Beauty on the Backroads

Stories of grace for life's unexpected turns

5 on Friday

First Friday Five {March}

March is a green month to me. When I think of March, I think green. Maybe it’s because of St. Patrick’s Day or maybe it’s because spring officially begins. Maybe it’s the proliferation of green foods that aren’t naturally green. (I’m looking at you Shamrock shake and green eggs and ham.)

Whatever the reason, it’s the first Friday in March. Winter has been kind of a dud, and while I know we’re not out of the snowstorm woods just yet, I can’t help but breathe a little easier. We made it through winter. We made it.

Here are some of my favorite things from the past month:

  1. Spring-like temperatures. I’m sure you didn’t see that one coming. We had numerous abnormally warm days in February, and I know I maybe shouldn’t be too excited about that because it means the world’s climate is out of whack. BUT I have young kids who were able to spend hours outside on a couple of Saturdays, and we took a Sunday outing to a local wildlife preserve to see thousands of snow geese that annually stop there during migration. I’m happiest when I’m outside or at least have the option of being outside. This little warm stretch will get me through to for-real spring now.
  2. A live-stream of ocean exploration. It’s technically over now, but for the last couple of weeks of February, NOAA live-streamed an exploration off of American Samoa every day for hours. It was fascinating to see an area of the world that few people get to see. Amazing creatures. Even the scientists were amazed and impressed. Here’s the link, in case they show highlights and you want to check it out: http://oceanexplorer.noaa.gov
  3. Vegetables. It’s way too soon for a garden, and I’m not sure what our plans are this year, anyway, but my husband started working for a produce company at the end of January and one of his benefits is a fresh produce allowance every week. Generally when the budget is tight, we don’t buy as many fruits and vegetables, especially if they are out of season. But having a connection to a local company, even if the produce isn’t local yet, has been an unanticipated blessing. We’ve got apples and oranges, kale, more mushrooms than we can use in a week, potatoes, and squash. We’re still trying to eat sort of seasonally, and I look forward to the expanded choices in the weeks and months to come.
  4. Ordinary adventures. I hate to even call them adventures, though they are adventurous for me. I started riding the city bus this month, and though I’ve only done it a few times, it’s a few more times than in the entire rest of my life. And I’ve been attending a women’s group for refugee women in our community, practicing my French occasionally with the Haitians I meet. I’m re-learning French on an app but using it in person with someone is scary but also helpful. I’m trying to be less afraid and more open to new things, even if they are unfamiliar or uncomfortable.
  5. Friends. I’m used to being independent and letting my husband take the brunt of all my venting. More often than not, lately, I’m texting friends when I need to vent or need some encouragement. With Facebook off of my phone, I feel like texting is one way I can stay connected throughout the day. (But not to an annoying degree.) I’m trying to have at least one friend date a week and be more aware of how long it’s been between get-togethers.

What have you been up to this month? Favorites you’d like to share?

First Friday Five {February}

Another first Friday means another chance to tell you some of my favorite things. I know, it’s your favorite time of the month, right?

Here’s what I’m loving this month.

  1. Royal dramas. The Crown on Netflix and Victoria on PBS. The first is a historical fiction about the reign of Queen Elizabeth II, the second about Queen Victoria, obviously. I’m not sure I would recommend having both of these shows “in progress” concurrently but they are fascinating (and yes, they are fiction based on true events) looks at female leadership in male-dominated worlds. (Also, they give me a Doctor Who fix. In The Crown, Matt Smith plays Elizabeth’s husband, Philip and in Victoria Jenna Coleman is the title character. When I can’t watch the Doctor, I can watch my favorite actors.)
  2. Unroll me. I’m not sure where I saw this, but it’s an e-mail service that helps you unsubscribe and consolidate your inbox. You choose what to do with each sender: keep it in your inbox, unsubscribe, or roll it up. Then, each day, you get ONE email with all your rolled up emails (I’ve gotten as few as 2, as many as 11) and you can click on each individual one to read it or just skim over it. My inbox is still out of control, but this is keeping the crazy at bay.
  3. The Price is Right. I used to watch this game show religiously in the summers as a kid, but I’ve stayed away from daytime TV as a stay-at-home mom (unless you count Netflix and I don’t. So there.) until recently. My husband was out of work for a few weeks and we made an 11 o’clock couch date each day to tune in to The Price is Right while we ate lunch. I have another entire blog post brewing about watching this show, but Drew Carey and this game show are one of the highlights of the last month.
  4. Ticket to Ride. We first played this board game with friends months ago and loved it. Then Santa brought us our own game fro Christmas and we have played it almost once a week (or more) with the kids. It’s the kind of game that’s really never boring no matter how many times you play it because it all depends on strategy and planning instead of luck.
  5. Dystopian fiction. Before the last few months, I’m not sure I had read a single work of dystopian fiction. Late last year I read The Hunger Games series and this month I read the Divergent series. Tell me what I should read next in this genre! I preferred the Divergent series but devoured both series in a matter of days.

Favorites in your life from the past month? Share away!