You Can't Always Get What You Want

There was a cat food commercial I used to find hilarious,it involved a family that adopted a stray cat on a dark and stormy night. No, I don't find stray or homeless cats funny, but the stray they patted off with a towel was either a Maine Coon or a Persian. Given the state of the cat' s coat he had obviously - and  recently been abandoned by a groomer. The Comercial makes me laugh because well, I've adopted cats off my porch, from under the house, under a bed, the pound and not one has been a Persian. My first cat was a tabby, much like the one I have now. I mentioned I would love to have a cat and a relative deposited one ASAP. I went to the pound for the next one, surely they must have one long haired cat. They might have but I could not see past desperate orange tabby trying so hard to get my attention. Mr Lee came next, born to the stray we took in under Adams bed. The mother took off ASAP, I re homed most of them and we kept the tiny black runt. We were not good at figuring out the boy or girl cat thing so it was intedesting when Mr Lee gave birth to 3 kittens, one of whom had long hair that we kept. We had one brief moment of that tiny longhaired cat- stolen and gone. Claw came next grey and white. Vincent, stray, starving and black appeared next, beaten to a pulp. And now Scout, teeny tabby dumped. I gave up on the persian years ago, I had a patient that put it all into perspective for me. She saved abandoned animals and one day I was admiring one of her rescues. He was a magnificent long haired dark grey cat with the most startling green eyes. I said what a beautiful cat and she rolled her eyes. That cat she said was too damaged and skittish to give to anyone. But,pointing to a half grown one "that yellow cat loves everyone, he is the nicest cat. I took him off a man who was getting ready to break his neck because he wouldn't go away. He just kept coming back and the guy threw him, and he came back again and again". She looked at that cat, angry. "Do you want him,?No of course you don't, who wants him - he's nothing, a nobody. No one wants a plain yellow cat do they?". She took a couple of steadying breaths and apologized for getting so upset, but I could see what she meant. So after that MY perspective changed - which is why my cats come off the porch, out from under beds and are retrieved from the garage. To quote The Stones you don't always get what you want, but if you try - sometimes you get what you need. 

Keeping Occupied

See

I got money for Christmas, but the sad thing about getting older is your need - and want of stuff seriously decreases. You still want big stuff - the second home, the Porshe, the Bahamas in winter.  But the general crap of my 20 and 30's is meh. Part of it is where I live, between a Gabes in every town and a ton of stores I can get anything in any color 50% most of the time. But there are only so many office clothes you can wear and when I'm home, well the cows don't care about my fashion sense and I don't care what the stupid neighbors think of course. I pretty much much blew my money on yarn, ebooks and, well, I still have the rest of it. David and I stopped years ago buying gifts for each other. We go out for a day a couple weeks after and have lunch and go shopping. I eventually find something I want. The eReader has changed my book buying, I bought a couple series and the latest ones, but even that was a low roar. I have more books than I can read now,adding more is not helping. The weather is perfect for reading, the temperature has been horrible. Yesterday my car read -6 as we were tooling along. It warmed up to a big 30 today, I am complaining a little but not too much. Up until now it has not been too bad and really spring is not far that off. We did a little house peeping today, nothing serious since the Bridgeport house is still in the pending file, but it's fun to see what's out there. The internet makes it easier to find houses but it's criminal the poetic license real estate use with the pictures. The house was on a couple acres. Outbuildings, pool, bucolic and straight out of a John Denver song. We sat in the driveway arguing if it was occupied. A call to the RE - estate sale. As we came up the driveway it became less John Denver and more Janis Joplin. Every door on the outbuildings hung open, the above ground pool had not held water recently. The siding and decking were suffering from rot or termites. I got out of the car while David talked to the agent,went around back for a little window peeping. Tried the door - not locked!! But David did the Felony Speech so I stayed out. I was able to see they had a huge hole in the floor and had pulled up the carpeting.  You don't do that unless there's a good or a bad reason. It also had a well and I am a super not big fan of wells, in my experience with Wells is they tend to dry up or get funky. When the power goes out you're out of water too. Our house must've had a well at some point because downstairs in our little root cellar are jars and jars of stored water, neatly standing ready for disaster. I don't have the heart to get rid of them. On the house that we looked at -we are gathering more information but it is most likely a no go, the rot is not fixable and even if it is, you would also need to fix the source of the rot and I'm pretty sure thathat is a horrible issue. So on we go. Right now the one house is uunder ontract and the other movinguys along so we will be window shopping for awhile

Oops!

