Archives for February 2019

Monthly Favorites | February

February 27, 2019 filed under: monthly favorites

1. Because I haven’t mentioned it in a while and wanted to make sure you don’t forget, I love my Chemex coffeemaker. After a week of travel earlier this month and acceptable, but mediocre hotel coffee for five days, I was so glad to get home to my Chemex.

2. I don’t eat a lot of jam, but when I do, I am picky. Go get yourself some Bonne Maman Apricot Preserve, it’s delicious on a slice of fresh bread.

3. I love me some snow, so I was happy to get to see some snow not once, but twice this month! Now, if I could get on my skis or snowboard one of these days, that would be awesome.

4. My co-worker introduced me to the Flyover Country App. If you’re a bit of a nerd like me, you’ve attempted to identify places from the plane and you think ahead if you want to sit on the right or left side of the aisle when you’re flying (depending on the route and what you might be able to see from the air). Flyover Country is an app where you can load an “offline” map of your flight route that points out landscape and geology on your flight route. Super-cool!

5. I had been thinking of giving some facial oils a try for a while, and so I got this Acure Morrocan Argan Oil with my last Grove shipment. I actually really like it. Are you using facial oils?

6. Do yourself a favor and get this slab of (imported) Gouda cheese from Costco sometime and taste the difference. This has so much flavor.

7. Somebody recommended this budget-friendly Essence Lash Princess False Lash Mascara to me and it doesn’t disappoint. In fact, it’s one of my favorite mascaras that I have used so far.

What was one of your favorite things this month?

* #notanad, This is not a sponsored post. I have not been compensated by the brand or anyone else for linking the websites. However, the post does contain ONE affiliate link. If you decide to join and try out Grove Collaborative via this post, you will receive $10 towards your first order and I will receive a $10 credit on my account.

Currently | February

February 21, 2019 filed under: currently

SAVORING | the first cup of coffee in the morning.

FEELING | frustrated with some communications at work. Why can’t some people just be clear in their writing and straight-forward in their message, for the love of all Germans? Are you the native speaker, or am I?

WEARING | my dusky pink corduroy pants. They don’t make them like they used to.

WONDERING | if I start getting forgetful, because I was just about to sign up for the San Francisco Half Marathon this week, when I realized that I am already registered. How did that slip my mind? I dropped a non-trivial amount of money on that registration.

READING | Becoming by Michelle Obama. It finally became available through the library, just when I finished my last book. Great timing!

EATING | more bread, because #breadisnottheenemy.

DRINKING | Odwalla fruit smoothie. The Mo’Beta reminds me of multivitamin juice from Germany. It’s not something you should drink every day or in large quantities (because of the fruit sugar content, which of course is still not as bad as added sugar, of which this smoothie has none), but it’s so good!

FINISHED | our tax return. Get it out of the way, people. It feels so good to get it done. Especially when you’re expecting a refund.

LOVING | the blue and cloudy skies this time of year!

CONTEMPLATING | running the first race of the year in March. I haven’t signed up yet and while I’ve been running, I haven’t followed a training plan in the last few months. I guess there is a little more time to think about it.

ENJOYING | my afternoon tea. I’ve been bringing a thermos to work and it’s been life-changing (if you want me to be a bit dramatic) but seriously, if it wasn’t for tea, I’d probably be severely dehydrated most of the time.

LOOKING FORWARD TO | my birthday month. Everybody should celebrate their birthday all month long and I am planning to do just that.

What’s up with you currently?

Tuesday Topics: Cold Weather Running Essentials

February 19, 2019 filed under: fitness, running, Tuesday Topics

To be quite honest, I am not prepared for cold weather running. Like, at all. Cold weather here in California is still well above 32°F and so snow is not a concern and even my layering is pretty minimal. The only thing I’d have to be concerned about is rain, and I guess I should invest in a rain-running jacket at some point, come to think of it (so far has not been that point), but I don’t really need gloves, hats, or anything like that.

Are you jealous yet? (In my defense, we do have to cope with some really hot summer temperatures in return.)

So, my list of cold weather running essentials might look different from yours, but here goes:

1. I don’t really need any lined or extra-warm running pants, regular long running tights* will do during the winter months.

2. I do like my Buff neck warmer* (which can also double as a headband or face mask, if it’s really cold and windy).

3. I always need tissues when it’s cold outside (just me?). I do get a runny nose – pun intended! – when it’s cooler running weather, so I can’t leave the house without them.

4. One of the things that instantly happens for me when it’s cold is chapped lips, so I usually carry lip balm* wherever I go.

