When the police are not your friends

Tonight I was up in my room peacefully reading more poetry by a Puerto Rican wordsmith. A friend came into my doorway saying she was the bearer of bad news. She looked stricken and held in her hand a sliver of a piece of green paper. It says:

This vehicle is illegally parked
California Vehicle Code Section 22500f prohibits the parking, stopping or standing of a vehicle on ANY portion of the sidewalk (property line to curb line). Parking on the sidewalk is a hazard to pedestrians and disabled individuals and is subject to $100 fine effective July 2004.

Except it’s 2007 and I was parked in our driveway! I have parked in the driveway for over 2 years and never even received a warning. I was commisserating with my roomies later tonight and we didn’t even know this law. Where does one find these kinds of laws if not posted- I mean 2004 is 3 years ago and I was living in a different housing situation back then on Lincoln Ave by the ocean… Those days we could find street parking by Golden Gate Park. My car saw many nicks and swipes during that time period not to mention having one of the windows bashed in for a $19 plastic tea kettle.

Not only do they not issue a warning statement first, on my way to Trader Joe’s this evening I saw multiple DPT mobiles divebombing the streets like wasps and wondered what they were up to. One of them didn’t exactly stop at his stop sign either and almost careened into me. The nerve.

So you’ve read it here folks: in San Francisco you cannot park in your own driveway unless you ride a scooter or drive a toy car like the Miata or Mini. It’s a good thing we rent.

When spending time with a Puerto Rican poet

I feel like smoking, long drags on an ever dwindling cigarette. And the thing is I don’t smoke- except for that one time at Dana’s house lying on her roof with several classmates during junior high…but that’s a story for another time as I can see my Mom pursing her lips in that “Annelies!” way she has perfected over the years.

But tonight he’s got me thinking about what it would be like to be a Puerto Rican growing up in the Bronx and marrying into a New England Caucasian family. He’s got me clasping my silverware a few seats down from him at the Thanksgiving table as his mother-in-law refers to her husband as Daddy- Daddy who later fires his cannon in the backyard at the tombstones.
He’s got me standing very still in one circle of immunity, watching the night janitor mop 10 floors of a corporate building clean with ammonia as oranges sprout from the glossy slick surfaces- the night janitor is tending his garden and I get to watch! He’s got me wondering how identity and culture seethe and bubble like a pot full of spices and chopped vegetables melding, their juices and flavors fusing more as time passes.

And I guess I wonder why we are sometimes so mean to each other that we can’t see how connected we all are. Why must the Palestinian not lie down with the Israeli? Why must the hatred persist like breast milk passed down to future generations. I think it’s all better- we are not the rallying cries of the Civil Rights movement era and yet three incidents occur this year utilizing the icon of the noose. I wonder how many more nooses? And I guess I also wonder how I am this stranger floating in my own marrow summoning up the Dutch, Bolivian and Mexican like they are guests oversleeping their stay. Sometimes I wish they would all be at peace with one another and sit in amicable conversation at the table. No forks as weapons or pepper as exclamation points, no fierce forked tongue to pierce the tender flesh, no constant driving like a clipper upon the sea sailing singlemindedly toward a perfection that could be fabricated.

But instead I read about a jail librarian, upon an anonymous tip, hauling away a dumpster filled with discarded unsold books to the jail, for the prisoners whose school is named after St. Dismas, the thief pardoned at the crucifixion.

Lentil Quinoa Cuzco

I came up with this dish a few weeks ago and found it so yummy that it was my vegetarian contribution to the Thanksgiving meal yesterday. No turkey, no tryptophan, no troubles! Bon appetit.

– 4 bunches of collard greens, turnip greens or kale
– 2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
– 1 leek, split and diced
– 1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes
– 3 tbsp. olive oil
– 1/2 cup quinoa
– 1/2 cup lentils (if you use Indian red split lentils- the dish will be creamier)
– 2 cups vegetable broth
– kosher salt

Plunge the greens into a large pot of boiling salted water, cook them for 10 minutes, then remove to a bowl. Reserve 1 cup of the cooking water. Heat the olive oil with the leeks, garlic and pepper flakes in a wide skillet over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the red pepper flakes, garlic and leeks are lightly colored. Add the greens, their reserved cooking water and 1 tsp. salt to the garlic, leeks mixture. Cook for 15 minutes. In the meantime, bring 2 cups of vegetable stock to a boil. Add the quinoa and lentils to the stock. Take a wooden spoon and add the greens to the lentils and quinoa. Cook for 15 minutes. Let cool for a few minutes and enjoy!

