#1 - Create a Writing Class

Back in fall 2021, I went to a Chicago Blackhawks game with my friend Alicia, who generously takes me to games pretty often and yay hockey. While we were there, she told me about a virtual class she'd been taking on the business as art and how helpful it was to her as an artist who sells her art. (Also, her art is awesome. Check out her Instagram and also her Society 6 store, where you can get prints of her art on all kinds of things, like water bottles, yoga mats, even furniture.) As she was describing the course, she said to me, "You should do this. Create a class." That game and the next, we talked about what kind of content might lend itself to a virtual class and what the class could look like. 

While Alicia had to do some convincing before I believed it would be a good idea, I came around to the idea of this being a way to (1) have some additional income through the registration payments, (2) get exposure to people who may be curious about what a writing coach / editor could do for them and could learn about the support I offer in a low-risk environment, and, most important to me, (3) I could offer a very low-cost support option, allowing people who cannot afford one-on-one editing services to get some additional writing support.

To further this idea, I created a Google form to collect ideas about content and process from many of my higher ed communities. Then, in December 2021, I was awarded a Chi Biz Strong grant, which created a lot of opportunities to try some new things, like creating a class. I signed up for a Zoom account, created the content and format, and sent around virtual flyers. I decided on a 2-class workshop on writing an academic literature review (a very common struggle in doctoral programs) with an optional 3rd class for peer review.

For the first class, I had 4 enrollees. Only 3 actually attended the first class. I was all set with my content, had them introduce each other, and--well, then I had to completely change what I was doing because during the introductions, I learned they were all doctoral students in the same program at the same institution, and they'd already done some of the activities I had planned. Because the group was so small and willing to share, it turned into a group coaching session, where they could share and ask questions, and then I would give recommendations about next steps and things to think about. It went as well as possible when I had to completely throw out my plans.

Then, for the second class, they all had a conflict with a class they were all in for their program. So we never had the second class. Or the third. They all did say they would like to continue to work with me, so really, as one already is working with me regularly, this is a huge win.

The second session I offered had no registrations at all.

I'm really glad I tried this and now that one of my spring classes is cancelled, I will be planning future classes, working to get this piece of my business off the ground. 

#86 - Visit a New National Park

While I wrote this item with the intention of exploring more U.S. national parks, I have certainly jumped at the chance to visit national parks in other countries, particularly the very beautiful Costa Rica--the most biodiverse country in the world. During our December trip, I took a trip to Manuel Antonio National Park with Chris Krone and then a second trip with my parents. 

Both trips were lovely, and we spent hours wandering the jungle and beach.

The capuchins in the park are so laid back and playful.

Mangroves are weird.

Squirrel monkeys

Land crabs, which only emerge during the day a handful of days per year. They were EVERYWHERE.

My favorite insect: The leaf cutter ants. I adore them.
They cut pieces of leaves from trees and then march them in a line, down the tree, making trails as they go, back to the hole where they live, so more ants can chew them up, spit them out, effectively farming and harvesting the mold they eat.

I have no idea how many flights of stairs we climbed that day. 20? 30?

And then we got to views like this:



And this:

When we came back down from the Cathedral Loop, we had a lovely time watching the capuchins at the beach.

On my second trip (with my parents), we got to see the capuchins frolicking in the mangroves, a whole family, including playful little ones. The capuchins at Manuel Antonio are pretty chill since they're used to people walking through their home every day. Also, visitors are not allowed to bring food into the park, so they don't look to people to feed them, which is important in keeping tourism in Costa Rica (and everywhere) eco-friendly, which is certainly a value on display in this beautiful country.

Chris & I had a fun time exploring the tide pools.
We saw an eel, fish, and many, many hermit crabs.

Just <3 

#48 = See a New Animal in the Wild

Costa Rica is the most biodiverse country on the planet, which is one of many reasons I love to visit. We saw capuchin monkeys, sloths, macaws, brown pelicans, white herons, caracaras, crocodiles, and many others I'd seen before. Here are a few that were new to me!

