20 in 2020

I am really excited for 2020, as Christopher and I have so much to look forward to this year.  We'll celebrate our fifth wedding anniversary in February, and in June it will be 20 years since I graduated high school.  Our province is hosting two of the biggest events held in Canada - the Grey Cup, and the Juno Awards, neither of which we'll attend, but it's fun that they are happening in Saskatchewan, and we might partake in some of the festivities that will surround these.  We have a couple of big trips planned, including a relaxing beach vacation, and a longer, bucket-list trip!  Annnnnd we have a new niece or nephew arriving this year!  My sister is due in May, and we're pumped to meet the new addition to our family.

I've created a list of 20 things to do in 2020, and I'm going to post them somewhere in the house so they are visible and more likely to be accomplished.  Some of these are carried over from 2019, and I've tried to make them more measurable and specific than I have in past years.

20 Things-To-Do in 2020

1)  Try floating in a sensory deprivation tank.

2)  Go on a double date with another couple to a new restaurant in town that we want to try, at least four times in the year - weeknight, weekend, whenever it works! 

3)  Host a minimum of three low-key get-togethers with friends/family over the year (games night, order-in and visit, just come over for coffee and dessert, etc.). 

4)  Read a minimum of 25 books this year, and keep track of all of them, along with my ratings, etc., and do a recap post at the end of the year of my top reads.

5)  Go on a weekend road trip to a small town near us that we've never spent any time in before.

6)  Canoe on Wascana Lake.
 
7)  Do something to commemorate my 20-year high school reunion, even if it's as simple as getting together with friends that I graduated with at our old watering hole, or retaking a photo from grad, and doing a side-by-side 20 years later (I always find those types of photos fun to look at.)

8)  Learn a new skill. 

9)  Cook a minimum of 20 recipes from cookbooks that we currently own.

10)  Go to the Globe Theatre at least twice.

11)  Go to at least three concerts, big or small.

12)  Listen to all of the vinyl in the basement from start to finish.  This was initially a winter plan, but I think it needs to be a 2020 goal, as we have a lot of music!

13)  Visit some Little Free Libraries in town, borrowing a few, and leaving as many as will fit.

14)  Print and frame a few of our favourite photos.  This one for sure:

15)  Get two new plants for the living room.  We brought in our hot pepper plants from the front step as the weather turned cool this fall, and loved the look of them in our living room.  They are outdoor plants, so we want to find a couple to take their place, as they made our house feel cozier.

16)  Buy new pillows!  We hate our pillows, and sleep is so important.  We need to stop talking about this and actually go and do it.  I have my eye on a pillow that stays cold.

17)  Go to at least one movie in the theatre a month, or a total of 12 throughout the year. 

18)  Paint something.  A canvas.  A wall.  Anything.  This is just something I want to do at home; I have zero interest in those painting classes where everyone paints something similar, or an art class of any type.  I can't work like that.

19)  Find a really good spot to see the night sky, and do some stargazing.

20)  Go on an Internet "Diet".  I remember 20 years ago, when I was just starting out as a university student, and we still had dial-up Internet.  I'd be trying to research, as the pages loaded so slowly, only to be disconnected as soon as someone upstairs picked up the phone.  At that time the Internet was a source of a lot of frustration for me, but it ended up becoming a place where I could connect, become informed, and be creative.  After twenty years of watching the World Wide Web grow into what it is today, I've never really had a break from it, and I kind of want to see what it feels like to step away temporarily.  So much of what I am seeing online these days is just not resonating with me, and the start of 2020 seems like a good time to pick up the metaphorical phone, and give my brain a refresh.  I have some other writing I'd like to do, a bunch of books I want to read, and I want the mental space to do these things without distraction.

I have given some thought as to what this Internet Diet will look like.

What's Staying?

