Little by little, the bird builds its nest. I find some tasks I have set myself easy, esp. when it comes to cooking and baking. Others are harder than I expected. In particular the traveling and even blogging tasks. Part of that is definitely that I underestimated how long the Covid pandemic would be with us. The other issue I have, of course, is that I still haven’t received my travel permit. I am simply not allowed to leave the country. That might be why I have so much time to be in the kitchen, he-he. I am trying my best though to tackle most tasks and might try a different approach by focusing more on a specific task at a time. Hopefully by my 5th update in December I will have achieved a little more.

Begins: 15 August 2020
Ends: 12 May 2023
Done: 25/101

1. Go vegetarian for a month
2. Have one vegan day per week (20/100)
3. Make ten different ice creams (1/10): frozen yogurt with caramel
   
4. Learn how to make my granny’s apple strudel: I finally did it in September 2021 √
   
5. Go without alcohol for three times one month (3/3): August/September 2020, June and July 2021 √
   
6. Learn how to use our instant pot √
7. Learn how to use the air fryer lid for our instant pot √
8. Make 20 different cakes/pastries (20/20): Arabian sponge cake, Caramelized Walnut Pear Tart, covered apple cake, browned butter blondies, plum olive oil cake, chocolate chip biscuits, chocolate coffee mayo cake, butter cake, spritz cookies, peppermint sheet cake with white chocolate frosting, cinnamon buns, Chocolate Caramel Sourdough Muffins, sourdough berry cake, cherry chocolate babka, marshmallow fluff fudge cake, basil apricot cake, plum cake with glaze, peach skillet blondies, almond streusel peach cake, pear almond cookies √
   
9. Make 5 African dishes (0/5)
10. Make pasta myself
11. Make 20 different zucchini dishes (7/20): zucchini soup with fried apricots, beetroot zucchini quiche, pan fried zucchini, gnocchi with zucchini and tomato sauce, green zucchini curry, shakshuka, my family’s zucchini stew
    
12. Find a recipe and make kürt böre‎ǧi
13. Make lemon curd
14. Make kaymak
15. Make tavuk göğsü
16. Host a murder mystery dinner
17. Host a German “Kaffee und Kuchen” (coffee and cake in the afternoon) for Rich’s family √: on 16 August 2021
    
18. Host a German dinner
19. Host a Turkish brunch
20. Host a Turkish dinner
21. Try 3 recipes from Rich’s family (0/3)
22. Learn to make saag paneer from Rich
23. Continue to read at least 52 books per year: ca. 114 books in 2020
    
24. Reread the Harry Potter series √: August/September 2020
25. Reread the Lord of the Rings books: started in September 2020
26. Send and receive 50 post cards via Postcrossing (7/50)
27. Send 50 handwritten notes and letters (24/50)
28. Do some embroidery
29. Knit a blanket
30. Organize my closet at least once a year (1/3)
31. Replace my battered leather jacket
32. Either go to the gym at least once per week or cancel my membership √: cancelled on 8 Sep. 2020
33. Lose 5 kg or give away my too tight clothes
34. Use my AMC movie subscription when cinemas open again √: restarted in late March 2021
    
35. Test out all my old film cameras
36. Review at least 20 books on NetGallery and Booksprout (4/20): How to Declutter Your Mind: Secrets to Stop Overthinking, Relieve Anxiety, and Achieve Calmness and Inner Peace; Concentration: Maintain Laser Sharp Focus and Attention for Stretches of 5 Hours or More; Mediterranean Every Day: Simple, Inspired Recipes for Feel-Good Food; Dropping Like Pies
37. Create my own business cards for my blog √: ordered on 17 Feb. 2021
    
38. Publish 300 blog posts (99/300)
39. Publish 80 new recipes (12/80)
40. Get 10 new collaborations (3/10): Oxyfresh (Sep./Oct. 2020), Kollectin (Oct. 2020), Oxyfresh (August 2021)
41. Update my “About me” page
42. Create a media kit
43. Collaborate with another blogger
44. Attend 10 blogger meetings (0/10)
45. Host a blog or Instagram giveaway
46. Learn how to do Instagram Reels √
47. Grow my Instagram to at least 2000 followers (1.273)
    
