Table for One

Hey, I cooked a thing again! I no longer live .5 miles from 6 different Thai places, so I had to try my own. It wasn't half bad! Better on day 2 when the sauce had soaked in more. -Cook pad Thai noodles according to package -Scramble 2 eggs, set aside -Stir fry 1 lb boneless/skinless chicken breast in ½ tbsp sesame oil, or vegetable oil -Combine noodles & pad Thai sauce (found in Asian food aisle at most grocery stores), eggs, chicken, and a handful or two of chopped green onions, and stir fry 3-4 minutes -Top with crushed peanuts (just buy a bag of salted peanuts, put a handful in a Ziploc, and stomp on it! it's fun!) I think next time I'll do ½ pad Thai sauce, ½ peanut sauce...or add some sriracha. I'm a wimp at spice but with pad Thai the spicy really does help bring out the flavor. Not as good as the experts at Thaiger Room, but yummy and pretty easy!

Beautiful walk through the cemetery.... One sad tombstone.

Starry Nites, a Van Gogh-themed cafe in NOTA 💫

Bloom where you’re planted 🌱🌸

Taking a plunge in 5 days. Nervous, yes. Excited, yes. Here's to the unknown.

Shoutout to the little green bug rollin through Wallingford tonight.

Was kind of forced into a table (bar stool) for one tonight, but it was really nice. There's something supremely liberating about knowing you can be comfy doing anything independently. And rookies is a great sports bar! Go Dawgs.

I've never been to a movie alone. It was oddly freeing to fly solo but also be surrounded by so many others -- and it was also the perfect movie to see alone. And I even splurged and bought popcorn AND a soda. Support small biz, right? Then my bus was 10 minutes delayed so I walked home. Perfect winter soloventure.

New coffee, new book, finally time for some 'splorin.

Solo adventure not in the destination this time, but in the journey. Despite the rain, walked instead of taking the bus to where I was going. Best decision.

Urban escape.

I haven't posted much on this blog this year...but I've still been very much enjoying my solo julestime, in doses. I've been really questioning my own introverted and extrovertedness this year, and because of that, questioning whether those labels are even appropriate for anyone ever. I used to be fascinated by the whole concept, but now it seems that the conversation is overwhelmingly argumentative, with "introverts" pushing back against society's endorsement of outgoing "extroverts," and "extroverts" in turn feeling misunderstood or undervalued. The reality, of course, is that we all lie somewhere on that spectrum, and most of us are somewhere near the middle. Recently I've found these labels more damaging than anything else, but it's also been valuable for me to reevaluate where I get my energy. People or alone time? The city or nature? Am I an introverted extrovert, or an extroverted introvert? Regardless, solo adventures are still rejuvenating for me - but equally so are adventures with friends, now. Suffice it to say I'm looking forward to both this summer. :) Peace for now. xo jusobo