Library Walk

Not Wanting

I read this article when I should have been doing something else. I'm sure you don't blame me. How could I not? Not only was I glued to how they have so little (almost nothing) waste but how they have so little in the house at all. The wife: "wanted to truly love and use and know everything she kept in her home. 'Even down to the vegetable peeler,' she says." Since I cleaned out my cupboards and closets this year, I know I could pare down more. I got rid of clothes, yes. But, I could be more cutting. The drawer in which I keep pajamas, long-sleeved tees, leggings, and workout clothes is my fullest. Hanging clothes need more room to breathe. This family has a handful of clothes per season. Being extreme like this would scare me; it makes the mother happy. Of course, I could do it. Changing a lifestyle is really huge. Sometimes I entertain the notion of walking away from my apartment without anything and starting new in a foreign city. I pick up a large wall hanging and live in a loft with pristine white bedding. I hang a few square snapshots or postcards. I hang a few skirts and blouses. Oddly, I have high heels. And then there is the foreign soon-to-be boyfriend. We go out to a concert, walking across laid brick.

Le Creuset: A Many-Splendored Thing

Among my earthly treasures I count pots and pans, blankets/quilts, jewelry, and photographs. Today I showcase a piece (mine is slightly smaller) I had no intention of buying, ever. I am a devotee of Le Creuset, dreaming about enameled cast iron is no joking matter. The heft, the pull, the look, the fast lane. As I live near a Le Creuset outlet, my pieces have multiplied over the years. I now possess three pieces of enameled cast iron in Cherry Red, Dijon, and Dune respectively. My shopping days are over.

Before I acquired the Dune braiser, I happened on a sale. Stainless steel pots and pans at 50 percent off. I averted my gaze and asked the eternal internal question, "Who would buy this?" Thanks to a knowledgeable excitable sales associate, low price, and cute size, I did. I keep it safe in my closet where I invite it out to greet and service company. Just this weekend, I used it for at least two dishes. Previously, I have made stove top rice and melted sugar in its luxurious heavy base. I would buy more.

That Glorious Easter Sunday

Menu

April 24, 2011

Easter Dinner

chilled cantaloupe soup with

tarragon syrup

balsamic roasted beef

grilled asparagus with

rosemary and goat cheese

spoon bread

creamed corn

vanilla ice cream with toasted almonds and

hot fudge, blackberry, and strawberry sauces

chocolate covered strawberries

minted water

Baby William had an egg. At his first Eastertide, he was the model of decorum and reverence. Audrey, Rob, and all passed him around and we exclaimed over his seersucker pant with matching belt. Todd sought the soft spot on his noggin and found it. Todd ate three filet mignon medallions. His cantaloupe soup with tarragon syrup was amorously greeted with "Who woulda thunk?" The asparagus was the first to go. One spoonful of spoon bread remains. We made inroads in the hot fudge with Todd and Audrey being most appreciative. Beth ate as much as she could and then pushed her ice cream bowl away. I used a few too many pinches of cayenne in the creamed corn. The sauce was pale pink. I served blackberry sauce in the jar Amy gave me gingerbread Christmas caramels.

Topics of interest included the feodora, millinery, food anthopology, language and linguistics, citrus fruit trees and their tempations, swaddling and the papoose, evolution, brine shrimp, salt and fresh water, Pink Floyd, Humphrey Bogart's son, whirlwind romance, the Royal wedding, bowls, Brigham City, Australia, opal mining, geology, Edna Lewis, Freetown, hollow bunnies, Bottlecaps, Easter Seals, dwarfism, honey mustard pretzels.

The Tide of Easter

Shopping is done. Eggs are drying (robin egg blue) and two simple syrups are chilling. I made tarragon syrup for the chilled soup. And blackberry sauce for the sundaes. The table is set. The almonds are toasted. The garden is at April's peak. This week I changed out the jade for a camellia, the shade lover. Also added a blue-grey succulent. I teeter between lush and arid.

The best has happened. I am hosting Easter dinner for five adults (including myself) and one newborn. There will be an honored elder. The menu is 80 percent complete. The guests have calendared. The time is 5 o'clock. A full report will follow the day. I am festooned with anticipation. My thoughts stray to place cards. I could not be more excited.

Pen and Ink

It seems that most of life's pursuits are begun alone.

Jerusalem: Tis the Season

Because I understand the frustration of finding a map online that is suitable for printing, I offer my map to the public. So that when you search high res, old jerusalem, jerusalem at the time of jesus, old city, easter week, holy week, and sundry indicators, you may chance upon my site. Please leave a comment with your email address and I will personally (oooh!) send you a high resolution pdf, suitable for printing.