1. I'm over half way through John Steinbeck's East of Eden and it's clear to me that much like other 19th and 20th century US fiction writers, Steinbeck is calling freedom, that most cherished and believed in American value into question, examining what might be determined in us through the traits we inherit from the family members who precede us and by social and economic factors that are external to us.
Steinbeck also explores how the consequences of past actions live on, take on a life of their own, and questions to what degree we are free to do anything about them.
Reading East of Eden is sobering.
I don't know how the stories of the different characters he's created are going to end, but I can say that in page after page I feel the power of inevitability, that several, if not all, of these characters are trapped in or sentenced to a future they don't have much control over.
I've been down this road many times whether in works by Shakespeare, Mark Twain, Herman Melville, Thomas Hardy, Toni Morrison, or Edith Wharton, to name a few, and it's always unsettling.
But, these writers unsettle me so poetically in their use of language that as emotionally difficult as their stories can be, the esthetic experience of reading them is fulfilling -- and the experience is doubly fulfilling because their writing has the integrity that comes with courageously seeking truth, however bitter and painful their explorations can be, and however incomplete.
2. Ed called me this afternoon and it was heartening that both of us could report to the other that we are both doing pretty well -- Ed's cancer treatment has been and continues to be successful and my post-transplant blood work has been solid, as I've written about 1,000,000,000 times on this blog.
Yes, I've been a broken record about my test results and progress, but tiresome repetition doesn't diminish my happiness and, likewise, I cannot hear Ed tell me enough times that his treatments have been successful, he continues with the medication he's not finished with, and, all in all, he's getting along great and, like me, I'll say, is maintaining a positive and grateful frame of mind.
3. First thing this morning, I discovered that Debbie had taken a package of chicken thighs out of the freezer for me to prepare for our dinner.
Awesome.
I enjoy experimenting with the seasoning blends I like to buy at Trader Joe's and today I decided to season the chicken with Ajika, a Georgian seasoning that is spicy and garlicky and I added some garlic powder to the chickens for good measure along with salt and pepper.
I sliced three yellow potatoes and seasoned them with Montreal steak seasoning and put a ring of white onion on top of each chicken thigh.
I filled a baking pan with the chicken, potatoes, and onion.
While they baked, I steamed a couple handfuls of Trader Joe's frozen green beans, seasoned with Trader Joe's 21 Seasoning Salute. It always works!
Everything turned out beautifully and Debbie and I relaxed with our delicious and simple dinner and had a fun conversation about actors and cable television multi-season programs we've watched over the last 15-20 years.
Great memories.
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