On My Mind Mondays: Even Keel -turns into - Feel Me, Read Me, Watch Me, Eat Me,

So I started this on Monday, and voila!  it's Friday.  Makes it almost sound like I made Friday come magically rather than chronologically.

I've been working on getting back to my regular life, with its routines and rituals, for the past week.  February was quite challenging as I was away or traveling fourteen out of the 28 days of the month.  Sure, it seemed like a good idea at the time (part of the macro versus micro discussion), and I did have fun, but it does take a bit to get back to everyday life afterwards.  One morning I was curious why I had so much free time while my coffee was brewing, and then I remembered that I usually put away the clean dishes while I'm making my coffee.  A few weeks away, and I forget what I'm supposed to do.

After a weekend off, and at home, we're both starting to get back into our groove.  But I'm trying to take it slowly; I have the tendency to jump head-first into things, which can lead to premature burn-out.  I'm in it for the long haul now.

Meanwhile, fast forward to Friday...

So the ladyfriend calls me into the living room to see something this morning, and what I get to see is the terribly talented and super cute Erik Karlsson winking at someone on the ice. It also gave me the opportunity to learn how to record, via Quicktime, something on my computer.   The video is a little jumpy, but you do get to see the wink.

I often wish he'd come to the Rangers.  That would be a dream come true!

He's Swedish, but it reminds me of this cool Kickstarter campaign I was directed to by Viking Biking:

I'm totally into the rain skirt, something I'd thought of trying to make myself before.  I like the designs she has.  I love that the poncho was originally designed for stylish Muslim women who wear burkas.  The three-person rain poncho is pretty funny; a sense of humour is always good.

One of the things I'm interested in learning is natural dyeing, being an original RIT dye kind of gal (oh, the options it afforded you, and so easy!), but this article from Hand/Eye demonstrates that just because a dye isn't "natural" doesn't mean it's not sustainable or environmentally friendly.  The dye pots remind me of the vinegar mother Sean Brock (on The Mind of a Chef) talked about dating back to his grandmother (and possibly further).  I really like the idea of a perpetual pot of dye, or a generations-old vinegar mother (or kombucha scoby or sourdough starter, for that matter).

I recently finished The Third Plate by Dan Barber and was introduced to Glenn Roberts of Anson Mills.   He's working on bringing back heritage grains, particularly those essential to the Carolina Rice Kitchen.  I'm hoping to get a few friends together to place an order (shipping is costly because the grains are refrigerated) soon; I'll report back on my progress and hopefully the grains themselves.

Okay, if I try to start another subject, I'll never get this post up.  Sure, there's more going on, but I'll save that for another post.

Have an awesome weekend!