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Sunday Chat; Seasonal Food and Relaxing

Hello everyone. I thought I would try a new post format and writing style today. A bit more conversational and informal. We’ll see how it goes, and it might become a regular feature on the blog. First, the link to a recipe for convenience.

Red Beans and Rice
An old, abandoned church I came across the other day on another overcast day. You can see the yellow paper on the front door, and I’ve never seen any cars in the parking lot. I think it was recently closed.

Today is an overcast, rainy Sunday. My husband and I had a busy Saturday yesterday, so I’m very thankful for a the relatively relaxful afternoon ahead. There are a few things I want to do around the house, but not much that I have to do. So for now I am sitting on one end of the couch, the blinds are open and the natural light and a couple of lamps light up our downstairs with a cozy glow. I am listening to a classical and opera playlist, and between the bouncy, light notes of Czech Suite in D Major, Op. 39, B. 93: II. Polka by the Czech Philharmonic and the random sounds of my husband doing something (I’m never entirely sure) with his fish tank, it’s a quiet afternoon.

I am looking forward to our supper, the last meal of leftovers from a pan of red beans and rice I made earlier in the week. I’ve linked my recipe above. It’s great because it makes a lot all at once and is easily adjusted to how much is needed. 

As Georgia weather warms up and transitions towards summer, we are actually having a distinguishable spring this year. Often it feels like we go straight from winter to summer, but that isn’t the case this year. While I am fully ready for my summer dresses and sandals, I am also trying to cook all of the “cold-weather” meals we like within a short time frame. There are some heavy, hot meals that I feel are best for colder weather.

Cinnamon Apple Oatmeal with a bit of brown sugar, plus a pot of Irish Breakfast tea and a surprise photobomber.

One example of a winter meal is cinnamon apple oatmeal. Not the instant kind, but homemade. It’s something my mom used to make for my brothers and me occasionally. I would link a recipe, but basically you just add some diced apple, preferable granny smith, and a little cinnamon to oatmeal. I like to add the apple when I add the oatmeal to the water, it softens them perfectly. It’s a very warm, heavy meal, perfect for overcast, cold mornings. Of course I like a pot of tea with mine, but that’s personal preference.

As we move into warmer temperatures, I tend to switch to lighter meals. I incorporate more veggies as they come into season, and I try to start having some meals that don’t need to be heated up. Chicken salad, a ham cooked in the crockpot and then sliced for sandwiches, pimento cheese (ate on a sandwich or dolloped on a salad). Of course not every meal will be cold, but things like soup, stew, and rice-based dishes will become rarer on our supper table. At least until the weather turns cool again.

We are also getting ready to move across the country to East Texas. I’ve moved between dorms, a college house shared with roommates, and then into my husband’s house, but I’ve never moved an entire house before. My parents still live in the house we moved into when I was three, so I don’t remember much of that move. I find myself a bit overwhelmed with how much stuff I feel like I have, and it makes me want to get rid of stuff. Granted, I am a sentimental person and have accumulated a lot of stuff, so I probably need to purge some things anyway, regardless of the upcoming move. 

This afternoon I plan to go through my clothes and get rid of some things and pack a few as well. I won’t need any winter clothes until after the move, and I kind of want to try out a capsule wardrobe. This will be a good chance to try a capsule wardrobe without getting rid of everything I have now. I haven’t completely decided how I’m going to structure it yet, but I want to go ahead and set out a few things which I know I’ll want to donate or sell.

Other than going through my clothes, I don’t think I have anything else planned. Just relaxing and getting ready for the week ahead. I may paint my nails later, but I am excited about getting some rest today. Let me know what you thought about the new post format! I think I like having an occasional chatty post, it feels a little less formal than some of my others. I hope everyone has an enjoyable Sunday afternoon.

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The Indomitable Spirit of Jonquils

Photo by David Jakab on Pexels.com

A few things lined up in my life recently, and together they gave me a reminder I’ve needed. 

I noticed how even though the jonquils, which line nearly all of the roadways where I live, die when we have a cold snap, they spring back to life as soon as the weather warms up again. They’re always the first flowers to bloom around here, and their sunny blooms are a sweet reminder that spring is coming, however long winter has felt.

Photo by Kristina Paukshtite on Pexels.com

I was speaking with someone on the phone later the same day, and they were providing a professional reference for someone I’m helping hire at our company. The lady mentioned the candidate’s “indomitable spirit” and refusal to give up. She talked about how he was always learning, always growing as a person, even when things didn’t work out.

These things in conjunction were a useful reminder to me. 

