Uncategorized | Change Is Hard

June 23, 2016
by dawnkinster 9 Comments

Vegan virgin

Several of my friends are vegans. Their diet includes no meat, no dairy, no eggs, which means no cheese! I’ve read enough to understand the health benefits of that sort of diet. And I haven’t been particularly interested in meat for a long time. Still. It seems overwhelming to move to the Land of Vegan.

I’m considering it more seriously now after attending a Veg-Fest last winter with vegan friends. I learned a lot, saw a lot of interesting things, but felt a lot of the booths at the show were hawking treats, chips and other type things that I’m already trying not to eat. I can’t imagine spending money to buy vegan versions of things I’ve been avoiding for years.

Like brownies. Or vegan ice cream. Which, by the way, was amazingly yummy. I ate two samples.

Still, I am beginning to explore recipes for main dishes that exclude meat and dairy. I’ve read 3 or 4 cookbooks, and gone to a healthy grocery story to find ingredients foreign to me. Seriously, what do you do with millet? I thought that was in birdseed? And ground flax? Chia seeds??? People eat those?

Today I made Lemony Red Lentil Soup. Hearty, easy and delicious. Could be a main course with some crusty homemade bread. Do I have time to make homemade bread? Well…yes…if I get organized.

Maybe there’s something to this vegan thing.

Yummy!

What is it about new things that frighten us? For me it takes longer to cook vegan because I’m always checking the recipe. Plus it seems like there’s a lot more stuff that needs to be chopped up. More planning ahead required. Different shopping at a different store takes time too.

For now I’m looking for a good bean burger recipe. If you’ve got one, feel free to share. And any other advice is welcome too. I’m going to try to incorporate a meatless meal into our weekly schedule — at first once a week, then maybe two days. We’ll see how it goes.

And I wonder if my vegan experiments should be described in a second and separate blog? Can I manage two blogs? Would anyone read them both? Would I just split my readers up or would I gain a different following? Does the world even need another vegan blog? I’ll have to marinate on that.

Marinate. Get it?

I crack myself up.

Veggies rule

June 22, 2016
by dawnkinster 16 Comments

Wordless Wednesday – zzzzzzzzzzzzz

June 21, 2016
by dawnkinster 18 Comments

Nothing to do

Remember when you were a kid how you’d hound your mom (or dad) during summer vacations about having nothing to do? And no matter what was suggested it wasn’t what you wanted. Even though you couldn’t exactly say just what that was.

Retirement can be sort of like that. Or not.

Checking out the buffet.

Katie and I have been camping in the back yard the last couple of nights. This morning, with a thunderstorm in the forecast, I went out to pack the tent up. I was feeling privileged that it was 7:30 on a Monday morning and I wasn’t sitting in commuter traffic on the freeway. The neighborhood was quiet, sun shining softly on the leaves, only the sounds of the birds to interrupt my wandering thoughts.

Got any jelly there lady?

A chipmunk and a fat squirrel skittered away from me as I startled them mid-breakfast. A rose breasted grosbeak flew off the feeder, an oriole streaked away toward the woods.

I smiled.

I’ll just get a drink while I wait.

And then part way across the back yard two tree swallows flew in formation right toward me, perhaps 6 inches above the grass. They swooped and swirled through the yard. I stood still. They circled me several times, flew low and then swept up over the tomato cages, then down across the lawn again. Like stealth bombers, their wings were silent unlike the other birds that frequent the yard whose fluttering wings and grumpy cries always let me know when the feeder is empty.

I recognized in that moment how lucky I am. I can stand perfectly still in my backyard, in the middle of a weekday morning, and enjoy doing absolutely nothing.

I demand fresh oranges!

I’m reading a book, Slow Love; how I lost my job, put on my pajamas, and found happiness. by Dominque Browning. The author is describing her transition from frenzied work to unemployment. This afternoon I read the following passage which perfectly described how I felt earlier in the day:

“I begin to understand how nothing to do is its own state of grace, difficult to find deliberately, nearly impossible to recognize. Nothing to do means I can sit and look and let my mind wander, then empty, then fill again, with wonder or with grief, with anything or with nothing at all. “Nothing to do” is not the same as “Nothing can be done.” One is hopeless; the other the place from which hope becomes possible.”

In the heat of mid-morning, standing still in the light, I realized that nature was enjoying my yard every day. Used to be that I didn’t get to see it, but now, now that I have nothing to do, it’s all right there for me to enjoy.

Pretty darn cool.

Grape jelly again?!

June 20, 2016
by dawnkinster 7 Comments

WordPress Photo Challenge: Curve

New spring canna leaf.

