today i am thankful for...

creativity and imagination. (and the fact that i'm done with my grocery shopping...)


source: serious eats

today i am thankful for...

• the birth of my cousin's daughter, peyton grace
• a great phone conversation with my friend kimber last night
• the coming cold front. i'm thinking soup...
  
• another chance at making pie crust
• pictures on the fridge
• the giant pile of leaves that sophie and i crunched at the park today
• the kansas farmer i saw interviewed today on "martha" who is growing heritage turkeys.
• magazines. i love magazines
• food blogs. i love them even more than magazines.
  

today i am thankful for...

• is it against the rules for me to say my friends two days in a row? because seriously, i get to count the most unbelievable people among my people. brunch with the girls this morning, dinner with ruthie tonight, and breakfast with ryan and holly in the morning. it's abundance!
• my yoga studio in kansas city. my teachers ashley, gina, sarah, and xi and their beautiful studio in the crossroads. this place became my second home (in more than one sense of the word) this past summer. i miss it every day.
  
• babies hysterically laughing, especially when that hysterical baby happens to be my niece.
  
• the friend of a friend of a friend who let me throw on to her compost pile today. hooray!
• the news that the writers and the AMPTP are going back to the bargaining table. i'd really like to see a christmas episode of "the office." call me shallow, i don't care.

today, i am thankful for...

• i seriously know the greatest people. i have friends in every corner of the world, a couple of which are in dallas for the weekend!
  
• the bulk section at central market, which allows me to buy one cup of cake flour.
• national public radio
  
• my new resuable grocery bags. they're working out great!
• a charlie brown thanksgiving
  

today, i am thankful for...

i've been learning alot this year about mindfulness. and intention. these virtues have been growing in me for the past couple of years, but my 2007 summer of yoga really framed them in new ways.

this, combined with the coming of my favorite holiday, has inspired me to count down the days to thanksgiving by...giving thanks. a thanksgiving advent calendar of sorts.

today, i am thankful for

• a perfect afternoon for a walk (which i did) - with a warm sun and a cool breeze.
  
• my eldest niece, who serenaded my voicemail earlier this week with a rousing rendition of "jingle bells."
• the fact that my job comes with free housing that includes maid service (what?). and vicky, the blessed soul who cleans my toilet.
• the team of writers who create the genius that is "the office."
  
• cranberries, apples, pears, and PUMPKIN. yum...

life is about balance, right?

getting a head start...

i have had it. i can no longer abide by the sheer number of paper/plastic bags that i myself partake of on a weekly basis. plastic bags are produced by a petroleum based process, used once, and even if i take them to the grocery store for recycle, i'm not guaranteed that they actually are reduced and reused. paper bags are somewhat better (i collect my recycling in paper bags), but starting today, my answer to the age old question of "paper or plastic" will be neither.

i am, at this moment, placing my order for four reusable grocery bags, made of recycled plastic. in addition, i am ordering two ultra-compact bags that i can keep in my purse, for random errand running. (note: i fully realize the irony of the fact that i am ordering bags to be delivered via UPS in order to reduce my ecological footprint...)

i am going to keep a running tally of the number of times per month i forget to BMOB (bring my own bag). i'll let you know on december 1st how many bags i accumulated over the course of november. of course, my goal number is zero, but we'll see how well i do here at the beginning.

if you're so inclined, i encourage you to join me in this endeavor. mindfulness is a good thing.