Soufflenheim and so forth

Just because I've been taking a little bloggy break, doesn't mean I haven't been stopping by G-Dub every Friday.  Don't worry.  It's only a minor addiction.  I like to think of it as a small way of contributing to the community. Anyway, I know you're dying to know about my latest find, this little Soufflenheim guy. Actually, he's a mini jug or jardiniere.  I have a few pieces of this pottery, and couldn't resist him.  What did I pay?  Ninety-nine cents.  Yep.  My kinda bargain. Can you believe it?  You can't even get a cheeseburger at McDonalds for less than a dollar anymore.

Soufflenheim is a town in northeastern France known for its charming pottery, hand-painted with a recognizable design of flowers or birds. The forested area in northern Alsace is a natural source for a special clay that has been used for pottery since the Bronze Age.  I love the history of the design, the legacy of the clay.

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just a coffee blend

Donut Store Blend

Gone the way

of the phone booth

and station wagon,

the morning tradition

is dunked, or otherwise

reduced to an essence

added to the grind,

a kind of tribute.

Time-travel across

the politically correct,

wrap one in wax paper,

dribble jelly for old times' sake,

the icing so sweet

it makes your teeth hurt.

tk/February 2012

Listen to R.A.D. Stainforth's sweet reading ... guaranteed to make you dribble jelly ...

Visit his great blog Black Dogs.

Join The Mag creative writing group. 
image: Epic Mahoney

Nay Masculines

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I didn't realize, until recently, that the first American poet was a woman. Anne Bradstreet's book of poems, The Tenth Muse, published in England in 1650, made her the first published American woman writer. She immigrated to America with her family in 1630, on the Arabella, one of the first ships to bring Puritans to New England.

Not only does her work reflect the struggle for survival in the harsh living conditions of the New World, but also of a well-educated and intuitive woman surrounded by Puritan ideology.

Her writing style is deceptively simple, but speaks of a free-thinking woman of high intelligence, airing her views in a restricted society with ease.  Bradstreet's rich vocabulary, and lyrical, yet logical quality, is a pleasure to read.

I love the description on the cover of a chapbook, published after her death: "Compiled with great variety of wit and learning, full of delight ... with diverse other pleasant & serious poems, by a Gentlewoman in New England."

One of her early pieces dedicated to Queen Elizabeth I, alludes to the role of women and their capabilities with a sly wit that emerges in many of her poems. Say it, Annie baby ...

Now say have women worth? or have they none?

Or had they some, but with our queen is't gone?

Nay Masculines, you have thus taxt us long,

But she, though dead, will vindicate our wrong,

Let such as say our Sex if void of Reason,

Know tis a Slander now, but once was Treason.

Another poem touches on the subject of the definition of the Puritan roles of men and women, with the understanding of the likelihood that her poetical accomplishments would not be accepted:

I am obnoxious to each carping tongue

Who says my hand a needle better fits

A Poet's Pen I should all scorn thus wrong

For such despite they cast on female wits.

If what I do prove well, it won't advance

They'll say it's stol'n, or else it was by chance.

Even though Bradstreet's feminism was held in check by her religious values, I appreciate the conflict expressed in her poetry, and the finding of her voice in a patriarchal society.  I am touched by the surprisingly modern thoughts contained in her Puritan style, as a woman, and as a writer. She and I are simpatico. 

stuffed peppers southwestern style

This is a yummy twist on the old standby.  I made a whole tray of these ahead of time, slid them in the fridge, until ready to bake.  The leftovers were just as tasty, too.  These were supposed to be sprinkled with chopped scallions, which would have made for a prettier presentation, but unfortunately I forgot to pick some up at the grocery.  You get the idea.

Southwestern Stuffed Peppers


1 cup cooked long-grain white rice
6 thinly sliced scallions (I forgot these)
1 small chopped onion
1/2 pound ground beef (I used turkey)
1 cup frozen corn (I used canned Mexican style)
1 4.5 ounce can chopped green chilies
1 tsp cumin
1 cup grated Monterey Jack (or cheddar)
salt and pepper to taste
4 large bell peppers, halved lengthwise, seeded
1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt or sour cream
salsa for serving

Cook the beef and onion in a large skillet, stir in the corn, chilies, cumin, rice, 1/2 cup Monterey Jack, salt and pepper to taste.  Arrange the peppers in a 9x13 baking dish, divide the mixture among the peppers, add 1/2 cup water to the dish, cover with foil, and bake 375 degrees until the peppers are soft, 20-30 minutes (tender, but not falling apart).  Uncover, sprinkle with remaining cheese, bake until browned, 5-7 minutes more.  Serve with yogurt or sour cream, salsa, and scallions.  Yummingtons.