Tag Archives: foodie

Re-Nudging: Visit a new market

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I’m on vacation–a real, fully unplugged vacation! While I’m out, I’m re-running a couple of favorite Nudges. You might try them again for yourself, read them simply for entertainment, or use them as inspiration to try one of your own new Nudges this week. When I get back, keep an eye on this space for news about a rebooting of 52Nudges in the fall. I’d love to have you join me. And if you haven’t already, sign up to receive the posts in your inbox. Subscribing is FREE. Cheers! — Kathleen

Backstory: A few weeks ago my husband and I tried out a sushi restaurant that just opened up in the neighborhood. At the table next to us, a dad ordered a table full of items for his two girls, who looked to be about five and two years old. No one complained or whined or insisted she was no longer eating things that were green (or raw or gooey). The two-year-old gobbled up salmon roe like they were jelly beans. It was amazing to watch—so inspiring! When I was growing up, I wouldn’t touch fish unless it was smothered in breadcrumbs and deep fried. And (and this is a tad embarrassing) I didn’t have my first sushi until I was in my 30s. Even now, I order the same things pretty much every time we go out.

Ruts. If I’m honest with myself, I have too many. I need to shake up my routines and expand my experiences. So for this week’s Nudge, I am going to check out a store that is new to me and wander for inspiration. Maybe I’ll go to a spice shop. Maybe I’ll pop into a bakery that creatively blends traditional flavors with contemporary culinary tricks. Or maybe I’ll just go to the big, beautiful, brand-new Whole Foods that’s nearby and see what’s in season.

What looks intriguing to you this week?

What Happened: My first thought was to visit our local farmers’ market, but it’s only held on Sunday mornings, and we almost always have something else to do at that time (see family or friends, go for a bike ride, sleep in). I also didn’t want to take my chances of putting this Nudge off all week and screwing it up (see Nudged: Wander an expensive store). My second pick was a decades-old produce market neighbors have raved about. Apparently it’s like an every-day farmers’ market, and generations of my friends’ families have made it their go-to shop for local fruits and veggies. Perfect!

But as my darling husband and I discussed the Nudge, he suggested I go way outside my comfort zone. Way, waaaaay outside.

“What about the Chinese market you always walk past?” he asked.

“But I wouldn’t know what anything was.”

“Exactly. You’d have to ask, How do you make this? What’s it good in?”

Hmmm…. Wise man, my guy.

So, while out and about walking errands in our neighborhood, between picking up a prescription at Target and returning books to the library, I paused at the Chinese market. Out front I spotted pineapples and ginger roots in bins. I wasn’t completely lost. Encouraged, I took a deep breath and stepped inside.

It was a little like stepping through a portal to another country. The signs were all written in Chinese, and I recognized very little of the packaged goods. Even the packages that had English translations were baffling. What in the heck is a “three tooth fish”?

Salted Dried Three Tooth Fish

Live frogs–for real

But the fun began with the live stuff. Big tanks with crabs and lobsters and fish, and a trash can-sized barrel of…What is that?…Are they moving?…Holy Toledo, that one just blinked!…live frogs, each about the size of my husband’s fist.

I was so not buying a live frog.

Feeling slightly freaked out, I made my way around to the front of the shop and spotted a bin of something that looked like mini cucumbers. For $1.99/lb., I could risk it. I took my one tiny item to the checkout counter, where the woman at the register greeted me with a long stream of I have no idea what. I smiled like an idiot and mumbled “Thank you,” hoping that was an appropriate response to what she had said to me.

That night I chopped up my mystery item and was relieved to discover it was, in fact, some kind of cucumber. I had planned to take a photo so you could see it, but it was so delicious, we ate it before it hit the plates.

Delicious cucumber things

The Ah-Hahs: I’ve daydreamed about, and my husband and I have even discussed, the possibility of living/working in a foreign country for a period of time, maybe three months, maybe a year. While my job can be done remotely anywhere, his does not translate. Maybe we could do it if we won big in the lottery and didn’t have to work. It could happen.

