Happy Sunday, friends! How is your weekend going? It’s another gorgeous day here in the Bay Area. I love autumn! I think I’m going to bake another pumpkin pie today, or maybe some gluten-free pumpkin chocolate-chip cookies … nothing says … Continue reading
Erica and I had a wonderful time exploring San Francisco on Tuesday! We lucked out with absolutely beautiful weather — gotta love the autumn sunshine — and had the best time walking around and window-shopping … and of course taking advantage of the amazing food options. Why hello there, sourdough crust tomato basil pizza and warm brownie Ghiradelli fudge sundae!
And look at this adorable sourdough bread lobster riding on the ginormous tail of a giant sourdough bread alligator …
We rode the famous cable cars from the Powell Street BART station down to Fisherman’s Wharf and walked all around the waterfront. As promised in my blog post yesterday, here are some snapshots from our day!
My favorite photo of the day was definitely this last one … can you tell why??
Photobombed by a baby!!! Classic. Every time I look at this picture it cracks me up!
I miss Erica a ton, but I’m so grateful that she was able to get a few days off work to come visit me. Only a month until I’ll be back home for Thanksgiving and we’ll have one of our famous 3-hour Simone’s cafe catch-up chats.
Hope you’re having a terrific Thursday, friends! 🙂
Hi everyone! Hope your week is going well. My dear Erica left this morning to head back home … we had the best visit! I can’t believe how fast time flew by while she was here. Tomorrow I’ll upload some pictures from our amazing day in the city yesterday, but here is a sneak peak:
Sea lions hanging out in the sunshine off Pier 39! They were playing and barking like crazy. What a bunch of goofballs! They reminded me of Mr. Murbur and brought the biggest smile to my face!
I also snapped a pic of this wise quote, which I spotted on a bag in a shop window, because I think it is so true:
Here’s an article I came across via Lindsay at The Lean Green Bean — it’s a short read on kindness and the benefits of giving: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mequilibrium/benefits-of-giving_b_3818016.html
This past week’s kindness challenge was to return someone else’s cart to the front of the grocery store the next time you go shopping. I returned carts in the parking lots of Safeway and CVS. It only took an extra two minutes of my time, but it made me feel very helpful.
The Week 41 Kindness Challenge is inspired by the above Huffington Post article, and is to advocate for someone, particularly someone younger or newer or just starting out on their career path. Reach out to a new colleague or intern. Make a phone call or send an email on someone’s behalf. Introduce two people who might be able to learn from or help each other. Send an email praising someone to their boss. Take the time to give feedback or advice to someone who could learn from you. Be a mentor or a sounding board.
As always, blog about your experiences and include your links in the comments section below, or feel free to send me an email at dallaswoodburn AT gmail DOT com.
Now I’m off to do some writing in the sunshine. What has been a highlight of your week so far?
❤ Dallas
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year of kindness archives:
– week 1 challenge: donate items to those in need
– week 2 challenge: leave quarters & note at laundry machine
– week 3 challenge: write & send a kind handwritten note
– week 4 challenge: give hot chocolate to someone outside in the cold
– week 5 challenge: do something kind for a neighbor
– week 6 challenge: deliver valentines to a nursing home
– week 7 challenge: donate to a food pantry
– week 8 challenge: donate toiletries to a shelter
– week 9 challenge: post a kind note in a public place
– week 10 challenge: do something kind for a child
– week 11 challenge: thank someone in a genuine & meaningful way
– week 12 challenge: deliver baked goods to a fire station
– week 13 challenge: give someone flowers
– week 14 challenge: donate books
– week 15 challenge: reach out and spend time with people
– week 16 challenge: smile at everyone you meet
– week 17 challenge: pick up litter/trash
– week 18 challenge: write a kind note to a mom figure in your life
– week 19 challenge: leave an extra-generous tip
– week 20 challenge: donate blood/join bone marrow registry
– week 21 challenge: visit a cemetery and pay respect
– week 22 challenge: practice a little patience
– week 23 challenge: call 3 loved ones on the phone
– week 24 challenge: do something kind for a senior citizen
– week 25 challenge: pay for someone’s public transportation
– week 26 challenge: volunteer at a food pantry or soup kitchen
– week 27 challenge: send a care package to someone in the military
– week 28 challenge: give at least one compliment every day
– week 29 challenge: do a favor for someone else
– week 30 challenge: scatter lucky pennies around a playground
– week 31 challenge: mail an empowering postcard
– week 32 challenge: plant something
– week 33 challenge: donate school supplies
– week 34 challenge: give a sandwich to a homeless person
– week 35 challenge: compliment a salesperson to their manager
– week 36 challenge: leave positive feedback
– week 37 challenge: do a household kindness
– week 38 challenge: let someone go ahead of you in line
– week 39 challenge: write a kind note to a former teacher
– week 40 challenge: return shopping carts
I can’t believe it’s Monday! Where did the weekend go?? It’s been gorgeous weather here and on Saturday we had a picnic lunch and went for a nice long walk around a beautiful park and lake. We saw the most adorable families of geese!
