Hello Blog Friends!
I hope that winter in your region is not as ghastly as it is here in Montreal, where vast quantities of snow continue to fall! Most mornings this week, I have had to head outside right after breakfast and put in up to 2 hours of shovelling before sitting down to start work. UGH!!(end of weather rant)
The good news, is that I am finally in possession of the music list for the 2026 program! The person sending it to me was having trouble giving access to the file in Drive, but it arrived on Thursday morning and the song choices look fantastic!! The next step will be finding enough musicians willing to record the songs. The plan is to have a different person (or group) each record the songs for one day of the week, but finding 5 suitable people may be challenging. I am also on the hunt for a group of people who can take on making all the creative activity samples for the program. It will be necessary to hone my badgering skills for these two important areas of program content.
Thursday afternoon, I had a Facetime meeting with DC committee member, Sharon, to discuss plans for the Alumni Lenten Mini-Retreat. This seems a bit precipitous, with the Christmas Tree still sitting on the front lawn, waiting to be picked up by the city, BUT Easter is pretty early this year and Lent starts in mid-February, so we need to get the process going. Tuesday evening, I spoke, briefly, with a friend who I think might make an excellent facilitator for the Mini-Retreat. He said he would need to take a few days to see if it can be fit into his already full schedule but then called me back on Thursday to say he was “in”, woot! woot!
Sharon and I talked more about the other aspects of the retreat, such as lyric videos and time blocking to allow for creative pursuits. A lot will depend on the direction Phil chooses to take but I’m already excited because he seems like the kind of person who will do a great job. Eli did a super job ,last year and will; be a hard act to follow!!
Meanwhile, there is the CTM Board Meeting, tomorrow afternoon, which means that on Monday there will more minutes to transcribe. I really hope I will get a couple of days break from the shovelling “shift” so that an earlier start can be made on workday mornings.
Of course, today is Bake day and, this afternoon, I hope to make a start on a gift for a friend whose birthday is in the first week of February. The project is a fabric backpack. Since I do not have access to any grommets it looks as if I may be stuck making 14 button holes. I might actually cave and send for some from an online shop. There used to be several excellent fabric shops within quite easy walking distance but all of them have closed, so finding quite basic sewing supplies can be quite challenge.
Right now, this post needs to get published so let’s finish off with a cosy winter soup, then I can back to the sewing machine!
Butternut Squash Soup
- 1 medium butternut squash, halved lengthwise and seeded
- 2Tbsps olive oil
- Sea salt
- 1 medium onion, sliced
- 4 garlic cloves, smashed and peeled
- ½tsp ground ginger
- ¼tsp ground black pepper
- ¼tsp ground cinnamon
- ⅛tsp ground nutmeg
- 4cups vegetable stock
- 1Tbsp rice vinegar
- 1Tbsp brown sugar
Rub the flesh of the squash with 1Tbsp oil and season with salt. Place the squash, cut sides down, in a shallow casserole and bake at 425ºF until the flesh is tender,45-50 mins. In a large pot, heat the remaining oil over medium. Add the onion and garlic and cook, stirring frequently, until softened and just beginning to brown around the edges, about 8 minutes. Scoop out the cooked squash with a spoon and add to the pot. Add the ginger, black pepper, cinnamon and nutmeg and stir until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the vegetable stock, stir and increase the heat to medium-high. Bring to a boil then reduce the heat to maintain a simmer and simmer uncovered for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Working in batches, purée the soup, in a blender or food processor, until smooth. Return the soup to the pot and add the rice vinegar and sugar. Divide the soup among bowls, drizzle with additional olive oil and finish with a sprinkle of ground black pepper if desired. Serve immediately or freeze for up to 1 month. Serves 4-6