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Monday, July 21, 2014

Comfort food

My mother was not much of a cook.  Her idea of vegetables was canned green beans; dinner ran heavily toward hamburger-based meals; she never baked; her spice rack was salt, pepper, and oregano.  Most of what she cooked was for the early "kids' dinner"; we did not have a lot of money, but she usually had my dad bring take-out for "the grownups" when he came home later.  Her own mother was famous for cooking the Thanksgiving turkey several hours beyond done.  My high school friends feared for me, and offered a crash course in domestic skills, including gourmet cooking boot camp.

My mother-in-law saw food as a way to show love.  When her son and I moved in together, she gave me the Armenian cookbook she had since she was a teenager, by way of welcoming me to the family -- she had long since memorized the recipes.  She made her mother's lamb shish-kebobs and pilaf for holidays, and many other dishes; the love stretched between a generation long gone and the newest additions to the family.  When she visited us or we visited her, she loaded us with bags and bags of food -- Armenian specialties and ingredients, fresh fruit and vegetables from nearby farms, wrapped and frozen steaks and lamb and a special seasoned burger blend for later, baked goods, on and on.  She took the same to her sister's family some hours to the south.  When my mother-in-law died in April, the apartment manager cried and talked about how she would come by with food -- "you've been working too hard; here are some steaks." 

After the not-a-funeral gathering to remember her this weekend, her sister's family and ours met again at MIL's favorite deli and bakery.  I believe we startled the clerk, a store full of relatives buying the entire shop and chattering away with memories.  But it was good.

What food comforts you? And what else is new?

68 comments:

Anonymous said...

Kathy a., what a beautiful tribute to your mother-in-law! She sounds like she was a wonderful woman!
(())
--Neighbor lady

Sue said...

(((kathy))) Such a lovely tribute. I'm glad the not-a-funeral went so well.

Liz said...

Beautiful.

kathy a. said...

Pixies! You are so sweet. But I was serious about comfort food memories. xoxo

esperanza said...

What a great idea for a not-a-funeral. Well done.

Comfort food...cake, brownies, cookies, pie, homemade bread. My mom made all our sandwich bread all through school. For reals.

It is a good gift to marry a partner whose parents were not particularly good cooks, nor did they cook a lot. Even if my experiments flop, he says "Thanks for cooking."

esperanza said...

W: I took the Baboos swimming for an HOUR AND A HALF this afternoon. I am exhausted. They are not. Fighting bedtime, both of them, with all weapons at their disposal...Mini's favorite: throwing books at the bedroom door; Sweet's favorite: the ever-popular whining.

kathy a. said...

Hope things have settled down over there, Esperanza!

Mmmm. Wow, about your mom baking even the sandwich bread.

Queen of West Procrastination said...

Mmm, homemade bread. I grew up on it, too, and Mom and I've been working on our recipe lately. The smell of fresh-baked bread is better for my mental health than anything else I know. (Speaking of which: we're out of bread. I need to get more made tomorrow.)

AW: free flour and oats from Upstairs Cousin! She's Celiac, but she used to make gluteny food for her husband. But there was too much cross contamination happening, and so they're going all GF in their house, and I'm happy to take all the gluten from her.

Also AW: Mr. Q helped his sister move today, and E and I had a nice, quiet day at home. We were both relieved to have our first "normal" day since summer began. (But I'm happy that he'll be home tomorrow. It's just nice having a little quiet once in a while.)

W: So, have you ever had someone hurt your feelings, and then you loudly complained to everyone about it forever, and then much later you found out the rest of the story, and it turned out that their actions (or, in one case, inaction, or the appearance of flakiness) were the result of something else, horrible, going on, which they hadn't told anyone? I had two such revelations this weekend. I'm feeling unobservant and selfish now.

Anonymous said...

(((QWP))) You are not unobservant or selfish! It happens to all of us from time to time....

comfort food: I agree with homemade bread and butter, or even non-homemade toast.
Also, my grandmother made this great dish with fried cabbage and dumplings that is still one of my favorite comfort foods, but is not so comforting now that I have to make it for myself if I want it. Also, have twice clogged the disposal with shredded cabbage--nothing comforting about that....