5. I usually can get away with a regular shirt and adding a long sleeve shirt on top, but when it does get down to the 30’s or 40’s, I often opt to wear my Fleece Jacket* as well.

6. I use Sunscreen* all year round, because even if it’s cloudy, it’s important to protect your skin. It also acts as a layer of protection against the cold.

7. During the winter month, I’ll wear long sleeve shirts like this one* (preferably with thumb holes! Are you a fan of thumb holes, too?)

Most of my winter morning runs will be so early (before work) when it’s still dark outside that I will opt for the gym, where I don’t have to worry about winter apparel at all.

Do you opt to run indoors when it gets really cold outside?

This week, I am linking up with Kookyrunner and Zenaida for Tuesday Topics.

* #notanad, This is not a sponsored post. I have not been compensated by the brand or anyone else for linking the products/websites.

February Link Love

February 18, 2019 filed under: link love

Around the Interwebs

5 Online-Shopping Browser Extensions That Effortlessly Save Me Money.

Everything is not going to be okay.

Everyone’s running – and that could be dangerous for the Democrats. How do you feel about this big field of contenders?

I totally love this approach. Treat failure like a scientist.

Why you should work less and spend more time on hobbies.

The best thing you can do for your health: sleep well.

Do you suffer from time poverty? Time for happiness.

What old story of yourself are you still believing?

How to stop overthinking everything.

Around the blogosphere

Best things to do in Denver. Well, I was just there and couldn’t really take advantage, but you can be sure I bookmarked this site.

What is food flexibility? It means, you listen to your body.

How to calculate your net worth. A complete guide. Do you know yours?

I need to try this Chicken and dumpling soup before the cold weather is over!

Share a good link with me in the comments!

Daily Life | 2018 Spending Report

February 15, 2019 filed under: budgeting, daily life, finances

I apologize, I skipped the spending report for the last quarter of 2018, but since we’re already well into the first quarter of 2019, I decided to just do my annual spending report and call it a day. I hope that’s ok with you guys.

Some of my friends, who have done spending reports in previous years, have already published their money pies (at least Lisa did). (And also, here’s what we spent in 2015, 2016, and 2017.)

A few notes again about our spending. This pie chart was created from my data in YNAB* (You Need A Budget), the budgeting software I have been using for over 3 years (and which I previously reviewed HERE). I just love it.

I know that technically there is no right or wrong way to budget. If I have learned one thing over the years is that my budget and spending will look different than yours, and that is totally ok.

It’s still good to talk about these things. These percentages are based on our actually spent money, not income. Not included are contributions to retirement funds (around 15% of my paycheck right now) and personal savings. Let’s break it down.

Home (41% — 39% in 2017) This category includes all home-related expenses, including maintenance, utilities, taxes, and all household items. We had some extra repairs and project expenses last year when we got our house ready for sale, so that’s why the number went slightly up.

Groceries (14% — 11% in 2017) The percentage from last year went up, and so did our average spending. Woomp.

Car Maintenance (8% — listed under Transportation last year). I broke this out into its own category this year, because we got new tires at the beginning of 2018 and then had our car serviced in March which triggered another (minor, but costly) repair.

Shopping & Misc. (8% — 6% in 2017) This went up from last year. We’re not big shoppers in general, but we did get a new laptop at the end of the year which caused the spike, I think.

Eating out (7% — 6% in 2017) We get take-out once a week and then eat out 2-3 times a month. This seems like a lot, even though it feels like I am also cooking all the time.

Fitness and Health (7% — 12% in 2017) This category includes our healthcare premiums, and our medical and dental co-payments. Nothing out of the ordinary last year.

Travel (3% — 5%in 2017) I didn’t travel as much as I had planned or wanted to last year. I did get to go to Washington, D.C. in the spring, I went to a women’s retreat and spent a weekend in San Francisco to run the half marathon.

Cable & Internet (3%) This category includes the Internet and cable. (Yes, we still pay for cable.)

Gifts (2%) This is a pretty straight-forward category and it includes birthday gifts, Christmas gifts and ‘just because’-gifts for family and friends.

Subscriptions (2%) I didn’t have that as a separate category last year, but thought I’d break it out. This included my gym membership, Identity Guard, Netflix, MLBTV, Flickr, Webhosting for my blog, YNAB, and Amazon Prime.

Cellphone (2% — 3% in 2017 ) I am glad this category was smaller in 2017.

Transportation (1% — 10% in 2017) This category is just gas, parking, and toll fees. Everything else is covered under car maintenance.

Clothing (1%) I think that was part of shopping & misc. in 2017. We do not spend a whole lot of money on clothing. J even less than I.

Personal Care (<1% — 1% in 2017) This category includes all toiletry items, makeup, and haircuts.