But probably the biggest hindrance is neither of us in bilingual. I’d like to think we could, with time and effort, learn the basics of a language here and be able to pick up idioms once we established a residency, but geez, it would be hard. Just getting around, learning the customs and courtesies, taking care of things like banking and driving, and, well, finding food, would all be exhausting. I imagine myself repeating my encounter with the woman at this market’s counter, of being overwhelmed by the selection of unfamiliar foods, of having her talk to me in a steady stream of what sounds to me like gibberish, and standing there like an ugly American tourist who has made no effort to even try to be respectful. This could certainly happen outside our borders, because, heck, I just had it happen a few blocks from home.

Still no clue what this is

Or would it be exhilarating? Are we too old and set in our ways to pursue a grand adventure? I’m thinking maybe, which strikes me as a little sad, but also a little realistic. I’m thinking it might be enough to broaden our Bucket List of places we want to visit, then be sure we line up some savvy English-speaking guides. Or maybe we start by asking around about authentic restaurants in town. Certainly we have an abundance of choices in cosmopolitan San Francisco.

Inspired, I did a quick google search for “best ethnic restaurants in San Francisco.” Jackpot! I found this article from two years ago.

Afghanistan, Chile, Iceland. Iceland! Something like 70 countries are represented. The article ends with “Forget packing your bags. The adventures offered at these Bay Area eateries require only a love for food and a willingness to try new things.”

Guess what’s going on my List for future Nudges?

Nudged: Try a new recipe

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Aaack! I was doing some admin this afternoon and discovered this post–originally scheduled to appear on April 13–never went live due to some technical glitch. I did indeed complete the Nudge in the one week, it’s just making it’s appearance now. Better late than never! 🙂

 

Backstory: Good timing!

I pulled this Nudge several months ago, when I didn’t have the time and wasn’t in the mood. But I love cooking and baking! I love experimenting in the kitchen! And my file of recipes (clipped from magazines and printed from online sources) is overflowing, so this is the perfect time to get back into an activity that feeds (pun fully intended) my soul.

Maybe this is the week you try a healthy version of one of your favorite dishes. Or challenge yourself with a meal from a different culture. Or, if cooking is not your thing, spread your wings and try a new technique in a hobby that makes you happy. The key words here are “try” and “new”.

What Happened: I had big plans for this week. BIG PLANS! I pulled two recipes for new-to-me entrees, two for spring veggies, and three for desserts. By Friday, I got a little more (ahem) realistic and decided to make one of the desserts, a “simple” raspberry tart, for a dinner party tonight.

Friday night I made the crust. We knew something was up when, in the middle of a relaxed dinner, all of the smoke alarms went off. We opened all the windows, I opened the oven, and, once the smoke cleared, I found this:

WTF?!?

A quick review of the recipe revealed I had used 3/4 of a cup of flour, not the called-for 1+3/4 cups. Disaster! “We can buy dessert on the way over,” my darling husband said. Well, phooey.

Two hours later I was back in the kitchen with laser focus and renewed determination. “I love when you get feisty,” my darling husband said.

This beauty came out of the oven:

Just now I added the fresh berries, and we will soon be on our way to share this with friends. Fingers crossed it tastes as delish as it looks.

Ah-Hahs: I am out of practice. I haven’t used these muscles in a while, and it shows. This week was a wake-up call for me, a reminder to use my gifts, to practice, and to enjoy my skills. To that end, I am going to make another tart—with a couple of twists—for a dinner party next weekend. Bon appetit!

Nudging: Try a New Recipe

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Backstory: Good timing!

I pulled this Nudge several months ago, when I didn’t have the time and wasn’t in the mood. But I love cooking and baking! I love experimenting in the kitchen! And my file of recipes (clipped from magazines and printed from online sources) is overflowing, so this is the perfect time to get back into an activity that feeds (pun fully intended) my soul.

Maybe this is the week you try a healthy version of one of your favorite dishes. Or challenge yourself with a meal from a different culture. Or, if cooking is not your thing, spread your wings and try a new technique in a hobby that makes you happy. The key words here are “try” and “new”.