Nothing beats a sunny weekend outdoors, especially in the autumn with all the leaves changing colors. What were you up to this weekend?
Here’s how I did on my goals from last week:
– write 20 pages of new material
– submit to two literary journals
– submit two fellowship applications {almost there but not quite!}
– sign up for the GRE exam
– phone dates with three friends
– exercise at least three times
Here are my goals for the week of 10/13:
– write 20 pages of new material
– submit two fellowship applications
– submit Ph.D. application
– exercise at least three times
As far as menu planning goes, my lovely friend Erica is in town visiting, so I’m not planning to be cooking too much this week … we will be off exploring new fun restaurants! But who am I kidding, we will probably make something for dessert, like these pb cup brownies…
Have a wonderful week, friends!
Hi everyone, hope your week is off to an excellent start! I’m a little late posting this because I spent all day at my aunt’s school, speaking to her class of eighth graders about writing. I also taught a writing workshop for them about the difference between scene and summary, since they are all working on their own short stories. They were such an enthusiastic and inquisitive bunch. I had so much fun! Nothing energizes me more than a roomful of writers, particularly young writers. You can practically hear their imaginations sparking with wonderfully creative ideas! The day flew by.
Speaking of teaching … last week’s kindness challenge {which came from my wonderful blogger friend Danica at It’s Progression} was to write a letter or an email or make a phone call to a former teacher of yours, thanking them for the influence they had on you. I wrote notes to three of my high school teachers and one of my college professors who had an enormous positive influence on me, and undoubtedly countless other students as well!
The Week 40 Kindness Challenge is simple: return someone else’s cart to the front of the grocery store the next time you go shopping. It was inspired by a man I spotted last week in the Safeway parking lot, returning shopping carts scattered around the parking lot to the designated cart areas. Such a nice gesture that only takes a few extra minutes of your time!
As always, blog about your experiences and include your links in the comments section below, or feel free to send me an email at dallaswoodburn <AT> gmail <DOT> com.
Have a wonderful week!