Also, love pad thai, but have tried to make it so many times and it always tastes terrible--something about the kind of fish sauce I suspect.

Also....Indian food, though many dishes in this country finish with cream, meaning I can no longer eat them...

Of comfort food, where have you gone?!?!?!?
(at least there's still toast!) :)

--Neighbor Lady

Anonymous said...

OK-- not sure why that posted twice....feel free to remove one if you like! Sorry!

Also, my last line was meant to be this great melodramatic whine, "OH, comfort food...." but is slightly less dramatic with a typo. Kind of like slamming the door and getting your skirt caught in it!
D'oh!

Have a great day pixies!

:) Neighbor lady

Sue said...

QWP, you are neither unobservant nor selfish. At all. I'm glad you had a quiet day (sometimes those are nice).

Yummmmm re: homemade bread. Love it. Can't eat it anymore, but I do love it.

I hope the sleep procrastinating didn't go on too long last night esperanza.

kathy a. said...

QWP, that does happen to all of us, sometimes. At least you know now what happened. xoxo

So jealous of homemade bread! We used to have a bread maker around here; wonder what happened to it? I have never been brave enough to try the whole kneading rising punching down etc. without mechanical assistance.

Alas, I also have no luck with pad thai. And our favorite thai place, the pad thai is not what it used to be. Sigh. Speaking of which, my favorite mexican place underwent a sudden change of personality, and on the last (I do mean LAST) visit, it offered burgers.

kathy a. said...

Can't even believe how exciting this day is so far!

2:30 a.m. -- dog got skunked. DogMan was home to deal with it this time.

5:30 a.m. -- RAIN! We are in a drought, and rain never comes in July even in good years.

9:00 a.m. -- mass escape of the fosters, momcat and 3 babies, who are currently galloping around the house. (They are supposed to stay in one room, but have developed mad skillz). I'll probably put them back in the room after a bit, but they are hilarious!

Liz said...

Comfort food: noodles with sour cream. Mac and cheese. Veal cutlet scallopini. Spaghetti with meat sauce.

Tonight I'm having soft shell crab. Yummmm

QWP, I have been there. I apologized for misunderstanding the situation, and hoped they would understand my misunderstanding.

KLee said...

Comfort food -- basically all of the stuff that's really bad for you, I love - sweets, Mac and cheese, fried chicken.... The list goes on.

I made the ever-comforting chicken soup last night since I am developing a cold. Why am I developing a cold? Because its time to go back to school, that's why! Of course. My throat feels like I ingested a package of razor blades. Not fun.

Have had a colossal screw-up (purely of my own making, naturally) with Offspring's financial aid. Now, I am panicking, and feel as if I am treading water at the edge of a whirlpool and trying not to get sucked down into the abyss. Feel a LOT more personal empathy with my poor husband's struggles with depression and anxiety. I COULD NOT do this on a daily basis. Many props to him and all those who suffer so. Walk a mile in their shoes, indeed.

Have not seen Offspring in about a week. Guess this is merely a foretaste of Things To Come.

Am feeling tired, hungry, and edgy. I will close before I infect any others with either the cold spores or the Cloud Of Doom.

Anonymous said...

KLee-- Back to school already?!?!?!?!?!?
That is just wrong.
Just sayin'

Hope you feel better soon!!

--Neighbor lady

KLee said...

We go back on August 1st, and students are back August 7th, NL. We also got out in May this year, so it sort of equals out....

Back to school sick is no fun. Hoping I have it under control by the first.

Chances are slim, especially since I have auditions this Thursday and Saturday, and kind of need my voice to talk and run said auditions.

Joy of joys.....

kathy a. said...

August 1st! That's just cruel!

If my daughter could vote, she would vote mac&cheese x eleventy for comfort food.

KLee, deep breaths. The financial aid will work out. They hire these helpful people to get things fixed. Pinky swear.

What the fireplace about Offspring gone for a week? I assume there is other contact, or we'd be talking federal investigation. :) When does she fly off to school? xoxo

All the fosters, babies and mama, staged a mass escape this morning and ran like goats around the house. It was hiliarous! Rounded them up after a while.

Andy said...