My favorite sighting started like this: 

"Hey, Chris, I think I just saw a fish jump."

"Where?"

"Oh, there's another one!"

"It must be running from a predator or something!"

...the next day...

"There's more jumping..."

...the next day...

"More jumping? Where are the binoculars?"

Turns out, the jumping beings were not fish but devil rays! For two weeks or so, nearly every day, we'd see the rays jumping, surfing, and splashing in the waves. While that made me much more anxious about surfing (though I think devil rays are related to manta rays, rather than sting rays, so I'm still not sure if they sting), I was fascinated by these playful beings. 

I couldn't quite catch the jumping on camera, and the videos I took of them splashing just aren't that great, so here's a link if you want to see them jump!

We also saw a ton of birds, which I logged on my Merlin app, but most were too quick to catch a photo.

Here are some of the many animals we spotted in Manuel Antonio National Park.

Some kind of eel

Hermit crabs

Land crabs. Apparently they are usually nocturnal but come out en masse to breed a few days each year, and we managed to be there during those days. They were EVERYWHERE in the forested areas of Manuel Antonio Beach.

Squirrel monkeys. A whole gang of these little creatures played in the trees around and above us on our way out of Manuel Antonio. They were very cute and jump huge distances between trees, like little flying squirrels.

Howler monkeys. It's quite easy to hear these monkeys but much tougher to spot them, as they spend their days lounging in the canopies. It was so cool to see several of them walking around the tree tops on this day.

#17 - Eat Vegetarian Every Monday (fail)

In an attempt to eat more sustainably, each year, I've been incorporating more

I love the fried tofu from Cozy Noodles
& am so stoked I finally found
a comparable recipe.

vegetarian and plant-based (vegan) meals. I decided to do meat-free Mondays for 2021 (in addition to some stretches and vegan days). I gave myself 5 exceptions, not because it's too hard, but I wasn't sure if I'd forget or perhaps be somewhere where someone else is providing the food and there aren't vegetarian options. I stopped working on this one in November, when I finished my 12 items for the year, but that means I only missed 4 Mondays through November, which is pretty darn good, and I had a lot of vegetarian days during the rest of the week because I learned a ton of vegetarian recipes that I liked, and business has been slow, and vegetarian food is much less expensive than meat.

After doing 8 days vegetarian last year, it's been shockingly easy to eat vegetarian once per week this year. I have so many great recipes in my arsenal; I know how to improvise well with plant-based ingredients; and I know where to go to easily find new, great recipes. 

I've included pictures and descriptions of some of my fav veggie meals.

Exceptions

1 - 2/8/21

Spanish tortilla!

I was so stressed about "moving" back to Chicago to teach one day/week in person. I was hungry after staying up late packing and was not pleased with my veggie options for snacks. I decided to make an exception and have some turkey bacon late night.

2 - 7/19/21

Hearty veg soup

It was my dad's birthday, and he wanted to eat outside with a water view. We wound up at X, and while the view is great, they don't have great vegetarian options. I went with a buffalo chicken sandwich and was also pretty pleased that miss #2 was more than 5 months after miss #1 and in the second half of the year.

3 - 8/16/21

Blip #3 was also intentional, as I was renting a house and doing group meals with 11 other people, 6 of whom were children. I just went with the flow instead of trying to go buy my own meals for the day.

4 - 10/25/21

This one was my biggest oops without planning. I'd had a rough day and just wanted some pizza, but business had been slow, so I opted for a frozen pizza. When I got home, I realized I'd gotten a pepperoni pizza, and it was a Monday. So I could have found something else, but instead, I said, well, here goes day #4.

Portobello burger with
mozz, sauteed onions, & spinach

#19 - Eat Vegan 12 Times

While I certainly have been eating more plant-based and vegetarian meals, I only managed to consciously eat vegan meals three times this year. Next year more!

