Monday, January 9 - Birthday is over. I'm really 71 now with no more celebrating. Except for the celebration of each day of life. My guiding word for several years has been LIGHT. As the new year begins, daylight increases each day. It can be hard to see on the cold and dreary days of January, but it is there! This year, I will add JOY to my daily meditation. I will look for JOY each day. Jesus said "Seek and you shall find."
The first event of the day was a UMW meeting at the Boys & Girls Club, just down in the street in the gym of the former Central UMC. We had an informative program and tour and appreciated even more the great work being done there for young people in our community. We discussed afterward how we might help beyond the monetary contribution we make each year, by volunteering and/or providing space for extra programs like cooking class.
After a trip to the grocery, I was home long enough to prepare some wings and potatoes for the football game that we will watch with the Brocks later. But before that, I had to go back to church for and Admin Council meeting. We enjoyed our wings, potatoes and veggie dippers during the first half of the game, then came home to watch the rest. Good, busy day.
Tuesday Claire had another round of infusion treatment in the afternoon. I took her to lunch before at Chuy's on Kingston Pike before dropping her off. I went to Birds Unlimited to stock up on Bird Seed, then on to Whole Foods to get some beets and other produce. They did not have their salmon or other fish on sale.
Wednesday I planned to bake bread. That meant I needed to start promptly in the morning to have it ready for the final rise by 1 pm. That worked out. I decided to try a room temperature rise instead of in the refrigerator. Claire had her last treatment today. I had an email notice that Whole Food had put their King Salmon on sale, so I went all the way back and bought a whole side filet. It would have been $100 if not for the 25% discount. I also picked up some chicken thighs on sale. Wish I had waited and not made 2 trips. Claire finished early, so I was home earlier that past days.
My bread spread out more than it rose, always a disappointment. It is very good and light, though. I used the new 8-in pans and I don't think that was the problem. I will go back to the refrigerator rise next time. The four loaves will last a couple of weeks and provide healthy accompaniment to our meals - flour, water, yeast-starter are the only ingredients, no fat or sugar or preservative or binders, etc.
Sometime during the day I had time to list the birds at the feeders. They were very happy to have a bountiful supply of seeds. I even saw a yellow-shafted flicker, not a common visitor. My usual visitors were Carolina Chickadees (12+), Tufted Titmouse (12+), House Finch (12+), Goldfinch (12+), White-throated sparrow (5+), Cardinal, (6+) Wren (2), Mourning Dove (6), Downy Woodpecker (2), Red-breasted Woodpecker (1), Blue-Jay (2+), Red-winged Blackbirds, (12+). Starlings (20+).
Thursday we were predicted to have rain and storms off and on all day and they were right! I was so glad that my dental appointment was cancelled. I would have been on the road in the worst of it. Instead, I decided that this would be a good day to dismantle the Christmas decorations. Bill went to the storage unit to get the boxes while I started un-decorating the tree. By 3 pm, everything was down, packed and returned to storage. I hoped the rain was finished because I had a Girls Night Out planned at Aubrey's in Lenoir City with Susan, Bonnie and Judith. We were able to meet, eat, drink, talk and laugh. How blessed to be with friends, Sunday, Monday, and Thursday!
Friday the 13th! Good thing I'm not superstitious. I did not have to go out on this typical cold gray January day. I had time to do my yoga practice and enjoyed watching the birds at the feeder. I started making Ukrainian Borscht. I say started because today I cooked the port butt with onions and seasoning to make a broth and provide pulled pork for the soup. The meat and strained broth will cool overnight in the refrigerator and I'll finish it tomorrow. Friday night calls for steak! I used some of the beets to make a very delicious side dish.
Saturday started with a dusting of snow on some surfaces which quickly disappeared. We had sun later, but not much warming. It was a good day for laundry, cooking and more bird-watching.
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| Barely a dusting of snow. |
I had to fill the feeders again. Many hungry little birds empty them quickly. Today, a Brown-headed Nuthatch and a Song Sparrow made their appearance, the first of this season. I had plenty of time to watch the birds while we watched the Tenn men's basketball game.
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| Beautiful Song Sparrow |
Making the borscht was quite a process - shredding about 5 cups of cabbage, a large beet (8+ ounces), and two carrots and chopping one onion and dicing a pound of potatoes. First the onions were sauteed until translucent, then cabbage added and cooked down, then beets & carrots added and cooked down, then a can of tomato paste and the seasonings. Finally, all this added to the hot broth in which the potatoes had been cooking. Last was the addition of the shredded meat with a splash of lemon juice and minced dill. Yes it turned out great! The recipe as written made a little more than four quarts of soup. I shared one quart with the Brocks and we ate one for supper. A quart plus 12 ounces are in the freezer and some leftovers for lunch are in the frig. If I make it again, I will be tempted to just throw everything in the crock pot and cook it overnight.
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| Extra-good served with a dollop of Greek yogurt and a dusting of fresh dill. |
Sunday began with Sunday School and I was late as usual. I'll have to think about why this is the only event that I'm consistently late arriving. I enjoy the preparation, the teaching and the people.
Today's discussion was based on I Corinthians 1:1-9 and the theme was that the church is rich with all the spiritual gifts that are needed. My challenge was that we all find and develop our gifts, and that studying scripture is necessary to the process of spiritual growth. The other point is that as individuals we do not have all the spiritual gifts, but that collectively we do. Let us hold up and encourage one another on our journey.
I try not to work too hard, even at cooking, on Sunday, so I am planning take-out Mexican. We are expecting Amanda for supper and to spend the night. She will also be with us overnight Monday and Tuesday. Laura and Mike left Friday for a 25th wedding anniversary trip to Cancun (January 2, 1998). Claire returned to Murphreesboro on Saturday to get settled in before classes resume for her 2nd and last semester at MTSU. Amanda had a friend overnight with her last night (Mom approved). She will make do with us the rest of the time. She has a holiday tomorrow for MLK day, so we are planning waffles for a special Monday breakfast.
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| Laura and Mike's hangout in Cancun |
PS. Add Pine Warbler and Dark-eyed Junco to the bird list this week.
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