W: Vacation Bible School this week. I am in charge of games, as always, because the fun hyperactive athletic guy with no kids gets games 100% of the time. I am so far behind with everything at home and work that I really don't have time for Bible School this week.

AW: Bible School! And I'm in charge of games! Which means I get to pick on little kids, play pranks on them, and laugh at them when they fall on their faces and it's socially acceptable!

Andy said...

As for actual whines: I haven't gotten mail in a week which makes me believe something is wrong at the post office; my house is still filled with ex stuff, boxes, and trash; I still have an ex on my couch watching my NetFlix on my internets while not packing; I'm expecting a replacement credit card in the mail that hasn't come yet; I have hours and hours and hours of documentation to catch up at work, and we're having a special Patient Fun Days, which, while fun, is also very labor-intensive while I also have to run our unit treatment team which always makes the doctor cranky because they people who are supposed to aren't there; and my foot hurts in a new way which makes me think there might be a stress fracture.

But! Bible School! Today they had to join hands back to back and carry a beach ball in between them to dump it in a tote. It quickly devolved into "Run faster than your partner, drag him behind you, and dump him in the tote." Good times. I'm not overly sure how this teaches them all about Jesus, but I figure the other stations have that part covered.

Anonymous said...

Andy, any chance the ex might have forwarded mail to her other address? Just a thought that if she did it for the whole household and not just her, that might explain where your mail is....

Bible school sounds fun! Lucky them, to have you!
:) Neighbor Lady

kathy a. said...

Oh, I was thinking ex stole all the mail, and that is why she looks so happy. But I have a suspicious mind.

Games sound good!

Queen of West Procrastination said...

Andy, the presence of your ex and absence of your mail are a concerning combination. A friend of mine had her identity stolen with that combination. If you don't receive mail tomorrow, perhaps you should call your credit card company and make sure no one has already validated the new card.

AW: the bread turned out beautifully. (kathy a, I use the whole wheat recipe from the Joy of Cooking, which yields three loaves at a time, and let the dough hook of my mixer do most of the mixing and all of the kneading for me. I just assemble ingredients, turn on the mixer, and eventually shape loaves.)

Also AW: pictures on my walls! My house is still full of boxes (mostly books and Christmas ornaments, waiting for the storage shed to be built), but our place is starting to look like a home.

KLee said...

Yeowch on the stress fracture, Andy! You need to get it checked out before you end up immobile on the couch, next to the ex, who only wants to watch episodes of something hideous, like Say Yes to the Dress, or Kirk Cameron televangelizing.

(Not that I have anything against Christians -- I AM one -- but watching seriously white people preach on TV brings out my inner critic...I always feel there's something slickly shady about TV evangelism. Anyway, I digress...as usual.)

I also echo the sentiment that you should check the mail, and make sure it all wasn't mistakenly sent on to her new address. Or, that she's harboring resentment, and wanting to stick it to you.

QWP -- I love the smell of fresh bread.

Luckily, the financial aid seems, once again, to have worked out. Offspring is laboring under the assumption that the world is out to keep her from going to her Dream School. She is totally convinced that SOMETHING will keep her from attending in the fall, and it's like she's waiting for the other shoe to drop.

I haven't seen her in about a week because she is determined to spend as much time with her friends and boyfriend before leaving for school, and working and house-sitting. I am just using it as a trial run for cooking only for two and not having that extra person across the dinner table. I'm just hoping, at some point, that she misses me, and shows it eventually.

Am feeling a little needy as well as feverish. Excuse my maudlin ramblings.

Sue said...

(((KLee))) I'm glad the financial aid trouble is worked out for now. Sorry you're not feeling good. Bleh.

August 1st for back to school seems so odd to me. It's been July and August as vacation here since I was in kindiegarten. But then, those are really the only decent months for weather around here, so if the kids were asked to be back in school, the parents would seriously revolt.

Wow, Andy. That's a whole lot to manage right now. Thank goodness for fun-times with games to balance out all the awful.

kathy a - Yay for DogMan being home for the latest skunkification!

W: I must be approaching vacation time. When the alarm goes off in the morning, my first impulse is to chuck it across the room and collapse in a puddle of sorrow on the floor. "I Don't Wanna!!" has become my morning mantra.

