Friday, December 02, 2016

Guilt Free at Last


I was so relieved, like the good introvert that I am, about having very little on my calendar for December.  I hate meetings but my Puritan instinct insists I must participate in good causes.

Then the days began to get filled.  Thus far, I have at least three classes scheduled for my Peruvian student, a family get together in the city before Christmas to attend my granddaughter's play (and I think the next day they are squeezing in a bit of a birthday celebration for me!), on another week an evening at one of the concert theaters with my son and DIL, an organization meeting of a local group of liberal women to be proactive with our local and state legislatures, and one doctor's appointment---all before the family gets together for Christmas!

The above leaves out the shopping and card writing that also must be completed.

Some of you would view this as lovely, and warm, and inspiring.  But I have just finished reading Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking by Susan Cain and admit that I have deep needs for being left alone for long periods of time.  It is an aberration, and to some extent not healthy, but it is strong somewhere in my genetic code.  If you are an extrovert who works with introverts, are married to or raising an introvert, or are an introvert yourself, you should read this book!  It has helped me become guilt free.

In the photo above is one of maybe four persimmon trees my husband has planted.  Because of this abundance, we have to find recipes to use and preserve the fruit.  I did purchase 4 venison medallions the other day and created a glace or sauce for the steaks using some leftover medoc and leftover coffee, made up a small half cup of beef bouillon, added a tablespoon of raspberry vinegar and the puree of two persimmons.  I cooked it all together until it was reduced to a nice sauce, and surprise, the experiment tasted quite nice on the steaks!  It was a good compliment to the side dish of bok choi that was just harvested from the garden even though it was starting to get bitter, using salt helped that.  But that used only two persimmons, actually three as we sliced the harder Japanese persimmon...I still have a long way to go.




11 comments:

  1. I love the color, but I have always found them too acidic for me. Then again, I should try them now at age 75. They were my grandmother's favorite fruit.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Persimmon wine?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Now if hubby drank that would be a thought!

      Delete
  3. I found peace with being an introvert when I fully understood that introverts get their energy from being alone while extroverts get theirs from being with other people. It all made sense to me then why I had to protect that alone time to have something to give to others when I was out and about.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Like Mage, I haven't found my taste for the fruit. But you are convincing me to try again. That plate looks yummy all around.

    ReplyDelete
  5. I love those soft persimmons. I just stand over the sink and enjoy eating them in my messy but efficient way. They need to be totally ripe, just short of rotten, because otherwise they are astringent. Local growers favor the hard persimmons, though, which I don't care for that much.
    I'll never forget a trip we made years ago from Switzerland to Venice in the fall, when the persimmons had dropped their leaves and looked like your tree.

    ReplyDelete
  6. I love being an introvert at this time of life :)
    Never tasted a persimmon - love the photo of the tree...

    ReplyDelete
  7. Rain explained it perfectly.
    Love to make persimmon cookies, they are among the best, and ship well.
    My little persimmon tree didn't bear fruit this year, drought stress may have been a factor.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Well I like being introverted but it can have its problems as far as socialising, especially as shyness nowadays is seen as being rather selfish. I have never tasted persimmons, but love the sharp taste of quince jelly, and have made wild crab apple jelly, which is similar, for the sweet sauces one often has with meat or chicken.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Ahhh that group. I wrote down the name of the book to see if we have it in our library. I am one.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Ahhh... You read Quiet. I'll have to go to my last post to see what your comment was in response to my favorable impression of it.

    The colors on your plate scream healthy and tasty! Like the others, I don't know that I've tasted persimmon either.

    ReplyDelete

Take your time...take a deep breath...then hit me with your best shot.