1 - 2/15/21

2 - 5/6/21

3 - 5/17/21

#32 - Try 12 New Restaurants in Chicago

I was being a bit ambitious in attempting to try 12 new restaurants in Chicago during a pandemic, but I wanted to keep this one on my list to continue my support of the fantastic service industry in Chicago. Chicago's restaurants and bars not only employ tens of thousands of people, they're also, on average, damn good, better than the bars and restaurants of most cities. If you don't serve great food or have something special to offer, good luck competing in this market. It's stacked.

1 - North Buena Deli & Wine

3/20/21

I was looking for some delivery and craving a great sandwich. I thought I'd try North Buena out, and I was not disappointed. I had the Sicilian and will definitely be ordering again and looking forward to going in person.

2 - Figo Wine Bar

4/20/21

It finally warmed up enough to dive into some outdoor dining. Laura reserved a table for 4 of us at Figo Wine Bar on a Tuesday night (an exciting return of Two Bar Tuesdays). It felt so luxurious to split apps and bottles of wine with 3 of my very favorite people. We laughed, drank, ate, laughed, and then continued on to our second bar. 

I also can't wait to go back to Figo once indoor dining is safe again. What a cute little spot with a great wine selection and tasty food.

3 - Crushed Pizzeria

7/5/21

I've said it before, and I'll say it again: I hate Chicago pizza. Deep dish is way too much. The first few bites are delicious, and then I don't want anymore, but that's all we've ordered because it's so much food, so I eat more, and then I feel like I've eaten several pounds of cheese and bread and I hate myself. The thin crust (a.k.a. pub style) is even worse. It's like cardboard topped with canned tomato paste, preshredded generic mozzarella, and then garbage toppings. It's tasteless grease. I hate it.

Luckily, some great woodfired, coolfired, and Detroit-style spots have opened up in Chicago. My favorite is Paulie Gee's, and they do squares (Detroit style), woodfired, and, newly, NY-style slices. Unfortunately, they're in Logan Square and do not deliver to my neighborhood, so it has to be a whole trip to go there. Then, wood/coal-fired pies just don't travel well (which I learned at Paulie Gee's, who refuses to do even take out woodfired pizza). 

So I've been searching high and low for some decent NY-style spots that will deliver to my place. On July 5, 2021, I FINALLY FOUND MY SPOT.

When I tried out Crushed, I ordered a salad and a simple Build-Your-Own pie: just mushrooms. The pizza was everything I was hoping for: crisp, chewy crust; that perfect bite to the cheese; delicious sauce; and just the right number of shrooms for great flavor. I had added on the garlic butter as a side assuming that if the pizza was mediocre (which it wasn't), I could dip it in buttery goodness, and wow, was I shocked. The garlic butter is mind blowingly good. Like, so so so garlicy and herby without being too greasy. It was great on the pizza crust, and then I used it in other ways: on my veggies, to fry eggs, every use perfect.

I'm so relieved to have a pizza delivery place that is satisfying!

4 - Immm Rice and Beyond

7/30/21

I walk by this place all the time, and on this day, tried to do takeout, but my phone said they were only taking orders by home, and I didn't have my wallet on me. But by the time I got home, I wanted Thai food badly, and this was one of the places still open at 9pm... and I could order online 😐

I had pad thai like a basic bitch and some coconut rice w/ mango (which is what I really wanted). The pad thai was fine. Like, fine. People must go there for other things. Because it was fine. The coconut rice was magical when combined with the mango. So I probably won't order delivery from this spot again, but I will give it another try and eat something more adventurous.

5 - Moxy Hotel

7/31/21, with Stephanie Souvenir

I was certainly drawn to this spot due to the name. Luckily, it also had tacos from 

Steph & I split a great dip trio and were recommended the carnitas tacos, which were great, and I can't wait to go back and hang/work in this spot.

#2 - Complete the 2021 Book Riot Reading Challenge

I only managed to get 4 of the 24 challenge items done (so far) this year, but I still really love working on this every year. It really gets me out of my reading comfort zone, and I love that Book Riot provides ideas for each of the categories. Can't wait for more next year!

