Friday Gratitude: 5 Things I’m Loving This Week

Some of the public art showcased in the Newburgh Illuminated festival last weekend

Welcome to the weekend, dearlings! (Yep, I made up that word. Combination of darling and dear, couldn’t you tell?) Do ‘weekends’ mean anything to you? Since it’s summer, weekends aren’t that  much different for us Milfords than the rest of the week- there might be more going on, local events-wise, but that’s about it. However, once the school semester starts, just wait! I crave that break from classes and routine.

Speaking of routine, it’s time for Friday Gratitude again. I’m so happy I’ve stuck with this series 🙂

Friday Gratitude (part five), or 5 Things I’m Loving This Week

1. Lemongrass, Oregano, and Peppermint! I’m grateful for the potted herbs we recently received as a gift. Andy has since put them in the ground, right outside our kitchen window, so it’s super convenient to pick some and add fresh flavor to our meals. Last night I made a variation on this sauce with some of the oregano, and I’m looking forward to making this dish again with the peppermint.

2. We witnessed such a spectacular nighttime scene four days ago! I’m grateful for the big orange full moon, and the clear skies on Monday night. Andy and I were both doubtful we’d see anything interesting, since it seems as though we’ve had cloudy weather for every exciting celestial phenomenon the last few months. But we kept our eyes on the forecast and headed over to the best local spot we could think of for hilltop views: Hasbrouck Park. Holy cannoli, was it worth it, you guys!

I just love seeing my favorite color in the sky 🙂

There’s something semi-magical about going to a park or somewhere in nature and waiting with bated breath for something to happen: you’re not quite sure what you’ll see, but you hopehopehope  it’s going to beautiful. It was vaguely reminiscent of six years ago, when we had been dating for just a couple of months, and we watched a lunar eclipse just before sunrise.

You know how you fall in love in small, heart-opening moments in the beginning of a relationship? This was one of those moments.

3. Not to get all Suzie Homemaker on you, but I’m grateful for my food processor!

$20 thrift store score, has all the parts, and works perfectly!

 I ‘m using it so much lately, even improvising by throwing in different ingredients and hoping the resulting dip or spread will come out halfway decent (everything has). Here’s a mystery after shot; you’ll have to wait until next week to find out what it is 🙂

Note the cute bowl- another thrift store score (and birthday gift from Mom!)

4. So you guys have heard the best news ever, right? I am so happy and grateful for the Supreme Court decision this week, overturning the Defense of Marriage Act and granting federal equality for gay and lesbian marriages. As you may know from my Pride post, these issues are close to my heart. Reading all the triumphant news stories and watching interviews of couples whose lives changed this week brings tears to my eyes. At last! 🙂

5. I am grateful for public art: mosaics, sculptures, light installations, and murals. In Newburgh last weekend, we stumbled upon a fantastic mural that took up the whole underside of an overpass, right near Downing Park. It’s one of those great, oversized works of art that looks incredible from a distance and plays with perception and dimension up close. Take a look:

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Oh my god, I love it! Imagine this as a print for your bedroom wall…

Love the colors!

Props to artist Dasic Fernandez! So in love with this whole mural 🙂

Wow…honestly, when I started writing, I wondered what my gratitude list would consist of, not really anticipating anything exciting. Now I look back and I love this post! So much goodness and color!

What are you grateful for this week? Did you see the “Super Moon”? Do you enjoy public art as much as I do? What are your weekend plans?

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Any great work of art… revives and readapts time and space, and the measure of its success is the extent to which it makes you an inhabitant of that world – the extent to which it invites you in and lets you breathe its strange, special air.    –Leonard Bernstein

[Thanks to Andy Milford for the second, third, and fifth photos in this post!]