Thoughts on the New Year

New Year's resolutions are pretty stupid, nevertheless, I find myself hoping for renewal, pushing for change and looking within each January.

Some goals for 2011:

Crafting

• I'd like to do all homemade Christmas gifts. We didn't do that this year and it was stressful. I've already started some projects.

Reading

• I'd like to spend the year reading Virginia Woolf

Eating

• I'd like to make a more serious commitment to eating locally, working toward making the majority of my intake locally produced by October
• I am quitting commercial soda-pop with the help of my new Penguin.
  

Home

• Continued transitions

Soul

• less computer and tv
• more books
• more yoga (I wish there was a yoga studio on my side of town)
  

Christmas Menu

Roast Goose
Butternut Squash and Gruyere Bread Pudding
Roasted Root Vegetables
Individual Yorkshire Puddings with Rosemary
Bitter Greens with Pomegranate Seeds and Goat Cheese with Balsamic Dressing

Raspberry Pie
Mulled Red Wine

Women Farmers

Some lovely ladies in Preston Co. put on a holiday open house last weekend and we went to participate in the merriment. They are a group of lady farmers who keep sheep and other small stock. They work to put together gorgeous crafts, foods, wools and other fibers, etc, for the open house each year. The best part is that they sell their meat and have delicious samples of soups and other things to make with it, which is a lovely idea. We ended up buying some really nice lamb and also a goose for Christmas. It is all local, organic, and humanely treated, which is basically the only kind of meat we buy now. Also bought wool roving and yarn in delicious colors.
Anyway, I just love the sense of community these ladies have fostered. They all work together to make these lovely things and I am sure they help each other on the farm when needed, too. It is really a great business model and a great way to earn a living doing what they do.
Oh yeah, and they all have at least one or two Great Pyrenees dogs, which are so lovable.

Home

Our week spent in Boston was just wonderful. We saw so many good friends, went to some of our favorite places, and just kind of relished being in a place we can honestly call home. It was very strange: I felt like I might have forgotten some things, but once I was there I realized that some things they do there just feel right, feel comfortable: keeping the left side of the escalator clear for those who’d prefer walking up (is there even an escalator in Morgantown?), stepping to the side to let people off the T, knowing in my bones the quickest way to cut across Harvard Square, knowing how to plant my feet just so to surf the greenline.

We went to Maine on the weekend; I took a trip to central Mass. one morning. Everything is so close. I had the best steak ever at Brasserie Jo’s on Huntington. I highly recommend going there for a steak frites lunch. So not only did I get to go to some of my old favorites, I also got to discover some new ones, too.

View from my hotel room

We stayed downtown at the Westin at Copley Place because Aaron had a conference to go to nearby. It was so much fun to be so close to the T, to jump on and get somewhere fast. The Boston Public Library was right across the street from us and I went there every morning to check my email and do homework. It was lovely. I don’t know why I didn’t do that more often when I was an undergrad. The elderly guard at the door greeted me by saying, "Good morning, darling" each morning. I saw two homeless people come in and sit down. They just sat there and wrote. The great American novel, I’m sure. Lots different than here.

View from my hotel room. The library is the large square building with the courtyard.

a study room in the library

When I left Boston 3 years ago I had gotten so used to it that I didn’t really appreciate it any more and things about it bothered me. Things about it still bother me. However, I have to say that the things that have happened with Aaron’s family in the past year or so have really changed Boston for us. I can’t imagine being too far away from anyone there for much longer.

That feeling was made so apparent by the sinking dread I felt when the plane touched down in Morgantown on our way back. I saw a hotspot from the airplane and I started crying.

Right Now

Right now, I am:
1) Trying to find the best organizational scheme to help a farmers market in TX implement a SNAPS/Food stamps acceptance program. Oh, and they don't have access to a power source. Oh, and I have to write a 10-20 page paper on that.

