A Foodie Love Affair

One of our favorite things about living in Durham is the foodiness of the town (check out the proof here and here). I am a girl who loves to eat no matter who is doing the cooking and our new home really reflects this trait. This weekend Steve and I had a very foodie weekend, which in our opinion is the best kind. One of our good friends from Arkansas is living in Durham for the summer and we have taken it upon ourselves to take her to the best places to eat in town (we know, what a hassle!). Friday night we went to one of our absolute favorites in downtown Durham: Dame's Chicken and Waffles. When we first moved to Durham we had no idea the city was so diverse in its culture and it's cooking. Growing up in the Midwest we were exposed to totally different kinds of restaurants; date night would be spent at Chili's and a really fancy occasion would be celebrated at P.F. Chang's (for friends back home, here's a mind-blower: Durham doesn't even have an Olive Garden!). Since we've been living here we've tried everything from Singaporean to Mediterranean to Harlem's own chicken and waffles, a delicacy that is loved by many in our food-obsessed town. Dame's is always packed when we go but we will gladly wait the half an hour for the BEST macaroni and cheese I have ever had, accompanied by juicy fried chicken atop a moist sweet potato waffle. I know, sounds terrible, doesn't it? Steve had been asked to judge Durham Central Park's Chili Challenge this year, which I gladly tagged along for on Saturday morning. For $4 I got to try 5 different kinds of chili, along with some of our favorite salsa they decided to throw in the competition as well. Waiting for Steve to finish his judging duties I was given the opportunity to hang out in Central Park while the weekly Farmer's Market was winding down. Durham is surrounded by small farms and many of the restaurants around the area are committed to using local ingredients. Living in Durham has given us the opportunity to really think about what we are eating and where it is coming from, and while we can't always afford to eat local and organic the Farmer's Market at least gives us the chance to substitute some of our store-bought choices with locally grown ones. Again, this is something that we did not have the chance to do where we grew up. While the small farming community I grew up in had some roadside stands selling corn and peaches in the summer, almost all of our grocery shopping was done at the local Wal-Mart. We did the best we could with what was offered, but we had no clue that all of your food shopping could be done outside of the grocery store until we moved to Durham. Today we culminated our foodie weekend at the Food Truck Rodeo, another popular event that is hosted by Durham Central Park. About 5 times a year the food trucks from around the area line up in one place and visitors to the Rodeo are offered just about every kind of food you can think of (except funnel cake). Steve and I always find out about the Rodeo the day after it happens, so we were very prepared for this one. It was like the best State Fair you can imagine, without all of the deep-fried milkshakes and weird stuff served on doughnuts. At first we just walked from truck to truck checking out the menus and enjoying the smells that were wafting from the windows, but then we really dug in. First we tried a chocolate chai doughnut from Monut's Donuts (divine), followed by a pepperoni pizza slice from Pie Pushers (delectable) and a meatball hero from Valentino's (delicious). We couldn't decide on where to round out our meal with dessert, and by the time we got in line for The Parlour ice cream the line was stretched a half mile long and Cafe Prost was out of pretzels. So we drove to Cook Out and got some Coke floats instead (dang good). At this point Steve and I would prefer not to eat for a good long while (probably at least another hour or so), but it was an excellent weekend celebrating what Durham does best--cooking and eating! 

A look at Durham's Food Truck Rodeo

Moving Out: Four Weeks Before

Quick clarification for these moving ideas before we get started: I realize it is possible to move in one day. I just happened to start our moving process 5 weeks before we move to make the process as painless for us as possible because, like most of you out there, we are busy people and we would rather not spend a lot of time stressing out about packing and breaking stuff. I have moved houses and dorm rooms, and once we moved halfway across the country without breaking or losing a single item. The move coming up with be my 12th move. Feel free to leave comments with suggestions and your experiences, but also remember you don't have to listen to anything I have to say. These posts are strictly about how I am approaching this particular move. And I'm choosing to be as OCD as possible for small bursts of time because I feel that's easier than throwing things in boxes willy-nilly, and we have the luxury of time on our side. So, without further adieu...

