More Cows!

Here are a few more photos from my cow photo shoot! I posted these on my shutterfly website, so check there for the complete collection or if you want to order prints.

It was fun sneaking up on these guys (or gals, I should say). I moved slowly and quietly so as not to scare them. They barely even noticed I was there until I started clicking away -- the shutter release of my camera was enough to perk their curiosity and call them slowly towards me. When I moved down to the ground they too brought their attention towards the ground. I thought it was funny how they formed a row to carry out their investigation. Go to my shutterfly site to witness more of these cow personalities!

SAPA SKA

Evan and I spent a few days down at the farm right before Easter. When E went out to the barn to help with chores I decided to come along with camera in tow. Turns out cows are pretty good models! They typically just stand there so you don't have to worry about sudden motion and shutter speed issues, and they perk up with curiosity when my camera starts clicking away; ears perched forward, noses searching the breeze, beautiful eyelashes fanning my way. Here is a little montage I put together with the images I edited focusing on the particular shape of the bovine body and their trademark colors. Sapa Ska, which means black-and-white in a Native American language, is the name of the Pierson family farm in Lake City, Minnesota.

NOTE: Notice anything tricky about the photos? How you can't tell where parts of the cows start and where the backgrounds begin?

Recipe: Tahini (or Peanut Butter) Oat Cookies

I have a little daily lunch routine when I'm at work: I sit at my desk and enjoy my lunch while searching the internet for tasty recipes! Most people who know me probably think I'm a bit of a health nut, but good food actually tastes good to me and makes me the happy, healthy and energetic person that I am. Just ask Evan what to do if I seem cranky -- dish me up my plain organic yogurt with honey and flax meal and I'll perk right up! Some may say I'm high maintenance as gravitating towards the organic and natural foods aisle in the store can be expensive... but I like to see it as the best investment you can make in life: your health.

One of my favorite recipe sites is wholefoodsmarket.com. Here is a recipe I found on their site for Tahini Oat Cookies. I was intrigued because 1) they seemed very easy to make and 2) they are completely naturally sweetened. I read in the comments that someone substituted peanut butter for the tahini so I did the same as I didn't have tahini on hand. It worked out great! I used non-hydrogenated peanut butter (with the oil you have to mix in) as that oil is much healthier for you than the hydrogenated form -- and I just love the taste : )

I love these cookies, but don't expect a big dessert-type taste. They are more like tea or coffee cookies.

Makes about 24 cookies

If you love sesame, you will love these cookies, rich in flavor from sesame seeds and subtly sweet from a touch of maple syrup.

Ingredients

1 cup rolled oats 
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour 
1/4 teaspoon sea salt (or regular, or none at all)
1 teaspoon baking powder 
1/4 cup tahini (or peanut butter, preferably non-hydrogenated)
1/4 cup sesame oil 
1 teaspoon vanilla extract 
2 teaspoons cornstarch 
1/2 cup maple syrup 
2 tablespoons sesame seeds

Method

Preheat oven to 350°F. Grind oats in a blender until coarsely ground (some whole flakes should remain intact). Do not wash out blender. 

In a large mixing bowl, combine oats, flour, salt and baking powder. 

Place tahini (or peanut butter), sesame oil, vanilla, cornstarch and maple syrup in blender and process until smooth. Stir this mixture into oat mixture. 

Drop tablespoons of batter on a greased baking sheet. Sprinkle with sesame seeds. I can't remember exactly, but I think I sprinkled some wheat germ or flax meal on top too. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until cookies are golden brown on bottom and puffed. Best when warm!

Horcruxes

I started re-reading Harry Potter #7 this week. As it is the only one in the series I haven't read twice, I thought I owed it to myself to pour over the 759 pages one more time to make the tale complete (although no true HP fan is ever completely finished with the world of wizards, wands, and whomping willows). Of course, HP is about much more than magic spells and flighty fiction. One of the greatest powers employed by fiction, especially the tale of Harry Potter, is the keen connection it makes to our human world and "Muggle" life. I won't go too in depth on this now -- surely if you've read one or all in the series you already know what I mean. Let's just say people aren't drawn to the series because they are simply interested in magic or are curious about the lightning bolt scar. Sure, these things may have attracting some of the readers (especially the younger ones) at first. But people cling to HP because they recognize some of themselves in the pages.

