Five Things

Friday Five Things 8/27

~ kofriedery ~ Leave a comment

“Happiness is not a goal; it is a by-product.” – Eleanor Roosevelt

I think recently I’ve been making happiness my goal. And this week something shifted that allowed me to let that go and focus on other things, which has actually brought about happiness as a by-product. So I guess my encouragement is that if you are striving after feeling happy, let it go for a bit. Focus on other things that take your time and focus. See if happiness shows up along the way.

  1. A little break from the smoky air. Weather patterns have changed over the last week and we had several days of wind which brought some relief to the bad air quality around here. From what I’ve seen, the smoke will return shortly. But it’s been nice to have a break. I’ve been able to spend time outside without feeling it in my lungs!
  2. A garden that keeps giving. Some how, despite the heat and smoke and wind we’ve been having, my outdoor plants are still thriving and producing! I even got to harvest my first cucumber this week! I’ve been able to shop my yard for tomatoes, zucchini, kale and herbs all month and so far it isn’t showing signs of slowing.
  3. This recipe. Making these zucchini fritters will help use up any squash your garden might still be churning out, like mine is! I think it would work just as well with yellow summer squash as it does for zucchini. I made these and ate them with some tzatziki sauce. They would be great for a very light dinner, otherwise I’d serve them as a side to some grilled salmon.
  4. 40,000 words written. I just crossed 40,000 words written in my novel manuscript! For reference, that’s probably about 150 pages of a typical novel. My goal is 90,000 words by the end of the year and now that I’m past 40,000 it feels so doable! I’d love to be able to finish my first draft by mid-December, take a break for the holidays, and then hit the ground running with editing in January!
  5. Exercise and movement. I pretty much stopped working out in August. It wasn’t intentional but the weather started to get too hot for hikes. And the dog only wanted to go for short walks. And the air was so smoky I didn’t want to spend much time outside. And there was so much other stuff to do! So it just eventually stopped being a priority. And then I stopped putting it on my daily list of things to do. But this week I’m making more of an effort to get outside and move my body for at least 15 minutes every day. So far so good and it feels great!

Friday Five Things 8/20

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“Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards.” – Soren Kierkegaard

Getting this out a little late this week, but better late than never. Last night I had the privilege of attending a fundraiser gala and the featured speaker was Eric Weihenmayer who is the first blind man to summit Everest. His story has always been inspiring to me and it was incredible to listen to him speak in person. He infused that room with encouragement and motivation about how change is difficult and full of struggle, but the end is worth it. We also each got a copy of is new book and I’m excited to read it soon and report on it here!

  1. Encouragement and motivation. In addition to getting inspired from the talk last night, I’ve been feeling very encouraged and motivated in my writing recently from people I’ve been talking with. I’ll be honest, sometimes I feel embarrassed to tell people that I quit my job to write a book. Like, I’m not worth as much to the world because I’m not working. Or that I don’t deserve to not be working full time because I don’t have kids to take care of. But when I’ve told people what I’m doing, the response has been overwhelmingly positive. Most commonly people tell me that they are excited for me and that they can’t wait to read my novel. I think it’s easy for me to get stuck inside my head with what I assume people’s expectations are of me. When I actually get out and talk to people I realize that there are no expectations really. And that most people will celebrate the fact that someone they care about is happy and pursuing their dreams.
  2. Late-summer cleaning. I’ll be honest, Tyler and I are not clean freaks by any stretch of the imagination. I guess that’s a good thing, given we have two cats and a dog running the house. I do my best on a daily and weekly basis to mostly keep a handle on the dirt, but it still builds up. I’ve also never been super into spring cleaning. I get the idea, after being cooped up in your house all winter you want to freshen things up. My problem is that in the spring…I don’t want to spend my time inside cleaning! But when it’s unbearably hot outside in mid-August? I’ll happily spend my days inside wiping down baseboards and cleaning out closets! To me this is a perfect example of managing time vs. managing energy. To keep me inside in the spring just to fit into the pattern of spring cleaning would completely zap my motivation. But a late-summer cleaning is the right match for me!
  3. Empathetic pets. Earlier in the week I was watching an episode of a tv show that just hit my emotions hard and I started crying. All of a sudden I was surrounded by my sweet sympathetic animals who just wanted to make sure I was okay. One of the cats ran over to me and snuggled up next to me and the dog started nosing my arms out of the way so she could get to my face. Of course this ended with the dog trying to scare the cat off, assuming in her mind that the cat was making me cry. So it all ended in laughter but it was such a sweet moment with them.
  4. This quick and easy dinner recipe. It was so easy to make, it’s relatively healthy, and it was SO YUMMY! I highly recommend for a weeknight dinner.
  5. Jeopardy drama. I was THRILLED to see that Mike Richards decided to step down from being the new host of Jeopardy. The things that some journalists uncovered about him were so problematic. It was pushing me towards not wanting to watch the show anymore if he was going to be the host. I think there were a lot of other fans who felt the same way and Sony felt that pressure. Not happy that he’s staying on a executive producer…but I guess you take what you can get. On the edge of my seat to see who they end up selecting now!

