2010 resolutions

In the spirit of 2009 and the resolutions I made I am going to do the same thing this year. I want resolutions I look forward to and want to accomplish instead of being disappointed or setting resolutions for things I should do like loosing weight, eating better, exercising more, and all those other ones that we all wish would happen each year but suddenly we need to have the same ones again the next year since they didn't quite happen like we had hoped.

So I will leave the gym in January for the rest of you and concentrate on what I want to do this next year.

visit a country I haven't gone to before . . . try making homemade cheese . . . take 2 days off every quarter for no reason other than I need a break . . . run a 5K in less than 32 minutes . . . decide to fly somewhere on a weekend with less than a weeks notice . . . live on the boat for a month or 2 . . . take at least 10 random pictures every week . . . go visit 4 new places we haven't gone before on the boat . . . write 5 blog entries per month . . . try wakeboarding . . . try to stay off email on the weekends . . . learn to make sushi . . . call a different friend each week I don't normally get a chance to talk with much . . . drink more tea . . . try new entrees at my favorite restaurants . . . take more walks in the rain . . . go to to the Superbowl in Miami . . . go somewhere warm and tropical . . . do absolutely nothing for an entire day . . . send a handwritten letter once a week to someone . . . try a new recipe every week . . . go swimming or wading whenever I have the opportunity . . . give out more compliments.

Now these are reasons to look forward to 2010. Goodbye 2009 I am ready for the next year and all it brings.

fond farewell to 09

Dear 2009,

While many seem to be happy to see your end I am sad to see you go. 2009 was my favorite year yet though I have to admit I told 2008 as well, and I hope to tell your close friend 2010 the same thing in a year.

Your first month started out well for us. January started with chilly weather and snow but finished with sun, beaches, and incredible food in Mexico. If I had made losing weight a resolution I would have been far behind the eight ball after that trip but I had a bit of foresight and didn't make a resolution that I would have broken in a few weeks.

February brought more chilly weather but it came with skiing so that was all good. It was finished off by a birthday party for a 6 year old with Wall E being the theme.

In March you kept the snow coming and the skiing was still pretty incredible if only my skills had kept pace as my nephews were starting to give me a run for my money through the trees. I decided I am more of a groomed run skier now and will leave the trees to them. The end of the month brought us a new nephew though he had to literally be yanked into the world to make the 1st quarter cutoff. March also included my favorite new toy - a Kindle that I still haven't been able to put down since.

April and you still allowed me to go skiing and get a head start of my seasons pass for next year. It is a great month when both skiing and boating are involved and the weather was perfect for both. It also brought out some good boating weather and we got in some time on the boat though Sam of course wished for more.

May was kicked off by opening day of boating season and the Cougar Yacht Club. Again the Cougs showed their spirit and the 2 oldest nephews joined us. Their loud voices came in handy chanting Go Cougs through the cut and I am sure they will be joining us again. Memorial Day brought incredible weather and a great boating weekend in Bremerton. Sam is now a bit more concerned about currents now in a marina though.

June seemed like a Seattle July or August with all of the sun. All of our free time was spent on Zig Zag and the month flew by. We even managed to get in a round of golf in Port Ludlow but sadly our golf game showed we hadn't been getting to the courses much. We talked about fixing this but by the time November rolled around we realized it didn't happen again. Too little summer and too many things to do. Unfortunately the end of the month we had to say goodbye to Calvin our dog for 14 years. It was a great run and we had been in a bit of denial he wouldn't be with us for another year. The house has never felt so lonely and even by the end of the year I was still expecting he would come running to greet us though towards the end it did take him a bit to hear us in the house.

July was another great boating month. We spent the first week in Poulsbo commuting via a ferry and realizing living someplace where a ferry would take you into work would only work if you didn't have to be in the office every day. We took Zig Zag to Anacortes and enjoyed some weekends in the San Juans though the weekend when our engine wouldn't start was a bit more exciting than I would have liked. After that I am not super eager to do a transoceanic crossing since sailing at night isn't quite my idea of a relaxing evening. The crabs found our pots so the fresh crab alone was often worth the Friday night rush hour traffic on I5 getting to Anacortes.

August started off like how every month should - on a boating vacation in the San Juans. We had a bit more wind for our race this year except at the starting line. Once again I wished I could climb aboard after the start. Zig Zag was our new entertaining venue and we invited many friends to enjoy a sail with us.

