My Ramblings
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my okra syndrome
Yesterday was the first time in over 20 years that I saw fresh okra in my grocery store. Bright green, fresh and tender, the okra brought back memories of learning to cook–standing on a footstool, sharing the kitchen counter with my mother. As I rinsed my okra, I remembered instructions and warnings mom had drilled Read more
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scheer during the civil war–#2
Brief emails from Roy to the head office during the civil war in Nepal. March 10, 2006 We’re on a mass casualty alert –the first one in the history of the hospital. Banepa is a war zone. The police station has been destroyed, the municipal building sacked and burnt, and now there’s about 1200 demonstrators Read more
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memo from the ceo
Cleaning out my hard drive today, I came across this email Roy wrote the expatriate staff at the hospital in Nepal, at the height of the civil war. Tuesday, April 25, 2006, 7:26 a.m. Please be apprised that I have been in contact with both Elder Ron Watts, President of the Southern Asia Division, and Read more
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the tiffany
Written some time in the summer of 2008 I spent part of the long weekend antiquing with Roy. We were shopping for the perfect end table: We walked down each aisle, stopping to look at stuff that interested us. And every once in a while, I’d let out a wow or an ooh to express Read more
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wasabi in my nose
Journal Entry: November 6, 2008 Yesterday I bought from the local Asian grocer a cupful of dried peas, marinated and coated with Wasabi. I love anything doused in Wasabi. The pungent, garlicky, horseradishy searing heat gives me some sort of weird addictive thrill. Years of Wasabi-laced food has taught me the best way to survive Read more
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holding it together
Holding it together when you’re running low on energy, patience, time and Christ-likeness is not an easy task. How does one hold it together? Here are some ideas: 1. Take small bites; Whether it’s a sandwich or a major project, tackle it little at a time–with small rewarding breaks in between. 2. Take time to Read more
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just a little is sometimes all it takes
Question: Suppose Americans cut down the amount of meat they eat by 10% and replace the 10% with grains and soybeans, how many starving people do you think the money saved would feed? Answer: 60 million people. (Americans eat a lot! The per capita consumption of peanut butter alone in the US and Canada is Read more
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the pharisee and the penny
The secret of perfect pizza and Cinnabons is in the dough. And I’ve never been able to get the dough right from scratch. Far away from modern grocers and frozen bread dough, it took 12-year-old Jenny to find a solution to my predicament: Buy dough instead of doughnuts. After healing from the slap to my Read more
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a day of lessons
Some days begin with such hurriedness that I leave Common Sense behind and find myself relearning old lessons. Lessons like . . . 1. A to-do list is of little use when it isn’t with you. 2. If you’re closer to menopause than you are to puberty, eating a whole can of Pringles is a Read more
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the unbridled wild
Today I spent the day on the banks of the Rogue River–worked some, crocheted in between and, at the end of the day, picked wildflowers. I may not do things that most do with a day on the river–I don’t fish, row, hike. For that matter, I don’t even enjoy walking in nature’s wild and Read more
SAYS FYL 