Saturday, October 22, 2016

Music Therapy and Lemon Pasta with Sausage and Broccoli


During the past spring and summer, while I was in my cancer treatment  -- what I fondly refer to as as my "confinement" -- I spent a lot of time in quiet activity, when I wasn't sleeping, that is.

I did a little bit of gardening, watched some TV (mindless stuff, like Law and Order reruns and sentimental Hallmark movies), read quite a few books (the whole Millenium series, all 1500+ pages), colored a bit and played too much a lot of Words with Friends.

But one of the things that gave me the most pleasure was music. Music kept me company, energized me, soothed me, made me smile -- all the good things.

I love all kinds of music (although I really haven't warmed up to hip-hop too much) but I tend to drift to listening to my favorite classic rock picks.  My sister and brother-in-law put together a couple of playlists for me that introduced me to new stuff.

This collection of theirs has everything -- the familiar, the classic, a little jazz, a little country, a quite eclectic collection. And they put all 150 songs on an Ipod Shuffle, complete with ear pods. I also got the music on two CDs, labeled "Rosie I" and "Rosie II."

As the songs played randomly, I'd be listening to the Beatles, then U2, then Bonnie Raitt, then Pink Floyd, back to the Beatles, then Fleetwood Mac, Coldplay, or Michael Jackson.  And I met new (to me) artists -- Good Old War, You+Me, Patty Griffin, Liz Longley, Jimmy Eat World, Allen Stone, and many more.

On a good day . . . my music had me dancing.--forgive the reflection of my phone in my sunglasses--

On my especially good days, that music had me dancing as I went for walk or tended to my flower beds.

My favorite new song on the collection was a song called "I Feel Good",  by Thomas Rhett. Like the Pharrell Williams "Happy" song, it's impossible not to feel good, or dance, while listening to the song.

I feel good, today
can't nobody bring me down
I just got paid, and I think I'm gonna hit the town
Yeah my problems can wait til tomorrow, 
cause I feel good today yeah,
can't nobody bring me down...

Give it a listen and you'll see what I mean.

Music therapy was a part of  my cancer center treatment, too. During chemo days, when I wasn't listening to my own music or reading or making new friends with the other patients, we were treated to music played by a volunteer, a certified music therapist, who played her harp while we happily ate lunch.  

Phyllis played a variety of music; I recognized some classical music, but I also heard "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star" and a couple religious hymns, a nice variety. 


I got to chatting with Phyllis one day and learned that she got her certification through an online course. (I also had asked her what she called her little harp, thinking it must have a unique name. She told me, "It's a harp, although I call it my baby.")
Another therapy I relished was shopping therapy. One day, my sister Lynn was gracious enough to drive me to one of my many doctor appointments, and, of course, there was lunch and shopping to make the most of the  190+ mile round trip to Pittsburgh. A must stop (in addition to Home Goods) was Trader Joe's

I'm a little kid in Trader Joe's.  I want to thow everything into my cart.  I try and restrain myself but end up buying more than I should planned on.

My best purchase that day was a package of lemon pepper papardelle.


I love the wide pasta, but the flavoring of this was simply outstanding.  Sometimes, flavored pastas are more colored than they are flavored.  This pasta was definitely lemony, not overpowering, just obvious.  And the pepper was the perfect complement.


This was a "no recipe" night:

  1. Put water on to boil for the pasta.  Cook (undercook!) according to package directions.
  2. Cook a half head of fresh chopped broccoli with 2 tablespoons of water in the microwave for about 4 minutes. Drain.
  3. Brown 1 pound of the loose, fresh sweet Italian sauage in a large non-stick pan on medium-high heat.
  4. When no longer pink,turn down the heat to low.
  5. Add the cooked pasta and cooked broccoli to the pan.
  6. Add about 1/2 cup half-and-half and 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese.
  7. Toss gently and serve.
  8. Wait for compliments.

13 comments:

  1. I love no recipe nights. I think that's the type of food that the body demands once in a while and we are tuned in enough to hear - whether that demand is for something that is quick and easy, or simple and tasty, or preferably both.

    Glad To hear you got such comfort and enjoyment from music, and also from taking time to enjoy and appreciate the simple pleasures.

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    1. I probably have more "no recipe" nights than not, Hester. (And I sure loved that lemon-pepper pasta -- didn't need a recipe.) Since I can't get to a Trader Joe's very often, Aldi has become my Trader Joe's. Occasionally, they'll have something similar. I was surprised that Aldi was in Ireland, too!

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  2. No recipe nights are pretty much the norm for us! I am also like a kid in Trader Joes :-)

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    1. Thanks for visiting, Amy . . . "no recipe" nights are easy with good stuff like this pasta! (Isn't Trader Joe's fun?)

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  3. Heck, most of the things I cook start as "no recipes!" Best way to cook, don't you think? Fun dish. And so interesting to read about your music therapy -- thanks!

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    1. Yes, John, I have the most fun cooking without a recipe, no going back to the recipe to make sure I haven't forgotten a step or - worse - an ingredient!

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  4. Whenever we go down to visit our children in south Florida, we take a cooler and stop at Trader Joe's on the way back home. Wish there was one that wasn't an hour and a half away. Your pasta sounds great.

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    1. It's always definite stop for me! Even worth a special trip sometime, Karen.

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    2. Just wanted to stop back by and say "hello"…hope you are well.

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    3. Thank you, Karen . . . . doing fine, just busy. Busy getting back to normal, getting ready for Christmas, busy growing hair! And every time I sit down to write a new post, I'm just not happy with it :(

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    4. I hope you had a wonderful Christmas and wish for you a very healthy and happy New Year.

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  5. Hi Rosemary, I was just thinking about you and wondering how you are. I hope you are enjoying many good days.

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    1. Doing better all the time, Linda! Thanks for dropping by. I'm hoping to be more "regular" here.

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I realize you don't have to take the time to comment . . . but it makes my day! So glad you decided to stay.