Another conversation with Pukka

(How long will you all be satisfied with these three line posts??)

Me: I think they make apricot Jell-O now. They didn't have that when I was a kid.
Pukka: I try to avoid things that are apricot-flavored; they tend to taste like baby aspirin.
Me: I *like* baby aspirin.

Seriously though, I've got a couple of theoretical posts for you, but a) work's been nuts and b) the iBook's broken. :( Someday soon, though . . .

It's such a Friday

Convo I just had with Pukka via IM, after we'd concluded one of us needs to clean the litter box soon:

Me: You think we could get a military task force to change the litter box? Tell them the kitties are stockpiling WMD?

Pukka: Totally! And they won't let inspectors in!

Me: They're definitely manufacturing some kind of poison gas!

Fall Preview

Found some notes this morning that I have dated 9/22/02 as I was driving north on 380 and thought I'd clean it up a little.

Hills that were a uniform green all summer now begin to differentiate
Out of the corner of my eye, hints of the splendor to come.
The green dulls -- the vaguest hint of of yellow, a whisper of red crimson.
All still fundamentally green, and yet changed.

Ultimately, more than of death, this is the beginning of the season of transformation.
Fields that have been growing all summer become the foods that nourish and sustain us.
Leaves -- small solar factories -- now become the visions that feed our passion.
Hillsides transform into the fiery beauty that fuel expression.

On the boundary between potential and actuality, seen and unseen, I touch the edge of the mystery.

Zen and the Art of Mushrooms

For Pukka, so he can stop confusing me with Morgan Webb:

I made pasta for dinner tonight, and we had some mushrooms in the frig so I used them in the sauce. It took me a long time to learn how to cook fresh mushrooms. Growing up we always used canned, but when I got out on my own, I figured they couldn't be that much different than any other vegetable.

I'd put a little oil in the pan, some onion, garlic, what-have-you, and then I'd toss in the 'shrooms. Stir them about for a bit and all was good. But then I'd get distracted by something, and when I turned back around, everything was sticking. Panicked, I'd add more oil. It would disappear. I'd add more. God only knows how many gallons of oil I've used this way in my lifetime, the mushrooms absorbing every drop. Finally everything would stop sticking, and devolve into a soupy mess. Ugh! I'm surprised I didn't give up completely.

Tonight I put a little oil in the pan, added some onion, garlic, and threw in the 'shrooms. Tossed them about for a bit and all was good. Then came the distraction (getting the water for the pasta started boiling), and sure enough, when I turned around, everything was sticking.

But now I know better. I resist the urge to combat the sticking with oil, and work harder at stirring. If it gets really, really bad, I add just a touch of water to get things moving around again. I remind myself that patience is a virtue. And sure enough, when I remember to wait and to trust, the mushrooms and I work through this phase together, and suddenly the sticking stops.

Now I know from experience that I can either take the mushrooms as they are at this moment, still a little firm, still recognizable. Or I can push them further. They'll suddenly release all of their moisture, infused with all of the flavor they've absorbed from the garlic and the onion (minus the half gallon of oil I would've added in my youth). The mushrooms themselves will be rather tired after this experience, but the liquid can be reduced down to essential, earthy flavors that are really powerful.

Tonight I decided to take them young and al dente, forgetting I had meatballs for tooth. Oh well, supper's never perfect around here. But at least the mushrooms and I have reached a truce. Somewhere in all this, I feel a lesson teasing the edges of my mind. But I have no idea what that might be. Guess that means it's time for bed. G'night.