Nudged: Do something I hate (i.e., weeding)

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Backstory: Ugh. Remember when I/we did something that scared us? (Read that post here.) That was scary (obvs), but it also had an element of fun. Not so much this Nudge. This has a taint of must-do, take responsibility, be an adult.

Or…I need to see this as spreading my wings and taking a leap of faith out of my nest.

That seems much more exciting, doesn’t it? 🙂 Let’s do this.

What Happened: The actual slip of paper for this Nudge includes “(i.e., weeding)”, so I initially thought about weeding at least part of the backyard, but couldn’t bring myself to do it. (Seriously, I do not enjoy gardening, as we learned in this post about finding a new bookstore. When I win big in the lottery, my first outsourcing will be to hire someone to clean up my garden—and maintain it—for me.)

Instead I decided to tackle the refrigerator. This is one of those household tasks that ends up on my to do list almost every week, and almost every week gets bumped to the end of the line.

So… I pulled on the ol’ rubber gloves, grabbed the trash can, and dove in.

Two words: Bio. Hazard.

Is sticking to a new diet on your list of New Year’s Resolutions? Then I’ve got a sure-fire trick for you to achieve your goal. Just pull a few condiments out of your fridge, read the expiration dates (oh, sweet god), then try, just see if you can open the lids that have become glued to the jars by what is now unidentifiable muck.

Gag-o-rama.

But it got done. All of it. And honestly, it wasn’t all that bad. Nothing pre-dated my marriage, which made me feel a tiny bit better about things. (I say this because there was a time when I went through the spice rack and discovered some items lurking in the back that should have been added to the compost pile ages ago). And there wasn’t a lot. I was definitely shaming myself for wasted food as I tossed unused items, but I couldn’t dwell on things that at this point were way beyond saving.

Ah-Hah: So fresh start. Clean shelves. Open spaces. When I popped out to the market this afternoon, I only purchased ingredients for our next several meals, and you can trust that moving forward I’ll be conscientious about only buying what we need for now.

It’s not perfectly organized, but it’s clean and I know what’s in there. Progress!

I’d like to tell you that during the process I also experienced a personal ah-hah, one in which I chose to embrace that every day is a fresh start with open spaces for new opportunities. I didn’t.

I also could have looked at this as an opportunity to examine the things in my life that have the potential to make me “sick”, physically, emotionally. I didn’t really do that either. But somewhere in the back shelves of my subconscious, the ideas are there, and maybe I’ll find myself making healthier choices as a result.

What did you weed out of your life this week?

52+: When Nudging pays off

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There’s this local craft spirits distillery I’ve been curious about for a couple of years. When a friend introduced me to their gin, in particular, I was surprised by how much I liked it. I wanted to learn more. I picked up a book about the history of gin. I tried flights at bars and experimented with cocktails at home.

Then about eight months ago, I nudged myself and coordinated a group of friends to go for a tour and tasting. It was fantastic. The whole time we were there I kept thinking, “It would be really fun to work here.”

So I nudged myself again and called them. Turns out they were hiring for the tasting room team, so I applied. And then I interviewed, went through intense training, was tested extensively, and got hired. I’m now there every Sunday alongside wonderful colleagues. I welcome guests from all over the world, tell stories, and learn new things.

I know: Wow!

This isn’t replacing my day job; it’s actually on top of all the other things I do. Friends have suggested I’ll one day write a book about gin, or start distilling my own in the bathtub. (Never say never!) I don’t know. I don’t know who I might meet or where it might lead. The future is uncertain, of course, so for now I’m just having fun. (And getting paid a bit while doing it.)

I have been meaning to share this with the 52Nudges community for ages, but there was part of me that wanted to make sure the job would “stick” before I went public. That sounds silly, now, but I was uneasy. Would they like me? Would I screw up? Would I burn out?

So far so good.  🙂

I share this with you now because I realize all of this came about because I opened myself up to opportunities and I nudged myself to:

  • Plan a fun outing with friends
  • Do something that scares me
  • Take a risk
  • Challenge my intellect and learn something new
  • Pursue a passion

If I wrapped up this whole 52Nudges project right now, I’d consider it a win. However, this experience inspires me to keep going. What might the next Nudge reveal? I am excited to discover the possibilities.

