What's the term for the internet equivalent of theater's "fourth wall"? Amy Leis from the blog Amiable Life will crash through that wall tomorrow to interview me and have dinner at the Dream Kitchen with us tomorrow. Amy found me by way of First Person Arts. Hooray, First Person Arts. I could rave on and on about FPA for a while, but let's focus here.
I will make a chicken dish I remember from childhood called "Country Captain," which came from Cecily Brownstone of the Times. Originally the dish is said to have come from a Sepoy officer in India, and then some British officer (hence "Captain") adapted it. Then it sailed across the world to Savannah, Georgia--some say. Then it became very popular, especially in the South. My mother and grandparents lived at Ft. Benning and Ft. Gordon during World War II; maybe that's where they originally ate it. Nana had several copies of this recipe, some handwritten, and dating before Cecily Brownstone's. I think. But I don't really know.
A full blown blog entry about Country Captain will come along later, and various speculations about its colonial history, but in the meantime, cleaning and shopping must proceed. Hannah (see previous entry) will be my prep assistant and all-around helper. We need to have everything prepped before Amy comes at 6:00 because there's no way I can answer questions and measure things at the same time. I'm also going to make one of my Nana's many rhubarb desserts--A crumble? A pie? A crisp? and a salad with CSA lettuce and dandelion greens. So fair readers, you will hear more about this here, and even more in a couple weeks on Amiable Life. Stay amiably tuned.
Jun 1, 2010
Homework. Baseball. Dinner. Pick Any Two.
Memorial Day weekend was very cooperative this year. It brought summer sun and warm temperatures. Even the water at the local swim club was warm enough not to turn lips blue. Nice! But weird. In fact, it was so summery that it was hard to remember that school schedules and homework drama still lay ahead.
You don't know what homework drama is? It involves secret procrastination and then wailing demands for perfect silence and cooperation from everyone else in the fifteen minutes before it's time to leave for school. Oh, and baseball playoffs start today, which will only exacerbate the homework situation. Let's check the math. If baseball is from 5:15-8:00, including practice and driving to two separate ballfields, and kids get home from school at 3:55, then that leaves one hour and twenty minutes for homework, "dinner" (frozen veggie burgers), and changing into elaborate baseball uniforms and accessories. Slider pants, athletic cup, baseball socks, baseball pants with their special belt that takes much effort to slide through the loops, and the shirt that we hope can be located. Then there's the cap in the cap bin and the bla bla bla in the I-don't-know-I-thought-you-had-it-last mystery location. Which leaves zero time for computer use, daydreaming, or drawing funny cartoons.
Baseball, summer, and even homework are all good. It's just that the conflict between all three may not bring out the best in us.
Speaking of crunches, were not lazing at the pool all weekend. We here in the Dream Kitchen family were getting ready to host Hannah, our church's youth intern, for most of the summer. This involved frantically clearing out the "guest room" and turning it into an actual guest room. And, gimme five, we succeeded! She arrived yesterday, in her light blue VW bug with a big peace sign on the back. It's one of those newer neo-bugs, and a it's a magnetic peace sign, not a bumper sticker, so wipe that Woodstock-y image from your mind. Hannah is very cool and we like her! Plus, yesterday she let Will look at videos on her iPad. Her! iPad! Hannah also brought chocolate chip cookies, but we agreed that the two things should not be handled at the same time, especially in this heat.
The Chocolate Chip Cookie iPad Goddess will probably be around later this afternoon, no doubt trying to take a nap, meditate, or write in her journal. Think she'll mind me yelling threats and ultimatums for an hour and twenty minutes? Perhaps this summer will put her off the idea of having children any time soon. Probably a good idea anyway, since she's only 22. Glad to be of service.
You don't know what homework drama is? It involves secret procrastination and then wailing demands for perfect silence and cooperation from everyone else in the fifteen minutes before it's time to leave for school. Oh, and baseball playoffs start today, which will only exacerbate the homework situation. Let's check the math. If baseball is from 5:15-8:00, including practice and driving to two separate ballfields, and kids get home from school at 3:55, then that leaves one hour and twenty minutes for homework, "dinner" (frozen veggie burgers), and changing into elaborate baseball uniforms and accessories. Slider pants, athletic cup, baseball socks, baseball pants with their special belt that takes much effort to slide through the loops, and the shirt that we hope can be located. Then there's the cap in the cap bin and the bla bla bla in the I-don't-know-I-thought-you-had-it-last mystery location. Which leaves zero time for computer use, daydreaming, or drawing funny cartoons.
Baseball, summer, and even homework are all good. It's just that the conflict between all three may not bring out the best in us.
Speaking of crunches, were not lazing at the pool all weekend. We here in the Dream Kitchen family were getting ready to host Hannah, our church's youth intern, for most of the summer. This involved frantically clearing out the "guest room" and turning it into an actual guest room. And, gimme five, we succeeded! She arrived yesterday, in her light blue VW bug with a big peace sign on the back. It's one of those newer neo-bugs, and a it's a magnetic peace sign, not a bumper sticker, so wipe that Woodstock-y image from your mind. Hannah is very cool and we like her! Plus, yesterday she let Will look at videos on her iPad. Her! iPad! Hannah also brought chocolate chip cookies, but we agreed that the two things should not be handled at the same time, especially in this heat.
The Chocolate Chip Cookie iPad Goddess will probably be around later this afternoon, no doubt trying to take a nap, meditate, or write in her journal. Think she'll mind me yelling threats and ultimatums for an hour and twenty minutes? Perhaps this summer will put her off the idea of having children any time soon. Probably a good idea anyway, since she's only 22. Glad to be of service.
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