An oasis of boredom in a desert of horror.

2023 was an oasis of boredom in a desert of horror.

As so often, I found comfort in Camus—the artist blooming in the desert, simply because they can—and also in Netflix, and mundane work, housekeeping, and the most Jane Austen of notions, that of “passing time.”

Oven-Steamed Salmon

I love steamed salmon, and in recent months I've dicovered that salmon helps cure a basketful of aches and ailments, which is just another reason to indulge in my favorite dish: oven steamed salmon in parchment. It's super simple and you can adjust vegetables and herbs for your whim of the moment. 

Place a filet of salmon (or cod is nice, too) on a piece of parchment paper on a baking sheet.
Place slices of cucumber or lemon on top of the filet.
Lay fresh green beans or spears of broccoli alongside the filet.
Add a sprig of rosemary and some freshly ground black pepper.
Drizzle with olive oil and lemon.

Fold the parchment paper into a tent around the salmon and twist the ends to seal.

Bake at 400 for ten minutes, enough to steam the filet and vegetables.

This recipe is perfect for a warm oven after baking bread or roasting root vegetables or making quiche -- anything that bakes at 400+.

Ember

 

Loft Life

Moving Day 12 (of 18)

Moving is always hell, but sometimes its worth it.

 

 

Saturday

Spending Saturday reading and enjoying bread with almond butter and jam, a glass of fresh milk, a book. There is knitting waiting in the basket at the foot of the couch, and a pot of tea.

I've had excellent conversation with my neighbor, with friends in the phone, and with myself in my journal. As Krakauer's tale of McCandless is a conversation, too, one on note cards and random asides. I didn't mean to pick up a handful of life-in-the-land books, but they have come to me anyway, all at once, from different directions. Into the Wild was joined by The Star Thrower, Upstream, The Solace of Open Spaces, and Braving the Wilderness. I'm reading Krakauer in the morning and Eisley before bed, a parallel path that I rarely take, but they seem to enrich each other neatly.

This is exactly the day I needed.

7

Dim brightness

Heaven will last,
earth will endure.
How can they last so long?
They don’t exist for themselves
and so can go on and on.

So wise souls
leaving self behind
move forward,
and setting self aside
stay centered.
Why let the self go?
To keep what the soul needs.