Surprise Winter Blooms

My mother used to talk to her plants, but I've discovered that my indoor plants do best when left alone...














I usually water the ones on the main-floor once a week. They get afternoon sun for a few hours on sunny days. However, I have to be careful not to give the African violets too much water, or they wilt. (This surprises me because I saw African violets growing naturally in Hawaii, where the ground is moist.)

Recently I took one wilting, ailing violet to a south-facing upstairs bedroom where I have a few plants that are almost totally forgotten.

This must suit them fine, because when I went there a few days later, I discovered flowers on this plant! (I've forgotten what it's called.) And a little bud was forming on my ailing African violet!














So my rule-of-thumb for plants is: don't talk to them - ignore them!

Botanical Drawing: A New Set Up

My first course in botanical drawing took place in public gardens, as we sat next to flowers and created botanical journals... (Or at least attempted to!)

My current class - in drawing and painting "winter textures" has brought a new drawing milieu: an indoor screen and a spotlight!

The light - and the magnifying glass - help us view our samples more clearly... I'm not sure what the screen is there for - perhaps to prevent our light from bothering others!














Last week we focused on seed pods of different textures. I was fascinated by this coffee tree pod, its smooth surface a sharp contrast with the rough pine cone I found on the side of the road!

Sitting outside in the sun was a lot of fun - but these cold, cold days of winter, it's better to be indoors!

"Making Margins" in My Bookshelves

In my ongoing attempt to "right-size" our house, I am trying to "make margins" (or empty spaces) in filing cabinets, closets and bookshelves.

My most recent discards are three books I found valuable when contemplating retirement:















Why Swim With the Sharks?: An unconventional guide to early retirement.

Live Well, Retire Well.

Smoke and Mirrors: Financial Myths That Will Ruin Your Retirement Dreams.

All deal with the looming financial worry: Can I afford to retire?! None seem to be in print at the moment, though used copies are available.They worked for me! I wonder what new ideas are currently being promoted to help those who want to retire?!

Winter Dawn... And Dusk

Are my art classes making me more attentive to color around me? Perhaps... I had never noticed before..

But our snow-covered neighborhood looks black and grey in the early morning...














But black and blue at the end of the day!

(I wonder why...)

"Christ BENEATH Me!"

I love the words of this ancient Celtic prayer, a prayer of St. Patrick:

Christ be with me, Christ within me,
Christ behind me, Christ before me,
Christ beside me, Christ to win me,
Christ to comfort and restore me.
Christ beneath me, Christ above me,
Christ in quiet, Christ in danger,
Christ in hearts of all that love me,
Christ in mouth of friend and stranger.

I often puzzled over the meaning of Christ "beneath me" - though I did think of it when flying in a plane, something the ancient Celts would never have experienced. Perhaps to them it meant that Christ was with them in their boats - and in the water beneath their boats...

But now that winter is here, thinking of Christ beneath me...

... does comfort me as I drive and walk on ice!

Mystery Bread

This winter I have again begun making bread by hand...

The recipe I  have been using is from a magazine I found online. I was looking for an article by a certain writer and discovered a magazine published by a Benedictine monastery. There I came across this recipe for Brother Paul's Milk Bread Rolls* [Recipe reprinted below...]














However, I call mine "mystery bread" - because I never know quite what it will turn out like! I constantly modify ingredients: Last time I replaced the white bread flour with a mixture of rye, spelt, whole wheat and unbleached white flour. I have also used olive oil instead of melted butter and, instead of milk, have used a mixture of yogurt and water (or cottage cheese and water - blended to make it smooth!) It always rises - and always turns out slightly different!














But I usually make cinnamon buns or cinnamon bread - and that always tastes good to me!

