It's been a nice quiet Thanksgiving.. The DH was again the founder (and chef) of the feast! We started the day with the Macy's Parade (which I couldn't make it through and managed to find "Sweeney Todd" just as it was starting! This seemed like the perfect thing.. a musical that included songs about making meat pies stuffed with people, whereas we were working on stuffing ourselves.
Sweeney Todd (w/ Alan Rickman as Judge Turpin)
We also managed to take the time to clear off an episode of "Survivor" and "Star Wars Rebels." Some football was viewed but I managed to not pay attention to it.. I was busy eating pie.
SeanYoda ended up purchasing more than we actually ended up eating: crackers, cranberry goat cheese, pickle salad, potatoes (for mashing), onions, cornbread stuffing mix, gravy, fresh cranberry sauce, a whole smoked turkey, and pumpkin pie.
The pie went into the oven first:
The smoked turkey ($30 from Berkeley Bowl) needed to stay in the oven about two hours to reheat:
the meat was very tender..
We have lots of meat leftover for sandwiches, soup, and omelets (he picked up eggs too) and the bones will go to make a soup stock.
Dinner all put together! Smoked Turkey, Stuffing (w/gravy) and cranberry sauce.
and dessert of course!(a couple hours later)
NOTE:
Thanksgiving is an American (and Canadian!) holiday.. The American day of giving thanks was officially made a nataional holiday by President Lincoln in 1863, but was celebrated in various states throughout history.. It often harkens back to Protestantism and giving spiritual thanks for the harvest. So many times the Pilgrims are dragged up as inspiration for Thanksgiving,(and they had plenty to be thankful for what with the local Native Americans saving them from going the way of early Jamestown.)
My experience of Thanksgiving as a child has always been a family holiday infused with religious doctrine (my dad's side of the family was/is Dutch Reformed or Protestant) As I've gotten older I've been able to experience the holiday as the secular day of family, friends, food, and fall festivities.
Today it seems most American Thanksgiving focuses on the food.. I can well imagine a world today that sees America as voracious in all things. In its most ideal, Americans come together as family and friends to share food and company, not unlike the winter holidays. Taking time to slow down and enjoy the time together. There's no wrong way to celebrate.. or not. Many of our family & friends live far off, so phone calls,"face time," emails or texts (or tweets!) are in order.
Yes there is the binge eating, and the 'turkey coma'..but we joke about it and move on, (and not everyone does turkey.. some do tofu, others tamales, others lamb, or duck, or chicken..It's not about what you eat, it's more that you're not eating alone if you can help it. And you take the time to think about the people and things that give your life meaning,(or at least you are thankful for), and the people who probably who aren't as fortunate as yourself.. gratitude, grace, and thankfulness.
Thanksgiving 2015 flickr set
Early evening,walking up Fulton St. at dusk.. sun setting on the back of a couple apartment buildings near Dwight Way..
This is not normal for Berkeley..
We ran our errands early today so we can hide in The Burrow out of the sun & heat. Draw the curtains and keep it cool..keep the lights off and just go into 'energy saver' mode..
On this morning's walk up Shattuck.. at Dwight Way (near our original old 'hood!) Someone has excellent parking skills. ;)
I have nothing to blog about lately.. I don't go anywhere, and when I do, it's not that amazing or interesting.. or not anything that I can post pix of.. hmmm. That makes it sound much more fascinating than it is. *evil grin* Ah,well..
If I ever get around to getting out there on my bike I may find something postable but I'm up to my knees in Math homework and history.. and I got a horrible headache from hitting my head on the windowsill in the house yesterday.. I'm keeping track, as if I suddenly black out we'll know why, right? The point is, I feel awful & not in the mood.
