Kevin's fiftieth birthday- pandemic version.  Ever since he was a little boy, lasagna was his birthday dinner of choice, with cheesecake for dessert.  If it ain't broke, don't fix it.

It's hard to take a pretty picture of lasagna, but this was delicious.  Michael Chiarello's "Lasagnette" from page 116 of his book "Casual Cooking."

Tonight, we watched Jaws- it was Mimie's first scary movie. She says she'll be bunking with us tonight.

Right now, though, we're introverting for our country and for all humankind.

Stay safe, be well, and WASH YOUR HANDS.

First post in two years- Covid 19 work-from-home post. 

I've been working at home with Mimie at home with me for five summers and four school years where I've worked various schedules - days and nights, and she has made either AB or A Honor Roll every year. In other words, since she was a little bitty till she's the young lady she is now.

It's exhausting, but we're both okay with it. A few pointers:

1. If your child is old enough, you need to work in a room with a door you can close. Don't try working in the living room or family room if you have a job where you truly have to concentrate.

2. Leave the snacks and some paper cups where your kids can reach them. A cup for water, a Ziploc full of rice cakes or Cheerios, a jar of peanut butter, and a plastic knife can get you through a staff meeting or a world tour without interruption.

3. Don't worry about relying on the TV occasionally. As long as you know what they're watching, it isn't going to kill them to watch more than an hour per day. Books and coloring books are a better option, obviously, but the TV is a good back-up in times of need.

4. Just because you're physically at home does NOT mean you need to worry about cleaning, chores, and tidying up. Do that when you're off the clock or you will drive yourself nuts- and possibly violate your work-at-home contract.

5. I've been working on California time for the majority of the past five years. If your family needs to eat dinner before you're off and able to cook, get things ready for them when you can. The occasional box of mac and cheese or turkey sandwich will hold them over till you get off work.

6. Try to get the dishes done before bed if you can swing it. Paper plates and cups are still available in our grocery store, if that's what you need to fall back on to keep your kitchen manageable. You're not Martha Stewart and you don't have her staff to help you through this.

7. Go easy on yourself and your kids, spouse, or partner. We're all in this together and things are a bit crazy now. Give a little and don't expect too much from anybody- especially yourself. Also, be glad you're ABLE to work from home. Not everyone is lucky enough to be able to do so.

2017 Read Harder Challenge

Here's my working list for Book Riot's 2017 Read Harder Challenge.

Key to the colors on my list:

Black-books I intend to read but haven't started yet.

Lavender - books I'm currently reading

Green - completed books

Read a book about sports. -  Moneyball, maybe?

Read a debut novel. - Other Voices, Other Rooms - Capote

Read a book about books.  - The Uncommon Reader- Alan Bennett

Read a book set in Central or South America, written by a Central or South American author ?

Read a book by an immigrant or with a central immigration narrative. ?

Read an all-ages comic.  ?

Read a book published between 1900 and 1950. Planning to finally finish Is Sex Necessary by Thurber and White

Read a travel memoir Sahara Unveiled

Read a book you’ve read before.   ?

Read a book that is set within 100 miles of your location. 

Read a book that is set more than 5000 miles from your location- The Hunting Party- A. Chekhov

Read a fantasy novel – LeGuin?

Read a nonfiction book about technology. Edwardian Farm, by Alex Langlands, Ruth Goodman, and Peter Guinn

Read a book about war.- The Naked and the Dead – Norman Mailer

Read a YA or middle grade novel by an author who identifies as LGBTQ+??? 

Read a book that has been banned or frequently challenged in your country.  So many to choose from!

Read a classic by an author of color. Their Eyes Were Watching God?

Read a superhero comic with a female lead. ?

Read a book in which a character of color goes on a spiritual journey  - Castaneda?

Read an LGBTQ+ romance novel  I don’t read romance novels.  Would Anais Nin count?

Read a book published by a micropress.

