New Beginnings

Life gets tough sometimes. Adversity is part of our experience.
Sometimes good things happen.

I have lupus. It's been in remission so long the doctor suggested I try going outside a bit again. Now this doesn't mean I get to go crazy. I go out in the early morning and come in before it even has a chance to get hot.

I dig around in the dirt, pull out weeds and water stuff. My yard is starting to look ok again just from the little bit of time I put in every morning. I'm starting to feel okay again too, just from that little bit of time that I can commune with nature. It's remarkable. People weren't meant to stay inside all the time.

There have been fruits of my labors. Literally. I've had strawberries, sweet cherries, raspberries, sour cherries and now peaches. Nothing tastes like sun ripened fruit straight out of my own yard, weeded, watered and cared for by me.

When tough things happen, I like to go outside and work in my yard. I can't express how grateful I am to have this outlet opened back up to me. Being sick is no fun, but having an important coping mechanism removed at the same time makes it almost unbearable. For me doing nothing but sitting in a chair outside is paradise and one I hope will never be taken away again.

Ham Gravy

It always surprises me when I mention ham gravy and people cringe. It is a favorite around here.

When the ham gravy flows it's celebration time. It doesn't seem to matter who's in the house at the time, family, guests, you name it - I find people eating it on all sorts of weird things in vast quantities - even discovered one of my kids drinking it from a glass.

Let me tell you what ham gravy tastes like - liquid bacon. Anything you can imagine that tastes good with bacon will taste divine with ham gravy. The possibilities are endless.

There are a few rules though if you really want to try it.

1. It has to come from drippings from a smoked ham - NOT a honey cured ham.

2. Do NOT glaze the ham. Just roast it in all its smoky pulchritudinous glory. (Trust me, if you haven't had ham this way you haven't lived!)

3. Make the gravy as a milk gravy not a water gravy.

4. If you have even the remotest opportunity to get a pig (with all its wondrous cuts) from an all natural or organic farmer - take it! You will never want to eat that nasty store bought pork again! (What do they DO to that stuff???????) Ham (yum yum!), bacon, sausage, pork loin, pork chops etc. all tastes so amazing eaten the way it was intended - from a person who knows what to feed a hog. Oh yeah.

5. Pour so much gravy on your food you can no longer see it and you have to use a bowl. (See picture above.)

6. Eat leftovers for the next two weeks. The drippings make so much gravy you'll be swimming in it (or at least your food will  be).

You can thank me for the introduction of a food that is akin to manna from heaven or the ambrosia of the gods, however you choose to look at it.

If you're a vegetarian... well then... I guess this is just plain awkward isn't it?

Another List! Oh Boy!

Things have been a bit neglected around here.

I have a love/hate relationship with writing. Sometimes I'm really into it and sometimes I detest it.

There comes a point where I detest writing and everything I write stinks. I'm the worst writer in the world and I'm never going to write anything that actually amounts to anything.

Regardless of how rotten what I've written is, I keep at it. I'm a masochist I guess. I torture myself with the process regardless of the outcome.

So today I thought I'd make a list (you know how much I love lists) of all the reasons why I should keep writing.  

1. To make all the other writers look good.
   
2. So my brain will be active and I won't get Alzheimer's.
   
3. Entertainment for my relatives who love me regardless of what I write.
   
4. When people ask me what my hobbies are, I don't have to say 'Sitting around eating candy.' It justifies the candy. Sugar is brain food. I need it so I can think of terrible things to write.
   
5. When I'm tired and I write I don't feel lazy. I'm being productive. I'm writing.
   
6. I can ignore everyone around me and become a hermit, but as far as everyone else is concerned - I'm amazing. I write. (Seriously, if you feel over-peopled you should try this. It works surprisingly well.)
   
7. If I'm writing I'm not cooking, doing laundry or washing the dishes. That's reason enough right there.
   
8. I can feel utterly embarrassed and self conscious  when people ask me about what I'm writing. This keeps me on my toes and stops me from sinking into mediocre life oblivion.
   
9. It's a great topic of conversation for people who have no idea what to say to me.
   
10. It keeps me humble... or humiliated, not sure which.