As I read #7 this time around, I am drawn to the idea of Horcruxes and how the principle behind them is present in our human world. Don't roll your eyes yet! Bear with me, I have not gone off the deep end, although you may be tempted to think otherwise. Horcruxes, for those of you who don't know, are created when a wizard splits his soul into many parts and plants each fragment inside an object. The purpose? It is harder to die when your soul is hiding and cast apart. Of course this way of thinking about horcruxes is rather dark... after all, it requires a fair amount of dark magic to split one's soul apart and only Lord Voldermort is evil enough to devise such a plan. But nonetheless, it serves as a springboard into a much happier way of thinking about objects and our souls.

As we interact with objects and make connections with places in our world is it possible to keep some of ourself from rubbing off? When we write in a journal or wear a locket, does some part of you enter in? Perhaps it's the reason why it's so hard to get rid of your favorite childhood stuffed animal or your great-grandfather's pocket-watch (and why many of us never do). These things are not simply objects anymore -- some part of the "caretaker" seems to still dwell there.

Once my sister Sarah and I played a game where we tried to come up with a list of our own 7 horcruxes -- what objects or places in the world contained a portion of our soul. Remember, this is partially serious and part just a game (I'm not into witchcraft or sorcery!)

To come up with your own list think about a place or object that at one point was important (or possibly the world) to you. Think of something that feels like more than just a token of a fond memory. Something that is very comfortable and when you interact with it it's like an old friend (because in fact it is -- part of yourself resides there). When you pick it up or settle your thoughts around that space and time, do you feel a tug somewhere deep inside that begs you to linger? If, at your very core, you resonate, then my friend, you have found your horcrux.

Here's my list:

1. My violin. No matter how long it has been, when I pick it up by the neck and swing my elbow around into position and the wood makes that almost silent creek that only I can hear, I feel... present.

2. The Black Hills of South Dakota. No place in particular. Perhaps the treehouse we spent our summers building and painting, or a path in the woods where the scent of pine mingles with the dusty golden ground.

3. My road bike. When soaring above the roads of rural NJ I feel like a four-legged animal running so smoothly my legs don't touch the ground.

4. My camera. I love the sound of the release. So much potential within the frame, so much accomplished with just the move of your finger.

5. Old Man's Tree at the Waldorf School of Princeton, my elementary school. If you went to Waldorf you understand.

6. Sailing. On any boat/ship will do, but a Tall Ship (particularly the Spirit of Massachusetts) is one of my "homes".

7. C13 Carver Place (childhood home). My memory is so clear I can walk through the entire house in my mind and recall infinite details -- part of me must still be there, and probably always will. You can never fully leave the places that were witness to your growing up. Luckily I had (and still have!) a good home : )

8. I have to add an extra one because I know of one other place where part of me will always be: St. Olaf College. I am still on the hunt to find this specific horcrux (in a dorm? Old Main hill? cross-country trails?) but wherever/whatever it is, I know the Hill is a 'home' to me.

A couple more things:

Remember how I said that when a wizard's soul is spread across the world in different objects that it is really hard to die? Well, so too with these human horcruxes... people tend to feel that if they have something to leave behind (a memoir, a family tree, children) that they will never completely leave the world.

So what are your horcruxes? Where in the world do you resonate -- where have you found your homes? I'd love to hear!

Evan's aunt Connie (I have an aunt Connie too, who also lives in California!) wrote an awesome response on her blog -- check it out here. There are some other great horcrux lists below in the comment section. Be sure to add your own list, even if you aren't an HP fan!

Girls of Rand 220: Photo Montage

I put this together in Adobe Photoshop Elements and ordered it as a 20x30 poster (framed it too!) for my sister Sarah and her friends to enjoy in their dorm room at St. Olaf College. I had a lot of fun putting this together and can't wait to make more montages in the future!