Read a collection of stories by a woman. – The Yellow Wallpaper – Charlotte Perkins Gillman

Read a collection of poetry in translation on a theme other than love.

Read a book wherein all point-of-view characters are people of color.  The Color Purple

Au revoir, facebook.

I decided to take a break from facebook, semi-coincidentally coinciding with the beginning of Lent.  I've been clean for two days now, and I have to say I feel a bit better.  I've finished a few crossword puzzles and the latest New York Times Magazine, among other things.  

The only thing I really miss about facebook so far is sharing things I've read.  Easy solution:  restart this blog.  


One of the best things going on the radio these days is Kris Boyd's now-nationally syndicated (in Texas- happy belated Independence Day, y'all) program Think, broadcast locally on 90.1FM and at kera.org.
Her interview with Tom Nichols, a professor at the Naval War College, about his book The Death of Expertise, pretty much stopped me in my tracks.  He was speaking my thoughts!   In addition to citing the instant access to Google that is chipping away at the foundations of actual knowledge, he stated that the real problem with education and our schools is parents;  parents who have never allowed their children to fail, parents who email or call the teachers and professors of their adult children to complain about grades...  This behavior and the tolerance of this behavior is handcuffing and hobbling some truly caring and hardworking teachers.

The podcast:

http://www.podcastchart.com/podcasts/kera-unlimited-kera-s-think-podcast/episodes/the-death-of-expertise

The book:
https://www.amazon.com/Death-Expertise-Campaign-Established-Knowledge/dp/0190469412/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1488575938&sr=1-1&keywords=the+death+of+expertise

The Texas Standard is another organization doing a bang-up job of broadcast journalism these days.
http://www.texasstandard.org



More to come. 

I've outgrown sippy cups, and so has Mimie, but...

... every hotel I've stayed in over the past couple of years has supplied them, free of charge, along with bars of soap.  These same hotels, however, don't always supply soap dishes, so I've come up with a solution- the sippy cup soap dish.

Pretty Quick Chicken Pot Pie

Chicken Pot Pie Using Mostly Storage Foods
2 poached or otherwise cooked chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces
1 1/3 c. Augason Farms (or other) Cream of Chicken Soup Mix
3 c. water
1 c. Pioneer Baking Mix (or Bisquick, or homemade version)
1/2 c. milk
1 egg
1 Tbs dehydrated onions
olive oil or butter
1/2 a 14.5oz. can chopped carrots
3/4 can 14.5oz can red potatoes  (I used all but 3 of the small potatoes in the can.)
1/2 a 15-oz can peas
1 each small red, orange, and yellow peppers, sliced
3 scallions, chopped

Bring water to a boil in  a medium-sized sauce pan. Whisk in cream of chicken soup mix and dehydrated onion, reduce heat and let simmer 15 minutes.
In a mixing bowl, mix the baking mix, the milk, and the egg. Set aside.
Pre-heat oven to 400F.
Heat a skillet over medium heat, add enough olive oil or butter and sweat sliced bell peppers until they're tender, about 5-8 minutes.
Add  the diced chicken, canned peas, carrots, and potatoes to the pan with the peppers and stir till everything is warmed through.  (I deglazed the pan with a little white wine at this point.)  Add the cream of chicken soup to the pan and stir to combine.  (You will have leftover soup to use in something else.)
Pour the chicken mixture into a greased  stoneware, glass, or metal pie pan. Pour the biscuit batter over the top of the mixture in the dish.
Bake 25-30 minutes or until golden brown.

Two spoons.

I never write here anymore because I can't seem to make the time to do it, so, I will no longer try to make time.  I'll write what I have time to write.

I make meatballs of some sort a couple times a month, and ever since I started making them, I've used, or attempted to use, tongs to turn them while they were cooking.  I have discovered, though, that using two spoons to flip them over is MUCH easier than using tongs, forks, or fingers to do the job.

That's my blog post and I'm stickin' to it.

Next time- hamburger salad.  Really.