June 14, 2011

Making Sense(ing) of it all.

I am an ISFJ.

If you know what that means, then you already know by putting myself into one of  the16 MBTI boxes, I like the orderly consistent behaviors that the MBTI indicators type. Sort of a self-fulfilling prophecy.

One of the big battles I have is with the "S" in me. People are typically an "S-Sensing" or an "N-Intuition"(or maybe somewhere in the middle. See I AM trying!) To determine if you are an "S" or an "N" one question that helps is "Do you prefer to focus on the basic information you take in or do you prefer to interpret and add meaning?" Or if you are like someone I know once said, "Do you like poetry or not?"

I don't.  

I wish, wish, wish I did.  I try to.  But I just don't get it.  It isn't literal enough.  What if what I interpret is "wrong"?  My friends would argue that that isn't the point; that you are meant to take what you can out of poetry.  I say, tell that to my English Teacher that still had to grade our papers. 

In any case, I decided to try to "get" poetry and Isabella & I have been reading some of the poetry books that  her Gigi has given her over the years.  I figure maybe a now 4-year old (HAPPY BIRTHDAY IZZY!!!) can help me interpret poems from her eyes. Heck, it seemed to help her process Simon's broken arm when the night it happened she recited Humpty-Dumpty and Ring-around-the-Rosie!

And in a different way to help me understand poems, I started to read the Psalms.  I always steered clear of them.  They seemed so antiquated, overly happy with their harps and trumpets and singing; or morbid with their enemies and dust to dust; and sometimes both! The Pslams just seem so OUT there.  Like "look at me! the Lord is SO MAJESTIC!" I didn't get them. I think one profile of mine described me as having a "distrust of the fanciful" and Psalms just seemed too fancy.  I mean, even the world Psalm with the silent "P" thing is too fancy.  Words should be written as they sound.  ISFJs do SO well in Spanish!
But,at the same time, I don't think it is right just to dismiss something entirely because I don't get it.  So I have been trying to at least read the Psalms.  I may not understand or interpret them, but I will try.  

This week, I came across this Psalm and decided to give it a whirl.  I read it.  And then let it sit. 

Here it is:
Psalm 8
O Lord, our Sovereign,
how majestic is your name in all the earth!

You have set your glory above the heavens.
Out of the mouths of babes and infants
you have founded a bulwark because of your foes,
to silence the enemy and the avenger.

When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars that you have established;
what are human beings that you are mindful of them,
mortals that you care for them?

Yet you have made them a little lower than God,
and crowned them with glory and honour.
You have given them dominion over the works of your hands;
you have put all things under their feet,
all sheep and oxen,
and also the beasts of the field,
the birds of the air, and the fish of the sea,
whatever passes along the paths of the seas.

O Lord, our Sovereign,
how majestic is your name in all the earth!
And then something came out of it.  I recalled it when I saw a youtube post on facebook, and then when I started writing more and more meaning came out of it.  Here is the youtube post:



I don't know about you, but when I see this, when I listen to this little girl talk about potatos, when I listen to Isabella process her brother's broken bones, I am moved to try to put understanding around poetry, around the Psalms around my life, around my choices.  Even if those choices are as simple as reading a poem over a Disney book or picking an organic sweet potato over a seemingly similar looking non-organic one.

Maybe this will help me get out of my ISFJ box and put me somewhere in the middle.

Do you know your type?  Do you care?  What about poetry....do you read it, write it, love it, hate it, strive to understand it? What about this Psalm?  What does it say to you? Inquiring ISFJs want to know!

June 12, 2011

Friday's Drawers: Baby, baby bok choy


Kale, romaine lettuce, potatoes, vidalias, mushrooms,
blue berries, broccoli, baby bok choy
My dad & step-mom came out to the east coast all the way from Arizona because the couldn't wait to try some of these veggies from our farm share and our garden!  It had nothing to do with Isabella's 4th birthday, visiting Simon or meeting their newest granddaughter, my niece baby Dune.  Nooooo.....it was all about the baby bok choy.   

Regardless of the baby they were really coming to see, it was a good visit and I did get to make a quick easy, point friendly meal for their visit. 

Orange-Ginger Baby Bok Choy
Ingredients:
1T EVOO
1 carrot, cut into matchsticks
2 T fresh grated ginger
1 lb baby bok choy, cut into 1/2 inch slices 
1/4 c. orange juice
1 T brown sugar
1 T soy sauce
1/2 c peas
1/2 c sliced mushrooms 
1t cornstarch mixed with 1T water

Directions:
In a large skillet, heat EVOO add the white parts of the baby bok choy, carrots, ginger and cook until tender about 3 minutes.  

Add the mushrooms, baby bok choy, orange juice, brown sugar, soy sauce and cover and cook until the baby bok choy begins to wilt, about 3 minutes.  

