A funny thing happened when I came to write a new post. I didn't have anything I wanted to say. I couldn't find the words that led to anything I thought anyone would have any particular interest in hearing or reading. I wrote a few things. I reread them. I deleted them. I did it all again and then I repeated the process, several times. In the end, I realized I was staring at exactly what I had when I started. A blank page.
So I stared at it for a while longer, but nothing changed. It was still blank.
I decided to give it a rest, so I saved it as a draft and left it for a few weeks. When I came back and looked at it again, it hadn't changed. It was still the same blank page.
No. Still nothing.
TT
Wednesday, December 4, 2013
Friday, November 29, 2013
Clean
Thanksgiving was wonderful! The tried and true menu we repeat year after year is quite the spread. I'll copy our menu at the end of this post, but the picture above is the cleaned up version of the onslaught of food and it's preparation we had going on in my small kitchen.
I've gotten the entire area clean. Dishes are being taken care of in the dishwasher, and I have hand washed all the large pots, pans, and other paraphernalia that was used yesterday. I've swept and mopped the floors, tablecloths are in the washing machine, and I even put out the recycle bin to the curb for pick-up.
Now, I have the entire day to enjoy the house in it's proper order with the thought of what a great get-together we had and all that we have to be thankful for.
There are a few other things I should probably take care of, but I will tackle the refrigerator a little later.
TT
Thanksgiving Day Menu
Crustini with Basil Pesto
Crackers
with Bacon Cream Cheese & Sour Cream Spread
Roasted Turkey
Cornbread Stuffing
Gravy
Green Beans
Roasted Sweet Potatoes
Mashed Potatoes
Carrots
Collard Greens
Broccoli
Cauliflower
Cheese Sauce
Cranberry Sauce
Rolls
Lot's of Wine
Pelligrino
Pomegranate Juice
Thursday, November 28, 2013
No onions
The Thanksgiving day turkey is in the oven. It's a big twenty-three pounds so it will take about seven hours to roast. I made all my preparations but now is the time in-between when I can relax for a spell before any real cooking starts up again.
I worked yesterday until 1:00 and then headed to the store to pick up my fresh veggies for today. I managed that in all of 45 minutes. Once home I was able to bake my cornbread and two pies. I was also able to pull my turkey out of the fridge, give it a rinse and pull the neck and giblets out to cook. This is all normal procedure. I've done it so many years consequently that it is pretty fail-proof.
This morning, I rose and started to put together my cornbread stuffing. I broke up my cornbread with crumbled french rolls, sage, thyme, rosemary flat-leaf parsley, celery. Onion. Where's the onion? We have no onion!
I stopped what I was doing and opened the darkened door to the bedroom and announced to a sleeping Jay, "We don't have any onions!"
"What?" he managed to grog out in his sleep.
"You used all the onions, we have no onions."
At this he pushed himself up in the dark and sat up. "ME? You're blaming me?"
I didn't waste any time on argument. "We don't have any onions for the stuffing. There will be No onions in the stuffing." I think I was trying to absolve myself of any complaints about the stuffing more than trying to point a finger of blame. I had been to the store the day before and didn't think to buy onions. We always have onions!
So the turkey is in the oven with freshly made cornbread stuffing with no onions. I am taking a short break now before starting any other prep for the feast. I was going to make the pesto for the crustini appetizers but I thought this break might be a better idea. You see, I went to start making the pesto and found I didn't have any olive oil! What?
And I was so confident that this was all so very fail-proof.
TT
I worked yesterday until 1:00 and then headed to the store to pick up my fresh veggies for today. I managed that in all of 45 minutes. Once home I was able to bake my cornbread and two pies. I was also able to pull my turkey out of the fridge, give it a rinse and pull the neck and giblets out to cook. This is all normal procedure. I've done it so many years consequently that it is pretty fail-proof.
This morning, I rose and started to put together my cornbread stuffing. I broke up my cornbread with crumbled french rolls, sage, thyme, rosemary flat-leaf parsley, celery. Onion. Where's the onion? We have no onion!
I stopped what I was doing and opened the darkened door to the bedroom and announced to a sleeping Jay, "We don't have any onions!"
"What?" he managed to grog out in his sleep.
"You used all the onions, we have no onions."
At this he pushed himself up in the dark and sat up. "ME? You're blaming me?"
I didn't waste any time on argument. "We don't have any onions for the stuffing. There will be No onions in the stuffing." I think I was trying to absolve myself of any complaints about the stuffing more than trying to point a finger of blame. I had been to the store the day before and didn't think to buy onions. We always have onions!
