Friday Night

I am particularly enjoying this Friday night. I’m doing almost nothing, but reading, eating graham crackers (leftover from a night of s’mores), and drinking cocoa (yes, even in summer), and that all feels good. It’s a handful of tranquil hours amid some weeks of storminess. And last night’s short sleep disturbed by the mini-explosions of local freedom enthusiasts hasn’t quite claimed its payoff yet.

**I’m spending the evening reading weird and wonderful works, particularly Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik and The Worm Ouroboros by E. R. Eddison. Novik’s Uprooted is one of the very best books I’ve read in the last year, and on my list of all-time fantasy favorites. So far, I’m enjoying Spinning Silver just as much. The narrative is lyrical and the setting evocative of the kind of magical places I imagined as a kid.

I stumbled upon The Worm Ouroboros at the local library when I went into the sort of back-corner aisle of fiction shelving that houses the authors beginning in “E”. I wandered there while waiting for a library worker to finish shelving in the area I really wanted. (“N” for Novik.) Now that I’ve begun reading this book, I’m wondering if I was mystically drawn there by some kind of spooky library magic or otherworldly sprite. This book, which was published in 1922, is delightfully weird and fantastical. It reads like the deepest ancient folklore spoken by Shakespearean players. I find it slow reading, not ponderous, but detailed, and definitely not boring or tiresome. There’s a chapter titled “The Wrastling for Demonland.” And the chapter lives up to that promise! People, there’s a blurb of praise from J.R.R. Tolkien on the cover. How have I never heard of this book before? Spooky library magic! Anyway, I’m enjoying it so far.

**I wandered out of town yesterday and enjoyed a bit of this

And this (Coconut Almond Fudge in a waffle cone, yes, please.)

 

**I’ve been cooking relatively simple things featuring fresh vegetables from the farmer’s market and a big shipment of heirloom beans I ordered from Rancho Gordo. I like to make a big pot of beans, something like this one, either on the stove or in the slow cooker and serve them poured over rice or other grains and garnished with avocado, cilantro, scallions, or a homemade salsa like this one or this one. I’m the type of person who finds trying different kinds of beans fun, and Rancho Gordo really sells a high-quality product. (They don’t know me nor are they giving me anything to say that.)

**My garden is doing quite well with all the heat and moisture we’ve had. The Sungold cherry tomatoes are promising to be prolific. I am entertaining big dreams of making lots of this pasta dish and this pasta dish and this tart. 

The other tomatoes I’ve planted are producing green fruits, too. I may have been a bit greedy when planting this year. Including the Sungolds, I planted six different varieties of tomato, both slicers and cherry tomatoes. I may be obsessed. There are also thriving cucumber plants and chile peppers, so Gazpacho is coming! I am obsessed and impatient.

Actually, I’m a tiny bit proud of myself for accomplishing as much with my garden as I have so far. The Day Job has eaten my life at an unhealthy level, and, frankly I’m struggling to see the concept of work-life balance as anything but a sick joke. Homegrown tomatoes and cucumbers and summer and winter squashes and lots and lots of herb are something to look to as both a pleasure and an accomplishment.

I’m looking forward to a whole weekend off, a whole two days with the potential for many more pleasurable accomplishments and accomplished pleasures.

Happy summer!