The very best thing about Wednesday…ALL Wednesdays…is that the boys come back home. Today, as a rarity, I managed to get to school for pick up. Usually Granny picks up because my work schedule has changed. After pick up and a run to the regular grocery store, we went to the Downtown Farmer’s Market. It is touted to be the bigger and better market, but I think that is debatable. What they have that is absent from the other area farmers’ markets are the non-produce items. We bought cheeses today from Sweet Grass Dairy. They come the first week of the month. We sampled all the cheeses except the bleu. I was impressed Evan tried them at all and even had a personal favorite. We used them in our meatless dinner tonight. The Lumberjack is a soft cheese that cubes like a feta but also has a string quality like a fresh mozzarella. It is pungent and tangy like a feta, too. It seemed to get more firm once in the dish than on the cutting board. The Harvest is harder and smoother in flavor, more like a cheddar. Both kept their “chunk” after being tossed into the pasta dish. We’ll go back and buy again.
I had a half dozen Gala and Fuji apples in the fruit bowl past their free hand eating stage. I made the Ginger Apple Upside down cake again. I added pecans to the batter this time. I took longer to cook this time and I am having to resist cutting into it, as it is going to work int he morning for the staff.
I have decided to “give up” criticism for Lent. There is a difference between criticism and a thoughtful critique. The hope is to silent the internal critic, my own critical loop. I also want to mute the near constant running assessment of my surroundings and the people in it. My criticism is not always negative, it is just energy consuming. I just do not need to process everything. And it is far easier to praise and speak of the worthiness of things. I will endeavor to say things that are kind and affirming or at least keep myself silent.