Donations (<1% — 1% in 2017) We still make regular donations every month, but the percentage hasn’t changed. I am still hoping to make this a larger percentage in the future.

* * *

The bottom line: In 2018, we spent 9% less money (as in, actual dollars) than the previous year (and remember, this pie chart only reflects solely on spending in percentage of ALL spending, not percentage of income).

I switched around some of the categories (again) and I am contemplating how I can update the format of these finance posts to be a little bit more transparent (without putting dollar amounts on everything), because I myself get a little confused sometimes when I looked at the pie chart and know that a percentage of total spending doesn’t necessarily give me a feel of where my “problem spending” is. It just tells me how I split the lump sum of money that we actually spent.

What could we do differently? I’m still playing around with the categories (and I should keep better track of what kind of spending I put in which category).

I am curious to see how renting this year compares to the expenses of home ownership last year.

Do you look at your finances once a year (or more often)? How do you organize your categories? Where do you spend the most, and where the least?

If you have any suggestions on making these kinds of posts more meaningful, I am all ears!

*The post contains a referral link. Download the fully functioning YNAB trial version for 34 days and if you like it, you can use this link to activate the software and we’ll both get a month free!

Tuesday Topics: What I love about running

February 12, 2019 filed under: running, Tuesday Topics

This week is Valentine’s Day, so it’s an appropriate time to talk about the things we love about running!

As most of you know, my blog is not exclusively a running blog, but running-related posts have been sneaking in more and more over the last few years. It’s just become a huge part of my life and so naturally, it has started to show up more on my blog.

I have fallen in love with running for many, many reasons, some of which I’ve talked about before.

Running is “me-time”.

Running has become on of my favorite forms of me-time. I put in my ear plugs, listen to some music or a podcast, and go. I love being outside, seeing other people be out and about, and just moving my body. It clears my head like hardly anything else. I know that when I am cranky, I have to get outside.

Running burns calories

Let’s be honest, I love and enjoy food and running affords me the luxury to eat some extra calories. I am not much of snacker, but if we’re having a good meal, you can bet that I am getting seconds.

Running creates community.

I usually run alone (I have yet to try out a run club), but I nevertheless feel like part of a community. I know some people might secretly shake their heads about people that document their fitness journey on Instagram or other social media sites, but the fitness – and especially the running community – feels very supportive and I am so happy to have met so many like-minded people (online and offline).

The reason why I love running the most though?

Running makes me happy.

Running – more often than not – puts a huge smile on my face. I just feel good after most of my runs (even though the run itself might not always feel good). That might seem odd, but that’s a fact. I feel strong, healthy, and capable and just physically and mentally in a good place.

What do YOU love about running (or your physical activity of choice)?

This week, I am linking up with Kookyrunner and Zenaida for Tuesday Topics.

One Little Word® for 2019: believe

February 11, 2019 filed under: about me, OLW

Photo by @missnjc on Unsplash

I know, I am late with this. If you’ve been reading my blog for a while, you know that I’ve picked a guiding word for the year for a few years now, but sometimes the word comes easier than other times. (Here are the words I picked in 2015, 2016, 2017, and 2018.)

I’ve had a hard time coming up with a word for this year. 2019 has been off to such a weird start for me that nothing felt quite right. January was mostly a blur. It was the longest month ever, but at the same time, it still feels like we just celebrated New Year’s (anyone else?)

So, I’ve been racking my brain for a word that could be adequately applied to this year and I decided that my word is going to be BELIEVE.

be·lieve [bih-leev] (verb)

to accept something as true, genuine, or real
to have a firm conviction as to the goodness, efficacy, or ability of something

I am generally a glass-half-full kinda person, so my approach to most things is optimistic. So it really threw me off that the shutdown situation effected me more mentally than physically (as in, financially). “Not knowing” when things will get back to normal (or when the next paycheck is coming in) was incredibly hard, even for a general optimist like myself. I want to apply this mindset to my life even more this year. I am not a religious person, but I believe in positivity and karma.

I’ll continue to believe in the good in people, as I always do. In most people, anyway. Not necessarily in the leader of our country (because OMG, is he f***ing it up for everyone!), but karma will take care of that, eventually, am I right?

I believe that in the end, things will work out.

I believe that obstacles are there to be overcome. Is it fun to run into roadblocks? Absolutely not, but there is always a life lesson hidden in the struggles somewhere.

I’ll try hard and believe in myself a little more. Sometimes I feel confident in my work, sometimes I feel like a fraud (imposter syndrome, anyone?) and I know that I need to work on my self-confidence. I am not one to toot my own horn and I surely don’t know how to self-promote, but people value my skills, work ethic and dedication, sometimes you (and with ‘you’, I mean, I) should just believe them.

