Five Things 1

Five Things Tuesday Kitchen Essentials

Five things you absolutely need in the kitchen in random order of importance (and yes I am aware it is no longer Tuesday but there’s probably another one coming up):

1. An Instant Pot. Because let’s face it, the less time you have to spend messing about with food, the better your state of mental health. This may not be true for everyone, but I personally swear by it. Get in, get out, do something else.

2. Lots and lots of bowls and utensils and pots and pans and measuring paraphernalia and baking things so that there is always something hanging about for you to grab which will probably work for whatever you’re trying to prepare. I find if you make a colossal mess people are more likely to believe you worked really hard.

3. More than three electrical outlets, for the love of God. (Sorry, there’s really no need to involve God in this.) Whoever wired our house did not ask his wife for advice on how many kitchen plug-ins are required, apart from the ones for the fridge and the stove of course, for anyone to function like a normal person who doesn’t trip breakers while using more than two appliances at once. She would have told him minimum fifty. All working independently. I can’t brew coffee and make toast at the same time. Add something going in the microwave to that and the whole place blows up. Me included.

4. A really good dishwasher. We are going to get one of those, I swear, because at the moment we have a really bad one. It turns on, sprays water around, makes everything very hot and turns itself off, all without doing any actual cleaning. I use it every day relentlessly, willing it to self destruct.

5. Lots and lots of cupboards and shelves and drawers and nooks and crannies to store all the stuff you’ve accumulated over the years, including special storage for all those things you don’t actually use, but you might someday, so you can’t just throw them out. My mom used to say you can have too many cupboards for exactly this reason. I have never in my life had “too many” cupboards. See item number two above.

I sincerely hope this list was helpful, while at the same time being reasonably certain it totally wasn’t. One last essential thing you don’t necessarily have to keep in the kitchen, just handy on all your devices – the app for Skip the Dishes.

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Share Your World January 13, 2020

What’s something your brain tries to make you do, which you have to will yourself NOT to do?  (could be a bad habit, a physical response to something…your interpretation is as good as mine! )

My brain tries to make me fall asleep while I’m reading. That’s because I’m in bed and relaxed and comfy and warm, it’s probably late and I’m no doubt tired. You can see why my brain gets confused. It gently nudges me to slow my breathing as it closes my eyes, while it continues on with the narrative which I am no longer reading because I can’t see it. In other words, it starts making shit up. I think it is hoping I won’t notice and will just drift off into oblivion. It’s not skilled at believability unfortunately, and if things get too wonky and weird I wake up with a start, because whatever strange turn the story has taken, even my brain has to admit that can’t be right. So I have to will myself to focus and backtrack a few lines so I can find out what really happened.

Having a confrontation with my own brain is something I’ve honestly never thought about before. I wonder if I ask it nicely if it would stop telling my hands to release their grip on my kindle at the same time as all this other stuff is happening. Because getting clunked in the face while falling asleep is counterproductive.

When someone finds out what you do, or where you are from, what question do they always ask you?

They normally just stifle a yawn and change the subject. I’m from eastern Canada, now living in western Canada, and I’m retired. See? You’re already looking ahead to the next question.

What’s something terrifying that we’ve all come to accept as a fact of life?

Corruption fueled by greed. The good guys play by the rules and the bad guys don’t.

Should governments make laws to protect people from harming themselves?  Could that even work?  (yes this one is deep, maybe too deep).

Isn’t that what they do already? There are all kinds of laws supposed to keep us from harming each other. How’s that working out for all of us? Gah, don’t get me started on politics and the state of the world. Ignorance (of the willful kind) and stupidity are rampant. Make a law against that.

Gratitude is an Attitude…
Please share your gratitude for this past week in the form of a photo, a quote or a thought.   🙂

“Paradoxical as it may seem, the purposeful life has no content, no point. It hurries on and on, and misses everything. It is only when there is no goal and no rush that the human senses are fully open to receive the world.”

— Alan Watts

This struck such a raw nerve with me, the purposeful life hurrying on and on, missing everything. I remember one long ago morning rushing around getting ready for work thinking it was all so pointless. Showering, getting dressed, fixing my hair, putting on makeup, grabbing something to eat, backing out of the driveway, being mad at moron drivers, dealing with idiots all day and coming home exhausted. Tomorrow I’d have to get out of bed and do everything all over again, and then the day after that and the day after that and on and on until death set me free. It was pretty depressing and I’ve never forgotten the feeling. But I’ve also never experienced it again to that depth of despair. I’m grateful for that.

