Green Tea for my Soul

Wool Leaves

JKO — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 20:48:30 +0000

This project was a trial run for a baby blanket that I plan to make for Michelle and Jonah, who are expecting their first baby mid-summer. I used “Wool Leaves” by Jared Flood and really like the way it turned out, even with cheap yarn. Now I’m just waiting for the new batch of baby-soft yarn to come in the mail!

Pickled Garlic!

JKO — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 06:19:35 +0000

When a new batch of cucumber of green bean pickles “matures,” I always go straight for the yummy cloves of garlic that float at the top of the brine. They’re probably my favorite part of the whole home-canned pickle experience. So, instead of getting a few measly cloves out of each jar, I decided to pickle some garlic by itself. I used the the pickled garlic recipe from a canning book that I received as a Christmas gift. We’ll see how it turns out in a few weeks!

family

JKO — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 20:24:33 +0000

I don’t think I quite understand old sayings like “you can pick your friends, but you can’t pick your family” or “blood is thicker than water” or even “you can pick your friends, you can pick your nose, but you’re can’t pick your friends nose.”

I understand how blood used to be thicker than water, when tribes had to stick together or be eaten by lions. I also get that when you’re a kid, you have to play with the hand you’re dealt when it comes to parents and siblings. But I’m at a complete loss to how extended family should function in the post-modern world. What inspires a sense of family loyalty or an effort to keep in touch throughout our adult lives? Are the bonds that (are supposed to) form during childhood enough to span decades? I’m looking for, but can’t find, a cultural framework to navigate this part of being human.

We live, we grow, we travel, and we choose. We don’t have to settle our differences or reconcile past conflicts because, really, we never have to see each other. Does that make us better off or somehow socially impoverished? We choose the village that will raise our children. Would they be happier knowing those who share their genetic make-up? Is it worthwhile to labor through dysfunctional family relationships simply because “blood is thicker than water?”

No, really, I honestly have no idea.

Yummy for 2012

JKO — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 05:55:41 +0000

My first canning endeavor of the new year was citrus marmalade. I used this recipe from UC Davis’ agriculture department and it turned out much better than last year’s attempt with citrus. Working with Liz made the project even more fun!

valley living

JKO — Sat, 10 Sep 2011 19:36:57 +0000

Ever since our good friends, Jonah and Michelle, told us they were moving back up to Calvin Crest, I’ve been wistfully remembering our mountain days. I miss things like having “real” seasons, walking through the clean snow just before sunrise, listening to the coyotes at bedtime and taking long walks through the forest. There is just something so special about quiet mountain living. I first moved to the Sierras to escape a home-life that was destroying my body with anxiety and depression. While there I read the Brother’s Karamozov for the first time, drank lots of tea, had many wonderful conversations and decided to get married. Our time in Big Bear Lake was about learning how to be happy, how to be a family, and how to survive on ramen noodles. I think often about all the hours spent absentmindedly gazing over a field of wildflowers or the lake with a big mug of tea.

And then today, teaching a class of preschoolers on a Saturday morning, I catch sight of myself. Mug in hand (green tea, of course), leaning back on the counter watching tulle-clad four-year olds attempt “the silliest dance ever.”

This isn’t mountain living, but it ain’t bad living either.

saying goodbye to summer

JKO — Tue, 06 Sep 2011 20:29:27 +0000

Two years ago, right about this time, we bought a house and for the first time in my life I became one of those special people– the elect, really, who possess central air conditioning. Probably one of the best choices in my life (though I suppose I should wonder if central air conditioning actually chose me). Either way, blessed air conditioning and unseasonably cool summertime weather has made this summer less angst-ridden than some summers past. Last Tuesday I spent the morning cleaning, organizing and mentally preparing for the new dance season. The students always seem so young in the fall and the task of making a personal connection with 150+ dancers seems enormous at this stage of the game.

Still, it’s good to be back in the routine…

JKO — Fri, 12 Aug 2011 06:12:54 +0000

I’ve found that some days there just aren’t enough deep breaths in the world…

Food in Jars

JKO — Thu, 11 Aug 2011 20:38:20 +0000

Two canning projects:
Pasta sauce and plain tomatoes!

in living color

JKO — Tue, 28 Jun 2011 20:06:35 +0000

A fun picture from last week’s major project:

the good life

JKO — Tue, 14 Jun 2011 03:11:44 +0000

Happiness sorta sneaks up on you, but then again, it doesn’t.

I think about the hundreds of little ways we choose whether or not to nurture happiness. The friends with whom we share our lives, the paths we take (literally and metaphorically), the food we eat, the hours we keep… and I realize more deeply each day that happiness is hard work.

A labor of love, perhaps?