Ten steps to start a work day

1. Arrive early, who wants to race one's students to the classroom.
   
2. Park on the opposite side of campus, walking is good.
   
3. Turn on your computer.
   
4. Put lunch in fridge and jazz on the stereo.
   
5. Log into the computer.
   
6. Grab a handcrafted mug and walk up a hill.
   
7. Visit a friend or two.
   
8. Fill the mug with coffee.
   
9. Walk down the hill.
   
10. Check emails and plants.

 

The Stratzeria: 10 thoughts on Making homemade pizza in Lansdale

For the third straight year I have been making pizza for friends as if it is my true calling. Maybe it is. Last night a friend said I needed a sign outside my house, The Stratzeria.

Some thoughts:

1. Jazz is chosen randomly, counting by 7's. Last night it featured Anat Cohen, Tony Bennett, Duke Ellington, and three others. They are set before I start the dough. The other week I forgot this stage. I do turn down the volume just before guests arrive.
2. People generally say they like all toppings, but what many really mean is they do no like olives and they think pineapple is a travesty. Personally if I could adapt to both of these I think you could as well. We love using oil-cured black olives.
3. I do keep a running total of people have fed. The last two years I nearly fed 60 people pizza. It seems to be what we do these days for entertainment. I am mystified by how many friends I wish to have over.
4. The best way to place greens on a pizza is to cook it in the sauce.
5. It's ok to use straight mozzarella.
6. It's ok to use billions and billions of other types as well. I like adding a bit of a second cheese to the mozzarella.
7. Broccoli is best chopped into tiny bits. We like muenster cheese with broccoli.
8. Dough. Heaping two cups of warm water, a splash of honey, two packets of yeast. One to two cups of whole wheat flour, 1/4 cup of olive oil, tsp of sea salt, and as much white flour to make if dough like. My recipe has evolved into this. It used to have a 1/4 cup of rye flour. Makes enough for two pizzas which I make on cookie sheets.
9. Shrimp and garlic is heaven. It used to be a special Christmas Eve treat.
10. If I am to make my own pizza sauce, then it happens in the summer by roasting tomatoes with garlic and salt. add fresh herbs from your garden at the very end.

Side note... I blogged about my Fit over here.

 

Flowing in the Living Water

I am The Living Water
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Holy Trinity Lansdale

It has been 17 years or so since I returned to church. I still have my doubts, but I cannot not doubt that the journey has transformed me.

Mosaic Woman has journeyed with me day by day and has unfolded along with me. We are blessed to have become people who still desire to share lives together.

This past year I reconnected with some friends I knew back in college. One came to town on business and I fed him pizza. One I actually picked up a phone and called. One I met halfway, by a river we both love from those days in college.

I pondered the chances of people disconnected for nearly three decades to have become new people who still would want to be friends with each other. In each case, I am glad to call them my friend. 

Watching the river that day with my friend, I was baffled; the river seemed to be flowing in opposite directions. Finally I asked if she saw what I saw. Rivers are turbulent. In fact trying to get any water to flow without any turbulence is quite difficult.

17 years ago I was afraid to leap into the living water. Where would it take me? I imagined places that I feared. Could I become shaped by God into a person I didn't want to be? A wise man told me that I did not have to believe anything, just be willing to take a journey.

The turbulence has transformed me, but so far not into what I feared. Who knew God wanted me to garden, to listen to jazz, to transform my doodles into glass sun catchers, to decide that creating joy is the ultimate goal of my teaching, to invite 50+ people a year to my house for pizza, to learn how to imagine the pain of others so I can open this stoic heart a bit more day by day, to become an Episcopalian, to find a place to finally release my pain and return year after year for eight days of silence with Jesuits ...

The journey has pushed me into so many places That I have to wonder who this new self is. Then I visit with three of my best friends from back in the day, and I can now see that I am flowing in the living water and I am pleased to have inched myself in a bit deeper each year.

The 12 Days of Christmas Shout Outs: Frederick Buechner for day nine

The conversation this past Sunday began like this...

Me ~> peace

Lay preacher friend ~> what would we do without Buechner? How would I ever end a sermon without him.

My friend knows I dig Buechner. She has been to many an adult discussion led by me in which the man was quoted. I don't like being asked what my favorite this or that is because I tend to have many a favorite and don't enjoy ranking things much. With that said, Buechner is near the top. I have read his theology, his sermons, his autobiographies, and his novels.

So here are some things I have learned from all of that. Tell your story if you hope to heal. Find what brings you joy and if it matches a need of this world, you have discovered your vocation. You and I are peculiar treasures loved by a God that will search us out no matter where we go to hide.

When I went missing for a decade or two, I fled a religion that I wanted nothing to do with. When I returned, Buechner and the man who recommended him, showed me a different side of that religion. And for that I am grateful.

What would we do without him?

 

The 12 Days of Christmas Shout Outs: The Resolved for day eight

I am a social introvert. Thus I will go out of my way to have conversations. I will roam about my school's campus visiting people. I will meet people for coffee. I will invite people over for pizza. I will vacation where friends live. I will drive halfway to see you and watch a river flow as we talk. I will linger in a town after a conference to see you. I will let you know if I will be driving by your area and meet you for lunch. If you come to my area and have the time to see me, I will do my best to see you. And I already gave a shout out for those who do this.

I am an introvert, so if you want to see me, don't invite me to a big party. I shy away from large gatherings, but I will be delighted to have a simple dinner at your house.