Tiny poll:   I’m curious what type of questions YOU, the reader, would like to see more of?   Less of?   Has SYW gotten too philosophical and less fun in nature?

Life is as depressing or as fun as you choose to make it, regardless of what bits of your world you’re prompted to share. I think the questions are a nice mix of silly and serious.

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Share Your World January 6, 2020

 

Is ‘hello” enough for you these days?  (credit to Rory –https://aguycalledbloke.blog/2019/12/29/is-hello-enough-for-you-these-days/ )

If it includes eye contact and a genuine smile, it’s good enough for me. However, if it also includes asking me if I’m over 55, and acting surprised when I claim to be 15 years beyond that, even better. And then telling me I qualify for a seniors discount, simply for being old – wow! This happened to me. I wasn’t even wearing makeup and my hair was still damp and a tad wild from my shower. Normally I dont leave the house looking like that, but maybe I should try it more often.

Do you believe in Murphy?   For those who aren’t familiar with Murphy, here’s a wee explanation:  Murphy’s law is an adage or epigram that is typically stated as: “Anything that can go wrong will go wrong”.

Yes, I am a faithful follower of all things Murphy. That way, when things go right, it’s a mini celebration.

Does evil come from within?  If so, why?

Within, without, above, below and maybe even sideways, you just never know. I used to believe we weren’t born with it, but the nicest people can end up with the wildest houligans. One thing I know for sure, hate being the greatest evil, it can spread like wildfire.

Are intelligent people more or less happy than others?   What defines intelligence?

Not sure intelligence has much to do with happiness. I’ve met some pretty stupid people who aren’t at all sad about it.  Intelligence is the ability to learn, understand, and reason.  And then not act like a moron.  Unless that’s what makes you happy.  I try not to judge.

Gratitude Section

Please feel free to share a quote, photo or thought about gratitude.

Hmmm, what am I grateful for today.  Not the big snow dump we got overnight, or the drop in temperature, but because of both those things I’m grateful for a spouse who delights in snow blowing.  The house is warm, the sun is shining, the days are getting longer, the grocery shopping was done just before the weather got crappy, and I have chocolate ovaltine in the cupboard.  Sorry to the people who gagged about that last one.

I also talked to my sister this morning and have started another crochet project, this time for my daughter-in-law.  Those things aren’t exactly related, it’s just how my intelligent mind works, stating random things out of the blue and being annoyingly happy about weird stuff.

Life is good.  January is long.  Time to stop talking. Until next time.

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Share Your World 12/28/19

What was the single best thing that happened in your life this past year?

I woke up three hundred and sixty five mornings in a row.

 The most challenging?

Getting out of bed three hundred and sixty five mornings in a row.

One thing you learned in 2019?

It is not a good idea to travel by car on the trans Canada highway in late October in a raging blizzard and freezing rain.  Well I knew that already, but a scary hour or so of getting caught in bad weather reinforced this for us.  We were heading west and the storm was heading east, so it all worked out in the end, after I helped W pry his clenched fists off the steering wheel.

Given all your experiences, insights, and lessons learned in 2019, what’s the best advice you could give yourself for 2020?

Stop spending so much time on Twitter, for the love of God.  It is making you crazy.

What’s the best meal/food you ate in 2019?

Anything I did not cook myself.  Except maybe for that one beef roast.  Neither of us could recall the last time I cooked one of those, so it was a rare and delicious treat.  Sorry, vegetarians.  Truly we don’t make a habit of it.

That Tim Horton’s iced cappuccino I treated myself to on the way home from Ontario was memorable.  I’m not supposed to consume that much sugar, probably in an entire day, never mind 10 minutes, or however long it took me to drain the cup.  It was worth every blissful slurp from the straw.  I wanted to lick the ice cubes.

What are three activities you plan to use in the coming year to relieve stress?

Blogging, crocheting, reading, Netflixing.  You may notice that each of these ‘activities’ involves sitting down.

Gratitude Question:

What brought you the most joy and are you going to do more of that?