Week 4: Get Rid of Your Junk...Seriously

I study in the school of "throwin' out your crap when you don't know what to do with it anymore." I am all about purging our household of unnecessary items, and about twice a year we will go through closets and find items to donate. I find that sometimes people are offended by my lack of emotional attachment to physical objects. BUT I do save things that are meaningful to me. I still have the teddy bear from before I was born, pictures from my childhood, my preschool graduation robe, and toys my grandfather made for me. And they are well-preserved in labeled storage containers. I just choose what objects mean the most to me physically (most of the aforementioned items are being saved for my children) and keep those around. The rest get tossed unless they serve some useful purpose. For example: I loved my Barbies growing up. I had BOXES of Barbie crap. I remember the great times playing Barbies with my mom and my friends, and how jealous they all were of my awesome stuff. However, I have none of those Barbies left because the memories are more important than the physical objects. Books, on the other hand, are always useful. Unless they are turning to dust I will hold on to those suckers for as long as I can (thanks for the new bookshelf, Dad!).

This week Steve and I are tossing out the junk and replacing some of it with new junk. In case you have problems with this step, here are some of the guidelines I like to follow:

• For clothes: If you haven't worn it in the past season (for example, if you didn't wear a sweater this past winter) you probably won't wear it next season (unless you're pregnant, then ignore this). If it doesn't fit you anymore, get rid of it. If you're keeping something because it was a gift but you actually hate it, get rid of it. Clothes are some of the best items to donate, but they're useless if they've been sitting in closets forever getting nasty. Give them to someone in need instead of making your closet look more full.
• For kitchen supplies: If you've never used it and have had it for more than a year, you'll probably never use it because you probably forgot about it. If something is melted or rusted, it's probably time to replace it. Some kitchen gadgets are totally useless. Alton Brown says that a flour sifter is the most pointless kitchen tool because a fine mesh strainer can be used with the same results, and it's useful for other things (like straining). If you are missing enough of a set of something for it to be embarrassing, replace it. Steve and I only had four glasses left after busting the rest of them in the dishwasher. So we bought some beautiful new ones to replace the old! This is also a great way to make your new home feel really new without spending a bunch of money (Bed, Bath, and Beyond 20% coupons are THE. BEST. EVER.).
• For books, movies, CDs, electronics, etc.: Use the same rules as above. If you forgot you had it, it's time to go. Amazon.com pays pretty good money with their trade-in program and it's free to ship items. Powell's Books is my go-to place for selling books, and they pay more if you get virtual credit to their store instead of real money (which I'm all about). Most public libraries take donations of books, DVDs, and CDs for their book sales. Electronics can also be recycled at Best Buy if they are no longer in working order.

Last week you should have gotten a pretty good idea of what you have. You may even already know what you want to get rid of. This week is the week that everything you won't be packing up and moving needs to get out of the house. Start going through your items again, this time with boxes in hand. If it needs to be trashed, throw it away. Separate items that you are planning to donate and sell. Go through one room at a time, one section at a time. Steve and I are doing one room a night to make it less stressful. At the end of the week we will take everything that needs to be donated to Salvation Army and ship out everything that will be sold. Plan a garage sale for the weekend if you have a lot to sell. This is also a good time to figure out if it's time to put certain things in the attic or in storage. Steve and I will have an attic for the first time in our new place, so we've also been determining what will be stored and packing those items in (labeled!) plastic storage bins. When all of your unnecessary and unwanted items are out of your house it will be so much easier to pack the rest of your belongings.

Goals for Week 5:

• Rid your house of all unwanted belongings (sell, donate, or throw away said belongings)
• Continue to prepare for packing by collecting packing materials and supplies

Next week: Pack, pack, pack!

Moving Out: Five Weeks Before

Steve and I will be moving to a new, bigger, shinier place in about a month (hooray!) and I've decided it's about time to start packing. As I may have mentioned in one or two (or all) of my previous posts, I have a little thing for Pinterest. Some of the posts that fascinate me the most are about organization, and genius ideas people grab out of thin air on how to pack, move, and store just about anything. I tend to be just a smidge crazy when it comes to organization, and moving is my favorite time of the year because I finally have a reason to go through all of our belongings and throw things out! I believe it's better to get rid of the old and bring in...well, nothing, really. (Unless it's more books! I'll always say yes to more books!) Steve has more of a hard time getting rid of things but is getting used to my incessant need to clean out the closets. Moving halfway across the country two years ago helped us to purge most of our...dorm crap. And gave us a great reason to go to IKEA!

Anyhoo, I started checking out some organization blogs to see if they had any useful tips. And while most had some pretty great ideas for how to store paper towels and canned goods, I only found a couple on how to organize before a move. Disappointed, I thought I would take a whack at writing down my own ideas for our move. So...here is my 5-week plan for moving our stuff.

