skiing

I have a friend who has two kids and a handful of grandkids. Some live in Wisconsin, the rest in Hawaii. The whole family likes to ski and so once a year they meet up at some midpoint destination (Utah for example) for a few days of skiing. I asked her recently -- how are the grandkids at skiing? She said -- well, the Wisconsin kids are great. The Hawaii one? What can I say, he lives in Hawaii and skis only once a year.

I thought immediately that Snowdrop is heading in that direction. Twice now I've taken her skiing, with a year's break in between. Oh, she's making progress alright. At a snail's pace.

For those of you who don't know Wisconsin's topography -- we do have hills of a reasonable (if perhaps modest) size. And we have skiing facilities. Limited, but running the range, from green to black trails. What Snowdrop and her family do not have is time. And motivation: since her parents do not ski, it's not a family activity, and so the idea of skiing gets pushed to the side. You might ask -- why doesn't at least her mom ski -- after all, that's my daughter we're talking about. Well, I did take her skiing a few times, and she went with groups of friends as well, but it's an expensive sport and my then husband was not a winter sports guy, so it never caught on.

After Snowdrop's days with Matthieu in Saint Martin de Belleville, I decided I need to take on this project at home: get the girl on skis at least a couple of times here, in Wisconsin.

Then came the weather issues. That we have no snow is not necessarily an impediment. Snow making machines are standard on ski slopes. But honestly, it's been too cold! And I have just one day in the week when she is with me without Sparrow (who believe me, is not a champion of winter sports). To say nothing of her other evening activities -- ballet, violin, Shakespeare. Where's the free time exactly? All good intentions slipped away.

Until today.

I don't care that it's still, well, kind of cold. (High of 21F/-6C) She has a clean day. No activities. Sparrow is not with us today. It's now or never.

 

The day begins slowly. I'm thinking about, reading about people and cats. Let's first consider the easier of the two: cats.

When I head out to feed the animals, I see that the chickens are out of their barn shelter. They're not happy with the cold, but I suppose the slight upswing in temps is a good motivator to start roaming. Even though it can be a painful trek through the snow and icy paths.

The cats are more adept at navigating winter terrain. And they do navigate it: they're all out this morning. And they're primed for confrontation. Tuxie, the sweetest little girl from the sheep shed, is nearly always a target: she has been chased and clobbered by nearly all of them. Why? This gentle spirit deserves a cuddle not a clobber.

I talk abou the cat squabbles over breakfast.

Ed shrugs. It's cat dynamics: one minute they chase each other and get into a brawl, the next they're rubbing cheeks. 

I've never seen Tuxie chase anyone. She's always the one who is bullied by the rest! Lately she has been trying to come to the farmhouse porch, closer to where we hang out -- always to be snarled at and chased out by the others.

Ed is nonplussed. It's just cats.

I know it's just cats! It's an aspect of cat behavior I dont happen to like. And because every negative comparison comes down to a reference to Hitler, I add -- it's just people behind the Nazi party, but I don't have to like or even tolerate the fact that there are Nazi supporters in this world.

Which of course brings me to Elon Musk, who does support the far right party in Germany. And don't tell me they are not Nazis -- if you do, I'll ask you to listen to this very smart and at the same time very funny 8 minute video, with a gifted link from me -- here. 

Did you watch it? I of course belong to that post war generation that grappled with how to talk about World War II and the Holocaust. It's interesting that in the video clip, we learn that Germany took on the burden of its past in a round the clock fashion. 24/7. I honestly did not feel that presence of its recent history the few times I visited Berlin. (I even wrote about this on Ocean.) I thought it had moved on much more than my own country had. The slogan oft repeated in the video -- "Never Again" -- was in fact plastered all over my classroom walls. In Polish. It was the only classroom decoration. We did not put aside our memories of the war, albeit we were selective in the way we remembered it. We left out details.

Can you see how it rattles a postwar Polish born person, to see Musk giving a Nazi salute, or to hear Vance admonishing the German nation for hesitating to give fascists a seat at the table? To hear that Russian aggression on Ukrainian soil was somehow the fault of the Ukrainians? Where were you two in the 1940s and 1950s anyway? Oh, I see. Not born yet. Birthdays in the 1970s and 1980s. You naive, insensitive fools. (And that's being kind.)