So the turkey is in the oven with freshly made cornbread stuffing with no onions. I am taking a short break now before starting any other prep for the feast. I was going to make the pesto for the crustini appetizers but I thought this break might be a better idea. You see, I went to start making the pesto and found I didn't have any olive oil! What?
And I was so confident that this was all so very fail-proof.
TT
Saturday, November 23, 2013
November 23, 1979
It was a Friday, and that year it fell the day after Thanksgiving. We both had the day off from work and we thought it was as good a day as any to take that next step together.
We were already living together. He had moved into my apartment a good 9 months before this date. He had asked me the question six months prior and I put him off. I wasn't sure this was the way I wanted things to go. I wasn't sure I was ready. I wasn't sure. So I put off the decision. He persisted, and after what seemed like an enormous amount of time I finally said yes.
So the day after Thanksgiving, a Friday, on November 23, 1979 we were married. That was 34 years ago today. We have never had the Friday after Thanksgiving off again, in all that time, so it seems we only had that small window of opportunity to take advantage of the situation.
Our honeymoon was a weekend get-away at the beach thirty minutes from our apartment. We stayed the first night then drove back home and bought furniture. I remember browsing the fancy furniture store, both of us dressed as beach bums, and getting side-ways looks from the salespeople. They didn't take us seriously, and I believe one or two must have cursed themselves silently for ignoring us when our final purchase was wrung-up and paid. Through the years, it's seems most of our major purchases have been made when we weren't dressed to impress. It might be because we have a knack of discussing these matters, letting some time pass in-between, and then spontaneously going out and doing it while we are in the middle of spending time on the beach or working in the yard. It's worked. We've worked. Thirty four years worth of work because I won't say there weren't times when both of us thought of pulling out that marriage certificate to check the expiration date.
We could never have predicted all those years ago that we would still be here today, together. We hoped, and thought we had a good shot of it, or we wouldn't have done it. All that time ago it was okay to be unsure, and okay to put off the decision. All that time ago, he persisted. And we both have, for the past thirty four years. We're not planning on stopping now.
Our wedding anniversary is not the day after Thanksgiving this year. It's today, which is a cold, rainy Saturday and he is going to work. But when he gets home, we are looking forward to going out to dinner and drinks, and next week, we both made arrangements to be off from work the Friday after Thanksgiving. We are too far away now to drive to the beach, but who knows, maybe we will dress down and make some large purchases or some other such foolishness. But whatever we decide to do, we are certainly looking forward to all those next steps together.
TT
We were already living together. He had moved into my apartment a good 9 months before this date. He had asked me the question six months prior and I put him off. I wasn't sure this was the way I wanted things to go. I wasn't sure I was ready. I wasn't sure. So I put off the decision. He persisted, and after what seemed like an enormous amount of time I finally said yes.
So the day after Thanksgiving, a Friday, on November 23, 1979 we were married. That was 34 years ago today. We have never had the Friday after Thanksgiving off again, in all that time, so it seems we only had that small window of opportunity to take advantage of the situation.
Our honeymoon was a weekend get-away at the beach thirty minutes from our apartment. We stayed the first night then drove back home and bought furniture. I remember browsing the fancy furniture store, both of us dressed as beach bums, and getting side-ways looks from the salespeople. They didn't take us seriously, and I believe one or two must have cursed themselves silently for ignoring us when our final purchase was wrung-up and paid. Through the years, it's seems most of our major purchases have been made when we weren't dressed to impress. It might be because we have a knack of discussing these matters, letting some time pass in-between, and then spontaneously going out and doing it while we are in the middle of spending time on the beach or working in the yard. It's worked. We've worked. Thirty four years worth of work because I won't say there weren't times when both of us thought of pulling out that marriage certificate to check the expiration date.
We could never have predicted all those years ago that we would still be here today, together. We hoped, and thought we had a good shot of it, or we wouldn't have done it. All that time ago it was okay to be unsure, and okay to put off the decision. All that time ago, he persisted. And we both have, for the past thirty four years. We're not planning on stopping now.
Our wedding anniversary is not the day after Thanksgiving this year. It's today, which is a cold, rainy Saturday and he is going to work. But when he gets home, we are looking forward to going out to dinner and drinks, and next week, we both made arrangements to be off from work the Friday after Thanksgiving. We are too far away now to drive to the beach, but who knows, maybe we will dress down and make some large purchases or some other such foolishness. But whatever we decide to do, we are certainly looking forward to all those next steps together.