2) Conducting sham reference queries for online virtual librarians to test their success and professionalism. So far, they're doing a bad job. Oh, and I have to write a paper on that.

3) Writing a 12 page literature review on the authenticity of electronic documents in an archival setting.

4) Packing stuff to put into storage.

5) Packing stuff for a trip to Boston we're taking in under a week.

6) Feeling like I might be getting sick (and following all the steps listed in the previous post).

7) Working between 9 and 12 hours a day at work.

8) Nursing my chickens through our first big molt.

9) Knitting in the round while watching class (helps me pay attention, oddly enough).

10) Crocheting miniature granny squares for stress relief.

11) Serving as this week's course discussion leader in my archiving class.

12) Battling a tap-dancing Elf dog that likes to start his routine at 5:45 each morning: 15 minutes before the alarm goes off! Argh!

Cold/Flu

Celestial Seasonings Echinacea Complete Care tea has found its way into my teacup, so it's fair to say that cold and flu season is here. I generally work really hard to stay healthy through the winter, and I'm usually pretty successful. Though I often feel like I'm catching something, I rarely have a full-blown cold/flu (knock on wood). When I start to feel like I am coming down with something, I've found these precautions to be extremely helpful in fighting it off:

Echinacea: taken at the first twinge of a sore throat or body ache, I think this stuff really works. However, half of the secret is believing, like Santa. It loses its magic if you don't believe.

Emergen-C/Airborne: I think it really tastes gross (Aaron won't even drink it) but I notice improvement within a couple of hours, if I take it early enough.

Gargle: take warm salt water and gargle repeatedly. Swab the inside of your nose with it, too. It helps.

Hot beverages: I think it is related to the warm gargle thing. The steam helps you rid the germs.

Lots of fluids: flush those bad boys out of your system.

soup: At the first sign of feeling a little under the weather, I crack out the miso paste. Aaron knows that if I am in the kitchen standing over a broth he should look out because I don't feel good. I think that this is also related to the gargle, as it is basically hot salt water, when you break it down. I also think that putting as many vitamin-rich things in it as possible and some protein will help you boost your immune system. Adding some noodles for carbs doesn't hurt, either. I find that when I don't feel good, soup is all I want. I put onions, carrots, spinach, seaweed, rice noodles and lots of other stuff into my miso soup. It usually makes me feel better within a few hours. When I'm really sick, it's chicken soup all the way.

Hot shower: kick out those germs.

Washing hands: I try not to touch my face and I usually wash my hands before and after I use the restroom.

A good night's sleep: even if it means taking something to help you stay asleep, sometimes it is what your body needs.

Keeping distance: I feel like Kramer, but I catch myself literally wince and back away when someone coughs around me. I also notice that I'm really bad about giving people dirty looks when they are sick in public. I may have yelled at a lady on an airplane about not wearing a face mask because she was coughing all over the place. I may have made her change seats. *cringe* Whatever, I want to stay healthy. I think that once you have that first cold of the season, it is really hard to get your immune system back in 100% working order, so putting that off for as long as possible is key.

kitchen classification assignment

Just in case you were wondering, here are the contents of my spice cupboard, cataloged for a class.

Spices

Bulk

Cloves (whole, bulk)

Pepper, crushed red (bulk)

Small containers

Individual spices

Ajwain

Allspice (ground)

Anise

Anise (ground)

Anise (star)

Anise seed (x2)

Asafoetida powder

Bay leaves

Caraway

Cardamom

Celery seed

Cinnamon

Cinnamon (ground)

Cinnamon (stick)

Cloves

Cloves (ground)

Cloves (whole)

Coriander

Coriander (ground)

Coriander flakes

Coriander seeds

Cumin

Fenugreek

Garlic powder

Ginger (ground)

Kasoori methi

Lemon grass

Lemon grass (coarse)

Lemon grass (ground)

Mango powder

Mint

Mint (ground)

Mint (whole leaf)

