Best Activity:
A new planner: During my time as a teacher, I became dependent on my daily planner and a Moleskin notebook. They kept me relatively organized, although sometimes meetings would slip through the cracks… The planner was made for our school. Each student used one, it had events specific to the school on it (overnight field trips, the start and end of breaks, holidays, etc…) and it only covered the months of September-June. The summer was “plannerless.”
Now that I don’t have that planner anymore (I’d be lying if I didn’t think about asking a friend to grab one for me) I started looking around for one. I stumbled upon a “Bullet-Point” planner and started to use it this week. As far as dates, it’s completely blank, so I settled in on Sunday and filled in the entire thing with the dates for the next year. It was strangely gratifying to fill out all those dates. It reminded me how long a year is and how quickly it can go by all at the same time. When I arrived at December 2020 I started to think about the future version of me sitting down to reflect back on the year and fill out my 2021 planner. Considering my professional career is in limbo and I’m not sure what life will be like in a year, it was a little nerve-racking. Once I got over that feeling, it was exciting to imagine the possibilities that lie ahead.
The thing I like about this planner is it actually has pages every three months that act as a “quarterly” reflection for achievements, things I learned, things I’m looking forward to. The individual weekly pages are also simple. There’s a place for appointments, but also for a meal plan, To-Do List, priorities, and a theme.
As we head to 2020 and you’re trying to find a fresh way to organize your life, a new, different type of planner might be a good start.
Best Read:
Lovers in Auschwitz: “The first time he spoke to her, in 1943, by the Auschwitz crematory, David Wisnia realized that Helen Spitzer was no regular inmate. Zippi, as she was known, was clean, always neat. She wore a jacket and smelled good. They were introduced by a fellow inmate, at her request.” -NYTimes.com
Best Watch:
Presidents Cup: This international golf team competition started on Wednesday and will continue through this weekend. This tournament matches Team USA against an International team that includes every country outside of Europe. If you like golf (or the USA) and are interested in golf architecture, this is worth watching. Royal Melbourne is the host club, which was designed by Alastair McKenzie, who designed Augusta National. The US has historically dominated this competition, winning ten of the twelve past events. The USA finished strong on Thursday night’s session, capped off by Justin Thomas hitting a huge putt on 18 and celebrating with Tiger Woods. That putt could very well be remembered as the one that turned things around for the Americans.
Best Listen:
Pure Heroine: Lorde’s debut album hopped back on my radar this week as I spent some time sussing out my favorite albums of the decade for a podcast with Tiff. Hard to believe it came out in 2013. So many great songs on here: White Teeth Teeth, Buzzcut Season, and World Alone are some of my favorites. Not a skippable song in the bunch, I say.
Best Eat:
Spiced Seared Eggplant with Pearled Couscous: This was a delicious one-pot recipe we made this week. Tiff and I had to tag team to make it because I had a phone call scheduled. I got it started and she finished it off. It was easy (read: not much slicing and chopping) and, like I said, required just one pot; that’s always a bonus. The dish was filling, had some interesting flavor combos, including cinnamon, which I rarely eat in a dinner. If you wanted to add a bit of protein, I would imagine something decadent like steak tips or simpler like grilled chicken would be good additions.
Best Drink:
Slangria: There’s a brewery out of Cincinnati called Rhinegeist. It’s probably the only thing you’ll hear my wife get excited about that comes out of Cincy (oh, and Sky Line Chili). I’m not entirely sure how it made it’s way out to Massachusetts in such volume, but Rhinegeist (and Cidergeist) can be found in most stores around Boston. Slangria was a new brew that Tiff found at Total Wine and Liquor. I’ll let Rhinegeist give you the lowdown: “Pomegranate, blueberry and lime collide in an effervescent blend of ruby red refreshment. Luscious, slightly tart and full-bodied, Slangria sows scarlet seeds of juicy delight.”
I was surprised at how much I liked this. It’s like a gateway beer into sours, too. It’s tart, but not too much. A good beer to bring to a holiday party if you’ve got a few to attend this weekend. If you’re really creative, it’s probably something you could use as a mixed in a punch.
Best Plugs:
The Random Division: This week, Tiff and I talked about music of the last decade. Tiff has another “Get off My Lawn” moment, we rank our five favorite albums from the decade, and give some other artists a shoutout that we enjoyed listening to. iTunes (If you listen to us here. We’d love a rating or review. We’ll read your review on our next show!). Spotify (If you listen to us here, click “follow” and then go to iTunes and rate and review!).
Imperfect Game: For our fifth installment of this Past and Present series, Both and I researched at Sheffield United, one of the oldest soccer clubs in England. Sheffield United is newly promoted and making waves in the Premier League with their risky, and pioneering play. Their manager is a former Sheffield United ballboy and player. Some interesting info on Sheffield United’s home stadium and the city in here, too. iTunes (If you listen to us here. We’d love a rating or review. We’ll read your review on our next show!). Spotify (If you listen to us here, click “follow” and then go to iTunes and rate and review!).
Sport!: I wrote about my favorite English soccer team, Manchester United, this week. They have a star player that I think they need to sell.