Balance

It’s well-known that sedentary activities, and activities requiring mental effort, should be balanced with physical activity. That promotes all-around good health and happiness, and in large measure it’s why people exercise, because the work that supports our middle- and upper-class lifestyles isn’t hard physical labor any more. Exercise gives us the balance we need.

I hate exercise. An exercise program has to be really convenient if it's going to work for me. When I lived in South Burlington the pilates class, the yoga class, and work were all within 6-10 minutes of home, and I went to those classes every week, because they were close and I’d paid the money! When I lived in Williston, Curves was literally on the way to work, and I exercised there three mornings a week, because it was close and I’d paid the money!

There has been no convenient exercise place for me since I moved to Brookfield. Last year I took Pilates in Montpelier on Tuesday after work, before the weekly grocery trip. But now there are no after-work Pilates classes, and the Curves in Randolph doesn’t open early enough for me to get to work on time. I have my ancient Nordic Track and a walkable road, but I have no dollar investment to motivate me, so when it comes to exercise, I just don’t do it.

I like exercise that accomplishes something. On the weekend I mow the lawn; I have a push mower and it takes me two days at an hour each day to finish. And if I go dancing, that’s certainly exercise. But that’s not enough days, is it? Getting exercise is still an unmet challenge.

Today I got exercise and my day is very well-balanced. Thelma expects a hay delivery before the middle of July, and the remaining bales of last year’s hay needed to be moved from the back of the hayloft to the front. I said I’d do it. Betsy Kelley hates going up the hayloft ladder, and Thelma is not supposed to lift anything heavy (hay) or awkward (hay). I’m taller than either of them, so moving hay is easier for me.

There were about 50 bales. Working with hay, even when the day is cloudy and there’s a pleasant breeze, is heavy, hot work. I’d worked about 45 minutes, and moved about 30 bales, stacking them 3 high, when Betsy Kelley’s son (middle-aged) showed up to do it. Who knew? He got the easy part, because there was no more stacking room. He tossed the rest of the bales down into the barn and we stacked them in a stall.

When I got home it wasn’t raining, so I took a deep breath and mowed the lawn in back of the house. Between the hay and the mowing, that was 3 hours of walking and lifting. Ye gods. That’s certainly enough exercise for one day. Maybe I made up for Thursday and Friday.

Alice's visit

Alice arrived Thursday evening, making good time and not getting lost even once. I had to transform myself into a proper hostess, and got into cooking again. We had a quiche with bacon, gruyere cheese, and spinach  and a salad with lettuce (from the garden) and a tomato Alice bought at a farm stand just before she crossed the state line between NY and VT.

Friday (we had to keep reminding ourselves it was Friday, not Saturday) we breakfasted on My Favorite Egg Breakfast: carefully cooked bacon, steamed garden-fresh spinach on the bacon, a poached egg on top of everything.  A bowl of mixed berries on the side. And coffee, of course. Alice took a picture of breakfast! Alice was the ever-present photographer all weekend.  Be sure to see her pictures on Facebook!

We filled Friday with sightseeing: the weather was magnificent. The State House's Golden Dome glowed in the sunshine. The drive to Cabot Creamery was pure Vermont, uphill and down. We took a tour of the plant to get a glimpse of the cheesemaking process, but the treat of the day was sampling the dozen varieties of cheese they make. Horseradish cheddar (yum), Seriously Sharp cheddar (yum), Tuscan cheddar (so-so, tastes like pizza sauce), caramelized onion cheddar (to die for, not available in stores, only at the factory, and We Bought Some). Then back to Montpelier to stop in the Artisan's Hand craft store, to Hope Cemetery in Barre to see all the stone-carving, and to the Floating Bridge, which has seen better days. We forgot to go to the waterfall that's in a woods nearby. Well, it will be there next time she comes.

We didn't have much planned for the evening. After supper we started to watch Napoleon Dynamite, which I'd never seen, and with which I was instantly bored. With Alice's kind permission, I bailed.  I know, I know, I am just not with it where movies are concerned.