11 more days.....

kathy a. said...

Andy, hope your foot is better.

QWP -- bread sounds delish. Yay, pictures!

KLee, glad the financial aid is straight. When does her school start?

Also, seriously funny mental picture of Andy and ex in perpetual TV hell. ;)

Sue, you're almost there!

esperanza said...

AW of epic proportions: Favorite Babysitter came and picked up Baboos this morning, transported them to her house, will take them swimming and otherwise wear them out, for my picking up at 3:30. Hours! All! to! Myself! Upholstery Project here I come!

Further AW: Mini slept all night in her own damn bed. You would think this would not be a AW for the mother of a 4 year old, but there you have it. (She's not sleeping in my bed, but frequently roams around the house and ends up on the couch or recliner during the wee hours of the morning.

QWP: is there an online source for the bread recipe? I think you've given it to me before. It's part white flour, part whole wheat flour, right? I'm on a quest for 100% WW sandwich bread, and so far I've been thwarted.

OK, off to the upholstery workshop aka living room.

kathy a. said...

Yay, Dr. Upholstery! Yay, no night wandering! Yay, favorite babysitter!

The entire foster herd, mama and 3 kittens, is galloping around the living room, checking out all this glorious space and the cat toys. They are truly funny!

We're supposed to keep them in one room, but they can all escape the 2.5' barrier now (except when we close the door). The rule is to keep them away from the resident cats (currently hiding in a secret location) and away from the other litter boxes (in my office, which is too scary to enter). The babies go back for their special operations and adoption tomorrow; momcat will stay a bit longer.

kathy a. said...

I got a bunch of veggies at a local family-owned store -- it's like a farmer's market, only open every day, and they have this great italian stuff and nummy baked things too. One block more, and I could be in supermarket superstore, trying not to be hit by SUV's in the parking lot.

So I think we'll be making the veggies and other stuff in the fridge into something good over pasta.

esperanza said...

AW: Best Babysitter Ever got *both* Baboos to jump off the diving board and swim to the side. Sweet did it in swimming lessons last week but then scared herself and quit. There is no way she would have done it for me. But I have video proof.

W: Even after swimming for TWO HOURS, Mini still fought bedtime, and just now fell asleep, an hour later. Ugh. Ready for this phase to pass.

Queen of West Procrastination said...

Esperanza: my recipe is half and half (but I adapt it to be 60%). My friend has a great 100% WW sandwich bread recipe that I keep meaning to try (she made some for me, and it was delicious), and I'm going to have to go looking for it.

Queen of West Procrastination said...

I found it! And accidentally posted this comment in the comments of the recipe first. Dang it.Homestead Revival: Basic Whole Wheat Bread

esperanza said...

Thanks! We may try it tomorrow.

Additional Babysitter AW: she, despite being darker-skinned than my pasty family, did an excellent job applying sunscreen to the Baboos. No sunburns, despite the 2 hours at the worst time of day in the pool.

Sue said...

esperanza, your Awesome Babysitter is, well, awesome!!

I hope you had fun with the upholstery project.

kathy, the kitten chaos sounds wonderful!

esperanza said...

Here's a W about the Awesome Babysitter: she is the typical overachiever, overprogrammed, over-busy high school student. Therefore, she has almost no time to babysit during the school year. :(

kathy a. said...

Daughter has to return the kittens to the shelter, then get to work in less than one hour. She should be leaving, but instead she just got in the shower. This makes me so crazy. It's like, as a matter of principle, she must always run late. Days when she isn't working are just as bad; she managed to get going about 4 p.m. yesterday.

kathy a. said...

Sorry about the limited availability of Awesome Babysitter.

kathy a. said...

W: I'm on this group email list, and there is a fireplacing EPIDEMIC of people hitting reply-all. It's just beyond ridiculous, the past 24 hours.

kathy a. said...

Oh, whiny. Daughter had an accident parking in a garage near work -- she missed hitting a car, but did not avoid running her bumper into a pole. AW: Dad is in charge of this kind of thing. It sounds minor. W: can we just get on a good sleep schedule, already? AW: no lectures. Thus, I must not be as bitchy as I feel.

