by Diane: Foods for Wellbeing and thought

 Monday, January 25, 2021

Breakfast making is now a relaxing and creative time that I give myself.  Not a new way to enjoy the beginning of the day!  My gift of cooking breakfast I gave to myself starting more than a year before Fisherman Hubby passed away from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis often called Lou Gehrig's Disease. Back then breakfast was the least demanding of me in preparing his food and mine at the same time. For months he was able to pour milk and a quarter cup of brown sugar on his instant oatmeal  followed by maple bars, coffee with milk, King burger from Hasty freeze, Coke-a Cola, white rice meat in sweet and sour sauce, hot chocolate. But definitely any of the fortified supplement drinks were too sweet.

Back then I thought he would be back to his normal healthy self if he got his Candida under control, but the Oregon Brain Bank Pathologist Dr. Randy Woltjer said Fisherman Hubby passed away within the range expected for ALS and what he ate wouldn't make any difference. I am happy he was adamant and I hope he enjoyed himself eating what he liked. 

                    Lunch;  Creamed vegetable soup, and egg fluffed oatmeal and blue berries

 

 

After breakfast I did more  repurposing the vacant garage space where the boat used to be.  Most of the fishing paraphernalia is gone. Without much happening today I started feeling an emptiness and nostalgia for the times I was painting aeries of fishing and river paintings.  I enjoyed riding along and pretending to be a fishing companion when I was there mostly in my own world painting. The realization that a chapter in my art was so dependent on my husband's avid stewardship of fish and waters of the Northwest, I might continue my river paintings or take an interest in new areas. 

All that I have thought of is how I can work larger to get my whole body moving and rejecting long stretches of sitting doing tight tiny detail. 

      Dinner; Pot Roast Stew - I had seconds

 Another thought occurred to me. Almost all of my appreciation of Fisherman Hubby is about what actions he did and how they were often done for love. Every day I think of how he did little things that supported my creativity like taking care of the floors, the yard, volunteering to do dishes, tending to my to do list before going on a fishing trip.  And very much I appreciate that he left me enough financial resources to be comfortable and able to make choices. He was a very responsible, thoughtful man who basically made good choices. 

The few words of praise and endearment are gems. He would say he missed me when at the coast fishing and I remained home. He said days before he passed away that he had a good life. Which made me feel all the cooking of my food outside and trying to do his bidding even when I could not understand exactly why, meant he had a good life in spite of me and his illness.

Tuesday, January 26

When I cook for myself after Fisherman Hubby passed away, I actually find cooking for just me relaxing far from the frantic many pots burning in the kitchen and outside at the same time. So thankful I didn't have an accident and survived!!! Now I simply pull fresh ingredients from the refrigerator and I use most of them and I am free to change my meal idea mid-way like  today's lunch. I boiled two chicken thighs and was going to make a salad. 

Snow flakes were threatening outside and I wanted to add some warmth to comfort me. So I added fresh ginger, cumin, and garlic powder. To add a little sweetness with my curry like chicken, vegetable  stew. I took a slice of my steel cut oatmeal with blueberries cooked with tapioca - a dessert planned for dinner.

While eating surrounded by my art work, I have more thoughts of the direction my next paintings will take. I like the square format of the "When I Get to be Older Series" I will add to the series.

The few words of praise and endearment are gems. He would say he missed me when at the coast fishing and I remained home. He said days before he passed away that he had a good life. Which made me feel all the cooking of my food outside and trying to do his bidding even when I could not understand exactly why, meant he had a good life in spite of me and his illness.