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I call this The Grampa Sweater. The Christmas before my grandfather died he sent me one hundred dollars in a card. I had just returned from Iceland, was on hard times and figured the best use for a hundred dollars was to invest in making a lopapeysa. The Lopapeysa is the traditional sweater design of Iceland that dates back to only about the 1950’s. Knit with lopi, a yarn made from the hearty Icelandic sheep, it is the ultimate “I’ve been to Iceland” souvenir.
The Grampa Sweater pattern is originally named Vetur, Icelandic for winter, and is the first of several Icelandic sweaters I've knit. 2013 was a tough winter being underemployed, cold, and living in an attic, knitting this sweater gave me focus and an opportunity to meditate. Optimistically green, the color belies the anxious energy it is knit of. That being said, I feel the heavy energy of the winter was actively transformed into something positive and creative and is still inherent in the the thousands of knit stitches it’s constructed of.
In the spring of 2014, five minutes after weaving in the last dangling threads, I put it on and bought a ticket back to Iceland. It is a prideful achievement in my knitting career and the sweater seemed to invite conversations with everyone it met. Most memorable was chatting with the all of the flight attendants on Icelandair in the back of the plane about the people that taught us to knit, how to use lopi, our favorite projects and sharing photos on our cellphones of them.
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Several weeks ago Colin Kopp and I visited Kristy Hanson at Yess Yoga in South Minneapolis to talk with her about her yoga practice, being a teacher, and a dream she had about touring the country by bicycle collecting stories of yoga in America to put into a book.
I love Kristy's yoga philosophy, "Keep it simple, and keep it creative," but also the ebullience with which she lives life. In her classes she focuses on mobility, ease of movement, and alignement;. I'm especially drawn to her dedication to playing while practicing yoga; if we can play and discover joyfulness and new ways of moving while on the mat, like mobility and alignment, those lessons move with us beyond practice and into the everyday world.
A week ago Kristy launched her Kickstarter campaign "Raconteur Yogi" and after surpassing her fundraiser goal of $2,000, she will embark on the tour she was dreaming of, to the western United States and back, in search of yoga across America.
To support and follow Kristy on her journey find her on Instagram.
I remember dancing to "Every Little Step" by Bobby Brown when I was four years old. I remember the house parties my mother would throw, the veneer wood of our towering entertainment system, and I remember the synth percussion and keys of the late 80's on that track. Later I danced in my room to a collection of cassettes by Salt N' Peppa, Janet Jackson and Toni Braxton. In third grade I won the daycare talent show by cartwheeling to "Emotions" by Mariah Carey. By sixth grade I was voguing to the Immaculate Collection and innocently told my teacher I wanted Madonna's Erotica album I saw on MTV--this memory is so vivid because it seemed completely left field when she responded disapprovingly by saying, "that sounds a little sexy." She knew something I didn't and I filed it in my brain under, "Undefined Words Unsuitable for Polite Company." I was obsessed with Spice Girls deep into high school, long after they disbanded. Missy Elliot introduced me to hip hop and twerking before it was called twerking. In college I became a hippie and discovered not only underwear dance parties but also the group/partner swing/swap of contra dancing. My friend Simon and I once drove a sleepless 24 hours from Duluth, MN to New York City only to arrive, change wardrobes, and whirl our dancing selves into the middle of an inert too-cool-for-school crowd at the Brooklyn Bowl
New Year's Eve several years ago I was dancing naked in a kitchen apron when I met Colin Kopp, the creator of this video by Vision the Kid and now friend/collaborator; we were at the edge of civilization in the UP of Michigan with some of our best, and mutual, friends celebrating a new year in a small cabin on Lake Superior.
I have never been happier and more excited to be alive than when dancing. This video was filmed in slow motion and their process blew me away--I had never seen my body in such minute detail while overcome with the simple joy of movement. All I kept saying on my drive home was, "Wow. I love dancing. Wow."
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A high school friend, Braden Lee based in Minneapolis, made this music video last winter for Supreme Cuts. Together we explored beautiful places in Minnesota and Wisconsin, and took some time to dance.
To honor the end of winter 2015, I present music to dance to.
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Sunday Soup at an Airbnb Rental in Montreal with new and old friends.
Spring is in full bloom and I feel the time has come to put Sunday Soup on the back burner until the frost returns in the Autumn.
Thank you to all of the friends that came to visit this winter in Minneapolis, Montreal, and Washburn; it means so much for me to be a part this dynamic and expansive community of friends and family.
Happy Spring friends!
Calvin
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Spring is once again flirting with the frigid heart of our dear Minnesota, and based on weather reports, he'll start moving his things in this weekend; I admit, I'm optimistic about all that he'll bring: sun, tulips, salads, and his handsome friends wearing t-shirts and riding bicycles, but until the cold is gone, I'm going to keep the thermostat where it is and make more soup to keep warm.
Borscht is found all across Central and Eastern Europe. Depending on its origin, the variety of ingredients are arguably as different as the ways to spell it (my friend Tanya is Russian and vehemently against the use of a "t"). Whatever the case, the soup is most often associated with beets, dowdy on the outside, it is certainly what’s inside that makes this vegetable so special. Months ago I discovered the equally unhandsome celeriac and have found plenty of ways to incorporate it into my kitchen this winter. I think celeriac is a beautiful companion to the ruby vegetable in the ruff; it is similar in texture but fresh and bright-tasting like celery offering a contrast to the earthiness of the beets.
I created this recipe recalling a fabulous Ukrainian borscht recipe of my friend Logan’s family in Boston—it is hearty and makes use of the root cellar’s star vegetables. Other than lots of chopping, it requires minimal preparation and is therefore my favorite soup to make. I enjoy it most with a crisp beer, dark bread and some butter.
1 medium onion chopped
1/2 pound mushrooms quartered
1 pound beets chopped
1 pound celeriac chopped
1 large carrot chopped
1 1/2 pounds beef chuck cubed
1 pound of cabbage julienned
3 garlic cloves minced
1 cup of red wine
1/2 lemon juice or 2.5 Tbsp rice vinegar
28oz can of diced tomatoes
2.5 liters of water
1/2 cup finely minced fresh parsley
salt and pepper to taste
fresh dill
sour cream
On a high flame add two tablespoons of oil to a soup pot; when it is hot add the cubed beef. Sear and brown on all sides, afterward, add red wine. Reduce to medium and simmer for 5 minutes. Add the rest of ingredients with the exception of fresh herbs and sour cream; cover with a lid and simmer until the ingredients are tender. When vegetables are tender add fresh parsley, salt and pepper to taste. Serve with a dollop of sour cream and fresh minced dill.
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