all grown'd up

You know you're a grown up and not just growing up when you......
(and "you" refers to...well.."me"!)

• think your parents are cool....like...you hang out and stuff
• put plastic up on your apartment windows to save energy
• wear a bike helmet, because you can't afford not to
• enjoy comfy cotton underwear.....long johns.....big thick socks.....flannel anything....
  
• notice that first little wrinkle in the crease beside your eye...you point it out to your husband and he says..."Oh!  WOW!!!!  Oooh!"
  
• start to try to collect funds for rainy days that's prepared for a hurricane 
• stop really caring what other people think of your....well...anything
  
• pluck that first grey hair....
• better yet....pluck that first, second, third and hundredth hair that's where it shouldn't be!
• talk to people younger than you, they open their mouths and you smile in compassion and keep your mouth shut....they won't get it til they're your age
  
• start to dream of dental insurance and the thought of it is more exciting then concert tickets
• can poke your own flab and make it dance
  
• would rather stay in with a good book and a tea then consider the possibility of a beer at a bar in the cold at night
• forget how old you are
• bend to pick something up and something inside of you creaks like an old house
  

Yep. 
I'm old.
Thanks winter for making these things so blatantly obvious to me! 
Here's to hoping spring hurries itself up and comes soon to warm up my decaying spirit!!!!

biking to the grocery store

It was so nice out again, we decided to bike out to buy some fresh lettuce.
I took these just an hour ago on our bike back home.

There was a willow tree above this little tree...
I thought it looked like they were trying to hold hands!

I don't know if you can see all three planes in the air?  Well...
I loved how they all almost lined up with these cables all at once!

Sarah trying to take photos like a hipster....did it work?

a winter wonderland

ok....so it's really more of a grassy wonderland!

Thanks to this crazy weather, R man and I took a walk around our neighborhood!

Here's what it looks like in our neck of the woods:

I've always biked by this and thought...man, what a beautiful warehouse!
3 blocks from home

old truck parked near the warehouse

East Johnson bridge near Tenney Park

Our new favorite neighborhood cozy brunch spot/bar

Ducks were out in full force!
I tried to explain directions to them, pointing and enunciating clearly..."SOUTH!  THAT WAY!"
.....but they just wobbled away!

My theory is that these geese in a line are simply walking South!

Attention ice fisherman!  I've found your ice!!!!
*make sure to bring your wet suit this year!

Walking back home across the Yahara River on Willy St.

The view of the capital a few blocks from home
Yay for winter nature photo walking!

making gnocci with chopsticks

today Rodolfo's cousins mom (who lives in Buenos Aires usually) is showing me how to make homemade gnocci!  So far, we've boiled water, added salt and then 1 cup self rising flour per cup of water.  (1 cup of each per person)

So...I just witnessed the coolest thing!  When she added the flour to the boiling water, she used CHOPSTICKS!

This is something I haven't really considered doing before, but seeing someone else do it and see how easy things seem to mix together, I'm inspired to give it a try.  It seems to mix better then when I use a big old spoon with less clumpiness and it's not as messy as a whisk!

So cool!  I'm converting to the sticks!

dreams of things

As always my friend and fellow blogger Kyria is always inspiring me with her ideas and thoughts on the world.  Just today I read her blog called Less is More.  Having traveled in some of the same places at around the same times, ever since we met, I love checking in on what she's up to and thinking about, because our thoughts for some reason tend to run parallel on lots of things.

After traveling, as you know, R man and I decided we wanted to return to normal life for a while. 

A job.  An apartment.  Cell phones.  A kitchen.  It's lovely, absolutely lovely.  All of it.
(Sarah does a happy dance)

We are to the point that we are even quasi redecorating!

I'm not that 'type' of gal who lives at Crate and Barrel  - although I AM the oggling type passing by plate and glass display windows, so I'm using the term 'redecorate' lightly, in terms of major essential household furniture purchases and such.