My first post-college job isn’t going quite as well as I had hoped, and after having waited so long to start my first career job (thanks COVID-19), I had begun questioning whether my chosen career is really the one for me. I’m sure my last post communicated some of the frustration I’ve felt recently. This doubt brought a spiral, of course. If this isn’t what I’m supposed to be doing, then what were the last four years (and student debt) even for?

Then, this harmony of events reminded me of the idea of an “indomitable spirit,” something that was frequently mentioned in the taekwondo classes I took in my teens. It is an idea that was reinforced over and over, but I had somehow forgotten about in the years since those classes.

Photo by David Jakab on Pexels.com

So what is an indomitable spirit?

I think someone with an indomitable spirit refuses to give up. Refuses to be conquered.

Not someone who always wins, but someone who tries again after they lose. Someone who gets back up and tries again every time they lose. Maybe not the same way, because I also believe in innovation and adaptation, but tries again nevertheless.

I was reminded by some little yellow flowers to never give up, to keep pushing and fighting. Even when there is a “cold snap” in life, or a period of things not going quite right, keep going. Spring will come and winter will not last forever. 

I bought a bouquet of flowers today when I went grocery shopping, just to help remind me to keep trying, and also because I love fresh flowers. To me, having fresh flowers is a sign that someone is doing well enough to spend money on something that isn’t really a “necessity,” so it is a very personal reminder to keep pushing and working for my goals. A little pink bouquet can say a lot, it turns out. 

I find it useful to have physical reminders sometimes, and I hope over the next weeks these flowers will remind me to keep trying. I have goals for my life, and I will take steps to reach them. Sometimes goals have to change, but as long as I am moving (hopefully forward), I will be happy.

Can you see the little pink stripe on this one bloom? I thought it was just so precious!

What is something that reminds you to keep going when you get discouraged?

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The Road Less Travelled

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.

From The Road Not Taken, by Robert Frost

From Lula Lake Land Trust, in Georgia

I sit in my car on my thirty minute lunch breaks from work, and today was a beautiful day. After a few weeks of rain, clouds, and freezing temperatures, we are having a week of sunny skies and mid-60s. 

I’m still not used to being indoors for 8 hours at a time. It kills me. Despite how busy I stayed in college, I could always find time to sit outside and enjoy the weather while still being productive. Now I barely get 30 minutes each day. 

A pretty day at my grandparents’ house

Maybe that’s why I hike so much, in order to make up for lost time spent out of doors. I worked from home on my previous job and would often take my laptop outside to work. Days like this make me want to start my car, roll down my windows, turn up some music, and drive without looking back. I’d go straight home, pick up my husband, and go to this one park near our house. We’d walk for a bit, then sit on a bench in the sunshine.

I think nature must be good for our spirits.

At my grandparents’ house, again

I know others have said the same, that nature helps reduce stress. It is not a new concept, by any means. I just never realized how true it was. I’ve never had a time in my life though when I couldn’t go outside at some point. In college I walked to class, and I was homeschooled, so I could always take my work outside if I wanted.

I often just want to be left alone. My ideal house would be a cabin on a bunch of land. I would grow and raise a lot of my own food so I’d go into town for groceries about once a month, go to church twice a week, and then only see another person if I wanted to.

It isn’t that I don’t like people, per se. I like most people just fine. I’m an introvert, and being around too many people or for too long can be really draining and tiring. This world isn’t exactly accommodating to introverts. I’ve been asked more times than I can count “why are you so quiet” or “why don’t you talk more?” However, if I were to ask someone why they don’t ever shut up, they would be offended and think I’m a rude person.

As I said before, it all comes back to just wanting to be left alone. 

Little River Canyon, Alabama

On a positive note (I’m really a positive person, I swear), I’ve learned how to leave my phone on silent and not feel compelled to answer it immediately or check every time I get a notification. My current job doesn’t allow any phone use in the office, and my husband isn’t known for being on the phone a lot or responding quickly (or at all), so those have both helped.

I’ve thought before about doing a job that would allow me to be outside, but I already have my degree (business) and I don’t quite know how to use that in an outdoors career. All I know is working in an office and driving as far as I do are killing my spirit. I’m sure I’m not the only one who feels this way. 

Upon further reflection, I’m not sure it has as much to do with being indoors as it does with not having a choice in being indoors. I’ve made a lot of decisions in my life based on which option would allow me to be in charge of my days. It never occurred to me that pursuing a corporate career would take away that choice. I know that sounds silly, and yes, I should have realized that. Maybe what I really want, instead of being outside all the time, is to be able to decide where I work. 

Entrepreneurship! 

I keep coming back to that word, so it probably means something. There’s a lot of risk involved in starting your own business (I had entrepreneurship classes as part of my degree). Am I willing to take that risk? I don’t know. But it may be worth it in the end if I can have the sense of freedom I crave. 

