kigali and tristan da cunha

last week i pulled parade magazine out of the sunday paper, and while i usually find the experience of reading parade to be nothing more than an eye-rolling seesion, that issue actually had a good book list of novels about africa.  a ways back i mentioned that omar and i read several books on genocide, particularly ones on the rwandan genocide.  the description of baking cakes in kigali by gaile parkin grabbed me and a few days later i’d finished the book.

the book centers around a tanzanian woman, angel, who lives in kigali, rwanda, with her husband and five grandchildren.  angel has her own cake baking business and she is somewhat of the community advice-giving sage.  in the book it has been six years since the genocide and the story touches on the lives affected and the reconciliation happening in the country.  

it was an entertaining book that was much lighter than what i thought it would be. perhaps too light?  i think parkin tries to address too many of the issues that are affecting africa today – AIDS, female circumcision, genocide, foreign workers/aid, etc. and she touches on them in such a cursory way that at times it can seem trite.

but it was an entertaining read that often made me smile, and after reading such heavy books on the topic, it was good reading one woman’s take on the years following such a horrific event.

and then parade gets me again this week.  did you know about the world’s most isolated inhabited island – tristan da cunha?  me neither.  parade wins some more points for me for letting me know about this.  quite an interesting history and the 270 inhabitants all share one of the seven original surnames from the 19th century settlers.  and as a result many share a bad case of hereditary asthma. fascinating.

pops

a rainy afternoon and a grumpy kid.  i popped some popcorn and made a fool out of myself showing them how to throw popcorn and catch it in your mouth.  

 

rainy morning

i think my love of rainy days seeped into my boys’ genes.  we woke up to thunderstorms and it’s like they instinctively knew what to do.  we sat on the front step and played a bit in the rain.  asher grabbed the book rainy morning, without prompting, and asked me to read it.  and for effect, elisha ran and turned the little noise machine we have to the “rain” sound, full blast.  but not to romanticize the morning too much, by about 9 am we were about to pull each other’s hair out and were begging for the sun to come on out and let us go for a swim.

days of a week

tuesday – we drank the coffee omar roasted on sunday.  omar has a new hobby thanks to our friend tim who introduced us the world of sweet maria’s and roasting with an old school air popcorn popper – the poppery II (and it is complete with vintage tan and orange color scheme).  tim was kind enough to bestow omar with one of his three (!) poppers.  

on this day omar somehow misunderstood me when i told him i’d created a “raffi” pandora station for the boys.  he thought i told him i’d created a “rocky” station.  we laughed.  and then we created an “eye of the tiger” station.  and then i promptly deleted it.  

wednesday – i started this shirt.  t-shirt courtesy of target.  stencil courtesy of lena corwin.  technique courtesy of  alabama stitch book.  color scheme courtesy of the leftovers of elisha’s rooster shirt.  

thursday – i found out that there is indeed an original kilogram (is this something i should have learned in school??) and it might have lost a bit of weight therefore upsetting the whole world of measurement.  and it has only been handled 3 times since 1889 for fear of an ill-timed sneeze.  very interesting.  

friday – we ran errands upon errands.  asher flirted with old ladies at ikea.  elisha had a major meltdown due to missing a nap.  black bean soup and french bread made it all better.

saturday – i learned that the entire score of fiddler on the roof is going to be released.  but this version is going to be performed with latin arrangements. random?  perhaps, but i am quite excited.  i am a fan of musicals, jewish culture (i studied aspects of jewish architecture in school and, oddly enough, got on a reading kick a couple of years ago where i read several jewish-themed novels), and latin music.  maybe they’ll have a tour.

working

my work ::  cutting paper, writing, printing on shirts, trying to figure out how to cover c. 1940s red naugahyde cushions, researching building a rain barrel. 

the boys’ work ::  flipping over the tricycle and “fixing it” in preparation for imaginary travels.  they are all about travel right now.  elisha understands the concept of visiting and going somewhere so every play situation involves going on an adventure.  just this morning we found him in asher’s crib.  he tells us he is in a boat.  the boat’s name is “jesus” and he is floating to “chicky-lay” (code for chick-fil-a).