TT
No way
I have stowed the items I bought and will now begin to prepare the list of items I will need to return to the store and buy, at a date closer to the festivities, that are more perishable. I will also need to purchase all the things I forgot in this first round...like Pelligrino. How did I forget that! And a number of other things.
But that is why this is only step one. This is a process. There is no way, no matter how many times I have done this before, that I can ever get this done in one step. Impossible. It's just too big a celebration. There is just too much food and preparations and ideas.
No, wait. That's not right. There is no way this could ever be too big or too much. Not when it comes to this...
TT
Monday, November 18, 2013
Misfit
I've been spending a lot of time on this writing.com site. I've been trying to figure out where I fit within this massive virtual writing community. There are so many different activities, contests, newsletters, works of fiction, reviewing groups, blogging groups, poetry forums. I could go on and on.
I have been trying to figure out the best way to get involved within this seemingly wonderful place. I've been trying. I've been reading the newsletters, I've tried a few posts, I've watched and read and tried to do things to find a place where I felt comfortable within this writer's confines.
It finally dawned on me and I've come to the realization that I don't fit. Again. I don't get it. I can't figure it out. I don't know what I'm supposed to do to fit into this virtual land. Then I realized I don't fit into any virtual land. And I'm not sure that is such a bad thing.
The only reason I went out to this site, and the other I bailed on, was to get someone else to read what I've written and hopefully get comments in return that would help guide me along a better writing path. I had to get some type of gauge to judge what I was writing. I've done that with the few things I've posted and I've average fairly well with a 4 stars out of 5 for my work. That should give me my gauge. I learned some very good things and gathered some good information.
The problem is I get caught up in all the other paraphernalia the site offers. I need to stay focused on using that site as a place to help in reviewing my work, and discard all the extra offerings that I don't actually need. It wasn't my focus when I joined to use all my time searching the site. I wasn't looking to fit into a virtual community. I was looking for input on my writing. I got that.
TT
I have been trying to figure out the best way to get involved within this seemingly wonderful place. I've been trying. I've been reading the newsletters, I've tried a few posts, I've watched and read and tried to do things to find a place where I felt comfortable within this writer's confines.
It finally dawned on me and I've come to the realization that I don't fit. Again. I don't get it. I can't figure it out. I don't know what I'm supposed to do to fit into this virtual land. Then I realized I don't fit into any virtual land. And I'm not sure that is such a bad thing.
The only reason I went out to this site, and the other I bailed on, was to get someone else to read what I've written and hopefully get comments in return that would help guide me along a better writing path. I had to get some type of gauge to judge what I was writing. I've done that with the few things I've posted and I've average fairly well with a 4 stars out of 5 for my work. That should give me my gauge. I learned some very good things and gathered some good information.
The problem is I get caught up in all the other paraphernalia the site offers. I need to stay focused on using that site as a place to help in reviewing my work, and discard all the extra offerings that I don't actually need. It wasn't my focus when I joined to use all my time searching the site. I wasn't looking to fit into a virtual community. I was looking for input on my writing. I got that.
TT
Tuesday, November 12, 2013
No Dashing
No Dashing
|
| As much as I wanted to follow up my Sunday run with another Monday afternoon it didn't happen. I knew I had an appointment to take my car to get it's 35,000 mile maintenance, but I was hoping it wouldn't take as long as expected and I would be able to dash home in order to dash around my neighborhood before it was too late. The dashing didn't happen. Either variety. It took over two hours for the car maintenance to be completed, which put me into rush hour traffic to get home. It was already dark when I pulled into my drive and I knew the possibility of even a quick dash around the block was out of the question. It wasn't going to happen. I had a co-worker question me about the small amount of miles on my car. It's a 2007 with only 35,000 miles? The car already attracts it's own attention being that it is a small, compact, convertible two-seater. Then when you mention the current mileage people get the impression you are being pretentious and have a 'weekend car'. It isn't that at all. I drive the car every day. I have the luxury of having only an eight minute drive to work, unless there is traffic and then it's ten minutes. Really. This is the car I use every day. I just don't have to drive it very far. Unless it's time for maintenance and then I have to go across town. Then the co-worker very cleverly pointed out, "you run more miles in a year than your car does". Cute, clever. No. Yesterday, I was only going to dash three miles. The car is way ahead of me. TT |
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