30 Before 30 Journey in a Year

With two lumps of clay, some water, a wheel, heat, glaze and much instruction from an excellent teacher, I present to you my first hand crafted ceramic projects. Why pottery? I think I was drawn to this particular medium because it is both artistic and functional. Or maybe I watched this scene from Ghost one too many times.  A quick Google search made it clear that the Marian Heintz Pottery Studio was the place to go in Chattanooga for a wheel thrown pottery class. Marian had excellent reviews and an easy, affordable class schedule. On a Saturday morning in late February, I went to her studio in Brainerd and was greeted by this little guy as I checked in. Wren the Cat.  Cats aside, the class had six participants which I felt gave everyone enough one on one time with Marian and created a fun atmosphere for us all to compare projects.  In the beginning stages, you have to build the clay up and bring it back down for internal strength.  ...

It's been a while since I've posted about this journey. And I can answer the reason for this delay in one word....running. I'm now half way through training for my half marathon set to occur at the end of April. And while I'm excited and can see definite progress in my running abilities, training is all consuming.  The plan that I'm using is Hal Higdon's Novice 1 plan . I feel like I know Hal. He's the little voice in my head that keeps pushing me when I'm tired, and the man I curse internally when I'm struggling up a hill. Hal, you better get me to 13.1 miles on April 30th And concerning Hal's plan, it works so far. I never imagined I would be running 4, 5, 6 miles at one time, and I'm able to do that currently without much soreness and residual fatigue. But with his plan, you're committing to 12 weeks, 6 days a week of something - running, cross training and/or strength training. The cross and strength training are important f...

Unusual - that really wasn't the right word the more I thought about it.  With an original list item of attending an unusual arts performance, I think I was having a "She's All That" flashback moment and thinking I might attend something like this just for the oddity. But when I really thought about this opportunity, I realized that what I wanted more was to be involved rather than a spectator in an arts centered experience that a. I wouldn't normally put myself in and b. something I could actually walk away from feeling that the content mattered versus a weird guy in his underwear and some chanting (just watch the video). My unexpected art experience ended up being an adventure in visual art and discussion. Want to know my artistic ability? Scan some kindergarten classrooms and what you'll find is probably better than what I can produce. While visual art was not something I was naturally gifted in nor an area I felt interested in developing a skill set, ...

The Bible....how can I write a succinct blog post about The Bible? A book that's both deeply dividing and immensely unifying. A book that has more books written about it than probably any other book. A book that anchors the Christian and my personal faith. Well, I'm not sure I'll even know by the end of this post, but I'll try. The impetus for this list item was simple. I couldn't without a doubt say that I had read every word. And as I viewed what were major milestones before my 30th, making sure I could definitively say this was both important and discouraging. Why have I waited so long? Setting out in a hunt for a reading plan, I knew there were a variety of options . You mostly come across The Bible in a Year versions. And while I support any plan that you can commit to when it comes to scripture, I knew that was too long for me. I went with a 13 week/3 month reading plan that of course I cannot find the link to anymore to share with you :/ I printed it ...

"Find something you're passionate about and keep tremendously interested in it." What better words could come from a zany, enthusiastic foodie like Julia Child, right? While I wasn't around for the heyday of Julia's The French Chef , my first trip to Paris in 2008 confirmed how easy it was to fall in love with this city and its superb culinary pursuits like Julia did. And while I sampled some incredible food (and not so incredible) both in the original trip and a follow up in 2009, replicating French cooking is intimidating. Overall, standard meals aren't necessarily complicated as they are involved. Many steps, components from scratch and an emphasis on sauces and garnishes are French recipe staples. Kudos to Julia Child for her work making this intimidating French cooking process feel more approachable and doable for American cooks.  While baking and cooking are areas I already feel pretty skilled in, I wanted to try one of Julia's standar...

When I started making my 30 Before 30 list, a random act of kindness was one of the first things I wrote down. Having experienced many times in the past that giving is truly more satisfying than receiving, I wanted to do something on a large scale for someone else. I like to think that I am kind in my day to day interactions and routinely try to do for others. But for the list, I was hoping and praying for an opportunity that was a little more meaningful that paying for everyone's coffee in line at Starbucks- so in came The MOMentum Network . The MOMentum Network is a newer, faith-based Chattanooga nonprofit that offers practical help to single mom families interested in building a better future through higher education. Being that I am a huge advocate for education, a former university adjunct instructor and firm believer that an education is the best form of self improvement from both a personal and economic standpoint, this was were I felt my act of kindness would be best spe...

Holidays are the time for family, friends, Jesus and lots of sugar. But, it's taken me almost thirty years to have enough culinary courage to attempt peanut butter roll by myself. The backstory on this one comes from many Christmases growing up, and the multiple unsuccessful attempts to make peanut butter roll with my mom and sister. Every December, we would gather in the kitchen to make a multitude of holiday fare, but we could never get peanut butter roll to come out successfully. Either it was too sticky or came out as hard as a rock. My sister and I would always eat whatever concoction came forth because it was basically straight sugar and what kid passes on that? Until finally, my mother, who is a wonderful cook and baker, gave up. Since then, the delectable candy has been intimidating, and I've never attempted to make it until this year. So interesting story that I've ran into when this initially was published as a list item and more recently when I've been ta...