reverse threading

the path back is the path forward

Tag Archives: necessity


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reddi-wip. [d.r. thursday]

reddi-wip was always on her list. any holiday, any winter-hot-cocoa-possibility day, any waffles-and-ice-cream-up-a-notch day. my sweet momma was a reddi-wip fan. so i can’t help but think of her when i look in the fridge right now and see the familiar red and white canister, just waiting…

we don’t buy ice cream. i can’t have it and, though it wouldn’t really bother me – unless it was coffee ice cream – in which case i would be ridiculously jealous, d doesn’t want to eat it in front of me. so we don’t put it on the list. we will – from rare time to rare time – pick up frozen cashew milk or some other dairy-free option. just a pint. but a treat and oh-so-good.

instead, we freeze bananas. and we take out one of those appliances you buy in one of those we-need-this moments. it’s a yonanas and, even though it isn’t a front-and-center machine, when it makes an appearance from the shelves in the laundry room in the basement, it reminds us of the deliciousness of a littlebitta dessert, a little something sweet.

frozen bananas become ice cream in this miracle-machine. we top it with berries. or really anything you might put on an ice cream sundae. and then – if it’s really a fancy moment – there’s reddi-wip. swirls and white fluffy clouds of whipped cream on top – it becomes an occasion. we look at each other and wonder why we don’t make this more often. what day – really – doesn’t deserve to be an occasion, we wonder aloud. what day – really – doesn’t deserve dessert, we insist.

i’ve been thinking a lot lately about the word “indulgent/indulgence”. i’ve sat with it, pondered over it, journaled about it, discussed it at length. it is one of those yin-yang words, one of those words that is both inspiring and guilt-producing. the dark and light of self-indulgence, the expansive greyness of indulging, judgement and justification invisible partners. i had to decide if i would indulge in some looking-back, in processing some times of great difficulty. i had to choose between indulgence and necessity. it was a seesaw for a bit.

the reddi-wip made its way into the shopping basket as i planned for a special holiday meal. and now, as i gaze into the refrigerator, i realize it’s still there – there is more in the container – more fluffy whipped cream – for any day. it’s an every-day possibility. some things that look like indulgences are not. some things are necessary.

“joy is not made to be a crumb.” (mary oliver – don’t hesitate)

*****

read DAVID’S thoughts this D.R. THURSDAY


					
		
	



					



	

					
				

			
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vintage. [two artists tuesday]

	


	

					






the last time i bought a brand new car – right off the lot – was 2003 or 2004.  littlebabyscion was almost brand new – with 250 miles on it and that was in 2006.  the new-car-smell and negotiating with salespersons and then, of course, their managers…both memories in the distant past.





littlebabyscion is getting up there.  260somethingthousand miles on it now.  wrinkles and groans and a little rust here and there and a few mechanical issues here and there, it’s a workhorse that just refused to start last friday.  dashboard lights i don’t think i have seen before appeared right before my eyes.  we suspect the alternator.  





but – in our one car driveway – there LBS sat…in back of big red, blocking the path out.  





the jumpstart hooked up to big red made LBS chortle.  starting for a moment and trying to chug the engine alive, it stalled and the handbook and google informed us to “go to the scion dealer” and do not pass go.  our truly amazing mechanic steve will be its destination when the tow truck comes.  





but – on friday – we were left without any transportation.  





saturday we pushed the scion down the driveway toward the apron and managed to thread big red through the space between the old brick wall and the front of LBS.  the only way out was across the yard, but the yard – all trenched and mounded up from the water line replacement – has seen better days anyway.  we rolled our eyes looking at the tire tracks across the snow in our front yard.  david suggested moving the couch out front.  





we have some real old stuff.  between a 1998 ford f150 and our xb and our vw and our stove and mixing bowls and corningware and this very laptop – not to mention hand-me-downs and never-been-replaceds, we qualify as our own antique shoppe.  when seeking a replacement adapter cord, the woman on the apple support line told me that my computer was “vintage” and that they didn’t even carry the cord for it.  (she was actually wrong about that part as i directed her attention to the correct cord on the apple store.)  see…you can rube goldberg things and keep them going when need be.





and as two artists for the majority of our lives – in between and in conjunction or simultaneously with other positions and career arcs – rube goldberging is of necessity.  i’d like to also think of it as having a smaller carbon footprint.  admittedly, the efficient energy consumption of a new stove vs the half-life of a decomposing stove in a dump somewhere leaves much room for debate.  but we, as artists, don’t always have the luxury of replacing things at whim – or even in a longer term plan – and we try to do our best at being responsible citizens of this beautiful world.   





i asked steve once what we were going to do when littlebabyscion reached 300,000 miles.  he looked at me, surprised, and said, “keep driving it.”  





yes, yes.  i suppose we will.





we pushed littlebabyscion back up the driveway so big red could fit.





it may be time to start planning for new grass.





*****





read DAVID’S thoughts this TWO ARTISTS TUESDAY