East Van Stitches

Plants are the best — now I’m planning which ones to get. It’s been a long time since I posted, so I’m just throwing this up for now. I’m not even including a photo.

• 

In the spirit of “using what I already have, I made Slow-Cooker Scalloped Potatoes from the remainder of a 10-pound bag of potatoes. I also made Cauliflower Tacos With Cashew Crema, which is a vegan dish. It was very tasty.

This isn’t even a cooking blog. I guess I’ve just been on a bit of a roll with the cooking and the “use what you have” idea. Have you done anything like this lately?

That’s a long-standing joke — something my son said when he was about six. At the time, he felt a bit sick of the thing we’d already had the night before. I’m sure many of us feel the same sometimes.

Well, I’m actually eating leftovers right now, as I write this post. I’ll admit it’s not overly appealing to do so. It’s compelling to make something else — maybe a nice fresh salad.

But I’m not going to make something else; I’m going to eat this leftover lentil soup and broccoli egg fried rice. It seems like the frugal option — waste less, spend less.

However, I just realized I am more interesting in writing about the leftovers than eating them. This is telling, isn’t it? At this rate, I’ll have to re-zap these leftovers in the microwave again.

But I’ll just say “Yum! I’m so lucky!” because I really am. I’m very fortunate and privileged to have these leftovers, not to mention this nice home, and its fridge I have to clean (after I’m done reheating and then eating some of the leftovers I’ve been dealing with).

So I’m going to use what I already have — and be thankful for it. (Of course, it would be ironic, and highly bloggable, if I got food poisoning from it!)

So far, I’m loving this Flax Light sweater by Tin Can Knits. Last year, I knit my very first sweater — Flax — and I liked it so much, I’m doing a lighter weight version.

I’m liking the feel of this Hollyberry Comfy from Knit Pick’s Red & Pink yarn sale.

“The truth will set you free. But first, it will piss you off.” – Gloria Steinem.

Today Facebook presented me with the memory of a post from three years ago. Below is what I said back then. It still holds true, perhaps even more than ever. Maybe it will feel increasingly “truer” as time goes by.

You are free once you can laugh about “it” – whatever it is. For example: “Hey mom – promise you won’t get mad?”

There are a lot of things in life besides stitching. Cleaning and being organized are just a couple of them. Achieving cozy minimalism is a long-standing goal of mine – and so I continue in 2017.

The January Cure is an annual challenge put on by Apartment Therapy. Our co-op townhouse may not be as stylish as what you’ll see on that inspiring blog, but I have big dreams.

Day 1 of the January Cure is a Confidence-boosting de-clutter of a drawer. I chose a kitchen drawer that didn’t seem too bad til I took everything out and saw how much was not needed. I “shopped my house” and found a container for the tin foil, wax paper, etc. and put it on the wall (hope the screw stays in). Many things were recycled, put in garbage, or put away elsewhere. What’s left is stuff we will use – how very civilized!