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1. Read a book you've been intimidated to read & 2. Read a nonfiction book about antiracism

Stamped From the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America by Ibram X. Kendi

4/27/21

I want to believe I was intimidated by this book due its length (515 pages + notes) but really, I think I was intimidated because I was concerned I'd learn about how ignorant I am to large swaths of U.S. history and the intricacies of racist ideas. Well, I was right. This book included 515 pages of things I should have learned in history class and instead was presented with a white-washed curriculum of American progress and exceptionalism, which just isn't accurate. Ironically, this book also showed that the uncomplicated, inaccurate version of history that I was presented with may also be why I hated history class. It was so boring. Kendi, on the other hand, tells stories and weaves ideas and narratives in a very compelling historical text. It made me want to read more, learn more, do better. 

I have one critique I feel compelled to share due to Kendi's own argument about how Barack Obama was a legal and policy scholar, not a history, race, and racism scholar, yet his supporters treated his ideas on race as expertise based on his identity. In the epilogue of this book and in his subsequent book How to Be an Antiracist, Kendi also speaks on topics on which he is clearly not an expert, namely gender identity, sexual orientation, and other aspects of identity. He rightly ties the freedom of and justice for all people of all identities to the freedom of all, as is required in antiracism work, but he sometimes speaks as if he is an expert in these others when he is not. Kendi is certainly an expert and a scholar on racism and racist ideas, currently and throughout history, and I learned so much from him in this book. I wish he would speak to the connection between racism and other forms of oppression, and then either do extensive research in these areas before writing on them or refer readers to the writing of other experts. This critique is focused on some pieces of the epilogue, which is such a small segment of the book, so the space I'm giving the criticism in this blog post may not be appropriate. It was just hard to leave on that note, especially after having first read How to Be an Antiracist, which dedicates entire chapters to identities on which Kendi is not an expert and often presents misleading, inaccurate, or sometimes harmful/hurtful narratives, much like the narratives Kendi worked so hard to counter and correct in his own work. 

That said, this is all a reminder to myself that I can do deep research, be an expert, and still have areas of ignorance, some of which I am aware of and some I am not. While intent does not equal impact, with the genuine intention of continual learning and growth, as it is clear Kendi has and I strive to share, the pursuit of justice can move forward.

3. Read a non-European novel in translation

The Disaster Tourist by Yun Ko-eun

9/17/21

This was a strange read. The idea for the story was fascinating, very compelling, but the writing was choppy, and the author took some really "easy" turns in the plot, removing some of the interest for both the story and the characters. I'd be really curious to hear what someone who read the story in the original translation and with knowledge of the culture thought about it.

22. Read a book set in the Midwest

Say Nice Things About Detroit by Scott Lasser

7/30/21

I picked up this book thinking it was nonfiction. Turns out it's fiction. It makes a good attempt at being loving toward a city I love, but it's also a bit... written by a straight, cis white man who isn't great at writing women or black people. So I see the love letter to the city, and also, it has a really limited, kinda dishonest view.

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Here's the rest of the list! I highly recommend the challenge!

1. 
   
2. 
   
3. 
   
4. Read an LGBTQ+ history book
5. Read a genre novel by an Indigenous, First Nations, or Native American author
6. Read a fanfic
7. Read a fat-positive romance
8. Read a romance by a trans or nonbinary author
9. Read a middle grade mystery
10. Read an SFF anthology edited by a person of color
11. Read a food memoir by an author of color
12. Read a work of investigative nonfiction by an author of color
13. Read a book with a cover you don’t like
14. Read a realistic YA book not set in the U.S., UK, or Canada
15. Read a memoir by a Latinx author
16. Read an own voices book about disability
17. Read an own voices YA book with a Black main character that isn’t about Black pain
18. Read a book by/about a non-Western world leader
19. Read a historical fiction with a POC or LGBTQ+ protagonist
20. Read a book of nature poems
21. Read a children’s book that centers a disabled character but not their disability
22. 
    
23. Read a book that demystifies a common mental illness
24. Read a book featuring a beloved pet where the pet doesn’t die