Good friends and good books

I had a wonderful visit with an old friend this week.  Alta Peachy is the very first person I got to know when I started university in 1991, when we were in a class together called The English Novel.  She and her family have been living in Saskatoon for the last four years but she was back in Edmonton this week for some work related training.

After getting caught up on each other's lives over dinner, Alta asked that all important question: "So what are you reading these days?"  My favourite question!  When I told her I was reading a really interesting book called What is the What, her eyes lit up and she exclaimed "I loved What is the What!" 

As Alta pointed out, she and I have always had similar tastes in books.  When she was still living in Edmonton, we used to get together for our birthdays and our gifts to each other were always books.  I think both of us looked forward to those occasions mostly to see what new book we'd be getting.

What is the What is written by Dave Eggers and tells the true story of Valentino Achak Deng and his nightmare journey as one of the so-called Lost Boys fleeing the civil war in southern Sudan in the mid-1980s and 1990s.  To say this is a powerful story is an understatement. 

My friend, Liz, told me about a documentary available on YouTube entitled, God Grew Tired of Us which tells the story of three of the Lost Boys of Sudan.  In fact, if you search YouTube for "Lost boys of Sudan" you'll find quite a number of videos on this topic.

In 2006, Deng established the Valentino Achak Deng Foundation to provide educational opportunities for those affected by the conflicts in Sudan.  His website details the incredible work the Foundation is doing thanks to the proceeds of book sales and charitable donations.  It is so heartwarming to see the pictures of healthy, smiling young students and the new schools they are attending in their villages after reading of the terrible suffering endured by so many.

Big rain

Thunderstormy weather here today. I had just finished mowing the lawn when I started hearing the thunder in the distance. It's been so long since I've seen a thunderstorm, I quite enjoyed it. Although once the hail started, I did get a bit worried. Thankfully it stayed small and didn't do much damage.

A few shredded leaves on the sweet potato vine in the pots, but not too bad.

If these hostas had been further along, they'd likely have had some damaged leaves. But they're mostly just getting started. I love the way they look when they're just poking out of the ground -- kinda prehistoric looking.

And who can resist these adorable fiddleheads.

Such a wonderful time of year!

 

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Rain at last

We have finally had rain here this weekend, our first substantial rain of the season. My rain barrel was dry before it started raining on Friday and by the time I got home from work it was full to the brim. A very welcome sight!

I'm sure the gardens and lawns and fields were just soaking it up.

Today is a beautiful mostly sunny day, and I managed to get some carrots seeded in a container. I don't have a decent spot for vegetable gardening so the little bit of veggies that I do plant are done in pots.

Sally watched from the sidelines.

 

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Victoria Day weekend

What a perfect start to the long weekend. 22 degrees and beautifully sunny -- a perfect day for being outside. I managed to pot up six pots for my back deck.

My deck is fairly shady for a good part of the day, and one of my favourite annuals for the shade is coleus. Grown for their brilliantly coloured leaves rather than their flowers, coleus are available in a wide range of colours, sizes and leaf shapes.

Here they are all potted up. I realized after the fact that in year's past I've included a trailing plant like sweet potato vine or calibrachoa (million bells). I think I may still add something like that to give the pots a bit more of a finished look.

I just love the variation of colour and leaf shape.

 

I also did three pots with yellow begonia and sweet potato vine and then filled up the rest with leftover coleus.

Tomorrow's forecast is calling for rain, so I'm glad I managed to get these done!

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A few little things that make me happy

Are you a sucker for cuteness?  Well, then you must check out Alicia Paulson's blog post at Posy Gets Cozy to see the most adorable stuffed bunny rabbit kits.  The bunny is called Maggie Rabbit and she has her own little dress, boots and knitted cape.  She's available in five different dress fabrics with matching yarn for the cape.  So cute! 

I couldn't resist ordering one in Emilia's Flowers dress fabric and Blueberry yarn, and I ordered the pattern for the little knitted dress as well!  I'm going to beg my friend, Annette, to help me out with the sewing.

Another thing that made me smile this week (okay, I actually laughed out loud!) was this video clip: singing at the pumps.  What a performance!

What's making you smile this week?

Planting pots

It was a beautiful day to do some spring planting and, since I happened to have the day off, I took full advantage of it.

I like to put two pots of purple and yellow pansies on my front steps. This year I started with a nemesia in the centre (below)

And then added six pansy plugs around the outside.