 

The sun is out. I pack up some foods to nourish a hungry Snowdrop and I drive over to pick her up after school. From there, we are off to Tyrol Basin. Just 29 minutes from her school!

This is a hill for Madisonians who want to keep up their ski habit. I signed Snowdrop up for a lesson and by 3:30-ish, she is on the slopes.

(one long magic carpet...)

 

 (down an empty slope)

 

I suppose I could have skied as well, but it really is a bit nippy out there and a ride up on a chair lift is not my idea of fun right now. Even though it is completely empty. I'd have the hills virtually to myself. Still, I'm not committed to going back to the sport. It's risky. I'm not sure it's worth it. I dont need a second busted knee, or a broken rib from a hellishly out of control snowboarder. So I wait inside. 

 

(dusk on the slopes)

 

(done and happy!)

 

 

I ask her on the drive home how her lesson here compares to the ones in France. (From my own observations, it looked like her instructor today pushed her less, though definitely paying attention to technique. Both French guys were all about having her do more, shrugging off her hesitation.)

She tells me all were fine, but Matthieu from Saint Martin de Belleville, was her favorite. So funny and playful! We had snowball fights! 

We drive home after sunset. The landscape west of Madison is gently hilly and the snow cover from last week's snowfalls looks absolutely lovely in the fading light. Even Snowdrop is enchanted!

 

At home I come back to my now defrosted fish. The cats lick their chomps in delighted anticipation. They're on their best behavior. Manipulative felines! Ah well, you were all feral once. I suppose it stays with you, even when you're in a warm house, with comfy cushions and dishes piled with salmon skins!

with love...

 

what we have

Just a few days ago, that post title may have read "what we have lost." Maybe I would have added, for clarity "what we have lost in America." Today? I have a wealth of headings that come to mind: the one that I gave you, with perhaps this addition, for clarity: "what we have in America." Or "the other side." No, not "the other side of the ocean" (remember when that was the name of this blog?) but "the other side of America." Or, looking at it from another angle, I could have revived the well known saying "if it bleeds it leads."

You've been reading a lot I'm sure, in the press and in the comments of a frustrated public. About Congress's limp response to Musk/Trump bulldozing of America. How ostensibly the Democrats are wallowing in their election debacle, seemingly at a loss as to how to react. And, of course, the news feeds have been full of stories about Musk/Trump arrogance, plundering, destroying, gleefully taking control of a country that was once considered a shining example of democratic governance. So of course, you're left with the feeling that we no longer are who we once were, or at least wanted to be. I've written about it here: it's easy to feel ashamed, on the world stage for sure, at home -- even more so. How could we let this happen?

But this morning I'm thinking about that other side. And in support of this perspective, let me reintroduce you to Andy Borowitz -- an author, a humorist -- someone who happens to write from that "other side," and whose newsletter cheers me up and makes me laugh every single morning (I highly recommend subscribing to him -- you can pay, or you can read him for free -- just look for the Borowitz Report). Today he writes about the greatness of that other side. Politicians who are far more savvy and smart than, um, ones who are charging ahead with a wrecking ball. [You doubt this? Consider names such as Jamie Raskin, AOC, Katie Porter, Adam Kinzinger, Liz Warren, Beto O'Rourke, Pete Buttigieg, JB Pritzker, Gretchen Whitmer, Letita James, Raphael Warnock, David Hogg, Chris Murphy, Stacy Abrams, oh I could keep adding! Which political party should be trembling right now -- the one with mostly grumpy old white men who can't stand up to an autocrat, along with their side kick -- screaming Marjorie Taylor Greene, or the one with these sharp as a whistle new generation politicians on the other side?]

No matter what your politics, you have to recognize this truly American strength: our form of governance allows for strong leaders to emerge across the spectrum. We really are a nation of states. And it's too easy to forget that there is a lot of Democrat talent out there -- brilliant talent, that's not hiding in the bushes. Again, don't read this as a propaganda piece -- I'm not pushing an ideology here, but simply pointing out that we do have very smart, very strong people working in support of a constitutional democracy. The headlines don't remind us of it. So I will.

