Still time to get in on the prezzie drawing!

There's still time to leave a comment in the first ever official ceci prezzie drawing, here. If your name is drawn I'll send you a bona fide accidentally ordered extra copy of Happy Accidents by Tiffany Murray, and I'll send it to wherever you happen to be in the world. If you're shy and don't want to leave your name just go anonymous, and I'll identify you by the name of your favourite book!

How to Craft a Cello From Parts You Have

I cannot take credit for that title. It is the title of a lovely poem by Tanya Laramie, which I first read when it was published in the Guardian's online workshop.

Within the confines of a solitary place, sit upright in a wooden chair.
Wait patiently while your hair grows to reach the ground....

Yes, that's how it feels, learning to play. Of course the waiting isn't passive, because you are playing. But you do have to be patient. And it does feel like your hair will end up growing to the ground.

Only I am not crafting a cello, but starting the process of buying one. So the real title should probably be something like, How to Buy a Cello From Money You're Scraping Together. (And oh, how we are scraping.) But I am certain it is worthwhile. Ultimately the cello will be Helsinki's. I will be able to play it (and not have to continue to rent one) while she grows. Cellos, even student-level ones, are expensive (even the renting). They are usually hand-crafted and I believe the ones I'll be trying are. It is not about brand names -- in fact, I don't know what brands of cellos exist and don't want to. I will decide based on budget and sound and my teacher's recommendation.

Imagine the sound of spaciousness.

Lichfield wonders why cellos are so much more expensive than guitars and I think it is largely because (1) cellos are big; (2) they must be made of good wood, spruce and maple, on top, back and sides; and (3) craft is required. Cheaper cellos are factory-produced and can have laminated, lesser-quality wood for top and back. But the cello is all about vibration, and each kind of wood vibrates differently so it is important to have the good wood partout. Cellos are also fragile -- when I see how Lichfield handles his guitar compared to how we've been shown to handle out cellos, it's really hard to take! (Note to Lichy: if it makes you feel any better, apparently cello strings are also much more expensive than their guitar counterparts).

Imagine what you most long for.

I realized this the other day: the significance of this purchase is not just the cello, is not just Helsinki, but has to do with loving to play an instrument, and the Small Me that wanted so very, very much to play the piano. Small Me was granted the cello instead at the ripe age of 37 and I will always be grateful to Helsinki for opening that door, which I have to admit surprised me at the time -- my little Helsinki! that big, deep instrument!

The other day my teacher complimented my playing. It meant a lot because I've often felt he hasn't taken me seriously -- like I'm just another Euro-wank parent with more money than sense, who wants their child to play an instrument because they think it brings them status. Well, he's gotten to know me a little bit.... Has seen the worn lining of my pocketbook.... Has seen the choices I've made. What would I rather have done with all those half-hours, those fifteen- and ten- minuteses? He said, "If all of my students played their Dotzauer like that, I would be so happy."

Invisible to him, deep down inside me, Small Me felt positively shiny.















image credit Cello Practice IV - Jenny Armitage

Too good -- A Man Is Only As Good....

A MAN IS ONLY AS GOOD...


A man is only as good
as what he says to a dog
when he has to get up out of bed
in the middle of a wintry night
because some damned dog has been barking;

and he goes and opens the door
in his vest and boxer shorts
and there on the pock-marked wasteground
called a playing field out front
he finds the mutt with one paw

raised in expectation
and an expression that says Thank God
for a minute there I thought
there was no one awake but me
in this goddamned town.



Note: This poem is this week's Poem of the Week from Poetry International. I liked it so much when I read it yesterday morning that I had to share it. You can listen here to the poet reading. And there's also Pat Boran's page on Poetry International.

© 2007, Pat Boran

Two Happy Accidents - And One Could Be Yours!

I recently ordered all of the books I was encouraged to read before my Arvon course, namely those of the tutors and the special guest reader. Better late than never, eh? Well, one of these books was by tutor Tiffany Murrary and its title is Happy Accidents. And when the order arrived I discovered a happy accident had indeed occurred, for I accidentally ordered 2 copies instead of 1.

What to do with an extra book? Sending it back is so boring.... not to mention what that would do to Tiff's Belgian sales spike. So I've decided to do the first ever official ceci n'est pas une cuisine prezzie/prize drawing. All you lurking readers out there, be brave and leave a comment telling us what is your favourite book -- and I mean your honest favourite, highbrow or lowbrow -- and I will do a drawing and send one lucky reader this extra copy of Happy Accidents. Woo-hoo! Drawing will take place this weekend so make your comment (one each, please) by midnight on Friday.

PS It is a fun, funny book!

A showcase of literary delights...

...which I found via Scott P at Me and My Big Mouth. People are always sending him stuff -- you know, I'd be happy to help him with some of that, if it's getting too much to deal with. Scott already showcased this handbag (US: purse) from The Literary Gift Company but it is so fab that I want to show it, too:


That's the Principles of Genetics book handbag, in case you're curious. How about an inside view?



