In honor of the Thanksgiving holiday, I'll share:
Thirteen little things for which I am thankful
1·My daughter (who isn't even three feet tall yet)
2·Our lovely home
3·Double Stuf Oreo® Peanut Butter Creme (YUM!!)
4·Having my in-laws over for dinner (they live 10,000 miles away)
5·My paycheck
6·My car (especially with the price of gas again on the rise)
7·Clorox® Disinfecting Wipes
8·Our local petting zoo (just the right size for the preschool set)
9·Our spinet (given to us by friends and worth a lot more than free)
10·Channel 23 (think Nick@Nite® without the cable)
11·Baby-swapping evenings out
12·Disposable sippy cups (six to a package)
13·A holiday that requires us to stop and say "Thanks"
Happy Thanksgiving, everybody!!
Check out other thirteeners at ThursdayThirteen.com.
Thursday, November 23
Wednesday, November 22
What You Find Under the Couch
In preparation for having Thanksgiving dinner at our house, Adam and I spent the day cleaning up and washing dishes while his parents took our daughter 
out for an adventure on the play equipment at the mall. One of the areas that really needed weeding out (no, not literally. It wasn't quite that bad) was under the couch. I found cracker crumbs, four pieces of a beading toy, three books, a CD case, cracker crumbs, two spoons, a juice tumbler, a plastic bag, cracker crumbs, the computer cord for my digital camera, a rubber funnel, two DVDs, and cracker crumbs. Lots of cracker crumbs. Have I mentioned that my daughter's favorite game lately has been to finagle an almost-empty box of crackers from her mother's hands and dump the remaining snacks and all the crumbs all over the couch, the floor, or wherever she happens to be when the mood strikes?
But the really exciting find was the cord for my camera. You see, earlier this afternoon, I had found the CD-ROM with the software for downloading photos from the camera on to the computer.
I'd been looking for that since we first set our computer up about four months ago. And today I finally found it, sitting inconspicuously on a bookshelf.
After a small dance of joy at the treasure I'd unearthed, I quickly began digging through the mess of papers and books underneath the computer table. I was sure that was were I'd last seen the cord to connect the camera to the computer. But it was nowhere to be found. Instead, all I got for my trouble was three telephone DSL filters, an AV cable, and some computer cord I can't identify, but I'm sure came with the CPU.
I had been all ready to download (upload?) the photos from my camera to the computer because our memory card was full and I wanted to clear it before Thanksgiving tomorrow so I could get some nice family holiday photos.
Numerous sighs and groans followed my fruitless search. Adam suggested, "You'll probably find it under the couch."
If I really thought he'd turn out to be right, I'd have looked under the couch first thing. But I didn't actually expect anything to turn up there, so I went about my cleaning from one end of the room to the other, finishing with the couch.
Yet there, in the last place I was planning to look today, I found precisely the item I needed. Sigh. But now I have the wonderful opportunity to share with you these lovely photos of my daughter. And the camera is all ready for the Thanksgiving family portrait that will surely grace the mantle. If we had a mantle.
out for an adventure on the play equipment at the mall. One of the areas that really needed weeding out (no, not literally. It wasn't quite that bad) was under the couch. I found cracker crumbs, four pieces of a beading toy, three books, a CD case, cracker crumbs, two spoons, a juice tumbler, a plastic bag, cracker crumbs, the computer cord for my digital camera, a rubber funnel, two DVDs, and cracker crumbs. Lots of cracker crumbs. Have I mentioned that my daughter's favorite game lately has been to finagle an almost-empty box of crackers from her mother's hands and dump the remaining snacks and all the crumbs all over the couch, the floor, or wherever she happens to be when the mood strikes?But the really exciting find was the cord for my camera. You see, earlier this afternoon, I had found the CD-ROM with the software for downloading photos from the camera on to the computer.
I'd been looking for that since we first set our computer up about four months ago. And today I finally found it, sitting inconspicuously on a bookshelf.After a small dance of joy at the treasure I'd unearthed, I quickly began digging through the mess of papers and books underneath the computer table. I was sure that was were I'd last seen the cord to connect the camera to the computer. But it was nowhere to be found. Instead, all I got for my trouble was three telephone DSL filters, an AV cable, and some computer cord I can't identify, but I'm sure came with the CPU.
I had been all ready to download (upload?) the photos from my camera to the computer because our memory card was full and I wanted to clear it before Thanksgiving tomorrow so I could get some nice family holiday photos.