You gotta love a guy like Jamie Raskin (Maryland Congressman), who is quoted as saying --  Given that I was marching at age three, you know I’m not letting any coup-plotting, election-denying, insurrection-supplying autocrat, kleptocrat, plutocrat or theocrat, or any techno-feudalist Silicon Valley broligarch aspiring dictator, turn me around now. I am going to honor and participate every day in this urgent national fight for strong constitutional democracy, personal freedom and social progress. 

It makes me proud.

And, too, it makes me smile.

 

As does the weather: we are starting the climb up. Still in freezing territory. It's going to be a slow climb. But it is a climb!

 

The morning goes quickly. Breakfast, with Ed, during which we discuss how little we know about the future (this is perhaps a positive: it is not a given that we will topple under the weight of what is happening).

Dance participates: she reminds us that tulips are awesome!

And I spend the rest of the morning Zooming with Bee. She makes me appreciate what it means to be a European, let alone Polish right now. You have to feel their pain as our leadership is charmed by Putin. Putin! How utterly stupid can you be!

 

In the afternoon I pick up the kids...

... and yes, if it's Wednesday it must be ice cream day. The weather notwithstanding.

 

All goes well until it's time to fix dinner. The fish didn't defrost, so I reach for eggs, scramble them up, with mushrooms, and a salad, and I call it a meal. What can I say -- you can't be on top of everything in your day. Some things must slide. Though I have to say -- our hens lay fantastically wonderful eggs!

with love...

time to change

Funny how you can love new things, yet hate to change old habits. That's my thought for this morning. Here's what lead me to it:

I get up very early and it is very cold. As in very many degrees below freezing. Perhaps the coldest day of the year. Nonetheless, the wind chills did not hit the magic mark of -30F (-34C), so schools remained open. Still, when I go out to feed the animals at sunrise, I feel the sharp needles of freezing air hit my face. Yep, cold.

And yet, the cardinal is up on the crab, singing away.

I am in a hurry: I have an 8am PT appointment. I'm back with my post knee replacement surgery super hero -- David (the therapist). David guided me through the exercises nearly two years ago and as a result of his expert help, I can now bend that darn knee almost fully (he remains impressed by this!). When my doc said I needed therapy for my other, non-replaced knee, I did not sign up for just anyone -- I wanted David. I had to wait four months for an appointment, but it was worth it! The guy is a walking bank of knowledge on the human body.

But this is not why I am just tickled to pieces by today's visit: sure, I get my knee exercises set up, sure I will do them to postpone any surgical work on my second knee. But while there, I ask him as well if he ever worked with people who have what I have -- occipital neuralgia. (It's when your head nerves are inflamed so you have all sorts of unwelcome head issues.) And he has! Well now, forget the knee (for the moment)! How do I get rid of this incredibly annoying and persistent problem? David tells me -- try the lazy way first: just change your reading/writing habits.

He takes a ball -- the size of a soccer ball -- and has me hold it. It's weighted at ten pounds. That's close to the weight of your head. Heavy, right? You lean it forward and you're putting a lot of pressure on your neck and head muscles, which in turn pinch your nerves. Hence the occipital neuralgia.

It took my hero PT guy to explain how to better position myself for a life without weird head sensations. I felt buoyed! I felt jubilant! Suddenly an unsolvable problem appears to have a fantastically simple  solution! 

Until I come home and try changing my habits. 

It should be simple, really. All I have to do is not bend my head forward (which I do to read and write on my laptop). So, lift the computer, maybe get a separate keyboard for it. Just don't look down.  Easy peasy, right?

Oh god is it hard! It's as if my whole body is yearning for that laptop to be ... on my lap! I want it there, not up high (so that I can keep my head on top of my spine where it belongs). Why couldn't we have evolved to conform to life's new demands (of a lap top on your lap!)? 

I tell Ed that the problem is with sitting on a couch and leaning forward. He considers this. In the evening he suggests rearranging the furniture so that the second lesser couch is against a wall. That way I can prop up a pillow to support my head. The cats hate this new furniture arrangement (they do not like change). The kids wont like it much either (they do not like change) when they see it tomorrow. But I'm giving it a go. It is worth it. (And if you dont want to pinch your nerves or aggravate them, heed David's warning -- keep that head straight, eyes forward, none of this leaning down on your neck!

