The spring-to-summer seasonal shift always seems to come at me fast, leaving me a little grumpy. The vibe shift starts dramatically and swells gradually, with physical signatures. In Atlanta, we know spring by the yellow pollen that chokes & coats everything; and summer, with the first fireflies (and the scramble for citronella candles).
I recently learned a bit about Japan’s 72 “microseasons,” with a convenient chart to reference here:
In ancient times the Japanese divided their year into 24 periods based on classical Chinese sources. The natural world comes to life in the even more vividly named 72 subdivisions of the traditional Japanese calendar.
At time of publishing here on Eastern Standard, we are reaching the tail end of 蚕起食桑 / Kaiko okite kuwa o hamu,“Silkworms start feasting on mulberry leaves,” and are soon to embark on 紅花栄 / Benibana sakau, “Safflowers bloom.”
Anxiously awaiting 鴻雁来 / Kōgan kitaru, when “wild geese return.”
LINKS FOR ALL SEASONS
A beautiful collection of standalone cinemas around the world. Two hometown favorites for me are the Plaza Theatre in Atlanta, and the Tampa Theatre in downtown Tampa -- two very different vibes & programming but amazing pieces of city history, respectively
“Be out early, be out late. Go to the less-famous places, and treat them like the famous places.” - Rick Steves!!!
A staple of the season: the summer reading list
And speaking of all these vibe shifts, here are 60 quick ways to make yourself a little happier
BUCK UP FOR BOK CHOY LO MEIN
As I mentioned in the last edition, in this house we’ve been learning new things about spring vegetables. But there are Those Days when work runs long, the brain is tired. However, the vegetables must be eaten!!!
And so an exuberant bunch of bok choy went into service for a veggie lo mein dinner. This dish came together extremely quickly (more quickly than UberPostDash). The beauty of this one is you can use whatever vegetables you have on-hand, especially if they’re about to wrinkle up.
INGREDIENTS
2 tbsp., sesame oil
~8 oz. of egg noodles or linguine
1 cup, sugar snap peas
1 head of bok choy, washed thoroughly and quartered
2 cloves of garlic, roughly chopped
About a cup of spinach
1 carrot, julienned
For the sauce:
2 tbsp., amino acids (or soy sauce)
2 tsp., sugar
1 tsp., sesame oil
½ tsp., ground ginger
½ tsp., garlic powder
WHAT TO DO
Whisk the sauce ingredients together in a small bowl, and put aside.
In a large skillet, heat oil until shimmering, add in bok choy and sauté until golden, adding the garlic in at this point and cooking until golden but not browned.
Cook egg noodles until toothsome (about 5 minutes), and drain. Add the noodles to the vegetable skillet, turn off the heat, and add sauce to the veggie & noodle mix, stirring to combine.
in good taste, vol. 78: microseasons
I had never heard of the microseasons! I kind of love the idea because it makes you focus on and appreciate the small details. But at the same time I think it may make me feel like time is passing more quickly because you’re always entering a new season. Haha I’m conflicted! Not so conflicted on bok choy, though, I 100% love it. Thanks for sharing the recipe!
Rick Steve is a wise man. Thank you for reminding me how much I love open air cinemas :)