Tuesday, January 5, 2010

Resolutions

Not really one to look back, at least this year. The decade is over. Go to NPR's and BBC's archives for some perspective. Read your favorite alt weekly for some year end lists. If you care about today's cool music and what's cooler than the rest, go to pitchfork or something for the year's and decade's most highly regarded recordings.

Currently, on the fifth evening of the 2010th year, I'm looking at drawing up some New Year's resolutions. While it's far from an exhaustive list, I encourage you to hold me to some of these, or maybe even to join me in a few of these pursuits if any of them particularly resonate.

NOURISHMENT

Make stock twice a month until there is enough in the freezer to use for six months
Cook a large amount of soup once a week
Use sichuan peppers more often
Learn and prepare three new recipes a week
Bake the best pizza in California once a week

TEA

Drink all Chinese, all the time
Acquire a few more tea pots and improve brewing technique
Learn the various Chinese tea regions inside and out, their geography, topography, cultivation techniques, growing cycle, production process....

WINE

Give the Loire a rest - there's got to be a similarly diverse, value proposition elsewhere...Bulgaria? Georgia?
Cellar more Spanish wine (note to self: needs to include wines outside Rioja)
Cellar more Riesling

BEER

Drink more of it; pay the same attention as given to wine (or tea)

MUSIC

Carefully consider the vinyl and the turntable
Produce some form of personally recorded content at least once a week

BOOKS

Read them

THE COMPUTER

Limit exposure to

FRIENDS

More quality time with (FB does not count as quality time) and promotion of

FAMILY

Meet them in the streets of Baltimore and the avenues of Oakland

HOME

Share it more often

WISHES TO MY READERS

Occasionally extend them. Here's to a great 2010 to all of you. Happy New Year.

4 comments:

Florida Jim said...

Joe,
Admirable resolutions. I make none but I do try to strike off in different directions, whether it be at new years or other times. The CA wine project was certainly one of those and its of recent onset.
But as for wine; I think Spain is where I am going to put forth some serious effort - particularly Galicia and Old Castile. Mencia fascinates me and there seem to be a number of people that do different styles that still haven't been influenced to any great degree by wine reviews. Albarino too; such a lovely grape.
And now that I think about it, Cava. It really isn't Champagne's bastard step-child.
So many choices . . .
Best, Jim

David McDuff said...

Happy New Year, my friend. Great list (except for the Loire part, especially the beer part). Hope to see you on the streets of both Baltimore and SF this year. Why not Philly, too? And NYC again, for good measure.

Joe Manekin said...

Jim - the CA project I'm sure was exciting to both kick off and continue to learn from. Let me know if you make any new Spanish discoveries. Very easy to find agreeable wines from Spain, quite a bit more difficult to find memorable wines; good luck in the search.

David - of course I'll still drink lots of Loire wines. How could I not? And definitely, without a doubt, more beer. Will be back east on 2 occasions very soon, emailing you now with details.

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