I’ll believe that we made the right move when we moved (pun intended!) and will make many happy memories in our new place.

I’ll believe that I can reach and work towards those goals I posted the other day.

Sometimes life is about the ability to believe in where you are going, even when you’re not sure what lies ahead.

Did you pick a word for the year? Which one and why?

What I read in January

February 4, 2019 filed under: books

I started off my reading with two fiction and two non-fiction books this year.

Every Note Played by Lisa Genova (★★★★★)

This is a story about a pianist with ALS and the havoc the disease causes for his entire family. His ex-wife, a pianist herself, steps up as his caretaker. The story beautifully written, detail-oriented (we sometimes feel like we’re in the room with him, his thoughts, and his failing body) and simultaneously explores the progression of the disease and the aftermath of his failed marriage and the regrets and hopes he has, as the end of his life is approaching.

Tomorrow Will Be Different: Love, Loss, and the Fight for Trans Equality by Sarah McBride (★★★★☆)

If a memoir about coming out as transgender isn’t enough in a climate where transgender people still face discrimination and non-acceptance, Sarah McBride takes on Washington politics as an advocate for transgender rights, while falling in love, getting married and losing her (also transgender) husband to cancer at the age of twenty-four. I mean, if you’ve been through that, you can pretty much handle anything, I’d assume.

I felt myself rooting for her in every aspect of her life throughout the book and hope she’ll continue to spread hope. Through her candid openness and honesty, I feel that I have a better understanding about some of the complexities and nuances of being transgender in America today.

The Incendiaries by R.O. Kwon (★★☆☆☆)

This book was okay, the plot intriguing and sporadically engaging, but overall I just couldn’t really get into Kwon’s style of writing. It’s not bad per se, but the narration was split between three people (in alternating chapters) who meet at prestigious Edwards University: Will, who recently left a Bible college, Phoebe, a Korean immigrant who his coping with her mother’s death, and John Leal, the leader of an extremist cult. However, in each chapter, the narrator is actually just one and the same person, Will, who is writing about the other two from his perspective. While we do get a bit of insight about Phoebe (his girlfriend), John, the cult leader that Phoebe starts to follow, mostly stays in the dark and it made for an odd, broken up flow of narration. I often felt like I wasn’t getting the “whole story” (maybe that was the point?).

This Is the Way the World Ends: How Droughts and Die-offs, Heat Waves and Hurricanes Are Converging on America by Jeff Nesbit. (★★★★☆)

You guys, I can’t say that I enjoyed this book, but it’s a book everyone should read. Science is real, climate change is real and we are all in this together. The sooner people get that, the sooner we can all advocate for our planet. Jeff Nesbit is not a scientist, so his book is easy to follow even for non-scientists. While engaging, it honestly isn’t the greatest writing either (sometimes I felt things were obsessively repeated for no other reason as to get another “citation” in), but he touches on all the important parts that we’ve all heard about: from animals nearing extinction, disappearing glaciers, more capricious weather (more severe flooding, droughts, fire, and wind events) to desertification, water and food scarcity, and emerging conflicts.

Since I work in science and am directly plugged into what’s happening to the aquifer system in California’s Central Valley, I know this is not all fear mongering. These things are happening right now. Nesbit talks about what’s going on in the world (including the military conflicts in Syria, Yemen, and Somalia) with an urgency that should make everybody sit up and take notice because riots and wars and refugee crises are intricately connected to the changing climate of our planet.

What did you read in January? Anything you’d like to recommend? Leave a comment, and then add me on Goodreads to keep in touch.

Monthly Recap | January

February 2, 2019 filed under: my so-called life, review

I am trying a new blog feature this year which was inspired by the monthly recap posts that my blog friend Stephany was sharing last year. I liked the idea of a monthly recap so much that I decided pick up the idea for my blog. I’ve tweaked the format a little bit, but I am excited for these recaps. They’re mostly for me, I guess, but I hope you’ll enjoy them too.

Read

I read four books this month, two fiction, two non-fiction (which I will review in a separate upcoming post, as always). The two novels I read were Every Note Played, which I enjoyed very much, and The Incendiaries, which I didn’t care for too much. The two non-fiction books, Tomorrow Will Be Different and This Is the Way The World Ends are both must-reads in my book!

Cooked

Remember that I said that I would like to try new recipes this year? I can already recommend the two that I tried this month: Fish Florentine and an adapted version of this Tuscan Lentil Stew. Both were very good and will definitely get a spot in my recipe binder!