So I can make a resolution to have plenty of these conversations, but I can only imagine them happening, if you resolve to have a conversation with me.

 

The 12 Days of Christmas Shout Outs: Paula Lewis for day seven

You are looking at what happens when you commission Paula Lewis to create a piece of art for you. I gave her some gerneral guidelines, then sat back and waited. I told her i was in no rush so she let my desires percoloate. Apparently Paula faces some danger as an enamalist, which is why she goes by Scorched Eyebrow Studio.

I do believe I only met Paula once and that was at a craft show. I stood in her booth amazed at her artistry and a seed was planted for the commission that was to become a part of my studio.

By commissioning others I am exposing myself to how others feel when I am commissioned. I also end up with a studio being filled with art by favored artists. I hope to keep this habit going. It's fun. But also a bit nerve racking as you don't know what it is you will be getting. But if others can trust me, I can trust others.

So while I am at it, let me celebrate the Jazz Tree I commissioned earlier in the year.

 

The 12 Days of Christmas Shout Outs: The Neighbors of Surprises for day five

It was a terrible night. Screams woke us. Flames across the street scared us. Seeing someone jump from a house horrified us.

After that comes the gratitude that no one died and an even greater respect for those who put out fires. After that we got to know the five households quite a bit better as we greeted them when they returned to see the damage and when they returned to once again live across from our two studio row.

Three Christmas past, I lied for the man who survived that jump. I told his wife that we would not be able to get their house number done in time for the 25th. Side note ~> This year I once again lied to a friend when I told her the piece she wanted had sold, but left out that her husband had bought it.

Two Christmas past, this time the wife surprised the husband with a mosaic celebrating chili peppers.

So, when they came to our home show and commissioned a cross and a nightlight, I decided it was my year to surprise them on Christmas Day. The commissions sight unseen, plus a small bonus gift, were placed in a box and gift wrapped. It amused me that for the third straight year a surprise gift was being open, maybe not as much as amusing as the surprise created by telling fibs, and surely not as joyful as when they moved back, but it did amuse me.

 

The 12 Days of Christmas Shout Outs: Breakfast Buddies for day four

On the third day of Christmas, I mentioned the tradition of buying Mosaic Woman a young adult novel every year. Here is another tradition. Years ago, she bought me a waffle iron for Christmas. I have never operated the gadget. In our two studio row, I am the pancake dude.

So now I am treated to waffles every Christmas morn, not for all twelve days, but consistently on day one. Mosaic Woman and I have eaten breakfast out in many a location over the years and for that I am grateful. But I have a few friends who have breakfasted with me more than once.

In Oregon it was the friend who I met when she was assigned the challenge of supervising my student teaching. This morning it was an Episcopalian priest, who I met when I searched for a spiritual director to guide me through the spiritual exercises of St Ignatius. I also meet a young man, who has decided that I am the Uncle Wayne he never had.

So, I give thanks to those who are willing to begin their days with me and share their first meal of the day.

 

The 12 Days of Christmas Shout Outs: Joanne Romano for day two

I have had some great conversations in 2013, and maybe some others will pop up during this Christmas shout out series. This morning as I created this Stratozpheric glass doodle for my friend Joanne, my mind went back to the day that she bantered with my snarky attitude (she did quite well) as she attempted to get me to buy tickets to a fundraiser my church was having. It was fun, the conversation that is because I never did make it to the breakfast. People who went said it was a hoot.

I love Joanne's voice and I am grateful that through it all she has remained a member of the band that creates music at my church here in Lansdale. Billions and billions of singers and instrumentalists have been in the band with her over the years. A flow chart may be in order.

After our home show, Joanne's name was pulled and I had the privilege of creating a sun catcher just for her. So here is to hoping she doesn't take his Sunday off.

 

The 12 Days of Christmas Shout Outs: Ken Doyle for day one

In the past 40 days, I blogged one time. I thought this blog just might have died and it might be on its way. But I had a thought and decided to make something of it. 12 days of Christmas, 12 shout outs.

And why not start with a friend I met while blogging in the early days of Stratoz. I now know Ken via other social media and I know a few things about him, but what has been clear from the beginning is that the man loves to write. I knew if his words were ever published, I would take the time to read them and I am glad that I did. His collection of stories took me into the people of Bombay and I met characters who filled me with hope for their future. Ken took me places, which I will likely never see and far from anything I have ever experienced. It was a wise choice to take the journey and it delights me that he has received positive reviews on goodreads. Keep writing.

 

21 pieces towards redemption ~> or I seem to be better at imagining gifts than giving them

One ~> Mosaic Woman finds a card I addressed in August. The friend was the 21st person to make a donation to my campaign to feed the hungry. I remember offering something to whoever was the 21st. What was it? Last night I chose scraps of glass, 21 pieces of redemption. I am imagining something new. An improvisation. A gift to a friend, who has been very patient.

Two ~> in my studio window hangs a mandala. Was it not supposed to go to Cleveland with me as a gift to friends who gave me a room with quite the view.

Three ~> a baseball card sits in my closet. Had I not planned to send it to a friend, who not only commissions stained glass, but also sends me amazing photos of them in their new home.

Four ~> a card rests on my drafting table. It is for a friend, who has shown me that she truly believes my cards are drawn with hope for healing by one commission after another. My friend has been in my prayers, and yes the card is a daily reminder to pray for her, but it is time to mail it.

Time to make the gifts become a reality.