Multi-blogs

For those who have been following me on Phil's Reverb 11, I want you to know that I have been fairly regular at blogging on my austerlitzphil.blogspot.com . I have surpassed the 1000 mark in number of readers there, so check it out. Phil

Bill

What a guy! My few words to summarize the life of our good friend, brother, father, husband, uncle, grandfather.
First, I present to you a few of the items and artifacts that many of us received over the years from Bill and Jean. I think they switched off and on, and Jean loved it when it was Bill's turn to come up with the gifts.
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One statue that Bill worked on was Our Lady of the Broken Nose. This statue stands in the middle of the South end of Albany in a small shrine outside St. Ann's Church. John Kirwin was pastor and expressed a desire that this image of Mary have a proper nose. It had been damaged by vandals. I mentioned it to Bill, and John noticed that something different was going on with the nose; and gradually, over several weeks, Our Lady's nose was healed. John figured Bill had something to do with it, but never caught him in the act. It seems that Bill would go there early in the morning, do some work, and then go to his work at the State. He did his work with out fanfare, quietly; you learned what he was doing only by asking him questions which he answered, sometimes briefly, but often with longer explanations, punctuated by "You know?"
He had to go back and redo the work a second time... that nose was a great target.
And I remember the puzzle he put together after the shrine of our Lady of Fatima  at St. Patrick's was rendered into rubble... he had a bucket for each of the figures pieces, carefully collected all of them, glued them together, and fabricated what he need until the shrine was good as new and ready for devotion. It was  a labor of love and devotion for him, and he did it to perfection.
As I read through the obituary the other day, there was a lifetime of accomplishments, and  then "Most of all..."   I thank Rob for these observations about family and Bill. The night of Bill's passing he noticed that no one in the living room at the family home was related by blood, yet they were family, and Bill was an only child, so there were no blood relatives on that side of the family. He fashioned a family with the love of his life, Jean, his adopted daughters, Jen and Michelle, their husbands, their children. In one summer, he went from having one grand child to having five. He had extended family in his brothers and sisters in law, nieces and nephews. All this through a marriage. He helped to build the family by his generosity of time, talent, love, service, and he talked up family whenever he had the opportunity. I think for him, family resembled a flowing river, fed by many streams, the river invigorated by the many rivulets  that emptied into it. And it all went into the family, including good times and bad times, hurt feelings and embarrasments, and we hung together, and we love.
And now to his philosophy of life, which is carved in the mantel surrounding the fireplace at Mike's house. Bill was a crew member when that was built. He carved shamrocks for unity, hearts for love, oak leaves for strength and a dove for peace... and all was connected by faint lines resembling streams, flowing and connecting. He knew the virtues that made life worthwhile.
We thank him and bid him bon voyage and he lives with us.

The Arts in My Life

Music, film, dance, photography, visual art- what arts do you participate in and what do you enjoy consuming? What books did you read? What movies did you see? Are there areas you wish were more a part of your life, actively or passively?

 

I think every area of the arts is for the most part absent from my life. I like to think that because I watch Dancing with the Stars and So You Think You Can Dance I could be classified as devoted to the performing arts. I also enjoy the Nutcracker on PBS at holiday time. 

Then, I also like American Idol which makes me a music lover and critic or is J-Lo the attraction here. Occasionally too, on PBS there is the NY Philharmonic or NYC Opera on Great Performances. I also watch the Kennedy Center Honors nights. Am I there yet, the devotee of the arts?

I hope not. This is minimal at best. I would love to be present at many live performances. Here near the Berkshires, the opportunities abound with the Boston Symphony, Pops, and Ballet. There are numerous attractions with the Canadian Brass, James Taylor, Arlo Guthrie. There is Jacobs Pillow for dance; MacHayden Theatre for Broadway; Shakespeare and Company for original and contemporary approaches to the work of the bard. If I could get to one of these events each summer, I will have risen above the minimum, and I may be a better person for the experience.

Defining moments

I f I were to describe a defining event for 2011, I would choose eating out on the occasions when my spouse was in the hospital.. I quickly realized that it was not fun eating alone in a  restaurant or diner. However, I was able to buy and eat whatever I wanted, and able to choose places that I wondered about.

One place always had lots of cars at all hours. I stopped there for a grilled cheese sandwich' basically, it was terrible, drab, and uncolored. I crossed that place off my list of places to go. I tried the Dairy Queen a few times. Not much ambiance, but I often met someone I knew from school, and who would engage in some conversation. I skipped Pizza Hut, found okay, but boring food at the place across the street;, overdone, but quick service at the Plaza, and slow but tasty food at Applebees
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The best place for me was Earth Foods, which served hefty portions of tasty food, with  various ethnic choices all at reasonable prices. There was an interesting clientele and an opportunity to talk to people. I liked the placa and went back whenever possible.

And then, finally there is the question of good quality, earth grown food, versus pretty good normal fare. I paid $15 for that lunch in the diner where all the food was locally produced from relishes and beer to milk and burgers. The very next day, in haste, I ate in the hospital cafeteria. Maybe it was the holidays, but I had a well stuffed chicken salad half sandwich on dark pumpernickel roll and a cup of Green Mountain coffee, all for 2.75.

