It has been rather a long time since I have posted here. This month I have taken the inktober challenge on Facebook, which has one doing an ink drawing a day. I started it for fun, but am finding myself enjoying the act of daily challenge. Therefore, I shall share them here as well. Since I already started some I will share today's now and make another post with the others up to now.
I hope, if any are still out there, that you won't miss my vintage inspired images. It is just such a part of who I am that it cannot but help appear in my drawings. I believe the hashtag, #DonnaDavisArt on FB would also bring them up.
Since leaving the 1950's I have become rather lazy sometimes with my meals. I realized, however, that the cooking skills I gained there has given me the license to fairly good meals with ease. When I was disparaging how easily I threw something together the other day to a friend, thinking as I spoke,"Oh what a lazy cook am I", she responded. You make it sound so easy, but I just can't put any meals together. It's too hard.
I am sure even in the 1950's new wives often felt a bit overwhelmed. Although many were taught cooking and baking skills either at home or in school. Today, in my post 1950's life, I often opt for simple and easy meals. As good fresh veg as possible (either my own or from local farmers market or what's in season the rest of the time), simple cuts of meat, and fruit. Makes life easy.
Yet, I too am want to make things easier and I admit to buying some frozen things as well. When I lived in the '1950s' in our other dear little house I had a vintage fridge (it is still there now, I just don't use it but I wonder what my tenants think of it) whose freezer was exactly like this. It's size dictated the few things I could choose to have in there. It was never prepared TV dinners, though, I can tell you that.
Now, at Toad Hall, we inherited a large double door refrigerator with an entire half that is just freezer. It is a monstrosity I would never buy myself. The first few months here it sat rather empty save occasional ice cream and of course some bought ahead, cut up and marinated meats. As I have got used to it, it has become fuller. Yet I only really realized the other day that there is also storage on the door of the freezer. It still is sitting empty. I just don't buy that much or keep that much food in the house in the freezer.
However, I did buy some lovely cheese ravioli and had it in there. The other night I wanted a quick meal and so I thought of it. I am sure this is no revelation to any of you who already cook with frozen, but for me, who used to make the dough, roll it out and fill them (which I will still do and freeze them myself, but not as often) it is a breeze to just grab a ready made bag of food. I boiled them per directions and them added simple jar tomato sauce. To this, of course, I revelled in the lovely tomatoes I am still getting from our little green house and cut them in as well as placed a few on top. We both love cheese, so I cut Parmesan and Romano and mixed it in. And then I placed on top crumbled blue cheese. I had a few croutons in the bottom of a bag, I am loathe to toss things since my sojourn in the 1950's, and I crumbled those in as well. The whole thing took very little time, the longest being the 6 minutes to boil the frozen pasta. I baked it all at 350F for 30 minutes and it was delicious and traveled well in Hubby's lunch box the next day. It was delicious and I served it with fresh cut basil on top. It couldn't be easier but would have been almost cheating in my 1950's time.
The 1950's did have its share of frozen. And really post war American, with its over abundance of energy, electricity, and factories wanting to pump out something to replace all the weapons they had been making, certainly provided the 1950's housewife with a great selection of freezers and food to go in it. Any way you slice it, the ease of frozen and ready made foods can make dinner time pretty simple and you can 'add in' as much high end or local grown items as you choose. I still prefer homemade, as I am not a fan of GMO foods nor the unknown put into processed eating, sometimes a gal is just lazy. I hope, however, to never be so lazy as to need a frozen Thanksgiving TV dinner.
I can recall days in my twenties when I lived with a dear friend. Though we lived by the sea, it was a walk to get there. Yet, we gave up a lot to be there. We lived in a small converted one room garage that was often visited by nightly cricket song. And not in an endearing way, but in that the crickets, seeing it was a garage, felt obliged to move right in and sing us to sleep.
Another quiet day. I seem to have many such quiet days strung together. For me, an introvert, it is simply how I choose to live. I realize, for some, it would be hard to go days of self reflection. Though other, I believe, would love a break into such a stream of days.
On my walk today, from which these pictures are from, I thought about happiness in the context of the moment. Some may say now I am in a position to enjoy such moments being on the sea, with leisure time, and days left to orchestrate as I see fit. However, I have always tried to cherish that moment and I certainly have not always lived thus.
We enjoyed the moments though. We had hot tea and donuts on upturned cardboard boxes for tables, and rations of hand rolled drum cigarettes. There were evenings of reading or solitaire (by hand not computer). Was I any less or more happy then, than now? I don't know I don't think so. I felt a need to be where I was and to have the time to do what I wanted with my days.
Even when I worked I always made sure that my schedule was arranged for my free time. Certainly climbing ladders and careers were attained and achieved by friends and others. For me, however, the moments was always the thing. Perhaps, in many ways, this was the lazy person's way. It may indeed be, I certainly would not run from the moniker 'lazy'. It is best to know one's limits I suppose.