Things I love so far this week

1. Sleeping in Thursday morning after an early a.m. airport run (like a big snooze button).
2. Singing the doxology 3 times at Thanksgiving to give thanks back to our Creator.
3. Seeing the opera “MacBeth” tomorrow night, sitting in killer seats.
4. My mom and I disagreeing politely like iron sharpening iron.
5. Connecting with an old friend over homemade Indian food in our yearly catch up and learning his permanent seat on United is 35A.
6. Butternut squash bread pudding- ok seriously I tweaked this recipe and this is going to be inked into my ever-growing cookbook.
7. No traffic, easy parking and one phone call at work on black Friday.
8. Finishing my paper on South American / Spanish surrealist poetry.
9. Rubbing sage between my fingertips and then inhaling deeply.
10. Loren. When the two of us get together, the antics begin!
11. Relabeling and cleaning out my desk and file cabinets at work on black Friday! Fall cleaning is the best!

In the spirit

of the upcoming holidays, I want to share with you one of my favorite newest finds that inspires giggling and a festive demeanor. This guy went to school with one of my colleagues and she introduced me to it this past week in Orlando.

Enjoy getting in the Christmas spirit before Thanksgiving…

Things I love so far this week

1. “Across the Universe”… a truly brilliant musical tour de force on the wide screen!
2. Rediscovering my love of the pot- painting pottery today with friends and having my way with color. Hello Provence!
3. Moving my cookbooks back to the kitchen and seeing their cheerfully colorful salutation every time I walk into the kitchen.
4. Watching the alligators sun themselves in Orlando under heat lamps in the lobby of our hotel… OR watching them sleep on a large rock with turtles. Very precious.
5. Discovering Pizzetta 211 and especially their curried butternut squash pizza with apples and Spanish peanuts. Yum!
6. Talking with Olga about forging an artistic life in conjunction with faith and how they rub on each other.
7. Making final preparation plans for the birthday dance party of the year!
8. Robert Bly and his radical ideas of “leaping poetry.”
9. My roommates and our new message board in the kitchen.
10. Celebrating one of my favorite people’s birthdays. My description of her: she’s one of the “sweetest, gentlest people edged with fire!”
11. Lying in front of the fire last night and talking late into the night with J.

A question to San Franciscans

Does anyone know of any celebratory, nice restaurants that will be open Christmas Eve?

Things I love this week

It’s been a few weeks since blogging which really means what happened to my computer?! And so what used to have the backdrop of Scheveningen on my laptop now has an ad of a bull terrier English Breakfast tea on it with the words “assertive”, “strong” and “bold” rising out of the steam. Kind of like me turning over a new leaf of sorts. The list is longer only because of the time that has elapsed.

1. Discovering a really delicious candy that you haven’t had in years!
2. Trying to ween oneself from needing this candy everyday!
3. Denise Levertov discussing her poetry revision style!
4. Drinking a round of tequila with my Dad and B. on a Saturday afternoon!
5. Finding out about a bag with solar panels that charges an IPOD and mobile phone inside!
6. Getting an entire row of airplane seats to myself!
7. Zac Efron in “Hairspray”- he is pretty to look at!
8. Hanging out with the roomies late Thursday night just because.
9. Listening to Adrienne Rich’s response to Galway Kinnell’s essay.
10. London in 2008
11. Cooking an entire turnip- braising the greens and roasting the bulb.
12. Freebies from the spa show- loading up on skincare products!
13. Talking with my mom in the airport next to the screeching escalator.
14. Kathi swinging by the airport to show us photos of California!
15. People of the masculine persuasion…
16. A fantabulous birthday tea at one of my favorite SF teahouses with one of my favorite people!
17. Reconnecting with a friend from India and finding ourselves in the same boat.
18. Mexico in 2008
19. Seeing “Dan in Real Life”
20. Elderflower gin cocktail at Citizen Cake! Amazing!!