In September Sam went to Paris over Labor Day weekend and I headed to Wenatchee so at least one of us could get in some boating over the 3 day weekend. Turns out that if it is choppy on Lake Chelan and looks like it might get a bit nasty heading out might not be a great idea. Dave was able to learn first hand how his boat handled in some chop and wind and luckily the results were good. Sam learned you can't fight jet lag when he flew in from Paris, immediately boarded Zig Zag and headed to Bell Harbor Marina, went to the Coug Game, and then headed to a wedding all within 24 hours. Turns out this might not be a good idea after all but we managed to get it all in. The month ended with a long weekend in Poulsbo where I got to see Sam run for the first time - when I convinced him it would be a good idea to train together.

With October came back our Seattle weather and tons of Halloween decorations. We spent time in Chelan and realized the lake is just as pretty if not prettier in the fall. For the first time ever I couldn't wait for the Cougar football season to end and put me out of my misery. I even convinced Sam to carve some pumpkins with me since we were too busy entertaining at our carving party to carve our own. The Halloween cruise was a bit scary with the winds and rains but the boat gave me another place to decorate since our house was already covered in decorations. It was also my first 5K where I ran the majority of it and even decided I might be up for another one.

November didn't bring the snow I was hoping for on the slopes but it did bring plenty of good food for Turkey Day and a nice long weekend. It brought some early, dark morning when I tried to get my runs in hoping I would be ready for the Jingle Bell Run.

December as usual was a short, crazy month. Even without having to do much Christmas shopping it seemed to fly by. All the holiday baking gave me an excuse to eat way too much fudge and almond roca candy. I ran the Jingle Bell Run 5K and ran the whole thing until the hill at the end but running all of it except for a few hundred feet I thought was pretty good considering. Of course I promptly undid any good I might have done with a large brunch. Christmas was a beautiful day with just Sam and I in Chelan in direct contrast to Turkey Day. The end of the month brought some good ski days so we could use our seasons passes and be happy we decided they were a good investment. 11:00 at night on New Year's I was sledding on a hill racing towards the lake so the year ended zipping by too quickly once again and I was left wondering what happened to all of it.

2010 if you are as good to us this year it will another good one. Looking forward to it but also looking back on 2009 wishing it was still here.

2009 resolutions in review

In 2009 I decided to try resolutions I would look forward to and want to do so I thought I should see how I did.

1. Try out a new recipe at least once a week - for the most part I accomplished this though sometimes it would be a couple a week or then I would get home and just go for the old standbys. . .
2. Don't pass up any opportunities to travel - I am sorry to say in 2010 I didn't travel nearly as much as I would have liked but at least I visited our neighbors to the south in Mexico and our neighbors to the north in Canada. Both countries could use another repeat very soon. And I plan to do it the same way - Canada by boat and Mexico by plane at least for now.
3. Eat more of the good chocolate - mission accomplished and then some! This may have been the easiest resolution to keep and I discovered new brands I love like Theo's and Choxie.
4. Go out to dinner with friends or have them over at least once a week - well looking at my credit card statements from the past year I definitely got the eating out part done though I needed to have more people over this year.
5. Take a day off at least once a quarter for no good reason - done, now I think I need to shoot for 2 a quarter.
6. Spend more time doing crafts with the nephews - not as much as I would have liked but we did do their photo albums again. Maybe next year I can actually do one for myself at the same time.
7. Take more pictures - what I should have said here was to actually organize the pictures I take and stop deleting all the ones of me I don't like which is pretty much all of them.
8. Shut off my cell phone occasionally - does it count that I turn it to silent at night while sleeping? Sam would beg to differ and remind me of all those times where I didn't even turn it off at night. Sorry - but if I remember correctly your phone was the one with the alarm going off the other night - not that I would keep track of things like that.
9. Spend more time in the water - a pool, a lake, the ocean - while I didn't grow scales I did spend more time in the water and I could always use more time in the water - warm water that is.
10. Work on my Spanish - while in a Spanish speaking country - well I went to Mexico and tried to speak Spanish though the locals may not have realized what exactly I was trying to say.
11. Book our trip to Italy - didn't do this I am sorry to say but isn't it good to still have things to look forward to?
12. Reach out to old friends I haven't been in contact with recently - did a little better but I am sure some of my old friends may be reading this and don't remember I did so I will have to keep working on this one.
13. Try a new restaurant at least once a month - now this was a fabulous idea if I do say so myself. Several times with a few friends we checked off 2 or 3 in the same evening having appetizers. Yum just thinking of some of the new places my mouth is watering - though I am sure my hips and waistline will attest to how often I found new favorites.
14. Have a date night with Sam at least once a week - done and needs to be on my list every year.
15. Redecorate at least one room in my house - as amazed as everyone will be this is one I didn't do this. This doesn't mean there wasn't any shopping done but not a single room got redecorated this year, maybe this means it really is time to move.
16. Have more fires - in our fireplace and out in the fire pit on the deck - had more fires in the fireplace but not on the deck though that could have been that we were gone almost every weekend and we haven't quite figured out how to get a fire pit on the boat yet.