It all makes me wonder: is there sheer quality worth paying for? or is there something to be said for well prepared lesser quality food? How do you know?

So how is this defining? I don't want to eat alone. .

I want to eat well

What’s the thing you most want to achieve next year? How do you imagine you’ll feel when you get it? Free? Happy? Complete? Blissful? Write that feeling down. Then, brainstorm 10 things you can do, or 10 new thoughts you can think, in order to experience that feeling today.

The thing I would like to accomplish next year is to eat well. I am a decent cook, but in the past few years, I have settled for less, reduced my expectations; dabbling in frozen and prepared foods, apologizing for it by saying it adds variety with little effort; picking up a delicious pizza because it is sooo good, so easy and easy to eat.

I went to a new diner in Hudson today. Everything on the menu is grown locally, raised organically, etc. from soup to beer, eggs, milk shakes, vegetables, fries. They gave me a list of farms where the produce is grown. And they handed me a menu which featured lots of burger from the black angus bovines they raise a few miles out of town, and a grilled ham and cheese sandwich, again from local farms.

I ordered that sandwich, which included local fries and a pickled beet and a small milk shake; total bill was about $15. What???? Well other than the grilled cheese, it was the least expensive item on the menu. It was a good sandwich. I should say great.

Now to the point of achieving in the next year... the owner of the diner knows the food is expensive at is diner. He counters this with good food costs money. It is expensive to produce, so you pay a premium price here for quality. I do not want to pay an arm and a leg for food next year, but I do want to upgrade the quality of what I eat and serve to others.

I intend to work on this by: 1.shopping farm markets, 2.buying organic, 3.growing some of my own food, 4. looking for food that smells good and feels good rather than the lowest price automatically, 5.baking bread and desserts, 6. buying in smaller quantities, 7. avoiding prepared foods, 8. supporting local farmers by talking up their virtues, 9. taking my time in preparing meals,10. assuming that others want the best also.

I will feel very happy when that first quality meal comes out of my kitchen with a table full of guests, involved in great conversation.

Joy in ordinary moments

Our most profound joy is often experienced during ordinary moments. What was one of your most joyful ordinary moments this year?

There were many tender moments and moments of love which gave me profound joy. There were moments of joy when I had a different experience with my family members. Seeing a person walk after a long period of inactivity is pretty inspiring. But the moment which stands out as really joyful...

It is silly. One of the recommendations given to us by the occupational therapist was to install a shower that had zero thresh hold, and large enough for a rolling shower chair. This meant, removing the old shower, refinishing the walls, leveling the floor, installing a drain where it could be serviced, and of course the plumbing. I am a DIY person.

As I researched the available type stock shower stalls on line, all had the drain in a place that would have been inaccessible for installation. My arm was not long enough.

I had read somewhere about installing ceramic tile showers. My experience with tiling had been limited to floors and walls adequately installed and serviceable, not necessarily pretty.

We went for it anyway, with a vague idea about how it should work. We used beveled siding to form the edges of the shower floor and covered that with frostguard. We cut a hole for the drain where we wanted it. We affixed the drain to a piece of cement board, and cemented everything in place, trying to make sure that the drain was a little lower than the rest of the shower floor, and the outer edge of the shower was low enough for a wheeled chair to roll over, but high enough so water would stay in the shower... all iffy at best.

I purchased some stone tiles, cemented them down, grouted them, with great apprehension. Is the drain low enough, will I have a waterfall cascading over the shower thresh hold into the rest of the bathroom? With these thoughts in mind, I waited a day. Then I put up the shower curtain. I turned on the water, and to my amazement, there was a soft trickle of water into the drain as I showered. There was no flood in the bathroom area.

That was the best shower that I had in days, and that was sheer joy in an ordinary moment of life.

Food for thought

What did you eat this year that you will never forget? What went into your mouth & touched your soul?

This is a difficult topic. I like food, but depending on circumstances, it is good or better.

Take birthday cake, for instance- if it's your birthday, it is usually great no matter what, and the more cake you eat, the longer you live. I would say that birthday cake touched my soul, contributing to my longevity in some way. But  the cakes are forgettable, as they mush together in a lifetime of cakes  for all occasions.

Amy's dinners, found in your local supermarket's frozen food department, was another delightful treat this year. The spiced Indian meals palek paneer, or lasagna, became a tasty addition to the weekly table adding variety without hard time in the kitchen. Did it touch my soul? I don't think so.

Now, for the real deal... vegetable stew with plenty of squash, carrots and other tasty items, topped off with a dollop of plain yogurt. Add a slice of cheese, some crusty bread and a salad, finally crowned with a group a friends whom you have known for years in conversation and laughter, and of course chocolate cake with chocolate mousse frosting... that becomes an unforgettable meal. This happened tonight.

It is not the food that matters, but rather the community built around the meal. It is the sharing of fun and ideas. It is what comes out of your mouth around the table that makes it possible for what goes into your mouth to touch your soul.