Did you know that Montenegro (tied with Serbia) is the world's third most recent sovereign nation? Montenegro split off by a referendum in which 55.5 percent of people voted for independence. The threshold to approve was 55 percent. As you might imagine, people still hold many strong feelings about this decision on both sides of … Continue reading Sixteen Things for Sixteen Years
Tag: food
Chi-Town, Take Two
Despite my love of big cities, I somehow didn't make it to Chicago until I was 35 and then never made it back. So when Solar had a week long conference there—giving me a free place to stay right on the river—I decided to join. Why not? And when he suggested we extend the stay … Continue reading Chi-Town, Take Two
Turning 40: Lists, Part 1
Yesterday kicked off a week-long series of posts all about me as I'm about to turn 40. The next two posts contain lists. Factual, thoughtful, silly, defining, wishful, nostalgic - all sorts of lists about who I am at this point in my life. Something interesting to look back on in the coming decades as … Continue reading Turning 40: Lists, Part 1
On the Eighth Day of China: What Am I Eating?
Prior to my trip, I learned a bit of Mandarin, including the essentials like basic food and drink. So I knew how to read and say different kinds of meat, noodles, water, beer, and a few other key words. But what I didn't know were the words for the hundreds of different types of vegetables … Continue reading On the Eighth Day of China: What Am I Eating?
Being Dog’s Best Friend
When I was 21, I spent five months living in India. It was only the second foreign country I had ever been to, and the first was Australia, which didn't really prepare me for what I was about to encounter. The conditions people existed in—both their own physical bodies and the environment around them—were horrific. … Continue reading Being Dog’s Best Friend
The Design of Everyday Things
I shamelessly poached the title of this post from a book I'm reading for professional development: The Design of Everyday Things, by Don Norman. I don't include books I read for anything other than pleasure in my semi-annual book reports, but product and user experience design has been so much on my mind lately that … Continue reading The Design of Everyday Things
Eight Days in the Mid-Atlantic (Part 2)
I spent the second half of my trip back east in "DC and Baltimore". Or is that "DC-Baltimore"? I was there to see a friend who used to live in Boulder. According to her fiancé, who works in urban development, Baltimore is part of the greater DC metro area, and the region should be referred … Continue reading Eight Days in the Mid-Atlantic (Part 2)
What is Authentic?
I went to Tim Horton's in Madrid. Being from Buffalo, New York, and having spent a lot of time in Canada before this fast food chain opened in my home town, I have a soft spot for Tim Horton's. So, seeing one right outside my hotel window a few weeks ago, I had breakfast there … Continue reading What is Authentic?
Return to Spain
Against my own personal rules for how best to take advantage of a life that is far too short to absorb everything the world has to offer, I have traveled to an international destination twice. Two weeks ago, I went to Spain. Fourteen years ago I lived there, working in a summer camp in Andalusia … Continue reading Return to Spain
What’s New for Dinner?
I can't resist making an easy buck. Some part of my mind still thinks I'm in my early 20s, earning $25k a year, instead of being nearly 40 and earning much, much more than that. So, I take on freelance work and odd little side gigs, as long as they pay enough. I don't think … Continue reading What’s New for Dinner?