Numerous sighs and groans followed my fruitless search. Adam suggested, "You'll probably find it under the couch."
If I really thought he'd turn out to be right, I'd have looked under the couch first thing. But I didn't actually expect anything to turn up there, so I went about my cleaning from one end of the room to the other, finishing with the couch.Yet there, in the last place I was planning to look today, I found precisely the item I needed. Sigh. But now I have the wonderful opportunity to share with you these lovely photos of my daughter. And the camera is all ready for the Thanksgiving family portrait that will surely grace the mantle. If we had a mantle.
Sunday, November 19
Third World Thanksgiving
I had never heard of the concept before this year. Suddenly, I keep seeing references all over the place, but when I tried to Google "third world thanksgiving" I only found information about one organization's fundraising banquet, an interesting article about daily life in poverty-stricken countries, and one site that had a video link which didn't look quite savory, so I left before I figured out exactly what it was showing. Therefore I offer you my own primer.
How to host a Third World Thanksgiving
Basically the idea is twofold: better understanding of and offering tangible assistance to those living in poverty (whether in the Third World or not).
Step one...Invite lots of friends over. And don't forget your family, too. Make sure everyone knows you are having a non-traditional dinner to raise awareness, as well as funds, for the hungry.
Step two...Shop for food. Go to your favorite grocery store with a list of all the ingredients you would need to buy in order to host a traditional Thanksgiving dinner for all the people you now have coming to your house. Price all of the items on your list. Buy only rice.
Step three...Cook dinner. Measure one cup cooked rice per person.
Step four...Enjoy the party. Spend a few hours sharing with family and friends the many blessings in your lives for which each of you can give thanks.
Step five...Share the wealth. Write a check for the amount you would have spent on your traditional Thanksgiving dinner (as calculated in step two). Send it to a worthy charity working to combat poverty and hunger in the Third World or right here in North America. Suggest to your guests that they make donations of their own.
A few charitable organizations working to feed the hungry:
• Church World Service†
• City Mission World Association
• Food for the Hungry International†
• Samaritan's Purse†
• World Relief†
• World Vision†
† on-line donation available
Another site worth a look:
• The Hunger Site
In less than 5 seconds, visitors can click on the "Give Free Food" button and, at no cost to them, send food (one cup per click per day) to the hungry in countries like Bosnia, Lebanon, Indonesia, Afghanistan, Honduras, Mozambique, Eritrea and the United States—anywhere there's a need. The staple food funded by The Hunger Site is paid for by site sponsors and is distributed to those in need by Mercy Corps and America's Second Harvest. 100% of funding from sponsor banner advertising goes to our charity partners. Sign up for email reminders and give an additional two cups of food!
Now, in the interest of full disclosure, I need to say Adam and I are not hosting a Third World Thanksgiving on Thursday. We are having a traditional turkey with all the trimmings. I thought this idea was just too good not to share, even though I'm not participating this year.
But keep your eyes open. I may be back for an Eating Less Easter in a few months. Fair warning to those of you who live nearby. Keep your checkbooks handy!
How to host a Third World Thanksgiving
Basically the idea is twofold: better understanding of and offering tangible assistance to those living in poverty (whether in the Third World or not).
Step one...Invite lots of friends over. And don't forget your family, too. Make sure everyone knows you are having a non-traditional dinner to raise awareness, as well as funds, for the hungry.
Step two...Shop for food. Go to your favorite grocery store with a list of all the ingredients you would need to buy in order to host a traditional Thanksgiving dinner for all the people you now have coming to your house. Price all of the items on your list. Buy only rice.
Step three...Cook dinner. Measure one cup cooked rice per person.
Step four...Enjoy the party. Spend a few hours sharing with family and friends the many blessings in your lives for which each of you can give thanks.
Step five...Share the wealth. Write a check for the amount you would have spent on your traditional Thanksgiving dinner (as calculated in step two). Send it to a worthy charity working to combat poverty and hunger in the Third World or right here in North America. Suggest to your guests that they make donations of their own.