Well joy is a little overrated.  I can settle quite happily for contentment.  We are SO lucky to have our kids and their families close by.  I treasure the time we spend together.

Lastly – Any resolutions you’d care to share?

Nope. I gave up on those.  There is no point in setting lofty goals for yourself and failing miserably. If there are positive changes, great! If not, oh well.

Here’s to 2020 and positive change everywhere in everyone’s world.

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Share Your World 12/23/19

I’m way out of the loop on this world sharing thing, but I’ve missed it a lot.  So here goes my Christmas sharing, a week after we’re all sick to death of the holiday and just want the house to magically return to normal.

Have you ever had to work on Christmas Day?

Every woman I know works her butt off before, during and after the day of, and likely the month before that. We work so hard we lose our sense of proper grammar, among other things.  So yes, I have had to work on Christmas Day, but never out of my home at a paying job that I can remember.  That would be like taking the day off I think.

If someone gifts you something that you immediately loathe, do you pretend to really like it anyway or are you brutally honest about your opinion?

Trying to imagine immediately loathing something.  A snake perhaps?  That would be a loathsome thing to receive.  And might prompt me to be brutally honest for once in my life.  Mostly I’m so touched by the gesture I don’t even care what it is.  If it’s really out to lunch I would rather not pretend it isn’t, but just profusely thank the gift giver for thinking of me.  And maybe silently ponder what the heck goes on in their heads.  Smiling the whole time of course.  Because gifts.  Everybody loves gifts.

This year we were spoiled beyond belief with a new iPad for me and a laptop for W.  We were eventually going to get around to making those purchases ourselves, but we just bought a new fridge, and we need our dishwasher replaced, and you know, priorities.  It was the best surprise EVER and I’m still over the moon.  That should be good for the next 20 years worth of gifts from our kids.   I’m serious.  Spoiled rotten.  It feels really good.

Which popular drink, found during the Christmas season most often, is called “milk punch?”

Oh, gah, must be egg nog.  Now there’s something disgustingly loathe-worthy.  I don’t care what you do to it, it’s still raw eggs.  I get a little gaggy just thinking about it.

How many ghosts show up during “A Christmas Carol?” 

Who started making these questions so hard?  Was it three?  Present, past and future?  Was there another one in there that I’ve missed?  Do I fail this one?  When in doubt, just answer a question with five more questions.  And then change the subject.

Are you all about the holly and jolly or more about remembering the alleged ‘true’ meaning of Christmas?    

Our Christmases have evolved over the years, that’s for sure.  I grew up going to church and singing all the carols and playing parts in the nativity scene.  I was a shepherd once, that was the worst costume ever.  But there was also always Santa and presents and decorations and food.  The Christian part of the holiday has been relegated to the background, but really, isn’t it all about caring and sharing, love and goodwill and kindness and fun?   I think we do that around here pretty well.

Please share a memory or thought about the holiday season if you’d like, whatever kind of celebration you may observe. 

That stuff I said in the beginning about Christmas being so much work?  It’s not that bad really.  I’m just old and cranky when I get tired.  Every year I get so much help I really have no reason to complain. You can make it as simple or as crazy as you want.  I sent out hardly any cards this time around, and bought NO wrapping paper at all. I find people are very unlikely to open up an envelope containing cash and immediately loathe it. There are five teenagers now and grandma and grandpa are not going to risk buying anything for them that they have to pretend to like.  Because that would definitely happen.

I’m quite enjoying our more adult Christmases.  Less fighting and crying and running around yelling is always nice.  I was going to say I miss having little ones for the holidays but I think I just talked myself right out of that one.  Whew.

Now I cant wait to take the tree down.  I’m done.  Over and out.  Love to all.

 

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Share Your World II 11-26-18

If your five year old self woke up in your current body, what would happen, what would you say?

I would probably look at my hands and think, wow, I have Grandma skin! Five year olds don’t normally look in a mirror unless they are carefully applying bright red lipstick in a circle from forehead to cheeks to chin just before leaving for church. Then I would be super excited that I could reach things without standing on tip toes. And finally I would find my mom and say “Hey! Look at me! NOW am I big enough to go to school?”

What is a relationship deal breaker for you? Whether you are talking about a romantic one, a friendship or a related to sort of relationship?

