Crayons

Today it is raining. I have always enjoyed this kind of weather, sometimes even longed for it. As a child I could smell the rain coming and would sit on the porch and wait for its visit. Although there are no storms today, I enjoy those too. Thunder and lightning never cease to fascinate me. My grandmother used to tell me stories when I was quite young about Heaven and the various antics taking place up there. It was her way of explaining thunder. Perhaps that is why I have never been afraid of storms...the reason I long to sit outside in the midst of them. If nothing else, it is making life easier today. My flowers are being watered without any effort on my behalf.

My little Lane is home sick today. It was quite unexpected as these things usually are. I am out of sickleave but honestly, I don't care. My baby has a stomachache and wants her Mommy (rather than her grandparents or her Granny). I would consider no other option but to oblige. And so today the house will get a little cleaner, the laundry loads will disappear, and my blog entry will be a bit longer. I certainly have the time.

Time. It is so fleeting. Today I am 39. Tomorrow that will no longer be my truth. There is this funny thing about me. I am a synaesthete. Numbers and letters, even words, have brilliant color when I see them in my mind. I never knew this was unique until about ten years ago. A coworker commented about an article in The Smithsonian magazine about synaesthesia. My response was, simply, "That's me." Over the years it has become a funny topic at work. For instance, colored cards are used on our Literacy Team's assessment wall (where student growth is monitored). Each teacher is assigned a certain color...but not before I am consulted! Depending on whether the first or last name is used, my cards are always red or green, and my first grade teammates' cards are yellow and lavender. The joke is that I must be crazy (fixated on getting the colors right, for sure). The truth is that I am magic. Personally, I like that idea. A world of merely black and white is boring. Anyway, back to my age... Today I am 39 and the associated colors are green and black. Tomorrow, I will be 40...red and white. I'm ready for the change. For those who know me well, this passage on synaesthetes seems to fit. There is more in-depth information at the site which you might find interesting as well.

"Why is synaesthesia much more common among artists, poets, and novelists? One thing they all have in common is a facility with metaphor, a propensity to link seemingly unrelated concepts (e.g. 'Juliet is the Sun', 'he has a sharp mind'). If the 'hyperconnectivity' gene is expressed more diffusely throughout the brain rather than locally, and if we assume that high-level concepts are also represented in brain maps, then the result would be a greater propensity for metaphor. This would explain the higher incidence of synaesthesia in arty types." (see bibliography at http://www.answers.com/topic/synaesthesia)

I like this quote. I have known, in a sense, about my synaesthesia since early in childhood. I just didn't realize that everyone else didn't have these same perceptions too. These words are also relevant because today I am an old woman, but tomorrow I will be a child once again. It will be the first day of the rest of my life. Until then...

Stephanie

(and now you can see 'me' too)

~*~

My skin is kind of sort of brownish pinkish yellowish white. My eyes are greyish blueish green, but I'm told they look orange in the night. My hair is reddish blondish brown, but it's silver when its wet, and all the colors I am inside have not been invented yet. ~Shel Silverstein

~*~

P.S. I spent a little bit of extra time in the kitchen. Enjoy!

~*~

Bacon and Dried Tomato Scones

Yields 16 scones

• 3/4 c. dried tomatoes (not oil packed)
• 2.5 c. all-purpose flour
• 1 Tbsp. baking powder
• 1 tsp. dried basil, crushed
• 1 tsp. dried oregano, crushed
• 1/4 tsp. garlic salt
• 3/4 c. butter, cut up
• 8 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
• 1/4 c. sour cream
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 2 Tbsp. milk
• 1/2 c. shredded mozzarella

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Place tomatoes in a bowl. Add enough boiling water to cover. Let stand 5 minutes. Drain well; chop tomatoes.
2. In large bowl combine flour, baking powder, basil, oregano, and garlic salt. Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in chopped tomatoes and bacon.. Make a well in the center of flour mixture; set aside. In small bowl combine sour cream, eggs, and milk; add all at once to flour mixture. Stir with a fork just until moistened. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead dough gently 10 to 12 strokes or until dough holds together. Divide in half. Pat or lightly roll each dough half to a 7-inch circle. Cut each circle into 8 wedges.
3. Place wedges 2 inches apart on very large ungreased baking sheet. Bake for 5 minutes. Sprinkle tops of scones with cheese. Bake 7 to 8 minutes more or until tops are lightly browned. Serve warm. Top with additional crumbled bacon.