Uncover, stirring frequently, add the peas, and corn starch mixure and cook for another minute or so.  

Serve over rice.  

We also made a really good Cesar salad with the Romaine lettuce, fried rice with the vidalia onions for the kids, and strawberries & blueberries for dessert.  A good use of the share for one meal!

What is your favorite baby bok choy recipe? What do you like to cook up when you have special visitors in town.  

June 09, 2011

Bike to work day 2.0


Back in May when bike to work week actually I happened, I had every intention of trying to bike to work, but somehow I kept finding an excuse. I don't know the route; the roads could be too busy; running is one thing, but I haven't biked more than 3 miles in 10 years, would I have the stamina?; I don't have a commuter bike (hey, at least I *have* a bike - albeit a mountain bike circa 1991); but the kids LIKE picking me up from the train station; it's too hot, it's too cold, it's raining.  (Actually the month of May did have a lot of rain.) But really, these were all just excuses that I used to keep myself going to/from work with the car-train-walk combo.

I had every intention even of trying out the commute this last weekend as a test run.  But 9 miles out and 9 miles back didn't seem like a good plan (me and a 3 yo were just having too much fun playing outside was told as I started to get ready to go...."Mama you must stay here forever and ever!")  So with Saturday's test-ride out, I thought for sure I wouldn't be bike-commuting  this week.  But on Tues when my train/carpool buddy took a different train, I finally got up the courage to try my bike commute.  I was going to have to try it sometime anyway and a Tuesday is a good a day as any.

So with my maps.google.com directions carefully written on the back of an envelope tucked in my shorts, bike helmet on, change of clothes in the bag, water, gps watch (Yeah, I know - why would I need directions written down....I still haven't mastered that feature on the garmin yet.), tires pumped, kisses all around and a quick prayer to get me there safely, I hopped on and made my way to work.

The first thing I learned - biking uphill is NOT the same as running uphill.  Dang!  I was nonplussed to see that my "average pace" on my garmin going up a hill was about a minute to 2 minutes slower than when I run that same hill.  Once I got over that - the hill and my puzzling thoughts, I kept on riding right up to one of the hairier intersections.

But that led me to something else I learned on my bike.  It is not a race.  My workouts and runs are often measured, with time, distance, pace goals. Biking to work was about getting from point A to point B safely, saving a few bucks, getting some fresh air, enjoying the ride and *hopefully* getting there before my train normally would.  And  burn a few calories so I can eat more

(I wished I biked on Wed & Friday this week too, when my train was way delayed both days!)

Lastly, I was pretty darn scared about commuting than I expected to be. Safety was part of it, but mostly because I just feel so vulnerable out there on the road with all these big metal objects around me.  Especially ones with people in them. On their smart phones.

But I think then I thought about a one of Molly's posts I just re-read recently about being scared: “It must be something like walking out on the rope at Xel-Ha—it’s scary till you start, then you’re so busy concentrating on what comes next, the next step, you forget to be scared.”

I am happy that I biked to work. It did feel like an accomplishment, (not to mention a decent workout) but really, I am prouder of the fact that I did something I was scared to do.  I am still a bit scared, especially at some of the busier intersections, but with a mountain bike I can always hop the curb an bruise my butt on the sidewalk bumps so I hope to add biking to my modes of transportation options more often.  I have a feeling I will get to see a lot more things that I miss when riding the train or driving everywhere.

Do you bike anywhere?  Or do you have something that you've been putting off because it just seems a bit too scary?

Apparently, this guy here, he as no fear. But man, do I wish he would at least wear a helmet!

June 08, 2011

Friday's Drawers - Small CSA, Small Post


This poor little blog is getting neglected!  Just not right....but yet I feel like I am writing ALL the time!

Anyway, we decided with 2 gardens going this year - a community garden plot at work and our little squarefoot garden at home - we decided to cut back to a small share.  Frankly, while the box is smaller, it was filled to the brim and this doesn't seem all that small to me.

The asparagus was roasted in EVOO and sea salt and devoured right away.  The onions were also roasted with some green peppers from last week, the baby bok choy was used with some scrambled eggs for dinner and there is still plenty left.  I think the rest will be a little stir fry with ginger, orange juice and soy sauce....unless anyone else has any ideas.

That seems to be the issue I have.  It's only been about a year and change since I really started cooking and I am finding that I keep going back to the same old same old.  I guess I just have to remember it was ALL new just that short time ago.

Now back the to share.  The sweet potatoes will get roasted when the temperature outside drops. (See more of the delicious same) Kale chips, and salad with the lettuce/tomatoe/cuke combo.  And those were some of the best blueberries I have ever eaten. Burp.

And the fiddle heads.....well hopefully they survived over the weekend and made it to a good home.  I just couldn't bare to try again.  Sorry heads.  Maybe next year. Or maybe I'll give them to some one to show me how to make them taste better.