Saturday, December 28, 2013
Saturday, December 21, 2013
Sunday, December 8, 2013
In bloom
Starts and stops, course changes, directional abnormalities - don't organisms, if given the choice, grow on a path of least resistance? is the ability to constantly adjust in order to meet external demands innate? can it be learned? Is it taken in by osmosis, or by careful observation, or some of both? Good improvisational skills are earned through trial and error, and some folks are more adept at handling disappointment. Lots of disappointment in a life with lots of starts and stops, switchbacks, and course overhauls can lead either to giving in, bemoaning the gnarled path, or to taking, with both hands, the blessing and the strength of a life led through well practiced improvisation, and blossom.
Spicy sweet potato bisque, chorizo over braised purple cabbage.
Sweets roasted with o.j. concentrate, turbinado, coconut oil, and grated ginger. Souped up with veggie broth, sauteed onion, pineapple, jalepeno, red chili, white wine vinegar, et al.. Oh me oh my what a way to create some light this dark late autumn night.
Friday, December 6, 2013
About food - muffins
More muffins; my easiest way to get a baked good for breakfast, or anytime. These made with rice flours, millet,quin,potato starch,xantham, etc. +coconut milk so they're dairy free. A mixed variety of dried fruits stirred in, drizzled with honey.
They're soon headed out the door for a work holiday to-do.
Me too! Cheers
Saturday, November 30, 2013
Hot Turkey
Hotturkey sammie with gravy, all gluten free with bread that can take the heat! thank you Three Bakers Bakery!
Pie & Coffee
This is a wild world. We give nationwide thanks, while an employee opens the doors to one of the most horrendous retail stores in greeting, & gets trampled to death by the waiting, fenzied mob anxious to get a bargain on something new.
As I was about to eat my thanksgiving breakfast pumpkin pie off of a plate that is near sixty years old, and drink my coffee from a mug that's nearly forty I am thankful that I came up in a time and place where frugality was prized.
I cannot pinpoint in my personal timeline when the shift to such gorging started full swing. Creeping up as it did. One day we are watching Dickens' Scrooge and vowing to never go there again and next it's beyond Scrooge and all of those false compassion trappings... A million galaxies away. Watching the images and sympathizing with the people in lives created & driven by images has little apparently little application in flesh &blood life.
Friday, November 22, 2013
Beethoven's Third Symphony, November 22, 1963
It has gotten so I am no longer completely certain which memories are my own, and which are the ones that have been constructed for me over the years. However, I do still feel how horrific it all was, as a sensitive 4 year old it would have been nearly impossible to escape absorbing it all, on at least some level.
In this powerful slice of history, the announcement made by Erich Leinsdorf, and the collective gasp of the audience brought back that feeling of horror again.
The Funeral March from Beethoven's Third Symphony. The initial reaction to the news of a program change to the Third Symphony is interesting, yet another collective response, "Oh, no!" , which I would interpret as a plea to not go on.. Yet, go on they did.
How were the musicians able to play that beautiful, moving piece of music? The most passionate response as a musician to the supreme call to serve your country in its time of dire need is to play it strong and well; I suppose, to play it brilliant. To have been in that audience, to have a part in that slice of powerful history. In the presence of such stirring music, the body/bodies strung together through the sound; what a collective expression that must have been!
The radio microphones were present at a Boston Symphony Orchestra concert at an extraordinary moment in American history.
"On November 22, 1963, conductor Erich Leinsdorf was leading the regular Friday afternoon BSO concert at Symphony Hall. Before the program began, it had been reported across the nation that president John F. Kennedy had been shot by a sniper while riding in a motorcade in Dallas. It was known, too, that his injuries were serious, but that was all the information that was available."
