good things

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Five Good Things Friday (Including a Giveaway!)

This year is sure off to a batshit crazy start, isn’t it. I hope you’re holding up okay, that you’re out there fighting the good fight, that you and your loved ones are warm and safe. If you need, as I do, a break from the endless cycle of WHAT IS GOING ON, you have come to the right place as I have a few good things to share with you.

Good Thing #1: NICOLE’S BOOK IS OUT!!!!! Listen, I am pretty sure that everyone in our cozy blogland community is aware of this by now, but if you are somehow not aware or if you don’t yet know and love Nicole, here is the quick and dirty: Nicole wrote a beautiful, hilarious, heartbreaking, hopeful book called Inhale, Exhale and it is now out in the world for all of us to enjoy.

I would love to send someone a copy of Nicole’s novel. That someone could be you, or it could be someone you think would love Nicole’s singular brand of wry humor and warm wisdom (which, honestly, is everyone). Just leave a comment letting me know you’re interested by next Friday, January 30, at midnight Pacific time and I will randomly choose a winner. (I’ll email the winner for details about where to send the book.)

The giveaway is now closed.

Good Thing #2: Winter Wonders Wow, literally everything good pales in comparison to Good Thing #1, so I am jumping straight into a Good Thing that many people dislike. (Including my poor husband.) We are deep into winter, and I am LOVING IT. We have so much snow! We’ve already had one snow day and a cold day and we may have another cold day today and another snow day Monday! Listen, my child has most definitely NOT been in school enough so far in 2026, but if she’s going to miss school, I’m glad it’s for snow and not for illness (that is not an invitation for illness to find us; TOUCHING ALL THE WOOD). I do not mind the cold (although I am of course deeply grateful that I have warm clothes and a warm home, without which I might feel very different), and I love the snow. It feels like magic, the way it transforms the world into something gleaming and soft. I know cold climates are not for everyone, but I adore winter and I’m trying to enjoy every frosty moment.

Good Thing #3: Freezer / Pantry Meal I am working my way through all the goodies I’ve stashed in my freezer over the past eleventy hundred months, and yesterday I was able to whip up a batch of my favorite chipotle chicken tortilla soup with items I already had. I even had a Ziploc full of diced onion, poblano, and jalapeno waiting for me in the freezer! The only thing I had to buy fresh was cilantro. And now I have a huge Tupperware full of delicious soup to get me through these wintry days. (Yes, I also made another batch of cucumber salad. It is so good.)

Good Thing #4: One Fewer Couch For over two years now, we have had an old leather couch standing awkwardly in our piano room. It didn’t go with the space, it had a huge tear in one cushion, all the other cushions were worn past salvaging. And yet there it stayed. Well. The couch is no more! My husband and I finally arranged for the trash collectors to pick it up, and we moved it to the curb earlier this week and it is GONE. All that snow sure came in handy; it was surprisingly easy to slide the couch along the snow-covered lawn.

Good Thing #5: Cat Grandpa My family and I recently left town for a long weekend, leaving the cat at home. We hired a cat sitter to come feed him twice a day (he eats wet food for breakfast and dinner and has access to dry food [and water] all day long). But I was worried that my lovely Lenny cat would be lonely with such big stretches of his day unpeopled. So my father kindly drove 30+ minutes each way to hang out with the cat, every single day we were gone. He also sent me (and Carla) videos and photos of our kitty, because he knew we’d be missing him. Kindest of all, when the weather prevented the cat sitter from getting to our kitty one evening, and Carla sent a rogue text begging her grandfather to step in, my dad immediately got into his car, prepared to make the long drive a second time that day. I assured him that Lenny had access to plenty of fresh water and dry food, so he didn’t need to brave the snow and the dark. But he was at our house first thing the next morning to make sure the cat knew he hadn’t been abandoned. Is that not the sweetest?

Okay Internet, that’s all I’ve got for you today. I hope you have some good things in your life lately, or at least that good things are on the horizon. Sending you love and warmth and cat purrs.