Saturday was stay-at-home day. Alice nagged me into letting her help with a little raking and yard work in the morning, but I had a memorial service to go to. Ted Marsden, a man in our contradance community who was also a math prof at Norwich, died unexpectedly on June 7. He was a born teacher, and a man who radiated both kindness and purpose. He had no children, but two nieces spoke lovingly about him. One said that on his 70th birthday the family asked for words of wisdom and Ted responded "Do what pleases you". He taught math, he taught teachers how to teach math, he danced (he was introduced to traditional dancing in the 60s) and he was always the first person to teach a new dancer the important basic steps. It was a touching, heartfelt and uplifting service that confirmed how special Ted was to so many people. His family came to Northfield from all over the country, and said they were astonished at the number of messages from the dance community, and at the number of dancers and musicians that attended Ted's memorial. Dance musicians played everyone into the chapel, and played at the reception afterward. Nothing rehearsed - just sitting down together, playing dance tunes Ted would've loved to dance to.

Saturday evening before supper Alice and I went down to Thelma's to see my horse (of course Alice has pictures), and then we went to Village Pizza. We were tired from all our running around the day before, and Alice had worn herself out sitting in the sun, and we turned in kind of early.

Sunday I fixed pancakes, too many of 'em. Yummy, though, and what we didn't eat for breakfast we divvied up so that Alice had a snack on the way home. We'd forgotten to stop for more decaf and Alice had to really s-t-r-e-t-c-h the supply that she'd brought to get enough coffee for the morning.

The Sunday treat was that the peonies burst forth gloriously. We sat on the bedroom deck and just took in the morning. I never sit on that deck, because there are always too many things that need doing. Thanks, Alice, for making me sit down a little bit.

Catching up - this and that

Well, this year's grad school Residency is finished. A week of 7 am-7pm hours, and 80-plus students and 5 faculty in attendance, who arrived last Sunday and departed Friday afternoon. The best way to get through Residency is to consider these folks house guests. All the students were great and the faculty who came went out of their way to talk to students and not just huddle together.

We have a focus group for each program, and I ask what worked, what could work better, and what they would suggest for improvements. All the focus group members gave us thoughtful comments, a couple of which were surprising because they think that a proposed curriculum development is less important than we thought - and they gave us what they think is a better alternative. (And I sold $600+ of maple syrup for the Howards!)

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The stovewood arrived. A large pile in the driveway. Just enough room for cars. I would be stacking it were it not for several days of rain.

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I caught a nasty cold at Residency because I refused to accept the reality of unseasonably cool weather. Didn't wear a jacket, didn't turn on the furnace, didn't light the woodstove. Until it was too late, of course. But I stayed inside since Friday afternoon amd most of Saturday. Then I couldn't stand being inside any longer, put on a lot of waterproof/water repellent gear, and weeded in the garden.  My excuse is that fresh air is good for you. And I don't seem to be worse for it.

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I didn't get to mow the lawn before Residency began. And it's been raining some of every day since last Wednesday. Lord love us. The grass is over my ankles.  Half is mowed, the other half gets mowed this afternoon.

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Alice is coming Thursday and staying through Sunday morning.  What a treat this is - she's never been here. Unemployment is treating Alice well. I'm thinking of things for us to do, and must make a Plan B in case the weather falls apart again.

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What do you do with asparagus that's been aging in the refrigerator? If it's not too old you make a delicious salad.  Cook the asparagus. Cut off the tips and cut the green part of the stems into small pieces. Combine with RED (not pink) canned salmon. Add mayo and chopped scallion and other appealing seasonings to taste. Chill well. DELICIOUS, especially on a bed of home-grown lettuce.

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Would there be a blog post without a garden update? The weather changes have really messed up most plants' blooming timetables. The peonies have not bloomed yet (astonishing) but are full of buds. The tomatoes, beets, green beans and squash are slow to develop. The lettuce is overflowing! The spinach is outstanding, and I will plant more. Snails (little less-than-an-inch critters) have invaded everything. For the first time, I've purchased snail deterrent.

"Beverly Sills" iris, left; Tradescantia "Sweet Kate", right. (Click to make the pictures bigger, use your Back button to return. )

SPINACH!!!   

Hostas galore, peonies about to pop open, and a preview of the rose-and-delphinium display

Harvard Commencement Address

Newly-retired Justice David Souter gave this year's Commencement address at Harvard.  It wasn't advice to grads. Instead, Justice Souter discussed the challenge to the Supreme Court of making decisions that must take into account the many values that the Constitution professes.  Well worth reading.

See http://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2010/05/text-of-justice-david-souters-speech/