We still don't want to be tied down to stuff in case the feeling hits us that it's time to leave (which we both decided is important to us), but as handy and useful as a card table is, it's not the same experience to eat on when inviting..say...your in laws or your boss over for dinner.  Nothing says, "enjoy this fine meal" like a folding chair as they sit down to eat!

We 'needed' a table.  

So!  Something had to be done!  After scanning ads for IKEA and target and staring dazed and terrified at furniture websites with tables and chairs for $2,000 each, we went the craigslist route.

We ended up scoring a gorgeous old antique wooden dining room table complete with original extendors (it can sit 8 people!  8!) with chairs for 4!  WITH CHAIRS! All for $35.  Awesomeness!
We were even physically able to carry it home the required 5 blocks!  I have the arm bruises to prove it!

But...there's a big but....this purchase?  Goes against a lot of what I've come to believe is the lifestyle I want and crave.  Not to be tied down to things.  Not to buy more then what is essential for a happy life.

We wanted something used and a bit beat up...and yes, cheap...not only to fit the budget, but so that we wouldn't feel bad when the time came to put it up for auction again.  Now that it's in our 'dining room,' we've both mentioned how unique and awesome it is and how much we'd rather rent a storage unit to save it, then to let it go to the junk heap....so....are we turning to the dark side?  Is it bad to crave comfort and pretty shiny things?!?  I don't know.  But at the moment, that pretty old antiquey table that's mine?  IT'S MINE!!!! HWA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA!  No backsies!

=)

life in a day

I just watched a documentary which features people all over the planet with camcorders on just one day called...guess what..."life in a day"

Great film.
Something I always feel curious about is learning what people's lives are like on a day to day basis...something great about traveling and staying with different places and friends was learning what is appropriate to eat for breakfast in different places.  How do people bathe or go to the bathroom?  What time and how people go to work.  That for me was the most interesting part of all!

Now that I'm back into a routine of working daily life, I definitely don't have as much "interesting" stuff to blog about on a regular basis, but today, I feel inspired to share what a regular day is like for me....if you have a blog going and feel inspired, I'd love to hear about your routine!  (If you don't have a blog and want to share, email me and I'll post your routine here!!!)

A work day morning routine as a baker/barista (so far):

• Wake up to alarm at 5:25am.
• Cuddle Rodolfo for an extra 5 minutes...R man kicks me out of bed with a sleepy "Sarah, go, you'll be late"....grumble, grumble, sit up, hit cold floor with feet, grumble and I'm off!
• Probably crash into a stool in the kitchen, yelp, find light switch
• Pee/Brush teeth, put on clothes (strategically placed in a pile in the bathroom the night before)
• Stare in mirror at horror of hair situation....put on hat/braid hair  (If I'm in the bakery, I wear a head hanky, barista...I've been trying to look a bit cute and french braid my bangs back)
• I don't put on deoderant or perfume - it interferes with the natural smell of the bakery, crazy but true!
• I throw on my dansko leather work clogs and a coat, locate my bike light and keys and I'm off.
• 5 minute bike commute thru deserted warehouse district (about 6 whole blocks).  We live 1/2 block away from the bus depot and I've happily discovered the hoard of buses for the morning share a busy intersection I cross that is scheduled to turn green every 60 seconds around 5:45am...perfect!)
• Walk in to the bakery, yawn, grab a coffee and clock in
• Around 5:50-6am my work day begins....

Barista - making coffee, putting out pastries, displaying breads, heating water, preparing the cafe for a busy day

Baker - joining in the crazy hectic end of night shift baker world, preparing orders to go out, slicing bread, last minute touches on pastries and breads for the front and trying to help out and not be a nuisance as much as possible

• 7-8am

Barista - taking orders, making beverages, clearing tables, serving food

Baker - mixing things, measuring things, helping shape bread, looking confused and bewildered

(repeat these for many, many hours)

• 2pm I finish up my work

I'm usually covered in flour and sweat, my back hurts a bit and my whole body is tired and ready for a rest.  I'm a bit hungry, a bit cranky, but satisfied and happy to go home.  