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Salad Sunday

I made a big fall salad last week and it was SO GOOD. It was a little fussy, because I went All Out by roasting a sweet potato and making a batch of crispy quinoa. But the result was well worth the prep work. And it wasn’t difficult prep work; just a little time consuming. I enjoyed it so much, I made it again yesterday, this time omitting the sweet potato and crunchy quinoa. Still delicious.

I started with the basic premise of my favorite fall salad, this mesclun salad with goat cheese and maple glazed pecans. But then I changed nearly everything about it. Except for the dressing. The dressing is so good.

This salad has responsibility spinach plus spicy, feathery arugula which pairs well with the sweet/tangy dressing and the creamy goat cheese. It has pomegranate seeds for a tart, juicy burst of freshness. It has roasted sweet potato for a little meatiness and that nice crunchy, mealy combo of textures. It has crispy quinoa for additional protein and crunch. It has sliced apples for additional tartness and another texture. Finally, it has nuts or seeds for more protein and fat, sweetness, and crunch. Everything about this salad is SO DELICIOUS and screams “There is so much to enjoy about fall!” 

Spinach and Arugula Fall Salad with Maple Dijon Vinaigrette (inspired by Once Upon a Chef)

Salad Ingredients:

  • Baby spinach (10 oz)
  • Arugula (10 oz)
  • Pomegranate seeds (2.5 oz) (or you can use dried cranberries or dried cherries)
  • Tart apple, sliced thinly (1)
  • Goat cheese, crumbled (4 oz)
  • Salt and pepper (to taste)
  • Pecans (5 oz) (or nuts/seeds of your choice; my favorite are the Sweet & Spicy Pecans from Trader Joe’s)

Optional Extra Salad Ingredients:

  • Sweet potato (1)
  • Cinnamon (to taste)
  • Cayenne (to taste)
  • Extra virgin olive oil (1 Tbsp)
  • Salt and pepper
  • Quinoa (1 cup)
  • Water (2 cups)
  • Extra virgin olive oil (1 Tbsp)
  • Kosher salt (1/2 tsp)

Vinaigrette Ingredients:

  • Minced garlic (1-2 tsp, although you will want to measure with your heart)
  • Minced shallots (2 Tbsp)
  • Salt (1/2 tsp)
  • Freshly ground black pepper (1/2 tsp)
  • Maple syrup (3 Tbsp)
  • Dijon mustard (1 1/2 Tbsp)
  • Red wine vinegar (4 Tbsp)
  • Vegetable oil (10 Tbsp)

Directions:

1a. (Totally optional step if you like fussiness and have time and inclination.) Prepare the crispy quinoa. Pre-heat oven to 425 degrees F. Rinse 1 cup of quinoa under cold water for 1 minute. Add rinsed quinoa and two cups water to a small saucepan. Over high heat, bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer until all the liquid is gone, about 15 minutes. Prepare a baking sheet with parchment paper. Once quinoa is done cooking, allow to cool slightly. Then pour onto prepared baking sheet. Add olive oil and salt to quinoa and mix through with your hands. Roast for 15 minutes, then stir. Roast for an additional 10 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes, until the quinoa is golden and crisp. 

1b. (Totally optional step if you like fussiness and have time and inclination.) Prepare the roasted sweet potato. Pre-heat oven to 425 degrees F. Wash and peel a sweet potato. Cut the sweet potato in half-inch cubes. (This can be very imprecise.) Prepare a baking sheet with parchment paper. Toss the sweet potato cubes with 1 Tbsp olive oil, salt and pepper, and cinnamon and cayenne if using. Spread the cubes on the baking sheet and roast for 15 to 20 minutes, tossing halfway through, until cubes are brown around the edges.

1c. Prepare the salad. Add a handful of baby spinach and a handful of arugula to a large bowl. Add a sprinkling (a tablespoon or two) of each of your toppings: crumbled goat cheese, pomegranate seeds, crispy quinoa, roasted sweet potato, pecans, etc. Top with another handful of spinach and arugula, then repeat until your bowl is full of yummy fall goodness. Slice the apple right before serving and add it to the bowl.

