Week Three: King of Diamonds

When I moved to Chicago I needed to decide whether or not to keep my car.  I drove a 26 foot UHaul up to the Windy City and I did not tow my little Dodge Caliber behind.  (Driving that behemoth was crazy enough, towing a car as well would've been insanity.)  So for months I didn't have the luxury of a vehicle.  It turns out, I didn't really need it.  Everything I need (or want for that matter) is a walk or "El"-ride away.  There were a couple times I found myself wanting a car though...
1. Thinking about my aging pup and wondering, if she ever got really sick, how I would get her to the vet.  Ours is about a half mile away which is just fine to walk to on healthy days, but I'm nervous for when we'll really need vet services...
2. Isis related again - but gone are the days when she will be able to make the trek home to KC for holidays.  Amtrak and Megabus don't allow 70 pound dogs, no matter how sweet and well-mannered they are... and I refuse to put one of my best friends in a crate in the belly of a plane.  Thinking about Isis-less holidays kind of makes me sad.

That being said, having a car up here is kind of ridiculous.  It costs a lot to insure, register, and get a city parking permit.  There are days when you have to move a car for street cleanings.  Living less than half a mile from Wrigley means Cubs game parking fiascos - even trying to find a spot to park becomes a challenge.  And gas up here isn't cheap, either.  So I did a little pro/con exercise and decided to part ways with my periwinkle blue hatchback.  For the amount of times I'd use it, it just didn't make sense to endure the expense and hassle.  If I'm ever in an Isis-medical-emergency bind, I'm sure my sister or one of my friends (and their cars) would come through for me.  This Christmas wasn't as weird without my furry friend as I thought it'd be (shoutout to Josh who watched and loved her most of the time I was gone).

This ramble brings me to this week's goal card: Soda Free

I probably didn't add this to the list above because I'm a little embarrassed and a little ashamed.  Times I wanted a car:

3. When I want to buy Diet Coke in bulk.

There you have it.  My secret's out.  I really love DC and have one probably every day.  The stupid grocery store up here puts it on sale, but only when you buy a ridiculous amount all at once. 
Example: 12-pack 3/$9 when you buy 3.  Regular price $5.49
WHEN YOU BUY THREE!?!?  How am I going to walk home with three 12-packs of soda in my arms!?  Why would I spend over five dollars on 12 cans of coke!?  ::sigh:: The reason I want a car... to get the sale price on Diet Coke.  If that isn't the most pathetic thing.

I knew I had maybe a little addiction when getting soda on sale weighed in to my pro/con car list.  I really knew it when I broke down and bought a granny-rolling-cart so I could get that sale.  (In my defense, the granny-rolling-cart has been helpful other times, too... like when I buy dog food, or lots of toilet paper, or cans of tomato... these things are heavy AND bulky... I'm not Wonder Woman!)

I added Soda Free as a weekly goal to challenge myself and to see really how deeply my addiction ran.  I can tell you... it's been hard.  I relapsed and had one on Tuesday after my long day at school.  (Not even 2 whole days into the challenge!!) I had the worst headache and had a lot of studying to do and I thought maybe I needed some caffeine.  It tasted great but I felt guilty the whole time I sipped it.  The studying got done though.  (I'm rationalizing my weak-will.)

The rest of this week I have been soda free.  Drinking more water and more coffee.  Mainly more water.  Two more days to go.  I don't think loving Diet Coke makes me any better or worse of a person.  I haven't noticed any real differences to the way I feel now versus when the week started.  I do think soda is an expensive and unnecessary 'habit' that I may eventually try to break.  This week without hasn't convince me though... and so, I will continue rolling the granny-cart.  Admittedly looking pretty dorky as I do.

Week Two: Jack of Spades

 

 

I've always had a dream of having a well-stocked liquor cabinet.  It's really been more of an idea (unlike my actual dream of having a closet with 50 pairs of TOMS... 3/50... almost there).  I envision having people over and mixing up fun and interesting drinks.  This probably started about 2 years ago when my beloved beer began giving me an allergic reaction... Good-bye beer journal and all of the yummy microbrews with artsy labels I tasted around the country with fun friends - writing about funny times with each entry.  Moving to Chicago has only deepened this desire - every restaurant has cool drinks that are too expensive to try!  And so, the Jack of Spades did me a solid this week - "New Cocktail Every Day".

I actually groaned a little when I pulled the card.  This was my first week back to school and I wasn't looking to go on any benders.  I don't drink every day, either.  Not even a glass of wine! So I asked myself - why did you write EVERY DAY!?  Couldn't you have just said one or two?  But I didn't.  And in week two I'm all about keeping these goals... so here goes...



MONDAY
"Kristi's"

My sweet Western Slope Mama gave me this recipe.
Mountain Dew, Spiced Rum, Orange Juice
She didn't provide any measurements so I winged it.  I don't have any cute cocktail glasses so I used one of my favorite every day glasses and added a spunky straw.  This was totally yummy.










TUESDAY
"Esky's Hot Spot"

Chicago's been cold this week so I googled "winter cocktails". Esquire magazine had quite the list and I added a few of theirs to mine to try. 
2oz Irish Whiskey
1 sugar cube
lemon peel
4oz hot water

Um, no thank you Esquire.  The drink was only good cause it was warm.  Otherwise I took about two sips and dumped the rest.  No fear, dear friends, I won't be making this for you.



