Things are Weird… but It's Going to Be Okay

As a crafty/DIY-type of introvert with more unfinished projects than time to do them all, there are some aspects of this “Shelter-In-Place” and Social Distancing-thing that make me want to just say, “Hey, welcome to my world everybody!”

But then there are the overwhelmingly serious aspects of this situation… and then there are The Fears… The Uncertainty... The Isolation... The Horrid Media Coverage... The Stats... UGH. And while I rejoice that some restrictions may be lifting soon, the weirdness will continue for quite some time.

I don't know about you, but I need to focus on positive things to keep my mood from spiraling. Lately that's a real challenge. So, while boredom is not in my vocabulary even in the best of times, I made a list of things to work off of when I do lose focus (or start to focus on the cruddy stuff). Plus making lists calms me.

My Big Fluid List of Possible Things to Do During the Lockdown (in no particular order)

Practice my penmanship

Go for a walk in my neighborhood

Embroider something

Putter in the garden

Catch up on stuff (UFOs)

Re-read a favorite book or two (or three...)

Make a dent in my craft supplies

Start a new art journal/work in my "altered book"

Write “morning pages”

Learn new ukulele songs/hone old favorites

De-clutter a closet/dresser/room

Watch movies and TV shows that make me feel good/laugh

Listen to old radio shows (online/streaming)

Mend stuff

Play board games/card games

Plant fruits and vegetables 

Organize/purge my digital photos

Make music playlists (I can kill a ton of time this way)

Rearrange the furniture

Do a real Spring Clean

Make meal plans

Feed the birds in the front yard

Clean out my fountain pens

Write letters and cards to friends/family

Bake and cook (even more) stuff from scratch

Practice “belly breathing”

I've been staying off the internet/TV/social media for the majority of each day. It really only takes a few minutes to get what little important info there is (the rest of it is just a depressing rabbit hole).

The main thing right now is to take care of ourselves: mind, body, and soul. Sometimes that might mean watching cat videos all morning in pajamas and eating ice cream straight from the carton. But only sometimes.

What’s on your list? What have you been doing to keep happy and healthy lately?

—Steph 

Butter Makes Everything Better

A friend of mine once gave me some basil-butter she made at home after tasting it a restaurant. It was amazing! Another friend used to make a compound butter with tarragon to use in her wonderful savory tea-sandwiches. Both of these altered-butters turned something simple into something memorable.

This article from: NYT Food News via seriouseats.com reminded me to try making some compound butters of my own.

The basil-lemon-garlic butter would be wonderful melted on a nice steak or some simple pasta, while the sweet honey-orange-vanilla butter sounds ideal for breakfast breads like scones, cinnamon rolls, muffins, etc...

They don't give a recipe but you'd hardly need one: Soften the butter, chop up the add-ins, put it all in the food processor, wrap it up and freeze it until needed.

Lavender Almond Cake with Lemon Verbena Syrup

Clicking from here at The Kitchn, to here at The Kitchn, then to Lucy's Kitchen Notebook blog. I found the following in the comments...

"I poured your lemon verbena syrup onto a lavender cake made with semolina and ground almonds." - Anonymous

Ever since I read that comment, I have been intrigued with the idea of it and am determined to find and/or make a recipe for it one day! A possible starting point might be this cake recipe from Epicurious.

Herb-Infused Sea Salt

Two ways to use two of my favorite garden herbs: rosemary and lavender. Combine them with sea salt to make Rosemary Sea Salt or Lavender Sea Salt. Or even, Rosemary-Lavender Sea Salt. Pulverize it all together in a food processor and use as a finishing sprinkle of salty goodness on meat or veggies... or even on popcorn. Should be easy to make and would be nice for gifts too.