Granola
3 cups rolled oats
1 cup pumpkin seeds
½ c slivered almonds
½ c pecan pieces
½ c shredded coconut
½ tsp cinnamon
½ tsp cardamom
¼ c brown sugar
¼ c maple syrup
¼ c canola oil

Directions
Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. In a large bowl, combine the oats, nuts, coconut, and brown sugar. In a separate bowl, combine maple syrup and oil. Combine both mixtures and pour onto a large sheet pan. Cook for 1 hour, stirring every 15 minutes to achieve an even color. Remove from oven and transfer into a large bowl. At this time, you may want to add additional items such as raisins or other dried fruit. Mix until evenly distributed. After cooled, granola may be stored for about 1 month in an airtight container. I’ve also placed it in an airtight freezer bag and placed in the freezer.

This recipe is a combination of two recipes (Alton Brown of the Food Network and Melissa Park from the New York Times).


Life's Little Interruptions
I have no written plans for the year, no resolutions or even a dream board as suggested by Oprah. I’ve done all of these things in the past and I may do them again. At the same time, I’ve also learned that life is largely circumstantial. In other words, things are going to happen and I’ll just have to adjust…in spite of my plans, resolutions and dreams. One moment I’m on a particular course and moving in a particular direction and suddenly I’m not. It could be a job loss, an illness, a break up or loss of a loved one. It doesn’t even have to be that devastating or dramatic. It could simply be that something just didn’t work out. Something happened. As poet Robert Burns said, the best laid schemes of mice and men often go awry. And he wrote that way back in 1785.

Why must our plans be interrupted? Sometimes a pause in life is what we need in order to consider our direction and lifestyle. It is easy to become unbalanced and somewhat crazy in today’s world where there is constant stimulation and pressure. There is a lot of pressure to seem more than ordinary. A lot of times we are doing stuff just to be doing it. We may need something to happen to stop the madness and to help us to live more intentionally with purpose.

An unexpected job loss will interrupt any immediate and future plans. For most of last year, 10-months to be exact, I was laid-off. Although I didn’t think it was possible, I lived on half of my previous salary. Life became very simple for me. I didn’t go anyplace beyond metropolitan Atlanta. I spent very little on entertainment and eating out. Friends were met at parks and coffee shops. In spite of the obvious financial challenges, I discovered that I could live a relatively happy life on much less. Of course, I learned the importance of being financially prepared for the unexpected. And I was not, in spite of Suze’s (Orman) warnings. She was right, a job-loss could last for about a year and that is the amount you should have saved. Of course, knowing and doing are two different things.

A job loss may also be an opportunity to learn new skills and change career paths. Even if we hate our job, we procrastinate or refuse to find a new one. For the last few years, I worked in an environment that made little use of my skills and where people thrived on negativity. My time there had run its course. It was no longer the place where I needed to be. I was trying to go along to get along. I did my best to suppress what I knew to be true and what I needed to do. I was conflicted. There’s nothing out there anyway with this economy. Shouldn’t I be happy just to be employed…with benefits? Who really likes their job? Then one day, the decision was made for me. Sometimes, that is exactly what we need. We need something to happen to make the decision that we won’t make for ourselves. Now I had to move forward and find another job. Of course I was angry about being laid off, but I also felt a deep sense of relief. The nightmare I had been living was over. Now I was free to become my best self…or at least a better self. I am now working in an environment where my skills are being utilized, that is more supportive and more aligned with my life goals.

Our plans will be interrupted. It is normal to initially feel shock, anger and sadness. But…then what? We can be consumed by it and become largely unproductive. Or, we can learn from it and move forward. It is our choice to see it as an opportunity and to trust that a greater purpose is being fulfilled.