48. Update my Linkedin profile at least once a year (0/3)
49. Update my CV once a year (1/3): Sep. 2021
    
50. Organize all the teaching material on my computer by subject, grade and topic (instead of by school year)
51. Attend 3 professional developments that do not take place in my school (3/3) √: Leisen series of online workshops, Digitaler DaF-Unterricht – Beispiele, Konsequenzen, Perspektiven on 12 Sep. 2020, a 6 week long course on inclusion in April/May 2021
    
52. File my taxes on time (1/2)
53. File all loose and important papers lying around in folders √: it made sense to do this before we moved (but it wasn’t fun)
    
54. Either apply for a Green Card or leave the U.S. √: the application was submitted in April 2021
    
55. Take at least one walk through the City every week that I am here
56. Go to Coney Island √: we went in May 2021
    
57. Take Rich to Balthazar (French Restaurant in NYC)
58. Go to a Yankees game
59. Go to Governor’s Island
60. Have a picnic with friends in Central Park
61. Try 10 new restaurants in New York City (6/10): Loulou’s, Franchia Vegan Café, Murray Hill Diner, Voilá Afrique, Fresh Ginger, Beyti Turkish Kebab *since there aren’t any new restaurants opening right now, I have changed this point to restaurants new to me
    
62. Eat at German restaurant Heidelberg on the Upper East Side √ – in December 2020
63. Take Rich to the Hamptons
64. Go on our honeymoon (albeit a little later)
65. Travel to three new U.S. states (0/3)
    
66. Travel on the train from the East to the West Coast (or the other way round)
67. Visit my friend in North Carolina
68. Go to the Outer Banks
69. Visit Harry Potter World
70. Travel to a new country
71. Visit my family in Germany at least twice (0/2)
72. Travel to Turkey
73. Go camping
74. Go on a road trip
75. Take 3 weekend getaways (1/3): Labor Day weekend 2020 in Peekskill
    
76. Meet Rich’s brother’s dog Christoph
77. Spend at least one week in the family homestead in Maine every year (2/3): October 2020, July 2021
    
78. Stay overnight in the lake house in Maine
79. Swim to the island in the lake and back
80. Plant a quince tree in Maine
81. Renovate our room in the homestead
82. Redecorate our room there
    
83. Start a German bookshelf in the homestead √: in October 2020
84. Organize all my earrings
85. Empty at least one eyeshadow palette √: I actually finally did in June 2021
    
86. Use up at least one lipstick
87. Empty at least one blush
88. Use up all my beauty samples
89. Use at least one facial mask per month (14/33)
90. Use up a bottle of nail polish
91. Stop biting the skin around my nails: still a long work in progress, the cast really helped when I broke my wrist …
    
92. Upgrade our coffee maker √: yes! in April 2021 – first I broke the coffee jug (accidentally, I swear!), then we ordered a fancy fully automated coffee machine
    
93. Upgrade our towels
94. Find a nice apartment when we have to move in summer 2021 √: we bought one in Turtle Bay
    
95. Hire movers √: I mean we also had to, but I would have wanted movers anyways when we finally moved on 21 July 2021
    
96. Upgrade our dining furniture √: finally done in August 2021
    
97. Upgrade our living room furniture: in August/September 2021 when we bought a new couch table and got a new carpet and dresser √
    
98. Have a proper work space with a bigger desk at home
99. Hire a cleaning person for deep cleaning every now and then: this was my Christmas gift 2020 – we have cleaning person once a month √
    
100. Have at least one photo of Canavar printed and hang it up
101. Adopt kittens: October 2020 √

Interim stages:
100: 22 November 2020 / 200: 2 March 2021 / 300: 10 June 2021 / 400: 18 September 2021 / 500: 27 December 2021 / 600: 6 April 2022 / 700: 15 July 2022 / 800: 23 October 2022 / 900: 31 January 2023 / 1000: 11 May 2023

© janavar

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