A Walk in the Rain

Splitting screen-headache. You know, the kind you get from looking at your computer or phone too long. It had to be done, but my head hurt like the Dickens.

It's Week Three of my new walking regimen. 

Three times a week at first with a planned increase to five.

This week - and this is Wednesday - I have not walked once.

"Never let your excuses be stronger than your determination."

I read that somewhere.

It came to mind today.

Wavering between excuse and determination, I looked outside and saw heavy rain pouring down.

Resolve shaky.......wavering......but I do love the rain.

Determination won!

Joie de vivre! 

Grabbing my pretty sage-green umbrella with the perfectly curved wooden handle, out the door I went.

And I walked. 

In the first block, a kind woman wearing a hooded red rain jacket walked toward me, her genuine smile sweet and supportive.

"We must get in our walks!"

"Yes. We must!"

I felt proud to be a member of that group, you know, the women who walk for their health group. I used to be the queen of it. Now, I am a beginner once again.

On the second block my neighbor walked toward me in a navy blue rain jacket.

I told her that her daily walks had inspired me to get moving myself after a four year absence due to a knee injury and fear of pain. Her positive impact on me seemed to make her happy. We agreed that it was important to keep moving, that movement is life.

"Have a pleasant evening!"

I walked on squishy rain-soaked leaves on the park's paths until I came to My Bench. It was wet, but I sat down anyway. A little water won't hurt me, and pants dry. I did my usual leg exercises while listening to the rain pelt the umbrella. What a pleasant sound!

I listened to and watched the rain splatter and bounce all around me. I began to smile. I do love water. A leaf fell on my umbrella, along with the rain, making a pretty red teardrop shape. The old-fashioned park lights came on, illuminating the paths and creating lovely shadows over the fall leaves and green grass.

While enjoying this reverie, I prayed for Audrey, the eight year old niece of my life-long friend, who suffers from a life-threatening brain tumor. She's back in the hospital with a dismal prognosis. Her lively spirit and sense of humor enliven all who know and love her. They cannot imagine life - or this world - without her in it. So, yes, I prayed for them all.

And I prayed for my friend who is recovering from COVID-19. She is doing well, but extremely fatigued. Her entire family contracted the virus, recuperating at different rates of speed. Prayers left my lips for them, as well.

Today, my determination was stronger than my excuses.

Tonight, I feel the endorphins of joy and relief and contentment.

My headache is long gone.

May I have this kind of success every day, in everything I hope to do.

And may you, as well.

Tea Trouble? Mais non!

Delicious hot tea, how I enjoy its comforting aroma, its tasty flavor, even the soothing ritual of making tea.

However - sorry, but yes, there is a however - both hot and iced teas have their downsides. 

Allow me to quote Anne Barone:

"I mistakenly believed that, drunk without sugar, iced tea was a 'diet beverage.' Now I know that iced tea poses hindrances to weight loss.

'Iced tea glasses are huge, holding about twice as much as the average water glass. On a hot day (and we had a lot of them where I grew up), I might slosh down two glasses per meal and several in between. That is a lot of caffeine and tannic acid. Nutritionists warn that tannic acid interferes with iron absorption. Not enough iron and we feel exhausted. And if we feel exhausted, we aren't going to be moving around burning up calories are we? We might just grab a quick sugar boost from a candy bar.

'Excess caffeine, besides depleting us of the B vitamins and vitamin C, can increase appetite and induce a craving for sweets. (Maybe that is why in my iced tea drinking days I couldn't pass the cookie jar without taking one.) Unfortunately, no-calorie iced tea can cause you to take in more calories in the long run - or suffer uncomfortable hunger pangs. The French stick with their mineral water with a squeeze of lemon as a hot weather thirst quencher."

Okay, all of that being said, let's add a positive however. 

However, I believe the classic rule of thumb - Moderation in Everything - applies here, don't you?

Awareness of the physical, emotional, and mental effects of food and beverages is crucial to good health management as well as quality of life. After drinking tea, I have often suffered from the disadvantages Anne mentions in the above quote. Feeling exhausted can follow in the hours after my sipping, even though I've had adequate sleep and exercise. Also, I've noticed a sweet tooth later in the day after enjoying my morning tea. 

Now that I understand what is happening, this awareness causes me to consider my choices and thus mitigate the effects. I plan when I shall enjoy tea, consciously eating foods high in the B vitamins, vitamin C, and iron on days when I don't have tea. I make sure to arrange for a quality, portion-controlled dessert for later to allow me to control the sweet tooth. Knowing there is a delicious dessert after dinner makes it quite easy for me to resist compulsive sweet-tooth snacking beforehand. I've also noticed that when I have my morning tea with a good breakfast which includes eggs (my morning protein-of-choice), I don't get the lagging feeling later in the day. 

Tea shall remain in my weekly diet, not every day simply because it upsets my stomach if I consume too much. I shall continue to enjoy its comfort and soothing attributes while remaining mindful to be proactive in dealing with the downsides.

Découragement non! Let us not be discouraged in tea's little drawbacks. The joyful indulgence is worth the consequences.

