FAITH

Amazingly spiritual place to go read about FAITH.

Faith, in terms of the totally grounded, infinitely committed. Faith where men and women smile because they're happy, not because of the mood they're in.

Peace, spiritually squared off--

SeeSaw Magazine, An Online Magazine: Observation Full and Felt

NEAR AFGHANISTAN

THERE ARE PEOPLE WHO SMILE NEAR AFGHANISTAN. THE WEATHER IS BEAUTIFUL THERE. THE MOUNTAINS ARE THEIR FRIENDS.

I ONCE IDEALIZED AFGHANISTAN. WROTE A REPORT ABOUT IT IN AN EARLY GRADE. I RECALL MY EARLY FASCINATION NOW, AS AFGHANS ARE CAUGHT IN THE CROSSFIRE OF TRIBAL FURY.

MY REPORT WAS OF IDYLLICS AND POETRY, THESE IMAGES.

"In the Pamir Mountains, the Crossroads of History", The New York Times, December 19, 2009

SEE THE WORLD

ASIAN RIDER

QUIET RIDER.

- Rimi Yang

SPARKLING

SPARKLING CRANBERRIES
from 101 Cookbooks

2 cups cranberries, picked over
2 cups water
2 cups sugar

More sugar for coating: I do a mix of medium-grained organic sugar for the first coating, and then a second toss with regular granulated white sugar. You don't want a huge grain for that first toss, just something larger than standard sugar, smaller than most turbinado sugars. You can sort of see the different grain sizes in the third photo in the main write-up

Place the cranberries in a medium glass bowl and set aside.
Make a simple syrup by bringing the water and sugar just to a simmer in a medium saucepan. Let the syrup cool for a couple minutes and then pour it over the cranberries. If the syrup is too hot the cranberries will burst, so be careful. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

The next day, drain the cranberries and toss them with larger grained sugar until they are well coated. I only use a scoop of sugar at a time, and small batches of cranberries, so the sugar doesn't get too damp. Place the coated cranberries on a baking sheet to dry for a few hours.

Do a second toss with the regular granulated sugar, this typically takes care of any sticky spots on the cranberries. Let dry another hour.

Makes 2 cups of sparkling cranberries to serve with cheese and bread on a celebratory evening.