The Bread and the Knife

First, I read Litany by Billy Collins (former US Poet Laureate):

You are the bread and the knife,
the crystal goblet and the wine. You are the dew on the morning grass

and the burning wheel of the sun.

You are the white apron of the baker

and the marsh birds suddenly in flight.

 

However, you are not the wind in the orchard,

the plums on the counter,

or the house of cards.

And you are certainly not the pine-scented air.

There is just no way you are the pine-scented air.

 

It is possible that you are the fish under the bridge,

maybe even the pigeon on the general's head,

but you are not even close

to being the field of cornflowers at dusk.

 

And a quick look in the mirror will show

that you are neither the boots in the corner

nor the boat asleep in its boathouse.

 

It might interest you to know,

speaking of the plentiful imagery of the world,

that I am the sound of rain on the roof.

I also happen to be the shooting star,

the evening paper blowing down an alley,

and the basket of chestnuts on the kitchen table.

I am also the moon in the trees

and the blind woman's tea cup.

 

But don't worry, I am not the bread and the knife.

You are still the bread and the knife.

You will always be the bread and the knife,

not to mention the crystal goblet and--somehow-- the wine.

I read it and I thought "Oh, pretty.  But I don't get it.  I need to try to understand how these things are different ... like she's too pretty to be as practical as boots or a boat?  But not pretty enough to be a field of cornflowers?  Is she his warm and slightly homely wife?"

Then I watched the poet recite it ... 



& I finally got the joke.  Three cheers for being funny and pretty, poem.  Mr. Collins, you are indeed the blind woman's tea cup.

Baby Pool

*** DEADLINE FOR GUESSES IS SEPTEMBER 1ST! ***

(I'm not letting him out before then.)

Hello dears,

I thought it might be fun to do a baby pool for this little guy.  In the comments, enter your guess for his birth date, weight (to the nearest ounce, please), and length (to the nearest quarter inch).  I'll calculate the winner by adding one point for each day, quarter inch, or two ounces away from the actual numbers; lowest score wins.

My dad won the baby pool for Scott, so you may want to cheat off his numbers.

So that we all have the same information: the due date is September 10th and I'm measuring (by tape measure) right on (meaning I have a 38 cm womb, which is impressive.  Too much information, Uncle Daniel??). 

If you win, I'll send you a prize that has something to do with California or babies.

Three-day-old Scott.  Posted especially for Daniel, because Karen says he gets all fussy when he sees a blog post that doesn't have a picture of the nephew.  Karen, try swaddling him tightly and shushing him loudly when he gets fussy like that.

...

Okay, weather, you win.  It was hot today.  It hit 100 here, and at 9 pm it's still 84, so we're all covered in a thin layer of sweat and our babies are sleeping in diapers only.

Still, a one-day heat wave is sort of fun and a nice excuse to sit around in a pool drinking something icy.

2010 Tally of Days I Wish I had A/C: 0.125 (there were 3 fairly hot hours)

EXTREME WEATHER WATCH

Living in perfect conditions makes you weak.  For example:

There is an extreme weather watch issued for tomorrow (Tuesday) for the Bay Area.  It is all over the radio.  Temperatures may reach 90 (but will drop to 60s at night).  There is fear that in some parts of the East Bay, temperatures will climb to nearly 100.  The extreme weather should break on Wednesday, and on Thursday and Friday it should be cool with expected rain showers.

Heavens, how WILL we survive?  What if the giant redwoods don't provide ENOUGH shade? And the coast is almost 45 minutes away!  If I need a cool ocean breeze, I will have to wait almost an hour! 

***************

So, I just blogged about the weather.  I'm sorry.  Please feel free to ignore all posts for the next few weeks; I will win you back with photos of your newborn grandson/nephew/friend.  My brain is a hormonal mush of baby thoughts (today I could feel his little legs crossed Indian-style just under/in my ribs (because he's head down, like a good boy) and how cute is that!!). 

Round, happy

We are 2 days from full-term (37 weeks). The clothes are washed, the cradle is set up, the car seat is assembled, and I cannot imagine how Baby Boy can continue to gain 1/2 a pound a week for 3+ more weeks. This womb is FULL!

So, child, Scott wants you to come out and play! But Luke and I think you need to stay in for at least 10 more days so we can finish our work commitments! (Which do not include blogging! got to go, doses need reconstructing ...)

Baby instructions

We gave ourselves a refresher course:

I particularly like "Bonding with Baby."

Granola

5 reasons to make this right now:

1) It's more affordable than store-bought granola.
2) It stays fresh for at least 2 weeks in a sealed container on a shelf (but it probably won't make it that long before you devour it).
3) If you have a Scott, you can mix it with a little plain yogurt and he will eat it up all by himself, without any adult assistance, for breakfast or a snack.
4) It smells wonderful while baking.
5) That will probably make your housemates think YOU are wonderful.

And you are!

3 c old-fashioned oats (not instant! and Dad Koop & I think Quaker's are the best!)
1/4 c cooking oil (Canola or veg, not olive, or subs melted butter)
1/4 c honey (go short)
1/4 c brown sugar (go short)
1 c shredded sweetened coconut (if unsweet, may want full measure honey/sugar)
chopped nuts, raisins, dried berries as desired
wheat germ or a little flax seed if you have it around

Preheat oven to 250F.

Pour oats in a large baking pan. Add brown sugar, oil, honey and mix well to coat oats. (Measure out in that order so that the oil helps the honey slide off cup.)
Add coconut and extras. Mix.

Bake for 30 to 40 minutes, turning every 10-15, until lightly golden. Oats will crisp as they cool.

The only downside to this is that the granola doesn't really clump together. I've heard you can add a little water to your hands prior to baking and try to form clumps, but I didn't have success with that. No clumps, no big deal.