Supply and Demand: Home Edition

I realized the other day that since moving to Chattanooga, we have bought far fewer items than when we lived in Birmingham. Of course, we're also living in a smaller place, so I'm sure that plays into it, but my theory is this: when inconvenienced by "stuff," we will not purchase it as often. In Birmingham, we lived 10 minutes from 3 different malls and 2 minutes from 3 different grocery stores. Now, we are 15 minutes from a grocery store and 30 minutes to a mall or any store and it causes us to evaluate whether or not we really need to go or really need those items. I see this principle in the food department: when we have a ton of food in the house, we tend to eat more. Or with money: when I have more cash, it's easier to spend it. It's the same with "stuff": if it's convenient, I'm much more likely to buy it.

So, I'm grateful that we live on a mountain with lots of hiking trails, walking paths, and parks nearby, because that's what we find ourselves doing most of the time--not just because we enjoy it, but because it's (you guessed it) convenient.

End of summer salad

Limited amounts of food in the fridge can lead to great creativity in cooking, like the End of Summer Salad that I created yesterday. There are several ingredients, but they happened to be in my fridge, so if you have them around, I highly recommend trying this recipe. It's not only delicious, but beautiful!

Ingredients:

Spinach
Honey roasted almond slices (from the bag--so much easier than homemade!)
Feta cheese
Blueberries
Pulled white meat from rotisserie chicken
Ken's Raspberry Walnut Healthy Options salad dressing

The blueberries give it a tart flavor, but the feta balances it out with its smooth, rich consistency. The chicken already has seasoning on it, so it adds some saltiness while the almonds add crunch and the dressing ties it all together. Bon appetit!

9/11

I'm thinking about grief today, about what it would be like to lose a sonmotherfrienddaughterco-workerfathergrandparentlovedone. About how words would be insufficient and almost insulting to my emotions. About how the loss would crush any other priority, about how I would have to go on with life--eating meals, taking showers, going to church, meeting friends for coffee--and it would all somehow feel like a betrayal to the one lost, like I don't care enough to halt my life too. About grief and anger and questioning and heaviness and tiny, tiny specks of hope that I can barely see. Are they really there? I'm thinking of eight years ago when hundreds of healthy heartbeats stopped their rhythm and I'm thinking of my mother-in-law who lost a child to SIDS over 30 years ago and I'm thinking of Sharon Solwitz, a writer who lost one of her teenage twin boys to cancer and I'm thinking of my 20-something friend Emily who lost her husband of 15 months in the line of duty in Iraq and I'm thinking of mamas around the world who have had to watch their children fade and I'm thinking of my grandmother who longs to see her beloved again on the other side. I'm thinking about how we grieve loss and how strange it is that that kind of emptiness can weigh so much. And I'm thinking about how everyone wants to make you feel better and tell you that it will be alright, but the truth is that, on this side, it will never seem right again. And that's okay.

The new Comeback Kid

Sorry to all you hardcore, punk rock fans out there; this post has nothing to do with the Canadian band, Comeback Kid.

I was doing a little light reading the other day for class, plodding through Plato's "Gorgias," and came across a phrase that must needs come back. If you didn't catch it, that phrase is "must needs." Microsoft Word identifies it as a typo, but I think that the word combination offers a new possibility of meaning. Instead of just "must" or "needs," the alliance of the two words gives it urgency, seriousness, and backbone. And the best part about this phrase is that it's reversible; "must needs" and "needs must" mean the same thing. Phenomenal. If you really want to investigate all the intricacies and history of this phrase, check out this website.

As for me, I'm adding "must needs" to my list of needed comebacks along with New Kids on the Block, Gushers, one cent gum, and leather pants.