New Things for '13

What with Christmas presents, gift cards, and a general shift in my schedule, this time of year always means new things. Here are some of them in a convenient (re: lazy) list format.

New temperatures. The January Thaw is upon us. Warm air on top the snow makes for a lot of spooky fog around town. The practice field on campus is haunted, fyi.

New food. I gave myself this book as a Christmas gift: Isa Chandra's Appetite for Reduction, which I think I've mentioned before. We have resolved to cook each of the 125 recipes in 2013.

This week, we made the black bean and olive tacos, with a citrus yogurt topping. It was all very easy and totally delicious. John also made a tomato salad with red wine vinaigrette on the side.

And while we're talking about food, last night I tried a new beer: the Imperial Winey Bastard, from Nickel Brook, in Burlington, ON. It's a dark beer that's aged in Pinot Noir barrels, and it's delicious. You get a strong beer flavor followed by a distinct red wine flavor, and I would definitely have ordered a second one, given the chance. Apparently it's already sold out everywhere.

New teaching schedule. This term I'm teaching 2nd year music theory (classical form) three days a week. I like to dress up slightly when I teach, in order to communicate to my students that I'm an adult and not their friend. My mom graciously bought me some new teaching clothes, all of which have to be short sleeved or sleeveless because I heat up when I'm in front of the class. Thanks, Mom!

New hand lotion. I bought this hand lotion at Whole Foods in Ann Arbor on our way back to London. It's a good point on the trip to stretch our legs and wander around Whole Foods. This lotion is called "Goat's Milk & Chai," or the Creamy Goat, as I call it. It doesn't make me smell like a goat, but it does make me smell like a hippie.

New TV addiction. John's mom gave us the first season of Homeland on DVD, and we've been devouring it. 

Not pictured: newly purchased month of towel service at the gym. It's an incentive to actually use the gym in the coldest, iciest part of the year.

My New Year's resolutions this year look more like a to-do list. And by this year, I mostly mean "in the next 6 months." What with the wedding, it's hard to think much further than the end of June.
Things that must happen this year:

• Submit our permanent residency application (something I'm waiting to talk about until it's submitted and probably until it's accepted). 
• Write, submit, and defend my dissertation proposal. I want to be ABD by the end of the term. This is a very do-able goal. It means I have to turn in a draft on the day before we leave for Reading Week (aka, Spring Break), so that week I'll be able to turn my brain off.  
• Spring clean/purge the junk from our apartment. We need to finally dispose of our broken microwave that's been living on the porch for almost a year.

Things that I want to happen this year:

• Enjoy the rest of our engagement and wedding planning as much as possible. 
• Keep my music theory class from being boring.
• Maintain a healthy weight so that my wedding dress fits (also very do-able, but it's good to state publicly so that I remember it).
• Come up with a fun and not ridiculously expensive plan for John's 30th (!) birthday in June.
• Run 1,000 miles in 2013. This depends a lot on my injuries, my foot in particular. We'll see.