"During the first half of the concert, what was feared became confirmed: Kennedy's wounds were fatal. Monitoring news reports backstage at Symphony Hall, orchestra officials determined to continue the concert, but with a change in the program. Librarians pulled orchestral parts to Beethoven's "Eroica" funeral march from the shelves and brought them down to the stage door. After learning of the tragedy himself backstage, Leinsdorf walked back onstage, relayed word to the audience, and led the BSO in a work in tribute to the nation's fallen leader."
more of the story from Bill Moyers
In this powerful slice of history, the announcement made by Erich Leinsdorf, and the collective gasp of the audience brought back that feeling of horror again.
The Funeral March from Beethoven's Third Symphony. The initial reaction to the news of a program change to the Third Symphony is interesting, yet another collective response, "Oh, no!" , which I would interpret as a plea to not go on.. Yet, go on they did.
How were the musicians able to play that beautiful, moving piece of music? The most passionate response as a musician to the supreme call to serve your country in its time of dire need is to play it strong and well; I suppose, to play it brilliant. To have been in that audience, to have a part in that slice of powerful history. In the presence of such stirring music, the body/bodies strung together through the sound; what a collective expression that must have been!
The radio microphones were present at a Boston Symphony Orchestra concert at an extraordinary moment in American history.
"On November 22, 1963, conductor Erich Leinsdorf was leading the regular Friday afternoon BSO concert at Symphony Hall. Before the program began, it had been reported across the nation that president John F. Kennedy had been shot by a sniper while riding in a motorcade in Dallas. It was known, too, that his injuries were serious, but that was all the information that was available."
"During the first half of the concert, what was feared became confirmed: Kennedy's wounds were fatal. Monitoring news reports backstage at Symphony Hall, orchestra officials determined to continue the concert, but with a change in the program. Librarians pulled orchestral parts to Beethoven's "Eroica" funeral march from the shelves and brought them down to the stage door. After learning of the tragedy himself backstage, Leinsdorf walked back onstage, relayed word to the audience, and led the BSO in a work in tribute to the nation's fallen leader."
more of the story from Bill Moyers
Monday, November 18, 2013
The wide angle lens
This morning's stunning, dramatic close encounter with what I now think was a sharp-shinned hawk has stayed with me all day. Two crows making a racket, the hawk out of my sight until it swooped past my parlor window, I saw the long tail that looked striped, and white belly underside, and it was smallish, so that's my best guess. Regardless, it's a wonder I was opening the curtains at just that exact time, or did the crows' racket draw me to the windows in the first place?
Once while walking along College Avenue in downtown happy valley at the start of a semester I was privy to a mesmerizing hawk encounter. On my way to a new English class outside of the Health and Human Development building a Red Tail dove in front of me and onto a smallish rabbit that was in a grassy space between the bushes and the building. As I walked around the bush, I could see the hawk working the rabbit, its sharp talons, beak being utilized in all the ways they are meant to be. I couldn't look away, and why should I? After what seemed a long time, but not long enough, this bird of prey drama a gift, I realized I was going to be late for this new, first class. I went inside and past the window where the hawk and rabbit were still embroiled. After another minute or so, the hawk, with the ragged rabbit in its talons, took off to somewhere out of my sight, and I moved on, breathless. Into the class, now 5 or so minutes late. The discussion turned to semantics and I could tell right off that this professor with a long history at PSU was going to be a bore. He would ask questions of students, and then cut into their answers with what he thought was wit and finesse. He did the same to me, I don't even remember the answer I gave, or the question. But as I sat there, listening, still vibrating from the energy of hawk and rabbit, it was clear this was not the class for me, and the hawk's dynamic appearance presaged a relationship that was not necessary for me to pursue. The mixed media sculpture class that I picked up instead was a delightful relationship, filled with many dynamic flights of fancy. (Yes, I really did use the term, flights of fancy, because I am corny and can't help myself sometimes.)
Another hawk with a something something, a dynamic and breathtaking experience. I am grateful for these majestic moments that take me out of the insanity that passes for reality, and smack dab into the center of the real world. Hawks and crows and rabbits, every time.