Little River Canyon, Alabama

People have told me before that I’m brave for some of the things I’ve done, maybe this is another test of that. To leap out on a limb and see where it takes me (road less travelled, all that). 

I’ve felt a really strong pull towards writing here lately, but it’s different than before. I’ve been writing stories for as long as I can remember, although I haven’t finished many of them, and don’t have access to any due to computers crashing. Now it feels more… serious? Real? It feels like something I could actually do. I could make a business out of writing, which would use my degree and also give me a bit more of the freedom I’m missing. It would certainly still take a lot of work, but I think I could do it.

So here’s to freedom, and nature, and creating our own path through life.

Near Lula Lake Falls, Lula Lake Land Trust, Georgia

What about you? Do you enjoy working in an office or other indoor environment? I’d love to hear the other side. Or if you feel the same as I do, I’d love to know I’m not alone.

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Cozy Minimalism

My husband and I recently spent a long weekend in a cottage on Lookout Mountain. The mountain is a unique one for our area, it’s tall and straight, instead of the rolling peaks more common in the Southern Appalachians. 

Over the weekend we went hiking at Lula Lake, drove to Desoto Falls in Alabama, went to Ruby Falls, walked around Chattanooga, and went to the Chattanooga aquarium. I highly recommend Lula Lake, it was absolutely gorgeous and unlike any other waterfall I’ve ever seen.

The real star of the weekend, though, was the place we stayed. A little cottage off of a dirt road, I was nervous at first due to the size and lack of central heating and air. But over the three nights we were there, I fell in love.

There was a tiny front porch with a trellis, window boxes on the front windows, a small square table in the kitchen with lace trimmed white curtains, and the bedroom was just big enough for a queen size bed and two side tables. In lieu of heating, there were two electric little fake fireplaces that heated the little house almost too well. 

It felt like something out of a Studio Ghibli film. I wanted to sell all my stuff and move there immediately. I would write books and sell something at farmers markets and bake so much the smell of bread would be absorbed by the house itself. 

Of course, that’s not possible at the moment. We will be selling our house soon because we’re moving to Texas in a few months. At least for the first year, we’ll be living in an apartment,  and even afterwards, I’m not sure that a small house will be practical for us. We’ll need office space, a guest room for visiting family, and hopefully, we’ll need a nursery in a few years as well. 

Regardless of practicality and the actual environment we’ll be in, I hope to carry the feeling of that cottage with us. I don’t want to go fully minimalist, but I’ve started getting rid of things that I don’t need and that aren’t adding to my happiness and peace.

I want to find a balance so I can keep some of my sentimental items, but not feel so bogged down by all the stuff. 

That house helped give a sense of peace and was so pretty to be in. I hope to keep that in mind when we move and start unpacking and decorating our future home. 

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Getting Lost, Figuratively and Literally

Trail maps are important items.

They keep you from literally getting lost in the middle of the forest. The help you be prepared and know what’s ahead. And most importantly, they normally tell you how far you can expect to walk.

However, some trail maps are better than others. My husband, his mother, and I went to a Cochran Mills Park a couple of weeks ago to hike. According to the maps and websites we saw, we expected to walk about 4.5 – 5 miles. It was a beautiful hike through damp, cold forest. And I say that in a good way. 

The cold and damp kept a lot of people away, and gave an ethereal atmosphere to many places on the trail. There were several sections of boulders overgrown with moss that reminded me of Te Fiti and the mountain giants from Lord of the Rings.

We finally made it to the waterfall we were looking for, and enjoyed the scenery for a moment before heading back. There was a short discussion about which way to turn to have the shortest way back, but we ended up returning the same way. 

When we got back to the car, we knew it had been far longer than 4.5 miles. My husband and I are somewhat out of hiking practice, but not that badly. When we looked at the map again with a better understanding of exactly where we went, we calculated a hike of about 7 miles. 7 miles. Those extra two miles can have a huge impact, and spontaneous events like that are the reason I carry so much stuff in my day pack. 

Regardless of the extra mileage (yes I was exhausted and sore for a day or two, but I slept really well), it was a beautiful hike. I also believe it was mostly user error in misunderstanding the trail map, and don’t want to put any blame on the park itself. We will definitely be going back to that park, since it’s nearby and there is a ton to see there. 

The takeaways from this story are to have plenty of supplies in your daypack, double check trail maps and make sure you know exactly where you’re going, and take a good sense of humor to get through difficult moments. Hiking, much like running, is often a mental game. You have to have thick skin, determination, and perseverance. But it is certainly worth the struggle and exhaustion in the end.