Sue said...

I hear you kathy. We started telling our son that family dinners start a half hour before they actually begin. ALWAYS late, that boy. Not to work or classes, but otherwise - ugh.

Sorry about the accident - I hope everything is okay.

The house must be quiet after the kitten-fest is over. Until next time... :)

Queen of West Procrastination said...

Kathy a: so, has this reply-all chain started to be flooded with reply-alls, asking people to stop replying-all, or to remove them from the list? That's always my favourite part of this kind of email clusterfireplace.

And I think kathy a needs an award for Patience in the Line of Parenting Adult Children.

AW: our backyard is finally being graded, which means my landlord will soon be able to build storage sheds, which means that soon we won't be surrounded by boxes!

Extra proud of myself: I squeezed a couple more bookcases into our suite, and now I won't have to store any books in the shed. Now, it'll just be camping stuff, Christmas decorations, bikes, and out-of-season clothes out there. (You know: normal stuff that need to be stored. Just a few more trips to the thrift store, and we'll be free of our excess stuff!

kathy a. said...

Thanks.

And QWP, you nailed it about the multiple reply-all reminders to quit it already!

Yay about clearing clutter, future storage sheds, and bookcases!

Momcat will return tonight, assuming the bumper isn't dragging. The poor girl -- think she'll miss her giant babies(they collectively outweigh her now), but also that she is ready to have a break and enjoy the housecat life.

Andy said...

My JJ cat is missing. I've had him for 7 years. I don't have a clue where he could be or how he got out, and I'm not here for most of the day if he decides to come back.

KLee said...

I had auditions for my upcoming show tonight, and I had a small turnout. And, two of the men who auditioned aren't able to do the show! Grrrr.... I hate it when that happens. One was really good, and I definitely would have cast him. Oh, well...... I hope Saturday's auditions are a little more well-attended.

I am not looking forward to having to make calls telling people that I can't use them. That's the sucktacular part of directing.

Queen of West Procrastination said...

Andy: oh no! That's so scary. I hope your cat comes home soon.

KLee: Why would two different people audition when they can't be in the show? That's incredibly frustrating!

W: power outage! I really hope it doesn't last much longer.

kathy a. said...

Oh, Andy. HERE, kitty kitty kitty! (shaking virtual treats)

KLee said...

Andy, so sorry about your kitty! Is there a chance that he could have crawled into a box or cupboard? Mine will find a "nesting" place and be mysteriously "gone" for couple of days, sleeping, and not answer to treats or the clacking sound the pull-tops on her favorite cans of food make. Here's hoping something of the same has happened to your poor guys, and that he's not in the awful Outside. Hope you find him soon!

QWP -- they went through the audition process (one I've worked with twice before, and his friend) before thinking to ask when the performance dates were. Turns out that they are both booked for a weekend in Atlanta during the second performance, and no way to reschedule. Dagnabbit. I was especially amused at the thought of putting the brawny, six-foot-three gentleman in drag, and alas -- I shall not have that chance now. *grumble grumble*

Hope the power is already back on, QWP!

I also so love the email "reply all" blasts. Get them in spades in our educational sector -- some are pedagogical, but mostly, there's 2% actual information there, and 98% bitching. Mostly, it's stuff like why we should be up in arms about how our political candidates suck, and why we aren't getting raises again this year, with assertions that this is why our political representatives suck. And, so the snowball of suck rolls merrily onward.

You're welcome for my bumming out the entire thread. (Sorry). Snark and posting at almost-five in the morning are not my brightest hour. Having one of those insomniac nights, apparently.

esperanza said...

KLee for Mullet "so the snowball of suck rolls merrily onward"

Alternatively, we could arm the posse with snowballs of suck.

On the other hand, it's hot enough here that any kind of snowball sounds pretty appealing.

Sue said...

QWP adds "clusterfireplace" to the lexicon this week (or I may have missed it earlier).

Yay for clearing clutter!!

Andy, I hope kitty finds his way home soon.

Klee, I can't imagine how difficult it must be to make those director's calls to actors. I know you do it with tact and kindness, so I'm sure the actors appreciate that.

