Cold as get out but a market haul nonetheless

Just when I thought I couldn't take it any more, the children went to Camp Grandparents yesterday for the afternoon and a sleep-over. What a reprieve! Have I ever mentioned how grateful I am for nearby gramps who truly enjoy the kids and really want to spend time with them? It is SUCH a gift. I slept until 8am and woke up smiling, still high (not literally) from our fantastic evening with friends. Everything was so darn good. I couldn't believe how perfect Foodie Friend's tam-like pot pie tops were. Beautiful. Lobster stew. Aah. And I sure wish I'd gotten a photo of the Huguenot torte but basically it looked like a sinkhole. Not the prettiest dessert, but God, it was good. I will definitely post that recipe. It is easy as get out and really wonderful. Despite the in-the-20s weather today, T and I went to the farmers market as I'd missed it the past few weeks and felt real withdrawal. The greens were all stunning so I got a wide array of them, plus these tiny Brussels sprouts, leeks, baby beets and white sweet potatoes. Much to make and enjoy from all this.

Off to get cracking on two cakes due for a catering order tomorrow: chocolate with whipped-cream mascarpone frosting, and a pistachio-cardamom with rosewater buttercream. Mmm...

A hell of a night

Wow! Spending many hours, seemingly infinite laughs, amazing food and wine, and serious talk too with great friends over the course of an evening is a luxury not often enough enjoyed. Foodie friend and hubby treated us all to lobster "pot pies" (see David Tanis recipe from 2/8/12 NYT Dining section) and a gorgeous beet, orange and bibb lettuce salad. Our wine glasses were never empty, the laughter never waned except when it did and should have, the friendship and happiness were palpable. When we got home, we were shocked, SHOCKED, to find it nearly 1am. What fun. The Huguenot torte was magnificent, and our champagne cocktails as wonderful as ever. Aah...

Your Saturday Om

The Wisdom of No Escape The central question of a warrior's training is not how we avoid uncertainty and fear but how we relate to discomfort. How do we practice with difficulty, with our emotions, with the unpredictable encounters of an ordinary day? For those of us with a hunger to know the truth, painful emotions are like flags going up to say, "You're stuck!" We regard disappointment, embarrassment, irritation, jealousy, and fear as moments that show us where we're holding back, how we're shutting down. Such uncomfortable feelings are messages that tell us to perk up and lean into a situation when we'd rather cave in and back away.

When the flag goes up, we have an opportunity: we can stay with our painful emotion instead of spinning out. Staying is how we get the hang of gently catching ourselves when we're about to let resentment harden into blame, righteousness, or alienation. It's also how we keep from smoothing things over by talking ourselves into a sense of relief or inspiration. This is easier said than done.

Ordinarily we are swept away by habitual momentum. We don't interrupt our patterns even slightly. With practice, however, we learn to stay with a broken heart, with a nameless fear, with the desire for revenge. Sticking with uncertainty is how we learn to relax in the midst of chaos, how we learn to be cool when the ground beneath us suddenly disappears. We can bring ourselves back to the spiritual path countless times every day simply by exercising our willingness to rest in the uncertainty of the present moment-- over and over again.

By Pema Chodron