101 in 1,001 Days Update

Friday, July 20th, 2012 | Posted under Personal

Hey, everyone!

I hope you like the new look of the site. I’ll be doing lots of tweaks to it in the coming weeks to make it even more user friendly for you (and for me, too).

So, do you remember when I started my 101 in 1,001 days list of goals and tasks earlier this year? Well, I can’t believe that we are more than 1/2 way done with 2012. Is this year going quickly for anyone else?

I thought I’d give you an update as to how I’m doing. I set this crazy goal of trying to do 50 this year (Ha!). I think I need to concentrate on the one off tasks since there are many of these goals that have multiple parts.

Here’s my progress report so far:

DONE

#13 - Leave a 100% tip. At Republic on March 19, 2012

#17 – Get my own personal stationery. March 2012

#46 – Travel internationally alone again. April – May 2012 in India

 

 In Madogarh. I’m excited to tell you about my day there.

#59 – Write a note to a friend just because. March 2012. I wrote the note on my new stationery.

#83 – Redesign Try Anything Once. It’s done. Thanks as always to Joy of How Joyful Design. Besos!

#84 – Learn WordPress. I’m going to say this is done. I’m still getting more comfortable with WordPress. I actually set up my own self-hosted blog for something else I’m working on. That made my head hurt, but I did it!

#87 – Attend two different blogging conferences. Blogging While Brown, June 2012 & Blogworld, June 2012. I never thought I was going to accomplish this one, but I’m glad I did. I may even try to catch BlogHer here in New York next month.

#88 – A private goal for the blog.

#89 – Reach 2,500 Twitter followers. Did you know that I even got recognized by a national publication for my Twitter activity?  :)

 

IN PROGRESS 

On my personal list, I’ve got quite a few marked in progress, but I’m going to be super hard on myself for you all and only list the ones that I am really, really working on for now.

#8 – Buy all fruits and vegetables from the farmers’ market for two months. I just started this this month since I love summer fruit. I do want to discuss this in a post. I really liked my first experience at the market.

#25 – Take a modern dance class workshop. My workshop started in late June and will end on August 1. It’s been fun, and I’m thinking of maybe taking more classes. It’s been good getting back into dancing again.

#27 – Attend a live music event once per month for a year. I have to admit that I don’t think I really accomplished this in April, but I was traveling so much that I just don’t think I made it to anything. Other than that month, I’ve been pretty good about attending musical events.

#28 – Go to an art museum or art gallery once per month for a year. So far so good. It’s been nice to see so much of the art that’s going on in the city, and I even stopped into a gallery in India.

One of my favorites from Millennium Gallery in Udaipur, India

#30 – Do a book reading project for 2012 and 2013 – I’ve made it through three of the five books that I have slated for 2012. It’s been educational reading Mark Twain, if not a little challenging. I’ve been supplementing Twain’s books with some culinary writing like Born Round by Frank Bruni and Yes, Chef by Marcus Samuelsson. I’m finishing the latter right and now and really enjoyed it.

#35 – Go to the gym at least 3 times per week for six months. This is about half way done. By the way, I never said the months had to be consecutive. ;)

#42 – Do a Reset Week once per quarter for a year.  I’ve already done two. Here’s what a Reset Week is, in case you’re wondering.

#45 – Quarterly financial meetings with Husband J for the duration of the 1,001 days. We’re on track so far.

#61 - No TV for one month. I’m actually currently doing this. It’s not been as completely drastic as it sounds. I still watch DVDs once or twice per week and the occasional tv show on Netflix streaming, but I have sworn off broadcast television completely except for the Olympics opening ceremonies on July 27. Thank god for DVR!

#70 – Join the board of a small nonprofit. I think this might actually happen. I didn’t think it would, but there is a real possibility.

#86 – Find 10 new travel or food blogs that I like and be an active commenter on these sites. I  actually have a whole list of new blogs that I’m still going through, but you should definitely check out these blogs below. Mind you these are blogs that I really started reading and commenting regularly this year and doesn’t include the many blogs I’ve been continually reading. This is probably going to be marked “Done” by next week.

Absolute Travel Addict

Mo Travels

One Brown Girl

The Road Forks

Anali’s First Amendment

 

UPCOMING

#11 - Eat a meal in each of New York City’s five boroughs in a year. I think I’ve narrowed down where I’m going. As I mentioned before, the Bronx and Staten Island will be the biggest challenges; but I’m making plans to get to both boroughs soon.

#18 - Sell or donate wedding dress. My anniversary is coming up, and I still can’t believe that dress is still in my closet. #FAIL. I want  this done soon!

#32 - Get a facial. I think this is going to be my birthday present to myself.