Yes, we can have our tea and delight in it, too.

Bois ton thé avec bonheur! (Drink your tea with happiness!)

Rediscover Your Joie de Vivre

A French lesson de moi à toi - from me to you - because I am having a joie de vivre sort of morning, thanks to Easter leftovers (Quiche Lorraine!) and afterglow happiness from a lovely Easter Brunch which included my daughter and son-in-law and their adorable one and half year old daughter, our precious Bina, who was completely delightful all day long.

Joie de vivre. What does it mean?

Joie de vivre is a French phrase often used in English to express a cheerful enjoyment of life, and exultation of spirit.

It can be a joy of conversation, joy of eating, joy of gardening, joy of anything one might do.

For the French, joie de vivre means looking at your life as something that is to be taken with great pleasure, to enjoy it.

Joie de vivre may be seen as a joy of everything, a comprehensive joy, a philosophy of life.

Retrouver la joie de vivre! Rediscover the joy of living!

De rien. You're welcome.

Bisous! Kisses!

Jambon en Honfleur

My  husband loves to eat ham.

We'd been leisurely walking side-by-side holding hands in the quaint, beautiful little town of Honfleur in northern France, until he saw this shop:

La Maison Du Jambon

(The Ham House)

His very lousy French translated those words just fine.

 

His eyes swirled around in his head and he sort of jittered the way Toad, of Wind in the Willows fame, did when he saw a shiny new motorcar.

I love France so much!

(And I love my ham-eating husband, too!)

Chicken Alfredo with a Twist

Quick, quick, hurry, hurry throw something together. Ever have that refrain rushing through your mind around mealtime? 

I'm here to help. Read the entire recipe before beginning, to get your ingredients gathered and the timing right.

Chicken Alfredo, Cherie Style:

Chicken breast, cut into smaller pieces so it will cook quicker (see photo above). Coat in flour, salt,  pepper, and dried thyme. Brown in butter and olive oil (medium - medium high heat) and cook almost through (lower the heat).

Toss some broccoli florets, and garlic on top before chicken is cooked through, add some water (1/3 - 1/2 cup or so, to keep things from scorching and to create steam), and a few squeezes of lemon juice (a teaspoon, if using bottled). Cover and steam until the broccoli is just about cooked the way you like it and the chicken registers 165 degrees or just under. Add cherry tomatoes, and let them heat for a couple of minutes, not to bursting, but warming them enough to turn their insides to liquid. Yum!

While the broccoli is steaming in the chicken, begin to boil pasta water in large pot (remember to add salt).

Once broccoli is steamed (this takes only minutes) drain excess water from pan, if there is any, add a container of whatever fresh Alfredo sauce you like - mine came from Whole Foods, so good - plus fresh cream, some glugs of white wine (1/4 - 1/2 cup), and season to taste. (I added some of my own dried thyme from the garden. Also, the wine is optional.) Heat through, simmering not boiling, so as not to break the cream. As soon as you have your sauce stirred in the pan with the chicken, cream, and wine, while it is simmering, drop your fresh pasta in the boiling water. This way everything will be heated and ready at the same time as fresh pasta takes but a few minutes to cook. (If you use dry pasta, begin the pasta sooner as it takes longer to cook.)

Plate the drained pasta, pile the chicken and sauce atop, garnish with whatever fresh herb you want (I had some fresh basil on hand.) Grated hard white cheese can be served on the side or grated on top before serving, or omitted altogether.

Enjoy this quick, impressive, one-dish meal full of protein, vegetables, dairy, herbs, and delicious pasta!

(After snapping this photo, I added more sauce to this serving before eating. Just so you know. Delicious!)

Joyful Art

One of the first things French people will tell you, when asked about Americans, is how Americans gobble their food. It drives them crazy.

The English will timidly ask, "Are the portions really as large as we hear?"

It's rather embarrassing.

It's something we moms and dads can do something about. First, by modeling mannerly eating habits and proper table etiquette, and secondly, by teaching them to our children, however long it may take. 

My children - and my husband - have heard me say time and time and time again, when pointing out etiquette at the dinner table, "If you ever eat with the President of the United States, you will be grateful to know these things." 

I have added the Queen of England to that statement, just in case.

Yes, eyes roll. But on more than one occasion of fine dining, I have been pleasantly surprised to see my Viking children using exquisite etiquette. Napkins and hands in laps (except in France, where hands are to be seen, a holdover from days of old when a weapon could be lurking beneath the tabletop), no elbows on the table when eating, correct utensils used in the correct order, politeness to the wait staff, bodily noises kept in check, enjoyment of food carefully eaten in small increments, please and thank-you's, consideration when passing food, inside voices used at all times. You get the idea. 

The kids - all adults now - enjoy these special occasions tremendously. A thing of beauty.

Find an etiquette book that covers table manners.

Read it.

Learn it.

Teach it.

You'll be doing the world an incredible lot of good.

Dining - whether a quick meal or a leisurely one - nourishes the spirit as well as the body in its joyful art.