Going through this list made me want to have a redo on almost all of them but we will see if I can get just a bit more creative and try not to recycle all of them even though it is hip to be green.

a christmas for 2

Well Christmas this year was a big change from Turkey Day. Instead of 39 people together it was just Sam and I. We had decided to just have it be the 2 of us this year and hang out at Lake Chelan enjoying ourselves. I have to say there are arguments for both sides but it is great to have a balance - 39 people on both holidays would have been too much and just 2 for both holiday might have seemed a bit lonely.

Instead of the craziness and bustle and 3 tables at Thanksgiving and a houseful of people and children running about it was Sam and I just relaxing and hanging out. We had planned to go skiing on Christmas Day but instead went on Christmas Eve with my sister and nephews. On Christmas Day Sam decided staying put was a better idea though I think this may have had something to do with his quads and how they were feeling after the previous day of skiing though he never fessed up to it.

Instead he said he wanted to just hang out together and go for a walk and spend most of the day eating. Of course our best intentions to just make it a total hang out day didn't quite pan out since I can't actually seem to sit still that long but we were actually able to just sit down for a few hours together over dinner and go for a walk though we didn't have the white Christmas Sam had been hoping for. Have to say an 8 pound ham goes a long ways with only 2 people eating it. Ham sandwiches and ham and eggs will be served for quite a few meals to come.

I did find out this year the absolute best time to hit Costco is on Christmas Eve just before they close - who knew? Since it is such a zoo the rest of the year I might just have to make this my new holiday tradition. While others may have more traditional holiday traditions I think my new one of hitting Costco may be the best one yet. Walking up to the cash register and having them just waiting for us to show up was a whole new experience and the front row parking without having to circle the lot a few dozen times was almost surreal.

So no matter where we end up for Christmas next year I am going to make sure there is a Costco close by.

i am grateful for . . .

With Turkey Day coming quickly it is a good time to reflect on things I am grateful for this year. It should go without saying but I will write it anyways that I am thankful for Sam, my family, and health so this will be about the other little (sometimes big) things I am thankful for.

1. A long sunny Seattle summer - though when it ended I wasn't ready for fall as I had gotten accustomed to long, sunny days.
2. Wenatchee apples from a local fruit stand (preferably the Cougar owned one at the turn off to Blewett Pass) - nothing else compares.
3. A closet full of shoes, though I still would like to acquire more.
4. 2 sisters who will be turning 30 in December - maybe the jokes about how much younger they are will finally end.
5. Sam who pushes me to do things I really don't want to - like docking the boat.
6. Chocolate, cheese, bread, and fruit - this should really be considered a full meal when paired together.
7. Caffeine - not just for myself though I do enjoy a good latte and diet coke but for Sam so he can eventually function every morning. Anyone who invents a way for him to have caffeine 10 minutes before waking would be at the top of my thankful list every year.
8. A boat with a shower not over the head - this has enabled me to be able to use the shower on our boat without feeling like I needed another shower.
9. Parents who live on San Juan Island so I have an excuse to make the morning Roche Harbor Donut run.
10. For the first time ever I am thankful the Cougar football season is almost over and basketball is beginning. I haven't even had the guts to check scores on some weekends until after the game.
11. Nephews who still let me pick out clothes for them - another excuse to go shopping and I can't help it if their department is on the top floor and I have to walk through all the floors on my way up.
12. Black and gray clothes so I have something to wear each day without having to put too much thought or effort into it other than picking out the shoes to wear with my outfit.

still residing at the house

November was the month Sam and I planned to live on the boat. Since November is typically a gray, rainy, and windy month in Seattle it seemed a good month for us to try our hand at being liveaboards. If we could love living on a boat in November then maybe living on a boat would be for us, especially if we survived on our current one without a washer and dryer.

Well it is 1 1/2 weeks into November and I am typing this from my house. Somehow we didn't get packed up and move in yet. We spent Halloween weekend on the boat but didn't pack quite enough to move on board. The evening of November 1st we were back on land.

We honestly meant to make November our month but then life got in the way or I just never got packed for a month. The thought of packing for a month is just a bit daunting - I know how much I bring for a long weekend and it is a good thing I have a truck.

Of course living on a boat is supposed to be in some part about living with less but I am not sure just how much less I am willing to do without. After all our idea of roughing it involves espresso that is made with a separate frother and if we are really roughing it just coffee with cream. It is one thing to stay on a boat while on vacation it is a whole different deal to do it when you have to get up and go to the office every day. The shoes I will need alone might require their own suitcase.