• I'll still be using the Internet for quickly taking care of business such as banking, booking travel, checking the weather, making reservations, or making necessary purchases.
• I will still check my email.
• I will use the Internet when necessary for my job (only while at work).
• I'll research excursions or information needed for the trips we have planned, but I'll set aside limited time on the weekend for this, and not search outside of this time.
• I am not willing to give up videos of our nieces and nephews, so I will watch Instagram stories only, and have set a limit on my phone for 10 minutes per day max, and will only check these once per day, in the evening.  Same thing with Snapchat.  I have turned off all notifications, except if a family member posts a snap.  I will check those quickly and nothing else.

What's Going?

• Blogging
• Facebook
• Reddit
• All unnecessary internet searches that aren't for a specific, time-sensitive purpose, such as for an upcoming trip, or to check if a business is open, or something like that
• Almost all Social media (I have moved all social media apps away from the home screen of my phone, and have turned off nearly all notifications; I will not be posting anything and will stay off these almost completely, other than to watch videos of our nieces and nephews for the time specified above, and only on the two apps mentioned.)  
• Online news 
• Basically, everything that is not mentioned under "What's Staying"

How Long?

• 10 weeks, starting today.  I'll see you back here on March 14th, and will share my thoughts at that time, and reflect on what life was like for 10 weeks with very limited Internet time.  I feel like 10 weeks is a good amount of time to really feel a difference, and to reflect on what is different.  I want to see how much more time I have, what books I can read in that time, and if I miss any app or website more than others, and what I miss about it.  Basically, I just want some insight. 

When the 10 Weeks are Up

• I'll catch up on what I missed on the blogs I love the most, and have a look at what some friends and family members have been up to online, so expect some late likes and comments come March 😄  I don't want to miss out on what my friends and family are up to, but I do want to disconnect for a while and just chill.
• I'll still be writing and taking photos when I feel inspired over the next 10 weeks, and will likely share some of what we've been up to around here.

See you back here on March 14th! 𝝅

Do you have any goals, resolutions, to-do list items, etc. for 2020?

You (Probably) Don't Suck at Baking

I've heard a lot of people say, "I suck at baking," or "nothing I bake ever turns out."  I'm here to tell you that you don't suck at baking, you're probably just doing something wrong.

For most average baking recipes, skill really isn't necessary (think cookies, cakes, pies), but you do need to follow the instructions exactly.  If you're not an experienced baker, then you should not be experimenting, substituting any ingredients, or altering the original recipe in any way.

Tips to help you not suck at baking:

- Follow the recipe exactly.  I cannot stress this enough.  A lot of these tips will reiterate this point.  Until you've really got the hang of a recipe, don't mess with it. 

- If the recipe calls for unsalted butter, use unsalted butter.  If the recipe just calls for "butter," use salted butter.  It does make a difference.  If you only have unsalted, use 1/4 tsp of salt per 1/2 cup of butter (1 stick).  Also never cut or reduce the salt from a recipe.  Or the sugar for that matter (unless it's icing, which often has way too much sugar).

- If the recipe calls for butter, use butter.  Don't use margarine, or oil, or apple sauce, or any other weird thing you think is okay to substitute with.  Substitutions aren't for people who "suck at baking".  If it calls for margarine, use that.  You get the idea.

- Buy sticks of butter, or use the lines on the package for accurate measurements.

- Don't estimate with ingredients.  Use measuring spoons/ cups, and level them off with the flat side of a butter knife.  Use liquid measuring cups for liquids (the glass ones are for liquids, and then you can look at the line and see if the liquid is in the right spot).  Use dry measuring cups for dry ingredients (like the metal ones pictured).  I have multiple sets of dry measuring cups and spoons, which makes baking easier and more pleasurable, as I don't have to constantly wash as I go.  I have a variety of metal and plastic sets.

- If a recipe calls for salt, use table salt.  If it calls for kosher salt, use that.  Again, the exactness matters.  Bulk Barn, or somewhere similar, is a great place to get little bits of things if you don't use them regularly.

- The pan you bake in matters.  Recently my sister told me that she "sucks at baking" because her cakes always turn out dry.  What she didn't realize, is that a glass 9x13 pan with rounded edges/sides is not good for baking cakes.  You should be using a good metal pan, and the sides should be straight.  Metal cookie sheets, 9x13 pans, square pans, and loaf pans are all baking necessities.  I like to bake pie in a heavy, ceramic pie plate. 