Friday Five Things 8/13

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“It’s the simple things in life that are the most extraordinary.” – Paul Coelho

This week was pretty quiet after all the people and activities of last week. And I am grateful for both, the busyness and the stillness.

  1. Honey harvest. This week was the big honey harvest from our bees! One of our hives lost a queen earlier this summer and didn’t quite make enough excess for us to take, but the other hive gave 50+ lbs so far! I’m excited to sell it again this fall as well as try out some new recipes. Honey caramels anyone?!?
  2. Garden veggies. Speaking of harvests, our little cherry tomatoes have started to ripen as well as a couple of our bigger tomatoes. The chickens got to one of the big tomatoes before I did, but there’s a couple more that are just about ready to pick. In the past week I’ve also harvested a couple zucchini, some jalapeños, and a strawberry! And we finally have baby cucumbers!!! Very excited to see the literal fruits of my labor.
  3. Reorganizing. I get a unique sense of joy and accomplishment when I’m able to rearrange and repurpose items around the house in a way that bring better organization and efficiency. This week it was moving a big cedar chest out of the guest room closet into the living room behind the couch. We have so much space between our couch and the wall that isn’t being used and isn’t visible from the rest of the room. Before it was filled with mismatched baskets overflowing with blankets, dog toys, and exercise equipment. Now all of that is tucked neatly into the chest. And now the guest room closet doesn’t look quite as cluttered as it did before. I did a couple other little projects like that this week and it makes me so happy to get the right things into the right places.
  4. Shitty first drafts. I’m serious here. I follow a few writers on social media and I am constantly thankful for the reminders that all first drafts are bad. The purpose is just to get the words out and the story on paper because you can’t edit nothing. I’ve been writing a lot recently and it’s been pretty bad. But it brings me joy to know that what I’m doing right now is all part of the process and exactly what I should be doing at this stage in the game!
  5. Reading. I spent a lot of time this week reading. I mean, I probably read more than the average person on a weekly basis because I consider it part of my “job” as a writer. But this week I really took some intentional time to dedicate to reading and I am really grateful for slowing down and immersing in story.

Friday Five Things 8/6

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“Nothing is worth more than laughter. It is strength to laugh and to abandon oneself, to be light.” – Frida Kahlo

Whew! It’s been a busy week and I almost forgot to write something to publish today! My sister and her family have been in town, so we’ve had a lot of good family time. Lots of fun and laughter.

  1. The best pet sitter in the world. A couple years ago I asked people for recommendations of pet sitters and a coworker/friend recommended her good friend. She has been ah-mazing. Our timid dog LOVES her. Our scaredy cats will snuggle her on the couch. It has been such a help and relief to have someone we know takes care of our animals when we are gone as well as we would, or even better! And as a bonus, she’s become a friend as well!
  2. My niece and nephew. I love all my nieces and nephews so much, but this week I got to spend a whole day with the two oldest. It was the first time that I’ve watched them by myself for an entire day, from wake-up to bedtime. And it was an adventure! We went to two playgrounds, did some shopping, sang silly songs, ate Red Robin, played outside, played a game, went to Dairy Queen, read books, rode bikes, ate dinner, and watched the Olympics! Whew! I was exhausted but so so happy.
  3. Cooler weather. Not only had the weather been slightly cooler at home at the end of last week, but we once again escaped to the mountains for cooler, crisper weather. My absolute favorite weather is when I need a sweatshirt and long pants in the mornings and evenings, but then can wear shorts and a t-shirt during the day. And that’s been the weather in Breckenridge so far this week.
  4. Writing progress. At the end of July I felt myself starting to get into a slump with my writing. But instead of giving into the block, I tried something different instead of just trying to write the next scene. I went back to my outline and wrote out a quick summary of where I want the rest of the book to go. In doing that, my writing just started flowing again and I’ve written over 2,000 words just this week!
  5. Really good sleep. I’ve been having a streak of really good sleep and not waking up during the night at all! It’s such a great feeling to feel really refreshed when you wake up and I am not taking it for granted this week.

