currently...

...finished reading: A Mercy, by Toni Morrison. Toni Morrison is not Danielle Steel -- fans have to wait a long time in between books, but each book is so carefully woven, it's worth it. A Mercy is no exception. Short, but tight, well researched, well told; the story of a slave girl and the strange little community she lives in, a household made up of orphans and slaves, mail order brides and indentured servants, each getting a chance to tell their piece of the story, ending in a way both resolved and unresolved. I really enjoyed the different perspectives, each time a new person told their story the reader understood a little bit more about it -- teaching us that to hear any whole story we have to try and look through many different sets of eyes.

reading: Mudhouse Sabbath, by Lauren winner. A Christmas gift to myself. She talks about how Jews do their faith better than Christians, how in their practices they increase their faith. A solid thesis, I'll let you know what I think when I'm done.

panning: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. I get it. Broad, sweeping epic. Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett, both looking lovely. A fascinating premise. Beautiful cinematographic. Golden Globe nominated. But ultimately? empty. I loved the idea of the movie, especially as I get older and I watch my parents get older. what would it be like to take all the knowledge that comes with age and put it into a young body, able to really understand and appreciate all the experiences able-bodiedness affords? After reflecting on that concept, I am angry at the filmmakers and Brad Pitt that more wasn't done. In the end, I didn't care about Benjamin Button or Daisy, his love. I didn't know him, I didn't know who he was, I didn't know why his experiences were so powerful for him. I felt more connection with his surrogate mother, who was onscreen for about 20 minutes of the totally unnecessary three hours of this movie, than I did with the characters who were in almost every scene.

resolving: Just three: 1. Send real letters. 2. Read more. 3. Create more.

cooking: Butternut squash soup -- a MAY zing, probably because it was made with cream cheese (although it did not look as good as the soup pictured). Also chicken pot pie, slightly less successful, but once you took the burnt parts off, serviceable. I decided to try and cook with the seasons, then on researching found out that Massachusetts has NO seasonal food between November and May. So, so much for that goal. At least until April.