Mid-week reminder: Grace in the turnaround

s I continue to explore my word for this year--grace--I was delighted to discover this image, tucked away, forgotten, on my iPad. It was the perfect reminder I needed for today... this week... this year.

Ten Word Tuesday + a picture

Prettiest scarf ever = bad day antidote and, "Hello, Spring, welcome!"

Luck 'o the Irish!

May the blessings of each day
Be the blessings you need most.

-Irish Proverb

Remember this shamrock, from just last night?

Well, I'm sure you didn't have a hard time imagining what was underneath that green four-leaf clover...

Which made for a lovely mid-afternoon snack, but was rich enough that now we're all craving something NOT sweet!

 

Inspired, of course, by this cake at iambaker, there is no real recipe to share, other than: be prepared to part with a good portion of a bottle of green food coloring. And my other tip: be delicate in the adding of this food coloring. You can always go darker, but it's pretty impossible (without another cake mix) to lighten up.

Side note: I learned just yesterday that there are moms who make little Leprechan footprints around the house on St. Patrick's Day, and that little green treats are left by these Leprechauns... I had no idea I had fallen down so resoundingly in this world of "mythical characters are real." I had never even heard of doing that. It's well documented that I've never been big on Santa as a real guy, and I thought everyone knew the Easter Bunny is made up (I've since learned otherwise). I think the one little lie I went along with was the Tooth Fairy, for a while, but even that got me the sideways wary eye from Seth...  

Anyway, this cake is my nod to the Leprechaun dude and his compatriots! Anything for a little green, I say! (Although I've been told that I should be making an orange cake, what with being Protestant and all. But MY green cake is not affiliated with any religious or political ideologies, so there.)

I complained that I had no shoes 

Until I met a man who had no feet. 

-Irish saying

Happy St. Patrick's Day to you!

Friday night grateful moment

o very much to be grateful for, as this weekend kicks off.

I am in love with our apricot tree, in full bloom! The scent is positively heady. And so far (knock on wood) no major frosts to crumple my fruit desires... I am grateful for everything that nature brings right to our door.

It was a week with a lot of rain--that made everything pop and bloom and green up nicely! I love having blooms in the yard, finally, as well as the house.

But I'll take blooms anywhere and everywhere right now. I have primroses inside...

And tulips too. Beautiful peach tulips.

I have a soft spot for holidays that give reason to hauling out the food coloring! (Tomorrow when we cut into the sweet treat, I will share what's inside.) (And no, it's not a leprechaun.) I'm grateful for frosting and flavoring, and silly ideas that somehow come to life in the course of an hour or two.

OK, I may have gotten carried away taking pictures of the shamrock cake... I will admit that much.

I have the dearest nieces and love to hear about their fun accomplishments. Maizy just finished her first sewing project, and that brings back a lot of memories for me!  In related crafty news, I spent some time painting pottery this afternoon for a local fundraiser, and thought of my nieces a lot, and how I'd love to take them there one day. For crafty stuff, it's great to have girls around!! I am grateful for Maizy and Lucy.

I finally succumbed to the pull of the Instagram, can you tell? I had quite a bit of fun playing with the different filters and settings this afternoon. I can see why people get so "into" it... my favorite filters seem to be ones that have borders, with a kind of vintage-y look. Grateful as always for technology and all it's able to assist with in our lives. I'm thankful that Seth is home safely from his tennis match, and that he and his doubles partner won solidly. They had a good time, too. (What's not to love about hours on your butt in those school buses? Ow.)

Husband is a frequenter of this grateful list, and for good reason. He's truly a gem. I could spend the whole list just on him, but he would not find that very good form, being modest and what have you. So take it from me, I am grateful and blessed.

Oh the weekend, the weekend, the joyous, restful weekend. I am grateful to be here, right here in this very spot, at the start of two lovely days with my men, and anticipating what it will bring.

What does your weekend hold? I hope only good things!

Peace.

Thursday 13: 13 things I'm looking forward to

hat's better on a windy, rainy day, than to look ahead to days that will involve sunshine and family and garden-fresh produce?