 

Breakfast is very late. After my PT, I had to wash the car. Normal people do not do this when it is so very cold, but that's exactly why I was at the car wash -- there were no lines. 

And I picked up some treats at Tati's coffee shop and Ed and I have a lovely breakfast that still fits within the parameters of a morning meal. But just barely.

In the afternoon I go off to pick up the kids. Sparrow tells me -- I didn't recognize your car! It's usually so dirty! Hey, blame the salty roads, little guy!

Yes, it's cold. They seem not to notice it. Kids...

We read. Sparrow abandons his pretense of indifference and joins Snowdrop and me on the couch. Snowdrop, as usual, cannot stand not knowing the ending. She peeks. I remind her I don't want to know! She tells me anyway.

Is there anything as great as reading books together with kids? On a freezing day?

And in the evening I once again bring out the leftovers. Chicken, sliced into a salad. And, as I said -- we move around furniture. And pillows for support. Easy fixes... Dont you just wish there were always easy fixes out there for life's intractable problems...

with love...

blast

We wake up to -5F (-21C), only we read that it feels like -14F (-26C) because of the wind. 

I do not rush to get out of bed, let alone go outside to feed the animals.

Instead, we stay upstairs and read, Ed lost in his next machine design, me -- well, picking up the threads of current news stories.

Morning thoughts? I can't help but think that history will look back at this period and it will not look kindly on us. Bad enough that we allowed this (nay, voted for it, so we asked for this!) to take place in our own country, wrecking, destroying, gloating, but it seems we are also awfully good at exporting our smug belligerent attitude of a bullying out of control emperor run amuck, hell bent on spitting fire on (former) friends and ravaged by war, disaster and disease people with whom we share this planet. History will judge us harshly. 

It's a gorgeous day.... to stay inside.

Still, those animals....

I head out.

(This is what I would call a stare-down: Tuxie is afraid of getting near the chicken. The chicken is afraid of getting near anyone. Who will prevail??)

(It even looks cold!)

 

Breakfast -- we should hunker down with oatmeal, but the granola is so good!

And then I do more reading. Yes, about politics, but, too, travel -- these two carry me through the day when I have free time. (Taxes will have to wait -- I haven't the stomach for them today.) And I do have time because the kids are off from school with supervision elsewhere. And it's good reading. Yes, I am properly horrified by the bullying venom coming out of the billionaire's mouth and the hateful speech is generates on his favorite platform, but I will not allow myself to get riled up about it. Making people angry -- that's his agenda, not mine. Instead, I try to stay focused on the facts -- what's being done and with what consequences for whom. Right now, all I can do is stay informed and think about a few what ifs, but not too many. One day at a time.

That's politics for you. My second reading theme is in fact a superb counter to the dismal news. I read about food and travel. And I have a link for you if you are at all planning trips for yourself, for your family! Here it is: 50 tips on better travel. I'm not sure I agree with all of them, but I do find them all to be good food for thought. The author has had (he says) 53 years of travel experience. I've had more (meaning I'm older!) and yet it's never enough. You're always learning what fits your mode, your mindset, what triggers the best reflection and reaction. And lets not forget this -- what makes you happy! [Sometimes I watch tour groups straining to hear the bored words of a guide as they push their way through crowded star attractions and I think -- who in that group is happy? Or, I listen to the rundown of the famous places that must be checked off in cities that do indeed have very many famous places and it strikes me as so insane. Are you having fun yet??]

Italians have a name for a way to get to enjoyment: Slow Food, Slow Travel. I think both need no explanation.

 (at home, my December amaryllis plant decided to spring another bud and deliver more flowers!)

 

 

(looking out the kitchen window: lots of deer passing through)

 

 

In the late afternoon I shuffle Snowdrop from her Shakespeare play rehearsal to her dance class. After the drop off, I find myself close to the grocery store and so I do my shopping for the week. There is something special about filling your cart in the evening hours. The store isn't empty, but it is somehow peaceful. Perhaps after a long day people are not in a hurry. And of course, every last item looks delicious, because you're hungry. 