2. Prepare the dressing. Add all the ingredients to a jar, cover and shake until emulsified. 

3. Dress and eat. Add dressing to your salad, toss, and enjoy. 

Notes: 

  • I store the quinoa and the sweet potato in separate Tupperware containers in the fridge. They keep nicely for several days, or until your husband eats them because they are delicious even by themselves.
  • This recipe makes a large portion of dressing, but I love this vinaigrette so much I like to keep it on hand in the fridge. I use emptied and washed glass salad dressing jars to store my own dressing.
  • This salad is endlessly customizable. When I don’t have pecans, I use pumpkin seeds or sunflower seeds or pistachio nuts. Sometimes I don’t have an apple, so I don’t include one. If the grocery store doesn’t have pomegranate seeds, I’ll use dried cranberries or dried cherries.

What salad do you get really excited about? Are there salad ingredients you need on every salad… or any you REFUSE to eat? I won’t eat a tomato or a beet — really, I’m quite sure — thank you very much, and I really prefer to avoid blue cheese, although occasionally I will tolerate it on a wedge salad.

I am kinda sorta attempting to complete NaBloPoMo, with the full expectation that life will make it impossible any day now. If you want to follow along, or join the fun, check out San’s blog here. 

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In Your Element

Today I am thinking about Jenny, who is running her first ultra. The training alone is a massive accomplishment. She’s made it all this way and I hope she is feeling strong and confident and capable as she runs. 

I used to run – not that I ever counted myself as A Runner. I ran simply because I enjoyed it, but eventually had to stop due to persistent knee pain. I feel incredibly lucky that my body allowed me to run for so long, and that I am still able to do so much. I recognize my physical abilities as the gifts that they are. But I do miss it.

I still remember the feeling that running gave me. That feeling of strength. Of connection to the physical realm: my body, the pavement beneath my soles, the air and sun on my skin. 

It was a wonderful sensation, but one that is dwarfed by the feeling I get when I ski. 

Skiing is, on the face of it, an insane thing to do. You allow a pulley to transport you, via a rickety bench, thousands of feet up a mountain, strap narrow planks to your feet, point yourself down a steep, tree-lined expanse of snow, and try not to fall or crash into anything before you reach the bottom. I would love to meet the person who came up with this idea and ask them WHAT they were thinking.

It may be ridiculous, but I have been downhill skiing since before I was two. It’s not something I do as often as I like, but it’s one of my favorite activities. I’m not an expert skier by any means, but I’m good at it. And I would say that it’s one of a very few things that makes me feel purely, triumphantly good. 

My family and I went skiing over spring break a few weeks ago and it was some of the best skiing I’ve experienced in years. Maybe, partly, because my feet are doing better and I’ve been able to exercise again, so my body felt fit and strong. Maybe because the snow was perfect and the weather was excellent. Maybe because I am a good skier, and it feels so satisfying to be engaged in something I’m good at. 

Like I said, I’m not an expert. I definitely prefer groomed blues and blacks, with the occasional mogul field thrown in. I get crabby if the snow is too wet or too icy, or if the weather is too hot or too snowy. I’m not jumping out of a helicopter onto a mountain peak or doing double black diamond trails through the woods. But I feel certain that I could get down pretty much any run, if I had to. 

I am not “sporty.” I am not graceful or lithe. But on skis, especially when the snow is that ideal texture of dry powder on packed snow, I feel athletic and agile, capable and confident. 

And the exhilaration of soaring down a fresh white mountain face, clouds and sky peeking over your shoulder, the valley laid out below you like a gift…

The hypnotic, automatic rhythm of your turns – gravity pulling, your legs resisting just the tiniest bit – your blood pumping steady, strong, your trajectory masked by plumes of your own snowfall…

The scrape of ski blade on snow crust, the bite of winter against your face, your breath darting away from you, unable to keep up…

There’s nothing like it. Nothing in the whole wide world. 

Do you have something that gives you that feeling? A feeling of confidence and competence? A feeling that fills you with pride and elation? A feeling that you are doing a thing the way it is supposed to be done? 

Maybe you feel this way when you give a presentation at work… Or when you’re writing or painting… When you’re baking a cake… Or singing in the shower… Or soothing a friend… I just want to know what makes you feel like you are in your element.