– Dallas
———————————
year of kindness archives:
– week 1 challenge: donate items to those in need
– week 2 challenge: leave quarters & note at laundry machine
– week 3 challenge: write & send a kind handwritten note
– week 4 challenge: give hot chocolate to someone outside in the cold
– week 5 challenge: do something kind for a neighbor
– week 6 challenge: deliver valentines to a nursing home
– week 7 challenge: donate to a food pantry
– week 8 challenge: donate toiletries to a shelter
– week 9 challenge: post a kind note in a public place
– week 10 challenge: do something kind for a child
– week 11 challenge: thank someone in a genuine & meaningful way
– week 12 challenge: deliver baked goods to a fire station
– week 13 challenge: give someone flowers
– week 14 challenge: donate books
– week 15 challenge: reach out and spend time with people
– week 16 challenge: smile at everyone you meet
– week 17 challenge: pick up litter/trash
– week 18 challenge: write a kind note to a mom figure in your life
– week 19 challenge: leave an extra-generous tip
– week 20 challenge: donate blood/join bone marrow registry
– week 21 challenge: visit a cemetery and pay respect
– week 22 challenge: practice a little patience
– week 23 challenge: call 3 loved ones on the phone
– week 24 challenge: do something kind for a senior citizen
– week 25 challenge: pay for someone’s public transportation
– week 26 challenge: volunteer at a food pantry or soup kitchen
– week 27 challenge: send a care package to someone in the military
– week 28 challenge: give at least one compliment every day
– week 29 challenge: do a favor for someone else
– week 30 challenge: scatter lucky pennies around a playground
– week 31 challenge: mail an empowering postcard
– week 32 challenge: plant something
– week 33 challenge: donate school supplies
– week 34 challenge: give a sandwich to a homeless person
– week 35 challenge: compliment a salesperson to their manager
– week 36 challenge: leave positive feedback
– week 37 challenge: do a household kindness
– week 38 challenge: let someone go ahead of you in line
– week 39 challenge: write a kind note to a former teacher
Hi, friends! How is your weekend going? I’m finally feeling settled into my new life and new routine up in northern California, so I figured it was time to bring back my weekly goals. When my life is in transition, keeping track on here of my weekly goals tends to fall to the wayside. But I do love setting weekly goals and meal plans … it keeps me feeling on-track, centered, and enthusiastic about each new week!
So here we go: my goals for the week of 10/6:
– write 20 pages of new material
– submit to two literary journals
– submit two fellowship applications
– sign up for the GRE exam
– phone dates with three friends
– exercise at least three times
And here are some recipes I’m hoping to try out this week:
– Maple Apple Crisp with Cheddar Crust & Bacon Crumb Topping via The Pajama Chef {hope you’re loving Nashville, Sarah!}
– Easy Slow Cooker Vegetarian Cashew Chili via Wellness Today, from a link I came across on It’s Progression {thanks Danica!}
– Pumpkin Pasta {will probably throw in more veggies this time around … I am loving all the squash in season now!}
– Greek Yogurt Chicken via The Lean Green Bean
– Flourless Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies via Chew Out Loud
There you have it! Now it’s your turn: I’d love to hear about your goals and meal plans for this week!
My grandma taught me how to make a wonderful salad last week that is perfect for autumn! She got the recipe from her friend Melinda, who she plays bridge with at the senior center every week. 🙂 This salad makes a perfect side dish, but is also hearty enough for a main course. I brought the leftovers to my writing “office” {i.e. the local library} for lunch the next day and they were terrific!
for the salad:
– cauliflower*
– broccoli*
– brussels sprouts*
– 1 tbsp minced garlic
– 1 package baby spinach
– 1 apple {we used a granny smith}
– 4 slices bacon
– 1 cup chopped walnuts
– 1 cup dried cranberries
– 1/2 cup feta cheese
* Feel free to use a combination of your favorite vegetables, and the amounts can vary of each. We used an equal amount of cauliflower, broccoli, and brussels sprouts, about 2-3 cups chopped of each.
for the dressing:
– 1/4 cup apple juice
– 1/4 cup olive oil
– 3 tbsp apple cider vinegar
– 2 tbsp lemon juice
– 1 tbsp honey
1. In the oven or on the stovetop, cook the bacon until it is very crispy. Set aside.
2. Finely chop the cauliflower, broccoli and brussels sprouts. Thinly slice the apple.
3. Saute the minced garlic in a bit of olive oil in a large pot. Add the chopped vegetables and cook 8-10 minutes, until tender.
4. Add the sliced apple and baby spinach and cook another 2-3 minutes, until the spinach is wilted. Then remove the salad from heat.
5. In a separate bowl, whisk together the dressing ingredients: apple juice, olive oil, apple cider vinegar, lemon juice, and honey, until well combined.
6. Toss the salad with the dressing, crumbled bacon, walnuts, dried cranberries and feta cheese. Serve warm, with salt and pepper to taste.
Hope you enjoy!
