Rainy Day

It rained most of Sunday so I channeled Cat of the House and spent hours curled up in bed. I read a book cover to cover and re-energized by the relaxation, I tackled the hall closet.

The hall closet is where I keep all sorts of odds and ends-- Christmas decorations, a box of family photographs, yarn and fabric, out of season clothes. I try to go through it each year, getting rid of items, reorganizing the boxes so they fit better.

Little by little I am getting rid of superfluous junk to create more open space. It seems that energy flows more freely through the house when there are fewer piles of papers and homeless items for it to get snagged on.

Yum yum!

On Sunday I baked four sweet potatoes. Two we ate for dinner. Last night, I heated up one of them while I sauteed some freshly picked Swiss chard in garlic with Kalamata olives and red onion. I sliced open the sweet potato and spooned the chard mixture over it, drizzling it with red wine vinegar and a sprinkle of feta cheese. It was an ultra easy healthy dinner that was absolutely delicious!

As I told a fellow bus rider last night, it is so helpful to have a repertoire of easy dishes. I had originally planned a more elaborate meal, but Man of the House had had a big, late lunch and wasn't interested in a full meal. I didn't feel like cooking so much just for myself, so having a fall back option worked just fine. And it turned out to be pretty darn yummy.

Thrifty

On Saturday, Man of the House and I attended a luncheon downtown for a foundation we're involved with. After the event, it was still early so we decided to thrift for a few hours.

I love the element of serendipity of thrift stores. You never know what you're going to find, although I've noticed that if you are searching for something, you'll rarely see it, until you've found it. Then you'll see the object of your earlier search every time you enter a thrift store!

I did find a few objects I had been looking for-- kneeling pads for when I work in the garden, a dozen pint jars, a small jar for when I make sun tea. I like the idea of reusing items instead of buying new but even more, I enjoy the thrill of the hunt. The mall simply doesn't hold the same sense of adventure.

More old "friends"

Man of the House called me on my commute yesterday to advise me of a small domestic tragedy. The nearly 50 year old Farberware coffee percolator Mom had given me quietly stopped working. It has been a faithful morning companion, cheerfully perking coffee every day. My mother gave it to me because I was disgusted with the short lifespans of my coffeemakers, several not even lasting a year.

I shared the story with my bus seatmate. Tim is a kindred spirit who proudly covers his bed with 40 year old woolen blankets and eats with the silverware his parents got as a wedding gift in 1957 so he understood my sadness. We agreed that having such long time companions adds a sense of continuity and history to our lives. He suggested that the coffeepot be turned into a flowerpot in my garden.

But I am not ready to let go. When I got home I surfed the Net and found a resource for parts. Man of the House is going to take the little coffee pot apart this weekend and I am hoping that it just needs a new heating element. Maybe we can get another 50 years of service out of it. I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

They're coming out of the woodwork

Now that word is getting out that I can, I'm starting to get requests for treats. One of my comadres, whom I've known for nearly 20 years, recently revealed that she adores anything pickled and hinted heavily that she would love to receive some dilly beans and pickled beets. Another friend, when I casually mentioned I had put up dilly beans the weekend before, grew visibily excited and asked if I was going to give pickled veggies as Christmas presents. He has fond memories of his grandmother's pickles and hasn't had any in years.

Last weekend I met up with a friend and brought three jars: lemon marmalade, pickled beets and dilly beans. Sometimes people are a little hesitant about the safety of homemade goods, so I gave him a lecture on acidity and water vs. pressure canning to show I know my stuff and he doesn't have to worry about being poisoned. He wasn't too concerned. He was already coming up with a plan for glazing a chicken breast with the marmalade and baking it.