Slowing Down

The first thing on my retirement list is "Slow Down." It's been 1 month and 2 days since I retired and I am beginning to acclimatize myself to this new lifestyle, with slowing down being my number one priority.  I was so used to having daily stress in my life; either self-imposed or mandated by the nature of my work that it was second nature.  I now find myself with no deadlines or time constraints and it's revolutionary. Not only has my body become more relaxed, but my thoughts have slowed down and I am experiencing a wonderful peace of mind.


The second thing on my list is "Walk." Opening up my senses by getting outside in the elements is something I have always enjoyed, but rarely made time for while working. Though we have a treadmill (aka clothes rack) in our basement, when I have used it in the past, it has been like torture. Nothing more boring in the world, even if listening to music or watching TV.


Walking through my neighborhood looking at others houses and yards, gardens, trees, and parks is far more interesting. Venturing outside my neighborhood and walking with my BFF is another great luxury we are able to do. What fun it is to have her company as we discover new places.  As we work on our endurance and are able to go greater distances, we will start exploring parks and gardens throughout our region and discover all the glories the Willamette Valley has to offer.


I have included a few pictures from some of my recent walks for your viewing pleasure and hope to create additional blogs of my future adventures.

Yum Yum Bowl

Food bowls are a thing.  They appear on menus of many restaurants these days. I have recently experienced two very good ones; one called a Philosophy bowl and the other was called a Harvest Pasta bowl.  I decided to try to make my own version and created a hybrid of these two bowls.

My bowl creation has a base of brown rice and the toppings include roasted vegetables of Brussels sprouts, tomatoes, and butternut squash then sprinkled with roasted pumpkin seeds, dried cranberries, and crumbled goat cheese.  A dollop of hummus and a drizzle of lemon-tahini dressing completes the dish. I have included the recipe I use for the lemon-tahini dressing.

This may not be the prettiest of all lunches, but it is packed with a depth of flavors and a variety of textures. It is also a nutritious meal that is quite fulfilling. 


Lemon Tahini Dressing
In bowl, whisk together 8 Tbsp sesame tahini, 1/4 cup each of lemon juice and extra-virgin olive oil, 2 Tbsp each of water and finely chopped flat leaf parsley, 2 tsp minced garlic, 1/2 tsp kosher salt, and 1/8 tsp cayenne.

Grilled or Toasted

There has been an ongoing debate in my home for years.  I call a cooked cheese sandwich a toasted cheese and The Husband always states "It's grilled cheese." I must have grown up in a household where the former title was used and I have always called it that.  What say the rest of you?



No matter.  Today I made lunch for the bestie and the menu consisted of rather unsophisticated childhood favorites of toasted cheese sandwiches, tomato soup, homemade dill pickles (thanks Jodi), and butterscotch pudding.  What raised the sandwich to adult heights was the use of three types of cheese.

Recently while on vacation, we made a stop at the Tillamook Cheese Factory where I couldn't resist stocking up on some delicious varieties of cheeses including Monterey Jack and a  three year aged cheddar, one of their special reserve cheeses. Today's three cheeses included those as well as real, honest-to-goodness Parmesan-Reggianno.  When done, the combination of these cheeses really raised the sandwich to a new level.
 
You can't go wrong with a bowl of hot, creamy tomato soup along with the sandwich for a classic duo. An occasional dip of the sandwich into the soup is a must.  A creamy butterscotch pudding with just a squirt of whipped cream was the perfect sweet ending.  My bestie had announced earlier in the day that when she gets old and loses all her teeth, all she wants to eat is butterscotch pudding!

Obviously, no recipe for this lunch menu. I'm starting off slowly getting back into my blog. I'm still getting used to having time off and cooking has not been at the top of my agenda.

New Beginnings

My slate is empty. A new year, a new start, a new lifestyle in front of me.

I retired on Friday after working non-stop for the past forty years. I was fortunate to get a full time job mere weeks after graduating from college and haven't stopped since.  Seven places of employment during this time period, countless coworkers-many who are long forgotten, a few indelibly etched in my heart forever, lots of hard work, stress, rewards, frustrations, and laughter all behind me now. Now is the time to discover what it is like to not be an employee but to be free and independent of time clocks, rules, regulations, and others expectations.

This will be a totally new experience that both excites and causes me some trepidation. Always a planner, months ago I began writing lists of things I would like to do. The very first thing on my list is "Slow Down."  My best friend recently told me that I always appear to be rushing to the next thing.  Now is the time to stop, be in the moment, and truly experience what I am doing.

I retired this blog in April 2013, finding that keeping it up was too demanding of what little free time I had. Now is a good time to dust it off and bring it out of retirement as I enter mine. Hopefully I will share how I start filling up my cleared slate with my experiences as I begin this new chapter in my life.

Happy New Year one and all!