#the29project: end of week 2

this week hasn't been much easier than the first week {frankly, it's been a bit harder as I've come into less contact with strangers}. Still, I am thinking about how my actions impact others. That's really what this project is about: considering others. There have been choices that I would have made without a second though that I have not made, pausing to consider more outcomes.

There is also what I'm learning about myself. It seems that the choices I make in the "me" action are often in taking the time to clean my house or organize something only moderately organized. I'm not yet sure if I am taking the easy way out & not making a  choice for me, or if I often feel that I should be doing something other than, say, cleaning my home.

Some of my friends have begun participating, which is possibly the best feeling I could have from this project. How are you doing? Have you noticed any trends in how your daily actions follow a pattern? Don't forget to tweet or Instagram #the29project or keep an eye out for pictures on the Pinterest board.

made rabbit for the first time: tasty!
rabbit braised in white wine & mustard

took Pepper for a walk along the Clarion River

"Be well. Do good work. Keep in touch." - Garrison Keillor

pretzel-crusted chicken, or grown-up kids' food

the other night one of my friends came over, and we re-created a movie theater smorgasboard right on my coffee table. We had Milk Duds, Twizzlers, m'n'm's, Whoppers, Bit o'Honeys, sour watermelon gummies, Tootsie Rolls, homemade popcorn with butter salt...everything a kid could ask for at the movies.

Because we are also adults who cannot subsist on candy alone, I wanted a protein that doubled as something fun. Trolling through Pinterest and Googling "movie snacks," I came across the idea of chicken baked with a pretzel crust. Not only did it sound rather like fried chicken tenders, the baking felt more healthy and allowed me to pop something in the oven and forget about it without much hassle.

Some of the recipes called for a mustard salad dressing style marinade, but I wanted something a bit more oil-free. Instead of putting the chicken strips into essentially oil with mustards, I tossed together my favorite mustards and stirred in some Greek yogurt. The same friend who came over has made a mayonnaise dressed chicken, rolled in crushed corn flake cereal and baked. It's crunchy and delicious.

This riff on pretzels and mustard and her mayo chicken brought me to a tender, juicy, crunchy, grown-up kids' version of chicken tenders. It was exactly what I wanted, and really quite easy, the two things best found in a recipe.

Pretzel-Crusted Chicken Strips
2 chicken breasts (or more depending on the number to be served), cut into 1.5" strips

2 tablespoons sweet mustard (I used Bavarian sweet, but choose the mustard in your cupboard)
2 tablespoons spicy mustard (preferably whole grain, again choose the mustard in your cupboard)
2 tablespoons standard yellow mustard
3 tablespoons Greek yogurt
2 tablespoons honey
3 tablespoons water

1 cup crushed (by hand or with rolling pin) pretzels, large stick or sourdough

mix together the mustards and yogurt, then remove two or three tablespoons of the mix into a small bowl for later dipping. To that bowl mix in the honey and keep the dipping sauce in the refrigerator. Add the water to the remainder of the marinade mix, then add chicken. Ensure the mix coats the chicken entirely, then remove to the fridge for at least a half hour but up to four hours.
Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Crush the pretzels into small and fine pieces and place into a shallow dish. Dredge each chicken piece in the pretzels for a fairly even coating of pretzel breading. Place the chicken strips on a cooking rake, which is set in a greased cookie sheet. Bake for 10-20 minutes, until the outer coating is crisp and the chicken's internal temperature is 165 degrees (as per the directions of US FDA).
Serve alongside the dipping sauce and enjoy.

  "Be well. Do good work. Keep in touch." - Garrison Keillor

movie night; or how a coffee table turns into a drive-in

movie nights are awfully fun. Movie nights become even more fun when turned inside out, from the idea of going to a theater and spending a decent chunk of money for just a ticket let alone snacks into the idea of a night at home with as many snacks as one might want.

Sometimes, especially when it's a movie I've never seen before, I turn out all the lights and light a couple of candles, make sure the dog is sleeping, and focus entirely on my television. Other times, movies are something that's running in the background while I do something else. In the middle lie movies watched when a friend or two come over and we watch and chat and snack.

Typically, generally lighthearted and easy-to-follow movies fall under that latter category. I especially love classic movies from the era of big studios, beginning with the advent of talkies in the late 1920's through the early 1960's.

