L. Kris Gowen's Blog, page 3

Compassion

The sun came out – just for a few hours – and I wept tears of joy. It’s been dark and flooding and heavy for so long, and I didn’t think I was going to see a blue sky for at least another week. Yet, there it was, waiting for me as I caught the […]

Good things that happened today

I went to bed, and woke up with, the worst headache I’ve ever had, and went to work anyway. A colleague brought me some Advil, and then went out to get me some more. The weather was cold, rainy, and dreary, so I treated myself to a decaf pumpkin latte. The warm cup felt cozy […]

Letting go of letting go

I spent the evening organizing. Cleaning out old files, trying to figure out what I need to keep, and what needs shredding. I found some old postcards – created by a well-known local artist – ones that were bought five years ago to become an art piece, celebrating Oregon, in my kitchen. Maybe I’ll make […]

Baking memories

I haven’t done a lot of writing this holiday weekend. Instead, my creativity came out in the form of cooking. This makes a lot of sense for Thanksgiving Day, but for some reason the cooking bug is staying strong through the weekend. On Friday, I made piragi* for the very first time. Piragi are Latvia’s pierogis […]

Thank you

The house is still. The thick coat of morning frost is gone as the sun is bright. After snuggling in bed for a few hours, reading a mystery novel, I brave venturing out from under the covers and plod downstairs. The house is warm; one of the many things I am thankful for. Morning is […]

Singing Oregon (#5)

Note: It’s my goal to karaoke in all 50 states. I’ve done 20 so far, and although Oregon was the 5th state in which I ever sang, I am reflecting on a time that happened just last weekend. Because, you know, I karaoke all the time here. The Facebook notification intrigued me: “Julie posted a […]

I took the day off (almost)

I strongly considered not posting today, yet here I am. Blogging every day is definitely challenging;  I anticipated it would be, and as the month wears on I come to the realization that I don’t think I could write every day. At least not in this manner. Perhaps if there was a goal, a specific […]

Together

We made chicken soup from homemade stock — added carrots, cabbage, and green onions. At the bottom of four bowls, we placed a generous scoop of mashed potatoes before ladling in the soup. Two of the servings went to the cooks, one was given to a friend studying hard, and the other to a friend […]

A perfect day

I woke up when I wanted to Stayed in bed until I was ready Walked in the brisk air. It felt like winter. Sipped fancy, creamy espresso and put some pieces together thanks to a friend who lent me his ear. Lunch with family. They brought orange flowers for my living room. Shrimp ginger dumplings, […]

My three songs*

A friend from college posted this interesting piece about “Your life in three songs”  — basically, can you sum up your life in just three songs? I will continue to ponder this, and instead today I created “My current life in three songs.” Drum roll please… Don’t Stop Believin’ by Journey.  Song from my formative […]