Fostering a new renaissance through creativity, authenticity, spirituality, and art
Polly Castor 
When I became a vegetarian 35 years ago, there weren’t many cookbooks relevant to me, which is why Mollie Katzen’s soon-to-be-classic Moosewood Cookbook became a standby. I grew up as a cook by her side, so to speak, and who would have imagined all those years ago that we’d become actually acquainted over something called … Read more
Nothing like being the flower committee at church to have an excuse to have a bunch of amaryllis blooming in your house! Each year we get a few new bulbs and nurse back to blooming those from the several previous years. So it may be wicked cold outside, but over here, it is blooming inside!
“For a long time it seemed to me that life was about to begin – real life. But there was always some obstacle in the way, something to be gotten through first, some unfinished business, time still to be served, a debt to be paid. At last it dawned on me that these obstacles were … Read more
When I became interested in Hundertwasser, I interlibrary loaned the couple books available on him. One of them was this rather well done children’s book, which gets into not only his biography and work, but also the issues that he thought about and what motivated him. There are tangential projects throughout to help kids relate … Read more
This recipe is a personal triumph because it was born out of an eureka moment. We haven’t had a classic tuna casserole in years because they usually call for canned soup that contains bogus ingredients. I’ve made and enjoyed gourmet versions – like this – but have missed the old standby. Recently when cooking soup … Read more
I found Amy Shackleton’s process shown in these two videos fascinating. I hope you will too!
Spirit at Work Spirit, as a synonym of God is a hard one to wrap your head around. It is not at all ghostly or phantasmagorical but actually more like a basketball cheerleader. I am beginning to think of Spirit as conscious divine energy. Both types are expressed in me: potential and kinetic, in equal … Read more
It was zero degrees when I pulled out of the driveway this morning, but before that, I snapped these photos in a chilly house!
We’ve gotten further and further away from anything packaged. Above depicts a typical grocery haul for us. In the photos here you can see we’re still eating some favorites that have already been posted on this blog (click on the links below) but we are trying new things as well. Two of the photos below … Read more
Here are some great quotes by Martin Luther King Jr: “All men are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality.” “In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.” “When you are right you cannot be too radical; when you are wrong, you cannot be too … Read more
This is artwork that I’ve collected from various articles online during 2013 and placed on my computer desktop. I’m depositing them here in an effort to clean up for the new year, and have a repository in which to save them. Also, I thought you might like to see what I was looking at last … Read more
Back to the New Normal Open nesting is challenging. The revolving door brings in gusts of cold air and crunchy-crisp leaf-litter as well as delight. So very good to see them, but your world clutters and clangs to a stop like musical chairs in suspension waiting frozen, like in statue tag as the house becomes … Read more
A lot of you really liked my sporadic “bits and clips” posts but were overwhelmed by the plethora of items on them. It has been suggested to do a more modest list on a monthly basis. So this is the first one of those… Thank you to a dynamic group of blog readers who send … Read more
I read this book mostly because my friend at Byrd’s Books (one of my favorite independent bookstores) was having an author event about it. Not only is the author local, but this novel is set locally as well. It is a story of a friendship between two guys in Brewster High School, in the late … Read more
I enjoyed this new retelling of Pride and Prejudice from the servants point of view, with their own drama front and center, and the familiar Bennet’s storyline in the periphery. I’m surprised it took so long for one to be written, given the success of shows like Upstairs, Downstairs as well as Downton Abbey. This … Read more
“Our Father in heaven, Reveal who you are. Set the world right; Do what’s best – as above, so below. Keep us alive with three square meals. Keep us forgiven with you and forgiving others. Keep us safe from ourselves and the Devil. You’re in charge! You can do anything you want! You’re ablaze in … Read more
When I was in Stonington, Maine last summer, I really enjoyed seeing Jill Hoy’s artwork. I was also glad to be able to meet her at her gallery and get her permission to photograph her artwork to feature on my blog. But somehow, life started flowing quickly and I never got it posted here until … Read more