I discovered the stems of the nemesia break off really easily if you're not careful. My first pot looks a bit beat up as a result, but thankfully the stems will grow back. I was more careful with the second pot and I think it turned out quite nicely. Now the pansies just need to fill out a bit and I'll have a nice pot full off purple and yellow.

While at the greenhouse, I also found a pot with a little removable cage attached to it, perfect for a small tomato. I potted it up with a Tiny Tim tomato. Can wait to have a plant full of those little babies!

I'll be getting more plants over the long weekend to fill up the pots on my deck. Stay tuned.

 

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Germany choir tour

Many of you know that I have been singing with the Concordia Community Chorus for the last several years.  This 125-voice choir is centred at Concordia University College, a Lutheran-based university, and is made up primarily of community members as well as some Concordia students, under the direction of the wonderful and talented Dr. Joy Berg.

The year before I joined, the choir made a trip to Vienna, Austria, and a few years before that they travelled to New York City and sang at Carnegie Hall!  I have been waiting and waiting for another choir tour ever since I joined the group, and finally that trip is about to happen. 

Next month, a small group of us (about 23) are heading off to Germany for two weeks.  We arrive in Berlin and then spend the first week in and around Wittenberg, where Martin Luther posted his ninety-five theses to the door of the Castle Church, protesting the church practice of selling indulgences as a means of absolving buyers from purgatory ("As soon as the coin in the coffer rings, the soul from purgatory springs.")  This is the event that sparked the beginning of the Reformation in 1517.

The second week includes the city of Eisenach, where Luther spent a year in hiding following his excommunication, and the birthplace of J.S. Bach; a visit to the Buchenwald memorial site; the city of Dresden; and finally ending in Prague, Czech Republic.

Several of us are arriving in Berlin a few days before our tour actually begins to give us a chance to get over our jetlag, and also staying a few days longer in Prague at the end of our tour.  I'm really looking forward to Prague, which I've heard is one of the most beautiful cities in Europe.

We'll be singing four or five times throughout the tour, both in English and in German.  We've recently started practicing a couple of German Lutheran hymns, and all I can say is, thank goodness I learned a bit of German as a child.  This is one tongue-twister of a language!  Some of the hymns are versions of English ones that I'm familiar with, including Ein Feste Burg (A Mighty Fortress) and Auf, Auf Mein Herz (Awake My Heart), but there's just enough variation to keep me on my toes.

If you're interested, check out the clips here for Ein Feste Burg (this one is by Bach; we're singing a slight variation by Crüger) and Auf, Auf Mein Herz.
 

Cooking

The women at Mennonite Girls Can Cook are celebrating the release of their second cookbook, called Celebrations.
 
If you'd like to win a copy, just visit their blog here.

I have to admit, these days my cooking leaves a lot to be desired.  I used to be so good at making decent meals for myself, but lately my motivation seems to have disappeared.  I still love food!  But it's the meal planning that I have difficulty with.  I like making dishes that allow for leftovers that I can take to work the next day, but not so many leftovers that I'm eating the same thing all week.  And I like things that I can put in the freezer and don't taste like mush when I reheat them.

I guess, like most of us, the thing I like best about food is having good company to share it with.

I took a cooking class called Cooking for One last year with Sally Vaughan-Johnston and got some good recipes and tips.  Here's one of my favourite recipes from that class:

Chicken, Apple and Cheese Quesadilla
Serves 1 (can be easily doubled)

1 9-inch flour tortilla
1 Tbsp peach or apricot jam or mango chutney
1/4 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
6 thin slices apple
1 green onion, thinly sliced
1/3 cup chopped cooked chicken
1/4 cup smoked gouda or other strong-flavoured cheese

Directions:

1. Lay tortilla on a work surface.  Spread jam over half the tortilla.
2. Sprinkle mozzarella over the jam.
3. Top with apple, green onion, chicken and gouda.  Fold uncovered half of tortilla over filling to make a half moon shape.
4. Place quesadilla on a large non-stick skillet and cook over medium heat, pressing down gently with a spatula, for 2 to 3 minutes per side or until golden brown, cheese is melted and chicken is heated through.
5. If the quesadilla browns before the cheese is melted or chicken is hot, zap quesadilla in microwave for 10 seconds.  It will  stay crispy.
6. Transfer quesadilla to cutting board and cut into 3 triangles.

Do you do the cooking at your house?  Do you enjoy it?