The Ciel Show

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Wednesday, June 2, 2010

One of those days...

Oh I can sit in my warm bed and feel my day has been for naught or worse for I have fumbled badly with a friend and feel unloved and distant from my joy and happiness that filled the hours before the broken minute when it changed... I can sit glum and nurse an ache within my belly and my heart as if forgiveness cannot be although this friend I know is better far than that. But then... I think again: remember that the world is darker far and full of deeper pain than mine, and hungers that devour... Sign in to see full entry.

Wednesday, May 26, 2010

letter to a friend

This is an excerpt from a letter I composed tonight and sent off into the void of Internet... I write to someone who can't write back... I can only assume the email is received, or will be received and read and maybe replied to. It is not only the future: sometimes the present is uncertain, too. Sold a photo today (an elephant's eye, photographed at the National Zoo in DC) and discovered a friend. The buyer and I sat and chatted with great vigor for about an hour and a half at Starbucks. Good... Sign in to see full entry.

Saturday, May 15, 2010

A new Postcard from Kabul today

Every time I read one of souljacker's posts, I want to know how to help out. It is no longer possible to send things addressed simply to A US Serviceman, not since 9/11. But I am sure there are things that would be no great sacrifice to send, that would boost morale or even provide something to help keep the soldiers--our sons and fathers and brothers, our sisters and mothers and daughters, too--some little bit safer. I read recently of a patrol that came into an ambush and was split up, and one... Sign in to see full entry.

Friday, May 14, 2010

What's this...!? What's this...!?

My younger daughter, the one who lives in New Zealand and trains dogs, is visiting this week. My daughter gets me doing things I never considered doing before she declared them good and fun and reasonable things to do. Mostly, they have revolved around the enjoyment of doing... girl stuff. I never had manicures before she dragged me along when she went to get her nails done. When I visited her in Singapore, she took us for a Chinese foot massage. Today, she kicked it up a notch... a big notch,... Sign in to see full entry.

Wednesday, May 12, 2010

a new recipe...

My daughter took me to Claimjumpers for Mother's Day dinner, and I tried something new: artichokes grilled with balsamic vinegar and herbs. It was tasty... reminded me of a day exploring the little back streets of an Italian town, when I came by an old woman who was grilling peppers and small whole artichokes on a brazier outside her house, and selling them. Delicious! So today, I tried making the split grilled artichokes at home: First, halve the artichoke right down the center, and gaze... Sign in to see full entry.

Friday, May 7, 2010

Glad note--

that Souljacker is back from missions and has sent another Postcard from Kabul. Sign in to see full entry.

Tuesday, April 27, 2010

a painting of Mt Kilimanjaro...

Some years ago, my folks went to Africa. And a little while after they came home, Mom went through a painting phase. Yesterday I came into possession of my favorite of her efforts, a painting of the Serengeti Plain and Mount Kilimanjaro on the horizon. She never thought much of it... typical of her attitude towards her own creations. I, however, have liked it since I first laid eyes on it, and am enjoing very much doing so now. Pretty soon I will wrap it up again for the journey home. But I... Sign in to see full entry.

Monday, April 26, 2010

recipe from Senegal

The menu at the dinner for Gueoul was a dish called maffe gerte, or 'meat in peanut sauce.' The meat was beef, and there were an assortment of vegetables steamed, and served with it, and the sauce was a touch spicy and not that noticeably peanutty... very, very tasty indeed! Dessert was right up Naut's alley, lately: waternelon and blackberries. The actual recipe is on page 108 of the cookbook put out by Friends of Gueoul, called It Tastes of Your Hand. This derives from the expression used to... Sign in to see full entry.

A stunning sunrise... and... OW!

If you saw my Adventuring item yesterday, you'll know I intended to go for a horseback ride this morning. Changed my mind. It isn't the snow, directly--But snow it did, in the night. I woke at dawn to see the sky blue and pink, and mo matter it was not quite 6am, of course I threw on clothes and shoes and scurried outside. A few pictures, then back to bed... that was the plan. The snow was not an issue. Ice on the slanting driveway... It may have been dawn, but I was suddenly seeing stars!... Sign in to see full entry.

Saturday, April 24, 2010

Dinner in Gueoul

Yesterday it snowed a little in Colorado Springs... a lot more, to the north! Enough that the snowplows were out on the highway pushing dirt snow around... and the drive back at 10pm was in high wind and driving snow, the roads varying from merely wet to very slushy. I did not hurry. The dinner was great! Lots of people attended, there was a silent auction of Senegalese and other things, and there was a teller of African tales to entertain. The food was a Senegalese dish, a stew with vegetables,... Sign in to see full entry.

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