This might seem like an odd answer coming from someone who thinks she can tell very credible lies, but I don’t want to be lied to. Or taken advantage of. Or told to quit ending sentences with prepositions. I lie only if it keeps me out of trouble and doesn’t hurt or incriminate anyone else. So that’s a discriminating kind of fib teller I guess. As if there are degrees of wrongness about not telling the truth. Maybe I’m lied to all the time and have no clue, but if I see through a lie I’m doubly offended that someone thinks I’m dumb enough to believe them.

Is there something out there, a thought, an idea, a current event, or a fear that you find deeply unsettling?

Global warming and what sort of horrible world we’re leaving for our grandchildren. Consumerism could kill us all. We can blame the big environment destroyers all we like, but we are the idiots demanding the crap they produce.

And one that is a bit whimsical:

If you were arrested with no explanation, what would your friends and family assume you had done?

Having spent a large portion of my life trying to convince myself that what other people think is not my problem, not important, and none of my business, I am at a complete loss to answer this. So I asked W the question. Surprisingly he was pretty prompt coming up with an answer. He would assume some secret from my past had finally come to light. He used the word “clandestine”. He told me when I say I’m going to Michael’s for yarn, I could be doing something else entirely. How clever he must think I am to come back home in an hour or less with a Michael’s bag full of yarn to cover my tracks. Woman of mystery. It doesn’t matter how long you’ve known someone or even lived with them, they can still surprise you. In our case, I guess that works both ways.

Finally

What were you grateful for this week? Something that brought some joy into your world?

My new keyboard for my IPad! Although my fat forgetful fingers are getting better, there has been a lot of fumbling and stumbling and wearing out of the delete button while I get back to what I think of as normal typing with all ten fingers. Its already getting better. Maybe blogging will start to feel like less of a pain again. You lucky blog readers.

The other thing giving me joy is crocheting. Like everything else, I go on binges. First it was slippers, then rugs that look like braided, and now suddenly it’s hats because I found a pattern. And bought a Pom-pom maker on one of my fake trips to the store. Life is good. And for all you know, I’m not talking about my secret one when I say that.

Digest This, SoCS 1

The rules for this prompt were made for me!  It’s how I write 99% of the time – no plan, very little editing, and stop whenever you feel like it!  So here you go.

Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “digest.” Use it any way you’d like. Have fun!

My grandma, bless her heart and all the memories she left us with, was a big fan of the Readers Digest magazine.  She subscribed to it for years and years.  It was a great way for someone with a short attention span to learn a little bit about a lot of things. I liked the reader submitted “jokes” even though most of the time they weren’t even remotely funny.  When grandma was in her late eighties she was still getting renewal notices from the magazine and decided it was time to sit down and write them a letter.  She asked them if they thought a woman of her age should still be getting magazines in the mail and would renew or not renew her subscription in accordance with their opinion on the matter.

The reason we know the contents of her letter is because she gave it to mom to mail, and mom thought she’d better open it up and check what grandma was telling them, just in case.  You had to know grandma to appreciate the wisdom of this decision.

I don’t remember what happened next exactly, although I do recall thinking the readers digest people weren’t likely to agree that she was indeed too old to be giving them her money.

Is Readers Digest still around?  I could submit this for their “Life’s Life That” category of unfunny jokes.  Probably too many words though.  They were always such sticklers for brevity.

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Share Your World Nov.19, 2018

Are you an early to bed, early to rise person, a night owl and day sleeper/dozer, or an ‘I’ll sleep when I’m dead’ person?

Well I don’t know, I’ve been both the first and the last one for sure. Early to bed is easy this time of year since it gets dark around 5 p.m. By eight it feels like midnight. After sleeping for eight or nine hours it’s STILL dark, but I get up and make coffee anyway and drink it by the light of my iPad, resisting the urge to stay in bed waiting for daylight while also lessening the likelihood of hibernating until February.

When we lived in Pond Inlet, NWT with close to six months of round the clock daylight, sleeping was something I would just sometimes suddenly remember I hadn’t done for a while, so I’d check my watch to see if it was a.m. or p.m. We covered our bedroom windows with tin foil to get some semblance of night. The six months of darkness were a whole other story.