Mustard seed

Nutmeg (ground)

Onion seeds

Oregano (x2)

Paprika (unlabeled)

Pepper

Pepper, black

Pepper, cayenne (x2)

Pepper, crushed red

Poppy seeds

Rosemary

Sage (unbottled)

Salt

Salt, sea

Salt, red (x2, unlabeled)

Salt, table

Sesame seeds, black

Thyme (x2)

Turmeric (ground)

Spice mixes

Bell’s seasoning

Bharat spice mix (labeled in Hebrew)

Cajun seasoning mix

Chili powder

Coffee Spices (x2)

Curry powder (x2, one unlabeled, one mislabeled)

Garam masala

Kansas City steak seasoning

Mulling spices

Mrs. Dash

Pilau masala mix

Salsa spice mix (hot)

Spaghetti sauce spice mix (unlabeled)

Tandoori spice mix

Za’atar (labeled in Hebrew)

Baking supplies

Cream of tartar

Extract

Almond extract

Anise extract

Cinnamon oil

Rose oil

Vanilla extract

Food coloring

Nonpareils, multicolored

Pumpkin pie spice mix

Sprinkles

Sprinkles, green (green apple flavor)

Sprinkles, green

Sprinkles, red

Vanilla bean

Other

Bulk

Honey (bulk)

11 empty jars

Grinding Instruments

Electric grinder

Mortar and pestle

Honey

Honey (cheap)

Honey (artisan: 4 instances)

About a Train

Can I just say that I love taking trains? Last week, I took an Amtrak from Pittsburgh to Milwaukee and back again. Night trains both ways. I wanted to take the train because I’ve had such bad luck with flights lately. Also, I am kind of angry that the airlines are trying to control everything you do as a traveler and they’re getting really mean about it, as if we're not supposed to bring anything with us or desire any kind of nourishment on our journeys. Not to mention that there is no airport stress. So, for now I’d rather give my money to the train companies in an effort to encourage others to do the same. Maybe the prices will even go down if there is demand.

People complain that trains take too long, but really, I find that to be refreshing. It was so nice to have some me-time. I went to the lounge, I read, I listened to Mennonites talk. The best part is that almost all of the employees on the trains were not only friendly, but funny and warmhearted. I met some really interesting people.

This one lady getting on at Pittsburgh must have been at least 85. She was wearing a fancy party dress, a sheer, sequined capelet, and a veiled pillbox hat. She also had a vintage overnight bag, a husband who didn’t say a word, and she flirted with all of the "red caps."

And there is a part of me that likes not being found for a little while. With many airlines now having wifi, there are not too many places where you can simply be out of reach. Spending a few quiet hours without much contact with the outside world does everyone good, I’d say. It’s as if the world is held in suspension for a time and you can sit back, be quiet, and gain some perspective. And sleeper cars? Is there a more romantic form of travel? I will definitely try to make the time to take the train whenever possible.

Whip It

Has anyone seen the movie Whip It? If not, I am here to say that it is surprisingly very good. Not perfect, but good. I took it home from work on a whim and Aaron and I were both kind of blown away by the sweet, simple, feminist, anti-norm message. Even more so because it's Drew Barrymore's directorial debut. She did a lovely job. It's a good movie for teen girls, I think.

It's all about roller derby. It actually inspired us to find a roller derby "bout" and go to it over the weekend. It was kind of weird and fun in an underground Pittsburgh tough girl kind of way. Reason #986 Why I Love Aaron: it was his first ever live sporting event. That kid is just too adorable for words.

Lots going on

There is a lot going on here. I feel like I am in a race to preserve food. I roasted a ton of eggplant yesterday, made eggplant parm the other day (awesome), processed a bushel of apples today (meaning washed, cut and juiced them, hopefully for cider), made stuffed peppers for the freezer, made lots of gazpacho in the last few weeks, froze a bunch of fruits and veggies, made two quiches for the freezer, and I'm sure I'm forgetting some. And now I'm convincing myself I should try making mead and the rest of the eggplant is demanding to be made into baba ganoush. Whew. It's awesome, but it's a lot of work. I am glad that I have a little break before school starts again.