Don't get me wrong, fascinating French New Wave films are great, but if a person has to spend all her time paying attention to the movie, it's not a time to catch up and hang out with friends. Just last Christmas, my Book Club girlfriends and I brought in the holiday season with a British romantic comedy triple feature and sleepover. Currently, I'm planning a classic unknown holiday films repeat for this holiday season. {think Christmas in Connecticut, The Man Who Came to Dinner}

That still doesn't say anything about one of those nights where you and a couple others just need a fun-filled pick-me-up movie and snack night. That's alright, because that is exactly what happened last night. One of my oldest friends has yet to watch a widescreen version of the Warner Brothers classic musical Seven Brides for Seven Brothers.

It's glorious Technicolor and sort of hokey, with seven burly and unshaven backwoodsman brothers on the hunt for wives. There's plenty of inappropriate sexism, and plenty of women who push their men right back. I've a soft spot for Howard Keel in just about anything, and all I need to make my night is grown people breaking out into fantastic song and dance. and the song and dance is fantastic, with director Stanley Donen best known for directing and co-choreographing movie musicals starring Gene Kelly.

As for snacks, I went a little nutty. With a general classic movie mood, I picked out all sorts of traditional movie theater candies and made some popcorn on the stove. Since we needed to pretend we were eating supper, I tossed some Pretzel-Crusted Chicken Strips {recipe soon!} in the oven and sliced some cucumber chips.

With just a few fun bowls and serving vessels, my coffee table went from magazine rack to drive-in food stand. It's easy peasy and tons of fun.

"Be well. Do good work. Keep in touch." - Garrison Keillor

the 29 project; or how a birthday is an inspiration for kindness

we could all use to be a bit kinder to each other. There's no suggestion here that we all have the time or wherewithal to be Bill & Melinda Gates or that we occupy the platform George Clooney or Brad Pitt use to their charitable advantage. In far simpler ways, we could all use to be a bit kinder to each other.

Hold a door, help a stranger, take a tiny bit of your day to brighten a friend's day. Not because we are looking for thanks, but just as a moment of kindness. We could take a moment for ourselves. Say "no, I have to do this for me." I'm not talking about weekly expensive facials {though, that certainly isn't the worst idea of me time}, but what I mean is carving out a bit of time to think about strangers and how you impact them. Think about your actions, think of a little way {or a big one} you can be kind to family or friends and to yourself.

I had a lovely birthday party, and a lovely birthday. It's tradition in my family, especially because we never know what will walk into the door from day to day in the store, that on a person's birthday, if nothing else, that family member need not do the dishes or cook unless he or she wishes to do so. On my birthday, I ran off for an espresso & gelato lunch, picked up a movie for us to watch {is there a better birthday than The Great Gatsby & blackberry martinis?}, and bought a couple new pieces of clothing.

That bit of time to myself got me thinking. I turned 29, and while I am valiantly attempting to throw away the societal timeline of what a woman has to do before 30, I do think a bit of self-thought is in order. Hence, The 29 Project. Every day until I turn 30, I will attempt to do a kindness for strangers, something for family or friends, take a moment for myself, and take a single photograph that encompasses something about that day.

It's been a week. I've failed entirely for a single day, and I have not managed to check something off the list everyday. But, this is not about making another to do list. The 29 Project is about reordering one's thinking, taking the time to think about the little things. I'll be posting a short note here each Tuesday, letting you know how I'm faring and to see how you're doing as well.

The 29 Project has also inspired me to increase my correspondence. We don't write letters anymore. We send texts, or post on Facebook walls or tweet each other. Maybe, we write emails. That is not a letter or a card that is physically delivered. It lacks a bit of the thrill received when holding something another person held, reading their handwriting, feeling their love. As a personal part of The 29 Project, each Wednesday I'm writing a note to a friend I do not get to see often. This is not about getting mail back, but about sending a bit of myself out there.

With this in mind, I am encouraging everyone to get involved. I post my daily pictures on Instagram with #The29Project hashtag, and will begin to tweet inspiration {@VMRvictoria} for my little helpfulnesses with the same hashtag on Twitter. I've also begun a Pinterest board with each of the daily photos. There will be 365 images there when I've done, though I hope that I won't need the reminder at the end of this year. Personally, I'm also keeping a notebook with a daily log, just to see what comes from The 29 Project.

Join me, even if you do not talk about it, in a reorganization of thinking. If you'd like to join my correspondence, send me your address {vmrvictoria@yahoo.com}. If you want to join The 29 Project, tweet or Instagram with the hashtag, or simply take a bit of time for others and for yourself. Less than five minutes is enough.

"Be well. Do good work. Keep in touch." - Garrison Keillor