A few charitable organizations working to feed the hungry:
• Church World Service†
• City Mission World Association
• Food for the Hungry International†
• Samaritan's Purse†
• World Relief†
• World Vision†
† on-line donation available
Another site worth a look:
• The Hunger Site
In less than 5 seconds, visitors can click on the "Give Free Food" button and, at no cost to them, send food (one cup per click per day) to the hungry in countries like Bosnia, Lebanon, Indonesia, Afghanistan, Honduras, Mozambique, Eritrea and the United States—anywhere there's a need. The staple food funded by The Hunger Site is paid for by site sponsors and is distributed to those in need by Mercy Corps and America's Second Harvest. 100% of funding from sponsor banner advertising goes to our charity partners. Sign up for email reminders and give an additional two cups of food!
Now, in the interest of full disclosure, I need to say Adam and I are not hosting a Third World Thanksgiving on Thursday. We are having a traditional turkey with all the trimmings. I thought this idea was just too good not to share, even though I'm not participating this year.
But keep your eyes open. I may be back for an Eating Less Easter in a few months. Fair warning to those of you who live nearby. Keep your checkbooks handy!
Saturday, November 18
Leave Me Alone
Regular readers (it's so cool to know that some of you read my humble little thoughts regularly!) may have noticed a dearth of deep, insightful comments lately. I feel bad that I haven't been making any. Mostly, I've not been having many deep insightful thoughts. Just dealing with the day-to-day trying to get everything together and keep it that way.
For Adam's birhtday I got him a gift card to one of our favorite coffee spots. The real gift isn't so much the card, but that I'll be sending him off on his own several times to use it. We have an ongoing battle to each get enough time to ourselves in the midst of busyness.
Alone Time is a concept I never really thought about as a single woman. Very rarely was my life so full that I needed to take time out just to be with me. I'm more an extrovert than an introvert anyway, so generally spending time with people is energizing to me. And when I did need a moment to myself, I just closed my bedroom door and voilà instant Alone Time.
Getting married, I thought, back before I was married, meant spending all your time together. I managed to cling to that illusion throughout our dating relationship because it seemed that was all Adam and I did as a couple, spending hours and hours together every evening, before reluctantly tearing ourselves away to go home, get some sleep, work a little, and wait impatiently for the time we could be together again.
Nobody told me to expect times I would want him to go away. I certainly never did. Expect it, I mean. When we were first married, Adam was unemployed, and I was working part time, so we spent nearly every waking hour, and all the sleeping ones, together. After a few weeks, I started feeling really upset and frustrated and I wasn't sure why. One day, it suddenly dawned on me. I was used to having big chunks of day, especially right before bed, when I spent time alone. And I hadn't been doing that since we'd gotten married. I thought it was a bad thing to want to be apart. Now, I recognize that, though God made us to live in community, that doesn't mean we are supposed to spend 24 hours a day, every day in their company.
Recently I was reading something (I'd link to what it was, if I could remember) that talked about Jesus taking off by himself to pray. The idea was that if Jesus needed Alone Time, surely the rest of us do, too.
So, I'd like to encourage myself and the rest of you, especially as we are entering the busy holiday season, take some time out. You don't need to spend it in Bible study and prayer (although those are good options, too) just get away from what you spend everyday doing and try to look at life from a new perspective. And when we come back, may we truly enter into the joy of the holy days.
For Adam's birhtday I got him a gift card to one of our favorite coffee spots. The real gift isn't so much the card, but that I'll be sending him off on his own several times to use it. We have an ongoing battle to each get enough time to ourselves in the midst of busyness.
Alone Time is a concept I never really thought about as a single woman. Very rarely was my life so full that I needed to take time out just to be with me. I'm more an extrovert than an introvert anyway, so generally spending time with people is energizing to me. And when I did need a moment to myself, I just closed my bedroom door and voilà instant Alone Time.
Getting married, I thought, back before I was married, meant spending all your time together. I managed to cling to that illusion throughout our dating relationship because it seemed that was all Adam and I did as a couple, spending hours and hours together every evening, before reluctantly tearing ourselves away to go home, get some sleep, work a little, and wait impatiently for the time we could be together again.
Nobody told me to expect times I would want him to go away. I certainly never did. Expect it, I mean. When we were first married, Adam was unemployed, and I was working part time, so we spent nearly every waking hour, and all the sleeping ones, together. After a few weeks, I started feeling really upset and frustrated and I wasn't sure why. One day, it suddenly dawned on me. I was used to having big chunks of day, especially right before bed, when I spent time alone. And I hadn't been doing that since we'd gotten married. I thought it was a bad thing to want to be apart. Now, I recognize that, though God made us to live in community, that doesn't mean we are supposed to spend 24 hours a day, every day in their company.
