At a recent leadership class, I was asked to take the Gallup organization’s Strengths Finder. I like their practice of focusing on strengths rather than weaknesses as it truly a way of achieving breakthrough performance in both work and non-work activities. The feedback was plentiful with adjectives to describe me; adaptable, independent, connector, maximizer. Unfortunately, in the days that followed, I received another label.
Making up for Deficiency
Posted by Tammy on May 5, 2013
https://agrigirl.com/2013/05/05/deficient-in-vitamin-d/
In the wee morning hours, I saw a peculiar site,
A sour frowning girl coming out of the night.
She pulled her belongings on a blue vinyl sled
while a vinegar scowl covered her face and her head.
Posted by Tammy on April 27, 2013
https://agrigirl.com/2013/04/27/the-vinegar-girl/
Beans and Rice
Posted by Tammy on April 7, 2013
https://agrigirl.com/2013/04/07/dinner-and-a-poem/
“I say,those people will always be thirsty on those hot stakeoutswithout a water fountain in sight.”
Coordinated surveillance of a location is referred to as a stakeout. It’s generally performed covertly in order to collect data about a criminal, a celebrity, or their activity. I could wax on about my own quiet neighborhood erupting with suspicion when tight-lipped Ray-ban-clad drivers were parked on our corner for days.
Dillinger Stake Out Plan at the Biograph Theater – FBI file
Posted by Tammy on March 14, 2013
https://agrigirl.com/2013/03/14/roasted-cabbage-steaks/
A group of people from my online writing class decided to eliminate the anonymity of the electronic blackboard and have a Saturday meet up. “Carry a copy of Bird by Bird,” was the instruction given so that we’d recognize each other. It worked and that book will always remain on my writer’s shelf. The title comes from a story eloquently told by Anne LaMott about her brother’s struggle with a homework assignment and her father’s enduring advice that he tackle the avian research report by writing about one bird at a time.
Carry a copy so that I will recognize you
Posted by Tammy on February 24, 2013
https://agrigirl.com/2013/02/24/seven-ways-to-use-up-lettuce/
When I got married, I was careful to carry something from each of these categories down the aisle; a beautiful old dress, new Kenneth Cole shoes and a borrowed blue garter to fulfill the last two requirements. I don’t believe I gave it more thought than that. Had I done so, I might’ve had a glimpse into the origin of this saying as it is the ne’er stated last line that gives us our best clue.
Celebrating Weddings
Something old,
something new,
something borrowed,
something blue,
and a silver thruppence in her shoe.
Posted by Tammy on February 6, 2013
https://agrigirl.com/2013/02/06/vegan-mushroom-soup/
In 1971, it was -40 farenheit in Arizona, setting a record low. Over the past week or so, we haven’t come close to that high country freeze but it has been cold. Our beautiful bougainvillea are ugly and brown. Fronds are falling from the jacaranda as if it was an aspen in autumn. I’m even carrying gloves in my handbag. We rarely experience the opportunity for top coats and cocoa.
AZ Cold Snap
Posted by Tammy on January 24, 2013
https://agrigirl.com/2013/01/24/thawing-out/
My children dislike this phrase because it highlights their lineage back to me. Used here, “a chip off the old block” means a person or thing that derives from the source or parentage. It first appears in the English language in or around 1621 when Robert Sanderson, Bishop of Lincoln, giving his sermon said, “Am not I a child of the same Adam … a chip of the same block, with him?”
Chips off the Block
Posted by Tammy on January 6, 2013
https://agrigirl.com/2013/01/06/making-radish-chips-snacks/
Do you know the feeling when you’ve just finished cleaning out the hallway closet? For me, that stack of old sweaters bound for the thrift shop is much more than a closet cleansing and it leaves me energized and feeling remarkably satisfied. I experience the same sensation at work when I hack through the items on my desk so that I can actually see the surface again.
A light dish for the New Year
Posted by Tammy on January 4, 2013
https://agrigirl.com/2013/01/04/lightening-up/
Three percent of U.S. homes have a chicken coop in the yard. Of course, I don’t know how many homes have yards but those with egg-laying birds are on the increase. Is this fad or economics?
Posted by Tammy on December 1, 2012
https://agrigirl.com/2012/12/01/backyard-chickens-ducks/
A wife, a mom, an executive, a certified leadership coach and a breast cancer survivor. I love learning and I love to write and I'm often fascinated with the life lessons that come from my kitchen. Focusing on community-based Placemaking is the way that I work towards creating a healthier planet.
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