the sunrise starts earlier, my cooler run hours are limited, and those are precious when summer creeps along and not only is the humidity way above a rational level, but any daylight worsens already shitty conditions.
Hence, if you woke up this morning a slight bit angrier and ready to punch some wall in your home, know that I’m in your same temper boat. Hopefully a week in the new routine will settle my circadian disruptions, though I seem to remember last year having a month of worsened sleep patterns before my body finally accepted the shortened dark hours. Maybe that was just another 2020 anomaly.
Spring Cleaning Priority List
Kids, my house is a wreck. When I moved in with J his place was clearly meant for one person who takes up a lot of space, or two people who take up minimal space – but two people with a whole shit ton of stuff creates a bit of a clutter situation. I often become very overwhelmed with mess when my minimalist voice starts to whisper, and lately I’ve proven more bothered by it. For my part, there’s some corners that need serious fixing up and such might help my brain feel less panicky. Any you would add to your own Priority List?
1. Desk
I don’t typically work at my desk nowadays but that’s no excuse for piling whatever exists on top of it with 0 sense of organization. Particularly, my tax forms. Not exactly wise to willynilly chuck them about. I leastwise could get some file folders and stow the papers in the desktop organizer I own, remove the props piled haphazardly there and on the desk chair, and throw away some of the boxes I hoarded from various trinkets I accumulated recently.
2. Props
I want to keep separate my photo-specific dishes from our main pile of plates and platters, but they need to not be on the floor by the living room window. I want to get some kind of cabinet, a small one, for those and the mixology equipment/liquors I’ve suddenly acquired since starting my Cocktail Friday features. I don’t really know what I’m looking for yet as far as style goes, but I figure once I see a thing, I’ll know whether it works or not.
3. Fridge
My fridge is due for another purge since the items in the far back are a total mystery and probably not a fair one. I should probably give it a scrub, too. Fridge maintenance is a special type of annoying since it requires some expeditiousness so things removed won’t get too warm, but I’ve done it before and can do it again.
4. Kitchen counter
For one, the kitchen is not big enough for the amount of cooking and baking I perform. Cannisters to get things more organized will help, and I’ve already bought a few to store flour and sugar, but small ones for teas, mints, and coffee supplies are on my list. We also own an inane amount of oils and they tend to migrate across the stove area, and our fruit and veggie corner is essentially a mass of produce bags. A basket for fruits and a basket for veggies like onions and lemons is in my priorities.
5. Bathtub
I loathe cleaning the bathtub, not so much because it’s nasty but because there’s no good angle from which I can get my scrubbing on without irritating a glute or toppling into the tub. But, it needs doing. Cue gross sobbing here.
Spring Fashion Inspiration
I’m trying to not resign myself to all-day pajamas on my day off, nor do I want to keep wearing pieces I’ve owned since high school. I thumb through Pinterest quite often for various types of everyday ideas, and outfits sometimes pop into my feed. I’m quite simple as is with my clothing, and don’t veer towards bright colors or strange patterns often. Here’s some looks I’d love to recreate in the next months!
Upcoming on VE
Monday is training recap day, and Tuesday we make some adorable, better-than-frozen vegetarian dumplings! Wednesday is Taco day, but not tacos (hmmm), and Thursday we bake up a lovely and simple coconutty treat for the weekend. Friday’s cocktail features a newfangled mojito, and Saturday a quick bread suitable for all types of suppers. And Sunday, per usual, we talk joy.
Have you found me on Instagram? Venturing_East on Insta is an active profile and I LOVE speaking to all of you through the platform about everything training, fuel, and life as a whole. Come say hi!
Joys of the Week, Episode 15
1. A “Superior” cycling VO2 Max
Probably an odd bit of elation for most people, but as someone who largely identifies as a mediocre athlete – not slow, but not fast or powerful, either – the elevated ranking in my Garmin makes me feel that some of this nut-busting training is paying off at last. Helps that my bike trainer is equipped with a power meter to measure progress. Obviously, I’m not pro, nor do I ever think I will be, but confidence boost in sports is so useful for encouraging me to keep up with my habits.
2. A Woman is No Man by Etaf Rum
This is my first book of 2021! I’m disappointed with my lack of reading the last two years or so. I don’t really know what’s good out in the world now and I tend to shun a lot of the trendy titles anyway, but I was given a pretty expansive list by a customer at work and I plan to plug through some of them in the coming weeks. A Woman is No Man is based off the author’s personal experiences in Arabic culture, and some of the imagery was quite startling and sad. The food talk, however, inspired me to make a very street food-esque, Middle Eastern inspired dish that will soon hit VE! Overall, a solid book that I whipped through in just a few days.
3. Marbled Funfetti Birthday Cake
Dudes, I did not expect we’d flash through J’s birthday cake so expeditiously, but somehow we managed to get through the whole thing in a week without freezing! The leaning tower of confetti actually toppled over one afternoon (contained in its encased stand, so no mess or loss) since it was so top heavy in the first place and most was eaten at that point. I guess this isn’t unusual for massive layer cakes with lots of tasty buttercream. You can find the recipe here!
4. Mom is vaccinated
My mom completed her second course of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine this past Wednesday! We halted our weekly or biweekly tradition of making dinner together over a year ago, and while I’ve seen her briefly at times we didn’t spend an extensive amount of time in each other’s company (except over the holidays). In a couple weeks, once the vaccine takes full effect, we’re planning our first supper and really can’t wait. So much lost time to make up for.
5. Wild Friends Sugar Cookie Peanut Butter
I prep overnight oats most nights prior to my early shifts, and this peanut butter ALWAYS features as a topping. I was on my last scoop and very sad about it since it’s a limited edition flavor, but Amazon actually had some for the same price as it usually is on Wild Friends’ website! I snagged a 3 pack, which’ll last me a few months at least, so my morning oats will be less sad.
Until next week, dearest folks! Share with me on good thing that happened to you this week. Or multiple, the more the merrier!
