vegan chai

my 101/1001 list and other miscellany

how lame is it that i've crossed 5 things off my list before i have even gotten it together enough to finish writing my list? pretty lame. i'm going to have to add "finish writing this list" as one of my items. heh.

i have two things right now that i just don't feel like doing, even though i really need to: (a) finish reading and commenting on a thesis draft, and (b) read and write a review for a journal manuscript. these are the kinds of things that don't have to take forever, but i can usually find a way to make them take forever. i hate that about myself, and i'm trying to figure out ways to make myself stop doing it, but today i'm losing that fight. the thesis draft needs so much work that i've literally edited or commented on every single sentence so far, which makes me not even want to pick it up again... and the journal submission just seems like Not That Much Fun and there's so much other stuff i could be doing instead. wah, i have such a rough life, i know.

reusable produce bags

okay, i'm still working on my 101 things in 1001 days list, but #18 has on my mind lately: reusable produce bags. i use canvas tote bags for my groceries almost 100% of the time now (it took awhile to develop the habit, but i'm pretty good at it these days), but the little plastic produce bags are starting to make me feel inCREDibly wasteful. it's like, "put two carrots in a bag, drive home, throw the bag away." ugh. i'm going to make a point of taking them to the humane society to use for poop bags from now on, but what i'd really like to do is buy some reusable ones. does anyone have experience with this? tried and true bags? nifty ideas? food for thought? these are the ones i'm looking at right now, but i'm totally open to suggestions. muchas gracias in advance!

the list

101 things in 1001 days
start date: jan 5 2008
end date: oct 2 2010

i'm just going to start listing things off willy-nilly, brainstorm-style. i reserve the right to edit or otherwise "fix" this list later, including re-organizing items into cohesive categories and stuff like that. okay, here goes!

1. buy a macbook pro (ha! i'm cheating already!) jan 5 2008
2. get tenure (holy crap, i don't believe it) jan 18 2008
3. failing #2: don't lose mind (moot)
4. decide whether we want to have children
5. go back to england
6. create a habit of making an itinerary for each day
7. create a habit of using a timer and sticking to my itinerary
8. talk to the director of the humane society about vegan outreach
9. volunteer at the big cat sanctuary
10. import all of my CDs into iTunes
11. buy a cat tree for avery & finley
12. read the manual for my camera
13. reconnect with carlo
14. enroll in an ashtanga class (and go)
15. learn how to bake and frost a layer cake
16. join a CSA
17. go back to austin
18. buy reusable produce bags
19. take mer & ken on a co-op tour
20. visit erik's family in nevada
21. see ed begley, jr. speak on campus (yay!)
22. reconnect with diana
23. visit portland
24. make the chai latte cupcakes in VCTOTW
25. make the chickpea cutlets in veganomicon (yum!) jan 2008
26. visit farm sanctuary again
27. go to the chicago diner again
28. paint the guest bedroom
29. paint the furniture in the guest bedroom
30. frame my diplomas and hang them up
31. successfully veganize eaglebrand brownies
32. start sending birthday cards again
33. do a purge of my jewelry box(es), and
34. try to give sentimental pieces to people who would appreciate them
35. either start stamping again, or decide not to and get rid of everything
36. visit jen in evanston
37. leave a copy of why vegan? in every waiting room i find myself in
38. get my kurt halsey original drawing framed and hung  jan 26 2008
39. visit erin, and jason & marianne, in las vegas
40. be a better penpal to josh harper
41. raise $1000 for the farm sanctuary walk for farm animals
42. read my entire backlog of satya magazine (may it rest in peace)
43. try 3 new vegetables
44. go out for ethiopian food with an experienced connoisseur
45. do a CD purge and re-organize them all
46. replace all of our bleached-out towels (from my proactiv days)
47. read the clicker-training book and attempt to clicker-train our kittehs, just for fun
48. watch the up series
49. finish reading introduction to animal rights: your child or the dog?
50. prep two new graduate courses
51. prep one new undergraduate course
52. watch dealing dogs (languishing on my FiVo for nearly 2 years now)
53. establish our 403b and/or start some other type of investing
54. watch peaceable kingdom with someone else
55. get a complete physical, with blood panel and the whole deal
56. completely redo my homepage
57. write an article for a vegan/AR publication
58. establish a regular date night with my husband
59. read my backlog of herbivore magazine
60. read my backlog of herbivore online issues
61. host a holiday/family dinner at our house (one we don't normally host)
62. establish a regular yoga practice
63. work back to a routine of going to the gym at least 3 times per week
64. read my stack of mini-magazines & newsletters from sanctuaries & AR organizations
65. clean desk at home 
66. organize home office
67. clean desk at school
68. organize school office
69. read zen to done e-book
70. surprise my husband with a gift, just because
71. surprise my sister with a gift, just because
72. go one month without chocolate
73. get 8 hours of sleep every night for a month
74. lose 5 pounds
75. lose another 5 pounds
76. decide whether i need to lose yet another 5 pounds
77.

...okay, i'm going to have to call it a night and finish this tomorrow.

1001 things in 101 days

i just became aware of this project, and i think it's kind of nifty. i'm tempted to give it a whirl, but i'm wondering if any of you have done it, because i'm unsure of the smartest way to blog it. do i just stick it here in a random post and then refer back to it sometimes? or am i supposed to start a new blog dedicated to the list (a less appealing idea, to me)? i was thinking i could create a category here for it, and that way all the posts referring to it would be "tagged" in some way (i don't currently use categories, so i'm not sure if this is feasible or even a good idea)... but i don't know.

i also have no idea if i could come up with 101 things deemed "good enough" to go on the list! heh.