Yet, on this sunny Autumn day, after my long 2 hour walk followed by tea and books by the sea, I have to think, for me at least, I trod the path of the quiet and the moment. It is not for all, but for those of you whomever feel like you are not on the right path, why not give it a try. Take specific moments of your day to be in that moment. If you are at work, make a little ritual of your favorite tea and tea cup and make sure you take that break and savor that moment. If you feel the rat race of hectic family life, maybe make a game of 'the moment' at least once a week. Each family member take that time to really just be for a certain amount of time. If it is for you and you enjoy it, then you can begin stringing those moments together more and more each week. We often make time for exercise or bill paying or even tv, but maybe a time just to be alive and awake in the moment might be a boon to the hectic pace of modern life.
I know, of course, that so many women are mothers or full time business people, and such moments are rare or hard found. Or perhaps, having chosen your path, such moments would seem too quiet or even wasteful. To each their own, I say. I learned a long time ago the world is made up of different people who like different things. I can share what I like and why but I would never presume to prescribe it or dictate to another.
Sometimes, thought, there might be that odd introvert or quiet seeker who might need the little reminder to remember to live in the moment in a quiet way now and again. You can be as happy as the queen of England at High tea in a Palace with percolator coffee and a donut on an upturned box, I know, I have done.
As a friend asked what we were doing today, I thought I'd might share my answer here as well. I am sitting with woolens on my lap on the lawn at Toad Hall. There is cinnamon black tea and the letters of Nancy Mitford and Evelyn Waugh to accompany me. The sky, though bright and shiny as a blue button this morning has come over grey and dramatic. And I just watched a fox ramble over our beach. Over all a rather fine Sunday, indeed.
Though it is not quite that time yet, here in my part of New England, soon enough leaves and their outcome will be upon us. Their beauty every Autumn also ushers in their maintenace shorty there after.
Today let's just view some lovely images of the past and Autumnal leaves. And of course a little hint on what one can do with the pesky things. Though, in all honesty, leaf mold is a wonderful garden resource available free in our own yards. Using Shredded leaves and the joy of Making Leaf Mold.
During
my sojourn in the 1950’s my daily dose of information included not
only books and magazines of the time, but the education films, made
for school children, were often helpful. They gave an insight into
the thoughts and ideals of the adult population of the day and of
what they wished to impart to the next generation.
Yesterday
I was going though them and found this one, “Act your Age” from
1949. The title made me laugh and of course think of Facebook. How
many times do I see in my feed various ‘tests’: “What tea
kettle are you?” What national brand sponge cake would you be? How
much like this or that movie star is your dog?” I watched it.
Surprisingly,
or actually not so as I often found in my year in the past, the film
actually pointed out some rather sound advice and held a mirror to
our own modern society. I was happy to see, once fully viewed, that
in no one did the ‘bad or childish’ behaviour we were meant to
not emulate if we were older include happiness or wonder. Those
actions we often associate with child-like attitude of joy from simple
things and pleasure in the moment were not looked down upon.
The
actions it did associate as child-like made me really take note.
These over reactions to things I have viewed on adults in front of
children in department stores. A rash quick response which, if we
really thought about it, might be better for our mental health were
we to stop, assess the moment and then think, “Well, I should act a
bit more calm and rational” Which, honestly, is all this film is
asking of the young gentleman and ladies of the day.
In
the film the main young man on his own makes a list that I thought
would be fun to share. Because we could make it and ask friends,
family, children, parents, what they think. It could easily be posted
on Facebook to get laughs I am sure. Here is the list he made:
Remove
You
will have to excuse the quality as I had to do a screen capture of
the film. The idea was, if you can’t make it through the film, was
that he made this list then rated himself and then asked others what
they thought. You might think you act 10 when someone disagrees with
you, but you friend might think you act like a toddler. That sort of
thing. With the idea that one would monitor their reactions and hope
for improvement.
In
today’s instant world and endless stuff, we often can seem like a
creche’ of spoiled children. We want what we want and we want it
now and if we don’t get it you bet you are gonna get an ear full or
a tantrum. One has to only ask the poor tired Retail sales person
about adults ‘child-like’ behaviour.
Enjoy
the film for what it is and let me know if you agree disagree or even
care about reactions to situations by adults in our modern world.
And
to close on a yummy note, here is last nights home-made French onion
soup.
I am trying to post now on FB more like a blog and then cut and paste it here, but it is not working. I am out and about today so I will look at this tonight and see what I can see. Here is a link to the post that was unreadable but not sure if it works if you are not on FB if not and you make a page just request friend me and then it would show up I believe...1955 Take me away! HERE is post.
A lovely morning ramble. The leaves are just hinting at their Autumn intentions. The scent of the sea has a poignancy quite particular to this time of year. It makes me think of certain Septembers with an old friend, when our lives stretch unfettered before us. The sky is big and blue and dappled with painterly clouds. Oh, October, you charming companion.