• I go home and take a shower, change my clothes and grab a beverage, 
• check my email and begin to think about dinner.  Perhaps I watch a movie/read the news/ check my google reader/facebook while eating a snack.  
• Then I call R man to make plans for the evening.
• 6-7pm  - Make dinner
• 7-9pm Eat and clean up from dinner joking around and catching up with the hubby/friends
• 9-10pm - Lay out clothes for the next day....fall asleep reading a book

And that's it!

Boring....but for me having a routine...it's golden!  I'm loving it!!!

Apprentice Baker

Photo taken by Madison Sourdough Co.  (that's me, and the head baker/owner Drew)

It's official!
I'm now apprenticing to learn the art of baking and pastries at Madison Sourdough Company!

I had my first short day of training yesterday, which seemed like it flew by in only a few minutes....I've never been so excited to learn/see/knead/layout and watch so many exciting little details for what goes into the process of baking and creating pastries and breads, (particularly at this particular establishment, where every detail is fine tuned, every second counts and every baker puts their all into what they do).  It's an honor to learn from people who feel such passion for their work and take pride in creating a product of such caliber and quality.  For those of you have tried MSCO bread, you know what I'm talking about!  For those of you who haven't, dude, you've got to try this stuff!  You are missing out!!!!

I don't think I've been this excited to learn something since...well...my years playing marimba.   Timing.  Order.  Details.....that you have to have the right feel to get it right.  There's something about it that just seems to fit with my brain....it's really hard to explain, but I feel so fortunate to be excited to learn something again and be a part of something that's become incredibly important to me.....locally made, great quality bread.  I know I sound like a freaking advertisement, but you would as well if you were in my shoes!!!  Freaking smiling from head to toe.....that's me!

The thing is, I have a feeling I'll feel the same way a year from now...time will tell I guess...I'll keep you posted!

Do you hear what I hear

This American Life just had an episode called "Living Without" and the first act is called  "do you hear what I hear, by Nubar Alexanian, talking about his life dealing with his Tinitis (a permanent ringing in the ears) and this story is really beautifully done...he did an incredible job explaining what it's like to have Tinitis.

For those of you who may or may not know about Tinitis, this gives a lot of detail about what it sounds like to deal with as well as what it's like to have emotionally.

I also have Tinitis and this has definitely made an effect on my life similar to what this man has gone thru.  I too went to doctors and looked into other forms of natural healing.  It's part of why I itched to travel and get away from my life for a while and for better or worse, it's sent my world into a new direction from what it was and life will never be the same again.

I can't go into loud restaurants or bars, because it makes my ring louder..I have special ear plugs, but I hate explaining what they're for.  I can't be in quiet places, because I begin to get annoyed with my ring, and if I'm slightly dehydrated, the ring also gets louder.

When I first got Tinitis, I thought my life was over.  I couldn't imagine dealing with it for the rest of my life, but yet here I am, living!  Of course there are good days and bad days (good days where I don't even think about it, bad days where I lay in bed thinking about the tone and how much I hate it.

He has this talk with his daughter...
Daughter:  You're trapped inside your own head....I would follow Van Gogh and cut my ears off"
Father:  "I'm somewhat grateful for the tone....on good days when I think about it, the tone was a warning that I needed to slow down....on bad days I think, I've learned this lesson... ok, I've slowed down, the tone can go away, but it doesn't go away."

Everyone at some point has a problem or an ailment which occurs that reminds us that we are human, that we are not permanent and we are delicate....the day something in us physically doesn't work anymore and we realized it's not going to come back again.  Perhaps, because we've used it too much, perhaps too little, perhaps just bad luck.  For me, this was my hearing.  I had/have to accept the fact that I will never be a professional musician....something I don't like to talk about after 20 years practicing percussion and marimba, but I'm at a place where I believe this was my bodies way of saying, it's ok Sarah, it's time to slow down, time to move on and do other things you want to do...life goes on!  So that's what I'm doing!  Sometimes, having something go wrong is a wake up call to live!

