Thankful Thursdays {11.17.2016}

This is my last day of being 42. I need to let that sink in.

40 was easier than I thought. I surrounded myself with my best friends, one flying in from North Carolina, another from San Francisco, and the rest were thankfully either a short walk, train ride, or car ride away. Tomorrow is very different. It will be just me, as it has been these last six birthdays, once the lights are dark, and my head hits the pillow.

He’s been on my mind a lot lately. Really that’s not new. He’s always on my mind. I’ve been wondering what his thoughts would be about all that’s happened the last week. I’ve been thinking about how he’d like living up here. I know the answer to that deep down. He’d go on long bike rides, enjoy the quiet solitude of walking along the reservoir as much as I do. But I’m rambling, I can feel it in my own words.

It’s so easy to focus on what you don’t have, or what you want vs. what you need, rather than appreciate everything in your life. That’s where I’m trying to tighten my focus, even in planning our trip to Europe. We leave in 28 days, and I feel so ill-prepared in many ways. But really, all I need to do is book our train tickets, as that’s how I’m choosing to travel between London, France, and Italy. The rest can all fall into place naturally. I’m sticking with carry ons, and while I initially intended to ship any thing we buy back home, I’d really like to focus on just enjoying moments and memories while we’re there, and not consuming more things.

I know I’m babbling a bit here. It’s my mind decompressing from the last week and a half. I’m waiting for things to settle down a bit here at In Jennie’s Kitchen. It’s been amazing to feel embraced here by such a strong group of women. I only say women, because there’ve been no comments from men, but if you’re here, feel free to chime in. I’ve always thought about politics of the plate, in how we choose what to eat, where to buy it, etc.

All the other parts of politics? I never thought they’d seep into these pages, but it’s so necessary that we all stay passionate about this. If you choose not to read anymore, then so be it. I don’t understand the folks who need to write nasty emails about unsubscribing. Isn’t life to short for stuff like that? I guess everyone just wants to be heard, and I’m learning to just delete without reading.

Okay, now I really am officially rambling on. One more thing before I go, though. I came across a new-to-me app called Buycott. We have the chance to vote with every purchase we make, and this app makes it a little easier to be an informed buyer. The money we spend directly, and sometimes indirectly, affects the greater world, and our political system.

With Buycott you can set campaign preferences (end animal testing, support fairtrade products, etc.), and then scan the barcode of your product to learn more about its parent company. And yes, there so happens to be a campaign to boycott Trump related businesses and products. Whether you choose it to filter your purchases based on political views, environmental views, or human rights issues, it’s one way to see the connection between what you buy, and the impact it has on the big picture.