W is a night owl prowler (we have night lights everywhere so he doesn’t bump into things and wake me up….I mean, kill himself) and he takes about 500 naps during the day. That could be a slightly exaggerated number. The snoring probably makes it seem to go on longer than it actually does.

What are some misconceptions about your hobby, should you have a hobby?

All my painting and drawing and crafting things are in my bedroom. That’s also where I store my yarn and finished art pieces and tools and patterns and ideas. If I don’t try to keep all this stuff confined to one room, it will grow and expand and multiply and eventually take over the entire house. It is impossible for me to create anything without making a colossal mess. Sadly, this makes me reluctant to start a new project because I dread the clean up that inevitably follows.

A penguin walks through the door right now wearing a sombrero. What does he say and why is he here?

He is here to remind me that life is a lot less serious than I’m trying to make it out to be. He says

“Humor is the great thing, the saving thing after all. The minute it crops up, all our hardnesses yield, all our irritations, and resentments flit away, and a sunny spirit takes their place.”

I’m surprised to hear a penguin quote Mark Twain. I’m even more astounded by his poor choice of head-gear for such a chilly day in November.

Aliens have landed…do they come in peace?

They had engine trouble and were forced to make an emergency landing to do repairs. Everyone is busy texting on smart phones and no one notices. So I guess we’ll never know.

What are you really, incredibly thankful for this week?

Amazon. I am SO excited to have finally ordered a keyboard to use with my iPad so I don’t have to use the on-screen one anymore when writing things like this. I’m tired of pecking away with one finger. I will be extra thankful if my left hand still works and I can actually remember how to type. And W will be happy there are less greasy fingerprints to look through when I show him something like the above cartoon. Which he didn’t find nearly as funny as I did.

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Share Your World – June 4, 2018

Is there a piece of clothing from your childhood you still remember?

I miss the carefree days of wearing nothing but red, before the notion settled in my brain that red made me look like the broad side of a barn.  Thanks to my dad for that  awesome expression, and thanks to my mom for choosing my all red wardrobe from ages one through six.  I never paid much attention to the clothes I put on, until I got this red corduroy skirt with three appliquéd white teddy bears and straps that crossed in the back and buttoned in the front and slipped off my shoulders a lot.  I imagine I begged to wear it every day, but had to keep it for “good”.  I’m so glad there’s a photo of it.  I loved that thing.

Those socks with strappy sandals are a much foggier memory, quite possibly my own fashion choice at the time.  And I think the white blouse had red buttons.  Best outfit ever.  It’s been all down hill since then.

Regardless of your physical fitness, coordination or agility, if you could be an athlete what would you do? Remember this is SYW, dreaming is always allowed.

I have given this question a lot of careful consideration while sitting here on the couch being totally not athletic.  My sport of choice would not include excessive speed or risk or danger or physical exertion.  So that limits the field somewhat. Beach volleyball, pole dancing, weight lifting and archery all crossed my mind.  But my final answer is darts.  It’s a sport which requires a keen eye, good concentration and accuracy, and possibly a great love and appreciation of drinking beer in pubs.

In a car would you rather drive or be a passenger?

Well that depends on who’s driving.  Mostly I’m content to sit in the passenger seat and be an annoying navigator, nodding off when things get boring.  But if I don’t trust the abilities of the person behind the wheel it won’t be a pleasant trip for either of us.  I think I’m a pretty good driver and I do like to be in control of the speed and the route and the pit stops.  But I’m also getting old and slow and more absent-minded, so hopefully I will be smart enough to give it up when it’s time.  However if you told me that time has come and it’s today I probably wouldn’t take you seriously.  It’s an old person thing.  We are all stubborn as hell.  Just hide my keys.

What did you appreciate or what made you smile this past week? Feel free to use a quote, a photo, a story, or even a combination.

This made me smile because I do almost all of these things!  It’s like a check list for a simple life.  I can’t sleep when it gets light out, so my summer mornings are ridiculously early.  I always make my bed as soon as I get out of it.  I excel at sitting.  I enjoy folding clean, fresh smelling clothes and towels and sheets.  It’s wonderful to wake up to a clean kitchen and empty sinks, so washing everything up before bed is a bit of an obsession with me.  Eat when hungry, sleep when tired – no problem – perks of being retired.