Not to say I am not going through with the idea because I am it just won't be in November. Now I am shooting for January. With the holidays coming up I am not so sure I will be able to cook all the holiday goodies in my oven. It has no temperature on the oven other than turning up and down the gas height. It is pretty much a guess how hot it is. Warming stuff up and cooking things where temp doesn't matter is just fine but anything with a precise temp is a no go.

Actually January might be a bit more of a challenge. That time of year Sam is usually more than ready to try and head to a warmer climate. If we can make it together that month we might just be ready to start pursuing this liveaboard deal more seriously.

I am just wondering how much of a challenge it will be storing the skis on the boat and if I can somehow rent a washer and dryer for a month. That is really my biggest concern. I just remember all too well not having a washer and dryer in college and what a huge deal it was when I finally got an apartment where we had a washer and dryer in the apartment. It was such a luxury and I am going to have a very hard time giving that up.

The cooking part I can deal with - I mean Seattle has some very good restaurants I still haven't tried yet. Plus I can always live on cheese, chocolate, fruit, and bread though I am not sure how many times Sam will think that is dinner. Actually not having a washer/dryer could work to my advantage - there are always new clothes to buy and in January there will be a ton of sales. Problem solved, though after Sam sees all the new clothes he will be the one pushing for the washer and dryer.

This is sounding better and better all the time. January is going to be a very good month.

a creepy cruise

Friday night after work we were set to head out to Des Moines for the Halloween cruise our yacht club was holding. The weather had other plans for us and with the wind and waves steadily increasing arriving in the dark didn't seem like a great idea. We instead headed out for some appetizers and dinner and planned to leave the dock in the morning.

Friday evening/early Saturday morning the wind really picked up. Our boat was actually leaning sideways into the dock as the wind blew us against it. Not only do I get to lean when we sail now it seemed I got to lean while trying to sleep. Neither seem to be a favorite of mine. Feeling glad we decided to stay put, I was happy at least our leaning was taking place while we were securely tied to the dock.

Saturday morning the forecast seemed to be wrong and the winds weren't dying much. Our promised window of opportunity to head out according to NOAA was at 11 in the morning. But as we left the fuel dock at 11:30 the winds hadn't died down much at all.

Halfway across Elliott Bay Sam asked if I wanted to turn back but when given the choice of facing a few waves and wind or missing a Halloween party I chose the party. But I did qualify my decision with the caveat that the waves had better not get much bigger. Sam held his tongue and didn't remind me that the wind was gusting the most at Alki point - a place we still hadn't cruised past.

At the place where the winds were the heaviest we hit some pretty good sized waves - the kind where your boat rides up the wave and then crashes down hard. Hard enough that the whole boat shakes and you begin to hope that it will stay in one piece. Fortunately I chose function over style and don't have glassware on board and since my cupboards are packed full things stay in place primarily because they don't have anywhere else to go.

I was feeling pretty good that in spite of the water breaking over the dodger and getting wet when I leaned around it that I was holding up well. I wasn't nervous and I felt like our boat was really in no danger. I might have the makings of a sailor after all though I did think that the long open water cruising still might not be my thing. There was no way I could ever sleep through something like this and I really enjoy my sleep.

Past Alki the waves didn't seem quite as large and Sam wasn't getting soaked with every wave - just every 3rd or 4th one. By this time he had convinced me to grab his foulies for him and at least the water was dripping off now. When I felt like it might improve a bit we suddenly saw a kite surfer cutting right in front of us. Sam slowed down so we didn't take him out and we both stared in awe as he went directly in front of us then came back around and right behind us caught serious air.

Here we were on a decent sized sailboat and knew that many would be skipping out on the cruise due to weather and now right out with us on the sound was someone on a very small board flying across the water. I had been a bit impressed with my calm demeanor and willingness to head out in less than ideal conditions but the kite surfer reminded me that I have no daredevil in me. It is much easier to be brave when the chance of your boat capsizing is very slim and you have plenty of provisions on board. I had gotten a bit wet but only because I had sat on the side and leaned out behind the dodger and didn't duck behind it quick enough before a large wave caught me.

We made it to Des Moines and pulled in to the marina in time to get the boat decorated for the Halloween. It was worth it just for the fact that I got to not only have my house decorated for Halloween I got to decorate a boat as well.

Sunday morning the sun came out and the winds were gone. The wind was so nonexistent that Sam didn't even try and put up the sails. Guess that is the thing about sailors - they complain about too much wind and then about no wind. I on the other hand was happy with the no wind and sun part. A very mellow cruise home makes one almost forget about the previous cruise. Give me a sunny windless day anytime -well except during a race or when our motor has died then I get a bit pickier.