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Everybody Needs a Wife

It's not easy for a girl in her twenties or thirties today to build a good life. The world is against her in more ways than one. She needs an education, she needs a job, she needs a decent guy (or girl), she needs to perform and she needs to do it quickly, before she gets too old, and then maybe, just maybe she can have a family too. Most likely it won't be very relaxed though, and I'm wondering what does she have to care for and protect in this situation? What will fulfill her destiny?

Over these past years I've been reading about a lot of women in biographies, autobiographies and stories. I didn't set out to find these people, but I must have unconsciously been looking for them because they're speaking to me in a way that few modern people are. Only recently did I realized how these women are all so similar.

Who am I talking about? Well there is Isabella Bird, Marie Curie, Abigail Adams, Alva Myrdal, Anne Ellis, Anne La Bastille and Elinore Pruitt Stewart to mention a few (not all of which are very well known, but all are highly interesting). They are pioneer women, homemakers, scientists, thinkers and free spirits. They all have a streak of independence; they're capable, they're reliable. Some of them were skillful wives and mothers, others were on their own. I've read about these people and I've admired them and their attitudes towards life and family immensely, some more than others, but in general I found their elegant and simple lives enviable.

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Dreamsequence: Wouldn't It Be Nice…

Wouldn't it be nice to hide away from this world, away somewhere in the woods. Out on a property where we could build and create and live. Doesn't this world of today tire you? The hustle and loudness and crudeness of people. Wouldn't it be nice to see green and fields and distances quite wide between you and your neighbor?

We could build quite the little world out there, you and I. Let's not go outwards, let's go inwards. And write and talk and create. Create interesting writing that nobody will really read, gather and collect information, paint all sorts of things and maps and charts. Sew quilts and clothes and a million small little things. Make it a world you never want to leave.

I want to build! I know you want to build too. I want to build a house full of soul. A house full of details and nooks and crannies and places for privacy. But I need to have somewhere to go during the day, so I won't go crazy pacing the same floors over and over. Let's build cottages on this lovely property of dreams. An artist cabin for me, an office and workshop for you. Let's build a guest cabin, a pergola, and a few more just for good measure. We can connect them with adorable pathways that light up at night. Like our own permanent resort.

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Happy Spring & Easter!

Happy Easter! This year it really snuck up on me, and I haven't done anything Easter-like. No painting of eggs, no decorating, no picking branches and putting feathers in them. It just came too quickly...

The closest I came to doing anything Easter related was to bake quiche; my mom always made at least one quiche that was part of the Easter meal along with herring, salmon, eggs and vegetables. But I didn't bake four quiches for Easter, we'll just have one for that. No, I've been a bit obsessed lately about cooking ahead of time, stocking up. Slices of quiche hold up beautifully frozen if packaged well and then you can reheat them in the toaster oven or microwave for an easy meal. Below are ham and cheddar, ham and brie and two with kale and feta. 

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Creating an Elegant Drainage Solution

The following is more like an internal dialog rather than a How-To, and even though there are some numbers thrown about don't mistake it for specific instruction. The only intention here is to look back on our work last year and take it apart mentally to see if we were applying techniques that were not to our own internal standard.

It is one's own internal standard that matters here and ours is realizing we are continually in a contest between the easy and the hard. It is difficult to stop ourselves and realize why we should not take the easy way out, even when all our religion, literature and physicians tell us otherwise. Sometimes it is really difficult to know even when we are taking the easy way out of something.

Last summer we started dealing with our drainage issues in the backyard.

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Tips for Being a More Interesting Person

When the time comes to be either guest, host or friend it doesn't hurt to be interesting. Hopefully everyone can score a few of the following.

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Tips for Being a Better Host

Not to solely penalize all the clueless guests out there we also have some experience with questionable hosts.

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Tips for Being a Better House Guest

The modern world is wonderful in many ways. There is instant communication, instant coffee, instant gratification, and of course a lot of poor behavior. For everyone out there who has been a questionable dinner or overnight guest here are a few suggestions for all of you out there.

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Is Beer Bridging Order & Creativity?

In honor of St Patricks day, The New York Times just published an op-ed piece on How Beer Gave Us Civilization. Jeffrey P. Kahn, the writer, makes the claim that humans are inherently rather restrictive in their nature; working towards keeping the pecking order going, not getting too close to anyone, and making sure the clan is working well, from a safe distance. In other words: in a sober state, nobody really wants conflict. Then, enter the concept of beer and alcohol, which made its appearance surprisingly early in human history, and you release human creativity, emotions, artistic expression, romance...and so on.

Kahn explains, beer made us more passionate, beer made us feel and live and got us out of the mental blocks of order and peace that we naturally divert back to. Beer in other words, provided a contrast against conformity, it freed the people. And then once the buzz wore off, people reverted back to their naturally distant selves of order, keeping this burst of creativity and emotions with them to build and develop the world. And then the whole thing repeated over and over.

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Guest Preparations - Stocking My Fridge Up

We're having guests this weekend so I'm stocking up my fridge with practical snacks and dishes that I can prepare in advance. Nobody really wants to stand in the kitchen for hours when you have other fun stuff going on, so I'm thinking it's better to be on the top the game here.