Week 5: Plan of Attack

This week is a great time to go over everything you own and plan your pack-attack (ha ha). I'm going to call this the "mental inventory" phase. Making lists at this point can be handy, but I don't think it's really necessary unless you're going to be buying or getting rid of a lot of things. This week, go through each room and get an idea of what exactly you have. Dig through drawers and cabinets, go through storage boxes and bags, and check out what's hanging in closets. If you notice something that you don't want or need anymore, set it aside. If you notice something you need to replace, make a note. If you find something broken, rusted, or rotting, throw it away. If you're planning on packing it and taking it with you, leave it alone. It's not necessary this week to make decisions about things you may want to sell or give away unless they jump out at you right away. This week, you should just get an idea of what you have so you can figure out how you're going to move it. 

By this point, you probably have some idea of what your new place looks like and where you'll be placing people and furniture. If not, try to make some sort of plan so you'll know what you might need to buy or get rid of. For instance, if your new place has room for an office or a second bedroom, you'll probably need to prepare to buy furniture and decor for this space. If you're moving to a smaller space, you'll probably need to get rid of furniture. When you have a good idea of what you'll be taking with you, it's time to start gathering moving boxes and supplies and planning for the moving day. I've been hoarding moving boxes for a few months in preparation so we won't have to go out and buy any, but there are plenty of places to get boxes. Craigslist often lists them under their "Free" section from other people's moves. Just remember that cardboard boxes can carry insect eggs, (including roaches, yuck!) so be careful about where you get them or you might be inviting some nasty creatures into your new place. This is also the week to check into places to take donations around your area. If you do pull items that you plan on donating, get a plastic or cardboard box to be used specifically for these donations. The attack does not have to be planned all at once, so if you prefer take the whole week and do a small section at a time (master closet, bathroom cabinets, bookshelves, etc.). When you find something you don't want, toss it in the donation box or the trash. 

Goals for Week 5:

• Create mental inventory of belongings
• Begin gathering moving boxes and supplies
• Create plan for where things will go in the new house/apartment
• Create lists for things you will need to buy/sell when you move

Next week: Getting serious about cleaning out belongings & preparing your old place for the move 

"Kindred"

On April 23 I had the unique experience of participating in World Book Night with the public library I work for. World Book Night is sponsored by major bookstores and publishing companies, and during the day one million books are given away across the country. This was the first year our library participated, and we were very excited about the opportunity. We chose seven titles to be given away in our community and, overall, it was a great success. We are looking forward to the event next year, especially since we got to pick out free books as well! The most popular book we handed out was The Hunger Games, but in a close second was Kindred, by Octavia Butler. Published in 1979, this author and her books have never reached my radar but were highly praised by my boss and everyone who chose to take her book. I decided to give it a try.

Octavia Butler has the distinction of being one of the few female African American science fiction writers. Having won both the Hugo and Nebula awards, she is also the best known from that category. As embarrassed as I was having never heard of her, I was anxious to start reading her book, especially after the one-line description I heard over and over again: "It's African American science fiction set around the Civil War." Huh. Never heard of that before, but sounds good to me!

As you may have guessed from my previous description, Kindred is a science fiction novel primarily set in Maryland about 50 years before the Civil War. The main character, Dana, is a female African American writer from 1976 who has the unfortunate ability to travel back in time. She doesn't discover this ability until she is 26 and suddenly appears in a creek just in time to save the life of a little boy. She later discovers that this little red-headed boy is Rufus Weyland, future plantation owner and her great-great grandfather. Dana continues to be pulled to Rufus whenever his life (and her own, as a future relative) is in danger, which happens to be a lot for this danger-loving boy. And as an African American in the Antebellum South, Dana must learn to live as a slave while she is stuck in Rufus' time. Obviously, this transition is not easy for Dana or the reader. She endures hardships that few of us today can imagine. Butler obviously did her homework before writing this novel because the historical details are spot-on, but described so simply that the reader often forgets that this world is totally new to Dana. While slave narratives are not unusual to today's reader, it is unusual to find a book that can easily discuss discrimination in both 1825 and 1976.

Kindred is an excellent find as we enter the "summer reading" phase. While a little slow to start as Butler sorts through the difficult task of introducing Dana to her new world while keeping the reader on track, the novel picks up speed as the lines blur between Dana's reality and her "past life." Introducing the idea of time travel for an African American back to one of the country's darkest periods is genius...and terrifying.

Overall Grade: B+