Curve.

Here’s a couple of my favorites so far.

Oh. And this one.

Enjoy!

June 19, 2016
by dawnkinster 8 Comments

Nothing left to add this Father’s Day

For days I’ve felt Father’s Day coming. And I’ve tried to conjure up a Father’s Day post, something sweet and reminiscent like I wrote last year. But for some reason I just don’t have anything profound to say. Nor anything less stirring. This year my mind can’t get around the fact that he’s not here.

He should be.

I should be able to give him a call, send him a card, even go for a visit. A couple weeks ago I did an interview and at the end the reporter asked me to send her pictures of me and dad. I realized I didn’t really have any of him and me together, just the two of us. I thought to myself that I should get a few taken next time I was home.

And then I remembered. Again. I have to keep remembering over and over and it’s just as painful each time.

I can’t make any more pictures. Can’t make any more memories. What I have is all there will be. All there will ever be.

I know I’m lucky that I have the vast number of memories and life experiences that our family created over the decades. Some people don’t have any memories at all. But I’m feeling greedy and wish there could be more.

He was a good man, a good provider, a good dad. He was doing the best he could to adjust to the loss of his life partner, my mom, when he was taken from us.

He should still be here.

This Father’s Day seems harder for me than most of the last twelve that our family has managed to get through. I don’t know why. But I know that tomorrow will be better. And I know we were lucky to have had him at all.

Still, I wish he was here today.

June 17, 2016
by dawnkinster 24 Comments

Evil waves !

No it’s not mama who thinks waves are evil. It is I, Princess Katie, who doesn’t trust those noisy, ever moving, elusively wet things. Not at all. And mama knows I don’t like them, yet she took me on an adventure where there were lots of waves! Sometimes I don’t understand my mama. At all.

Our home away from home.

But you know what? I had a really good time anyway. You know how much I love to camp with my mama and we went to a park we’ve never been to before, way up north, on the shores of Lake Huron. Mama scored a beautiful campsite with our own private path to the beach (and those pesky waves!). Lucky for me it was a ‘no dogs allowed’ beach so I didn’t have to spend much time out there!

Some people ask me what I do all day when we’re camping. Well! Let me show you! We go on lots of walks around the campground where I can show off my beautiful self…

Not too many people around to admire me!

…and we take lots of naps. When my mama is reading in the tent I like to nap up on her bed, right next to her…

Reading is boring mama!

…unless I’m busy keeping watch on my private pillow from my own private window.

What’s going on out there?

And when my mama is reading in her chair outside I like to keep track of the world while keeping cool under the picnic table. It’s my secret hideaway. Nothing gets by me!

My secret hiding place!

But we explored lots of other places too. This campground has a dog beach and the first evening we went to find it. The path went through some tall trees and the sun was getting low which made the trees (and me!) just glow. Mama spent a long time in there taking pictures of everything.

Isn’t the light cool in here?

When we finally got to the dog beach I made it very clear with my flat ears that I did not like it mama! I especially didn’t like when the noisy waves were behind me. Mama tried to tell me that these were just little, harmless waves and she wasn’t going to make me get my feet wet but I was still very glad we didn’t stay there long.

What IS that mama?

The next morning mama almost missed the sunrise! I slept all night, hardly moving at all, while my mama shivered under four blankets while wearing layers of clothes. She finally fell asleep in the early morning hours and expected that I’d wake her up at the usual 5:30. But I didn’t! It was so nice sleeping in the cool night air that I just rolled over and kept sleeping. She woke up at 5:45 and woke me up! She wanted to go out on the beach to see the sun? Is she crazy?

The sunrise was nice but I didn’t want to be there, so she brought me back to camp, put me on my long leash and gave me breakfast to keep me busy while she went back out on the sand to take more pictures.

Morning light on my fur.

Well. I do not like to be separated from my mama! So after I finished my breakfast (You didn’t think I was going to leave that in the bowl did you?) I figured out my leash wasn’t really attached to my collar and so I walked casually right back out to the beach to find her!

Hey mama! Whatcha doing out there?

She turned around to check on me and there I was, standing next to the path (I don’t like the sand in my toes.) watching her! Mama came running and I got hooked up to my leash really good. I think she was sort of surprised that I came back out on the beach on my own. I like surprising my mama. Keeps her on her toes.

Later that day we went on a little road trip. And guess what? I got to see a real lighthouse in person! This is Sturgeon Point lighthouse. It’s very beautiful. Mama would have walked up to the top, but the tower was only open on the weekends. And she had me. As you know I don’t do stairs.