Seriously, I need someone to come over and can stuff with me. I am too afraid to do it by myself. It just seems like a job you do with someone else. I am wondering if I can food process cherry tomatoes and can them. Do you think? I'd add them to soup and stuff. I have about a million and more keep coming.

Blueberry Picking 2010

Meg of my heart

Meghan came to visit at the time I needed her most of all, which was very convenient and soul-mending. We grilled, we played pool in the weirdest old-school pool hall known to man, we had a car towed, we went to the Andy Warhol museum, but most importantly, we did some serious hanging out. I miss you, Meghan. I wish we lived closer. Thank you so much for coming here and cheering me up.

I love Summer

Though I am typically a winter person, yesterday pretty much confirmed the great things about summer. I picked 24 cherry tomatoes and two bell peppers from the garden. We bought fresh corn from local farmers on the side of the road. We went to the farmer's market and bought a ton of stuff, simply because it was so cheap and so fresh. $1 for a pint of basil (even though we're growing our own...I couldn't pass it up: an extra batch of pesto to have in winter). $2 for a ton of eggplant, promptly made into a caponata and placed in the freezer. 3/$1 cucumbers that are so sweet and snappy. 2/$1 (huge) zucchini that will be stuffed and frozen shortly. 2 pints of fresh, local peaches also came home with us not long ago.

Also, we have been picking apples from our trees like crazy. We'd like to try making cider this time around. The problem is that our trees are too tall. I can't get to most of the apples, even with a ladder and a picker. Now I know that dwarf trees might be the way to go, next time around.

Links

Here are a couple of cool links sure to suck you in before you know it.

1) Hippy Kitchens. Long hair, bellbottoms, crazy wallpaper. Need I say more?

2) Picture Book Report. Really cool images of the best scenes from your favorite books.

Birthday Gift Craft

Aaron made me this pretty leaf box for my birthday. I just love it. I even cleaned so that I could put it on display. That's really saying something.

Anniversary Gift

Remember last year, when Aaron made me the most beautiful wood/paper lantern for our first anniversary? So lovely. I use it everyday and it makes me smile. If you can believe it, I think he actually topped himself this year! He made me something that I have wanted for a long time. I am kind of still in shock over how incredible it is. Aaron made me a hope chest.


I know, right?! It's phenomenal! I can't believe he made this. It was a labor of love, for sure. He'd spend a few hours working on it every day, over several months. The best part is that he managed to keep it a secret.





The second anniversary is "cotton." I love that he took the theme and came up with something so creative. I am washing all of my favorite linens to put into my new chest.

Peas

We're harvesting peas like crazy over here. They're so pretty. I think we would have had more, but our trellis fell down and I never bothered fixing it. We built a very elaborate trellis with bamboo and duct tape and after the first big rain the duct tape decided to give (note to self: duct tape isn't the answer to all of life's problems). I've been a little preoccupied with school. But these lovelies were plump and begging to be picked when I found them.



In other garden news, I'm trying beans for the first time and they are in full bloom. Any tips? I can't remember if they are bush beans or not. Not sure what to do.

stressed much?

School is hard. That is all.

Bring Home Ec Back?

Interesting post on The Kitchn. Should home ec have a comeback in public schools? I say yes! I had really rudimentary home ec in middle school. I remember making an omelet, but that's about it.

I'm not really confident that kids these days (I can't believe those three words just came together in my mind...oh dear) know how to do anything close to cooking a healthy meal. They know how to microwave. They know how to order a combo meal.

I think it is crucial for every kid to learn how to make basic meals and exercise creativity while using their hands (baking, sewing, folkcraft, etc). I think it's also important to find out how your food reaches your table, how to make choices about what you should eat, how to grow plants, how to budget.