WEDNESDAY
"Brown Derby"

Wednesday found me applying for jobs and getting things organized for the semester.  This included four hours of printing out labs and homework assignments for Chemistry and putting additional homework assignments in my planner.  Then reading and re-reading the first chapter in my Anatomy book... then making beautiful notes. Then making a lab notebook.  I topped off my night with a Brown Derby in one of my favorite art-fair finds.

2oz dark rum
1oz lime juice
1tsp maple syrup
Better than good.









THURSDAY
"John Collins"

I have a pretty great BIL. He was really excited about this week's goal and when I shared it with him said, "Do you need any bourbon? We've got bourbon.  Why don't you come over and we'll make YOU a cocktail?  Better yet, have dinner with us, too!"  How could I pass that up!?  The picture says it all... showmanship, pride, elegance.  Wyatt and I enjoyed the drinks on the left... breastfeeding Bug had the Shirley Temple on the right.  All drinks were paired with the most incredible quinoa mushroom 'burgers' and zucchini.  I am a lucky girl.

1 1/2 ounces bourbon whiskey	1 ounce lemon juice
1/2 ounce sugar syrup	Club soda
Maraschino cherry for garnish	Orange slice for garnish

FRIDAY
"Moscow Hot Chocolate"

Another day, another classy/classless cocktail glass.  I actually love this mug (An octopus is my Spirit Animal).  And I loved the drink I put in it!  As a fan of the Moscow Mule (I was actually gifted a copper mug this Christmas!), when I stumbled upon "Moscow Hot Chocolate" I knew I had to try it! 
1oz vanilla flavored vodka (I didn't splurge, so I just added a little vanilla extract)
3/4oz amaretto liquor
4oz hot milk (I use vanilla unsweetened almond milk)
1TBSP instant hot chocolate mix
This tasty bev warmed me right up for my chilly evening walk with Isis around the neighborhood.




SATURDAY
"Scotch and Lime"

I pulled out my antique-store find for this limey drink.  The whiskey on Tuesday didn't go over very well, so I decided to give it another try... I do, after all, now have a big bottle of Jameson.  Luckily, I liked this simple cocktail much better.  It called for blended (what's that?) Scotch whisky - which I didn't have and although my dream of the stocked liquor cabinet is still strong, I wasn't going to make a special purchase.  So I used the Irish stuff and I think it came out well.  No fancy garnishes, but it was totally yum as is.
3oz blended Scotch whisky
1/2oz lime juice







SUNDAY
"Bee's Knees"

One of my chic friends sent me this recipe to try.  Angela and Andy are oldies AND goodies and are foodies like me!  They're always throwing fun theme parties and trying interesting recipes so I thought this one would probably be a delight.  Today I went out for Thai food with the first new friend I made in Chicago (the first weekend I got here!) and came home to sip on this while finishing up this post.  I put it in another favorite art-fair find.  Refreshing!
2oz gin
3/4oz fresh lemon juice
3/4oz honey simple syrup





And there you have it.  New Cocktail Every Day is complete! 
What are some of your favorites?







Week One: Seven of Spades

One of my very favorite things is giving presents to people I love and... who am I kidding... I love receiving them, too.  So, this past Sunday felt a little bit like Christmas morning.  I woke up excited about what adventure my Deck of Goals had in store for me and couldn't wait to shuffle and select.  But first things first.  Sunday is one of the best days of my week because it means an hour at Mass holding my favorite boy Godchild, my nephew Oscar.  He had fun clawing at my necklace, trying to rip the glasses from my face, dancing to the music and overall being very squirmy - just what a 7 1/2 month old should be!  Then he peed through his clothes and it was his Daddy's turn to hold him.  :)  After a quick diaper change and a less-than-quick Target run, my sister, bro-in-law, and Oscar came to my house to give their opinion on a new rug I bought.  (They approved.)  While hanging out together I decided it would be the perfect time to pick a card and who better to pick it than Oscar!  I spread the cards out on the coffee table and he swirled them around in his hands until finally he found one he liked and proceeded to pop it in his mouth!  That kid will chew anything!

 

 

What did he select?  Well, his mom - my beautiful sister Chloe - exclaimed right away, "Good job, Oscar!"  So I turned it over to see: "Invite Chloe for massages".

 

Two things popped into my mind when Oscar revealed his card.  1) Yay! Fun sister time! 2) OMG, people reading the blog are going to be thinking "What!?  Her goals are to get massages!?  What a crock!"

My mom told me, "Who cares what people think?", but I still feel like I should explain.

No, not all of my goals involve pampering myself.  In fact, very few are.  That being said, anyone who knows me knows I'm not really a girly girl.  I don't like shopping for clothes, I get my hair cut maybe once or twice a year, and my nails rarely see polish as they're almost always in a half-chewed state.  About the only thing pampering-wise I do for myself regularly is get my eyebrows waxed.  And that hurts.  So I threw a few do-something-nice-for-yourself things in the mix.  And on this particular card I thought my sister, the new mom, the hard-working attorney, deserved to have something nice for herself as well.

The appointment is booked.  Thursday at 7p.m.
Chloe will head there straight from her long day at work and I will head there from my day searching for work.
And we will begin this new year relaxed.  And together.  It's a beautiful thing.