What is more beautiful than a lighthouse? Why ME of course!

Of course there was a beach there too, with even bigger waves and I didn’t like it. So mama and I walked around the grounds of the lighthouse instead of out by the water like she wanted. She’s good about compromise, my mama.

There is also a one room school, the Old Bailey School, on the site. Mama said that since there weren’t any waves nearby could I please sit and look pretty so she could take a picture with me and the school. But I was more interested in what that thing was over to the right of me. Plus there were two people on the other side of the school and I could hear them talking and I wanted to go see what was over there. So all my mama got was this.

What IS that mama?

By the time we got back to camp I was exhausted! I slept all night again, and mama shivered all night. She put on all her clothes and even wore a pair of socks on her hands and she was still cold! I don’t know about you mama! I was wearing all my clothes too and I thought the weather was perfect for sleeping! Anyway, this time my mama set her alarm to wake us up at 5:30 so we could go out and see the sunrise. It was spectacular. I couldn’t stop looking at it.

The sun’s got nothing on me!

Wouldn’t you? Out on the horizon was a fishing boat which made it even more interesting. The sky was just gorgeous. Everything was gorgeous, and this time I didn’t even act scared of the waves! I let mama enjoy everything!

Colors beyond description!

But then the clouds started rolling in….

Uh oh…

…and it began to rain. And rain….and rain. Mama and I hung out in the car. We drove into town so she could check the radar. We drove back to camp. We hung out in the car again and it continued to rain. And the wind picked up and the waves were getting bigger and noisier.

Getting noisier out here!

Mama thought about another night of sleeping in the cold. And now we were both wet from me making her take me on walks to do my thing. Even if she wore all her clothes again she’d be cold. And she didn’t think we’d ever be dry again. So she packed up camp. She didn’t even ask me if I wanted to go home! And I did not!

Goodbye lake! We’ll be back!

Sometimes mama uses that old excuse “because I said so” and I have to just go with the flow. But I have to admit I was really happy to see my Dad when I got home. I guess it’s nice to be here too. I slept upside down on my king sized bed that night. But now I want to know….what are you going to do to top this one mama? Huh? Huh?

What’s next mama?

It better be good, that’s all I have to say. Because a princess has certain expectations you know. And it’s very bad if she’s disappointed. I’m going to go take a nap now, in preparation for the next royal event.

I like the woods best!

June 16, 2016
by dawnkinster 17 Comments

WordPress Photo Challenge – Pure

Those of you that live in or around Michigan have surely seen and heard the promotional advertisements aimed at getting tourism. So when I saw that this week’s WordPress Challenge was Pure…and knew I’d be ‘up north’ enjoying some of the best that Michigan has to offer….

Pure Michigan

…well, I couldn’t resist tying the two together.

Wordless Wednesday

June 15, 2016 by dawnkinster 22 Comments

June 11, 2016
by dawnkinster 12 Comments

Winding through Shakespeare’s woods

Have you ever explored through beautiful woodland in search of Shakespeare? Unless you live in Ann Arbor, maybe not. But if you’re from around here you’re in luck. The University of Michigan is putting on a spectacular production of Love’s Labour’s Lost in the Arboretum below the beautiful peony garden.

The peony garden.

You should go. Even if you aren’t sure you love Shakespeare. Because what could be better than to spend a couple of hours wandering in the beautiful trees and flowers of the Arboretum while watching talented people joyously telling a story of love and mistakes and confusion and confirmation?

As the actors headed down into the woods to prepare for the evening performance my Aunt and I wandered the beautiful peony garden.

On her way to find her nobleman.

It was past it’s prime, last weekend would have been perfect, but it was still beautiful, and smelled like heaven must.

Can you smell the perfume?

Once the show started we followed along eagerly, as we learned that the country’s king had decided to ban women from his court for three years, while he and his noblemen studied. Women are, you know, distractions from serious study.

No women?? For three years???

But had he forgotten that the Princess from France was scheduled for a royal visit? Why yes he had! So she and her noble women would have to stay camped in a field outside the court. She was quite put out. Which was a shame, because the King had a huge crush on her.

The ladies arrive.

And the rest of the women? They and the King’s noblemen had crushes too. So what to do? Meet in secret, write love letters that get hand carried to the wrong people? Pine away in the forest?

Studying.

All of that and more. And of course don’t forget the visiting Spaniard with his grandiose ideas of love and women who falls for the common milk maid.

She’s the match for him.

It was all there deep in the lush green forest. How does it all end? Does everyone get to live happily ever after? I’m not telling you. You’ll have to go find out for yourself. The play continues Thursdays through Sundays until June 26.