Recently I was reading something (I'd link to what it was, if I could remember) that talked about Jesus taking off by himself to pray. The idea was that if Jesus needed Alone Time, surely the rest of us do, too.
So, I'd like to encourage myself and the rest of you, especially as we are entering the busy holiday season, take some time out. You don't need to spend it in Bible study and prayer (although those are good options, too) just get away from what you spend everyday doing and try to look at life from a new perspective. And when we come back, may we truly enter into the joy of the holy days.
Thursday, November 16
Thursday Thirteen #6
Thirteen harmlessly addictive ways to play on the internet
1.
Jigsaw Puzzle of the Day from JigZone
2.
Pop the Shrimp from Red Lobster
3.
Foxcentration from Bill Amend's Web Page
4.
Simon from Neave
5.
JACKSONPOLLOK.ORG from Miltos Manetas
6.
Checkers from Fun Ranch
7.
Tantrix Puzzle from Tantrix
8.
Daily Crossword from The Washington Post
9.
Click 'N Slide from NCBuy GameHouse
10.
Museum of Childhood Kaleidoscope from The Victoria and Albert Museum
11.
Tetris from 2DPlay
12.
Island Mini-Golf from TBS
13.
Connect 4 from Milton Bradley
Check out other "thirteeners" at ThursdayThirteen.com.
Tuesday, November 14
Happy Happy Birthday, Baby
Today is Adam's birthday. Not having sound on my computer, I'm always a little wary of the free e-cards you can send. I remember back when it was just internet postcards with a single static image and your message underneath. Ah, the good old days. I sent him my own card this afternoon. I love playing around with Photoshop®.
I hope today is a special day, my love. I am so very glad you were born. You have my love, always.
I hope today is a special day, my love. I am so very glad you were born. You have my love, always.
Monday, November 13
Grace Around Fire
I haven't made a real home-cooked meal in a while. Mostly because our kitchen is a mess and one of the things I seem to have caught from Adam since we've been married is his aversion to cooking in a messy kitchen.
But tonight I felt like making something new and different. So I thawed some chicken and paged through my More-with-Less and Extending the Table cookbooks looking for chicken and rice recipes. I finally settled on a peanut soup recipe from More-with-Less to which I added chicken, rice, and garlic (since the books are copyrighted, I won't post the recipe here, but you can purchase your own copy, here. Peanut Soup is on page 217).
The real fun could now begin. First, the knife I had wasn't working well with the chicken. I already had a Band-Aid® on my thumb from an earlier run in with a knife (no pun intended), and now I was getting raw chicken juice all over my hands. Yuck.
Next, I was searing the chicken a bit when I noticed a small flame outside the burner ring. When I bent down to investigate, I saw a ladle that had once been neatly situated in the center of the stove between two burners was now melting into the flame under my sauce pan. I pulled up on the pan, immediately turning off the flame. When that didn't solve my problem, I reached up into the cupboard for an open box of baking soda, remembering the dire warnings my home ec teacher had given us about spreading a grease fire with water. Since I wasn't quite sure the content of the plastic-looking handle, I didn't want to take any chances.
Unfortunately, sprinkling baking soda over an open flame is not the most efficient means of dousing it. Once the box was emptied, the flame continuing unabated, I decided the best course of action would be to grab the ladle from the serving end and plunge the flame into the sink.
The problem with that plan was a simple matter of unfinished laundry. Both of our oven gloves are in the wash. I tried grasping the metal end with a dishtowel, but I wasn't able to get a decent grip on it. Additionally, by this time, the melted portion of the handle was dripping down onto the chrome plate below the burner. I was not at all certain that lifting up one end would ensure the other followed.
Finally, in a moment of inspiration, I remembered that we have a fire extinguisher on the shelf above the microwave. I pulled it out and searched quickly to find the directions for use. (As an aside, this is not the course of action I recommend. If you have a fire extinguisher in your kitchen--a wonderful idea in itself and highly recommended--make sure you know how to use it before you need it.) Following the instructions on the label, I stood six to eight feet back and squirted a short blast of whatever was inside onto the stove. Instantly the flames went out. It was kind of fun, really.
Once the excitement was over, I still had dinner to make. I briefly considered throwing my hands in the air and letting Adam finish it, but, by then the meal was nearly complete, so I scooped out the half-cooked chicken, washed the excess baking soda out of the pan and began cooking again.