I second both award suggestions. kathy's for Patience in Parenting an Adult Child, and Klee's Mullet award for "so the snowball of suck rolls merrily along."

Yes. It does.

W: I'm stuck between a rock and crazy stepmother place. She and my dad are hosting a dinner at their cottage next week and I'm attending. Despite many offers for my sisters and I to bring along food, she is insisting on doing all the cooking.

I can't eat gluten, garlic,or onion. At all. I mean, it gets ugly really quickly. As in, it could wreck a party in an unfortunate way. Which is why I wanted to bring at least one thing I could eat so as not to go hungry.

Stepmother is SO sensitive. She will notice what every person puts on their plate and whether they finish what they take.

So - do I phone and remind her about my food limitations and become the needy, demanding, high-maintenance daughter? Or do I take my chances that something on the table will be edible?

Or, I could leave the country...

Liz said...

Sue: Possible script (taking bull by horns version) --> "[Stepmother], I hate to be the needy, demanding, high-maintenance daughter, but I just want to make sure that there will be at least one dish I can eat, given my medical issues. Will you be making a dish that is free of gluten, garlic, AND onion? Or would you rather I bring one?"

(((KLee)))
(((Kathy)))

(((Andy))) Uh...is ex still at your house? Am I the only one who jumped to a suspicion about her and the cat?

Liz said...

Funny story, re: food issues. My friend Amazing-Woman can't eat olives. She told her MIL that the first or second time they met. MIL has since put olives in everything. Except dessert.

Sue said...

I like that Liz. I'll have to adjust (or omit) any reference to medical issues. She's a retired nurse who doesn't have any time for invisible illness. If you look healthy, you are healthy. Period.

Ya, she's a peach.

kathy a. said...

Oooh, mullet nomination and an excellent addition to the lexicon!

KLee, maybe next time. Although perhaps not every script calls for a tall cross-dresser.

Sue, since your stepmother seems determined to ignore your food limitations -- would one of your sisters be willing to collaborate? If a couple of you bring dishes, you at least won't stand out. Won't solve the problem long-term, but then again, you've had that conversation before....

Even if this was just a food preference, it is so rude to ignore that. If someone is vegetarian, you make sure the table includes vegetarian food. You don't force wine on a teetotler, or peanut butter on an allergic person, or chocolate on a person who doesn't like sweets.

I have problems with eggplant, bananas, and fresh tomatoes -- they all make my mouth itchy. My husband really doesn't understand that, but he gets to eat all of the above items while I eat something else, so it works out.

esperanza said...

I'd be tempted to eat before I go. I tend to get grumpy with hunger, so I'd want to make sure I had something to eat.

Watermelon makes my mouth itch, kathy a.

Anonymous said...

Yeah, my suspicious mind suspected the ex, too, on the cat issue. Hope the kitty reappears quickly, Andy. Maybe it'll bring your mail back with it! :)

Have not gotten much work done in terms of preparing for next school year. ON the other hand, have spent time with friends, and some GREAT time hanging with my sister who has been in town staying with her inlaws. Has not always been a close relationship, so this time is SO special to me.

Am finally (I know) taking Neighbor Boy to doctor today once he told me this morning that his chest has been aching again. I suspect allergies or growing pains (though I'm not totally sure what those are), but we'll see.

Sue, I like Liz's script. I would be tempted to bring something for yourself that you know you could eat. If you just bring enough for yourself, then you're not really "helping with the cooking" if that is what she doesn't want, you're just doing what you need for yourself...


--Neighbor Lady

kathy a. said...

NL -- yay about restoring things with your sister!

Hope NB is ok. Has he been evaluated for asthma?

Sue -- while I agree with NL on a practical level (making sure you can eat something), I prefer a dish to share because it is inclusive, and doesn't separate you from the rest of the family. Stepford mom can get mileage out of "Sue's too uppity to eat our food," but not so much when other people are sharing your dish. IMO, ymmv.

Andy -- hope the mail AND the cat come back.

kathy a. said...

p.s. -- Liz has a good idea about broaching this with stepmom.

kathy a. said...