How will you nudge yourself this week? Is there something on the edge of your dreams you want to try? Please hear this from me: Go for it. ♥

Nudged: Take Thor to a new place for date night

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Backstory: (For those of you who are new to 52Nudges, “Thor” is the code name for my darling husband.)

I think we’re pretty good about getting out on date nights, but we certainly have our favorite spots (some might call that a “rut”). This is our chance to try something new.

Maybe this is the week we’ll check out one of the ethnic restaurants I learned about when I was inspired by visiting a new market (read the post here). Maybe we’ll put a bunch of different restaurant names on strips of paper, toss them in a bowl, and make a random selection. Or maybe we’ll skip dinner and go straight to a bowling alley, movie theater with recliners, miniature golf course, or pumpkin patch. Hmmm…I might have date night ideas for the next several months!

What would be fun for you? Significant other not available or up for adventure? Then take yourself out. Or call up a friend…or several friends. Wherever you end up, I hope you’ll take a moment to toast yourself for nudging yourself into trying something new. xo

What Happened: There were so many great options, so many places nearby we have yet to try! Finally I decided on a tiny family-owned Italian place we’ve driven past for years. While it’s barely nudging us out of our comfort zone, my choice does have an intention. We’re starting to save up for a big vacation in Italy, and I’m watching movies, reading books, listening to language CDs, and doing whatever I can to keep us motivated to save that money and get excited about going on this adventure together.

I booked the table, then I sent Thor a text message to formally ask him out on a date. It’s silly, I know, but when was the last time you practiced all those courting rituals? He responded in kind, and we were set.

I arrived a bit early and was seated when he walked in the door. Although I know he saw me, he made a point of checking at the counter, then he turned to me and introduced himself as if it was a first, and blind, date. Silly (and adorable) man. Then…he pulled this from behind his back:

So, yes, I married a gem. We had a lovely evening, we nurtured our romance, and we discovered a sweet local restaurant to which we’ll return.

Ah-Hahs: This was one of those “small Nudges” that was so easy to do and so fun. So what if it didn’t lead to any new epiphanies? It was simply fun to venture out of our normal routine.

But I did have one bigger ah-hah: I don’t get flowers spontaneously very often any more. Maybe I’ll receive something on a birthday or following a medical procedure (right?), but flowers “just because”? Doesn’t much happen.

It was really nice, it left me feeling almost giddy. And I’d like for my friends to feel this way more often too. So I’m adding this to the bowl of Nudges: Send flowers to a friend for no particular occasion.

 

Nudging: Take Thor to a new place for date night

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Backstory: (For those of you who are new to 52Nudges, “Thor” is the code name for my darling husband.)

I think we’re pretty good about getting out on date nights, but we certainly have our favorite spots (some might call that a “rut”). This is our chance to try something new.

Maybe this is the week we’ll check out one of the ethnic restaurants I learned about when I was inspired by visiting a new market (read the post here). Maybe we’ll put a bunch of different restaurant names on strips of paper, toss them in a bowl, and make a random selection. Or maybe we’ll skip dinner and go straight to a bowling alley, movie theater with recliners, miniature golf course, or pumpkin patch. Hmmm…I might have date night ideas for the next several months!

What would be fun for you? Significant other not available or up for adventure? Then take yourself out. Or call up a friend…or several friends. Wherever you end up, I hope you’ll take a moment to toast yourself for nudging yourself into trying something new. xo

 

 

 

 

Nudged: Visit a new market (i.e., Whole Foods, specialty)

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Backstory: A few weeks ago my husband and I tried out a sushi restaurant that just opened up in the neighborhood. At the table next to us, a dad ordered a table full of items for his two girls, who looked to be about five and two years old. No one complained or whined or insisted she was no longer eating things that were green (or raw or gooey). The two-year-old gobbled up salmon roe like they were jelly beans. It was amazing to watch—so inspiring! When I was growing up, I wouldn’t touch fish unless it was smothered in breadcrumbs and deep fried. And (and this is a tad embarrassing) I didn’t have my first sushi until I was in my 30s. Even now, I order the same things pretty much every time we go out.