I was lucky enough to have a large set of grandparents. I would spend at least one day each week, usually, learning how to make something with a grandparent, whether it was a simple soup, a rag rug, an experiment on the sewing machine, biscotti, a casserole, etc. I was around food. A lot. My mom didn't cook, which was also a catalyst for learning. I was making omelets way before middle school home ec.

My grandma was a teacher and for a while she used the old home ec room. One of my fondest memories was using that hour between when classes were over and she could leave to dig through the debris of the fabric closets in her class and fashioning outfits for my stuffed animals. Remember that? I'll never forget it.

2 years

Tomorrow will be our second anniversary. What a beautiful day it was.

Scattered Sushi

I found this article from Bittman, one of our very favorite foodies (Aaron says: “he’s a man after our own hearts and stomachs”) and I thought I would share it because there has been a lot of this happening in our household.

For the past two weeks and counting, Aaron and I have been taking fishless sushi to work for lunch. Sorry there are no pics…mornings are dysfunctional enough. Anyway, let me tell you: it’s awesome. I love lunch again. And it’s healthy as all get out.

We don’t roll the sushi, but we do it salad style and call it “scattered sushi.” I do about a ½ cup of sushi rice (Aaron does more because he’s a growing boy), I use black sesame seeds, which adds a nice touch. We’ve been doing matchstick carrots, English cucumber, pretty radish, bell pepper and (my favorite) avocado. Once in a while I’ll throw in a fake crab stick if I’m feeling sassy. We’ve just been adding the soy sauce to the bowl and throwing a generous dollop of wasabi to the center. We use scissors to cut strips of nori for the top. That’s it. And it’s delicious. I end up constructing perfect little sushi bites at my desk which is so much more fun than the sheer bovinity of a typical salad.

Now we have many more ideas to play around with.
Thanks, Bittman!

My brain must have developed new patterns for cilantro flavor

Here is a really interesting article on a topic that comes up with regularity in our household: the notion that, for some, the soapy taste experienced while eating cilantro is due to a genetic predisposition and sensory function.

I found this article to be really helpful in explaining why I used to think cilantro tasted like soap and now I find it to be delicious. It has become one of the top 5 constantly used ingredients in our household.

I had never had cilantro until I moved to Boston. The first time I had it I was like: "why would anyone eat something that tastes like soap?!" I kept encountering it, much like the author of the article, and it took about five years or more for the taste to change for me and just within the last three or four years, it has totally transformed into green goodness. Which seemed odd, as I knew I was supposedly genetically predisposed to taste soap, so why the change? Read the article.

This totally convinces me that my theory about taste is accurate: you create your palate. There may be things you might not like, but if you work on that, you can totally change your tastes. Something you don't care for or just feel so-so about can become a favorite taste if you practice.

I hate to harp on the WV thing as always, but I just find this so interesting. Some West Virginians, as far as I can tell, have the most sensitive palates I have ever encountered. Any slight recipe variation or addition is likely to become a tragic event. I've had to completely retool my old potluck/cookout standbys because my dishes haven't been touched a number of times. (Which, really, is okay with me because I get to take it home, but still....) Goat cheese? Forget it. Sharp cheese is even a deal-breaker. Remember that delicious pasta salad with the Gorgonzola and kalamata olives that I'm sure you've had if you've attended any bbq with me? I can't make it here. Green food is pretty much a no-no, but I still make spinach dip because there are at least two processed foods used in it. Anything sweet is okay. Salty is good. Processed is better. Lately, I turn to the backs of containers for recipes that might be acceptable at a gathering. Now, this isn't everyone, obviously. But people are really not afraid to hurt your feelings and say something like "oh, it has _____ in it? Eeeww."

But, I think it's just a comfort-zone thing. I struggle, because I know you can work to overcome these prejudices. If you want to.