At home, I reheat leftovers -- a Monday tradition here, at the farmhouse. We add a quilt to the couch, not because the house is cold, but because it is so freezing out there that you feel chilled just thinking about it! I wonder if schools will close tomorrow -- the morning temp is to be -13F (-25C) and that's before factoring in the winds. But you know, further north it will be even colder and hey, after this week, we are moving ever so closer to spring.

Did I ever tell you how much I love spring?

with love...

Sunday

It's cold, but it will be colder, and besides, there we do get some sunshine! And don't forget about the snow! We've got it!

I had two tasks for this day. Both require gobs of time and neither is likely to be finished, but I had to start in on one of them. I chose the one that's a tiny bit more fun: putting together a photo book. (The other? begin unraveling the tax stuff.)

I use Blurb and Book Wright for photo books. It's not intuitive, unless you use both frequently and I don't use them frequently. Getting started is always frustrating and getting to the end is even more frustrating because it always takes longer than you think it should. I oftentimes wont even edit the final product, I am that tired of it. Still, I have a chunk of hours and I cannot devote yet another day to trip reshuffling (although I would like to!). 

First, though, the animals. I tell them that they will have to put up with the winds and the cold for just a couple more days. I truly think we're nearing the end of wintry cold weather. 

But, they stare at me incomprehensibly and demand their food. Fine, go for it.

On Sundays, I try to tidy things around odd corners of the house. And this is the day I water the plants -- here and in the sheep shed. My orchids, which I over-winter there are splendid as always and they bloom for months on end.

Here, the over-wintered plants are variously healthy. Some are crying out for more sunshine. Others are happy to take what they have. (The tulip bulbs are past their bloom, but I like them even in their spent state. So does Dance.)

And now it's breakfast time with Ed and my flowers. They're a little rough around the edges (sort of like Ed!), but I don't mind. 

And I lose myself in the photo book project. 

We almost do not go out this afternoon, but oh, am I glad that in the end we gave ourselves a push to take our skis to our local park. Yes, it's cold, but the sunshine is just splendid. I cannot tell you how many times I tell Ed that this luxury of having a county park nearby is just beyond awesome. 

Back at the farmhouse, I put away my laptop and head for the kitchen. Sunday dinner is back on the calendar. For these guys:

And this is how a whole day passes without too many glances at the news out there. Yes, I felt the gloom with the radio on at meal prep time. Yes, I read opinions about the spineless Congress protecting their skin but ceding their power. About the budget of cuts, and of benefits for those who are doing the cuts. Yes, my blood boiled for just a little. But I let it all simmer and drift away today. It's Sunday: time to regroup and get strength for the week ahead! Right?

Right.

with love...

Valentine's Day redux!

Well isn't it nice when you get your sleep, the temps go up to a decent winter level, you move your body a lot, flowers arrive, and you have nothing more urgent on your plate for the day than a ski outing with your sweetie, and time to reconfigure (yet again!) some future travel adventures? Yes it is.

Sure, I did begin the day with reading news and commentary to the news and commentary to the commentary. But then I put it aside. For a good many hours. And the day unfolded in the gentlest manner. And I fell captive to its seductive quiet. Peace reigned in the farmhouse.

I do have some photos, because a lot of snow fell last night and it of course brightened the landscape considerably, even if it was not a sunny day.

I had scheduled an early grocery delivery and Ed was sleeping in today. The driveway, therefore, remained snow covered. I could have woken him. Or, I could have heaved open the door to the shed where we keep the blower, which I sort of know how to operate. But instead, I chose to hand shovel the entire driveway on my own. I know at my age I should take care, but I felt energetic and the snow wasn't that heavy, so I went at it. Yeah!

Breakfast (still with the old flowers, but with my Valentine sweetie!)

(I glanced out the window and noticed that it was snowing again -- just enough to cover some bare spots, not enough to undo my driveway efforts.)

 

We returned briefly to The Topic, but Ed was in a fairly upbeat mood (he rarely goes up or down, but his machine design is going so well that he actually is tipping upwards these days!). His response to my report on news stories? Well, when Obama was elected, gun sales skyrocketed. He seems to have scared some people. Now, with Trump, gun sales are down again, so that's a good thing. On the other hand, anxieties about the Constitution are high. Maybe we'll get lucky and our fears will be for nothing.

