happy. oh, ate.

i spent most of new year's eve and day driving back to NYC from delray beach, florida, where my mom lives. it was, all things considered, a pretty relaxing ride. i chose (wisely, i think) to stop overnight in north carolina to avoid crazy drunks on I-95 and get some sleep so i wasn't totally exhausted when i got home. well, it seemed like i met my first goal, but within a couple hours of being home, i was fast asleep. i don't think it was all physical tiredness, though. i was pretty out of sorts when i got back - my neighborhood just didn't look the same and i was feeling kind of melancholy. i don't know if it was the quick transition from sunny, warm florida to overcast, chilly new york or if it was a side effect of having essentially two days of total alone time, mostly spent taking stock of years past. that always makes me a little blue. i end up thinking about friends that are gone, things i wish i could re- or undo, and retracing the path that winds up at my doorstep.

the nap was what i needed, though, because i woke feeling pretty refreshed and also significantly more optimistic and motivated than i'd been when i lay down. there are so many things i want to do and work on this year and i've given a lot of thought to perspective and how it really colors what we think and do and feel and how that perspective can be altered at our whim. it was a few hours well spent sleeping.

i'd wanted to make a sort of traditional new year's day meal of collard greens and black-eyed peas, not quite giving over to superstition but signifying my commitment to bringing some prosperity to my life. when i woke shortly after 9PM, though, i had to make do with what the 24-hour deli had in store. so i strayed slightly from tradition and cooked up some cannelini beans and dandelion greens. beans and greens are always a bonus, so i wasn't bothered by having to make exceptions.
and in honor of 2008 being the year of the potato, i whipped (literally) up some yukon golds. i've been intrigued by a potato puree i recently saw on a blog that featured some unfortunate short ribs, or i would link it. i just whipped these with EB and soy creamer, but if i ever invest in a ricer i might make a truer attempt at making a fluffy potato cloud.

anyway, this is what i ate on the first day of 2008. it hit the spot, i tell ya, and i'm going to bed sated and (relatively) happy.
here's hoping everyone else is, too!