Well, having felt unmotivated to write over the last 3 weeks, let me share what I’ve spent my time doing.

I started my birthday by deviating from what had been my tradition, but it was for good reason. Typically it’s the one day a year when I have ice cream for breakfast. However, I wanted to see what running downtown in a big city like Seattle would be like. I woke up in an empty house and proceeded to get myself out the door to run down random streets all the way to the waterfront. Being brilliant, I then learned the pros and cons of the combination of hilly cities, crosswalk signals, traffic, and regaining a resting heartbeat. Regardless, I enjoyed the start to the day.

Other activities included a rainy walk to the Outdoor Research retail store, a visit to Bluebird Ice Cream, a personal curling lesson – my first since 2006, enjoying some beer and catching up with a Fairbanks friend, and throwing said friend’s housemate’s U of M sweatshirt out of the house. (Someone had to do it!)

I actually contemplated skipping ice cream entirely before realizing that I’d be creating both an identity crisis and a quarter life crisis. Thank goodness my brain woke up.

A few days later I flew back to Michigan, where I proceeded to live in the kitchen and try various beers. I’m really not kidding. Over the course of my 13 days at home, I managed to try 10 different microbrews from Michigan and bake/cook up the following:

• Aloha bread
• Pumpkin chocolate chip bread
• Peanut butter beer bread
• Cornbread (not completely homemade, but more than just a box mix)
• Refrigerator pan rolls

• 100 cookies (recipe name)
• Chocolate pixies
• Russian tea cakes
• White chocolate chip macadamia nut cookies
• Mint chocolate chip cookies
• Hawaiian pie

• Bacon, egg, & cheese brunch ring
• Sauteed kale and vegetables
• Quinoa and vegetables
• Ground turkey and sweet potato chili
• and last but certainly not least: pasties!

And for the beer:

• Atwater Brewery’s Detroit Pale Ale
• Short’s Brewing’s Soft Parade
• Cranker’s Brewing’s Fifth Voyage Coconut Porter
• Bell’s Winter White Ale
• Grand Rapids Brewing Company’s Cranucopia
• Brewery Vivant’s Big Red Coq
• New Holland Brewing’s Carhartt Woodsman
• Jaw-Jacker from Arcadia Ales
• Atwater Brewery’s Vanilla Java Porter
• Bell’s Kalamazoo Stout

Whenever I eventually have my own fully stocked kitchen, life will be grand!