Friday Five Things 7/30

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“It is a happy talent to know how to play.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

Earlier this week I attended an Olympics themed birthday party that was so fun and really well executed. I think it was my first party in a very long time and I wasn’t super great with party-type situations before staying locked in my house for a year and a half. I had some pre-party social anxiety but it eventually faded when I got there and remembered how to play and have fun with other people. Over all, it was a great reminder to be playful and not take things too seriously!

  1. Olympics! I’m not really a fanatic about the Olympics but it’s always fun to watch a few competitions when they’re airing. I love hearing to how excited the commentators get during close races and unexpected outcomes, due to many of them being former athletes in those events.
  2. The neighbor’s kitten. My neighbors were out of town for a few days this week and they asked me to stop by to feed and check in on their two cats. They have a very sweet black long haired cat and a new little orange kitten who is a firecracker! Both cats have been very friendly even though I’m a stranger to them. The kitten has the scratchiest little voice when he meows and he purrs like a diesel engine.
  3. New houseplants. I stopped by our local garden center to pick up some self-watering devices to help a few of my outdoors plants get through the near 100 degree temps this week. And while I was there I allowed myself to buy two new houseplants! I potted them last night and also repotted a few of my other plants. While doing so I discovered that my snake plant had propagated itself three times in it’s original plant so I split off the babies and I now have four snake plants! When I was younger I tried to keep plants alive and just never could do it. Now that I’m older and pay more attention to things in my house, taking care of my green babies has brought me so much joy!
  4. Cutting back on social media. Over the past year my social media consumption has gotten a bit out of control. So on Tuesday I decided to delete Facebook and Instagram off of my devices. Not having them easily accessible has prevented me from mindlessly scrolling for a few days. I’m not sure how long I’ll keep them deleted, but even just a few days away has felt really good and freeing.
  5. Books. I got back on track with my goal to finish five books this month! I read some good ones and I’ll have my book report up early next week with my reviews and recommendations.

Friday Five Things 7/23

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“To affect the quality of the day, that is the highest of arts.” – Henry David Thoreau

I think the quote above is going to mean something different for everyone. For me, it is getting outside to move my body, mindfulness in gratitude, and checking things off my to-do list! What is it that you can do for yourself to affect the quality of your day?

  1. Hiking. I didn’t hike at all last week because I was limiting my driving while waiting for my new tire. So it was a top priority to get out into nature this week. I went for a long hike near Boulder and it was the life-giving fulfillment I needed!
  2. Fun projects. In the midst of continuing to finish painting our house, I have let myself do a few little fun side projects. One of them has been painting a cardboard cat house that I bought for the kitties last Christmas. It has been sitting out in the living room with it’s Christmas theming since December and I decided rather than toss it, that I would make use of a few of the paint samples we decided not to use. So while we are getting a fresh coat on our house, Buzz and Portia are getting a new look for their little playhouse!
  3. This recipe. I finally had a zucchini big enough to harvest this week and I made this Zucchini Butter Pasta recipe from Smitten Kitchen. I added mushrooms because it seemed like the right thing to do. Guys, I make a lot of pasta and I think this is my favorite pasta recipe I’ve ever made. I scaled down the recipe a little bit for just two people, but don’t make that mistake. We would have eaten more if there had been more, it was SO GOOD. I’m stalking two baby zukes on my plant right now because I want to make it again as soon as they are ready!
  4. Happy tired clean dogs. Bama and I met up with a friend at the dog park this week and they ran around like lunatics. And then ran through the little creek and everyone got so muddy. But we came home, took a bath, and snoozed HARD. We don’t get out to the dog park much these days and when we do…it’s hard to get Bama to play with other dogs. So it was really fun to watch her make a friend and get out some wiggles in a social way.
  5. Surprises in the mail. A friend of mine accidentally bought the same puzzle twice and instead of returning the second one, she mailed it to me! It’s always fun to get mail, especially when it isn’t your birthday or a holiday. It makes me want to start sending my friends little surprises at random because it made me smile so much.

Friday Five Things 7/16

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“Stay close to any sounds that make you glad you are alive.” – Hafez

Hello again! I actually got my act together and wrote my blog post on time! I also have a couple ideas for some one-off posts, so I’ll scatter those throughout the coming weeks on non-Friday days. As far as weeks go…this was a pretty good one.