Seed Exchange

Yesterday I hosted a seed exchange through work. The idea is simple: if you grow plants, chances are you aren't using the whole packet of seeds. So, why not swap out those extra seeds for something else you'll use? You get something, someone else gets what you don't need. We all celebrate locally grown food. Everyone is happy.

The more significant aspect of this has to do with beliefs that run a little deeper, a little more serious. Hybridization and large-scale agribusiness have ensured that only a fraction of plant species are being consumed in America today. Others are becoming extinct or are on the brink of extinction because no one grows them. This makes our food system very unsustainable and susceptible to devastating disease. So, though all seeds were welcome, the focus of the seed exchange was heirloom varieties, whether the seeds were purchased or saved year after year at harvest time.

I was honored that our favorite seed company, Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds, out of Missouri, donated an astronomical amount of heirloom seeds specifically for this event. It allowed me the opportunity to make sure that people had a lot (A LOT) to choose from and also it gave me the chance to make sure everyone left with seeds, whether they had something to trade or not. Because, the point is that people plant them and hopefully save the seeds from this crop to plant next year. I need to make sure I properly thank my friends at Baker Creek.

One of the stars of the day was a pack of seeds for the West Virginia 63 tomato, a locally refined heirloom variety. I can't say how I got the seeds, but I worked hard to track them down. I felt it added another dimension to the idea of celebrating locally grown food if we could have a local heirloom present.

I was a little nervous about this event. It seems like there are some very deep-running class issues about growing your own food here for some reason, so I wasn't sure what the response would be. However, I managed to get the word out to the right places and more than 50 people swapped seeds and stories and gardening tips yesterday. They all want to do it again. It was kind of incredible and I have to say, I am so proud that this experiment was such a success. It really confirmed the importance of promoting locally grown food, self-reliance, community action, and etc.

Crazy Hippie Jelly

Aaron: How does it make you feel that, for your first time canning anything, you made crazy hippie jelly?


I feel great about it! Success! We had all of these violets growing in our yard and I had been wondering what I could do with them, if they were edible, etc, etc. And then I stumbled across this recipe and I knew that I should try it. I am sure my neighbors think I'm crazy. I was crawling around on our lawn for an hour and a half picking flowers while two little chickens followed closely behind.


One neighbor even stood out on his deck and asked if I'd been stung by a bee or something. Embarrassing. But it's good to use what grows around you and come winter, these little pots of sugared jewels will be a welcome reminder of spring.

This recipe was very easy, but the canning of it was a little high-stress. I kept wishing that I had a grandma there to show me how it's done. Not quite sure I mastered it. Are you supposed to put it into the jars while it's still boiling or take it off the heat to fill the jars? Help!

Anyway, I have 10 little jars of violet goodness in my pantry, so I guess I did something right!

Picnic No. 1: Easter

We decided to go for an Easter picnic at the last minute. We hadn't planned a fancy meal or anything. Enjoying the weather seemed just the ticket. When we got to the arboretum, we were ecstatic to find the magnolias in bloom! The purple-pink flowers are so pretty, but I swear: they bloom for like a day and then look like brown, depressing death. So, it was nice to catch them while they were here.


I liked the bark on this tree.


Elf always thinks the picnics are just for him. They kind of are.



Best friends.



Aaron and I took turns reading one of our favorite read-aloud books: My Side of the Mountain. Yes, we ate cold pizza.

Menu

Pizza, two kinds
Fresh strawberries
Homemade half-moon cookies

4 Happinesses

1) Oregon

2) Donkey Baby

3) Nice Weather
4) Gardening

Sit back, relax, and enjoy the flight!

I have had major flight delays and cancellations on the last three trips I've taken. Each time, I've had to stay overnight because of a missed connecting flight. This last time, I was kicking myself because I thought a simple flight to Portland, OR would not require provisions. Had my hours of playing Oregon Trail taught me nothing? Boy, was I wishing for a care package at 3am in the Seattle Airport*. Needless to say, as I was sitting there stewing -- tired and hungry and dirty -- I started a list of things I will take with me in my carry-on luggage from now on. I thought I would share, for all you vagabonds out there:

1) Extra underwear. 2 pairs.

