learn or try something new every week

... I’ve learned about:

- Fair Trade (which anyone that complains about illegal immigrants should really take the time to learn about because it certain puts things in perspective)

- the ecological benefits of shade grown coffee and tea

- Forest Service Certification and why the heck people should understand what it is and be mad that it’s not more important in the United States

1) I am currently trying out a herbal tea called “Midnight on Glacier Bay” that I’ve never had before.

2) I learned today that for every pound of zooplankton in the ocean (the food staple a goodly portion of marine wildlife) there are SIX pounds of plastic particles. Which get eaten since it’s like… everywhere.
That’s sick. Totally sick what we’re doing to the planet.

... I am so, so horribly behind on this! I know I’ve learned something new every week but I haven’t been writing it down here. (My bad for not using 43Things regularly, I always feel really cheerful after I have.)

Anyhow, back to task – last night I learned about humans driving the baiji river dolphin functionally extinct. Extinct! How horrible is that? The human race is screwed up, honestly. We’ve got animals and plants dying all around us and yet we’re wrapped up in drivel like what Paris Hilton did or about Harry Potter. Something is wrong with this picture where drivel is important and the demise and endangerment of species is quietly ignored.

Shame. On. Us.

1) Singles Awareness Day: I did a lot of reading up on the topics of depression, loneliness, and different types of love over Valentine’s Day as a sort of analytical study in honor of the holiday, and because of that I ended up learning about limerance and what it is. I was unaware of there being an actual word for that phenomenon.

2) Entertainment News: I learned who the “God Warrior” of Trading Spouses fame is; I was until last night unaware of this, ah, religious freakout of major proportions that seems to be general knowledge across a goodly amount of the Internet.
I also learned about the Britney Spears head shaving and tattoo freakout. Amazing the news you miss when you don’t watch television anymore. I guess in tandem with those things we can say I also learned I’m behind the times.

3) I learned I’m really quite happy not being up with current news sometimes. With current affairs and world issues it’s one thing, but all the celebrity gossip and junk that there is nowadays, it’s quite silly. There are more important things to do in life like actually live it than get caught up in the drama of the rich and famous.

I live in the “Land of Coffee”. Starbucks, Tully’s, and of course Seattle’s Best Coffee started here in my home state, and off the top of my head, I can think of thirty coffee shops, shacks, or cafes within fifteen minutes of my house. That said, I usually don’t drink much as far as a variety of coffee goes. I’ve always been more of a social coffee drinker than a “true” and regular coffee drinker, but that’s been slowly changing over the past few months.

Yesterday I ventured into the Starbucks Coffee Shop down the hill from my house. I’ve lived here for six years now and I’ve never once ventured inside of there. Feeling rather bold and adventurous for doing that new thing I decided to try a new coffee confection – up until this point my standard drink of choice (of the grand totally of three times I’ve ever ordered anything from a Starbucks) had always been a latte. So I went for the first new thing that caught my attention on the menu – a White Chocolate Mocha.

The nice barista gave me my drink and I was on my way out the door, sniffing the contents through the little sippy hole in the top. The result after my first sip? Pure heaven in a cup.

However in realizing that it could become an addiction that would hamper my progress for my stop wasting money on little things I don’t need and set my sights on the more expensive things that will mean more in the long run goal, I came home and figured out how to whip up a similar coffee drink for myself at a lower cost and at a more convenient location. :)

and I haven’t learned something new every single day, but I’ve learned quite a lot more than usual trying to be mindful of this.

I’ve tried new things – I finally tried gelato, which I wouldn’t have done if I hadn’t taken the time to learn about it several weeks ago. I’ve learned quite a lot about myself in the process of trying to achieve this goal.

I think I’m going to be changing this from ” learn something new every day” to “learn or try something new every week for a year” because that’s a lot more achievable at this point in my life. If I accomplish more than one thing a week? Awesome, but if not, I’m still accomplishing more than I was before I had a goal like this.

Well, I fell off the boat on this one the past couple of days, but I’ll be getting back with the program starting tomorrow! Real life can be kind of bothersome when it gets in the way of goals.

Today, I learned the meaning of verismo.

In honor of Talk Like A Pirate Day, I researched Blackbeard, Bartholomew Roberts, Henry Morgan, Anne Bonny, and Mary Read.

Today I learned what Gelato is. I think I’m going to have to try some now!