  1. Catching up with old friends. Over the weekend I had the opportunity to see a high school friend who I haven’t seen, or talked to really, in about twenty years! She was visiting a mutual friend who I do see regularly and the three of us got together for some drinks and a stroll around town. It was so fun to hear everything that’s been going on in her life recently and to see that she is doing so well. A good blast from the past to be sure. Later in the week I also had a good phone catch-up with another long distance friend.
  2. Taking care of nagging tasks. I crossed two of those annoying, nagging tasks off my list this week! You know, the ones that come with being an adult that you really just want to ignore? The first was taking my car to the tire shop. I’ve had a very slow leak in one of the tires and refilled it with air probably one more time than was responsible before taking it in. Turns out the tire needed to be replaced and luckily I had bought a warranty when I got the new set a couple years ago and the replacement was free! The other little nagging task was to file some mail and papers that have been stacking up in our office. Nothing important, but just stuff that shouldn’t be throw away just yet. I have a bad habit of adding to the pile rather than filing right away, so the stack was getting bigger and bigger. I finally set a 20 minute timer and told myself I’d get as much done in that time as I could. As is usually the case, it took much less time to go through everything than I had thought and now…no pile! At least until I bring in the mail tonight.
  3. Afternoon thunderstorms. Colorado has a very dry climate, even in the summer. Humidity doesn’t really exist here. But this year we have gotten about 50% more rain on the front range than we usually do by this time of year. While my animals may disagree with me here, I love when an afternoon thunderstorm rolls in. First of all, it means my plants will be wet and happy without my daily watering. Second, there is just something so cozy about being inside while the tempest is raging outside. And third, it usually cools things down for the evening and makes my house just a little more comfortable for sleeping.
  4. Loki. Guys, Disney has been hitting it out of the park with their Marvel series this summer. I loved WandaVision, Falcon and the Winter Soldier, and now Loki. It was a smart, funny, and heartwarming journey for one of our favorite antiheroes of the Avengers. And Tom Hiddleston does such a great job of playing the character! You can tell he really loves being in this role. Again, these might not be the best shows for you if you aren’t already an MCU fan and don’t have a working knowledge of the characters. But, also, what better time than now to get rolling on the whole franchise!
  5. Roasting garlic and jalapeños. I made cheesy grits for a dinner one night this week and I added canned corn along with roasted garlic and jalapeños. I decided to try roasting them in my air fryer/toaster oven on just the bake setting and it worked! All in all, it was much faster from start to finish than if I had used my big oven. And it didn’t overheat my whole kitchen!

Friday Five Things 7/9

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“You will either step forward into growth, or you will step backward into safety.” – Abraham Maslow

Better late than never, right? This has been one of those weeks where I’ve completely lost track of the days, so even though I “knew” today was Friday, I didn’t remember it was Friday until just now… Anyway, on to the good things!

  1. Mozzarella. I’ve been buying a ball of fresh mozzarella and having it in a grilled cheese or some caprese for lunch. It is such a perfect summertime cheese to have on hand! The other day I did a salad with mozzarella, strawberries, avocado, and spinach. Yum!
  2. Looooong hike. I decided to challenge myself earlier this week and I did an 8 mile hike with 1200ft elevation gain! It was tough and hot and tiring, but I finished in less than 4 hours and I felt so great to have accomplished it. My legs and feet were sore that afternoon, but I woke up feeling pretty okay the next couple days. So I think that means I might finally be ready to bag my first 14er after having lived in Colorado for 20+ years!
  3. Cucumber plants. For several years we’ve tried to grow cucumbers with little to no success. This year I changed up the locations for all my plants and the cukes are now on the deck under some partial shade. And they are THRIVING! They aren’t fruiting just yet, but the actual plants are three times as big as we’ve ever gotten them and there are tons of flowers. Here’s hoping we can harvest some without the squirrels ruining everything!
  4. Puzzles. Puzzles were always part of my life growing up. And last March when we were stuck inside puzzles became a regular pastime for me, especially while on long conference calls! Anyway, I’ve kind of been taking a break over the past few months but this week I pulled out a 1,000 piece puzzle that I hadn’t done yet. And I’m hooked again! It is just so meditative and relaxing for me to sit and put in piece after piece. And then I feel so accomplished at the end of it!
  5. House updates. The front of our house is now 90% finished painting! Everything is covered with at least the first coat and there are a few places that will need a second coat/touch up but you can really only see those from up close. It’s like a whole new house from the street! Still need to finish around the sides and the back especially. We are starting to think about what color to paint the front door and have some fun ideas for updates in that area. I’m really glad we decided to do it ourselves, not only do I think we’ve done a pretty good job with the painting, but it’s also has given me more confidence when thinking about other DIY home projects that I could help with or do myself!

