I keep a list in my notes app of the things I’m electronically dog ear-ing to pay attention, to notice but mostly to remember. These are my Sunday strands of contemplation. I’d love to know what is speaking to you ~
making
When I was recovering from surgery, my mother brought me Greek Lemon Soup, and since then, I may have made it one, two, three, four, five, six, seven times more. It’s the perfect dose of sunshine on a wintry day.
You probably have all the ingredients in your pantry already, and if you happen to make chicken with potatoes and oregano the night before, you should have a few slices of caramelized lemon left over. Here is the recipe:
Greek Lemon Soup
Bring 6 cups chicken broth/stock/better than bouillon to a boil and add 1/2 c uncooked basmati rice. Cover and simmer just until rice is done, about 15 minutes.
In a separate bowl, whisk 3 egg yolks with 3 tablespoons of lemon juice.
Add one ladle of hot soup into the egg mixture, then add whisk back into the soup.
Season with black pepper, possibly parsley, and serve.
Thanks Mom!
reading
CJ Hauser’s writing is breathtaking. I’ve been waiting for her memoir in essays to be published ever since I read her work in The Paris Review, and it does not disappoint. If you love big dogs, muppets, and the sea, then you must read The Crane Wife.
speaking of dogs
This sums up my life with Olive, because my girl has a history of ingesting interesting items. Three packages of yeast—why not? Four and a half pounds of chocolate chips? Don’t mind if I do.
On Thursday, just after midnight, she attempted to eat a massive chunk of ice, except it got stuck in her digestive tract, and her gagging sounded as if she was going into acute respiratory distress. Fun fact: Rochester no longer has a 24 Hour Emergency Vet. Fortunately, the ice (slowly) melted, then she threw up the entire contents of her stomach. Crisis averted. All before we drove to Buffalo to put her in an oxygen tent. Six hundred dollars saved.
Oh Olive. My Cocaine Bear.
listening
I loved watching Parks and Recreation with my kids, but I love this conversation with Nick Offerman even more: Working with Wood, and the Meaning of Life
viewing
Joan Lyons has been making pictures continuously for more than six decades. She has been a fearless innovator in a wide range of historical and contemporary image-making processes, and she was my MFA thesis advisor at Visual Studies Workshop. I’m looking forward to her retrospective at the Memorial Art Gallery and today’s conversation with Tate Shaw at 2pm. If you are in the 585, I hope to see you there!
watching
Well, it’s happened again. I’ve lost ten hours of my life watching the third season of Outer Banks. While I will always fall hard for a teen soap opera, especially one when the love interests are named John and Sarah, this one, sadly, is one treasure hunt not worth the journey. Perhaps, season four.
wishing you a wonderful week ahead ~
current offerings and ways to work together
two retreats • always on island
EARLY BIRD REGISTRATION ENDS MARCH 5
When Women Were Birds: solstice, story, sea
June 18 - June 22, 2023
When Women Were Birds: murmuration, memoir, meditation
September 22 - 26, 2023
Monhegan, ME
This retreat is an invitation and an embodied book group: journeying and journaling through the words of Terry Tempest Williams's poetic memoir When Women Were Birds: Fifty-four Variations on Voice with the many seasons of the sea. It is for anyone who longs to learn or return to the practices of writing and meditation to discover our stories through silence and speech.
register before March 5 and receive $100 off any retreat • all the details
Sarah has an amazing talent of weaving so many things together and listening. It was a truly inspiring few days together on retreat...I am going to continue to write every day ... Jeanne, Philadelphia
and if you’ve ever wished for a taste of retreat closer to home…
join me for the final gathering of writing, ritual and restorative yoga
NEXT Sunday, March 5 in person at tru yoga, rochester, ny
register online or in studio • $40 • scholarships available
from breath to pen, mat to page
this workshop is for anyone ready to explore how yoga & writing complement the other to become their own embodied practice.
come dressed in comfortable clothes, bring your mat, a journal & pen
March 5
3:00 - 4:45 pm
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