Why do Little Things Make me Happy?

The Joys of an Organized Spice Drawer

William Hazlitt wrote, "It is better to drink of deep griefs than to taste shallow pleasures."  Well, I have drunk enough deep griefs in life and can't stop opening my new spice drawer to taste its shallow pleasures!  What is it about clean glass jars at an angle in alphabetical order that makes my heart sing?  I mentioned while installing it that it has long been my dream to have such a drawer in my kitchen, and my teenage daughter remarked, "Nice dream, Mom." OK, it is dream number 549,000 on my dream list, but still an old and dear one, going back to my mom's spice drawer of my childhood. I should mention also that our 25th anniversary is coming up this summer and most of the spice jars we had been using we have had for 25 years.

My new spice drawer.

 Now isn't that a sweet sight? Clearly visible labels and spices equals a happy cook. Of course, I had to buy fresh refills for many jars! I bought these little racks at my local kitchen store, The Seasoned Kitchen, in Gibsons, BC. (They even sell extra jars separately, which is good, as we can't make dip without dried onion or some of Vij's recipes without Garam Masala, so had to squeeze two more in front.)

Tidy, shiny, exotic!

Here it is in context. This drawer used to be for plastic wrap, aluminum foil, wax paper and the like, but two spice racks fit perfectly in here and those thin boxes don't need so much space. It is right next to the pantry.

"Old Spices"

Here are the old jars which we couldn't part with for a quarter century, now headed either to the recycling or my son's kitchen. So far he only wants basil. That mace you see in the bottom of the jar has been there since 1988! We didn't make a new mace jar.

Majestic Jars

The sight of these colourful herbs and spices, in ground or leaf form, makes me think of all the places in the world they have come from, and all the cooking and baking I want to do. This is the sight I must keep peeking at all morning and evening. Like babies in baskets or more like a control board?  Whatever the associations, this drawer is my magnetic north these days while it is new.