This morning I cut the grass, trimmed a tree and two bushes, watered the flowerbeds, put out the green compost  garbage bin and the recycling and cursed at the bugs.  Like housework, doing these things is a weird kind of pointless because it all has to be done again.  And again, and again.  But it’s also pointless to dwell on that.  So I won’t.

And that’s my very ordinary little old world for another week!  It’s a blessing to be this bored and content you know.  There’s something to appreciate.

 

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Baby sister and me at picnic grounds, random uncle in background, and some very cool cars.

Share Your World – May 28, 2018

If you were to pack a basket for a picnic lunch, what would be in your basket?

I have the fondest memories of our Sunday family picnics in a little park beside the beach in Port Elgin.  There were always various aunts and uncles and cousins from my dad’s side of the family, the heady scent of cedar in the hot sun, and picnic tables that the men would round up until there were enough to seat everyone.  There were paper table cloths and paper plates, plastic cups and cutlery, wasps, ants, screeching sea gulls, and so much food we always ended up having to decide who would take what home with them.  Because how boring to take what you brought and how fun to exchange things.  And fight over Aunt Marie’s brownies topped with melted marshmallows and chocolate icing.  Well, maybe that never happened because I can’t imagine there being any of those left.

Something that did happen every picnic day without fail was having the adults warn their children that swimming was absolutely forbidden until two hours after eating. Because to do so meant you would probably get cramps and die.  And the adults would have their after meal chat time seriously reduced too. That bit would be equally tragic.

I do not remember ever having much to do with the picnic food prep, which likely explains my picnic nostalgia.  White bread sandwiches cut in little triangles and jello salads and potato salads and desserts all just magically appeared.  And there was always Freshie.  That’s a Canadian thing from the 1950’s and beyond, an add-your-own-sugar drink mix, in kid flavours called orange, yellow, purple and red.  Purple was the best.

At this point in my life I have a hard time figuring out what the point of a picnic is when it’s just so much easier to stay home where there is less pollen and fewer bugs.  But if I was forced at gun point to pack for one, I’d fill the basket with potato salad and plastic forks.  And hope somebody else remembers to bring the Freshie.

On a vacation what do you require in any place that you sleep?

A decent mattress, clean sheets, air conditioning, a great shower, towels larger than postage stamps and internet access.  As far as I know there are none of these things in a tent.  Oh, and lots of body lotion.  Some places are very chintzy with the body lotion.  I bring my own, but still, you know, free stuff.

If you were to buy a new house/apartment what are the top three items on your wish list?

Funny you should ask because I have been watching design challenges and home purchasing shows and small home documentaries.  It is completely bizarre to me how much space some people think they need.  One woman wanted an extra room just to store her shoes.  Think about why you need such a ridiculous amount of storage space and then get rid of half your crap.  Plus, seriously, if you are one person with four bathrooms, what is going on in that little head of yours?  And more importantly, who is keeping them all clean while you’re out working your ass off to pay your mortgage?

Top three items on my list:  two bedrooms, big shower, no stairs.  The rest of the list?   Kitchen with stools and a counter you can eat at, open to living area, a little patio or balcony, no grass to cut.  A den or office area would be a nice bonus for books and art paraphernalia but if that stuff can fit in the bedrooms, even better.  Something small and easy to keep clean.  If I want to entertain I will rent a hall.  Or take you out to a restaurant.  If you get really drunk and can’t drive home, you can sleep on my floor.

What did you appreciate or what made you smile this past week?

Last summer it would often take me a couple of days to cut the grass, doing the back one day and the front the next.  I’ve done it twice now, front and back easily in a morning, no problem. So I guess those 15 minute senior workouts are doing their magic.  I also found a video that takes you on a mile long walk (1.609 km in Canada) without leaving your home.  So, great for rainy, heavy pollen, or crazy hot days. The ‘walk’ incorporates side to side and back and forth steps, arm and knee raises, kicks, twists, and generally a lot of antics that if you did them out and about in your neighbourhood would draw a lot of attention to yourself.

After all these hot days, last night we had our first real thunder-storm of the season. It was short but lovely.  There’s something about the delightful smell of a rain storm that always makes me smile.   That, plus the fact that if you had a picnic planned you’d have to call it off and eat at your kitchen counter instead.