Update on A-List Activities

If you're wondering about the status of recent blog posts, here is an update...

• The yoga challenge is going well. It's still hard but I am liking it. My one-month membership ends this weekend, and I'm on track of hitting my goal of going ten times.

• My big read, despite being a light read, is going slowly.  I'm about 750 pages into the 1,100+ tome and the book is fine. Not a great book that has sucked me in but enjoyable enough and easy to read. I had planned on reading approximately 30 pages a day, which would have put me on track for finishing by my upcoming holiday but that's not going to happen. There are just too many other things to do and with few rainy weekends this spring, I haven't had much time to get in lots of reading. I will finish and will post my thoughts on this blog, but it will have to wait. Too big of a book to bring on my trip.

• The travel I just referred to is an upcoming trip Mike and I will take to Where Tito Once Roamed. Yes, I'll be heading back to Montenegro in May. This will be Mike's first time in the Balkans and in Eastern Europe, and we are looking forward to exploring this relatively undiscovered yet very dynamic part of the world. We've been trying to pick up some of the language, checking out maps, and making plans. As you can imagine, we are very excited and sometimes talk about the possibility of not coming back ;). Either that or starting an import-export business. 

Seizing the Day, Montenegro Style

• As for adventures, it has been a mix of skiing and biking with more and more hiking thrown in the get ready for some big hiking trips we plan to do in Montenegro. Last weekend was a bust for skiing as I just couldn't motivate to go in the rain, but I did get out to Goose Creek after work on Monday. Coverage there is fading fast but it was nice to make some turns on one of my favorite quick, go-to spots. I never did complete the Chestnut Mountain Traverse despite two attempts but I now have a better understanding of what it would take and it is on my radar for next winter.

Last week's rainy weekend allowed me to revisit homemade tea and gives me the chance to share another recipe with you. I'm not much of a tea fan but have recently grown quite fond of ginger tea. (Thanks, Mike, for introducing me to Choice Organic Ginger Tea!) While in San Francisco in November, my chef buddy Deno made homemade ginger tea and it was wonderful so I decided to try it on my own. It was the perfect thing to make over a rainy weekend and is quite easy. Enjoy on a rainy spring day or any time!

Smiling Buddha Ginger Tea
~For every six ounces of water, add 12 slices of thinly cut ginger.
~Water
~Honey

• Place the ginger and water in a pot.
• Bring to a boil.
• Simmer for 25 minutes.
• Voila! Your hot ginger tea is now ready. Add honey to suit your taste.

Note: If you have made enough tea to save for later, you can go either way on removing the ginger slices. If you leave them in there, it makes the tea very strong so you'll have to dilute subsequent cups of tea with water.