Once while walking along College Avenue in downtown happy valley at the start of a semester I was privy to a mesmerizing hawk encounter. On my way to a new English class outside of the Health and Human Development building a Red Tail dove in front of me and onto a smallish rabbit that was in a grassy space between the bushes and the building. As I walked around the bush, I could see the hawk working the rabbit, its sharp talons, beak being utilized in all the ways they are meant to be. I couldn't look away, and why should I? After what seemed a long time, but not long enough, this bird of prey drama a gift, I realized I was going to be late for this new, first class. I went inside and past the window where the hawk and rabbit were still embroiled. After another minute or so, the hawk, with the ragged rabbit in its talons, took off to somewhere out of my sight, and I moved on, breathless. Into the class, now 5 or so minutes late. The discussion turned to semantics and I could tell right off that this professor with a long history at PSU was going to be a bore. He would ask questions of students, and then cut into their answers with what he thought was wit and finesse. He did the same to me, I don't even remember the answer I gave, or the question. But as I sat there, listening, still vibrating from the energy of hawk and rabbit, it was clear this was not the class for me, and the hawk's dynamic appearance presaged a relationship that was not necessary for me to pursue. The mixed media sculpture class that I picked up instead was a delightful relationship, filled with many dynamic flights of fancy. (Yes, I really did use the term, flights of fancy, because I am corny and can't help myself sometimes.)
Another hawk with a something something, a dynamic and breathtaking experience. I am grateful for these majestic moments that take me out of the insanity that passes for reality, and smack dab into the center of the real world. Hawks and crows and rabbits, every time.
Saturday, November 16, 2013
Roasted Parsnips aka Tastebud Lovers
Roasted parsnips are one of the best things on the planet. Roasted and then re-fried til carmelized and crispy parsnips are one of the best things in the universe.
A couple of nights ago I roasted four parsnips cut into chunks with two large-ish peeled russet potatoes, a bit of olive oil, a bay leaf and about a tablespoon of brown mustard seeds. In a enameled, cast iron, heavy- lidded roasting pan. 350 for a bit over an hour. That first meal the veggies accompanied a half chicken breast, sprinkled with a mixture of herbs and gluten-free bread crumbs, drizzled with olive oil, placed atop 3 cloves of thin sliced garlic, and roasted in a separate open pan alongside the vegetables. An excellent meal, if I must say so. :)
The leftover potatoes were good sliced, as a salad, mixed with a pre-made orange/poppyseed dressing and some thinly sliced celery. Also nice.
Today I fried those parsnips in a pan with some thickly sliced onion and a link of fully cooked Andouille, also cut into chunks. Over white rice. A simple pairing of sweet and hot. A little salt, and the onion slowly sauteed until it still had a little bite.
In my opinion, of all the supreme treats of autumn, its roasted vegetables are hands-down a favorite.
A couple of nights ago I roasted four parsnips cut into chunks with two large-ish peeled russet potatoes, a bit of olive oil, a bay leaf and about a tablespoon of brown mustard seeds. In a enameled, cast iron, heavy- lidded roasting pan. 350 for a bit over an hour. That first meal the veggies accompanied a half chicken breast, sprinkled with a mixture of herbs and gluten-free bread crumbs, drizzled with olive oil, placed atop 3 cloves of thin sliced garlic, and roasted in a separate open pan alongside the vegetables. An excellent meal, if I must say so. :)
The leftover potatoes were good sliced, as a salad, mixed with a pre-made orange/poppyseed dressing and some thinly sliced celery. Also nice.
Today I fried those parsnips in a pan with some thickly sliced onion and a link of fully cooked Andouille, also cut into chunks. Over white rice. A simple pairing of sweet and hot. A little salt, and the onion slowly sauteed until it still had a little bite.
In my opinion, of all the supreme treats of autumn, its roasted vegetables are hands-down a favorite.
Friday, November 15, 2013
A Time-lapse horror story .. this map of the only world I know
http://memolition.com/2013/10/16/time-lapse-map-of-every-nuclear-explosion-ever-on-earth/
I probably shouldn't have viewed this, but I did. And now am sharing for your viewing too.
