On Sunday, we sold my parent’s dining set. Though I knew we wouldn’t have it on our home, we held onto it for a number of years after my mother passed. The big French table, straw covered seats, and carved oak buffet were an almost perfect match, not like “something out of the Sears catalog” as my mother used to say.
Elisabeth and John bought the dining set; we met on Craigslist. At some point I realized I may have been treating the sale as more of an adoption, I really wanted it to go to a good home- not to some dealer who planned to split it up. I chose Elisabeth and John because in her emails,Elisabeth sounded like she really loved furniture. She mentioned that she just couldn’t part with a bedroom set that John’s great grandfather had made, but most importantly, she wanted to put the set in their big kitchen/family room where it would see many family dinners.
On the day of the sale, I pulled out the leaves of the table and the evidence of nearly 100 years of dinners and celebrations- the ever so slight ring from the time my mom forgot to put down a trivet. I added a bit of oil to a cloth and I wiped the table, the chairs, and the buffet for the last time.
Mom’s Roasted Potatoes (With Fennel Pollen)
These are roasted potatoes just like my mom used to make and like her mother made before her. … get the recipe
Today’s Quotable Friday comes from Kurt Vonnegut. It was inspired by another famous quote. Poet John Greenleaf Whittier said “For of all sad words of tongue or pen, the saddest are these: ‘It might have been”. When that quote came up on NPR, it reminded me of something Kurt Vonnegut once said, and I knew it had to be a Quotable Friday poster.
Kurt Vonnegut was one of my favorite authors, I’ve read nearly everything he ever wrote with Sirens of Titan being one of my favorite books of all time. Like his hero Mark Twain, he was full of wit and wisdom.
This Vonnegut quote speaks to me as a reminder of being present, of living fully in each moment, and cherishing the people and the beauty around me. I am so fortunate to be living where I do amongst the friends and family that I have. As one of my teachers, Vinny Ferraro says, to have been born in the US, where it is unlikely that we will suffer famine or war on our soil, we have hit the karmic jackpot. So it’s important to be grateful for even that. The rest, folks is gravy and frosting. I, for the record. Love both.
“Enjoy the little things in life, for one day you’ll look back and realize they were big things.”
― Kurt Vonnegut
So, if you’re loving this poster, click the picture to download the high-res version. Also, please pin-it if you dig it! Oh, and … get the recipe
I wouldn’t be a good ER doctor if I didn’t ask, “Are you safe at home?” I chuckled & winced a little. Of course, physical abuse is far from funny, but this is not the first time I’ve been asked.
Long before I knew my husband, a doctor asked me if I was safe from my parents. I guess the story that my baby brother had broken my foot with a hammer seemed a little improbable. My chart may have had some red flags, especially considering that the year before I’d sprained my ankle and broken my pinkie in the span of one week. My story? I was tackled while playing flag football (the pinkie) and I fell off a curb while walking home from school (the ankle).
As I had all those years ago, I assured the doctor that I was, indeed, safe. I told the handsome young doc that Joshua actually rushed home from work when I called in hysterics to tell him I’d broken my foot. I reassured him that the marks on my chest were actually burn scars from hot butter, not bruises. He smiled, gave a little wink, and said, “I figured, he seems really great.”.
Handsome young doc, had no idea how great. There, in the ER, it was well-past midnight, and not the kind of place I’d like to ring in my 40th birthday, but Joshua never complained. He smiled and joked and took good care of me.
I promised that … get the recipe
It’s another Quotable Friday and today actually marks one month that I’ve been creating free downloadable high resolution posters with (hopefully) cool and inspiring quotes. I love everything about these and creating them is really a highlight of my week.
Today’s quote comes from Henri Matisse a French painter whose work I particularly love. If you are fuzzy on Matisse, he was a contemporary of Picasso their work is even confused at times. I am mad for Matisse’s cut outs particularly the Blue Nudes which look like this.
Today’s Quote Is:
“Creativity Takes Courage”
-Henri Matisse
Creativity is a funny thing, sometimes it’s a little scary to be true to oneself- to tap into that part of us that is wildly and uninhibitedly creative. Even deciding to use this quote was a bit of a process- was it too simple? Would people like it? In the end, it speaks to me, and hopefully, it speaks to someone else.
Sometime back, I wrote about writer’s block and this quote reminded me about how amazing it felt to break free from that block, to find my creativity again and break past trying to live up to constraints I was only placing on myself. I hope you find the courage to be creative today whether it’s in the kitchen, on an easel, behind the lens, on the dance floor, or while singing at the top of your lungs while heading down the freeway.
Have a great weekend!
X
Sabrina
Dear California,
I know you hear this from an awful lot of girls (and boys), but I have to say it anyway. I am in love with you. But, California, before you dismiss me as just another of your millions of admirers or, worse yet. one of those interloping social climbers, please hear me out.
While many are seduced by your Hollywood glamour or your Silicon Valley connections, don’t worry, California, I know that’s not what makes you tick. I am rather attracted to your curves and those sheer… cliffs you’ve got going on but how can you blame me? I’m only human? You sure have a fabulous way with food and wine, and these things I definitely find appealing.
There are certain things that drive me wild, California, like when you seem to spring into your full bloom while everyone else is still half asleep. How you’re simply radiant and glowing and every hill, mountain, stream, and tiny flower reflects that brilliant glow. How when you’re grey and misty, that misty fog seems expansive and enveloping all at once.
I love that in all the years I’ve known you, I still haven’t gotten to know you all the way. I’ve seen your highest peaks and your lowest valleys (take this as you will), but I have so much more to explore. Others have given up on you, California, saying it’s too hard to be with you. There’s no denying, you’re one expensive love affair to maintain, but I am … get the recipe
