Programming with Purpose

Posted on January 13, 2021April 27, 2022 by keepinthesunlightblog@gmail.com

This is an amazing keynote talk my friend Ish gave in 2019 at Swiftfest Boston. Swiftfest is a conference for iOS developers, but this isn’t a talk about formulas and code. It’s a talk about Life and Goodness. About breaking out of boundaries and fears and taking steps towards following our dreams. It’s about enjoying life’s moments and not taking our loved ones for granted. It’s about the actions we take that can change people’s lives. And it’s about finding our purpose.

I know that in our rush society, people seem to want short snippets of videos and audio while they’re going about their days, so 25 minutes is an investment. But–if I may–you owe it to yourself to watch this. If you notice the tags below, this video covers just about everything. (The original talk isn’t allowed to be posted, so I’m beyond grateful Ish has put this together.)

Ish has a way of speaking and thinking that puts people at ease and helps them tap into their true selves. Even before I became close friends with him, he’d ask me how I was doing in such a sincere way, that I always stopped in my tracks to truly reflect and consider how I was, instead of resorting to the automatic, “Fine. And you?”. He’s the guy people meet for the first time and feel like they’ve known forever. People open up to him with stories and questions and conflicts and joys, because he really listens without judgement or assumption. He helps people through their problems, not by giving advice, but by listening to what they say and holding the space for them to find their own conclusions. I can say with absolute certainty, I would not be where I am today without him.

I realize I’ve digressed a bit, but I wanted to take a moment to share a little bit about Ish, because I am hoping it will inspire you to take a pause and watch this video. A beautiful reminder about what is good in life and how we can help make it even better, just by being ourselves.

Food Gifts

Posted on January 13, 2021March 5, 2021 by keepinthesunlightblog@gmail.com

I remember once reading an article about a young woman who baked a mini birthday cake for each of her friends and family members on their birthdays. I wanted to be that person, baking little tiny cakes and helping people celebrate their special day with a surprise treat.

Well, that never happened, but that doesn’t change how much I love food gifts! As a gifter, they’re a great, low-pressure choice, and as a recipient, I love that they are, quite literally, consumable and don’t add to any clutter.

I have a soft spot for homemade food gifts, for environmental reasons and that added personal touch, but I’ve also been the happy recipient and proud sender of store-bought items as well. There are zillions of ideas on food gifts anywhere you look, but here are just a handful that have worked well for me:

-Cocoa Mix

-Granola

-Chocolate Chip Cookies or Oatmeal Choc. Chip Cookies

-Brownies

-Homemade Vanilla Extract

-Homemade Oreos

-Mochi Muffins

-Bread (homemade or from a local bakery)

-Local delivery (It’s sometimes easier than I realize to set up a local delivery from long-distance. I once came home to a cooler of local mini cheesecakes on our doorstep for my birthday, sent from my sister’s family a state away.)

-Food baskets! (My personal favorite. I love a collection of fun, snacky foods, whether homemade or local treats or store-bought favorites. There’s something about seeing them all together, collected by someone who knows what you like that is truly special.)

-A collection of favorite snack foods (Somewhat redundant, I know, but food collections are so rad I had to give them two entries.) (After giving birth to my first baby, my sister sent me a whole package of baby-sized/mini-sized snack foods. I still remember how wonderful they all tasted (New mamas are HUNGRY!). So, I definitely don’t discount the awesomeness of well-chosen store-bought foods, especially favorites or unique items)

Sometimes the toughest part for me is figuring out how to package items, since I am an environmental over-thinker. If I’m mailing a food item and sending it Priority where the weight doesn’t matter, I love reusing cleaned-out glass jars for items. But a well-cleaned plastic container could definitely work too. In fact, I try to keep a stash of empty jars and containers on hand for just such an occasion.

If I’m sending cookies or granola in the mail, I like to make them ahead of time and freeze for a few days to give them a bit more time, just in case. (It’s always good to have cookies in the freezer anyway for last-minute food gifts or for rainy days.) And then, of course, there are definitely items that won’t send well in the mail but that are great for local deliveries or gift giving.

Food gifts shine for pretty much any occasion–birthdays, new babies, break-ups, illness, graduations, anniversaries, loss, apologies, and my favorite–just because.

Mochi Muffins

Posted on January 13, 2021March 5, 2021 by keepinthesunlightblog@gmail.com

Mochi Muffins

I fell in love with mochi muffins last summer when we moved and discovered a wonderful little coffee shop in town that serves these amazing chewy treats. We do our best to support this local shop, especially these days, but at some point in pre-Covid days, I went in search of a homemade recipe so we wouldn’t go broke on mochi muffins. This recipe is spot on, and I’m excited to explore the creator’s site more (FINALLY, a recipe source without annoying pop-up ads every two seconds!) She suggests sprinkling them with black and white sesame seeds, which is truly delicious. But, sometimes, when I’m feeling especially decadent, I’ll make part of the batch with chocolate chips mixed in, and Oh, My! Wow. These freeze really well, and they’re perfect for a 3pm teatime treat on a whim.

The sweet rice flour is sometimes hard to come by, and I have finally researched and see that you should NOT try to replace the sweet rice flour with regular rice flour. Good to know. If I remember correctly, the black sesame seeds were a bit more than I expected, even in our bulk section, but the look and flavor are worth it.

If you haven’t tried mochi muffins, I highly recommend giving them a try. Their chewy texture and sweet flavor is completely unique and absolutely delicious!

Pumpkin Lentil Curry with Spinach

Posted on January 13, 2021 by keepinthesunlightblog@gmail.com

Pumpkin Lentil Curry with Spinach

Whenever I use canned pumpkin, I always seem to have some leftover that I’m not quite sure what to do with. And that is how I stumbled across this beautiful recipe last night. So comforting and tasty. I kept hopping up– first for seconds, then thirds, then again…

A couple changes I made that seemed to work okay:

–I only had a red onion, not a sweet one. Seemed to work fine

–I only had dry curry powder, so I changed the amount to 2 teaspoons

–I didn’t have tomato paste, so I omitted that altogether

–I didn’t try the optional cashew topping, but it sounds delicious

We just had it as a stew-y soup last night, but we had leftovers on rice today, which was great. I also tried blending some of it with an immersion blender for a certain picky eater, and that seemed to be yummy as well!

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Posted on January 13, 2021October 21, 2021 by keepinthesunlightblog@gmail.com

Ruth Wakefield (of Tollhouse fame) brought the world the chocolate chip cookie in the 1930s. And while there are many positively fancy, gourmet recipes out there for chocolate chip cookies these days, the Toll House recipe has always held a special place in my heart. And I never fail to get compliments on this simplest of recipes. Several years ago, I switched to the recipe on the back of the Trader Joe’s chocolate chip bag, but it is nearly identical to Toll House’s. I have started lowering the butter and sugar called for in this, and all other recipes, lately with little to no difference in taste and consistency.

My two other favorite chocolate chip cookie recipes are the Quaker Oats oatmeal chocolate chip cookies (I use chocolate chips, instead of the raisins listed, although those sound good too!) and Jessica Seinfeld’s chickpea ones.

Chocolate chip cookies are great for any occasion. Fun to send to a friend in the mail (I freeze them for a few days first) or drop off at someone’s house for a birthday or just because. My sister-in-law once sent a whole batch in a container in the mail after my mother-in-law passed away, and they were definitely welcome then too. I love baking new things and trying out new recipes, but the chocolate chip cookie always holds a touch of comfort and home.

Love the idea to make ‘spider’ choc chip cookies for Halloween (Mine don’t look quite like the idea one I saw online, because I lack the patience and skill, but still fun!)