lovely heat http://blog.alexanderphaneuf.com food and the nature of things Tue, 15 Dec 2009 05:34:24 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.6 en hourly 1 Minnesota – Morel Mushroom http://blog.alexanderphaneuf.com/?p=16 http://blog.alexanderphaneuf.com/?p=16#comments Tue, 15 Dec 2009 05:34:24 +0000 admin http://blog.alexanderphaneuf.com/?p=16 July 23rd 2007, my brother wrote me  a postcard. He had gone away for the summer from his school in N.Y. He had gone to a college in Minnesota to study, a state that he had never been to before. He knew nobody and yet met some amazing people and learned tons. In normal fashion, my bro sat down and wrote me a nice postcard with a Morel Mushroom on the front. If he only knew that his words would inspire my recent move back to the kitchen and my thirst for knowledge that has grown since then. I won’t get mushy about the damn thing, but i read that postcard daily. it reads, in full:

“i hope this postcard finds you a happy man. (i almost wrote “content man”: but realized that those words are dangerous…. temporary contentment is beautiful but never get too comfortable or life will lose meaning without fresh experience.) my time here in minnesota has been just the healthy change i unknowingly needed. this experience has provided me with great company and new perspectives. as much as i like the place, i can’t wait to come home and enjoy some gourmet cooking (maybe with some shroms like the front of this postcard.) love you. peace. “

CHRIS

this is the kind of stuff that keeps me going. people, like my brother, can teach me so much. through the experience and “climb” that is life, we can all learn so much from each other. just stop to listen, or stop to write a note to someone about how you are feeling in a moment. to learn and to teach is a crucial part of life that should never be overlooked. i just love it.

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i wrote this on my i-phone when i left the kitchen one night. i was working at a local restaurant for one week to feel it out. the job didn’t end up working, but it got me on my way and ignited some serious passion for sure. i wrote the below text in haste and with the tips of my finger while in the car.

Just got out of the heat. I’ve been away for so long. I have Forgot/Lost so many things that were such crucial parts of my life. It’s flooding back now. Not like one or two things, but about twenty. Just lightbulb after lightbulb. I’m teaching myself how to think about every little action. I’m remembering what it’s like to truly FEEL something and understand what the feel means and to react properly to it. To see such small things in your hands and to adapt them, transform them, create them into a final product that is, for an instant, perfectly yours. To realize that you are so focused on a task that your subconsious is taking over far more tasks than you could imagine. Tasks that I have performed thousands of times. This is why I sacrificed and will continue to push myself toward the top. To see it and realize this is wild and only being back at it fo six days is a trip. Now I know how great it is to do what you set out to do. How do I explain the joy one would feel if he had found his trail that had been lost for two and a half years? The joy of knowing that once I am back on that trail, the stunning journey can be on again.

-photos from the past month or so.

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