Five faves

1. Creativity Warrior, Darryl DMC McDaniels.

   One morning listening to cbc radio, I heard the end of an interview (31 minutes in) on Q with Darryl McDaniels and he was talking about a year of only listening to Sarah McLachlan. He tells the amazing story of how they met and eventually recorded this song, Just Like Me, together. I was intrigued and had to listen to the rest of the interview. At the beginning of the interview, at 3:19 – he says “Creativity is the building blocks to your soul.” I love how he slows down to say this line, then like an engine building steam, he continues on and barely takes a breath for the remainder of the interview. He tells the story of his life and the key role of creativity in his life.

2. Making chocolate with schizandra and medicinal mushrooms. It’s very easy. I got a recipe from Lotus Herbal, but when I went back and asked some questions, Betty said she just eye balls all measurements. The recipe is given below.
3. Great Pumpkin Pie My daughter made this for Thanksgiving. I’m not a fan of pumpkin pie spice or even pumpkin pie so much, but this is a pumpkin pie over base layer of pecan pie.
4. The boyhood episode of the Moth podcast, in particular Neil Gaiman’s story about learning that his father was proud of him and Ishmeal Beah’s story of a second childhood after being a child soldier in Sierra Leone.
5. Mary Oliver’s Rules for the Dance. Another book I want to read of hers is A Poetry Handbook, but this is the book that was in the library. I’ve learned what iambic pentameter is and other rules of metrical verse. I’m still making my way through it. I love that the first chapter of the book is Breath.

Elsewhere, I came across this message again from the On Being interview with Mary Oliver, which is a particular focus of mine lately.

The habit — I think we’re creative all day long. And if — we have to have an appointment to have that work out on the page. Because the creative part of us gets tired of waiting, or just gets tired.

– Mary Oliver

Homemade Chocolate

Melt and mix together:

one part cocoa butter
one part coconut oil
two parts cocoa powder

Sweeten to taste with a good glob of honey and add a dash of salt and a little vanilla if you wish.

Do taste and adjust flavours. Also note that the chocolate will be a little sweeter after it sets than when warm, which may go against your expectations.
Add your secret ingredients like medicinal mushrooms or super foods like schizandra. Mix in the mushroom powder so the flavour will not stand out. For flavours that you want to stand out, place on the surface layer or bottom layer of the chocolate. Use a silicon mini muffin tray or parchment lined container for a mould. Place in the freezer to set. A long time ago, I made some with only coconut oil. As long as you keep it cold, it will be fine. Some people just use cocoa butter. Any proportion of the coconut oil and cocoa butter will work.