Sunday, December 13, 2020

the thing is to be happy

 The deck was wet with precipitation this morning and the clouds dipped their glum bodies close to the ground. It was grey in the house again - how many days does that make this December? I could have easily slid into gloom but instead threw some flour around to make bread and shortbread cookies. 


As the afternoon wore on, the bread rose in the oven on the ‘proof’ setting (one of the most used settings on this stove) while the shortbread chilled in the fridge. Eventually the oven did its magic on the bread - two beautiful loafs for the freezer. While the oven was hot I rolled out ⅔ of the shortbread dough to create a bunch of delicious cookies. I didn’t decorate them - I like my shortbread naked.



Carm chose the beer tonight. Boneshaker is a slightly bitter IPA with lots of citrus but not much sweetness. It went especially well with the savory Philly cheesesteak and rice dinner that I made. I loved the pairing.



“The thing is to be happy,' he said. 'No matter what. Just try that. You can. It gets to be easier and easier. It's nothing to do with circumstances. You wouldn't believe how good it is. Accept everything and then tragedy disappears. Or tragedy lightens, anyway, you're just there, going along easy in the world.

~Alice Munro

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