#57 - Print and frame an engagement and wedding photo. Husband J called me out on this one recently. :(

 

So, how is your goal setting and other to-do lists going for 2012? I know some of you have 30 before 30 lists, which I can’t do ’cause 30 came and went a long while ago (My birthday is coming up, and I’m going to stop saying my age after this one). I know others of you have 101 in 1,001 days lists. How are things going?

 

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(Why) I’m Not Too Proud for Group Tour, Part II

Wednesday, June 13th, 2012 | Posted under India, Personal, Travel General

While I’ve already talked about the basics of my tour with Intrepid Travel in India, I never really talked about WHY I decided to do a group tour to India. Some of them are probably obvious, but I thought I’d talk about them a little:

I don’t think I would have gone to several places on our itinerary. It’s very easy when traveling in India to keep on the tourist trail in part because it’s often hard to veer off of it. What I loved most about our tour was the fact that we stayed and experienced both large cities with major sites AND got a chance to see small, rural towns. Honestly, those experiences in more “off the beaten” path locations were really some of my favorite moments on the trip. Over the coming weeks, I’ll share those experiences with you, but I know that I wouldn’t have even thought of going to many of them. One place we visited wasn’t even mentioned in my guidebook and barely comes up in a Google search.

Doing the washing in the town of Tal Waz (I think that’s the name of the town. I’m not sure about the spelling.)
I knew being a woman traveling alone in India was not always going to be easy. I’m not trying to scare anyone, but I knew going in that my time in India was not always going to be hassle-free. I read a lot about the experiences of solo women travelers, and they were all a mixed bag. Mostly the answer was, “You’ll be fine as a solo woman traveler, but….”. Solo women travelers were a rarity (Black female solo travelers non-existent) in my three weeks in India. Our group did encounter or see a few women traveling alone, and there were moments where I felt like a little bit of a punk. Maybe I should have done this all alone? Maybe I can’t hack travel like I think I can (I thought I’d overcome that insecurity with my solo trip to Brazil, but maybe not)?

On the streets of Jaipur within the Pink City walls
Can a woman travel alone in India safely? Totally! Would I want to travel solo in India as a Black woman for an extended period of time? I’m not so sure (I’ll get into why in many posts). Also I did have 8 days of solo travel during the trip, so it’s not like I didn’t have the solo experience. I have to admit to you, though, that there were moments when I liked knowing that the men of Team Ozzie and our guide, Pancham, had my back.  I felt there were instances when I was alone that people (okay, fine, men, especially vendors) felt it was okay to a be a bit more aggressive than if I was walking with the male members of our group or Pancham. Although I’ll have to tell you about the time I almost got into a fight in Darjeeling, but, that, my friends, is another story.

While we were on camels, our guide, Pancham, used another route. :)

Sometimes I needed to talk it out with someone. What I mean by this is that India can sometimes rattle you. I’d seen extreme poverty while traveling before. I’ve stood out as a traveler before, but India affected me differently than many places I’ve been. I call my time there “in your face, full frontal” travel. I think that’s why I liked it so much. When I saw or experienced something, it was nice to have someone right there to say, “Hey, did you just see what I just saw?” I was processing so much between my travel journal (the first one I’ve kept in a long time) and writing e-mails to family and friends, but having someone who was experiencing the same things at the same time who could discuss it really helped me. I know that Team Ozzie and I may not have agreed about everything, but at least we could talk about it all together.

Me during a boat ride on Lake Pichola in Udaipur
For those who’ve been on group tours what were your reasons? Safety? Ease? A need for company? When would you NOT consider a group tour?

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Dinner at Castle Hill Inn – A 40th Anniversary Celebration

Tuesday, June 12th, 2012 | Posted under Family and Friends, Personal, Rhode Island

On Friday, I mentioned on Facebook (Hey, are you following me on Facebook?) that this past weekend was going to be a special one for Husband J’s side of the family. This weekend we celebrated my mother and father-in-law’s 40th wedding anniversary at Castle Hill Inn in Newport, Rhode Island. I have to say that 40 years is a rare and beautiful thing in 2012. Congratulations to them!

I’ve actually written a little about a previous experience at Castle Hill Inn. This hotel and restaurant are perched on a great spot in Newport. Many people don’t even bother to stay or eat here. They just come for the views of the water and cocktails.

The Castle Hill Inn Lawn 

Boats pass right by Castle Hill Inn’s gorgeous lawn. It’s a nice place for boat watching. 

By the way, I think it’s time for my once per year “Please allow me to show you that I actually have some sense of style” picture.

Husband J cleans up well, too. Yes, I am taller than him in wedge heels.

