Try Something New at home!

TEXT+PHOTOS: Clara Altfeld, Flipi Poggenpoel This isn’t a success story. The success I haven’t had recently has to do with COVID-19 quarantine trends.

Despite not being in lockdown my- self, I’ve been inspired by some of the hobbies that those in lockdown have started. Namely, baking with home- made sourdough starter.

For me, chess has been a fan- tastic find in the lead-up to COVID-19 and lockdown days. With decades of materials in various mediums, active online communities, and a global player base, I have enjoyed playing, learning, and improving at all hours of the day and night. The

I’ve never been much of a baker, but it’s something that Image courtesy of TEDxSaikai. Some rights are reserved under Creative Commons BY-NC-ND 4.0 I figured the person I wanted to be would do. So I got some sourdough starter from a friend, excited about my new task. I may not like the shokupan available in Japanese stores, but I was going to bake my own delicious bread! I was going to be a baker!

The first loaf of bread that I baked was totally burnt. It had risen too much in the oven, and the top of the loaf had collided with the low ceiling of my microwave oven, and had charred. In tears, I sent a picture to my parents, who expressed some sympathy, but who also thought I was being a little dramatic. I had fed my starter every day, I had followed the recipe, but it had risen too much, and I had failed. I was doomed to eat shokupan for the rest of my life.

It was all too easy to stop feeding my starter, whom I had dubbed Doug boy. He smelled worse and worse. My nose burned with the scent of alcohol when I opened his jar. When I did feed him and bake with him, my breads were too sour because of the over-fermentation.

I told you, this isn’t a success story. I didn’t magically figure out how to feed Doughboy every day. I didn’t break all my bad habits and establish all the good healthy ones that I imagine myself doing. I haven’t yet ascended to yeasted goddesshood. But I’m learning that the hard- est part is getting started. It’s taking off the lid of Doughboy’s jar to smell him, or measuring out the flour to feed him. I’m sure there will be plenty more times that I don’t feed him, and it will take days of perseverance in feeding him before I can use him again. But if this lack of success has taught me anything, it’s that if baking bread isn’t the perfect metaphor for life, I don’t know what is.

most active online communities I found were at Chess.com (freemium) and Lichess.org (free). Both websites host puzzles, lessons and ongoing tournaments for various levels and variations of the game. There are also large, active communities on YouTube, Twitch, and Reddit to satisfy those looking for a sense of camaraderie. Far from being limited to "the smart people," chess is largely reliant on pattern recognition, which any one of us can build and improve as we enjoy a few games. Please give it a try if you've ever been curious.