The Man in Black

Last night Evan performed as the lead singer in the staff band at the LNHS variety show! He sang Jimmy Eat World "In the Middle", Johnny Cash "Ring of Fire", and Red Hot Chili Peppers "Dani California". It was a hit! I am uploading "Ring of Fire" for your viewing pleasure as it best showcases Evan's bass voice. I was in the last row and without zooming capabilities, so the video image is rather small... but you can hear it! If E gives me permission perhaps I'll upload the other two songs later ; )

Upon popular demand I am releasing Dani California!

More of Graduation

Here are some photos from the evening before graduation -- Karrin's last day as a student! We had a lovely dinner under a big tent, then the Ole sisters (past and present, minus Kirsten who was in Finland) went on a little walk down on the cross-country trails. If you are interested in viewing the entire selection, click here. (Although I find that the image quality on this site is rather deteriorated and pixelated...)

Karrin St. Olaf Graduation '08

Well it's about time I get these photos done! My sister Karrin graduated from St. Olaf College in Northfield, MN in May 2008. You can view (and order if you wish) these photos from my shutterfly website:

There will be more to come of the weekend festivities -- stay tuned!

Addendum to Starry Night

I was listening to the Lion King soundtrack tonight (the broadway musical, not the movie... although I know all of those songs too!) and was struck by the song "He Lives in You" and how it so perfectly adds to my little discussion posted below. In this song and throughout the Lion King the characters often look to the stars where "the great kings of the past look down on us... and watch over us". Although this could easily be overlooked as a cliche message as people often look to the sky for answers, prayers, etc. it really is much more than that. If the stars really do represent the past, no they don't represent the past, they ARE the past, then it is only fitting that our ancestors reside there, along with the famous Lion King (and Grandma Connie) reminder: remember who you are.

Message from the Stars

The other night I was witness to a "shooting star" trailing through the sky. I put this in quotes as I am well aware that these fleeting moments of light dancing across the darkness are not stars romantically falling to their rest, landing in a pile at the end of a rainbow, or whatever other tales we are lead to believe. No, these moments that have caused shepherds to stop and ponder the universe, lovers to swoon, lonely hearts to sigh, and children to make a goodnight wish, are in fact directed by meteors rushing through the atmosphere at top-notch speed, spontaneously combusting in midair, then settling again into the form of dense, cold rock (that hopefully doesn't have plans of landing in your backyard). Nevertheless, the "shooting star" I spied the other night worked its magic on me: as it is prone to do, my mind wandered out into the darkness where there's space enough to mingle with new thoughts and reflections and welcome back memories from other starry evenings.

It was a perfect summer evening on Priest Lake in the mountains of Idaho that first awakened my thoughts to the message from the stars and brought me humility and wonder from light-years away. For it was on that night as I lay on the edge of the dock watching the slow spread of stars strengthen above me, that my thoughts reverted back to old teachings of physics and how the term "light-years" was coined because it literally takes years upon years for a stars' light to reach my waiting eyes on earth. Suddenly I realized that the light twinkling above was the oldest thing around me -- perhaps even older than the bending trees across the lake. In fact, that very moment of light existed in its present time so very long ago that as I sat at Priest Lake in my present time I had no way of knowing if that star had since leapt the scene and taken a romantic tumble from the sky leaving nothing but darkness. Perhaps the very light that I gazed upon was really just a memory of what used to fill the space? But if I can look at the "past" today, is it really the past? If my eyes were taking in the light at that very moment, no matter where or when the source of that light came, it existed in the present because it impacted my present surroundings (the reflection on the water, the lighted pathway up to the cabin) and me (my thoughts, my feelings, and now my present writing)! What a great illustration of how the past really can have an immediate impact on the present -- and the future. What a little time machine we have access to every night: this eternal conversation between the stars and earth reminds us that the past, present and future truly are interconnected -- even one and the same.

As with stars, so too in life: we never know what will be dark later -- what we won't be able to access or who won't be around any more. But it is comforting in the least to know that the light of yesterday still carries into tomorrow and can shine just as brightly for those who look up to find it.