I've been volunteering when I can.. I purposely have been trying to cut back because I'm torn between being a pest, a permanent fixture, or running out of happiness credit. No, I don't know what that means either. But I do know I don't want people to be sick of seeing my ugly mug every morning. I keep thinking I'll do a post about the stuff I come across in my project(s) but then I think.. I don't work there, so it wouldn't be anything legitimate. Best to leave it alone for now. ;)
I find lately I miss my long walks more and more.. I miss the annual "Great LA Walk" our friend Mike puts on every year. I was thinking when the Spring session is over I'll have more time to go 'hiking' and maybe head up into the hills, or bus to Tilden Park or west to the Berkeley Marina and walk back.
The weather has gotten so lovely, the bike is desperate to be utilized. One of the things Berkeley is fortunate to have is the Bike Station- sort of a bike valet.. I was advised by a clerk there that BART pays for the space, probably to encourage commuting.. Since my U-Lock got busted last Fall I haven't bothered replacing it. If you leave your bike parked in the Bike Station, you don't need your U-Lock. Pretty neat huh?
I find I also miss the LA bike meander.. A friend of mine would have downtown LA neighbor/friends gather outside his loft in the Arts District on Sundays and the half dozen or so of us (whoever showed up) would ride around, meandering through the streets of LA/Boyle Heights and beyond. I was always at the back of the pack but I always had fun. It was definitely not one of those intense rides you see around the city. Just mellow.. If you can't pay attention to traffic & chat at the same time, you're going too fast.. "It's not a race.. it's a meander.." I'm so freaking out of shape at this point I don't know if I could handle a meander.. but it'd be worth it to find out. =)
Berkeley doesn't have an art walk.. Oakland has something called "First Fridays" but I've not gone. I remember when we first moved back to the Bay Area there were some issues with it, and I stayed away. I'm honestly not crazy about crowds anymore.
If I can get my act together (caught up with life) I'd like to start attending the Poetry Unbound events at Art House again. It's the first Sunday of the month I want to say.. The first 15 minutes is like an open mic and then they have some scheduled poets reading their works. It's pretty laid-back, comfortable and there's a good mix of funny, moving, romantic, emotional stuff being read. I never read my own bad poetry.. (because it's BAD poetry!) ;)
Then there's the whole history thing. I'm taking an online class right now, which makes me think it'll be the last online class I take for a while. As cranky as other people's bad habits make me (showing up late, eating, wandering in & out to use the bathroom) I miss the lecture aspect.
So here was a post about nothing. I guess it doesn't matter as I have no idea how many people actually show up & read this stuff anymore; probably not anyone I know these days! ;). (I realize I'm not writing about the Historic Core of LA. Oh, do I knew that!) I wish I had something to say, to share.. to enlighten, but I don't.. It's not a good time for me right now.. Maybe I should call this "Overwhelmed Pt 2" ..things aren't hard or difficult, just busy: I don't get out much and I miss friendly, familiar faces. Oh, and my head hurts.
Walking to the library Wednesday Morning.. the fog was misting over the hills. On some of the side streets off Shattuck, the leaves were coloring the neighborhood south of campus..
Beautiful Berkeley..
Sunday was the 2014 Solano Stroll.. An acquaintance had suggested "It's been done.. hasn't it??" and then remarked on how his family had attended in the past and even the kids had been in the parade. Sure, I said.. but this year would be different.
Different for me, at any rate: I would be supporting it as a member and volunteer with the Berkeley Historical Society. I've been volunteering a bit in various ways here and there with the group since earlier this Spring.. and although I wasn't sure I was ready to be thrown into a wolves' den of people (crowds of strangers and unfamiliar situations tend to make me a little anxious unless I know someone..) I was more than willing to give it a go. For as much as new experiences can make me anxious, I still love to try new things, and learn new things.
While I knew what to expect as an attendee of the Stroll, I wasn't sure I was knowledgable enough to support the Society the two hours I was there. It turns out I had nothing to worry about.. I was surrounded by knowledgable associates that were there at the ready whenever a question was too much for me.. Mostly I just chatted people up, sold postcards of various views of Berkeley, some neat B&W pix, as well made change, shared out membership pamphlets when requested, and just had Fun!