dinner work ::  these tomatoes topped barefoot contessa’s mac & cheese.  the flavors were great but this was a baked mac & cheese recipe and i now know, after way too much time researching this, that almost all baked mac & cheese suffer from graininess.  many sites recommend just adding velveeta or kraft singles to the cheese mix but that’s just not going to happen here.  cook’s illustrated team to the rescue.  just mix the pasta with the cheese sauce (using a mixture of monterey jack in your cheese combo to help combat moisture problems that occur with all hard cheese recipes) in the pot, transfer to a baking dish, top with the topping of your choice (tomatoes and buttered bread crumbs were winners here) and broil for a couple of minutes.

we don’t even HAVE cable

recently i’ve been getting asked the same question quite a bit – are you getting settled?  i know that most people that ask me this are probably thinking about whether i can find my way to a grocery store, post office, library (i think the fact that i’ve already acquired two library cards and have checked out over 15 items confirms i’m definitely “settled” in the library department), and if all our boxes are unpacked.  

but when i think about myself being settled, in my mind it can equate to feeling comfortable or safe.  not bad things, but when i start feeling my excitement about a new city and helping a new community that is quite broken and hurting in many ways, like all towns, die down i get a bit nervous.  everyday life can easily take over and concerns about getting a “to do” list done, finding my way around town, and dealing with kids become my reasons/excuses for not following up with things like the adult literacy program, community garden, getting to really know and develop friendships with neighbors, etc.  they become my sorry excuses for not being salt in my neighborhood and community.  my home is safe.  my church is safe.  

i’m actually quite thankful for the question.  it’s made me think.  since the moment omar and i decided to move here we’ve had a burden on our hearts to love the people of our town and work alongside them.  and i noticed that while i was quite involved in setting up a home and finding places for office supplies, linens, and skeins of yarn, i wasn’t exactly praying about finding avenues for developing relationships outside my home and church.  it’s like i was cocooning. and i think i kind of knew i was doing it.  my house seemed safe.  yesterday morning i prayed i’d be (gently) pushed outside my comfort zones.  

and sure enough yesterday made me realize how even being in your own home won’t shield you from frustrations, fears, and the need and beauty of knowing your neighbors.  yesterday morning the boys noticed a truck in front of our house and got all excited.  a little while later i noticed a guy kind of lurking around and a couple minutes later he knocked on the door.  what followed was the guy’s sorry routine as a supposed comcast employee who just needed to get in my yard. during the incident i kept wavering between freaking out and wanting to give the guy a few tips that might make his attempts a bit more believable.  later, the cops and my neighbors agreed that the guy had guts for scoping out a house so brazenly.  i come to find out my neighbors (one whom i hadn’t met) were watching and saw what happened and were also able to share some information with the police.  then the neighbors and i had a great discussion about looking out for each other and knowing one another in an area of town that tends to get hit with burglaries.   

and so i was indeed pushed.  and it made me realize how God can answer a prayer within hours (shady “comcast” guy episode breaking me out of my cocoon) or months (job search, ahem).

monday, monday

before the sun rises i hear some dramatic whimpering coming from the boys’ bedroom.  i walk in after a bit, and elisha pops up and tells me he can’t have swim lessons today.  he just can’t.  i tell him he can and the whimpering gets a bit more dramatic.

before lunch miami friends come for a visit and the boys get tossed about in the pool.

before dinner i accidently cause omar to poke asher’s eye with a sharp piece of cookie.  a bloodshot and puffy eye accompanies him to dinner.

before bedtime stories asher learns the word “vermouth.”

before the sun sets omar kisses the boys goodnight and goes to shut their bedroom door.  elisha calls out, “see you next time!”