Maybe in part because my own mom pretty much failed at this -- I really believe in breaking [metaphorical] bread together as a way of bonding. It always works, unless there is no food that includes someone. xoxo

kathy a. said...

It is already 800 degrees here; about to fire up the fans. I've made an experimental wild/mixed rice and bean salad with sweet corn, chilling now in the fridge.

Sue said...

Thanks for all the helpful ideas. I decided to go with a slightly altered version of Liz' script. I emailed it because stepford mom is deaf as a post and I was nervous about her misunderstanding my intent if she didn't hear it fully. (Both she and my dad need hearing aids. *sigh*)

I haven't heard anything back yet.

esperanza said...

Ugh.

W: Baboos and I went swimming at a new-to-us pool. Slippery steps, Mama fell in (unhurt), Baboos scared, whining "I can't" ensued. Shorter swim than intended.

W: Mr E rarely talks to me about office business. The only time he does? When he's having trouble with another member of the staff. Then I hear more than I ever wanted to know.

kathy a. said...

Esperanza -- you got back in, and the Baboos did too, I assume. Good lesson! Like get back on that horse, only more cooling in summer. xoxo

Momcat stayed over at the shelter because she seemed lethargic. She's back today, minus kittens -- and she keeps calling them. Poor momcat. Daughter is engaging with meows and catnip.

Anonymous said...

Kathy a.-- good point. I hadn't thought of that--and I agree it's great to bring food to share.

--NL

KLee said...

Oy. Food woes. We deal with this often in my family, because I'm no seafood, and the husband is no pork. (both are allergies, though mine is life-threatening, and his is not.). My mother CONSTANTLY forgets that JF can't have pork, but it's not a passive-aggressive thing, she truly just forgets. Since she cooks big meals, there's ALWAYS something he can eat. And, lately, he hasn't been eating all that much since he's on a diet. He's lost 55 pounds! (I hate him a little. No, not really!)

I agree with the plan to take a dish, share it out with others, and maybe eat something small before you go, in case there isn't a lot of choice for you. Or, if you would rather, pack a small snack for the journey home in case of the same event.

Esperanza -- are you okay after your fall? Hope you are! And, it's understandable that the Baboos were a little freaked when you fell -- no kid likes to see their parent(s) in pain, and they may not be able to accurately express their alarm. Little ones feel very lost when their parents (who they see as all-powerful) experience pain or hurt.

Well, the snowball of suck has lost a little momentum here in the coastal South -- I managed to reel back in one of my favorite actors to do this show, and I called back a friend who hasn't worked with us in a few years, also a wonderful actor! I'm doing a happy dance!

I only need a couple more men, and I'm good to go!

But, in a suck-balancing move, got notice today from our school system that we (my classification of employee) will have to work an additional half-hour each day, with no pay raise, but I suppose it all works out because it means we will have ten more hours of pay on each paycheck. I need that money, so I'll just have to grit my teeth and bare it.

esperanza said...

Oh, I'm fine, KLee. Falling into water is a good plan, as long as you remember to hold your breath.

We're going to the movies tomorrow. Surely that will be safe.

Hooray for less sucking!

kathy a. said...

KLee, this probably isn't news, but I think most teachers work more than the hours paid. So this sounds like a win!

Queen of West Procrastination said...

KLee, I am so with you on the teaching hours woes. Our government legislated a longer school day last year, and somehow didn't notice that they'd increased teachers' hours without compensating them for it. When called on it, they basically said "Whoops!" and didn't reverse anything. It's now a source of contention, and reason why Mr. Q has gone a year without a contract, as negotiations have stalled again.

So, at least they're paying you for that extra half hour, I think?

W: the weather is making my head hurt. Apparently, I can now forecast thunderstorms: they give me pressure headaches!

Sue said...

I'm sure the movie will be safe esperanza (one piece of popcorn at a time, please). Also, air conditioned, yes??

Still no word from Stepford Mom. At this point, if I hear nothing from her, I'm going to take that as permission to skip dinner and have four desserts. (kidding. kind of.)

Teachers get such a raw deal. It seems there are still some professions where a person's passion for the work is taken as permission to screw them over re: pay. Bleh.

Klee - yay for actors stepping up!! WooHoo!!