By the way, the soup turned out pretty yummy. I'll have to repeat my experiment again sometime. Minus the steps involving runaway flames, of course.
But tonight I felt like making something new and different. So I thawed some chicken and paged through my More-with-Less and Extending the Table cookbooks looking for chicken and rice recipes. I finally settled on a peanut soup recipe from More-with-Less to which I added chicken, rice, and garlic (since the books are copyrighted, I won't post the recipe here, but you can purchase your own copy, here. Peanut Soup is on page 217).
The real fun could now begin. First, the knife I had wasn't working well with the chicken. I already had a Band-Aid® on my thumb from an earlier run in with a knife (no pun intended), and now I was getting raw chicken juice all over my hands. Yuck.
Next, I was searing the chicken a bit when I noticed a small flame outside the burner ring. When I bent down to investigate, I saw a ladle that had once been neatly situated in the center of the stove between two burners was now melting into the flame under my sauce pan. I pulled up on the pan, immediately turning off the flame. When that didn't solve my problem, I reached up into the cupboard for an open box of baking soda, remembering the dire warnings my home ec teacher had given us about spreading a grease fire with water. Since I wasn't quite sure the content of the plastic-looking handle, I didn't want to take any chances.
Unfortunately, sprinkling baking soda over an open flame is not the most efficient means of dousing it. Once the box was emptied, the flame continuing unabated, I decided the best course of action would be to grab the ladle from the serving end and plunge the flame into the sink.
The problem with that plan was a simple matter of unfinished laundry. Both of our oven gloves are in the wash. I tried grasping the metal end with a dishtowel, but I wasn't able to get a decent grip on it. Additionally, by this time, the melted portion of the handle was dripping down onto the chrome plate below the burner. I was not at all certain that lifting up one end would ensure the other followed.
Finally, in a moment of inspiration, I remembered that we have a fire extinguisher on the shelf above the microwave. I pulled it out and searched quickly to find the directions for use. (As an aside, this is not the course of action I recommend. If you have a fire extinguisher in your kitchen--a wonderful idea in itself and highly recommended--make sure you know how to use it before you need it.) Following the instructions on the label, I stood six to eight feet back and squirted a short blast of whatever was inside onto the stove. Instantly the flames went out. It was kind of fun, really.
Once the excitement was over, I still had dinner to make. I briefly considered throwing my hands in the air and letting Adam finish it, but, by then the meal was nearly complete, so I scooped out the half-cooked chicken, washed the excess baking soda out of the pan and began cooking again.
By the way, the soup turned out pretty yummy. I'll have to repeat my experiment again sometime. Minus the steps involving runaway flames, of course.
Thursday, November 9
Thursday Thirteen #5
Thirteen random acts of kindness (all true)
1·On my first Mother's Day after my mother passed away, One of the volunteer leaders of our church youth group bought me a bouquet of flowers because she knew I would be having a tough day.
2·In college, a friend gave me $928 to pay back rent and utility bills so I wouldn't get evicted from my apartment.
3·When my car broke down about an hour outside of Cincinnati, a woman took me into her home, fed me dinner, drove me to the airport, paid for my ticket home, and mailed two boxes of stuff from the car.
4·When my grandmother passed away unexpectedly and I had to drive across several states to go to her funeral, a friend's boss (who owned a deli) sent me off with a free sandwich and chips so I wouldn't have to stop for lunch.
5·While I was away for the funeral, my roommate cleaned my bedroom and finished unpacking for me.
6·As I prepared to leave grad school, I casually mentioned to my brother that I was considering moving to his area. He offered to let me live with his family until I found a job and my own apartment.
7·When my brother-in-law started a new job with a computer company, he and my sister FedExed their old CPU and monitor to me at no charge.
8·While I was between jobs, two former managers called me in to do temp work for their new organizations.
9·Friends from church gave Adam and me their tickets to a popular concert series when they were unable to go suddenly.
10·Another friend from church opened her home for our rehearsal dinner on the eve of our wedding.
11·We were given a matching crib and changing table from a woman we had only met IRL a few times, but knew from an on-line message board.
12·One of my best friends went against her boss's orders to take an extra day off work so she could be with me the day my daughter was born.
13·When Adam and I went to a play several weeks ago, we were "upgraded" to second row center seats by a woman who couldn't use her tickets.
Visit other thirteeners at ThursdayThirteen.com.