2) Toothbrush and travel toothpaste.

3) A change of clothes. If you are traveling on business, make it a nice change of clothes in case something happens to your bags and your meeting is the next morning. Seriously. See below.

4) Travel pillow.

5) Light blanket. I'm pretty sure they keep the airport in Seattle at a toasty 32 degrees. I was trying to cover my legs with a cardigan while curled into the fetal position. Next time, I'll bring a little lap blanket.

6) Eye Coverlet. This is always a carry-on must for me. As my friend Jen once wrote: "The horse needs blinders."

7) Chapstick, mascara, and any other personal care product that will at least upgrade your resulting appearance from zombie to undead.

8) Snacks. Most airport snack shops are closed between 12am-6am.



*Actually, long afterward, as well, because they lost my luggage. And then I fell in the mud (no joke).

news and lesser news

The lesser news is that I am officially 50 pages into Gravity's Rainbow, this year's BIG READ. Lately, I've been trying to read at least one major work per year, something that has been on my to-read list for at least 10 years. Take that, intimidating novels! Last year, I picked Ulysses. The year before, I geared up for future times by reading both Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man and Crying of Lot 49. I always have this crippling guilt about reading worthwhile things. If you read at all, the majority of it should be good quality and a big chunk of that should be a challenge. I like the way I read and don't see this pattern changing any time soon. But these two books were the bulk of my on-going to-read list, so I'm going to have to spend some time revising that.

Anyway, I am reading it now because I may not get a chance to later in the year. Onto my news: I got accepted into a grad program at Pitt. Hooray! I'll continue to work full-time and go to school...it's really scary to actually see that in writing. I'll continue to work full-time and go to school. I'll continue to work full-time and go to school. I'll continue to WORK...full-time...and go to school. oh my.

Elf-sized bed

Aaron's latest wood shop creation was the sweetest little bed for Elf:

The picture doesn't even do it justice. It's just too cute! He found a picture of a little sleigh bed for a doll and modified it to fit an Elf. And Elf just loves it. He lays on his bed with his little pillow and just has the happiest look on his face. He literally loved his other beds to pieces, so we hope this will last a bit longer.


And of course, Matilda had to give it a try.

5 Happinesses

Happy Last Day of February. I seriously need to update the blog. I am sorry. I've been busy. I've been away. I've been neglectful. Let's change that, starting with 5 Happinesses for this Last Day of February:

1) still riding on the wings of vacations long over. We've been to India and Costa Rica in the last month. What an incredible ride life can be, if you let it. The best part was that we went to CR with some close friends from MA. It was as nice to spend time with our people as it was to be in such a beautiful place.

2) the chance to bring some eco-friendly programming into work. Generally, work is going really, really well.

3) Finding the BEST BREAKFAST IN TOWN. Wow, there are a lot of places to eat breakfast in Morgantown, but not a ton of really good ones. Don't tell too many people, because part of me wants to keep this quiet little place all to myself and the handful of people there this morning, but today we went to Zen Clay's Sunday brunch and it was awesome. What a restorative effect a good breakfast place can have on your outlook on life/WV.

4) other chicken people. I'll admit it: I like to talk chicken whenever I can, so it is nice to get the chance to talk to other chicken people, which has happened a lot in the past couple of weeks.

5) Dream Snow. So much snow! I can't believe how much we've had this year. It's so pretty, so lovely, but so crappy to have to drive in. I love waking up to a new coating of several inches fallen in the night, taking Elf off the leash to run and tunnel and lick at the fresh surface, and coming back in for coffee.

"Please accept from me this unpretentious bouquet of very early-blooming parentheses: (((())))."