*If you want to find the magazine online, google "Brother Paul's Milk Bread Rolls." Here is the recipe, which is found on page 29:

Combine 1 package active dry yeast with 3 tablespoons warm water to dissolve. Add 1 cup warm milk (110 degrees F), 5 tablespoons melted butter, 3 tablespoons sugar, 1 egg and 1 teaspoon salt. Mix to combine. Gradually add 3 1/2 to 4 cups bread flour to make a moist but not sticky dough. Knead about 10 minutes. Transfer to an oiled bowl and allow to rise, covered, until doubled. Punch down and refrigerate, covered, about 30 minutes. Shape dough into rolls and allow to rise on a baking sheet until doubled. Bake at 425 degrees F for about 15 minutes.

(My one question about the recipe is: why is it necessary to refrigerate the dough for half an hour before the second rising? I'd really love to hear someone's explanation about that.)

New Favorite Tea

My favorite tea these days is lemon green tea from Nepal...

I bought it at a Mennonite shop run by volunteers, Ten Thousand Villages, a store that features items from all over the world. What to do with the lovely cloth bag it comes in?

It could hold my camera or my e-reader...


















Perhaps some pens and a very small note pad.














Or a chocolate bar - if I'm going for a walk!


















(Though I will have to make the strap a little longer if I want to wear it around my neck!)

Any other ideas??!!

Book Darts

When I was a child, my weekends were filled with reading. I remember heading regularly to the library to make sure I had one good novel to read on Saturday and another on Sunday. I read through many a series in juvenile fiction: Pollyanna, Swallows and Amazons, Cherry Ames, Sherlock Holmes, the novels of Alexander Dumas...

Studying literature at university quelled my love of fiction... (Something is lost when reading becomes a homework assignment, a chore!)

These days I rarely read fiction. Instead I gravitate towards biographies, memoirs and religious writing. My current reading interest - to read through the great writings of the Christian church since its origins - has me reading, among others, a book (pictured below) by the 17th century clergyman, George Herbert, one of Britain's more famous poets. Not a quick read!

So when my friend Janet gave me a few thin copper clips called "book darts" from Lee Valley - I was thrilled! Now I can find not only the page - but the exact line where I left off! (Great for slow, reflective readers like me!)

Back to the Drawing Board!

I've begun another botanical drawing course - this one called "winter textures."














We started out by trying to draw nuts as realistically and life size as possible.














 The instructor had a variety for us to choose from.














After this comes drawing the fluffy, the rough, and the smooth! I'm looking forward to the challenge!

(Should the walnut be a little darker - or larger? Does this look realistic enough?!)

Could I Handle a Technological "Fast"?!

Years ago (before I had a cell phone) I spent a quiet weekend at a convent. I had no access to a telephone - and thought nothing of it. My time away was a welcome break from the busyness of raising three small children. (And I knew my family could contact the convent in case of an emergency.)

But could I do it now?! I started to think about this after reading Richard Foster's comment that we are all distracted, in part due to technology. He suggests that we "crucify the spirit of distraction" by having a technological "fast" or "Sabbath" from time to time:

"I would suggest a fast from all Internet gadgetry for one hour a day, one day a week, one week a year. See if it helps to calm... internal distraction. I have a friend who when leading retreats asks the retreatants to turn in (not just turn off) their cell phones and Blackberries and Ipads. She reports to me that when she makes this request, people look at her as if she had just asked them to cut off their right arm." (Sanctuary of the Soul, p. 106)

Would it bother me to be without my computer, my cell phone, or my ipod for a day - or a week? I wonder... I think an hour would be no problem - but I would find a week difficult!

(Which leaves me wondering: when did this technological addiction happen?!)
 

Major Demolition

One of Ottawa's oldest football stadiums is being demolished to make way for a new downtown development that will include condos and more. Terry and I wandered over recently to watch. He was fascinated to see the roof over the grandstand being taken apart - and noticed people on it removing snow with a snowblower! (Not something I'd like to do...)

Next to the Rideau Canal, Landsdowne Park is a historic landmark. There has been a lot of community opposition to the plan - but change is inevitable...














The demolition and rebuilding will take years.














It was hard to imagine the scope of the project with everything covered in snow! We'll have to go back in a few months, once the snow is gone, and check on the progress.

