Misadventures of the Monster Librarian

"To improve the golden moment of opportunity, and catch the good that is within our reach, is the great art of life. Many wants are suffered, which might once have been supplied; and much time is lost in regretting the time which had been lost before." ~ Samuel Johnson The last weekend of September I went on the Annual Hiking Retreat with Churchy Church (my home church), to act as cook and general kitchen-bitch for the weekend. I was prepared for a simple menu-- Saturday breakfast: Bacon, red pepper & onion quiches, bagels and muffins, cereal Saturday lunch: Sandwich bar with soups: Chicken tortilla and Chicken & wild grain rice (these were a la Campbells), salad, raw veggies Saturday dinner: Beef and Chicken Kabobs, Veggie Kabobs, pitas, raw veggies, saffron rice Sunday breakfast: Blueberry pancakes, sausage, bagels and muffins, cereal --and hoping for some peace of mind and some time to reflect on all that has unfolded in the last year. It is almost comical to thin...

Never got to mention what a good time I had this weekend, on retreat on the shores of Lake Huron. The weather was cooperative; providing us with cool nights which made it wonderful to find oneself in front of the huge, flaming bonfire. And the sunrises were astounding; painting Lake Huron in pale yellows and blood-orange reds. Friday night I reacquainted myself with the kitchen, storing food and setting out things that I would need in the morning. Stayed up until 2:30am, chit chatting with friends, which made the 6:30am wake up hard. It was amazingly refreshing to walk out of the cabin, hair still damp from a shower, into the cool low 50s air, just beginning to see the tinges of crimsons and gold on the distant horizon. I walked over to the lookout over the lake and stared in awe at how magnificent the colors were, and how majestic the lake looked in the first throes of dawn. It was a different lake than the one that I had seen the night before under a setting sun, and eventually a s...