WATCHED

I watched more TV than usual (also due to the shutdown situation). In a regular week, I usually just watch some news every night and then MAYBE one movie or a show on the weekends. January was definitely an exception. Here’s what I watched (besides the news, which I was also glued to a lot):

Salt Fat Acid Heat (Netflix) (★★★★★) – This is a mini-series and I wish there were more episodes to watch. I was never someone who watched cooking shows, but this was super-intriguing.

Lila Lila (★★★★★) (on Amazon Prime) – This is a German movie and it was nice to watch something in German for a change (I hardly ever do). I don’t know how to describe it but German movies have a different ‘flow’ than American movies. I feel like they’re “slower” and they don’t fill every single second with words or action.

Sing (Netflix)(★★★★☆) – I had heard about this (animated) movie before. I am not the biggest fan of animated movies, but this was supposedly quite funny: an optimistic koala tries to save his theater with a singing contest featuring a timid elephant, a teenage gorilla, an overworked sow.

Saving Capitalism (Netflix) (★★★★★) – Robert Reich, former Secretary of Labor and Professor, takes his book and his views to the heart of conservative America to speak about our economic system. I am a sucker for these kinds of documentaries.

3 Türken und ein Baby (Netflix) (★★★★☆) – another German movie. Light, humorous entertainment: the lives of three dissatisfied Turkish brothers running a family bridal shop turn topsy-turvy when one of them finds himself in a situation where he has to care for his ex-girlfriend’s baby.

Along Came Polly (TV re-run) (★★★★☆) – I like Jennifer Anniston and Ben Stiller and this movie is just fun to watch. I catch re-runs of it every now and again.

Listened to

I mentioned before, I am not much of a podcast person, so don’t expect a lot of updates in this category, but I still want to mention it, if I listened to something worth recommending. As previously stated, I am enjoying the podcast “Pod Save America“, where former Obama staffers discuss the political events of the week.

Bought

Because of the shutdown and no money coming in, I really didn’t shop much (other than the necessities) this month, but I did get these awesome running leggings (that I mentioned in my “monthly favorites“) on clearance (+ sale) from Old Navy. I also bought this amazing European-style bread that I mentioned in my “Currently“-post, but I’d totally count that as a necessity rather than a splurge.

Ran

I ran 71 miles in January. That’s on the higher end of my average monthly mileage. I know it was due to me being furloughed and having more time on my hands. If I am frustrated, I run. I took a total of 192,326 steps with an average of 6,204 steps (or about 3 miles) per day. That’s not quite where I want to be, so I’ll have to keep an eye on that number.

Going-ons

+ As many of you know, I was furloughed for five weeks. While I can’t say that I ever get bored and definitely had time for things that I usually don’t find much time for, the not-knowing when I’d go back to work (and into paid status) was chipping away at me mentally. January felt forever long.

+ I got my annual checkup right before Christmas and the results from my blood work were all normal, hooray!

+ I kinda fell off the bullet journal bandwagon last year and only used it on and off during the second half of the year. I wanted it to be an organizational tool as much as I wanted it to be a creative outlet, but I just didn’t put the effort in. But I read over and over again that it can take a while until you find your groove with a bullet journal and I am not ready to give up on it quite yet. For 2019, I am planning to change my approach a little bit to make it work better for me.

+ I gave my hair an at-home dye job and it turned out quite well, if I dare say so myself. I just can’t justify spending $150 at a salon all the time.

+ I received my Mom’s Christmas package in the middle of January and while it was about 4 weeks late, I was so happy that it arrived at all, packaging intact and no contents missing.

+ We had two visitor’s in January (which must be some sort of record, because we hardly ever have visitors, let alone two in one month!). At the beginning of the month, J’s friend came to visit from Portland for the weekend, and then, J’s Mom came up over MLK’s holiday weekend.

+ I found some unexpected extra time to work on my knitting this month. It’s been slow going (even though I usually get more knitting done during the winter month than the rest of the year), but I am making progress with my triangle shawl.

+ Before the shutdown, I found out that I’d be switching supervisors at work. I was very happy with my previous supervisor (I have known and worked with her for all the time that I have been with the USGS) and I wasn’t very happy that I’d be forced to switch, but I had my first meeting with my new supervisor this week when were finally asked to come back work and I am optimistic that things will work out with him.

+ Two days after we went back to work, we already received partial backpay for the time we were furloughed. That was a huge relief (especially since we don’t know what’s going to happen in two weeks, when the next budget deadline hits).

+ We had some rain but we also had some beautiful, sunny winter days here in Northern California. When the skies are clear, I can see the snowy peaks of the Sierra Nevada on my runs!

How was your January?