Octo-beer-fest

My uncle is a microbrewer and a damn fine one at that.
He grows hops in his backyard and is known to combine local fruits and flavors to his beverages....he's good!

He gave my parents a small sample of a particular brew he's prepared for an event he has defined as "Octobeerfest"...yes, he's that cool.

***This is not intentionally meant to cause embaressment or cast judgment on my parents...it's more so meant to clearly define the differences between Minnesota and Wisconsin (my uncle lives in Wisconsin)***

What was their plan for this sample?
Mom: "hmmm.....perhaps it could make a nice beer bread?"
Dad: "I wonder if we could store it in your tea pot?"

True quotes.
I don't think anything else needs to be said further, accept that I may have changed color upon hearing this and started to say half sentences similar to this...
"You want to...."  "In a where....?"  "With a....."

If Wisconsin has taught me one thing, it's that beer has no place in a tea cozy....

flying solo

When R man and I first started dating a friend of ours took me with to say goodbye to him at the airport when he flew home for Christmas.  I was crying in hysterics as if I would never see him again....I was flying to Chile to meet him in a WEEK!  His friend was totally befuddled and holding back tears of laughter at my hysterics....

"girl, you're going to see him in a week!  What the heck!  Chill out!"

I used to believe that once he was out of my sight, he was as good as dead until he came back, which when you love someone, thinking like this for extended periods of time leads to lack of sleep, lack of comprehensive thought - which then leads to losing things and acting really weird!

I've lost keys multiple times, my wallet, important paper work, my work badge and a tendency to forget to eat and shower....all signs of an insane person you might meet in a downtown public library...a hobo.

This is our first longerish term separation in oh...years and years...and I think thanks to having traveled so much now, I've improved greatly in my coping skills.  Sleep - check.  Eating - check.  Things are going well!

I'd forgotten all the awesome perks of living alone!  You eat, sleep, watch, listen to whatever you want, whenever you want without discussion!    No lamp on while sleeping!  I can eat melted cheese all I want!  Popcorn can be dinner!

• There are of course little things I miss a lot...
• I have to take out the trash this morning...buggar.
• There's no one to make my coffee in the morning...not that I couldn't, I just don't if he's not here.  It's not as fun without him!
• The salad spinner wouldn't spin...I couldn't push the button down...poops.
• My phone suddenly wouldn't turn on and I had to think about it for an hour....hmm.
• My computer popped up with an emergency blue screen of death and I had no idea what to do, but press the same button over and over again....
• Last but not least....our fridge is packed, PACKED with food.  

WHO IS GOING TO EAT ALL THIS FOOD? 

So, yes, can't wait for the man's return.  Not because I think he's dead, but I need him to consume produce and fix my electronics!!

I had a friend tell me the thing she missed the most when her husband wasn't around was his ability to open peanut butter jars...at the time I was astonished..."that's it?!?"  Now...I totally get it.  
Things have definitely changed!  No emergencies here!

mouse in the house

"Sarah, come quick!  Look at this!!!  Should I kill it?"

right around when I'm running towards the kitchen I see a small fluff ball moving towards the refrigerator...

A mouse?  We have a mouse?!?!?

So then we wait....
a while....yup!  It pops out again!

This time looking at us a little confused wandering around the floor....
Our first reaction to each other? 
A mix of yelling 2 things simultaneously:
1) KILL IT!  KILL IT! 
2) Awww!!!  Look at its little head...with those little itty bitty eyes!

So, it runs under the oven.
Rodolfo grabs a stick and we decide that we'll simply get it out with the porch door open, it'll be free and all will be well, accept with it's cuteness and fastness, it easily outmaneuvered us and made its way to the bedroom.

So.  We have a mouse.   A cute one.  Freaking adorable sharing our bedroom with us...somewhere...
R man I think wants to adopt it into the family as another house pet.
I'm concerned about our electronic wiring and don't really want something trying to eat my stuff.

What do people do in these scenarios?!?
I'm so stumped!