Friday Five Things 7/2

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“The worst enemy to creativity is self-doubt.” – Sylvia Plath

Hi friends and happy Friday! I know I’ve been a bit negligent about posting every Friday, but things are getting busy around here! I’m planning to put out my Book Report for June on Monday and then resume regular Friday posts for the rest of the summer.

  1. Freedom to adjust expectations. For most of May I was writing a lot most days of the week. Then in June my creativity seemed to dry up for some reason. I spent the first few weeks trying to force myself into the same routine from May before I remembered that I have the freedom to adjust my expectations. So I made a shift to only asking myself to write 300 words every day. The result is that I added to my manuscript much slower this month, but I was able to actually get words on the page every day instead of sitting for two hours without any progress. Reducing the expectation on myself for a single writing session freed up the block I was having, if only a little bit. For July I plan to continue the 300 words per day and see where the rest of the summer takes me.
  2. The ability to escape to the mountains. After a few weeks of super hot weather where we live, we decided to escape to the mountains and it was definitely a cool down! A little too chilly at times to be honest, but after several days of 90 degree heat I didn’t mind a couple mornings with a fire in the fireplace. We are super lucky to have a free place to stay when we head up there and live close enough to do it on a whim. On the way up to Breckenridge this weekend, Tyler planned a little side excursion to hike up to St. Mary’s Glacier as a surprise for me. Bama loved it, rolling in the slushy ice of the glacier especially. We also did a half day Jeep trail on Friday morning and had a little lunch picnic above tree line. Nothing big, just little adventures out of our normal routine that bring me joy.
  3. Physical wellness. I’m not what anyone would call “in great shape” but this morning I was hiking and was so grateful for what my body can do for me. There have been several stark reminders in my life recently that you can’t take wellness for granted so I am going to take joy from the fact that I can hike four miles in the morning and still have energy to vacuum the whole house in the afternoon.
  4. BLTs (with avocado). No hidden meaning here…just very thankful to live in a world with ripe tomatoes in the summer for delicious BLTs.
  5. Luca. New Pixar movie released on Disney+. It isn’t a huge epic musical Disney movie, but it is so sweet and so magical. I loved watching it and I’ve been recommending it to everyone. I won’t say anything else to avoid any spoilers…but it’s just so darn adorable!

Friday Five Things 6/18

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“Almost everything will work again if you unplug it for a few minutes, including you.” – Anne Lamott

I’ve needed some time away from routine and schedule for the past couple weeks, which has included deadlines for this blog. It has been HOT here and that kind of heat always affects my motivation and focus. So I just kind of went with it and got little things done around the house, read a lot, and had small little burst of productivity. It has been good for me and I think I’m ready to get back to my regularly scheduled programming.

  1. My garden is thriving! Both my wildflowers in the front yard and my herbs and veggies in the back are doing great. I’ve had a couple harvests of spinach and kale already and I love not needing to buy it at the store every week, especially since I’ve been into salads recently.
  2. Summer salads. I’m not a big salad person, especially making them myself at home. But this week I made two really delicious salads that I’ll be making again! The first was sliced cucumber and red onions marinated in a vinaigrette (like this). Then I had that over top of spinach (obviously) and torn pieces of fresh mozzarella. Soooo good. The other salad was spinach again, sliced strawberries, goat cheese crumbles, chopped walnuts with a homemade basil vinaigrette (this one is so good!) Both of these were really simple to put together and really refreshing in the heat this week!
  3. Monday morning walks. A friend and I went for a walk on Monday morning and it was so lovely we decided we should do it every week! Now I have something to look forward to at the beginning of each week and hopefully it will act as an anchor in time for kicking off the week the right way!
  4. Painting our house. Like, the outside! We have a red house and the exterior paint is super faded. We’ve tried to find another red that we like, but in the end decided to go with a blue/gray color called Adirondack Blue. And it’s going to be my summer project to do the painting! I figure if I really screw up badly, we can hire someone to touch up trim and stuff, but hopefully we don’t need that. Also really happy we don’t have an HOA because this isn’t something I’m going to get done quickly. We’ll have a partially painted house for awhile…
  5. Character breakthroughs in my writing. In the past couple weeks I’ve really started to get to know the main character in my novel and figure out some of her motivations and neuroses. It’s been fun to write a scene and know exactly how she is going to react to something! Still figuring out some of the other characters, but feeling good about where things are headed.