It is almost Spring. Just forget about the present situation and let that soak in for a minute. Feels better, doesn’t it. Daffodils and little sprigs of wild arugula and dandelion greens in the fields. The birds are coming back. They have to; it is in their DNA. They don’t read headlines.
I can’t hug my own child without thinking “ARE YOU DISEASED”? And you know, he probably is. He is a male, 17 year old. The only way to protect yourself from that is, well, forget it. It is impossible.
And if you think I can keep my hands off my face, you are crazy. My hands were born to cook and touch my face. They are a face accessory. Need to think? Hands on face. Frustrated? Hands on face. Yawning? At the dentist? Windy, and there is a tear in your eye? Eyelash fall somewhere?
I don’t have a chance in Dante’s Hell.

Don’t worry. We can only do our best and keep living.

Cook everything you eat, instead. It will leave you exhausted and happy enough to put things in perspective. It will be like having a new baby. You can’t quit a baby, just because he won’t sleep. A new baby makes you go above and beyond anywhere you have been before, and every single minute is worth it. You come out a badass. That’s what we need to tap into.

You can cheat with things like bread and butter. You don’t have to make those.
At the end of the week, you are going to be a master of your own fast food and much better at delegating.

What to Make When you have Nothing Left to Give:

frozen bananas, blueberries, lime and yogurt in a blender

fried eggs and toast with braised black cabbage, grate of parm

sausages and boiled potatoes with side of butter peas

buckwheat pancakes with cured salmon, creme fraiche and chive. side of champagne.

roasted shrimp, scallion, lemon and chile and side of rice. arugula salad

hamburger and side of thin, thin, thin, potatoes tossed with olive oil and salt at 425. broccoli with ripped parsley and garlic (no need to cook the garlic)

tortillas with cheese and jalapeño, side of black bean soup. (go ahead–buy a can; but all you have to do is throw a poblano pepper, half an onion, uncut, a few garlic cloves, a bay leaf and a spill of olive oil into a pan of pre soaked black beans, and let them simmer in water that you keep just over the top, with plenty of salt. smash a few at the end.)

grilled cheese (cheese week!!) and tomato soup. (again, canned is ok, but waaaaay better: get some color on a few cloves of uncut garlic, thyme sprigs, rosemary sprig, then can of whole tomatoes. 15 minute simmer. Puree with immersion blender. Add milk to taste. salt and pepper. (I add a little half and half)

peanut noodles (peanut butter, lime, water, rice vinegar, fresh ginger, garlic, scallion, cilantro). side of romaine

broth. Whatever you do this week, make some broth. Throw a bunch of raw chicken and beef bones in a pot with celery, carrot, onion, leek, garlic, thyme, bay, parsley and a tomato. Let it simmer and spoon it into all those Tupperware containers you have. Freeze it or refrigerate it. Eat it with the best bread you can get your hands on and a little hard salami or a tear of chicken that you roast with nothing but olive oil, salt and pepper.

then get in the shower with a big bar of soap and tape your hands to your sides if you have to, but hug the one you love. hug them with everything you have and all that you are. (update: hug them from a far)