Hence, my Thursday 13 this week: what I'm looking forward to. Some are practically immediate, others are a bit far off... but still, just stating them out loud makes me joyful.

1. Lunch with a girlfriend today. Pho!

2. Seth's first tennis match on Friday. I won't be there--an hour drive both ways? Um, no, especially since he'll be on the bus with his buddies--but he'll do great and I can't wait to hear about it. (He had a super-close challenge match yesterday. Came down to breaking a 6-6 game tie with an 8-10 victory in his favor. I got there for the very end, and it was great to see him prevail.)

3. The weekend. Of course. And our weekend breakfast traditions, which are legendary. (Well, to us they are, anyway!)

4. Apricots on the apricot tree this summer. I know, that sounds a long way off, but the tree is blooming just beautifully right now, and I'm crossing my fingers we don't get a hard frost, since that has killed off the crop the last two years. I'm ready for a 400-pounds-of-apricots year, I am.

5. Spring break. I am feeling very "cabin feverish" about not having left town since December. Itching to go somewhere! And I will sneak in a long lunch with Jen in PDX too, which makes me smile just thinking about it. Will it involve fondue, she asks, hopefully?

6. Some work issues to be ironed out next week. Good things are happening, but next week should be pivotal, and I'm eager to get there, and beyond!

7. The garden. We have our little seed packets ready to go and are going to start seeds inside this weekend. Nothing makes me more anticipatory for spring and summer than plotting and planning the vegetables, herbs and flowers!

8. Family visit in April. So looking forward to having everyone here together. Makes my heart so happy just thinking about it, planning, getting goofy about Easter stuff for the nieces...

9. Summer plans that involve girlfriends, food, good times, Outstanding in the Field, laughter, music, sharing, more laughter and probably more food. (OK, I will probably sneak in a little crochet time, but they can handle it. And if there's a crochet intervention need, I am sure I can handle that too!)

10. Summer eating. Follows naturally from summer garden planning, but can't help but mention that I'm hankering for fresh basil, garden-grown tomatoes, peas, beets, carrots, kale, arugula... and the list goes on... yum.

11. Extra time with Seth. It's magically delicious that we have all of next week with the lad too, and I savor Every Moment. (And then spring break too, wa-hoo. I may have mentioned that already?)

12. Weather that is consistently more than 50 degrees, at night. Is that too much to hope for, long for? You'd think we'd had a hard winter, but that's not really the case. It's the dragging out of this in-between spot that's killing me. Snow, sleet, rain, hail. Please.

13. A visit to Grandma this spring. Not quite sure which weekend Seth and I will sojourn north, but we'll carve it out in May, I'm thinking. Ready for my Tim Horton's fix! Well, and seeing Grandma too, of course!

That's it for today... but I'm sure as the spring progresses I will find more and more to look forward to.  Thinking about these items has definitely brightened my morning; I hope you have some fun things to look forward to this spring and summer, as well! Care to share?

For more Thursday 13s, go here. And have a great Thursday!

Midweek reminder: Beyond the heart of things

nce upon a time (and for a limited time--three years) I spent my days cooking, many hours on end. It was a mixed bag, like with any chosen path. While there are aspects of catering/personal cheffing that I truly miss: having multiple pots on the stove, various dishes in states of prep, oven always on and baking, having a walk-in fridge with some of my favorite ingredients just feet away at all times, bringing smiles to people's faces when I'd arrive with food... There are things I do not miss, as well: events eating up my weekends and weeknights, tense brides and their even-more-tense mothers, being asked to make some not-my-style menu items, earning on the low side, money-wise, and of course, sore feet and cut-up hands...

I saw this poem and it really took me back, in a very good way, to those days; especially the sore feet and cut-up hands! I wish I'd taken a picture of some of the worst weeks, with bandages on at least three fingers... Good times.

