Just Lauren

This past week has been jam packed with fun. I had something going on every single day. This week is a lot less eventful so I’ll have time to rest up before visiting my family for the weekend!

Last Monday I met up with, Nancy, a woman from work whom I have been wanting to be friends with for some time. She’s this cool woman who is vulnerable, speaks her truth, and is overall fun, funny, and clever. Who wouldn’t want to be friends with a person like that? After joining a speaker’s series at work about women, I decided I was going to be brave and ask Nancy if she’d like to hang out together. We’ve been in some of the same meetings throughout the past year but only virtually, and we don’t interact with each other in our day to day tasks. I felt scared. What if she said no? (I knew she probably would say yes because she’s awesome, but it was still very scary). My comic book meetup ladies encouraged me to reach out to her so I did, and Nancy and I scheduled a dinner date for Monday.

I had so much fun. Nancy is just as cool in person as she is over a Zoom call. She brought me a gift, which blew me away. I now have two Mexican tapestries and the two books she’s written and published. I’ve been wanting to read her books for months now so I’m glad I no longer have any excuse. I started her memoir that night. I have a feeling we will hang out again and when she has another book signing in the summer, I will definitely be there.

I finally got to make vegan pavlova last week too! And it turned out PERFECTLY. I could not feel happier about it. I got to hang out with Shari, Carolyn, and Carolyn’s son as we made pavlova, ate tasty fried tofu, and discussed interesting historical figures few know about. Carolyn even brought me a house warming gift – some delicious vegan chocolates and a candy dish that looks like a goblet made out of carnival glass. It’s so intricate and beautiful, I like it a lot. I’ll post a picture of it sometime on here.

So the company and the pavlova made my night. It was Carolyn who saw my “Make vegan pavolva” item on my #30 before 40 list and encouraged me to give it a try. If it wasn’t for her, I likely would still have not made it at this point. Another item off my list and a new recipe in my pocket! I had felt scared to make pavlova ever since I went vegan because it has a special place in my heart and I didn’t want something subpar. But this pavlova is not subpar. It’s not even an “it’s good for being vegan” dish, it’s a “this dish is delicious, period” dish. I will make this again. Be on the lookout for the recipe sometime in a future Food Friday post.

Friday night, Shari hosted me and Elisabeth at her place for dinner and hanging out. We made some bomb fajitas and I got to do another boxing routine on Shari’s oculus. I realized this is the only time I willingly do cardio. It’s making me seriously consider purchasing an oculus of my own in the next few months. We’ll see, the game that has the boxing costs $20 a month so I’ll have to see if that fits within my budget. Either way it’s super fun and energizing whenever I play it.

On Saturday, Shari and I went to Clyfford Still Museum, which means I got to cross off two items from my #30 before 40 list in one week! How lucky am I? And happy. I’m gonna be able to get a lot of my items done this year, except for the travel. It’ll be the travel tasks that will take me the longest, and that’s ok.

Turns out Still’s art style of abstract modernism isn’t Shari’s favorite but she was a trooper and by the end of it was able to appreciate the art even if it wasn’t something she’d hang on her wall. I really liked the exhibit this time around because it was the first time the museum collaborated with the choices and the layout. Who did they use as their co-curators? Children! Literally babies to kids age 8, they had children help choose which art would go on display and how the art would go on display. They also took quotes from those old enough to speak and had those quotes as the intros to the galleries. Many of Still’s pieces were also placed lower down on the wall so they would be eye level for kids instead of adults (the normal way museums hang art). Love it.

Yesterday, Shari and I went to the Botanic Gardens because it was a warmer and sunnier day and I wanted to get out. We wandered around looking for spots of color and tulip leaves sprouting above the soil. Growth was all over, hinting at the color and vibrancy the garden will soon have. We explored the art galleries there too and I liked the new Cross-Pollination installation. People from all over the world drew different moths and the artist, Hilary Lorenz, printed them and cut them out and placed them all around the gallery. Click the link above to learn more about the installation as I just appreciated it for what it actually was, paper moths, and didn’t read into what it represented.

After the gardens, Shari and I headed to Elisabeth’s to meet her newly adopted cat, Finnley! He’s such a cutie and is so friendly. He hopped up next to Shari on the couch and laid right next to her. It was so adorable. I can’t wait to get to know him more. Elisabeth’s apartment is looking great too! Most of her stuff is set up at this point and she basically she just has to hang art. Glad she’s settling in.

One fun whirlwind week is over, what shall we all get up to this week I wonder?