I just want to take a minute to acknowledge the loss of the author who probably played the most instrumental role in my life. JD Salinger died at 91 last week. He wrote some of the best prose I’ve ever read. I blame him for my inability to write a proper ending. He is, without a doubt in my mind, the reason I read, the reason I’ve written, and the reason I got a degree in English.

I was not a reader growing up. I wasn’t one of those kids who devoured books or even slogged through them. Reading was for school and I honestly didn’t see much point in doing it on your free time. I hate to admit all this, but it’s true. I liked being read to, but hated reading.

Then, my mom’s friend started coming once a week, giving me assignments and doing just what I wanted: reading to me. We read a lot of the major children’s literature classics, namely the Narnia books and Madeleine L'Engle. I started reading a bit on my own.

But it wasn’t until I was 13 and I read Catcher in the Rye that I realized that this reading thing was really something to cherish. It was my first “adult” novel. I read it because I took a quiz in Teen Magazine that said my ideal boyfriend was Ethan Hawke and the little blurb mentioned that he’d have a dog-eared copy of Cather in his back pocket for some reason. (This is so embarrassing.) So I read it and I couldn’t believe that anyone could write like that; that writing like that was allowed at all! It was so real. It just floored me: books were supposed to be fake. Literature got a lot more interesting with a narrator like Holden. And then there is the Glass family. I have outgrown my initial feelings/obsessions with Salinger, but the Glass family will always be a literary miracle. After that, I just read, and read, and read. And I have to say, I always read the good stuff. I drank in all of those books one should read as a teenager: To Kill a Mockingbird, A Separate Peace, Slaughterhouse-5, One Flew Over the Coo-Coo’s Nest, Brautigan, On the Road, etc, etc. No Twilight-type stuff, ever, thank heavens.

And so, JD Salinger has followed me through my life. Aaron and I basically became friends because of Franny and Zooey. And the rest is history there. I named two of my cats after characters in Salinger stories: Esmé and Sergeant X. And I met my best friend Meghan because I was giving a presentation on Salinger’s uncanny ability to Address the Reader in “Seymour; An Introduction” in a Creative Writing Workshop we were in together and she happened to be reading that story at the same time.

And now, he is gone.

Incredible India

Let me start off by saying that India was a totally wonderful, totally draining experience that I am so happy to have had the chance to go. It was like no other place I have had the privilege of visiting. Of course, vast wealth and vast poverty mingled at every corner. One thing to note: seeing people live their lives gives you a unique perspective. I never felt sorry for anyone there, even as they were showering or shitting on the roadside. This is life and they are living it. It might be different than mine, but it is no less fantastic. It’s so important to realize that saving the world isn’t always a good thing because you’re saving it in your image, when theirs is just as valid. The richness of life was felt in full.

The sights were gorgeous. Beautiful buildings, beautiful landscapes. Fields of mustard waiting to be pressed into oil. Bold colors, pink cities. Of course, there is the Taj Mahal. Can I just say it is covered with the most intricate inlaid marble I’ve never seen. It is more incredible than pictures can convey. And yet, it is small inside. You feel that she is protected there. Having seen (or rather, not seen) all that the British had looted out of India , I am so surprised it is intact at all. Did you know that once upon a time the Brits rented it out to honeymooners? Seeing the Taj was worth the trip.

My favorite city was Jaipur. Everything is painted pink or constructed in Pink sandstone. It’s gorgeous. I loved the Hawa Mahal (The Palace of Winds) and the Amber Fort (of course!). Hawa Mahal is just this incredibly vertical palace in the middle of the city and it reminded me of a pipe organ or something.

And the Amber Fort was just all around gorgeous. It was classic Hindu style, beautiful decoration. So much fun to wander.

I won’t mention the bad stuff like 9 hour bus trips, food poisoning, cancelled flights and Al Qaeda terrorist threats. We were so lucky to have had the chance to go to such a unique country.