7 New Things I Tried So Far In 2016
I tried some new things this year. Here is how they’ve gone so far.
1. Yoga class
There are a ton of reasons yoga doesn’t appeal to me. I’m skeptical of its spiritualism, particularly when it comes culturally appropriated through white instructors to classrooms of mostly white practitioners. On an athletic level, I’m more interested in competitive sports, like hockey and soccer, and when I’m training in classes, I prefer martial arts. Finally, right or wrong, yoga’s sexist pop-culture portrayal as gym-lite for white women turns me off.
But the classes at my gym are free. And I need something to do on still-resting-but-exercising-also days between interval training and games. So I gave it a shot.
Verdict:
I’m pretty terrible at balance and flexibility, and yoga does help with those. It’s also helping me develop strength and stability in ways that weight training doesn’t target. And I like “take care of your body” attitude that doesn’t single out people for being new or lacking physical abilities — nobody snaps at me when the neuropathy in my arm says “nuh uh” in the middle of downward dog.
But I’m also still weirded out by the emphasis on monolithically portrayed “ancient Indian” spirituality by not-Indian people for the benefit of not-Indian people without addressing the problematic history of white people unilaterally taking Indian things for our own benefit.
2. Quinoa
I’ve been looking for something to juggle in with the various starches I serve with dinner: rice, brown rice, bulgur/kasha, sweet potatoes, noodles. Preferably, something that offers more than just carbs nutrition-wise; it’s easy for me to fill up on those and ignore what my body is telling me about “variety” and “fibre.” But I need something versatile to fit in with a lot of different flavour profiles and also appeal to Boyfriend, who is not a very adventurous eater.
Everyone’s been talking about quinoa forever, so I figured, why not?
Verdict:
Anything that can be cooked in the rice cooker automatically gets a +1 for me, and anything that tastes grain-like and is also kosher for Passover AND nutritious gets, like +1,000,000. But I’m not sure I particularly like this food as opposed to, say, rice. Still, it’s a handy option to have around. (I am probably also inappropriately biased to the negative by the fact that I tend to serve it with dishes I don’t really like, such as salmon.)
3. One Piece (manga)
I didn’t realize until this year that the Toronto Public Library carried manga or that users can reserve specific volumes. That makes it way easier to read tempting series. At the time I’m writing this, I’m about 25% of the way through the 80+ volume run of One Piece, the story of Luffy, a kid who vows to become King of the Pirates in a zany fantasy world. Lots of my friends (including Boyfriend) like the anime, so I decided to give it a try.
Verdict:
I really like One Piece. Some characters don’t do it for me, and some story lines are meh, but overall, it’s a lot of fun. It’s happy and silly but in the way that takes itself just seriously enough to keep the plots engaging. Like, silly things happen, but they’re always sufficiently logical to resolve the conflict in a satisfying way. Also, I like the indomitable optimism of the protagonist, Luffy: his irrepressible joy makes the manga likewise a joy to read.
4. White jeans
When I was a little kid, I used to love wearing all white. It made me feel angelic, which was kind of an obsession. But I don’t usually wear white these days — or at least, I didn’t until I read a men’s fashion article about different ways to wear white jeans that all looked super-cool.
Can Sarah pull off white jeans? Will she be able to wear them a whole day without spilling something on them? Will the poor jeans make it through even an hour? Tune in next week, same jean-time, same jean-channel!
Verdict:
Day 1 of not staining, scuffing, or otherwise ruining white jeans was a success. I like jeans, and I like the conventional feminine and androgynous-leaning-to-dapper outfits I can make with white denim.
But that didn’t tell me the real deal. Could white jeans survive a humid day outside? On the TTC? During rush hour? To work for the whole day? WITH A BURRITO FOR LUNCH???
They could! I did! I can be a grown up too! Whee!
5. Muscat grapes
Grocery store had a special on “pink” grapes. Boyfriend likes grapes. I like grapes. Bought some.
Verdict:
OMG these are amazing! They taste like roses — no, like lychee — like something sweet and floral with a hint of grape. Too bad that when they’re not on sale, they’re pretty pricey. Also, Boyfriend doesn’t seem to care for them… or maybe I just eat them so quickly he doesn’t get a chance.
6. Spotify
I downloaded the Android app for Spotify, the music-streaming service, a while ago, but I seldom used it. Lately, though, I’ve been playing around with its features. Apparently, there’s a reason it’s so popular.
Verdict:
Once I learned how to make playlists entirely of songs I like or want to like, I was sold. It doesn’t fit too well with the way I listen to music — as a total musical Philistine, I like to listen to parts of the same song over and over (and over) again, and I like to skip ahead to my favourite sections.
But as a way to get familiar with an artist or album without dropping a ton of cash, it’s pretty nifty. Which is important for a tot. mus. Phil. like me (see above), because the way I learn to like songs is through familiarity. So Spotify helps me expand my musical horizons and get a taste of a track without committing to it outright through purchase.
7. True Detective (TV show, season 1)
Everybody seemed to be raving about the first season of this TV series when it came out. It was on my Amazon wishlist for a while until I realized, duh, it was available at the Toronto Public Library. So I placed a hold, and it came in right away.
On the surface, it seems like a regular serial-killer show: two Southern detectives track down a killer in the 90s. We see both how they tackle the original case and hear them tell the story in present-day to detectives from a new investigation. There’s philosophical debate underpinning the whole story, and the audience slowly figures out exactly why the new investigation is interviewing these guys.
Verdict:
Originally, Boyfriend and I intended to binge-watch the season (eight episodes of one hour each) but quickly realized that it’s too intense without some breaks in between. The show interrogates the way the serial killer genre is essentially about the “right” and wrong ways for men to control the bodies of women and children, and that can be difficult to take in large doses.
As the two leads, Woody Harrelson and Matthew McConaughey turn in amazing performances. The cinematography is evocative too — I can taste the cigarette smoke. I can’t say that it hooked us, exactly, since it’s easy to put down, but we did find the plot engaging and the ending satisfying.