In Which I Discuss Birthday Fatigue, Pizza Dough and The Hunt For Beauty
February-April are jam-packed with birthday festivities for our nuclear family. I have so many feelings about this. There are members of our family who adore being celebrated ( everyone but me) and members of our family who struggle with it ( it’s me. It’s just me). It always feels fraught with weighty expectation, I feel pressure to make everyone’s birthday dreams come true, and then I’m too exhausted to mitigate the idea that my day of birth is an afterthought- an, “oh yes, we should probably do something” after we’ve already gathered in the previous weeks for copious amounts of cake and balloons and party melt-downs. No one wants a reprise, least of all me. I’ve been reading Priya Parker’s, “The Art of Gathering” the last few months, which has been such good practice in uncovering why we celebrate, and why we need to keep doing it.
I’ve been in a bit of a philosophical stalemate where my writing is concerned lately. I’ve been asking really big questions that don’t really have concrete answers. Taking cues from Kate DiCamillo who consistently asks, “How do I tell the truth and make it bearable?” I’ve been applying the concept to every piece of content that passes through my fingers. It’s been humbling and challenging and truth be told- I’m not really any closer to finishing my proposal as I was several weeks ago but I feel like I’m digging in the right places.
While I’m no longer in the classroom ( full-time, at least. I’ve been blessed with an Instructional Coaching position which I adore, allowing me to provide the kind of support teachers have needed after the last few years), I’ve been revisiting the texts I used to teach with fresh eyes. I posted a bit about it here.
The on-coming Spring brings about two things in our family: 1. allergies and 2. a deep-seated wanderlust. We daydream about trips to warm places, full of culture and good food. One of my and R’s favorite trips that we’ve ever taken was to New Orleans. Joy the Baker’s favorites list on her site is making me think that perhaps a weekend trip is in order.
Sounds like a perfect lead-i to …
Things That Are Giving Me Life This Week
My in-laws gifted our entire family with tickets to The Franklin Institute’s Harry Potter Exhibit. There are only three words that come to mind if you are in the vicinity: YOU SHOULD GO. It was delightful.
I do tend to pride myself on my culinary prowess, but my daughter was quick to inform me that no matter how hard I try, Uncle Tom’s pizza dough is always better than mine. After pressing him for details, he revealed that Bobby Flay’s Pizza Dough Recipe is his secret weapon.
The more entrenched I become in the world of publishing, the more I want to support authors in the best way I can- for most, that means pre-ordering their books that have yet to be released. The pre-orders I’m most excited about this week are:
Eric Kim’s, “Korean American Cookbook” (If you’re as obsessed as I am with NYT’s Cooking Column, he might be familiar to you).
Shauna Niequist’s, “I Guess I Haven’t Learned That Yet” (Shauna’s essays have always felt like home to me.)
Kendra Adachi’s, “The Lazy Genius Kitchen” (If you haven’t read, The Lazy Genius Way, I highly recommend it. Kendra gives you principles to guide the life that feels organic to you- not blanket steps to apply to everyone. I return to it again and again, especially in September.)
Let the countdown to summer vacation begin! We’ve started making lists of places within driving distance to visit in the warmer days ahead such as NYBG, Bronx Zoo and Philadelphia’s Magic Gardens. What else should we add in the tri-state area? ( Did anyone else read that in the voice from Finneas and Ferb? No?)
May you enter this week looking for the things that give you life, loving your way through all uncertainties, and unafraid to eat your words. It helps when you make them delicious.