I had to show my latest bruise to David twice - I showed it to him the other day and he was just meh about it. I thought it was impressive - I actually  managed to bruise the top of my foot, a pretty difficult feat if you ask me. How do you bruise the top of your foot you wonder - well, I was clearing brush in the woods with the dogs nearby. We started back and Molly started running, I started  too because that's what I do. We were jumping ditches and the third one, well not so much. I didn't realize the ground had defrosted enough to make mud. As I hit the other side my foot slipped, whacked it on a branch and back in the ditch I went. Molly hopped back in too since it looked so fun and then Reuben popped back. Descendents of Lassie they are not. So when I showed to David it had not quite gone technicolor yet so that is what led him to declare it was not my best work. It did darken up today but David remains not impressed. But that's ok, given my klutz nature there will be more opportunities. I fall probably once a month or so, there's nothing neurological wrong with me - I simply don't watch where I'm going and run into, fall on, fall off and fall over a variety of objects. But on the upside I have never broken anything, not a toe, not a finger,nada. Neat! I other news I got a new car this weekend. My Subaru was only a 2012 but given my huge amount of driving I've racked up almost 80,000 miles and am that far from the end of my extended warranty. I was at the point of needing new tires, new brakes, etc.. I was not overly happy with the car, not that there's anything wrong with it - it's a fine car but just didn't suit me. We had started looking a couple of weeks ago the used car market is pretty good right now. I ended up with another Subaru but the Forester. It's higher off the ground, same gas mileage, only had 2000 miles and was quite a bit less than the CRVs I had been looking at. The payments are about the same and I got a better warranty. It took longer than I thought it would - I usually give it half an hour including the free coffee. But they prefer it take like three long days or so in which you are forced to sit in the lounge and drink not so good coffee until your heart stops just for something to do. But like all good things it did end and I have a pretty super ride this week. We are still muckin around with the Bridgeport house, deal fell through again, that's twice. It's upsetting and annoying but we've been down this road before.  Our record for selling a house is four times, so here's to hoping we don't break our record.

Happy Holidays

Christmas over the years has changed - and changed back. Many, many years ago it was just David and I, when we got married we moved a big 3 miles from where I had grown up and 7 miles from where David had been raised. We celebrated the way we remembered, well, minus the screaming alcohol fueled fights for me, but that was an adjustment. I came from a family that put the tree up weeks before and took it down soon after. David's family waited until Christmas eve and then kept it up.mingling these two traditions meant the tree was up for a glorious 30 seconds so I waited to take it down. The entire day was spent running from one house to another, at that time everyone still lived on LI and I still had a (little) relationship with my father's side of the family. First child was born and then everything exploded. The tree got bigger, the present pile got deeper, house hopping got infinitely more difficult. Child number two arrived, more presents, more mayhem. My sister moved, I had drastically decreased the time we spent with my father's side, my mother remarried a man with half a dozen adult children. Time moved on, we eventually morphed our tradition into quick runs to family, home, then out to the Asian restaurant. It was so much fun. More family moved, Adam joined the Navy, we began to move -  and then there were three. We moved to the Poconos and found it almost impossible to find an open restaurant - so, I started cooking. We adjusted again, I made a turkey breast instead of a full turkey, tofurky for me. It was happy times, the novelty and all. Then Jackson joined the navy,got married -and now he and Brandi will be starting their own traditions. Adam has also moved, he lives rather happily on the edge of Kentucky and Ohio. And we are back to two. Just us. We stopped buying presents for each other years ago, this year I did try, but I picked it,put it down. David doesn't need anything, most of my needs are virtual.We still do the tree, still do the Asian restaurant, hang with the dogs, back to the beginning. Back to the start. 

v Is For Vegetarian

I usually pack a lunch when an office sponsored meal is in the offering. But since it was coming from Panera I figured there would be something I could have so for once I  came in with no back up food. And technically there was something for me to have -  while everyone dug into rich dishes of pasta I sat with, sigh, yet another plate of iceberg lettuce. Rosemary garlic chicken was heaped, I had steamed broccoli. And I know that my meat free diet is my own choice, no one is making me - and seriously I'm not starving, but it makes me feel so self conscious. It takes a very short period of time to eat a little salad, you end up sitting there pushing an olive around your plate hoping it will just be over soon. Bigger functions are actually better for meals, if you're signing up they usually ask if you have any diet restrictions - I've even found that most of the time they'll even ask what type of vegetarian ( for those of you interested I am an ovo-lacto which means I eat some dairy products). Things have gotten better since I first became vegetarian almost 25 years ago - my friend Jeanne had laughingly warned me not to EVER tell the waiter when I went out that I was a vegetarian, unless of course I didn't mind dining on steamed celery. And that was a good rule but with so many people going meat free for ethical, health, and other reasons most places have at least a couple dishes I can have. And I've also found that if you ask they frequently have non advertised  vegetarian meals or they will adjust the food for you.  One of the best meals I've ever had was when I started to order and the waitress stopped me and asked.when I said I was she announced that the chef would make me a great vegetarian meal - he did and I strongly suspect he was one of "us". I have come to the realization in the past few years I most likely will never be able to eat meat again, even after all this time I still cannot bring myself to even think about it too hard. I can buy it, cook it, store it - just can't eat it. I wonder if I started smoking again if I could eat it again. Most people that know me know that soon after I quit smoking my sense of taste came back big time - two things happened. First I became obsessed with chili, at one point I was even eating it for breakfast - for at least two months there was not a chili I didn't love. I remember going out to lunch with a friend who sat there in astonishment as I ate a pail sized bowl down to the bottom and mused about seconds. The second was an increasing distaste for meat that even eventally led to well, now. So I guess I'll just make sure I have my back up food - just in case and really in the grander scheme of things, if you only can have a salad it leaves all the more room for cake!

