Vegan Sushi 101

Fish and I are not friends. It's a very sad state of affairs, but I trudge along. Sushi is probably my number two envy food, hearing the stories of folks laughing and enjoying their deliciously light sushi for lunch or how excited they are to try a new place. It makes me cry a little inside.

Thankfully for me, I have amazing friends who brought amazing vegan sushi to my house. And then offered to teach me how to make it!

We used nori, aka sushi seaweed wraps, brown rice, and a smattering of vegetables and sauces like yellow peppers, avocado, fennel, carrots, kale, tahini and Ume plum vinegar. Then we really got the creative juices flowing and decided to make "Mediterranean" sushi using olives.  

Making the rolls were a snap. Using simple bamboo mats you roll the ingredients into the nori, let it sit for a few minutes and the slice. Voila! 

Even though it's "sushi" and "vegan" it doesn't mean it's hard or scary. It was super easy and fun to make using many ingredients you probably already have. I've already purveyed my bamboo mats (they were under $10) and am concocting ideas on how to make an Ume vinegar substitute using local plums. 

Now it's your turn to get out there and taste something new. 

Project management in every day life

Have you ever thought, "My city would be great if [fill in the blank]"? Or how about "I'd love to learn how to do [y]." What stops you? Sure it might be fear or nervousness, but, be honest, a lot of the time, it's how daunting a new project can seem. 

By day, I work as a Product Owner for a technology company, but by night I organize a handful of meet-ups and projects aimed at making my city a more interesting place. The good news is that many of the principles I use at my day job help keep me sane when I'm working and starting new community projects. 

Here are three quick tips to help you get started on your shiny new in 2014! 

Value doesn't not have to mean huge investment

This summer, I visited a friend who lives right outside of Washington D.C. We were chatting over dinner and started discussing how I'm part of a Makers meet-up in Manchester. It's a small once-a-month meet-up at a friendly local coffee shop, but in her eyes there was value in having such a group as none exist around her.  

Make it measurable 

We all want to succeed, so set yourself up for celebration by making sure you know the criteria that you want to accomplish. Generally, this can be accomplished by adding a number. I want to write 5 blog posts this month. 

Scope creep is not your friend

Ah scope creep. It's easy to get excited about a project. And it's just as easy to discuss a project down all the rabbit holes until you're not sure if you're in Wonderland or a Beatrix Potter story. 

Scope creep is what happens when you start adding on to your initial project. The real and present danger is that your great idea, your valuable project, may not get done because you added in so much extra stuff it will never be measured a success. Sniff. Don't let good projects die a sad lonely death because it can never meet your high expectations. That's just not nice and you're a better person than that.

That's it! Now go off and try something new in 2014! Feel free to come back and share what you're working on.