Hi, strangers who have suddenly started following me! I’ve pretty much abandoned this blog; when I feel like writing I contribute something at Dead Wild Roses.
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Hi, strangers who have suddenly started following me! I’ve pretty much abandoned this blog; when I feel like writing I contribute something at Dead Wild Roses.
I am an atheist. The hardass kind. I believe not only that no deities or other supernatural entities exist, but also that behaving as if the non-existent really exists (the practice of religion being one example), causes significant harm both to believers and also the world at large*.
I also love to sing. And a lot of beautiful vocal, and especially choral, music is religious in nature. It’s a bit of a conundrum. I’ve rationalized my way through some, but not all, of it. I’m quite comfortable singing religious music where the purpose is clearly just artistic. I’ll happily sing all the old Christian carols, because let’s face it, they beat the hell out of Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer. I’m very glad it hasn’t happened, but if somebody important to me died and wanted me to sing a religious song at their religious funeral, I’d do it – as long as they didn’t want (don’t click, it’s both disturbing and an earworm) Our God is an Awesome God. Or if somebody important to me got married and wanted me to sing a religious song at their religious wedding, I would, as long as they didn’t want Our God is an Awesome God or something loaded with husband:wife::Jesus:church fuckery.
I can make these kinds of hypothetical decisions as a soloist because my singing will always be strictly for pleasure, even if it’s one of those pleasures that sometimes makes me want to scream and tear my hair out when the going gets rough. I have absolutely zero interest in monetizing it and anyway I don’t expect to ever get good enough (let alone connected enough) that I would be asked to perform except at student recitals or for people with whom I already have a close personal relationship.
It’s harder to figure out where to draw the line as a member of a choir. My choir, which I love, is a secular choir but is occasionally invited to sing at church services. I’ve only felt mildly uncomfortable about it so far, because our participation has generally felt like an add-on, a special treat, but not really involved in the delivery of the worship service itself, if that makes any sense. (Kindof how singing at a hospital isn’t delivering healthcare.) They invite us, we sing whatever we have that’s vaguely spiritual or at least uplifting, regardless what the service is going to be about, and they feed us cookies after and tell us how great we are and how much they enjoyed us. As a beginner choir, it’s a great chance to get up in front of a supportive audience.
The trouble (if you want to call it that) is, even though we’re still technically a beginner choir – we take anybody, no auditions, and we specifically welcome people who believe they can’t sing – we sound pretty good (I’ll write the paean to our director in another entry). And the women’s section has been invited to participate in the service for the Feast of the Annunciation in our city’s big, old Anglican cathedral. It’s going to be a beautiful service. The music we’re singing – all about Mary, from Gregorian chant to present-day – is gorgeous. The acoustics in there make anybody sound good. And the use of all women’s voices strikes me as a fitting artistic choice.
BUT, here’s where the trouble is for me: Continue reading
I was feeling creative the other day and got busy in the kitchen with some flavours I’ve been really enjoying. One of the rotating specials at the cafeteria at work is enchiladas with yam and black beans, and some kind of meat. Yams and black beans are a match made in heaven, regardless whether heaven exists. And I’m having a bit of a love affair with quinoa. So chewy and satisfying and packed with protein! So here’s what I did:
Yam, Black Bean, and Quinoa Enchiladas (totally not authentic, just tasty)
Ingredients:
1 small to medium yam
butter, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, cumin, chili powder to taste. lots of cumin!
1/3 cup quinoa
1 can black beans, thoroughly rinsed and drained
1 can seasoned diced tomatoes (spicy red pepper flavour) (let some of the juice drain off)
1 package (12) corn tortillas (6″ size)
Salsa or Enchilada Sauce
grated cheese
sour cream
How to:
Very filling. Good for six servings. More if you weren’t as hungry as we were, or if there’s more to the meal than this and a tossed salad.
(with gratitude to Suzy Becker’s Dog Rules)
I was talking about this with a family member, and got as far as #4 when he interrupted, incredulously, “Wait – their side?!”
I think I may have a problem.