I have not taken my Christmas tree down, nor put away my Christmas tins. Christmas was over on January 7th, even for those of us who celebrate it as a season rather than a day.

Last week I washed the Christmas guest towels that had been in the powder room and I took the red, green and white swirled candles from the candle holders on the table and substituted white tapers. But I’ve realized that I don’t want to take down the bright and cheerful Christmas decor until I have a plan to replace it with something bright and cheerful. I looked through a box of matted paintings, pulled some to consider, remembered I had framed paintings somewhere still in boxes.

I went out last weekend to buy a 2026 calendar. I am getting a slow start on the new year. As I walked toward town I looked for bright things in the landscape. In midafternoon the sky was a soft gray, the green grass was bright. I saw an occasional red leaf.

By the time I left the bookstore it was drizzling. The sky was no darker in color, but less light was coming through. The only bright colors were the red, green and yellow of traffic lights, yellow mats at intersections, the odd neon sign, an orange peel on the pavement.

Yesterday and today we have had two bright sunny days, although there was frost on the grass this morning. Yesterday Safeway had bunches of lavender tulips for $5.99. I bought one and swapped my red and white checked tablecloth for a blue, green and white floral on a black background.

While I was at Safeway, a $2.99 packet of Thai basil caught my eye in the produce section. Almost nothing at Safeway costs a mere $2.99, so I bought it and immediately began to think of making pad Thai. I have rice noodles in my cupboard, brown sugar, chili sauce. I needed limes. I bought some extra firm tofu. I hesitated about buying wild caught shrimp, but only because they were a larger size than I prefer. I bought some fresh green beans to add to my noodle dish, but refused to buy scallions because they were imported from Mexico. Why, with California two states away, are Washington state grocers buying scallions from Mexico?

I cruised the sauce aisle and found a house brand of “pad Thai sauce.” When I read the ingredients, the first was sugar. I made a mental note to look for tamarind paste at the local health food store instead.

Because I am a former Californian, I must have lemons. We grew Meyer lemons in our front yard on an eight foot “dwarf” shrub. I’m happy enough to buy sharper Eureka lemons before I figure out how and where to grow a lemon tree here and I bought a two-pound bag (about six lemons). I went home and roasted a big pan of Greek potatoes in olive oil, garlic, oregano and lemon juice. Without realizing it consciously, I am in search of bright flavors in January, as well as bright colors and blue skies.

This morning I went out to do my Saturday errands: Atomic Bagel, First Fed, Country Aire, farmers market. I usually buy myself a bagel sandwich on Saturday as a reward for walking to town and carting all my food home on my back. I also like to keep sliced bagels in the freezer for quick meals (toasted and spread with peanut butter, or butter and jam, or?).

At Country Aire, I found a bottle of Thai Kitchen pad Thai sauce. Once again, I stood and read the label before I put it back on the shelf and bought tamarind paste, rice vinegar and fish sauce. I am slowly building a pantry that allows me to cook a variety of dishes in my own kitchen. I also bought some rye flour because I have been wanting to make limpa, or Swedish rye bread flavored with orange and anise.

As I walked to the farmers market I wondered when I might see bok choi there. I think it is a fall crop here. I was pleasantly surprised to see savoy cabbage at today’s market — it will go nicely in a coconut milk-based soup, along with carrots. I was thinking about making such a soup as I walked home. I might even add frozen pork potstickers for an Asian-fusion soup: because I am the resident food critic, my cooking only needs to please me. An egg vendor, who also sells herbs, had a bunch of Vietnamese coriander. I’ve never had it, but it seems like it might fit well with Thai flavors.

This week’s cooking was inspired by the sight of that Thai basil packet at Safeway yesterday. I wasn’t looking for Thai basil — I just happened to see it in the produce section.

I am not, however, inspired by the “meal plan” that the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture put forward, reported to me as “a piece of chicken, a piece of broccoli, a corn tortilla and something else.” First of all, that is not enough food for a meal unless the something else is large, bulky and filling. Can you imagine feeding a hungry teenager just one tortilla? Or someone who does physical labor? Secondly, the cited items do not go well together and are not enough to make a dish. If you want to make Chinese-style chicken and broccoli, you will need rice, ginger, garlic, soy sauce; if you want to make Italian-style chicken and broccoli, you will need Parmesan and cream and red pepper flakes. If you want to make a chicken taco or tostada, you will need onions, peppers, limes, cilantro — and you won’t need broccoli. I think the Secretary should be required to report what she eats to the American public: I’m sure what she eats is not what she is advising all of us to eat.

Do your best to find brightness in your neighborhood, whether it is in the sky, in your landscape, or in the flavors of your food. Or just hibernate until spring.