Happy October, friends! Hope your week is off to a fantastic start! I woke up with a little sore throat this morning, so I’ve been trying to be extra gentle to myself today and {fingers crossed} keep from getting sick. I’ve been downing green tea like nobody’s business! 🙂
The Week 38 Kindness Challenge was to let someone go ahead of you in line. I let people go ahead of me in the security line at the airport last week on my trip home from visiting Holly in Nashville, and I also let people go in front of me in line at the grocery store and the drugstore. On my trip into the city on Sunday, I let people go ahead of me onto the BART train … it meant I didn’t get a seat, but I enjoyed standing and looking out the window at the beautiful autumn leaves as the train zoomed along. I also saw a number of young men get up to offer their seats to elderly passengers, mothers and children. It warmed my heart!
This past week’s kindness challenge made me think of a sermon I heard over the summer about how moments of grace can happen in the midst of the most mundane daily activities. Our pastor spoke about a mantra that she repeats while washing the dishes or doing laundry or, yes, waiting in line at the grocery store: “Even here.” Even here, even now, even in the most chaotic and hectic days, goodness and grace and kindness can blossom. I certainly felt filled with happiness and connection this week every time I let someone go ahead of me in line. It transformed a chore into an opportunity for grace. Where can you find opportunities for grace in the margins of your daily life?
The Week 39 Kindness Challenge comes from my wonderful blogger friend Danica at It’s Progression: Write a letter {or an email or make a phone call} to a former teacher of yours, thanking them for the influence they had on you. This would also be a wonderful activity to do with children. If you are a teacher, turn it around and write a letter to a former student of yours who was really special. Teachers are such an invaluable, tireless and huge-hearted part of society and in my opinion they are not thanked nearly enough for all they do! Spread the kindness and gratitude this week!
As always, blog about your experiences and include your links in the comments section below, or feel free to send me an email at dallaswoodburn <AT> gmail <DOT> com.
Have a wonderful week!
– Dallas
———————————
year of kindness archives:
– week 1 challenge: donate items to those in need
– week 2 challenge: leave quarters & note at laundry machine
– week 3 challenge: write & send a kind handwritten note
– week 4 challenge: give hot chocolate to someone outside in the cold
– week 5 challenge: do something kind for a neighbor
– week 6 challenge: deliver valentines to a nursing home
– week 7 challenge: donate to a food pantry
– week 8 challenge: donate toiletries to a shelter
– week 9 challenge: post a kind note in a public place
– week 10 challenge: do something kind for a child
– week 11 challenge: thank someone in a genuine & meaningful way
– week 12 challenge: deliver baked goods to a fire station
– week 13 challenge: give someone flowers
– week 14 challenge: donate books
– week 15 challenge: reach out and spend time with people
– week 16 challenge: smile at everyone you meet
– week 17 challenge: pick up litter/trash
– week 18 challenge: write a kind note to a mom figure in your life
– week 19 challenge: leave an extra-generous tip
– week 20 challenge: donate blood/join bone marrow registry
– week 21 challenge: visit a cemetery and pay respect
– week 22 challenge: practice a little patience
– week 23 challenge: call 3 loved ones on the phone
– week 24 challenge: do something kind for a senior citizen
– week 25 challenge: pay for someone’s public transportation
– week 26 challenge: volunteer at a food pantry or soup kitchen
– week 27 challenge: send a care package to someone in the military
– week 28 challenge: give at least one compliment every day
– week 29 challenge: do a favor for someone else
– week 30 challenge: scatter lucky pennies around a playground
– week 31 challenge: mail an empowering postcard
– week 32 challenge: plant something
– week 33 challenge: donate school supplies
– week 34 challenge: give a sandwich to a homeless person
– week 35 challenge: compliment a salesperson to their manager
– week 36 challenge: leave positive feedback
– week 37 challenge: do a household kindness
– week 38 challenge: let someone go ahead of you in line
Hi friends! Hope you are having a wonderful weekend! I ventured into San Francisco by myself for the first time today, and it was so much fun! The sun was out and the day was beautiful. It was an easy trip in — all I did was drive 10 minutes to the BART station, hop on the train and ride for 40 minutes, and then I was in the city! I love public transit!