Here's what I'm thinking about preparing in terms of food:

• Large platter of chicken caesar salad in the fridge for lunch, dressing (I make mine by simmering the egg for exactly three minutes before emulsifying with the blender).
• Italian meatballs – only place in the oven to cook before serving. Polenta on the side and roasted broccoli.
• Apple crisp crumble for dessert with whipped cream.
• Banana bread for breakfast as well as a stocked pantry of cereal, yogurt, eggs etc..
• Chicken, ground beef, cheese, salsa and sour cream in the fridge ready to turn into quesadillas, nachos and all the fixings.
• Also on hand: salted almonds, popcorn kernels ready to turn into flavored popcorn, cheese, crackers.

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Where is the Revolutionary Man Today?

If there is one thing I have a love affair with, it's the revolutionary man. What do Frank Loyd Wright, Hemingway, Ingmar Bergman, Newton, Voltaire and Picasso (to mention just a few) have in common? They were all brilliant, arrogant, difficult and deeply intelligent men who thought, invented, created and contributed to the world in fundamental ways. These men were colorful, strong-willed and utterly unique. They responded horribly to being restricted and they really didn't care much what anyone thought of them or their work, as they knew it to be superior to the small minds around them. These were the revolutionary males.

I'm wondering where these people are today. Obviously, the percentage of people in the population with this kind of mental capacity is naturally small, but does not the outside world and structure also contribute to whether or not these people develop in the first place? Whether they become exceptional or not? It's my perception that a safe, coddled, acceptable world is not the best breeding ground for these kinds of people. In fact, the exact opposite seems to be true.

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Monday Pick Me Up: Cream Puff Semla

After last week's book intensive theme (which by the way was a blast to get into!), may I suggest we cleanse the palette before moving on to other subjects with something creamy, sweet and designed to fatten you up: a Swedish cream puff semla! A cardamom flavored, slightly sweetened wheat bun is filled with a sweet almond paste and then completed with luscious whipped cream. This provides the ultimate reason why you should NOT jump on the band wagon and go the gluten free route!

This cream puff is so light, and airy, it's quite easy to consume a few in one sitting, especially if you had a light meal before hand (may I recommend a clear broth with vegetables for lunch?)

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Easton Press Books and Why Choice is Overrated

Never do we become as confused and stressed as when we have too many choices. They lie around and infect our lives. These confusions of color and noise. Just bring me something that fits! Stop asking so many questions!

In fact, it's easy to get quite stuck when trying to pick out the right meal from a menu full of delicious sounding options, not to mention deciding on a career and a future that YOU will thrive in, and that also is optimal for your brain, temperament and ideal lifestyle. Too many choices can be enough to drive anyone crazy!

We should really thank commercials for guiding us in this never-ending array of options. At least when a commercial comes on it is guiding me towards one thing so that when I walk into a fast-food joint I don't have to waste too much time gazing around and looking dumb.

In many ways we function much better if our choices are limited and if someone tells us what we should do. That is something that The Easton Press has perfected so wonderfully in their books. 

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Something Human Funny That Surprises & Shows You There is a Certain Rightness to Your Wrongness

On my list of favorite feel-good movies, Dan in Real Life ranks pretty high. It's the kind of movie you crave if you're feeling a bit under the weather, and if somehow you need to be cheered up a bit; not unlike getting comfortable with a cherished blanket or enjoying your favorite childhood food. In one of the scenes, the main character, Dan (Steve Carrell) meets a beautiful woman (Juliette Binoche) in a bookstore and the following dialogue takes place:

Dan: What are you looking for?
Marie: Something funny might be nice. But not something necessarily big, hahaha, laugh out loud funny, and certainly not-make-fun-of-other-people funny, but certainly something human funny.

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Sewing a Fabric Book Cover

To sew a fabric dust cover is really the perfect project: it's something that doesn't take forever to do. It's rather fun and provides a good excuse to use up any left over fabrics you might have (or indulge in something expensive, because you don't need a whole lot). I like that a fabric dust cover gives you a bit of privacy when taking a book out, so nobody can see what exactly it is that you're reading when you go to a coffee shop, or maybe sit on the subway.

A fabric dust cover like this also makes for the perfect gift, especially if the recipient has a book in particular that they like to read over and over again. The one limiting factor with these covers is size of course. It can be a good idea to make a cover that fits a couple of different books, such as pocket books or other series in similar sizes. Or, you can skip trying to be smart and just make a cover for one, very special book.

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Fragmented Memories of Books and Reading

I'm sitting under an apple tree by an old white painted table covered with a hanging mosquito net, in the backyard of my childhood home in Sweden. With a fountain dip pen I'm writing down Keats' poem Ode on a Grecian Urn (Thou still unravished bride of quietness...) on linen paper and I'm letting the words roll on my tongue over and over again. I'm feeling utterly in tune with this place in time, as well as oh so sophisticated in regards to my advanced level of reading and fancy writing instrument.

It's a hot summer's day and I'm reading The Stranger by Camus. The Moroccan environment so fits the heat of the room I'm in and I feel like I'm there. I see the world through his abrupt, male, disconnected perspective. They're eating blood sausage and drinking red wine. I remember thinking that it seemed like such an ideal meal, having only blood sausage and wine.

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