Being at the Stroll in this capacity put into play one of the aspects of history that I love.. the tactile aspect. Yes, it's "going to places" where historical things happened.. One can visit Philadelphia or Baltimore as I have, or Charleston or St Augustine, (as I also have many years ago) and see where things happened and be told what and who did what where.. but the bit I'm talking about is more subtle than that.
Walking Solano, you see the theatre, the shops, you talk to people who live there and are part of the community. You take in their experience. You take home your own memories and photos of things you saw or experienced. Whether it's the neat hat I purchased at a local shop or a Solano Stroll poster I took home a few years ago.. the ephemera and memories.. You look around and know people have shopped here before, lived here before.. memory ghosts ..that walk the sidewalks and commune with neighbors and shopkeepers.
Listening to the people yesterday that were fascinated with the panoramic image of Berkeley that the Society had on display (and for sale) was a pleasure. Discussion, sometimes heated about which building was missing or where someone's home was or which street they were looking at.. Learning by listening, learning by viewing.. Learning by holding the things that came before and being part of it myself. It's more than just visiting a park or a city. It's experiencing and opening yourself to those around you and the stories they share.. Being part of the community engagement. Yes, there's a lot of nostalgia mixed throughout these stories.. but so is some truth.
Thursday night we headed over to Mrs Dalloway's for a poetry reading with Matthew Zapruder & Dean Young:
The Central Branch of the Berkeley Public Library held a reception for local author and painter Pete Najarian earlier this afternoon. Najarian has written several works which often featuring his portraiture (Daughters of Memory, The Artist and His Mother) or landscape paintings (The Great American Loneliness.)
Najarian points out details of his Berkeley Marina painting.. He explained that along with painting near the Marina, he often heads to the 2nd Street area of West Berkeley on weekends when traffic is light to non-existent. He explained the big buildings aid as a wind break while he works. The painting on the left was created at Cedar and 2nd, looking south.
Walking the attendees through the various works on exhibition, Najarian explained how he had taken a landscape painting class at Berkeley; he and his fellow painters would go to paint near the Berkeley Marina. Some of the paintings feature fellow painters or landscapes from across the Bay looking toward Albany.. or the Berkeley Hills.
The installation went up on the 7th of July in the first floor "Central Catelog Lobby." As you're heading toward the short stairs to the 2nd floor historic Central Lobby and Reference desk floor, be sure and stop and look around you. You can check out Mr Najarian's painting retrospective until the 3rd of August during regular library hours.
Berkeley Public Library (Central Branch)
2090 Kittredge
Not far from bustling neighborhood of Elmwood in Berkeley is Willard Park. It was opened in the early 70s and named after Suffragate and Temperance leader Frances Willard.
Here in the background you can see the clubhouse (and bathroom on left side of structure) where the Berkeley Day Camp is ran from.. a neat water fountain is seen in the foreground.
Toddler Play Area seen across an open field of dead grass.. Tennis Courts are to the right of the play area.
Willard Park is really a family, neighborhood park.. and is located just around the corner from Willard Middle School, which also uses the park for activities.
What I don't show is the smattering of homeless folks there that were sleeping under the few random trees.. Along with the homeless were random sunbathers, napping folks, ladies having picnics and playing cards. Nearby a couple bicyclists had taken a break from their ride to rest by cooling off and playing a game of "hacky sack" (they were doing pretty good too!)
It was a busy park mid-afternoon and I was hard-pressed to find a spot where I wanted to sit and read. It wasn't peaceful, nor restful. The day was such that with a strong breeze, a shady tree wasn't what I was looking for, and the grass that extended outside in the sun was very dead. I ended up sitting and watching the hacky sack players for a bit and then contemplated the random piece of brown glass from a beer bottle laying weather-worn in the grass next to me. The day camp kids on the far side of the park were playing some kind of soccer I think, well away from the resting homeless. The thing about Berkeley though, is that you can have a wide range of people of various backgrounds and economic situations enjoying the same park. No one is bothering anyone.
That said, this isn't really my idea of a 'meditate under a tree' and read type of park. I'm sure it is for someone..
