National Sibling Day (April 11)

So I learned that today is National Sibling Day - another made-up holiday, but I like this one because … well, my brother is my best friend in the whole world. He’s 14 months younger than I am. He is my earliest memory - I remember my mom showing him to me when he came home from the hospital. And we’re … not unalike, but not alike either.

My brother is very charismatic - if you met him, you’d get sucked into his vortex too.

The best way to explain my brother Jeremy is to show him in his usual guise in a photo. He’s usually doing something on a mountain. Snowboarding, hiking, biking, whatever… When I get emails from him, the signature line is “I fear flat planets.” He frowns upon heat. He showed me my first glacier. This photo is of Jeremy when he lived in New Zealand. He’s lived there, Tejas, Colorado, Vermont, Montana, Alaska and Washington. He’s always sending me pics of him on top of mountains.

I am remarkably proud of my little bro (who is almost a foot taller than I) for his dedication to living life without fear, and for his absolute loyalty to those he loves. He does whatever the hell he wants. He lives wherever he wants. He believes his own reasoning is good enough for anyone. He regularly hurtles himself down steep slopes but thinks the fear is fun, or at least interesting. He’s taught me a lot about how not to be afraid in life, about how to go for it and ask questions later. About how asking permission is a lot harder than getting forgiveness afterward. (Right, bro?) He’s taught me about what it means to believe in others and myself.

Jeremy is not organized (at all), and he’s forgetful. He does not own furniture nor is domestic in any way - really, he does not “own” anything or want to. He does not want to settle. He travels and learns and argues with people, and spends a hell of a lot of time working out (don’t get into a fight with him, he works out daily and has an … er, volatile temper).

Jeremy’s someone I look to when I find myself playing it safe instead of doing what I believe is right. He is proud of me for being a person I like, not for toeing the line. He thinks rocking the boat is probably better than accepting the status quo. Jeremy’s fearlessness is what I remember when I’m afraid to be me, or to state my true opinion. He reminds me that no matter what, I shouldn’t accept being passed over or ignored.

And if I don’t like where I am, I can always go forth and find a new and more interesting experience.

Fleurs and a Personal Challenge

Aaand, spring ….. go!  Aaaah, I love spring so much!  So much so much so much.  Flowers have to be the best thing ever.  April in central Texas has to be the most beautiful thing.  So, I have made a resolution.  I am going to pick five pictures and do something art-and-or-craft-ish with them.  Dunno what, but I’ll do something.  OK, and Picture #1 doesn’t count, because Audrey is just adorable.

#1 - I love the delicate white and the blue of the sky, and the rich greens, and dots of flowers.  That’s the best.  This was so wonderful in the breeze, the petals fluttering about.

#2 - Indian blanket.  I chose this because this daisy-ish flower is one of my very favorites, but also because of the many textures of this shot, from the petal veins to the spiky bits in the center, to the soft and delicate aspect of the petals.

#3 - Have to research what this flower is.  I like the blue/yellow element, and that there are several blooms on a tall stalk.

#4 - Strong color, simplicity of elements, strong shape, slight petal texture.  Clarity of color, mostly.

#5 - I like the varying shapes in this picture, from the stalk to the long, slender, dark leaves, to the flowers with multiple types and colors of petals, to the darker red unopened buds, and of course the dark, sunlit browns of the ground.

Interested to see what I’ll come up with.  I think I’m going to have to get out some floss.  Maybe some special fabric … hrm …

I escaped the poison ivy

This past weekend I trekked back to Goliad and went camping.  I love camping.  A lot of work, yes, but I always get there and wonder why I don’t do it more often.  This particular weekend the wildflowers were out in force.  If you don’t know this already, know that wildflowers are third in priority behind friends and family for me.  Don’t know why, but they are.  However, the flowers are (mostly) for tomorrow.  Today’s photojournalism is South Tejas camping (with a recipe at the end).

This stuff goes under the heading “stuff that I find inspiring.”  At some point in my life, I might actually learn how it is, what switch in my brain I have to flip, so that I can take the things I love, that I find inspiring, and actually do something creative with that inspiration.

Pretty place, Goliad.  Going in February actually made me want to go back.  I didn’t visit the mission this time, as I had the pup along (not allowed on mission proper), but the grounds are quite nice.

IMHO, one should not go camping in Texas, generally speaking, between May 1 and September 30.  It’s miserably hot.  And there are too many bugs and poisonous snakes around here.  For example, this area of south Texas has an abundance of cottonmouths, copperheads, rattlers, scorpions, black widows and tarantulas in the hot months. Yipe!

There have been days in my life when I was tempted to try out some kind of survivalism thing.  Camping, however, reminds me that I am indeed a modern person, and entirely ill-equipped to handle such a challenge.  It’s all right to rough it for a weekend, but a true lack of modern conveniences would surely kick my ass.

Nevertheless, cooking over fire is eminently preferable to anything else.  And if you give me mesquite or apple wood, I’ll be even happier.

There were lots of onion flowers out.  Humble plant, really, with a very strong onion/garlic smell and taste as well as a simple, pretty flower.  It’s what the onion was before it got genetically modified.  I was reminded of my dad picking these and cooking the bulbs with mushrooms in a wine reduction sauce when I was younger.  I recommend that.  Highly.

Pet Peve about Tents:  you cannot stand up in many of them.  I hate trying to put on clothing in a tent.  I don’t like the idea of getting a larger tent than what is absolutely necessary, but … well, sometimes it’s the small things that make the biggest difference.

I find the out-of-doors and small towns to be more inspirational than anything else.  However, I have to admit that’s probably because I live in a relatively large city.  Still, it’s nice to see the stars at night, and I think a lot of inspiration is about getting out of your element, and seeing textures and objects that are new, instead of getting stuck in the same ol’ rut.

Always remember 3 things:  bug spray (Off), sunscreen and a first aid kit with benadryl.  Guess which one I didn’t have?  That’s right - SUNSCREEN.  Ow ow ow crispy.

Leave time to sit in the shade and sniff the flowers.

Recipe for simple, yet tasty stuffed jalapenos follows:

Mix 1/2 small tub of lowfat vegetable cream cheese with about 1/3 cup ham that’s been finely diced.  Crab will also work.  Wearing gloves (as in latex gloves), cut 6 large jalapenos in half and remove the stems, seeds and membranes.  Spoon cheese mixture into empty jalapenos even with the top.  Line a baking sheet with foil (or just use foil) and line the jalapenos up in 2 rows.  Cover with foil.  These can be baked at 275 or put on a grill.  The key is to bake them slowly until they are soft and no longer bright green.  Eat!