My excuse for making a trip into San Francisco was a reading that my new writer friend Vanessa was giving at the famous City Lights bookstore in Jack Kerouac Alley. She did fantastic!
Afterwards I spent a blissful half hour browsing through the bookstore’s three book-crammed floors. I could happily live in a bookstore!
It was a lovely day walking around, taking in the sights and people-watching! I’m looking forward to making another trip into the city again soon!
Have you been to San Francisco? Any sights/shops/restaurants to recommend?
Happy Tuesday, everyone! Can you believe we are nearing the end of September?? Fall is now completely upon us and although part of me is trying to hold onto the last rays of summertime, I am also loving the honeycrisp apples, gorgeous red and orange leaves, and the cool crispness beginning to seep into the air. Hooray for comfy scarves and boots weather!
I made it back safely to my new home in the Bay. It was hard to say goodbye to Holly {it always is!} but it was nice to come home to my sweet grandparents and the new life I am building for myself here. My grandma tends to express her love through food, and I think she missed me while I was gone because within five minutes of my arrival back home she had set out the following spread on the kitchen table: strawberries, grapes, clementines, cinnamon rolls, two different types of cookies, a warmed-up slice of homemade quiche, and chocolate-covered raisins. When I told her I was not that hungry because I’d eaten lunch on the plane, she proceeded to boil a pot of water to make pasta. Thanks, Grandma — I missed you, too! 🙂
Last week’s kindness challenge was to do a household kindness for someone you live with. Since I was visiting Holly, I tried to be an especially gracious houseguest! In addition to the typical houseguest kindnesses like making the bed, helping do the dishes, wiping down the bathroom sink, etc. I also cooked dinner for Holly and her sweet roommate Naomi as a thank you for letting me stay with them. {The timing worked out well — they were both working on a paper that was due at midnight and were grateful to have dinner taken care of!}
The Week 38 Kindness Challenge is to let someone go ahead of you in line.
As always, blog about your experiences and include your links in the comments section below, or feel free to send me an email at dallaswoodburn <AT> gmail <DOT> com.
Always, Dallas
———————————
year of kindness archives:
– week 1 challenge: donate items to those in need
– week 2 challenge: leave quarters & note at laundry machine
– week 3 challenge: write & send a kind handwritten note
– week 4 challenge: give hot chocolate to someone outside in the cold
– week 5 challenge: do something kind for a neighbor
– week 6 challenge: deliver valentines to a nursing home
– week 7 challenge: donate to a food pantry
– week 8 challenge: donate toiletries to a shelter
– week 9 challenge: post a kind note in a public place
– week 10 challenge: do something kind for a child
– week 11 challenge: thank someone in a genuine & meaningful way
– week 12 challenge: deliver baked goods to a fire station
– week 13 challenge: give someone flowers
– week 14 challenge: donate books
– week 15 challenge: reach out and spend time with people
– week 16 challenge: smile at everyone you meet
– week 17 challenge: pick up litter/trash
– week 18 challenge: write a kind note to a mom figure in your life
– week 19 challenge: leave an extra-generous tip
– week 20 challenge: donate blood/join bone marrow registry
– week 21 challenge: visit a cemetery and pay respect
– week 22 challenge: practice a little patience
– week 23 challenge: call 3 loved ones on the phone
– week 24 challenge: do something kind for a senior citizen
– week 25 challenge: pay for someone’s public transportation
– week 26 challenge: volunteer at a food pantry or soup kitchen
– week 27 challenge: send a care package to someone in the military
– week 28 challenge: give at least one compliment every day
– week 29 challenge: do a favor for someone else
– week 30 challenge: scatter lucky pennies around a playground
– week 31 challenge: mail an empowering postcard
– week 32 challenge: plant something
– week 33 challenge: donate school supplies
– week 34 challenge: give a sandwich to a homeless person
– week 35 challenge: compliment a salesperson to their manager
– week 36 challenge: leave positive feedback
– week 37 challenge: do a household kindness
Day-By-Day Masterpiece 