Simple pleasures get lost. Think of when you mailed or received a letter in the post. This treasure – rooted in practicality and a deep sense of human need for connection – has existed since ancient times. We’re forgetting.
Writing and cooking are art, pleasure and belonging. Many of my peers don’t, or can’t, cook. The special occasion restaurant became the everyday. Bucketlist Healthhack™: Eat what you cook. Cook what you eat.
Put on the Chickpea Stew and get writing. Rock your world and someone else’s too.
Chickpea Stew is one-pot ancient deliciousness. Death-Free™ and stupid easy. Some version of it exists across cultures. This recipe follows the birthplace of mail, though older than mail. Chickpeas are one of the oldest cultivated legumes domesticated 4000 years before Persians set up the first true postal network (6th century BCE).
A healing force, chickpeas are excellent protein, rich in fiber, and support energy and red blood cell production. Bucketlist Longevityhack™: Ditch ideas of carcass “protein”.
Bucketlist confession: I embrace the the email and text world I’m raised in without ditching ink and paper.
I actively write and mail friends. I love sending and receiving mail. I send postcards during travels. Bucketlist Parentinghack™: Have “Post Sundays” for little ones so they enjoy the magic and power of this ancient delight – and know how to use a bloody pen. Don’t let them end up duds who don’t know what a stamp is. Emails can’t hack lonely like letters do.
Absurdity and stupidity destroys or privatizes national postal systems. In Colombia, finding a post office was impossible. A friend’s Abuela explained that since the 2006 loss of Adpostal (Administración Postal Nacional) and no support for its replacement, 4-72 (Servicios Postales Nacionales S.A.), mailing letters wasn’t possible. In Ecuador, I wrote beautiful postcards only to learn Correos del Ecuador was dissolved in 2020. I mailed them once home. Bucketlist chuckle. Postcards from travels, posted from the Boogie Down.
Postal networks are worthy of national pride. Mail reachest the furthest corners of the world. There may not be a hospital or paved roads, but there will be a post office. One of humanist quietest all-good achievement. Bucketlist Lifehack™: Send an OG letter. Treat yourself to home cooking. Put on the Chickpea Stew and get writing. Rock your world and someone else’s too.
Bon appétit, Friends.
VIDEO: Chickpea Stew by Bucketlist
You Need:
∞ 2 cup Chickpeas (soaked overnight or glass-can)
∞ 1/2 cup Parsley (chop with stems)
∞ 6 Garlic Cloves (chop or crush)
∞ 2 tbsp Tomato Paste
∞ 2 Bay Leaves
∞ 1 tbsp Za’atar
∞ 1 tbsp Cumin (powder)
∞ 1 tsp Paprika (smoked sweet or hot)
∞ 1.5 tsp Celtic Sea Salt
∞ 3 cup Water
∞ optional 2 tsp Olive Oil