5 year notes

at our wedding five years ago, we had a table where people could write us notes that we would open for on first year and fifth year anniversaries.  i saw the idea in a martha stewart magazine and thought i’d give people a task that i’m not sure even i would have completed.  my mind goes blank in those instances when a piece of paper or a card is put in front of me and i’m supposed to come up with something touching, tender, or witty.  

but evidently our family and friends are amazing and took the time to write us something.  we’ve saved the first year anniversary notes and during our recent five year celebration dinner we read the rest.  some were crazy, some were hilarious, and some were sweet and thoughtful.

my aunt wins for most practical – go get your ring setting checked.  our friend ryan wins the prize for most tender and kind words for both first and fifth anniversaries.  and miss 8-years-old-at-the-time elisabeth?  well, her note cracked us up.  our interpretation was either some kind of “mind ball of love” that we toss between ourselves or something having to do with babies.  not sure.   

laundry

folding :: besides countless kitchen towels, not that much, actually.  the boys spend their days in swim trunks or shirtless running around in shorts.  asher would prefer nothing, like sans diaper nothing, but they dart in and out of the house too much for that.  

watching :: TED talks.  they make folding what laundry i do have more interesting.  i had not watched/listened to any in awhile and abbie’s posts this week have reminded me of what i’ve been missing out on.  last night i watched a couple, including one abbie linked, ken robinson says schools kill creativity.  the title kind of says it all.  it is a great talk and i agree with much of what he said.  but the lines that kept me thinking were the following from the introduction:

everybody has an interest in education. …it’s one of those things that goes deep with people, like religion and money and other things.

really?  everybody has an interest in education? perhaps it depends on what one means by “interest.”  an interest in defending one’s choice of schooling (regardless of whether it is researched/well-informed or not) for one’s children, perhaps, but an interest in studying and grappling with all the types and issues of education and striving to perhaps change it?  i’m not so sure. and does one’s own personal educational history “go deep” with people?  i look back on much of my education and realize that while i was a good student and interested in lots of areas of study, i often felt kind lost.  ”what am i doing with what i’m learning?” surfaced in my mind a few times.  and here is where robinson is spot on: 

the universities design the system in their image.  if you think of it, the whole system of public education around the world is a protracted process of university entrance.  

and i’d add that once i was in college, the education there seemed to carry on that model.  the environment in which i learned seemed to have as its goal to push me to the next possible degree.  

also watched:  gever tulley on 5 dangerous things for kids.  gever tulley’s tinkering school.  carl honore praises slowness.

i spy something green

this guy has been hanging around recently.  i chase him around trying to take pictures of him, and omar chases him around trying to keep him out of the pool. but i think a picture of him in the pool would be a good thing.

reading groove

starting::  righteous porkchop: finding a life and good food beyond factory farms by nicolette hahn niman

omar picked this up at the bookstore and really got into it. you know he likes a book when there are a bunch of little sticker flags hanging off the sides of pages marking passages he likes. niman chronicles the inner workings of factory farming and also shares what she learned from farmers and ranchers who have chosen to treat animals humanely.

in the middle::  the art of the commonplace: the agrarian essays of wendell berry ed. norman wirzba

i’ve read a few of the essays in this compilation and just finished feminism, the body, and the machine, which is a response to the letters he received in response to an essay of his that was printed in harper’s (got that?). here is a brief passage where berry talks about the condition of modern day marriages/household.

Marriage, in what is evidently its most popular version, is now on the one hand an intimate “relationship” involving (ideally) two successful careerists in the same bed, and on the other hand a sort of private political system in which rights and interests must be constantly asserted and defended. Marriage, in other words, has now taken the form of divorce: a prolonged and impassioned negotiation as to how things shall be divided. During their understandably temporary association, the “married” couple will typically consume a large quantity of merchandise and a large portion of each other.

The modern household is the place where the consumptive couple do their consuming. Nothing productive is done there. Such work as is done there is done at the expense of the resident couple or family, and to the profit of suppliers of energy and household technology. p67

finishing::  the revolution: a manifesto by ron paul

wow.  i’m feeling a bit sheepish that i hadn’t read more of him/about him before now.  i can’t recommend reading him enough. during the course of last year i remember thinking over and over that despite all the talk of “change” from both sides, all that was being touted were standard party lines that did not address the true and pressing issues of america.  now that i’ve been reading more and more about paul i am intrigued by how his supporters come from across the political spectrum.  he is no friend/supporter of the neoconservatives or the mainstream democrats. his stances on the war, federal reserve, non-interventionist foreign policy, and taxes will get you thinking.  go check him out on the daily show and colbert report.  good, brief, and funny interviews.