The First Seven

I can't believe that it's already been a week since I committed to doing 100 Happy Days. I have had a busy past week and plenty of opportunities to observe happy moments in every day. So here are the first 7 of my happy days!

Day 1: Homemade Thai Red Curry

Monday: I homemade some delicious Red Thai Curry. It had red, yellow and orange peppers, mushrooms, onions and bamboo shoots. I pretty much ate it for lunch and dinner three days in a row! Being a vegetarian has empowered and challenged me to cook more food and try new recipes.

Day 2: Ellen Davis Ecclesiastes

Tuesday: We have been using various chapters of this Ellen Davis book through our YAV year. Our focus this past week was the chapter on the book of Ecclesiastes. I wasn't at all familiar with the book before reading Ellen Davis' interpretation but felt an immediate connection with it's message. At first glance the book can seem very cynical (the author, Solomon, preaches that everything we do and everything we work towards is essentially meaningless) which I find very easy to relate to especially in my current stage of life. What is my purpose on this earth? Will what I do have an impact? These are questions consistently on my mind as I search for a place in the world. I think a very easy, and in my opinion a cop out answer, is that we might not know why were are here but if we are here we might as well make the most of it. Make the most of it how? Solomon in Ecclesiastes takes a slightly different and more satisfying approach to the question. He talks about how history and nature all move in cycles, so that ultimately all events are predetermined and unchangeable - the wise man and that man who does not study wisdom will both die and be forgotten. Death levels all. All people face death but yet life is better than death so we should enjoy life when we can. The only good is to partake in life in the present moment, for enjoyment is from the hand of God. This line of reasoning and recognition of death as a unifying agent among all living things thus we should enjoy God's creation while we can really resonated with me. I found a lot of peace contemplating the book of Ecclesiastes and how I can fit it's message into my own world view.

Day 3: Going to the Fly

Wednesday: The Fly is one of my favorite spots in all of New Orleans. It is located in Audubon Park and is essentially a big open lawn that looks over the Mississippi River. When the weather is nice, people set up their grills and blankets and enjoy the beautiful view as boats pass by on the river. Me and a few coworkers met up after work, grilled some burgers and enjoyed the sunset and good company.

Day 4: Trixie

Thursday: My roommate Alex had her family in town for the weekend and they brought along their brand new kitten! This adorable munchkin (named Trixie) got to stay at the YAV house for a few days. She is quite possibly the cutest kitten I have ever got to play with. So friendly and playful and she liked licking my fingers and playing with dust bunnies under the bed. Definitely a happy day getting to hang out with such a cutie.

Day 5: Mona's Cafe

Friday: I went out to a late lunch with my site coordinator, Layne, to Mona's Cafe. I got a delicious Falafel sandwich (resisted getting a gyro!) and enjoyed eating it outside. It is always nice to spend time with Layne because as much as she is my boss she is also someone I consider a friend. She has been such a support during my YAV year and I don't know what I would do without her. Getting some quality time together with good food definitely makes me happy.

Day 6: A Cajun Affair

Saturday: I wish I had a better picture to represent the YAV silent auction and dinner but to be completely honest, I was so busy running around and helping to coordinate the event I didn't take any pictures! The event went better then I could have ever anticipated. The food turned out wonderful (BBQ meatballs, loaded potato skins, cheese cubes, crawfish pies, cajun catfish, red beans and rice, salad, and bread pudding with homemade rum sauce to top it off!) while Anna Leigh and Sydney manned the bar (assortment of red and white wine, Abita Gold beer, Bourbon and Ginger and Margaritas). We had some awesome auction items that represented both New Orleans and our YAV talents (Anna Leigh auctioned off golf lessons, Colleen auctioned off a tie dying partying, Kalyn some of her paintings, Alex some of her creations from her ceramics class, etc.) We ended up raising $3,000 for the YAV program after all of our costs. The highlight of the night was by far the square dancing lessons which people got into!

Day 7: Bike Ride

Sunday: Since my knee is the worst knee in history (ok maybe a little bit of an exaggeration but sometimes it can be very annoying!) I have taken it easy on the running and starting biking! I downloaded this awesome app called MapMyRide that allows you to track your route, distance, duration, speed, and calories. My favorite route is taking the path around Audubon Park (as you can see from the picture). I really enjoy biking because you can go further distances than if you were to just run and Audubon Park ain't too shabby to look at :)

Lesson from the Journey: Apparently New Orleanians love their Murder Mystery dinners. Anna Leigh and Jess auctioned off a Murder Mystery dinner complete with three dinner options which ended up being bid up to $240! Making it the item of the night. And to make the situation better? The number 2 bidder said they would pay their top bid if Anna Leigh and Jess would do it for them as well. Pretty neat if you ask me :)