- If a recipe says don't over-mix, it's very important that you stir gently (with a wooden spoon or spatula) just until the ingredients are incorporated.  Over-mixing results in tough baked goods.

- Lean towards under-baking everything.  If a cookie recipe says to bake them for 8-10 minutes, I always, always take them out at 8 minutes.  Even if they don't look completely done to you, they probably are, and will firm up once out at room temperature for a few minutes.  If a cake recipe says, for example, to bake it for 35-40 minutes, I do the toothpick check at about 32 minutes.  I don't want the toothpick to be completely clean, but rather have a crumb or two stick to it.  This ensures you have a moist cake.

 

 

- Use room temperature ingredients, especially butter and margarine (for most things - but not for pies or anything requiring a flaky crust).  Most recipes have you cream the butter or margarine with sugar to start, and you want the fat to be nice and soft for this so that it blends together easily.  For pies, etc., you want very cold butter (the recipe should specify this).

- Unless the recipe specifically says which rack to bake on, use the rack in your oven that is second up from the bottom; I've found that this one works the best (I DON'T have a convection oven; I just have a regular oven).

- Don't open the oven while the food is baking, rather use the oven light to peek on it.  Keeping an eye on your baking is a good thing, because you can pull it out when it's just barely done, which is when it's best.

- Folding ingredients in should be done with a spatula, and you don't want to stir, but rather fold the ingredients over each other (YouTube should have a video).

- Cutting in means to use a pastry blender (they're cheap - buy one) to cut the fat into little pieces inside the flour (YouTube should have a video).

- Take your time, and make sure you have all the ingredients before you start.  It sounds obvious, but it's worth mentioning.

- All purpose flour is not the same as pastry flour, or self-rising, or whole wheat, etc.  These are all different, and are not interchangeable.  If a recipe simply says "flour", use all-purpose.  Don't try to be all healthy, by substituting whole wheat flour for all-purpose, unless the recipe states that you can do so.  It's baking - it's not supposed to be healthy, but it is supposed to taste good.

- Instead of spraying cookie sheets, I line them with parchment paper.  I spray cake pans though (or butter them, depending what the recipe says).  If I'm making squares that are firm, like puffed wheat or Nanimo bars, I'll press them into a parchment-lined pan, then just lift the parchment out later to cut them (once firmed up).  I'll occasionally do this with loaves too.

 

- If using yeast, make sure you have the liquid you're dissolving it into at the right temperature.  Your warm water/milk should be between 105-115 F.  I use a digital meat thermometer.  It doesn't matter which meat setting you have it on, just watch the temperature.  Have your yeast (and sugar if the recipe calls for it) already measured out in a small dish.  Run your tap water warm and hold the thermometer under it.  Once it's around this temperature, measure out what you need and put it into a bowl.  Check the temperature again, and if it's in the range, quickly add your yeast/sugar.

- Need a warm place for your dough to rise?  Place it on the stove top (if the stove isn't on), and turn the light above your stove on.  Or, if your oven isn't on, put it in the oven with the oven light on.  Or just set it on the counter, and if your house isn't really cold, it will be fine.  Speaking of house temperatures, they can affect baking, as can humidity.  If you don't air condition when it's really hot out, or you keep your house really warm, it could affect your baking.  You might want to chill your cookie dough if this is the case, and handle any dough as little as possible to prevent it from getting too warm/ soft. 

- Lastly, have fun with it!  If nothing you bake ever turns out for you, you probably don't enjoy baking.  Take your time, be accurate, and keep an eye on what you're baking.  Hopefully, after you have a bit of baking success, you'll start to enjoy it a bit more.

If you're an experienced baker, you'll know what you can get away with, and what you can't.  I don't always use liquid measuring cups for liquids, etc., but I have done enough baking to know where it will matter and where it won't.  I change recipes, and create my own, but I didn't always do this.  It takes a lot of practice to figure out the science of it all, and to get comfortable experimenting.  Baking is not like cooking; it's not as forgiving or as flexible. 

Are you a good baker?  Do you enjoy baking?