Ruts. If I’m honest with myself, I have too many. I need to shake up my routines and expand my experiences. So for this week’s Nudge, I am going to check out a store that is new to me and wander for inspiration. Maybe I’ll go to a spice shop. Maybe I’ll pop into a bakery that creatively blends traditional flavors with contemporary culinary tricks. Or maybe I’ll just go to the big, beautiful, brand-new Whole Foods that’s nearby and see what’s in season.

What looks intriguing to you this week?

What Happened: My first thought was to visit our local farmers’ market, but it’s only held on Sunday mornings, and we almost always have something else to do at that time (see family or friends, go for a bike ride, sleep in). I also didn’t want to take my chances of putting this Nudge off all week and screwing it up (see Nudged: Wander an expensive store). My second pick was a decades-old produce market neighbors have raved about. Apparently it’s like an every-day farmers’ market, and generations of my friends’ families have made it their go-to shop for local fruits and veggies. Perfect!

But as my darling husband and I discussed the Nudge, he suggested I go way outside my comfort zone. Way, waaaaay outside.

“What about the Chinese market you always walk past?” he asked.

“But I wouldn’t know what anything was.”

“Exactly. You’d have to ask, How do you make this? What’s it good in?”

Hmmm…. Wise man, my guy.

So, while out and about walking errands in our neighborhood, between picking up a prescription at Target and returning books to the library, I paused at the Chinese market. Out front I spotted pineapples and ginger roots in bins. I wasn’t completely lost. Encouraged, I took a deep breath and stepped inside.

It was a little like stepping through a portal to another country. The signs were all written in Chinese, and I recognized very little of the packaged goods. Even the packages that had English translations were baffling. What in the heck is a “three tooth fish”?

Salted Dried Three Tooth Fish

Live frogs–for real

But the fun began with the live stuff. Big tanks with crabs and lobsters and fish, and a trash can-sized barrel of…What is that?…Are they moving?…Holy Toledo, that one just blinked!…live frogs, each about the size of my husband’s fist.

I was so not buying a live frog.

Feeling slightly freaked out, I made my way around to the front of the shop and spotted a bin of something that looked like mini cucumbers. For $1.99/lb., I could risk it. I took my one tiny item to the checkout counter, where the woman at the register greeted me with a long stream of I have no idea what. I smiled like an idiot and mumbled “Thank you,” hoping that was an appropriate response to what she had said to me.

That night I chopped up my mystery item and was relieved to discover it was, in fact, some kind of cucumber. I had planned to take a photo so you could see it, but it was so delicious, we ate it before it hit the plates.

Delicious cucumber things

The Ah-Hahs: I’ve daydreamed about, and my husband and I have even discussed, the possibility of living/working in a foreign country for a period of time, maybe three months, maybe a year. While my job can be done remotely anywhere, his does not translate. Maybe we could do it if we won big in the lottery and didn’t have to work. It could happen.

But probably the biggest hindrance is neither of us in bilingual. I’d like to think we could, with time and effort, learn the basics of a language here and be able to pick up idioms once we established a residency, but geez, it would be hard. Just getting around, learning the customs and courtesies, taking care of things like banking and driving, and, well, finding food, would all be exhausting. I imagine myself repeating my encounter with the woman at this market’s counter, of being overwhelmed by the selection of unfamiliar foods, of having her talk to me in a steady stream of what sounds to me like gibberish, and standing there like an ugly American tourist who has made no effort to even try to be respectful. This could certainly happen outside our borders, because, heck, I just had it happen a few blocks from home.

Still no clue what this is

Or would it be exhilarating? Are we too old and set in our ways to pursue a grand adventure? I’m thinking maybe, which strikes me as a little sad, but also a little realistic. I’m thinking it might be enough to broaden our Bucket List of places we want to visit, then be sure we line up some savvy English-speaking guides. Or maybe we start by asking around about authentic restaurants in town. Certainly we have an abundance of choices in cosmopolitan San Francisco.