Wednesday, November 8
A Wonderful Present for My Birthday
Now that all the elections are over and done with and it's all been decided (at least "unofficially" by the AP and television networks), I can spend a moment talking about politics.
I should begin by saying, it was a great birthday present that after yesterday all those horrid negative mud-slinging opponent-bashing ads are off the air. Hooray!! Unfortunately, like a cancer, I know they are only in remission until the campaigning season begins for the next election. I give it a year, tops.
You should check out the post Ash wrote about a common sense approach to politics. He makes a good point about not needing to agree with a candidate on every single issue if you feel he or she is a person of integrity.
I really don't understand some people. I have heard talk about voting for this or that candidate because she's pro-life or he's against the legalization of marijuana. Since when does a single issue define a candidate or a race? And, are these people truly willing to vote for an unscrupulous person simply because he or she is willing to vote their way on this one issue?
Now, I do understand in many cases the issues seem cluster together. The pro-choice, affirmative action, universal insurance candidate against the pro-life, lower taxes, tightened border security candidate. But, I still wonder. What if you agree with a particular candidate on a number of issues and you respect him or her, yet, he's pro-life and you are pro-choice? Would you not vote for him because you disagree on that one issue?
And while I'm on my soapbox, who are these people who vote for a candidate because of his or her negative ads? As I have heard many times, the reason we keep seeing negative advertising is because they are effective in garnering votes. Maybe I'm just strange that way. The more negative ads I see from any given candidate, the less likely I am to vote for that person!
If you have thoughts on these issues, I invite you to share them in the comments. I really would like to better understand how others process this information and come to their decisions. (Thanks!)
I should begin by saying, it was a great birthday present that after yesterday all those horrid negative mud-slinging opponent-bashing ads are off the air. Hooray!! Unfortunately, like a cancer, I know they are only in remission until the campaigning season begins for the next election. I give it a year, tops.
You should check out the post Ash wrote about a common sense approach to politics. He makes a good point about not needing to agree with a candidate on every single issue if you feel he or she is a person of integrity.
I really don't understand some people. I have heard talk about voting for this or that candidate because she's pro-life or he's against the legalization of marijuana. Since when does a single issue define a candidate or a race? And, are these people truly willing to vote for an unscrupulous person simply because he or she is willing to vote their way on this one issue?
Now, I do understand in many cases the issues seem cluster together. The pro-choice, affirmative action, universal insurance candidate against the pro-life, lower taxes, tightened border security candidate. But, I still wonder. What if you agree with a particular candidate on a number of issues and you respect him or her, yet, he's pro-life and you are pro-choice? Would you not vote for him because you disagree on that one issue?
And while I'm on my soapbox, who are these people who vote for a candidate because of his or her negative ads? As I have heard many times, the reason we keep seeing negative advertising is because they are effective in garnering votes. Maybe I'm just strange that way. The more negative ads I see from any given candidate, the less likely I am to vote for that person!
If you have thoughts on these issues, I invite you to share them in the comments. I really would like to better understand how others process this information and come to their decisions. (Thanks!)
Tuesday, November 7
Famous People Born Today
- Marie Curie (1867) Nobel Prize winning Physicist
- Leon Trotsky (1879) Bolshevik leader, assassinated in exile
- Heinrich Himmler (1900) Nazi leader, death camp founder
- Albert Camus (1913) Existentialist writer and philosopher
- Billy Graham (1918) Christian evangelist and teacher
- Mary Travers (1937) Folk singer of Peter, Paul & Mary fame
- Joni Mitchell (1943) musician, songwriter, and painter
- Dana Plato (1964) Actress, known as Kimberly on Diff'rent Strokes
- Amy (1975) Yours truly
Have a special day today.
Monday, November 6
Multiple Cooking Intelleginces
Learning styles and theories of multiple intelligences fascinate me. Unfortunately, I have neither the time nor the inclination to keep up with all the new research (that was one nice thing about grad school, research was made really easy). So, in a half-hearted effort to add more research, I offer my totally anecdotal theory of cooking.
The way I see it, there are two different styles of cooking. One is the French Chef method, which is all about recipes and directions and going out to buy the right ingredients in order to make the best dishes. Then we have the Two Days 'Til Payday method (a.k.a. the Mom method) which is to survey the contents of the cupboards and the fridge then concoct a dish out of what's available. If what you make tastes good, all the better.
Adam is definitely a French Chef cook. He loves complex recipes requiring unusual ingredients and elaborate techniques that, quite simply drive me to distraction. Me? I prefer to dump it all in a bowl, mix it up, and toss it in the oven at 350°. I'm a big fan of casseroles.
