FEBRUARY

Winter sun, eating in situ, creative outlets

Feb 09, 2025

From last Monday (it’s cold and gray again today) - I’ve just plunged into cool running water at the end of a hike. Something unthinkable a week or two back, but spring comes and we make it feel welcome. Today (sunny, 65) is a taste of what’s to come, a fleeting grasp - one I know will disappear as quickly as it arrived. These mid-season blips encourage us to avoid taking the changes for granted. Seasons come and change and the year goes on. We have to drink in every little passing moment, notice how the light hits your steering wheel, or how it’s just a little bit brighter each morning when you rise. Notice the geese flying above, chattering and letting us know of their migration. Notice moments of foreshadow, of hope.

The groundhog saw his shadow. We take what we can get.

January was a bit of a slog for everyone, I think. I turned inward, out of necessity, avoidance or both. Jan and Feb are for preparation, working behind the scenes and on your own, trusting inner wisdom and building foundations for growth, light, warmth. We do the work by readying ourselves for and looking forward to what’s ahead. We need to.

I’ve gathered a list of links and some personal recipes to try this month, cozy meals and brightness for balance, support and comfort.

FEBRUARY RECIPES

Marmalade and toast shortbread bunnies, water over moss, a bucket bag I made, Trapp’s new neckwarmer

In care of my creative well and in the interest of keeping it topped up as best I can, I’ve sought out low risk, fun ways of accessing other parts of my brain throughout the week. Knitting, sewing, walking, cooking and reading are constants in my life, but drawing more, playing with quilt blocks and making more lists have been great ways for me to explore. I scribbled this in about 8 minutes while holding onto my dog at our swimming spot earlier.

LOOKING AHEAD TO / a list of things I’m excited about:

+ IN SITU - I am reading Honey From a Weed by Patience Gray, who’s focus on her experience in Catalonia, Tuscany, Islands in Greece and Apulia, Italy and how it shaped how she saw food, work, life (spoiler - they are all intertwined). Some things, from her experience are irreplicable - certain wines enjoyed on the vineyard, a tomato eaten readily picked right off the vine, bread baked in a specific town oven, a fisherman’s feast off the coast of Spain, prepared just so. What is irreplicable in your own life? I’m hoping to record more moments and eat more bites in situ this growing season. Patience lived in accordance with her own goals and dreams, far outside the norm for a woman in the mid-late 1900’s. She followed a trail of inspiration, foraged for wild fungi and edible wild plants, made jewelry and lived very simply, prioritizing her creative journey.

Eccentricity: living according to priorities established by one’s own experience. - Honey from a Weed

+ CULTURED DAIRY - yep, makin’ yogurt. It is so rewarding, simple, delicious. It is perfect with homemade granola that’s just salty enough. We had it with lemon curd as well.

+ CHUNKY SILVER - one of my primary creative inspirations is Georgia O’Keeffe - her style, approach to her home, garden and food as well as her individualism and independence are all so expansive to me. I am looking for a vintage chunky silver pin to adorn some of my more plain outfits. Here is a fun to read, comprehensive look into her style.

++ Separately, I just learned to polish my silver with a paste made from baking soda and water. I cleaned up a few old pieces this weekend and they’ve been brought back to life and onto my wrists. I wish I knew this sooner!

+ CHALLAH CLASS - teaching a 4 hour class on yeasted, enriched breads at the Cumberland Folk School this April. Here is a link to details.