Cook
Each night you come home with five continents on your hands:
garlic, olive oil, saffron, anise, coriander, tea,
your fingernails blackened with marjoram and thyme.
Sometimes the zucchini's flesh seems like a fish-steak,
cut into neat filets, or the salt-rubbed eggplant
yields not bitter water, but dark mystery.
You cut everything to bits.
No core, no kernel, no seed is sacred: you cut
onions for hours and do not cry,
cut them to thin transparencies, the red ones
spreading before you like fallen flowers;
you cut scallions from white to green, you cut
radishes, apples, broccoli, you cut oranges, watercress,
romaine, you cut your fingers, you cut and cut
beyond the heart of things, where
nothing remains, and you cut that too, scoring coup
on the butcherblock, leaving your mark, when you go
your feet are as pounded as brioche dough.
Jane Hirshfield

Ten Word Tuesday

Tuesday: Just like Monday, except much better. Bite that, DST.

Sourdough bread: an all-day affair

iddling with my sourdough starter since getting it to a ripe-ish state has been largely experimental, so far. I made a couple of loaves, but no recipe to date has really stood out as a keeper. I think a large part of the blame lies with me, as I have been improperly adapting recipes to whole wheat (or so I learned when reading a few recipes this weekend)... something you have to be a bit careful with or you'll get some pretty dense (er, heavy) loaves of bread.

Enter Pinterest, once again. And having good pinners to follow (in this case, dear friend and neighbor Laura)! I saw her pin a "slow rise sourdough" this past week and promptly tucked it away on my baking board without really looking it over. As I pulled my starter out of the fridge yesterday to warm and rest before feeding it again this week--that happens every Sunday whether I bake or not, I've been pretty good about that--I started to peruse some new sourdough recipes, and landed on the one I'd pinned just this week. I wasn't thrilled to see that the recipe was really-truly slow rise--15 hours (approximately) for the first rise, 4-5 hours for the second, but I happened to see that if your kitchen is warmer (ie, it's summer, which of course it is not), it could move along a little more quickly.

Given that my schedule isn't quite as flexible right now, getting things done on Sunday or having it timed just right for after-work baking, is kind of important. So I stuck the dough for its first rise in my convection oven with the light on, which can warm to a happy 80 degrees... and sure enough, it rose and bubbled beautifully in about 7 hours. Feeling optimistic, I hopped on to the next rise, which was also accomplished in about 1/2 the recipe time--2 hours... 45 minutes or so of a pre-warmed dutch oven and a hot oven, and voila! A lovely bedtime snack of warm bread and some of that heavenly blood orange jam I mentioned last weekend. Yum.

This bread is definitely a keeper. I'm already looking forward to making it again next weekend, though I may start earlier in the weekend, and finish on Sunday--theory is that the slower the rise, the deeper the sourdough flavor, and I'm all for that. If anything, this was more a crusty loaf of peasant-style bread, not truly SOURdough. But if getting it done quickly is on your list, this recipe adapts a-ok.

And one last note: best crust I've achieved on a loaf, ever. Crispy, crunchy, oh-so-good. 

Friday night grateful moment

magine the most happy sound you can think of, something between a squeal of glee and a sigh of contentedness... that's me right now. It's Friday night and that itself is sheer bliss around here.

A week with some sun didn't hurt, either. Well, OK, it wasn't the whole week, but boy these last few days have been lovely. I have been so grateful for the sunshine! Getting up in the morning, peeking out behind the blinds and seeing clear skies? Fabulous! Rumor has it that Chill is returning, and bringing its dear friend Rain with it... I won't argue, since we need moisture, but I sure wish it could be scheduled so that weekends are lovely and whatever rain is necessary falls between Monday and Friday. Just a thought...

beeboots

As I sat in Seth's school conference this morning, with his teachers all chiming in on his freshman year, I felt grateful indeed for the thought they put in to this semester review of his classes, and the time they take to meet with us. Seth's doing well, and that's always good to hear, but aside from that, it's nice to learn a bit about these people who spend time with my kid. One observation: he has more male teachers now than he's had to this point, combined. His only female teacher is English (and he adores her), and the rest--science, algebra, history, music, PE--all guys.

 multi-orange

The work week was a pretty good one, progress made, slowly but surely. I'm grateful for the weekend to recharge and take some time to think about a few aspects of the project, and hopefully return Monday with some ideas and energy again. I am also grateful for the more technically-inclined who are working on the project with me, very much.