While it was fun being waterside, we also came to get our grub on; and we sure did. The Castle Hill Inn has three types of menus: a three course, five course or eight course tasting with the possibility of wine pairings for each course. We kept it simple with the three course. 
By the way, I have to shout out to my family for always asking, “Hey, Terri. Did you get your picture?” before eating. They are too sweet. Plus, my sister-in-law J ( Sis-L J), I think gave some people the side eye when they remarked about me taking pics of food. It’s good when the family helps out the cause. :)
We received an amuse bouche to start. 
Can I say that I didn’t get the entire description that the waiter gave, so just trust me. I wasn’t sure how I felt about this amuse bouche. It’s actually a watermelon gelee, but it was a little rubbery. You don’t really get the full watermelon flavor. I did like the parmesan.
We each ordered very different appetizers.
Pan-Seared Foie Gras 
 Pinto Noir cake, green grapes, foie gras ice cream, vincotto

Someone ((ahem!) got foie gras, but it was primarily because of the ice cream, which was really did taste like sweet foie gras. I would never think of cake and foie gras going together either, but it was really nice for all of the different textures and tastes in this dish (sweet, tart, and savory). Do you see the pop rocks underneath the ice cream? That was a super cool surprise. Many times I just let them pop on my tongue.

Confit of Wild Boar
 applewood smoked, yakitori glaze, candied citrus fruit, shaved radish

The small taste I got of this was awesome. What made it really special was the play between the smokiness and the sweetness of the glaze. Plus, the boar was really just buttery tender. 
Cheese Plate
with fruit jam, Marcona almonds, honey, and grilled bread

I can’t believe this was supposed to be for one person. We all chipped in to help out Sis-L J.  

Three of us ended up with the same main course. We were in Newport where the fish is fresh. 
Pan seared Native Fluke
with a bouillabaisse, lobster “sausage”, confit potato, and braised leeks 

I had to try the lobster sausage. It had a sweet finish. While not a traditional bouillabaisee, it was still nice to have the soup-like broth that was comforting for a cool, early evening on the water. 


Herb Roasted Elysian Fields Lamb
with Merguez sausage, falafel, spring bean ragout, Lucques olives


Duck Rohan 
roasted with gooseberries, foie gras and quinoa

I snagged a small piece of Husband J’s duck, and it was cooked beautifully.
Since we were celebrating, we had to have dessert. 

Tres Leches Cake 
caramel corn, toasted marshmallows, popcorn ice cream
What you’re not seeing are the pop rocks (again!). They were underneath the smaller pieces of cake, which had been drenched with thick dulce del leche-like cream. I even thought the little pieces of parsley actually added to the dish giving it an earthy edge. 
Belgian Chocolate Terrine
Cocoa nib coulis, caramelized white chocolate creme, feuilletine

Creme Brulee
Vanilla & Meyer lemon custard on top with poppyseed cake on the bottom, blueberry coulis


Not a bad way to celebrate….
I asked my mother-in-law the secret to staying happily married for a long time. In her opinion, she told me that she thought there were two things that have helped her and my father-in-law all these years:
1. Have a sense of humor – Be able to laugh with one another and at one another. I definitely have no problems laughing at Husband J. :)
2. Grow together, not apart - Over the course of time, we all change. Taking into account each other’s best interests through the years and staying connected is important.

Great advice, no? 
Happy Anniversary to them!
Castle Hill Inn
590 Ocean Avenue
Newport, Rhode Island 

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Hiatus

Thursday, April 19th, 2012 | Posted under Blogging, Personal

Hey, y’all!

I know that I came back, threw up a teaser full of Argentina pics, and then haven’t posted all week. I’m taking a little bit of a blogging hiatus. This is actually all my fault because I just didn’t plan well enough in advance to make sure that posts would be coming forth as I make some moves. Don’t worry; things are good. :) I’ll hopefully be popping up here and there in the next few weeks, and hopefully with some surprises. Allow me a few moments to be cryptic.
I hope all is well where you are.
Love,
T

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Pictures of Me

Wednesday, April 4th, 2012 | Posted under Personal, Travel General

I’m bad at making sure that I have pictures of me when I travel. I’ve been looking through pictures of our past few trips, and I realize I have very few good ones of me to add the TAO Facebook page now that it’s switched over to timeline. Husband J is a great travel partner, but he is NOT good at saying, “Hey, let me make sure you have a picture of you in front of x spot.” It’s not really his fault. I could just ask more. I guess I have no one to blame but me?

I’ve never been into taking pictures. I don’t mind taking them when I am at events or for special occasions, but it’s not something that I go out of my way to do. I know some people who would take pictures of themselves all day just for fun. I found doing that a little frivolous, a waste of time and vain (Don’t worry. I have others ways that I can be vain), especially when this was back in the day before digital cameras and the opportunity for unlimited shots. Waste an exposure on just me? Nah.
Well, I’m over it now. Bump that! I’m going to make sure I get better pictures of me on this trip!!
What about you? Are you the first in front of the camera? Do you shy away from taking pictures when traveling or otherwise? Do you take pictures of yourself just for fun?
Feel free to follow me on Facebook, Twitter, and on Pinterest! I’d love to hang out with you there!

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