The Great Cookie Experiment

Well, for the first time around things did not go badly. I've sent cookies out before, but not such a mass mailing. All told it was 14 boxes and with the exception of Nancy and Ray all out to relatives, from New Jersey to Nebraska they are out. Making them was not as hard as you might think, but I planned well ahead. I found my handwritten old recipe book for the gingerbread first. Out of everything I can make that is the one that really brings home the feeling of the holiday. Then Spritz of course, sugar cookies, molasses, chocolate chip. I wanted macaroons but some of the recipes were beyond complicated. I found one from Food & Wine that had 5 ingredients and minimal fuss - sold! My requirements were easily found ingredients, ingredients that could be used in multiple recipes - the chocolate chips are one of the main ingredients in my chocolate hard sauce and then were used in cookies. Idid a shopping trip specifically for what I needed, made up all the rolled  doughs a week  ahead of time, found all baking stuff. When I got home on a Friday I started baking gingerbread,  then got up early the next morning and rolled, baked, cooled, iced, decorated, dried, baked again. David bought me two giant containers and I layered wax paper to cushion and keep them fresh. Homemade cookies, especially gingerbread are better if they sit for a few days. During the week David brought home boxes - I had decided on flat rate priority mail rather than use the boxes that needed weighed. And then I packed, wrote out cards, taped, addressed, and stacked. David mailed them from our wee little post office for two days, half at a time. The second day he showed up with the remaining 7 boxes and a plate of cookies for the post lady. And then off they went. I checked my tracking and they have all either arrived or are imminently due. Cost wise I think between ingredients, shipping, and a few extra expenses  (I found some really cute Christmas cloths that I used for padding) it was close to $400 - not a cheap date, any of you. On the other hand I made enough Christmas cookies for everyone, just about. Did everyone that got them like getting them?Next year I am planning on doing it again and will expand my list a little depending on the feedback I get - but its been positive so far.This year was more of a trial run, it was a little hard to figure out how many cookies I would need, how long, etc.. But I have to say it was fun doing this and I very much liked that even though we are so far away from each other I can still do some baking for everyone

A Note To My Family

So far this weekend I have made 4 batches of  chocolate chip cookie bars, 3 sugar cookies, 4 of spritz, 2 soft molasses, 3 shortbread, 2 chocolate puffs, 3 coconut macaroon, 2 batches of eggnog cookies and last but not least four batches of gingerbread. You would be more impressed if you knew the above gingerbread recipe came from Bakum and crew, liz's family who I am sure are responsible for the phrase "go big or go home" - each batch of gingerbread contains 6 cups of flour to start. seriously, those people feel if you're not cooking for an army you might as well not even bother. I've made gallons of royal icing, chocolate hard sauce, iced, stacked and ready to roll. Because this year, this year I am not sending gift certificates. The boys and Brandi will get of course and Rhi, but everyone else gets cookies I made myself. The past few years our family due to being so far from one another has gotten into the habit of exchanging gift certificates - I have started to feel like we could just take the same money and shift it back and forth I get a certificate for Amazon, I send one for Applebee's. So this year I baked - it's not saving me any money mind you. The ingredients cost a fortune, butter, sugar, ten pounds of chocolate chips, they will have to be packed and mailed, actually it might end up costing a little bit more. Because I'm sending to more family members this year, instead of shrinking my list I'm expanding it. Maybe no one will like it, they could get broken and I could be responsible for a mass wave of crumbs washing up on everyone's doorstep. I might go back to gift certificates next year as this has been no easy task, I literally baked all weekend from  8 in the morning til 6 at night. But it was fun, I can still make the chocolate hard sauce from memory, still have that double boiler I bought at a yard sale. It looks about the 40's or 50's. When I bought it years ago it looked well used - and it continues to be to this day. I have not baked in years and it all came  back in an easy rhythm, I mixed and baked using one recipe that called for yolks and balanced that with one that called for whites, my timing was spot on - as soon as one batch came out the next was ready to go. And as of an hour ago, they are done, packed in layers and layers of wax paper. During the week I'll be getting the boxes from the post office, packing them all up tight and off they'll go. So be warned - don't look for your gift card this year. I will not be looking for one either. Just remember when you get your box of Christmas cookies - or Christmas dust - that someone was thinking about you this year and thought you were worth the work.