Understanding Prayer

Here is a comment on prayer that I find fascinating:

"The more we pray, the more we want to pray ... What is happening is that our capacity for God is being continually widened. A kind of empty space is being hollowed out in the innermost core; a space which God can then fill. The more space there is, the more of himself he can pour in. This is the 'enlarging of the heart' which St. Benedict speaks of..."
(The Path of Life, p. 142)

New Restaurant in Town

One of our sons invited us to try a new restaurant in town. A French microbrewery and restaurant chain called the 3 Brewers is expanding into Canada. A week ago they opened their downtown Ottawa location.














Beer is made on the premises...














When my son ordered a one meter sampler, I didn't realize what we were getting! (I shouldn't have ordered a drink with my meal of sauerkraut and sausage!)














The three of us tried, but we didn't manage to drink them all!














The food - and the view - were great.

It was also interesting to see where they make the beer...














(Next time I think I'll just drop in for coffee and dessert! They have a great dessert menu, but this time I was too full to even think about it!)

Jam Crumb Cake

Whenever I see a container of jam that I want to use up, my mind turns to my mother's recipe for Jam Crumb Cake.

It is a smallish recipe, one I used to double in the days when more of us lived at home. But I recently made the recipe in the original size - and it was perfect for a small household.

Jam Crumb Cake:

1. Mix together (cake method)

• 1/4 cup (50 ml) margarine or butter
• 1/3 cup (75 ml) sugar
• 1 egg, beaten

2. Add

• 1 1/2 teaspoons (7ml) baking powder
• 1 cup (250ml) flour (I used spelt)
• 1/3 cup (75 ml) milk

3. Spread on small greased pan

4. Spread 1/3 cup (75 ml) jam over batter. (If it is stiff, beat it with a fork beforehand to soften.)















5. Top with crumbs made by blending the following until a crumbly mixture is formed:

•  2 tablespoons (30 ml) butter
• 1/4 cup (50 ml) flour
• 2 tablespoons (30 ml) sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon (2 ml) cinnamon

6. Bake at 350 degrees F (180 degrees C) for about 35-40 minutes. (Check with toothpick to see when it's done.)

Enjoy!

New Compost Pail

It's nice when useful things are also attractive!

One of our Christmas gifts this year is this pottery pail for compost - made by a local potter.


















 The painting on the pail depicts a dragonfly...


















 ... but I see a cute little bearded man!

Visio Divina

I have discovered a new latin term: visio divina. (It's strange to hear a fancy name for something you've been doing for years!)

Visio divina literally means "divine seeing," using your eyes to gaze at something - perhaps a religious icon (like a stained-glass window) or a lit candle - to turn your mind to God.

For me, a window...

... and a view of nature - are all I need to quiet my spirit and sense the heart of God!

New Scrap Quilt

I wasn't planning to start a new quilt... But when I saw one (called Kim's quilt) on a local quilter's online gallery, I just had to try it! I don't know what the pattern is called.

 A simple geometric shape, it didn't look difficult to figure out. I cut
2 1/2 inch strips of two different fabrics (one light, one dark). Then I sewed half of them together like this:

I then cut the sewn strips into  4-inch "slices".















I used the remaining strips, to make the sides, by sewing them end to end...














... and placing them in such a way that two U-shapes are formed...















 Here the first side is done.














After the first side was pressed and trimmed, I did the second side.

Then I sewed the squares together, alternating light and dark sides.

The beauty of this pattern is that it is so vivid and strong that I can use up scraps. It doesn't really matter how much fabric of any pattern or color I use. In fact, any strip 2 1/2 inches by 16 to 18 inches can make half a square.

(Hopefully, this quilt will make a serious dent in my box of brown and beige scraps!)

Beautiful Sunset

We were driving home a few days ago...














I couldn't help but take pictures of the darkening day...

... and the lovely sunset!














The downside of this story?














It was only 5:30 in the afternoon!