Yes, a little blurry but you can tell it's cool. 100% cotton lining. It has now been officially added to my list of Covetable Items.

On the other hand, the George Bernard Shaw Correspondence version is also very tempting:


Classy, non? The handles on the Genetics one are better but GBS has red lining!


On the jewellery front, there's the Banned Books Bracelet:

(Special hint to Lichfield: stocking stuffer.)

There are also book cover posters, Greek scrabble cuff links, and other tempting lit-treats in all shapes and sizes. So thanks to whoever sent Scott the Haruki Murakami quote pin!

“Devise, wit; write, pen...”

My writers workshop meets tonight... those of us who are struggling on with it. Although admittedly lately I am having a different sort of struggle. The workshop has been a solid one and is now in its 7th year running. I've received some very good feedback over the course of these years and learned a lot about the craft of writing. But right now what I would most like to do, and most need to do, is hole up for a few months and write my current project. I don't want anyone to see it or read it or make a comment before I feel ready. I don't want to be distracted, either, by making some token submission to the workshop (and what a waste of every one's time that would be), just because it's my turn. The problem is that I feel pressure to be a "productive member", particularly given the group's current weakened state. I don't know how this can be resolved without the group being understanding and accommodating. No other member has raised this issue before. But it has to work for everyone, right? Just because no one else has had this issue doesn't mean we can't find a solution. Well, anyway, I like to think so. So I am going to try to resolve some of this tonight...





Quote is from Shakespeare, in Love's Labour's Lost: “Assist me some extemporal god of rime, for I am sure I shall turn sonneter. Devise, wit; write, pen; for I am for whole volumes in folio.”

image credit

From our house to yours...

Thanksgiving Lunch Menu for 10, Belgian-style

Soup of Two Squashes (inspired by Smitten Kitchen's winter squash soup,
but with 1 butternut squash, 1 potimarron (cousin to the pumpkin,
the national squash of Belgium), and a couple of potatoes.

cute, non?

♦

1 6.6 kilo Roast Turkey (soaked in brine à la Nigella)

Gingerbread Stuffing
(inspired by Nigella, using Delhaize pain d'épices
plus extra odds and ends of bread, and far less bacon;
finished off by removing from bird cavity and baked in oven)

Roast Potatoes

Celeriac Purée

Cranberry Sauce

Red Cabbage

Peas Sautéed with Onions

♦

Maple Cream Pie (from Smitten Kitchen)

Brownie Cake

&

Scattered Raspberries

(Martin very thoughtfully photographed the desserts!)

♦

To finish off the evening:
a little

"They are that that talks of going..."

I wonder about the trees.
Why do we wish to bear
Forever the noise of these
More than another noise
So close to our dwelling place?
We suffer them by the day
Till we lose all measure of pace,
And fixity in our joys,
And acquire a listening air.
They are that that talks of going
But never gets away;
And that talks no less for knowing,
As it grows wiser and older,
That now it means to stay.
My feet tug at the floor
And my head sways to my shoulder
Sometimes when I watch trees sway,
From the window or the door.
I shall set forth for somewhere,
I shall make the reckless choice
Some day when they are in voice
And tossing so as to scare
The white clouds over them on.
I shall have less to say,
But I shall be gone.

-- The Sound of the Trees by Robert Frost

Roasted Chicken, the way Odete’s mother used to make it

photo from epicurious.

1 whole chicken for roasting

2 tbsps olive oil

3 cloves garlic, chopped

3 bay leaves, chopped

1 chicken bouillon cube, crushed

1 lemon, whole

Salt, paprika, and pepper, to taste

6 small slices of butter

½ cup white wine

1. Preheat oven to 180° C.
2. Trim any excess skin and fat from the chicken, particularly around the opening to the cavity. Ensure the cavity is empty and wash the chicken.
3. Spread the olive oil around the base of a roasting pan. Place the chicken on top of the oil.
4. Rub ½ of each of the chopped garlic and bay leaves, along with the crushed chicken cube around the cavity. Insert the whole lemon.
5. Pour the white wine over the top of the chicken.
6. Sprinkle salt, paprika and pepper, along with the remaining garlic and bay leaves over the top of the chicken.
7. Place the small slices of butter, at various locations, on the outside of the chicken, for example in the areas between the breasts and the wings, and between the drumsticks and the thighs, and on top of the breasts.
8. Cook for 1 hour and then turn the chicken over and cook for another 30 minutes.
9. Let stand for 10 minutes before carving.

Catch up with Odete, Jacqueline and a Little Bit of Hope:
Chapter One, part one
Chapter One, continued

And by the way, Happy Thanksgiving! We're not celebrating until Sunday so we can sit down and eat all afternoon, but with any luck there'll be a photo or two of, hopefully, the turkey.

"This place where I took things...

(photo taken in field behind The Hurst, Shropshire)

"This place where I took things
sunk shallow in the middle of the field,
a secret bruise hidden by trees."

- from The Pond by Owen Sheers (from The Blue Book)