Okay, I'll stay with that for the day.

Of course we go skiing. Of course we do! To the forest! 

And then I'm back with my scheming and planning. I am so very aware that my travels may be receding as the years progress and the body twitches and the worries multiply. And so every trip becomes important and deserves full consideration. (Or let's face it -- I just really do love the process of scheming and rearranging!)

In the evening I cook cabbage soup. A real central European dish very much at odds with the predinner drink -- champagne! (I had opened a half bottle of champagne yesterday and my drinking behavior is such these days that I much remains. Besides, it's Valentine's Day redux!)

Oh, and the much delayed flowers finally arrived and despite their torture (remaining on the truck in the cold for all those days), they seem to have survived.

Such a good day. And yes, I am so very grateful for all that went well for us today!

with so much love...

Happy Valentine's Day?

Yes it is!

Despite  a very slow start to the festivities. 

There was the night. Sleepless again. I may be reading too much, but in the middle of the night I decided I am not doing enough. Doing what, you ask? Well, advance planning in case things tumble with the speed of a rolling stone. I talk to Ed about this (yes, in the middle of the night). I mean, I'm one of those ancient types who is living off of a government social security check, and a state government pension check, and some savings invested in the market. No gold bullion under my mattress. And not much diversification And a heavy reliance on a functional government bureaucracy! There's not room for error here. So, I spin and fret and bug Ed, even though he keeps saying "go to sleep." 

I did want a nice breakfast today. I planned to have extra nice flowers delivered yesterday. Each year I pick one treat: sometimes chocolates, sometimes flowers, sometimes bubbly wine... this year I threw in my dice behind flowers. 

They did not arrive.

Not yesterday, not this morning. Many apologies from the flower people but hey, you cannot decorate your morning table with apologies. Ah well, I have the grocery store bouquet and though it's old, it's still nice.

I feed the animals. It is cold. Very cold.

To add warmth to our morning Valentine's Day meal, I bake my VERY BEST blueberry muffins.

And while I'm baking, Ed gets a call from the people working on his machining design. It's an important call: the project is nearing completion and they have a bunch of good test results coming in, so I don't blame him for taking the call. I mean, it will be nice to put the new model into production if the company stays afloat (you know -- despite the market chaos). Still, I ate our special Valentine's Day breakfast without my goofy Valentine.

And then I went back to reading the news, ostensibly to stay informed, but of course, I am, if anything, too informed. So much so that I can't sleep at night. And it's too cold to go skiing or walking or to do anything outdoors, and don't tell me that it's all in the clothes -- stepping out feels... cold.

 

Here's where things turn around a bit: in the warm quiet of our living room, I thought about how good these years have been for me. How many kind people there are in my everyday. How luck has been with me for a long while now. And on top of everything -- there is now snow outside.

I worry about this country, I really do. Being poorly informed never served anyone well and we are a nation of very under-informed people. The complexities of life in the 21st century grow steeper and deeper, and we remove ourselves from expertise because it's far easier to pick up a piece of gossip from a friend than to dig in and try to understand why the world moves in the way it does. It reminds me of the days of Copernicus who proposed a theory of the universe that was at odds with the conventional thinking, and of Galileo who then was put under house arrest for defending the Copernicus model. I imagine there was a lot of support for doing away with Galileo. Complexity is always so unattractive. It messes with your life and it's hard to unscramble. Seems that we've been fighting science for hundreds of years now!

 

In the afternoon I pick up the Valentine babes. 

They spend the entire time in the car negotiating with me how much Valentine candy they can sample. Yes, Valentine candy, because it seems that simply handing out Valentines to your classmate is so... yesterday. Today you stick on a treat or a small gift of some sort. Oh, nothing big and nothing too sweet, but still, you have to wonder -- isn't it better to just hand out cute little V Day cards? With the inclusion of treats, the Valentines themselves were definitely not the star attraction.

And finally, Valentine's Day evening.  

 

 

I defrosted two tiny lobster tails and I bake them in the scampi style, along with two ears of corn for Ed and myself. 