For me, cooking is a creative activity. Say, I have about-to-spoil chicken breasts, wilting carrots, droopy celery, and expired-yesterday milk in the fridge, a canister of cornmeal on the counter, and a clean casserole dish (trust me, some days this can make a difference!) in the cupboard. It takes some imagination to mentally convert all that, along with a few other staples, and come up with a chicken and vegetable casserole topped with cornmeal biscuits.
Yum. In fact, we actually do have all those things in our kitchen right now, except for the clean pan. Maybe that's what I'll make for dinner. Adam was supposed to cook tonight. In fact, he's been supposed to cook dinner ever since last Thursday, National Men Make Dinner Day. Maybe I'll let him off the hook again tonight though. He can make it up to me tomorrow (hint, hint).
And maybe I'll even make another batch of blondies. I made these for a football potluck we went to last night (the Bears lost...there was much weeping and gnashing of teeth). I discovered this morning, the blondies are even more yummy refrigerated overnight.
Peanut Butter Blondies
¾ cup peanut butter
½ cup sugar
½ cup brown sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
1½ cups flour
½ cup chocolate chips (optional)
½ cup chopped peanuts (optional)
Step 1: Mix all the indredients together.
Step 2: Spread into a greased 9 x 13 pan.
Step 3: Bake at 350° for 25 minutes or until the center is set.
Now this is my kind of recipe! It should be, I suppose, since I wrote it. If Adam were writing it, there would be several more steps and you'd have to beat the eggs separately and mix ingredients in a specific order. And if you were really a gourmet foodie, you could probably tell the difference between his batch and mine. But since gourmet and I have only a nodding acquaintance, I prefer the easy way.
The way I see it, there are two different styles of cooking. One is the French Chef method, which is all about recipes and directions and going out to buy the right ingredients in order to make the best dishes. Then we have the Two Days 'Til Payday method (a.k.a. the Mom method) which is to survey the contents of the cupboards and the fridge then concoct a dish out of what's available. If what you make tastes good, all the better.
Adam is definitely a French Chef cook. He loves complex recipes requiring unusual ingredients and elaborate techniques that, quite simply drive me to distraction. Me? I prefer to dump it all in a bowl, mix it up, and toss it in the oven at 350°. I'm a big fan of casseroles.
For me, cooking is a creative activity. Say, I have about-to-spoil chicken breasts, wilting carrots, droopy celery, and expired-yesterday milk in the fridge, a canister of cornmeal on the counter, and a clean casserole dish (trust me, some days this can make a difference!) in the cupboard. It takes some imagination to mentally convert all that, along with a few other staples, and come up with a chicken and vegetable casserole topped with cornmeal biscuits.
Yum. In fact, we actually do have all those things in our kitchen right now, except for the clean pan. Maybe that's what I'll make for dinner. Adam was supposed to cook tonight. In fact, he's been supposed to cook dinner ever since last Thursday, National Men Make Dinner Day. Maybe I'll let him off the hook again tonight though. He can make it up to me tomorrow (hint, hint).
And maybe I'll even make another batch of blondies. I made these for a football potluck we went to last night (the Bears lost...there was much weeping and gnashing of teeth). I discovered this morning, the blondies are even more yummy refrigerated overnight.
Peanut Butter Blondies
¾ cup peanut butter
½ cup sugar
½ cup brown sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
1½ cups flour
½ cup chocolate chips (optional)
½ cup chopped peanuts (optional)
Step 1: Mix all the indredients together.
Step 2: Spread into a greased 9 x 13 pan.
Step 3: Bake at 350° for 25 minutes or until the center is set.
Now this is my kind of recipe! It should be, I suppose, since I wrote it. If Adam were writing it, there would be several more steps and you'd have to beat the eggs separately and mix ingredients in a specific order. And if you were really a gourmet foodie, you could probably tell the difference between his batch and mine. But since gourmet and I have only a nodding acquaintance, I prefer the easy way.
I Want to Win!!
Jenny over at Home is Where You Start From is hosting a contest to celebrate her 100th post. Check her out and leave a comment for your chance to win!
And while you're there, check out some of her posts, too. She has a lot of good things to say and some fun photos of her family and animals.
And while you're there, check out some of her posts, too. She has a lot of good things to say and some fun photos of her family and animals.
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