Inspired, I did a quick google search for “best ethnic restaurants in San Francisco.” Jackpot! I found this article from two years ago.

Afghanistan, Chile, Iceland. Iceland! Something like 70 countries are represented. The article ends with “Forget packing your bags. The adventures offered at these Bay Area eateries require only a love for food and a willingness to try new things.”

Guess what’s going on my List for future Nudges?

52+: For Inspiration

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Kathleen WoodsIn the right column of this page there’s a small section titled “For Inspiration.” Here you’ll find books and websites, resources that have helped me come up with Nudges for myself or have inspired me in some way.

Today I added a book I finished reading over this past weekend: Aperitif: Recipes for Simple Pleasures in the French Style by Georgeanne Brennan with photographs by Kathryn Kleinman. If you started the 52Nudges with me a few months ago, you’ll remember one of the earliest tasks was to enjoy a beverage outside before dinner. (If you’re just joining in the fun, you can check out the post here.) I took about 15 minutes out of my day to transition from Work Mode to Dinner Mode, lower my blood pressure, and ease myself into a calm space so that I could get the most out of my evening. It’s a ritual I’d like to practice more regularly.

So what should come across my radar, but this book. Here’s what Ms. Brennan has written in the first page of the introduction:

Woven into the fabric of daily home life, of public and private celebrations, and of café and restaurant culture, l’apéritif is more than a drink before a meal. It is a national custom [in France] that, by deliberately setting apart time to share a drink and to socialize, engenders civility and conviviality.

If that doesn’t make you want to close up shop at a decent hour and treat yourself to something lovely, check out the accompanying photo:

I got about half way through my To Do list today, and there is a part of me that thinks I should work late. But the same thing will likely happen tomorrow and Wednesday and…. You know the story. Instead, I am going to practice what I preach and apply some of Ms. Brennan’s advice: a small glass of wine (or sparkling water with a slice of citrus), a bowl of California olives, a few minutes outside enjoying a lovely midsummer evening.

Cheers!

Nudged: Have a glass of wine with lunch; linger

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Backstory: My lunch breaks are generally just long enough to get fuel into me for the afternoon’s work. Occasionally I take some of that time to run to the market, dash to the post office, return a due item to the library. Linger? Right. Now, the good news is this week I’m heading out of town on a vacation, and I’ll have at least one opportunity to have lunch on my own. I don’t like eating by myself, and I pretty much never drink by myself. But I’m going to try this, because it’s forcing me to slow down and enjoy my midday meal.

What Happened: After a long walk at the beach, I took myself to a bar for a half turkey sandwich (which I’m guessing was built to feed half of a linebacker), a green salad, and a generous pour of a local Sauvignon Blanc. Yuuum. I alternated reading pages in an absorbing novel (Ahah’s Wife: Or, the Star-Gazer by Sena Jeter Naslun—you can read a thoughtful review here) with looking out the front window to take in the view over the ocean. A bite, a sip, a not-too-obvious sigh of contentment. I ate slowly; a change for me. I enjoyed every quiet moment, and I finished everything on my plate with a little wine left.

Now, the problem, I’ve discovered, is when I have enough good wine, it works on my brain in some unexpected ways, such as “Of course you want dessert!” So I enjoyed the last sips with a deeply rich chocolate torte (nestled in a bath of crème fraîche, dear God in Heaven), then finished the meal with a cup of sugary, creamy coffee. A nap, which also felt like an indulgence, followed.

The Ah-Ha: Is this what it takes for me to slow down and enjoy a meal? Pretty much, and how sad that is. But a lunch ’n’ linger experience is not something that can happen on a regular Monday through Friday. I also don’t want it to be something that only happens on vacation. I need to find some balance. Maybe it’s something I treat myself and my husband to once a week, on the weekend, along the lines of brunching while lingering over the Sunday New York Times.

Speaking of balance, I also need to figure out how to balance the positive impact (actual lingering) with the semi-negative (I really didn’t need that torte).