Dragonflies in the Wild

 

 

My Heart Hurts. And I'm Angrier Than I Can Say.

You know I'm from Nashville.  You know I love Nashville.  But sometimes Nashville embarrasses me.

I went to a predominantly Jewish middle and high school, which is where I met my best friend.  Her father-in-law was a Holocaust survivor.  She is a Holocaust educator.  She is heartsick over this, as you might imagine.  Me, too.

But Of Course

 Man, it is hot here.  Tap-and-I-aren't-even-going-on-walks hot.  So, naturally, I'm knitting hats.

Last year, I gave scarves to all the people who help me with my curbside pick-ups at Kroger.  Even dipping into my etsy stock, though, I came up short and had to do some really quick knitting to catch up.  I figured I'd give them hats this year, and to avoid a repeat of The Hurrying, I'm starting now.

I'm also thinking of getting into a sock mood, so I searched for some two-needle patterns online.  One I found goes with a very, very interesting shape:

I may have to go with these just to see how it all works.  It's a Russian site, but, thankfully, has directions in English.

I've seen some good movies lately.  "Our Little Sister" is a beautiful, detailed story.   "The Red Turtle" has no dialogue, but sweeping and heart-wrenching animation.  The Pink documentary "All I Know So Far" is truly interesting, and features a little scene of her knitting a purple blanket for her daughter.   I'm in the middle of "Red Beard", a 3+ hour Kurosawa film.  The best movie I've seen lately, though, and honestly one of the best movies I've seen in a long time is "In and Of Itself."  I want everyone to watch it, but I can't tell you anything about it, which is SO frustrating.  It's emotional and funny and deep and has magic and if you want to give it a chance, don't look up anything about it.  Go in blank. There's nothing to be leary of, but you'll probably want some tissues or handkerchiefs at hand.

This is Weird, but Stay with Me

I don't know if any of you have Market Wagon in your area, but we have recently gotten it here.  It's a very good way to support local farms and other businesses and try new things.  One of my favorite finds has been garlic dill sauerkraut from Cultured Traditions:

(They also have a seaweed flavor, which I may not be brave enough to try.)

ANYway. . .

My mother was a canner. She also froze lots of food but calling her a "freezer" doesn't work.  One of the things she would put up (that's a professional canning term) was sauerkraut.  As you can imagine, I was drafted many, many, many times during canning season to chop cabbage or shell beans or stir apples or fill various jars or do whatever an extra hand could do.   Except in a single case under singular circumstances.

I could not help with kraut if I was on my period.

Re-read that.

Because if a menstruating woman helps with kraut-making, the batch will go bad.

You can also re-read that if you choose.

Being a skeptical, I'll-show-you teenager, one year I lied about my period and helped with the canning.

And the whole batch was ruined.

And Mama angrily--- surprisingly angrily --- asked me, "Were you having your period when we put this up?'

All of which to say that I wonder if menstruating women in all the sauerkraut plants everywhere get a few days off each month.

Also, as if that weren't enough, a favorite story:  One of my mother's good friends was also a gardener and canner.  Mama went to visit her in the hospital after she'd had a hysterectomy, and Miss Robbie --- first thing --- said, "Now I can make kraut whenever I want!"

Random Thought Generator

There are two foods that make me, whenever I see or hear them discussed on television (show, movie, or commercial),  want them.  Every time.  No other foods do this to me.  Pizza.  Eggs.

Is the song in your head the first thing in the morning a memory from the night before, or a harbinger of the day to come?  

There is now green apple Kool-Aid.  The difference green apple Kool-Aid would have made in my childhood is immeasurable.

If you met yourself, would you like you?  It would take me a while to like me, I think.  You know, to warm up.  But then I think we'd get along;  I like all the things I like.

Not a random thought, but a random photo:

Hannah's Theo, portrait taken by Briton on Mother's Day.