2011 Learn-Go-Do - August Reflection

Remember this?

Well, if summer 2011 had a theme for me, it was losing my intention.


Because in a crazy world of business travel and 108 degree days, living intentionally just fell by the wayside. I've been home for two weeks, though, and I'm beginning to feel like my old self again. 


July went like this: Airplane/airport chicken sandwich/SuperShuttle/hotel/conference room taco bar/SuperShuttle/airport/airplane.


August went like this: GAH! I know I set some intentions at the beginning of the year! What were they again? Let's get back on track.


So I got right and started to re-visit my intentions for 2011. 


Learn
I feel like I've conquered my intention to learn to knit lace. With the hot weather, however, I've temporarily put aside the lacey sweater I'm knitting; the sweater is now almost sweater-sized, and that's not a nice thing to have on your lap when it's 108 degrees out. I've started a short, small project to tide me over until the weather facilitates sweater-knitting.


I've added to my "Learn" list. I'd like to learn to needle felt. I'm hoping to share some examples soon...


Go
Of my "Go" goals, I'm doing really well. I've gone to Spain, and I've gone to two American cities I hadn't visited previously (Minneapolis and Philadelphia). I'm scheduled to go to Newark in October, and complete my goal (Yay, Newark!)


I also had a "Go" goal to go to a new restaurant each month. In August I hit two:

• My friends Kelly, Keith and I went to Raia's Italian Market, a simple space in Houston's Washington corridor. It was an old-school Italian place with checked table cloths in a new mixed-use development. When we arrived, all of the tables were filled with families and friends, and they brought us wine while we waited. I adored my pescatore pasta, with shrimp, calamari, crab and anchovies. A briny delight. We all loved our meals, and finished it off with some perfect gelato.  A definite find.
• For Houston Restaurant Weeks, my friend Amanda and I headed out into the suburbs to le Mistral. During Restaurant Weeks, restaurants offer 3 course meals for $35. Our meal was fancy and enjoyable, but it didn't revolutionize my life. The best part of my meal was the chocolate truffle dessert. I think I'd choose Raia's any day.

Do

Health is the theme of my "Do" goals. Two of them are to: re-commit myself to sustainable eating and to work myself up to working out 5 times a week. Here's where I am with those:

• Re-commit to sustainable eating: When you're traveling, sustainable eating really goes out the window. However, now that I'm home, fresh veggies and fruits are my friends. I'm feeling so great to be eating whole grains, greens, and yummy fruits like fresh figs and blueberries. I recently found out I have an iron deficiency, so I have to take lots of iron which means that I also have to eat tons of fiber - which means delicioso spinach, oats, and my favorite snack - prunes.
• Working out: Over the first 5 months of the year, I worked my way up to working out 5 times a week. At the beginning of the summer I sprained my foot, and then I got a bad cold. I know that experts say you can work out when you're sick, but as someone who is not a pro-worker-outer, that was the last thing I wanted to do. So I started over, and I'm back up to working out 3 times a week. I don't love it, but I have to admit I feel better when I do it.

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