green

I attended a training session (two sessions, actually) this week relating to nonprofit leadership work and it was time well spent. The training and approach to problem-solving has applications for so many areas of my life, personally and professionally, and I'm grateful that I had the opportunity, AND for the people I got to train with. Good, thoughtful, intelligent people with a real heart for sharing their skills with others. I am intrigued to see where this goes...

 t-strap

This week we had an event at work, and I made that delicious s'mores pie for everyone. Actually, the s'mores pie came about in anticipation of that work event, and I was experimenting with it to see how making large-ish amounts would work. I'm grateful the recipe turned out so well when multiplied over and over (I made 150 squares, 5 pans of 30) and I'm also grateful that it was one of those recipes that you can make a day ahead and it tasted great, was nice and gooey and exactly what you'd want a s'more to be. Shocking as it may sound, I'm kinda over s'mores for the moment... overload? Maybe a little...

 tan 

I'm grateful to have a mother's heart. I remember when I was pregnant with Seth and I would be driving home from work and see a local man who quite obviously struggled with daily life functions and mental health issues, walking along on his way here or there. (If you live in a small town you know what I mean. Every town has a few people who wander and talk to themselves. Or maybe it's just our small town?) My heart would soften and invariably I would start to cry--partly for the man himself, but also for the mother who bore him, and all the hopes and dreams she undoubtedly had for him. And of course I would also cry because I knew I would soon be having a boy that I would have hopes and dreams for too, and how would that all work out? Some things you think you can know (especially in your 20s), and other things you realize you won't be able to impact to the extent you'd like... and so you (I) cry.

Big side note: I do not think you have to be a mother to have a mother's heart. In fact, I don't even think you have to be female. I just chose that word because it's coming from my heart. Maybe it would be better to say an "open" heart. A heart that empathizes and sympathizes.

black

Words of love and affection. Words of blessing and worship. Words of encouragement and hope. Words that elicit laughter, or tears, or deep sighs. All these, and so many more, I am grateful for. Sometimes I reflect that my high interest in information and reading and discovering really all comes down to words. How they are put together and what meaning they can convey. I certainly don't mean to sound like I only read lofty things--as if!--but I do think that the world opens up with words in a way that is unique. I am grateful every day for the ability to read what others have written and be moved by it, and the ability to put words together too. It's such a blessing.

scrappy

Can you tell I've got shoes on the brain? I feel like I'm in a "black flats rut" right now--actually I'm feeling like I'm in a black-brown-gray rut, period, ready for some spring and summer COLOR--and was just thinking this morning: "I need to go shoe shopping!" So I'm sharing my top dream picks with you! (Rhonda, my dear shoe friend, shall we go soon?)

 

floral

blue

unionjack

greenkeen

I am grateful for colorful shoes!

What are you grateful for on this Friday evening?

I hope the list is long and includes those near and dear, as well as possibly a few further away. I am grateful for you, wherever you are tonight.

Peace.

Thursday 13: 13 emails I get every day

eing back at in a daily work schedule, I don't have much time for a leisurely morning coffee-and-email routine. Not even. And going through my backlog of emails over the weekend, I've been slowly paring down the ones I get daily, trying to pare down to the ones I really read, if not daily, then at least a couple of times a week.

I thought I would share the ones that will stay (for now), in the thought that some might interest you as well.

In no particular order (other than #1, which is very #1 in my book):

1. The Writer's Almanac
This daily poem and authorly information snippet comes every night at about 11 p.m. for the next day. I've been known to check my email that late, just to see what's up from Mr. Keillor.

Here's an example of the kind of information, aside from a poem, that lands in my inbox:
Beethoven's "Moonlight" Sonata was published on this date (March 3) in 1802. Its real name is the slightly less evocative "Piano Sonata No. 14 in C Sharp Minor, Opus 27, No. 2," and its Italian subtitle is translated as "almost a fantasy." In 1832, five years after Beethoven's death, a German critic compared the sonata to the effect of moonlight shining on Lake Lucerne, and the interpretation became so popular that, by the end of the century, the piece was universally known as the "Moonlight Sonata." Beethoven himself had attributed the emotion of the piece to sitting at the bedside of a friend who had suffered an untimely death.