 

 

No flowers, no gifts or cards. Just us, once again content, because it's snowing hard outside and here we are -- safe and warm, and together. With so much love.

Happy, happy Valentine's Day. 

investing in something without a quick return

One (of many) conclusion I've drawn from reading and watching news analyses is that we are a nation with a short memory and with a oversized craving for instant gratification. Now, Ed has been counseling me to back away from so much news reading and news thinking (and thus news writing), and I am going to follow his advice today, tomorrow and maybe through the weekend. Read once, put it aside. Done. But some thoughts do stay with me and the one about instant gratification bounced around, then simmered to the surface again as I opened my emails this morning. Remember when I signed onto a bunch of cooking newsletters a few weeks back (in an effort to diversify my reading portfolio and introduce new foods into my rotation)? Well, this morning, Tamar Adler ("the Kitchen Shrink") delivered into my mailbox the perfect way to poach a chicken breast.

Do you know how easy it is to have your chicken meat crimp over itself, giving you a tough, dry piece of rubber? Yes, if you ever boiled chicken breasts, you know what I'm talking about. Turns out all you have to do is put this piece of meat into boiling water (no salt! but you can throw in other aromatics if you wish), turn off the heat and leave it there, covered of course, for twenty minutes. And if you keep it in longer, because you're ancient and you forgot to set the clock, or whatever -- no prob! Let it rest like that for up to an hour (I'm told)! It still will be succulent and tasty for your salads, tacos, etc.

The point is that doing things in anticipation of a better outcome down the road (subscribing to newsletters that maybe someday will deliver something worthwhile) should be in our nature. And yet, we demand instant gratification.

Okay, so it snowed yesterday and last night. Beautiful, fluffy snow.

 

 

But it is very very cold outside and this isn't the end of it, because it is only going to get colder next week. Think Polar Arctic bone-chilling air. Yep, coming our way.

Getting Dance to go outside (for bathroom duty!) is difficult. I finally forced her out after what must have been at least 24 hours of failed effort. As a reward, we waited breakfast for her! (She loves to join us at the table, even though she gets no food out of the deal. Today, she reveled in playing with the pussy willows.)

Afterwards, well, I peaked at the newspaper again. Mistake. I read this article (another gifted one for you). Unfortunately it reminded me of that other period in my life -- living in an undemocratic country, where so many felt compelled (for actually good reasons) to show loyalty to a regime they privately did not support. The article addresses the question of why influential people stay silent, even as institutions and laws in their country are being ripped apart with the speed of lightening. Read it if that topic interests you. I just nodded my head throughout. So familiar! And here's the warning that comes with it: autocratic rulers are insatiable. Give in once, and they're not done with you. And after a while they will suck you dry. And in a country where collective action is uncommon, the autocrat will prevail. So, that was definitely not a cheerful moment. Ed and I should have at this point gone skiing, but it really is too cold and besides, Ed had to wait for a call from the Wall Street Journal (he was being interviewed on the subject of tariffs). Good excuse to stay home and stare glumly at the wall.

Well, not exactly. The sunlight is brilliant. The landscape is beautiful.

Again, I am reminded of Poland: in the years I lived there, so many of us took to the mountains, the forests, the fields and meadows. We were a nation of walkers. And those habits stayed with us, even as we rid ourselves of despots and returned the nation to a democratic system of governance. So maybe Ed and I should double down and get out even more? 

Maybe. When the temps get out of the "greatly below freezing" range.

I pick up Snowdrop today. We were to go downhill skiing but I deemed it too cold. I'm sure she thought I was being over protective, but honestly, the winds are strong and the temp never climbed above 12F (-11C) and that just seemed to me to be too harsh. So we stayed in the farmhouse. (To which she walked tossing her jacket aside...)

We are starting in on the sequel to a very good book and that has us busy for ... several hours! (Yes, ice cream and short sleeves. Yes, in this weather. She is a winter girl alright!)

Evening -- I drop off the girl.

 

 

Crisp, cold. I had made a frittata yesterday. Reheat and eat. And brace for more snow. Yes, I admit it -- I like it. But of course, even now, I have to gripe about the weather: it's too cold!

with love...