I warn you, it's unsettling. Yet, fascinating to watch, from the beginning all the way through. One of those 'train wreck' moments.
we're over the edge. such wicked humanity, scarred this exquisite planet and all of its creatures.
and still today it's a perfect autumn noon, with blue sky and sunshine, birds chirping, here where I sit, this moment, playing with the thought that peace prevails on earth and we are all opening our hearts and souls, where love can be the only answer.
I probably shouldn't have viewed this, but I did. And now am sharing for your viewing too.
I warn you, it's unsettling. Yet, fascinating to watch, from the beginning all the way through. One of those 'train wreck' moments.
we're over the edge. such wicked humanity, scarred this exquisite planet and all of its creatures.
and still today it's a perfect autumn noon, with blue sky and sunshine, birds chirping, here where I sit, this moment, playing with the thought that peace prevails on earth and we are all opening our hearts and souls, where love can be the only answer.
Thursday, November 14, 2013
In Case You Needed More Movies to Choose From
Oh heaven! what a site!
There are quite a few wonders listed here, a good many classics, and some real oddballs, too. Film!! All of it FREE.
See you at the movies ~
There are quite a few wonders listed here, a good many classics, and some real oddballs, too. Film!! All of it FREE.
See you at the movies ~
The Food Safety act that Will put us All in Danger
Legislation that contains the word safety in its title should also contain adequate provisions for people to be able to grow their own food, on whatever scale they deem fit to provide sustenance for themselves, in all its forms. If the backyard farmer wants a bit of tomato, pepper and basil; a large handful of cucumber vines for winter pickles; and a large patch of mixed greens for a first spring tonic she and the farmer who provides the same for others who do not have the ability or circumstance to do so for themselves should be equally PROTECTED under the law, not punished with outlandish fees and fines, and regulations that restrict their use of good and proven practices for growing.
The inane, scientifically illogical restriction on the use of compost and manures written into this piece of unhealthy legislation takes the cake. Healthy, sustainable, organic farming practices rely on the use of non-chemical fertilizers. This is a transparent ploy to again make us accountable to big business agriculture, the Cargill/Monsanto demon tag team.
As I sit here enjoying my hashed browns made with potato, onion and garlic grown by a family down the road and my eggs from chickens who share the same neighborhood air as me, I can be assured that my food source is safe. Much safer than anything that comes of this faulty and frivolous piece of proposed legislation. If you care about YOUR food source and your ability to be in control of how you feed yourself and your family, I suggest that you write, call, HOUND your legislators to do the right thing and not write off our ability to self-sustain. Thank you
FSMA fact sheet
Government site for comments
Government site for comments, 2
The inane, scientifically illogical restriction on the use of compost and manures written into this piece of unhealthy legislation takes the cake. Healthy, sustainable, organic farming practices rely on the use of non-chemical fertilizers. This is a transparent ploy to again make us accountable to big business agriculture, the Cargill/Monsanto demon tag team.
As I sit here enjoying my hashed browns made with potato, onion and garlic grown by a family down the road and my eggs from chickens who share the same neighborhood air as me, I can be assured that my food source is safe. Much safer than anything that comes of this faulty and frivolous piece of proposed legislation. If you care about YOUR food source and your ability to be in control of how you feed yourself and your family, I suggest that you write, call, HOUND your legislators to do the right thing and not write off our ability to self-sustain. Thank you
FSMA fact sheet
Government site for comments
Government site for comments, 2
Wednesday, November 13, 2013
diving privately into the hollow structure
These bones feel the shortening days seeping and diving
privately as they will, into their hollow structure.
Illuminating the ability
to withstand
whatever rises to meet me.
Outside, while the dark grows,
shadows stretch and play with the light.
privately as they will, into their hollow structure.
Illuminating the ability
to withstand
whatever rises to meet me.
Outside, while the dark grows,
shadows stretch and play with the light.
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