I don't know about you, but I kinda dig that stuff.

2. Six Pixels of Separation
Digital marketing and media insights that 9 days out of 10 I find very interesting. Helps in thinking about the way the world operates now, business and otherwise. The post just Wednesday was thought-provoking about how to connect "for real" in this always-connected world, and the last sentence I especially enjoyed: You don't have to unplug to become more human, you just have to make a choice. (Also, there's a misuse of a word--technically not a typo per se--in the post. Let me know if you find it!)

3. Foodimentary
Where else would I learn that yesterday was National Cereal Day and today is National Peanut Cluster Day? Important stuff. Ha. Actually, in and around the national food holidays, this site has some fun trivia re: food. Kind of a Writer's Almanac for foodies.

4.  News.me
This email requires a Twitter account; it aggregates the news in your feed and send you a daily list of five or six headlines from Twitter. I rarely log onto Twitter anymore, so this is a great way to still get info from the sources I once thought interesting enough to follow. (And there's an iPhone app too.) Important to note: this app/email is only as captivating as the people you follow. So if your feed is full of Ashton Kutcher and Lady Gaga, that's what you'll see.

5. The High Calling
I enjoy the devotional emails I get from this site. And once a week, there's a summary of articles that haven't been emailed, so occasionally I find a good blog post in that list as well. Right now they're working through Ezekiel, not the first book I'd be diving into, so I'm glad for the chance to read along.

6. Nieman Journalism Lab
A selection of articles about journalism, with topics ranging from challenges the LA Times will have going to a "membership subscription" (read: paywall with a twist) to advice for journalists on Facebook.

7. Etsy Finds
You'll need an Etsy account to sign up for newsletters from them, but it's a great way to see areas of the site you might not ordinarily stumble onto. In some emails there's absolutely nothing I'm interested in (Mardi Gras, for example) and other days it can be completely up my alley (crochet, anyone?).

8. The Happiness Project, Moment of Happiness
I've read Gretchen Rubin's blog since prior to her first book release, and have enjoyed watching her continued success (second book about to be published, first book has been a full year on the NYTimes bestseller list). Her daily email quotes are usually quite good, thoughtful, and it appears she works at selecting quotes off the beaten path, which I appreciate. I also get her monthly newsletter, which helps if I haven't kept up on reading her blog.

9. Women's Health, Daily Dose
Information from diet to yoga to exercise... a little motivation in my inbox, definitely.

10. Now I Know, by Dan Lewis
Lewis takes a topic and does the research for you. Usually a bit obscure and arcane, but also interesting, and not so indepth as to lose his readers.

11. VSL: Very Short List
This email has purported to "bring you the best of the web" for a number of years now, and I've liked many of the items they've pointed me towards, whether a web site, a new album by an obscure band, a book that is outside my recommended Amazon reading, etc. They very recently revamped their whole approach and have a different topic each day by a different guest editor. So far so good, from what I've seen.

12. Song of the Day: NPR
This is one I'm loathe to give up, but I honestly delete it more often than I click through to listen. I'm sharing it because maybe YOU might enjoy it? I don't know. It ranges in musical tastes, for sure, and I am often intrigued or turned off by how the song/band is written about in the lone come-hither sentence that is meant to draw me in... when it works, it works, when it doesn't, click-delete.

13. Netted by the Webbys
This is a new-ish email to me, maybe a few months since I first signed up. It's all about pointing you toward online resources--apps, websites, etc.--to "assist" you with life. I have found some good ideas via Netted, but sometimes get a bit weary of the same kind of app crossing my path... do I need a "new" Pandora? A amped up Goodreads? A curated YouTube? Not so much. But in and among the redundancies, there are a few gems...

OK, so just reading that list makes me feel like information overload. As I try to keep my inbox clean and tidy so that things don't get missed (almost slipped past the deadline to schedule Seth's school conferences today, ahem), I may end up deleting a few more, but for now, these suit my info-hounding tendencies...

I ask this in fear I'll find more ways to be distracted online, but what are YOUR favorite daily emails? I would like to know.

For more Thursday 13s, go here. And have a great Thursday, while you're at it.